The three tall soldiers swung the axes they had prepared and struck hard at the iron chain connecting the rope bridge to the stone pillars on the shore.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
The sound of the ax hitting the iron chain was deafening, and the iron filings flew out and sparked little sparks.
Another ax fell, and one of the chains broke.
At this time, the sound of rolling horse hooves suddenly came from the other side.
"It's Xu Jiajun!"
"Chase! Cross the bridge!"
"Vice General Yang, they are cutting down the bridge!"
The face of Lieutenant General Yang Yong, who was rushing in front, suddenly changed. As he approached the bridge, he suddenly reined in his horse and ordered urgently: "Fire the arrow!"
"Still shooting your mother's arrows! What a shame!" Qin Wu cursed loudly across the Jingshui River, but his tone and demeanor were extremely cheerful.
His general's carriage has already left, and these idiots are still here fooling around!
Another hard blow with the axe, and the last iron chain could no longer withstand the blow and was completely separated from the stone pillar.
The long rope bridge lost control at one end and fell into the Jingshui River like a giant snake.
Qin Wu bent down and grabbed the ax from one of the soldiers, and threw it violently towards the group of soldiers on the other side who were still shooting arrows.
He was famous for his uncanny strength. The ax left his hand and whizzed away in the cold river wind, like a deadly beast rushing towards people.
Yang Yong's pupils shrank and he quickly drove his horse to avoid it. The soldiers who fired arrows also stopped their attack and became confused.
At this time, Qin Wu's loud voice came again from the other side: "My surname is Yang, my grandpas don't have time to fix you today. I'll come and take your life when I have time another day! Hahahaha!"
"drive!"
Qin Wu slapped his horse and led his subordinates away from the river bank, even his back looked happy.
Seeing the figures of the people and horses quickly disappearing into the poplar forest on the other side, like wild beasts that had broken free of their restraints and returned to the forest, Yang Yong gritted his teeth, and the fear in his heart spread uncontrollably.
Duke Zhenguo actually rebelled like this!
"Vice General Yang, how should we respond next?"
Yang Yong's head was about to explode.
How does he know how to respond!
"Take someone to the palace quickly to report this matter!"
The soldier who spoke was stunned when he heard it: "...Are you going down?"
"Nonsense!" Yang Yong turned the horse's head and said in a deep voice: "Go back to camp!"
The soldier stood there wanting to cry without tears.
He failed to stop the Duke of Zhen and his errand failed. At this time, he went to the palace. Rather than delivering a message, he would rather call it sending his life.
Looking at the rushing river, the soldier suddenly had the idea of doubting his life - why on earth did he have to go up and ask that question?
…
In Dali Temple, the fire had been extinguished, and the assassins who had robbed the prison saw that they could not succeed, so they all fled in defeat.
As soon as the situation was under control, the Minister of Dali Temple led people to the file building where the fire broke out to deal with follow-up matters.
After finishing the task of hunting down the assassin, Ji Xiu took two of his confidants to the dungeon.
He didn't care at all whether these assassins could be chased back, and he had no intention of pursuing them himself - he was not crazy enough to help his enemies to defend themselves against the enemy and solve problems.
Anyway, his ability is mediocre and he is a fool. If he does well or poorly, it is luck, and if he does poorly, it is normal.
Now all he cares about is revenge!
There were many strange things going on today, and he had to see with his own eyes that Xia Tingzhen, the old fox, was still in prison before he could rest assured.
The sky outside was gloomy, and it was getting much darker inside the prison.
As the door was opened, the wind came in, causing the few wind lanterns hanging on the stone wall to flutter uneasily.
The jailer led the way and kept walking inside. Finally, he stopped in front of the innermost single cell, took out the key and opened the cell door.
"I have something to ask Xia Shoufu alone—"
When Ji Xiu spoke about Xia Shoufu, his tone was filled with unspeakable sarcasm.
The jailer responded wisely and retreated far away.
Two confidants were guarding outside the cell, and Ji Xiu walked in.
The cell was not big, with an old wooden table, a bench, and a narrow bed built against the wall, with a thin, moldy quilt on top.
Moreover, the seemingly stiff thin quilt on the bed was actually folded very neatly.
Ji Xiu saw this in his eyes and sneered from between his teeth: "Xia Shoufu is quite calm and calm. He must have been strategizing and determined that he will not die here——"
A man wearing a prison uniform with his hands and feet chained was sitting on the edge of the bed, slightly raising his eyes to look at Ji Xiu.
Those eyes still had a cold and solemn air, no different from the past.
