168. Kill them all
In the courtyard, Zhang Zhuo and Chen Liqin were pacing under the persimmon tree. When they saw Chen Wenzong, Chen Wenxiao and Zhang Xia behind Mr. Feng, their eyes were bloodshot.
Old man Yao moved a chair and closed his eyes to rest. When he heard Mr. Feng's voice, he didn't even lift his eyelids.
At this moment, a young man beside Zhang Zhuo rushed up like crazy: "You beast, let my sister go. If you have any trouble, come to the men of the Zhang family. Why are you making things difficult for a woman?"
Mr. Feng watched the young man rushing towards him quietly, without any intention of avoiding him. He slowly raised his hand and was about to slap him with a palm.
At the critical moment, Chen Ji took the lead and blocked Mr. Feng's way, punching the young man in the abdomen.
The young man suddenly curled up like a shrimp and vomited continuously.
Chen Ji said coldly, "Dare to be rude to Mr. Feng? You're courting death."
Mr. Feng patted Chen Ji on the shoulder and said admiringly, "You have quite a keen eye. Please move aside. I want to talk to the two adults."
After saying this, his eyes swept across the faces of Zhang Zhuo, Chen Liqin, and Old Man Yao, and finally returned to Zhang Zhuo. "Master Zhang, I've always heard that you're an excellent chess player. I wonder if we could play a game together? I'm afraid that after today, I won't have the chance to play chess again, Master Zhang."
Zhang Zhuo helped his son, who had been vomiting non-stop, to his feet and said angrily, "It's already this late and you still have the mind to play chess? What you should do now is protect your mother!"
Mr. Feng was startled, then burst out laughing and said, "You civil servants, you're always cursing people in roundabout ways, it's not straightforward enough."
He sat down at the stone table in the courtyard as if no one was around, looked up at She Dengke and said with a smile, "Young man, please pour me a cup of tea. I've been busy all day and haven't had a sip of water."
She Dengke responded and hurried into the building of Feiyun Garden to pour water.
Zhang Zhuo helped his son aside and sat down across from Mr. Feng. He then asked, "I heard you're a Jinshi (Jinshi) graduate. Why did you waste ten years of hard study, hiding your identity and taking on such a risky job?"
Chen Liqin said coldly, "Back when you were at Donglin Academy, the teachers often praised you. How come you've fallen into depravity and become a servant of the Liu family?"
Mr. Feng sighed and said, "Donglin Academy... I envied you when I was in the academy."
"What are you envious of?"
Mr. Feng recalled: "You can go out for an outing, drink and write poetry, get drunk in a brothel, and when you come back you will still be treasured by the gentlemen."
Chen Liqin frowned: "This is all commonplace, what is there to envy?"
Mr. Feng counted the money on his fingers, "Going out for an outing requires hiring a carriage. A poor, slow carriage costs thirty coins per trip, while a better one costs over a hundred. Even the wine you enjoy in a tavern can easily cost hundreds of coins. I was able to attend Donglin Academy only by selling my family's land to raise the tuition. How can I waste my money here?"
Zhang Zhuo retorted, "My background is equally poor, but that's no reason to be someone else's slave."
Mr. Feng sneered and said, "If Master Zhang had not married the daughter of the Xu family, would he be where he is today? What's the use of you being the top scholar back then? Weren't you still forced to work as a proofreader among the piles of books by Lord Xu for several years?
Okay, let’s stop talking about these old things and get down to business.”
Zhang Zhuo asked in a serious tone, "What on earth are you doing holding us captive?"
Mr. Feng said calmly, "I would like to ask you two to write a manifesto to fight against the rebels."
"What thief are you looking for?"
"Xu Wenhe, Wu Xiu, the Imperial Household Department, eunuchs!"
Zhang Zhuo was not a fool. Once he wrote the manifesto to fight against the rebels, the Xu and Chen families were also tied to the Liu family's chariot. People all over the world thought that the two families had rebelled together with the Liu family!
He immediately asked solemnly, "You want to come to the capital under the pretext of clearing the imperial court? Do you want to drag the Xu and Chen families into this?"
Mr. Feng smiled but said nothing.
She Dengke brought some tea. Mr. Feng gulped down a cup and handed it back to She Dengke: "I'm really thirsty. Pour some more."
Zhang Zhuo looked at Mr. Feng's calm demeanor and became a little angry. "Do you know that if I write this anti-traitor manifesto, I will also become a traitor? If you fail, I will lose my head too."
Mr. Feng said frankly, "I know, but if you don't write it, you'll lose your head now."
Zhang Zhuo sat up straight. "If you want to recruit us, you have to negotiate terms. You can't just ask us to write something and we'll write it for you."
Mr. Feng said sincerely, "Master Zhang, if you write me a letter to punish the rebels, I will spare your entire family. How about that?"
Feiyun Garden suddenly became quiet, a cold wind swirled in the courtyard, and the atmosphere suddenly became solemn.
But Zhang Zhuo sneered, "Meng Sheng said, 'Life is what I desire; righteousness is what I desire. I cannot have both. I would rather sacrifice my life for righteousness.' I won't write it. The Zhang family is spineless, and they won't write it either. Just kill us."
