Chapter 36 first quarter

Sun Li reined in the reins, raised his right hand to stop the people behind him.The entourage raised the torch to illuminate the environment near the main road, and he glanced around.The messy horseshoe marks on the ground, the trails of snow on the roadside, the broken branches, and the faint smell of blood all hinted that a not too fierce battle took place here. Sun Li jumped off his horse, leaned over to investigate carefully, and suddenly found a few thin sheets lying on the snow.He walked over, picked them up one by one, looked at them before the torch, and found five portraits.He carefully picked up these few pages, stepped on the horse again, the horse neighed, turned around and galloped away.

In Wang Yue's assassination of Cao Pi, Sun Li stood up and won Cao Ren's praise.He was exceptionally promoted to Qu Chang, only one level away from Ya Jiang.For most of the lower-ranking officers, there was a gap between Qu Chang and Ya Jiang, and many of them stopped at the level of Qu Chang in their lifetime.If Sun Li can seize the opportunity and cross this chasm, the future waiting for him will be limitless. When Sun Li first received this appointment, he was very excited.But one person's evaluation made his mood drop to the bottom: "It's the first time in this dynasty to kill women and save children in exchange for high positions." The harsh commenter was Tang Ying, she and Sun Li said these words when they met each other on Xudu Street.Sun Li was speechless and could only bow his head and walk away, unable to be happy anymore.

On this day, Sun Li was suddenly summoned by Cao Ren in the middle of the night and asked him to leave Xudu overnight with dozens of cavalry to pursue Yuan Jun who had kidnapped Dong Cheng.After Sun Li figured out the mission, he smiled wryly. He first chased after Concubine Dong and then Dong Cheng. It seemed that he and the Dong family really had an inseparable bond. The only thing that puzzled him was Cao Ren's request that he take two people with him.These two people, one old and one young, couldn't ride a horse and had to ride a carriage, but in this way, the speed of the team couldn't be increased.He asked a question, but Cao Ren didn't answer directly, but just patted him on the shoulder and said, "Do your best."

At this time, the light car was parked in the road not far away, surrounded by several tiger and leopard riders guarding it vigilantly.Sun Li held the portrait in his hand, and drove the horse to the side of the cart. "What happened?" someone in the car asked. "Going back to Lord Jijiu, I found some traces ahead. It seems that Yuan Jun had a small conflict here." "Oh?" Guo Jia leaned forward and stretched out the car.An unhealthy red color appeared on his cheeks, and the sable fur wrapped around his body seemed to be unable to resist the cold, and his whole body shivered slightly from the cold.

After Chen Qun took Zhao Yan away, Guo Jia stayed in Xuduwei to chat with Man Chong.When the report of Dong Cheng's robbery came, he immediately summoned a group of elite cavalry including Sun Li and an old man, and chased them out of Xudu.In name, Guo Jia was going to pursue Yuan Jun's surprise attack troops, but no one knew what his actual plans were. However, this plan had a little accident here. According to Guo Jia's calculations, Yuan Jun's surprise soldiers should flee northward at full speed after the prisoner is successfully robbed, without any stop in between.In order to cooperate with them, Guo Jia also specially asked Cao Ren to transfer all the patrols.

But why did Yuan Jun fight here?Could it be that he encountered Cao Jun's small patrol team? Sun Li described what he saw in detail, and then handed over several portraits in his arms to Guo Jia.Guo Jia took a look at it, and his face froze: "Oh, my luck... Oh, no, this guy Deng Zhan's luck is really bad." Guo Jia smacked his lips, and he figured out the cause and effect the moment he saw the portrait.Deng Zhan must have discovered something amazing in Wen County, so he rushed back to Xudu in advance, but happened to encounter the surprise soldiers sent by Yuan Shao to rob the prisoners on the way.

These two things were arranged by Guo Jia, and they were originally staggered by one day in time.But Deng Zhan's self-assertion caused two things to collide - such a coincidence can only be attributed to Deng Zhan's bad luck. Fortunately, Deng Zhan did not forget his most critical task, and threw the portrait in the snowdrift beside the road before the accident.Yuan Shaojun probably didn't know what it was, and he wasn't interested in knowing, so Sun Li took it back, and Deng Zhan's final mission was fulfilled. "Where's Deng Zhan's body?" "There are no corpses, only these five portraits." Sun Li replied.

