On February 26 of the eighth year of Longsheng, it was the good weather of the wind and the beauty, standing on the Zhenhuai Tower, standing in front of the window overlooking the scenery under the city, Pei Yun's seemingly calm face hid a trace of boredom, Huaidong lost the battlefield, although he occupied Chuzhou and Sizhou, he could not make him feel better in his heart. But this time he was ordered to contain the Chu army only in Huaidong, and he couldn't take the initiative to attack in Wuyue while Lu Can was trapped, which made him even more depressed. Thinking that Xiangyang is full of smoke, Changsun Ji's Nanyang battalion has increased to 300,000 troops, but he has not been replenished by troops, and now the Xuzhou battalion is less than 100,000 troops, and he has little spare strength to launch a major military operation, how can this not make him depressed.

Another thing that made him depressed was the new Chuzhou County Guard Luo Jing. At the beginning, he originally planned to wait until the situation stabilized to replace Gu Yuanyong, so as not to have an unstable foundation. Who knew that this Gu Yuanyong was powerless when Luo Louzhen controlled Chuzhou in the past, and there were always omissions in handling government affairs, but since he voted for Dayong, if he had divine help, he would be the leader of Chuzhou's government affairs. Pei Yun was originally a person who rewarded and punished fairly, and seeing that Gu Yuanyong was very competent, he had the heart to let him continue to stay, but at this time, the imperial court had already sent Luo Jing to serve as the county guard of Chuzhou, although he was not very willing, but this was also reasonable, after all, the position of Chuzhou was very important. But although Luo Jing has outstanding ability, his surname is very unruly, and his methods of governing Chuzhou are vigorous and resolute, which has caused the people of Chuzhou to complain, if he changes elsewhere, Pei Yun will not oppose him, but Chuzhou is an important front-line town, and it is a new surrender, so he once hinted to Luo Jing. However, the new county warden was proud of his talents, but he refused to make a slight concession. If it was someone else, Pei Yun would probably give him a military stick first, and then drive him back, after all, Chuzhou is still a military town and needs to be under Pei Yun's jurisdiction. However, this county guard is extremely hard in the background, and he is the beloved son-in-law of Gao Rong, the queen's brother-in-law, Gao Rong is an important minister of Emperor Yong, and he once had the credit of Youzhou to assist the prince Li Jun, and his status in the emperor's mind is extremely high. Although Pei Yun is not afraid of Gao Rong, he is now a general of the defeated army, so he naturally doesn't want to offend Gao Rong easily, but with such a civil and military discord, how can he go all out to force Huaidong? How could such troubles not make Pei Yun feel depressed.

Pei Yun stood there silently, but Gu Yuanyong, who was standing behind him, was calm. As a subordinate, he has already been fully prepared, as for the safety of the family, he is not worried, the Hengyang Gu family has been passed down from generation to generation, and he will never be wiped out because of an unscrupulous son, now he only needs to worry about his net worth and surname. He is a person who understands current affairs, in the past, he was a child of the Southern Chu family, so he studied carefully, obtained fame, achieved glory for the family, and stood in the strategy of the tiger and wolf, he was wise to protect himself, even if he fought for the truth between the military and the people of Chuzhou and Luo Lou, it was also controlled within the scope of Luo Lou's patience, and he was even more interested in marrying the officers of the Chuzhou battalion, leaving a way to ask for help and intercession. When the Yongjun captured Chuzhou, he surrendered gloomily, Pei Yun entrusted him with a heavy responsibility, and he did his best to do it, and now that he is removed from his official position, he has no worries, just planning whether to find an opportunity to return to his hometown, or continue to wait for the appointment of Yongting. In Gu Yuanyong's mind, he thinks that he is just a mediocre person, unable to compete with power, as long as he does not infringe on his interests too much, it makes no difference whether he is a Yongchen or a Chuchen. Of course, if Nanchu comes back from the counterattack now, he will not surrender back immediately, after all, the good horse still doesn't eat the grass back, but if someone in Dayong forces him to do something crazy, such as asking him to say that the people of the tribe will surrender to Yong, and the inside and outside should cooperate to deal with Nanchu, which he will never do. Gu Yuanyong was such a person, so Pei Yun intended to keep him in Chuzhou, so he naturally stayed, Shi Shiran walked beside Pei Yun, and the new county guard naturally didn't know that many of his laws and orders that were not in line with the feelings of the people of Chuzhou were instructed by this person to order the officials of Chuzhou to disobey and conceal the superiors and subordinates, so as not to provoke chaos.

Pei Yun stood for a long time, and finally shook his head helplessly: "That's it, I don't want to worry about so much, Master Gu, let's change our clothes, go out for a walk, and it's good to relax." Gu Yuanyong said with a smile: "The general is busy with military affairs, and he is just looking at this Chuzhou City. Pei Yun smiled and nodded, glanced back at Du Lingfeng, and said, "I just went out today to wander, and you are not allowed to cause trouble casually." Du Lingfeng hurriedly responded, but his face was red, his surname was aggressive, and he always liked to cause trouble, if it weren't for this reason, he would not have officially entered the military so far.

