across the Quartet

Chapter One

Yan Wangxi is 27 years old.Jidu.

It is near the end of the year, and the rain and snow are mixed, and the rain is endless.The Feixue Pavilion, which used to be full of guests, suddenly became cold because of the murder of the dancing girl. The candlelight in the building was dim, and the music of the harp was utterly loud, and pedestrians avoided it; there seemed to be an ominous atmosphere, like a monster entrenched in the building.

Today is a bit special.After noon, there were several gorgeous cars parked outside Feixue Pavilion one after another. The people who got out of the cars were often wearing capes and bamboo hats, and hurriedly entered the building to close the door, acting quickly and mysteriously.However, in an alley obliquely facing Feixue Pavilion, there is a dark and dilapidated tavern hidden; peeping from a certain window position, you can just see every move outside the door of Feixue Pavilion.

A vigorous young man glanced out of the window, then turned his face and stared intently at the pot of dog meat in front of him.The boiling soup was gurgling and steaming.A pair of hands that were slightly stiff from the cold stopped in the white air.He squeezed his fists, lined up seven or eight pottery bowls, lifted the wine jar with one hand and poured it back and forth; with the other hand, he turned a bamboo chopstick and knocked one by one along the mouth of the bowls. Put it down as much as possible.

Such a snowy day is unavoidable, but it is a pity that once the music is played, it will definitely attract unnecessary attention; before doing big things, it is the most cautious to drink and eat meat.

Thinking this way, the young man picked up two of the wine bowls and took a few sips of each.After putting it down, I finally couldn't help knocking it a few times with chopsticks, and felt that the tone of my voice was clearer than before.So he knocked and chanted contentedly:

"Changjia—come back—eat without fish—Changjia—come back—go out without car—"

The hands that had stopped in the white air withdrew and paused heavily on the wine jar on the desk.

The young man paused, and said with a sneer: "Xiao Gao, isn't it that you are so excited that you want to play a duet with your elder brother?"

The person sitting in front of the case looked a little younger than him, with clear eyebrows and fair skin; but his lips were light and thin, showing a sense of coldness for no reason.

"Don't make a sound, we are still friends."

The young man's complexion changed, and his two sword eyebrows also collapsed. "Xiao Gao, it turns out that we have known each other for so long, but you don't think of me as———" His voice seemed choked up, and he couldn't continue.

"Brother, I'm not..."

"—As a musician?!"

"..." A layer of humiliation like a fish biting a hook appeared on the young man's face, "When did you become a musician again?!"

"I, Jing Ke, have a lot of friendship with the two national players who play the piano. Whenever there is a fight, someone will play 'High Mountain and Flowing Water' to cheer me up. Even if I can't be Yu Boya, it will be half a bell period, right?" The young man said happily, "On playing the piano As for Chi Zhu, big brother will naturally not be as good as Xiao Gao in his lifetime, but this set of 'wine clock' music I created myself can be regarded as earth-shattering—"

"...Ghosts and gods have the same name." The young man nodded, turning his neck stiffly and looking out the window. "There's another one."

Jing Ke downed a bowl of warm wine hastily, and stared at the window for a while. "Looking at the style of the car, it seems to be a Korean car. Therefore, the king of Han and his government were imprisoned in the country by the Qin people. The one who can be invited by the prince should be the escaped Hengyang Lord."

"Even people from South Korea have come, plus Wei, Chu, Dai, and Qi, His Highness's plan is really big." The young man sighed, "However, envoys from various countries secretly entered Yan, such an action can really be hidden from the pervasive Is it a trap?"

"That's why the giant asked us to wait here." Jing Ke grinned, "After the death of Lord Yanchun, His Highness the Crown Prince was determined to uproot the forces that had been ensnared in Jidu; .If any suspicious person approaches there, we will take them all down."

The young man took a few sips of wine with a heavy heart, and suddenly said: "Brother, you have traveled around the world, but have you ever been to Handan?"

"I've been there a few times. Tsk tsk, Zhao Guo's music and dance beauty is the most famous among the Seven Kingdoms. Didn't that Xue Ji sister tell you?"

The young man choked on the wine, coughed for a long time before he recovered, and replied very quickly: "She said it. She also said that the famous people in Handan were generous and promised, and they sacrificed life and death for loyalty. But recently, the land of Yan Dynasty According to legend, there was a swordsman in Handan whose swordsmanship was so superb that even the sword master of Qin State was no match for him. However, this man presented Heshibi to the King of Qin when the city was broken, and then drove him into Qin and became a reused by the King of Qin. guard."

"...Ah Nie. He is an old friend of mine." Jing Ke lowered his head to pour the wine, his expression unchanged.

