Pick all the cold branches

After entering the stronghold, I realized that this ugly bandit stronghold really has hidden secrets.There are not only firecrackers confiscated from the Japanese pirates in the village, but also cannons. If an expert trains strictly, it will be enough to train another magic machine army.

And there are warships.

The bandit village is backed by a broken rock, and under the rock is a natural inlet, which can be used as a harbor for warships. There are already five warships parked there. Although each of them is damaged and is being repaired, it can still be seen See its mighty.

In such an excellent location, it is not the guards of the officers and soldiers who are stationed there, but bandits who smuggle ore.

Not to mention Jia Fei and Zhen Xian, even the guards are also surprised.

Yuqing glanced at the big flag on the gate of the village, and muttered dissatisfiedly: "What's so great...you dare to call yourself 'Dragon Tiger'? Later, I called Lin Anwei to kill and bring this nest of grasshoppers..."

"Lin'an Guard?" Jia Fei couldn't help snorting coldly, "I think it's possible that they took Lin'an Guard in one go."

The last time I went outside Juyong Pass, the guards in northern Xinjiang I saw were nothing more than conservative, and there was no major fault.But now, going to the southeast, what I saw was horrific, and the strength of the officers and soldiers was so weak, it was really outrageous.

If even bandits are inferior, how can they guard the country?

Jiafei's heart was heavy, and he was even more unhappy. It was really difficult to have a good color on his face.

Gu Sanniang led them to the main hall in the village.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw a person coming forward with a smile and shouting: "Brother Xiuwen, I miss you so much after I leave Jiyuan."

This man walked straight up to Zhen Xian, holding a feather fan in his hand, casually wearing a Taoist robe, with all his black hair scattered, it was Lu Lan who was supposed to be dead.

However, Lu Lan at this time, no matter his appearance or voice, is quite different from the wealthy and personable Boss Lu back then.

The words were spoken to Zhen Xian.

Zhen Xian frowned slightly, clenched his fingers hidden in his sleeves, and sighed, "Brother Guangfeng has great powers, I have seen it."

"Hey, brother Xiuwen, what are you talking about!" Lu Lan was not polite at all, and stretched out his hand to grab him.

But was stopped.

His Highness Prince Jing's eyes turned cold, and he immediately strangled Lu Lan's wrist, not allowing him to touch Zhen Xian.

Lu Lan's smile faltered, and he paused for a moment before watching Jia Fei pull up his lips.

"My lord...it's been a long time too."

This sentence is ambiguous.

Zhen Xian felt that his heart was caught all of a sudden, thinking that Lu Lan was going to expose His Highness's identity just like that, but just as he was about to say something to stop him, he heard Zhang Er yelling after him.

"Brother, they are all Jinyiwei!"

The expression on Zhang Er's face didn't change much, as if he didn't understand what Lu Lan meant by "Prince", even Gu Sanniang didn't have much reaction.

No wonder.In a mere bandit village on the border, how could ordinary people think that His Royal Highness Prince Jing would suddenly come to the door in person.The two probably thought that Jia Fei was surnamed Wang.

Lu Lan looked at his two siblings one by one, and the smile on his lips became more and more strange.

"It's not necessarily Jin Yiwei who uses the Xiuchun Knife, otherwise the Japanese pirates' firecrackers and warships would all be Japanese pirates?"

He unceremoniously knocked Zhang Er on the head with the feather fan in his hand.

"Then... who can still get Jin Yiwei's Xiuchun Knife?"

Zhang Er stroked the top of his head, perplexed and questioned.

Lu Lan smiled meaningfully and didn't answer, as if he could spit out something insignificant at any time.

For Lu Lan, Zhen Xian is ashamed. After all, he once promised to try his best to save his life, but in the end he failed to do so.

But this is between him and Lu Lan, it has nothing to do with righteousness, and he doesn't regret it.

And this incident should not involve His Highness.

If Lu Lan has any complaints, just blame him.

