The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty Author: Hao Sheng Yong Xian

If a person is poor from birth to death, it is not his fault, it is because no one has ever taught him how to make money! - Quotes from Zhang Yinghao

If you suddenly realize something, write it down. It may be very important to you. If you don't write it down, you will soon forget it. - Quotes by Zhang Yinghao

A novel that supports the Communist Party. Only after reading it did I realize the importance of the Rectification Movement.

Chapter 1: Hungry when I first arrived in Guang'an

4270 words

If a person is poor from birth to death, it is not his fault, it is because no one has ever taught him how to make money! - Quotes from Zhang Yinghao

In 1900, at the end of the Qing Dynasty, in Mingyue Mountain, Guang'an, Sichuan Province.

Zhang Yinghao saw that today's training mission was completed, so he shouted, "Stop, brothers, we're here for today. Let's rest early and prepare to go down the mountain tomorrow."

As Zhang Yinghao finished speaking, voices of "yes" were heard from all directions.

A gratified smile immediately appeared on Zhang Yinghao's face. This was the first accomplished thing he had done since coming to this world. After two months of training by him, these boys had already acquired some of the unique temperament of a soldier.

Zhang Yinghao recalled that he woke up slowly and suddenly remembered that when he was returning to his rental house after working the night shift, he was distracted by the thought of his life after college and had a car accident, which led to him coming into this world.

In my past life, my pre-college life was a distant, beautiful memory, while my post-college life was a helpless and painful struggle. I had the opportunity to become a civil servant, but I gave it up. Never having experienced the harsh realities of society, I lived in a world of my own imagination, dreaming of building something new. I opened a shop, sold counterfeit medicine, engaged in direct sales, telemarketing, and online commerce, but ultimately ended up working in a factory.

Looking back on those few short years, I felt as panicked as a lost dog, as anxious as a fish that had escaped a net. My life and work were a mess, and I thought to myself, what a complete jerk I was. I was stuck in memories, unable to extricate myself, feeling drained and distracted. Before I knew it, I'd walked into the middle of the street. Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and I was flying through the air. The last thing I saw was a car driving under me, Zhang Yinghao headfirst. I heard two clicks, and then nothing happened.

Zhang Yinghao, having just woken up, had only one thought in his mind: "If you don't die in a car accident, you'll have good fortune in the future." He didn't know which hospital he was in, or whether his family had been notified. He was so exhausted that he fell back asleep without even opening his eyes.

"Yunxia, ​​you came to see me."

Zhang Yunxia was Zhang Yinghao's childhood sweetheart. Without saying a word, she blushed and dragged him up the mountain. Zhang Yinghao didn't know why they were walking out of the hospital into the mountains behind the village. He followed Zhang Yunxia, ​​watching her round butt wiggle before his eyes. He felt like the steel gun below could pierce the steel plate.

Halfway up the mountain, Zhang Yinghao couldn't hold back any longer and couldn't wait to kiss Zhang Yunxia. Sucking her soft little melon and caressing her elastic butt, Zhang Yinghao fell into a frenzy, feeling all the strength in his body concentrated on his gun. He was suddenly thirsty and felt that he had hit the target, but he couldn't see clearly. Zhang Yinghao suddenly felt upset.

"I can't get in, why can't I get in?"

Zhang Yinghao was sweating profusely from anxiety. No matter what, he would definitely be able to get it in if he used force. After all, great force can make miracles happen. Zhang Yinghao suddenly concentrated all his strength, tensed all his muscles, and pushed hard.

Oh! Zhang Yinghao smacked his lips. Damn, he woke up from the dream. He felt that semen was still coming out from below. He sighed deeply and his semen overflowed.

Zhang Yinghao slowly opened his eyes, nearly pissing himself. What caught his eye was a thatched roof. A few beams of sunlight shone through the middle. He jerked his head to the side and saw a mud wall. His heart raced, his adrenaline surging.

