Chapter 24-The Rain
After the lion and dragon lantern show ended, Maple Ridge returned to its usual peace. Those who should feed pigs still had to feed pigs, those who should get firewood still had to get firewood, and those who should do long-term work still had to do long-term work.
There were only a few days left before the second lunar month, and Mei Di died. When he died, he wasn't even 44 years old. His wife, Granny Yan, said," It's all because of this Mei Yu who has been cut into pieces by a thousand knives. What lion dance and dragon activity is this? Our Mei Di died of exhaustion during this activity. For half a month in a row, she only went home to sleep at the end of the ugly hour every day. Even a lump of iron would melt.”
The beauty Sala said," This Mei Di is really pitiful. Mei Yu wants to mess with him until he's ugly. When he's home and sleeping on his bed, there's still someone who wants to mess with him. He's not a piece of steel. How can he withstand the torture?"”
Granny Yan said," You brothel girl, you cheating hen, what maggot are you chewing on? Do you have the right to speak here? Can you see if I'm messing with him or not?"”
"I can't see it, but I can think of it." The things in the world were not what everyone could see, but what everyone wanted. I only need to think about how many children you have given birth to, and I can imagine how addicted you are.”
Granny Yan scolded again,"Pheasant, pheasant, shut your stinky mouth and get out of here."”
The beauty Sala left with a smile. As she laughed, she thought to herself," This Granny Yan is known to have a big mouth. She might say that she's very powerful, but she's actually not. As long as she touches my sore spot, I'll jump three feet high."
Once the demoness left, Granny Yan returned to her suffering. Her eldest son, Xiuxin, was already twenty-five years old and had a head full of scabs. He was still unmarried, and she did not know if he would be able to get married in the future. His second son, Xiu You, was twenty-three years old. He was half-blind in one eye and was known as Blind You. Naturally, he did not manage to get married. These two sons had been working long-term for a few years, and now they were working with their third son, Xiuqiu. Xiuqiu was only seventeen years old, so she could only be considered half a worker. His youngest son, Xiu Man, was only three years old. She was also a scumbag. It was still a problem if she could raise him. Her husband had already left, and there was one less long-term worker in the family. In the future, she would not be able to eat meat every day like in the past.
Granny Yan was also half-blind. She could not go out to do work, so she could only do some housework slowly. She could only do some rough work, such as making tea and cooking rice. If she wanted to do something like knitting, that was impossible. Therefore, there was only one thing left in her life: Eat.
Xiu Xin said,"Mother, Old Master is dead. You have to save some flowers in the future. You can't eat meat every day."”
Granny Yan said," What are you talking about? If I don't eat meat, what can I eat? You can't ask me to eat seafood, stones, or all the fennel." I don't eat meat to raise you guys. I raised you guys to eat meat. You brothers have to do more work and please the boss. Only then will the reward be more. Only then will I have meat to eat.”
On May 7th, a few days after the beginning of summer, a strong northern wind blew in the Dongting Lake area. No one knew how wide and high the wind domain was, nor how fast it was. If you follow the wind, it can lift you up and fly you far away. If you walked against the wind, you wouldn't be able to move at all. The wind would pull your hair back, and the wind would pour into your nose and mouth. If you took a step forward, it would blow you back two steps. When the wind passed by you, it would make a whimper that could scare you to death.
The dead branches and leaves on the trees in the forbidden garden fell one after another. They floated in the pond and the ridge in front of the gate. Thousands of fallen leaves floated on the water surface of the pond, like small sampans moving forward. The dried branches were inserted into the mud, some horizontally, some vertically. The eggs of the egrets were blown from the nest to the ground, and a large piece of egg yolk was burnt.
Pieces of blue tiles flew away from the roof. The wind poured down from the courtyard. They lingered in the hall and then went straight to the bedroom doors and windows. The unfastened doors were knocked open, and the fastened doors were blown into a V-shape. The wind poured into the bedroom through the gaps.
