across the Quartet

Chapter Five

The map of the land of Dukang slowly unfolded on the case: mountains and rivers, thousands of miles of fertile fields, and a panoramic view.

The rolled sheepskin finally came to an end.A slender dagger was still half hidden, but it was grabbed by someone suddenly, and it struck in the air - at that moment, the King of Qin didn't realize what happened; The murderous aura that had been there for a long time suddenly broke out, like a gust of northern wind that blew like a knife.The instinct of practicing martial arts when he was young made him lean back with all his strength, and the cuffs made a hoarse cracking sound.

With the vision and speed of Jing Ke's sword, King Qin couldn't dodge the blow.But when there was no time to spare, the four closest guards rushed forward like crazy. Two of them pulled King Qin back, one pushed the assassin away with his palm, and the other blocked the dagger with his bare hands.In an instant, blood droplets splashed, and the wailing was deafening.Ge Nieyin entered the palace a little later, and was behind these four people, so he couldn't get in for a while; but he could see that the assassin had missed his best chance.

But Jing Ke never gave up.According to the prince's plan, there shouldn't be such obstacles in Xianyang Palace—soldiers can't enter the palace until King Qin issued an edict.It never occurred to King Qin that he had arranged many secret guards, waiting in the dark like shadows.However, he only had one face-to-face meeting with these Qin masters, and he could see the fear in their eyes: what they were afraid of was not the assassin, but the king of Qin-in such a short distance, if they were killed by the assassin, only one person would die; No matter who it is, if it hurts the monarch, it is a crime of family punishment.Therefore, as long as the figure of the assassin clung to the King of Qin, even if they had swords in their hands, they would never dare to use their swords;Like a group of dogs whose teeth have been pulled out, and eagles whose claws have been chopped off.

What's so scary about such an eagle dog?

The guards could only block the way of the assassin with flesh and blood.However, Jing Ke has no scruples at this moment, and his aura is unprecedentedly strong: the short dagger in his hand flashed coldly, and the blood was overflowing. Although it only scratched the skin, two guards died on the spot; However, it was less than five steps behind King Qin again.

The King of Qin himself wanted to draw out his sword, but he didn't know whether it was because his palms were sweating or it was too long, so he couldn't pull it out for a while; in his panic, he just ran around the pillar, while the officials were horrified and screamed, at a loss what to do.In a blink of an eye, Jing Ke turned around and stopped, and the King of Qin bumped into him, with the dagger stuck in his throat.

"If Your Majesty calls for warriors to enter the palace, I will have no choice but to draw down this dagger."

After Mrs. Xu restrained Ying Zheng, he calmed down and said, "Did Yan Dan send you here? Did he really think that as long as the widow died, the country of Yan would be safe?"

Jing Ke said in a deep voice: "His Royal Highness King Qin does not necessarily have to die, but he must promise to return the land that Qin has embezzled from the six countries."

"Huh, the land of the Six Kingdoms... what is that? I only know the land of my Great Qin! Duke Xiao, King Hui, King Wu, King Zhaoxiang, King Xiaowen, King Zhuangxiang, the ancestors of all dynasties worked hard to govern, and countless soldiers charged into battle and sacrificed their lives. Forgetting death is the reason for the prosperity of today's Great Qin. Even if you are a king, how can one life be worth more than the foundation of the previous king and the sacrifice of thousands of people?"

"...What does your Majesty mean, that you die willingly?"

"Yan Dan thinks that once the widow dies, the country of Yan will be able to live in peace. It is really short-sighted!! My Qin army is strong and strong, and the monarch and ministers are united. It has become a boulder hanging over ten thousand feet! It is ridiculous for a mere assassin to think that he can turn the world upside down!" King Qin said Feeling the blood rushing to the top of the head, the fear of death was overshadowed by the anger. "All generals listen to the order! If the widow dies at the hands of the assassin today, the whole country will be dispatched to conquer Yandu, slaughter [-] Yan people, and be buried for the widow!!!"

"you!!!!"

Jing Ke gritted his teeth in anger; but at that moment, the dagger in his hand, which was as sharp as iron, seemed to become extremely heavy.

He had known for a long time that killing the king of Qin alone would not save the whole country of Yan.I wanted to imitate Cao Mo in robbing Duke Huan of Qi and seek justice for the six kingdoms, so why didn't I expect such a situation to happen?

No, I actually thought about it, at least one friend led him to think about it: Is this kind of planning really beneficial to the country of Yan and the common people...

one person?Or 10 people?

When he saw Gai Nie's eyes in the crowd, he seemed to be asking: If the bet is thousands of innocent lives, would you still— dare to bet? ?

No, this is not a gamble.This is the belief that he, the prince, and the entire Mo family have always believed in and pursued.Maybe many people will die because of this in the future, but they are trying to save more people and save the world.Even if you go to the fire, even if you bear the blood debt, you will never regret it!

