Flower Fairy's Tribulation

Fufu City is about 200 miles away from the Liangjie River. Saving people is like putting out fires. Everyone works non-stop, braving the wind and snow to get into the city and settle down before the city gate closes at dusk. Following Qi Xuan's guidance, he stayed at an inn near the former Cai Mansion and now the Qin Family Mansion.

The next day, December 12th, after breakfast, according to Hua Yueying's plan, Qi Xuan led the way, and Lin Chenzhong carried a jar of old wine out of the east of the city to visit the prison of the Campus Military Field and City Defense Headquarters, hoping to meet Cai Fei's family. Determine where they are currently so you can take next steps.

Unexpectedly, the security of the prison was extremely tight. Even though Lin Chenzhong had nothing but good things to say, the warden who was on duty and spent a lot of money would not let him in. He only said: "The situation has been unstable recently. There are bandits wandering around in the nearby mountains and forests to prevent thieves." I used the excuse of visiting the prison to find out what is true. There are orders from above. Without official documents from the city defense headquarters, outsiders are not allowed to visit the prison. Anyone who disobeys the order will be executed! It’s not that I have to refute the young master’s face. It’s just that the orders are overwhelming and the sword is hanging high. I dare not disobey. , please come back and come back after a while when the weather calms down——"

Lin Chenzhong gave the prison chief 200 gold coins and asked him about the current situation of Cai Fei's family. The prison chief couldn't stand the temptation of 200 gold coins, so he took Lin Chenzhong to a corner of the wall and whispered, "Sir, although I and I I'm not familiar with Boss Cai, but I've heard about him. He offended Captain Fu, and he was said to have had an affair with Lu Lin. The boss used the knife, and a hundred heads of Boss Cai's family were also chopped off! According to reports, bandits have gathered in the mountains and forests in recent days, and they don't know what they want. If something goes wrong, there must be a monster. Captain Fu is very vigilant, fearing that the bandits will rob the prison. So be on guard. I don’t know who you are, and I don’t know what your relationship is with Boss Cai, but I advise you not to get involved at this juncture. If Captain Fu knows that someone is secretly communicating with Boss Cai, if there is any trouble, I guess Boss Cai’s end is not far away! There’s no need to blame anyone—you understand, right?”

Lin Chenzhong quickly bowed to thank him for the advice, and then asked: "Brother, may I ask which god is the one who suppressed Captain Fu and prevented him from touching Boss Cai's family?"

The warden became a little impatient and said: "Stop asking, curiosity killed the cat, leave now!"

Lin Chenzhong hurriedly presented another 100 gold coin Elf Bank bearer stored value card. The prison chief said: "You young man is really troublesome! Forget it, good people will do their best to the end. I will tell you a few more words. You can go in with your left ear and out with the other." , don’t go out and talk nonsense——”

Lin Chenzhong nodded hurriedly, and the prison chief whispered: "I heard that Deputy Commander Xu Kun of the 67th Division is trying to protect Boss Cai, and Commander Fu can't provide any real evidence that Boss Cai is having an affair with Lu Lin, so it's hard to get off the horse..."

Lin Chenzhong didn't know Xu Kun, so he quickly asked: "Xu Kun, Chief Xu? Is the commander of the 67th Division in charge of the affairs of the 66th Division?"

The prison chief said: "Deputy Commander Xu has a good relationship with Master Xie Changting of the 66th Division. They said hello. Master Xie asked about the matter and asked Commander Fu to handle it carefully. He should neither let the gangsters go nor kill innocent people unjustly. They can't kill him, and they can't release him either, so Boss Cai has been detained until now. Recently, many people have been complaining on behalf of Boss Cai. Captain Fu is in trouble, and he keeps looking for Boss Cai's pigtails. Do you understand?! "

Lin Chenzhong seemed to understand and asked: "Since we can't get real evidence, we have to be acquitted. Why are we still detained? Isn't it against the law?"