In just two hours, the wild north wind had blown the land back to the winter season. People curled up at home, afraid to go out, and those who were outside were also anxious to go home. People dug out the winter clothes that they had collected and hurriedly put them on to keep warm, or families huddled together to keep each other warm. Fear gathered in everyone's hearts. People were afraid that their houses would collapse. It was not safe outside, nor was it safe at home! On second thought, even if the house collapsed, it would still be a family buried together. Wouldn't that be great luck?
In the middle of the night, the wind finally stopped. People opened their eyes and thought that they were still alive. It was good that they were alive. When they woke up early the next day and opened their doors, people would gather in the alleys to see if anyone had collapsed. Fortunately, there were no families in Maple Ridge who had collapsed. When he went outside, he saw that all the plants planted in the field had fallen to the ground. The rape seeds that had not been stepped on in time had been scraped away. The water in the fields was blown dry, and the planks were cracked.
Two days later, news came from Yuezhou. Two to three thousand houses in the city had been blown down. More than ten sailboats and bamboo rafts had been blown into the Dongting Lake. More than two hundred people had died in the storm.
Granny Yan said," Do you still want me to live? My husband has only been dead for a few days. This is a sign from the heavens. The heavens are punishing the Maple Ridge people. Who asked them to kill my master?"”
Xiu Xin said," Mother, you're talking nonsense. This kind of wind disaster has blown through the entire land. It's not just Maple Ridge. We didn't lose anyone, but Yuezhou City lost someone. How are you going to explain this?"”
Granny Yan said," Your old man has been selling water in Yuezhou for more than ten years. There has never been a typhoon. This is because Yuezhou can't tolerate your old man. He deserves it, he deserves it!"”
Xiu Xin said,"My heart is not pure. I always hope that others are not good for myself."”
Granny Yan said,"Isn't this human nature? Aren't you like this?"”
A few days after the wind disaster, the fallen crops in the fields had just straightened up when it began to rain. It was not a drizzle, but a moderate rain. It was as if the heavens had been pierced with countless holes. Its tears flowed down continuously.
Xigui was calculating his income for the year at home. Pan Zaixing, his long-term worker, was helping out at home because Lian Yu couldn't make noodles. Xi Gui waved his hand and said,"Come, come, Old Pan, help me calculate how much rent I can collect this year."”
"Master, how much land did you give away this year?" Pan Zaixing asked.”
Xigui said,"One stone and two buckets of land are rented for one year, six buckets of land are rented for two years, and four buckets of land are divided for farming. How much grain do I get from these three types of rented fields?”
Pan Zaixing said,"If you rent one and a half stone and a half to two stone grains for each bucket of land, you can collect eighteen to twenty-four stone grains. If you pull the high and pull the low, you'll get twenty-one stone grains. Those who rent can get twelve stones of grain, while those who farm and divide the land can only get eight stones of grain at most. These three types of land rent, I estimate that we can collect forty stones of grain.”
When Pan Zaixing said this, Xigui was discouraged. He said,""This is really not worth it. I invited you to do a year's work, provided you with food and clothing, and gave you twenty stones of grain as labor money. You took half alone, and my family only had half left.”
Pan Zaixing said," You can't settle the score like that. This score only includes rice. You can still grow rape on the rented land. You still have dry land. You can grow two seasons on twenty acres of dry land. I can exchange grain for fennel. My family can't just eat grain. How much can they eat? They have to eat fennel too."”
Xi Gui said," Now that you've said it, my heart is much more relaxed. Otherwise, I might as well be a long-term worker. It's so good to be a long-term worker. I don't have to worry about it. My income is constant. He doesn't care about the good or bad years of the boss. He only wants dozens of stone grains a year. His life is very smooth."”
Pan Zaixing said," You used to be a long-term worker too. Why did you quit? Why did you become a boss? Who forced you to be a boss? As a boss, why do you envy a long-term worker?”
Xigui said," I'm a responsible person. Mencius said that only when you have land can you have a sense of responsibility, so I became the owner. Being the owner is a very prestigious thing."”
Pan Zaixing said," But this year's harvest might not be good. Look, the rain keeps falling. There's no sign that it's going to split open the sky. So, this year's rent is a problem."”
