Chapter 46 2. Yang Du came to Niu Shiling alone to pay homage to Tan Sitong

Just after walking back a few steps, Ma Fuyi's groom walked towards him, leading the big white horse that Huang Xing had given him. "Mr. Yang, why don't you go in and drink?" The groom knew that Yang Du was a big shot who had just returned from Dongyang, so he hurriedly greeted him. "Brother, let me ask you something." "What's the matter?" Yang Du's polite address flattered the groom. "Tan Sitong from Liuyang, do you know?" "I know, I know." The groom laughed.He felt that Yang Du underestimated him a little, so he started talking endlessly, "Mr. Yang is talking about Mr. Tan San, how can I not know! Although I am from Liling, I am actually a close neighbor to his old man. He is I am from Niushiling, Nanxiang, Liuyang. My family is in Liyuchong, Beixiang, Liling. It is less than ten miles away from his mansion. His body was transported back to his hometown after he was murdered in Beijing, and he was buried in Niushiling. I even kowtowed on the grave Too much!"

Tan Sitong was only 33 years old when he died, and even if he is still alive, he is still less than 40 years old, and this groom is at least 50 years old, but he keeps claiming that someone ten years younger than him is an old man.Just by this title, one can tell the status of Tan Sitong in his heart. "Old brother, is Nanxiang Niu Shiling far from here?" "It's not too far. Thirty or forty miles. If you take a small road, it will be closer. Mr. Yang, do you want to go and have a look?" "Is Tan Sitong's tomb easy to find?" "It's easy to find, easy to find! When we arrive at Niu Shiling, any cow herding child will know where the tomb of Mr. Tan San is. Someday you go, I'll accompany you!" The groom was very enthusiastic.

"I'm going now." Yang Du looked up at the sun. He estimated that it was only two o'clock now, and it would take ten hours to walk seventy or eighty miles to and fro. "Old brother, please tell Da Longtou, I won't be back until midnight." "Are you going on foot?" The groom was surprised, and thought to himself: Don't look at this gentleman, he really can endure hardship.He raised the rein in Yang's hand and asked, "Mr. Yang, can you ride a horse?" "Yes." As early as in Guide Town, Yang Du had learned the skill of riding from his uncle. Although he hadn't ridden for ten years, he believed that he would still be familiar with it.

Hearing that Yang Du could ride a horse, the groom respected him even more, handed over the rein casually, and said, "Mr. Yang, you can go and ride the horse named Dalongtou. This horse is still tame. The one you just fed I don’t know what to eat today. I’ll ride it, and I can come back for supper.” Yang Du took the reins and asked, "How?" "Just walk along this stone road, and you will see a mountain like a knife splitting, that is Niu Shiling." The groom pointed to the front. Yang Du thanked the groom and jumped onto the big white horse.Sure enough, the big white horse was tame, carrying strangers on its back, and walked forward unhurriedly on the ancient bluestone slabs.

It's been a long time since I rode a horse. Sitting on this tall and strong white dragon horse, looking at the quiet and desolate wilderness, Yang Du felt a sense of pride in his chest. He clamped the horse's belly between his legs, and slapped the horse's buttocks with his left hand. , the horse immediately raised its four hooves and galloped, and there was a rapid and crisp sound of hooves on the bluestone board.With the whistling of the wind in his ears, and the fleet of farmhouses in front of his eyes, since leaving Guide Town, Yang Du seems to have seldom been so comfortable.

A stone peak appeared far ahead.The peak stands thousands of feet high, as if the gods split it with an axe. A few stubborn pine trees grow from the crevices of the brown rocks, adding a bit of vitality to the rising rocks.There is a small river two or three feet wide under the stone wall. In autumn, the mountains and rivers dry up, and there is only a narrow flowing water in the river.The silver-white fine sand beside the water glistens under the sunlight, and a few egrets with slender feet and long necks wander leisurely on the sandy shore.Yang Du saw it in his eyes and praised it in his heart: it is really a good place full of poetic and picturesque flavor, and the place is outstanding, no wonder Tan Sitong came out here!

