"What are you going to do?"

Zhao Rang asked.

He did not ask who the "common enemy" was, for he himself was not sure.

Red Hand turned around, walked to the window, pushed open the window, let the sunlight outside into the hut, turned his back to Zhao Rang, and said:

"We're going somewhere."

"Where?"

"Yingchun Tower in the Forbidden Palace."

The Spring Festival Building is the place where the Spring Festival Night Banquet is held.

"What about the white crane?"

Zhao Rang glanced at the white crane who was still in a coma.

The red hand replied:

"I have already given him the best healing pill, and I have also been treated by the best Lang Zhong in the Imperial City. and what is saved depends on the number of his lives. Life and death are fateful, and wealth is in the sky. ”

"Okay."

When Zhao Rang heard the red hand say this, he immediately agreed without hesitation.

The two walked out of the hut, the sun shining through the clouds on the ground, bringing a faint light.

The wind, gently blowing through the palace walls, seemed to carry some secrets in the deep palace.

Although the sunlight was faint, it was enough to illuminate the path ahead of Red Hand and Zhao Rang.

Red Hand's familiarity with the Forbidden Palace made Zhao Rang start to guess his true identity.

Every step, every turn, the red hand seems to be strolling in his own courtyard, without any sense of strangeness.

After passing through several palace gates, the soldiers guarding saw the golden waist plate on Zhao Rang's waist and saluted and let him go.

It was given by the Seventh Emperor Yuan Mingkong.

However, Zhao Rang felt that the red hand didn't seem to care about the waist card.

It's as if he has the power to be above all of this!

Finally, they came to the front of the Spring Festival Tower.

This pavilion is towering into the sky, carved beams and painted buildings, showing the royal style. The red hand stopped and looked up at the building, a complex glint in his eyes.

"We're here." The red hand whispered.

Zhao Rang nodded and followed the red hand into the building.

The furnishings in the building are gorgeous, and every place reveals the luxury and dignity of the royal family.

Zhao Rang felt an unusual atmosphere.

Although it is extremely luxurious, it hides an indescribable oppression.

I walked down the stairs through one pavilion after another, and finally came to a hidden room.

Red Hand pushed open the door and walked in.

Zhao Rang followed, only to find that the room was empty.

"What is this place?"

Zhao Rang couldn't help but ask.

Red Hand didn't answer, just stood quietly in the center of the room, as if feeling the air around him.

After a while, he sighed lightly, turned to Zhao Rang and said:

"This is where I used to be."

Zhao Rang was shocked, and felt more and more that the identity of the red hand was not simple.

Although the room was empty, it was filled with an indescribable majesty and solemnity.

"Who the hell are you?"

Zhao Rang finally couldn't help but ask the doubts in his heart.

The red hand turned around, and a bitter smile curled up at the corner of his mouth:

"Me? I'm just a person who once had everything and then lost everything. ”

Zhao Rang wanted to ask something more, but was interrupted by the red hand:

"Well, now is not the time to talk about that. We have more important things to do. ”

With that, Red Hand walked to a corner of the room and pushed open a small hidden door.

Behind the door, there is a dark secret passage.

"The place we're going to is at the end of this secret passage."

Red Hand said.

Zhao Rang did not hesitate, followed closely behind the red hand, and stepped into this secret passage full of unknowns.

As you walk along the secret passage, it is pitch black all around, except for the faint glow of a lantern in the red hand.

The secret passage seemed to be long, and they walked for a long time before finally seeing the light ahead.

As they approached, the light became more and more blinding, until at last, they stepped out of the secret passage and into a large hall.

The light in the main hall was dim, but Zhao Rang could still see the surrounding scene clearly.

Filled with all kinds of ancient artifacts and books, it is simply a treasure trove of forgotten things.

And in the center of the main hall there is a huge stone table on which a sword is placed.

The red hand walked over to the stone platform and gently stroked the sword.

Although the scabbard was rusted, it could still feel its sharpness and majesty.

"This sword ......"

Red Hand's voice trembled a little.

"This sword is the sword I used to have."

Zhao Rang looked at the red hand in shock, and he finally understood that this mysterious red hand must have been a member of the royal family with a prominent status.

