Chapter 215 Righteousness
(In order to keep the characters’ personalities consistent with their original settings, I used a lot of Huang Lao’s original texts in this chapter. Please understand!)

A man and a woman stood facing each other under the moonlight.

They all have extraordinary looks, like golden boys and jade girls walking out of a painting.

These two people are Shi Feixuan and Xu Ziling.

Shi Feixuan suppressed her thoughts and said, "Ziling! You once said that if Li Shimin wanted to ascend the throne, you would persuade Kou Zhong to withdraw. For the sake of the people of the world, can Ziling take a positive attitude and fulfill Feixuan's wish?"

Xu Ziling had a thousand words to say in his heart, but when he heard these words, he calmed down instantly.

Xu Ziling shook his head dejectedly and said, "Too late! Too late! Now that Young Master Zhong has become the dominant force, he can't retreat just because he wants to. We are brothers for life, and I can't hold him back when he is about to unify the world."

Shi Feixuan said: "Kou Zhong cannot unify the world. Master has analyzed that if Kou Zhong wins, the Li Tang will collapse, and the generals who originally belonged to the Li Tang will claim to be kings and avenge the Li Tang. The northern regime will collapse, and the coalition forces outside the Great Wall will take advantage of Kou Zhong's busy cleaning up the mess to invade the south. It is very rare for Kou Zhong to hold Guanzhong and Luoyang. In this case, what will the situation in the Central Plains be like?"

Xu Ziling remained silent.

Shi Feixuan continued, "Among the outstanding figures in the north, only Li Shimin has all the conditions to make the people of the Central Plains happy. This is something Kou Zhong cannot deny. His only flaw at present is that Li Yuan did not make him the crown prince, which gave the Demon Sect an opportunity to take advantage of it and gave Jie Li a chance to fish in troubled waters. If Li Shimin ascended the throne and became emperor, all problems would be solved."

Xu Ziling still shook his head and sighed: "It's too late. If Zhong Shao doesn't give up the fight for supremacy now, how can he explain to Song Que? Even if he is willing to withdraw, Song Que will still lead his army north to attack Luoyang and Chang'an. Without Kou Zhong, Song Que still has the ability and strength to defeat Li Tang."

Shi Feixuan said, "That is the situation that Feixuan does not want to see the most. Song Que has been in remote Lingnan for a long time. Although everyone is afraid of his power, fear does not mean submission. Moreover, the southerners are not used to the northern climate and soil, and they have left their hometown. The people who follow Song Que are mainly soldiers, who are regarded as barbarians by the northerners. They are unwilling to submit. It is conceivable that the north and the south will fall into division again."

Xu Ziling nodded and said, "Kou Zhong and I are not as far-sighted as you think. Now that things have come to this, what can we do?"

Shi Feixuan smiled and said, "You are the guardian of our mountain sect, so it is up to you to use your brain to come up with a solution."

Xu Ziling lost his voice and said: "I..."

Shi Feixuan reached out her hand and pressed her jade finger on his lips to stop him from speaking, then she retracted the slender finger that made Xu Ziling's soul ecstasy, and said softly with her beautiful eyes deeply fixed, "The road from chaos to peace is not easy to walk. Feixuan can only do her best with an attitude of not caring about success or failure, but personal strength is limited. What Feixuan can strive for is only an opportunity for peace. When this situation occurs, Ziling, you must stand up and do your duty. Don't let people down and live up to their trust and expectations of you."

In the end, Xu Ziling decided to take Shi Feixuan to see Kou Zhong.

. . . . . .

When Shi Feixuan arrived at Kou Zhong's tent, she began to explain her purpose.

Kou Zhong naturally disagreed and said angrily: "Why do you think I can't sit firmly on the throne and seek the welfare of the world?"

Shi Feixuan said calmly: "Because it's not cruel enough, not ruthless enough."

Kou Zhong stared at Shi Feixuan, somewhat unsure of what she meant.

Shi Feixuan continued, "Feixuan is a roadblock on your path to the throne. If you kill me, Li Shimin will completely lose support and will surely die."

Upon hearing this, Kou Zhong suddenly felt murderous intent in his heart, and the Moon in the Well in his hand began to emit a faint yellow light.

That's right!

Kou Zhong was tempted. As long as he could get rid of Shi Feixuan, Li Shimin would not be rescued and would definitely be killed by the Demon Sect. In this way, he would lose an opponent.

Xu Ziling suddenly stood in front of Shi Feixuan.

Instantly, Kou Zhong's killing intent began to subside, and he smiled bitterly, "You know that I will never kill you for Ling Shaodao's sake, so why provoke me!"

Shi Feixuan said coldly: "This is why you are not qualified to be the emperor!"

Kou Zhong's eyes widened when he heard this.

Shi Feixuan said slowly: "Throughout the history, those who have accomplished great things have all been ruthless and merciless. All obstacles that stand in the way of the throne will be removed."

Kou Zhong smiled bitterly and said, "When you chose Li Shimin as the future leader, did you find that he had this trait?"

