Jinting Han people

Chapter 84 Stars Falling Like Rain (5k)

After that day, according to the original plan, Liu Xian planned to take Luzhu back to Dongwu to meet Xiaomei's family first.

So when it was time for another day off, Liu Xian went to the Minister of the Central Secretariat Hua Yi and asked for an extra day off. He then ordered Zhu Fu to drive an ox cart to pick up Chen Shou from his residence.

Liu Xian put a veil on Lu Zhu and felt a little uncomfortable when he took her to the car. Because he and Lu Zhu were not the only ones in the car, but also A Luo.

Since it had been agreed to send Lu Zhu away, Liu Xian thought about it again and again, and finally felt that he was a little frank. After returning to the mansion, he confronted A Luo about the matter.

In the inner room, he told A'Luo the whole story, but as he spoke, he felt embarrassed by his own willfulness. Then he lowered his head and waited for his wife's judgment like a child who had done something wrong.

He had already prepared himself for a scolding. After all, Zhang Ximiao had often argued with Liu Xun when she heard about this kind of thing. Unexpectedly, this didn't happen. As usual, Ah Luo stared at him with her calm yet ignorant eyes, questioning, "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"It was to keep it secret and avoid the search. I never thought it would turn out like this..." Although he felt his words were pale, Liu Xian still explained his actions.

Unexpectedly, Ah Luo suddenly said, "No matter how dangerous the situation is, I can still help my husband, right?"

"Huh?" This was so unexpected that Liu Xian paused in his defense. He then heard Ah Luo say, "Ever since I married you, didn't we agree to go through all the ups and downs together? Did Ah Luo do something wrong? Why didn't you discuss this with me?"

"of course not……"

"Then let's not talk about it anymore." A'Luo gently held Liu Xian's hand, looked at him and said, "What's done is done."

"But I want to witness my husband's life with my own eyes. I don't want to miss it again."

So this is the scene we have now.

When Luzhu got into the car, she took off her veil and looked directly into the eyes of the prince's wife. Just at the first sight, she was quickly moved by A Luo's purity.

A look of vigilance crossed Ah Luo's face, but it wasn't obvious. Her underlying color remained a carefully preserved white, devoid of many other colors: strong yet tolerant, restrained yet approachable. Luzhu could tell at a glance that, unlike herself, who had been tainted by the mundane world, this was a girl who still sincerely believed in kindness and love.

This made Luzhu feel a little inferior. She thought of herself when she was ten years old, but those days could never be returned.

Lu Zhu took the initiative to bow and said, "I am sorry to trouble you."

A'Luo was simply stunned by Luzhu's beauty.

People, regardless of gender, undoubtedly love beauty. Although she had heard Liu Xian describe it before, seeing it with her own eyes, Ah Luo couldn't help but cover her lips with her hands. She was so amazed that all her thoughts were forgotten. Before she could think about it, she had already grasped Lu Zhu's hand and said, "Sister, you are so beautiful. You must have suffered a lot!"

Then he worriedly said to Liu Xian, "Can someone like my sister really be hidden?"

"There will always be a way." This was the only answer Liu Xian could give.

Then A'Luo acted like a younger sister, asking Luzhu all kinds of questions, from her childhood, to her past in Jingu Garden, and her opinion of Liu Xian.

Many of the questions were sharp and harsh, literally exposing Luzhu's wounds. But Luzhu didn't feel offended. She simply brushed aside many of the topics, saying, "It's all in the past."

This scene was beyond Liu Xian's expectations, and it also made him greatly relieved. What he worried about did not happen. These were two smart women. Although they came from different backgrounds, they both knew how to maintain decency and reserve.

He could think of other things for a while.

At this time, the ox cart had driven into the wilderness. Liu Xian reached out and lifted the curtain, looking outside. The fields were in a state of desolation.

Across the vast plain, a few lush green hilltops could be vaguely seen, but the land below was barren and yellow, a barrenness devoid of life. Dry cracks covered it, and an earthy, bloody odor emanated from it. The nearby canals were also dry. Straw was piled in groups of three or two across the fields, crawling with autumn locusts stalking at the grains of rice. Occasionally, a few wild chrysanthemums could be seen, but they lacked any fragrance or aroma.

This year is another year of severe drought.

Although later generations believed that the Taikang period was a rare period of peace in hundreds of years, in fact, since Liu Xian was old enough to understand, his childhood had been bound up with disasters.

