Chapter 24 Twenty-fourth auspicious day

Xue Cailong tightened his cloak and followed Pan Fang into the secret passage. There is nothing unusual about the secret path itself, it is a very ordinary floor, the floor has long been burned in the fire, and the remaining stone slab is lifted upwards, which is the entrance.But after entering, there is another world.As Du Juan said, the secret passage extending from the east courtyard was dug and connected by four people, so when you reach the end of each passage, you will find that the road ahead is blocked, and Xuanji, The reason is that the junction points are different from channel to channel.Some are on the head, some are in the middle, and some need to jump up to break off the lamp above the head and the arc-shaped stone top together to find that the entrance of the other one is on the top.

If it is not known in advance, I am afraid that it will take a lot of time just to find the exit. The last passage can obviously feel that it is sloping upwards, and the ground is muddy and wet. There is a stone door at the end. Xue Cai opened the secret compartment next to the door according to the method Du Juan taught, pulled the buckle inside and knocked three long and two short, then said to Pan Fang, "hold your breath", and after a "crack", the stone door slowly opened, and countless water flows Immediately poured in. Fortunately, both of them made preparations in advance, held their breath and went upstream, and after a while, they emerged from the water.

It turned out that the exit of the secret passage was a well. The two climbed out along the wall of the well, and outside was a small yard with many cloths drying in the yard, which seemed to be a cloth dyeing workshop.The door of the house not far away was not closed tightly, and it creaked when the wind blew.The air is filled with the scent of heavy rain. Pan Fang said in a deep voice, "I'm advanced." Xue Cai nodded. Pan Fang held up his fingers and counted to three, one of them jumped over without a sound and opened the door—— The oil lamp inside the door swayed suddenly because of the wind. Under the bright and dark light and shadow, Xue Cai looked straight ahead with a slightly pale face.

Blood. Bloodstains everywhere. A mess of dead bodies. Look at the clothes of those dead people, they look like the folks of the cloth dyeing workshop, there are seventeen of them, none of them survived. Pan Fang went forward to check the wounds of the people, and said in amazement: "Although these people are dressed as clerks, they have strong bones and strong martial arts. They are all dead. It can be seen that the people who killed them have extremely high martial arts." Xue Cai didn't say anything, just went to one of the corpses and began to search, and said while searching: "The clothes are old and have been washed at least three times, but the inner clothes are new, and the fabric used is Cheng County, Jiangdong. It is rich in oolong hemp. There is not much wear and tear between the inner and outer clothes, which shows that their clothes have not been changed for a long time."

"That is to say?" "That is to say..." Xue Cai straightened up and looked at the corpses on the ground, "These people were not arranged by Mrs. Wei to wait for the master here, but they were dropped." "You mean they were sent by Jiang Zhong to wait here to ambush Lord Hou?" "If it is Mrs. Wei's person, since she chose this cloth dyeing workshop as an outlet, it must not be within a day or two. In order to deceive people, even if she wants to change staff, it is impossible to change all of them in one day. You know, There is a busy city outside, and this store will still open its doors for business during the day. If the clerk suddenly changes to a new person, the neighbors or the like will be suspicious. Even if they are all clerks arranged by her, it is impossible for seventeen people to change at the same time in the same day. New underwear. So, based on these two points, I deduce that they are definitely not Mrs. Wei's people."

Pan Fang nodded and said: "That's right. There is only one kind of person who can take a bath and change clothes before taking action, and eliminate all possible traces on himself - killers. And in the court of Zhubi Kingdom, they have another name - —Dark Guard." Xue Cai pushed open the door of the inner room and walked in. There was a bedroom inside, which seemed normal, but the smell of blood was extremely strong. Xue Cai sniffed, walked to the bedside following the smell, and opened the bed curtain——as expected , Another pile of corpses!They were stacked on the bed like stacks of ingots, and all of them took off their coats.

Pan Fang checked their wounds and said: "These are the real guys here. None of them know martial arts. It seems that they were killed by those people outside. Can we assume that? When I came out, I found out that the clerk here was transferred, so the City Lord Wei killed the clerk and escorted Lord Hou to leave, so why did he not return to the post?" Xue Cai said "hmm": "It seems like this... Du Juan is meticulous in his work. Since this place is an exit, naturally the more normal the better. If it were me, I would also recruit real buddies." Speaking of this, his Frowning again, he murmured, "It's so strange..."

"What's strange?" "You count." Xue Cai pointed to the pile of corpses. Pan Fang counted, there were eighteen corpses on the bed. "Why are there eighteen people inside, but seventeen outside? If a total of seventeen hidden guards came, it doesn't make sense to take off the clothes of eighteen people. If eighteen pieces of clothes were taken off, it means that there should be eighteen The hidden guard needs to dress up in disguise. So where did the missing dark guard go?" "It makes sense." Pan Fang nodded and pondered, "Could it be that the hidden guard disappeared with Lord Hou? In other words, he killed the seventeen people outside."

"To kill seventeen people in one go is beyond the reach of ordinary martial arts..." "That's right. I originally thought that Wei Yuheng killed the seventeen hidden guards. After all, he was the champion of martial arts, a first-class expert, but now it seems that it is not that simple..." Xue Cai took a few steps, his eyes were suddenly attracted by something, and he let out an "ah". "What's wrong?" Xue Cai ran to the window, and the window sill was a little cracked, so a piece of fabric was hooked at the corner. He took off the fabric and sighed: "It belongs to the master."

Sky grosgrain, spun silver silk, and unique exquisite embroidery work - in today's world, only Ji Ying can wear, wear, and dare to wear white clothes. The corner of the cloth was stained with a little blood, even if it was not sure whether it was Ji Ying's or someone else's, this discovery was shocking enough. Xue Cai took the fabric and began to search around again, and finally he found another thing lying quietly in a very dark corner.If Xue Cai only frowned when he saw the fabric, but now when he saw such a thing, he was completely frightened—— It was a wrench made of cooked leather.

