The sun was blazing.
Atmospheric drought.
If you stand under the sun for a little longer, you will feel like you are about to be steamed.
It hasn't rained for several days.
The crops in Lijia Village are wilting.
Li Jincheng, wearing a scarf and cloth, stood beside the rice field, holding up a rice leaf and watching.
Seeing the yellowed and dry parts of the leaves, he and the villagers behind him all looked sad.
The day to pay taxes is coming soon. If there is another mistake in this batch of harvest, even if they have money to make up for the field tax and Ding tax, they will not have the money to exempt them from the corvee.
Officials in this era don't do things according to the rules.
If you can't pay, your service time will probably change from one month to several months.
If you don't work in the fields for several months, you can only rely on the old, weak, women and children at home.
If something goes wrong again next year, it will become an endless cycle.
The debt is getting heavier.
How else are you going to live this day?
They either sold their fields or sent their children to work as tenants or slaves in the homes of scholars or wealthy families. Otherwise, he would become a monk, a Taoist priest, or something like that. Otherwise, there is really no way out.
Li Jincheng is a tribute from Lijia Village.
Lijia Village has pooled its efforts to support him in terms of tuition fees and food over the years.
Everyone just hopes that one day Li Jincheng will be able to pass the examination as a scholar, and then the people in the village will transfer the fields in his name to exempt him from taxes.
It's a pity that Li Jincheng failed to pass the exam every year.
However, except for the guilt and self-blame he felt, the villagers did not blame him, and even asked him about everything no matter how big or small.
Because he is the only scholar in the entire Lijia Village.
"Jincheng, Jincheng, tell me, what should we do?" the village chief asked Li Jincheng with a sad look on his face. There are several villagers and elders nearby.
Li Jincheng's face was also very ugly: "In a few days, I will prepare some gifts and go to the county magistrate's house to see if he can say a few nice words to us in front of the county magistrate and be accommodating..."
If they want to be qualified to take the children's examination, a countryman with no background like Li Jincheng can only rely on the county magistrate's nod.
In recent years, Li Jincheng has given many gifts and only said a few words.
But with his status, it is absolutely impossible to become a county magistrate.
After hearing this, the village chief's wrinkled and sad face finally looked a little better: "Then it's up to you, Jincheng. I'll gather all the villagers to prepare gifts for you later."
At this moment, a hunter in tattered clothes ran out of the mountain forest and said, "It's not good! It's not good! Something bad is going to happen!! There are monsters in the mountains! Cuihua and her sister Yangyang are both here." Caught up the mountain by monsters!!"
Orion shouted as he ran.
During this period, he fell several times, but he immediately got up and ran again regardless of his injuries.
When the villagers who were busy heard the commotion, they came to Li Jincheng one by one.
More and more people gathered to watch the excitement.
Not long after, Orion ran up to Li Jincheng and others, out of breath.
Seeing Orion being so panicked, the village chief felt anxious: "What's going on?"
The hunter panted heavily and said word by word: "The three yellow tigers, white deer, and black sheep that often mix together in the mountains are all...all become sperm!! Cuihua and her sister were both captured! "
The words just fell.
The villagers were in an uproar!
These three yellow tigers, white deer, and black sheep that often stay together are almost unknown to everyone in Lijia Village.
A few years ago, a hunter saw a young yellow tiger and a young black sheep growing up together with the white deer, drinking the milk of the doe.
Naturally, this kind of anecdotes quickly spread throughout Lijia Village.
But what everyone didn't expect was that the protagonist of their fun stories would now become a monster!
You must know that since they were young, they have been instilled in them by relatives and friends, officials, Taoist priests, monks, and various myths and stories that monsters are representatives of "bad and evil".
Now that the monster is so close to them, how can they not be nervous and afraid?
At this time, a young woman squeezed out of the crowd. Her steps were slow and she had to be supported by someone to squeeze out: "Cuihua~ Yangyang~ What's wrong with my two daughters?"
