Chapter 228 Lao Nian's Family

All the answers were finally revealed after the military families arrived in Chongqing.

It turned out that their sons did not join the imperial court, but belonged to the Huaxia tribe. Moreover, many of their sons were already officers in the Huaxia tribe. What's more, people like Scar and Lao Nian were even middle and high-level officials.

Of course, some are happy while others are sad. Some people's sons have died in the war, but they have left them with generous pensions and monthly salaries that they can continue to receive for another 20 years.

The lowest monthly salary for the soldiers of the Huaxia tribe was three taels of silver. Even if they died in battle without any merit, they would be promoted to a higher level, with a monthly salary of at least five taels of silver, which was equivalent to the income of five farmhands and was enough for them to support their families.

What's more, after they came to Chongqing and settled down, if they settled in the countryside, each person would be allocated five acres of land, and if they settled in towns, the military would naturally arrange suitable jobs for them, with a monthly salary of no less than two taels of silver.

So, although their son had sacrificed his life, he brought them good living conditions.

Of course, it is naturally better to be alive. For example, the Tang family was ecstatic the moment they saw Lao Nian. Although Lao Nian had a broken leg, it was a blessing in disguise that he was able to save his life.

Lao Nian has two younger brothers and two younger sisters. The older three have already started their own families. They are somewhat reserved around Lao Nian, their brother whom they haven't seen for more than ten years. On the contrary, the younger brothers, who are about fifteen or sixteen years old, are very close to Lao Nian.

"Brother, your mansion is so luxurious and so big. Are you a high-ranking official in the Huaxia Department?" Tang Jiayao, the younger brother, asked excitedly.

Looking at this little brother who liked to follow him around since he was a child, Lao Nian's eyes were full of doting, and he smiled and said, "He should be considered a high-ranking official. As for this mansion, I didn't know about it originally. It hasn't been two months since we captured Chongqing.

I was in the army before, and I just came back because I was injured. This mansion was allocated to me by the leader, and this is my first time coming here today. You guys can look around first, and then we can discuss how to settle down."

Father Tang frowned and asked, "Are you married, Boss?"

Lao Nian smiled bitterly and said, "What's the point of getting married? Life was not easy before. It was only after the leader appeared this year that he and his brothers started to live a good life. Until now, they have conquered the whole of Sichuan."

"Then find one quickly. By the way, what kind of official are you now? How much silver can you get a month? Now that you have lost a leg, how will your leader arrange for you?" asked Tang's mother.

Facing a series of questions from Tang's mother, Lao Nian just had a headache. After thinking for a while, he said, "I am the director of the Intelligence Department of the Huaxia Department. If you convert it, my position should be higher than that of the prefect."

"Wow~!"

The Tang family members cried out in surprise. Normally, the only government officials they saw were small figures like yamen runners and mayors. Occasionally they would see a county magistrate or a schoolmaster, but they did not dare to look up and take a closer look. As for the prefect, he was simply a legendary figure whom they had only heard of.

"How much money is there in a month?" Tang's mother asked hurriedly.

Lao Nian smiled and shook his head, saying: "Speaking of silver, you may be disappointed. Our Huaxia tribe distributes land to the people and only collects 10% of the grain. The rest of the taxes and even corvée are all exempted.

A soldier costs three taels of silver, a yamen runner, and a lowest-level clerk also costs three taels of silver, so our Huaxia Department has low income but high expenses.

We high-ranking officials don't have much monthly salary. Even the leader seems to have only 50 taels of silver at the moment. We, the lower-level officials, only get 40 taels of silver a month. But we don't have to spend money on food, clothing, housing, etc. The government gives it to us every month." "Forty taels is not a small amount. With so many people in our family, we can't save 40 taels a year!" Tang Jiayao said excitedly.

"You know nothing!" Tang's mother said somewhat dissatisfiedly, "A prefect in the Qing Dynasty earns at least 100,000 taels of silver in three years, which means 2,000 to 3,000 taels a month. Forty taels is indeed a bit too little, not even as much as a clerk in the county!"

"You know nothing, what nonsense are you talking about, woman?" Tang's father glared at his wife in dissatisfaction, "Don't talk too much, are those officials of the Qing Dynasty human beings?
Their silver is the flesh and blood of us ordinary people. The more silver they earn, the more of our flesh and blood they eat.

Why did the eldest brother leave home to find a job outside? Wasn’t it because he couldn’t survive in his hometown?

If the boss died outside, he would be eaten by the officials.

I think the Hua Xia tribe of the boss is very good. If each of us had five acres of land back then, there would be no need for the boss to go far away to find a living!

How could a monthly salary of forty taels of silver be considered too little?
Forty taels of silver is enough for our family to have enough food and drink, enough for every meal!"

Looking at his mother who was silent at the end of the field, and then at his father who was agitated, Lao Nian couldn't help but smile and said, "Dad, you are very conscious. You can even be an official in the Xuanfu Division!"

Old Nian's words made Tang's father feel a little embarrassed. "How can I be an official if I can't read a single word? Don't delay your business!"

Lao Nian smiled and said, "You can learn if you don't know. I didn't know how to read at first, but I learned a few words one by one after I came out.

Later, when we had our base, the leader said that we had to know how to read, so he hired a teacher to teach us. Then I worked hard and learned a lot of characters. Even now, I am still working hard to learn. "

"Brother, you still can't recognize all the words now?" Tang Jiayao asked in disbelief.

The Tang family members were also surprised. In their impression, an official had to be well-read. Many people with excellent knowledge found it difficult to pass the examination to become a scholar, and even if they passed the examination, they still could not become an official.

Lao Nian smiled nonchalantly and said, "Even if I can't recognize everything, I can barely cope with daily reading and writing. In fact, we in the military are not well educated, most of us are like me. It's just that the leader is better than us, but not by much.

Those with good academic knowledge are the managers of various local departments. They basically have a title above the level of scholar, and at least they are well-read. "

"So your military doesn't require academic knowledge?" Tang Jiayao blinked and asked, "Well, can I join your military?"

The other younger brother and two brothers-in-law were waiting for Lao Nian's answer with anticipation.

If they have Lao Nian, an official higher than the prefect, looking after them, then they should be able to become minor officials, right?

(End of this chapter)