Sui and Tang Dynasty Generals

Chapter 14: Village Night

The dusk faded away and night enveloped the earth.

The village, which was bustling with people during the day, is now dark and silent.

In the simple wooden house, Liu Zhiyuan was writing something under the candlelight, holding a pen and ink. From time to time, he looked up in thought and occasionally looked out the window at the night scene. He felt nostalgic, unwilling, and a little melancholy. Then he seemed to think of something, smiled, and when he lowered his head, his eyes revealed a hint of hidden expectation.

I don't know how much time passed before a faint, inaudible mumbling sound came from inside the house.

"In five days, I will be able to obtain the military book..."

The cold wind blew past the window, and the sound of a few grasses and trees swaying on the village road made the already faint sounds in the house completely covered by the night.

In the village.

The lights in the Zhao residence were bright, and even before approaching the gate, one could faintly hear laughter and talking.

Looking up at the night sky, one can clearly see that in the main hall of the Zhao family, the second son of the Zhao family, Zhao Zi, and the fourth son, Zhao Yong, are kneeling in the main hall with twenty or thirty burly men, drinking and having fun.

Zhao Zi and Zhao Yong knelt at the main seats on the left and right of the Zhao family. The rest of the men were on both sides of the main hall, kneeling behind wooden tables. And beside every burly man, there were women of different ages accompanying them.

In today's world of unrest and food shortage, they can still eat and drink to their heart's content, and have wine and women to accompany them. No wonder all the men in the hall have smiles on their faces.

Amidst the laughter and conversation, they kept raising their glasses and drinking with Zhao Zi. After drinking, every man would boast to Zhao Zi about his past. Under the sidelong glances of the women beside them and the gazes of other men, they would proudly narrate the deeds that they were once proud of.

Some people say they can lift 400 kilograms!

Some people say that they had traveled around the world alone when they were in their early twenties!

Some people also said that they had already learned to hold a bow when they were only seventeen years old, and now ten years have passed, and they rarely miss!
What's worse, after a strong man drank a glass of wine, he stood up and said that when he was fifteen years old, he was able to fight with a man ten years older than him and remain undefeated!
However, after hearing the man's words, there was a lot of boasting in the main hall. The strong man did have big arms and a thick waist, but when he was only fifteen years old, he could fight with someone ten years older than him and remain undefeated. How come he is thirty years old now and has no fame at all?

Seeing that everyone didn't believe him, the strong man blushed and wanted to argue, but after Zhao Zi's comfort, he finally calmed down. However, from the look in the strong man's eyes when he sat down, it can be seen that the strong man probably really fought with the older man, but...

The other person may not necessarily be ten years older than you, or perhaps, he is not very strong!
"drink!"

"Come!!"

With Zhao Zi around, everyone soon stopped taking the matter to heart and raised their glasses happily again. Zhao Yong was also smiling, constantly raising his glass and drinking with the men. Looking at everyone, his eyes were full of pride.

The brothers Zhao Han and Zhao Gu, who were in the main hall, looked at the people after they had drunk and listened to the conversations among the warriors, their faces full of admiration.

Under the night.

Inside the Fu family’s wooden house.

Looking at the three corpses on the ground, Zhang kept hugging the frightened Tai and comforting her softly. At the side, the old man with gray hair was sitting cross-legged in front of the stove, silent.

The three corpses had their eyes open, as if they died with their eyes open. They probably never dreamed that they would die in this room.

Aung crossed his hands in his sleeves to keep them warm and looked at the three corpses. When he thought of the evil intentions and bullying behavior of these three people today, Aung's old face rarely showed an expression of indignation as he looked at the three corpses.

"Pooh!"

After spitting, Aong seemed not to have calmed down enough. He looked at Tao, who was already sweating profusely as she moved things out of the room.

"Hou'er's mother, when you go in, remember to tell Erlang and Zhi'er to dig deeper so that these three beasts will be buried under the bed for the rest of their lives!"

Aong whispered the instructions and turned to look at the three bodies, especially the bearded burly man who was in the lead.

When I think of the arrogant look of this bearded man when Hou'er came back, he even made physical advances towards his eldest grandson's wife.

