Abyss Train

Chapter 768 Appendix② Omen

Many people pay the price of their youth and happiness for success.

—Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

The iron nail hammered into the sleeper, making a deep crack.

The worker, Old Man Li, looked around in panic, afraid that others would find out.

  This sleeper was made of birch wood and had been soaked in decrystalline anthracene oil. Although it was not a very precious item, it was not something he could afford to lose. If the foreman knew about it...

"Hey," the worker patted the old man on the shoulder and handed him a water bag, "Old man Li, drink something?"

"Stand away! Stand away! You're blocking my work!" Old man Li felt like he was electrocuted and involuntarily pushed away Wu Liang Jin from the same team.

He didn't have much strength in his body, but he pushed and squeezed, and his shoulders felt sore and painful when he touched the five ounces of gold.

——He couldn't remember when he became so weak. Perhaps it started from the summer when the sun became more and more scorching. He had to get up early to move wood at the dock, and go back and forth between the railway construction team and Sanyang Port in Emao County. Over time, his hair fell out and his skin became dark and shiny.

"If you don't want to drink, then don't drink!" Wu Liang Jin pushed the offer away with a grin, giving Old Man Li some face - everyone knew that the old man had a daughter who was sixteen years old and waiting to get married.

The ballast pierced my sandals, and the hot rocks and pebbles burned my soles red.

——Old man Li did not respond. He just stood there stiffly, wanting to wait until Wu Liang Jin left. When no one came to see him, he would pull out the iron nails and send the piece of wood away.

As for compensation, each sleeper is worth sixteen small dollars, which is the price of six catties of rice. If you walk twenty miles north of Emao County to the Du Mansion, six catties of rice can be exchanged for refugees from Jiangdong, or for a wife.

He was unwilling to pay the money unfairly, so he had to find a way out and be clever.

"Hey! Five taels of gold!"

Hearing the old man's shouting, Wu Liang Jin was about to sit down and rest. He found a shady stone under the shade of a tree beside the railway and half-crouched - and just happened to see a black line extending from the railroad sleeper between the old man's legs.

The two men worked in the same work group. They both looked like dead wood that had turned into monsters, with dirt hidden in the wrinkles on their faces.

"explain."

Old Man Li: "I think your family raises fish. In this weather this year, the pond should be dry. During the busy farming season, I will help you harvest rice and thresh grain, and you can go and work on the fish pond with your brothers and sisters."

"Will you help me?" Wu Liang Jin was a little confused, but soon felt relieved. If you want to help someone, you must negotiate some conditions. Old man Li must have something to ask for.

Old man Li went on to say, "I got into trouble because of this railroad tie."

As he said this, he moved his legs apart, completely exposing the iron nails and showing the cracks on the sleepers to Wu Liang Jin.

"Oh my." Wu Liang Jin stood up immediately, with a cold expression on his face and the same tone: "What a disaster!"

Old man Li continued: "Tell the county magistrate, I..."

Wu Liang Jin rolled up his sleeves and interrupted with great interest, "Don't even think about it. The soldiers will give you five whips first, and then ask you how you got the nail down."

Old man Li didn't have a long coat to protect himself from the sun, only a short coat. Standing under the sun, he felt very passive.

——It seems that telling classmates about this news is not a wise move, but it will give them a handle in their hands.

"Hey - I won't tell anyone, don't worry." Wu Liang Jin's face changed, and he explained with a smile: "But if you want to see the official, you will definitely get beaten."

Old man Li swallowed his saliva and asked nervously, "Do you have a solution?"

"There's no other way." Wu Liang Jin sat back down, holding the back of his head and leaning against the rock.

Old man Li asked: "Is it okay as long as I pay a fine?"

Wu Liang Jin: “Not necessarily.”

Old Man Li: “Not necessarily?”

"Yesterday, there was also a laborer who wanted to escape, and he ran southeast from Emao County." Wu Liang Jin casually pulled a dogtail grass and held it in his mouth, muttering, "It was also when the railway was being built, and he said he wanted to help - he was originally a canal worker, but later on, I don't know what happened, but this guy ran to Wulong Cave."

"The morning officer of the textile workshop caught him and handed him over to the county government. The boy said he was going to see the mountains and rivers and wanted to draw a picture for homework."

"In the end, you still want to escape. Everyone knows that."

"Lingguang Buddha has passed away. A newspaper has been sent here, along with photos."

Wu Liang Jin hasn't read many books, and his sentences don't make sense.

