General's humble stand-in

Strictly speaking, Xu Tianlei is not considered a general.Although he was registered in the Ministry of War, he has never been on the battlefield, let alone a general.But because of his family background, these things that haven't happened will happen sooner or later, so Xu Tianlei will probably become the first general in Dajing Kingdom who is most afraid of death in the near future.

Seeing that group of people getting more and more angry, Tao Zhuo panicked and sweated on his forehead.

Shaking Xu Tianlei's sleeves, he asked in a panic, "What should I do now?"

"Listen to me." Xu Tianlei was quite calm at the moment, "Hurry up and look for Mr. Zhao through the back door of the county government office. If the two princes are injured in his territory, ten of his heads are not enough to cut off. I will go find Gu Yan, General Gu will definitely be able to suppress these thugs."

The two did not dare to delay for a moment, and went to seek help separately.

On the side of the porridge shed, there were more and more refugees participating in the riot, and the dozen or so officers and soldiers were almost overwhelmed, and were forced to retreat step by step by the crowd.Soon, the small porridge shed was surrounded.

"What exactly do you want?" Although Xiao Mu was still wearing the armor of ordinary officers and soldiers, his aura was like that of a general on the battlefield, "Do you dislike the stones in the porridge? I can have someone cook new porridge for you, or give you food But don't make trouble here."

"Who dares to drink your porridge, if you put stones now, I'm afraid you will be poisoned next time."

Xiao Mu and Xiao Heng grew up in the palace. Xiao Heng was as untouched by the world as a piece of pure white paper. Although Xiao Mu was used to power and evil, he had never seen such a messy person, and he didn't know who they were. What intentions.

At this time, the little parrot that Xiao Heng had been holding in his arms suddenly flew out.

"My dumpling." Xiao Heng likes these little gadgets the most on weekdays, and when he saw the parrot flying away, he rushed over to catch it in desperation.

And a thug standing in front of the porridge shed saw Xiao Heng rushing towards him, and raised his wooden stick to beat him down.

Xiao Heng was frightened and froze where he was, and subconsciously shouted, "Third Brother, save me."

In an instant, Xiao Mu pulled out the sabers worn by the officers and soldiers at the side, and when the wooden stick was about to fall on Xiao Heng's head, the sharp blade had already penetrated into the opponent's chest.

As the blade was pulled out, bright red blood gushed out all at once.The right hand that stained Xiao Mu red also splashed on Xiao Heng's pale cheek, like little bloody petals blooming.

Xiao Heng is a little prince who really lives in a fairy tale, and has never touched the darkness of the world.Now he watched that man die, blood streaming all over the ground.Such a scene made Xiao Heng seem to be petrified, and his dark eyes were full of fear and helplessness.

Xiao Mu changed the knife in his hand to his left hand, and his blood-stained right hand went around the back of Xiao Heng's head, tightly covering his eyes, not letting him look any further.

Then he pressed Xiao Heng on his shoulder and comforted him in a low voice, "Don't be afraid, third brother is here."

Everywhere he looked was scarlet, Xiao Heng couldn't control his tears, the tears mixed with blood flowed over his cheeks like blood.

The sudden change caused the scene to fall into a moment of silence, and everyone looked at the handsome young man covered in blood.It was obviously still a childish face, but it exaggerated the ruthlessness of the vulture.

"Killed, the censor sent by the emperor killed." Scarface shouted loudly, "They don't give us poor people a way to survive, we will fight them."

These refugees swarmed up. Although a dozen officers and soldiers tried their best to protect the two princes, they were outnumbered.

Seeing that the protection circle was getting smaller and smaller, Xiao Mu tightly held the knife in his left hand, and his right hand kept embracing Xiao Heng without any relaxation, watching every move around him vigilantly.

At this moment, three arrow blades flew from a distance.The arrows were fired, and the three refugees who participated in the riot fell down.

The sound of horseshoes pierced through the cold winter like a thousand troops and horses.

"It's General Gu." Looking at the flying snow in the distance, Xiao Mu lowered his head and whispered into Xiao Heng's ear, "It's okay Huan'er, General Gu is here to save us"

The maroon horse was galloping, and Gu Yan drew three more sharp arrows from the quiver behind his back.Putting it on the tight bowstring, he let go of his hand, and the arrow blade with a cold light pierced the sky and hit the three thugs again.

