Suddenly, I heard movement from the door, and I woke up slowly in an instant.
"who?"
Zhao Qiu suddenly spoke. The county lieutenant's mansion was heavily guarded. Zhao Qiu couldn't figure out who could sneak in. What's more, weren't there servants and maids waiting outside the door?
Zhao Qiu opened his eyes and stood up. Then he saw dim candle light coming from the door, and accompanied by the maid, a young man's figure slowly walked into the room.
Bai Yan!
Seeing Bai Yan come to her boudoir in the middle of the night, Zhao Qiu really didn't expect it. After all, Gongzi Jia's spy has been removed, and everyone in the mansion has been thoroughly investigated. He has been pretending to do it dozens of times, and the servants
, all the maids knew that she was Bai Yan's favorite concubine.
She couldn't figure out why Bai Yan suddenly came to her boudoir in the middle of the night.
Could it be that you drank too much at the banquet tonight and want to spend the night here?
When Zhao Qiu thought of this, her heartbeat suddenly beat faster, but it was fleeting. She knew that if Bai Yan really wanted to have fun, he would be the first to choose Bao Shu. After all, who would not want to be bullied by someone as gentle and stunning as Bao Shu?
Even when she looked at Baoshu's face and figure sometimes, she had this thought in her mind.
"Why did you come here suddenly in the middle of the night?"
The candle lamp in the room was already lit. Watching the maid leave the room at Bai Yan's instruction and close the door, Zhao Qiu took the Qin clothes on the bed and gently put them on her body.
There were still coals in the stove, and the room wasn't that cold.
"I just got an urgent order. Your Majesty ordered me to go to the Kingdom of Chu!"
In the quiet boudoir, Zhao Qiu was walking. Before he reached the stove and stretched out his fair hands to warm himself, he suddenly heard a sentence. In an instant, Zhao Qiu suddenly raised his pretty face and looked at the wooden table with her beautiful eyes.
The young man sitting on his knees.
After the young man's voice fell, the boudoir became quiet again. Occasionally, the cold wind blowing from outside floated by, making faint sounds.
for a long time.
"Qin has no generals?"
Zhao Qiu was squatting next to the stove, enjoying the warmth from the charcoal fire with both hands on the stove. Under her long hair, she was wearing a white Qin suit.
Bai Yan was sitting on his knees at the wooden table, his heart full of melancholy. He looked at the closed wooden window. With the slight sound of wind outside, he still seemed to be able to feel the cold air blowing into the house through the cracks in the wooden window wire.
"The king ordered me to hide my whereabouts!"
Bai Yan explained.
As if he didn't want to delay it any longer, Bai Yan finally turned his head and looked at Zhao Qiu, who was right in front of him beside the wooden table, looking at Zhao Qiu who seemed to be focusing on the charcoal fire.
"Mr. Wei is in the Yunzhong Mountains, and Xun Shuo is going to Qi State to find the person who is rumored to be here. I would like to ask you to take more care of me here in the mansion, as well as the nobles of Yanmen."
Bai Yan said slowly, then took out a seal from his arms and placed it on the wooden table.
This is not a general seal that cannot mobilize Yanmen's military power, but with this seal, Bai Yan's spies in Yanmen and all his connections will be mobilized for Zhao Qiu.
In the boudoir.
Bai Yan's words made Zhao Qiu turn his head, and then he saw the seal on the wooden table.
"Aren't you afraid that I will directly rebel against Qin?"
Zhao Qiu looked at the charcoal fire in front of him, with complicated expressions in his beautiful eyes.
"Or, betray you!"
Zhao Qiu said softly, and after finishing speaking, he became quiet.
But Bai Yan slowly stood up at this time, and the seal on the wooden table was still quietly placed on the wooden table.
"That's up to you."
As Bai Yan spoke, he walked towards the outside of the study.
"Get some rest early. I'll see Xun Shuo off early tomorrow morning, and then I'll leave!"
Bai Yan was relieved after receiving Zhao Qiu's answer. If Zhao Qiu wanted to betray him, he would not have said what he just said. Now that he had said it, he would not betray him, just like Mr. Wei had told him before he left.
Just like Zhao Qiu.
Perhaps Mr. Wei believed in Zhao Qiu and left Shanwucheng with peace of mind.
