Chapter Thirty-Four: The Human Heart

  Zhang Lao Shi's long and mournful howl shook the heavens, but it also exhausted the last bit of strength he had left. His body fell heavily to the ground, his empty eyes wide open, carrying with him a heart full of regret as he took his final breath.

  Looking at that old honest man, who just a few days ago was still chatting and laughing with himself, with a thick face and no temper to speak of, always thinking for others first, doing things for people with utmost care, the representative of China's lowest-level citizens. In just these two days, he unwillingly left, it's better to say that he was crushed to death by this officialdom, this man-eating world, rather than being harmed by Zhangjiakou. At this last moment, he shouted out a slogan that shouldn't have been his to shout - "Rebel".

  Lü Shiyí's mind went blank for a moment, and tears covered her face.

  The only relative who had crossed over to this world with him had left like that in front of his own eyes, and he had left with such reluctance. His mind was muddled, but Zhang Lao's final cry, which had exhausted all his strength, kept rolling around in his mind like thunder.

  Originally, the common people and scholars saw the new emperor's ascension to power, vigorously eliminating the eunuch clique, rectifying the imperial court, and making a great stir. In this gloomy era, it seemed that the dark sky of the Ming dynasty had a glimmer of light, and everyone seemed to have seen hope in this faint light, and they all held onto the fantasy of the revival of the Ming dynasty.

  But can this decadent and declining Ming Dynasty really be revived? Not to mention the knowledge of the aftermath of this crossing person, the living example in front of us is that this world and this court have forced even a honest man like Zhang Lao Shi to shout out rebellious words. Is there still any meaning to revival? Is there still any hope for revival? Can one still hide and fantasize? No, looking at Xiaoyi and Sanzi wailing on top of Zhang Lao Shi's body, the flames of anger suddenly burst forth in his heart.

  He suddenly stood up, picked up a large knife beside him, without any language or violence, with a faint expression, step by step slowly walking towards the trembling official. But anyone can see the ferocity and determination in Lü Shi's expression.

  "Kill him, kill him, who cares about killing an official or rebelling against the government, who cares about the great Ming dynasty, to hell with his rich father-in-law, to hell with his southern lands, to hell with his overseas territories, kill him, kill him, for the sake of the late Zhang brother, for the sake of all the deceased fellow villagers, do it quickly, even if it means being torn apart and crushed to pieces immediately."

  Zhao Dahai was also grief-stricken over Zhang Laoshi's death, but having seen his fair share of life and death, he hadn't lost his composure. However, when he saw Lv Shi's body radiating an aura of murder, he suddenly thought of something - Brother, you're going to kill the county official to avenge Zhang Laoshi, but if this knife falls, it'll be an irreparable conclusion with no room for retreat. He recalled that Lv Shi had once said that his idea of not being a leader was now empty talk. With that, he flew forward and wrapped his arms around Lv Shi in a bear hug.

  That official also saw the murderous aura in Lü's calm expression, and his own life was on the line. At that moment, he immediately fell to the ground at Zhao Dahu's feet and cried out loudly: "Lord Zhao, save me!"

  The courtyard fell silent for a moment, with hundreds of people holding their breath. The villagers from Zhangjiacun and the porters from the Heavenly Star Inn all looked at Lü Shi with eyes filled with doubt, excitement, or fear. Lü Shi gritted his teeth and shouted loudly: "Zhao, get out of my way! I'll chop down this corrupt official right now to offer sacrifices for Brother Zhang's soul and to raise our banner for the uprising!"

  Zhao Dahai just loudly shouted: "Brother, wake up, don't be reckless!" Then he tightly hugged Lü Shi and wouldn't let go.

  Lü Shì suddenly shook his body, and indeed threw Zhao Dàhǎi far away. He continued to hold the knife and walked step by step towards that corrupt official with a determined expression, gritting his teeth and muttering: "Kill him, kill him for my brother's family to avenge."

  Zhao Dahi was thrown into a state of confusion, but at this moment he couldn't care about many things. He rushed forward again, hugged Lv Shi tightly and patted him loudly: "Brother, don't be like this! Killing these corrupt officials is just like killing a dog. We've already rescued the people, there are many things to do, and we're not in a hurry for now. What's important now is to take care of these wounded men? Settling Zhang's family affairs is the priority!"

  Lü Shi has now lost his mind, how can he listen to Zhao Dahi's advice, and still drag Zhao Dahi forward with a knife, his eyes red with anger, determined to kill the official to vent his anger.

  Zhao Dahai also became anxious, and he immediately slapped him with a loud slap, saying: "Have you forgotten your analysis back then? Do you want to let these villagers who have just escaped be slaughtered by the government troops again?"

