The gloomy prison smelled of decay, the buzzing of flies, and the heat and humidity mixed together. After the intense pain and discomfort subsided, Su Wenfang, dressed in rags, curled up in a corner of the cell, shivering.
Cries of anguish could still be heard from afar in the Zizhou prison. He had been captured here for a day and a half, and after almost a day of interrogation, Su Wenfang had already collapsed. At least, in his slightly lucid consciousness, he felt that he had already collapsed.
Perhaps it would have been better to die back then …
The continuous pain and discomfort would cause one's perception of reality to dissipate. Many times, there would be all kinds of memories and hallucinations. After being continuously tortured for a day, the other party threw him back into the prison to rest. The slight relief allowed his mind to gradually clear up. His body trembled as he cried silently. His thoughts were in chaos. Sometimes he wanted to die, sometimes he regretted, sometimes he was numb, and sometimes he recalled his experiences over the years.
This was the first time in his life that he had experienced such things. Whips, rods, sticks, and even soldering iron. He was beaten and repeatedly tortured with water. From the first time, he felt that he could not endure it any longer.
He had never thought of himself as a strong person.
In these years, he had first followed Takeshi to do things, then later participated in the war and became a member of the Huaxia army. This road of his had not been easy, but it could not be considered difficult. Following his sister and brother-in-law, he could learn many things. Although he had to put in enough effort and seriousness, for other people in this world, he was already happy enough. In these years, from Takeshi's efforts in Xia Village, to the regicide in the golden palace, to the Little Blue River, to the defeat of Western Xia, to the three years bathed in blood, and to the management of the southwest for several years, he had seen many things as an administrative member of the Black Flag Army, but he had never truly experienced the hardships of a bloody battle or the great terror between life and death.
Many times, when he passed through the miserable camp for wounded soldiers, his heart would also feel a penetrating chill.
In these years, he had seen many people as strong as steel. But in the depths of Su Wenfang's heart, there was always fear. The only weapon against fear was rational analysis. When the situation outside the Great and Small Liang Mountains began to shrink and the situation became chaotic, Su Wenfang was afraid of what he would experience. But the result of rational analysis told him that Lu Qiaoshan could clearly see the situation, whether it was war or peace, the safety of his group, for him, was also the greatest benefit. And in the current southwest, the army actually had an enormous say.
However, things still went in an uncontrollable direction.
Ever since he was captured and thrown into prison, the interrogator had asked him to reveal the list of Huaxia Army members who were still outside the mountain. Naturally, he was unwilling to reveal it. Every second of the torture that followed was unbearable. Su Wenfang thought of his comrades who had died in front of him. He thought to himself, "I have to hold on, hold on." In less than an hour, he began to beg for mercy.
Begging for mercy would give them some time to catch their breath, but no matter what they said, as long as they were unwilling to confess, the torture would continue. His skin and flesh were quickly lacerated. At first, Su Wenfang fantasized that the members of the Huaxia Army hiding in Zizhou would come and rescue him, but this hope did not come to fruition. Su Wenfang's thoughts swayed between confessing and not confessing. He spent the majority of his time crying and begging for mercy, occasionally opening his mouth to threaten the other party. The wounds on his body were truly too painful, and he was then splashed with salt water. He was pressed into a bucket again and again, suffocating until he fainted. After more than four hours, Su Wenfang finally begged for mercy and confessed.
The words of confession were at the tip of his tongue, but he could not say them.
After so many years, those figures on the battlefield, the Black Flag soldiers who died fighting against the Women Zhenren, the horrifying screams in the wounded barracks, the broken limbs, the old soldiers who didn't die but were already disabled … these things swayed in front of his eyes. He simply couldn't understand why these people would experience so much pain and still shout that they were willing to go to the battlefield. But these things made it impossible for him to confess.
He sat on the table, trembling for a while, and then began to cry. He raised his head and sobbed, "I can't say …"
What followed was naturally even more vicious torture.
