Nightwatcher

The "female thief" in night clothes looked warily for a while, lowered her head, bent her waist, and got into the dark hole.

"call!"

In the darkness, she took a breath, sparks flew up, and a cluster of flames burned quietly.

The Huozhezi gave off an orange halo, dispersing the surrounding darkness. She held up the Huozhezi and looked at the cave wall. The traces of artificial excavation were very obvious. .

The free hand of the woman in black reached towards her waist, where a short blade was pinned.

The short blade was slowly unsheathed without making any sound. The fire-colored halo illuminated the blade, showing a pitch black, swallowing the light.

This weapon is called Mo Ya. It is made from black iron and the fangs of the Black Scale Beast. It takes a month to refine. It is one of Si Tianjian Song Qing's most proud works.

In addition, the great formation master Yang Qianhuan personally burned the formation for Mo Ya, making it one of the top magical weapons among the peerless magic weapons.

Moya has a three-layer formation. The first layer strengthens the blade, making it sharper and can cut iron like clay; the second layer strengthens the blade, enhancing its toughness so that even a fourth-level martial artist cannot damage it easily; and the third layer is short-range. Teleport, come and go without a trace, very suitable for close quarters attacks.

The woman in black held up the fire folding device in one hand and held Moya behind her back in the other hand, walking forward slowly.

Along the way, she did not encounter an ambush. The tunnel in the cave was not long, and she reached the end in a short time. At the end was a stone chamber.

The furnishings in this stone chamber are very simple. In the center is a stone disk that resembles a millstone, about two feet in diameter. The stone disk is densely inscribed with twisted runes. There are oil bowls inlaid on the stone wall.

Apart from that, there is nothing else.

The woman in black examined them carefully for a moment, then walked around the wall, checking each oil bowl. There was dust in the bowls, the wicks were dry, and no one had refueled them for a long time.

Each oil bowl can be easily picked up, and there are no mechanisms. Knocking on the wall, there was a thick echo, which proved that there was no coincidence or mechanism in the wall.

After checking around, the woman in black approached the stone plate. She knocked on it very cautiously and with high vigilance.

A quarter of an hour later, the fire was burned out, and she blew another fire.

"Uncle Pingyuan's Mansion is a palace given by the emperor. The royal family has strict standards for building a palace, so they must choose a place with the best feng shui. In the capital, what location is better than the location where the dragon veins are located? So this provides the possibility of earth escape teleportation .

"Li Miaozhen said that it is difficult to practice the Earth Escape Technique. There is no possibility that both Ping Yuanbo and Huai King's secret agents can master this secret technique. Therefore, this stone plate is the Earth Escape Technique teleportation formation. It requires special techniques to activate. .After activation, it will be teleported to the corresponding place. Where will that place be, somewhere in the palace?

"When Hengyuan broke into the mansion in anger, Ping Yuanbo must have thought about escaping into this tunnel and escaping through teleportation. But he failed. Perhaps he was beaten to death by Hengyuan as soon as he opened the secret tunnel.

"But Hengyuan doesn't know anything about other things. It's impossible to think of too many things based on a secret passage. Moreover, it is normal for a secret passage to be built in a noble house. But in his eyes, this is a huge flaw. , so Hengyuan must die.

"So far, my speculations have been verified without any flaws. I don't know if Xu Qi'an didn't think of it or just ignored it temporarily. I always feel that he knows more. For example, why does His Majesty collect a group of people regularly? What are you doing with those innocent people?”

The woman in black was lost in thought.

After a long time, she sighed, gathered her thoughts, stared at the stone plate carefully, and memorized it silently for ten minutes, imprinting all the details accurately in her mind.

Then, she held the fire certificate and left the secret room quickly.

June 18th, the beginning of autumn!

After three sacrifices, the day finally came for the army to set out for battle.

Early that morning, Wei Yuan led a group of generals on horseback and set off from the main road of the imperial city towards the army camp outside the capital.

"Swaggering through the market" is an indispensable process. Historically, being named to the gold list and going out to fight have been national events, and they must be swaggered through the market and widely publicized.

In the mighty team of hundreds of people, Wei Yuan was at the forefront. He was still dressed in green clothes, with gray hair on his temples, elegant and handsome.

Just like before.