Xigui said," Yes, yes. If the tenants have no income, then we have no income. Otherwise, I would say that it's better for you to work long-term. Regardless of the good or bad years, you only care about your own wages.”
Pan Zaixing said," Boss, you don't negotiate with your teeth. You have many sources of income, not just from the fields. For example, you have a noodle shop and loan sharks.”
At the mention of usury, Xi Gui's eyes glowed green. He said,"Help me calculate how much interest I can collect from the usury this year.”
Pan Zaixing said," Your loan sharks are a pile of bad debts. Do you think I can calculate them?"”
Xigui said,"Who doesn't know that you're an iron abacus? How can you not calculate it?" I'll give you a 3% interest first. I'll give you 10 stones of grain for this interest, which is 100 dollars. I've already given five stones of old grain, four oceans per stone. When the new grain comes out, they'll pay me back. At that time, the new grain will only be two oceans per stone.”
Pan Zaixing said," This is much more worthwhile than renting your land to others. You've earned thirty dollars from Eight Stone Valley in these two areas. You're killing people without them noticing."”
Xigui said," What are you talking about? This is the current price for us to go up and down the lotus pond. How can I break this rule?" Besides, what kind of people come to borrow money from me? Granny Yan borrowed 50 yuan from my 100 yuan. What did she borrow money for? She didn't buy land or build houses. She just wanted to eat meat for her. She borrowed money with a glib tongue. Shouldn't I charge her some interest? If there is money that doesn't charge interest, I will borrow it every day.”
"That's true," Pan Zaixing said."You can't wake up early without profit! No wonder Boss always wakes up so early every day. You're a cheap life. Look at Granny Yan. Every day, she sleeps until the middle of the morning before waking up. I just can't figure out what she eats and what she uses to make firewood.”
Xi Gui said,"Everyone has their own way of living. Granny Yan eats the grain that her son earned from long-term labor. She also has a son called Xiu Wu who makes firewood for her." Other families had many children and many mothers, but their family had many children and many mothers.”
Pan Zaixing said," What should we do if this goes on? She doesn't care about savings and doesn't manage the family business. Does she still want her sons to get married and carry on the family line?" Boss, you were also a long-term worker back then. You were calculative and used money to earn interest. Later on, you finally became the boss. This was really two different heavens!”
Xigui said,"Let's not talk about it, let's not talk about it. This is all a vexing matter. It's better to count our debts."”
" Alright, alright, alright," Pan Zaixing said." Let's not talk about it anymore. Let's settle the score."”
Xigui said," I still have money for new grains. This year, I put in 60 dollars for new grains. When the new grains are sold, I can receive 30 stones of new grains. This is a 50 - 50 interest."”
"This is no different from opening a new valley," Pan Zaixing said.”
Xigui said," It looks like there's no difference. However, some people need grains, and some people need money. I have to satisfy different needs. Otherwise, how can I make money?”
Pan Zaixing said," Boss, I think your life is boring too. You have a few dollars in your hands, and the interest grows with the interest. You just can't bear to use it or eat it. You eat pickled vegetables and fennel every day. No wonder you can't hire a long-term worker.”
Xigui said,"If I was lazy, wouldn't I be like Mei Di?" You're right. I'm a person who sticks money into my ribs. If I can't hire a long-term worker, I'll hire you every year.”
Pan Zaixing said," I also heard that you let go of the top money. This is a huge windfall!”
Xi Gui said,"This kind of money is only taken by those gamblers. They want to gamble, and when they don't have money in their hands, they come to me for help." In the past, Mei Di often came to take this kind of money, as well as people like Marquis Kun and Chunyan.”
Pan Zaixing said,"He really gambled to death. Top money was also called one plus one. It was the interest of one plus one. If the person borrowed one yuan, the interest would increase by 10 cents per month. After a year, the person would have to pay back 2.2 yuan.”
Xigui said," This is how things are in the world. One thing will subdue another. If no one borrows money from the top, no one will give money to the top."”
