Chapter 064

Chapter 064

The sun grew hotter day by day, and the wheat stalks in the fields became increasingly firm.

Although the government's tax increase had cast a shadow over the villagers' hearts, the golden wheat fields still gave them hope.

The common folk were actually quite easy to satisfy. Even with the heavy taxes this year, at least there was no war. With sixty percent of their crop income, a family could still make ends meet if they were frugal. It was better than having their men conscripted for labor.

However, every time harvest season came around, theft in the fields became more frequent.

In previous years, some people would sneak into others' fields at midnight to steal wheat. Some did it out of poverty and hunger, others because they felt pained about having to pay taxes and wanted to compensate from others, and still others simply out of greed—seeing others steal, they thought, "Why not take advantage?"

This year, many new settlers had arrived in nearby villages, so the number of wheat thieves was expected to increase.

Over the past two months, Lingshui Village had arranged night patrols and practiced spear fighting together with the Xiao family. The villagers were more united than ever before. Sun Xinghai took the opportunity to rally the villagers to jointly guard the wheat fields. Those patrolling the village at night now rode donkeys along the field edges, ready to shout for help at any sign of trouble.

As a result, the villagers dared not harbor thieving thoughts, and outsiders...

On the first day of the fifth lunar month, seven wheat thieves from other villages were indeed caught, each armed with a sickle and a large bag.

Sun Dian and Sun Wei, brothers, tied the seven thieves together like a string of grasshoppers and paraded them through nearby villages as a warning.

Those with thieving intentions saw that Lingshui Village was as tightly guarded as a fortress and dared not try anything.

Starting from the third day, villagers began harvesting based on the condition of the wheat in their fields.

The Xiao family also set their harvest day for the third.

The women stayed home, while the patriarch led his sons and grandsons to the fields at dawn.

In times of prosperity, people would leave the harvested wheat in the fields for another day or two to dry before bringing it home. But now, everyone rushed to move it home immediately to guard it carefully.

Young and strong men like Xiao Zhen and his three brothers could cut three mu of wheat from morning till sunset. Xiao Shouyi, in his forties and still vigorous, could manage two mu like an ordinary young man. The patriarch, despite being robust, was still old and could only cut one mu like an average villager.

To finish everything in one day, the Xiao family hired five able-bodied men from new households without fields in the village, paying ten cash coins for a day's work.

One of them was Pan Dai, son of the Pan family from the eastern part of the village.

For such hired hands, cutting one mu of wheat a day was considered diligent. Any extra effort was their own merit. Because it was the Xiao family, all five worked hard as if it were their own harvest. Among them, Pan Dai, with his sturdy build and great strength, cut wheat almost as fast as Xiao Zhen and his brothers.

Xiao Mu, after tying a bundle of wheat, looked over at the five workers and immediately noticed Pan Dai's full effort. He bent over, head down, focused solely on his task, not chatting with anyone.

Xiao Shouyi followed the patriarch's gaze and smiled, whispering, "This lad from the Pan family is good at practicing spears and works diligently. He's indeed impressive."

Xiao Mu nodded.

Xiao Shouyi, bending over to cut wheat, asked, "Father, I've seen the girl from the Pan family a few times. She looks quite suitable for the fourth nephew. What do you think?"

The fourth nephew was twenty-three this year, just a year younger than the third. It was time to consider his marriage.

Xiao Mu smiled, "I asked him, but he doesn't fancy the blacksmith's wife. He told me not to worry about this family anymore."

Confused, Xiao Shouyi asked, "What's wrong with the blacksmith's wife?"

Xiao Mu replied, "He just didn't find her to his liking."

Xiao Shouyi laughed, "Young men usually choose wives based on beauty, but the fourth nephew is an exception. He's picky about his mother-in-law."

Xiao Mu added, "When a girl marries, she must also consider whether the husband's family is easy to get along with. It's the same principle. Otherwise, even if the couple loves each other, conflicts with in-laws can make life miserable."

After all, a married woman moves into her husband's family and deals with her in-laws daily, while a son-in-law only visits occasionally during festivals. Living on the same street, becoming in-laws would be almost like living in the same courtyard.

With enough hands, by nightfall, the Xiao family had brought their twenty mu of wheat back home, piling it all in the backyard.

The women prepared a meat-filled dinner, and Pan Dai and the other five workers ate with them.

When distributing the wages, after the other four left, Xiao Mu offered Pan Dai thirty cash coins.

Pan Dai firmly refused to take more: "My father said this morning that your family has helped us so much. I was idle anyway, so I should help in the fields. I shouldn't even accept ten cash coins, let alone more."

Xiao Mu suddenly grabbed his shoulder.

Pan Dai couldn't dodge and winced, "Ah."

Xiao Mu said, "Cutting three mu of wheat isn't an ordinary task. Look at how swollen your shoulders are. Take the money and go home to rest."

Xiao Ye, standing nearby, complained, "Hurry up. We want to sleep too."

Pan Dai then accepted the thirty cash coins and left.

Back at the Pan family, seeing the copper coins, Wang Shi glanced at her mother-in-law and husband, "What does the Xiao family mean by this? Are they trying to distance themselves from us?"

Pan Yong replied, "Not sure. Maybe they just want to be fair and not take advantage of Dai."

—

The next day, the Xiao family borrowed a chopper from the village head Sun's family. They moved bundles of wheat to the chopper, cutting near the heads, collecting the wheat heads in a large basket to dry in the sun, and stacking the stalks in the woodshed.

Mianmian and Qi Yao, free from school these days, also came to help carry the wheat bundles.

Xiao Zhen and his brothers took turns operating the chopper.

