Embrace the blade

They were vigilant for a moment, stood up almost at the same time, looked around, and waited with bated breath.

Not long after, the cry sounded again, following the sound, it was actually coming from the firewood pile in the corner.The light from the bonfire circle could not be reflected there, leaving only a large mass of thick black shadows.

"It's not enough to hide people there, and I didn't notice any noise just now." Jiang Li said.

"Let's see." Qi Zhaoxi stepped forward and stabbed into the pile of firewood with his sword and sheath without feeling any hindrance. When he turned his wrist, the firewood collapsed with a bang, and there was still no one there.

This is strange.

A light of fire approached, and it was Jiang Li who lit a thick stick as a torch.When his vision brightened slightly, Qi Zhaoxi couldn't help but let out a "huh" and kicked away the scattered firewood, only to see a wooden plank lying in the sand. He stretched out his hand to uncover it, as if tearing open a dark wound on the ground, and the hole stared open. with him.

"Is it a cellar?" Qi Zhaoxi wondered.

Jiang Li didn't make a sound, and what answered him was a low cry from the bottom of the cave again, this time there was no cover, and he could finally distinguish it was a girl's voice.

It was so dark in the cave that it was hard to see.Jiang Li threw down the torch, the cave was not too deep, the fire light rolled around twice, although no one was seen, it alarmed the other party.The cry suddenly became louder, and the content could not be heard clearly, but the voice was so hoarse that it was startlingly hoarse, and there was a faint sound of iron chains rattling.

Jiang Li finally said, "Go down and have a look."

When they went down to the cave, picked up the torch and took a look, they realized that this was not a cellar, but a tunnel. The walls of the cave were reinforced with stone bricks, and only the ground was sandy. place.A few steps away was a young girl sitting paralyzed, she looked a few years younger than Jiang Li, her hair was disheveled, her hands and feet were chained to the wall, she struggled to pounce on anyone, her face was full of tears, He babbled and babbled, unable to utter a single word.

Jiang Li was stunned for a moment: "She is..."

"It's a fool." Qi Zhaoxi looked at her restless expression and came to a conclusion.

As Jiang Li approached slowly, the little girl became more irritable, her eyes widened, she didn't know whether she wanted to defend or catch Jiang Li, she danced wildly with the iron chains in her hands, forcing him not to approach.

With a bang, the crushed stone accurately hit the little girl's acupuncture points, she closed her eyes, and immediately fell limply.

Qi Zhaoxi patted the non-existent dust on his hands, and also walked forward: "It seems that her family can't support her or doesn't want to support her, and she can't bear to kill her with her own hands, so I just locked her in a place where she can't see her." Waiting for death will make me feel much better."

"How do you know?" Jiang Li looked at him.

"Obviously." Qi Zhaoxi smiled, pointing to the two pairs of footprints on the ground, one pair of big and deep footprints resembling a man's, and the other pair of small and shallow ones, which must have been left by this little girl.He knelt down and rolled up the little girl's sleeves to show Jiang Li, "Look, there are no bruises."

Qi Zhaoxi patiently explained: "The footprints show that she was not brought in a coma. Since she can walk, she is still conscious, but there are no injuries on her body. Even if you want to tie up a cat or dog with an iron chain, it takes a little effort. Don't they struggle? But sometimes, animals know how to struggle, but only humans can't." He paused, and then said with deep meaning, "Why didn't Cheng Juxian resist?"

Jiang Li disagreed, "You're just guessing."

"That's a reasonable inference based on the evidence."

Jiang Li didn't argue with him, and tried to pull the iron chain nailed to the cave wall, making a clang.Seeing his movements, Qi Zhaoxi couldn't help but said again: "You want to save her?"

Jiang Li glanced at him inexplicably: "Don't save him?"

"I don't like to meddle in other people's business." After talking about what Qi Zhaoxi remembered, he added, "You are an accident."

He sighed with emotion: "People in the rivers and lakes love to be chivalrous and righteous. They don't ask about the cause or the consequences. They are unrestrained and happy. How can the rescued people be better off than dead? Jiang Li, listen to Master's words." A word of advice?"

"You said."

Qi Zhaoxi leaned against the wall, looked at the little girl with folded hands, and said, "You idiot, what are you going to do after saving her? Let her fend for herself, or can you take care of her every day? Or do you find her?" family, but since her family has abandoned her, are they still willing to take her?"

