Lin Jue frowned and said to himself: "Is it because I'm dazzled? Why does he look like an acquaintance of mine?"
Lu Wu said: "Who is that? Do I know him?"
Lin Jue shook his head and stared at the man in the bamboo hat across the street without blinking. Suddenly, the man in the bamboo hat took off the bamboo hat and turned towards Lin Jue. Lu Wu screamed in fright, it turned out that
The person's face was extremely terrifying, the flesh was rolled up, and there seemed to be several huge scars.
The man in the bamboo hat quickly put on the bamboo hat and strode forward. Lin Jue thought about it, turned around and told Lin Hu and Lu Wu: "You guys go home, I have something to do."
Lu Wu said hurriedly: "What's the matter? Let's go do it together. Didn't we agree to go to the West Lake to relax?"
Lin Jue said: "Go again tomorrow. When you go home, don't follow me."
Lu Wu and Lin Hu were still waiting to talk, but they saw Lin Jue walking across the street, chasing the man in the bamboo hat.
Lu Wu stamped her feet anxiously and said to Lin Hu: "Follow and have a look. The man just now looked very scary. He might be a bad guy. The young master didn't know who he was, so why did he chase after him? This is really worrying."
Lin Hu shook his head and said: "He must be an acquaintance of my uncle, otherwise why would he chase me? Let's go home. My uncle definitely doesn't want us to know. I'm afraid he will be scolded if we follow him. Besides, it's broad daylight in the city now.
The security is tight, so there is no danger. Sister Lu Wu, don’t worry."
Lu Wu frowned and thought for a while, then sighed and said, "Well, what you said makes sense. But I don't know who it is? It's almost time for the exam, so don't let anything happen."
When Lu Wu and Lin Hu slowly returned home, Lin Jue was following closely behind the man in the bamboo hat. The man walked very fast, striding straight towards the south of the city. Lin Jue pulled up the hem of his robe and followed quickly.
After walking in tandem for about half an hour, we passed through seven or eight street intersections and arrived at a neighborhood at the foot of Fenghuang Mountain in Nancheng. This is actually one of the slums in Hangzhou, leaning against the depression on the northern slope of Fenghuang Mountain.
Many of the extremely poor people in Hangzhou City gather here. In recent years, there have been several such slums in the southeastern part of Hangzhou City. The people living here are city coolies and extremely poor people who have no livelihood.
The man in the bamboo hat suddenly disappeared into a narrow and dilapidated alley with low walls. Lin Jue hesitated for a moment at the entrance of the alley, but then he dived in.
The alley is dilapidated and extremely quiet. The dilapidated adobe houses on both sides block the sunlight. The autumn wind passing through the alley brings a damp and cold atmosphere, which makes people feel a little chilly. The ground is full of dilapidated vegetation and some dog feces.
Things that cats drown have a fishy smell.
Lin Jue frowned and walked forward, wondering where the man in the bamboo hat had gone. Suddenly, a figure flashed in a dilapidated house in front of him. Lin Jue hurriedly ran over and entered the yard. The yard
It is also in dilapidated condition, with half of the surrounding walls falling down. The walls of the low thatched main house have been cracked, and it seems that they will fall down at any time. The two dark and slanted doors are ajar, and it is so dark inside that it is difficult to see clearly.
Is there anyone.
Lin Jue stepped closer and stretched out his hand to push. The wooden door made a harsh creak and was pushed half open. A musty smell rushed out of the room. Lin Jue frowned and walked in. The light in the broken house was dim.
, there were several big holes in the thatch on the roof, and a few rays of sunlight shone down diagonally, dappled on the wall in one corner. In the light, dust was flying. With the brightness of these few rays of sunlight, Lin Jue reluctantly
I saw clearly what was going on in the house.
There were several bundles of random grass spread out in the corner. The grass was pressed into a grooved human shape, and a leather mattress was thrown aside in a mess. It seemed that someone was living in this dilapidated house. Lin Jue frowned and turned around.
He was looking around, trying to find the man in a bamboo hat who had followed him, when suddenly, a cold, low voice came from his ear.
"Don't move, otherwise the weapon in my hand will not be able to see."
