However, after Chen Wenqi left, the more Qin Sen thought about it, the more he felt that it was inappropriate, although Ximen Feng and his "new attached army" were frightened birds and fled in the wilderness, but after all, they were outnumbered, and if they moved, Chen Wenqi would be lonely and difficult to scream, wouldn't it be extremely dangerous?

After chasing for less than half an hour, I came to a three-way intersection. Qin Sen hesitated, not knowing where to go. The left road was closer to Tatar-controlled Alxa, and the right road led to Otok relatively farther. It stands to reason that Yin Feng and the others were anxious to get rid of the pursuit of the Ming army, so they should go to Alxa nearby, but they had to take advantage of Phoenix City on the way, and it was very likely that they would meet the Ming army by a narrow road, so the risk was greater. The road to Otok is long, and it is unknown whether they will meet the Ming army on the way. Qin Sen couldn't guess what Yin Feng would choose, and he was afraid that he would delay the trip and miss the opportunity to deal with Chen Wenqi, so he sent two spies to investigate the situation first, and he led five hundred musketeers to wait in place.

Not long after, the scout horse on the right hurried back to report that the "new annexed army" was found on the front road.

When Qin Sen heard this, he hurriedly ordered the spy to wait here to explore the horse on the left, and then led the musketeer to gallop to the right. In just a few moments, he met the soldiers of the "New Annex" who had fled back the same way.

When the soldiers of the "new attached army" saw the men and horses of the Ming army, they were afraid of misunderstanding, and without waiting for the Ming army to speak, they threw away their weapons one after another, raised their hands and shouted: "We obey the order of General Chen Wenqi and are willing to return to Jingzhou City to abandon the darkness and surrender to the light." ”

"Where is General Chen now, why didn't he come back?" Qin Sen asked.

A soldier of the "New Annex" turned and pointed to the way he came, and replied, "It's not far ahead." He was entangled by Ximen Feng and his two junior brothers. ”

"Senior Brother of Ximen Feng, do you know what your name is?" Qin Sen asked in surprise.

"His two junior brothers are named Wu Yun and Ji Dian. ”

Qin Sen didn't listen, and he was shocked when he heard this. The officials already knew that Qin Sen was the homonym of Shen Qing's words read upside down. In that year, he was chased and killed on the Huangzhou Road, and it was the "second murderer" Wu Yun who led his junior brother "three murderers" Jin Lei, the "five murderers" Bao Yu, the "six murderers" Shan Xue, and the Qianhu Liang De of the Jinyi Wei pro-army. What is the martial arts of the "Lingnan Eight Murders", Shen Qing is naturally clear. Now that Chen Wenqi has met Wu Yun and Ji Dian, not to mention, there is also Ximen Feng, and Ximen Feng is the senior brother of Wu Yun and Ji Dian, so he must be the "first culprit" Yin Feng. The martial arts of these three people are no worse than the four of them back then, so Chen Wenqi is afraid that he will be more auspicious.

Shen Qing didn't dare to think about it, and pointed to a small officer in the Shenji Battalion and said, "You give him the horse (the soldier of the "New Attached Army" who answered), and then take them back to Jingzhou City." He waved his hand to the "new annex" soldier who answered: "Quick, get on the horse and lead the way." ”

The soldier of the "New Annexed Army" was also agile, jumped on horseback, and led Shen Qing to fly away on the original road.

After running for about twenty miles, the soldier of the "new annex" grabbed the reins of his horse and slowed his pace.

"Why don't you leave?" asked Shen Qing.

"Hey, no, this should be this place, why don't you see anyone?" said the "new annex" soldier as if he had replied and said as if talking to himself.

Shen Qing's heart tightened, and he asked in a fluke tone, "Are you sure it's here?"

"That's right, this is it. The soldier of the "New Annex" jumped off his horse and replied affirmatively: "Look, my lord, there are still traces of blood here." ”

At this time, although it was getting late, the vision was still clear. Shen Qing dismounted and saw that there were large blood stains on the ground, and the footprints were messy, and the weeds were trampled to the ground. Apparently, there used to be fierce fights here.