The prison chief said: "Are you really confused or are you just pretending? Boss Cai is in jail, Cai Ji Seasoning Brokerage was taken away by Commander Fu's nephew Fu Yi, and the Cai Mansion was converted into the Qin Family Mansion by Commander Fu's nephew. If Boss Cai is not guilty, If you are released to the light of day, what will happen next? Do you understand? - Stop asking and leave quickly. If the leader knows that I am chewing his tongue behind his back, it would be strange if he doesn't chop off my head!"

Lin Chenzhong was unwilling to leave, and asked again: "I will never leak a word, brother, don't worry, I want to ask one more question, brothers are as if they are facing a powerful enemy, which way in the forest is it that makes everyone so nervous?"

The prison chief pushed Lin Chenzhong away and left, saying: "Stop asking. If you ask again, I will suspect you are a spy!"

Lin Chenzhong chased after him and asked, "Okay, I won't ask. Brother, can you help me bring this jar of wine to Boss Cai with all your heart and soul? It can also be considered as our friend. This trip is worth it!"

The prison chief glared and said: "Master, are you really confused or are you pretending to be confused? I've been talking for a long time in vain? At this time, if the outsiders come in, Boss Cai will be deemed to be having an affair with the outside world. You think he has a long life, right?" ?”

Lin Chenzhong said: "Oh, look at my wooden head, why don't I understand? Brother, let me ask one more question -"

The prison chief refused to say another word to Lin Chenzhong. He raised his legs and turned back to the prison gate, leaving Lin Chenzhong and Qi Xuan outside the door in the snow. Lin Chenzhong wanted to follow, but five or six spears were pressed against his chest and he was blasted out. .

Hua Yueying repeatedly told everyone to be patient and not to expose the spirit flower. If you can't bear it, you will mess up the big plan. Lin Chenzhong didn't dare to attack rashly, so he had no choice but to carry the wine jar and Qi Xuan back the same way, but it was not nothing. After all, it was found that Cai Fei was still alive He is alive, and has been protected by noble people for more than a year to survive to this day. This is a blessing among misfortunes.

They went back to the inn and told the story in detail. Everyone was very angry that Fu De, the leader of the 328th Regiment and the commander of the city defense, had blatantly taken advantage of him. They were so embarrassed that even his subordinates couldn't look past him. They had no scruple to harm him behind his back. But no one knew who Xu Kun was and why he wanted to protect Cai Fei. Hua Yueying asked Qi Xuan, who shook her head and said she had no idea.

Hua Yueying did not dwell on the matter and immediately asked everyone to split up. Qi Xuan took Hua Lin to the Qin family mansion and Caiji Condiment Store to find a way to identify Qin Shi and Fu Yi. The rest of the partners went to a nearby teahouse to drink tea and hang out, secretly making inquiries. Knowing the local garrison situation and knowing yourself and the enemy will make it easier to take action.

Hua Yueying has seven exquisite orifices, some of which are tricks. The three of them put on rubber masks and changed their faces. Qi Xuan took them to find Fu Yi's residence. Lin Chenzhong pretended to be a spice merchant in the Golden City and asked to see Fu in the name of doing business with Cai Ji Seasoning Company. Yi, after waiting for more than two hours in Fu Yi's villa, the servants found Fu Yi who was out having fun.

There was nothing special about Fu Yi, he just had the look of an idle playboy. Lin Chenzhong chatted with him, finalized a pepper trading deal, and had a meal at his house at noon before leaving.

Then Qi Xuan took the two of them to the Fuyu City Public Security Bureau. Lin Chenzhong asked to see Director Qin Shi in the name of the eighth day of the Songling City Public Security Bureau. Unfortunately, Qin Shi had a meeting in the city hall. After waiting for a while, someone came to report that Director Qin had dismissed the meeting. Go home and ask Lin Chenzhong and others to come back another day.

The three of them went straight to the Qin family's residence, and Lin Chenzhong came alone to ask for an audience. That middle-aged man, who was about 40 years old in Qin Shi, was quite shrewd and capable, and met Lin Chenzhong in the living room of the deep courtyard of the Qin family's residence.

Lin Chenzhong explained the purpose of his visit: there was a bandit from the Songling Mountain area running into Fuyu City, and he requested the Fuyu City Public Security Bureau to dispatch troops to capture and bring him to justice.

