On the twentieth day of the lunar month, light snow.

Jianguo Temple.

Jianguo Temple is not a temple, let alone worship gods, only bad luck and death are enshrined here.

Because this is the tightest cell in the Northern Dynasty, whether you are a general who dominates the battlefield, or a world-famous hero, or a Jiangyang thief with unique skills, as long as you enter this prison temple, you are guaranteed to not be able to get out.

This is not because of how tightly guarded the Jianguo Temple is, but because there are many institutions here, and each cell has been specially modified, no matter how good you are at sliding the door and picking the lock, you will not want to escape.

It was a nightmare for the prisoners, a nightmare that they would never dare to imagine.

Today's weather is not very cold, with snowflakes in the sky.

The guards guarding the door were really tired from watching all night, so they sat by the brazier and squinted as if they were going to fall asleep.

No one can get out here anyway.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

The guards immediately woke up and stood up, glaring.

He saw a man push open the door, and three figures walked in.

The guard immediately said respectfully, "See the prince"

Sima Yunxuan said, "No courtesy"

The guard said, "Prince Xie"

Sima Yunxuan said, "Where is Zhang Qianzhi locked up?"

The guard said, "The prince wants to see Zhang Xiang?"

Sima Yunxuan said, "Hmm"

The guard said, "Come with me, everyone."

The three of them followed the guards, and every time they walked through a door, they heard an exclamation.

Sima Yunxuan said, "Why is Brother Murong sighing?"

Murong Xia said, "Every time we take a step, the sound of the mechanism here will keep ringing, it can be seen that the skill of the mechanism here is definitely set up by extraordinary people."

Sima Yunxuan looked a little proud, and said with a smile, "Of course, this was personally supervised by Nangong Wangji, the world's first machine artist."

Mu Chen was also a little surprised, and said, "Nangong forgot the machine, the Nangong family is actually willing to come forward to help you design this Jianguo Temple?"

Sima Yunxuan said, "The Nangong family and the Sima family were officials in the same dynasty in the previous dynasty, and later the Nangong family was persecuted by traitors, and the Sima family saved them, so they can be regarded as repaying their kindness."

Mu Chen nodded, he was not very interested in the rights and wrongs of these official clans.

After turning a few corners and passing through several doors, everyone finally came to the cell where Zhang Qianzhi was.

Zhang Qianzhi seems to be older, and his hair and beard seem to have turned white in the past few days.

It's like an old man in his last years, huddled in the darkest corner of his cell.

Sima Yunxuan said, "Open the door"

The guard opened the door and stepped back.

When Zhang Qianzhi saw Sima Yunxuan, he immediately stood up. His movements were slow, as if he were a dying man.

He stood up, knelt down again, and said, "The guilty minister greets the prince."

Sima Yunxuan's eyes were a little red, after all, he was an uncle who watched him grow up.

"Excuse me"

Zhang Qianzhi said "Prince Xie"

He said this, but the man did not stand up, perhaps saying that he did not have the strength to stand up.

Sima Yunxuan stared at him without saying a word.

Mu Chen also looked at Zhang Qianzhi, with a strange look flowing in his eyes.

Zhang Qianzhi smiled bitterly and said, "Is the prince here to send off the guilty ministers?"

Sima Yunxuan said, "Even if you have committed a crime, but you have done your best for the country for many years, you will not be given a capital crime."

Zhang Qianzhi smiled bitterly, "I'm at this age, even if it's a capital crime, what's the matter?"

Sima Yunxuan looked at him with a surprised gaze and asked, "What are you doing it for?"

Zhang Qianzhi smiled bitterly and said, "What else can I do for useless vanity?" he said, and laughed again, I really don't know why he can still laugh at this time.

Sima Yunxuan said, "You are brothers, why are you killing each other?"

Zhang Qianzhi said, "This is a personal grudge, why should the prince ask?"

Sima Yunxuan choked up and said, "Okay...... I don't ask."

So saying, he turned and left.

Murong Xia also left.

Mu Chen didn't leave, he stood there quietly, looking at Zhang Qianzhi with a strange look.