This look was like a huge thorn piercing Ji Xiu's heart, making him angry and uneasy. Just as he said just now, the other party was calm and calm. He didn't know what escape route had been paved or whether there were any tricks yet to be used...
...and he will never allow the other party to leave here alive again!
"Assassinating the Holy Emperor in the Imperial Ancestral Temple and arranging other people to rob the prison. This move of attacking from the east to the west does not seem to be very clever, but it is not like Xia Shoufu's usual plan of exhaustion."
Ji Xiu suppressed his uneasiness by ridiculing the opponent's failure: "The master wants to cook the dog, and the dog in turn wants to bite the master to death. This drama is indeed wonderful, but it is a pity that this bite failed to bite the vital part, and he tried to pounce on him again."
I’m afraid I can’t.”
Xia Tingzhen's eyes moved slightly.
Assassination of the Holy Driver...
Prison robbery?
When Ji Xiu came up, he pointed these two things at him. Could it be that Rong's mistake was exposed?
But the so-called prison robbery was obviously someone using his name to cause chaos...
Including just now he vaguely heard from the jailers that there was an assassination in the Ancestral Temple...
This piece of information may be the true way for those who are willing to "make an impact in the east and attack in the west"!
Xia Tingzhen's mind turned around and she made frequent guesses. For confirmation and testing, he said coldly: "He openly robbed a prison in this capital. Xia couldn't do such a stupid thing. But Mr. Ji, I don't know where he got it."
I didn't know the truth or falseness of a sentence, so I hurriedly came to Xia to ridicule him, weren't I afraid that I would misplace the real messenger and miss my mission?"
"Xia Shoufu is in prison, but he can still make decisions outside. Although the assassination failed, he kidnapped the Queen Mother, Queen Wu and the young prince as hostages. It must have been used to negotiate terms with the emperor - why, now
But you don't even dare to admit it?" Ji Xiu was sarcastic on the surface, but actually he was testing.
He has always had doubts about what happened today.
"Abducted the Queen Mother and the little prince?" Xia Tingzhen's demeanor finally changed.
Queen Mother, Queen, Little Prince...
These three people are all closely related, and each has a role that cannot be replaced by others!
The other party took advantage of the chaos and robbed these three people, and something big was going to happen!
Ji Xiu saw his expression in his eyes and frowned quickly.
Could it be that it really wasn’t Xia Tingzhen?
Those assassins who broke into prison just now did have something strange about them...
Since it was a prison robbery, they should fight to the death to get over, but when those people saw that the situation was unfavorable, they retreated one after another...
Is it just to create the illusion of trying to rob the prison to mislead everyone?
Ji Xiu was shocked when he thought of a possibility.
If it really wasn't Xia Tingzhen's arrangement, then there was only one person left that he could think of...
The Duke of Zhenguo!
He had said it a long time ago that the Xu family girl's attitude made it clear that she was going to rebel!
The so-called right to surrender turned out to be not only to push Xia Tingzhen over, but also to delay time, confuse the emperor's attention, and gain opportunities to kidnap the queen mother and empress!
At this moment, Master Ji said that he had completely realized it.
And what he could think of, Xia Tingzhen had already guessed at this time.
The reason why Duke Zhenguo did not break up with the emperor when he returned to Beijing this time was because he had an agenda!
He had already noticed it when he went to court that morning, but the stupid emperor never gave him a chance to speak. Now that he has not obtained the military power and lost his wife and troops, he is really stupid in the right way.
——He is really a fool who made mistakes!
"Today's incident in the Imperial Ancestral Temple is probably a plan for Duke Jin Chan to escape from his shell..."
Xia Tingzhen looked at Ji Xiu and said: "If Lord Zhen Guo escapes from the capital today, the situation will inevitably be unbalanced, and he kidnapped the Queen Mother, obviously to help the King of Yan... In such a situation, Master Ji will not use his words to add insult to injury.
If it’s too fast, it’s better to pave a way out for yourself, so as not to end up being shattered into pieces when the situation gets overwhelming.”
"Xia Shoufu has always been aloof, cherishing words like gold, and never bothered Ji to say more than a word. Why are you so kind to remind him now?"
While Ji Xiu was speaking, he slowly approached Xia Tingzhen, his eyes immersed in the dimness that made people unable to see carefully, but his voice became lower and colder: "You think I'm still useful, and I'm even stupid enough to kill you again."
Is it being used by the enemy?!"
Looking at Ji Xiu who came in front of him, Xia Tingzhen's eyebrows moved, but her expression didn't change much.
Turns out I already knew it.
"Back then, I was immersed in the pain of losing my son, but it was your words that provoked me, blurred the truth, and made me wrongly hate King Yan ever since!"