Although he didn't know how Lu Lan escaped death and became a bandit here, if he had known earlier, he would not have allowed His Highness to take such a risk, but since the matter has come to this point, the first priority is to keep His Highness safe.

Zhen Xian was nervous in his heart, his complexion was also tense, and he immediately said in a low voice: "This time I am going south with the young master for the important matter of fighting against the Japanese. I will not care about you, and you don't have to think about it."

Lu Lan laughed even more strangely when he heard this, "Your brother has completely regarded me as a villain."

Zhen Xian frowned tightly, "If you are not a villain, you can expel the Japanese pirates and rescue the people to atone for your sins. Why take this opportunity to make money for the country?"

According to Zhen Xian's temperament, he actually doesn't like to criticize others like this.

People's hearts are different, no matter how you think in your heart, you are thinking for yourself, and you have no position to demand others.

But Lu Lan was different.

This person once shocked him for a moment, at least for a moment, and made him see the courage and righteousness that he knew he couldn't do.

Is it really all an illusion?

No matter how ever-changing and exquisite, there are always some things that cannot be changed.

He didn't believe it, or rather, he didn't want to believe it. Regarding Lu Lan, he was completely wrong.

However, Lu Lan in front of him always had a look of natural mockery.

"I do a little bit of ore business, kill the Japanese pirates by the way, and take in a few homeless brothers. I don't know how to make a fortune for the country? I don't kill the Japanese pirates, and the officers and soldiers don't see how to kill them? I don't save the people, even Their families don't care whether they live or die."

The pirates in the southeast have been infested for a long time, and they can never be eliminated. The imperial court is suffering from the pirates, and they turn a blind eye to these bandits. As long as they pay tribute, they ignore them. It is precisely because of this that they simply survived in the grass and turned around to bully the weaker.

Every time there is war, the law does not exist, the people are in dire straits, and the world turns into hell in an instant.Killing his wife and throwing his son away is easy to find.Even if he is not killed by his family, he will be tortured and killed by Japanese pirates, bandits, or even trampled by passers-by, and trampled by himself.

In the face of life and death, human nature is gone, and all that is left is the animal nature for survival.This is how people at the bottom live. There is no honor, no nobility, or even dignity, but at least they can live one more moment, just to live one more moment.

People who have lived to this extent are no different from ghosts.

But ordinary people can do this, but Lu Lan shouldn't.

Having read the books of sages and sages, and possessing the heart of glory, how could he be willing to degenerate and fall down in the mud so easily!

"Look at those people whose families were ruined because of the war, do you really have the heart?"

Zhen Xian felt that his throat was dry and sore.

But Lu Lan looked at him and sneered.

"Brother Xiuwen, have you forgotten? My family is also ruined."

There was coolness in his voice, and his eyes were even colder.

"Lu is a businessman. Three generations of my family have been saddle horses and queens in the palace. In the end, they were abandoned like worn-out shoes. Only by dissipating all the family wealth can they save a mere life. He has already died once, so what wealth can't be made ? After all, not everyone is as high-spirited as Brother Xiuwen, who is willing to devote himself to the enemy who killed his father and family."

Zhen Xian trembled all over, as if sinking into a cold pool in an instant, almost suffocating.

There was blood that couldn't be coagulated at the bottom of his heart, and he was stabbed down and gouged out like this.

But he couldn't blame Lu Lan for being cruel.

Because he had never been kind to Lu Lan.

"The Superintendent of Rituals and the Weaving Bureau are sorry for you, but the people of Zhezhi have none." He took a deep breath and struggled to utter these words.

"Really? That's how you lie to yourself."

Lu Lan sneered even more coldly.

"I'm sorry for your courtiers, not the king, not the country, and not the people. But the world is innocent, so why are you innocent?"

Zhen Xian almost couldn't stand anymore.

There is a screaming sound in the depths of my heart.

Although he didn't feel that he was wrong, he always knew that he was just doing what he should do, and shouldn't be easily swayed by these few words of ridicule.

But what Lu Lan said was more mean and bitter than the ridicule he encountered in this life.