Mr. Wei is in the Yunzhong Mountains, in Yanmen, and is beyond his reach to do anything good, and the Yunzhong Mountains still need the protection of outside powers. Mr. Yang is the county guard. Once Bai Yan leaves, everything needs to be handled by Mr. Yang, and
In dealing with these matters, Mr. Yang may not be as skillful as Zhao Qiu.
Arriving at the door, he was about to open it.
"You can go find people from the Ruo'ao clan!"
Bai Yan suddenly heard Zhao Qiu's voice coming from behind him, stopped, turned his head and looked at Zhao Qiu.
In a quiet atmosphere.
How many breaths have passed.
"Ruo Ao's six soldiers have not disappeared."
Zhao Qiu slowly turned his head and looked at Bai Yan in front of the door with his beautiful eyes. However, for some reason, Zhao Qiu avoided his eyes. When he looked at Bai Yan, he always felt a little unnatural inadvertently.
"Ruo Ao six soldiers?"
When Bai Yan heard about Ruo Ao Sixth Soldier, he immediately remembered something in his mind. He had some understanding of this name. When his teacher Jin Gong was teaching a long time ago, he once said that there was a king in Chu State a long time ago.
Even the Zhou royal family was afraid of the influence of the Chu State, the Chu Ruo Ao clan.
And under this clan, the clan soldiers are the famous ‘Ruo Ao Six Soldiers’.
Compared to today's soldiers from the scholarly clans in Chu State, including the famous Xiang clan, they were slightly behind the 'Ruo Ao Six Soldiers' back then.
But my mentor Jin Gong said that since the Ruo Ao clan experienced great chaos hundreds of years ago, except for Dou Ziwen's clan, most of the other clansmen have almost died.
In the middle of the year, all the six Ruo Ao soldiers under his command were dead.
"When I went to Handan, there was a merchant selling utensils, mostly exquisite Chu things. This man's name is Cheng Ding, and he is a descendant of Ruoao's lineage."
Zhao Qiu said softly.
Bai Yan nodded slowly, raised his hand and saluted Zhao Qiu.
"Thank you!"
After Bai Yan finished speaking, he glanced at Zhao Qiu gratefully, turned around, opened the door, and left the room.
The next day.
As light appears in the sky, the hazy fog disperses, and the warm sun rises.
At the gate of Shanwu City, Bai Yan walked side by side with Xun Shuo. As they walked, they talked about the situation in the world. Outside the city gate, several carriages were already waiting outside the city.
"Send it here!"
Bai Yan stopped and raised his hand to salute Xun Shuo, Chen Ze and Fu Yao.
Coming in a hurry early in the morning, out of the whole banquet yesterday, only Bai Yan came and was the only one to see him off.
"Stop!"
Xun Shuo looked at Bai Yan, slowly raised his hand, and bent down to salute Bai Yan seriously. He was grateful for Bai Yan's respect for him. A man who knows his best will die for his friends. No matter what happens in the future, at this moment, Xun Shuo's heart has never been
I regret joining Bai Yan’s tent.
Fu Yao and Chen Ze still smelled of wine, but looking at the carriage prepared behind them and Bai Yan coming to see him off, they both saluted Bai Yan one after another.
They all remembered Bai Yan's treatment of the two of them. This time they returned to seek a teacher to study. If they failed, they would both remember Bai Yan's kindness and return to Shan Wu to help Bai Yan.
And if they are lucky enough to be able to worship under the knees of a famous teacher, when they return from their studies, no matter how they dominate the world, no matter which country they serve, even if they become Qin's old enemy, they will help other vassal states defeat Qin.
He will also remember Bai Yan’s kindness and treat Bai Yan favorably.
Besides, with Bai Yan's ability to lead troops, no king would have the heart to kill a famous general like Bai Yan.
After a while.
As Xun Shuo, Chen Ze, and Fu Yao got on the carriage, they drove slowly towards the direction of Qi State.
Bai Yan stood under the city gate and looked at it for a long time.
Whether it was the common people coming in and out of the city gate, the merchants, or the Qin officials guarding the city gate, they all looked at the carriages curiously. They didn't understand where the three people just now were able to make the county captain do this.
Solemnly, even the carriage has gone so far, and the county captain still hasn't returned to the city.
"General?"
