Chapter 39: Paying the Price

On the outskirts of Tokyo City, there is a famous spiritual temple within a radius of 100 miles, called Kannonji Temple. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 infoIt is said that the incense ashes in the temple can cure diseases, and the wish is special for the spirit, and the temple wishes for the release of the signature are particularly accurate. Therefore, the people in the vicinity go there to burn incense and worship a Buddha when they have nothing to do, and the balloon goes to heaven to bless many children and many blessings, go to all kinds of diseases, and live a long and healthy life.

People only have things in life that they can't ask for, or things they can't do, and they hope in the gods. But what is a god, no one has ever seen it since ancient times, so if you pin your hopes on an invisible thing that you have never seen, you say, can it be realized?

The answer, of course, is no.

The days of summer are long and the nights are short, the time has just passed, the sky has not completely darkened, and the sunset in the evening still has a little temperature, and the attachment refuses to retreat. There are no pedestrians in the Guanyin Temple, and the only temple blessing doesn't know where to go to drink. The whole temple was empty, only the candlelight in front of the hall remained, and the incense that had not been burned out in the incense burner.

In the hall where the candles were flickering, on the clean and dust-free floor, a figure suddenly appeared. The figure walked to the door, looked around, and saw that there was no one around, and there was no extra sound around, so he raised his feet and walked inside. When he arrived at the desk, he reached out and took the incense candle on the side, lit three candles, inserted them into the furnace, and then retreated to the futon, folded his hands, and bowed three times reverently.

"I didn't expect the night boy to believe this."

Naturally, it was not a person kneeling on a futon who spoke, but a man in a black cloak who was coming in at the doorway. The people on the futon heard his voice, ignored it, and continued to complete his prostration.

After three bows, he stood up, looked at the statue of Guanyin in front of him, and said, "I believe it." ”

The visitor walked in, looked around, and wondered, "Why did you choose to meet here instead of the old place?" ”

Yetian turned around, regained his flying nature, looked at the people who came in, and shook his head helplessly. Why is he dressed like this again, is he very short of clothes? Don't change it. "There are too many meetings in the same place, and it is easy to arouse suspicion. Even if we hide it well, it will inevitably be suspected by people with intentions, and if you look at you, it is difficult for this shape not to attract attention. You know, there are too many smart people in this city of Tokyo. ”

The man in black was very dissatisfied with Yetian's disdain for his appearance, but thinking that he had a point, the lone wanderer was more noticeable, and it seemed that he would have to change it in the future. "Then why in such a remote place?" There's no need, there are many more places in Tokyo.

Yetian leaned his back against the desk behind him. "The big is hidden in the city, and the small is hidden in the wild. We used to meet in the city of Tokyo with great swagger, but now we have to try it in the middle of nowhere. Moreover, after a while, it will be completely dark, as the saying goes: the night is dark and the wind is high, and it is easy to do things. Seeing the cloaked man's expression gradually relaxed, a wicked smile leaked from the corner of Yetian's mouth, and said, "How is it, Liu Tong Yinwei, you are still satisfied with my answer!" ”

Hearing this, the cloaked man's newly relaxed body immediately became vigilant, and his voice was like a sharp sword. "How do you know who I am?"

Cut. "Of course, your lord told me, I don't want to cooperate with a person who doesn't even know his identity, and he is also a dangerous person. You don't have to be too surprised, with my ability, even if I look it up myself, I can find out. Your Lord is wise. ”

The man in black in the cloak heard this, and lifted the curtain, revealing his full face. Thick eyebrows and big eyes, although the outline is ordinary, but the strange aura exuded by his body makes him unusual. "What else does the Night Sky Boy know?"

"And what don't you want me to know?" Yetian asked rhetorically.

never thought that he would have this question, Liu Tong was a little stunned. Even if he knew something, he probably wouldn't say it. This point is clearest for those who do their job.

Seeing that he didn't answer, Yetian continued: "You don't have to worry, I won't say anything, I will only do it." Of course, if you don't have anything to offend me, I won't embarrass you, but if something touches my bottom line, you must pay the price. ”

I don't know why, looking at the smiling young man in front of him, Liu Tong felt that every word he said was like a sharp sword, penetrating the human body. Before his brain could think about it, the words had already come out of his mouth first, "What price?" ”

"Haha." Yetian stretched out his index finger and shook it on his chest, smiled or something, and said, "This, you won't know beforehand." And that's not the point of tonight. ”

Liu Tong then remembered the purpose of meeting tonight and said, "Indeed, this is not the point. Yetian Gongzi, our lord asked you that the emperor of Zhou is about to conquer in person, how will he mobilize troops and grain and grass from all over the country. ”

"Didn't you find it all?"

"What our people found is just a rough idea, and we have to ask the night boy to tell you the details."

