As night fell, the hustle and bustle of the imperial city receded like a tide, leaving only the barking of dogs and the sound of night watchmen echoing like lonely souls in the empty streets and alleys.

In a magnificent mansion, the lights are bright and the figures are weaving.

This is the mansion of Li Shenglin, the prime minister of the ruling and opposition forces.

At this moment, Li Shenglin was full of sadness, sitting in the study, and several retainers beside him also looked nervous, as if they were facing a great enemy.

"My lord, how is this good?"

A retainer couldn't help but speak.

"That gang of horse thieves is rampant, and now they dare to offend the Xiangfu Huwei!"

Li Shenglin sighed:

"How could I not know? It's just that this gang of horse thieves is secretive, coming and going without a trace, what can we do? ”

As soon as the words fell, there was a sudden sound of hurried footsteps outside the study, and then a figure broke in, it was the chief butler of the Li Mansion.

"My lord! Oh no! ”

The big butler panted:

"Outside...... There were a lot of people out there! ”

Li Shenglin was taken aback when he heard this, and quickly stood up:

"Who? Could it be the horse thieves? ”

"No...... Not a horse thief. ”

The big butler swallowed:

"Yes...... It's the people of the Investigation Division! ”

"Investigation Division?"

Li Shenglin frowned:

"What are they doing here?"

"I said I came to investigate the horse thief case."

The butler replied.

Li Shenglin felt uneasy in his heart.

Don't let him think about it, the people from the Investigation Department have already come to the door of the study.

Li Shenglin tidied up his robe, took a deep breath, and walked out of the study to greet him.

I saw more than a dozen shadow guards of the Investigation Division standing outside the door, all dressed in strong suits, with swords hanging from their waists, and their expressions were cold.

The first person, about forty years old, with a resolute face, is none other than Gu Changfeng, the commander of the Investigation Division and the Shadow Guard!

"Li Xiang, it's inconvenient to disturb late at night."

Gu Changfeng bowed his hand and continued:

"We are here to investigate a number of horse thieves that have occurred in the Imperial City recently. As far as we know, the Li Mansion was also looted by horse thieves, I wonder if Xianggong can provide some clues? ”

Li Shenglin sighed secretly in his heart, knowing that he would always come.

He hurriedly invited Gu Changfeng and the others into the study, and told him what had happened before.

Gu Changfeng frowned when he heard this, the style of this group of horse thieves was indeed different from the past.

Not only were they powerful and cruel, but they also knew the terrain of the Imperial City and the situation of each household.

What kind of horse thieves are this?

"Master Gu, who do you think this gang of horse thieves will be?"

Li Shenglin asked tentatively.

Gu Changfeng pondered for a moment and said slowly:

"This matter is not trivial, and I am afraid that there is a lot of support behind it. As for the specific identity and purpose, further investigation is required. ”

Just then, a shadow guard hurriedly walked in, holding a note in his hand:

"My lord, we found a note outside the Li Mansion."

Gu Changfeng took the note and looked at it, only to see that it was written:

"Tomorrow at midnight, the mountain behind the Prime Minister's Mansion, one hundred taels of gold, in exchange for one life."

"What does that mean?"

Li Shenglin asked suspiciously.

"It seems that the horse thief has set his sights on someone in the Li Mansion."

Gu Changfeng's eyes lit up.

"They're going to demand a ransom!"

Li Shenglin was shocked when he heard this, but Gu Changfeng comforted:

"Li Xiang don't worry, since the horse thieves have left clues, we will definitely be able to catch them all."

The next day night fell, the moon was dark and the wind was high.

A cloudy and snowy slope in the back mountain of Lifu is full of murderous atmosphere.

Gu Changfeng and more than a dozen shadow guards were ambushed in the shadows, his eyes staring at the road ahead like a cheetah.

They had been waiting here for nearly an hour, but there was no sign of the horse thief.

"My lord, will the horse thief change his plans?"

One of the shadow guards couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

"No, it won't."

Gu Changfeng shook his head, his eyes firm.

"This gang of horse thieves is secretive, but they will come if they have left a clue. We just have to be patient, and the prey will come into the net. ”

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a sudden sound of horses' hooves in the distance.

Immediately afterward, a carriage slowly drove into sight.

Around the carriage were more than a dozen black-clothed men on horseback, all of whom covered their faces and couldn't see clearly, only revealing their cold eyes.

"It's coming!"

Gu Changfeng's eyes flashed.

The shadow guards moved when they heard the sound.

Just when the two sides were about to fight, a sudden change occurred!