Suddenly, I felt full of strength. I flung aside the quilt, not caring about the wet, sticky crotch inside my pants, and ran towards the door. I pushed hard at the broken door, but it didn't open. I pulled it back, and what I saw was a withered landscape with a few scattered bluestone and tiled houses, and the rest were thatched houses. A breeze blew over, and I felt a cool sensation on my body and head. I raised my hand to touch my head, and it was bald. I looked back and felt "pigtails", and the only two words that remained in my mind were "Qing Dynasty clothes". I looked down and saw a big hole in my clothes on my stomach and two big holes on my knees. I touched my crotch again, and it was indeed a dream where I had just overflowed with semen.

As a 21st century internet user experiencing the information explosion, I'm all too familiar with words like "time travel" and "rebirth." The only difference is that other time travelers are either royal relatives or wealthy landlords. Judging by my attire, I'm probably a poor or lower-middle peasant.

Zhang Yinghao doesn't care much about death. From junior high school to college, he saw many elderly people in his family pass away. Moreover, Zhang Yinghao learned the meaning of the fickle fate when his classmate was drowned in a flood in junior high school.

The most important thing was that his father was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Within half a year, his originally strong father became emaciated and died from the torture of illness. Zhang Yinghao was open-minded about death.

Now I realize I’ve traveled through time, and a song by Andy Lau comes to mind: I’ve waited for so long and finally waited until today; I’ve dreamed for so long and finally the dream came true…

My mother in the original world must be very sad, but she has a younger brother to take care of her, so she doesn't have to worry about that. She is just a little worried about whether she is dead or in a vegetative state. If she is in a vegetative state, I don't know what to say. The ideal situation is that she has exchanged souls with the original owner.

Looking around, the first thing he noticed was the tattered quilt on the bed. Glancing at the roof, Zhang Yinghao imagined that if it rained, he would be likened to the scene in Du Fu's "Song of the Thatched Cottage Broken by the Autumn Wind": "The cloth quilt has been cold for years, like iron; the darling child lies awake on the couch, its quilt ripped apart. There's no dry place at the head of the bed, and the rain falls like hemp, but it never stops." There weren't even any shoes under the bed, and he was still barefoot. Zhang Yinghao didn't mind. He had been a child in the countryside in his previous life, and going without shoes was commonplace. Even if he had shoes, he wouldn't have worn them unless he was working in the mountains. After all, the flesh on the soles of your feet can grow back, but you can't fix your own broken shoes.

There was almost no furniture in the bedroom. There was a mud brick and tile house next to it, and a few tattered clothes and pants were hanging at the door. Zhang Yinghao thought to himself that this family could barely survive starvation.

After standing for a while, I suddenly felt a little dizzy. I raised my hand to look at my dark and thin hands, and touched my hungry belly. It was not important to observe the environment or the specific time. I would change my pants first.

After knowing I'd been transported through time, the three questions of life were meaningless. The main issue now was starvation. Carbohydrates were essential. My current body, probably in my teens, was incredibly thin. I'd just lost so much nutrition, and it would take several days to replenish it. If I wanted to return to normal, I absolutely couldn't do without meat. Judging from this house, there was no hope of eating meat.

After changing his pants, he was about to go out to find something to eat when he suddenly heard voices outside the door. A moment later, he saw a middle-aged woman in her forties or fifties hurried back, followed by a girl about fourteen or fifteen years old. The woman was visibly stunned when she saw Zhang Yinghao, but then her face lit up with joy. She said, "Hao boy, you're finally awake! You weren't feeling well to begin with. You didn't eat anything this morning and even went to the mountains to chop wood. Luckily, Aunt Cao saw you and carried you back. Otherwise, where would we have found you? I asked the doctor to come see you, and he said you were starving, so I fed you some sweet potato soup. This time, I borrowed ten pounds of rice from your Aunt Hong's house. Wait, I'll go cook. Talk to Xiaoxue. Don't be so stubborn next time. Aunt Cao almost scared me to death when she carried you back." After saying that, she picked up a cloth bag and went into a small room next door.

