Chapter 24: Righteousness Extremity Destroys Kinship

  Feng Guozhang still had to leave, and Zhou Xuanzhang was very disappointed: "Brother, please speak."

  "Brother, you really don't blame big brother?"

  "Don't blame me, big brother, rest assured, if I, Zhou Xun Zhang, dare to blame you, I'll die a terrible death!"

  "Well, I'll tell you the truth. Brother, if you find any signs that the Qing Empire is going to war with the Eastern devils, hurry up and escape, the farther the better, best to escape to the mountains of western Hunan, then they won't be able to find you."

  "Big brother, didn't you just say that Jin won't cut off my head?"

  Feng Guozhang's face turned red: "Brother, I was deceiving you. If China and Japan go to war, Shanxi will definitely chop off your head!"

  "Why?" Zhou Xianzhang was shocked and lost his color.

  Feng Guozhang let out a long sigh: "That old man Jin is so stubborn, his whole body reeks of vinegar. There's nothing good about him except for one thing - he's surprisingly good at keeping his promises! He's most afraid that others will say he's not trustworthy! If he were to bet with me on someone's head and lost, he would definitely cut off his own head and send it to me without hesitation! Not to mention the heads of his disciples!"

  "Big brother, didn't you say I'm his favorite disciple? Is he reluctant to let me go?"

  "It's a pity that you are his disciple! If you had nothing to do with him, just an ordinary person, he really wouldn't have the heart to kill you. This old man is softhearted and won't slaughter innocent people indiscriminately. But now, as his disciple, you're like his own son. This old man has been harmed by the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, he can't bring himself to kill others, but when it comes to killing his own son, that's 'justifiable filial piety', and he'll be extremely decisive!"

  Zhou Xuan Zhang's face turned pale: "Big brother..."

  "But you don't have to worry too much. With that kind of person, after he kills you, he will definitely raise your son as his own grandson and ensure the continuation of the Zhou family lineage..."

  "Big brother, I have no son, if you kill me, the incense of the Zhou family will be cut off!" Zhou Xianzhang was sweating profusely.

  "Originally, young brother doesn't have a son yet! However, please be at ease, that Jin will definitely raise your wife and cultivate her into a chaste widow who won't remarry, and report to the imperial court to set up a chastity arch..."

  "Big brother, I don't have a wife either." Zhou Xuan Zhang was so anxious that he jumped up and down.

  "Actually, little brother is still single, but don't worry, that Jin will definitely submit a memorial to the imperial court to commend your sacrifice, let the emperor grant you the surname Yehe Nara, and let you enter their Yehe Nara clan's ancestral tomb, enjoy noble treatment..."

  "My bloody head is gone! What's the use of being a noble!" Zhou Xianzhang was furious.

  "Feng Guozhang coughed and said, "Brother, you should make arrangements early. The imperial court has not yet made up its mind to declare war on Japan. You still have time, I'm taking my leave!" Feng Guozhang turned around and rushed away."

  It turned out that Feng Guozhang had a very good understanding of Jin's character, although he was stubborn and old-fashioned, he was also a man of his word. Feng Guozhang had long seen that the Sino-Japanese War would break out at any moment, and within three months at most, it would inevitably develop into an all-out war between the two countries. At that time, Jin, this old stubborn fellow, would regard 'faithfulness' as more important than life itself, and would certainly fulfill his promise, and Zhou Xuanzhang would be unable to escape his fate.

  Feng Guozhang was just a small instructor, unable to get Zhou Xuanzhang out of the Tianjin Military Academy. He was extremely regretful for using Zhou's head as a bet with Jin, but now he had no choice and could only deceive himself by saying that this was all Zhou's fate. Besides, Zhou wasn't even a close brother, so beheading him would be no big deal. After all, half a year ago, he should have been drowned to death anyway.

  Of course, Feng Guozhang was after all ashamed in his heart, so Feng Guozhang came to find Zhou Xuanzhang tonight, actually to "mourn" for Zhou Xuanzhang, even if it meant making an early sacrifice for a living person, similar to the ritual of giving offerings to prisoners on death row.

  However, Feng Guozhang walked a long way, and Zhou Xuanzhang's words "It's cold, add clothes" were still lingering in his ears. Feng Guozhang couldn't bear the torture of his conscience, so he hurried back to tell the truth, hoping that Zhou Xuanzhang would take precautions early.