"This kid just wanted to run to the southeast and seek refuge with the foreigners. But he refused to admit his guilt. The county magistrate had no choice but to report to the major general and give an explanation to the Fire Camp. If he didn't punish him, wouldn't everyone be able to run to the Oolong Cave?"

"The foreman of the sixth group of the Southern Cardinal took on this job. He got two sleepers and asked this kid to hammer in the nails. He broke them all."

At this point, Old Man Li's heart sank, and he finally understood what this meant.

Wu Liang Jin continued with a smile, "Now we have caught him red-handed. He was convicted of destroying military supplies and disobeying orders. He will be given thirty lashes and sent to jail to await the Major General's decision."

"He ended up getting hit with 16 strokes, and he vomited blood."

"The county magistrate gave some advice and asked the county magistrate what he thought."

"But he didn't stop. Perhaps the dead are more useful than the living. If he didn't die, there would be a lot of trouble. Who told him to run away? He shouldn't have run away, and he couldn't have."

"After hitting the man for 20 times, he died. This was attributed to the county magistrate. The young general was indeed angry when he learned about this, but when he saw the bloody corpse, he also felt that this was a good thing to do."

At this point, Wu Liang Jin started dancing with joy.

"Twenty ingots of gold were sent from the Military Affairs Office! I don't know how much the secretary, the county magistrate, and the clerk got, but the one who beat the stick, who did the work of the Red Terrace executioner, must have got some - that night I saw the brothers squeezed over next to the Yihong Tower to congratulate the Lord of the Court Staff. Congratulations to the Lord of the Court Staff."

"I don't want to escape! I didn't escape!" Old man Li was anxious and seemed frightened after hearing this.

"I definitely know! I definitely know!" Wu Liang Jin was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, and kept trying to persuade him: "Don't worry, old man. Since I saw it, I will definitely testify for you. You just broke the railroad ties, and you didn't mean to defect."

Old man Li nodded, but still seemed worried, thinking that this matter could be big or small, light or heavy, and the county magistrate had the final say on the sentence. If the magistrate was unhappy, how many beatings would he get for his old life?

"Five ounces of gold! If you help me, I will definitely go and harvest the rice! I can finish all six acres of land by myself!"

"Hey!" Wu Liang Jin shook his head and quickly refused: "Old man, let's not talk about this, okay?"

"Then" Old Man Li was always uneasy, "So what do you mean?"

"Will you introduce your daughter to me? Say something nice." Wu Liang Jin came up to Old Man Li, took out a small pipe from his long coat, and started rolling cigarettes for the old man.

Old man Li felt a chill in his heart - so this is what it meant?

But can the daughter really be entrusted to this guy? Wu Liang Jin is not much younger than the old man, and the daughter has to call him uncle when she sees him.

This guy seemed smart, but he was not a hard-working person. He was ugly, his hair was almost falling out, and he had a mouth full of yellow teeth. After his two wives ran away, no woman suitable for marriage in Emao County was willing to even look at him.

The old man hesitated for a long time and nodded.

"I'll talk to her. I'll talk to her."

Wu Liang Jin's face was all wrinkled up like a chrysanthemum, and he said with a smile: "Then you must explain it clearly. I will help you to reason with the foreman, who understands the ways of the world. It's simple, it's just a railroad tie."

"Yeah," the old man nodded.

Wu Liang Jin changed the subject: "But, old man, think about it, if your daughter can't reach an agreement and becomes unhappy, I don't know what to do with this matter. My heart will be empty, I won't be able to speak well, and my mind will not be smart anymore."

"Hmm" the old man thought it was nothing, and asked for five taels of gold to get the job done - as for the reward later? If he could deny it, he would!

"I'll take you to pay the money and admit your mistake!" Wu Liang Jin cheered up, removed the sleepers, and took his co-workers to the workshop.

Entering the wood processing shed, workers were busy working everywhere. The sounds of sawing and panting could be heard one after another, and the air was filled with the smell of rotting wood chips and coughing.

Wu Liang Jin found an old carpenter who was missing three fingers and asked casually.

"Fried fish, where is the foreman?"

The old carpenter was huddled beside the eaves, oiling the sleepers, and pointed in a direction.

The two followed the instructions and saw a six-foot-tall burly man sitting in a rocking chair, enjoying the cool air by Songbo Lake.

Wu Liang Jin was the first to show the sleepers and shouted loudly:

"——Foreman! I found a railroad tie!"

The foreman slowly turned his head and suddenly woke up when he saw the cracks on the sleepers.

"What did you say?" Wu Liang Jin said nonsense: "I found a sleeper, it was sunburned and cracked, it's not usable, so I brought it here for you to see."