Pan Zaixing said," The boss's reason is not valid. It's because rich people like you want to make money. If you don't make money, who can borrow money?”
Xi Gui said," I'll say a thousand or ten thousand, but I still envy you for being long-term workers. You earn at least twenty stone grains a year, and at most thirty stone grains a year. You still have to eat from the boss, and you don't have to worry about it." The rule here is that long-term work does not count as a month, and the boss does not count as a sick month.”
" How long have I been working for you?" Pan Zaixing asked." How much grain do you give me a year?" Since you're so envious of being a long-term worker, let's switch positions. You'll be the long-term worker and I'll be the boss. How about that?”
The rain continued day after day. The ponds were already filled with water. The excess water flowed down the old creek, into the Xiushui River, and into Dongting Lake. When they couldn't win, the flood would flood the ridges and cover them. A long waterfall would form. It wouldn't be a problem for the seedlings to soak in the water for a day or two. If it was too long, they would be scrapped.
There were also days when the sky was split open. Generally speaking, there would be one day when it did not rain. On such a day, the sky would either be gloomy or reveal the light of the sun. If they saw the sun, it would be a joyous festival for the people. Women had to dry their clothes, children had to dry their firewood, men had to dry their fields, and thousands of paths had to dry themselves. The drooping seedlings had to stretch their waists.
While you were still reveling in the day's harvest in your dreams, the rain was beating on the tiles on the roof again, and the eaves were beginning to tickle again, singing that hateful tune. Lady Lightning began to pull again. The thunder god gave a muffled sound. The light shone into the dark room and the sound traveled into the ears of the sleeping people.
The next day, Granny Yan said to her eldest son, Xiuxin,""I haven't eaten meat for a few days, do you know?”
Xiu Xin said," You still want to eat meat. I don't even know where the rice for cooking porridge is. I don't even know where the firewood for cooking porridge is. The well has been flooded. Whether it's the well water or the pond water, they're all turbid. There's no water to drink."”
Granny Yan said," Don't you know how to think of a way? Go and borrow. Xigui has a lot of grain at home, and Xigui has a lot of money at home. I'm very trustworthy when I borrow rice from his house. He will definitely lend it to you."”
Xiuxin said,"You lend him a stone of grain now, and when you get a new one, you'll return him two stones. How dare you lend him such a grain?"”
Granny Yan said," You're just not as good as your old man. If your old man was still alive, he would listen to me in everything. If I say I want to borrow grain, I will borrow grain. If I say I want to borrow money, I will borrow money." What kind of accounts are you counting? Are you afraid that a family with a few people can't afford it?”
Xiu Xin said,"Don't say that it's not a glorious thing for a family to have a few people to do long-term work." Now that it's raining every day, the boss has asked us to stay at home. Even if we don't deduct our wages, he will save money for food and our family will have more money for food. You also like to eat meat. The three of us are working long-term outside. I'm afraid we won't be able to support the three of you.”
Granny Yan said,"Alright, alright. I won't eat meat anymore. Can I eat fish instead?" Don't say anymore. Go and borrow some grain from your uncle Xigui. At the same time, borrow some money to buy fish. With this flood, there will definitely be a lot of fish.”
The heavy rain trapped people at home, making it difficult to do outdoor work. If you wanted to survive, you had to eat. Where would there be gold and silver mountains for you to eat? As the saying goes, even if you were as rich as a mountain, you would still eat up everything. The Shengzu family had encountered such a problem. Their family was not prosperous. Their parents had died a long time ago, and their only brother had died a long time ago. Now, he was the only one left to support the family. He married a wife. The wife was short, but she was short. As the saying goes,"short, short, full of children". The wife gave birth to two sons for him. The eldest son, Qi Hua, was eight years old, and the second son, Qi Wang, was four years old. This family had four mouths to eat.
The Sheng Group's wife's surname was Yan. After breakfast that day, Madam Yan said to the Sheng Group,"What are we eating for lunch? The house is clean, and there's no more coarse grain.”
"Where are the broad beans, wheat paste, and peas? Weren't there a lot of them two days ago?"”
