In the autumn and August of the 23rd year of Kangxi, in Xintai County, Shandong, it has been raining for more than half a month, and it is very annoying. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info

Yang Fang, the magistrate of the county, stood in the corridor outside the hall of the county government, and a servant beside him held a black umbrella to protect the county from the rain. The emu suit on Yang Fang's body swished in the strong wind, and it looked like it had been completely wet by the rain, but Yang Zhixian didn't notice it. At this time, Yang Fang looked at the sky covered with black clouds, and her eyebrows were twisted into a pimple.

The servant's name is Yang Lu, he is nearly forty years old, he leaned the black umbrella towards Yang Fang as much as possible, "Master, let's go into the house and wait, the weather is so cold, you have stood for so long, you will catch a cold." ”

At this time, another cold wind blew, and several drops of autumn rain fell on Yang Fang's face, and his face twitched subconsciously. Yang Fang sighed and glanced back at Yang Lu, "Do you think the rain will stop tonight?"

"Master, whether the rain will stop or not, the sky has changed. Yang Lu wiped the rain from his face.

"I know, it's just that I'm not a saint, I still can't let go, and there is still hope in my heart, even if it's slim. ”

Yang Lu didn't say anything anymore and lowered his head. Yang Fang looked up at the black clouds in the sky again, the master and servant had been standing like this, not knowing what they were waiting for.

Ninety miles to the west of Xintai County is Culai Mountain, Culai Mountain is known as the sister mountain of Mount Tai, located in the southeast of Mount Tai fifty miles, although it is not as famous as Mount Tai, but its poetry and painting of Zhuxi Liuyi and the long literary style of Culai Academy make Culai Mountain become the retreat of countless sages, of course, it also includes a lot of idlers. The rain was still falling, the air was even colder, and the Helian Villa on the top of the hill seemed unusually quiet at night, nay, silence, for anyone could see that it smelled of death. Helian Villa is not big, and it is not a mountain villa to say that it is a mountain villa. It is said that it is not a mountain villa, it has only a two-story courtyard, a dozen houses, none of which can be called magnificent and magnificent, and it is said that it is a mountain villa because it is on the top of Culai Mountain. In the center of the courtyard on the first floor is the reception hall, sitting north and facing south, the hall has no plaque, the door is open, and the cold wind keeps pouring in from the door. In the middle of the hall, there is a central hall hanging on the north wall, with four big characters written on it: quiet and inactive. There is a black lacquer Taishi chair under the middle hall, and there is a person sitting on the Taishi chair, a middle-aged man. He was dressed in a black robe, with a shawl on his head, but pinned to a black black gold hairpin. The man held the armrest in his left hand and his head in his right hand, his face was expressionless, his eyes were slightly closed, and he seemed to be asleep. There is a table of eight immortals in the middle of the room, and there is a tung oil lamp on the same black tabletop, and the outside of the lamp is covered with a white cover, and the flame of the wick burns very strongly, not affected by the cold wind outside the house, and the brilliance of the flame keeps swaying on the face of the middle-aged man. The light in the room is not bright, but you can still see the surrounding objects. The interior of this room is simply furnished, except for a table of eight immortals and a few Taishi chairs, there are only eight black lacquered pillars left in the house.

At some point, there was the sound of rustling footsteps outside the house, stepping on the rain, unhurried, walking towards the hall. Four big umbrellas, black umbrellas, are also black people. Four middle-aged men, about forty years old, walked into the main hall, and they gently put away their umbrellas and placed them on the left and right sides behind the door.

The four of them walked up to the Taishi chair in the middle, and at the same time said, "Big brother." ”

The middle-aged man on the Taishi's chair sat up straight and opened his eyes: "You guys are here." The middle-aged man had calm eyes and a flat tone, but he was not enthusiastic and did not mean to give up his seat.

One of the middle-aged men standing opened his mouth and said, "Big brother, Emperor Kangxi has sent Shi Lang to lead the army to defeat Liu Guoxuan's army in Penghu, and Duke Haicheng has been defeated and surrendered. ”

The middle-aged man on the Taishi's chair was still silent.

Another middle-aged man cleared his voice and said softly: "Big brother, if it is decided today, the four seas will be peaceful, and Lord Kangxi will issue an edict, and all the people of the Ming Dynasty who return to the Qing Dynasty will not be held accountable." ”

The middle-aged man on the Taishi's chair still didn't make any sound. “

Lord Kabula, the Minister of the Guard, said, "As long as you hand over the dog's tooth talisman, you will be able to accept the post of capital of Taean Province immediately." ”

There was silence again, and the air in the hall seemed to freeze.

