Above the stars

"I have a friend," said the old man.

Tang Bandit glanced at the old man, making a friend out of nothing?

No matter what topic a man is talking about, if he uses this sentence as the beginning, then the matter is probably about himself.

Bandit Tang suspected that the old man was making up a story again. If he really made up a story, he would leave without looking back, and never believed him again.

He had heard two of his stories and didn't want to hear the third...

"From a very young age, his dream was to be a general."

"I'm the opposite of him. I'm afraid of death and bloodshed, and I don't dare to go into battle and fight with others, so I want to be a behind-the-scenes worker and design some smart armor or weapons to help him in his battle."

"The two of us have agreed a long time ago, and we will work hard towards this goal. He will fight bloody in the front, and I will build the most powerful weapon mecha for him in the back."

"He is a martial arts prodigy who entered the Grand Master realm at a young age. He is the youngest Junior Grand Master in the Phoenix Empire's history, and he is also the man most promising to become a Grand Grand Master and reach the pinnacle of martial arts. Those March Seven Stars now have no Compared with him, I'm not even worthy of carrying his shoes."

"At that time, Xinxing was still relatively turbulent, and wars broke out more frequently between countries. In particular, in order to compete for resources and land, our country and the Ossian Empire fought to the death and issued national mobilization orders several times."

"When you are born in troubled times, it is when a hero comes to the fore. My friend started out as an ordinary mechanical soldier, and then quickly became the commander of the first battalion. He led the mechanical battalion to perform extraordinary feats and created amazing achievements again and again. A military miracle."

"His promotion speed is also very fast. He is in charge of a division and an army. Before the age of forty, he has become the empire's generalissimo commanding the entire army. He is less than one person and more than ten thousand people."

"Although he comes from a famous family, he doesn't have the arrogance or airs of those young men from aristocratic families. He is as close to every soldier as a brother. Every time he fights, he rushes to the front and every time he retreats, he walks behind."

"He never gave up on any of his teammates. He always told everyone that you are also the children of your parents, and you are the parents of your children. The general is a human being, and so are you. The general has a family, and so do you guys."

"It's actually a very stupid thing to do, because things can change instantly on the battlefield. It's very possible that a single oversight could put you in danger. However, for such a stupid thing, he persisted in doing it for decades, and was He has saved countless people. No matter where he is a commander, the soldiers there like him very much and are proud to be his soldiers..."

"My wife is a medical soldier. When they rushed to the front line for rescue, their medical plane was intercepted by people from the Austrian Empire, and all the doctors were captured."

Bandit Tang looked at the old man in surprise, and asked, "Are you married?"

The old man never mentioned his family, let alone his marriage.

He also once asked the old man where he came from, and he said he came from a very far away place.

At that time, the Tang bandits did not have a clear concept of the word "remote", and thinking about Lingyang City, it was already very far away.

The old man did not answer the Tang bandit's question, as if he was completely immersed in the memories of the past, and said in a deep voice: "Everyone knows that due to the bad relationship between the two countries at that time, it fell into the hands of the soldiers of the Ostto Empire. , I am afraid that it will be difficult for these medical soldiers to survive, and they are more likely to live worse than death, and suffer inhuman abuse and humiliation."

"After he found out, he led his mechanical battalion in pursuit, slaughtered all the Ost Empire troops that were several times larger than his own, and rescued the medical team completely."

"I asked him why he did this. He said that as the commander of the first battalion, doing this was extremely risky and irrational. But as my brother, he couldn't just watch his brother's family fall into the hands of the enemy and his family was destroyed. People die and do nothing.”

"If nothing can be done, forget it. If you can do something but choose to sit on the sidelines because you are worried about your own safety, it will make him feel uneasy for the rest of his life."

"At that time, I was just a mechanic in the equipment department. I thought I didn't have to go to the battlefield, practice, or learn those boring ancient martial arts. Until then, I didn't know how insignificant I was. how vulnerable"

"Another time, there was a problem with a batch of supplies from the Equipment Department. The weapons that were supposed to be equipped with our army actually appeared on the black market and were used by the Galaxy mercenaries. The military department was furious and began to investigate this matter. Who was responsible for selling this batch of supplies? After searching and searching, it turned out to be me. All the supply lists have my signature on them."

