Gu Shengchao grabbed the note and rushed out like a madman, but where should he look in the capital at night?
Ding Ying need not worry, she is absolutely safe with the two seniors Lu Chuan and Fang Xingdan accompanying her. Liu Ximei was different. She was alone in the world with no relatives or friends. She didn't even know who her biological parents were. She had no experience in the world. A weak woman was really frightening.
Gu Shengchao stayed up all night and searched the entire capital. He kept running through the streets and rooftops, hoping to meet Liu Ximei at any cost. However, the other party seemed to have disappeared without a trace.
The capital was also restless at night. As the Ninth Prince's right-hand man, Fan Lixin stayed up all night and was busy arresting relevant suspects, causing uproar in the city.
At a street corner, the ancient sage rushed past, and the guard on the handle immediately shouted: "What are you doing? Stop, the archers are ready."
Gu Shengchao didn't want to pay attention to them. A black shadow jumped from the roof and stopped in front of him. The two looked at each other and laughed at the same time. They asked in unison: "Why are you here?"
"Brother Fan, my wife and I had some quarrels. A man ran away and I'm not chasing him." Gu Shengchao sighed.
Fan Lixin was overjoyed and said: "You, how do you say hello? Eat the food in the bowl and look at the food in the pot. I will live a good life with you in the future. Okay, I want to escort the prisoner back. Remember to come to me tomorrow morning. It's done this time, Your Highness." If you want to be rewarded based on your merits, you are indispensable."
At dawn, the ancient sage was exhausted. The rising sun brought light and warmth, but his heart sank into the cliff, as if frozen by thousands of years of ice, and he was in pain.
Gu Shengchao remembered that Liu Ximei once said that she was from Lizhou, so with a sense of luck, he found out the route to Lizhou, bought a horse and drove there. As for the Ninth Prince, it doesn't matter whether he is rewarded or not. His beloved has been lost, and there is no time or mood to deal with this.
Outside the capital, on a hill, there was a man sitting far away, singing and drinking, with a hoarse voice and a sad voice.
Gu Shengchao faced the rising sun and saw only a figure with a golden edge. He walked around the hill and saw the face of that person clearly. He was the son-in-law of the Shaoqing of Dali Temple in the capital. He had broken one of his legs a few days ago. .
Dali Temple is backed by the Ministry of Punishment. After this turmoil, it should be a disaster. As the son-in-law of the temple minister, he was not arrested and imprisoned last night. Of course, it is something worth celebrating.
Ancient Sage Chaozong immediately went to the hill, dismounted and walked towards the man, "Master Liu is drinking here alone, what a joy to congratulate him!" Ding Ying said that she had accompanied Liu to the capital, and this man must be Liu.
The man raised his head, his young eyes full of vicissitudes of life, and he asked doubtfully: "Who are you, and where does my happiness come from?"
Gu Shengchao smiled and said: "It doesn't matter who I am. The Minister of Punishment is dead and Dali Temple has no backer. Isn't it a happy event that you can still drink and sing here?"
The man took a sip of wine and smiled bitterly: "Yes, I am still alive. It is indeed gratifying." He raised his head, squinted his eyes and looked at the morning sun, and sighed: "They are all dead, and I am the only one who is still alive. I should be happy. ." He smiled, but tears rolled down his cheeks, and he started to cry.
Gu Shengchao sat down with him silently. After he cried for a while and stopped sobbing, he asked in a low voice: "I can't stay in the capital anymore. What are your next plans? Are you going back to your hometown?"
The man asked warily: "Who are you?"
Gu Shengchao thought of the departure of Ding Ying and Liu Ximei, and said sadly: "Like you, I am a sad person who was forced to get involved in the dispute between the Ninth Prince and the eunuch chief Wen Zhe, and ended up with nothing."
The man felt relieved and sighed: "Yes, the glory, wealth, fame and wealth are all in vain, just a dream!" He picked up the wine jar with both hands and took several swigs.
Seeing that he was drinking happily, Gu Shengchao stretched out his hand and said, "Here, I'll take a few sips to enjoy myself too."
The man hugged the wine jar and refused to let go. He shook his head and said, "You can't drink this wine. It's all mine."
"Stingy." Gu Shengchao laughed mockingly.
The man simply picked up the wine jar and drank it all in one breath, then threw the wine jar into a shallow pit next to it. Only then did Gu Shengchao notice that the shallow pit was long for one person, and there was a handful of farm work tools thrown beside it.
Gu Shengchao looked uneasy at the shallow pit and asked, "Did you dig the pit?"
The man nodded and said sadly: "I have no home anymore. This is my last home." Thinking of the past, he shed tears again and choked up: "My wife died because of me, and I don't know where she is buried. , I became a son-in-law because of my greed for wealth, and I was humiliated so much that my family was ruined. I had no shame to see my ancestors, and no shame to go back to my hometown to see my fellow villagers."
He was crying and talking, and blood oozed from the corners of his mouth and flowed down.
Gu Shengchao suddenly realized: "Did you drink the poisonous wine?"
The man cried: "I can't survive. I just want to ask you one thing. I hope you can help me."
"Say." Gu Shengchao was a little moved.
"After I die, bury me here. Please cover me with thicker soil. I don't want to be picked up and eaten by wild dogs in the wilderness." After he said this, he felt severe pain in his abdomen, and blood came out from the corner of his mouth. He found the right spot and fell headlong into the pit. He rolled and curled up in the pit because of discomfort, and finally his body stood motionless.
Gu Shengchao said "Hey" several times to confirm that the other party was dead, then jumped down to straighten his body, then came up to backfill all the soil and level it with his feet.