Shen Qing gathered a few generals with troops, and asked them to lead the soldiers of the headquarters to search separately, and if they found the situation, they would fire their guns, and the rest of them would quickly rush to the place where the guns were fired.

Two hours passed in a flash, and near midnight, all the searchers returned to their original places, and no trace of Chen Wenqi was found within a radius of dozens of miles. Shen Qing was anxious, but he was sleepy and tired, and his vision was not clear in the dark, so it was futile to continue to search.

Considering that such a major event had to be reported to Xia Yao, and that this place was relatively close to Phoenix City, Shen Qing immediately decided to send two of his own soldiers back to Jingzhou City to report the situation to Lu Wan, and the rest of the men and horses rushed back to Phoenix City overnight with him.

After returning to Phoenix City and placing the men and horses, Shen Qing did not dare to delay the time, and hurriedly came to the Generalissimo's Mansion in Zhenxi, and ordered the soldiers on duty at night to wake up General Xia quickly, saying that Qin Sen had an urgent matter to see.

Although Shen Qing is a staff general, he has been Xia Yao's left arm and right arm for many years, so how can his personal soldiers not know? Today, Shen Qing wanted to see the generalissimo in the middle of the night, and his personal soldiers did not dare to slack off at night, so they hurriedly went inside to report.

Xia Yao hurriedly got out of bed and hurried to the hall. Shen Qing, who was already waiting here, saw Xia Yao, and hurriedly took a step forward and said hurriedly: "Uncle Xia, Chen Wenqi is missing. ”

"What? What did you say?" Xia Yao was shocked and asked subconsciously.

Shen Qing thought he hadn't heard clearly, so he repeated again: "Chen Wenqi is gone." ”

Xia Yao stabilized his mind and said to Shen Qing: "Don't worry, say slowly, why is Chen Wenqi gone?"

Shen Qing was not in a hurry, he briefly told Chen Wenqi before and after his disappearance.

After Xia Yao heard this, he didn't make a sound for a long time. Shen Qing was anxious and asked, "Uncle Xia, what do you think?"

Xia Yao said slowly: "I don't see anyone alive or dead, I think there are only two possibilities: one is to be kidnapped by the 'three murderers' and taken to Etok; ”

Shen Qing thought for a while, thinking that there were only these two possibilities, so he then asked, "Then what should we do next?"

Xia Yao thought for a long time and was about to speak, when he suddenly heard a sobbing sound from behind the curtain, so he asked, "Who?"

"Grandpa Xia, my eldest brother is ...... What's wrong with him?" The door curtain was lifted, and Shen Lingshan walked out with red eyes.

Although he had some doubts about Shen Lingshan's true identity, Xia Yao actually imagined Shen Lingshan as Shen Qing's biological daughter in his heart. In order to take care of her, Xia Yao let her move into the General Military Mansion, and sent a maid of the same age as her to take care of her daily life, and to be a companion with her, so as not to be lonely. Although Shen Lingshan didn't get the message from her father, she had an indescribable sense of closeness to Xia Yao, so she was also happy to move into the mansion. However, due to the unfamiliarity of people and land, especially after Chen Wenqi led the troops south, Shen Lingshan felt extremely lonely. That night, she tossed and turned in bed, thinking about who her father was and where he was now, thinking of her eldest brother Chen Wenqi who went south, and wondering if she was safe, and thinking of her mother and Ruizhu who were far away from her hometown, and evoking a trace of homesickness, and she couldn't sleep for a long time. In the haze, I suddenly heard that General Qin Sen returned to the city in the starry night to see General Xia. Shen Lingshan suddenly fell asleep, General Qin is back, is there any news from the eldest brother? She hurriedly dressed up and came to the front hall, and happened to hear the information of the eldest brother's disappearance behind the door curtain. She was already sad for half the night, and when she heard that her eldest brother's life and death were uncertain, she was immediately heartbroken, and although she tried her best to control it, she couldn't help but cry sadly.

Shen Qing saw that Shen Lingshan looked like she was about to cry, and the love of licking calves came spontaneously, but the father and daughter had not yet recognized each other, so it was not easy to soothe them rashly, so they only looked at Xia Yao.

