Chapter 36 “Who wouldn’t want to?”
Time waits for no one, and Gu Guan and Xie Ci didn't say anything more. After hurriedly reporting that they were safe, Gu Guan waved to him, turned around and went into the dark forest.
Xie Ci watched her throw the sword into her left hand, then pull a branch with her right hand. The figure dodged left and right and soon disappeared.
Zhang Qing was also looking eagerly, a little nervous. "Master, do you think we can find out who that person is this time?"
Xie Ci stared until he could no longer see her. He looked up. A northeast wind blew from the grasslands, stirring the thick clouds into a continuous heave. He said, "I don't know."
The only thing to do now is to wait.
…
Let’s talk about Gu Wan.
When she and Qin Ying ran to catch up, Chen Luo waved to them, and they quickly bent down and hid in the grass.
Unknown insects fluttered around, and Chen Luo told them in a low voice that Chen Lang had been packed into a box and sent on board.
In the dark woods, the group's plan went smoothly without having to change from ambush to killing. After successfully capturing the person, they ran quickly through the rugged mountains. They made every preparation they could, stepping on thorns and weeds to move forward, and soon bypassed the mountain ridge and arrived at the bank of the Hushui tributary.
The newly grown reeds and aquatic plants swayed in the wind, and night birds flapped their wings and flew up in the darkness. Several black-sailed boats hidden in the shadows of big trees and reeds immediately paddled out to meet them.
The people waiting for pick-up on the black-sailed boat were also overjoyed. When the boat docked, they quickly carried out a large camphorwood box, untied Chen Lang from the fishing net, tied his hands and feet tightly with cowhide ropes, threw him into the camphorwood box and locked it.
When Gu Guan quickly stretched his head to look over, he saw two big men quickly lifting the box and putting it into the cabin of the black-sailed boat on the foot of the mountain. Then they pushed the oars to the river bank, and everyone jumped on the boat. Several small boats quickly left the shore and rushed downstream.
A series of actions were completed quickly and silently in the dark of the night. In the blink of an eye, the chaos and commotion were left behind, and the boat sailed across the water and quietly evacuated.
Chen Luo waved his hand quickly, and the group quickly chased after him.
Because this group of people were extremely alert, constantly raising their swords and vigilantly scanning the shore, the water, and all around. In this situation, it was impossible to follow them from the water. Fortunately, Gu Wan and his group were also extremely well prepared. This large tributary directly leading to Hushui was one of their key targets. Every few meters, there was a hidden sentry on the hilltop. Even if they were temporarily hindered by the rugged terrain, they would quickly bypass it and follow them back to the shore.
The night was dark, the wind rustled the leaves in the forest, and the thick clouds kept moving, occasionally shedding a ray of moonlight, which quickly disappeared.
On the water and on the shore, without knowing each other, both sides were nervously racing against time.
As for Chen Lang, he opened his eyes immediately after being put into a large camphorwood box and carried into the cabin.
Just now, he was hit hard on the back of the neck. Chen Lang held his neck hard to resist. The back of his neck felt hot. He pretended to be knocked unconscious. Now he felt the swaying of the boat. He opened one eye and took a look. He quickly pressed the ring face of a ring that Gu Guan had specially made for him to wear against the wall of the camphor wood box. Then, a small sword that was one finger long and very sharp came out from it.
Then Gu Guan also specially taught him the hand gestures, which showed him the technique of how to position his hands in case his hands were tied. Now when he opened his fists, the small sword could just touch the leather rope.
He rubbed it with all his might for a long time, and finally broke the leather rope in half. Once the knot loosened, he pulled it out with his hands.
There were two air holes in this large camphorwood box. Chen Lang hurried over to take a look, but it was pitch black and he could only see the dark old boat awning. He had no choice but to retract his head, muttering to himself.
Chen Lang struggled to pull off a copper buckle decoration on the side of his boots, and turned it into a small target mirror.
He then pulled out a bunch of miscellaneous small things from the other side of the boot, the sole of the boot, the cuffs of his belt, etc. When he opened the small paper packages, they were all packets of tiny resin makeup powder. He stuck out his tongue and tapped his finger, carefully dipped a little foundation powder and rubbed it evenly on his index finger. Then, holding the target scope in one hand, he put it close to the side of the air hole and used the little light to carefully apply it to the bridge of his nose and both sides of his cheeks.