Zhang Qianzhi also stared at him, and the two looked at each other.

Mu Chen said, "You must be very happy now."

Zhang Qianzhi wanted to keep a straight face, but he couldn't hide the smile in his eyes, and said with a smile, "Why am I happy?"

Mu Chen said, "Because you made a scapegoat."

Zhang Qianzhi said, "No, no, no, how could I be a scapegoat for someone else?" He smiled again and said, "Have you ever seen such a happy scapegoat?"

Mu Chen smiled and said, "This is not an ordinary crime, it is also a blessing to be offended like this."

Zhang Qianzhi's face changed slightly, and he said, "Then tell me what kind of crime I am?"

Mu Chen said lightly, "Loyalty sin"

Zhang Qianzhi smiled bitterly and said, "Loyalty is also a sin?"

Mu Chen said, "Of course loyalty is not a crime, so I said that you are a scapegoat" He suddenly sighed and said, "You must know that being able to substitute for the emperor is not a right that ordinary people can have." When I think about it, I'm still a little envious."

As if stepping on a nail, Zhang Qianzhi immediately got up from the ground, walked to the door of the cell, and looked out.

Mu Chen said, "Don't look at it, I've already let them go out first, and today I specially asked the prince to bring me to see you"

Zhang Qianzhi said, "Why did he promise you?"

Mu Chen said, "I told him that I could ask you why you did these things."

Zhang Qianzhi snorted coldly, "There is no reason"

As he spoke, he had returned to that corner, as if he was planning to ignore Mu Chen.

Mu Chen just stood there and watched, without saying a word or urging.

Finally, Zhang Qianzhi spoke first, he had a straight face, and said in a deep voice, "It's not a beauty to give the emperor a substitute, you still don't envy it"

Mu Chen laughed and said, "Then why do you do such a stupid thing?"

Zhang Qianzhi smiled bitterly and said, "You also say that I am a sin of loyalty"

Mu Chen just smiled.

Zhang Qianzhi stood up again, walked to Mu Chen's side, and said, "How did you see through it?"

Mu Chen said, "See through what?"

Zhang Qianzhi said, "Fight with me?"

Mu Chen said, "Actually, you wrote this play very well, but the acting skills are a little clumsy"

Zhang Qianzhi laughed and said, "Let's talk"

Mu Chen said lightly, "I can see that it is because there are three points, the first is your attitude towards Zhang Qianzhong"

Zhang Qianzhi said, "Attitude?"

Mu Chen said, "Yes, if you really want to harm him, you won't give him the opportunity to appear at the sacrificial ceremony, and you won't be stupid enough to buy a killer to kill him."

Zhang Qianzhi said, "So what? Maybe I underestimated him."

Mu Chen said, "If you don't know his ability, how dare you slander and frame him at will?

Zhang Qianzhi said: "Why?"

Mu Chen said slowly, "Because you don't want to kill him at all"

Zhang Qianzhi said, "Why don't I want to kill him?"

Mu Chen said, "He is your own brother, this reason should be enough"

Zhang Qianzhi did not speak.

Mu Chen continued, "The second point is your martial arts, I don't believe that your martial arts are so strong, your brothers will not know?"

Zhang Qianzhi said, "Do they know, just ask"

Mu Chen said, "Of course they don't know, because this kung fu is indeed practiced by you."

Zhang Qianzhi sneered, "Nonsense"

Mu Chen said, "I haven't finished talking yet, since your kung fu is practiced secretly, how did you practice it?

Zhang Qianzhi said, "You said it all, of course you practiced secretly"

Mu Chen said, "I am also a person who practices martial arts, naturally I know that this kung fu must be practiced hard every day to be effective, if you practice while still hiding from others, naturally you don't have a lot of time to practice, and naturally you don't want to surpass Zhang Qianzhong" He paused, and said, "Unless, you have the help of a master"

Zhang Qianzhi looked at him coldly, as if he wanted to peel off the skin of Mu Chen's skin immediately, and then swallow it raw, completely blocking his mouth.

But he didn't know what Mu Chen was going to say next, and it was even more critical, it was simply a word to break all the conspiracy.

(End of chapter)