Ordinary observers in fast time travel

As dawn broke, Shi Jia and Wang Tieshan each carried a load of firewood to the prefectural city. The journey of more than twenty li took them over an hour.

By the time we reached the city gate, the sun was already high in the sky.

The city of Jingzhou is well-governed; at least there's no entrance fee. Otherwise, they might not have had enough firewood to enter the city.

After knocking on seven or eight doors, someone finally bought their firewood. It was 30 coins per load, but although they carried two loads, it was only about one load in total. So they only sold it for 30 coins.

Holding a bag of copper coins, Shi Jia sighed softly. Finally, she forced a smile, "Let's go buy rice."

"Okay." Wang Tieshan was still breathing rapidly but steadily. He was just a child, and carrying a load of firewood for more than 20 miles had already pushed him to his limit.

In front of the rice shop, a group of men and women dressed in patched clothes looked serious, seemingly haggling with the shop assistant.

"Didn't the price of rice go up a couple of days ago? Why has it gone up again today?"

"Damn it, 90 coins a bushel? Isn't that going to kill us?"

"Let's buy more now. I heard from my cousin's nephew that the imperial court is going to start requisitioning grain again," a neatly dressed woman whispered.

"What? Wasn't grain requisition just a month ago? Why are they requisitioning it again? Are they trying to kill us?" A ragged old man said with a sorrowful expression.

"What can we do? The barbarians from the north are attacking again..."

"Damn barbarians."

Listening to the discussion, Shi Jia and Wang Tieshan exchanged a worried glance, "Sister-in-law?"

"Let's buy rice first," Shi Jia said. The little guy is still young and can't always eat wild vegetables with them. Shi Jia gritted his teeth and bought two bushels of rice.

After leaving the grain shop, the two bought another pound of meat and prepared to return to the village.

As they passed the city gate, a surprised voice rang out, "Lady Li?"

Shi Jia immediately looked up. The newcomer was clad in armor and looked exceptionally handsome. His face was familiar; it was "Young Master Wan?"

“Yes, yes.” Wan Anshou walked quickly to their side. “Long time no see.” He looked at Shi Jia and subconsciously swallowed.

"I heard you settled in Dashan Village, but unfortunately I've been too busy with official duties to visit you." Wan Anshou felt a little itchy; he actually wanted to say that the wild vegetable and preserved meat soup you made was so delicious that he wanted to try it again.

Unfortunately, he wasn't thick-skinned enough to say something so abrupt.

"Thank you for your concern, Young Master Wan." Shi Jia was somewhat confused about Wan Anshou's intentions, and seeing that it was getting late, she said, "It's getting late, so we won't disturb you any longer. Farewell."

Shi Jia and Wang Tieshan nodded and were about to leave.

Wan Anshou opened his mouth, but seeing that the person was about to leave, he quickly said, "Wait."

"The wild vegetable and cured meat soup you made last time was delicious. When I visit your home, could you make it again?" Wan Anshou stared at Shi Jia with wide eyes.

Shi Jia was a little taken aback. So, it was all about food? She found it amusing and nodded, "Of course."

"Great!" Wan Anshou cheered. That's wonderful!

After walking for a long time, Shi Jia could still hear Wan Anshou's cheers, and his heavy mood suddenly lightened considerably.

"Sister-in-law, that Young Master Wan doesn't seem to be an ordinary person." Wang Tieshan was a little worried; Young Master Wan's status was probably beyond their reach.

“Yeah, let’s just take it easy. We’re not taking advantage of him,” Shi Jia said. “However, they have indeed been kind to us. That meal before, although it was a legitimate transaction, saved us a lot of trouble.” “If it weren’t for that money, I wouldn’t have dared to build the house in the first place.”

"However, we don't need to feel too burdened. We should treat them normally. If we can find a suitable time to repay them, we should repay them. If we can't find a suitable time, we should just keep it in mind and not forget it. We can send a gift to Young Master Wan and the others during festivals in the future."

Wang Tieshan nodded.

Shi Jia patted the boy on the shoulder, "Why are you thinking so much at such a young age!"

It took another hour to get from the prefectural city to Dashan Village. By the time we returned, the sun was already high in the western sky. But strangely, in the dead of winter, a group of people were sitting under a big tree at the entrance of the village, each with a worried expression on their face.

"Aunt Lin, what happened?" After handing the things to Wang Tieshan, she also went over to ask.

Lin Da Niang looked worried and sighed, "Alas, someone from the government office just came and said that they will start collecting grain and conscripting soldiers tomorrow."

"Let's not even talk about conscription. We've already requisitioned grain twice. Where are we going to find any surplus grain in our households?" Aunt Lin said. "Isn't this government trying to kill us?"

“Yes!” Shi Jia nodded with equal concern.

"By the way, how old is your brother-in-law this year?"

"He's only twelve years old by the traditional Chinese age reckoning," Shi Jia said. According to Li Yunniang's memory, the imperial court began conscripting soldiers at the age of fourteen.

"Well, your family is doing alright." Aunt Lin hadn't finished worrying about the grain requisition, and now she was worried about the conscription. She had four sons and three grandsons over 14 years old. Her second and third sons had already gone to the battlefield a few years ago, and now they were going to conscript again. Wasn't this like cutting off her flesh?
Shi Jia listened silently to Aunt Lin's complaints, feeling a pang of sorrow in his heart. But what could he do in this world, being just a poor person?

The setting sun was fiery red, but lacked warmth, making the deep winter evening even more bitterly cold. Instead of bringing warmth to those feeling lost and anxious, it only intensified their restlessness.

"Everyone, you should go back first. The old man won't be back so soon." Aunt Lin couldn't bear to see the villagers waiting in the cold wind, so she quickly told them to go home.

Shi Jia was somewhat confused, but she didn't press him for details and went home with her questions in mind.

"Sister-in-law, you're back." Wang Tieshan was sitting at the door chopping wood, his eyes glancing at the road every now and then. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Shi Jia appear.

"Tieshan, thank you for your hard work." Shi Jia looked at the pile of firewood that covered half the wall and felt very gratified.

"It's nothing, just a quick thing." Wang Tieshan scratched his head. "Sister-in-law, come inside quickly, Niu Niu is looking for you."

"Okay, I'll go in now."

As Shi Jia entered the room, she saw a pair of red and swollen eyes.

"Mommy~ Hug~" The little guy pouted when he saw Shi Jia, his face full of accusation.

"Sister-in-law, you're back!" Wang Tiehua breathed a sigh of relief and quickly came over with the little one in her arms.

Shi Jiaxin's heart softened, and she reached out to pick up the little one. "Come here, let Mommy hug you, my sweetie."

"Waaaaah~" The little guy couldn't help but cry.

Shi Jia could only hold and coax the little one repeatedly. After finally calming him down, the little one just wouldn't get off her. There was no other way but for the two siblings to cook dinner.

After dinner, the family sat in the main room, and Shi Jia told his two siblings about the grain and soldier requisition. "We still have a few taels of silver left, which should be enough for this grain requisition, but we'll have to rely on the mountains for food before spring."

"Sister-in-law, I'll go up the mountain tomorrow morning." The two siblings weren't worried about this at all. (End of Chapter)