Yang Du was about to dismount to ask for directions, when he suddenly heard a conversation between two people behind the horse: "I heard that the third sister-in-law came to sacrifice her husband, and she fainted from crying." "Poor thing, it's been six years! When the third son was killed in the year of 1898, it was just two days before the Mid-Autumn Festival." "Do you come to sacrifice every Mid-Autumn Festival?" "It has been five Mid-Autumn Festivals since the third son was buried, and every year I bring four-color mooncakes to pay homage to his old man."

Yang Du turned his head and saw two men dressed as scholars in their thirties walking and talking, each holding a bamboo basket with some money paper, incense sticks and moon cakes in it.Knowing that they were also going to Tan Sitong's tomb, he purposely tightened the reins to make the horse go slower.After a while, two scholars walked to the front, and Yang Du followed behind them.After walking two or three miles, the scholar turned right.It was a path full of weeds, and it was inconvenient to ride a horse, so he got off his horse and led it. Not long after walking along the path, a tall and large mound suddenly appeared in front of my eyes.There are about ten or twenty people in front of the mound, busy there quietly, or burning paper and lighting incense, or setting dishes and bowls, or kneeling and kowtowing, or standing silently.The two scholars also stopped in front of the mound, and Yang Du knew that this mound must be Tan Sitong's tomb.He tied his horse to the trunk of a larger pine tree, and walked slowly towards the tomb with a feeling of reverence.

In front of the tomb is a rough stone tablet, engraved with nine big characters in official script: Tomb of Mr. Tan Gongji Sitong.Next to the tombstone is another stone tablet.This stone tablet is as tall as a person. It is made of a piece of milky white marble with a smooth surface and exquisite carvings around it. Two lines of regular script are engraved on the stone tablet: eternal, the vastness of the stone stands up to the sky and the earth; .There is a line of small characters on the lower left: Liuyang Layman Song Jianyuan Jingli. Yang Dumo stood in front of Tan Sitong's tomb, thinking about it.He recalled the scene when he met Tan Sitong for the first time in Changsha Current Affairs School, watched his expression, listened to his conversation, and met him for a short time, and he decided that this well-known Mr. Tan was a very righteous and strong man, especially It was that sonorous and powerful oath that has been lingering in my heart for six years, and it seems that I have not forgotten it for a moment.At the reunion in the capital, Tan Sitong brought Xu Renzhu's extraordinary letter from home.The speech at Xu Zhijing's house is both strong and sad. Could it be that he has seen the shadow on the future?For the implementation of the New Deal, Tan Sitong conspired, ran and shouted, and faced ten times and a hundred times the old forces, he was not afraid, did not give in an inch, and finally composed a moving movement with his life.

Thinking of this, Yang Du bowed reverently to the tomb.The two scholars beside them were tearing up and burning the paper money they brought, and they said softly: "Third son, your old man died bravely for the sake of the country and the people, and died of injustice. You are already a god. Your spirit is immortal, and your heroic spirit will never leave. Please accept a little thought from the younger generation. You old man can rest in peace, and someone will inherit the career of the 1898 year!" "There will always be someone to inherit the career of the 1898 Years." The unintentional words of the two scholars deeply shocked Yang Du who was standing aside.Yes, I, as well as Liang Qichao, Cai E, and Fan Yuanlian, aren't they all inheriting the unfinished business of the 1898 year?Huang Xing, Liu Kuiyi, Ma Fuyi and others wanted to rebel to overthrow the Manchu court and establish a Han regime.People with lofty ideals from eighteen provinces and passionate people studying abroad can be said to be the successors of the cause of the Eighteenth Century.