Master Xu was holding Bai Yan's sword and wanted to speak, but suddenly he saw Bai Yan slowly saluting in the direction of Qi Guo.
Master Xu, who was a little confused, turned his head and looked over, and then discovered that far, far away in the direction of Qi State, the carriage that was originally walking had stopped, and a figure seemed to be standing beside the carriage.
, I don’t know what I am doing, it seems that I am also giving a gift.
"Who were those people just now?"
"I don't know."
"Do you know?"
Xu Master was not the only one who saw this scene. Whether it was the common people, merchants, or Qin officials, they all saw this scene, Bai Yan, who was a county lieutenant, and the various behaviors of the carriage in the distance.
At this moment, I don't know how many people are envious of Bai Yan. Not to mention Bai Yan's title and rights, it is also a happy thing for ordinary people to be treated like this by a good friend and confidant.
Return to the mansion.
Bao Yu was already waiting in the courtyard.
When Bai Yan saw Bao Yu, he slowly raised his hand to salute, and Bao Yu returned the salute.
When the two of them came to the study while talking, they saw that Bao Shu had packed the clothes needed for severe cold and hot weather, and there were six or seven full packages, most of which belonged to Bai Yan. In Bao Shu's words
Generally speaking, in the past two or three months, when winter turns to spring, the mood is the most unpredictable, and it is also the rainy season. After all, it is not a bad thing to prepare more clothes.
Looking at Bao Shu, who was wearing Qin costumes, with her delicate and moving face, she was chattering instructions while putting pieces of clothing into the package. In her words, she still hoped that Bai Yan could take Master Xu to go to Xianyang with her.
Bai Yan and Zhao Qiu next to Baoshu looked at each other.
This time, after all, he was going to fight Chu State without any iron cavalry or side cavalry. He did not tell Bao Shu.
Bao Yu looked at his beloved daughter and inadvertently looked at Bai Yan, with some relief in his eyes. As a father, he could feel that his daughter Bao Shu was happier and more lively than when she was in Xinzheng.
Looking at Zhao Qiu, Bao Yu slowly raised his hand to salute Zhao Qiu, indicating that Zhao Qiu would take more care of his daughter in the future.
After learning about his daughter's affair with Bai Yan, and his previous actions of leading the Bao clan, Bao Yu was already on the same boat as Bai Yan. Naturally, Bao Yu would not tell anyone about Zhao Qiu's affairs. After all, if something happened to Bai Yan,
Not only him, but also his daughter and even his clan members will lose their greatest support.
Bao Yu was even more worried than Bai Yan about Zhao Qiu's news being leaked and being known to others.
soon.
As the time came, Bai Yan and Bao Yu were ready to leave.
"Be careful!"
It wasn't just Bao Shu who said this to Bai Yan. Zhao Qiu looked at Bao Yu, Bao Shu and his daughter, and finally said it in a low voice.
When Bai Yan heard this, he turned his head and was a little surprised.
"You made a promise to me, don't forget it! I've helped you so many times, but you haven't fulfilled your promise, so don't let anything happen."
Zhao Qiu seemed to feel Bai Yan's gaze. When her beautiful eyes looked at the father and daughter in front of her, she felt a little guilty and avoided them. But then Zhao Qiu seemed to feel so guilty and couldn't explain it, so she turned to look at Bai Yan.
Her beautiful eyes are full of seriousness.
"If something happens to you."
There was another sentence behind it. Zhao Qiu didn't say it out loud, but the shape of his mouth seemed to say a sentence.
Bai Yan saw that Zhao Qiu's last sentence was "I will fight against Qin".
"rest assured!"
Bai Yan said with a smile.
In the courtyard.
Bai Yan looked at Bao Shu, Zhao Qiu and his maids stopped, looked at each other, looked at their appearance, and then left the mansion with Bao Yu.
Mid-March.
Bai Yan did not find the merchant named Cheng Ding in Handan as Zhao Qiu had asked. Instead, after spending several days without finding him, he went south directly with Bao Yu.
It passed through Fanwu, Zhangshui Basin, Anyang, Shanyang, Guanyi, Xinzheng, Anling and other places, and finally followed the road to Yangxia.