The man in black suddenly took out the fire fold in his hand, lit the torch that had been prepared, and then brandished the torch and rushed into the surrounding woods and grass.

"Not good! They're going to set fire! ”

Gu Changfeng exclaimed in surprise, and hurriedly commanded the shadow guards to extinguish the fire and save people.

However, the fire spread so fast that in the blink of an eye, a sea of fire had formed, and the raging flames were like demons, showing the night as if it were day!

Gu Changfeng was very anxious in his heart, this group of horse thieves obviously came prepared.

They deliberately lured the men of the Investigation Division to come to the ambush, and then set fire to create chaos so that they could escape.

If they succeed, not only will they not be able to capture the horse thief, but they will also take the lives of themselves and the shadow guards!

Thinking of this, a strong crisis surged in Gu Changfeng's heart...... He knew that he had fallen into the trap of a horse thief, and that he had to find a way to get out as soon as possible.

I saw that the men in black suddenly gave up setting the fire, turned around and ran towards the carriage, and soon there was a rapid knocking sound from the carriage, as if someone was struggling inside.

"Is there someone in the carriage?"

Gu Changfeng's heart moved, and he hurriedly commanded the shadow guards to rush towards the carriage.

Seeing this, the men in black did not give them a chance, and drew their sabers from their waists to meet them, and the two sides immediately fell into a fierce melee.

Although Gu Changfeng and the shadow guards were extremely brave. But the opponent was outnumbered and strong, and for a while he couldn't break through their defense.

The carriage shook violently suddenly!

There was a loud bang.

The carriage was blown open from the inside by a huge force!

The moment the carriage exploded, debris splashed everywhere, flames soared into the sky, and a powerful air flow mixed with thick smoke and flames swept in.

Gu Changfeng and the shadow guards were swept away by this air current, and the man in black was also blown to pieces.

Gu Changfeng struggled to stand up, only to see that the carriage had turned into a pile of ruins.

In the ruins lay a figure, covered in blood, life and death unknown......

"Look, sir!"

A sharp-eyed shadow guard exclaimed, pointing to a stone next to the ruins.

Gu Changfeng looked in the direction of his finger, and saw a line of blood characters engraved on the stone:

"One hundred taels of gold, already in the Prime Minister's Mansion. If you want to know the truth, it will be a long time to come. ”

"This ......"

Gu Changfeng was stunned, what the hell are these horse thieves doing?

Didn't they come to extort ransom?

How could you leave the gold in the Prime Minister's Mansion and leave such a line of words?

At this moment, there was a sudden sound of horses' hooves in the distance, followed by a group of cavalry galloping, which was the forbidden army led by Commander Wei himself.

"Master Gu, are you all right?"

Commander Wei turned over and dismounted, and asked with concern.

"Commander Zhao, why did you come here?"

Gu Changfeng asked in surprise.

"It was the Prime Minister who sent a letter to the Five Princes, saying that something happened here, and then His Royal Highness the Five Princes sent me to support you."

Commander Wei replied.

"Prime Minister?"

Gu Changfeng's heart moved.

The five princes returned to the dynasty and acted for the affairs of the forbidden army together with Commander Wei, but the prime minister chose to send a message to the five princes as soon as possible, and the deep meaning is self-evident.

"What did he say?"

"This ......"

Commander Wei hesitated.

"I don't know very well, but I'm just at the disposal of His Royal Highness the Fifth Prince."

When Gu Changfeng heard this, an inexplicable chill surged in his heart.

Thinking of this, Gu Changfeng suddenly realized a terrible thing: they had fallen into a well-designed trap from the beginning! The real target of this gang of horse thieves is not someone in the Li Mansion, but himself!

"Commander Zhao, we have been tricked!"

Gu Changfeng's face changed greatly.

"These horse thieves are coming for me!"

"What?"

Commander Wei was shocked when he heard this.

"How is this possible?"

"How could it be?"

Gu Changfeng sneered.

"Look at this line carefully."

Commander Wei took a closer look, and immediately gasped:

"What does that mean?"

"It's simple."

Gu Changfeng's eyes were cold.

"This gang of horse thieves already knows about the feud between me and the prime minister, and they deliberately created this chaos in order to lure me in. And the hundred taels of gold are just a disguise. ”

"So what now?"

Commander Wei didn't know how to distinguish it for a while.

"What should I do?"

A hint of coldness flashed in Gu Changfeng's eyes.

"Of course, to find out the identity and purpose of this gang of horse thieves! In addition, the guards of the Prime Minister's Mansion will be strengthened immediately to ensure the safety of the Prime Minister. ”

"Well, that's the only way to do it now!"

