Qi Ning sneered and said: "This person really had deliberate intentions. He assassinated Mr. Hu, naturally to hinder the delegation from going to Dong Qi. If he succeeds this time, of course we can only stop and report to the court quickly, and we can't continue. Go to Dongqi. Delaying here might be his trick."
Hu Bowen sighed: "Although the lower official knew that he had a feud with the Jinyi Hou Mansion, he thought that sending an envoy to Eastern Qi was a national event after all. He could not delay the national event because of personal grudges." He shook his head and said softly: "Look at it this way Come on, the three soldiers who were killed earlier were probably his fault."
"Master Hu, please don't forget that Wu Dalin was promoted by the Sima family." Qi Ning said calmly: "The emperor wants to propose marriage to Dong Qi, but the Sima family is unwilling to do so. I have been thinking that the Sima family will not let us become generals smoothly. The marriage has been negotiated. Now I'm just worried that there is another conspiracy behind it."
"Is there another conspiracy?" Hu Bowen asked worriedly: "How can Master Hou say this?"
"Master Hu, after we left the capital, there were always people watching in secret." Qi Ning said coldly: "Before, I was still thinking about how bold those people were to attack the mission. Now it seems that those people are very brave. They may be Wu Dalin's accomplices, they are trying to cooperate inside and outside, waiting for opportunities to sabotage the mission."
Hu Bowen said in shock: "Master Hou, are you saying that the group of people who have been following and monitoring us are Wu Dalin's people?"
"Now it seems that this should be the case." Qi Ning sighed: "Master Hu, try to think about it, if Wu Dalin succeeds tonight and you, the deputy envoy, are killed, what will be the result? Needless to say, It will definitely be a mess, and even I will be in a big mess."
Hu Bowen suddenly thought about it and said: "Master Hou, is Wu Dalin killing the official just to cause chaos? In this way, the following group of people took advantage of the situation to sneak in, cooperate with Wu Dalin inside and outside, and destroy the gifts?"
"That should be it." Qi Ning said: "Master Hu was killed, the gifts were destroyed, and the mission to Dong Qi was in vain. I, Qin Ning, could only return to the capital in embarrassment. As an envoy, I cannot escape the blame. I will intervene when the time comes. The news of impeaching me will be like snowflakes. Even if I can save my life, it will be extremely difficult to organize an envoy to go out again."
Hu Bowen sighed and said with a wry smile: "I didn't expect that Duke Zhen's methods were so ruthless. In order to achieve his goal, he did not care about the interests of Dachu."
"I guessed before that the three guards who were killed must have seen things they shouldn't have seen, so they were killed and silenced." Qining whispered: "Although there is no real evidence at the moment, the matter should not be beyond my guess. , Wu Dalin must have secretly gone out to meet with his gang members tonight, and happened to be seen by three patrolling soldiers. Wu Dalin was worried that the three soldiers would leak the news, so he shot and killed... Mr. Hu, do you think my speculation is possible? "
Hu Bowen nodded slightly and said: "This matter is strange, but when I explain it this way, it makes sense." He asked in a low voice: "Master Marquis, Wu Dalin is planning to assassinate Xianguan tonight. It seems that he has already started to take action. We should How to deal with it? If it cannot be solved in time, I am worried that something more dangerous will happen."
Qi Ning pondered for a moment and then said: "Master Hu, in your opinion, how should we handle this matter?"
Hu Bowen said hurriedly: "Master Marquis, I am not trying to shirk my resignation, but this matter is indeed of great importance. I ask you to make your decision. No matter what your decision is, I will definitely obey your orders."
Qi Ning sat down on the chair, thoughtfully, and then said after a moment: "If Wu Dalin is not eliminated, the consequences will be disastrous. Mr. Hu, if we get rid of this person to avoid future troubles, what do you think?"
"Master Marquis, if we really...really get rid of Wu Dalin, will it offend the Sima family?" Hu Bowen frowned slightly and said worriedly: "The Sima family is very powerful now, and we...we are not easy to provoke."
"Why, Mr. Hu is scared?" Qi Ning smiled lightly and said: "Don't worry, if anyone wants to pursue the case, just come to me."
Hu Bowen said hurriedly: "The Marquis has misunderstood. This is not what Xiaguan meant. If the Marquis decides to really get rid of this person, I will advance and retreat together with the Marquis."
Qi Ning smiled and said: "That's very good. We also want the mission to go to Dong Qi smoothly. The national affairs are important, so we don't have to worry about it."
Hu Bowen walked to the front window, opened it slightly and looked outside. It was raining heavily at night and it was dark outside. He closed the window and came back and said: "Master Hou, in my opinion, even if you want to get rid of Wu Dalin, you need to be careful. We must not cause shock to the mission." He said in a low voice: "We don't know the details of these two hundred Yulin guards. It's hard to say whether there are any confidants of Wu Dalin among them."
Qi Ning nodded slightly and said: "What Mr. Hu said is absolutely true. You and I have not had contact with the Yulin Camp before and are not very clear about them. If many of them are Wu Dalin's people and take action, I'm afraid To cause internal strife. Before, I saw that Wu Dalin seemed to have a very harmonious relationship with his soldiers. If he attacks Wu Dalin easily, I'm afraid it will be very troublesome." He frowned slightly, thoughtfully.
Hu Bowen thought for a while, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he said: "Master Marquis, is there someone who may be able to help us solve this problem?"
"who is it?"
