As the end-of-day bell rang, the sawmill located on the banks of the Volga River stopped working for the day. The workers put down their tools, dragged their tired bodies, and walked to the door to receive today's pay.
"Why is it only 8 kopecks?!" The first worker who received his salary screamed loudly: "There were 10 kopecks yesterday!" The manager responsible for distributing daily wages said impatiently: "8 kopecks is good. , the factory next door has reduced the price to 6 kopecks! The boss saw your hard work and kindly gave me an extra 2 kopecks!"
"Should I still thank him?!" The workers in the queue suddenly started to make a fuss. The front team complained, and the back team didn't know what happened.
But... the news that the daily salary was only 8 kopecks quickly spread.
"I quit! This money is not even enough to buy potatoes!" A worker threw his hat to the ground and left the factory angrily.
With him taking the lead, the workers soon united. They all said they would not come tomorrow and wanted to increase their wages, but the manager sneered, his eyes full of sarcasm.
As if to counter the indignation of the workers, the manager signaled the team behind him to wait, stood up, walked outside the door, and shouted loudly: "We are looking for workers! 6 kopecks a day!" There was a brief silence, and he squatted on both sides of the street for several consecutive days. People who had not found a job for the day rushed up like crazy. They surrounded the manager and waved their arms, hoping to be selected.
"Did you see that?" The manager looked at the workers who had just resigned and taunted with a grin: "If you don't do it, there are people who will do it."
"Why do you work for a shady boss?!" A worker shouted: "With 8 kopecks a day, you can't even buy half a pound of potatoes!" No one answered him, as if the condescending tone failed to empathize. Workers have the same worries.
Even if a day's salary can only buy a small bag of potatoes, it is still food. The desperate former serfs can only endure the exploitation of the evil bosses. They still have children and wives at home, and not eating is a certain life... Can't go down.
"Is there anyone else who wants to resign?" The manager, while recording the names of the new workers, glanced sideways at the team behind him: "If you want to resign, hurry up. I'll recruit them together to save you the trouble." The noisy team gradually quieted down. People are resigning.
Although 8 kopecks is not much, it can still buy some food, and in many cases, a potato can survive.
Huisen is also a worker in a sawmill. He is strong and looks thin, but he is very strong and is engaged in the most tiring transport work.
After a busy day, his clothes were wet with sweat. After drying, a circle of white salt spots appeared on the clothes.
Seeing that the job was so popular, he stood at the back of the crowd and silently retracted his legs from stepping out of the queue.
After receiving his salary, Wyson clutched the coins tightly, ran to the stall opposite the factory, and selected a few small potatoes of good quality, less than half a pound, but it had already cost him a day's wages.
In order to prevent his pockets from bulging, he put the small potatoes into several pockets, avoided the police patrolling the streets, and walked quickly back to his home in the slums.
"Huisen?" Hearing the sound of the door opening, a woman with a slightly haggard face came out. Seeing her husband, she was visibly relieved: "It'll be good if you come back. Mr. Mozeli next door was arrested by the secret police today." It was really terrible... They beat him to a state of disgrace..."
"How is Mrs. Mozeli? Where is their daughter?" After closing the door, Wyson took out the potatoes from his pocket one by one and placed them on the cabinet at the door.
"The mother and daughter are fine, but it seems there is no food...Have prices increased again outside?" asked the woman who noticed that the number of potatoes had decreased.
"No... the salary has been reduced. Now it's only 8 kopecks a day. I don't know what will happen in the future..." Huisen lowered his head, not daring to look into the woman's eyes.
"Huisen..." The woman hugged her husband, kissed his cheek, and said softly: "Thank you, it doesn't matter if there is less food. I just need to eat less." Huisen clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and his chest felt like It's as uncomfortable as exploding.
"Don't do dangerous things. Those secret police are very cruel." The woman let go of her husband and walked toward the kitchen with the potatoes. Suddenly she remembered something and turned around and asked: "Send some to Mrs. Mozeli and the others later. Food, I don’t know when Mr. Mozeli will come back... We are all neighbors, so I can help if I can."
"Yeah." Wyson nodded. Even if there wasn't much food, he was willing to share it with orphans and widows who had no food. Watching the other person starve to death was obviously not what a man should do.
At dinner time, there were three small potatoes on Wyson's plate, and only one on the woman's plate. There was no butter or jam, and a pinch of salt on the edge of the plate was the condiment for the boiled potatoes.
Wyson picked up a potato and put it on his wife's plate. He swallowed his food in three or two mouthfuls. Although it had no taste, the hunger in his stomach was slightly relieved.
As night fell, there were gradually fewer people on the street. When Wyson was planning to go to bed early to reduce physical exertion... there was a sudden knock on the door.
His heart tightened, Wyson looked at the door with some fear, and asked with a trembling voice: "Who?!"
"Scott King!"
"I do not know you!"
"I don't know him either, but as long as you open the door, don't we know each other?" A man's voice came from outside the door: "Don't worry, I'm not a bad person!" Which bad person would say that he is a bad person?
Huisen glanced at his worried wife and decided not to open the door.
"Let's go!"
"I'm here to deliver food! Free food! Mrs. Mozeli has already received it!" Hearing the food, Wyson's stomach growled. He smacked his tasteless mouth and hesitated to come. He reached the door and held the handle.
Click... A thin, dark man appeared in his field of vision. He was carrying a heavy sack full of round things.
