Huan Rong

After receiving Qin Ce's letter, Qin Xuan made some arrangements and immediately led five hundred horsemen back to Xihe.

It will be May, and there is still spring cold in Xihe.When the team entered the city, it was catching up with a cold rain.The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and the distance between them was less than ten steps, and the person on the opposite side could no longer be seen clearly.

When the guards at the top of the city heard the sound of the horn, they immediately climbed up to the archery tower and looked into the distance.

Seeing that there were hundreds of Mercedes-Benz coming, with a large and eye-catching car in the team, they still dare not confirm the identity of the comers.It wasn't until the team reached the bottom of the city that the horns were blown again and the flags were displayed, only then did the creaking sound of the noose being pulled behind the door.

"Seventh son returns to the city, report to His Royal Highness King Qin!"

The rain became more urgent, accompanied by the faint muffled thunder, cold and depressing.

The heavy city gate slowly opened to both sides, the war horse snorted violently, and stepped through the puddles inside the gate, the splashed water droplets collided with the rain, and instantly shattered and scattered.

The owner of the building guarding here hurried down the city wall, recognized Qin Yu, and immediately saluted with fists in his hands.

"Seven sons."

Qin Yu returned the gift immediately, and said: "Yuan has important matters to attend to, and needs to rush back to the palace as soon as possible. Please forgive me for the negligence."

After the words fell, he kicked the horse's belly lightly, only to hear a loud neighing, the horse's belly hit the ground, and galloped away in the rain.

Zhang Banzhu quickly stepped aside, watched Qin Xuan go away, wiped the rainwater off his face with his backhand, and said, "What are you all doing in a daze? Close the city gate!"

"promise!"

The soldiers pulled the noose, the gates were closed, and the drawbridge was pulled up.

After confirming that there were no omissions, everyone returned to the top of the city and patrolled the top of the city in the rain, not daring to be careless.

Owner Zhang leaned against the city wall, holding down the cold bricks with his big hands, a strange thought flashed in his mind: What is the reason why the Seventh Young Master returned to Xihe at this time?The big cart he was carrying looked a little familiar, it seemed to be the military chariot used by the Fourth Young Master.

Shaking his head and putting aside his messy thoughts, Banzhu Zhang withdrew his almost frozen fingers and stamped his feet vigorously.

He was only in charge of guarding the city, and he rushed to kill when the King of Qin ordered him to do so.Other things are not something that a mere owner can care about, and he cares about them in court, Chinese and military.

Five hundred riders entered the city, and most of them went to the barracks temporarily. Qin Yu returned to the mansion with only twenty pieces.

Even so, there was still a lot of movement, attracting the attention of every family in the city.

Before the father and son could meet and discuss in detail, the civil and military ministers and the heads of the various families had already learned that Qin Yu had returned from the south with [-] cavalry under a secret order and had now entered the palace.

"What is the king's plan?"

The same questions linger in everyone's minds, and they still can't get an accurate answer.I can only wait and see for a while, and then follow the clues to solve the whole mystery when there are clues.

In front of the palace, Qin Yu got off his horse, didn't care to wipe off the rain from his face, and didn't care to change out his cold armor and soaked jacket, he threw out his whip, strode forward with two long legs, and hurried to the main courtyard.

At that time, Qin Ce was dealing with government affairs. He heard a report from someone and knew that Qin Yu had returned from the south. Before he could give his orders, the latter had already walked outside the door. Di Jishou.

"Father."

Qin Ce frowned, looking at his son with his forehead on the ground, his heart sank.A burst of unexplainable sadness surged up, but in the end he didn't say anything, he just aroused Qin Yu, and said in a deep voice: "Go and see your mother. Everything is settled, and we can leave in three days."

"Father, everything is settled, and my son wants to protect my mother to go south tomorrow." Qin Yu straightened his back, lowered his eyes slightly, and did not look at Qin Ce, but his tone was very firm, "Aunt's condition cannot be delayed, and sooner or later." One day of walking, one day of recovery."

Qin Ce was silent.

Looking at the somewhat unfamiliar son, he sighed for a long time, "Come on, let's go."

"promise!"

Qin Yu agreed, got up and exited the inner room.

Watching him leave, looking at the futon soaked in water in front of him, Qin Ce closed the bamboo slips, stared at the swaying three-legged lamp, lost in thought for a long time.

In the back house, Mrs. Liu had just used the medicine, and when she heard that Qin Yu had returned, she rarely showed joy, and said, "Ah Lan is back? Let him in quickly."

