When Cen Yin came out of the imperial study, it was already noon, and a round of red sun hung high in the sky, reflecting the red unicorn robe on Cen Yin's body more and more dazzling, and the gold thread on the robe was shining.

Cen Yin took the little scorpion back to the celebrant first.

Four or five celebrant supervisors and subordinates of the East Factory had been waiting there for a long time, and when they heard that the overseer was coming, they came to the study to report it.

Cen Yin's study in the celebrant is not only spacious, but also very elegantly arranged, there are several tall Huanghuali bookshelves on both sides of the wall, the bookshelves are full of all kinds of books, the middle of the study is a big Huanghuali bookcase, there are two small square tables and four circle chairs in the window, one of the square tables also has a blue and white porcelain fish tank, and a few red and black goldfish are swaying in the fish tank

If you don't know this, I'm afraid you still think that this is the study of the son of a family!

In the study, there was a strong smell of books, and with Cen Yin's return, a faint fragrance of tea was added to the air.

A small waiter neatly served Cen Yin tea, in the steaming tea cup, the tea soup was clear and clear, the fragrance was clear and mellow, and when you saw and smelled it, you knew that it was good tea.

Cen Yin elegantly picked up the blue and white porcelain teacup and took a sip of tea unhurriedly, quite a bit of leisurely Yunyun Wild Crane.

In contrast, Cao Youxian and the others on the other side of the bookcase all looked serious, and they didn't even dare to take a breath.

"Overseer, those Nanhuai spies have already recruited all the recruits, and it is estimated that they will not be able to squeeze out anything" Cao Youxian respectfully clenched his fists at Cen Yin, and took the lead in asking for instructions, "Look, I don't know what to do?" ”

The other people beside Cao Youxian lowered their eyebrows, and they didn't dare to glance at them, just staring at the tips of their shoes silently.

Cen Yin took another sip of tea, his narrow eyes were as deep and cold as the still water of a cold pool, and he gave five words lightly: "Send them on the road." ”

He said lightly, and Cao Youxian replied solemnly: "Yes, Overseer." ”

Several lives were wiped out in a few words, but no one in the room showed a little emotion, and it was as calm as ever.

After all, are there still fewer people who die under the guillotines of their East Factory? What's more, these are still a few Nanhuai spies, even if they are cut by a thousand cuts, they deserve it!

Cao Youxian quietly retreated, and then another middle-aged eunuch in his forties stepped forward and said respectfully: "Lord, the folds presented from all over the country yesterday have been sorted out one by one."

While the middle-aged eunuch spoke, another chubby little chamberlain respectfully presented a thick fold.

According to Dasheng's rules, all the folds must be sent to the celebrant first, and the celebrant will select them first, and classify them, either return, present, or leave them unsent

At this moment, these folds presented by the little chamberlain are sandwiched with ribbons and notes of different colors, which are the notes left by the eunuchs after the eunuchs of the celebrant have sorted out the folds, and the color of the ribbon is used to indicate the urgency of the matter.

Cen Yin put down the teacup in his hand, and took the lead in turning over the folds with red ribbons at will, he had to deal with the folds played by these officials every day, and he had been very proficient all year round, looking down at ten lines at a glance

In the study, there was no sound, and the other people did not dare to say anything, and waited quietly on the side, only to hear the rustle of the folds echoing in the room.

After about a stick of incense, Cen Yin took out four folds from the folds, and ordered with the corners of his mouth slightly upturned: "These books will be discussed by the cabinet." ”

"Yes, Overseer." Seeing Cen Yin's gentle expression, the middle-aged eunuch secretly breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, and hurriedly responded.

After that, Cen Yin took out two more folds and ordered the little scorpion to be sent to the imperial front, and as for the rest, he directly stamped the emperor's imperial pen Zhu Pi.

By the time all these trivial matters are taken care of, it will be almost time.

In front of the bookcase, I don't know when there was another young eunuch in his twenties with a thin body.

