Zhou Youcheng is actually more than ten years older than Zhou Dazhi.

However, although Zhou Dazhi is also surnamed Zhou, he was not originally from Zhoujia Village, his ancestral home is in Jinling, and the ancestral home of Zhoujia Village is in Cangzhou, that is to say, he is a tribe separated from Zhoujia Village for many generations.

If the two sides want to calculate the seniority, they can't calculate it clearly for a while.

Therefore, usually, the people of Zhoujia Village regard him as the generation with the most young people in the village.

And people with characters, out of respect for Zhou Dazhi, are obviously older than Zhou Dazhi, and they often call Zhou Dazhi as a brother in turn.

Zhou Dazhi was called so by them at first, he was a little embarrassed, and he would be polite, but now that it has been a long time, he has acquiesced.

He picked up the rice in the bowl three or two, walked to the gate of the courtyard and asked, "Yes, what's wrong?" ”

Zhou Youzhong said with a sad face: "The monarch issued an edict, in addition to the collection of the remaining fifty percent of the imperial grain, to collect thirty percent of the imperial grain to fill the army food, from today onwards, every household has to go to the township to hand in, if you can't pay it within three days, you will be arrested and sent to the army." ”

"Then pay it, just pay 30% more, we can still get by, it's a big deal, from now until next autumn, we will find more miscellaneous grains to satisfy our hunger." Zhou Dazhi knew this kind of thing, and there was no way to resist, but he could see it.

Zhou Youzhong can't do it: "Brother Dazhi, you taught us how to harvest rice in the rain and dry it with charcoal fire, and each of our families has to hand over an extra thirty percent of the military rations, so we can still get by, but no one in other villages teaches this method, basically all of them have run out of grain until now, where can we still hand over a pound of grain?" ”

Zhou Dazhi thought about it, and it was indeed the case, so he had to pat Zhou Youchong's shoulder and comfort him gently: "There is a kind, you can think about others, it's very good, but in this kind of world, ordinary people like us can only ask for a breadwinner and be good to themselves, where can they have the ability to care about how others live?" ”

"I'm not talking about anyone else, it's not someone else!"

Zhou Youzhong was anxious: "Brother Dazhi, let me tell you the truth, that mother-in-law in my family is just a thing that eats inside and outside." ”

"She knew that her mother's family would not be able to hand over the imperial grain, and her brother and brother would have to be arrested and sent to the army in three days, so she made trouble at home early in the morning, saying that if I didn't agree to help her mother's family pay the imperial grain, she would hang herself."

"But I've calculated, if I help her mother's family pay the imperial grain, my family will not be able to survive at all, and in February of the next year, I will have to run out of food."

"So, I can only help her mother's family pay fifty percent at most, and there is still thirty percent, Brother Dazhi, look, can you do me a favor and lend me this thirty percent of the grain, and I will pay you back when I harvest the grain next autumn!"

"Yes, you and I are brothers, your family is in trouble, it stands to reason that I should help you, but borrowing food is not a trivial matter, I have to discuss it with your sister-in-law first." Zhou Dazhi thought about it and turned his gaze to Chu Yunniang.

Chu Yunniang has always been kind-hearted, and immediately said without thinking: "Folks, who doesn't need help from others when they don't have a foil?" Brother Zhou, you don't need to discuss with me, you just have an idea. ”

"Okay, then let's borrow it." Zhou Dazhi made up his mind and asked Zhou Youzhong about the amount of grain in his mother-in-law's mother-in-law's family, opened the warehouse and took out a load of grain, and handed it to him to take away.

Xiao Qiongzhi saw it in her eyes and felt pain in her heart.

She counted carefully, and the food baked by the charcoal fire at home this time was only a little more than seven quintals.

When the last time I handed over fifty percent of the emperor's grain, I used two loads of surplus grain.

This time, the remaining fifty percent of the imperial grain and the additional thirty percent of the imperial grain were handed over, and it was almost necessary to use three loads of new grain.

Seven quintals minus one quintal of borrowing Zhou Youseed, and then subtracting the three quintals that will be handed over soon, which means that there are only three quintals left in the family.

