Winning the examination was a great joy. After the excitement wore off, Liu Quan hurried to a shop to buy some good tea.
Nowadays, my husband is also a person of status, and distinguished guests will inevitably visit his home. As for the cheap tea that my mother-in-law bought for cheap, how can I have the nerve to serve it to the guests?
I need to change it to something better!
Oh, I guessed it correctly and bought the tea correctly.
Starting from the next day, there was an endless stream of guests coming and going at home, and the good tea really came in handy.
There were all kinds of people coming, and there were all kinds of people.
There are petty officials from the government office, as well as instructions, instructions, and classmates from the government school. There are even some "relatives" who are beyond reach, and they come over to recognize their relatives.
Of course, they didn't come empty-handed, they all came with congratulations.
There was no other way, so Liu Quan had to learn to be reserved and treat each other with courtesy.
In particular, I haven't learned the ritual of holding back my hands, so why should I press my hands to the left? Or press to the right?
Forget it, forget it, just follow the example, no one will blame you anyway.
Zhou, however, quietly ran into the storage room. After seeing more and more gifts piled up, she felt extremely happy.
She also told her daughter-in-law in private which family had more gifts, which family had less gifts, and whose gifts were shoddy.
In fact, Liu Quan had already memorized it in a small notebook, so how could it be messed up?
This is the benefit of literacy.
…
For the government, this is a cultural and educational event.
In just two days, the imperial examination report spread quickly throughout Yongchuan Mansion.
There was an uproar in every county.
In the words of ordinary people, the current Yongchuan Mansion has really become a Wenquxingzhatui!
No!
After this subject, Yongchuan Prefecture won a total of eight candidates, including a Yayuan and a Yakui. It has truly become a place worthy of the name of outstanding people and talented people.
Some old boys lamented that such good news had not happened in many years. It was not an exaggeration to call it a grand occasion.
Especially the barren and remote Lanshan County has become famous this time. I heard that Yayuan and Yakui are both from here.
wrong!
Another well-informed person refuted.
They said that Mr. Qi from Yakui has now separated from the Qi family clan and settled in Shifu City to buy property. Therefore, he is no longer considered to be from Lanshan County.
Oh, I see!
Everyone was stunned.
On this day, Liu Quan counted on his fingers and estimated that his husband would be back soon, so he prepared some chicken and duck ingredients to replenish his health when he came back.
necessary.
I heard from those old scholars that the provincial examination is very difficult. A strong man will peel off his skin after passing it, let alone a husband?
Bang bang...
Suddenly there was a knock on the door.
Could it be that he rushed back?
Liu Quan quickly took off her apron and ran to open the door.
But he saw two men, one old and one young, standing outside the door.
It was none other than the old patriarch of the Qi family, Qi Zhuchang, and his grandson Qi Yuanzhen.
Huh?
Why are they here?
Haha, I must go to the Three Treasures Hall for nothing!
The two of them were about to take a step into the house, but unexpectedly, Liu Quan took a step forward and stood in the middle of the door with his hands on his hips, as if he didn't welcome visitors.
Ahem!
Qi Zhuchang straightened his chest and coughed dryly, still acting like an elder.
Liu Quan's face was neither happy nor worried, and he just said coldly: "What are you doing?"
This is so cool!
Qi Zhuchang's face froze when he heard this, but he still managed a kind smile and said: "I said my grandnephew's wife..."
Before he could say anything, Liu Quan grabbed the conversation and said proudly: "The title is wrong, you should call me - madam!"
lady?
Do you want me, an elder, to bow down to your wife?
So embarrassing~~~
Qi Zhu is an old man, pretending to be confused despite his understanding, but still said kindly: "Haha, we are all a family, why are we so different?"
"Family?" Liu Quan smiled upon hearing this, "Then tell me, where is my home now?"
"..."
"Sister-in-law, how can you talk to your elders like this? Do you still know how to respect your elders?" Qi Yuanzhen showed a sullen expression.
However, Liu Quan's face tightened and he said: "Why are you so mean? Are you so mean at the door of my house? Do you still have the nerve to say respect for elders? Why do you respect elders? My husband-in-law even moved his ancestral graves here, Taohua Are there any 'old' people in the village?"
After that, there was another moment of embarrassment...
"Sister-in-law, you can't just let us stand here, right? Why do you want us to have a cup of tea?"
"Oh? You want to enter the house? Haha, I'm not welcome!"
"I said my grandnephew's wife..."
"Call me—ma'am!"
…
As a last resort, Qi Zhuchang had no choice but to bend down and say respectfully: "Madam, is your A'hao at home?"
"Huh?" Liu Quan was unhappy again, "Can you call me Ah Man? You have to call him Mr. Qi!"
Ahem! Isn’t this a mess?
Liu Quan didn't dislike this at all.
