Three Philosophical Questions for Travelers

There is still morning reading this morning, so she can't be late.

Chapter 10: Bad news blocking the way

Chapter 10: Bad news blocking the way

Haven is on his way back to Bear Mountain.

This trip was not smooth, many things were beyond his expectation, so his mood was very complicated.He shared a carriage with Ramon, and Smiley Cat acted as a coachman.Haiwen rested his arms on the car window, watching the surrounding scenery move slowly.Ramon said to him: "My lord, don't be too anxious. It is not a bad thing to withdraw from Bear Mountain."

"I wasn't in a hurry at all." Haven said to him.

In fact, Haiwen had already considered the matter of moving the base camp.Xiongshan is too close to Lujiaoguan. If the little trident loses in the future, then Xiongshan will be the first to be unlucky.Now retreating to Pinewood Castle, there is still a little buffer space.So after this trip, he didn't have any substantial losses.In addition, he has two gains.

First, he finally met the little trident and got a general idea of ​​the king.Haiwen has mixed feelings about the little trident. Although this man is warlike and tyrannical, he is also somewhat intelligent and quite heroic.When he was the Earl of Xiongshan, Haiwen was secretly supported by the little trident, and when he signed the contract, he also swore allegiance to the king, which made his position vacillating—he still couldn’t oppose the little trident. Make up your mind on this matter.

At this moment, he thought to himself: War is certainly bad, but it is not necessarily good to rebel from behind at this time.

In other words, Haven Ambleside, he is still confused.

The second harvest, and the most important one: he was given the legal power to reform.

In this way, he can justifiably carry out reforms in his own territory. Compared with the revolutions in his previous life, such reforms will be much more peaceful and bloodshed will be less.Pinewood was next to Mustang, and in Mustang the agrarian revolution was complete.At that time, he will be able to connect these two bases to form a piece of soil that will allow him to gain a foothold in troubled times.

Build high walls, accumulate food widely...but he still has no intention of becoming king.What Haven wanted from beginning to end was fairness and justice, not that cold throne.

On the sixth day, they came to a place called the Weeping Bridge.It is said that there was a woman whose husband was forcibly conscripted into the army. The woman cried here for seven days without eating or drinking, and finally cried herself to death.People took pity on her, so they set up a stone monument for her, planted some flowers, and called the bridge Weeping Bridge.

The Weeping Bridge is long and narrow, and can only accommodate two carriages running side by side.Smiley Cat always said that this place is unlucky and it is best not to go there. However, this bridge is the only way for Haiwen to return to Bear Mountain. If they don't use the crying bridge, they will have to walk an extra day to return to Bear Mountain.

At this moment, the convoy was about to step onto the Weeping Bridge, when Haiwen heard the smiling cat say, "My lord, someone is blocking the bridge."

Haiwen raised the curtain of the carriage and looked out, there were indeed several people blocking the bridge on the other side.He narrowed his eyes and looked around, and found that these people were dressed in rags, and many of them were wounded, as if they were a group of deserters.Deserters are troublesome, he thought, these guys are no different from bandits.He said to Smiley Cat: "Master Cat, there is probably going to be a fight." Smiley Cat nodded to him and said, "Small."

But at this time Ramon said: "My lord, those guys look familiar."

Haiwen was taken aback when he heard this, and after a closer look, these "deserters" were indeed somewhat familiar.And at this moment, a deserter led by them came towards them.The man shouted loudly: "Is it the Earl of Bear Mountain?"

It was probably a man's voice, but it sounded a bit demonic, and Haiwen immediately recalled the voice: It was the eunuch Darrow!When Haiwen was recruiting people in Xiongshan, he recruited the "Three Heroes of Xiongshan". One was Myrick who was a scholar, the other was Darius the warrior, and the other was this middle-aged eunuch—Daro .Darrow is very talented in business. During this period of time, Haven has been asking him to manage the finances, and also let him help Little Hammer and their union.

Why is he here?And... why do these guys look like deserters?Hai Wen immediately got out of the car and went up to meet him. "Dallow!" he asked loudly, "what's the matter with you? Has something happened to Bear Mountain?"

Darrow walked up to him and knelt down on one knee, saying, "My lord, we are the ones who are incompetent!"

Haiwen felt his heart go cold, and he asked, "What's going on?"

"Tang De'en led people to besiege Xiongshan City, and the murlocs used magic to capture the castle in half a day!" Darrow cried as he spoke, with two smudges on his face, "We fought as hard as we could, but ice fell from the sky Rain, venom is pouring out from under the feet, and some soldiers lost their minds under the banshee's singing, we are not opponents!"

The convoy was dead silent. Haiwen had prepared for the worst before, but he still couldn't accept the news—Tang Deen, how could it be?That old man shouldn't have done such a thing?

