"My ancestor is right, Zhang Xiaopou is the bloody enemy of my Shen family. I, the Shen family, will never surrender to anyone I surrender to!"
"A man is a real man, his head can be broken, his blood can bleed, but his spine cannot be bent!"
"Yes, fight him!"
Some of the Shen family men were aroused by Shen Xiongfeng's words. They raised their eyes and roared at Zhang Xiaopou.
But most of the Shen family fell into a dilemma and ideological struggle.
They agreed with Shen Huaixu's point of view and did not want to fight with Zhang Xiaozu. Of course, the main reason was because they could not defeat Zhang Xiaozu and did not want to be killed by Zhang Xiaozu. However, they also felt that what Shen Xiongfeng said was right. If the Shen family asked Zhang Xiaozu If you surrender, you will lose even a little dignity as a human being.
Zhang Xiaozu glanced back and forth between Shen Xiongfeng and Shen Huaixu a few times, wondering in his heart, "There is still one step left, what will we do?"
He had already seen that Shen Xiongfeng and Shen Huaixu were acting.
"Ancestor!"
Shen Huaixu suddenly shouted, suppressed the noisy sounds around him, and said loudly, "Zhang Xiaozu is the child of Shen Wenjun, the daughter of my Shen family. He is the nephew of my Shen family. The fight between you and him is actually just a battle." It’s just a private fight within the family.”
Shen Xiongfeng suddenly felt as if someone had punched him in the chest. His body staggered back and he took several steps back. He stared at Shen Huaixu in disbelief and asked, "What did you say? Yes...yes... A private fight within the family?"
Shen Huaixu spread his hands and asked, "What if not? Half of the Shen family's blood flows in Zhang Xiaozu's body, and he is a close nephew of the Shen family. What else is there between you, if not a private fight within the family? Could it be that there is a clan war?"
"Cough-cough-"
Shen Xiongfeng suddenly coughed violently and coughed up blood.
Shen Huaixu kept talking, "Ancestor, you may not know that Zhang Xiaozu has destroyed the Lingjian Sect and the Daqiong Sect, and his unification of the Nine Provinces is unstoppable. What happened to our Shen family being led by him? Helping our own family What is there to be ashamed of when my nephew unites Kyushu? The Shen family no longer has the capital to dominate Kyushu.
Aren’t you going to let your nephew dominate Kyushu?”
As soon as these words came out, the expressions of the Shen family members changed.
Some people looked at Shen Huaixu in horror, wondering how he could wipe out the family blood feud so lightly, and also openly and openly stated that surrendering to Zhang Xiaopou was natural, and even felt a little proud.
However, those Shen family members who were trapped in ideological battles suddenly found the answer.
Yes, this is a private fight within the family. What does it have to do with us?
If you want to die by yourself, why do you have to drag us along?
The Shen family's family tradition has always been cold-blooded and ruthless, speaking mostly in terms of strength and power, so its internal cohesion and family sense of honor are actually mediocre. Now that they have found a reasonable reason not to go to war with Zhang Xiaozu, they suddenly feel confident. .
"The head of the family is right. Why do you want to drag us into the funeral with you because of the personal grudge between you and Zhang Xiaozu?"
"That is, you don't discuss with us when you get into trouble, but you think of us when a disaster is imminent. Isn't it ridiculous?"
"I agree with the head of the family. Personal grudges should not rise to the level of family hatred. The overall situation should be put first."
"I also support the head of the family."
People kept standing up to support Shen Huaixu.
Then he got into a fight with those people who were determined to fight to the death.
The huge square suddenly turned into a noisy vegetable market.
Zhang Xiaozu looked at Shen Xiongfeng with a half-smile but was quite surprised and said in his heart, "I didn't expect this old guy to be so willing to sacrifice his own reputation and the reputation of other ancestors of the Shen family to resolve the grudge against me and force the blood feud to end." This is a private fight within the family. I want to find a way out for the clan members so that they can surrender to me so that they will not be ridiculed too harshly by the cultivators of Kyushu."
