Phi-Fic Chapter 148: Passerby A died before the escape began 4
Chapter 148: Passerby A died before the escape began 4
When Jiang Yue and Chen were moving things, Jiang's father came back with two mules in his hands. After tying up the mules, he needed some fodder and food. The cows and donkeys in the family were old, and Jiang's father was afraid that they could not withstand the long journey, so he went to the county to buy two strong mules. After checking the things on the cart, Jiang's father nodded and said that everything was complete and he didn't need to worry about it.
When the family was packing up, the village chief came over with a few people. The village chief looked at the family packing up, took a puff of cigarette and went into the living room with Jiang's father. Mother Chen asked Jiang Yue to take his younger brother and sister to her room, and after sending the three children back to the house, she also went to the living room.
The current soundproofing is not very good, Jiang Yue can hear their conversation, but the two little ones are always making trouble, shouting so loudly that Jiang Yue can't hear clearly. Jiang Yue took out a comic book and two pieces of chocolate from the space and handed them to them. After that, the two of them lay on the desk and read quietly. At this time, Jiang Yue can also hear what is said next door.
"No sense of righteousness? Village chief, you are kidding. You are planning to take advantage of the situation and accuse me of being disloyal. How did you say 200 taels of silver?"
The village chief must have said something, but his voice was too low for Jiang Yue to hear clearly. Then he heard Chen's angry voice: "That 200 taels is impossible. I spent 3 or 4 taels of silver to buy the land. What kind of land was it then? Wasteland! What about now? There are more than acres of good land, and the rest of the land is considered medium-quality land. There is almost no land for farming."
"If you're not robbing me for 200 taels of silver, what is that? There's going to be a war, but it hasn't reached us yet. Even if they do, I won't sell this land for 800 taels less."
At this time, a person's voice was heard: "Aren't you all going to leave? If you don't sell it, it will be wasted. You might as well make some money back."
"Liu Da, you are dreaming. Everyone knows the situation of my land. I am a villager. Maybe I will come back in the future. I want to give it to the villagers at a lower price. But it's not that I can't sell it. Believe it or not, I will have no problem selling it to Zhang Laogui for 1000 taels."
The above words were said by Jiang's father. After he finished speaking, there was silence next door for a while. The price of good farmland is still very expensive now. More than ten years ago, before the war started, an acre of good farmland here cost about 18 to 35 taels of silver. Now during the war, the price has dropped a lot, but now it will not cost less than 5 taels of silver to buy an acre of good farmland. Jiang's father's asking price of 800 taels of silver is really not an exorbitant price.
After that, the voices from next door became quieter. Plus, the clingy twins had finished their chocolates and pestered Jiang Yue to tell them a story from the comic book. Jiang Yue didn't know what happened next. After a while, she heard them opening the door and talking. By the time she got off the bed to put shoes on the twins, Jiang's father had already sent them away.
After Jiang Yue left, her parents did not continue to discuss the matter. Jiang Yue did not ask further questions because she would know sooner or later. After packing up for a while, Jiang's father took his family to look at the yard. Chen's face was full of reluctance. Jiang's father held his mother's hand and whispered, "It's okay. We can buy new things after we settle down."
No matter what he said, he still felt melancholy. Who could feel good about losing the foundation built over half a lifetime? There were still many things that needed to be sorted out. Some of the clothes and items that were no longer used were given to several long-term workers in the family by Jiang's father. Their families would not leave their hometown to follow the Jiang family.
When the family of five was having dinner in the evening, the village chief came to the Jiang family by himself. Chen had just finished her meal and waited for a place for the village chief to sit. When Jiang's father finished his meal and the village chief finished smoking a pot of cigarette, Chen took the twins' hands and planned to ask Jiang Yue to go back, but Jiang Yue said that he hadn't eaten yet and wanted to eat for a while. In fact, he wanted to listen to what the two of them discussed, but he was dragged out.
The mother and daughter stayed in Jiang Yue's room for a while. Chen checked Jiang Yue's room to see if anything was left behind. After the inspection, Jiang's father and the village chief had also talked. After seeing the village chief off, Chen went into the room to clean up the table and Jiang Yue followed her. As for the two little kids, they had already fallen asleep on Jiang Yue's bed.
"How is it going? Is it settled? How much will the village chief pay?"
"700 taels of silver, including our house. Do you think we can return it after we sell the house?"
"If you don't sell it, and we leave, do you expect it to be left here empty without anyone snatching it? It's not a question of whether we sell it or not. If no one is looking after it, it won't belong to us in two years. We can get some money back if we sell it now."
"As for whether I will come back or not, even if I can, I don't know when. I think the State of Chen has reached the time of dynasty change mentioned in history books. Even the county city may not be unsafe now. Our place has always been a battleground for military strategists. I don't know how chaotic it will be by then."
"Let's take a step back and say, how old are we? Even if we can come back, we probably won't live for many years. Let Yue'er and Xuanxuan bury us in the ancestral tomb, if the tomb is still there by then."
Jiang Yue felt deeply in agreement with her mother Chen's story. She was indeed the daughter of a scholar. The marriage between Jiang's father and Chen was a typical example of a talented woman marrying a rough man in a novel. When Chen married Jiang's father, people who knew about it said that flowers were stuck in cow dung. Jiang's father laughed at Jiang Yue nodding her head and said, "Look, Yue'er is still nodding. She will be a talented woman like you when she grows up."
"My dear daughter, do you think your mother is right?"
Jiang Yue nodded in agreement: "Dad, I think my mom is right. It's better to go directly to the capital than to the county town. I read in history books that even if dynasties changed, there was no precedent of massacring civilians in the capital." The main reason was that the protagonist did not move the capital in the end. By the time the plot was over, steam locomotives had been developed, and the capital would definitely be the first to install rails. Maybe he could even experience riding a train in ancient times.
After Jiang Yue finished speaking, the two discussed for a while and felt that it made sense, but for now they still planned to go to the county town to check out the situation. After all, even if they went to the capital, they would have to go to the county town to replenish supplies. The food they brought would not last long. Besides, the mule also needed to rest. It could not keep moving after all, it was not a perpetual motion machine.
The family of three chatted for a while, and after Chen finished clearing the table, she went to Jiang Yue's room and brought the twin brother and sister back. In fact, it would be okay for them to sleep with Jiang Yue, but Jiang Yue had just recovered from the illness a few days ago, and Chen was afraid that the two children would not sleep well and disturb Jiang Yue's recovery. After all, the whole family would go on a long journey in a few days. Chen held the two children and said that her strength was much greater than before. She couldn't even hold two children before, and had to hold them one by one, but now she can hold one in each hand easily.