In the evening, after dinner, Qin Faming squatted in the courtyard, looking at the slanting sun on the horizon. My family has been here for several generations, and I finally have today, how easy is it to leave? But what if you don't leave? Listening to the statements of several people, this time the Khitan repaired Zhuozhou, and used the people who were recruited very ruthlessly. It's the hottest time again, and I don't know how many people die in a day.

In his own family, there are four people in a family, and there is only one male in himself. It's not that I'm afraid of death, but that I die, and the family is scattered. How difficult it is for a poor family to start a family, and how willing to disperse like this.

Watching the sun set down the mountain, Qin Faming sighed. When he returned to the house, he said to his wife and daughter, "I'll go to Meng Xuexue's house and see what he has to say." At this time, it's not just our family who is having a hard time. ”

After speaking, he went out of the room and walked towards Liu Lihe next to him. Meng Xuexue lives by the water, teaching a few naughty children in the village to eat together. He was a rare scholar in the neighborhood, and he was very prestigious among the people, and whenever there was a major matter, he would go to his house to discuss it.

When he arrived at the door of Meng Xuexue's house, it was not yet dark, and Meng Xuexue's wife carried a goose and was slaughtering it there. Seeing Qin Faming coming, he hurriedly got up to greet him.

Qin Faming returned the salute and asked, "Dare to ask my sister-in-law, is the pedant at home?" ”

The woman said, "Today there are a few guests in the house, and the head of the house asked me to slaughter the goose, and a few people are drinking. Big brother, please go to the house. ”

Qin Faming thanked him and went straight to Meng Xuexue's house. I saw a few people sitting with Meng Xueyu drinking tea and hurriedly saluting.

Meng Xue said: "Brother Qin came well, it just so happened that we were drinking at night. ”

Qin Faming squatted on the ground on the side and said, "I had dinner just now, and I came to the scholar's house to talk about some gossip." All you have to do is drink and I'll be here. It's hot now, so it's time to cool off with the evening wind. ”

How does Meng Xue agree? The son who was ordered to the side moved a broken wooden stool and let Qin Faming sit down.

After drinking a cup of tea, Deng Zhaoren on the side said: "In this conscription, I heard people in Zhuozhou say that they are very ruthless. When the morning dawned, soldiers with whips in their backs were rushing to build a wall with dirt. If one is not careful, he will be beaten to death by whipping. The Khitan people do not heal, and if they can't get through it, there are many people who lose their lives. It's scary! ”

Meng Xue said: "The Khitan people have never seen this before. In the past, even though there were occasional tattoo conscriptions, they were quickly stopped, and I have never heard of using people to death. At the beginning of this year, the Chongyuan Rebellion was quelled, and I heard that the Song people took the opportunity to seize Shuozhou. The saint personally led his troops to attack, but in the end he returned in vain. I think that this defeat scared the Khitans, and as soon as they arrived at the farm, they immediately renovated the city, for fear that the Song people would come over. ”

Wei Xin, who was drinking tea, said: "The Song people have always been unable to defeat the Khitans, why are they afraid this time?" ”

Meng Xue said: "I couldn't beat it before, but now it's different." Didn't you talk about Captain Du of the meandering road? In a few years, he seized thousands of miles of land from the Khitan and the party, and fought westward to the Western Regions. Last year, the Song Dynasty wiped out the party, hundreds of thousands of troops pulled out their hands, and there were no worries, how could the Khitans stop it? If it weren't for that, how could the Khitans rush to repair the city! ”

Qin Faming said: "What the pedant said is. I have also heard that Du Taiwei is a jinshi of the Southern Dynasty, and he is naturally fierce and invincible in the world. His army of 100,000 is a rare fierce man. The battle array was dressed in iron armor, and it was invulnerable and invincible. Encountering this kind of rare figure who can set the country and be able to defend the country with martial arts, how can the Khitan people not be frightened! ”

Meng Xue said: "Taiwei Du is indeed a natural god general, but unfortunately I haven't seen it." The Khitan and the Song Dynasty were opposed to each other, and those of us were living in the gap between them. Now that the Song people are strong, how can the confrontation last? The Khitan people must have thought the same way, so they conscripted all of us into service, regardless of life or death. When the Song people came north, they would inevitably go to Zhuozhou, and I don't think the Khitans might be able to hold it. ”

Several people said yes together. Zhuozhou is the post road of the Song Dynasty and the Khitan, and after crossing the Juma River, it will be smooth all the way. Moreover, there is a river around to transport grain, which is a place where soldiers are used.

Du Zhongxiao was in Hequ Road for several years, defeated the Khitan and the party in a row, and then restored the Western Regions to the west, and his popularity among the people was growing. Of course, most of the stories they heard were legends, and many of them passed through the mouths of the storytellers in the tiles, and they were far from the truth. They don't need to know the real situation, they just need to know that now that the Song Dynasty has the upper hand, it will be good to come to attack the Khitan.

