The prince is very cruel

"Thank you for your kindness!"

He speaks politely, like a scholar.

Guan Ning saw his predicament and thought that he was worried that he would not have enough money to buy medicine at the clinic. He could not help but feel more sympathy for him. It was really hard to be born in this world.

"I have money, you don't have to worry about anything."

"You don't need it, but your mother needs it at her age, right?"

The middle-aged man who was about to refuse was unable to speak when he heard the second half of the sentence. Looking at his white-haired old mother, tears suddenly came down.

He knelt down at Guan Ning's feet and kowtowed loudly, the sound sounding as if he was going to smash his head: "Thank you so much, benefactor, thank you so much..."

"Hey, don't!"

Guan Ning helped him up: "Let's go first, there are too many people here."

"..."

As they spoke, Guan Ning and Lou Xinyue took the mother and son to the nearest clinic and got some plasters. Fortunately, nothing serious happened, but the middle-aged man was too thin, and there were a lot of bruises when he took off his coat to apply the plasters. It was estimated that he didn't have enough to eat on a daily basis and was often beaten.

Then, Guan Ning and the other man left some money and planned to leave.

But the mother and son were grateful and kept trying to keep him, saying that he could stay at their home.

It was hard to refuse such a kind offer, and since he had just arrived, Guan Ning needed some time to inquire about the news and rest, so he agreed.

When we arrived at the home of the mother and son, it was actually just two dilapidated tiled houses. However, since the middle-aged man knew some masonry work, there was no problem in sheltering them from the wind and rain.

"Well, benefactor, my house is a little shabby, please don't mind." The middle-aged man seemed embarrassed, almost alluding to the helplessness and inferiority of all people who have reached middle age but have accomplished nothing.

Guan Ning grinned: "Having a place to live is already very good. My wife has been with me and she hasn't lived in a decent house for a few days."

Lou Xinyue glanced at her and thought to herself, how dare you say that? She has followed you all over the country, but she didn't live the life of a rich lady for many days.

The middle-aged man smiled awkwardly, but he looked much more natural.

"Come, benefactor, sit inside."

"Mom, take out the meat from home."

"Okay, okay!" The old woman smiled, as if she had forgotten what happened not long ago.

Guan Ning couldn't bear it. After all, the middle-aged man's home could only be described as bare, and if the only bit of meat was taken out.

"That's it."

"Brother Liu, you provide the space and the meat, I can't eat for free."

"I can still provide some white rice, Xinyue, go to the street and buy some white rice!" He ordered. He was the only one in the world who could order Lou Xinyue like this.

But Lou Xinyue, such a cold and arrogant lady, didn't say a word.

"Okay!" She immediately understood and turned to leave.

"This, this... How can I feel so embarrassed!" The middle-aged man rubbed his hands in embarrassment. He was a scholar, and he felt embarrassed to ask guests to buy things, but he really didn't have a grain of rice at home.

"Oh, never mind. Never mind."

"This is called reciprocity. You are a scholar, you must know this, right?" Guan Ning pulled him to sit down.

The middle-aged man smiled bitterly. Knowing that Guan Ning was kind-hearted, he felt even more touched and his eyes were almost red.

Guan Ning changed the subject and said with a smile, "By the way, Brother Liu, may I ask your full name?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you, my name is Liu Rui, and I'm from Guangdong and Guangxi." Liu Rui said.

Guan Ning nodded and curiously started chatting: "Brother Liu, you are a scholar. Logically speaking, you should be respected in this town. Why have you fallen to this point?"

Hearing this, Liu Rui smiled bitterly.

"My benefactor, you are from another place, you don't know the situation here."

"I'm just a scholar. If I meet a soldier, I can't explain it to him."

"Furthermore, the path to advancement for children from humble backgrounds was cut off ten years ago. Unless you were born into a family of high rank or high office, it would be impossible for you to achieve anything."

"Life is so difficult now. The Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi won't give us a way out."

"I still have a piece of land in the eastern suburbs. If my mother and I save some food, we won't starve to death."

"But...but since the year before last, Zhao Tai has been ordering conscription and grain collection in the name of suppressing bandits. They've adopted a system of male-to-male contributions, requiring every household to choose between two options: either send a male adult to join the army without receiving any salary, or pay military rations every quarter to support the army."