"Pa!" The guard's big slap hit the prisoner's cheek hard. There was blood flowing from the corner of his mouth, but he smiled nonchalantly and spat blood on the ground. "Ignorant thing!" the guard cursed, got up and left the woodshed.
Zhang Nao, who was standing at the corner of the side hall, waved to him and the guard walked over. "How?" Zhang Nao asked with a smile.
The guard was unconvinced: "Hitting him is too light. I should twist off this kid's arm!" He turned to leave, but Zhang Nao grabbed him.
"We have agreed that each of our two families will go to judge a cup of tea, so we can't break the rules. Just wait and see me come!" After he finished speaking, he picked up a clay pot with a large porcelain bowl upside down.
"Hey, come on, come on. I still don't believe it. If you invite him to tea, he will bow his head honestly?" The guard looked disdainful.
"You can talk about this later." Zhang Nao happily put the linen handkerchief on his shoulders and walked towards the woodshed.
The door creaked, and the prisoner looked up and was startled when he saw a fat, white man with a Buddha-like smile coming in.
"Brother, come on, rinse your mouth first, and then drink some water. Drink more while they allow you, and they won't care about you when you get back on the road!" After Zhang Hao finished speaking, he poured a bowl of tea and brought it over: "I'm sorry for this. The tea is a bit cold, so just make do with it."
The prisoner wanted to refuse, but the aroma of the tea made his growling stomach uncomfortable. He took a sip and spit it out, then lowered his head and took a swig from Zhang Nao's hand.
After drinking two bowls of tea to keep him full, he leaned against the pillar again to catch his breath. Asked in a low voice: "What is this place?"
"I don't know either. I met a temple on the road." After Zhang Hao finished speaking, he looked back at the door: "Little brother, can't you just give in? They will send people to torture you endlessly."
"Huh, I'm not afraid!" the prisoner sneered: "Since you're doing this, you don't want to die!"
"Alas! You are a man of backbone, unlike me."
"Huh?" The prisoner looked over.
"To be honest, Xia Lujiu was a scout under Poyang Lake Marshal Liao Huazi. He surrendered after being captured. They saw that I was literate, so they asked me to be a book clerk, which saved my life." Zhang Nao said softly.
"Oh, so you were a thief?"
"Ha, you say that as if you are not ordinary."
"I am not a thief!" the prisoner replied righteously: "We are doing justice for heaven. The thief emperor has usurped the country and we must take it back and return it to its true owner!"
"Usurping the country? This is the first time I've heard this. Liao Huazi also rebelled, but he didn't say that the emperor usurped the throne? Didn't he inherit the throne from his father?" Zhang Nao looked puzzled. ask.
"I'm not talking about the current emperor, I'm talking about his father! He should not have been allowed to ascend the throne in the first place. It is only natural that brothers should be treated like brothers!
Er Yang controlled the government, and the two daughters harmed the country, which is why the world is so dark. Civil riots occurred everywhere in Jiangxi, Fujian, Hunan, Guizhou, and Guangdong and Guangxi. This is the best proof that the emperor's throne was incorrect! "
"Shh...! Keep your voice down, don't attract people!" Zhang Hao looked panicked, stood up and looked around the window for a moment, then came back and exhaled: "Fortunately, this place is the backyard, close to the monks Very few people come to the kitchen."
"Brother, can you find a way to let me go?"
"Oh my God, they were the first to suspect me!" Zhang Nao waved his hands repeatedly, then continued: "It's really hard for you to come out in such a large group and risk being discovered. Danger.
How did you get here? Are there no officers and soldiers blocking the road? In our Jiangxi Province, let alone crossing the state, even crossing a county without a road would have been detained! "
"Hey, we are led by our instructors. When the officers and soldiers see it, they have to bow their heads and give way. Who dares to intercept us!"
"So powerful?" Zhang Hao blinked and lowered his voice and asked, "Brother, if I let you go, I risk beheading you. Why don't you take me away and introduce me to the gang?"
