Under the dangerous peak to the west of Ruoshui City, there is a vast forest, which is inaccessible and the scenery is beautiful. At the beginning of the founding of the Rong Kingdom, it was classified as a hunting ground for the royal family, and the buildings in the field were readily available, in addition to hunting activities, Emperor Rong set this as a summer resort.

In addition to the members of the royal family, officials and their wives above the third rank participated in the hunt, and the gentlemen and directors of the four halls of the academy were among them.

The Ministry of Rites watched the time, fired the salute, and the hundred officials set off from the imperial city with the Son of Heaven, and the palace guards led by Ge Yiyan escorted them westward, passing through the long streets, and the people along the streets were crowded, shouting long live.

The flags covered the sun, the military horses stepped on the sound, and they left Kyoto all the way.

Su Yan lifted the corner of the curtain and looked back, if the water city tower was only left with the dazzling five-color flag, the same scene as when she left that year.

Ah Yu tinkered with the luggage for a long time, picked up the copper kettle like a big fat man, and said with a smile: "Fortunately, I'm witty, I hid under my ass when they checked the carriage and escaped a catastrophe, these are enough for Mr. to eat for half a month!" ”

Su Yan stretched out his index finger and tapped the copper kettle, making a buzzing sound. She couldn't help but disgust: "This is not enough for me to drink for three days, you can keep it for yourself." There are so many dignitaries and nobles in the hunting ground, if you drink your head, you don't know if you run out to hook up with a young man! He laughed secretly.

Ah Yu blushed suddenly, and stuffed the copper kettle into her arms. Su Yan still said endlessly: "Ah! The little son of Dali Siqing has not married yet, not bad~"

"People are big families, how dare I climb high, sir, aren't you a fantasy!"

"Neither nor not!" Su Yan began to enlighten this girl who was full of feudal superstition, "Let's take Dali Siqing as an example, his wife, Jinqi's mother-in-law is a maid, and now she is not enjoying all the glory and wealth!" There is also the eldest grandson, the eldest grandson Yue's mother-in-law, she is also born as a maid, although she is not accepted by the family, but at least the eldest grandson loves her and respects her. You still say it's a fantasy? I can tell you, there is no eternal maid in the world, only sparrows who are unwilling to fly up the branches! ”

Ah Yu was thoughtful, and his fingers turned white.

"Why don't you understand, I said you are smart, but you have an elm head! Let's put it this way, as long as you improve your own conditions and let Ruoshui and those young men notice you, you will have the opportunity to choose a good family like the eldest grandson Yue and her mother, and you dare not guarantee prosperity and wealth in the future, but you don't have to be like other maids, return to the countryside after the completion of the construction period, and be forced to marry a bad old man who stepped into the coffin with half his feet! ”

"How can I raise the conditions?" He asked in a wrenched manner.

"My own conditions... You can understand the piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, and you can't cope with it if you have more. In this case, you will go to Shuyoutang to listen in the future, and I will teach you after the class. ”

Ah Yu asked in surprise: "Teach me to make tea?!" ”

Su Yan bowed, and then added: "It's not enough to just make tea, I'll teach you to read again!" ”

"Mr. is so busy, how dare Ah Yu bother you again."

Su Yan hugged her shoulders tightly: "Who of us is with whom, you treat me as a friend, and I treat you as a sister!" Don't dare to say anything in the future, I'm going to be angry! ”

Ah Yu nodded vigorously, and a smile spread on his face: "In the future, Ah Yu must be seriously literate and make tea with heart!" ”

The scenery outside the window regressed rapidly, Ah Yan's eyes looked out from under the curtains, the well-behaved and docile in his eyes gradually disappeared, and his dark face seemed to be covered with sadness, which was the pain of a girl trapped in love, who couldn't ask for it.

Su Yan found the expression on her face flashing, and she was puzzled, and she also looked out the window. The dense Janissaries were nothing unusual, only the young man in military uniform riding a tall horse was interspersed, vigilantly observing the surroundings.

Su Yan retracted his gaze and looked at Ah Yan again, feeling unspeakably uncomfortable.

