The two men cowered, slid through the air, and headed for the wall.

Looking at that intimate appearance, it really seems like a winged bird soaring into the sky. On the fifteenth day of the first month of the third year of Tianbao, Mao Zheng.

Chang'an, Xingqing Palace.

The thing next to the owl kiss is a stone statue of a wrestler. This Vajra-like wrestler, with a knotted beard and a half-naked body, wore only half a lion's skin over his shoulders, and wore a ruffled crown on his head, decorated with wings on both sides. Its right hand was held high, its five fingers were spread out, and its left hand was holding a huge club, and it looked like it was intoxicated with killing, and its fighting spirit was awe-inspiring.

Although the Son of Heaven does not know its origin, he can at least see that this thing is by no means Middle-earth, and should have originated from the Persian Sassanid area, with some traces of Sogdian style.

The statue is not very tall, less than a foot shorter than the owl's beak. Its location is very cleverly chosen, the front and back are blocked by the kiss of the owl and the cornice, if you don't get close to the top of the building, you can't find it at all - and in the entire Chang'an City, how many places can you look at the roof of the diligent government building?

The face of the Son of Heaven became more and more ugly. He had to hover in this building every day, but he never knew there was such a strange thing above his head. What if someone was going to do something that cursed with witchcraft?

Xiao Gui smiled: "Your Majesty, don't worry. This god is called the Rolling Mountain, and it is the god of war in the Persian area. When this building was first built, it was assumed that Persian craftsmen were involved in secretly building a shelter for the gods they worshipped. ”

The craftsmen of the Tang Dynasty themselves are very capable, but they do not exclude absorbing the techniques and styles of foreign countries. Large royal buildings such as the Qinzheng Mansion are mainly based on the fashion of Middle-earth, but the details are mixed with the characteristics of Turkic, Persian, Tibetan, and even Goryeo, Pyu, Linyi and other places. So it is not surprising that when it was built, there were exotic craftsmen involved. It is not uncommon for those craftsmen to occasionally hide some private goods in an inconspicuous place, leaving a name or a paragraph.

However, it is very rare to secretly place an outer god on the eaves of the royal palace like this, and I don't know how it passed the supervision and acceptance in the first place. The person in charge of the project must be guilty of murder.

But what the Son of Heaven is thinking about now is another question: how does the grasshopper plan to escape?

This is true of the outer gods, but it sits on the cornice, and there is still no way to escape around - could it be that this fighting god of war will suddenly appear and carry them down?

Xiao Gui asked the others to walk to the side of the mountain, patted the stone carving on the shoulder, and then gently grabbed its right hand with his hand, and with a little force, the entire stone sculpture made a loud noise and fell to the side. Everyone noticed that under the stone carving, there was a large square hole, which happened to coincide with the shape of the stone carving base, and it looked as if this piece of cornice had been punctured with a hole.

This hole was used by craftsmen to transport the masonry materials when they built the cornices. Workers will first mix the materials on the ground, rest them in buckets, and the rope will pass through the hollow, which can be hung under the cornice, which is very convenient. It seems that these Persian craftsmen, after finishing the work, did not seal it according to the regulations, but covered it with a statue of the mountain.

"How do you know?" The Son of Heaven glared at Xiao Gui, his self-esteem was really unacceptable, this diligent government building was full of loopholes.

Xiao Gui said with a little emotion: "How do you say it...... This statue of the mountain is the earliest reason why I want to come to see His Majesty. Many years ago, I was a wanted criminal, full of hatred, but I didn't know how to reciprocate, so I had to wander around. That year, I accidentally met an old Persian craftsman from Jiling City in the Western Regions, who had retired for retirement. When he was drunk, he boasted that he had built a building for the Son of Heaven, and secretly enshrined the God of War on the roof of the emperor's palace. Of course, the old craftsman didn't have any bad intentions, he just hoped that the mountain would have a place in the royal family of Middle-earth. But this news, to my ears, means something different. ”

Hearing this, the Son of Heaven's shoulders trembled slightly with anger.

"I poured him a few glasses, and he got all the details out: where the statue was, what the image was, how to open it, etc., it was clear. I asked again and again, but I couldn't find anything new, so I slaughtered him - you should be understandable, right? He's going to tell someone else, but it's not good. Xiao Gui said very easily, as if he was talking about an ordinary trivial matter, "Since then, I have been thinking about how to use this secret to deal with Your Majesty. What started as a rough idea was then revised and refined until a perfect plan was formed. If it weren't for this statue, you and I wouldn't be where we are today. ”

Xiao Gui patted the statue and said emotionally. The Son of Heaven was speechless for a long time, and the unintentional act of an old craftsman more than ten years ago turned into a disaster. The evolution of the number of fortunes is so wonderful that it is difficult to describe what if.

As Xiao Gui spoke, he took a coil of rope from his waist, and the other grasshoppers also untied it, and quickly strung the rope into a long strip. However, everyone, including Taizhen, could see that this length was not enough to fall to the ground.

"This length can only hang down to the third floor, do you want to jump from that height?" The Son of Heaven said sarcastically, "Even if you are lucky enough not to die, the ground is already full of forbidden troops, and you still have no way to escape." ”

"Your Majesty doesn't bother with this." Xiao Gui said lightly.

They tied one end of the rope to the tail of the owl's kiss and slowly lowered the other end. As the Son of Heaven estimated, this rope only hangs down to the third layer, and it comes to an end. Moreover, the third floor is the Wind Invitation Pavilion, which is open on all sides, so unlike other floors, there are cornices sticking out, and there is no safe place to stay.

The Son of Heaven no longer mocked, he really wanted to see what tricks these damn grasshoppers could play at this point.

Xiao Gui tugged the rope with his hand to make sure it was strong enough, and then told the other five mayflies to take care of the hostages and grab the rope and slip down a little bit.

Now there is chaos in the main building. The forbidden armies had already arrived, rescuing people, searching and arresting people, and putting out fires layer by layer, with shouts and footsteps coming and going. At this time, the sky was still dark, and none of them thought about it, and none of them saw that the cunning grasshopper was hanging on a thin rope a few feet away on the east side of the building, slowly sliding down.

