EBE Chapter 588: Raising an Army to Punish the Crime Part 2
Chapter 588: Raising an Army to Punish the Crime Part 2
The girls all looked at her with envy, but because they had never met her before and because she had killed many people to protect everyone on the way to escape, everyone was still a little afraid of her.
After these words were spoken, no one reached out to help, let alone say a word of what the adults had told them to do.
It was different among the boys. Everyone said whatever they wanted. Besides, Zhou Mi and Zhou Mai had been to school for two years. They were fair-skinned and looked like weak scholars. It seemed that the strength of their two hands was not as strong as that of one of their hands. Naturally, they didn't have so many reservations when speaking.
"You two are still in school now? Didn't you agree that you would only study for two years? Are you planning to continue studying and take the exams for the title of scholar, the title of juren, and become a high-ranking official in the future?"
Before the two of them could speak, someone else said, "We are all from the same family, all with the surname Zhou. If you ask me, we should study together. Only when the whole family is doing well, can we be considered truly well off. Otherwise, it is useless if only your family is doing well. We will not be rich for long and will collapse. We still need the support of our family members to make our wealth last longer."
Everyone nodded, that's it.
Zhou Mai and Zhou Mi looked at each other.
Zhou Mai said: "So, you are all going to go to school after the new year?"
"No, we are not so lucky to be able to read and study. It's said that your family has become prosperous in the past two years, and you have made a lot of money with the villagers. Originally, this village was made up of mud and thatched houses like everyone else, but in the past two years, many of the mud and thatched houses have disappeared and have been replaced by blue brick and tile houses. You have made a lot of money."
"We are still our family. You even take outsiders with you, shouldn't you take us with you as well? You can't enjoy the good life while we can't read a single word. Even if your family becomes prosperous in the future, if outsiders see that you have such people in your family, you will lose face."
The Zhou family is not at peace today. Except for Zhou Guo, no one dares to talk about these things in front of her. Everyone else asks the Zhou family to be considerate and help them, and not to help outsiders while not helping their own people.
Li smiled bitterly, "You know how the village got rich. It was all thanks to the pine mushrooms in the mountains. Even if I want you to come with me, the villagers have to agree. This is not ours, so even if we say something, it won't work."
On the other side, Zhou Gu also said: "Last year, someone wanted to ask the daughters who were married to the neighboring village to come back to the mountain to collect flowers, but no one in the village was willing to do so. Not a single married woman was able to come back. You see, married people in the village are not allowed to go up the mountain, let alone you people from other villages. It's even more impossible."
Zhou Mi said: "So, don't make it difficult for us. Our words don't count. At most, we can help the villagers to connect and build a bridge. As for things, they belong to the whole village. If you want to go up the mountain, you have to go to the village and tell them. Once the villagers agree, you can go up the mountain."
Everyone was anxious.
"You have brought all the villagers to make money, and you have earned so much for them. Whether we go into the mountains or not is just a matter of a word. You can't even make the decision on such a small matter? Then you have been in the village for nothing, right?"
The kitchen was bustling with activity, and the rooms were filled with noise.
Zhou Guo heard a quarrel on the other side, turned his head and listened, frowned, put on his shoes, went out, stood outside the woman's room and the main house and listened for a while, and sure enough, they were all talking about the same thing.
The quarrel in the main room was particularly intense.
The old man sat there calmly, holding a cup of tea, with his eyes closed, resting, not looking at anyone.
Zhou Da Cang and Zhou Gu were sitting together. Zhou Gu was talking to someone intensely, and Zhou Da Cang would occasionally make a comment indifferently, making the person opposite him jump in anger.
She couldn't help but look at Lao Lizheng lying on the kang, and seeing that he had closed his eyes, she sighed. It was true that there was no good meal. She invited people to dinner for nothing, but why did she end up in trouble?
He straightened his clothes, cleared his throat, and stepped into the house. "Uncles and grandpas, it's no use asking my uncle or my brother about this matter. I'm in charge of this matter!"
The noisy room suddenly became quiet. Seeing the pink and tender Zhou Guo, someone forgot what kind of person she was. Someone shouted, "We are talking to the masters. What are you doing here, a little girl? Get out now. You are so rude. Is this the place for you?"
"If this gets out and people find out, they'll think our Zhou family has no rules. A little girl can interrupt the elders at will. Why don't you get out?"
The old man opened his eyes and stopped drinking tea.
Zhou Dacang and Zhou Gu sat up straight and moved back a little.
Zhou Guo narrowed his eyes, but before he could say anything, Lao Lizheng opened his eyes and scolded the two of them, "What are you talking about? You are the elders, how can you talk to the younger generation like this?"
Zhou Guo smiled, "Village head, are you awake? You said that you are old and your legs are not very good. You don't stay at home and insist on running outside. You worry about it. You are afraid that some people are not clear-headed and don't appreciate it, and let you down."
Zhou Gu quickly made room for her, shrank back a little, and moved closer to Zhou Dacang.
Zhou Guo walked to the seat vacated by Zhou Gu and wanted to sit down with her legs apart, but when she thought of the skirt she was wearing today, she had to adjust the hem of her skirt and sat down.
"Hey, how can you talk like that? This is the head of the village!"
The old man sighed, glanced at the person who had spoken, and said in a soft tone: "You have seen it, so I won't hide it. Life has been hard for everyone in the past two years. The lives of every household in your village are getting better and better. They have bought cows and built houses, and their lives are prosperous. Why is it all because of you?"
"Zhou Guo, after all, we are all from the same place. In terms of closeness, we are closer. You have made these unrelated people in this village rich, so you can't just ignore us."
Zhou Guo said, "Li Zheng, during this journey, everyone must have at least 150 taels of silver, if not 200 taels. At least 100 taels. Aren't these enough for you to live on? You should know that in previous years, a family of more than ten people like us could live on two guan per year by living frugally. 100 taels is enough for a family to live on for a lifetime. How else can we have more money? Having money, land, and cattle, and being together as a family, isn't this the good life that everyone on the run longs for?"
In the final analysis, it’s still not enough if you don’t have it. When you see others have it, you have to have it too.
There was silence in the room.
Zhou Dacang's eyes were filled with smiles. It seemed that he was right not to speak.
The village chief was speechless for a long while, and said, "Then...how can they be the same? If you live off the land, you will eventually run out of food. Since we are from the same place, we are a family, equivalent to a clan. We must stick together to avoid being bullied and to go a long way. The children are gradually growing up. There are only a few acres of land at home, and the children are not enough to share. We must let them learn skills and go to school to learn a few words. In this way, everyone will be better off, and your family will be better off too. A prosperous family is not called prosperity, but a prosperous clan can last long. Don't you think this is the truth?"