Family!

The journey home is long.

Three horses were dressed along the official road in the middle of the sorghum fields, and on the saddles of the two horses in front sat two soldiers, an officer and a soldier, the officer did not look very old, at most thirty years old, the soldier was surprisingly young, he looked only sixteen or seventeen years old at most, perhaps a teenager who had falsely declared his age to join the army.

The young cavalryman led a horse behind his saddle, and on the saddle was a shelf, and the black cloth on the bracket was tied with rope, so that no one could see what was on the trailer.

Neither of the two soldiers spoke as they walked through the sorghum field, and the atmosphere was a little strange, especially the officer, who, despite his spine, hung his head and looked listless.

Occasionally, the officer would look up into the distance, as if to see how far he was still to reach his destination, and although he seemed a little anxious, he had no intention of urging his horse to speed up.

And the soldier followed him without saying a word, and sometimes, he would look around, but the tall sorghum of this man blocked his view, so that he could not see anything in the distance.

The two of them walked like this, without saying a word.

But wherever the official road of the Ming Dynasty is, there must be a toll station.

According to the principle of taking from the people and giving it to the people, the tolls collected by the toll booths on this official road are all used to repair the road, but in fact, I am afraid that only God knows whether the amount of silver collected every year is really used to build the road.

However, there are also many people in the toll booths, such as the old post guards, who not only work in the service stations on both sides of the official road, but also collect fees in the toll booths.

"What kind of car is this, it's ten feet nine inches, and it's still ten feet ......."

"Ten feet and nine inches have to be paid according to the eleven-foot car, who made you lose an inch......"

Such shouts echoed in the toll booth, tax collectors, station staff and vendors will always fight, the world's toll stations are like this, tax collectors, station staff want to levy fees according to the law, those vendors naturally do not want to pay, do everything possible to pay less, so, the quarrel between the two sides is always inevitable.

In the midst of everyone's shouting, the station member, who had been arguing with the vendor for a long time and had already been in a rage, shouted loudly when he saw the two officers and soldiers in red uniforms coming.

"You guys, you two, say you, wait a minute, go to the back and line up......"

But the officer on horseback only glanced at him, and did not mean to stop at all, but rode directly towards the passage next to the toll booth.

As soon as they left, the people around them immediately shouted.

"Ouch, now you can see it, these people in gray clothes are bullying us!"

"No, it's kind of to stop them!"

"The one who is a soldier is a ......"

"It's not, it's okay now, when I meet a soldier, I pretend to be grandchildren one by one......"

Without using the surrounding vendors, Li Deliang went straight over there and stopped the two people who wanted to go over.

"Tell you to wait, didn't you hear?"

As soon as he said this, the young soldiers behind him unceremoniously rushed over.

"Wait a fart, what does this sign say, soldiers have priority pass, are you blind!"

The young soldier pointed to a sign on the side, which not only announced the amount of tolls levied by vehicles of various sizes, but also clearly wrote the words "Priority for military personnel".

"Soldiers first, then when the score is also scored, don't you see that there is a busy time,"

was so frightened by the young cavalry, the station member who knew that he was at a loss shouted again.

"Pay the money, pay the money, three horses, a total of ......"

Before he could finish speaking, Tian Cheng over there suddenly ran over and kicked him.

"What the hell, are you blind?"

Then Tian Cheng immediately apologized to the officer on horseback.

"Sir, I'm sorry, he doesn't know the rules......"

Rules, what rules?

Li Deliang, who had been kicked, was about to ask, but when he raised his eyes, he noticed that the saddle carriage of the horse behind him was covered with black cloth.

The face turned pale in an instant, and as soon as his legs even weakened, the man knelt down.

"Yes, I'm sorry to ......"

While making amends, he kowtowed his head.

The originally noisy toll booth had quieted down, and everyone looked at the three riders and the black cloth on the horseback.

"What ...... this?"

As soon as a vendor spoke, someone pulled his sleeve.

"Don't shout, it's an escort."

Convoys.

Most people are unfamiliar with convoys, a phrase that has appeared in the newspapers only in recent months, and the task of these convoys is to deliver the ashes of fallen officers and soldiers to their homes. The escort team is composed of officers and soldiers left behind by various units, and it is often composed of such an officer and a soldier.

