Yingzhou City in February, if it is put aside, it must also be the time when the green willow branches are swaying in the wind, but over the years, the winter is getting longer and colder day by day, even if it is already February, but there are still snowflakes floating in the air, and the snow seems to be coming like winter, which only makes this spring look a little bit of winter.

Yingzhou City is just a small city in the north of the Huai River, and even the bricks wrapped on the city wall are only wrapped in the Zhengde period, after all, after Huaibei from the Yellow River to seize the Huai River into the sea, because of the siltation of the riverbed in the lower reaches of the Huai River, the Huai River lost its estuary, so the entire Huai River basin is waterlogged, and this former land of fish and rice has become a barren land prone to drought and flooding, and the local people are also quite poor.

Although the people are poor, the culture and education here are still prosperous, and there have been many talents in the Ming Dynasty, and there have been officials and military officials, but Chongzhen has been trapped in Yingzhou for eight years, and the damage brought to this small city has not been restored even now - the local gentry and scholars have been killed or captured, and I don't know how many once high-ranking families have fallen into ordinary people's homes, and I don't know how many wealthy families have fallen into abject poverty. Naturally, the cultural and educational atmosphere here has not been overcome, and even the former seowon has been abandoned for many years, and it will take a long time for the impact of the war on the local area to recover.

Next to the street of the Great East Gate, under the root of the city wall, the blacksmith shop according to the city wall hangs a banner with the word "Li" written on the door, the blacksmith shop is facing the road in front of the Great East Gate, the road is paved with bricks, even if it rains, there will be no mud, and because of this, this road has always been the most lively place in Yingzhou City.

The shelves in front of the blacksmith shop are full of hoes, shovels and other ironware, among which there are also waist knives, weapons such as knives, simple knives, and even a few guns, after all, the Ming Dynasty never restricts the people from holding knives and weapons, even firearms ordinary people can also hold them at will, and the government also encourages the people to hold weapons, especially firearms, and even now in the civil has begun to appear in the military fifteen-type firecrackers similar to firecrackers, because of the use of flint fire, therefore, most of the people call this kind of firecrackers "stone hair", However, in this blacksmith shop, there seems to be only a well-made pipe.

The sound of "clanging" was heard from time to time in the blacksmith shop, and inside the shop, because the iron furnace was burning, it was much hotter inside than outside, and even when the snow was falling, the room was still quite warm.

Inside the shop, a tall and sturdy man in his thirties was beating iron with a young man with a hammer, although it was winter, but both of them were only wearing short clothes, and even so, the two of them looked like they were sweating like rain. With the hammer wielded by the two of them, the sweat on their chests and foreheads flowed, and the exposed chest muscles trembled even more.

This man who is striking iron is Li Mingren, his ancestors were originally Yingzhou Weijun households, although it is only a hereditary hundred households, but because the Li family gradually attaches importance to the education of their children, the Li family has also produced a few jinshi, even as a side branch of the family is considered rich, when he was young, he even studied and entered the school.

However, all this was changed in the eighth year of Chongzhen, although Li Mingren's father was a widow, but when the city fell, because he refused to surrender to the thief, he was killed by the rogue, and his mother also threw himself into the well. Although Li Mingren, who was only nine years old at the time, escaped and saved his life, his family was gone, because the title deed was burned along with the family house, and some people in the sect deceived him as a child of a few years old and took away his family property. He was taken in by the Wang blacksmith when he was living on the street, and Li Mingren in the social science of the year became a small blacksmith in the blacksmith shop, and finally became the son-in-law of the Wang family, although he was not the son-in-law of the Wang family, but he also inherited the blacksmith shop.

After more than 20 years of iron, even if he is nearly forty years old, Li Mingren is still full of strength and tendon flesh all over his body, and this body alone has long disappeared from the appearance of the thin little scholar in previous years, and it seems that there is no difference from ordinary blacksmiths.

But everyone on the street knows that this blacksmith writes well, and even he has no bad hobbies, except for buying and reading books, what books does a blacksmith need to read, but he not only reads it himself, but also sends his son to social studies. According to him, children must study if they want to be successful.

