A general wouldn't be unable to see through this, right?

Or is he particularly confident in the portrait in his hand?

Shao Qing was puzzled and turned to look at Wei Jing: "Husband, what are you talking about..."

She paused mid-sentence.

Wei Jing was staring at the checkpoint through the car curtain with an inexplicable look on his face, and he seemed to be absent-minded, which was rare.

Shao Qing followed his gaze and saw the general in red armor.

The other party had a very serious face and was pacing around the checkpoint, as if he was unaware of his own strange behavior.

Does Wei Jing know him?

Just as Shao Qing had this thought in mind, he heard Wei Jing behind him whisper, "He is Xu Cang."

Xu Cang, General Anyuan, used to guard an important town in the northern border. He guarded the national border, drove out the barbarians, was good at fighting, and was one of Wei Jing's left and right arms in the northern expedition.

"Then why did he come to the southwest?"

Shao Qing thought about it and was afraid that he was demoted after the new emperor ascended the throne.

She didn't recognize Xu Cang, but she knew this man's name. The Xu family is a large family with deep roots. Many of their sons and daughters have entered the court and have great prospects. Among them, Xu Cang's grandfather was the teacher of many princes.

That can be considered as the emperor's teacher of the current dynasty.

The Xu family was prudent and low-key, and they were impartial in their official duties. They had always been the neutral party throughout several dynasties. Even when the crown prince's succession to the throne was undisputed in recent years, they were not overly close to the Crown Prince and the Fu family.

When the new emperor ascended the throne, he launched a massive purge of the court, but families like the Xu family would certainly not be touched, after all, the court still had to function normally.

Although Xu Cang got closer to Wei Jing by chance, he was a son of the Xu family after all. With the family's protection, he was demoted to the southwest after seizing power, but he managed to keep his life and property, which was expected.

Now, is he taking his old master's feelings into consideration and lending a helping hand in a covert way?

Shao Qing sighed and said that if this was true, then if he were not there and Wei Jing did not die after jumping into the river, he would not be left without a chance to breathe.

Wei Jing was silent for a moment, then withdrew his gaze and said, "A great falsehood can appear true, a great treachery can appear loyal. No matter who it is, you should never trust them."

His voice was light. After experiencing bloody betrayal, he would not trust anyone easily, except Shao Qing.

Wei Jing stopped talking about this matter and frowned and said to her, "What are you talking about?"

What does it mean without her? He felt uncomfortable when he heard such ominous words.

Shao Qing pursed her lips and smiled without explaining.

After discussing Xu Cang's matter, the two of them put it behind their minds. After all, their situation was still good, and asking for help was not something they considered.

What neither of them expected was that in just one day, they would encounter familiar people and things for the second time.

…

At noon, as the convoy of people stopped at a roadside tea stall for lunch, Wei Jing paused slightly as he got off the car.

Although he returned to normal immediately, Shao Qing now had a certain understanding of his demeanor and behavior, and as they were walking side by side, he still discovered it.

She didn't say anything at the time, but just winked at him when she sat down and called the waiter to bring the meal.

What's wrong?

Wei Jing remained calm and just glanced towards the lower left side of the tea stall.

Shao Qing picked up the ceramic bowl, blew on the hot tea in the bowl, took a sip, and looked in the direction he pointed.

The old tea shed was not very big, with a thatched roof that was open on all sides. It had no walls and was supported by only four thick tree trunks. There were many people in the small pavilion, and it was bustling with activity. She looked in the direction and saw a new scratch at the base of the old and blackened pavilion pillar.

It was small and inconspicuous. If Wei Jing hadn't reminded her, she would definitely not have noticed it. But it was obviously not drawn casually. If you look closely, you can see that it is a pattern similar to a three-petal plum blossom.

Considering Wei Jing's behavior, could this be a secret communication code?

It is true!

