The third year after the death of the emperor

The released spies escaped into the city of Dayu Mansion, and the news they brought back developed in the expected direction.In order to do things cheaply, Xie Wen only brought a few people with him, all of them disguised as Tatar soldiers, and two of them could speak Yi language.

Xie Wen's shoulders were covered with a thick plush cloak, her hair crown was tied up, and the collar covered half of her neck.The burning light of the torches illuminated his face.

Xiao Xuanqian frowned and tied the front tie of the cloak for him.The emperor was dressed in military uniform, and the task tonight was not as easy as Xie Wen. He reluctantly let go of his thoughts of changing his words before the battle, and restrained himself, he said, "If Shi Rupei is ignorant, you pull out the Tianxia Taiping Sword, and the dark guards will kill his dog's head. If you go west, Chen Huidong will meet you."

Xie Wen said: "I understand."

Looking at his face, Xiao Xuanqian was lost in thought for some reason, so he tied a bow tie slowly in his hand, and after a long while, he reluctantly loosened the tie, lowered his head to his cheek, and asked, "Can you not go?"

Xie Wen shook his head, he turned around and wanted to get on the horse, but the sourness overflowing in his heart couldn't be relieved for a moment, his figure paused, and suddenly he turned back and took Xiao Xuanqian's hand, even though there were many people present, he still held the horse without hesitation. He raised his head and kissed his lips... He couldn't care about the virtuous name of the emperor and the ministers' blame at this time, but said to the slightly dazed little emperor, "You're already healed, aren't you?"

"I……"

Xiao Xuanqian looked into his eyes, there was almost no room for further thinking, he nodded subconsciously, feeling that if he didn't answer like that, Huaiyu's moist and gentle eyes would shed tears the next moment.

Xie Wen held him tightly again, then got on the horse and took the rein.Surrounded by guards, he quickly fled into the night according to the news sent by the spies, and fell into a vast darkness.

Xiao Xuanqian looked at the darkness, and suddenly his mind was like a tattered rope that had been finely repaired, shaking at the other end, making him shaken, confused, and fell into an unsettled mood.

...What are you thinking... The little emperor closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again, he let out a breath, comforting himself: According to the teacher's caution, nothing will happen.

At the same time, the army moved to another road, the fire was shining, and the heavy armor made a frightening muffled sound in the quiet night.

Dayu Mansion, Shi Rupei's office.

The temperature difference in the northwest is huge, and the chill at night penetrates into the limbs and feet.Shi Rupei is dressed in foreign costumes, but still has the hair and crown of people from the Central Plains.He was sitting blankly on the seat covered with wild animal fur, and there was a secret report on the small case in front of him—a lobbying statement written by Xie Wen himself and handed to him secretly.

Shi Rupei's hand stroked the handwriting on it, and the ink color that had been dried long ago was built into a familiar stroke.He is very familiar with this kind of handwriting, but it has been too long since he left... Three years ago, after he heard the news of the death of the emperor, those splendid articles that had poured out all his ambitions were burnt.

It's him?Or was it a trick by Xiao Xuanqian?If the death news is forged, where is the emperor during these long thousand days and nights?

Shi Rupei remained silent, even though he knew that in three quarters of an hour at most, he would be able to meet the person who wanted to lobby against him as promised... As long as we meet in person, all doubts will be resolved.But the wait was too long.

He sat there for a long time, his mind sometimes wandered for a long time, and sometimes fell on the lobbying secret report. After an unknown period of time, the voice of the guard outside spoke a foreign language.

"Who are you?...Oh...the Qi Dynasty bureaucrats sent by Shi Junshi to arrest?...Interrogate...the military newspaper? Go in..."

The guard's voice was not loud, and the room was somewhat isolated from sound, so Shi Rupei could only hear the rough outline of the conversation.He raised his eyes and stared at the door.After the footsteps continued to approach, the door opened.

When that person stepped into the room, his whole body was suddenly covered with the glow of candlelight, and behind him was a faint starlight, which faded away with the closing of the door.Shi Rupei raised his eyes and saw that Xie Wen's wrists were tied together, he stood up immediately, took a step, and the emperor calmly and silently untied the slipknot, and the hemp rope that seemed to be tied tightly fell to the ground.

This was just a disguise to deceive the enemy, but the hemp rope was rough and made his wrists red.

Xie Wen rubbed her wrist bones, looked up at the other party, did not say anything about the military affairs in the first sentence, but looked at the other party carefully, and said: "I will not recognize you."

Shi Rupei walked in front of him, and said after a while: "But this junior has always recognized the emperor."