Lady Yan said,"I've eaten it all. I sit at home and eat every day. How can I not eat it all?"”
"Then let's eat the vegetables. We'll treat them as food."”
Madam Yan said," Where did the vegetables come from? The fruits and vegetables in the vegetable garden don't even bloom. We haven't seen the sprouts for a long time. We put some salt in our meals."”
Sheng Group said," What should we do then? It's fine for the adults. It's okay to starve for a meal or two. Children can't go hungry either. If they're hungry and have nothing to eat, they'll cry."”
Madam Yan said," We can only go and borrow. Uncle Xi Gui should still have some food at home. We can go and borrow some to cook porridge for each meal. We can't just wait for death at home."”
"I know that Uncle Xigui has food at home. Do you dare to borrow his food?" He was a black-hearted person who always stared at others all day long, hoping that they would be short of food. Lend him a stone, return him three buckets of stone, he always sat back and enjoyed the fruits of his labor.”
Lady Yan said,"This is all fate. Who told his family to have food, and who told us to lack food?" Speaking of which, lending him a stone and returning him three buckets with a stone was also something that should be done. Without his stone, we will starve to death. He still has to keep it, he still has to store it, and the rats still have to eat it.”
"That's true. I just can't take it lying down."”
Lady Yan said," What are you betting on? If you are angry, your stomach will croak from hunger, your head will turn black and dizzy, your eyes will become blurry, and you will not be able to stand steadily.”
Team Sheng left. He didn't want to listen to his wife's nagging anymore. If you stood in front of her for a day, as long as there was no food, she would nag for a day.
The same problem troubled the 22-year-old Boson. Boson's family now had five people. His mother, Fei Shi, his 16-year-old brother, Lin Sen, and his wife, Fei Shi, had a little daughter this year.
The young Boson had long been the pillar of the family. Now, the burden of supporting a family of five was on his shoulders. Although Lin Sen was an assistant, he couldn't handle it.
His mother, Madam Fei, said," Bosenyazi, go to Fei Zhang's house and see if they still need helpers in their noodle shop. Use your labor to exchange for some flying flour to make glutinous rice cakes at home."”
"In this weather, it rains every two or three days. Can his family still make noodles?" Borson asked.”
Madam Fei said," Why can't he make noodles? There will be a day when it doesn't rain in three days. People who eat noodles have to eat. How can he not make noodles?"”
Bosen left. Madam Fei turned around and said to Linsen,"Linsen, you're going to chop a few loads of firewood today. There's not a single strand of firewood left in the house. Even if your brother mixed it with flour, he wouldn't be able to cook it.”
Lin Sen said,"It's not like you haven't seen it, old lady. The heavens keep raining, how can I chop firewood?" Besides, the matter isn't that serious. Don't we still have the bed grass and the bed board?”
Madam Fei said,"You always think of good things. You burned the bed grass and slept on the ground?" I don't sleep on the ground."
The little girl grinned and cried. As she flew, she stuffed her tits into her mouth and sucked on the sweet milk. As he flew, he thought that the milk would run out at any time. There was a shortage of food, and there was no food at home. If the adults were hungry, would the children have milk to eat?
Bosen came to Fei Zhang's noodle shop and said to Mei Shang,"Second Uncle, do you still need labor at home? I'm here to do a day's work and exchange some flying noodles for food at home.”
Mei Shang looked at Bosen and said," Didn't you say that you wouldn't come to my house to work? What's wrong today? The sun rose from the west, but the sun in the east hasn't even risen yet!"”
Boson said," Times have changed. When I said this, I was still not sensible. Second Uncle, don't be calculative. We are a big family. You are the elder. You have to forgive us as juniors."”
Mei Shang said,"You're quite good at talking. If you come to beg me, of course I'll agree." Your master died early, and it wasn't easy for your mother to raise you brothers. Now it's time for you brothers to pay your debts.”
Boson worked with Fei Zhang in the noodle shop for the whole day. In the evening, Mei rewarded him with a bucket of flying noodles as a reward for his hard work. Boson went home happily.
