"I'm really self-aware." Lian Ji smiled and said sarcastically: "Although the news of your conversion to the Turks is difficult to verify, at this time, of course, the imperial court would rather believe what you have than what you don't. The ghosts and deserts in Western Xinjiang have all been lost, and the Turkic Khan has personally issued an edict to confirm it, so what reason is there not to condemn you as a traitor? It's just that everyone thinks that the wanted warrant is also white-haired, and your old An An is hiding in the western Xinjiang, and he is in cahoots and collusion with Xu Youchang, who killed the commander of He Jingming, and no one can cross the Turkic camp to arrest you. ”

Li Jiangyao nodded helplessly: "Hey, that's the same." I originally thought that when I came back, I could say good things for Lao Xu and explain to the court, but I didn't expect that my reputation was even more stinky than his. Oh, by the way, Lian Ji, you've never seen me, so how can you be sure that I'm the real Li Jiangyao? ”

Lian Ji laughed and said, "You can impersonate anything these days, but no one is stupid enough to impersonate you." Didn't the officer of the Long Knife Army also say it today, whether it's true or not, let's kill it directly. However, I can be sure that you are the fake Li Jiangyao. ”

"Oh, so sure? Why? Li Jiangyao was a little curious.

Lian Ji pouted at his side and smiled, "Of course it's to look at weapons." The famous Zhenjiang guards the 'Star Falling Knife', and the appearance alone is quite good. ”

Li Jiangyao was slightly stunned, and then gave a thumbs up: "Awesome." Not only have I heard of Shen Lie, but I also recognize the star falling knife, dare to love you as an old Jianghu, disrespectful and disrespectful. ”

"You can't stop eating it." Lian Ji said as she stuffed a large piece of rabbit meat into Li Jiangyao's mouth: "I've seen a lot of things, but I can't hurt you, why do I care so much?" ”

Li Jiangyao experienced the deliciousness of roast rabbit and asked, "Well, speaking of which, where are you going to go?" I guess it won't be long before you'll be about the same as me, and the wanted warrants will be posted all over the world. ”

Lian Ji was stunned for a while, and suddenly said: "I don't know why, there are some things that shouldn't be told to you, an outsider, but I vaguely feel that even if I talk to you, it doesn't hurt." I assassinated Cheng Kaiyang, in fact, to repay someone's kindness. Now that the mission is complete, I don't owe him anything. After that, I decided to go to the eastern capital of Luoyi and find my sister. ”

"Oh, your sister is in Luoyi, did she marry over there?" Li Jiangyao asked casually.

"Almost," replied Lian Ji, "we two sisters have been together less and more since we were children, and I want to let go of everything and spend some time with her." ”

Li Jiangyao seemed a little worried about her: "Anyway, Luoyi is also one of the best big cities, if you are really wanted, won't it cause trouble for my sister to go there?" ”

Lian Ji smiled: "That's not afraid!" Now that the prince of Dongdu is in prison, he is fighting against the imperial court, and the wanted documents issued by the government may not be easy to use in Luoyi. Besides, I heard that my brother-in-law is a close minister of the crown prince and has a lot of power, what is called 'light on the high lamp', do you understand? ”

Li Jiangyao smiled bitterly and shook his head: "I don't understand." You said that the prince was in charge of the country, and I was confused. I've been away for too long and I don't know anything. ”

Lian Ji understood that a few years ago, Li Jiangyao and his subordinates had been trapped there in the chaos in Western Xinjiang, so the news was blocked, and she didn't know what happened to Shengtang at all. Anyway, now that he has a full stomach and has nothing to do, he simply set up a dragon gate array for Li Jiangyao with great interest, and told several major events over the years.

Unexpectedly, this statement didn't matter, and directly stunned Li Jiangyao.

Who would have predicted that in just three years, the Holy Tang Dynasty had undergone earth-shaking changes, no wonder the ghost desert in Western Xinjiang had fallen for so long, and the imperial court had not even sent a single soldier, as if it had directly given up the thousands of miles of mountains and rivers.

Although most of the stories told by Lian Ji are just folk speculation and gossip, and do not touch the real inside story of the core of the political arena, even this kind of false news is enough for Li Jiangyao to understand the general situation.

From this point of view, the confessions that Shen Lie interrogated from the mouth of Zait, the leader of the horse thieves, were by no means fabricated, but were all confirmed one by one.

It's a pity that Shen Lie and him are one step late.

Shen Lie was a step too late, and failed to save the Great Commander He Jingming, nor did he fail to stop the occurrence of the Imperial Capital Incident.

Li Jiangyao was a step too late and failed to inform Zhang Sanpi's deputy capital protector in time to detect the Turkic conspiracy in the Battle of Crescent Bay.

People who are surrounded by history only know how to rush forward in a hurry, and it is not until they stop and look back that they suddenly realize what they have missed, and they can truly experience the sense of powerless fate at that time.

Li Jiangyao pondered for a moment, and sighed faintly: "Alas, according to what you say, the imperial court is indeed constantly compromising, tolerating the crown prince and Xie Guang step by step, and letting them act arbitrarily. It was precisely because the two of them were hindered in the rear that the 150,000 Saint Tang soldiers died in vain in Crescent Bay! Now, these two people have made a Jinhe project, which is clearly a waste of national strength and creates opportunities for the Turks. Shameless scum! ”

As he spoke, he slammed his fist to the ground, full of pain and resentment.

