Chapter 7 Filial Piety Never Fades

Perhaps because he still valued the dignity of a scholar, Liu Qiao didn't bother with this young boy. While he didn't exactly treat him well, he didn't lock him up in the cage either.

As for food, luxuries like steamed pork or chicken and millet porridge were out of the question; millet porridge was enough for two meals a day. In contrast, Liu Fan only had one meal of wheat porridge a day, which was far from enough even for an elderly and frail man who couldn't eat much.

So Liu Jun would save his own food to feed Liu Fan every day. But the prison cart was high, Liu Jun was short, and Liu Fan's hands were tied. Liu Jun had to stand on tiptoe and work hard to get the food to Liu Fan's mouth. Every time he fed him, he was exhausted and drenched in sweat.

At first, Liu Fan felt sorry for his grandson and resolutely refused to eat. Liu Jun also had great perseverance; he kept holding the food up until Liu Fan opened his mouth to take it.

In the evening, Liu Jun rested against the cage. Fortunately, he practiced martial arts to stay healthy and the summer night was not cold, so he was able to hold on.

The Jin dynasty placed great importance on filial piety, and Liu Jun's filial conduct was naturally praised. The soldiers and officers around him treated him much better, and even secretly took care of him.

It seems that Lu Jing is quite capable. Five or six days have passed and there has been no news of the rest of the Liu family being captured.

So Liu Jun decided to make the best of it, and Liu Fan, under his care, was in high spirits. He would often talk to him about the past, about the heroes he had seen in his childhood who had roamed freely, and about the peaceful and tranquil times he had experienced in his youth.

Sometimes he would also tell Liu Jun about poetry and prose, the Seven Scholars of Jian'an, the Twenty-Four Friends of Jingu...

He even quoted Cao Cao and Cao Pi, saying that Emperor Taizu wrote, "White bones are exposed in the wild, and no rooster crows for a thousand miles. Only one in a hundred people survive, and the thought of it breaks one's heart," and Emperor Wen wrote, "The chaos and devastation have lasted for decades, and white bones lie scattered for thousands of miles. The people are pitiful and have no one to rely on. I will restore order in due time." He also recited Chen Si's poem, "The walls are all broken, and thorns reach the sky... How desolate the wilderness is, with no one living for a thousand miles."

On the one hand, Liu Jun felt a pang of sadness that his grandfather, who used to engage in philosophical discussions with famous scholars, was now able to empathize with the suffering of the common people after enduring such a great hardship. On the other hand, hearing his father and grandfather's poems and essays again filled him with even greater sorrow.

In the evening, the grandfather and grandson shared a bowl of wheat porridge, both feeling extremely hungry. Liu Fan fell asleep in the prison cart, while Liu Jun, who was at the age where he was growing, was so hungry that his vision blurred and his heart was racing. He simply got up and leaned against the prison cart, gazing up at the starry sky.

A long night, a fierce north wind. The Milky Way flows westward, stretching across the sky.

The Milky Way overlooks the human world indifferently, flowing silently westward like the Han River, regardless of the dynasty, whether it is prosperous or declining, peaceful or chaotic.

Even though the emperor is called the Son of Heaven, has he ever truly received the favor of Heaven?

It's just a slightly larger one among countless ants in this mortal world.

The soldiers guarding the grandfather and grandson whispered among themselves in the distance.

"You say that Liu family's youngest son is really something, he's so young, yet so filial."

"Not only that, he's fallen so low, and we don't even know how many days he has left. He doesn't even have a piece of paper with him, yet he still recites poems and books every day. He has no weapon of his own, so he practices horse stance and boxing every day. He truly is Liu Yueshi's son, with the spirit of getting up at the crack of dawn and being ready to fight at any moment."

"Oh, he's great in every way, but what's he doing pacing back and forth in the middle of the night instead of sleeping? It makes us have to keep an eye on him."

