January, Chenjia Village.

Chenjia Village, as the name suggests, except for a few people with outdoor surnames in the village, the villagers of the entire village are all surnamed Chen without exception.

Obviously, like most villages, Chenjia Village is named in the most common way, such as surname, specialty, river, mountain, etc.

The natural family affection that has arisen over the years has flowed in the blood of generations of villagers, breaking bones and connecting tendons. Because of this, most of the villagers are related to each other, so they are naturally very close.

Take the most common sentence of Chen Jifa, the head of Chenjia Village, that is, everyone "was a family behind closed doors a hundred years ago".

In addition, the seniority of this village is also a major feature. Some people are still in the womb, but their seniority is already high. And some people are already seventy or eighty, but in terms of seniority, they are just juniors.

There was once a little daughter-in-law who had just married into Chenjia Village, but she was only seventeen or eighteen years old, but the next day, a child called her grandma and asked for a red envelope. That's not all, the point is that there is an old woman in her sixties who has almost lost her teeth and takes her hand and calls "sister".

Because of this, even if there are small contradictions and frictions between neighbors, they will not be irreconcilable after all, and they will not be black-faced and will not talk or communicate for the rest of their lives. As long as it is not an untouchable bottom line and an unforgivable matter of principle, after a quarrel or even a fight, reconciliation is only a matter of time.

And once you encounter a situation such as a red and white wedding, even if it is a little discordant with the main family, the family will send a representative, who should contribute, who should give gifts, and help the master's family from the bottom of their hearts, and will never stand idly by.

Take the incident that happened between Aunt Chen's mother-in-law Zha Wu and Erniu's mother-in-law Yang on the fifth day of last month, although the two had a fight because of Aunt Cha's "little habit" of loving people and things, and both sides ripped off their hair, but a few days ago, the Yang family married a sister-in-law, and Aunt Cha's family still came to drink the wedding wine.

As for which branch of the ancestors of the villagers is, it is a pity that there is no way to start with it. However, according to the genealogical records in the ancestral hall of the Chen family in the east of the village, it can be known that the first generation of ancestors of Chenjia Village is called Chen Yingyan, and he is still a small talent.

According to ancient records, the surname Chen "originated from Wanqiu, looked at Gushi, and flourished in Yingchuan". Therefore, because of the word "Ying" in the name of Chen Yingyan, the ancestor of Chenjia Village, and the mention of it by someone who cares, most of the villagers think that they are related to the Yingchuan Chen family. As a result, some people had the idea of recognizing their ancestors with the Yingchuan Chen family.

If you want to talk about the Yingchuan Chen family, it is a big family that everyone knows, with poetry and books heirlooms, and many readers, even in the court, there are people who are big officials.

An unknown village like Chenjia Village is naturally not comparable.

Therefore, the reason why the villagers of Chenjia Village think that they are from the Yingchuan lineage and not other places is naturally the same reason.

If you can get his recognition, recognize your ancestors and return to your ancestors, you will have to be brought one or two, and I dare not say that it will definitely soar in the future, but there is absolutely hope for a few more scholars in Chenjia Village.

You know, this village has not had a talent show for generations, not even a child, which is indeed a very frustrating thing.

However, everyone is human and was conceived in October, and Chenjia Village also encourages villagers to send their children to private schools in the town or city. However, I don't know why, others can get in, but Chenjiacun just can't be a reader.

Fortunately, in this generation, the youngest son of the village chief Chen Jifa's family has already passed the children's exam, so he is waiting for the opportunity to take the exam to see if he can go further.

In this time and space where "everything is inferior, only reading is high", if there is a scholar in the village who can raise people, it will definitely be a big deal.

Fame aside, it is easier for the young offspring of the village to marry, and the mere fact that the land is exempted from paying taxes in the name of the lord is something that everyone wants.

Except for a few families who have cultivated the land that has been passed down from their ancestors for generations, almost all the people in the village now rent the land of the big landlord in the village, Mr. Zhao.

It's just that this Master Zhao is not a good person, although he did not collect rent according to the standard of 28, but he also collected it according to 37.

Therefore, most families have been tired for a year, and after paying the rent, almost no family can be fed and clothed, and this is still a good year.

