Chapter 3 third quarter

On December 14th of the fifth year of Emperor Yincheng, Nanhuai City, Pancheng Prison. After nightfall, it rained heavily, and it didn't stop.The roof was leaking, the light rain was dripping in the cell, and the straw used as a mattress had a musty smell, causing the prisoners to curse repeatedly.The jailer was also angry in this bad weather. When he got impatient, he came in and beat the iron railing with an iron rod, yelling and cursing loudly.After a few times, the prisoners stopped cursing their mothers, knowing that complaining was useless, and they couldn’t sleep in the leaky cell anyway, so they gathered together in twos and threes to gossip about women through the iron bars, and it was as lively as a wine shop.

Xi Yan thumped the cell wall: "I cast two, and the dark horse gets two." A smug smile came from the next door: "I knew you were going to take this step, just look at my luck! Ziwei is on the top, Beichen is on the side, and the magic soldiers open the way. I will win at the gambling table today if I win!" These few sentences are what gamblers in Nanhuai City often say before throwing dice. It means that the gods will make money, and the luck of gambling will be good. Then there is the sound of stones rolling on the ground from the opposite side. "Six o'clock! Six o'clock! I'm going to finish!" The person on the other side was so excited that he covered all those chatting with his shrill voice.

"Did you cut the old man with a thousand knives? Shouting so loudly? That's how successful you are at playing Pan Shuanglu?" The prisoners chatting over there cursed viciously and complained. The old prisoner on the opposite side of Xi Yan didn't dare to be arrogant any more, he laughed apologetically, his voice still full of complacency.Xi Yan also smiled, looking down at the backgammon board he drew on the cell floor with stones. The name of this prison is horrific, but in fact, everyone is locked up. The prostitutes who cause trouble in the wealthy family, the traffickers who fight and kill people in the market, and even some low-level officials who have committed crimes may go here. Throw.However, this is also the most heavily guarded prison in Nanhuai City. The inmates held here have a lot of crimes, and a few are cut every few days.Yi Xiyan’s official title should be locked in a separate cell even if he is released from prison. He was indeed locked in a stone prison facing the south in the first few months of his release. Except for the patrolling guards, he was not allowed to contact anyone. There is only one skylight for ventilation.Baili Jinghong was disgraced among the feudal lords of the Eastern Continent because of the robbing of the prisoner in the law field, and he hated Xi Yan deeply, so he sent an internal prisoner from the palace to see if the traitor Xi Yan was depressed.But when the eunuch arrived, he saw Xi Yan whistling against the skylight to tease a pigeon resting there, with a lazy expression on his face.After the internal supervisor reported back to Baili Jinghong, Baili Jinghong was so angry that he ordered Xi Yan to be imprisoned in the stinking death row, and he would eat the same food as those lowly prisoners.

Baili Jinghong didn't send the eunuch to visit after that, otherwise he would be even more annoyed.Because it seemed that Xi Yan only complained about the stench of the prisoners around him, but he didn't dislike this relatively lively place. At night, he chatted with other prisoners through the iron bars.He can speak the vulgar language of the vulgar people in the market, and the prisoners are happy to hear some anecdotes from this big man who has lost power, and Xi Yan is quite popular among this group of people.After a while, Xi Yan realized that the old prisoner next door, Shuanglu, was doing well. Unfortunately, the two of them could never see each other across the stone wall, so they each made dice with roughly square stones and drew Shuanglu on the ground. Chessboard, relying on knocking on the wall to play chess, there can be three or four wins and losses in one night.

"Speaking of which, old man, what did you do?" Xi Yan pinched the two stones in his palm and thumped the wall. "Forging a golden ticket is a crime of beheading." The old prisoner on the opposite side was not very depressed, and answered very frankly. "How much was faked?" "It's only two hundred thousand gold baht." Xi Yan was stunned for a moment, then laughed out loud: "No wonder it's the crime of beheading, your forged golden ticket can buy half of Ziliang Street." "Then what did you commit? You are the famous General Xi in Nanhuai City. If you can be reduced here, you must have committed a serious crime." The old prisoner asked back. They have been locked up longer than Xi Yan, There is no news from the outside world.

Xi Yan scratched his head: "Speaking of which, the matter of being caught is to mobilize the army in private." "Mobilize the army? How many people have been mobilized?" The old prisoner chased after him. "It's only 30,000 to 40,000 people." Xi Yan imitated his tone. "No wonder it's the crime of beheading. The people you secretly mobilized can bring down a country." The old prisoner retaliated triumphantly. The two laughed together, and seemed to be somewhat happy about the fact that each other was about to be beheaded. "Actually, I think I'm pretty lucky," said the old prisoner.

"You mean it's luck not to be sentenced?" "No," said the old prisoner. "Anyway, I have no family. I die as soon as I die. I have nothing to worry about. This is luck. If I had known that it would cost two million baht, I would have beheaded it, right?" "You can think about it too." Xi Yan smiled. "Wars are everywhere these days. I don't think Nanhuai will be quiet for long. Who dares to say that he can survive when there is a war? Those who violate the laws of the king and those who do not violate the laws of the king will fall to the ground. It's a chaotic world, everyone is involuntary, and everyone is trying to eat, like a dog begging for a living. I'm just unlucky." The old prisoner sighed.

Xi Yan was silent for a while, silently looking at the only window on the wall, the cold rain poured in from the window, and it was pitch black outside. "Don't talk about it, I have a good record, and I will beat you in this game. Quickly cast quickly." The old prisoner urged repeatedly. As soon as Xi Yan came back to his senses, he heard a tooth-piercing voice.The rusty iron shaft of the gate of the death cell slowly turned and opened.The light of the torch shone on the damp ground, and the two shadows cast extremely long.The prisoners suddenly became quiet, and the sound of breathing became slight.Death row inmates are not allowed to let out the wind. The door is only opened when delivering water and killing people. Hearing the sound of the iron shaft turning is like a reminder to die. You just don't know whose turn it is to die.It's late at night, and the jailer will definitely not kindly send some food and drink to the prisoners, so is it murder?In such bad weather, the executioner is willing to kill?

