Because of the new situation, they didn't travel today. Everyone lived in the ruins.
The newly joined tribes felt the warmth of a big family. For example, the breastfeeding children.
The women helped to dig, but they were exhausted. They didn't have enough food and were anxious, so they didn't have enough milk.
The women of the other six tribes helped to feed the children. They didn't worry even when the wind blew and snow fell at night.
The juiciest parts of the prey caught by the southwest barbarians were specially given to them. They only put a little salt to increase their milk.
They could also eat wild vegetables first. They couldn't lack vegetables, so the horse milk was their extra meal.
The old people worked hard to do what they could. They knew the consequences if the Military forces of the Tang Dynasty didn't come.
After the heavy snow, there was a shortage of food. The old people who couldn't work hard were taken to the wild and given some food. It was usually a meal.
Some sensible people didn't need others to take them and quietly left at night.
The people who slept with them listened to the movement and lay there for a long time, unable to fall asleep.
This year, it was different. The Li Family Zhuangzi's team was too strong. They always made sure that everyone had enough to eat.
They had to work hard and not be an eyesore.
The old people usually beat the grass they dug out from the snow with sticks and softened it for everyone to use.
The old people who were strong took the older children to the place where the grass grew and were responsible for digging the snow.
The children held small knives in their hands to cut the grass that was not hard. They tied it into small bundles and fed it to the horses.
The women helped to cook, tie, and plow.
The men tied ropes to climb trees. They used long poles to break the dead branches and selected good places to cut them into sections to be firewood.
The things they dug out from the houses were uniformly managed, especially the food.
The newly joined tribes had no objection to this. As long as they could eat their fill and reach the Tang Dynasty alive, it was enough.
When most people were resting, the people of the Li Family Zhuangzi took out dried ginger.
It looked like powder, but when it was real, it was cut into pieces the size of rice grains. After it dried, it shrank into grains smaller than sesame seeds.
They boiled it in water in a large pot. Soon, the dried ginger was soaked and turned into large grains of ginger soup.
Everyone drank it to warm their bodies and avoid getting sick.
This was just an ordinary ginger water with a little salt, but the group of people actually felt happy after drinking it.
The older child, Mo Agan, who was good at handling animals, still had deer blood on his hands that had not been washed clean. He carried half a bowl of ginger water to the adults.
He hesitated for a moment and asked Li Enzhong, "When the people there get old, do they just dig a hole and bury them?"
"You mean passed away? Dead? Li Enzhong nodded. "Let's keep the corpse for a few days before burying it."
"He's not dead. He's alive, but he can't work." Mo Agan shook his head.
"Don't worry if you can't do anything, as long as you can talk. The older you are, the more valuable you are. When you see His Majesty, you don't have to salute.
Even if there was only one stool, if His Majesty didn't want to sit, the old man would have to sit.
The yamen still had to pay, mainly for food, once a month.
If you're sick, the yamen will send someone to take you in for treatment. If there's an old person in your family or if you're not old enough, you'll be exempted from paying the rent … "
Li Enzhong explained how the elderly were treated in the Tang dynasty. The older they were, the more valuable they were.
To be able to live to ninety years of age, their entire family would be able to enjoy happiness. Some could even live for five generations under the same roof.
The fact that the elderly lived to such an age proved that the children were filial. If the children couldn't get the qualifications for the local imperial examination, they would directly prove their filial piety and go for the imperial examination.
If the men and women of a family were over eighty years old, the imperial court would set up a memorial arch for them. This family was filial!
As for the elderly who were seventy years old, the local yamen would visit them from time to time during the New Year and other festivals to ask about their well-being.
This would prove that he was good at governing the people. Look, he's still alive at such an old age under my rule.
If the 79-year-old fell sick, the officials would be more anxious than the family. Hold on until you're eighty years old. I'll get you ginseng.
Li Enzhong spoke like he was telling a story. Mo Agan was dumbfounded. The older, the better?
No work? Can there be a family member who doesn't work? Send someone to take care of the elderly? Give cloth and food?
"When my father goes to the Tang dynasty, won't he be thrown out in the heavy snow?"
Mo Agan wanted to ask about the treatment of these people. He would go later.
"Who dares? The Retired Emperor is still alive. Is throwing the elderly an insinuation that the Retired Emperor is too old and should die? "
Li Enzhong's accusation proved that the Retired Emperor would not be thrown out. Who could bear such a big accusation? It was a disaster.
"Ah!" Mo Agan's eyes showed joy and then worry, "My father's legs hurt when it's cold and he can't walk. I carry him on my back. Can I be exempted from the rent?"
"Where will you get the rent? You go to school in the Tang dynasty. Your father's cure is probably not good. My family's Dongzhu has a way to make him less painful. "
"Ah, I don't pay the rent? Tell me more about what the old people in Zhuangzi usually do. "
Mo Agan wanted to hear more. He was full of fantasy and longing for the future.
"The old people in Li Family Zhuangzi … They do whatever they want. Some are willing to make soles for shoes, and some are willing to make baskets.
Those who do such things are limited every day. It's tiring to do too much. They play chess, bask in the sun, watch children play, and dry vegetables.
At other times, they exercise. In the winter of Chang 'an, they wear protective gear and skate. In the summer, they pick mushrooms in the nearby mountains and dry them.
They can't stay idle. It's not good for their health if they don't exercise. They all want to live a few more years and see the Tang dynasty. "
Li Endong's eyes turned red as he spoke. He lost all his relatives and was sold as a slave.
He was sold since he was a child. He couldn't remember the past. Perhaps the family who sold him was still alive.
If only he could find them. There was no hatred in his heart. He thought that they encountered difficulties that couldn't support him at that time.
At least he was still alive after being sold. Now he was living a good life.
It was probably the person who gave him away. How did the person who picked him up turn him into a slave?
Thinking about it, he raised the back of his hand and rubbed his eyes. He smiled and said to Mo Agan, "You came at a good time to meet my family's Dongzhu in the Tang dynasty."
"This ginger is delicious. It's a little spicy and a little sweet. Does planting ginger make money?"
Mo Agan couldn't understand some things for a while. He drank some ginger water and asked about planting.
"How should I put it? Those who know how to plant are called Jiang Zisheng. Those who don't know how to plant are called Jiang Zisheng. The two Jiang are different. Because … "
He introduced to the child that those who know how to plant ginger are called Jiang Zisheng. A large pair of Jiang Zisheng was called Jiang Zisheng.
Those who don't know how to plant ginger don't have many Jiang Zisheng after planting the Jiang Zisheng.
One spoke patiently, and the other listened carefully. The leaders of the seven surrounding tribes began to arrange for people to take over the old man's work.
They didn't dare to let the old man be tired again. Live and work hard to live. If they could live over 70 years old in the Tang dynasty, even if they fell ill at 60 years old, they would still benefit.
Originally, they didn't want their relatives to be abandoned, but they had no choice. Everything was for survival.
The longer their family lived, the happier they would be. They could even get money!
As long as there was a way to live, who would be willing to kill their parents? Wouldn't they be old one day? At that time, should they leave silently?
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