Chapter 108

By the time Fan Changyu returned, the news that she had been appointed as the Cavalry Commander had spread throughout the camp.

Everyone who saw her said, "Congratulations, Captain Fan!"

Fan Changyu simply nodded slightly to those faces, whether familiar or unfamiliar.

Although she had been mentally prepared, she still felt uncomfortable when the day finally came.

With her promotion, her military tent was naturally moved as well. The number of people who came to congratulate her was far more than those centurions who had come before, and most of them were generals or captains.

Fan Changyu did not dare to neglect them, but it was not possible to learn the tactfulness in dealing with the human relationships overnight, and she really could not do it with ease. Fortunately, the war was not over yet, and it was not appropriate for the army to hold private banquets, so there was no need to set up a banquet to entertain these people.

Faced with the sounds of congratulations, she imitated the behavior of the military commanders who had been promoted that she had heard from storytellers in the past, and clasped her fists and said "Congratulations" to each person who congratulated her.

It was only then that she realized that there were many flatterers in the military camp.

A few unfamiliar military officers almost praised her as a rising star in the world.

"As early as when the dam was being built in Jizhou, I heard of Captain Fan's name. He was a commoner but he had the world in his heart. He killed three scouts on a rainy night, which made it possible to implement the plan of luring the rebels away to the river valley and flooding them!"

"The battle to kill Shi Hu at Yixian Gorge was also really brilliant. He wielded two pig-killing knives and chopped off Shi Hu's head! This time he performed an even more extraordinary feat, saving Lord He and killing Prince Changxin!"

Everyone was amazed and praised: "It doesn't matter where a hero comes from. The old saying is really true!"

Fan Changyu only said humbly: "You are all wrong. I was able to kill Prince Changxin, but it was just luck."

Immediately, a military officer interrupted her and said, "Captain Fan, don't be so modest. Even if it is luck, not everyone has this kind of luck!"

As the crowd echoed, a man with a mustache on each side of his mouth and chin expressed his pity for her: "Logically, the one who killed Prince Changxin should be the first meritorious service. After the vanguard troops were dispersed, it was also the captain who led the right wing troops to attack the heart of the rebel army. Why did the court only confer a fifth-rank official title on the captain, and the reward was only three hundred taels?"

Fan Changyu was slightly stunned, thinking to himself that it turned out that the rank of Cavalry Commander was a fifth-rank official position.

He recalled what Xie Zheng had said to him before, when he was disguised as Xie Wu: if he killed Prince Changxin, he would be rewarded with a thousand taels of silver.

But she was actually given only three hundred taels.

Even with such a bonus written in the imperial edict, no official was bold enough to be greedy. That meant the emperor only gave her this much when he decided to reward her.

For a moment, Fan Changyu couldn't figure out the reason.

But this person's words seemed to imply that Tang Peiyi had taken advantage of her military achievements.

There were so many people here, many of them were even strangers, and if that person's words got out, she would undoubtedly be criticized.

He Jingyuan's words of warning were still ringing in her ears. Fan Changyu was alert and said immediately: "The tactics and deployment of troops to attack Chongzhou were the hard work of Lord He and General Tang. They deserve great credit. I am just a small team leader, but I was promoted five levels in a row. It is really a great favor from your majesty. Moreover, I have little experience in the army. I am nervous about taking on the position of captain. I will have to ask for your patience in the future."

The non-rank military officer who is in charge of fifty people in the barracks should be accurately called a captain, but because there are chief and deputy captains, the subordinates are accustomed to calling the chief captain "Captain" and the deputy captain "Deputy Captain".

Fan Changyu's words were very precise, and the other military officers were already sweating in their hearts when that person said that ambiguous remark.

They just came to congratulate him because they were going to work under Fan Changyu from now on.

If that word got to Tang Peiyi's ears, he would be dissatisfied with Fan Changyu. If their superior is not valued by the commander, then what hope can the people under them have?

So when they heard Fan Changyu's self-deprecation and praise of He and Tang, everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief and quickly agreed, "Captain is right. The two generals have made great contributions, but Captain is also worthy of this position!"