At this moment, looking at the tragic sight of the bearded man who died with his eyes open, Aung felt extremely happy.

You look down on my grandson and touch my eldest grandson's wife. You deserve to die!
Have a good death!
"Hey! Got it, Dad!"

When Mrs. Tao heard what Aweng said, she put down the quilt, looked at Aweng and nodded.

"Oh, and, Hou'er's mother, remember to go outside the house later and see how Hou'er is doing!"

Thinking about his grandson Fu Zihou's silence and dazed look, Grandpa couldn't help but feel a little worried. He gave him another reminder, and his tone of voice completely changed.

Especially when the word "Zihou" was mentioned, the worry in old Aweng's eyes was completely different from the look in his eyes when he looked at the three corpses. The change was so fast that it was not only jaw-dropping.

In fact, there was no need for Grandfather to say anything. At this moment, Tao was more worried about her son than anyone else. But at this moment, Tao couldn't help but look at her niece-in-law who was held by her sister-in-law. Her niece-in-law was scared just now.

"It's okay! Go ahead!"

Zhang and Tao looked at each other and said with a distressed look that Tao didn't need to worry about Tai because she was here.

Tao nodded, knowing that although her sister-in-law didn't say it, she was actually feeling bad.

Looking at the corpse on the ground, Tao did not rush out, but went into the bedroom.

The small room was originally where Fu Rui and Tao slept. At this moment, the simple wooden boards had been put aside. Under the light of candles, Fu Rui and his nephew Fu Zhi were digging a pit covered in mud. On the other side of the deep pit, there was already a large pile of soil.

"That's about it! We have to leave tomorrow, so we need to get some rest tonight!"

Tao did not follow the instructions of her grandfather and ask Fu Rui and Fu Zhi to dig the pit deeper. Instead, she saw that it was almost done, so she asked Fu Rui and his nephew to bring the body in and bury it early.

Tao knew that they obviously couldn't live in this house any longer and had to leave at dawn, so both Fu Rui and Fu Zhi had to go to bed early tonight.

"it is good!"

When Fu Rui heard his wife's words, he responded breathlessly. Looking at Fu Zhi who was silently digging a hole beside him, he knew what Fu Zhi was thinking, so he looked at his wife and gave her a look.

Tao understood, so without saying anything, she took the last package of clothes in her hand, turned around and left the room.

After watching his wife leave, Fu Rui called his nephew Fu Zhi to go outside to move the body.

After a while.

Fu Rui and his nephew Fu Zhi carried the three bodies into the room, threw them into the pit, covered them with soil, and then placed the wooden sleeping boards on top, restoring them to their original state. Then they stopped, made sure that there was nothing else in the room, left the room and closed the door.

"It's already been buried in the pit, filled with soil, and then pressed on top with a couch!"

Fu Rui walked out of the room, looked at his wife, then looked at his father, breathing slightly.

"That's good!"

Aweng nodded, then looked towards the room. Since he decided to go to Xin County, Erlang Furui had been trying to find out the news from Hebei Province for the past month.

The journey was long, and there were thieves everywhere. Grandfather knew that at his age, he might lose his life on the way.

"Let's leave here early tomorrow morning and head to Qian County. Let's burn this house down!"

Aong thought about it and decided to burn down the house before leaving. This would be a reason for the Fuji family to leave the village, and it would also cut off his last hope.

However, just as he finished speaking, Tao, who came over with a small wooden bucket of water, began to dissuade him softly.

"Dad, we can't burn it. There are people everywhere during the day. The Zhao family has also sent people to patrol the village at night. This fire will probably be put out before it even starts. By then, everyone in the village will come here. What if we are discovered?"

Tao's words made Fu Rui nod.

Upon seeing this, Grandfather gave up and looked at the wooden house with a worried face. He recalled the time when he moved here that year. The smell of dust was unbearable and he looked disgusted. After all these years, he was reluctant to leave.

"Zhi'er!"

Just as Grandpa was looking at the house with some reluctance, Zhang, who was standing nearby, saw Tao wiping the blood on the ground with a cloth, so she stood up.

"Go outside! When you hear mother calling you, let Old Liu and Hou'er in!"