Although Pei Yun wants to go out to relax, but after all, the three of them are too conspicuous, although Pei Yun is thirty-four years old this year, but he has practiced Buddhism since he was a child, and his internal strength is profound, which makes him look less than thirty years old, plus his appearance and bearing are the dragons among people, even if he wears civilian clothes, everyone is paying attention, not to mention that the patrol sergeants he met in the past couldn't help but salute when he saw him, and Gu Yuanyong was originally the county guard of Chuzhou, and no one knew him, Du Lingfeng wandered around the city when he had nothing to do, and there were many people who knew him, and everyone was in full view, If you want to play, you can't have fun. Pei Yun smiled self-deprecatingly, his eyes flashed, and he saw that there was a small restaurant on the side of the street that was still elegant, so he walked inside.

The guy in the restaurant almost stumbled inward, the shopkeeper's three steps and two steps to the front, bowed his head and waist, and welcomed the three people upstairs, there are only six or seven seats on this floor, and the three seats near the window are separated by screens, and there are light yellow bamboo curtains hanging outside, but it is elegant and chic. Although Gu Yuanyong has been in Chuzhou for many years, he has never been to this small restaurant, and now he feels quite regretful when he looks at it. The three of them sat down, asked for some food and drink, and began to drink and chat. Pei Yun pushed open the window and looked down, there were people coming and going on the street, which was naturally much more interesting than the snub of the people downstairs in Zhenhuai, and he felt more and more that it was right to come out.

At this time, the shopkeeper brought a few more guests upstairs, and the shopkeeper originally wanted to say that he would not entertain guests upstairs today, but Du Lingfeng was very smart, and knew that Pei Yun came out today to be distracted, and he would be happy if he was more popular, so he had already warned the shopkeeper not to leak the distinguished guests upstairs and let him treat them as usual. Although the shopkeeper did not dare to disobey, he also kept a careful look, and the guests brought upstairs also speculated about whether there was any obstacle. There were six guests this time, obviously they were people who traveled from afar and had quite a status, so he was relieved to invite people upstairs, two of them walked straight to the seat on Pei Yun's left hand, and the other four people chose a seat next to the stairs outside, obviously the master and slave were clear. The shopkeeper was just about to turn around and go downstairs, only to see two handsome scholars going upstairs, these two people looked similar, one was taller, the other was shorter, and the difference was one or two years old. At a glance, the shopkeeper was shocked, these two people are brothers, brother Zhou Ming, younger brother Zhou Hui, have always been drinking upstairs in him, Zhou Ming is the most wild and uninhibited, has always had some rebellious words, it is just a matter of peace, no one tells the spread, but now there are distinguished guests upstairs. Thinking of this, the shopkeeper was just about to step forward to stop him, but Zhou Ming had already laughed and said: "Lao Du, you said last time that the green plum wine can be opened today, and our brother specially came to drink a few cups." ”

The shopkeeper sighed in his heart, knowing that it was too late to stop it, so he had to say vaguely: "That green plum wine is sour and astringent, and only your brothers like it." ”

Zhou Ming laughed again when he heard this, but Zhou Hui only smiled slightly, Zhou Ming said: "This green plum wine is made by Lao Du you pick the seven-ripe wild green plums mixed with cold winter ice and snow, although the taste is sour, but it has a different flavor, how can the layman understand, not only our brothers like it, Wenpu also loves this wine, but now he can't come." In the end, his voice was a little embarrassed.

The shopkeeper was shocked again, and quickly changed the topic and said: "Aren't there still two sons to taste the wine, the villain will go to get the wine, the two sons please sit down first." With that, he leaned over to the two and was about to whisper, but there was a cold snort in his ears, and his body trembled, and he noticed a cold gaze from behind the bamboo curtain, so he had to go downstairs. When he was leaving, he quietly turned around, but saw that the Zhou brothers didn't notice anything, as if they hadn't heard that cold snort, and they felt strange in their hearts, but they could only be sad. At this time, Pei Yun in the curtain smiled faintly, it was he who sent a message to warn the shopkeeper, but he also had worries in his heart, thinking that the resistance of the people of Chuzhou to Dayong was increasing, and he couldn't help but sigh.

The Zhou brothers walked into the seat on the far right side of the window, as if they were familiar with the road, and Zhou Ming said to his younger brother while walking: "The year before last, when you and I sent Brother Qingpu away to fly away, there was an appointment, and now we are here to meet again, and drink the green plum wine newly brewed by Lao Du, but unfortunately now Chuzhou has belonged to Dayong, and the road to and from is cut off, and Brother Qingpu is going to miss the appointment today." ”

Zhou Hui said: "It's no wonder, Chuzhou is no longer part of Southern Chu, although Brother Qingpu is a person of a thousand daughters, but he can only look at Qingmei and sigh, it is difficult to return to a home, and it is difficult to run to a country." ”

