Gong Shuwu looked at Pang Mei and white hair, the flames in his eyes flickering uncontrollably. The old woman before him was dressed in coarse linen clothes and a fur-lined jacket. Her features still showed traces of her former life, but the pampered and wealthy air of her youth was nowhere to be seen.
In my memory, although my mother managed the household chores and took great care of the widows of my father's former subordinates, resulting in calluses on her hands, she was, after all, the matriarch of the Gong family, and her hands were still well-maintained. But now? Her hands are covered in thick calluses, red chilblains, and severely cracked.
Gong Shuwu bent his knees and knelt heavily on the ground.
[My son is unfilial, my son is unfilial...]
He kowtowed repeatedly.
Even though he had lost his physical body, he still felt warmth in his eyes, as if some kind of liquid was about to spill over. He kept repeating those four words, while the old lady held him and sobbed. The reunion of mother and son after more than ten years was a truly moving sight.
It took a lot of persuasion from others to calm her down.
[It's clearly a joyous occasion of mother and child reuniting, a happy day. The old woman should be happy too. This crying and sobbing is bad for her eyes... The child feels sorry for her...] A woman of similar age to the old woman stepped forward and gently advised her.
The old lady wiped away her tears, her nose reddening: "I truly never imagined I'd see righteousness before I die... I'm just too happy. You're right, I shouldn't be crying..."
She said those words, but seeing her son reduced to a skeleton, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. Her hands, gripping Gong Shuwu's wrist bones, trembled uncontrollably: "My son, my son Yili... how could you become like this?"
Gong Shuwu could not possibly say that he fought with Gong Cheng.
The statement was vague: "On the battlefield, swords and spears have no eyes."
He stroked the thick calluses on his mother's hands.
He wanted to question Gong Cheng, "Is this how he takes care of you all?" but the words wouldn't come out. His mother being alive was far beyond his expectations. He could confidently question Gong Cheng about other things, but not this.
As a grandson, Gong Cheng was at least competent.
As a son, he himself was a complete failure.
The old lady, with her keen eye, noticed her son's actions. Like their father, her son was reserved, and the second son was a martial arts fanatic. He didn't like to express himself verbally, and many of his emotions could only be gleaned from his gestures: "Your mother has lived well these past years, and Yun Chi has taken good care of her. It's just that your mother can't get over that hurdle in her heart; she doesn't want to accept the debt of gratitude from Bei Mo."
If Tudege had helped the Gong family under the guise of a Wuyuan, she wouldn't have felt any guilt; she could simply consider him a close friend from another tribe, and would repay his kindness tenfold in the future. However, Wuyuan wasn't Wuyuan; he was still Tudege, completely changing the nature of the situation. The old lady, having shared her husband's hatred for the Northern Desert for most of her life, simply couldn't get over this.
I did the work myself that I could handle.
She didn't feel that she was suffering too much.
At least, the spirit is free.
Upon hearing this, Gong Shuwu felt another pang of sadness.
[It's because my son is late...]
The old lady affectionately patted his smooth skull: "Don't talk nonsense. As long as you can come, it's never too late."
At that moment, an old man asked a question.
What about Yunchi's child?
The atmosphere suddenly plummeted to freezing point.
Gongshu Martial Arts: [Yun Chi committed suicide.]
No one around made a sound.
The old lady held Gong Shuwu's hand, her eyes closed, remaining silent. Her aged face seemed expressionless, but Gong Shuwu knew her fingers were trembling. Just as Gong Shuwu was thinking of how to comfort her, the old lady sighed: "Did he commit suicide? It's for the best. At least this child made a choice for himself. You needn't be too sad; the Gong family's children have their own paths to take!"
Mother, you...you knew all along?
"I'm just old, not senile." The elderly and frail members of the Gong family were moved to Camel City. As the old lady looked up and saw the Kang Kingdom flag flying over the city walls, she knew the answer. With the fall of the Northern Desert, her grandson Gong Cheng would not survive. Compared to dying from the backlash of the oath of "Enlightenment," suicide was clearly more dignified, preserving the last shred of dignity.
