Li Langhuan glanced at her, then twitched the corner of his mouth and said, "This is an old woman living alone. Everyone in the village calls her Old Lady Chen. Her husband, brother, and only son were all conscripted into the army by the government in their early years, and there has been no news of them since... Her daughter-in-law ran away with someone, leaving only a granddaughter, who was also kidnapped by a kidnapper a few years ago."
After a pause, Li Langhuan sighed and said while picking vegetables, "Once I happened to pass by her house and wanted to ask her for a drink of water. She thought I was her granddaughter and cried for a long time. I couldn't bear it, so I comforted her and said that I was Nannan and that Nannan had come back."
Tao Ying fell silent.
Li Langhuan picked out a wilted green vegetable and continued, "She didn't suspect anything. I just told her that I had previously worked as a maid in a wealthy family, but the master was kind and released me from the family. I finally found my way back... Fortunately, General Li is kind and allowed me to work in her tent, where I was responsible for washing her clothes. I would receive two strings of copper coins a month..."
Tao Ying didn't know what to say, so she could only silently wash the vegetables.
After a long pause, she finally spoke in a hoarse voice: "Why did the general bring me here?"
Li Langhuan smiled, immediately seeing through Tao Yingshi's thoughts, and said, "I brought you here not to tell you that there are people worse off than you—in fact, everyone in this world has their own misfortunes, and these misfortunes cannot be compared at all. He Yang once told me that happy people are always the same kind of happy, but unhappy people are always quite different."
“Yingshi, you are a good girl, and I don’t want you to be trapped by the past. There are many people in the world like Old Lady Chen and like you, but everyone is trying to live—including you. Since you have decided to live, why can’t you live life to the fullest? Many years ago, I was disfigured and lost my original identity. That was when I truly didn’t want to live anymore.”
"But it was only after He Yang appeared that I realized how difficult the world is, especially for women. Why can't we live the life we want? I want to continue fighting on the battlefield, I want to continue fighting and riding horses... So I accepted He Yang's help and worked hard myself."
"So that day I told you that Consort Zhao had passed away, and the one who is alive now is Li Langhuan, the General of Zhennan."
After a pause, Li Langhuan looked at Tao Ying and asked, "And you, what kind of life do you want to live?"
Tao Ying suppressed her inner turmoil, thought for a moment, and then gave a genuine smile: "I used to travel around everywhere, but now it seems I haven't done anything—General, I also want to help others."
Li Langhuan earnestly discussed with her, "How do you want to help?"
Tao Ying didn't think much of it and said, "I've done some business over the years and saved up a lot of money. I want to build an orphanage."
Li Langhuan said slowly, "That's a good idea... How about being more specific?"
Tao Yingshi's eyes shone brightly as she smiled and said, "Let's start in southern Yunnan, sending all the elderly living alone and orphans to orphanages. I'll have someone teach the children some skills, enough for them to support themselves in the future; as for the elderly living alone..."
She hesitated, because she couldn't think of a good solution.
Li Langhuan reminded them, "They may not be able to work or learn a trade. How are you going to support them?"
Tao Ying thought hard for a while, then suddenly said, "I know! Whether or not they go to the orphanage is entirely up to them. If the elderly are willing to come in, we can hire helpers to take care of them. I will pay for this in advance. The children who are willing to come in need to sign a contract with us. In the first five years of their work, they will have to give 20% of their earnings to the orphanage. This money can be used to support the elderly!"
Li Langhuan gave her an approving look, and then asked several questions in succession: "What if those children break their promises later? What if some elderly people are shameless and take advantage of their age? What if someone tries to extort you?"
Tao Yingshi's face fell, and she stood there struggling to think.
Seeing this, Li Langhuan smiled and said, "This matter can't be rushed. You can go back and think about it slowly, and then do it. You can also give it to me, and we can discuss it together."
Tao Yingshi was gentle and understood that one cannot become fat in one bite, so she immediately calmed down and continued washing and preparing the vegetables.
After a while, the two finished their work. Since they couldn't leave Li Langhuan's military camp, they instructed Tao Ying to take good care of Old Lady Chen before bidding farewell to her and leaving.
Tao Ying cleaned the house again, and then went out to talk to Old Lady Chen. Over the years, she had traveled all over the country and encountered many things, which were quite interesting to talk about.
"...That time I met a soldier in the Northern Zhou. His wife was having a difficult childbirth and was extremely anxious. I happened to be there and there was a midwife with me—it was really a coincidence, and I'm still grateful to this day; his wife gave birth for a day and a night and finally gave birth to a little girl. The two of them insisted that I be the girl's godmother."
As Grandma Chen listened to Tao Ying speak with a smile, she could imagine that she was a lovely and lively young woman, even though she couldn't see her.
After Tao Ying finished telling the story, she took a sip of water and was about to say something when she heard Old Lady Chen say slowly, "You and the general are both good people."
Tao Ying was stunned for a moment, then said with great pride, "The general is of course a good person!"
Old Mrs. Chen smiled and shook her head: "The general is so busy every day, yet he still comes to keep an eye on this old woman from time to time... Girl, go back and tell her that she doesn't need to come anymore."
Tao Yingshi was stunned, and it took her a long time to come to her senses before she exclaimed, "Ah! You...you knew about this?"
Grandma Chen laughed heartily: "How could I not know? Once, she helped me take a walk, and I touched her hand—where else could someone who washes clothes have such delicate hands? I initially thought it was some kind child, but then I smelled the blood on her, not chicken blood or duck blood, so I guessed she was from the military camp. In the military camp, there was only one woman, General Li."
Li Langhuan had only recently left the palace, and her hands were still soft and tender, without any calluses. This was something the old lady could not hide from her.
Tao Ying didn't know what to say.
Old Mrs. Chen said leisurely, "The general is a good man, and he has lost his parents. I, this old woman, will treat him as her elder and show him concern from time to time... But I heard that the Baiyue people are going to attack. The general must be busy. I hope he won't let me cause him to miss important matters."
Tao Yingshi's eyes and nose were very sore. She wiped her wet eyes and forced a smile, "Then I'll keep you company from now on, okay?"
Old Mrs. Chen smiled and refused, saying, "You all have your own things to do, why waste your time by the side of a dying person like me..."
As she spoke, she fell into a deep sleep.
Tao Yingshi didn't want to disturb her, so she just sat quietly to the side and fanned her with a palm leaf fan.
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