It was difficult to talk in the tea shed as there were too many people, so when they got on the donkey cart and continued on their journey, Wei Jing whispered in Shao Qing's ear that this was one of the special communication codes he had set up, which was used exclusively for his personal guard camp.

Wei Jing had been in the army for more than five years, and the personal guards around him had changed greatly, from a few hundred royal guards at the beginning to the Qing Zhai Camp composed of thousands of selected soldiers.

This elite force can protect the commander-in-chief when in action and charge into battle as a surprise attack. In addition to Wei Jing's personal guards, most of its members are loyal war orphans selected and trained by him personally.

These people were willing to die in battle to protect Wei Jing without hesitation. Most of them were alone without family ties. When they heard that their master had been betrayed, they took off their armor and left the camp in anger, and came thousands of miles to rescue and follow him. It was not surprising.

Shao Qing asked quietly: "Then do you want to contact them?"

If we have such a force, we will be more confident and things will go much more smoothly in the future, right?

Wei Jing shook his head.

“No hurry.”

He said calmly: "Even if we want to contact each other, it's not now."

How do we know whether these people are truly loyal or not? Is it not impossible to lure him out by switching sides and joining the new emperor?

Even if most of them remain loyal, it is difficult to guarantee that the new emperor has no spies among them.

If possible, Wei Jing certainly hopes to take control of the Qing Zhai Camp again, as this is a powerful bargaining chip. But he was not in a hurry. Caution was the first priority. He was not alone now. He still had Shao Qing.

Just observe first, time can filter out a lot of things.

He explained his plan to Shao Qing in detail, and when she nodded in agreement, he warned her, "Be careful these two days. We have to pass by Yujia, which is the fief of Prince An."

Prince An, Shao Qing knew.

The fourth son of the late emperor and half-brother of Wei Jing. His biological mother was Concubine Zhu, and she was of very humble origin. She was a personal maid who had served the late emperor since childhood.

That’s right, she is the personal palace maid who served the late emperor since childhood, and she is exactly the same as Concubine Li, the current Empress Dowager. These two colleagues, who had known each other since childhood, were both taken into the late emperor's bedroom and had a son.

Although he was born in a humble family and had a son, the struggle in the harem of the late emperor was extremely fierce. Naturally, the two of them joined hands to resist.

They had always had a very good relationship and lived in the same palace. Later, Concubine Zhao died of illness and Prince An was only eight years old. Naturally, he was also raised by Concubine Li.

Since their biological mother and adoptive mother are the same person, the two brothers naturally have a closer relationship. The previous emperor did not attach importance to Prince An and arbitrarily gave him a remote and small fiefdom and let him go there. After the new emperor ascended the throne, he directly doubled the fiefdom given to Prince An, which was very close to Gong County.

It is said that Prince An was one of the leaders in this manhunt for the fugitive, and soldiers from his fiefdom frequently appeared in sight.

Soon after the new emperor ascended the throne, the expansion of Prince An's fiefdom was even more new, and Wei Jing could easily collect the information he wanted to know.

He had told Shao Qing this before. She nodded in understanding and was thankful: "Fortunately, Pingtao is hundreds of miles away, very far from Qiejia, otherwise there would be trouble."

Now as long as I can get through this section smoothly, it will be fine.

…

——

The capital of Jia was Linchang, and the royal palace was built there.

The once relatively small Prince An Palace is now under expansion. Although it does not involve the front palace, it is bound to cause more noise and dust.

Xu Cang was dressed in casual clothes and was quietly led into the main hall from the side door. He lowered his eyes and greeted: "Your Highness Prince An."

"rise."

A mellow young male voice sounded, and Prince An turned around.

This was a man in his early twenties, wearing a lacquered gauze crown and a navy blue robe with a long collar. He had fair and rosy skin, a broad forehead and a square jaw. He was very handsome and had the dignity of a prince.

He met Xu Cang and asked: "No news yet?"

Xu Cang lowered his eyes, stood up, and bowed: "Indeed."

"Could it be possible that he really died in the Qian River?"