"This day is a day to die!" Many people thought so in their hearts. Two men proceeded down the aisle, one of them apparently a jailer, wading across the bars with an iron rod, making a frightening series of clanging noises.The other person didn't make the slightest sound, his footsteps were as quiet as a cat's.The two finally stopped in front of Xi Yan's cell. Xi Yan saw a familiar black cloak with a hood covering the man's face. Under the cloak was a faint iron armor. He was equipped with a long and slender knife. There is a bright silver iron ball in the cavity.

That was one of the four black-clothed servants of Leibi City. These four people under Shangyang Pass protected Leibi City to pass surrounded by thousands of troops. They were powerful and silent, like the guards of gods. "Are you here to execute my imperial envoy?" Xi Yan nodded after finishing his study. "Apocalypse seven censors have already passed a verdict on the case of General Xi. General Xi colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country, formed a party and conspired against the country. He deserves to be executed for the crime without pardon." interest Yan.

Xi Yan took it, glanced at it, and threw it aside: "No need, I believe what you said. Now that you have controlled the royal family, even if there is no such judgment, you can write a copy and stamp the emperor's seal .” The black-clothed servant does not answer, which is regarded as a default. "You killed my brother, but I don't hate you." After a moment of silence, he suddenly said. Xi Yan raised his eyebrows, and looked at the black-clothed servant again: "That corpse warrior at Shangyang Pass? Is he your brother? It seems that there is a lot of difference between you brothers." "I can't compare to my elder brother. Among all the students, my elder brother is the most admired by the teacher." "You say you don't hate me? Why?" "Because you, like my brother, are sacrifices on the altar of God." The black-clothed servant said flatly. Xi Yan was silent for a while, then smiled: "You are not good enough in cultivation, but you speak reasonably and have a clear mind, which is much better than your brother. No need to talk nonsense, can you meet the last requirement for a dying person? I want a harp with thirty-six strings, a jug of wine, something to eat, and a woman who can play the flute. When I play the piano, she can accompany me with the flute." "Go to Ziliang Street and buy a jug of wine for General Xi, some food, buy the best ones, and a used old harp with thirty-six strings." The black-clothed servant ordered to the jailer. Looking at the pouring rain outside, the jailer felt a hundred thousand reluctances in his heart, but he didn't dare to say anything more to the imperial envoy, he just felt that this imperial envoy was much more difficult to serve than the last time.He put on the tarpaulin poncho, gritted his teeth and went out. Xi Yan nodded slightly: "The used harp is good. You are a person who knows how to play the qin. The harp is like white jade, and you can't make it without grinding. But what about the woman who can play the flute?" "It's raining heavily. It's too long to find a woman who can play the flute now." The waiter in black took out a brown piccolo from his sleeve, "I can play the flute." "Okay!" Xi Yan smiled, "Chenyue plays the flute, the sky drives the harp, the general is in battle, and he draws his sword to live and die." "Old Xi, you are going to die..." The old prisoner was listening next door, looking at the unfinished Shuanglu game in front of him, remembering how much friendship he had with this cellmate playing chess over the wall these days, suddenly burst into tears Feeling sad about the death of the rabbit and the fox, he couldn't help wiping his eyes with his sleeve. "Everyone will die." Xi Yan stood up, "Don't bend down." He paced around the cell with his hands behind his back, while the servant in black stood like a sculpture outside the iron fence, motionless.Under the hood, he also covered an iron mask, so he couldn't see his face at all, and he didn't care about his expression.The prisoners didn't dare to breathe loudly, and looked at each other through the iron bars, waiting to see how the hero who shocked the Eastland would die. They had already bid farewell to many inmates in this way.The rain outside became more urgent, and amidst the sound of wind and rain, Xi Yan's footsteps were clear and soothing. When he turned the fortieth lap, the jailer returned.The oilcloth poncho didn't help much, the jailer was soaked through, and he cursed in his Nanhuai dialect, and put a bag of things in front of the black-clothed servant.The black-clothed servant cast a cold glance at the jailer, pulled the items with the scabbard, saw clearly one by one, and nodded.The jailer did not open the iron gate, but handed things in from the iron bars one by one. Xi Yan opened the wine tank and smelled the aroma, then checked the oiled paper bag, and saw rose peanuts, candied plums, and fragrant cherries, shook his head and sighed: "This wine is old wine, and the fruits are sweet. How to serve wine? Good food to serve with wine is fat and lean pork head meat, crispy fried duck skin, a few slices of salted pork legs, peanuts should be fried and sprinkled with fine salt. .” The jailer was so angry that he had nowhere to vent his anger. He was about to stare when