Had he been lying to us before?Is he a hypocrite?

He immediately calmed down after a brief moment of rage, and asked, "Daro, how many people are left in the garrison?"

Darrow and the defeated soldiers looked at each other and said, "We are the only ones who broke through."

The Xiongshan garrison, the White Clothes Society soldiers, and the slave fighters, together there are nearly 2000 people!Haiwen asked loudly, "What about the rest?"

"Death in battle, capture, escape..." Darrow cried again, "My lord, I ran away after the city was broken. You know, I'm just a businessman, not a soldier, I..."

"It's okay, I didn't say I'm going to blame you." Haiwen patted him on the shoulder, and then asked, "Daro, let me ask you, what happened to the cadres at Bear Mountain? Who escaped? Who was captured? ? Who else... sacrificed?"

Dallow pondered for a while, and said: "Myrick was shot by an arrow, and he probably died; General Brian never retreated. I saw that his left arm was cut off, so he probably couldn't die; then...King Kong killed Six enemies, but he is no match for Putin, the demon monk is so powerful that he threw King Kong off the city wall, and..." He choked up, and Hai Wen nodded to him, saying: "Continue."

"Darithus was surrounded by many people, Hollanger had his head smashed, and none of the slave fighters was spared. The members of the White Council later surrendered, and the saint Laya volunteered to be a prisoner in exchange for the safety of her men."

The smiling face cursed furiously, and Ramon pinched the side of the car until it creaked.Haiwen suppressed the grief in his heart and asked, "What about the other women?"

Darrow pondered for a while, and said, "They didn't go to the battlefield, but they couldn't run out either."

Haven murmured, "Violet, Hyacinth, and my daughter, Mirsalu. They are all in prison at the moment."

Darrow didn't dare to look him in the eye, so he lowered his head and said, "No matter how cruel Tang Deen and the others are, they won't hurt women and children. My lord, don't worry."

At this time, the smiling cat said: "The children will be taken hostage, and the slaves will be sold. Sir, we must rescue them."

Haiwen nodded and said, "But how can we save it? Are we going back to Bear Mountain?"

Dallow said: "You can't go back. The descendants of the sea god will kill you!" As soon as he finished speaking, Ramon continued: "Dallow is right, we can't do anything alone. My lord, the big battle It's about to start, we should evacuate first."

Haven asked him, "My family and friends are at stake and now we're going to take refuge? I think I should go to Castle Sands and..."

Ramon said loudly: "My lord! How do you know that Jinsha Castle did not instigate the matter of Bear Mountain? What's more, on the one hand is the mighty descendant of Sea God, and on the other is the downcast Earl of Bear Mountain—" He bowed and saluted, "—no intention Offend, my lord. I just want to tell you that the king will not help you now. He needs the power of the Sea God Cult to help him fight the war."

Ramon's words woke him up, and Haven said, "You're right, we can't go to Bear Mountain, and we can't go to Sands Castle—then we have to do something."

"Let's go to Shrimp Bay," Ramon said.

Chapter 11: 61 years, fall short, one

Chapter 11: 61 years, fall short, one

"How could you do that!"

In the Xiongshan Great Hall, Tang De'en was arguing hard.However, other than him, everyone looked indifferent.Putin was cutting her nails, Lorelai was sitting on a chair soaking her tail in sea water, and two maids were rubbing her arms and back with salt.There are also several cadres of the Sea God Cult next to them, and they also look nonchalant.

"We had a contract with the prime minister, and the siege of Bear Mountain was just for show! We could have taken Bear Mountain City without fighting, and even legally taken over the Bear Mountain army. Now it's all right, Bear Mountain City was stolen, and the garrison is closed In the prison, we can't explain to the king."

There were sneers on people's faces, but no one paid attention to him, which made Tang De'en feel like a clown.He was not reconciled, so he continued: "Sea God is a religion that protects the people of the Gulf! Our enemy is the northerners, not our compatriots. Now we have not yet fought the northerners, but we have sacrificed the butcher knife to our—"

"All right, all right! Tang De'en!" A man with a sharp voice shouted behind him, "You've left this routine these days, we're tired of hearing it!"

Tang De'en looked at the man. It was a young man in a robe with hanging shoulders. He had a mean and pointed face, like a usurer.This man was the youngest son of the Earl of the Vale, named Audrey Desen.The Desen family didn't believe in religion before, but Odria was a devout believer.He paid a lot of money for this matter today.

"You old guy didn't put in any effort. You're still not satisfied that we've brought down the castle? I don't know what to do!" He said to Tang De'en, "His Highness Lorelai took down Xiongshan Mountain, so if you don't know how to be grateful, that's all. you still……"

I didn't have any strength?So what are my 60 years of trying my best?Tang De'en stared at him and said, "Shut up! You idiot with a stomach full of straw, your brain is not as big as a black fish egg! If there are guys like you in the Sea God Sect, then we will have no hope of restoring our country!"

