The imperial forest army who went to besiege Pingyuanhou's mansion came to the gate of Pingyuanhou's mansion and announced the imperial edict loudly, listing the crimes of Pingyuanhou's treason. The leader of the Imperial Forest Army was ordered by the crown prince to publicize the treasonous acts of Marquis Zhenbei and Marquis Pingyuan to the people in front of the mansion, so as to tarnish their reputation, only then can they drive out their families and exterminate them. The gate of Pingyuan Hou's mansion was empty, and the Imperial Forest Army rushed into the mansion gate after yelling. There were several "civilians" outside the gate of Pingyuanhou's Mansion. Seeing that the Imperial Forest Army could easily rush into the gate, they dispersed in a hurry and ran to report the news.
The Imperial Forest Army who entered Pingyuanhou's Mansion felt very surprised—the courtyard was empty, not even a servant. He walked all the way to a courtyard in the mansion, only to hear a bang inside, and a row of servants appeared on the courtyard wall.
The general of the Yulin Army shouted: "The Yulin Army has been ordered to kill the Pingyuanhou Mansion!"
A young man appeared on the wall, and said in a crisp voice: "My father led the army to fight against the Beirong, and someone actually provoked the emperor behind his back and copied and killed the family members of the soldiers who resisted the enemy! This is a poisonous plan of the Beirong, and it must not be allowed to succeed! Dear Imperial Forest Army! Soldiers, please think for a moment, don't trust bandits!"
The leader of the Imperial Forest Army shouted back: "You are the son of Marquis Pingyuan?! How dare you question the imperial decree? Marquis Pingyuan colluded with Marquis Zhenbei, intending to usurp the throne and treason. Don't make excuses, open the door!"
Zhang Yunzhao said loudly: "No! When my father comes back, he will protest to the emperor. You back off, or you will seek your own death!"
The general of the imperial forest army said: "You want to rebel! Go!" He felt that he was in command of the imperial forest army, and they were all professional soldiers. What are these servants who guard the courtyard
But when the Imperial Forest Army rushed upwards, a burst of arrows shot down the wall, and many Imperial Forest Army soldiers fell to the ground.
The leader of the imperial forest army shouted: "You are rebellious! You are really rebellious!" He commanded the people: "Let's go together, let's go together!" Five hundred people rushed up together, and the arrows on the wall rushed over. Arrow Rain's people also fell to the ground suddenly when they approached the wall.
Zhang Yunzhao was holding a tray full of short darts, standing beside Eunuch Gu. A wooden shelf has long been set up inside the wall, and people can stand inside and shoot arrows outside. Eunuch Gu walked back and forth along the wall, occasionally throwing a dart to shoot off soldiers missed by the bow and arrow.
After a round of attack, the Royal Forest Army suffered heavy losses. While the leader had people surround the courtyard, he sent people to the palace to deliver letters.
Zhang Yunzhao looked at the soldiers of the imperial forest army retreating, and praised Eunuch Gu repeatedly: "Master! You are so amazing! I really admire you! If you are not here, we will be in trouble! I don't know what happened to my junior brother."
Eunuch Gu said with a stern face: "That kid is kind-hearted and soft-hearted, he probably doesn't want to kill anyone."
Zhang Yunzhao also nodded and said, "I think so too. Every time I hit him, he never fights back. How could he do it?"
Eunuch Gu snorted: "He better not make mistakes!"
The situation in Zhenbeihou's Mansion is roughly the same. As soon as the Imperial Forest Army arrived at the gate, the servants who were in front of the gate ran inside, but there were many people around. The Royal Forest Army naturally issued an imperial decree, denouncing Zhenbeihou's treasonous acts. Among the evidence listed, it was also mentioned that Second Miss Shen personally delivered the letter of Zhenbeihou's father and son collaborating with the enemy.
After hearing this, the informants who were guarding here left, and the people left behind started talking loudly: "Zhen Beihou actually defected to the enemy?" "Second Miss Shen has evidence of collaborating with the enemy? Is this true?"...
The Royal Forest Army didn't have time to respond to the doubts of these people, so they rushed into the mansion and began to kill.