The corners have been worn down, and the color is very dim, and it can be vaguely recognized that it was originally red. If it weren't for Xue Cai's reluctance to search carefully and his eyes were bright, it would be hard to find such a thing lying on the ground. Pan Fang asked curiously, "Is this also something from Lord Hou?" "More than that." Xue Cai murmured, "I am 100000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001888888888888899999999911100000000 A A 1000000 It Sure It Sure, The The were were ”, It ’s not willing to part with this finger wrench , the master would rather give up everything .” "So important?" Pan Fang was taken aback, "Then..." "The presence of the finger puller here means..." Xue Cai turned his head, his palm-sized face was flustered for the first time until now--the normal panic that an eight-year-old child should have, "The master is dead. What should I do? General Pan ,what should we do?" The door of the west courtyard was gently pushed open. A pair of red embroidered shoes walked in unhurriedly, holding a tray in their hands. On the tray was a bowl of thick soup, the color was black and green, very weird. Du Juan, who heard the sound, frowned and asked, "Who is it? Didn't I give an order not to enter without permission?" The man let out a chuckle: "It's me, can't I get in?" "Aunt Mei?" After being surprised, Du Juan was even more puzzled, "Why are you here?" Wasn't she brought down by Pan Fang, Xue Cai and the others? "Hey..." Aunt Mei rubbed her neck and said, "General Pan's hand knife was really ruthless. I lay on the ground for two hours and still couldn't stand up. If someone didn't come to rescue me, Mr. The slave may have died in the woodshed." Du Juan's head exploded with a bang, realizing something was wrong. Aunt May is her confidant. It was her first year back in the city that she personally picked it out from the death row. Aunt Mei's original name was Shen Mei, and she was originally the seventh wife of a villainous cottage leader, Yibazhou. After being imprisoned in Yibazhou, she was also sentenced to death.She had confirmed that Shen Mei's identity and background were sound, and that's why she promoted her to be her personal servant.And in the past four years, this person is indeed quite reliable, and he has done a lot of things for her both openly and secretly. But she is meticulous by nature, even though she is a confidant, she did not tell Yi Ming about Ji Ying this time.When the east courtyard was on fire, Aunt Mei was just pretending to stop Wei Yuheng.Hearing that she was put down by Pan Fang, he was relieved, but he didn't expect her to appear again now, and she appeared so strangely.Could it be that something happened to her? Although Du Juan was full of suspicion, he still held his breath and said lightly: "The manor is in chaos tonight, I really forgot about you. Just come back. What did you bring in? Is it medicine?" Aunt Mei giggled: "Madam's nose is as good as ever. That's right, the old slave heard that Madam was suffering from a sudden illness, so he brought a good prescription." As she approached, the smell of the soup became stronger. Du Juan lowered her eyebrows and said in a deep voice, "Aunt Mei is so kind. But I feel much better, and the medicine is no longer needed." "Hey, Madam, what are you talking about? The sooner the illness recovers, the more serious the medicine should be given to completely pull out the root cause of the disease. You see, the old slaves have already brought them, Madam should drink some at least." Aunt Mei As he spoke, he lightly pressed on Du Juan's back and put the bowl to her lips. Finally, Du Juan could no longer whitewash the peace, and struggled: "Bold! How dare you force me to drink medicine?" Aunt Mei was not moved at all, with a sweet and friendly smile on her face, she said: "Madam is sick, you should take medicine when you are sick. Be good, don't be afraid, this medicine is very sweet, not bitter at all... ..." "Let go, let me go... Goo... You, you dare... Goo... You..." Although Du Juan struggled hard, she was still given a lot of drugs, and her resistance gradually turned into despair, " W-why? Goo...why? Aunt Mei?" After drinking the medicine, Aunt Mei let go of her hand and said with a smile, "Ma'am, don't be so afraid. It's not poison." "But... but I... oops!" Du Juan screamed and rolled off the bed, her whole body began to twitch non-stop, screaming, "What is it? What is this?" "This is just a little punishment for you." The person who said this was not Aunt Mei. Jiang Chenyu, who had been watching coldly from the sidelines, turned around following the voice, and saw Wei Yuheng outside the door. The evening wind was blowing, and the light and shadow were mottled. He stood at the door, his clothes fluttering, like a visitor from outside the sky. It was extremely weird that he would appear in this way at this time.But at this moment, Jiang Chenyu was no longer surprised, or in other words, there was nothing in the world that could surprise her anymore.She just watched indifferently, at Wei Yuheng, who was smiling, gentle, handsome and sassy, ​​and at Du Juan, who was moaning on the ground in a panic. Du Juan propped up his