The First Great Ancestor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 26 Live with dignity
The Khitan troops withdrew to the north bank of the Zhang River, and the war in Cangzhou came to an end for the time being.

The soldiers and civilians in the city ignored the joy and excitement, and under the organization of the officials of the governor's office, they devoted themselves to the intense post-war reconstruction work.

The dilapidated small dwelling in Dongcheng, which survived the war, became Zhu Xiu's temporary shelter.

In the room, Ma San held up a bronze mirror, and Zhu Xiu stood in front of the mirror, arranging a semi-old but clean brown fine linen round-neck shirt, wearing a black and green knitted headdress, and a nine-handed cyan brocade iron belt around her waist.

This belt with several holes was still regarded as a treasure by Pan Mei, and she was reluctant to part with it when she gave it away.

Zhu Xiu stared blankly at the elegant and handsome young man with red lips and white teeth in the bronze mirror, sighing silently in his heart.

More than two months after he came to the troubled times of the Five Dynasties, everything he experienced was more exciting and dangerous than the combined total of more than 20 years in his previous life.

He touched his delicate and fair face and couldn't help but sigh. Under the youthful appearance, there was a heart that had gone through years of wasted life.
"From now on, I will try my best to live a decent life."

Zhu Xiu took a deep breath, straightened her scarf and dusted her sleeves. Everything she did in life was for the sake of dignity.

In this troubled world, the threshold of decency has been lowered to having food to eat, clothing to wear, and living like a human being.

Even so, tens of thousands of refugees in Cangzhou City still have nothing to eat and no clothes to cover their bodies.

Compared with the tens of thousands of corpses outside the city, being alive is also a kind of luck and dignity
Ma San's face, which was bigger and rounder than the mirror surface, appeared from behind the bronze mirror. He grinned widely and said, "Young official is the best-looking young man I have ever seen! If I go Kaifeng will surely attract those rich ladies to pursue him!"

Zhu Xiu glanced at him, pulled out a long stool and sat at the table. Ma San quickly put down the bronze mirror and diligently placed the earthen bowl to pour water.

Drinking coarse tea with a lot of impurities, Zhu Xiu pursed her lips and spit out the powder, pointing to the stool: "Don't stand, you can sit too."

"Young official, if there is no seat for a small person, just stand." Ma San stood aside respectfully.

"I don't have many rules here. Just sit down if you want! Could it be that you want me to talk to you with my neck raised?"

Ma San hesitated for a moment, then bowed and said, "Thank you, little official, for the seat."

Ma San sat down with his buttocks next to each other and his legs together in an orderly manner.

Zhu Xiuqing cleared her throat: "San, have you really thought about it clearly and want to follow me from now on?"

Ma San quickly raised three fingers: "Thanks to the little official's rescue, the villain's life was saved! The little official is a very capable man. If Thunder God comes to earth, he will definitely be rich and powerful in the future! The villain has thought clearly, and the villain is willing I swear to follow the official to the death, not only to repay the favor of saving my life, but also to find a future for myself! If the official is afraid that I am not sincere, I am willing to take this oath."

Ma San swore a poisonous oath, which made his face turn pale.

Zhu Xiu didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so she quickly stopped: "Okay, okay, I didn't say you were insincere. It's just that Director Zhao has agreed to let you continue to work in the prison, why are you still following me?"

Ma San said angrily: "The villain is working in the prison, and he is nothing more than to make a living, but when the disaster comes, he still can't escape! In this world, when there is a war, even the officials can't save their lives, let alone us. These lowly officials are no different from the death row inmates in the prison! A villain has no skills and cannot do the work of being a soldier. If you want to avoid being ruined by others, the best way out is to serve as a slave to the powerful family!"

Zhu Xiu smiled and said: "I am not a powerful person."

Ma San bent his legs and fell to his knees: "Little officials are like eagles without hair, tigers without eyes, and flying dragons without horns. In the future, they will definitely become high officials, live in big houses, and marry dozens of beautiful wives." , give birth to a bunch of boys and girls.”

"." Zhu Xiu almost spit out a mouthful of old tea. This guy is simply a flatterer!

"Hehe~ If the little official is born rich, I'm afraid he won't look down on the villain, let alone meet the villain in prison! But the little official is the apprentice of the immortal master. He has great skills and will earn a fortune in the future. Wealth and a bright future are not a problem, and villains can also benefit from it in the future!"

Ma San's big face smiled shyly, but his words were sincere.

Zhu Xiu laughed dumbly. This guy was a sensible person. He dared to bet today on tomorrow and bet on his potential stock in advance.

Zhu Xiu was a little hesitant, still a little uncomfortable with such a dependence relationship in life.But after more than two months, Zhu Xiu also deeply realized how hard and troublesome it is to have no manpower.

After all, this is an era without mobile phones and the Internet, and all things and messages must be implemented and delivered by people.

The central point where power and wealth gather, and the periphery will inevitably attract countless people who rely on power and wealth to survive. This principle remains unchanged throughout the ages.

Zhu Xiu had just solved the problem of survival and became a small marching staff officer of the Tianxiong Army.

Relying on the big tree of Tianxiongjun, Zhu Xiu did not have to worry about food and clothing, and his personal safety was also guaranteed.

These basic living conditions are already very attractive, attracting low-level people like Ma San to sacrifice their lives and become slaves.

Seeing that Zhu Xiu was silent, Ma San said anxiously: "I am willing to sign a slave contract, and I beg the officials to take me in!"

Dong Dong Dong~ Ma San choked and kowtowed heavily.

"stand up!"

Zhu Xiu quickly helped him up and sighed: "I agreed. From now on, you can follow me! There is no need to sign any slave contract. From now on, you will serve me as a retinue."

Ma San was overjoyed, and kowtowed a few more times while crying: "Ma San swears to serve a small official to the death! If you have second thoughts, I will cut off my descendants and die a good death!"

Zhu Xiu picked him up and patted his shoulder with emotion.

In Ma San's eyes, his own words of mercy were life-saving straws, and he would hold on to them even if he risked his life.

The life of the people under the war was too hard and too humble.

The door of the small courtyard opened, Zhang Yongde stepped in, and Zhu Xiu hurried out of the house to greet him.

Perhaps because Zhu Xiu looked like a human being after cleaning up, Zhang Yongde looked at him a few more times, and his cold poker face softened a lot.

"Shuai Chai orders you to go to the East Gate Tower to discuss matters."

Zhu Xiu responded and asked Ma San to stay behind to look after the house. He climbed on the gray donkey and followed Zhang Yongde.

The gray donkey had its own stubbornness and was unwilling to run faster and keep up with the horse's pace. Zhu Xiu whipped its black butt several times, and the gray donkey reluctantly sped up its hooves.

The fighting in Cangzhou City had stopped for three days, and Chai Rong finally had time to ask him to come over and talk.

As for what to talk about, Zhu Xiu knew clearly, of course it was about Black Fire Thunder.

For him, Black Fire Thunder was just a stepping stone to enter Chai Rong's sight. He had thought a lot about how to use it in the past three days.

The key to the problem now is that Liu Chengyou is still alive, and in a short period of time, Zhu Xiu doesn't think he can find a chance to kill him.

And Liu Chengyou is alive. According to historical trajectory, he is still very likely to inherit the throne next year and become the second emperor of the Liu Han Dynasty.

Only Zhu Xiu knows this secret in the world.

After offending the future master of the Central Plains, Zhu Xiu didn't think Chai Rong and Tianxiong Army could still protect him.

Therefore, he needs to find out Chai Rong's inner trajectory at the moment to decide his next move.

(End of this chapter)