Medicine in Song Dynasty

Chapter 257 Veterans
Su Tong entered the front door of the main room, and saw her father sitting in front of the table trying his luck at a glance, his face was flushed red, and his eyes were full of anger.

Li Xiuniang kept sewing in her hands. She was making cotton waistcoats for Erlang, light blue and very plain, unlike the red and purple clothes she used to make.

Erlang is getting older, and it is indeed time to change to this kind of style worn by adults.

Su Tong smiled, holding a plate of lotus flower crisps and placed it in his father's hand: "Aunt Ma just made it, and my father must be hungry all morning, so fill it up."

Su Wencheng picked up a piece viciously, put it in his mouth, crunched it and swallowed it.

"The queen mother actually told me that it wasn't Wang Qixiong who killed him, but his slaves. Are you kidding me? Is it possible that those slaves can't do it on their own? He instigated it all, and he is naturally the culprit!"

Su Tong laughed: "Daddy, you shouldn't be angry, isn't this a normal thing? The queen mother is also a human being, and she has selfishness, not to mention anything else. If I am a dandy and order the servant to beat someone to death, it will be Daddy's rebirth. I'm so angry, I'm afraid I can't bear to punish me, right?"

Su Wencheng was startled, frowned and smiled wryly—how could it be so easy for the so-called emperor to break the law and commit the same crime as the common people?
Not to mention the emperor, even a businessman who is married to the queen mother committed a crime, and it is so difficult to deal with.Powerful people always have various ways to escape punishment.

If Su Wencheng encountered this kind of thing before, he would not be too angry, after all, it was a common practice.

But this time is different.

Su Wencheng was silent, Li Xiuniang didn't know whether to laugh or cry, she glanced at her husband, and said with a smile: "Don't pay attention to him, Ah Tong, how courageous is he, why should we worry about it? He won't give the Empress Dowager the slightest bit of face. I can't even speak, just now when Liu Langjun sent him home, I broke into a cold sweat."

Su Tong laughed: "It's okay, it's not a big deal at all. Although Wang Mengzheng is related to the queen mother, the queen mother is not a fool, and she will not blame her father for upholding the law."

Glancing at his father again, Su Tong snatched the herbal tea from his hand, and told his servants to set up meals quickly, "It doesn't matter if you are full after eating a full stomach of tea, just eat a good meal, and you will feel naturally comfortable."

The meals made by Aunt Ma and the cooks in the kitchen are more and more suitable for the appetite of the Su family. They are not very bland, and the taste is slightly heavier than ordinary people's food, but Su Tong thinks it is just right, Da Song salt and oil They are all expensive, and ordinary people eat too little salt and oil, so the taste is naturally not delicious enough.

The Su family can also be considered frugal, but they never save money on food and clothing. Although it is only four dishes and one soup, the portions are sufficient and delicate.

In the past Su Wencheng liked eating at home the most. Even if he went to the Yamen and couldn't come back, he always hoped that his daughter would bring him some food. Today, he raised his chopsticks and poked him for a long time, but he still couldn't eat.

The few pieces of cumin mutton that Su Tong gave him were poked so badly that they couldn't see their original appearance.

"I went to see Zhang Zisheng's house. It was really bare, and there was a broken thatched hut with air leakage. His old mother was still there, dazzled, deaf, and confused. Fan dared not tell her that he had left home to live in Zhang's house. , put on sackcloth and mourning for him, and I told her to send the old man to the orphanage, but she refused desperately and insisted on taking care of it herself, saying that no matter how good the orphanage is, her family has her as a bride, so there is no need to go."

Su Tong was taken aback, he really didn't expect that veteran to have relatives, and then sighed, Fan's temperament is too stubborn, she is a woman, she is so young, she has no children, and she is not even married, how can she take care of her? Good old man, take care of yourself?

However, if the Fan family hadn't been stubborn, they probably wouldn't have waited ten years for Zhang Zisheng. In such an era, it might be better to be a concubine for Wang Qixiong than to suffer for ten years.

"In the shack near Zhang's house, there are still a few veterans living there. They are suffering from illnesses all over their bodies. Two of them have lost their legs. Zhang Zisheng is still alive and can help them. I don't know what to do now."

Su Wencheng was worried, "Hey, there are too many people like this, and it's too difficult for the government to arrange them. Moreover, they don't want to go to orphanages."

The conditions in the orphanage are actually not good, and their age is not suitable.

"It's not bad in Tokyo. At least these veterans' government will find a way to manage it. In remote places like Qingzhou, they just want to manage it, and the government doesn't have that much ability."

Su Wencheng had seen villages where wounded soldiers gathered before. Those veterans were wounded and left the army. Some were seriously injured, some were disabled, and even though they were not disabled, they had been away from home for many years. If you don't hurt your family, settle down in the nearest place, the general government will not ignore it, and will give some money, some fields and so on.

But the life of each family is still extremely difficult. They are often handicapped and seriously injured. Many of them are too old to do heavy work, and there is no way to earn a living, let alone marry a bride and start a family.

Although there are very few big wars in these years, but small-scale conflicts and banditry are rampant, and more veterans leave the army due to injuries. If there is such a big war, there will be no wounded soldiers. Come on! Once seriously injured on the battlefield, in this military camp, there are thousands of people in the age of a military doctor, how can it be possible to survive?

Not to mention broken legs and arms, even a few cuts, if not dealt with properly, may die.

Su Wencheng sighed as he spoke.

Su Tong simply brought some plain cotton cloth and rice grains that are commonly used at home to visit the Fan family, but when he met the veterans who came to offer sacrifices, he found that the situation was not as serious as he imagined.

Most of these veterans are in groups, at least a dozen people live together, and they take care of each other on weekdays. Those who have major obstacles are all working part-time, doing some menial work, and they can barely make ends meet.

Poor is really poor.

The Fan family was not hypocritical, thanked Su Tong for the rice, and took it to the kitchen to put away: "Brother Qiao and the others plan to sell the land, anyway, they can't grow it well, and the grain they earn from the tenants is not enough to chew. It’s better to do some part-time jobs, and you can barely get by.”

Su Tong smiled wryly. In the Great Song Dynasty, soldiers were given a lot of money. In times of calamity, more young and middle-aged refugees go to serve as soldiers. Now it seems that it reduces the possibility of refugees rebelling, but in the later period, it is inevitable that there will be redundant soldiers , The resettlement of veterans and wounded soldiers is also very problematic.

The house of the Zhang family was really simple. Mother Zhang was lying on the bed, sleeping deeply, with a peaceful expression on her face. She obviously didn't know about her son's death at all. Her hands, feet, head and face were clean, and she was obviously well taken care of.

Fan's family is still calm, the madness of the previous period has faded from her face, women's endurance is actually stronger than men's, no matter what era they are in.

(End of this chapter)