Li Zhang

From the topographical map, Baozhu Peak and Xiantao Peak are close to Chenglong Terrace where Qingfeng Village is located, like two old men playing chess facing each other, looking down on a small chess scale.This is the junction of two continuous mountains. The two peaks stand together, just like a pair of delicate buckles, hooking Zhu Ti's Yunwu Ridge and Bodao's Cuiping Mountain.

Sima Yi and Li Zhang Wangxiang were dressed in the same black clothes and shorts, and even carried the same burden of dry food and drinking water as they did. They followed behind the guide Weber, following the traces of the herb pickers and walked forward step by step.

Sima Yi has practiced martial arts since he was a child, and his physique is very strong. Only because he is used to being pampered and takes good care of himself, he does not appear to be rough and reckless like a martial arts learner, but looks more like a scholar, handsome and romantic.Therefore, after following Weber for half a day, Sima Yi remained relaxed and showed no sign of fatigue.

On the other hand, Li Zhang was already weak in physical strength, and he had just recovered from a serious illness and had not had time to recuperate, so it was very difficult to keep up.After finally turning over the steepest section of the mountain road, when the four of them sat down to rest, Li Zhang's face was pale and his breath was unstable. He drank a few sips of water and meditated on the side.After Wang Xiang served Sima Yi and ate the dry food, Sima Yi looked at the sky, asked Weber the distance to the next resting place, walked behind Li Zhang with a gloomy face, stretched his palm against his back, and slowly Slowly pass a burst of true energy to help him adjust his breath.Like Li Zhang, his inner strength and mentality came from Mu Yan, so to Li Zhang, his help is naturally ironed out like burning coals directly thrown into a charcoal stove.

Although Mu Yan's father was Liu Muyan's apprentice, his martial arts were passed down through his family.Mu Yan's father used to be the bodyguard of Emperor Lie, and after the death of Emperor Lie, he continued to serve as the bodyguard of Emperor Xuan. His loyalty to the emperor was already in his blood. After Mu Yan entered the palace as Emperor Jing's bodyguard, Emperor Jing treated the Mu family as both a servant and a friend. Because Emperor Jing preferred Sima Yi, Mu Yan treated him with a little more affection and protection than other princes, and when teaching martial arts, he directly taught him family kung fu.

With Sima Yi's help, Li Zhang's scattered internal energy quickly calmed down and returned to their own veins, and the internal energy that Sima Yi had crossed obediently merged into it, and returned to his own sea of ​​energy.Li Zhang's complexion gradually returned to normal, and after receiving the credit, Li Zhang thanked Sima Yi, showing some sincere gratitude in his respect.Sima Yi snorted, his face still gloomy, and waited for Li Zhang to eat something before letting Weber continue on the road.

For the next few days, they kept climbing up and down the steep rock walls. The sharp rocks scratched their hands, worn out their shoes, and almost fell off the cliff several times.The four of them supported each other along the way, and in the past few days, the barriers of status and status have been reduced. Li Zhang, who is physically weak, has been helped by Sima Yi's internal strength along the way, and his condition has improved a lot compared to the beginning.Therefore, as the mountain road became more and more difficult, he could still try his best to keep up.

They finally arrived at the fairy bridge connecting the twin peaks.

"Immortal Bridge, Hades Ferry. The rain wets the wings of birds, and the fog buries human bones."

This ballad sung among the herb collectors is about the danger of Xianrenqiao.Although Weber is the herb picker who is most familiar with the terrain, his expression changes when he mentions the Fairy Bridge.Xianren Bridge is a natural stone bridge, which is less than one foot wide.Therefore, when they really stood by the bridge, even though they had been mentally prepared, they still couldn't stop the chills in their hearts when they saw the clouds and mist rolling under the bridge, and the bridge was slippery and narrow.