People lined both sides of the main road. After such a long period of publicity and warm-up, the people had already accepted the war and silently watched the team go out.

In the crowd, an old man with gray hair stared at the man in Tsing Yi, and suddenly burst into tears and burst into tears.

"Dad, why are you crying?"

Next to the old man, the young man asked blankly.

"Wei Gong, Wei Gong finally led the army again"

The old man held his son's hand tightly, with a mix of sadness and joy: "When my father joined the army, he went to Shanhaiguan with Wei Gong and came back with him. Twenty-one years later, Wei Gong is still the same as before, but The temples are gray. At that time, I remember that His Majesty was standing at the top of the city, beating the drum himself to see Duke Wei off."

His Majesty's young son was playing the drum with his eyes wide open and a look of disbelief on his face.

Many older people, seeing the scene of the Confucian scholar in blue leading the team, recalled the Battle of Shanhaiguan that year.

I remembered that there was another military god in Dafeng, and I remembered this Confucian scholar in blue who suppressed the King of Zhenbei and was unable to get ahead.

Especially the old people who had joined the army, when they saw Wei Qingyi leading the troops again, they might burst into tears, be extremely excited, or feel a mixture of joy and sorrow.

"Wei Gong, it's Wei Gong"

"Twenty years, exactly twenty years, I finally see Wei Gong leading the army again."

"After so many years, I have almost forgotten the scene when Wei Gong led thousands of troops to the westward expedition. Wei Gong, why did you hide in the court after the Battle of Shanhaiguan? Do you know how sad the brothers were back then?"

It is difficult for young people to understand the feelings of the older generation, and how radiant those in Tsing Yi were in the past.

On the street, Xu Pingzhi, who was responsible for maintaining public order, had a knife on his waist and stared blankly, as if in a dream.

"Master Baihu, you also fought in the Battle of Shanhaiguan, right? Wei Gong, are you really that awesome?"

A young swordsman asked in a low voice.

"For people of our generation, when Duke Wei is here, the military spirit is there. He is the kind of person who makes people willing to die for him." Xu Pingzhi sighed:

"It's hard for young people of your generation to understand what we were like back then. However, you will experience it sooner or later. Well, after we finish defeating the Witch God Cult."

"I heard that during the Battle of Shanhaiguan, His Majesty personally beat the drum at the top of the city?" asked another sword guard.

"The Battle of Shanhaiguan is related to the survival of the country, so it is naturally different. This time, we can't see it." Xu Pingzhi said regretfully.

Behind Wei Yuan, Jiang Luzhong, an old man who had followed Wei Qingyi on the expedition, heard the discussions of the people on the street and couldn't help but think of those days.

During the Battle of Shanhaiguan, Da Feng mobilized the entire country to fight. The man in dragon robe personally stood at the top of the city beating drums to see him off. What a scene.

It would be great if Your Majesty could beat the drum to send us off again!

The group of old people back then thought sincerely in their hearts.

It's just that Your Majesty is not the wise king of the past. The Emperor Yuan Jing at that time was wise, proficient, diligent in government affairs, and wiped away the chronic diseases of the late emperor's period.

Your Majesty is currently addicted to Taoism and has been idle in government for many years.

Things and people have long since changed.

At the top of the city, the civil servants headed by Wang Zhenwen, the military generals headed by several dukes, and the royal family members headed by the prince lined up in a line at the top of the city, silently watching the procession slowly approaching at the end of the spacious main road below.

"I think back then, when Wei Yuan went on an expedition, His Majesty personally climbed to the top of the city and beat drums to see each other off. This made everyone in the capital unite as one." Wang Zhenwen said with emotion.

The veterans who had experienced the Battle of Shanhaiguan were slightly in a daze.

"I asked why there is no one beating the drums in the city. It turns out that no one is qualified anymore." The Minister of War suddenly said.

Twenty years ago, he was not a Beijing official and worked in other places.

Hearing this, the crown prince, fourth prince and others looked slightly warm in their eyes. If they could follow the example of their father and beat drums to see him off, they would be very popular.

However, most clan members just think about it casually and dare not actually do it.

There were only two people on site who could do this, one was the Crown Prince of the East Palace, and the other was the Fourth Prince, the legitimate son of the Queen.

