It was late, and looking out from the solemn and majestic Tianji Palace, the red clouds were gradually dissipating, and there was no wind to be felt in the air. Search: \(\"Complete Book Divine Station\") to read high-quality literature for free. Located in the central plains, the crucial center of power, every rise and fall of power has a similar atmosphere.

Tiger King spoke slowly, instructing Minister Hu Ying a few words. After a moment of silence, he said again, "For this matter, I have even imprisoned Lou Qing..." His tone was not light.

Hu Ying bowed, stepped forward, and said, "Lou Shuwan is not trustworthy."

"After all, she has the grudge of killing her father against the inner demon."

"However, Lou Shuwan was also the first to get involved with that demon. When it comes to this important matter, what can't she endure for the sake of her father's hatred? Moreover, judging from Lou Shuwan's usual temperament... she is highly suspicious."

Tian Hu was silent for a moment: "...I know what I'm doing."

After this conversation, Tian Hu waved his hand, and Hu Ying excused himself and left, all the way out of the Tianji Palace. At this time, the streets of Weisheng City were teeming with people. The Tianji Palace was built against the mountain, and from the window, one could see the outline of the city and the rolling mountains in the distance. After more than ten years of management, when the man in the center of power looked into the distance, there were also things belonging to various people happening in the unseen places of Weisheng City.

Tian Lao (Heavenly Prison).

In any regime at this time, a place with such a name is a dark abyss hidden in the center of power but unable to bring pleasure. The Great Jin regime rose from the rebellion of bandits, and the initial laws were chaotic. All kinds of struggles depended only on scheming and strength. Its prisons were also full of countless dark and bloody pasts. Even at this time, the name of the Great Jin was better than average, and the framework of order still had not been successfully built. The Tian Lao, located in the east of the city, was still, in a sense, a Shura hell that could stop children from crying at night.

In the oppressive and rancid atmosphere, screams occasionally sounded from a distance, faintly echoing in the prison. In the deepest part of the prison were the residences of some important figures. At this time, in a simple cell in the deepest part, a woman in gray was sitting upright on the simple, straw-covered bed. She was thin, her ten slender fingers were resting on her knees, and although her face looked pale after several days without sunlight, her eyes were still calm and indifferent, only her lips were tightly pursed, appearing slightly strained.

This woman named Lou Shuwan was once the biggest anomaly in the Great Jin power system. As a woman, she gained the trust of the Tiger King and supported half of the entire force in the internal affairs management of the Great Jin.

She was ruthless, strictly managed her subordinates, handled official affairs impartially in the court, and never gave anyone face. During the Jin people's repeated southern expeditions, the Central Plains were chaotic, and the people's livelihood was withered. Moreover, in the Great Jin regime, there were a large number of people who believed in hedonism and demanded privileges as relatives of the emperor. With the support of the Tiger King, she stubbornly defended the cultivation and commercial systems of several important prefectures and counties, so that these places could transfuse blood to the entire Tiger King regime. Within a few years, she reached the highest position in the Tiger King regime.

Now, some call her "Female Prime Minister," while others privately scold her "Black Widow." In order to maintain the normal operation of the prefectures and counties under her command, she also personally came forward several times to eradicate troublemakers, troublemakers, and even the forces behind them in the prefectures and counties with bloody and fierce means. In the mouths of some people in the folk, she once had the reputation of "Female Qingtian" (upright official). But now, all of this has become illusory.

In the dim dungeon, voices and footsteps quickly approached. Before long, the light of torches spread from the corner of the passage along with the sound. Leading the way was Cai Ze, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice who had been dealing with Lou Shuwan recently. He brought several Tian Lao soldiers, escorting a haggard and gaunt man covered in blood, and as they walked, the man moaned and begged for mercy. The soldiers brought him to the front of the cell.

Lou Shuwan sat in the cell, coldly watching this scene.

"Lord Lou." Cai Ze cupped his hands. "See who I brought today?"

Lou Shuwan's eyes stared at the disheveled, gaunt, and haggard man for a long time: "Useless."

Cai Ze smiled: "Your elder brother said he wants to confront you."

"The Tiger King knows very well what my brother is."

Lou Shuwan's answer was cold. Cai Ze seemed unable to explain. He pursed his lips slightly and gestured to the side: "Open the door and let him in."

The person who was brought over was Lou Shuwan's elder brother, Lou Shuheng. When he was young, he was a handsome man, but in recent years, he had overindulged in wine and women, emptying his body and making him appear thin. At this time, he had obviously been tortured, with several bruises on his face and broken lips, looking extremely embarrassed. Facing his sister in the cell, Lou Shuheng was slightly timid and unwilling to be pushed in - perhaps out of guilt - but he was finally pushed into the cell. When he met Lou Shuwan's cold gaze, he timidly looked away.

