The man glanced at the woman, only then, did she realize her loss of composure. She smiled somewhat embarrassedly and asked cautiously again, "Did we really win?"
The man nodded and said, "I've just returned from the Northern Frontier. The war is over, it's time to go back home."
At this point, the man began to talk about the major war at the Northern Frontier. Although he did not experience everything in person, there were still things he could share. The woman did not understand much about military affairs, but she grasped two key points. The first was that the Northern Frontier had indeed won this time, giving the demons who were constantly thinking about advancing southward a brutal blow. The second was that the Northern Frontier would enjoy peace and stability for many years.
"Not fighting is good. Without wars, people won't die. That's really a great thing!"
The woman was ecstatic. This was the best news she had heard in days. Despite the impoverished days throughout the year, she no longer felt the bitterness at this moment. Even if she could not buy any rouge now, she did not mind at all.
The man was about to speak again when footsteps were heard outside the door. Shortly after, someone knocked on the door of the woman's courtyard.
She glanced at the man, smiled apologetically, and hurried to open the door. Standing at the entrance was a government official dressed in an official robe. The woman knew this person, he was Song Zhong, a constable at the government office. Normally, the monthly stipend was personally delivered by him. They had a fairly good relationship.
At this moment, he carried a bag of rice noodles in one hand, while the other held a pig trotter. Seeing the woman opening the door, he quickly placed the rice noodles on the ground and handed the pig trotter to her. Then, he took out a money pouch from his pocket, smiling, "Sister-in-law, I've brought this month's allowance."
Taking the money, the woman did not open it. After hesitating for a moment, she asked, "I heard people say that it seems the government-issued money isn't thirty coins every month but forty... I wonder if that's true?"
Song Zhong, who had been working in the government office for years, naturally knew about this matter. However, at this moment, he looked at the woman with some surprise. He had originally thought that the woman was well aware of these things but had been holding back from mentioning them. However, judging by her expression now, it seemed she had just learned about it. He could not help but glance behind the woman and happened to see a man sitting under the eaves.
Seeing Song Zhong's reaction, the woman hurriedly explained, "It's not what that guest mentioned."
She did not want to bring any trouble to the man she had only just met.
Song Zhong withdrew his gaze and said with a bitter smile, "Sister-in-law, I thought you knew about this already. However, since you've asked now, it's no big deal. Indeed, the government allocates forty Great Liang general currency coins every month, but once it leaves the Divine Capital, it's no longer under the control of His Majesty. It gets milked at various levels, with the provinces taking a share, the prefectures another, and so on. This is something that everyone in the officialdom understands tacitly. Sister-in-law, you can understand if you think about it too. Now that Sister-in-law has brought this up... It's fine that you ask me, but if Sister-in-law really wants to make a fuss at the government office, please think about it carefully..."
In the end, Song Zhong was just an errand-runner. It was already quite challenging to not go against his conscience and skim some of the remaining thirty coins from this woman. What more could he do?
A bitter smile squeezed out on the woman's face. Previously, she claimed not to mind, but it was just a facade put on in front of others. These ten extra coins did matter to her. If she could save enough, it would be enough for several days' worth of provisions.
"I have a sense of propriety."
The woman nodded. She did not want to cause trouble, especially for someone who had helped her.
Song Zhong glanced at her, thought for a moment, but still decided to speak up, "Sister-in-law, there are some things I say that might anger you, but it must be said. Please forgive me, it's something I have to say."
"Big Brother Qi died in the North while serving. In our Great Liang Dynasty, we have great respect for those soldiers who sacrificed themselves in the north. As a widow, Sister-in-law's household needs a man to begin with. However, in the eyes of the neighbors, this sort of thing is a bit..."
Song Zhong looked at the woman. When he reached this point, he stopped. He quickly apologized with a smile and asked the woman to think about it. Without waiting for the woman to respond, he took his leave.
Watching Song Zhong's departing figure, the woman's complexion was not great. Her gaze was complex. She thought for a long time, sighed, and realized that the present days were tough. She understood that there were no restrictions on widows remarrying in the Great Liang laws, but if she did so, the government would naturally stop providing monthly stipends. While that was not a significant issue, the bigger problem was that if she chose that path, she would likely face disdainful looks from her neighbors.
This was something she could not accept.
Her own man had already sacrificed his life for the people and this world. As a living person, she could not tarnish his sacrifice.
With a sigh, the woman picked up the rice noodles and walked back through the small courtyard into the house. After putting down those things, she returned under the eaves. However, seeing the untouched large bowl of meat and steamed buns in front of the man, the woman became somewhat unhappy. Still, she concealed these negative emotions extremely well.