Facing those eyes full of hatred, Xia Tingzhen said calmly: "Since you already know the truth, you should know that the real enemy is not me. Back then, I couldn't even be called an aide in the camp, I was just an identity.
He is just a humble gentleman who teaches young men how to read. What he does is just following orders——"
As ordered...
Ji Xiu sneered silently.
If it were anyone else, he might think so, but Xia Tingzhen...
Over the years, he had already seen clearly what the other person was like under the skin. Rather than following orders, he thought that what happened back then was probably the other person's idea!
He revealed that King Yan wanted to sneak attack on the enemy camp, and then set an ambush on the way back...
This may not be a certificate dedicated to the eldest son of that concubine!
No, maybe it's a conspiracy...
After all, the reason why these two people got together was because they had the same chemistry!
The reason why Xia Tingzhen chose the unnoticed eldest son of a concubine back then was simply because she had shown kindness to King Yan before but received no response. King Yan's mother clan was powerful and easy-going but also had its own pride.
I don't even bother to play the so-called conspiracy.
So Xia Tingzhen could only find someone to support her who was just as treacherous as herself at heart!
Now he says that he was just following orders!
Would the dignified chief minister not even have the guts to admit it to someone he never looked down upon?
It's not that I dare not admit it...
I want to repeat the old trick!
Eighteen years ago, he took advantage of his hatred for King Yan, and eighteen years later, he still wanted to take advantage of his hatred for the emperor!
But that wasn't what made him most angry. At this moment, what made him most intolerable was the calmness in the other person's tone——
The words can be faked, but after being exposed, they remain calm and calm, and their unflinching arrogance is naturally revealed!
At the moment when he heard him reveal the truth, the other party didn't even dodge...as if the lives of his two sons were not worth mentioning at all, and were just an old thing worth mentioning!
There is no repentance, no guilt, just contempt.
Those were his biological flesh and blood. They were two good children who would still make his heart break when they met again in a dream after eighteen years!
Xia Tingzhen was unaware of Ji Xiu's uncontrollable rage.
In other words, these emotions, which he considered to be the most useless, were something he could not personally experience.
People often lose one or two points of sensitivity when it comes to things that they cannot empathize with.
Therefore, his words continued——
"Nowadays, there are certainly many people who want to fight for the world, but King Yan has the Wu family to help him, and now he has an additional Duke of Zhenguo. He has the best chance of winning. If King Yan gains power, Ji Shangshu believes that he still has a chance to survive.
Say something?"
Xia Tingzhen's voice was slow and calm, but there was an invisible persuasion: "On one side are the enemies you owe money to, and on the other side are the enemies you owe debts to. I wonder how Ji Shangshu plans to take the next road?"
"Master Yixia, how should I go?" Ji Xiu's tone seemed much calmer.
"Your Majesty is now exhausted. Fortunately, there is still a little prince under his knees. Even if he is kidnapped by Xu Qiwei, he can still try to find him in the future. Even if he cannot be found, there is still a prince in the court -"
"Xia Shoufu's intention is to let Ji kill the king and support a young emperor?"
"Why not kill your enemy with your own hands?"
"What's wrong with killing an enemy with your own hands..." Ji Xiu suddenly laughed.
As expected, he is a person who has climbed to the position of chief minister by virtue of his ability to control people's hearts!
If he hadn't made an agreement with the Xu family, he would have been shaken by the other party's words now that he was "desperate"!
If he has to make a deal with someone no matter what, there is no reason why he would choose a murderer.
He is still somewhat sure about the integrity of Zheng Guo. At least he doesn't have to worry about the Xu family going back on their word.
Furthermore, although the person in front of me has some ability to play politics, these so-called skills are more suitable for peacetime, or for opportunism under the favorable circumstances of the time and place - but in the real troubled times, with thousands of armies and horses fighting.
, destined to be a vulnerable paper tiger.
At this moment, looking at the enemy in front of him, Ji Xiu even felt lucky.
Fortunately, he met the Xu family girl that day. Fortunately, he still had a choice, so he would not compromise with his enemies in order to save Wan'er!
Now, not only does he not need to compromise...
Ji Xiu took another step forward, but suddenly raised his hand and strangled Xia Tingzhen's neck.
"...The day I learned the truth, I vowed to seek justice for my two children! Today, as a father, I will send you down to apologize to them!"
The hand tightened violently around her neck. Xia Tingzhen's face turned red quickly. She struggled with her hands and made a difficult voice: "Are you crazy..."
How dare the other party attack him right here and now!
