A month passed in a blink of an eye, the weather was in autumn, the night breeze was slightly cool, Zhang Xun sat alone under the peach tree in the yard, carrying an empty wine jug, drunk.

The place has long since lost its former cheerfulness, and after the public left suddenly, even the always clean and tidy ground was covered with dust.

Zhang Xun raised his head, looked up at the full moon, and suddenly felt endless sadness.

"General Zhang! Are you here? Is it there? Outside the courtyard, Yu Xianyao's call came from the door.

Yu Xianyao seemed a little urgent, he knocked several times but did not see any response, and finally he slapped hard, and actually pushed the door open a crack, it turned out that the courtyard door was not locked at all.

Yu Xianyao pushed open the gate and looked into the courtyard, and sure enough, he saw Zhang Xun leaning under the peach tree. He hurriedly stepped forward to help Zhang Xun up, "General Zhang, I can't find you anywhere, I didn't expect you to be here!" ”

Zhang Xunhuang pushed Yu Xianyao away leisurely, and said drunkly: "Look for me...... Hehe...... What are you looking for me for? ”

"It's Gonghui! We might have a clue! ”

As soon as Zhang Xun heard this, he immediately sobered up and asked urgently, "Where is he?!" How is Brother Gonghui now?! ”

Looking at Zhang Xun's expectant face, Yu Xianyao hesitated a little, and he hesitated: "Actually...... Well, it can't be said that it is the whereabouts of Lord Gonghui. According to what the people said, Lord Gonghui was taken away by Xiao Shi at that time, so I arranged for the guys to pay attention to Xiao Shi while looking for Lord Gonghui, and also pay attention to Xiao She......"

Zhang Xun was impatient and urged: "Xiao Shi? Did you find him? What the hell is going on! Old Yu, you said it! ”

"The day before yesterday, the guys saw a person suspected of being Xiao Shi in a mountain village, and I was thinking that if that person was really Xiao She, maybe I could find Lord Gonghui through him."

"Anyway, find him first! As long as there is a slight chance, you must find Brother Gonghui! ”

"I've already sent someone to keep an eye on Xiao Xi."

"Let's go! Let's go to that village now! Zhang Xun said, and strode out.

"General Zhang!" Yu Xianyao hurriedly grabbed Zhang Xun and sighed: "Hey, General Zhang, although we may have found traces of Xiao Xun, you still have to be mentally prepared. ”

"I don't care! To live to see people, to die to see corpses! Brother Gong Hui can't die so easily! No way! I firmly believe that Brother Gonghui must still be alive, he may be seriously injured and cannot contact us, but he must still be alive! ”

"Okay, General Zhang, you go back and rest first, and we'll rush to that village early tomorrow morning, okay?"

"No! Right now! I'm going now! Zhang Xun took a deep breath, his expression became extremely melancholy, and he sighed: "Old Yu, I have lost too many cherished people, so as long as there is still a little chance, I will not give up hope." ”

"Hey, okay, General Zhang, I'll take you there now."

"Thank you!"

With that, Zhang Xun strode out of the courtyard gate.

At this time, in the same moonlight, Ji Zheng had just rolled over from Ina's chest, he gasped and hugged the naked Ina in his arms.

Ina's cheeks were crimson, and she gasped for the intoxicating fragrance shyly, and she snuggled up to Ji Zheng, stroking the scar on Ji Zheng's chest with her delicate fingers.

"General......" Ina cautiously raised her big eyes and asked as if she was a little scared, "That time...... Did what the general said really count? ”

Ji Zheng turned his head to look into Ina's eyes, but didn't say anything, he slowly sat up, turned his back to Ina and asked, "Am I a person worthy of your love?" ”

Ina sat up abruptly and said firmly, "Yes! The general is the nicest person I've ever met! Meeting the general is the greatest blessing of my life! ”

Ji Zheng shook his head, "No, I'm not a good person, and I don't deserve you to love me like this." ”

Ina hugged Ji Zheng tightly and pressed her chest against Ji Zheng's tough back, "General, I love you." ”

Ji Zhengliang was speechless for a long time, and finally he said softly: "What I said last time counts, I will marry you." ”

"Hmmm! That...... Deal?! Ina playfully held out a little finger of her right hand.

Ji Zheng looked at her confusedly, not understanding what Ina meant.

"Pull the hook, pull the hook, don't change it."

Ji Zheng showed a smile on his face, he also stretched out the little finger of his right hand, gently hooked Ina's little finger, and nodded: "Okay, a word is a decision." ”

With that, Ji Zheng put his arms around Ina and pushed her down on the bed again, kissing her on her rosy lips.

