Second Master Xue of the Red Chamber has space

Chapter 21 Shocking Words
The Eight Banners boys in Beijing all have eyes on the top of their heads, and the sons of rich people like him dare not mess with them, so these poor people are naturally even more untouchable.Moreover, the Eight Banners are not the only ones in the world. It is a trick for the wealthy to oppress the poor. Only the common people suffer.

Even he himself doesn't take the poor seriously, and beats and scolds the servants around him frequently. He only wants to do things according to his own wishes, and doesn't care about anything else.

Xue Pan used to only say that people like them are like this in everything, and there is nothing wrong with him.But now after hearing these stories, I know what it means to be rich and unkind, and the life of the poor is like a toy in the hands of the rich.The more I listened, the more I felt my cheeks became hot, and my head gradually lowered.

Old Hei saw Xue Pan's expression, which seemed to have achieved the effect he wanted, and deliberately raised his voice to laugh: "Is it because you are too hungry, or are you running to listen to the story?"

Everyone then noticed Xue Pan and smiled kindly.

Lao Hei took out two steamed corn buns and a bowl of rice soup specially reserved for him and handed them to him: "Eat quickly, I'm already hungry by now, shouldn't my anger go away?"

Xue Pan felt that he was so boring before, and he was really hungry, so he took the food from Lao Hei with drooping eyebrows, and ate silently.To be honest, even if he was allowed to eat this poor person’s cornbread two days ago, it would be a dream. Now that the hard cornbread is biting in his mouth, he only feels that the more he chews, the sweeter he is. The irony that couldn't be said in my heart, and the silly smile hung on my face again.

Heizi also smiled, got up and went into his small warehouse, and took out a brand new set of shoes and socks and a medicine bottle after a while.He threw the shoes and socks to Xue Pan: "These are the new shoes and socks my adoptive father bought for me. I haven't worn them yet. Just take off the shoes and socks on your feet, dry them with charcoal fire, and freeze them to hurt your feet."

Xue Pan's drenched shoes and socks wrapped around his feet, like two moving ice cellars covering his feet, making him uncomfortable.Seeing dry shoes and socks to wear, he didn’t pick them. He took off the semi-wet shoes and socks on his feet in twos and threes, only to find that his feet were already red from the cold. Holding his feet in his arms, he carefully rubbed the medicinal wine for him.

"This is cherry wine, to prevent frostbite. Your feet are like this. If you don't rub the medicinal wine, they will be frozen tomorrow. If you get frostbite, you will get it every year. If you don't get it right, it will easily break. It's good. It also hurts and itches when I’m pregnant, which is very troublesome.”

In fact, there are very few poor people who don't have chilblains on their hands and feet. They are used to it.It's just that Heizi saw that Xue Pan had too thin skin and tender flesh, and he remembered that he had been like this in the past. It was really difficult when he first got frostbite, and he couldn't bear that Xue Pan was like that, so he felt a little sympathy.

Xue Pan, who was used to being served by servants, felt embarrassed for the first time. Rubbing Heizi's feet with his callused hands was not very comfortable, but the skin on his feet was painful because of the thick calluses.But Xue Pan didn't draw back his feet, let alone make a fuss, just sat quietly and let Heizi move his hands, staring at the brazier, wondering what he was thinking.

Heizi looked at his feet, then looked at his uncomfortable expression, smiled for a while and said: "Oh, I used to be like you, with thin skin and tender flesh, I opened my mouth and stretched out my clothes when I was eating, but it's a pity that my family was defeated, and I was also like you." Being sold as a slave, I have suffered a lot for several years. If it wasn’t for my adoptive father and my boss, I’m afraid I’d starve to death today. You, don’t be in the cloud, think about it sooner. It will be easier to understand sooner. Don’t mention whose son you are. For a truly rich family, whoever has a glimmer of hope of recovery, who would be willing to send their children to such a place to suffer? It’s all for this reason , Who else can you rely on if you don’t rely on yourself? Our place is already very good, and people who have no money to eat in many places on the shore will starve to death.”

Xue Pan asked curiously: "Your family was originally from a wealthy family?"

Heizi shook his head: "It's not a big family. Our family was originally a small salt merchant in the south of the Yangtze River. Although it is not as rich as those families, it is still very rich. It's a pity that my father was not a businessman. Unexpectedly, he lost his family business in a few years, and he was lustful again, so he would go to that Huajie Liuxiang to have fun. It is a place where people eat people and don't spit out their bones. All the money he got was gone. When he had no money, he pawned things, sold the house, and later borrowed money to go. He sold his sons and daughters and his wife before paying off his debts. My mother, brothers and sisters were all sold by him. , as if we were on each side today, and I don’t know where to find them..."

As Heizi spoke, his voice gradually weakened, and the atmosphere became dull for a while.