Zhou Ming said with a smile: "Actually, this may not be, Brother Qingpu is both civil and military, and has always had the heart to serve the country, but he is not used to seeing the mediocrity of the imperial court, so he wanders and has no intention of pursuing a career, but now Huaidong is in charge of General Lu, maybe Brother Qingpu is in Yangzhou and Guangling, although the two armies are facing each other, but if he has the heart, he may not be able to come back with his ability." And Brother Qingpu has never broken his promise, so I have to wait here today, otherwise if he ventures back, our brother hides at home and does not dare to come out, wouldn't it be a shame to be a good friend. ”

Zhou Hui said: "Brother is cautious, in the eyes of the younger brother, it is better for Brother Qingpu not to come, he regards Mr. Hua as his father, if he learns the bad news, he will definitely refuse to give up, but that thief is the county guard of Chuzhou, holding a lot of power, if Brother Qingpu intends to seek revenge, I am afraid that it will be a mistake for his surname." Zhou Ming also sighed when he heard this.

Pei Yunben ignored the other drinkers upstairs, but the Zhou brothers didn't deliberately lower their voices, so he heard it clearly, and glanced back at Gu Yuanyong, with doubts in his eyes. Gu Yuanyong also heard the words of the two brothers, and was worried about them in his heart, he glanced at Pei Yun, hesitated, but Du Lingfeng said in a low voice: "These two generals think they have forgotten, our army was defeated in Guazhou a year ago, and Zhou Ming wrote a poem to ridicule the general, and said in public that Lu Can would definitely be able to recapture Chuzhou. After Lord Luo took office, there were many disputes with the scholars in the city, and he sent people to monitor these people, and once there were inappropriate words, they would be imprisoned for questioning. I'm afraid that there is Lord Luo's spy downstairs now. As for the Mr. Hua they are talking about, I think it is Hua Xuan, a famous man in the city, and as for the Qingpu brother, I think it is Zhuang Qingpu, a talented son of Chuzhou who ran away two years ago because he injured a sergeant under Luo Louzhen, Zhuang Qingpu is the leader of the scholars of Chuzhou, and he has a good relationship with the Zhou brothers. ”

Pei Yun only then remembered that incident, but just smiled faintly, he never took it to heart about the attacks of these mad scribes, as long as the Great Yongjie Festival wins, after a long time, these people will naturally stop talking nonsense. But that Hua Xuan's matter is very troublesome, that person is very knowledgeable, six or seven out of ten Confucian scholars in the city are called disciples under him, since the Yongjun entered the city, Hua Xuan has been closed, Luo Jing intended to force him to enter the office to accept the heart of the scholar, but he was strictly refused, Luo Zhangren was angry and put him in prison, or Gu Yuanyong personally pleaded with Pei Yun, Pei Yun issued a warrant to release Luo Jing, which made the old gentleman get out of prison, as a result, Hua Xuan was old and frail, and he was humiliated in prison, and died of illness less than half a month after being released from prison, If it weren't for Gu Yuanyong's mediation, Pei Yun sent additional soldiers to sit in time to sit in the town, and the Chuzhou scholars who went to the Hua family to worship the spirit almost made trouble, and Luo Jing also wrote a letter to impeach Pei Yun for connivance and connivance, which made Pei Yun almost dizzy, but Pei Yunsheng's surname was calm, although he was already angry, he didn't show it, but just put on an excerpt to defend himself. Thinking of Luo Jing's strong suppression, wouldn't it be easier to provoke right and wrong, once the people's hearts are disturbed, how can he defend Chuzhou? Thinking of this, Pei Yun became more and more melancholy in his heart, and said in his heart, if that Zhuang Qingpu really came, he would take him back to the camp, lest he seek revenge against Luo Jing, but it was a pity that he was a talent, shook his head slightly, and Pei Yun looked out the window again.

Gu Yuanyong secretly frowned, Zhuang Qingpu is a famous man in Jianghuai, surnamed Yilie, literary talented, and good at swordsmanship, he is a rare good son in Chuzhou, his parents are deceased, there is no one in the clan, if it is not for Hua Xuan's love for his qualifications and receiving care from his family, I am afraid it will be difficult to be sincere, if he knows the news of Hua Xuan's death, I am afraid that he will really seek revenge on Luo Jing. Zhuang Qingpu has a very high reputation among the scholars of Chuzhou, if he responds to every call and sets off chaos, it will not be a big trouble. He didn't know Pei Yun's intentions, and he was even more worried that Zhuang Qingpu would take the risk today, and he was thinking hard about how to lure Pei Yun away, or he wanted to meet Zhuang Qingpu privately and persuade him not to make trouble. But seeing Pei Yun drinking and enjoying the scenery there, he didn't have any intention of getting up, and he didn't dare to show his appearance, let alone hint at the Zhou brothers, and his heart became more and more anxious.

At this time, the shopkeeper had already hugged a small wine jar up, and as soon as he opened the mud seal on the wine jar, it overflowed with wisps of wine, and the aroma was already with a sense of loneliness. Zhou Ming poured a light green liquor, took a sip, and said loudly: "Xiaowu locks Qin Lou, adding to the sorrow." The wind poured the pot into the gold. Yangguan sings all over and is difficult to stay, this hatred is long. He chanted several times, and his voice was full of melancholy.

