The news of the defeat in Dingzhou was blocked by the imperial court, and only a very few people knew about it, because there were five days left, which was His Majesty's sixtieth birthday. General Pingnan was killed in the battle, and a secret decree was issued to the camp of the Pingnan Army, and the son of the Interception of the Mountains was ordered to take charge of the Pingnan Army.

There was a lively and peaceful atmosphere everywhere in the capital, the streets were full of lanterns, and courtiers from all over the world and foreign envoys from Fanbang also entered the capital, bringing all kinds of tributes.

The death of Vancouver was buried by the imperial court, and Vancouver was posthumously named the Marquis of Dingyuan, and Xiao Jinyan, the murderer of the Dengwenyuan bloody case, was also arrested by the imperial court.

The news of Xiao Jinyan's arrest spread far and wide, causing quite a stir in the capital.

Some people applauded.

Xiao Jinyan is the younger brother of the traitor Li Chuntie, and he is also a member of the same party, Li Chuntie is treasonous, Xiao Jinyan is naturally not innocent, not to mention, he killed so many people.

There are also people who are worried about him.

In the past two days, Dongfang Nuannuan has used almost all her relationships, and she can't find where Xiao Jinyan is being held.

It was Zhao Lanjiang, who was unusually calm.

According to the secret sentry observed at the gate of his mansion, Zhao Lanjiang almost stayed at home, playing with children and practicing swords during the day, and reading in the study at night, very regularly, without any abnormal behavior.

However, based on the relationship between Zhao Lanjiang and Xiao Jinyan, it can be inferred that there is no abnormality, which is the biggest abnormality.

This was quickly diluted by another.

News came from the Ministry of Rites that the negotiations between the Ming Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty had made a breakthrough.

It is said that Lu Guogong in this negotiation, reasonable and modest, based on reason, said that the Ming Dynasty attacked the Northern Zhou, it was a peaceful move, not to occupy the land of the Northern Zhou, plus between the fairy ditch and the Phoenix Ridge, there are desert Gobi everywhere, there is no use value at all, and finally the Northern Zhou Dynasty redeemed it at a price of 30 million taels.

30 million taels is a tax for a year in the Ming Dynasty.

In addition, the Northern Zhou court agreed to be a vassal to the Great Ming Dynasty as the state of the Ming Dynasty.

The government and the opposition were shocked.

This is a great victory, a timely victory, and it shows the demeanor of my Ming king's army.

The people of the entire capital were inspired by the news and came to the streets to celebrate.

However, what the people didn't know was that the 30 million taels would be paid in 100 years by the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and 300,000 taels would be paid every year.

Another point, the Northern Zhou Dynasty to the Ming Dynasty, every year to the Son of Heaven tribute cattle, sheep and horses, in order to highlight the prestige of our Heavenly Empire, the imperial court to the North every year to 300,000 taels.

It is said that when Lord Xue heard the news, he was almost so angry that he vomited blood.

Shenxian Gou is a hard bone, he beat it with the blood of countless soldiers, how can he not feel ashamed if he handed it back so easily?

The return of the book will be on the tenth day of October, the 60th birthday of the Great Tomorrow, and the Northern Zhou Dynasty delegation will pay tribute to the Ming Emperor.

All of this is from the pen of Tuoba Lanruo.

She came all the way from the north, walked very slowly, every village and city in northern Xinjiang, she visited, and even stayed in some key places for a few days, thus coming to a conclusion: the seemingly powerful Ming court was unable to launch a full-scale war against the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and the fairy ditch penetrated deep into the belly of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, if the Ming Dynasty garrisoned over there, it would cost great manpower, material resources, and financial resources, and it would also face the continuous harassment of the Northern Zhou army.