"Child, why are you here? Why haven't you slept yet?" Xia Yao didn't know how to reply to Shen Lingshan for a while, so he had to divert the topic.

"Grandpa Xia, my eldest brother ......" Shen Lingshan choked up and couldn't continue, her hands were tightly wringed in her hands, and tears flowed uncontrollably.

Xia Yao stretched out his hand and patted her on the back, and comforted: "Child, your eldest brother is a good man, and he will be fine." Let's go and rest, Grandpa Xia and General Qin will discuss how to find your eldest brother. ”

"Grandpa Xia, my eldest brother's life and death are unpredictable, how can you tell me to rest in peace?

Shen Qing couldn't bear it, and hurriedly said, "Xia ...... Commander, will you promise her?"

"Okay, you just stay here. Don't cry, be careful of hurting yourself. Xia Yao patted a chair beside him, let Shen Lingshan sit beside him, and then said to Shen Qing: "There are two possibilities, we must have countermeasures. If General Chen was captured by the 'Three Murderers', he would definitely be taken by them to Jinongfu, the right wing of Etok, but Yin Feng and others intended to ask for merit and reward, and after a short stay in Etok, they would have to go to the Khan's court. Therefore, I want to send someone to Etok as soon as possible to inquire about the news, I ......"

Without waiting for Xia Yao to finish speaking, Shen Qing hurriedly said, "I'll go." ”

"You? Xia Yao shook his head.

"Why not? Could it be that you are worried about my low martial arts and are afraid of delaying major events? But now that the generals of the General Military Office are all sent out, I am the best choice. Shen Qing said urgently.

"General Qin, don't think too much, the old man didn't mean that. You have other things to do. ”

"Grandpa Xia, I'll go. Shen Lingshan stood up and said.

Before Xia Yao could speak, Shen Qing shook his hand again and again, and said, "No, no, you have one...... A ......"

Without waiting for Shen Qing to finish speaking, Xia Yao said, "Don't fight, I have two best candidates." ”

"Who is it?" asked Shen Qing and Shen Lingshan in unison.

"Doesn't General Chen have two senior brothers in Phoenix?"

"That's right, why didn't I think of them?" Shen Qing patted the back of his head and said, "Li Zhuangshi also went to Etoke with General Chen, the situation is familiar, and there is no language barrier, so he is indeed a good candidate." ”

"Come on, go to the post house quickly and invite Li Yuan and Ren Si to come to the General Soldier's Mansion. ”

"Yes. The soldiers on duty at night agreed, and walked out of the general soldier's mansion quickly.

Soon, Li Yuan and Ren Si followed the soldiers on duty at night to the General Soldier's Mansion, and both of them were sleepy-eyed.

"disturbed the dreams of the two strong men, and invited Haihan. Xia Yao said apologetically while giving up his seat.

"Your Excellency doesn't have to be polite. The adults made an appointment to meet us all night, and there must be something big, so please tell me directly. Li Yuan said.

"It's a big deal, and you have to ask two strong men to help. General Qin, you talk to the two strong men. Xia Yao said solemnly.

Shen Qing told the two of them about Chen Wenqi's disappearance.

"What? Senior Brother Chen was taken captive by the 'Eight Murderers of Lingnan'?" Ren Si asked in surprise.

"It should be, but that's just speculation, so we'd like to find out as soon as possible. Shen Qing added.

"I see, do you want us to go to Etoke?" Li Yuan said as he looked at Xia Yao.

That's exactly what I mean. However, this matter has to be decided by the two strong men themselves, and if it is inconvenient, we will find another way. Xia Yao said euphemistically.

"Don't be too humble, don't say that this is a great trust from adults, just because we are brothers, we are also duty-bound. ”

"It's best if two strong men can go. Let's leave tomorrow morning?"

"No, it's urgent, we'll leave overnight. Li Yuan said decisively.

Xia Yao was overjoyed when he heard this, and said, "Then it's hard work for the two of you." General Qin, go and prepare two good horses for the two strong men. ”

"Yes. ”

"Grandpa Xia, I'm going too. Shen Lingshan on the side stood up at this time and pleaded with Xia Yao.

"Don't make a mess of the children's family, let's wait for news from Li Zhuangshi in the mansion. Xia Yao said gently.

