I began to understand the myriad things by chopping wood

Chapter 5 Shock
Xie Yuan raised his head and saw a man with a fat face walking in.

The man was not actually fat, he just had a lump of fat on his cheek; plus, his mouth was tilted to one side, with the corners of his mouth always turned downwards, making him look very ferocious.

In fact, there was no need to look up. Just by listening to the unclear sound as if someone was biting something and the tone with a bit of arrogance, everyone in the village knew who it was.

Xie Yuan stood up and said cautiously:

"Brother Zhang? What brings you here?"

"Hey, isn't that what I told you before?"

Zhang Laoer glanced at him:
"Winter is coming soon, and you are alone and have a hard time. My elder brother has found a job for you in the county town. You said before that you wanted to think about it. Do you want to make a name for yourself now? How do you say it?"

Xie Yuan frowned subconsciously.

This again?

Why do you insist on taking me to the county town?
"Brother Zhang, what kind of work do you want me to do? I'm afraid I can't do it."

Zhang Laoer waved his hand and said carelessly:

"It's not that difficult. Just be a servant in the master's house, wiping tables, sweeping the floor, serving tea and water. Anyone can do that.

"It's a rare opportunity. The master is very wealthy, and the servants in his house also wear cotton jackets and eat meat.

"Look at you, wearing only a single layer of clothing, looking pale and skinny, how are you going to survive the winter? I am only thinking of giving you this opportunity because we are from the same village."

Xie Yuan was sweating while chopping wood, so he took off the cotton coat that Wang Lei had borrowed from him, and now he was wearing only one piece of clothing.

When he heard Zhang Laoer bring this up, he suddenly became furious.

Damn it, wasn’t it your little brother who stole my clothes?
Wait, his tone seems to indicate he knows this...

Did he specifically order it?
Xie Yuan had many associations in an instant.

After he lost his elder brother's care, it was normal for the skinny boy who was alone to be bullied by the village hooligans.

But these hooligans are all Zhang Laoer's men, and he is bullied every day, as if it is because of his rejection of his last proposal...

Taking it out on me?

No, it was more like he was forcing me to live a miserable life so that I would agree to his proposal!

Xie Yuan's thoughts were spinning rapidly.

The master's servant?

Isn't that just like being a slave to someone else and having to sign a contract to sell yourself?
Damn, you want to sell me out?
Xie Yuan clenched his fists, resisting the urge to chop the crooked-mouthed guy to death with an axe.

Being a servant, obeying others and not having freedom. How could he, who was born under the red flag and grew up in the spring breeze, bear this?

Not to mention the previous life, even here, there is a saying that "it is better to be a beggar than a house slave."

Once you sign the contract to sell your body, you will be whipped by your master and have to kneel down and thank him for the reward.

Xie Yuan, who had never kneeled once in his two lifetimes, didn't want to be so shameless.

He was silent for a moment, then whispered:

"Brother Zhang, I'm timid. I'm afraid to go to the city and see the master. I'm afraid my shaking hands will knock over the master's tea bowl. It's better for me to stay in this village."

Zhang Laoer frowned instantly, with a cold look in his eyes:

"Yuanzi, I am so kindhearted, how can you not tell the difference? Look at you, how are you going to survive the winter like this? We are from the same village, and I don't want to watch you freeze to death or starve to death!"

Xie Yuan pursed his lips, turned around, took out his cotton-padded jacket from the house and put it on:
"Thank you for your concern, Brother Zhang. I have clothes to wear."

Zhang Laoer widened his eyes:

"How could that be? You don't have any clothes... Oh, I haven't seen you wear this cotton coat before?"

When Xie Yuan heard this, he immediately realized that his previous speculations were all true.

He lowered his head slightly to hide the anger in his eyes:

"I recently cut down a poplar tree and exchanged it for some clothes and food. I can barely get by."

He didn't say that he borrowed it from Brother Shitou's house, so as to avoid Zhang Laoer causing trouble.