A horse-drawn carriage of Daise Shuangyuan slowly moved through the procession, and because it was the car of Lord Shangshu, the carriage was able to accompany Emperor Rong's footsteps, followed by the two adults of Zhongshu Province and Menxia Province, as well as the other six adults.

Yan Ling, the head of the Xuanting Palace, turned his horse's head and came to Yuan Qin's carriage, knocked on the window, and without waiting for a response, he first said: "Lord Mo once asked for the elixir of immortality for His Majesty, and then he was able to take on the important task. ”

The men inside paid no heed, and the carriage continued to follow unhurriedly.

Yan Ling snorted coldly and continued to pretend: "Lord Yuan is Mo Fei's protégé, and he has gained trust, but he has been stagnant in the past few years, and I am afraid that this province is going to be handed over, right?" ”

The people inside finally responded, and only heard a heavy voice: "Lord Mo is strict with the prince, and Yan is always dissatisfied, and the whole dynasty knows it, but don't speculate in front of the public, this is not good for the prince, please think twice!" ”

Yan Lingzi didn't take him seriously. Since the beginning of the elixir of life, His Majesty began to ignore the government and gave full power to the three provinces headed by Murphy and the crown prince, and the crown prince had little power in his hands to fight. Xuanting was ordered by the emperor to protect His Majesty and the East Palace, and the safety of His Majesty and the crown prince is his duty! He hated Murphy to the core, but no matter how hard he tried, every time he finally got the tip, it was ruined in the blink of an eye! The ears and eyes sent out were all different in a few days! In the past three years, the palace, the three provinces and the six departments have been thoroughly penetrated by Murphy's ears and eyes, and I am afraid that the only place that is still clean is the Xuan Court.

But over time, even Xuan Ting began to be powerless, and in the face of the ubiquitous Mo Party, no one knows how long they can hold out.

Yan Ling smiled and said gloomily: "Think twice? It was because of thinking twice about everything that so many colleagues were buried. He stretched out his hand to lift the corner of the curtain and peeked at the cunning old face, which was very much like Murphy, and couldn't help but feel disgusted, "Lord Yuan, don't panic, I'm just joking!" Time has passed, and everyone has a time to look away. He smiled and loosened the curtains.

The scholar in the carriage reminded the master in a low voice: "The boss should be asking you for peace with these words, but the boss is arrogant and can't be subdued." ”

He was calm, as if he had never seen this person, and he could even hold the teapot and close his eyes to recuperate, "Yan Ling, please make peace?" You're afraid you're going to look away, even if this person dies, he will stand and die, and never bow his head. He shook his head and said regretfully, "This person is too arrogant and loyal, and he doesn't want to be with anyone. ”

"Do you think he's on the wrong side?"

Yuan Qin put away his sadness, "An individual has a personal life, let him go." ”

For this hunt, the Ministry of Industry specially improved the buildings in the hunting grounds, and built a large courtyard next to the palace for officials and their families, including Shuyoutang.

On the day of arrival, it was just after noon, and Emperor Rong was supposed to be conducting a sacrificial ceremony first, and then having a luncheon with hundreds of officials, but he never thought that His Majesty suddenly became sleepy, so he temporarily canceled the sacrifice and went into the dormitory to sleep. The officials waited in the square hungry, shivering in the cold wind, but they did not dare to squeak.

Nangong Yan cautiously asked the eldest grandson beside him: "Lord eldest grandson, Your Majesty was the same last year?" ”

The eldest grandson Wuzheng was napping with his eyes closed, and when he heard someone talking in his ear, he slowly opened his eyes and found that it was Nangong Yun, so he said slowly: "Why did Lord Nangong say this?" ”

"We've been waiting here for so long, and Your Majesty hasn't come forward to preside over the sacrifice for a long time," Nangong Yan gripped while touching his gurgling stomach, "Everyone hasn't had lunch, and we have to stay up in this cold weather after a tiring journey, I'm afraid I won't be able to hold on!" ”

The eldest grandson Wuzheng looked at him and said with a smile: "I think everyone is very happy, but you can't hold it yourself." ”

Nangong Yan looked at everyone, gathered together in groups to steal dry food, and stomped his feet in anger, "They all brought their families, and their families prepared dry food, but I didn't, my relatives couldn't come with me when they suddenly felt unwell, I was so hungry that I was dizzy!" ”

"Lord Nangong, don't worry, wait a little longer, maybe Your Majesty will wake up."