Lou Shuwan stared at him for a moment, then turned her eyes to Cai Ze: "You call this torture? Lord Cai, haven't your men eaten? " Her eyes turned to the jailers: "Didn't the court give you food? You call this Tian Lao? He doesn't even need medicine!"

"Lord Lou, your brother

accuses you of having private dealings with the Black Flag Army."

"He's a waste."

"Young Master Lou, speak."

Lou Shuheng's body trembled. An officer raised the scabbard and banged it against the pillar of the cell. Lou Shuwan's eyes looked over. In the cell, Lou Shuheng suddenly cried: "They, they will beat me to death..."

Lou Shuwan showed sadness and looked at the man who was her brother. Outside the cell, Cai Ze snorted: "Young Master Lou!"

"You have an old relationship with Ning Liheng!" Lou Shuheng said this sentence, paused slightly, and then cried out, "You, just admit it..."

Lou Shuwan just looked at him, tilted her head: "Look, he's a waste..."

"You, you have an old relationship... you have collusion..."

"Waste."

"I'm not a waste!" Lou Shuheng stamped his feet and raised his red and swollen eyes. "Do you know what this place is? You're just sitting here... they will beat me to death. Do you know what the outside, the outside is like? They are hitting me, not hitting you, you, you... you are my sister, you..."

Lou Shuheng's words were choked with sobs. When he said this, he saw Lou Shuwan's figure rushing over. With a "slap," a heavy and crisp slap echoed far away, breaking Lou Shuheng's mouth, and blood and saliva flowed out.

The woman stood in front of her brother, her chest rising and falling with anger: "Waste! While I'm alive, you have a chance of survival. If I die, you will definitely die. You can't understand such a simple principle. Waste!"

"I also know..." Lou Shuheng dodged to the side, and Lou Shuwan slapped him again. This slap made him stagger back a step.

"I also know..."

"Waste."

"It's not you who's being tortured outside!" Lou Shuheng roared, his eyes red as he looked back at Cai Ze subconsciously, then turned back and said, "You, you... just admit it, you have many ways, you get me out, I am your brother! Or you ask Lord Cai to be merciful... Lord Cai, the Tiger King relies on my sister... sister, you have connections, you must still have connections, you use your connections to protect me..."

With another heavy slap, Lou Shuwan gritted her teeth, almost unable to bear it. This time, Lou Shuheng was knocked dizzy and crashed into the cell door. He woke up slightly and suddenly shouted "Ah!" He pushed towards Lou Shuwan, pushing Lou Shuwan back and falling into the corner of the cell.

"I am your brother! You hit me! Why don't you go out! You *****!" Lou Shuheng shouted almost hysterically. In these years, he had relied on his sister's power to eat, drink, gamble, and prostitute, and had done some disgusting things that were not human. Lou Shuwan had no way to think and had beaten him more than once. In those times, Lou Shuheng did not dare to resist, but now it was different after all. The pressure of prison made him explode.

"What are you pretending to be innocent and pure! Ah? What are you pretending to be selfless! You are a *****! A ***** ridden by thousands of men! How many people in the court have slept with you, tell me! I'm going to teach you a lesson today!"

Lou Shuheng cursed and rushed towards that side, reaching out to grab his sister. Lou Shuwan had already stood up, supporting the wall. Her eyes were indifferent, and she leaned against the wall and said in a low voice, "Not one." Suddenly, she stretched out her hand, grabbed the little finger of Lou Shuheng's outstretched palm, and waved it downwards with force!

Crack!

"Wah ah ah ah ah ah!"

A creepy scream echoed in the cell. Lou Shuwan's strike had directly broken her brother's little finger. The next moment, she kicked Lou Shuheng in the crotch and slapped him in the face, grabbing Lou Shuheng's hair in the screams and dragging him towards the wall of the cell. With another "bang," she smashed his forehead against the wall, causing him to bleed.

Lou Shuheng wailed on the ground, covering his crotch. Lou Shuwan kicked him a few more times and said, "Do you know why they don't torture me, but only torture you? Because you are a waste! Because I am useful! Because they are afraid of me! They are not afraid of you! You are a waste, you deserve to be tortured! You deserve it! You deserve it..."

After hitting him like this for a while, she was a woman after all. Panting, she retreated to the broken bed and sat down, looking at her brother groaning on the ground with indifferent eyes, and also with sadness. She was quiet for a long time.

"Lou Shuheng... have you forgotten what you used to be like? In Hangzhou City, with your father and brothers... you thought you were a capable person, you were high-spirited... a talented and romantic man, wherever you went with your friends, there were a large group of people. What couldn't you do? You dared to openly snatch someone else's wife... look at what you are like now. The world is in chaos! You... deserve to die, you were supposed to die, don't you understand..."