Perhaps Li Mingren has long forgotten what his father looked like, but the mark left on him by his father cannot be erased, and his father once told him that everything is not as important as studying, and it is precisely because of this that he believes that if he wants to get ahead, he must study.

Clang! With the rhythm of the iron, the father and son in the blacksmith shop swung their hammers to beat the fiery red iron and turned it into a farm tool.

"Dad, the child has thought about it, when the ice melts and the boat on the river is open, the child will take a boat to Qinghe, and then try to see if he can be admitted to Qinghe Academy!"

Li Yuqian, who played iron, was Li Mingren's son and his eldest son, although he was the son-in-law of the Wang family, but Wang Blacksmith treated him well, not only raised him, but also married his daughter to him, and left this blacksmith shop to Li Mingren, except for letting him retire and filial piety, there was no other requirement, and because of this, his son would be surnamed Li, not Wang, but, although there was no request, he was still the second son to change his surname to Wang, in order to inherit the incense of the Wang family. After all, the father-in-law only has one daughter, but this second boy can't see his shadow all day long, he only knows how to fool around on the street, where is the boss who knows both reading and his parents' worries.

"Well, it's better to try, although our Li family is from a military family, in the final analysis, it is also a scholarly family, if this industry wants to prosper, you have to study, your father and I don't have time to study, and I don't have time to invest in famous teachers, after all, we have to support our family, and the future of the Li family is on you."

Li Mingren, wielding a hammer, did not object to his son's idea of leaving home.

"Go back, I'll tell your mother, she feels sorry for you the most, and no matter how reluctant she is, she must always be willing."

"His father, look at what you said, I am a woman's family, and I also know that this study must be a famous teacher, then the gentleman of Qinghe Academy heard that there is also a gentleman of the king in it, no matter what, it will not lose the future of the child, Qian'er......"

Wang Li, who came in as he spoke, was carrying a food box in his hand, but although he said so, there was a faint reluctance in his expression, after all, the child was only a teenager and had never been far away. "Mother, did you agree?"

"What's so bad about not agreeing to this, it's just that you can go to Qinghe, but you have to pay attention to yourself, you have to know how to your own heart......" Just as Wang Li was telling his son, two errand officers came to the door of the iron shop over there, and there was an officer in an overcoat. Master Jun. As soon as he saw the officer and soldier in the overcoat, Li Mingren's face squeezed out a smile, he was no stranger to this officer, this person was the head of the county's military department, and the difference from the past was that after the restoration of sight from Jiangbei, the head of this military department was slowly played by the official of the loyal army.

"Are you Li Mingren?" Lin Pu looked at the blacksmith in front of him and asked, looking at this blacksmith shop, he knew that this blacksmith shop was inseparable from the man in front of him. But even if you can't do without it, there is no way, after all, the state has its own laws. Now that he has drawn his ding, he must become a soldier!

"The villain is exact, I don't know what the military master commands?" Although he didn't know the reason, Li Mingren's heart was still tight, and he vaguely guessed why this military master came to the door.

"This is a conscription order issued by the government, you have been selected to serve, and you will report to the county military department within two days, and if you are late, you will be punished as a deserter......" Looking at the woman and young man beside Li Mingren in the blacksmith shop, Lin Pu asked rhetorically.

"Li Mingren, do you know what the result of desertion is?"

It's not so much a rhetorical question, but a reminder to him of what will happen if he becomes a deserter!

What is the result of desertion?

The sudden conscription made Li Mingren's face change suddenly, and the question of the military master made him think of what happened to a family last year after his son was demoted to a pariah because his son was a deserter, and the other nine households of A were also punished together, and now not only are they often abused and beaten, but even the marriage of their children has become a problem, and no good people will marry the daughter of a untouchable, let alone a untouchable.

"Master Jun, this ...... Isn't it time for conscription yet? Why is it levied again? Because of the relationship between reading, Li Mingren naturally knows that this conscription is time-sharing, and there is no reason to start conscription before the spring planting has begun.