Wei Bo checked the rattan across the stone bridge, and took the lead in pulling the rattan across the stone bridge.Afterwards, Li Zhang suppressed the tension in his heart, step by step his scalp was so tight that it exploded.As soon as he stepped firmly on his feet, he wrapped the long rope on his back around a raised boulder on the side of the mountain, and then fell back to the original place with a heart that had been hanging tightly.

Li Zhang looked back to the other side of the stone bridge, Sima Yi had already stepped onto the stone bridge with a rope wrapped around his waist.

The moss that has accumulated over the years on the stone bridge has been trampled to pieces, making it even more slippery.Sima Yi is tall and weighs much more than Wei Bo and Li Zhang. Every step he takes seems to be a bit overwhelming even for Shiqiao.Walking carefully to the narrowest part of the bridge, Sima Yi didn't step on a steady step, and quickly used the jackhammer to stabilize his body, but he didn't know that under the force, his feet couldn't grasp the slippery bridge surface, and suddenly lost Center of gravity, slide down the stone bridge!

Both sides of the stone bridge exclaimed at the same time!

Sima Yi clung to the rattan with both hands as he slipped down, and Li Zhang immediately tightened the long rope wrapped around the boulder.Sima Yi stopped his fall under the pull of two forces, but he couldn't return to the bridge after a while.

The rattan on the top of the stone bridge was originally the original rattan that the herbal pickers tried to build across the stone bridge in the early years. It was wrapped around a pine tree that grew obliquely from the crevice of the stone on the other side of the stone bridge. grow into one.The pine tree is very thin because it is rooted in the rock crevices. Now it bears the weight of Sima Yi, and it will not be long before it is crumbling.

Wang Xiang has already stepped onto the stone bridge, ready to go to La Simayi to come up.Weber cut another vine, wrapped it around the pine tree and then wrapped it around the previous boulder to ease the force on the pine tree.

During the whole process, Sima Yi only panicked for a moment when he stumbled, and then calmly controlled his body, trying to use his strength to return to the stone bridge.

After recovering from the initial fright, Li Zhang carefully observed the surrounding terrain, and soon found that there were several raised places not too far apart on both sides of the stone bridge. .He quickly made a decision, cut down several long vines together with Weber, and after they were tied tightly, one end was also wrapped around a boulder, and the other end was tied around his waist.He asked Wang Xiangfu, who had reached one-third of the stone bridge, to hug the stone bridge tightly, and told Sima Yi the order in which he landed, and asked him to follow the rhythm and use the thrust to escape in one fell swoop.

Li Zhang's voice trembled uncontrollably due to nervousness, but the tone was always concise and confident in the confrontation. To Sima Yi's ears, it was an irresistible trust and peace of mind.He nodded slowly, stared at Li Zhang's movements, and took a deep breath at the same time as him.

step.Li Zhang crosses to the stone bridge.

two steps.Li Zhang stepped out obliquely, stepping on a withered vine protruding obliquely from the side of the stone bridge.

three steps.Li Zhang stepped on the stone bridge again.

four steps.Li Zhang pointed to a stone beam next to the bridge.

five steps.Li Zhang jumped out towards Sima Yi, tapped Sima Yi's back with his toes, and at the same time gathered all his strength in one place, kicking Sima Yi high.Sima Yi, who had been prepared for a long time, held his breath and turned his body in the air with his strength. When he stretched again, he stretched his whole body like a big bird, just in time to pounce on the side of the pine tree that was entwined with the rattan, and clasped his hands together to hug the trunk.Weber quickly reached out and pulled him to the ground.

Sima Yi looked back, and saw that Li Zhang had been pushed to the other side of the stone bridge by the reverse force, and just landed on the slope of the rock, and then changed his feet a few times, falling back to the stone bridge.The mountain wind was blowing, blowing Li Zhang's loose hair in a mess, and his slender body seemed to want to fly away.Sima Yi looked at Li Zhang at this moment, he had never met him completely.

After getting out of trouble, several people were a little bit out of strength, and Li Zhang was trembling because of fear.Sima Yi looked at his thin back, which was forced to suppress himself, and no longer had the slightest disgust. He only felt that Li Zhang like this was more real and closer to him, rather than the distant and unreachable one on the stone bridge.