Aside from the relatively peaceful third year of the Taikang era, the rest of the year was marked by either severe drought, making it difficult for people to move, or by hailstorms that left bloody holes in their backs. There was hardly any year in which there was news of a good harvest.

By the ninth year of Taikang, the disaster had reached its worst level in history.

This year, Liu Xian copied documents submitted by various prefectures and states in the Secretariat. The amount was more than shocking. There were no less than thirty requests for disaster relief alone:
First, at the beginning of the year, earthquakes struck Dongyang, Jian'an, Linhai, and Kuaiji counties in Yangzhou.
In April, earthquakes struck eight counties in Jingzhou: Wuling, Tianmen, Hengyang, Nanping, Yidu, Xiangyang, Jiangxia, and Changsha.
By July, the country was hit by another drought that had lasted a century. Many areas north of the Huai River had not seen any rain. The drought was so severe that it had affected seven states and thirty-three counties, including Sizhou, Yanzhou, Bingzhou, Youzhou, Yongzhou, Qinzhou, and Liangzhou. Wheat-growing farmers had almost all lost their harvest and could only feed on wild vegetables and grass roots.

What's even more terrible is that although it is not yet late autumn, locusts have appeared in various places, and their numbers are far greater than in previous years. The governors of the affected states have all predicted that this year's locust plague will be worse than in the past, and they hope that the court will make early plans for disaster relief.

In the face of this serious disaster, the emperor had to muster up his courage and rarely summoned General Yang Jun, Minister Yang Yu, General Yang Ji, as well as Minister He Shao, Palace Attendants Le Guang, Wang Ji and others to discuss disaster relief matters.

After discussion, it was found that the country's grain reserves did not exceed two million hu, a considerable portion of which was military rations and difficult to requisition.

Under these circumstances, the emperor ultimately issued an edict exempting the land tax in the counties affected by the disaster and allowing the people to forage for food in the mountains and forests. Ultimately, only 500,000 hu of grain was allocated for disaster relief, a mere drop in the bucket.

Even though the disasters were so severe in various places, it did not affect the prosperity of the capital. Luoyang City was as bustling as before:
After the autumn harvest, young men and women, dressed in silk and satin, would go out for outings, hunting in places like Longmen and Mangshan, or strolling along the Yi and Luo Rivers. They would enjoy the sounds of flowing wine and singing until dawn, and some would even hold a yellow flower festival south of Luoyang, where they would appreciate the chrysanthemums grown by various families.

As grain prices rose, the number of caravans traveling to and from Luoyang increased instead of decreased, and the goods became more and more diverse, including Yue women from Jiangnan, Hu women from Guanzhong, and horse slaves from Bingzhou... The price of slaves in the human market plummeted, so that every household in the gentry family had slaves.

Because of this disaster, Luoyang City became even more lively. If people did not inquire carefully, they might have thought that it was another prosperous era and could not help but sing praises for the court.

But what Liu Xian saw outside the car window at this time was a shocking scene: it was definitely an exaggeration to say that there were starving people everywhere, but the farmers he saw along the way all had hungry looks on their faces and unsteady steps, and the mountains and forests he passed through had countless dug pits and discarded grass roots.

Fortunately, there have been no rumors of people eating dirt or cannibalism for the time being, but even so, Liu Xian still couldn't help but wonder: How many people will freeze to death this year?

It's still early autumn, and this hardship is manageable, but what about winter? Will the common people be forced to forage for food in the mountains during this severe cold? Without enough food to eat and no money to buy new clothes, the end of the year will be even more difficult than one can imagine.

On the way, Liu Xian listened to the casual conversation of Luzhu and A'luo, while he himself fell into deep thought.

Finally, they arrived at Dongwu. The situation there was slightly better than in other places. The people around hadn't yet gone out to dig bracken, but they also looked worried. As soon as Liu Xian got off the ox cart, someone approached and asked, "Sir, are you here to collect the rent?"

Liu Xian recognized him as a tenant farmer named Zhang Ni, who was forty-five years old and had three sons and one daughter. Because Liu Xian had previously farmed with Li Mi and was somewhat familiar with him, he approached to ask about this sensitive topic.

Liu Xian didn't answer his question directly, but asked, "How was your harvest this year?"

