Chapter 5

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When Han Yi said this, the matter was settled without a doubt.

"Oh—!"

Immediately, many of the villagers let out surprised exclamations.

This was because Han Dashi, during his lifetime, was always ready to help others and never took advantage of anyone; he only let others take advantage of him. He would never ask for a loan, which would make others feel uncomfortable. Therefore, when Wang Bao first came to collect the debt, they all thought Wang Bao was fabricating the facts, aiming to kidnap the beautiful young lady. They never expected that this was true, and they were particularly shocked.

Whether this amount of money was much or not depended on the person. For the rich, a sneeze might cost more than this. But for the poor, every coin was squeezed from their bones. Moreover, it was just after the Zhenguan era, a time of abundant resources. Therefore, relatively speaking, this money was equivalent to a significant increase in value because prices were low. At that time, one coin had the purchasing power of about three yuan in the future, and one string of coins was worth about 3,000 yuan. For farmers like them, it was definitely a huge sum.

Brother Shan, Brother Yi, I'm really screwed by you guys.

Han Yi had completely remembered that all this money was borrowed to prepare for the wedding. Han Dashi was just a farmer with nothing at home, and even if he saved, it would be very difficult to save any money. However, this daughter-in-law was as beautiful as a fairy, well-educated, and one in a million. Of course, the impression of being well-educated and well-mannered had been completely shattered just a moment ago. But no matter what, for Han Yi to marry such a beauty was a blessing from ten lifetimes of good deeds. Given the Han family's situation, if Han Yi did not work hard, he might end up a bachelor for life.

Although this beauty was a few years older than Han Yi, her stunning beauty was enough to make people overlook this fact.

Moreover, Han Dashi was a very honest and self-aware person. His inferiority complex made him feel that this woman had already given up a lot by marrying into the Han family. Therefore, after the wedding was decided, Han Dashi felt that the wedding should not be shabby and should not let the daughter-in-law down.

The father and son decided to borrow some money from their employer, the Wang family, to buy some good clothes for the bride and also to make two new sets of clothes for Han Yi. Han Dashi had already planned to pay off the debt with the rice harvested after the autumn harvest and then go out to do some odd jobs, willing to suffer himself rather than let his son and daughter-in-law suffer.

Han Dashi was undoubtedly a great father.

But who would have thought that such a disaster would happen.

This is truly a tragic situation!

Do you still feel tragic? I feel even more tragic. Oh, it turns out I came here just to help you guys pay off debts. Han Yi would rather not think about these things.

"Did you hear that? Did you hear that?"

When Wang Bao heard Han Yi admit it, he became even more unreasonable, "You damn peasants, you are blind as dogs, you deserve to be peasants for life." Saying this, he still seemed unsatisfied and added, "You owe me money, and you even dared to stab me with a knife. I will settle this account with you later, but now, pay the money first."

Han Yi was nervous inside but still spoke firmly, "The loan note clearly states that the money will be repaid after the autumn harvest. It's still ten days away from the harvest. Why are you in such a hurry?"

"Still talking about the autumn harvest? You're just talking nonsense!"

Wang Bao laughed, "Don't you know that your fields have been washed away by the flood?"

This can't be true! Han Yi really didn't know this, and there was no such memory in his mind. He turned to look at Yang Lin and others.

Yang Lin hesitated several times before nodding with a sympathetic look, "Xiao Yi, it rained heavily a few days ago, and the Mei River flooded, washing away your fields. Although our families also suffered some losses, yours was the most severe."

This is truly a series of misfortunes!

Han Yi wiped his eyes and said, "Who can lend me a knife?"

"What do you want to do?"

Wang Bao was immediately alarmed.

"Suicide."

Han Yi smiled, a very bright smile. In this village of over a hundred households, his family suffered the most, and they were the only ones who had taken out a high-interest loan. Such a lucky thing happened to him, and he really doubted that stabbing himself to death would make him a god. He couldn't find a reason not to do it.

"Xiao Yi, don't be impulsive!"

Yang Lin looked very worried. Today's Han Yi was too unusual, as if he had completely changed.

"If I don't act impulsively, am I still human?"

Han Yi roared, but then saw Yang Lin staring at him in shock, and he wiped his face, "I'm not sorry!"

Wang Bao shouted, "Hey, I don't care if you want to die, but if you die, you must pay the debt first. If you don't have the money, you can use your wife to pay the debt." He cast an evil glance toward the house.

Although the woman had almost scared him into wetting his pants just now, she was indeed very beautiful, which made him even more lustful. If he could conquer such a woman, he would feel a great sense of achievement.

Yang Lin and others were all furious at this.

You bastard, always thinking about making me wear a green hat. Han Yi cursed in his heart and said, "Even if our grain is gone, we must follow the loan note. If you want the money, come back after the autumn harvest."

Wang Bao sneered, "Han Dashi is dead, and your grain is gone. What will you use to pay the debt?"

Han Yi snorted, "Worst case, we can give you the fields."

Wang Bao laughed, "Are you struck by lightning? Your family has sixty acres of land, forty of which belong to the government. Now that Han Dashi is dead, your land should be returned to the government. The other twenty acres belong to my family. You want to use my land to pay my debt? You're dreaming."

Wait, let me think.

Han Yi immediately searched his mind for information on this.

Suddenly, three words popped into his head—Equal-field System.

Because the Tang Dynasty was newly established, the population was small, but the land was abundant. The Tang government implemented the Equal-field System to promote agriculture.

