It was the Mid-Autumn Festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month.
The moonlight hung in the night sky like a silver plate. In the messy market, beside the market was a ruined mansion. Beggars in tattered clothes sang the Mid-Autumn Festival Song of that year. Their hoarse voices caused the surroundings to seem to be filled with a terrifying feeling out of nowhere. The crowd, who were laughing or making noise, could not help but quiet down.
The old man called Zuo Xiuquan tapped his fingers on the table when he heard the poem, but he also sighed silently. This poem was written nearly twenty years ago on the Mid-Autumn Festival. At that time, the Wu dynasty was prosperous and prosperous, and the Central Plains and Jiangnan were filled with songs and dances.
Now, twenty years later, it was said, "People have joys and sorrows, the moon waxes and wanes, this matter is difficult to complete. I hope people live long, a thousand miles together … ". It was not known whether the poem described the human world, or the human world annotated the poem.
He had entered Jiangning City with Yin Ping, Yue Yun and the others yesterday. Today was the Mid-Autumn Festival. After dealing with a few important matters, he and the others came to the hometown of the Inner Demon to investigate. During this time, Yin Ping and Yue Yun had received Ning Yi's help. Over the years, they had also heard from their father about the many deeds of this Southwest Devil, who was both good and evil at the same time. They were also very respectful towards him. However, when they arrived, the dilapidated and smelly ruins naturally made it hard for them to be interested.
At this time, the beggar's words were questioned by many people. But the Zuo family, starting from Zuo Duanyou, had a deep understanding of Ning Yi's deeds. In the past, Ning Yi had been hit in the head by someone and lost his memory. Although Qin Siyuan, Kang Xian, and the others didn't really believe it, there were still some clues left behind.
Now that he heard the beggar's words, Zuo Xiuquan felt that most of the things he said were true. He had gone to the southwest twice, and each time he saw Ning Yi, he had sensed the other's imposing aura that could swallow the world. In the past, he had never thought too much about it. When he was young, he had also experienced this sort of jealousy and been drawn into the literary world.
The moonlight in the sky was as bright as a silver plate. It was so close that it looked like it was hanging on a building at the other end of the street. The beggar on the side of the road finished his poem and rambled on about the "inner demons". Zuo Xiuquan took a handful of copper coins and stuffed them into the other party's hands. He slowly sat back down and chatted with Yin Ping and Yue Yun.
He waved his hand and called the stall owner over.
"Was this person really the young master of Da Chuan Cloth Company?"
"… How did he become like this?"
Zuo Xiuquan asked a few questions in succession. The stall owner was initially a little hesitant, but as the old man took out some money, the stall owner told him the whole story.
That was several months ago.
When the Fairness Party first entered Jiangning, they naturally plundered a little. However, they didn't blindly rob and kill the rich families in Jiangning.
According to the rules set by the Prince of Fairness, all people in this world were equal. It was extremely unfair for some rich families to amass large amounts of land and property, but not all of these people were wicked beyond redemption. Thus, every time the Fairness Party took over a piece of land, they would first screen and "investigate" the crimes of those who had committed many crimes. Naturally, they would be killed and their possessions confiscated. And for a small number of people who were not so bad, even those who gave medicine and had a certain reputation and good deeds, they would preach the ideals of the Fairness Party to these people, asking them to voluntarily hand over a large amount of wealth.
This kind of "persuasion" was naturally a type of coercion on a practical level. In the face of the mighty Fairness movement, as long as one still wanted to live, they would naturally choose to sacrifice their wealth in order to preserve their safety. (In reality, He Wen's methods also ensured that the enemies would be divided before the great war. A portion of the rich families would negotiate the conditions from the very beginning, using all of their wealth and even joining the Fairness Party as a bargaining chip. They would choose to settle things, rather than stubbornly resist in despair.)
The Xue family didn't have any great evils in Jiangning. Apart from when they were debauchees, they had indeed smashed a brick into the back of a person named Ning Yi's head. However, in the larger scheme of things, this family could actually be considered a good family in the Jiangning region. Thus, the first round of "investigation" was only to confiscate all of their family property, and the Xue family had already agreed.
Of course, there was a certain procedure for handing over the property. During this period, the first to be dealt with were naturally the heinous rich families, and the Xue family needed to finish counting all of their property during this period of time. When the Fairness Party had time to spare, they would take the initiative to hand over all of their property to the state, and then become role models who would turn over a new leaf and join the Fairness Party.
However, the first round of killing had not yet ended. The "King of Hell" Zhou Shang's people entered the city.
Inside the city, they carried out the second round of sentencing of the rich families who hadn't been killed in the first round.
It was four and a half months ago. Dozens of members of the Xue family were chased out and detained in the city square. They said that someone had reported their crimes, so they had to be interrogated for the second time. They had to confront the person to prove their innocence. This was the fixed procedure of the "King of Hell" Zhou Shang. After all, he was also a member of the Fairness Party, so he wouldn't "kill people indiscriminately".
One of the witnesses who could prove that the Xue family had done evil came out. It was a middle-aged woman who was dragging a child. She told the crowd that more than ten years ago, she had worked as a servant in the Xue family. Then, she was raped by the Old Master of the Xue family. She returned home and gave birth to this child. Then, she was chased away from Jiangning by the evil slaves of the Xue family. There was even a scar on her forehead from the beating she received.
The woman's voice was tearful, and every word came from the bottom of her heart. The Old Master of the Xue family wanted to speak several times, but Zhou Shang's people told him not to interrupt her. They had to wait until she finished speaking before they could defend themselves.
