Sealing Sword

Ten years ago, on August [-]th, the moon was full in the Mid-Autumn Festival.

This should be a good festival for the reunion of thousands of families, but at the beginning of the evening, the pedestrians on the street turned around in a hurry, and did not stay outside, and most of the wine shops and houses by the road were closed, only a few sporadic ones were lit. Get ready for night business.

However, the business was bleak, only some ordinary people lingered in it, and occasionally a few vulgar rich merchants, none of the nobles who used to wear silk and pearls could be seen at this time, and the soft sedans and carriages went straight to the mansion without stopping.

Tianjing City is a prosperous place at the foot of the Son of Heaven, and it is this annual festival, so logically speaking, it should not be so silent. However, Emperor Chongzhao was old and seriously ill. Seven days ago, he summoned hundreds of monks and priests to enter the Fengtian Hall, to stand up for the Son of Heaven. Cang pray for longevity.In order to show sincerity, civil and military officials are not allowed to drink and have fun. They need to cleanse their body and purify their energy and fast for ten days.

There are few benevolent things in life, so why ask the blue sky for mercy?

Even the most ignorant people can guess that the emperor is incapable of medicine and stones, and he can only pray to the gods and Buddhas to live on for a while.

For a moment, an undercurrent surged above the court hall, and the situation in Tianjing City was rumbling.

No matter how much thought is in the hearts of high-ranking officials, they wish they could be cautious at this juncture, for fear that people will catch the wrong place, affect the whole body, and cause the dangerous balance to shake.

In the big market, there is no sound in Huajie and Liuxiang tonight, but there is still a little candle in Zuichunlou.

The three-storey building with carved railings and paintings, removed the complicated red lights, put away the lingering curtains, and the front and side doors are all closed, which fully demonstrates the family style of "thanking guests behind closed doors", but this is not the case in this building.

Food and sex are also sexual, the nobles are used to the life of wine, sex and wealth, how can they really be a lay Buddhist who eats fast and recites Buddha for ten days?Compared with the smart people who know that "a little intolerance can lead to big plans", there are more people who steal, rape and play tricks in the world.

What's more, tonight is the day for the red silk lady to redeem herself.

"Red Silk Lady" is of course a stage name, she is the number one girl in Zuichunlou, she was sold here at a high price two years ago by her father who owed a lot of gambling debts, the man hypocritically begged the old bustard to let her be a clean lady After making money, he came back to redeem the girl, but he didn't expect that the girl had already pledged on the deed of sale before the old bustard ridiculed her.

"You don't want me, and I don't force it. The 500 taels of silver is to repay the kindness of your parents. From then on, it will be irrelevant to you."

She cut the bright red handkerchief in half, and became the red silk girl of Zuichunlou ever since.

Compared with the so-called pure ladies, the red ladies who are willing to let go of their flesh and blood are naturally more profitable. The red silk lady is smart. He competed for his talent, appearance, and intelligence, and after two years, he has become the top card of Zuichunlou, and his fame is widely spread in most of Tianjing City.

Naturally, her customers have changed from a peddler to a wealthy official, and she is still not complacent. She follows the rules and listens less, asks less, and flirts just right. But no man who has ordered the red silk lady's sign will not be fascinated by her. .

For eight hundred days and nights, the red-haired lady had already collected all the money needed to redeem herself, even if the old bustard doubled the amount by playing tricks, she didn't dare to tear herself apart with the red-haired lady, for fear that she would go find her in a fit of anger. Loved ones put pressure on them.

In this way, the redemption of the lady went smoothly, and she will leave Tianjing City tomorrow to find a place where no one will recognize her to live the rest of her life. Tonight is her last night in Zuichun Tower. The risk comes in from the dark side, just for this one-night romance after spending a lot of money.

In order to ensure the safety of the guests’ identities, all the guests who came here tonight were not named. As long as they could afford the silver taels, they would put on a mask and bid for the competition. In the end, a burly man with a tiger face mask won the championship at a price of 3000 taels of silver. , triumphantly hugged the beauty and went up to the third floor of Anxiangju.

Not long after, Gu Xiao, who was dressed in black, was like an inconspicuous shadow, passing by the big tree outside the building, and swept into the room with the half-closed casement along with a gust of wind.

As soon as his feet hit the ground, he covered his nose with his sleeve, his eyebrows furrowed tightly: "Your fragrance is so strong that it might kill a swarm of hornets."