Zhang Yinghao was somewhat prepared for the fact that he was called Hao Wazi. After all, that's how it was written in those time-travel novels, with the same name and surname! Zhang Yinghao suspected that this woman might be his mother, so he stood at the door without saying anything. The problem now was to clarify these relationships, and the only way to get them out of Xiaoxue was to get them out of her.

Zhang Yinghao pretended to be familiar with her and said, "Xiaoxue, your home is so far away, but you followed me here?"

Xiaoxue didn't disappoint me either. She immediately said, "Brother Gouzi, um, what's that smell? Oh, I don't live far away. My mom asked me to come see you this time. She doesn't have time..."

Zhang Yinghao wasn't surprised that Xiaoxue called him "Gouzi." After all, in rural areas, it was unusual for a child to not have a nickname, and children often called each other by their nicknames. After all, it was said that the more humble a name, the easier it was to raise a child.

"Oh, it's the smell of rice liquid. Let's go out and talk about it..."

......

After arriving in Zhangjiagou for half a month, Zhang Yinghao had already known that Aunt Hong was the mother of this little girl through his conversations with Xiaoxue and their life contact in Zhangjiagou for half a month. Xiaoxue's name was Chen Xueer and she was 15 years old this year. Zhang Yinghao asked about his own age and found out that he was 18 years old. Aunt Cao means that she was from a village called Caojiazhuang before she got married, so everyone called her a member of the Cao family. And the one who cooked for him was his mother. His deceased father named her Li Xiufang. As for why he was able to borrow rice, it was because Xiaoxue and he were engaged as children. As for the reason, it should be related to his deceased father. Zhang Yinghao did not act pretentiously and directly accepted the fact that he had a fiancée. Zhang Yinghao was very happy about this. Although he was not interested in the Loli training plan, who gave him the opportunity? It's okay, we can still raise her.

It is now March 1900, which Zhang Yinghao had to find out after a lot of effort. It is the 26th year of the Guangxu period, the year of the Boxer Rebellion, and the heroic era when Empress Dowager Cixi challenged the whole world.

The history of this life diverges slightly from the previous one. There was a slight change at the end of the Ming Dynasty. Nurhaci was not killed by a cannon, but died suddenly for unknown reasons a few years later. However, other major events remained almost unchanged.

Although he had a bit of a prophetic air after traveling through time, it was impossible for him to go to Beijing and save the country from collapse like the other protagonists. Zhang Yinghao had no hope of achieving any effect. Whether he could meet the authorities in Beijing was still a question. Even if he did meet the authorities, the Qing Dynasty would definitely lose. Unless he had aircraft carriers or other plug-ins when he traveled through time, he would not dare to try to shake the tree with his weak arms and legs. If he died accidentally, it would be a shame to his identity as a time traveler.

In the past half month, Zhang Yinghao also knew that he was in Guang'an, Sichuan. Zhang Yinghao didn't know where Guang'an was exactly in Sichuan. Now the only problem Zhang Yinghao had to solve was hunger, and the problem he couldn't solve was hunger. He was hungry from morning to night. After eating the borrowed rice, he had almost no food to eat. He only had a little porridge. Sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn were not enough to fill him up. For Zhang Yinghao, who came from the future, coarse grains were like cutting his throat. Now he could only ensure that he would not die.

Zhang Yinghao's family background was also revealed. His father was educated, considered a scholar. After failing the imperial examinations twice, he returned to Zhangjiagou to teach. Last year, he suddenly suffered a severe stomachache. He spent a lot of money, but the pain was not cured, and he died a few days later. The family's land was taken away by a landlord in the same village at a low price. Now, only a little over an acre of land remains. The family has almost no food left even if they save enough for seeds.

