The beloved baby has a space

Chapter 36 Disposal
The people of Hujia Village held Zhang Zhan in high regard. They didn't know his exact identity, but the fact that he had brought food so quickly after being rescued to provide disaster relief was unbelievable; no one believed it wasn't out of gratitude. It's easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow. "It's all here," Village Chief Hu said to Zhang Zhan.

"Two things. The first is to exempt the spring tax this year and not to issue any corvée labor before March," Zhang Zhan said, emphasizing each word.

The villagers were immediately shocked. No spring tax? No corvée labor?!

"Taxes and corvée labor have been waived, so we can focus on farming this spring!"

"Thank you, Your Honor! Thank you, Heavenly Family!"

"We can survive! We can survive!"

The villagers were stunned at first, and then overjoyed. This time they really cried, feeling even more surprised than when they received food before.

The grain distributed was nowhere near as valuable as the spring tax exemption!
The excited villagers knelt down, kowtowing to Zhang Zhan one moment and then to the direction of Changning City the next.

He kept shouting.

Little Ayu was sitting on Wang Erlang's neck when she saw the villagers kneeling down, so she quickly slid off her brother's neck.

She ran over, trying to pull up the nearest aunt, but after only two steps, Wang Erlang grabbed her arm.

"Ayu, don't run around."

Little Ayu looked puzzled, her face filled with confusion.

"Why are they kneeling? Did they do something wrong?" Only those who have done something wrong kneel.

Wang Erlang thought for a moment and said, "It's probably because the spring tax was waived. The spring tax is exhausting!"

Thinking back to the past, my family had to work in the fields from morning till night to pay the spring tax, vying for the harvest.

It's called the spring tax, but it's actually a grain tax that has to be paid in late spring and early summer. It includes sorghum, spring wheat, broad beans, peas, and barley. It seems like a lot, but the yield of each one is very low. Only by piecing together the grain can you pay the tax.

Wang Wulang felt a headache coming on just thinking about the spring tax: "Yes, it's exhausting! Last year, when my third brother turned 18, we had to pay an extra shi (a unit of dry measure) of tax. It really wore us out, and we didn't have any time to play!"

Wang Sanlang also felt frustrated: "Our Yongye land isn't even enough to cover the losses."

"What is Yongye Land?" Little Ayu felt she had so many questions; she couldn't understand anything.

“It’s land that the imperial court gave us,” Wang Wulang said.

Wang Erlang simply explained to Xiao Ayu what Yongye Land was.

The Great Chang Kingdom stipulated that men who reached the age of 14 were considered adults and were entitled to 30 mu of land, of which 20 mu were state-owned land and 10 mu were permanent land.

State-owned land cannot be bought, sold, or inherited; it remains with the family from adulthood until death, at which point it reverts to state ownership.

Perpetual land is land that is permanently allocated to an individual and can be bought, sold, leased, or passed down to future generations.

The villagers' land is basically composed of: land issued by the state + land passed down from their ancestors + land they reclaimed themselves.

It seems like a lot, but very few people actually manage to keep any land in their hands.

Various reasons have forced them to sell or exchange land, all due to poverty.

The land belonging to Old Wang's family was allocated to his grandsons after they came of age, but they also sold some of it, and the whole family lived a very frugal life.

One mu of fertile land can only produce one shi of grain, which is only 150 jin. Most people don't have much fertile land, and the yield is usually only 70 or 80 jin per mu, which is not considered good.

Each male adult pays one shi of grain in spring and autumn, while other unmarried men or women pay one shi of grain for every three of them.

It may seem like a small amount, but when you add it all up, it's simply unaffordable.

Little Ayu was confused, blinking her little eyes as she tried hard to understand what her brother was saying.

But she only remembered one thing: Yongye land was scarce, and farming was very tiring.

She raised both arms and struggled to roll them up. Under the surprised gazes of her brothers, she puffed out her cheeks and said in an unusually serious tone, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, Ayu can farm too, Ayu will farm together!"

Wang Wulang covered his mouth and chuckled to himself, "You're too young to farm."

Little Ayu exclaimed anxiously, "The vegetables Ayu grows are delicious! They're even more delicious now!" With the help of the fairy, who waters them with sweet water, the vegetables are sure to taste even better!
Seeing the little boy so anxious, like a bouncing fruit, the Wang family boys couldn't help but laugh.

They rushed to comfort her, saying, "Okay, okay, Ayu's vegetables are delicious! Our Yongye land depends on Ayu!"

Little Ayu grinned, her two little pigtails bobbing with joy.

In her excitement, she forgot to ask what corvée labor was.

Before Xiao Ayu could remember, Zhang Zhan spoke again.

Once everyone had calmed down a bit, Zhang Zhan continued, "The second thing is about the fight between your village and Shanyang Village."

