Drive to the Tang Dynasty, where supplies are refreshed daily!

Chapter 23: Released Prisoner and Returned to Prison!

"I was wrong before, it was all my fault." Zhang Dalang apologized while slapping himself.

Xiao Ran had previously thought Zhang Dalang was just a hothead, but now he felt he was a lunatic.

His mind isn't quite right; there's definitely something wrong with him.

"Get up and talk!" Xiao Ran couldn't stand it anymore.

Zhang Erya and San Niang, who hadn't been crying before, started crying again.

"If I can help, I definitely will!" After all, Xiao Ran also needed the help of the Zhang siblings.

"You don't have much time left, what do you mean? Terminal illness?" That was the only thing Xiao Ran could think of.

But Zhang Dalang didn't seem to be sick.

Hearing this, Zhang Erya felt a deep sense of despair.

Xiao Ran was now absolutely certain that the siblings had encountered something serious.

It's probably because Third Sister is too young to know.

“No,” Zhang Dalang shook his head, “I’m a death row inmate!”

Zhang Dalang lowered his head, seemingly recalling unpleasant memories.

"Did they escape from prison?" Xiao Ran had this guess when he saw the word "thorn" before.

That's why Zhang Dalang has such a strong sense of malice.

"No, no. I didn't escape from prison. The imperial court released me," Zhang Dalang quickly explained.

Xiao Ran became more and more confused as he listened. How could a death row inmate be released? That didn't make sense!
"Why should I let you go?" Xiao Ran felt that Zhang Dalang was playing a trick on him.

How could a death row inmate be released when they're terrified of escaping?
"It was His Majesty who decreed our release, but I must return next autumn."

Upon hearing this explanation, and considering that it was now the Tang Dynasty, the four words "release the prisoner back to prison" came to Xiao Ran's mind.

This actually happened.

According to the New Book of Tang, Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, personally reviewed the prisoners in the sixth year of the Zhenguan era. After seeing many prisoners sentenced to death, he felt pity and decided to let them go home to reunite with their families, agreeing that they would return to prison on their own the following autumn.

In the end, all the condemned prisoners returned as scheduled without exception, which moved Li Shimin, who then pardoned them.

Xiao Ran then confirmed that it was now the autumn of the sixth year of the Zhenguan era.

"Is it the sixth year of the Zhenguan era now?" Xiao Ran asked tentatively.

“Exactly!” Zhang Dalang nodded.

Zhang Erya cried even more desperately. Xiao Ran didn't understand before, but now he understood why Zhang Erya was so desperate.

Life is like this now that Zhang Dalang is here; if Zhang Dalang were gone, the two sisters would have no way to survive.

It's quite helpless to think about it.

All of Zhang Dalang's previous actions now seem reasonable.

He wanted to kill Xiao Ran because he knew he wouldn't survive, so he wanted to take Xiao Ran with him to prevent his sister from being bullied while he was gone.

She discovered that Xiao Ran's intentions weren't bad. She had previously thought Xiao Ran was capable, so she made a big change in attitude, hoping that Xiao Ran could take care of her younger sister in the future.

Xiao Ran helped Zhang Dalang up, knowing that the guy wouldn't die.

"Second Aunt, it's alright, you'll get better." Xiao Ran rubbed Third Aunt's head. Although the little girl didn't quite understand the specific reason, she burst into tears.

"Young master, I beg you, please help Second Sister and Third Sister. If they can't survive, I'll repay you by being their oxen or horses in my next life."

"Stop!" Xiao Ran interrupted Zhang Dalang. "Second Aunt, don't cry. It's alright, you'll get better."

"Your brother will be fine. Since I need your help, I will naturally help you. Don't worry about that." Xiao Ran took out a tissue and wiped the third sister's face. The little girl was crying with snot and tears streaming down her face.

"Young man, I've killed someone. A life for a life, there's no way out for me." Zhang Dalang said, "Now I can only move around in the village, I can't go anywhere else."

Xiao Ran glanced at the 'unfilial' mark on Zhang Dalang's forehead and had a vague guess in his mind: Zhang Dalang probably killed his own family members.

Most ordinary people would suffer psychological trauma from the loss of another person, and if it were a family member, the trauma would likely be even greater, and it's normal for their personality to be affected.

"Believe me, you'll be alright. I'll help Second Aunt and Third Aunt. It's a win-win situation for us, and you'll have to register my household registration in return." Seeing that Zhang Dalang wanted to ask, Xiao Ran continued, "Don't ask how I know you won't die!"

Xiao Ran couldn't very well say that he was a time traveler and knew he wouldn't die.

"Let's make a bet. If you go back as promised next year, and you die, I'll treat Second Aunt and Third Aunt like my own sisters and take care of them. If you don't die, you'll listen to me from now on, okay?"

Zhang Dalang hadn't expected such a good thing, a sure-fire way to make money, and nodded repeatedly, "Great, great!"

All Zhang Dalang wanted was security for his two younger sisters, and now he had it.

If Xiao Ran is willing to help, at least the two younger sisters will have something to eat.

Zhang Erya wiped away her tears, still feeling very sad, because her brother only had less than a year left to live.

"How much land does your family own now?" Xiao Ran asked casually, wanting to find out the situation.

"Twenty mu," Zhang Dalang said truthfully.

"Hmm? Only this much? Why is it so little?" Xiao Ran frowned.

Twenty mu sounds like a lot, but grain yields were very low in that era, so twenty mu was definitely not enough to feed everyone.

"Because I committed a crime, the court took back all the 100 mu of land it had given me." Zhang Dalang lowered his head, feeling very guilty.

"Because I accidentally killed my father, which had a terrible impact, the county government tattooed words on my face as a warning." Although Zhang Dalang was reluctant to bring up this matter, he still told Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran was not surprised.

The word 'unfilial' says it all.

If it weren't for this incident, our family wouldn't be in such dire straits.

According to the equal-field system during the Zhenguan period, adult men were granted 100 mu of land, of which 20 mu were permanent land, which belonged to the recipient and could be passed on to his heirs after his death. Under certain conditions, it could be sold.

The 80 mu of land was allocated to the state and was not allowed to be bought or sold. If the recipient died, the land would be taken back by the government and redistributed.

In other words, the 20 mu of land that the Zhang siblings now own belonged to their grandfather, Zhang Dalang, and has been inherited by the three siblings.

Zhang Dalang's 100 mu of land was all taken back because he committed murder.

Before Zhang Dalang committed the crime, his family owned 200 mu of land when his father was still alive, but now it has suddenly become 20 mu.

hiss!
One tenth!

The equal-field system stipulated that "widows and concubines would be given 30 mu of land; if they were the head of the household, they would receive an additional 20 mu."

After Zhang Dalang died, Zhang Erya, the eldest daughter, became the head of the household and was entitled to 20 mu of land. In other words, the two sisters would have 40 mu of land in the future.

Zhang Erya was not married, so she could only be considered the head of the household.

"Okay, I understand. It's not a big problem. Get me a dependent's household registration tomorrow." Xiao Ran was indeed very anxious. Although dependent's household registration is not independent and makes one inferior, at least it is legal.

During the Tang Dynasty, household registration was divided into primary households and secondary households. Primary households were local residents, while secondary households were migrants.

A dependent household is a customer who becomes dependent on the main household and thus acquires legal status.

"Now the head of the household is Second Madam, so it's up to Second Madam and the young master to go." Zhang Dalang scratched his head.

After the misunderstanding was cleared up, Zhang Dalang's anger lessened considerably, perhaps because he felt his two younger sisters were now safe.

(End of this chapter)