he was stopped by a black-clothed servant. "The things that go with the wine are not good, you can buy them again." He ordered in a low voice, "According to what General Xi said, pork head meat, duck skin, salted pork leg, salted peanuts." "Forget it." Xi Yan waved his hand, "People who are going to die will only make people laugh for a little snack for drinking... What a harp!" He caressed the old harp, tsk-tsk in admiration.The konghou is ordinary in style and has no inscriptions, so it must not be very valuable.The same thing is sold on the street, and the brand new one is only worth a few gold baht.This one is probably several decades old, it has been rubbed too much, and the paint has been worn away in many places on the surface, but it is as smooth as dark brown amber, with a layer of soft light.Xi Yan tuned the string carefully, looking like he couldn't put it down. "I don't know which old violin master used it, it's good wood." Xi Yan said lightly, "The person who used this violin is probably dead, and the younger generation is not sensible to sell it? Otherwise, who would play the violin? Zhang Laoqin?" The jailer didn't speak, but his heart skipped a beat.He braved the rain to knock on the door of an old luthier's house and bought it at a cheap price. The old luthier used to tell stories in the neighborhood, telling old stories about Emperor Qiangwei, earning a little money and living a very happy life. Down and out, he just died last month, and his son had no use for keeping this violin, so he sold it to him for a gold baht. Xi Yan's fingertips twitched on the strings, the feather sound was clear and clear, against the sound of the rain outside, a sudden loneliness slowly spread away.His expression changed, he stopped smiling, and looked silently at the darkness outside the window, watching the rain splashing on the window sill.Suddenly, he looked a little old, and only then did he really look like a man in his thirties. "You said that a person like you should have been wandering around like a lonely soul, but accidentally got into a cage," Xi Yanyou sighed, and played the strings casually, "Actually, why didn't everyone accidentally get into a cage? Since then, I dare not go out..." The inmates all leaned on the iron bars to look at him, thinking that this inmate, known as a hero, must have gone mad when he was about to die, talking like this, as if someone was sitting opposite him. "The temple is tall, and the flute and drum are old; Candle tears piled red, and several people sang. " Xi Yan chanted in a long voice, and the thirty-six strings in his hands moved successively, like clasping an ancient tree with his fingers, drawing a knife and hitting a hall pillar.Suddenly he moved his ten fingers, and the sound was like cracking feathers.The servant in black blew the piccolo at the same time, the sound of the flute was surprisingly clear, faintly reminiscent of the freshness in the sound of Bai Yi's flute.He must have worked very hard on the flute. The sound of the flute follows the sound of the harp, never overpowering the audience, but never falling behind, as if the white phoenixes flying together cut through the floating clouds at a very high speed, and then turned around and dived into the sea together. .The prisoners around were not very accomplished in rhythm, but they could also hear the sound of the flute and the harp, which seemed to be harmonious but intertwined and fighting, relentlessly. Kong Hou was moved to the extreme by Xi Yan, no longer the gorgeous and elegant white phoenix, but like a giant eagle soaring to the sky.The sound of the flute also skyrocketed, not refusing to lag behind.The black-clothed servant took a very long breath, and the sound of the flute was hardly restricted by his breath, but at this moment, the thin bamboo tube couldn't hold the sound of the flute, and the sound of the flute was like a dragon struggling to get rid of its restraint.The prisoner only felt that if he continued to play at this tone, the flute might crack, and the thirty-six strings might also snap.The sound of flute and harp had overwhelmed the wind and rain, and everyone felt uneasy, vaguely feeling that some danger was approaching. Yes, great danger, like a black snake swimming in the dark night! Xi Yan's harp sound suddenly paused, reached a new high, and sang at the same time: "With a lifespan of a hundred years, who should die? When you are born, you will be drunk, and you will borrow the moon to shine on the garden. I don't see the heroes of all ages draw their swords, and the iron flute sings the dragon's night; I don't see thousands of years of rouge and tears, and the dragon's blood thrush red. ..." The sound of the flute was interrupted, and the black-clothed servant drew out the sword. The color of the sword was green, and the blade was straight.He reached out and took off the cloak from the back, revealing his iron scale armor. Every piece of black iron had faint patterns of ice silk. It was cold-forged fish scale steel, a specialty of Chun Country, and the Fenghu cavalry used this kind of steel to make their armor.The servant in black opened the gate of the death cell, took a look at the pouring rain outside, and walked out slowly with a knife in hand. Behind him, the sound of Xi Yan's harp became louder and louder, as if a hundred thousand armored soldiers lined up, a hundred thousand war