Seeing that he was about to reach the height of the third floor, Xiao Gui began to shake his body, making the rope swing up sharply. Swinging back and forth a few times, when he reached the highest point on the east side again, he suddenly moved, pulled the rope, and jumped onto the blue-gray wall far away from the third layer.

The diligent government building is located in the middle of the city wall on the south side of Xingqing Palace, so its east and west ends are followed by a section of the city wall. The height of the city wall is level with the third floor of the Wind Invitation Pavilion, and the distance is extremely close. However, for safety reasons, there is no communication between the floor and the city wall, and a gap of about three zhang wide is deliberately left.

Just now, Zhang Xiaojing slipped down from the top of the Taishang Xuanyuan Lantern Tower, and was originally going to fall on the city wall, but because of the collapse, he rushed into the third floor of the Wind Invitation Pavilion. Now Xiao Gui is a repeat of the old trick.

The decorative significance of this section of the city wall is greater than the military significance, and everything is important for beauty and magnificence. The city wall is tall and straight, and the head of the city is galloping enough for horses. Xiao Gui quickly fixed the rope at the sleeve of a military flag flagpole, and then pulled it three times regularly.

It was too dark, and Xiao Gui couldn't raise the fire, so the people above could only judge from the shaking of the rope that he had landed safely. So the grasshoppers began to get busy, and they had two hostages and a companion who could not move, and they had to be tied to one of them, and in pairs, they slipped down slowly.

The mayfly doesn't have to worry about the hostage's resistance, its fate hangs by a thread between heaven and earth, and no one will take advantage of that time to make a mistake. But there was one problem that had to be solved immediately: Taizhen saw that he was going to jump from such a high place, and he collapsed to the ground, crying loudly, no matter how threatened by the grasshopper, it didn't work.

In the end, a grasshopper couldn't bear it anymore and wanted to go over and knock her unconscious. The Son of Heaven said angrily: "You are not allowed to touch her! The mayfly turned her head and said viciously, "If she doesn't shut up quickly and summon the forbidden army, we will push her down directly!" ”

"I'll tell her." The Son of Heaven straightened up. The mayflies hesitated and let go of his arm. The Son of Heaven stepped between Uwa, came to Taizhen's side, squatted down and lovingly lifted her scattered forehead: "Taizhen, do you remember what I told you?" ”

"Huh?" Taejin continued to sob.

"In heaven I wish to be a winged bird, and on earth I wish to be a branch." The Son of Heaven grabbed her hand and recited these two lines of poetry softly, as if returning to the Agarwood Pavilion next to the Dragon Pond. Taejin looked up hesitantly, two more tear troughs on her fair cheeks.

She remembered that these two lines of poetry came from a wonderful dream of the Son of Heaven. The Son of Heaven said that he saw a man surnamed Bai in a dream, kneeling under the Danqi, to dedicate a poem to the Son of Heaven and the concubine to remember his feelings. The guy babbled on for a long time, and when the Son of Heaven woke up, he only remembered two sentences. Later, he told Taizhen about it, and Taizhen pretended to be angry, saying that I was just a kundao, and I was not a concubine. The Son of Heaven took her in his arms and promised that within a year, she would definitely have a name. Taizhen turned his anger into joy at this time, and he made friends with fish and water.

"Look, isn't it beautiful that we can now fly in the sky like a winged bird? I promised you that I would never leave, and I would never let you get hurt. The Son of Heaven relieved and took her in his arms. Taizhen buried his head in it and didn't make a sound. These two lines of poetry are a little secret between her and the Son of Heaven, and no one else knows about it.

The Son of Heaven stood up, stared at the grasshopper and said, "Let me tie up Taizhen and slide down." ”

The mayflies were stunned for a moment, Xiao Gui was not there, and they didn't know what to do with this unexpected request. At this time, Zhang Xiaojing said: "Let's do it, anyway, there are people watching from both ends of the head, where can they run?" ”

The mayflies stood still. Zhang Xiaojing's face sank: "My Zhang Xiaojing's words, you can ask Xiao Gui, should you listen to it?" "He is used to being bad handsome, and he is very imposing, and the grasshoppers also know his relationship with the leader, so he is easily subdued.

No one noticed that when he heard the name Zhang Xiaojing, Taizhen's eyes lit up.

The mayflies tied the Son of Heaven and Taizhen together, and also strung belts on the rope in case the Son of Heaven was old and weak and could not hold the rope for a while.

Zhang Xiaojing recovered a little bit of strength at this time and said I'll check the rope. The status of the Son of Heaven is precious, and it is normal to be more careful. Zhang Xiaojing endured the severe pain in his muscles, walked to him, grabbed the rope with one hand, and whispered: "Your Majesty, I'm here to save you." ”

The Son of Heaven sneered in his nostrils, it's all at this time, and he is still playing this kind of trick. But Taizhen blinked his beautiful big eyes and whispered: "I know you, you are Tanqi's lover." ”

Zhang Xiaojing was stunned, where did this come from?

In order to convince Taizhen, Tan Qi pretended to be happy with Zhang Xiaojing. This kind of embarrassing detail, when she relayed it to Zhang Xiaojing, she was naturally embarrassed to mention it. The current situation is urgent, and Zhang Xiaojing is not good to ask too much. He tightened the end of the rope again, and said in a low voice: "Whether it is true or not, Your Majesty will know in a while." Please also act on the opportunistic. "Then stand away.

Taizhen closed his eyes tightly and hugged the Son of Heaven with his arms. The Son of Heaven grabbed the rope, glanced down, and quickly withdrew his gaze, his face pale. The emperor of the Tang Dynasty has to experience all kinds of dangers in his life, but like today, it is the first time he has encountered it.

He had experienced a strong wind and waves, gritted his teeth, grabbed the rope, pressed the weight of the two people, and then slowly slipped down the hole.

The two men cowered, slid through the air, and headed for the wall. Looking at that intimate appearance, it really seems like a winged bird soaring into the sky. They were slow and had several dangerous encounters along the way. Fortunately, the Son of Heaven practiced polo a lot on weekdays, and he had to be carefully cared for, and his physique and reaction were much better than those of ordinary old people, and finally he landed on the city wall without danger.

As soon as Xiao Gui saw the Son of Heaven landing, he immediately stepped forward and restrained him. Taizhen didn't need to pay special attention, she was already so frightened that she almost fainted.