The young eunuch saw Cen Yin put aside the last batch of folds, so he stepped forward and said, "Governor, the military department just sent someone to ask if this year's Beijing Camp Military Parade is feasible at the end of March. ”

Most of the military parades in Beijing in previous years were also at this time, and the young eunuch thought that this was just a trivial matter that followed the old routine, but he didn't expect Cen Yin to show a deep groan, and said slowly: "This seat is about to leave Beijing, and this matter will be talked about after this seat returns to Beijing." ”

Several eunuchs and chamberlains in the room were all shocked, and subconsciously looked at each other, and immediately guessed that Cen Yin must have been ordered to go out of Beijing on an errand.

The middle-aged eunuch squeezed out a flattering smile, and eagerly asked himself: "Overseer, it is better for your subordinates to accompany the overseer."

Several other people also scrambled to say: "Overseer, subordinates wish"

Cen Yin's narrow eyes narrowed, and he raised his hand to signal them to silence.

Almost instantly, the sound in the room became silent again, as if it had been sucked away in an instant.

The eunuchs stood frozen on the spot, lest they had said something wrong.

Cen Yin said lightly: "The stakes are very high, and we must go alone from this seat." ”

The others didn't dare to say more, they all responded again and again, and then the young eunuch said earnestly: "Then the subordinate will immediately go to help the overseer prepare the horse and the car." ”

The others felt a sense of chagrin in their hearts, feeling that they had missed another opportunity to be courteous.

Cen Yin stood up, casually dusted off the dust that didn't exist at all, and said, "The car doesn't have to be." ”

The implication is that this horse is to be prepared.

The young eunuch only agreed, and hurried down to prepare his horse.

Several other people in the study hurriedly said that during the days when Cen Yin was out of Beijing, they would definitely be cautious and cautious, and after showing their loyalty, they reluctantly resigned.

Cen Yin did not leave immediately, but entered the inner room of the study, which was an inner room for resting, with beds, tables, tables, chairs, bowls, jars, bottles and basins, all lacking.

He changed into a royal blue moire carved silk brocade robe in the inner room, took a small baggage, and then left the celebrant priest.

As for the young eunuch, he was already waiting under the eaves, and walked towards the palace gate with Cen Yin.

The young eunuch cautiously lagged half a step behind, and as he watched his words, he spoke:

"Overseer, my subordinates specially asked someone to prepare a sweaty horse for you, although you can't travel thousands of miles a day, but it is also a rare good horse, but you can run for a day and a night without exhaustion."

"This BMW is a good horse selected from the northwest by the Imperial Horse Supervisor, and it is better than the Liaodong horse."

Another little chamberlain who followed behind saw the young eunuch chattering endlessly, and secretly glared at him from behind, and said in his heart: Flattery! This horse was originally an errand for their royal horse supervisor, and whoever asked his celebrant to overstep the rules!

The little chamberlain racked his brains to interject into it, thought about it and thought about it, and suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and then the other party's words said: "Overseer, my subordinates think that this Liaodong horse and the northwest horse have their own merits. Speaking of which, my subordinates have heard that the eldest girl of the Duanmu family is asking which horse farm in Liaodong is going to be sold."

Cen Yin's steps were slight, and he looked at the little chamberlain with great interest, and sighed, "You are well-informed. ”

The little chamberlain also knew that his overseer had a good relationship with the two girls in Duanmu Mansion, so he interjected, but he didn't expect to be praised by the overseer.

He smiled happily and said cleverly: "Overseer, why don't you help Duanmu Miss ask if you want your subordinates?"

Cen Yin smiled slightly, did not speak, and continued to stride forward.

The little chamberlain is not a stupid person, of course he understands Cen Yin's intentions, and smiles brighter, today he really unintentionally inserted willows and willows, not only won the praise of the overseer, but also got a new errand. He has to go back to the Bodhisattva to make a vow!

As he spoke, several people led by Cen Yin had already arrived at the gate of the palace, and an eleven or twelve-year-old waiter was waiting there with a tall and vigorous red horse.

"You don't have to send it again."

Cen Yin took the horse, casually sent the men, and walked unhurriedly north, strolling leisurely.

The young eunuchs in the rear did not dare to continue to follow, but they did not retreat, and they all stood at the palace gate and respectfully watched Cen Yin leave.

After turning a corner, the palace gate behind him was completely out of sight, and Cen Yin continued to walk forward.