His attitude was unexpected. When Xie Wen came here, she thought that the other party might be tough, or soft, or hide needles, duplicitous face and scheming, but she never thought that the other party even had a trace of sincerity.He was a little puzzled: to be able to become a military advisor next to the second prince Zhihan, and to gain the trust of foreigners as a Qiguo, one should have a cold heart.

Shi Rupei is indeed a cold military adviser who only has interests, but this will not be shown in front of Xie Wen.He pulled Mr. Xie to sit down. The two sides of this small table were covered with wool blankets and soft pillows.The hot stove crackled in the room.

Shi Rupei said: "You are alive."

Xie Wen took a cup of tea from him, didn't drink it, but held it in her hand: "I didn't expect to see each other again, but the side of the goodbye is that the positions are different and each is in charge. Ci Sheng , why do you serve Zhihan?"

Shi Rupei's name is Cisheng.He hadn't been called in this way for a long time, so he was stunned for a moment, and then he said after a moment of dullness, "Have you never thought about my reason?"

"I have thought about it." Xie Wen told the truth, "If it were me, when the official position was rising and the spring breeze was prosperous, I would be relegated to the Dayu Mansion far away from the people because of irrelevant things, far away from my parents, wives and children. Thousands of miles away, I will also be angry and sad, so much so that I want to take revenge on this country and that king who doesn't know people clearly."

Shi Rupei looked at him and said, "That's right, take revenge on that king who doesn't know people clearly."

Xie Wen smiled and said: "As I said in the letter, the road of a person should be wider and wider instead of pushing yourself into a desperate situation. You are not a rare person. If you ruin your life because of such an angry reason It is a pity that even the opportunity to return to the country is lost."

Shi Rupei said: "Are you feeling sorry for me?"

Xie Wen felt that there was something behind in what he said, so she didn't answer directly, showing an expression of "all ears".

The other party really continued: "You are not sorry for me. It's just that if I let go, it will be easy to capture this city. If I immediately fall to Daqi at this moment, then the fastest tonight and the slowest tomorrow night, this city will be defeated." The city that is threatened by delay will be breached... The situation in the northwest will be completely torn apart, and the invasion of the royal court will be just around the corner."

Xie Wen nodded without hesitation.

"So you are not doing it for me, but for Daqi. For the monarch who doesn't know people clearly." Seeing that he was only warming his hands with a teacup, Shi Rupei guessed that the other party was coming all the way, and his hands were still cold, so he took that He took out the cup of tea that was almost cold, poured it on the ground carelessly, then filled it with hot tea and returned it to his hand, and continued, "Barbarians, snow, severe cold, strong wine... I am tired of watching, watching I'm bored, I'm so impatient to watch, I really can't wait to go back to the capital, Luodu, but why did I come here?"

He said: "Since I came here, I have been constantly instigating schemes, instigating the second prince and the Zhihan royal family, advising them, invading the border, and plundering cattle and sheep without any damage. After this group of people have tasted the sweetness, they don't have to I pushed, and expanded the battlefield by myself, greedy... I thought, what day will Xiao Xuanqian be unable to hold back?

"...A month and a half ago, I heard that he was marching in person. Since the news reached my ears, I have thought about how to lure the snake out of the hole and let him die in my hands. These barbarians obeyed me, as long as Some temptations, they are obedient like pawns that I can play with. This Dayu Mansion, and even the distant Tatar royal court, are just nourishment for killing Xiao Jiu."

Shi Rupei almost told the whole story, he stared at Xie Wen intently: "Do you still feel regretful now?"

Xie Wen felt a very subtle and weird atmosphere, he was silent for a while, and said: "...Because he failed the feelings of the monarch and his ministers..."

Shi Rupei suddenly swept the table and all the teacups and utensils on his side to the ground, and the vase also shattered all over the floor.He clenched his hand into a fist and slammed on the wooden table fiercely, causing the small wooden table to tremble.

"It's because he failed you!" He finally stopped using honorifics.

Xie Wen really didn't expect such a conversation, he was startled for a moment, and heard Shi Rupei continued to talk angrily.

"Feng Qijun, Qin Zhen, Dong Huiyin..." He counted the names of these people, "Feng Qijun is extremely weak, he does not have the spirit of putting all his eggs in one basket, and Qin Zhenming protects himself. Although his kindness is there, he is still a cold-hearted thing! Dong Huiyin He's a coward who doesn't dare to fight... And, yes, there's that Zhou family's Major General, who hides a heart of unscrupulous snakes and scorpions under his decent skin! I'm the only one who will avenge you!"

