twin moon

Chapter 158 No.20 Scene
In the first year of Zhaoxi, July [-]th.After the beginning of autumn, the weather turns cooler, which is the most sunny and drier season of the year. The sky is high and wild geese fly south.The north wind blowing quietly from the Shuozhou tundra turned the weeds yellow and the leaves red overnight.Looking around, the mountains and plains are covered with golden colors, and the fields have also ushered in the busiest period of time.

Right now is the season when the rice is ripe, and the rice that has been grown for the whole summer has poured all the energy it has accumulated into the heavy ears of grain.As the saying goes, "ten drops of blood and sweat and one grain", rice is the foundation of survival for farmers to store grain for winter.Before winter, they not only need to sow mature japonica rice, but also sow the next year's new wheat seeds in the fields.

As the sun set in the western mountains, in the large fields at the foot of the Qingying Mountains, the farmers who had harvested for a whole day finally had the opportunity to sit down on the field stalks and beat their sore backs.They gathered in groups of three or five, smoking dry tobacco, and exchanging news about the imperial capital brought by travelers from south to north.

Gradually, cooking smoke rose in the village, and the voices of wives calling their husbands to go home for dinner gradually sounded.The farmers in the field slowly walked away, but a red-haired girl staggered out of the woodland not far away with tired steps at this moment.

Although she escaped from the mouth of those monsters in the middle of the mountain, without the guidance of her mother, Ning Yue walked in the dense jungle for half a month before finally finding a way out.Along the way, she drank spring water and ate wild fruits. Occasionally, she used the method Yan taught her to climb up a tree to get some bird eggs to eat.However, the days of living in the wind and sleeping in the open made him lose weight rapidly, his originally round cheeks were now sunken, and the innocence in his blue eyes was also less innocent and more vicissitudes.

The village in front of the girl happened to be located in a long and narrow valley north of Suoyang Pass.Tongyan Mountain and Qingying Mountain seem to have deliberately vacated this flat area to connect Changzhou and Sizhou.Going north from here, there is no dangerous terrain, and you can drive straight into the highlands of the imperial capital.If you ride a fast horse, you can even arrive at the capital within five days.

Right now, Ning Yue is standing by the grain field, and she can see the tall city wall and archery towers of Suoyang Pass dozens of miles to the south from a distance.Although it was not yet night, the lights in the pass were lit early.Occasionally, I could still hear the soldiers faintly drifting in the wind, and the soldiers shouted in unison.

After Bai Jiangxi abdicated and left Beijing thousands of years ago, his son Bai Jiangying succeeded him and changed his reign name to Yongguang.In the same year, the whole country began to build large-scale construction projects, and the construction of Suoyang Pass was also started in this year.However, the project was so huge that it was not completed until 40 years later when his grandson succeeded to the throne.Since then, this unparalleled pass has also gained the reputation of "the emperor's capital is the unparalleled place, and Kyushu respects the first pass".

Rather than saying that Suoyang Pass is a pass from Si to Chang, it is better to think of it as a small city of considerable size.Even though it is located in the narrowest area between the Tongyan and Qingying mountains, the tall city wall spans more than ten miles from west to east.On both sides of the pass, there are steep mountains and overlapping green peaks. At the pass, there is a large urn city used for garrisoning troops, and nine gates, large and small, like a hill rising from the ground, completely connecting the standing peaks on both sides into one piece. , Constructing an I-shaped barrier that is easy to defend but difficult to attack.

On any day in the four seasons, as long as you stop in this pass and look south, you can see a round of bright sun in the sky from the crowing of the cock to the hour of people's time.An unnamed poet even wrote the magnificent poem "the autumn light, the clouds and the moon are clear, the lonely city locks the setting sun", and Suoyang Pass is named after it.

However, it is quite ironic that this majestic pass city that has stood for thousands of years could not lock the radiant sun forever, even during the Shuodi Rebellion more than a hundred years ago, even the kingdom of the Dasheng Dynasty Zuo also almost failed to keep.

Although there was a feat of Wei Liang Guan Ning's military soldiers going north out of Tongyan to recover the lost land, but before that, the Di people still entrenched in the large fertile land north of the pass for decades, and they were reluctant to leave.To this day, on the dark blue city wall, you can still clearly see the various traces left by the war.And this pass seems to have turned into a striking scar on the ground, showing that this great dynasty that has lasted for more than a thousand years has been seriously injured since then, and is still alive today.

Ning Yue turned her head and looked at the way she came, and suddenly remembered Granny Cen who had stayed in the depths of Qingying Mountain forever, and tears fell down again.While crying, a hoarse voice suddenly shouted behind her: "Who's there?!"

The girl was startled, and turned her head suddenly, only to see a figure standing in the shadow of the mountain.The opponent was stooped, his two skinny legs were covered with mud, and he held a rusty long-handled sickle in his hand.

Due to fatigue and hunger, the girl's vision became blurred.In the afterglow of the setting sun, Ning Yue couldn't see the other party's face clearly at all, thinking that the terrifying monsters in the caves had followed her all the way here, and Dang even wanted to run towards the village.