Mei Yang was twenty-six years old this year, but he was still alone. He lived in a dark side house. The firewood and food in the house could last for two days. He didn't know what to eat and burn after two days. It had been raining heavily for more than a month. As long as it was raining, he would sleep in bed every day until 11:00 am and cook two meals of porridge a day. If he did not live frugally like this, he would have run out of food long ago.
Today, there was a rat running around in front of the bed. Mei Yang slept on the bed and thought that it would be great if he could catch this rat. He could have another meal. Not only could he fill his stomach, but he could also taste the taste of meat. How long had it been since he had eaten meat? Mei Yang couldn't remember which day he had eaten meat. In short, it had been a long time since he had eaten meat. Ah, he remembered. He had eaten meat on the day Zhu Ren was buried. That day, he was called to help out, so he had the opportunity to grease his mouth. Now that he thought about it, it still tasted good.
Mei Yang thought about the delicious meat as he got up. He followed the rat. Wherever the rat went, Mei Yang would follow. When he was in a hurry, the rat would run under the bed, and Mei Yang would follow him. Rats were so tiny and slippery that they ran out when Mei Yang crawled under the bed. Mei Yang chased around the house again. Although one of his eyes was half-blind, the other was surprisingly good. In such a dark room, he could always see the rat's tracks clearly. The rat was tired of being chased by Mei Yang, so it hid under the bed again. This time, Mei Yang learned his lesson. He did not hide under the bed anymore. Instead, he took the fire fork and stabbed it under the bed. Finally, he stabbed the rat to death in a corner.
Mei Yang took the rat from the tip of the fire fork. He held the rat in his palm. The rat was still warm and soft. Mei Yang jumped up in joy in the room and put the rat to his mouth, pretending to eat it. Unfortunately, no one else in the room saw it. It was not funny.
The rat's skin was scraped off, and then its intestines were cut open. Mei Yang carefully did this. He left the liver and lungs behind, removed the rat's skull, and dug out the rest of the water. A rat shell that could be eaten by humans appeared in front of Mei Yang. Should he roast it or fry it? Mei Yang hesitated for a moment before deciding to roast it. He had never eaten roasted meat in his life. He had only heard that roasted meat was delicious and fragrant.
Mei Yang dipped the rat meat in some salt and fixed the rat on the fire tongs with iron wire. The tip of the fire tongs was placed on a brick, and the handle was placed in his hand for easy flipping. They began to roast the rat meat. After a while, the rat meat began to drip with oil. The rat oil fell on the firewood and made a sizzling sound. The flames jumped up and the fragrance of the meat began to spread in the house. As Mei Yang roasted the meat, he drooled as if he had already eaten it.
Mei Yi was also a pitiful person. When he was still seven years old, his mother died. When he was twelve years old, his master also died. Mei Yi could only live with his uncle. This uncle didn't live long either. He died when he was seventeen. Fortunately, his uncle married him that year. His uncle had just turned seven when his aunt remarried. Now, only Mei Yi and his wife, Zi Yin, were left in the family.
By the time of this year's continuous heavy rain, Zi Yin was already five months pregnant. The food at home had run out. Mei Yi could not think of where to hide the food at home.
Zi Yin touched her stomach and said," What should I do? I can stop eating, but the child in my stomach can't stop eating. He's growing and needs to eat a lot of my juice every day."”
Mei Yi said," The child wants to eat. You want to eat too. I want to eat too. We all want to eat. If we don't eat, we will starve to death. The problem is, what are we going to eat?"”
Neither of them could answer this question. They were a young couple. They were the same age and were not even 18 years old. Many young people were still playing with their children at this age, but they had become adults, married, and established a family. Apart from helping each other, there was nothing else they could rely on.
"Why don't you go to my maiden's house and see if you can borrow a few buckets of wheat?"”
Mei Yi said,"Go again, how can I wipe away this face?" Your master is a cultured person. He speaks in a refined manner, but every word he says is a spittle. You have to think for a long time before you can understand what he said. The last time I went to borrow food, he said something to me. I only understood after coming back for a few days.”