When he was far away from the palace gate and those chamberlains, the aura around him seemed to have undergone a subtle change, as if a sharp sword was put into a richly decorated scabbard, elegant and leisurely like an ordinary prince of a family, except for his overly gorgeous face, which was really eye-catching, and wherever he passed, he was always the focus of everyone's attention.

On the street, pedestrians came and went, bustling, and lively, Cen Yin simply did not get on the horse, and led the horse slowly all the way.

Pedestrian and horse-drawn carriages came and went endlessly.

After passing by Cen Yin's side, a black-painted flat-headed carriage suddenly stopped two feet away, and the curtain on one side of the carriage was lifted from the inside, revealing a beautiful face, and he whispered in surprise: "Master Cen Gongzi!" ”

Cen Yin didn't stop, and continued to walk forward with the flow of people, not hurrying, as if he hadn't heard of it.

The girl in the carriage looked at the tall back like a bamboo and was ashamed, and suddenly lowered the curtain, her face was not very good-looking.

The air in the carriage was cold.

"Fifth girl," the maid beside her pouted a little indignantly, and said angrily, "That Cen Yin is just a eunuch, what's the big deal, the slave doesn't have to give him face after seeing the girl!" Some people just don't have a face! The slave maid has long heard that those eunuchs are yin and yang monsters."

"Enough!" Geng Tinglian glared at the maid in displeasure and interrupted her.

The maid flattened her mouth, still feeling unfair for her master, but she was silent after all.

In the carriage, there was silence for a while, only to hear the noise of the street coming one after another, disturbing one after another, like the sound of the waves on the sea, the noise did not stop.

The carriage of the Patriotic Mansion continued to move forward, making a regular sound of wheeling.

Geng Tinglian looked stunned, and muttered as if to herself: "Actually, I always feel that he is a little familiar. ”

She searched her memory repeatedly, but she still couldn't remember if she had seen Cen Yin anywhere in the past

However, as they saw each other again and again, she felt that this familiarity became stronger and stronger, but she could not remember where or when.

Sometimes, Geng Tinglian herself couldn't figure out whether it was because she was confused by Cen Yin's alluring appearance that she had this illusion, or if she had really seen him

Geng Tinglian couldn't help but open the curtains again and looked back, eagerly searching for his back in the crowd on the street, her eyes burning.

The Buddha said that it took 500 times to look back in the past life in exchange for the passing of this life.

She only hoped that Cen Yin would look back at her again, even if it was a glance.

Geng Tinglian watched Cen Yin's royal blue back fade away without blinking, his slender and upright figure stood out in the crowd, so elegant, so eye-catching, like the pride of heaven favored by God.

However, Cen Yin never looked back.

Geng Tinglian bit her lower lip slightly, feeling indescribable disappointment and frustration in her heart.

Still so.

Cen Yin had never paid attention to himself, as if he was just an ant among all living beings in his eyes, and it was not worth his trouble at all.

She is the concubine of the Weiguo Mansion, she has grown up like a star and moon since she was a child, and no one has ever treated her like this for more than ten years. She didn't understand why he would rather show his face to that Duanmujun

Geng Tinglian clutched the curtain in her hand tightly, and watched Cen Yin's figure slowly be engulfed by the crowd in a daze

Cen Yin in front walked two more streets and walked out of the city through the north gate.

He quickly turned over his horse, and then subconsciously glanced back in the direction of the city gate, the banners on the city wall fluttered in the breeze, and the hunting sounded as if to welcome and farewell.

The chamberlain was not allowed to leave the capital without a will, and he had not left the capital for eight years, except for his chauffeur.

Suddenly, Cen Yin resolutely turned around, clamped the horse's belly, and the red horse under the crotch galloped out like an arrow from the string, and the horse's hooves flew away.

"Gotta get it"

Cen Yin went all the way north, hurried during the day, and rested at the post station at night, and after five days of driving, he finally arrived at the foot of the Changbi Mountain Range, which was thousands of miles away.

Different from the prosperity of the capital, the Changbi Mountains seem to be another world, as far as the eye can see, only green mountains and green trees and clear water, people are rare, the surrounding mountains and forests seem to isolate the hustle and bustle of the world, almost like the deep mountains and old forests.

