(First update on the list, counting from 8,000 monthly votes...)
At dawn, Xu Xin'an knocked on the door.
To the west of the Baijian River, the horse trail is located in the mountains and valleys, which is more rugged than the east side. It is difficult for large vehicles to travel. Bulk goods must be transported by mules, horses and camels, or carried on the shoulders by humans, which is not fast.
They had to follow the cavalry, and if they wanted to reach Yushan Station, which was sixty miles away, before nightfall, they were still in a hurry, so they needed to start early.
"You quickly wash up and prepare the dry food for the road; I will inform Mr. Wang first so as not to miss the trip." Xu Xin'an thought that he was the leader of this trip, and was afraid that things would go wrong, so he woke up early and packed up.
After a while, he woke Xu Huai up and quickly ran to the post to see if Wang Zhen and the others had gotten up to pack their bags.
Although the past two years have been quite peaceful, horse thieves broke into the vicinity of Huaiyuan Town yesterday. Xu Xin'an did not dare to be too careless. It was much safer to go with the camel caravan.
Xu Wujiang was still sleeping soundly, but the diligent Di Niang had already gotten up and prepared breakfast for them.
Lu Xiong was about to "take action" on Wang Zhen, so Xu Huai was of course not in a hurry. After dawdling for a while, he pretended to go to the yard to get water from the well and wash himself.
After he devoured a pound of wheat cakes with pickles, Xu Xin'an came running back.
Seeing that Xu Huai hadn't even prepared his luggage for departure, he cursed hurriedly: "Are you a mule or a donkey? Why are you moving so slowly? Isn't it necessary for someone to drive you away with a whip?"
"Leaving now?" Xu Huaichi asked.
"You idiot, you still have to wait until three o'clock in the morning before leaving?" Xu Xin'an urged, throwing a set of armor and a knife to Xu Huai, and said, "Put down the baggage and let me pack it. You quickly put on the armor and don't take it again.
That hatchet of yours is in disgrace! Mr. Wang and Mr. Lu are going to the ferry first. Oh my god, hurry up!"
Regardless of whether there was any danger on the road, it was true that they escorted Wang Zhen to Biyang City on behalf of the Inspection Department.
Xu Xin'an didn't want to go with Xu Huai with a hatchet stuck in his waist. He had already borrowed a set of military uniforms and armor from the barracks very quickly.
Xu Huai was stunned: What went wrong? Lu Xiong hadn't put Wang Zhen down yet, but was urging him to go on the road? Did he change his mind, or was Wang Zhen aware of it?
Xu Huai has a strong build. His gray-black military uniform and leather armor are a little tight on his body, but he is also majestic.
The narrow-edged iron sword was used by ordinary soldiers, and it was far from sophisticated, but Xu Huai liked it very much. He pulled out the sword, first tilted it to the left back of his body, and held the narrow-edged iron sword with his wrist when he stepped forward.
Above the body, cut to the front right side.
Xu Huai didn't move much, he just wanted to experience the feeling of his body vertebrae being the roots of the knife, but he felt much more comfortable.
"You idiot, why are you so busy? Put away your knife and follow me quickly!" Xu Xin'an handed Xu Huai the baggage containing dry food and dragged him to the stable to retrieve the horse and to the ferry outside the east gate of the military village.
In addition to running brothels and warehouses in Huaiyuan Market and Biyang City, the Tang family also ran a tea and medicine business.
Morning tea is not yet on the market, but thousands of kilograms of Tongbai Mountain's specialty medicinal materials are shipped to Biyang every month, and then go south to Jinghu and north to Chuanluo by medicinal merchants in Biyang City.
The Tang family has been operating in Tongbai Mountain for several generations, with numerous fields, and its financial situation is much stronger than that of the Xu family.
The head of the Tang family rarely showed up, and his younger brother Tang Tiande was inferior to Xu Wujiang in swordsmanship, bow, fist, and kick, but he was able to hold the post of deputy chief of the Inspection Department.
"Why did this fool follow you to the county?" the manager of the Tang's warehouse asked Xu Xinan with a smile when he saw Xu Huai leading his horse.
Xu Tang was a well-known surname in Tongbai Mountain. Not to mention the villagers who were attached to him, his direct descendants ranged from one thousand to eight hundred.
However, Xu Xin'an's skills are excellent among the younger generation, while Xu Huai is considered a celebrity in Huaiyuan because he is so big, has natural powers, but is stupid and clumsy.
After regaining his consciousness, Xu Huai felt very unhappy when he heard others looking at him like this. But on the one hand, more than a month had passed, and after what happened yesterday, he couldn't help but think that others looking at him like this might not be a cover.
As long as Wang Zhen, Lu Xiong and the others didn't tell the truth, if the assassin came to Huaiyuan Town, he would probably break his head and not think that he was standing at the hawk's mouth yesterday, right?