But the grain field in front of her was full of mud up to her calf, and she had exhausted her last bit of strength after just two steps.The girl only felt as if a huge boulder was pressed on her chest, she couldn't catch her breath, her eyes went dark and she fell down on the spot.

When she woke up again, she was already lying on a couch made of straw.It was dark all around, only a ball of fire not far away could be seen beating flickeringly.There were two figures sitting around the fire. With the help of the faint light, Ning Yue gradually saw that she was in a dim, low room. The quilt covering her body was covered with patches, and it smelled faintly musty.

Seeing the girl wake up, one of them immediately got up and walked to the side of the couch.The other party held a chipped ceramic bowl in his hand, and the bowl contained some steaming, fragrant yellow rice porridge.

"Miss, are you awake? Let's eat something first. Seeing how thin you are, you must have suffered a lot in the mountains, right?"

The voice of the other party was very different from what he had heard in the field before.Ning Yue raised her head and saw that it was a white-haired peasant woman. She finally felt relieved and reached out to take the pottery bowl, but she still couldn't help crying.

Seeing this, the peasant woman on the opposite side quickly spoke up to comfort her: "Oh, girl, don't cry, don't cry. It's all because of the old man in my family. He smoked dry tobacco on weekdays, which made his voice hoarse, and he spoke like a bandit. Generally, it will scare you."

As the peasant woman spoke, she turned her head to look at the old farmer with white beard and hair sitting by the fire.The old farmer turned around and smiled awkwardly, but still stuffed the cigarette pot in his hand into his mouth.

The yellow rice porridge was warmed by the careful peasant woman, and it didn't burn my mouth at all.The girl took a sip, and the sweet and soft rice grains and the solidified soft skin on the porridge immediately melted in her mouth, whetting her appetite.After eating a bowl of hot porridge, her face gradually turned red. Seeing this, the peasant woman quickly filled another bowl, and then asked:
"Girl, didn't you lose your way before? Otherwise, how could you walk out of that old forest alone?"

Ning Yue just shook her head and didn't answer.

The peasant woman in front of her was stunned for a moment, but she still refused to stop there:
"Girl, don't think about it too much. Our husband and wife are by no means bad people. Just tell us what troubles you encounter. Although my family is not rich, I will try my best to help you, okay?"

After some soft words, Ning Yue's nose was sour, and tears welled up in her eyes again.However, she still didn't say a word, just pointed to her mouth, and waved to the peasant woman again.

After all, I don't know if Kun Jie will come after her, and her red hair is too eye-catching. When she was on the mountain before, she made a plan in her heart, and she will never let any innocent person get involved in her again. Right and wrong in the grievances!

The peasant woman finally believed that the troubled girl in front of her was indeed a mute who could not speak, so she sighed and stopped asking.

The old farmer by the fire also stepped forward and patted his wife on the shoulder:

"Okay, old lady, stop chasing the girl and asking her questions, let her have a good rest. If it is convenient tomorrow, I will go to the town to find a gentleman, and ask for some pens and ink, so that she can write down what she wants to say. .”

The peasant woman nodded, and reached out to help Ningyue lie down on the couch again.However, outside the thatched hut, there were suddenly barks from the guard dog, and in a blink of an eye, the sound of horseshoes approached, and then a person shouted loudly in Changzhou dialect:

"Every household, come out and count the heads!"

Before the words were finished, the speaker dismounted from his horse, ran outside the house and slammed on the door panel.The peasant woman's expression changed slightly, and she quietly opened the small window beside the couch.From the gap, Ning Yue vaguely saw the appearance of the person who came - the person was holding a spear and saber in his hand, and was covered with all-over gold and white iron armor. He was actually a fully armed Dasheng Wuwei!

"It's the defenders in Suoyang Pass, and it's probably here to urge the payment of the land tax again!"

The old farmer seemed a little indignant, and he threw away the tobacco pot in his hand helplessly, motioning for his wife to go out with him to deal with it. Halfway through, he suddenly remembered something, turned his head and told the girl on the couch:

"Girl, don't show your face when you stay in the house. These soldiers eat people and don't spit out their bones. If they see you, they will definitely pay an extra head tax!"

Ning Yue nodded a little at a loss, and watched the husband and wife go out the door supporting each other.As the soldiers came over one by one, the girl's heartstrings quickly tensed.Suddenly, she felt a little worried about the honest and honest peasant couple, so she boldly opened the window a crack.

"Old Jintou, are the couple still alive?"

The head lieutenant was proud, as if these farmers were just like pigs and dogs in his eyes.

"Thanks to my lord, I'm still alive, but my body is getting worse day by day."

The old farmer hunched over, smiling obsequiously.

"Since you are alive, you have to pay ten stones of food according to the law. Pay half of it today, and pay the other half after winter comes!"

Listening to the captain's expressionless expression, Ning Yue in the room also secretly calculated in her heart.Although the land people's weighing method is completely different from that in Cangliu City, but she helped Jiayun Zhai a few years ago, and she has already been able to calculate the accounts clearly.

