The village chief opened his eyes, full of worry, "I'm worried. The river has risen and the dam has broken. If you can't pay taxes, will you be punished? What will happen to those families who have no food?"
Jiang Shan didn't understand, "No, aren't there people from the government to manage it? Dad, you think too much, they should be able to take care of it."
The village chief frowned, would he really care?
"The weather this time is so abnormal, it's a natural disaster. If the government had someone to take care of it, no one would have entered the village until now..."
Before he could finish speaking, there was a sound of snoring beside him.
The village chief suppressed his thoughts of beating people, and then closed his eyes to rest. Recently, he had been thinking too much and couldn't sleep well.
He was thinking about whether to vent his anger with Li Zheng first? Look at what the regulations are above. This is a natural disaster. You can't just ignore the people, right?
Before he could come to the door, Li Zheng came with people from the yamen.
The village chief led his sons to welcome him out. He saw Zhang Lizheng, who usually held his chin high, wearing a raincoat, nodding and bending to hold an umbrella for an adult in a robe.
The old man got off the mule cart, his face was serious, he was not tall, but his belly was very high.
After entering the main room, the adult first patted the water stains on his clothes.
Zhang Lizheng showed a flattering smile and introduced, "Sir, this is the village chief of Jiangjia Village."
Then he raised his head as if he was proud and said, "This is our Rongjiang County magistrate, who has come specially to understand the farmers' suffering situation. Please cooperate well."
The county magistrate is in charge of matters related to the Grain Department and tax collection. The village chief had only met him once from a distance before, but he couldn't remember his face clearly. He bowed quickly and asked his wife to pour water.
There is no tea in his house, and he has already prepared hot water.
The county magistrate would not take this to heart. He disliked the fact that the farmer didn't even have a cup, so he just put it in a bowl, so naturally he wouldn't use it.
He nodded slightly, then put on a grateful expression and said, "At the time of harvest, we were hit by rain. The county magistrate was deeply aware of the suffering of the people. He fell ill due to fear and worry. That's why he sent me Come to each village to inspect the disaster situation so that you can compile a case and let the county magistrate know."
The village chief bowed his head and said, "Thank you, the county magistrate, and the county magistrate. I will give you your full cooperation."
"Yes." The county magistrate was obviously satisfied with the village chief's cooperation.
Then Rimasa asked some routine questions on his behalf, such as how many households there were in the village, how much fields there were, how much the harvest was, and whether any houses had collapsed.
Half an hour later, they declined the village chief's farewell, saying that it would be better for them to inspect the situation in the village themselves.
Not long after, the mule cart left the village.
In addition to the path that goes around the foot of the mountain, the way in and out of the village must pass by their house.
The village chief estimated the time and almost walked around the village before leaving.
Seeing his father sitting on the stool for a long time, his face gloomy, Jiang Shan asked carefully, "Dad, what's going on?"
"Do you think there is something wrong with the county magistrate?"
Jiang Shan scratched his head, "Is there any problem?"
The village chief took a deep breath and said, "Close the door and I'll teach you."
"oh."
Jiang Shan closed the door and sat aside.
"The county magistrate said that the county magistrate fell ill. We don't care whether it is true or not. But when the county magistrate came here, he asked questions that were not painful and did not take notes. Do you know a few villages near us? ? There are more than a dozen villages, big and small, can his memory really be so good?"
"Also, did you pay attention to what he was wearing? Maybe he didn't wear official uniform to be closer to the people. But, wearing a robe when he came to inspect in heavy rain? In previous years, the previous county magistrates would wear short brown ones when they came to inspect. He went to the field. Those cloth shoes, apart from the mud on the soles, there are only a few mud stains on the uppers..."
Jiang Shan recalled the situation just now and realized that it was really like this. He felt heavy in his heart. He heard his father ask again, "When I finally asked him if there would be any relief food, please repeat his expression and answer."
The county magistrate's expression was obviously impatient. What he said was that he should first report the disaster situation to your Excellency and wait for your instructions.
"He didn't have a clear explanation from beginning to end. He didn't know whether there would be any relief food when our village was hit by the disaster. He didn't know how to appease the villagers while waiting for instructions. He didn't even mention the most difficult thing about paying taxes. "
These were all face-saving efforts. He understood that there would be no chance of relief at all.
He sighed. He didn't have enough to eat in previous years, and he was going to be even more miserable this year. Every time there is a disaster, there are always people in the village who cannot survive.
His family survived the drought when he was eight years old, but he did not survive the drought when he was twelve years old. In order to save food rations for her children, she starved to death.
He has lived for forty years and has always remembered the disasters every year clearly, so he used so much money to hoard food when he knew his family had no money.
Starving to death is not uncommon.
I patted my eldest son on the shoulder and looked at his young face. He was in his early twenties and it was time to stand up.
He said earnestly, "You are my eldest son, and you are the one who is going to hold up the family. I have been a fool for the rest of my life, and you have to think more about things in the future." , You have to be more steady in your work. Otherwise, when the tiger's head grows up, what family property will you pass on to him? Your wife will have a few more children, how will they be divided?"
Jiang Shan saw that his father's eyes were green and black, and he realized the pressure of supporting a family, "Yes, Dad, I will work hard."
In the middle of the night, their chicken coop fell down. Fortunately, the chickens were small and hid in the corner and were not hit. The mules have been pulled into the kitchen to den, and this time they have to add a few chickens and two rabbits to the room where they sleep...
No matter how disappointed the villagers were, the village chief still had to fulfill his responsibilities as a village chief. He took his eldest son to inspect the conditions of each house in the village. When the rainstorm washes away, the raincoat has little effect, it just protects people from being washed away.
Walking down from the village, more than one or two families were washed away by the heavy rain.
The latrine of this family collapsed, the kitchen of that family collapsed, and some even the main room and bedrooms collapsed. The food was not dried in the first place and was soaked in water.
Someone's leg was injured. Jiang Sanhe came over in the rain and tied a board.
The villagers cried and cursed God, but they still had to live after cursing.
The village chief and his eldest son tried their best to help them move their things. The neighbors on the left and right also helped as much as they could, but no more could be done.
Now that everyone is drying food in the house, who has an extra room to lend out? Even their own relatives cruelly refused. They could only cry and move their belongings to an abandoned house in the village.
This abandoned house is naturally crumbling, and I don't know how long it can last.
The village chief's eyes were red, but he had no choice but to withstand the power of God.
Jiang Shan reminded, "Dad, all the houses in the village have collapsed like this. Over there at the foot of the mountain..."
Jiang Yue and Jiang Nian's house was not much different from an abandoned house. Oh no, it was originally from an abandoned house!
The village chief wiped the rain off his face and said in a hoarse voice, "Let's go take a look."
Their straw hats were almost blown away as they hugged each other and moved forward.
After arriving at Jiang Yue's yard, he slammed the door hard.
"Bang bang bang——"
"Jiang Yue, Jiang Nian!"
