A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 255: The Old Soldier of the Liao Expedition
Zhouzhi,

It is the most southwestern county among the more than 20 counties in the capital area. It faces Wugong City from the Wei River to the north and Qinling Mountains to the south.

In the drizzle, Zhang Wu huddled under his worn straw hat and raincoat, his fingers touching the leather bow bag at his waist. The bow inside was the one he had shot and killed three barbarians in Liaodong in exchange for the title of Grand Commander-in-Chief and the eighty mu of land he should have been awarded.
But in the end, he returned to his hometown in Guanzhong after escaping death, but he didn't get an acre of land.

The next year, the imperial court wanted to summon him to conquer Liaodong again. Looking at his hungry and emaciated wife and children and his elderly and seriously ill mother at home, Zhang Wu made up his mind to break one of his legs and lied that he broke it in a fall. Thanks to this lucky foot, he was spared from the expedition to Liaodong again.

In those days, many people broke their own bodies, calling them "lucky hands and feet", to avoid conscription.

"Old Five,"

The village head Zhang Youcai's loud voice came, "Hunting in the mountains again? You're a cripple, it's raining, and you have a broken bow. How can you shoot a bird feather?
The mountains are full of bandits, so don't let them take you away."

"I'm an old cripple. Why would the heroes in the mountains kidnap me? I can neither join their gang nor be sold as a pig." Zhang Wu said to this distant relative who was five generations away from him.

"Old Five, when will you return the grain you borrowed?"

"Third brother, it's a lean season now and we have no food at home. That's why I thought of going into the mountains to see if I could hunt something to fill my stomach. But where can I get the food?"

Zhang Wu dragged his lame leg forward two steps. One of his legs was lame, so he walked with a limp and stood a little crookedly.

In order to avoid the Liao Dynasty, he broke his own leg with his own hands, but his family was poor and had no money for medical treatment, so he became disabled. He even felt excruciating pain every time it rained.

"Old Five, you keep borrowing and owing every year. When will it ever end? I'm taking care of you because we share the same ancestor, but you can't just act like a scoundrel."

"Third brother, there is really no other way."

Zhang Youcai patted him on the shoulder and said, "Old Five, since we're of the same clan, I'll forgive you once more. I have a job that can earn you money. Lead people into the mountains. I'll give you three liters of millet a day, and if you do well, there'll be a reward."

"Lead the way into the mountains?"

"You know what I mean. I'll take you to Yishou Palace."

“But…”

"Three liters of millet a day. If you perform well, you can earn a few bushels of grain. Wouldn't that be enough to get through these lean times?"

Zhang Wu sighed in embarrassment.
He asked Zhang Youcai, "Third brother, you are the village head. You said that there was a heavy snow last year and a cold snap today. The people suffered. Why didn't the court open the granaries to release grain for disaster relief?"

Midnight,

The embers in the fire pit glowed dimly, casting distorted shadows on the earthen walls.

Zhang Wu took a whetstone and sharpened the broken horizontal sword in his hand. Every time he sharpened it, the shadow of the past when he held this sword would appear in front of his eyes.

He had fought in Liaodong, the Liao River stained with blood. How many brave men from the Central Plains had gone to Liaodong, only to end up as ghosts in a foreign land. He had made meritorious service, received honors, and was fortunate enough to return alive. However, when he presented the title of Grand Commander bestowed by the imperial court to the county clerk, he didn't even glance at it.

If you want merit land, there is none at all, no land to be divided.

There are no other rewards.

Instead, the clerks came with the grain collection books and demanded the overdue rent, millet and silk from him.

"Yeah, I'm hungry."

The little girl was so hungry that she couldn't sleep, and she curled up in her mother's thin arms in the cold spring weather.

Zhang Wu sheathed his sword.

"Go to sleep quickly, you won't be hungry when you fall asleep."

After tucking in the thin reed quilt for his daughter, he turned and disappeared into the dark cold wind.

Zhang Wu was once an excellent hunter; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to decapitate three enemies on the Liaodong battlefield and still come back alive. He could see even in the dark, and he was especially familiar with the bamboo forest.