In the courtyard of the Zhenbeihou Mansion, a few guards rushed to the backyard. The Imperial Forest Army came all the way in without encountering any obstacles. There was no one in each courtyard. They walked all the way to a small courtyard at the back before seeing the wall The shadow of the guard was revealed.
The imperial army surrounded the courtyard and shouted at the door, "The imperial army was ordered to kill Zhenbeihou's mansion..."
An old guard said loudly: "Master Hou and all the grown-up sons and even the eldest lady went to fight against Beirong. The emperor must have been deceived. I can't open the door, at least until Master Hou comes back."
The general of the Imperial Forest Army shouted: "How dare you resist the order? No wonder the Marquis of Zhenbei colluded with the enemy! How dare a general defy the imperial order?!"
It was Lao Guan who was talking on the wall. He was clumsy with his tongue and couldn't make sense. He could only say, "No matter what you say, I won't open the door!"
The general of the Imperial Forest Army shouted: "Kill!"
Lao Guan also shouted: "Shoot the arrow!"
The guards on the wall opened their bows and shot arrows, but they were also a little apprehensive in their hearts—this was an imperial decree, so they hesitated to shoot the arrows, and it didn't matter if they hit the arrow.
Lao Guan was in a hurry: "Shoot! Otherwise, they will charge and everyone will die!"
The guards shot another round, the Imperial Forest Army retreated slightly, and also bent their bows to shoot back. The guards half-lowered their bodies behind the wall, and then stood up to shoot arrows while looking at the space. . The general of the Imperial Forest Army was yelling outside while sending people back to the palace to report the news, saying that the Marquis of Zhenbei was connected with foreign barbarians, harming the country and the people. The evidence is convincing, but he did not subdue the law. Such shamelessness is really rare in ancient and modern times...
Shen Qiang took a wooden stick and walked around the wall surrounding the inner courtyard. He still had a slight smile on his face, thinking it was fun. Before leaving, the third brother repeatedly said that he should listen to Lao Guan. If he is surrounded in a yard, he must not let bad people into the yard. Shen Qiang couldn't understand the words outside at all, so naturally he didn't care about anything. He just waved his stick and yelled a few times, but no one else knew what he meant.
Lao Guan was very nervous, staring at the outside and at the people on his side. Although he tried his best to choose reliable people, he still couldn't guarantee that there would be no spies. He was most afraid of being rebellious, and he didn't have the heart to talk to the outside at this time. The guards were conflicted. If they didn't resist, they would die. But now, listening to this, they seemed to be guilty, and no one made a sound. Seeing that no one scolded each other in the yard, the people outside felt that the other party felt wronged, so they cursed louder and more unscrupulously, and the shouts spread into the inner courtyard.
The female relatives in the Zhenbei Hou's Mansion have already moved into the old lady's courtyard. Although it is so crowded that several people live in one room, the old lady keeps saying that it is so lively and won't let people move out. When I came up this day, I heard the commotion outside. It turned out that the Imperial Forest Army surrounded the yard, and the female relatives all went to the old lady's living room.
Mrs. Yang sat on the chair with a face full of anger, the old lady closed her eyes and chanted scriptures, Mrs. Liu tightly held the hands of the two children, pulled them beside her, and sat on the bedside worriedly.
Holding the scarf in her hand, Mrs. Yang gritted her teeth and said, "Copy and kill our house?! What kind of madness did they commit?! Lord Hou, Dalang Erlang Saburo, my Xiang'er, are all fighting the enemy outside!" Her tears burst out and stood up abruptly: "I will fight them!"
Su Wanniang grabbed Yang Shi: "Mother! Don't worry!" She had already prepared for this time. After Shen Wen escaped, she even sneaked back once at night, telling her that the Imperial Forest Army should attack soon. She helped Yang to sit down, comforted Yang and said, "Mother! Everyone knows the virtues of Lord Marquis. There must be treacherous people here. Lao Guan will guard the yard, and the fourth brother is also outside. They just use it." The bows and crossbows sent to the righteous soldiers should be able to resist the Imperial Forest Army. We will hold on for a while, and maybe someone will complain for Lord Hou." She tied her hair with a scarf and wore Shen Xiang's narrow-sleeved shorts. T-shirt, she looks particularly neat, and her calm tone makes people feel convincing.
