The sky is dark, and the snowflakes are no longer falling. Only the bonfires lit everywhere bring people the slightest warmth.
In an open area in the northwest corner of Kaifeng City, inside the military formation, hundreds of hungry people were sitting around piles of bonfires, sharing a bowl of porridge.
The large pot sitting on top of the bonfire was steaming with steam, and the thick rice porridge wafted out with an alluring aroma. The hungry people around looked at the large pot greedily, waiting for the porridge bowl to be passed to their hands.
Several hungry people were holding thick-faced steamed buns skewered with thin wooden branches and roasting them by the campfire. Seeing the frozen steamed buns gradually melting and becoming softer, the hungry people's eyes flashed with greed.
light.
A hungry man stretched out his hand and pinched the steamed buns that were being roasted. He felt that it was time to bake them, so he took them off one by one and distributed them to the hungry people around him. He only kept one on a thin branch, but he was reluctant to pick it off.
, but put the finger that just took out the bun into his mouth and licked it.
They were all hungry people who were forced by the bandits to attack the car formation this afternoon. They were lucky enough to survive the bursts of cannon fire, but they did not turn back and flee towards the bandits.
Instead, they ran away in all directions, including many hungry people like Liu Chengzu who could no longer run and could only fall to the ground and wait for death, but what greeted them was not the God of Death!
For them, there is no big difference between officers and soldiers and thieves. Often officers and soldiers are even more vicious than thieves. Not only do they rob property, they even use their heads to pretend to be thieves' leaders and claim military merit.
Therefore, through their own efforts in the hands of the thieves, these hungry people may still have a chance to survive. If the god of luck is lucky enough to survive several attacks on the city, they will finally be able to join the ranks of the thieves.
But the officers and soldiers they encountered today were different!
…………
Liu Chengzu had no intention of staying with his wife Chen Xiuniang and his daughter Chen Nannan. His only hope was that his daughter Nannan would have a chance to survive, so he hid his daughter in the pit under his chest.
However, the officers and soldiers who were cleaning up the battlefield after the war discovered their family of three. Seeing that Liu Chengzu and the others were weak, they did not give them any trouble. They just took them into custody together with the hundreds of captured hungry people.
Because the officers and soldiers had to register their names, place of origin and other information one by one, they needed someone to assist them. Therefore, when a dark and strong officer and soldier came to ask if anyone could read, Liu Chengzu timidly reported his name.
Who would have thought that this group of officers and soldiers was not vicious at all. After registering their names, place of origin, skills that each person was good at, and other information, they were all led to the piles of lit bonfires.
After arranging the person in charge of each bonfire, a large pot was set up to cook rice porridge, and buckets of thick-faced steamed buns were delivered. Although they were all frozen hard due to the severe cold weather, they were sitting beside the bonfire.
It can be eaten once it is grilled, and it is enough to eat.
All these hungry people were so excited that they burst into tears. Many of them knelt on the ground and kowtowed to the officers and soldiers who came to deliver grains and steamed buns.
Because Liu Chengzu helped the officers and soldiers register the information of the hungry people and set up accounts, he not only had porridge to drink and steamed buns to eat, but also specially designated this temporary wooden shed for his family to live in.
Although the wooden shed is simple, it can provide some protection from the wind and rain. They spread some hay in the corner inside, and there are half-old cotton mattresses given by the officers and soldiers on top. There is also a bonfire in the middle. Although it is not as burning as the bonfires outside, their family still enjoys it.
It's barely enough for people to keep warm.
Chen Xiuniang held her daughter Nannan in her arms and made a bonfire for a long time. Nannan's complexion became much rosier. She drank two small mouthfuls of rice porridge and asked timidly: "Mom, where is my brother?"
Chen Xiuniang's hand holding the porridge bowl shook, and the warm rice porridge spilled onto her cold hands. She didn't notice it at all. She just raised her head and looked at Liu Chengzu with dull eyes.
With tears in Liu Chengzu's eyes, he handed over two warm thick-wheat buns with his still somewhat dirty hands, but he didn't say a word.
Chen Xiuniang forced herself not to let her tears fall. She freed up one hand to take the two buns, handed one to her daughter, and said softly with a hint of gulping: "Brother is going to play, daughter-in-law will eat first."
A steamed bun."
"Brother, can you come back tonight?"
Chen Xiuniang didn't know how to answer. She turned her head and looked at her husband Liu Chengzu again. She saw him squatting down and adding two more logs to the bonfire. He looked at the fire and said softly: "Yes, I can come back..."
"Cough... cough cough... cough cough cough..."
The fire flashed and the wooden blocks crackled in the bonfire. It may be that the added wooden blocks were stained with snow water and were a little moist. A thick smoke spurted out. Liu Chengzu was choked and coughed loudly, and he couldn't stop crying.
It rolled down beside the fire.
Not far away, several officers and soldiers were walking towards this side. Liu Chengzu's eyes were already blurry, and he could only vaguely see some figures. He was not sure whether they were coming to see him, so he did not dare to get up to greet them.
"Si'er... it's Si'er..."
Although Chen Xiuniang choked and called softly, the words fell like pearls on Liu Chengzu's heart. He could no longer control his emotions, his shoulders could not stop shaking, and tears fell like rain.
"Brother, it's my brother Sijie!"
Liu Nannan's thin voice was like a thunder. Liu Chengzu, who was already dejected and without any strength, suddenly stood up. He rubbed his eyes vigorously with both hands. In his hazy eyes, he saw the officers and soldiers walking over there, followed by a half-grown man.
child.
"Sijie, you are my Sijie!"
When the officers and soldiers got closer, he saw clearly that the child was the son he missed so much - Liu Sijie.
I heard an officer from the army squad shouting loudly: "Liu Chengzu, come out and have a look. Do you recognize this child?"
Liu Chengzu's lips trembled and he was speechless for a moment. He muttered: "I...my..."
But the boy shook off the hands of the officers and soldiers, ran over quickly, hugged Liu Chengzu, and cried: "Father..."
He knelt on the ground, his face covered with tears and dirt, and cried again: "Grandpa Fu...Grandpa Fu, he..."
The army officer came up and said, "Since we are your family, let me stay with you."
He then waved back and continued: "This child is very lucky, but the old man is not so lucky."
Two officers and soldiers slowly carried a stretcher into the wooden shed and put it down. They saw an old man lying on it, with a skinny face and a pale face. It was obvious that he was inhaling less and exhaling more.
The team officer added: "This old man is also tough, but he doesn't know what he has to do with you. Even with two broken legs, he can still crawl to the front of our military camp."
He paused and then said: "Both he and the child only remember your name. It's time for your family to reunite. There are hundreds of hungry people, but our general just remembers your name."
After the officer finished speaking, he ordered someone to bring in a set of old cotton mattresses and some old clothes, and said, "I'll go ahead tonight. My general will see you tomorrow."
Before leaving, he said: "This old man has been examined by the military medical officer in our camp. Whether he can survive depends on these few days!"