"It's really like 'killing relatives for the sake of justice'!"
Liu Zhennian laughed heartily, reached out and pulled out the memorial, and placed it in front of Yan Wen, who was participating in politics.
"I didn't delay Yan's participation in politics until today just to collect evidence; now that his son is participating in his own affairs, he can't defend himself." Liu Zhennian stepped forward and hit him on the back, but Yan Wen looked up with a dull look on his face.
He said to him: "Ye Long has no proven crime. His son did this to avoid disaster. Does the general have to kill Ye Long? There must be a way out."
"Damn the escape route," Liu Zhennian said with disdain, "Don't talk like that when Yan is in politics! When I was suppressing the Southern Barbarians, if I thought about leaving a retreat, I wouldn't be able to enter the capital today! I really gave him a retreat.
, he doesn’t even remember it at all!”
"General, don't be anxious..." Yan Wen finished reading the memorial, took off his glasses, and rubbed his eyes gently, "This matter is not the same as suppressing the Southern Barbarians. If a general wants to return to the heart of the world, he must be benevolent and righteous.
Cultivate your virtues; if you allow Ye Long to resign from his official position, and treat him generously at the inns passing by, even if you cannot make him grateful, you can still make him admire you, both at home and abroad, and you will have no excuses for others."
However, Liu Zhennian listened absentmindedly. When Yan Wen came to the end, he shook his head: "That's not appropriate. It's better to do it according to my idea."
"It's up to you." Yan Wen responded, stroking his glasses.
Ye Long's hands were tightly cuffed, and a layer of skin had already been worn out, and the hand lines were covered with dirt and dust, making it impossible to see clearly; his face had also become dull due to long exposure to wind and frost, with only the pupils shining clearly.
Yan Wen illuminated him with a burning candle, looked at him once, then handed the candle to the servant and rubbed his hands.
"It's only been a few days, but Yu Shi's appearance has changed..." Yan Wen sighed.
Ye Long kept silent. "Thanks to your own son," Yan Wen said, "I got you involved."
"What do you mean?" Ye Long couldn't help but ask.
"Ye Yongjia personally wrote a letter to refer to you, and this case was settled." Yan Wen's voice was extremely determined.
"Who... who would listen to your nonsense!" Ye Long's scolding voice was slightly trembling, and he looked at him hard, "If this is really the case, why don't you take out the memorial!"
The servant standing next to Yan Wen took out the memorial and threw it to the ground without waiting for instructions. Yan Wen quickly bent down to pick it up, folded the memorial again, and held it to Ye Long with both hands with a smile.
He opened the memorial book, and as soon as he took the first glance, his body felt a little unbearable. He reluctantly continued to read, and something seemed to be rushing out of his throat, but he swallowed it alive. His wide-open eyes continued to move up and down.
, but his body was almost stiff - then, as if his ears were pierced by thunder, there was a sudden shock, his eyes suddenly turned black, and his body fell heavily backwards.
…
The jailer wrapped the body tightly in white cloth and placed it on a dilapidated wooden stretcher. He turned around and asked Yan Wen, who was sitting in a chair and was stunned: "Ye Long lost his breath immediately because he was so angry... Should he be buried directly or..."
"Ah..." Yan Wen was still a little panicked, "After all, he is also a minister of the imperial court, so it is inappropriate to do this."
"But General Liu ordered us before..."
"It's better to listen to my opinion and submit it to your Majesty to return home for burial." Yan Wen paused for a while, took a look at the man's expression, and continued: "You don't have to be afraid. If you offend General Liu, I will take the responsibility.
.”
"yes."
The cavalry carrying the coffin silently trampled every inch of land outside the city and marched slowly into the city; when the people on the roadside saw the white flag swinging from the side, they all stood there and thought blankly. Those who were literate could recognize the words on the flag, which were clearly written.
It was "the coffin of Ye Long, the censor of Zuodu". Everyone just knew it, and they were all in an uproar. They looked at each other in confusion and retreated to get out of the way.
The coffin stopped heavily in front of the meeting hall. A dozen people knelt along the coffin board, all of them with ashen faces. They only maintained peace for a short while, and then they started wailing in piles. Only Cheng Congyuan pressed his head firmly on the coffin.
The ground, without saying a word.
"The master's mood has almost settled now." Humanity walked out of the meeting hall.
"When the coffin came just now, the master almost fainted from crying..." Kou Zhong sighed, wiping his tears, his eyes filled with bloodshot eyes, "Who... who thought of the master..." At this point, he couldn't hold back anymore.
Stop and start whimpering softly.
"This is absolutely impossible!" Kou Zhong shouted, his voice almost hoarse. "There must be someone in the house doing some dirty trick..."
Cheng Congyuan gritted his teeth and closed his eyes tightly.
"Forcing the master to do this!" He looked directly at Cheng Congyuan.
"I also feel strange," the man said, "Kou has to have his own opinion on matters, so he might as well go to the master to discuss it."
