The guard of honor set off, Xiao Fan's car was in the middle of the team, a yellow dragon flag fluttered in the wind, and the other flag was embroidered with the word "Xiao" with a big fight.

On the official road, a team of 3,000 people is like a peer army, the speed is very fast, after the river boat crosses to the north bank of the Yangtze River, the honor guard team goes straight to Xuzhou Mansion, on the potholed official road, thousands of people silently march quickly, fortunately, in this trip, they are all the palace's long-trained Praetorian Guards and carefully selected Jinyi Guard captains, which can be regarded as a real elite army.

Qincha's first stop was Xuzhou Mansion, because the spies reported that Jiang Du and Chen Ying'er had lost their traces outside Xuzhou City, and Xiao Fan had to go to Xuzhou to find them.

Cao Yi was worried about the danger of this trip, he was once a hundred generals under Zhu Di, he knew too well what kind of person Zhu Di was, Xiao Fan offended Zhu Di so much, and this time he took the initiative to send it to the door, and the consequences were ......, "Brother Xiao, do you have to go to Beiping?" If we find our younger siblings before entering the Beiping realm, should we just go back to Beijing? Peiping...... It's dangerous! Cao Yi frowned, his eyes revealing deep worry.

Xiao Fan shook his head and said indifferently but firmly: "Whether you can find Jiangdu or not, Beiping must go!" ”

"Why?"

"If we don't find Jiangdu before entering Beiping, she doesn't know that I'm looking for her, and she will inevitably travel all the way, and eventually enter the realm of Beiping, if we don't find her, we can only wait for her in Beiping Mansion, with me, we can keep her safe and safe......"

"What if we find them before we enter Peking? The speed of our march must be much faster than their leisurely and elegant play all the way, and there is a great chance of finding them, if we have found them at that time, why should we go to Beiping? ”

Xiao Fan smiled and said, "Brother Cao, don't forget our mission to Beiping this time. We must convey the court's kindness to him to King Yan, deliberately appease him, delay his rebellion, and understand the local people's feelings and various details of the Beiping garrison, including the number of sergeants, the level of training, the surnames and hobbies of the generals, etc., know ourselves and the enemy, and when we fight him on the battlefield in the future, we will have a better chance of winning......"

Cao Yi was stunned for a moment and said: "However, it's okay to leave these things to others, you are now a pillar of power, why take risks yourself?" ”

Xiao Fan's smile revealed a firmness, and he said lightly: "Because I promised the Son of Heaven, I must do it, the Son of Heaven and I are both monarchs and ministers, but also brothers who are like brothers and sisters, his business is my business, if a man doesn't talk a word, is it still a man?" ”

Cao Yi was silent for a moment, and said with a smile: "Yes, Brother Xiao, you value love and righteousness, and you are worthy of your friends, Cao knows you, and this life is in vain!" ”

Saying that, Cao Yi was arrogant, looked up to the sky and laughed: "Okay! Let's go to Beiping! No matter what kind of Longtan tiger's den it is, our brothers will go back and forth with it, the big husband stands in the world, just dominating the world, fearless, willing to give up this stinky skin, where in the world dare not go? ”

Xiao Fan looked at Cao Yi's heroic laughter, and he also showed a sincere smile.

In this life, people always have to do a few things that look stupid, but have to do things, perhaps, everyone has a belief in their hearts that others do not agree with, but they have always adhered to, this belief makes life full and beautiful, it, it is worth sticking to.

If there is a friend who can accompany him to do this stupid thing without hesitation, it is enough to comfort his life.

The middle-aged man who had just been tied up by the captain of the brocade clothes and gagged his mouth was placed on the horseback behind the two of them in a very strange posture at this time, and when he heard the conversation between the two, the middle-aged man did not struggle or whine, his eyes did not stop looking back and forth on Xiao Fan and Cao Yi, and his eyes showed a little deep meaning.

After Xiao Fan smiled, he glanced at it and saw the unlucky guy behind him.

"After arriving in Xuzhou, he was thrown to the prefect of Xuzhou, and after strict interrogation, didn't he say that he was a minister of the imperial court? Civilians pretending to be ministers should be killed according to the law, so we don't have to worry about this. Xiao Fan's mind was all on Jiang Du, and he was really in no mood to care about other idle matters.

Cao Yi glanced at the middle-aged man with ill intentions, and said with a smile: "Since you have to kill him sooner or later, it is better to simply cut him down here, in the past, the army always had to cut two prisoners to sacrifice the flag before going out, which can not only boost morale, but also make an auspicious ......."

The middle-aged man's eyes suddenly widened in horror, and he twisted his body and kept struggling.

Xiao Fan glanced at him lightly and said, "Whatever, if you want to cut it, drag him away and cut him, I am kind, I can't see blood......"

Cao Yi exclaimed: "My lord is really a bodhisattva......hearted"

"W-w-wh!" The middle-aged man was anxious, and the struggle became more and more intense.