Everyone looked at Orion in unison: "She...the two of them were captured by the tiger demon and went up the mountain..."
When the young woman heard this, she almost fainted.
Or did Li Jincheng catch the key point: "You mean, the tiger demon only caught them and didn't harm them?"
The young woman suddenly regained her energy.
Orion nodded and shook his head.
"You should tell me quickly! What is going on?"
"The person is not dead, but I guess it will be soon. I saw Yangyang crying and escaping from the cave. She cried so desolately! But she was quickly captured back by the fierce tiger demon. Then A few monsters were probably going to attack them. Fortunately, I reacted quickly and hid, otherwise I might not be able to come back."
After Orion finished speaking, he still felt scared for a while.
It can be seen from his performance how terrifying the situation was at that time.
How terrifying the tiger demon is.
The villagers were in an uproar again.
Three aunts and six wives, talking all over the place.
"Hey~ It's so pitiful. Yangyang was only three years old, and she just died..."
"There is also Cuihua, who is well-behaved and sensible... ah~"
"It's true that misfortunes never come singly. The man was arrested and sent to serve in the military. There has been no news for a year. Now the two children..."
The young woman finally couldn't help crying and knelt down in front of Li Jincheng, holding his cloth: "Jincheng! Jincheng! Please! We must find a way to save Cuihua and Yangyang! They are not dead yet! Please!" Try to find a way to save them~oooooo~"
Li Jincheng's mood was complicated and heavy.
Over the years, the village had raised him and raised him, but he felt very guilty for not being able to pass the exam and repay the village.
Now the village is facing various desperate situations, and there is nothing he can do.
The guilt and shame that had been suppressed in my heart for a long time suddenly broke out completely at this moment!
He helped the young woman up and shouted to the villagers resolutely: "Everyone, listen! The tiger demon can capture Cuihua and Yangyang today, and tomorrow it can capture anyone in our village! Rather than live in the shadow of the tiger demon for a long time, Come on, why not take advantage of the fact that they have just transformed and go up the mountain to fight with them!! If we win, we will eat tiger meat and sell tiger skins! The whole village will no longer have to worry about this year’s taxes! If we lose, it’s a big deal Eighteen years later, he is a good man again!"
After hearing this, the more the villagers talked about it, the more it made sense.
The fire in my heart becomes stronger and stronger!
I don’t know who took the lead in saying: “Kill the tiger demon…Kill the tiger demon!”
The villagers' momentum was instantly ignited.
"Kill the tiger demon!"
"Kill the tiger demon! Kill the tiger demon!"
Li Jincheng raised his hand, and all the villagers fell silent: "Listen, everyone! Now all the strong men go home to get tools, and then come back to gather here! We will go up the mountain to kill the tiger monster today!"
The villagers agreed one after another, and then left aggressively.
The village chief pulled Li Jincheng's arm anxiously: "Oh, Jincheng! You can't go! You are the hope of our Lijia Village. What should we do if something happens to you?"
Li Jincheng raised his hands to the sky: "Village chief, as the saying goes, Confucius said Cheng Ren, Mencius said Yi! Everyone has taken care of me for so many years. How could I, Li Jincheng, choose to retreat at a time of crisis for the village!"
The village chief wanted to say something more, but Li Jincheng interrupted: "Village chief, you don't need to persuade me anymore! I have made up my mind!"
Not long after, the villagers came back here with hoes or big forks and various agricultural tools.
Li Jincheng led a group of strong men up the mountain with high spirits.
"Kill the tiger demon!"
"Kill the tiger demon!"
"Kill the tiger demon!"
…
at the same time.
Deep in the mountains and old forests, there is a cave halfway up the mountain.
Zhao Lei, who was wearing a tiger's head and body, sneezed: "Hello! Who is talking about me?"
And the little girl who was kneeling in front of him, short and still crying, was Yangyang.
"What are you looking at?! Why are you so stupid? You haven't learned it yet after being taught for so long! Follow me and keep reading! In the beginning, human beings are inherently good."
"Man's original nature is good..."