"You mean," the foreman sneered, "that it cracked before the nail was driven in?"

There are still holes on the sleepers caused by the iron nails, and the scars on the wood cannot deceive people.

"Where?!" Wu Liang Jin pretended to be crazy and said, "It broke before I could get it in!"

Foreman: "Don't talk nonsense, did you hit him?"

Wu Liang Jin suddenly started to panic. He did not point out the man immediately, but looked at Old Man Li.

Old man Li immediately whispered: "I will talk to my daughter and make sure she is clear."

"I did it." Wu Liang Jin's thoughts immediately became clear, "Captain, the oil you used to paint it is not good, can you get some tung oil?"

The foreman did not give Wu Liang Jin any chance to explain.

——He waved his hand, and the soldiers who were resting in the workshop shed came over to take the person away.

"Hey!?" Wu Liang Jin still didn't understand what was going on: "Hey?! Hey hey!"

He was held by two palace soldiers, looking around, trying to explain something.

"Hey?! Foreman? Hey! I want to pay you some money! Sixteen cents! I have it!"

Half an hour later, the county magistrate excitedly ordered his men to carry a steaming corpse to the major-general's mansion.

Old man Li did not have the opportunity to listen to the court verdict. By late night, the five taels of gold had not returned. He returned home and saw his daughter washing clothes and sitting by the well. She was still fine - he breathed a sigh of relief.

The next day when he arrived at his post, Old Man Li received twenty cents of silver, which was originally two silver coins, and the foreman considerately divided them up. He didn't understand why he got this money, and he couldn't understand what everyone was talking about.

The five taels of gold seemed to be a sign of death, because the foreman and the soldiers had received money, and the county magistrate must have received money as well. As for the twenty cents of silver in Old Man Li's hand, it should also be a reward for proving the crime of escaping.

The whole process went smoothly, with many things that cannot be said, but the cooking process was incredibly smooth - the five ounces of gold seemed to have turned into a pot of human flesh and disappeared. Just as he said, the county magistrate took it to the major general to exchange for gold.

A bird gradually appeared in the scorching sun.

——It swooped down towards Axe's Edge Mountain. It was the soul of the goddess Io.

[Tianshu] fell in the political center of Danqiu State and into the garden of General Yu’s mansion.

When the strange phenomenon occurred, the warlord had already been waiting at the Sun-Viewing Terrace with many alchemists and the disciples of Lingguang Buddha.

The lark stopped among many ritual objects and finally chose a cloisonné enamel Heqing tri-color tripod and gently tapped the cultural relic with its beak.

The disciples at the altar did not dare to neglect the gods, and immediately lifted up the pot and sent the elixir to their heads.

A hand stretched out from the belly of [Tianshu], that was another Fayi Frosalin returning to the world.

She was like a fairy descending from heaven, falling into this huge cauldron——

——The King of Danqiu shouted loudly.

"Get the gods!"

A sound of brass pipes could be heard around the pavilion, with bursts of Sanskrit chanting.

The smoke from incense curled around, and the thick fog gradually formed a misty fairyland.

[Tian Shou] brought an elixir and stuffed it into the body of the traveler who was unable to solve the mystery in the womb.

The blessed holy blood soon took effect, and Fayi Frosalin took another life. She climbed out of the cauldron, and with the help of her disciples, she tried her best to maintain an elegant posture and slowly walked back to the Solar Prominence - the sacrificial site used by Judah to perform miracles.

Next came the ceremony of resurrecting Judas. [Divine Grant] showed its power again, and a new man crawled out from the bird's chest. After feeding him the elixir, Judas came back to life in a miserable state.

The two looked at each other, neither willing to speak. In the eyes of mortals, they were high and mighty gods.

But in reality, these two characters were beaten half to death by the Nameless One, and were only able to be resurrected with the help of the Fire King's soul power.

Commander Yu was a little embarrassed. He didn't want to tell bad news. Making reports to leaders was an art, but at this moment he really couldn't come up with a few good words.

"Lingguang Buddha, you are finally back."

"What do you want to say? Keep it brief." Judas covered his head, feeling a headache. "I need to rest."

"The news of your death is spreading in the outside world!" Commander Yu said worriedly, "It seems that you were beaten to death by foreigners."

“What?” Judas’ expression changed before he finished speaking. “What did you say?”

He didn't expect the bad news to come so quickly. It shouldn't take long for [Tian Shou] to fly to Danqiu Kingdom, three or four days at most, but the battle report from Daoheng County reached here earlier!

"This is a newspaper from Jiangdong. A peddler delivered it to the Tonghe Umbrella Factory. After several rounds of circulation, the news reached me. It should have been seven days ago."