On this day, Cen Yin set off from Jin Xingcheng early in the morning, galloping out of fifty or sixty miles non-stop, at first there were some fields and villages around Jin Xingcheng, but now the sun is sinking in the west, and there have been no people and carriages around for a long time.

"Gotta get it"

Cen Yin rode his horse tirelessly, and when the sun was about to set, a small town finally appeared in front of him.

At the entrance of the town hangs a dilapidated plaque with illegible handwriting, on which are written in black paint in three large characters:

Nan shan.

Cen Yin pulled the horse rope and stopped the horse.

The red horse let out a tired neighing sound while pacing the horse's hooves, and Cen Yin on the horseback looked up at the three big characters, and a sharp light flashed quickly in his dark eyes.

He turned over neatly and dismounted, and led the red horse into the town.

It was a deserted and old town, walking along a street that was not very wide, with scattered shops on both sides, almost half closed, and the road was covered with gravel and fallen leaves, and there were few pedestrians at all.

As soon as Cen Yin entered the town, he attracted scrutinizing eyes from both sides of the street, and the air underwent a subtle change as if a thunderclap had exploded all around.

"Mother, I'm going to be born! Afterlife! ”

A little boy of seven or eight years old, dressed in a patched coarse cloth robe, pointed at Cen Yin and shouted excitedly, the child's crisp voice was especially loud in this empty town.

On both sides of the street, the wooden doors and windows that were originally half-closed and half-closed were opened several times, and men, women, and children all poked their heads out to look, and more eyes looked at Cen Yin, a "living person".

The yelling boy ran over happily, and he was not afraid to talk to Cen Yin: "Brother, you are so good-looking, my name is Gou Yu, are you here to find someone in our Nanshan Town?" ”

"Do you want me to show you the way?"

"All you have to do is buy me a meat bun to eat."

"Otherwise, you can give me a piece of maltose."

The boy named "Gou Yu" followed Cen Inche and chattered like a cheerful little sparrow.

Cen Yin didn't say a word from beginning to end, casually untied a dark purse from his waist, threw it at the boy, and continued to walk forward without stopping.

The dog subconsciously reached out and grabbed the purse.

He eagerly untied his purse, muttering in his mouth: "Sugar Candy" However, his fingers took out a few silver bills from his purse.

"It's not sugar." Gou Yu slumped his shoulders in disappointment and looked at the silver coin in his palm with disgust. What's the use of silver in this hellish place where birds don't poop?!

"Brother, do you have any sugar?"

The dog looked eagerly at Cen Yin, and at this time, Cen Yin had already walked seven or eight feet away, and walked towards the back hill at the other end of the town with a clear goal.

"Brother" Gouyu still wanted to catch up, but found that his arm was tight, and a young woman in Tsing Yi in her twenties grabbed his wrist and looked at the purse embroidered with a four-clawed python pattern in his hand with deep eyes.

At some point, more people walked out of the house onto the street, men, women and children, with different descriptions, all looking in the direction of the back hill with complicated expressions, as if waiting for something.

"Mother, this purse is mine." The dog swallowed his saliva, feeling as if his wrist was being shackled by an iron clip, even if he would be beaten, he still said bravely.

He was answered by silence.

The surroundings were a little silent, and there were obviously many people standing on this long street, but there was silence.

The sunset had already set for the most part, the sky above was dark, the town below was half-light and half-dark, and there was an eerie atmosphere around him.

"Quack!"

In the distance, the rough cries of several crows were heard, one after the other, and the air gradually became a little cold.

"Gollum"

Suddenly, a loud gut-in-one roar sounded in the streets, causing everyone to subconsciously follow the sound.

Gou Yu was a little embarrassed to be looked at by so many people, touched his belly, and said, "I'm hungry"

Before he could finish speaking, he heard a "whoosh" sound from behind him, as if something had torn the air.

Everyone didn't care about the dogs, and they all looked up at the sky, and saw the direction of the mountain behind, and an orange-red fireworks rushed straight into the sky from the mountain, like a lightning bolt tearing the night sky.

"Bang!"

The fireworks exploded in the night sky, bursting into a huge firework, and the orange-red sparks suddenly scattered in all directions, decorating the night sky so brilliantly and brilliantly.

