After Min Rou left, Su Liang transferred Mrs. Min to the sky prison, and told her not to use torture for interrogation, not to let her die, and just treat her like a normal prisoner. Regarding this matter, Su Liang told Min Rou, Because no one in Su Mansion has time to take care of Mrs. Min.
This is a secret. The people in the sky prison do not know Mrs. Min's identity, and the Min family does not know that she is in the sky prison.
The tension of the past few days finally eased temporarily. After Gu Ling confirmed again that neither Min Rui nor Duanmu Chen had suffered a bloody disaster recently, he told Duanmu Chen that he could leave the library.
"Are you sure everything is okay?" Duanmu Chen breathed a sigh of relief, "Have you dealt with all the assassins?"
Gu Ling shook his head, "There is another leader who ran away."
Duanmu Chen frowned, "It's just okay for the time being? Okay. I'm mentally prepared for this." As an emperor, it is completely normal for him to be assassinated by enemy countries during wartime. In fact, Duanmu Chen also sent people to assassinate him before. Situ Xie, but no news came back, so I guess it was a failure.
"Everything is as usual. The position of regent should be removed." Gu Ling said.
Duanmu Chen shook his head, "Why withdraw? This position is very suitable for you. I need your help."
Gu Ling turned around and left, "Don't come looking for me if you have nothing to do."
Duanmu Chen's voice came from behind, "When can I eat the steamed buns you made again?"
"Next year." Gu Ling said casually.
Duanmu Chen:......
Empress Dowager Xiao couldn't help crying with joy when she saw that Duanmu Chen was safe and sound. Duanmu Yi, whose face was as dark as the bottom of a pot, asked Duanmu Chen and Gu Ling what the hell they were doing.
Duanmu Chen knew very well that the relationship between father and son had long since ceased between Duanmu Yi and him, and he wanted to save Duanmu Yi's life, but he felt that the relationship between the two was not so bad that he needed to kill Duanmu Yi, so he was a little reluctant to do so. .
Duanmu Chen answered Duanmu Yi's question calmly, "Father, don't worry so much, it's not good for your health."
Duanmu Yi was so angry that he cursed angrily, but Duanmu Chen didn't care.
Empress Dowager Xiao asked Duanmu Chen to go see the queen and concubines, so Duanmu Chen went.
Xing Yuyan started crying when she saw Duanmu Chen, saying that she had been having nightmares and was worried that something might happen to Duanmu Chen.
Although Duanmu Chen didn't like the queen very much, because he knew her and knew that she was sincere, and Xing Yuyan was pregnant with his son, he put aside the previous unhappiness and comforted her for a while.
Then, Duanmu Chen went to Situ Yao's place.
Situ Yao was pregnant but very thin. When Duanmu Chen saw her, he frowned and scolded his servants for not taking good care of her.
Situ Yao spoke for the servant, saying that she had been restless recently and couldn't eat.
"Are you worried about the Liang Kingdom, or are you worried about me and the Qian Kingdom?" Duanmu Chen asked calmly.
Situ Yao smiled bitterly, "I care about my family, and the emperor is also my family."
Duanmu Chen hummed, "But this time it was not me who started the war, but your grandfather."
"I don't understand the major events outside, and I can't interfere. I just hope that I can give birth to my baby safely." Situ Yao said and looked out through the window. The farthest place she could see was the high palace wall.
Duanmu Chen came out of Situ Yao's place, and Chang An, who was waiting outside, immediately followed him and went to the imperial garden.
It was Duanmu Chen's favorite pavilion since childhood. He sat in the same place, looking at the colorful flowers and lush ancient trees, and sighed, "I have been working hard to sit on the dragon throne since I can remember. , trembling with fear, not daring to make a wrong step. Now, I am really sitting in this position, and slowly, I started to feel a little..."
Duanmu Chen's voice paused for a while before he said two words, "Boring."
Chang'an was stunned. He really didn't dare to accept these words. But from his point of view, it must be the couple Gu Ling and Su Liang who made Duanmu Chen have such thoughts.
After such a long time, Changan was most aware of some of the changes that had taken place in Duanmu Chen, even if they didn't seem obvious.
Duanmu Chen quickly changed the topic, "Chang'an, I hope Concubine Liang will no longer miss her natal family. Isn't that too harsh?"
"This..." Changan didn't dare to say it, but he really didn't know how to say it.