These two sentences fully expressed Kou Zhong's resentment, which made Xu Ziling, who could only be a bystander, feel the same way and wanted to hear Shi Feixuan's satisfactory answer.

Shi Feixuan replied calmly: "When you regard the throne of the emperor as your highest goal, you will make any sacrifice for it. Not to mention killing me, you will not hesitate to kill Ziling. What a pity! You don't have the necessary capacity for an emperor."

Kou Zhong and Shi Feixuan argued for a while, but still couldn't convince each other, so Shi Feixuan left.

in fact,

Kou Zhong became ruthless.

But he couldn't be cruel to Xu Ziling.

The [Eternal Life Secret] that the two of them practiced was extremely evil and could change a person's character.

Xu Ziling, who was weak, inferior and negative, was gradually transformed into a person who was indifferent to fame and wealth and lived a reclusive life.

If he was affected by this, then Kou Zhong would naturally be affected as well.

Kou Zhong's character became increasingly cold and ruthless.

Kou Zhong is loyal and righteous only to a few people.

. . . . . . . .

Kou Zhong glanced at Xu Ziling. He and this brother had been together since the Wei Mo era, so he could naturally guess what he was thinking. He smiled bitterly and said, "Young Master Ling, do you still want to persuade me?"

Xu Ziling didn't say anything, but his meaning was obvious.

Kou Zhong smiled bitterly and said, "If I were still the little hoodlum who followed you to roam the world alone, you, Big Brother Xu, could do whatever you wanted, and I would just obey you.

But after going through untold hardships and building up the Shaoshuai Army from a poor background, with so many soldiers sacrificing their lives and fighting for me, Kou Zhong, I suddenly went to them and said, I quit! Because Li Shimin wanted to be the emperor.

If you were me, could you say it?

They are willing to follow me because they trust me, Kou Zhong. They trust that I will not betray them, but will lead them to unify the world, achieve eternal immortality, and leave a name that will be passed down through the ages. "

Xu Ziling fell silent, with endless pain and helplessness in his eyes.

After a while

Ba Fenghan also entered the tent and discussed the specific details of tomorrow's battle with Kou Zhong, and learned what had happened between Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling.

He brought over some wine and food, hoping to ease the tension between his two good friends.

Xu Ziling remained silent and in a low mood, and the atmosphere between the three of them was extremely awkward.

After Kou Zhong drank a glass of wine, he smiled and said, "In fact, Ziling is thinking about me. He knows that I don't want to be his emperor. But maybe no one will accept this solution?
Do you want my army to surrender to Li Shimin when we are so powerful and victory is imminent?"

Xu Ziling said: "This may be your only way to make Song Yuzhi change her mind. It is to make sure that you, Kou Zhong, are not blinded by greed and will do anything to become the emperor. You can even let her know that you are not fighting for the world for your own gain or loss, but for the people of the Middle Earth.

I am not asking you to surrender, but I am asking you to actively help Li Shimin, help Li Shimin, help him ascend the throne, and fight back against the conspiracy of Li Yuan, the Demon Sect, and Jie Li to put him to death."

Kou Zhong was stunned when he heard this. This was Kou Zhong.

If Liu Bang or Zhu Yuanzhang were in power at this time, they would definitely have killed Xu Ziling.

Not only did they ask him to surrender, they also asked him to be a dog.

In fact, Kou Zhong was just being polite. Xu Ziling's behavior was too shitty. Kou Zhong was afraid that Ba Fenghan would think Xu Ziling was not worth associating with and stay away from him, so he deliberately said that he didn't like being an emperor.

he does not like?

Don’t you like being able to fight to the death like this?

Can you persist day and night for ten years?
It is said that he decided to conquer the world for a woman named Li Xiuning.

When Kou Zhong was still a gangster in Yangzhou, he was already developing in the direction of conquering the world.

At that time, he was determined to join the rebel army and become a high-ranking official.

This situation is the same as when Zhu Yuanzhang joined the rebel army and served as a leading soldier.

It was just that Li Xiuning's existence instantly inflated his ambition, and he wanted to become emperor directly.

If it weren't for Li Xiuning, he would have ended up taking the same path.

The difference is that Kou Zhong will proceed step by step:
Soldier, decapitation commander, centurion commander, thousand-man commander, general, great general...

In the end, it may be another Zhu Yuanzhang who unifies the world, or it may be Zhao Kuangyi who wears the yellow robe, or it may be all in vain.

To quote the whale shark king: Human desires are like rolling stones on a mountain; once they start, there is no way to stop.

No matter what, it is impossible for Kou Zhong to have no interest in the throne.

Kou Zhong was stunned by what Xu Ziling said. It took him a long while to recover and asked Ba Fenghan for help: "Your brother is our best friend. How about you speak a fair word?"

Ba Fenghan said, "Who can I side with? My heart is divided into two bloody halves! One half is eager to fight side by side with you, the young commander, to attack Luoyang and pacify Guanzhong; the other half deeply understands Ziling's noble sentiments and understands that he sees the disaster of the invasion of the Turkic Jie Li Khan! And Ziling is my beloved friend and brother, Ba Fenghan."