The procession was advancing, and the middle-aged man, who had been tied to a horse, slid down the horse's back.

Cao Yi's eyes were quick, and he hurriedly reached out and grabbed him, lifting him up.

Xiao Fan glanced at it and said, "It seems that he doesn't agree with the official's disposition......

Cao Yi sweated violently: "My lord, no matter who gets such a disposition, he will not approve of it......"

Xiao Fan thoughtfully: "Makes sense......"

The middle-aged man immediately nodded quickly, with an eager look in his eyes, and a whining sound in his gagged mouth.

Xiao Fan turned his head sideways to look at him, blinked, "Do you have something to say?" ”

The middle-aged man nodded: "Woo-woo!" ”

"Brother Cao, rip off the stuff on his mouth, see what he wants to say."

The rotten cloth towel that covered his mouth was torn off, and the middle-aged man breathed a long sigh of relief, and then kept spitting a few mouthfuls of saliva in his mouth, until his old face turned red, and then he said the first sentence angrily.

"Which bastard gags me with stinky socks? Phew! I'm disgusting! ”

Cao Yi was pinching the cloth towel that blocked his mouth in his hand, and when he heard the middle-aged man say that it was a stinky sock, Cao Yi suddenly looked around with disgust, looked left and right and wanted to throw it away, seeing that the middle-aged man was full of anger, Cao Yi simply stretched out his hand and blocked his mouth with the stinky socks again, and his hand kept wiping his clothes a few times.

"Woo-" The middle-aged man's face was full of grief and indignation, and he wanted to cry without tears...... Xiao Fan was still coaxing through the small window of the carriage, and said with a wicked smile: "Good blockage!" Since this guy can't say anything meaningful about the construction surname, he just continues to gag his mouth, and when he arrives in Xuzhou, he will be handed over to the prefect for punishment. ”

"Woo-" The middle-aged man finally shed tears of sorrow.

The team moved forward very quickly, Xiao Fan ordered to speed up the march, so in addition to eating and a small amount of rest, almost all of them were in a hurry, and they arrived in Xuzhou in two days.

There are still about ten miles away from Xuzhou City, the first horse exploration returns, Xuzhou prefect Liu Zhi led the prefect Yamen officials and the magistrates under the jurisdiction of the county, squires, people and other more than 1,000 people, out of the city ten miles on the official road to meet the Son of Heaven Qin Cha Dacha.

Xiao Fan sighed, this is an unavoidable welcome in the officialdom, very annoying, but I have to deal with it, after all, it is not him who others welcome, but his current status as a messenger, the ancients are respectful, he now represents the Ming Emperor, no matter from which point of view, he can't avoid these red tapes.

At that moment, Xiao Fanqiang cheered up, ordered to play the honor guard of Qincha, and sorted out the military appearance of the team, 3,000 people with a mighty and awe-inspiring atmosphere, and drove towards Xuzhou.

At the same time, Xiao Fan secretly sent several groups of scout horses to sneak in different directions, and secretly ordered Xuzhou Jinyi Wei Qianhu to send Ti Qi to secretly search for the traces of the Jiangdu County Lord and others in various places near Xuzhou City.

Everything was arranged, Xiao Fan changed into a brand-new official uniform, sat in the car, and waited for the greeting ceremony of the officials at all levels in Xuzhou.

The ceremony is very cumbersome, the officials of the local government are much more in awe of the imperial power than the ministers of the Beijing court, when the officials and people who greeted them are still more than a mile away, under the leadership of the prefect Liu Zhi, the officials and people of Xuzhou City have knelt down early, and everyone touches the ground with their heads, respectful and solemn, as if kneeling down to worship the gods.

After a set of welcoming ceremonies were completed, it was almost dusk, Liu Zhi respectfully welcomed Xiao Fan, Cao Yi and others into Xuzhou City, and three thousand honor guards camped outside the city.

Liu Zhi is a middle-aged man in his forties, thin and lean, with a diligent attitude towards Xiao Fan and a little unconcealable fear, Xiao Fan knows the reason why Liu Zhi is afraid of him after a little thought. In addition to the identity of the minister, Xiao Fan is also the No. 1 leader of Jinyiwei who makes people talk about the tiger in the world, and the identity of the commander of Jinyiwei alone is enough to make Liu Zhi, a small five-pin prefect, scared to pee his pants, until he entered the city and arranged Xiao Fan and the others into his own set of four-entry mansions to temporarily serve as official posts, Liu Zhi was able to maintain his composure along the way, and he was not scared to lose the official demeanor, and it was not easy to be honest.

On the other hand, the county magistrates and squires who followed behind were all pale, with cold sweat on their faces, trembling all over, and they were so frightened that they didn't dare to raise their heads, for fear of annoying this legendary murderer and causing trouble, like a flock of sheep following behind a hungry wolf.

Xiao Fan rubbed his nose and smiled bitterly, am I so terrible? I don't kill people indiscriminately, and I'm handsome, okay?

