Heartburn

Seeing that I was in a low mood, all of them were silent, and each lowered their heads to cover up the expressions on their faces, as if they were afraid that I would also ask them like Jiang Zhuo.

I shook my head and couldn't help laughing at myself, but I couldn't laugh anymore.

Suddenly, I was about to call my buddy over to check out, but there was another movement downstairs.

Peering out his head and looking outside, it turned out that a group of ragged beggars staggered from the end of the street-the direction there should be the Xiangwei city we are about to set off-I don't know. Did they meet the convoy of worshipping heaven?

As soon as this idea appeared, it was immediately rejected by me—not to mention this group of beggars, even ordinary civilians, if they intentionally intercept the convoy, they will be dealt with mercilessly, hoping that the convoy will help these people with kindness. But it was my whimsical.

There are probably more than a dozen of them, who are involved, they are familiar with each other, and they have fallen to the point of begging together, and they are also pitiful; among them there are two young children, one is held in the arms of an adult, and the other is tightly held. He walked on the ground draggingly, his eyes were puffy, his face was yellowish and thin, and he seemed to have no strength to cry and noisy.

The vendors on both sides gathered up their own things, some even waved to drive them away, looking evasive, and some pointing. Although there was sympathy on their faces, they just stood far away, without passing. The meaning of helping.

I looked at the two children, and the sorrow and sorrow in my heart rose up in waves, which actually overwhelmed the sadness of being rejected-they taught me to think of that lovely group of students and the profession that I once loved so much. .

The group of beggars slowly came down to the tea house where I was and approached the door carefully.

The eldest woman headed straightened her shabby gown, which was too shabby to see the color, and said to the shopkeeper who had rushed to the door after hearing the news, and pleaded in a low voice.

One floor away, I couldn't hear what she was talking about, but from the disappointed and aggrieved expressions of the people behind her, I guessed that most of the answer from the shopkeeper was rejection.

Seeing that the guys behind the shopkeeper were about to blast the beggars away, I quickly sent a guard to stop them and ordered her to bring the group of beggars up-anyway, the entire second-floor lounge was only us left. A group of people don’t have to worry about affecting other guests, nor is it too cramped and crowded to accommodate this group of people.

After a while, the stairs were slammed, and the guard led a large group of people up to the second floor, and the shopkeeper and a group of guys followed closely behind them. Maybe you were worried about these beggars.

Ordering those people to stay a few feet away from me, the guard walked behind me and stood vigilantly with the others, holding the hilt of the sword in his hand, always on guard—as if there was anything from them. The imposing power suppressed those beggars shuddering and dared not move.

"It's okay," I raised my hand to signal the guards not to frighten each other. I looked at those who were uncertain and slowed down and said, "Sit down—I’ll ask some of you to come up. It’s nothing but a few questions. Malicious."

"The shopkeeper, send them some easy-to-digest food." Hearing what I said, Jiang Zhuo had no objection. Instead, he threw a small coin to the shopkeeper and allowed her to do the same.

"Hey, the guest, wait a minute, and come right away." When the shopkeeper faced us, he was another humbling face. I didn't know whether it was succumbing to interests or being scared by the weapons on the waist of the guards, but whether it was Which kind of sentiment has excuses, this snobbish attitude is always unpleasant.

"Thank you, this young lady." The woman who was speaking was about fifty or so, and she seemed to be the head of the family. The posture and voice of the salute looked like well-educated intellectuals, and I couldn't help wondering how they would become begging along the street. To the point.

Hearing my question, her face was sad, and the men behind her couldn't help sobbing—the men seemed to be very young, their appearances hidden under the stains, black and gray, and they couldn't be real. , Such a cry, not to mention the delicate beauty of Pear Blossom, but it teaches me this outsider who has not yet been used to the inferiority of women and men is awkward.

"The young lady doesn't know anything. The old woman is originally from Xiangwei City and lives by the river today. There are a few acres of thin fields from her ancestors, which is enough for her family to eat and wear," she said, sighing several times, like I want to sigh away all misfortunes, "I don’t know that the river has flooded out, broke the dam, flooded the fields by the river, and finally saved my life, but the valuable objects were washed away by the water. As a last resort, our family was begging for a living along the street."

"Today's flood disaster? When did it happen?" I glanced at Jiang Zhuo, but saw her frowning. Obviously, I only learned the news. "Isn't the court paying for the disaster?"

It stands to reason that all dynasties and dynasties have had a policy of comforting the people for natural disasters. Is it that Dawu is different?

——In my opinion, Kuang Xiqing is by no means a dull and incompetent monarch. There is no reason to be indifferent and do nothing after the flood.

I heard a younger woman among the group sneered: "Paying for disaster relief? Huh, I heard that the court has sent money and food, but the officials on their heads are scraping oil layer by layer. How many sons are left?"

Her words taught me that there is no way to defend, but I can only remain silent-although I am not a politician, I know some of the twists and turns; it is also because I understand that what she said is true, it taught me that there is nothing to say.

As a member of this ruling class, I have no standpoint to make judgments.

There was another noise from the stairs, and the guys in the teahouse brought up some refreshments, somehow breaking the dullness of the talent; I sighed in relief and greeted the people to sit down and eat.

They haven't eaten a full meal for a long time, and when they see exquisite refreshments, they are busy delivering them to their mouths. After eating, they can't even bother to talk to me.