"You don't have to answer." Duanmu Chen shook his head, "I have been thinking about a question in the library these days. What is the goal in the future? Unification of the world? It seems that the time has come, although the result is unknown. After the world is truly unified,
Woolen cloth?"
Changan said that he could just be a silent listener.
"My son is going to be Gu Ling's apprentice. When the child grows up, I can hand over the throne to him. I am absolutely assured that he was taught by Gu Ling. When the time comes, I will also go out and see the world.
Beautiful scenery." Duanmu Chen said and smiled slightly.
Chang'an was stunned again, a little surprised, but felt it was very feasible.
"It's a pity that I have many women, but none of them make me want to travel around the world with me." Duanmu Chen sighed. If Situ Yao was not the princess of Liang Kingdom, maybe their relationship would be different. But there is no if, and in the world
At the time of reunification, either the Situ clan would be destroyed or the Duanmu clan would be destroyed. The life-and-death situation meant that his relationship with Situ Yao would not be better than it is now.
After sighing for a while, Duanmu Chen regained his senses, left the corridor and went to the imperial study to handle political affairs.
In the evening of the same day, the second battle report arrived in the capital: the Liang army was approaching fiercely and without calling for formation, they directly began to attack Xuanbei City on the first day. Xing Ji took command in the city, and Qiu Jing led his elite troops out of the city to fight. After a fierce battle,
The Liang army temporarily retreated.
In addition to the news about the war situation, Xuanbei City sent another news. Before the war started, Xing Ji sent people to Ping'an Temple and wanted to ask the abbot master to lead the monks to Xuanbei City to avoid the war from damaging the quiet place of Buddhism, but was
Heianji refused.
Just as the battle report from the north arrived, a "battle report" also came from the south: The Yan Kingdom army sent troops to attack Kasyapa City. On the first day, the Yan Kingdom army general called for formation. Nian Jincheng went out to fight the city, but there was no victory or defeat. It wasn't long before the Yan Kingdom army started to attack the city.
, they retreated due to heavy rain. There were no casualties on either side.
Duanmu Chen only smiled slightly at this. It was true that the Liang Kingdom attacked Xuanbei City, and the Yan Kingdom's attack on Kasyapa City was just a show, otherwise there would be no casualties. This was an agreement between Gu Ling and Ji Yuebai, confusing Liang.
The country's methods. As for the details of Yanguo's border army, Ji Yuebai had sent people to find out before, but they did not "expose" them. He was not a person in an important decision-making position, so he kept them just to pass the news to Situ Xie.
…
Su Mansion.
Before dinner, new battle reports from the north and south were also sent to the Su Mansion.
For now, it seems that Mo Yan has not appeared yet, and no explosives have appeared on the battlefield. There is nothing going on in the south, and Ji Yuebai will not let his own army get out of control and be led by Situ Xie.
"My father ordered the attack on Qian Kingdom?" Ji Xiaoshu was shocked, "I'm still here! He really doesn't want me anymore? Will I be taken as a hostage by the emperor's uncle and hung up on the tower? How scary!"
Zheng'er frowned. He also felt that this matter was a bit troublesome. He originally thought that Yan State and Qian State were allies, so why did they fall out so quickly?
"Master, I'm so scared!" Ji Xiaoshu said and threw herself into Gu Ling's arms.
Gu Ling was serving soup when he was bumped and almost spilled the soup. He put down the bowl and pulled Ji Xiaoshu away, "Sit down."
"Master, what on earth is going on?" Zheng'er asked seriously with a small face.
"Guess." Gu Ling looked calm.
Zheng'er and Ji Xiaoshu looked at each other.
Ji Xiaoshu sighed, "I know. My father is a liar. He sent me to Qianguo to confuse Master, Master and the Emperor's uncle, right? It makes you think that Yanguo is cooperating with Qianguo, but this is not the case. Master and Master will not treat me badly. A child started it."
"Xiao Shu, your analysis makes sense." Zheng'er agreed, "If that's the case, then it makes sense. Your father is using you."
"Master, is this true?" Ji Xiaoshu asked.
Gu Ling nodded, "Yeah."
Ji Xiaoshu was dumbfounded, "I was joking! My father is definitely not a liar! Master, don't scare me!"
Zheng'er: ...Ji Xiaoshu is a liar. It turned out that he was telling sarcastic things just now, which made him believe it.