Therefore, if Tuoba Lan is sure, the fairy ditch will definitely come back, this city is of great strategic significance to the Northern Zhou Dynasty, but it is a chicken rib to the Ming Dynasty. After reaching this conclusion, all that remains is to spend the money.

even secretly kidnapped Lu Guogong's son, so that Lu Guogong could comply, from Lu Guogong to the Ministry of Rites, and then to the Ministry of War, up and down.

The money that goes into your own pocket is the real money. As for the indemnity, it is the money of the imperial court, it is the money of the Ming Dynasty, as long as His Majesty does not pursue it, it is everyone's money.

……

Night.

Zhao Lanjiang was reading in the study, and every day at this time, he would stay in the study, he was a little absent-minded, and he didn't turn the page for a long time.

The figure flashed, and Dongfang Nuan Nuan appeared in front of him.

Zhao Lanjiang hurriedly got up, "Dongfang girl, is there any news?"

Since Xiao Jinyan was arrested, Dongfang Nuannuan came to the door, he was closely monitored, it was inconvenient to go out, and the investigation of Xiao Jinyan's whereabouts fell on Dongfang Nuannuan.

Zhao Lanjiang is not familiar with Dongfang Nuannuan, but has only dealt with it a few times. has a good understanding of this woman's scheming and methods, and he can't have deep friendships, but he understands that this woman has some feelings for Xiao Jinyan, and it is not ordinary, so he chose to cooperate with her.

Dongfang Nuan Nuan said, "There are eyebrows." ”

She looked around, wary.

Zhao Lanjiang said, "The guards around are all people I brought from Yinyang, and the imperial court still has to give this face." ”

Dongfang Nuan Nuan said, "When I looked for someone to look through the files, I found out that when Zhu Liye was still King Yong, there was a mansion in the capital, which was later diverted for other purposes, and it is said that it was used to hold the envoy of Shujian Mountain, and Brother Xiao is very likely to be locked up there." ”

"Reliable information?"

"It just so happened that the person who delivered food to the house was a believer in my sect, and I asked someone to say that a prisoner did come two days ago, and the appearance described was somewhat similar to that of Brother Xiao. Moreover, my subordinates also saw that Mr. Fang from the Forgotten Worry Pavilion was also haunting there in the past two days. ”

Zhao Lanjiang hadn't heard of the Forget Worry Pavilion, and asked, "Mr. Fang?"

Dongfang Nuannuan explained, "Mr. Fang is the first warlock of the Forget Worry Pavilion, one of the four great strange gates, and he is also a master in the pavilion, good at alchemy, and he took refuge in the Ming Emperor many years ago. ”

The current emperor loves Dan Dao, in addition to the head of the Yuxi Dao of the National Teacher's Mansion, over the years, there is also a mysterious warlock by his side who has refined pills for him. So the emperor was nearly sixty years old, and he still looked like a man in his forties and fifties.

"There was a rumor back then that the envoy of Shujian Mountain who went down the mountain with Zhu Liye was refined into an elixir by this Mr. Fang, and Zhu Liye's martial arts advanced by leaps and bounds at that time. ”

Zhao Lanjiang remembered that when he faced the saint a few days ago, Zhu Liye did not have any true yuan fluctuations on his body, but there was a deterrent force in the eyes of those who looked at people, combined with the rumors he heard, it was enough to prove that this majesty was a hidden master.

Zhao Lanjiang asked, "Can you arrange for me to go in to see him?"

Dongfang Nuan Nuan said, "Tomorrow night, I'll make arrangements." ”

The two discussed some details again, Dongfang Nuannuan got up to say goodbye, Zhao Lanjiang said, "This courtyard is surrounded by eyes and ears, you go from the east gate, be careful." ”

Dongfang Nuan Nuan said, "City Lord Zhao also underestimated me too much. With that, her figure shook and disappeared from Zhao Lanjiang's eyes.

Zhao Lanjiang smiled bitterly, he was a little worried, after all, she was the Holy Daughter of the Light God Sect, a female stream, if she didn't have some means, how could she control the number one demon sect in the world?