In the event of a natural disaster, such as a great drought or locust plague, it is common for family members to starve to death, and it is not a legend to sell children and daughters.

And as mentioned earlier, Chenjia Village has a history of hundreds of years, and most of the villagers are related to each other, even if you are a master, it is not good to make a name for yourself just because the villagers voted for land. You must know that the generations in the village are intricate, and a baby is very likely to be the "grandfather" of an adult.

And if you want to find a relationship, you can always find it.

So no matter how good you are, even if you are a master, as long as you still live in the village, you are always embarrassed to embarrass the people of the "grandfather's generation", right?

Therefore, although the recognition of Yingchuan Chen is the first step, it is also the most critical step.

As the village head, Chen Jifa naturally took over this glorious and arduous task and planned it wholeheartedly.

If this really happens, his family will be the first to benefit, after all, his youngest son Chen Qianfan has just passed the children's exam, and he is waiting for the opportunity to take the Xiucai exam.

So, after discussing with the elders and elites in the village, Chen Jifa made a bold decision, that is, each family paid 50 yuan for each family, because it was necessary to go to the county to find someone to write a letter and go to Yingchuan to deliver a letter.

Of course, when this decision was announced, he still pushed it to the village elders, saying that it was their decision.

When the villagers were gathered in the large courtyard outside the ancestral hall, and explained the powerful relationship in detail, Chen Jifa roared and said: "Everyone be quiet, everyone be quiet, listen to me!" ”

Since I heard that every family had to pay 50 yuan for free, everyone has been talking about it, some for it, and some for it. Among them, the opposition is the majority.

Fifty yuan looks like a small amount, but because everyone is not rich, saving a little is enough for the family to buy coarse grains for more than ten days.

However, everyone knows that Chen Jifa is the most face-saving person. If he didn't be quiet, he would really be angry. And as the village head, whoever makes him unhappy, he naturally has a way to trouble you.

Seeing that everyone was quiet, Chen Jifa continued to shout loudly: "I know that many people are reluctant to spend these fifty wen. But if you don't farm, where will you reap? Right now, we're spending fifty cents, but if it happens, then I don't need to say that you know it......"

Who knows, no matter how much he wants face, there will be those who don't give face.

"The benefits? I don't know if it's good or not, after all, it's a matter of whether people admit it or not. However, the disadvantage is immediate, that is, you have to pay fifty yuan. Village Chief, do you really think that everyone is like your family, and they don't blink when they take out fifty yuan. ”

The woman who spoke out against her hands was crossed on her hips, her nostrils were facing the sky, her mouth was grinning, and her eyes were squinting, and she was not easy to provoke.

And as soon as she said this, those who were unwilling to pay naturally began to buzz along with her.

Chen Jifa saw that this sarcastic remark was none other than Chen Wu's mother-in-law, Cha Shi, known as Aunt Cha Wu. This Cha clan is the most arrogant and spicy, not only in Chenjia Village, but even in neighboring villages such as Qingzhu Village, Nanmu Village, Wujia Village, etc.

If it were someone else, especially a man, he could have cursed a few swearing. However, in the face of Aunt Cha Wu, he really has no choice.

And Chen Wu is the most afraid of guilt, and he can't help at all. After thinking about it, Chen Jifa scolded "long hair, short knowledge", and then continued: "This is the decision of the village, and the clan elders also agree. In a few moments, I will go door to door to collect cashiers. ”

He didn't bother to continue to talk to this group of people, anyway, it wasn't that he didn't want to give money, but he only wanted to get benefits. But how can there be such a good thing in the world?

When everyone heard that the clan elders agreed, they sighed in their hearts, and seeing that Chen Jifa had nothing to say, he held his head high arrogantly, looking non-negotiable, so he had to slowly disperse and walk home.

The clan elders all agreed, and even if they had any opinions, it was useless. In this village, the words of the elders are more effective than the words of the village chief.

Aunt Cha Wu didn't say anything anymore, but she didn't take it seriously. Anyway, she made up her mind that she wouldn't pay the money anyway.

After thinking about it, he took a few steps forward and caught up with the women who were walking in front.

"Hey, Sister Zhao, Sister Fan, wait for me" Aunt Cha shouted while chasing quickly.

