Transmigrated into a minor official in a county government, with children at home waiting for rice t

"Zhao Daniu!"

"Here we are!"

A burly man squeezed forward, carrying rice and noodles on his shoulder, a piece of cloth tucked under his arm, and meat hanging from his neck. He freed one hand to take the string of coins, weighed it in his hand, and grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.

The line moved forward slowly.

Those who received their items dispersed in twos and threes, and laughter filled the courtyard.

Old Liu stood in the middle of the line, carrying the meat he had just received, and weighed it in his hand.

"This year's reward is significantly more than last year's."

Xiao Zhao squatted down by the wall, counted the five hundred coins twice, stuffed them into his pocket, and looked up at Old Liu. "Brother Liu, you're the same as always, aren't you?"

Old Liu nodded.

Xiao Zhao swallowed hard. "I wish I could reach the rank of ten generals someday."

Old Liu slapped him on the head and said, "You better do a good job, stop slacking off."

Xiao Zhao shrank his neck and chuckled.

Standing at the entrance of the grain depot, Zhang Sanlang watched the crowd gradually disperse, then turned to Yan Shizhong and smiled, "Yan Shizhong, Clerk Yan, Registrar Gu approved an extra hundred strings of cash. Shouldn't each of the higher-ranking officials in each department receive an additional one?"

Yan Shizhong nodded and smiled broadly, "Alright. You can make the arrangements; everyone can rest assured."

Zhang Sanlang then had Liu Da bring out rice, flour, wine, and cloth from the storeroom, distribute them according to the number of people, and prepare an extra portion of food for each person above the rank of Front Officer.

A total of three hundred strings of cash were spent, and everyone was all smiles.

Before the county government office was sealed, Zhang Sanlang leisurely collected his share.

Old Huang was waiting at the door with his mule cart. Liu Da and his men worked for a quarter of an hour to load the goods onto the cart.

Yan Shizhong glanced at the remaining items in the storeroom: several reams of paper, several pieces of ink, two bolts of plain silk, a jar of wine, and two baskets of dried fruit and candied fruit.

He gestured with his chin toward Liu Da, "Those things are mixed together in the baskets, so Zhang Qianxing can carry them all up the cart."

Liu understood and turned to lead his men to move it.

Yan Shizhong turned to Zhang Sanlang and said, "Your family has both a son and a daughter, and I heard you've adopted two more girls. You should give them a bigger share for the New Year. This year's rewards are generous; everyone is grateful for your kindness."

Zhang Sanlang cupped his hands in thanks. "Thank you, Officer Yan."

Yan Shizhong waved his hand, "It's nothing. It's troublesome to put the rest into storage anyway, so it's better to do a favor."

The two looked at each other and then burst into laughter.

Liu Da stood to the side, a slight smirk playing on his lips, thinking to himself, "You got even more stuff; two truckloads wouldn't be enough to carry it all!"

Old Huang tied the rope twice more before jumping onto the cart shaft.

Zhang Sanlang clasped his hands in a fist salute to Yan Shizhong, then turned and left the grain depot.

The mule cart creaked and groaned as it drove out of the back gate of the county government office.

Upon arriving at Kujing Lane, Old Sun, hearing the sound of the cart, poked his head out from the gatehouse. "Oh, so much stuff?"

Soon after, other people in the courtyard heard the noise and came out to help unload the goods.

Ah Zheng jumped onto the vehicle and handed the rice bag down to Ah Fang, who caught it below.

Aunt Sun carried the cloth into the main room, and then came out carrying meat.

A-Yun stood by the car and reached out to take a basket of dried fruit. However, the basket was too heavy and wobbled. Zhang Sanlang quickly reached out to hold the edge of the basket.

A-Yun lowered her head and laboriously carried the basket into the yard.

With many people working quickly, the items were moved in no time and piled up to half a person's height in the yard.

Zhang Sanlang pulled out fifty coins from his sleeve, smiled, and handed them over, saying, "Uncle Huang, you've worked hard on this cold day, take this and have a bowl of hot soup."

Old Huang pretended to decline, but seeing that he genuinely wanted to give it to him, he smiled and accepted it, putting it in his pocket. "Thank you for the generous gift, Zhang Qian. I live in Xiaoliu Lane in the east of the city. If you need a car during the New Year, just let me know."

