While Lin Heng was exploring copper mines in the mountains, Zhiling had already led his team from Jinyang, traveling day and night, getting closer and closer to the border town.
The convoy carried a large amount of gold, jade, silk and silk, and when word got out unexpectedly, it inevitably attracted covetous attention. Fortunately, there were hundreds of soldiers and slaves guarding him, so there was no danger along the way.
However, just one step away from the border town, the team ran into trouble.
"What did you say?"
"Back to Mr. Lang, the bridge was broken and the boat sank. The boatman was nowhere to be found, and there were still traces of blood on the shore."
Drizzle falls from the sky, but the clouds linger. The gray rain and fog blocked the view, forcing the team to slow down.
Seeing that the scheduled time had passed, Zhiling was already anxious. Unexpectedly, the guards came to report that all the boats docked by the river were scuttled, the boatmen disappeared, and the only rope bridge was cut off. It would be difficult for boatmen and slaves without excellent water skills to cross the river for a while.
Zhiling was frightened and angry. Regardless of the continuous rain, he opened the car door and jumped out of the car.
The blue brocade robe was wet with water, the rhinoceros leather boots were stained with mud, and the hem of the robe was splashed with mud and water, but he didn't care much and pressed his sword on his hand to order the guards to lead the way.
"Prepare your horses, I'll go there myself!"
The river is surging as far as the eye can see.
The rolling yellow dragon roared, and the sound of the water was deafening.
After heavy rain for many days, the water level rose rapidly, and large pieces of soil on both sides of the river peeled off, causing the river to float and sink. The most courageous slaves would not dare to swim through such water.
"Can't you send a message to the border town?"
Zhiling tightened his grip on the reins, intending to control the horse. However, the war horse was frightened, kept neighing and stomping, and then struggled to retreat, unable to hold back at all.
Out of helplessness, Zhiling had no choice but to turn over and walk to the river.
"Lang Jun, be careful. The soil on the river bank is not strong and may break and collapse at any time. Don't get too close." The guard warned.
Zhiling stopped and looked at the long river whizzing away. He looked at the dangerous eddy bay and the rough waves crashing on the shore. His face was solemn and his eyebrows were wrinkled more and more tightly.
"Shikasi."
"Servant is here."
A guard of medium build stepped out.
He has an ordinary appearance and seems to be ordinary among the team. He is easily ignored and lost in the crowd.
"Go back to Jinyang quickly and report to my father. There must be spies in the city." Zhiling's voice was low, and he looked at the remaining sampans with a fierce look.
He set off from Jinyang and worked hard all the way, but he was still tricked.
Ten years ago, in a great war, the Zhi family was greatly damaged and retreated to Jinyang. The monarch still refused to let go and was secretly aggressive. It's nothing to have the Fox family, but he is just a running dog without the protection of the king. He has been crushed into powder long ago. How can he be so arrogant today and act more and more unscrupulously.
"After you saw my father, you told me that there must be strict investigation in the city and in the government. I would rather kill him by mistake than let him go. When the young master returns to the country, there will be a storm in Suzhou. The Zhi family will have no way to retreat, and they can no longer hide!"
"promise!"
Lu Si knelt down to accept the order, took out a war horse, jumped on the horse and galloped away.
The war horse galloped not far away, and something unexpected happened suddenly.
The sound of breaking wind came from both sides, and the black arrow rain was overwhelming, comparable to the black clouds, covering Zhiling and his party.
"Protect Mr. Lang!"
The guards quickly surrounded and protected Zhiling in the center.
The round shield is hung on the arm, raised up at the same time, with the edges overlapping, tacitly protecting the head above the head to resist the flying arrows.
Lu Si was attacked from a flank. He faced the rushing assassin alone, nimbly bent down and hung on the horse's back, using the horse's body as cover, and even stretched his bow while hanging upside down, shooting the attacker through the throat.
"Lu Si, leave quickly!"
When Zhiling's voice came, Lu Si did not hesitate, got rid of the assassin's pursuit, and stabbed the horse's buttocks with the dagger. The war horse went crazy with pain, knocked away the assassins who were blocking the way, crushed one person's leg bones, and galloped away with all four hooves.