The two people who were called stopped their steps, and when Aunt Cha Wu caught up, the three of them walked forward together. This is the east end of the village, and their homes are basically facing the west side of the village, so there is still a long way to go.

It's a good choice to talk while walking.

"Hey, what are you going to do, do you want to pay the money?" Aunt Cha asked. Although she made up her mind to fight to the end, there was still a trace of fear in her heart. If you can find a few allies, that's a different story.

The wood is beautiful in the forest, and the wind will destroy it. Although she doesn't know these words, she still understands this truth. This was taught to her by her eldest son, Chen Yuang.

Zhao said: "Hey, if you don't want to, you can only pay it." The clan elders have all said, can we still refuse? It's just that it's really hard for me to survive in this house. Last year's harvest was not good, and this year's wheat is still in the field......"

This Zhao is a well-known widow in the village, she is only in her twenties this year, due to the hardships of life, she is both a mother and a man, and she looks like she is forty years old.

Her man died of illness when her son was three years old, and she did not remarry, but guarded a son, Chen Qianliang, to live. Since there is no man in the family to support the door, although the people in the village admire her, this life is hard, and she is basically one of the poorest families in the village.

Fan Shi looked at Aunt Cha pitifully with a pair of big watery eyes and said, "Sister Cha, what can you do?" If so, you must teach us! That's a lot of miles! ”

Fan's family was married from another village, because of his good looks, understanding some truths, and speaking in a gentle manner, he looked a little different among the yellow-faced women in the village.

Especially those big watery eyes, most of the men in the village will feel that their hearts will suddenly soften, and if the Fan family asks them for help, almost no one will refuse.

After listening to Zhao and Fan's answers, Aunt Zha felt even more upset. Also, a widow, a little daughter-in-law like a flower, where is there any scheming and guts? Listen to their advice and stick to your own ideas.

Moreover, if you want to pull members, you can't pull these two people. Huang, who is as spicy as her, can think about it.

Thinking of this, Aunt Cha said, "Where do I have any way?" As you have just heard, the chief of the village will receive this money. I guess we're coming to the door after lunch. Hey, let's go home, and it's only right to get our money ready. ”

Zhao believed it when she heard it, in her opinion, no matter how powerful Aunt Cha was, she would not dare to disobey the will of the clan elders. It is said that a few years ago, there was a little daughter-in-law who did not honor her in-laws, although she was protected by her father-in-law, but the clan elders unanimously decided to give Hugh back to her parents' house.

It was the Fan family, smiling, but in his heart he firmly believed that Aunt Zha would play tricks to the end. It's just that she will still suggest that the family give this silver. After all, she also has a son, and in two years she will be able to go to the town's private school.

If the matter of recognizing the ancestors is really yellow, it is just a loss of fifty yuan. But if it happens, it will indeed be of great benefit to families with scholars.

That is, Aunt Cha Wu can't think about it herself, her eldest son is studying in a private school in the city, and doing so is tantamount to making a stumbling block for her son.

How small Chen Jifa's heart is, the whole village knows.

In this way, with all kinds of thoughts, everyone went home.

After lunch, since there is no work in the field now, the most I can do is pull out the weeds in the wheat field. In addition, Chen Jifa said at the meeting in the morning that he would go door-to-door to collect money in the afternoon.

Therefore, when he brought his mother-in-law Ye to the door, almost every household had someone at home.

Although he was reluctant, the fifty pieces of silver still went into the cloth bag that Ye was carrying.

However, not every household is so obedient.

For example, several families with surnames in the village are very reluctant and do not cooperate with the payment of money. Moreover, the reasons they gave were also very sufficient: "We are not surnamed Chen, even if we successfully climbed to the Yingchuan Chen clan this time, they are not willing to carry us in the future." ”

In this regard, Chen Jifa said half-threatening and half-profitable: "Although they don't have the same surname, they live in the same village, not to mention that there are several generations, right?" We, we have long regarded you as ourselves, but you have not regarded yourself as a person from Chenjia Village! ”

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere became a little stiff.

