big song poppi

Chapter 535 0532 [Redemption in Paradise]

Zhao Ji said nonchalantly: "The people of our Song Dynasty are rich and prosperous in Henan Province. How can this happen?"

Lu He knew that his family was wealthy and he could carry more than ten or two hundred thousand dollars with him. It was easy to imagine how rich his family was. Such a rich boy usually lived deep in the mansion, with maids and maids at home, and traveling with carriages and horses. , where can I feel the suffering of the people.

Thinking of this, he explained in a deep voice: "The heavy taxes in the Song Dynasty, followed by the many ills of the Zhou Dynasty after the Five Dynasties, were so great that during the good years of the Zhejiang and Zhejiang roads, the people had no food left in their homes, and they had to feed Bianjing. This was still a good year. In a disaster year, when floods and waterlogging occur, the crops in the fields will be destroyed, and the people will have to sell their sons and daughters and their fields if they want to survive. "

"Ordinary people in the countryside can only eat a few mouthfuls of food during the harvest season. The rest of the time they eat wild vegetables and fruits to satisfy their hunger."

Zhao Ji wondered: "There are also wild vegetables and fruits in winter?"

Lu He shook his head: "Of course not."

Zhao Ji asked: "How to survive the winter?"

"Hard spanking!"

Lu He said two words lightly.

Zhao Ji heard the cruelty and coldness contained in these two words and couldn't help but shudder.

Get through it, and when spring comes next year, the flowers will bloom, and there is still hope of survival.

If you can't survive it, then you can only return dust to dust, and dust to dust.

In the Song Dynasty, which winter didn’t freeze to death?

Not surprising.

Zhao Ji fell into silence.

After a while, seeing that he hadn't spoken for a long time, Lu He couldn't help but turn his head and glance.

But he saw that Zhao Ji had fallen asleep at some point.

Pointing at Zhao Ji, Lu He took the opportunity to educate his young son: "Jiuyuan, you must never learn from him in the future. Knowledge is never a castle in the air. Since ancient times, sages and sages have learned from their words. Practice comes first, and knowledge and words come second. Master traveled around the world, Yan Hui worked hard in the fields, and Xunzi asked about all kinds of knowledge.

"You are talented and intelligent, but you have a lazy temperament. This encounter may not be a bad thing for you."

Lu Jiuyuan raised his little face and nodded solemnly: "Father, I understand."

"Go to sleep."

Lu He ordered.

……

"You bunch of pickled things, get back to work!"

A loud roar sounded in the wooden house.

Lu He slowly opened his eyes and found that the sky outside the door was already dim.

Three or five strong men were shouting angrily in the room. When they encountered those who were slower, they would kick them. They were almost treated like cattle and horses.

Zhao Ji was sleeping soundly when he was suddenly kicked on the thigh. The pain made him wake up immediately.

Everyone stood up and walked out of the cabin amidst the curses of the overseer.

After being given tools, they were driven to work in the fields.

Zhao Ji had not yet recovered from his sleep. He was standing in a daze in the field in a daze.

The next moment, a whip was whipped on the head.

But after hearing a crisp sound, Zhao Ji had a red mark on his cheek.

Although these supervisors are ruthless in their attacks, they are actually very clever in their methods, with excellent technique and force control, ensuring that the blows are painful but will not injure the person at the same time.

As soon as the whip went down, Zhao Ji woke up immediately.

After working until three o'clock in the morning, the supervisor shouted: "It's time to eat!"

Hearing this, the busy people in the fields roared and rushed to the edge of the fields.

Breakfast was vegetable porridge, with not many rice grains visible. It was all soup and watery green vegetables.

After eating a bowl of vegetable porridge, my stomach felt a little better.

Zhao Ji kept slapping his mouth, but before he had time to think about it, the supervisor drove him back to the fields to continue working.

While the supervisor was eating, Lu He lowered his voice and said, "Brother Song, I found that the defense here is lax. There is only a wooden fence around the perimeter, which can be climbed over. I just don't know if there are any secret sentries or patrols outside."