As he was talking, the center of the crowd suddenly became lively, and Nangong Yan looked away, only to see Zuo Qing standing in a group of colorful magnates, wearing a colorful brocade robe and a feather, which was particularly prominent. It is rare for officials to see this righteous son of Lord Mo who does not go out of the door and does not step out of the second door, and they are all very attentive. Nangong Yun also wanted to come over, but was carried back by the eldest grandson Wuzheng.

"These people are squeezing their heads one by one and want to introduce their own girls out, what is Lord Nangong making a fuss about?"

When Nangong Yun heard that it was a matchmaker, he suddenly became interested, "Coincidentally, the little girl is almost at the age of marriage, it's time to choose a good family for her, I think this deputy director is young and promising, and he is really the best candidate!" ”

The eldest grandson Wuzheng looked at Zuo Qing, who was surrounded, and raised the corners of his mouth coldly: "Mo Fei is just arranging him in the academy now, but with his ability, sooner or later he will be on a par with you and me." This person's city is too deep, and your daughter can't control it. ”

In the center of the crowd, Zuo Qing only smiled modestly and perfunctorily in the face of everyone's enthusiasm. Murphy saw it in his eyes and was happy in his heart. But Yan Zhen, who was drinking sullenly in the distance, saw that the root of his teeth was itching, lost the wine jug, scolded a little white face, angrily returned to the courtyard, kicked open the door, and said something in his mouth: "What's so great about Zuo Qing, he doesn't look as good as me, and he has a dead face all day long, I really can't figure out how those idiots fall in love with him!" ”

Su Yan sat up from the bed with a "pout": "What did you say?" Who has taken a fancy to Zuo Qing?! ”

Yan Zhen thought it was an assassin, and immediately drew his knife and prepared to kill, and after seeing that it was Su Yan, he frowned two thick eyebrows and said to her unhappily: "Why are you here?" What are you excited about? ”

Su Yan rubbed his eyes, as if he had been asleep for a long time, "It's so cold in the mountains, a fool is just waiting there, anyway, I'm just a gentleman, who can notice me?" But you, the former general Yan Zhen, why are you afraid of coming back from the cold? ”

Yan Zhen was even more angry: "Ghosts are afraid of the cold, they are all those pedantic old men, and they are full of food and want to be a matchmaker for Zuo Qing." I wondered how they could have taken a fancy to that ice cube, to be inhuman, to be inhuman, and to keep a straight face all day long, as if someone owed him hundreds of taels. ”

Su Yan felt really uncomfortable when he heard such sour words, so he said a few good words about Zuo Qing, which was really jealous: "If you like him, hurry up and grab the marriage, if it is a moment later, Zuo Qing may be robbed!" No, you have the West Building, what are you doing to make a fuss? ”

Su Yan jumped up from the bed: "A dog's mouth can't spit out ivory!" Who said I was good with the West Building? ”

"Then you're good with Zuo Qing?"

"Fart!"

"Then why are you in a hurry?!"

"I'm not just worried about you! You are also a former general who is also a master of martial arts, and you compete with people who are powerless, what will others think of you? Ordinary people have always been the best at adding oil and vinegar, you don't want your own mistakes, they take them as snacks, right? ”

Yan Zhen pursed his mouth aggrievedly, "They are all talking about how Zuo Qing is, they all hold him in the palm of his hand, he is just a college steward, what ability can he have!" Anyway, I also gave Rong Guo a few years of birth and death, and the border people were all saved by me, why did they see me one by one like ghosts! ”

A little embarrassed for a while, Su Yan tugged at the corner of his clothes: "Aren't you attracted to girls all over the world, why do you feel so emotional?" ”

His face sank, and he could almost grow ice slag: "But it doesn't include the mother who gave birth to me and raised me, heh!" He shook the bag and drank it up.

