In his previous life, Xie Yuan had been alone and only thought about making a name for himself as quickly as possible.
Before autumn arrived, he had gone to the prefectural city and narrowly escaped disaster.
His luck during the following two years had also been good. He consecutively passed the county and prefectural examinations and became a licentiate.
But just as he was full of ambition and preparing for the metropolitan examination, he became inexplicably implicated in a cheating scandal during the imperial exams and eventually died in depression and resentment.
When he woke up again, he had been reborn to the time during their refugee journey, when his parents and elder brother’s family had just died.
Fortunately, relying on the slight advantage of foreknowledge from his previous life, he managed to escape alive with his two nephews.
Xie Yuan felt somewhat bitter. He had failed to save his family, but Xiao Zong and Xiao Yao were truly alive, and now A’Xing had also appeared by his side. At last, he was no longer alone.
Perhaps this life would finally be different.
“Can we request two mu of paddy fields? I want to grow rice,” Zhou Xing said.
She had previously noticed paddy fields surrounding Dashi Village. The terrain was suitable and irrigation convenient.
Thinking about how awful coarse rice tasted, proper rice was far more appealing.
Besides, she had grown up in the south and had experience planting rice.
“Rice? But we don’t know how to grow it,” Xie Yuan replied.
Most of the people in Dashi Village were from the north, and he had assumed Zhou Xing was as well. Southern regions had not suffered barbarian invasions or drought, so southern people usually did not become refugees.
Moreover, A’Xing herself had once said she came from the north. How could she know how to grow rice?
“My aunt was from the south. I once heard her talk about rice cultivation methods, so I want to try. Rice sells for a high price after all,” Zhou Xing explained.
After some thought, Xie Yuan agreed. Rice truly was valuable.
From the matter of the yam alone, he could tell that A’Xing was not the sort of woman who spoke carelessly without reason.
Even if the rice failed, they could always drain the water and plant vegetables instead.
Having received his approval, Zhou Xing finally felt relieved.
As for her other requests, such as a large bathing tub, they truly were unrealistic for the time being.
For the next two days, the family entered the mountains early every morning.
At dawn, there were barely any villagers near the mountain paths, so no one suspected what they were doing. At this time of year, everyone was busy gathering wild vegetables. Once the land was distributed in a few days, people would become far too busy farming.
Who would still have time to dig for vegetables then?
Spring wild vegetables were fresh and tender. Whether dried or pickled, they could last a long time and supplement food supplies throughout the year.
People who had once starved would never waste anything edible.
In only two days, the area beneath their bed was piled full of yams.
Seeing the abundant food supply filled everyone with happiness.
Finally, the day arrived when they had to visit the county office.
Early in the morning, the entire village set out in a grand procession under the leadership of the village chief, walking toward the county town.
Yongping Township was essentially a county town, and it was not actually far from Dashi Village. It only took them half a morning to walk there. For people accustomed to farm labor, such a distance was insignificant.
The villagers were excited. After all the hardships of fleeing, they could finally settle down. How could they not feel joyful?
Especially for farmers, only after obtaining their own land could they truly feel rooted.
Village head Tian Yunfeng walked at the front with his family while anxiously searching for Xie Yuan.
“Xie Yuan, you can read and write. After the land is distributed, don’t leave. Stay and help supervise the clerks while they finish the registrations.”
“I understand, Village Head,” Xie Yuan respectfully replied.
His good attitude greatly pleased Tian Yunfeng.
Deep down, he could only sigh that his own wife lacked foresight. Personally, he thought highly of this young man.
Today, five villages from Yong’an County had come to register land ownership. Each village had a clerk responsible for recording and compiling the records.
As one of the few educated people around, Xie Yuan was naturally entrusted with responsibility.
As preferential treatment, the Xie family was also among the first to receive their fifteen mu of land.
“Lady A’Xing, why did you choose paddy fields?” an old farmer asked curiously.
Could someone in the Xie family really know how to grow rice? Rice was delicious and sold for high prices.
The old farmer began wondering whether his own family should also acquire some paddy fields.
Xiao Zong answered proudly, “Grandpa Tian, my aunt heard about rice cultivation methods before.”
“Oh, I see.” The old man nodded. So she had never actually planted rice herself.
“Uncle Tian, rice tastes good and sells for a high price. The children are still growing, and rice nourishes the body,” Zhou Xing explained.
A tall tree attracts the wind. She knew it was best not to stand out too much for now.
Still, she believed that sooner or later, the whole of Dashi Village would begin planting rice.
The child beside Uncle Tian tugged on his grandfather’s clothes and stared at him eagerly.
“Then my family will also buy a few mu.” A loud and cheerful laugh sounded nearby.
A tall, thin woman stood several steps away, smiling warmly at Zhou Xing.
“A’Xing, I’m Aunt He. Your Xie Yuan and my Tieniu grew up together. I even attended your wedding,” the woman introduced herself.
“So you’re Aunt He.” Zhou Xing smiled. A few days earlier, Xie Yuan had indeed gone into the mountains with Lin Tieniu.
The woman’s smile was sincere, and her features were plain and honest. She seemed easy to get along with.
“Buying paddy fields is good. It’s nice to plant something different.” Aunt He understood Xie Yuan’s character well. If he agreed to let his wife buy paddy fields, then it was certainly not a joke.
Of course, there were also different opinions. Some people believed they were northerners whose families had never grown rice for generations. How could they possibly have experience? Land was the foundation of survival and should not be treated so casually.
In the end, not many families in Dashi Village chose to purchase paddy fields, but Zhou Xing did not mind. Everyone had their own ideas.
After registration, they purchased grain seeds according to the amount of land they had received. The process was simple, and everything was quickly completed.
The villagers returned home in small groups beneath the glow of the setting sun.
Happy figures moved along the roads while cheerful laughter filled the air.
“Tomorrow we’ll begin preparing the seeds,” Zhou Xing said as she looked somewhat critically at the rice seeds.
They were not plump enough, and the grains were too small.
Still, the seeds had been borrowed. Having them at all was already fortunate enough.
“Preparing the seeds? I’ve never heard of that before, but you can decide for yourself,” Xie Yuan admitted honestly.
He understood some farming basics, but he was no expert. For the finer details, he still needed to consult the experienced old farmers in the village.
In this life, he still intended to take the imperial examinations. At the very least, he wanted to obtain the scholar title. Once he became a scholar, the family’s farmland would become tax-exempt. Even if the harvest was poor, it would still be enough to survive on.
Then he could use the money earned from selling ginseng for a few investments…
Xie Yuan felt that perhaps it was better not to enter officialdom again in this life. As a poor commoner, entering the devouring world of politics only meant living in constant danger.
Zhou Xing nodded. She realized the greatest advantage of this bargain husband was that he did not interfere unnecessarily and allowed her freedom to act.
“By the way, do you still plan to continue studying?” Zhou Xing asked.
Xie Yuan frowned. In truth, he no longer needed to study much. In his previous life, he had already studied enough to the point of nearly hanging himself from the rafters and stabbing his thighs with an awl to stay awake. What A’Xing really meant was whether he intended to continue taking examinations.
Seeing him frown, Zhou Xing felt confused.
“I heard scholars don’t have to pay farmland taxes and receive many benefits. If you can pass the exams, that would naturally be wonderful. But if you fail, don’t take it too hard. Our family won’t starve anyway.”