This life-and-death calamity made several people feel more of a sense of mutual support and dependence, and the defensiveness and animosity between Li Zhang and Sima Yi also weakened a lot.Although he was almost out of food in the second half of the journey, Sima Yi's face lost the gloom at the beginning, and he had more patience and persistence, making people feel that he was no longer the high-ranking prince, but a companion in their guard camp .

Li Zhang was surprised by Sima Yi like this, but he couldn't adapt as quickly as Wang Xiang.Everything in the past was too profound, he couldn't and didn't want to judge which one was the real Sima Yi, but he was careful not to break up this "illusion".

Three days later, when they finally climbed over the last cliff and saw a steep and gentle slope before them, they all felt a little reborn.

The four of them were all in ragged clothes and bleeding. They looked at the smoke rising from the village at the foot of the mountain, but they were too exhausted to walk any longer.The dry food has already been eaten, and the water bag has been empty for most of the day.Fortunately, there was a small stream not far away, and a few people stayed by the stream to drink enough water, ate a few mouthfuls of wild fruits that Weber had found, and fell asleep by the stream.

Li Zhang was the most tired all the way, and when the destination was approaching, he was more worried and nervous than others.He woke up after sleeping for a while, looked at the sleeping Sima Yi and Wang Xiang, gently patted Wang Xiang awake, told him to go to the stockade to check the situation first, and asked him to find a hidden place after the prince woke up , Wait for your own signal and then quietly enter the village.

Wang Xiang agreed.Li Zhang looked at his hands and feet that were still trembling slightly, dipping into the cool stream.After tidying up, Li Zhang woke up and quietly went to the stockade.

According to Jin Bai's arrangement, the second guide to succeed Wei Bo is in Baofeng Village.When Li Zhang went down to the outside of the stockade, it was already dark. People who had eaten and enjoyed the coolness in the yard returned to their houses one after another, and even those who went to bed early had already turned off the lights.The number of people in the courtyard gradually decreased.Li Zhang found the house under the cover of the firewood pile, and stuck it under the window without hearing anything unusual, and tapped on the window lattice a few times according to Jin Bai's instructions.

"Who?"

"Passers-by from Ningzhou, ask for a place to rest."

A person leaned out from the window and saw that Li Zhang was not surprised. He continued to look behind Li Zhang but frowned suspiciously.

Li Zhang explained: "The prince is in a safe place."

The man nodded in relief, opened the door to let Li Zhang in, saw Li Zhang in a mess, and asked in surprise, "Where are you from?"

Li Zhang smiled wearily, his eyes were full of pride: "Over the mountain."

The man was even more surprised: "Come over from Shuangfeng?"

"Ah."

"The prince too?"

"Correct!"

Li Zhang, who answered in this way, also felt a strange touch in his heart. Because of this touch, the coldness and sternness that had always been aloof, had a touch of warmth similar to himself. It was the persistence and hard work that refused to give up and struggled to survive.

The man was very moved when he heard the words, and after pondering for a long time, he said to Li Zhang: "My name is Qiuming, Master Zhao ordered me to wait for the prince here. You must be hungry and tired, why don't you invite the prince to come and rest for a night, and you can continue on your way tomorrow." .”

Just as Li Zhang was about to agree, there was another knock on the door, and he looked at Qiuming inquiringly.

Qiuming seemed a little uneasy, and said with a smile that it was a neighbor who came to borrow farm tools, and went to the yard to open the door.

Li Zhang was worried, and quietly went to the window to look out. There seemed to be someone's voice outside the courtyard, and there was a light flashing at the gap in the courtyard wall. Li Zhang could clearly see that it was a plain knife with a cold light!His heart trembled, and he looked at the gate of the courtyard again. A man from the government came in behind Qiuming, and looked into the room.

