Chang Yi didn't think there was anything amiss; he and his older brother had had an even tougher childhood, growing up in the fields as well, "They're helping their parents."
That would spare them the trouble of going back to pick up any missed sheaves of rice later, saving quite a lot of effort.
He didn't calculate pay by the hour but by the acre, how much silver coin for cutting one acre. The capable could earn more, and it also prevented people from slacking off and skimping on work.
Chang Zhong saw a child fall down but quickly get up to continue working. Blinking back tears, he clutched tightly at his second brother's neck. It was the first time he had so directly confronted the fact that people's destinies could be so different.
That evening, Zhulan received a letter from the manor, written by Chang Yi, mainly about what Chang Zhong had observed—how well-behaved the children of the farming households were while working.
