The next day, early in the morning, before dawn, Fang Xin got up and went to the porridge shed. At this time, He Xiang also arrived and saw Fang Xin, smiling and saying: "Xian nephew, you're here too? Indeed, studying the classics of sages, one must also consider the suffering of the common people. However, our dynasty has been established for less than a hundred years, from Taizu to Mingzong, including the current emperor, all are considered wise rulers, why have so many people suffered from hunger and cold?"

  He sighed at this point.

  Fang Xin was a bookworm and naturally read the history of this dynasty. Taizu seized power at 41 and ruled as emperor for 23 years, which can be called the period of social order and economic recovery. Taizong continued his predecessor's legacy, ruling with literature and treating scholars kindly. The system of granting 10 mu of land to xiucai and 30 mu to juren was established by him, and he ruled for 24 years.

  Jingzong enjoyed the country for a short time, only three years. Renzong was in power for eleven years, and Mingzong was in power for fourteen years. The current emperor has also been on the throne for thirteen years now, with the era name of Mingwen, which can be considered as a middle-of-the-road ruler.

  Fang Xin, however, was aware that all societies have a foundation. In an agricultural society, agriculture is the most important thing, and agriculture relies on land. However, land is limited, and once the population exceeds the amount of land available, no matter how enlightened the politics or wise the ruler, it will be of no use. Not to mention when politics are corrupt and officials embezzle profits.

  To put it bluntly, He Xiangding was still quite tolerant and fair in his land transactions, and he also did some good deeds from time to time. However, despite this, the family's landholdings expanded from 2,000 mu to 3,000 mu under his leadership, and the family business prospered. This made him one of the contributors to the acceleration of the dynasty's downfall through land annexation.

  This is a law and cannot be changed, so generally every dynasty lasts for about 300 years, at most no more than 500 years, that's all.

  The current price of rice is 10 cents per dou, and one dou weighs 10 kilograms. Can it be said that the price is low, or has famine already appeared?

  However, this is not easy to say. At the moment, we arrived at the porridge shed, and twenty large pots were being cooked. The firewood was burning vigorously, with one pot holding one dou of white rice, ten pots making up one dan, and one dan weighing 100 jin.

  Fang Xian saw it and asked He Xiang: "Uncle, how many days has the porridge been given?"

  "From the 15th of December to New Year's Day, the 15th, is a month." That's one month, one day one dan (unit of measurement), that's thirty dan. According to the price of rice, it's three taels of silver. He took it out immediately and gave it to He Xiang.

  He Xiang calmly accepted it, this is not someone else's money, but the money for good deeds. He handed it over to an old servant, who was a servant of the He family for several generations, with the surname Ma and the name Pu. "This is what Sir gave you. Keep it well, and use this money to buy rice in the future."

  "Yes, sir." Ma Pu received it. In fact, Fang Xin was in the He family and was one of the young masters. His food and clothing were all up to the He family's standards, with exquisite meals that could be said to be worth five hundred coins a day. Who would care about this little bit of money? However, this money was different; not only did he have to accept it, but also had to spend it afterwards.

  While talking, the porridge has been cooked, and a strong man is holding the pot. He poured it into the bucket, although it's freezing cold outside, but the person doing the work was also sweating profusely, looking like he had some experience, one pot just filled one bucket, pouring it in full.

  "Take it out!" At this time, the porridge bucket was extremely heavy. Ten people carried twenty buckets and opened the door to go outside, but He Xiang had already left, saying a few words before returning on his own.

  At this time, the sky had just brightened up, and the cold wind was blowing through the trees. However, there were already some people waiting outside, and when they saw the bucket being carried out, they surrounded it, each holding a bowl.

  "Bring me chopsticks!"

  Twenty buckets were put down, Fang Xin ordered without any politeness, naturally taking himself as the half-master, and the servant immediately responded to the order. A pair of chopsticks was brought over right away, and Fang Xin inserted the chopsticks into the porridge with one swift motion, amazingly, they stood upright without falling.

  "Today Mr. He's nephew, Li, is also offering congee, you all have good fortune, drink up, today you can have an extra bowl!" Ma Pu shouted.

  "Thank you, Mr. He! Thank you, Magistrate Li!" The people waiting for porridge below exclaimed with great joy.

  Just then, several riders happened to pass by and saw this scene. They slowed down and watched carefully. After a while, one of the men asked the people around who were watching but not going to get porridge: "What's the meaning of this?"

  "Hey, does this need to be said? Look, Old He is serving New Year's congee!" said an old man.

  "Why don't you go and get it?"

  "In the past, we only had ten buckets a day, and once they were gone, there was nothing left. This year, with Mr. Li around, even if we add ten more buckets, it's still not enough to drink, let alone have a meal. Why bother competing with those who don't even have porridge to eat? This is life-saving porridge, and if you fight for it, heaven will hold you accountable!" The old man said: "Besides, everyone around here are fellow villagers, who doesn't know the details of whose household? Even if you fight for it, there's no porridge to eat!"

  "Ah! So that's it!" The newcomer suddenly understood and went forward to take a look at the porridge, which was indeed thick.

