The First Great Ancestor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 254 Brothers on the Surface
Snowflakes fell, and the corpse with a broken neck and the fallen head were soon covered with a thick layer of snow.

The blood splashed on the snow, like plum blossoms blooming, and the color gradually changed from bright red to dark.

Li Guangyan stared blankly at the head with a stunned and frightened expression, and scenes from the past flashed before his eyes.

To be fair, he had always felt that Xue Xiuming treated his sister well, was very respectful to his father-in-law, sent people to bring gifts during the four seasons, and took good care of their five brothers.

He also brought Li Guangbo to Jingzhou for cultivation.

When he first heard about Li Guangbo's tragic death in Jingzhou, Li Yijing was filled with grief, and his already weak body could not afford to fall ill.

Soon after, it was reported that the Li family had been killed and the Xue family was overthrown. Xue Xiuming fled in panic to Xiazhou for help. Li Yijing, regardless of his serious illness, took him to beg Li Yiyin in person, hoping that the disaster relief army could help the Xue family. Get justice.

Li's children died one after another in Jingzhou, and Li Yiyin was naturally very angry. He took this opportunity to seize the Yuanzhou Racecourse, which he had coveted for a long time, so he sent Wuyuan Town General Li Guangyan to march from Yanzhou to raid Yuanzhou and occupy the racecourse.

Li Yijing begged Li Yiyin to find a job for his poor son-in-law in Xia Yinzhou. Li Yiyin readily agreed, but in the end he only gave him a useless position as Liangu Guanling. Arrange the transfer again.

Li Yiyin patted his chest and promised in front of his cousin Li Yijing that your son-in-law is my son-in-law, and he will definitely cultivate him vigorously in the future.

Xue Xiuming came to Lianguguan and took office for two months, and his originally full of expectations quickly turned into a cold feeling.

That kind of ancient pass that may be abandoned at any time, even ordinary petty officials are unwilling to go, there is no future at all.

If Li Yiyin really meant to cultivate him, how could he throw him to a place where birds don't shit?

Li Yijing heard the bad news one after another and fell ill. He struggled to take soup and medicine every day and could no longer help his son-in-law.

Helpless, Xue Xiuming had no choice but to go and see Li Yiyin by himself. He made more than a dozen trips to see him once or twice.

Gradually, Xue Xiuming also understood Li Yiyin's perfunctory intentions and gave up.

Xue Xiuming resigned on the grounds that he was not competent and went to Wuyuan to join his brother-in-law Li Guangyan.

Li Guangyan still remembered what happened that night. Xue Xiuming cried bitterly and drank heavily while crying. He was very drunk and he accompanied him to drink to drown his sorrows.

Xue Xiuming was knowledgeable and knowledgeable, and Li Guangyan admired him very much and treated him as his brother.

If he hadn't said it himself, Li Guangyan would never have believed that a seemingly gentle person had such a vicious heart behind him.

It was snowy and cold, but Li Guangyan felt that his heart was even colder.

Zhu Xiu looked at him calmly, without breaking his silence.

It seemed that Xue Xiuming still held considerable weight in his heart.

After a long time, Li Guangyan raised his head and let out a long sigh. He held the knife in his hand and took a step towards Zhu Xiu. The soles of his feet crushed the ice and snow, making a rustling sound.

Yan Ping's hair stood on end, he held his sword in front of Zhu Xiu and said sternly: "Stop! Put down the sword!"

Several sergeants from the Beihu camp also drew their swords and surrounded Li Guangyan, pointing the tips of their swords at him as if facing a formidable enemy.

Zhu Xiu frowned, does this guy still want to continue to be stupid?
Li Guangyan was stunned, looked down at the Yanling knife in his hand, and threw it away without hesitation.

"I don't mean any harm, I just don't understand something, and I want to talk to you about it."

Zhu Xiu signaled Yan Ping and others to put away their weapons and said calmly: "You say so."

"Why do you want me to know the truth? I am just a defeated prisoner who fell into your hands. Why don't you just kill me?" Li Guangyan stared at him closely.

Zhu Xiu smiled and said, "Actually, I never thought about killing you. Do you believe it?"

Li Guangyan stared at him for a while: "Why?"

Zhu Xiu spread her hands and said, "The reason I don't kill Li Guangrui is because I'm afraid that Li Yiyin will go crazy and fight for me. The reason I don't kill you is because I want to make friends with you."

Li Guangyan obviously didn't believe it, and said coldly: "The Wuyuan soldiers were destroyed by you, and you have already formed a grudge against the Dingnan army."

"A Wuyuan army is nothing. At most, it will only make the Dingnan army lose some face. There is no mortal enmity between us and Li Yiyin. This time we fought in Yuanzhou and took back the racecourse. It's just self-defense and counterattack to take back what belongs to us.

War and peace between feudal vassals and towns are normal, so there is no need to keep them in mind.Or do you think that Li Yiyin would lead his army south to fight our Zhangyi Army for the sake of Xue Xiuming and thousands of miscellaneous soldiers? "

Zhu Xiu curled his lips and smiled jokingly.