upper body with his hands, faced Wei Yuheng's direction, and said in horror, "Yuheng? You're back? Yes, yes, you asked Aunt Mei to force me to drink that bowl of medicine? Why? Why? What happened? ? Why punish me?" Wei Yuheng looked at her quietly for a while, without saying anything, just took out something from his bosom, and threw it in front of Du Juan. The snow-white cloth bulged in the air, and then slowly fell, silently. But Jiang Chenyu smelled a familiar scent—bergamot. Du Juan stretched out his hand to touch the material, then shrank back in horror, stopped for a while, then stretched out his trembling hand to grab the material, and shook it away.It was a robe with a big hole in the back, and it was stained with blood. Jiang Chenyu's eyes suddenly became moist. And Du Juan has already screamed: "This is Qi Aohou's clothes! What's wrong with him? What's wrong with him? Didn't I ask you to escort him away? Why was his clothes taken off, and there was blood on them The smell of blood? No! More than that, there is also the smell of poisonous sunflower in the blood, what's going on?" "It's very simple." Wei Yuheng said slowly in a voice that was so cold that there was no ups and downs, "I killed him. And this is my trophy." "Impossible!" It was two people who shouted this sentence at the same time. One is Rhododendron.One is ginger fish. Wei Yuheng laughed sinisterly, the louder and louder he laughed, and finally turned into a long laugh, and said in a voice that was almost crazy: "Five years! Five years... I have been waiting for this day, and I have been waiting for five full years Ah! Hahahaha! Mrs. Ji, I have been waiting for you to fall for five full years!" Jiang Chenyu finally couldn't help but ask: "Why?" "Why?" Wei Yuheng turned his head and looked at her with a strange expression, "Of course it's because..." An hour ago—— The raging fire was blocked above by the partition of the dark passage. The narrow passage became very stuffy due to the fire, and Ji Ying followed Wei Yuheng for a while, then stopped suddenly, with a thoughtful expression on his face. Wei Yuheng turned around: "What's wrong?" Ji Ying's eyes froze for a moment, and finally smiled and said: "It's nothing, let's continue." Wei Yuheng let out a "hmm", walked to the end of the secret passage, and was about to open the door, when Ji Ying suddenly said, "Wait..." Before he could finish speaking, a puff of white smoke rushed in from the door. Wei Yuheng standing in front of him was fine, but Ji Ying seemed to be strangled by someone, his whole face turned pale, and he convulsed fell down. Wei Yuheng looked at him coldly. Ji Ying fell to the ground, bean-sized beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his whole body was drenched in an instant.His eyes were wide open, his chest rose and fell violently, and he could see that he was struggling to breathe. Wei Yuheng said: "How does this smoke taste? It is harmless to ordinary people, but it is extremely poisonous to those with heart disease." Ji Ying covered her chest with one hand, stretched forward with the other, stretched her five fingers to the limit, as if she wanted to grab something.When Rao was in such a state of embarrassment, he still didn't scream or moan like ordinary people, and it could even be said that he didn't make any sound at all. A little pity flashed in Wei Yuheng's eyes, but it turned into jealousy in the next moment: "At this point, do you still have to hold back? Tsk tsk tsk, Ji Ying, Ji Ying, you really deserve to be the one I know You are the most tolerant person, no, you are not a human being, you are a turtle at all. When things happen, you shrink your head and keep silent, and it is you!" He suddenly stepped forward, grabbed Ji Ying's lapel, and pulled him hard Dragging it up, he said word by word through gritted teeth, "Pu, Ji, Hu, return, give, me!" Give me back Ji Hu—— Give me back Ji Hu—— The six words echoed in the narrow passage for a long time. The white smoke gradually dissipated. Ji Ying's face became paler and her pupils began to dilate. At this moment, even if she wanted to say something, she couldn't say it. "Give it back to me...give me back...you give me back Hu'er..." Wei Yuheng's hands trembled violently, and he hissed, "For the sake of glory and wealth, you insisted on tearing up Hu'er and me. She was sent to the palace. In order to see her, I desperately tried my best to be admitted to the champion of martial arts. I thought that if I could become an imperial guard, even if there was no hope of marriage in this life, I could at least protect her from the side, and I could see her from afar during the grand ceremony. What I asked for was nothing more than this, but you didn't even give me this chance, and secretly instigated the left minister to recruit me as a son-in-law, trying to break my thoughts about Hu'er! How could I do what you wish, even if you want me to marry another, I will not marry the woman you arranged for me! Therefore, I would rather take refuge in the right minister and marry his illegitimate daughter. One place, one stay for four years... I, Wei Yuheng, is talented and handsome, both civil and military, and I am sincere to Hu'er. The