"The boss doesn't understand the way of mixing incense, so don't talk nonsense. You see, this benefactor really likes it." Behind the ash wood table, the red silk lady rested her cheeks with one hand, and poured wine from the wine cup with her jade fingers. When it was eight full, he pushed it casually, and the wine cup flew out flat, and landed firmly in Gu Xiao's palm, without splashing a drop of wine, and the water surface was still as smooth as a mirror.

Without even the slightest hesitation, Gu Xiao raised his head and drank the wine in one gulp. The strong wine passed down his throat to dissipate the chill of the autumn night. He looked up and looked behind the screen. Muttering, holding the quilt and moving a few times from time to time, showing her ugly behavior.

He took a look and then retracted his gaze, said: "Minister of Rites Du Yi."

The red-haired lady sneered and said, "As the servant of the Ministry of Rites, you are so eager and ignorant of etiquette. I don't know which master can train such a hungry dog?"

"Yingxiu, please be careful, my daughter, after all, such filth is not worth dirtying your mouth." Gu Xiao said flatly, "Did you ask anything?"

"The emperor's illness is hopeless." Yingxiu put down the wine cup, his eyes were as cold as water, "He didn't want to die, and he didn't want to give up his rights, so after the death of the crown prince, he refused to be the crown prince again, and now several sons are fighting for it. The head is broken, and the gang members of various factions are fighting each other."

Gu Xiao raised her eyes: "Watching the fire from the other side, naturally the bigger the fire, the more interesting it is."

"An old thing that hasn't lived for a long time, isn't it afraid of being burned by fire?"

Gu Xiaodao: "The person he likes doesn't have the capital to beat the crowd, so the harder the other people fight, the more he likes."

Yingxiu didn't ask any more questions.

Emperor Chongzhao was over sixty years old and was seriously ill. Unfortunately, Da Chu has not yet had a crown prince to oversee the country. All the affairs of the court were handled by Prime Minister Qin Mingde and six ministers. Xu Dace made the first decision.

However, courtiers cannot exceed their power, and disasters will inevitably arise over time.Now seeing that Emperor Chongzhao became more and more ill, among his heirs, apart from the eldest prince Chu Huang who died young, and the second prince Chu Yu who was left cold because of the Qin Gong case, one of his heirs became restless.

This Minister of Rites, Du Yi, is a member of the Tenth Prince Chu Ze.

Chu Ze and Chu Yu are brothers from the same mother, and both are the sons of Concubine Situ.Concubine Situ is not only beautiful, she is extremely favored, but also comes from a family of military generals. Her father and brother are both important officials in the court. When she was the most popular, even Empress Xu wanted to give her three points.

However, the Duke Qin case 24 years ago involved the second prince Chu Yu and Duke Protector Qin Hebai, which naturally also implicated the Situ family.Although Situ escaped the catastrophe because of his status as a royal family, his vitality was seriously injured after all. Concubine Situ was also treated coldly for a time. Remnant, but calmed down.

It's a pity that she and the second prince can live in peace, but the young and energetic tenth prince Chu Ze can't.

Since the death of the eleventh prince, Chu Ze was the youngest son of Emperor Chongzhao. No matter how suspicious the emperor was, he would always be a little more tolerant towards the youngest son, which naturally gave birth to Chu Ze's pride.

Although Empress Xu is the wife of Emperor Chongzhao, the power of her mother's family is only moderate, and only the eldest prince is born under her knees. It is a pity that Chu Huang died of illness 12 years ago, leaving only the eldest grandson of the emperor Chu Xun's flesh and blood.

After losing her son who was the crown prince, Empress Xu became depressed and unable to manage the palace affairs. She was gradually divided between Concubine Situ and Concubine Tang Chen. If you follow the court early to be a director, I am afraid that the position of queen has long been empty talk.

However, the eldest grandson of the emperor is not a prince after all. Since Empress Xu's lineage is not a concern, the crown prince has to be chosen from among the remaining eight princes.

"Chu Ze is not as old as the weak crown. Although he has the favor, he does not have the support of Concubine Situ and the Second Prince. It is not easy to win over the courtiers, unless..." After a pause, Gu Xiao looked coldly, "He has other backers. "

Yingxiu frowned. Two years ago, she was ordered by her teacher to enter the capital under the guise of Gu Xiao, the heir of Jinghong. Since then, she has been involved in the secrets of the court. The Dark Feather faction, the latter coordinates the power of Lve Ying in the palace.