The matter is now over.

When Fan Changyu was about to see the guest off, an uninvited guest showed up outside the tent.

"It's quite lively here, Captain."

This voice, as gentle as the March breeze, is truly recognizable.

When Fan Changyu turned around, he saw the servant boy lifting the curtain and a man in a sky-blue Confucian robe walked in with a smile. It was Li Huaian.

The military officers in the tent suddenly became nervous. Fan Changyu thought to himself that he was coming here at this time to congratulate him on his promotion. However, he still acted politely and said, "Master Li."

The tail of Li Huaian's handsome eyebrow was slightly raised. His eyebrows were light in color and had a slight curve at the tail, making him look gentler and harmless. Therefore, this action, which might seem frivolous to others, was still pleasing to the eye when done by him.

He smiled faintly and said, "Captain Fan and Huai'an are still so distant."

He raised his hand and took a brocade box from the servant behind him, saying, "I learned that Commander Fan had received an award from the emperor, so Huai'an prepared a small gift for him."

Xie Wu, who was guarding the door like a door god, saw this scene and his eyes widened. If his gaze could turn into reality, he could burn two holes in the back of Li Huaian's head.

Although the Marquis was separated from the Captain for now, Mr. Gongsun had sent Xie Shisan to Chongzhou to inquire from him about the news. After the Marquis returned, he directly made fun of the thieves in Kangcheng, and it was obvious that he couldn't let go of the Captain.

Not to mention the captain, he had seen the captain staring at the black iron sword in a daze several times.

Why is Li Huaian showing such courtesy at this time?

Taking advantage of others' misfortune?

Xie Wuyi stared at Fan Changyu with a nervous heart, hoping that she would not accept the gift.

Fan Changyu frowned and said to Li Huaian, "I appreciate Lord Li's kindness, but private gifts are not allowed in the military. I absolutely cannot accept this gift."

The centurions who had come to see her before were under the pretext of visiting a sick patient, and the things they brought were only some inexpensive cakes and wine, so it could not be considered a private transaction.

The military officers who came to congratulate her today were not stupid enough to give her gifts directly in the army, so everyone came empty-handed, so it was not difficult for Fan Changyu to refuse.

Li Huaian smiled and said, "Captain, you misunderstood. The box contains only a few military books that I annotated in my spare time."

As he spoke, he opened the box, and there were indeed only a few half-worn military books inside, and nothing else.

He knocked his fingertips quietly on the bottom of the brocade box, with a smile on his face: "Huai'an's gift is really meager, I'm sorry to make you laugh, I hope you won't reject it."

He had said so much, and there were only a few books in it, so it was really difficult for Fan Changyu to find a reason to refuse.

Moreover, Li Huaian's calm action seemed to hint that she should accept the golden box first.

Fan Changyu thought about it and felt that if it was just a simple gift-giving, he wouldn't have to pick a bunch of military officers to come and give gifts to congratulate him.

She glanced indifferently at the mustachioed military officer who had instigated her and Tang Peiyi before, and recalled what He Jingyuan had told her, that Li Taifu's group would not harm her at the moment. After hesitating for a moment, she accepted the golden box that Li Huaian handed over and said, "Then Changyu will respectfully obey your command."

Li Huaian looked relieved. He smiled and said, "Huaian's knowledge of military tactics is shallow. I hope this annotated military book can help the captain."

Fan Changyu could only add a polite remark: "Your Excellency is too modest."

After finally sending away all the people who came to congratulate him, Fan Changyu collapsed in his chair, feeling a burning pain in his head.

Who says that the army is full of rough and burly guys? None of those who have worked their way up from being foot soldiers to becoming generals are stupid.

She must be on guard against the military officer who deliberately set a trap for her and intended to alienate her and Tang Peiyi in the future. However, it is easy to remove the nails that are in the open, but she is afraid of hidden nails.

Li Huaian's behavior was also indescribably strange.

After everyone left, Fan Changyu carefully looked at the box. There was no secret chamber or anything, and there was no note inside the military books. The small words annotated on it were really just annotations.