horses hoofed, and a hundred thousand long knives roared in their sheaths. The servant in black lit a torch, but the light wasn't enough to penetrate the darkness.He looked around and saw six dark shadows standing in the rain, threatening to surround him.None of them held an umbrella, because they needed to hold their weapons firmly, two with knives, one with an epee, one with a two-handed mallet, one with a spear, and one with a pair of tooth hooks with chains.Each of them was wearing a full set of armor, and the icy rain hit their iron helmets, splashing water, and the water dripped down the seam of the armor and penetrated into the inner clothing, so it must be very uncomfortable to be completely soaked in such a cold day. But no one moved, except sweating. In this cold rainy night, each of them was sweating. The black-clothed servant took a few steps forward, and the six-person encirclement moved with him, and the distance between everyone and him remained the same.He raised the fire high, barely illuminating the enemy closest to him, the man was holding a long gun, he was quite young and handsome, and he looked familiar. "The commander of the Yulin Heavenly Army, Xie Cheng, I have seen you in the imperial capital before." The black-clothed follower remembered. "Samurai Regiment of Heavenly Exorcist, Xie Gui, this is my real name." said the young man with a spear. "I don't need to know your real names, and I won't erect tombstones for you." The black-clothed servant said flatly. "I dare to tell you my real name, because you don't need to hide it deliberately from people who are about to die." Xie Gui paused every word. The servant in black threw the torch into the air, held the handle of the knife tightly with both hands, put it on his right chest, pointed the tip of the knife to the sky, and was as silent as a stone statue.The torch fell on the ground and was immediately extinguished by the rain, leaving no light left. Everyone faced the darkness and listened to the sound of rain.Xie Gui's sweat became more urgent. He knew how terrifying this opponent was. The students of Leibi City would not be weak. All focus was on his knife.Xie Gui knew how Bai Yi and Xi Yan teamed up to injure the Corpse Warrior when Shang Yang closed the gate. Can the six of them together compare to Su Yue Mo Yu?Xie Gui was completely unsure. Two lights suddenly jumped up in the darkness, the color was like the light green of fireflies, but it was as blazing as fire.A green spot of light slid across a piece of icy metal, the iron ball shook violently, and the rain and wind were torn apart by a shrill howl. "Xiaotong!" Xie Gui had heard of this secret technique, which allows people to see anything that is hot in absolute darkness. The six people started at the same time, and their movements were in unison, as if someone clapped their hands and gave an order.In fact, no one clapped their hands, and it was the sound of the harp that gave them the order. At that moment, the sound of the harp suddenly stopped, and the sound of the wind and rain between the sky and the earth became very clear at this time.Time seemed to slow down, and the splashing water droplets on the ground swept silver lines in the dark, and the weapons cut those lines and swept them in deadly arcs.The top warriors of Tianqi and Chenyue passed by, their weapons did not block, and Xie Gui's spear pointed at the eyebrows of the black-clothed servant between the pair of green owl pupils.But before he hit the target, the Xiao pupil went out, it was the black-clothed servant who closed his eyes, Xie Gui felt that his gun was empty, and then the warm liquid splashed onto his hand.One of his companions was injured at the moment of crossing, but no one made a sound. In a life-and-death struggle, the time of one breath is enough to kill, and the sky-drivers who lost their targets turned to attack the darkness at the same time.The tacit cooperation between the sky drives made the second attack not leave a dead angle, but the weapon only caused a few helpless whistling in the cold and humid air, and the black-clothed servant seemed to melt into the darkness and disappeared.The six of them immediately formed defenses back to back, each feeling the violent heartbeat of their companion. Xie Gui held the middle part of the spear, which was the "Double Man Luo One-handed Formation" passed down from Yi Tianzhan, a defensive martial art refined by Yuren for countless generations.He began to regret his carelessness. He thought that his side had the superiority in numbers, but on this rainy night where you can't see your fingers, the number of people can't play a role at all.The black-clothed servant confuses them with the sound of the iron beads in his sword and the pair of green pupils. Just when they thought they were close to success, the sound of the iron beads and the green light of the pupils disappeared.And Xie Gui absolutely believed that the servants in black were observing their prey like owls in a corner they could not predict, and calculated the time of the next attack. Such a secretive style was not like a warrior, but an assassin.When the servants in black appear again, some of them may fall. He didn't look up, so he couldn't see a pair of slender blue eyes slowly opening in the darkness above his head.Those eyes hovered there, as if the dark sky had opened, and then fell down like a