Pei Yun frowned slightly when he heard this, although he didn't know much poetry, he also knew that this should be the first half of a song "Waves and Sands", that Zhou Ming was a genius, how could he not continue the second half of the song.

At this time, a clear and arrogant voice came from the stairs and continued: "The green plums are full of sleeves and the snow flakes are thinned. It has been brewed as Dujia wine for many years. Drink the lonely cold and stand on the light boat, and get drunk before resting. ”

Zhou Ming and Zhou Hui were both surprised, and Zhou Ming even rushed out of the bamboo curtain, looked at the stairs, and asked in a lost voice, "Brother Qingpu, are you back?" ”

Pei Yun was shocked in his heart, he couldn't imagine that this Zhuang Qingpu really came, no matter how he crossed the city pass, but this person's promise and trustworthiness were already amazing. Pei Yun looked out from inside the curtain, only to see Zhou Ming and a scholar looking at each other, Zhou Ming was actually full of tears, obviously very excited. The white-clothed scholar was also quite excited, but there was a sense of calmness and determination in his expression. Pei Yun looked carefully, and saw that the scholar had sword eyebrows and starry eyes, and his demeanor was elegant, like a jade tree in the wind, he really looked like a child, and the wind vane was peerless, but Zhou was shrouded in arrogance and innocence, and there was a little less cordiality. The scholar was dressed in white like snow, with a wide robe and ribbons, fluttering sleeves, and a three-foot Qingfeng hanging from his waist. It can be seen that this scholar is really a handsome man with both civil and military skills.

Pei Yun was amazed in his heart, his eyes swept away, and fell on the scholar's face, only to see that although the scholar's divine light had not diminished, his face was pale, there was a black shadow in the Yin Hall, and there was a faint dark red mark on his temples, Pei Yun's heart trembled, and he couldn't help but sigh gloomily: "It's a pity, it's a pity!" ”

Unbeknownst to him, from within the seat on the left, an elegant voice also said, "It's a pity that such a talent is so talented." ”

Pei Yun's heart moved, his eyes looked to the left, through the screen, he couldn't see the appearance of the guest over there, but the voice was a little familiar, and he couldn't remember who it was for a while. When Du Lingfeng saw his expression, he knew what was going on, and whispered in his ear: "Those four people came with them." After saying that, he stretched out his hand and pointed lightly, Pei Yun looked, but it was four young people sitting there with their heads bowed to eat, Pei Yun just glanced at it, and saw that these four people were calm and calm, with a faint light in their eyes, their posture was straight, their clothes and shoes seemed to be ordinary, and their blades were wrapped in cloth, like ordinary wealthy businessmen guarding them, but now where would there be ordinary merchants in Chuzhou, not to mention that these four people knew that they were extraordinary at first sight. The more I look at it, the more strange I feel, Pei Yun can't help frowning slightly, now that Chuzhou is extremely well guarded, such a character appears in Chuzhou, why didn't he get a report?

At this time, the white-clothed scholar's eyes also glanced at the drinkers upstairs, smiled faintly, and followed the Zhou brothers into the seat, and said: "You still remember the words I wrote when we were separated, it seems that if I don't come today, you will definitely scold me to death." Pour the wine, I've been waiting for this for a long time, these years have been floating in the rivers and lakes, the most looking forward to is Lao Du's green plum wine, and now I have fulfilled my long-cherished wish, even if I die immediately, it is not in vain to live this life. ”

Zhou Ming's heart was full of ecstasy, but he was wild, and hurriedly took a big wine cup, poured a full glass of green plum wine and handed it over, the white-clothed scholar drank it all, and his originally pale face was a little more bloody. Zhou Mingxi said: "Brother Qingpu is still so refreshing, Lao Du only brews ten jars of 100 catties of green plum wine a year, this time I have bought them all, you and my brother have a drunk party rest, and tell the story of parting, until the wine wakes up, no matter how Brother Qingpu orders, the younger brother is happy to obey." It was inconvenient for him to ask his friends if they had learned of his teacher's death, so he said it in such a vague way. But Gu Yuanyong, who was listening to the screen, was anxious, and he couldn't wait to shout a warning.

The white-clothed scholar smiled and said, "I don't have anything to ask for my brother, I just came here today for the promise of the past and this green plum wine." After that, he took the wine jug on the banquet and poured himself a glass of drink, the color of the wine was dyed on his face, and he looked more and more elegant. Zhou Ming hesitated for a moment, and then stopped, finally reluctant to ask his friend if he had learned of Hua Xuan's death.