Qin Shi asked Lin Chenzhong to produce an official letter from the Songling Public Security Bureau. Lin Chenzhong shied away and said: "I encountered bandits on the way and robbed me. They took away my horse and my briefcase. I am not an elf warrior and I dare not force myself to go forward." Grab it back——"

Of course Qin Shi knew that the road from Songling City to Fufu City was not peaceful. There were more bandits than officers and soldiers, and being robbed was a common occurrence. He asked: "I see, but I wonder why the Pine Ridge Bureau didn't send flying elf warriors to communicate. What's more, It’s fast and safe, but how dangerous is it to send you, an ordinary soldier, to walk across the land of tigers and wolves on the road?”

Lin Chenzhong groaned and said: "Director Qin, you don't know something. If I'm complaining, it's not that the Songling Bureau doesn't have flight communicators. Maybe I offended my boss. I was called here because I was given a chance to make meritorious deeds. If you succeed, go back and promote me to be the squad leader. If you fail, don't go back! Director Qin, you know, there are hundreds of miles of mountain road from Songling City to Fufu City, with poor mountains and rivers, and dangerous passes everywhere. Those who occupy the mountains are kings and block the roads to make a fortune. There are probably more bandits than there are bastards in the wishing fountain in the temple. They insist on letting me, an ordinary person without a magic flower, go out alone to do business. To put it bluntly, I would like to judge the heart of a gentleman: How can they expect me to make meritorious deeds? , maybe he wanted me to see the King of Hell and never come back! But I was lucky. I was frightened and cautious all the way and finally got through it. I just shed tears when I talk about it - forget it, I’ll knock out my teeth and swallow them in my stomach, don’t mention it. That’s all! It’s a pity that the official documents were snatched by thieves, and you can’t verify them. It’s a flaw in the ointment..."

Qin Shi frowned and thought for a while. He couldn't refute, so he asked: "Brother Chuba, thank you for your hard work. Can you tell me who the Pine Ridge Bureau asked us to arrest?"

Because the prison chief of the city defense headquarters had said that bandits were gathering near Fuyu City, Lin Chenzhong wanted to inquire about the news, so he said nonsense: "There is a stubborn group of bandits in the Songling Mountains, called the Zhongyi Army, you know? They are arrogant. And the fate is very tough - they have been suppressed repeatedly. Recently, our Songling Bureau has made great efforts to defeat one of their bandits. The fish that slipped through the net are flowing towards Fuyu City. The Pine Ridge Bureau first asked me to report the news, and secondly asked me to beg for help. The bureau sends troops to capture the remaining bandits and enforce law and order!"

Qin Shi's face turned green when he heard this, and asked: "The Xishan Loyal Bandit Army? They are extremely vicious people. Even the regular army dare not provoke them. How dare you, the Songling Bureau Public Security Bureau, to encircle and suppress them on your own?"

It seemed that Qin Shi knew something about the Zhongyi Army, so he answered: "Hey, how could we not know? It's not that we have eaten the courage of a bear's heart and a leopard's guts, but that we originally wanted to go into the mountains to catch a few common thieves who kill people and steal goods. Who knows? The brothers were unlucky, and accidentally ran into a group of loyal bandits, and they had to fight - there were heavy casualties. More than 40 brothers were gone, but only a few figures came back, and every one of them was still missing an arm or a leg. , It’s really bad luck for eight lifetimes! - We secretly followed them for a while and then got dumped. We knew through informants that they were going to flee Fuyu City, but we don’t know what they were doing specifically, so we came here to warn them.”