The prisoner looked troubled: "We are not lake bandits or mountain kings. How can we join if we want to?
We are all the children of the officials who were persecuted by Er Yang back then, because our parents supported His Highness’s accession to the throne.
To get guilty. We hate both our country and our family, so it doesn't matter if we risk our lives. But you…. "
"Yes, yes, I really don't have any hatred of the country and family like you." Zhang Nao nodded: "But actually, I don't need to join your team.
As I said just now, we were born as scouts. In fact, it would be good to open a small shop outside and continue to be a spy. You see, I am now working as a book clerk with Li Sanlang. I have to go wherever he asks me to go, and I have no freedom at all. "
"Oh, is that what you think?"
"Yes!" Zhang Nao became happy: "I saw your leader in front of the battle. The one with the gray beard. I think he is pretty good. He shouldn't be that difficult to talk to, right?"
"Have you met Coach Hou? He is not what you think. He is a very powerful person. He once led thousands of soldiers!"
Seeing Zhang Nao's disappointed look, the prisoner quickly said, "But I will help you speak up. As long as you are on the periphery, it shouldn't be that difficult!"
"Okay, okay!" Zhang Nao became happy again: "The monk will be hungry after finishing his morning prayers. Later, someone will come to the backyard to have a meal, and someone will bring tea and rice to the prince. People are coming and going to us. There is a chance!"
The prisoner heard this and was surprised: "Isn't it true that there are only a few people with opportunities?"
Zhang Nao shook his head: "Now there are four groups of people in this temple: monks, pilgrims, people from King Ding, and Li Sanlang's subordinates. These people are not familiar with each other, so we are fishing in troubled waters.
Please be patient while I go find some clothes, and then we can sneak out quietly while they are eating... "
Zhang Nao came out and made a report in front of King Ding and Li Dan. After hearing this, King Ding frowned and asked Zhang Nao to go down and make preparations. After a while he said:
"I didn't expect it was him again! But why did he put so much effort into it? I can understand it if it happened to Your Majesty, but why did he come to trouble me?"
Li Dan walked to the door and called Lu Jiu, giving a few instructions in a low voice. After a while, Lu Jiu came in carrying several weapons and piled them on the ground before going out again. ..
Li Dan picked up a knife, looked at it, nodded, then looked at the other two weapons, and then said, "Chitose, please look at this. These are the weapons we captured after we blocked the pursuers this morning."
King Ding stepped forward and Li Dan pointed them out to him one by one. Surprised, King Ding picked up a sword and pulled it open to see that the word "Fan" was engraved on the sword body above the sword grid.
"What does this mean? King Fan?" He turned around and asked in surprise.
"That's what the other party wants to tell us." Li Dan smiled: "Kill King Ding, frame King Fan, and confuse His Majesty's judgment. Kill three birds with one stone!"
"The three of us brothers are the ones who are in trouble, but he is enjoying the benefits?" King Ding suddenly understood. He turned back and looked at Han Xian, whose face was ashen: "Master Han, what do you think?"
"It's really a lot of effort!" Han Xian pressed his chest and exhaled: "However, His Highness is on the road right now, and it is not the time to investigate this matter. It is better for us to leave this matter to the Winged Dragon Guards to investigate!"
"I agree with Chang Shi's opinion." Li Dan said: "This matter involves a wide range of matters and requires detailed investigation by the Winged Dragon Guard project. Chitose's priority is to return to the capital as soon as possible and safely, and it is not advisable to stay here for a long time. In the battle before noon, the opponent suffered a lot of losses. For the time being, they will not take the initiative to attack again.
The host has already sent a request for help to the Hu family. When the Hu family's guards arrive, we will cross the river north to Tongcheng and Lujiang as soon as possible to get rid of the pursuit. This is the safest approach. "
"Okay, Master Han, tell everyone to be ready. We will set off as soon as the Hu family's response arrives!" Han Xian accepted it and went out.
