Overcharged by three to five dou Original text

An overcharge of three to five buckets①

Ye Shengtao

Tips

The novel tells the story of a group of farmers in Jiangnan in the 1930s who endured the pain. The description of a man who made a profit at a loss, but suffered a more tragic misfortune in a good year than in previous years, vividly reveals the reality of the rapid bankruptcy of rural areas in old China under the oppression of the three mountains, and indicates that farmers will surely embark on the road of resistance. < /p>

The description of the environment in this novel is concise and vivid. The author uses extremely concise pen and ink to describe the environment of the story three times. In just a few strokes, he vividly depicts the customs and appearance of small towns in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. The local flavor is very strong. When reading, be careful Experience this feature carefully.

The Wansheng Mihang River Pier ② is lined with open-top boats from the countryside. The boats are loaded with new rice, which lowers the hull very low. Vegetable leaves and garbage were surrounded by white greasy foam, which rippled and filled the gap between this boat and that boat.

The river port can only accommodate two or three people. A street where people walk side by side. Wansheng Rice Store is on the other side of the street. The morning sun slants down from the broken Mingwa ceiling ④, and the light pillars fall on a few old felt hats swinging outside the counter. < /p>

Those people wearing old felt hats came out of the boat early in the morning. When they arrived at the pier, they came to the counter to divine their fate without even breathing.

"Five pieces of brown rice, "Three pieces of grain," the gentleman in Mihangli answered them feebly.

"What!" The old felt hat friends hardly believed their ears. Their high hopes suddenly sank, and everyone was stunned.

"In June, didn't you sell it for 13 yuan?"

"We also sold it for 15 yuan, don't say 13 yuan."

< p>"Nowhere has the fall been so severe!"

"What time of year is it now? Don't you know? The rice everywhere is pouring out like a tide, and it will continue to fall every few days!"

The energy that was used to rock the boat like a dragon boat is now relaxed in everyone's body

This year, the weather will take care of it, the rain will mix evenly, and the little bugs will not interfere. ①, With an extra harvest of three to five bushels per acre, everyone thought it was time to take a breather. Who would have thought that when the final divination came, we would get a worse omen than in previous years②!

"Don't be fooled. Okay, let's shake it back and put it at home!" Such angry words spewed out from his simple heart.

"Scoff!" Mr. sneered, "If you don't behave, people will starve to death. There is a lot of foreign rice and noodles everywhere; before the first few batches are finished, several more batches have arrived from overseas ships."

Ocean rice, ocean noodles, foreign ships, that's all It seems that we can ignore distant things; however, not caring about the rice that has been delivered to the river port can only be said as an angry statement. How can we ignore it? The landlord has to pay the rent. In order to hire day laborers , buy fertilizer, eat well, and the debts borrowed must be repaid.

"Let's go to Fan's Tomb to make money." In Fan's Tomb, there may be a better fate waiting for them, there are people I think so.

However, the gentleman said "chi" again. He twirled his thin short mustache and said: "Don't talk about Fan Tomb, it will be the same even if you go to the city. Let's discuss it together. , the price for these two days is five yuan for brown rice and three yuan for grain."

"There is no benefit in going to Fan's Tomb to sell food." My companions also raised objections, "It takes two yuan to get to Fan's Tomb here. Bureau ④, if you know how much money they donate to us, just ask them to donate it. Where do you get the foreign money?"

"Sir, can you raise it a little higher?" It was almost a pleading tone.

"It's easy to talk about it a little higher. We use capital to open this rice business, you have to know. To raise a little higher, it means that working for you is in vain. Who is willing to do such a stupid thing" < /p>

"This price is so low, we never dreamed of it. Last year the selling price was seven and a half yuan, and this year the price of rice is thirteen yuan. No, your husband said, fifteen yuan is not enough." We have sold it. We think it should be a little more than seven and a half yuan this year. Who knew it was only five yuan!"

"Sir, that's the old price last year, about seven and a half yuan."

"Sir, the farmers are pitiful. You have good intentions and earn less."

Another gentleman was tired of hearing this and threw the butt of the cigarette in his mouth into the middle of the street, his eyes widened. Said: "You think the price is low, so don't squander it. You came here on your own."

I didn't invite you. Just keep asking for nothing! We have plenty of foreign money. We don't want to buy from you, but from others. Look, there are two more boats parked there at the pier."