Chen Lang has been working hard on imitating Xie Ci's makeup for a while now. After practicing for a long time under Gu Wan's criticism and guidance, he finally got it right. In order to accommodate all these things, he didn't even bring a small dagger for self-defense.
Chen Lang was very nervous. Oh my god, please follow closely and don’t let him die.
He felt a little regretful. One three-story house was too few. He needed at least two!
…
After Chen Lang carefully applied makeup on his face, he looked left and right in the mirror and felt that this was the best he could do.
He packed up all his things, put the cowhide rope back on, sewed the part where it was cut in half with a needle, and then turned it inward. Then he adjusted his posture and quickly went to sleep.
He is not careless, he needs to conserve his energy and strength quickly, otherwise what will happen if he can't even run at the critical moment?
Chen Lang's mission this time is to act as bait and lure out the person behind the scenes.
So far, everything seems to be going smoothly.
Zhao Chengwen and others rushed along the tributary and merged into Hu Shui before dawn. After spending a morning, they left the Yunzhou direct-controlled area and arrived in Min County, where they reunited with the contact person.
At this point, they finally showed a hint of joy.
Zhao Chengwen immediately sent a letter to Fan Yang, then disguised himself as a merchant caravan again and quickly left with "Xie Ci".
Heading east.
…
Inside the Andong Protectorate.
Late that night, a carrier hawk landed on the iron frame of the hawk house in the east attic.
The sound of rapid footsteps came from the corridor straight to the side door, and Lu Xinyi, who was lying on the big bed, suddenly turned over and sat up.
With a "creak", the main door opened wide.
"Zhao Chengwen successfully captured Xie Ci?!"
In the pitch-black night, the ox-horn lantern was blown around and around. Lu Xinyi stood barefoot on the gorilla wool carpet in the main room. His heart skipped a beat: "Is this true?"
"Did you really capture Xie Ci?"
He was both happy and skeptical. Although all this was not impossible, when it finally succeeded, it would inevitably make people feel disbelief and doubt.
Especially someone like Lu Xinyi who is so suspicious.
"According to the original plan, bring the person to Yanzhou. Chen Fen, go there in person and see if it really is him!"
Xie Ci, and Xie Mingming, Lu Xinyi was a little agitated. He paced a few steps on the spot and immediately gave the order.
Chen Fen: “Yes!”
…
Chen Lang stayed in the box for seven or eight days. He felt like he was being transported here and there, by land and water, until he finally arrived during the day on the seventh day.
He heard a new sound of footsteps coming hurriedly towards him, followed by the sound of a lock being unlocked with a "click".
The lid of the box was suddenly opened, and the door was wide open. His eyes were stinging after not seeing the sunlight for a long time. Before he could curse, a hand reached into the box and lifted his face up.
Chen Lang's heart immediately began to beat fast, but fortunately, the man only forcefully lifted his chin.
Chen Fen brushed away the messy hair from his face. The boy's eyes were sharp and full of resentment, his hoarse voice was filled with hatred, and his pair of gorgeous and unparalleled eyes were slanted with hatred that was thrilling, but also thrillingly beautiful.
"Who are you?! Are you him? Let me out! You bastard—"
The young man was filled with hatred and spat in his face. Chen Fen turned his head away.
He had met Xie Ci several times, when he was twelve or thirteen years old, but Xie Ci would definitely not pay attention to an unimportant background character like him. Lu Xinyi was very good at painting, and he had carefully examined the detailed painting many times before coming.
Chen Lang struggled violently. Chen Fen held his chin tightly and looked at him carefully. Finally, he rubbed his cheeks and forehead with a wet cloth. Chen Lang quickly struggled to break free and cursed.
Chen Fen looked down at the wet cloth. It was clean. He finally put his hand down and said, "Yes, it's him."
"Release the carrier eagle immediately and report to the master!"
Everyone showed joy, especially Zhao Chengwen.
…
After the appearance of this sturdy man with a veil covered with thick gauze drapes, it was obvious that the group of people in the backyard of the inn suddenly became cheerful and excited.
