"Dad... let's not go... let's not go, okay?" Zhong Ling cried bitterly and struggled in Zhong Guoliang's hands.
"Don't leave? Then tell me, do I have the heart to watch Shijiazhuang be wiped out, or do you have the heart to watch?" Zhong Guoliang said, and he couldn't help but glance at Shi Jin with his tearful eyes.
"Dad... Shijiazhuang will not destroy the family... No way, dad, we won't... we won't leave." Zhong Ling begged her father.
Zhong Guoliang smiled bitterly with tears in his eyes: "Isn't it possible? When the imperial court suppressed it with heavy troops, it was the day when Shijiazhuang was destroyed. Have you ever seen the 'sun and moon hanging over the sky to illuminate the universe'? With such a weak foundation, we cannot resist the imperial court.
of."
"...But, didn't you say that...the government was in ruins, treacherous ministers were in power, and the Song Dynasty was... showing signs of exhaustion!" Zhong Ling resisted choking and retorted with her father.
"It's good to have all the energy, but it's not yet! What's more, 'a centipede is dead but not stiff'. If the great Song Dynasty could teach us to defeat Shijiazhuang so easily, then 'there is heaven outside the world, and there are people outside the world'
, wouldn’t it mean that he would also occupy half of the country. By then..." Zhong Guoliang looked at Shi Sangong and others, and continued: "Isn’t it true that the world is in chaos, and local forces are divided into one party? Is there still peace in the world?"
Although Zhong Guoliang was talking to Zhong Ling, "The drunkard's intention is not to drink", but he deliberately raised his voice in his heart to tell everyone, especially because he wanted to use this to make Shi Jin understand something.
In fact, in Shi Jin's mind, his original focus was on the entire Huazhou. He wanted to annex all the mountains in Huazhou and kill the corrupt officials in all prefectures and counties. In the end, he wanted to rule everything in Huazhou secretly.
However, after listening to Zhong Guoliang's words, the thoughts in his heart gradually rose to a higher level. Looking back on what he thought at the beginning, it was really childish and ridiculous. How could such a big court allow him to dominate Huazhou? Let alone
How difficult is it to capture Huazhou? Even if it is captured, it will really be regarded as a rebellion. The court will definitely mobilize several troops to attack. Zhong Guoliang is right. My foundation is too weak.
I can't afford the imperial court's suppression.
But Zhong Guoliang never expected that at this moment, Shi Jin's heart was distressed and concerned about Zhong Ling, but at the same time, his words just gave birth to a broader vision. What Shi Jin wanted now was no longer the entire Huazhou, but the Song Dynasty
half of the country.
At this moment, Zhong Guoliang wanted to let Shi Jin understand the current situation in the world, to have self-awareness, and to take a "curved revenge" path. But he did not know that his words did point out a path for Shi Jin, but this path
It was not the "curved revenge" he expected, nor was it the "rebellion and becoming king" as he feared. In Shi Jin's heart, that special path gradually became clear in Zhong Guoliang's words in a flash of inspiration.
Shi Jin understood, and Shi Jin gradually figured it out. If he wanted to achieve the stability that his father had pursued all his life, if he wanted to create a bright world, and if he wanted to make the people of the world happy and healthy, then the system must be changed, and there must be enough people to change the government.
To achieve this point, it is impossible to blindly engage in rebellion, but it is even more difficult to become an official and achieve success. Then he can only follow his own path.
Shi Jin thought of this in a flash, but he heard Zhong Ling scream in pain. He looked up anxiously and saw Zhong Guoliang forcefully dragging Zhong Ling into the crowd.
Zhong Ling struggled and stumbled. Seeing that she was getting further and further away from Shi Jin, she felt anxious. However, she accidentally tripped over a stone and fell to the ground. She was dragged out by her father.
When Shi Jin saw this, his heart was so painful that he was about to bleed. He heard Zhong Ling crying and calling his name. He couldn't bear it anymore. After a few ups and downs, he stood in front of Zhong Guoliang and knelt on the ground with a plop: "Zhong Ling
Uncle, please stop, I beg you." After saying that, he kowtowed to Zhong Guoliang.
