xymnovel Chapter 129 finally brings one that isn't abstract.
Chapter 129 finally brings one that isn't abstract.
Chapter 129 finally brings something that's not abstract.
Since arriving in the Great Song Dynasty, Lin Zhou has encountered very few normal people. Cheng'er is considered one of the better ones. The middle and old men, who are a level above him, are all incredibly shrewd. You have to be careful what you say, because if you say the wrong thing, they will make you suffer for a long time.
In fact, Lin Zhou had never been in contact with the upper class or the upper class. He was just from a working-class family back there. Although he had met some big shots here, he only had contact with them and had not been involved in their lives. Even nobles like Hong Liu and Yang Ti came to join Lin Zhou's life.
Therefore, many rumors he heard were just hearsay. But the problem is that hearsay is often mixed with personal emotions and is easily amplified by subjective issues.
For example, he always heard about the debauchery of those rich and powerful young men, and that the children born to the higher social class were more likely to be bad. This would inevitably give people a preconceived notion.
However, this kid is really good today. He's practically a shoo-in for the next emperor, having been groomed as crown prince since he was five. Based on what Lin Zhou has read in his previous novels, this kind of person doesn't treat others like human beings.
The words most associated with him are "hands behind his back, cold eyes, thin lips slightly pursed, steady steps, upright posture, aloofness, laziness in raising his eyes, and an imposing presence when he raises his hand," and so on.
But after getting to know him, Lin Zhou found that this guy was a bit beyond his expectations. He was very well-mannered, emotionally stable, and always smiling.
"This medicine is so miraculous, is there a prescription?"
Zhao Ji leaned forward curiously and looked at the two pills Lin Zhou took out; they were the same pills he had used to treat the child yesterday.
"No, these are medicines prepared by top-tier experts. It's already quite remarkable that someone like me can bring some over to save people. They're just old and want to accumulate good karma, so they don't let me sell them for money. Otherwise, one of these things could easily sell for ten strings of cash."
Lin Zhou's standardized answers have reached a state of perfection; they can even be varied in countless ways around the core idea. This is what they mean by "acting is everything when you're out in the world."
As I said before, the highest level of deception is to tell the truth while lying. The medicine prescribed by the top boss is an objective fact that must be told the truth, while the decision not to sell it for profit is a subjective judgment that can be lied. This is a lie that even the King of Heaven himself cannot expose.
"Then it's not like a deity descending to earth, is it?"
"There are no gods. If there were, then why didn't all those Buddha statues in the Longmen Grottoes protect your country?"
The truth is often the most hurtful, and Zhao Ji was left speechless, only able to look up at the sky. After a long while, he sighed and said, "So that's how it is. It was a false alarm. When the news reached the palace, it was all very mysterious, and the Emperor naturally didn't believe it, so he sent me to investigate. Now, after hearing what Brother Lin said, I understand. This elixir is indeed too powerful, and the people couldn't explain it themselves, so they made up stories about ghosts and gods."
At this moment, Zhao Ji stared at the medicine in Lin Zhou's hand: "Then, Brother Lin, could you please give me two pills so I can return to the palace to report to the Emperor?"
.
"What are you saying in such a flowery way?" Lin Zhou slapped the two opened pills into his hand. "If you want to take them back for the imperial physicians to study, just say so. You still have to report back to the Emperor. It would be good if you could make a copy, saving me the trouble of running back and forth."
Zhao Ji blushed with embarrassment after Lin Zhou exposed his secret, but since things had already come to this point, it would be somewhat insincere to be coy. He could only cup his hands in thanks and say, "Thank you for the medicine, Brother Lin."
After he finished speaking, he paused, glanced at Lin Zhou with a hint of melancholy, hesitated for a moment, and showed a struggle on his face.
"I want to ask about Xiao'e." Lin Zhou tilted his head and looked at him for a while: "Go ahead and ask, what are you hesitating for?"
Zhao Ji turned his head and sighed softly: "I have wronged her. I tried to persuade the Emperor, but he did not listen. On the day General Yue left, I planned to go to his residence, but I was detained when I left the palace. By the time I came out, I had already heard the news that she had jumped into the well."
"Why are you explaining this to me?" Lin Zhou rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Go explain it to her."
"I dare not—" Zhao Fen gave a self-deprecating laugh, tinged with helplessness: "She would never forgive me. When I learned from the official that she was still alive that day, I was already content. But after hearing that she had been sentenced to be a servant, I tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep—"
"Alright, alright, stop talking to me about this. I'm not good at this kind of plot." Lin Zhou hurriedly waved his hand and said, "I've been sentenced to be a maid, but as you saw, she didn't hold back when she beat me, so you don't have to toss and turn at night."
Zhao Ji smiled and nodded: "When I saw her again just now, I saw that her heroic spirit was still undiminished, and I knew that she had not been mistreated and was being taken very well here."
At this point, he stood up, stretched his arms out in front of him, folded his palms together at a 90-degree angle, and then bowed deeply to Lin Zhou.
"Hey, hey, hey! It can't be that bad." Lin Zhou quickly got up and helped him up. "What are you doing?"
"Firstly, I thank Brother Lin for protecting the moonlight in my heart; secondly, I thank Brother Lin for protecting the backbone of our Great Song Dynasty. In either case, you deserve this gratitude."
