The moment he turned around, a small black shadow rushed in, like a hungry mouse, stretching out its hand to grab the pot. Doctor Song was frightened when he saw it, "What are you doing! Stop it!"
He rushed over and stopped the child's behavior.
The little boy looked to be about seven or eight years old, with a fair complexion and a height only up to his waist. He stared at the pot of porridge with eyes like a hungry ghost, and the dark black hair under his eyes made him look a little scary.
"Hiss!" The boy suddenly bit Doctor Song's hand, trying to escape from him.
Doctor Song was in so much pain that he pushed the boy to the ground. The boy wanted to get up and rush to the porridge, but Ying Qi flashed over and grabbed the boy's hands, preventing him from resisting.
"This kid is really biting to death." Doctor Song looked at the back of his hand that was bleeding in pain.
Zhao Chengqian walked in after Yingqi.
"What's the matter?" He asked, glancing at the struggling child in Yingqi's hands.
"Sir, this kid is starving. He just scoops up the boiling hot rice porridge as soon as he sees it." Doctor Song said angrily.
The man who heard the sound rushed in, pulled the child over and knelt down, "Young Master, my child has no bad intentions, he is just very hungry. We haven't eaten anything for several days. I hope you can spare him."
The man begged bitterly.
"Get up." Zhao Chengqian glanced at them and said.
"Thank you very much." The man pulled the child up and dragged him out regardless of the child's struggle.
"etc."
Zhao Chengqian's voice rang out again. The man with the child stopped and turned around to ask, "Young Master, do you have any other instructions?"
"Yingqi, serve them two bowls of porridge." Zhao Chengqian said in a light voice.
The man paused, thinking he had misheard, only to see the man named Ying Qi bring over two bowls of porridge.
"This...how can I do this..." The man looked at the two bowls of white rice porridge and couldn't help swallowing.
Zhao Chengqian had no expression on his face. "Just consider it as payment for living here."
The man got the porridge, and the child beside him reached out to take a bowl, as if he had lost his mind, with only the desire to fill his hunger in his eyes.
He drank the porridge impatiently, and even when he was scalded, he had no reaction and hadn't swallowed it yet.
I haven’t finished my bowl of porridge yet.
"Bang!" The bowl of porridge fell to the ground, spilling all over the floor. The boy covered his stomach, his face pale, and rolled on the ground in pain.
The man's face turned pale with fear and he squatted down nervously, "Ping'er, what's wrong with you? Don't scare Dad."
The boy held his stomach and began to vomit. He vomited out all the rice porridge he had just drunk before it was digested, and even vomited out all the bitter water in his stomach.
"Song Zhou, go over and take a look." Zhao Chengqian gestured.
"Don't worry, I'm a doctor, let me take a look." Doctor Song walked over and the man made room for him.
"It's okay. It's just that the child hasn't eaten for a long time. He felt nauseous when he suddenly ate something so hot so quickly. Take his time and don't let him eat so quickly." Doctor Song said after taking the pulse.
This child is too weak and has not eaten for a long time. If this continues, his body will eventually collapse.
Doctor Song didn't say this out loud. In this world, he couldn't even eat a bite of food, let alone take care of his child.
"Yingqi, give them some more." Zhao Chengqian sat by the stove, holding a bowl of porridge.
The man thanked her gratefully with red eyes, "Thank you very much, young master, thank you very much, young master!"
He helped the child up, and Yingqi served them another bowl of porridge. The child drank a bowl, but was still not satisfied, and stared at the pot eagerly. Zhao Chengqian asked the father and son to stay and eat with them.
After they drank three bowls in a row, Doctor Song still felt unsatisfied, but his stomach was no longer full.
It was a cold night and they had to keep watch, so a few of them started chatting by the stove.
Song Zhou asked, "Doesn't the imperial court have disaster relief grain? Why don't you go to the county town or town?"
"There are more than a dozen county towns in Youzhou alone, and there are also townships under them. How can we rob so many people? Besides, the relief food will not fall on the heads of poor people like us." The man sighed.
"The governor of Youzhou has also raised taxes on us. Many people can't afford it and have to hide everywhere. Some are even forced to go up in the mountains and become bandits."
"Haven't you ever thought about it?" Song Zhou asked.
The man patted his lame leg and said, "I've thought about it. Now that my leg is lame, I can't even walk. No one will want me to go up the mountain. I'll just be cooked like human meat."
Compared to Ying Qi, who obeys Zhao Chengqian and has a cold face all day long, Song Zhou is more friendly.
"How did your leg become like this?" Song Zhou felt sorry for him and checked his leg. He knew there was no way to save him and had to give up.
The man wasn't sad, but rather optimistic. He smiled and said, "There used to be a wealthy family in our town, and I worked there every day as a laborer. But they didn't even pay me, and they even injured my leg. I had no choice but to go up the mountain to catch some game and collect some herbs to sell. But now there's really nothing I can do. The weather is not easy for me."
"I see you were a martial artist in the past, so you have a strong body." Song Zhou glanced at the calluses on his palms and his powerful hands.
The man said, "I used to work in the government office, but because of my straightforward character I was not well-received, so I returned to the village."
"I think you should be doing well, otherwise you wouldn't have survived until now." Song Zhou said with a smile.
The man's eyes froze for a moment, and he forced a smile and said, "That...that's natural."
"Let me boil some water for you all." He stood up and walked to the stove, took out a kettle, and limped outside to get a kettle of snow water.
When the water boiled, he asked the children to bring a few bowls. As they filled them with water, he asked, "Doctor, where are you going?"
When asked this question, Zhao Chengqian and Yingqi instantly became alert and their backs tensed.
Song Zhou smiled and said, "Hi, my wife is not feeling well, and she and the young master have been recuperating in Youzhou. Unexpectedly, it snowed heavily in the spring, and my master asked us to escort the wife and the young master back to Bianjing."
"When they came in just now, I noticed that the young master and his wife didn't look like ordinary people. It turns out they were from Bian Jing. No wonder." The man asked the child to bring the water over.
The boy handed the bowl of water to Song Zhou. His little hands were shaking unsteadily, and he looked at Song Zhou timidly with his eyes.
Just as Song Zhou was about to take the water, the boy suddenly pulled his hand back as if frightened. Just as the bowl was about to fall to the ground, a hand quickly reached out and caught it.
"You kid, you just ate so much porridge, why are you still so clumsy? Stay away." The man said in a reproachful tone.
The man raised his eyes and said, "Don't blame me, the child is not very flexible."
Song Zhou didn't say anything, but just reached out and took the bowl of water.
"Young master, please have some water." The man softened his voice when speaking to Zhao Chengqian, showing obvious respect.
Zhao Chengqian did not take the bowl of water, but raised his eyes and looked at him carefully.
The man quickly looked away and said with a smile, "I don't have much tea at home. Please forgive me for my poor hospitality."
Zhao Chengqian said nothing and just took the bowl.
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