A two-entry courtyard house, the brick structure of the gatehouse shadow wall represents the glory of the past, but now the house is tilted, the mud wall is falling off, and the decay of the portal is revealed. Although the bride price is not required when the child bride is married, and the wedding ceremony can be simplified, the money is still a lot of money.

The queen mother is also a strong person, she doesn't want to be gossiped about when her only male is married, so she has been trying to save money, hoping to hold a decent wedding for her son in the future, and her plan is to marry her son next year or the year after.

For Xie Xiuniang, Wang Dou felt a little complicated, Wang Dou was general to Xie Xiuniang in the past, although he was considered a fool and a coward outside, but he was very arrogant in front of Xie Xiuniang, and it was common to drink and scold.

After the advent of the current Wang Dou, from the later generations of unintentional consideration and care for women, Xie Xiuniang can experience that she can't describe this new feeling in words, but she is very happy and looks forward to Wang Dou's return. However, she is silent every time she comes back, she doesn't know how to deal with it, and no one teaches her this knowledge, she just serves carefully.

For this woman, Wang Dou has some pity in his heart, but also a little helpless, there is no common language, no emotional foundation, two people want to live together for a lifetime? Forget it, don't talk about this, maybe this is your fate in this world, it's too extravagant to talk about this.

After the two said a few words, they had nothing to say, and Xie Xiuniang noticed Wang Dou's silence, so she stood aside obediently and did not speak.

Wang Dou said softly: "Xiuniang, if you are tired, take a rest, what about my mother?" ”

Xie Xiuniang had a smile on her face: "I'm not tired, I still have to sort out some farm tools, my mother is inside." ”

……

Wang Dou walked into the back room, and his mother Zhong was weaving, a simple loom, that kind of monotonous action, which had to be repeated countless times a day. Every day, sometimes at night, the rooster crows, only to rest for a while, weaving cloth for some money and rice, her skills are very good, and the woven cloth is often very popular.

Zhong is now less than fifty years old, but his head has turned gray, and the wrinkles on his face are getting deeper and deeper, but his hair is still meticulously combed, and although the clothes on his body are shabby, they are very clean.

She looked at the sky and said, "It's not too early, it's time to make dinner." ”

She smiled and said to Wang Dou: "My mother will cook herself and cook some delicious food for you." ”

Wang Dou smiled and said, "Thank you, mother." ”

Zhong glared at Wang Dou: "This kid is getting more and more outward. ”

……

Zhong was busy on the stove, and the white face in his hand couldn't help changing shape, and Xie Xiuniang was helping by the side. Wang Dou changed into a coarse coat and sat on the side to watch.

Zhong's skills are very good, the movements are like flowing water, and there is a pleasing feeling to look at, since he was a child, Wang Dou's favorite thing is to eat the white noodles she rolls out. However, white flour is precious, how can the peasant family be willing to eat casually, most of them take wheat to exchange for some coarse grains to eat, those white flour steamed buns, white flour noodles, can only be eaten with an open stomach during the New Year's Festival.

At present, the season is not good, and it is good for ordinary people to eat black flour steamed bun scones, and many Xinzhuang people now use bran mixed with wild vegetables, and even grass roots and tree bark to eat.

Later generations advocated white flour and bran mixed together, thinking that this is more health and health care, and the white flour steamed buns every day are actually lost in nutrition, but in this era, being able to eat white flour every day is a symbol of status.

While working, Zhong talked with Wang Dou about family affairs, in addition to farm work in the fields, there were also some autumn grain taxes. Maybe she thinks that her son is sensible and can share his worries, so she can't help but talk a little more.

The summer tax has already been paid, and the collection of autumn grain will soon start again, but last month the Tartars came to loot, and the security of all parts of the country suffered greatly, and many places were empty, hoping that the government could reduce the collection of autumn grain, otherwise I really don't know what to do next year.

In the Ming season, the field endowment is levied in summer and autumn, which is called summer tax and autumn grain. It is stipulated that the summer tax shall not exceed August, and wheat shall be the mainstay, and the autumn grain shall not exceed February next year, and the rice shall be the main (). After the implementation of the "One Whip Law", most of the summer taxes and autumn grains were levied in silver.

The Wang family now only has about 20 acres of land left, and because it is not a fertile land near the river, and the drought continues, the current wheat yield is less than one stone per mu, and the annual income is about 20 stone. From the beginning of the Wanli year's Liao, to the current Chongzhen seven years, the Ming Dynasty has had several tax increases on the field, but the positive tax is actually not much, and it is terrible that there are countless additional factions attached to the local area. There were also local gentry who transferred their taxes to the small people, and the burden of small yeoman farmers like the Wang family became heavier and heavier.

Because of the levy on silver, he had to exchange wheat for silver, and he had to endure a merchant's exploitation, so that after paying the tax, more than half of the income was gone, and the expenses such as seeds, farm tools, and debt interest were not included. The rest is the chewing head of the family, with a family of three eating one liter and five a day, the surplus grain is only enough to support a few months, so that in the second year's grain production period, there are still several months of blank, this is the so-called green and yellow not received.

In the past, in good years, the Wang family could still support themselves, or use the income from weaving cloth and raising silkworms to make up for it, but in this kind of famine year, things are difficult to do. If the family has no savings, or if they can't get through this blank period by all means, most people can only borrow usury except for their wives and children.

However, borrowing usury is tantamount to quenching thirst by drinking doves, and like the business schemes in various parts of Baoan Prefecture, the usury in this territory is also controlled by those gentry, these gentry, who are full of poetry and books on the surface, but in fact act viciously behind the scenes, borrowing usury, the final result is further poverty and complete bankruptcy.

For example, the Li family in Xinzhuang is a well-known money lender in Baoan Prefecture, Wang Dou is sure that if his family borrows a loan shark from the Li family, in a few years, not to mention that the rest of his family is gone, it is a question whether the ancestral house he lives in front of him can be kept.

The Zhong family came one by one, although the words were relaxed, I believe that the Wang family can tide over all kinds of difficulties, all these years have been like this, but the heaviness and hardship in the heart Wang Dou can be experienced.

His heart was heavy, and survival was a serious problem.

……