She had no idea at all, so she sighed and asked Xie Wu, "Xiao Wu, what do you think Li Huaian meant by suggesting that I accept these military books?"

Fan Changyu was asking about serious matters, so Xie Wu had to suppress his prejudice and helped analyze: "The military power in Jizhou has changed hands. Although the generals below believe in General He, General He is no longer in charge, and they have to find a way out from their new superiors. Just like when those centurions came to show goodwill to the captain before, the captain accepted their goodwill, and it was a game of lining up and pulling together."

He paused here, glanced at Fan Changyu, and then continued, "Li Huaian... was probably trying to get rid of the captain."

Fan Changyu understood: "I accepted the military books he sent me. Does that mean I am now on the same side as the Li family?"

Xie Wu nodded and added, "But he deliberately gave the gift in front of others. It's obvious that he wanted to let someone know."

Fan Changyu thought about it carefully and realized that the only one who wanted to kill him was Wei Yan. But no matter whether he accepted the protection of Li Taifu's group or not, Wei Yan would never stop.

Then it seems that the only person in this military camp who could make Li Huaian go to such lengths to do this is the eunuch who just arrived today to announce the imperial decree.

But the eunuchs were announced to be the emperor's men.

Could it be that the emperor intends to harm him?

But why would the emperor want to harm her? At present, He Jingyuan has not been questioned, which means that her true life experience has not been made public. Even if the emperor was angry with her because of her grandfather, why did he give her an official title?

Although this official position seems to have been suppressed.

The more Fan Changyu thought about it, the more confused he became. He grabbed a handful of his hair in frustration.

In the past, she had Master Tao to teach her how to analyze the situation. But now, there is no news from Master Tao, and He Jingyuan will be transferred back to Jizhou soon. No matter what happens in the future, she can only figure out and make decisions on her own.

Thinking of this, Fan Changyu's eyes fell on the three hundred taels of gold placed on the red silk cloth tray on the table.

Each gold ingot weighs ten taels, and there are thirty ingots on the tray. They are glittering and very eye-catching.

She thought for a moment and told Xie Wu, "Take out thirteen ingots and send them together with the relief funds to the families of the thirteen soldiers who died in the battle. Take out two more ingots to buy some supplements for the seriously injured soldiers, and find me some talented and knowledgeable staff. You can give them as much money as you like."

Xie Wu nodded and said, "The captain is now a fifth-rank official, so he should have a few staff members around him. But... isn't it too much to give to the fallen soldiers?"

Ten taels of gold would be worth one hundred taels of silver if converted into silver, plus the five taels of relief money allocated by the court, it would be a total of one hundred and five taels.

Fan Changyu said: "This is what I promised the soldiers."

The group of centurions headed by Captain Guo could be used by him in the future, but they could not become her personal soldiers.

There are still too few people around her who are available and loyal enough to her.

She wanted to pick out two of the soldiers she brought with her to serve as her personal guards.

Xie Wu was stunned when he heard her answer, but finally said nothing.

When he was about to leave, Fan Changyu stopped him and said, "Take these military books and show them to the soldiers below."

Xie Wu was stunned.

Fan Changyu said: "It would be beneficial for them to read more military tactics."

After confirming that Fan Changyu had asked him to deal with the books, Xie Wu was almost ecstatic. His smile was almost to the roots of his ears. He was afraid that Fan Changyu would notice something, so he quickly restrained himself and picked up the brocade box and said, "Okay, I'll take it down now!"

After Xie Wu left, Fan Changyu stared at the Mo Dao on the weapon rack for a while, then took out the book that Xie Zheng had annotated for her and slowly began to read it.

Reading can make people smarter, so she wants to read more.

Whether it was a coincidence or intentional that Li Huaian gave her the book with annotations, it was really too much of a coincidence that he met her on the mountain road and later helped her to investigate the files on the murder of her parents. He just happened to find out that there was something wrong with her life experience, and then he followed the clues to find out that He Jingyuan had forged various documents for her parents.

-

The imperial palace.