Zhang Ni replied, "Don't mention it. We knew there was going to be a severe drought this year, so we didn't plant wheat. We planted drought-resistant corn instead. A smaller harvest would be okay, but at least we could get by. But this year, the weather hasn't been kind to us. Not a single hair has fallen, and even the millet harvest has failed. We're losing almost 50 kilograms per acre."

"In the middle of last year, I arranged for people to dig a small canal and a well. Was it useless?"

"Thanks to the well, watering is a little easier this year. But farming is like that. You fool the land, and the land fools you. What can you do?"

At this point, Zhang Ni couldn't help but complain, "Sir, please delay paying the rent this year. I really can't pay it. My family of seven all depends on this harvest for food!"

"But even if you eat sparingly, it still won't be enough, right?" "Then we'll have to borrow more."

Liu Xian pondered for a moment and said, "How about this, I'll go home and discuss it with the parents, and then I'll give you a definite answer."

Zhang Ni felt a little hope and a smile appeared on his face, so he left with many thanks.

It was already evening when Liu Xian, A'luo, and Lu Zhu entered the attic. The lights were dim, and only three servants were watching over the house. They came up to greet him, and Liu Xian exchanged a few words before sending them to call He Cheng and his family over, saying he had something to discuss with them. Actually, it was inconvenient for Lu Zhu to appear in public, so they could only meet in private.

Having not seen her family for almost ten years, Luzhu was very nervous. When she lit the lamp in the attic, she suddenly stared at the flame in a daze. Her originally beautiful face turned a little pale, and the fire in her eyes flickered repeatedly. It was obvious that she was thinking about the scene of meeting her family in her mind.

But she didn't have to think about it for long. With the crows cawing outside the door, He Cheng's family arrived.

There were three people in total, namely He Cheng, his wife Hu, and their young daughter Xiaomei.

When He Cheng and his wife entered, they looked apprehensive. Liu Xian's arrival had come without warning, and they had no idea what had happened. After much deliberation, they, like Zhang Ni, assumed Liu Xian was here to collect the rent. So, before Liu Xian could say much, they began to complain for a while. Xiaomei, meanwhile, hid behind her parents, observing them quietly.

Liu Xian comforted them, saying, "It's nothing, I just want you to meet someone."

"Meet people?" This sentence immediately left He Cheng and his wife speechless. Only Xiaomei thought of something and her eyes suddenly lit up.

"You'll know when you see it."

Liu Xian brought the group to the attic. He Cheng and his family didn't understand why, but they couldn't refuse, so they followed carefully.

He Cheng has lived in Henan for more than 40 years as a farmer, but it was the first time for him to climb the attic of a scholar. He stepped on the stairs, curious and cautious, as if he had entered a place made of gold. Then he followed
He Cheng and his companions were confused, but when they went up to the attic, opened the door, and saw Lu Zhu's figure, they were all stunned.

Xiaomei was the first to recognize Ah Jie's identity. She cheered and threw herself into Luzhu's arms like a child.

Mrs. Hu stood there at a loss, wringing her hands and staring at her daughter with a mixture of ecstasy and disbelief. Tears flowed as she hesitated.

But Liu Xian noticed that He Cheng was stunned for only a moment and his face changed, but he did not say anything. He just looked at Luzhu deeply twice, then silently walked out of the door and went downstairs quietly.

Luzhu also saw this scene, and her face turned as pale as snow.

Liu Xian hurriedly chased after him and found that there was no one in the hall. He walked to the backyard and found that the old farmer was squatting on the railing of the stable in the dark moonlight, looking down at his feet without saying a word.

Liu Xian took a breath and wanted to say something, but then, putting himself in the father's shoes, he found himself at a loss for words and fell silent. Selling a daughter was commonplace these days, but for the person involved, it was a lifelong pain that could never be forgotten. Even a tenant farmer would feel shame and guilt.

When He Cheng saw Liu Xian approaching, he hurriedly stood up and saluted, saying, "Young Master."

Liu Xian was also very polite and called him, "Uncle He."

After a slight pause, Liu Xian remained silent for a moment before asking, "Uncle He, aren't you going to see Ah Qing?"

He Cheng shook his head and smiled bitterly, "Let's not do that. I'll just make her angry if I'm there."

"But you are her father after all, and you are not forced to do so..."

"Precisely because he's my father, he's unforgivable..."

He Cheng said this with great force, and Liu Xian was unable to refute it. In fact, he himself also viewed Anle Gong Liu Xun in this way:

For a child, a father is always the pillar that supports him. Once his support collapses, the fragile father is no longer a father.

