In the famine, others ate Guanyin soil, but he had space to build a farm.

Seeing the villagers walking away, the old village chief walked to Lin Kunlun. The wrinkles on his face looked particularly deep in the afterglow of the setting sun, and his eyes revealed deep worry.

"Kunlun, is what you just said true? Is there really no food left to sell in the town?" The old village chief's voice trembled a little, and it was obvious that he was very anxious.

Lin Kunlun nodded and replied solemnly, "That's true, old village chief. Today, there are only some broken rice left in the grain store in town. I learned from the store owner that the entire west is facing a food shortage. Although they sent people to several states in the east to purchase, it is like water from afar cannot quench thirst. Moreover, the continuous drought in the past two years has caused the price of grain to soar. This batch of grain can basically be determined to be the last batch in the town."

Upon hearing this, the old village chief sighed, as if all hope in his heart had been shattered: "How can one survive in this world?"

Lin Kunlun also sighed and continued, "Yesterday I heard from the head of the pavilion that the court has reported that they are preparing to levy taxes this year. After all, the court's soldiers in the north consume countless amounts of money and food every day. Last year, the entire western region did not pay taxes, and the court has been unable to make ends meet."

The old village chief thought of the news from the headman yesterday, and his heart became even heavier: "Under such circumstances, why is the imperial court still thinking of collecting taxes? Isn't this forcing everyone into a desperate situation?"

Lin Kunlun added, "Yes, old village chief. Once the tax is levied, I'm afraid everyone's survival will be in jeopardy. Moreover, there is no harvest in the fields this year. Where will the tax come from?"

The old village chief shook his head and sighed, "It is said that people have starved to death in the neighboring Kaoshan Village. Although they are only a few elderly people with poor health, if this continues, even people with good health will not be able to withstand it. What's more, the court is now levying taxes, which is simply the last straw that breaks the camel's back."

Lin Kunlun couldn't help but frowned: "This news can't be true, right? Those high-ranking officials in the court should be able to think of this."

The old village chief sighed and said, "Which of those officials doesn't have a lot of fertile land in Jiangnan and the east? They probably don't know how serious the drought in the west is now. In addition, some local officials probably want to take advantage of this opportunity to make a fortune."

Lin Kunlun looked at the old village chief and was surprised. He didn't expect that an old man from such a small mountain village could think so far and understand the affairs of the court so clearly.

"Old village chief, where did you get this information?" Lin Kunlun asked curiously.

The old village chief smiled slightly and said with some pride: "When I was young, I once served in the southern border. In the army, there were people coming and going from the south and the north, among whom were several comrades from the south of the Yangtze River. They told me all these things."

Lin Kunlun nodded to show his understanding. He then asked, "What about what you just said? Why can these local officials make more money during the drought?"

The old village chief sighed and explained, "It's just like those officials in our army who are not paid for their work. The number of people they report is often very different from the actual number of people. These local officials will report disasters even if there are no disasters, so that they can get tax exemptions from the court. Over and over again, they can gain a lot of benefits from it. When there is a drought, they can levy taxes from the people below, and increase them as much as possible. After all, with the drought as a sign, the court has no idea how much money and grain it can collect."

After listening to the old village chief's explanation, Lin Kunlun felt even more depressed: "Then the possibility of taxation is still very high. Old village chief, what should we do with our village?"

The old village chief was silent for a while, then he slowly said: "Then we can only postpone it for now! We don't even have food to eat, so how can we pay! Fortunately, the drought this time is so widespread that every town is in the same situation. I can only hope that the tax can be waived or postponed to next year because the law does not punish everyone!"

"That's not a solution! People in some places can't survive at all! Now the court has no relief grain, which has almost cut off the livelihood of many people!" Lin Kunlun sighed. He couldn't think of a solution now. After all, he didn't have that much food to give to so many people. And hiding in the mountains was the worst decision. If he did that, he would live like a savage forever.

"Let's just take it one step at a time!" The old village chief didn't know what to say. After all, no one knew what would happen next. Food is the most important thing for people. As long as they can barely survive, they won't do anything exciting. But the current situation is obvious. Everyone is on the verge of not being able to survive.

"Old village chief! Please take some food back with you! I guess we don't have much food left at home!" Lin Kunlun poured out some of the food from his sleep.

"You can't do that! You worked so hard to buy all this!" The old village chief waved his hands repeatedly, with a determined look on his face: "Kunlun, you have to support your family, how can I take your food? You should keep it for yourself. I still have some in stock at home, which should be enough to last for a while."

Lin Kunlun insisted, "Old village chief, please don't be polite. I know your family's situation. This little food is nothing to me, but it may be life-saving for you. Besides, since I already know the situation, how can I watch you starve? What's more, I have been using your wheelbarrow all this time! This is the rent you paid us for lending the wheelbarrow!"

The old village chief looked at Lin Kunlun's determined eyes and was moved. He knew Lin Kunlun's character and knew that he meant what he said. But he was still a little hesitant, after all, this was not a small amount.

Lin Kunlun saw the hesitation of the old village chief and said, "Old village chief, please don't hesitate. These grains are just a temporary difficulty for me, but they are a matter of life and death for you. Just take them back. It is also a small token of my appreciation."

The old village chief felt warm in his heart after hearing this. He looked at Lin Kunlun deeply and nodded: "Okay, then I thank you for your kindness."

After saying that, the old village chief took the food handed over by Lin Kunlun and walked away with a staggering step. Looking at the old village chief's back gradually going away, Lin Kunlun couldn't help but feel an inexplicable worry in his heart. He knew that the difficulties brought about by this drought were much more serious than he had imagined.

As night fell, Lin Kunlun sat alone on the stone steps in front of the house, looking at the starry sky, with a lot of thoughts in his mind. He didn't know when this disaster would end, nor did he know whether he and his fellow villagers could survive this. But he knew that he must find a way to protect his family.

"Dad! It's time to eat!" At this time Lin Hua ran to Lin Kunlun and shook him gently.

"Let's go, let's have dinner together!" Lin Kunlun smiled and held his little daughter in his arms. The little one seemed so light in his arms.

"Dad! They all say that our family is the richest now!" Lin Hua said with a smile.

"Who told you that?" Lin Kunlun asked in surprise, and at the same time, he began to feel alarmed. If everyone in the village thought that his family was the richest and had the most food, then if something went wrong and they encountered some robbers or bandits, their family would be the first to be robbed.

"All the kids say so! They say that only our family can have enough food! There is still so much food! I am afraid we won't be able to finish it by next year!" Lin Hua said innocently at this time. Those kids looked at her with envy, which made her feel very honored.

When you, Kunlun, sat down at home, the families of Lin Da and Lin Er as well as Lin Dashan and his wife all came.

At this time, everyone sat in the yard. After all, Lin Kunlun's small thatched houses could not accommodate everyone.

"Third brother! You bought so much food, why are you still so sad?" Ye Cai'e asked when she saw that there was no expression on Lin Kunlun's face.

"It's okay! It's just that the fields in many villages we saw along the way today were completely dry! I'm afraid many people will starve to death!" Lin Kunlun said with a sigh.

"I've heard about it too. There were two lonely old widows in the village next door who were so hungry that they ate grass roots, tree bark, and Guanyin soil until they bloated to death!" Lin Dashan took a puff of his pipe and sighed.