In the past few months, such escorts have always appeared on official roads in the north and south of the country, returning the ashes of fallen officers and soldiers to their families. Naturally, it also appeared in the newspapers, and some people learned about the escort team from the newspapers, and some people simply did not know anything about it.

Just like Li Deliang, although he didn't know, he knew that he had made a big mistake. That's why I knelt down to apologize. And the surrounding vendors did not dare to speak loudly, for fear of disturbing the undead, which was the minimum etiquette, not to mention, these people died for them.

The officer on horseback, his face still did not change, he barely reacted, just glanced forward, and then said indifferently.

"Let go of the gates."

From beginning to end, the officer did not look at Li Deliang.

He's tired!

In the past half a month, he has sent nine comrades-in-arms home, this is the last one, and a camel rack can hold up to twelve urns. The experience of sending nine comrades-in-arms home was a kind of torture for him, and every time, he had to face the tearful family members of his comrades-in-arms.

He couldn't stand it.

After sending his comrades home for the first time, he even sat by the river and yelled that he would rather go to the front line, even if he was blown to pieces by a mine, and did not want to send the ashes of his comrades home again.

The taste is too unpleasant.

"If you don't say anything, you will succeed and your bones will wither."

It was also at this time that he knew why His Majesty insisted on letting the officers of the headquarters send the ashes of the fallen officers and soldiers home, and only then did he know that this box of ashes was never a number, but a family, and the urn contained the son of the parents, the wife of the woman, and the father of the children. Only in this way did we know the cruelty of war, and we knew that when commanding a battle, we must be cautious, and not let the brothers die in vain for the sake of personal honor.

The death of every brother means the breakdown of a family.

After sending this one, you can go back......

The officer sighed, and after leaving the toll booth, he and his subordinates continued on their way, and after an hour, they had already left the official road and came to a market, where a group of children were playing at the bridge at the entrance of the town. When the children saw officers and soldiers coming, they stopped laughing, and some of them even looked at the man on horseback with anticipation, expecting to see their father or brother.

"Xiao Wu, is your brother back, isn't your brother riding a big horse?"

"His horse can't be ridden home, it's the officer's horse."

As the children were talking, the officer who had come to the bridge on horseback jumped off his horse, and then sorted out his appearance with his subordinates, and even took out a cloth towel, poured water from the water bag and washed his face, and then led the horse to the town.

The fingers of these two officers and soldiers attracted Zhang Kunli's attention, and as a showman, he vaguely felt that these two officers and soldiers must have something to do when they came here. As soon as they crossed the bridge, he met them.

"In Xia Zhang Kunli, it is a local talent in Zhangji, I don't know what the chief is doing here?"

"Excuse me, where does Master Zhang Yiming and Master Zhang live?"

"You mean Master Zhang......"

As soon as he heard that he was looking for Zhang Yiming, Zhang Xiucai's politeness took away two points, that Zhang's family is just an ordinary honest family in the town, that is, the boss is a little promising, I heard that he is a platoon commander in the official army, that is, a martial artist.

"Xiao Wu, I'm looking for you ......"

Suddenly, Zhang Xiucai's eyes opened, looking at the horse at the back, his eyes widened, and he said softly.

"Zhang, Brother Zhang is gone?"

"Hmm!"

Wang Yuzhi nodded, and then said to Zhang Xiucai.

"What about the village chief? Come with him! ”

The people of the town saw it, and the people saw the box covered with black cloth on the saddle rack of the horse. Before the chief of the security guard came, someone ran to Zhang's house to ventilate the news, so when Wang Yuyi and his party came to the door of Zhang's house, there were already many people standing in front of the door, an old woman cried and shouted "my son", although someone was supporting, but still slumped on the ground, an old man with snow-white hair, also full of tears, if it was not for someone to support, I am afraid that he would also sit on the ground, he watched the two officers and soldiers come over. watched with amazement as they removed the urn tied with a white cloth from their horses.

Holding the urn in both hands, Sun Qiang made his expression as solemn as possible, he followed behind the commander, and walked in front of the father of his fallen comrade-in-arms.