In the face of major events, hesitation is the most taboo.He couldn't let these worries stir his chest and chill his blood.

The dagger stopped abruptly and stabbed again, but only in an instant.But one moment is enough.

At the moment of decision, a dusty cloth bag fell from the sky, almost hitting the assassin's head.Jing Ke instinctively raised his hand to block it, and the cloth bag instantly disintegrated, and countless scarlet fine powders floated in the air, making people cough continuously.No matter how anxious my heart was, my body couldn't help but close my eyes and hold my breath.

At the same time, Ge Nie made a move.

With his sword out of its sheath, he took advantage of the moment when the assassin closed his eyes to use the "Longyuan" pose. The vortex of true energy caused King Qin's body to fall backwards, and the timing was masterfully mastered.The powder in the air became more and more flying, blocking sight like a thick fog.Someone drew a sword and stabbed Jing Ke in the back of the heart, and he dodged the move sideways.

Jing Ke already felt the momentum when the sword slid across his clothes.He knew that the guards were still worried about King Qin's safety, even though someone took advantage of the chaos to besiege them, they dared to leave the empty door wide open and continued to pursue King Qin wholeheartedly.But Gai Nie's sword qi was like flowing water, strangling the dagger's path.

After all, this battle cannot be avoided.

Jing Ke knew now that the chance of success was almost slim.He smiled bleakly, but his offensive became more and more fierce, as if he wanted to use his lifelong knowledge to compete with his best friend.When the dagger and the long sword collided, sparks flew; the sword energy swept across the copper pillar, making a piercing hiss.

Gai Nie finally realized the strength of Jing Ke's swordsmanship: Even if his eyesight is blocked, even if he holds a short dagger that is not in his hand, he can exert such power.Jing Ke's self-created eighteen swords are free and easy, and the moves are endless, full of vitality and strength just like him.In Gai Nie's opinion, this kind of power gave him a more delightful feeling than the weird moves of the Juggernaut and the power of Shengqi, as if he had captured the purity of his initial yearning for swordsmanship and the way of swordsmanship.

But they didn't have the chance to immerse themselves in the mere confrontation for too long.

A thin voice pierced through the thick fog and shouted: "The king bears the sword!"

King Qin finally found a chance to catch his breath, pulled out Tian Wen from behind his back, stepped forward and slashed down with his sword, which just cut off one of the assassin's left legs!

Jing Ke didn't expect that after King Qin escaped from the pursuit, instead of avoiding it, he drew his sword rashly to join the battle. In addition, Tian Wen's sharpness was unrivaled in the world, so he was attacked by an opponent whose sword skills were far inferior to his own.His body lost his balance and he fell to the ground.Warm blood sprayed from the wound.In the blurred red mist, he threw Mrs. Xu's dagger viciously with the rest of his strength. When his wrist fell, he pointed his thumb at his chest intentionally—his gaze met Ge Nie's eyes, and the corners of his mouth raised a little indistinctly.

He is begging to die.

Ge Nie only felt a "buzz" in the head, as if someone had hit him hard from the back of the head.In desperation, he didn't care about calculating the right time, and pierced Jing Ke's upper abdomen with a sword, nailing him to the ground.But his body also happened to cover the assassin's remnant body, preventing other guards from making up the sword.

He swallowed forcefully, his throat choked, and hissed, "Report to Your Majesty, the assassin is dead."

I can only pray to ghosts and gods in secret, and the Qijiesan painted on the sword can still save the day.

Only then did King Qin gradually come to his senses, only to feel that he had narrowly escaped death, and his clothes were soaked in cold sweat.Zhao Gao rushed over with a few servants to support him, with tears in his eyes.The courtiers were still in confusion, some fell to the ground, some knelt down and pleaded guilty.

"Your Majesty, these dead people..."

King Qin waved his hand with a grim complexion.Although just now he was considered fearless in the face of danger, but the more he thought about it afterwards, the more frightened he became. It may take some time to fully recover. "The dead are buried alive, and there will be rewards later. The assassin will beheaded, his limbs will be split, and the city gate will be placed."

King Qin left the hall surrounded by his servants.The low-level eunuchs were busy cleaning up the blood on their knees.A halberd-wielding warrior stepped forward and together with Gai Nie carried the assassin's body out of the hall.No one paid much attention to them.

The guards in the palace also knew that something serious happened, and they were searching for the assassin's accomplices.The other entourages of the Yan Mission were all detained.Gai Nie and the warrior carried the assassin's body to the torture chamber near the Inner Palace Prison, where four eunuchs were on duty.The warrior with the halberd commanded softly, and the four of them obeyed as if possessed by evil spirits: They gave up the execution room for Gai Nie and others to use, and quietly guarded the door.