The joy and excitement of pressing cannot be concealed in any way.
Gu Wan, Qin Ying and the others breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time they couldn't help but get excited.
This means that the identity has been verified!
"Could this be the person behind this?"
Gu Guan and the others looked at each other, but after thinking about it, they all felt that it shouldn't be the case.
Soon, the group's actions confirmed their guess.
Chen Fen quickly asked them to pack up, and then loaded the large camphorwood box back onto the truck. They kept wandering around several nearby counties. Finally, at nightfall the next day, they did not stay overnight, but left all the people and goods behind, and drove straight to the suburbs with the large camphorwood box.
“Here I come!”
The most critical moment has finally arrived.
Gu Wan couldn't help but get nervous.
Oh my god, I hope everything goes well.
They were exhausted along the way and had to use all their strength to track the enemy along the river in the deep mountains and forests until they got here. They were disheveled and dirty.
This is Yanzhou, which is considered an inland city. Obviously, the other party is very cautious and does not intend to transport "Xie Ci" back to their nest. They are probably guarding against their current move.
He is indeed a shrewd and cunning man!
The two sides battled with wits and courage, and finally reached the last step. They gave up on the messenger eagles, which had too many uncertainties and were difficult to track, in order to ensure the greatest success rate of this strategy of luring the snake out of its hole.
Now, it is finally time to reveal the truth.
Gu Wan couldn't help but tense up.
The group followed cautiously, divided into three echelons. The ones with the best light body skills were at the front, leaving hidden signs along the way and following all the way up. Finally, under the cover of night, they arrived at a small forest.
In the dark night, they soon noticed that there was a sentry. Several skilled fighters took advantage of the cover of darkness and crawled through the thorn bushes. It took them a lot of effort to successfully knock down one of them.
Even the meeting place was temporarily set and randomly selected, which made it very difficult to follow, and they could not judge the identity of the mastermind based on the location, which made Gu and others very regretful.
But at least they are not in someone else's nest, which has its advantages. If others can take advantage of the terrain, so can they; they are not familiar with the terrain, and so are the other party.
Chen Luo held his breath and searched the man's body, shaking his head slightly. Judging from the posture and movements of this scout, he was obviously from a military background, but he had nothing on him to prove his identity.
Gu Guan and Qin Ying looked at each other. In this case, it was obvious that they could only determine each other's identity by seeing each other's face clearly.
When she arrived here, even Qin Ying's face became solemn. She stared at the direction where Zhao Chengwen and others had passed through the grove. Finally, her smile faded, revealing a cold murderous intent.
But it is very difficult to kill them. After all, in order to successfully follow, there must not be too many of them.
The best plan that Gu Guan and his team could have was to see the other person's face clearly, confirm his identity, and rescue Chen Lang at the same time.
As for the former, Gu Guan actually never dared to say it. In fact, she had never held much hope in her heart, and always felt that it would not be so easy.
But at this moment, after finally arriving here after so many setbacks, her hope could not help but increase greatly.
Is it really a change of luck?
Really?
Is it possible?
…
Chen Lang felt the carriage shaking and the road becoming more and more rugged. After about a quarter of an hour of violent shaking, he heard the sound of the carriage scraping against branches stop, and then the camphor wood box finally stopped.
Under the moonlight, dozens of fast horses rushed into the woods. When the reins were pulled, the fat horses neighed loudly and stopped on the carriage.
Chen Lang held his breath, he knew it had finally come.
He adjusted his posture, pressed hard against the corner of the box, and tightened the eyebrow pencil in his hand.
There was a "click" sound of unlocking, Lu Xinyi stood in front of the shaft of the carriage, and Zhao Chengwen quickly jumped onto the carriage and opened the lock.
With a "whoosh" sound, the lid of the box was suddenly opened!
The moon is full tonight, and the bright moonlight shines brightly in the dense grove. The big box is placed in a relatively open place. The lid is suddenly opened, and Chen Lang and the pair of sharp eyes behind the silver mask suddenly meet each other's eyes.
Chen Lang: Fuck!
At the same time, he cursed inwardly, as well as Gu Wan.
