CHAPTER 455: CHAPTER 449: LOOKING DOWN

Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Tinghan followed along with the group.

The group was led directly outside the city, where the black-faced young man, with his hands on his hips, looked at them and admonished, "Although this is work relief, the government’s money isn’t easy to take. Everyone must complete their assigned tasks and not slack off, or else your wooden tags will be confiscated, and you’ll be driven out! Now, everyone come to get your tools!"

Everyone lined up to get their tools. The black-faced young man held a few sheets of paper, which recorded their information. As he called out names, he scanned the information, matched faces to names, and started assigning tasks. "Take a hoe and start digging."

"You, take the wooden frame to transport the mud."

When Zhao Hanzhang stepped forward, the black-faced young man glanced at her, then at the records, and despised them, his face turning even darker, "You’ll go and pack the mud,"

He was somewhat irritable, "Are you really strong? If not, go pick up stones."

Zhao Hanzhang immediately said, "I can pack mud."

The black-faced young man snorted and called for Fu Tinghan next.

Seeing the paper said Fu Tinghan was literate, his expression improved slightly. After calling him up, he sized him up and said, "You will also pack mud, and this small team will be managed by you. You must record how much foundation was dug, how many baskets of mud were packed, and how many were transported out, all of which must be recorded properly. If the task isn’t completed, everyone’s wages will be halved!"

Upon hearing this, everyone’s hearts tightened, and they suddenly despised the women in the team, complaining, "Officer, there are too many women in our team, seven in total. They’re weak; won’t they slow us down?"

"What’s the shouting about? They’re weaker, so their wages are lower, and their workload is less. Don’t shift responsibilities onto them. If the task isn’t completed, no one will escape."

A few men couldn’t help but begin to mutter, dissatisfied but not daring to express it openly.

The women, including Zhao Hanzhang, secretly gritted their teeth, determined to show them their strength in a moment.

After receiving their respective tools, everyone headed to the fields. At this point, the snow in the fields was stomped into a black slush and melted, and as they stepped on it, the cold seeped from their feet into their bodies.

Zhao Hanzhang felt the chill, but as she scanned around, she saw many people wearing only straw shoes or directly stepping barefoot onto the snow.

She was stunned, and Fu Tinghan was too, looking at their red and swollen feet with pain, "This...will cause frostbite, won’t it?"

A middle-aged man next to them was about to swing his hoe to dig. Upon hearing Fu Tinghan’s concern, he glanced over and said dismissively, "The soles of their feet are thicker than horse hooves; what could happen? Come on, you can’t even feed yourselves, and you’re worried about others. Get to work quickly and don’t delay us from earning our wages."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Hanzhang quickly pulled Fu Tinghan backwards, letting them dig.

Despite the cold, they kept digging. Though the ground was tough, with more hoe strikes, they heated up. By the time the wind blew again, they didn’t feel so miserable.

The soil they dug was tossed aside, waiting to be packed by Zhao Hanzhang and others. But it took time to dig, so they idled and eventually joined in the digging themselves, knowing the task’s completion depended on the team.

Fu Tinghan repeatedly struck the ground but only managed to dig small amounts, barely the size of a fist, and was momentarily dumbfounded.

He pondered for a moment and then changed his angle, striking diagonally. This time, the shovel went in deeper but wouldn’t lift up.

A refugee elder watching couldn’t resist exclaiming and rushed over to push him away, taking over, "You can’t dig like this, the shovel will break. Do you know how hard it is to get tools?"

He pulled the shovel out, demonstrating a few digs for Fu Tinghan, "Like this, like this, it’s efficient and fast."

Zhao Hanzhang watched from the side, and after a few tries, learned by imitation.

Fu Tinghan noted the angle and speed at which the elder used the shovel, thinking he’d grasped it, and nodded.

But...

Reality often differs from ideality.

Fu Tinghan continued silently, and the elder, seeing this after a bit, turned to him, "Young man, you grew up but can’t even match the young lady beside you."

Zhao Hanzhang, who had been focused on working, finally looked up, laughed heartily, saw his flushed face, and teased, "Your method is right, but you’re not strong enough. This requires gradual effort. Don’t rush or you won’t lift your arm tonight."

Due to practicing archery, Zhao Hanzhang had been training her arm strength for over a year, not to mention her original skills in martial arts, so she was quite strong.

She could now draw a bow weighing one and a half stone, but usually didn’t use such a heavy bow unless shooting from a distance; otherwise, she used a seven-dou bow on horseback, which required great strength.

Fu Tinghan also practiced archery, with decent accuracy, although his strength was slightly better than average, comparable to ordinary soldiers, but paled next to Zhao Hanzhang.

Hence, he used a short bow and even made a short crossbow for himself, requiring precision but not strength, just aim and shoot—a short-range lethal weapon.

He also made a long crossbow for Zhao Hanzhang, used in the military, not his personal arsenal.

Previously considering his arm strength decent enough, though not matching the best owing to this, he found himself still struggling compared to others while digging soil.

Fu Tinghan felt somewhat dejected.

Zhao Hanzhang pushed the shovel down, pressed it with her foot and dug, noticing Fu Tinghan mimicking her but lifting less dirt, she couldn’t help but laugh again.

Hearing her laugh, Fu Tinghan finally couldn’t resist turning around and glaring at her.

Zhao Hanzhang quickly shut her mouth, but couldn’t hide the laughter in her eyes, "This is actually a good thing; nobody’s perfect. Everyone has something they’re not good at; the way of the world is balanced."

Nearby, the elder heard her long speech and couldn’t resist interjecting, "Young lady, there’s no need to comfort your man so much. He can read, earning much more than us, let alone you. You should worry about yourself; be careful, he might not want you after earning money."

Zhao Hanzhang opened her mouth wide.

Fu Tinghan was unhappy, "Why do you assume that, elder? Why would I not want her?"

The elder gave him a look, "What’s impossible? There are many unfaithful men even in peaceful times, even more now in chaos. You’re handsome, gentle, and literate; would you endure bitter days with your lady?"

Fu Tinghan: "...Can’t I earn more to provide a better life for her?"

The elder snorted, turning to Zhao Hanzhang, "Men are like that, full of sweet words without spending a dime. Don’t easily trust him, let him suffer with you for a few days, and then find out if he’s good or bad."