"Seven days?!" Judas asked in surprise.

"Yes." Commander Yu began to emphasize his own work, wanting to claim some credit: "The people in the territory are in a state of panic. After the rumor spread, there were defectors everywhere. They were secretly sabotaging and doing all kinds of things. I had my subordinates execute these troublemakers!"

Judas was shocked and said, "Executed?!"

Commander Yu continued, "Not only will they execute him, but they will also find a way to convict him and confiscate his property! How can we forgive those who don't believe in Lingguang Buddha? How can we let them go?!"

Judas was surprised and asked, "Searching the house?"

Commander Yu continued, "More rewards! I say that Lingguang Buddha can turn stone into gold. Anyone who provides clues about the defector will be rewarded with five taels. If you catch him and hand him over to the government, you will be rewarded with ten taels. If the local county government sentences him to death, you will be rewarded with twenty taels."

Judas was still in a state of shock.

--To be honest, his mind is comparable to Dengzi's, still confused. His brain needs to adapt to the transformation of the holy blood and the fusion of the spiritual body. He has no way of understanding what Commander Yu said, let alone accepting this warm greeting gift package.

On the other hand, if the news about "Judas is dead" was reported back seven days ago - then it means that this newspaper has already been typeset and printed, and perhaps the template was made half a month ago and has been processed in the printing factory in Sendai!

"Wood! Wood Prak! You are so despicable!" Judas gnashed his teeth and was furious - but getting angry was useless in this game.

He was so angry that his hair stood on end and his eyes were red. When he heard Commander Yu's words about the extremely high efficiency of cannibalism, he just felt it was ridiculous.

Now is the time to appease the people. Commander Yu has no idea what Danqiu Country is facing.

——Now is the darkest moment when people’s hearts are most needed to unite. If there were only external threats, he could still rely on the geographical advantages of Axe Mountain and continue the tug-of-war with Aohen Mingde in the second half.

The Anonymous Forces are fighting away from home. They have no mass base, no supplies, and their bullets will eventually run out.

As long as they hold this natural barrier, Danqiu Kingdom still has millions of lives to burn and use as scapegoats.

"You are so despicable! You are so despicable!" Judas was defeated.

Commander Yu stabbed the wound in the broken defense again, picked up the newspaper and handed it over: "Lingguang Buddha, look! It's really despicable!"

That was a still photo of Judas's last body, with his head chopped off by an anonymous soldier.

There were other small pieces of tofu on the newspaper page, all of which were close-ups of Judas' corpses. Different Judases had similar faces after being transformed by the magic pill.

——These corpses have been carefully choreographed and artistically posed, telling many absurd and bizarre stories vividly.

But the ending is always the same, it is death, death in various ways, and death in an inhumane way.

One of the tabloids had a headline: "Many people trade their youth for success, but this bald donkey failed" - the content of the newspaper was quite explosive, with Judas's body having its hair shaved off and its bloody buttocks facing the camera.

  [According to a report from Index, a reporter from Sendai Prefecture’s Hirofumi newspaper, at the Raihoku Port in Inahune Prefecture—]

[——Recently, Lingguang Buddha has been active in the area around the Aizong Mausoleum. This evil monk was so mad that he did all kinds of evil things, bullying the fishman cubs and molesting the fishman grandmother. He was shot dead on the spot by a righteous man who was unwilling to reveal his life.]

[When death is imminent, the Buddha takes off his pants. This shameless bitch wants to sell the hook to save her life, but there is no chance! Justice will not be late, it should arrive early every time!]

[Every Shambhala person who sees this news! Look carefully! He has another name, Judas!]

[He has never been from Shambhala, he is not a god from Xiabang, he is a fugitive that we foreigners want to catch!]

[This is the butt of Lingguang Buddha. Believe it or not, it is right here!]

"There's more! There's more!" Commander Yu was very excited and took another newspaper from his disciple. Different from the Bowen Morning Post, it was from the Dionysus Press in Dongma Port - also Gloria's business.

Various versions of rumors are accompanied by strange photos, and perhaps no one cares what is true and what is false - for Shambhala, its information has a lagging attribute and the circulation of information is also very backward.

This also makes the process of verifying facts by the people in towns and villages extremely difficult and slow.

However, this collection of street stories was approved by the government of the southeast and appeared in newspapers, which was almost a devastating blow to Judas. A strong impression had been deeply planted in people's minds that he was killed -

——Even if he survived, he would have been killed many, many times.

Tortured in all sorts of different ways, completely to death!