"What did I say to make you so concerned?" Zi Yin asked.”
Mei Yi said,"He asked me if I had read any books and if I knew the allusion of handing out food in contempt." Of course, I didn't know. I thought about it for a few days and still didn't know. I had to ask Mister Rain. After hearing Mister Rain say it, I suddenly understood.”
Zi Yin said," What enlightenment are you trying to achieve? No matter what my master says, as long as he's willing to lend you food, it's fine. As long as we can fill our stomachs, it's fine." As the saying goes, if you don't have rice in your hand, you won't even get a chicken. Eating was the most important thing in the world. No matter what kind of etiquette, righteousness, or shame it was, it was not as important.”
Mei Yi touched Ziyin's stomach and said," I understand, I understand. I'll go now. Even if Master beats me up, I'll still borrow the food back. Just you wait."”
Chao Fan was not a person who liked to farm. When he fought the Japanese, he joined the plainclothes team. After idling around for a few years, he disliked farming even more. He did a little wild work all day long. No one knew how this family survived, what they ate, what they wore, and who gave it to them. Whenever someone mentioned this, Chao Fan would say,""What are you all worrying about? Snakes have their own paths, wolves have their own paths. I have my own way to survive.”
Chao Fan's burden was not light anymore. He and his wife had three sons and a daughter. In addition, his second brother, Sheng Fan, had passed away. His sister-in-law had remarried, and he had to raise the remaining son. In this way, he was a family of seven.
Chao Fan carried a shotgun and went up the mountain. His second son, Mei Zheng, followed him. The ten-year-old Mei Zheng chattered non-stop along the way. In the end, he meant the same thing. He said that nothing would come to the muzzle of the gun on a rainy day. Chao Fan said," You're so long-winded, you're just like a cat. You know what? There's a lot of fighting in this rainy day. The heavy rain will wet the feathers of the pheasants and they won't be able to fly. Not only can we kill the pheasants, but we can also catch them." It was the same for the wild rabbit. The ground was wet everywhere, and the rain stuck to its fur. It could not walk fast, so you could catch it.”
Chao Fan really hit the nail on the head. The sharp-eyed and quick-witted Mei Zheng really caught a pheasant today. Chao Fan also caught a wild rabbit. The father and son hung the game on their muskets and carried it back. On the way, Chao Fan said to Mei Zheng," Don't tell others that you can catch pheasants. If you tell them, they will go and catch them. Look at how everyone has no food to eat now. If they go and catch them, they will take away our rice bowls. Do you understand?"”
Mei Zheng agreed. Chao Fan returned home to find Xi Gui and asked him if he wanted to use the grain to exchange for his live pheasant. "Do you really have live pheasants?" You must be lying."
Chao Fan said," I can't lie to you even if I lie to anyone. You're the rich man in our house. Isn't lying to you equivalent to seeking death?!" I really have a live pheasant. It's worth it whether you want to feed it or eat it.”
Xigui said,"Go and bring it to me. I'm still afraid that you'll deceive me."”
Chao Fan brought the live pheasant to Xi Gui's house. Xi Gui weighed it in his hand and felt that it weighed six pounds. He said happily,"Yes, yes. Name a price and how much grain you want.”
Chao Fan said,"I'll exchange it for a stone, not much, not little.”
"Only one basket," Xi Gui said.
Chao Fan said,"Add a stone, not a grain less.”
Xigui said,"Alright, a stone is a stone."”
Xigui picked up the pheasant and went to move the grain. After picking the grain, he called his sons to do the rice.
This year, the heavy rain in the Dongting Lake area lasted for three months, from May to August, causing a huge disaster. Dozens of lakeside areas were flooded, hundreds of thousands of acres of paddy fields were affected, hundreds of people drowned and starved to death, and more than 10,000 houses collapsed. The crops in the fields had all been reduced in production. The rice in the two ridges of Maple Ridge had been reduced by at least 10%. Four elderly people had starved to death in this house, but their families said that these elderly people had died of illness.
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