Odria blushed with anger, but when he was about to speak, Lorelai spoke first: "Odria, stop talking."

"Yes, Your Highness," said the man.

Then Lorelei put her hands on the edge of the tub and crawled out.Leaning against the side of the tub, she said, "No one will forget your contribution, Tang Deen."

"Thank you, Your Highness." Tang De'en looked at her and said solemnly.

"I will give you a reward worthy of your merits. Land, gold, titles..."

"I don't want these, Your Highness." The old man's eyes were burning. "I'm already 90 years old. I don't have a few years to live. These things are meaningless to me."

Lorelai said: "I will give you whatever you want, as for what I just said, it is a gift. But the premise of all this is that you are loyal to me."

"I have always been faithful to you."

"Then you shouldn't question my decision, Tang De'en."

Putin sneered, and Tang Deen's face became ugly. He said, "Your decision may not be correct. As your staff, I have the responsibility to point out the right direction."

"Tang De'en, you forgot about our relationship. You are an aide, not a commander in chief. You don't need to talk about what I have already decided."

These words chilled Tang De'en, and he asked Lorelai, "Then why did you make this decision, Your Highness?"

"Because the descendants of the sea god will not negotiate terms with the king of human beings." She straightened her fish tail and looked at Tang De'en with haughty eyes, "I must let the little trident and every human being know that I am higher than them The form of life. Bear Mountain City is just the beginning, the next step is to break through the Antler Pass and attack the Northern Guards.”

"Your Highness, the northern guards are as solid as a rock, and the two cities are guarding each other. With the people like us now, it is very difficult to defeat them."

"That's not what you need to worry about, Tang Deen——well, bring the prisoners up." She gestured to the servants.

Tang Deen asked her: "What do you want to do?"

Lorelei said: "We don't have much food, and we can't afford to feed so many mouths. I only keep those who are useful to me, and the other prisoners are killed."

Tang Deen immediately shouted: "No! You can't treat these captives like this. This will be spurned by the nobles. You can...you can keep them, maybe the earl will come to redeem them."

At this time, Putin sneered and said: "Now that Xiongshan's property is in our hands, where does he get the money to redeem people? Hundreds of mouths in the prison have to eat, I think it's better to deal with it as soon as possible." After finishing speaking Putin approached the guard, who nodded, and went to the cell to arrest him.

The first person to be caught was Myrick.The maester had bruised arms and chest, his robes were in tatters, and his hair was disheveled like straw.As soon as he entered the hall, he yelled: "You despicable bastards, you will die!" The guard behind gave him a sap on the back, and then went to beat his knee and told him to kneel down.Tang Deen shouted loudly: "Stop!"

Myrick looked up at Tang De'en, he clenched his teeth, and squeezed out three words from his throat: "Betrayer!"

Tang De'en was poked in the sore spot by him.This time the hard-boned old man lost his former staunchness. He lowered his head and said, "I didn't expect this kind of result, Myrick."

The guard pushed him again, and the bachelor finally couldn't bear it anymore and fell to the ground.He tried to get up, but someone stepped on his back.This touched the wound, he groaned in pain, and then shouted loudly: "You keep saying that it is for the Gulf! Then you slaughter your own people and occupy your own castle, what is this? If you have the ability Go hit the northerners! Go hit the north—" the guard grabbed the back of his neck and hit his face hard on the ground, Myrick screamed.When he raised his head again, blood came out from both nostrils.

Lorelai said, "Scholar, look up into my eyes."

Merrick showed a terrified look, and immediately turned his eyes away.However, Lorelai said again in a charming voice, "Scholar, look into my eyes."

Then Myrick's head was turned as if by an invisible hand, and his and Lorelai's eyes met.At that moment, his eyes suddenly lost focus, his eyes became straight, and he opened his mouth like a mentally retarded person.Then Lorelai said a few incantations that no one could understand, and Myrick nodded silly.After a few seconds, his eyes suddenly returned to normal, and he shouted: "You banshee! Your magic cannot hurt me, and my will will not yield!"

Lorelai nodded and said, "You really have strong willpower—alright, let's change to another prisoner."

In 61 years, it fell short, two

In 61 years, it fell short, two

The guards dragged the half-dead Myrick down, and a moment later they brought up another man.

That was a very strong man, Tang Deen knew him, his name was King Kong, he was the son of a mason.In this battle, he was thrown off the city wall by Putin with one hand and broke his spine.This person has already lost half of his life, and if he does not die, he must be paralyzed.He is in a semi-comatose state at the moment, exhaling more and breathing less.Seeing a lively man become like this, Tang De'en was really worried, he couldn't help turning his head away.