bat. The sky-driver with the tooth hook let out a short warning, and just before Xiaotong fell, he saw a flash of green in his mirror-smooth weapon.Almost at the same time, the six people sensed the incredible attack coming from overhead, five people rushed forward, and Xie Gui raised his gun to meet it.He hit, but not the body of the black-clothed servant. His red gun and the black-clothed servant's saber collided in the air, and a series of short blocking sounds joined together.Relying on the almost impenetrable defense of the "Double Manro One-handed Formation", he took over all the offensives before the servant in black landed. But he didn't hear the sound of the servant in black falling to the ground. When he suddenly realized this, it was already an instant late.His companion clearly saw two blue lights slowly opening in the darkness behind Xie Gui. Xie Gui had a premonition of the enemy's position in the exclamation of his companions, he rushed forward with all his strength, and followed the knife behind him like a ghost.He couldn't go any faster, and he didn't have time to turn around to block, because he didn't have time to breathe, and his strength was exhausted.Tie Zhu shook violently, unscrupulously revealing the position of the black-clothed servant, because the prey was about to die, and the hunter could show up calmly. Xie Gui stopped, did not move at all, and received the knife forcefully with his back.It was as if the pain of splitting the whole body came from behind, but Xie Gui knew that he had succeeded in his adventure. He heard from his teacher that if a real knife cuts a person's body, the dead person would only feel a kind of pain at that moment. Cold enough to cool the whole world.Xie Gui wore heavy armor under the Habayashi Heavenly Army cloak, and the black-clothed servant had no time to accumulate energy before he drew his sword, and the strength of the sword was not enough to break through the finely forged armor. Xie Gui turned around and swept his spear, but lost the target again.The black-clothed servant closed his eyes again, and completely merged into the darkness as before. This time it's luck, who will die next time the servant in black appears?Xie Gui couldn't wait any longer, he suddenly dropped his spear and clapped his hands vigorously.He knew how risky it was. He didn't have the ability to see in the dark, and the opponent might be less than a step in front of him, or he might be pierced through his heart before he finished clapping. He is not dead.As he clapped his hands, a two-foot-long flame rose from the darkness. What is burning is a piece of paper, but no one has ever seen a piece of paper burn with such a blazing light, it looks like a torch poured with butter.The piece of paper was floating in the palm of a person, and that person was holding an umbrella, standing in a corner not far away, the umbrella drooped down, covering most of his face, leaving only a small smudge under the eaves. mustache mouth. There was a smile on the corner of that mouth: "Go, it won't burn for long, but it's enough for you to kill him." Behind him, a curved sword slowly emerged from the darkness, and a powerful black figure strode out, walking towards Xie Gui stepping on the rain.The burning paper illuminated everything around, and the darkness that the black-clothed servant used to hide was driven away. He was bending over like a cat not far from Xie Gui's side, but now he slowly stood up straight.His green long knife hung on one side, and the rain washed away the blood and flowed down at high speed. The person holding the arc sword walked up to Xie Gui. He was a man about sixteen or seventeen years old. He was dressed in close-fitting black clothes with no visible material. He had a young but unruly face, and his hair was casually pulled into a bunch hanging on his shoulders. . The black-clothed servant turned his back to him and remained motionless. "Your sword is very good, is this the killer sword?" Xie Gui said and stepped back slowly. "Yinghu, I hit it myself." The young man replied in the most flat voice.At this time, he turned the arc sword, and the blade of the sword reflected the fire in the hand of the umbrella holder, dazzled everyone's eyes. "Hurry up, don't waste time." The umbrella man urged with a smiling voice. The young man stopped answering.The distance between him and the black-clothed servant was less than two feet, and neither of them was moving at all. This distance was enough for Xie Gui to launch a thunderous blow with his spear, and it was a dangerous distance, but neither side seemed to be in a hurry to make a move. "Tianluo, have you considered the consequences of doing this?" the black-clothed servant asked lightly. "Who knows? The old men probably thought about the result, but they won't tell us." The umbrella man said every word with a gentle smile. There was only the sound of rain in the sky, the young man turned the self-made sword "Shadow Tiger" faster and faster, the light and shadow flashed rapidly, but his feet were as firm as nails.The Celestial Drivers approached slowly, Xie Gui watched the paper in the palm of the umbrella holder slowly turn into ashes.In fact, the burning speed of the piece of paper was already very slow, but Xie Gui still couldn't help but worry, once the torch lit by the secret technique was extinguished, the darkness would return, and