Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 95 Tian Family
In the spring of the third year of Xiantong, Tian Xiang, who was only seventeen years old, came to Weizhou with her brother, contacted internal supporters, and tried to use the remaining influence of the Weizhou Tian family to overthrow the then governor He Hongjing and re-establish the rule of officials loyal to the court in Weizhou Town.

After the mutiny failed, Tian Xiang hoped to be killed like her brother, but He Hongjing, after personally insulting her, vented his anger by ordering Tian Xiang to be exiled to become a camp prostitute.

He Hongjing admired the body of his young "niece" and helped her with her business many times. Four years later, He Hongjing died suddenly on his way back to the Jiedushi residence after drinking and taking drugs. He was 60 years old.

Four years later, He Hongjing's son He Quanhao caused a mutiny by abusing his soldiers, and the entire He family was killed.

The newly appointed military governor, Han Junxiong, considered sending Tian Xiangli back to the court, or even finding a general to marry her and send her back together as a token of respect for her loyalty. However, his generals opposed this, stating that "happiness alone is worse than happiness shared" and that such a beauty should not be enjoyed by one person alone. Furthermore, the court had no active interest in rescuing Tian Xiangli, so the matter was dropped.

Tian Xiang died in the 14th year of Xiantong, three years after the He family was exterminated. She was 28 years old.

These events not only proved how rotten Weizhou Town was and how disheartening the imperial court was, but also caused Zhu Wen and Tian Jun to be unable to find a direct enemy to avenge Tian Xiang - under the tremendous power of the Weizhou soldiers, no one in the He family was left alive.

Then Tian Jun's scumbag brothers who bullied Tian Xiang will inevitably be the target of the wrath.

Zhu Wen couldn't bring himself to fight in the street, so he forced himself to put on an elegant smile and introduced himself to Madam Tian and Tian Erlang: "Zhu Huang of Youzhou."

He held Tian Jun's hand quite steadily.

"This is Master Zhu of Youzhou... oh, he is truly a man of good character and demeanor. If he were not from a family of generals, how could he have such temperament?" Mrs. Tian's cheeks were sweating as she tried her best to praise him.

The Tian family of Wei Bo and the Zhu family of Youzhou were both typical military families from Hebei Province, both of them upstarts from humble beginnings. However, the Zhu family of Youzhou still had a certain amount of wealth and influence, and their sons were undoubtedly much more noble than the children of the Tian family of Wei Bo.

Tian Erlang, who looked cowardly and indecisive, suddenly had a clever glint in his eyes: "So it's my brother-in-law. My good-for-nothing sister actually deserves the favor of such a noble man. This is truly a blessing she has earned through three lifetimes!"

Another girl of about twelve or thirteen came out from the door. Because she had not yet reached the age of marriage, she had no hairpin on her head. Her hair was tied in two small buns, like a pair of deer horns, which was the so-called "zongjiao" hairstyle.

"Sister, I haven't seen you for four years. You've grown so tall!" The girl's eyes sparkled. "This Mr. Zhu you found is really handsome. I thought you were already a stunning beauty, but I didn't expect that Mr. Zhu, as a man, is even more stunning than you..."

"Do you want me to punch her twice?" Zhu Wen whispered into Tian Jun's ear.

Zhu Wen had been complimented on his looks by women since he was a child, so he had long since lost interest in such compliments. He also didn't mind hitting women. When Lan Suting first met Zhu Wen, she was beaten by him for her outspokenness.

"No need... Although my younger sister is also your daughter, she is nice to me. She probably just can't speak like you." Tian Jun also whispered in my ear.

"You're such a good-hearted idiot. I could only hear her provoking you. Well, there's no point in beating up a kid."

"What are you guys talking about outside the door? Our daughter who has been away from home for almost five years is back, but you don't even welcome her in quickly. Is this how the Wei Bo Tian family treats guests?" Zhu Wen said with a burning gaze.

Mrs. Tian slapped her forehead and said, "Oh my! Look at me, I'm so stupid! I'm so happy that I've forgotten my manners."

She had the same clever and ingratiating look as her second son, and waved her hand to lead the way: "Mr. Zhu, come in quickly. Be careful with the doorstep, don't bump into it."