Immediately afterwards, a grasshopper also slipped down smoothly, and Zhang Xiaojing was tightly tied to his body. Zhang Xiaojing's strength recovered a little, and he was able to hold the rope tightly with both hands to share the pressure, so these two people came down more smoothly than the combination of Tianzi and Taizhen.

However, when the next grasshopper slid down, the accident happened.

He had just slipped halfway through when the rope seemed to be overwhelmed, and it broke and spread out with a "snap". A black shadow didn't even have time to scream, and fell heavily from mid-air to the top of the city wall, its spine hitting the bulging battlement, and its entire body was broken in half in an instant. The top half of his body slammed down again, and his skull shattered, and the muddy * covered the walls.

Fortunately, Taizhen was groggy and didn't notice this tragic situation, otherwise he would have screamed and killed everyone. Seeing this tragedy, the Son of Heaven who was holding Taizhen raised his eyebrows, and couldn't help but glance at Zhang Xiaojing more.

Xiao Gui froze in place, revealing a stunned expression. The blood from the wounded eye covered half of his face, making him look particularly hideous.

It's not just a matter of losing someone. There was only one pair of ropes, and now when it was broken, the retreat of the three people on top was completely cut off. Now Xiao Gui's manpower, except for the half-crippled Zhang Xiaojing, there is only one person left.

The rope was made of the silk of the hemp sheep vine and the horsetail mane, which was contracted by cold water and soaked in oil, and it was so tough that it could not have been broken so quickly. Before Xiao Gui came down, he checked inch by inch, and he didn't find any hidden dangers. Why does it break inexplicably?

When Xiao Gui was in doubt, Zhang Xiaojing quietly put his hand together and put an ivory-handled folding knife that did not belong to him into his sleeve. This was stolen by Zhang Xiaojing when he was entangled with the Son of Heaven just now.

When Zhang Xiaojing held the rope, the folding knife was already hidden in his palm, and the tip of the knife was sandwiched between his two fingers. Slip down, and the tip of the knife will quietly cut the rope. Of course, this strength and angle must be mastered very well, and a part of the carrying capacity must be retained, otherwise the rope will break before the person lands, which is tantamount to suicide.

Zhang Xiaojing had used this kind of rope before, and he was well versed in its temperament, and when cutting, he raised the blade slightly, and only picked out a circle of rattan silk outside. The rattan silk is mainly stretched, and the horsetail mane is mainly bent. When the silk is broken, the horsetail mane can still maintain the strength of the rope, but it can no longer support the weight.

"Let's go."

Xiao Gui only glanced at it, then quickly turned around and said with an expressionless face. The three grasshoppers trapped on the roof of the building are destined to be hopeless, and they will be broken when they are broken.

"Where do you want to go?" The Son of Heaven still had a sarcastic tone.

Even if these mayflies were clever enough to finally let them land on the southern wall, what could they do? The Son of Heaven is too familiar with this area, and every fifty steps on the city wall, there is a sentry post, one person inside and one inside and outside, every three sentry posts, and a special city shanglang. They are still in the net, and there is nowhere to escape.

Xiao Gui said coldly: "The escape of the right people relied on the selfishness of the old Persian craftsmen; The next road is to thank Your Majesty for his gifts. ”

"Huh?" The Son of Heaven suddenly felt bad.

"Go to the Sandwich City." Xiao Gui spat out three words.

Yao Runeng was huddled in a cell, physically and mentally cold.

He still remembers the scene of his arrest in Dawanglou: holding a purple lantern, he desperately sent a signal to Zhang Xiaojing: "Don't come back, don't come back, don't come back." "Jing'an Division is not the same as before. Then a vicious guard pounced on him, dragged him down from the watchtower, and threw him into a cold prison.

Unbeknownst to Yao Runeng, Wen Ran was arrested almost at the same time; He didn't know how much of an impact this message had on the situation.

For what happened to him next, Yao Runeng knew it. Tomorrow, Ji Wen and Yuan Jae will definitely frame a crime for themselves, and the reputation of the family will be disgraced. But he didn't regret it at all, because it was the right thing to do, and no matter how much the outside world smeared him, he would make a fair judgment in his heart - he was more worried about whether Quelehodo had been stopped or not.

"If Captain Zhang is here, it must be fine." Yao Runeng thought in a daze.

I don't know how long later, there was a clatter from the lock of the prison door, as if someone had opened it. Yao Runeng raised his head and saw a familiar figure standing in the doorway, standing with his hands in his hands.

"Li Sicheng?!"

Yao Runeng was pleasantly surprised, and hurriedly got up from the straw. He wanted to meet him, but he saw that Li Mi's face was very grim, so he barely suppressed his excitement and simply made a cross hand salute.

"I know you have a stomach full of questions and grievances, but now is not the time to cry." Li Mi didn't talk nonsense at all, and went straight to the point, "You go back to the big watchtower immediately and get the watchtower back up and running again as soon as possible." I want all the gates to be sealed immediately, the lights to be stopped, and the curfew to be renewed. ”

Yao Ru was taken aback, the situation had evolved to such a serious point? He wanted to ask what was going on with Quelehodo, but now he had to swallow back silently.

"How quickly can it be fixed?" Li Mi asked.

Yao Ru can think for a while, and it is enough to say for a moment. Li Mi was surprised, it was so fast?

Most of the nodes in the watchtower system are actually operating normally, and only the center of the watchtower needs to be reorganized. The workload is not large, and the difficulty is to find someone who understands the technology of the watchtower. The reason why it was not repaired for a long time before was because Ji Wen didn't understand it at all, and he drove away a group of Hu officials, which made it even worse in terms of manpower.

The most important thing now is to send a message, so the big watchtower does not have to be restored to a full state, as long as there is a simple function of sending and receiving, so he dares to pat his chest and say that it is enough for a moment.

After listening to Yao Runeng's explanation, Li Yu was very satisfied: "Soon, go and do it immediately, just ask for any materials you need." ”

"Yes."