At this time, the pale yellow bamboo curtain was provoked, and two people in Tsing Yi walked in, the person in front of him had gray hair and frosty sideburns, his appearance was elegant and handsome, and his bearing was calm and free, and the person in the back seemed to be a servant, and he followed with his head down. Zhou Ming was stunned for a moment, seeing that the person described as unfamiliar, Shen Yun Qixiu, if he had seen such a character in the past, he would naturally be interested in making friends, but thinking that Chuzhou was already to Dayong, although this person looked quite Chu style, but there was no doubt that he was Yongren, so he said angrily: "Why did Your Excellency trespass on the table, it is too rude." ”

The man's eyes flashed, and he said: "I heard that the three of them praised the green plum wine, and I also want to taste this wine that clears the lonely cold, if you are willing, you will exchange this thing for a new jar of wine, I don't know what the three of you think?" ”

After that, he opened his right hand, and in the palm of his hand was a wax pill as big as a dragon's eye, Zhou Ming was about to ask, but the man had already crushed the wax pill, revealing a red pill like a flame, and the room was immediately filled with aroma, Zhou Ming just smelled the aroma and felt refreshed. Although his medical skills are mediocre, he also knows that this is an excellent life-sustaining elixir, but the three of them don't seem to need it, and when he was hesitating, Zhuang Qingpu had already said coldly: "Thank you, Your Excellency, a jar of green plum wine in exchange for this pill, it is too unworthy, if Your Excellency loves this wine, I will ask the shopkeeper to send a jar." Zhou Ming was at a loss, but subconsciously called the shopkeeper to fetch the wine, and after a while, the shopkeeper Du really brought another jar of green plum wine and sent it.

The man in Tsing Yi sighed lightly and said, "It's me who has too many things, a moment earlier, a moment later, but there is not much difference." After saying that, he pinched it hard, the pill turned into a crush, the fragrance in the chamber was great, the red medicine powder floated to the ground, the man in Tsing Yi took out the silk silk, wiped off the medicine powder in his hands, turned around and walked out. Zhou Ming was shocked in his heart, and felt that it was a pity, that pill must have been a life-saving medicine, but it turned into ashes and fell into dust. At a glance, I accidentally saw the man in green clothes wearing a jade ring on his right hand. The ring was originally a woman's ornament, and the man wore it a little lightly, and the Tsing Yi was extraordinary, but how could he have this fat powder, Zhou Ming was contemptuous in his heart, and his eyes showed disdain. Unexpectedly, the servant in Tsing Yi was about to go out at this time, and when he saw Zhou Ming's expression, a trace of coldness flashed in his eyes, and he glanced at Zhou Ming coldly and walked out. Zhou Ming didn't pay attention to this move, but was seen by Zhou Hui, who was sitting on the side. The green-clothed servant looked like he was in his twenties, his appearance was delicate and fair, but his eyes were as deep and cold as a cold spring, Zhou Hui was shocked and felt uneasy.

At this time, Pei Yun sat on the chair in a daze, his heart was full of surprise, but he couldn't believe that what he saw in front of him was the truth, just seeing the faces of the two people through the bamboo curtain had already shocked his heart, and after listening to a few words, he became more and more sure of his judgment, and he couldn't wait to go out to see him immediately, but he thought that if he went out, he was afraid of alarming everyone upstairs, but he didn't dare to move, but he was restless, afraid of scorning that person. At this time, a cold voice came from his ear and said, "Childe, please don't come over to see the general for the time being." Pei Yun's heart was relieved, and then he calmed down, and his mind surged, thinking about how to use this opportunity to get rid of his embarrassment.

At this time, Zhuang Qingpu also seemed to notice that the atmosphere above the restaurant was different, got up and said with a smile: "The wine has been drunk, the people have passed, I am leaving." Zhou Ming exclaimed: "Brother Qingpu is rare to come back, why do you have to leave?" Zhuang Qingpu's eyes showed reluctance, and his expression was a little difficult.

Zhou Hui had already seen some ominous signs, got up and said: "If Brother Qingpu has any difficulties, please speak, even if the next brother is broken, he will not live up to his trust." ”

Zhuang Qingpu knew that Zhou Hui had always been careful, so he smiled and said: "Where else is there something, I just hope that there are no two of them." After saying that, he got up and waved it, and then walked out, Zhou Ming got up and wanted to stop, but Zhuang Qingpu had already walked to the staircase and was about to walk downstairs. Zhou Ming wanted to call him, but Zhou Hui grabbed him and shook his head gently. Zhou Ming is also a smart person, and suddenly he understood in his heart, and blurted out: "Could it be that Brother Qingpu has already been to the Hua family?" Before Zhou Hui could answer, there was a shouting and running sound in his ears, and Zhou Hui didn't care to explain to his brother, and had already rushed to the window.

The smoke and dust on both sides of the street, the iron armor of the Yongjun army of Chuzhou can be seen in the smoke and dust, and it has blocked all directions, and the people on the street are scattered and fled, a man in brocade clothes rushed in with more than 100 guards in gray armor, pointed to the houses on both sides of the street and said: "Someone has seen that assassin appear here, he must have fled to the houses and shops on both sides, you will go in and search for me, if there is resistance, there will be no mercy." ”

