Do you know? Do you know? Should be green fat and red thin

  As the New Year approaches, Minglan plans to give herself a couplet, with the top line reading "料事如神" and the bottom line reading "铁口直断", and the horizontal inscription reads "半仙".

  That day, after a thorough discussion, Zhang Yu went to Jinling the next day. The situation was unstable at that time, and it was always good to have more soldiers to protect the family and the temple. The Jinling Commandery and the five surrounding Wei camps were all eager to fight, but unfortunately, there were too few enemies to defeat. Zhang Yu was naturally very welcome; after five consecutive banquets with fat geese and ducks, Zhang Yu took leave and returned to Yangzhou.

  "Sister, nonsense! Just say there's no war in the south? Lying on the wall of Jinling for so many days, nothing happened, but the wealthy families inside Jinling City knew about the war outside and were scared to death. In just half a month, my husband has already paid the city protection tax three times! Look, even the servants got 50 taels of silver." Zhang Yu threw a heavy embroidered gold silk bag on the table, sighing, for those who lived off military pay, this was a large sum of money, but the Sheng family's children were not short of money.

  Mr. Li saw that his son's words still showed a desire to go north, and he was at a loss for what to say, breaking out in a cold sweat on this chilly winter day.

  "Second brother, don't be in a hurry." Minglan said leisurely, "Think about it, the war just started last month, refugees are on foot, how can they be faster than horses? Let's wait a bit longer!"

  "Really......?" Chang Yu looked at Minglan with suspicion in his eyes.

  Minglan nodded, then encouraged him with past achievements in a tone similar to that of a book-reading master: "Think back to the year when Emperor Wu personally led the expedition against Wulangha, braving the bitter cold and icy rain for two months at Nuergan Ancient City. He remained calm and composed, ultimately luring Wulangha into underestimating him, deploying all his elite troops, only to be annihilated by Emperor Wu! Second Brother, learning is about being able to defeat a hundred or a thousand people, who knows, maybe one day you'll be able to defeat ten thousand people. 'Patience' is the most important thing!"

  The power of role models is boundless. Chang Yu was stunned and returned to Jinling that night. At dinner time, Li Shi kept putting food in Minglan's bowl, and Yun'er put the two chicken legs originally reserved for pregnant women into Minglan's plate.

  "Niece-in-law, you're really something!" Old Lady Sheng said with a hint of a smile, "This little girl just opens her mouth and wins people over."

  Sheng Wei's expression turned serious as he said, "Not yet. Listening to my niece's words makes sense, these days I've been going around the countryside and towns, inviting the elderly from various big families to have tea with me, asking them not to be extravagant this New Year's, but instead save more grain and firewood in preparation for any unexpected events, after all, things are chaotic outside."

  Sheng Wei felt a sense of foreboding, but three days later, Chang Yu brought back a message: The refugees have arrived.

  Because of the king's secret plot, a large amount of silver and grain was urgently needed for military use. For many years, they had been extorting heavily from the people, and officials at all levels had been sucking the marrow from the bones of the common people. Just as the severe winter arrived, with heavy snowfall, the people were suffering from hunger and cold, unable to bear the hardships. The crowds who had lost their homes could only flee from Anhui Province, thus a large number of refugees rose up and scattered to various provinces such as Jiangsu, Henan, Hubei, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang.

  In the last month of winter in the first year of Chongde, 50,000 refugees from Anhui gathered at the foot of Jinling City. The government opened granaries to distribute food, and wealthy households also set up large soup kitchens, providing firewood and shelter for refugees to spend the winter in civilian homes outside the city.

  Changwu finally had a place to use his skills, as he was afraid of the refugees causing trouble and chaos. Every time the city gate was opened to rescue those in distress, troops were stationed on the side to guard against any potential danger, working day and night without rest. In the second year of Chongde, Yang also welcomed the first wave of refugees at the end of January.

  Fortunately, the Sheng family had made preparations earlier and, together with several other large families in the county, temporarily set up many sheds to accommodate the refugees. They provided porridge twice a day and found some unused cotton quilts and clothes to help them get through the winter.

  Minglan also followed Mrs. Li to the sedan chair to take a look, and after returning, she was sad for a long time. In today's worry-free life, children who grew up in modern times cannot imagine what kind of scene it is: goose feather-like snow, icy frost all over the ground, many old people and children only wearing single-layer clothes, shivering and huddling around small piles of fire to warm themselves, their skin frozen purple, children's hands and faces covered with chilblains, their eyes dull and staring blankly at that bowl of cold thin porridge, as if it was their only hope.

