Chapter 2960: The sunset is infinitely beautiful, but the trolls also bow their heads
Chang'an.
In prison.
Dark stone walls, thick wooden fences, iron ropes and moss.
Insects and mice are the owners of this territory, while others are just passers-by.
The darkness seems to have persisted for a long time, making people in it feel that not only the light has been swallowed up, but also time and life have been swallowed up by the darkness.
Looking at the weak light on the stone wall in the distance, Li Kui knew that even this weak light was not reserved for these prisoners, but to allow the jailer who came in to inspect the prison to see the road clearly under his feet.
Everything here does not belong to him.
All his efforts have now come to nothing...
People are dying and the money has not been spent!
what to do?
Li Kui felt that he failed to see the road clearly and chose the wrong path.
He regretted it very much, but now there was no new light to illuminate his path, only the oppressive darkness, and the insects and rats that laughed at him in the darkness and eroded his territory unscrupulously.
These insects and mice would swagger over to grab food when he was eating, and would secretly nibble on his clothes and even his skin, legs and feet when he was sleeping.
Li Kui felt that these insects and rats seemed to have regarded him as a dead thing, a piece of carrion, and he did not want to really become a dead thing or carrion.
If God could give him a chance...
The sound of footsteps came.
The cell is deep, and even the smallest sounds from the outside world seem to be amplified inside the cell.
A voice that sounded familiar yet unfamiliar to Li Kui sounded. He seemed to be talking to the jailer about something, and then the jailer opened the lock and the chains rattled.
"Brother Li, are you okay?" A black figure walked up to the wooden fence.
Li Kui was stunned for a moment.
The jailer stood aside and seemed to turn on some of the lights on the stone wall.
The light arrived in front of Li Kui again, and the insects and mice in the darkness scurry toward darker places, temporarily giving up their territory to Li Kui and the guest.
"You...you you you..." Li Kui's eyes widened, "Are you a human or a ghost?! Aren't you...dead?"
The man revealed half of his face in the light, with a smile on his face, "Brother Li, I did die once..."
Li Kui recovered from the initial shock, with a slight look of disdain on his face, "It turns out... no wonder there were so many casualties in Chang'an before. It seems that they all became Brother Fan's career path."
!Congratulations, congratulations!』
Fan Cong's face was slightly embarrassed.
In any case, he did do such a thing and betrayed some people...
In the eyes of some people in later generations, betraying someone may not be a big deal at all, but in the current era of the Han Dynasty, loyalty, filial piety, honesty and justice are still the yardstick that many people abide by. Fan Cong also felt a little embarrassed when Li Kui slapped him in the face with such a crackling sound.
ashamed.
But soon, shame became the fuel of anger.
"Even if I don't betray you, brother Li, won't you still become a prisoner?!" Fan Cong said coldly, "Those who know the current affairs are heroes. Now that the general trend of the world is on the side of Hussar, brother Li, you also come to Chang'an for a while.
Oh, can’t you see clearly?!』
"The Emperor is still in Shandong!" Li Kui said loudly, as if he could maintain his momentum in this way.
"It is true that the emperor is in Shandong, but can the emperor in Shandong really be called the emperor?!" Fan Cong also responded loudly and without any explanation.
The two voices collided with each other inside the stone wall, stirred up each other, canceled each other out, and then left a faint reverberation.
The only sound left was the heavy breathing of two people.
Fan Cong sighed, then sat down, separated from Li Kui by a wooden fence, "I've been in your cell before."
"..." Li Kui was stunned for a moment, not knowing what to say, so he simply remained silent.
"Sacrifice one's life for righteousness..." Fan Cong said in a faint tone, "Kong Wenju, is he famous? He has many righteous deeds, right? Then what? He sacrificed his life, where did his righteousness fall? Haha, his family property was divided, his house was occupied, and his fields were occupied.
Swallowed... What’s even more ridiculous is that the people who did these things are not outsiders, but the same clan as him, and even his daily relatives and friends! Shandong, ha, the land of culture! The land of benevolence and righteousness! 』
"...How do you know this?" Li Kui asked, and then smiled, "Oh...I understand, the hussar used these to persuade you to surrender? Haha, haha..."
