My whole family time-traveled! I became a god during my exile in a famine.

Chapter 70 How can the light of fireflies rival the brilliance of the sun and moon?

The men who were being actively exiled looked at each other, and for a moment they were all speechless.

This...this is really kind of funny.

How could a perfectly good imperial court be brought to a standstill by a sudden downpour?
Impossible, impossible, impossible, unless something even more outrageous has happened that outsiders are unaware of.

"Your emperor now believes what the Director of the Imperial Observatory said, and he even wants to invite him back. But is it too late? You've gone too far; even if he sends someone immediately, they'll hardly be able to catch up."

As Chief Luan spoke, his thick beard twitched repeatedly, and his eyes were full of sarcasm.

He cupped his hands in greeting towards the upstairs, "Is Chief Zhao Jianghe of Longhu Village here? Luan Dalong has come here specifically to pay his respects to Chief Zhao."

No one responded. Liang Guang stared at the crowd below with a solemn expression. After hesitating for a long time, he finally spoke up to express his gratitude, "We are extremely grateful that Chief Luan brought people here late at night to inform us of the situation in Shengjing."

"Oh, these are all minor matters." Luan Dalong waved his hand, his eyes gleaming. "My main purpose in coming here is to rescue the brothers of Dragon Tiger Stronghold. If you, Chief Zhao, are willing, I can even give up my position as leader."

"Where's Zhao, the head of the family? Come out and say something!" Several thugs beside Luan Dalong laughed and egged him on.

"You need to understand one thing. The world is already in chaos. At this time, do you, Chief Zhao and all the brothers of Dragon Tiger Stronghold, really want to be obediently escorted to the Northern Ice Wasteland by these guards?"

"A great man establishes himself in the world and makes a name for himself; a hero's origins are irrelevant. If one lives a life of mediocrity, what difference is there between him and rotten wood or decaying grass?"

"Hey, who taught you to say that?" A crisp voice suddenly interrupted Luan Dalong's boastful talk.

On the bamboo raft, Luan Dalong's brothers all looked up at the attic window.

On the second floor, the Xin Wen'an couple, who had been awakened by the noise and were also secretly eavesdropping at the window, were almost speechless at the little girl's antics.

If you're going to eavesdrop, fine, but someone's giving a passionate speech, why did you interrupt?
Luan Dalong's eyelids twitched slightly. "Little girl, what do you mean?"

"Brother, you look so uncultured. How come you know about heroes not being judged by their origins, and that being mediocre is no different from being rotten wood or decaying grass? Who taught you to speak such flowery language? Hey, brother, you've come here to be recruited by the government, haven't you?"

Everyone:...

We're not bandits, why would we need to be recruited by the government?
"Who's making all that noise?" Xin Wenyuan was woken up by the noise. He rubbed his eyes and went to the window, peeked out, and immediately—

"Holy crap, who are these people? Where did all these people come from? What are they doing here?"

"Father and his men have their eyes on us. They came in the middle of the night to try and recruit us. They want us to join their bandit stronghold and work together to overthrow the old dynasty!"

Xin Wenyuan looked bewildered. "How can that be? If we get caught, we'll be beheaded!"

"Of course! Not only will they kill our heads, but they'll drag out our ancestors for eighteen generations and whip them. We're traitors!"

"Oh right, right, right, a rebel party, a rebel party won't do. You can't be a rebel party no matter what you do."

The group was crammed into a side room on the second floor, not close together.

But in the dead of night, the father and daughter kept calling each other "traitors," and it was all very clear to the ear...

Luan Dalong's face darkened, and he roared, "Shut up!"

What does "brat" mean? Is he uneducated? Is he a rebel?

Yes, he is uneducated, but he refuses to admit that he is a member of the anti-Party organization!

What rebellious party? The court is gone, the emperor has fled with his favorite concubine and a bucket, where is this rebellious party?

“What do you know, you little brat? The imperial court has collapsed. What can the brothers do if they want to live a good life? They can only…”

"Rob it!" Luan Dalong's face twitched with anger.

That brat, what's she doing, interrupting him every time she speaks.

"It's not about robbing, it's about establishing our own power! The brothers of Dragon Tiger Stronghold will surely understand. This is the best opportunity to secure a position for our wives and children and to become kings and overlords. As long as we all work together, we're sure to have a bright future."

"You must know that opportunities are rare and once they come again. The current court is like the setting sun... a pheasant on the western hills, like a faint glow... a glowing fire. How can it compare to us, the rising sun? Isn't that right?"

He spoke with great passion and enthusiasm.

Xin Nian couldn't bear to see him make mistakes while memorizing his lines. "Look at this! The person behind you must have told you to memorize your lines properly, right? What have you memorized? You kept stumbling over your lines on the spot, and you couldn't even express yourself properly!"

"Are you trying to say something like, 'How dare a firefly compete with the sun and moon? How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan?'" Xin Nian gave him a disdainful look. "What nonsense about 'wild pheasants of the west mountain and fires of the east mountain'? Look at you, you're so forgetful, your words are all jumbled up and nonsensical."

As soon as he finished speaking, someone in the second-floor room let out a muffled laugh.

Luan Dalong, who was talking at length, also turned bright red.

The group of underlings behind him were whispering and gossiping amongst themselves.

"It seems she's right."

"I remember it was these two sentences..."

"Shut up!" Luan Dalong snapped, enraged.
"Dad, who does he look like?"

"Like a pyramid scheme. They paint a huge picture of the future for you, just to see if you can choke on it."

"Shut up, all of you." Luan Dalong waved his hand, and his henchman immediately handed him a drawn broadsword.

Luan Dalong grabbed it in his hand and slashed it a few times in the air, his face full of anger. "Don't refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Today, on behalf of the entire Heng County, I sincerely invite you all to join our ranks!"

“I disagree.” Xin Nian shook her head like a rattle drum. “On behalf of all the prisoners on this trip, I refuse to join the rebel party and become one of its members.”

Luan Dalong swore that if this girl hadn't been shouting from so far away, he might have been the first to jump up and chop her little head off, letting it roll into the water!
"What good is it if you disagree?" Luan Dalong roared. "Whom can you represent?"

“I represent everyone!” Xin Nian said emphatically, “On behalf of all the exiled prisoners and soldiers, a total of 183 people, I refuse your offer of amnesty.”

Luan Dalong jumped up and down on the bamboo raft, looking up at Liang Guang, "Lord Liang, are you just going to let a little girl spout nonsense here?"

“I… what Sixth Sister said is indeed correct. She represents all of us.”

Liang Guang was secretly alarmed; the little girl knew exactly how many people were in the group.

He now even suspects that this girl, though seemingly calm, actually remembers everyone's physical characteristics exceptionally well.
"Lord Liang, you should think this through! If these things are destroyed, it will be difficult for you to leave the county government office surrounded by water." Luan Dalong said threateningly, pointing his knife at a row of reed rafts in front of him.

After everyone went upstairs, the raft was tied together with a rope to prevent it from drifting aimlessly.

Luan Dalong's intentions are now very clear: to threaten and coerce, threatening sabotage if they don't join.

Xin Nian made two "eh" sounds and quickly exclaimed, "Don't try anything funny. Okay, okay, we'll join, alright?"

If you can't beat them, join them. That's normal.

Everyone:...

Don't go too far!

(End of this chapter)