Zhang Yinghao now suspects that his father's illness was caused by acute appendicitis perforation. In his previous life, Zhang Yinghao himself suffered from acute suppurative appendicitis and almost had perforation. In modern times, this is just a minor operation, but now it is a serious illness that can take lives.

In his past life, the internet reported that the average age of people in this era was only in their thirties or forties. Zhang Yinghao initially didn't believe it, but now he believes it's true. Newborn girls, if there are too many children or if there's a preference for boys over girls, will drown. In this era, if a wound isn't properly treated and becomes inflamed and festering, it can easily kill. For example, a simple case of appendicitis claims tens of thousands of lives every year. This isn't a joke; it's the reality of this era.

The lower class people are now living by stimulating their body's potential. There is no way they can have a bright smile on their faces. They almost all have a numb expression, because keeping a straight face can save the body's energy. Laughing until your abdominal muscles show is no joke, and happy emotions also consume a lot of energy.

Every household went to bed early, so they wouldn't feel hungry. If they weren't working, they would get up late to conserve energy. On days without work, they'd eat porridge, and only when they had work to do would they eat something solid. That was during spring plowing, summer harvest, and autumn harvest.

Therefore, people of this era loved being asked to help out with chores. Wages were best, but if not, at least meals were provided, meaning they didn't have to eat at home. Saving a meal for the family could be life-saving in times of famine. A notable characteristic of people doing manual labor during this era was that their faces would be covered in knife-like wrinkles whenever they exerted themselves. This was because their entire bodies, including their facial muscles, were required to provide energy for the exertion.

The Chinese have always been hardworking and diligent, but in this era of low productivity, the vast majority of people struggle to make ends meet. Zhang Yinghao finds himself constantly darting his head around, his eyes darting in all directions. His eyeballs glow green, his deep, sunken eye sockets gleaming with a gleaming intensity. A modern person would probably be horrified by this look. But no one thinks it's unusual these days, because everyone looks the same, searching for food.

Chapter 2: Recognize the reality and take action

3696 words

The more difficult the situation, the more we need to develop. — Quotes from Zhang Yinghao

Zhang Yinghao's father was a private school teacher, so he was considered a scholar in his day. However, since his father's death, he has had no income, and now his family has little food to eat. Furthermore, according to Zhang Yinghao's understanding of Guang'an today, a large area is currently suffering from drought, and almost nothing can be grown.

Of course, Zhang Yinghao didn't know that Guang'an's history described the drought in and after the Gengzi Year as follows: In the 26th year of the Guangxu period (1900), during the spring plowing season of the Gengzi Year, there was a drought. It was not until the end of April that it rained and rice was planted. In the autumn, there was a severe drought, and the water supply was cut off, making the Qu River wadable.

So, around March, it's spring plowing season, but now there's a severe drought, and almost every household is running out of food. In rural areas, food storage is crucial: last year's harvest must be carefully budgeted and saved until the first harvest of the following year, otherwise the family will run out of food. Now, due to the severe drought, it's impossible to plant crops. All we can do is plant some land, sow seeds, and wait for rain. The rest of the land is practically uncultivated because of the drought and lack of water. So, many families are already worrying about how they'll get through the rest of the year.

It's been two weeks since Zhang Yinghao arrived in this world. Aside from the initial few days of adjustment, he's been constantly thinking about what to do next. Of course, Zhang Yinghao hasn't been idle for the past two weeks. He believes in the saying of Taizu: "Work hard and you'll have enough food and clothing." Furthermore, he was originally from the countryside in his previous life, so he quickly adapted to rural life. However, Zhang Yinghao's current resources have limited him to starting with the simplest things.

The first thing Zhang Yinghao did was make a few duck-feather pens. While he could make pencils, he didn't have the tools for the job. He'd learned to use a brush in elementary school, but he couldn't write well. So, he made a few duck-feather pens modeled after goose-feather pens. Regardless of their quality, he couldn't live without them. Regardless of their quality, he had to first solve the problem of having them.