He paused and continued, "It seems absurd to give up the world for a woman, but what Ziling said is not without reason. Only in this way can you show that she is more important than anything else in your heart."

Kou Zhong was surprised and asked, "Are you helping Zi Ling?"

Ba Fenghan raised his hands in surrender and said, "I won't say anything more!"

Kou Zhong stared at Ba Fenghan for a long while.

Ba Fenghan was a Turkic person.

But the Turks are divided into DTZ and Western Turks.

And this Turkic Khan, Jie Li, happened to be his mortal enemy.

Ba Fenghan and Jie Li Khan's wife played mahjong.

If Kou Zhong could conquer the world and successfully maintain his position, he would naturally not be afraid.

But after hearing Xu Ziling's words that Kou Zhong would definitely lose, of course...

Kou Zhong looked at his empty wine glass and suddenly laughed, and his smile turned into a loud laugh.

It was Xu Ziling and Ba Fenghan's turn to look at each other. I don't know why he could still smile.

Kou Zhong laughed so hard that he gasped and said, "Pour the wine!"

Ba Fenghan hurriedly held up the glass and poured the wine.

When Kou Zhong was full, he raised the cup and poured it into his mouth, pouring it straight down his throat. He said happily, "Good wine!"

He reached out and put his arm around Xu Ziling's shoulders, sighing, "If we can put aside the grudge with Li Shimin, Ziling's move is really brilliant. If successful, it can indeed avoid the possibility of the North-South split. I don't have to accept the hard job of being the emperor, and I can win Yuzhi's heart. Oh! Damn it, Ziling is doing this for my own good! Right?"

Xu Ziling said calmly: "What unresolvable grudge do you have between Li Shimin and you?"

Kou Zhongwei was stunned for a moment, and looked thoughtful.

Blood feud!

The young marshal had so many soldiers and generals under his command, following him from Pengliang to conquer the world. How many of their brothers were killed by Li Shimin?
How much blood was shed?

Those were his soldiers, and they all died for him. Those soldiers believed in Kou Zhong, and that’s why they followed him to conquer the world.

Can this hatred be small?
Will it melt?
Once they surrender, the deaths of these people will become meaningless.

Xu Ziling smiled bitterly and said, "If the situation continues to develop as it is now, who knows when peace and prosperity will come?

Or maybe China will be divided forever, and the Five Barbarians will reappear! But I know that as long as we join hands with Li Shimin, smash the alliance between Jiancheng Yuanji, the Demon Sect, and Jie Li, and let Li Shimin, who knows how to manage the army and the people, be a good emperor who loves the people, the world can be unified again, repel foreign enemies, and let the people of the world live in peace and happiness.

After weighing the pros and cons, I know I will make things difficult for you, but I have no choice but to explain the pros and cons to you."

Kou Zhong nodded dejectedly and said, "Zi Ling's words are so thought-provoking, but are you sure that Fan Qinghui can convince Song Que? Why can she do it today when she couldn't do it in the past few decades?"

In fact, Kou Zhong already knew the answer at this moment.

"boom"!
Kou Zhong suddenly let go of Xu Ziling's hand and slammed the table. All the cups and plates on the table shattered, and the wine spilled everywhere. He shouted, "It's so unfair! Since the battle of Cijian, I have been struggling to survive in desperation, exchanging blood for every possibility and opportunity, and working hard to achieve the current results. Why didn't Li Shimin come to me, but I went to Li Shimin?"

Xu Ziling said calmly: "Do you want to be an emperor? And can you really be a good emperor? You must know that even if your martial arts and strategies are better than Li Shimin, do you have his literary talent and political and economic strategies to govern the world?"

In the end, Kou Zhong decided to surrender.

Kou Zhong is so cold-hearted!
He lost the courage to fight on.

Because he has no support!

His two best brothers wanted him to surrender and not become an enemy of Li Shimin.

It made him continue to persist! It seemed that he was making an enemy of the world and harming the people of the world.

in fact,

These are not enough to make him give up the world!

What really left him with no choice was a piece of news.

A piece of news that pushed him to the brink of despair.

A piece of news brought by Xu Ziling and Shi Feixuan.

That means Fan Qinghui went to find Song Que.

He knew that Fan Qinghui had gone to persuade Song Que, but he still had confidence in Song Que.

But just now, he lost confidence.

He glanced at Xu Ziling, his good brother who grew up with him and supported each other through thick and thin.

he knows!
He lost!
He lost completely!
He had no chance of winning.

Xu Ziling was seduced by Shi Feixuan and came over to surrender without caring about their brotherhood.

What about Song Que?

Kou Zhong knew that Song Que and Fan Qinghui had had a relationship, and he also knew that Song Que still had feelings for Fan Qinghui.

Then his old father-in-law Song Que probably won't be able to bear it.

A large part of Kou Zhong's power depends on the Song clan. If he loses Song Que's support, his half of the empire may collapse at any time.

(End of this chapter)