However, Heizi's melancholy didn't last long, and soon he raised his head, with a much clearer expression on his face: "Now I'm learning from my adoptive father, and I've met a good boss like Mr. Saving some money in the past few years, marrying a daughter-in-law, and leaving incense for our family is considered worthy of our ancestors."

He didn't say anything about looking for relatives, but he knew that there was a huge crowd, and the chance of finding relatives was very slim.So what if you find it?It's just adding to the sadness, no one can control the other, let's all live in peace.What's more, no news is good news. If we can't see each other like this, Heizi can still think that they are all alive and well.

Hearing Heizi's words, the boatman beside him laughed at him: "You are only a little boy, but you think of your wife. I said Heizi, are you ashamed?"

Heizi disagreed and retorted: "I am 15 years old now. Didn't the boy from the old Li family get engaged when he was 14? Why can't I miss my wife?"

Everyone laughed, and Lao Hei's eyes flashed, but he told another story about the failure of a wealthy family.

This time, what Lao Hei was talking about was the real story of the overnight downfall of a real high-ranking official.The story is not about someone else's house, but the house of Prince Pingnan Shang Kexi who was once prominent.

Thinking of the title of Pingnan King Shang Kexi back then, all common people like them knew it well.

When Shang Kexi came to Beijing to report on his duties, all the people in the capital had seen the semi-royal guard of honor. It was so magnificent and majestic, it was really eye-catching.The sound of gongs, drums and firecrackers at that time seemed to still be echoing in my ears.

Another of Shang Kexi's sons married Princess Heshun of the royal family. He was a real royal relative.

But so what?
His son Shang Zhixin led troops to surround his residence and snatched the military power from him to respond to Wu Sangui's rebellion.Even before his death, Shang Kexi still did not forget the kindness of the Qing court. However, his son's crime of rebelling against the Qing Dynasty was too heavy, and Shang Kexi's loyalty failed to move Emperor Kangxi, let alone preserve the prosperity of his family.

After his death, in addition to the rebellious and rebellious Shang Zhixin, three other sons were also killed by Emperor Kangxi. All three of them were young talents. The old Shang family only had so few useful men, but none of them died. So damn good.

It’s okay to be dead, as soon as you close your eyes and kick your legs, you don’t know anything. Those who are alive are worse than dead.

Except for the one who married Princess Heshun, the rest of Shang Kexi's family members lived a normal life.They were imprisoned brutally, and once they got to this point, they were forced to work every day as soon as they opened their eyes, such as pouring night incense, cleaning toilets, picking manure, washing diapers... any dirty work imaginable They are all assigned to these people to do it. Who calls them relatives of criminal ministers?
But where have they worked, and where can they work?If they don't do well, they will be beaten, and if they don't finish their work, they will not be allowed to eat. They live a life with one meal and one meal every day.

In fact, Lao Hei also wants to talk about Wu Sangui's family. Their family is not as good as Shang Kexi's family.

It's just that the imperial court has ordered the arrest of Wu Sangui's second son Wu Yingqi. The story of Wu Sangui's family can be said to be known to everyone, and it is even more miserable than that of the Shang family. Lao Hei didn't say anything, but the boatmen nearby also talked about it vividly. , saving Lao Hei's words.

When the Wu family ransacked all the families, Mrs. Wu Chen Yuanyuan took the second son of the old Wu family and now ran outside to live a life of incognito.But what kind of life can they live?Even with the treasure that Wu Sangui left them, they would not dare to have fun under the coercion of the court. Isn't it because they are afraid every day, and they all take off a layer of skin to experience the life at the bottom?
Not to mention comparing with their previous days, even ordinary people can't compare with them.Don't talk about rich and poor, no matter how poor the ordinary people are, at least they can have peace of mind. But as for them, they are all like frightened birds, frightened every day.

More than 20 years have passed since the pacification of San Francisco. Xue Pan, who was unwilling to go to the study, naturally did not understand this period of history.Now, hearing Lao Hei talking about it, and listening to others say how Wu Sangui's family ended up, he just felt his soul fly away, but he muttered timidly: "That's because they treasoned the country, as it should be, how can an ordinary official's family just say they're defeated? "

Old Hei sneered and said: "I often hear people say that 'accompanying the king is like accompanying a tiger'. I don't know much about this officialdom. It's just that when I ran to the Cao Gang, those state officials or those in charge of the Cao Gang on the shore Mr. Ba, Mr. Qian, among the officials I have met, none of them dare to guarantee that they can be officials for a lifetime. Even those who seem to be doing well are suffering. How can there be officials who are prosperous for a lifetime?"

Xue Pan's face turned pale.People always judge others by themselves, and he couldn't help but think about how his own family was. It didn't matter when he thought about it, he felt a cold air coming from behind his back. His thick cotton-padded jacket was wet with cold sweat, and he sat there blankly. I don’t know the personnel.

Old Hei smiled, and patted him on the shoulder: "Boy, it's all other people's business. We're just talking about it to relieve boredom. Why are you in a daze? Let's live your own life, wake up!"

(End of this chapter)