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006 [Treading the Sky]

The ointment is very effective, but a bit expensive, only three coins per spoonful.

Apply it to the affected area, it will feel cool and cool, and it will look like Maying Long.

It probably had a bactericidal effect, and the swelling subsided in half a day. Unfortunately, Zhao Han was always constipated, and the wound would burst when he exerted force. After struggling for several days, it was enough to send one or two taels of silver to the drugstore.

One-tenth of the money stolen from the Marquis' house was used up in one go.

Alas, no matter what, we are still considered strong men.

Grain prices in Tianjin are getting more and more expensive. Take buying steamed buns as an example. The price has increased by 30% in a few days. It must be Tianjin grain merchants who are raising prices.

Zhao Han did not save money, so he bought meat buns and vegetable buns on a rotation basis every day.

You can make more money, but you must take good care of your body.

The brother and sister look much better, can run and jump, and no longer feel tired after walking for a while.

The weather was so pitiful that two malnourished children did not get sick after being caught in a heavy rain. This was considered a blessing among misfortunes.

Zhao Han was very careful and never went to the same store every time he bought food. But he was still targeted because he, a child, paid scraps of money in a drug store for several days in a row.

"Let's go!"

Zhao Han took the little girl's hand, and at the corner of the street, he suddenly quickened his pace and ran into another street.

A gangster followed up, only to find that the target was missing. He stamped his feet and cursed in anger.

The brother and sister went straight to the southeast of the city, where there are Tianjin Health School and Gongyuan, where Tianjin students take exams.

No matter how the world deteriorates, scholars still need to keep their reputation, and hooligans dare not run wild near health schools.

Opposite the Wei School is a bookstore.

The brother and sister were squatting under the eaves eating. The bookstore owner didn't chase them away, but just told them not to get too close to the door.

Several health students came together, selected in the store for a while, and then left with their newly purchased books.

Zhao Han took a peek and saw that the student's hands were full of novels.

He immediately came up with a plan, maybe he could make money by telling stories about fairy tales, martial arts or whatever.

That night, I slept under the eaves of the bookstore.

"Second brother, I'm cold."

In the middle of the night, the little sister shivered in his arms and hugged Zhao Han tightly to keep warm.

Zhao Han was also awakened by the cold and couldn't help but curse: "This damn weather leaves no way for the poor to survive!"

It was only the beginning of the eighth lunar month, and a cold wave suddenly hit us.

Zhao Han never dared to take out the two children's silk clothes that he snatched from Mr. Hou's house and wear them. At this moment, he didn't care much and hurriedly asked his little sister to put them on to keep out the cold.

But it’s still cold!

The brother and sister had no choice but to hug together and huddle under the eaves until dawn.

There is no way we can stay in Tianjin any longer. The temperature difference between day and night is already huge. If we delay heading south, we will definitely suffer from the cold in autumn.

Regardless of his plan to make money by telling stories, Zhao Han immediately prepared food.

After buying some dry food, a few kilograms of miscellaneous grains, and a little low-quality salt, the brother and sister left the city together the next day.



Tianjin North Pier is located in the northeast of the city.

There is also a South Pier in the southeast of Tianjin City.

Although the South Pier is not as prosperous as the North Pier, it does have a "Ji Chong Class" (the highest level) post station - Yang Qing Shui Post.

Decades ago, Yangqingshui Station was located in Yangliuqing Town further south and was maintained by financial allocations from Jinghai County.

There were too many officials passing through the inn. Regardless of whether they were on official business or not, they all showed their official badges and had free food and accommodation, and they had to be served with good food and wine.

It's just an inn, but it has become the largest fixed financial expenditure in Jinghai County.

Therefore, Jinghai County gave up its job, but the Jichong-level post station could not be abolished, so the imperial court had no choice but to move Yang Qingshui Post Station to Tianjin.

Tianjin is so prosperous that it can afford a post station.

Zhao Han planned to take the South Pier and follow the canal all the way south.

Unexpectedly, after crossing the moat, I discovered that there were soldiers stationed everywhere from Yangqing Shuiyi Station to the South Pier and then to the residential areas outside the city.

After many days of heavy rain, the water level of the canal has been restored, and the temporary wooden bridge has been demolished. It is difficult for the hungry people outside the canal to cross the river, and they disperse one after another.

However, there seemed to be more and more hungry people in the west and south of the city, with only a moat blocking them.

