The arrow almost flew past Bian Rang's cheek, which made his hair stand on end and he was sweating like a waterfall. The intense fear almost made him unable to control his urge to urinate. He turned his head with difficulty and looked at He Jin with a pale face: "General... General... General." His voice trembled, and his teeth collided with each other, making a slight clicking sound, like dead leaves swaying in the cold wind. He seemed to want to say something to He Jin, but at this time, he had something on his mind and could not speak.
Although He Jin was frightened by this sudden turn of events, he still had courage and courage after being a general for so many years. He did not act as rude as Bian Rang.
He took two deep breaths and waved his hand towards Bian Rang: "Sir, go ahead. Maybe the guards in the palace were practicing archery, so the shot missed."
He gave a very lame excuse, but Bian Rang didn't care anymore. The only thought in his mind was to stay away from He Mansion and He Jin as soon as possible. As soon as he saw He Jin's gesture, he didn't even have time to perform the most basic farewell etiquette, and directly opened the door and rushed out.
It wasn't until Bian Rang's figure disappeared from his eyes that He Jin retracted his gaze and looked at the pitch-black arrow. The reason why he didn't show any fear or fear, nor did he call the guards to come.
It was entirely because the moment the arrow was nailed to the screen, he noticed that the arrow seemed to be wrapped with something, and it was tied to the arrow with a thin hemp thread.
Therefore, he concluded that the arrow was not meant to assassinate him, but probably to send him some information. He had sent Yuan Shao out on business earlier, and it was very likely that Yuan Shao had sent him some important news.
He Jin reached out to pull out the arrow to see if it was the information Yuan Shao had given him. But he didn't expect that the arrow would not move at all. He had obviously exerted a lot of force, which made him frown. He looked carefully at the cutting point, and his pupils shrank immediately. He saw that the cutting tip had completely penetrated the one-inch thick wood. Screen siding.
A thin trickle of sweat slowly crawled onto his forehead. The scene in front of him made this powerful general who was in charge of the world's troops couldn't help but tremble.
How many stones does this bow have to be so powerful, and what kind of person is the person who uses it? How much strength does it take to pull such a treasured bow?
He Jin took a deep breath, gathered all his strength in his hands, and held the arrow tightly. With a loud shout from his mouth, the arrow was finally pulled out with a click. The sharp edge of the scissors brought out a splinter of wood, torn from the screen.
He Jin couldn't help but gently touch the place where the wood chips fell off, as if stroking the wounds on his body.
He turned around and placed the arrow on the desk. The thin hemp thread was tied with a slip knot, which was not difficult to solve. He gently pulled the thread, and a piece of black silk with the same color as the arrow body fell down.
He Jin picked it up and spread it in his hand. He saw that it was not a secret report sent to him by Yuan Shao.
I saw a line of small characters written with dragons and phoenixes on the silk, "If you want to keep the official alive, go to Taoyuan Restaurant."
He Jin looked at Juanbo and couldn't help frowning. He knew about Taoyuan Restaurant. It was the largest restaurant in Luoyang City, and princes and ministers like them were often guests there.
Moreover, his younger brother He Miao was killed due to a personal conflict in that restaurant.
He put the silk on the oil lamp and lit it, watching it slowly burn and turn into ashes.
In the study room, he was wandering unsteadily, with ups and downs in his heart.
Originally, he had decided to flee Xiliang, but the four words "Keep the official alive" on the silk resounded in his mind like a spell, putting him in a dilemma.
He knew that once he left Luoyang, it would mean a complete break with the center of power, and his future was uncertain. If he could really keep his official alive, who would be willing to flee to the end of the world.
But who was the one who came to help? What's the purpose? How dare you boast about going to Haikou to save his life and retain his official position? Isn't this bait?
After wandering in the study for a long time, He Jin finally made up his mind and decided to go to Taoyuan Restaurant to find out. He put on his casual clothes, quietly left the He Mansion and walked towards the restaurant.
The Taoyuan Restaurant was brightly lit and bustling with people. He Jin found a seat by the window and sat down, ordered a pot of wine and poured himself a glass of wine. He is always alert to everything around him and can run away immediately if something goes wrong.
Before the glass of wine was finished, a young man in his twenties, dressed in white clothes and holding a bamboo slip in his hand, dressed as a scholar, sat directly opposite him.
He Jin subconsciously reached out and drew his sword. The young man patted the bamboo slip in his hand on the table and looked at him with a smile: "Why, General He doesn't want to live anymore?"
When He Jin heard this, he drew his long sword and pointed it at the young man. He narrowed his eyes and said coldly: "Is this the letter you sent to me?"
"Haha, that's right!" The young man stretched out a finger, pushed away the long sword that was only an inch away from his face, and said with a smile: "General He, you'd better sit down. You reacted so loudly because you were afraid that others would notice you." Not with you?"
He Jin glanced around the restaurant and found that many of the guests drinking and dining in the building were staring at this side. With a soft hum, he put the long sword into its scabbard and sat down.
He looked at the young man and said, "Tell me, who are you? You deliberately lured me here. What are you going to do?"