Normally, even though Yingxiu was quick in handling affairs, he would not inquire too much about royal secrets, so he was a little at a loss at this time.

Gu Xiao saw that she was confused, so she didn't let it go: "The empress loses power, the noble concubine is left cold, and in the harem, Concubine Tang Chen is the head."

Concubine Tang Chen was born in a family of the Tang family. Tang Jie, the current patriarch of the Ministry of Officials, is her elder brother. He has a lot of party members in the court, and he uses the opportunity of personnel scheduling to set up a network. No one in the other parties can say that they have no nails in the Tang family.

With such a powerful mother clan, Concubine Tang Chen should be able to sit back and relax, but unfortunately she has a fatal weakness - she has no children under her knees.

Concubine Tang Chen has only one daughter, Princess Yuning, and childlessness is her biggest worry. If she hadn't been able to control Emperor Chongzhao's thoughts and had the support of her mother's family, she might not even be able to sit firmly as the fourth concubine.

Yingxiu said: "She wants to support Chu Ze? But..."

Chu Ze has a mother and brother, no matter how much Concubine Situ keeps her own life, she will not tolerate other women to destroy her mother-child relationship. Concubine Tang Chen's method is undoubtedly to make wedding dresses for others.

Gu Xiao shook her head: "Although Concubine Tang Chen has no parents, she has an adopted son... The fourth prince, Chu Yan, whose biological mother is Beiman Heqin Princess, was suspected when he was young because Beiman broke the contract and knocked off the customs, so he committed suicide to prove it." It’s clear, Chu Yan was raised under Concubine Tang Chen’s knees, and has treated her as her own for many years, and the relationship between mother and child is very close.”

When Yingxiu heard the word "Chu Yan", her eyes turned cold, and she seemed to ask unintentionally: "Is there a rift between her and Chu Yan? "

"Since Chu Yan wanted to accept his side concubine half a year ago, because the main concubine Tang is Concubine Tang Chen's niece, Concubine Tang Chen was naturally displeased. Chu Yan didn't mention this matter knowingly, the suspicion did fall, but..."

"But what?"

Gu Xiao showed a cold expression: "However, there is not a single secret letter exchanged between Yuxiu Palace and the Fourth Prince's Mansion."

The so-called rift is just a way to cover one's ears and steal the other's bell. Compared with Chu Ze, Concubine Tang Chen of course values ​​Chu Yan, whom she brought up with one hand, but in this troubled autumn, if she wants to play for the other party, she naturally has to pretend to be alienated in order to turn the light into darkness.

Yingxiu is a little clear: "Then she approached Chu Ze, and even encouraged him to form a party for personal gain, in order to let Chu Ze become the leader of Chu Yan, and also drag the second prince and the Situ family into trouble."

Gu Xiao sighed and said, "Chu Ze is arrogant, Concubine Tang Chen is scheming."

"The imperial court, which was already smoggy, has turned into a pool of muddy water because of this battle for the heir apparent..." Yingxiu clenched her fingers tightly, "From what you say, I'm afraid Chu Yan will probably be the one who will become a great treasure in the future."

Gu Xiao sneered inexplicably: "He really does."

Ying Xiu blinked, and asked seemingly unintentionally: "You took Chu Yan's son as your apprentice, taught him martial arts for three years, and reorganized the secret guards for Chu Yan, helping him spread his ears, eyes, and claws widely in Tianjin. Loyal and loyal, why are you so angry now?"

Gu Xiao's dark eyes were like two deep pools, staring at her coldly, without saying a word.

There was a sudden chill behind Yingxiu's back, and the fingers holding the porcelain cup tightened, but he finished the sentence without changing his face: "It is said that men are also sexually erotic, Chu Yan knows how to employ people, and I will give you delicious food and wine. I gave you beautiful women, even half of my private guards are at your disposal, so how can I be sorry for you?"

"Yingxiu." Gu Xiao finally opened his mouth, his voice was very soft, "I know what I should do, and you don't have to use these words to test me, if I really switch to Chu Yan, I will definitely not let you live until now. "

He said it lightly, cold sweat broke out on the back of Yingxiu, but he was relieved.

Three years ago, Gu Xiao rescued Chu Xun and Chu Yao who were in distress by accident, but forged a grudge with Burial Soul Palace, and thus implicated her mentor Gu Yaofang.

