“Nothing funny, hurry up and eat.”
Guan Xiao Rou smiled, serving Xiao E a bowl of thin porridge.
Xiao E, just waking up, had little appetite. She sipped twice, grabbed a pancake from the plate, and started running out.
She’d planned with her friends to catch birds in the back hills today and couldn’t be late.
“Stop right there!” Guan Xiao Rou called out sternly.
“Sister, what’s wrong?” Xiao E asked, puzzled.
“Finish your food before you go!” Guan Xiao Rou pointed at the nearly full bowl of porridge. “Who’s going to eat all that?”
“Sister, I don’t want it. Let Sister Run Niang toss it out.”
Xiao E said carelessly.
She waved and turned to leave, but Guan Xiao Rou grabbed her.
“Your brother-in-law said, ‘once, twice, but not a third time.’ This is your third time leaving food!”
Guan Xiao Rou pointed at the stool. “You’re not going anywhere until you finish it today!”
“Brother-in-law…” Xiao E looked at Jin Feng pitifully.
Jin Feng usually doted on Xiao E, always bailing her out when Guan Xiao Rou scolded her for mischief.
But this time, he didn’t help, pointing at the leftover porridge and saying, “Every grain on your plate comes from hard work, Xiao E. Wasting food is wrong. Do you know how many kids in the village dream of a bowl of porridge?”
In the 21st century, picky eating was normal with abundant resources. But in Da Kang, where productivity was low and countless starved yearly, wasting food was a sin.
Even Jin Feng only took what he could eat and never threw out leftovers.
“Exactly, you’ve only had full meals for a few days, and now you’re wasting food?” Guan Xiao Rou tapped Xiao E’s forehead hard. “If you keep this up, I’ll send you back home for your sister-in-law to deal with you!”
Xiao E’s past life was a nightmare. Hearing Guan Xiao Rou threaten to send her back, her face paled. She quickly sat down, obediently picking up the bowl.
“Every grain on your plate comes from hard work…” Qing Mu Lan chewed her chopsticks, repeating the phrase. “Sir, that’s profound. It sounds like two lines from a five-character quatrain.”
Tang Dong Dong nodded in agreement.
“Not bad for someone from a wealthy family, picking that up,” Jin Feng said with a smile.
“When I was young, my father forced me to study. I got countless whacks from the teacher. Those two lines have clear tonal patterns. If I couldn’t tell, wouldn’t those beatings have been for nothing?” Qing Mu Lan asked. “What are the other two lines?”
“Under the midday sun, hoeing the fields, sweat drips to the soil below,” Jin Feng recited the rest of *Pity the Farmers*.
“Under the midday sun, hoeing the fields, sweat drips to the soil below. Every grain on your plate comes from hard work!” Qing Mu Lan murmured, praising, “Simple words, clear meaning, straight to the heart. Great poem!”
“It’s a fine poem,” Tang Dong Dong nodded. “The first ten words make you feel the farmer’s sweat falling to the ground.”
“Sir, what’s the poem called?” Qing Mu Lan asked, eyes sparkling.
Due to Da Kang’s emphasis on literature over martial arts, poetry was a core skill for scholars. Poets and lyricists were more influential than modern celebrities, and a standout poem could launch a scholar’s career.
Though Qing Mu Lan disliked studying, she admired great poets.
“*Pity the Farmers*!” Jin Feng answered, silently reassuring himself, “If the heavens let me transmigrate, they shouldn’t mind me borrowing a few poems, right?”
*Pity the Farmers*, two poems by Tang Dynasty poet Li Shen, was a must-learn for schoolchildren. But Da Kang’s history had no Tang Dynasty or Li Shen.
These were treasures of Earth’s cultural heritage, educating generations. In this feudal era, where farmers were oppressed, Jin Feng felt he was giving them a voice.
“*Pity the Farmers*?” Qing Mu Lan said. “The name fits the content perfectly.”
“Recently, some people in the cafeteria have been wasting food. I’ll post this poem on the wall,” Tang Dong Dong added.
“Last time I came back from the hills, I saw a worker dump uneaten wild vegetable porridge into a ditch. We need to address this,” Qing Mu Lan said.
Human desires are endless. When the women first joined the textile factory, a full meal made them want to kneel in gratitude to Jin Feng. Now, months later, some selfish workers took it for granted, over-serving themselves and tossing leftovers.
“I don’t mind people eating, but wasting food is unacceptable,” Jin Feng said to Tang Dong Dong. “Discuss with the village chief and Third Grandpa to come up with a solution.”
“Alright,” Tang Dong Dong put down her bowl. “I’ll go now.”
“I’m full too,” Qing Mu Lan said, shovelling the rest of her food in. “Dong Dong, wait for me, let’s go together.”
Tang Dong Dong took Jin Feng’s words seriously. At the textile factory, she immediately sent for the chiefs of both villages.
They discussed all morning in the office. That evening, after work, they gathered all the workers for a meeting.
Tang Dong Dong announced that anyone wasting food would be fined.
Having known hardship, most workers didn’t waste food. The decision was fair, and almost no one objected; many even supported it.
“Miss Dong Dong, I support this. My parents starved to death. I can’t stand people wasting food. If I see anyone tossing food, I won’t let them off, and don’t say I’m snitching!” one worker said.
“Everyone here has gone hungry. If not for Brother Feng, would we be eating full meals now?”
“Exactly, only a few days of full meals, and some forget their roots. If anyone wastes food again, I’ll be the first to object!”
“Zhou’s wife, what are you looking at? I’m talking about you. I saw you leave food twice. If you can’t eat it, don’t take so much!”
“And Li’s daughter, you threw out half a steamed bun last time!”
“Alright, we know we were wrong!” The two women, called out publicly, blushed and begged for forgiveness.
“Let’s forget past mistakes, just don’t do it again,” Tang Dong Dong said, pulling out a wooden sign. “Tie Niu, hang this on the wall to remind everyone.”
“Miss Dong Dong, what’s written on it?” a village woman asked curiously.