Su Liang smiled and hugged Gu Xiaonuan over, sitting between the two children. Originally, the seat next to her was reserved for Gu Ling, but he couldn't argue with the children, so he let Zheng'er and Ji Xiaoshu sit. Prerequisites Yes, Gu Ling knew that Ji Xiaoshu lacked maternal love and was very dependent on Su Liang, so although he was harsh on the child on the surface, he actually doted on him.
"Master's wife..." Ji Xiaoshu was really nervous now, and her face tensed up.
"Your master is right, your father is a liar." Su Liang chuckled, "The Yan Kingdom's attack on the Qian Kingdom was a fake, it was just a pretense. Your father deliberately deceived the Liang Kingdom."
Ji Xiaoshu blinked, "Oh~ this liar? That's a good deception, a wonderful deception! Am I right, Master?"
"That's right." Su Liang nodded.
Then the two children began to discuss the battle situation. Their serious look was very cute, but after all, they were still young and did not know many things clearly, and their views were relatively naive. For example, Ji Xiaoshu said that if Gu Xiaonuan smiled in front of the battle, the enemy would surrender. Yes, Zheng'er actually agreed...
…
The next day, Duanmu Chen resumed his morning court, and all the officials saw that he looked quite good. There was no sign of illness or injury. They all felt that the previous emergency was just a ploy. After all, they had already started a war. Maybe there were too many assassins to avoid him temporarily. Avoid and confuse the enemy.
As for the regent Gu Ling, he only attended the morning court once, but as soon as Duanmu Chen showed up, he stopped coming.
Although the situation was tense, Gu Ling had nothing that he had to do for the time being. He fulfilled his promise today and planned to take his two young apprentices out for fun and look for tadpoles.
"Master's wife, aren't you going? Bring your sister and we'll go together!" Ji Xiaoshu held Su Liang's hand and shook it.
"That's okay." Su Liang looked at the weather outside and decided to go for a walk.
Cen Man also wanted to go, and finally Su Liang decided to go with all of them, including Nangong Qian and Qiu Yue. Otherwise, they would be a little worried about leaving their master and servant at home. If Nangong Lin came to visit again and took Nangong Qian away, Su Liang could There is no way to explain to Qiu Cong.
Hefu went on a trip and took two carriages, and the destination was Wangxiang Mountain. There are clear streams in the mountain where you can find tadpoles, and it can also meet the needs of Su Liang and the children who want to climb mountains.
After packing up, the group set off.
We got off the car at the foot of Wangxiang Mountain and walked up the mountain. Gu Xiaonuan was held by Gu Ling the whole time, while Zheng'er and Ji Xiaoshu ran forward energetically. Nangong Qian and Qiu Yue, who were the weakest in physical strength, are now much stronger than before, and they usually
I continued to exercise under Su Liang's guidance. Although Wangxiang Mountain looked very high and I thought I might not be able to climb it, I still wanted to give it a try.
"Master, whoever reaches the top of the mountain first can be the senior brother?" Ji Xiaoshu asked.
Gu Ling shook his head, "No."
Ji Xiaoshu said to Zheng'er with a smile as he ran forward, "I originally wanted to trick my senior brother into competing, but actually I don't want to be a senior brother, haha!"
Zheng'er: ...Yes, Ji Xiaoshu is too good at acting coquettishly and cheating as his junior brother. What's the good thing about being a senior brother?
But having said that, Zheng'er is happy to be the senior disciple, because he feels that he is actually Gu Ling's first disciple, and he should take care of the junior disciples who follow him.
Nangong Qian felt tired after walking for a while and slowed down. Cen Man asked Su Liang and the others to go first while she, Nangong Qian and Qiu Yue walked slowly behind.
"Then let's meet at the waterfall in the middle of the mountain." Su Liang said.
In the middle, Ji Xiaoshu wanted Gu Ling to carry him on his back. Gu Ling said that he could, but if he did, he would expel Ji Xiaoshu from the school because his physical strength was too low and he would lose his place.
Ji Xiaoshu lost his temper for a moment and continued to rush forward.
When they arrived at the place where the waterfall was, there was a clear stream. Su Liang took her daughter over and asked Gu Ling to take his two apprentices to play in the water. It was rare to get out, so he could put aside his worries and relax for the time being.
"Master, is this a tadpole?" Ji Xiaoshu called Gu Ling to come over and take a look.
Gu Ling walked over and shook his head, "It's a loach."
"What is a loach?" the two children asked at the same time, eager for knowledge. One was the prince of the Yan Kingdom, and the other was a young master from the four major merchant families of the Qian Kingdom. They had never seen such a thing.