Then Zhang Yinghao thought of using earthworms to raise chickens and ducks. This method wouldn't be outdated even in the 21st century, demonstrating its longevity. So Zhang Yinghao, hoe in hand, headed to his own field, isolated about a quarter of it, and began digging. The dry weather and Zhang Yinghao's already fragile health made him sweat profusely after just a short while. Just loosening the soil took Zhang Yinghao two days. Looking at the land he had dug, he felt a surge of pride. He then collected a large pile of dead branches and leaves from the woods and piled them in the field, then shoveled his own manure into the earthworm patch.

It's still spring drought season, which doesn't mean there's no water everywhere. Some areas still have plenty of moisture, so there's enough water for basic survival. Every day, Zhang Yinghao tries his best to get water and spread farmyard manure on the earthworm fields.

Zhang Yinghao spent several days digging earthworms in the fields in front of and behind the village, and put the earthworms into his own breeding fields.

Zhang Yinghao wasn't familiar with the villagers at the time, and felt a sense of alienation. He didn't want to talk to them. Villagers and his mother, Li Xiufang, did ask him what he was doing, and he replied, "Playing." He didn't want to talk much, believing it wouldn't be too late to talk until he had achieved success.

Moreover, Zhang Yinghao was exhausted every day. Hard labor is always hard, and physical fatigue leads to indifference. If Lu Xun had also worked so hard, he would not have said that the people's faces were numb and indifferent. Zhang Yinghao didn't want to talk to anyone at all. Only those who have experienced it know that it is better to save the energy to talk and warm your stomach.

After some time, he learned that almost all the good land in Zhangjiagou was monopolized by the landlord Zhang's family. Many villagers could only cultivate wasteland in remote areas, and if they wanted to farm, they had to rent land from the landlord Zhang. Zhang Yinghao watched all this with indifference, thinking of accumulating strength to change this.

During the Qing Dynasty, land annexation was particularly serious. Land grabbing in the early Qing Dynasty was no joke. By the end of the Qing Dynasty, the rich had vast tracts of land, while the poor had no place to stand.

Zhang Yinghao couldn't explain it to the villagers. Even if he told them about earthworm farming, no one would believe him, and no one cared. In those days, no one knew the value of earthworms, and no one was bothered enough to raise them. They couldn't even afford to eat, so where would they find the land? And during droughts, the earthworms disappeared, so Zhang Yinghao just quietly went about his business.

Zhang Yinghao also cleaned the earthworms and cooked them into porridge. He believed that after a period of eating porridge and supplementing it with some meat, his health would be much better.

Another major thing Zhang Yinghao did was to use the leftover paper at home to write down the Chinese Pinyin alphabet, multiplication table, some simple and practical words, and the drill training and physical training methods he learned in the police academy.

There are some inkstones and papers at home, and Zhang Yinghao knows that these simple things are the most important to him now. Zhang Yinghao doesn't know what he should do specifically now, but when he comes to the end of the Qing Dynasty, he must learn from the protagonist of the novel in his previous life, who did not rebel in the Qing Dynasty and used an electric drill with his chrysanthemum.

Zhang Yinghao is now having a headache about his first step. The original accumulation is always slow and painful. Zero to one, one to two, and two to three are the most difficult. Zhang Yinghao is not clear about what to do specifically.

Zhang Yinghao's understanding of the situation revealed that the people of Guang'an Prefecture were still struggling to get by. Pawnshops were booming, and the number of borrowers at banks was rumored to be increasing. There were also more idlers and beggars on the streets, and many women and children were kneeling or squatting in the streets. Seeing these women and children made Zhang Yinghao sad, but he himself had nothing to eat, so he could only leave quickly. Such a short drought had left so many people bankrupt and homeless. Zhang Yinghao often saw emaciated bodies being dragged out of the city gates and buried in the mass graves.