They sneaked all the way and finally carefully hid in a decent position, under the shadow of a large rock on a small hill. Everyone stared with wide eyes, not blinking for a moment.
Gu Guan saw more than a dozen flying cavalrymen, with a middle-aged man leading the way, and she held her breath.
The middle-aged man in a dark blue round-necked samurai uniform stood in front of the carriage, and the man in the veil and Zhao Chengwen immediately bowed in silent greeting. This subconscious, instinctive movement, coupled with the obvious authority of this middle-aged man, who had held a high position for a long time and whose aura was unmatched by ordinary people, all told Gu Wan that this man was 100% the mastermind behind the incident!
Up and down the slope, one could hear a pin drop. The moment the lid of the box was opened, the silence was broken. The first time Lu Xinyi saw Chen Lang, he suddenly raised his eyelids: "Oh, you are not Xie Ci——"
A deep male voice roared with rage.
Chen Fen was shocked: "What?!"
At the same time, Chen Lang threw a handful of broken pieces out with all his strength! "Hurry up and save me, ah ah ah——"
The man took a step back, and in the moonlight, the shiny silver reflection on his face was clearly visible.
The middle-aged man suddenly raised his head, and a silver metal mask was clearly visible on his face.
——The evil demon Yaksha in Bishamontian with furious brows, huge mouth and fangs.
When he saw the silver mask on his face clearly, Gu Wan almost burst into curse, "Fuck, fuck!"
damn it!
Xun Xiao isn’t wearing a mask, why the hell are you wearing a mask!!!
…
His mood was like a roller coaster, but at this moment, he couldn't care less. Chen Lang screamed in agony! Chen Luo turned his palm upside down and let it go. Gu Wan suddenly jumped on it. Chen Luo threw herself up, and Gu Wan jumped with all her strength, swooping down like a night bird to a treetop at the foot of the hill. She had already thrown a metal chain in her hand, which landed accurately in front of Chen Lang. Chen Lang was quick-eyed and quick-handed, and quickly grabbed it!
Gu Guan pulled with all his strength, and Chen Lang pushed hard, flying up on the spot.
Chen Luo and Qin Ying were extremely disappointed, but they immediately took action. With a sharp whistle, they rushed down quickly.
The last few people were desperately shaking branches and thorn bushes, pretending to be a large group.
The opponent obviously had no intention of fighting. Lu Xinyi's face turned ashen behind the silver mask. He narrowly missed his target by pulling Chen Lang away. He knew he had been tricked and had no intention of staying for long. The two sides only fought briefly, quickly separated, and retreated quickly.
Gu Guan and the others rushed to rescue Chen Lang, who was still in shock and sat down at the roots of a tree.
Gu Guan and the others wanted to try to give chase, but Qin Ying rushed out of the woods with a sword in hand. Gu Guan hurried to catch up, but there was a road on the other side. Qin Ying stood beside the road, panting heavily. The sound of horse hooves in the distance kicked up dust, and the horse quickly disappeared into the night.
…
Finally, the score for this round of actions is about 7 points.
They were very successful in eliminating all the spies that the other side had planted among their own guards for many years.
This is the most important thing.
It’s a pity that I didn’t see the man’s face.
But Chen Luo said at the time: "This is a short man."
A very important clue.
Gu Guan, Chen Luo and the others didn't know whether the other party had any hidden tricks in Yanzhou. After rescuing Chen Lang and chasing him out of the road that night, they only saw the horse's butt and quickly withdrew.
Return to Yunzhou overnight.
Chen Luo said that the man was short, but in fact he was not short. It was just that compared with tall and strong men like Qin Xian and Chen Yan, the other person was about half a head shorter and of medium height.
"Then it can't be Huo Can."
Chen Yan and his men were not idle in Yunzhou either. They uprooted and wiped out the entire network of spies. Without these spies, all the thorns on his back disappeared. Xie Ci no longer needed to disguise himself, and he could enter and leave the camp headquarters and the governor's mansion with ease.
Late at night, the branch-shaped lamp in Chen Yanwai's study was still brightly lit.
He picked up his pen and wrote down the names of three people: "Lu Xinyi, Zheng Shoufang, and Huo Can."