After the rains, many hungry people actually chose to return to their hometowns and borrow usurious loans to buy seeds to replant food. However, when they returned to their place of residence, they were met by the government demanding food, forcing them to pay taxes quickly. They had no choice but to return to Tianjin to avoid the officials who collected food.

.

The summer grain and field tax must be settled before September. The officials in the Northern Zhili Province were pressing hard, and the state and county officials had no choice but to collect it.

Now more than 50,000 hungry people have gathered in the south and west of Tianjin. The Tianjin officials were so frightened that they quickly sent troops to build a defense line.

No one was allowed in or out, and the brother and sister were temporarily blocked.

After a few days, the hungry people were unable to cross the defense line and began to disperse in groups.

Some chose to leave and go to the countryside of Sime to beg for food and make a living.

Some people choose to carry on. As long as they postpone it until September, after the summer grain collection period, they will not be afraid of the government after returning to their hometowns, and the tax arrears will become "book taxes." In another two or three years, in order to facilitate the collection of new taxes for the coming year,

, the emperor will issue a decree to "eradicate Bu Fu".

The last group of victims were indeed too hungry to move and lay down outside Tianjin waiting to die.

Gradually, the vigilance began to relax. Outsiders were not allowed to come in, but inside they could go out.

Zhao Han stood by the moat, looking at the situation of the victims on the opposite side, and felt that he should be able to pass smoothly.

The victims were completely unorganized. They set up a tent in the east and a shack in the west. Most of them lived in the open air. If they encountered danger, they only needed to kill one or two people to show their power, and the rest would choose to give in.

Zhao Han took off the rag wrapping the spear tip, held the spear in one hand and his sister in the other, and crossed the bridge with his luggage on his back.

After walking a few hundred steps, they saw Zhao Han carrying items and his luggage was bulging, and dozens of hungry people were surrounding him one after another.

"Little sister, hold on to the second brother's clothes and follow him. Don't go too far." Zhao Han warned.

Zhao Zhenfang was a little scared, so she quickly grabbed the hem of her clothes and followed him step by step.

Zhao Han advanced with his spear, ready to kill and establish his authority at any time. There is no room for a woman's kindness in these troubled times.

With his experience in the past few days, Zhao Han has already adapted.

This is the late Ming Dynasty, not the peaceful China of the 21st century!

As the brother and sister walked among the hungry people everywhere, countless indifferent or greedy eyes were cast on them, and he responded with fierce eyes.

It's a pity that no matter how cruel a child may be, there is no adult to protect him.

A slightly stronger hungry man walked up to them first and asked with evil intentions: "Have you got anything to eat when you come out of the city?"

"No." Zhao Han replied expressionlessly.

The hungry man said, "I don't believe it. Open the bag and take a look."

Zhao Han sneered: "Come closer and I'll show you."

The hungry man stepped forward immediately, not taking Zhao Han seriously at all.

A bamboo pole with half a pair of scissors tied to it, and a child holding it, what kind of threat could it possibly be?

As they got closer to each other, Zhao Han suddenly struck with his spear.

Zhao Han had never practiced traditional martial arts and didn't know how to use a spear, but he was very good at bayonet skills.

At this moment, the opponent didn't even react, and was accurately stabbed into the throat by the scissors at the front of the bamboo spear.

Blood gushed out and the target fell to the ground with a look of disbelief.

After eating well and recuperating for more than half a month, although his strength is still weak, Zhao Han's speed is faster than before.

There were screams everywhere, and the hungry people who were eyeing him quickly quickly avoided Zhao Han, the little plague god.

The brother and sister stepped forward, no one dared to stop them.

Zhao Zhenfang lowered her head to look at the wound of the deceased. She was quite frightened by the dripping blood. She grabbed her second brother's clothes with her little hands and walked forward.

As they walked, three more hungry people blocked their way.

Zhao Han sneered and showed off his weapon. The scissors on the front of the bamboo spear were still bleeding, forming a confrontation with the three people.

"Brother, the idea is tough, there's no need to go all out." A hungry man advised.

The hungry man who was called "Big Brother" bared his teeth and smiled ferociously at Zhao Han, but he finally got out of the way.

Just like tigers and leopards hunting for prey, they will choose to change targets whenever there is a possibility of injury.