Zhang frowned and said to Fu Zhi, then looked at her daughter-in-law Tai beside her.

"You also follow Zhier and guard outside the house!"

As Zhang said this, she asked her daughter-in-law Tai to follow Fu Zhi out as well. Firstly, the couple would have company outside, and secondly, Tai was frightened, so it would be better for Fu Zhi to accompany her at this time.

"Got it, mother!"

Fu Zhi nodded, then walked up to his wife, took her hand, and turned to walk towards the door.

Tao knelt on the ground and watched Fu Zhi take Tai away. Her sister-in-law Zhang came over, picked up a cloth to help wipe the blood, but after thinking for a moment, she did not stop them.

The sooner it is done, the sooner Hou'er can go back to the room. As a mother, she is really worried.

Outside the cabin.

That night, the fire in the small garden burned particularly vigorously.

Perhaps Mr. Liu was worried that Fu Zihou might catch a cold, so he kept adding firewood to the fire.

Looking at Fu Zihou who was silent and looking at the fire, Liu Laocong took Fu Zihou out of the house and had not said a word until now.

Having experienced this feeling before, Mr. Liu knew better than anyone else that what Fu Zihou needed most at the moment was quietness.

However, when he noticed that Fu Zihou's eyes were slightly bloodshot, Mr. Liu was still a little worried.

"Young Master!"

When Fu Zihou heard what Old Liu said, he finally turned his gaze away from the fire and looked at Old Liu.

Then he saw Old Liu sitting by the fire and turning his head to look at the house behind him.

"...If it weren't for the young master, the Fu family wouldn't be so quiet right now!"

After Old Liu finished speaking, he looked at Fu Zihou and said nothing more. After all, Old Liu didn't know whether there would be any wandering refugees passing by outside the dark courtyard.

"Yes! Don't worry, Mr. Liu, Zihou is fine!"

Fu Zihou nodded. He knew what Mr. Liu meant. While he was grateful to Mr. Liu, he still chose to remain silent. He didn't want to say much. He needed more time to digest the guilt in his heart after killing someone.

Before this, I only wanted to protect my family from harm, so my hands and feet were shaking and my mind was blank.

Now, with everything over, the family is safe and there is no danger.

Looking at the fire, as soon as Fu Zihou closed his eyes, the tragic death of the strong man came vividly into his mind. Even the feeling of the strong man behind him struggling desperately under him seemed to still remain in his hands.

Fu Zihou had no experience in killing, nor did he have a hobby of killing. From beginning to end, he had never even had the slightest thought of killing. He was just an ordinary, normal person.

The three lives were like a mountain pressing down on his heart, making Fu Zihou's breathing heavy and his head dizzy.

for a long time.

They heard the sound of a door opening behind them, and Fu Zihou and Old Liu looked over, and found that it was his cousin Fu Zhi and his cousin-in-law Tai who came out.

"Mr. Liu! Zihou!"

Fu Zhi came forward with his wife and greeted them.

Seeing Mr. Liu nod, Fu Zhi then looked at Fu Zihou who had also stood up.

As a family, looking at his cousin, Fu Zhi didn't know how to express his gratitude. Some words, if spoken out loud, would sound awkward. He could only look at his cousin and keep them silently in his heart.

Fu Zhi was like this, and so was the frightened Tai.

Tai's face was pale. She looked at her brother-in-law who was now silent. She felt guilty and didn't know what to say.

"Cousin, cousin's wife..."

Fu Zihou's mind was filled with the scene of three corpses lying on the ground covered in blood. In addition, it was a little dark at night, so he did not notice the looks in his cousin and his wife's eyes. He just nodded absentmindedly, slightly made some room for his cousin and his wife, and sat down together to warm himself by the fire.

"Mother, aunt, grandfather, are they okay?"

Fu Zihou thought about it and asked.

"fine!"

Fu Zhi asked his wife to sit down and warm herself by the fire first. When he heard Fu Zihou's question, he shook his head.

At this moment, let alone the honest Fu Zhi, even the silent Old Liu and Tai, who was sitting by the fire with a pale face due to fear, could not help but look at Fu Zihou.

Everyone is worried about him.

But now he actually has the thought of worrying about others.

(End of this chapter)