Liu Xie's residence was deep in the courtyard of Liang Xi's Assassin's Mansion.

Because of Liang Xi's strict orders, almost no one approached Liu Xie's residence. Except for the shadow who is in charge of Liu Xie's diet and daily life, Liu Xie has almost become an unknown existence.

And when Xu Ji and Liang Xi came here, there was no one to be seen around the courtyard, and there was no movement. Only those who have not died in early autumn know that they are singing lonely in the warm autumn sun.

But this is only a superficial phenomenon, when Xu Ji and Liang Xi stepped into the back garden, there were immediately figures flashing in front of them, and several black-clothed people had already blocked Xu Ji's way, and the flashing black crossbow in his hand was already on Xu Ji and Liang Xi's chests, and at the same time he whispered: "Who person?" ”

Liang Xi looked at Xu Ji with a wry smile, although he was a new assassin of Bingzhou, but he had nothing to do about these ghosts in front of him, he had no right to mobilize these mysterious people, he knew that under the rule of Yanzhou, only Xu Ji had absolute authority over this army.

Seeing this, Xu Ji opened his mouth and smiled: "It's me, don't you even recognize me?" Don't retreat yet. ”

Those phantoms had already seen clearly from the time they flashed out that the person in front of them was the lord of Yanzhou, and when they heard this, they smiled back at Xu Ji's good-natured joke and then bowed slightly, arching their hands, not looking back, and flashing into the depths of the garden. In the blink of an eye, it was gone. As if it had never appeared.

Seeing this situation, Liang Xi gave his hand to Xu Ji and exclaimed: "Lord, if all my Yanzhou soldiers are of this quality, why worry about the injustice of the northern Xinjiang." The big man is not prosperous? Of course, Xu Ji completely agrees with this statement, the problem is that this kind of army is too difficult to train. Now that I have the two big states of Yanzhou and Jizhou in my hands, I am close to finding you an empty Qingxu. But the number of troops under his command is already about to reach 500,000, but the Phantom is only about 10,000. Although this is only the combat personnel of the Phantom, if you count the intelligence network of the Phantom almost all over the world, there are naturally more than 10,000 people. But if you want to make all the Yanzhou army become this quality, it is simply a fool's dream.

The two talked as they walked, and while they were talking, a person floated in front of them. It's Shi Ah who hasn't been seen for a long time. Xu Ji looked at the increasingly unfathomable martial arts of the first sword master of the Han Dynasty, and couldn't help but feel a little warm in his heart, if it weren't for him Xu Ji still didn't know that his body would be in danger of his life if he didn't maintain it, of course, Shi A's exploits were more than just these little things, but it was good to keep these things in mind. Xu Ji immediately talked and laughed with Shi A. Shi A's face was still as cold as frost and snow, but a strong and sincere friendship flashed in his eyes.

After a few words of laughter, Xu Ji asked Shi A about Liu Xie's journey to the road.

Shi Ah frowned and said, "There is nothing wrong with the Holy Lord's journey, it's just that I don't like to talk very much." He and I also talked, but they didn't have the same casualness as before. This is not surprising, Liu Xie once regarded Shi A as his confidant, but in the end, he found out that Shi A was Xu Ji's person, and the feelings in his heart can be imagined.

Xu Ji looked at Shi A, knowing in his heart how this Shi Ah felt about Liu Xie.

Anyway. Shi A's master Wang Yue died in the hands of Lu Bu in the battle to protect Liu Xie, for Shi A, Liu Xie is not as simple as an emperor, this young man should be said to be the ideal left by Wang Yue. In Shia's heart. It doesn't matter if Liu Xie is not the emperor, but Liu Xie must be safe, and now the object he wants to protect is actually very protective of him. How indescribable the feeling in Shi A's heart is, Xu Ji can also understand one or two.

Shi Ah seemed to have made up his mind, and said to Xu Ji in a deep voice: "Lord." Shi Ah has an uninvited request, I don't know if the lord can agree"

Xu Ji said indifferently: "Brother Shi." You can rest assured, no matter what time it is. I will keep the Holy One safe. I, Xu Ji, can use the head guarantee on the item. ”

Xu Ji has never been interested in Liu Xie's life. He is confident that as long as he operates it properly, the people of the world will sooner or later forget this unworthy emperor.

Shi A was stunned when he heard this, he didn't expect Xu Ji to see through his mind at a glance,

Xu Ji said indifferently: "I still remember that when the first emperor was dying, the most worrying thing was the saint, and I promised the first emperor that day, so I won't regret it, otherwise what's the difference with beasts?" It's just that the first emperor Xu Ji said is not the ruthless and righteous Emperor Han Ling who only thinks about using him, but Liu Xie's brother, the innocent Liu Wei, in Xu Ji's eyes, I am afraid that this will really be a good emperor, only people who are always in awe know how to sympathize with the people's feelings, as for Liu Xie? That's just a cowardly man who has been frightened.