Su Yan's heart was indescribably bitter and sad, the memory of this younger brother was originally to enjoy the family's favor, and his face was always full of vitality, but after she left, everything changed.

Emperor Rong finally woke up when the sun set, and the dinner party went on in an orderly manner. Su Yan found an excuse not to go, and later heard that Jinyun City didn't go to the banquet either, and at the same time, Ge Yiyan also excused himself due to illness.

In the middle of the night, the officials did not sleep, but gathered together to prepare horses, bows and arrows, and other utensils, which called a loud noise. Su Yan was so noisy that he couldn't sleep, so he picked up the Buddha who had just fallen asleep and slipped up from the bed to go outside to be quiet, but he didn't expect to run into the West Building, which was also noisy and difficult to sleep. The three of you, look at me, I'll look at you, Su Yan proposed: "Since you can't sleep, why don't we drink!" ”

Xilou looked at the darkness of the night and nodded hesitantly. Su Yan didn't care whether the Buddha was willing or not, took her hand and went straight to the west building's accommodation.

After three rounds of drinking, Su Yan was a little drunk, and his interest became more and more high, holding the hands of the Buddha and Xilou and talking and laughing, but Xilou didn't look at the Buddha from beginning to end, and there was nothing else in his eyes except Su Yan's reddened face.

Buddha Ji quietly withdrew the hand that was tightly held by Su Yan, refilled the wine, and drank it with his head up.

"Good amount of alcohol!" Su Yan clapped her hands and applauded, and hurriedly filled her up again, "I didn't expect it, I used to see that you always drank tea, but today I found out that you can also drink!" I think that back then, I Su Yan was invincible in Kuaifeng Town, and today you and I will definitely be superior to each other. Don't ink in the West Building, let's do a wine order, drink if you lose, drink until you sleep! ”

Xilou snatched her wine glass, a little displeased: "You drank too much, go back and rest." ”

Buddha wiped his mouth expressionlessly: "It's still early!" ”

Xilou was a little unbearable and wanted to stop it, but the hand that had just been stretched out was dusted away by Su Yan, and she boldly slammed it on the table, saying, "Good man, good amount of wine!" ”

Buddha picked up the wine jug and staggered to the door, she held the door frame softly, looked at the moonlight with a pair of confused eyes and said, "I haven't seen such a lively moonlight for a long time, you ...... Maybe you forgot about it, right? ”

The West Building didn't dare to look up, let alone respond. The cold voice lingered in his ears, sometimes laughing, sometimes crying, but he still didn't dare to look at her.

The sound of shattering came from outside the door, and Su Yan's wine immediately woke up for the most part, and rushed out to check the situation, but in the dim corridor, except for the remnants of the pot left on the bluestone floor, her person was gone.

was about to look for someone, but saw Zuo Qing appear at the end of the corridor, stopped in front of her, stared at her flushed face for a while, and seemed to be a little angry, "This is a hunting ground, not a academy, if you want to drink, you should also drink, so if you drink so much, you are not afraid of causing trouble?" ”

Su Yan grabbed his shoulder, and then pushed it away vigorously: "Nonsense, I'm going to find the Buddha, I don't have time to talk to you about anything!" ”

"Don't worry, I'll let Yansheng send her back to the room, you ......"

Su Yan sighed slightly when he heard it, and saw from his blurred vision that Zuo Qing's eyes full of tiredness were looking at him stubbornly, wanting to say something, but he didn't say it.

"That's fine, she won't have a trace of luck anymore, and the long pain is better than the short pain." The voice of the West Building came from behind him.

At this time, Su Yan was drunk, and he wanted to seek justice for the Buddha, and when he heard Xilou's unkind words, he suddenly became angry: "For so many years, she has been wholeheartedly devoted to you, but you said that if you don't like it, you don't like it, how sad should she be?" Well, even if you are ruthless to her, you should make it clear, and you always avoid it, you ......"

