Chapter 27 Chapter Twenty Seven

The rest of the kiln, mainly composed of kiln workers surnamed Cao, began that night.Cao Yu'er and a few brothers under his command were shouting up and down Zazipo, and brothers surnamed Cao and Xiao who wanted to be bloody should not go to Baijiayao again.Cao Fuli, the former master of money and grain of the Cao Tuan, stood under the bare old locust tree in the red light of the setting sun, and gave a generous speech to the brothers who had rested from the kiln. Cao Fuli said: "...Men and brothers, we really have to think about it today. How did our Cao Tuan become like this? Why are some people so rich and some poor? Our old group always started to set up Cao Tuan Didn’t there be rules at the time? From the head of the regiment to the brethren below, no private money is stored, and the blessings are shared, and the difficulties are shared. The old regiment has always led us to fight for more than ten years. Aren’t we all the same as our brothers until death? The straw mat was rolled and buried under this old locust tree. What is going on with Xiao Taiping today? Why should he be the kiln manager of the Baijiayao?! There is no bloodshed from the brothers who broke the kiln in the eighth year of Tongzhi, the Baijiayao Can he let him take over the kiln?! Today he posted it, and he completely forgot about the brothers. He lost even a little bit of support. To his brother-in-law, the only surviving son of our old regiment, he was able to do such a cruel thing, how can we still count on it? What?! Why are we still serving him? I really want to eat the food of making a kiln, where can we not eat it?"

In addition to brothers surnamed Cao, there were also a few brothers surnamed Xiao who were dissatisfied with Xiao Taiping. Dozens of brothers all stared at Cao Fuli, and the expressions on their faces gradually became agitated. Cao Fuli dragged his gray braids and wore a coarse cotton robe full of patches, with piercing eyes: "...this is called 'water can carry a boat or overturn it'. Our men and brothers of Cao Tuan can hold a boat in the eighth year of Tongzhi. If Xiao Taiping is promoted, he can be brought down today! In order to bring Xiao Taiping down, we have to make a big fuss, not only our old brother Cao Tuan is going to quit the kiln, but also newcomers from the past few years. The brothers of the local kiln workers rest together..."

Just as he was talking, a brother came running to Cao Fuli and said, "Master, my Uncle Ershun is going to the kiln, we can't stop him..." Cao Fuli was taken aback, stopped his speech, and went down the slope with the brother to block Cao Ershun. At the intersection under the slope, Cao Fuli greeted Cao Ershun who was going to the kiln wrapped in a ragged padded jacket. Cao Fuli was very upset, and he taught Cao Ershun a lesson: "...Second brother, you really don't know each other! So many brothers surnamed Cao have quit the kiln, why are you still going to the kiln? Go back quickly, don't damage the brothers. event."

Because Cao Fuli is a master of money and grain, he is knowledgeable, and Cao Ershun always respected him very much, so he didn't dare to be hard on Cao Fuli, and he just said nonchalantly, "Brother Shi Ye, no... what can we eat if we don't go to the kiln?" Cao Fuli flicked his braids and said, "If I'm not starving to death, I won't starve to death, brother you! I, Cao Fuli, am not Xiao Taiping. Brother, I am poor, but I am so poor that I have both loyalty and backbone." Cao Ershun said: "This is not good. I have strength and can contribute, so I have to earn my own food. God wants us to rely on our honest labor in exchange for daily meals..."

Cao Fuli didn't know Cao Ershun's belief in God at that time, so he said: "Being blinded by Xiao Taiping in one eye, you have no temper?" Cao Ershun said: "Qi belongs to Qi, but Xiao Taiping is a devil, I am not." Cao Fuli said: "Since you know Xiao Taiping is a devil, why don't you try to defeat him?!" Cao Ershun said: "God will punish him in the end, and it has nothing to do with whether we stop the kiln or not." Cao Fuli asked, "Are you really going to the kiln today?" Cao Ershun nodded and reiterated, "God asked me to exchange my daily meals with honest labor."

Cao Fuli was so angry that he pointed at Cao Ershun and scolded: "God, you mother! Don't you think about it, is this fair? You have worked so hard to sell your life for five liters of sorghum. Xiao Taiping can't kiln in a day. How much money does he make every month?" One hundred taels of silver!" Cao Ershun said solemnly, "Brother Master, you are wrong. I earn more than five liters of sorghum a day, and the Baiyao kiln earns a bucket of sorghum overnight. What is so unfair? The next kiln is five liters of sorghum. It’s been like this since the day we left the kiln, and Xiao Taiping didn’t pay us a price, so what can we say?! Why are we jealous!”