Of course, this is not to say that he was acting against his will. At least Gong Cheng's help in seizing power and establishing himself in the Northern Desert Royal Court was genuine; he simply wanted to repay Tudege for saving his life twice and for rescuing the remaining elderly and weak members of the Gong family.
And then, they helped the Northern Desert wage war against their homeland...
Gong Cheng was wrong.
Suicide is the most dignified choice.
Gong Shuwu looked around but didn't see a child's face, so he asked, "[Yun Chi entrusted his daughter to someone before he died, saying he had a daughter and hoped his son would take care of her. Has that child arrived yet?]"
The old lady and the others exchanged bewildered glances.
[Yun Chi's child?]
Is it a daughter?
The old lady thought carefully: "Are you talking about Imamuk pine?"
Gong Shuwu realized he might have been tricked by his nephew and wanted nothing more than to hang Gong Cheng up and beat him: [Yun Chi didn't say the child's name, only that the child's mother was a woman from the Northern Desert, and the son—]
He really took it seriously.
Not only did I take it seriously, but I also spent a long time mentally preparing myself.
Although he was very bothered that his child had a mother from a northern desert tribe, the child was, after all, Gong Cheng's only offspring and the only heir of his elder brother's lineage. He couldn't possibly deny it. He tried to convince himself, but it turned out that his nephew was just playing a trick on him?
Is Gong Cheng really not afraid that his ashes will be scattered?
The old lady said, "That must be her."
Imamson's mother was from a different ethnic group outside the Great Wall, and her father was indeed a man from within the Great Wall. Everything made sense except that this man wasn't Gong Cheng. As for why she became Gong Cheng's daughter…
The story here isn't particularly complicated.
Imamsong's mother was originally from a small tribe near Zhuyue Pass, where her family made a living by farming and hunting. After the Xin Kingdom was destroyed, the situation in the northwest was in chaos, and local warlords in Kunzhou would frequently organize troops to "collect" military supplies.
Imamson's mother was abducted at that time.
The warlords were arrogant and domineering until they ran into a brick wall.
Gong Cheng brought back the Northern Desert woman who had been living away from home.
The others were alright; they could be sent back to their original tribes for resettlement.
Only the heavily pregnant Imamsong's mother was left homeless. The small tribe had long been swallowed up and devoured by other powerful tribes in the Northern Desert, and the original members of the tribe were scattered and could not be found. Gong Cheng then brought the woman and Imamsong back and sent them to the Gong family's residence.
The woman initially had a blank expression.
Only after having more contact with others will one be willing to communicate with them.
The first thing she said to Gong Cheng was—
You killed my brother.
Gong Cheng: [...]
[You don't know who he is, maybe you don't even know what he looks like. He was just one of those people who charged at you with knives and you killed with a casual flick of your wrist.] The woman's emotions were very stable, as if she were narrating something unrelated to herself. [My man was also killed by you. He wasn't killed instantly, but he didn't last two or three rounds either.]
Gong Cheng: [...]
The woman said, "My son was also implicated and killed."
The resulting blast wave destroyed the houses.
The roof beam crushed and killed her son.
My husband is no good. He steals women, breaks into people's homes to steal things, and kills women when he's unhappy. My brother isn't a good person either. He used to be alright, but he turned bad. He has many women and, along with his brother-in-law, killed many people—men and women, young and old… I don't really feel sorry for them when they die, but my son is still young and hasn't had the chance to do bad things yet. Maybe he'll turn bad when he grows up, but he hasn't had the chance to grow up.
The woman chatted as she deftly helped others hang their clothes to dry.
I have two sons.
Two sons and one daughter.
One is still in the womb, and we don't know if it's a boy or a girl.
"Are you going to steal my child so I can give you a son too?" She sighed, looking at Gong Cheng. "If we're going to have another child, I have to give birth to this one first. You'll have to wait a bit; four months is enough."
Gong Cheng said awkwardly, "No."
The woman retorted: "No?"
She didn't seem to quite understand Gong Cheng's thoughts.
[They kidnap a pregnant woman just to have her baby, right? Men in the Northern Desert do this, and men outside the Northern Desert do the same. My mother was also kidnapped to give birth.]
Her mother was a woman from within the Great Wall who was abducted.
She was a foreign woman from beyond the Great Wall who was abducted.