"It's edible." Gu Ling explained from a cook's perspective.
"Can tadpoles be eaten?"
"Can't."
"Are frogs edible?"
"I've never eaten it. It's said that it's OK, but it's not easy to handle."
"Ah! This loach is as slippery as a snake! It's so scary, don't come near me!"
Su Liang was holding Gu Xiaonuan while watching the waterfall. Listening to the play of Gu Ling and the children not far away, she felt as if she had returned to Sujia Village, thinking of brothers Bai Xiaohu and Zhuzi. They hadn't seen each other for a long time.
They must have grown taller. If the war can subside and the trouble is solved, Su Liang will definitely go back to the village with Gu Ling and their children to live for a while.
By the time Cen Man arrived with Nangong Qian and Qiu Yue, Zheng'er and Ji Xiaoshu had already caught the tadpoles and put them in a specially brought expensive glass vase to show them.
Nangong Qian saw it for the first time and thought it was amazing, "Like an ink drop, what does it look like when it grows up?"
Then she followed the direction of Zheng'er's finger and saw a frog whose legs were tied by Gu Ling with a straw rope. She was immediately frightened and screamed, and her face turned pale. After that, she couldn't even look at the tadpole.
The two children didn't have enough fun, but wanted to continue climbing to the top of the mountain, so they put back the tadpoles and frogs they caught, saying they would come here to look for them another day.
When Nangong Rou Qiuyue, who was lagging behind, also arrived at the top of the mountain, he saw two children hanging on swings in the tree, and Gu Ling and Su Liang's family were sitting and resting under the tree.
Nangong Rou wiped the sweat from her forehead and looked to the north. She couldn't help but sigh, "You can only see far when you climb high. This is the first time I have returned to such a high place. I don't know what the situation is like with my grandpa and eldest brother."
Cen Man smiled and said, "If they are together, nothing will happen." She was blind before and had never seen such a scenery.
Gu Ling brought some fruits and snacks, and everyone played at the top of the mountain for about an hour before going down the mountain. In the meantime, Gu Ling wrapped Gu Xiaonuan in his coat and hung her on a tree to float in the wind. Gu Xiaonuan liked it very much.
Laughing non-stop.
After returning home from the mountain, Qi Yan went to Wanjia Restaurant to get some food. After eating, the three children quickly fell asleep.
…
Xuanbei City.
After another day of fighting, when Qiu Jing saw Qiu Cong, there was a lot of blood on his body.
Seeing Qiu Cong's face darken, Qiu Jing quickly explained that he was not injured, it was other people's blood. With his strength, it would be difficult to be injured on the battlefield.
"Grandpa, did you gain anything today?" Qiu Jing asked.
Qiu Cong sighed, "No! Xiao Liang said that Liang Country has grain and grass, but I searched everywhere I could, and there was no sign of grain and grass. Liang Kingdom didn't seem to be short of grain and grass, which was really weird! I didn't find Xiao Liang either.
The mysterious person Liang talked about. Otherwise, I will go and arrest the leader of Liang Kingdom tonight!"
Qiu Jing frowned and pondered, then shook his head and said, "Since Su Liang said that Situ Xie had colluded with mysterious forces and had many masters, grandpa should not take risks to avoid causing trouble. The general of Liang Kingdom's military skills are not as good as the Marquis, and his martial arts skills are far inferior to mine. He was caught.
The country may not save him, and once he dies, something unexpected may happen."
"Okay, you have the final say." Qiu Cong shook his head and sighed again, "If I weren't afraid that Situ Xie would send people to kill you, I would really want to go to Liang Kingdom and kill Situ Xie!"
"Grandpa, don't worry, he will definitely die badly." Qiu Jing's eyes were firm.
At this moment, a soldier hurriedly delivered a letter, saying that a mysterious man had sent it to Qiu Jing at the door of the general's mansion.
Qiu Jing opened the letter, his face suddenly turned cold, the handwriting was very familiar, "It's Nangong Lin."
Qiu Cong took it and looked at it, frowning fiercely. Nangong Lin said in the letter that he had picked up Nangong Qian from Su Liang's home. He made a special trip to say goodbye to his master and apprentice tonight. He planned to take his daughter to live in seclusion.
I hope all past grudges can be wiped out. If Qiu Cong and Qiu Jing don't go to the city for an appointment tonight, they will never see Nangong Qian again in this life.