The pride of serving the country and dedicating himself surged in Yang Du's heart again.He wants to burn three sticks of incense to the heroic soul to express the respect of an old friend and a deceased person.But when he came in a hurry, he didn't bring anything. He looked around and saw a small hut nearby, and a man came out of the hut, holding a joss stick in his hand.There must be offerings for sale there!Yang Du hurried to the side of the thatched hut, there was indeed some money paper thread incense candles on an old table in the room, and an old man with white beard and hair sat blankly beside him. "Old man, I'll buy a bunch of incense sticks and four candles." Yang Du said to the old man while taking money out of his pocket. "Master, from your accent, it doesn't look like someone from Liuyang." The old man narrowed his eyes and looked at Yang Du. "I'm not from Liuyang, I'm from Xiangtan." "Who are you from the third son, you came so far to pay homage to his grave?" The old man took out a bunch of incense sticks while speaking. "I'm his good friend. I worked with him in Beijing in the year of 1898." Yang Du took the incense stick from the old man. "Oh, you are also in Beijing in the year of 1898?" The old man regained his energy and looked Yang Du up and down again: "Your name, young master?" "My name is Yang Du, and my name is Xizi." "Oh, you are Mr. Xizi! The third son often mentioned you when he was alive." The old man became very enthusiastic, stood up and gave up his seat, and slapped his forehead and said, "Since the third son was righteous, my brain has been completely numb. Young master Yang has been here Several times in Liuyang Guild Hall, I didn't recognize you, it's really useless!" "Old man, have you lived in Beijing before?" Yang Du sat down and asked. "I'm Liu Fengchi, the elder squad leader of Liuyang Guild Hall!" There was a light in the old man's dry eyes. "Oh, you are the second father Liu!" Yang Du held the old man's hand with both hands, feeling quite excited. Yang Du has been to Liuyang Guild Hall several times, but he has never paid attention to the elder class who guards the Guild Hall, so he does not know each other when they meet each other.However, when they reunited in the cemetery today, he was in awe of this dull old man. It turned out that after Tan Sitong was murdered that year, his decapitated body lay at the entrance of the vegetable market for two whole days without anyone asking.Tan's father was a governor and had worked in Beijing for many years. He had many relatives and friends, but they were afraid of being implicated and dared not go.Tan's comrades all fled away for refuge.A poor generation of outstanding people is so violently killed in the execution ground.It was mid-August at that time, and the weather was still hot. Seeing that the body was about to rot, Liu Fengchi, who had always admired Tan Sitong as a man, felt both sad and angry.He stepped forward and rushed to the execution ground, took out a few taels of silver to give to the corpse watcher, and said: "I am the gatekeeper of Liuyang Guild Hall. I don't know whether what Tan Sitong did was right or wrong during his lifetime, and I have never participated in it." , but at most he is only guilty of beheading, not rotting corpse. I will collect and bury his corpse, and if the court asks, you will say that I, Liu Fengchi, did it. Beheading and sitting in prison, my second father Liu will be responsible for it all!" The corpse watcher was moved by his loyalty and gave him the corpse without reporting it to the police.Liu Fengchi took out all his savings of decades, bought a high-quality coffin for Tan Sitong, and asked someone to sew Tan Sitong's head to his neck with cotton thread, and then hired a mule cart to transport the coffin to the coffin. He returned to Liuyang and was buried in Niu Shiling.The deeds of righteous servant Liu Fengchi spread all over the country, Yang Du had already heard about it, how could he not be excited to meet here today? "Er Father Liu, have you been selling sacrifices here all these days?" "After the third son was buried, I built a hut here to live. I have no children and no daughters alone, and I live everywhere. It would be better to stay with the third son here. The third lady has made up her mind when she sees me. They provide me with food throughout the year. These sacrifices were also bought by the third wife and placed here, and when someone came to pay homage, they gave them away, and did not sell them for money." "Oh!" Yang Du nodded lightly, and asked, "Are there many people who came to offer sacrifices to the third son?" Father Liu lowered his white beard and said: "In the first two years, no one dared to come to sacrifice during the day, but only came at night, secretly crying a few words to the grave. In the year of Xin Chou, Cixi returned to Beijing. After ordering the reform, the wind direction changed. Gradually, more and more people came to offer sacrifices to the tomb. For three years, people came almost every day, and more people came around Qingming, Zhongyuan, and Mid-Autumn Festival. The land is getting bigger and bigger. The third son deserves to die, and the people of the country will never forget him!" The old man's eyes were filled with tears, he took a breath, and continued: "It's especially strange that the sky turns cloudy in the afternoon of August 13th every year. It's still