On the morning of the second day, the imperial court sent two sets of banquet clothes for Zhao Lanjiang and Yang Xiaoxiao to use when attending the emperor's birthday banquet. Nowadays, the etiquette is strict, different ranks, knighthood officials enter the court, worship, state banquets have different standards of dress, and these clothes are uniformly customized by the Imperial Court Dyeing and Weaving Bureau, after Zhao Lanjiang and Yang Xiaoxiao came to Beijing, they sent someone to measure the size and sent it a few days in advance.

Along with the crown, there is also the ritual of the birthday banquet. Zhao Lanjiang took a closer look, and the entire birthday banquet was divided into three parts.

First, all nations come to court. The cabinet led hundreds of civil and military officials and envoys from all walks of life to congratulate the emperor on his birthday, and sent birthday gifts and birthday words.

The second is to return to the book and lower the table. The Northern Zhou envoy congratulated the emperor on his birthday alone, and proclaimed himself a minister to the Ming Dynasty.

The third is immortality. This piece of ritual is only a passing pass, and there is no detailed description, but Zhao Lanjiang smells a different taste.

Eternal life?

He knew that the emperor believed in the Dan Dao and favored the warlock, could it be that Mr. Fang of the Forgotten Worry Pavilion offered the Dan to him?

Or there is another possibility.

That was the Li Chuntie incident that caused a stir in the capital. His Majesty once said that on the birthday banquet, in front of hundreds of civil and military officials and envoys from various countries, Li Chuntie would be executed with ten thousand knives.

Thinking of this, Zhao Lanjiang had an ominous thought in his heart. He decided to do something, for the sake of his brother.

All day, Zhao Lanjiang hid in the house and did not go out, but there was a clanging sound in the courtyard.

At night, as usual, he went to the study, lit a candle, and asked one of his subordinates to sit in his seat, pretending to read.

He had an hour to spare.

During this period, no one will come to disturb him, except for Yang Xiaoxiao, who will come in to deliver supper and talk to him for a while by the way.

He changed into a set of loose clothes, went out through the back window, and mixed in with the servants who left the mansion, avoiding the eyes and ears who watched him inside and outside the mansion, and left the Anguo Mansion. The people who knew his whereabouts were his cronies and his wife.

He came to an alley, met Dongfang Nuan Nuan, and found the believer who was delivering food from King Yong's old house.

"Lao Liu, this person will be handed over to you. ”

The believer said, "Please rest assured, the Holy Maiden is willing to go to the soup and fight for the Divine Religion." ”

Dongfang Nuannuan stretched out her hand and pressed it on the top of his head, and said softly, "May the light be with you." ”

Lao Liu prepared a food box, let Zhao Lanjiang pick it up, and walked towards King Yong's Mansion, he introduced, "These guards are all from the palace, and they have a big temper, you have to be careful, don't rush them." ”

Zhao Lanjiang nodded, from his arms

took out a thousand taels of silver tickets and handed them over, "A little meaning, not a respect." ”

Although Lao Liu didn't know where Zhao was coming from, he didn't shirk when he saw that he was generous, after all, he was taking a great risk to do things for him, and said, "The official's meal is in the upper echelons, and as for the person in the prison, they gave an order that they are not allowed to talk nonsense, and when the time comes, they will put the food in the hole and stuff it." ”

Zhao Lanjiang asked, "Can I go into the cell?"

Lao Liu smiled, "I advise you to die of this heart, the cell is made of stainless steel, and without a key, even if it is a person from the Elephant Realm, it can't be opened." ”

"Where's the key?"

"It seems that only that Mr. Fang has the key, listening to the official chat, he comes once a day, takes a bowl of blood from the prisoner and leaves. ”

When Zhao Lanjiang heard this, he was angry in his heart, but he knew the priorities and quickly adjusted his mentality.

"Who is that man?"

"My brother. Zhao Lanjiang replied.

