Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 14 Courage
"Mr. Liu has returned home in glory. Has he realized his ambition? Has he become a prominent figure?"

Liu Daji sat at the desk, bent over, with a kind look, just like a black bear.

He looked at Taozi with a mocking expression.

Taozi didn't reply, but gnawed the thigh bone in his hand expressionlessly. He had very good teeth, which were like steel blades, which cut through the meat sharply, chopped it up in his mouth, and swallowed it.

Lu Qubing frowned.

Returning home in splendor?

Liu Da swallowed the broth in one gulp, touched the corner of his mouth, and cursed: "I've never heard of anyone becoming a petty official to get ahead!"

"You fool, are you mistaking the clerk for an official?"

"What is an official? It means being a slave to an official! Do you think you can receive a salary from the government? Do you think you can be listed in the government?"

"Once you become an official, you will be an official for the rest of your life. Unless you lose your arms and legs, you will be an official forever! If you run away, you will be a refugee!"

"If you're in a hurry to be a slave, why bother? I can just sell you to those knights and put on a green turban to help them with their weapons. I can make a little extra money!"

Listening to Liu Da's abuse, Lu Qubing cleared his throat. As the lowest-ranking official in Da Qi, he felt that it was time for him to speak up and change the other party's wrong idea.

"In fact, it is not true. Nowadays, the government promotes capable officials. Many important officials were born as minor officials. If they perform well, they will be recommended."

“Eat your meal!!”

Liu Da looked at him suddenly, without any politeness.

"good!"

Lu Qubing responded, lowered his head and started eating.

Before Liu Da continued to vent his anger, Taozi finished her meal and went to find Liu Zhang.

In the front yard, Lu Qubing and Liu Da sat face to face.

At this moment, Lu Qubing felt uneasy and as if he was sitting on pins and needles.

He secretly raised his head and saw Liu Da staring at him.

He gave an extremely ugly smile.

Peach! Come back soon!!

Liu Da stared straight at Lu Qubing in front of him, without any fear in his eyes. He pursed his lips and took the lead in starting the conversation.

"Have you ever killed anyone?"

Peach smash!!!!
At this moment, Taozi was in the inner room listening to her mother's instructions.

Liu Zhang prepared a pair of new shoes for Taozi. She squatted in front of Taozi and measured the size. "Fortunately, they are a little bigger, otherwise you wouldn't be able to wear them. You are growing up right now."

"Eat more. Don't go hungry. I've prepared some food for you. Take it with you and share some with your classmates."

"You have been quiet since you were young. If someone bullies you, tell your lord to lift his foot."

Liu Zhang stood up, wiped the sweat from her forehead, looked at Taozi's new shoes that fit her feet well, and chuckled.

"Don't worry about me, and don't be angry with your grandfather. He didn't speak for several days after you left. Your grandfather has figured out a way to let you avoid corvée labor. He said he would take you to shoot a fierce beast."

"Mom, don't ask him."

"Once I pass the test, I will take you away."

Liu Zhang was silent for a long time, then stood on tiptoe. Taozi lowered his head obediently, and the mother kissed her son on the forehead.

"Go ahead, don't waste time."

"it is good."

Taozi came out from the inner room, glanced at Lu Qubing, and walked out. Lu Qubing felt as if he was relieved, and hurriedly stood up, almost falling to the ground. He hurriedly bowed to Liu Day, then ran to catch up with Taozi.

Liu Da just sat at the desk, staring at their backs, his face changing from gloomy to bright, as if he wanted to say something but stopped himself.

There was only one day of vacation and the road was not short, so after we met, we had to go back.

Walking on the familiar road again, Lu Qubing couldn't suppress his curiosity.

"Brother Taozi, what is your origin? Who were your ancestors?"

"I don't know."

"I don't think you are from a commoner family. You may be from a wealthy family that has fallen on hard times. Your family members are quite polite and can even quote from the classics."

As Lu Qubing was speaking, Taozi in front of him suddenly stopped. Lu Qubing couldn't stop his feet and bumped into him.

He felt as if he had hit a city wall and fell to the ground, dizzy.

He was about to ask when the ground began to tremble slightly.

At this moment, Taozi suddenly raised her head.

Lu Qubing looked up to meet his gaze.

A strange thing flew in the air, like a bird, but bigger than any bird Lu Qubing had known. This strange bird did not flap its wings, but just flew away with the wind.

The next moment, a group of knights appeared in the distance.

These people were fully armed, and the horses under their crotch were covered in armor. The knights wore strange masks and held weapons in their hands. They charged towards this side from the end of the road.

At this moment, Lu Qubing felt that he was suffocating. His legs were numb. He wanted to get up and escape, but his whole body did not obey his command.

