On the evening of May 2, it is the time of the willow tops on the moon, and the city of Xi'an is also entering the nightlife at this moment*. The 12 main streets are crowded, and the citizens who come out to eat after dinner are wandering around the night market near the drum tower with their families, and from time to time some people take a fancy to the ornaments on the roadside vendors, so they stop and talk about the price with the small vendors on the roadside, and it seems that it is a peaceful night.

However, on the North Horse Road near the Qin Wangfu, pedestrians are relatively rare, and even if someone passes by, they are trotting briskly, not daring to linger in the vicinity. Of course, the officers and soldiers in the palace of King Qin have always walked very leisurely on this road, and there is no need to be as frightened as ordinary people passing by here.

Although at the beginning of the founding of the country, the feudal kings of various places were quite strict in controlling the personnel in the palace. But after arriving in Wanli, the vassal kings themselves were rampant, let alone restraining the people in the palace. Not to mention, some vassal kings also supported the people in the palace, as long as the wealth these people got outside could attack their own share.

Therefore, at this time, the honor guards of the Qin Palace, who were supposed to be guarding the palace, walked out of a restaurant in the east of the city at this moment. Pedestrians on the street not only did not feel strange when they saw these drunken royal guards, but they were accustomed to lowering their heads and bypassing these royal guards far away, for fear of getting into some trouble.

These thirty or forty royal palace honor guards surrounded four or five officers and walked in the middle of the street, looking at the direction of the team's advance, they were about to return to the Qin Palace. However, before they could get out of the alley where the restaurant was located, they heard someone shouting from behind: "Zhang Qing! ”

Zhang Qing, the deputy guard of the Qin Wangfu, who was originally drunk and riding a horse in the middle of the team, suddenly sobered up a little when he heard this shout, and he immediately turned his head and scolded: "Thief, your mother, that old man called you by your big name." Is this greasy and crooked? Do you want you to give you a whole bone? ”

With Zhang Qing's return, these thirty or forty palace guards also turned around and scolded, and many people were gearing up and were intending to do a big job. In this Xi'an City, they have never seen the existence of daring to provoke the Qin Palace. Many palace guards smiled and scolded their companions and said: "I just ate too much today, so that this young man who doesn't know whether he is alive or dead can give his grandfathers a drink..."

However, after the figures shouting Zhang Qing from the rear came out of the shadows, these honor guards suddenly stopped. What kind of cowardice was there in the rear, but a group of heavily armed cavalry. Although the cavalry numbered only a dozen or so, they were wearing armor.

In contrast, these honor guards who came out to drink and have fun were wearing just regular clothes that represented their status, and what they were holding in their hands was just a useless instrument knife, and at this moment even Zhang Qing, who was still roaring just now, was stunned. He really couldn't understand how such a team of cavalry could intercept him in Xi'an City, could it be that someone rebelled.

When he was stunned, the cavalry in the rear finally walked to a distance of more than 30 steps, and with the help of the lantern hanging in the restaurant next to him, Zhang Qing finally recognized the cavalry led by him. He immediately scolded angrily: "Which bastard bastard released Liu Zhongqi, and these little bastards followed Liu Zhongqi to mess around, don't you want a head?"

Openly wearing armor and holding troops to intercept the honor guards of my Qin Wangfu is a rebellion, and it is a great crime of the nine clans of Zhulian. If you take Liu Zhongqi now, the official can still not blame the past, if not, he will be guilty of the same crime. Do you really want to implicate your family? ”

After confirming that the person who came was a junior colonel in the Xi'an Town Army, Zhang Qing calmed down and threatened the officers and soldiers behind Liu Zhongqi. However, the officers and soldiers on the opposite side did not waver at all, but followed Liu Zhongqi to lower his body and make a charging gesture. The royal palace guards who were originally guarding Zhang Qing's side automatically dispersed to both sides of the street when they saw this situation.

Liu Zhongqi, who led this team of cavalry, didn't care about the actions of these palace guards at all, he just stared at Zhang Qing in the middle of the front, looking at the enemy who killed his sister and brother-in-law's family of five, and wanted to kill him under his horse, but he didn't realize that the wound on his back that was tortured was cracked.

The deputy who followed behind Liu Zhongqi saw that Liu Zhongqi did not publicize his intention at all, so he wanted to rush out like this, so he had to open his mouth and shout for Liu Zhongqi: "Zhang Qing, the deputy of the honor guard of the Qin Palace, is suspected of plotting rebellion, and I will come to arrest him on the orders of the commander of Jinyi Weitian and the governor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate. When everyone heard this, they immediately threw down their weapons and threw themselves to the ground, and those who dared to disobey were killed..."

Before the deputy finished speaking, Liu Zhongqi had already rushed out in the lead. After Zhang Qing heard that he was involved in the rebellion case, he did not hesitate to turn his horse and run in the direction of the Qin Wangfu, and shouted loudly: "These people pretending to be Jinyi Guards are really against the party. You hurry up and arrest him, and the official will immediately return to the palace to gather people to quell the chaos..."