Zhao Ji said in a deep voice: "Don't act rashly, wait a few more days to observe."

He wants to escape more than anyone else, but he is not stupid after all. He knows that there is only one chance to escape, so he is cautious.

"Ah."

Lu He nodded calmly.

The juice from the poppy fruit can be harvested multiple times until no more juice can be shed.

The process of collecting is extremely boring and boring.

There wasn't much in the bowl of vegetable porridge, and it was digested in a short time, leaving me feeling unbearably hungry.

"Father, I'm hungry."

When Lu Jiuling was growing tall, a bowl of gruel would never be enough.

Lu He sighed slightly and said warmly: "Where did your father teach you the lessons you did at home?"

Lu Jiuling replied: "The third chapter of Mencius."

"Recite it to your father."

"Shun was raised in the countryside, Fu Shuo was raised in the building, Jiao Ge was raised in the fish and salt, Guan Yiwu was raised in the army, Sun Shu'ao was raised in the sea, Baili Xi was raised in the city. Therefore, heaven will give great responsibilities to the people. Human beings must first strain their minds, strain their muscles and bones, starve their body and skin, and deplete their body..."

"It is characterized by color, produced by sound, and then metaphorized. How to interpret it?"

"..."

Between the questions and answers, Lu Jiuyuan's attention was diverted, and he no longer complained about being hungry.

The supervisor did not stop him, but looked at the two father and son with a playful expression.

When he thought about it, after entering Paradise, he would never be able to get out in this life. He could only die of exhaustion in the fields, feeding Paradise grass. What was the use of learning these things?

The overseer was also very bored. One of the few pleasures he had was to look down on the serfs in a superior manner.

Time passed bit by bit.

Before I knew it, it was noon.

At this time, a strange smell wafted from a distance.

The serfs working in the fields suddenly became energetic, dropped their work one after another, and ran quickly to the row of hay sheds in the east. The supervisor did not stop them.

Seeing this, Zhao Ji's eyes lit up: "Maybe the food is served again."

In just a few days, Zhao Ji went from not eating rare delicacies to eating everything.

Hungry is the most delicious condiment in the world.

When a person is extremely hungry, he will eat grass roots, tree bark and even Guanyin soil, not to mention wheat bran.

"Go and see."

Lu He nodded and followed quickly.

As they approached the hut, they realized that it was not for food.

Under the thatched shed, an iron pot was set up. The poppy juice they collected in the morning was poured into the pot and boiled over low heat.

As it continued to cook, bursts of white smoke came out of the pot.

Lu He frowned: "Madam, what are they doing?"

"I don't even know."

Rao shook his head, looking blank.

Her hometown is in Fujian. Although some people grow poppies in her hometown, they harvest the fruits when they are completely ripe, but never collect the juice. This is the first time she has seen this scene.

Zhao Ji reminded: "Look at these people."

Lu He looked around and saw the serfs surrounding the hut. They took a deep breath and then closed their eyes, with a look of pleasure and enjoyment on their faces.

He also tried to take a sip and frowned.

The smell was a bit strange, not pleasant at all, and there was a faint feeling of vomiting in my chest.

But these serfs seemed to smell the fairy spirit, and the expressions of enjoyment on their faces did not seem to be fake.

In fact, whether opium is swallowed or smoked, instead of feeling pleasure for the first time, it will cause the body to reject it, making it extremely uncomfortable.

But once you get used to it, you will become addicted to it.

The same goes for anything that is addictive, including alcohol and tobacco.

Zhao Ji covered his mouth and nose, frowned and said: "The effect of this smoke is similar to that of Wu Shi Powder, it's better for us not to smell it."

Although he had also cultivated immortality before, what he could cultivate was inner elixir. He focused on health preservation and the harmony of yin and yang, and rarely took elixirs.

He is an absurd person, but he cherishes his life very much.

During the Zhenghe period, a stranger once practiced the Dragon Tiger Purple Gold Pill, claiming that eating it could transform him into an immortal.