"I was arrested. The witnesses, physical evidence, and the signatures all pointed against me. During the war, privately selling arms and weapons was a capital crime. The only thing waiting for me was death. The trial came down quickly, with three In a few months, he will be injected to death.”

"At such a critical moment, in order to avoid suspicion and protect themselves, the family could not stand up to save me. Because at that time, some people did not believe that it was me alone, but the overall behavior of our family..."

"He stood up and said he was willing to use his own head to guarantee that there was absolutely no way I could do such a thing."

"Then he personally rushed to the black market, arrested a large number of mercenaries, tortured and interrogated them in the most brutal and direct way, which took two months and twenty-seven days, and he was beaten layer by layer. I peeled back the truth and found the culprit who was really reselling arms and had the ability to blame me. He was a prince of the imperial family."

"Three days, only three days left. If he took a breath and took a nap, I would be dead and my bones would have turned into ashes."

"The emperor also wanted to save the prince from the death penalty and sentenced him to twenty years' imprisonment. He disagreed, saying that the country has national laws and the family has family rules. If national laws and military laws vary from person to person, it will be abolished for each person. He forced the royal family to use the right method. I executed that prince in the manner of my sentence.”

"Perhaps, this was also one of the triggers of that incident. The royal family was very jealous of him and extremely afraid of their family. They wanted to uproot them and get rid of them."

Speaking of the old events he had experienced, the old man's eyes glowed red again, and the hand holding the cup began to shake slightly.

"Later, later he was killed, not just himself, but his family, his wife, their newborn child. Their entire family was killed."

"Phoenix City's bloody night. Arrest people during the day and kill people at night. They kill for thirty-nine days."

"I heard that the groundwater in Phoenix City was dyed red, and that year the rats and cockroaches underground grew larger than in previous years."

A vicious smile appeared on the old man's face, and his voice was cold and mocking: "Do you know what crime he was killed for?"

Bandits Tang did not answer.

He knew the old man didn't need answers from him.

He just needs to be a quiet listener. What he needs most now is a listener.

Tang Bandit could tell that these words had been held in his heart for too long.

I suppressed him until his temperament changed drastically, I suppressed him until he looked haggard, I suppressed him until his hair was white and his face was wrinkled.

He is a brilliant practitioner. According to his current age, he should be extremely full of energy and look ten or twenty years younger than he is now.

However, now he is really too old to look good.

He is older than ordinary people of this age.

"Treason." The old man laughed loudly, laughing until he was hoarse, laughing so hard that his tears and nose mixed together. "Treason. I joined the army at the age of sixteen. I served in the army for twenty-three years. I fought in more than two hundred battles. I have more than three hundred scars on my body. I almost died a dozen times. I was betrayed by my brothers dozens of times. return."

"The arrogant Os Empire had its back broken by him, and could not hold its head high in front of the Phoenix People. Those seventeen small countries that were ready to fish in troubled waters were beaten by him until they were unable to protect themselves, and in the end they could only form the Kaman Federation. "

"Such a person, such a person who has devoted everything to the empire, is actually executed for treason. How humiliating is this?"

"What's even more ridiculous is that in order to kill a chicken to scare monkeys, he was burned at the stake and broadcast live to the whole world through video equipment."

"Hahaha, those people who are as stupid as pigs and dogs actually believe it. They actually believe that he has rebelled against the country. They really believe that their family wants to rebel."

"They slandered, humiliated, and scolded them in every possible way. How shameful and hateful they deserved to die."

"They were burned alive and burned to ashes. Those who were loyal to him raised a butcher's knife against him. Those who were protected by him to the death slandered him."

"You said, how ridiculous this world is"

"Do these people deserve to die?"

"Do they all deserve to die?"

At the end of the sentence, the old man burst into tears, covered his face and cried bitterly.

There is hatred in his heart.

After so many years, it has not disappeared or diminished.

Even like that old wine, it gets stronger and stronger as it gets brewed. Every time I think about it, it makes my heart break and my insides feel like burning.

How many times did he want to speak out without restraint.

How many nights did he want to cry happily.

However, he can't.

He wanted to protect Tang Bandi and protect the seedling of Tang Bandit.

