Chapter 2: The world is difficult

In the present age, it holds a rather special status. Not only are the cities vast, but the regions are also esteemed, historically serving as the best fiefdoms granted to imperial brothers or princes

Straw sandals can be woven by even the poorest families to wear a few pairs, but straw mats are different; they require a certain level of craftsmanship. Moreover, as the weather becomes increasingly hot, not only ordinary farmers but even some well-off city dwellers occasionally inquire about the prices.

I saw my brother walking towards the west, and coincidentally, our Chen family village is also to the west. Let's walk together. It will be nice to have some company. This simple-minded man, disregarding the displeasure of his companions, took a few steps forward and said in a naive manner

In fact, the short man also dared not speak; this sturdy fellow is the tallest and the strongest fighter among the four of them. Every time he appears, he is a heavyweight presence.

Glancing at his coarse cloth short shirt, which was adorned with countless patches, Cao Chan let out a bitter smile, reflecting on the stark contrast between the past and the present

Houzi, I don't care what he did in the past; I can see now that he comes from a poor family. Times are tough now, so let's lend a helping hand if we can. If you don't like it, I will go with him alone. You all can go back together. The honest man expressed his dissatisfaction to the short fellow.

Observing the bustling street filled with people coming and going, Cao Chan recalled the scene of his kind mother eating thin rice porridge at home. Without a moment's hesitation, Cao Chan set off with his companion to the front of a shop adorned with a beautifully written character for rice in clerical script.

Cao Chan's residence, Qinghe Village, is located to the west of the city. According to Cao Chan, Chenjia Village is only a few miles away from Qinghe Village, making it a neighboring village

"Shopkeeper, how much is this rice per dou?" Cao Chan inquired, looking at the young servant who was attending to customers in the rice shop

Thank you, brother. The behavior of the other villagers is quite evident. If this were modern society, Cao Chan would certainly leave in a huff, but unfortunately, this is the era of the Han dynasty, a time of chaos and turmoil. His family is destitute, with no rice to cook, and at home, there is an elderly mother who survives on thin rice porridge. The most important thing is to return alive, especially to bring back a bag of rice in his burden.

"Poor family? Brother Wanzi, your eyes should be sharper. Is this guy really considered a poor family? Bah!" A small man behind the honest fellow could no longer hold back and mocked. Cao Chan is one of the most notorious figures in this county, yet he is still called a poor family.

Isn't that the eldest son of the Cao family?" The well-dressed guest in the shop looked at Cao Chan with surprise and couldn't help but exclaim

As for Cao Chan, most of the people in his village were hoping for his early death to cleanse the village of its tarnished reputation. Naturally, no one accompanied him into the city

After selling straw mats on https://www.hetushu.com for an entire morning, I found that I had only earned enough for ten dou of rice

A dou is an ancient measuring vessel, and one dou is approximately equivalent to ten jin of rice

Goodbye, esteemed guest. The young servant smiled as he reached out to take the money.

Alright. The young servant immediately shouted and quickly prepared a dou of rice for Cao Chan. Cao Chan took the sack of rice made of coarse cloth, reached in, counted out one hundred copper coins, and handed them to the young servant

If it weren't for this honest man, the other three villagers might have truly been kidnapped on this mountain path

Others are relatively easy to deal with; when they enter the city to sell goods, it is usually a group of ten or so people from the same village. After all, the world is somewhat chaotic, and traveling in larger numbers is safer.

Since this man knows Cao Chan, he must have also heard about the notorious deeds of Cao Chan's past. Nevertheless, he still invited him to go along.

After leaving the city, Cao Chan determined the direction and chose a relatively wide road to walk on. "Brothers ahead, please walk slowly," a hearty voice suddenly called out from behind.

Therefore, Cao Chan accepted the good intentions of this simple man

After looking at the bag of rice in his hand, Cao Chan deftly hid the bag among the pile of straw sandals, and only then did he leave the city

Cao Chan's thoughts, however, differ from those of these individuals. The popular straw mats have sold out, while the straw sandals are left unattended, likely not selling even a few pairs in an entire afternoon. Wasting this afternoon's time, it would be better to return home to rest or to see if there are other tasks to attend to.

