Although the little emperor had heard the report about the people in his palace before, and had issued strict prohibitions, he still couldn't help but take a breath when he actually heard and saw these scenes.
At that time, because they were about the same age, he once asked with great interest how Goose came to the palace. As a result, the little guy bit his lip and told the story of that tragic past, crying uncontrollably. He also knew that the trusted eunuch
What kind of hardships did the others go through to get to him, and subconsciously he believed them a little more. However, knowing how much pain it was, how could he believe that there were so many cruel people who could kill him?
"We have already issued such strict orders..."
Before he could finish his sentence, an old man in front of him said with a smile on his face: "Father, the children to be selected are already inside. There are forty-eight of them in total. They are definitely the smartest and good children. They are definitely not the best."
You will be disappointed."
If possible, Goose didn't want to appear in such a place. At this moment, he tried his best to restrain the twitching corners of his mouth and said word by word: "That's all?"
"Uncle Niemen, people picked two children from us before, which shows that the quality of the children here is better than those in other nearby villages." The old man seemed a little dissatisfied when he saw Goose, and said hurriedly.
, "If my father-in-law doesn't like them, just tell me what kind of people you want, tall, short, arrogant, and well-behaved. No matter what your requirements are, the little old man will definitely be able to find them for my father-in-law. After two or three months, he will be able to find them."
Send the person to my father-in-law."
The little emperor was so angry that he wanted to curse, but his arm was pinched hard, and he could only suppress the evil fire. He followed the goose into a warm room with a charcoal pot.
Seeing rows of ragged children with expressions that ranged from ignorant to miserable to numb to submissive. The oldest children were about the same age as him and the youngest were only six or seven years old. They came forward and knelt down to kowtow. He finally vaguely understood why Epuzi had just said that.
sentence.
You can’t make a living…that’s probably what I mean!
Although Goose'er knew that the best way out for these castrated children was to be sent to the palace like him, there were so many people, not to mention him, even the trusted eunuchs couldn't bring them all to the palace in one go.
So, he looked around and finally selected two children who were only eight or nine years old and had the shabbiest clothes but still handsome appearance. Even so, the old man and several villagers were still full of joy.
Thank you very much, but the scene of the two children over there crying and saying goodbye to their families makes people even more sad. Even though he doesn't shed tears so easily now, his eyes still feel sour and astringent.
The little emperor originally wanted to call the two boys into the carriage and ask them a question on the way back, but when the old man and a few middle-aged men sent them out, they told them that the children in the village could afford hardship and asked them to walk with the carriage.
, who had been silent all this time, finally couldn't help it anymore, and opened his mouth and said: "Epuzi, let your men carry each of your men on the horse, just like this, we will return to the city in a while!"
With these words, two eight or nine-year-old children were carried by two guards and got on the horse. As the carriage started, the little emperor heard two exclamations from outside, but the sounds disappeared in the blink of an eye.
, he couldn't help but take a deep breath, then looked at Goose Shop and said: "You said before that there is a village with hundreds of such people?"
Epuzi nodded, and then said calmly: "This scene is nothing. Next, I want to take the emperor to another place."
The little emperor thought to himself that he had seen this scene before, and he would get used to seeing it again. He nodded casually, and sat in the car all the way, feeling sulky. He sat there with his chin in his hands.
He was minding his own business, while Epuzi looked at Epuzi worriedly. It wasn't until Epuzi shook his head at him that he held on to the hand stove tightly, thinking about how his hands and feet were tied after being stabbed.
The misery and despair of being locked up in that empty room.
However, I don’t know how long it took. When the carriage stopped again, the two people who got out of the carriage were stricken by the smell that hit their faces. When they saw the filth around them clearly,
When faced with the situation, the little emperor changed his expression first, but Goose actually forgot about etiquette and grabbed the little emperor's arm.
The carriage happened to be parked at the entrance of an alley. The white snow in the alley had long been trampled into a blackened shape. There was an unclear smell of rotten food or mold wafting out in the wind.
, people can’t help but want to step back. There are various low houses on both sides. Some of them can still see traces of brick walls, but some are clearly houses made of thatch, wooden boards, etc.
Now there have been two heavy snowfalls in a row. There are houses everywhere that have been completely crushed by the heavy snow. You can even hear bursts of wailing. After watching for a while, the little emperor asked in a hoarse voice: "Is this the case?"
where?"
"This is a hell on earth more terrifying than the previous village."
Goose Shop paused as he spoke, but did not force the little emperor to go inside. Instead, he whispered: "The children I saw before were all children of the right age. If they were sent to the palace, it would be a coincidence.
Can enter the inner study hall, or follow the distinguished father-in-law. And these are all at least over twenty, even thirty or forty-fifty, and have been in the palace for many years. Because their lives are poor and have no place to live, they take this road for advancement.
