"Chun Qiu Zuo Zhuan" is the work with the largest number of words in the Confucian classics. The full text is less than 200,000 words, and Liu Jing is not a person who likes to "bite words". He will only read it when he encounters something that is really difficult to understand.

Jia Tu's comments.

Therefore, his progress in reading was very fast. He finished reading "Zuo Zhuan" in less than ten days, and then he took out "Historical Records" and "Book of Songs" from the library.

At the same time, March is coming to an end, and time has quietly arrived in early summer of April.

As his body recovered, Liu Jing became more and more energetic. He only slept for three hours a day, and spent most of the remaining time practicing swordplay, reading, and writing.

In my free time, I teach my younger siblings and amuse my nephews, and my life is leisurely and comfortable. It would be even better if my stepmother, Mrs. Zhang, doesn’t jump in from time to time to cause trouble.

This morning, it began to rain lightly in the sky. Since the beginning of summer in Changsha, the weather has changed suddenly, sometimes rainy or overcast, and rarely sunny days.

The six members of the Liu family sat around the dining table to enjoy breakfast. Liu Jing drank three bowls of rice porridge in a row. He now wakes up every morning to run and practice swordsmanship, and his breakfast appetite has become very large.

As for my sister-in-law Lai Ci, she still has no appetite. Her pretty face is unhealthy and pale, and her lips are like petals that have lost their nutrients. It's really heart-wrenching to see.

Sensing Liu Jing's frequent glances, Lai Ci put down his bowls and chopsticks and said first: "Zhongda, it's been a month since you came back, right? What are your plans for the future? In my sister-in-law's opinion, you'd better return to Xiangyang as soon as possible and continue

Unfinished studies.”

Lai Ci rarely stepped out of his room and didn't care much about foreign affairs. However, he also knew that Uncle Ji studied all day long and worked very hard. Since he had a desire to learn, he shouldn't stay at home and waste his time.

Stepmother Zhang said calmly: "Li Ji, you should know that so many things have happened in the family recently, and all the savings have been used up a long time ago. How can there be any money left for him to continue his study tour?"

Zhang was obviously trying to make excuses, but with Lai Ci's family background, she would never care about money and common things with Jun Gu. She turned her beautiful eyes back to Liu Jing and said comfortingly: "Zhongda, it's about money.

Don't worry, I still have some gold jewelry in my room. I can sell it in the market, which should be enough for your study tour."

Since the money was provided by Lai Ci, Mrs. Zhang naturally had no reason to object anymore. She thought that it was better for Liu Jing to leave than to never come back.

Liu Jing had already decided not to return to Xiangyang, so he politely refused: "Thank you sister-in-law for your kindness. If your brother is still alive, I will not shirk it. Now I am the only man in the family. I should shoulder the burden of the family, leaving only my mother and sister-in-law."

, sister-in-law, my nephew is at home, even if I leave, how can I rest assured? "

"Brother, I am also a man." Liu He was dissatisfied that his brother ignored him and protested in a low voice.

"And me, and me..." Five-year-old Liu Qun raised his little face and joined in the fun.

Lai Ci touched his son's shaved head and said worriedly: "What about your studies?"

"Didn't I bring Master Song's "Notes on Zhouyi" with me when I returned home this time? Even if I return to Xiangyang, I won't learn anything new, so I might as well study by myself at home. I admire Wang Zhongren's attitude towards learning very much. Wang Zhongren loves to read and read extensively.

If I don’t abide by the rules and sentences, I won’t seek to understand them clearly when I read them.”

Wang Zhongren is Wang Chong, who can be regarded as the leading Confucian scholar in the Eastern Han Dynasty for more than a hundred years. Liu Jing compares himself with Wang Chong, which is simply unreasonable.

Lai Ci thought that Liu Jing was deliberately trying to comfort her, so she made such bold remarks and sighed softly: "Zhongda, since you have made a decision in your heart, my sister-in-law will no longer persuade you."

Just as Liu Jing was about to open his mouth, he suddenly noticed a noise outside and turned to look outside the door. He saw Song Liang's family of five, walking in the drizzle, supporting each other.

Song Liang and his eldest son Song Gu both have thick eyebrows and wide lips, and have honest looks, just like they were carved from the same mold. The second son Song Jin and the youngest daughter Song Shi have delicate faces, more like their mother.

The Song family came to the door of the hall, knelt down in a polite manner, and put their foreheads on the ground. Song's wife, Zhou, hugged her second son, the young girl, whose eyes were very red and swollen, and she had obviously cried a lot.

Liu Jing raised his eyebrows. Now is the busy time of farming. Song Liang and his son should have set off long ago. What happened? He noticed a detail. Song Liang seemed to be limping when he walked, and the Song family

If a family has a desperate expression of "the sky is falling", then it must be that something big like "the sky is falling" has happened.

