Chapter 150 What is the border town like?
Jin Sui saw the refugees hiding nearby and rushed out, kowtowed in the direction of the carriage.
This is a farewell to Grandpa Ling. Some feelings cannot be captured by power and wealth.
When the soldiers were no longer visible, Jin Sui sat back in the car, clenched his fists, and looked up at the roof.
Jin'an said nothing, walked up to her silently, held her head like an adult, and stroked her back over and over again.
Soon Jin Sui felt tears dripping on her face and the back of her hands. She looked at her brother and saw Jin An crying with snot and tears.
She forced a smile and said, "Are you so reluctant to leave?"
Jinan shook his head: "I am crying for my sister. I know you want to cry in your heart."
Jin Sui's eyes were also wet: "Silly boy, can I cry for you?"
Jin Sui hugged his brother tightly and teased him deliberately, "At least there is one good thing."
Jinan choked up and asked, "What?"
"From now on, you can call me sister. Brother Prince, that sounds so ugly."
Jin'an burst into laughter, and his snot formed a big bubble.
Grandpa Ling heaved a long sigh of relief when he heard the laughter in the carriage. Although his granddaughter had changed a lot, he felt that there was still one thing that was very similar to him.
That is, they don't take physical torture and pain to heart at all. Once the wound heals, they forget the pain.
But the wounds in the heart are extremely difficult to heal. It's like a thorn stuck in the heart. Even after decades, it still hurts when you think about it.
Sui Sui may not realize yet how sad he is.
I was really wrong. I didn't expect the royal family to be so ruthless! Alas, I hope that on this journey south, I, as her grandfather, can help Sui Sui get out of the haze, and when we get to the south of the Yangtze River, she will become the positive and fearless girl again.
Thinking of this, Grandpa Ling shouted "Go" even louder. We must leave Yandi as soon as possible before the news spreads.
During the time when my granddaughter pretended to be the King of Li, she offended many nobles! No matter when, there are always many people who take advantage of others' misfortunes.
Especially the Zheng family, they are like a centipede that is dying but still has not yet been stiffened. If they send people to cause trouble, the three generations of grandparents and grandchildren, old and young, will really not be able to escape.
Grandpa Ling was driving fast. In the car, Jin Sui was taking the time to teach Jin An how to use a crossbow: "Hold it tightly like this, and pull the button below. This hole is for the anesthetic needle. It won't hurt anyone, it will just make people faint.
This thick hole is used to hold the fish oil firearm, which explodes and catches fire when it is fired. This is what my sister used to burn the border town."
Jinan's face turned pale: "Is it safe to put it in the car like this?"
Jin Sui smiled and said, "Don't worry, this box is specially made. Look, it doesn't shake at all. It's very safe."
Jinan thought it was even more terrifying: "But sister, why do you want me to learn this now? I won't encounter the Tartars even if I leave the border town."
Jinsui rubbed his little head:
"It's not just the Tartars who are bad guys. Have you forgotten the bandits we encountered? There were also wolves, tigers and leopards. Grandpa is old, and I'm a girl, so you have to protect us all!"
"Don't want to learn, or don't dare to kill people?"
Jin An immediately said, "I want to learn, and I dare to kill people! Whoever dares to hurt my sister and grandfather, I will kill him!"
Jin Sui encouraged, "Great! You need this kind of momentum to succeed in whatever you learn.
You can practice with the crossbow with the wooden arrows first, and I will take away the anesthetic needles and fish oil."
She herself was holding the Yan geographical map and looking at it nearby. She had already practiced with the crossbow very well. This was a weapon she had tailor-made for herself. It was lighter than a bow and arrow, easier to aim, and could fire multiple shots at once.
Jin An was practicing nearby when he suddenly said, "It would be nice if Brother Hei Hu came with us."
Jin Sui felt a dull pain in her heart. She believed that if she made this request, Hei Hu would definitely be willing to go with her. But how could she be so selfish! "Once the imperial edict arrives, your brother Hei Hu will be a seventh-rank lieutenant. If he follows us, he can only be a guard and a coachman. What future does he have?"
"It's better to rely on yourself than on anyone else! You have to practice crossbow shooting for half an hour, and then study with your sister."
Jin'an suddenly didn't dare to say anything. He saw with his own eyes his sister training the new recruits of the Black Feather Camp. At that time, his sister was so full of vigor and vitality that even he himself found it unbelievable that the person on the horse was his sister.
Now he is the only person my sister can scold. It seems that I have to start studying before I even reach Jiangnan.
Jin'an wanted to cry but had no tears, but he didn't want to back down. He only hated himself for growing up too slowly. If he were a few years older, he would never let his sister suffer such a great injustice.
They hardly stopped on the way, at most the horses would slow down a bit if they got tired. Jinsui took over driving from Grandpa halfway through the journey, and Grandpa started snoring as he lay down in the carriage.
The old man was very tired. He almost didn't sleep last night while he settled the refugees who came out of the mountains with him.
