Chapter 1 Bitterness

In the early morning, the sun had not yet risen, and only a white line was faintly visible in the east.

Before the night had faded, this nameless mountain in Sheyu Town was shrouded in a layer of gray fog.

A strange-looking green plant swaying in the morning mist.

Different from other weeds, it has a crystal color, with a drop of dew, swaying slightly...

Huh!

A hoe came down from the air without warning, and instantly dug up the one-foot-high "grass" with its roots.

But it did not hurt the roots at all, obviously very experienced.

Shaking off a lot of smelly black soil, a young man who looked seventeen or eighteen years old was holding the herb.

"Two taels of snake bone grass is worth about two hundred copper coins, and the fluctuation will not be too big. This time I followed the team into the mountains and finally got the biggest harvest."

Chen Ku raised the herb called snake bone grass to his forehead and looked at it in front of him.

The roots of the herbs were one after another, resembling snake bones, and he confirmed again that he had not made a mistake.

Then he solemnly put it back into the bamboo basket behind him.

In the bamboo basket, there were also some other common herbs lying quietly, but none of them were as valuable as this snake bone grass.

"Two hundred coins, converted to the purchasing power on Earth, is roughly equivalent to two hundred yuan. In this world, you can buy twenty kilograms of rice, seven or eight kilograms of pork, and about one hundred kilograms of firewood..."

"All the herbs and snake bone grass in my medicine basket can be sold for about four hundred coins. After deducting the fifty coins to pay for entering the mountain, the half tax that retail investors have to pay... that is, half of the income, the remaining one hundred coins are my income for the day! So poor!"

Chen Ku felt helpless.

I didn't expect that after waking up, I became a herbalist in Sheyu Town, Baojiao County, a border area in the 153rd year of the Ji Kingdom.

Here, every mountain has an owner, a big landlord.

Just like picking strawberries in someone's field or fishing in a fish pond in the previous life, you have to pay!

Not only do you need to pay to enter the mountains to collect herbs, but you also need to pay to cut wood.

The saying "I opened this mountain and planted this tree" is really not without reason.

If you dare to secretly enter the mountains to collect herbs and cut wood, you will be caught by the landlord and beaten to death by the servants on the spot without reporting to the authorities.

What's more, he is a retail householder who has been expelled from the household register.

You can only grit your teeth and save up a sum of money to pay the toll before you are qualified to come in.

Without a household registration, you are a retail householder, and you are a person who has been expelled from the household register.

The court does not recognize the status of this kind of people as citizens.

There is a saying in the court that a certain prince committed a crime, was expelled from the clan register, and was demoted to a commoner.

Retail households are worse than commoners, and even their household registration is removed, turning into refugees.

In order to punish these people, they have to collect higher taxes from them, such as prostitutes.

The reason why Chen Ku became a retail householder is because of the brother of this body.

He was also a herbalist.

However, during the process of collecting herbs, he sneaked into Yuan State outside Ji State, smuggled herbs from there and sold them for profit.

As a result, he was caught in the second time and was blocked on the mountain road. Finally, he was forced to jump off the cliff and fell into the river of Yuan State. He must have died.

After his brother was recognized on the spot, the whole family was implicated. Not only was the family property confiscated, but even the family members were removed from their hometowns and demoted to wanderers.

And wanderers need to be expelled from the town and become refugees.

In order not to become more miserable refugees, the family of four can only be entrusted to the family of Zhao, who has a good relationship in the village. The mother helps to coax the children and the sister-in-law washes clothes, so that they can continue to live in the original home.

If it weren't for the married sister, she would occasionally send people to bring some rice and grain back from the county to help.

In addition, Chen Ku himself also needs to go into the mountains to collect herbs frequently, and the livelihood of this family is really difficult to maintain.

"Only a hundred yuan a day, but I have to support myself and my family..."

It's not that he hasn't thought about leaving this family.

But as mentioned before, refugees are more miserable than individual investors. They may die on the road at any time, just like those who lived in bridge holes and slept on park benches in their previous lives.

And in this world, there are no kind people to give him free bread and mineral water...

In general.

Although the pressure is very high now, at least there is a hot meal made by my mother when I go home, which is better than begging on the street and becoming a corpse on the roadside.