But why would he give up everything, live incognito, and live such a life of exile?

The red hand seemed to see Zhao Rang's doubts, he sighed lightly, and said:

"A lot of things are not as simple as you think. I used to have everything, but that also became my shackles. When I lost everything, I realized that the real freedom is to let go of the obsession in my heart and pursue the life I really want. ”

"Tomorrow, though, is the time for this sword to unsheath again!"

The red hand drew his sword with a flick.

The scabbard has been damaged, and the lack of the sword body is still cold!

Zhao Rang only glanced at it superficially, and felt the pain of the pupils being stabbed, and couldn't help but take a step back, marveling at the sharpness and majesty of this sword in his heart.

He had never seen such a sword, not even in the palace.

The red hand gripped the hilt of the sword tightly, and there was a determined glint in his eyes.

His fingers slid lightly over the blade.

This sword has accompanied him in his battles and witnessed his rise and fall.

Now it's back in his hands, ready for a new mission.

"Tomorrow, the sword will be unsheathed again. Together with your black steel sword, slay all enemies for Dawei! ”

The voice of the red hand echoed in the hall like an oath.

The two of them walked out of the main hall and returned to the dark secret passage. They followed the secret passage all the way back until they returned to the hidden room in the Yingchun Tower again.

Red Hand hung his sword at his waist and extinguished the lantern in his hand.

The room was plunged into darkness again.

"Let's go."

The red hand whispered.

"There's a lot to prepare."

The Spring Festival Banquet is tomorrow evening, but according to the rules of previous years, tonight's Spring Festival Building has been opened to people and forces who are qualified to participate in the Night Banquet.

Doing so is of course very risky.

After all, none of these forces are fuel-efficient lamps.

Staying in the Forbidden Palace for an extra hour will cause you more unpredictable troubles.

But rules are rules.

Since the first emperor, the location and scale of the Spring Festival banquet have changed countless times.

The only thing that hasn't changed is this rule.

The rules that cannot be changed naturally have a reason that cannot be changed.

Zhao Rang thought about it, but he didn't figure it out.

But as soon as I thought about it, the principles and rules of the world were not meant to be figured out, but used to do it, so I was no longer entangled, moved a chair with peace of mind, sat at the door of the Spring Festival Building, and silently calculated which one would be the first to arrive.

The mansion of the Nangong family in the imperial city was unexpectedly quiet today.

Since Nangong Jian came to the imperial city with his twelve sons and one daughter, the entrance of the mansion has been full of traffic.

In the imperial city, whether it is the nobles of Tianhuang or the fathers of the family, they all came to place it in turn to show their respect for the green forest flag of the Nangong family.

But today, everyone in the Nangong family is sleeping.

Because tonight, Nangong Jian is going to take his twelve sons, a woman, and Lao Bei, to the Great Inner Forbidden Palace and stay in the Yingchun Tower.

In Lao Bei's house, a light is like a bean.

For a blind man, it doesn't matter if the lamp is lit or not. But Lao Bei must light the lamp on the table every evening before every evening.

In the lamp, there is not much oil left.

Lao Bei lay quietly on his big, soft bed.

This bed is carved out of Huanghuali as a whole, which is incompatible with the narrow room where this subordinate lives.

The old north is certainly entitled to live in a better house.

But instead he felt that the house was an indifferent thing.

For the blind, the emptiness of the house does not have any effect.

On the contrary, it is the touch of the furniture in the house that is more important!

In addition to being big and soft, his bed is also very fragrant!

No woman has ever slept in this bed, but this faint fragrance of white plum is Lao Bei's favorite.

When he was young, he loved it when he was not blind.

At that time, like all young men, he had imagined that he could marry a girl with the scent of ash and plum, and sleep beside him every night.

Now, he has long broken off his thoughts about women, but he still can't give up his love for this fragrance in his bones.

Lao Bei's sword is at hand at this moment.

If you look closely, you will see that he has a sword on his left hand and a sword on his right hand!

His sword did not have a scabbard and was usually hidden in his sleeve.

Because of his hands, as long as he gets up from bed, he will always hold a blind cane made of Arhat bamboo.

