Chapter 33 Rules for going out

Brother Da'an, is brother Da'an at home?

Lu Qing shouted in front of an earthen house.

Who, who is calling me? A tall figure ran out of the house. When he saw Lu Qing, he was suddenly surprised, It's you, Ah Qing, what do you want from me?

Da'an, who is it?

Before Lu Qing could answer, an old voice came out, and an old man grabbed a bamboo pipe and walked out of the house.

Grandpa, it's Ah Qing who's here! Wang Daan shouted directly.

Grandpa Wang. Lu Qing greeted the old man.

Hey, it's Ah Qing, come on, come on, come inside and sit down.

When the old man saw Lu Qing, he was also surprised and wanted to take him into the house to drink water.

No, Grandpa Wang, I have something to see Brother Da'an, so I won't come into the house to disturb you. Lu Qing declined quickly.

By the way, what do you want from me? Wang Daan asked.

I want to go to Daji. Didn't Brother Da'an say last time that if I wanted to go to Daji, I would come to see you. There are some rules that I need to know.

Are you going to the market? Wang Da'an was stunned for a moment, then realized, Yes, today is the day to go to the market.

The market opens every five days, and today is exactly the fifth day since the last time we went to the market.

Ah Qing, what are you going to do in Daji? Selling fish? Wang Da'an asked.

I'm not in a hurry to sell the fish. I want to go to the market first to have a look, understand the situation, and buy something on the way.

That's it, I have no problem. It's just that Grandpa Gang wants to ask me to kill pigweed. Wang Daan scratched his head.

Grandpa Wang took two puffs of cigarette and said: In this case, Da'an, you should take Ah Qing for a visit. He is now the head of the family, so he should know the rules of going out.

Okay, Grandpa, don't worry, I will definitely teach Ah Qing! Wang Daan said happily.

He was very happy to be able to stop hunting hogweeds. That work was so boring.

Let's go, Qing, we'll talk on the way.

Wang Da'an pulled Lu Qing and walked out.

When they arrived at the entrance of the village, Wang Daan pointed to a big tree at the entrance of the village.

Said: Ah Qing, the first rule when going out to the market is here.

Here? Lu Qing looked at the big tree with some confusion.

Of course he knew about this big tree. It was not very tall, but it was very strong, with lush branches and leaves, and a trunk so thick that it would take several people to hug it.

It looks a bit like the banyan tree from the previous life.

And this big tree seems to be quite important.

Not only do some people usually smoke incense, but the children in the village are warned from an early age that they are strictly prohibited from playing nearby, and they are not allowed to climb.

If anyone was found to have violated the ban, he would be beaten and even more serious, he would be forced to kneel in the ancestral hall with an empty stomach.

Therefore, the children in the village stayed away from this big tree and would rather play in the mud elsewhere than dare to play on it.

However, in his memory, he could not find the real purpose of this big tree. He only thought it was to worship gods and pray for peace.

Now listening to what Brother Daan means, it seems that it has another purpose?

Yes, this big tree is the sacred tree of our village, and it is also the tree of faith. Everyone in the village who goes out to do errands, whether they are going to the market or going to the city, must leave a mark here to indicate their whereabouts.

In this way, if someone does not return in time, the village can still know his whereabouts based on the marks he left.

This big tree actually has such a use? Lu Qing was surprised.

He really didn't expect that the big tree that the original owner was afraid of in his memory would have such an origin.

Then how do you leave a mark on it? Lu Qing asked.

it's here.

Wang Daan stepped forward and lifted up a stone slab under the tree.

When I came back, I already had two more red ropes in my hand.

Wang Daan handed one of the red ropes to Lu Qing, pointed at the tree and said:

Did you see that among the old branches on the sacred tree, the ones on the left represent the gathering, the ones in the middle represent the city, and the ones on the right represent other distant gates.

Wherever you go out from now on, wrap a red string around it so that people in the village know that someone has gone out.

When you come back, just take off the red rope.

Is that it? Lu Qing was stunned.

He thought it was complicated, but he didn't expect it to be so simple.

That's it, what else can we do? Wang Daan was a little confused.

Don't you need to put up a sign or other signs? Otherwise, how will everyone know who has traveled far away? Lu Qing asked.

Why hang up the sign? Wang Daan was even more confused.

You can write your name on the sign...

When Lu Qing said this, he suddenly came to his senses.

He had forgotten that most of the people in the village were illiterate.

Sure enough, Wang Daan grinned when he heard this.

Do you think we are all like you, Ah Qing? You know so many words, but who can write your own name?

And there is no need to go to such trouble. The village is so big. If you see that the red rope has not been taken off, just ask in the village and you will know who has not come back.

Lu Qing thought so too.

It was because he couldn't turn his head around for a while, thinking that this place was still the same as in his previous life, and he could travel far away casually.

In fact, in an ancient world like this, villagers were very cautious about going out.

You won't go out when you don't have to.

Some villagers may have never traveled far in their entire lives.

Children are strictly prohibited from running outside.

Under such circumstances, in fact, not many people usually leave the village, so it really doesn't need to be that troublesome.

But in this way, Lu Qing also understood why everyone usually burned incense under this tree.

It seems that besides worshiping gods, the villagers pray more for the safety of those who go out.

Here, let me tie it for you.

Wang Daan tied two red ropes to the branches on the left.

In addition, there is another rule in the village. The big market is not far from our village. If you want to go, you can go there alone, as long as you tie a red rope here.

But if you are going to the city or somewhere further away, at least two or more people should go out so that they can take care of each other.

If no one in our village wants to go to the city, you can call to the next village to see if anyone wants to go with you. The rules for going out in our villages are similar.

Going to the city is no better than going to a big market. With more people, we can take care of each other.

Brother Da'an, is the road to the city dangerous? Lu Qing couldn't help but ask after hearing these rules.

Wang Da'an calmed down for a moment and then said: I can't say it's dangerous. Fortunately, the road has been quite peaceful these years. But I heard from my grandfather that bandits appeared on the road before, and someone was arrested in the next village. It took several years to escape.

Originally, everyone thought he had died outside. It was only after he escaped that they found out that he had been captured by bandits.

But it is said that the bandits were later exterminated by the County Lord City Lord, so peace was restored on the road.

It was also from then on that several of our villages gradually established the current rules for going out.

Bandits!

Lu Qing was shocked.

Sure enough, the world was not as peaceful as he thought.

Similarly, the word Lord County Lord also made him somewhat concerned.

However, Lu Qing did not ask in detail. The days were still long, so he could ask more slowly in the future.

Explain clearly to Lu Qing the rules for leaving the village and tie the red rope.

Wang Daan then took Lu Qing towards the direction of the gathering.