The Equal-field System, as the name suggests, means the equal distribution of land, a method to prevent land consolidation.

The official policy was that men aged eighteen and above would receive eighty acres of land for farming and twenty acres of permanent land. The farming land belonged to the government and would be returned upon death, while the permanent land was private and could be passed down to descendants and freely traded.

Of course, this was just the official policy, and people generally just listened to it.

In reality, the situation was different. In rural areas with more land and fewer people, each person could receive one hundred acres of land. In areas with less land and more people, there was not enough land, such as in the Guanlong region, where the population was dense, and large families were concentrated. Each family had thousands of acres of good land, so each male could only receive thirty acres of land, with no permanent land, as most of the land was owned by the Guanlong nobility.

Although Yangzhou was not as crowded as the Guanlong region, it was still a large city with a large population. Therefore, each male in Yangzhou could only receive forty acres of land, which belonged to the government and could only be farmed, not traded.

In any case, the land in the hands of the common people could not be too much, even if there was a lot of idle land. If each commoner had a hundred acres of land, who would work for the landlords? They would all become farmers, which was not scientific. It was better to leave the land idle than to give more land to the common people. This was the thinking of the landlords, and this was why land consolidation could not be stopped throughout history. It was not that there was not enough land, but that there were not enough people. Without slaves, there would be no landlords.

Actually, the Han family originally had twenty acres of ancestral land, but it was consolidated by large landowners during the Zhenguan era. Although the government opposed land consolidation, it was ineffective, and the consolidation continued. It was said that the twenty acres of land the Wang family rented to the Han family originally belonged to the Han family.

Han Yi was not yet eighteen years old and would not be for another half a year. Therefore, he had not been granted land yet. In such special cases, the government would handle it appropriately, but it would take at least half a year for the process to be completed. Moreover, with the autumn harvest approaching, even if he were granted land, it would not help much. It would probably be the end of this winter before the land was allocated.

In short, a heavy rain had left the Han family penniless.

Who is more tragic than me!

Han Yi shouted in his heart.

Comparing tragedies!

The current Han Yi was not afraid of anyone and was determined to be the champion.

But this was reality, and the common people were always the oppressed, as all the rules were made by the strong.

Although Han Yi's heart was cold, his face remained calm, a basic quality of a con artist. He must never let others know what he was thinking. He snorted, "Even if so, what can you do? If you want to collect the debt, come back when the time is due."

Wang Bao sneered, "What if you run away? Now you have nothing, and you might run away."

As a high-interest lender, he had a reason to come early to collect the debt. The loan note stated that the debt would be paid with the harvest, but now the Han family's grain was washed away. Any responsible person would come early to collect the debt to prevent the debtor from running away. When Wang Bao heard that the Han family's fields were washed away, he was very happy and quickly brought his people.

Is this guy an idiot? I would—wait—uh... Running away is actually a good choice. I like the life of a wanderer. Although Han Yi thought this, he said, "Since that's the case, can I also accuse you of murder?"

Wang Bao shouted, "On what grounds?"

"On the grounds of tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

"What if you kill me tomorrow?"

"Don't talk nonsense. Why would I kill you?"

"How do I know? I'm talking about the possibility. If you can think about the possibility of me running away tomorrow, why can't I think about the possibility of you killing me tomorrow? Isn't that too unfair?"

"I—I—I—"

Wang Bao's fat face turned red.

Han Yi suddenly put his hand on Xu Lao's shoulder and said, "Besides, there is Xu Lao as a witness. If you don't trust me, you should trust Xu Lao."

Wang Bao glared at Xu Wang with a hint of threat, "Xu Lao, will you vouch for him?"

The witness only confirmed the authenticity of the loan note, but the guarantor would share the debt. These were two different things.

"Ah?"

Xu Wang looked confused, not understanding what they were talking about, and he ignored Wang Bao's threat. He was a bookworm and did not understand threats.

Han Yi quickly said, "Isn't that nonsense? A man of great learning like Xu Lao, who is well-versed in the classics, would naturally do what the sages say, such as upholding justice, helping the weak, and enforcing the law."

It must be said that Han Yi's flattery worked. Xu Lao was so pleased that he could not stop nodding, almost ready to pay the debt for Han Yi. But he asked, "Is upholding justice, helping the weak, and enforcing the law what the sages say?"

Han Yi remained calm, "Who else but the sages and Xu Lao could say such righteous words?"

"Reasonable."

Xu Lao nodded shamelessly. He was old and had read books for decades, making even the smartest person foolish. His mind could not keep up, and this inadvertently made him a guarantor for Han Yi.

Han Yi finally understood why Xu Lao always failed the exams.

Wang Bao also saw that Xu Lao had been tricked by Han Yi and wanted to remind him, but Han Yi did not give him the chance. He turned to Xu Wang and said, "Xu Lao, we agreed on when to repay the money, and it is clearly stated in the loan note. If Wang Bao comes early to collect the debt, who would be in the right if we report it to the authorities?"

Xu Lao thought for a moment and nodded, "Of course, you would be in the right."

Han Yi looked at Wang Bao, "Did you hear that? If you force me, I will have to take a stand. I have nothing to lose, and no one will be at a disadvantage if they are buried under my coffin."

"Fine, fine, fine, you have guts."

Wang Bao pointed at Han Yi, gritting his teeth, but he was still a bit afraid because Han Yi's behavior today was too strange, and he was not sure. Moreover, Xu Lao was there as a guarantor. He could only say, "If you don't pay the debt on time, I will make you pay."

"We'll