In the Jade Palace, a bright and beautiful woman in a red palace dress walked quickly past, and sixteen palace maids with double buns followed her with their heads lowered and small steps.

The old eunuch standing guard in front of the study saw the woman from afar, and a forced smile appeared on her wrinkled face. She walked forward and said, "What brings Her Royal Highness the Princess here..."

The woman's face was full of coldness. She swung her sleeves and pushed away the old eunuch who was blocking her way. She frowned and shouted, "Get out of here!"

The old eunuch fell to the ground with a cry of "ouch". Seeing that she couldn't stop this ancestor, and afraid of turning around and calling the person inside to get angry, she could only hug the woman's leg and said in a shrill voice: "Your Highness, Princess, you can't go in. His Majesty is tired and just rested..."

As she spoke, the woman had already opened the door to the study.

The rich smell of ambergris filled the room, causing her delicately made-up face to reveal a hint of disgust.

The old eunuch was so frightened that he knelt at the door: "Your Majesty, please calm down. I deserve to die. I failed to stop Her Royal Highness the Princess..."

"Forget it, leave." A young man's voice came from inside.

The old lady prisoner was as if she had been pardoned. She bowed and left, closing the study door behind her.

The princess looked fearlessly at the man behind the dragon case, wearing a bright yellow dragon robe, holding his brow with one hand, and looking exhausted. She asked coldly, "You arranged a marriage between me and Marquis Wu'an?"

The emperor looked at the beautiful woman at the foot of the jade steps. When the corners of his mouth curved up, he smiled like a simple young man, but his eyes were like a poisonous snake spitting out its tongue in the dark: "I have found a great hero as a husband for my sister, and she is not happy?"

The princess said angrily, "When Marquis Wu'an was in trouble, he met a commoner girl and pledged his life to her. Your Majesty, do you want me to be the evil person who beats the cuckold with a stick?"

The emperor said, "My sister, you are worrying too much. I am just a humble girl. How can I compare with you, my sister Mingzhu of the Great Yin Dynasty? Marquis Wu'an has already made a clean break with that girl."

The princess frowned and said firmly, "It's impossible. In order to marry that woman as his principal wife, Marquis Wu'an even asked Master Tao, who had been in seclusion for many years, to adopt her as his adopted daughter. How could he break off all ties with her?"

The emperor smiled and said, "Then my sister really doesn't understand men. With overwhelming power and the most beautiful woman in the world, how can she not shake the importance of a vulgar woman in his heart?"

The eldest princess's expression became colder: "I cannot tolerate any sand in my eyes."

The emperor said lightly, "Don't worry, my sister. After she gets married, she will never see that girl again."

The princess's expression suddenly changed: "You killed her? Aren't you afraid that Marquis Wu'an will be resentful of you?"

The emperor curled his lips and said, "It's not surprising that a general died on the battlefield. The one that Wu Anhou should blame is the rebel, isn't it?"

In his early years, he was sidelined by Wei Yan, who was afraid that his ambitions would be exposed and Wei Yan would be jealous, so he always pretended to be stupid and timid. Later, in order to win over Li Taifu, he pretended to be obedient and easy to control in front of Li Taifu, and in the past two years, he has gradually shown his fangs.

Hearing his words, the eldest princess' eyes showed shock and she was speechless for a long time, as if she was frightened by his insanity.

The emperor looked at the woman in front of him with a kind and well-behaved smile on his face, just like the young emperor who pretended to be well-behaved and stupid in the past, but his eyes were full of ambition and desire that could no longer be suppressed.

He touched the gilded dragon head on the armrest of the dragon chair, and his nonchalant tone revealed endless expectations: "Once Wei Yan falls, the imperial power will return to my hands. With Marquis Wu'an here, what does that old man from the Li family have to fear?"

He tilted his head, smiled happily and said, "Given the corruption of the Li family over the years, it is enough to confiscate and execute the entire family."

The princess had never felt so strange towards her cowardly and honest brother. Goosebumps appeared on her arms as she held the light gauze. She asked, "Where is Marquis Wu'an? He has a large army under his command. Are you relieved?"