The third man clenched his sleeves, the muscles on his face trembled a little, and said: "Big brother, even if you don't want to work for the Qing court, you can let go of the mountains and forests, for the sake of your sister-in-law and two nephews, after all, the dog tooth charm is something outside the body, don't fight with the court anymore, otherwise your whole family will not be able to protect it." If you insist on doing so, you will surely die without a place to be buried. ”

"So what. The middle-aged man on the Taishi chair finally spoke, his voice was not loud, and his tone was calm, "Although I, Helian Qingtian, can't talk about standing up to the sky, I can also be called loyal and patriotic. Although the first emperor has long since passed away, the soul of the nation is still in my chest. My father, Helian Boming, once said to me on his deathbed: 'My grandfather defended Jiangyin with Yan Dianshi's resistance to the Qing Dynasty, and there was no food and grass in it, and there were no rescuers outside. In the face of 240,000 Qing troops, they held on to 81 days. When the city was broken, Shi Gongning would rather die than fall, the blood was boiling and serving, and his knees were especially bent. My grandfather was killed by more than 100 knives in the body of Baodian Shigong, and died of blood, especially before he died, he shouted "Why be afraid of death, shave your head and don't think about it". The men of my Helian family can steal and rob, and women can sell and dirty, but they must not be lowered. Even if there is only one person left in the Helian family, he cannot be a dog or a slave for the Qing court. After Helian Qingtian finished speaking, as if he had exhausted all his life's strength, he slowly closed his eyes, and two lines of hot tears flowed down his cheeks.

There was silence again, and the middle-aged man who was closest to the door finally spoke: "Big brother, the four of us are all burdened with a sea of blood and hatred, which one doesn't want to oppose the Qing Dynasty and restore the Ming Dynasty, drive out the Tartars, and restore China." But look at the fact that the people are now subdued, the people are tired of war, and there is really no hope of regaining sight, and if we insist on it, we will only die in vain. The change of the imperial court, the mourning is everywhere, the blood is flowing like a river, and the corpses are million, we can't get it back, but we can't let it continue. The common people have finally lived a peaceful life, do we have to lead them into the endless abyss of the sea of blood?"

"Fifth brother, you are talented and resourceful, I can't talk about you. Even if I can't see the day when I regain my sight, I still can't hand over the Dog's Tooth Talisman, and I can't lower the Qing. I believe that my children and grandchildren will see the day when the Qing Dynasty will fall, and I will let him hand over the canine talisman to the true Son of Heaven. ”

The hall fell silent again, and the middle-aged man who had spoken for a long time spoke: "Lord Kabula has sent troops to surround the Wandering Mountain, if you don't hand over the Dogtooth Talisman, he will not give up, and this time it is Lord Nalan Xingde who is leading the troops at the bottom of the mountain, eldest brother!" This person knelt down on both knees, and the other three also knelt down at the same time, "You will definitely not be able to leave this time, if your sister-in-law and two nephews die, what is the use of the Dogtooth Talisman! My brothers and I have sworn that we cannot live together, but we want to die together." Big brother, please. ”

Helian Qingtian looked at the four people kneeling on the ground, and said resolutely: "Then I will kill Nalan Xingde and then go down the mountain." ”

"I've arrived, I don't know if you can kill me?" A crisp voice sounded in the courtyard, and at this time, a group of officers and soldiers outside the courtyard surrounded the villa, each sword out of its sheath, bow in hand, and the arrow aimed at the main hall in the courtyard.

At some point, more than a dozen guards walked into the courtyard, all of whom wore hats and robes. At the head was a young man under thirty years of age, with a handsome face and a flowing demeanor. "Master Helian Zhuang, I know that you are strong in martial arts, and you are known as 'the first person under the sky'. But no matter how powerful you are, can you withstand the strong attack of more than 2,000 officers and soldiers of the Celestial Empire? Nalan Xingde's bright eyes stared at Helian Qingtian in the middle of the hall, "I really don't understand, the former Ming Dynasty died at the hands of the thief Li Zicheng, I entered the Qing Dynasty and eradicated the demons for the former Ming Emperor, why the owner of Helian Zhuang hated my Qing Empire so much, this official is really puzzled." ”

Helian Qingtian gently stroked the long hair on his forehead, and snorted coldly: "I have heard for a long time that Helian is outstanding, and when I saw it today, I found that the shamelessness under my feet was even more unbeatable in the world." Although Emperor Chongzhen died at the hands of Li Zicheng, if there was no Jurchen aggression and harassment, how could Inspector Yuan die, how could I be shaken by Li Zicheng. After the Qing army entered the customs, they killed all the royal family and abused all the people of the Ming Dynasty. What's more, it is ridiculous and shameful to ask my Ming people to shave into the ghost appearance of Jurchens. ”

Nalan Xingde was not angry, and still said calmly and slowly: "There are virtuous people in the world, and those who are not virtuous are lost." When the court changes, there will inevitably be killing, the Ming Dynasty officialdom is mediocre, and the emperor is rigid. The war between the Ming army and the thieves lasted for decades, which can be described as thousands of miles of bloodshed and mountains of bones. After I entered the customs in the Qing Dynasty, I treated the Han people well, and all taxes were canceled at the end of the Ming Dynasty. And the shaving order is just a change of customs, did not insult Confucius and Meng, although the former Zhao Wuling King Hu Fu cavalry was criticized at the time, but later generations praised its majestic strategy. Although you are famous for your martial arts, you don't understand current affairs, you don't know the people's livelihood, and you vainly try to change the world with the power of one person, and go against the trend. Do you still think that the blood of the land of China has not been shed enough and the people are not bitter enough? Now that the Qing Dynasty has risen to peace and the people are happy to work, you do not want to serve the imperial court, the people share their worries, and you just want to disturb this piece of pure heaven, but you are really a sinner of the people, and you want to call yourself a national hero and laugh at the people of the world. ”

Nalan Xingde's face did not smile, but stared at Helian Qingtian's face.

