Xian Yu Zhongtong's entourage began to pack their things and planned to leave for Yizhou tomorrow morning.

Before leaving, he sent a letter to Chang'an, requesting the Ministry of Civil Affairs to transfer Huang Wenjin, the magistrate of Qingcheng County, to be promoted to the governor of Shu Prefecture and join the army. He would be in charge of farmland reclamation in various counties in Shu Prefecture. Given Huang Wenjin's character, he was

People make the most of their talents.

That night, Gu Qing cooked several delicious dishes for Xian Yu Zhongtong at his home. Xian Yu Zhongtong knew etiquette and brought several jars of good wine to the door. Gu Qing cooked braised fish, grilled venison, and steamed wild boar meat.

It's so enjoyable, I feel like I've spent these days in Shiqiao Village in vain. If I had known that Gu Qing had this skill, he would have come here every day to have a meal.

Finally, Gu Qing mysteriously served a plate of stir-fried beef. Xian Yu Zhongtong was stunned after taking the first bite.

"This is……"

"Pheasant meat, the villagers got it from hunting in the mountains and gave it to the boy." Gu Qing said nonsense without changing his expression.

Xianyu Zhongtong suddenly understood and responded without changing his expression: "It turns out to be pheasant meat. It is tender and chewy in the mouth. It is delicious! My good nephew is a good cook."

The attitude of self-deception quickly gained Gu Qing's favor. Everyone's moral sense and values ​​should be on the same level, so it is easy to deal with such people.

The dishes used to serve the dishes were made by our own porcelain kiln, and the wine cups used to serve the wine were also made by ourselves. The bottom of the indigo wine cup was slightly rippled with wine, and the slightly turbid wine reflected a dreamlike effect under the dim light of the oil lamp.

light.

Xianyu Zhongtong held the wine cup and looked at it carefully, and exclaimed: "What a porcelain, what a porcelain! A wonderful thing in the world, unparalleled in the world. How can this thing not be heard and used by the Holy Emperor?"

Gu Qing smiled and said: "Uncle Xianyu, my foolish nephew asked the kiln worker to pack two boxes of porcelain, including dishes, cups and bottles. They have been handed over to your entourage. This is a little tribute from this junior to you."

Xianyu Zhongtong said happily: "Thank you very much, nephew. You and I are just like my own family, so I won't be polite to you. I feel ashamed."

After saying this, Xianyu Zhongtong sighed, looked eastward with his lamp in hand, held it high and said in respect: "I only hope that the Holy Emperor of Chang'an City will use such a wonderful thing as soon as possible. If the Emperor does not hear about it, how can I dare to do it before the Emperor does?"

The day my nephew's porcelain is not designated as tribute porcelain, I will no longer use it. I am in Shuzhou, southwest China, wishing His Majesty the Emperor good luck and good luck to the country for thousands of years."

Gu Qing was stunned for a moment, unable to react.

So, now it’s time for the banquet to show loyalty? Is this a must-have procedure for the Tang Dynasty’s official banquet?

Regardless of whether it is true or not, it is always right to follow it.

Gu Qing also hurriedly raised his cup to pay homage, feeling deeply emotional and feeling depressed.

…………

The host and guest had a great time and went to sleep.

Gu Qing and Xianyu Zhongtong don't have much in common, they only have common interests.

No matter in terms of physical age, psychological age or the thousand-year time difference, the two of them have a deep generation gap, so they can only talk about some topics that men like, such as the romance of Chang'an, the anecdotes of Chang'an courtiers, etc.

After chatting until late at night, we finally dispersed happily.

Gu Qing drank a lot of wine and fell asleep quickly while lying on the bed. Not long after he fell asleep, at midnight, a heartbreaking cry suddenly came from the east end of the village. The cry was like a cuckoo crying blood.

The heartbreaking sound echoed in the quiet night sky.

Gu Qing still didn't wake up until the footsteps and talking outside became louder and louder. Someone patted the door of Gu Qing's house as he passed by, and Gu Qing finally woke up.