  Feng Guozhang hastily left, Zhou Xianzhang was so angry that his eyes were about to spout fire, it turned out that Feng Guozhang had been deceiving him all along, what kind of damn big brother is this!

  Just now I swore with my own mouth, don't blame big brother, if blaming big brother, won't die a good death!

  Now big brother will tell the truth, it's giving him a chance to survive. If he scolds or disrespects big brother, heaven will take away this chance of survival.

  Zhou Xuanzhang had no choice but to suppress his indignation and hurry back to the dormitory before lights out.

  No matter what, I mustn't get into trouble now. If I do, even if it's not fatal for the time being, I'll definitely be locked up in solitary confinement. Once you're in there, all opportunities are lost!

  Zhou Xuanzhang had just stepped into the dormitory when the lights-out signal sounded. Zhou Xuanzhang wiped away a cold sweat, got into bed, covered his head with the quilt, and racked his brains for a way to escape, but his mind was a jumbled mess, without any clue.

  When Zhou Xuanzhang first entered the school, he had secretly investigated the school's security measures. The school treated its students like prisoners and escaping was as difficult as ascending to heaven. Therefore, Zhou Xuanzhang gave up on the idea of escape and focused on becoming a Confucian scholar to save the country through indirect means.

  Zhou Xuan Zhang did not persist in finding opportunities to escape, and now that the knife is at his neck, he is temporarily resorting to desperate measures, how can this work!

  According to Feng Guozhang's words, the Sino-Japanese War may break out at any time. If things go wrong, tomorrow when he opens his eyes, his head will fall with the smoke of war.

  Zhou Xuanzhang thought for a whole night but couldn't come up with any plan. The rooster crowed, the east was breaking dawn, and suddenly a tall figure appeared at the entrance of his dormitory.

  Zhou Xuanzhang broke out in a cold sweat, pulled the quilt to cover his head, but saw that the figure looked familiar, and when he took a closer look, he was overjoyed.

  Zhou Xuanzhang threw off the covers and jumped out of bed, rushing towards the figure in the dark, shouting: "Grandpa, grandpa, he's going to kill me!"

  Standing at the door was his white-haired grandfather.

  Grandfather held a Han Yang rifle in his hand, with a red glow all over his face and a spirited look.

  Zhou Xuanzhang burst into tears and buried his head in his grandfather's arms: "Grandfather, take me away from here quickly, I don't want to be a soldier, I want to go back to Western Hunan!"

  Grandfather pushed Zhou Xuanzhang out of his arms, handed him the shining Hanyang rifle and shouted: "Take it to fight against the devils! If you can't fight against the devils, don't come back to Western Hunan, don't enter the ancestral tomb of our Zhou family!"

  "Grandfather, are you asking me to enter the Yehe Nara family's ancestral tomb?" Zhou Xianzhang was desperate: "Grandfather, take me away, take me away!"

  The gate was empty and grandpa had disappeared without a trace.

  The sound of bugles echoed in his ears.

  Zhou Xuanzhang lay in bed, opened his eyes, and the sky was dimly lit. The barracks were filled with the sound of reveille.

  It's just another dream after all.

  Zhou Xuanzhang sprang up from bed, jumped down, and hastily put on his clothes. However, he stepped on a garlic clove with his foot.

  Lowering his head to take a look, he saw a gleaming Han Yang sword leaning against the bedside.

  "Grandpa!" Zhou Xianzhang shouted loudly.

  "What the hell is wrong with you, calling out for grandfather all night!" said the captain.

  Zhou Xuan Zhang stared at the Han Yang rifle and said in a daze: "My grandfather is here!"

  "Nonsense!" The captain shouted: "When did Instructor Feng become your grandfather? Isn't he your sworn elder brother?"

  "Feng Guozhang! Has he arrived?"

  "Last night when you were asleep, Instructor Feng came by and asked me to give you this 1988 model committee rifle. You little brat is really lucky, this '88 rifle was awarded to Instructor Feng as a prize, it's his treasure, nobody else can even touch it, but he actually gave it to you! This is an original German import!"

  Zhou Xuanzhang took a closer look and only then discovered that the rifle by the bed was not his grandfather's Hanyang Arsenal, but rather Feng Guozhang's 1888 Commission Rifle.

  The 1888 Commission Rifle was the precursor to the Hanyang rifle, with both being very similar.