Chapter 8 (This chapter is free)

When he got up the next day, Cui Po continued to move forward, crossing Xiaohe River to Yuci to Taiyuan, without stopping for a long time, he crossed Jinshui and Qingyuan, passed Jiaocheng and Wenshui, turned east to Qixian. When he arrived here, Cui Po felt that his eyes were getting wider, but he had already entered the Fenhe Plain.

When he arrived at Qi County under the Taiyuan Prefecture, Cui Po saw that it was not too late. After a little rest, he walked out of the city and headed for Pingyao, Fenzhou. He was greedy for a long journey and thought that he could definitely arrive at the inn in Pingyao City before dark.

Unexpectedly, the weather in early summer is the most unpredictable. Just after leaving the city for dozens of miles, the sky was covered with dark clouds, covering the sun that had just been showing its might, into a golden phantom. Accompanied by the dark clouds, the strong wind also rose all over the sky. For a moment, sand and stones were flying, and pedestrians could not move.

I rushed for about two miles against the wind, and when I walked against the wind, I was confused by the wind and sand. Cui Po and Huahua were really unbearable. I looked up and saw several houses on the right side of the front. I was excited and rushed away.

When he got closer, Cui Po saw that this house was built with earth. For some reason, he was built on the side of this official road and actually avoided the fire of swords and weapons caused by the Anshi Rebellion and survived.

Before he could think more, Cui Po made up his clothes and went up to call the door. He knocked on the door for a long time. Just as he thought there was no one in the room and wanted to leave, the door creaked and a woman in her fifties walked out of the room. She was wearing old clothes with many patches. Her hair was gray, her forehead was covered with fine wrinkles, and her eyes were red. It seemed that she had just cried.

"I am a student who went to Beijing to take the exam in Dingzhou. I was so greedy that I encountered this bad weather, and I was struggling and unable to rush. I wanted to borrow the old man's treasure land to rest for one night and get up again tomorrow morning." Cui Po expressed his intention to seek a stay.

"Who is there someone who takes the house to travel? But my family is really poor and ruined. I have to feel wronged you, so I'll invite guests in!" The woman said with a frantically.

After settled the flower in the back of the house, Cui Po followed the woman into the house and looked at it in the dark light. It was indeed empty and simple. The woman fed water and asked him to wash it. She pointed to a house on the right and said, "This is my son's house. He is not at home today, so you will live here tonight." For some reason, when she said this, Cui Po felt a little crying in his tone, but the light in the room was dim and it was not real. He was not convenient to ask each other rashly, but it was left with a doubt in his heart.

After settled Cui Po, the woman went to the kitchen to prepare supper. Cui Po entered the room, but only a few pieces of thick wooden houses. He worked hard for days and didn't think much about it. He lay in bed and slept, but he didn't expect to fall asleep.

When the woman came to ask him for supper, it was already all night. Cui Po got up and washed up a little and came to the middle room. He saw two large bowls on the thick wooden table, which were decorated with color and light green food, but he couldn't name it. In the middle of the bowl, there was a small plate of pickled pickles at home.

"I was called you earlier, but I saw that the guests were sleeping soundly, so I didn't wake you up. It would be too late to sleep after dinner." The woman said softly. Cui Po had already sat down and picked up the bowl. After taking only one bite, he almost didn't spit it out. It turned out that the rice was very refreshing, and only then did I realize that it was steamed from corn and locust leaves, without any trace of oil. Therefore, it was extremely difficult to eat. Although Cui Po was from a poor family, he had never eaten such a meal.

"My family is poor and I am not afraid of laughing at customers. I have not eaten salt for a long time. I just went to the three nearby families and wanted to borrow some, but I didn't have them. I had to complain that the guests would eat with this kind of food." The woman pointed to the pickled vegetables in the middle and said.

Cui Poshi was hard to swallow. He was about to take out the dry food from his bag and eat it with the woman, but he was afraid that it would be bad for her to look good on her face, so he had to give up. Out of politeness, he picked food in his mouth.

Although he couldn't eat, the woman was also unwilling to eat. Just looking at Cui Po in front of her with the light of the oil lamp, she thought that every night before, her son was sitting there for dinner with her, and then when she thought that he was suffering in the prison, she could no longer help but feel worried and longing in her heart, and sobbed.

Seeing this, Cui Po was shocked and put down the big bowl in his hand and asked, "Old man, what's wrong? Please tell me if there is any difficulty. Since I stayed here today, it is a fate. If I can help, I will naturally help. If I can't, I will feel more relaxed after the old man says it."