"Are you really going to let that prisoner go?" King Ding looked over with some amusement in his eyes: "Are you still going to let that person be an undercover agent?"
"It's a good opportunity to give it a try." Li Dan said: "Even if you can't enter the core, as long as you get involved, I think the copper fortune teller will have a way. What hasn't he done in pawning or lending money? How can he deal with these things? There’s nothing wrong with people!”
"But... if this prisoner is released privately, it will be another trouble if it spreads to other people's ears."
"I am responsible for it myself." Li Dan replied with a smile: "We cannot completely follow the laws and rules. Sometimes we have to be flexible. If we follow the steps step by step, opportunities will be lost.
Come again. "
Prince Ding nodded helplessly with his finger: "That's you, you are so audacious and do whatever you want!" Li Dan laughed and threw it away. At that time, he had not thought of how much trouble this matter would cause.
The two people quickly crossed the narrow causeway between the water pools, then hid behind the reeds and looked back towards the pier. Zhang Nao, who was wearing a pyrotechnic robe, smiled proudly and said:
"Look, what did I say? Sometimes there are opportunities when there are many people." After he finished speaking, he pointed with his hand:
"We are two miles away from the temple now. If we haven't been discovered by now, we are probably safe. How about it? Can you still run?" After saying that, he took out two steamed buns from his arms and handed them to the other party.
"Great, I was just thinking that if I have something to eat, I can run ten miles without any problem!" The prisoner happily took it and bit it.
Zhang Hao couldn't help but burst out laughing when he saw that this guy was unprepared and unguarded. "It's okay, I'm not laughing at you. I suddenly remembered that we both ran away together, and I don't know what to call you yet!"
"Oh, yes, yes!" The prisoner hurriedly swallowed the food in his mouth and handed over his hands apologetically: "Xuan Zhang, the Xuan Huang of heaven and earth.
My father, Zhang Yeling, was the right counselor of the former Chief Secretary of Shandong. He was dismissed by Er Yang for dereliction of duty. On his way home, he was arrested by Tiqi and his whereabouts are unknown since then.
My mother and I were rescued overnight by the righteous men sent by King Xiang and sent to Xiangyang. I was raised by Chitose and reborn with kindness, so I swore from an early age that I would help Chitose rise to power, and I would be willing to behead and shed blood! "
"Okay, okay." Zhang Nao nodded: "I didn't expect to save a young man from an official family. Lu is lucky. But young man, what's our next step? Where are you people and how can we find them?"
Henry Zhang blinked and thought: "They should be not far away from here, watching from a distance."
"Not far away?" Zhang Nao remembered that he had passed a small village on the road with about ten households.
"That's enough!" Henry Zhang patted his thigh: "Let's go to that village and we'll definitely find them!"
The small village is less than three miles away from here. Two people came in the morning and the people were scared away. The whole village was deserted.
Henry Zhang didn't care. He found a piece of charcoal and drew a long-tailed bird on the door panel, with an upward fist underneath. Then he threw away the charcoal and called Zhang Nao into the house to sleep.
"Ah? Sleep? What happens next?" Zhang Nao asked.
"When they see the painting, they naturally find us."
He dared to sleep, Zhang Nao was a little embarrassed. Lying in bed and tossing and turning. After an unknown amount of time, he opened his eyes and saw a pair of eyes looking down at him. He was startled and sat up "suddenly".
The man opposite was none other than the gray beard. "Are you awake?" The man turned around and asked, "Is he the one who helped you escape?"
"Yes!" Zhang Nao was startled when he heard the voice, and then realized that Henry Zhang had gotten up at some point and was standing respectfully behind Gray Beard. He felt a little annoyed. Was he too careless in asking this young man for instructions?
"It's great that you were able to rescue him. I would like to thank you in advance!" Gray Beard raised his hand and bowed.