His voice was cold, and the back of his neck was also cold. It was the feeling of the weapon rack touching the skin on the back of his neck.
"Brother Liang Qi, is that you? I'm Lin Jue." Lin Jue stiffened his neck and called out softly.
"I know it's you, how could I not recognize you? But I'm not your brother Liang Qi." The cold voice said slowly.
Lin Jue said: "Brother Liang Qi, of course it's you. I recognized you on the street. You can't fool me."
"Huh, I can't lie to you. I didn't say I'm not Liang Qi. I just said I'm not your brother Liang Qi. Because... you don't deserve to call me brother. You have harmed all my brothers and fellow villagers on Guishan Island.
Isn't that miserable enough? You actually dare to call me brother and sister with such shamelessness."
That person was none other than Liang Qi from Guishan Island Village. He had followed Lin Jue through life and death on Peach Blossom Island and had done shocking things.
Lin Jue pondered for a long time after hearing the words, and sighed softly: "Brother Liang Qi, I know you hate me, and I am indeed responsible for what happened in the Guishan Island village. If you can't forgive this, just kill me with a knife, and I will do the same."
No complaints at all. After all, this is my responsibility."
Liang Qi said coldly: "Do you think I dare not kill you? I killed you to avenge my brothers and fellow villagers on Guishan Island who died."
Lin Jue sighed: "You can just kill me. My death in your hands is not unjust. I am fully responsible for that matter. But what I want to tell you is that I didn't know what the outcome of that matter would be, and I was very sad."
Angry, let alone you."
Liang Qi was silent. After a moment, Lin Jue felt that the cold blade on the back of his neck disappeared. Liang Qi's voice came slowly: "That's all, if you follow my temper, I will definitely kill you. But I know you will be killed."
The leader of the village doesn't want you to die. You are the husband of the leader of the village. I can't kill you like this. The leader of the village will blame me."
Lin Jue slowly turned his head, and what he saw was Liang Qi's face covered with knife marks. Lin Jue said softly: "Brother Liang, don't worry, I will give you justice in this matter. Someone is causing trouble."
, harmed everyone on Guishan Island, I have made these things clear to the leader of your village, didn’t she tell you?"
Liang Qi snorted coldly, walked slowly to the grass and sat down, and said in a deep voice: "Of course I said it. If the leader of the village didn't say it, do you think you still have the head to stand here and talk? I said it a few months ago
It’s going to take your life.”
Lin Jue sighed, walked slowly to Liang Qi, squatted down, and asked: "Brother Liang Qi, why are you in Hangzhou? Didn't you say that you and your village master went to Funiu Mountain to settle down? And, you
What happened to your face? Just now on the street, you followed me all the way and aroused my alertness. It took me a long time to think about your figure and steps, and then I decided it was you. Did you attract my attention on purpose? By the way,
Did you come to me specially? Did Mu Qing send you here? Is Mu Qing okay? How is she now?"
Lin Jue asked a series of questions and stared at Liang Qi, waiting for his answer.
Liang Qi looked at Lin Jue quietly for a moment, then breathed out and said: "Are you still concerned about the life and death of the leader of the village? I thought you had forgotten the master of the village. Do you know what we have gone through? Do you know that we are now
situation?"
…
The dilapidated house that exudes the smell of musty and hay is extremely quiet. The autumn sun shines through the holes in the roof, casting mottled circles of light on the bumpy ground in the house. Countless dust, grass clippings and unknown dust are reflected in the light.
Dancing wildly in the sun, up and down, left and right.
Outside, the autumn wind blew through the branches, and the sound of swaying branches could be clearly heard. A few fallen leaves fell from the holes in the roof by chance, swirling in the beams of light and falling quietly on the dark ground.
.
Lin Jue and Liang Qi sat opposite each other on the grass. Liang Qi calmed down and began to answer Lin Jue's questions.
"Master Lin, do you know what the leader of the village and our brothers on Guishan Island have experienced in the past few months? You ask me why my face looks like this. I tell you, my face looks like this.
He was stabbed three times and burned once. His brow and cheek bones were broken, and he needed more than thirty stitches on his face. Whose face can still be seen after enduring so many injuries? But it’s nothing, the scars belong to men.