world can be shown. With my talent, it is not impossible to be named a marquis and a prime minister. Why? Why do you You just refuse to give me the slightest chance? Why do you insist on breaking up Hu'er and me? Why do you insist on her marrying the emperor? I, I, I hate you..." When Wei Yuheng said this, his agitated expression suddenly turned calm, but under that calmness, there was a kind of hatred more terrible than rage: "So, I swear to myself, I want your Ji family to die peacefully. I want your tricks to be exhausted but nothing. I want you to die, Ji Ying." Ji Ying's expression was very sad. It was a kind of sadness that couldn't be deciphered because there were too many emotions fused together. It is also a kind of sadness because of seeing everything but being powerless. The sadness was very thick, but it was for others, not for himself. In the end, he could only close his eyes. However, Wei Yuheng was stimulated by his action, and he violently dragged him out of the secret passage, and said as he walked, "Do you think it's ok if you stay out of it? Do you think it's ok if you don't resist? Tell you Ji Ying, do you want to?" Die, it's not that easy! Come on!" Immediately, a lot of people dressed as men but with extraordinary skills appeared in the cloth dyeing workshop. One of them stepped forward, cupped his fists, bowed and said, "Master, everything is ready." "En." Wei Yuheng nodded, and threw Ji Ying onto a chair in the middle of the courtyard.Ji Ying was powerless to resist, but they were still worried and stepped forward to tie his hands and feet tightly. Ji Ying opened her eyes slightly, breathing weakly, but her gaze was clear, like a stream under the moonlight, gentle and agile. "Strange why I didn't kill you yet?" Wei Yuheng walked across to Ji Ying and stared at him condescendingly. Ji Ying smiled lightly.There was no contempt or mockery in the smile, as if he was not the one who was tied up and endured the pain at the moment.But in Wei Yuheng's eyes, this smile is undoubtedly ironic. His eyes darkened, and he said coldly: "Death is imminent, don't you have anything to say?" "Dead?" Ji Ying panted shallowly, and her smile became brighter, "Why should I die? Or, how could I die?" Wei Yuheng swished out a dagger, put it on his neck, and said fiercely: "I just need to push a little harder, and you will die on the spot. Do you still think that you will not die?" "I'm dead, who will give you the genealogy of the Four Kingdoms?" As soon as this sentence came out, it was like a thunderbolt, which struck Wei Yuheng straight. He was shocked heavily, and his eyelids began to twitch non-stop. It was difficult for Ji Ying to speak, but his expression seemed to be more relaxed: "If you don't bring the Four Kingdoms genealogy to see Jiang Zhong, will he let you go?" Wei Yuheng exerted force in his hand, and the sharp blade immediately cut into Ji Ying's flesh, and bright red blood flowed down slowly. Ji Ying's eyebrows trembled slightly, but she still refused to make any moans. "Since you know, then those who are sensible, hurry up and hand over the Four Kingdoms and even the city wall!" "Didn't you go to my house to look for it?" "Hmph, if we find it, can you still live here? Are you on your body?" Wei Yuheng said, and began to search.But Ji Ying's chest was empty, except for a finger, there was nothing else. Wei Yuheng glanced at the worthless finger puller and threw it away casually. The wrench drew an arc in the air, flew through the open window into the house, and disappeared. Ji Ying's eyes tightened and she closed her eyes. If Wei Yuheng had been more careful, he would have noticed that his hands were trembling, but even if he saw it, he would just treat it as a normal reaction caused by the severe pain in his body and ignore it. "It's not on me...and it's not on the messenger's boat, so it's hiding somewhere else?" Ji Ying laughed loudly, and just after a few laughs, it turned into a violent cough, and now, not only the neck, but also the mouth was bleeding. "Say, where did you put those two things? As long as you tell me, I will make you suffer less." Ji Ying stared at Wei Yuheng fixedly, and finally said, "Torture is useless to me." "You!" Wei Yuheng was furious, took a few steps back with his knife, and winked at the guys. Two guys stepped forward, one with a cylindrical mechanism in his hand, the other with a cloth bag, and put the cloth bag over Ji Ying's head, and then turned off the engine, another puff of white smoke was sprayed in. In the cloth bag.Ji Ying's body immediately twitched crazily. Wei Yuheng said leisurely: "The taste of this smoke is very unpleasant, right? Do you feel that there are thousands of knives stirring your heart now? It seems like hundreds of rabbits are jumping on it? Every breath you take It's torture for you, but if you don't smoke it, you will die...Ji Ying, this is specially prepared for you, you have to experience it well." After a tube of white smoke was sprayed, the clerk took off the cloth bag and exposed Ji Ying's head. His eyes were bloodshot, his face was red and white, and his muscles were twisted together in pain. His appearance was terrifying. "How? Are you still unwilling