  This slap and this shout, like a wake-up call, woke up Lü Shi. He looked around at the villagers with helpless and panicked eyes, suddenly understanding Zhao Dahai's good intentions. His mind cleared up, thinking it was fortunate that he had not acted impulsively earlier. The situation was complex, and any decision would be inappropriate. This matter should not be decided now. He nodded and said to the paralyzed official, "First, remember that your dog head is still on your shoulders. Let's wait until things are settled before making a decision." After speaking, he threw his large knife to the ground with a thud, half of it sinking into the mud. The knife continued to quiver in front of the official who had wet his pants, as if there was still unvented killing intent.

  Killing is not possible, but it's hard to calm the raging fire in my heart. I went up and gave him a good kick, then ignored his pitiful cries and turned around to gently pick up Xiao Yu, softly comforting her: "Good girl, don't cry, Master will get you something delicious, okay?" At this point, I thought of our happy times together and tears fell again.

  The child is after all simple-minded, and when it comes to life and death, they are also confused. As soon as they hear that Master Fu has something delicious for them, they stop crying and snuggle into Lu Shihuai's arms, sobbing. Zhao Dahan feels a pang in his heart and takes the child from him, whispering to Lu Shi: "Brother, don't be impulsive, you still need to mourn, after all, there are still important things to attend to. How can you afford to lose your composure when there are so many people in the courtyard and matters to take care of?"

  Lu Shi nodded gratefully at Zhao Dahai and said, "Brother's teaching is that it's just hard to swallow one breath."

  "Killing a brother is like killing a dog, but now killing him goes against the original intention that Tianxing and I taught in the mountain stronghold, it's really not worth it."

  Lü Shidao nodded, casting a hateful glance at the bailiff who was now in a heap on the ground. He then turned to the crowd in the courtyard and said, "Fellow villagers, do not worry for now. First, let us tend to the wounded and get them settled. Then, we will divide up the tasks of counting the Zhang family's assets and prepare to resist the reinforcements from other powerful families that are sure to arrive soon."

  As soon as Lü Shi spoke, he clearly heard people in the crowd letting out a sigh of relief, some with disappointed sighs, others numb and indifferent, but more of them feeling relieved.

  This is the heart of people nowadays.

  Sorrow cannot solve the problem, now the top priority is to arrange the internal affairs of Zhangjiabao, and prepare for resistance against the upcoming attack by Lianzhuang's militia. Although each village can't help but secretly laugh and rejoice that the stick has eliminated a tiger for them, after all, they have to put on a show for outsiders, and there is also the revenge of Zhang's relatives, Chen's family, a big battle is inevitable.

  Come on, it's better to come, hoping to bring the brothers of Guotianxing, in coordination with the upcoming Wuniu Mountain pole and the upcoming alliance pole, as well as the solid city wall of Zhangjiabao, the deep moat, clean up Chenjia, frighten other village townships, so that when we attack the county town to rescue people, eliminate the hidden danger behind.

  Lü Shìxiān summoned dozens of young and strong men to carry the rescued villagers into the main hall, found dozens of aunties and sisters, used clean water to treat and bandage everyone's wounds. At the same time, he opened the grain warehouse, slaughtered dozens of pigs and sheep from the Zhang family, lit a fire to cook food, let all the brothers eat their fill, accumulate energy for the upcoming battle. Then he comforted Zhang Xiaosan, saying that after rescuing his brother, he would arrange for Zhang Laoshi's funeral, and make sure Zhang Laoshi died with honor.

  Zhang Xiao was still young and had a dependent heart on Lü Shi, everything was waiting for this master to arrange. Lü Shi then sent two strong men to quickly bring Zhang's wife over, also to take care of her husband's aftermath.

  After making these arrangements, he asked for the heavenly star to direct his subordinates to arrest Zhang's servants and maids. This was actually a form of protection. Upon further inquiry, it turned out that most of the servants and maids were either debtors or had been purchased, all of whom were poor people. Lü Shi promised them that once the matter was settled, he would give them some money and property and let them return home. The same treatment was given to the family retainers.

  Coming outside, seeing the cheering crowd eating the rare white rice and big meat, sticks, in his heart also involuntarily rolling Zhang Lao Shi's shouting voice.

  To be honest, Lü Shi knew that the heavenly star had fallen on Zhang's family building, but it was just to let the refugees gathered around him have money and food for the winter, and also to repay Zhao Da Hai's kindness. In his bones, he hadn't thought about rebelling against the government yet. This was also the current situation of the Ming Dynasty at that time. They had taken up arms, but they didn't realize that they had started a magnificent career to overthrow the Zhu Ming dynasty. They still thought they were subjects of the imperial court, and their hatred was only concentrated on those officials and wealthy families who directly oppressed and bullied them. They were just forced by hunger and cold, taking up arms to defeat the government's tax collection, and snatching away the means of survival from the granaries of rich families. But Zhang Lao Shi's final cry with his last breath was like a thunderstorm, shaking everyone's heart on the scene.

  The shock left everyone at a loss for what to do at first, but it also made some people start thinking about something they had never thought of before - whether or not they were already counter-revolutionaries.

  Just then, a shrill clang of copper gongs suddenly came from the city gate, followed by a shout.

  "What was bound to happen has happened."

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