Pride, I, Liang Qi, don't care about this at all. What I care about is whether the Guishan Island cottage can survive and whether everyone can survive."
Liang Qi's voice was hoarse and deep. The scars on his face were terrifying, but his whole temperament gave people a sense of sharpness, toughness, and fearlessness.
Lin Jue felt horrified and said in a deep voice: "Tell me, what have you all experienced."
Liang Qi nodded and began to describe in detail the experiences of everyone on Guishan Island after arriving at Funiu Mountain. From being taken in by Zuo Zongdao, the leader of the Shirenshan village, to being forced to attack other villages for Zuo Zongdao in exchange for supplies of grain and grass materials, to then
Gao Muqing decided to establish a foothold on his own, to establish his own territory, and told Lin Jue everything in detail.
"...We went all the way north from Guishan Island. Along the way, officers and soldiers intercepted and suppressed us, and fought more than ten battles. Finally, we arrived in the Funiu Mountains. We thought we could stay here, but who would have thought that we would be left here?
This bitch Zongdao actually took advantage of others' danger and just wanted to take advantage of us. Four hundred of our brothers and more than a thousand people who had defected to live under the shelter of others with no food or drink, so we had no choice but to agree to his request. In August, we attacked on behalf of Zuo Zongdao.
We descended three small villages and captured four hills for him, but in exchange we only received a few grains and supplies. However, we also killed and injured hundreds of brothers, and these grains and supplies could not last long at all."
"The leader of Dazhai is frowning every day. In order to reduce our burden, the villagers go to the mountains to dig wild vegetables, tree barks and tree roots, and try their best to collect edible things. But what use are those things? Although we work hard
We got some food from Zuo Zongdao in exchange, but it couldn't last long at all. Because of this, the leader of the stronghold discussed with our brothers that we must build our own stronghold and be self-sufficient. Otherwise, we people will all starve to death sooner or later.
Even if they don't starve to death, they will all die working for Zuo Zongdao. Therefore, in the middle of last month, we decided to attack Luoyan Valley and establish a foothold."
"... In two days, more than 30 of our brothers died, but we finally captured Luoyan Valley Village, occupied two canyons and three peaks, and controlled the passage to the east of Funiu Mountain. But this also attracted us
We have suffered endless revenge. We are outsiders, and it is difficult to gain a foothold. What's more, we have violated a taboo in Funiu Mountain and become the target of public criticism. Luoyan Valley Village and Laojunling and Heishui were captured by us before.
Village and several other mountain villages are under the jurisdiction of Beishan Dazhai, the largest mountain village in Funiu Mountain. Bao Meng, the owner of Beishan Dazhai, was previously afraid of us because we were from Zuo Zongdao of Shirenshan Dazhai, so he chose it.
We were negotiating with Zuo Zongdao. But now, because we decided to set up our own business and did not hand over Luoyan Valley to Zuo Zongdao, Zuo Zongdao fell out. Zuo Zongdao informed all the cottages in Funiu Mountain that he had nothing to do with us and whoever wants to destroy them
We and he will not interfere. This bitch, what he said before was sanctimonious, and what he said about expressing his gratitude to the old village master, is all fucking bullshit..."
"... Bao Meng, the leader of Beishan Dazhai Village, immediately sent troops to attack Luoyan Valley after receiving Zuo Zongdao's promise. Do you know how many battles we fought in this month? Eighty battles. We fought every day.
Fighting during the day and at night, you have to fight with all your strength as soon as you open your eyes. In this month, not even a single hour is safe. People are dying every day. Half of our more than 400 brothers were killed or injured. A group of people who came from Guishan Island
Thousands of people also fought hard with them, and more than 300 people died. The scars on my face were left in this month, when a stupid guy took a hammer and smashed my left cheek.
I could hear the sound of bones breaking. But I was the one who survived in the end. He was kicked down the valley by my kick, and he probably fell to pieces. Mr. Lin, everything we experienced on Peach Blossom Island, I thought
It was the most brutal battle I have ever experienced in my life, but everything I have experienced in the past month is the real nightmare and the real hell on earth..."