Liu Jing thought for a moment and came up with a guess, and his face slowly became serious.

"Why are you crying so early in the morning!" Mrs. Zhang was obviously still confused, so she looked very impatient. She pointed at Song Liang and shouted: "What happened? Song Liang, tell me."

Lai Ci held his beloved son Liu Qun in his arms and said softly: "Song Liang, you have served the Liu family for more than ten years. You have always been diligent and hardworking, and you have to work hard even if you don't have credit. Don't kneel outside.

Let’s talk about it after you come in.”

"Thank you, mistress." Song Liang responded tremblingly. He was only in his early forties, in his prime, but at this time he was like a twilight old man, almost being walked in by his wife and children.

Mrs. Zhang was greatly surprised by Song Liang's current physical condition. He was still in good health a few days ago, but why did he suddenly turn into such a devilish behavior? She hurriedly asked: "Song Liang, are you suffering from an emergency?"

Song Liang didn't even dare to raise his head, and said in a low voice to the ground: "To be honest with my old mistress, since the beginning of spring, I have found that my left leg is often swollen and painful. At first, I could bear it without delaying my work in the fields. But as time goes by,

Over time, my right leg also swollen, and now both legs are swollen, making it difficult to even walk. I am afraid that I may... have swollen feet."

Liu Jing secretly sighed. He had already guessed before, and he guessed it right. Song Liang had swollen feet, or both feet. He thought to himself that he was really a miserable person.

Swollen feet is a widespread disease in Jingnan. Once you suffer from swollen feet, you will completely lose your ability to work and become a disabled person. In severe cases, it may even threaten your life. Prefectures and counties hate this disease deeply because they have swollen feet.

It means exemption from taxes and servitude, but swollen feet are quite common in the Jiangnan area.

When stepmother Zhang heard that it was swollen feet, she immediately sentenced Song Liang to death. She sighed: "Song Liang, I think you also know that there is no cure for swollen feet. Now that you have this disease, it will be difficult for you to get off the ground."

, and the fields at home need people to cultivate them, what do you think we should do?"

"This..." Song Liang's lips trembled and he couldn't answer.

The Liu family's more than 200 acres of land are all 240 paces large, and the labor force is only Song Liang and his eldest son Song Gu. The second son Song Jin is only twelve years old this year and can only work on the side, so even if Liu

Even if the family has two buffaloes, they can't plow all the fields.

During spring plowing every year, the Liu family would allocate an extra sum of money and hire two helpers. With the combined efforts of four people and two oxen, they could barely plow all the land.

Originally, Mrs. Zhang was hoping that Song Jin would grow up quickly so that she could have an extra worker and save money on food.

Unexpectedly, Song Liang contracted swollen feet and became disabled. Currently, only his eldest son Song Gu is left as a strong man. However, the Liu family has to bear five rations of food for Song Liang's family. How could Zhang's businessman's character be ignored?

Changsha has countless refugees fleeing from the north every day. It can be said that the most indispensable thing is labor. Zhang decided to drive Song Liang's family away and recruit another family to come in.

As her mind was spinning, Ms. Zhang said: "Song Liang, don't blame me for being unkind. It's not that I don't want to help you, I just can't do anything about it. You go back and clean up, and leave my house now."

When Song Liang heard the words, it was like five thunders struck his head, and his face turned pale. Song's wife, Zhou, held her young daughter and cried helplessly.

The youngest daughter of the Song family was Liu Rao, Liu Qun's playmate. When they saw the little Song girl crying, Liu Rao, Liu Qun's aunt and nephew couldn't help but burst into tears.

For a moment, there was loud crying in the hall.

Liu Jing had been watching with cold eyes from beginning to end. At this time, an idea gradually took shape. After weighing it in his mind, he felt that this was an opportunity, so he stood up and left the table. He bowed to Mrs. Zhang and said: "Mother, please wait a moment.

A word from my son.

When my brother passed away, I was bedridden and could not personally carry the coffin for the funeral. This is a regret in my life. Song Liang and his son contributed a lot to my brother's funeral. Now that my brother's body is still cold, we have to expel Song Liang's family from the house.

I feel really uneasy."

Sister-in-law Lai Ci was deeply moved when she heard this. Song Liang and his son had indeed made great efforts regarding her husband, so she echoed: "What Zhongda said makes sense, Auntie, please think twice."

Stepmother Zhang was secretly resentful. The two of them sang and harmonized, so where did she go? With a livid face, she asked Liu Jing: "I don't care if you want to be a good person. I just ask you, who will cultivate the fields at home? Are you going?"

"Go back to mother, my son is willing to farm for Song Liang."
Chapter completed!