Ye Shi hurriedly said: "Hey, don't mind, everyone, he is like this, he can't speak, don't take it to heart." But what he said was the truth, it was only fifty wen, and everyone paid it. If you don't pay it, it's not easy for us to explain to everyone, right? ”

As soon as these families heard this, they knew that this was inviolable, after all, as the Ye family said, they couldn't drag everyone back. After thinking about it, they all obediently handed over the fifty pieces of silver.

The Fan family and the Zhao family naturally paid it, even the poorest lonely man in the village, Chen Jitang.

This man's father, mother, brothers and sisters have all passed away, leaving him alone to live. To be put on hold in modern times, that is, the five-guarantee households, which belong to the government's key poverty alleviation targets.

But in this time and space, there are no such good policies, just managing themselves and struggling to survive.

Therefore, when Chen Jifa saw Chen Jitang rummaging through the money in the house, and finally barely scraped together fifty yuan, he secretly swore in his heart that he must do this for everyone, so as to live up to everyone's hard-earned money.

However, there are always people who are unwilling to pay and have already made up their minds not to pay, for example, the famous Aunt Cha's family.

When they arrived at Chen Wu's house, no matter how Chen Jifa and the Ye family knocked on the door, they just hid inside and didn't open it, treating the Ye family and the two as if they didn't exist, so angry that Chen Jiafa wanted to pick up a stick and smash the door.

However, Yip would not allow him to do so.

Not to mention what it means to be a village chief to pick up a stick and smash the door of a villager, just for the sake of her youngest son's reputation, she doesn't dare to take this risk.

She is confident that her son will be a big official in the future, and the fifth aunt in front of her is just an existence like pig dung.

However, she knew that Chen Jifa's violent temper and death wanted to save face, and if he couldn't collect the money today, maybe he would make some outrageous moves. After thinking about it, Ye Shi said to the air: "Ah, Yu Ang, why are you coming back, shouldn't you be in the school hall in the county?" ”

Originally, most of the children in the village went to the private school in the town. But first, Chenjia Village is closer to the city than the town, and secondly, Aunt Cha thinks that the private school in the city is better, and wants to win at the starting line, so she gritted her teeth and sent her son to the city.

Seeing that there was no movement in the room, Ye waved his hand at the surprised Chen Jifa and continued: "You kid, hey, look at your runny nose, come, wipe it with your aunt's handkerchief." Hey, my aunt told you, this truancy is not right, how can you be worthy of your father and mother by doing this......"

"Squeak", the door that the couple had not opened for a long time opened automatically. I saw Aunt Cha rushing out angrily, still holding a small stick in her hand. Ye recognized that it was cut in the back mountain, and the people in the village called it "Huangjing".

Don't look at this yellow vitex is not thick, thin, as soon as it touches the flesh, it will drill into it, which is most suitable for corporal punishment of children. There are almost every household in the village, and there is a saying that "good people come out under the yellow wattle strips".

"Chen Yuang, you skipped class again! You stand up for the old lady, see if I don't smoke you into a flower loach today! What about people, you come out for me, come out! Aunt Cha Wu saw that there was no one around, so she shouted angrily.

Her son likes to skip school the most, and she has beaten him several times. I thought it had been corrected, but now it doesn't seem to be like this.

It's just that when she saw that her children didn't come out for a long time, Aunt Cha Wu had a bad heart, and she was in the way of Ye's dead mother-in-law. This Ye family claims to be the wife of the village chief, and usually does not interact with their group of village women.

It's good now, it doesn't seem to be a white lotus, it's just like them, and it's also a little indiscriminate.

Just rushing to this, she has to go around and say, tearing off her mask.

However, what if you are fooled, the momentum must not be lost.

Thinking of this, Aunt Cha Wu said without blushing and without a heartbeat: "Hey, it turned out to be the village chief and the village chief's wife, I was feeding the pigs in the house, and I didn't hear the stupid pig howling, and I thought it was a wild dog picking the door." ”

Seeing Chen Jifa's face flushed, Aunt Cha Wu pretended to be scared and said, "Then that, village chief, I didn't scold you for being a wild dog, don't think about it." You know, there have been a lot of wild dogs in the village lately, and they can't get rid of them. ”

Aunt Cha is telling the truth, there have been a lot of wild dogs in the village recently, and I don't know where they came from. When some old people saw it, they said that it was estimated that there was a disaster in a neighboring county.