The villagers all looked at Zhang Zhan expectantly, hoping to hear good news. Zhang Zhan said, "We have investigated this matter thoroughly, and the fault does not lie with you."

The officials left behind by Zhang Zhan were not just there for show; they were also responsible for investigating the situation in this area.

On the way back, Wang Chuanman and his brother had already explained the situation clearly, but they couldn't just believe one side of the story, so they naturally had to investigate from multiple angles.

The results of the investigation were similar to what Wang Chuanman and his colleagues had said.

The people of Shanyang Village resorted to cannibalism, exchanging children for food. Later, some families who were required to give their children away refused and decided to steal children from Hujia Village.

Because they heard that a child had been found and eaten in Hujia Village, the people of Hujia Village would definitely not cause trouble.

In Shanyang Village, when Zhang Zhan inquired about this matter, a man said with a hateful expression, "We can't even survive anymore, and they still take children in! If they had left us even a bite to eat, we wouldn't have resorted to robbery!"

“That’s right. Hujia Village was the poorest village to begin with. Over the years, the surrounding villages have helped them a lot. Now that they’re in trouble, we asked them to share 100 jin of grain, but they’re stingy and only give us 50 jin. How can we swallow this insult!”

“That’s right. Our two villages are so close, and we’ve had a lot of interaction. They’d rather give money to some unknown girl than give us a chance to live. They’re forcing us to this!”

"They also caused the deaths of several of our people; they must pay with their lives!"

"They even demanded compensation from us! You are the most unjust person in the world!"

The people of Shanyang Village became increasingly agitated as they spoke, even demanding that Zhang Zhan severely punish the ungrateful bastards from Hujia Village.

This act of turning the tables left Zhang Zhan and his entourage of officials dumbfounded.

How can you say that?
Not only those who had eaten the children said this, but even those who hadn't, including some respected elders, expressed their grief and said that the fault did not lie with them.

When Zhang Zhan finished his investigation and left Shanyang Village, he felt very heavy-hearted.

He originally thought that practices like exchanging children to eat were extremely heinous and should be severely punished.

Unfortunately, the officials below reminded him that this fell under the category of "the people don't report it, the officials won't investigate," and it was more likely to be handed over to the local clans or gentry for trial.

If no aggrieved party comes forward to seek redress, the matter will simply be left unresolved.

At most, they'll arrest the person, detain them for a few days, and give them a lecture.

He originally thought that not everyone in Shanyang Village practiced cannibalism, and that there were always some people who were unwilling to do so.

But when he asked, "Is there anyone who wants to file a complaint and seek justice? I can help them."

Everyone in Shanyang Village fell silent.

Even some women who had cried their hearts out in front of him, when asked to report their husbands and fathers-in-law, kept shaking their heads.

"My lord, you can't arrest them! How will they survive without a man in their family!"

He said coldly, "They are the kind of people who can abandon their own flesh and blood. Are you really going to forgive them?"

The women sobbed, not daring to cry out loud, but no one answered.

The child is gone, but the man cannot be lost as well.

He is an imperial envoy; he can manage this matter, but he cannot overstep his bounds.

Finally, unable to contain his anger, he ordered the officials to tie up all those who had gone to Hujia Village to cause trouble and send them to the county town.

Even if the matter of exchanging children for food could be discussed later, their actions of causing trouble in other villages and resulting in deaths in their own village were undeniably criminal.

Recalling this, Zhang Zhan looked at the simple and honest villagers of Hujia Village, composed himself slightly, and said, "Shanyang Village actively provoked trouble and injured people from your Hujia Village, which is a serious crime. You did not provoke them and were acting in self-defense; the Snake Den's actions are not your fault. Therefore, your village is innocent. But—"

Zhang Zhan abruptly changed the subject, and everyone tensed up, afraid he might say something he shouldn't.

"However, Shanyang Village provoked you first. In addition to the compensation for the medicine you requested, Shanyang Village will be responsible for your corvée labor before June. If the imperial court summons you, they can do it in your place."

As soon as he finished speaking, the villagers' eyes widened.

All corvée labor will be replaced until 6 months from now!

The men in their village will then have at least six months to recuperate, which is a blessing they could only dream of.

"Sir, is what you're saying true?" The villagers asked tremblingly, mainly wanting to know if what he said was true.

Little Ayu now (raising her little arms): Ayu is the best at farming!

The brothers (nodding perfunctorily): Yes, yes, yes, our Ayu is the best.

Later, the brothers would boast to everyone they met: "Our Ayu is the granddaughter of the Earth God! The vegetables she grows are the most delicious, the grains she grows are the most fragrant, and the flowers she grows are the most beautiful!"

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(End of this chapter)