Although the wind was not as sharp as a knife, it still hurt when it hit my face.
Jinsui felt her eyes were burning. She put on her grandfather's thick hat, pulled down the brim, lifted the scarf around her neck, and put on the laboratory goggles. Only then did she feel better.
It got dark too early, and there were no street lights outside the border town. The light from the horse lantern was so dim that I didn't dare walk at night.
They had already reached the outskirts of Yanzhou. Jin Sui was not worried about anyone else but was afraid that Zheng Yun would catch up and cause trouble, and then Yan Jiu would catch up.
She didn't know how to face Yan Jiu. It felt like you had just rejected a big boss who offered you a high salary to work for you, but when you met him again, you found him begging on the overpass.
Regardless of whether the boss laughs at you or not, you yourself feel like a joke!
Fortunately, Jin Sui found that there were many horse-drawn carriages traveling to and from the border town, and her wheel tracks were quickly covered up.
They didn't dare to look for a place like an inn to spend the night. They wanted to find a small forest of trees to shelter from the wind. The three generations of grandparents and grandchildren would stay warm in the carriage all night.
But I saw that several bonfires had been lit in the grove, and dozens of people had gathered there to spend the night.
A quick glance revealed that they were all common people. Some were peddlers. When they saw newcomers joining, they immediately pulled their goods to their side and looked at Jinsui vigilantly.
There was also a family of several people, young and old, the youngest of whom was only three or four years old, looking at Jinsui curiously. Well, mainly looking at the horse she was leading.
Her mother carried her away, fearing that she would offend the "noble person". In the eyes of the common people, a person with a tall horse pulling a carriage is a noble person.
Jin Sui wakes up Grandpa Ling. Grandpa is best at communicating with ordinary people, and she is worried that someone will recognize her.
He pulled the scarf up again, pulled the cart to an open space, then untied the horse to feed it water and fodder.
This is a yellow horse that retreated from the battlefield. Its foot was injured and it could not go to the battlefield, but it was a pity for it to be used as a carriage horse.
Jinsui poured a bottle of glucose into Dahuang's water to replenish energy.
Cao Liao also grabbed a few more handfuls of good bean fodder and whispered to comfort him, "When we leave Yandi, I will let you walk slowly."
Grandpa stretched himself in the carriage and got off the car. He was very much like a fellow from Northeast China, and asked with a familiar smile:
"Oh, I was worried about the three of us at night. What would we do if we encountered a wolf? I didn't expect so many villagers to be here!"
Grandpa Ling has already taken off his Taoist robe. The three generations of grandparents and grandchildren have agreed that they will no longer travel as Taoist priests because that would be too conspicuous.
When Grandpa asked this, an older man immediately responded: "People like us cannot afford to stay in the post station, so we have to sleep in the wilderness. Why don't you stay in the post station?"
Grandpa Ling chuckled and ran to the bonfire to warm himself: "What kind of master am I? I can't even afford two meals a day.
This carriage and horse are all rented, how can we afford to stay at the post station!"
Everyone felt the same way when they heard this. Seeing that there were no adults in the car, only a teenager and a child, they all relaxed their guard and started chatting.
While Jinsui was listening to the noise coming from his grandfather's place, he and Jin'an started a fire. A woman was so kind as to give him a bunch of dry grass to start the fire, but Jinsui didn't dare to use the coal stove.
I picked up some firewood nearby, put the hanging pot on the stove, and prepared to cook a simple dinner.
Thanks to grandpa's sufficient preparation, he filled a pot with the base ingredients from the stew restaurant. It's cold today, and although it's not frozen, it's enough to eat for three days.
Just scoop a spoonful of soup and add water to it to make a simple soup. Then re-bake the pancake and dip it in the soup pot. It is a quintessential Central Plains delicacy.
The biggest advantage of the three generations of grandparents and grandchildren is that they have all experienced hardships, so it is easy for them to go from frugality to extravagance, and it is not difficult to go from extravagance to frugality.
Everyone, including Xiao Jinan, was very satisfied with the dinner.
However, Jinsui secretly added some food to Jin'an's meal. The child was growing and was tired from the journey, so he needed to eat. So he let him gnaw on two pieces of cooked beef in the carriage.
There are too many people outside, so you have to keep a low profile. Eating bread and drinking soup is much better than those people who have to eat dry food. If you eat meat, it will attract too much attention.
After the soup pot boiled, Jinsui first served a bowl and asked Jinan to give it to the woman who gave them the hay as a thank you. She had two children.
Grandpa sat back in front of the pot, having almost gotten information about dozens of people. He looked at Jinsui meaningfully, with pride and heartache in his eyes, and whispered, "They are all going to the border town."
Jinan asked in surprise: "What are you going to do in the border town?"
Grandpa Ling said with a smile: "It has spread throughout the sixteen states of Yan. The prince is taking care of the refugees. The border town is short of manpower and can find work. Even if there is no work, the prince will not let them starve to death or freeze to death."
