After King Yan left, Yao Biao spent half a day telling Shen Ruoliao in detail the route and itinerary to Kaifeng, drawing a map to repeatedly advise, as well as the way to meet King Zhou in Kaifeng, and finally forced Shen Ruoliao, who had never been to Kaifeng, to memorize several routes, more than a dozen locations, names and so on. The next day, he called Shen Ruoliao to his home, led him to a beautiful chestnut pony, and then spent a whole day training him to ride a horse in his own martial arts training ground, and Shen Ruoliao fell all over the mud. In the evening, Shen Ruoliao could go home; The stubborn and mischievous pony has a new name: Second-rate. The second-rate son found that the new owner smelled the same, and it was difficult to give up, so he followed Shen Ruoyu back to the Hongjia Hotel.

Two days later, Shen Ruoyu said goodbye to Lu Jiang for the first time, took King Yan's letter home, and set off alone with the map and coil given to him by Yao Biao. Along the way, Shen Ruoliao strictly followed the detailed plan made for him by Yao Biao, and while paying close attention, he found that Yao Biao's plan was very accurate, how many walks to walk every day, when and where to rest, where to pass through the city, where to pass by the village, where there are hotels and inns, how much money to spend, all the arrangements are just right; He couldn't help but secretly admire Lord Yao in his heart, hoping that he would soon have such experience and brains.

He crossed the Yellow River smoothly and arrived in Kaifeng. After entering the city, he breathed a sigh of relief, and according to Yao Biao's prior arrangement, he found an inn, opened a room to live in, and ate something casually. After the meal, Shen Ruoyu walked around the street. He came to Kaifeng for the first time, but unfortunately he had something to do, and he didn't have much spare time, so he couldn't go anywhere. It was still early, and he had seen the scenery in the neighborhood, but there was nothing; Half a year ago, the Yellow River had just broken through once, flooding Kaifeng City. Now, this ancient city, which has been accustomed to yellow water, does not seem to have much vitality and vitality despite the presence of Zhu Hu, the king of Zhou, as if it is difficult to restore the vitality of the Song Dynasty. Of course, he has never seen Kaifeng in the Song Dynasty, just imagining it out of thin air, and the domain of King Zhou in his imagination is more of a shadow of the prosperous Beiping that Zhu Di, the king of Yan, has devoted his efforts to govern. He looked at it, and was a little disappointed, so he gave up looking at the scene, took out the address and name that he had already prepared in his hand, and asked passers-by where to go.

Asking for directions isn't hard; Soon, Shen Ruoliao found the address under the guidance of passers-by. It was a very small house, three rooms, and a stable. At the entrance is a tall plane tree with a well under it. There were also two wooden barrels and a wooden basin beside the well, in which some clothes were soaked. The courtyard door was ajar; He didn't knock at the door, but went straight into the courtyard; A young and beautiful young woman was drying clothes in the courtyard, and when she heard the sound of footsteps, she turned back happily, but when she saw a handsome young man whom she had never known, she could not help screaming, lowered her head, and blushed with shame.

Shen Ruoyu was a little embarrassed, and she blushed with shame. He asked, embarrassed:

"That...... May I ask if the home of the head of the Wangfu Lu sect is here? ”

The young woman bowed her head and replied in a soft voice, "The humble husband is on an errand in the palace and has not yet returned." If the official has anything to do, he can leave a note, or come back tomorrow. ”

Shen Ruoxiao hesitated for a while, a little disappointed. He didn't want to come back tomorrow and pounce again; However, he was afraid that it would be inappropriate to leave a note.

Eventually, he said, "Then I'll come back tomorrow." Excuse me, Madame. ”

He walked back down the street in front of the inn, a little bored. The sunset hangs in the sky, and the sunset is just average. He stopped for a while, and was quickly attracted by the commotion on the other side of the street, and walked over. Two soldiers were beating a beggar, looking at the attire, they were all soldiers of the royal palace. The beggar was huddled on the ground, begging for mercy, and was grabbed by the hair by the two soldiers, and slapped in the face; Shen Ruoyu saw the beggar's face, about forty years old, and he couldn't help but think of the third brother in Beiping. He was furious, rushed out of the crowd of onlookers, and went up to grab one of his own soldiers and punch him.

Seeing this, another soldier left the beggar, pounced, and sandwiched Shen Ruoliao in the middle with his companions, and the three of them fought for a while. I don't know where I got the news, and another team of palace guards appeared on the other side of the street, quickly rushed up, and surrounded Shen Ruoyu in the middle. His martial arts have not fully recovered, at this moment he is outnumbered, he is powerless, he is gradually defeated, and he is knocked to the ground, and everyone pounces on him, adding fists and feet, bent on beating him to death.

"Stop!" Suddenly, a voice roared down in mid-air like a thunderstorm. When the pro-soldiers heard the voice, they stopped their hands, looked at each other, and then automatically took a few steps back to make room for it. A person walked in and looked at Shen Ruoliao on the ground with a blue nose and swollen face and a bleeding head; The beggar had long since disappeared.