After the Zhao Han brothers and sisters walked away, the "eldest brother" thought more and more aggrieved, and said: "I can't live this life. Not to mention being bullied by the officers and soldiers, and now I am being frightened by a child. We have no money to pay for summer grain when we return home, so why stay here?"

We're going to starve to death here, so we might as well join forces and do something big!"

"Just the three of us?"

"Where are there only three? There are tens of thousands!"



Another day passed.

A master and a servant came out of Tianjin city.

The owner is a scholar named Fei Yinghuan, who is about forty years old. He wears a scholar's shirt, has a fair hair and a beautiful beard, holds a folding fan, and hangs a long sword from his waist.

The servant is quite strong, his real name is unknown, and his pseudonym is Wei Jianxiong. He has a big shoulders, a round waist, and a beard. He carries a bookcase on his back and a wrought iron rod across his waist.

The two stepped across the moat and immediately became serious the moment they crossed the bridge.

Fei Yinghuan put away the folding fan, drew out the scribe's sword, and continued to move forward calmly.

Wei Jianxiong picked up the wrought iron rod and glanced at the hungry people around him. Wherever he looked, those with ulterior motives lowered their heads.

After passing through the hungry area, Fei Yinghuan finally sheathed his sword, turned around and looked back at the hungry people all over the place, and sighed with compassion: "In prosperity, the people suffer; in death, the people suffer. Alas, the ancients never deceived me."

Although Wei Jianxiong was a servant, he spoke rudely and reminded: "Master, now is not the time to be merciful. We have exhausted all our expenses and must quickly go to Jinghai County to visit friends and borrow money, otherwise we will have to beg for food and go back to Qianshan. This journey will probably be long.

It’s not peaceful, so be careful in everything.”

"I know, it's really unlucky!" Fei Yinghuan looked helpless.

He originally went to Beijing for an examination, but he not only lost his reputation, but also stayed stranded in Tianjin when he returned to his hometown. He also got seriously ill out of nowhere, and spent all his money on seeking medical treatment. As a result, he now doesn't even have money to hire a ship.

Fei Yinghuan, a member of a well-known family, did not have as much money as Zhao Han.

The two healthy victims stared at their retreating figures and began to whisper:

"Brother, are you going to let them go like this? They must have valuables on them."

"It's important to do something big! Are Brother Zhang, Brother Zhao, and Brother Chen ready?"

"Everything is ready."

"Remember, you are not allowed to call me by your real name from now on, lest the court digs up your ancestral grave someday. My name is Tapotian!"

"You know, I will call you Zhenshan Xiang from now on."

"After the incident, Beizhili cannot stay. We will fight all the way to Shandong. We will first seize Yangliuqing Town so that everyone can have a full meal, and then we will attack Jinghai County. If we can, we will fight. If we can't, we will leave. Beizhili University

There is a drought and there is not much food, so Shandong has more food."

"I heard that Shandong was also hit by a disaster last year."

"Then go to Henan."

"Henan suffered from drought the year before last and floods the year before last. Many victims came to our village to beg for food."

"Shut up, you are talking nonsense, you will go somewhere when the time comes!"

"..."

Two miles away from the south moat, several large vats had been set up. Someone shouted among the hungry people: "You have broken the natural meat, go and eat meat!"

If the famine lasts for many days, what kind of meat can we eat?

The hungry people had already guessed the truth, but they were on the verge of starving to death and didn't care so much. Many hungry people even ate meat secretly in private, but they didn't show it openly.

After half a day, the sharing of broth ends.

Ta Po Tian selected 3,000 young men, and brought hundreds of their families with them, and marched to the south in a mighty manner.

The so-called strong men are just people who can still pick up sticks and fight hard. The remaining hungry people have long been too hungry to walk. They hold all kinds of "weapons" in their hands, which can be used for fighting and robbery at critical times, and can be used as weapons during the march.

crutch.

Without crutches, these people would have difficulty walking.

Zhao Han had already flapped his butterfly wings, and in the first year of Chongzhen's reign in Beizhili, a bandit leader named Ta Potian appeared inexplicably.

(Crying, I was fooled by the Penguin boss, and he actually rewarded me with a Silver Alliance. I’m flattered.)

(In addition, I also saw Ding Boyue and other old friends, and also thanked Feng Sheng Shui Qi, Dao Yuan Fu Tu, Lord of Secrets, Tree Like Such 12 and other friends for their rewards. I will not list all the names, but there are many rewards.

, everyone is so enthusiastic.)


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