Chapter 272: Pillars of the Ming Dynasty
Datong City.
Ever since Jiang Qingzhi set out, Zhang Da would climb up to the top of the city wall every day and sigh, saying that if he didn't need to stay in Datong, he would follow Chang Wei Bo north to the grasslands to show off his power in foreign lands, etc.
"General, they are back."
On this morning, Zhang Da finally waited for Jiang Qingzhi and his party to return.
Zhang Da was overjoyed and went out to greet him with his generals.
When Zhang Da saw that there were only cavalrymen behind Jiang Qingzhi, he was stunned, "My Lord..."
Jiang Qingzhi looked at the dusty man. He briefly described the situation of his trip and finally said, "I have been away from the capital for a long time and I need to rush back. You can ask Yan Xu and others for the follow-up information."
After saying this, Jiang Qingzhi rode away on his horse.
The infantry arrived on the second day. After Zhang Da learned about the situation, he was overjoyed and immediately ordered a banquet to welcome Yan Xu and others and to congratulate the Altan tribe for bringing honor to them.
That night, Zhang Da and others were drunk.
……
The spring breeze blew from the grassland, passed over the city walls and into Datong City, all the way along the streets and rooftops... gently covering this important city on the nine borders.
The slaves were also brought here by the spring breeze.
When they saw the city of Datong, the slaves knelt down and wailed, their voices shaking the whole area.
The cries echoed outside the city, but the city remained peaceful.
In the morning, Yang got up early and fed a few chickens. In the kitchen, her daughter-in-law Liu was making breakfast.
Yang, who is in her sixties, is blind in one eye and her eyes look a little strange and dull.
She went into the kitchen to get a wooden basin and prepared to chop the pork. Liu was cooking porridge and turned back when she heard the sound. "Mom, put it down. I'll do it."
"I can still do it, so I'll do it. When I can't do it anymore, I'll go find the boss." Chen bent down, picked up the wooden basin with difficulty and went out.
Liu scooped out the porridge and took some pickled cabbage from the jar and cut it into shreds. This was breakfast.
Yang was chopping pig food in the yard. Liu went over and said, "Mom, let me do it."
"Take a break." Yang shook her head and chopped pork dishes while whispering, "I've been dreaming about the boss a lot lately. Sometimes he smiles at me, sometimes he cries at me. Every time I wake up crying."
"Mother, you've cried so much that one of your eyes has gone blind." Liu sighed, "If my husband were still alive, he would definitely be heartbroken."
"But I don't know whether he is alive or dead now. I feel bad." Yang looked at her. "I know the boss probably won't come back. I'm sorry for you."
"Mom, don't say that again." Liu squatted down, grabbed the kitchen knife, and chopped the pork chop quickly.
"Mom!" Liu's son came back.
"My dear, you must have stayed up all night! Go wash your face quickly, breakfast will be here soon." Yang stood up, wiped her hands on her apron, and went over to take her grandson's bag.
"This is the leftover food from the restaurant yesterday. The chef saw that I was diligent, so he gave me some." Sixteen-year-old Chen Gao is very sensible. After his father, who was in the army, disappeared, he went to work in the restaurant at the age of thirteen. Now he is one of the pillars of the family. Yesterday he was on duty and worked the night shift at the restaurant.
"Okay, I'll heat it up when you wake up so that the whole family can have a hot meal." Yang felt sorry for her grandson and kept asking him to wash his face quickly.
"Mom, let me do it." Seeing that his mother Liu had chopped the pork chop and was about to carry it to the kitchen, Chen Gao went over and grabbed it.
"This child!" Liu wiped her face with her hand and suddenly felt a little disappointed.
"Do you miss the boss?" Yang asked.
Liu nodded, "I don't know whether he is dead or alive. If he is dead, I have to find a way to bring his soul back. If he is alive... I will wait for him."
"No one has ever escaped back." Yang sighed, "I have prayed to the gods countless times to protect the boss, but the gods have never responded. I think, maybe... he is gone."
"Mother." Liu's eyes were filled with tears. "My husband must still be here."
"He's still here, he's still here!" Yang wiped away her tears. "If the boss is still here, it would be worth it even if I cry my last eye blind!"
Knock...knock...knock!
Someone knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" Liu asked loudly, then walked to the door and gently opened it.
In the morning light, spring comes rushing towards us.
A ragged man stood outside the door.
Look at her steadily.
"Who is it?" Yang asked.
Then she heard a howl.
It was as if something was broken all of a sudden, causing me great pain and yet great joy.
"Husband!"
Yang was stunned for a moment, then slowly looked up at the man outside the door.
The man hugged Liu and walked into the gate.
"you……"
Yang tried hard to open her single eye wide and rubbed it.
The man walked over quickly and knelt heavily in front of her.
"Unfilial son, Principal Chen, meet your mother!"
Yang looked down at him for a long time, and suddenly hit Chen Xiao's shoulder hard.
"My son!"
The eldest brother of the Chen family is back.
Upon hearing the news, neighbors came one after another.
Principal Chen had changed his clothes and was talking to his family in the yard.
Neighbors came in and asked him about his past two years.
"…After I was captured, I refused to surrender and became a slave." Principal Chen did not mention a word about the suffering he had endured.
"Then how did you come back this time?"
Principal Chen took a sip of tea, glanced at his son who seemed a little distant from him but wanted to get close to him, and smiled, "Do you know Long Wilbur?"