Zhao Ji didn't dare to eat it, so he asked the eunuch Wang Cheng to test the medicine. As a result, Wang Cheng died suddenly that night after eating it, which frightened Zhao Ji. From then on, he stopped taking the pill.

When Lu He heard the words "Wushi San", he was so frightened that he quickly took a few steps back.

Gradually, the viscous juice in the pot began to solidify, and the white smoke slowly dissipated. It was not until the smell was completely gone that the serfs gathered around the hut dispersed.

After boiling, the opium becomes like dough, which is put into clay pots and sent to the wooden house for the next process.

In the wooden house, more than a dozen women mixed the opium with sugar and then kneaded it into pills the size of a paper nail.

When the supervisor was not paying attention, a woman quickly stuffed one into her mouth.

After a while, the woman's whole body twitched a few times, and then the whites of her eyes rolled out. Her whole body was in a state of ecstasy, as if she was in a fairyland.

"You bitch, you stole food again!"

This movement immediately attracted the attention of the supervisor, who angrily raised his whip and slapped him on the head and face.

Who would have thought that the woman was not wailing, and there was no expression of pain at all on her face, and she still maintained an expression of great enjoyment.

"If you dare to steal the Paradise Pill again, I will chop you up alive!"

After a few more whips, the overseer gave up.

In fact, Hua Sanniang deliberately allowed these women to steal food, including letting the serfs inhale the smoke from cooking.

Once you get involved with Paradise Grass, you will never be able to get rid of it in this life.

In this way, these serfs would not think about escaping, but would be relieved.

……

Five days passed by in a hurry.

Zhao Ji's originally fair and delicate skin was now tanned by the sun, making him look several years older.

The originally flowing long beard became messy, sticky with sweat and blood, exuding a strange smell, like a beggar.

Even if he stood in front of Wang Yan at this moment, he was afraid that Wang Yan would not recognize him.

But it should be said that Zhao Ji is indeed very smart. In just a few days, he actually learned some local dialects in Quzhou.

Although it is not proficient, it is barely enough for daily communication.

This evening, the sky was gloomy and covered with dark clouds.

There was a faint sound of thunder coming from the clouds.

Anyone could tell that a downpour was about to hit.

Thanks to the upcoming heavy rain, we got off work a quarter of an hour earlier than usual.

"It's time to serve food, it's time to serve food!"

The overseer banged the gong and shouted.

The serfs in the fields were like chickens and ducks, hooting and running to the hay shed.

Zhao Ji squeezed in the crowd, took a bowl of wheat bran and wild vegetable rice, found a secluded corner, and ate it hungrily. There was no trace of the imperial atmosphere.

I can’t help it, I’m hungry.

I work from morning to night and only have two meals. The key is that breakfast is the same as water, with just a few more wild vegetables.

Lu He sat down next to Zhao Ji with a bowl in hand, sifting at the wheat bran while looking at the supervisor.

Seeing that no one was paying attention, he lowered his voice and said: "There will be a heavy rain tonight, which is a good time for us to escape."

"it is good."

Zhao Ji nodded calmly.

In these five days, they found a weak point and figured out the supervisor's patrol time.

Moreover, given the lazy nature of these overseers, it is unknown whether they will patrol on rainy nights.

While the two were talking, a thin middle-aged man squeezed in and sat down next to them.

Seeing this, Zhao Ji and Lu He frowned slightly.

Lu He recognized this man and lived in the same wooden house with them. He often looked at his wife with squinting eyes, but when he saw that the other party did not make any further moves, he ignored him.

After all, their top priority right now is to escape, and they don't want to cause trouble.

Seeing that the two of them were silent, the middle-aged man whispered: "Oh, do you two want to escape?"

hiss!
Zhao Ji was startled, and a trace of panic flashed in his eyes.

Lu He was also startled and looked at the other party in confusion.

Zhao Ji scolded in a low voice: "You guys, don't talk nonsense."

"Don't be nervous, I won't snitch."

The middle-aged man smiled, showing his yellow teeth.