A pair of big hands reached out and pulled Lu Qubing up. Lu Qubing flew into the air and landed behind Taozi.

The knights charged forward, more than thirty in all.

The dust raised by the charging war horses instantly submerged the two men. Lu Qubing covered his eyes, and the two figures were revealed only after the knights had gone far away and the dust gradually dissipated.

Lu Qubing sat on the ground in a mess, Taozi stood by the road, staring at the knights going away. Lu Qubing quickly got up, coughing and wiping the dust off his face.

"It's Yuan Xing!"

He gnashed his teeth and cursed: "This bunch of damn villains!"

"Those villains instigated Your Majesty, saying that in ancient times there were people who could fly to the sky on kites. Your Majesty should find some criminals, tie them to kites, and throw them down from the Golden Wind Tower. If they can fly out of the city, you will pardon their crimes."

"I don't know where this came from. With such cruel punishment, even if we get out of the city, I'm afraid no one will survive."

Taozi didn't listen to his nagging, he looked at the knights behind him.

The knights turned around.

These people's attire was very familiar to Taozi. They were wearing the same masks and were slowly approaching the two of them.

Lu Qubing didn't dare to nag anymore.

One of them pointed at them and said, "Kill these two."

Lu Qubing was shocked. He quickly searched his body and said, "I am the county school official! I am an official!"

The knights seemed not to have heard his words. They approached and drew their swords leisurely.

"Under the Emperor's feet! How dare you be so presumptuous!!"

Lu Qubing's face flushed red. He pointed at the people in front of him and said, "You killed officials and rebelled. Aren't you afraid of being blamed by the emperor?"

"rebel?"

After hearing this, the leader finally reacted and became angry.

"You are the ones who rebelled! I had three good fighters, but I lost them on this road! You killed them!"

"Ridiculous! We just left the county school today and are unarmed. How could we kill your three best fighters? Are all your best fighters so incompetent?"

Hearing Lu Qubing's question, the leader sneered and said grimly:

"Since I can't find the real murderer who harmed my subordinates, I will kill people around here. I can always kill the murderers. Even if I can't kill them, maybe I can kill their families! Let them know what it feels like to lose their loved ones!!"

"In the past ten days, I have killed many people, but I didn't kill them. They were killed by those murderers!!"

"This thief has done a lot of harm to others!!"

Lu Qubing could no longer bear it. At this moment, his whole body was shaking with anger.

What he experienced during these days continued to impact his soul.

He pointed at the man and shouted, "You can't kill the real murderer, so you kill innocent people to vent your anger? You are a bastard!!"

"It is truly a shame for me to die at the hands of such an evil villain who can only harm the innocent and good!!"

"Fatherless and motherless beast!!!"

His hands were shaking and his voice became strange, but he continued to curse.

Now, the rest of the knights also began to draw their swords.

The leader stretched out his hand and stopped everyone.

He stared at Lu Qubing for a long time, then suddenly raised his head and laughed.

"You are an official from Ancheng. What's your name?"

"Lu Qubing! Kill him if you want!!"

"He is a talented censor."

The man muttered, reined in his horse, turned around, and left quickly. The knights put away their weapons and followed him and left together.

The knights went away, but Lu Qubing remained motionless, still roaring at the other side.

He glanced stiffly to the side.

"Brother Taozi~~"

“I can’t move.”

"Ugh~~~"

Taozi was walking on the road, supporting Lu Qubing with one hand. Lu Qubing was almost hanging on Taozi's arm. He was pale and vomited from time to time.

He was in a very bad condition and lacked the bravery he had just shown when he scolded dozens of knights in person.

I don't know how many times he vomited, but his condition finally got better and he could barely walk on his own.

"It's all the fault of those villains. They bewitched Your Majesty. They bewitched Your Majesty. Villains! Beasts!"

Lu Qubing cursed weakly, cursing almost all the way.

He himself doesn't know how many swear words there are, and he always uses the same few words when he curses.

Taozi frowned, and this time, he seemed annoyed by what he heard.

"Was it also the villain who instigated the rape of the sister-in-law and the humiliation of the mother?"

At this moment, Lu Qubing shuddered, his pupils dilated, and he did not move.

His lips trembled slightly, and he dared not say anything more.

ps: The Queen Mother once sat on a small couch in the North Palace. The Emperor was drunk at the time and lifted the bed with his hands, then fell off and was seriously injured. "Book of Northern Qi"

In the sixth year of Tianbao, Wenxuan gradually became insane, so he moved to Gaoyang's house and took the treasury, saying: "My brother raped my wife in the past, and I must take revenge now." He then raped the queen. "Northern History"

(End of this chapter)