Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

Jiang Shangxian did not take out the purse given by Wang Mingqian and Zhao Shan. She planned to keep it for herself to enrich her small treasury, and when she left in the future, she would give the remaining money to the Jiang family.

Jiang's mother, who had to ask Jiang Shangxian for money every time she needed money recently, saw that she gave today's wages directly to her. Her eyes lit up at first, then she hesitated and retracted her hand, looking at Madam Xia eagerly, not knowing whether she should take it.

She knew what was coming out of her belly, so how could Old Lady Xia not know that she wanted it? She nodded and said, "Take it. Don't ask Nian Nu for money until you finish spending it here."

"Oh! Thank you, mother!" When Jiang's mother saw her nod, she was afraid that she would change her mind, so she quickly put the purse in her arms.

Old Madam Xia rolled her eyes secretly. What a fool! She is so old and still behaves like this. As soon as she sticks out her butt, you know what she is going to do!

"Grandma, you didn't go out today, I'm afraid you don't know."

Jiang Shangxian was so happy and a little amused when she saw her mother taking this little bit of wages. However, this was her original plan, so as to save herself the trouble of having to step on tables and stools to hold Jiang Wangri to take out and put money. She estimated that since their family did not have the expenses of setting up a stall, this money could last for many days.

"What's going on?" Jiang's mother put away her purse and rekindled her desire to listen to gossip.

It's the second day of the Chinese New Year, the day when the girl returns to her parents' home. Her family members are all here now, so she has nowhere to go. The neighbors have all gone to visit relatives today, and have taken the children in the neighborhood away. There is not even a single person to visit. I usually think they are too noisy, but today I miss them a lot. It's more lively and lively.

"General Wang of the Jinwu Guard said that on New Year's Eve, four dancers disappeared from Pingkangfang."

Jiang Wangri raised his head and asked, "Could it be the dancers who are going to perform the drums?"

"Exactly."

Jiang's mother was completely bewildered. As the eldest wife, she was displeased to hear about these prostitutes. "What about a dancer on a drum? Are you really that bold? Do respectable people go to places like Pingkangfang?"

"No, mother, Cui Shaoqing said there were too many people and was afraid that we would get lost, so he brought us back. I didn't go to check." Jiang Wangri shrank behind his sister.

Jiang Shangxian patted his brother's hand soothingly, and said to Jiang's mother earnestly: "Mother, you can't discriminate against people with special jobs. In this world, there are either cattle and horses, or chickens and ducks. There are cattle and horses like us..."

Before she could finish her words, there was a sudden commotion outside. Jiang's mother's ears were not as sharp as theirs, so she thought it was someone knocking on the door. She stood up and went to open it, mumbling, "Who is it? Coming to our house on the second day of the New Year? Could it be someone sent by Cui Shaoqing to deliver horse food?"

Jiang Shangxian also quickly put on his clothes and followed him out. Why did it sound like someone was knocking on the door, but rather someone was arguing?

With such a lively scene to watch, no one in the house could sit still. They ran out one after another, putting on their coats and running to the yard. When they got outside, the noise was indeed louder. Just as Jiang Shangxian had guessed, it was not someone knocking on the door, but a woman crying.

Jiang's mother tilted her head, turning it this way and that like a super-eared person, and listened seriously for a long time. Then she slapped her thigh and said, "Oh my, why does this voice sound like Lai's mother's?"

Old Madam Xia's hearing wasn't as good as hers. After listening for a long time, she could only make out some vague sounds, nothing more. Seeing her say that, she frowned and said, "Life is not easy for their family. Why are they making trouble during the New Year? It shouldn't be like this. It's his mother who's making trouble. Oh, she's an old woman, how could she not know what was going on? Such trouble is not allowed during the New Year."

Jiang Wangri's ears were sharp, like a monkey's: "It seems that someone is trying to steal his meat!"

"Ouch!"

Old Madam Xia's mouth dropped open. "How could such a thing happen? Is there no law under the emperor's feet? Come on, Erlang, go to Wuhoupu and tell him!"

"and many more!"

Jiang Shangxian quickly stopped Jiang Wangri and quickly told him the rest of the story. Finally, he gave his own speculation: "The meat from the Lai family might have come from a shady source. I'm afraid the government must have come to visit."

Jiang's mother and the two children didn't understand: "What do you mean by unclean meat? Is there any unclean meat?"

Xia Zhenying made an experienced guess: "Maybe it was stolen."

She has been with Old Madam Xia all the way and has seen a lot of stealing and cheating, so you can't be sure!

Old Madam Xia was horrified, and with trembling lips she looked at Jiang Shangxian: "Nian Nu, are you talking about vegetable human flesh..."

She had lived through the chaos of the Sui Dynasty and the Xin Dynasty, and knew that in some places, the chaos and devastation caused by wars was so severe that even grass roots and tree bark were hard to come by, let alone food. She remembered hearing people say many years ago that vegetables and human meat cost thirty coins per pound...

"What is vegetable human meat?" Jiang Wangri and Xia Zhenying were young after all, and they repeated these three words several times without understanding what they meant.

Jiang's mother was stunned for a moment, then her face turned pale. "No, it's impossible. In this prosperous world, how could such a thing happen?"

Jiang Shangxian was unsure about this matter, so he supported Madam Xia and walked back. "Let's go back. I'm afraid things are going to get out of hand again. The authorities will investigate this matter, and it has nothing to do with us anyway. You'd better keep a close watch on the gates these days. Erlang, you and Zhenying, don't run around these days. When you set up your stalls for the new year, choose to walk along the most crowded roads."

Jiang Wangri hadn't figured it out yet, so he chased after her and asked, "Sister, what exactly is vegetable human meat?"

Jiang Shangxian didn't turn around and said softly, "It's human flesh, human flesh."

As expected, the two little ones also turned pale, and Xia Zhenying couldn't help but retching. Jiang Wangri said with difficulty: "Fortunately, fortunately we didn't eat that meat yesterday."

Xia Zhenying retched several times and swallowed hard, "How many pots do they have at home? Did they also pick up the meat from the gutter?"

"Ugh!" Jiang Wangri also began to dry heave.

Feeling Old Madam Xia's momentary stiffness, Jiang Shangxian glared at them both, helped her into the house, sat her down, poured a glass of water into her hand, and patted her back: "We still don't know whether it's true or not, there's no need to scare yourself."

She paused, thinking that if it were her, she would probably feel disgusted too, so she didn't say much.

The Lai family was indeed making a scene at this time. The old lady, ignoring the snow on the ground, rolled around with disheveled hair, howling with red eyes: "This is my meat. Why do you let you take it away? What about the government? Can the government break into my house and steal the meat? I'm going to sue you!"

Lai Da stood by silently, his hands pressed tightly on the meat. Mrs. Lai hugged a few crying children and stood in front of her door, looking as if she didn't want the government officials to take the meat away.