Wang Zeran handed the steamed bun over and said, "Here you go."

The little boy struggled to move his eyes from the steamed bun to Wang Zeran's face. Seeing that he was giving him the food sincerely, he excitedly wiped his hands on his clothes and reached out to take it.

Suddenly, a skinny hand came over hard and hit the little boy's hand with a "snap".

The little boy instinctively retracted his hand and looked up at the old woman in shock, "Breast..."

The old woman pointed at the little boy and said in a high-pitched voice that was almost crazy: "Who told you to take people's things casually? Why do you remember to eat and not to beat? How dare you eat other people's things? Aren't you afraid of being poisoned to death?"

The little boy rubbed his red hands, his mouth tightened twice, and finally he couldn't help but burst into tears.

Si Sheng explained in a good-tempered manner, "Auntie, how could this steamed bun be poisonous? We are just passing by and we don't mean any harm."

The noise attracted two men and women in the yard. The woman hugged the little boy and coaxed him into the yard softly. The man helped the old woman and asked patiently: "Mom, why are you angry again? What happened?"

"Ask yourself." The old woman said, waving her hands and entering the courtyard.

The man watched helplessly as the old woman entered the house, then turned to look at Si Sheng and the others.

This was probably the Li Ping'an the villagers were talking about. Si Sheng stepped forward and said, "Brother Li, we are from Yi County and want to ask you something. Auntie may have misunderstood something just now."

Li Ping'an looked at the three of them and said coldly: "Come in and talk." After that, he took the lead and walked into the yard.

Si Sheng, Suxue, and Wang Zeran quickly followed.

Suxue quietly looked around. The yard was bare, and there wasn't even a bench. The idiom "a house with only four walls" could really be used.

Si Sheng and Li Ping'an sat face to face on two stone pillars, while Suxue and Wang Zeran could only stand behind Si Sheng.

Seeing that Li Ping'an was still a little wary, Si Sheng said bluntly: "Brother Li, we are going to Zhoucun to prepare to move west. After passing here, I heard from the villagers that you knew something about the situation, and came here to find out some real news."

Ping An's daughter-in-law, who was standing by, heard Si Sheng asking about this, and she "hummed" angrily, then went into the house with her child in her arms, and closed the door with a "bang".

Li Ping'an glanced at the door of the house and said nothing. He hesitated for a long time with a sullen face, and then said to Si Sheng: "You are a foreigner, so it's okay to tell you. If you listen to our story, it will make you happy."

If we take fewer detours, it will be considered as a sign of our good deeds."

Li Ping'an's family was indeed heading towards Zhoucun, but they did not reach Zhoucun.

Li Ping'an started with two strangers staying overnight.

Li Ping'an's family, who lived at the entrance of the village, one day came to stay with two strangers. The money offered was very generous, so Li Ping'an naturally did not refuse.

The two foreigners were very generous. After they settled in, they paid extra money for Ping An's wife to buy a banquet and treat Ping An's family to a meal.

That night, the two strangers seemed very happy. They ate a lot of wine and soon became drunk.

The drunk foreigner told the truth after getting drunk, and accidentally revealed their secret to Li Ping'an. The two of them went to Zhoucun to grab a quota and get benefits.

Hearing that there were benefits to be gained, Li Ping'an took the initiative to inquire, leading the two slightly confused strangers to tell the whole secret.

The two strangers were brothers. They had a relative who was the village chief in Zhoucun. Two days ago, someone specially sent a message to them, asking them to go to Zhoucun as soon as possible.

There is great news recently in Zhoucun. People who are willing to move west will be given fifty taels of silver per hair.

Fifty taels of silver per person was enough to shock people, but the two brothers also said that the benefits were far more than that. When the people who migrated westward reached the western border, the government also gave them land, tax exemptions, and corvee exemptions.

Because this kind of good thing only happens once in a lifetime, there are only 500 places available, first-come, first-served. If you arrive late, you won't be able to take advantage of it.

When Li Ping'an heard this so-called secret, he didn't believe it at first. How could such a good thing happen? Why would he give so much money to one person out of thin air? Fifty taels was an astronomical figure for a farmer.

But the two foreigners swore that their relatives would not lie, and the money was not given in vain. They had to voluntarily move westward, and they had to obtain household registration documents to be eligible to compete for quota and receive money.

The two brothers also showed Li Pingan the household registration documents they had opened.

Li Ping'an was illiterate, so he believed it just when he saw the bright red seal.

The two brothers also said that their parents and children were walking slowly and would arrive shortly behind. They wanted to go to Zhoucun first to grab a spot.

At this point, Li Pingan has basically believed that this matter is true.

Li Ping'an's family was originally poor in the local area. Given such a good opportunity, he naturally wanted to seize the quota, but moving his family westward was not a trivial matter. Since the family was old and young, he couldn't make up his mind at the moment.

Although the two foreigners were drunk, they still had a hint of sobriety in their hearts. They repeatedly warned Li Ping'an not to spread the word. If more people knew about it, it would be difficult for the two brothers to get a spot.

Li Ping'an didn't dare to tell the villagers. Only his family hesitated and didn't sleep a wink all night.

The next day, Li Ping'an saw that the two strangers were awake and wanted to ask for some more details, but the two people denied what they said yesterday, took their luggage and left in a hurry.

The reaction of the two foreigners completely eliminated Li Ping'an's last hesitation. He tried every possible means to coax the two brothers away and asked them to take his family with them to compete for a spot.

The two men knew that he had caused trouble after drinking, and seeing that they could no longer hide it from him, they reluctantly agreed.

Li Ping'an went to find Li Zheng to apply for household registration documents that day.

Li Zheng was afraid that he would suffer a loss, so he refused to open it to him at first. Li Pingan almost knelt down for him, but Li Zheng got tired of pestering him, so he got the paperwork.

Li Ping'an sold his family's land at a low price in the shortest possible time, and took his family on the road with the two strangers early the next morning.

The two brothers said that they had been to relatives' houses in Zhoucun and knew the way to Zhoucun. Li Ping'an didn't have to worry about asking for directions and just walked with them.

The group of them were in a hurry to grab a spot, and the schedule on the road was very tight. They set off before dawn every day and stopped to rest when it got dark. They didn't even have time to chat with passers-by.

Everyone walked slowly and hurriedly for several days. Finally one day, two strangers told Li Ping'an that they were almost at Zhoucun.

For the first time, a group of people rested in a small village when it was still dark. The village was very small and remote, with less than ten households in the village, and it was half a day's journey from the other nearest villages.

The two foreigners saw that Li Pingan's family only ate some porridge at night, so they kindly gave some white steamed buns to Li Pingan's son.

After Li Ping'an and his family finished eating, they lay down to rest early.

When Li Ping'an's family woke up the next day, they could not find the two people. The landlord said that the two people had left last night.

Li Ping'an's first reaction was that the two brothers were too unkind and left them behind in order to grab a spot.

But when they were about to get up and go to Zhoucun, they found that their silver coins and luggage were missing.

The landlord's brother also looked confused. The landlord's family didn't live in his yard at all last night.
Chapter completed!