Three or four old felt hats came up from the stone steps. Under the old felt hats were red faces expressing hope. They immediately joined the group that had arrived first. The beams of light stretched out diagonally and fell on the shoulders and backs of their rag jackets.

"Listen and see what the price is this year."

"It's not as good as last year, only five yuan!" accompanied by a look of frustration and helplessness.

p>

"What!" Hope is like a soap bubble, and after a while it bursts three or four more.

Although the soap bubble of hope bursts, the rice carried in the open boat has to be released; And it is destined to be sold to this Wansheng Rice Store. There is a lot of foreign money in the rice store, and the empty pocket of the rag jacket needs foreign money.

In the debate about the good and bad rice quality , under the quarrel between Qian and Manchu of Huzi①, the open boat at the dock finally turned upside down; the hull floated a lot, and the vegetable leaves filling the gap between this boat and that boat and garbage can no longer be seen. The friend in the old felt hat gave the rice he grew to the back room of Wansheng Rice Shop②, and what he received in exchange was more or less a stack of banknotes.

"Sir, can you give me cash in foreign currency, Yuan Shikai③?" I can't exchange white rice in cash for foreign currency. It seems that I have been given a discount by them again. I feel uncomfortable.

"Country braids④! "The hand holding a pen was pressed on the abacus bead, and a disdainful look was projected from the top of the glasses. "One dollar of banknotes is used as one yuan, who would like to give you a copper plate. We don't have foreign money here, only foreign money. Banknotes."

"Then, let's exchange for Bank of China banknotes." From the pattern, I knew that the banknotes in my hand were not from Bank of China.

"Scary!" The voice was very serious. , pointing forcefully with the index finger of his left hand, "This belongs to the Central Bank. You don't want it, but if you want to get sued,"

If you don't want this money, you will get sued. I don't understand this, but no one wants to. Understood. Everyone looked at the portrait on the banknote, exchanged doubtful glances with each other, and then stuffed the banknote into the empty pocket of the rag jacket or the empty trousers wrapped around the waistband.

A batch People grunted and left Wansheng Rice Store, and another group of people stepped up from the dock. In the same way, soap bubbles of hope burst in front of the counter, driving away the joy that had been felt since the beginning of autumn when looking at the heavy ears of rice. .Similarly, I sent the white rice that I was extremely reluctant to part with into the Wansheng room and exchanged it for cash and foreign currency banknotes that were not in vain.

The streets became lively.

My friend from the old felt hat came to town today, and he had many plans. He ran out of foreign soap, so he had to buy ten or eight yuan to go home. He also had to bring a few boxes of matches. He bought foreign oil from the hawker who carried a load to the village. It's such a small scoop for ten copper coins, which is such a disadvantage; if several families buy a tin and use it for cents, it will be much cheaper. The colorful foreign cloth displayed in the window is said to be only eight and a half feet per foot. Women I have been jealous for a long time, and today I want to come out with you. I have a budget for myself, Ada, and Er. Some women also have an egg-round mirror and a snow-white mirror in their budget. Towel, or a small hat with beautifully knotted wool. It’s rare that Tian has taken care of it this year. An extra three to five bushels per acre of land can make the hands that are always tightly squeezed relax a little. Who said that rent should not be paid? , I can probably deal with the past by paying off the debts and resolving the relationship; besides dealing with the past, I probably have more than enough. In such a state of mind, some even want to buy a hot water bottle. This thing is really strange. There is no need to light a fire, and the hot water can be used to brew it. Go down and pour it out after a while and it will still be hot; compared to the teapot nest made of rice firewood, one is really in the sky and the other is in the ground.

When they left Wansheng Rice Store with a grunt. , it's like walking out of a casino that has always been unlucky - this time they lose again! They don't know how much they lost. In short, there is not even half or a corner of the stack of banknotes in the bag that is theirs. They still need to add something I don't know where. How many banknotes should you give to others before they will be satisfied? You have to wait for them to tell you.

You are a loser, and it may not be much better if you sail back immediately; walk around the town, Going back to buy something is just adding to the loss, and there are some things that are really waiting to be used. So the street became lively.

They were in groups of three and five, dragging short The short figure is walking on the narrow street. The mouth is still

Grumbling, recalculating the price just gained, cursing the rice shop with a black conscience. The woman has a basket hooked in her arm, or holding a child with one hand, her eyes just glanced at the shops on both sides. The child was covered with celluloid clothes The animals, tigers, dogs and red and green bronze drums and horns were alluring, and they stayed there and refused to go away.

