It was an ordinary piece of letterhead, coarse and scribbled.

The scribbled handwriting was Ruan Qingzhi's déjà vu.

"Brother Shen: Today, the court received a secret report that the plague in Rucheng is out of control, and Your Majesty is furious, fearing that you and I will blame you. I hope that my brother will plan it as soon as possible. Nguyen. ”

Nguyen.

There are many people with the surname Ruan in the world. However, the Ruan clan in Shangjing never practiced medicine, and before Ruan Qingzhi, there was really no one with the surname Ruan who could be associated with the "plague".

Except for Nguyen Van Trung.

Chu Shen, the word is cautious. His ancestors have worked in Tai Hospital for generations, and he is arrogant and does not admire the powerful, and has never had any contact with the Ruan family.

However, on this yellowed letterhead, Ruan Wenzhong called Chu Shen, who was more than 20 years older than him, a "brother", and secretly reported to him the secrets of the court, reminding him to "plan it as soon as possible".

If this information wasn't scary enough—

Ruan Qingzhi stared at the short two lines of words and read them three times.

Having read many textbooks, she certainly knew that the plague broke out from a small county town under the jurisdiction of Rucheng seventeen years ago.

Coincidentally, His Royal Highness King Ji, who had an excellent reputation among the people, had a vast fief, and the most prosperous place happened to be Rucheng.

The plague in Rucheng is out of control.

Since we say "out of control", it means that it is initially "controllable". However, in all the records that have been handed down at that time, there is no mention of the "control" of the plague by the doctors. So the word "out of control" on this letterhead is intriguing.

What interests Ruan Qingzhi even more is that "Your Majesty is furious, and I am afraid that you and me will be blamed."

Blame.

Ruan Qingzhi's teeth clenched, and the hand holding the letterhead couldn't stop trembling.

Although she had always had such a guess, she still had a bit of luck in her heart, always hoping that she and Ye Han had guessed wrong.

After all, the king of a country! Not to mention loving the people like sons, at least they should be worthy of the people of the world to the court and the royal family, how can they do such a bad thing as poisoning the people just to eliminate dissidents? !

Now that last bit of luck is gone. This piece of paper not only proved the crimes of the emperor and Nguyen Van Trung, but also brought the Tai Hospital in.

In this way, a conspiracy that had been buried for seventeen years had faintly revealed its outline in front of Ruan Qingzhi.

Ruan Wenzhong offered a plan, the emperor adopted the poisonous plan and gave the "heavy responsibility" to Chu Shen of the Tai Hospital, and then the matter became big, and the Tai Hospital was unable to solve it, and finally caused chaos in the north, and tens of thousands of innocent people filled this evil abyss with their lives......

After the incident, the emperor was still the emperor, Ruan Wenzhong was enjoying prosperity and prosperity, and Chu Shen was still showing off his might in the Tai Hospital.

Ruan Qingzhi didn't know that these people had seen tens of thousands of people dying in their dreams, crying out for the Heavenly King in the midst of illness, in the fire, and in the water of the river boiled by quicklime?

Probably not, right? Tens of thousands of people, just a number, where is it worthy of the respect of the Ninth Five-Year Plan and the court magnates to take it to heart; How can those humble souls enter the lofty mansion and break into the noble dreams of the prince and grandson!

After standing stiff for a long time, Ruan Qingzhi finally exhaled a long breath, folded the piece of paper and put it into his arms, put the classic book box on the bookshelf back to its original place, and blew the lamp out of the door.

When I went out, I realized that I had stood in front of the bookshelf for too long, and the time was almost over.

The little medicine boy on duty at night couldn't help but be deeply moved when he saw Ruan Qingzhi's red eyes only at this time, and he really felt that this Miss Ruan had worked really hard to restore the prescription and make the people rich.

Ruan Qingzhi didn't bother to pay attention to the medicine boy's touch. At this time, the first thing she has to think about is her own life.

Chu Shen kept this letterhead at the beginning, of course, not to leave a legacy for himself. He must know that once that incident is exposed, it will be a catastrophe, and this piece of paper can decide who to hit first when the sky falls.

In this way, a new question arises: why did Chu Shen leave such an important thing in the Tai Hospital, and may even deliberately guide her to discover it? If it was only to kill her, it would be enough to have that bottle of poisonous smoke, and leaving this letter behind was redundant and dangerous.