The old lady opened her eyes and said to Yang Shi: "Just listen to this child."
Yang took a breath for a long time, calmed down a little, and suddenly said in a daze: "Fortunately, Wen'er went to pray for blessings, and she is not in the mansion, otherwise she would not be able to escape..."
Su Wanniang said decisively: "Mother! It will be fine! There are guards outside, grandmother, mother, sister-in-law and children, just stay in the room, just don't go out." There are only Xia Qing and one of Liu's personal maids in this room , are all reliable, the other maids and women are all in the side room, as long as they stay in the room for a day and don't go out, there should be no danger.
Yang nodded a little helplessly, and the room was silent. Outside the window, there was a sound of shouting and cursing from the imperial guards. It was still the same clichés, such as the father and son of the Zhenbei Marquis collaborating with the enemy and plotting rebellion, colluding with the Beirong, luring wolves into the house, not wanting to resist, what betraying the emperor's favor and harming the people, what the emperor ordered to copy and execute, and others Do not help the traitor! Otherwise, it is the same crime! …
Yang Shi was trembling with anger when she heard this, and when she got up several times, she was pushed back to the chair by Su Wanniang, not letting her go out.
After a long time, amidst waves of cursing, the old lady finally got up and walked to the ebony bow hanging on the wall. At that time, each family brought soft goods to her, and the old lady asked someone to bring the ebony bow of the first generation of Old Town Beihou, and hung it on the wall of the main hall. The old lady raised her hand and stroked the ebony bow and said: "Since the beginning of my family, my Shen family has been adhering to loyalty, defending the country, and serving the people. Up to now, I have been so slandered by people. I can't go to the court to seek justice, but I can't do it anyway." I can't let them ruin my Shen family's face like this."
Su Wanniang hurried over, helped the old lady's arm and said, "Grandmother, please bear with me now, don't go out."
The old lady shook her head: "I want to go out and say a few words to them."
Su Wanniang shook her head in fright: "No way! It's not safe outside!" She increased her strength.
The old lady turned her head to look at Su Wanniang, shook her head and said, "My child, I am not afraid of death anymore at such an old age."
Su Wanniang was in a hurry: "Old lady! No way! Miss... the younger sister said... grandma should take a good rest and don't get tired. Shall I help you to lie down?"
The old lady ignored Su Wanniang and walked towards the door. Su Wanniang pulled the old lady's sleeve vigorously and knelt down: "Old lady! Grandmother! You can't go out! In case something happens, I'm sorry for my benefactor!" Thought she was talking about Mrs. Yang and the old lady, Su Wanniang was afraid of accidents, she was sorry for Shen Wen.
The old lady broke Su Wanniang's hand away, Su Wanniang still had respect for her elders, she didn't dare to argue with the old lady, so she could only let go.
The old lady said with tears: "If I allow them to insult the Shen family's reputation like this, I will be sorry for the dead Marquis and the dead soldiers!" She walked towards the door, Su Wanniang stood up, went to support the old lady, turned her head to face Yang Shi and Liu Shi who followed up said: "Mother, sister-in-law, please stay in the house. I will go with grandma." Yang shook her head and said, "I have to scold them too!" She told Liu Mrs. Liu said: "Take the child with you, it is the root seedling of our Shen family, don't go out." Mrs. Liu cried and stayed in the house.
Before leaving the courtyard, Su Wanniang hastily pulled out a veil from her bosom to cover half of her face. She used to be a maid and showed her face in the courtyard every day, but now she is the righteous daughter of the Hou family, so she must be careful.
Su Wanniang and Mrs. Yang helped the old lady out of the inner courtyard. When Lao Guan saw it, he was shocked and jumped off the wall and said, "Old lady, madam, why did you come out?! Go back to the inner courtyard!"
Shen Qiang ran over with a smile, knocked down an arrow with a stick, yelled twice at the old lady, and pointed to the courtyard door behind.