"My dear, Wang Yibo!" The young man said with a smile: "Didn't I tell you in the letter why I asked you to come here? To save your life and keep your position as general."
Seeing the spring-like smile on Wang Yibo's face, He Jin felt chilled all over.
"Haha!" He Jin laughed mockingly: "Just you? Now the emperor's clan wants me to die, can you protect me?"
Wang Yibo stood up and looked at He Jin, the smile on his face never diminishing: "It's my business whether you can do it or not, and it's your business whether you want it or not. There are a lot of people talking here. General He, please follow me to the fifth floor to talk!" Without waiting for He Jin to react, he turned around and left.
"Fifth floor?" He Jin's pupils shrank. As a frequent visitor here, everyone knows that the fifth floor is not open to the public. No one has this privilege.
There was once a man who wanted to have a banquet on the fifth floor. He felt that because of his status as a prince, the other party would not dare to refuse.
But in the end, the store owner's words made everyone tremble with fear. The shopkeeper only said one thing, don't say you are just a prince, even if you are the current emperor, this fifth floor will not be open to you.
At that time, people thought that the store must be unlucky, but later, the store had nothing to do and continued the business, but the prince was inexplicably deprived of his title.
From then on, all dignitaries and prominent families chose to drink and dine at Taoyuan Restaurant.
The reason is to find out the details of Taoyuan Restaurant and to curry favor with the people behind it, and He Jin is no exception.
But for many years, the owner of Taoyuan Restaurant has always been a mystery, and the fifth floor has never been opened.
But now this young man said that he would go to the fifth floor to discuss it in detail. How could this make He Jin calm?
In his heart, besides shock, there was ecstasy.
If this young man can go up to the fifth floor, then even if he is not the owner of Taoyuan Restaurant, he is inextricably linked to the person behind Taoyuan Restaurant.
If he could get help from this mysterious restaurant that even the royal family was not afraid of, he might actually be able to save his life or even his official position.
Because since the other party can make a prince lose his official position, he will definitely be able to keep him.
After He Jin struggled for a while, his eyes became firmer, he took a deep breath, grabbed his sword and chased after him.
The departure of the two people did not cause any disturbance in the restaurant. As the two people left, the guests turned their eyes away, and everything in the restaurant returned to normal.
It was almost evening, the setting sun was soft, and there were more and more pedestrians on the street. The vendor's shouts were also louder, hoping to attract the attention of pedestrians and buy his goods.
In Luoyang's East Street, the scene here is quite different, because most of the people living here are dignitaries. The people walking on the streets were no longer ordinary pedestrians, but groups of heavily armed soldiers.
Since Liu Yan made a big fuss in Luoyang and kidnapped Cai Yong, the number of guards here has more than doubled.
The residence of Zhang Rang, the ten permanent servants, is in the middle of East Street. It is the place with the most guards and the most magnificent residence. Some people even say that his residence is as luxurious as the Luoyang Palace.
At this time, in a secret room in his mansion, Zhang Rang and a middle-aged man were sitting opposite each other, talking in a low voice.
Zhang Rang looked at the large boxes of treasures in the center of the secret room, looked at the man opposite and said: "Haha, you are really generous. These treasures are enough to buy most of Luoyang City, and you gave them to me so easily. Just want to keep He Jin, that reckless man?"
"That's right!" The man said, "As long as you keep He Jin, they will be yours."
Zhang Rang's face trembled, and he struggled for a while before saying, "Why do you want to protect him?"
The man picked up the wine glass on the table and took a sip: "You don't need to know this, and knowing too much can be very dangerous."
Zhang Rang thought for a moment and said, "Just take your things away, and I'll pretend you've never been here."
"You don't like these treasures?"
"I like it, but although the treasure is good, I still care more about my life. What good does it do to me to let He Jin go? He controls the Forbidden Army, holds the military power of the world, and has always been against me..."
"Then what if He Jin resolves the feud with you from now on?" Zhang Rang was interrupted by the man before he could finish his words: "You and He Jin will help each other from now on. The emperor has full confidence in you, and He Jin has a powerful army. If you two join forces, you will not have the final say in this world."
"Besides, look at the emperor's current body, how long do you think he can sustain it? What will you do if he dies? Which aristocratic families and people who hate your eunuchs do you think will let you go?" The man saw Zhang Rang and said nothing. , and then said: "You need an ally and a backer now, and He Jin is just the best candidate. With your business experience in the court for so many years, plus He Jin's army, who in the world would dare to fight with you?" enemy?"
After hearing what the man said, Zhang Rang's expression changed. He naturally understands the stakes involved, but does He Jinhui?
"I'll think about it." Zhang Rang finally said. The man nodded, as if he had anticipated Zhang Rang's reaction.
After a long time, Zhang Rang looked at the man and said, "Can you guarantee that He Jin will join forces with me from now on?"
"certainly."
"Okay, I agree!" Zhang Rang finally made up his mind. If he could practice with He Jin, it would be the best choice.
He didn't dare to offend the person in front of him, and besides, there were mountains of treasures that he would never be able to spend in a few lifetimes.