Lian Ji looked at him thoughtfully, stopped talking, and waited for a while before saying, "Don't be angry." National affairs, national affairs, since there is a word 'big', it means that there is nothing we can do about these little people. I often hear others say that both the country and the people have their own fortunes, and sometimes it is impossible to escape the catastrophe, and it will not help you to get angry. ”

Li Jiangyao bowed slightly: "You're right, it's useless to think too much." I sneaked back to the Central Plains with the intention of reporting the movements of the Turks to the imperial court. But as it stands, with my status, I'm afraid it's useless to say it, and they will wonder if I'm spreading false information. Rather than this, it is better to ......"

He thought to himself: It's better to go to Luoyi and find a chance to kill Li Bing and Xie Guang! These two brutes killed He Jingming and killed more than 100,000 Saint Tang soldiers. Killing them not only avenges the teacher, but also removes the constraints of the imperial court and clears the way for the imminent outbreak of the war.

At the same time, Li Jiangyao also considered another problem: the woman named Lianji in front of her was also very suspicious. Take the target of her assassination as an example, Cheng Kaiyang is a royal nobleman, although the official style is loose, but after all, he is a loyal martyr, and he is open-minded and kind, and rarely makes a big enemy who does not take his life.

Therefore, the reason for Zhen Guogong's assassination is likely to be the same as He Jingming's, because of his current identity - the commander of the Long Knife Army!

As the commander-in-chief stationed on the front line of the two passes, Cheng Kaiyang died, and the biggest beneficiaries were the Turks and traitors in the court. It can be seen from this that the so-called benefactor behind Lian Ji, the mastermind behind the murder of Cheng Kaiyang, must be inextricably linked with the Turks or Xie Guang.

Lian Ji is friend or foe, and there is still a gap between the two, but her benefactor must be the great enemy of Saint Tang!

So, Li Jiangyao secretly made up his mind and walked with Lian Ji all the way, first went to Luoyi to see the situation, and by the way, found out the person behind Lian Ji. Thinking of this, he pretended to smile casually: "Why don't I follow you and take the opportunity to go shopping in the Eastern Capital." If it's fun, stay longer, and if it's not fun, I'll either continue to Jiangnan, or go back to the west to become a lord. ”

Lian Ji didn't guess his thoughts, but she just felt that walking with Li Jiangyao was very fresh and exciting, so she couldn't help but say shyly: "It's good, but let's go together alone, we have to avoid the city and the county, and pick those inaccessible places, what kind of relationship is it." ”

Li Jiangyao couldn't help but laugh dumbly. If this Lianji is not born like this, then she must have been deliberately cultivated and trained to be like this. is provocative at every turn, and hangs a man's appetite all the time, so that it makes people's hearts itch.

"Just think I'm the bodyguard you hired." Li Jiangyao smiled and said, "Send you to the place safely, and reward me with three melons and two dates." ”

Lian Ji snorted: "How can a bodyguard like you be able to afford an ordinary silver tael?" I don't have that much money, so don't let me compensate you in any other way. ”

Li Jiangyao saw that she was still teasing herself, and replied nonchalantly: "In what way, let's talk about it when we get to Dongdu, maybe I will have to compensate you." ”

As he spoke, he threw the cloak on his body and threw it to Lian Ji with shaking hands: "It's cold at night here, you can rest with it, be careful not to catch a cold." I'll go to sleep first. ”

Touching the cloak that was still warm, Lian Ji glanced at Li Jiangyao, who had turned over and fell asleep, and said with a smile: "I can't see it, I still know how to pity the fragrance and cherish the jade." ”

-

The next day, Li Jiangyao and Lian Ji set off early in the morning and headed for Luoyang.

Although they deliberately avoided densely populated towns and avenues, they inevitably had to stay on the road, and naturally they heard a lot of villagers chatting and bragging.

The more you go to the Central Plains, the more news from all walks of life flies.

The hottest rumor is that the court and the prince directly tore their faces, and the armies of the two sides are facing each other on the front line of Michi at this time, and war may break out at any time.

Compared with this matter, Cheng Kaiyang, the prince of Zhenguo who was killed by the concubine, is nothing more.

Because she was worried about her sister's safety, Lian Ji was afraid that the war would spread to Luoyi, so she discussed with Li Jiangyao if she could find a market town, buy two good horses, and hurry up along the galloping road.

Li Jiangyao was also concerned about the situation of the civil war and readily agreed. So, the two managed to find their foot strength, and in order to bypass the Michi battlefield in the east of Luoyi, they diverted to Yichuan and turned from the south to the eastern capital.

At this time, Luoyi, the eastern capital, was not as rumored before, and people were panicked everywhere.

On the contrary, it is still a thriving scene.

The rows of shops were thriving, the streets were bustling, and the officers and soldiers guarding the city gates were not deliberately guarded against the enemy, as long as they paid the entry tax, even if they had swords on their bodies, they could enter and exit at will.

In fact, if you think about it carefully, the current situation is not difficult to understand.

After all, all the troops participating in the war were gathered in Michi, a few hundred miles away, and the war seemed to be far away from everyone. What's more, both sides are Shengtang people, and no matter who wins, the emperor is still surnamed Li.

Therefore, for the people of Luoyi, there is no tension about the imminent war, and the only change may be that the price of rice has risen a few points recently.

That's all.