to say? It doesn't matter. I have prepared a total of 18 tubes of poisonous smoke. The two tubes I used just now are weak, and they will become thicker and thicker. You can try one after another until you are willing." Let's stop." Ji Ying panted for a long time, and finally spoke, but only said one word: "Bah." The corner of Wei Yuheng's eyes twitched, he stomped his feet and said, "Come here! Continue to torture me! Spray hard!" The guys took turns going up one after another to execute the torture. When the sixth tube was sprayed, Ji Ying passed out. Wei Yuheng said coldly: "Wake him up." A clerk came over with a basin of water, and the two clerks next to Ji Ying stepped aside so that he could walk over and splash water.But the moment they backed away, the buddy suddenly splashed water on them with his backhand, and while the two of them were dodging, he slashed twice, accurately, quickly, and simply. The two buddies fell down without even making a sound. down. Wei Yuheng was startled, and a black shadow snake leaped towards his head, so he had to fly back, just between his surprise and retreat, he heard "Ding Ding Ding..." fifteen times in a row, and the person beside him Everyone else fell down. ——What kind of terrifying martial art is this? Wei Yuheng narrowed his eyes, and stopped when he was about to pounce, looking at the guy vigilantly, but the guy didn't even look at him, put away his whip, picked Ji Ying up with one hand, and quickly walked over to him. Having tapped a few acupuncture points on his body, he said in a deep voice, "I'm sorry, I'm late, my lord." Ji Ying, who was originally in a coma, slowly opened her eyes and looked at the man, with the corners of her lips raised, as if smiling, but she became weaker and weaker: "You have never let me down, Zhu Long." That person was Zhu Long, his personal bodyguard. Wei Yuheng slowly took two steps back, his eyes quickly scanned the surroundings: "Why did you find this place?" Zhu Long replied, "The imprint." "Impossible! I have deliberately observed it along the way, there is no way that Ji Ying will have any chance to make a mark for you!" As if to make him give up, or to hit him further, Zhu Long continued to answer this question: "Young Master's imprint is not a symbol, but a smell." "What?" After Wei Yuheng was startled, he suddenly realized: Ji Ying has a faint fragrance of bergamot, and most people would only think that this young man has a romantic and clean nature when he smells it.Moreover, even if you notice this fragrance, but because it is very light and faint, it disappears when you pass by, how can it be a clue for people to identify? What kind of character is this Zhu Long?Not only is martial arts so advanced and terrifying, but even the sense of smell is far beyond the limits of human beings. Wei Yuheng took another step back, slowly clenched his hands, and weighed the odds of winning against such an opponent if he made a move at this time. Ji Ying saw through his thoughts, and suddenly said, "You are not Zhu Long's opponent." "why?" "Because I said it." Ji Ying lay in Zhu Long's arms, although he was so weak that he seemed to die at any moment, but his voice was extremely firm, "I—Ji Ying said—you are not his opponent." The word "Ji Ying" came out, and the whole world suddenly sank, and the air seemed to become extremely dignified because of these two words. The person in front of him is a nobleman who grew up in a powerful country with the name of Bai Ze; Even Yan Rui, the most wise man in the world, said that "in ten years, people in the world will only know Qiao but not the old man"; He is a top figure whose every move affects the current situation. Now, when he said "You are not as good as him", it seemed that the whole world was on his side, making his conclusion a firm fact, which could no longer be shaken by Wei Yuheng's hand. Shaking in control. "Also," Ji Ying added, "An incompetent loser like you is not qualified to marry my sister. No, he is not even qualified to look at her." Wei Yuheng was thoroughly irritated, screamed, and rushed over. Zhu Long hugged Ji Ying with one hand, and waved the long whip with the other, avoiding it easily.In fact, Wei Yuheng was the No. 1 martial arts scholar in the 26th year of Jiaping, and his martial arts were not much lower than Zhu Long's.But Zhu Long was holding Ji Ying again, and was restrained, so the situation was very unfavorable, so Ji Ying deliberately provoked Wei Yuheng, causing him to be in a turmoil. Because of this, not long after, Wei Yuheng was hit three times with whips, his clothes were torn, he gasped and stepped back, his originally excited expression gradually calmed down. Ji Ying thought something was wrong, and then Wei Yuheng put his finger to his lips and blew a loud whistle. Ji Ying immediately said, "Run." But just as Zhu Long hugged him and turned around, he saw a crowd of archers appearing from outside the wall of the cloth dyeing workshop.It turned out that Jiang Zhong acted meticulously, and it was not enough to replace a group of buddies. He also arranged for archers to ambush secretly.At this moment, the archers heard the signal and appeared one after another, pointing their cold