Seeing that Cao Ershun was so obsessed with obsession, Cao Fuli was very distressed: "Cao Ershun, you... you are so cheap, no wonder you could only feed horses in the Cao Tuan back then. Now, I have also seen it, you are only worthy of working hard to dig coal for the rest of your life... " Cao Ershun was not happy anymore. He raised his head and said, "What's wrong with this? I fed horses in Cao Tuan and dug coal in Baijiayao. Ansheng!" After all, Cao Ershun ignored Cao Fuli and walked abruptly along the embankment of the Damo River in the direction of Qiaotou Town.

Cao Fuli shouted behind Cao Ershun: "Cao Ershun, you come back, your daily kiln salary I...we recognize it!" Cao Ershun didn't answer at all, and didn't even turn his head. Several brothers surnamed Cao were furious, and they planned to bring Cao Ershun back and beat him severely. Although Cao Fuli said he was angry, he didn't allow his brothers to mess around. Cao Fuli had already thought about it in his heart, in order to make a big fuss about the kiln break, he had to fight—however, it was not a fight with Cao Ershun, but a fight with Xiao Taiping's gang of kiln men.According to Cao Fuli's speculation, the unscrupulous Xiao Taiping would never watch the brothers on the slope of the kiln stop the kiln, and he must send Xiao Taizhong's people to dissuade him.As soon as Xiao Taizhong's men came over, things would be easier to deal with. No matter what excuse they had, they would have to beat them up. If they saw blood from the beating, they would make trouble in the kiln and Xiao Taiping's shopkeeper's room...

Unexpectedly, things turned out to be very strange. Cao Fuli, Cao Yuer's uncle and nephew had been instigating for two days on Zazipo, more than 50 brothers followed suit, and there was no movement at the shopkeeper's room in Qiaotou Town.Xiao Taiping didn't seem to know that there was a break in the kiln, and Xiao Taizhong and his gang of kiln workers didn't come up to the slope.This made Cao's nephew and Xie Yao's brothers a little impatient. On the afternoon of the third day, a small blue cloth sedan chair finally floated down the slope. Cao's uncles and nephews thought it was Xiao Taiping coming, and each of them shook their spirits again, ready to fight.But when the sedan chair curtain was opened, they realized that it wasn't Xiao Taiping who came, but Li Wuye from Li's kiln.

Li Wuye got out of the sedan chair, clasped his fists at his brothers and said, "Brothers, we can't rest in this kiln for a long time, can we? After resting for a few days, our energy has been nourished enough, so we still have to work hard to eat, right? So here I invite you all—if you don’t want to eat rice from Baijiayao, you can eat rice from Lijiayao.” Mr. Li Wu took special care of Cao Yuer, who was the leader of the rest of the kiln, and he promised a good job with a big basket head, asking Cao Yuer to bring all the 50 or so brothers who had rested to Lijiayao to carry coal .