The emperor seemed to want to say something, but when he looked at the eldest princess standing below, his smile deepened. He suddenly stopped talking and said, "Of course I am relieved. After all, my sister is helping me to watch him."

"The person I trust most in this world is my Imperial Sister."

The coldness on my hands and feet slowly went up my spine.

The eldest princess calmed herself down and raised the corners of her lips: "Your Majesty trusts me so much, it is my honor."

The emperor seemed very happy about her change of attitude. He said, "I knew that my sister would stand on my side. I will marry her in a grand ceremony when she returns."

The eldest princess replied "OK", bowed, turned around, dragging the train of her gorgeous palace dress, and walked out of the study. Just like when she came, she held her back proudly and looked down on everyone. Sixteen palace maids followed closely behind her.

No one knew that the gauze on her back was soaked with cold sweat, but it was blocked by her dark hair.

After returning to her palace, the eldest princess closed the door and angrily smashed the broken porcelain all over the floor.

When he was tired from smashing things, he supported his forehead with one hand and sat down on the soft couch to rest. His snow-white brows were furrowed, and it was obvious that he was still worried.

The maid of honor carefully brought a cup of scented tea and advised, "Princess, don't get too angry and get yourself in trouble..."

The eldest princess took the cup and wanted to drink, but when she thought of the emperor's words, she couldn't control her anger and threw the cup away. The broken porcelain flew everywhere, scaring the palace maids serving beside her.

"Who does he think he is? Born to a lowly palace maid, with no relatives, he wants to drag me into this mess!"

The eldest princess's beautiful face was full of anger.

She was the most beloved daughter of the late emperor, but not his first daughter. It was only because the previous princesses died young that she became the eldest princess.

Her biological mother was of noble status, and she and the emperor were not siblings.

The emperor probably wanted to rely on her maternal family in recent years, which is why he became close to her.

The eldest maid was outside the palace at the time and had no idea what was being discussed inside. She thought her princess was still angry about the marriage proposal. After careful consideration, she finally advised:

"Princess, Gongsun Sanlang has refused to enter the government and has not even set foot in the capital in order to avoid you. Why do you still miss him? Marquis Wu'an has made great military achievements and was granted the title of marquis at the age of 20. He is a first-class son-in-law..."

"Shut up!" The eldest princess's face turned cold, and her nails on the wooden armrests of the couch were almost broken due to excessive force.

The eldest palace maid was so frightened that she was stunned.

The princess seemed to realize that she had overreacted, and she lowered her eyelashes like a fan to hide the emotions that were out of control at the moment. She sneered and said, "What good end can you have as Marquis of Wu'an?"

The eldest palace maid was shocked, knowing that this might affect the situation in the court. She said anxiously, "The imperial edict has been issued, and the official who announced it has left the capital. What should we do now?"

The princess closed her eyes and thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "Grind the ink for me."

-

Cannes.

A group of soldiers stopped by the river. The bandits tied up with thick ropes were squatting together like dumplings. A dozen armored guards with knives were guarding this group of captured fish.

The grass along the riverbank was lush and green, but it was summer now and the grass stems were already old, so the war horses used their noses to pick out young shoots to eat.

When Gongsun Yin received the letter brought back by the personal soldiers sent to Chongzhou, his brows furrowed.

He asked: "Miss Fan killed Prince Changxin, but the court really only gave her the title of Xiaoqi Duwei?"

Xie Shisan nodded: "It is absolutely true. The eunuch from the Imperial Household Department went to announce the decree in person."

Gongsun Yin wondered, "Is Prince Changxin's head so worthless?"

He waved his hand to signal Xie Shisan to step aside first, and glanced at the man standing by the river with his upper body naked, with his personal soldiers pouring water down his entire back to clean the wounds. He walked over and deliberately raised his voice and said, "Miss Fan is really a heroine. After killing King Changxin, she was awarded the title of Fifth-Rank Cavalry Commander."

The water dripping down Xie Zheng's back had a faint rouge color.

After hearing Gongsun Yin's words, his half-closed eyelids only raised slightly, but he still said nothing, looking cold and uninterested.

