But this is still much better than these Song Dynasty sergeants going to the border and engaging in brutal hand-to-hand combat with the enemy.
at the same time.
Stationed in a simple tent about five miles outside Tokyo.
A group of old men in their sixties wearing shabby armor were discussing something with sad faces.
Among this group of old men, an old man with a black headband on his head, a frown on his face, wrinkles all over his face, a goatee, and chapped lips, sat in the middle.
From the looks of it, he seems to be the leader of this group of people.
This man's name is Liu Hu.
When he was young, he followed his elder brother and led the army to attack Xixia many times.
And the army led by these two brothers.
It was the famous Flying Tiger War Cavalry at that time.
At that time, it was because of the invincibility of this army that in the end, Xixia was forced to beg for peace with them, the Song Dynasty.
But even the bravest general cannot escape the ruthless baptism of time.
Just over twenty years ago, Zhezong of the Song Dynasty, Zhao Xu, dismissed their flying tiger warriors on the spot on the grounds that the world was now peaceful.
However, the imperial court still owed each of them fifty taels of disability allowance and refused to pay it.
At the beginning of the period, when they were disbanding, the imperial court explained to them carefully.
Even if they will no longer be the active military force of the imperial court in the future.
But the imperial court will never abandon those soldiers who have worked hard for the country for most of their lives.
A relatively generous amount of silver will definitely be prepared for those meritorious soldiers and soldiers who were disabled due to the war, so that they can enjoy their old age in peace.
When those sergeants received the court's affirmative reply, they were extremely happy.
After all, when they grow old, they will have no way to defend themselves, and life will be extremely difficult by then.
Although the fifty taels of silver was not much, it could provide a guarantee for their old age.
Within the first few years.
They, the veterans, didn't care about the fifty taels of silver that the court wanted.
After all, they are still young and have enough strength to do whatever they want without starving themselves to death.
At the same time, they also knew that the imperial court had just finished fighting a war and was not well off in terms of silver.
Therefore, they did not want to cause trouble to the country, so they were not in a hurry to ask for it.
But in a blink of an eye, the time has arrived twenty years later.
At this moment.
Song Zhezong Zhao Xu.
Has long since passed away.
The new emperor Huizong Zhao Ji came to power.
And the group of vigorous flying tiger warriors back then are now in their sixties.
By this time, they already had their own grandchildren.
Originally, they thought of taking these fifty taels from the imperial court as money to survive in the future.
However, at this time, the court not only refused to pay them the disability allowance, but some officials even spoke harshly to them.
Finally, under the exploitation of many corrupt officials, these veterans of the Flying Tiger War Cavalry finally couldn't stand it anymore.
If they don't leave their hometown and come to the capital to ask for the long-overdue disability pension, their entire family will not be able to survive.
So Liu Hu took the lead and organized two to three thousand old brothers.
He also asked them to bring their families and follow him to the capital to claim the disability pension.
After all, this disability pension was promised to them by Song Zhezong Zhao Xu back then.
Therefore, their coming this time is not unreasonable.
They came to the capital this time with only one purpose, which was to get back the disability pension.
And in this process, they did not want to cause trouble to the court.
So along the way, although there were many ordinary people who were filled with indignation after hearing their experiences, they wanted to join in and help them beg for money.
However, they were rejected.
Liu Hu and others all came from poor backgrounds.
When I left home, I didn't have much money with me, and there wasn't much food left at home.
So along the way, I also ate and went hungry.
But even so, Liu Hu did not organize them to beg for food.
If not for anything else, they were afraid that this kind of behavior would discredit the famous Flying Tiger Warrior.
When a group of them arrived in the capital, they found the Kaifeng governor and told the Kaifeng governor the purpose of their trip.
And what about the governor of Kaifeng?
After hearing about this, I felt it was very difficult to handle.
So, Liu Hu and others were sent back.
He also told them that they would definitely report what happened to these people to the current officials and let them go back and wait for the news.
And that Liu Hu is also a real person.
Since the official said so, he had no choice but to lead this group of old, weak, women and children to temporarily station five miles outside Tokyo.
Without a house to live in, they used broken bricks and tiles, plus some broken boards and rags to build hundreds of temporary shelters, similar to shacks.
And there was nothing to eat.
Here they reclaimed several pieces of wasteland, planted vegetables, and became self-sufficient.
Although life here is very hard.
But I am still happier than these people in my hometown.
After all, when they were in their hometown, there were always various exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes that exploited them.
But not here.
Liu Hu and the others have lived here for more than half a year.
During this period, Liu Hu would go to the government office in Kaifeng Prefecture every one or two months to ask if the disability pension had been approved.
He also repeatedly explained to the Kaifeng Mansion that when they were young, these old brothers had been injured and bled for the Song Dynasty.
Now that I am older, I can no longer do any work.
My family was also exploited by those corrupt officials, and there was nothing left.
I just hope that the court can give them the disability pension for the sake of their hard work for the country.
This also gives these people a way out.
But every time the Kaifeng governor gave Liu Hu an answer, I would try my best to report the matter to the officials. I am quite busy here, so you should go back first.
Every time Zhao Hu went to Kaifeng Fuyin, he brought his old brothers with them and looked forward to it.
But every time he went back, the news he conveyed disappointed everyone again and again.
After several times.
Liu Hu even felt a little desperate.
At this time, he was looking at the few old comrades sitting in front of him with dull eyes.
Then he turned around and looked at his little granddaughter, who was sallow and skinny.
Suddenly, a feeling of sadness came to my heart.
"Why……"
"We brothers are all so old."
"Even if you are healthy, how many more years can you live?"
"When we die, how will the descendants around us live?"
"Once upon a time, we were all soldiers of the Song Dynasty, and we were the best soldiers."
"We don't want to do anything to embarrass the court."
"I came here this time just to leave a way out for our descendants."
"But now I find that it is almost impossible to get the disability pension through normal means."