A group of forest guards patrolled outside the side hall, and the sound of heavy footsteps and the grinding of mountain armor reached my ears for a moment, extremely clear.
In the side hall, Xu Mu turned his head.
Looking at the four or five black-clothed corpses piled in the dark corner, his expression became solemn.
Si Hu pulled a corner of his robe and kept wiping the blood on the back of his hands.
The dancing candles on the table, along with the howling of the wind and snow, pulled out twisted shadows from the objects in the room.
I don't know how long it took before the footsteps of the imperial guards gradually faded away.
Xu Mu breathed a sigh of relief, and Si Hu also raised his head.
"Si Hu, pick up a long knife."
"Brother Mu, can this scholar's robe be torn off?"
"Wait a minute."
Xu Mu rubbed his forehead. Tomorrow at the latest, what they did would be discovered.
Si Hu picked up the knife and helped Xu Mu get a sword.
Xu Mu took it and silently held it in his hands. Then he stepped lightly, opened the door and walked out. He stood there for a while. When he found that no one in black jumped down to question him, he made a gesture and led Si Hu to touch the night in the palace.
, proceed carefully.
According to what Yuan Tao left, the eunuch father-in-law named Lianchun was in the den of the Jingshi Room on the east side.
"Brother Mu, there are too many big rooms in this palace, I can't recognize them clearly-" Sihu nestled in a corner of a stone staircase, Si Hu hadn't finished his words yet.
Xu Mu suddenly reached out and covered Si Hu's mouth.
Two groups of Imperial Guardsmen walked through the aisle overhead, making a "stomp" sound.
When the sound faded away, Xu Mu breathed a sigh of relief. Now he only felt that he and Si Hu were like assassins who killed themselves for justice.
…
The Jingsi Room is a hundred-person dormitory on the east wall of the courtyard. Those who live here are usually young eunuchs who have just entered the palace, or some old men who have been abandoned by their masters.
Lianchun belongs to the latter.
He served three generations of emperors of the Yuan family. When he was most favored, he was the chief steward of the palace. Standing beside the dragon chair, he read holy edicts for the late emperor, studied ink for the late emperor, and made noises for the late emperor to attend his bedtime.
Until the young emperor ascended the throne and the treacherous prime minister came to power.
After losing power, an old palace concubine who was his opponent robbed him of all his saved salary, and even took a few young eunuchs with him to give him a good beating.
There is not much anger. The country and the family are originally connected. If the country dies, the family will die too.
In the darkness, Lianchun covered her mouth and coughed twice, then slowly stood up, but was kicked to the ground by a young eunuch next to her.
Lianchun was silent, stood up, picked up a lantern, and carefully walked out of the shack.
The sky was full of wind and snow, and the lantern seemed unable to withstand the freezing cold, and the candlelight became weaker and weaker.
"Tomorrow is the palace banquet, it's time, it's time to come." Lianchun said to himself, but he was afraid of being discovered by other people in the shack, so he simply wrapped himself in a tattered robe and walked dozens more steps.
The wind and snow were still howling, but no one noticed that two figures had quietly touched the edge of the shack.
"Brother Mu, there is an old eunuch."
Xu Mu raised his head, followed the direction Si Hu pointed, and saw an old eunuch shivering all over, holding a lantern, and his legs were hopping from the cold.
"The snow falls on the sun."
Xu Mu grimaced and raised the short crossbow in his hand. If the old eunuch in front of him could not pick up the code and avoid being exposed, he would have no choice but to shoot him on the spot.
Si Hu also bulged his eyes and made a gesture of rushing out.
"Sword, sword comes out of the border." Lianchun turned his head, his wrinkled old face showing a joyful smile.
…
Lianchun extinguished the lantern, wrapped herself up, and led the way carefully.
"The shacks here are considered dirty by the imperial guards, so they rarely come here. In the past, the carriages carrying night fragrance would also leave the palace from here."
"They were very fierce. I told them to walk faster so as not to fume the palace. These night scenters would grab me and beat me in the corner."
Xu Mu was slightly startled, "I heard from Mr. Hou that my father-in-law used to be the head of internal affairs."
"It's changed, it's all changed. There was a little eunuch who did tricks and pleased His Majesty, so I was driven back to the shack."
"The young Marquis told me to buy a house for me to retire in Cangzhou."
"Why doesn't father-in-law not want to go?"
Lianchun stopped and looked back, with an unspeakable sadness on his face.
"My little boss, I have served three generations of emperors of the Yuan family. Even if I am an eunuch, I should have feelings and cannot leave."
"In my bones, I probably feel that I should be a part of the palace."
Xu Mu was silent for a moment.
"The Epoch Times is in turmoil. It's not the fault of me, an eunuch, but I, Hu Lianchun, can be considered a member of the palace. I should do something at this time."
"I don't understand the matter of fighting. I can't even defeat the old palace lady who eats the right food. I have been busy all my life and am still covered in pain."
"I have a guilty conscience, but as far as the country is concerned, Lianchun has no shame."
In the snow, Xu Mu looked up and felt that the figure of the old eunuch in front of him suddenly grew taller.
"My dear boss, please go forward. If you go down this aisle, someone will be waiting for you."
"I won't go, there are still things to do."
"Thank you, father-in-law."
Lianchun showed a gentle smile, and held a small wooden box tightly in her hands covered with old spots.
As soon as Xu Mu walked a few dozen steps, Lianchun's eyes turned red for a moment. With trembling hands, she took out the treasure from the small wooden box and tied it around her waist with a circle of red rope.
After tying up everything, he walked to a deserted corner, moved a wooden pier, took out a piece of faintly yellowish white silk from his sleeve, and threw it high over the eaves with all his strength.
"How can an eunuch save the country!"
After kicking off the wooden stake, a figure was hanging in the wind and snow, and merged with the entire gloomy night.
…
Xu Mu turned his head in shock and saw only a shaky figure, vaguely visible in the wind and snow.
"Mu, Brother Mu, he hanged himself."
Xu Mu remained silent for a long time before he picked up his feet again, followed the path Lianchun pointed out to him, and continued forward with a sullen face.
"Brother Mu, I feel a little uncomfortable."
"If you feel uncomfortable, when you kill the enemy, remember to kill a few more."
Si Hu nodded anxiously.
We walked down a remote corridor for about half a mile.
When Xu Mu looked up again, he was shocked to find that at the end of the corridor, a figure wearing mountain armor, with one hand wrapped in a cloak and the other holding a knife, stood coldly in the wind and snow.?
…
"Emergency March——"
Two hundred miles outside Changyang City, a long formation of snakes snaked rapidly through the forest.
The one at the head was wearing silver armor and was riding a horse with a cold look on his face.