"Little brother, it’s fun, buy one of the bronze drums and horns. ." Deliberately making a seductive tone. Then: winter, winter, winter, - Ba, Ba, Ba.

Dang, Dang, Dang, -" the porcelain basin scraped, A square corner is really fair, folks, take one with you."

"Hey, folks, there are all kinds of colorful fabrics here, especially on sale, eight and a half feet, plus three feet. Don't cut some pieces back."

The shopkeepers in Wan Yuanxiang, Dali, and Laofuxing worked very hard, calling out "fellow folks" at any cost, and at the same time pulling and pulling on the "fellow folks"'s cloth jackets. : They know that today is the only day that the "folks"' pockets will be full, and this is a good opportunity that cannot be missed.

After hesitating to save the budget, the "folks" took the newly received banknotes one by one. The land is handed over to the shopkeeper. Matches, foreign soaps, etc. are necessary, so I have to buy them, so I have to buy less. I heard that the price of foreign oils is too "bitter", so don't buy it. It's still ten coppers for a small scoop. Hawker's Souvenir ①. As for the clothing material, I cut one piece if I was going to cut two pieces, and I cut the son's piece if I was going to cut it together. I took the egg-shaped glasses and put them in the window. The woolen hat. I put it on the child's head and tried it on. As soon as it fit, the old man said "Don't buy it" and took it off again. Those who wanted to buy a thermos bottle didn't dare to ask the price. Maybe one piece or half a piece. If you don't care, If you buy it back at 37-21, if nothing else, a few white-haired old ladies will scold you: "At this age, you are greedy for comfort and spend a yuan, a yuan and a half to buy these things, and you will never be able to use them." You should not turn over! Look, who at our age has ever used these things!" This nagging was enough. There were a few women who couldn't resist their children's desires, so they bought them the cheapest ones. Little Yang Nuan. Little Yang Nuan's legs and arms can rotate. He will sit when he is asked to sit, stand when he is asked to stand, and raise his hands when he is asked to do so. This not only makes the eyes of other children who cannot hold their hands almost burn with fire, but also makes adults watch. I thought it was quite funny.

The "folks" also drank some wine and bought some meat from a cooked meat shop, then returned to their own boat moored at the Wanshengmi Boat Pier, and got out of the boat again. The stern man took out bowls and dishes filled with pickles and tofu soup, and sat on the bow and began to drink. The woman cooked at the stern of the boat. After a while, this boat was smoking, and that boat was also smoking, and everyone was dripping. With tears in their eyes, the children stumbled and rolled in the open cabin, and picked up dirty things floating on the river to play with. Only they had indescribable happiness.

When the wine was in my stomach, I started talking. There are more and more people, acquaintances and strangers, who have fallen into the same fate and are drinking on the same river. You pick up the wine bowl and say a few words, and I put down my chopsticks to pick up a few words. The one I heard is shouting: " "Yes", if you don't like it, give it a scolding; everyone feels that this kind of venting is needed.

"Five yuan a load, what a ghost!"

"Last year there was a flood. , the harvest is not good, and we are losing money. Even if this year is considered a good year, the harvest is good, but we are still losing money!"

"This year's loss is worse than last year; last year, we still made a profit of seven and a half yuan."

"You have to sell out the rice you eat again. Alas, the farmers can't eat the rice they grow!"

"Why are you selling out, you damn ghost! I must stay here At home, I feed my wife and my son. If I don’t pay the rent, I would rather go to court and have them lock me up!"

"I have no choice but not to pay the rent. I will borrow new debt immediately after paying the rent. Borrow He borrowed a debt of four cents and five cents to pay the rent. What are you trying to do? Are you just trying to carry a heavier debt next year?"

"Tian is really awesome!"

< p>"Refund the rent and run away. I think those who run away are quite satisfied."

"If you run away, you will be able to pay off your debts and you won't have to pay off the money. It's a good plan. Let's go together. !"

"Whoever comes out to be a brain and they are running away are a few brains. Men and women, old and young, all listen to the brains."

"I see, it’s okay to go to Shanghai to work. Not bad. Xiao Wang in our village works in some factory in Shanghai. I heard that the monthly salary is fifteen yuan. Fifteen yuan, according to today's price, is three tons of rice!"

"What are you looking for in the old calendar for the next year?

The Oriental people in Shanghai were at war③, and many factories were closed. Xiao Wang was working as a beggar there, and you didn’t know yet.