Jiang Li didn't answer for a while, only listening to Qi Zhaoxi continue: "Think about the good, maybe her family's soft heart left this little girl behind. But judging by her clothes, she doesn't look like a wealthy family, and it takes a lot of energy to feed a fool. Then you are not saving someone, but harming her and her family."

"What's more, she is so muddled and stupid that she can only be a burden to others. What's the point of living?" At this point, Qi Zhaoxi suddenly flashed a self-deprecating smile, "Ah, you can't say that, living It's meaningless in itself."

Jiang Li waited silently for him to finish before speaking, "So should we stand by and watch?"

Qi Zhaoxi tilted his head and smiled deeply: "If you really want to help her, there is a way." He tapped Jiang Li's sword, "It's better to give her a happy life than waiting to die."

It is not unreasonable to say that everything is light when you die.

"..." Jiang Li brought the torch closer to the iron chain, illuminating the bloody fingerprints on the cave wall, and said softly, "But she wants to live."

After saying that, he didn't wait for Qi Zhaoxi to open his mouth, and raised his sword and dropped it, breaking the iron chain.At the same time, half of the iron chain nailed to the cave wall collapsed, and there was a muffled bang above the head, and even the ground trembled slightly. The field of vision suddenly went dark, leaving only the light of the torch.

Jiang Li raised his head in horror, and found that the earthen wall had collapsed, sealing the hole they came down from.

To make matters worse, the guy next to him was actually happy.

Qi Zhaoxi smiled gloatingly: "Look, I'll let you meddle in your own business."

Jiang Li couldn't understand this kind of person: "You are trapped by me, you are not angry, but still laughing?"

"Don't be afraid." Qi Zhaoxi said with a smile, "If I really can't get out, I will kill you two first."

His smile is gentle and amiable, but his tone is quite serious, making it hard to tell whether it is the truth or a joke.As if he wanted to taste Jiang Li's taste first, he reached out to pinch his face, but was slapped away by Jiang Li.

Qi Zhaoxi was not annoyed at all, and asked with a smile: "Since you don't listen to me, then you make up your mind, what should you do?"

Jiang Li handed him the torch, then removed the iron chains on the little girl's hands and feet, pulled her onto his back, and then turned to the deep tunnel: "There is no other choice, let's go."

At first they walked very cautiously. Although they didn't hear the sound of the machine chain, it was obvious that the iron chain that locked the little girl was connected to the machine. Unusual and authentic.

The only discovery was a jade earring lying in the sand halfway.Qi Zhaoxi almost stepped on it, picked it up and looked at it for a while, only to see that the silver thread inlaid on it was worn out, it was an old thing.

Going forward, the tunnel slowly narrowed and narrowed.Just when the torch was burned out, there was finally a section of upward stone steps ahead, but unfortunately the exit at the end of the stone steps was also tightly blocked by huge stones.

Jiang Li put the little girl against the wall first, and tried to use his internal strength to push it, but the boulder probably weighed a thousand catties, and he refused to move.

Jiang Li took a breath, and turned to look at Qi Zhaoxi by the dim light of the torch: "Master..."

"Now you know how to call him Master?" Qi Zhaoxi said without hesitation, "Give up, even if you are a teacher, you can't push it away."

Jiang Li said: "What if we split it with our strength?"

Qi Zhaoxi raised her eyebrows, motioning for him to continue.

Jiang Li carved a mark on the stone with his sword, and then said: "The stone steps are narrow and cannot accommodate two people standing side by side. After a while, you and I will attack the weak spot of the stone in tandem. The moves must be continuous without leaving any gaps, so as to be able to break through ..."

"One in front and one in back?" Qi Zhaoxi was a little surprised.

The tunnel is narrow, especially on the stone steps. If the person in front is unable to retreat after making a move, the next sword of the person behind may break the former and the boulder together.

"Yeah." Jiang Li didn't have any hesitation in his eyes, and his tone couldn't be denied, "I'm dragging you down, so I'm at the front."

"The two of us are fake masters and apprentices. We have only known each other for a few days, and we are far from tacit understanding. If I go down with this sword, what if your head is chopped off?"