Commander Wei responded, and immediately summoned a personal soldier and asked him to go back first, and report the situation here to His Royal Highness the Fifth Prince.

Gu Changfeng stood in the ruins, looking at the lines of blood.

There must be more complex conspiracies and forces behind this game that are secretly controlling everything, and he, as the shadow guard of the Investigation Division, is responsible for maintaining the safety of the Imperial City, and he can't let this gang of rebellions succeed no matter what!

A breeze blew through and brought with it a faint smell of blood and burnt, as well as ...... A bizarre floral scent.

Gu Changfeng frowned, where did he seem to smell this kind of floral fragrance......

It was in the study of the Prime Minister's Mansion that night!

Thinking of this, his heart moved, as if he had grasped some important clue, but just as he was about to think deeply, a dark shadow suddenly came out of the shadows and rushed towards him......

Gu Changfeng reacted extremely quickly, dodging the black shadow's attack sideways, and at the same time pulled out the saber on his waist.

But when he saw the face of the black shadow, he was stunned.

"Is that you?

Gu Changfeng exclaimed in surprise.

The black shadow took off his mask and revealed a familiar face, which was the great butler of the Li Mansion!

"Master Gu, be careful of deception!"

The butler said breathlessly.

"The gang of horse thieves left this in the house."

As he spoke, he took out a piece of jade pendant from his arms and handed it to Gu Changfeng.

Gu Changfeng took the jade pendant and looked at it, and his face suddenly changed greatly.

This jade pendant is all too familiar to him, it is the belongings of his father who has been missing for many years!

"This ...... Where did this come from? ”

Gu Changfeng asked with a trembling voice.

"It was found in Xiangye's study."

The butler replied.

"I suspect there is some kind of connection between this gang of horse thieves and Xiangye."

Gu Changfeng's heart was shocked.

Could it be that the mystery of his father's disappearance is related to Li Shenglin?

And this gang of horse thieves was sent by Li Shenglin to deal with him?

It makes sense to think so.

There was another sound of horses' hooves, and a group of men and horses galloped up.

"Master Gu, what happened?"

Li Shenglin turned over and dismounted, and asked in a deep voice.

Gu Changfeng took a deep breath, hid the jade pendant in his arms, and said coldly:

"The Prime Minister came late at night, I don't know what you are doing?"

"I heard that there are horse bandits from the Western Regions here, so I came here to check it out. What about Commander Wei? Haven't arrived yet? ”

Li Shenglin said, a trace of imperceptible panic flashed in his eyes.

"Oh? The Prime Minister is quite well-informed. ”

Gu Changfeng sneered.

"But it's okay here, I'm tired of the Prime Minister's running for nothing."

"It's okay."

Li Shenglin laughed dryly, and then said:

"Since it's okay here, I'll go back first. If Lord Gu needs to speak, the Prime Minister will fully cooperate. ”

After speaking, he turned around and was about to leave, but Gu Changfeng suddenly stopped him:

"Prime Minister, please stay!"

Li Shenglin paused, and then slowly turned around:

"What else is going on with Master Gu?"

Gu Changfeng stared at his eyes and said word by word:

"I hope the Prime Minister can give me an explanation."

"Explain? What's the explanation? ”

Li Shenglin pretended to be calm and asked.

"The true identity and purpose of this gang of horse thieves."

Li Shenglin's face changed greatly when he heard this, but he quickly regained his composure:

"Master Gu, what are you talking about? Why can't I understand? ”

"Don't understand?"

Gu Changfeng sneered:

"Then I'll be clearer. I suspect you sent these thieves against me!" What are your intentions? ”

Li Shenglin didn't expect Gu Changfeng to have guessed so much, but he was the prime minister after all:

"Master Gu must have evidence when he speaks. You dare to frame your true appearance without evidence or evidence, do you want to rebel? ”

"Rebellion?"

Gu Changfeng sneered

"If I want to rebel, why wait until now? Prime Minister Li, you'd better not force me, otherwise I don't mind letting this imperial city change into the sky! ”

The two went toe-to-toe, and the atmosphere became tense.

A strange whistle suddenly pierced the night sky, sharp and weird, and everyone involuntarily turned their heads to look, only to see that among the ruins, a man in black slowly stood up, holding a strange whistle in his hand.

"Gu Changfeng, do you recognize this?"

The hoarse voice of the man in black echoed in the night sky, with a hint of mockery.

Gu Changfeng's pupils shrank, how could he not recognize it?