Li Mi made a gesture to ask Yao Runeng to help him up, and handed over a bowl of hot mutton soup, which was just right hot, and there were still a few slices of dough soaked in it. Yao Runeng was cold and hungry, so he took it unceremoniously and drank it in a big gulp. At this time, Li Mi suddenly threw out another question: "Jing'an Si has a traitor, do you know?" ”

"Huh? I don't know. Yao Runeng was so surprised that he almost threw the bowl on the ground, "If I knew, I would have reported it early in the morning." ”

Li Mi said: "After analysis, we judge that this traitor should have an intersection with you, and he must have exposed flaws." Think about it, and if you think of anything, feel free to let me know. Then he turned and left.

Yao Runeng nodded solemnly, and suddenly said curiously: "Is it Xu who analyzes it?" ”

Li Mi stopped for a moment, but didn't say anything, and continued to walk forward. Yao Runeng was a little baffled, but now was not a good time to ask. He drank the mutton soup in one gulp, patted his cheeks on both sides vigorously, shouted loudly, and then walked in the direction of the Great Lookout.

Li Mi couldn't help but sigh when he heard the energetic call behind him, and suddenly envied Yao Runeng's ignorance.

If he knew the current situation in Chang'an City, I am afraid it would not be so easy. But then again, who can do it all? Li Mi unexpectedly thought of Zhang Xiaojing again, and he didn't know where he was when the lantern tower exploded.

The only thing Li Mi can be sure of is that as long as there is a possibility, this guy will not give up.

Oh, and by the way, and Tanqi. Li Mi is quite strange, he has not remembered to care about her whereabouts until now. Since she went out with Zhang Xiaojing, she has not heard from her. But this girl is very smart, and she must have taken refuge in a safe place.

These irrelevant things only flash in my mind. Li Mi refocused his attention on the current situation, and at this time, Tong Chuan hurriedly ran to the front, said in a loud voice that he had made a discovery, and then handed over a roll of paper, saying that the principals had just rummaged through it.

Li Mi unfolded it and found that it was a roll of hands. The paper is yellow, and it has been quite a few years. This is a deed to a mansion in On Yip, and the names of both the buyer and the seller are unknown. The structure of the mansion is written in hand, which is six miles deep, and also includes a large garden, which shows the details of the tree species, architecture, size, etc., among which there is a Persian pavilion, a basement for prisoners, and a large number of precious trees.

This layout, Li Mi could see at a glance that it was the mansion that the grasshopper brought herself. I didn't expect it to be dug up so quickly.

Anye Fang...... Li Mi chewed on the name, his expression complicated.

Anye Fang is located in the fourth square on the west side of Zhuque Street, one of the best areas in Chang'an City, and the people living in it are either rich or expensive. However, the most famous building in Anye Fang is the Temple of Queen Zhenshun Wu.

Empress Zhenshun Wu was the most favored concubine of Wu Hui in the saint during her lifetime, died in the twenty-fifth year of Kaiyuan, and was posthumously awarded the title of queen after her death. Her existence is very delicate in Chang'an City. Because she has a son named Li Mao, who married his wife Yang Yuhuan, and was later taken away by his father.

And there is also a causal connection between her and the crown prince Li Heng. Concubine Wu Hui framed the crown prince Li Ying to death in order to give Li Mao a chance. Unexpectedly, the Son of Heaven did not care about Li Mao, but gave Li Heng the title of prince.

Therefore, this Anye Fang, whether it is for Li Mao or Li Heng, is a place with mixed feelings. If this woman had lived a few more years, I am afraid that the fate of many people would have changed with it.

Putting aside these old things, Li Mi once again focused on the real hand, and suddenly found that next to the buyer's name, his hometown was Longxi. His eyes moved, and suddenly he remembered a detail.

A few years ago, the imperial court issued a "Decree on the Granting of Favor to the House", stipulating that the mansions of the four squares on both sides of Suzaku Street were not allowed to be bought and sold by non-clan nobles.

In fact, the buyer's name was not written next to the official position and rank, nor did he indicate his affiliation, so he was a white commoner. There is only one possibility that he can buy the mansion of Anyefang - his identity is actually the son of a certain family or a slave, and he buys it on behalf of his master.

This is not uncommon. Many people are sensitive to their identities, and they want to buy individual houses and hide their identities, so they let their domestic slaves come forward. This situation is called "hidden mailing". This hand should be a hidden transaction.

Since the buyer is from Longxi, the owner behind it is naturally a big family from Longxi.

Li Mi sneered and shook his hand. Li Xiang Li Linfu is the great-grandson of Gaozu's cousin and a branch of the Li clan in Longxi.

This inference seems to be crude and unreasonable, but it is not a trial now, and there is no need for conclusive evidence. As long as Li Mi finds a little connection, it is enough.

"Gather the brigade and the army immediately, and I will personally lead the team to Anyefang." Li Mi gave a brief order. He needed to see with his own eyes whether the garden he had been to before.

Si Cheng's order was carried out as quickly as possible. The soldiers of the brigade quickly gathered more than 30 people, and under the leadership of Li Yu, they rushed towards An Yefang. Attentive people in Jing'an Division noticed that these soldiers not only carried swords and crossbows, but also strong bows and iron shields.

This is like a great enemy's position, is it going to investigate the case or to fight? They thought to themselves.

The distance from Guangdefang to Anyefang is not too far, and it arrived in less than a moment. According to that hand, the mansion is located in the northwest of the fang, just next to the temple of Queen Zhenshun Wu.

The room is still brightly lit at this time, but there are many fewer people watching the lanterns. After all, it was the right time, and people who had been playing all night went back to catch up on sleep. Li Mi and his entourage went straight to the door of the mansion, where there were neither halberds nor aconitums in front of the gate, and they looked very simple and low-key. However, at this time, there was a luxurious seven-incense car parked in front of the door, and the luxurious decoration showed the extraordinary taste of the owner.

"Got you, old fox!" A smile appeared on Li Mi's lips.

Two soldiers with big shoulders and round waists slammed open the gate with a "bang", and the followers swarmed in. Li Mi specially instructed that they must not be careless, so they maintained a standard attack posture, in groups of three, attacking in groups, and aiming more than a dozen crossbow arrows in all directions at any time.

They rushed through the forecourt and atrium, all in silence, without any obstacles along the way. Li Mi was suspicious, but he continued to move forward. When he stepped into the back garden, the first thing that caught his eye was the strangely shaped self-rain pavilion.