He truly deserves to be called the last real man of the Song Dynasty; no one else would dare to say such a thing.
Oh—right! He's the one who exonerated Yue Fei! It seems he exonerated Yue Fei right after he ascended the throne. Lin Zhou even checked a section on his phone a few days ago while washing his feet, and it was him! Moreover, he was the one who made Yue Fei known as Yue Wumu by later generations, and he was also the one who built a temple for Yue Fei.
At that time, Zhao Gou was still alive and serving as the retired emperor.
Moreover, it seems he was a proponent of war, and was known as the last true man of the Southern Song Dynasty!
"Hey!" Lin Zhou suddenly understood why he started purging the previous dynasty as soon as he became emperor. It turned out that this guy's gentle and refined manner was all an act, and he was a hot-blooded person at heart.
"What's wrong with my brother?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Zhou's expression immediately turned wicked and sinister, but this time he didn't act rashly; instead, he coughed.
"I think we should build a temple for Xiao'e's father. When I go to Annam next time I go to sea, I'll secretly build it there."
"No!" Zhao Ji suddenly shouted emotionally, but seemed to immediately realize that his reaction was a bit excessive, so he slowly sat down and said, "At present—Marshal Yue is still designated as the Minister of State—"
He bit the word "thief" into his mouth and refused to spit it out, finally managing only an embarrassed smile: "Anyway, brother, don't worry about this."
Lin Zhouchun was a scoundrel; what good could he possibly be up to? He leaned closer and lowered his voice to the lowest possible level: "Are you afraid that when you build the temple for Marshal Yue again, the Annamese will try to steal the source from you, right?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Ji's expression became visibly unnatural. He wanted to laugh but couldn't. He simply waved his hand and then tried to flee.
"Alright, alright," Lin Zhou waved his hand. "What are you afraid of?"
Zhao Ji glanced at him, as if to say, "How the hell am I supposed to know if you're testing me or not? You're a top-tier traitor or Qin Hui's ultimate lackey."
Lin Zhou was quite honest; he didn't need to guess people's intentions, since he knew his own reputation well. So he simply waved his hand and said, "It's alright, then I won't fix it. You can fix it."
Chatting with Lin Zhou for a while would shorten Zhao Ji's life by half a year. He sighed and gave a bitter laugh, then simply cupped his hands in greeting.
"Oh right, I remember you are—you are—a descendant of the founding emperor, right?"
"Yes." Zhao Fen nodded and said, "A seventh-generation descendant. He is a descendant of the fourth son of the founding emperor."
"That's strange. You don't have any of the air of a prince or nobleman. You're quite approachable."
Zhao smiled upon hearing this: "The Emperor is strict in his discipline, and I have never been given too much preferential treatment. The Emperor often says that simplicity cultivates virtue."
Lin Zhou pursed his lips and remained silent, because he wasn't very well-educated and couldn't come up with any nice compliments. But putting everything else aside, Ninth Sister was a bit better than the two emperors of Xuexiang. She might be a coward, but when it came to educating the next generation, she really didn't seem to have much to say.
"I've troubled you a lot today, Brother Lin, I'll head back now."
Just then, Princess Furui came upstairs with her footsteps. She sat down next to her brother and said with a smile, "Brother, Sister Wan'er just told me that she invited you to eat. I said you don't like eating out, so they prepared some food for you themselves."
Zhao waved his hand forcefully and said, "No, no, I'm too ashamed to face her—"
After saying that, he cupped his hands to Lin Zhou again and fled in a hurry. However, he was quite dignified. When he left, he paid for the tea without letting Lin Zhou pay.
At this moment, only Princess Fu Rui and Lin Zhou remained in the private room.
"No, you're in great shape, you should lose some weight."
"Why do you care so much?" The princess frowned. "If you don't eat your fill and get fat, the Jurchens will capture you."
"What do you know about the Jurchens? Nobody knows them better than me." Lin Zhou waved his hand as he came downstairs: "The Jurchens like your type the most. They think you're strong, fertile, and can pull a sled with a sled."
The princess was so shocked by those words that she stood frozen in place, tears welling in her eyes: "Really—really?"
"Why would I lie to you? You'd be the first one arrested."
Seeing how frightened she looked, Lin Zhou realized he had gone a bit too far. After all, although she looked tall and strong, she was actually just a seventeen-year-old girl.
"Alright, alright, just kidding. Let's eat. I haven't eaten anything all afternoon, just had a belly full of fat-removing tea, I'm starving."
Back in the shop, Lu You was still craning his neck to look outside: "Young Master Zhao hasn't come?"
"What? He's very famous?"
"Of course!" Lu You's eyes widened. "One of the Four Gentlemen of Lin'an!"
Lin Zhou shook his head and said with a wicked smile, "They said they were too ashamed to see someone if they didn't come. What a pair of star-crossed lovers."
Upon hearing this, Xiao'e kicked Lin Zhou under the table and glared at him fiercely: "If you keep talking nonsense, I won't talk to you anymore."
Lin Zhou laughed heartily, then leaned close to Lu You's ear and whispered, "I plan to bring Young Master Zhao into our group."
Lu You, who had been laughing while watching the drama unfold, suddenly burst out of his nose upon hearing this. He quickly covered his nose and said in a low voice, "Brother Lin, if you're crazy, go get it treated—"