Inquiry
Mr. Zhuang: ... To be so ill that you need to take leave for your grandson in the morning, and then recover so quickly?
What kind of illness is this, coming and going so swiftly?
Mr. Zhuang glanced at Bai Shanbao but did not ask him any further questions. After all the students had taken their seats, he announced that the students from Qili Village would have half a day off in the afternoon. They were supposed to go home and find their parents. Their parents would then instruct them on what to do next.
Mr. Zhuang did not provide them with much information.
As Manbao and others walked hand in hand with their small book bags, Mr. Zhuang turned to the remaining students and said, "Rest here for the afternoon." The afternoon session will primarily focus on calligraphy lessons. Grab your paper and pen to practice calligraphy. Lufeng, you are the oldest, so you oversee them.
Lufeng often performed these tasks, so he stood up to accept.
Mr. Zhuang then returned the books to the courtyard and strolled leisurely back into the village.
When assessing the disaster situation, is it truly necessary to verify the household registration individually?
Do they also need to distribute subsidies per person?
Mr. Zhuang was not a simple villager and naturally could not believe it. Not to mention, Qili Village was a poor mountain village; even in the bustling capital, it would be impossible to provide such subsidies after a natural disaster.
Moreover, why only come to Qili Village and not go to Dali Village first?
It should be noted that Dali Village was the largest village nearby, and most policies were implemented in Dali Village before they reached Qili Village.
Obviously, Mrs. Liu also knew this, which was why she took the initiative to lead them to the village chief's house. Unusually, she did not avoid the local villagers but sat in the courtyard of the village chief's house, listening to the three of them questioning her bit by bit.
More and more villagers and children arrived as the news spread. Children always like to join in the fun, including Manbao and Bai Shanbao.
Initially, both of them found this matter a bit boring and considered it more beneficial to return to school and listen to the teacher. When so many children showed up, they became excited and thought the situation was indeed enjoyable.
Mrs. Liu quietly got up and saw Mr. Zhuang standing outside the crowd. She hesitated for a moment before walking away.
She could feel a pair of eyes behind her, seemingly watching her intently but inconspicuously.
Mrs. Liu seemed unaware as she walked over to Mr. Zhuang with her maidservant, greeting him with a smile.
Mr. Zhuang returned the greeting and looked at the three people surrounded by the crowd, whispering, "Were these three brought here by Madam?"
Mrs. Liu nodded slightly, and her voice carried just enough for the nearby villagers to hear, "Early this morning, Lizi's mother came to call for me, saying that guests had arrived at home." As you know, Lizi is in the prefecture, not at home, so I had to go the extra mile.
Mrs. Liu continued, "At first, I thought it was relatives coming to visit, but when I arrived, I found three officials." They had received orders from the Yizhou government office to conduct disaster relief statistics in the villages and towns below and distribute relief funds.
"They came to the village for the first time and didn't know who was in charge." Upon seeing the imposing house of the Bai family, they knocked on the door. Mrs. Liu smiled and said, "But this is the responsibility of the village head and the village chief." "Our households consisted of women and young children; no one had any ideas, so we just showed them the way."
Mr. Zhuang nodded and looked at the clothing and accessories of the three individuals, then asked, "Madam, are you sure they had the official seal of the Yizhou government office?"
Mrs. Liu, facing away from the crowd, also became more serious, nodding, "I'm sure."
It was strange that, considering Yizhou was currently severely affected by the disaster, they had the time to oversee such a small mountain village.
But if that wasn't the case, could it be a forged official seal?
And what were they after?
Mrs. Liu was also curious about their motives.
If they really wanted to verify the disaster situation, shouldn't they have first gone to the county registrar?
Even if they didn't go to the registrar, if they wanted to bypass the county, they should have found the village head after going to the countryside. Instead, they bypassed the village head and went straight to the Bai family's door.
Not to mention the challenge of locating the village head, at this time, there were numerous individuals in the fields and at the entrance of Qili Village. If they had asked anyone, they would have been told without hesitation.
The villagers of Qili Village were very hospitable. Who would refuse to give directions to visitors?
But they visited the Bai family, conversed at length with the elderly Mrs. Bai, and delved into the ancestral history of the Bai family for generations.
The elderly lady, Mrs. Bai, contacted Mrs. Liu because she was concerned that the probing questions from the visitors could be a scam, and she felt unable to deal with them by herself.
Mrs. Liu was different from her sister-in-law because she had previously lived in Longzhou and was also a part of a large family. She might not have superior insight, but at least she had some common sense.
She had never seen or even heard of disaster relief being distributed on a per-person basis. It was impossible for one household to receive one share; that was already implausible.
Hadn't she heard that Magistrate Fu had to extort quite a bit from the local landlords before providing assistance to those whose houses had collapsed, and aid to those most severely affected by the disaster?
Both Mrs. Liu and Mr. Zhuang did not leave but stood outside the crowd, quietly watching the three of them inside as they asked various questions.
To ensure perfection, their questions were very detailed. The village chief was unaware of their intentions, and he answered every question they had, seeming eager to unearth even the ancestors buried in their fields to verify.
As long as there was relief aid, that was fine.
It was almost evening before they asked about Manbao's family.
Lao Zhou had been waiting for a long time with the entire family. The three were then surrounded by the villagers in the courtyard, and Lao Zhou greeted them with a smile, "Official, would you like me to take you to the fields to see? Although the house appears more orderly, our family is also severely affected by the disaster."
Zhou Dalang and others nodded repeatedly.
Lao Zhou said, "These houses were all built with borrowed money. There's no other way." The children have grown up, and if we don't build houses, they won't be able to get married. "So our family is also facing difficulties."
"How many people are there in your family?" The leader interrupted him.
Lao Zhou hesitated for a moment and instinctively looked at his younger daughter.
Manbao helplessly said, "Father, there are twenty-one of us."
"Twenty-two," Lao Zhou corrected. "My third daughter-in-law is pregnant again." Officially, you see, at a time like this, getting pregnant brings trouble to the family. Her health is not great, and we will have to tighten our belts in the future.
"All your children?" The man looked at the masses behind him, somewhat astonished for the first time.
"Yes, yes, let me introduce you." "This is my eldest son," he said, smiling, as he introduced Manbao. "And this is my younger daughter."
The man only glanced at Manbao before asking, "Have your sons ever traveled outside?"
"Outside?" Lao Zhou immediately replied, "Oh, they've been outside." They go out every day.
"…I mean, have they been to Luojiang County?"
Lao Zhou faintly felt that something was amiss and shook his head, "No, why would we go to Luojiang County?" "The roads are difficult to travel..."
"I checked the household registration, and according to the recorded age of your younger brother, he should be twenty-seven now." Where is he?