The location of Yangxia is on another road from Anling to Chu State. It is located in Yingchuan County, the border area of Wei State and Chu State. You can go to Wei State at the top and Chu State at the bottom. In later generations, one year
Later, Li Xin and Meng Tian led the Qin army of 200,000 people. They went directly south and divided their troops into two groups. Li Xin attacked Pingyu and Meng Tian attacked Qin. They then extended vertically to attack Yan and Ying, planning to attack the city.
Father joins.
Later, due to the rebellion of Ying and Chen, the Qin State was defeated in this battle. All seven captains under Li Xin, Meng and Tian were killed in the battle.
Wang Ben's purpose this time was not to go south to attack Pingyu, or Yan and Ying, but to attack directly from the east, along the Wei-Chu border, and to attack the cities bordering Chu and Wei.
This move is very risky. It can be said that if you are not careful, you will be playing with fire and being outflanked by Chu and Wei. But the advantage is that once it succeeds, the border area between Chu and Wei will be cut off by the Qin army. In the future, Qin will attack Wei
The state of Chu and the state of Chu wanted to reinforce, but they were unable to do so.
Perhaps it was because they knew where the victory of Yan State was in sight that Ying Zheng, Wang Ben, or Wang Jian made this risky decision.
After all, with the current military strength of the Wei State, it is no longer possible to form an alliance with the Chu State to attack Wang Ben, and at the same time find an army of no less than 100,000 to resist Wang Jian's army in Handan, Yanmen, and Yan.
Inside Yangxia City.
Although the geographical location of Yangxia City is not a must for Chu State to go to Yingchuan or Wei State, because it has been at the junction of Han, Chu and Wei for a long time, this city has also formed a unique cultural scenery.
It feels like it can encompass all the cultural essence of the world.
Bai Yan and Bao Yu wore bamboo hats and led their horses as they walked down the street. Behind them were Yu and three other confidants holding swords and wearing commoners.
The reason why I didn't take the carriage was because, not to mention the slow speed of the carriage, it was still too conspicuous, and because I was delayed for several days in Handan, if I wanted to reach Yangxia as soon as possible, I could only ride on horseback. This is why Bai Yan and Bao Yu took the horses.
s reason.
"There are so many more people fleeing today!"
"No, I heard that the Qin army has already attacked Chunshan Stream. I'm afraid that in two days, they will attack Pinghui!"
"Hey, how many cities are there already? I'm afraid it's already the third city! I didn't expect that Qin General Wang Ben could capture three cities of Chu in such a short period of time."
Bai Yan and Bao Yu listened to the conversations of passersby and merchants around them. They walked and listened to the news, and soon came to a restaurant.
"Eh? Why are you here?"
Bai Yan had just tied the horse to a wooden beam beside him when he suddenly heard a voice coming from beside him. Bai Yan turned around and saw a somewhat impressive person.
Bai Yan also didn't expect to see people from the villages near Shuicun here.
The reason why Bai Yan has an impression of this person is because at that time, Bai Yan was doing the job of burying corpses. Bai Yan still remembered that the man in front of him was called Wu. He had an eldest sister in the family. Later, because of his eldest sister, he was imprisoned in Linzi City.
A scholar took a fancy to it.
Because of this incident, Wu, who is only a few years older than Bai Yan, has always been very arrogant, and the young people in the village also like to be with Wu because of this.
But what really left Bai Yan's memory fresh was the fact that Wu's eldest sister was attracted by a descendant of a noble family. At that time, Wu secretly took the disciples from Linzi City to the eldest sister's place without telling the scholar on the pretext of visiting.
, and soon stood outside the door to watch.
Later, the scholar just happened to come back and meet him. As for what happened next, no one knows, but it was widely spread in the village at that time, and the villagers talked a lot about it and gossiped behind their backs.
"You call."
Wu looked at Bai Yan and pretended to scratch his head for a long time. Then he suddenly remembered and said with a smile: "By the way, Shui Yan! Right!"
Upon seeing this, Bao Yu and Mang, along with the other three subordinates, all looked at the young man. At first they thought he knew the general, but they never thought he knew him at all.
"Why haven't you come over yet?"
Suddenly, a man's voice came from a distance.
Bai Yan turned around and saw a man with some impression. If Bai Yan remembered correctly, the man in silk clothes was the one Wu brought to see the eldest sister. Seeing that man, Bai Yan did not expect that