sea ​​ballad

Chapter 15 Forest House
On the banks of the Qinhuai River, the streets are bustling.The season of awns is full of vitality.A man and a horse walked through the street. The crowd dispersed from both sides, and the lively street suddenly became silent.

There was only one child squatting in the middle of the street looking at a bird lying on the ground.

A bird with a broken leg.

The child has no intention of leaving. It is so quiet all around. The child must feel safe. Only adults can't stand the silence.Hustle is the best protection.

Children have no such awareness at all, they only know what is delicious and what is fun.Now, the bird on the ground attracted all his attention, and he didn't even realize that the familiar street had changed dramatically in a few seconds.

"I heard that disasters continue in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, and the victims will soon flock to Jinling. At this time, ministers are still selecting good-looking women from various places to send to the palace. Alas, the tax is probably going to rise again."

"I just got a penny increase last month. If it goes up again this month, I don't know if I can fill my stomach. I can't even live in Jinling, and I don't know where else I can go."

"Everyone is the same, we can't see us starving to death."

"If you give birth to a girl, you can still send it to the palace."

"Keep your voice down, you can't say such things. Last time, Gao Xiucai gave the money he had saved his whole life to an official, saying that he could find a way to send his youngest daughter to the palace. But in the end, he took the money and didn't send anyone to the palace. He was sent to the palace, but to the Lin Mansion in the east of the city."

"Lin Mansion? That is a place dedicated to offering sacrifices. Recently, news came out from the palace that a disaster is imminent due to the Big Dipper Nine Stars. The Lin Mansion has been very busy recently."

"I don't know how many children will be taken away by force."

"Shh, don't talk nonsense, you may lose your head."

"It is said that at Gao Xiucai's house, after the child's mother found out, she cried for three days and three nights. Then she fell ill and is still lying in bed. Gao Xiucai realized that he could not stay in Jinling any longer and wanted to take the lame leg with him. The son returned to his wife's hometown, but he had never farmed much in his life. The family originally had some foundation, but then he wanted to be an official. From Emperor Taizong to Emperor Wenzong, he failed to pass the exam. It has been more than 30 years. Now he plans to follow others and return to his hometown. By plowing the wasteland and planting vegetables, we can at least make a living, but except for holding pens and writing letters for others, how can those hands carry a hoe?"

"Hey."

Everyone sighed repeatedly but did not dare to shout loudly. Even if excessive taxes and miscellaneous taxes delayed their lives, at least Jinling City had beautiful scenery and was suitable for all seasons. There was no frost in winter and no pests in summer.Although life is hard, it is still stable.

"It has been so many years since the queen died, and the emperor has never established a new queen or crown prince. Every family hopes that one person will ascend to heaven, and chickens and dogs will ascend to heaven. Those who give birth to girls would be lying if they say they don't have this idea. But it is also true that the family is ruined like this. Pitiful."

There were six sedans in total, one after another, swaying forward. When the team in front stopped, the people in the sedan shouted, "Why don't you leave?"

"Madam, there is a child in front of you."

"Child? How old?"

"Looks like six years old."

"Six years old? Boy or girl?"

"boy."

"Boy?" The woman finished speaking and lost her voice.

Soon, the man on horseback came to the boy, took out a round cake wrapped in oil paper, and handed it to the child, "Are you hungry?"

The child didn't answer.

The man put the round cake into the boy's mouth again.

"Eat."

The boy raised his head and looked at the man with wide eyes.Take the man's hand and put it on the bird.

"This bird is dead. You take the cake and stand aside."

"Save it, it just has a broken leg."

"It's obviously a dead bird. Kid, if you don't leave, come with me to a fun place."

"Its leg is broken, can you save it." "Are you deaf? I tell you this bird is dead."

"Please, save it."

The boy held the bird in his hands and raised it above his head.

"What's a dead bird talking about here?"

The man waved his hand, and the bird was hit in the air and fell down again.This time, if you don't die, you will die.

"Why did you kill it?"

The boy cried and ran to the bird, held it to his chest and held it tightly, as if doing so would save it.

"Whose child is this?"

the man asked angrily.

No one dared to say a word.

"Whose child is this? I'll ask again."

"Lin Gang, if he is a child without a father and mother, take him back. No matter whose child his child is, he is a citizen of Daqi. If he does not have parents to take care of him, he cannot be left helpless at such a young age. , bring him back home, get him some food, change into clean clothes, and then slowly find his parents."

"What's wrong, this Lin Gang is Lin Lichi's eldest disciple. If this kid is taken to the Lin Mansion, he may never come back."

"I heard that the Lin Mansion will only send some children who have not lived long to sacrifice to the gods. Those children do not live long, and children who die early cannot be buried without their parents. As usual, they can only be tied with stones and thrown Go into the water and feed the fish and insects.”

"Yes, there is a courtyard behind the Lin Mansion, which has adopted many children. It is said that Lin Gang is also an adopted orphan. If the children can survive healthy, the Lin Mansion will not use them as sacrifices."

"Who told you? I heard that the courtyard of the Lin Mansion is dedicated to raising boys and girls to be white and fat. They bathe twice a day, take good care of them with fine clothes and food, and also hire a husband to teach poetry and a piano artist from Liuxiang. Teaching music is just to please the gods.”

"Anything like that?"

"It is said that the current emperor worships the Buddha and spends a lot of money to repair temples. The Lin family's position in the palace has been in jeopardy in recent years."

"This time there is a disaster all over the country, the Lin Mansion must mean that the gods are angry and are launching an attack. Those monks don't know what they will say yet. In short, whoever believes it or not depends on our emperor's thoughts, no one can guess."

"But in all these years, I haven't seen anyone cry out that they are missing a child."

"It is said that the Lin Mansion was generous and dealt with the aftermath thoroughly. If it hadn't been for the incident involving Gao Xiucai's little daughter, no one would have dared to think too much."

"It seems that those monks were better. At least they didn't put the living people into the fire or throw the living people into the river."

"Lin Gang, is it done?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Keep on your way. Enter the palace within an hour. If you are late, you will miss the auspicious time."

"Get up the sedan chair."

Lin Gang was tall and tall, wearing light armor and riding at the front of the team.The little boy just now was stuffed into the last pink sedan. When the curtain of the sedan was opened, there was no one inside.

Ze Yu clearly saw what happened before, and she also clearly heard what the people were saying.But she didn't really understand these things. When she arrived on land, she only wore a lavender dress. A kind-hearted woman gave her an old dress and told her that if she encounters difficulties, she can go to Liuxiang to find Mrs. Shen.

But now she had no time to repay this woman's kindness. She wanted to enter the palace and complete her mission as soon as possible.It was easy for her to slip quietly into the last sedan chair.The boy didn't yell when he saw her. Neither of them spoke, just rocking along with the sedan chair.

(End of this chapter)