Li Guangyan was silent for a moment, then said: "Tell me, what conditions do you need before you let us go?"

Zhu Xiu said hey: "This kid Li Guangrui's life is precious, I plan to use him to make a lot of money. The Dingnan Army has become more and more powerful in recent years, and its face is getting bigger and bigger. I plan to take this opportunity to make a big fuss and let Dingnan The army should be embarrassed and let Li Yiyin and the world know that I, the Zhangyi Army, are not easy to bully."

Li Guangyan's face trembled and he looked at him speechlessly. He really dared to say these words.

Zhu Xiu smiled slyly and said: "Li Guangrui is Li Yiyin's biological son. Li Yiyin will definitely spend a lot of money to ensure his safety. As for you, guess how much Li Yiyin is willing to spend on you?"

Li Guangyan fell silent.

"And that little bastard Li Guangrui, you are brothers of the same race who are closely related by blood. You think of him as your biological brother, but he may not necessarily regard you as his biological brother. Do you dare to make a bet with me again? Let's see what Li Guangrui is like at the moment of life and death. What will I do to you?" Zhu Xiu smiled sinisterly.

Li Guangyan didn't like the feeling of being manipulated and said angrily: "What do you want?"

"Haha, I just want to tell you that if you still have some ambition in your heart, if you don't want to live the rest of your life in mediocrity, if you don't want to live up to your father's full expectations, and if you don't want to waste your talents, you should take a clear look at yourself as soon as possible. Given the situation, make plans in advance." Zhu Xiu smiled thoughtfully.

Li Guangyan's eyes flickered for a while, then he took a deep breath and said, "What do you want me to do?"

"Don't worry, let's first listen to what your good brother Li Guangrui has to say."

Zhu Xiu turned around and whispered a few instructions to Yan Ping. Yan Ping nodded understandingly and went down with a sergeant to prepare.

After a while, the most spacious earthen house in the center was transformed into a temporary interrogation room. The doors and windows were blocked to make the light dim. Wall lamps hung on the earthen walls and flickering dim candles added a bit of gloom.

Xue Xiuming's human head was used as a prop and hung under the beams of the house. The guillotine used to feed the horses was also brought into the house, and some blood was smeared on it, looking creepy.

Zhu Xiuduan sat behind the desk and used a hardwood brick as a gavel.

Several fierce-looking sergeants from the Beihu Camp acted as yamen servants, standing on both sides with swords in their hands.When Li Guangrui was escorted into the house, he was really shocked by this formation.

"Bang!~" There was an explosion, and Zhu Xiuqing cleared her throat and shouted: "People in the hall, why don't you kneel down and listen to the trial?"

Li Guangrui was so frightened that he fell to his knees with a bang.

His hands were tied behind his back, and he had been living without water for two days. His lips were chapped and turned white, his eyes were black, and there were bruised and swollen bags under his eyes. His hair was disheveled, and he was dirty and messy, like a refugee fleeing from hunger and cold.

"Who is here? Tell me your name!" Zhu Xiu's face was serious, and he pointed his sword with both fingers. It was quite similar to the feeling he had when he saw Bao Qingtian.

Li Guangrui cried sadly and said: "Sinner Li Guangrui, kowtow to the young gentleman."

Li Guangrui raised his butt and kowtowed without hesitation. His forehead hit the cold, hard and uneven ground, making a muffled thud. He grimaced in pain and did not dare to say a word.

Suddenly a low and angry groan came from a corner of the room, Li Guangrui looked subconsciously, and seemed to see a vague figure in a dark corner, as if someone was there, but he couldn't tell who it was.

"Ahem~" Zhu Xiu coughed hurriedly, clapped the gavel again, and asked: "Li Guangrui, do you know your guilt?"

Li Guangrui begged: "The sinner knows his crime. The sinner should not have broken into Yuanzhou, and he should not have killed and robbed in Pinggao County. The sinner should have been cut into pieces. I beg you, for my father's sake, to spare his life."

Zhu Xiu shook his head in disdain. Although Li Guangrui looked like a rough and ferocious barbarian, he was actually bullying the weak and afraid of the strong, tough on the outside but cowardly on the inside.

He is ruthless when he hunts herdsmen for fun, but when his own life is in danger, he begs for mercy in every possible way.

Li Yiyin was considered a hero in his lifetime, but the son who succeeded him turned out to be such a loser. It's no wonder that starting from his grandchildren, the authority of the Dingnan Army fell to others.

Zhu Xiu glanced at the shadow in the corner and scolded with a tigerish face: "Li Guangrui, why didn't you mention your crime of leading troops to invade our Yuanzhou Racecourse?"

Li Guangrui shrank his neck and said with a grimace: "Young sir, I have learned from you that the Yuanzhou Racecourse is no one's business. It was taken away by Li Guangyan's troops more than half a year ago."

"Li Guangyan occupied the racecourse under your father's order. The crimes committed by your father will naturally be borne by you as a son!" Zhu Xiu suppressed his laughter and shouted angrily.