Master Li Wu patted Cao Yu'er on the shoulder and said with a smile: "...Cao Tongtou, lead these brothers to our Li Family Kiln and do a good job! I will not lose you Cao Tongtou, nor will I Thanks to the big guys, as much as the Baijiayao gave you, we will also give you as much as the Lijiayao..." Listening to Li Wuye calling "Cao basket head" one by one, Cao Yu'er is really a bit like a dream.Cao Yu'er never thought that such a good thing would happen to him, and after three days of rest, the kiln became the big basket of Li's kiln.Brothers who carry coal on the pipe kiln in Dagangtou, if you don’t work or talk about it, the benefits will be great in the open and in the dark. Cao Yuer didn't even hit him in a daze, and immediately knelt down to thank Li Wuye, and stammered to Li Wuye, "Fifth...Fifth Master, you...you are always praising your brother, in the future... In the future, the brothers and all the brothers will be proud of the fifth master, and they will definitely help...help the fifth master to fight with Baijiayao and Xiao Taiping..." But Mr. Li waved his hands and said, "Hey, what are you fighting for? Mr. Wu, I only need to dig coal, and don't fight. We want to make money through harmony—do you understand that harmony makes money?" Cao Yu'er hurriedly said: "Yes, yes, yes, harmony makes money. What your fifth master says is what you say. From now on, our 50-odd brothers will recognize what you said, fifth master..." Seeing this, Cao Fuli frowned, pulled Cao Yu'er, and asked quietly: "Yu'er, is this the end of our kiln break?" Cao Yu'er said: "That's right, let's take it when you see it!" Cao Fuli said angrily: "Brothers, what benefits do you see? Aren't you the only one who got the benefits? You became the leader of the big basket in Lijiayao, but the brothers didn't become the leader of the big basket—you, you and Xiao Taiping back then It’s a piece of goods, and the brothers let you sell it again!” Cao Yu'er said: "Uncle, you can't say that. The brothers were not sold by someone, but they won. The brothers have all gone to Li Wuye's kiln, and they will no longer serve Xiao Taiping. This is not a victory." Is it? It’s not that I rushed to make the big basket, it was Li Wuye who insisted on asking me, who can say anything?” Cao Fuli asked: "Would Li Wuye let you be the head of the basket without the more than fifty brothers going to Lijiayao with you?" Cao Yu'er asked disdainfully, "Uncle, what should you do?" Cao Fuli said in a stern tone: "According to me, none of us should go to Lijiayao, this kiln has to rest, and we have to fight with Xiao Taiping to make a name for ourselves - not to let anyone be the head of the basket , the counter, but to let Xiao Taiping remember Cao Tuan’s rule of not storing private money back then, if there is food for everyone to eat, and money for everyone to use..." Cao Yu'er interrupted Cao Fuli and said: "Uncle, I think you are dreaming! How old is it now, how can Cao Tuan come? Who doesn't take care of themselves now? Uncle, did you lose yourself because you made a fuss for nothing? Get benefits? In fact, you want to open it. You always think, if I get benefits, doesn’t that mean you get benefits? You are old, and you can’t make a kiln at all. I will honor you when I get better in the future... ..." Cao Fuli was so angry that he waved his hand and slapped Cao Yu'er across the face, cursing sharply, "Get out, I'm not a bitch like you!" This slap didn't dispel Cao Yu'er's idea of ​​being the head of the basket.In the evening of that day, Cao Yu'er took the brothers from Xie Kiln to the shopkeeper's room of Lijiayao in Qiaotou Town to drink Li Wuye's Shanggong wine.Li Wuye was more loyal than Xiao Taiping, and set up five tables of wine in his shopkeeper's room, not only invited Cao Yu'er, but also more than fifty brothers from Xie Kiln. While drinking, Cao Yu'er and his brothers scolded Xiao Taiping, Li Wuye just laughed and didn't talk much.No one expected that when the wine was half drunk, Xiao Taiping came in surrounded by his younger brother Xiao Taizhong and a group of kiln workers.Only then did Li Wuye stand up and explain the truth, saying that the five tables of wine were not invited by Li Wuye, but by Xiao Taiping. Li Wuye pointed to Xiao Taiping and said: "...Brothers, you really don't know how benevolent and righteous shopkeeper Xiao is! You break the kiln and mess with him, but he thinks of you all, afraid that you will not eat or drink, and the house will be broken. I asked you to go to the kiln on the slope, and I invited this wine again today, saying that you are all his old brothers, and it is always easy to talk and break up..." Cao Yu'er and the brothers were all stunned. After staying for a while, Cao Yu'er came to her senses first, and felt that she had to say something, or she would be really ashamed.He also thought that he would not eat Xiao Taiping's kiln food anyway, even if he offended Xiao Taiping, he would not be afraid. Unexpectedly, Cao Yu'er stood up gloomyly, and before he could speak, Li Wuye spoke first: "...Cao Lantou, you represent all the brothers to give a toast to Mr. Xiao! It's not Mr. Xiao who told me about it. , I really didn’t know there was such a character as you! Uncle Xiao strongly recommended you to me, you big basket!” This surprised Cao Yu'er again: Xiao Taiping recommended his big basket head to Li Wuye. It's not easy to make trouble anymore, Xiao Taiping values ​​love and justice, and he has to value love and justice too!What's more, the relationship between Li Wuye and Xiao Taiping is so good right now - Li Wuye has won so many people in Baijiayao, so of course he has to buy Xiao Taiping's account.Since Xiao Taiping can recommend him to be the leader of the big basket, he can also make Li Wuye abolish him as the leader of the big basket. Cao Yu'er completely convinced Xiao Taiping, blushing raised his wine glass, toasted Xiao Taiping three glasses of wine. Xiao Taiping finished his three cups of wine, patted Cao Yu'er on the shoulder, and confessed: "Yu'er, work hard at Li's kiln, I will owe you, Fifth Lord will not owe you." Cao Yu'er was extremely embarrassed, and hurriedly said: "You... your third uncle... didn't