In the following days, the Boling County Temple took no action. Only Hu Puguang took up the lawsuit and continued to sit in the County Temple to resolve disputes within the county.
At the same time, the land distribution movement was in full swing in several counties near Boling, and some stubborn local tyrants were constantly being punished in public trials. Moreover, because only the land of local tyrants and peasants was divided, this time the land distribution movement was criticized.
Supported by a large number of homesteaders.
The isolated powerful people generally did not dare to resist, because the five field armies of the Taishan Army were stationed nearby, and resistance was a dead end.
As a result, powerful people continued to offer their land and accepted their fate.
But there are always some people who can't give up this kind of privileged life and status, so a quarrel broke out in the Bolingcui family's manor.
…
In the southeast of Rushui, there is a manor covering an extremely large area.
This is the largest manor of the Boling Cui family, Dunbenbi, and it is also the main line of the entire Cui family.
As a Confucian classics family that has lasted for four hundred years, the Cui family has a great cause and its branches are constantly spreading. In Anguo, Liwu has people and industries.
Nowadays, there are more than 60 households in Guangwubi, with a thousand slaves and 3,000 tenant households. However, the number of households in Boling County is only 10,000 households, and this family accounts for one-third.
However, Tu Li and tenants are still different.
The disciples are almost slaves. They sold themselves completely to the Cui family, and all the fruits of their labor belong to the Cui family. But the tenants are different. They just rent the land from the Cui family, and after paying it to the master, the rest belongs to themselves.
of.
Then why didn't the Cui family accept all these three thousand households as disciples?
The first one is that you can't.
Because the Cui family did not have enough tribesmen to manage such a huge manpower, and the tenants had their own surplus after all, their enthusiasm for production was much higher than that of Tuli.
Therefore, generally speaking, the Cui family will not manage all the captured land under their own manor, but directly transfer it to others. They only need to collect the rent on time.
Cui exploited the tenants very harshly. At first, he wanted to take away seventy-eight percent of the tenants' annual harvest.
However, the yield per mu in this world is already low, and no one is exploiting it. It is just barely surviving, not to mention that Cui will take away 70% to 80% of it, so naturally it is impossible to survive.
Ms. Cui also knew that renting rice at this level was simply unaffordable to the tenant farmers, so they would reduce the amount at this time.
This is where Cui is careful.
They know very well what the people below are thinking. If they set a very low tax rate at the beginning and then raise it higher, public dissatisfaction will inevitably boil. But if it is reversed, they first set a tax amount that is completely unbearable for the people below, and then continue to
Lower it, but at this time you can gain the gratitude of others.
This is human nature.
After several generations of games like this, Cui has worked out a set of standards that will not arouse public resentment and maximize the amount of rice he can rent.
Moreover, in order to make the people below confused about the standards for collecting rented rice, Cui also set up various names.
Nominally, Ms. Cui and her tenants only received one penny of land rent, which was a virtue that Ms. Cui flaunted. Not to mention thirty-one tax, that was a thing of the past.
But in fact, the Cui family has names such as "white land" and "grain cultivation".
This white land means that if you want to rent a tenant, you must first give Cui's land 20 acres of white land. In other words, 20 acres is the head money.
Then the land is not enough for you, you also need seeds. Cui also lends you the seeds, but after harvesting, you have to pay back twice as much. In other words, if you borrow one bushel of seeds, you will have to pay back two bushels of grain later.
This may not sound like much, after all, there is such a saying:
"Sow a grain of millet in spring and harvest ten thousand grains in autumn."
This is only double, not much.
But literati poetry cannot be taken seriously. In fact, in this era, even in the canal fields of Hebei, if you plant a bushel of rice, you will only get three bushels of it.
But those who went to the fields, even sowing a bushel of grain, received only twice as much.
The normal yield per mu is about one stone, and even if one person does not work hard, he will eat twelve stones of millet that year. And millet is harvested only once a year, although some large estates with advanced agricultural technology can achieve wheat-millet rotation.
Plant to achieve two crops a year.
But this technology has not been widely promoted.
So for a farmer, just to feed himself, he needs 12 acres of land, and if he wants to keep one third of it as grain for the coming year, he needs 16 acres of land.
This is just one person, and once the family has more mouths, the required rations must be prepared. And agriculture is about harvesting in three years and famine in one year. Therefore, a certain amount of reserves are needed every year to cope with famine years.
.
In short, if the Cui family's grain-growing project is used to collect twice as much grain, the tenants can work in vain for a year.