Shi Rupei looked at his face, his brain burning with anger seemed to be extinguished in an instant, his eyes felt hot, and he sat down very tired suddenly, rough palm lines spread out from the palms accustomed to the bitter cold and windy sand.

He slowed down his tone, ignored Xie Wen, and said, "If you don't come today, the gunpowder buried under the tower of Dayu Mansion will be my congratulatory gift to Xiao Xuanqian for his victory in the night attack... Xie Huaiyu, since you are here, this Do you still want me to give you a gift?"

Xie Wen was really frightened by these words, cold sweat dripped from his palm holding the teacup, and he asked in a low voice, "Does what I said mean something?"

"Of course it is." Shi Rupei said, "I avenged you, thinking that one life is for another, but you didn't die... After years of hard work, you didn't die, do you want me to laugh, or do you want me to laugh?" I lament!"

Xie Wen felt very ashamed, he never thought that what he did in order to protect himself would trigger so many chain reactions.If he hadn't come with the army, would Xiao Jiu really have died in Dayu Mansion?Will Shi Rupei have to leave his hometown and bear infamy in his life?He didn't even expect that among the undergraduates he had supported, the young man in foreign costumes in front of him was actually the most unyielding and intolerant one.

Xie Wen put down the teacup, looked into the other's eyes and said, "I don't want him to pay for his life, and I never imagined that he would burden you like this... Cisheng, I'm tired of seeing the wind and sand here, let's go back to the capital."

Shi Rupei remained silent for a while, and said slowly: "Did you prepare a basket of family and country righteousness to persuade me?"

Seeing what he said, Xie Wen joked reassuringly: "No wonder it was designed to such an extent. Ci Sheng is really a prophet who descended from an immortal to the world."

Shi Rupei said: "Don't coax me. If you come here in person, I naturally... naturally have nothing to say. Even if I repay your kindness for knowing you, I don't have to feel guilty after all these years of planning. I just want me to be Xiao Xuanqian's minister again. , absolutely impossible."

Now I don't even want to use a word of honor.

Xie Wen said: "I will let you live in the old Xie Mansion, Mr. Shi just needs to be a rich and idle person."

"Who wants your old Xie Mansion..." Shi Rupei suddenly felt something was wrong when he said this, and raised his eyebrows to look at him, "You don't live in Xie Mansion, where are you going?"

Xie Wen didn't expect him to be so sensitive, and he was really different from the humble bachelor who was full of knowledge and high spirits back then. He didn't hide it, but smiled, and said bluntly: "I won't go back."

"not going back……"

Xie Wen didn't answer, but teased in a relaxed tone: "If your plan can be realized, there will be chaos in the Great Enlightenment, and the world will be restless. It is a good time to plunder and invade. I said that Cisheng is a rare prime minister's seed, but He was the number one Zaifu from a poor family in this dynasty, but Cisheng suddenly transformed into a Zaifu military advisor of a foreign race."

"I'm not a phase star, I'm just a misfortune star." Shi Rupei raised his eyelids, as if he didn't intend to be fooled by Xie Wen, "Why don't you go back? Do you want to stay here? Or..."

"I'm leaving." Xie Wen said frankly, "I know you blame him, but when things come to an end, I still want you not to do anything."

"There must be the emperor's spies or secret guards by your side. If I tell you this, it is equivalent to telling the emperor." Shi Rupei said expressionlessly, "Since you are not dead, I have no revenge. If you blame him, you won't let me kill him. The emperor can rest assured, how dare the junior dare to touch the love of the emperor's heart."

Xie Wencai just took a sip of tea when she was almost choked up by this sentence.He held his chest and coughed for a long time, his eyes were red, but he still didn't say anything to refute.

Shi Rupei sighed and said: "The emperor and you have long had a different relationship, and the younger generation really has a teacher-student relationship with you. Mr. Xie is not only my teacher, but also my recommender. Help me take care of my family and save me from suffering. Among them, I have never forgotten the kindness of knowing you and supporting you, so I took the opportunity of demotion to take care of your funeral affairs."

Xie Wen looked at him gently, and said: "Cisheng treats people too deeply, I didn't even see your heart before."

Shi Rupei said: "But please tell the emperor clearly, if you don't return to Beijing, where are you going?"

During the conversation between the two, several messages have been handed out.Shi Rupei handed over the warrant to his confidant and gave him detailed instructions.Not long after, there were numerous clashes of swords from outside, and the soldiers who attacked at night had already climbed over the city wall and entered the brightly lit place where the second prince was staying.

