lcionline Chapter 363 It's time to recruit soldiers
Chapter 363 It's time to recruit soldiers
"Aunt...Auntie." Liu Xiaocui, who was being held in Gao's arms, was a little confused.
At this moment, Zhang Haoran, who had been in a daze, finally came to his senses. He stepped forward and pulled his mother off Xiao Cui, then looked at the girl standing opposite him with a slightly flushed face and stammered, "..."
"Xiao Cui, you...you...you're back?"
"Brother Hao?" Liu Xiaocui looked at Zhang Haoran, and could still vaguely see the original shadow in his eyebrows and eyes.
"Hey," Zhang Haoran said, a mix of excitement and nervousness in his voice. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but the words that came out were just a dry "Hey."
After many years, seeing old friends again brought back buried memories. Seeing Zhang Haoran's slightly flushed face, Liu Xiaocui recalled the childhood betrothal between her mother and Aunt Gao years ago. She also understood what Aunt Gao meant by "Hao'er and I have searched so hard for you." It turned out they had been searching for her all these years.
For a moment, Liu Xiaocui felt somewhat ashamed.
Tian Maisui and Liu Shi exchanged a glance, and they could both see the joy in each other's eyes.
"Auntie, stop crying, or your eyes will hurt when the cold wind blows." Liu stepped forward and took a handkerchief to wipe Gao's tears.
"Oh, look at me, I got so excited when I saw Xiao Cui that I couldn't hold back my tears." Gao took the handkerchief from Liu and wiped the tears off her face.
She looked up at her son and saw him staring at Xiaocui as if he wanted to say something but didn't dare to.
When she was crying just now, she understood why Tian Maisui insisted on bringing her to the Guanyin Temple, and even specifically called her son along. But judging from Xiao Cui's reaction just now, she was probably being kept in the dark as well.
Thinking of this, Gao felt a little better. At least there was hope for her son to get married.
So he composed himself and addressed Lady Liu and Tian Maihui.
"There are plum blossoms in the garden ahead, they're very beautiful, haven't you seen them yet?"
"No, we just offered incense in the main hall and came out to look for you," said Madam Liu.
"Shall I take you to see it?" Gao suggested.
So, Gao, Tian Maisui, and Liu walked in front, while Liu Xiaocui and Zhang Haoran walked side by side behind them, a meter apart.
Xia Yu followed at a distance with several of her maids.
The group strolled around the garden for an hour. During this time, Madam Gao pulled Liu Xiaocui aside and spoke for a while; it was unclear what they discussed. Xia Yu only noticed that her aunt's eyes were red, as if she had been crying. However, remembering what Madam Gao had said to her earlier, Xia Yu felt it was unlikely that her aunt had been bullied by Madam Gao; she was probably just moved to tears.
Finally, the group had a vegetarian meal at the temple before heading down the mountain to where the carriages were parked. As luck would have it, they ran into Young Master Hu, who was returning alone, on their way down. Madam Hu and the young lady were not with him.
When Young Master Hu looked up and saw Xia Yu and the others, a look of surprise suddenly appeared in his eyes that others couldn't understand. However, when his gaze fell on Zhang Haoran, who was walking side by side with Liu Xiaocui, the smile that hadn't yet blossomed on his face faded.
He simply stood quietly on the other side of the stone steps, watching Xia Yu and his group descend the mountain.
Tian Maisui and the Gao family saw Xia Yu and his family off to where the carriage was parked, and then talked about the matter of visiting them the next day to learn the Mao language.
Gao asked Liu with some difficulty.
"Liujia Village is too far from Zhangjia Village. If we travel back and forth every day, it will take too much time. Could you find a place for Hao'er to stay in the village? My family is willing to pay."
"Why bother looking for a place to stay? There's still an empty yard at home; you can stay here," Liu replied with a smile.
After listening to Liu's words, Gao pondered for a moment, then looked at Liu Xiaocui and her son who were talking to each other, before shaking her head and saying...
"It's not really appropriate for her to stay at home." After saying that, he pulled Liu aside and whispered in her ear.
"It's not appropriate for a young man like Hao'er to live in our house; it's not good for Xiao Cui's reputation. Let's find a family in the village to accommodate him!"
Hearing her say this, Madam Liu understood her concerns. So she nodded in agreement.
"Auntie is so thoughtful. Don't worry about it. I will definitely find a suitable place for Brother Hao to stay."
On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, Zhang Haoran began to learn Maozi language from Xia Yu, and Liu Shi arranged for him to stay at Zhang the Cripple's house.
Zhang the Cripple lived alone with his wife. Their house was a brick and tile structure, which Gao had also visited and was very satisfied with. She gave Zhang the Cripple three hundred coins a month for food and lodging. Although it was called food and lodging, he actually ate all three meals a day at Xia Yu's house, though he would use some firewood to boil water.
The Zhang couple, who were both lame, were overjoyed to have an extra source of income and thanked Liu repeatedly.
Thus, Xia Yu would teach Zhang Haoran for two hours every day, and spend the rest of the time in his room farming in his spatial dimension. Then, every five days, he would go aboard the ship to load the wheat he had grown, along with the stalks, into the cargo ship's hold. As for where the grain was transported, Xia Yu didn't care.
Just when Xia Yu thought life would continue peacefully, after the first month of the lunar calendar, local governments issued conscription notices.
"Isn't it time for conscription yet?" The village chiefs of several villages asked with some doubt after hearing the village head's announcement.
"Sigh, I heard that this time it's really going to be a war." The village head said helplessly. Life had only been good for a few years, and now there was going to be another war.
"Hurry up and spread the word. This time, we will not accept money in lieu of military service. This will allow families with male members to prepare as soon as possible. The list will be issued in a few days."
As they emerged from the village head's house, the village chiefs all looked rather grim. After all, every family had men, and if money couldn't replace military service, it meant that every family would have a male member sent to the battlefield. It could be a son, a grandson, or even themselves.
When the village chiefs brought the news to their respective villages, a deep sorrow enveloped each village. Although Shen Jingheng had promised that his family members' names wouldn't be on the list, there's always an element of chance; what if something went wrong?
Amidst everyone's tension and fear, the conscription list was finally distributed to each village.
The village chief gathered everyone at the village's drying ground and read out the list from a high place. Each time a name was called, a wave of weeping erupted. Zhangjia Village has a total of 122 households, and 118 people were on the conscription list from Zhangjia Village this time.
Those who were only sons and had no offspring were not conscripted. Almost every other family of eligible age had male members conscripted. The Zhang family and the Zhang family ancestral home were not on the list, nor was anyone from the Zhang Cripple's family. There was also one family that had five daughters but no sons. However, the Zhang Cripple's brother was on the list.
Zhang the Cripple's mother fainted on the spot upon hearing her beloved son's name. She was revived by having her philtrum pinched, and then she wailed again. But no one pitied her; everyone was struggling to survive, barely able to find peace for themselves, let alone others.
Finally, she even grabbed Zhang the Cripple's sleeve and said to the village chief...
“Let him go, let him replace his brother on the battlefield. Anyway, he’s a useless person, keeping him at home is just a waste of food.”
Even though he knew his foster mother wasn't close to him, Zhang the Cripple's heart still ached when he heard her say that.
Fortunately, the village chief ignored him; her son, who had long since separated from the family, was someone she couldn't possibly cling to now.