"That's right. I also remember that you mentioned having such a friend before." The boy continued. "On the day when the Qin army destroyed Zhao, people with lofty ideals either died in battle or fled to Daijun with the son Jia in order to make a comeback; but this person, who actually relied on presenting national treasures to the king of Qin in order to seek fame and fortune, is such a despicable villain... Brother, you What kind of person was he when you made friends with him?"

"Xiao Gao, you are still young, I'm afraid some things are not what they seem on the surface." Jing Ke raised his head, still smiling, but his tone was very solemn. "Ah Nie, he is more stern-faced than you. He can't play the piano, drink alcohol, and can't even tell jokes. But he looks boring, but he knows a lot of strange things; he looks honest, sometimes Not so honest. Although I have had a life-and-death friendship together, sometimes I feel that I can't see through this person at all."

He drank the bowl of residual wine in one gulp, speaking with a smile.

"—But I can still trust him with my wealth and life."

The young man looked at him in puzzlement for a moment, and wanted to ask something. Jing Ke had already picked up a good leg with his chopsticks, and began to feast on it on the foggy table.

The two people in the tavern would never have imagined that their gossip would be clearly transmitted to the ears of a man sitting in Feixue Pavilion.The man was wearing a big cloak, with white hair loose, muttering to himself: "...Wei has been in business for many years, and the notoriety he earned is not as good as him. The world is really cold."

At this time, the person sitting above him just removed his cloak and veil, revealing a stunning face, which surprised the envoys sitting in other seats.

Crown Prince Yan, wearing a jade crown and court uniform, got up and asked, "This is—"

The white-haired man from before smiled slightly, pretending not to hear the whispers of the others: "My lord Hengyang suffers from a minor illness, so it is inconvenient for a long journey; Blame it?"

"It turned out that the princess came from afar, and Ji Dan was negligent. This person must be the famous heir of Guigu, Mr. Wei Zhuangwei." Prince Yan saluted.Both of them got up to return the salute.

After all the guests were seated, the host clapped three times, and then there was music in Feixue Pavilion.Several young girls danced slowly in the center of the jade platform.It's a pity that everyone here has no interest in watching.

Under the cover of singing and dancing, Prince Yan slowly got to the point.

"Handan fell, and Yi Shui was shocked. The reason why Dan invited secret envoys from various countries to come here, you must already know."

The envoys winked in twos and threes, and did not say a word for a long time.Finally, an old man from the state of Chu was elected and answered for everyone: "Does the prince want to reconsider the alliance? Although the six-nation alliance has a long history, Yan and Chu are thousands of miles apart, and the threat of the Qin people is imminent. We are not allowed to calmly form an alliance and send troops. Even if our country intends to join the Hezong, the rescue will be powerless. I wonder if the prince has a good plan?"

An envoy of the Dai State choked with sobs and said: "Tigers and wolves are powerful. Although the Zhao people fought against them with all their strength, in the end...there are only remnants of the old and weak soldiers in Dai County. They can protect themselves in danger, so there is nothing they can do."

"Dan already knows everyone's difficulties." Prince Yan looked around, but saw a look of sadness. "The king of Qin, Chen Bing Zhao, is about to attack Yan. The matter is urgent, and Dan also knows that it is difficult for all the countries to prepare and send troops in the near future. However, the cold is coming, and the Qin army can't make a big move after winter, and the troops will have to wait until the next year. After the snow has melted, my father has planned to send envoys to Qin to lobby during the truce. Dan and my father have only one request from you: if there is a major change in Qin soon, I hope that the kings of all countries will respond with troops , to recover the land previously annexed by the Tyrant Qin."

"The prince's so-called accident...what is it?"

"For example... a national funeral."

There were more than one sound of gasping in fear during the banquet.After a short silence, an envoy from the Qi State suddenly sneered and said, "I am afraid that all the monarchs and ministers present here have imagined what the prince is referring to. However, the guards of Xianyang Palace are so strict, and His Royal Highness Qin is so strong, and there are so many eyes and ears in the net." , All-pervasive, how difficult is it to achieve? How can the prince have such confidence that the prince's plan will definitely succeed if the plans of other countries cannot succeed?"

"This plan started three years ago." Prince Dan didn't take it seriously, his demeanor was calm. "Dan has found the strongest warrior in the six kingdoms. The sharpest dagger. He has also prepared a peace negotiation ceremony that is enough to tempt King Qin. As long as our envoy approaches King Qin within five steps, life and death will only happen in a flash."

There was another silence at the table.This plan is so bold that it is almost arrogant, and it is so simple that it is almost ridiculous.But what other means can be more thorough and feasible than it?The envoys from various countries racked their brains to think about it, but they couldn't think of anything for a while.