It's getting dark, and it's time to get up.

Lao Bei remained motionless.

In fact, he had already woken up half an hour earlier.

Do what you need to do when you want.

According to Nangong Jian's arrangement, today I have to wait for the sky to be completely dark before getting up, and after tidying up, I will go to the Spring Festival Tower in the Forbidden Palace.

It's at least an hour before it gets dark.

Even if you get up, there's nothing to do.

So now it's time to sleep. Even if he couldn't sleep, he would lie motionless on the bed.

At this moment, there was a sound of footsteps outside the door.

The steps were very light, and it was clear that the people who were walking had done their best not to make any noise.

But the footsteps are basic.

Obviously, the people who came, even if they didn't want to make a move, still couldn't suppress the anxiety in their hearts!

Footsteps stopped outside the door.

As soon as the man raised his hand, before he knocked on the door, he heard Lao Bei say:

"Is the master looking for me?"

The man outside the door gasped as he scurried away, and said:

"Yes, Mr. North. The lord called you over, and there are guests in the house! ”

"Got it, tell the master, I'll be there soon."

After Lao Bei finished saying the last word, the two swords that he had just put in his hand had been hidden in his sleeve and disappeared without a trace.

Instead, there is a blind cane in his hand that has not changed for 10,000 years.

The only person who can be called the master by Lao Bei is Nangong Jian.

There are many masters in the rivers and lakes, but only Nangong Jian can make the chest old and north serve willingly.

He's lost a pair of eyes.

But he didn't care.

Even if he loses this life again, as long as he does things for Nangong Jian, it doesn't matter.

Die early and die later, and die sooner or later.

What's more, Lao Bei never thought that he would be a long-lived person.

A long-lived person gains virtue, and he has always been blessed with bad luck.

Today, Nangong Jian had already informed the concierge and refused all visits.

But now he's entertaining.

This is not to say that the subordinates who came to Lao Bei lied, but to prove that the guests who came must be extraordinary and must be excellent friends!

There are often two kinds of excellent friends.

One is a very deep, really good friend.

The other is a friend who has no friendship and talks about things every time, but is extremely useful to each other.

Of the four people now sitting in the vestibule, two are the former and two are the latter.

The former, like Nangong Jian, is mixed in the rivers and lakes and green forests, and the three of them once traveled together when they were young, and they were lifelong friends.

One of the latter is a wealthy businessman, and the other is a high-ranking local official where Nangong's family is located.

Although the extremely wealthy businessmen were not as rich as the Simon family, they did have wealth that ordinary people could not even imagine.

The reason why such a businessman deals with the Nangong family is very simple.

Rich people are afraid of death, and there are almost no people in the rivers and lakes who dare to go against the Nangong family.

Some of the money of the Nangong family is not so clean, and it just so happens that the most important thing for businessmen is business, of course, they can give Nangong Sword Handle no matter how much gold and silver, it will become dry and quiet.

As for the official, not to mention.

In other people's land, it is not an exaggeration to respect the sentence 'food and clothing'.

On the way to the front hall, Lao Bei was thinking about the reason why these four people came.

But when he actually got to the front hall, he found out that the reason was that he couldn't figure it out even if he wanted to!

These four people actually came to participate in the Spring Festival Night Banquet!

Each of these four people has a jade pendant, which is exactly the same as the one sent by Zhao Rang!

Although Lao Bei is blind, his heart is as bright as a mirror. Standing in the doorway of the antechamber, he could sense the tension and subtlety of the atmosphere in the hall just by hearing and smelling.

The four guests, whether they were old friends with deep friendships or partners with intertwined interests, seemed unusually silent at the moment.

Nangong Jian sat on the main seat, his face solemn.

His gaze swept over the faces of each guest, and he slowly spoke:

"Why are you here today?"

The four men exchanged glances with each other, and finally the rich businessman answered:

"Brother Nangong, don't hide it, I came here today for tomorrow's Spring Festival Night Banquet."

The merchant said, placing the jade pendant in his hand lightly on the table.

Nangong Jian raised his eyebrows, not surprised by this answer.