"Since it's out, let's pay the silver, right?" Ye didn't bother to talk to people like Aunt Cha. Even if she's like this, ten people can't say anything about her.

"Silver? What silver? ”

"It's the silver that I said at the meeting in the morning, fifty wen per family, everyone has paid it, and your family is left."

"If you don't have any silver, if you want a life, you can take it if you have the ability! Everyone knows that all the money in my family has been taken out for the children's education, and it has long been spent. Your family Qianfan is also studying, so he naturally knows the price of this ink, paper and inkstone. "Aunt Cha played a straight game.

Regarding Aunt Cha Wu's pretending to be deaf and dumb and making trouble, as well as Chen Wu's shrinkage, Chen Jifa yelled directly and shouted into the house: "Chen Wu, Chen Wu, you come out for me!" You shrunken turtle, who is in charge of this family? ”

Who knows, this trick didn't work at all, Chen Wu stayed in the house at the moment and didn't come out at all. If you are afraid of your wife, you should be afraid of your wife, it is better than giving up your wealth.

Moreover, if he dared to hand in fifty wen on his own initiative, it is estimated that he would have to sleep on the cool ground for the rest of the day and night. As for the deadline, it's really hard to say. Anyway, a few years ago, he was stubborn, and as a result, he slept on the ground every night for three months.

Seeing that there was no movement in the house, Chen Jifa scolded angrily: "Chen Wu, if you are a man, come out and take care of your mother-in-law, it's too unusual." No wonder people say your eggs are white......"

Hearing Chen Jifa's words, it became more and more unbearable, and as soon as the Ye family was about to stop it, he heard Aunt Cha crying: "The village chief is amazing, someone is coming, the village chief is beating people!" He also scolded my man for being a soft egg! Whose eggs aren't soft? It's not that I don't pay the money, but I don't have the money for the time being. Oh my God, this is going to kill our family......"

Aunt Cha Wu has made up her mind, and she will never compromise this time. Anyway, if the clan elder knew, she would say that she couldn't take it out at home for the time being, and the silver would be spent on her son, and she would give it when she had the silver.

As for when there will be silver, hmph, in the next life.

I have to say that at the critical moment, Aunt Cha's big voice and gender are still very dominant. If it weren't for Ye's presence, he really couldn't tell.

Seeing this, Ye hurriedly said: "Okay, I know, don't cry, get up quickly, this silver will not be handed over first." Just ......"

Ye Shi gritted his teeth and said fiercely: "It's just, others ask, you want to say that you have already handed it over, do you know?" Otherwise......"

Hearing this, Aunt Cha quickly stood up flexibly, smiled at Ye's and said, "It must be, it's still Mrs. Hello is easy to talk to." With your appearance and heart, I want to come to the previous life as a bodhisattva, a cat or a dog flower or something......"

"Okay, don't say it, go back quickly, your pigs are still barking! If you are hungry and thin, you will not be able to sell it for a good price. ”

Aunt Cha Wu glanced at Chen Jifa with disdain, snorted, and then twisted her waist and entered the house, and closed the door with a "snap".

Seeing this, Chen Jifa was so angry that he yelled: "This shrew, this damn scoundrel, I must kick her out of the elders of the Bingming clan!" ”

In this regard, Ye said helplessly: "Okay, don't be angry, it's just fifty wen, if you don't collect it, you won't collect it, and the whole village has paid it, and the road fee is already enough." ”

As he spoke, he pointed to the left and right sides of Aunt Cha's house.

Chen Jifa immediately understood what Ye meant. Also, I almost fell for this shrew.

If it gets a big fuss, everyone knows that Aunt Cha's family didn't pay the money, especially those with foreign surnames, maybe they will make a fuss about asking him to return the money.

He collected all this money with great difficulty, coercion and inducement from door to door, but he couldn't have any problems because of Aunt Cha's trouble.

Forget it, as my mother-in-law said, this silver is more than enough, and there is no shortage of these fifty wen.

At best, it is necessary to go to the county to find a well-written reader to express their meaning, and then send someone to Yingchuan to deliver the letter, and that's it.

He had already calculated an account, and if every household in the village collected fifty wen, there would actually be a lot of surplus.