Zhang Nao quickly returned the salute, looked at Zhang Xuan and asked softly: "Teacher Hou?" Zhang Xuan nodded vigorously. Zhang Nao immediately got up and kowtowed and said, "Former scout Lu Jiu, who was under the command of Liao Shuai of Poyang Lake, came to pay tribute to Master Hou and asked him to take him in and give him a bowl of rice!"
"Well, Ah Xuan told me just now." Gray Beard stretched out his hand and said, "It's not difficult for you to stay, but my subordinates will never keep people who are incompetent. What skills does Zhuangshi Lu have?"
"I know how to write and do calculations, so I can be a shopkeeper or accountant."
"Oh, is there anything else?"
"Well, I know how to deal with pawns, shop rentals, and loans."
"Um, um, is there anything else?"
"Uh," Zhang Nao looked outside the house: "I don't know if this counts? Please move outside the house." He got out of bed and came to the millstone outside the house. There was a stone mill standing against the wall.
Zhang Nao looked at the stone grinder, braced his horse, and felt angry in his dantian. He pushed the stone grinder with his hand first, then stood up and took a breath.
Instructor Hou narrowed his eyes when he saw his posture.
I saw Zhang Nao gently crushing the stone and placing it crookedly, holding the bottom with his hands, exerting force on his waist, back, and arms, "Ahem!" He lifted the stone above his head, soaring, soaring, soaring, and stepped under the window, pushing the stone Crush and slowly return to the ground.
Someone in the audience whispered: "True divine power!"
"It's funny, it's funny!" Zhang Nao sang in groups. The surprised Henry Zhang went over and patted him on the back, as if he was indifferent.
"Hey, when the master comes back and sees that the roller has moved, he will probably think that some gods and monsters have come, right?" Coach Hou actually made a joke, and then asked everyone:
"Which of you can lend a hand, it's better to help others move back to where they were." Everyone's faces suddenly looked embarrassed.
"No need to worry about you, the person who tied the bell needs to untie the bell." After Zhang Nao finished speaking, he squatted down and picked up the mill again and put it back under the wall next to the millstone. This immediately caused everyone to applaud.
Instructor Hou came over and took Zhang Nao's left arm to invite him into the room, and then asked: "Since Brother Lu came from there, he should know roughly the route they took, right?"
"Captain, they will stay in Tongcheng County tonight. They will leave for Lujiang tomorrow, and then go from Luzhou Prefecture to Fengyang Prefecture. I don't know how to go from there."
"Very good, that's enough!" Coach Hou was very satisfied: "I was always unsure whether they would take the Shucheng road. It seems they are planning to go along the west bank of Chaohu Lake?"
"It turned out that King Ding planned to go to Shucheng via Beixiaguan, but Li Sanlang was worried that this road would be easily ambushed due to the high mountains and dense forests, so he persuaded him."
"Oh, that's it! Humph, that's pretty weird! But does he think everything will be fine if he just walks to Lujiang River?" Coach Hou stroked his beard and thought for a moment:
"But he reminded me that Lujiang is indeed an important place, and we didn't pay enough attention to it before!" He turned around and looked at Zhang Nao: "You are very good!
Let's do this, you take Henry Zhang and rush to Lujiang first, find a place to stay, and at the same time monitor the convoy's actions after entering the city. Henry Zhang knows how to contact me. I may not go to the city, but you have to be able to report the news. Can you do it? "
"This is my job, don't worry. I will take Henry one step ahead. You and the other brothers will follow the convoy. I will write down the information about their accommodation, defense, and contacts after they enter the city." Is that true for you?"
"Sure enough, he has been a scout!" Coach Hou gave a thumbs up and added: "You two will stay in Lujiang later and be responsible for building up the Luzhou Prefecture's informant network. I will leave you a sum of money. You Find a business to open as a cover.
Henry Zhang is the bridge between you and me. Except for Zhang Xuan, don’t tell anyone else about this. Do you understand? "
"True and false, it's so subtle!"
