The land of the Central Plains was supposed to be the essence of the world, with unparalleled wealth.
However, after more than ten years of war, it has become desolate, desolate and desolate. Although there are green trees and grass in the summer, there is no life except the bones hidden among them.
A sparse motorcade moved slowly, as if it could blend into this powerless world at any time.
The flag of "Prince Zhou's Mansion" hung drooping on the front of the car, without any sign of dignity, and looked as panic-stricken as a bereaved dog.
The dozen or so carriages were obviously improvised, with different specifications and no gorgeous decorations. But in today's situation, it is already the best means of transportation.
The weak soldiers around the convoy were staggering, making it difficult to believe that they could play any role in protecting them.
Zhou Wang Zhu Gongzhen was sitting alone in the only car covered by a curtain. His organs were tumbling due to the bumpy road, but he had to endure it.
He could clearly hear the non-stop crying of the young children, but he didn't want to care.
The dike was dug and the city of Kaifeng was flooded, and the Prince of Zhou's Mansion was not immune to the disaster. In desperation, Zhu Gongzhen had no choice but to ask Chongzhen to temporarily stay in Zhangde Mansion.
Prince Zhou's Mansion also has a separate courtyard over there. Although it has been abandoned for a long time, it is not easy to be picky at this time.
Another one, Li Zicheng attacked Kaifeng three times, which really frightened Zhu Gongzhen.
Especially now that there is no effective Ming army in Henan, how can we talk about defending Kaifeng? If he just goes back and Chuang Jun comes again, his head will not be saved.
After running to Zhangde Mansion, just one step further north is Zhili, not far from the capital.
Zhu Gongzhen made a good calculation. If he was closer to the emperor, he would definitely be safer.
Although the emperor in the capital was mean, he would definitely pay attention to his own safety. Once something happens, run to the emperor's side to have hope of survival.
The only thing that made him angry was that despite all the preparations, there was still a lot of property in the palace that had not been transported.
That was the savings of several generations of the Zhou Dynasty, and it was all lost. How would the whole family live in the future?
When Zhu Gongzhen, who is in his sixties, thinks about losing all the gold and silver he has worked so hard to accumulate, he can't help but feel evil and ill, making it difficult to hold on.
His illness made everyone in Prince Zhou's palace even more panicked.
At this time, if Zhu Gongzhen disappeared and the emperor took the opportunity to cut down the vassalage, the whole family would be doomed.
No one in the entire Zhou Palace felt guilty for the people who drowned in the flood.
The whole world belongs to their Zhu family, let alone some untouchables?
He was just a slave of their Zhu family.
The convoy was moving slowly, making it easy to be spotted in this troubled world.
Suddenly a bowstring rang out in the weeds beside the road, and arrows flew everywhere. A large number of the unprepared guards were shot to death.
Suddenly, everyone was frightened, and the screams of women and children were harsh and sharp. The guards did not think about resistance first, but looked for bunkers to avoid dying from random arrows.
Zhu Gongzhen was extremely scared.
"Escort me! Hurry and escort me! If something happens to this king, your whole family will be buried with him!"
Needless to say, more guards gathered around him.
"kill!!!!"
Countless figures rushed out of the grass.
Although their costumes were messy, they were all very tough, and they instantly overwhelmed the convoy of Prince Zhou's Mansion.
As soon as the guards of Prince Zhou's Mansion took over, they realized something was wrong.
These people who ran out were all highly skilled in martial arts, and their attacks were accurate and ruthless. They were obviously not ordinary thieves.
The number of people is several times theirs, and there is absolutely no chance of victory.
Immediately, many guards began to turn their eyes around, looking for opportunities to escape.
Fight to the death to protect King Zhou?
The stingy King of Zhou didn't even give him wages, so who would be willing to work for him?
However, not only were these killers more skilled in martial arts, they also cooperated with each other so perfectly that the guards could not even stand a chance.
Without even a stick of incense, the ground was covered with dead people.
When he went to look again, the killers were uninjured, and the dead were all the guards of Prince Zhou's palace.
By this time, the guards knew that the situation was over. They quickly dropped their weapons and knelt down to beg for mercy.
It was obvious that these killers were coming towards King Zhou, and they were just careless people. As long as they don't mess around, they should be able to save their lives.
Sure enough, seeing that the guards were no longer resisting, the killers just drove them aside and took care of them.
The scene was calm, and a figure emerged from the group of people.
"Catch the King of Zhou."
Several killers rushed to King Zhou's carriage and hacked to death all the eunuchs who stood in their way. Then he dragged Zhu Gongzhen out like a dog to death and beat him to the ground hard.
Zhu Gongzhen was already seriously ill, and after being thrown down like this, half of his life was lost.
He was dizzy and struggled to look towards the leader.
"I am the vassal king of the Ming Dynasty, a noble man in the sky. You don't know the dignity and inferiority, and you disobey the power of heaven. Aren't you afraid that your family will be confiscated and your clan will be destroyed?"
The killer leader looked at him condescendingly, and informed the family in a calm tone.
"I am Zuo Fu, the Minister of Intelligence of Xia State. King Zhou, you should know why I am here?"
Zhu Gongzhen was stunned, and the souls of the dead emerged like falling into an ice cave.
The reason why he wanted to run to Zhangde Mansion, besides wanting to be closer to the emperor, was because he was afraid of being chased by Xia Kingdom.
Although before today, he had always been proud that as a vassal king, the Xia Kingdom could do nothing to him.
Even though Gao Mingheng, Huang Shu, Yan Yunjing and others were already dead, it was because they were timid and scared themselves to death.
Unexpectedly, he was intercepted by people from Xia Kingdom before he even reached Zhangde Mansion.
This was within the territory of the Ming Dynasty, and they couldn't even protect his safety.
Zhu Gongzhen's fat body shook violently, and his crotch was hot, and then the earth was wet.
In the face of death, no one is worthy of mentioning, such as being a member of the imperial family or being a loner.
"It's all...it's all Gao Mingheng's idea. I...this king...is none of my business..."
Zhu Gongzhen was so scared that he kept shirking responsibility.
Since Zuo Fu came here in person, how could he let him go?
The sharp blade came out of its sheath, making a crackling sound and glowing with a penetrating cold light. Then there was a flash of lightning, and Zhu Gongzhen's huge human head flew high into the sky.
When his family members not far away saw this scene, they were all frightened and screamed and cried one after another.
But Zuo Fu thought it was not enough, and raised his hand to point at all Zhu Gongzhen's family members.
"These worms who harm the world and enrich themselves have killed many people because of their greed. No one is innocent. Kill them all and hang their heads on the city gate of Kaifeng. Let the people of the world take a good look. , the consequences of greed and evil.”
Following the orders, the subordinates drew their swords and rushed towards the carriages.
Zuo Fu didn't even bother to look at it, turned around and mounted his horse, preparing to leave.
boom……
There was a gunshot from nowhere, and Zuo Fu felt a violent shock in his body. Then there was a chill in my chest, and the world in front of me was spinning.
(End of chapter)