The key point isn't whether it's inside or outside the pass, but that it can be robbed. Rob young men to do hard labor, robber elderly people to perform corvée labor, robber young women to bear children—everyone has a use.
The woman hung all the washed clothes to dry, then picked up the wooden basin and held it to her waist, looking at Gong Cheng with a puzzled expression: "You don't need me to have your child, are you planning to wait for my daughter?"
Gong Cheng's lips twitched as he looked at Imamsong, who had just managed to walk steadily and was being led around by the woman with a thick hemp rope, and shook his head.
Would you want revenge?
Gong Cheng couldn't sense any hatred from the woman.
He did indeed kill the other party's son, brother, and man.
The woman's answer was very honest.
[If I seek revenge, I will die, and my daughter will die too.]
Therefore, the conclusion is not to seek revenge.
That's what her mother said too.
These are all normal occurrences.
To survive, men must be dogs, and women must be prostitutes.
Gong Cheng was shocked by her distorted ideas.
His lips moved several times, but he couldn't utter a single word.
Imamsong, sitting on the ground, clutching grass as if trying to stuff it into his mouth, stared blankly at the two "giants" with his large, lake-blue eyes.
She had no idea how explosive the conversation between the two adults was.
Two months later, the woman died in childbirth.
She gave birth to a baby boy who was barely alive.
Gong Cheng happened to come over and deliver some daily necessities.
He couldn't save the woman even with his martial arts.
Woman: [Son or daughter?]
Gong Cheng said: "It's my son."
The woman knew her time was coming to an end, and her eyes reddened.
Gong Cheng: [If you have any last words, please tell me.]
The woman thought for a long time but couldn't figure out what her unfulfilled wishes were; apart from the child she was about to give birth to, she had nothing.
Just when Gong Cheng thought she had left.
A faint sound came from the woman's mouth.
I don't want my son to be a dog.
I don't want my daughter to become a prostitute either.
If I could, I'd like them to be treated like human beings.
Not long after the woman passed away, her frail newborn infant also perished. Gong Cheng carried the child, seeking medical help and medicine, but even after a whole night of trying to soothe him, he couldn't stop the ox-headed and horse-faced demons from taking him away. Gong's dwelling was very simple, and the only decent doctor only had a rudimentary understanding of pharmacology—yet these conditions were still better than most of the Northern Desert tribes. Medical conditions in other places were indescribable; people treated illnesses by bloodletting, eating dog excrement, or even by opening one's forehead—there was no proper medicine.
He buried the mother and child together.
After much deliberation, they adopted Imamsong.
Does the tragedy of the weak stem from race?
Gong Cheng looked at his palms. His palms were clean, but he could see bloodstains that he couldn't wash off.
[Or does it stem from the strength of the strong?]
The old lady sighed as she looked at her perpetually bewildered grandson.
Others have encountered similar problems.
She said, "This is not something we can consider right now."
If Gong Cheng were to say these words to other members of the Gong clan, especially the Gong clan ancestors who had already died in battle, he would definitely be beaten to a pulp.
Gong Cheng became increasingly confused.
The old woman said, "In your view, people are divided into the strong and the weak, without distinction of gender, age, friend or foe. But, Yun Chi, the differences between people are not just about strength and weakness, but also about country, race, gender, family background, wealth... As long as people live among people, they cannot avoid being divided by these factors..."
Other members of the clan had some objections.
However, they still tacitly approved the adoption of Imamson.
After all, they raised the child themselves, and over time they developed feelings for him. Besides, Imamuksong is indeed a lovable child.
This was the first time Gong Shuwu had seen the daughter that Gong Cheng had acknowledged.
My feelings are complicated, but I accept it with a sigh.
My child, from now on, be an upright and honorable person.
_(:з」∠)_
I'm symptomatic, and my throat hurts, and my sense of smell is failing.
How did I discover my sense of smell had run away? I sprayed on a new perfume today and found that the one labeled as strong was very faint; I could only smell a slight, pungent alcohol scent. Something felt off. I sprayed it a few more times, and my mom said I was practically soaked in perfume and still wearing it… So I tried another one, and found that I could only smell the pungent alcohol scent there too…
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