He stood on the hill, feeling inexplicably sad.
There is nothing wrong in a person's pursuit of glory and wealth, but if the method and process are wrong, maybe it is the real mistake!
The ancient sage was so depressed that he couldn't help but roar loudly. He felt more comfortable, then he mounted his horse and ran towards the rising sun.
He asked around while walking, but there was still no news from Liu Ximei. On this day, Gu Shengchao came to a prosperous town. He randomly found a restaurant on the roadside and went in. There were many people downstairs. Gu Shengchao walked up to the second floor and found a seat to sit down. He ordered wine and meat and drank alone in depression. He was drinking wine, and there were three people leaving the free table unused, so they sat down face to face with Gu Shengchao.
"What do you want, sir?" The waiter came forward to greet you.
"Three portions of his order," a woman replied.
The Ancient Sage was very strange. He looked up and looked at the person in front of him as if he had seen him somewhere before, but couldn't remember for a moment. The three women are all in black robes, and the leader is in his thirties. He is dignified and elegant, exuding a murderous aura, and one can tell that he is a master who is not easy to mess with. Perhaps due to being exposed all year round, her skin is a bit rough, far less delicate than that of Ding Ying or as delicate as Liu Ximei's.
The woman also noticed that Gu Shengchao was looking at her, with a sharp look in his eyes. Gu Shengchao lowered his head involuntarily and drank carefully, lest he cause trouble. He sensed that the woman's aura was reserved and difficult to detect face to face. She was definitely a master.
The waiter brought the food and wine to the table and set them up. The woman next to him filled the three of them with wine. The woman picked up the wine bowl and took a sip. She stared at Gu Shengchao and said, "Why, you don't recognize me anymore?"
Gu Shengchao then raised his head and looked at it again, shaking his head in confusion: "I seem to have seen it somewhere, I can't remember it."
The woman placed the wine bowl heavily on the table and said sarcastically: "Hmph, you were hung up on Qixing Cliff. Who saved you?"
Scenes from the past appeared in his mind, and Gu Shengchao finally remembered it, cupped his hands and said: "Thank you, senior, for saving your life that day. I can't thank you enough. I think your senior is the Night Charm King of the Four Kings Valley."
Gu Shengchao remembered correctly, this woman was Wanruo, the Night Charming King of the Four Kings Valley. That day, Gu Shengchao was captured by Qixingya and hung up and almost died, but Wan Ruo rescued him in time.
Wan Ruo snorted coldly: "You still have some conscience, remember this king." After she said that, she thrust a palm at Gu Shengchao without any warning. Gu Shengchao was horrified, and quickly raised his hands to parry, and naturally used The skill of Jiutian Biluo Palm. Wanruo's moves were swift, and when he saw the Ancient Sage's super block, he turned his palms to lift up, heading straight for the Ancient Sage's super face gate.
Wan Ruo and Lu Chuan were from the same sect. Although Lu Chuan was not the master of Gu Shengchao, he was better than him. Gu Shengchao made up his mind that if Wan Ruo really wanted to make a killing move, he would never entangle him and escape as far as he could. No matter how far you are, you won’t be an enemy of the Four Kings Valley.
Fortunately, Wan Ruo was just testing, and the two of them were sitting across the table. As long as Gu Shengchao defended properly, Wan Ruo would immediately respond without delay. Wan Ruo only attacked but did not defend. Gu Shengchao only defended but did not attack. After making more than thirty moves, Wan Ruo suddenly closed his palm and said with relief: "That's right. It seems that Brother Lu has indeed taught you all the Nine Heavens Blue Falling Palm." , which disciple are you?"
Gu Shengchao said truthfully: "I don't know, junior. It seems that senior Lu has never accepted a disciple."
Wan Ruo was confused: "Why, you are not his disciple?"
"No." Gu Shengchao shook his head and said, "Junior wanted to become Senior Lu's teacher, but he refused and just taught me kung fu."
Wan Ruo said in confusion: "This is strange. Could it be that Brother Lu has something to hide?" She looked at Gu Shengchao and said: "I think your kung fu is not weak, how could you be caught by the Qixingya gang? I'll test it." However, their skills are quite ordinary."
Gu Shengchao smiled bitterly and said: "Senior Lu had just taught the junior kung fu at that time, but he was arrested before he could use it for his own purposes. He almost lost Senior Lu's face."
Wan Ruo smiled and said, "Let me tell you, there are no weak soldiers under a strong general. No matter how bad Brother Lu's martial arts is, the disciples he taught will not be in such a mess." She thought for a while and said, "Well, you can follow me back to the Four Kings. Gu’s return to life can be regarded as an explanation to the owner of the valley.”
"Back to the Four Kings Valley? Why?" Gu Shengchao didn't understand.
Wan Ruo stared with big eyes and asked, "Didn't Brother Lu tell you about the rules of the Four Kings Valley?"
"No, Senior Lu has not disclosed anything about the Four Kings Valley to this junior." Gu Shengchao said seriously.
Wan Ruo was even more confused, "What kind of medicine is in this gourd of Brother Lu?" She waved her hands and said decisively: "Forget it, leave him alone, just follow me back to the Four Kings Valley, and then leave after eating."
Gu Shengchao refused: "Thank you, senior, for your kindness. I understand. It's just that I still have important things to do. Let's go back with senior after I finish it!"
"You are presumptuous, and you don't know how to appreciate it." Wan Ruo stood up with a slap on the table, smashed the wine jar in front of him with one palm, and stretched out his right hand to grab Gu Shengchao by the collar.