Lorelai glanced at King Kong who was slumped on the stretcher, waved her hand, and said, "This is useless, bury it."

"Yes, my lord."

So the guard dragged the man down again.Tang De'en thought to himself: Burying alive is too painful, let the guards give him a good time by spending some money later.

"Next." His Highness Mermaid's face showed impatience.

The next person brought up was Haiwen's wife, Hyacinth.The little girl was so scared that she couldn't speak. Tang De'en looked at her, and she burst into tears immediately. "Help me, master." She whispered in southern dialect.

"Who is this?" Lorelai asked.

Tang Deen had an idea and said, "She is the earl's female slave!"

Lorelai smashed her tongue and said, "Can't you pick some useful people up?" She waved her hand, "This one, pull it down and bury it."

Tang De'en said: "I suggest selling her and exchanging some gold for military expenses."

Lorelai nodded and said, "It doesn't matter, you can do it, Tang De'en."

"Yes, Your Highness." Tang De'en breathed a sigh of relief quietly, and he quickly asked the guards to take Hyacinth down.Then Lorelai said: "Forget it, listen carefully. All the troops who surrendered will be recruited, those who don't surrender will be killed, and all women will be sold as slaves. The rest of the captives will be treated like this." After saying this, Lorelai called Yawned, "I'm going to take a nap, the meeting is over." She got back into the big tub, and several strong servants came over and carried her away.

Everyone walked towards the door, only Tang De'en stood there speechless.The demon monk patted him on the shoulder when he passed by, and said, "This is the revival you want." After saying this, he laughed and left, while Tang Deen moved away for a long time as if he was nailed to the ground. Don't move.

I'm going in the wrong direction, he thought, and I've been wrong for 60 years.

He left the hall, first ordered the execution guards, told them to give King Kong a good time, and then called some of his closest students, and said: "Go back to Black Pine Manor to dismiss my servants, and then take the money I saved It's all divided, here is the key to the vault. After that, you can run as far as you can, and it's best to go to the south... no, to the west."

Of course the students did not agree, but Tang Deen had made up his mind.He persuaded a few students to leave very forcefully, then went to the street to buy a black dress, and went to a tavern to drink a bottle of wine.The wine cut his rotten throat like a blade, reminding him: your time is running out.He couldn't help but think of his high spirits when he was young, and the feat of drinking three bowls.Wine used to be his blood, which could make every inch of his muscles and bones full of vitality; but now wine is cold water, murderous poison, and bitter tears, forcing him to face the reality.

"This is what you want." He looked at the reflection in the wine bowl and muttered to himself, "You asked for this, Tang Deen."

After coming out of the tavern, he sent someone to prepare some carriages and fast horses as backup.

About night, he came alone to the prison at Bear Mountain. "I want to interrogate the prisoner! I have a token from His Royal Highness Lorelai." He showed the jailers Lorelai's scales—of course, they were fake.

Tang De'en's identity allows him to come and go from this place at will.As he descended the steep, winding staircase, there was silence and darkness all around him, but his heart was beating a drum.

He walked on a wrong road for 61 years, and it was too late to look back.It is impossible for him to return to that intersection and choose a correct path.However, this does not mean that he intends to go all the way to the dark. Tang Deen is a man of courage. He has the courage to move forward and the determination to retreat bravely.

The jailers were dozing off, and pairs of eyes were looking at Tang Deen from the iron bars.Someone was calling for help, someone was cursing him, but Tang Deen just kept going.At last he came to the lowest cell for women, and at the end of the cell there was a nun in a white robe.The moonlight shone through the skylight, and she knelt under the moonlight to pray.

Tang De'en stood behind her and said, "Chairman of the White Clothes Association, I have something to ask you."

Raya didn't reply right away.She was silent for a while, as if to finish the prayer silently.After a while, she stood up and said, "Master Tang De'en, please speak."

She looks a lot haggard than before, Tang Deen thought to himself. "How many fighters are there in the White Council?" he asked Raya.

"About 300 people, all locked in cells."

"Okay, Raya, long story short, I'm going to get you all out. But I need your help."

Laya stared at him, the cold gaze of the saint was like the bright moon outside the window. "Master Tang De'en, I don't understand what you want to do."

Tang Deen's face was very painful. He said: "I don't know what I did, Laya. I... I was confused by my own fantasy. Before this, I thought everyone was good. I thought Lorelei is kind and beautiful. She thought that Putin was resourceful, and that every nobleman was sincere for our compatriots... But I was wrong! My old eyes are dim, and I..." He covered his face in pain, "Forgive me, la Ya!"

"You should say this to the victim." Laya looked at him and said.