At this moment, a woman's voice broke the ice.

"I heard that the King of Qin has learned martial arts since he was a child, and has outstanding physical strength. He wears the legendary sword Tianwen; maybe he is also wearing a protective armor under the outer robe. Has the prince ever considered that if the assassin's blow does not hit the vital point, the King of Qin What should I do if I draw my sword to resist?"

"Your Highness Honglian." Prince Dan turned to the princess of South Korea with a respectful tone, "I don't know what advice the princess has?"

"I don't dare to take it seriously. Honglian thinks that the dagger prepared by His Royal Highness is not sharp enough. It should also be tempered with deadly poison. It only needs a little scratch to see blood, and it can kill people."

The prince was silent.What the Korean princess said is indeed worthy of consideration; however, in the eyes of the old nobles of the Six Kingdoms, the use of poison and medicine is not fair enough.The legacy of the Spring and Autumn Period always makes people feel heroic, but it also brings many weird and customary rules: For example, some people think that even killing fathers and kings seems to be more noble with swords than poisoning.

Sure enough, an envoy from the State of Wei commented unceremoniously: "Poison is the weapon of the villain and the weak. The strong should face his opponents openly and frankly."

"Oh?" Honglian turned to this person, smiling very charmingly, "My lord, do you use bows and arrows when hunting?"

"—Naturally it is used!"

"Hmph... Since you claim to be strong, why don't you use your own minions to fight the bear with your bare hands when you encounter a wild beast? You don't even dare to show your own shadow, and use weak things like bows and arrows to fight the bear from a distance. Killing them, is it not enough for wild beasts?"

She stroked a strand of hair behind her ear, her red lips parted slightly, and there was a hint of a smile in her voice.

"The means of killing people can only be divided into effective and ineffective. How can there be any superiority or inferiority?"

At this time, a piece of music in the building had just finished playing, and there was no sound from the elegant sparrows at the banquet.Suddenly, the sound of the piano sounded again, and gradually a buzz of disapproval emerged from the crowd.

Prince Dan looked straight at her, "What the princess said is very true. Dan will definitely ask someone to make this arrangement."

Wei Zhuang had always closed his eyes and dozed off, but now he said: "In this way, His Royal Highness must have considered someone who can introduce the envoy of Yan to the King of Qin in Xianyang."

"good."

"Then I dare to ask, what is the peace negotiation condition that His Highness just said that can tempt King Qin?"

"We are going to pretend to present a heavy gift to the King of Qin. The first is to cede the land of Dukang, the richest place in the Yan Kingdom; the second is to give away the head of a certain traitor that the King of Qin really wants to see."

"Excuse me, Wei said bluntly, since the army of the Qin State is ready to go, as long as it sends troops in the next year, and the territory of Yan will be completely exhausted, the land of Dukang will naturally fall into the palm of its hand, so why is it necessary for the State of Yan to cede it? And the reason why the traitors can escape the trap is Naturally, relying on the protection of His Highness the Crown Prince; as long as the Kingdom of Yan no longer exists, who can protect him? It can be seen that as long as the Qin army marches northward, the two generous gifts prepared by His Highness will be at your fingertips. How can His Highness be sure? Will you give up using troops?"

"Sir, what you said is wrong. First, for the Qin State, it has to pay a price for seizing the land of other countries. If other countries can take the initiative to cede land and seek peace without a single soldier, why would the people of Qin not do it? Second, besides Yan Dan, there are other people protecting the traitor of the Qin State, and the snare is not so easy to get. Even if such a condition cannot stop the war, at least it has the value of making the King of Qin take the initiative to receive the envoy." After a pause, Prince Dan continued, "Of course, the hidden worries mentioned by Mr. Dan are also under Dan's consideration. I am afraid that one more crucial thing needs to be added to ensure nothing goes wrong."

"Oh? What?"

"Sui Hou Zhu."

Wei Zhuang's fist clenched, secretly calling for a trick.The Crown Prince of Yan suddenly got up, walked quickly to the front, and bowed to him, "Only this treasure is what the King of Qin desperately desires, but he doesn't know where it is. Even if he wants to send troops to attack Yan, he may not be able to get it. Because of this It's not elsewhere, it's in the hands of Mr. Please, for the sake of the plan to assassinate Qin Qin and the Six Nations Covenant, please donate to me."

Wei Zhuang's complexion was as usual, even though he was furious in his heart, he couldn't reveal half of his murderous aura.

This gathering was actually a trap from the very beginning - a trap aimed at him, Wei Zhuang.

