Late Ming Dynasty: Oops, I am surrounded by the Donglin Party

Kai County, Kuizhou Prefecture, Sichuan.

Thirty-year-old Sun Qingfeng worked hard all day and dragged his tired body back to the village.

In addition to his father who is just over 50, there are two children in his family. The eldest daughter, Sun Cuicui, just turned 12 this year, and the youngest son was born the year before last and is only three years old this year.

Last year, my father was working as a domestic worker and accidentally broke his leg, so the family suddenly became short of a labor force.

His wife died when she gave birth to their youngest son the year before last. Whenever Sun Qingfeng went to work in the fields, all the household chores fell on the shoulders of their twelve-year-old eldest daughter.

Although Sun Cuicui was only twelve years old, children from poor families had to grow up early. In addition to taking care of her disabled grandfather and younger brother every day, she also had to cook and deliver meals to her father from the fields.

In order to supplement the family income, Sun Cuicui also helped the villagers wash clothes. She was busy from morning to night and never complained of being tired. Sun Qingfeng sometimes always felt guilty.

If only the baby’s mother were still alive.

"Dad, you're back. The meal will be ready soon. Dad, please go inside and rest for a while."

Cuicui wiped the sweat off her face beside the stove and said as she added firewood into the stove.

Although Cuicui was only twelve years old, she had grown into a beautiful young lady. Her family was poor, and the clothes she wore were all made from old clothes left by her mother. But even with all the patches on top of the patches, they still couldn't hide her pretty face.

Sun Qingfeng is indeed very tired. In the past, he had his wife and father to help him take care of the 30 acres of rice fields, but now he is the only one left.

His house, like those of his neighbors, was built with adobe bricks mixed with straw. There was nothing in the yard and the house could only be described as bare.

He was a little tired, but this year's harvest was better than in previous years. He felt that his name had given him luck. Happy harvest, happy harvest. This year is finally a good harvest.

Sun Qingfeng roughly calculated that, apart from the rent to the landlord Wang, the summer tax to the government, the Liao salary and the supplementary tax, the remaining grain should be enough to last until the autumn harvest if used frugally.

He just hoped that there would be no more corvee labor this year. He was the only laborer left in his family. If more corvee labor was imposed, no one would cultivate the rice fields. By then, not only would the landlord's family not forgive him, but the government would not forgive him either.

While Sun Qingfeng was still thinking, Sun Cuicui had already brought over the bowl of rice. It was a bowl of porridge wrapped in rice bran and a mixed-wheat bun the size of half a fist.

After Sun Cuicui served the meal to her father, she took another bowl into the house for her grandfather.

At this time, more than a dozen officials from the county came out of the yard, pulling several donkey carts, and the village head followed behind them.

"Sun Qingfeng, you have paid the tax, why don't you come over to greet me?" The leading official walked to the door of Sun Qingfeng's house and said rudely.

Sun Qingfeng hurried over to ask before he even had a sip of his porridge.

As usual, after the rice was harvested, 50% was paid to the landlord first, and the remaining half was taken back home. When it was time to pay the summer tax, each family usually went to the county in person to pay it.

Now these officials took the initiative to come to the village to collect the money, which made Sun Qingfeng feel very strange.

"The county magistrate sympathizes with your hard work and has sent us here to collect the grain. Where is the grain? Why don't you lead the way?"

Sun Qingfeng did not dare to disobey and could only point to the small house next to the main house. The yamen runner then instructed his men to go in and take a look.

"Sir, are this year's taxes and surcharges the same as last year's?"

As soon as Sun Qingfeng finished asking, the village chief Wei Fang sighed. He wanted to say something, but he opened his mouth but nothing came out. The official said directly:

"This year, in addition to the land tax and the additional Liao salary, more than a dozen households in your village have fled, so the accompanying tax will naturally be higher. In addition to the accompanying tax, there is an order from above that there is a shortage of food to suppress the bandits. Commander Yang has been ordered to pay the local grain, 300 kilograms per household.

Your family's summer tax totals 3,260 kilograms."

After hearing this number, Sun Qingfeng felt his whole body trembling and he thought he had heard it wrong.

"Three thousand two hundred...but sir, it was only two thousand kilograms last year?"

When the yamen runner saw that this little bastard dared to question him, he immediately scolded him:

"Last year was last year, and this year is this year. You unruly man, didn't I just tell you that the tax has increased, and there is also the additional levy by Commander Yang. Are you deaf?"