So every autumn, after the grain is harvested from the fields, Cui's field head will lead his servants and bring buckets and dendrobium to the field to collect grain.
They first deducted the planting grain, and then collected the rent rice, and deducted two and one deduction. The tenants were either empty-handed or had very little left.
What should you do if you don’t have enough to eat at this time? What should you do if you encounter a disaster year?
Don't worry, don't be in a hurry to rebel yet, Mr. Cui is kind-hearted and will lend it to you.
And this is another big business of Cui's business, which is lending. In short, Cui's arrangements for you are clear in every aspect.
It will keep you from starving to death, won't let you rise up to resist, and won't give you any chance to stand up. In short, your descendants will have to pay Cui's debts and farm the land.
Of course, the premise is that you can still marry a wife in this situation, otherwise there will be no children and grandchildren.
Therefore, outside the Cui family's manor, the fields were full of slaves and tenants, all bent over and working in the fields. It was their bent waists that carried the pure face of the Boling Cui family.
In this deep dock wall, Cui Si, the head of the Cui family, was angrily yelling at his nephew Cui You below:
"Naughty, Uncle Wei has told you several times to read the Bible behind closed doors and not to hang out with those powerful people. Why don't you listen?"
Seeing the indifferent expression on his nephew Cui You's face below, Cui Si felt regretful.
He really had a headache for this brother's youngest son. It was because he had no father or mother, and the lack of careful teaching within the clan, that he developed such a domineering personality.
Just when Cui Si was about to use force to ban Cui You, he heard Cui You say:
"Uncle, aren't those powerful people all friends of my Cui family?"
Cui Si was furious and opened his mouth:
"you……"
But he couldn't talk any more.
Because what his nephew said was right, the nearby rangers and bandits were indeed friends of the Cui family. If local bandits can become big, they often cannot do without the support of local powerful families.
Cui's family is no exception, because they also need some people to do things they don't want to do.
A great family will not always live in the sun. How big its body is, how big its dark side will be.
But can such a thing be said?
Because in the final analysis, those who associate with bandits and knights are all from the side of the family. What does it have to do with the main lineage of my Bolingcui family? My children just want to read the scriptures to maintain the family reputation, rather than willing to fall into depravity.
But Cui Si also knows that it is useless to tell Cui You this truth.
So he could only say warmly:
"It's very chaotic outside now, and the Taishan Army has begun to divide the fields in various places. Although we in Qinghe don't know why, we haven't divided the fields yet. But we can't escape the division of the fields. I have discussed it with several clan elders at home.
I will also take the initiative to ask each house to hand over the land and accept the distribution. So during this period, please don't cause trouble for the family, do you understand?"
These words were meant to be comforting words, but our Cui You exploded after hearing them:
"What? Hand over the fields? No! Not at all. If we hand over the fields, what will we eat? What a stupid idea."
Cui Si didn't come to listen to Cui You's wishes. He said rather forcefully:
"Otherwise, what are you going to do? Do you still want to resist? So what if you pull out thousands of troops? Can you compare to Lu Shuai's tiger soldiers? Don't interfere, you don't understand what's going on at home."
After Cui You heard this, he didn't want to say anything more, but he just felt angry:
"Huh, I don't understand? Just see how difficult this is."
After Cui You left the hospital angrily, he heard bad news.
His companion suddenly told him that his falcon had been killed by a tenant in the village.
But Cui You was brave and fierce and liked to hunt, so he raised a bunch of big dogs and falcons for hunting.
On this day, a falcon flew away because it was not fed.
When Cui You's companions followed him all the way to find it, they saw that the falcon had died in the hands of a tenant.
Cui Youben was very angry, and he asked viciously:
"What's the tenant's name?"
The companion was originally worried that this matter would affect him, so he hurriedly said:
"It's Wei Leizi."
Cui You didn't know this person, so he asked Bandang to take him there.
At this time, Wei Leizi, who killed the eagle, was tied and kneeling in a thatched hut. Judging from the scars on his face, it was obvious that he had just been beaten.
When he saw Cui You coming, Wei Laizi, who had been moaning just now, quickly stood up and wailed:
"Lang Jun, really, I really didn't mean it. If I knew it was your eagle, I, Wei Laizi, would not dare to touch a hair even if I had eaten the courage of a leopard. Please, spare me this time, I am willing
Compensate. I still have an old mother, please."
Wei Lezi felt that he was so unjust.