Chen Ku is used to comforting himself and making fun of himself:

"Isn't it just poverty? This is also a fine traditional virtue of the Chinese nation. Work hard, and good days are coming."

This is self-deprecating, but it actually contains hope.

His hope comes from the time travel itself.

Looking back on the time travel, there was indeed a big doubt, that is, he had just returned from a business trip from Guanjiangkou, Qingcheng Mountain that day, and he inevitably went to worship Erlang Zhenjun in Guanjiangkou during the period.

"Could it be related to this?"

After entering the mountain for a day and a night, Chen Ku had finished his dry food and was about to go back. He murmured in his heart:

"Grandpa Zhenjun, please show your spirit... Even if I don't have any skills, you can keep me by your side and serve tea and water to Grandpa Zhenjun..."

Mumbling in his heart, he had already walked out of the mountain.

When he got to the foot of the mountain, he found that several people from the same village who had entered the mountain with him were already waiting there.

Old Li Baotou was the guide of the Chen brothers to collect herbs. He loved to smoke dry tobacco. Next to him was his grandson Li Jiyang, who was slightly strong but had small eyes and was smart and shrewd.

Watching Chen Ku walking down the path with a backpack on his back, Old Li Baotou knocked the pipe bowl on the sole of his shoe, and did not get up, but asked with concern: "Ku boy, did you encounter any snakes?"

In Sheyu Town, there are many snakes in the mountains and many fish in the water.

Chen Ku told the truth: "No, but I picked a two-liang snake bone grass, so I came back late."

Old Li was relieved, and then whispered: "Two liang snake bone grass, your entry into the mountains is worth it this time."

Chen Ku looked at Li Jiyang and asked about his harvest.

But he was slightly proud and said: "My luck is not bad. I picked a chicken blood orchid, which is also worth two or three hundred coins. My grandfather is even more powerful. This time he encountered a wild ginseng that is about to become a 'treasure grass'."

"Treasure grass."

Chen Ku was moved when he heard it. That is worth dozens of taels of silver, tens of thousands of yuan.

It is also something that warriors need to practice martial arts.

He looked at the old head.

There was a pity in the eyes of the old head Li: "The fire is not right, it was too early, otherwise with this wild ginseng, if it is given to Yaowang Hall, Ji Yang can be a handyman there."

Li Jiyang also drooped his eyelids.

Chen Ku sighed.

There were all kinds of people, and sometimes the ancient world was more orderly than the modern world.

Medicine shops, firewood shops, and fish shops were actually medicine gangs, firewood gangs, and fish gangs...

It was an industry and a gang.

Almost monopolizing a certain industry, a giant status, and an enviable income and status.

But he knew that the reason why the old boss Li wanted to send Li Jiyang to the Medicine King Hall was not only because he could practice martial arts in the Medicine King Hall and learn the skills that could really make a living in this chaotic world.

The most important thing is that there is said to be a huge force behind the Medicine King Hall, with the backing of the mountains.

After entering the Medicine King Hall, the household registration of the old Li family is expected to be changed from "registered household" to "county household".

It is expected to change the fate of the ancestors who have been living in the mountains for generations, and the next generation may have better conditions to study and practice martial arts, and change the fate of the family.

Only when your grandfather has made a name for himself in the village can he have the opportunity to send your father to the county. Only when your father has made a name for himself in the county can he have the opportunity to send you to the city...

There is a saying that goes like this: To change the fate of a family, it takes at least three generations of hard work.

The social upward channels in ancient times were more difficult and more difficult than those in modern times.

Chen Ku thought of his current situation. Not to mention the county household, he now had to get a registered household first. He felt depressed and his heart was even heavier.

The future is bright, but it is not visible.

The road is tortuous and endless.

It is bitter.

After a few simple chats, these people stopped chatting and set off on their way home with their own thoughts.

"Kuhai, go to the town with me tomorrow, sell the medicinal materials together, and buy some household expenses."

"Yes."

He responded.

Back to the village, each went home.

He crossed the path and walked to the end. Soon, a three-room courtyard surrounded by a fence came into view. There were several houses not far away, which looked similar. They were neighbors.

The smoke was coming out of Chen Ku's house. There was a vague figure busy at the stove.

There was a child in the yard with a runny nose poking at an ant nest.

From time to time, the cough of an old woman could be heard in the house.

"Mom, sister-in-law, I'm back."