do anything wrong to me, but... I'm an asshole!" Xiao Taiping laughed: "It's good to know, I like to deal with people who understand." Cao Yu'er nodded again and again: "I...I understand now, I understand everything! Your third uncle is right...you really have nothing to say to our old brothers, it is... we are messing around..." Then Xiao Taiping turned his face to the brothers and said: "Isn't it just nonsense?! I know that among our old brothers, some people can't see me, Xiao Taiping, as the shopkeeper of the kiln. They always feel that I, Xiao, have lost someone. Now I I have to ask, am I really at a disadvantage to any brother? Back then in Zazipo, Mr. Baier promised five liters of sorghum, did I, Xiao, have one liter less than anyone else?" Cao Yu'er is really a sensible person, and she responded repeatedly with a lost smile: "No less, no less..." Xiao Taiping said: "Since there are not many of you, why do you hate? Why are you making trouble? You have to behave according to the rules, right? Even if I, Xiao, want to give you a stone of sorghum, this is not in accordance with the rules, Li Jiayao , The Wang family kiln doesn’t follow me. Li Wuye is here, you can ask him! If you are really not convinced, then find a kiln to make fun of!” Li Wuye echoed and said: "Uncle Xiao, who among them has the ability like you? I'm afraid we won't be able to find a kiln master like you in our Mohe, not to mention Mr. Bai Er, even Uncle Wang and I admire you." Well. Let’s talk about the idea of ​​resting people and never resting the kiln, who would have thought of it?!” Xiao Taiping sighed and said: "Li Wuye, you don't know, my old brothers are very powerful, some people think that they have great abilities, and they always think that without him, my kiln can't be opened... " At this time, a bold brother stood up and said: "Without our brothers, can a basket of charcoal...can come up from the ground by itself?" Xiao Taiping was furious, and the table slapped: "In order to dig out the baskets of charcoal from the ground, I will pay you five liters of sorghum every day - you are worth the wages, feel bad, don't do it!" Then, he turned to Li Wuye and said, "Our old brother is worth a lot, if you can't afford it, then don't use it!" Li Wuye said knowingly: "That's fine, that's fine, then let him find another Gao Zhi." Cao Yu'er was always the representative of the brothers, and was responsible to the brothers. When she heard this, she panicked and hurriedly interceded for that brother, and even forced that brother to apologize to Xiao Taiping.Afterwards, the brothers dared not say anything more. Seeing that the brothers were all stupefied, Xiao Taiping calmed down and said: "...you want to leave, but I don't want to keep you in my heart. Why? Just to let you see, without you, Can I, Xiao, manage the Baijiayao well? Of course, good gatherings and good breakups are also good. After all, everyone is a brother. I don’t care what you think, I will always do my best. In the future, if you want to leave My old brother, I, Xiao, gave him a drink to see him off, that's all." After finishing speaking, Xiao Taiping toasted all the brothers for three glasses of wine, and then walked away surrounded by Xiao Taizhong and his gang... As soon as Xiao Taiping left, Cao Yu'er and the brothers were all drinking, drinking, and drinking, and some brothers cried out of alcoholism, saying that they were being tricked by Xiao Taiping.Cao Yu'er also knew that Xiao Taiping had tricked her, but because of the benefits of getting it, she didn't say much.Li Wuye persuaded everyone not to care about Xiao Taiping's words, saying that Xiao Taiping always made sense on the surface, not only invited the wine, but also asked the brothers to light a candle on the small flower boat under the Sankong Bridge after drinking. Incense, and the incense money for the girls is also left behind.As a result, after drinking, dozens of brothers, under the leadership of Cao Yuer, went to press the flower boat, and the few who did not go also took some incense money left by Xiao Taiping from Li Wuye... … Xiao Taiping disintegrated the Xie Kiln carefully launched by Cao's uncle and nephew.The eleventh year of Tongzhi is not the eighth year of Tongzhi, Cao Yuer is not Xiao Taiping, and the myth of labor over capital has not reappeared. The brothers hugged the girl on the flower boat drunkenly, and most of them forgot their dissatisfaction with Xiao Taiping, but they saw clearly Cao Yuer's injustice, and some brothers regretted going to Lijiayao to work in the kiln.The next day, eight repentant brothers ran to the shopkeeper of Baijiayao to find Xiao Taiping, hoping to stay in Baijiayao.Xiao Taiping didn't want to see him.These brothers went to the Xiao family mansion to look for Cao Yue'e, and Cao Yue'e interceded, so Xiao Taiping left them in the Bai family kiln.The remaining brothers really did not suffer, this month Xiao Taiping rewarded each of the eight remaining brothers with an additional five wages... This suspension of the kiln became another laughing stock and was recorded in the history of the coal kiln industry in Qiaotou Town, which made the later kiln workers disheartened when they mentioned the suspension of the kiln.The brothers who participated in the kiln break twice said, what is the trouble? The eighth year of Tongzhi broke the kiln, and there was a shopkeeper Xiao.In the 11th year of Tongzhi, there was a break in the kiln, and there was a cao basket head.We worked hard, didn't we still work hard! The collaboration between Xiao Taiping and Li Wuye started at this time.In this joint venture, neither side suffers.Li Wuye got more than forty good animals that could work hard, and Xiao Taiping drove away a bunch of unruly old brothers as he wished. It was also after the failure of this rest kiln that a group of old people represented by Cao Fuli, the former master of money and grain of Cao Tuan, finally understood: the Cao Tuan, which was founded by the old Tuan Zong and did not store private money, has followed Tongzhi for seven years. The head of the regiment is dead forever, and no one can bring back the good time when everyone spends money and eats food...