Seeing that Mrs. Liu was no better than seeing Qin Ce, Qin Xuan didn't dare to take off the cold rain, so he took off his armor and put on a dry long robe, and then respectfully walked into the inner room to pay respects to Mrs. Liu, and greeted Mrs. Liu.

"Mother, my son received the news from the father, so he didn't dare to delay, and immediately set off for the north."

"Is the journey going well?"

"Everything is fine." Qin Yu said with a smile, "It's just that the weather this year is very unusual. There have been continuous torrential rains in April and May. I have heard from farmers over the years that this is a sign of floods."

Mrs. Liu sighed and shook her head, "Drought and snowstorms last year, there may be floods this year, the remnants of the Hu thieves have not been wiped out yet, your father intends to send troops to fight against Murong Chui, the army rations may be a problem."

Qin Yu didn't make a sound.

If you don't challenge Murong Chui today, you will fight in the future.

The Qin family intended to unify the north, and then swept across China, with Murong Chui on the side, always a serious problem.There is a shortage of military rations, so we can find another way.It is not Qin Ce's style to allow Murong Chui to gain a firm foothold in Sanhan and threaten Changli and other places.

In fact, Qin Yu has already made an offensive plan after being stationed in northern Xinjiang these days.As long as the army rations are in place, Xihe will issue an order to send his troops to the east to wipe out the bandits who are entrenched around him.

"Aunt, I have asked my father for instructions, and tomorrow I will escort my mother and aunt to the south."

"Tomorrow?" Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Liu both showed surprise.According to their opinion, even if Qin Yu returns, he will stay in Xihe for two or three days.

"Depart one day earlier and arrive in Chang'an one day earlier." Qin Yu said earnestly, "My son received letters from the second and fourth brothers. The Chang'an palace has been cleaned up and repaired, just to welcome my mother. Youzhou promised Those who borrow medicine will also sell good medicine."

Having said that, Qin Yu changed the subject, and his expression finally became somewhat relaxed.

"Mum and aunt probably don't know yet, but the good doctor borrowed from Youzhou is named Hua Xianxian, and his medical skills are extremely good. I heard that his ancestor was a doctor of Jiankang, and the four brothers spent a lot of effort to lend him out. We even gave up attacking Guzang, stationed our troops in Guangwu County, and let the Jin troops enter the city first."

Mrs. Liu was slightly stunned, then frowned and said, "Does your father know about this?"

"Are you referring to the doctor or Gu Zang?"

"Both."

"I don't know." Qin Yu shook his head and said in a deep voice, "But I know that no matter what the father wants, as long as it is for the mother, the fourth brother will do it."

Madam Liu closed her eyes, her expression seemed relieved, but more complex.

"Okay, let's go tomorrow."

"promise."

"You're exhausted from the journey, so it's good to rest today."

"promise."

Qin Yu didn't say much, got up and exited the inner room.

When he got to the corridor, he called a servant and asked, "Where is elder brother?"

The servant did not dare to hesitate, and told the courtyard where Qin Jiu was.Qin Yu raised his legs and wanted to leave, but stopped midway, and said, "You must not report this matter to my mother."

"Promise!" The servant girl promised, Fushen did not dare to raise her head.

Qin Yu turned around with an increasingly cold expression, holding the sword at his waist with one hand, his eyes filled with coldness.

Not long after he left, Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Liu got the news.Even if the servant did not say anything, it did not prevent the two of them from knowing what happened in the inner house.

"This child." Mrs. Liu shook her head and coughed suddenly.

"Sister, Ah Lan has a sense of propriety." Mrs. Liu gently followed Mrs. Liu's back, feeling the thinness under her palms, and there was a burst of heat in the circles of her eyes.

"Furthermore, when Ah Lan comes back at this time, he will definitely attract attention. Instead of waiting for other people to do things, it is better to follow his wishes. Besides, the eldest son has been decadent these days, if the two brothers meet, maybe they can figure it out a bit."

Figured it out?

Madam Liu smiled wryly.

As she said before, Qin Jiu is still the same.Let him figure it out, I'm afraid it will be harder than climbing to the sky.

Not mentioning Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Liu, Qin Yu rushed to the west courtyard angrily, and when he saw Qin Jiu in a ruined body, his anger became even worse, and he couldn't suppress it.

"Brother." Qin Xuan stood by the door and did not go into the inner room, "I haven't seen you for a while, and I hardly recognize brother."

Qin Jiu raised his head, looked at Qin Xuan with a blank expression, and didn't say a word.

"Brother," Qin Yu took a deep breath, and said, "Brother Xuan taught me swordsmanship, and now I'm asking brother for advice, I don't know what he thinks?"