That was a year ago, the servant replied

After being resurrected in this tumultuous era, this is the third person who has made Cao Chan feel a sense of warmth

Thus, the Yellow Turban Rebellion swept through Chenliu for a period of time before being suppressed by the imperial army. Zhang Jiao of the Yellow Turban Rebellion only managed to survive for a year. However, in Chenliu, the Yellow Turban Rebellion lasted merely three months.

Because it is a case of borrowing a corpse to return the soul, Cao Chan has also accepted most of the memories of the previous person. Although there are some discomforts, it does not lead to a situation where everything is completely unfamiliar and incomprehensible.

Having walked a distance of more than ten steps, Cao Chan was naturally unaware that he was being discussed in the small rice shop. However, even if he had known, there would have been little he could do, as he was merely a poor young man at this moment, physically weak and unable to engage in fights at will. As long as no one acted in front of him, even if they spoke ill of him in his presence, Cao Chan could only smile and let it pass.

Surely, no one would be unaware of this Cao Chan. The reactions of the several villagers around him coincidentally confirmed Cao Chan's suspicions. Yet, this simple-minded man still took a step forward, wanting to walk alongside him. This made Cao Chan feel a sense of warmth

It is known that when country folk come to the city, those selling goods spend an entire day selling, regardless of how much inventory remains. It is indeed rare to find someone, like Cao Chan, who prepares to pack up by noon.

Cao Chan turned around to see a sturdy-looking man gazing at him with a simple-minded expression. Several companions were beside him, looking somewhat displeased at this man.

After the tall man finished speaking, he briefly suppressed the discontent within the group. The team reluctantly made their way westward

However, once he left the city, things became uncertain. On the road, Cao Chan encountered more than a couple of starving people, and their eyes, which glowed with a green light and fierce intensity, left a lasting impression on him

After the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the world fell into chaos. Although there were no large groups of refugees causing disturbances, small bands of bandits continued to emerge incessantly. Although the county was relatively safe under the strict policies of the county magistrate, a person walking alone on the road was still likely to encounter some bandits or other dangers

Cao Chan sat on the ground, having strung together the hundreds of copper coins he had sold with hemp thread. He glanced at the sky; it was nearing noon. Then he looked at the straw sandals on the stall, which had attracted almost no attention. He rolled up the cloth on the ground, packed the pairs of straw sandals back into the burden, and prepared to head home amidst the astonished gazes of those around him

Peixian is a relatively large city under the jurisdiction of Chenliu Commandery. Chenliu Commandery became quite famous in later generations, with numerous notable figures such as Chen Liu Wang, Cao Zhi, Liu Xie, and others.

"You're welcome. I see that my brother is also having a hard time; we are all poor people and should help each other as much as we can." This simple-hearted man chuckled foolishly, waved his hand at Cao Chan, and repeatedly said.

"One dou for a hundred wen." Upon hearing this, the young servant abandoned his conversation with the guest and turned to glance at Cao Chan, who was dressed in a coarse cloth short shirt. He then lazily remarked this single sentence before shifting his gaze back to the guest in the shop, who appeared to have greater purchasing power compared to Cao Chan.

Not knowing why my brother called me, Cao Chan first glanced at the few displeased individuals surrounding this simple man, and only then did he calmly address the simple man.

"Alright, alright, it's just one more person. Let's go together." There were a total of four people, among whom a tall and thin individual spoke up, seemingly holding a certain level of authority. After he finished speaking, the shorter individual did not respond.

Cao Chan was taken aback; in his memory, he often had meals served to him without effort, thus he had little concept of rice prices. He did not expect it to be so expensive

It is now the summer of the third year of Zhongping. The Yellow Turban Rebellion has become a thing of the past, thus, Peixian can be considered relatively safe and well-preserved

Looking at the string of copper coins in hand and recalling the embarrassment of relying on rice porridge at home, Cao Chan gritted his teeth and said: "I would like a dou of rice"

In the course of the morning, Cao Chan sold only two pairs of straw sandals, but the straw mats were sold out.