However, after a calculation, it is frightening - according to the measurement standard of the Dasheng Dynasty, thirty catties is one jun, and four jun is one stone.From this point of view, if you need to pay ten shi of grain, it is about a thousand catties of brown rice.But in this old farmer's house, he couldn't even find a rice jar that could only store a hundred catties of grain.

Sure enough, upon hearing the captain's words, the old farmer and peasant woman outside the door became anxious:

"My lord, last year you only received a total of five stones of food from my family, and this year it will suddenly double. The weight of ten stones, Xiaomin is really—"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Do you want to bargain with the official?"

The captain suddenly turned his eyes sideways, and his tone suddenly became sharp.

"Xiaomin dare not, Xiaomin dare not. It's just that the autumn harvest is just now, and there is not much rice harvested, and the harvest in the field is not good, can you-"

After explaining, the old farmer wanted to ask the other party for some time.But the school lieutenant on the opposite side didn't allow him to argue at all: "No! You should know that the official came to collect the land rent today as he was ordered to do, without any selfishness. Besides, why can every family in front pay it? Your family can't do it? Are you deliberately making trouble with this official?"

Before he finished speaking, the school captain swung the horsewhip in his hand, and slapped the old farmer's face with a "woo", and then pointed to a cart that was still loading grain not far away.The sacks of rice on the cart are now piled up like a hill.

Seeing this situation, Ning Yue's heart suddenly became agitated, and the peasant woman hurried forward to plead for her husband: "Master Mingjian, my family only has a mere ten acres of land!"

"Bold and unreasonable, isn't ten mu of land not enough? I have carefully calculated before I came, and one mu of land in your village can produce at least three shi of grain, and ten mu of land is thirty shi. So, the two of you husband and wife After paying for food, there are at least two thousand catties of brown rice left in their hands! How can two old guys eat so much food in a year?"

"But my old man's body and bones are not as good as those of the young people in the village. Only half of the ten acres of land can really be taken care of. In addition, we will need to use grain to go to the town to exchange some money in the future, and we have to reserve the seeds for next year... "

The peasant woman shed tears as she spoke, but the captain on the opposite side couldn't bear to listen any more, he actually lifted his foot and kicked her hard on the chest:

"Listen to me, everyone! Those of you who have food today will pay it obediently. If you can't pay it, you will be arrested and sent back to the customs to serve in corvée. If you don't obey, don't blame our brothers for not being sympathetic!"

The soldiers on both sides got the order and immediately stepped forward to put the shackles on the old farmer.The peasant woman could only kneel on the ground, crying with snot and tears.But no matter how much she begged for mercy, she couldn't make the other party forgive.Other farmers in the village started talking in low voices, but no one dared to step forward to intercede for the old couple.

The corner of the captain's mouth raised slightly, and he continued to lead the team to collect food from the next family.But before he had traveled far, he suddenly heard a woman's voice behind him:
"Aren't you afraid of being punished by God for bullying two old people like this?!"

The officers and soldiers couldn't help being surprised, when they turned around, they saw a young girl rushing out of the house of the old farmer and his wife.The girl stared angrily, and her red hair fluttered in the wind, like a ball of bright red fire.

"Old Jintou, didn't you say that there are only two people left in your family? Where did this little girl come from?"

The captain looked Ning Yue up and down, wondering who gave her the courage to confront him face to face.

The old farmer and his wife were also stunned by the girl.In their memory, except for a name that no one can remember, no one in the whole village has ever dared to speak to officers and soldiers like this.

"Girl, don't be impulsive!"

The peasant woman also suddenly realized that the girl was not dumb, so she stopped in front of her in a hurry and wanted to persuade her to go back, but it was too late.The captain waved his hand, and the soldiers who had been guarding the ox cart rushed forward with a whoosh, and surrounded the three of them tightly.

"Officer, this girl came from a foreign country. She got lost in the mountains before and didn't know the rules here. We pay the food, and we promise to pay the food. Please don't embarrass her!"

The old farmer and his wife knelt down on the ground at the same time, and they were willing to use food that was a matter of life and death for them in exchange for the safety of this strange girl whose name they didn't even know.

The lieutenant on the opposite side sneered:

"Old Jintou, why do you have so many disobedient masters in your family? I have heard people talk about that incident back then, and I sympathize with you and your wife very much. But now, in order to save people, I am willing to give in. Isn't it a little too late? This girl contradicted me in front of so many brothers, and the two of you even lied about the head of your family, and you will be punished according to the law! But I am kind and don't ask for more, so I will continue Just fine you ten stones of food!"

"Another ten shi is fined, and that's twenty shi of grain!"

When the old farmer and his wife heard this, they couldn't kneel any longer and fell to the ground.

As a result, the girl's heart was burning like coals, and she became more and more angry: "What are you begging him for! If you let this villain bully you today, will you be able to live a good life in the future?!"

"Bold, do you want to incite rebellion? If the two of you can't pay the food today, I will arrest you, a sharp-tongued little girl, and go back to be an official prostitute! I want to see, how dare you Don't dare to speak so rudely like today!"

Under the dispute, the captain finally stopped pretending to hide his ugly face, but raised the long knife in his hand and pointed at Ning Yue, and ordered the soldiers under him to rush straight at her!
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(End of this chapter)