"That means I retreated too slowly, and I can't blame you." Jiang Li looked at the little girl not far away, "When the time comes, take her out."

Qi Zhaoxi was finally slightly moved, and smiled softly: "Okay."

The flame was about to go out, and the few remaining rays of light reflected on the unsheathed sword. The two of them distanced themselves and stood back and forth.

The sword screamed loudly, like a dragon rising out of the sea.The tunnel was dark and dark, and Qi Zhaoxi couldn't see his moves clearly. He could only hear the boulder slamming and roaring waves. The wind and thunder.

Someone brushed against him sideways, and the warm breath was fleeting in his ears.

The long sword slammed into the boulder brazenly!

This seemed to be a sword that opened up the world. The tunnel trembled and shook countless gravel, and the torch was completely extinguished.

A beam of skylight fell in.

Qi Zhaoxi brushed off the dust and turned his head, Jiang Li happened to be standing in the light, raised his eyebrows at him, and there was a needless smugness in his eyes.

They began to clear away the rubble, and found to their great relief that the opening, though not wide, was enough for a single man to pass through.

Jiang Li got out first, the little girl was thin and thin, Qi Zhaoxi could lift it up with one hand, and handed her outside with ease.

Just as he was about to leave, a hand was suddenly held in front of his eyes.Qi Zhaoxi raised his eyes and met Shang Jiangli's eyes. The distance was close or far, and his eyes met. Jiang Li looked away uncomfortably and looked at the gravel on the ground.

Qi Zhaoxi paused, and couldn't help but want to tease him: "Where are you looking, that stone is your master?"

It seems that this guy doesn't need help.Jiang Li was about to take back his hand, but unexpectedly, Qi Zhaoxi grabbed him and used his strength to climb out.He was caught off guard and staggered, almost sitting on the ground with Qi Zhaoxi.

"..." Jiang Li frowned, "Let go."

Qi Zhaoxi laughed and let go, sat on the ground without getting up in a hurry, looked around, and found that this place was quite familiar.

It is the east courtyard of Juyizhuang.

They were at the rocky place next to the stone bridge and flowing water, and it was a broken rockery that was holding down the exit.At this time, the sky was bright, and the movement would have alarmed the nursing home. A group of people strode up and shouted: "Who is it?"

After seeing that it was the two honored guests who were disgraced, the leader of the nursing home had a surprised expression on his face, and when his eyes fell on the fainted little girl, he burst out in surprise: "Isn't this the youngest daughter of Cook Li? Why did you run away?" here?"

Jiang Li's eyes moved: "You know him?"

"I know, of course I know!" The nurse replied courteously, "Her mother gave birth to her with difficulty, and ended up with mental problems. It's because our master is kind-hearted and doesn't think she is stupid. He said that since she is from the Zhuangzi, She was raised by her. She got lost a few days ago, and her mother was suddenly ill! Hey, it was the two heroes who saved her, right?"

"Just find it, take it back quickly." Qi Zhaoxi said.

The nursing home responded with a lot of voices, and cleverly didn't ask why the two of them were here, and the group picked up the little girl and left.

Watching them leave, Jiang Li's brows relaxed, and he said to Qi Zhaoxi, "You guessed wrong."

Qi Zhaoxi shrugged indifferently, and was about to wipe off the dust on his robe when he suddenly caught a glimpse of a small object in the grass at his feet.He picked it up and took a closer look, it was an earring, and he found out the one he picked up in the tunnel. It was a pair of earrings inlaid with glittering emerald jade on a silver thread plate.

Although this matter was weird, the two of them didn't intend to delay, they had to go back to the hospital when they got up, no matter what, they changed into clean clothes before talking about it.However, as soon as he stepped into the gate of the courtyard, Xue Le rushed up to greet him: "Why didn't you see anyone so early in the morning... and you are still in such a mess?"

Qi Zhaoxi pushed him away and wanted to go in: "It's a long story, let me wash my face first."

"Zhaoyue was taken for interrogation." Xue Le said.

Jiang Li paused, Qi Zhaoxi wondered, "What's going on?"

"The Qingshan faction seems to have a new clue. Moreover," Xue Le glanced at Jiang Li hesitantly, "Jiang Lanze, the young owner of the Yunshan Villa, has arrived this morning, and is currently being interrogated by the three families."