"Impossible!" Jiang Cheng was almost scared out of his wits, utterly unwilling to believe it!
But there was still no news from Xindu, even though he had reported the situation at the border...
The men in gray were also thrown into chaos, as they were directly under the emperor's command.
Over the years, the emperor entrusted the secret guards to the Marquis of Xinting, but they were still kept behind and have become his most trusted confidants!
If the emperor dies, will the new emperor trust them?
Even if they trusted him, they weren't entirely sure. What if the new emperor gradually divided them and eventually eliminated them...?
Jiang Cheng wasn't entirely stupid; he quickly realized what was happening after a brief moment of panic.
He shouted at the men in black, "Whether the Emperor is alive or not, they must be killed today! Otherwise, we will be the ones who die!"
The men in gray came to their senses and tried to pull the bow with all their might, but suddenly found that their arms were weak!
Even the bows and arrows fell to the ground with a clatter!
Jiang Cheng's legs went weak, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud. If he hadn't been supporting himself with his sword, he would have fallen flat on his face...
"You...you poisoned me!"
Jiayin clapped her hands playfully, as if it were a rare moment of mischief, and replied, "Don't accuse us of something wrong! We didn't poison them!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than an old man with a white beard jumped down from a large tree upwind. His clothes were somewhat dirty, and his face was haggard, but his eyes shone brightly. It was none other than Doctor Zhang.
The old man strode over, glared at Jiayin, and complained, "You brat, look at the good job you've given me! At my age, I still have to come all the way to Jiangbei to suffer!"
Jiayin chuckled and quickly gave Mu Xu a wink.
Mu Xu understood and stepped forward with a smile to help Jia Yin help the old man sit down under the shade of a tree.
Mu Xu joked, "Grandpa, your medicine-making skills have really declined! A simple muscle-relaxing powder took so long to take effect. We were almost riddled with holes from the bullets."
The old man coughed twice to cover his guilty conscience, and stubbornly complained, "It's all because of Fu Niu'er, she's so good at hiding things. She has so many good medicinal herbs, but she just won't give them to me. Humph, if I had those good medicinal herbs, I would have taken them all down in the blink of an eye."
"Okay, okay! It's all my fault!" Jiayin took things out of the basket; there was food, fruit, and snacks all there.
The old man immediately forgot everything and started eating as soon as he grabbed something.
He originally came to prevent the Marquis and Li Laosi from being framed and seriously injured, so that he could receive timely treatment.
Little did they expect that they would escape so easily.
Fortunately, Jiang Cheng arrived with his men, finally giving him a chance to show his skills; otherwise, the trip would have been in vain.
On the other side, Li Laosi and the Marquis, carrying knives, finished off the gray-clad men one by one.
They didn't commit any heinous murder; they simply slit their throats with a single stroke. Out of consideration for their shared Tianwu heritage, they gave them a quick death.
Finally, when it was Jiang Cheng's turn, he was so scared that he wet himself and burst into tears.
"Waaah, Lord Marquis, spare us! I was just momentarily bewitched, I didn't mean to kill you! I just wanted to capture you and report back to the Emperor!"
"Waaah, my wives, concubines and children are all in the Emperor's hands, I dare not disobey his orders!"
"My lord, spare my life! I will never dare to do it again!"
Seeing his appearance, the Marquis and Li Laosi were mostly disappointed.
The Northern Expeditionary Army was full of unyielding heroes; even an ordinary soldier was a hero who would rather die than bend!
But Jiang Cheng, as a general, is so incompetent!
Seeing their silence, Jiang Cheng assumed they had softened their hearts, so he cried even harder.
"My lord, I will never dare to do it again! It was all ordered by the Emperor that I did this, I was forced into it!"
"I know many of the Emperor's secret orders. I will tell you them all, one word: 'tribe.' I beg you, my lord, for the sake of our many years of friendship, spare my life!"
The Marquis couldn't stand it any longer and replied coldly, "If you plot against me, whether it's assassination or poisoning, I will spare your life."
"But your mistake was colluding with the barbarians and setting up an ambush at Lonely Mountain, which killed hundreds of vanguard soldiers! They also had wives, children, and parents!"
"If we spare you, how will we appease their spirits in heaven? Only you can personally go and apologize to them!"
Jiang Cheng tried to argue, but the Marquis's sword had already fallen, and the head rolled far away, finally ending this feud.
Li Laosi, fearing that the Marquis would be upset, comforted him, saying, "A man like that isn't worth grieving for. He's worse than a pig or a dog; it would be better if he died!"
The Marquis sighed, "I did have my doubts about him, but after more than a decade of following him through thick and thin, I didn't want to believe it. I never imagined it would lead to such a disaster, dragging so many soldiers down with it..."
Li Laosi shook his head, "My lord, the brothers who followed you into battle were prepared for some to lose their heads. After all, no war is without death!"
"Besides, you won't send troops unless you're absolutely certain of victory, and once you do, you charge ahead in the fight. It's all because you want to protect your brothers more, to kill fewer people, or even kill none at all."
"We understand! Your Excellency need not blame yourself for this!"
Upon hearing these words, Jiayin stepped forward and explained the arrangements made in Xindu.
In addition to the pensions that the imperial court would definitely provide, soldiers who died or were wounded in battle received extra subsidies, enough to ensure they would have enough to eat and wear for the rest of their lives.
The Marquis raised his hand and ruffled his daughter's hair, saying nothing more, but his expression had improved considerably.
The group worked together to dig a large pit and buried Jiang Cheng and the man in gray.
By this time, Doctor Zhang had finished eating and drinking. While picking his teeth, he asked, "Where are we going next? To Quanzhou?"
Jiayin casually put her things away and replied, "Yes, our families must be worried about us. We'll have to go and meet up with them to let them know we're safe."
"Also, I wonder if the fleet picked up my sixth brother on the way! My eldest brother should be with Mr. Wen, so there's no need to worry too much about him."
Li Laosi wasn't worried at all. "Don't let Li Ge'er's quiet and refined demeanor fool you; he's actually incredibly clever. His path to officialdom through the imperial examinations has been remarkably smooth. This kid is truly the most fortunate of all!"
"But your elder brother is full of dogma. If he can't bear to leave the people, Mr. Wen will have to use his words to persuade him."
The Marquis retorted, "It's not that bad. Jiaren knows how to seek advantage and avoid harm, and he is reasonable. This is a decision made by the entire family, and he will not act impulsively."
"Let's go, let's go!" Doctor Zhang jumped up, dusted off his clothes, and shouted, "There's no use thinking about it. We'll know once we get to Quanzhou."
Jiayin looked around and replied, "Uncle Dashan hasn't come back yet, let's wait for him."
Speak of the devil, and he shall appear.
Before the words had even finished, Ye Shan appeared.
"My lord, I delivered a message to the border. Jiang Cheng is not here; only a eunuch is swaggering around. Following your orders, the eunuch was immediately arrested and sent back to the Crown Prince in Xindu. Jiang Cheng's whereabouts are unknown. Should I investigate further?"
Lord Hou shook his head. Li Laosi pointed at the new grave mound not far away with the tip of his knife and replied with a sneer, "No need to investigate anymore, it's already gone to report to the King of Hell."
"Luckily, Old Master Zhang intervened just now, otherwise we would all be injured by now. This guy brought more than twenty gray-clad guards, wanting to step on us as a stepping stone to gain wealth and glory."
Today's update is here!
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