The governor and the soldiers seemed accustomed to this. They drove anyone who blocked their path like an animal, beating and scolding them, treating these people in distress like nothing more than human beings. Zhang Yinghao simply couldn't imagine why the soldiers could be so callous to the people, scolding and abusing them at the slightest provocation. Seeing this, Zhang Yinghao gritted his teeth and vowed to change the world.

Zhang Yinghao walked across Guang'an, seeing fortified towns, forts, and watchtowers everywhere. Zhang Yinghao had never seen these things in his past life, and wondered if they had never been built in his hometown or if they had been demolished later.

According to the Guang'an Prefecture Chronicles of the Xuantong reign of the Qing Dynasty, Guang'an Prefecture had a total of 210 fortified towns and watchtowers in late Qing Dynasty. The Newly Compiled Wusheng County Chronicles of the Republic of China records nearly 500 forts within the county. The Yuechi County Chronicles, Military Records of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty, records that in 1798, in order to defend against attacks by the White Lotus Rebellion, Yuechi County alone built over 1000 forts and watchtowers. Small forts were later incorporated into larger ones, resulting in a total of 118 large forts throughout the county. Based on these statistics, the total number of fortified towns and watchtowers within Guang'an throughout history must have exceeded 1000.

Guang'an is a place that is fought over by military strategists. It has experienced four large-scale fortress constructions. Guang'an is also a place where disasters continue to occur. Today's Guang'an is still not peaceful. Not only are there rampant bandits, but there are also a large number of landlords who are rich and unkind.

Zhang Yinghao even saw a wealthy young man take some food and throw it among the beggars for fun. They used alms as a ploy to get the beggars to fight each other. The beggars, in turn, scrambled for the food like mad dogs. Seeing the wealthy young man's arrogant face, and then seeing those grabbing the food or rushing over to grab it, Zhang Yinghao inexplicably shed tears, feeling deeply sad.

Zhang Yinghao watched with his own eyes as a dark, thin, middle-aged man repeatedly glanced up at the food in the hands of the wealthy young man, then at the crying child in his arms. Finally, he gritted his teeth, put the child down, slowly stood up, and resolutely walked into the crowd of people scrambling for food, joining the large group.

The rich kid also saw the dark, thin man's unyielding face. Perhaps because he had seen more unruly people being forced into submission, he came to him and forced them to eat. The rich kid became even more aggressive and rampant. Perhaps he felt he had found a weak spot for these people. He looked around, looked down on everyone, and laughed happily.

Zhang Yinghao remained calm and indifferent on the surface, but in his heart he was crying out: "It shouldn't be like this. People shouldn't live like this. They are human beings, not animals. Shouldn't people live with dignity?"

Although this situation would never happen in the future, Zhang Yinghao, after all, was a college graduate, and he quickly thought of the saying, "When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they have enough food and clothing, they know honor and disgrace. When the problem of survival has not been solved, it is impossible to talk about luxury things such as dignity." As for the rich kid, what else can be said about him except that he is perverted?

So after a few days, Zhang Yinghao gradually adapted to the situation. He still felt uncomfortable seeing these people. After all, many things were completely disruptive to him. But humans are highly adaptable creatures. After seeing too much, they become numb and let it go.

However, through his understanding during this period, Zhang Yinghao gradually understood some things. Our Qing Dynasty is now sitting on the edge of a volcano. The reason why it has not perished is that, like the Ottoman Empire, it still has the inertia of unity.

Zhang Yinghao had been traveling extensively in recent days for two reasons: first, to understand the current society. Without research, one can't accomplish anything; after all, without research, one has no right to speak. Second, to see if there was any place where his knowledge could be put to use and where he could make some money.

