xymnovel Chapter 44 A Village with Only One Household
Chapter 44 A Village with Only One Household
Heyang Ferry, located north of Luoyang, was one of the three major Yellow River ferry crossings in the early Tang Dynasty.
A ferry bridge is constructed by placing a row of light boats on the bottom, with wooden planks laid on top, and hemp ropes used as lining at both ends of the riverbank. It serves as a bridge during droughts and as a boat during floods.
The bridge was wide enough for two carriages to pass side by side, but the ferry crossing had been closed early this morning and would not be opened until their group had crossed.
After leaving Luoyang, Wei Zheng's cold had healed. He had Yan Liben ride in the carriage, while he and Shen Ce and the others rode horses, so they could better understand the lives of the local people.
As the angels were about to step onto the pontoon bridge, the soldiers on both sides of the river drew their swords and stared menacingly at those below, fearing that someone might be foolish enough to offend their superiors.
Shen Ce ignored the soldiers' unusual behavior. Instead, he noticed that although the vendors on the shore had their heads down, their eagerness was written all over their faces, and their feet had left countless footprints on the yellow earth of the shore.
Shen Ce shouted, "Speed up, everyone!" and then took the lead, walking towards the other side of the Yellow River.
Looking at the short distance on the map, it would take several days to travel on horseback; the distance from Luoyang to Weizhou was over three hundred li.
More than twenty riders rode along the official road, raising clouds of dust. Wei Zheng, who loved the people like his own children, did not stop them. Instead, he rode very fast because... there was no one else on the road except them.
Along the official road, what should have been lush green millet seedlings were now nothing but withered stems and leaves, lying stiffly on the ground, easily crushed into powder with a pinch of the hand. The fields below were cracked, like mouths open, eagerly awaiting food, waiting for the nourishment of heaven.
Looking at the carts laden with dried meat and flatbreads behind him, Shen Ce teased Wei Zheng beside him, "Lord Wei, now you know why I brought so many carts of dried rations from Luoyang. If we arrive at the post station and the postmaster serves you a bowl of porridge without rice, will you eat it?"
Wei Zheng snorted coldly and said sarcastically, "You're just greedy and afraid you won't have any food in Shandong, so you begged for food and drink from Minister Wen. Don't use the excuse of helping your superior; it's disgusting."
Furthermore, I won't say anything about you taking the flatbread and sesame cakes, but you also took more than ten smoked chickens and ten jars of grape wine. I wonder how much you've bribed Wen Daya."
Shen Ce smiled but didn't explain. He would just bring as much food as he could, otherwise he wouldn't have any to give when the time came...
In just over ten days, Shen Ce and Wei Zheng's relationship progressed rapidly; they could now exchange sarcastic remarks and even gain the upper hand.
Wei Zheng shook his head, dismounted, walked into the field, picked up a shriveled millet seedling, and put it into his bag.
"Such good land, yet no one lives here," Wei Zheng sighed, gazing at the vast expanse of barren land before him.
Shen Ce didn't know how to answer. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, the eighteen rebel kings vied for control of the Central Plains. To put it nicely, they were fighting for supremacy, but every meritorious service of the generals was built on the sacrifice of lives.
Wei Zheng was not a pedantic scholar; he did not sit in the fields and spontaneously compose poems expressing his concern for the country and its people. Instead, he raised his whip and continued on his way.
As they approached the border of Weizhou, the millet seedlings along the official road gradually turned green. Although they were scattered here and there, they were not completely barren, so the group decided to go forward and investigate.
At noon, in the vast expanse of earthen villages, one house was still emitting smoke from its chimney. In order not to frighten the villagers, Wei Zheng, Shen Ce, and Cheng Chumo went to investigate.
When they were almost at the farmland, the three of them dismounted to prevent the horses from trampling the crops.
The plow rustled softly underfoot as the women toiled in the withered fields. Seeing the noise ahead, they put down their plows and looked up to see two armored soldiers and an official in a red robe slowly approaching. They couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "The soldiers are here!"
The woman grabbed a handful of weeds from the side, covered her buttocks, and ran towards the village.
Looking at the scene before him, Shen Ce couldn't help but scratch his head. He had underestimated the extent of the hardship here. Women working in the summer wore only trousers and bras that barely covered their breasts.
Shen Ce turned to Wei Zheng and said, "Lord Wei, shall we still go? I'm afraid we'll get beaten up by those men... and lose face."
Wei Zheng was silent for a moment, then hesitated and said, "Take two of your smoked chickens; that should make up for our rudeness just now."
Shen Ce refrained from mocking Wei Zheng and waved his hand, instructing Cheng Chumo to retrieve the item from the caravan.
Passing by the village entrance, a half-person-high blue stone tablet was erected on a high platform not far from the main road. The two approached to look at it, and it read:
In the first year of the Daye era of the Sui Dynasty, Li Tangjun, an elder from Shaoli Village, Zhangyin Township, Ji County, Weizhou Prefecture, Hebei Province, led the villagers, young and old, to erect this steadfast stone to commemorate the origins of their hometown.
Ji County, Weizhou
Eighty-seven households in the merged village
Below this is the blank space. Every few years, when the number of households in the village changes, it is changed below, or it is crossed out and rewritten. When the officials come, they will also check the number of households to collect taxes and perform corvée labor.
Shen Ce watched as the number changed from ninety-seven to sixty-five, then to thirty-two, then to eleven, before finally crossing out the cross.
The two remained silent for a long time. In just twenty years, the large estate with nearly a hundred households had vanished completely. This was not a natural disaster, but a man-made one.
Seeing this scene only strengthened their resolve to go and visit the family. The house was easy to spot. They followed the dirt road in the village toward the smoke. Only one road was still passable; the rest were blocked by collapsed houses.
The courtyard was small, only about 50 feet in diameter, but the owner must have been diligent. The other courtyards were all fenced, but this one was built with yellow mud and poles, reaching the height of a person.
Shen Ce touched the large and small handprints on the wall, thinking that this family must have wanted to live a harmonious life.
Bang, bang bang.
Wei Zheng stepped forward and knocked on the door, saying softly, "Is anyone home? We are officials passing through. We saw that there were houses here, so we came to take a look."
They heard noises coming from inside the door, but no one opened it for a long time.
Shen Ce noticed that the capon in Cheng Chumo's hand was oozing oil from the sun, shook his head, and quickly advised Wei Zheng, "Lord Wei, let me try. You might not be able to get through to a humble household."
Wei Zheng sighed softly and stepped aside.
Thump thump thump, thump, thump.
As Shen Ce pounded on the door, he impatiently shouted inside, "Open the door! I'm just a passing official. I bought some fat chicken but have nowhere to eat it, so I'm asking to use your table and chairs. If you don't open the door, don't blame me for pounding on it!"
Not long after, sounds came from inside; judging from the footsteps, there must have been quite a few people.
The door opened, and a heavily pregnant woman, seeing Shen Ce in his full armor, knelt down with a thud, her voice trembling with tears:
"Sir, could you please not recruit our husband into the army again? More than ten members of my family depend on him for their lives."