Shi Ah let out a long breath,

After a long time in the troubled times and the court, Shi A has long seen the true colors of these ambitious and ruthless people. But I know that these heroes are all heroes. With Xu Ji's words, what else is Shi Ah worried about?

Shi A has a very good impression of Xu Ji, and since the incident of the Hero Building, Shi A has been extremely optimistic about this person who was full of bearing and eloquence at a young age, so Shi A really doesn't want to see Xu Ji, a friend, do something that makes him embarrassed.

But he also knew that Xu Ji's strength was actually the head of the princes in the world now, and there was no one who could fight on his own, in this case, Shi A knew that in fact, taking this opportunity to kill Liu Xie could be completely wiped out, and Shi A knew that leaving Liu Xie would bring Xu Ji a lot of trouble. Now that Xu Ji has made such a promise to himself, of course he is moved.

Xu Ji has other plans in his heart, now the situation in the world is becoming clearer, generally speaking, the north has its own, and Cao Cao in Jiangdong, Sun Ce in Jingzhou, and Yizhou will be the last enemies in his conquest of the world.

Indeed, now that Cao Cao has not gained a firm foothold in Jiangdong, it will take some time for Sun Ce to completely subdue Jingzhou, and the situation in Yizhou is probably turbulent now, and it can be said that the current situation in these three places is really the best time to start by himself. However, he does not have the ability to attack in an all-round way now, and in the past six months or so, almost all the troops that can be mobilized in Yanzhou have been mobilized, and many of them are long-distance attacks, passing through states and counties, and the fatigue of the army has already reached the extreme. Yanzhou's economy has also reached the point where it can afford it, although it can maintain its military operations by increasing taxes. But that's definitely a dry fish, and the gains outweigh the losses.

Besides, how can the laws made by oneself be changed at will? That's definitely the way to get rid of people. And in addition to the three enemies in front of you. The vast territory of his entire north will become a battlefield for fighting against foreign races, and the chaos in Naxiliang is even more headache.

Let's not talk about these simple-minded grassland aliens, thinking about Cao Cao and Zhou Yu's scheming, Xu Ji is enough to have a headache.

Cao Cao is very smart, there is no doubt about it, he let Liu Xuan, the assassin of Yangzhou, block the front of his southward army, so that he is a bit of a mouse-thrower. is also a relative of the emperor, Xu Ji is just a foreign surname, but Liu Ji is a veritable royal relative. As for Jingzhou, seeing that Zhou Yu only wants to take the four counties of Jingzhou, you can know that Zhou Yu has seen through his intention to go south and is ready to fight a water war with him, even if Li Yan leads the Yanzhou army into Jingzhou, so what?

There is no doubt that the families of Jingzhou would rather choose Sun Ce than choose themselves to be the lord of Jingzhou.

Therefore, Xu Ji knew very well that the result of his current southward movement was to force all the clans in Jingzhou to surrender to Sun Ce, and he would only march to the Xiangyang area and stop, because he would advance further south. That is the Yangtze River and its tributaries, Zhou Yu can completely abandon the north of Jingzhou and fight a protracted war with himself in the south of the Yangtze River.

The surrender of the Jingzhou family will definitely lead to the surrender of the Jingzhou naval army.

Want to fight a water war? That's an absolute headache.

Yizhou, Jingzhou, Yangzhou, the three join forces, the Yangtze River defense line will be perfect, and there will be no planes at this time. In the face of such a natural danger, there is only a forced crossing, so you can imagine how arduous it is. So Xu Ji understands that the entry point for his unification of the world should be in Yizhou!

And Yizhou doesn't matter who it will fall into in the end, but it must be a descendant of the surname Liu.

The best interface to deal with the royal family is the imperial order, so. Before taking Yizhou, he must ease the relationship with Liu Xie.

While thinking about it, the three of them had come to the front of a magnificent and magnificent tall building. Shi A said to Xu Ji solemnly: "My lord." I'll go and report to the Holy One first. ”

Xu Ji nodded.

Shi Ah entered the house. After a while, he appeared at the door. There was uncertainty on his face.

Xu Ji saw that his face was not very good-looking, and asked with concern, "Brother Shi." What's wrong? ”

Shi A didn't answer, but just said to Xu Ji: "Lord." When the Holy One heard that you were coming, he seemed very happy and wanted to see you alone. ”

Xu Ji felt a pang in his heart, this Liu Xie was becoming more and more difficult to deal with, and in the face of himself, the person who was most likely to steal his great Han country, he could actually laugh.

But Xu Ji just thought about it, how could he take Liu Xie to heart? He was just thinking that this Liu Xiemo had to play with fire, otherwise there would be a thousand means waiting for him to see.