At this moment Gai Nie found the opportunity to acupressure the assassin's acupuncture point to stop the bleeding, sprinkle some medicinal powder deep into the wound, and wrapped the cut leg with his coat.The warrior who followed Ge Nie raised his head, and there was a beautiful pale face under the armor, which was already stained with tears. "Sir, is he still...alive?"

"Ma'am, don't worry too much. I... will definitely find the supernatural doctor who will respond to you." Gai Nie only felt that his heart was in a mess, but he had no time to be sad. He had to act quickly and steadily according to the plan: he dragged a man from the corner A corpse wrapped in a straw mat—the place where the corpse was hidden was arranged in advance by Li Ji in the "Tianshui Dun" formation, so no one noticed—it was divided into several pieces on the execution table.The head of the corpse had been soaked in potion and carved with a carving knife, so it was seven or eight points similar to Jing Ke's. If it had been hung at the city gate to dry for several days, it would be even more difficult to distinguish.After the completion, he called the eunuchs outside the door to enter, and ordered them to load the divided corpses into carts, cover them with straw mats, and transport them to the gates of Xianyang; then he also wrapped Jing Ke in the straw mats and placed them in another Zhang car.

Li Ji was weeping beside her, and suddenly said in a low voice: "Sir, you plan to leave like this? There are still three layers of walls from here to the outer city, and the guards on duty at the palace gate don't know what happened in Xianyang Palace; they are loyal to their duties , won’t let people pass easily—”

"If Madam's illusion can still be supported, just push the cart and follow the eunuchs just now, so that the palace gate guards think that you are also the one who was ordered to go to the city gate. If you show your credentials, the guards will let you go." He said. Take off your token and hold it in your hand.

"This plan may be feasible, but illusion is just a trick after all; if they find any clues and insist on checking the car, we..."

"When it's unthinkable, we can only force our way in." Ge Nie gripped the scabbard.

"But in this way, the people of Qin may regard you as an accomplice in the assassination—"

"Don't worry, Ma'am. Gai is alone, unrestrained; if the Ting Wei Mansion wants to track it down, let them go."

They prepared for the worst, but they didn't expect this last step to go smoothly.The guard at the palace gate inspected Gai Nie's badge, then casually turned over the first two carts transporting the corpses, and then waved his hand to let them go.On the streets of Xianyang, the eunuchs ran towards the four gates.Gai Nie took the cart from Li Ji and rushed to the previously agreed-upon deserted courtyard.The mute girl who had followed Divine Doctor Ji in Handan last year walked out of the hospital and helped them move the injured to the bed.However, when she saw Jing Ke's left leg, she also showed a very frightened expression and kept gesturing.

Gai Nie couldn't understand what she meant, so he had to repeat anxiously: "Girl, look at this kind of injury, is the seven-the medicine that my husband gave me earlier not enough, and I need to add some more?"

The girl shook her head.She took some sackcloth soaked in medicine from the house and re-wrapped the "dead".Gai Nie could only bow his head and stand aside.After a while, he thought of something, and said to Li Ji: "It is safe to arrive here, we can only wait for the return of the genius doctor. Madam Li, you should go back to Xianyang Palace first, so as not to be noticed by the palace people. If Jing Qing finally wakes up, I'll try to let you know again."

Li Ji had cried a lot before, but now her eyes were red, but her expression was calm. "Mr. is so kind, I dare not say thank you."

"Don't dare." Gai Nie said tragically, "Jing Qing is so seriously injured, it's because I didn't think carefully, I never expected—"

At this point, he suddenly paused, unable to continue.What did you not expect?Never expected Tianwen to be so sharp?Never expected King Qin to be so ruthless?

If the younger brother was here, he would probably reply with "ridiculous."

A good sword has no value if it is not sharp enough.A king cannot live long if he is not ruthless to his enemies.Everything that happened in Xianyang Palace was the most natural thing.

He has seen countless people dying before his eyes.Some he couldn't save, some he killed himself.But there were only two people who made him so anxious, so frightened.One was Li Mu—but at that time he found that the deceased was shrouded in a huge conspiracy, so that he was too angry and confused to take care of many other emotions.However, what happened to Jing Ke happened clearly in front of his eyes. Up to now, when he recalled it, every fragment is clearly visible.There are very few things he can change.

"Sir, don't blame yourself too much. This matter... I have done my best. It is enviable that Qingqing has friends like this."

"Gei, I am ashamed to accept it. Madam, take care."

After sending Li Ji away, Gai Nie waited quietly in the medicine hut, like a stone statue.It wasn't until night fell that the dumb girl lit the lamp with orchid ointment, and a long-awaited figure finally appeared outside the door.

