Daqian has a profound heritage and a history of thousands of years. Although it has suffered from wars, it is still prosperous after several dynasties and generations.
Among them, Jinling, the capital of the country, is the most important.
In the south area of Jinling City, there are countless wealthy families. They are escorted by carriages and horses when traveling, and they eat and drink delicacies from the mountains and seas.
In previous years, in the most lively embroidery garden in the south of the city, the drama was performed one after another, from morning to night, and from night to early morning.
Of course, the most eye-catching thing is not the big drama.
What the young dignitaries like to see is the graceful dancers wearing thin red shirts, with their graceful and exquisite bodies twisting, and their plump and white legs half-covered.
There is a red rope tied on the delicate jade feet. When the bell swings on the rope, it is unknown how many people's eyes and souls have been captured.
This can make the actors very tired, but fortunately the rewards are huge. With real money and silver in hand, it doesn't matter if they are tired.
If an official takes a fancy to him and takes him into the mansion, his career will skyrocket and his life will change.
Every year, the number of people in Xiuyuan increases, but especially in the past two years, there are many more beautiful women in the garden.
Now that it's nearly a new year, if it's normal, he will be increasingly busy, and he will never be able to steal even half a day's leisure.
But since the past two days, fewer people have come to the Liyuan.
In the past, the most popular ones were the richly dressed young men and their servants, waving the folding fans with the inscription "Elegance and Elegance" in the winter, standing in groups under the stage, craning their necks and staring.
Nowadays, these people can only stay at home, the dull ones grumble, the smart ones are trembling, each has his own thoughts and ideas.
But one thing is beyond doubt.
The curfew in Jinling has been extended. Not only that, the censorship of people entering and leaving the city gate has also become stricter.
Once the curfew time comes, even if you are a minute late, you are not allowed to enter the city.
It was really the sixth street with no drums and no pedestrians, and there was a moon in the vast sky on the nine thoroughfares.
"Eh! You don't know! I'm afraid that these damn people wouldn't be able to fit in five streets if they were piled up!"
Unlike the bustling southern part of the city, which is so quiet, the northern part of the city, where the most ordinary civilians live, is still as noisy as before. To be precise, it should be more lively.
In a teahouse, a middle-aged man wearing an undershirt described the scene of the battle at Yanluo Mountain to the person in front of him with a beaming face.
He continued: "Good fellow, the barbarians from the southern border passed by in a fierce manner last month. There were hundreds of thousands of them! Look, look!"
Having said this, he pushed aside a peanut, put the two red kernels into his mouth, and continued:
"It's just one bite and it's gone."
"Ah no, it will be gone in one battle."
When the thin man in front of him heard this, he nodded and said:
"A lot of people did die."
The strong man peeled another peanut and continued: "Hey, that's not all."
"Even General Zhongwu died in the battle, and half of the 200,000 soldiers and horses he brought with him have not returned."
As he said that, he shook his head, "Tsk, tsk, tsk, I don't dare to think about how many people there were before and after, but they were all defeated in just one battle."
"You tell me, how can I stop this?"
The thin man nodded, picked up the tea bowl and took a sip. After the warm tea entered his stomach, he carefully said:
"This... first it was Tongwei City, and then Anyang County. Now the imperial court sent soldiers and horses, and even let the barbarians pass, but they were all defeated."
"It seems that he is very powerful. Could it be that the soldiers and horses in his hands are all heavenly soldiers and generals?" When he said this, his voice was extremely low.
The strong man agreed very much. He pushed the peanut shells off his sleeves and said in a deep voice:
"Who says it's not?"
"The barbarians fought with us a few years ago. If nothing else, they are indeed a group of guys who are good at fighting. If General Huwei hadn't defeated them, they wouldn't be here today."
"Oh, the court can mobilize these barbarians to fight..."
He paused and then said: "Hey, this is something that I like to hear, but just like this, I was still killed completely."
"Not to mention this year, even if we look at previous years, there wouldn't be such a big war, right?"
The thin man shook his head, biting the corner of his lip and said, "Well, no."
"Looking at it now, I'm afraid that the current court is really unable to deal with it."
"In the past few years, those who can fight well have either been stripped of their power and dismissed from their posts, or... now, what should we do?"
The strong man lowered his head and whispered: "I think it won't be long before I'm going to fight."
"Right now, it seems unstoppable!"
The thin man didn't say anything. After being silent for a while, he whispered, "I heard that the people in Beiliang are living much better now than before."
"Then Anyang County was captured, so it seems to be okay."
"To be honest, I was thinking, just... let him call me."
As soon as he said this, a sound like a bell sounded.
"Dad, second uncle, what are you talking about? Who is he? Let me listen." But a child with a yellow mouth sneaked over without knowing when.
He was young, about ten years old, holding a shuttlecock in his hand, with a string of shiny snot hanging from his nose, and looking at the table without blinking.
The strong man waved his hand: "Go, go, you kid, you even found the teahouse, go home and play."
The child sniffed and came to the table with a smile, "Dad, what are you whispering about? I want to know too."
The thin man on the side touched his chin and said: "You are still young, you don't understand even if I say it."
The child put his hands on the table and frowned: "Second uncle, I will definitely not understand if you don't tell me. Maybe I will understand if you tell me."
Hearing this, the thin man smiled slightly, crossed his hands and said, "Do you understand the important national affairs?"
The child raised his face, took his hands off the table, and said like a little adult: "I know."
"The country is peaceful and the people are safe, and the mountains and rivers are safe. This is a major national event."
"Hey, you kid, you have learned a few words. Where did you learn it?" The strong man on the side looked at his son with interest.
The child put his hand on the table again, sniffed and said, "When did I forget what I learned? It was an old Taoist who said it anyway."
The thin man chuckled, and then asked: "Then do you know what this means?"
"It's a national matter," the child replied.
The thin man shook his head, "I know it, but I don't know why. It's in vain to understand, it's in vain to understand!"
The child's face turned red and he said angrily: "Huh, you know, I never went to school, how do I know so much!"
"I'm going to school, and I will definitely know more than you."
The strong man immediately yelled and cursed: "What are you talking about? This is your second uncle. Your butt is itchy, right?"
The thin man didn't care, and was about to explain the meaning to his nephew, but the naughty nephew stuck out his tongue at him and ran away with a proud smile on his face.
"This kid." The strong man looked at his running back and slowly looked away.
As soon as his eyes fell on the table, an exclamation came from his mouth:
"This little brat! He's here to get peanuts! I wonder how he knows this!"
"This greedy little brat! He can't eat enough!"
I saw only a lot of peanut shells left of the peanuts originally placed on the table.
On the street below the teahouse, a child carrying a bag of peanuts glanced at the teahouse proudly, and then waved his little hand:
"Here, eat peanuts!"
A group of children dressed in miscellaneous clothes gathered around him, sniffing and screaming happily, jumping around like a group of little sparrows.