Zhou Ming also looked downstairs through the window at this moment, and he recognized that the brocade-clothed man was Gao Bing, the captain of the Chuzhou Wei Army. According to the Dayong military system, each state and county has a guard establishment, the combat strength is weak, the source of soldiers mainly comes from the sergeants who have been dismissed, Ping said to assist the county guard to maintain local tranquility, the Chuzhou guard has 3,000 people, but now Chuzhou is Huainan Jiedu Pei Yun guarded, so the establishment is not satisfied, only 1,200 people. That Gao Bingnai is a clansman of the uncle Gao Rong, who is here as a captain of the guard, and his meaning is clear, this person has always been a cronie of Luo Jing, the county guard of Chuzhou, and Zhou Ming hates him to the core. The heart said that what assassin did he come to capture, could it be that someone assassinated Luo Jing? He has always been quick-witted, and immediately thought of Zhuang Qingpu's words, listening to his tone, it was actually a matter of mind, and there was no need to worry about it, presumably that Luo Jing must have been given the head, and the person who started it was Zhuang Qingpu. Thinking about this, Zhou Ming only felt like falling into an ice cave, with the slightest joy of the wicked being retributed, and he didn't have the heart to think about how Zhuang Qingpu had a way to assassinate a dignified county guard, but he just thought that Zhuang Qingpu was downstairs and hadn't gone out yet, how could Zhuang Qingpu escape in this heavy siege?

Gao Bing downstairs was also cold, remembering what happened an hour ago, and still felt like he was in a dream. At that time, a scholar suddenly came to ask for a meeting, saying that he could persuade the scholars of Chuzhou to come out of the Yongting, Luo Jing was happy, because of Hua Xuan's matter, he fell into a very passive situation, although he temporarily avoided the limelight by impeaching Pei Yun, but once the court learned the truth of the matter, the future was only afraid of being ruined, so Luo Jing hurriedly summoned him. When the scholar entered the meeting, the long sword was hanging from his waist, and there was no hidden blade in addition, Luo Jing and Gao Bing only said that this was a scholar's habit and did not mind, but for the sake of safety, they still let him untie the sword and enter.

The scholar who came to see himself called Zhuang Qingpu, who was a protégé of Hua Xuan, this name Luo Jing had heard of it, and knew that this person had a good reputation among the scholars of Chuzhou, although he despised this person for being ungrateful, regardless of the death of his teacher, and came to take refuge, but Luo Jing also knew that if this person helped, the big thing of enveloping the scholars of Chuzhou could be accomplished. Therefore, it is very polite to Nazhuang Qingpu. Zhuang Qingpu talked eloquently, he knew everything about the celebrities in Chuzhou, and when he talked about how to win over these people, Luo Jing listened to it and was no longer suspicious. Although Luo Jing is arrogant, but the talent is not shallow, otherwise he would not be able to do the county guard, seeing that Zhuang Qingpu is very talented and generous, and he also has the heart to recruit, so he talked with him in detail, and under a talk, he felt more speculative, when it came to the hearty place, Zhuang Qingpu got up and made a sword dance, folded the willow for the sword, and cried when the long song was written, including "He Yan was abandoned in the middle of the road, and he fell into the ancient prison." Although it is useless to sink and bury, it can still soar into the sky night and night. (Note 1)". Luo Jing saw that he was wild and unrestrained, and he smiled and said that the sword dance could not be without a sword, but let people take Zhuang Qingpu's sword.

After Zhuang Qingpu received the sword, he danced the sword again, and sure enough, the sword was like a flowing rainbow, and the cold light was like frost and snow. After the sword dance, Luo Jing stepped forward to salute, but was stabbed by Zhuang Qingpu, Gao Bing couldn't save him, so he could only surround Wei to save Zhao, and hit Zhuang Qingpu with a palm, only hoping that Zhuang Qingpu would avoid it, so that he could not kill Luo Jing in one fell swoop, although Zhuang Qingpu's swordsmanship was gorgeous, it was not a first-class skill, as long as there was a gap, Gao Bing had the confidence to save Luo Jing. Who knew that Zhuang Qingpu also knew that the opportunity was no longer there, so he was willing to accept a palm, pierce his heart with a sword, take Luo Jing's surname, and then fled out. Gao Bing was confident that this palm could shatter the assassin's heart, but Zhuang Qingpu actually had the strength to escape, coupled with the impact of Luo Jing's death, Gao Bing was stunned for a moment, and when he came to his senses, Zhuang Qingpu, who was familiar with the terrain of the county guard, was gone.

Gao Bing was angry and ordered the guards to pursue him, and even asked Pei Yun for help, mobilized the army, closed all the streets, and arrested the assassins. Gao Bing is not a mediocre talent, although the Yongjun in the city is not under Gao Bing's command, but he also knows that it is important to capture the assassin who assassinated the county guard, and they work together, although the people of Chuzhou are not very cooperative, but they still discovered Zhuang Qingpu's whereabouts and determined that he was within the scope of this street. Before those Yongjun received the general's order, they blocked the passage on all sides and let Gao Bing take the guards in to search for him. And Gao Bing thought that he couldn't explain to his uncle Gao Rong, and his anger rose in his heart, and as soon as he came in, he ordered the guards to forcibly search.