It was like experiencing a short but real nightmare, but fortunately the two princes were only frightened but not injured.

With one order, all the refugees who participated in the riot were temporarily detained in prison.

Tao Zhuo was not seen on the left and right, Gu Yan was worried, and ordered Xu Tianlei to stay and take care of the two princes and clean up the scene, while he went into the county government to look for Tao Zhuo.

Xu Tianlei pulled out a blue handkerchief from his sleeve and handed it to Xiao Mu, motioning him to wipe off the blood on his hands.Xiao Mu took it, but first wiped off the blood stains on Xiao Heng's face.

If the imperial palace is a filth buried in darkness, then Huan'er is a pure land in Xiao Mu's heart, which cannot be tarnished.

"Third brother." Xiao Heng's big eyes were full of panic, and his voice trembled like a frightened deer, "Don't kill people again, okay? Huan'er is scared."

"Okay." Xiao Mu nodded and agreed, "Third brother won't kill people in the future."

Now thinking of the unlucky parrot again, Xiao Heng blinked his big eyes and couldn't hold back the tears, "It's a pity that the dumplings are gone."

"When I get back to Shengjing, my third brother will buy it for you." Xiao Mu handed back the blood-stained blue handkerchief to Xu Tianlei, and then took out his own clean handkerchief to wipe Xiao Heng's tears.

Seeing their brotherly love, Xu Tianlei felt a little uncomfortable in his heart, thinking that it would be great if he had such a brother.

At this time, Gu Yan almost turned the county government upside down, but he didn't see Tao Zhuo.He stood in the empty courtyard, his phoenix eyes were a little bewildered, and his fingertips trembled uncontrollably.

The snow was flying, against the lonely figure of Gu Yan.There is also a fragile heart hidden under his fearless body. He is afraid of losing, and the pain of having nothing to rely on once is enough.

At night, the snow had stopped, but Tao Zhuo was still not found.

Zhao Chengwen knelt at Gu Yan's feet and defended himself tremblingly, "It's the incompetence of the lower official, and the disappearance of an official in the middle of the capital occurred in the lower official's territory. It's the lower official's dereliction of duty. Please forgive me, the lower official. people come back."

"There was a riot outside the county government office today, what did you do?"

Zhao Chengwen snotted and burst into tears, "It's a concubine of the lower official who committed suicide for some reason. The lower official was busy going home to attend the funeral. Unexpectedly, something happened to the county government. The lower official Damn the officer."

Gu Yan was in a state of confusion, and waved her hand weakly, "Go down, you have three days to find him."

"Yes, yes." Zhao Chengwen scrambled out of the house, and immediately summoned all the yamen servants to search for it.

All night, Liangzhou city was brightly lit, but Tao Zhuo was still nowhere to be seen.

In the early hours of the morning, Gu Yan returned to the county government with exhaustion all over his body.His eyes were dark and gloomy, and he couldn't see the handsomeness of the past at all.

Xiao Mu who had been waiting outside the door hastily stepped forward, "General Gu, haven't you found it yet?"

Gu Yan shook his head in a daze, he kept thinking in his heart that perhaps Tao Zhuo had already returned to the county government, knowing that the possibility of this was very slim, but Gu Yan still had a little hope in his heart.Now Xiao Mu's questioning shattered Gu Yan's hope.

He turned his horse's head and wanted to search for it, but Xiao Mu stepped forward to stop him.

"General Gu, you have been searching all night, and your body will not be able to bear it if you continue like this. You should go back and rest for a while and eat something before searching."

"No need." Gu Yan's voice was a little hoarse, showing exhaustion, "If I can't find Taozhuo, I can't eat anything, and I have to trouble the Third Highness to wait at the county government office, please let me know as soon as you have any news. "

Xiao Mu nodded, "Don't worry, General Gu, as long as there is news about Tao Zhuo, I will definitely tell you in time."

Watching Gu Yan leave, Xiao Mu secretly sighed.The ancients asked what love is in the world and taught life and death.Thinking about Gu Yan being frightening on the battlefield, the so-called qi overwhelms the mountains and rivers, but there is also a love word, like a caged animal without the slightest energy.

