Writing requires both study and practice.

He wasn’t sure which Baker it was, but he knew that anyone called a great noble was absolutely not someone he could afford to provoke right now.

Baker is currently one of the eight ministers of Jin.

At the same time, Baker is a branch of the “You Tao clan,” with a two-thousand-year history of pottery making, and is the major family controlling pottery production in Jin.

“Selling in the village…” Ethan Clark asked hopefully, “Is it allowed?”

The house steward replied, “It is.”

This is the Spring and Autumn period; many words used in later generations haven’t even been invented yet.

People usually speak very simply.

For example, a servant would say “master,” not “house master.”

Ethan Clark spent most of the past half month trying to understand where he was living, afraid of giving himself away, so he hadn’t spent much effort learning about the family’s situation.

From some conversations among the servants, he learned that this “previous self” was the only child; his father died in battle a few years ago, and his mother, stricken with grief, followed soon after. The only family left was an elderly grandmother.

“In that case…” The house steward thought for a moment and sighed, “The national war at the end of autumn—once it’s over.”

“National war?” Ethan Clark was startled and asked, “We’re going to war?”

He didn’t know that a “national war” didn’t necessarily mean going to battle, but the required taxes had to be paid after the autumn harvest.

The house steward bowed to Ethan Clark, then went off to report the good news to the old grandmother.

“Explain it clearly!” Ethan Clark called after the steward’s departing figure, “Who are we fighting? Do I have to go too?”

The steward had already disappeared.

He didn’t know about the nobles of other states.

When Jin went to war, a mobilization order would be issued. Even if nobles weren’t summoned to the battlefield, the taxes they owed the ruler would be temporarily increased.

But this increase wasn’t arbitrary; it meant paying next year’s taxes in advance.

And next year… they might be asked to pay taxes from even further in the future.

Doing this once or twice was fine, but it didn’t mean taxes could always be collected in advance.

Not even the ruler could do that.

There was a limit, and for those who had already paid in advance, they truly didn’t need to pay those taxes again.

Ethan Clark’s small family had previously received notice from their superior noble that this year, they needed to pay next year’s taxes in advance.

As for why the state needed the advance, the higher-ranking noble didn’t say.

Of course, calling it “tax” is just for convenience; otherwise, in the Spring and Autumn period, when the ruler collected taxes from nobles, it was actually called “levy.”

Having just transmigrated here, half a month wasn’t enough for Ethan Clark to even catch his breath. Looking at his own small frame, just hearing about going to war left him dazed.

He went to his grandmother’s residence, and upon entering, saw the house steward reporting something to her.

Given that his grandmother had already cried and laughed as needed, and had been rather strict in their recent interactions, he stood at a distance and didn’t approach right away.

The steward finished his report and left again.

The old grandmother beckoned to Ethan Clark, and when he got closer, she said, “Wu, you asked the house steward about the national war?”

Ethan Clark nodded.

Ethan Clark, who was focused on first improving his own quality of life, was well aware of the family’s current situation, and had many plans waiting to be carried out.

Besides, going to war? He truly didn’t think that, with his current small body, he could survive the battlefield.

If he really had to go, couldn’t they at least wait until he was healthy, or grown up?

The old grandmother sighed and said, “Qin is making moves, and the White Di are also acting strangely—do you know this?”

According to historical records: In 582 BC, Qin and the White Di attacked Jin.

Chapter 2: This Is the Spring and Autumn Era

Later, Ethan Clark figured out one thing: he himself might not be named to go to the battlefield, but the family definitely had to send warriors to await orders.

This is the Spring and Autumn period; things are truly different from the Han, Tang, Song, or Ming dynasties.

And this is Jin!

Any noble couldn’t simply enjoy their status—they had to bear corresponding duties and responsibilities.

The warriors attached to them and the people of their fief were, first and foremost, heavy responsibilities hanging on the noble’s shoulders.

Oppress the commoners? They could just run away.

If the commoners went to complain, there were plenty of nobles willing to step up for justice.

Oppress the warrior class? In Jin, quite a few nobles had been killed by their own warriors.

This is the Spring and Autumn period, after all; the number of rulers assassinated is countless.

So, you really couldn’t act recklessly.

As for taxes, as a member of the state, everyone had to pay; it’s just that nobles produced more, so they bore more.

Being summoned by the state to participate in war was an honor for nobles, and also a way to establish merit.

Commoners and freemen didn’t even have the privilege of serving the country on the battlefield.

So-called freemen were either descended from former nobles or were the descendants of warriors—they were the so-called “guoren” (state people).

In fact, slaves had a greater chance of going to war than commoners or freemen, but they usually did manual labor.

Use slaves as cannon fodder?

Jin was a militaristic state; nobles cherished every opportunity to make achievements, and warriors needed to fight bravely to prove their worth, gain spoils, and climb to higher ranks.

Those who could go to war were all professional “war machines”—groups who trained in killing skills all year round.