Outsiders may enter the bamboo sea and get lost, unable to find their way and tell north from south, but he walked along limping.

As dawn approaches,

Zhang Wu came back from outside.

"Aye is back. Did you catch the bird?" The daughter stood up immediately after hearing the noise.

"Not asleep yet?"

"I woke up hungry."

The other children also stood up and looked at their father expectantly.

The woman was silent.

Zhang Wu smiled and took out a piece of meat, "Mother, get up quickly and cook the meat, and also make some millet porridge." Then he took out a small bag of rice.

The woman did not ask where the rice and meat came from in the middle of the night. She got up quietly, dressed, and dug up the ashes in the fire pit. There was still unburned charcoal inside. She grabbed a handful of pine needles and put them on the ashes. She blew gently, and soon the fire started.

Put the pot on the stove and pour water in.
The meat was a piece of bacon, cut into small pieces, and then a handful of millet was poured into it and cooked.

"Put more rice in and cook it dry."

The woman hesitated for a moment and grabbed two more handfuls of rice.

The whole family gathered around the fire pit, staring at the pot.

When the bacon, millet and wild vegetable porridge in the pot was cooked, the family gathered around the fire pit to eat before dawn.

After eating, the woman hid the food.
Zhang Wu took his bow and sword, put on a straw hat and raincoat and went out.

The village head's house,
Zhang Youcai waved to him, "Come quickly, this is a noble from Chang'an. You take them into the mountains and give them three liters of millet a day."

Zhang Wu looked at the people in the room.

He was wearing hunting clothes and carrying a bow and a knife, all of which were of the best quality.

These people are either rich or noble.

"Recently, a group of people in the mountains have raised the flag of rebellion. The imperial court previously sent two groups of troops into the mountains to encircle and suppress them, but they were both defeated, and even lost three generals.
It's dangerous to go into the mountains now. If you want to go hunting, now is not a good time. It would be better to go to Wugong County north of the Wei River to hunt."

"Don't you want to earn three liters of rice a day?" asked the man sitting in the middle.

"I'm also concerned about your safety. If anything were to happen, I wouldn't be able to take the blame." "Don't worry, we'll just wander around the Sizhu Garden. I heard the bamboo partridges and bamboo rats in the bamboo forest are very delicious."

Another young man said, "I heard there are Pixiu in Sizhu Garden. Can you lead us to find one? If we can hunt one, I'll reward you with a stone of rice."

Pixiu, also known as the iron-eating beast, white bear, and tapir.

"Yes, there are the most Pixiu in Shuzhong, but we also have Pixiu in Qinling. They just look different from those in Shuzhong. The ones in Shuzhong are black and white, also called Xuan Pixiu, while the ones in Qinling are brown and yellow. There are indeed Pixiu in the bamboo sea, we call them bamboo bears, and they are generally not easy to encounter.
Although these bamboo bears mainly feed on bamboo, they are still ferocious and dangerous. Even wolves cannot defeat them. They are very dangerous."

This actually aroused the young man's interest: "No matter how dangerous it is, it's just a wild beast. I want to hunt one myself and then skin it and hang it on the wall."

Wei Ting interrupted his cousin, "Don't talk nonsense. The village head said you are an old hunter and familiar with the bamboo forest, so I plan to let you be our guide. We are not looking for Pixiu or bamboo bears, but we plan to get some bamboo chickens and bamboo rats, and dig some bamboo shoots to taste.

The reward is three liters of millet a day, and if the harvest is good, there will be an additional reward."

Zhang Wu hesitated for a while, and finally took the job.

On the same day,

Zhang Wu led this group of people into the bamboo forest.

Wei Ting and his group of 39 people, dressed in hunting clothes, riding horses, carrying bows and swords, followed Zhang Wu through the bamboo forest in a mighty procession.

There were indeed quite a few bamboo rats and pheasants in the bamboo forest. Zhang Wu even led them to follow the footprints and found two nests of wild boars.