Xu Ji promised not to kill him, but the generals and ministers under Xu Ji did not agree.

At that time, Shi Ake couldn't complain about himself.

However, Xu Ji didn't want to do this, Xu Ji knew very well the purpose of his trip, he just didn't want to make any trouble for himself before he blackmailed the Son of Heaven to make the princes seize Yizhou after pacifying the north, and Cao Cao in history was a lesson from the past. Although he knew that no one would give up his rights, Xu Ji was still ready to give it a try, not because he hoped that Liu Xie would not fight with him at all, but because he hoped that Liu Xie would be able to restrain his behavior.

Xu Ji entered the house alone, only to see that in the jewels of the room, the young Liu Xie was sitting behind the desk, concentrating on writing. Hearing the sound of the door opening, Liu Xie raised his head, and when he saw that it was Xu Ji, he stood up and said with a smile on his face: "Brother-in-law, I haven't seen you for a long time, I heard that the Yanzhou army broke Yuan Shu in Yanzhou, and the Bocai army broke through Yuan Shudi's camp, and the angry Yuan Shu thief vomited blood and died, which is of course caused by Aiqing's good teaching on weekdays, this time I was able to get rid of Yuan Shu, and Aiqing made great contributions!" ”

Xu Ji looked at him smiling, but there was a violent discomfort in his heart.

The palace is really a terrible place, I didn't expect Liu Xie to learn to hide a knife in a smile at such a young age. I obviously hate myself to the extreme, but I have to pretend to regard myself as a confidant and treat myself as my right-hand man. Could it be that Qin Shi Huang and Kangxi in history also had this expression when facing Lü Buwei and Aobai?

However, Xu Ji would not give Liu Xie a chance to backhand, first knelt down routinely, and when Liu Xie stepped forward quickly, he supported him with his hand. Xu Ji quickly stood up and wrote lightly: "The saint has praised it. Yuan Shu is a person who is very happy, and he especially likes to talk about the destiny of heaven. Being able to be a good assassin in a state and county is already his ultimate. But he thinks he is the honor of the Ninety-Five, and now he is angry, and he is completely to blame, and he has nothing to do with others. When a person does things, he must first measure his own ability, and do not do things that he can't do, just like a three-year-old child who goes to dance with a spear, but is afraid that he will not cause death, he will be injured first, and the saint is wise and benevolent. Naturally, I understood what my subordinates were talking about. ”

Liu Xie's face changed slightly when he heard this, of course he could hear Xu Ji's voice, which was using Yuan Shu to warn himself not to act rashly, and the final result could only hurt himself.

It seems that his threat has worked, and Xu Ji is very satisfied.

It is Xu Ji's good habit to strike while the iron is hot, he didn't give Liu Xie a chance to think, and said indifferently: "The saint suffered a lot during the Chang'an Rebellion, and he was adrift for a while, so he must have suffered a lot of fright. ”

Liu Xie didn't understand why Xu Ji suddenly mentioned this matter. I remembered that I had deceived Shi Ah that day. When he quietly escaped, he thought that Xu Ji was going to attack him, so he was a little flustered, and said with a reluctant smile: "Aiqing expected it very much." When the widow woke up in the cave that day, he found that Shi Aiqing was not by the widow's side, so he was naturally a little scared. Of course, I ran out, but I got lost all of a sudden. The cave will never be found again. Makes you worried."

Xu Ji glanced at Liu Xie meaningfully, and suddenly felt the need to have an in-depth conversation with Liu Xie. Otherwise, the emperor is likely to provoke himself in the days to come. I don't want to lose Shi A because of this Liu Xie in front of me. looked at Xu Ji's eyes that seemed to be able to see through his heart. Liu Xie panicked. He laughed even more reluctantly and said: "But Yanzhou is really good, the widow didn't expect that there would be such a beautiful place in the world, if it weren't for Aiqing, he would take the widow back to Chang'an." The widow thinks he can stay there for a long time, ha......"

These words are soft and hard. On the surface, he said that Xu Ji had a way to govern the state and county, but in fact, he was saying that Xu Ji committed the following crimes and forced himself to stay in Yanzhou.

Xu Ji looked at Liu Xie quietly, and said meaningfully: "What the Holy Lord said is extremely true, although Yanzhou is good, it is not Chang'an, and the Holy Lord is the Ninth Five-Year Honor." Living in Yanzhou for a while is just a stopgap measure, after all, Chang'an is in turmoil, and it is too dangerous there. ”

Liu Xie squinted his eyes and nodded and smiled, but he didn't know what he was thinking.

Xu Ji looked at Liu Xie's self-made smart appearance, but there was more pity in his heart. It seems that Liu Xie's feelings about himself are simply checked to the extreme, if Liu Xie retains this mentality in the future, he is afraid that he can't help but want to do something to him.