the pupils of the black-clothed servants would once again gain the upper hand. But the umbrella bearer was still smiling, and the young man was expressionless. The paper finally burned to the end, and the umbrella holder slowly clenched his fist, and the paper hanging in his palm suddenly burst into flames three feet high, as if it had exploded.At this moment, the young man's sword was beeping harshly amidst the rapid vibration, and the light of the sun disappeared in an instant. The six heavenly drivers raised their weapons to defend at the same moment. Xie Gui watched the young man dragging his sword and shooting it for the last time. Cut a silver streak in the stagnant water without feet.The darkness fell, and the green eyes of the owl pupils revived. This time, the black-clothed servant brought his speed to the extreme, and his eyes gleamed from the corner of his eyes, like waving a lighted incense stick in the dark. The eyesight of ordinary people is no longer enough to distinguish his eyes. Xie Gui could barely catch up to the exact position.He watched the two blue lights flickering in the darkness, turning back and forth quickly, this time the black-clothed servant no longer dared to close his eyes, the young man's "Shadow Tiger" posed a far greater threat to him than Xie Gui gun.The sound of two people stepping on the water rang together, and the sound of metal breaking through the wind was ear-piercing, but there was never a single encounter of weapons. The umbrella holder smiled softly not far away, and lit a torch with a scythe.Probably the secret technique of burning paper lighting was very exhausting for him, and he didn't want to use it again. Sparks fell, torches were lit, and almost at the same time the sound of footsteps and the clatter of weapons died down.The umbrella bearer held up the torch. Xie Gui squinted his eyes and saw the young man walking towards him with "Shadow Tiger" stepping on the rainwater.Behind the young man, a servant in black stood silently, holding a long knife in both hands. The heavy rain hit his pitch-black armor, splashing silvery water. "It seems that I don't need it anymore. The knife is too good, and the watchman always has nothing to do." The umbrella holder said with a smile. The moment the young man and Xie Gui passed by, the black-clothed servant fell to the sky, the only wound was on his neck, his head was like a leaky water bag, and the blood mixed with rainwater flowed along his chin Flowing.That sword was unbelievable to Xie Gui, the young man used the "Shadow Tiger" to penetrate from the bottom of the chin and penetrated into the brain when the opportunity was fleeting in the darkness.The black-clothed servant fell into the stagnant water. His last move was to raise his hand to the sky. Something shot out from the sleeve armor, making a shrill cry in the night sky. "Damn it!" Xie Gui's expression changed. "The order I received was to kill this man, and now he is dead, and the rest has nothing to do with me." The young man stopped for a step, and looked sideways at Xie Gui. Xie Gui didn't say anything else, he held the sword hilt on his waist to keep alert, and watched the young man walk away slowly.He saw a tiger-like light in the young man's eyes, which made him feel that he was an unstoppable person.He was surprised to find that there were wounds almost everywhere on the young man's body. There were no less than dozens of small wounds on the seemingly extremely flexible black clothes. The blood was washed down by the rain. Some wounds were very close to the vital organs. If the attacker can penetrate an inch more, the outcome of this battle will change. "Long Xiang, don't be so rude, I have met Mr. Xie Gui from the Tianqi Warriors." The umbrella holder said slowly. The young man didn't stop, put his sword back into its sheath, and passed him by. The umbrella holder strolled out of the corner, side by side with Xie Gui, looked at the back of the young man leaving, and smiled: "Did you disappoint the employer? Then forgive the young man for his arrogance. The best young man with swords in ten years, he is so good that we don't know what to send him on. Thank you for finding the right puppet for him." "Puppet" refers to the target to be killed in the assassin business, "knife" refers to the person who performs the killing task, and the task of "watchman" is either to make up for the fish that slipped through the net, or to solve the killer who cannot escape. "This is the remuneration agreed in advance. A gold ticket of 5,000 baht will be issued by the Jiang family in Wanzhou. It can be exchanged anywhere in Wanzhou or the imperial capital." Xie Gui took out a small sealed bamboo tube from his arms and handed it over. The umbrella holder took the bamboo tube, smiled, and put it into his sleeves: "You are lucky. The Chenyue Cultists who practice killer martial arts like this are indeed not good at dealing with warriors like you who go to battle." "Don't you check the amount of the gold ticket? I heard that Tianluo is the most shrewd businessman in the world, and he can calculate every penny and tenth of the transaction clearly." Xie Gui squinted at the umbrella holder, the brown bamboo umbrella Still intentionally or unintentionally covering the man's face. "It's not necessary, we believe in the credit of SkyDrive." The umbrella bearer turned and prepared to leave. "Is