Xu Huai led the horse to Lu Xiong and lowered the curtains of the carriage. He vaguely heard Wang Xuan sitting in the carriage admonishing Wang:
"Grandpa, if you feel unwell, you should listen to Uncle Lu's advice and rest here for two days to recover without delaying your trip to Biyang..."
"We have only been on a two-day trip to Biyang, and I just feel a little cold. What's the problem if I sit in the carriage without the wind blowing?" Wang Zhen said in an extremely weak voice, coughing in the carriage.
Only then did Xu Huai know that Lu Xiong had taken the medicine, but what he didn't expect was that Wang Zhen had a strong temperament. He knew that going to Biyang would bring bad luck, and his body was also like this, but he still refused to stay in Huaiyuan Town.
On the one hand, Xu Huai was troubled by Wang Zhen's strong temperament, but at the same time, he was secretly grateful.
The result in front of him is always more acceptable to him than accidentally saving a bad official.
But what are they going to do next?
He couldn't tie up Wang Zhen and keep him in Huaiyuan in public, right?
…………
…………
In addition to the Tang family's caravan, there were many business travelers crossing the river at this time, and they all headed to Biyang with the caravan.
Four light carriages; more than 30 mules and horses, most of which were bundled with large bags of medicinal materials; the total number of horsemen, guards and accompanying foreign businessmen was more than 40 people. Such a team was meandering along the narrow horse path.
There are hundreds of steps from end to end, but it is quite spectacular.
Xu Huai rarely had the opportunity to touch an iron knife, but yesterday he was prompted by Lu Xiong.
Although he thought in his heart that there was no need to rush for success, he was very bored following the team walking on the mountain road. When he had nothing to do, he pulled out his sword, held it in front of him, and waved it twice from time to time, thinking about how to better adjust his body spine.
The root of Weigen is integrated into the force of the sword.
Xu Huai did not notice that there were two people at the back of the team who kept their eyes on him.
"What this boy is gesticulating is the Fumang knife that Wang Xiaocheng created in the army. Is it the man from Yatou yesterday?" The thin-faced man stared at Xu Huai's back with surprise in his eyes and asked his companion in a low voice.
This man was one of the assassins who appeared under Yingzi's mouth yesterday, but this time he no longer had a full beard, only two moustache remained on his upper lip, and he looked very capable.
"Yes!" The scar-faced assassin had a beardless chin and cheeks. He was quite fair and fair, but gave off a ruthless look. He also stared at Xu Huai's back.
Lu Xiong was an old man in the Jingsheng Army. When Wang Zhen served in the Jingsheng Army in his early years, Lu Xiong served as his personal guard. The two formed a deep friendship, which they had known for a long time; they set out from Bianjing
At that time, I thought that as long as I got rid of Lu Xiong, there would be no more obstacles.
Yesterday they were stopped in front of Yingzizui Cliff and did not dare to break in. To put it bluntly, an unexpected situation made them suspect that Lu Xiong was contacting the remnants of the Jingsheng Army in Tongbai Mountain to protect Wang Zhen. The matter was far more complicated than they thought.
He sent one person to rush back to Bianjing overnight to report the news.
At this time, they saw this young man wielding a sword on horseback, which seemed unfamiliar, but there were clearly traces of the python sword. How could they not be frightened?
"You talk about 'there are many heroes on the Huaihe River', I don't think so, but looking at this soldier, he is not very old, but he is so powerful with a knife in his hand, it is really amazing!" The scar-faced assassin was slightly behind.
Some people asked the steward of Tang's warehouse in a low voice.
Huaiyuan Town is a small place, and there are usually no major events. The fact that Yushi Zhongcheng was demoted to Tangzhou and passed through Huaiyuan was enough to make people talk about it for more than half a year.
Although Xu Wujiang asked Xu Xin'an to tell everyone not to tell anyone about Wang Zhen's encounter with the gangsters, how could the soldiers below control their mouths?
The news that Wang Zhen was demoted to Tangzhou and that he encountered bandits at Yingzizui spread in the streets last night.
Except for one of the three assassins who rushed back to Bianjing to report the news, the other two changed their clothes and sneaked into the market of Huaiyuan Town last night. They also found out that Wang Xun would go to Biyang today with the cavalry of the Tang Family Warehouse - they also found Tang.
The steward, who lives in the town, asked to accompany the cavalry.
It is very common for business travelers to pay some money to the stewards and accompany caravans with armed escorts. This is very common in Tongbai Mountain; they even do not pay to go with the cavalry, as long as their behavior is not suspicious enough to report to the official.
Who will forcefully drive them away?