The cell was slightly dim. When she said this later, her eyes couldn't help but feel sour, but she turned her head towards the inside, not letting anyone see it. The Vice Minister Cai Ze looked at this scene and was slightly embarrassed for a moment. He waved

to the side, asked the soldiers to carry Lou Shuheng out, and made a sound: "Cough."

Lou Shuwan looked at him: "Lord Cai."

"Uh... Lord Lou, you also... cough, shouldn't beat prisoners like this..."

"The sea accepts all rivers, tolerance is great; the cliff stands tall, desirelessness is strength." Lou Shuwan spoke softly, "His Majesty values me because I am a woman. I have no family, no husband, no children, and I am not afraid of offending anyone, so I am useful."

"..." Cai Ze licked his lips.

"I haven't been executed yet, so perhaps I'm still useful." Lou Shuwan said, "My brother is a waste, and he is also my only relative and burden. If you are kind, save him, keep him alive, and I will remember your kindness."

"Uh..." Cai Ze considered his words, "...It's my duty."

"...Thank you."

The soldiers dragged Lou Shuheng out, and gradually the torches moved away, and the cell returned to darkness. Lou Shuwan sat on the bed, leaning against the wall, quite tired, but after a moment, she tried her best, tried her best to make her eyes clear...

The intersection of power, the ups and downs of millions of people, and the cruelty in it, the farce that just happened in Tian Lao could not encompass one ten-thousandth of it. Most people also cannot understand the repercussions and effects of these many things. Even the few people at the top of the circle, of course, cannot predict whether these things will subside silently or suddenly turn into huge waves.

Of course, outsiders are even more unable to understand. You Hongzhuo, a seventeen-year-old from Ze Prefecture City, has just entered this complicated Jianghu (Martial World) and does not know that he will soon experience and witness a huge, overwhelming part of the wave. At this moment, he is walking in a corner of Liang'an Inn, casually observing the situation inside.

At this time, the Liang'an Inn where the three of them were staying was neither big nor small. The living area was a courtyard with two entrances, surrounded by two-story buildings in a "日" shape. There were two large locust trees in the front and back courtyards, and the leaves were lush and green like umbrellas. There were many people living in the inn. At this time, the weather was hot, and the noise was also loud. Children were running, couples were quarreling, and chickens and ducks brought from the countryside were running around the yard chased by their owners.

You Hongzhuo was not unaccustomed to such a scene. Before, the news about Wang Shitong and the general Sun Qi leading heavy troops here was learned from the merchants talking loudly in the courtyard. At this time, there may be two or three Jianghu (Martial World) people in this inn. You Hongzhuo secretly spied and looked around, and did not easily step forward to talk.

As a young man from the countryside, he actually liked this chaotic and noisy feeling. Of course, he also had his own things to think about in his heart. It was already night, and there were lights lit up in the distance of Ze Prefecture City. After a while, Mr. Zhao came down from upstairs and patted him on the shoulder: "Did you hear what you wanted to hear?"

You Hongzhuo told him about Wang Shitong and Sun Qi. Mr. Zhao nodded with a smile: "It's no wonder. Look at the city gate. Although there is inspection, it does not prohibit the entry and exit of Green Forest people, so you know they are not afraid. If something big happens, the city will be closed, and no one will be able to leave."

He looked at You Hongzhuo and comforted him: "You don't have to worry that you won't see the excitement. So many people have come, and they will always take action. The Green Forest people have no organization and no discipline. Although the Great Bright Sect is secretly leading the way, most of the really smart people don't dare to follow them. If you encounter reckless people and those who are skilled and daring, maybe someone will rob the prison in the next few nights. If you want to see... well, you can rent a house near the prison."

Mr. Zhao took himself as a guide, thinking that the young friend regretted that there was no excitement to watch, but he did not say that he also liked to watch the excitement. After saying this, You Hongzhuo said yes, and after a moment, he frowned: "Senior Zhao, there is something in my heart that I can't figure out."

"Young man, it's a good thing to know what you can't figure out." Mr. Zhao looked around, "Let's go out for a walk. What's the matter, let's talk as we walk."

"Yeah." You Hongzhuo nodded and followed him out, saying, "When I came over this afternoon, I kept thinking about the assassin I saw at noon. The army escorting the Jin dogs were our Han people, but when the assassin attacked, the Han people actually used their bodies to block the arrows for the Jin dogs. I used to hear people say how incompetent the Han army was, and that those who surrendered to the Jin were even more afraid of death. I really can't figure out why such a thing happened..."