  There was no loud wailing in the hut, only sparse and intermittent sobbing. Mother held the scorching hot child with a fever, barely breathing, unable to cry out even if she wanted to, her weak voice calling out for food, making Minglan's heart knot up into a ball.

  "...back in my hometown, it was hit by a flood, our fields were all flooded, no harvest, nothing to eat, and my younger brother got sick. My parents had to sell...". Xiaotao recalled the vague past, saying very calmly, "I heard from the village uncle that life is still good nowadays, every household has their own land, no need to pay rent. In the previous dynasty's chaotic times, ordinary people didn't have their own land, they were all under the big households! Whenever there was a natural disaster**, if you couldn't afford to pay the taxes and rent, you would have to sell your children, suffer from hunger and cold."

  Ming Lan nodded slightly. The more the Wang Dynasty went on, the more severe the land annexation became. When the peasants could no longer survive, they would overthrow the dynasty and start anew.

  Qin Sang's emotions were also low, and he said in a low voice: "Our family originally had more than 10 mu of land. When the weather was good, our family would go to work on it. But that year, a county magistrate came, and under the pretext of seeking fame and fortune, he demanded money from us. He also took a liking to Silver Flower, the sister from our village, as his concubine. Silver Flower's family refused, so he arrested her father and brother, saying they were disobedient commoners who refused to pay taxes, and threw them in prison where they were tortured. On the third day, Silver Flower entered the county magistrate's mansion. Who knew that her father and brother couldn't withstand the torture and died early in prison? The villagers went to reason with him, but the county magistrate's steward said: 'She's already slept with him, don't make a fuss about it.' Later, Silver Flower smashed her head to death at the entrance of the county government office."

  Minglan's heart sank, it was indeed "a county magistrate who ruins his family and a prefectural governor who destroys his gate". In this era, the happiness of ordinary people is as fragile as thin paper, and a disaster can easily pierce through; Minglan suddenly felt that her life had not been in vain.

  "What does this have to do with our family?" Lüzhī listened for half a day without grasping the key point.

  Yin Hua Jie is the sister-in-law who has not yet entered the door of her brother's house.

  Everyone was solemn.

  Qin Sang stirred the charcoal fire in the stove, and the soft light illuminated her plain face: "Brother was furious, wanting to fight to the death, but was beaten by the bailiffs until he was covered in blood and chased out. Father also got angry and fell ill, and with two men at home unable to work, where would we get so much silver? Grandmother said we couldn't sell the land, that when the men recovered they would still have to farm it. But now it's been sold; as for Silver Flower, sister, brother, and little sister, who knows where they are now?"

  "Tangerine lightly asked: 'Do you still remember what the county magistrate was called?'"

  Qin Sang shook her head, the pom-poms on her hair gently swaying: "I don't remember, I was only five or six years old at that time. All I knew was that when we left, the village chief and the local officials were discussing it, everyone chipped in some silver coins, determined to make our village produce a scholar, so that later on when we were bullied, there would be someone who could speak up for us... Later, I heard that the county magistrate had been impeached, his family confiscated, and he was dismissed from office, exiled and banished, it was wonderful! But unfortunately, Silver Flower's family had already fallen apart, their house and land abandoned, and no one ever mentioned them again."

  Everyone's heart was a little sad, and they were silent for a long time. Qin Sang became lively again, smiled and said: "In the past two years, my family sent a letter through someone, saying that things are getting better at home. My older brothers have all taken wives, my younger brother is studying, and my parents said that when things get better, they will come to redeem me. They say it's not necessary, I'm doing well here, every month I can earn two or three silver coins, more than my father and brothers, and I'll save them up and bring them back home to buy some land."

  Minglan listened quietly to their conversation, but couldn't help asking a sentence at this time: "The family is unwilling to sell and not willing to sell, don't they blame them?"

  Qin Sang smiled slightly and waved her sleeve: "At first, I was resentful, but later I let it go. With a place to live, a father, and brothers, there's hope for the future. Mother also listened to many people's advice before selling me; fortunately, I was able to enter our household, where I wasn't beaten or scolded, and had the good fortune to serve Miss. All these years, I've eaten well and dressed well, and the sisters have all gotten along. What is there to complain about?"