The man shook his head with a stern expression, leaned down, helped Shen Ruoyu up from the ground, and asked with concern:

"Little brother, are you hurt?"

Shen Ruoyu raised his eyes and looked at the officer in front of him; He was about thirty years old, with a burly build, a broad forehead, a purple complexion, and a look full of questions and apologies.

"Who are you?" He asked rhetorically without answering.

A soldier shouted: "What a rude blind man, we Lu Jiaotou don't even recognize it in front of him?" ”

The officer turned his head and glared at the soldier with a frown; The soldier did not dare to say anything more.

Shen Ruoyu's heart was disgusted; The soldiers who can indulge themselves bully others on the street show that this sect leader is by no means good. The liaison of the palace that Master Yao asked him to find turned out to be such a scum of the common people. He broke free from the other man's grasp and was about to leave. Lu Jiaotou immediately grabbed his arm again and asked suspiciously:

"Little brother, have we met before? Look familiar to you. ”

Shen Ruoyu didn't bother to pay attention to him, and just wanted to leave immediately, but he couldn't help but bite himself tightly like a steel tong with the other party's hand, and he couldn't break free no matter what.

Seeing this, the two soldiers who initially caused the accident immediately complained on the side:

"Sect leader, the two of us just patrolled the streets here, and saw this person insulting and beating a beggar on the side of the road for no reason, and the two of us stepped forward to stop it, but this person was so powerful, with the two of us not getting close to him at all, but he had the upper hand, until the brothers rushed to relieve the siege, and then subdued this guy."

Shen Ruoyu had expected that he would be sued by the other party's wicked person first. He was silent; After hearing the accusations of his subordinates, Lu Jiaotou looked at himself even more suspiciously, and asked:

"Is it true? What's going on? ”

Shen Ruoliao was extremely bored in his heart, and he struggled violently, and finally broke free of the other party's hand; He was just about to run, but Lu Jiaotou had already deceived himself in front of him, and the speed was so fast that Shen Ruoyu was taken aback; Without saying a word, he drew his sword and went straight to the other party's heart; Lu Jiao's head only flashed slightly, and his right hand was already reaching his throat; He leaned sideways, and the sword path was lightning to the opponent's lower plate; Lu Jiao's head jumped slightly, and in a blink of an eye, he was behind him, and his hand was on his shoulder blade, Shen Ruoliao's whole arm was suddenly sore, and the long sword fell to the ground.

Lu Jiaotou grabbed his wrist and motioned to his soldiers to shackle his hands, but he did not bind his legs and feet, nor did he allow others to touch him, and personally escorted him back to the palace of King Zhou.

Shen Ruoyu was like this, inexplicably, and entered the Zhou Palace; He never expected that he had just met with the planned palace liaison and it would be such an experience. He has the mission of King Yan on his shoulders, and he needs to complete it through this Lu Jiaotou; However, at this moment, when the enemy and I meet each other, he is the prisoner of the other party's subordinates, how can he make the other party believe in himself, let alone let himself believe in the other party, and hand over the letter of King Yan.

Lu Jiaotou escorted him into the barracks, but instead of putting him in a cell, he locked him in an ordinary barracks and brought him some tea. Shen Ruoliao didn't know what the other party's intentions were, so she could only remain silent. An hour later, Lu Jiaotou came to the barracks alone, opened the lock, took him out, and escorted him to an open field.

This is clearly a military barracks. The night was falling, and the golden moon had risen. There was silence on the martial arts field, and there was no third person. Lu Jiaotou opened the shackles on Shen Ruoliao's wrist and asked:

"Your Excellency is young, but your skills are extraordinary, I don't know who to learn from?"

Shen Ruoyu looked at the other party coldly, not knowing what he meant.

Seeing that he was silent, Lu Jiaotou explained: "Your Excellency, between the sword road, there is a sense of déjà vu, and his face is also a little familiar, Lu is dull, but he can't remember, I don't know if I have seen my foot before?" ”

Shen Ruoyu was still silent.

Lu Jiaotou took out the sword that Shen Ruoliao had been knocked out earlier and put it back in his hand.

"Under the impudence; It's been some years since I've met an opponent like yours, and tonight there is no one in this martial arts arena, so I can have fun with you in martial arts. But I don't know if you are willing to appreciate your face? ”

Shen Ruoyu finally opened his mouth and said coldly: "I am your defeated general, and before I passed the three moves, I asked you to collect the sword, this superiority has been divided, what else can be compared?" ”

Lu Jiaotou was silent for a moment and said sincerely:

In the evening, Lu later carefully questioned the street pedestrians who witnessed it at that time; My soldiers bullied the civilians, and your excellency was falsely accused of doing what was right. It was all Lu, the head of the sect, who misdisciplined him on weekdays and was seriously derelict in his duties. Lu is deeply ashamed and hereby apologizes solemnly to Your Excellency. Your Excellency is a hero, and Lu should send you away from here and go home; It's just that the previous two tricks contested made me really itch, and I want to take this opportunity to have a good look at your martial arts. There is no coercion in this matter; If you do not want to, you can leave now, and I will not force you to stay. ”

Shen Ruoyu heard what the other party said, and most of the anger in his heart had disappeared. After all, he would eventually count on Lu Jiaotou to introduce him to King Zhou. Yao Biao did not give him a contingency plan; Except for Lu Jiaotou, he didn't know who else could help with this.