Being called old? It doesn't matter, as long as my husband doesn't think I'm old!
After that, it was quiet again.
"Well... I said, Master Qi, is he at home now?"
"Master, he went out and hasn't come back yet. If you have anything, you can tell me, madam!"
Qi Qiuchuan's face was as red as an eggplant. After struggling for a while, he bowed and said, "Old man, I came all the way here to ask for something."
Oh, did you bow?
Haha~~
Liu Quan deliberately refused to give in and accepted the offer calmly.
"Do you have anything to ask for?"
"Yes, ma'am."
clang!
The ten cents were thrown on the ground.
Liu Quan smiled and said: "Forget it, since you opened your mouth, I will do my best to help you. Don't be too little with the money, just spend it!"
this……
Why do you feel like you are sending a beggar away?
With such stimulation, Qi Qiuchuan's face turned even redder. He suppressed his anger and said sarcastically: "Madam, my family has more than fifty acres of fertile land, and I have not yet been reduced to begging! I came here mainly because I want to I asked Ah Ma to...oh, no, I want to ask Mr. Qi to write a page of documents."
Documents?
Liu Quan was very curious and couldn't help asking: "What is the document for?"
Qi Qiuchuan said: "It is a document used to protect the Qi family members. For Mr. Qi, this is just a trivial matter."
shelter?
What's the meaning?
Liu Quan thought about it carefully for a moment and then suddenly realized.
I heard my husband say before that a juren is a matter of fame and status, and he enjoys some legal privileges. To be more precise, a juren can protect the entire family and forgive the tax on four hundred acres of land. In addition, he can also be exempted from taxes. corvée.
Could it be that they wanted to be exempted from the food tax, so they came to ask for help?
Humph, what a stingy family they are, not even willing to pay thirty-one tax for the national royal grain?
Still want your husband to protect you?
It’s weird to help you!
So, Liu Quan laughed and said: "You can't be too stingy! Before I came here, my mother-in-law and husband-in-law depended on each other for life, and even their orphans and widowers could pay the grain tax. How could you have a bunch of big men in your family?" Can’t we pay it yet?”
Qi Qiuchuan was startled, shook his head and said, "What I'm here to ask for is not a pardon for grain taxes, but an exemption from corvee!"
…
The so-called corvee refers to unpaid labor performed in response to national recruitment, including manual labor, miscellaneous labor, military service, etc.
Generally speaking, this kind of decree is usually promulgated by the Ministry of Industry of the imperial court, and local officials will select men according to the household registration books. The most common corvées include: building dams, building roads and bridges, building city walls, etc.
Qi Qiuchuan bowed again and begged: "Please take care of me, madam."
But Liu Quan shook his head and said: "It is a national law, and you have to do the corvée that you have to do. If you don't want to do it, can't you spend money to redeem it?"
Yes, corvee can be paid for.
No matter when the time comes, money will come in handy.
"This time I am not doing ordinary corvee work, I am building the Great Wall!"
! !
Build the Great Wall?
Among all the corvee projects, this is definitely the most frightening project. Who is not afraid of it?
Building the Great Wall is not only hard work, but also fatal.
The most famous one is the Qin Dynasty. The First Emperor ordered the entire country to work hard, leaving corpses everywhere among the people. It is said that under the Great Wall, all the dead bones were piled up.
In addition, in the third to fourth years of Emperor Yang's great career in the Sui Dynasty, he built the Great Wall east of Yulin. He mobilized 1.2 million men twice, and more than half of them died.
Even storytellers know these tragic events by heart. Who doesn’t know?
However, this Great Wall has not been repaired for hundreds of years. Why is it suddenly being conscripted now? "
Could it be that there is going to be a war?
Seeing her solemn expression, Qi Qiuchuan thought she had persuaded her, and hurriedly begged: "Building the Great Wall is not as good as digging mountains and building roads, which will kill people, and the redemption of corvee is not ordinary expensive, enough to bankrupt the family."
oh?
It's 'enough'!
That is to say, the family still has money, but they are reluctant to spend it?
Haha~~
Liu Quan smiled and said: "I can't help you, so you should hire someone else!"
"you!"
Qi Qiuchuan was so angry that he didn't dare to explode. Yes, now that people are in power, they can’t be bullied but they can’t be bullied, and they can’t be scolded but they dare not scold them. What else can they do?
If you don’t want to help, then let’s go!
So the grandfather and grandson left in despair.
After walking less than a hundred feet, Qi Yuanzhen said angrily: "This damn woman is so hateful! Humph, why didn't the fire burn her to death?"
Qi Qiuchuan also gritted his teeth and said, "You should also take part in the imperial examination. If our family becomes powerful one day, let's see how I deal with them!"
"..."
Liu Quan looked at their leaving figures and smiled proudly.
