At the right time, Qiao Zhang washed the dishes and placed them, greeted the deacon in charge of the kitchen, and went out to return home while the corner door was not locked. Qiao Zhang was a servant from Ning Mansion. He came every day and Wu Zheng left, helping picking vegetables, washing dishes and doing some miscellaneous work in Ning Mansion's kitchen. He gave him 200 cents of wages a month, and served this meal at the Ning Mansion at noon.

The corner gate is open in the alley, and walking out of the long alley is the main street. Ningfu is in the most lively area in the east of the city. At this moment, the shops on both sides of the street are lighted up, and the shops in front of the store are urging hard to attract customers, which is a bit more lively than during the day. It is soon the Mid-Autumn Festival, and major shops have purchased a lot of new goods and make a fortune during the festival. Most people have to work during the day, but they have more free time at night. The family, young and old, are enthusiastically out of this store and that one.

A group of beautifully dressed girls came out of the cloth shop, passed by Qiao Zhang with a smile, and walked towards the next rouge shop. When they passed by, they brought a gust of fragrant wind. Qiao Zhang smelled the fragrance of osmanthus oil. Two years before the Hu people invaded, her husband bought a bottle, which was very expensive for every bottle.

In the past, when passing by the cloth village, Qiao Zhang always slowed down, and even couldn't help but walk in, touching the bright and smooth fabric, gestured on her body, and imagined how beautiful and charming he should be wearing such a outfit. But today, no matter how tempting the guy in front of the store shouted, Qiao Zhang kept walking by, and didn't even turn around and look inside.

The heavy reward in her arms was the reward given by Ning's mansion. Although she only received the minimum 200 quota, Qiao Zhang was very satisfied. She was somewhat envious of Zhao Huang, a chef who worked in the kitchen. She got 500 quota. She also came to Si Zheng and Wu Zheng left. The chef who cooked the dishes was twice as high. She could cook and only wash dishes on her own. She heard that the servants raised in the house received 800 quota, and those in charge even got one or two silver dollars. There were not many good masters like the Ning family.

Nowadays, we are recruiting servants who work as honey fruits everywhere. I heard that they were given a lot of 40 or 50 a day. Qiao Zhang was a little moved, but he thought that people should not be without credit. Ning's family's life will last for a long time and there will be rewards for the family festival, so it is not bad.

Qiao Zhang walked to the street with brisk steps, turned into an alley at the end of the street, and lived in the middle of the alley. She knew that the whole family was waiting for her to have dinner. There were low mudstone houses on both sides, and lights leaked out. The dizzy yellow lights shone on the broken bluestone slabs, making Qiao Zhang feel very warm.

Standing in front of his door, he reached out and pressed the copper coins in his arms. Qiao Zhang stretched out his hand to push open the yard door. The "creaking" sound alarmed the two children waiting in the house. The five-year-old daughter ran out and shouted happily: "Mom is back." The eight-year-old son, Cowboy, followed closely behind the girl and welcomed her.

Holding her daughter's hand and touching her son's head, Qiao Zhang asked, "You're hungry." She knew that no matter how late, the whole family would wait for her to come back before having dinner.

"Not hungry", my daughter Lancao grabbed her big hand with her hands and said, "Mom, I took me shopping. There are so many things on the street." Qiao Zhang lowered her eyes and faced her daughter's big eyes, which were shining brightly. Her family said that her daughter's eyes looked like her and looked good.

Qiao Zhang's face showed a smile, her daughter's hands tightened, her voice fell down with some hope, and she said softly: "Mom, I saw the candied haws, red and beautiful, so beautiful, there are many of them for only two cents."

My daughter obediently did not say she wanted to buy it, which made Qiao Zhang feel sad, her eyes were moist, and she clenched her daughter's hand and said: "

I will ask your brother to take you to buy tomorrow, and you two will share it with you."

"Okay," Lancao smiled happily and said, "I'll eat one, my brother eat one, my mother eat one, my father eat one, and my grandfather eat one."

The daughter counted happily, and the son interrupted, "There is one more."

Qiao Hei stood in front of the door and smiled honestly. The man was as famous as his name, with dark skin and tall figure. After the war, the government distributed twenty acres of land to the family. Although the land was six miles outside the East City and his fertility was not good, the family had a support.

My mother-in-law died of illness while fleeing in the war. The land at home is farmed by her father-in-law and her husband. Last year, the emperor exempted the land tax and the family was full. This year, the government wants to "combinate the tax" and pay 25 cents of tax per mu of land, which is 500 cents of yuan. At first, my father-in-law and her husband sighed and couldn't eat enough again. She went to Ningfu to work as a servant to subsidize the family income, and the family always had to survive.

This year, God is beautiful. One acre of land is collected for one stone and eight dou of grain. The market price of 200 min. One stone is worth 7,200 min. After paying the land tax, it is really like the government said that no other miscellaneous donations were collected. The government's yamen runners did not ask for it. I heard that corvee labor was also paid in the land tax, which was more than 2,000 min. The father-in-law said that when he encountered a good day, the court was wise and the governor was kind, the people would have a good day.

Qiao Zhang entered the door and shouted "Dad" to his father-in-law sitting at the table.

"Well, I'm back, let's have a meal." Old Qiao responded and greeted his family for dinner.

Qiao Zhang took out the money from his arms, and two hundred-liter yellow Cancan copper coins piled on the table, which made people's hearts excited.

"Where did you get the money? It's not the day to pay the wages yet?" Qiao Hei asked in surprise.