Wei Zhuang had suspected for a long time, why did Yan Dan secretly summon envoys from all over the world to reveal the detailed plan to assassinate Qin in front of them?If you just want to make an agreement that all countries will raise their troops at will after the agreement is completed, then a few secret letters from Jidu can do it.What's more, if King Qin is really assassinated and civil strife is triggered, there is no need to make an agreement in advance, and the countries will definitely take advantage of the fire to loot.But now that he pointed out in front of the envoys of various countries that "Suihou Zhu is hidden in the Guigu faction", it is difficult for Wei Zhuang to deny it in public: South Korea is in an embarrassing position among the six countries, and it is the only country that does not exist at all; Generations are lingering, but South Korea has no monarch and no army. If it does not rely on the support and recognition of a big country, it is just a dispensable ghost.Yan Dan specially invited the nominal South Korean son when discussing the alliance, which was a very respectful act; if Wei Zhuang refused to hand over even a single bead, the other five countries would doubt the sincerity of South Korea's alliance.Coupled with the nursery rhyme of "one jewel, one jade, the world", people who hold Suihou beads will be suspected of having some kind of ambition; the nominal monarch of South Korea is still Hengyang Jun, and Wei Zhuang, as a mere bodyguard, is even more so. This kind of ambition cannot be confirmed.If Lord Hengyang were present today, there might be a gap between them.

He still underestimated Yan Dan.It seems that in addition to having a group of trusted warriors under his command who could help him escape from Qin to Yan, he must also have a close connection with the Mohist family in order to know about the Mohist family, Guigu and Suihouzhu.And his methods of mediating the princes and manipulating people's hearts are not inferior to him.

Good, I made a note of it.

He supported the Crown Prince of Yan State with both hands, with a very respectful expression, "Since it is for the sake of a grand plan, Zhuang dare not follow orders."

When it was time to light up the lights, the tavern was warm and comfortable.The pot of dog meat had been eaten up, and Jing Ke was full with wine and food, patting his sword scabbard to refresh himself.The young musician warmed his hands and plucked a few times on the strings, quite in the mood of playing the last piece.

At this moment, a black object suddenly entered through the window, and Jing Ke's outstretched scabbard flicked it, and then it turned back to the table obediently.It turned out that it was a heavy wine jar that flew in.

Jing Ke cut open the seal, took a deep breath, and said with a smile, "My friend, why don't you even show your face when you invite someone to drink such good wine?"

Across the window, a deep voice slowly replied: "I'm afraid I won't be able to help but kill you as soon as we meet."

Jing Ke raised his eyebrows, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw a cold light shining under the body of the musician's piano, and the long sword had already been drawn halfway silently.He shook his head, put one hand on the back of the young man's hand, and smiled out of the window, "Zhuang... No brother Wei, I haven't seen you in a few years, brother didn't offend you, so why bother."

"Just venting your anger."

"what?!"

He snorted and laughed outside the window, "Brother Jing, I don't know what kind of friendship you, the great Mohist, have with the Crown Prince of Yan Kingdom?"

This time it was Jing Ke's turn to frown and remain silent.However, the people outside the window did not press any further. "Forget it. If my guess is right, I'm afraid I don't need to make a move. Brother Jing has already been sent to the point of the knife."

"It doesn't matter. The world is difficult and dangerous, and you have to live happily every day, drink freely, and fight happily." Jing Ke held the wine jar and said, "It's not like you who are swaying, everyone is full of worries. ,frown."

There was a chuckle outside the window, and then the footsteps faded away.The musician returned the saber to the violin case, and was about to pluck the strings again, when he heard a melodious singing faintly from a distance.

"Zhan Zhan Lusi, the sun is not shining. I am tired of drinking at night, and I will never return if I am not drunk."

TBC

The author has something to say: A small theater? A public service advertisement

[A certain day in a certain year, next to the bar of "blackink" pub in Jidu.]

Gao Jianli: What kind of person is Gai Nie?

Jing Ke (sigh): Ah Nie, he is a guy who drinks martini without gin, drinks bloody marry without vodka, and drinks tequilas sunrise without tequila.

Gao Jianli: ...He is here to mess things up.Why do you want to be friends with this kind of person?

Jing Ke: But when a group of people go out to play, whoever drives home after drinking too much?It is precisely because Ah Nie does not drink at all that I can entrust my life (and bills) to him!

Gao Jianli: ...Is this what you mean by entrusting your life with one another?

Jing Ke (turning his head to the screen, grinning): Cherish life and stay away from drunk driving.

Waiter (on the glass): Mr. Jing, there is a gentleman in the VIP room offering you a drink.

Jing Ke: What is this?

Waiter: Denatured alcohol.

Jing Ke:  …