During the past half month, he has been fighting bandits everywhere and destroyed all the bandit dens around Cannes. The wound on his back always opens again when it is about to heal.

But I never saw him take medicine once.

After his personal guards filled the kettle with water again and poured the water on the wound on his back that was bleeding, he seemed to think it was about time. He waved his hand to signal his personal guards to retreat, took his outer robe and put it on.

Gongsun Yin frowned and said, "If you continue to suffer from these injuries, you will die sooner or later."

Xie Zheng seemed too lazy to even reply, he just tucked up his clothes and walked back: "The bandit trouble near Kangcheng has been eliminated. I have to go back to Huizhou for something, so I leave this place to you."

Gongsun Yin looked at his pale face under the sun and wanted to scold him but held back. He just said, "I heard that Li Huaian annotated several military books as gifts for Miss Fan. My relationship with Miss Fan is better than his. I have to escort Yuan Qing to Chongzhou, so I will not stay in Kangcheng. I can also bring a gift to Miss Fan."

Xie Zheng paused slightly, said "It's up to you", and continued walking without looking back.

Gongsun Yin watched him climb onto his horse and finally got so angry that he yelled, "Xie Jiuheng! You have guts! If you really want to let it go, I'll burn that ugly doll in your room in the brazier when I get back!"

The warhorse sped away in a cloud of dust, and the man on horseback didn't give him any response at all.

The armored guards who stayed behind were stunned for a moment, then followed with the captured bandits.

Only Gongsun Yin was left, still cursing there.

-

Xie Zheng only brought two personal guards with him and traveled day and night to return to the Xie family in Huizhou.

When his father was stationed in the northwest, he settled in Huizhou. In a sense, the Xie family home in Huizhou is the old house.

The Xie residence in the capital was purchased when his father got married, and every tree and blade of grass in the residence was arranged according to the woman's preferences.

The servants who stayed at Xie's house in Huizhou were surprised to see Xie Zheng returning home in the middle of the night.

Although they are called family generals, they are actually family servants. They are people who broke their arms or legs while following their father in the battles and will never be able to fight on the battlefield again in their lifetime.

The Xie family will support these people for the rest of their lives.

Xie Zheng did not disturb too many people. He went directly to the ancestral hall and knelt in front of the tablets above for a whole night.

It was not until dawn the next day that the door of the ancestral hall was opened from the outside again.

A middle-aged man with a lame leg and a broken arm, but a very strong face, limped into the ancestral hall. He looked at the man kneeling on the mat with a straight back like a cypress tree, and said calmly, "I heard that the Marquis came back last night. Why didn't you send anyone to inform us?"

Xie Zheng said, "Mr. Zhong, I came back to ask for punishment."

The lame and armless middle-aged man's eyes flashed with a strange look, then he calmed down and asked, "How much fine do you want?"

The Xie family has family rules and ancestral teachings. Any male member of the Xie family who commits a serious offense must come to the ancestral temple to ask for punishment.

During these seventeen years, the only punishment Xie Zheng requested was when he recaptured Jinzhou. He ordered an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, just as the Northern Jue people massacred the people of Dayin. He also ordered the massacre of all the Northern Jue people in Jinzhou city.

The Xie family has produced many benevolent generals since ancient times. After the massacre, people only remembered his name as a killer and no longer remembered the benevolent spirit of the Xie family.

It is a big taboo for a person in charge of troops to be unable to control his violent temper.

The only time Xie Zheng asked for punishment, he asked for the heaviest family punishment in the Xie family's ancestral tradition, 108 lashes.

Today, he knelt before the tablet of the Xie family's ancestors and answered, "One hundred and eight lashes."

This number made the middle-aged man's eyes look strange again, and he asked, "What did Lord Hou do wrong?"

Xie Zheng looked at the tablet of Xie Linshan in the center of the ancestral hall and said, "Uncle Zhong will know about it in the future."

Xie Zhong had also been on the battlefield and was sensitive to the smell of blood. The wound on Xie Zheng's back was torn and the marks on his clothes soaked with blood were particularly obvious.