Before he grew into a towering tree, any reveal of his identity would be a devastating blow to him.

He knows too well the feeling of powerlessness, how uncomfortable it is to feel weak and unable to take revenge, and how despairing it is.

Day after day, it will devour the human mind and turn the person into a violent and twisted monster.

The best way to deal with it is to let Tang Bandit grow up freely and live a carefree life.

He gave all the kindness to Tang bandits, and left all the pain to himself to suffer silently.

Unexpectedly, Tang Bandit picked up a phoenix while hunting.

This is the arrangement of fate? Is this an opportunity for revenge given to them by God?

Originally, he wanted to wait a little longer, but he felt that the current bandit Tang was still too fragile and insignificant. Not enough time to step up and take responsibility for it all.

However, Bandits Tang did not expect to meet Lu Whisper in the Mechanical Department, and both of them had doubts about him at the same time:

Lu Whisper doubts whether he is back, Tang Bandit suspects his relationship with Lu Whisper.

As a result, Bandit Tang followed Lu Whisper and was taken into the Luban formation.

At this time, it was no longer realistic for him to want to hide his identity.

With this guy's spirit-like personality, I'm afraid he already knew the answer.

Tang Bandi poured a cup of tea for the old man, then sat next to him and waited quietly.

a long time.

a long time.

After the old man finished venting his emotions, Bandit Tang handed over the tissues he had prepared.

The old man didn't answer and wiped his tears with his sleeve.

"That friend you mentioned?" Tang Bandi looked at the old man and asked aloud, "Is it Tang Li?"

I don't know why, but Tang Bandit's heart palpitated when he mentioned this name.

There was a very strange feeling, as if the two of them were old acquaintances, or had some kind of connection.

He felt that he should have seen him.

Or they admire his charisma and lament his miserable fate.

Or perhaps it was because of the brotherly relationship between the old man and him. If the old man had not been implicated by him, he would not have fled to the old land.

If he had not fled to the old land, he would not have such a family.

The old man looked at Tang Bandit with strange eyes and asked, "Do you know him?"

"I know." Tang Bandit nodded and said, "When we were in the old land, Fenghuang also said that he wanted to be a general, that he wanted to be a powerful general like Tang Li."

"I learned the name Tang Li from her and heard some stories about him. After I came to Xinxing, I often saw that name, but I couldn't find the video of the burning."

"It's really ironic." A sarcastic smile appeared on the corner of the old man's mouth and he said: "The traitor identified by their ancestors has actually become a role model for the younger generation."

"So." Tang Bandit looked at the old man's grief-stricken look and said, "It's because of that friend that you left Xinxing and fled to the old land."

"Yes." The old man said aloud as he drank the tea in one gulp.

"This is unreasonable." Tang Bandit shook his head and said: "With the strength of the Gongshu family and their development trend over the years, it is obvious that they were not involved in that incident, and may even be a vested interest. "

"In this case, it's more than enough for them to protect a direct lineage of the family, right? There's no reason to let a talented mechanic walk away into the wasteland."

Tang Bandit looked at the old man thoughtfully and asked aloud: "What did you do that even the family can't protect? So you have to leave?"

"Yes." The old man nodded and said, "I took Tang Li's son away."

Tang Bandit suddenly felt his heart beat faster and his breathing became heavier. He looked at the old man with wide eyes and said, "What do you mean?"

"Tang Li's son is not dead, but someone else's son is dead." The old man looked at Tang Bandit with a serious expression and said in a deep voice.

"his son."

"It's you." The old man said firmly: "Tang Bandit, you are Tang Li's son."

"."

I have really been stuck these past two days. I know what I want to write, but I have to find the most appropriate way to express it.

I was hesitating, I was hesitating to reveal the truth about Tang Bandit’s identity at this time, push the story in a more extreme direction, and stretch the emotional line to the extreme...

It's better to take it slow and give Tang Bandit more space to grow, a higher realm, deeper feelings... and let them have more freedom and happiness.

This is a significant node choice for the entire book.

I have imagined all the possibilities and drawn all the branches.

Then, I chose this more cruel way of writing.

The article seems to be displeased with the plainness of the mountains, so it starts from today, from this chapter.

The real darkening of the Tang bandits is about to begin, and the bloody journey of revenge has also begun.