Qin Shi nodded and said, "What you said is in line with current affairs. Yesterday, a military intelligence report notified the Fuyu City military and police families that the same group of loyal bandits had appeared twice at the bridgehead of the Liangjie River. General Zhong, the so-called pioneer of loyalty, The captain of the Liaoming Brigade of the 328th Regiment lined up to fight. Unfortunately, he died for his country: he was killed in front of the formation without even seeing his opponent's face clearly or even seeing his spirit flower. Several captains and deputy captains were killed. It was a complete defeat! Report He said that they were heading toward Fuyu City and asked us to take more precautions. It is not because I have grown up with others and destroyed my own prestige: all the people gathered together were picked off their horses. This bandit army was so arrogant that the regular army suffered a big loss. Fuyu City Where are the younger brothers from the Public Security Bureau who are their opponents——"

Qin Shi gave in without hesitation and continued: "Brother, it's not that I'm a coward. A good man never suffers a loss. I always know the current affairs and never do anything that I don't overestimate my own capabilities. Just bear with me. I'll do it tomorrow." Go report to the garrison of the 328th Regiment and see how they deal with it. After all, they have also been beaten and hurt by the loyal bandits. It is impossible not to fight back or retaliate. Those who can do more work. Suppressing bandits is also their duty. Let the regular army deal with the bandits. We How about waiting for good news to avoid getting burned?"

Lin Chenzhong secretly laughed at Qin Shi, who was powerful but cowardly and incompetent. On the other hand, he thought: This guy is slipperier than a loach. He really puts himself out of the situation and refuses to take any losses!

Lin Chenzhong then made up nonsense and said: "Director Mingjian! I heard that Bandit Town Sanshan has been around Fuyu City recently. Is there any news?"

Qin Shi said in astonishment: "Zhen Sanshan? Why haven't I heard of him? What kind of immortal is he?"

Lin Chenzhong said: "Zhensanshan is also a bandit in the Songling Mountain area. Twenty years ago, Wan Bailiu, the former commander of the Songling Fortress of Baqiu Kingdom, was intercepted and killed by the gangsters in Zhensanshan. Didn't you hear the big news that caused a sensation?"

Qin Shi suddenly realized: "Oh, it's him you are talking about. How could I not know about this earth-shattering event! Although Zhensanshan is famous for a while, it may not be the real person: many bandits claim to be the soldiers and horses of Zhensanshan, and they pretend to be powerful. Later, the bandits were suppressed and many bandit leaders were captured, but during interrogation they were all fake and not trustworthy!"

Lin Chenzhong said doubtfully: "That's strange - maybe our intelligence is wrong. If it's not the people who control Sanshan, who would have the courage to surround the 328th Regiment's station?"

Qin Shi said: "Brother, you don't know something. There is a Jigong Village in Jigong Mountain, more than 200 miles away from Fuyu City. There is a bandit leader called Liu Zitan who is the king of Zhanshan there. Do you know?"

When Lin Chenzhong heard the name Liu Zitan, he almost lost his temper and stood up. He suppressed his excitement and said with a puzzled face: "Liu Zitan? I seem to have heard of it, but I don't have much impression. Is he very awesome?"

Qin Shi explained: "The Liu Zitan tribe among the dozens of green forests near Fuyu City is not the most powerful, but Liu Zitan has the greatest background: During the Wu Sheng Kingdom, he was affiliated with the Wu Sheng Army, and during the Baqiu Kingdom, he switched to the Baqiu Army and served as the 61st Army The commander of the Third Regiment of the 304th Division's Sharp Swords. That is one of the ace troops of the Bachu Army. It is stationed at the Royal Hunting Ground and has great military achievements! However, Liu Zitan's bad luck. You just mentioned that the commander of the garrison at Sanshan and Songling Fortress, Wan Bailiu, was killed. Major events happened right under his nose, and Liu Zitan was devastated as a result, and his career came to an abrupt end. However, this cannot conceal Liu Zitan's military talent..."

No one in the world knew more about Liu Zitan's past and the death of Wan Bailiu than Lin Chenzhong. He pretended not to know much and listened attentively. After all, they lost contact with Liu Zitan after they left Pine Ridge City. It's been sixteen or seventeen years.

"Later, Wu Sheng Wang Suhua suddenly activated Liu Zitan. In just a few years, he promoted Liu Zitan from a regiment-level cadre of the regular army to a sole-resident general at the commander-level. Liu Zitan became the most dazzling general in the Baqiu Kingdom. Later, the Holy Spirit During the founding of the country, Wu Sheng Wang Suhua used Liu Zitan and others as his arms to rebel against the Holy Spirit Empire. The two sides fought fiercely at the Pine Ridge Fortress. Liu Zitan lived up to expectations and once defeated the Holy Spirit Army with a small number and defeated the superior force. You are in the Pine Ridge Bureau You should know about your appointment, right?"