"No." Fan Cong shook his head.
"Humph!" Li Kui obviously didn't believe it.
Fan Cong raised his head slightly, seeming to be immersed in some memories, "I also wanted to die...but then, I heard that I could take my family to Chang'an..."
"Ah?" Li Kui didn't seem to hear clearly, "What?"
"Family papers," Fan Cong pointed to himself, "Mine. And, I really received it..."
"..." Li Kui was silent for a longer time, "So this is your reason? The reason you found for your rebellion?"
"No." Fan Cong shook his head again, "Although I am indescribably grateful for receiving the family papers... But the real reason that made me make up my mind was not in Guanzhong, but in Shandong..."
"Nonsense!" Li Kui sneered, "This is probably just your own self-appointment and pretentious words. How can you tell the difference?"
Fan Cong smiled and said, "I faked my death at the foot of Luoyang City. The news spread to Shandong. According to the usual practice, if I die in battle, I will be compensated for my family members and be suspended from labor for ten years... That's the rule, yes."
Bar?"
Li Kui suddenly realized something and nodded with some hesitation.
"The family papers have been received," Fan Cong said in a faint tone, "I asked, but there is no pension, not even a penny. Because... they didn't see my body! So they "don't know" whether I am alive or dead.
, so there is no pension, no cessation of hard labor, and no cessation of mediocrity!"
"..." Li Kui was silent for a long time, and then turned his gaze to one side. There was a darker corner, where insects and mice seemed to be rustling, chirping, and laughing, "Maybe... this matter should go away.
A process...』
"Yeah." Fan Cong nodded, "Indeed, the process is very important. But..."
Fan Cong gritted his teeth, with a ferocious look on his face, "But, haha, that's fine if they don't give me a pension, but they stopped my family support salary the same month when the news came back! The reason?
It means that I am already "dead"! Hahaha, you tell me, Brother Li, do I count as "life" or "death"!"
"Uh..." Li Kui couldn't answer.
"My wife... yes, she was just a concubine before, but now she is a wife... Nothing can't be changed, right? Although my wife has read books, she is not an eloquent person..."
Fan Cong sighed, "I went to ask the officials, and then... this one couldn't tell, the other said he didn't know, the one said this was not his responsibility, the other said that it was not his responsibility... My wife has been running around for a month.
, I went back and forth more than ten times, but no one... no one could solve the matter... Haha, I faked my death, but... what if I really died? 』
Li Kui remained silent.
"I asked urgently, but the people in Hucao looked angry and said that it was okay for them to do so! Since he is dead, his salary and food should be stopped. What's wrong with this? It violates that law again.
?I just bombarded my wife and asked her to find Gong Cao." Fan Cong sneered, "Then Gong Cao also said that they had no problem too, everything was done in accordance with the law! Unidentified corpses, life and death have not been determined, so nothing can be done.
Pension! Then I drove my wife to look for Hucao... At home, the mother needed to be raised, the children needed to be fed, the fields were taxed, and the silk and Mayong were paid... To collect taxes, the officials who were paid to pay went straight to the door and rummaged through the boxes and cabinets.
He claimed that there was an order, and no one had to miss a penny! Even the copper hairpin that sealed my relationship with my wife was snatched away with my hands... The thin coffin given to my mother was... also...
』
Fan Cong burst into tears and was speechless.
Li Kui turned his head.
Fan Cong wiped his face with his sleeves, his voice a little lame, "That's when I knew that I didn't owe Cao Mengde, nor did I owe the emperor, I only owed Hussar... If not
Hussar sent someone to pick up my family's papers, and I...my wife said that they all wanted to die at that time..."
"You...your people..." Li Kui asked, "Why do your people..."
"Ha." Fan Cong sneered, "Didn't you see clearly enough about Kong Wenju? Clan members? If you have meritorious service and official position, they are human beings. If you have nothing and become extinct, they will be
Waiting to divide the house and property! At that time, you thought they were human beings, but you didn’t realize that they no longer regarded you as human beings!”
Li Kui was silent. He also knew about this. Within the clans with big surnames, there were indeed some volunteer schools and so on. They would also distribute Hukou money and food to the widows and widowers in the clan, but the price was that the family that accepted this money and food would become a certain person from then on.
