When the pears are green

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, Song Changhe would go to the fields every day to check the maturity of the corn.

The weather has been good in recent days, and the villagers want to wait until the corn becomes drier before harvesting it, so as to save time on drying it in the sun.

That afternoon, Song Changhe returned home and said to Zhang, who was feeding the chickens, "Xiangxiang, I think the corn is almost ready. Let's go harvest it tomorrow. What about the children?"

Zhang nodded and said to Song Changhe, "Xiao Li took them out with a shovel and a basket. They must be digging something."

After hearing this, Song Changhe said to himself, "What can we dig in this season?"

At this time, Song Li was leading Song Yue and Song Xing to pick wild chrysanthemums in a relatively remote place on the Heihe River embankment.

There are about a hundred chrysanthemums in this area, which were discovered by Song Li and her friends when they were looking for cicada shells in the summer.

Song Li asked Song Xing and Song Yue to pick the chrysanthemums and put them in the basket, and she prepared to pick a few that looked like they had well-developed roots and stems to take home and plant.

There were not many chrysanthemums, and the three siblings picked them all quickly. Some were just buds, so Song Li planned to come again in a few days.

On the way home, Song Li said to Song Yue and Song Xing, "Yueyue, Xiaoxing, we have to keep the wild chrysanthemums here a secret. The chrysanthemums can be sold after being dried. When they are all dried, we will see how many there are. If there are many, we will go to the medicine store to try. If there are few, we can keep them and soak them in water. If your throat is uncomfortable, you can drink it."

Song Yue and Song Xing nodded, indicating that they would not tell anyone.

Song Changhe was sitting in the yard, thinking about the taxes for the autumn harvest. After hearing the voices of Song Li and her brother, he walked to the gate of the yard and asked the three siblings who were about to enter the yard: "Where have you been?"

Song Li looked at Song Changhe, who was worried, and said softly, "Dad, we went to pick chrysanthemums and dug up a few to plant at home."

Song Changhe looked at the basket in Song Xing's hand, then at the chrysanthemums in Song Li and Song Yue's hands, and then said, "You guys should finish it today, and start working in the fields tomorrow."

After Song Changhe finished speaking, he went straight back to the house.

Song Li asked Song Xing to pour the chrysanthemums onto the prepared wooden board, and she and Song Yue went to the vegetable garden to plant chrysanthemums.

Song Li asked Song Yue in a low voice: "Yueyue, what happened to Dad? Wasn't he very happy when he went to the field to check on the corn in the afternoon?"

Song Yue looked at the yard and whispered in Song Li's ear, "Sister, it's the same for every family now. After harvesting the crops, we have to pay land tax and head tax. After a while, Dad will have to do labor service."

After listening to Song Yue's words, Song Li also understood why Song Changhe looked so worried. Song Li thought of a sentence: In ancient times, there were endless taxes to pay and endless service.

At dawn the next day, Song Li and her brother followed Song Changhe and Zhang to the fields to pick corn.

A family of five worked from morning to noon and finally harvested all the corn from three acres of land.

Song Changhe asked Song Li and her brother to gather all the corn together, and he and Zhang pushed the cart to deliver the corn home.

The cart was made by Song Changhe using the remaining wood after he finished making furniture for Song Li and some wood given by Song Sanshun.

Song Li looked at the sun hanging high above her head, and she asked Song Yue and Song Xing to go to the field to drink some water and eat some cakes they brought from home.

Song Li continued to bring back corn from other places.

A small cart was used to load the corn bit by bit and deliver it in trips. Finally, all the corn was brought back home by dark.

After harvesting the corn, Song Changhe let Song Li and her brother rest at home for a day, and then went to harvest peanuts in another field.

Although there are not many peanuts, squatting on the ground and picking them one by one is indeed not very friendly to the lumbar spine.

Just when Song Li felt that her waist was about to collapse, there was a commotion in the fields. Song Li looked up and saw the headman and a group of people patrolling the fields.