As the sun grew hotter, Xiao Zhen sent the women and children inside to rest. With only one chopper, the men could handle moving the wheat bundles.

Tong Sui was fine, but noticing Lin Ningfang's flushed face and sweaty forehead, she feared she might suffer heatstroke. So, she had Liu Chu take Lin Ningfang back first.

She fetched a straw hat from the east wing and continued helping.

It was Xiao Ye's turn to operate the blade of the chopper. He looked down at his second sister-in-law, who had squatted down to press the wheat sheaves, and suddenly asked, "Second Sister-in-Law, your name is Tong Sui, right? The 'Sui' in your name means 'wheat ear,' doesn't it?"

Tong Sui smiled and replied, "Yes."

Xiao Ye: "So you were born during the wheat harvest?"

Just as Tong Sui was about to nod, Xiao Zhen walked over with an empty basket. While he was swapping out the full basket on the other side of the chopper for an empty one, he glanced at her and said, "The eighth day of the fifth month, right? I didn't forget, did I?"

During marriage arrangements, both families would exchange birth dates to see if their fortunes matched. Neither the Xiao family nor the Tong family had done this, but they had learned each other's birth dates from the matchmaker.

Xiao Zhen seemed to be just making casual conversation, but Tong Sui felt her face heat up, especially when Xiao Ye and Xiao Yan started teasing them.

She stopped gathering wheat stalks, stood up, and walked towards the eastern courtyard.

Once she disappeared into the main room entrance, Xiao Yan turned his gaze back and asked his elder brother, "Second Brother, you actually remembered that?"

Xiao Zhen: "The matchmaker mentioned the wheat harvest when she told us your second sister-in-law's birth date. The eighth day of the fifth month is easy to remember."

Xiao Ye: "Second Brother, no need to explain. You remembered because you like Second Sister-in-Law."

Xiao Zhen: "I remembered the date before I even met her."

Xiao Yan: "True, Second Brother has a good memory. He remembers all our birthdays."

Xiao Ye: "But what about Third Sister-in-Law's birthday? Do you know that too?"

Xiao Yan: "..."

Xiao Zhen: "I don't know."

Xiao Yan breathed a sigh of relief. If even he didn't know, what would it mean if his second brother did?

At noon, while taking a break, Xiao Yan remembered this and specifically went to ask Lin Ningfang.

Lin Ningfang didn't want to talk about it.

Unable to get an answer from her, Xiao Yan turned to Ah Zhen, who unexpectedly became teary-eyed and lowered her head, saying, "The day before the master and mistress had their accident last year, they celebrated our young lady's birthday."

Xiao Yan was stunned.

---

On the fifth day, the Xiao family spread all the wheat ears along the northern road, covering a long stretch. They let it bask in the sun all day, and villagers passing by could walk on it, which helped to thresh the grains. On the sixth day, the Xiao family hitched stone rollers to each mule, and the four brothers took turns leading the mules back and forth over the layer of wheat ears. Under the weight of the heavy rollers, the grains fell off one after another.

In the morning, they threshed the wheat, and in the afternoon, they winnowed it. After winnowing, the whole family worked together to sift the mixed grains and stalks through sieves twice. Finally, only the plump grains remained, which were then loaded onto carts and taken home.

The grains still needed more drying, so they were brought to the rooftop to be exposed to the sun for another two or three days before being stored.

The old man gave the order, "It's getting dark. Go have dinner first, and go to bed early. We'll continue tomorrow morning."

After dinner, Tong Sui and Xiao Zhen returned to the east wing.

As usual, one washed in the southern room while the other washed in the main room. After washing, they lay down in bed, and Tong Sui gradually felt the soreness in her shoulders and waist.

But these were minor issues. She turned to look at the man in the adjacent bed.

There was a question she had asked several times before, so now she remained silent. Xiao Zhen, meeting her clear, dark eyes, understood her unspoken query.

Xiao Zhen reached out and held her hand. "It should be within these few nights. If they come, they will certainly do so before the officials."

The villagers' progress in harvesting and drying the wheat was roughly the same; by tonight, most should have finished threshing. Once threshed, even if not completely dried, it would be easier for bandits to steal and for officials to collect taxes.

If the bandits waited until after the officials collected taxes, there would be little wheat left for the villagers, and they would fight fiercely to protect their food. Therefore, the bandits would arrive earlier, ensuring less resistance. By the time the officials came to collect taxes, the villagers would resent them for taking the last of their grain.

These few nights...

That meant any night from tonight to the ninth.

For the first time, Tong Sui voluntarily crawled into Xiao Zhen's bed, leaning against him, unable to stop trembling.

Xiao Zhen stroked her long hair and kissed the top of her head. "Don't be afraid. Grandfather has everything arranged. Even you have a task."

Tong Sui looked up in surprise. "Me?"

Xiao Zhen pointed to the roof. "If something happens, the women and children will hide in the ancestral hall. Grandfather wants you to hide on the roof of the ancestral hall. If any bandits approach, you're to shoot arrows at them. Of course, this is just a precaution. It shouldn't come to that."

Tong Sui: "I've never shot arrows at night before."

Xiao Zhen: "As long as your eyesight is good, it doesn't matter whether it's day or night. Even if you miss, hiding on the roof is safer than hiding inside."

Tong Sui fell silent.

The roof was indeed safer. Even if the entire village was surrounded, she could escape under cover of darkness by jumping from the roof to the wall of the Xiao family's backyard and fleeing quietly.

But she chose to stay with the Xiao family, not to run away.

Images of Liu Chu, Lin Ningfang, and the other women and children flashed through her mind. Gradually, she stopped trembling, and her heart calmed.