Lin Chenzhong heard from Qi Xuan that Su Hua's troops from Lusheng City fought a bloody battle with the Holy Spirit Army in Pine Ridge City and severely damaged the Holy Spirit Army, but Qi Xuan did not mention Liu Zitan.

After Su Hua disarmament, Liu Zitan rose to prominence after being commissioned, transforming into a powerful military commander and a senior general. Lin Chenzhong did not expect that he would flourish under Su Hua, but he knew that Liu Zitan had military talent. Because Hua Yueying once said: "Liu Zitan has the talent of a general, but it is a pity that there is no Bole in the army who cannot recognize a thousand-mile horse!" Unexpectedly, Su Hua turned out to be the Bole who appreciated Liu Zitan. Of course, Su Huahui also got his due. Return.

Lin Chenzhong said in astonishment: "Really? Liu Zitan has such a profound background?"

Qin Shi said: "Yes, the Holy Spirit Army was defeated by Su Hua and Liu Zitan and retreated to defend Xishan City. Later, Pope Yin Mu sent His Majesty General Salami to the Songling front line to supervise the army and gather the troops. General Salami guarded Xishan City. , used counter-intentional tactics to drive a wedge between Su Hua and Liu Zitan. Su Hua fell into the trap and deposed Liu Zitan and drove him out of the army. Liu Zitan took some of his personal followers and left for a foreign land, and went to Luocao, Jigong Mountain, which was dangerous, easy to defend and difficult to attack. He became a bandit and became the king of the mountain... After Liu Zitan ran away, Su Hua lost his adviser, and was crushed by the strength of Yin Muqing and the flying king Jieda Timur. He was completely defeated and unable to recover! "

Lin Chenzhong pretended to be dumbfounded. A man uses his wisdom and a tiger uses his strength, so a man can definitely defeat a tiger. When Hua Yueying avenged Jiang Youyou against the traitorous official of Lusheng City, Earl Wan Gufang, and the Holy Spirit Hui Lusheng City's Tong Jinming power group, he tried his best to sow discord. This incident prompted the three forces of Wan Gufang, Su Hua, and Tong Jinming to turn against each other, and quietly and without bloodshed completed the plot to kill with a borrowed knife: with the help of Su Hua, he eliminated the powerful group of Wang Gufang and Tong Jinming, who were the henchmen, and Lin Chenzhong witnessed the power of the counter-intentional scheme with his own eyes Witnessing it and experiencing it personally is extremely reverent.

Lin Chenzhong said: "So Liu Zitan has a lot of strategy. Why is such a talented person willing to remain unknown and not be able to become a powerful person?"

Qin Shi said: "Brother, you don't understand this: the Holy Spirit establishes a country, and the world bows its head. This is destiny. Those who obey will prosper, and those who rebel will perish. People like the second prince of Baqiu and Wu Sheng Wang Su Hua are powerless among the dragons and phoenixes. Not to mention Liu Zitan? Liu Zitan knew the destiny, so he went to a place high in the mountains and far away from the emperor to fall into the enemy's trap, and gathered a group of small and medium-sized people. Even if he did not surrender and lost his integrity, he was still able to protect himself and was happy and free. This is a wise way to protect yourself: if a tree is beautiful in the forest, the wind will destroy it. If the tree is big and attracts the wind, the Holy Spirit Army cannot sit idly by and ignore it and send troops to conquer it. What good will this do to him? So he only needs to remain neither big nor small. The scale allows us to protect ourselves without threatening other bandits and government troops. Everyone keeps their own territory and lives in peace. This is a very clever way to avoid disaster!"

Lin Chenzhong suddenly realized it and said: "Ha! Director Qin is indeed an expert with unique insights. Listening to your words is worth ten years of reading!"

Qin Shi laughed and said, "How could I have such knowledge? This is what my uncle taught me..."