Gu Qing, who was woken up, had a bad temper and didn't like anything he saw. He threw on his clothes and went out, staring with red eyes, intending to beat up a few unsighted villagers to establish his authority.

When I opened the door, I found that many torches were lit in the east end of the village. It seemed that the entire village had been awakened, and everyone gathered there.

Gu Qing felt anxious and hurriedly walked over.

Prestige was slowly built up. When Gu Qing arrived at the place where the crowd gathered, everyone voluntarily and consciously moved out of the way. Gu Qing walked in and saw a group of women and children kneeling in the center of the crowd. They were all villagers from the village.

Gu Qing was confused, so he grabbed a familiar villager and asked, "What happened?"

The villager explained with a sad expression: "Someone just came to the village to report that all the men from these families are dead. Last month, the Tubo thieves invaded Yaozhou, Jiannan Road. The men from these families joined the army and died on the battlefield."

Gu Qing was speechless.

Shiqiao Village is a village for the elderly, a village for widows, and a village for orphans. Many young children have no supervision and have grown up eating the food of hundreds of families. When they grow up, the children are unwilling to die in a barren village, so they go out to join the army and eat military rations.

There are also those who get married, have children, leave seeds for the family, and then go out to join the army, such as the families in front of me.

Most of the people who surrendered to the army died in battle, and only a handful of them came back alive, but most of them had their hands and feet broken and were disabled for life, such as Feng Aweng and several other veterans in the village.

The saddest thing in life is that you have to go to the road of death in order to survive.

What's even sadder is that this path was not chosen by them voluntarily. They don't want to be soldiers.

In the middle of the crowd, several middle-aged women knelt on the ground and cried loudly. Ignorant children stood nearby, blinking innocently and looking at the adults around them curiously. They did not understand why the adults suddenly became so sad, and even more so.

I don't understand what I have lost.

The atmosphere was very depressing, and only the women's cries could be heard. Several widows kept comforting them and wiping their tears with them.

Feng Aweng didn't know when he stood beside Gu Qing and sighed deeply.

"There is always bad news like this every few years, but there are always people who continue to join the army. By joining the army, they can earn military rations and exchange for money. If they are lucky enough to survive, they can eventually keep their family fed and clothed. If they die in battle, they can also earn money for their families.

The pension of several hundred yuan can be regarded as his last effort for this family..." Feng Aweng shook his head sadly.

Gu Qing quietly looked at the women kneeling on the ground. They were already widows.

"Feng Aweng, the Tang Dynasty now adopts a recruitment system, right? Can the villagers who surrendered to the army be recalled?"

"There is a time limit for recruiting soldiers. Unless they are dead or disabled and can no longer go to the battlefield, they can be sent back in advance. The old man was sent back because he was disabled. Most villagers go out to join the army for five or ten years. If the time limit is up,

The camp can distribute money and food and allow it to be returned."

Gu Qing pondered for a long time and said slowly: "Feng Aweng, ask your neighbors to send a message to the villagers who have surrendered to the army. If there are people whose time limit has expired, let them come back. The village is now better off. There is no shortage of food and clothing. There is no need to go back."

I sacrificed my life just for one bite of food.”

Feng Aweng nodded: "Okay."

After taking another deep look at the wailing women, Gu Qing sighed, turned and left.

After returning home, Gu Qing couldn't sleep anymore and sat in a daze in front of the dim oil lamp. He sat like this all night.

In the early morning, just after dawn, the sound of crying and howling came from the village again.

Gu Qing hurriedly went out and saw the villagers running towards the east. Not long after, someone came and told Gu Qing that after the funeral last night, a woman hung from a beam and was only discovered early in the morning, leaving behind a five-year-old child.

Maybe it's because the couple loves each other so deeply that they can't bear the pain of losing their husband, or maybe they don't have the courage to continue living. People are dead after all.
Chapter completed!