That's right, this is it!

Li Mi clenched his fists, I'm back!

At this time, under the self-rain pavilion, there were several people standing. The others were all servants, but the one in the middle was dressed in a round-necked brocade robe, wearing a black gauze head, and standing with his hands in his hands - it was Li Xiang.

The two looked at each other, and before they could speak, suddenly the sound of street drums flew over the wall from a distance and reached their ears. Not just one drum, but many drums, sounding at the same time from all directions, near and far.

The residents of Chang'an are all too familiar with the sound of the drum. On a normal day, as soon as the sun sets, the street drum will be sounded 300 times in a row, indicating that the curfew is about to begin. If you don't get home before you get home, you'd rather stay on the street than stay on the street, or you'll be punished with a rod or even condemned to death.

At this time, the street drum actually sounded at the end of the day, which not only meant that the lantern festival was suspended, but also meant that Chang'an City would enter a complete blockade, and it would not be lifted after sunrise.

As soon as Xiao Gui said Jiacheng, the Son of Heaven and Zhang Xiaojing immediately understood.

The layout of Chang'an is respected in the north. To the north of the Vermilion Bird Gate, it is the Taiji Palace. Gaozu and Taizong are all discussing in this hall, which is the pivot of the world's operation. Later, Taizong built Yong'an Palace in the east of the Taiji Palace, called "Dongnei", in order to distinguish it from the Taiji Hall "Xinei", and later renamed Daming Palace. When he arrived in the Gaozong Dynasty, he didn't like the feng shui of the Taiji Palace, so he moved to the Daming Palace to discuss the matter.

Since then, successive emperors have governed in the Daming Palace, and have been expanded many times on a grand scale. In the Kaiyuan period, the Son of Heaven did not come out of the machine, expanded and renovated the Xingqing Fang in the south of the Daming Palace, and became the Xingqing Palace, where he lived for a long time, called "Nannei".

The distance between Xingqing Palace and Daming Palace is quite far, and the Son of Heaven travels back and forth between the two places, which is inconvenient. So the Son of Heaven in the sixteenth year of Kaiyuan, once again out of the machine, from the south wall of the Daming Palace, to build a double road between the city. The compound road starts from Wangxian Gate, goes all the way to the east along the south city wall, connects with the east side of the city wall of Chang'an's outer Guo, and then turns to the south, crosses the Tonghua Gate, and communicates with the south city wall of Xingqing Palace.

In this way, if the Son of Heaven wants to go back and forth between the two palaces, he can take this road between the city and the city, and there is no need to disturb the people. Later, the Son of Heaven felt that this method was really good, and extended the compound road to the south to the Qujiang River, with a total length of nearly 16 miles. From now on to the north to the Daming Palace, to the south to the Qujiang Pond, the Son of Heaven can travel the entire Chang'an without leaving the palace city.

On such a chaotic night, everyone was focused on the diligent government affairs building, and no one would have thought that the grasshopper would hit the city with his mind. As long as Xiao Gui holds the Son of Heaven hostage and goes down the stairs near the southern city wall to the Jiacheng, he can follow the empty Jiacheng and flee directly south to Qujiangchi, and it is easy to get out of the city.

No wonder he said that this escape route was "given by the Son of Heaven", and this sentence is really not wrong at all. Tianzi's face was pale, and he felt that this guy was too much of a bastard, but in his eyes, there was more jealousy.

From the fierce fire and thunder of the Taishang Xuanyuan Lantern Tower to the Hydraulic Palace leading to the Dragon Pool, from the statue of the god of the rolling mountain on the main floor of the diligent government affairs to the Jiacheng Restoration Road, before this guy started, he really made the preparation to the extreme, and studied Chang'an City thoroughly. It would take a lot of thought and courage to construct such a complex plan.

And this plan turned out to be a success.

No, strictly speaking, we are infinitely close to success now, only the last step is missing.

Xiao Gui knew the truth that those who traveled a hundred miles were half ninety, and he did not get too carried away. He asked the only remaining grasshopper to help Zhang Xiaojing up, and then stood behind Tianzi and Taizhen himself, and ordered them to leave quickly.

"You've won, let her go. You don't have any extra manpower anyway. The Son of Heaven spoke again.

Xiao Gui was a little tempted by this suggestion. But Zhang Xiaojing said: "No, let her go, and soon the forbidden army will find out." As soon as the drum passed, the road was immediately closed, and we became turtles in the urn. When Xiao Gui heard this, his words were reasonable, so he pushed Taizhen up.

"You ......"

The Son of Heaven glared angrily at Zhang Xiaojing. Since that one grasshopper fell to his death, he had some expectations for Zhang Xiaojing, but now he has disappeared again. However, Zhang Xiaojing pretended not to see it, he was not interested in Taizhen's safety, as long as he could cause more burden to Xiao Gui, so that he could have a chance to save people.

Xiao Gui simply assigned the task of escorting the hostages, and led the greatly reduced team to the road again. They walked a little east along the wall, and soon saw a huge crack between the walls in front of them, which was straight and straight, like a skilful craftsman chiseling a little bit, and stretched into the distance.

A downward stone staircase leads to the bottom of the fissure. As they walked slowly down the stone steps, they felt like they were falling headlong into a very different world.

The so-called double road of the city is to dig a narrow road in the middle of the city wall that can accommodate a carriage, and the blue brick walls are made up on both sides, and the ground is paved with river sand and stone slabs. The thickness of the city wall is limited, and the compound road can only be built so narrowly.

At this depth, all the light and noise outside is blocked, creating a deep place. The brick walls on both sides are high and cramped, and the slope is slightly inward, as if two mountains are squeezing towards the middle. Pedestrians walk at the bottom, feeling like a toad staying at the bottom of a well, and when they look up, they can only see a glimmer of night overhead.

There were no patrolling guards in the corridor, and it was extremely quiet. They walked inside, and they could hear each other's breath clearly. In this environment, everyone is a little trance-like, as if the chaos of light and shadow just now is just a beautiful dream.

I have to admire the imagination of the Son of Heaven, who can actually think of breaking a quiet and closed road between the city walls. Walking here, you don't have to worry about people watching, you can completely follow the car. How pleasant it would be during the day.

After walking for about a moment, they saw that the road ahead came to an end. This should be the end of the south wall of Xingqing Palace, and the front is the Guodong city wall outside Chang'an City. There is a fork in the road that stretches in both directions to the north and south.

"Xiao Gui, how are you going to go?" Zhang Xiaojing asked.

The road to the north can go straight to the Daming Palace, which is equivalent to throwing yourself into the net; The road to the south leads to Qujiang Pond, which is a good place, but the road is far away, to say the least, there are ten miles. In the condition of this group, if there were no horses, they would have been tired and paralyzed when they walked to Qujiang.

Xiao Gui seemed to have a plan in his heart, and he stretched out his hand and pointed to the south: "Go to Qujiang." ”

Zhang Xiaojing didn't ask why, Xiao Gui must have made arrangements. This guy is so well prepared, even if he conjures a horse out of his pocket now, Zhang Xiaojing will not be surprised.

The group turned south and walked a long way. Taejin suddenly sat down on the ground, begging that he couldn't walk anymore. She has fine clothes and food, and there are cars in and out, how can she have walked so far? The Son of Heaven leaned down and asked with concern, she took off her cloud-headed brocade shoes aggrievedly and gently rubbed her ankles. Even in the dark night, the white skin that bullied the frost and snow was particularly eye-catching.

Xiao Gui kept her face calm and drank to keep her going. The Son of Heaven straightened up and stood in front of Taejin, insisting on taking a break. Xiao Gui sneered: "If you keep a flick of your fingers, you will be in more danger of being intercepted by the forbidden army." If I am cornered, Your Majesty and I will not die well. ”

When the Son of Heaven heard this naked coercion, he had no choice but to help Taizhen put the cloud head brocade shoes back on. Taizhen moth's eyebrows frowned slightly, and he was crying. The Son of Heaven caressed her pink back in distress and comforted her in a low voice, finally making her cry fade away.

At this time, Zhang Xiaojing spoke: "I'm almost rested, I can force myself to go." Why don't you just let me escort Taizhen. ”

Xiao Gui thinks about it, it is better to match it this way. It's too weak to help the wind, with Zhang Xiaojing's current situation, he can see it, and he can free up a mayfly's manpower to concentrate on escorting the Son of Heaven.

So the team made a simple adjustment, re-tied the hands of Tianzi and Taizhen, and continued to move forward. This time Zhang Xiaojing walked behind Taizhen, one of them was delicate and the other was weak, and they just couldn't walk fast, and they were far away at the end of the line. Taizhen stumbled and kept whispering, but Zhang Xiaojing remained silent.

This compound road is not an immutable straight line. Every 200 steps, the road suddenly widens and opens up a circle of open space on both sides, which is called a stump. In this way, when the car of the Son of Heaven passes, the patrolmen and miscellaneous servants along the way can have a place to dodge and salute, and it is also convenient for other vehicles to make mistakes. If one looks at the straight road from the sky, they will find that it is adorned with a series of stumps, like many knots tied to a rope.

The small group walked for an unknown amount of time, and another stumble appeared in front of them. Xiao Gui waved his hand, signaled to stop, and said to take a break. With that, he walked forward again on his own, and soon disappeared into the darkness.

Taizhen couldn't be reserved, and sat on the ground, panting. The Son of Heaven wanted to come over to comfort him, but was stopped by the grasshopper. Xiao Gui had told him before leaving, not to allow these two people to get too close. The Son of Heaven had already recognized his situation, and instead of shouting loudly in vain, he glared at Zhang Xiaojing stupidly, walked to the other end of the mouth, and looked up at the dark sky with his hands.

Zhang Xiaojing stood beside Taizhen, leaning against the stone wall, gently closing his eyes. For a whole day, his physical exertion was too great, and now he was barely able to walk. He must seize every time to recover as soon as possible in preparation for the next possible dramatic battle.

Suddenly, a woman's low voice drilled into her ears: "Zhang Xiaojing, you are actually a good person, you will save us, right?" Zhang Xiaojing's heart tightened, opened his one eye, and saw Tai Zhen really curiously raised his round face, and there were still tears under his eyes. Her right hand continued to rub her ankle. The mayfly glanced over to this side, but was not suspicious.

"Why do you say that?" Zhang Xiaojing lowered his voice and asked rhetorically.

"I believe in Tanqi."

Zhang Xiaojing was stunned for a moment, and then nodded slightly: "That's a smart girl in ice and snow - but you believe her, what does it have to do with me?" ”

Taizhen smiled and said: "The man she likes in Tanqi will not be a bad person." ”

"Uh......"

"But I can see that there is nothing between you and Tan Qi. I've seen too many women in love and men in love, she is, you're not. ”

Zhang Xiaojing was a little helpless, when was this, and the woman was still talking about this topic with interest. Taizhen couldn't help but purse his lips and smile when he saw that this fierce and vicious guy actually showed an embarrassed expression.

"I knew you had an ulterior motive for doing that."

"So your performance just now was just an act to make the grasshopper let its guard down?" Zhang Xiaojing asked rhetorically.

"No, when I slid down from the top of the temple, I was really on the verge of collapse. But I'd rather go ten more times than the rich life I'm about to lose. Taizhen smiled self-deprecatingly, "I, a Kun Dao who has turned my back on my husband, will be nothing if I leave the favor of the Son of Heaven again." So I have to seize every possibility and let the Son of Heaven and I live. ”

Taizhen slowly turned his neck and looked at the darkness in front of him: "Tan Qi asked me for help before and saved your life, and now I can only count on you to return this favor." When he said this, a resolute look appeared on Taizhen's face, which was similar to the squeamish and weak woman just now. Zhang Xiaojing's one-eyed gaze stared at her, and his gaze became serious.

"Well, you guessed it, I'm here to save people." Zhang Xiaojing finally admitted.

Taizhen breathed a sigh of relief and wiped away the tears with her fingers: "That's great." The saint would be glad to learn of such a loyal minister. ”

"Loyalist?" Zhang Xiaojing sneered, "I'm not a loyal minister, and I didn't come here to be loyal to the Son of Heaven." I'm not interested in those. ”

This answer surprised Taizhen, isn't it loyal to the emperor? So why on earth did he do all this? But at this moment the grasshopper happened to slip over, and both of them closed their mouths and turned their faces away.