Gu Haofang lived and died in a hurry, and did not leave much to Gu Xiao, only his martial arts and a stunning knife.

Gu Xiao wanted to kill He Lianyu even in her dreams, but she was never stupid.Due to the encounter in Mizong Ridge for several days, Gu Xiao knew that He Lianyu was just a murder knife in the hands of others, and the culprit was still behind the scenes, and even involved in the royal family's infighting.

He Lianyu tried his best to attract Gu Huafang, was it really just for the sake of old enemies?

Gu Yaofang's life was buried in the vast Mizong Ridge, but he escaped safely as a young man. Is it really auspicious?

In the past, Gu Xiao believed that God had eyes, but now he only believes that people's hearts are unpredictable.

So at that time, facing the solicitation of the man who claimed to be Lieutenant Lin, Gu Xiao chose to politely refuse to leave. The other party did not stalk him, which made him more vigilant while he was relieved.

When he met Chu Yao in Jinshui Town, he followed him to Tianjing, and "ran into" Lieutenant Lin again on the way. The other party claimed to be the subordinate of the fourth prince Chu Yan. They were captured, but fortunately the two emperors and grandsons had their own talents, and they were rescued by Gu Xiaoheng.

Xiaowei Lin's expression was frank, his reasons were justified, and Chu Yao testified that what he said was true, so Gu Xiao let go of his doubts.

He came to Tianjing with the two of them, and met the fourth prince Chu Yan. Although the other party was dignified and majestic, he had no pride in himself, knew people and made good use of them, and even had a deep gap in his chest.

It was from Chu Yan that Gu Xiao learned the meaning of Jinghong Dao, and at that moment he was struck by lightning.

Chu Yan does not hide his ambition. His appreciation of Gu Xiao comes from Chu Yao's admiration, but also from the value of Jinghong.

Emperor Chongzhao is fatuous, and the princes are fighting for power... These have nothing to do with Gu Xiao at first, but because their private struggles implicated Gu Huafang, as his disciple, he would be willing to kill the culprit to catch the culprit .

So he became Chu Yao's master, and accepted Chu Yan's deal - he helped Chu Yan develop the dark guard, and Chu Yan helped him find out which prince was colluding with the Buried Soul Palace.

All this was going on in an orderly manner until two years ago when Gu Xiaoyin went to Zuichun Building to spy on Chu Yan's surveillance officials, but found a new celebrity.

The red-haired lady who was said by outsiders to be "born in poverty and have a long way to go" can play a bewitching melody with golden bells on her hair, making the guests feel dizzy in Chunxiao Yimeng, and answer her every question.

Gu Xiao deliberately investigated her, and found the gambler who sold her to Zuichunlou according to the information, but found that this seemingly wretched and thin old man also had good martial arts.

When he turned his head, he saw a crimson phantom on the long street.

At that time, Gu Xiao clenched the knife tightly, and asked in a deep voice, "Who are you? Why did you sneak into Zuichunlou?"

"The slave's sleeves are full." She paused, looked at the Jinghong knife in Gu Xiao's hand, her eyebrows and eyes were cold, "Zuichunlou, it's mine."

When the swords met, Gu Xiao's skills surpassed Ying Xiu's, but his eyes fell on the two swords in the woman's hands.

One long and one short, the dark blade body is very similar to Jinghong, but the handle is not engraved with fluttering swan geese, but a pair of phoenixes.

The reunion between Jinghong and Anyu after so many years happened in this one night.

From Ying's cuffs, Gu Xiao learned the secret behind Jinghong's other half, and also learned a piece of news that shocked him——

Three years ago, the owner of Jinghong Sword, Hua Fang, died in Mizong Ridge. Jiang Muxue, the owner of Dark Feather, urgently summoned Liao Ying with a secret order, and gathered the strength of the two parties to search all the way from the southwest to the north, and finally found a usable clue.

One is to capture the spies alive at the northern border, and to find the letter written by the fourth prince who secretly communicated with Beiman;

The second is to find a token hidden under the scorched earth on the ruined Feiyun Peak.

Gu Xiao has seen such tokens before, because he also has one himself, which was given by Chu Yan himself when he first entered the Fourth Prince's Mansion, and together with Lin Xiaowei, he was in charge of the hidden guards in the mansion.

At that moment, Gu Xiao's eyes were suddenly bloodshot.