Just as he turned around and went back to the county office, he saw Zhao Chengwen hurried out in white linen.

"Where is Master Zhao going?" Xiao Mu asked curiously.

"Oh." Zhao Chengwen stopped, "Yesterday, my little concubine committed suicide. Because of a sudden death, it is not easy to stay at home for a long time. I will go back to arrange the funeral. After the house is done, I will come back to help find The fifth prince's confidant."

"Why did your concubine commit suicide?"

Unexpectedly, Xiao Mu asked this question suddenly, Zhao Chengwen was stunned for a moment before explaining, "I had a few words with me, and I slapped her out of desperation, but she couldn't think about it anymore."

Xiao Mu didn't say anything more, turned sideways to let Zhao Chengwen leave.

Xu Shi was used to pondering people's hearts since he was a child, Xiao Mu always felt that something was wrong with Zhao Chengwen, whether it was his expression or tone, there was too much anxiety but little grief.

But I didn't think too much about it. People like Zhao Chengwen seem to have a lot of selfish desires. There are many women outside the family. Maybe the concubine is not favored.

Walking along the gravel-paved path to the house, Xiao Mu stopped when he was almost at the door.

Huan'er was frightened yesterday, Xiao Mu was always thinking about it, thinking that he should stay with him until he returns to Beijing.

In this way, he turned around and walked towards Xiao Heng's room. When he reached the corner, he saw two yamen servants leaning against the wall and chatting, and their voices fell into Xiao Mu's ears impartially.

"Why do you think our master Zhao's little concubine died suddenly? Last month, he bought it from a brothel for more than 1000 taels. It's only been a few days, and more than 1000 taels have gone to waste."

—Bought it back with more than a thousand taels, and it's only been a month, shouldn't it be unfavored?Xiao Mu stopped, wanting to hear what they said again.

"Who said it wasn't? Yesterday morning, I came to the county government office to chat with Mr. Zhao, but suddenly the person disappeared. It's strange to say that the person died yesterday and went directly into the coffin. I helped carry the coffin back to Mr. Zhao." It's from the house. That woman looks petite, but it's not light at all when she lifts it up."

"Normal, the body of the dead is heavy, and there is a coffin pressing it down."

Xiao Mu lowered his eyes and listened carefully, suddenly thought of something, turned around and ran outside the county office.

Liangzhou City is not too big, but looking for someone is like finding a needle in a haystack.Holding Tao Zhuo's portrait, Gu Yan walked almost every street and alley, but still found nothing.

Standing at the crossroads, Gu Yan seemed like a migratory bird who had lost his way, not knowing where to go.

Suddenly hearing the sound of horse hooves, Gu Yan turned around and saw Xiao Mu galloping towards him with his whip raised.

"General Gu, come with me, I know where Tao Zhuo is."

Zhao Chengwen was sentenced to death for embezzling disaster relief funds.But Tao Zhuo's identity is not on the table, so the reward has nothing to do with him.

But Tao Zhuo doesn't care about these things, and now he is full of thoughts about the promise Gu Yan made to him.

The General's Mansion was still dignified and solemn, Tao Zhuo felt that the sky seemed to be bluer, the plum blossoms were in full bloom, and even the two stone lions standing at the door looked cute.

Gu Yan held Tao Zhuo's hand, with a faint smile in his eyes, "I'll take you to live in Jing'an first, I still need to talk to my mother about this."

When mentioning the old lady, Tao Zhuo inevitably felt uneasy, and the palms held by Gu Yan were sweating.Tao Zhuo wanted to ask what if the old lady disagreed?He moved his lips but said nothing.To be exact, Tao Zhuo didn't dare to ask, he knew that the old lady would definitely not agree.

Sandalwood incense curls up in Jing'anju, and the sound of wooden fish slowly enters the ears, but it is not calming.

Gu Yan and Tao Zhuo knelt side by side in the outer room, only separated by a screen but did not dare to disturb the old lady worshiping Buddha.

After about two sticks of incense, the old lady walked out of the Buddhist hall with the support of Li Meme.The phoenix eyes slightly similar to Gu Yan coldly glanced at the two kneeling at the door, and sat down at the pine tree table without saying a word.

"Mother……."

