Later, Charles Harris was killed. William Harris was only a few years old, wandering from place to place with his mother Thompson. His mother also died, but fortunately his aunt raised him to adulthood. Speaking of it, Elder Harris's childhood was also very tragic.

When he was seventeen or eighteen, William Harris joined the army. Because of his youthful impulsiveness, he killed a butcher in the street.

You should know that butchers in ancient times were not ordinary people; they had to have some influence. William Harris had caused big trouble. Someone immediately reported him to the acting governor of Luzhou, David Thompson, and at that time, they even wanted to execute William Harris.

Fortunately, Edward Clark's grandfather worked under David Thompson. When he saw William Harris's name, he remembered an old friend. After inquiring, he found out that William Harris was indeed the descendant of his old friend.

Old Master Clark found David Thompson and finally managed to save William Harris.

Later, William Harris gradually became successful and visited the The Clark Family several times to express his gratitude.

About twenty years ago, Old Clark died, and the The Clark Family declined, while William Harris kept rising in official rank. The situation of the two families was reversed. Edward Clark's father, being somewhat proud as a scholar, was afraid of being accused of currying favor with powerful officials, so he visited less and less, focusing solely on his official duties.

Just four years ago, Yelü Deguang invaded Kaifeng. Old Man Clark refused to bow to the Khitan and acknowledge them as overlords, and as a result, he was killed. Edward Clark's mother was heartbroken and died within a month. At that time, Edward Clark was not even seven years old and could only rely on his grandmother for survival.

The old lady lost her husband in middle age and her son in old age—she had experienced every kind of tragedy.

The old and the young, with no one to depend on, had no choice but to seek refuge with Edward Clark's aunt's family. But unfortunately, Edward Clark's uncle was a good-for-nothing—lazy, gluttonous, and fond of gambling. All the money Clark had was squandered by her son-in-law. Winter was coming, and Edward Clark was still wearing only thin clothes and straw sandals. The old lady was truly at her wit's end.

"I'm old now, I don't care about my pride anymore. These years the The Harris Family has prospered. Relying on our old friendship, I'll go to the The Harris Family and beg! No matter what, I'll get you a job. You must work hard and support the family. Can you do that?"

Edward Clark's uncle beamed with joy, secretly thinking he'd been waiting for this!

"Mother-in-law, don't worry. It's not that I lack ability, but that my talents have not been recognized. This time, I will definitely work hard and not let you down." The uncle pounded his chest loudly.

The old lady chose to believe him for now, went to pack up, and prepared to head into the city. The uncle rolled his eyes and said, "Mother-in-law, can you ask the The Harris Family to find me a civil official position in the capital? Don't send me to the front lines... It's not that I'm afraid of death, but if I'm close by, it's easier to take care of the family!"

The uncle's explanation was clearly a cover-up. The old lady gritted her teeth—truly useless. How could she have been so blind to marry her daughter to this good-for-nothing!

Seeing the old lady hesitate, the uncle rolled his eyes and pulled Edward Clark over.

"Let Eddie come along. The The Harris Family people, seeing an old and a young, surely won't refuse to help!"

Well then!

The uncle's limited wits were all spent on these kinds of things.

The old lady braced herself and went into the city, and did meet the The Harris Family people.

After inquiring, she learned that in recent years, William Harris had been leading troops in battle—first pacifying Hezhong's John Thompson, then moving north to resist the Khitan. He was promoted to Chief of the Privy Council, Governor of Yecheng, Military Commissioner of the Tianxiong Army, commanding all the troops in Hebei—second only to the emperor, a powerful minister with great military power.

Hearing how successful William Harris was, the old lady was filled with hope. Swallowing her pride, she requested a job for her son-in-law. Who would have thought that the The Harris Family would rudely refuse, saying many harsh things—calling them paupers, sycophants, ungrateful... They even drove the grandmother and grandson out, and threw out the whole bundle of local products and wild game the old lady had brought.

Faced with this situation, Clark was so angry she trembled all over, feeling both ashamed and humiliated, wishing she could disappear.

"I really was foolish, an old woman shamelessly coming here to be humiliated. I should have known the prime minister's gate is high, and should never have come, even if I died. Your grandfather was strong all his life, and I've disgraced his name!"

The old lady blamed herself, tightly holding her grandson's hand.

"Eddie, you must strive to succeed in the future. Learn from your father and grandfather, not from me!" The old lady's tears of grievance flowed.

Edward Clark felt terrible, his throat a little hoarse. "G-grandma, maybe the The Harris Family has difficulties they can't speak of. Maybe it's not that they look down on the poor..."

Before Edward Clark could finish, the old lady glared at him and sternly scolded, "Listen, never mention their family again. Just pretend we don't know them!"

Don't be fooled by the old lady's age—she was still strong. Pulling Edward Clark, she quickly made her way to the east gate, ready to leave the city and go home. Suddenly, several hundred imperial guards arrived, blocking the city gate. Everyone trying to leave was driven back!

"By order of His Majesty, the city gates are closed. No one is allowed to leave!"

...Now the old lady was dumbfounded. How could the city gates be closed before noon? Could something major have happened?

Chapter 2: Generous Gift

Clark took Edward Clark and tried to leave the city, only to find the gates suddenly closed. Now they were in trouble. As the capital, Kaifeng was far from the overwhelming prosperity of a million households it would have decades later, but it still had hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians.