*

The sand dunes that are shining brilliantly and golden in the scorching sun stretch out a majestic curve in the yellow sand, stretching from the distant horizon. The eye-catching bright colors and bold and vivid lines form a grand canvas that can never be copied with the brush and ink that is accustomed to depicting the landscapes of the south of the Yangtze River.

The golden yellow that once occupied the eyes of the travelers formed an incredible and wonderful contrast with the leisurely green and the blue lake under the feet at this moment.

This is the closest oasis to Black Sand City, only a few miles away from Black Sand City, whether it is the residents who live in the city or the pedestrians from outside, they will rest and drink horses here, so there are often people coming and going, and it does not give people a desolate and lonely feeling like the vast desert.

At this time, a group of people stopped at the edge of the oasis. There were three or four hundred people in this group, and the momentum was huge, and the Hu and Han people in terms of clothing were mixed, and there were monks, musicians, servants, and people dressed as soldiers.

A pit had been dug in the sand in front of them, and seven or eight monks were burning incense and chanting sutras, and groups of musicians were playing mournful music.

Helan Chu also stopped in front of the pit at this moment. He stood solemnly, his deep eyes were deep and cloudy at the moment, and he couldn't see whether it was a tumbling sea or a deep pool of peace underneath. His expression was still cold, as if he had already known everything that might happen in his life and even in this world, and he was not shocked, sad and joyful, but he seemed to be using this glacial cold to sneer at the blazing desert that had blocked his longing for his family for twenty years.

Behind him were a neat line of Hu Han soldiers and their entourage. Ke Tuyu was also in the team at this moment, standing with a solemn expression. As the messenger of such a major event as the return of the princess's bones, he communicated and liaised for both Turks and the Great Zhou. arranged the itinerary and resolved many potential contradictions, which can be said to have spared no effort, and also earned a little favor and trust from Helan Chu.

The monk finishes chanting. The ceremonial officer stepped forward and bowed to Helan Chu and said, "Master, the great gift has been completed." ”

Helan Chu nodded.

The ceremonial officer immediately commanded aloud: "Open the coffin—"

The ceremonial officer gave the order, and the attendant with a crowbar stepped forward. Come to the pit that has been dug. At the bottom of the pit lay a simple coffin. Although the coffin is only made of a few ordinary wooden planks, it can be regarded as blasphemy for the burial of a princess of the Great Zhou, but you only need to think about it carefully, in such a place where there are only deserts and grasslands, it is not easy to create such a coffin that conforms to the culture of the Han people.

The attendants stuck their heads into the pit. Carefully use the tip of the iron pry to find the right position, and pry it up together. With the crunch of hard wood being broken, the lid of the coffin was pried open.

At that moment, Helan Chu seemed to feel that in the past twenty years. The part of his soul that he didn't know how to put finally fell to the ground.

*

"Husband, don't you regret taking the place of your brother in the first place?"

Under the bright moonlight, Zuo Ying sat in the courtyard of the Ziyang City Inn, leaning on the rockery next to her, looking up at the moon in the sky.

At this time, there were very few merchants coming and going in Ziyang City, so there were not many guests. First, it was not a good time, and secondly, there was such a serious flood in the vicinity. She remembered when they told the shopkeeper that they were silk merchants. The look of sympathy in the shopkeeper's eyes estimated that he must sigh behind his back: "This group of people must have lost all their money." ”

"Hmph, I don't regret it, it's too early to say." Ashina stood by Zuo Ying's side indefinitely—he happened to come out to breathe and pass by here.

Zuo Ying smiled and lowered her head to look at him: "Do you still want to carry my head back?" ”

"Hmph, aren't you afraid?" Ashina stared slightly. "You also gave me the 'Guanxiao' big knife, aren't you afraid that one day, this knife will take off your head?"

Zuo Ying stared at Ashina for a while, not only because of the unique charm that his brown eyes exuded in the clear moonlight, but also because she suddenly realized that among the so many people around her who wanted to take her life, this one was the most honest - a little cute.

"If I was afraid, how could I take you out of the palace with me?" Zuo Ying said with a smile.

"You're provoking me?" Ashina approached Zuo Ying's face indefinitely, and hooked the corners of his lips with a smile, revealing a dangerous aura. His thick and powerful arms seemed to be able to choke Zuo Ying's throat effortlessly at any time.

The dangerous aura exuded from his body seemed to be felt even by Scarlet Feather, who was waiting ten meters away, and he couldn't help but hold his hand on the saber.

Zuo Ying did not evade, and returned the salute with a sly smile.

"Hmph, you asked me to go out of the palace with you, not at all as you said 'reward', but worried that I would cause you trouble in the palace."

Zuo Ying suddenly fell silent, she frowned, tilted her head and thought for a while, and said thoughtfully: "Husband, what kind of animal do you have there that will 'hum, hum, hum' all day long?" ”

Ashina was puzzled: "What animal? ”

"In our place, only pigs are 'hum, hum, hum' all day long." Zuo Ying teased.

Ashina didn't react at this time, Zuo Ying was making fun of him, and just wanted to follow the habit to "hum" angrily, but he swallowed the "hum" from his nose.

"Husband, I asked you to travel with you, it's really worrying about one thing." Zuo Ying restrained her smile and said seriously: "But this matter is not that you will cause me trouble, but that I am worried that someone will trouble you and even want to kill you." ”

"Alarmist." Ashina glanced at Zuo Ying with disdain. Despite saying this, he jumped on the rocks beside Zuo Ying and sat down, "Who do I have a grudge against?" Who will take my life? ”

Of course, Zuo Ying knows that body language is the most honest language.

"Husband, do you know what 'troubled times' are?" Zuo Ying looked into the distance and said in a gentle tone: "The world that can make people who are originally affectionate also wave knives at each other, and let people who have no grudges kill each other to death is a troubled era." Today, we are in a 'troubled world without war'. ”

Although what Zuo Ying said was more obscure and esoteric to Ashina Wuji, thinking of what Li Yunshen said to him that day, whether he believed it or not, he could probably understand what she meant.

"Hmph," Ashina still couldn't change his habit of using this pronunciation word frequently, "I said that it was a mistake for you to leave the palace at this time. Halfway through, he left his military entourage behind, and what did he do to 'visit without wearing court clothes'? It's just a mistake on top of a mistake. ”

Although she was criticized, the corners of Zuo Ying's mouth curled - this person who was always not interested in the affairs of the palace and the court actually expressed his opinion on her today, and she felt that it was a good signal.

"Husband, please speak, I will listen to you."

Ashina Wuji has the grandeur of the pre-war deployment and said: "That Helan Chu went to the desert to find his mother's bones, and he must not be in the court for at least a month. Since he's so threatening to you, why don't you take this opportunity to get rid of him? I don't know what method to use, anyway, you Da Zhou people have a way. Okay, even if you give up this opportunity to get rid of him, don't give him a chance to get rid of you. Like now, there are only a few people around you, how easy it would be for Helan Chu to send someone to kill you! I can think of these methods! ”

Zuo Ying smiled appreciatively.

She nodded and said, "Yes, there are many ways to get rid of him. I can poison the wine that I practiced for him, and let him repay it and kill him on the spot. I can also ask Ke Tuyu to make an agreement with the Khan of Baibu to ambush the soldiers halfway and pretend to be thieves or Tuyuhun's thieves to cover up Helan Chu and his party, take his life, and after the matter is completed, give the Khan a heavy reward. I can also take the opportunity to gather the ministers and confess his crimes of killing the king and monopolizing the government, and exterminate his traitorous party, so that even if he is not beheaded in the city, he will flee for the rest of his life......"

These methods made Ashina feel a chill in his heart when he heard it indefinitely-this little empress is really vicious!

"But I can't do that." Zuo Ying changed her words and said, "Because, I need him." I said in front of the ministers that the Great Zhou can be free for a day, but not for a day, and that is not a lie. ”

Speaking of this, Zuo Ying couldn't help but recall the day when Helan Chu kowtowed in front of the ministers to thank her for saving her life, and recalled that she grabbed the knife to save him.

In fact, it wasn't until she opened her eyes from the coma that Zuo Ying recalled her actions of snatching the blade at that time, and she also felt unreal, but her mentality at that time was clearly calm, without the slightest impulse under the hot head. She wasn't ready for the uproar that might ensue in the court after Helan Chu's assassination, and she did think that it would be better for Helan Chu to be of her use than to defeat him...... If she had to say the consideration and reasonableness of what she did, she could justify herself without far-fetchedness, but the truth was that she didn't have time to weigh it all at that time, and her body had already pounced on it at the last moment.

Perhaps, it was because she gradually realized that at least so far, this court could not play without Helan Chu, at least not as well as with him. Even if she has the ability to wipe out the Helan Chu Group, it will be difficult to clean up the rest of the mess. His power has long been intricately penetrated into every organ of the imperial court, and cutting him off is not a matter of breaking the muscles and bones, but the extent of digging out the heart and lungs.

once again gave a reasonable explanation for that incident, and Zuo Ying's heart was a little more steady.

"As for why we want to ...... private interview?"

Before Zuo Ying's words were finished, something seemed to be wrong on Scarlet Feather's side.

*

*(To be continued.) If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendation and monthly passes, and your support is my biggest motivation. )