"Liang Xiong!" Hu Bowen said solemnly: "Liang Xiong is from the Yulin Camp and has a good relationship with these soldiers. Moreover, he knows the situation of the Yulin Camp very well. If he can help, he should be a good helper. "
Qi Ning smiled and said: "Yes, Liang Xiong is a very alert man. To be honest with you, Mr. Hu, Liang Xiong has noticed something is wrong with Wu Dalin a long time ago, and before leaving Beijing, Chi Fengdian had already told him to be careful about Wu Dalin. If you find this person to help you, you will definitely succeed immediately."
Hu Bowen said happily: "If so, that would be great. Mr. Hou, Liang Xiong is the deputy leader. If someone pursues Wu Dalin's matter at that time, you, me and Liang Xiong can prove that Wu Dalin intended to sabotage the mission's marriage proposal. Others have nothing to say. Mr. Marquis, you stay here later, and I will go find Liang Xiong to discuss this matter."
Qi Ning said softly: "The fewer people know about it, the better."
Hu Bowen nodded and said: "I understand." Then he went over to open the door and walked out lightly. Not long after, he saw Hu Bowen leading Liang Xiong into the house. After Hu Bowen entered, he closed the door and Liang Xiong came forward. He cupped his hands and said: "Master Marquis, the brothers are still searching for the assassin, and there is no trace of the assassin yet."
Qi Ning nodded, looked at Hu Bowen, coughed slightly, and waved to Liang Xiong to come closer. Liang Xiong was a little confused, but he still came forward. Qi Ning leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice: "Assassin Found it!"
Liang Xiong was startled and said in surprise: "Found it?"
"Deputy Leader Liang, there were many people just now, so I didn't speak out in public." Hu Bowen came closer and whispered: "The assassin who wants to assassinate me tonight is the escort leader of the mission, Wu Dalin!"
Liang Xiong's body trembled, his thick eyebrows tightened, and he was extremely surprised. He was silent for a moment, and then said: "Master Hu, you... do you see clearly? Although Leader Wu is a little strange, but... he won't assassinate you, right?"
Qi Ning said: "Master Hu is very sure, and I also believe that Wu Dalin is the biggest suspect."
Liang Xiong smiled bitterly and said: "Before leaving the capital, Commander Chi had given instructions. I only thought that Commander Chi was cautious, but I didn't expect...!" After a pause, he said: "Master Marquis, Mr. Hu, please come to me and inform me. There must be something to tell you about this matter, and no matter what the instructions are, I will do my best in this humble position."
Qi Ning smiled and said, "I'm just waiting for your words." His expression turned grim and he said, "Deputy leader Liang, I am leading the mission. The purpose is to fulfill the emperor's will and successfully propose marriage to Dong Qi, so I blocked the mission." All obstacles that stand in the way of Dong Qi must be kicked away." Staring into Liang Xiong's eyes, he asked, "Do you understand what I mean?"
Liang Xiong nodded slightly and said, "Did the Marquis say that... he wanted to restrain Wu Dalin?"
Hu Bowen whispered: "Deputy Leader Liang, among these two hundred soldiers, is there anyone from Wu Dalin?"
Liang Xiong said: "Although Wu Dalin came to Yulin Camp not long ago, he was well-known before. He came from a poor family, and most of the soldiers in Yulin Camp also came from poor families, so they respect him quite a bit."
"Master Marquis, it seems that we really cannot punish this person openly." Hu Bowen said: "We must do it quickly and quietly, but also quietly."
Qi Ning nodded and said: "Deputy Leader Liang, this matter is very important. Do you have any good ideas?"
Liang Xiong pondered for a moment, then finally said: "Master Hou, I have already understood what you and Mr. Hu mean. What is to be done is secret. Naturally, the fewer people know about it, the better. I have a way, I don't know if it is feasible or not." More He came closer and whispered in a low voice. Qi Ning listened and nodded. When Liang Xiong finished speaking, Qi Ning said with a smile: "That's very good. Let's do it according to Deputy Leader Liang's idea."
In the heavy rain, Wu Dalin was leading his soldiers to search for the assassin's whereabouts in every corner of the village, but found nothing. Suddenly he heard someone shouting: "Leader Wu!" A man came from the darkness. Wu Dalin took a look and saw it was Liang Xiong immediately asked: "Is there any trace of the assassin?"
Liang Xiong stepped forward and whispered: "Leader Wu, the Marquis has discovered the clues and has already led people out of the village. I ordered you to come over and inform you so that you can rush over quickly."
Wu Dalin frowned and said, "Master Hou left the village? What clues did you find?"
"It should be the trace of the assassin." Liang Xiong said softly: "The Marquis ordered us not to alert others. The others will continue to pretend to search in the village, and you and I will sneak over."
Wu Dalin looked strange, hesitated, and finally nodded: "Where is Mr. Marquis? Lead me there."
Liang Xiong led the way, and Wu Dalin followed. The two of them arrived at the entrance of the village one after another. The guards naturally did not dare to stop them. After walking for a while, they saw only a small forest in front of them and a small pond beside the forest. Wu Dalin frowned. Said: "Deputy Leader Liang, where is the Marquis?"
Liang Xiong raised his hand and pointed forward and said, "That's it." Wu Dalin looked up and saw a figure standing by the forest in front of him. Ning was about to salute, but Qi Ning had already turned around and walked into the forest. Wu Dalin frowned slightly, turned to look at Liang Xiong, and followed him.