Approaching King Yong's old house, the guard saw Zhao Lanjiang picking up a food box and asked, "Lao Liu, why are you late today?"

Lao Liu said, "I flashed my waist when I was cooking today, and I delayed some work, my nephew, let him do some rough work for me, the officials are hungry, right? I made potato beef stew." ”

The officers and soldiers at the head were not suspicious, and said to Zhao Liangjiang, "Pick it in." Zhao Lanjiang snorted and agreed, picked up his arms, and picked up the food box to the house with a little difficulty.

There are a total of sixteen guards on the periphery, and it seems that the martial arts are not weak, and Zhao Lanjiang deliberately suppressed the realm aura so as not to be detected by the other party.

He opened the food box and distributed the things to the people, and the officers and soldiers were also vigilant, and divided the meal into three batches, and after a stormy meal, the leader said to Zhao Lanjiang, "There are two brothers inside, you go and send the food over." ”

He picked up a broken bowl again, picked up some leftovers, put them in, and spat in the bowl again, saying, "There is another prisoner, you just have to send it in, and you are not allowed to speak, otherwise your life will be lost, you know?"

Zhao Lanjiang said in a sullen voice, "I know." ”

Zhao Lanjiang followed this person to the inner courtyard.

This was originally the royal palace, but the entire inner courtyard has been converted into a death row, which looks a little old, and has only recently been opened, and the iron door handle is still full of rust.

The man knocked on the door with his hand, three long and one short, and so on twice, and there was a rumbling sound from inside, and the door opened, and the iron door was a foot thick.

As soon as he entered the inner house, Zhao Lanjiang's face was full of consternation.

The entire inner house is surrounded by arm-thick iron railings, like a cover, enclosing the inner courtyard in it, Zhao Lanjiang observed that there is an iron railing in the southeast corner, which is somewhat deformed, and it looks as if it has been damaged by external forces, but it was a long time ago.

Two guards came in, and Zhao Lanjiang handed them two portions of food, and said, "There is another one for the prisoner." ”

Because it was nearly an hour late, the two guards were already very hungry, so they picked up and said while eating, "You go and send it over, don't speak." ”

Zhao Lanjiang nodded.

The aisle was low, surrounded by iron plates, and through a two-zhang long tunnel, in the center, he saw a small black house.

There's something strange about this cottage.

The size of one zhang, cast in stainless steel, on the top of the black house, carved with strange symbols, Zhao Lanjiang only glanced at it, and felt dizzy.

It seems that it is some kind of formation or prohibition that can block the connection between the inside and the outside, and he estimates that if all the internal force is used, unless there is a golden knife in hand, it will be difficult to split, and this is still under the premise of not considering the prohibition of the formation.

On the iron door of the small black house, a pattern is carved.

Zhao Lanjiang knows this pattern.

It's a bloody mudra!

Skull and Bones Club?

Zhao Lanjiang was suspicious in his heart, he had seen this mark in Shuzhong and Jianmen Pass back then, and it was not until he got Mrs. Qi's skeleton in the Ghost King Sect that he would know something about this skeleton.

And the owner of the Ghost Fan Mansion under Hidden Yang City seems to be a member of the Skull and Bones Society. This mysterious organization can even penetrate the capital.

It seems that their strength is not ordinarily strong.

Could it be related to King Yong, no, to His Majesty today?

Zhao Lanjiang didn't think too much, and knocked on the small hole under the door with an iron spoon, and there was a sound of footsteps inside.

Unexpectedly, the two said goodbye outside Hidden Yang City and met again on such an occasion.

Zhao Lanjiang took out an object from his arms, put it in the bowl, and handed it in.

Xiao Jinyan took the rice bowl and sent out the previous dishes and chopsticks.

"Huh?"

Xiao Jinyan seemed to have discovered something, "Who?"

When Zhao Lanjiang heard Xiao Jinyan's voice, he couldn't help but tremble, "It's me." ”