Li Guangrui said aggrievedly: "Young Master has wronged you. Li Guangyan's family has offended Mr. Little. His son-in-law went to Xiazhou to ask his father for help. In order to make them angry, my father sent Li Guangyan to occupy the racecourse.
After all, all the blame lies with Li Guangyan's family. What does it have to do with his father and the villain?The culprit should be Xue Xiuming, and we were also instigated by him."

Zhu Xiu sneered: "Raise your head and look at the top of your head."

Li Guangrui looked up in confusion and saw a human head hanging in the air, spinning above his head, and a twisted dead face turned in front of him.

Li Guangrui screamed in fright, kicked his feet wildly, and shrank back in panic.

"Xue Xiuming is the key criminal pursued by our Zhangyi Army. He has committed serious crimes and was executed just now! Did you see the guillotine next to you?" Zhu Xiu said in a low voice, majesticly.

Li Guangrui turned his head and looked to the left. Sure enough, he saw a pair of blood-stained stone guillotines. He was so frightened that he rolled away and ran away.

"Pa!~" Zhu Xiu slapped the gavel tree and shouted: "The prisoner Li Guangrui hunted and killed 17 herdsmen outside Pinggao County, plundered 120 sheep, five cattle, and 48 horses, and trampled them down. There are more than [-] acres of soybean fields, and several crimes are punishable. It deserves death! Come on, take off your clothes and pants first, beat [-] big boards, and vent your anger for the suffering people of Pinggao County!"

Yan Ping led several sergeants without saying a word. He knocked down Li Guangrui and roughly tore his hakama, exposing his black buttocks. The two burly sergeants held flat sticks, spat into their palms, and used the flat sticks fiercely. Lay down.

There was a miserable howl, accompanied by a melodious "cracking", Zhu Xiu was sipping tea while discussing with Yan Ping how much the bastard's black butt could stand.

Before the tenth board, Li Guangrui's black buttocks were already torn and fleshy, sticky blood spattered and stained on the flat stick, and the bloody buttocks couldn't bear to be looked at directly.

"Young gentleman, you are unjust! The herdsmen were not killed by the villain alone, and the cattle and sheep were not robbed by the villain alone. There is also Li Guangyan~~ah~~spare my life!~"

Li Guangrui wailed miserably and did not hesitate to involve Li Guangyan, hoping to alleviate his guilt.

Zhu Xiu smiled and said: "You are so unloyal. You can just carry it by yourself for only thirty pieces. Why do you need to involve Li Guangyan?"

Li Guangrui cried bitterly and screamed: "Yang Chonggui should also be punished! It is clearly the fault of three people, but the young gentleman has forced it on me. It is unfair! What an injustice!~"

"As far as I know, Yang Chonggui did not kill anyone. On the contrary, he advised you not to kill civilians."

"Yang Chonggui didn't kill anyone, but he also ate a lot of the cattle and sheep he stole!~"

Li Guangrui cried and shouted angrily, as if he had been greatly wronged.

All the sergeants from the Tiger Battalion were so amused that they burst out laughing, and this guy was a little too cowardly.

Zhu Xiu smiled and said: "According to what you said, I should only hit you ten times?"

Li Guangrui was already numb from the pain, his whole body was shaking, and he cried weakly and begged for mercy: "Little sir, please spare my life."

Zhu Xiu was too lazy to talk to him and scolded him: "If you bargain any more, I'll give you an extra twenty bucks! Give me a fight!"

The sergeant holding the stick greeted him vigorously, and the crackling sound of the close contact between the flesh and the flat stick was still there. Li Guangrui was filled with grief and anger, but he did not dare to say any more, gritting his teeth and enduring it silently.

After thirty rounds of fighting, both sergeants broke out in a small sweat. Li Guangrui lay on the ground, moaning weakly, almost fainting, his lower body was sticky, and sweat mixed with blood flowed all over the floor.

A sergeant brought a bucket of water and poured it all over him.

Li Guangrui was awakened by the cold water. He was soaked all over and shivering from the cold. He lay on the cold hard ground and was in unbearable pain. He actually started whimpering, which caused another burst of laughter.

Zhu Xiu slapped the gavel and shouted: "Prisoner Li Guangrui, do you know your crime?"

Li Guangrui said feebly: "The villain knows his crime."

"Since you know the crime, then take a look at this confession. If you have no objection, sign it and deposit it."

Zhu Xiu winked at Yan Ping, who stepped forward with a well-written confession, squatted next to Li Guangrui, and waved the confession in front of his eyes.

A sergeant pressed his hand and made a bloody fingerprint on the confession.

"Young Envoy, the prisoner Li Guangrui pleads guilty and has signed a confession." Yan Ping reported loudly.

Zhu Xiu asked him to step aside and said with a smile: "Li Guangrui, considering the crimes you have committed, it is not an exaggeration to chop off your head ten times. However, you are also a young commander of the Dingnan Army. If I kill you with one knife, I am afraid of provoking the Zhang Yi Army." The war with the Dingnan Army.

Let's do this. One of you and Li Guangyan will be kept as a hostage, and the other will go back to Xiazhou to report to Li Jieshuai and ask him to pay for the ransom. What do you think? "

(End of this chapter)