The old lady forced a smile to look at Shen Qiang, and said, "Honey, carry grandma up to the wall, I want to say a few words." Shen Qiang obeyed the old lady's words, and immediately bowed down, letting the old lady lie on his back . Shen Qiang has grown tall and burly. The old lady has a stooped back in recent years, and she doesn't weigh much. Shen Qiang easily carried it on her back. Then Shen Qiang stepped on a bench and a mahogany table, and put the old lady on her back. lay down. The old lady faced outside the wall, showing half of her body. She opened her mouth and said: "The old lady Gu is the wife of the old Zhen Beihou..." The people outside were still cursing, no one listened to what she said, Shen Qiang yelled twice , stretched out his hand and snatched the bow and arrow from the hand of the guard beside him, bent the bow and shot it, a man who was scolding fell down with an oops, with an arrow stuck in his hair, Shen Qiang said ah twice to the old lady, very flattering grinning.
Over there, with Su Wanniang's support, Mrs. Yang also boarded the table, and supported the old lady's arm beside the old lady. Su Wanniang shouted to Shen Qiang at the table: "Fourth brother, protect grandma and mother!"
Shen Qiang nodded with a smile, and took out an arrow from the bow pocket of the person next to him, and shot it. With a whoosh, another person sat down on the ground with an arrow stuck in his hair.
It was quiet outside the wall, and the old lady tried her best to say: "I am the wife of the old Marquis, Mrs. Gu. Several generations of Marquis of my Shen family have died on the battlefield. My sons and daughters have served the country faithfully..."
Someone interrupted from behind the crowd: "How can a family of traitors show their face?! Why don't you accept the decree quickly?!"
Shen Qiang yelled outside the wall, and the old lady started to tremble, with tears in her eyes, she said, "If it was just me, I would die to show my innocence! But now my children and grandchildren are still fighting against the enemy in the north, Their children and grandchildren are all young people, if I don't protect them, how can I be worthy of those who are ahead?"
Someone said: "Shut up! The Marquis of Zhenbei led Beirong into the country..."
The old lady said sharply: "You just shut up! My Shen family army has guarded the northern border for so many years, how much blood was spilled, and how many people died?! If you want to lure Bei Rong into the country, why stick to it for a hundred years?!"
The man over there said, "Shoot her! The old beggar!"
There was a sound of bows and arrows, several arrows were shot, Shen Qiang waved his hand a few times and bounced away, the old lady pointed to the outside of the wall and said: "You have no proof, you just spout blood like this!"
The person over there replied: "What is there is no evidence? The second lady of the Shen family gave the letters of her father and brother collaborating with the enemy. The evidence is as solid as a mountain!"
Yang heard it and screamed: "You killed my daughter?! You killed my daughter these days! Did you kill my daughter?! Who of you is guarding the border? Who went to kill Beirong?! One One here knows how to attack women and children, a bunch of bastards! What collusion with the enemy, my husband has been guarding the border for many years, and now there are many dangers. My children have all gone to the battlefield when they grow up. I don’t know if they can come back... But you are here Fart here! I curse you for losing your limbs and going to hell!..." She hoarsely cursed and was on the verge of falling, Su Wanniang hurriedly moved the stool, stepped on it and helped Yang to go down: "Mother, don't pay attention to them!"
Crying, Yang followed Su Wanniang out of the table, covering her face and crying: "My daughter! She must have been murdered! Otherwise, how could they be used as evidence!" Su Wanniang was surprised that Yang, who had always been scheming, had such acumen. He hurriedly said: "Mother, maybe not, the younger sister is only in the temple." He forced Yang to walk towards the inner courtyard.
On the wall, Shen Qiang yelled at the old lady who had a bad complexion, and gestured for her to go down. The old lady said to the outside of the wall: "There is no letter of collaborating with the enemy in my family, and my granddaughter would not do such a thing. This is someone who spit out blood and has no good intentions. Soldiers, please think about it, my family has been bloody for generations. In Xinjiang, tens of thousands of Shen family soldiers are buried there. We have lost so many people! How could we cooperate with the enemy..."
Someone in the imperial forest army put down their swords and guns, and the people who had been told by the prince shouted: "Stop talking nonsense, rush up! If they refuse to obey the order, they will all be executed! Anyone who kills the family members of the Marquis of Zhenbei will be rewarded with a hundred taels of gold." !"