"I'm sorry, my miserable child, who has been arrested in the county prison, and I don't know what kind of suffering he is suffering now? Is there still food to eat at this time? If he has a few mistakes, how can I explain it when his father comes back?" The woman may have been depressed for a long time. At this time, an outsider heard her talk, pressing her down and saying it, and her crying became louder and louder. It sounded particularly miserable on this quiet night.

Cui Po felt desolate when he heard the crying. He waited for a while and waited for the woman's mood to relieve her a little, and then he answered and asked: "Why did the county catch him? At this time, the old man went there again?"

"Because the Yang Dahu family in Fenzhou City was stolen, the officers and soldiers chased the thief here and disappeared. Later, they could not search everywhere. So they arrested all the D and Zhongnan in the village to find the thief. I pity my child was chopping firewood at home and was also captured by them. It has been three days now. If the Yang Dahuo said that if he could not find the murderer in three days, he would send them to the edge of Youzhou Xu. Our family is a military household in our residence. His father is a soldier outside. He is now fifty-six. He will be released in three or four years. If he returns home and cannot see this only seedling, then how can it be!" Speaking of this, the woman couldn't help but let out a sad voice again.

"After joining the army for 15th, he will return at the 80th." As expected, Cui Po said in his heart that it was a pity that only a hundred years have passed. The "domestic military system" that Taizong used to pacify the world, but he had already suffered such a malpractice. The court used this resentful army to fight on the battlefield, and how could he not be defeated! Looking at the families of these soldiers, if they were poor, the morale and military discipline of the army can be imagined. In this way, it is not surprising that the court's army has been defeated repeatedly since the Anshi Rebellion.

Cui Po thought for a moment, and when the woman's sob woke him up, he smiled lost his heart: "I am just an ant-like figure. Such a big thing is something I can worry about changing!"

"Don't the military family of the government don't have to pay rent, mediocre, and adjust taxes? Why does the old man even eat salt? Besides, the Yang family is not an official family, so why can he say such harsh words?" Cui Po asked in confusion.

However, he didn't know that these words evoked the old woman's memory of sleeping for many years. She was in her youth and was also a famous flower. At that time, there were so many people asking for marriage. Tienniu in the Qian Village and the Hou Village Mountains. Whoever saw him was surrounded by the kindness and kindness, and finally his father promised him to Sanwang in Yang Village. I still remember that when my father sent him out that day, he said: "Daughter, don't blame Dad, Dad will harm you. Although the Sanwang family is a little far away and is not as handsome as the mountain, his family is a military household in the palace, without taxes, and there are many lands. There will be wars in this peaceful world? Sanwang's young man is honest, and you will not suffer if you go."

The days that followed were good. Sanwang was very nice to him. His family didn't have to pay taxes like other people's families. Sanwang was willing to make efforts. After the autumn harvest every year, there was still some extra money to pull a few feet of silk from afar and make clothes for himself. How cheap things at that time would be! The box of bright red rouge was only nine cents, and he put on rouge and put on new clothes. Every time Sanwang was stunned, he just smiled foolishly. As soon as he walked out the door, he was really jealous of the big girls and little wives in the village.

The beautiful memories temporarily dispelled the sorrow in the woman's heart. Thinking of the sweet spot, a sweet smile appeared on her wrinkled face. In the eyes of Cui Po, who had just heard her miserable crying, it was so beautiful, and even this dark little earthen house added a lot of warmth.

But the woman's smile was so short, and the ray of sunshine had just bloomed, followed by the ice sword that made people feel heart-wrenching. "It's a pity that good days are always so short. I just had Xiaobao. I first heard that there was a fat man named An in the north and turned against him. Soon after, the government began to recruit soldiers. Xiaobao's father could only put down his farm tools and resist the swords and guns. In the beginning, he could occasionally come back, but later he didn't return for several years. He could only raise Xiaobao alone. This day

It was even more difficult, and the miscellaneous taxes in various states and counties were increasing. The rouge was gone, the new clothes were gone, and the family was gradually gone. Now that my son was gone, how could I live this life? I pity my piety and worship Buddha every day, but why can't the Buddha Bodhisattva open his eyes to save my son?" The woman's memories finally ended with an insolvent question and a darkness. After a long time of silence, the woman came back to her senses and remembered the question the guest asked her.

"What you said was the matter of Kaiyuan and Tianbao before! Although Yang Dahu was not an official, he had an older brother who was the eldest in the capital. Even the provincial officials dared not offend him. What's more, the county officials in this county were pretty good. I heard from his seventh grandfather that Yang Dahu's family was going to be punished by the big punishment, but he blocked them back, but this official was too young and could not stop the three-day period. Without Xiaobao, how could I live, an old woman?" The woman said and cried again.
Chapter completed!