Zhou Ming was so anxious that he didn't want Zhuang Qingpu to be caught, and he couldn't bear to see the people implicated, and the Yongjun army would definitely go upstairs to search, if he learned that Zhuang Qingpu had come, he would definitely be affected, although he was bold, but thinking of the serious surname of the assassination of the county guard of Chuzhou, and then thinking of the killing blood when Pei Yun attacked Chuzhou in the past, his heart was also cold, but he was helpless, and he didn't know how to deal with it.

Zhuang Qingpu downstairs looked gloomy, he naturally knew the seriousness of the situation, he had already known the bad news of his teacher's death before he returned to Chuzhou, although his connections in Chuzhou allowed him to mix into the city, and let him know his surname before he saw Luo Jing, and set up a plan to assassinate, and succeeded in one fell swoop, and even after escaping from the county guard, there was a way to change his bloody clothes and leave the dangerous place. But he also knew that he would never have a chance to go out of the city again, and the inspection of going out of the city was already very strict, and after the assassination, the Yongjun army would inevitably seal the city. What's more, if he leaves, under the anger of the Yongjun, he will definitely claim the whole city, causing innocent people, so he has no intention of escaping, not to mention that he still has unspeakable secrets. Now he is delayed for a long time, but he doesn't want to fall into the hands of Gao Bing, and he will be humiliated before he dies. At this time, several guards had already rushed into the restaurant, and one of them saw Zhuang Qingpu standing at the door at a glance, and shouted, "The assassin is here." ”

Zhuang Qingpu sighed slightly, walked out, and the guards were about to step forward to arrest him, but seeing his calm demeanor, they were stunned and let him walk to the street.

Zhuang Qingpu didn't care, stood in the middle of the road, and said loudly: "Zhuang Qingpu is here, why bother the people." ”

Gao Bing was overjoyed when he saw it, he recognized Zhuang Qingpu at a glance, and said sharply: "Take him down, the captain of this school will break him into thousands of pieces." Thinking that his future might be ruined in the hands of this man, he really hated it. Zhuang Qingpu smiled coldly, the sword was unsheathed, the cold light flashed, and he forced back a few guards who came up to capture me, and said: "If you want to capture me, you can come up in person, these sergeants are acting on orders, and I have no interest in killing them." ”

Gao Bing was furious, took a step forward, and was about to take action in person, determined to humiliate this Zhuang Qingpu in his heart, but at this time he heard someone shouting: "Slow." Gao Bing looked back, only to see Wei Ping, who belonged to Pei Yun's white-clothed battalion, standing at the entrance of the street and shouting loudly, Wei Ping was often ordered to deal with Gao Bing, and Gao Bing naturally recognized him. Seeing him stop, Gao Bing was slightly angry in his heart, and was about to ask, but when he saw Wei Ping wave his hand, the fierce Yongjun sergeants rushed from all directions, quickly controlling the surroundings, strong bows and arrows, swords and guns.

Gao Bingyan said angrily when he heard this: "This person has assassinated Lord Luo, and he should be handed over to my guards for disposal." ”

Wei Ping said loudly: "Now the two armies are facing each other, this person suddenly came and assassinated the county guard, I suspect that this person is a secret spy of the Chu army, and needs to be handed over to the general to deal with, the assassin listens, if you are captured and have nothing to hide, I will plead with the general, give you a good time, and do not put down the blade, surrender immediately." After Wei Ping learned of this, he was worried that Luo Jing's death would implicate Pei Yun, so he decided to control the assassin in his hands, so he hurried over, not knowing that Pei Yun was in a small restaurant next to him.

Zhuang Qingpu heard the words but laughed, although it was wanton laughter, but it was not reduced handsome and graceful, for a moment, he stopped laughing, and said: "Zhuang is an ordinary scholar, although he has the ambition to serve the country, but there is no way to green clouds, when he said that he was forced to run away because of offending that Luo Louzhen, he returned yesterday and learned that his teacher died in the hands of Luo Jing, and regardless of the national enmity, the teacher raised me Chengren, I have not yet done my filial piety before the knee, but I saw the coffin of the teacher, and now it is said that the assassination is my own business, and it has nothing to do with others. ”

Wei Ping frowned and said, "With me here, it's not easy for you to die." With a wave of his hand, two white-clothed battalion warriors walked out of the crowd, one carrying a red tassel gun, one carrying a treasure knife on his back, the two approached left and right, Zhuang Qingpu smiled, the two were about to step forward to make a move, but they heard someone in the restaurant next to them say loudly: "Go down, the dignified white-clothed battalion warriors, facing a dying person, why do you need so many things, Zhuang Qingpu, Pei Mounian is in your revenge for the teacher, filial piety and righteousness, today I don't embarrass you, you go, this general promises not to be arbitrary." ”

Zhuang Qingpu was shocked when he heard this, looked up, and saw that above the restaurant where he had just come down, in front of the window in the middle, stood a young man in black, with a calm and calm bearing, handsome and heroic, and felt impressed at first sight. He never forgot the covenant in his heart, so he also came to drink a glass of green plum wine before he died, and he was worried that his relatives would be implicated by him, so he refused to give up his life.