As he spoke, he was about to rush over and beat him, but fortunately he was stopped by Zuo Qing in time: "You are an understanding person, why do you still want to match the impossible?" You've seen it, it's time to accept the facts, right? ”

Xilou sighed heavily: "If you fulfill your wish to speak warmly with her today, will you be happy?" Su Yan, why can't you just look at me, don't you really understand my mind? ”

Su Yan clenched his fists, "What you said is so unreasonable, if you don't like her, you can speak coldly to her, if you like me, you have to accept you." ”

Xilou was stunned, and then smiled bitterly in a low voice: "You are different from her." ”

"Aren't they all the same? It's just you deceiving yourself. Su Yan slammed the door and left.

Xilou looked at the empty door in a daze, and muttered to himself: "She has no Xilou, but she can be hurt and protected by you, but what about me, only you, I only have you in this world, can it be the same?" ”

A chill slowly appeared on Zuo Qing's face, and looking at her back as she ran away, she suddenly felt a sense of happiness in her heart.

In the afternoon, Zuo Qing walked through the woods to the foot of the mountain peak to meet the West Building, and the vast forest under the mountain peak in front of the two of them was like a natural barrier that would be impassable around the water. The waterfall cascades down from between the peaks to form a pool of blue lake, through which you can clearly see the rotting trees and the bones of weapons that have been dormant for many years. Along the Bihu Lake all the way to the westernmost shore, there are dense bones and broken weapons along the way, covered with trees and exotic flowers and plants, if it weren't for the curiosity of the West Building to take a few more looks, I'm afraid it would be difficult to find. And it was because of a few more glances that a chill rose from my heart in an instant. It seems that this is still an ancient battlefield, and I don't know how many bones of heroes and heroes have been buried.

Neither of them dared to approach, perhaps because the yin qi was too heavy, or perhaps because of the respect for the deceased.

"It's been many years, the old capital of Chu was originally in Ruoshui, but it was besieged by the six countries overnight, with heavy casualties, and those soldiers who once stuck to the city ended up just a pile of white bones in the mountains, which is chilling." Zuo Qing was immersed in that vicious battle, and his face was sad.

Xilou looked at the white bones on the other side, a strange look appeared in his eyes, and he immediately flew over.

The waterfall rumbled, the fog shrouded, and a gust of mountain wind blew, carrying with it the disgusting smell of death.

Xilou casually broke a branch and fiddled with the pile of bones, and was actually hooked out of a corpse stump. The corpses were heavily decomposed, covered in corpse worms, and they wriggled wildly from the movement, and from time to time many of them had crawled out of the corpses and reached his feet.

Xilou just waved the fan bone, and a gust of wind fell, and the corpse insects fell in large pieces, and the rest returned to the corpse.

Zuo Qing asked across the lake, "How did you find a corpse here?" ”

"Wherever there are carrions, flowers and plants bloom luxuriantly."

Only then did Zuo Qing notice that although the flowers and plants on the shore were dense, the flowers at the corpse were denser and more gorgeous. But the corpse was very strange, "This is the royal hunting paddock, who will come in?" ”

"Maybe it's the people of the neighborhood. Although this is a hunting ground, the usual guards are not too strict, and it is not known if anyone enters, maybe they were killed because of the conflict, or maybe the displaced people took refuge here and died here," he squatted down to check the grass next to the corpse, and suddenly smiled, "I know." ”

"What?"

The West Building re-covered the body and flew back to the shore, "This place is hidden, and it is the best place to set traps." ”

Zuo Qing didn't say anything, but the two of them tacitly knew that the next plan was already in their hearts.

At night, a clear moon hangs high in the starry sky, the moonlight passes through the thin clouds, and the shadows of the trees are mottled.

Ge Yiyan led a team of more than a dozen people to patrol outside Emperor Rong's dormitory, passing through the square, but saw a person sneaky, and immediately went over to investigate.

"General, it's Zuo Qing, what is he doing sneaky." The guards found that Zuo Qing was hurrying out from the direction of the other courtyard.

Ge Yiyan watched Zuo Qing disappear into the darkness, too lazy to take care of it.

"Houshan was the site of the battle between the Six Nations." The guard reminded him.

