CHAPTER 167: CHAPTER 166: TATTOOED AND EXILED

Yu Xiaolian sat on a custom-made high stool behind the counter, holding a book and reading it, a travelogue borrowed from the bookstore next door.

Just as she was engrossed, a group of little kids entered the shop.

Before she could speak, Little Tiger led a few chubby kids to the snack shelf and started introducing the items.

"This is chocolate, this is milk candy, and this is crispy candy..."

Little Tiger introduced everything he had tasted and thought was delicious, one by one.

Each time Little Tiger introduced something, the little companions who came along exclaimed in amazement.

This shop is different from others; it sells things they’ve never tasted before.

Every recommendation Little Tiger gave, Zhao Xudong eagerly bought it.

Though the other families weren’t as wealthy as Zhao Xudong’s, they still had some means, and could afford some snacks.

Even though these candies weren’t very expensive, they were still three times the price of malt candy outside.

Malt candy was one coin apiece, and the candy at Taotao Residence was three coins apiece.

Chocolate was even more expensive than candy.

The little kids, coaxed by Little Tiger and Su Jingyue, wanted to buy and try everything.

Yu Xiaolian put down the travelogue and started tallying up for these little ones.

The little ones bought various candies, but together it wasn’t much money; Yu Xiaolian didn’t want to charge them, but Little Tiger quickly took the Copper Coins, telling his classmates they were getting a deal, buying five candies and getting one free.

He then winked at Yu Xiaolian, implying they couldn’t lose money.

Yu Xiaolian chuckled; her younger brother was indeed clever.

Little Tiger sent the classmates to the door, not forgetting to tell them that his family’s shop had everything, and if they were short of anything, they should definitely come here to buy.

The little classmates, carrying braised meat and candies, got on their family carriages, waving their little chubby hands at Little Tiger, eagerly urging the servants to hurry home.

Off to go eat meat at home.

As soon as Little Tiger turned around, Yu Xiaolian grabbed him for a talk, advising him to focus on studying and not worry about the family business. What if the classmates’ parents thought their kids spent too much and suspected their family of scamming children?

Candy outside is one coin each, ours is three, what if they accuse us of tricking children and come knocking?

Little Tiger waved his little hand, "Sister, don’t worry, the ones I brought home, they’re all from wealthy families at the academy, they don’t lack money.

That Zhao Xudong you saw? He’s gotten so chubby that if he skips a meal, his grandparents get worried, thinking he’s lost his appetite.

Don’t worry, they won’t come looking for trouble."

Su Jingyue chimed in, "Their families worry they don’t eat well at the academy at noon, so they send food boxes with little servants every day!"

The reason they brought those classmates home was because they knew they had money, so the concern wouldn’t happen.

Just as Yu Xiaolian sent Little Tiger and Su Jingyue off to do their homework, Mrs. Sun and Old Lady Sun returned from outside.

They had bought ten ducks and two large bags of Sichuan pepper, letting the sellers help deliver them to the doorstep.

Mrs. Sun plopped down on a stool in the braised meat shop and exclaimed loudly, "Oh, you never know until you go out, once you do, you’ll be shocked at how expensive everything is now outside."

She turned her head to Yu Xiaolian, saying, "Hurry and adjust our family’s grain price up by five coins; now even rough rice outside sells at the price of delicate grains before.

That salt...my goodness, it sells for two hundred coins a tael now, and at that price, everyone is scrambling to buy, saying it’ll probably go up again soon.

This meat, vegetables, none are the price they used to be.

The tax collectors went to the west side of the city today; that big silk and satin shop we bought clothes from paid hundreds of taels in taxes.

It’s scary, really scary!"

Mrs. Sun thought as she wandered to the silk shop to buy some soft fabrics, to make some pouches for the two little ones in her belly.

As she entered, she overheard the shopkeeper complaining to someone else, looking distressed.

Hearing they had to pay hundreds of taels in tax, Mrs. Sun was a bit frightened; her family’s two shops paid over four taels, and she already felt heartache. If hundreds of taels were just handed over to the government, she’d probably be heartbroken!

Mrs. Sun drank water Yu Xiaolian handed her and continued, "I heard that the big shops in the west city have different donation amounts compared to us; they donate much more, and those wealthy sirs in the city have to donate a lot, there’s no choice.

The number of vendors at the market has also decreased considerably, fearing they have to pay tax, they’re afraid to set up stalls.

The duck seller said a lot couldn’t pay the tax, and their land was confiscated; some families that resisted the government’s land seizure got into altercations, and the whole family got imprisoned.

It seems since yesterday, quite a few people have been arrested, and there’s no room left in the jails now."

Yu Changhe said earnestly, "Farmland is a lifeline for families; who would want to hand it over? Besides, crops are growing in the fields; everyone depends on them for survival. How is this different from robbery?"

Old Lady Sun also sighed, "Exactly, it’s blatant robbery."

Mrs. Sun looked at her mother, "Sigh, what can rebellion accomplish? Land gets lost, people get arrested; resisting is useless."

Yu Xiaolian asked, "But if so many people are arrested, they can’t keep them all in jail, right?"

They’d have to feed them if they were locked up, they should release them after a few days, right?

Mrs. Sun lowered her voice, "I heard the neighboring lamb seller say the government is sending these people to Xiazhou to work on water projects; supposedly, characters are etched on their faces, just waiting to send them to Xiazhou to work."

Yu Xiaolian gasped. Just for failing to pay taxes and resisting the government a bit, they’d be branded and exiled?

Without even a trial?

Sigh, if this keeps up, no wonder the residents of Jie City secretly opened the gates for the Great Meng Country. Under such oppression, no one can bear it!

Yu Changhe asked, "Once marked and sent to Xiazhou, will those people never come back?"

Mrs. Sun shook her head, "I really don’t know that."

Mrs. Sun noticed that there were no wooden basins for braised meat left on the stall outside, so she asked Yu Changhe, "Isn’t the second batch of braised meat ready yet?"

Yu Changhe laughed, "It’s out of the pot, sold out."

How so fast?

Yu Changhe laughed and recounted how Little Tiger brought back some classmates.

Mrs. Sun was surprised; did a few kids really buy up a whole pot of braised meat?

Do these kids carelessly spend money and not get scolded at home?

Will their families come looking for trouble tomorrow?

Mrs. Sun shared the same worry as Yu Xiaolian, earning money from a few kids felt uneasy.

Even if they were selling rightly and they were buying rightly, there was the feeling of doing something wrong in the heart.

It always felt like kids couldn’t make such big decisions.

When women bought braised meat, they would pick and choose, and haggle over prices, but could kids as young as six or seven really make such decisions?