Chapter 76 Taking Stock of Losses
"Commander, we have lost more than a thousand dan of grain, but fortunately everyone reacted quickly and most of the grain was not lost."
"Okay, I understand."
Ambassador Cang hesitated for a moment, then said, "Commander, if the Ministry of Revenue's grain supplies don't come through soon, this year..."
Qi Rong sighed and waved his hand: "I understand, I will urge them again."
"There's one more thing. Why hasn't Commander Lin been reporting for duty lately? Some of the account books..."
Qi Rong glanced at Ambassador Cang: "Old Liu from the stables has passed away. He's been busy with the funeral arrangements these past few days, so don't disturb him."
Ambassador Cang's eyes flashed with shock, which quickly turned into understanding: "Commander Lin is a man of great loyalty and righteousness. Old Liu is really lucky to have such a young man to see him off in his final days."
Qi Rong handled his business without even looking up, and Ambassador Cang bowed and left.
It was almost noon when Qi Rong finished his business. He rubbed his dry eyes and rested for a while before getting up and walking outside. The messy street had been cleaned up again. Although it looked clean and tidy, almost half of the shops were gone.
The last time the Tartars came, nearly a hundred civilians were killed or wounded, nearly a thousand were injured in the garrison, and more than a hundred died. Today, you can see a mourning hall and roadside memorial every now and then in the city. After walking along the road for a while, I arrived at Old Liu's house.
Pushing open the dilapidated door, Qi Rong saw Old Liu's coffin sitting in the main hall, with mourning curtains hanging over half of it. He went in, signaled his guards to place the elegiac couplets on both sides of the mourning hall, and then went to sign in at the gift collection area in the courtyard.
Sitting at the gift-receiving area was an old soldier. When he looked up and saw Qi Rong, he hurriedly stood up and bowed. Qi Rong waved his hand and said, "I've come to offer my condolences today. The deceased is the greatest person, so let's not stand on ceremony."
After saying that, he took out a silver ingot from his pocket and placed it on the table.
After the veteran sat down with his hands clasped and finished writing, he sang: "I am deeply grateful for the kindness of Commander Qi Rong. I respectfully present ten taels of silver as a condolence gift and a eulogy. The sentiments are profound and the sentiments are truly noble!"
Lin Changning got up from the kneeling cushion and went out of the mourning hall to greet Qi Rong. He had lost a lot of weight in the past few days because of taking care of Lao Liu's funeral.
"command."
Qi Rong helped Lin Changning up with one hand as he was about to bow, saying, "Sixth Brother, there's no need for such formalities."
Lin Changning still looked somewhat dazed, as if he had cried last night. His eyes were red and swollen and his face was pale. Qi Rong was a little worried, but he also felt that Lin Changning was very loyal and a good young man with deep feelings.
Lin Changning has only been in this world for half a year. Apart from the first two months spent at home, he has spent almost all the rest of the time at the border. Apart from Shilang and his comrades, the person he has spent the most time with is Lao Liu.
Old Liu is just like a loving elder, and also just like her grandfather in modern times.
I never imagined that our fate would be so short-lived; we hadn't even spent a full year together before he passed away.
After a few polite words, Lin Changning got straight to the point: "Commander, have you caught the mole?"
Qi Rong's expression was somewhat grim. He paused for two seconds and said, "When we found them, they were already dead. From the outside, it appeared they died at the hands of the Tartars. After a thorough investigation of the two taverns, we found that the owners' entire families had also been killed. We found some sleeping pills in their homes, and the paper was still new, so they must have been in their possession not long ago. The trail ends here. What we can confirm is that there is indeed a traitor within the army who is colluding with the enemy."
Lin Changning lowered his eyes and remained silent, seemingly lost in thought. After a long while, he seemed to snap out of his reverie and said, "Hmm."
Qi Rong wasn't really good at comforting people, and Old Liu probably wouldn't have left if he hadn't bought candied hawthorns for his brother. An An had been running a high fever ever since she heard the news of Old Liu's death that day, and she was still lying in bed in a coma.
"Do you still have enough money?"
Lin Changning looked up and forced a smile: "Good command, how is An'an?"
Qi Rong shook his head: "I gave him medicine when he came out this morning, so I know he was taking care of him."
Lin Changning hummed in response and then fell silent. Qi Rong burned yellow paper in the earthenware pot in front of him. After the stack of yellow paper was burned, he said in a low voice, "Sixth Brother, I'm sorry, I should have stopped An'an back then."
Lin Changning looked at Qi Rong with some surprise and gently shook his head: "What does this have to do with An'an? Commander, don't worry too much. Old Liu just dotes on the child. When I went there that day, Qi Ming said that Old Liu left me five copper coins. There are just enough candied hawthorns at the door to buy two skewers. According to the Commander, I am probably also the cause."
Qi Rong still looked at Lin Changning with some concern.
Lin Changning rummaged around for a few moments, and Big Yellow, who was lying in the corner, ran over. Lin Changning hugged the dog, stroked its head, and sighed, "The old man was so stingy. When I came to sort through his belongings, I hardly saw anything. His life was very poor. In the end, all he left me was Big Yellow, which I had to shamelessly snatch from An'an. He was so stingy. Apart from a few copper coins and the dog, he didn't leave me anything to remember him by."
Qi Rong didn't know what to say, and after a long while, he managed to stammer out, "Please accept my condolences."
Lin Changning smiled politely and said, "Commander, if there's nothing else, you should go back first. An'an is sick, so it's best to take care of her."
Qi Rong nodded: "Take care of yourself, I'll head back now."
Lin Changning didn't know how long he had been kneeling on the mat. His legs were so numb that they felt like they didn't belong to him. Da Huang whimpered and rubbed his nose against Lin Changning's hand.
Lin Changning patted the dog's head again before slowly standing up, grimacing as he walked out. His legs were numb from squatting for so long.
Big Yellow followed Lin Changning out the door, and Lin Changning cupped his hands in greeting to the old soldier: "Grandpa Zhao, I'm going back now. I'll come back after dinner. I'll take care of the funeral and breaking of the urn tomorrow."
The veteran nodded: "Young man Lin, go back. I'll take care of things here."
Watching Lin Changning limp out of Old Liu's yard, the old soldier suddenly smiled and said, "Old Liu, you've gotten a grandson for free in the end. You old codger, you're really lucky."
The next day——
The feng shui master has found a good place. Today, Lin Changning, as a filial son and grandson, is dressed in mourning clothes to attend the funeral. Old Liu has no relatives in this world. Only a few neighbors and comrades are attending the funeral.
Inside a thin coffin were Old Liu and several jars of fine wine. Old Liu didn't have any particular hobbies except drinking, so Lin Changning bought several jars of good wine and placed them beside the old man to prevent him from getting hungry in the afterlife.
Qi Rong, carrying Qi An'an dressed in white, also came over. Qi An'an seemed to still be unwell; her once plump little face had become gaunt in just a few days.
Following behind Lin Changning, she called out "Sixth Brother," and tears streamed down her face.
Lin Changning patted Qi An'an's head and led the others to kowtow several times. Qi Rong did not stop them, but followed suit. The onlookers all said that Lin Changning was a man of loyalty and righteousness, while Old Liu was a lucky man.
A brand new little mound rose up on the low hill outside the city, and this little mound was the final resting place of the lucky old Liu.
His ancestors were buried here, his descendants were buried here, and finally he was buried here as well.
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