Wei Han extinguished the fire and came to her: "What are you thinking?" Very happy. ”

"Huh? I'm thinking that in the future, when we go out to enjoy the mountains and rivers, I'll leave the cooking errand to you. ”

"Okay."

Xia Chen leaned his head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat, and sighed for a while: "It's time to go back, I still have a lot of things to arrange today." ”

"Didn't you say you'd leave two days later?"

"Yes, but today's events were predetermined."

Wei Han stood up: "I also have to go to the palace, let's go." ”

In the next two days, Wei Han would come to her when he had a little free time, and he was like a fart.

Wei Han left very late this night, Xia Chen thought that he was going to leave tomorrow, and he was reluctant to give up for the first time in his heart. In the past, when she thought of going to the Western Regions, she could see many new people and things, and she longed for the sky to light up soon, but this time she hoped that there would be a heavy rain tomorrow, so that she could stay for one more day.

Looking at the bright moonlight, she took out the wind god slash, I really hope that this knife can call the wind and rain like the words engraved on the knife.

"Chen'er, haven't slept yet?" Yueniang came over and asked.

"Can't sleep."

Yueniang smiled: "Chen'er, I see that you and Wei Gongzi have become a little different in the past two days, is there anything good?" ”

"A good thing?" Xia Chen didn't understand too much.

"yes, you two have been awkward for a long time, and these two days suddenly seem like ...... You can't be happy with each other, naturally there are good things to be so happy? ”

Xia Chen was stunned, they were so obvious! "It's fine. It's just a bit of a misunderstanding. ”

Yueniang nodded: "That's good, to be honest, I haven't seen you smile like this for a long time." ”

"Yueniang, I have to go tomorrow. Let's rest first. Xia Chen said that Chong Yueniang shook her hand and returned to the room, she was really afraid that Yueniang would find something if she thought about it again, she had told herself whether a woman was in love at a glance, and she really had to be careful in the future, but that was also two or three months later.

Wei Han didn't come to see her off the next day, this was what they said in advance, and they said goodbye no matter what. It's always heartbreaking.

Riding his horse on the road, Xia Chen found that he had returned to his heart like an arrow at this time. Originally, in order not to attract attention, she only chose a very ordinary horse, but now she regrets it a little.

Except for the first time I found a caravan. Later, she was alone on several trips to the Western Regions, so that she would be faster and less likely to be targeted by bandits, but despite this, she still encountered many unexpected dangers.

The further north you go, the stronger the autumn mood becomes. Several villages of trees fall and reeds are broken, and a few maple trees fall with red leaves. When the lonely bird goes, the sky is wide. The sunset is bright and the mountains are low.

It was dusk. Xia Chen, who had been in a hurry for seven or eight days, came to a small village on the border of Qingzhou, she could have spent the night in the county seat, but she wanted to go early and return early, and she remembered that she had spent the night here two years ago, so she hurried a little more.

As soon as she entered the village, her heart sank suddenly, and the already poor village became even more dilapidated, and the few barking dogs seemed weak and listless.

Come to the door of the old couple who stayed overnight last time. She knocked on the door a few times but no one answered, and with a gentle push the door opened. Most of the three adobe huts had collapsed. The remaining room has also been tilted so badly that it looks like it is in danger of collapsing at any moment.

Fortunately, there was a little light in the room, Xia Chen came to the door of the house and knocked twice again, and then heard a cough from the house, followed by an angry scolding: "You people who eat people and don't spit out bones, take my old life." ”

Xia Chen hesitated slightly: "Old man, I am passing by and have come to spend the night." ”

After a while, a yellow-skinned child of about seven or eight years old opened the door and looked at her timidly: "Aren't you a rent collector?" ”

Xia Chen looked at his thin little face, which seemed to have only a pair of eyes left, and felt sour, took out a steamed bun from the baggage he was carrying and handed it to the child: "I'm here to visit Uncle Zhang." ”

The child looked at the two steamed buns, and his eyes flashed with a glint that was almost covetous, but then he lowered his head and put his hands behind his back: "I don't want you to starve to death." His voice choked.

