Huangtang Village was a village in Lotus County with a population of roughly a thousand. Yang and Xu were the two main surnames there. Everyone was a neighbor or relative, and the village was tightly knit.
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Recently, however, a pall had hung over Huangtang Village. A mudslide had struck during the previous autumn harvest. Fortunately, it had not swept toward the village itself, so casualties had been few.
But it had destroyed a considerable amount of farmland just before harvest, dealing a substantial blow to the entire village.
With a little temporary tax relief and the crops remaining in their fields, they had barely made it through the winter.
Then notices about Replace Rice with Mulberry began appearing. Officials came to measure their farmland and designate areas for mulberry cultivation. This set Huangtang Village ablaze with fierce resistance.
Some hotheads had even beaten the minor officials sent there, and the whole village had become worked up.
After driving away the officials and pulling out every marker designating the mulberry fields, some villagers went to the County City to inquire. There had been no response there.
Even so, several village elders were worried. They had gathered together now. "Alas, we were too rash. We really shouldn't have beaten anyone."
"If we didn't beat them, were we supposed to let them mark out our fields? This is exactly when we need to fight back and make our position clear. As long as our village sticks together, there's nothing to worry about."
One particularly hot-tempered elder bristled and glared.
Elder Yang had been a Martial Talent in his youth, with Bright Force cultivation. Although age had severely depleted his vitality and his accumulated muscle was slowly wasting away, he still looked much more vigorous than an ordinary old man.