arrows at the two people in the center of the courtyard. "Do you think you can escape with a helper?" Wei Yuheng stretched out his hand, and immediately a famous archer jumped off the wall and handed him his bow and arrow.He took the bow and arrow, bent the bow and aimed at Ji Ying, and said in a deep voice, "Today, no matter how wings you have, you will never get out of this place!" Facing countless bows and arrows, Ji Ying didn't show any sign of fear. He just raised the corners of his lips and said three words softly: "Si Guo Pu." Wei Yuheng's face turned pale immediately. And at that moment, Zhu Long hugged Ji Ying and jumped onto the fence, kicked two of the archers over, and broke through the fence. The archers were about to shoot arrows, Wei Yuheng hurriedly shouted: "Keep alive!" The archers were so frightened that they hurriedly turned their strengths, and the arrows that were originally aimed at Ji Ying deviated from the original aim, and shot down Zhu Long's body. Wei Yuheng gritted his teeth with hatred, seeing that there are so many soldiers in his hands, but there is nothing to do with just two people, what a useless and aggrieved thing this is!The whereabouts of the Hateful Four Kingdoms have not been found out yet, and Ji Ying can't die yet.So he relied on that point to reverse the situation and escape, damn it!hateful! The arrow in his hand trembled, as long as he released his two fingers, the number one minister in the world could be killed on the spot. However, he couldn't shoot...Damn it!hateful! On the wall over there, Zhu Long was about to jump down, when Ji Ying suddenly said "ah", and subconsciously stretched his hands backward. "What's wrong?" "Wrench..." "..." Zhu Long was extremely unwilling, but finally turned back, saw the window and jumped in. Wei Yuheng was already mentally prepared for the two to escape, but he never expected that they would come back again. With a trembling of his hands, the bowstring was stretched to the extreme, and it slipped from his fingertips uncontrollably, pushing the arrow , flew out through the air. Unbiased, he hit Ji Ying's back. At that time, Zhu Long had just jumped over the window lattice, and with a "stab", Ji Ying's robe was pulled by the hanging wood. Zhu Long didn't even think about it, so he just pulled it, took off the whole dress, and threw it out of the window. . The white robe unfolded in the wind, like a curtain, covering the window. When the curtain fell and the archers rushed into the room, they saw that the room was empty, without Zhu Long or Ji Ying. Wei Yuheng picked up the blood-stained robe with a very ugly expression on his face. After a while, he pulled the robe hard and said, "They won't be able to escape far. Let me chase them!" All the archers hurriedly chased them out. The archer who handed him the bow before hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward and said, "City Lord Wei..." "What's up?" "There is poison in the arrow." "Poison?" Wei Yuheng was taken aback, subconsciously looking at the bow in his hand. "Mm. The world is highly poisonous. Seeing blood seals the throat, and the victim will die immediately. There is no antidote." Wei Yuheng's heart beat faster, and he said in a tight voice, "That is to say..." "Qi Aohou is dead now." The archer lowered his head, and there was a bit of regret in his voice. The rain had stopped a long time ago, but the wind was whimpering, and the world was full of chills. After half an hour—— Xue Cai and Pan Fang walked out of the secret passage, and what they saw was the cloth dyeing workshop that was empty. Finding Xue Cai, who was pulling his finger in the corner of the inner room, was full of despair. He wanted to continue tracking, but there was no clue; he wanted to give up, but he was unwilling.Just when he was at a loss what to do, the window lattice suddenly made a soft "boom". Pan Fang immediately jumped out like a streamer. And Xue Cai was stunned, and chased after him.The inspection found that it turned out that a small stone was thrown on the window lattice, and it did not fly away after hitting it as usual, but got stuck in the wood. It was pitch black, the rain gradually stopped, and there was nothing but the sound of the wind. Who is lying in ambush?And why should Shi Shi remind the two of his existence?As a warning?Or a threat? When Xue Cai was full of doubts, he heard a "boom", and another stone jumped in front of them without warning and fell into the ground. Xue Cai and Pan Fang glanced at each other, and they all rushed towards the direction the stone was coming from. Along the way, the stone always appeared at critical moments, leading the two out of the cloth dyeing workshop, and even out of the busy city, and the more they walked, the more remote they went.Before, Xue Cai had ordered the gates of the city to be closed to block the exits so that no one could leave.But the stone-throwing man knew another passage, along the bank of the river and through the thorns, there was a cut-off wall that was unattended, and after jumping over the wall, he was already outside the city. The two chased here, and they were even more curious about the identity of the mysterious man, but the