"Can I come in?" Scott King asked politely. Seeing that the other party didn't seem to have any ill intentions, Wyson stepped aside and said, "...Come in." Carrying the sack with great effort, Scott King walked into the house, looked around, and then went directly into the kitchen, followed by Wyson and his wife. back.
Untying the rope, Scott King opened the sack, took out four palm-sized potatoes and put them on the dining table: "I'm not lying to you! Free food!"
"You..." the woman asked doubtfully, "Why do you want to send us food?"
"Where are the gifts from the Church of Truth! Every poor person has them!"
"The Church of Truth?!" The woman suddenly widened her eyes and grabbed her husband's arm: "Mr. Mozeli was arrested by the secret police because he joined the Church of Truth! We don't want their food! Wyson, let him go quickly Get out!" Wyson stared straight at the four potatoes that were bigger than his hand, swallowed, and said, "What do you want to do?"
"Don't be nervous, the Truth Church is not a bad person!" Scott King took off his hat and said with a smile: "Are you willing to listen to my story? After listening to it, if you still let me leave, I will leave immediately." Four A potato bigger than a hand, and according to the market price, was equivalent to three or four days of Wyson's wages. After much hesitation, he decided to listen to what Scott King wanted to say.
"I used to be a serf and worked for Baron Brago. Although he collected high taxes, at least no one starved to death. He was a pretty good nobleman..." Sitting on a wooden chair On the book, Scott King slowly narrated: "Later, the king abolished serfdom, and I suddenly became a free citizen. But I had no skills at all. I only knew how to farm. For food, I had to go to Sarato. My husband was looking for a job, but as you all saw, there was no boss who liked a dark, thin, short worker like me, so I couldn't find a job at all... Just when I was desperate, it was Goncharov. The priest saved me.”
"He gave me food, gave me a job, and was willing to let me become a temporary monk of the Church of Truth. I have never seen anyone like him. There are many people more suitable for this job than me, but Goncharo Father Husband treats everyone equally and does not discriminate against me because I am short..." Scott King looked at the woman standing next to Wyson: "Madam, Mr. Mozeli is a good comrade. We are indeed believers of the Church of Truth, but we are not evil existences as you imagine. Everything we do is for the bottom people like you and us."
"Mr. Mozeli was arrested by the secret police because he started a riot!" the woman said.
"That's right. According to Father Goncharov, the secret police was established because the Church of Wisdom and the nobles targeted the Church of Truth. They did not want to see the Church of Truth develop and grow, because the doctrines promoted by the Church of Truth touched upon the Their interests." Scott King looked at the Wysons quietly,
"This is an opportunity for us at the bottom to stand up. The Church of Truth is willing to fight for power for us at the bottom. This has never happened before! Those noble lords and factory owners do not regard us as human beings and want to exploit us. Shouldn’t we resist when they exploit us?”
"But those who resisted were arrested!"
"They can't catch them all! As long as we unite!" Scott King said: "The Romanov Kingdom has a population of 150 million, and the nobles only have tens of thousands! If we unite against them, they are not ours at all. Opponent! Do you know the three bills proposed by Her Royal Highness Katerina at the Senate Assembly?" Wyson shook his head. He knew that Katerina Romanov, the hero who helped the kingdom repel the invaders, Mo The Grand Duke of Skopje, but he didn't know the three bills.... He didn't read the newspaper because he couldn't read.
"The Church of Truth supports Her Royal Highness Katerina!" Scott King said loudly: "The three bills are the bills drafted by Father Mawei, the leader of the Church of Truth! It not only mentions land reform, but also civil rights. , personal safety and other things that benefit the people at the bottom!”
"If the three bills proposed by Father Mawei come true, then everyone will have fields to cultivate, everyone can find a job, and we will no longer have to worry about being squeezed and exploited by noble lords and factory owners! The Church of Truth will become our largest Backer!" Seeing that Wyson was a little confused, Scott King realized that what he said was too grand. He thought about it and changed his words: "If the Church of Truth can achieve the final victory, people like you, Mr. Wyson, Workers, you can get at least 40 kopecks a day, your children can also get a good free education, you only have to work five days a week, you can be at home with your wife on Saturdays and Sundays, and you don’t have to worry about overtime!" Sen understood, he felt like he was in a dream: "Really?"
"Of course it's true! If you are injured at work, your boss will pay you a large sum of money! Because these are the rights we should have! The Truth Church just wants to help us fight for these!"
"What good will this do to the Church of Truth?" the woman asked curiously.
"Father Mavey is a great man. He pursues the truth and wants to create a beautiful world. This is his ideal. Now he is about to succeed, if Mr. Wyson is willing to support the Church of Truth."
"As long as I support Father Mavey...will his ideals be realized?"
"You support, I support, can't it be enough if everyone supports it?" Scott King shrugged: "We should know what we deserve. If someone takes away what should belong to us, then we should also We should take up arms and take them back!" After saying that, Scott King realized that a long time had passed. He stood up, put on his hat, tied up the sack, and said to the Wysons who were still thinking: "You shouldn't Indifference. Today the secret police arrested Mr. Mozzelli and no one speaks for him. Tomorrow the secret police arrests me and no one speaks for me. Then one day when the secret police knocks on your door, who else can help you? Woolen cloth?"
"We must unite as one and help each other, that's the only way..."
"Only can we create a beautiful era that belongs to us!"
