Lingnan Gang

The scorching summer season is the hottest, even if it is only the fourth watch, the damp heat in the air is enough to make people feel unbearable chest tightness, the sky has just turned white, and the eyes can only see the face of the opposite person. Wei Dacheng, a big bearded man in the shed, kicked open the crumbling wooden door and yelled loudly for the prisoners to get up.

In order to prevent the prisoner from escaping, Su Beiqin was handcuffed and stood together with the rest of the prisoners, waiting for Wei Dacheng to tie them together with a hemp rope like a grasshopper, and then under his yelling, He set off with other prisoners and went to the quarry a few miles away to carry out the labor reform work that Wei Dacheng said.

This long hemp rope tied a group of twenty or so people tightly and close together, almost to the point of touching each other's shoulders. Those who walked a little slower would drag others down. Because of the pull of the rope, everyone who was tired followed. His footsteps became crooked, but Wei Dacheng didn't care about it, he whistled to himself, pulled the rope forward like an animal, and occasionally whipped a whip on people who walked slowly.

Su Beiqin is not the one with the slowest pace, but the one who is often beaten. No matter how he behaves, Wei Dacheng will always wipe a certain part of his body with a flick of the whip after beating others, leaving a dark red streak. Bloodstains, if he could not help frowning in the first two days, now he has become numb here.

He should have thought of this kind of bullying of new prisoners.

When they arrived at the quarry, the officials guarding the gate opened the wooden fence to let them in. Wei Dacheng untied the ropes that bound the prisoners and ordered them to get tools, while he leaned on the fence and chatted with the officials.

The official locked the door, looked at Su Beiqin's back and said, "The newcomer is really tough."

Wei Dacheng took out a few wild fruits from his bosom, threw them into his mouth and chewed them, gloating, "No matter how hard the bone is, it will be torn down by those people within two days."

Su Beiqin's work place is at the top of the mountain. He climbed the mountain road for half an hour with tools to get there. His clothes were already soaked in sweat. He wiped the sweat from his forehead. The sun was rising at this time, and the morning glow was full of The sky, the sky and the earth are dyed with a layer of magnificent gold, which is so dazzling that people can't open their eyes.

This is the most peaceful moment for Su Beiqin every day. He half-closed his eyes to appreciate the magnificent scene in front of him, as if merging with heaven and earth, but this rare peace was soon broken.

A broken basket was thrown at the foot of Su Beiqin, and a cloud of dust was raised. Several ragged men squatted on the high raised mound, pointed in another direction and said: "The newcomer, the work over there is also It's up to you."

Su Beiqin recognized these people. They often shouted and shouted at other prisoners in the quarry. Although they also wore prisoner clothes, they looked like the boss. They observed Su Beiqin secretly for a few days. It was just a verbal temptation. Later, he probably felt that Su Beiqin was not threatening, so he also started to blatantly provoke him.

Su Beiqin ignored this. He took his own tools and walked to the shade of a tree a little far away, and started the boring and monotonous work. He smashed the whole stone into pieces, put the sand and gravel in the basket, and carried it on his back. When the basket is halfway up the mountain, use ropes to lower the basket to the foot of the mountain, wait for someone to remove the sand and stones, and then repeat the previous work.

The big man in the lead was obviously irritated by Su Beiqin's indifference, stepped forward and kicked over the sand and stones in his basket, and said viciously: "Did you hear me talking to you?"

The big man's words seemed to be blown by the wind, Su Beiqin straightened the basket calmly, and continued with the work just now, then he was punched hard on the left cheek, the big man exerted all his strength, half of his cheek was swollen When I woke up, my ears were filled with buzzing sounds.

When he turned his face away, he saw the official overseeing the work sitting not far away, fanning the cattail fan leisurely, as if he was watching a good show, it seemed that the official didn't want to care about this matter, Su Beiqin glanced at the man who started the work The big man, much stronger than him, stood in front of him like a hill to block his glare.

"Did you get beaten?" The big man laughed.

However, the laughter quickly stopped and choked in his throat, because Su Beiqin also punched him hard in the face. They never expected that the seemingly thin scholar in front of them would fight back with such force. Heavy, abruptly turned the head of the person who was much taller than him.

The big man covered half of his swollen face, stared wide-eyed and said, "Go up, go up to me."

The one-on-one fight quickly developed into a gang fight. Several accomplices of the big man came from not far away to join the beating ranks. Su Beiqin was restrained by several people. Those people probably really wanted to beat him to death. Both fists and feet greeted his vitals, but Su Beiqin gritted his teeth and held the protruding stones on the ground with both hands. There was a slight noise until the overseer came slowly with a teapot and dispersed the beating people.

The big man spat and said, "You wait for me."

"Don't pretend to be dead, get up and work." The official kicked Subei Qindao, and then slowly went to find the shade of a tree to enjoy the shade.

Blood and sweat dripped into the skirt of his clothes. Su Beiqin sat up slowly. His vision was blurred by the swelling of his face. It took him a while to get used to it before he could barely see the scene in front of him. The gentle mountain breeze brushed his cheeks, relieving the pain a little. , or that he has long been numb to pain.

Su Beiqin stood up again, picked up the broken hoe, which was only half a wooden stick, and cut open the gravel. The sun had already climbed to the top of his head, and the scorching sun scorched the earth. The rising heat is enough to make you dizzy.Sweat slid down his forehead and was quickly dried by the wind.