A vassal of a big house, a servant, a servant in a sense.
And even if this system is available, not all families have it, and even if some families do, it is not open to everyone...
As a noble family, you only need to protect the main branch and the main house from falling down. As for the side details, outside of the five servers, whether to help or not depends entirely on a single thought.
"Brother Li, you are not a wealthy family," Fan Cong looked at Li Kui and said, "You should have seen it in Chang'an... It is true that we are from Shandong, but there is no place for us in Shandong! We can't learn more.
So what if it’s good? A child from an aristocratic family can recite poems and books at the age of three! At the age of seven, his poems can be praised in the countryside! At the age of ten, he can publish a book and become famous all over the world!"
"So what if they are capable? If they say no, they can't. They claim that they want to recruit talented people from all over the world, but it's more open than just being eclectic. But in fact, the people who are finally hired are either the sons of this family or the grandsons of that family.
Ordinary people... If this were not the case, you and I would not have to come to Chang'an..." Fan Cong chuckled twice, "Shandong like this, with such a court... is it worth it? That's all, Brother Li, think about it...
…』
Fan Cong had no intention of letting Li Kui answer on the spot. Instead, he stood up, gave a slight salute, and stood up and left without waiting for Li Kui's response.
The sound of footsteps faded away, and amid the clanging of iron chains, the cell once again fell into silence.
Li Kui was silent, sitting like a statue, motionless.
"Is it worth it?"
If a court or a region prevents the living from living, the dead from dying in peace, the young and the strong from seeing the light of their future, and the old from seeing the hope of a long life...
Li Kui knocked his head on the wooden fence. With a loud sound, it seemed that someone was still asking, "Is it worth it?"
He knocked again, hoping to knock these three words out of his mind with this action.
This time he hit harder, and the rough wooden fence scratched his forehead, blood flowed down, and there was a burning sting.
But these three words still couldn't be eliminated from my mind, and they even got louder and louder.
"Is it worth it?"
……?囧rz……
In prison, Li Kui was confused and unable to make a decision, and in Chang'an City, there were also people who were confused and unable to make a decision.
"Father, we...is this, is this our chance?!"
Wei Kang stared at Wei Duan with undisguised longing.
Ever since Webster retired from officialdom, Wei Kang really understood what it meant to be "a lonely man".
His "friends" who were smiling before now avoided him like snakes and scorpions, and then he realized that what his father had always warned him about making friends carefully was true...
Wei Duan's figure is slightly stooped, and his face is much older. Without authority, Wei Duan seems to have accelerated his aging.
Before, Wei Duan hoped to get in touch with Kong Rong's children, just like a backdoor listing in the stock market, to regain some political capital, but he didn't know whether he was hit by Doe, or was noticed by others, or whether it was the children of Kong Rong.
You really need to concentrate on your studies. Although Chang'an is mentioned, basically most people can't see the children of the Kong family at all, so naturally there can be no talk of backdooring.
Without authority and position, Wei Duan felt as if he was walking naked in the busy city. After the initial period of shame, anger naturally ignited in Wei Duan's heart. He was the dignified "Jingzhao Sanxiu" back then.
One of them, now looks like a lost dog...
"What are your plans?" Wei Duan asked. He did not say yes or no, but directly asked Wei Kang what he wanted to do.
With a gloating smile on his face, Wei Kang raised his eyebrows and said, "The fat black man is obviously scared! He made a mistake! Now he should be gathering the strength of the three assistants in Guanzhong to deal with Prime Minister Cao with one heart and one mind, but he is at a loss.
!First I had a disagreement with the Prince of Hussars, and then there was a fire in the warehouse in the city. And because of the fire in the warehouse, Wei Wenchang was implicated, and Wei Wenchang was caused to cause official trouble!"
"This fat black man usually pretends to be quite presentable, but now at the critical moment, he has panicked!" Wei Kang became more and more excited as he spoke, "This fat black man has now lost the trust of the prince and the support of the general.
How can the three assistants in Chang'an not be in chaos? How can they resist Prime Minister Cao? When Prime Minister Cao's troops come to the city, it will be the day when this fat black man will be crowned!"