"You...... Who are you? ”

Gu Changfeng's voice trembled, and the green tendons on the back of his hand holding the handle of the knife burst out.

"Hahaha!"

The man in black looked up to the sky and laughed.

"Gu Changfeng, Gu Changfeng, as the commander of the Investigation Division and the Shadow Guard, can't you even recognize your father-killing enemy?"

Gu Changfeng was like being struck by lightning.

"That's right!"

A fierce gleam flashed in the eyes of the man in black.

"Back then, your father was killed by my own hands!"

As he spoke, he blew his whistle violently, and the sharp whistle sounded again.

Gu Changfeng only felt dizzy for a while, and then saw the black-clothed people around him surround him like ghosts.

"Protect your lordship!"

Commander Wei gave an order, and the Praetorian Guards drew their swords one after another, fighting with the men in black.

However, these men in black were extremely strong and cooperated tacitly, and the Praetorian Guards soon fell into disadvantage.

Gu Changfeng did not rush into the battle situation, except for the group of investigation brothers he brought with him, he didn't believe anyone present.

After watching coldly for a while, he suddenly found that those black-clothed people seemed to have avoided Li Shenglin's location intentionally or unintentionally when attacking!

"Do you mean ......?"

Gu Changfeng's heart moved, and he seemed to understand something.

He turned around to look at Li Shenglin suddenly, but found that Li Shenglin was standing there with a pale face at the moment, trembling all over.

"Li Shenglin!"

Gu Changfeng shouted.

"What the fuck are you fucking up to?"

Li Shenglin was taken aback and almost fell to the ground. trembling said:

"Gu ...... Master Gu, I'm ...... I don't know! ”

"Don't know?"

"Do you still want to deny it? I've seen you're in league with these horse thieves! ”

Li Shenglin hurriedly waved his hand and said:

"No...... No! Master Gu, you misunderstood! I'm not in the same league as them! ”

"Then why are you here?"

Gu Changfeng pressed on.

"And why did you know in advance that we were being attacked by horse thieves here?"

"I ......"

Li Shenglin was speechless.

Seeing this, Gu Changfeng was even more sure of his guess, and the tip of his saber pointed at Li Shenglin:

"Li Shenglin! As the prime minister, you colluded with horse thieves to endanger the safety of the imperial city! ”

Saying that, he was about to rush up, but was pulled by Commander Wei:

"Master Gu think twice! Prime Minister Li Cheng's status is noble, if he does not have real evidence, he will act rashly, I am afraid that it will cause big trouble! ”

Gu Changfeng said angrily when he heard this:

"Commander Zhao! You let go of me! If I don't kill this old thief today, I will not be a man! ”

However, at this moment, the leader of the men in black suddenly spoke:

"Gu Changfeng, you don't have to waste your efforts, Li Shenglin also has his own unspeakable secrets, even if he kills him, he won't change anything."

"What do you mean?"

Gu Changfeng glared angrily.

"Make it clear!"

"Hahaha!"

The leader of the men in black laughed.

"You think you know the truth? You think I'm telling the truth? You don't know anything! That's all for today, we'll see you later! ”

After saying that, he waved his hand and led the men in black to turn and leave, and soon disappeared into the night.

Gu Changfeng looked at the direction they were leaving, his heart full of anger and unwillingness.

Seeing this, Li Shenglin hurriedly stepped forward and said:

"Gu ...... Master Gu, they're gone, what should we do now? ”

His voice trembled, and he clearly hadn't recovered from the shock he had just had.

Gu Changfeng glanced at him coldly, didn't speak, and turned to leave.

Seeing this, Commander Wei hurriedly followed, leaving Li Shenglin standing alone in the night, looking extremely lonely and desolate......

The night was like ink, and in the study, the faint candlelight jumped in Li Shenglin's eyes, and his face looked extremely old and tired in the interplay of light and shadow.

Sitting on a carved rosewood chair, he clutched a blood-colored letterhead in his hand.

On the letterhead, his son's handwriting was blurred, but every word seemed to be engraved in his heart.

His eyes were slightly red, but the tears were forcibly suppressed by him.

As the prime minister, he leans towards the government and the opposition, and a single sentence can affect the life and death of countless people, but he can't save his son's life......

What kind of pain is that?

Li Shenglin's heart was full of anger.

The anger was like a raging flame that almost burned his sanity.

But he also knows very well that at this time, he must not fall, he must not collapse, and he must not be carried away by anger.

You have to be patient! Must wait!

Gently closing the window, Li Shenglin turned around and returned to his desk, picked up his pen, and continued to deal with the mountain of official business.