"Shouldn't the law be conscripted after the grain is collected? Why is it that the spring ploughing has not yet begun, and the conscription is being carried out? ”

It's not so much a question, it's better that Li Mingren wants to figure it out, he doesn't know why he was conscripted in advance, but this is certainly not a good thing.

"This is an order from the palace," Lin Pu looked at this Li Mingren, and accidentally saw a few newspapers in the shop, and even a few books, so he asked curiously.

"Are you literate?"

"Director Lin, this blacksmith Li is not only literate, but also writes well, and the people around here are all ghostwritten by him." When the errand officer next to him spoke, he didn't forget to knock Li Mingren.

"I said Blacksmith Li, you naturally know how much you read, this Qing has been suffering my Han people for more than ten years, I am a Han people, and I am a soldier to fight, it is the duty of the people, when to recruit soldiers in this mansion naturally has a reason in the house, I just have to obey the people."

"That is, put it aside, when the Manchu puppet official was there, it was a tax of a few dollars of silver added to you, and if you dared to speak up, you had to cut off your head!"

The words of the errand officer made the heart of Li Wangshi on the side confused, and he hurriedly looked at the errand and said flatteringly.

"Brother Xu, Brother Chen, look, look at what you said, this, this government has an order, naturally dare not disobey, but, but you also know that there is only one man in charge of the family in the family, this is not the eldest is only 17, and he is not yet the age of a soldier.

lest the official in front of him misunderstand, Wang Li hurriedly begged again. "Didn't all the errand service in previous years be paid with silver? We are willing to pay the silver to pay the difference, I don't know ......"

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Pu reprimanded angrily.

"What are you babbling here, woman? It is natural for this people to be soldiers and defend their families and the country, and I understand my duty as a common people! And how can it be said that silver is used for servitude, and if so, will not a few stinking money be exempted from servitude? ”

After such a reprimand, Lin Pu stared at Li Mingren again and said. "Li Mingren, you remembered it for two days! If you don't report it two days later, you won't blame Lin for being ruthless! After saying this, Lin Pu looked at the lively people around him and said.

"It's a matter of course to be a soldier to fight, if you dare to have a deserter, your family will be denounced as a pariah, and the other nine families in the first family will sit together!" This reprimand was deliberately said by Lin Pu, he was reminding the neighbors around the Li family, reminding them of what would happen to them if Li Mingren ran away. Sure enough, as soon as he said this, the neighbors around him immediately thought that the current national law was different from the past, and the current national law was to sit together, so they persuaded one after another.

"Akihito, I said, it's not a bad thing to be a soldier, didn't you see what the newspaper said, if the soldier is injured and disabled, then he can give a reward of one or two hundred acres of farmland......"

The neighbors were persuasive, but their eyes were staring at their family, and they even made up their minds very tacitly that they must keep an eye on Li Mingren in the past two days. After the military master and the errand left, Li Yuqian looked at his father who was standing by the door.

"Daddy......" Before he could speak, Li Mingren let out a long sigh, and then silently took the hammer on the side and said. Let's finish the things that Uncle Wang's family wants first......"

After saying this, Li Mingren continued to bury his head in the iron, his eyes looked at the red iron, and he didn't know what he was thinking. Now the red iron was like his father's killer, and he was there hammering and hammering.

Although he didn't say anything, others could still see the helplessness on his face from his expression.

After all, he is the pillar of the family, and if he goes to become a soldier, what will happen to this family?

Being a soldier now is not like being paid as a soldier in the past, so what is there now? Now being a soldier is a "bad service", and apart from a pitiful allowance, there is no military pay.

He went to become a soldier, and there was no blacksmith in this blacksmith shop, so what would the family do when the time came? But if he didn't become a soldier, that price was also not something he could afford.

The hammer in his hand fell heavily on the red iron, and Li Mingren's eyes were red, but he kept venting his inner dissatisfaction on the iron. For him, perhaps only through this method can he vent his inner irritability.

In the midst of the heavy snowfall, the sound of hammering from the blacksmith shop grew denser......