Zhang Laoer then looked around the yard and found that the ground was indeed littered with piles of ironwood.

He was stunned for a moment, frowned and said:
"You can actually cut down Tieyang?" Xie Yuan lowered his eyelids:

"Ah."

Zhang Laoer couldn't hold back his pride anymore. He took a step forward and frowned:

"Yuanzi, think it over carefully. You really don't want to go? I worked so hard to find you a job. You can't miss this opportunity."

Boom.

With a dull sound, Xie Yuan raised his axe and chopped a piece of iron poplar log into two halves.

The two pieces of wood flew directly to the sides, and the wood chips also splashed onto Zhang Laoer.

Zhang Laoer subconsciously stopped and was in a state of confusion.

What's the fuss?
How can such a hard wood as iron poplar be chopped to produce such an effect?
Xie Yuan held the axe and looked at Zhang Laoer calmly:

"Brother Zhang, I am good at chopping wood and can support myself. I appreciate your kindness."

Zhang Laoer was silent for a while, then sneered:
"Well, Yuanzi, you have really become more capable. Okay, I won't argue with you today. But I advise you to think about this proposal carefully. We are doing this for your own good.

"I'll come back after a while. If I can't persuade you, just wait for my brother to come!"

After Zhang Laoer left, Xie Yuan threw the axe to the ground, sat on the pile of firewood, and let out a sigh.

Why does Zhang Laoer have to stare at me?

It is not uncommon for a teenager with no relatives to be sold out by a bully for some bribes.

But most of the money from selling his body was kept by himself. If Zhang Laoer wanted to steal this money, it would be human trafficking, and the government would intervene.

He has already shown a very tough attitude, which obviously made Zhang Laoer hesitate, but he finally asked him to consider it?

Xie Yuan was a little puzzled.

To be honest, if he threatened me and said he wanted to make me look bad, that would be understandable, but why did he insist on making me be a servant?
Xie Yuan couldn't figure out what was going on inside. But he knew that the more it was like this, the less likely he would go there.

"Zhang Laoer looked frightened by the axe, but he is big and strong and has practiced martial arts with his brother. If we really fight, I'm not sure I can beat him.

"Even if he can beat him, there is still Boss Zhang. He is a real warrior. If he really calls Boss Zhang back..."

Xie Yuan felt annoyed and chopped hard with the axe.

"I have to find a way to become a warrior... I have to save money as soon as possible and go to a martial arts school in the town or county to become a disciple. Even if it's just a registered disciple, as long as there is an entry-level move, with my ability, maybe I can learn something..."

He took a deep breath and stood up.

"Cheer up, worrying won't help."

Xie Yuan patted his face, picked up the axe, and started to chop the pile of firewood in the yard.

After packing the fine firewood, he put it in a basket and went to the village to ask every household.

This time he didn't exchange anything, only copper coins.

After walking around for a while and finally selling all the iron poplars, Xie Yuan went home and counted them, sighing slightly:
"Half a poplar tree costs 120 coins. The village chief and Zhu Dongming are the only ones who take it. No one else wants it..."

I heard that the cheapest martial arts school in town charges a starting entrance fee of ten taels of silver for tea.

Roughly speaking, that would be ten strings of coins, or ten thousand coins, not counting the discount on silver and copper coins, which would cost forty iron poplar trees.

"It's a little difficult."

Xie Yuan took a breath. It would be too difficult to just chop wood.

But he had no intention of giving up. On the contrary, he became more motivated.

Chop more wood, cut more trees, and improve your ability. You will probably be able to save money faster and faster in the future.

If you stop moving forward because you get discouraged, there will be no hope at all.

The next morning, just after daybreak, Xie Yuan picked up his axe again and went up to the woods on the hillside.

But this time, as he was getting ready in front of the tree, he suddenly heard a sarcastic voice from behind:
"Hey, isn't this Yuanzi, the expert tree cutter?"

The day after rejecting Zhang Laoer, trouble came knocking.

(End of this chapter)