As soon as these words came out, someone rushed forward bravely, Shen Qiang saw the people coming, and hurriedly took the old lady's hand, signaling her to lie on his back again. The old lady was powerless to compete with Shen Qiang, and she also knew that she had to leave so that the guards could fight, so she climbed onto Shen Qiang's back again. Shen Qiang couldn't do light work, so he could only get off the table and put his feet on the chair below. He had one leg in the air, and was about to step on the chair and then on the ground, when he suddenly saw a black shadow waving towards his head from the corner of his eye, faintly carrying the sound of wind , he was carrying the old lady on his back, and he was in mid-air, unable to dodge, so he straightened his neck, ready to take the blow, but the old lady on his back suddenly supported his shoulders and stood up, shouting: "Qianger!" His head blocked a stick that hit Shen Qiang!
Shen Qiang felt a heat on his face, the old lady's head had drooped on his shoulders, Shen Qiang's feet were falling on the chair, he shouted loudly, the chair was smashed to pieces, but Shen Qiang stood firmly On the ground, he didn't even put down the old lady, and as soon as he lifted his foot, he kicked the chest of the person next to him who raised the stick again! This kick passed, and there was a click, and the man backed up repeatedly holding the stick. When he fell to the ground, his chest was sunken and he was out of breath.
Lao Guan saw the opportunity and yelled: "If there is someone who betrays the master, this is the end! Quickly shoot the arrow!"
Everyone saw that Shen Qiang was just a smiling kid, tall and tall, just walking back and forth with a stick on one side, never really used his hands, and he was accurate in archery, but he didn't shoot anyone to death. where to go. The man heard that there was a reward outside, so he was moved, thinking that he would be able to cook him with a stick, and just to be on the safe side, he specially chose the moment when he got off the table with the old lady on his back. But who would have thought that Shen Qiang would be so powerful that he could kick someone to death with one kick? For a while, no one dared to try again.
Shen Qiang was anxious to see the situation of the old lady, so he immediately put the old lady on the ground. Yang Shi and Su Wanniang who had already reached the gate of the inner courtyard turned their heads to see each other, came back in panic, helped the old lady off Shen Qiang, and kept calling: "Grandmother! Grandmother!..." "Mother!"
Shen Qiang also shouted loudly.
The old lady was limp and lying on Shen Qiang's arm. One side of her head was already dripping with blood. She opened her eyes wide, trying to see Shen Qiang clearly through the blood, and said, "Qiang... Qiang... Are you okay... "
Yang cried and said, "It's all right! Mother! Qiang'er is all right!"
Shen Qiang started to cry, and shook the old lady's hand.
The old lady seemed to smile: "It's fine... Qiang'er, my baby... it's fine..." She closed her eyes.
Su Wanniang cried, "Grandmother! Grandmother!"
Yang burst into tears: "Mother! Don't go! What can I do?! What can I do?! How can I tell Lord Hou?!..."
Shen Qiang suddenly stopped crying, blinked vigorously, saw the old lady's face covered by blood clearly, touched it with his hands, and suddenly leaned forward to kiss her. Seeing that the old lady didn't respond, he pulled the old lady's stiff hand again, and finally shook the old lady carefully, but the old lady still didn't open her eyes, and he froze there.
On the top of the wall, the Imperial Forest Army had already climbed up with ladders. Some guards dropped their knives and surrendered, and some continued to fight, but the Imperial Forest Army jumped down one after another from the wall.
Lao Guan shouted: "Fourth son! Come and help!"
Su Wanniang looked back, and seeing this scene, she pulled Shen Qiang's arm: "Fourth brother! Wake up! Hurry up and beat them out! Otherwise we're all dead!"
Hearing Su Wanniang's voice, Shen Qiang's eyes moved for a moment. Hearing the crying in the inner courtyard, Mrs. Liu couldn't help it. She brought Shen Wei and Shen Yu out of the courtyard, and saw the old lady lying on the bed with blood on her head. In Shen Qiang's arms, he also rushed over and cried loudly. The two children panicked and cried while holding Liu's arms. The courtyard was full of crying.