Qin Xian spent a year investigating and narrowing down the three suspects, who were also recognized by Su Zhen and Chen Yan.
Gu Guan and his team's tracking was not without results. Based on his physique, Chen Yan immediately crossed out Huo Can.
Huo Can, like them, is tall.
Lu Xinyi and Zheng Shoufang are both of medium height, about the same height.
"From Yanzhou to Andong, Fanyang, and Yuzhou, Shan'an, if you ride a fast horse or light cavalry at full speed, you can get there in two days."
Gu Wan and his companions also analyzed this problem on their way back. Fan Yang is closer, but they cannot use the distance as a criterion for judgment.
In the end, only these two people are left, and they have to choose one.
Chen Yan said: "It's not bad."
It was a pleasant surprise. The other party plotted against them, but they were able to counter-plot against them.
Chen Yan specifically said this to Xie Ci, fearing that Xie Ci, a young man with too high expectations, would be disappointed. But Xie Ci wouldn't be disappointed. No one present, except Gu Wan, could fully understand the countless intrigues and dangers he had endured along the way.
Today, he has joined the army. He no longer looks around with regret and anxiety. Instead, he is no longer overly anxious.
Xie Ci sat upright on the armchair at the side and said, "I know, Uncle Chen, don't worry."
"good!"
Chen Yan indeed thought that this battle result was quite good. He took out a bright yellow imperial edict and a transfer order issued by the Ministry of War with a tiger talisman printed on it from behind his desk.
"The transfer order has been issued. Within three days, 500,000 Northern troops will gather in Luan!"
Chen Yan said, "We will set out tomorrow and lead our army to Lu'an."
…
This war that had been brewing for seven years finally came.
All parties mobilized and rushed to the front, and the Northern Army regrouped.
This will be a top-level battle.
Finally, the former members of the Xie family army were reunited into one, and people like Zheng Shoufang and Lu Xinyi, as well as troops from all over the country, large and small, were also integrated into one.
If nothing unexpected happens, the result Xie Ci wants will be to unveil the other party here.
It was almost dawn when we came out of the Governor's Mansion.
The morning star illuminated their path ahead, and they were about to muster the troops and set off. Galloping horses hurried back and forth beside them. Xie Ci gazed at the dawn in the east, feeling his heart surge with all kinds of emotions.
Finally, he glanced at Gu Wan beside him and said, "Let's go."
Qin Ying went to see Chen Lang off. The two of them walked and waited, slowly moving forward along the loess road, holding the reins. The wild grass and flowers on the side of the road were already lush and green, and the night wind brought the scent of unknown wild flowers and soil.
Gu Guan looked at Xie Ci from the side. His face was facing the dawn light, and it was pale. He looked in the direction of Yunzhou camp at the end of the road, his eyes bright and his face dazed, no one knew what he was thinking.
She whispered, "Are you disappointed?"
She felt very sorry. They just passed each other by and she almost knew who that person was.
The relationship between the two was different from that between Chen Yan. There were even some feelings that Xie Ci would not even tell his second sister-in-law, but he had never hidden them from Gu Wan. The two of them always spoke freely about whatever was going on.
Xie Ci came back to his senses after hearing this. He thought for a moment and said, "I'm a little disappointed, but not really disappointed."
Xie Ci tried to describe his inner feelings, saying, "...I feel like I'm very close to him."
He stretched out his hand and grasped it with all his strength. It was so close that if he exerted all his strength to reach it, he could really reach him! He could reach the great enemy who had caused the tragic deaths of his father and brother and the destruction of the entire Xie family.
Xie Ci said: "I hope I can catch him with my own hands!" Revenge him, every inch and every strand, blood debt with blood!
Xie Ci glanced at Gu Wan hastily. As soon as he said that, he felt something was wrong. This thought was too much of a letdown for his second sister-in-law and Gu Wan, as if all their hard work and efforts along the way were unimportant and not to his liking.
But Xie Ci didn't really think so. He didn't mean that at all. "No, that's not what I meant. I just..."
Gu Wan: "I understand, I understand."
Don't worry, don't worry, she really understands.
