After the snow stopped, the sun was shining brightly.

But the temperature did not increase, but became even colder because of the melting snow.

Occasionally, a north wind blows, blowing up large clouds of snowflakes and bringing a chill to the bones.

The manor located in the suburbs of northern Beijing was silent.

Even the snow in front of the door was not cleared.

Quietly, a figure in a wide robe and long sleeves appeared in the manor.

Wen Yan looked around, the tip of his nose twitching slightly, and his face gradually became serious.

Soon after, he came to the pavilion deep in the manor and his eyes fell on the overturned chessboard.

Whether it was the black and white chess pieces scattered all over the floor or the dark red blood stains, they seemed to be silently telling the chaos of last night.

Suddenly, a piece of clothing embedded in a crack in the stone caught Wen Yan's attention.

He held it in front of his eyes and observed it carefully, and after a moment he exhaled heavily.

"Lord Zuo, something seems wrong."

A man in green clothes rushed over, "My subordinates found the bodies of other disciples, which were piled up in the mud of the fish pond."

Wen Yan was silent for a moment, "Have you found the Saint and Prince Yan?"

"My subordinates found two mutilated corpses. Judging from their clothing, they seemed to be that of a saint and a prince. However, the heads have not been found so far, so I dare not really confirm whether they are..."

"You don't need to say anything."

Wen Yan waved his hand and interrupted his subordinate's report. He slowly sat down on the stone bench and remained silent for a long time.

Things seem to be in trouble.

And it's quite a hassle.

Wen Yan was basically certain that Su Rong and Wu Qinglong had lost their lives last night.

Su Rong is the candidate Saintess he has bet on for a long time. If she can stand out and go one step further and become the real Green Lotus Saintess, her status and level of strength will definitely become completely different.

It can be compared to a fish leaping over a dragon gate.

Then, as an important figure in the line, he will naturally rise. In time, he may even take the position of Qinglian Dharma King and control the entire land of death.

However, now the critical moment for the fight for the Saint is coming, and she unexpectedly dies outside without any explanation, which is a huge blow to their lineage.

What made Wen Yan even more irritated was that not only Su Yan himself died, but also Wu Qinglong.

Wu Qinglong is the eldest son of Prince Yan and one of their main targets. The importance of this person can be imagined.

As a result, he died tragically on the territory of the Green Lotus Sect. If Prince Yan knew about this matter, a huge crack would definitely appear in the cooperative relationship between the two parties.

Then all their previous investment and the price they paid may be in vain.

Wen Yan sat motionless in the pavilion, lost in thought.

After a long time, he finally stood up slowly and ordered to his close subordinates who were standing by him, "Clean up the manor and block all information. Absolutely not a single bit can be leaked."

"besides……"

After a moment of silence, Wen Yan closed his eyes and continued, "This matter can be delayed for a while. Even if it cannot be delayed in the end, Wu Qinglong's death must be disconnected from us so that it cannot affect subsequent plans.

Implementation.”

"My subordinate understands!"

In the afternoon, Wei Tao followed a group of scholars who were outing in the snow and entered the capital city of Zhou Dynasty through the north gate.

People come and go in the city like a weave.

Except for the occasional patrols of armored soldiers on the road, there was no tense atmosphere.

Perhaps for ordinary residents, things that happen in the court hall and the inner palace are far away. As long as there is no disaster of weapons, it is equivalent to non-existence.

After walking a long way along the bustling long street and turning a few corners, he finally saw the restaurant named Jingweixuan.

At this time, the busiest meal period at noon has passed. Apart from a few diners, there are only the guys cleaning the TV tables and chairs. It seems a bit quiet and deserted.

When he saw a diner coming in and saw that he was a well-dressed young man, the waiter hurriedly put down his work and hurried over with a smile on his face.

Wei Tao found a secluded private room and sat down. The waiter was quietly serving tea and water and placing dried fruit snacks on the side.

After finishing his work, he picked up a towel and wiped his sweat. Just as he was about to sing the names of the dishes, he was interrupted directly.

Wei Tao casually threw a silver ingot to the waiter, and said slowly with a smile, "There is no need to tell you the name of the dishes. I saw the Jingwei Xuan sign on the door outside, so you prepared and served the best dishes in the store."

Just come up, is this ingot of silver enough?"

"That's enough, that's enough. Sir, please wait a moment. I'm going to tell the chef to use all his skills to ensure that you are satisfied with your meal."

"Well, go ahead, as long as it tastes good, I have other rewards."

Wei Tao smiled again and picked up the tea he had just made.

It has to be said that the chef in the restaurant acted very quickly. After just tea time, all kinds of dishes were served in a stream, and the table was packed to the brim.

Wei Tao took a deep breath of the rich aroma of the vegetables, picked up an elbow, clicked twice and swallowed the meat and bones, and then turned his attention to the steaming goose that was still steaming.

At this moment, there was a gentle knock on the box door.

A slightly deep male voice came in. It was obviously not the store clerk who had been busy here just now.

"The young one is Wan Fusheng, the manager of the restaurant. He is here to offer the young master a jar of fine wine."