Xia Chen was stunned: "How could I starve to death?" ”

The child sobbed and said, "I, my father and my little sister are starving to death, and my mother gave me half and half a chaff cake before she died." ”

At this time, an old man with gray hair walked out with a piece of wood, he looked at Xia Chen for a moment, and there was a hint of surprise in his eyes: "You...... You are? ”

Xia Chen nodded: "Uncle Zhang, I'm Xia Chen." "I didn't expect that it had only been more than a year, and Uncle Zhang seemed to be ten years old, and his already extremely thin body now looked like only skin and bones.

"Yes, it's Xia Gongzi! Enter the house. ”

Xia Chen nodded and stepped into the threshold, but felt a musty smell, she couldn't help but wonder for a while, the autumn is high and cool, and the autumn in the north is mostly dry, how can there be such a heavy musty smell in this house?

When she saw a broken mat rolled up on the couch, and the gray hair exposed, her stomach churned.

Uncle Zhang took a broken bowl and scooped some water for him: "Young Master Xia, you must be tired from coming from afar, drink saliva first to catch your breath, and then I will send you to live at Lao Wu's house." ”

Where can Xia Chen still drink this water. "Uncle Zhang, how did this become like this in this family?"

Uncle Zhang sat on the edge of the couch and sighed: "The imperial court increased the tax by 20% last year and this year, plus the original 50%, and there is still a deficit if there is no half grain of grain left after planting a year, and the landlord keeps increasing the rent, and the village of 100 people is now almost half starving to death." ”

Xia Chen knew that the so-called fractions were not calculated by looking at the harvest of the people, and the base was reported by officials from all over the country. Generally speaking, thirty percent of the tax is not in the event of natural disasters, and the people can barely go hungry, and this seventy percent tax is really life-threatening. And the farther away from the capital, the more unscrupulous the local officials are to exploit the people as much as they can, and she has been deeply touched along the way.

"Uncle Zhang, who is this child?" She put the steamed bun in her hand on the table and took out the two remaining parts of the bag together.

Uncle Zhang handed a steamed bun to the child: "Eat, you can still eat a good meal before you die." After that, he sighed heavily: "He is a neighbor's family, and he is the only one left in the family, and everyone else is starving to death." ”

Xia Chen was stunned: "Uncle Zhang, what do you rely on to live now?" ”

Uncle Zhang glanced at the child: "The grass roots and bark have been eaten up, and it looks like winter is coming, and we are afraid that we will not be able to survive this year." ”

Xia Chen took out an ingot of ten taels of silver and a few pieces of broken silver and handed them to Uncle Zhang: "You should take these for emergency first." ”

Uncle Zhang excused himself repeatedly: "I can't help it, I can't do it." ”

"Take it."

Uncle Zhang knelt down with tears in his eyes: "Master Xia, it's useless for you to give me more silver, every family has no food to eat." The government does not allow anyone to leave the village, and those who force debts come to the door every day, and where they collect rent, it is clear that they are robbing. ”

Xia Chen said in surprise: "Don't leave the village? Is it too much to whitewash! ”

"Of course."

Xia Chen saw that the child choked with tears because he ate too quickly, but he kept stuffing steamed buns into his mouth, and the anger that had been suppressed for a long time rose from the bottom of his heart, what kind of world is this? These people have worked hard all their lives but can't even eat a full meal, and they are even starved to death! And their blood and sweat have fattened a bunch of corrupt officials and evil officials.

"Oh no, what's the wind!" Uncle Zhang said, pulling the child up with one hand and pushing Xia Chen out of the door with the other.

Before Xia Chen could calm down from his anger, the person had been pushed out of the door, and at this moment, the house suddenly collapsed! She subconsciously took a few steps back, but by the time she tried to save someone, it was too late. (To be continued......)