"Ask for advice?" Qin Jiu said, his voice hoarse, as if gravel had rubbed his throat.

"Brother, do you wish?" Qin Yu stared at Qin Jiu's eyes.

He was not lying before.

The person in front of him was so strange that he could hardly recognize him.

The two brothers sat and stood, looking at each other for a long time.

Smoke curled up from the incense burner, and the rain splashed on the windows, making a rustling sound.Pieces of rain curtains hung down from the eaves of the corridor, and were torn into waterfalls, smashing out crystal puddles.

"……it is good."

Qin Jiu stood up, her footsteps were slightly swaying, and she was wearing a big shirt, which didn't look elegant, but only looked decadent.

The Qin brothers are all tall, and Qin Jiu and Qin Xuan are standing opposite each other, they are almost the same size.

"Please!"

Qin Jiu didn't ask anyone to take the wooden sword, turned around and walked to the wooden stand, and drew out a precious sword.

The long sword was unsheathed, the cold light shone, and the blade was thirsty for blood.

Qin Yu nodded, also drew out his sword, and left the scabbard on the corridor.

The two brothers didn't speak any more, they stepped out of the corridor, and stood opposite each other in the rain, letting the cold soak their bodies.The next moment, the sword's edge penetrated the rain curtain, and the cold light hit each other, making bursts of humming.

Thunder roared and rain poured down.

Cold light flashed one after another, and the buzzing sound was deafening.Long sleeves fluttered in the rain, and two slender figures crossed each other, their swords collided with murderous aura.

The brothers who were once close and fought side by side are now strangers.

Scenes from the past flashed in my mind.

Under an ancient tree, Qin Jiu taught Qin Yu and Qin Jue how to dance swords.Qin Jun and Qin Jing stood aside with arms folded, looking at the two brothers who were no higher than their waists, with smiles on their faces.

That page melted in the years, gradually turned yellow, and then shattered in the wind.In the end, it turned into fine sand and powder, which could no longer be pieced together.

One sword after another, Qin Yu used all his strength.Having experienced the baptism of war, he was full of evil spirits.

Even though Qin Jiu is decadent, his martial arts are not fake after all.What's more, Qin Yu's swordsmanship was taught by him himself, and after a few moves, he already had the upper hand.

However, his body was eventually hollowed out by the drink, and his physical strength was weak. The advantage could not be maintained for a long time, and he soon fell into a disadvantage.

The long swords struck each other again, and the cold wind blown off the rain curtain.

In an instant, the rainwater was cut off from it, and the broken raindrops stayed in the air, as if replayed in slow motion.

when!

There was another crisp sound, and the two swords were released at the same time.

Qin Yu clenched his fist and slammed Qin Jiu's waist hard.

With a bang, Qin Jiu couldn't dodge and was hit in the side, his face turned pale for a while.

Qin Xuan took advantage of the situation to chase after him, punching him one after another.When Qin Jiu started to fight back, the two brothers rolled on the ground like evil boys, their whole bodies were covered with muddy water, and the corners of their eyes and mouths were bruised.

boom!

With another punch, Qin Jiu fell to the ground, his chest heaving up and down, panting heavily.

Qin Yu grabbed his collar, raised his fist high, but stopped in mid-air, and finally didn't drop it again.

"Brother, how did you become like this?"

Qin Yu withdrew his hand, stood up, looked at Qin Jiu who was lying in the rain, and said hoarsely: "You are not the eldest brother who taught me swordsmanship, you are no longer the Qin clan who fought with the army when he was young, and was praised as a hero. .”

"Brother, do you know? We all know your thoughts."

"Fourth brother never thought of fighting with you, never."

"The second brother knows, the third brother knows, the fifth brother and A Yan are all clear, but you don't know. Maybe you know, but you are blindfolded and don't want to see it, and you don't want to think about it seriously."

"The Hu thief is still alive, and we brothers started a rift first. Apart from making relatives and enemies happy, what good can it do?"

"The fifth brother was ambushed by thieves and lost an arm. The fourth brother led his troops to slaughter several tribes of Hu thieves. On the contrary, the fourth brother and the third brother guarded the important border areas. Brother, what did you do?"

"If you want people not to know, you have to do it yourself."

"Father and mother don't tell, but it doesn't mean that others don't know!"

"Brother, what is the reason for getting to this point? Have you ever thought about it carefully?"

After leaving these words, Qin Yu turned around and picked up the saber, retrieved the scabbard left in the corridor, and strode away through the rain curtain like when he came, without looking at Qin Jiu again.