"...Senior Xia." Gai Nie stood up abruptly, and ran to the courtyard to welcome people in.The old man glanced at him and said calmly: "You should return to Xianyang Palace as soon as possible. The King of Qin was frightened, and all the officials were still in shock, so no one has noticed that you have not returned. But after the investigation, it is inevitable that someone noticed these abnormalities. behavior."

"Senior, dare to ask about this person's injuries..."

"It can't be saved." The doctor replied very simply. "Today in the hall, when the king cut down the sword with his own hands, the old man will know that your plan has completely failed. The effect of Qijiesan depends on the circulation of blood and energy in the veins to reach the whole body; Qi and blood are damaged, and the passage of the pulse is also cut off. In my opinion, he can't survive seven days at all."

"Sir, but there is really no way? As long as there is still a chance, Gai is willing to go through fire and water, and will never refuse."

"...There is no way."

Gai Nie's eyes widened, his legs trembled, and he almost fell to his knees.

But in fact, he still stood upright.He was wounded several times and pointed at by thousands of arrows, and he did not fall down at that time.as at this moment.

"I believe that Jing Qing is different from ordinary people. Perhaps it is his nature to act against the sky."

Before returning to the palace the next day, Gai Nie self-mutilated with Qi Yan's martial arts "cutting the pulse finger", causing serious internal injuries, in order to explain to his colleagues why he failed to return in time after leaving the palace.The king of Qin praised him greatly, and appointed Gai Nie as the new first guard because the commander of the guards died of poisonous hair on the dagger; he also gave him [-] days of vacation to recuperate.The doctor Xia Wuqi also received a generous reward of two hundred yi gold.

For the next few days, Gai Nie stayed with his friends in the medicine hut.Jing Ke remained in a coma, and his complexion became worse day by day.Sometimes he babbled in his dreams, mentioned mountains, flowing water, wine, and jokes in a trance—the rest of the content could no longer be heard clearly.

On the fourth day after the court meeting, Gai Nie received another shocking news: Li Ji committed suicide in the palace.The little son Tianming also disappeared on the same day.

It is said that she slayed herself with a dagger, and in the pool of blood, there were two strange fishes that had been dead for a long time.

This incident surprised and angered the King of Qin, and he ordered the net to thoroughly investigate the cause of Li Ji's death and the whereabouts of the young master.

Only Gai Nie, when he heard the news, immediately understood the last thoughts of the deceased—Li Ji once told him that the theory of "Yin Yang and Five Virtues" was the core of Zou Zi's study, and his disciples also learned the different elements belonging to the five elements. spell.As for the "Water Virtue" lineage that Li Ji belongs to, the technique itself does not have much offensive power, so there are few followers, and she may be the only one left now.But according to Zou Zi's theory, Yin-Yang and Five Elements must be complete in order to be born and die, and any branch is indispensable.

Madam Li's death was precisely to protect the life of her youngest son.If Tianming was just a child of an ordinary person, the King of Qin would have tolerated it; but now that such a major event as the assassination of Qin has happened, the eyes and ears of the net are all over the world; How can't let him live.But once Mrs. Li died, the Yin-Yang Family's five-line disciples lacked one line, so Tianming might be the only descendant.The other Onmyoji disciples will definitely do their best to protect the child's life.

But why didn't she wait?At least, until Gai Nie sent the news about Jing Ke... Could it be that she was overly sad when she saw Jing Ke's injury and knew that the gods could not save it?Or was there something wrong in the palace that made her feel so frightened that she was forced to make such a bad plan?

In any case, this child is probably being hidden by Li Ji herself, or the Yin Yang family.We must find a way to find him before the net is caught.Gai Nie thought of this, and the pattern on the scabbard made his palm ache.His saber once pierced his friend's body, but now he only has the scabbard left.

On the seventh day, Jing Ke finally woke up for a very short period of time.When he saw Gai Nie in front of him, he showed a smile that was not surprising and had no grudges.He knew exactly who stabbed him with the last sword.But he couldn't find the sullen pain of being betrayed by his best friend in his eyes, but there was a peaceful relief.The powerful murderous aura and hostility when assassinating Qin, the sharp pain and shake caused by being irritated by King Qin's words, all disappeared miraculously like mist and clouds.

Maybe things don't turn out the way you want.But if you worry about whether there will be any results in everything, people will never want to live arbitrarily.This is the way of being a hero.

Gai Nie and Jing Ke are completely different people.But sometimes they are the exact same person.Just like many years ago, in Daliang, the prosperous capital of Wei, a young and seasoned robber met another novice who was forced to board a robber ship: one said nervously, I came to rob the rich and help the poor; Chinese people, disrespect and disrespect.

Before passing away, Jing Ke only left two sentences.

"My wife and son, please."

"……Brothers."

Even if there are thousands of words in my heart, there is no need to say more at this moment.

"Gai Nie will do his best." He answered firmly.is a promise.It is also forever.

TBC