Every moment, he felt that he was going to die. The next moment, even more pain continued. His brain had already turned into a field of blood light. His crying was mixed with cursing and begging for mercy. Sometimes, while crying, he would move the other party with emotion. "We fought the Women in the north. For three years in the northwest, do you know how many people died? How they died … When we defended Little Cang River, how we fought? When there was a lack of food, there were people who starved to death … When we retreated, there were people who did not retreat … Ah — we were doing a good deed …"
"I beg you … don't beat me anymore …"
"I beg you …"
This weak voice gradually developed into, "I'll say …"
Then it became, "I can't say …"
This cycle repeated over and over again. The torturers had changed several times, and eventually, they were also tired. Su Wenfang did not know how he persevered, but those tragic things reminded him that he could not speak. He knew that he was not a hero. Not long after, a certain him who could not persevere would probably open his mouth and confess. But before that … he had already endured for so long, just a little more …
Perhaps the rescuers would come?
Unknowingly, he was thrown back into the cell. Every time he breathed a little due to the injuries on his body, he curled up there and then began to cry silently. In his heart, he was also complaining why the rescuers had not come yet. If they did not come soon, he would not be able to hold on any longer … Unknowingly, someone suddenly opened the cell door.
Su Wenfang was extremely tired, but he suddenly woke up. His body began to curl up in the corner of the cell, but two officials came over and dragged him out.
Su Wenfang struggled with all his might. Soon, he was half dragged and half dragged back to the interrogation room. His body was slightly relieved. At this time, seeing the torture equipment, he became even more afraid. The torturer came over and asked him to sit at the table. He put a pen and paper on the table. "Brother, you have considered for so long. Give me some face and just write a name … Write something unimportant."
Su Wenfang trembled all over. The person pressed his shoulder and touched the wound. The pain surged again. Su Wenfang cried again. "I can't say. My sister will kill me. My brother-in-law will not let me go …"
"They won't know."
"They will know … Haha, you don't understand at all. There are people around you …"
"… Who?"
"I don't know. They will know. I can't say. I can't say. I can't say. You didn't see how those people died … To fight the Jurchens. The Wu dynasty could not fight the Jurchens. They died to resist the Jurchens. Why, why did you do this …"
As soon as he said this, the torturer slapped him to the ground and shouted, "Tie him up!"
Several people next to Su Wenfang tied him to a rack. The torturer came over. "You don't want to say. Your tongue is useless. But you only have one. I gave you face. I asked you to write, but you refused. I have ten fingers. Let's play slowly! "
"I don't know. I don't know. Don't do this …" Su Wenfang struggled and shouted. The torturer had already grabbed one of his fingers and brought an iron needle over with the other hand.
"Will you say it or not …"
"We are gold miners! Many of our people died! I can't say it! "
"Give me a name …"
"My brother-in-law will kill you! He will kill your whole family! Let me go! I can't say it, I can't say it … "
The crazy screams and bloody froth in the mouth lasted for a while. Then, the iron needle was inserted, and the hoarse screams came from the interrogation room …
What followed was a scene from hell.
*****
In Mount Xiaoliang, the encirclement and suppression of the Mang Shan Ni tribe had begun.
The autumn harvest was still in progress. The Huaxia army in Mount Ji had been mobilized, but it had not officially started yet. In the dull autumn, Ning Yi returned to Hedeng, waiting to negotiate with the people outside the mountain.
On the surface, Lu Qiaoshan's attitude towards war or peace was not clear. On the surface, he respected Ning Yi and was willing to have a face-to-face negotiation with Ning Yi. However, the details of the negotiation were a little disputed. But this time, the envoy of the Huaxia army received Ning Yi's order. Under his tough attitude, Lu Qiaoshan finally made concessions.