After the head of the village and his entourage left, Song Li heard someone say that the man in the middle wearing official uniform was the county magistrate of Linhe County, who came to Heihe Town on behalf of the county magistrate to persuade farmers to harvest.

Then someone sighed and said that once the county magistrate arrived, we would know how much tax we had to pay this time.

After this person finished speaking, Song Li felt that the atmosphere in the entire field became depressing.

It took about five or six days, but the Song family finally brought all the crops home.

Song Li sat on a stool, picking peanuts mechanically, she felt like she was almost exhausted. Song Li looked up at Song Yue, Song Xing and Zhang who were sitting next to her, all of them were working expressionlessly, no one was in the mood to joke, all of them were thinking about finishing the work quickly.

Last night, the head of the village sent someone to notify each family to send one person to gather at the village drying yard at noon today, saying that this was to notify the tax collection for this autumn harvest.

Song Li picked peanuts while looking towards the courtyard gate. Not long after, Song Changhe came back from outside.

Song Changhe walked into the yard happily. He smiled at the four people working and said, "Xiangxiang, it's thirty and the tax is one."

After hearing this, Zhang happily said to Song Changhe, "Really? I can put more noodles in it every time I cook next time."

Song Changhe went on to say, "The head tax is still the same as before. Xiaoli is fifteen this year and needs to pay 40 coins. My second uncle's family was exempted from paying the head tax for one year because they had a boy this year."

After Song Li finished listening, she asked Song Changhe: "Dad, do Yueyue and Xiaoxing need to have sex?"

Song Changhe glanced at Song Li and continued, "Yes, they are both under the age of fifteen, and the tax is 20 coins."

Song Li silently calculated in his mind that the Song family would have to pay 160 coins in taxes a year.

"Dad, how many coins are worth one penny?" Song Li had only come into contact with copper coins so far, so she didn't quite understand what Song Changhe was talking about.

Song Changhe thought for a moment and then said to Song Li, "Generally, 70 copper coins equal one qian. This needs to be weighed. If the copper coins are heavier, it will be less, and if the copper coins are lighter, it will be more."

After hearing this, Song Li nodded. Counting all these items, a lot of money would need to be paid to the government every year.

Zhang thought for a moment, and then she asked Song Changhe, "Master, when will the land tax be paid?"

"Just like before, let's do it together with my second uncle, third uncle and others. The head of the village said that we can hand it in by February next year." Song Changhe squatted down and said while picking peanuts.

After Song Changhe finished speaking, no one spoke. For the first time, Song Li truly felt how difficult it was to live in this era.

Time passed slowly, and when the wheat was planted in the fields, the busy farming season was completely over.

According to the previous agreement with the Jiang family, Song Li and Song Changhe took a ox cart to the town on the first day of the ninth month of the lunar calendar, and went to the town government office with Jiang Qingzhou to register the household registration of Song Li and Jiang Qingzhou.

After coming out of the yamen, Song Changhe spoke briefly to Jiang Qingzhou and then took Song Li home again.

Song Li's wedding day is approaching, and the Song family begins to clean the house bit by bit.

On the afternoon of the fifth day of September, Song Changhe and Song Xing put up couplets together.

Song Xing held the broom in his right hand and the paste in his left hand, and watched happily as Song Changhe pressed hard on the couplet with both hands.

After Song Changhe finished pasting the couplet, he and Song Xing stood together and looked at the festive scene in front of them. Song Xing pointed at the couplet and said to Song Changhe, "Dad, let me read it to you. The Song family has a daughter looking for a good husband. They will live together in harmony until old age. The one above is a perfect match made in heaven."

Song Changhe looked at Song Xing in surprise. He asked Song Xing: "Xiaoxing, how did you know him?"

Song Xing smiled and said to Song Changhe: "Dad, Minghui taught me. It took me a long time to learn it."

After hearing this, Song Changhe touched Song Xing's head. He suddenly didn't want Song Xing to do carpentry like him.