Wei Kang, both Wei Duan and Wei Kang, had suffered losses at the hands of Pang Tong more than once. Therefore, Wei Kang hated Pang Tong deeply. Now that he saw Pang Tong's behavior, not only did he not do anything for the people of Chang'an Sanfu
Although he was worried about his safety, he was extremely excited. He felt that this was a good opportunity to overthrow Pang Tong, allow Webster to return to politics, and re-list for financing.
Wei Duan frowned, "I'm asking you what to do."
"Uh..." Wei Kang was stunned for a moment. Didn't he say so much before that he didn't know what to do? But he quickly said, "Since Pang Tong behaves badly, he will naturally not be able to serve as minister! And in Chang'an
Among them, the one who has the most experience and the most powerful ability to turn the tide is none other than Father!"
"Idiot! A prodigal!" Wei Duan scolded unceremoniously, "You really won't stop until you ruin Wei's family fortune! Am I really..."
Wei Duan suddenly remembered the words of Dr. Hua from the Baiyi Clinic, saying that he was too old and should not be angry, otherwise his life would be shortened easily. He stopped scolding Wei Kang, took a long breath, and warned himself not to be angry and not to be in trouble with him.
This prodigal son cares about...
Wei Kang rolled his eyes, wondering what went wrong with his idea.
"Nowadays, it is better to be still than to move..." Wei Duan temporarily calmed down some of his anger and began to explain to Wei Kang, "Try to turn the tide, haha, it looks beautiful, but what if you are knocked into the water by the violent waves?"
』
Wei Kang chuckled, "Father, are you... afraid? If you don't stand up to control the three assistants, how can you achieve great feats just by sitting at home?"
Wei Duan rolled his eyelids, "Do you think the Hussar can definitely win?"
"What else? There are many elite soldiers and generals under the cavalry..." Wei Kang was stunned, "Father, you don't know how...then if you put it that way..."
"I don't mean anything!" Wei Duan was afraid that this thing would go astray again, so he couldn't help but yelled, "Now Wei only has this little wealth left, so be careful! Do you understand?! Don't act rashly!"
I mean what if, what if... When the time comes, if Webster steps forward now, wouldn't it... If it is true... then it will be a perfect opportunity for Webster to rise again..."
Wei Kang rolled his eyes, obviously thinking clearly about the key point, and nodded and said: "That's true... But what if the winner is... the hussar? Then why don't we do nothing now?
Didn’t you miss a good opportunity?』
Wei Duan frowned, pinched his beard and pondered, and then said after a while: "That being said...but I feel that this Pang Shiyuan...should not be like this, there seems to be something wrong..."
While he was talking, suddenly some of Wei's confidants rushed into the corridor and reported with a somewhat strange look: "To the head of the family, young master... This Pang Lingjun came to the table and said that Wei Wen was domineering and had a bone in the back of his head."
... He even said that the generals treated the generals too well, so that the generals and others did not know the kindness and wanted to cut down their subordinates. They even said that the Protector of the Western and Northern Regions had too much power and wanted to remove him from the position of Protector and change him to the governor...
…』
"What?!" Wei Duan was shocked, "This... was Pang Shiyuan beaten stupid by Wei Wenchang?"
At this moment, what kind of civil and military disputes are still going on?
But having said that, since the Eastern Han Dynasty, civil servants have trolled people, especially relatives, generals, eunuchs, everything except themselves, and even their own civil servants. It seems to have become a habitual political correctness, just like
The little fairy bows her head now and that, and there is no one who doesn't bow her head.
Chang'an Sanfu, because of Fei Qian's rule, has not seen such a situation for a long time. The current situation is because Fei Qian left and Pang Tong had no one to suppress him, so his true nature as a "Han civil official" was exposed?
This possibility is not impossible. After all, I heard that in the Runan area, I liked criticism the most in the early days. Jingxiang is very close to Runan. It is impossible to say that Pang Tong was also infected with the disease and now it is starting to attack...
"Father!" Wei Kang looked at Wei Duan helplessly, "Now...what are we going to do now?"
Wei Duan squinted his eyes, "Let me think about it, think about it... hiss... um, yes... we have to believe him..."