The date of the negotiation was delayed by two days because of the preparation work. The location was set in a valley on the outskirts of Mount Xiaoliang. Ning Yi brought 3,000 people out of the mountain, and Lu Qiaoshan also brought 3,000 people over. No matter what their thoughts were, they had to negotiate clearly. This was Ning Yi's toughest attitude. If they did not negotiate, then they would start the war as soon as possible.
This day was already the 21st day of the seventh month in the ninth year of the Wu dynasty. In the morning, the autumn wind became a little chilly, blowing across the grassland outside Mount Xiaoliang. Ning Yi and Lu Qiaoshan met in a dilapidated pergola on the grassland. In the distance behind them, there were 3,000 troops each. After greeting each other, Ning Yi saw Su Wenfang, who was brought over by Lu Qiaoshan. He was wearing a neat robe. His face was patched up, and the fingers in his sleeves were also bandaged. His footsteps seemed weak. For this negotiation, Su Tan'er also came. As soon as she saw her brother's expression, her eyes slightly reddened. Ning Yi walked over and gently hugged Su Wenfang.
Su Wenfang's face showed a slight expression of pain. His weak voice seemed to come from the depths of his throat. "Brother-in-law … I didn't say …"
"I know. Take care of yourself."
"… It was those scholars who did it. They want to force Lu Qiaoshan to start a war …"
"Okay."
Su Wenfang said in a low voice with difficulty. Only then did he separate from Ning Yi and walk over to Su Tan'er.
Ning Yi faced Lu Qiaoshan. Lu Qiaoshan cupped his hands and smiled politely. "It was a misunderstanding. It was not my intention. Mister Ning, it was a misunderstanding."
Ning Yi nodded and gestured for him to sit. He looked behind him and said, "After all, he is my wife's brother. Thank you for your concern, Lord Lu."
"Ai, it's only right. It's all the fault of those rotten scholars. They are not worth scheming with. Mister Ning, please calm down."
Ning Yi nodded and smiled. Neither of them sat down. Lu Qiaoshan only cupped his hands. Ning Yi thought for a moment. "Over there is my wife, Su Tan'er."
"Sister-in-law is famous. You are talented and virtuous. I have long heard of you."
Ning Yi did not respond. He continued in the same tone as before. "My wife was originally from a merchant family in Jiang Ning city. She was ranked third in the cloth merchant family. When I married into her family, it had been a few generations of accumulation. However, it came to a critical time. There was no one in the third generation of the family who was successful. Grandfather Su Yu finally decided to let my wife, Tan 'er, manage the family. Wen Fang and the others followed her to do some chores and do some odd jobs. At that time, I thought that it would be a great fortune for these branches to be able to maintain the family. "
Lu Qiaoshan nodded.
"Of course, later, for various reasons, we did not take this path. The old man passed away a few years ago. There was no world in his heart. All he thought about was the family around him. When he passed away, he was very peaceful. Although there was a rebellion later, the Su family still had a successful child. Ten years ago, he was a young man who walked the streets and fought the dogs. Perhaps he would spend his entire life as a hedonistic son of a rich family. His vision would never go beyond Jiangning City. But the truth is, General Lu, you see, my brother-in-law has become a real man of indomitable spirit. Even in the whole world, compared to anyone else, there is nothing he can't stand up to. "
Ning Yi looked at Lu Qiaoshan. Lu Qiaoshan was silent for a moment. "That's right. When I received Mister Ning's message and decided to save him, he was already beaten beyond recognition. But he did not say anything. "
Ning Yi looked up at the sky and nodded. "General Lu, for the past ten years, the Chinese army has been through a very difficult situation. In the northwest, at Little Canghe, they were besieged by millions of soldiers. They fought against the Jurchen elites, but they were never defeated. Many people died, and many people lived to become true men of indomitable spirit. In the future, they will still fight against the Jurchen. There will be countless battles to fight. Countless people will die. But they must die a worthy death … General Lu, the Jurchen has already gone south. I beg you, this time, give them a way out. Give your people a way out. Let them die in a place that is more worthy of death … "
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