Ruan Qingzhi thought about it, but in the end, it could only be attributed to Chu Shen's full confidence in that organ: he believed that the poisonous smoke in that organ could easily kill her and return to her original position accurately, without considering the possibility of failure at all.

If this is the case, of course, it is safer to put things in the Tai Hospital, just like Ruan Wenzhong tried his best to tie up the Luan family back then, in order to ensure that even if the emperor sent secret agents to the palace to search, he could still find nothing.

"So," Ruan Qingzhi, who was sitting in the carriage, thought sullenly, "there really is nothing foolproof in this world. You must not be overconfident, you must know that there are people outside the sky, and the consequences of underestimating the enemy are very serious. ”

Don't be underestimated. This principle can be applied not only to Chu Shen, but also to Ruan Qingzhi himself.

The fact that the letterhead was in her hands at the moment did not mean that she was one step closer to the truth, but quite the opposite—she was more likely one step closer to danger.

When the enemy discovers that she is not only not dead but also has evidence, they will inevitably do whatever it takes to put her to death. Chu Shen, Ruan Van Trung, and of course the emperor, all those who had anything to do with that incident would not allow an outsider who knew the secret to live.

Moreover, the patience of the Emperor of the Ninety-Five Dynasty is also limited. Now the emperor can tolerate her in every way, but after a while, whether she can write that prescription or not, the emperor who has been fooled will no longer tolerate her.

At that time, the guise of "Heaven Determines the Destiny of the Phoenix" may not be able to protect her, not to mention that she is still fake.

It's time to think about running for your life. Ruan Qingzhi listened to the sound of wheels all the way, thinking in a daze.

At the same time, the child on night duty in the hospital could no longer stay up and fell asleep on the table. In the darkness, someone slipped into the library, found the box by the faint light of the window and skillfully placed it in the groove and turned it gently.

Naturally, he didn't see any smoke. What awaited him was the faint residual warmth of the dark grid, and a blackened porcelain vase.

The man's face could not be seen clearly in the darkness, but a handful of gray beards trembled slightly, and I did not know whether it was because of fear or anger.

"She's ......," he muttered, and then suddenly let go of his hand, watched the mechanism slowly close, and then picked up the box and put it elsewhere, and left the library in a hurry, and rode out of the house and went straight to a deep mansion compound.

……

The night in Beijing is destined to be a rare peace, and in a mountainous area in the far north, the night is even more murderous.

The road into the mountain is not narrow, and it is clear that this mountain area is not a barren mountain, but a prosperous and rich land. But at this time, the mountain was silent, and more than 100 cavalry soldiers outside the mountain stopped in the middle of the road with some anxiety, hesitating.

"Master," a rough voice tried its best to suppress it, and the air trembled a little: "Could the news be wrong?" ”

The leader turned his head, the moonlight shone on his face, and the young and handsome face was slightly frosty, it was the cold of the night.

At this moment, his eyebrows frowned slightly, he looked behind him, and said in a deep tone: "There will be no mistake." At this moment, the fourth watch has been handed over, and if the town is calm, there should have been the sound of chickens and dogs barking, and it will never be as quiet as it is at this moment. ”

Everyone was silent.

Earlier, they had received news that a town in the mountains had been completely overrun by bandits, that the townspeople had fled to death, and that many women had become the playthings of the bandits, and that they were miserable.

If true, this group of bandits is undoubtedly the worst group they have encountered since they went north.

"But," Zheng Laoliu questioned in a soft voice, "If it is really occupied by bandits, it shouldn't be so quiet!" How can a bandit be willing to rise at sunrise and rest at sunset? If nothing else, there should always be a few people left at this intersection to keep vigil......"

Before he finished speaking, Wu Lin suddenly raised his finger and shouted.

Ye Han clenched the long sword in his hand tightly, and his expression was solemn: "It's late." People have been waiting for us for a long time! ”

Wu Lin and the others let out an exclamation in unison, and a few clever men next to them had already stepped forward and protected Ye Han's side.

"Master, do you want to retreat first?" Lao Cheng asked.