At this time, there was a report from the guards outside, "General, Lord Fan asks to see." ”

As soon as Ji Zheng heard that Fan Li was visiting at night, there must be something important to discuss, although he was reluctant to give up, Ji Zheng still held back his warmth, stood up and responded outside: "Okay, I know, please ask Lord Fan to wait in the cabinet, and I will go over." ”

Later, Ji Zheng gently kissed Ina on the forehead and helped her cover her with a silk quilt. Ina wrapped the silk quilt tightly, revealing only a pair of big eyes secretly watching Ji Zheng's figure. She is like a squirrel about to spend the winter, guarding the fruits of happiness in the warm nest of love.

After a while, Ji Zheng came to the cabinet, and after a short greeting, Fan Li said bluntly: "Prince Wu was mistakenly killed by his husband, and the current situation is very unfavorable to you." ”

Ji Zheng nodded silently and agreed with Fan Li's statement.

Fan Li continued: "If you can capture the prince according to your brother's original plan, then you can force the husband to support you, but now that the prince friend is dead, it is absolutely impossible to get the support of the Wu State." Although the state of Wu has plummeted, after all, it is the nominal overlord, and at the moment, the state of Wu and the state of Jin must support your younger brother Ji Ren at the same time, so the Son of Heaven is afraid that it will be difficult to canonize you as the new prince out of consideration of power. So, you have to enlist the king's support to the maximum extent possible and take immediate remedial action. ”

Ji Zheng saluted and said, "Please ask Master Fan for advice." ”

"First of all, you must return to Luoyang before the harvest festival, and use the festival to announce to the world that you are still alive, and you will officially take the crown prince."

"Okay, there are still more than two months left for the harvest festival, and I will set off for Luoyang next month, and I will have time."

"Well, once you arrive in Luoyang, you have to immediately start managing your network, winning over the powerful, and forming a party."

Ji Zheng frowned slightly, slightly embarrassed, "I left Luoyang at the age of nine, and there are almost no old acquaintances there, how to start a business?" ”

Fan Li took out a letter from his arms and handed it to Ji Zheng, "This is the resource left by your brother to you, and inside is a directory, these are all his closest relatives and trusted people during his lifetime." When you arrive in Luoyang, visit them one by one according to the records on the list, and they will help you. ”

Ji Zheng squeezed the letter tightly, and then took it into his arms.

Fan Li nodded, and said with a solemn expression: "Once this trip starts, you will never have a chance to turn back." So, there's one more thing that you have to do before you go. ”

"There's no turning back for me." Ji Zheng smiled bitterly and asked, "Master Fan, tell me, what's the matter?" ”

"Marriage."

"Princess Frosty?"

"Yes, now that your background is known to the world, although the king has expressed his support for you, if you want to make this support more powerful, you must form a blood pact with him, and marrying Frost is the best way."

Ji Zheng let out a sigh of relief and nodded vigorously, in fact, in his heart, he had already thought of this, and it was time to end everything in the past.

Ji Zheng did not hesitate and said, "Okay, I will propose to King Yue tomorrow." ”

Late at night, when Ji Zheng returned to the room, Ina was already asleep. He sat gently on the edge of the bed, gazing at Ina's beautiful face, his heart as calm as water.

The next morning, after a night's trekking, Zhang Xun and Yu Xianyao took a few men to the nameless mountain village.

The village is very small, there are 100 families, the houses are new, the roads are narrow, and it seems that this village has not been formed for a long time.

"General Zhang, this is it." Yu Xianyao said tiredly.

Zhang Xun saluted Yu Xianyao, "Thank you Elder Yu, please take a break for a while, and I'll go find some villagers to ask." ”

"Okay, okay."

Zhang Xun turned over and dismounted, handed over the horses to his fellow men, and then walked into this small mountain village alone. Searching up the mossy stone steps, Zhang Xun saw several villagers building houses, and some strong men were clearing the fields, where the people were simple and far away from the hustle and bustle, as if they were out of the world.

Zhang Xun came to an old man with gray hair and saluted, "Old man, may I ask if any outsiders have come to the village recently?" ”

The old man nodded and said, "There is a miracle doctor, who came to the village half a month ago, he is a good person, he helps us treat our diseases wholeheartedly, and he doesn't take a penny." ”

"Oh? Miracle Doctor? Is he still in the village? ”

"Yes, yes."

"Where does he live?"

