Manbao ate every last grain of rice in the bowl, touched his belly and said, "Mom, I'm full."
Qian ate slowly, reached out and touched her protruding belly, and said with a smile: "Go play."
Manbao finally had time to care about their accounts. "Mom, where is the money we made from selling Centella asiatica and Chinese yam?"
Qian said, "Your elder brother used it to buy cotton and cloth for you."
Manbao was stunned.
Zhou Wulang and others looked up. He bit his chopsticks and looked at Manbao with tears in his eyes, hoping that she could argue with her mother for their interests.
But this is impossible. Manbao hasn't figured out the relationship yet. He scratched his head and asked, "Why should I buy cotton and cloth?"
"Your clothes are too short, and you've entered school. Winter is coming soon, so you have to make a new set of clothes. If I had enough money, I would have made you an extra set."
Manbao was no fool. She counted the money she had earned from selling yam and Centella asiatica on her fingers and said, "There are 1,200 coins. Have you spent it all?"
"No, it's just that your share has been spent." Qian would certainly not cheat the child on the price. What if the child becomes stupid in the future?
So she said, "The 1,200 coins are not all yours. After paying the money to the government, won't you still have to share the money with your elder and second brothers? There won't be much left for you."
Manbao calculated it herself and found that it was true, so she didn't care about it anymore. Anyway, this was always her attitude towards money.
Zhou Wulang couldn't help but asked, "What about our mother?"
Qian glanced at him and said nothing.
Old Zhou raised his head and said, "You? You still have the nerve to ask your family for money? You're going to get married in two years, and you don't need money to marry a wife? In the future, all the money you earn should be given to your mother. When you get married, you can have your own private property like your brothers."
Zhou Wulang muttered, "Fourth Brother hasn't even proposed marriage yet, how can I be so quick?"
Speaking of this, Old Zhoutou looked at Old Fourth and asked, "Silang, how is your land development going?"
Zhou Silang, who was busy eating, raised his dark face and said, "The tree roots have been dug up and the stones have been picked up. Now we start hoeing the ground."
Old Zhou nodded and said, "Let Lao Wu and Lao Liu help you these two days. You are not young anymore, it is time for you to learn more skills. In a few days, the new old lady Bai will build a house and has started recruiting workers in the village. You can go too. The daily wage is 30 cents, which is more profitable than carrying grain bags in the county."
Old Zhou has already decided that all four of his eldest sons will go, while the fifth and sixth sons will go to the fields to open up wasteland for the fourth son, in an effort to make some extra money before the New Year.
After dinner, he specially called Manbao over and asked her to calculate for him how much money her four brothers could earn for the family in a month by working.
This is easy to calculate. As Manbao was calculating, he remembered something and said, "I have to serve in the military this year. I guess Third Brother can't go for a month. Let me calculate again."
The Zhou family's adults were stunned. Old Zhou grabbed her hand and asked, "What did you say? Serving this year?"
"Yes," Manbao said, "from October 22 to November 21, a total of one month."
Old Zhoutou: "Who told you? Our village happened to be chosen?"
Qian and others also sat up straight.
Zhou Wulang said, "Manbao was reading the notice at the gate of the county government office, but the head of the village hasn't come down to notify us yet."
Old Zhou touched his waist again, but didn't feel any cigarette, so he simply put the empty pipe in his mouth and didn't say anything for a while.
Zhou Dalang took the initiative to ask Manbao, "What does the notice say?"
Manbao has always had a good memory. Although he couldn't repeat it completely, he managed to tell most of it.
Zhou Dalang understood and said, "It's not conscription, it means every household in the county must be counted. There are so many people, no wonder they only go for one month."
"It's winter, and being gone for a month is unbearable," said Old Zhou. "The county magistrate is really a fool. Why must he choose winter as the best time to serve in the army? It's so cold and the ground is frozen, and it's hard to dig the soil."
Qian closed her eyes and said, "This is the county magistrate's business. We just need to take care of ourselves. Third brother, go to work and save your strength. If your body can't bear it, don't force yourself. Report it and let your brothers take your place."
She said, "You are not the only male in your family. You have many brothers. Just take turns."
Zhou Sanlang agreed.
Qian said to Little Qian, "Starting tomorrow, cook an extra handful of grain to nourish the third child for a month so that he can be in better health and live longer."
Xiao Qian agreed without complaint. This was also the tradition of the Zhou family. Every year, whoever's turn it was to serve in the military had to be raised for a period of time in advance.
It’s just that in the past they always received the news late, usually only ten days in advance.
How horrible is it to serve in the military?
Not to mention Zhou Dalang and Zhou Erlang, even old Zhou, who hadn't served in the army for many years, couldn't help shivering when he thought of the days when he served in the army when he was young.
The atmosphere in the Zhou family was a bit depressing tonight. Manbao was still young and couldn't remember many things, so she didn't know why everyone's mood was so low after they served in the army.
But she was well-behaved. She didn't make a fuss or ask too many questions. She just lay beside her parents' bed and looked at them with bright eyes when she went to sleep at night.
Qian patted her little head and said to Old Zhou, "Military service is a big deal. Now that we know about it, let's go and tell the village chief tomorrow and ask him to find out if it's true. If it's true, the villagers can prepare early."
Old Zhou agreed, and after a moment of silence, he said, "Prepare some more solid rations for the third child."
Qian whispered, "I know."
Seeing Manbao looking at them with a pair of round eyes, Qian smiled at her and said, "Don't worry, your third brother has always been in good health, and he will be able to come back safely this time."
"Mom, aren't we supposed to be serving in the army to dig water conservancy projects and build roads? There are often dig water conservancy projects and build roads in the village. "
Qian said, "That's different. When the village is repairing the road, they just fill in the potholes. Everyone can do it when they have free time. The house is just around the corner. How can that be the same?"
Not to mention water conservancy, it’s just a matter of digging a few hoes in the spring.
"The service in the county is different..." But Qian didn't tell Manbao what was different. No matter how she asked, she smiled and said, "You are still young. You will know when you grow up."
Manbao pouted and turned to ask Keke.
The system searched the encyclopedia and fell silent. After a long while, it said, "In the era where the host lives, historical records show that military service was very hard and death was normal."
Manbao was startled and asked quickly, "Will my third brother die too?"
"Service is voluntary labor. Although the county government will distribute some food, the amount is very small. You still have to rely on the food you bring with you to fill your stomach," the system said. "Also, October is winter, which is the coldest time of the year. Once a person gets sick, it is easy to die ."
Manbao instantly became worried, "Can Third Brother not go?"