He hesitated and said, "It seems that the Marquis has some serious injuries."

Xie Zheng simply replied, "No problem."

Xie Zhong took the python whip hanging on the wall, looked at Xie Zheng in silence for two breaths, and then said, "Have you started?"

Xie Zheng was silent and said "hmm".

"Our ancestors were illustrious, and their names have been passed down through the ages. They have taught their children and grandchildren to follow the righteous path."①

As the profound ancestral teachings were recited, a heavy whip hit Xie Zheng's back.

Xie Zheng's body trembled, his back was tensed like a piece of steel, and his hands hanging at his sides were clenched into fists, so he did not fall forward.

But the clothes on the back were torn directly by the whip, and a whip mark appeared on the skin, which was red and swollen and almost engorged with blood and broke the skin.

According to the rules of the Xie family, when punishing someone, they would recite the ancestral teachings while whipping him, so that the punished person would know why he was being punished and would remember the ancestral teachings in his heart.

"I will follow this will and further promote auspiciousness, saying to my descendants, listen to my instructions."①

“Bang!”

Another heavy whip was swung out, and the whip marks and the wound on the back that had been torn countless times overlapped, blood and flesh flew everywhere, Xie Zheng's lips turned white in pain, cold sweat rolled down his temples, and veins bulged from his clenched fists, but he still didn't make a sound.

The ancestral teachings of the Xie family were followed by the whips that fell one after another. Xie Zheng's entire back was covered with crisscross marks of whips, and it was so bloody that it was unbearable to look at. Beads of sweat hung on his eyelids, but he still kept his eyes open, staring at the tablet of Xie Linshan above the ancestral hall without blinking.

By the ninety-eighth lash, the blood gushing out from his back had soaked through his clothes and even formed a small puddle on the floor tiles.

He could no longer kneel and fell forward. Dark shadows filled his eyes and he could hardly see the tablets in the ancestral hall.

Xie Zhong's arms were already sore, and the python whip in his hand was covered in blood.

He was the executioner of the Xie family's generation. No matter how much he felt sorry for someone, he would never be lenient in sentencing.

Only this time, he said, "My Lord, let's stop here."

Xie Zheng fell to the ground, and the puppet he had stuffed in his arms fell out. His palms were bleeding from the pain he had caused. When he picked up the puppet, the palm-sized puppet was also stained with blood. He slowly moved his eyelids and asked, "How many more lashes do you need?"

Xie Zhong replied: "Ten lashes."

Xie Zheng propped himself up on the ground with one hand and held the puppet with the other. He slowly knelt up, straightened his bloodstained back, and said, "Continue."

Xie Zhong's eyes flashed with reluctance, but he still recited the ancestral teachings loudly and whipped him hard.

Blood foam splashed on the floor tiles beneath him, looking as if blood flowers were bursting out.

Ten lashes, not too many, not too few either. When it was over, Xie Zheng was covered in blood, and his fingertips were almost embedded in the puppet from grabbing too hard. He lowered his head and could hardly open his eyelids.

Xie Zhong was afraid that his injuries were too severe and he might have an accident, so he hurried out of the ancestral hall to call for a doctor.

Xie Zheng knelt on the ground, gasping for breath, his back aching so much that he almost lost consciousness.

After a while, he finally recovered from his shock and forced himself to open his eyelids, which seemed to weigh a thousand pounds. He looked at the tablet of Xie Linshan, kowtowed, and said in a hoarse voice, "I am an unfilial child."

There is someone in his heart. He has dug his whole heart out, but he still can't bear to let go.

At first, the constant fighting and killing could temporarily numb his nerves, but later, the pain of the wounds bursting again and again could not suppress the desire to see her.

It was so painful that my whole body was trembling, but I just couldn't wake up.

Or maybe he was awake.

He just wanted to see her.

All my bones ache from thinking about it.

After receiving the 108 lashes, he could go find her.

The author has something to say:

①Quoted from "Chen's Ancestor Instructions".

I wrote this fat chapter all night, muah, good morning, I'm going to sleep~