But Zhang Yinghao was deeply disappointed. Jobs were incredibly hard to come by these days. Guang'an, an inland city, was practically devoid of job postings. Even when there were, they were mostly for manual labor, and quickly filled up. Most importantly, Zhang Yinghao was so frail that no one would give him a chance, not to mention that he was just a teenager, unable to do much manual labor. Even clerical and math work was difficult to find without a personal introduction. Most importantly, any decent work required a guarantor; without one, no one would hire someone they didn't know. Unlike later times, with industrialized mass production and the current rapid expansion of industries, many needed workers had to be self-trained. Just like those church schools, they trained agents for their own factions, who would later work for them. And if the employer didn't trust you, you couldn't even get into the industry.

Zhang Yinghao's home wasn't particularly close to Guang'an Prefecture, only about 30 kilometers away. He'd make the round trip every day, waking up early in the morning to explore society and returning in the dark. But Zhang Yinghao desperately needed to understand society, so he desperately sought out information everywhere. The villages and rivers along the way all bore traces of Zhang Yinghao's presence.

In the village, Zhang Yinghao used to study with his father. Scholars in all generations were a bit stolid and generally would not do physical work, or would be ashamed of doing physical work. They believed that those who work with their minds rule others, and those who work with their hands are ruled by others. Of course, scholars did not have much energy to do physical work. In the old dynasties, the food was not very good, and scholars consumed a lot of mental energy, so their physical fitness was generally not very good, of course, except for the rich. The saying "poor scholars and rich warriors" is not just a saying. If you can't eat meat, how can you get the energy to practice martial arts? So his predecessor had never done any farm work. Suddenly, his father passed away, and it was a bit difficult for his predecessor to work. In the end, he could only do the work reluctantly, and the current Zhang Yinghao took over.

Chapter 3: Cheating and deceiving to enter the mountains

3865 words

To live is to eat, but to eat is to work. — Quotes from Zhang Yinghao

Zhang Yinghao's predecessor had many friends in the village. After all, his father was a teacher, and scholars were very favored in the late Qing Dynasty. But the problem is that Zhang Yinghao doesn't know anyone in the village now, and there is no one to teach. The weather this year is really bad, and the children are very hungry. They stay at home and don't want to move much. Exercise consumes a lot of energy. Some children don't know the importance of it until they go hungry a few times. Moreover, when the disaster comes, the family will never have enough to eat.

Zhang Yinghao is an exception now because he is a time traveler. There are some situations that he must understand clearly before he can make the next plan.

Zhang Yinghao's original plan was to farm peacefully and slowly accumulate a certain amount of wealth through earthworm breeding technology. In the past, there were time-travel novels that relied on farming to accumulate wealth and then slowly developed.

However, after Zhang Yinghao's understanding of the situation over the past two weeks, he suddenly felt that this was not feasible. Not only did they have so little food left at home, but they also had so little land. If they didn't find a way to make a living, they didn't know how they would survive this year.

Although Zhang Yinghao didn't know what taxation was like in those days, with so many people losing their land and going bankrupt, it was certain that taxes wouldn't be low. Furthermore, the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty and the Manchu nobles were unproductive, relying entirely on the people for support. This amount had to be included in the tax. Add to that the upcoming 450 million yuan in war reparations, which would be one ounce of silver per person. Just thinking about it made Zhang Yinghao's scalp tingle.

Zhang Yinghao suddenly realized that his plan to slowly develop through farming was completely unworkable. He was too weak. He was innocent, but possessing a treasure would be a crime. Any enviable possession would attract a pack of wolves. Furthermore, given the level of public security in the late Qing Dynasty, the frequent uprisings and unrest were beyond the ability of a time traveler like him to handle.

The world has reached a point where without reform, survival and development are impossible. Simply put, the Qing Dynasty is a pool of stagnant water. If this stagnant water is not drained away, even the slightest amount of fresh water added will immediately turn it into stagnant water, emitting an unpleasant odor. The current uprisings are merely minor ripples; after all, they are old-fashioned rebellions and cannot even be called rebellions.