Li Zhang sat back at the table, picked up a pancake, and ate it slowly.After leaving the palace, it's been a long time since I've eaten such a soft and soft pancake.

"Guard Li, this is our Lord Zhao. I heard that the prince came in danger, so I came here to greet you. Please guard Li take us to find the prince!"

Li Zhang got up and bowed to Master Zhao: "Master Zhao has a heart. But the prince has an order, and he doesn't want to disturb the government. Please forgive Li Zhang for not obeying his orders."

Mr. Zhao was obviously impatient, and he scolded with a calm face: "The prince disappeared in Zhuti. Such a big event has already alarmed the court. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was furious, and severely reprimanded Mr. Zhang, the governor, for his ineffectiveness. He has ordered Mr. Zhang to search for the prince with all his strength. My lord and family members are guilty! You are a little guard, how can you bear such a heavy responsibility! Don’t tell King Ning’s whereabouts as soon as possible!"

Li Zhang was unmoved: "The matter of the prince involves the interests of the government, and Li Zhang dare not make decisions privately. Li Zhang is the guard of King Ning's mansion, so he should obey King Ning's order!"

"Is this going to resist the decree?!"

"Where is the edict?"

"His Royal Highness is here to speak!"

"Since there is no imperial decree, I forgive Li Zhang for not being able to obey his orders!"

"You! Then don't blame me for being rude! Someone! Soushan!"

Mr. Zhao walked up the mountain with Li Zhang whose hands were bound overnight.Li Zhang dawdled on purpose, ignoring the kicking and beating of the soldiers, pretending to fall, and took the opportunity to check their weapons and equipment. Seeing that they were lazy and didn't even have the same weapons, they were probably just the guards of the government office. Care about.

Before he entered the stockade, he set up a simple trapped dragon formation in the woods beside the mountain road, and at this moment he deliberately led people to go deep into the woods.Mr. Zhao only said that he was afraid and wanted to cooperate, so he ordered everyone to follow closely.Seeing that everyone had entered the formation, Li Zhang turned around suddenly, knocked down the soldiers escorting him behind him, and ran forward quickly.The people behind were stunned for a moment and realized that Li Zhang was nowhere to be seen.

The forest that I was used to seeing suddenly turned to the sky, every step was full of traps, everyone was left alone, surrounded by ghosts and shadows, there were strange things screaming and rushing at me, I could only yell Hacking and killing.For a moment, the birds and beasts fled in the peaceful woods, and the shrill shouts came and went, and the world turned into hell abruptly.

After Li Zhang got out of trouble, he quickly found Sima Yi and Wang Xiang.After listening to Li Zhang's report, Sima Yi took out a jade flute while pondering, poured his inner energy into it and blew it vigorously. A night owl echoed loudly.Soon, a small, fast-moving black figure appeared in the blurred outline of the distant mountain, and it flew over their heads, circled for a moment, and landed on Sima Yi's shoulder.It was a night owl.

Li Zhang watched with some curiosity as Sima Yi took out a roll of paper from the quill on the night owl's leg, unfolded it, wrote another roll up and put it in the quill, pinched the seal tightly and let the bird fly.

"Zhao Chang is no longer trustworthy. Zhang Lan tried his best to capture this king, and the Berkshire Ferry can no longer be used. It seems that he can only break through the net of officers and soldiers!"

Sima Yi's expression became stern again, with a bit of the bloodthirsty excitement of a beast being driven to a dead end, but it did not make Li Zhang feel intimidated, but instead aroused the passion and arrogance hidden in his nature.No matter how much he hated Sima Yi, in the depths of Li Zhang's consciousness, he had already regarded himself as Sima Yi's bodyguard, so he naturally put his safety first, and did not change because of the harsh treatment he had received.And this is also the basis and bottom line for him to stand in front of Sima Yi.

So, at this moment, regardless of the cause and result, both Li Zhang and Sima Yi felt the dependence and trust from each other, the will to survive irrespective of status and status, and the high-spirited fighting spirit to survive.