People who live in the palace have a living, but because they are too old, it is basically impossible to fulfill their wishes. They are also laughed at by the neighbors and not tolerated by relatives. In addition, the government strictly prohibits them, so they can only live here in groups."
While they were talking, a man crawled out of a room deep in the alley. Even though they were far away, both the little emperor and the goose could see the man dragging a weak and weak hand.
His legs crawled towards the entrance of the alley. The man's head was gray and red, and he couldn't tell whether it was mud or blood. It was impossible to see the true color of the clothes on his body. He let out a series of deep gasps.
It didn't even sound like a human being. When this person saw the group of them standing at the entrance of the alley and suddenly rushed over like flying, the little emperor finally saw clearly the eyeball that almost fell out of his eye socket.
Finally I couldn't bear it any longer, so I turned around and got straight into the car.
"Okay, give me something to eat..."
"Kick him away!"
Seeing that Goose was about to follow the car, Goosepuzi grabbed him with one hand and made a gesture. In a moment, the man fled in hastily, driven by several guards with knife handles...
A soldier walked out of the room and asked, "May I ask who you are..."
"We are the Supervisor of Ceremonies." Epuzi directly pulled out such a big flag. Seeing that the soldier was stunned and hurriedly showed an extremely respectful expression, "I heard it was snowing heavily, so I came here to take a look.
look."
"My father-in-law is kind, my father-in-law is kind."
It is said that the body and skin are affected by the parents. Although nowadays, the children of the poor in France cannot become monks at an early age, and the only way to survive is to become eunuchs. More and more people are leaving the palace, but after all, most people still despise these mutilated people.
, coupled with the rumors that these people are so sinister, even the people from the Nancheng Army and Horses Division can't help but stay away. At this time, I saw Goose Shop wearing a thick mink scarf and speaking in a bossy manner.
Naturally, none of them doubted that Epuzi was really from the Supervisor of Ceremonies. While the soldier at the head nodded and bent down to laugh, a cold sweat broke out on his back.
There were one or two characters here who were lucky enough to enter the palace, but most of them had no choice but to wait for death. How could any big shot in the palace, such as the chief ritual officer, think of coming here to take a look?
When Epuzi saw that everyone was silent, he didn't say anything. He looked inside again and asked coldly: "Such a heavy snowfall, it seems that many houses have collapsed. How many people died inside?"
"This..." In the cold weather, even the dead are frozen to the core, and they will rot if not treated in time in midsummer. Therefore, the Soldiers and Horses Department naturally delayed coming here to check, just thinking about it when the time came.
After sending the child to the crematorium, he was asked this question by Goose Shop. The soldier suddenly felt a chill on his forehead. After a while, he stammered, "Little man, I will go and take the people to count."
"
"Act quickly, I'll be here waiting for a reply right away. I only want the numbers, and I'm not here to check on your negligence. Don't play any trick of making false reports or concealing reports, otherwise if I verify it by then, I will definitely punish you severely!"
"Yes, yes..."
After giving the strict order, Goose Shop gestured to Goose to get in the car and wait. However, he did not follow him. Instead, he stood in front of the car, looking at the low houses and listening to the shouts and curses inside.
He scolded, his eyes flickered, and he gradually thought too far.
Although the punishment for the people in the palace has always been very severe, as the number of people increased, the execution of the people in the palace itself became a false policy. After all, the imperial court would not be willing to go on a killing spree, killing hundreds or even thousands at a time.
But such a group of people who cannot enter the palace but are rejected by the people around them will cause big trouble if they are left alone.
Although the eunuchs do not completely treat people as the same kind, if they deal with them rashly, they will still cause harm to others. And if they blindly send troops to remote areas, they can certainly send them away out of sight, but it is also the same as forcing people to go.
Death is no different.
After waiting like this for about half an hour, even though Epuzi gently rubbed his hands and stamped his feet, his hands and feet were still cold. Just when he was getting impatient, a soldier from the Nancheng Army and Horse Division finally ran out quickly and came to him.
The soldier shrank his hands and feet and wanted to salute, but he stopped him with a look, and then he swallowed hard.
"Reporting to my father-in-law, the heavy snow collapsed seventeen houses, and a total of ninety-four people died. Seventy of them were crushed to death, and twenty-four died of cold and hunger. As for those who were crushed and suffered frostbite, very few
Quite a few, the boss is calculating over there."
"I know, transport all the dead people out as soon as possible, otherwise if there is an epidemic, you will be the only one to ask." As Epuzi said, he took a piece of silver from the entourage beside him, weighed it and threw it away.
The soldier's eyes lit up when he took it in his hand, and he said, "Build a shack to accommodate these people first, and then set up a big pot to cook porridge. How many can be saved? After today, I will ask someone to send two more
Come here with ten taels of silver, I don't care what you do with it, but if another person dies..."
