"Oh! So it's called Jiumei! How did Jiumei know me?" Zhang Rui asked curiously
"Last time my parents and I went shopping here, my eldest brother treated me to meat buns!"
"The meat buns are fragrant and very delicious. Ninth Sister has never eaten anything so delicious. I told other children in the village and they all said that I lied to them. I said no, and they didn't believe me. ." As she said that, Jiumei seemed very annoyed.
After listening to the little girl's words, Zhang Rui finally understood why she could remember him.
Looking at this little girl who was thin and wearing thin and shabby clothes, Zhang Rui was very moved. If these children grew up under the red flag, few would care about meat buns!
"I see, does Xiao Jiumei still want to eat meat buns?" Zhang Rui helped Jiumei kneeling on the ground and asked, holding her little hand.
I saw the little girl biting her finger and turning her head to look at her parents. Jiumei's parents didn't dare to speak even with Zhang Rui here, they just looked at her quietly.
"Is it okay?" Jiumei said in a low voice when she saw that her parents didn't object.
"Of course." Zhang Rui said as he pulled out the straw stuck in Jiumei's head.
"Shitou, ask someone to buy some meat buns nearby." Zhang Rui said to Liu Shitou who was following him, and then took out a piece of broken silver weighing two taels from his arms and handed it to Liu Shitou.
"Brother Six, where can I get you to pay for it? Just let me pay!" Liu Shitou pushed the silver handed over by Zhang Rui with his hand.
"Take it, it's not easy for you to get that little money. Besides, how can I ask you to pay for anything I buy? Don't forget, our team is disciplined, and I am no exception." Zhang Rui continued to hand over the money. said in the past
"Since Sixth Brother said so, I'll take it." Liu Shitou said, took the money, and then called two guards to buy buns.
At this time, Zhang Rui said to Jiumei's parents who were still kneeling on the ground: "You two, get up!"
"Yes, thank you, Your Majesty."
Jiumei's parents replied, then kowtowed and slowly got up. His expression was very restrained.
"I am not a king, nor am I called a king. My name is Zhang Rui. They all call me Sixth Brother. You can also call me that." Zhang Rui said to the two people who were still bowing.
"Okay, I understand, Your Majesty...Oh, Sixth Brother." Jiumei's father replied
"Well, what's your name?" Zhang Rui asked
"The villain Chen Shantu, this is Chen Li, the lowly wife." Chen Shantu did not dare to say more and just answered according to Zhang Rui's question.
"Why did you sell Jiumei?" Zhang Rui touched Chen Jiumei's head with a calm tone.
Chen Jiumei didn't know what the eldest brother was talking to her father, but she heard them talking very calmly, and thought that she would be able to eat delicious meat buns again soon, so she waved her little hands happily.
"There is really no other way. How can anyone be willing to sell their children? It's just that the landlord wants to increase the rent, and then the court has to come to collect taxes."
"If I can't pay the rent, they'll steal my wife. If I can't pay the taxes, they'll put me in jail and threaten to behead me. There's no other way."
"We also thought that if Jiumei could be sold to a good family, we might be able to have a full meal in other people's homes in the future, instead of having to suffer hunger with us." Chen Shantu narrated in a low voice, but the lady next to him But he was crying quietly.
In fact, how could they not know that this is just wishful thinking and self-deception. But besides thinking for the best, what else can they do?
Zhang Rui was silent for a while after listening to Chen Shantu's words.
He continued to stroke Chen Jiumei's little head with his hand.
Then, Zhang Rui took out nearly five taels of broken silver from his arms and handed it to Chen Shantu, saying to him: "This is five taels of silver. I don't know how much rent you owe. It's enough to pay back the rent." Have you paid your rent yet?"
"That's enough, that's enough. I only owe four taels of silver." Chen Shantu replied happily in his heart.
"Okay, here you go." Zhang Rui handed the money to Chen Shantu and continued: "However, I have to say something before giving it to you. This money is not just given to you. "
Chen Shantu just wanted to stretch out his hands to take the money, but after hearing what Zhang Rui said, he couldn't help but feel nervous. So, he hurriedly asked: "Sixth brother should show me."
"This money counts as the money I paid for selling your daughter. I see that you like your daughter very much, so these five taels of silver can be considered as me buying her as a maid!" Zhang Rui looked at Jiu Mei who was still waiting for the anxious meat buns, and faced Chen Shan Tu said
"This... is natural." Chen Shantu replied unnaturally.
"Well, although Jiu Mei is the one I bought, I don't have time to take care of her, so she doesn't have to follow me. I just let her stay with you. I leave you to help me take care of her. What do you think?" Zhang Rui looked at Chen Shantu and his wife and said seriously
"Thank you, Sixth Brother. I kowtow to you!" When Chen Li heard Zhang Rui's words, how could she not understand what he meant, and she quickly knelt down and kowtowed to Zhang Rui in tears.
When Chen Shantu saw this, he knelt down and kowtowed to Zhang Rui.
"Bah, this traitor will only win the hearts of the untouchables. What's the use?" Liu Feifeng, who was being escorted behind Zhang Rui and others, cursed in a low voice.
"Mom and dad, what's wrong with you?" Ninth Sister said with some fear as she saw her parents like this. Then she shook Zhang Rui's hand again, raised her little head and said to Zhang Rui: "Brother, what happened to my parents?"
"It's okay." Zhang Rui touched her head and replied.
"Get up! The children are here too, so stop kneeling."
"Yes, thank you, Sixth Brother, thank you." Chen Tushan and his wife thanked Zhang Rui again and got up.
Zhang Rui also let go of Chen Jiumei's hand and let her return to Chen Li's arms.
"I have agreed with you, I will stay with you. I also hope to see you sell her again, otherwise don't blame me for being rude. You have to raise her until she finds the person of her choice and gets married. ." Zhang Rui warned.
"Yes, I will never do it again." Chen Shantu answered Zhang Rui tremblingly.
"Well, you can take this money back and pay off the rent! As for the tax, you don't have to worry about it. As long as I am here, this year's tax will be exempted." Zhang Rui handed the money to Chen Shantu and said:
"After you pay back the rent, you should also return the rented land! In two days, go to the Yamen to divide the land. Your family should be able to get six acres of land!"
"Divide the land? Six acres of your own land?" Chen Shantu asked with some credence.
"Of course it's your own land. Although you don't have to pay rent in the future, you still have to pay taxes. The temporary tax is set at two bushels of grain per mu of land. Can you pay this?" Zhang Rui asked naturally