I was just about to discuss with my father and mother how to improve my life.

As a result, the existing grain will be reduced by half at once. How can you live!

"Brother Dazhi, it's not good, it's not good, it's not good!" Xiao Qiongzhi was secretly complaining, outside the courtyard, someone was actually calling again.

Moreover, this voice is very familiar to Xiao Qiongzhi.

Its owner, named Zhou Lili, is a well-known gangster in the village.

The gangster usually came to Zhou Dazhi to fight the autumn wind at every turn, and Zhou Dazhi basically responded to his requests.

As for the reason, according to Xiao Qiongzhi's understanding, it was Zhou Li's father, Zhou Laojiu, who had been kind to Zhou Dazhi before his death.

Xiao Qiongzhi hated Zhou Lili's behavior of blackmailing his father's kindness very much, and he intuitively felt that he was probably here to borrow food this time.

She whispered to Zhou Dazhi with a serious face: "Dad, Uncle Li is not a good person, don't always follow his wishes, there is not much grain left in the house." ”

"Hmm." Zhou Dazhi also suspected that Zhou Lili was here to borrow food, and nodded.

At this time, Zhou Lili had already entered the courtyard.

He wiped the sweat on his head with his sleeve, and shouted at Zhou Dazhi and said: "The monarch issued an edict, in addition to collecting the remaining fifty percent of the imperial grain, thirty percent of the imperial grain should be collected to fill the army. ”

"Then pay it, there are only two people in your family, you and your mother, but your family has much more land than mine, and it shouldn't be a big problem to pay thirty percent more." Zhou Dazhi replied calmly.

"But, however, I fell ill a few days ago, and I didn't harvest rice in the rain, and my family was about to run out of food, and I couldn't hand over one or two imperial grains." When Zhou Lili said this, his expression became depressed.

His tone also began to become low: "Brother Dazhi, I heard that you have recently harvested all your rice in the rain, so there should be seven or eight loads of grain, but your usual annual imperial grain, that is, four loads, it is estimated that this time, as long as you pay three loads, there are still four or five loads left, it is better to lend me two or three loads to solve the urgent need." ”

"Powerful, you can't harvest rice when you're sick, you can tell me, I help your family harvest rice every year, not bad this time. And you have no harvest now, you are to blame, you don't need to explain it to me, it has nothing to do with me. ”

"As for my rice, there are not as many as you imagined, and you are too late, already before you, someone asked me to borrow a load of grain, and there is not much left, this time, I can't help you." Zhou Dazhi frowned and replied.

Zhou Lili immediately became anxious: "That's not good, if you don't help me, who will help me?" Let me tell you, my father told me before he died, he used to be the housekeeper of a big family in Chujing City, if it weren't for helping you and your brother, he was enjoying happiness in Chujing City, how could he be here and spend many years of hard life with you, and he fell off the cliff and died! ”

"You owe my father, you can't pay it off in your life! Today, I have to help me pay this imperial grain for my family, and if you don't pay it, you have to help me pay it, otherwise, I will tell the government your true identity and let the government arrest you two brothers! ”

"Heh, Zhou Lili, it seems that my father-in-law, although he was deceived by you and your mother, did not tell you my true identity at all. Tell the government what you know, for I am fearless. ”

"However, there is one thing that I want to explain to you clearly here: my father-in-law Zhou Laojiu, although he was once kind to me, but my father was even more kind to him, even if he told you that the so-called housekeeper status of a big family in Chujing City was also rewarded to him by my father!"

"If you just talk about the kindness between the two families, my Zhou Dazhi family has never owed you Zhou Li's family, not to mention, you are just the stepson of my stepfather! My father-in-law died because of you! ”

"Of course, though you are unkind, I will not be unjust. For the sake of my father-in-law, who accompanied my brother and came here for nearly four years of hard life, I will help you at last and give you two loads of grain. It's just that you and I will be separated from each other from now on, and I will never be the slightest polite to you, understand? ”

When he said the last sentence, Zhou Dazhi's tone and eyes became sharp, and even Xiao Qiongzhi could hear and feel the coldness in it.