Lin Chenzhong pretended not to know and asked: "Director Qin, do you think your uncle is Commander Fu?..."

Qin Shi chuckled and said, "Let's not talk about him! Let's talk about this Liu Zitan. It was he who suddenly led his people down the mountain and stayed near Songling City for several days and refused to leave. His dragon never saw its end, and the 328th Regiment sent troops to encircle and suppress it many times. But he always failed to find any trace of him. My uncle also sent people to contact him to find out his purpose, but he refused to see the messenger. It was really confusing!"

Lin Chenzhong had made a big gain, and said in a pretended surprise: "It turns out that Liu Zitan's tribe caused the rebellion. I thought it was the gangsters who had eaten enough to commit suicide in Sanshan! Liu Zitan is not a three-headed and six-armed man, and he doesn't have much power. Is there nothing the 328th Regiment of the regular army can do against him? I'm afraid there are other powerful bandit leaders who are colluding with him, right?"

Qin Shi said: "I don't know. Most of Liu Zitan's troops are stubborn and it is difficult to find out the news. The soldiers are good but not numerous. Don't look at the fact that Liu Zitan's troops only have a hundred or ten people. However, other gangsters who are hostile to him may attack." The government troops who suppressed mountain bandits rarely took advantage. Legend has it that the forces of the black and white factions circled around Liu Zitan's territory in Jigong Mountain. It was generally accepted that people should not trespass in the river, so as not to bring trouble on themselves. Liu Zitan has always been a very good person. Keep a low profile, he has been in Jigong Mountain for seven or eight years, and he doesn't go down the mountain very often, and I haven't heard of him taking the initiative to provoke anyone. This time he took the initiative to go down the mountain to surround Fufu City. There must be a reason for everything, but we don't know it!"

It was obvious that Qin Shi, the chief of security, was very afraid of the bandit Liu Zitan, and he absolutely did not dare to use force to fight against Liu Zitan's tribe.

Lin Chenzhong secretly sighed: Most of the high-ranking military and political officials in the Holy Spirit Empire are really good at making money from looting and plundering people's wealth. They can't be counted on to suppress bandits and protect the country and the people: a small rogue bandit with the size of Liu Zitan's hundred-man squadron. They frightened their thousands of regular legions out of fear, and they hid in the fortress and did not dare to come forward.

Lin Chenzhong asked tentatively: "Is Liu Zitan going to break into Fuyu City?"

Qin Shi shook his head and said: "Maybe not. Although Liu Zitan is fierce, he is not seeking death. If he dares to attack a wealthy provincial city, the Holy Spirit Army will retaliate. With his current power, he cannot compete with the Holy Spirit Army." Unit, isn't this asking for trouble? I think he will think twice before doing so!"

Lin Chenzhong asked tentatively: "What if he loses his mind and goes crazy and does something he knows he can't do?"

Qin Shi said: "Your worries are not unreasonable. My uncle has already considered this. On the one hand, he has stepped up the city defense preparations. On the other hand, he has asked for reinforcements. The division headquarters ordered the 329th Regiment stationed in Qingxi City to rush to Fufu City for reinforcements. , striving to encircle and suppress Liu Zitan's tribe, the army is already on the way, if he doesn't leave in the past few days, hehe-"

Lin Chenzhong said: "Liu Zitan must have run away after hearing the news!"

Qin Shi said: "He'd better get out of here with his tail between his legs, otherwise there will be many heroes from the military department coming to help. If he doesn't leave, he really won't be able to leave -"

Lin Chenzhong was really surprised this time: "What? Did it alert the military headquarters of Pine Ridge City? Such a big movement?"

Qin Shi nodded and said: "My uncle said that Liu Zitan is a talented person. It is easy to get a thousand armies but it is hard to find a general. Commander Gao Junxiang of the 14th Army sent people to recruit him many times, but he ignored him. Because the commander loves talents, he delayed. I don’t want to touch him, so this time he came to my door. If I can win him back, that would be the best policy. Otherwise, I would rather be broken than destroyed, and I will kill him to avoid future troubles——”