"Judging from the way things were these past few days, he'll be staring at the stars for at least another half an hour. Look, the old man is in the cage, and the young man can't escape no matter what. Why don't we give him a break?"

Listening to their conversation, Liu Jun smiled faintly.

They were captured just after the first month of the lunar calendar. In recent years, the winters in the Central Plains have become increasingly cold. Every year as autumn approaches, nobles and powerful families would already be wearing fur coats, and even adding silk floss to their linings. The soldiers were not so lucky. Some generals and officers could wrap themselves in sheepskin felt for warmth, but most ordinary soldiers could only wear all their clothes inside their armor to protect themselves from the cold wind.

Liu Fan was old and frail, and had been coughing incessantly for the past few days. Even if Liu Qiao could remember the matter, he would never be so kind. The grandfather and grandson could only suffer through it.

Liu Jun was no longer a true six-year-old child. Even after two lifetimes of luxury, he had already learned many of the skills of a poor man to survive after being toiled here for over a month. One day, seeing Liu Fan shivering from the cold, Liu Jun simply asked Liu Qiao for permission to leave the camp. Under the watchful eyes of two soldiers, he went outside the city to pick some reeds and leaves, and exchanged the only piece of fine silk he had for five coins. He then asked an old woman to make him a hastily made padded jacket.

When Liu Jun returned, he happened to run into two or three generals. One of them was older, over forty, while the other two were young. They all stopped when they saw him.

Knowing that carrying thick clothes would attract attention, Liu Jun bowed and hurriedly went back, finally persuading Liu Fan to put on the padded jacket.

These three were Liu Qiao's eldest son Liu You, second son Liu Ting, and Liu Ting's son Liu Dan.

"Is this Liu Yueshi's son?" Liu Ting asked with great interest.

"It seems so. I've heard he's a filial son," Liu You said casually.

Liu Ting watched from afar as he dressed and fed his grandfather, sighed, and said to Liu Dan, "If we are unfortunate enough to meet that day in the future, I would be grateful if you could treat me even half as well as he did."

Liu Dan retorted, "What kind of skill is it to take care of someone's daily needs? If it were me, I would lead the army to rescue my father; that would be the right thing to do."

"Don't you know how old he is?" Liu Ting was about to scold his son a few more times when Liu You said, "Alright, meeting the adults is the important thing."

The autumn wind chilled him to the bone. Liu Jun huddled up in a ball, his arms wrapped around himself, silently reciting the Book of Changes in his mind. He just wanted to forget the past and let go of his anxiety about the unknown future, and fall asleep as soon as possible.

"Young master." Xue Taoshu, who was in charge of delivering their meals, usually took good care of them, but today he smiled in an unusually fawning manner.

Liu Jun thanked him, but when he opened the food box, he found that today's meal was excellent, with even two steamed buns. He was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Such a sumptuous meal, it can't be my last meal, can it?"

Before Xue Taoshu could reply, a clear, youthful voice rang out, "So what if it's my last meal before I'm beheaded?"

Liu Jun looked over and saw that it was the young man who had come to see Liu Qiao today. He stood up and greeted him, saying, "Thank you for your concern. If this is my last meal, I must eat my fill so as not to disappoint Your Excellency's kindness."

Seeing that he spoke calmly and without any fear, Liu Dan couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement, "Aren't you afraid?"

Liu Jun moved a large rock, stood on it, and fed Liu Fan a steamed bun. "Life and death are natural laws; what's the point of all this chaos? In this world, what's the use of being afraid of death? Is there really anyone who's afraid of death?"

Looking at the indifferent calm on that pale face, Liu Dan remained silent for a long time before finally saying to the guard beside him, "Uncle, out of compassion for your son's filial piety, please speak to your grandfather so that we will no longer need to use the prison cart."

He then said to Liu Jun, "My name is Liu Dan, courtesy name Jingdao."

Liu Jun bowed deeply, "I am deeply grateful for your kindness and will repay you handsomely in the future!"