"They all couldn't make a living in their hometowns. Some of their fields were occupied by the gentry, some sold their property to pay the autumn tax, and some couldn't pay the autumn tax. The men were dragged into corvée labor, and the women could only take their children out to make a living."
"They are all miserable people! Not much better than refugees. When they heard that there is a way to make a living for the poor in the border town, they all ran to the border town."
Jin'an also became proud, it was all thanks to my sister!
Thinking about the current predicament of the three people, he couldn't laugh anymore. He whispered to Jin Sui: "Sister, after we leave, will the prince still be kind to the people?"
Jin Sui said indifferently: "That is his border town, his people, who knows! Eating is none of our business anymore."
Although he said this, he couldn't help but look at these people in his heart, wondering where that woman would be arranged. That family looked strong and could go to work in the salt fields.
The calluses on the hands of that old man indicate that he is a craftsman. Craftsmen are the most scarce in Border Town. I hope Cheng Yu can ask for clarification and not reject him just because he is too old...
He quickly shook his head to indicate that he was sober, and that it was none of his business! You have the time to worry about these things, why not think about the future! Maybe it was because their food was too delicious, or maybe it was because Grandpa Ling's chatting method just now worked, someone asked loudly: "Lao Zhan, have you been to the border town?"
Grandpa Ling glanced at Jinsui and said with a smile, "I haven't been there. We are from Yanjiao."
Someone asked again: "You should have heard of that! King Li really recruited common people, worked for him, provided him with food and paid him?"
Everyone asked at once:
“What is Border Town like?”
"Will the refugees be given land after registering their household registration?"
"Are there no nobles who are trying to seize the good farmland?"
"There are many soldiers at the border town. The soldiers won't beat people randomly, right?"
"I heard that the Zheng family wanted to bury a commoner girl alive, but the King Li rescued her and even chopped off the head of the Zheng family!"
Jin Sui hurriedly explained: "The one who was chopped was the acting head of the Zheng family. Not only did he want the common people to be buried alive with him, he also colluded with the bandits and horse bandits to rob the people."
Everyone was stunned at first. Didn’t your grandfather explain it clearly? But they immediately reacted and gathered closer:
"I heard that many people saw it. The King of Li, who was as handsome as a god and powerful and domineering, chopped the head of the Zheng family to death in front of the imperial envoy."
"It's what they deserve! These noble families have dominated Yan for a hundred years. It's time for someone to punish them."
"I heard that the King of Li set fire to 10,000 Tartars and burned down the entire city! Now the old city is still a scorched earth, and you can still smell the blood!"
Jin Sui: ...How did you brag so much? There are only a thousand Tartars in total, and ten thousand of them. Ten thousand Tartar cavalry can flatten the Yan area.
The imperial edict of reward from the court has not come yet. Could it be because someone boasted too much? "I heard that the border town has grain seeds from the Western Regions, which can be planted even in the cold winter. If they plant grain, they won't starve."
"I heard that if you work for the prince, you get two meals a day, and you can even eat meat!"
When the word "meat" was heard, even the little one boldly asked: "Meat, do we have meat to eat every day? Mother, let's go to the border town quickly!"
The woman looked at her little son who was licking the bowl, smiled apologetically at Jinsui, and said that she would wash the bowl.
He then pulled his eldest son over to ask about this and said worriedly, "How can we eat meat every day? I don't know if a mother like you can find a way to make a living."
Grandpa Ling said hurriedly, "We can find them! There are many women and girls setting up stalls in the market. When you go there, you should register at the refugee camp first. Those with registered permanent residence will have to transfer their permanent residence. Those without registered permanent residence will first do the tasks assigned by the government to earn work points, and then they can settle down.
For people like you who are raising two children, we will give you two more subsidies."
When everyone heard this old battle, they initially said they didn't know, but later they understood a little, and now they even know exactly how the border town was settled.
They all crowded over to ask, and Jinsui was afraid that Grandpa would let the cat out of the bag, but he also sympathized with these people, so he could only listen nervously at the side, ready to remind Grandpa at any time.
Turning her head, she saw Jin'an quietly picking up the cake from the bowl and giving it to the child who was licking the bowl, and her heart softened again.
For some reason, the melancholy mood that Gu Changxiao had aroused in him was relieved by the people's chattering and their yearning for the border town.
Jinsui just felt much better. Everything I did in the border town might be meaningless to Gu Changxiao, and might not leave anything behind, but to the common people, the border town became a beacon in their hearts.
The efforts you make will spread to the world in another way, silently and subtly.
As she thought of this, her eyes gradually became gentle and the corners of her mouth slightly raised.
Grandpa Ling saw it all and smiled in his heart, my Sui Sui! You always say that Jin An and I are too soft-hearted, but in fact, you are the most soft-hearted person!
Alas, I know that I don't write well, and there are many areas that need improvement. But the data is so bad, so bad, the manuscript fee is so low that I can't even eat. Please vote and comfort me~~
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