Ye Han turned his horse's head to look at the road carefully, and shook his head: "We have fallen into a heavy siege and cannot retreat." ”

"His ancestors, damn it!" Chu Weiyang finally came to his senses, "The old man who reported to us is a liar!" He didn't want to invite us to suppress the bandits at all, but the bandits in this mountain wanted to suppress us! ”

As soon as he finished speaking, a loud laugh immediately sounded from the big pine tree behind him: "Ha! You're not stupid! Dog officer, come on! ”

Along with the laughter, a strong black shadow fell to the ground, and the sword shadow flashed in front of his eyes at the same time, and the cold wind instantly hit his face.

Immediately in the ditch by the roadside and behind the rocks, many dark shadows came out at the same time, and the road when the people came was indeed cut off, and many thieves and bandits rushed down in dense clusters on the hillside next to them, like squirming beetles on the branches of dead trees.

Chu Weiyang was not afraid to wave his knife to meet him, and scolded angrily: "The dog thief of the old ancestor of the day! Dare to lie to your grandfather! ”

Wu Lin laughed: "Chu Da fool, why did you even scold yourself?" ”

Chu Weiyang didn't answer, and had already rushed down the hillside to meet those "beetles". Wu Lin didn't say anything more, just followed closely behind Ye Han, accompanied him to fight with the bandit leader, and protected him all the way.

A vicious battle begins.

The Northwest Army is one enemy to one hundred, although there is an exaggerated component, but it is also true that it is brave and invincible. The thieves gathered more and more, like wolves waiting for tigers, and dangers abounded.

In such a situation, the soldiers were not afraid at all, but became more and more courageous.

In the past, when I was at the border, the flatlands, grasslands, ponds, and snow-capped mountains ...... Battles on all terrains have been experienced, and now that they are blocked on the main road, can't they be fought?!

In front of the officers and men of the Northwest Army, it is useless to have any favorable time and place, and if there are tactics, they will fight tactics, and if they have no tactics, they will fight for physical strength, and the soldiers have never been afraid of brutal attacks.

There weren't many blade strikes along the way. The long knives and spears in the hands of the officers and men of the Northwest Army accurately avoided the enemy's swords with the sound of the wind, and accurately slashed the enemy's neck and pierced the enemy's chest, which was as smooth as chopping melons and vegetables.

But the battle was not an easy one.

This gang of bandits is obviously not a rabble, they have also practiced kung fu, they know some cooperation with each other, and they also play with swords, guns and halberds, which makes the soldiers occasionally be a little hindered when they fight.

The biggest obstacle is that there are more and more thieves, and they only have so many people.

It's like a lonely boat in the turbulence, no matter how strong it is, it is inevitable to be a little irritated when looking at the water that keeps coming over.

"Don't be reckless, form a formation!" Ye Han shouted at Uncle Cheng, who was killing him.

All the soldiers hurriedly gathered together again, readjusted the formation, and continued to charge. Chu Weiyang still refused to listen to the command, and single-handedly killed all the bandits, and had a good time.

The small army formation of more than 100 people was like a rolling wheel, slowly but surely advancing towards the bandits' nest in the mountains.

The thief apparently quickly realized that he was powerful, and his attack became more and more ferocious, and of course, the scolding became more and more speechless.

On the side of the Northwest Army, only Chu Weiyang was interested in scolding others, and the rest of the people were only slashing and killing, and they had already entered the mountains for more than two miles in a short time, and they saw that those scattered houses were in front of them.

Once a prosperous and stable town, it is now a den of bandits. The soldiers were doubly angry in their hearts, and their hands became more and more ruthless.

"Master, is this litter of rabbits still recruiting?" Uncle Cheng frowned and asked, "I'm afraid I can't recruit Zhao'an, right?" Why don't you kill them all and leave no one? ”

"Let's take it first!" Ye Han slashed and slashed, and said in a deep voice.

Of course, Lao Cheng also knew that he should take it first. But in front of them, in the town, on the hillside, and behind them, the bandits kept pouring out, how long would it take to kill them?

The soldiers still have some strength, but if they continue like this, I'm afraid the weapons will be dull!

Many soldiers had such worries, although they were not afraid, but they used their swords more ruthlessly and carefully, for fear that they would be damaged when they collided with the opponent's weapons, and they were afraid that they might not be able to grab them easily.

