God-given mother: The villain cub is super clingy

I saw four or five yamen runners holding gongs, resting at the entrance of the village. Some sensible people had already brought them water to drink. When they saw the village chief coming, the leading runner talked about increasing the land tax!

"You gentlemen, you have worked hard. Why don't you come to my house and have a seat and some water?"

The man waved his hand, his attitude quite friendly. "You are the village chief, right? I heard that your village once hunted a tiger. That's quite impressive! Now that you know about it, you should get things done as soon as possible. We have a lot of things to do today, so I won't bother you anymore!"

After saying that, he called on the others to go to the next village.

The village chief hurriedly trotted after him, quietly stuffed some silver into his hand, and said a few words.

"Alas! Ordinary people can't even fill their own stomachs, and yet they want to increase taxes. How can we survive after this increase?"

"After paying taxes on this year's grain, we're barely enough to eat. Now that the tax has increased, how are we going to get through the winter?"

Some people couldn't help but sit on the ground, covering their faces and crying!

As a result, everyone's face was filled with sadness and indignation.

Seeing that the village chief looked unhappy, the old patriarch walked over to him and asked.

"Dashan, did you find out anything?"

The village chief moved his lips, still feeling that the news he had just heard was shocking.

"They say the bandit problem in the northwest is serious and the army is short of food. If we can't survive this winter, they will attack the capital next year."

He had originally thought that there must be some reason for the sudden increase in revenue this year, but he was surprised to hear such news. Although he had heard a little bit of it before, he hadn't thought much about it! Who would have thought that it would be confirmed today!

No wonder food prices are rising, it turns out there is such a reason. Fortunately, the old patriarch was wise and asked everyone to stock up some food in advance, but now most of the stockpiled food has to be handed over!

If you can't pay, you have to pay silver. If you don't have silver, you will be arrested! Even if you cry your heart out, there is no place to reason.

The old patriarch sighed deeply. Although he had expected this, he still felt sad, but he also expressed his thoughts tactfully.

"If it was just a small banditry, the imperial court wouldn't have mobilized such a large force. If it wasn't a natural disaster, it would be a man-made one. If the imperial army couldn't stop it next year, can you imagine what the consequences would be?"

The village chief was shocked when he heard this. The old patriarch was thoughtful and it was not impossible! If that was the case, they would probably have to flee!

While he was thinking about it, the old patriarch reminded him again.

"Talk to everyone! Every household needs to be prepared and plan for the worst!"

The village chief nodded solemnly. The price of food outside has already risen. Even if this news is just speculation, it must be told to everyone in advance so that they can prepare for the worst.

He gathered everyone together and told them the news he had just heard. Before he could say anything more, the young man with a quick mind had already thought of a possibility.

"Village chief, if the imperial army can't hold out this year, will those people attack us next year?"

"They say there's a bandit problem, but how could the bandits be so powerful? Could it be that someone is rebelling?"

Some older women were so frightened that they wanted to cover the mouths of these young people.

"Oh! Don't dare say that! Be careful someone might hear you!"

The village chief glanced at the old patriarch, who nodded at him.

"You're right. If that happens, we must prepare for the worst!"

Everyone was stunned, unable to believe whether the village chief was joking or serious.

But seeing that his expression didn't seem fake, some people couldn't help but fall to the ground.

"If rebels come and attack us, will we...will we still defend our home?"

"Home? I'm afraid we can't even stop the refugees from coming. It's always us ordinary people who suffer from natural disasters and man-made disasters! If refugees flee here, forget about our homes, not even our food and vegetables! Don't even think about leaving anything behind!"

"When people are extremely hungry, they can do anything!"

"When the rebels come, I'm afraid I won't be able to save my life!"

Everyone was talking at once, causing panic, fear and anxiety. Everyone's mood was much heavier than before.

Lin Yue didn't understand what the land tax here was. As far as she knew, the ancient taxes, corvee labor, salt and iron were related to the common people, but she didn't understand the details very well, so she muttered to herself.

"Taxes? Contributions? Aren't they the same thing? Why are you talking about them separately?"

A young man in a long gown next to her heard what she said and patiently explained to her.

"There's the land tax, and then there's the popinjay. The land tax was one-thirty cents, but now it's being changed to one-fifteen cents. The popinjay is paid per person. Every young and middle-aged man and woman in every household pays one hundred and ten cents per year, and it starts when they reach adulthood at fifteen."

Lin Yue understood. It turned out that these were land tax and population tax.

"Don't we have a scholar in our village? Scholars should be exempt from taxes, right?"

The young man glanced at her and said, "The scholar's family can indeed be exempted, but others cannot."

Lin Yue agreed. Land could be registered under the name of a scholar, but not everyone could do so. Population tax was inevitable, unless one became a slave of the scholar.

Only then did she remember that the man looked unfamiliar, and she looked at him carefully.

"Are you Chunwang from Fourth Grandfather's family?"

Ye Chunwang showed a warm smile.

"it's me."

Lin Yue suddenly understood. No wonder he spoke so clearly. It turned out that it was Ye Chunwang, the only educated person in Yejia Village.

"Why are you back in the village? Are you taking a rest?"

Ye Chunwang's face showed a trace of worry. "I heard some news, so I rushed back to tell everyone, but I didn't expect to catch up with the notice of increasing the land tax."

Seeing his expression, Lin Yue guessed that the news he brought back must be related to this.

At this time, the village chief also noticed Ye Chunwang and waved at him.

"Chunwang, you're back?"

The villagers then noticed that Ye Chunwang was standing at the very edge of the crowd. Seeing that everyone had noticed him, he took a few steps forward.

"I heard some news in town and was going to come back to tell everyone, but I didn't expect to catch up."

"People in town are already rushing to buy food. We in the village can't just keep complaining. Those of you who have extra money should quickly stock up on food!"

After these words were spoken, those who were still waiting and watching became even more heartbroken. Ye Chunwang, who was teaching in the town, personally confirmed the news, and no one dared to wait and see anymore.

"Oh my God! This is going to force us to have no way to survive!"

Those who had previously stockpiled food were now extremely grateful. They had listened to the village chief's words and used their remaining money to buy food. At least they didn't have to rush to buy it for now.

Although everyone was still crying and resentful, they did not dare to stop. Some people had already run back home to get the remaining money to buy food!

"Everyone can go to Qingzhou City to have a look. Qingzhou City is big and there are many grain shops. It's easier to buy some!"

The village chief shouted loudly several times, but he didn't know whether they heard him or not.