"May I ask if it's Master Zhang Yiming? I am Wang Yuzhi, captain of the 57th Battalion, and I am very sorry to inform you that Sergeant Zhang Ping, the son of Linggongzi, was killed on the front line......"

Standing in front of Zhang Yiming, Wang Yuzhi said in a nutshell. Then he took the urn from Sun Qiang's hand and handed it out respectfully.

"My son, my son......"

Zhang Yiming, who took the urn, could no longer control himself, he immediately cried loudly, his face full of old tears. And Xiao Wu, who originally came with him, seemed to understand and know, and when he was crying, he kicked Wang Yuzhi with his feet.

"You return my brother, return my brother, return my brother, return my brother to me......"

Wang Yuzhi just stood there and let him kick and beat, and finally Xiao Wu, who was crying, was pulled away by the person next to him. Then he didn't tidy up his appearance, but took out an envelope from his pocket and said.

"This is the pension of the prince Ling, a total of one hundred and twenty-six taels, in addition, the local government will allocate Sergeant Zhang Ping's meritorious land to his heir in the county within three months, and the children of the bereaved family will also get preferential treatment when they study in the county school and government school......"

One hundred and twenty-six taels, this is Zhang Ping's military salary for a year, in fact, it is not much. For the families of the fallen officers and soldiers, the real bereavement pension is the tax-exempt meritorious land, and the number of acres of land varies according to different ranks. For example, Zhang Ping is a sergeant, he can get 200 acres of meritorious land, and he can enjoy tax exemption privileges until his wife dies and his children reach adulthood, and if it is inherited by his parents, the tax exemption rights will also be until the death of his parents.

Two hundred acres of land is enough for his family to live a worry-free life, but this is often not what they need. They need to be their own family.

"We don't want money, I want my brother, you give my brother back to me......"

Xiao Wu was still crying there, and the people around him also had tears in their eyes, and some women also cried.

Who wants that money?

Zhang Yiming looked at the envelope that was delivered to his hand, his face became more and more sad, and his lips trembled.

"This money, this money, you, how can you let me spend it......"

Holding the envelope containing the money, Zhang Yiming muttered.

"This, this boss's life......"

There's money!

It's fate!

The money that his son who had raised for twenty-three years in exchange for his life, he couldn't hold it in his hand, he looked at the envelope, then at the officer in front of him, and then he cried and said.

"You take this money back, give it, buy it for the brothers, buy cigarettes and ......"

"Master Zhang, I can't, this money is Ling Gongzi's pension, if you don't collect it, I won't complete the task, and I can't explain it to my superiors."

Wang Yuzhi shook his head again and again and said. He didn't expect such a change, and he turned to the chief again.

"If you really can't help it, you will collect it first, and wait for ......"

"No,"

Zhang Yiming shouted loudly.

"Chief Bao, please use this money to buy cigarettes and wine, buy the best, you take it back and smoke it for the brothers, just, just say yes, it is Zhang Ping who invited the brothers to ......"

As he spoke, Zhang Yiming cried again.

"Master Zhang, this, this is Zhang Ping's pension, it can't be like this, it can't be like this, it can't be ...... like this"

Wang Yuzhi, who originally wanted to say that it was bad, still couldn't say it,

"This money is my son's life, how do you let me spend it, let me spend it, you tell me, how can I spend it......"

Zhang Yiming howled loudly, that's not money! That's fate! It was his son's life.

"I can't ......"

As soon as Wang Yuzhi, whose eyes were red, wanted to refuse, he heard Zhang Yiming roar.

"You can't, if you carry him back, just carry it back......"

In the end, the money still turned into cigarettes, it is the best paper cigarette in Beizhili, a pack costs fifty wen, and hundreds of cigarettes are piled on the camel rack, looking at the smoke that is loaded on the camel rack, Wang Yuzhi, who has been restraining his feelings for many days, suddenly cried loudly, he couldn't stand it anymore.

"Ah......h

Wang Yuzhi, who was crying loudly, just sat there, sitting on the side of the road, Sun Qiang had already cried into a tearful person, and he didn't even dare to look at the smoke. That's the life of a comrade-in-arms......

(Pensions, cigarettes, is a real thing.) 5 Mao Yi's solidarity cigarettes, 500 yuan pension. ）

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