it because you don't value five thousand gold baht?" Xie Gui said behind him, "Tianluo would never send out the assassins in this church for a mere small amount of money. You said your name was Su Hehui, and that young man, you called him Long Xiang. Among the three families in Tianluo, the Long family studies the ultimate assassination martial arts, and the Su family is the most proficient in the secret way of killing. Without great benefits, Tianluo would not send out such a strong match like you?" "Assassins only perform tasks, but don't ask about decision-making. If you want to know why you want to kill someone, you will shake your resolve." Su Hehui smiled, "The deal is over, go and save your friends." "Go all the way." Xie Gui said. Su Hehui walked a few steps in the pouring rain, stopped, but didn't look back: "The idea of ​​the old men is that this era will change again. Regardless of whether Chenyue's plan can succeed this time, Dayin is destined to The country is subjugated. We want to live in the new era, Tianqi or Chenyue, we want to know who can dominate the new era. Yan admires General Xi very much. He believes that General Xi will bring a new era of peace to Donglu. And the assassin I also want to live in an era of peace...Maybe one day there will be more transactions between us." "You and Chenyue also have a good deal, right?" Su Hehui smiled: "According to the truth, the priests of Chenyue are more generous in bidding...but the old men are not satisfied with the previous deal with Chenyue." "You really sound like a Wanzhou businessman." "This is the difference between us. We are not Tianqi, nor Chenyue. We don't want to fight for ideals or gods. We are just a group of people who get together and want to support each other to survive." Su Hehui is far away Chu bowed slightly, as if saluting, and then walked away slowly. Xie Gui was silent, watching his back slowly enter the rain curtain.Suddenly, he disappeared, as if melting in the heavy rain, an umbrella fell to the ground. The sound outside completely subsided, Xi Yan stood up silently, put down the harp in his hand, and straightened his collar.The melody has been played, and the luthier only needs to wait for someone to applaud, but Xi Yan is not absolutely sure who the applause will be. The sound of heavy combat boots approached from far away, Xie Gui shook off his rain hood, and smiled at Xi Yan through the iron bars: "I almost died." "I was thinking that I was ready, but I didn't know whether it was you or that Chenyue who came in to lead me on the road." Xi Yan said, "You almost came late, and my body will be cold in a while." "In fact, the verdict against you was only issued yesterday, and the document has not yet been submitted to the emperor for review. But the warrior Chenyue set off early and deceived Baili Jinghong with a fake conviction document. Lei Bicheng is anxious to kill you. I heard that a man named Baili Moyan held a secret letter with the emperor's seal and asked Yushitai to judge the crime quickly. Only then did I realize that this matter is far more important than I thought. In the urgency of meeting them, I gathered them and drove non-stop for two days and one night. As soon as I arrived at Youfengtang, I saw your homing pigeons flying over, and they came here non-stop." Xie Gui said, "Thanks to your pigeons, how did you train the pigeons? ? I don’t even look for a place to take shelter in this kind of heavy rain, and I’m always ready to report to you.” "I can teach you this later. You said that person is called Baili Moyan?" "Baili Moyan, about fifteen or sixteen years old, blind, he is a noble son like white jade. There was no such person in the imperial capital before." Xi Yan took a deep breath, his face solemn: "Baili Moyan is the son of Baili Changqing." "Evergreen?" Xie Gui was shocked. "So he is the owner of the Baili family of this generation, and even Baili Jinghong is just the master of the branch family in his eyes. I have been wondering whether the Baili family can maintain their presence in the Eastern Continent after Baili Changqing. The power for hundreds of years, now it seems that they have an heir. Besides Chenyue, we have to be hostile to such a family." Xi Yan paused, "You bought Tianluo's killer?" "Thanks for buying it." Xie Gui hesitated, "Did that woman leave you the way to contact Tianluo? She left the way to save you?" Xi Yan's expression froze for a moment, he didn't speak, and smiled faintly.Among Xie Gui's companions, one put away the knife, and took out a leather case from his belt, and opened it to a set of fine steel tools.He squatted by the cell door and tried to unlock it, and his movements were capable. This Tianqi was actually a quite accomplished mechanism engineer. "I have bad news." Xie Gui said. Xi Yan also smiled: "So it was a messenger, I thought you were here to rescue me from prison." "After hearing this news, the general will probably not be able to laugh," Xie Gui said, "Yilin Vitas Stark's army took twelve Mulan longships seven days ago and attempted to attack Beigushan City, a seaport in northern Shanxi. 。雷千叶已经有预料，派遣古月衣带领三千出云骑射驻扎北固山城加强防御。双方隔海对射十万支箭，最终羽人未能穿越出云的箭岚，暂时退回了对岸。” “羽族的进攻？”息衍果然笑不下去了。 “这一次的胜利非常危险，古月衣靠的是出云的骑射，三千匹马在海边的驰道上来往奔驰，一刻不停。所以即使羽族的箭术远高于人类，却没有办法轻易命中目标，不过出云的弓箭射程远不及羽人的普通长弓，古月衣只能以箭岚封住可以登陆的海滩一线，却没能射中一名羽人。最后羽人的箭支耗尽，不得不回撤。