sunny in the morning. , Watching the dark clouds come up, covering the whole Niu Shiling tightly. Young master Yang, August 13th is not the end of Shenchu, it is the time when the third son was killed. God has eyes, remember Zhongliang , Every year at this time, I feel sad!" Liu Er's father's face was full of old tears, and Yang Du's heart was also very sad. "Second Father Liu, the third son's tomb should be repaired. The top of the tomb should be paved with stones to prevent it from being washed by the rain. I wonder if the third lady has this arrangement?" "In the past two years, many people who came to pay homage have said so, and some even donated money voluntarily. The third lady was also moved. I advised the third lady not to repair it for the time being." The old man wiped his tears with his sleeve. "Why don't you fix it now?" Yang Du felt strange. "Master Yang, think about it, who killed the third young master?" Second Father Liu lowered his voice. "It's the old witch Cixi. She is seventy years old this year, how many years can she live? Once the old witch dies and the emperor takes power, the six gentlemen will be rehabilitated. At that time, the emperor will order the governor of Hunan to come to Niushi Ridge Ritual Sacrifice, we can grandly build the mausoleum for the third son according to the imperial decree. Not only will stones be laid on the top, but also a temple and hall will be built, and stone men and stone horses will be erected for the third son. So I advise the third lady not to move for now. It won't be long before that day comes!" "The old man is right!" Yang Du admired the foresight of the elder class. "At that time, all the elegiac poems and elegiac couplets of celebrities from all over the world will be pasted up and hung in temples for future generations to watch and emulate." After all, people who have lived in the capital have a wider vision than people in the valley.Yang Du praised in his heart. "Master Yang, I still have a rare elegiac couplet here." The old man stood up, took out a roll of paper wrapped in oiled paper from a black and old wooden box, opened it and said, "This is the year of the Tang Dynasty. It was left when Mister came to pay homage." When Yang Du read it, Tang Caichang's elegiac couplet wrote: "Okay, well written!" After reading it once, Yang Du praised, "Mr. Fochen has also passed away. You, old man, should keep this leftover ink well, and you will deserve a lot of credit in the future." Father Liu sighed: "This Mr. Tang Caichang is also a good man, but it's a pity that he died unjustly!" After hearing the words about rebuilding the mausoleum just now, Yang Du changed his view of the previously dull Liuyang Guild Hall Elder Ban.He respectfully asked this unusual old man: "Old man, why do you say that he died unjustly?" "Master Yang, Mr. Tang Caichang's self-reliant army, do you know why it failed?" "I don't know." Yang Du shook his head. "They kicked it out by themselves." Liu Erpai said angrily, "The main figures in the self-supporting army are all members of the party. Before things are done, they will fight for power and profit among themselves, and the party that suffers will report Officer. And just like that, the whole plan was exposed." "Oh!" Yang Du was quite surprised. "The people in the party are all bandits. How can they achieve great things, but Mr. Tang Caichang believes in them, isn't it an unjust death?" Yang Du was silent.The scene of conferring titles in Xia's ancestral hall at noon came to mind again, and he couldn't help but gasp. Will Huang Xing and Liu Kui make the same mistakes as Tang Caichang? "Young Master Yang!" Yang Du was thinking wildly when he saw Da Kong rushing in suddenly, his expression a little flustered. "Is something wrong?" Yang Du quickly stood up. "Let's go, Mr. Huang and Ma Dalongtou have left Puji City." "Why?" Yang Du was very surprised. "Let's go, I will tell you slowly tonight." Yang Du asked Second Father Liu to burn Sanzhu incense and four candles for Tan Sitong on his behalf, then bid farewell and left the hut.Da Kong also came on a horse, so the two got on the horse and left Niu Shiling. Along the way, Da Kong told Yang Du that when he was having lunch at noon, the patrol leader came to report that a dozen or so Liuyang County Yamen disguised in plain clothes appeared nearby. It seemed that the government had paid attention to today's gathering.After discussing with Ma Fuyi, Huang Xing and Ma Fuyi immediately made a decision, except for the ten leading chief halls who were appointed junior ranks, everyone else would leave Puji City and go back.The people left behind were transferred to another secret place led by Ma Fuyi to continue to discuss the action plan. Huang Xing and Liu Kuiyi also went with them, and specially entrusted Dakong to go to Niu Shiling to inform Yang Du.Yang Du remembered what Liu's father said just now, that the awarding meeting was transferred halfway through, which is not a good sign, so he decided not to go to Huang Xing and the others with Da Kong tomorrow. When it was dark, they borrowed a farmhouse to live in.That night, Da Kong and Yang Du talked for most of the night.Dakong talked about the affairs of Jianghu, and Yang Du talked about the affairs of Japan, and they both talked very happily.The next day, Yang Du returned to Xiangtan via Changsha by boat, while Da Kong went to look for Huang Xing and Ma Fuyi.