Liu Xie looked at Xu Ji and said, "This time, under the escort of Aiqing, the widow can return to Chang'an." It's really something that the widow can't ask for, plus the matter of exterminating Yuan Shudi, after returning to Chang'an, the widow must add an official to Aiqing, how can a small Yanzhou assassin history reflect Aiqing's merits? ”

Xu Ji took the opportunity to say: "Saint, these rewards are all things outside the body, but the subordinates hope that the saints will understand the hard work of the subordinates, so it will not be in vain for the ministers to do so many things, with sincerity in their words." Liu Xie was stunned when he heard this, he didn't expect Xu Ji to suddenly talk to himself in this tone, and couldn't help but look at Xu Ji, only to see Xu Ji's eyes shining with essence, and there was a kind of love faintly flashing in it, which was not seen in the eyes of other princes who wanted to control themselves, and couldn't help but be stunned.

However, Liu Xie will not easily believe Xu Ji, because he is a suspicious person, and he is very good at acting, and he knows that Xu Ji's best thing is to pretend to be deaf and dumb, so Xu Ji's expression is absolutely impossible to make Liu Xie's feelings about Xu Ji.

Xu Ji looked at Liu Xie and said in a deep voice: "I don't know if the Holy Lord still remembers the scene when his subordinates entered Luoyang to meet the first emperor a few years ago?" ”

Liu Xiedi's eyes flashed with a look of remembrance, although Emperor Han Ling was not a good emperor, but he was a good father, in his childhood, because of this father, his gray life had some bright colors.

Xu Ji sighed lightly and said: "At that time, his subordinates were not concubines, nor did they have such a prominent status as they are now. ”

Liu Xie didn't expect that Xu Ji, who was a chaotic minister and thief in his eyes, actually remembered what he said at that time, and couldn't help but be a little stunned. Xu Ji sighed lightly and said, "At that time, the people who accepted the entrustment of the first emperor were Master Saishuo, Mr. Wang Yue and his subordinates. It's a pity that both of them died in the Luoyang Rebellion, and now, the only people who know about this matter are me and Mr. Shi A. ”

This is naturally a lie, Xu Ji was appointed to have nothing to do with Liu Xie, he relied on Zhang Rang at that time, and the matter of Jian Shuo was just made up according to the historical materials of later generations. But fortunately, there is no proof of death, even if Shi Ah has verified it, he also knows nothing, after all, he is the one who received the edict, and Shi Ah is just entrusted by Wang Yue.

Liu Xie was silent, but when he heard Shi A's name, his eyes flashed, obviously hating Shi A for betraying him. reacted immediately, raised his head and looked at Xu Ji, seeing Xu Ji's expression, he immediately knew that his reaction just now had fallen into Xu Ji's eyes Xu Ji looked at Liu Xie and said with a wry smile: "The saint is uncomfortable in his heart, his subordinates know, but the saint is wrong to blame Shi A, you must know that the person Shi Ah respects most in his life is his master Wang Yue, and it is Wang Yue's last wish to protect the saint, please believe that no matter when, Shi A will not do anything sorry for the saint." ”

Liu Xie laughed, but it was like an awl: "Aiqing is right, Shi A is Aiqing's guest, and the widow doesn't know that with a master like Aiqing who serves the country and the people, there will be loyal subordinates like Mr. Shi A." This was said politely, but it was still ironic that Shi Ah was deceiving his trust by sneaking into the palace at that time, and he had no intentions, as for who this intention was for, of course, the spearhead was directed at Xu Ji.

Xu Ji is not in the mood to fight with Liu Xie now, shook his head and said: "Shengshang, in fact, Shi A is not a subordinate of his subordinates, he now calls me the master completely for the sake of Shengshang, I heard that Shengshang is also a master of swordsmanship, and he should understand that first-class martial arts can only be practiced by a first-class person with a mind, Shi A is the second Wang Yue, who regards fame as dung, except for the supreme martial arts in his heart, other things in this world are left no traces in his heart." If it weren't for the protection of the Holy One, I'm afraid he would have traveled all over the world or gone to find Lu Bu for revenge. Liu Xie was taken aback when he heard this, and his face showed contemplation.

Of course, this is even more nonsense, Shi A's realm must be higher than Wang's, Shi A is really fame and fortune like dung, but Wang Yue is dedicated to entering the office, Wang Yue's real detachment was only when he fought with Lu Bu, but at that time he was already old, so naturally he couldn't change the situation of being defeated by Lu Bu.

But looking at Liu Xie's reaction, Xu Ji was relieved, knowing that Liu Xie's heart was not monolithic, if he could be moved, it would be of great benefit to attack Yizhou in the future. (To be continued......)