The courtyard door slammed loudly and fell to the ground. A group of royal guards rushed in, armed with swords and guns, and came towards the group of people.
Mrs. Liu pulled her two sons to her side and protected her behind her. Mrs. Yang raised her head and cursed while crying, "You fools! Come on! I'm just about to die!" After bumping into it, Su Wanniang didn't care about Shen Qiang anymore, and held Yang Shi tightly with both hands: "Mother! Don't..." She turned her head to look at Shen Qiang in a hurry, and wanted to ask Shen Qiang to help again, but suddenly found that Shen Qiang's eyes turned blood red, Surprised, I saw Shen Qiang facing the sky and yelled loudly: "Ah!" This long howl made people's ears buzz and their hearts tremble, and someone's hand softened, and the knife fell to the ground.
Shen Qiang slowly put the old lady on the ground, stood up, and as soon as he turned around, he walked into the soldiers of the Royal Forest Army with bare hands. Su Wanniang exclaimed: "Fourth brother, be careful!" Shen Qiang raised his hand with one punch, and his five sense organs were all flattened, and with another kick, he was kicked out more than ten steps, one elbow, one person's body The chest armor broke inwards and sank into the chest, and cut it off with another palm, and one person's Adam's apple was shattered... Everyone was killed on the spot.
The people who broke into the yard were stunned for a moment, and even the crying people stopped crying and looked up at Shen Qiang.
The Imperial Forest Army reacted and shouted: "Kill him first!" They all swung their knives and chopped at Shen Qiang. The knife of the person closest to Shen Qiang was only raised in the air, and Shen Qiang's hand was already on the man's wrist, only a crisp sound was heard, and Shen Qiang snapped the man's arm from the elbow. The knife fell into Shen Qiang's hand. The knife light flashed a few times, and the knife array surrounding Shen Qiang turned into a forest of broken arms. Amidst the screams, flesh and blood flew everywhere, which was too horrible to look at.
None of the imperial forest soldiers who rushed into the gate survived, Shen Qiang did not stop, and then walked outside the gate.
The guards guarding the courtyard opened their mouths half-opened, Su Wanniang Yang and the others were also stunned, and when Shen Qiang left the courtyard, Su Wanniang hurriedly said: "Fourth brother! Come back! Don't go outside, they are many!"
Yang also shouted: "Qiang'er! Come back!"
But Shen Qiang didn't seem to hear it, holding a knife, he walked into the besieging Imperial Forest Army like a fool...
Soon, there was a sound of exclamation outside the wall, and someone shouted: "Get out! Get out!" The voice sounded like a conversation with the old lady just now, and Shen Qiang probably heard it too. Call.
The sound of footsteps outside the courtyard wall faded away, Su Wanniang was afraid that Shen Qiang would continue chasing them, so she ran out of the courtyard door to look for Shen Qiang, only to see Shen Qiang standing among the corpses, frowning and tilting his head. The knife in his hand was already curled, and the blade was covered with red, white and white stains.
Su Wanniang carefully pulled Shen Qiang's sleeve, and said to Shen Qiang: "Fourth brother, come back, mother is worried about you."
Someone from the Imperial Forest Army who had retreated far away shouted, "Shoot!"
A cloud of arrows shot at them, Su Wanniang was shocked, but Shen Qiang just swung the knife a few times, and knocked all the arrows to the ground. Then he threw the knife, bent down and picked up a bow from a dead body, picked up an arrow, nocked the arrow and shot it, there was a cry from the other side, and one person fell down with the arrow in the forehead. When people saw it, they quickly backed away, or hid behind the corner of the house. Shen Qiang picked up another arrow, put it on the bow, and pulled it, only to hear a bang, and the bowstring broke. He dropped the bow, picked up another one, pulled it again, and it broke again.
Su Wanniang persuaded Shen Qiang again: "Fourth brother, go into the yard! Grandma is still lying on the ground."
The bow in Shen Qiang's hand fell to the ground with a bang, and he suddenly ran into the yard. Su Wanniang hurriedly chased him into the yard, and Lao Guan hurriedly asked people to lift up the fallen courtyard door and stand on the door frame.