What made him miserable was that he understood what Lu Lan was talking about.

People are unreliable.No one is perfect, let alone impermanence.Blaming the courtiers is just the easiest self-deception.

Because the courtiers can't kill them all.

Even if this one is killed, so what?It seems that if the Lu family falls, other merchants will fill in the vacancy immediately.It's just a new cycle.

Of course Zhen Xian understands these reasons.He just couldn't say these words like Lu Lan.Because once he speaks out, His Highness will inevitably be hurt.He didn't want to continue such a topic in front of His Highness.

Zhen Xian bit his lips tightly, tried his best to calm down his breath, not wanting Jiafei to see the ups and downs of his emotions.

He heard Gu Sanniang asking curiously.

"Brother knew them so? What are their backgrounds?"

Lu Lan immediately smiled.

"Brother Xiuwenxian is a good friend who used to go boating with me on Taihu Lake to drink cold mountains. As for the background of this 'prince', it is even bigger——"

This person wanted to put on an appearance of targeting His Highness Prince Jing everywhere.

"Lu Lan!" Zhen Xian finally couldn't bear it and shouted angrily.

In the eyes of everyone around His Royal Highness Prince Jing, Zhen Xian has always been a modest person, and he rarely quarrels loudly with others, let alone getting angry.The guards had never seen Zhen Xian scolding Batu Mengke in the grassland before. At best, they occasionally saw him being annoyed by the prince and arguing for a while, but now seeing him getting angry with Lu Lan, they are quite upset. for surprise.

Although Lu Lan was mocking Zhen Xian, he didn't talk much about His Royal Highness Prince Jing, but whenever he mentioned it, the meaning of targeting was strong, obviously to make Zhen Xian angry on purpose.Although the guards were unhappy, they were not sure of the prince's intentions, so they didn't dare to act rashly, so they each pressed their waist sabers, as if they could kill at any time.

In this way, the situation is a little delicate after all.

Zhen Xian immediately noticed that his mood was different.

Perhaps it was because the involvement of His Highness made him lose his composure; perhaps it was because Lu Lan had made him feel a little bit of sympathy for him, so now he is particularly resentful; or maybe it was just because he was poked at a painful spot.

But in any case, he shouldn't lose control easily.

Zhen Xian suddenly turned pale, and took a step back unconsciously.

With just this one step, he was supported by the person behind him.

"Xiaoxian, it's okay."

Jiafei put his hands on his back to support him calmly, without any waves in his eyes, instead he smiled more deeply.

"I heard that Boss Lu is always particular about business. I owed Boss Lu a huge favor in Suzhou, and it's my fault that I haven't been able to repay it. If Boss Lu wanted to ask me for it right now, I wouldn't say anything else. But Now I have a bigger deal here that I want to discuss with Boss Lu, if it is done, I will pay back the same amount as last time, I wonder what Boss Lu wants?"

It was so easy to say, it was really elusive.For a while, no one knew what His Royal Highness Prince Jing meant by "return double."

Lu Lan was silent for a moment, with a provocative arc on the corner of her lips.

"I am very much looking forward to being able to have the lord condescend to negotiate business with me. I'm afraid... what Lu wants, the lord won't give up."

When he said that, he glanced at Zhen Xian presumptuously.

Zhen Xian was stunned for a moment, and when he understood, he suddenly felt that the blood all over his body was rushing to his face.

This is already an undisguised humiliation.

From the moment of "reunion", Lu Lan's deliberate every word and every sentence is nothing more than face-to-face sarcasm.

Sarcasm is harmless, but humiliation is quite another.

Moreover, this person humiliated not only Zhen Xian, but also His Highness Prince Jing.

As soon as this remark came out, all the guards around Jia Fei turned black.In particular, Yuqing has an unscheming and violent temper. Where can she swallow this kind of uselessness, she immediately gritted her teeth and reprimanded "presumptuous", and was about to rush to beat someone.

But Jia Fei raised his hand to stop him.