"...The leader of the Dazhai is really good. Without her, we wouldn't be able to survive. She passed out from exhaustion many times, but we never saw her say a word of complaint. When killing the enemy, she rushed to the front,
She killed at least thirty people with her sword. When we were most tired and frustrated, the leader of the village never gave up. In the past, all of us complained about her and thought that following her might not have a future, but now we
Everyone admired her. We all knew that the leader of the village would risk his life for us, even if he died in battle. The leader of the village also suffered many injuries, including more than a dozen large and small wounds on his arms, legs and body.
The wound, but the leader of the village didn't say a word, just wrapped it up and continued to kill the enemy. The only time I saw her cry in panic was when her face was scratched by an arrow. That was the furthest thing I've ever seen her.
A panicked time. I think it may be because of you. The leader of the village is worried that his appearance will be ruined and he will be disliked by you in the future..."
"...The battle lasted until ten days ago. We lost two mountains and kept the territory on both sides of Luoyan Valley. Maybe it was because we didn't expect us to be so desperate, or maybe it was because Bao Meng's men and horses suffered too many casualties. He sent
He mobilized more than 1,300 people to attack us, but we killed 700 to 800 people. He must not be able to bear such huge losses. In short, he ordered to stop the attack. The battle finally stopped. We were temporarily
We have established a firm foothold and secured the foothold in Luoyan Valley. However, have we won? No one dares to say so, because I am afraid there will be more tough battles to fight in the future. Whether we can survive it, none of us can
have no idea……"
Liang Qi's narration was calm and understated, as if he was describing something that someone else had experienced, rather than the purgatory that he had personally experienced. But the more so, the more you can feel the meaning revealed in his words.
Despair and vicissitudes, and a kind of perseverance.
Lin Jue was calm at first. When he heard that Gao Muqing led everyone to defect to Zuo Zongdao's village, Lin Jue immediately realized that this matter was unreliable. He didn't know the situation in Funiu Mountain, Zuo Zongdao
Lin Jue didn't know about the invitation. When Gao Muqing came to say goodbye that night, he didn't tell Lin Jue these things. Lin Jue was also in a state of emotion at that time and didn't even think of asking. Otherwise, if Lin Jue knew all this
If so, he would definitely remind Gao Muqing of this.
But what makes Lin Jue heartbroken and horrified the most is everything that Gao Muqing, Liang Qi and others have experienced in the past month. Although Liang Qi's description is calm, Lin Jue can fully imagine the cruelty and despair. I don't know when.
, Lin Jue's eyes were moist, tears rolled down, and his heart was filled with excitement.
In the strange and cold mountains and fields of Funiu Mountain, surrounded by packs of wolves, there is no one to rely on. Countless enemy soldiers attack the people of Guishan Island who are short of food and clothing. They are bleeding in the mountains and fields, and are desperate and helpless.
.Lin Jue has experienced that feeling before, on the execution ground in his previous life, and on the desert island not long ago. But that feeling may not be as profound as what Gao Mu Qingliang Qi and the others have experienced.
Cruel, because they have been in this kind of despair and fear for a long time.
When Lin Jue heard Gao Muqing crying because of the injury on his face, Lin Jue felt even more helpless and tears rolled down his face. At that time, Gao Muqing was still thinking about himself and worried that he would lose his appearance after ruining his appearance.
Yan would be despised by herself when she saw him. But he couldn't stand by her side when she was most helpless and desperate. Even for everything they experienced, he couldn't escape responsibility. That kind of self-blame and guilt was serious.
Indescribable.
Liang Qi looked at Lin Jue's tearful face, and the expression on his face relaxed a lot. Even though he had resentment towards Lin Jue in his heart, Liang Qi also understood in his heart that Mr. Lin was not the culprit who caused them such misery. Mr. Lin
In fact, he had good intentions and hoped that the Guishan Island cottage would be reborn. However, things went against his wishes. The Guishan Island cottage was destroyed, and Mr. Lin must have felt bad.
Liang Qi silently took out a piece of rag from his arms and handed it to Lin Jue. Lin Jue reached out to take it and wiped the tears on his face carelessly. He sighed to calm down.
"Mr. Lin, I have told you everything you want to know. This is what we have experienced in the past few months." Liang Qidao.