"Why aren't you eating, guest?"
The woman looked at the man, unable to determine his age for a moment. Looking at the white hair at his temples, she felt he must be older. Yet, looking at his face, she thought he should be only around thirty or forty years old. It seemed the harsh cold of the Northern Frontier made him appear older.
The man sat under the eaves, not hiding anything. He replied straightforwardly, "I can't eat."
The woman asked, "Does Guess find that the food is too bad?"
Shaking his head, the man looked out into the snowy courtyard and said, "What makes it hard for me to eat isn't the food, but that you should receive forty coins every month, but they only give you thirty."
The woman smiled bitterly, thinking that since this man was a soldier who returned from the Northern Frontier, he probably had a wife at home. Naturally, he could empathize with her situation.
For a moment, the woman only murmured, "What can we do?"
Hearing this, the man fell silent for a while. He thought for a long time before saying, "Many years ago, when I wanted to do something big, many people felt that I couldn't do it. But my wife urged me to do it. Because not doing it would mean our family wouldn't survive. That would be a trivial matter, but countless people living a fate worse than death would be the important thing." "However, no matter how anyone looked at that matter, success was virtually impossible. Doing it was actually about the same as not doing it. The price of failure was even greater if attempted. For this reason, I thought for a long time whether to do it or not."
The woman frowned and said, "Since not doing it means your family won't survive, then you must do it. At least give it a try; otherwise, how do you know if it's possible?"
The man nodded and smiled, "That's the idea."
But then he paused and said softly, "That's why they dare to bully you, it's because they know you can survive right now. If they bully you, you can only swallow the insult and humiliation silently. Because once you resist, perhaps even what you have now will be taken away. Once there's something to lose, people will be cautious. On the other hand, if there's nothing to lose, one might stake everything on one last throw."
The man continued slowly, "But it's not an honorable thing. As the uncle, taking something that belongs to the nephew will surely be criticized."
The woman was puzzled, but in the end, she was not too foolish. She could still understand the meaning and asked softly, "So, is it right for the nephew to want to kill the uncle's family?"
The man turned to look at her and smiled, but did not say anything.
The principle was originally so simple, but there were still many people in the world who did not understand it.
"But in the end, he was my nephew. Thinking back to how my big brother treated me back then, he was quite good to me. However, after his death, I did these things. Even if my big brother were alive, he probably wouldn't forgive me, right? Otherwise, my wife wouldn't have left me just like that..." The man looked at the snowstorm, his expression becoming somewhat hesitant. In most situations, people presented a different side of themselves in private than what they showed publicly.
Thinking of his deceased wife, the man reached into his pocket and took out the wildflower. After a long time, it was still as vibrant as ever.
In the end, he still plucked the flower.
The woman did not know what to say. She did not know what the man had been through, but she suddenly felt that the man in front of her was extremely sad at this moment. It was a kind of sadness that left people unable to speak.
After some time, the man suddenly stood up, glanced into the distance, and was about to leave.
"Where are you going?"
The woman was somewhat worried, afraid that this man would rush to the government office to seek justice.
The man looked at her and asked in return, "Shouldn't justice be sought?"
The woman thought that seeking justice was naturally a good thing, but whether it could be achieved was a big question. If it could not be achieved in the end, would it not harm you?
The man knew what she was thinking and calmly said, "If I want to seek justice in the Great Liang Dynasty, there's likely no one who can stop me."
The woman frowned, not quite understanding the meaning of this sentence.
The man did not care either and just said, "But before seeking justice, there's something more important to do."
The woman did not understand, but felt a bit wronged as she said, "No matter what, you should eat before leaving."
The man shook his head, "I already owe you many meals. If I eat one more, what if I can't repay it later?"
The woman inexplicably said, "You already owe so many meals, what difference does one more make? Besides, you were killing demons on that Great Wall, you owe no one anything!"
The man remained noncommittal, just shook his head and said, "Your husband died at the border, and you only receive thirty out of the forty coins every month. These are all what I owe you. If your lives become difficult, you can curse me, and should curse me. This should be the case no matter who comes."
The man reached out and caught some snowflakes, saying with some vicissitudes of emotion. "Making your lives better is something I should do in the first place."
After saying this, he walked towards the courtyard, and added without turning his head, "Just stay in this courtyard, don't go anywhere."
With that, the man had already opened the door and walked out.
In the small alley, amid the snowfall, this weary man slowly walked forward, talking to himself, "No matter how We deserve to die, We shouldn't die at your hands."