man's martial arts were so high that it was unimaginable. After all, Xue Cai was young, and after chasing him, he was out of breath and gradually exhausted, and Pan Fang wanted to take care of him, so naturally It's even more impossible to catch up. Finally, Xue Cai simply stopped, squatted on the ground, panting and said: "Pan, General Pan, you don't have to worry about me. It's important to catch up to him! This is our only clue now." Pan Fang wondered: "But you are alone..." "Don't worry, if that person hurt our hearts, he would have done it long ago. He must have a plan to lure us out. Go and see what he wants to do." Pan Fang has never been a mother-in-law, so after thinking for a while, he nodded and said: "Okay, so, you should be more careful." After thinking about it, he took out a firework from his bosom, "If you are in danger, set it on fire as a warning." Xue Cai reached out to take it, and Pan conveniently left, jumped a few times, and disappeared in front of him. Xue Cai looked at the fireworks in his hand, squatted for a while, and after his breath calmed down, he suddenly said, "You can come out now, Zhu Long." A gray shadow suddenly appeared out of thin air and fell beside him like smoke.This person stood still, it was Zhu Long with the red three-clawed dragon tattooed on his left eyebrow. Xue Cai frowned and said, "I saw the stone on the window lattice, so I guessed it was you. Since you are here, do you mean...you know the master's whereabouts?" Zhu Long nodded, said "Follow me" and turned to lead the way. Xue Cai couldn't help asking: "Why did you take us out of the city? You deliberately went around to imply that I would send Pan Fang away?" "Because the master told me to see you first, and he will bring General Pan over later." Although Xue Cai was surprised, she didn't ask any more questions, and followed Zhu Long. This way, the higher and higher she went, she actually went up the mountain. The previous heavy rain made the mountain road extremely muddy. Xue Caishen walked with one foot shallow and one foot shallow. Appreciate the color. "Wait a minute." After saying that, he jumped up and landed on an uncle tree.Raindrops fell from the trembling branches and leaves. Before Xue Cai could avoid it, Zhu Long hugged a person down. Xue Cai's eyes turned red all of a sudden, and she said in a tight voice, "Master... person?" The man in front of him who was wearing only his inner garment, with his drenched long hair stuck to his body like a snake, and his breath was so weak that he seemed to die at any moment, how could he look like his master, Qi Aohou, who was so proud and powerful?That famous minister of Bai Ze who is worshiped by the world?That incomparably handsome and peerless young man——Ji Ying? Although Ji Ying didn't die as he imagined, it was more uncomfortable for him in this state than death. Xue Cai hurriedly stepped forward to hold one of his arms, and suddenly found that the entire arm had turned black and blue.He widened his eyes and said anxiously, "Who hurt you?" Ji Ying's eyelashes trembled a few times, and his closed eyes slowly opened, and when he saw him, he showed a little joy: "Are you here?" "You didn't look for Jiang Wanyi at this moment, but let Zhu Long come to me? You are a pig!" Xue Cai turned around while cursing, and was about to go to Jiang Wanyi, when her hands felt cold, but it turned out that it was Ji Ying who stopped her. he. Ji Ying's hand has no strength at all, he can break free with just a slight movement. However, being held by such a weak hand, Xue Cai immediately froze, unable to move any further. He turned his head stiffly, and saw Ji Ying, who was pale and lifeless, still smiling at him, a powerless sadness welled up from the soles of his feet, and he could only say in a low voice, "You..." Ji Ying gently lifted the skirt of his clothes with the other hand, Xue Cai gasped, and saw an arrowhead on his chest close to his heart, the cut surface polished by pure steel even reflected the cold light, shining It makes people's eyes hurt and hurt.And his chest, like his arms, had turned completely black. The arrow not only penetrated his body, but also had poison on the arrow. The poison had completely penetrated into the internal organs, and it was impossible for a god to save him.Although he is still alive now, he is just lingering on his last breath. Xue Cai trembled at the thought that the person in front of him would die at any moment. Seeing him like this, Ji Ying smiled again: "I thought I still had five years left, so there are many things I haven't taught you yet, and there are many things I haven't had time to do. I'm sorry." “我才不要你教！”薛采恨恨地垂下眼睛，声近哽咽，“你有什么了不起的，你会的我都会，你不会的我也会！再过几年，我肯定比你强！你……你……你凭什么现在就死掉？凭什么不给我超过你的机会，真狡猾！你太狡猾了！” 姬婴缓缓抬手，摸了摸他的头：“你听着，小采。我没多少时间了，箭上的毒非常可怕，若非我因长年累月服食药物而有了些许抵抗之力，现在早就死了。而我之所以撑到现在，就是为了见你一面。我接下去说的话很重要，你要好好地听。” 薛采抬起眼睛。 “你有两条路。第一条，去燕国投奔彰华，他是个仁厚的君王，知才善用，必会好好待你。”姬婴停了一下，见薛采睁着大大的黑眼睛，没什么表情，这才继续往下说道，“第二条，拿我的头颅去献给昭尹。” 薛采咬着嘴唇，还是不说话，但眼睛里却蒙上了一层雾气。 “两条路都能让你直通天梯，位极人臣，只不过一条简单些，另一条，则十分艰难。” 薛采低声道：“你凭什么认为我的目的是要位极人臣？” 姬婴温柔地看着他，缓缓道：“因为……我了解你，一如你了解我。我们是一样的人。我，你，还有沉鱼，都是一样的人。” 薛采脸上露出崩溃的表情，双膝一软，突然扑地跪倒在了地上。 姬婴把目光投放到很遥远的地方，轻轻叹息：“我们都成于家族，却又为家族所累，一生不得自由。家族面前，无自我，无善恶，无是非。