Yetian slowly paced to the door, and it was completely dark outside. "If I tell you, then our emperor will not have to skin me alive? You have won the war and expanded your territory, and I have become a traitor who has been stinking for thousands of years, and this is not a good deal. ”

"Yetian Gongzi, you are the founding hero of the Northern Han Dynasty, not a traitor seeking glory. A hundred years from now, people will only sing praises to you, because history books are written by victors, aren't they? ”

That's right, history books are written by the victors, but people's hearts cannot be fabricated, and the truth will always live in their hearts and be passed down from generation to generation. "What about you, have you ever thought about what identity you want to appear in the history books, and you are also a hero?"

Liu Tong laughed twice and shook his head helplessly. "How can people like us who don't even have a tombstone after death be written into the history books. We grew up without a father or mother, trained to be murderous tools, to steal information, and to tell the truth, we don't know how to live without the Lord. ”

Are you really tenacious, can you survive until now? Night Sky said sarcastically. Ye Tian took two steps forward and stretched out his hand to close the temple door, cutting off the night outside and all sounds. Then he turned around and returned to the main hall, and said in a deep voice: "In order to fight against the 100,000 army of Shu, the emperor of Zhou personally led 80,000 horses to Fengxiang, including 50,000 troops under Fan Ai, as well as troops transferred from all over the country. In terms of grain and grass, with Dengzhou, Xuzhou, Songzhou, Jinzhou, Jizhou, and Weizhou as the center, half of the grain and grass was transferred to the prefectures and counties, and special soldiers transported them to the front. ”

"Half of the grain and grass? Does that mean that what is left of these states and counties can no longer sustain operations this year? ”

Since the accession of the first emperor to the throne of the Zhou State, in all states and counties, in addition to the taxes paid, the common people can dispose of the rest by themselves, which can be kept for family consumption or sold in the market. Under normal circumstances, the annual grain production is fixed, so the tax received by the yamen is also fixed. This grain was reserved for the government and state soldiers, and if there was a disaster year, the yamen would distribute the grain to the people. In wartime, according to the regulations, each state and county can only use one-third of the grain and grass to ensure the operation of the local area. But if half of it is to be transferred, then the rest will not be able to maintain the expenses of the yamen, and the tax can only continue to be levied on the hundreds. In the event of a natural or man-made disaster, the people will have no food to eat, and the other is that the people will not have the money to buy seeds to continue farming in the coming year.

Moreover, grain and grass are not only grain and forage, but also include oil, salt, spices, medicinal herbs, and so on. Is the emperor of Zhou Guo wanting his people to starve to death on the streets in the coming year? Liu Tong shook his head secretly, this is impossible, Emperor Zhou must have other arrangements. So he knocked on the side and said: "If we wave our troops south at this moment, although the Zhou State has enough troops to block it, but the backup is insufficient, they will definitely fail." ”

"Hmph, you guys are too underestimating him, he doesn't know your thoughts, and he has already secretly sent Zhao Kuangyin to guard Luzhou. Luzhou is the closest route for you to enter the Zhou Kingdom, Zhao Kuangyin must be no stranger to you, and your lord has also suffered losses in his hands. If you have the ability, you can attack now, don't blame me for not warning you, you will lose badly. ”

Liu Tong nodded secretly, Emperor Zhou really had other arrangements. "Could it be that the Emperor of Zhou has any other tricks?"

How could Ye Tian not be able to see his thoughts, "I don't know if there are any tricks, and I have said everything that should be said, believe it or not?" ”

"Then you don't have to choose the nearest route!"

Ye Tian glanced at him with disdain, not wanting to explain. "Go back and ask your lords. You probably don't understand it. ”

Taiyuan, the capital of the Northern Han Dynasty, and Tokyo of the Zhou State are actually not far away, if the Northern Han Dynasty wants to enter the palace of the Zhou Kingdom, Luzhou is the shortest route, but unfortunately there is Zhao Kuangyin, the general, guarding there. If you bypass the west, it is the place where the Zhou and Shu are fighting, and the Zhou troops are there, the Northern Han do not dare, and they are not willing to form an alliance with Shu. If they attack from Dingzhou in the northeast, firstly, the route will be too far to detour, and the gains will outweigh the losses, and secondly, Zhao Kuangyin will also be able to go there to help.

When the two armies are fighting, in addition to the favorable time and place, people are very important. The Northern Han army wants to capture the Zhou State, it is impossible to do it in a time, the army marched to the border of the Zhou State, presumably it was tired, coupled with the diet is not used to it, the water and soil are not adapted, this battle does not need to be fought to know the result.