The grasshopper glanced at the two of them, then turned back. The Son of Heaven cut his hands and paced anxiously, Xiao Gui hadn't come back yet. It's a pity that even if there is only this one grasshopper, Zhang Xiaojing still can't beat it, and his current physical strength can barely maintain talking and walking.

Faced with Taizhen's unexpected speech, Zhang Xiaojing found that he had to revise his plan. Originally, he only regarded Taizhen as a vase that could add trouble to Xiao Gui, but she was much calmer than she imagined, and maybe she could help herself.

He glanced at him, turned his head to Taizhen again, and lowered his voice, "Next, I need you to do something." ”

"I don't have the strength to fight, that's what I'm not good at......" Taijin said.

"No, you don't. What I want you to do is what you don't like the most. ”

It didn't take long for Xiao Gui to turn around from the darkness with a happy face. He gestured to the crowd to get on the road, and the group continued to walk south along the Jiacheng Compound Road.

This time it didn't take long for Xiao Gui to stop the team. There is another stamping hole ahead, but there is an additional brick staircase that extends upwards to the left. Needless to say, the steps must lead to the east side of the city wall.

It is impossible to close the road from end to end, and it will leave some stairs up and down the city wall to facilitate the delivery of supplies or emergency response. Xiao Gui left first just now, just to find out if there was anyone guarding this staircase.

It stands to reason that there are guards at the entrances to these steps to prevent idle people from entering the compound road. But today, they were all attracted by the changes in Xingqing Palace, and it was empty.

With a wave of Xiao Gui's hand, everyone left the compound road and slowly climbed up the city wall along this staircase. As soon as they reached the top of the city, the environment immediately became noisy and lively again, dragging them back to the earthly Chang'an at once.

Zhang Xiaojing looked around and left, the tall city wall divided Chang'an City into two distinct worlds, the inner side of the city wall was still brightly lit, but the outside was as dark as a sea of ink. He squinted his eyes and saw a tall city gate tower in the distance to the south, which was supposed to be Yanxing Gate. According to this estimate, they were on the city wall parallel to Jinggongfang at this time.

Jinggongfang...... Zhang Xiaojing smiled slightly wryly. From this height, he could see a wide darkness in the square, which was a polo field. A few months ago, he stood in the middle of the field to intimidate the Yongwang, then dropped his weapon and became a death row prisoner, walking towards his own end, or another beginning.

Unexpectedly, today has come full circle, and it has returned to the origin of everything. Zhang Xiaojing seemed to see that the wheel of creation in the underworld was rattling like the Taishang Xuanyuan Lantern Tower.

"Let's go down from here."

Xiao Gui's voice interrupted Zhang Xiaojing's emotion. He walked to the outside of the wall and patted a wooden shelf beside him that looked like a shaft. This wooden frame is much thicker than the usual wheel, with more than a dozen loops of thick rope wrapped around it, and the fork frame sticks out of the city wall, and a suspended rattan basket is hung. Near it, close to the edge of the city wall, there is also a trumpet flag. However, because there was no wind, the flag hung on the flagpole.

Chang'an's laws and regulations are severe, and the door is closed at night, and everything is open. If it was necessary to enter or leave the city during the night due to an emergency, the defenders had a workaround: they attached a skeleton to the city wall, tied a large rattan basket, and stood in it with men or horses and hoisted them up and down with a wheel.

This was the final step of Xiao Gui's plan, which used the reels to hang everyone out of the city. It was the darkest period before dawn, and with the chaos in the city, no one would notice the inconspicuous part of the city. The grasshopper can calmly break away from the shackles of Chang'an City, and then go wherever it wants.

Seeing that he was only one step away from success, even Xiao Gui was a little breathless. He smiled at the Son of Heaven and said, "Your Majesty, take a look at your Chang'an again, I'm afraid I won't have a chance to see it in the future." The Son of Heaven snorted coldly, and clasped his hands behind his back without saying a word. He knew that saying anything to this vicious bastard would only lead to more humiliation.

The two hostages were guarded by Xiao Gui and Zhang Xiaojing respectively. The only remaining grasshopper began to untie the ropes on the rack. He wound the rope around it and hooked it to the top of the large rattan basket.

The trellis must be able to lift one person and one horse, so this rattan basket is extremely strong. In order to maintain balance and not tip over, a rope is hoisted on each side of the basket, which is bundled into a strand at the top, and then the towing rope on the roller is connected. How to straighten out and connect these ropes is a technical job, otherwise the rattan basket is likely to turn over halfway through the hanging, which will kill people.

After working for a while, tired and sweating, the grasshopper finally balanced the rattan basket. As long as the wheel is loosened, you can hang people down.

The next issue is manpower.

The rattan basket should be lowered slowly, and the people who shook the wheel were required to be at least two people, and two people with strength. If Xiao Gui and Grasshopper go to hold the wheel, then only a weak Zhang Xiaojing will be left to guard the two hostages.

Xiao Gui didn't hesitate much, approached the Son of Heaven, and suddenly swung a hand knife and slashed him in the neck. This Ninety-Five Venerable rolled his eyes, and he lay down and fell unconscious. I didn't faint before, because I had to get rid of the complex environment of the diligent government building, and it would be more convenient for him to walk by himself. Now that you can get out of the city, there is no need to worry.

Taizhen thought that the Son of Heaven had been killed, so he couldn't help but let out a scream, squatting down, and trembling. Xiao Gui glanced at her coldly, and ordered the grasshopper: "Knock her unconscious." ”

He knew that Zhang Xiaojing was extremely tired now, and it was difficult to grasp the strength, so he asked the grasshopper to do it. The grasshopper let out an "um" and walked over to make a move on Taizhen. At this time, Zhang Xiaojing said: "Throw her into the rattan basket first, and then knock her unconscious." The grasshopper was stunned for a moment, and then understood.

This is a good suggestion to save a bit of effort in carrying it. So the mayfly grabbed Taizhen's arm and roughly dragged him all the way to the edge of the city wall, and then threw it into the rattan basket. Taizhen curled up at the bottom of the basket, gasping for breath, and the hosta on his head trembled.