In this way, the arrogance of the bandits finally gradually decreased.

Presumably they have never seen such a fierce "dog officer".

Because of the enemy's retreat, the battle was not as dangerous as it had been at first. Chu Weiyang still did not return to the team, and single-handedly slashed and scolded in the enemy pile: "Little rabbit cub! Who was the first for you to eat and to wear? It's just snowing, and you're not going to be human! Killing people, occupying villages and towns, suppressing officers and soldiers, you are waiting for heaven! It was not easy for the people in this place to survive back then, and your father and mother raised you in your trouser pockets, so they let you come out to harm this place! ”

The thief was too busy wielding his knife to scold, and most of them didn't care about scolding him, but a leader-like person in the distance gritted his teeth and ordered: "Why are there such long-winded officers and soldiers?" He doesn't have a background in singing for the emperor, right? Shoot him in the throat with an arrow! ”

An arrow swished out from behind the boulder, Chu Weiyang was startled, although he narrowly avoided it, but he almost startled the horse, so frightened that he didn't dare to shout anymore, and finally became a little honest.

But the arrow just now had already revealed the position of the archer, and the thief simply stopped hiding it, and many people with bows and arrows came out from behind the boulder at the same time, and the witchcraft arrows were aimed at the soldiers, and fell like a torrential rain.

The soldiers did not carry shields, they could only block with their blades, and they were inevitably extra tired for a while, and the slashing finally slowed down.

In the darkness, someone shouted on the hillside: "Dog officer! Throw down your weapons and surrender now, and spare you from dying! ”

The soldiers naturally didn't pay attention to this kind of shouting, and Ye Han didn't pay attention to it completely, just concentrating on swinging his sword to block arrows for himself and the personality next to him, and at the same time secretly thinking of countermeasures in his heart.

This time, it was he who underestimated the enemy. The number of people on the other side and the sophistication of weapons far exceeded his imagination. At this moment, although the soldiers have not yet shown their defeat, I am afraid it will not be good if it drags on like this.

For these more than 100 soldiers, dozens or hundreds of small bandits can be easily disposed of at any time, and thousands of big thieves have to consider formations and tactics.

Although they are brave, they are also human beings, not gods.

Well, if the number of bandits is not tens or hundreds, but thousands...... Or even tens of thousands?

Ye Han's mind moved, and he was suddenly shocked: "Which team are you?" Good officers and soldiers are inappropriate, why should they fall into the grass! ”

His voice was extremely loud, and it was heard far away in the night, and it was silent in the middle of the mountain.

Next to them, Zheng Lao Liu was shocked: "Officers and soldiers? No way? ”

Wu Lin suddenly gasped: "I'll just say...... The thief behind the stone on the left just now used not a bow and arrow, but a crossbow! If it weren't for the officers and soldiers, ordinary bandits would not have such a thing! ”

All the soldiers were a little shocked when they heard this.

At this time, there was finally another loud laugh from the mountain: "What officers and soldiers, who will be officers and soldiers!" Lao Tzu was born to be a thief, who is impatient to be an officer and soldier like you waste! ”

As soon as these words came out, they were even more like officers and soldiers.

Ye Han's heart was cold, and he couldn't bear to kill again for a while, and asked again, "Which team are you?" If there is any injustice in the army, you can say that you know it with this king, and this king can make decisions for you! ”

"This king?!" The other party was surprised, "What kind of king are you?" ”

Identifying yourself is the first step in recruiting security. The soldiers have been very accustomed to going all the way, and immediately someone shouted loudly: "This is the commander of our Northwest Army, His Royal Highness King Li!" ”

There was a sudden silence on the hillside.

Arrows no longer fall in this direction, and nearby bandits no longer slash and kill. The soldiers were a little surprised, but they didn't take the opportunity to chase and kill, but kept their formation and took the opportunity to breathe a sigh of relief.

Then the other party's slightly trembling voice sounded on the hillside again, and this time it seemed to be closer than before: "King Li...... Are you really His Royal Highness King Li? ”

"I am." Ye Han replied in a deep voice.