古月衣一度告急，下令点燃了北固山城城楼上的火鼎，大胤立国七百年来，那一直是羽人正式入侵的信号，火光一路传递到达秋叶山城，雷千叶以为北固山城已经被突破，两万五千精锐武士立刻整备完成，即将出城，得到消息说古月衣成功把羽族舰队驱走了。” “确实是斯达克城邦的军队？”息衍问，“翼氏的军队不可能在那么快的时间里推进到海边，羽族诸城邦不会那么快的臣服于他。何况天武者还在那里……” “古月衣送来一个情报，据说来自晋侯雷千叶安排在宁州的斥候，但还不能确认，”谢圭沉默了一刻，“从斯达克城邦叛逃的贵族翼天瞻在上个月被人发现偷袭他的侄孙翼霖，但是翼霖出人意料的早有防备，短暂的交战后……杀手被翼霖的卫队射杀。” “绝不可能！”息衍脸色剧变，“翼天瞻是谁？他是我天驱的苍溟之鹰！他用不着以刺杀阻止翼霖！而且他是鹤雪中的第一人，他想刺杀的人还从未有过漏网的！” “我们的斥候已经证实翼霖还活着……如果被刺杀的人还活着，那么杀手的下场会是什么？” 息衍沉默了，紧锁眉头在牢房里踱步。谢圭觉察到息衍身上透出来的压迫感，很少会在这个懒散的人身上看到这种森冷逼人的气息。 “翼霖认为他已经得到了整个羽族的臣服，正带着他的军队前往青都，准备在年木下接受大司祭的加冕。也有人认为这是一个阴谋，羽族贵族们想把翼霖引诱到青都城下，趁他没有防备狙杀他。但是翼霖随身带着七千名精锐射手和一万两千名轻步兵组成的庞大军容，任何刺杀计划都很难说有绝对的把握……如果天武者都失败了的话。”谢圭说，“古月衣并没有给翼氏的军队造成任何伤害，他们很快会尝试再次登陆。如果明年开春之前蛮族骑兵也南下，大胤将没有足够的军队两线开战，羽人的长弓，蛮族的铁骑，加在一起势不可当。” “打不开，这锁太复杂。”开锁的天驱擦了一把汗说。 “那是河洛特制的十字花对心锁，珊瑚金的质地，不容易对付，钥匙在百里景洪手里。”息衍说，“从外面把墙壁打碎！” 谢圭的同伴中，最孔武有力的那人点了点头，提起双手重槌，转身向外走去。 “北都的战事有新消息么？”息衍问。 “有，也是坏消息。青阳部的老将木黎战死，青阳和朔北的第一场仗，青阳完败，战死两万余人，虎豹骑损失惨重。如今北都城里热议的是何时献城投降。如果青阳坚持不住，野心高涨的朔北部大概会直接推进到瀚州南岸，最早明年春天他们可以渡海进军。”谢圭这么说着，自己心里也沉重，“朔北世子呼都鲁汗是个对土地欲望极强的人。” “不知尘少主怎么样了……想起来他快满十八岁了。”息衍低声说，“他是个出色的学生，假以时日还会是杰出的天驱武士，但是现在他还只是个孩子。此时此刻我们无法影响北都的战事。” 他沉默了一会儿，猛地吸了一口气，抬起头：“就算是山崩之局，我们也不得不进去！我不信翼天瞻会死，如果翼霖真的杀死了他，无疑会对四方公布这个消息，说他诛灭了整个羽族的叛徒古莫·斯达克，这会给他的皇冠一个绝好的装饰。翼霖不会那么轻易地获得权力，关键在于北都，你明天出发去北都城。你曾在铁线河边帮着龙格真煌打了一个月的仗，熟悉那里，这次你要帮青阳挡住朔北人！” “明白，我立刻启程，如果天拓海峡的海面没有封冻，我应该能在两个半月之内到达北都。” “如果封冻了，就踩着冰过去吧。”息衍说。 “踩着冰过海去瀚州？”谢圭苦笑，“将军对部属还真是严苛啊。” “闪开！”墙外传来那个持槌的天驱的声音。 用成块青石垒砌的石墙猛地震动了一下，石缝里的灰尘激射出来，几块青石松动开来。又是一击，灰尘弥漫，一个魁梧的人影竟然冲开坠落的青石直入牢房。盘城大狱的墙壁号称以黏稠的糯米汁调了石灰来砌，也不知是这个天驱武士的力量太过骇人还是有人偷工减料。那名天驱武士显然也没有料到如此的轻易，诧异地看着自己的重槌，拿手背抹去溅在脸上的泥灰。 “早说这个屋子要塌。”谢圭抓住那些男人手腕粗细的铁栏晃了晃，纹丝不动，“不好好砌墙，只在铁栏和锁这种表面事情上下工夫，为百里景洪建这座监狱的人只怕贪了不少好处。” “盘城大狱的图纸是我画的。”息衍说。 谢圭点点头，看起来并不意外：“难怪。” “借你的家伙用一下。”息衍伸出手。 那名天驱耸耸肩，把重槌递给息衍。息衍握住，掂了掂分量，忽地旋身飞转，重槌带着低低的风啸砸在他身后的那面墙壁上。那名天驱和这件武器相伴了十几年，也吃了一惊，没有想到这个东西到了看似文士的息衍手上忽然爆发出如此可怕的力量，两个牢房间的墙壁彻底崩碎，弥漫的灰尘里露出对面那个老囚犯呆呆的脸。 息衍把槌还给那名天驱，拍拍手，对老囚犯说：“如果想逃，就趁现在吧。” 老囚犯傻了一会儿，忽地明白了，狂喜得几乎是跳起来扑在地上使劲磕了几个头：“多谢息将军大恩，你是个大英雄！” 息衍也不跟他客气，走向石墙上的缺口，走了两步回头一笑：“英雄不英雄不重要，关键是双陆下得比你好！” 谢圭和其余天驱跟在息衍背后，谢圭把一袭黑色的羽林天军大氅递给息衍，息衍迎着冷风抖开，把自己完全的罩住。不远处传来了骏马的嘶声，去牵马的天驱武士已经回来，他所带的七匹神骏中，赫然有一匹就是息衍的墨雪。 “息辕那边解决了么？”息衍问。 “安排了四个人过去，会在城外和我们会和，他所在的监狱，防御远不如这里，四个人绰绰有余。”谢圭回答。 “你们在外面杀伤多少？” “三十多人，全部狱卒，没敢留下活口，惊动了军队就麻烦了。” “以后我们还不得不杀更多的人吧……”息衍站在阶前，仰头望着雨线连着天地，“有时候也会问自己，为了大胤能杀多少人呢？” 谢圭站在他背后，犹豫了片刻，摇了摇头，没有说话。极远处传来了低低的梆子声，想必是隔着一两个坊，打更的老人披着蓑衣溜着墙根慢慢走过。午夜来临了，因为大雨而变得湿涩的钟声随之向着南淮城的每个角落播撒，那是文庙的镇国钟，每个午夜敲响，已经漫漫七百年。谢圭忽然想起自己初来南淮的时候，十分不解为何这个城市要在午夜敲钟，让人不能安睡。可他很快就发现南淮城里的人对于午夜那记钟声并不觉得烦扰，因为他们听着这钟声渡过了许许多多的日夜，那声钟是响起在他们安宁的梦境里，告诉他们一切平安，他们只会在卧榻上舒服地翻个身，继续酣睡。他想这大概就是南淮了吧，就像文睿国主诗云：“水畔听钟七十年，便了却了此生。” 息衍出神地看着雨幕，很久很久，低声说：“这样的雨夜，南淮真是多啊。” “这一次离开，很久都不会再回来了吧？”谢圭也陪着他看雨，银色的雨滴打在院子里的青石板地上，碎裂、跳跃，“将军在这个城市住了十几年吧？” “是啊，十几年。不过没什么可留恋的了，以前的那些人和事……都不在了。”息衍轻轻地叹了口气。 “那为什么叹气？” “我在想，从今而后，在我不在这个城市的时候，一年又一年，我种的那些花是不是还会生生发发……或者被人铲平？”息衍淡淡地说，“以前我走过很多城市，总不愿留下，怕在一个地方住得久了，就再也走不出去。可是走到南淮……偏偏没能走出去，就羁縻了很多年，看遍了这里的大街小巷，种下了那圃花，弄得现在还站在这里……啰啰嗦嗦的像个碎嘴的老头子。” 他低头笑笑，摇摇头，像是自嘲。 他忽地大步踏入雨幕，上去抓住墨雪的勒口，五指掠过爱马的长鬃，激起一片冰凉的水，翻身上马，扯紧了缰：“走吧！已经耽误很多年了！” 谢圭忽地笑了，从怀里摸出一只精钢酒罐，打开来饮了一大口，一股暖气怯退了寒意。他抓紧红枪，大步奔向自己的战马。 密集的脚步声从外面的街上传来。谢圭一惊，凝神分辨，那些脚步声沉重而急促，显然是穿了制式重靴的军人，人数不下百人。他们人数有限，能够劫狱成功甚至要感谢那个辰月武士，他手持的判罪文书是伪造的，所以更加不愿秘密处死大臣的事情成为口实，特意把守军调开，只是自己由一个狱卒引路，准备亲手处死息衍。而如果所有守军都在，人数不下三百，以谢圭所带的精锐，杀进来也并非容易的事。 “来不及了，那是他调回军队的信号！”谢圭左手拔剑抛给息衍，右手一振红枪，“杀出去！” 黑压压的军队踩着雨水涌入了这片空地，他们一色青灰色的军服，外罩黑色鱼鳞铁甲，脚下牛皮重靴，每个人都仅仅配两尺的短刀。谢圭全身绷紧，他意识到他们遭遇的军队是鬼蝠，如果下唐还有一支军队可以凭自身的战斗力名闻东陆，那么一定是息衍亲自训练的鬼蝠营。这支军队被作为精锐中的精锐训练，强化了暗杀和斥候的技巧，在这种贴身战斗里，鬼蝠远比重装铁骑更可怕。谢圭和其他五名天驱同时策马靠近息衍，准备借助战马的优势发起冲锋。鬼蝠们并未立刻展开进攻，而是绕开他们，左右分为两队，组成了完整的包围。谢圭举枪翼护息衍，紧张地环顾周围，无数火把照亮了铁甲，这个包围毫无破绽。他意识到自己这伙人不可能毫发无损地离开了。 息衍平静地带马上前几步，其余六人以不变的队形推上，护卫他的两翼和后背。 “雷云伯烈，你是来阻拦我的么？”息衍对鬼蝠中的一人说。 谢圭注意到了那个矫健的年轻人，他军服的领口上所绣的蝙蝠和其他人都不同，显然是这些鬼蝠的首领。他也听过雷云伯烈这个名字，南淮雷云家的长子，下唐年轻将军中和幽隐、息辕齐名的人物。 雷云伯烈排众而出，走到息衍的马前站定，他空着双手，后面跟着他的三弟雷云仲明。雷云仲明响亮地击掌，所有鬼蝠同时收回了佩刀。雷云伯烈转身接过雷云仲明递来的长剑，雷云仲明忽然抓住哥哥的小臂，瞪着眼睛看着哥哥。 “回去！”雷云伯烈对他低喝。 雷云仲明手抖了一下，仍旧不肯放开。 “回去！”雷云伯烈重复。 雷云仲明默默地放手，转身退回了人群里。 雷云伯烈把那柄剑高高地举过头顶，举向马上的息衍：“这是将军的佩剑静都，将军即将远行，不能没有随身的武器，我们是来送将军的。” 谢圭看向雷云伯烈，但是雷云伯烈低着头，他便看不到雷云伯烈的表情。他又看向雷云伯烈腰间的两尺佩刀，缠了牛皮的刀柄上雨水滴落。天地间只剩下雨水冲刷大地的声音，息衍默默地看着自己的佩剑，抖手把谢圭给他的剑插入一侧地下，缓慢地探出身体，把手伸向静都。 息衍握住了静都的剑鞘，瞬间，雷云伯烈微蹲，身体呈“虎势”，闪电般按住腰间刀柄，谢圭已经听见他腰间传出了刀出鞘的摩擦声。息衍握住剑鞘的手仿佛按过琴弦那样沿着剑鞘滑动，他的速度之快，在剑开始下坠前他已经握住了剑柄。 清光扬起，一闪而灭。 雷云伯烈默默地站在雨里，他手握刀柄，短刀出鞘一尺，一双眼睛沉静而悲伤。 息衍默默地看着天空，静都指天，剑鞘坠地。他的一剑宛如大雁飞起的弧线，在雷云伯烈的胸口留下一道一尺长的致命伤口。 天驱武士们扯紧缰绳，准备硬冲。 可是鬼蝠们没有拔刀，沉默地看着。雷云伯烈低头，艰难地看了一眼自己胸前的伤口，缓缓地推动短刀回鞘。鬼蝠中发出一声悲痛的呼喊，雷云仲明冲出人群奔向自己的哥哥。雷云伯烈没能等到他跑到自己身边，已经闭上了眼睛，沉重地倒地，溅起一片雨水。息衍横剑在前，凝视剑刃。暴雨淋在古剑静都上，洗净了雷云伯烈的血迹，剑在火把的照耀下泛着肃杀的光，连溅起的水点都被染上了一层铁色。 谢圭惊疑地看着息衍，息衍漠无表情，弯腰捞起剑鞘插入腰带，按剑回鞘。 “帝都的钦差严令，我们没有办法。哥哥说，雷云家世代效忠百里氏，是下唐的忠臣，到了他这一代也不能例外。”雷云仲明在哥哥的尸体旁跪下，这个白皙的少年默默地把头盔摘下，解下自己的武器放在地上，膝行上前两步，把哥哥整个抱了起来，“他已经为阻拦将军而死，尽了对百里氏的忠诚。其余的就不是他能做到的了，他的下属也得以活命。” “我知道，他拔刀的时候我忽然明白了。你哥哥真愚忠。”息衍淡淡地说。 雷云仲明挥手，鬼蝠们的包围圈忽的分裂，一条足够六匹马并行的道路呈现在息衍一众人面前，所有鬼蝠半跪下去。雷云仲明已经做完了哥哥交代他的所有事，放下一切的少年终究没能忍住悲伤，抱住哥哥的尸体号啕大哭起来，哭声穿破了雨夜，像是一只离群的鸟儿。 谢圭看着息衍的脸，这一刻他忽然想从这个男人脸上看出一些悲痛。他跟了这个男人快十年，不时的总想知道他的虚弱，这样他会显得更真实一些。可他什么都没看到，息衍解下了领巾默默地蒙在脸上。那是雨夜骑马赶路的人常见的做法，以免雨水寒气扑入嘴里。谢圭楞了一下，这时候他忽地看见一个蒙着面巾的马贼活生生地出现在他面前，不再是虚无缥缈的故事人物。 “雷碧城，我们已经付了代价，总要有结果。”息衍拍了拍墨雪的脖子令它前行，“来吧，开始了，不死不休！” 他忽地大喝一声，墨雪黑电一般驰入雨幕，谢圭愣了一瞬，带马追了上去。 “将军的花我们照管得很好，我们还会继续照管下去。”雷云仲明带着哭泣的声音从后面传来。 铁蹄不停，大雨瓢泼。 胤成帝五年冬，十二月十四，雨夜。下唐国武殿都指挥息衍在同伙的协助下越狱，斩杀狱卒三十四人及鬼蝠营百夫长雷云伯烈，他以此举宣布了自己的正式叛乱。三天之后，加盖皇帝印玺的通缉令从天启发出。多数诸侯接到这份通缉令的时候都震骇莫名，因为这份通缉令中明白无误地写出了息衍的真实身份，“天驱武士团寇首”。风炎朝之后，诸侯们用了五十年来剿灭这个组织，如今这个组织再次逼迫皇帝把它的名字写入了诏书。 大概只有离国那位乡下诸侯在接到诏书时露出了颇有些喜悦的笑：“这只狐狸又是一巴掌扇在辰月教士的脸上了啊，处死他的话，雷碧城应该派出一支军队。如今整个东陆都在通缉他，你说他会不会逃窜到离国来避避风头？毕竟皇帝的诏书在我这里等若废纸。” 被问的是离国骥将军谢玄，此刻这个男人正一袭轻袍背着双手眺望北方的天空。 “想招揽他么？他不会来的。”谢玄站在流云之下，“离国对于他来说太偏僻了啊，他那只鹰的羽翼，离国的天空里容不下。” “终究还会是敌人吧？”山巅上席地而坐的嬴无翳低低叹了口气。