Li Yuan walked up to Shen Lingshan and said to her, "Young Master Yang, please rest assured, we will definitely find out the whereabouts of Senior Brother Chen and rush back to Phoenix City as soon as possible." ”

Shen Lingshan also knew that she would become a burden to Li and Ren, so she no longer insisted.

After Li Yuan and Ren Si left, Xia Yao and Shen Qing discussed for a long time, and finally thought that although Chen Wenqi was more likely to be taken captive, they could not rule out the possibility of escaping, so they decided to send people to search carefully within a radius of 30 miles from the place where the incident occurred as soon as dawn. This time, Xia Yao did not refuse Shen Lingshan's request, but only told her that she must obey General Qin's arrangement, regardless of whether she finds clues or not, she must go and return with General Qin, and she must not act willfully.

As long as he can find his brother-in-law, Shen Lingshan will naturally agree. When I returned to the room, I was worried about Chen Wenqi, but I was sobbing and communicating, and I couldn't sleep for half a night. Seeing that it was already four watches, he simply dressed and sat in the room waiting for the dawn.

Chen Wenqi had no news, Xia Yao and Shen Qing were naturally very anxious, and before it was dark, they had already gathered all the people and prepared to set off. Shen Qing specially chose a Mongolian horse with short body but strong endurance as Shen Lingshan's mount, and saw that she was empty-handed, so he asked Shen Lingshan if she had practiced any kung fu. Knowing that she had learned the family swordsmanship from her mother, her heart moved at the moment, thinking that she was really a big negligent, only that she could not take out the token and did not dare to recognize each other, if you see whether her martial arts moves are swordsmanship, wouldn't it be the best "token"? Well, when this matter is over, let her demonstrate the "family heirloom martial arts", if it is really the "sword technique", it is not too late for the father and daughter to recognize each other. Thinking of this, he unsheathed his saber and let Shen Lingshan carry it with him for self-defense.

Shen Lingshan followed Shen Qing and them with hope, and came to the place designated by the soldiers of the "New Attached Army" last night, and then the soldiers divided into four roads and fanned out in the east, west, north and south. Until the evening, the four groups of people returned one after another, except for the first scene, no traces of the fight were found, and there were no traces of blood dripping. Since he only had a meal of dry food, Shen Qing ordered to return to Phoenix City, and tomorrow people from all walks of life will search for another twenty miles at the end point that they have been looking for today.

For three days in a row, the search range was nearly 100 miles, but still nothing was found. Shen Qing guessed that Chen Wenqi had been captured by Yin Feng's brothers, and after reporting to Xia Yao, he withdrew all the searchers to Phoenix City, and turned to wait for news from Li Yuan and Ren Si.

Shen Lingshan was unwilling and wanted to continue searching, but Xia Yao and Shen Qing did not allow her to go out of the city alone, so she had to run to the city gate every day, anxiously waiting for Li Yuan and Ren Si to return.

On the evening of the fifth day, Shen Lingshan had just returned to the General Soldier's Mansion from the city gate, and had not yet entered the room, when he suddenly heard Li Yuan's voice coming: "Lord Xia, we are back." ”

Shen Lingshan hurriedly came to the hall, Li Yuan and Ren Si were covered in dust and exhausted, Xia Yao and Shen Qing only looked at them and did not ask. It can be seen that their mood is not only nervous, but also complicated.

Shen Lingshan's heart was pounding hard, hoping that the two of them could bring back the news of Chen Wenqi, but also did not want them to confirm that Chen Wenqi was indeed captured.

Li Yuan drank a cup of tea and wiped the residual water from his lips with his hands, and then said: "Lord Xia, General Qin, we have been in Etuoke for a day and a night, and we have checked all the places that should be investigated, but there is no news of Senior Brother Chen. ”

"Did you not hear from him, or did you not hear about his captivity?" Xia Yao felt that this sentence was quite flawed, so he asked.

