In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 767 Wisps of Smoke

As the sun began to set, wisps of smoke rose from the city's chimneys.

People who bought livestock and grain in the East Market happily started cooking, enjoying a hearty meal with their families or savoring delicious meat dishes.

The people who didn't manage to buy any weren't disappointed, because merchants from Taicang County in the East Market told them that more goods would be delivered to the city later, and they would be able to buy them then as well.

The goods continuously transported from Taicang County, while unable to completely solve the food shortage problem in the prefectural city, reduced the demand for food among the city's residents, bringing a touch of sweetness to their bitter lives. The entire city seemed to be filled with a joyful atmosphere, and the names Taicang County and Chenjia Village were frequently mentioned by the city's residents, gradually spreading their fame throughout the prefectural city.

While many city dwellers were enjoying chicken and duck dishes from Chenjia Village, a family of five was having dinner in an ordinary house.

There are many people in Qingzhou Prefecture who can afford to buy chickens and ducks, but there are also many who cannot.

Like this family of five in front of us, because there are many people in the family and the children are still young and unable to work, the family's income and savings are very little. So even though they heard that there were cheap yellow-feathered chickens and white-feathered ducks for sale in the East Market, they had no intention of going to the East Market to buy them. The family of five could only live on the relief grain distributed by the government.

"Honey, eat more so you'll have the energy to work tomorrow."

Two and a half pounds of relief grain was clearly not enough to feed a family of five, so it had to be distributed reasonably.

After cooking two and a half pounds of wheat into wheat porridge, the woman in the house ignored the longing looks of her three children and gave half of the porridge to her husband.

It's not that the woman doesn't love her children, but given the limited food rations, she has to give the largest share to the most capable person in the family.

"Need not!"

Xu Jun shook his head and divided some of the wheat rice in his bowl among his three children. He knew what his wife was thinking, but the children were growing and needed to eat more.

"Thank you dad."

The three children thanked their father politely, and then wolfed down the wheat porridge in their bowls.

Seeing this, Xu Jun and his wife quickly started eating, filling their empty stomachs with the wheat rice in their bowls.

"Honey, do you think Little Ma can come back?"

Xu Jun's wife, Zhou Yan, said with a worried expression as she ate her wheat porridge.

She and her husband had three boys and one girl. Several years ago, their eldest son, Xu Xiaoma, resolutely chose to join the Qingzhou Army to ease the burden on his family.

Since joining the Qingzhou Army, Xu Xiaoma has lived and worked in the military camp. He used to be able to come back to visit his wife from time to time, but since the Yang family army began to besiege the city, the couple has not seen their eldest son again.

This made them wonder if their eldest son had died in the previous war...

"do not know."

Xu Jun put down his chopsticks, his expression indifferent, seemingly unconcerned about Xu Xiaoma's death.

In reality, Xu Jun was not feeling good. Xu Xiaoma was his biological son, and blood was thicker than water. It was impossible for him not to love his child.

But that's just how the world is; even children from wealthy and powerful families are extremely prone to dying young, let alone men like Xu Xiaoma who join the army.

In fact, from the moment Xu Xiaoma joined the army, Xu Jun's worries never ceased, but...

What can he do?

If Xiao Ma is not allowed to join the army, how can the family of six, with only a few acres of land, support themselves?

To put it bluntly, Xu Xiaoma's joining the army was a helpless choice made by his family under the pressure of survival.

Xu Jun had long been mentally prepared for Xu Xiaoma's death in battle, but when he actually learned of Xu Xiaoma's death, he was still heartbroken.

As the head of the family, he had to be strong and not show any weakness in front of his wife and children.

"Sigh! We haven't heard from Xiao Ma for many days. We don't know if he's dead or alive!"

Zhou Yan's eyes were filled with tears. Xu Xiaoma was her own flesh and blood, and now that Xu Xiaoma's fate was unknown, she was naturally extremely saddened.

Every night, lying in bed, she prayed to God, hoping that He would let Xu Xiaoma live. But so many days passed, and there was still no news of Xu Xiaoma, which filled Zhou Yan with despair...

She didn't even know who to hate.

Do you hate the Yang family army?

To be fair, the Yang family army had been good enough to them. After entering the city, they not only did not harass them in the slightest, but also provided them with relief food.

Do you hate Zhu Changhe, Wang Li, Qing Wang, and other such people?

Zhou Yan did have reasons to hate them, but they were all dead, so she couldn't bring herself to hate them even if she wanted to.

She could only pray for Xu Xiaoma in her heart every day, hoping that Xu Xiaoma could return safely!

"Father, Mother, I'm back!"

It seemed that Zhou Yan's prayers moved the heavens, and just as she was bursting into tears, a voice came from outside the door.

That familiar voice made Zhou Yan almost think she was hallucinating.

"Master, did you hear that?"

Zhou Yan stood up excitedly, "It's Xiao Ma's voice!"

After saying that, Zhou Yan excitedly rushed out, and Xu Jun and the three children inside the house also got up and rushed outside.

Soon, they saw Xu Xiaoma, who had just entered the room, carrying large and small bags in his hands.

Upon seeing that familiar face, Zhou Yan rushed over and hugged Xu Xiaoma tightly, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Little Ma, you're back! Your mother was so worried about you!"

Zhou Yan's tears fell like broken beads, soaking Xu Xiaoma's clothes at the shoulder. She had thought Xu Xiaoma was dead and even felt despair.

So when she saw Xu Xiaoma return, the joy of finding him again filled her mind, and she couldn't help but shed tears.

"Mother, I am an unfilial son, and I have caused you worry!"

"Just come back! Just come back!"

The mother and son embraced tightly, and Xu Jun and his three children were also filled with surprise and joy.

It took a full fifteen minutes for them to gradually calm down.

"Little Ma, where have you been all this time?"

After releasing Xu Xiaoma, Zhou Yan looked him over and asked him with concern.

"Because of my merit in surrendering the city, I have temporarily stayed in the military camp..."

Xu Xiaoma slowly recounted his experiences during this period.

After Yang's army entered the city, Xu Xiaoma and his comrades were not mistreated because of their merit in surrendering the city.

However, to prevent the Qingzhou soldiers from causing trouble, the Yang family army still brought them under control, confiscated their weapons and armor, and then settled them in their original military camp, treating them to good food and drink.