Next to the prince, Lin'an, who was wearing a fiery red palace attire, pursed his lips, imagining that scene and feeling a little crazy for a moment:

"My father must have been unparalleled in his heroic appearance back then."

I really want to watch my father beat the drum to see him off again.

Huaiqing also showed some expectation. What does it mean to be in the spotlight and shine brightly?

The number one scholar who was named on the gold list and paraded through the streets on horseback is counted as one, and the poems he produced at the poetry meeting are counted as one. Wei Yuan at this time is counted as one. The father who wore a dragon robe and climbed to the top of the city to beat drums for the army is also counted.

The prince and the fourth prince were somewhat moved.

"Since my father is not here, I will beat the drums myself. How can there be no one to beat the drums when the army goes out?" the prince said excitedly.

He knew that doing so would be a certain amount of transgression, but after all, this kind of thing was not a taboo in etiquette. Even if his father knew about it, he would be displeased at most. And he can gain huge popularity.

After weighing it, the prince was a little eager to give it a try.

The fourth prince frowned and was about to retort when he heard Huaiqing say: "Fourth brother, you are not qualified enough."

The fourth prince said angrily: "Then who is still qualified?"

Speaking of which, the fourth prince is quite outstanding among the princes. He is a seventh-grade warrior.

Huaiqing shook his head and did not answer.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

Wang Zhenwen stopped for a moment, blocking the prince's way to the drum, and said warmly:

"In terms of status, it is inappropriate for you to do this, and it will offend His Majesty. In terms of reputation, you lack some qualifications. In terms of Wei Yuan, you still lack some qualifications."

The prince frowned: "Then according to Lord Chief Assistant, who is qualified?"

Wang Zhenwen glanced over his shoulder, looked at the steps, and smiled: "The qualified person is here."

Everyone suddenly turned around and saw a young man with a sword on his waist. He walked very slowly. The guards on both sides were trembling as if they were facing a powerful enemy. They tried hard to pull out the sword, but they couldn't.

Huaiqing and Lin'an's beautiful eyes flashed with light in unison.

"Xu Qian!"

In the room, someone spoke with gritted teeth.

Xu Qian ignored him, just nodded to Wang Zhenwen, and walked straight to the drum.

The fourth prince's eyes moved slightly and remained silent.

The prince stared at him sharply, standing in front of him, blocking the way.

"Brother Prince, please get out of the way." Lin'an pushed him with his elbow turned outward.

As far as his status is concerned, he doesn't have to worry about his father no matter what he does. In terms of reputation, the people in the capital cheered and praised him. As far as Wei Yuan was concerned, he was too qualified. The prince snorted and walked aside.

Xu Qian took out the drumstick and beat the drum hard.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

"Dong dong dong"

The sound of drums came from the top of the city, first a dull sound, then two, and then the drums were as dense as rain, echoing in the sky.

Everyone, including Wei Yuan, raised their heads or looked sideways at the city wall.

On the city wall, someone is beating a drum!

"Look, it's Xu Yinluo!"

There were shouts of surprise from the crowd.

"It's Xu Yinluo playing the drum."

"Xu Yinluo is beating drums to see off the army."

The people's emotions suddenly rose, shouting loudly and enthusiastically.

Lin'an sometimes looked at the lowly people, and sometimes looked at Xu Qian's back. She smiled brightly and innocently.

The corners of Huaiqing's mouth curled up slightly.

Jiang Luzhong and others squinted, looking at the young and upright figure on the city wall, and listening to the people's excited cheers, they felt inexplicably in a daze.

Back then, the dragon-robed man beat drums at the top of the city, and the people in the city cheered.

Twenty years have passed in a blink of an eye. The people beating the drums have changed, but the people still cheer.

They were silent for a moment, and then suddenly smiled from the bottom of their hearts.

Wei Yuan raised his head and stared at the young man at the top of the city. A trace of relief flashed in his eyes filled with vicissitudes of life.

Twenty years ago there was Wei Yuan, and twenty years later there was Xu Qian.

very good!

At this time, another poem would be better.

Then, Wei Yuan laughed loudly and said, "Xu Qian, do you have a farewell poem?"

PS: I will definitely explain the story of Wei Yuan and the Queen later, so don’t be impatient and be patient. The plot of a book slowly advances, and when you reach the right place, you write the right plot. It’s impossible to throw everything out at once.