"Mother, fireworks, fireworks!" Gou Yu excitedly pointed to the night sky above with his other little finger and barked, "What a firework! ”

Immediately after, there were two more "whoosh, whoosh" sounds, and two identical fireworks rose up quickly, exploding in the night sky almost at the same time, and the surroundings seemed to be lit up.

The dog was even more excited, applauding happily, and his little face was flushed.

On the street, those people who had been standing quietly for a long time like stone sculptures suddenly had some movement, and more than a dozen figures came out of the crowd, including old people, middle-aged people, young people, and women

These ten people all walked towards the direction of the back mountain together, their expressions were serious, and a solemn aura naturally emanated from them.

"Mother"

The dog in the back looked at the back of the young woman in Tsing Yi who was gradually moving away, and a middle-aged man beside him rubbed the top of his hair soothingly, and said meaningfully in a low voice: "Didn't you always say that you wanted to go out to play?" ”

Ten people, including the young woman in Tsing Yi, came to the back mountain familiarly, and after nightfall, it was pitch black all around, but no one went to get torches or light lamps, they came directly to a cave along a path in the back mountain.

Outside the cave, a red horse was grazing leisurely under a big tree, and the vines that had been used to cover the cave entrance had been torn aside in a messy way.

In the cave, the dim candlelight is lit, and the candle flame jumps slightly in the night wind, sometimes bright and sometimes dark, and the air is heavy and very dignified.

The ten men exchanged glances with each other and went into the cave.

The cave is very spacious, three or four zhang wide, and the top of the cave is more than one zhang high, so as not to give people too strong a sense of oppression.

The cave was roughly cleaned up, like a small hall, with chairs on either side, an incense table in the center, and a tablet at the desk.

At this moment, the two incense candles on the candlestick on the desk were lit, and a young man in a blue robe stood in front of the incense case, solemnly bowing his head to the tablet and offering incense.

The ten people in the back looked at the young man in front of them with deep eyes, although they didn't know who this person was, but since he had found this place, he had opened the secret door of the cave, and even knew how to fire the corresponding signal flare, which meant

He was supposed to be sent by "that man".

Otherwise, there are things that the person would not have known unless there was no word of mouth from "that person".

Now, all that's left is one last "thing".

The ten people were all silent and waited quietly, anyway, they had been waiting for more than ten years, and they were not in a hurry.

Cen Yin didn't seem to hear the footsteps behind him, and completed the incense action one by one, as if he was carrying out an extremely important ritual.

After he inserted the three sticks of incense into the incense burner, he slowly turned around, looked at the ten people standing in two rows in front of him, and smiled.

The jumping firelight cast a strange shadow on his flawless face, but instead set off his whole person more and more gorgeous and charming, like the fox demon in the mountains and wilderness, so beautiful that people can hardly breathe.

The breathing around seemed to have stopped, and there was a dead silence.

Cen Yin took out a golden carved dragon token from his sleeve, and the dim candle flame plated the golden token with a faint halo, making it look as if it was glowing.

One side of the token is engraved with a word shadow.

The eyes of the ten people fell on the token, froze for a moment, and then exchanged glances with each other.

One last thing is here!

"See the Commander!"

A bearded middle-aged man took the lead in kneeling, and the other nine also knelt on the cold hard ground, shouting in unison, their neat voices echoing in the cave.

The ten people all bowed their heads and clenched their fists, looking respectful.

Their shadow guards were set up by the first emperor, and they were divided into a total of ten guards, and ten of them were the guards of these ten guards.

According to the rules set by the first emperor, whoever holds this token is the leader of the shadow guard, and they must obey each other's orders.

It's been more than ten years, since the death of Emperor Chongming, these people have been waiting in this town for more than ten years as if they were "forgotten".

They almost thought that this wait would be endless, but they didn't expect that someone from the capital finally came!

In the cave, there was a dead silence again, and there was no sound except for the sound of the evening breeze blowing the branches and leaves outside

I don't know how long it took, but a feminine male voice suddenly sounded from above his head:

"No courtesy."

The sound seems to be near and far away, as if it has traveled through more than ten years of time.