He nodded and saluted, "In that case, please teach Master Lu." ”

Lu Jiaotou was overjoyed when he heard this, and after clasping his fists and saluting, he stretched out his hand and drew out the long sword he carried with him. When I first saw him on the street before, Lu Jiaotou did not draw a sword; At this moment, the night was deep, and Shen Ruoyu couldn't see the description of the other party's long sword clearly, only a piece of golden light shone brightly; The familiar light and color made his heart jump twice involuntarily. He was inexplicable, and even more instinctively uneasy, clenched the sword in his hand, and just waited for the other party to make a move.

Lu Jiaotou stood quietly in place for a moment, raised his sword lightly, the blade was warm and sharp, and attacked Shen Ruoliao's chest. Shen Ruoyu caught the incoming sword, and the sword speed of the two instantly became faster, and where the sword blade reached, there was no sword shadow, only a phantom of fine light. Lu Jiaotou stretched for a moment, and noticed that the opponent's sword path was meticulous and natural, obviously he had received years of rigorous training, but the sword blade was a little difficult and sluggish, and it seemed that he was not trained enough, his qi was not smooth, and his physical strength was insufficient, so he couldn't help but be confused; He stood up the long sword in his hand, leaned slightly sideways, and slashed head-on towards Shen Ruoyu like thunder; Shen Ruoyu crossed the blade of the sword, caught the flying sword in front of him, and with a loud bang, it shook his mouth and made his wrist bones sore. Only for this moment, the opponent's long sword was still in front of him; His gaze suddenly met the inscription on the sword, and his heart shook violently, and he collapsed there. For a moment he could not hear anything, could not see, his limbs were stiff and unconscious, only the inscription that had just glimpsed it shone before his eyes; Everything happened in an instant; He suddenly trembled again, and the sharp pain of the tearing woke him up, and Lu Jiaotou also let out an exclamation; Only then did he realize that his right shoulder had been pierced by the opponent's sword. Both were stunned.

Lu Jiaotou stood in place, horrified. The young man in front of him is agile and has a very deep internal strength; Just now, his first sword was fierce and fierce, thinking that the opponent's sword was sluggish, this blow was a must-win move, but the opponent backhanded his own sword, followed by a strong rebound. It was rare for him to encounter such a strong enemy, and he was secretly applauding in his heart, so he used all his strength to probe with a sword, but unexpectedly, he drove straight into it and easily stabbed the other party into a hole.

He woke up and immediately withdrew his hand and drew his sword. Shen Ruoyu couldn't help but let out a wail and fell down, but fell into the arms of his opponent.

"Little brother, how are you?" Lu Jiaotou looked at him with concern and asked anxiously.

Shen Ruoyu stared at the pro-military sect leader with a purple face in front of him with wide eyes, and couldn't say a word for a while. The vision still flashed with the long sword as bright as silver; On the slender narrow blade, in the middle of a wide and pitch-black concave surface, a line of golden seal characters was just a glimpse of it, but it lingered in front of him from then on. He had forgotten it; Ten years ago, as a child, he had seen and touched the bunch of inscriptions with his own eyes. But he could not forget; The inscription's pitch-black golden light is like a shooting star streaking across the endless night sky in my heart, no matter how many more decades pass, it will always be so intense mystery and profundity.

The goodness is like water, and the sword is in the autumn wind......

A lot of warmth and sourness surged in Shen Ruoliao's heart, blocking his chest, too huge to release. He stared blankly at the head of Lu Jiao in front of him, looking in vain for the once intimate and familiar mark on the other party's face, but there was only a blank in his memory. He and his second brother have been separated for nine years; The exact appearance of the second brother, he had already completely forgotten it, and he could no longer remember it. Who is this person in front of you? If he is the second brother, why is his surname Lu? If he wasn't, why did Autumn Wind hold it in his hands?

Soon his vision blurred, and a line of tears cut down his pale cheeks.

Lu Jiaotou cried when he saw that he was silent, thinking that he was unbearable to be hurt, looked at his bloody shoulder, and regretted it:

"Little brother, I'm really sorry...... I'll take you to the doctor. ”

When he stood up, he had to carry Shen Ruoliao.

"Second brother...... Don't ......" Shen Ruoyu finally screamed, but his voice was as thin as a mosquito.

Lu Jiaotou did not hear his words clearly. He let go of his hand.

"What did you say?"

Shen Ruoyu knelt on the ground, holding on to his injured shoulder, unable to move in pain, trembling all over, and said incoherently:

"Autumn Breeze...... Who are you...... You hold the autumn wind...... Second brother ......"

The head of Lu Jiao in front of him suddenly lost his breath, and stood quietly in place, not moving at all, as if he was dead. He looked at Shen Ruoyu blankly for a long time.

Then, Liang Tiehan suddenly woke up, threw himself down with open arms, and hugged the fourth brother tightly.