Having said that, he jumped onto the cart shaft, lashing the whip in the air with a sharp crack. The gray mule snorted and started moving. The wheels turned the corner of the alley, and the sound gradually faded into the distance.

In the courtyard, Old Sun was counting on his fingers: "Two bushels of rice, eight pecks of flour, two jars of wine, three bolts of hemp cloth, two bolts of plain silk, thirty catties of meat, twenty catties of salt, ten reams of paper, ten pieces of ink, ten baskets of charcoal..."

He looked up at Aunt Sun and asked, "Grandpa, how much would this cost if we bought it at the market?"

Aunt Sun laughed upon hearing this, "Uncle Sun, how could I possibly know?"

She turned her head and saw Zhang Sanlang enter the courtyard. "Zhang Qianxing, these things would cost at least ten strings of cash at the market, wouldn't they?"

Zhang Sanlang smiled but didn't reply. "It's the New Year, everyone gets a share, everyone who sees it gets one!"

Aunt Sun was taken aback for a moment, then smiled so broadly her eyes disappeared. "How could I possibly accept this..."

Zhang Sanlang knew that everyone usually ate millet, but his ration included two shi of rice and eight dou of wheat flour.

He scooped out about five pounds from the rice bag, put it in a coarse linen bag, and handed it to Sister Sun. He then urged everyone to bring over earthenware basins to distribute the wheat flour, saying, "This year's new rice makes fragrant porridge, and we'll save the wheat flour for steaming buns for the New Year."

Aunt Sun took it, holding it in both hands, and kept saying, "We usually only drink mixed grain porridge, but thanks to you, we can enjoy refined grains this year!"

Everyone helped unload the goods and received some New Year's treats. The courtyard was filled with laughter and joy.

Ah Yun brought a bowl of hot tea from the kitchen and handed it to Zhang Sanlang, saying, "Uncle Zhang, have some tea to warm yourself up."

Zhang Sanlang took it, took a big gulp, and nodded to her.

Lin Qiao'er stood at the entrance of the main room, watching Zhang Sanlang distribute the items, her eyes filled with complex emotions. Lin Xiu'er squatted on the threshold, a piece of candy in her mouth, her cheeks bulging.

Zhang Sanlang resealed the remaining rice and flour and moved them into the east room.

Qingge'er, with snot running down his face, followed behind him, looking up and asking, "Dad, is rice tastier or millet tastier?"

"Silly boy, it's not like you've never eaten rice before."

"I haven't had this in so long! Are we going to eat rice from now on?"

Zhang Sanlang turned and glanced at him. "That depends on whether your father is capable or not."

Qingge sniffed and grinned, "My dad's the most capable!"

Xi Mei gently patted him on the head, "Stop joking. Go share some food with Hu Zi."

Qingge pouted, grabbed a large amount of dried fruit and candied fruit, and ran to the backyard.

Zhang Sanlang suddenly smiled.

Having been here for so long, he has been on edge every day, carefully dealing with everyone, afraid to say the wrong thing, afraid to take an extra step, and even taking his two children very seriously.

Only now do I realize that I've finally integrated.

But none of the people in this courtyard are intact.

He severed ties with the Zhang family and was abandoned by them.

Old Sun's only son stole his money and ran away, never to return for many years, leaving him abandoned by his son.

After her husband passed away, Sister Sun was kicked out by her husband's family.

The brothers Afang and his brother lost their parents at a young age, and no one in their clan was willing to take them in.

The Lin sisters were kicked out of their home by their biological grandmother, and their adoptive parents also died.

He's family seemed well-off, but he was an untrained carpenter who had never been apprenticed or entered the trade, and was looked down upon by people in the industry.

Even Zhou Qing and his wife, who moved to Chenjiazhuang, had no relatives or friends there.

This large courtyard housed only the abandoned.

Zhang Sanlang withdrew his gaze, turned around, and went into the main room.

In the kitchen, Aunt Sun was talking to A-Yun in a low voice, so it was hard to hear clearly.

In the courtyard, Qingge chased after Lin Xiuer and knocked over an empty basket.

Zhang Sanlang sat at the table, picked up a brush, dipped it in ink, and wrote four lines of characters on the paper:

Half a shoulder of wind and snow enters the thatched gate; the courtyard at dawn and dusk is like a small village.

Do not ask where this body belongs, for it has already taken root in the world.