Many people harbored the idea of ​​killing officials, rebelling, and receiving amnesty, or simply making a quick buck and leaving. It was extremely difficult for such people to achieve anything. Even if they could achieve something, Zhang Yinghao didn't want to do it. If Zhang Yinghao couldn't take the lead, his own safety wouldn't be guaranteed. It wasn't that Zhang Yinghao valued his life, but rather that he felt he shouldn't die so easily after arriving here. He couldn't lose face as a time traveler.

But where to take his first step, Zhang Yinghao hadn't figured out how to do it, and where to get the initial accumulation. Although he had no specific clues yet, an idea had quietly come to Zhang Yinghao's mind.

After wandering for half a month, Zhang Yinghao had a pretty good understanding of the situation. He felt that he couldn't go on like this. He had seen too many human tragedies during this period. In our Qing Dynasty, people were dying from droughts, floods, and man-made disasters. Unnatural deaths could be seen almost every day.

The entire 19th and 20th centuries were dominated by the bold. As the saying goes, the bold die of overeating, the timid die of starvation. A man cannot become rich without unexpected fortune, nor can a horse grow fat without night grass. So Zhang Yinghao gritted his teeth and gave up trying his luck. He couldn't survive without risking his life. As the saying goes, "A man dies, and the birds fly to the sky; if he lives, he will live forever." Having made up his mind, Zhang Yinghao couldn't wait even a minute longer. After all, nothing would come to fruition without action.

When he returned home, Zhang Yinghao saw his mother licking the bowl from a distance. Zhang Yinghao suddenly felt a soreness in his eyes. It had been a long time since he had felt such a touching and sad emotion. He was touched that his mother left all the good things for him, and he was sad because of the hardships of this world and the working people who worked all day but still could not get enough food.

Zhang Yinghao knew that now was not the time to be sad and nostalgic, so he made up his mind. He said to his current mother, "Mom, I'm going to study far away for a while, and you don't have to ask me where I'm going. You give me half of the money in the family, and you stay at home and take care of yourself. I've already planted sweet potatoes in our fields. This year, we won't plant other crops in our fields, just sweet potatoes. If I can make it, I'll come back to help. If I can't come back, you can ask relatives and villagers to help plant the fields in one or two days. You must help me take care of my earthworm field. When you have time, go water it and throw the manure from your home into the earthworm field. It will be very useful to me in the future. You also know how to clean the earthworms. Make some earthworm porridge for yourself."

The mother put down the bowl and looked at Zhang Yinghao silently. She opened her mouth but said nothing. Zhang Yinghao turned around and walked towards his room without waiting for his mother to speak.

Early the next morning, Zhang Yinghao packed up his tattered quilt and some things he felt he could use, took half of the salt in the house, took a dozen sweet potatoes, and some copper coins given by his mother.

With tears in her eyes, my mother packed her things silently, got up early and made breakfast. She even boiled two eggs for the first time, but no one knew where they came from.

When she saw me walk out of the room, my mother immediately called out, "I've prepared breakfast, come and eat it."

Originally, he wanted to leave early, but since his mother had already prepared breakfast, he decided to have breakfast before leaving. Zhang Yinghao thought about it and agreed. His mother also finished breakfast with tears in her eyes. Zhang Yinghao felt uncomfortable, but he became more determined in his heart.

Perhaps influenced by traditional values, such as obeying one's father at home, one's husband after marriage, and one's son after the husband's death, his mother didn't offer any advice on Zhang Yinghao's departure. Perhaps she also knew that even staying home would make it difficult to get meals. This reminded Zhang Yinghao of his mother in a previous life, who was also like this, without a single opinion. She was fine with some farm work, but anything else was completely incomprehensible. Limited by her limited knowledge, she never expressed any opinion on Zhang Yinghao's choices, simply silently supporting them.

After breakfast, Zhang Yinghao immediately returned to his room to pick up his luggage. Suddenly, he remembered something: he really couldn't just leave without saying anything.