Bozhou is the residence of tens of thousands of military and civilian households.

"Six days ago, that is, the day after Wu Lang left Kaifeng City, seven Taoist priests left the city from the east gate of Kaifeng City. Among them, one was an old Taoist, two were female Taoists, and four were young Taoists. They said they were going to Qixia, Shandong, which is called Changchun. The real Qiu Chuji cleans the ancestral graves."

"It must be Li Xia and his party. Wang Xun deserves to die for being perfunctory." Zhang Hongdao leaned on the couch and said to Shen Kai: "Bring the map."

He looked very weak, turned to another middle-aged man in the room and said, "What do you think, cousin?"

"They won't really go to Qixia, Shandong. Their purpose should be to leave our sphere of influence, enter Shandong's East and West Road, and then turn south."

The middle-aged man who spoke was named "Jingjie" and he was Zhang Rou's wife and nephew.

The Jing family came from the Western Zhou Dynasty, after Shan Jinggong, and took the posthumous name of their ancestor as their surname, so they have the surname "Jing".

Jingjie's grandfather was named Jing'an Min. He served as an official envoy to the west of Zhongdu in the Jin Dynasty and was granted the title of Yi Shuigong. He was one of the Nine Dukes of Hebei Province.

Thirty-six years ago, the people of Jing'an refused to surrender to Mongolia, and their father and son were killed by their subordinates. After his death, he was awarded gold to Dr. Ziguanglu. In the same year, Jingjie was born, and his mother named him "Jie".

Jing Anmin was Zhang Rou's father-in-law. After his death, Zhang Rou adopted his wife's family and raised Jingjie.

Jingjie doesn't like his name.

In his eyes, only those like his uncle Zhang Rou who can protect the whole family in troubled times and prevent their wives and children from being wronged can be called true heroes. As for his father and grandfather, for the sake of useless integrity, they made the family suffer and acted selfishly. Just a senior.

But Zhang Rou admired his father-in-law Jing Anmin's integrity very much, so when Jing Jie came of age, he gave him the title "Mingyi".

At this time, Jingjie was talking, drawing his finger on the map, and then said: "But after arriving at Shandong East Road, which way Li Xia will take...it's hard to judge."

Zhang Hongdao whispered: "It's nothing more than a search."

Jingjie pondered: "The East and West Road in Shandong is not our territory."

"It doesn't matter. With Wang Xun's relationship, Li Fen's people can let us enter."

"It would not be good if the Khan's court knew about it."

"Kill Li Xia, and then withdraw as soon as possible." Although Zhang Hongdao's breath was weak, his tone was firm, "Li Xia must not be allowed to escape easily."

Seeing that he was weak, Jingjie patted his hand and said, "Okay, Wulang will just rest and recuperate. I will discuss this matter with my uncle."

"Please remember, cousin, never underestimate Li Xia."

"Okay, you've said this many times." Jingjie said, "I can only admire him. I must work hard to deal with him. I won't underestimate him."

Zhang Hongdao explained again: "What makes him...not strong in strategy, but...he is arrogant in the world. He dares to do things that you think ordinary people wouldn't dare to do..."

"Okay, I want to see it too."

After Jingjie met Zhang Hongdao, he took Shen Kai to the lobby.

In the hall, Zhang Rou hadn't arrived yet, but Zhang Yanxiong was sitting there.

Immediately afterwards, Jingxuan walked in.

Jingxuan, also known as Dingchen, was known as "Mr. Taining" at that time. He was a native of Yizhou. He was a Jinshi scholar in the Jin Dynasty and was well versed in classics and history.

Zhang Rou's shogunate gathered many talents, such as Hao Jing, Wang E and others, who had all been recruited by Kublai Khan. Now he is the oldest and most prudent person.

"I've met Mr. Taining."

"Has Mingyi met Wulang?"

"Yes. Because of Li Xia's incident, Wu Lang is very nervous. I'm afraid he will have to rest for some time."

"Things are getting worse..."

"yes……"

After a few people had a conversation, Zhang Rou strode into the hall and sat down on the main seat with a golden sword.

After chatting for a while, Shen Kai spread out the map and talked about Li Xia's clues.

Everyone in the hall was a confidant of the Zhang family, and they had no scruples about what they said.

"There are too many high-ranking officials and dignitaries in the city of Kaifeng. Various forces are involved and the situation is complicated. Wu Lang does not want to disturb Brother Ma, Shi Tianze and others anymore, so he withdraws from Kaifeng to avoid making the matter bigger. He originally wanted to wait for Li Xia to leave the city before arresting him. , but I didn’t expect that he took a detour to the east and west roads of Shanxi..."

Zhang Yanxiong muttered: "Li Fen's territory? Damn it."

Zhang Judao: "Mingyi, what do you think?"

Jingjie stood up and said: "Enter the country and kill Li Xia."

After making five simple words, he continued: "This is what Wulang meant. He had the deepest dealings with Li Xia and believed that if he didn't kill him, there would be endless troubles. Li Xia was able to force Wulang to kill Daru Huachi, and he was surrounded by many people. If he gets out of trouble and is released back to the Song Dynasty, if he becomes a powerful figure and holds the Zhang family’s hand, how can he not use it?”

"What does Mr. Taining think?"

Jingxuan said: "Since Li Xia can obtain the information that Yang Zhengqing and others have painstakingly collected for many years, he cannot let it go no matter what. I believe that Dong Weng should capture Li Xia and that information."