The road was cut off. Everyone was silent for a while. Jiang Chi’s face was exposed to the sun. Coupled with the power of alcohol, they all look ugly, as if bright red blood will burst out from the skin.

"We farm every year, who are we farming for?" One person took a sip ④ Liquor, he quietly raised his question.

Another person pointed at Wansheng’s old gold-lettered signboard and said: "It is right in front of us. It was grown for them. Let’s eat it." After working hard and borrowing money at high interest rates, they twitched their lips and said, "Five yuan a load," and swallowed up all our oil and water!"

"If we let us Just set your own price, that's fine. In good conscience, I don't want to ask for more than eight yuan a load."

"You prisoner, what are you dreaming about there! Don't you hear them? The business is opened with capital, and they are not willing to work for us in vain."

"Then, our fields are also cultivated with capital, why should we work for them in vain! Why should we work for the landlords in vain. "

"I just thought this in the cellar: Let you take advantage now and put the rice here; if I don't have anything to eat in the future, I will eat yours!" Deliberately lowered his voice, the Internet The red eyes squinted towards the shore.

"When you really have nothing to eat, it is not against the law to eat some rice wherever there is." He said confidently.

"This spring, wasn't there a rice-robbing incident in Fengqiao?"

"The security team opened fire and killed two people."

"Today we People here might also eat guns, who knows!"

Of course there was no resolution in the scattered conversation. After the wine was drunk and the food was eaten, everyone set sail back to their own villages. The dock The dark green dirty water was rippling desertedly.

The next day, another group of open boats came to anchor here. The same story was performed in the town. This kind of story is also being played in various towns. The performance on the street is really ordinary and ordinary.

① Selected from "Selected Works of Ye Shengtao".

② [堠(bù)头] The pier where the ship is parked.

< p>③ [瀿] pronounce nì.

④ [Mingwa ceiling] A translucent sheet made of clam shells ground into thin sheets, called Mingwa. Larger shops in southern cities and towns often set up a ceiling on the street. The roof of the shed is covered with open tiles.

⑤ [Divination (zhānbǔ)] originally refers to superstitious activities such as fortune-telling. Here it means inquiry.

① [Making obstacles (gěng)] To hinder things from proceeding smoothly.

② [Omen] Omen.

③ [Mustache (zī)] The beard above the mouth.

④ [ Bureau] This refers to Lijin Bureau. At that time, the government set up Lijin Bureau in towns with convenient transportation. Goods transiting the border had to pay taxes at the bureau.

① [斛(hú)] A device for measuring rice. One hu. Combine five buckets.

② [廒(áo)间] Granary.

③ [Yuan Shikai] refers to the silver dollar cast in the early Republic of China that was common at that time. It has Yuan Shikai’s head on it.

③ [Yuan Shikai] p>

④ [Crooked braids] A word that ridicules the working people. In the Qing Dynasty, men had braids, and their braids were smooth and straight if they were often combed and braided. The working people did not have time to comb and braid them frequently, so their braids would appear fluffy and crooked.

⑤ [Disdain (xiè)] Look down on people.

⑥ [Bank of China] was founded in 1912. Because it has been in business for a long time, in the hearts of the people, its credibility is higher than that of the Bank of China established in 1928 by the reactionary Kuomintang government. The central bank is high.

⑦ [衡裢(dālian)] A long bag that can hold things and be wrapped around the waist like a belt.

① [Listen (tīng) ]English transliteration. This refers to the iron barrel containing kerosene.

② [小囝(nān) Jiangsu and Zhejiang dialects, children.

③ [媠] pronounced kē.

④ [Celluloid (lùluò)] English transliteration. The United States first used this word. A chemical product that can be used to make film films, toys, decorations, etc.

① [沽(gū)] Original Refers to buying wine. Here is the meaning of buying.

② [老老子] Father.

③ [拗] Read niù.

① [Four cents and five cents] refers to loan sharking. Four cents and five cents means four cents and five cents, which is a very high interest rate for borrowing money. If you borrow one hundred yuan, you have to pay four yuan per month or annually. The interest of forty yuan is called four cents.

② [Write (xiè) meaning] Jiangsu and Zhejiang dialect. Comfortable and happy.

③ [Shanghai Oriental people fighting] refers to 1932 The war against the Japanese invaders in Shanghai in "128".

④ [呷(xiā)] Drink in small sips.

⑤ [Quietly] describes the sound, The light is weak. There is a profound meaning here.