  Minglan couldn't help but feel a little dazed. Qin Sang, who was in the twilight years of his life, didn't count as being useful anymore. His appearance and temperament were both just average, neither as meticulous as Yancao nor as capable and efficient as Lüshi. As a result, his monthly allowance and rewards were also ranked last. However, judging from his tone, he was extremely content with his life. Whenever he talked about his family, he would become even more nostalgic and sentimental. Such a warm, honest, and kind-hearted person was truly hard to come by.

  Minglan saw the kindness and sincerity of the ordinary people at the bottom, they were like the mud on the soles of their feet, humble but real. Minglan liked it in her heart and smiled: "If things really go well at home, you don't need to take silver to redeem, just let them go, I'm sure your parents and uncle have all agreed, and we'll make up for the dowry later!"

  Qin Sang's face turned red with anger and embarrassment, she stomped her foot and said: "Young lady! You can't just talk nonsense like this, go tell Housekeeper Fang about it!"

  Laughter finally dispersed the gloom, and after Minglan told Old Madame, she took out three-quarters of her private savings, and the little maids also contributed some loose silver coins, all of which were used to buy rice, grain, and cotton quilts to relieve those refugees.

  "All these years of saving money have been for nothing, and now you're feeling relieved? Or could it be that without this amount, people outside wouldn't freeze to death?" Old Lady Sheng looked at Minglan with a hint of a smile.

  Minglan nodded seriously: "The granddaughter knows it's a drop in the bucket, but she does her best and does what she can; according to Wu Erge, after the spring begins, the government will arrange for them to either return to their hometown or go to open up new land and take root, hoping they can get through this winter."

  The old lady hugged her little granddaughter, a smile on her face, and softly sighed: "Little fool!"

  In the second year of Chongde, at the end of January, bandits in Anhui's eastern part, Zhejiang's western part, southern Jiangsu and western Jiangsu frequently robbed and plundered refugees, attacked towns with lax defenses, killing people and setting fires wherever they went, doing all sorts of evil. Many refugees had nowhere to go and became bandits.

  Chang Wu and Gan Re Xue Shi several times asked for orders, hoping to lead the Wei Suo soldiers out of the city to suppress the bandits, but were all suppressed by the Jinling Prefecture and the Du Zhi Hui Shi. Now that the swords and spears are rising outside, Jinling is still tightly guarding the city gates and can't even come out to suppress the bandits, where would they dare to open the city to suppress the bandits?!

  Chang Wu's repeated requests for leave were rejected, and in a fit of anger, he took leave and returned home.

  "How many times have I told you, don't be at odds with your superiors, keep a low profile! It's not easy to get by in the official circle!" Sheng Wei worried that his son would offend his superior and immediately scolded him.

  "Dad! How can this be?! My brothers all slammed their fists on the table, smashed their wine cups, and scolded me with wild gestures in front of our superior, but you didn't say a word!" Zhang's neck was stretched out, his face flushed red to the sleeves: "It's precisely because of this that I took leave to come home! Otherwise, how could I have faced my brothers?"

  Minglan comforted him, "Second brother, don't worry, it's not like he's a high-ranking military officer from Jinling, and it's not good to advise too much; Ah, right, how are the battles going outside? It seems that our southern region is still quite peaceful, could it be that King Jing's journey north has been smooth?"

  "He's dreaming!" Chang Wu's face was full of disdain, "That bunch of rabble, all noise and no substance. They're just a mob, as soon as they entered Lu territory they suffered a defeat, their army was cut in half, the rear half retreated to Xuzhou, and again fell into an ambush in the mountains, the front half fled to Zhuangzhou, I reckon that's about it."

  As soon as the words were spoken, everyone in the house relaxed, Sheng Wei and his son exchanged a smile, and finally put down their worries. The old lady counted her rosary with a smile, Li's hands clasped together reciting Amitabha Buddha, Wen's joyful face bustled around serving tea and fruit, while Shu Lan whispered to Ming Lan: "This Jing Wang is really too careless!"

  Minglan patted her chest and sat down at the table, pouring herself a cup of tea, sipping it slowly.