Wei Ting shot two wild boars by himself and couldn't help feeling very proud. He even said that he would reward Zhang Wu later.

Along the way, while hunting, he asked Zhang Wu about the route into the mountains, the recent movements of bandits, etc., and Zhang Wu answered every question.

Following Zhang Wu, Wei Ting had no idea where he was in the bamboo forest, and it felt like everywhere was the same.

"Young Master, you guys take a break here. I'll go to the bathroom."

"Okay, let's go."

Zhang Wu turned around and limped away into the bamboo forest. He soon arrived at a valley in front and made the sound of a bamboo partridge.

As the sounds of bamboo partridges continued to be heard, someone soon came.

"The people are right behind us, thirty-nine in total,"

"Have you figured out your identity?"

"They didn't reveal it, but I secretly observed and eavesdropped. They must be from the Wei family. The leader seems to be a general of the cavalry, from the Eastern Palace. He brought six brothers with him, each with some followers. Each of them had two horses, and they were all equipped with hunting rifles, bows and swords."

"anything else?"

"I overheard someone say that Li Yi, a brat, is just a sixteen-year-old Taoist priest who just returned to secular life. But because he can please the emperor and the crown prince, he was actually allowed to lead the army to fight against the bandits. He also deliberately took revenge on his own and conscripted my brother into the army, and sent him to scout without giving him a single soldier..."

"You've got a big fish this time,"

"He's just a General of the Cavalry, and the Protector of the Township has already executed three third-rank officials."

"Hahaha, you rest here for a while. I will bring my brothers to catch them so that you don't get covered in blood." The man laughed.

Soon, with a few whistles, many people gathered together.

Wei Ting was eating dry food with his six cousins.

Suddenly, countless people emerged from the bamboo forest from all directions, pointing bright swords and guns at them.

"Which one is Wei Huqi? Since you have come to Sizhu Garden, why are you sneaking around? Just say hello and we will come to greet you."

Wei Ting's face changed drastically.

His hand reached for the knife, but an arrow shot in front of him.

"Brother, don't move."

The Wei family members who had been chatting and laughing all the way were all dumbfounded.

A guard shouted: "Protect the young master to break through."

But before he could finish his words, he was shot into a hedgehog by several arrows, and several servants who took action were also shot down.

Wei Ting dared not move.

"Excuse me, who are you from?"

"Yes, you are the servants of the Protector of the Township. It is a bit presumptuous of Wei Huqi to come here uninvited. Why don't you introduce yourselves?"

"I, I'm just here to hunt bamboo chickens and bamboo rats,"

call out.

The strong man shot an arrow, which hit Wei Ting in the thigh. He grimaced in pain.

"This arrow is just a warning.
Let me ask you again, who are you?"

"My name is Wei Xiuming, a descendant of the Jingzhao Wei family. I'm just here hunting..."

call out,
Another arrow.

This time I shot the right thigh again,
"Wei Qiqi, you are really dishonest. I have called you Wei Qiqi several times. Do you think I am calling you that randomly?"

Wei Ting almost fainted from the pain.

"Stop the bleeding for me,"

"Tell the truth and I'll bandage you up. Otherwise, you'll stay and feed the wolves."

Wei Ting was now like a fish on the chopping board, at the mercy of others. Seeing this, he had no choice but to submit. "I am Wei Ting, the Prince's Left Guard, General of the White Deer Cavalry, with the courtesy name Xiuming. Stop the bleeding for me!"

"Hahaha, if you had confessed earlier, you could have been spared these two arrows. Jingzhao Wei, the Prince's Left Guard General of the Cavalry, what a prestigious title! Hahaha, you're nothing but a cheapskate." The burly man laughed heartily. "I used to cut bamboo in this bamboo forest to make charcoal and dig bamboo shoots for you nobles and high-ranking officials to enjoy."

"Come here, stop this guy's bleeding. Where's the General of the Cavalry, a fourth-rank official? Take him back to the Protector of the Township for personal interrogation."

(End of this chapter)