These are but low-grade dry fields, the soil meager and barren. A poor family might toil upon these few acres …
These are but low-grade dry fields, the soil meager and barren. A poor family might toil upon these few acres for a lifetime, yet harvest barely enough to keep hunger at bay.
The text specifies the owners: "The Li household of five, Liang County, Ruzhou," "The Qiu household of four," "The Lin household of four," and so forth. Each bears the signature of the same verifying clerk: Liu Ji'an.