After entering the city, as usual, he went to the reception banquet that Liu Zhi had already prepared, during the banquet, everyone was afraid of Xiao Fan's might, and he didn't dare to say much, only the prefect Liu Zhi was afraid that the cold field would sweep away the interest of Lord Qincha, so he hurriedly exerted his eloquence, frequently toasted and ordered, and it was a subtle sycophant pat, which made Xiao Fan laugh, full of spring breeze, everyone was happy to see Lord Qincha, and they were quietly relieved, and the atmosphere of the banquet was slightly warmer.

That night, Xiao Fan and Cao Yi stayed at Liu Zhi's house, and Liu Zhi was honored to give up his bedroom, and shouted in front of the two, showing great hospitality.

Later, Liu Zhi was overzealous, and he had to arrange a few pretty maids for the two adults to accompany him to bed, Xiao Fan smiled bitterly and refused, Liu Zhi knew Xiao Fan's identity as a guest of honor, his wife was the sister of today's son, but he didn't dare to persuade him too much, so he turned his head and begged Cao Yi to give him a face, and at night he gave his few pretty maids to the family, saying that being able to serve Lord Qianhu for one night was a blessing they had cultivated in their previous lives...... Cao Yi was impatient with him, so he simply slapped the table and said viciously: "Lao Tzu doesn't want women, Lao Tzu only likes men, what?" Isn't it possible? ”

Liu Zhi was taken aback, wiped the cold sweat on his face, was silent for a long time, and cautiously tentatively said, "That...... Xiaguan is going to find a way to find a few faces for the thousand households? ”

Cao Yi was stunned, then looked at Liu Zhi with a silver look, and said with a gloomy smile: "Look at your appearance, it is quite in line with Lao Tzu's appetite......"

Liu Zhi's face suddenly turned miserable, and he looked at Xiao Fan's smiling expression, hesitated for a long time, and finally looked up to the sky and sighed: "Xiaguan...... I am willing to recommend the pillow seat of the thousand households with my crippled body, and I only ask the thousands of adults to have mercy on the lower officials...... Meng Sheng said: The heavens will descend on the people, and they must first suffer their minds, strain their muscles and bones, and starve their bodies and skin......"

“…… Poke its chrysanthemum! Cao Yi couldn't stand it anymore, and kicked Liu Zhi, who decided to dedicate himself, out of the door, "your grandma!" You old Longyang! ”

There was a terrible howl outside the door, and then there was silence.

Xiao Fan couldn't stop laughing wildly, but Cao Yi's face became darker and darker.

After a long time, Xiao Fan laughed enough, then he suppressed his expression and thought: "Seeing Liu Zhi's thin appearance, I suddenly remembered something......

"What's the matter?"

Xiao Fan looked at him and said, "What about the middle-aged Confucian student we arrested outside the Jingshi City?" Where is he now? ”

Cao Yi was stunned and said, "You ask me, who do I ask?" When things are busy, who cares if that guy lives or dies? ”

Xiao Fan wiped his sweat and said, "...... I've only heard of people who lost their luggage, I haven't heard of shameful people, that guy won't be killed by some of his men on the way, right? ”

Cao Yi said indifferently: "Why do you ask him?" A poor sour man is just dead, and if he dies, he dies......"

Xiao Fan thought for a while and said, "Let's ask, after all, it's a human life." ”

Cao Yi went out to ask the captain who was guarding the door, and after more than half an hour, four captains walked in carrying a dying middle-aged man.

Xiao Fan saw that his face was gloomy, his face was full of vegetables, and he snorted with a gagged mouth, and couldn't help but be a little surprised: "Why does he look like this?" Didn't anyone feed him for the past two days? ”

Cao Yi patted his forehead and said with a dry smile: "I really forgot about him......"

"Uh......h Woo! The middle-aged man's weak and sad protest suddenly turned red.

Xiao Fan couldn't bear it for a while, and ordered: "People are pitiful enough, we arrested him if he didn't recruit anyone and didn't provoke anyone, and starved him alive for two days, just untie him......"

The lieutenants immediately untied the rope from his body and ripped off the stinky socks that gagged his mouth.

The middle-aged man gasped, lay on the ground weakly, grabbed Xiao Fan's ankle, and said in a crying voice: "This adult, my words this time are very good...... My name is Fang Xiaoru, and I am ...... It is the Son of Heaven who was enshrined as a bachelor from the Wupin Hanlin Attendant...... Don't, don't gag me anymore, ...... Call the doctor to save me...... Hurry up ......"

Xiao Fan gasped when he heard this, and exclaimed, "Are you Fang Xiaoru?" Are you Fang Xiaoru? ”

Fang Xiaoru finally smiled and said weakly: "It seems that ...... You've heard of me...... Zi said: 'Abuse without teaching', you detain the court officials privately, wait, we are not finished! ”

As soon as the words fell, Fang Xiaoru's head turned off and fainted.

Xiao Fan's eyes widened, and he was speechless for a long time......

(To be continued)