After being divorced, my identity as a poet was exposed

"It's difficult...!"

Just two words.

But these two words came from Old Man Wang’s heart!
To everyone's ears, it has a heavy weight!

There are seven people in the family, and the real labor force is Wang Xin, his father and his son, and his two daughters-in-law.

The grandson and granddaughter are both young and cannot do much work in the fields, but they still have to greet them with their mouths.

This is a granary of Wu State.

It’s all Ueda here!

Compared with Ningguo, the yield per mu is about fifty kilograms more, but this family has worked hard for a year, but they can only make ends meet!
If there is a surplus, I think these two brothers should also separate their families.

Looking at this dilapidated thatched hut, it was obvious that Old Man Wang was not lying.

This is the real current situation of the farmers in Wu State, so compared with it, the farmers in Ning State will be no different.

It’s even hard to keep an empty stomach!
At this moment, Li Chenan truly realized the backwardness of this world.

Only then did he really feel the weight on his shoulders.

Wu Qin was also stunned at this moment.

As the only princess of the Wu Kingdom, she has never been short of money in the palace.

When she was six years old, she went to Wu Hui's fiefdom and thought she had seen the suffering of the people. But when she heard what the old man Wang said, she realized that her knowledge was too shallow!
Officials in the court said that the Kingdom of Wu had reached its peak of prosperity under the rule of my father.

If this is a prosperous age... then such a prosperous age is a prosperous age for very few people!
For the most numerous farmers in the world, such a prosperous age has nothing to do with them.

They are all his father's subjects, why are their lives so miserable?
Wu Qin is talented and intelligent.

At this time, she had a difficult doubt in her heart——

On rainy days like this, farmers still have to work in the fields in the rain for the crops in their fields.

On a rainy day like this, the merchants and dignitaries in Kyoto were probably sitting in a teahouse or by a lake somewhere.

They drank tea, listened to music, and looked at the misty scenery. Maybe they could even recite a poem when they got angry...

The farmers who have paid the most have lived the hardest days!

Those merchants and dignitaries enjoying themselves in Kyoto did nothing but lived the most comfortable life!
Why is this happening?

Wu Qin was puzzled.

Qiu Balou also frowned slightly at this moment.

He has some understanding of the sufferings of the people, but he also does not go among the masses like Li Chenan, so he only knows the surface but not the roots.

Now he understands how hard life is at the bottom of society.

This is something the emperor will never see and will never know!

I'm afraid even the local officials don't understand it...or they understand it, but in order to whitewash the peace and their own political achievements, they write up the memorials that were submitted.

As a result, there was peace in the court.

All the officials thought that the world was prosperous and the world was at peace!

Amidst the praises and praises, the emperor became confused and thought he was the destined emperor!
He looked at Li Chenan, the future emperor of Ning State who had walked into the crowd. He had seen the suffering in the world with his own eyes. What was he thinking in his heart at this moment?

Li Chenan's expression was very calm.

Old Man Wang didn't mention the taxes, but he thought they wouldn't be much better than Ningguo.

Exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes are one aspect. In Li Chenan's view, the reason why farmers are so poor is also the extremely low productivity.

Over the past millennium, there has been no major progress in farming technology.

In terms of farming, breeding, fertilization and field management, water conservancy irrigation, and even the improvement of agricultural tools, there is still huge room, but it is limited by the science and technology of this world, all of which are still limited. Not developed.

Of course, there are many more reasons.

For example, grain merchants have pricing power over grain.

Another example is the lazy administration of local officials. They don't have the idea of ​​​​opening up resources. Most of them adopt the simplest apportionment!

And the targets of the apportionment must be the most honest farmers!
They have no culture and no place to express their opinions.

They can only bear it silently.As long as there is such a dilapidated thatched hut where they can live in peace, and as long as they can still have food to eat, they will guard their one-third of an acre of land and work with their backs to the sky and their faces to the loess.

They will not rebel unless they have to!

And the ruling class just took advantage of this.

"Uncle Wang, how is the price of food now?"

"You can't say for sure about food prices, like last year,"

"Last year, the harvest was very good. The rice yield per mu was around 250 kilograms, which is about twenty bushels."

"If we go by the prices in previous years, the grain merchants would buy a bushel of rice for 27 cents."

"My family has 16 acres of land, 12 kilograms of rice, which is [-] dou. If we sell them all, we can get [-] taels of silver. After deducting the roughly [-] taels and [-] yuan required for various taxes, we can have [-] taels and five yuan left. money……"

"But last year's bumper harvest caused a sharp drop in grain prices, and the purchase price of grain merchants dropped to 22 cents..."

"Last year, we collected more than ten dou more, but only sold for more than 13 taels of silver... But the taxes paid have not changed, and the remaining silver is only [-] taels... Excluding the purchase of seeds and so on..."

"If you look at it carefully, you have worked hard for a year in vain."

Wang Xin grinned again, shook his head, and sighed again: "It's difficult...!"

"I don't understand. I received more than ten buckets more, but the price of food is so low. It makes life even more difficult."

"I originally thought I could earn a few more copper coins, and wanted to send Goudan to a private school to learn a few words, but now I have given up. I can only look at this year."

Li Chenan nodded silently.

He looked at the darkening sky and the increasingly heavy rain, and sighed:
"It's not easy!"

"Of course it would be best if Wang Mang could be sent to study..."

Before he finished speaking, a woman wearing a bamboo hat came rushing out of the rain.

When the woman came to the yard and took a look, she was startled.

She walked carefully to the eaves and looked at Wang Xin. She didn't know where these guests came from, and she didn't know how to entertain them that night.

"Xiaomei, go kill those two chickens."

The woman named Xiaomei's eyes widened immediately: "Dad, she is laying eggs!"

Wang Xin raised his neck, "What eggs did dad lay? Just kill those two chickens if I ask you to!"

Xiaomei swallowed and immediately became unhappy with these so-called guests.

She also thought about raising thirty eggs so that she could send them to the third master and ask the third master to take the eggs into his private school.

This is still sixteen eggs short, just two chickens... Isn't this study matter ruined again?

At this moment, Li Chenan waved his hand:

"No, it's not easy for two chickens to lay eggs."

"My people who are staying here will bring food to us, and we will eat together then. I am just out of interest. I happened to meet you, uncle, and I want to have a chat with you."

"I understand your difficulties better now, but I can't help you with anything."

"I gave Goudan the name. This is fate... Ruoshui, take... take ten taels of silver."

Zhongli Ruoshui took out a piece of silver from his sleeve pocket and handed it to Li Chenan.

Li Chenan turned around and stuffed it into Wang Xin's hand, "Wang Mang, you must go to study!"

"It's not that I can have a great future in the future. I can read, use my brain, and have more knowledge. Even if I'm farming, I think I can do better."

Wang Xin was startled and quickly declined:
"Son, no!"

"keep it!"

Li Chenan held Old Man Wang's rough hands and said earnestly:
"Being able to hear your words is something that money can't buy."

"I can't help you with anything else because I'm leaving tomorrow, but I hope your life will get better and better."

"Wang Mang's future... can also be better!" (End of this chapter)