Strange, Yuan Jun should not have the leeway to bury the body, why did they take Deng Zhan away?Even though Guo Jia was astute, he couldn't think of the reason.He is not a person who likes to drill into horns, and he quickly gave up when he couldn't figure out this kind of doubt that could not be judged, and turned to look at the portrait. Guo Jia first noticed that there was a small ink tick on the right side of the bun in each portrait, which could not be seen without careful attention.This ink hook seems to be written accidentally, but it is actually a secret note agreed between Guo Jia and Deng Zhan.In this way, if someone wants to change secretly, it will be clear at a glance.

After confirming the authenticity of the artist, Guo Jia went to see the portrait.These five sheets of paper were all buried in the snow, already wet by the snow water, and the ink stains were blurred.Three of the portraits have similar faces, while the other two have slightly different profiles from the first three.This is understandable, after all, the artist draws according to the description of others, and the description is detailed, so there must be deviations in the reproduction of the pen. Guo Jia looked at it for a long time, and felt that this person's facial features seemed familiar, but the impression was illusory, and once he tried to think more clearly, the impression disappeared suddenly.

Could it be that the truth that Yang Ping tried so hard to cover up was nothing more than that?Could it be that Deng Zhan's motive for rushing back to Xudu all night was nothing more than that?In the portrait, Guo Jia can't see any problems, but if there is no problem, it is the biggest problem. Guo Jia folded the paper and decided to put the matter on hold for now. He didn't want to disrupt the business because of this accident. At this time, a gust of cold wind blew by, and everyone present couldn't help wrapping their clothes tightly.Sun Li looked at Guo Jia with some anxiety. They had been delayed for a long time when they set off. If they had stayed at this place longer, those Yuan Jun might have disappeared without a trace.

"Feng Xiao, why did you call this old man out of the city in the middle of the night?" The old man next to Guo Jia asked suddenly, with a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone. Guo Jia put on a helpless expression: "You saw it too. I just picked it up. Just asking. Our serious business is General Chariots. He has a good relationship with you and me. The country is honored and honored. Let it fall into the hands of thieves." After speaking, he ticked the darkness in the distance with his finger.In the distance that they couldn't see, Chunyu Qiong's cavalry was galloping like lightning. That's what he said, but he wasn't in a hurry.The old man hunched over on the carriage, and also cast his eyes into the darkness: "Hebei cavalry are so fast, you are dragging me as an old man, how can you chase after me?" "You can't catch up, but Xu Fu can catch up." Guo Jia laughed heartily, and then coughed several times after laughing.The old man's expression froze for a moment, and then relaxed again: "Guo Jijiu, you have spent the whole night chasing him this time, it really is because the hunter has no intention of hunting." "If I don't invite you out of the city, how could he come out?" Guo Jia patted the shaft of the car, indicating that the light car can move on, then turned his head sideways, and carefully tucked up the blanket in front of the old man's knees: "The Yang family Cao Gong is very considerate of his contribution to the pacification of the chaos. This time Yuan Shao robbed the prisoners, it is a big matter, and naturally I have to rely on your strength to show the unity of the court." You are willing to lend your strength to pursue Dong Cheng, which shows the unity of the court.The implication is that if you refuse, you will naturally be disunity with the imperial court.Either with the imperial court, or with Duke Cao.If you are against Cao Gong, then Dong Cheng's robbery this time must also be inseparable. The old man understood Guo Jia's implication almost instantly.This is Guo Jia's counterattack after his son's aggressive advance.Guo Jia dragged the old man out of the city in the middle of the night just to exert pressure and hold Xu Fu in his hands—he refused to wait until dawn.It seems that this time, it is very difficult for Xu Fu to stay in Xudu. What surprised the old man even more was that he believed that Guo Jia deliberately let Dong Cheng go this time, and there must be a far-reaching intention to deprive the Yang family of force, but it was just a matter of convenience.He never underestimated the means of the young man beside him. "How does Guo Jijiu plan to take advantage of it?" Yang Biao asked.From the current point of view, Guo Jia only intends to use Xu Fu to beat Yang Xiu, and has no intention of pursuing further.For the safety of the Han Dynasty and Liu Xie, Yang Biao could only choose a strong man to cut off his wrist. Hearing Yang Biao's answer, Guo Jia clapped his hands proudly, as if he had just written a magnificent fu. "I want him to become my knife in Guandu."