Sweat evaporated too much, and there was no replenishment of water. Su Beiqin's mouth was dry and a layer of dry skin formed on his lips. Generally, officials would come to deliver water once an hour, and prisoners could get a short rest. There is also water, but other people's water is clear, but his is green. I don't know where the officials got it, and there is a layer of green duckweed floating on it.

Su Beiqin picked up the bowl with the gap, blew away the layer of duckweed on it, and drank the water in one gulp. He thought he had gotten used to it after drinking it for a few days, but he still couldn't bear the strange smell and almost spat it out. In the end it was swallowed anyway.He leaned against the tree trunk behind him, looking at the blue sky through the gaps in the leaves.

Being alive is the most important thing, he thought, only by being alive can he have a chance to return to the original place and wipe out the group of court moths.

In the middle of the day, the sun became more and more fierce, and the dull air made people feel suffocated. Su Beiqin took the meal and found a secluded corner to rest alone. He said it was rice, but it was actually just a bowl of vegetable leaf soup, but the taste was better than before. That bowl of green water is much stronger.

A steamed bun was placed in Su Beiqin's empty bowl. Su Beiqin turned his head and saw an old man with a kind face. The old man pointed to the steamed bun in his bowl and motioned him to eat it quickly.

A normal prisoner’s meal is a bowl of gruel with two steamed buns, but Su Beiqin didn’t have any. At first he didn’t know why he was treated like this, but then he vaguely heard from the words of the prisoners that it was Wu Weiyang’s meaning, so I was relieved, knowing that it was useless even to argue with reason, so I calmly accepted this kind of differential treatment.

"Old man, you should eat this by yourself." Su Beiqin was about to decline the old man's kindness, but the old man waved his hand and pointed to his side, where there were several white flour steamed buns on a clean handkerchief.

"I brought them from my own home. There are plenty of them," the old man said with a smile. "Young people, eat quickly. Only when you are full can you work hard."

Only then did Su Beiqin see that the old man was wearing the clothes of ordinary people. He was really hungry, so he accepted the steamed buns, thanked the old man, and asked, "Old man, do you work here too?"

The old man nodded and said: "I used to work here, but the boss thought that I was old and had the heart to change, so he let me go back to the market and divided my two acres of land to be an independent business. I am a person who can't sit still. , so I will come here to do some odd jobs during the slack season and save some coffin books.”

Su Beiqin frowned slightly, he had never heard of exiles receiving such treatment, "Wu Weiyang is the boss you're talking about?"

"That's right, that's him," the old man mentioned him, and said with twinkling eyes: "You are young, but you know the big picture. We used to be a mess here, but since the boss came, all the places where exiles from Qinzhou gather are everywhere. Thanks to the well-organized management, many people who have been wronged can be rehabilitated, and although they cannot return to their hometowns, they can be treated like ordinary people, and they are content."

Su Beiqin felt that he couldn't understand what the old man was saying more and more. Before he had time to chew the steamed buns, he choked in his throat. The old man took out his own kettle and poured a bowl of clean water for him, and said, "I think those officials seem to be I'm targeting you, otherwise, whoever dares to make a move on this ground will be dragged to the top of the mountain and tied to a tree to expose themselves to the sun, this rule is also set by the boss, and no one dares to violate it."

Su Beiqin wanted to laugh, but when he smiled, his wound hurt so badly, "I'm afraid it was Wu Weiyang's instruction."

Now it's the old man's turn to be puzzled, "I've met the boss, he has always been very clear about rewards and punishments, how could he ask someone to bully you for nothing?"

Yuemo was silent for too long, and it was rare to meet a person who seemed normal enough to talk to, so Su Beiqin told the old man about his previous affair with Wu Weiyang.

The old man pondered for a while, and said: "My lord, you probably have some misunderstandings about the boss. In fact, our boss is a rare kind person. If you want to, you can ask those who come to the quarry to do casual work. In fact, follow him. It's not a bad thing to be around, and it can help many people who have been wronged to be cleared of their crimes, clean up those who committed riots, and protect the safety of the people, isn't it better than digging stones here with your hands with a pen?"

Su Beiqin was startled, and just about to say something, the officials over there were already yelling to start work, the old man stuffed a few steamed buns into Su Beiqin's arms, and said, "Young Lord, there are not only vicious people here, There are also innocent people, and it’s not a bad thing for you to have more contact with them.”

Su Beiqin closed his eyes and nodded slowly.

"Boss...boss..." Si'er stood under the tree and shouted loudly.

Wu Weiyang, who was resting on a high branch, rubbed his eyes, and said angrily, "What's the matter?"

Si'er put his hands to his mouth and continued to shout: "I heard that Mr. Su was almost beaten to death."

"That has nothing to do with me." Wu Weiyang said, closing his eyes and going to sleep again.

"Did you do everything possible to bring him here just to watch him be beaten to death?" Si'er continued to shout from below unwillingly.

Wu Weiyang broke off a branch and threw it on Si'er's head accurately, saying: "That's what he did on his own, go away, don't disturb my rest."

He looked up at the tile-blue sky without a single cloud, curled his lips and said, "Scholars are troublesome."