The mayfly also stepped into the rattan basket and stretched out her hand to pinch her neck, wondering if this pink and slender neck would be cut off with one palm. Unexpectedly, when Taizhen saw him stretching out his hand, he was so frightened that he hurriedly hid to the side. The rattan basket was suspended in the air, and the whole basket swayed when she moved like this.

The grasshopper couldn't stand a little, and hurriedly held on to the basket and shouted, "Do you want to die?" ”

This rebuke was counterproductive, Taizhen dodged even more, and burst into tears as he shook it. The mayfly found that she seemed to be acting on purpose, and couldn't help but be furious, and got up and leaned over to teach this stinky girl a good lesson.

He leaned forward like this, and the rattan basket shook even harder. In order to avoid the attack of the grasshopper, Taizhen tried his best to lean behind him. Suddenly, a scream came from Taejin's mouth. She seemed to lose her balance for a moment, her right arm raised in the air, as if she was about to fall outside.

In a hurry, the grasshopper reached for Taejin's sleeve, hoping to pull her back. But the moment the palm grabbed the sleeve of the shirt, he found that something was wrong.

Although Taizhen is a Kundao identity, he is a cultivator in the palace after all, and his clothes are not the same as ordinary Taoists. Today's Shangyuan Festival, in addition to the Taoist robe, she is also wearing a plain saro shawl. This shawl wraps around the neck, stretches out over the shoulders and arms, and ends between the fingers, giving it a low-key and luxurious look.

Just now, Taizhen quietly re-wrapped the shawl, not around the neck, a whole long scarf was wrapped around the right arm, the ends were loose and untied, and it looked easy to be confused with the sleeves. This method of wrapping is called "fake phi" and is generally used to meet close friends in private.

Where did the grasshopper know the doorway of these aristocratic women, he thought that he was grabbing the sleeves, but in fact he was grabbing the shawl wrapped around his arm. As soon as the shawl was strained, it immediately fell off from his arm. The grasshopper had enough strength to pull her back by the advantage of her weight, but she fell short, and the whole person suddenly fell backwards and fell towards the outside of the basket.

Fortunately, the grasshopper is also a good hand in the army, and although his body fell out, his two hands held the edge of the basket. He was stunned and was about to turn it back with all his might, when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his fingers.

It turned out that Taizhen had the courage to get out of nowhere, took out an ivory-handled folding knife from the placket of his chest, closed his eyes and stabbed it fiercely. This folding knife was originally used by the Son of Heaven, but it was later taken away by Zhang Xiaojing, and now it is in her hands again.

The grasshopper did not dare to let go, and could not fight back, so it had to hold on to the outer edge of the rattan basket and dodge desperately. A veteran soldier who disarmoured and a stunner in the palace started a peculiar duel inside and outside the rattan basket that was shaking in mid-air.

After all, Taizhen has no experience in fighting, she doesn't know what the key is, she just blindly stabs wildly. As a result, although there were many wounds on the grasshopper's body, none of them were fatal. The grasshopper herself was aware of this, and knew that there was still hope for a counterattack, so she endured the severe pain and reached out to scratch it. Unintentionally, he actually pulled Taizhen's scattered long hair, and he didn't care about pity and cherished the jade, so he pulled it hard. Taizhen only felt a sharp pain in her scalp, and her whole body was ripped over, and the grasshopper raised her hand and slammed it, hitting her temple.

Taizhen has never suffered like this, ahh

The mayfly crawled back into the basket in a rage, wanting to teach this girl a heavy lesson. But at this moment, there was a slight cracking sound above his head, and when he looked up, he saw that the rope holding the rattan basket was actually broken—this was probably because Taizhen waved it indiscriminately just now and cut the rope by mistake.

The grasshopper's complexion changed, and her hands and feet sped up and turned in, but unfortunately it was too late. The rattan basket, which had lost a quarter of its traction, fell abruptly to the other side. The grasshopper let out a mournful cry, and its hands could no longer support it, and its whole body fell out like this.

The mournful sound was not far away, and in mid-air, a crisp cracking sound was heard.

It turned out that the fight just now made the hanging rope near the rattan basket a mess of twine. When the mayfly fell, its neck went right into one of the rope nooses. The crisp sound was the sound of the body falling suddenly, causing the cervical vertebrae to be strangled.

The rattan basket was still swinging, and Taizhen was slumped at the bottom of the basket, unconscious. Beneath the basket, the last mayfly slumped its head, eyes bulging, and let its body be suspended in mid-air by ropes, squeaking and squeaking over the walls of the night.

All this happened so fast that Xiao Gui didn't react at all when he stood by the wheel. It wasn't until the grasshopper uttered its last cry that he realized something was wrong, and hurried to the edge of the wall in three steps and two steps, and looked into the rattan basket.

Seeing that his last subordinate was also hanged, Xiao Gui was furious. He looked at Taizhen at the bottom of the basket, and at first glance he noticed the small ivory-handled folding knife she was holding tightly in her hand.

Xiao Gui's pupils contracted suddenly, and he remembered that this ivory-handled folding knife was worn by the Son of Heaven on his waist, and it was taken away by Zhang Xiaojing in the Star Picking Palace, but now it fell into Taizhen's hands. What this means is self-evident.

An abnormal flow of air swept past Xiao Gui's ears. He hurriedly turned back, only to see a black shadow rushing towards him with all his might, slamming him out of the city. Xiao Gui was in a hurry, so he could only reluctantly move his body, so that his back was leaning on the flagpole near the flag, barely relying on it.

With this reluctantly won moment, Xiao Gui saw it clearly. It was his old comrade-in-arms Zhang Datou who crashed into him.

"Big head, you ......," Xiao Gui shouted. But the other party had a black face and did not speak. He no longer had the strength to fight, so he had to hold on to the same fate, and used his body as a weapon to crash into him - this was his only choice.

The flagpole barely flicked a finger before it snapped off. These two people and the flag jumped into the air from the head of the east city wall of Chang'an. The banner suddenly caught a gust of wind, unfurled, and fell towards the distance outside the city, just like back then.

At the same time, the first glimmer of dawn appeared on the eastern horizon. The faint morning light projected towards Chang'an City, just in time to illuminate the figures of the two people who fell out of the city in the night.

The street drums in Chang'an City sounded and resounded throughout the city.