Li Yuan looked apologetic and said, "It's me who didn't make it clear." We didn't inquire about Senior Brother Chen's whereabouts, but we can be sure that Senior Brother Chen was not captured by Yin Feng and them. ”

After Xia Yao and the other three heard this, they couldn't say whether they were disappointed or happy.

fell into the hands of the enemy, although Chen Wenqi's whereabouts were found, but he was still worried about his life, if he wanted to save his life, unless he cut the city and lost the land, it would be difficult to climb to the sky. However, since the founding of Taizu, the Ming Dynasty has become an iron rule of the imperial court without harmony, indemnity, land cession, and tribute. Fifty years ago, Yingzong was captured in the "Tumubao Change", and the royal family would rather set up a new monarch than agree to Mongolia's conditions of asking for property in exchange for Yingzong, let alone a five-grade minister in the court?

But if it is not obtained by Yin Feng and others, then where is Chen Wenqi? Is he alive or dead?

Shen Qing was afraid that they had misjudged, so he asked uneasily, "Why are you so sure that General Chen was not captured by the 'Lingnan Eight Murderers'?"

Ren Si saw that his senior brother was drinking water, so he said, "We once infiltrated the right-wing Jinong Mansion and eavesdropped on the conversation between Balsborough and Yin Feng. Baalsborot asked Yin Feng about the situation of the defenders of Jingzhou City, and Yin Feng replied: "Burigood and Bortala were killed in battle, Abahai Wanhu was killed by himself, and General Ullihan was captured, and only Armu escaped, presumably to Alxa. Balsborough sighed and said, "Ulihan was my father's most relied on archery master, and he originally wanted to keep him in the Khan's court, but he couldn't stand the soft grinding and hard bubbles of the Abahai family, so he went to Jingzhou. Who knew that this would be ...... Alas. Yin Feng said as if reproaching himself: "It's a pity that Chen Wenqi was not captured alive, otherwise he would have been exchanged for General Ulihan, and they would not have been disrespected." From this, it can be concluded that General Chen was not captured by them. ”

"What Yin Feng said was that General Chen was not captured alive, but he did not say that General Chen was not in their hands. Shen Qing picked out the words and said.

Ren Si was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and asked inexplicably, "Is there a difference?"

"There is a difference. Li Yuan interjected: "General Qin is saying that they have killed Senior Brother Chen...... Kill...... And then brought his body to Etok?"

This sentence just matched the question in Shen Lingshan's heart, she felt dizzy, her body trembled, and a pair of beautiful eyes and tears flowed for a long time. Shen Qing hurriedly stretched out his hand to support her, and pulled over a chair for her to sit down.

Ren Si was still puzzled, and asked rhetorically, "Even if they kill Senior Brother Chen, what's the use of taking his body away?"

Shen Qing said: "The Tatars not only lost their troops and lost their generals, but also lost three cities, how could Batu Munk spare the defeated generals? Needless to say, Abahai and the others are dead, and if Yin Feng and the others return to the desert, even if they don't ask about the capital crime, the living crime will be unforgivable." If they get rid of General Chen, will they be able to redeem their credit?"

Li Yuan and Ren Si thought about it carefully, it did make sense, but they were silent for a long time.

Xia Yao, who hadn't spoken for a long time, said at this time: "This is impossible. Even if they want to ask for merit and reward in front of Batu Munch, they only need to cut off General Chen's head, how can they be so stupid as to take it with their bodies?"

"Grandpa Xia, is this really the case?" Shen Lingshan couldn't help but be overjoyed when she heard this, and hurriedly asked, looking at Xia Yao with a pair of teary eyes full of anticipation. With Shen Lingshan's cleverness, it is not difficult to understand this truth, she is "messing with herself".

Xia Yao nodded and said, "It should be so." But-" Xia Yao didn't want to be too optimistic about things, in case Shen Lingshan was suddenly hit after being full of hope, "General Chen has not been captured, and he can't be found for a hundred miles, whether he is injured or not, whether he is alive or dead, it is really difficult to say, only depends on his creation." ”

"Grandpa Xia, you can't ignore it. Shen Lingshan's mood was a little more relaxed just now, but it instantly became heavy again, and she whimpered and begged Xia Yao.