"The reward given by Ning Mansion is said to be a holiday, which makes everyone happy." Qiao Zhang said with a smile.

"The Ning family is really a living Bodhisattva," Lao Qiao sighed and said in a low voice: "Zhang, what are you showing off on the table? Put it away quickly. Don't know if you don't show off your wealth. Hurry up, don't let people see it."

Qiao Zhang disagreed with his father-in-law's caution. Since Lord Jiang came, he dealt with a group of yamen runners. The security of Huiye Mansion is good. It is said that the yamen runners will receive rewards when they catch thieves. These yamen runners wander around the streets every day, hoping for thieves.

Unlocking the cowhide rope that tied the money, taking off two copper coins and giving it to his son, Qiao Zhang ordered: "Take your girl to buy candied haws tomorrow, don't fall off."

The son nodded happily and held the money tightly in his hands. The daughter tightly pulled the brother's sleeve, for fear that he would run away alone. Qiao Zhang smiled, took another article and handed it to his daughter, and then put the money away and entered the house.

Find the key from the clothes at the bottom of the wardrobe, pull out the wooden box under the bed and open it. There is a small red box under the pile of miscellaneous items, which is her dowry box from that year. Use the key to open the copper lock, and there are a pile of yellow copper coins and two small ingots of blooms and one or two taels of small ingots, totaling 7,846 cereals.

After selling twenty stones of grain, I got 4,000 yuan, paid the land tax of 500 yuan, and left 3,500 yuan. I earned 3,800 yuan in selling melon fields planted by my father-in-law and husband. I earned 3,800 yuan in sales of melons this year. I paid 1,400 yuan in this period. During this period, I spent more than 700 yuan in spending. Qiao Zhang knew clearly that it would be impossible to count things twice a month.

Take one hundred and ninety-seven texts in your hand

After putting it in, Qiao Zhang made up for a long time, but couldn't count the number. He rushed to eat and had no time to count. Anyway, it was more than eight liang. After closing the lid, the box was almost full. Qiao Zhang thought it was time to change to a larger wooden box.

There are meat and vegetables, and fish are meaty. People in Huazhou don’t eat much fish, which is cheaper than beef and mutton. Seeing their children eating happily, Qiao Zhang carefully picked up fish bones for his son and daughter, while thinking about the holidays in his heart that it was time for the family to buy some things.

The food is good, and the children have grown up. They can't wear the original clothes anymore. They should make a new piece of clothing for the New Year. The clothes patches on the father-in-law and husband are stacked with patches, so they should be replaced. The daughter is a girl and cannot always wear the old clothes that the brother changed to. She should pull her into a floral cloth jacket. She went to Fuhua Clothing Village two days ago. The materials I just arrived in Fangzhou are so beautiful. If I pull a few feet to make new clothes, I will definitely be attractive when walking on the street.

Qiao Zhang thought, her face turned red and brighter under the lamp. Qiao Hei looked at his smiling wife and felt moved. His wife was a great beauty in the village. She suffered a lot after marrying herself. She worked hard to help Ningfu help her servants to make money to subsidize the family income. This year, the family earned more money and it was time to buy something for her wife. The bottle of osmanthus oil she bought three years ago had been used up and she was reluctant to throw it away. She had seen her wife secretly took it out several times and sniffed her. She also had clothes on her body. She was in her twenties when she was in love to dress up, and she was wearing a self-dyeing gray cloth and became much older.

Lao Qiao is actually not old, only forty-eight years old, but has experienced three wars in his forty-eight years of life. After all, he finally came to this day. Only then did he feel that life is hopeful. There are fish and vegetables on the table, and there are white flour buns and millet porridge in his hand. It is so fragrant. My son and wife are beautiful, and my grandson and granddaughter are obedient. Only such a life is called living.

When he heard that his daughter-in-law wanted to buy new clothes for him, Lao Qiao said with a dark face: "You can still wear clothes on your body. Why do you do it so hard? If you don't have two dollars, you won't be able to find it."

Realizing that his tone was too heavy, Old Qiao reached out and touched the head of the grandson beside him, and said, "You couple will be worth it by themselves, so I won't need it."

Seeing his wife blushing, Qiao Hei lowered his head aggrievedly and said, "Dad, look at what you said, we have changed into new clothes and asked you to wear old clothes. Neighbors should not poke our backbone."

Old Qiao was happy, his face was not revealed, and he taught a lesson with a stern face: "You can't just look at the things you do. The cowboy is getting older, and he has money to let him know two words, which will be useful in the future."

Qiao Zhang raised his head and said, "Dad, what are you talking about. When I was delivering food in Ning Mansion today, I heard the old man of the Ning family discuss with the guests about what kind of academy to do. If I send the cowboys to study, I wonder how much it will cost?"

Lao Qiao said in a muffled voice: "No matter how much you have, you have to send it. This is my family's thought. Hei'er and I work harder, open more wastelands and plant some fruits. It seems that the price of fruits and fruits will increase in this way, which is more cost-effective than farming. I plan to free up two acres of land at home next year to plant melons, so I should be able to earn more."

Qiao Hei put down the bowl and said excitedly: "I heard that the family was poor when governor Jiang was young..."

The family became more and more enthusiastic as they talked about it, and turned their expectant eyes to the cowboy. The cowboy didn't know what her parents and grandpa were talking about, biting the white bun in big mouthfuls, and from time to time looked up and smiled at her mother.
Chapter completed!