He glanced at the jade pendant, and then said coldly:

"Oh? I don't know where I got this jade pendant? ”

There are only eight pieces of jade pendant.

At this point, Nangong Jian knew that Zhao Rang was not deceiving.

Zhao Rang didn't have the courage and ability.

The merchant hesitated for a moment, but replied truthfully:

"It was a gift from a mysterious person. He said that as long as he holds this jade pendant, he can participate in tomorrow's Spring Festival Night Banquet. ”

Nangong Jian sneered when he heard this:

"Mysterious figures? What kind of mysterious person can I not know about Nangong Jian? ”

He said, turning his gaze to the other three:

"What about you? Is this also true? ”

The three nodded their heads to indicate that it was true.

Although they have different identities and backgrounds, they all seem unusually humble and submissive at this moment.

When facing Nangong Jian, they all unconsciously lowered their heads.

Seeing this, Nangong Jian couldn't help but have a trace of doubt in his heart.

He knew very well that these four people were all calling for wind and rain in their respective fields, and they were also above the top on weekdays.

However, today they are so unusually gathered here, and each of them holds a jade pendant that is exactly the same as his own. There must be a secret in this.

He thought about it for a while and decided to press the doubts in his heart for the time being, and first find out the details of these four people.

So he put on a smiling face and said:

"Since you all have this jade pendant, then you will go to the Yingchun Tower in the Forbidden Palace with the thirteen swords of my Nangong family in a while!"

However, at this moment, Lao Bei suddenly spoke:

"Wait!"

His voice was not loud, but it was clear to everyone's ears.

Everyone looked at him in unison.

"This jade pendant is fake."

"What?!"

Everyone was shocked when they heard this.

They looked at Lao Bei in disbelief, as if they were looking at a madman.

Lao Bei sneered, turned to Nangong Jian and said:

"Master, this jade pendant is indeed fake, because we all know that there are only eight real jade pendants!"

Nangong Jian had long known that the jade pendants brought by these four people were fake, but there was no evidence.

Now listening to Lao Bei say this, he asked in a deep voice:

"Are you sure?"

Lao Bei nodded and said firmly:

"I'm sure. In this Spring Festival Night Banquet, His Majesty the Seven Princes will operate the will of the Seven Princes, and reduce the forces eligible to participate to eight, with eight jade pendants as tokens, namely my Nangong family, Ximen family, Zhao family, Yangqi Academy Yang family, Nandi Shuzhong Tang family, Prime Minister's Mansion, Baihe Mountain. ”

"As for the other one...... It is in the hands of the five princes. ”

Nangong Jian was silent for a moment, then slowly stood up.

His gaze swept over the faces of the four men again.

This time, there was a hint of fierceness and murderous intent in his eyes:

"Everyone, it's better not to fool around!"

There was a chill in his voice, which made the four of them shiver unconsciously.

was taken by the power of Nangong Sword, and no one dared to speak for a while.

After a few moments, the parent said in a trembling voice:

"Brother Nangong, I really don't know if this jade pendant is fake. When the mysterious figure gave us the jade pendant, we also asked someone to identify it, and we didn't find anything unusual. As for the eight pieces you mentioned, out of the imperial city, no one knows about it at all. ”

Nangong Jian turned his head to look at Lao Bei and asked in a deep voice:

"Lao Bei, come and see this jade pendant."

Lao Bei walked to the table with a calm face, picked up the jade pendant and rubbed it carefully.

His fingers slid gently over the jade pendant, feeling every breath and texture in the jade pendant.

The jade pendant sent by Zhao Rang contains a special atmosphere.

This kind of aura may be imperceptible to ordinary people, but for a master like Lao Bei, it is as conspicuous as a light in the night.

Lao Bei kept rubbing this jade pendant, and before he knew it, he had passed a cup of tea.

Nangong Jian's face was even more suspicious.

Because he saw a fine layer of sweat on Lao Bei's forehead.

"Old Bei, how's it going?"

Lao Bei licked his lips.

He had only drunk a large cup of tea before he came, but now his lips were dry and white.

"Old man......"

Lao Bei said with difficulty.

"In addition to the quantity, the four extra jade pendants in their hands are all real!"