The steward received the report last night and was very enthusiastic towards the two foreign merchants. He said: "Ha, you said that the Xu family is a stupid donkey. But this idiot is born with supernatural power. He can bring down an ox with his two arms. But he is a bit stupid here.
…”
"Ah?" The scar-faced assassin looked behind Xu Huai again in surprise. Firstly, the Tang family steward had no reason to lie to him. Furthermore, Xu Huai was wielding a knife on horseback. Everyone else looked afraid that he would get away with it and wished they could hide.
Looking from a distance, he said, "We have traveled all over the country and have seen a lot. The sword skills this soldier performs are very extraordinary. Don't you see that there is something wrong with his mind?"
"Xu's Python Fighting Fist, Python Saber, and Python Spear are extraordinary. Speaking of which, they are related to this idiot. His father brought them back to Huaiyuan from Jingsheng Army..."
Tongbai Mountain is not a small thing, but the fact that Xu Wuxuan joined the army in his early years and returned to his hometown to pass on the Fumang Fist and swords and guns to his tribe has long been spread throughout the mountains and ridges, so it is not a secret.
Even if the journey is boring, the steward is willing to chat with the generous guest, especially when he encounters something he knows very well.
"But when it comes to the Fumang Knife, this idiot hasn't even started yet, and with his brains, I'm afraid he won't even think about getting started in this life. The Tongbai Mountain Fumang Knife and Fumang Spear, Xu Wujiang and these guys are the best
Qiang, the slightly thinner Xu Xin'an next to him, is also a good player among the many teenagers in Huaiyuan Town. Apart from his extraordinary strength, this fool is far behind in other aspects. However, with his size, he will be a good player on patrol in the future.
The inspector's military pay is enough. If Xu Wujiang hadn't let him go, the warehouse would have wanted to hire him - if nothing else, at least he would show it off to scare people. Look at him, he looks like a calf.
Yes, how strong!"
There was no need for the scar-faced assassin to ask questions. The talkative warehouse manager wanted to tell all eight generations of the Xu family.
As soon as the sun passed three o'clock, the scar-faced assassin knew that there were more than thirty clan members in the Xu family in the early years, including Xu Wuxuan, who had not known anything about the bandits in the early years. During the Xihe period, when Wang Xiaocheng was appointed magistrate of the state, he was incorporated into Jingsheng
military.
Fifteen years ago, the Jingsheng Army disbanded some of its old soldiers and recruited new ones to fill them. Eventually, more than ten people from the Xu family returned to their hometown with Xu Wuxuan.
Xu Wuxuan died within two years of returning home, leaving behind a son who was foolish. The other Xu clan members who returned home were mainly taken in as villagers by Xu Wufu, the head of the Xu family, but they were extremely tyrannical in the Huaiyuan Mountains.
Supporting the local soldiers, Fumang Boxing, Fumang Knife, and Fumang Spear subsequently became popular among the Xu clan and villagers with different surnames who surrendered to the Xu clan.
Xu Wujiang is a younger brother of Xu Wuxuan and a branch of the Xu family. Although he did not join the army, he practiced martial arts since childhood in Tongbai Mountain and gained a reputation for bravery when he was young. He later learned Fumang Quan, Fumang sword and spear, and his skills were extremely tyrannical.
, representing the Xu family, he entered the Inspection Department as a section-level officer.
No matter how insignificant the military positions at the provincial level were in Dai Viet's bureaucracy, in Tongbai Mountain, Xu Wujiang represented the Xu family in the Inspection Department and was the number one figure.
The scar-faced assassin and his accomplices looked at each other and could see the shock in each other's eyes:
Lu Xiong escorted Wang Zhen to Yingzizui. First, there were remnants of Jingsheng's army on the cliff to meet him, and then Xu Wujiang led the military soldiers from the army to come quickly. Now they heard that the relationship between the Xu family and Jingsheng's army was so complicated.
Shen, what do they think?
Was it that the entire Xu family was bribed by Lu Xiong and was determined to preserve the king's legacy, or was it just the old members of the Jing Sheng Army who were deceived into participating in this incident?
No matter which one, there will definitely be many people who are willing to protect Wang Zhen, but why are there only two people accompanying Lu Xiong to escort Wang Zhen to Biyang City?
Is it a deliberate show of weakness?
Both of them thought of this, with horror in their eyes: this was a trap to lure them.
This time the Tang family's caravan went to Biyang. In addition to the eight or nine armed guards with swords and bows, the other twenty horsemen were all strong and young men - this was similar to those of Huaishang Shangwu and Tang Xu.
The situation in Tongbai Mountain was high, but the two assassins were not familiar with the situation in Tongbai Mountain. At this time, all of these people looked fierce.
The two of them fell behind for an excuse and passed a fork in the road. When the person in front was not paying attention, they turned directly into the fork on horseback and left...
