Stone Village, a small village with just over 20 households. During the war, all the men in the village were expropriated, leaving only women. Outside, Stone Village was also called the Widow Village. Widow, the old woman in charge of the village women.
Fortunately, with her, the women in the village survived the war.
After all the men were recruited, they stopped interacting with the outside world and lived with their children. Only the merchants would occasionally bring some salt to exchange with them.
The old woman from the village chief's house was called the old woman Zhao by the villagers. She was a sturdy old woman. She was thin to a handful of bones, but she had a lot of strength. She was bigger than the young guy. He also dug a cellar with his two daughters-in-law and raised chickens and ducks in the cellar.
The women in the village all learned to do this, otherwise they might be taken away by the little officials if they were kept outside.
When the women went to work in the fields, the children were all sent to the village head's house for Mrs. Zhao's eldest daughter-in-law to take care of.
The women in the whole village were all in one place, and they all survived the famine or the war.
The children also survived, thanks to Mrs. Zhao's strong command.
Later, the merchant didn't come back for a long time, and they didn't dare to go out after the village's salt was eaten up.
It was the merchants who reappeared, and they switched to salt again, but the merchants told them that the dynasty had changed, and the emperor was a good emperor, and the tax on farming was very low, and women who set up households could have private property.
"Mr. Zhao!" The woman ran into the village chief's house, and she excitedly said to Mrs. Zhao who was sitting in the courtyard picking vegetables, "The trader has brought salt!"
Mrs. Zhao also stood up excitedly when she heard the words, she followed and walked out: "How much salt did you send?"
The woman danced and said, "I gave you a cart! They also said that salt is cheaper now! Official salt is cheaper than private salt!"
Mrs. Zhao was taken aback: "Guanyan?"
I haven't heard of Guanyan for eight hundred years.
The woman nodded: "He said that the dynasty has changed outside! The emperor has been replaced!"
Mrs. Zhao: "Really?"
The woman is silly: "I changed it, and said that the new dynasty will not collect land tax for the first three years, and women can also set up households!"
The women laughed silly.
Mrs. Zhao's small eyes narrowed.
The woman restrained her expression and instantly became cramped.
The old lady Zhao said vigilantly: "You believe him when he says it?"
The woman whispered, "So much salt, he couldn't get that much before."
The woman felt that what she said made sense: "He just lied to us, what can he lie to?"
Mrs. Zhao scolded her: "It's really flattering to say you're stupid!"
"The little doll of our village!"
The woman's face turned blue instantly. She managed to support her only daughter, and she will live by this daughter for the rest of her life. If her daughter is taken away, she will lose her vitality.
"Then... what should I do? He's at the entrance of the village now..." The woman said and turned around and walked back, "I'll get a hoe! Beat him to death and bury him, no one will know we're here again!"
Her tone was fast and urgent, obviously not the first time she had done such a thing.
There were mountain bandits who had stepped on the road before, and once they were discovered, they did this.
There are no men in the village, only women. If someone tries to break into the village, the women can't even die.
When they killed the first time, none of them dared to do it.
It was Mrs. Zhao who took the only rusted knife left in the village, wiped the man's neck like killing a chicken, and drained the blood.
After the person died, they found a place to bury the person.
Later, the women in the village learned to take up arms to protect themselves.
There are hoes at the door of every house, and if something happens, they can swarm up with the hoe.
Fortunately, there were not many gangsters who attacked their ideas, and they died on the spot. They couldn't figure out how many men and weapons there were in this village, so they didn't rush to the door.
So the women in the village listened to Mrs. Zhao's words very much.
Because facts have proved that what Mrs. Zhao said and did was right.
No one will question Mrs. Zhao's decision, and when everyone is united, their strength should not be underestimated.
The merchant didn't know that his life might be ruined in this widow's village.
He was still talking to the women in the village about the outside world.
"A lot of new houses have been built!" The merchant smiled, his hands exaggerated, "My father, mother and daughter-in-law and I have also been allocated a house, and I will be a salt seller hired by the government in the future! The more I buy, the higher the price. Lower!"
He excitedly shared with the women: "I only have one female doll, but now the female doll can grow up and can recruit children. The baby born is still my surname. If her man bullies her, she will kick her man out and find another one. better one!"
He was said to be a businessman, but he was not too young. He injured his body when he was fleeing for his life in the chaos of the war. If he could not have children again, he held the girl in his hand and raised him in the palm of his hand. In the future, he would point to his own girl to inherit the lineage.
The women exclaimed in surprise.
Is it that good out there now
Is what the dealer said true
The dealer didn't hurt his head and said some crazy things, right
I don't know who shouted: "Mr. Zhao is here!"
