When the pears are green

Jiang Qingzhou went to Heihe Town alone to sell dried vegetables, and when he came back, he became five people.

There were knocks on the door of Jiang's courtyard. Jiang Qingye opened the door quickly. He was stunned for a moment, then turned around and shouted, "Sister-in-law!"

Song Li raised her head, dropped the clothes in her hands, and quickly ran towards the gate of the courtyard. Her eyes slowly changed from surprise to sadness.

Song Li looked at the three people in front of her, Song Changhe, who were thin, bearded, haggard and exhausted, and she whispered, "Dad, Second Grandpa, Third Grandpa, Uncle Changsong, come in quickly!" Then she reached out to pull Song Changhe's sleeve.

Song Changhe avoided the hand that Song Li extended. He smiled and said to Song Li, "Xiao Li, Daddy's body is not clean. There is a lot of dirt on him."

Jiang Qingzhou looked at the sad Song Li, he reached out and held Song Changhe's arm and said, "Dad, it's windy outside, let Second Grandpa and the others go in, it's warm in the yard."

Song Li, who had recovered from her shock, quickly moved a few stools to the sun and asked Song Changhe and the others to sit down. White smoke began to come out of the chimney of the Jiang family's kitchen. Jiang Qingye leaned over the window and looked at the scene in the yard. He took a few more buns and put them in the pot to steam.

Song Li saw that Song Changsong's left hand was wrapped in cloth with a trace of blood on it. Song Li guessed that he was injured while doing forced labor.

Song Sanshun saw Song Li staring at Song Changsong's left hand. He sighed and said to Song Li, "Xiao Li, your uncle Changsong was young and hot-tempered. He had a conflict with the supervisor and was whipped like this. Fortunately, it was his left hand. If it was his right hand, what would his family do?"

Song Ershun took over Song Sanshun's words: "Changsong was too impulsive. If so many people from the same village hadn't pleaded for him, this hand might have been crippled."

The atmosphere suddenly became heavy.

Song Li didn't know how to comfort Song Changsong, she could only whisper: "As long as the bones are not injured, it should be healed in a few days. Uncle Changsong should think more about Auntie, Xiaohui and Xiaolan in the future. If something happens to you, what will happen to the three of them?"

Song Changsong touched his head with his right hand in annoyance. He lowered his head and said, "I will pay attention next time."

At this time, Jiang Qingzhou pulled Song Li aside and whispered to her, "Xiao Li, find some food for Dad and the others first. Dad said it took them two days to get to Heihe Town, and it was cold, so they must be cold, hungry, and tired. I originally wanted to buy them some food in town, but Dad didn't want to. After I persuaded him, Dad was willing to come over so that they could have a hot meal before going home."

When Song Changhe saw this, he walked over and said to the two of them, "Qingzhou, Xiaoli, we will be back soon, don't bother any more."

Jiang Qingzhou quickly said, "Dad, Qingye is already boiling water. Let's wait until we finish eating before leaving. Xiaoli will be sad if you go back with an empty stomach." After that, Jiang Qingzhou pulled Song Changhe to sit on the stool again.

Song Changhe had just sat down when Jiang Qingye came out of the kitchen carrying a basin of hot water.

Jiang Qingye said to Jiang Qingzhou and Song Li, "Brother, sister-in-law, I have boiled water and steamed buns. Let uncle and the others wash them first. I will bring the buns over later and let uncle and the others eat them first."

Song Li looked at Jiang Qingye with gratitude. She took the basin from Jiang Qingye's hand and brought it over for Song Changhe and the others to wash their hands.

Jiang Qingzhou patted Jiang Qingye on the shoulder, walked to the kitchen and brought out the buns.

Song Changhe and his three companions sat in the warm sunshine, eating hot buns, and felt like they were alive again.

Jiang Qingzhou asked Song Li to stay here and talk with Song Changhe and the others, while he and Jiang Qingye went into the kitchen to cook. These buns were not enough to fill Song Changhe and the other three, but could only temporarily drive away their hunger.

Song Changhe told Song Li in detail what happened while he was doing his labor service.

It turned out that Song Changhe and his four companions, together with other villagers from the same village, walked from Yilu County to Heihe Town. They had to sleep in the open air along the way, eating dry food when they were hungry and sleeping in the wild when they were tired.

Song Changhe brought some silver with him, which was used to save his life in case of emergency. Song Changhe did not dare to show it, fearing that he would cause trouble, so he could only follow others. Originally, he wanted to take Wang Laohan's ox cart back in Heihe Town, but there were too many people on the cart, and the four of them could not squeeze in. Jiang Qingzhou met them there.

During the labor service, Song Changhe and his men had to work for five hours a day and live in the woods beside the official road. Fortunately, it did not rain during the fifteen days, otherwise the cold alone would have killed a group of people. Although the government provided meals, the portions were very small, which could only ensure that they would not starve to death, but it was impossible to eat enough.

"If I work a little slower, I will be whipped by the supervisors. I look forward to the end of my labor day and night." Song Changhe said with a sigh.

Song Li was speechless for a long time after hearing this. She had only known about the labor in words before, but those few short lines contained so much blood and tears.

Song Li became more determined to let Song Xing and Jiang Qingye go to school.

Now it is just labor service, but once a war breaks out, I am afraid that military service will also follow. Once the situation changes, many policies will change accordingly. The labor service once every three years may become once a year, the land tax of 30% may become 15%, and the tax of 40 coins may become 90 coins.

Song Li thought of what he had read in a book before: in the later years of Emperor Wu, children as young as three were required to recite poems orally; during Emperor Taizong's eastern expedition to Goguryeo, women also had to join the army.

Song Changhe saw Song Li sitting there in a daze. He thought Song Li was frightened by what he said, so he didn't say anything else. He just whispered to Song Li, "Xiao Li, it's all over. Don't be afraid."

Song Li finally came back to her senses. She smiled at Song Changhe and said, "Dad, as long as you come back safely, it's fine. Dad, have you ever thought about letting Xiaoxing go to school?"

Song Changhe was stunned for a moment. He did not answer Song Li directly, but silently calculated in his mind how much silver it would cost to support a scholar.

Song Li did not ask any more questions. She was thinking of more ways to make money. Although she might not be able to change her fate, at least she would not regret it.

This era is destined to be turbulent at any time. Droughts, floods, wars, and plagues may crush the Song and Jiang families at any time.

After Song Changhe and his three companions had their meal, they rested for a while and then left the Jiang family.

Song Li and Jiang Qingzhou sent Song Changhe and the other three to the village entrance. Song Li looked at their receding backs and told Jiang Qingzhou what she was thinking.

Jiang Qingzhou walked silently all the way. After returning home, he held Song Li's hand and said, "Xiao Li, don't worry too much. If what you said really happens, it is not something we can change on our own. All we can do is to prepare for a rainy day. As long as our two families help each other, we will be able to get through it, whether it is a natural disaster or a man-made disaster. After I send winter clothes to your parents, I will take you home to see them."

Song Li nodded. The dust of the times falling on everyone could be an insurmountable disaster.

In Wuzhuang Village, Zhang, Song Yue and Song Xing were still anxiously waiting for Song Changhe's return.

They didn't feel relieved until a villager came back and told Zhang that Song Changhe had gone to the Jiang family.