Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 217 The withered old man and the man with uneven eyes

Zong Ze and his group arrived at the Jinqian Lane compound around noon.

All that could be seen in the courtyard were princesses, but Lin Dao was nowhere to be found.

"My husband is in seclusion." The eldest daughter of the matriarch, Zhao Yupan, was playing mahjong with her three younger sisters. "He'll probably be back tonight."

I glanced at the mahjong tables in the courtyard, and the two strange metal carts.

Zong Ze bowed in response and turned to leave.

With a courtyard full of imperial princesses, it was not appropriate for them, as officials, to linger.

‘Bang! ’

At the gate of the courtyard, a two-wheeled iron cart was accidentally knocked down by Yue Fei.

He hurriedly helped her up, but didn't know what to do with her.

Fortunately, Princess An De, Zhao Jinluo, seized the opportunity to break up the bad hand of mahjong and offered advice, which helped them regain their footing.

He left the academy.

Zong Ze instructed, "Get to work first, then come back at 7 PM."

Zong Ze, who was appointed as the Privy Councilor and acting prefect of Kaifeng, vigorously reorganized Bianliang City.

In other words, the students of the Imperial Academy led the Council of State to various places to distribute land; otherwise, they would all have been arrested by him.

Dare to depose the emperor?

That's utterly outrageous!

This is roughly equivalent to the royalists' counterattack and reckoning phase.

At the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), Zong Ze led his generals to visit the immortal master again.

"That's strange."

After dinner, the princesses crowded into two RVs to watch TV series.

Princess Zhao Yupan spoke up, "At this time in the past, my husband would have already returned from the pass."

"I don't know what's wrong with him today, he hasn't come back."

"Why don't you wait a little longer?"

Zong Ze said he could wait.

They waited from the hour of Xu (7-9 PM) to the hour of Hai (9-11 PM).

Zong Ze and the others paced anxiously outside the courtyard, while the princesses inside were engrossed in watching a drama, laughing and crying with joy, and clearing out all the snacks and drinks from the cabinet.

Looking at the sky, Zong Ze shook his head. "This immortal is quite busy."

"Let's go and come back tomorrow."

The following morning, Zong Ze and the others, who had come to the academy again, finally met the immortal.

Yawning, with red eyes and clearly looking listless, Lin Dao greeted, "You're here?"

"Zong Ze and Yue Fei are coming over; the rest of you go back."

He led the two into a motorhome, and Lin Dao opened the cabinet, only to find it completely empty.

He muttered to himself, "Isn't he afraid of getting fat?"

His figure suddenly vanished.

Zong Yue and his companion, who were curiously observing their surroundings, were immediately stunned.

"Pengju, am I seeing things?"

"Minister, it's true!"

"This is... a true immortal!"

If there were any doubts before, seeing is believing now, and the two were speechless with shock.

Not long after, Lin Dao reappeared, carrying a large bag full of snacks and drinks.

He stuffed the things into the cabinet and tossed two bottles of drinks to Zong Ze and Yue Fei.

"busy recently."

He was telling the truth; he wasn't making excuses.

Princess Roufu was confirmed to be pregnant, and Lin Dao was the busiest person around.

I rushed to Yonghe Time and Space and Chongzhen Time and Space to plant seeds, and I've been busy until now before I finally returned.

According to his speculation, this was probably the result of the time travel ability being corrected after the main force of the Jin army outside Bianliang was defeated, thus preventing the Jingkang Incident.

After finishing all that, Lin Daofang finally took a good look at the two of them.

Zong Ze, a thin, frail old man.

For many years, he had been working at the grassroots level in local prefectures and counties, and had even retired from officialdom.

He was once labeled a traitor because of the conflict between the old and new parties.

If it weren't for the Jurchen invasion of the south, he would probably only appear in the biography of some historical figure, mentioned briefly, and at most be considered a follower.

But the real Zong Ze used his frail shoulders, nearly seventy years old, to shoulder the burden of a country in ruins!
At the same time, it also provided shelter for the young Yue Fei, providing him with the core troops and resources to start his career.

This is a respectable old man.

"Lord Zong."

With a smile, Lin Dao handed over a stool, saying, "Please sit down."

He always resorted to fists and kicks to deal with the timid official.

Offering a chair is a sign of utmost respect.

Compared to the gaunt Zong Ze, Yue Fei appeared much taller.

The Song Dynasty had strict requirements for conscription, requiring a height of at least five feet five inches.

Unlike the handsome young men in movies and TV dramas, Yue Fei in front of me had a standard square face and was upright and dignified.

Due to a past eye condition, one of his eyes is larger than the other.

He had thick eyebrows, thick arms, and his hands were covered with calluses from years of martial arts training.

His body was extremely robust, even slightly overweight.

Lin Dao had memorized his works and knew about his life and deeds when he was in school.

A spiritual totem!

"General Yue~"

Another stool was handed over. "Please sit down."

Zong Ze, standing to the side, glanced at him sideways.

When he gave me the stool, he handed it to me with one hand.

When the stool was given to the young Yue Pengju, it was handed over with both hands.

This kind of treatment and the obvious difference in attitude~
Why?

"I won't waste any more words."

Lin Dao took out the remote control and turned on the LCD screen. "You two can see for yourselves."

If you betray me, I will abandon you and never see you again.

Watching the handsome men and beautiful women on the screen reciting their lines with affection, Lin Dao calmly exited and started over.

These princesses are obsessed with watching dramas!
I selected a TV series about Yue Fei and started watching it continuously.

Lin Dao gestured, "Please look."

They watched it from morning till night.

The two had been given meals several times along the forest road, but they hardly touched them.

Having returned from the modern world, Lin Dao looked up at the starry sky and stepped back into the RV.