The child who had been hiding in his father's arms carefully raised his head and looked at me, looking eagerly back and forth between my face and the plate of butterfly cakes beside me, teaching me a funny heart, and he couldn't help but beckon her to come over.

"Master..." a guard reminded in a low voice, some objection to letting the child approach.

I waved my hand and didn't take it seriously-just a five or six-year-old baby, how could he be an assassin?

The little guy looked at me timidly, looked back at his father, then stared at the plate of pastries for a while, finally made up his mind, twisted his body and got out of his father’s arms, walking towards me with his short legs I ran, tiptoeing to reach for the pastries I had-seeing her struggling, I reached out and took her under her ribs, hugged her on my lap, moved the dish to her eyes, and poured a cup of tea for her .

Unlike her, another older child still hides behind his father cowardly, and even though he moved intentionally, he still shrank and dared not come over—perhaps because he was a boy.

Sitting firmly on my lap, the little guy happily stuffed a whole piece of pastry, bulging his mouth, like a greedy little squirrel, very cute; I helped her wipe off the debris from her mouth Crumbs, handed her the tea, and wiped off the sweat without a trace—even though the little guy was young, he had some weight. Just lifting her up was a big burden on this body.

Not only did she look like she hadn't eaten well for some time, she probably hadn't taken a shower, her hair and clothes had a rotten smell, compared with the happy expression of squinting her eyes when she gobbled it, it was really distressing-took a photo. Pat her on the back, lest she choke when eating too hard, her father's nervous expression and Jiang Zhuo's meaningful eyes swept from the corner of her eyes.

Her father felt nervous and understandable, but Jiang Zhuo’s eyes taught me incomprehensible—thought for a while, then he smiled bitterly: Yes, with Kuang Xihan’s temperament, how could he care about the life and death of this group of civilians? Not to mention holding a child with a smelly scent on his lap without any complaint.

I understand that I have done a suspicious move again, but I don’t regret it—the left and right sides have left the Imperial Capital Guanlan, there is no Yan Ke and Kuang Xiqing who are familiar with the original owners, and there is no personal attendant Xiaochan by the side. Watching, who can tell that I am no longer the Ling Wang?

Besides, if there is a thought hidden in my heart, even at the risk of being dismantled, I still want Jiang Zhuo to know that-I am no longer the original annoying Kuang Xihan.

"What do you plan to do in the future?" The little guy on her knees turned upside down and made her giggle. I looked at the stiff older woman who didn't dare to eat more and asked, "It won't always be like this. Go on begging?"

"This..." She curled her eyebrows without saying a word, showing that she was also bothered by this problem.

"What will you do? Is there a way to make a living?" After thinking about it, I asked again.

"It's true that the old woman was a talented scholar who could only read and write." She touched the callus on her hand embarrassedly, and then added, "Oh, I have studied the art of Qihuang before, so I know some superficiality. Medical treatment."

-Literacy and medical skills? This is not bad.

"What about them? What will happen?" I pointed to the two young women and a few men behind her.

"The little girl is also literate, but she has no fame. As for the little servants of the husband, they can only do stitching." She stared at her daughters with a hatred of iron and steel, a little ashamed. To say.

After understanding the basic situation, I turned my head and asked the shopkeeper who had been waiting by the side: "What are your lack of jobs here? The gentleman of the private school, the doctor who sits in the hall, the embroidery helper... or some who write letters for others. Odd job?"

"Well..." The shopkeeper hesitantly looked at the people who described it as embarrassed, and his gaze was somewhat disgusting.

I reached out and asked Jiang Zhuo for some silver, patted an ingot on the table, and stared at the shopkeeper with a serious face: "Think about it carefully...this is your introduction fee."

"Some and some, of course! Our town is short of scholars!" The shopkeeper immediately agreed with a smile, "You can rest assured to leave this to me, and you must find suitable work for these people!"

"Okay," I also gave the rest of the money to the shopkeeper. I put down the little guy who was yawning after eating and drinking. "This is three months' rent. Let me rent a small yard for them and buy it. Some clean clothes and necessary utensils-if you are greedy, if I know... My guards are not vegetarian, do you understand?"

"Choke chuck" a few times, the guards pulled out the sword halfway cooperatively, looked at the shopkeeper sternly, and she couldn't help but nod in fright.

"My boss, it's late, let's set off." Seeing that my arrangements are almost done, Jiang Zhuo said lightly.

After looking at the sky, it was already in the afternoon. If you are slow and can't make it to the next city before the gate closes, you can only sleep in the wild.

Nodded, I followed them as I got up and was about to leave, and just listened to "puff", the older woman knelt on the ground suddenly, and then there were a few more "puffs", and those people all knelt on the ground; young The child’s head was pressed by the parents, and it seemed ignorantly that there was a trace of reluctance to teach me the idea of ​​taking her away with me—but it was just thinking about it.

"Benefactor, I am unforgettable, please wait for me." She fell down deeply, knocking her forehead on the floor with a crisp sound, and I heard a tremor in my heart, but resisted the urge to jump away. Shengsheng received this gift from her, "Please leave a name for your benefactor, and the old woman would like to set up a tablet for longevity for you at home, praying for blessings day and night."

"My name..." After stroking the pendant around my waist, I was asked to stop--I don't know if they told her that I was the infamous Ling Wang, they would rather die than accept me. Help-shook my head, I chuckled and replied, "My name is Jian Xin-simple and easy."