The deer had escaped, and the assassin knew that reinforcements were coming, so he did not dare to delay.
Seeing that the arrow rain was ineffective, the leader curled up his fingers and whistled. The sharp whistle echoed in the wind, entangled with the sound of string control, and was extremely sharp and harsh.
"Quick victory!"
Their mission was to destroy the rope bridge and pierce the ship, delaying the meeting between Young Master Heng and Zhishi in the border town.
Things were settled, and the group should have left. However, the leader was eager to make a contribution. When he saw Zhiling separated from the large army and appeared at the riverside with only a dozen people, he thought it was a God-given opportunity. He temporarily changed his plan, led his men to ambush, and launched a sudden attack.
Thirty versus fifteen, Zhiling and the guards were surrounded and clearly at a disadvantage.
"Kill and take his head!"
The leader was so excited that he waved his stone ax while running. The linen wrapped around his head fell off, and it turned out to be Kuntou.
"Inurong!"
The guard recognized the attacker's identity and quickly mounted the short spear on his shield, with the cold spear tip pointed straight outward.
"Quin Rong, the ears of wild beasts." Zhiling did not hold a shield and pulled out the long sword on his waist. The light of the sword shone into his eyes, "I heard that the Hu family is willing to be humble and associate with Quan Rong. He is not worthy of being a member of the Jin Dynasty."
The leader was so angry that he screamed and rushed towards Zhiling with an angry roar, trying to knock away the shield array of the guards.
"I am the son of Zhi, and my ancestors taught me to kill Hu."
"Step aside!"
Zhiling held his long sword across his chest. When he saw his guard being knocked away by the leader of the Quanrong army, he faced the danger without dodging or evading it.
The leader of Quanrong was tall, a full head taller than Zhiling. He was a giant. He clenched the giant ax with both hands and struck it down, with a twisted expression and a leering look in his eyes, vowing to split the target in half.
The giant ax fell halfway, and his chest suddenly felt cold.
Severe pain ensued.
The leader of the Quanrong froze in the middle, lowered his head, and saw only the hilt of the sword left on his heart, holding a white and slender hand on it.
This hand can brew tea, wield ink, hold a sword and spear, and take a person's life in an instant.
The blade of the sword penetrated the chest of the Inu Rong leader and emerged from his back. Zhiling did not stop, but quickly flipped his wrist and opened a gap in the opponent's body.
"Any wild beast that dares to step into the land of Jin shall be killed!"
Zhiling retreated, sheathed his sword, and kicked the Quanrong leader on the knee.
The latter was seriously injured, and blood gushed out from the wound. He staggered and fell to his knees on the spot, lying on the ground, like a rock collapsing.
"The leader is dead!"
The leader of the Quanrong fell to the ground, and the attackers were leaderless and instantly lost their will to fight. Everyone was thinking about escaping, just like a mob.
"Kill them all, leaving no one behind."
Shaking off the blood stains on the sword, Zhiling gave the order on the spot.
The guards were ordered to disperse, working in teams of two, to hunt down the escaping Quan Rong.
A dog soldier panicked and was chased to the river bank. There were dead ends ahead and behind him, and he did not dare to fight, so he threw away his weapon and knelt down to beg for mercy.
"Spare your life!"
Without thinking, the guard pierced his neck with a spear, showing no mercy.
Blood splattered, Quan Rong covered his wound and opened his eyes wide, looking at the guard with hateful eyes.
The Jin State is bordered by a desert in the north, and it fights with the Quanrong tribes all year round.
The Zhi clan was in charge of the Jin army. The sons of the clan went to war at a young age, and the girls could also use bows and swords to defend the territory.
Among the three armies of the Jin State, the lower army fought the most with Quanrong. The clans in the army despised the Hu clan's behavior the most and disdained to be with them in the same dynasty.
Encountering Zhi's private soldiers, Quanrong had no chance of surviving, and even keeping the whole body was a luxury.
The last two attackers were forced to the water's edge, with no hope of survival, and cowered back. Unexpectedly, the ground beneath their feet collapsed, and the two fell into the water together, and were swept away by the waves in the blink of an eye.
After the battle, the guards counted the number of people, cut off the ears of the dead dogs, and threw the bodies into the river.