He stopped Yuqing back, and when he spoke again, the smile was still there, but the brilliance in his eyes was already cold.

"The so-called 'buying and selling' is of course using what I can sell for what Boss Lu is willing to sell. If you force it, no matter who you are, you won't be able to do this business. Boss Lu is a smart person, he must know how to advance and retreat, and he won't just make things difficult. mine."

Lu Lan could not help staring at Jiafei when he heard it, and after a long time, he clapped his hands and laughed.

"My lord is indeed a cheerful person. It must be very interesting to do business with my lord."

He bowed in a welcoming gesture, invited Jia Fei and Zhen Xian to sit down, and ordered people to distribute wine, meat and fruits to the guards.

The guards did not welcome him well, even though they were forced to attend the banquet by the king's order, they refused to touch the food and drink in front of them.

Lu Lan didn't mind either. He still had the same posture as the boss of Lu Da, and he was eager to invite everyone to sit.

However, when everyone sat down, they realized that the owner of this bandit village was not the "big brother" Lu Lan who Zhang Er and Gu Sanniang respected.

The one sitting in the top chair was actually the girl with a peachy face, Gu Sanniang.

The second village master's seat is Zhang Er's.

Lu Lan sat on the special seat beside him, feeling at ease.

That Gu Sanniang jumped down to the ground, picked up a large bowl of wine, and shouted loudly:

"Eldest brother is the benefactor of me and second brother. Since we have made obeisance, we are brothers and sisters. What elder brother said is what I said, and the friend of elder brother is also my friend. I just misunderstood and offended my friend. How many of you are not going to accompany me, let's do it first!"

There was a bandit air in her voice and demeanor. Although she was petite, she was majestic, and she drank a large bowl of wine with her head raised.

Wine is a common knives burnt by the folks, it is not smooth, and it hurts the throat after swallowing it, but she is a little more bold than a big man who is addicted to alcohol, except for a rosy blush on her cheeks, her expression does not change at all.

But she is clearly a sweet-eyed little girl, no wonder she wears the bronze mask, presumably because she is afraid that people who judge people by appearance will look down on her.

The name of Longhuzhai in Zhejiang Province has only become famous in recent years. Speaking of it, I am afraid that it is also thanks to the "credit" of the Weaving Bureau for lowering the price of silk and forcing the people to sell their land cheaply. Of course, Lu Lan is also a part of it. .This Gu Sanniang called Lu Lan a benefactor, in various senses, it is not wronged.

Jia Fei scoffed coldly in his heart, still smiling, and asked, "Boss Lu, won't you introduce the heroes to me?"

It's actually an irony.

Although His Highness Prince Jing spoke kindly.

Lu Lan shook her fan and laughed lightly.

"It's a long story to say."

The reason why the owner of Longhuzhai is Gu Sanniang is because Gu Sanniang was the only one who fell into the grass in the first place.

A few years ago, Gu Sanniang was just a cardamom girl. Her father was Sang Nong from Jinhua, Zhejiang Province. Because the raw silk expropriated at a low price could not make ends meet, she led a few neighbors to ask the government for an explanation, but was beaten instead. Cheng Zuo rebelled against him, and he was sentenced to death.

In order to save her father, Gu Sanniang disguised herself as a maidservant and sneaked into the investigation department at night, appealing for grievances to the then Zhejiang investigation department, but happened to see that the third department and the Weaving Bureau were secretly discussing the matter of exploiting the people's land.At that time, Gu Sanniang was young and was captured by mistake. She was about to be killed and silenced. It was Lu Lan who replaced her "corpse" with a maidservant who died of a serious illness in the Lu Mansion to cover her eyes and ears, and then saved her.But Gu Sanniang's father was still beheaded as an anti-party city, and her mother was subsequently "dian" by her husband's family and a butcher in Hangzhou City.

After her parents died, Gu Sanniang could no longer return home, fearing that she would also be sold by her father's family, so she lived a life like a savage in the mountains.Lu Lan would often help her by asking her family to give her some food and clothing.Occasionally, Gu Sanniang would do something for Lu Lan, but most of the time she was serving as a tour guide in the southeast, fighting injustice for the bullied people, and gradually recruited a few desperate brothers.