  At this time, Fang Xin was ladling out porridge, filling bowl after bowl for the people who were coming. When he saw a woman with children, he added a bit more, and without realizing it, beads of sweat broke out on his forehead. Seeing this, he smiled: "You folks, didn't you rush along the road and miss dinner? Come, it's very cold outside, come have a bowl too. Even if you're going to the county town, even if you're riding a horse, it'll still take some time. My porridge is extremely clean, there won't be anything in it!"

  He looked at Fang Xin and smiled: "Good, let's have a bowl of hot congee to warm up!"

  Fang Xin ordered someone to bring over a bowl and poured one for the man and his followers, saying apologetically: "My family's porridge distribution starts from December 15th to New Year's Day, which is a month. Every day we distribute ten buckets, but once it's gone, there's none left. The locals all know this, so the number of people who come is fixed. Today is the first day, and since there's extra porridge and not many people have come, I can still offer you some. But if it were later on, I'm afraid there wouldn't be any left - after all, there are still people suffering from hunger and cold, and drinking this porridge could save their lives!"

  That person drank it, indeed a thick porridge, very fragrant and rich, just right to dispel the cold. Just as he was about to say something good, after hearing this remark, he was stunned, and there were still several mouthfuls of porridge that were hard to swallow. He looked around the yard and said: "This bucket of porridge is not bad, how much rice per bucket? Also, since it's like this, why doesn't your family give out a bit more?"

  "A picul and a peck, ten piculs make a stone. In reality, if you add a little more, there is still some left, but it doesn't conform to benevolence or propriety."

  "Doesn't this go against benevolence and propriety? How can you say such a thing!" The man finally took notice, he looked at Fang Xin's green robe and asked: "You're also a scholar, which classic says that?"

  "Working and eating are the natural order of things, how can there be gain without labor? If we're talking about benevolence, then everyone should have land to farm and work to do, that's what benevolence is. Giving out this kind of porridge, if it's used to support people who don't think about working hard every day, that's actually a sin. That's why our family only gives out porridge for one month at the beginning of the year, just to get through the difficult time when food is scarce." Fang Xin said, but in fact there are ways to gain without labor, it's just that they require mechanized large-scale production reaching a certain peak, an era where people don't have to work hard to have food.

  "This remark, although unheard of before, seems to make some sense upon careful consideration." The man said thoughtfully: "But isn't this contrary to propriety?"

  "The ritual is the rule of the world. My family provides porridge, not afraid that you will come to mock us. It's not necessarily all for good deeds. Firstly, we think about these people who are hungry and cold, and we should give them a chance to survive. This kind heart is present. Secondly, it's also for our own family to accumulate some virtue and extend our family business. This selfishness is also present. However, my family is not an official institution, nor the imperial court, nor the heavenly house. Every year in January, we provide ten or twenty buckets of porridge, that's all. If we provide too much, wouldn't it be overdoing it? Wouldn't people say that we are gathering people's hearts with our good deeds and have ulterior motives? That would be truly unbearable."

  Fang Xin sighed and said: "Furthermore, my family provides ten buckets, some families can still learn from this. But if we provide too much, how many families can follow suit? Are they willing to do so? As a student, I can only use chopsticks to test the thickness of the porridge. If it's not thick enough, tomorrow we'll add more rice. That's all we can do. We can only hope that in the future, as students, if we become officials and take office, when encountering such matters, we will provide for them in the name of the imperial court and the emperor, and there will be no worries."

  That person listened, and indeed had nothing to say. He drank the porridge in one gulp, looked at him deeply with a strange light in his eyes, and said: "You young man, what is your name, how old are you? Did you pass the imperial examination or become a scholar?"

  "This is the He family, my uncle He Xiang was a juren, but he didn't pass the imperial examination, so he returned to his hometown. The student's surname is Li, and his single name is Rui, he will be 16 years old this New Year's. This year, he coincidentally passed the provincial examination with the 10th place on the first list. I'm afraid it's because of impure academic achievements. If he goes to take the imperial examination in the province, won't he become a laughing stock? Therefore, he won't take the imperial examination this year."

  Fang Xin scooped and scooped, bucket after bucket, ten buckets later, he was exhausted with fine sweat: "After becoming a xiucai, I often feel anxious and fearful. If my academic achievements are not pure, and my moral character is insufficient, then how can I repay the emperor's kindness above, my parents' and ancestors' kindness in the middle, and the people's nourishment below? Anyway, I will take three years to study again, and when I am 18, I can focus on refining the sages' teachings, purify my academic achievements, and then it won't be too late to obtain this honor."

  At this time, the porridge had been served, and the sun had come out. Fang Xin let out a sigh of relief, stood outside the cool shed, and looked around. He saw that every household had smoke rising from their chimneys, and some tenants who had just finished eating were already in the fields, doing something or other. As they walked over, it turned out to be four sturdy men, and human voices could once again be heard. Another day had begun.

  "What a Li Rui, what a benevolent and polite man! What a heart that is always worried about itself!" The man looked at him deeply again, as if to remember him, then said: "With this heart, you will have your own future." After finishing speaking, he turned over and mounted his horse, then led the group of people to continue on their way.