Wei Xin sighed: "It's bitter. We've only had a good life for a few years, and we've been at war again! ”

Meng Xue said: "How do you say that? Although we are under the rule of the Khitan, we are Han people after all. There is no way to survive in order to live, if you recognize a thief as your father, isn't it better to be a beast? It is a good thing that the Song Dynasty has a strong army, if we can recover Yanyun, we will return to the rule of the Central Plains, and we will do it if we die! ”

Deng Zhaoren said: "That's what I said. But the war is together, it is difficult to survive in the chaos, and after all, it is the life of the small people. ”

Hearing this, several people showed sad faces. In the past, the Song and Khitan confronted each other, and these two losing households living in the cracks were surrounded by both sides, and their lives were good. Especially after the alliance of Lanzhou, it has indeed lived a good life for decades. As soon as the relationship between the Song Dynasty and the Khitan was strained, such days were gone. In the future, this area will inevitably be an area for both sides to fight, and there will be a good life for each other.

Qin Faming said: "Don't talk about this, let's just say that the imperial court has recently conscripted and repaired Zhuozhou." My son is eleven years old, and he is considered a single household, and Li Zheng said yesterday that he will also go to the service. I heard what you said about Xiuzhuozhou is so scary, once there are three long and two short, what can the family do? ”

Meng Xuezhu waved his hand when he heard this: "Don't talk about you, my family is also a single family, and I was also requisitioned." ”

Qin Faming was taken aback: "Even the pedants have been recruited? Isn't that all the men we have here being recruited? Oops, I've lived for dozens of years, and it's the first time I've encountered something like this! In the past, we were a single household here, and at most we paid some money and grain, how could we have been levied! ”

Meng Xue said: "This is the case this time. I heard that it is two Ding Zheng one, three Ding Zheng two, and single Ding is also levied. Speaking of which, only two households are a little better, and in other families, the men are almost in the light. ”

Qin Faming didn't know about this yet, and couldn't help but be surprised when he heard it. This levy really wiped out all the men in the people. In addition, the death rate of Zhuozhou is high, and the whole rule is not like a disaster.

On the other hand, Meng Xuexue's wife boiled the goose and brought it up. I made another pot of village brew and let everyone drink.

While drinking, he talked about the recent labor, and everyone thought it was unusual. Most of these people are not many men in the family, and they feel that the impact of this conscription is too great, so they went to Meng Xuexue's house to inquire about the news. I don't want to be more frightened and feel that the situation is critical.

After drinking a few glasses of wine, Qin Faming said: "I heard that yesterday, after Mo Laosi's family heard that they were going to Zhuozhou to repair the city, the whole family moved out overnight. The villagers talked about it, and they all said that they had fled to the other side of the river. ”

Meng Xuezhu nodded: "I also heard what people said." Mo Laosi has relatives on the south bank, and there are people who take refuge there. The Song people exempted Xiongzhou from paying taxes, and the two losers were not levied as the former servants, and their lives were much better than ours. ”

Deng Zhaoren drank a glass of wine, thought for a while, and whispered: "Do you think that we, the people on the north bank of the river, fled to the south bank, what will the Song people do to us?" If the Khitan went to pursue it, would they send people back? ”

Meng Xuexue sneered: "If it was before, the Khitan soldiers were strong, and most of the Song people would have sent them back." Now it's different from the past, the Song people are looking for the bad luck of the Khitan people, how can they send people back? If it's a good time, it's possible to pay for settlement. ”

Deng Zhaoren looked at Wei Xin, stretched out his neck forward, and whispered: "If that's the case, how about we go all the way, fight for our lives, and escape to the south bank?" This time, many people died in Zhuozhou. We fled to the South Shore, no matter how hard it was, there was still a life! ”

Meng Xuezhi looked at a few people, drinking and watching coldly.

Qin Faming said: "I just don't know what it's like to flee to the south bank, and I hesitate in my heart." If you go to Zhuozhou to repair the city, you will die for a lifetime, so it is better to flee to the south bank to fight for a way out. Just like my family, if something happens to me, how can I live my life? ”

Wei Xin sighed: "Which one is not the same?" My family has been sick for months, and if there is no me in the house, everything will be over. ”

Zhu Zhaoren looked at the two of them and whispered, "Why don't we investigate and find an opportunity to escape to the other side of the river?" ”

After speaking, he said to Meng Xuexue: "Xuexue, your family is also Shanding, and if there is an accident, your sister-in-law and children will lose their backing." ”

Meng Xue said: "If you flee to the south bank, if you are caught by the government, it will be a matter of losing your head!" ”

When Zhu Zhaoren heard this, he couldn't help laughing and said, "What are you talking about?" If we don't run away, we're really going to lose our heads! ”

Wei Xin also said: "I heard many people say that going to Zhuozhou to repair the city is a life of nine deaths!" It was obviously a dead end, and we didn't run away, but we didn't just take our own lives, but we also harmed our families. ”

"Drink, drink!" Meng Xue didn't answer, just raised his glass.

After drinking a few glasses of wine, Wei Xin said: "Pedant, you have always been a happy person, how can you swallow and vomit today?" In three days, we will be conscripted to Zhuozhou, and time is not waiting for anyone! ”

Zhu Zhaoren said: "That's right." We, the countrymen, have no knowledge and are not pedantic. Now in a critical moment, the pedant helps us to come up with an idea, good or bad, and leave a dead life. Now in the summer, a ferry boat can cross the river, just look at how the Song people look at it. ”

Meng Xue stroked the wine bowl, was silent for a while, and said, "Do you really have this thought?" ”

Zhu Zhaoren said: "How can you joke with your life!" Pedants have a way, even if they are. ”

Meng Xuezhu looked at a few people, nodded and said, "I have an acquaintance who works in the official office of Xiongzhou. If you can be trusted, how about I ask him to find out the news? ”