She hurried to appease Xie Ci, who was anxiously explaining. Alas, she really understood, she understood too well! It felt like, after exhausting all her efforts for so long, desperately wanting to bring the murderer to justice, if it was ultimately a colleague who solved the problem, while certainly wonderful and filled with gratitude and excitement, it was also inevitable that there would be a sense of loss and emptiness.
She understood the feelings of the victim's family, who wanted to use all their strength to make the suspect pay tenfold or a hundredfold for his blood debt.
Gu Guan understood it too well, because she had experienced it before. She knew too well the shocking indignation that felt like a 10,000-ton ship repeatedly crushing her heart.
She said softly, "Who wouldn't want to?"
Dawn was approaching, and the faint light of dawn shone on the two of them. Her cheeks and whole body were shrouded in the hazy morning light. Gu Wan felt pity and lowered his voice very softly.
The light from the sky is as light as a veil, so gentle and soft to the extreme.
Xie Ci suddenly stopped talking and there was no need to say anything.
She understands him.
Emotions suddenly surged up and rushed to the top of his head. Xie Ci's eyes felt a little hot. He couldn't help but hugged Gu Wan tightly.
He blinked hard to get rid of the tears in his eyes.
Gu Wan smiled and patted him on the back.
"It's going to get better."
It's getting better, isn't it?
"Um!"
He thinks so too.
Xie Ci let out a breath, and the next moment, he realized what he had done. Almost the moment he realized this, he clearly felt the tough yet soft arc, the curve of life outlining her vibrant body.
He was already emotionally surging and tearful, and hadn't yet calmed down when he was startled again. The blood rushed up his body and his heart was pounding out of his chest. The places where his hands, feet and chest touched her body temperature suddenly felt incredibly hot.
It was completely different from every hug he had had before, and his soul trembled.
"Wan Niang, I like..."
He was so impulsive that he almost told her that he liked her.
Fortunately, at the last moment, he suddenly remembered Zhang Qing, Zheng Ying and others behind him. He caught a glimpse of their wide eyes from the corner of his eye, and the impulse came to his mind and he slammed on the brakes.
Gu Wan: “???”
Xie Ci let go of his hand, his eyelids still red, and he wiped his eyes hard.
He whispered, "Nothing."
"I was thinking, we're about to leave Yunzhou."
Gu Guan took a step back. The green grass beside the ridge of the field was soft to the touch, but the muddy feeling had disappeared. The morning light enveloped the two of them. In the distance, the sound of war drums could be heard from the Yunzhou camp.
Yes, we are about to go to the other side.
Gu Wan turned around and smiled. She trotted a few steps, jumped onto the horse, and waved: "Why don't you go?"
If you are late for call-up, you will lose face.
Her smiling face reflected the morning light, like the rising sun at dawn, brilliant for a moment.
She turned the horse's head and shouted, "Gee!" The horse's hooves clattered, and the wind blew up her hair and the hem of her clothes, making her move lightly.
Xie Ci immediately jumped on his horse and rode forward.
The two walked side by side, rushing towards the distant place where there were swords and horses.
Xie Ci turned his head to look at Gu Wan, he pursed his lips and smiled, he was very lucky to have you along the way.
The boy's pure emotions were surging and overflowing, and he could hardly take his eyes off them until Gu Wan looked into the distance and raised his whip.
Xie Ci ran after him.
Walking in the morning light, one in front and one behind, passing by in the wind.
The author has something to say:
When I was writing the last part, a really beautiful picture came to my mind: the pale light of dawn, a young man and woman, riding their horses past in the half-dark morning light, he whipped the horse and looked at her intently.
Tomorrow, he will go to the battlefield and start a new chapter. Besides hatred, Xie Ci's heart is carrying a lot of other things.
The green mountains are fortunate to bury the loyal bones, and we stand on horseback to protect the country.
This is not only a story of revenge, it is also a story of growth!
Hahahaha, besides, it’s been so sweet for so long, it’s time to be polished by reality. The budding emotions of a teenager are beautiful, but not deep enough. What we need is a fairy tale love!! Hahahaha
Muah~ Ah Xiu is a bit busy today, I'll come catch bugs later! (づ￣3￣)づ╭
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