Zhong Guoliang stopped, but still held Zhong Ling tightly in his hand. Seeing Shi Jin begging for mercy, Zhong Ling felt aggrieved and cried even more sadly: "Dad... I won't leave... I don't want to leave Dalang."
.”
Zhong Guoliang gritted his teeth and held back the tears in his eyes, not letting them fall: "Just because you can't leave him, we have to leave. As a father, I don't want my only daughter to die with him... Shi Taigong
This departure has already been a deep pain in my heart. I can't bear anyone leaving me again... I, you, and your mother, we must stay together well even if we live in exile."
"Uncle Zhong, just stay in the village, I will take good care of Zhong Ling!" Shi Jin raised his head and looked at Zhong Guoliang with tears in his eyes.
"Will you take good care of Zhong Ling? That was once! Shi Jin, I have always been optimistic about you back then. I thought you were a man, well-educated and sensible. I thought you could take good care of Ling'er and give her happiness. Therefore, I agreed to make an engagement for you two.
But that was just the past, and everything has changed now."
When Zhong Guoliang thought of the good times in the past, his blood-red eyes choked with tears again, and he said: "Everything has changed. Shi Jin is no longer the old man... People's hearts have changed, and there is no going back. You are no longer like
Your father was so loyal, but now he has become selfish and arrogant! How do you take good care of Ling'er? Tell me how you plan to take her through the torture of war!"
"Shi Jin, how can you let me, a father, rest assured! Stop saying that you can take good care of her, and stop lying to her." After Zhong Guoliang said that, he picked up Zhong Ling and left.
Shi Jin hugged Zhong Guoliang's legs, fearing that he would never see Zhong Ling again accidentally, and begged sadly: "Uncle Zhong, I really care about Ling'er and will really make her happy."
"Dad... I don't want to leave. Even if there is a war, even if the family is destroyed... I don't want to leave Dalang. Dad, please help your daughter." Zhong Ling also knelt down next to Shi Jin and begged her father to change his mind.
Zhong Guoliang watched with a twinge in his heart: "How can I bear to break you up? But have you ever understood the torture in my heart... Well, Shi Jin, I don't have to leave, I am also willing to let Ling'er marry
You, but you have to do what I just said. Otherwise... don't blame Uncle Zhong for being cruel!"
For Ling'er's sake, did you kidnap your brother and apologize to the dog officer?
Do you want to give up your love for Ling'er for the sake of your brothers?
Why, why do I, Shi Jin, have such a difficult time living in this world... Why does God torture me, Shi Jin, like this... God doesn't tolerate me!
If Zhu Wu, Chen Da, and Yang Chun were kidnapped to the county, they would be dead. I, Shi Jin, would be reputed for being disloyal and unjust, but that's not the end of it. But how could I pull this off?
Shi Jin couldn't help but think of Chen Da's bravery that night when he took the lead with his sword and killed the army. He couldn't help but think of Zhu Wu who fought a bloody road to save himself regardless of life and death. He couldn't help but think of Yang Chun's attempt to vent his anger on him.
The brothers chased the officers and soldiers. Shi Jin couldn't help but think of the careful consideration they had given to Shijiazhuang, and the way all the brothers in the village knelt down to worship him as their eldest brother... He remembered what he had said in his heart,
You will definitely live up to your brother's words.
Seeing that Shi Jin was silent, Zhong Guoliang knew that he couldn't make a decision in his heart. He sneered, and his last thoughts were turned into ashes. He smiled and cried, his heart was broken, and he kicked Shi Jin down.
He grabbed Zhong Ling forcefully and dragged her towards home.
Shi Jin lay on his back, but his whole body felt as cold as the earth.
Zhong Ling struggled desperately, but Zhong Guoliang was determined. Even if Zhong Ling fell to the ground, he would not stop and forcefully pulled her home.
Zhong Ling's voice, screaming for Da Lang, was like a hammer, hitting Shi Jin's eardrums forcefully time and time again, and like a sharp blade, stabbing his heart to pieces.
What kind of pain it was, what kind of suffering it was. Shi Jin couldn't describe it, but the tears in his eyes, mixed with the torture of separation, gradually blurred Shi Jin's sight, Zhong Ling's cry, and Zhong Ling's
He only stretched out his hand farther and farther towards himself.