The members of the Xue family waited to defend themselves. However, as the woman finished speaking, she broke down in tears on the stage. When the Old Master of the Xue family stood up, rocks had already been thrown up from below the stage. The rocks smashed the Xue family members' heads until they were bleeding. The people below the stage felt empathy for the Xue family. All of them had a common enemy and were filled with righteous indignation. They rushed up the stage and started a frenzied fight. Even more people followed Zhou Shang's team and charged into the Xue family. They carried out a new round of looting and plundering. Before the subordinates of the "King of Justice" arrived to receive the Xue family's belongings, everything was swept clean.
"This is how the subordinates of the 'King of Hell' do things. They interrogate people every time. After the interrogation, there aren't many who are left alive."
Under the moonlight, the vendor who had received the money spoke softly about these things. The flag hanging on his stall belonged to the Chakra King. Recently, with the arrival of the Great Radiant Church's Leader in the city, his influence had grown. He spoke of Zhou Shang's methods with some disdain.
"Is it like this every time?" Zuo Xiuquan asked.
"Naturally, it can't be the same every time." The vendor shook his head. "There are many tricks, but the results are always the same. In the past two years, almost all the rich people who fell into the hands of the King of Hell have died. As long as you go up, the people below the stage won't care what crimes you have committed. They will just throw rocks at you and kill you. Once your belongings are snatched, even if the King of Justice comes personally, he won't be able to find anyone. "However, in any case, there are no good people among the rich. In my opinion, they deserve to be in this predicament."
"Little brother, you're setting up a stall here. Don't you want to be a rich person?"
"I want to be a rich person, but I'm not going against my conscience. Look, I'm busy every day, aren't I?" That vendor waved his hand and stuffed the money he had received into his clothes. "Old man, you don't have to use words to pressure me. That King of Hell's faction doesn't follow the rules, and everyone doesn't like it either. However, you can't handle the fact that there are so many of them. Do you think that the people who threw rocks at people in the middle of a conversation were all from Zhou Shang's faction? No, who wouldn't do that if they wanted to get rich … However, these words can be said here. In the future, when you go to other places, you guys have to be more careful. Don't offend that group of people. "
As the vendor said this, he pointed to the 'Chakra King's' flag at the side. It could be considered as a kind advice.
Right now, on the ground at the side, the beggar's arms were trembling as he slowly poured the food that the crowd had given him into a small cloth bag. It was unknown who he was going to bring it back for. He had not been a beggar for long. In the past few decades, he had lived a life of luxury. Now, as he quietly listened to the vendor talk about his encounters, his tears mixed with the dust on his face flowed down …
Zuo Xiuquan sighed. After the vendor left, he drummed his fingers on the table and pondered for a moment.
"Wang of Fairness, He Wen, is an extraordinary figure no matter where he is. But why is it like this in Jiangning City … Why, why is it like this?"
At a nearby table, Ning Ji heard the old man's murmur. His eyes swept over and sized up the group of people again. One of the figures, who seemed to be a woman dressed as a man, also glanced at him. He calmly shifted his attention away.
He knew that this group of people most likely had some background. He guessed that they were from a large clan like Yan Yunzhi's group. At this moment, he did not intend to form a feud with these people. However, the old man's question also moved his heart.
Although he was not a person who was good at thinking and summarizing, when he was still in the southwest, he was surrounded by all kinds of people and had come into contact with the richest information in the world. He also had some knowledge of the world's situation. Regarding He Wen of the Party of Fairness, no matter what type of analysis, no one would take him lightly. In fact, the majority of people — including his father — viewed him as the most threatening enemy, the one most likely to open up a new situation.
But could he really open up a new situation with these people in front of him?
He felt a trace of confusion …
…
Of course, he did not like to get to the bottom of these serious questions. Today was the Mid-Autumn Festival on the 15th of August. He had come to Jiangning to participate in this chaotic bustle. What he wanted to trace was nothing more than the traces of his parents' life here.
At this time, the moon gradually rose. In the distance, there were fireworks flying into the sky in the dusky city. It was unknown where the Mid-Autumn Festival was being celebrated. Not far away, a beggar had been begging on the ground for a while. He did not gain much, but he slowly got up. One of his legs was already lame. At this time, he passed through the crowd and slowly limped towards the end of the street.
Ning Ji paid the bill and followed behind them.
The beggar's lonely figure passed through the street, through the dark alleys flowing with dirty water, and then along the canal that was suffused with foul water. His feet were not well and it was difficult for him to walk. As he walked, he even tripped. He struggled to his feet and continued walking. Finally, he reached a small bridge at the corner of the canal. The smell of this bridge was not pleasant, but it could at least keep out the wind and rain.
Ning Ji saw him walk into the opening of the bridge, and then he woke up a person inside in a low voice.
He staggered out, supporting the figure, whose gait seemed strangely feeble, and the two figures, at once intertwined and crowded together, climbed slowly to the edge of the canal, and sat down, leaning against each other, on the edge of the road, which was both the edge of the canal and the edge of the road.
"Yue, Yue Niang, I … I brought food … food …"
The beggar pulled open the small cloth bag on his body. The small cloth bag contained the bowl of food that had been given to him as a charity.
His problem of speaking intermittently might be because he had been hit in the head. Ning Ji did not know what kind of injury the figure next to him had suffered. From behind, he could only see that one of her arms was twisted. As for the rest, it was difficult to distinguish. She leaned on the beggar and just swayed slightly.
"Yue, Yue Niang, today … today is … the Mid-Autumn Festival, I …"
"I just saw … there … fireworks …"
"Just … over there …"
"Eat … eat something … they should, should …"
"They should …"
"I'll release it again …"
Two figures leaned against the canal in the night wind. The silhouettes in the darkness were so weak that they seemed to be dissipating with the wind.
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