Wei Tao looked up and saw a fair and wealthy middle-aged man in a cotton robe holding a wine jar in his hand, coming in from the door with his head lowered, and carefully placing it beside the table.

"Shopkeeper Wan, take a seat." Wei Tao pointed to the empty seat opposite the dining table.

Wan Fusheng did not sit down, but opened the mud seal and filled the wine bowl. The rich and mellow aroma suddenly filled the entire box.

He took two steps back, bowed deeply, and suddenly lowered his voice, "This subordinate has met Wei Daozi."

Wei Tao nodded, picked up the wine bowl and took a sip, and asked curiously, "What kind of wine is this jar? Why does it taste so much more mellow than what I just drank?"

Wan Fusheng respectfully put the wine jar on the table, clasped his fists and saluted, "This is the aged wine stored in my subordinate's cellar. It is not usually sold to outsiders. Today I was lucky enough to see Daozi, so I took it out from the wine cellar and asked Daozi to taste it."

.”

After drinking a bowl of wine slowly, Wei Tao closed his eyes and tasted it for a long time before praising, "It's really good. It really deserves the name of cellared agarwood."

"As long as Daozi likes it." Wan Fusheng said with a smile. His whole temperament unconsciously became calm and steady, no longer the slightly oily and elegant one when he first entered the door.

Wei Tao stroked the smooth and delicate wine cup, "Deacon Wan should have received the summons and learned of my intention."

Wan Fusheng nodded and took out a stack of white paper filled with words from a close position, "My subordinates have collected and sorted out part of the information about Prince Cheng and Prince Yan. Daozi can review it at any time."

At this point, he added, "However, these two people have special identities. There may be a lot of omissions in the intelligence collection. Which details Daozi needs more, I will find a way to secretly collect them when I go down."

Wei Tao slowly looked through the contents recorded on the paper, "Deacon Wan did a great job. With this information, it solved a big problem for me."

Wan Fusheng bowed again and said, "The sect and the Taoist Master have been so kind to me. My subordinates only did some trivial things within their duties. They are not enough to repay the sect in case anything happens. I am completely unworthy of such praise from the Taoist Master."

Wei Tao tilted his head slightly and was about to say something when his eyes suddenly fell on a few lines of writing, his eyes flashing thoughtfully.

After reading it again, no movement was seen on his part, and the sealed document quietly turned into powder and fell into the soup basin, never to return to its original appearance.

"Today's food and wine are very good, thank you for your hard work, Manager Wan." Wei Tao picked up the wine bowl at hand, brought it to his mouth and drank it slowly.

"As long as the young master likes it." Wan Fusheng bowed and walked out of the private room door.

A few days later.

In the center of the official road, a team with bright armor and a strict atmosphere was guarding three black carriages, which were slowly moving towards the outside of the capital.

The wheels ran over the unmelted snow, leaving several straight and long wheel marks.

In the first carriage, an old man with white hair was half lying and half sitting. His somewhat rickety body was swaying as the carriage moved forward. His eyes were half open and half closed, as if he had fallen into a deep sleep.

The carriage in the middle is tall and spacious, and there is room for a simple and elegant desk in the carriage.

A middle-aged man with a majestic face sat behind the table, holding a volume in his hand and reading it carefully.

From time to time I picked up a small pen and made detailed notes on it.

There was also a graceful woman in palace attire accompanying him, grinding ink and pouring tea for him, adding fragrance to her red sleeves.

As the carriage moved forward, the candlelight on the table swayed slightly, reflecting the woman's charming face that was as white as jade and could be broken by a blow.

Her eyes never left the man's side, as if he was the only one in her eyes, and she turned a blind eye to everything else.

After a while, the middle-aged man put down the book, drank all the tea in the cup, and closed his eyes tiredly.

"Is there no news yet from Qinglong?"

He asked in a low voice.

The woman in palace clothes said, "When he was in the territory, didn't he often stay away from home for several days in a row? I'm already used to it."

"The territory is the territory, and the capital is the capital. There are many things you can do in the territory, but you must be careful when you get here, and you can no longer be as careless as before."

The middle-aged man changed the topic and said, "Isn't he going to see that witch again? I told him a long time ago not to get too close to these people, lest he be taken advantage of without realizing it."

"My lord, please don't be angry. When Qinglong comes back, I can have a good talk with him."

The woman in palace clothes refilled the teacup and calmly changed the subject, "It's just a Jingnan Guard Camp. Is it worth it for the prince to go through this in person?"

"It's just a Jingnan health camp, so it's certainly not worth my visit in person."

The middle-aged man picked up the tea cup and took a sip, savoring the hot and sweet taste. "But the person I want to see this time is a little special. It seems inappropriate to let him enter the city, so I will use this opportunity to receive the guard."

Discuss the opportunity of the camp in detail with his counterpart.

It can be regarded as taking my beloved wife on a snow outing and having a good rest and fun in the countryside for two days."

The woman in palace clothes blinked her eyes, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, and a faint smile appeared on her face.
To be continued...