"Child, don't worry, how can grandpa not care?" Xia Yao comforted Shen Lingshan while ordering Shen Qing: "General Qin, you draft a document overnight in the name of the General Military Office, and send people to Ningxia Wei, Zuotunwei, Right Tunwei, and Ningxia Qianwei (which have been recovered by the guerrilla general Gan Tian led the troops) to belong to the Qianhu Office, the Baihu Office, and the local Lijia (which have been recovered by the guerrilla general Gan Tian and his troops), so that they can find the whereabouts of General Chen in their respective stations (jurisdictions); Search in an inaccessible place, find the situation, and immediately come back to report it. ”

"Yes, the last will do it. Before Shen Qing's words fell, the person had already walked out of the hall.

"Lord Xia, what can we do?" Li Yuan and Ren Si took the initiative to ask.

"The two strong men have been running around for days, it is very hard, let's go back to the post house to rest first, if there is a loan, I will send someone to invite. ”

Shen Lingshan saw that Xia Yao's arrangement was perfect, so she took a long breath, and after Li Yuan and Ren Si left, she said to Xia Yao: "Grandpa Xia, I want to ask you for something?"

"What's that?" you say. ”

"I want a license plate to get in and out of Phoenix. ”

"This ......" Xia Yao hesitated for a moment and said, "Child, I understand your thoughts. But this is located at the border, and the Tartars will come and disturb from time to time, I am afraid that you will encounter danger. You see, I have ordered all localities to assist in finding out the whereabouts of your brother-in-law, and I have sent twenty scouts out to search for him, are you still not at ease?"

"Grandpa Xia, I'...... I was just bored and panicked, and I wanted to go out of the city to relax. I promise to only walk around the neighborhood and never go far. Shen Lingshan said pleadingly.

Xia Yao saw that she looked heartbroken, and she couldn't bear to refuse, so she said: "Okay, you go to General Qin, just say that I asked him to give you a number plate, and in addition, send a small team of men and horses to follow." Rest assured, just follow you from afar. But you also have to promise me that you will not be more than five miles away from Phoenix. ”

"Well, I listen to you. Shen Lingshan hurriedly agreed.

It stands to reason that if Chen Wenqi had not been taken captive by Yin Feng and others, he would definitely be able to find his traces within a hundred miles of this radius. But the strange thing is that whether it is the local Lijia going door-to-door or exploring the mountains and forests one by one, there is no information about Chen Wenqi, as if the world has evaporated.

Shen Qing, Li Yuan, and the others returned to their original speculations, and even Xia Yao doubted whether his judgment was wrong, could it be that Yin Feng and the others were really so "stupid" to bring Chen Wenqi's entire "people" back to Mongolia? Xia Yao had no choice but to change his previous arrangements and decided to ask Li Yuan and Ren Si to sneak into Etoke again to find out the situation.

The righteous brother disappeared mysteriously, Shen Lingshan was sad in his liver and spleen, and he had no tokens, his biological father was difficult to recognize, and staying here was nothing to add sadness. She decided to leave this small border town that broke her heart, followed Li Yuan and Ren Si to Etuoke to find the traces of her brother-in-law, and then went home to ask for her mother's "token", and then came here to find her father Shen Qing.

She secretly found Li Yuan and Ren Si and told them her plans, Li Yuan and Ren Si resolutely refused to agree at first, but seeing her tears and poignant helplessness, she couldn't help but soften her heart for a while, and promised to take her on the road tomorrow morning.

Shen Lingshan returned to the general soldier's mansion, opened the maid, and quietly packed her bags. Seeing that it was still early, he walked out of the city gate and came to the outskirts of Phoenix. I imagined in my heart how happy and pleasant it would be if my righteous brother walked to me safe and sound on the eve of his departure!

However, as far as the eye can see, all that catches your eye is the ups and downs of the mountains, the remnants of the sun are about to end, the falling trees are Xiao Xiao, and there is a scene of slaughter. Touching the scene and feeling sad, Shen Lingshan couldn't help but feel sad, and said softly: "Big brother, what you promised me will return safely and not let me down, you ...... Why are you untrustworthy?"

I don't know how long it took, a hand put on her back, gently stroked it, only to hear someone in her ear say, "Little sister, why is it so sad?"

Shen Lingshan was startled, took a few steps forward, turned around and asked, "Who are you?"