  Chang Yu hurriedly walked around the house in circles, let out a long sigh, and his tone was very desperate: "Ming Lan, it seems you were right, there's no need to return to the capital. Looking at King Jing, he won't make it to the capital, it's all over! Nowadays, those who can stand are all from the Ping Luang army, if I had known earlier, I would have gone to join the army!"

  Sheng Wei saw his son's embarrassed face and changed the subject: "I wonder which route the army took to quell the rebellion this time?"

  Chang Wu stopped and sat down, saying: "It's likely that the Emperor had already taken precautions against the south, and over the past few months, while openly maintaining order in the capital, he secretly deployed half of the five military camps to train in the suburbs. After the northern border was thrown into chaos, the Emperor didn't mobilize this army, but after Prince Jing raised his rebellion flag, the main force quietly marched south and ambushed the rebels at Xuzhou."

  Chang Wu felt a bit relieved in his heart. He was under the jurisdiction of the 3,000-strong camp in Zhongwei, and even if he were in the capital city, he would not be sent to the expedition.

  "Isn't the Fifth Army Camp led by General Gan? It's really Old General Gan." Sheng Wei had done some business with the army a few times, so he knew a bit about the situation in the military.

  "Who would have thought that Chang Wu shook his head: "It's not General Gan, but the emperor's newly appointed general, who was also a noble son in the capital. It is said that the emperor valued him highly when he was still a vassal king, and this time he took the opportunity to promote him. In the future, I'm afraid he will have great prospects."

  Minglan's eyes sparkled as she smiled and poured herself another half cup of tea, saying: "Really? This general has quite the discerning eye."

  At that time, the Eighth Prince was among the many princes, and it can be said that he was a cold stove among cold stoves. He was not as good at literature as the Third Prince, nor as skilled in martial arts as the Fourth Prince. He was not as noble as the Fifth Prince, nor as adept at handling affairs as the Sixth Prince. He was not as favored by the previous emperor as several of his older sons who were born late in life. The only thing he had going for him was that his birth mother was of a lower social status than the others, and yet someone actually thought to invest in this dark horse stock, it's simply Buffet-like.

  Sheng Weiye was also very interested and secretly calculated that he wanted to establish a relationship with this new military noble: "Who is it? Hadn't heard of him before."

  Chang Wu seemed to have given up and sighed: "I heard that his name is Gu Ting Ye."

  Everyone in the house was stunned, none of them had ever heard of this name.

  Minglan held the teacup and looked at it for a good half moment, before swallowing hard and asking cautiously: "This... how come I've never heard of it before? Second Brother, even if military officers don't have to slowly accumulate experience like civil officials, can they really be promoted from being a commoner to a general?"

  Blink of an eye, the old hen has turned into a duck! Three months ago, he was still a heroic outlaw with the gang, how did he become a great general who pacifies the country? Is this really military-civil cooperation?

  The morale of the Chang Wu spirit has been greatly boosted. Since the rebellion of King Jing, he himself, a veteran elder, has always been pointed out by his younger sister, and has not been recognized as saying something precise and reasonable. Today, he finally got the opportunity to show off his brother's knowledge.

  He let out a long sigh and said loudly: "Sister, I didn't know that. General Gu was originally the commander of the 12th battalion of the Imperial Guard in the Zheng Qi Book."

  "This is just a nominal position, many young masters of the capital's noble families have it too, why don't they become great generals?" Minglan almost laughed, her supposed suitor, Liang Huan Gongzi, also held this position.

  Chang Wu's tone was somewhat envious, and he quoted the report from the Jinling army: "The key is that General Guo has been highly favored by the emperor. Since His Majesty ascended to the throne, he has led the Imperial Guard as the commander of the Five Armies, and now leading the army to quell the rebellion was also done with a secret edict from the emperor beforehand."

  Minglan was speechless, clicked her tongue, and forced a dry laugh, then walked over to refill Chang Yu's tea cup. Her face was clever: "Second Brother, you really know a lot, no wonder Father often praises Second Brother for having insight."

  He smiled with a long face, feeling much more comfortable; this little sister is lovely in this way, and in the future, if her brother-in-law dares to be lazy, she will definitely use all her strength to 'beat' him.

  The author has something to say: Everyone, stop guessing about CP already, everything will be fine; next chapter returns to the capital city.

  A buddy recommended a domestic film "The Long Engagement", which is said to be one of the few touching movies in recent years. After watching it in the afternoon, I cried a lot, it's really moving.