The old man pointed behind him and said, "It's right there." ”

Zhang Xun came to the place pointed out to him by the old man, where there were green mountains and green waters, and clear mountain springs flew down from the rock wall, splashing water and drawing a fresh rainbow in the air. Birds flew through the rainbow, and the crisp call echoed in the mountains and forests for a long time.

Zhang Xun walked along a stone path to a thatched hut by the water, and there was a man huddled in the room, who was concentrating on grinding medicinal herbs, not in the slightest aware of Zhang Xun's arrival.

"Xiao Shi?" Zhang Xun recognized this person from the back as Xiao Shi.

Xiao Shi was still immersed in grinding, completely ignoring the meaning.

Zhang Xun walked up to Xiao Se, squatted down and said, "Xiao Se, why are you here?" What about Brother Gonghui? ”

Xiao Shi glanced at Zhang Xun, then slowly raised his hand, pointed to a new grave behind the courtyard, and smiled with relief: "I'm accompanying Senior Brother." ”

Xiao Shi's tone was as calm as a gentle drizzle, but the reality that could be said was like a thunderbolt from the sky, Zhang Xun's heart ached, and he almost fell. Even though he had already prepared for everything, when he saw the lonely tomb, tears flowed instantly. He shook his head and walked to the grave of the public with a shudder, his muttered muttering of a rejection of reality.

The tomb of Gong Wanran lies peacefully at the foot of the green mountain, the stream meanders not far away, the soil on the grave is loose, and a tombstone carved from a rock is engraved with a few words - "The Tomb of Senior Brother Gong Wanran".

Zhang Xun ** looked at the name of Gong Huiran, tears were like rain but he couldn't cry sound, thousands of words were piled up in his heart, and no one could speak. Countless pictures appeared in Zhang Xun's mind, he could never forget his senior brother's love for him, he could never forget the time he spent with his senior brother, he still remembered that the last time they were separated, they had agreed to go back to Yuanling Mountain to visit the master together, but now, everything is impossible.

"I think Senior Brother will like this resting place, it is very clean, and no one will disturb Senior Brother." Xiao Shi said, patted Zhang Xun on the shoulder, and handed him three sticks of incense.

Zhang Xun wiped away the tears on his face, took the incense and inserted it in front of the grave of Gong Huiran, and then bowed deeply.

After a long time, Zhang Xuncai straightened up, looked at Xiao Shi with red and swollen eyes, and asked, "How did Senior Brother die?" ”

"Senior brother was seriously injured by Ji Zheng in order to buy time for the people, and later the flood flooded, and the senior brother drowned due to serious injuries."

"What!?" Zhang Xun clenched his fists tightly, the muscles on his body trembled nervously, and he shook his head desperately: "Ji ...... Ji Zheng...... How can it be...... That's impossible...... No way! It's impossible! How could Xiao Ji do such a thing! It must not be so! Definitely not! ”

Xiao Shi was expressionless, just calmly looking directly at Zhang Xun.

Zhang Xun grabbed Xiao Shi's shoulder and roared angrily: "You lied to me!" You must be dividing us! Definitely! ”

Xiao Shi shook his head, "You and I both know Ji Zheng, since he has done this, he will definitely admit it." If you don't believe me, then go to Ji Zheng and ask yourself. ”

Zhang Xun pushed Xiao Shi away, holding down his almost cracked head like crazy, his mouth was panting in pain, his heartbeat became more and more rapid, and finally he actually threw himself and sat on the ground.

After a long time, Zhang Xuncai gradually regained his senses. Xiao Shi finally said, "I think you and him will definitely meet again." And then, everything will come to an end. ”

With that, Xiao Shi turned around and prepared to leave.

"Why here?" Zhang Xun asked suddenly, his voice no longer hysterical manic, replaced by calm.

Xiao Shi didn't turn back, turned his back to Zhang Xun and replied: "Seventeen years ago, I was imprisoned in the Forbidden Mountain by Master, before that, I had disregarded human life and wantonly poisoned and killed refugees infected with the plague, and the refugees had to leave Yuanling Mountain to continue to live in exile because of what I did. In order to help me atone for my sins, my brother has been trying to find a way to help the refugees. This is the new home that the senior brother chose for those refugees, and the senior brother likes this place very much, and once said that he hopes to come and settle here when he is old. Therefore, I brought my brother here, and from now on, I will always be with my brother. ”

After speaking, Xiao Shi turned around and walked back to the thatched hut, leaving Zhang Xun alone to sit quietly by the tombstone of Gong Wanran.

Zhang Xun sighed, bowed deeply in front of the grave again, and then turned around and left quietly.