我十四岁掌权，也就是那时候起，看到了光鲜外衣下的丑陋，千姿百态。堂叔贪污，表舅受贿，姬氏子弟欺街霸市，徇私舞弊，竟无一个，是干净的。然而，即使如此，也要撑下去，因为，父母兄弟，骨血手足，难道真忍心他们穷途末路？因此虽自知这毒瘤越大，危害越广，却不能动手铲除之。我本以为时机成熟，可以静下来好好整顿，但老天，却不给我时间……”说到这里，他将目光转回到薛采脸上，用一种说不出是悲伤还是淡漠的表情幽幽道，“也算是姬家的报应到了吧。我一死，姬氏这个毒瘤也终于可以割掉了。” 薛采什么话也说不出来，只是紧紧抓着姬婴的手，像小动物一样地颤抖。 姬婴摸着他的头，目光轻软：“盛衰之理，虽固知其如此，但人在局中，真的是别无选择，不是吗？所以，小采，如果你选第二条路，就要为我做一件事情。” 薛采看着眼前之人，清澈的瞳仁倒映出姬婴的影子，不敢眨眼，似乎想就此把这个人烙印住，永不消亡，永不磨灭。 “其实以姜仲的实力，早就可以反控时局，但他迟迟不动手，一方面固然是为了等姜沉鱼长大，另一方面则是因为朝野流传——姬家，有一本四国谱。” 薛采抿了抿唇，开口道：“我知道。” 姬婴笑了：“看，连你也知道。” 薛采沉声道：“我爷爷生前跟我爹私下提及过。不止四国谱，姬家还有一块连城壁。所谓的四国谱，是姬家自太祖以来便向其他三国密派出去的奸细，经过几百年的累积掌握所得到的讯息，里面所记载的任何一个秘密，说出来都足以惊动天下，引起政变。每个家族都有自己不能外传、想要守护的秘密，而得知了该秘密的人，就可以利用这点操控他们。这，就是四国谱最可怕也最致命的地方。” 姬婴静静地听着，没有发表看法。 于是薛采继续说了下去：“而所谓的连城壁，是指姬家的先祖，预料到几百年后家族的没落，因此，就把大量财富和珍宝藏在了某个地方。那块连城璧，就是打开藏宝之地的钥匙。姬家有了这两样东西，就可以维持长盛不衰。” 姬婴深吸口气，用异常平静的声音道：“那么，你信吗？” 薛采沉吟片刻，最后慎重地摇了摇头。 "why not?" “因为……”薛采的眼眶湿润了，低声道，“如果真有那两样东西，你就不会这么累了……” 这个答案显然在姬婴意料之外，他微张着嘴巴，有些惊讶，有些动容，还有一些别的情绪。 “我知道你有多累，我都知道。如果真有什么四国谱和连城壁，你根本不用日夜操劳，四处奔走，从没睡过一场好觉，连养病的时间都没有。你说你只有五年之期，但你明明知道，若你能抛却一切，跟着晚衣去某个山清水秀的地方好好静养的话，是可以调养回来的！” 姬婴垂下眼睫，静默了一瞬间，似乎想说些什么，但终归没有说出来，而下一刻，他抬眼，眸色如光，如水，如一切灵动却又柔软的东西，就那么浅浅地看着薛采，道：“有的。” 薛采乍然一惊。 姬婴扯出一丝笑容，却更像是苦笑，低声缓缓道：“四国谱、连城壁，都，确有其物。” 这下，薛采再也说不出话来。 姬婴深吸口气，朝薛采俯过耳去，说了几句话。 薛采原本就睁得很大的眼睛，因受到了惊骇而变得更大。 姬婴说完，喘着气恢复成原来的姿势，沉声道：“我本想明年开始施行改革之举，但现在看来，时机需要往后再拖十年。十年后，一切，就拜托你了。” 薛采站着一动不动，仿佛被定身了一般。 “望你不改善良正直的本性，在复族之时，亦想一想天下百姓，想一想，我们活着的真正意义，是什么。”姬婴说着，真真切切地笑了起来，“当日受沉鱼所托救你，现在看来真是我此生做的最正确的一件事情。我很高兴……虽然我一生于国于家，都无真正建树，但我毕竟，为图璧，为天下，为苍生，留下了两个人——一个是你，一个是沉鱼。” “不、不……不……”薛采颤抖着，抬起雾蒙蒙的眼睛，令他整个人显得非常无助，“不要死不行吗？求求你，不要死！姬婴，你不要死……不要死，求你了……” 姬婴闻言呆了一下，复长叹：“傻孩子……” “我不是孩子！我不是孩子！”薛采跳了起来，气急败坏道，“你们求着我的时候，都不把我当孩子，取笑我时，却又说我是孩子。我哪里是孩子了？天底下何曾有我这样的孩子？我告诉你，姬婴，从我能走路时起，我就不是个孩子！我没有乳娘哄我睡觉，没有同龄人跟我玩耍。别的孩子还在流鼻涕玩弹珠的时候，我就已经进宫献艺取悦先帝了；别的孩子还在哭着背书歪歪扭扭地写字的时候，我就已经代表一个国家去讨好另一个国家了；父母夸我聪明，于是要我光耀门楣；姑姑夸我坚韧，于是要我重振家族；而你，更是把全天下都拜托给了我——你凭什么？全天下与我何干？你又凭什么代表天下？你倒是一死百了解脱了，凭什么我要继续活着承受一切？你们！你们！你们这些……不负责任的大人们……我恨你们！我恨！我好恨！”说到这里，仰起头哇哇大哭。 姬婴看着他哭，也不劝阻，只是默默地看着，眼底始终流动着一种介于欢喜与悲伤之间的复杂情绪。 暗幕逐渐散去，天边透出薄薄的光。树林里风声呜呜，仿佛也跟着委屈的少年一起痛哭。 七岁。 这孩子甚至不能称之为少年。 然而，他却经历了普通人一辈子都不可能经历的事情，成就了一万人都不能成就一个的辉煌。 三岁能文，四岁成诗，五岁御前弯弓射虎，六岁使燕，名动四国，七岁全家灭门，贬身为奴。 而今，又被寄予了全天下的厚望。 大人尚不能承受，更何况只是个稚龄童子？ 只是，除了他，也没别人了。 人生，残酷如斯。悲哀如斯。 姬婴望着哭得泪流满面的薛采，眼底的复杂情绪最终被怜惜所覆盖，最后低低一叹，吃力地伸出手臂，将薛采搂入怀中。 薛采反抱住他，哭得更凶。 姬婴轻轻拍着他的背，动作极尽温柔。 一旁的朱龙，眼眶也红了起来，偷偷抹泪。 如此过了一段时间，其实很短，但于在场的三人而言，却像是一辈子那么漫长。 薛采终于抬起袖子擦了擦自己的脸，强行止住了眼泪。 姬婴道：“哭完了？” 薛采“哼”了一声，寒着脸说道：“你还有什么遗言，赶快一并交代了吧。免得我哭太久，你没说完就死了，到时候变鬼再来烦我！” 姬婴失笑出声，又温柔地摸了摸他的头：“没有了。” “没有了？”薛采瞪着他，“你没有其他未了的心愿了吗？” “未了的心愿？”姬婴看向远方的天空，淡淡道，“未了的太多，也就当全了了。” “那么放不下的牵挂呢？” 姬婴眉心微悸，目光一瞬间就寂寥了起来，沉默片刻，才道：“朱龙，把他们都叫来吧。” “是。”朱龙应声而去。 薛采吃了一惊——怎么？此地还有别人？ 没多会儿，三位年约四旬的中年男子跟着朱龙出现在视线中，走到近处，齐齐拜倒：“主人。” 姬婴“嗯”了一声。 其中一人道：“老七他们已在路上，很快就会赶来。” “无所谓了……”姬婴拉住薛采的手，将他推到众人面前，“找你们过来，是要宣布一件事，你们三个也对那些没来的传令下去——从今天起，薛采就是白泽的继承人。” 三人彼此对视了一番，看看薛采，再次拜倒：“拜见新主。” 薛采咬住下唇，脚步轻挪，像是想要后退，但最终还是朝前迈了出去，就那样以荏弱的童子之躯站在年长他许多的大人面前，开口道：“起……起吧。” “谢新主。”三人起身。 一旁的姬婴眼底露出欣慰之色，转头吩咐朱龙：“把我抱到那边的山崖上去。” “是。”朱龙立刻抱着他朝山崖走过去。 林木依次落在身后，一方山崖高耸，站在崖顶，整个回城尽收眼底，而更远的地方，郁郁葱葱，随着光线越来越亮，颜色也越来越是鲜明，呈展出一种大自然独有的壮阔美丽。 姬婴将头自朱龙怀中抬起，望着远处的风景，像是痴了一般。 身后，其中一名中年男子哽咽道：“主人，如果现在飞车赶往宜国，也许还来得及……” 姬婴摇了摇头。 另一人道：“主人，留得青山在！虽然帝都到此地的道路已经全部封锁，我们回不去了，但去燕国，还是可行的……” 第三人急声道：“是啊！主人！留得青山在！世上无不可解的毒！我们这就去接江神医，再去找翁老，齐他二人之力，主人的毒一定可以解开的！” “主人！不能放弃啊！” “主人！求您了！我们走吧！先离开璧国！姜仲势力再大，皇上权威再重，只要出了璧国，就什么都不是……” "Owner……" 这些哀求，姬婴全都恍若未闻，径自问朱龙道：“那边可是帝都的方向？” "yes." “毒发作得太快，我的视线越来越模糊了……”姬婴眯了眯眼睛，“不过，我能想像得到它的样子……图璧最美的地方就是帝都，一年四季气候宜人，红园的花林一到春天就都开了，美不胜收……美不胜收……” 薛采想起一事，连忙从怀中摸出那枚扳指，递了过去。 姬婴颤颤地接过扳指，脸上的笑容消失了，眼底千情万绪纷纷涌动，然后，将扳指慢慢贴到唇边，保持着那个亲吻的姿势，一动不动。 三人的哀求还在继续。 薛采忽然道：“你们别再说了，没用的。” 三人一呆，悲痛地抬头看他。 薛采的目光从始至终都没离开姬婴，缓缓道：“因为……他乡非故国。” 他乡非故国。 所以，别说姬婴根本就走不了了。就算有机会，他也不会走。 虽然知道璧国充满危机，虽然知道姜仲要追杀他，皇上也放弃了他，但是，他还是不会就此逃亡别国。 人生之中，有些坚持，有些依恋，也许在旁人看来很不可理解、很盲目顽固，却也是异常珍贵的。 姬婴遥望着晨光下的山峦，亲吻着他最心爱的物件。他的表情是放松的，柔软的，也是最最真实的。 What was he thinking about? 这一刻，他是否想起了那个制作它的人？是否想起很久很久以前，年轻热情的他，曾经深深、深深爱过那个娇俏美丽的女子？是否想起他曾因为不知道该如何靠近她而心跳很快，最后借口买了她的花？是否想起他信誓旦旦地说过要娶她，最后却眼睁睁地看着她嫁给了别人？是否想起最绝望的时候想过抛弃一切，带着她远走高飞，却硬生生地被人破坏了计划，一院的族人屈膝跪下，包括他那风烛残年的老父亲？是否想起了再相见已是隔若浮生，他跪在地上尊呼夫人，而那女子看他的眼神，冰凉冰凉？ ... 这一切，除了姬婴自己，没有人知道。 never. 便连朱龙，所看见的也不过是染布坊中，姬婴放弃了安全逃脱的机会，固执地要回去捡扳指，一支毒箭破空飞来，就那样射进了他的后背，直穿而出。 如果当时那枚扳指没有被卫玉衡扔掉…… 如果姬婴当时没有回去捡那枚扳指…… 如果卫玉衡的箭上没有毒…… 只要其中任何一条没有成立，结局就不会如此。 这枚扳指，烙刻了姬婴对曦禾的思念的同时，是否也埋藏了曦禾对姬婴的怨念？所以，才在最关键的一刻里，用最可怕的方式，毁灭了姬婴。 祸水！祸水啊…… 朱龙心中深深叹息。 而就在所有人都以为姬婴会一直亲下去的时候，姬婴却突然朝薛采看过来，最后，把扳指慢慢地递回到了薛采面前。 虽然他什么话都没有说，但薛采赫然明白了他的意思—— 这枚扳指他曾经开口要过，当时姬婴没舍得给，如今，临终之际送给他，也算是圆了他当年的遗憾。 然而，此情此景，又让他如何去接对姬婴来说那么重要的一样东西？ 薛采摇了摇头。 姬婴又将扳指往他面前递了递。 薛采还待摇头，姬婴的右眼角忽然流下了一滴眼泪。 无比晶莹的液体，滚落为珠，自那张秀雅无双的脸上滑落，天地顿时遥远，万物顿时消失，只剩下眼前的这么一张脸，一滴泪，哀绝浮生。 薛采大骇，不敢再拒，乖乖地平摊开手。 姬婴拈着扳指往他掌心放，但手刚到中途，就无力跌落，扳指掉到地上，滚了几个圈，随之响起的，是朱龙和其他三人的痛哭声：“侯爷！主人！侯爷！主人……” 薛采连忙转身做出一副专心捡扳指的样子，不敢去看。 不敢看那人死去的样子。 不敢看那人死时的表情。 不敢看那人在松手的一瞬，是怅然是留恋是悲伤还是解脱…… 那些，他都不敢看。 一道弧光慢慢滑上他的脸，旭日从遥远的海平线那一端，升了起来。 薛采看着这轮比之以往显得更为艳丽的太阳，目光闪烁，瞳仁由浅变浓，手心攥着那枚扳指，紧紧攥住。 扳指上仿佛还残留着那个人的体温。 但那个人，永远地离开了。 八月初二，甲寅，晴。大吉。诸事皆宜。 那一天的姜沉鱼，在卫玉衡的陪同下走向马车，随同出使的其他人等一起回京。一路上，民众叩拜，呼声重重，她平视前方，面容沉静，一步一步，仪态万千。 那一天的曦禾夫人，醉卧榻间，酒兴所至，翩然入池与群姬共舞，琉璃宫中，一派纸醉金迷，醉生梦死。 那一天的姬忽，据说诗兴大发，赤足散发，提笔直接往墙上挥毫，该诗稿自宫内流出，为众文人争相抄送，立成名作。 那一天的姜仲，午间陪同妻子游园，对着一盆兰花细细赏析了一番，气候正好，景致正妙，夫妻恩爱，其乐融融。 那一天的昭尹没有上朝，将自己紧闭书房之中，滴水未进，书房外，惶恐难安的太监们跪了一地。 那一天的彰华，在弹琴时琴弦突然断了一根，他怔怔地盯着琴弦看了半天，最后一挑眉，嘿嘿笑道：“从你店里买的名琴竟然如此不坚实，哼哼，看我如何勒索你这个奸商吧，赫奕。” 那一天的赫奕，在看奏折时突然打了个喷嚏：“唔……是谁家的姑娘又在想念朕了吗？身为一个帝王，长得还这么英俊，惹了这么多相思，真是罪过啊罪过……” 那一天的颐殊，梳头时发现镜子裂开了，顿时摔镜大发雷霆，并赐死了两个宫女。 那一天，据说是百年难遇的黄道吉日。