Helian Qingtian still had no expression on his face, but said lightly: "Nalan is talented, I can't compare, and I can't say it." I'm a martial artist and don't read much, but I've also studied one or two poems. I remember my mother once taught me a poem like this: 'Hardships and hardships come to an end, and there are few stars around you.' The mountains and rivers are broken and the wind is fluttering, and the life experience is ups and downs. The panicked beachhead said panic, and the zero ding sighed in the ocean. Since ancient times, no one has died, leaving Dan to take care of his sweat. I don't dare to say whether the current people are willing to become lackeys of the Qing court, but I think if everyone bows their heads when they see the tough ones and tramples on the weak ones when they see them, there will be no legends and legends in this world. Although I dare not call myself a hero, I dare to say that I am not afraid of death and greed for life. Helian Mountain Villa can be destroyed, Helian family can die, and I, Helian Qingtian, will never descend to the dog of the Qing court. No matter how talented Helian is, in front of Emperor Kangxi, he is just a minion. I am a minister of the Ming Dynasty, even if I respect the king, I am ashamed to call myself a slave. ”

Nalan Xingde's face was a little gloomy, and he began to get angry, but he couldn't refute it. Because in the Qing court, and even in various mansions, subordinates are slaves, no different from dogs. In the eyes of the emperor, courtiers are no different from dogs. Although Han Chen saw the emperor of the Qing Dynasty, he did not call himself a slave, but his status was not as good as that of the Manchu ministers who claimed to be slaves. Nalan Xingde is a slave, but his temperament is very arrogant, even if Emperor Kangxi asks, he has never been called a slave. Therefore, Helian Qingtian's words were also unwilling, but he still couldn't refute them.

After pausing for a while, Nalan Xingde said: "Helian Qingtian, let me ask you, whether you can hand over the canine tooth talisman." Deliver, I'll leave when I turn around, if you don't pay, you only have a dead end. ”

Helian Qingtian finally had a smile on his face: "I want to see if I live or die in the end, in the whole world, I really haven't met anyone who can let me die so far." ”

Nalan Xingde gently raised his right hand, and squeezed out a word between his teeth: "Kill".

More than 30 officers and soldiers rushed in from outside the courtyard, all of them crossbowmen. Nalan Xingde and the guards around him took a few steps back to make room. At this time, bows and arrows were fired in unison, shooting towards Helian Qingtian in the middle of the room, and the four middle-aged people kneeling in front of the Taishi's chair were still kneeling and did not move. Strange to say, Helian Qingtian didn't move a bit, and dozens of black gold wolf tooth arrows landed one after another.

Nalan Xingde was taken aback, he knew that Helian Qingtian had outstanding martial arts, and at the age of twenty, he had defeated the top ten masters of the Qing court, and he didn't know where his martial arts came from, and he didn't even know the name of kung fu. He imagined what it would be like to meet many times, and he laid a net for it. But today is still surprised is not small, isn't he a human being? Nalan Xingde is by no means a mediocre generation, the world knows that Nalan Xingde is well-read, scriptures, classics, poems, songs, has thousands of ancient books, Tongyin law, good calligraphy, but I don't know that Nalan Xingde has worshiped the Tibetan Baijiao Lama as a teacher since he was a child, and the thirty-six Liuyun Sword is unpredictable, and there are few opponents, otherwise Kangxi's guard commander can be whoever is not anyone. At this time, Nalan Xingde waved his hand, except for the two guards around him, the rest of the guards all took their short knives out of their sheaths, threw off their robes, and went straight to Helian Qingtian.

Helian Qingtian stretched out his hands flat, and two long swords fell from the top of the hall, the scabbards of which went straight into the bricks above the ground, and sank into half a foot, and the two long swords had already fallen into Helian Qingtian's hands. These two long swords are one long and one short, and the sword body is extremely thin. The long sword is slightly longer than the short sword, and there is a rainbow that crosses the waterfall, which is lifelike and named Silver Rainbow. The short sword is three feet long, and there are 17 snowflakes engraved on it, although it is made of steel, but there is a faint brilliance of jade, and it is called Yurong.

But I saw that a gust of wind suddenly blew in the hall, which was stronger than the cold wind outside the house. First there was the humming of the twin swords, and then the sound of metal clashing. In the blink of an eye, all the guards' knives were cut in two, and all the guards' necks were cut with a very thin blood groove. The guards' necks were bleeding profusely. They hurriedly covered their wounds with their hands, but the blood stained their hands and clothes red for a moment.