Not long after, Lu Lan sent her another person, Zhang Er.

Zhang Er was born in a military family, and he was fighting against the Japanese pirates under Hu Dutang's subordinates. Because he was defeated and the officer refused to take responsibility, he put all the blame on him and wanted to kill him with a stick.Zhang Er refused to accept it, so he died and escaped, lying down on the side of the road, and was picked up by Lu Lan by chance.

Lu Lan had a premonition that there might be changes in the weaving bureau. In order to save himself a way out, he had been interested in Jinhua Mine for a long time, so he brought Gu Sanniang and Zhang Er together, and set up camp with their money, occupying an important place, and landed again. One after another, more than [-] people who dared to die were recruited from all over the place, and they wanted to open up a business road and sell ore.

Jinhua has always had a strong folk style, and if you want to do ore business in Jinhua, you can't do it without your own people.

Unexpectedly, just after some improvement, an imperial decree came down, and Jin Yiwei rushed to Zhejiang to take Lu Lan's head.

Hearing the news, Lu Lan knew that it was impossible to escape, so he set fire to the Ji Garden, Jin Chan escaped from its shell and hid in Longhuzhai. From then on, he kept his name incognito and saved his life. The black market trading of smuggled ore.

Some of the firearms in the village were confiscated from Japanese pirates, and the other part was obtained from Lu Lan's business for many years.

"The former Lu Lan is dead, now there is only Lu Da in Longhuzhai, who has nothing else to do but lead the brothers to find a way out."

When Lu Lan said this, his voice was steady, as if he was just telling a story about an irrelevant person, but there were vicissitudes in his eyes.

Zhen Xian was in a daze for a long time, but he didn't know what to say.

There are mixed feelings in my heart, the most is still pain.

When he looked at Gu Sanniang in front of him, it was as if he saw another Xiao Hengwu.

And they, as well as everyone in this Dragon and Tiger Village, are just life that is performed every day in this world.

In comparison, what was his own experience?

At least he still has His Highness...

He can still sit here now, well-clothed and well-fed, being cared for thoughtfully, neither being killed in the wilderness, nor being forced to fall into the grass, it's all because he has His Highness protecting him.

Compared with these people, he is much luckier.

Zhen Xian couldn't help but sigh secretly.

He heard Jia Fei talking to Lu Lan.

"You follow me to fight the Japanese pirates, and recruit another 5000 people to gather a rebel army. As long as you have military merits, I can guarantee that your past crimes will be forgiven and you will see the light of day again."

His Highness Prince Jing's voice was calm and sounded serious.

But Lu Lan was very disdainful.

"The white way has the way of the white way, and the underworld has the way of the underworld. Does the prince think that the current Lu Dao still cares about the court's 'crime'?"

Jiafei continued: "You chose the cottage here because you intend to open up maritime trade routes, and to put down the Japanese invasion will be of great benefit to you and will not cause any harm."

Gu Sanniang raised her eyebrows when she heard the words, "Then we also want to be pirates, just fight those Orientals, why should we submit to the imperial court?"

She also said it very seriously, as if being a pirate is a much better thing than submitting to the court.

Jiafei glanced at her and couldn't help but smile.

"I'm not here to command you. If you want to be pirates, you can go there in the future. I'm just borrowing soldiers from you."

He paused for a moment, looked at Lu Lan again, and promised solemnly.

"You can ask for a price, and I will give it to you when the southeast is appeased."

It is unheard of for the prince to actually hire this group of bandits to fight the Japanese pirates.

When the guards heard the news for the first time, they were very dissatisfied, but they couldn't disobey the prince's decision, so they could only stare at Lu Lan and Gu Sanniang.

Lu Lan also seemed to be very surprised. He watched Jiafei without speaking for a long time, and touched his chin with some interest for a long time.

"In this case, I have to carefully calculate this account."