Lin Jue nodded and said: "I didn't expect that you have gone through so many hardships. You should kill me. My fault has harmed you."
Liang Qidao: "If I could kill you, I would have done it a long time ago. Unfortunately, I couldn't do it. I also understand that all this is a mistake and cannot be entirely attributed to you."
Lin Jue looked up at Liang Qi and said, "Brother Liang, why did you appear in Hangzhou? Did Mu Qing ask you to come?"
Liang Qi slowly shook his head and said: "No. The leader of the village did not know that I came to Hangzhou. I just told the leader of the village that I was going to inform the brothers and people who were planning to defect to our Guishan Island and ask them to take a detour.
The east passage of Niushan Mountain leads to the mountain. You cannot enter the mountain from the southern pass, because Zuo Zongdao and other people from the village will kill them. I went to Hongze Lake to do this, and I should have gone back immediately, but something happened to me.
Coming to Hangzhou..."
Lin Jue thought for a while, nodded and said, "You're not here to kill me, you're here to ask me for help, right?"
Liang Qi was silent.
Lin Jue said: "Brother Liang, you must tell me the truth, because I think your current situation is very dangerous. Although you have temporarily stabilized Luoyan Valley, those gangsters will never give up. Besides, you have killed and injured nearly half of our men.
, the strength has been greatly reduced. I guess that your materials and food must be very scarce, and you may not be able to survive this winter. The winter in the North is extremely harsh. Perhaps the reason why they stopped is not because they cannot defeat you, but because they just want to wait for winter to come.
When you run out of food and fall into a desperate situation, you will have only one way to die."
Liang Qi gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice: "You are right. These village masters and we have all considered it, but we have no way to deal with it. You may not know that Funiu Mountain is already very cold this season, and people will be affected at night.
Frozen to death. The locals said that it will snow in the Funiu Mountains at the end of September, which means that even the wild vegetables and fruits in the mountains and forests will not be collected. And our food supply will indeed not last for a month, let alone survive.
Until next spring."
Lin Jue nodded and said, "I guess that's the case too. What are you going to do?"
Liang Qidao: "The leader of Dazhai said that if it really didn't work out, he would take a risk and go out to the two eastern counties before winter to grab a batch of supplies and bring them into the mountains. That was the last resort."
Lin Jue hurriedly waved his hands and said: "Absolutely not. Doing so at this time is tantamount to seeking death. Since there must be heavy troops stationed in the county near Funiu Mountain. Even if there are only 500 officers and soldiers stationed in the county, you will have to
If you suffer a big loss, you might even lose a lot of people. This kind of risk must not be taken."
Liang Qidao: "Yes, I don't think it's possible, but we can't freeze to death and starve to death. Surrendering to other villages is also impossible. They will never allow us to live. I won't hide it from the young master anymore. I have been here for two days
I entered Hangzhou City a while ago, and this time I came to see Mr. Lin. On Peach Blossom Island, I admired the young master’s ability very much. In the mountains, the leader of the village also kept saying, it would be great if you were by her side.
, you must have a way to get rid of the current predicament. So I thought of coming to see Mr. Lin. Mr. Lin will definitely not stand idly by, right? I don’t want him to follow me to Luocao, I want him to do it.
I’ll give you some pointers, what should we do now?”
Lin Jue nodded and said, "You should have come to me a long time ago. How could I just stand by and watch?"
Liang Qidao: "Only after I entered the city did I find out that it was the day of the Qiu Wei Examination. The city was heavily guarded, and there were many guards around your Lin residence. I was afraid of exposing my identity, so I didn't dare to go to you easily. Isn't that right?
, I found a place to stay in a shabby house in Nancheng, and wandered outside your Lin family house during the day, hoping to see the young master. But you never went out. Until I heard that the government office was going to issue floating tickets today, I guess
You will definitely go, so I waited around the government office and finally saw you. But I didn’t dare to show up on the street, so I had to attract your attention. I knew that once you recognized me, you would definitely follow me.
here."
Lin Jue nodded and said: "It's hard for you. The city is really heavily guarded. It's not easy for you to sneak in at this time. This is not a place for people to live. So, you come home with me and we will have a good discussion tonight.
