Three days ago, the capital.

Tong Liben, the head of the Ministry of Rites in his forties, stared at the dim oil lamp and frowned, the rice jar at home had bottomed out yesterday, but there was no extra money to buy rice at home.

"Daddy—hungry, you need to eat, hungry—" exclaimed the son, who was lying on the bed, with his mouth crooked and his eyes slanted.

"Son, wait for tomorrow, tomorrow Dad will sell this pepper, buy you rice porridge to eat, sleep, you won't be hungry when you sleep." Tong Liben hurriedly walked to his son, who was suffering from brain disease, and whispered.

"I want to eat meat, I don't care, I want to eat meat, I want to eat meat...... Tong Qiang cried and threw himself into Tong Liben's arms.

Tong Liben hugged his son wordlessly and sighed deeply.

Seven days ago, the household department paid this month's salary, which was still 70% of pepper and linen, and this was the case for several months, so that the price of pepper in the capital was still unpopular even if it was low and low.

And because it is now the season of green and yellow in the north, even the price of rice in the capital has risen to two taels of silver and one stone.

It's a pity that he studied hard for ten years as an official and ten years in the cold, and he couldn't even support his family.

"Master, it's late at night, it's time for you to rest." His wife, Zhang, wore several patched bedgowns and came to persuade her.

"Well, let's go to sleep first, the old man still has something to explain to your brother." After Tong Liben finished speaking, he walked out of the main house and walked to a dilapidated log cabin on the side.

"Zhang Sheng, what are you doing, what are you eating?" As soon as Tong Liben entered the house, he saw his wife and brother lying on the bed eating something.

"Sir...... Didn't eat anything...... I ......" Zhang Cheng was startled and hurriedly stuffed things into his arms.

"Hmph, where did the sweet potatoes come from? Stealing again? Alas! The Tong family's face has made you lose everything! Tong Liben dragged the half-eaten sweet potato and threw it to the ground.

Zhang Sheng stared at the sweet potatoes stained with mud on the ground and didn't dare to speak, this was indeed from a grain shop in the city, he was too hungry.

"Tomorrow, I will continue to sell pepper at the market, and I must sell the pepper." After Tong Liben finished speaking, he wanted to go back to the room.

"Master, now the streets are full of pepper sellers, and they can't be sold at all~!" Zhang Sheng said with a bitter face.

In the past seven days, he has carried the pepper out every morning, and then back in the evening, and now most of the people in the city are counting the money to live, who will take the life-saving money to buy this pepper?

"If you can't sell it, you have to sell it, won't you reduce the price?" Tong Liben naturally knows the current pepper market, but if he can't sell it tomorrow, the children in the family will really not be able to hold it.

"It's also dropped, it's already dropped to ten cents a pound, and it's better to give it away for nothing." Zhang Sheng lowered his head and whispered.

Tong Li didn't say anything, went out and went back to the house, Zhang Sheng quickly got out of bed and picked up the dusty sweet potatoes from the ground, wiped his clothes and continued to gnaw on them.

After being on duty on the second day, Tong Liben simply cleaned up the documents on the table, and walked out of the yamen of the Ministry of Rites towards the yamen of the household department.

"Yo, isn't this the Rite Boy? Why did you suddenly come to my household? Zeng Dechang, a member of the household department, said in a weird way.

"Lord Zeng, the lower official's family is embarrassed, and I hope that Lord Zeng can open the net and allow the lower official to advance five taels of silver." Although Tong Liben was a few years older than Zeng Dechang, he still bent down and asked for it.

Scholars are the most respectful of face, but when he thinks of his hungry son who has no strength at home, he has to whisper so much, which makes him feel very embarrassed.

"As an official of the imperial court, doesn't Lord Tong still know the rules of our court? Salaries cannot be advanced once a month, so please go back. Zeng Dechang looked like a businessman.

"But, Lord Zeng, this month is another pepper discount, now the pepper in Beijing is backlogged, and it can't be sold at all, and there is no rice in the Xiaguan's house, so please ask Lord Zeng to help!"