A group of neighbors stood outside, looking at the show and talking in low voices.

Though the Tian family of Weizhou had fallen on hard times, their fourth sister, Tian Jun, was a renowned beauty in Weizhou City. Many of the neighbors' sons had come to seek marriage, only to be beaten out of Tian Jun's brilliance. After disappearing for over four years, the fourth sister reappeared, bringing with her a distinguished and wealthy young man—a truly impressive sum, having spent three thousand strings of cash on a house just outside the city.

Is this a sign of immense wealth or disaster for the Tian family? Everyone imagines there will be plenty of excitement to watch.

The walls to either side of the Tian family's house were already packed with people, their ears pressed against the walls to eavesdrop. So much so that the two neighbors said they would charge a fee if anyone else tried to come in.

Someone even brought a ladder and tried to peek over the wall, but Mrs. Tian picked up a stone and smashed it down on him, causing him to fall with a bleeding head.

But the Tian family really has no way to deal with those who don’t climb over the wall. That is their neighbor’s house, so how can the Tian family interfere?
Land in Weizhou was extremely expensive, and the Tian family's modest house housed over 30 people, including two or three servants. Their three sons, all married, had no money to move out and buy property.

As the saying goes, a poor man is good at literature, but a rich man is good at martial arts. If Tian Jun had not followed his grandfather in the army since he was a child, he would have never had the chance to learn martial arts.

Tian Jun's father was a captain in the Yabing, in charge of fifty people, with a monthly salary of five strings of cash. It was not easy to support such a large family.

Fortunately, Tian Jun's three brothers all had vacancies in the army and received a monthly salary. They would have to save up money for a long time before they could bully Tian Xiang and vent their anger at the family's decline in social status.

If it weren't for Tian Hongzheng's group seizing power, currying favor with the court, and making the Heshuo land donation, they should have been born with a silver spoon in their mouths. How could they have ended up like this today?
Even Tian Jun herself had this idea at the beginning.

People cannot transcend the cognitive limitations of their current position, and every family has its own problems.

But this was not a reason for Zhu Wen to let Tian Jun's brothers go.

He rubbed his fists silently in his sleeves, thinking about how much strength to use, because he had told Tian Jun that he would not beat her brothers to death.

Of course, it would be better to wait until her father, Captain Tian, ​​returns.

"Where is Junmei's mother?" Zhu Wen saw that this group of people were really stupid and stubborn, so he could only speak for himself.

"Her...sister is not feeling well. I'll ask her to come out right away." Mrs. Tian immediately nodded and bowed.

The maid quickly helped a middle-aged woman into the hall. She had fair skin and wore a linen skirt. Her face was full of wrinkles, making her look even older than Mrs. Tian, ​​but her tall nose still faintly revealed the color of her youth.

Long Shuang was once a maidservant to a general in the Weizhou army. When Tian Jun's father was young, he had ingratiated himself with his superiors and secured this beautiful maidservant as a concubine. Neighbors even speculated that Tian Jun's third brother might not be of their family.

The surname Longshuang was also the official surname of the Yanqi Kingdom in the Western Regions. However, for the Tang people, it was natural for the Western Regions' barbarians to become slaves, maids, prostitutes, and concubines in the Tang Dynasty. Princesses from the fallen Persian and White-robed Arab kingdoms, two sworn enemies, were now prostituting themselves in the largest brothel in Chang'an. What did the tiny Yanqi Kingdom stand in for?
Although Tian Jun was as straightforward as a man, tears welled up in her eyes when she saw her mother. She rushed over and hugged her tightly: "Mother, you have missed me so much these past few years..."

"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back." Long Shuang stroked her daughter's back. There was no blame in her eyes, only a mother's pity for her beloved daughter.

Of course, she also knew her daughter's difficulties.

Zhu Wen looked at this touching scene and suddenly remembered that Tian Jun's maternal family was the Longshuang clan of the Yanqi royal family. This family was also referred to as the Long clan, and was called the "Long family" in Liangzhou. It seemed that she was not completely unrelated to the title "Qinglong".

(End of this chapter)