Of course, he also knew that Shen Xiongfeng was completely afraid of him and made a helpless choice after having no choice.
"enough!"
Shen Xiongfeng suddenly shouted loudly, and the thunder-like sound suppressed all the noise around him.
His back seemed to be hunched a lot, the wrinkles on his face seemed to have increased a lot, and his whole figure seemed to have aged dozens of years. He trembled for a while before he stabilized himself, looked around and asked "Is that what you all think?"
Everyone in the Shen family looked away and did not respond.
There were only a few screams, wanting to avenge the death of one of their relatives at the hands of Zhang Xiaozu, but Shen Huaixu glanced at the crowd, and his loyal confidants immediately understood and stepped forward to stop the howling people. Take it and hold it down.
"I understand, I understand, I understand."
Shen Xiongfeng smiled sadly, then waved his hand, turned around and walked towards the main hall, saying dejectedly as he walked, "I'm old, I'm old, I'm useless, you have the final say, you have the final say."
His steps were staggering and his back was hunched, as if he was really on the verge of death and was about to die.
Shen Jinbai, who had escaped from the claws of the white tiger at some point, also followed Shen Xiongfeng and left with a desolate look on his face.
Shen Huaixu bowed towards the two old figures leaving and shouted, "Farewell, ancestor!"
Then a victorious smile appeared on his lips.
He raised his hand to wipe away the cold sweat on his forehead, turned to look at Zhang Xiaopeng, bowed and said, "The Shen family is willing to listen to Mr. Zhang's orders. I also ask the master to give a lot of help to the Shen family."
Zhang Xiaozu sneered and said, "Since your ancestor is willing to admit his mistakes and make concessions, although it is through your mouth, it is very valuable. I will spare you one more time. Next time, your Shen family will be removed from Kyushu."
Shen Xiongfeng, who had just walked into the hall, suddenly paused in his steps, then shook his head with a wry smile.
He turned his head and continued walking towards the depths of the hall.
Zhang Xiaozu was telling him that he had seen through his and Shen Huaixu's performance.
Yes, he and Shen Huaixu were both acting.
Otherwise, Shen Huaixu wouldn't dare to contradict him even if he had a hundred courages.
Zhang Xiaozu's punch made him realize the reality. In front of Zhang Xiaozu, the Shen family was already a piece of fish on the chopping board, ready to be slaughtered.
Is it to exterminate the clan, or is it to bow its head and surrender to Zhang Xiaopeng and live an ignoble existence?
He chose the latter.
Shen Huaixu's sudden confrontation and madness were all his instructions. Some of the words he said were taught by him, and some were said by Shen Huaixu himself. They had only one purpose - to surrender to Zhang Xiaozu and do his best for Zhang Xiaozu at the same time. The Shen family saved their last bit of dignity.
With blood, he swallowed the humiliation and hatred that Zhang Xiaopou had inflicted on the Shen family, and put all the blame on himself, Shen Jinbai, and the dead ancestors of the Shen family, thus finding a way for the clan to step down and let everyone I feel a little better.
But Shen Huaixu suddenly said "private fight within the family", which defeated his last line of spiritual defense.
The moment he heard these two words coming out of Shen Huaixu's mouth, he was so angry that he almost couldn't help but slap Shen Huaixu on the head, but he had to admit that Shen Huaixu was right.
From a blood feud to a private fight within the family, it can not only allow the clansmen to find some pitiful comfort for surrendering to the enemy, but also retain the last pitiful false face to block Youyou's mouth, so as not to stand in the street without a trace of hair and be raped. He could laugh and insult, but at the same time, he could also play emotional cards on Zhang Xiaopou, asking him to leave a way for the Shen family to survive.
"Ancestor, I'm sorry. We were defeated and can only live in an ignoble existence. Please forgive me that the younger generations can't help you avenge your hatred for the time being. Ahem——"
Going downstairs, Shen Xiongfeng bowed deeply in the direction of the ancestral hall. His deep guilt made him cough up a few mouthfuls of blood.