Ge Yiyan tilted his head, and the hilt of the sword he held in his hand tapped lightly on his lips: "It seems that it is a godsend." ”

"General, maybe there is a deception..."

Ge Yiyan snorted coldly, "Is there a fraud? I'd like to see what he's up to! ”

"Don't you inform Lord Mo?"

Ge Yiyan was about to catch up, but at this time he remembered the deal with Changsun Xi, so he instructed him: "I will set a mark along the way, you go to report to your uncle quickly, and let him come to the back mountain." ”

"Yes!"

"Come back!" He added: "Remember, you can't let anyone find out. ”

"Yes!"

Ge Yiyan followed Zuo Qing to the peak of the back mountain, hiding in the bushes.

Zuo Qing stood in front of the waterfall, as if waiting for someone. In the middle of the night, someone came out from the other side.

West Building?!

Ge Yiyan was shocked, how could these two meet here, if there is something to discuss, they don't have to come to this kind of place, there must be ghosts!

The West Building looked around, and after confirming that no one was following him, he took out a brocade box from his arms with confidence: "I worked hard to get this list, think about how to repay me." ”

"We are an alliance, wouldn't it hurt to say that the exchange would hurt the feelings?"

Xilou smiled and threw things at him, "Talking about feelings hurts interests!" Then again, can this really eradicate Murphy? ”

"It's man-made, and you can't just rely on evidence."

"You see you're confident, so what's your plan?"

"It's inconvenient to reveal, but I can tell you that once Rong Guo is gone, there will be chaos, and I don't mind if you go back to your Chu country as soon as possible." He hid the brocade box in his sleeve, and suddenly thought of something, adding: "Don't come back in the future." ”

"Why?" Xilou was very surprised, "It stands to reason that only by eradicating the tumor of Mo Fei can Rongguo be stable, how can there be chaos?" ”

Zuo Qing patted him on the shoulder: "A deep-rooted tumor, when it is pulled out, it will definitely hurt the muscles and bones, do you say it will be a mess?" ”

"You mean...... Will it involve others? Did you let me go back to Chu because I wanted to ...... Civil strife? ”

Zuo Qing looked at him meaningfully and did not answer.

Ge Yiyan, who was lurking in the bushes, slowly lowered his body, and looked behind him nervously, time passed little by little, but his uncle did not find it. He was very anxious in his heart, if he waited any longer, he was afraid that he would have to let the tiger return to the mountain, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and he couldn't miss it.

He tried his best to slow down, slowly climbed over, and took advantage of the roaring water to take cover, and rushed to Zuo Qing's side with an arrow step, and at the same time drew his saber and put it on his neck.

Everything happened between lightning and flint, and by the time Xilou and Zuo Qing discovered the danger, it was too late.

Ge Yiyan held him hostage and strode back, opened a safe distance from the West Building, and asked Zuo Qing: "What's in the brocade box?!" ”

Zuo Qing didn't dare to lower his chin too much because he was holding his neck by the sword, so he tilted his head, and his eyes were just facing the road they had just come, and far, far away, several Hokages were rapidly approaching.

"It's just a piece of jade, you want to check it too?"

Of course, Ge Yiyan didn't believe his nonsense, and with the force on his sword, blood immediately oozed from his neck.

Xilou took out a folding fan, leisurely tapped it in the palm of his hand, and said to him: "General Ge is so Yaxing, he doesn't guard outside His Majesty's palace in the middle of the night, and he comes here to make trouble!" ”

"Who is causing the trouble, we don't know! I have heard all your words, dealing with today's Shang Shuling, Zuo Qing, you have a lot of ability! His face was behind his ear, and he smiled grimly, and said, "I've waited for so many years, and finally waited for you to show your feet, and tonight, I want you to die!" ”

Zuo Qing said indifferently: "Why should General Zuo go against me, everyone is planning for my father-in-law, and the future will be long, one day you will be able to see my good intentions." ”

Ge Yiyan spat on the ground: "At this time, you are still quibbling, saying, what is in the brocade box!" ”

By the time he said this, the Hokage had already made their way through the woods, led by none other than Murphy.