"It's better... just wait until the master comes out."
"No need. The master told me when I came out that if you want to discuss something, you can come in at any time." He looked around at everyone and said.
"Okay!" Kou Zhong wiped his tears with his sleeves, got up and ran straight into the hall.
Ye Yongjia sat quietly. He was lying on the table, covering his whole face with his hands. Suddenly he heard the sound of clothes rubbing against the door, so he sat upright, not daring to make a sound. In the dull atmosphere, any noise would be heard.
It seems extremely deliberate.
"Is Kou in charge?" Ye Yongjia looked steadily behind the screen.
"He's a slave." Kou Zhong turned around, nodded to Ye Yongjia, and prepared to kneel down. "There's no need to kneel down. You might as well sit down and talk if you have something to do." Ye Yongjia spoke in a low voice, and his throat hurt when he spoke.
"Master, the master has passed away... what did the people in the government say?" Kou Zhong sat aside and bent down to ask.
"Do you think there is something hidden?"
"I think... it has something to do with Mr. Cheng." Kou Zhong's mouth trembled a little. "Tell me about it." Ye Yongjia frowned.
"It stands to reason... that the master and the Ye family will be blamed here. But now, not only is there nothing wrong with our house, the master's coffin has been restored to its original state. I'm afraid... someone is causing trouble."
"Speak clearly." Ye Yongjia stared at him and said.
"Yes...yes..." Kou Zhong hurriedly knelt down to apologize. "I'm afraid that Mr. Cheng wrote a memorial to impeach the master in order to protect the Ye family. Mr. Cheng is in a position of high authority and can do this easily, so
..." He suddenly swallowed his words.
"I understand," Ye Yongjia looked out the door blankly, "Bring Cheng over from the abyss."
Walking around the screen, Cheng Congyuan saw all white clothes. The lowly servant guards were on the left and right, and Kou Zhong was standing next to Ye Yongjia. Ye Yongjia looked straight at him, his eyes like daggers. Everyone's faces were the same color, as if they were dead.
It was gray and white. Although the candle flame was bright, it was emitting a dark light at this moment, swallowing up the entire meeting hall.
It might be pouring rain outside, mixed with thunder. He seemed to hear it.
He knelt on the ground. Ye Yongjia closed his eyes, as if he couldn't bear the facts he was about to say.
"Just as Kou Zhong said -"
He said, "I joined the master in the name of the master."
Ye Yongjia immediately opened his eyes, his eyes empty.
"You have failed the master's trust!" Kou Zhong shouted. Thunder roared loudly outside.
"I have failed the master's trust..."
The rain fell softly on the dim road.
"You are ungrateful and sorry for the Ye family!" Kou Zhong pressed every word.
Thunder exploded one after another.
"I……"
"That's enough!" Ye Yongjia said in a trembling voice.
"Sir, I'm sorry, master, and I'm sorry to you..." Cheng Congyuan swallowed, "But I can't be considered disloyal... I..."
"Detain him!" Ye Yongjia didn't let him say any more. "Lock this bastard... into the study! Let him repent before the master's soul!"
People on both sides dragged him out; Cheng Congyuan seemed to be saying something, but he immediately disappeared among the crowd of white clothes.
The rain stopped and the thunder stopped.
Ye Yongjia was still stunned, his eye circles were red, there were still tears on his face, but he no longer felt anything.
Cheng Congyuan was pushed into the courtyard of the study, followed by a series of locks. The east door was the last one to be locked. After the lock was locked, the door locker slammed the key down, and the bunch of keys were knocked hard.
At the door, everything was silent after that.
The study room was set up as a mourning hall, and a heavy coffin was placed across the door. Ye Long's memorial tablet stood solemnly on the table in front of him, and some sacrifices were also displayed. They were stored in basins. Cheng Congyuan did not dare to look at the coffin.
, at first glance it seemed to be speaking to him, but he couldn't listen.
Cheng Congyuan felt bored, so he had to go to the south gate to find a broom and do his job. As expected, a bamboo broom was leaning against the door, intact. He pulled the broom and suddenly heard a "bang" sound.
The iron kettle placed behind the broom suddenly rolled to his feet. He bent down to pick up the kettle, opened the lid, and the aroma of wine came straight into his nose.
No longer needing to think about who brought the wine, he walked straight back to the room, found a tea bowl at random, and drank a bowl. After a few bowls, he felt unsatisfied, so he simply pushed the bowl away and drank from the spout.
Go. He will no longer think about other things, and those things that are enough to make him cut off his wrists and go through fire and water for him will no longer exist. The wine is burning in his body, and the fire is spreading, as if it is boiling; what is burned is hatred,
Sadness, struggle, restraint, and power struggles were burned out in the madness. After that, his mind went blank, and everything in front of him was erased by darkness; he stood up, and even though he couldn't see anything, he still pushed forward without hesitation.
, just like he did before, smashing into the boundless darkness.