As soon as I got on the bus, I saw a gaunt old man sitting there wiping away tears. My gaze fell on the screen, which showed the scene at Fengbo Pavilion.

The screen was filled with bullet comments of various colors, all tearfully pleading for Yue Fei to come back to life.
Lin Dao looked at Yue Fei and saw him sitting there motionless, his expression unchanged.

That mental fortitude is truly remarkable.

Finally finished reading it.

The old man Zong Ze immediately started cursing, "Hey, Prince Kang! Judging from his face, he's no good!"

"Pengju, such a loyal and devoted minister, has been framed without any evidence!"

No wonder he's a corrupt official in the imperial court.

It's obvious at a glance that Qin Hui is a knife!

Lin Dao stared at Yue Fei.

Yue Fei raised his hand and touched his face, saying, "My face isn't that white."

How could someone who's constantly battling in the wind and rain possibly have a pale face on the battlefield?

"There is an element of interpretation."

Lin Dao pointed out the location of the toilet to Zong Ze, "but the theme is indeed true."

Yue Fei was silent.

His current status is so high that calling him a mid-level general in the Song army would be an understatement.

He was just a junior officer with a reputation for martial prowess.

But within the Kunlun Mirror that the Prime Minister spoke of, he himself had become the backbone and pillar of the Great Sage.

He was determined to launch a northern expedition and restore the lost territories; this was indeed his ambition.

But this ending...
He didn't know what to say.

Zong Ze finished fastening his belt and came out, bowing to Lin Dao without any hesitation.

"This bow is because Immortal Master Xie saved Da Song and saved Bianliang City."

The withered old man gritted his teeth and said, "Without the immortal, the humiliation of Jingkang would have nailed us all to the pillar of shame in the annals of history!"

Lin Dao readily agreed.

He immediately stepped forward and helped him up, saying, "You are also someone I admire."

"Even on his deathbed, he still shouted three times to cross the river—it's all recorded in history books."

Zong Ze stood up, a joyful smile spreading across his wrinkled face.

"I lived a dissolute and unrestrained life in the first half of my life, and I thought that would be how my life would be."

"I never imagined that I would have the opportunity to be remembered in history when I was so old."

"Hahahaha~~~"

Lin Dao added after glancing at the subtitles on the LCD screen.

"After Yue Fei's death, the Yue Family Army collapsed, and many people defected to the Jurchens in the north."

"For over a thousand years since then, no general in the army of any dynasty has been as loyal as Yue Fei."

"Yue Fei's death took away the military spirit and integrity of the army."

Zong Ze roared in fury, "You scoundrel! You scoundrel!!"

"A scourge to the country and its people!"

"That whole family, not a single one of them is any good!"

Lin Dao looked slightly surprised. "You really believe it?"

"letter!"

The old man said seriously, "Just because you've slaughtered so many golden dogs, I'll believe whatever you say!"

This old man was a staunch fighter against the Jin dynasty.

He supported anything that was against the Jin dynasty.

Even on their deathbed, they should shout "Cross the river!"
Lin Dao used his superhuman abilities to defeat the main force of the Jin army and kill so many Jin dogs.

In the eyes of this withered old man, he was even more celestial than a real immortal.

"Immortal chief."

The young Yue Fei stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "I want to go fight the Jin people."

Lin Dao looked at him with a serious expression. "You still want to serve the Zhao Song emperor?"

Yue Fei, expressionless, lowered his head and pondered for a moment.

"I only care about the people of Hebei."

"Not only." Lin Dao shook his head. "There are also the people of Hedong, the people of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, and the people of the whole country."

Do you know why Wanyan Gou was so determined to kill you?

"I don't know."

It wasn't shown in the TV series; it was only said that it disrupted the peace negotiations and that welcoming back the two emperors threatened Zhao Gou's legitimacy.

But no matter how I think about it, it all seems a bit unreliable.

"The real reason is that you distributed land to the Hebei refugees and your soldiers!"

"Land is the most important tool of exploitation for the ruling class."

"If you give all the land to the common people, how can the corrupt ruling class exploit them?"

"You have shaken the very foundation of their rule!"

“Zhao Ji’s true supporters were the large landowners in various regions.”

"You have shaken their foundation; how can they tolerate you!"

Lin Dao took a breath and said, "When you were young, you worked as a thug for the Han family in Plum Blossom."

"Have you ever thought that if every family in Xiangzhou had enough land to support themselves, who would still work as a laborer for landlords like the Han family of Meihua?"

"Without exploitation, how can they maintain their luxurious lifestyle and superior status?"

Pointing at Yue Fei, Lin Dao spoke again.
"You have touched the fundamental interests of the ruling class."

"This is the root cause of why I am determined to kill you."

"The goldsmith is there to ward off external troubles."

"The rotten flesh inside also needs to be cut out."

“Whenever you arrive at a county, military prefecture or state, you should thoroughly eliminate the local powerful landlords and redistribute the land to the local people.”

"Land sales must be completely banned."

Lin Dao turned to look at Zong Ze and said, "In order to prevent the powerful and wealthy from turning against us."

"We must eradicate their roots in Bianliang City!"

Zong Ze frowned. "The Emperor and all the princes are present."

"Only King Kang, who is outside, has gradually gained momentum."

Lin Dao nodded. "I'll take care of things on his end."

Dongping Prefecture, a thousand miles away.

Prince Kang, Zhao Gou, whom Lin Dao and the others were concerned about, was desperately fleeing on horseback.

Behind him, hundreds and thousands of Jurchen cavalrymen were in a frenzied pursuit.

With a single blow, Wanyan Wuzhu killed Huang Qianshan, who was kneeling and begging for mercy. He then raised his arms and shouted.

"Chase after them and capture the Song Dynasty's Grand Marshal!"

(End of this chapter)