The man in Tsing Yi gave him medicine, that is, he saw that he was seriously injured and about to die, although he smelled the aroma of the medicine, and felt a shock to his spirit, but Zhuang Qingpu knew that there was no cure, and he didn't want to owe favors in vain, so he refused to accept it. But I didn't expect that Pei Yun was also above the restaurant, and I didn't expect that this General Pei could also see at a glance that he was seriously injured and about to die, and he deserved to be a disciple of Shaolin.

Originally, for Luo Jing's matter, he hated Dayong, but seeing Pei Yun so generous and open-minded, he was also convinced, he could naturally see the power of these white-clothed warriors, and the dispatch of the two was just to prevent him from having a chance to commit suicide, if it weren't for the fact that his life was hanging by a thread and he really started to do it, he was afraid that he would be humiliated before he died. If it weren't for the fact that he still had concerns in his heart, he wouldn't be relieved that his relatives and friends would not be able to endure each other, but now that he heard that Pei Yun had no intention of connecting him, his heart was wide, his heart was shaking, and he felt that his limbs were weak, and he could no longer walk. He raised his head and said in a loud voice: "Thank you General Pei for being generous and innocent." After that, his eyes were slightly closed, but he stood still. Wei Ping stepped forward to take a look, looked up and said, "General, he is dead." ”

The Yongjun and the people of Chuzhou on the street were moved, especially those people, who had always known Zhuang Qingpu's reputation, and some people knelt down and kowtowed, and prayed in a low voice. Pei Yun sighed, went from the upper floor to the center of the street, looked at Zhuang Qingpu's body for a moment, bowed down and said: "Pei has never lied, and he will never embarrass Chuzhou's father because of one person's affairs." The voice fell, and Zhuang Qingpu's body had fallen into the dust.

Pei Yun sighed slightly, didn't look at Gao Bing, and said to Wei Ping: "Immediately pass on my general order, close the city gate, martial law in the whole city, and those who walk without permission will be dealt with on the charge of annihilation, Luo Junshou has been assassinated, so Gu Yuanyong will temporarily take his place, Gao Bing will guard the county guard, temporarily remove the military, and the guard will be under your command." ”

Gao Bing was already angry, and when he heard this, he shouted: "Pei Yun, how can you behave like this, the captain of this school is the emperor's order, how can you say that you will be exempted, that assassin assassinated the county guard, you actually allowed him to commit suicide calmly, and ordered Nanchu to take over, could it be that this assassin is your mastermind." ”

Pei Yun's face turned cold when he heard this, and he said: "Gao Bing, you are just a captain of the guard, but this general is the envoy of Huainan Jiedu, Chuzhou is a military town, and it is under the control of this general, don't say that you are a small captain, that is, you have changed the general and deputy general, if there is someone like you who acts like you and delays the military aircraft, I will also cut it first and then play." Come, take him down. Gao Bing wanted to resist, but when he saw that even the guards under his command had no intention of obeying the order, he had to be captured and taken down by a few sergeants. He has always been rampant, and when he saw him banned, the streets were filled with joy. Pei Yun smiled slightly and walked towards the restaurant.

Wei Ping hurriedly stepped forward and said: "General, someone went to Zhenhuai Tower to ask for a meeting, holding the emperor's imperial gold medal in his hand, and his subordinates are here to ask the general to go back." ”

Pei Yun said: "I already know. "Smiling silently, I said in my heart, if I didn't know that person came to Chuzhou, I wouldn't dare to act so recklessly. Walking upstairs, his mind full of doubts, he was about to ask the man.

At this time, upstairs, Zhou Ming hid his face and was silent, tears flowed down his face, seeing his friend die, but he couldn't help anything, his voice and smile were still in front of him, Si Ren had passed away, and his hatred was endless, Zhou Hui was also silent, but he thought more, thinking that Pei Yun was just beside him, so he naturally saw everything in his eyes, but he didn't know if he would embarrass his brother?

At this time, Gu Yuanyong raised the curtain and entered, and when the two saw it, they both got up and shook it, Zhou Ming whimpered, and Zhou Hui said respectfully: "Please let your lord go around and allow our brother to bury Brother Zhuang." ”

Gu Yuanyong sighed when he heard this, and said: "Although your brothers are cold and hot, they are all righteous people, don't worry, General Pei is like a mountain of words, and will never change, when he just went downstairs, he has asked me to tell your brothers, so that you can bury Qingpu, this matter is inconvenient for him to come forward, no matter how Qingpu assassinated Dayong Junshou, this is a capital crime, not implicating others is already General Pei's extrajudicial grace, you must not be resentful because of this, and don't think about avenging him, Qingpu seeks benevolence, and wants to die without resentment." ”

Zhou Ming and Zhou Hui bowed down to thank him when they heard this, and Zhou Ming said: "Your Excellency, rest assured, our brothers are not people who don't know how to advance and retreat, and they will not blame General Pei for the death of Qingpu. ”

Gu Yuanyong helped the two of them up and said: "You guys go now, there are still nobles in the building, you can't say much about him, if you disobey, even General Pei can't save you." Both of them were shocked when they heard this, but they could only obey the order.

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Note 1: Tang Guozhen's "Sword Chapter"

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