Prince An frowned: "I always feel it's too easy." His fifth brother should be more resilient.

"Could it be that he saw through this plan?"

That’s right, Xu Cang is a plot. His past identity and his current actions are all part of the plan.

As Prince An Wei Ping, who was once overshadowed by his younger brother, he was quite aware of Wei Jing's abilities. If he wasn't dead, these ordinary soldiers, no matter how thorough their search, would be unable to do anything to him.

So, after discussing with his staff, he decided to choose Xu Cang, who was demoted to the southwest.

It seems that his former subordinates are secretly helping him, but in fact, he is setting numerous traps.

According to reports, the King of Qi jumped into the river with severe injuries and poison. The river is turbulent and even if he could reach the shore, he would be in imminent danger.

The famous doctors in all the towns and cities have been restrained at the first opportunity, and the search has been carried out day and night with the greatest intensity. It must be difficult for the King of Qi, right? At this time, a former subordinate who has not forgotten the old friendship comes out. He is already at the end of his strength, so he will probably ask for help, right?

Unfortunately, it has been almost ten days since the incident and there is still no movement.

Wei Ping frowned and thought for a moment, then waved his hand: "Go back and search carefully to make sure there are no mistakes."

"yes!"

Xu Cang responded and retreated silently.

When he came out of the spacious and magnificent main hall, the scorching sun shone directly on him. It was so hot and stuffy that he almost broke out in a sweat. His expression remained unchanged, but he felt a great relief in his heart.

He is a member of the Xu family. He was able to survive thanks to the protection of his family and continue to wear armor. Given the current situation, he naturally cannot drag down the family. When King An's men found him, he had no choice but to obey them, and he had to cooperate highly without making any mistakes.

In addition to his family, he also has a wife and children.

However, compared with his positive attitude, he just hoped in his heart that the King of Qi would not come looking for him. He suffered inside and out day after day, and finally made it to today. He can basically conclude that the plan has failed.

His thoughts were in a mess, he despised himself, and couldn't help but think of the King of Qi. He let out a long sigh. Compared to the mountainous, rainy, stuffy, humid, cold and hot southwest, he actually liked the vast world of the north more.

A sip of wine, a bite of meat, a knife to the barbarians, a heart full of blood, the sand and earth blow on the face but the heart is clean and comfortable.

Unfortunately, this time and this self are gone and can never be retrieved.

…

Return to Prince An's Palace.

After Xu Cang went out, Wei Ping glanced at his back and snorted.

He might have guessed that Xu Cang was unhappy, but that didn't matter. The other party had to do it and try his best.

What a pity, after putting so much effort, there was no result.

"I just can't believe that the King of Qi died like this."

He said this to another person in the hall, who had been sitting in the hall but had not spoken a word just now. Prince An did not introduce him to Xu Cang, and he did not even look at Xu Cang, just sipping his tea leisurely.

He looked to be no more than twenty years old. He wore a dark blue robe with wide sleeves. His long black hair was not tied up but tied loosely behind his back with a black satin. He had sharp eyebrows, phoenix eyes, a high nose and red lips, and a fair and shiny complexion. He was a very handsome man. Unlike Wei Jing, who was handsome in a heroic manner, he was like the famous scholars of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, and was very romantic.

This person was none other than the first aide of Prince An’s Palace, Wei Xu.

Wei Xu was not just an aide-de-camp, he was a famous scholar in Jingzhou. Wei Ping admired his reputation and visited him several times. The two had similar interests and called each other close friends. Then he came out of seclusion and went to Qiejia.

So this person spoke quite directly: "Believe it or not, this plan is useless. We need to find another way as soon as possible, otherwise, as time goes by, it may be hopeless to capture the King of Qi."

"Where is Zhang Kuo? He has been hiding in the Qing Zhai Guard for some time. Is there still no news from him?"

The author has something to say: Dear die-hard fans, don’t be too anxious, the male protagonist is unlikely to trust anyone now.