He Cheng tried to shake off the emotion and smiled at Liu Xian: "After so many years, she has become even more beautiful."

Liu Xian also praised sincerely: "Yes, I have never seen a woman more beautiful than her."

He Cheng sighed and said, "But she shouldn't have been born in my family."

Liu Xian was startled, then he heard him say, "With the harvest this year, if she were still at home, there wouldn't be any extra food for her."

This was an irrefutable truth, Liu Xian thought with a touch of sadness: The Buddha suddenly realized the truth beneath the Bodhi tree, believing that the entire world was a sea of suffering and that life was to be endured. But for farmers who depended on the weather for their livelihood, this was a truth they had grasped from birth.

He Cheng asked again, "Sir, you were the one who robbed Jingu Garden, right?"

Since Lu Zhu had appeared, this was the truth that was easy to guess. Liu Xian nodded and said, "Yes, so in order to keep it secret, I plan to send your family to Xichuan in three days."

"Thank you for your kindness, sir, but as the saying goes, fallen leaves return to their roots. How can I leave here? Just send them all away..."

He actually didn't even glance at his daughter, and silently slipped into the night. The autumn wind gently blew through the treetops, and upstairs could be heard the cries of Luzhu and Xiaomei.

Liu Xian didn't go up immediately, but instead stared at the autumn leaves on the tree for a while, wondering why the world was in such a state, just like why leaves fell in autumn and snow accumulated in winter. Could it be that humans, the creatures favored by the gods, were born only to perish?
At this moment, a familiar voice came from behind, calling him softly: "Bi Ji!"

Liu Xian was startled when he heard this, and thought it was his mother Zhang Ximiao. He suddenly turned around and found that it was his wife A Luo under the light. This made him feel a little regretful, but also relieved.

Ah Luo held a robe in her hand and draped it over his back, then asked, "Husband, what are you thinking about?"

Liu Xian was silent for a moment, then said, "A'Luo, this winter, after sending Lu Zhu away, you should stay in the other courtyard."

"What?" Ah Luo was very surprised by Liu Xian's unexpected words. She stopped talking to Lu Zhu and asked, "What do you mean, my husband?"

"You've seen the state of the country this year. Everyone is short of food and clothing. I think many people will freeze to death this winter. You should stay here and help me take care of them."

"But how can we take care of it? There isn't much surplus food at home, right?" Although A'Luo had only been married for over a year, she was already helping the eldest lady Fei Xiu with the accounts. Land prices were low this year, and Fei Xiu took the opportunity to buy 300 acres of land. There really wasn't much spare money left in the mansion.

Liu Xian already had an idea. He said, "Tell the people in the village to hand over all their harvest this year, and then we'll provide their meals. I'll also have Ah Tian come over and lead the young men in the village to go hunting in Mangshan to get more game. The women can take advantage of this opportunity to dig up some wild vegetables. If there's still something missing, I have connections outside and can always get some food."

"No matter what, let's just get through this year first. Don't let the people in the studio sell their children anymore. They won't make much money anyway."

At this point, he recalled the factional turmoil still brewing in the palace, and he could not help but sigh, thinking: Darkness! Darkness! Being born in this era is like being born into a dark room, pitch dark. When will people see the light?

Just as he was sighing inwardly, Ah Luo suddenly pointed to the sky and said, "Biji! Look, there are so many shooting stars!"

Liu Xian looked up in shock, and saw that in the starry sky that was flowing quietly in the night, suddenly there were meteors falling, and there was more than one!
Thin streaks of stars streaked across the night sky, barely discernible on their own. Yet, there were hundreds and thousands of meteors! Countless meteors intertwined like raindrops, forming an undeniable white curtain across the night sky. Even the mountaintops, previously hidden in darkness, were now revealed in the dazzling array of stars.
This magnificent spectacle attracted countless bright eyes from all over the world. They were either in the south of the Yangtze River or in the north of the mountains. They were either Hu people or Han people. They were either hermits or celebrities. But at this moment, they all looked up and remembered this rare spectacle in the ages.

Is it a sign of things to come? A warning from heaven? Or the beginning of a legend?
After the star shower ended, the night returned to calm. Some people fell asleep peacefully, some were dancing with swords in a panic, some were full of confidence, and some sneered.

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(End of this chapter)