On the contrary, the place where the two talked was peaceful, because Daqi's guards peeled off the camouflage's outer skin, and the bloody knife lay in front of him.

But soon, this place was also affected.In the night sky, incomprehensible roars resounded, slashing, flames, and a cluster of broken wood arrows stabbed in front of the door, until now, a hurried voice suddenly came from outside the door: "Thank you, my lord, here is the place!" Dangerous, please go west and join General Chen as soon as possible!"

Xie Wen drank the cup of tea in the palm of his hand, he replied to Shi Rupei's previous question, paradoxically, "Go back to where I should go."

Shi Rupei's knot was finally resolved, so he watched him stand up and bid farewell to him.He suddenly felt an extreme sense of alienation from the other party, and hurriedly said: "Master Emperor!"

Xie Wen looked back at him, Shi Rupei was stunned for a moment, and felt a sense of relief from the other party's calm expression, he couldn't say anything else, so he could only say: "Please take care."

Xie Wen also turned around and raised her hand again, leaning over to salute, counting it as thanks and apology.Then he pushed open the door and met He Quan at the door, but when the anxious Chief He reached out to grab him, he found that the other party had no intention of approaching.

He Quan slammed down the enemy in front of him, and stepped forward to catch up, but he didn't even catch the opponent's sleeve, so he could only shout: "Master Xie—"

Xie Wen didn't look back.

He Quan was stumped by the fierce battle, and he was unable to follow up immediately, and the same was true for Ran Yuanfei and the other two beside him.After slaying the fallen enemy army, he fell to the ground. He raised his head, but he could no longer find Xie Wen's figure.

And when Xie Wen walked in the opposite direction, the dark guard Eleven, who had been hiding by his side and only quietly left to pass on important information, also appeared.

Eleven didn't block his way forward, but just eliminated the enemies he encountered along the way one by one, silent like a ghost that shouldn't exist.He followed Xie Wen and accompanied him out of this bloody sky.

Xie Wen climbed to a good position. He stopped on this high hillside covered with dead branches and vines. He could see Daqi's flag planted on the tower at a glance, see the banners rising in the sky, and see the blood. The light soared into the sky, and a black cloud swayed away.

He took off the Tianxia Taiping Sword from his waist, handed it to Eleven, and said, "Go and return it to Your Majesty."

Eleven remained silent.

"I won't die." Xie Wen said, "You go."

This was just a reason to dismiss him. Eleven understood that he had been standing still for a long time, and in the end he didn't know if he really left.

Xie Wen didn't know the whereabouts of the hidden guard, and didn't know whether the other party really went to find Xiao Xuanqian, or stayed by his side to watch, but he didn't really care much.Looking at the flag, he felt a lingering nostalgia from the bottom of his heart, but at this moment, all these nostalgia seemed to go away.

He said to Tongtong, "Can I go now?"

"...Wait a minute, I feel something is wrong," Tongtong said suddenly, "It's not that I don't have enough energy, it seems to be because..."

Before Tongtong's voice ended, Xie Wen felt a strong sense of separation, similar to the feeling when he opened his eyes after a car accident. The scene in front of him faded away little by little, turning into scattered lights , together with the surrounding flowers, plants and trees, and the cold wind, gradually became far away—far away—to an almost completely strange situation.

At the last moment, on the tower that he had been staring at, a figure in battle robes and armor finally appeared. He looked at the generals surrounded by the other party, each of them was covered in blood and dust, but seemed to be flowing with a wave of blood. The boiling and heat of war.Xiao Xuanqian seemed to have turned his head, but he didn't seem to, he couldn't see the other person's expression clearly, they seemed to be looking at each other from a long distance, and it seemed that they didn't meet each other's eyes at all.

It is so far away that it is separated by a time and space, and it is so far away that there are thousands of years.

Like a dream like smoke.

———— In 20X2, City B.

The lights in the room were not turned on, and the curtains were not drawn on the floor-to-ceiling windows. The starlight came in along with the neon lights of the city, dimly covering the head of the bed.

Silence lingered throughout the room, and after about 5 minutes, a white hand stretched out from under the quilt and touched the cold mobile phone.That hand fumbled for the side button a little rusty, first pressed the volume, and then pressed the switch.

The screen lights up, November 11, 15:10 pm, the battery is 17% one.

Xie Wen glanced at the screen, then closed her eyes again.

On November 11, he was back three days before the crash.

The author has something to say: go home, go home, go home!

It was originally two chapters, but I was afraid that my emotions would be broken the next day, so I coded it into one chapter and posted it.