Chapter 950

But this was no longer important.

Lv Luo covered her mouth, her beautiful eyes already red.

She looked at Gao Yang, her heart feeling sour, tears streaming from the corners of her eyes. She asked in confusion, "Young Master, why does such a bad custom exist in the world?"

Gao Yang looked at Lv Luo, his calm voice ringing out in the empty mountain forest.

"When productivity is low and grain production is fixed, once the people encounter frequent natural disasters and wars, they cannot survive."

"Great droughts, locust plagues, famine, epidemics, and people eating each other!"

"The few words in history books, when they fall upon the ordinary people, are like heavy mountains."

"When grain becomes limited and it is difficult to feed a family, choices must be made, and the first to bear the brunt are the elderly."

"When there is no choice, the elderly, having reached an advanced age and lost their ability to work, become a 'family burden,' and the Waguan grave is born in response."

"To put it bluntly, the birth of the Waguan grave is an extreme measure taken out of necessity."

"As for the so-called 'stealing the blessings of descendants,' that is pure nonsense. In the end, it is the essence of human nature: to save the limited grain in the house for the young and the children."

"As time passes, even if the family can barely survive, the selfishness of human nature and the saying about 'stealing the blessings of descendants' become deeply rooted. Coupled with the herd mentality, under the influence of ignorant thinking, they will blame all misfortune on the elderly!"

"Life is full of unsatisfactory things, eight or nine out of ten. Which family doesn't have its own difficult problems? But when all these misfortunes have a vent, they will automatically be attributed to them!"

"Even if the reason is extremely absurd, even if it is extremely outrageous!"

"In the end, this is a reality of hardship and a result of ignorant thinking!"

Gao Yang's words were extremely cruel, but also very realistic.

The so-called Waguan grave, isn't that just what it is?

The two combined to form a vicious cycle: the reality of hardship forced them to do this, but they had to find a high-sounding reason.

Thus, the saying that elders over sixty would steal the blessings of descendants was born, and it became deeply rooted as time passed.

When the descendants' lives improved a little, the "stealing blessings" excuse would cause them to continue this bad custom.

As for why it was the age of sixty, the reason was also very realistic: ordinary people generally could not live to sixty; reaching sixty was already considered longevity.

Secondly, those in their fifties could still work and had not yet lost their labor power; in other words, they still had some value!

"But are they not afraid that when they grow old, they will also be locked in a Waguan grave like this?"

Lv Luo stared straight at Gao Yang, wanting an answer.

Gao Yang's eyes were indifferent, his voice devoid of any emotion. "People always deceive themselves; there is always wishful thinking. Otherwise, why would corrupt officials in the world still take bribes when they know that corruption leads to being skinned and stuffed with straw?"

"Even when conventional concepts are deeply rooted in their hearts, they might even feel that this is how it should be. Only in this Waguan grave will a strong desire to survive make them regret, or perhaps fearfully welcome death!"

Shangguan Wan'er sneered, her voice ringing out faintly. "My Da Qian has always governed the country with filial piety. I didn't expect that this small Suiyang Prefecture would hide such a chilling bad custom. Come to think of it, it is truly ridiculous!"

"But whether it was the late Emperor or His Majesty, they both issued decrees to treat local elders well and abolish all heinous bad customs, and even provided some money from the national treasury. Do they not know?"

Shangguan Wan'er stared at the wide-bellied, narrow-mouthed Waguan graves in front of her, and at the endless Waguan Mountain.

How many elders had died because of this bad custom?

She could not speak.

Gao Yang's gaze grew colder, his eyes flickering with light.

"Don't know?"

"Wan'er, do you really not know, or are you deceiving yourself?"

Once these words fell.

Shangguan Wan'er immediately stopped speaking.

Gao Yang said coldly, "The Waguan grave is deeply rooted; the local people have already regarded it as a conventional concept. To change it, is that an easy task?"

"Moreover, in impoverished areas, abandoning the elderly in the house can make the family's interests greater. Moving people's money is like killing their parents. From their perspective, the resistance to this matter is too great, but what can they gain?"

The contempt in Gao Yang's eyes grew stronger. "Da Qian evaluates political performance with a focus on taxation, public security, and agricultural production. From the perspective of interests, the return on doing this is far lower than the investment. Who would be willing to do it?"

"What's more, once there is over-correction, it could trigger riots, injuries, and major rebellions, which would still be a huge trouble for them!"

"This is typical inaction, typical risk avoidance!"

"His Majesty's starting point is good, but where does the money come from? The national treasury can at most provide a sum, and the local prefecture and county must also provide a sum!"

"Setting aside personal gain, wouldn't it be better to use this money for water management, road repair, and things related to their political performance?"

Once these words fell.

Shangguan Wan'er stopped speaking completely, her beautiful eyes dimming.

In fact, as soon as the words left her mouth, she thought of the reason.

Zhao Da and Chen Sheng also fell silent.

As for Wang Ermazi, who was being held down by Wu Guang, the corners of his mouth curled up, his face filled with disdain.

Damn it, this dog-day lunatic is even putting on an act!

He even brought up the inaction of officials!

However, he was somewhat familiar with Gao Yang's address for Shangguan Wan'er.

Wan'er?

The female official by His Majesty's side also seems to be called Wan'er?

Could they be playing some very new game?

Or perhaps...

Wang Ermazi's expression changed; these people didn't look like they were acting!

Shangguan Wan'er looked at the Waguan graves, her face filled with sorrow.

"When I was young, I thought that by reading the books of the sages, I could manage the affairs of the world, sweep away corrupt politics, and return peace to the people."

"But Suiyang Prefecture is not even remote, yet such a bad custom exists. Then, in my Da Qian world, how many more bad customs are there that I don't know about?"

Shangguan Wan'er's tone was low, her voice echoing.

"Although I have read the books of the sages, I cannot manage the injustices of the world. The one who feels pity is me, the one who is powerless is me, the one who empathizes is me, and the one who has no solution is me!"

"Gao Yang, do you know?"

"These emotions are like a sharp knife, constantly stabbing into my heart!" ===== CHAPTER 952 =====