Just then, the deer had gone and returned, with a group of soldiers following behind him. Seeing Zhiling, Commander Jia got off his horse and reported that bandits were attacking the camp. They were killed on the spot and no one escaped.
"I checked the back of the limbs and found no brand totem. He is neither a slave nor a private soldier." The soldier said.
"It's a trick used by the Fox family." Zhiling sneered and sheathed his sword. "They learned a lesson a few years ago and they learned wisely. Without evidence, the monarch is partial and can deny it even if it is brought to the court."
"Mr. Lang, there is someone on the other side." Lu Si said.
Zhiling turned around and looked at the other side, and saw several people dressed as officials waving shields, followed by heavily armed city soldiers.
"Lu Si, please return to Jinyang immediately, see your father, and tell me what I said before."
"promise."
Lu Si did not delay, mounted his horse again, and carried out Zhiling's order.
As the war horses galloped away, a small boat was already approaching from the other side. The boat was bumping in the waves, like a dead leaf, and seemed about to capsize at any moment, but it passed through the river safely without any danger.
The official on the boat was a member of the Taorong tribe. When he saw the boatman who was seriously injured and fled back to the city, he immediately led people to inspect the accident site and happened to meet Zhiling and his party.
"It was done by Quanrong."
Both parties revealed their identities, and the officials learned that the ship had sunk and the bridge was broken, and they denounced the thieves' actions. Then the conversation changed: "Don't worry, Sir, my servant has ordered people to return to the city, and the bridge will be built when the craftsmen arrive."
"bridge?"
"Prepare plank ropes and claw flying hooks, plus a few wooden boats, we can do it on the same day."
The official is confident and does not seem to be arrogant.
Chiling was curious and sent someone back to the camp to deliver the message and watch the bridge construction process in person.
Craftsmen and slaves came through the rain, and under the arrangements of the officials, they connected the ropeway in an orderly manner and laid a suspension bridge in the air.
The craftsmen's tools attracted Zhiling's attention.
Without him asking, the official took the initiative to answer his questions: "If you plan to leave the county government, Master Tao will order someone to cast it."
Although the craftsmen are fast, the amount of work is really not small. By the time the suspension bridge was completed, it was almost sunset.
The sun sets in the west, the clouds disappear and the rain falls, and the sky is filled with crimson.
The cool breeze blew in my face, and the water gradually calmed down, no longer as violent as it was during the day.
The armored soldiers escorting the carriages gathered at the river bank. Zhiling was considering crossing the river in batches when he suddenly saw a team coming from the other side of the river. There was a black carriage in the team, followed by knights on both sides carrying double spears. They were clearly private soldiers of the Zhi family. .
"Lang Jun, it's the young master here." Lang Jia was walking with Zhiling. When he saw the familiar carriage, he immediately said.
Zhiling could guess the identity of the person without him having to say anything.
He immediately tidied up his clothes and made sure there was nothing wrong, then led his friends to board the suspension bridge and reached the other side as quickly as possible.
The two of them, Wolf and Armor, walked together.
The remaining personnel and vehicles remained on the other side, awaiting further orders.
Zhiling quickly walked off the bridge and stepped onto the river bank. The carriage door opened at the same time, and Lin Heng bent down and walked out of the carriage.
The two met when they were young and have been apart for many years.
In nine years, a child grows into a boy, and a boy becomes a young man. Although the body shape has changed, the outline of the facial features is still familiar.
"Greetings to the young master." Zhiling straightened himself up and saluted. He was as handsome and elegant as a bamboo pole.
Lin Heng personally helped him up and said with a smile: "I've been away for nine years, brother, I'm back."
He left Shangjing safely and returned to Jin alive.
There will no longer be peace in Suzhou with singing and dancing, and some people are destined to have trouble sleeping and eating, and feel as if they are sitting on pins and needles.
Zhiling raised his head, met Lin Heng's eyes, and immediately understood what he meant.
The two looked at each other and smiled, and the strange feeling of not seeing each other for many years quickly faded away, leaving only the joy of meeting again after a long separation. Warmth and tacit understanding filled my chest, settling slowly and lingering for a long time.