In the candlelight swaying in the Guanyin Hall, a strong wind suddenly hit. With Liu Tong's sensitivity and reflexivity, he knew what would happen next. He couldn't help but think about it, a white light flashed in the hall, and it disappeared like lightning, Liu Tong had already quickly drawn his sword out of the sheath, blocked the sword blade that was slashing towards him, took a step back, and said in surprise: "Yetian Gongzi, what do you mean by this?" ”

"What do you mean?" At this time, Yetian's face no longer had a playful look, but was replaced by a hellish coldness and a solemn murderous aura. "You, you who shouldn't have moved."

Without waiting for Liu Tong to think about it, Yetian's sword blade attacked him again, Liu Tong flashed to the side, and instantly came to the back of Yetian, attacked his back, and the sword qi swept across the candle flames, and the hall became darker because of the lack of firelight. Ye Tian's body flipped into the air, and his toes landed on Liu Tong's sword, and with a slight touch of his toes, he used the sword body as the force point, jumped a few feet into the air, and then turned one hundred and eighty degrees, and the true qi was concentrated on the tip of the sword, stabbing at the people on the ground. Liu Tong couldn't dodge because this sword qi was too strong, so he could only use all his strength to respond.

For a while, the sword was shining and the eaves were walking on the wall, and the sound of utensils falling to the ground and breaking was heard in the house from time to time. After about thirty or forty moves on both sides, the last two swords attacked each other, both of them were sword masters, when the weapons were equal, they were faster, and whoever was faster could gain dominance. Liu Tong saw that the tip of his sword was close to Ye Tian's throat, and a smile of victory couldn't help but appear at the corner of his mouth, but before the smile could be contained, Ye Tian's body flashed half a step to the side, staggering his sword qi, and he couldn't help but rush forward, secretly screaming "not good" in his heart, exposing the back of his death hole to the enemy, which is a big taboo. Sure enough, Yetian had already stood behind him and used a palm, and the palm wind knocked him out of the temple, broke through the temple door, and fell to the ground and rolled around, and when he quickly turned around and wanted to stand up, the tip of Yetian's sword was already against his throat.

"Stampede......

"Quick, Quick, Fast......"

The three incense sticks in the incense burner on the desk in the hall just completed its mission, and the flame reached the last incense pole and was extinguished. Just now, halfway through, it was completely dark.

Accompanied by the sound of steady and powerful footsteps, shouts, and weapons, Liu Tong looked at the condescending person in disbelief. He was so stupid that he actually believed his "meet in another place" statement, he didn't even think that he would betray him and betray him. "The officers and soldiers you brought in? Why? ”

Yetian returned to his playful expression. "I warned you last time, don't touch people you shouldn't. But you don't listen, so you have to pay a price, and that price is death. ”

"How dare you ......"

The door was opened, and one after another guards with swords and torches ran into the courtyard, forming a circle, putting Liu Tong and Yetian in the middle. For a time, the huge Guanyin Temple was as bright as day. A person stepped forward and walked in front of Yetian, who should be the leader of these people, bowed down and said: "Tell your lordship, Zhang Pingrui, the captain of the Privy Council Team B, has led all 20 people of Team B to arrive, please instruct." ”

Ye Tian withdrew the long sword in his hand and said in a deep voice: "You are really obedient, you didn't come in earlier." ”

Zhang Pingrui saw that the boss of his family said easily, and scratched his head embarrassedly and said, "Hehe, my lord said it, I use slamming the door as the number!" ”

"Well, well done. Take him back, the emperor should be interested in him. Hey, look at it, his martial arts are very high, be careful to let him escape, plug his mouth with a fast cloth, and be careful that he bites his tongue and kills himself. ”

"Yes." Zhang Pingrui turned his hand back to the people behind him, and someone came over with an iron chain, tied Liu Tong with his backhand, and gagged his mouth with a strip of cloth.

Liu Tong only came to his senses at this time, and scolded: "Yetian, you villain, you dare to carry ...... Woo woo woo ...... "It's a pity that the rest of the words can also be conveyed with dry stares."

Ye Tian stepped forward and approached his face, and laughed quietly: "Don't blame me, the order given to me by our emperor is to see you before the conquest, otherwise I will have to go to see him." Then approached Liu Tong's ear and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear: "Don't worry, I believe that Concubine De in the palace will definitely come to see you." ”

Liu Tong's expression at this time was not just angry, he was afraid, puzzled, and stared at the young man in front of him in horror. Knowing this moment, he really understood that the Lord despised him too much, and the Lord thought that he was controlling Yetian, but he didn't want Yetian to be using him.

Ye Tian took a step back and watched the guards suppress the horror and anger, but Liu Tong, who couldn't say a word, left. Zhang Pingrui stepped forward and asked, "My lord, but you want to go back with your subordinates?" ”

"Where's Team A?"

"It's going door-to-door in the city."

Yetian thought for a while and said, "Let's go, if you have a fight, you have to go back and take a good bath." ”

Although the door-to-door search is effective, it is estimated that only a few small minions can be found, and the key people may not be able to find them.