The so-called accompanying payment means that other farmers in the village have run away, and the land tax and other taxes that these farmers need to pay will have to be shared by other people. This is called accompanying payment of taxes. Of course, Liao salary also applies to accompanying payment.

"But...but...Sir, our family's harvest in the first half of the year was less than 3,000 kilograms!"

Sun Qingfeng's eyes turned red. He pulled the official's hand and wanted to see the number on the account book, but the official kicked him to the ground and flew into a rage:

"You unruly man, do you want to steal the account book?"

"Daddy!" Sun Cuicui trotted out from the inner room, crying and going to support Sun Qingfeng.

The officer's eyes widened when he saw Sun Cuicui, and Sun Qingfeng quickly asked his daughter to go back to the house.

"I didn't expect that a unruly man like you would give birth to a beautiful daughter." The officer looked at Sun Cuicui entering the house, with resentment flashing in his eyes and a sneer on his face.

At this time, several other officials had already started carrying grain out. They poured the grain into the hu. When it was almost full, the yamen runners on both sides kicked the two sides of the hu in succession, so the grain in the hu sank a few centimeters. It was not until the grain stopped sinking when kicked again that it was counted as one hu.

"Officer, this is not how the county collects grain. Are you going to give me a way to live?" Sun Qingfeng was dragged by the yamen runners and watched helplessly as the harvest he had worked hard for half a year was wasted.

"Hmph, every household is like this. If you are not satisfied, you can go to the county to find the magistrate." The bailiff glanced at the house again, and Sun Cuicui, who was lying near the crack of the door, was startled.

Soon, all the food in the house was taken out, and the bailiff counted the amount and frowned.

"Your family is still short of 320 kilograms, Sun Qingfeng. Tell me the truth. Where is your stored grain?"

"Sir, all the food in the house is here, you can't do this!

You took away all the food, what will we eat?"

Sun Qingfeng had a look of pain on his face. He had thought it would be a good year, but he did not expect that after paying the landlords and the government, he still owed more than 300 kilograms.

"Why should I care what you guys eat? If you don't pay me enough food, I'll lose my job!

You guys stay here and I'll go see if there's any food stored in other houses.

You, a wicked man, must have hidden the food."

As he spoke, the officer ran towards the inner room. Sun Qingfeng was horrified upon seeing this and stood up to stop him, but was held back by the officer's men.

"What are you doing? You beast! Cuicui! Cuicui, run!"

Sun Qingfeng roared and tried with all his strength to break free from his restraints. The two yamen runners were unable to hold him back, and two more people came over to hold him down.

In order to prevent Sun Qingfeng from struggling again, they simply tied him up to the donkey cart.

A moment later, Cuicui's crying and Sun Qingfeng's father's cursing were heard from the inner room. There was a slight fight in the room, but soon only Cuicui's screams were left.

Sun Qingfeng bared his teeth and bit his lips, but the people guarding him turned a deaf ear and just as they were leading him here, they disappeared.

About a quarter of an hour later, the official came out from the inner room. While fastening his clothes, he said to Sun Qingfeng:

"Since you have no more food at home, I will make up for the 320 kilograms of food you owe me, Sun Qingfeng. Your daughter's matter will be considered as your compensation to me.

You guys all saw it, right? It was this guy who took the initiative to ask for it. It was something that both parties agreed to, right?"

The bailiffs all smiled strangely and agreed. This was something they had discussed earlier, and there was no other evidence here except them.

"You...you are all beasts! Beasts! Let me go, I'm going to kill you!

Are you going to let people live?"

Sun Qingfeng shouted until his voice was hoarse, but he could not break free from the ropes. He watched these people take away all his food.

After the officers left, the village head came over from outside and untied the ropes for Sun Qingfeng.

"Alas, what a terrible world this is..." After sighing, the village head followed the group of yamen runners to another place.

Sun Qingfeng staggered into the inner room like a zombie, but saw his father fainted on the ground, his daughter Cuicui was disheveled and unconscious, and his three-year-old son was lying on his grandfather's body crying.

He put his coat on his daughter and moved his old father to the bed.

The sky gradually darkened. My father woke up early but didn't say a word.

His daughter had a high fever and was crying in her dreams, but Sun Qingfeng had no money to buy medicine.

Only the youngest son cried out that he was hungry, but there was not a single grain of food left in the house.

The next morning, Sun Qingfeng got up to see his father, and was stunned as soon as he opened the door.

On the beams in the room, there were two bodies, one large and one small...

……