The women just gave way.
The old lady Zhao walked over from the road separated by this person and walked in front of the merchant.
The trader knew that the old lady was in charge of the village, and he quickly said, "Old lady, look, this time I brought all good salt! Fine salt! You can't even buy it with money!"
He knew that the women in this village had no money, but every time he came here, he would exchange things for something. Still willing to earn the hard money.
Moreover, he is also a kind-hearted person. He feels that the widows of a village have a difficult life. When the days were difficult, he was afraid that other businessmen would leak their affairs to the bandits, so he always went out in the middle of the night and brought salt over.
"Tie him." Mrs. Zhao gave an order. Although the women didn't know what happened, they still held the rope and tied the man to the ground tightly.
The trader's eyes widened and he resisted frantically. He shouted: "What are you doing?! I haven't hurt you! You can't take revenge for your kindness!"
Mrs. Zhao looked at him gloomily: "If what you say is true, you will naturally be released. If what you say is false, you will not have to leave this village in the future."
The trader was frightened. He was helped to the yard of Mrs. Zhao's house, and a rusty knife was placed in front of him. There was a red mark on the handle of the knife, which was the trace of blood that had never been scrubbed.
What kind of blood is that
Chicken blood? Duck blood? Or... human blood
The trader was tied to the ground and dared not move, scolding himself that he should not be a good person.
Good people are not rewarded.
If you didn't want them to be hard at first, just give them salt.
Before the dealer could speak, he was hit with a stick on the back of his head.
For a moment, the world was spinning, and the sight of the merchant was blurred.
It was night when he woke up again.
"Old lady..." The trader was lying on the ground with a disheartened face, he didn't dare to say hard words, he only dared to beg, "We used to have no grievances in the past, but now we have no enmity, these years the mountain road has been steep, and I also pulled a car to deliver it to you. Salt, even if you don't read my favor, don't kill me..."
"My father, mother, daughter-in-law, and my baby are all waiting for me at home."
Mrs. Zhao sat next to him, and Mrs. Zhao said, "You said, the dynasty has changed outside?"
Merchant: "What am I lying to you about!"
Mrs. Zhao said, "Tell me well."
The trader explained the events of the past few years clearly, saying that he is now a salt seller hired by the government, and that he has been assigned to a house. The family has a place to live, and there are no bandits outside. The soldiers of the imperial court will be on the street. Patrol, those ruffians dare not commit crimes, and the life of the common people has never been easier.
Men can find work as long as they have the strength, and so can women if they want to get out of the house.
Moreover, women can recruit children and establish female households.
A female household can have private property.
Don't worry about being snatched away.
"In that case, I'll come with you, old lady." Mrs. Zhao unbound the merchant herself.
He said to the women around him, "If I don't come back by then, you don't have to worry about me, and you should live your life well. The Ertou family has a good plan. If I don't come back, you can listen to her."
"If what he said is true, I will come back and take you out."
The women are very afraid, and Mrs. Zhao is their backbone.
It was the second daughter-in-law who stood up and said, "Don't make a mark! The old lady has a chance!"
The women were quiet.
Mrs. Zhao helped the merchant up and took off a gold bracelet from her wrist.
This is the dowry that her mother passed on to her, and she was not willing to take it when the family was in the most difficult time.
She put the golden bracelet into the hand of the merchant: "Lady, I've wronged you. You can use these two bracelets as something, and you can also buy something for your home."
Even if the merchant had monstrous anger, his anger subsided when he saw the golden bracelet.
This gold bracelet earned more than he earned from running for half a year, and it was still a solid gold bracelet!
"There's no such thing!" The trader grinned, "I know you are a sincere lady! You never wrong a good person."
Early the next morning, Mrs. Zhao left with the merchant.
The women in the village sent them a long way, and many people were wiping their tears.
The children were pulled by their mothers and watched Mrs. Zhao leave.
"Mother, where are they going?" The little doll looked up and asked her mother.
Mother said worriedly: "They are going outside."
The little baby has never left the village since he was born. He wondered, "Where is the outside? Is there anyone outside?"
Mother hugged him, crying with tears and snot running down her face: "My mother is from outside, and my mother's family is in a village outside!"
As soon as she cried, other women began to cry.
Mother's house is also home.
Out-married women also want their parents' home.
Who knows if her family is still there
The little baby didn't understand very well, but when the mother cried, he cried too.
The widow's village was soon overwhelmed by cries.
They hoped that what the merchant said was true.
The emperor has really changed outside, women can really set up households, and they don’t have to pay taxes for three years of farming.
If that's the case, then they will set up a tablet for longevity for the merchant and offer him incense every day.