Chapter 577: Heroes (Part One)

In the third month of the ninth year of Chongzhen, spring arrived in the frozen Liaodong. At the Niuzhuang port on the Sancha River, boats towed northward by ropes docked one after another, unloading groups of refugees arriving from Denglai. This vital port of Ming-dynasty Liaodong regained its vitality.

Liu Minyou stepped off the gangplank and took a deep breath. Wu Youdao beside him smiled and said, "I've heard that you, my lord, are also a man of Liao. Now that you've returned to Liaodong, will you visit your hometown?"

"Of course, of course. It's just that I've been away from home too long and don't know what it's become. We'll talk about it once everything is settled." Liu Minyou casually brushed him off.

They found the First Company of the Fourth Battalion stationed there. The Company Commander helped them arrange carts and horses, and Liu Minyou's party left Niuzhuang for Shenyang.

Along the official road, large numbers of migrants traveled, supporting the elderly and carrying the young. Their faces were full of joy. Here they would be allotted farmland. Grain, seeds, and plow oxen for the initial phase were all provided by Dengzhou Garrison. The grain tax per mu was only one dou for the first three years, and two dou after three years.

The refugees, brimming with hope, advanced along the official road toward central Liao. They were constantly led away from the main road by personnel from the Land Settlement Department, dispersing into the black soil of Liaodong toward those resettlement villages.

Liu Minyou made the journey in a cheerful mood, arriving in Shenyang five days later. Chen Xin received them at Shenyang's south gate. The two climbed the gate tower, and the vast central Liao plain stretched before their eyes without end.

Chen Xin, full of high spirits, said, "Such fine land, no longer cut off beyond the passes by a barrier fence."

Liu Minyou let out a long breath and said, "In the Tianqi years, so many brave men fought with fierce resolve. Finally, thanks to you, Liaodong has been recovered."

"It wasn't thanks to me." Chen Xin raised his hand. "I merely gave those brave men a stage to display their talents. Everything else was accomplished by them."

Liu Minyou turned his head to look at him and smiled. "It seems you haven't become self-aggrandizing yet, so I plan to keep working for you."

Chen Xin laughed heartily. "Then let's put in more effort, brothers, and give the common people of the realm an even better stage."

In the fifth month of the ninth year of Chongzhen, at Chang'an Fort in Liaodong, where the Crown Prince River and the Hun River converge, Guan Xiaomei was performing a new play called "The Recovery" on a riverside stage.

A group of refugees newly arrived in Liaodong watched with rapt attention below the stage. Suddenly, a loud shout came from the river. "Guan Xiaomei, I've finally found you!"

The audience turned their heads in unison to look. They saw a fat man waving his arms and legs wildly at the bow of a ferry. Without waiting for the boat to dock, he jumped into the river with a splash.

"Guan Xiaomei, I got the medal! I've been discharged too! I got land in Liaodong, and I'm holding shares in the trading company. I'll support you... Help!"

By the time the boatmen frantically pulled him out, Tang Wei vomited a bellyful of water on the bank. When he looked up, he saw Guan Xiaomei in full theatrical costume, her face filled with emotion.

"Tang Pangzi, how did you find your way here? Did you get the letter I sent?"

"I didn't get it. I was discharged at Tieling Guard. I went to Shenyang to ask about your whereabouts and followed the trail all the way here." Tang Wei smiled foolishly and held a golden medal engraved with a flying tiger before Guan Xiaomei's face. "I'm not a play-acting Tatar anymore. I'm a real combat hero. I can marry you now."

Tears streaming down her face, Guan Xiaomei cupped Tang Wei's dripping-wet fat cheeks in her hands. "You are a hero of the realm, and my play-acting Tatar."

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