Mr. Feng shook his head in disappointment and turned his gaze to Chen Liqin: "Master Chen, what do you say?"
Chen Liqin said solemnly, "My Chen family has a long tradition of courtesy and etiquette. How could we possibly be in cahoots with you?"
Mr. Feng sighed, "It seems like they won't cry until they see the coffin... Sir Chen, your son Chen Ji is in my hands. If I give the order right now, he'll be beheaded. I'll give you ten breaths to think about it. After ten breaths, you'll be one less son."
Chen Ji was slightly stunned, and then realized that Mr. Feng was trying to trick Chen Liqin.
Mr. Feng counted down: "Ten, nine, eight... three, two, one."
Chen Liqin's face darkened and he remained silent.
Mr. Feng turned to Chen Ji and said cheerfully, "Zhang Yuan, go and kill Master Chen's bastard son."
Chen Ji cupped his hands and said in a muffled voice, "Yes."
Before Chen Ji left, Zhang Zhuo suddenly said, "Wait!"
Mr. Feng turned around unexpectedly: "Oh? Master Zhang has something to say?"
Zhang Zhuo thought for a moment and said, "Chen Ji has long since fallen out with the Chen family and has lived in the Taiping Clinic for years without returning home. What does this have to do with him? You want to purge the emperor's court, and you claim to be righteous men. Why do you do such a heinous thing and implicate innocent people? Doctor Yao, what do you think?"
Old man Yao, who was sitting on a chair in the courtyard, finally opened his eyes and said slowly, "Mr. Feng, why don't I write this anti-traitor manifesto for you? My handwriting is pretty good."
Mr. Feng was speechless.
After a long time, he cried
He couldn't help laughing and said, "You guys have confused me. How come the father hasn't even spoken up to plead for mercy, yet you two are more concerned than he is? Imperial Physician Yao, it's useless for you, an imperial physician, to write a manifesto to fight the rebels. So please don't join in the fun."
Old Man Yao glanced at him and said, "I am at least a seventh-rank official."
Mr. Feng was amused. "If I were to use a royal physician's manifesto to exterminate the rebels and raise a banner, I'd probably be laughed out loud by the world. The storytellers in the teahouse would laugh at me: 'Feng Wenzheng isn't very smart.'"
Zhang Zhuo raised his eyebrows and said, "Then don't embarrass a small apprentice from the medical clinic. This is the behavior of a mean person."
"That's right," Mr. Feng turned his gaze and instructed Chen Ji, "Bring Mr. Chen's legitimate son here."
"Yes," Chen Ji brought Chen Wenxiao to the stone table and said, "Sir, how do we do it?"
Mr. Feng sniffed his nose and said, "Wait, what's that smell?"
He looked down and saw urine dripping from Chen Wenxiao's trouser legs.
Mr. Feng raised his hand and fanned his nose in disgust: "Move away and cut off a finger."
Chen Wenxiao cried out in pain as if struck by lightning: "Dad, save me!"
Chen Ji dragged Chen Wenxiao under the persimmon tree and pushed him down. Then he pried open each of his fingers and pressed them to the ground, then stepped on them to secure them.
He drew his sword from his waist and raised it to chop.
Chen Liqin suddenly stepped forward: "Wait!"
Mr. Feng's eyes lit up: "What do you mean?"
Chen Liqin was silent for a long time: "I can write a manifesto to fight against the rebels, but I can only write about fighting against the eunuchs. I don't care about anything else."
Mr. Feng clapped his hands. "Well, well, well, the eunuchs have been ruining the country for too long. Any aspiring scholar in the world should punish them! Compared to Lord Zhang, Lord Chen is a truly knowledgeable man! But... a bastard is still a bastard. Everyone says that our dynasty doesn't distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate children, but great scholars always say one thing and mean another, say one thing to your face and another behind your back. Only when things get serious do we know if there's any real difference."
Zhang Zhuo said coldly, "Chen Liqin, think carefully. If you act like a coward today, you'll never be able to hold your head up high again. You usually value your reputation more than I do. What's wrong with you now?"
Chen Liqin turned his head away without saying a word.
Mr. Feng smiled at Zhang Zhuo and said, "Master Zhang, everyone has their own ambitions. If this campaign to purge the imperial court succeeds, Master Chen will also be remembered in history, right? Master Chen has already written about it, so why don't you write about it?"
Zhang Zhuo turned to look at his son: "Should I write?"
Zhang Zheng angrily said, "Write his mother's eggs!"
Zhang Zhuo turned to look at Zhang Xia again: "Daughter, what do you say?"
Zhang Xia pursed her lips and said, "I can't write."
Zhang Zhuo laughed heartily: "My son and daughter are pretty good, at least better than Master Chen's!"
Mr. Feng stood up and walked out: "It's okay, Master Chen's manifesto to fight the rebels is enough. Take Master Chen and his family away."
A soldier asked in a low voice: "The rest..."
Mr. Feng said casually, "Kill them all."
Chen Ji's heart trembled!
(End of this chapter)
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