Tong Li's waist was bowed at ninety degrees, and old tears were already in his eyes.

"It's not that the official doesn't want to help you, if the official gives you the silver Tong Liben, Zhang Liben and Sun Liben will come tomorrow.

There are thousands of officials of all kinds in the DPRK, if all of them are like this, won't they be chaotic? Who can afford to take this responsibility? Please go back, don't embarrass the official. Zeng Dechang couldn't bear it, but he was helpless.

If it weren't for the fact that there was a relative in his family who was doing business and was always honored, he would probably be sad at this time!

In addition, the imperial court took back the land of the officials, and only divided the land by capitation, and most of the officials lost the tenants on which they depended for their survival, and could only live on the pitiful salaries of the imperial court.

Alas, who can be better?

Tong Liben arched his hand when he heard this, and said no more, almost weakly walking towards home.

It was almost evening, the weather was gloomy, and when he opened the door, he saw his wife and brother Zhang Sheng walking into the house with pepper on his back, and Tong Liben's heart was stagnant.

"Sir...... I reduced the pepper to eight cents a pound, and only sold it for six pounds, which is a silver coin. Zhang Sheng took out dozens of copper coins from his waist and handed them to Tong Liben.

"Don't count, you go to the street, buy three taels of pig offal, sell some two taels of soju, and buy some potatoes and sweet potatoes for the rest." Tong Liben's face was expressionless, and he wanted to go back to the house after speaking.

"But...... The old man ...... "Zhang Sheng wants to say, if these dozens of dollars are used to buy rice, save some money enough to eat for several days, if it is such an expense, what will happen tomorrow?"

"Don't be grinding, let's go!" Tong Liben entered the house without stopping.

In the house, his wife Zhang was sewing and mending clothes, and when she saw Tong Liben coming in, she hurriedly went to pour water.

"Dad, I'm hungry—I'm hungry—" Twenty-year-old Tong Qiang had no strength to cry after more than a day, and took out a piece of dirty black cotton out of nowhere and stuffed it into his mouth.

"Son, spit it out, and wait, we'll eat meat later." Tong Liben hurriedly walked over and took the cotton out of his son's mouth.

"Well, Dad, my son can bear the hunger, let's eat meat together." Tong Qiang grinned.

Boom - a miserable white lightning bolt lit up the night, and then a thunderclap came, and it was about to rain.

"Master-master-" Zhang Sheng's shout came from outside the room, and Tong Liben went out when he heard it.

The rain was pouring down, but I saw that the donkey in the shanty was lying on the ground and did not move.

Tong's family is poor, and he never takes a sedan chair when he goes to the court, and relies on a donkey raised by the family as a means of transportation.

"Oh my God! Why do you treat my Tong family like this! Tong Liben walked into the wooden shed regardless of the wind and rain, and cried as he caressed the donkey that had followed him for several years.

He went into the house in despair, but saw a plate of pork offal, two taels of soju, and a large bowl of boiled sweet potatoes on the table.

Tong Liben took out half of the pork offal from the plate and motioned for his wife and brother to eat first, while he took the bowl to feed his son.

"Son, eat slowly, and more!" Tong Liben smiled and looked at his gobbling son.

"Dad, it's delicious! You eat some too. Tong Qiang no longer opened his mouth and motioned for Tong Liben to eat too.

"Dad just ate it, these are all for you to eat, quick, open your mouth!"

……

On the second day, just after dawn, Zhang woke up and saw that there was no Tong Liben next to the bed, so he got up to look for it.

I searched the simple yard and couldn't find it, but when I saw that the door of the hut where the miscellaneous things were kept, I walked in slowly.

The room was black, only two large bags of pepper were thrown in the corner of the room, Zhang stood at the door and vaguely saw something hanging in the room, she walked in, and the pupils of her eyes instantly dilated.

"Master—master—" Zhang cried out.

On the beams of the broken hut, Tong Liben had already hanged himself with his eyes open.

……