Gu Yan just opened her mouth when she was interrupted by the old lady, "Gu Yan, don't be too greedy. You surrounded Fengmingxuan, and brought this male prostitute all the way back to the general's mansion from Fengmingxuan. I don't care about these things. What's the face, anyway, the face of the Gu family has been lost by you long ago. You can pamper him if you want, but what's the matter if you take him to kneel here? Want to marry him? I won't do it Agreed."

He obviously didn't say anything, but the old lady saw through everything and blocked the conversation directly.

Tao Zhuo lowered his head, biting his lips tightly to hold back the tears in his eyes.He didn't know why the old lady disagreed, if he thought he was a man, he would have nothing to say, if he thought he had been a prostitute, he would always feel wronged.Fengmingxuan has been in for several months, but Taozhuo is not dirty.

When the idea of ​​marrying Tao Zhuo came up, she knew that her mother would not agree, but since Gu Yan promised Tao Zhuo, she made up her mind.Some people miss it for a lifetime.Gu Yan doesn't want history to repeat itself, doesn't want to lose again.

"Mother, I want to marry Tao Zhuo, and I want to bring him into the house. This time I came here not to ask for my mother's fulfillment, but to tell my mother that I will welcome Tao Zhuo into the gate of my general's mansion some day."

The moment of silence seemed to digest Gu Yan's treason while being shocked.

"Did you hear that?" The old lady turned her head and asked Li Momo, full of unbelievable pain, "Nowadays, our General Gu only needs to be informed, and I have become a show."

"Don't be angry, old lady, Brother Yan didn't mean that." After persuading the old lady, Li Momo said to Gu Yan earnestly, "Brother Yan, for the sake of taking care of you since I was a child, I will let this old slave To put it bluntly, fame is nothing but liking in heart is the most important thing. Now that the old lady doesn't stop you from being together, why do you bother to make trouble? Everyone knows it, just put it in the room and pamper you."

"Fame may be insignificant to us, but it is very important to Tao Zhuo." Gu Yan looked at Tao Zhuo who was restless, and gently held his fingertips as if to give comfort, "I just want to let the world Everyone knows that he is my Gu Yan's man, and the man behind him is the general of the Jing Kingdom, so that he will no longer be cold-eyed or bullied. He is not like a woman who can conceive, so all I can give him is love and affection. Names are left."

"Oh." Tao Zhuo responded, and ran out quickly.

An anxious Mo'er stomped her feet from behind, "My lord, it's cold, you should put on your cloak."

It's just that Tao Zhuo's figure was nowhere to be seen before the words were finished.

Getting into the carriage, Tao Zhuo rubbed his frozen red hands and asked joyfully, "Where are you taking me?"

Gu Yan, who was reading a book, raised her head, looked at his thin clothes and couldn't help frowning, then took off her cloak and wrapped it around Tao Zhuo's body.

"Wear more next time when you go out, don't catch the wind and cold."

Tao Zhuo slipped into Gu Yan's arms with a grin, and rubbed back and forth coquettishly, "Where are you taking me?"

"Splendid Pavilion."

"Restaurant?"

Gu Yan raised her hand and poked Taozhuo's forehead, "I just know how to eat, Jinxiuxuan is the largest silk and satin shop in Shengjing, I will take you to make a wedding dress."

Although Tao Zhuo also wanted to be a little more reserved, she couldn't help but hide in Gu Yan's arms, trembling happily.

And on the eaves beside the street, a red figure followed the carriages and horses towards Jinxiuxuan.

According to the rules, Tao Zhuo is a concubine and cannot wear red, but Gu Yan has never cared about this, and specially picked a bright red brocade for Tao Zhuo.

After that, it is time to measure the size and choose the style, and it is already past noon when the busy work is over.

"General, I'm hungry." Tao Zhuo took Gu Yan's hand and pressed it on his stomach, "Touch it, it's all deflated."

Gu Yan fondly scratched the tip of Tao Zhuo's nose, "Little greedy cat."

At this time, I suddenly heard a trembling voice from behind.

"Feng Xi."

Gu Yan suddenly froze.

Seeing Gu Yan staring at him sharply, Xu Tianlei didn't dare to ask any more, and followed Gu Yan out of the room.

In the yamen prison, the candles on both sides of the wall were faintly bright, and the bloody smell in the air was mixed with the musty smell of decay.