Just in the morning, he was still chopping firewood at home. Suddenly he saw an eagle flying towards him to catch his chickens and eat them.
This chicken is Wei Laizi's favorite. How can he let this evil eagle succeed? It's too late and he will hit the eagle's head with an ax soon.
Wei Laizi, who thought he could add more meat to his meal, suddenly saw a domino hanging from the eagle's neck. He was frightened at that time.
Because he knew this must be the Cui family's eagle.
Just when Wei Leizi was about to hide the matter secretly, Cui You's companions broke in from outside.
The companions were also frightened and took Wei Laizi back to the manor without any explanation.
But it was useless to accuse him unjustly. Wei Laizi, who had long known Cui You's ruthlessness, knew that if he didn't bleed this time, he might die this time.
But fortunately, Wei Lezi has a somewhat bad reputation in this area. He used to be an old soldier in Liyang Camp, but he was kicked out of the military camp after he had his ears pierced and visited the camp because he violated military law.
After that, Wei Laizi returned to his hometown, where he took care of his orphaned mother and taught some villagers childlike skills.
Several of Cui You's companions had learned a bit of cockroach under Wei Lezi, so they couldn't help but come up to persuade him to make peace. They whispered to the sinister Cui You:
"Since Wei Laizi wants to accompany you, then let him accompany you. This man has some savings, so he is in the right position."
Who knew Cui You scolded back:
"Have I failed his family? Well, doesn't he want to compensate? Then let's compensate like this. Although my Cui family's dog is a beast, the lives of you and other tenant farmers are precious. Now that my dog is dead,
This person will pay for my dog’s life.”
Just when Cui You took the knife and wanted to give Wei Leizi a blow in person, one of his companions knew that something was wrong and hurriedly said with a smile:
"Mr. Lang, I have a way. It will make this Wei scoundrel feel more uncomfortable alive than dead."
Then, this person came up with a solution.
He asked Wei Laizi to build a coffin, and then bury two chickens and ten rabbits with it. He also found eight trumpeters who played innocent things to bury Cui You's eagle.
When the time comes, let Wei Leizi hold the sign of the eagle and let him mourn for the eagle as he did for his deceased father. Every time he takes a step, he must call out "Eagle Father".
Just to let everyone in Wubi see that our Cui family's eagle is the father of you people, let alone our Cui family.
Cui You praised this method and accepted it happily.
On the same day, Wei Lezi sold his family's land, and then found a few former apprentices to be trumpeters. He held the falcon's rank humiliatingly and shouted "Eagle Father."
Originally, his family was ruined and his reputation was ruined. No matter how sad and angry Wei Laizi felt, he still felt that he was unlucky.
But who knew that in the end, Cui You led people to dig his father's grave and put the eagle coffin inside.
Pointing at Wei Lezi's head, Cui You said this:
"Since he is your father, how can he not be buried with your biological father?"
Looking at the bones that were dug up, Wei Laizi vomited a mouthful of blood and fainted on the ground.
Before he fainted, he heard his mother crying in anger;
"I'll fight with you."
…
This incident caused a big fuss. Afterwards, Cui You was slapped in the face by the clan leader Cui Sizhong, and was taken away and grounded.
When Wei Laizi woke up, he saw that his mother had been placed on the mat. He did not ask the villagers present who killed her.
Wei Leizi just cried silently.
The villagers present did not say much. After all, it concerned the Cui family, and they did not dare to have anything to do with it. So after comforting Wei Laizi for a few words, these people also found an excuse to leave.
In the end, only one vendor who often went to the county town to sell goods was left. He looked at the empty-eyed Wei Laizi, thinking about the kindness he had received from him in the past, and gritted his teeth and said:
"Old Wei, if you can't do it, go to the county temple and find the county prince. I saw that the county prince tried cases in public before, and he killed a lot of foxes and rats in the county. I heard others say,
Today’s county and temple are different from those in the past. The Taishan Army has the final say, and the Taishan Army only makes decisions for us poor people.”
Seeing that Wei Laizi still didn't respond, the dealer didn't know what to say. When he left, he silently left a bunch of copper coins and left.
But Wei Laizi still had empty eyes and no reaction.
It wasn't until he lay on the ground for two days and his mother's body began to stink that Wei Laizi disappeared in the night.
When he appeared, he had already knocked on the door of Boling County, and he wanted to sue Cui for killing people.
At this time, Wei Lezi was desperate and could only place all his hopes on the Taishan Army.
I just hope that they really make decisions for the poor as others say.