"Of course I know. Others in Datong don't know him. Chang Wei Bo is very famous. We go to see the Jingguan outside the city every day. It makes us feel peaceful."
The neighbor's old father laughed.
"This time, Chang Wei Bo went on a diplomatic mission to the Altan Khan tribe and made a bet with Altan Khan on his future..."
The crowd was sometimes worried and sometimes happy as he spoke...
After everyone left, the father and son began to get familiar with each other again. "Dad, they said that the captured people were not heroes." Chen Gao was a little frustrated.
"Chang Wei Bo said that those of us who fought hard and were captured are not only heroes, but also heroes of the Ming Dynasty," said Principal Chen.
"Really?"
"Why did I lie to you?"
"Is Principal Chen here?" someone shouted from outside.
"Yes, yes." The neighbor replied, and then shouted, "Master Chen, the official is here."
Chen Xiao opened the door and saw two soldiers and a clerk outside.
The whole family was a little uneasy.
"Are you going to hold me accountable?" Liu cried, "I finally came back, I'm afraid I'll be exiled to a wild place."
Yang raised her head, "The eldest daughter-in-law."
"Ok!"
"Keep your head up and don't embarrass the Chen family."
"mother!"
"As long as the old man is alive, there is hope!" Yang said to his wife, "A person lives for a breath. Once the breath is gone, the person will lose his soul. Raise your head!"
Liu tried to raise her head, but she became more and more panicked.
The two sergeants came in.
Suddenly a military salute.
Principal Chen was stunned. "This is..."
"The general ordered the two of us to come here just to praise the hero's achievements!"
A soldier shouted, "In March of the 25th year of Jiajing, the enemy army besieged Nanmo Village. Chen Xiao and others fought to the death and were captured after exhausting their strength. Today, the heroes have returned, which shows that God has always been there to protect us."
Another soldier turned around and looked at the neighbors, saying, "Does this hero deserve applause?"
The neighbors shouted in unison: "Cai!"
Someone murmured, "How can a good man be captured? What kind of achievement is this?"
The soldier said coldly: "Who is protecting Datong? When the enemy attacks, who is fighting bloody battles? The front is bleeding and sweating, while the back is mocking and ridiculing. Who will be willing to join the army in the future? If no one joins the army, who will protect you?"
The man blushed and was speechless.
The clerk then came over, holding a small plaque in his hand, and said with a smile: "This is written by the prefect himself, praising the achievements of our Datong athletes."
Since no one was literate, Mrs. Liu called her grandson who had learned some books in the restaurant.
Liu Gao looked at it carefully, turned around and said, "A pillar of the Ming Dynasty."
"what?"
"It's about the pillars of the Ming Dynasty!"
Principal Chen's lips trembled as he slowly knelt down, "It's worth it! It's worth dying for!"
At the government office, prefect Jiang Yang rubbed his wrist and complained. "That Lord Chang Wei kept saying that the Datong soldiers and civilians needed to boost morale, which was a burden to me. If those people in the capital knew about this, they would definitely say that I was flattering the rich and powerful and had no sense of shame."
Everyone didn't know how to comfort him.
Jiang Yang suddenly sighed, "But he was right in saying that we cannot let heroes bleed and cry. Otherwise, who would be willing to join the army in the future?"
……
At the General's Mansion, Zhang Da was a little confused. "I don't know if these arrangements made by Chang Wei Bo are useful or not."
Someone said, "General, these measures are at least considerate of us warriors."
Zhang Da smiled bitterly, "At present, warriors are like slaves. Only those who are desperate and about to starve to death will join the army. Is it really useful to brag a little bit like this?"
……
In the early morning, Chen Gao got up quietly and put the letter for his family on his pillow.
He carried his bag and tiptoed out of the bedroom.
It was still dark at this moment. Chen Gao walked to the gate and slowly opened it.
He looked back at his home, knelt down and kowtowed heavily.
Then he muttered a few words, turned around and closed the door.
"Where is Dalang going?" The bedroom door of Chen Xiao and his wife was opened a crack, and Liu was a little panicked.
"He drank last night and said he wanted to join the army," said Principal Chen.
"Then... only those who have no future would join the army! Dalang works in a restaurant, why would he join the army? I'll go and get him back."
"Stop." Principal Chen held his wife and said as she struggled, "Captain Weber said that the conditions of officers and soldiers will get better and better from now on..."
"It's no use for him to talk alone!"
"Long Wilbur swore an oath!" Principal Chen said, "He swore an oath in front of us."
Chen Xiao said slowly: "I, Jiang Qingzhi, swear here that I will make warriors the most respected profession in the Ming Dynasty. If I fail, I will be shot to death by arrows!"
"This!" Liu cried, "But Dalang is our only child."
"We are still young." Chen Xiao hugged his wife, "Give Dalang some brothers and sisters..."
……
When the first ray of sunlight shone into the military camp, a group of young people were waiting anxiously outside the gate.
The soldier guarding the gate shouted, "What are you doing?"
Chen shouted, "I am waiting to join the army!"
The sergeant was startled. "The damn sun is rising from the west?"
At the General's Mansion, Zhang Da was stunned for a moment after receiving the news, and then he was ecstatic. "Immediately write a memorial to inform the capital that our Datong warriors are eager to join the army. I implore the Ministry of War to send someone down to check and accept them!"
Government office.
Jiang Yang looked at his still sore wrist and said, "Just four words, do they really work?"
He walked out of the duty room, looked up at the sky, and said softly: "So, what a warrior wants is so simple?"
(End of this chapter)