Lying in the courtyard, letting the rain fall on his head, Qin Jiu suddenly burst out laughing, until the end of the laugh turned into sobs, like a wounded beast, lonely and out of the pack, unable to find a way back.

Ningkang three years, early May

Mrs. Liu and Liu Wei left Xihe County and set off for Chang'an under the escort of Qin Yu and five hundred cavalry.

With the military chariot brought by Qin Yu, Mrs. Liu can rest at ease and not aggravate her condition due to the journey.Mrs. Liu took care of Mrs. Liu without pretending to be someone else's hand, and left her personal servant to help A Xiao handle the affairs of the back house.

Everything was going on in secret, and the chess pieces that the Liu sisters had buried for many years began to work one by one.

When the team arrived in Chang'an, news came from Xihe that the doctor who had diagnosed Mrs. Liu's pulse and prescribed medicine suddenly died suddenly, and two beauties died in the back house of the palace.

Qin Ce took the opportunity to beat the martial arts under his command and the new powerful players, and achieved good results.

However, the various families did not stop sending beauties to the back residence of the palace. It is reported that there are powerful people from Qinghai and Hebei prefectures who took refuge in them, not only sending beauties, but also sending a large amount of food, grass and people.

The girl is backed by the family, and she is in the limelight for a while, and the old people in the back house of the palace have to retreat.

The news came one after another, but Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Liu just smiled and didn't take it seriously.

To put it bluntly, everything that should be done has already been done, and today's situation is also expected, so it is not worth bothering too much.What's more, these beauties competed fiercely, which also reflected the attitude of each family from the side.

Rather than being distracted by those irrelevant things, it is far better to take the opportunity to see clearly which one can be wooed and used, which is conducive to the great cause of unifying the north; Hang it up and toss it aside anytime, anywhere.

"After leaving Xihe, I can see more clearly." After using Hua Xian's prescription, Mrs. Liu's condition gradually eased, her body improved day by day, and her spirit returned to the past.

"Sister can recover from her illness, so he doesn't care about anything." Aunt Liu took the lacquer bowl, put it aside casually, and said, "I should write a letter to Mr. Silang, and thank you Huan Jing."

"Indeed." Mrs. Liu nodded, putting aside her troubles, thinking about the rumors about Huan Rong, she couldn't help but feel a lot of curiosity, "Speaking of which, when he held the coronation ceremony, Ah Zheng specially sent back a letter stating that he would send Luan Fengchai. I think I'm asking, but unfortunately there are so many things, I went around in twos and threes, and in the end I forgot."

Mrs. Liu handed over the silk handkerchief with a smile, and said, "I heard that Mr. Huan's husband is beautiful in appearance, praised for his talent and beauty, and his appearance and conduct are extremely extraordinary. Every time he enters Jiankang, girls hold hands and block the way, throwing fruit. The car is no less grand than that of Pan Anren back then."

Mrs. Liu also laughed.

"I heard that the gentleman in the south is elegant, but he is different from the hero in the north. If there is a chance, I would like to meet him in person."

"Mr. Silang and Mr. Huanlang have a very close relationship, there is always a chance."

"Hopefully."

After all, the Qin family and the Jin family are not the same.

Qin Ce intends to wipe out the world, and will eventually have a battle with the south.What will happen then is hard to predict now.It is still hard to say whether we can meet Huan Rong in person.

If I see it, I'm afraid it will be on the battlefield.

Thinking of this, Madam Liu sighed again, and her originally soothing expression became serious again.

Because of her illness, Ah Zheng stepped aside and gave up the chance to attack Gu Zang first.What consequences this move will bring is still hard to determine now, and we can only take one step at a time in the future.

Youzhou, Xuyi

When Huan Rong received Qin Jing's letter, he knew that everything was going well, that the other party had kept his promise and temporarily stationed troops in Guangwu County, and he felt relieved.Looking at the news sent by Huan Shiqian, he let out a long sigh of relief.

Now that Guzang is gone, the commercial routes in the Western Regions will be opened soon.

Shi Yiqian fled to the north, but he did not pose any threat; the remaining Di soldiers were also insignificant.As long as the whole territory of Liangzhou is conquered and the old road leading to Shazhou is opened, the matter in the west will come to an end.

To be more precise, it was the most important joint to get through. He could let go of his hands temporarily, hand over the follow-up matters to Huan Huo and Yang Liang, and set off for Jiankang by himself to complete the plan formulated by Jia Bing.

Putting down the silk cloth, pushing a plate of fresh meat in front of the goshawk, Huan Rong got up and walked to the corridor, smelling the fragrance of flowers rushing towards him, with a trace of a smile on his lips.

got windy.