I heard that the clan leader comes from a humble background as a fire worker in the Taoist temple, and his vast wealth was accumulated in the temple. After descending the mountain gate, Zhao Zhuang was elected as the clan elder and took over the position of clan leader within two years. From Zhao Sanlang's memory, he certainly doesn't know what exactly a fire worker layman does, but Zhao Ran is a time traveler who can understand without thinking. This identity is probably a type of miscellaneous worker in the Taoist sect. Even the odd jobs can do so well, which shows a sign of the power of the Taoist sect.

When the Ten Guan Jiajing Tongbao was loaded onto the car and pulled out of Zhao Village, Zhao Ran finally gave up his thoughts of studying. He was completely focused on figuring out how to squeeze into the door.

Unfortunately, Zhao Ran's family was as poor as a wash and had no surplus wealth. If he were twenty miles away from home, he would definitely go hungry. If it weren't for the help of neighbor Uncle Zhao, Zhao Ran probably wouldn't have survived this winter. Even the ancestral three acre thin field is not handled properly. In the foreseeable next six months, Zhao Ran will still have to rely on Uncle Zhao for survival.

From another perspective, even if Zhao Ran still wants to study hard and become a successful candidate, the situation at home is absolutely not allowed.

So Zhao Ran's footsteps cannot be separated from Zhao Zhuang, and seeking a way to join the Taoist sect is just a pipe dream. Even inquiring about some information is difficult. The villagers in the village are poor families who have never seen the world before, and Zhao Sanlang, the ghost, has broad knowledge.

Zhao Ran has also considered borrowing some money from the newly appointed clan leader under the guise of promoting his career, so that he can "visit famous mountains" for himself. But although Uncle Si was given the title of "uncle", he clearly did not have the self-awareness of being a "relative". Uncle Si agreed to lend Zhao Ran ten copper coins or twelve taels of silver, but with the three acres of land inherited by Zhao Ran as collateral. To put it simply, Uncle Si doesn't think Zhao Ran can afford to repay this money, and Zhao Ran himself doesn't think he can, so this loan is actually like selling the land.

Even if Zhao Ran is a time traveler, he must carefully consider the matter of selling his assets. The money that Uncle Si agreed to lend out can sustain Zhao Ran's livelihood for a period of time. If he stays at home and eats in the mountains, he can last for more than a year. If he goes on a trip, he will have to exhaust it in at most six months. This means that if Zhao Ran trades his life for six months and cannot find an opportunity within six months, he is likely to become starving and a tragic time travel failure.

So Zhao Ran pondered anxiously for over a month, but still hasn't made up his mind.

But since Zhao Ran revealed his idea of borrowing money to Uncle Si, the situation gradually became out of his control. The canal water that irrigates the fields is often cut off by Uncle Si, forcing Zhao Ran to work hard to fetch water from the creek for irrigation; The oxen and lambs of Uncle Si's family often "wander" into Zhao Ran's fields, leisurely gnawing on the seedlings; The Zhao family, who supported themselves, were also threatened and occasionally received the same treatment as Zhao Ran.

Zhao Ran was very angry, but deeply helpless. Leaving aside the authoritarian power of the clan leader in the patriarchal society, just a few strong children and servants of the Fourth Uncle's family are not something that Zhao Ran and Zhao Uncle can afford, let alone 30% of the households in Zhao Zhuang being tenants of the Fourth Uncle. When Zhao Ran gets angry repeatedly, every time he picks up the only broken kitchen knife at home, he will carefully consider it for a long time and sigh before putting it down. The sixteen years of school education and twelve years of experience as a civil servant in his previous life have naturally instilled in Zhao Ran a habit of carefully considering the consequences before taking action. Unless absolutely necessary, he would never make an extreme reaction of pulling out a knife and spilling blood.

It only implicated Uncle Zhao, which made Zhao Ran feel very guilty.

After finishing a day's work, Zhao Ran returned to his shabby dirt house and erected wooden windows. The afterglow of the setting sun penetrated into the room, bringing some light to the dark room. Zhao Ran used this light to fill a bowl of porridge cooked yesterday. He found two sweet potatoes in the ashes of the stove, thought about it, and put one back.

After finishing eating, the room was already pitch black. Zhao Ran lay on the bed, and the broken wooden board creaked several times. He rested his hands behind his head and gazed quietly at the night sky through the wooden window.

A crescent moon hung on the branches of an old apricot tree in the courtyard at an unknown time, and the stars in the sky illuminated the pitch black distant mountains even more deeply. Occasionally, an unknown mountain bird emits a crisp cry, accompanied by sporadic croaking of frogs, creating a picturesque countryside scenery.

If it weren't for the waves of hunger coming from his belly, Zhao Ran might have felt a little sour at this moment. Let's recite a few lines of Tao's pastoral verses silently. It's just that the hunger is really overwhelming, and Zhao Ran has no intention of considering art at all. All he had in mind was one question: should he borrow or not borrow this money?

If I borrow it, can I find a chance to enter the door? Taoist temples are everywhere in the world, but it is extremely difficult to become a Taoist. If the Taoist sect insists on not accepting themselves - this possibility accounts for 90%, or rather 99%, what should they do? How can I infiltrate the gate? Don't think of yourself as a time traveler, but the 'ancients' in this world are not fools either. Why do the vast majority of people not follow this path and find a way to get through on their own? Do you use the knowledge before traveling? Will it be considered a demon and suppressed by the Taoist sect?

If I don't borrow it, how can I endure under the pressure of the clan leader? The key is how to gather enough resources? Zhao Ran had never seen such a thing as a pie falling from the sky, and he didn't believe that such a good thing could happen. Life experience told him that only by taking action can he see opportunities - even if such action is aimless and chaotic.

Zhao Ran is not an indigenous person, and his desire for land is not as strong as that of farmers who have been farming for generations. To be honest, he would never want to truly become a farmer who digs and eats in the land. He was also considering whether to simply sell his land and make a living as a merchant, and seek opportunities in the process of trading. This could also be a way out. But in this way, his identity became that of a merchant, and the world was equally contemptuous of merchants. Zhao Ran's desire to join the Taoist sect was not just for the status of a pyrotechnic layman. Will his background as a merchant hinder his development within the Taoist sect? Zhao Ran thinks it's highly likely.

After thinking about it, he couldn't help but chuckle. He hadn't even touched the threshold of the Taoist gate and was fantasizing about his future development. Isn't it a bit too unrealistic?

Anyway, Zhao Ran finally decided to sell the land directly to Uncle Si, so that the asking price could be higher. As for the issue of livelihood, he is no longer willing to consider it. Even if he starved to death, he couldn't sit still in Zhao Zhuang!

Behind making this decision, there must be a certain sense of luck - Zhao Ran felt that since he was a time traveler, he should enjoy a certain degree of protagonist aura. If he really starved to death on the middle path, then... Zhao Ran couldn't help but ask: Author, do you think this book will end in just one chapter?