Zhang Rou asked: "What is the use of the information?"

Jingxuan did not answer, but asked: "How does Dong Weng view the secret alliance between Wulang and Wang Wentong's son?"

"This matter... I still need to ask Mr. Taining for his opinion."

Jing Jiguang glanced at him slightly, knowing that it was time for him to offer some advice to the old gentleman.

"Uncle, in my opinion, Yang Guo is just a rotten scholar, Yao Shu may not really be rebellious, Wang Wentong and his son can only plot small schemes, and Li Fenggong has great ambitions, but they are not enough to make plans. Wulang made a secret alliance with them, but he was forced to do nothing. Wang But Xun didn't keep his promise and used a fake corpse to fool us. Do you think we can't tell? Why should we keep such a covenant?"

At this point, Jingjie paused for a moment, and then said: "For the time being, we are just using their power to quell the killing of Eri Dunbar and the Chongyang Watch Fire, and then enter the East and West Road of Shandong... kill Li Xia, and then Kill Wang Xun. If these two people die, all the evidence will be wiped out, and a piece of alliance letter will mean nothing."

Zhang Yanxiong and Shen Kai nodded.

Zhang Rou asked: "What do you think of Mr. Taining?"

"Mingyi is right." Jingxuan said, "But why should Dong Weng be in such a hurry?"

"What do you mean, sir?"

Jingxuan said: "Li Fen from Shandong Province is not enough to make plans, but he is so. He is arrogant. The Great Khan recruited soldiers and horses from all walks of life several times, but he did not make any excuses. He intercepted the salt tax, bought horses at high prices, and supported his troops with self-respect. Khan Why didn't the imperial court deal with him? Was he really unaware of his ambition? Furthermore, why was Yang Zhengqing so anxious to contact Zhao Song?

As the commander-in-chief of the Southern Expedition, King Monan was unable to destroy the Song Dynasty, and the Great Khan was extremely dissatisfied... In the next two or three years, the Great Khan, King Monan and various Mongolian kings, Zhao and Song competed with each other, and the situation was unclear. , Yang Zhengqing, Li Fen and others are betting on changes in the situation."

Zhang Rou pondered.

Zhang Yanxiong asked: "Mr. Taining, what does this have to do with Li Xia's matter?"

Jingxuan said: "This is what I said about 'seizing Li Xia and the information'. For example, if the Goukao Bureau goes south next year, if the situation is unfavorable, Dong Weng can cut off Li Xia's head and hand over the information to the Great Khan. Not only can he be annihilated The evidence of the crime can still be trusted by the Khan's court; and if King Monan survives this disaster, he will be free to deal with Li Fen from Shandong, and Dong Weng will report to King Monan, kill Li Fen, and achieve another meritorious service."

Zhang Rou nodded, deeply convinced.

Jingxuan added: "There is another possibility, but... it's extremely slim."

He sighed and then said: "If the princes of the north are not fully confident, they will never raise troops easily. However, there are many people who spy on the situation and criticize the government frequently. If this happens, the king of Monan will be deposed and the Khan will use violence to govern the Central Plains. , the Song Dynasty defeated Mongolia and tried its best to lead the war. Mengge Khan's reputation plummeted, and the kings of the Golden Horde were divided... At this time, the princes may gather in groups to start a rebellion, and the general can use this information and alliances to annex other princes. , independent Central Plains.”

"This is just a chance, it's almost impossible."

"Yes." Jingxuan said: "In short, if we hold Li Xia and the information in our hands, Li Fen, Wang Wentong and his son will not be able to hold the commander's hand, but Dong Weng will hold their hand. We can wait and see what happens. That’s it.”

"What Mr. Taining said is absolutely true. Zhang Wulang is a mediocre person. He should have asked Mr. Tai Ning earlier."

Zhang Rou stood up and said, "In that case, I will go to Shandong East Road personally to capture Li Xia."

"Dong Weng personally takes action, so that little thief will have no way to escape."

"Sir, you are old and there is no need to go. Zhang Yanxiong, Shen Kai, Mingyi, please make preparations and come with me."

"yes……"

After the conversation was over, Zhang Rou walked out.

When he walked to the door, he remembered something, and suddenly stopped and asked Jingxuan: "Li Xia is a talented person, so what if I, the Zhang family, keep him and use him?"

"It was possible before he entered Kaifeng, but now, how can he still stay?"

Zhang Rou asked again: "What if we kill him directly and then use the information to report him when the situation is settled?"

Jingxuan said: "It's not very appropriate. After all, it was him who contacted Yang Guo."

"Since we must kill, it is better to kill early than to kill late."

"Why?"

Zhang Rou didn't answer directly. She just glanced at the backyard and said, "Save it for trouble and cause more trouble."

"Then... you can also kill him first, and then use the heads of other details to report..."

Zhang Rou didn't answer anymore, turned around and walked out.

But he muttered something in a voice that only he could hear.

"Kill that harmful person."

…

After walking through many courtyards, Zhang Rou walked outside the eldest daughter's courtyard and stood in silence for a while.

A woman came forward and called: "Alang."

"How is eldest sister?"

"It's still the same. I've been feeling sleepy all day. I don't think about food or tea. I went to see Wulang yesterday. I thought I was feeling better, but when I came back, I felt bored again..."

After Zhang Rou heard this, she frowned and looked a little unhappy.

Suddenly, I heard a clear voice behind me saying: "Father, don't listen to her nonsense. My daughter is fine."
To be continued...