Xu Tianlei pinched his nose and followed closely behind Gu Yan, "General Gu, what did you bring me here for?"

"Your father entrusted me to take care of you, but in the end, when you are on the battlefield, I can't take care of you, who have no eyes or eyes. You still have to face it yourself." Where?Xu Tianlei was stunned. Does this answer have anything to do with my question?

"Bring over the one who took the lead in making trouble at the gate of the county government that day." Gu Yan ordered, and the jailer brought the scarred face to the execution room.

Gu Yan sat lazily on the wooden chair and looked at the man without saying a word.

Unable to withstand Gu Yan's gloomy gaze, a mouthful of phlegm sprang up on his scarred face, "If you want to kill me, I will still be a man in 20 years."

With a sneer, Gu Yan turned to the jailer and said, "Gag his mouth to prevent him from committing suicide, first use a dagger to goug out the flesh from his body, and then burn his wound with a branding iron."

"Gu Yan." Xu Tianlei on the side seemed to be looking at a ferocious monster in horror, and all the hairs on his body stood on end.

"Just keep your eyes open for me to watch. If you dare to close your eyes, I will let you go to execution." Gu Yan said it lightly, but it almost killed Xu Tianlei.

"Gu Yan." Xu Tianlei was in a hurry, and his desire to survive was zero. "Do you still have humanity? We have known each other for more than ten years. I have always respected you, so you treat me like this?"

Gu Yan tilted her head and licked her ears, took Xu Tianlei's words as fart, and completely ignored them.

As Scarface let out a muffled wail, the sharp dagger sliced ​​off a piece of flesh from his body.

Xu Tianlei only felt nausea in his chest, wanted to vomit but couldn't vomit.He pitifully squatted beside Gu Yan and begged, "General Gu, Big Brother Gu, I was the one talking nonsense just now, your lord did not remember the villain's fault and forgave me this time, I really can't bear this scene."

"Look carefully." Gu Yan said coldly.

Unable to get rid of the bondage of family background, Xu Tianlei will go to the battlefield sooner or later.It is impossible for Gu Yan to protect him all the time, he must learn to face it.Only when you are used to seeing flesh and blood flying everywhere, will you not be frightened by the enemy.Only by learning to fight can there be hope of survival.

Seeing that Gu Yan refused to eat, Xu Tianlei became anxious again, "Gu Yan, are you out for revenge? Didn't I accidentally see you and Tao Zhuo kissing in the yard, why are you bullying me like this?"

Gu Yan narrowed her phoenix eyes, "What did you say?"

Oops……

Gu Yan jumped off the horse, stepped forward in twos and twos, kicked Zhao Chengwen to the ground angrily, "Dig out the coffin for me."

The phoenix eyes were full of blood, and the face that was originally as cold as ice was now full of ferocity, which made people daunting.

The red coffin gradually exposed the loess again, Xiao Mu hurried over, "Tao Zhuo, Tao Zhuo, are you in there? Can you hear me?"

Soon, Tao Zhuo's voice came from inside, "Third Highness, is that you?"

"It's me." Xiao Mu was overjoyed, and turned to Gu Yan and shouted, "General Gu, Tao Zhuo was indeed locked in a coffin and is still alive."

Gu Yan didn't move at all, but the hand holding the silver whip was hidden in the sleeve and trembled.The joy was only momentary, but the remaining panic lingered in my heart all the time.

If he also leaves quietly like Zizhi...

Gu Yan didn't dare to think about it.

The mahogany coffin was lifted to the ground, and the moment the coffin lid was pushed away, the sudden influx of light caused Tao Zhuo to raise his hand to cover his eyes.He turned his head to avoid the strong light, but suddenly he was almost face to face with the dead woman.

The woman's eyes were still open, her bluish cheeks were sunken, she just stared at Tao Zhuo so eeriely.

Unable to bear the sudden fear, his heart stopped for an instant.There was a chill that penetrated directly into the scalp from the tailbone, and the brain went blank after being frightened, only the teeth chattered constantly.

"Peach burning, peach burning..."

In the anxious calls, Tao Zhuo's eyes finally regained their light, with a little bit of focus.