How could Lu He believe him easily? He said with a gloomy face, "I don't understand what you are talking about."

The middle-aged man said to himself: "I've been watching you for several days, and I'm clearly planning to escape. Don't worry, I will never tell anyone a secret, but if you two really escape, just do me a favor. "

Zhao Ji asked: "Why don't you escape?"

"I have been poisoned by the Paradise Grass. I can't escape. If I don't inhale it for a day, I will feel uncomfortable all over. My internal organs feel like being scratched by a cat. Life is worse than death. You are still short-lived. If you run away now, you can still be saved. Besides, even if So what if you escape? Life outside is not easy either. There are endless taxes to pay and unpaid debts. After working hard for a year, we finally look forward to a good harvest. The government comes to collect a wave of taxes first. If we collect another debt, all our work will be in vain.”

The middle-aged man gave a wry smile and continued: "It's better to stay here. After all, I still have to eat shit every day."

Hearing this, Zhao Ji and Lu He fell into silence.

This man spoke plainly, but every word was filled with blood and tears.

Liangzhe Road was one of the richest places in the Song Dynasty, but the people living there lived in such misery that they might as well be slaves to the rebels. It was a big joke.

After a moment of silence, Zhao Ji slowly said, "What do you want us to do for you?"

The middle-aged man looked happy and said in a low voice: "If you two high officials have a chance, you can go to Dongtou Village, Lixian Town. My house is the fifth house on the right after entering the village. Tell my mother-in-law, just say Hu San'er is already dead. Let her not wait any longer and take her baby with her to remarry. "

"Okay, I promise you."

Zhao Ji nodded solemnly.

"Thank you, sir."

The middle-aged man put down the bowl and clumsily bowed to the two of them.

After the other party left, Zhao Ji couldn't calm down for a long time, and he didn't even bother to eat.

"Brother Daoqing, has the Song Dynasty become so corrupt? The people would rather be serfs who rebelled against thieves and suffer all kinds of humiliation than live in the mountains."

Lu He sighed slightly and replied: "It was better when the officials came to the throne. Although it was difficult, they could get through it by gritting their teeth. In the past ten years, the officials have become more and more absurd, addicted to pleasure and building large-scale construction projects, which has made the people miserable. "

"My hometown is in Longquan. When I was young, there were more than 2,000 households in the village. When I left a year ago, there were less than 800 households left. The more than 1,000 households were forced to have no way of survival and fled into the mountains to become victims. "Fleeing mountain people."

Zhao Ji said angrily: "These corrupt officials deserve to be killed!"

Lu He raised his eyebrows and said, "Corrupt officials are hateful, but the root of the problem lies with the officials. As the saying goes, if the upper beam is not straight and the lower beam is crooked, if the official family is close to the virtuous ministers and far away from the villains, it will be difficult for the traitors in the court to gain a foothold."

Zhao Ji retorted: "Brother Daoqing is a little paranoid and has a deep misunderstanding of the official family."

At this point, this guy didn't think it was his fault, but put all the blame on the officials in the DPRK.

"..."

Lu He immediately shut up and stopped this topic.

He found that Song Duan blindly worshiped officials and could not listen to a bad word about officials.

In this case, any further conversation will only cause trouble.

……

That night.

Rumble!
Along with thunder, heavy rain poured down.

Zhao Ji curled up and slept soundly.

"Brother Song, Brother Song."

Feeling someone pushing him, Zhao Ji slowly opened his eyes.

It was pitch dark inside the wooden house. Lu He lowered his voice and said, "It's time to go, otherwise it will be difficult to escape when the rain stops."

Zhao Ji was excited and sat up immediately.

It was pitch black inside the wooden house, and the four people groped their way to the door.

Lu He carefully opened a crack in the door and looked outside.

Seeing that it was also dark outside and there were no patrolling supervisors, Lu He was overjoyed and said, "There's no one outside, hurry up!"

After leaving the wooden house, the four people immediately walked quickly towards the west side of the stockade.

After climbing over the wooden fence, Zhao Ji and others ran wildly.

(End of this chapter)