Takahashi Kumiko gathered his men and said to them: "You have all seen that the warships of the Tang Dynasty are tall, and you have also fought with their warships, and our warships cannot defeat them. Without the cover of warships, our Kyushu Island is surrounded by the sea, and their warships can land anywhere at any time, and we can't prevent it.

Seeing that our hometown is about to be destroyed, as the samurai of the Takahashi family, we should do our best to defend our hometown. ”

"Miss, what to do, you can tell me." Ayumi Kawasaki said.

"The warships of the Tang Dynasty were well guarded, and it was difficult to burn them, and even if they succeeded, they could only burn one or two of them. I have thought about it, the only feasible way is to assassinate the prince of the Tang Dynasty, as long as he is dead, the Tang Dynasty people will definitely be in chaos, at least temporarily stop the invasion of our Kyushu Island. Kumiko Takahashi said.

Ayumi Kawasaki said, "Okay, Miss, I'll leave this matter to the minister." ”

Takahashi Kumiko shook her head and said: "This matter is very dangerous, nine deaths, I can't sacrifice your lives in vain." ”

With a pop, Ayumi Kawasaki and the others knelt down, "Miss, you can't take the risk yourself, the ministers are willing to complete this task, please leave this task to the ministers." Ayumi Kawasaki said excitedly.

"Please let the ministers wait." All the warriors slammed their heads to the ground in unison.

Takahashi Kumiko looked at these loyal courtiers, and her heart was also a little moved. She said, "Very good, worthy of being a samurai of my Takahashi family." Arise, all of you. ”

The samurai were still kneeling on the ground, but they straightened their waists and listened to Takahashi Kumiko's lecture. Kumiko Takahashi said, "You are commendable for your loyalty, and I am proud of your bravery. However, the prince of the Tang Dynasty has many guards, and his whereabouts are difficult to grasp, and it is difficult for you to approach him even if you are brave, so we must outwit him. I'm a woman, so it's easier to get close to him. ”

"Miss, it's too dangerous. You can leave this matter to the ministers to complete, and the ministers will complete this task desperately. Ayumi Kawasaki said.

"Alright, that's it. Besides, I'm just trying to get close to him and complete the assassination mission, and I still need everyone to complete it together, so let's live and die together. Kumiko Takahashi said firmly.

"Hey." All the samurai slammed their heads on the ground and answered in unison.

Next, they began to study ways to get close to the prince of the Tang Dynasty, and Takahashi Kumiko said: "Sato-kun, you go and inquire about which of the merchants you know who have connections with the Governor's Mansion, and try to find out what is going on inside." ”

"Hey, Miss, I'll go." Sato said.

Governor's Palace.

Li You was about to set off, and Sima Wang Huairen of Dengzhou came over to ask for advice on the handling of Takahashi Kumiko and others.

Li You said: "The news that should be passed on by them has already been passed on, and it is useless to keep them, so let's catch them." But try to live as much as possible, especially that Takahashi Kumiko, I'll keep it useful. ”

Wang Huairen said: "Yes, the minister will go and arrange it." ”

Li You said: "Lord Wang, leave this matter to Zhou Qing and them, it's not someone who can't trust you." Those Japanese slaves were all difficult warriors, and against them, Zhou Qing and their special combat team were more sure. ”

"Lord, leave it to the minister." Zhou Qing said.

"Zhou Qing, although I ask to be caught alive, it must be on the premise of ensuring your safety, if it is really difficult to catch them alive, I will shoot them to death." Li You said.

Zhou Qing was very moved, and he said: "Your Highness, rest assured, the minister will definitely complete the task." ”

Li You said: "Lord Wang, you are responsible for cooperating with Zhou Qing and them to complete the task." ”

"Yes, Your Highness, the ministers are leaving." Wang Huairen and Zhou Qing bowed and retreated.

Back to the special combat team, Zhou Qing told His Royal Highness King Qi about their concern, and the officers and soldiers were very moved, and they all said that they would rather sacrifice themselves than complete the tasks assigned by the prince.

Zhou Qing said: "The brothers are right, our special combat team was established by the prince, and it is the descendant of the prince, and the prince must have an important use for leaving those Japanese slave countrymen." The prince thinks about us everywhere, and we must not let the prince down. Now, let's look at the specific course of action......"

After discussing with Zhou Qing, Wang Huairen decided to carry out the arrest mission tonight.

In the evening, Wang Huairen, who was ambushed in a tailor shop near the Silla Trading Company, said to Zhou Qing: "Something is wrong, why hasn't the person I sent in come out yet?" ”

It turned out that Wang Huairen, through his subordinate Wuhou, had mastered a local servant in the Silla Trading Company, the one who provided information last time. The Silla Trading Company was in business, and there were a lot of merchants coming and going every day, and in order to accurately grasp the situation inside, they asked the servant to come out before dinner to deliver a letter to them, but it has not come out until now.

Zhou Qing thought for a while and said: "Don't wait, as long as that Takahashi Jiumiko is inside, the day after tomorrow the prince will set off, it's too late, it's better to do it tonight according to the original plan." ”

Wang Huairen said: "I have been observing for a day today, and I have not seen the female slave go out. ”

Zhou Qing said: "That's it, do it in the early morning." ”

Early the next morning, Li You had just gotten up, and Baihu came in to report: "Lord Wang, Wang Sima and Zhou Qing are waiting outside to report to you." ”

Li You came to the living room.

"Ministers, see the prince and His Royal Highness." Wang Huairen and Zhou Qing said.

As soon as Li You came in, he saw their embarrassed expressions and knew that things were not going well. "What's the situation?" he asked. ”

Zhou Qing said: "Lord Wang, last night I raided the stronghold of the Japanese slaves and captured 9 Japanese and 14 Silla inside, but that Takahashi Kumiko and three Japanese were not in it last night. We only suffered two wounds, no team members were killed. He knew that the prince was concerned about the casualties of the team members, so he simply said it together.

Li You was a little depressed, and he said, "Sit down and talk." ”

"Thank you, Your Highness." Wang Huairen and Zhou Qing said.

Wang Huairen said: "Your Highness, the ministers have been staring at the Silla Trading Company and have not seen her go out, so they decided to arrest people." Unexpectedly, at noon yesterday, Takahashi Kumiko and others left in the carriage that came to deliver the goods, and the person in charge of monitoring did not see it. The people sent by the ministers to investigate the situation were controlled by them, and they were not able to come out to report to the ministers, and the ministers pounced.

The ministers did not complete the task assigned by His Highness, and asked His Highness to punish him. ”

Zhou Qing also pleaded guilty and said: "Lord, the minister is very ashamed, please punish His Highness." ”

Li You said: "Don't talk about this, I believe you did your best." However, Kumiko Takahashi's identity was exposed, and it would be difficult to catch him again. ”

Wang Huairen said: "Your Highness, if you don't set off on the Eastern Expedition first, the minister will continue to track down the whereabouts of Takahashi Kumiko here, and once you catch her, I will send someone to send her to you." ”

Li You didn't speak, there pondering.

Wang Huairen and Zhou Qing didn't dare to speak and waited for Li You to speak.

Li You asked, "You have interrogated those Japanese slaves, what have you gained?" ”

Wang Huairen said: "The situation is similar to that of the pirates before, there is no more information. ”

Li You asked, "What kind of character is this Takahashi Kumiko?" ”

"This?" These words stopped Wang Huairen and Zhou Qing.