The man on the hillside shouted, and then shouted angrily, "Bastards, what are you doing! Put away the knives! The bow and arrow are collected! After eating the bear's heart and leopard, you dare to fight the Northwest Army of His Royal Highness! ”

The innocent and scolded thieves were a little confused, but no one dared to disobey the leader's orders, and they all put away their weapons one after another, and then began to retreat chaotically under the scolding of some small leaders.

The open space in the middle immediately became spacious, and the bandits gradually withdrew a few feet away, only the soldiers of the Northwest Army still maintained their formation and stayed in place on their horses, confused.

"Akan, what do you mean by that, bunnies?" Chu Weiyang rushed down from the hillside and asked urgently, "I've killed so many people, don't suddenly tell us that it's your own person, I'll be embarrassed...... Yes! ”

His loud shout suddenly turned into a scream.

The soldiers who were close immediately saw it with sharp eyes and were shocked: "Young Master Chu has been hit by an arrow!" Thieves deceive! ”

The officers and men of the Northwest Army were of one heart and one mind, and when they saw that Chu Weiyang was injured, they immediately greeted him without hesitation and wanted to take him back to the team.

At that moment, the road under the horse's hooves suddenly shook. Everyone only felt that their bodies were weightless for an instant, and then the snow and dust in front of them rose together, and the people and horses quickly fell down at the same time.

It's a trap!

The soldiers reacted with great speed and jumped upwards almost at the same time, pulling each other to rescue each other as if they were the same person.

The war horse did not have such ability, not only fell heavily below, but was quickly pierced by the bamboo knife and wooden stick inserted below, and the wailing sound rang out.

When the soldiers fell to the bottom of the pit, their eyes and noses were almost filled with dust, but under their feet were the corpses of their beloved war horses.

Some people were injured, but those who were not injured were also overwhelmed, and in an instant their morale fell to the bottom.

Ye Han quickly stood up and asked loudly, "Did Chu Weiyang come in!" ”

"I'm here," Chu Weiyang's weak voice came from the corner, "Akan, I'm dying!" ”

Ye Han breathed a sigh of relief when he heard his voice, and said in a deep voice: "You are a scourge, you can't die!" ”

At this time, most of the soldiers also came back to their senses, and each of them tightened their weapons, and their morale rose slightly.

But the voice of the thief came from outside, with an arrogant smile: "Haha, dog officer, didn't expect it?" What does this gift taste like? You say it's not good for you to pretend to be someone, but you want to pretend to be a dead person! ”

"You're the fucking dead!" Lao Cheng stepped on the horse's back and jumped up.

Ye Han stretched out his hand and dragged him, signaling him to talk less and accumulate strength.

Sure enough, no one spoke in the trap, and it was as quiet as if it were a bunch of dead people. At this time, dust and snow flakes gradually fell to the ground, and the soldiers rubbed their noses in unison, and their breathing was finally easier.

Gather enough strength before you have a chance to fight back.

The laughter outside was getting closer and closer, and it was obvious that the bandit leader was very proud, and the laughter became louder and louder: "It's not easy for you to think of scaring us under the banner of King Li!" But I, Li, am not stupid, and I can still see a few things about the court! How can there be a prince in the world who rises from the dead? Today's King Li is obviously because the imperial court is afraid that Beiyan will come in, so he has found a fake one to scare people! If he really has any powerful king Ling Han alive in the world, I will recognize him as an ancestor......"

Before he finished speaking, more than a dozen figures suddenly jumped out of the deep pit at the same time, and then Ye Han's fierce voice was directly inserted in front of him: "It's a pity that this king doesn't have unscrupulous children and grandchildren like you!" ”

As the words fell, the long sword stabbed forward.

The bandit leader was taken aback and hurriedly retreated. Before the smug smile on his face could be hidden, the man had already fallen to the ground in embarrassment, seeing that the long sword in Ye Han's hand was about to pierce his chest.

At the same time, more and more soldiers in the pit jumped out, and it was obvious that the Northwest Army did not suffer much damage.

Morale returned.

Chu Weiyang, who was carried up by the two soldiers, laughed weakly: "You guys are finished, you dare to calculate Ling Laosan......

Before he finished speaking, his face suddenly changed drastically.

At the same time, the bandit leader who had fallen to the ground waiting to be killed suddenly narrowed his eyes, and the smile that had not yet disappeared from the corners of his lips deepened.