"General?" Tao Zhuo raised his hand in a daze to caress Gu Yan's cheek, the softness of the skin was so real.There was no longer the disgusting rancid smell in his nose, but the faint bluegrass fragrance he was familiar with.

As if relieved of the exhaustion all over his body, Tao Zhuo smiled at Gu Yan, then turned his head and fell asleep in his arms.

In the middle of the night, Tao Zhuo was awakened by a nightmare. He was panting violently. Although his eyes were fixed on the ceiling, his mind was full of that gray, white and blue dead face.

"Tao Zhuo." Gu Yan, who had been staying awake by the bed, quickly hugged him into her arms, and gently followed his back, "Don't be afraid, it's fine, everything is over."

Tao Zhuo is like a docile kitten, lying motionless in Gu Yan's arms.

After a while, I whispered, "Did I cause you trouble again? I don't want you to worry, I will try my best to take care of myself, don't drive me back to Shengjing, I don't want to leave you .”

The poor little thing seemed to be begging for shelter.

"Tao Zhuo." Gu Yan's voice paused, and he said in a deep voice, "When I get back to Shengjing, how about I marry you?"

The idea was not deliberate, nor was it a sudden whim.It was Gu Yan who stood blankly on the street, thinking that if he was safe, he would promise him his life.In this way, it can be regarded as fulfilling each other's feelings.

Tao Zhuo widened her apricot eyes, hurriedly broke free from Gu Yan's embrace, and asked in disbelief, "What did you say? You, you say it again."

"I want to marry you." Amber eyes looked at Tao Zhuo solemnly, "Although I can't be my wife, I also want to give you a name."

Happiness came too suddenly, and I was not mentally prepared yet.Taozhuo's curled eyelashes drooped, and surprise and uneasiness were revealed in his eyes.Suddenly he raised his arm and bit the back of his hand fiercely.Looking at the bright red small tooth marks, Taozhuo's vision was a little blurred, he wanted to cry, but it was not because of the pain.

"You, don't go back on your word." Tao Zhuo choked up.

"No regrets."

Maybe there will be no regrets in this life, just because of Gu Yan's "no regrets".

Recipe, Shining.When the son returns home, it is suitable for his family.When the peach blossoms are in full bloom, dye ten miles of red makeup, cut off an acacia plant, and send it to be together forever.

The next day, Gu Yan was too lazy to get out of bed.

It was also too exhausting last night, the sun was already high, and the two were still hugging each other and sleeping.

Suddenly there was a "bang bang" knock on the door, waking Gu Yan awake.He first tucked the quilt for Tao Zhuo, and then got up to open the door.

"General Gu." Xiao Hengyuan's small face was full of anxiety, "It's not good, Mr. Xu is dying, you should go and have a look."

"What's wrong with him?" Gu Yan was startled. Before leaving, Xu Shangshu asked Gu Yan to take good care of his single seedling.

"Just now, he was practicing swords with the third brother in the yard. The third brother thought that he was from a family of generals, so he accidentally injured Mr. Xu. Mr. Xu was afraid of blood, so he passed out immediately."

"He's afraid of blood?" Gu Yan couldn't help frowning, most likely it was just pretending.

"Okay, Your Highness, go back first, I'll go right away."

When returning to the room to sort out her clothes, Tao Zhuo, who was woken up, opened her eyes sleepily, "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, you can sleep for a while." Leaning over and kissing Tao Zhuo lightly on the forehead, Gu Yan joked, "I'm afraid your legs will be weak and you won't be able to stand up."

Tao Zhuo blushed, "I hate it."

Then she retracted into the quilt and ignored him.

When Gu Yan arrived at Xu Tianlei's residence, she was already awake, lying on the bed as if recovering from a serious illness, and the weak one had to rely on the third prince to serve him tea and water.

"Are you okay?" Gu Yan supported the side of the bed with both hands, and bent over to look at Xu Tianlei, who was delicate and good at acting.

"General Gu." Xu Tianlei said weakly, "I'm useless. It's a pity that I have no desire to serve the country, but I have no strength to fight for the country. Please also tell my father a few words from General Gu and my father, don't let me go It's the battlefield."

Gu Yan curled one corner of his mouth, laughing so Xu Tianlei inexplicably felt creepy.

"Get up and follow me."

"Where?"