At the window of a restaurant facing the street on this street, Tian Ergeng, who was watching the situation on the street below, couldn't help but smile and said: "This person is quite talented in adapting to emergencies, if it weren't for the fact that it was night, maybe he would have escaped from the city." ”

Wu Jun on the side said disapprerovitically: "It's just a person from Wupin, and if he escapes, he will escape." Now, it's our turn. Commander Tian stayed here to coordinate the overall situation, and the Zajia and Sun Guerrilla went to the Qin Palace. Tonight, Xi'an City is probably going to be lively all night. ”

Tian Ergeng turned around, looked at the two military attachés Sun Shoufa and Lin Chengdong who were guarding the door, and couldn't help but nod and said: "Then bother Gonggong Wu to go, Gonggong Wu will go this time, as long as the lives of King Qin's family are saved, others don't have to be merciful." ”

Sun Shoufa and Lin Chengdong didn't hear Tian Ergeng's words, but Wu Jun couldn't bear to say: "Killing too much, I'm afraid it's not a good thing for us, if it spreads in the future, the clans around the country may not come to us to settle old scores." ”

Tian Ergeng looked at him and said meaningfully: "If we can't handle the errand given to us by His Majesty this time, where will we have anything to do." ”

Wu Jun was frightened and didn't dare to say more, so he called Sun Shoufa on the side and hurried down the stairs. When Wu Jun and Sun Shoufa walked to the street near the Qin Wangfu with a large group of people, Liu Zhongqi returned with the group of cavalry and happened to bump into this group of men and horses.

Liu Zhongqi hurriedly rolled off the horse, knelt in front of Wu Jun's horse with a human head and said: "Back to father-in-law and General Sun, the villain has brought back the head of the rebel Zhang Qing, please check it out." ”

Sun Shoufa suddenly looked at Wu Jun at a loss, he didn't know how to deal with this oolong incident, he didn't know whether to reprimand this subordinate for working too hard, or whether he should praise him for doing a good job.

Wu Jun glanced at the hideous head very calmly, and said calmly: "Fake." Ordered the team to move on. ”

Liu Zhongqi was still a little dazed, he didn't understand how the head in his hand was not Zhang Qing, as his enemy, he could recognize it clearly, just when he cut off Zhang Qing's head, he also heard the other party's voice begging for mercy.

Looking at Liu Zhongqi, who was still kneeling in the middle of the road and not moving, Sun Shoufa, who had already woken up, suddenly waved a whip at him, and scolded him: "You idiot, this is just a human head similar to a rebel, can you admit your mistake?" Don't get out of the way. You will stay here for Ben until dawn, and Lao Tzu will come to clean you up. ”

Liu Zhongqi, who had been whipped on his shoulder, rolled to the side in confusion and watched the team pass in front of him. It wasn't until this group of men and horses walked by that his subordinates gathered around him and asked, "Liu Xiaoqi, do you really admit your mistake?" "It can't be the wrong head, right?"

"Nonsense, even if this Zhang Qing is burned to ashes, grandpa will recognize him." Liu Zhongqi interrupted the suspicions of his subordinates and replied categorically.

The cavalrymen were speechless for a long time before someone said, "What are we going to do next?" Is it really here? They will definitely get a lot of benefits by going to the palace to raid their homes, should we also go around to check if there are any chaotic troops hiding in the houses? ”

The soldier's proposal immediately resonated with many cavalrymen. They had just charged hard, firstly, to avenge their comrades in the army; The second is to look forward to being able to make a small fortune in the city through the reverse case. But unexpectedly, as soon as the revenge was completed, they were thrown on the street by their boss, which not only made them a little dissatisfied.

Liu Zhongqi looked at the appearance of these comrades who were about to move, and immediately shouted: "Don't you want your brains anymore?" The army that entered the city this time was not only our battalion, Jinyiwei and the Henan New Army were in charge of military discipline in the city tonight, and they didn't have any relationship with us. ”

Liu Zhongqi's intimidation immediately calmed down these cavalrymen. But there are also people who are still itching, and they are in a treasure trove and cannot get their possessions, which is more uncomfortable for these military gangsters than cutting off their hands and feet. Although under Chongzhen's attention, the food and salary of the Shaanxi official army were finally able to be distributed to eighty percent, but for these sergeants who had to support their families, this could only make them barely survive.

In normal times, they are kept in the barracks outside the city, and they are subject to military discipline, but they can also show a harmless nature. But when they stand in a rich city with weapons in hand, the threat of military law is somewhat unstoppable. If Xi'an is not their own city, and they are already struggling to feed their families, then perhaps Liu Zhongqi's intimidation will not stop them.

But now, the majesty of the imperial court and the threat of military law still barely kept them to the last shred of sanity. However, Liu Zhongqi looked at the expressions of these comrades, and knew that he could only be curbed for a while if he moved out of the military law, after all, tonight had just begun, and God knew if they would lose their minds because of the gains of friendly troops.

After thinking for a while, Liu Zhongqi said to these comrades: "But this Zhang Chun and his comrades, there are still a few foreign houses not far away. They are not good citizens, and the generals probably can't take care of these places, so let's go and check them first, and if we find anything, it can be regarded as a meritorious service. ”

The sergeants, who were originally a little depressed, immediately applauded, and then left with Liu Zhongqi in their arms. On this night, many people in Xi'an City were worried, listening to the noise outside and keeping watch with their families all night, not daring to sleep.