Shen Qiang ran to the old lady's side, knelt down and called out: "Grandmother!" Then he cried hoarsely.
Yang raised her head in tears: "Son! Did you speak?!"
Shen Qiang ignored Mrs. Yang, and only kept calling: "Grandmother! Grandmother!..." Unfortunately, he yelled for a long time, but the old lady couldn't hear her.
Several people burst into tears, Su Wanniang endured her grief and said, "Quickly, carry the old lady into the house."
Someone carried a bench under the wall, Shen Qiang lifted it aside, and helped carry the old lady into the inner room. Putting down the old lady, Mrs. Yang and Mrs. Liu burst into tears again. Su Wanniang held back her tears and hurriedly asked people to find white clothes, and she wanted to look at Shen Qiang from time to time.
Shen Qiang stood by the old lady's side, staring at her eyes, but tears rolled down like beads. He sat like this for an hour, Su Wanniang finally saw that his tears were less, she went over and asked in a low voice: "Fourth brother, are you okay?"
Shen Qiang turned his head slowly, and said to Su Wanniang: "Sister Yi, I seem to have a dream, I just woke up, but I remember everything in the dream. Grandma treats me well..." He paused for a moment, suppressing his sobs, Shen Sheng asked: "Tell me, who sent these people to harm us?"
Su Wanniang was used to Shen Qiang's silly look, and when she saw a childish child asking such a serious question, she couldn't react, and said dumbfounded: "You are still young, just protect this yard now."
Shen Qiang stared at Su Wanniang with red eyes, her eyes shining brightly, Su Wanniang suddenly felt a chill down her back, but she had taken Shen Qiang in the past, and she always had a caring heart for Shen Qiang, remembering what Shen Wen said about the old Taoist priest's advice Shen Qiang is an evil star, and he suddenly said to Shen Qiang uncomfortablely: "Fourth brother, fourth brother, grandma loves you the most, you must, please, don't, don't lose..."
Before finishing speaking, the husband outside shouted: "Fourth Young Master, come help! There are too many of them, and they are coming this way again!"
As soon as Shen Qiang looked up, he saw the ebony bow on the wall, got up and went over, took off the bow, and walked outside. Mrs. Yang was exhausted from crying, she just hung her head and wept next to the old lady, Mrs. Liu had to take care of the two children, Su Wanniang saw that no one was stopping Shen Qiang, she was afraid that Shen Qiang would leave the hospital again, so she chased her out.
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Ye Zhongshu got the news early in the morning that the emperor had decreed to kill the two prefectures. He didn't even eat breakfast, so he sent someone to pass on the word: Let the people in the city sing about the heroic deeds of the Shen family army of Zhenbei Hou. , Vigorously praise the feat of the third prince of Pingyuanhou who raised righteous soldiers to fight against the enemy! Not only those actor lobbyists, but also disciples and students have to go out for activities! He also asked those Qingliu officials to meet outside the palace gate to protest together and demand a review of the case. The person agreed to leave, and Ye Zhongshu said again: "Although the people from the old officials Liu, Mrs. Jian and Mrs. Yan have already passed their breath, in order to avoid delays, let someone tell them that their People should also go to the palace."
The old official Liu has not been involved in government affairs for a long time, but his granddaughter is the eldest daughter-in-law of the Zhenbei Hou Mansion, how can he refuse to save him? The third prince is old master Jian's student, he was involved in it, how could he ignore it as a teacher? As for that old fox Yan Jing, his granddaughter is the second daughter-in-law of the Zhenbei Hou Mansion, so naturally he shouldn't be on the sidelines.
After finishing the order, Ye Zhongshu had his breakfast, straightened his clothes, asked people to bring dry food and water, and prepared to go to the gate of the palace to fight to the end with Qingliu.
In fact, there was no need for Ye Zhongshu to report the letter. The old official Liu had already sent his eldest son to contact the civil servants under his sect, so that they could be vigilant and prevent traitors from framing Zhongliang. Old Master Jian also earnestly warned his disciples to give the general a stable rear. At this time, people are in panic and the country is in crisis. If someone wants to attack the family of generals who are resisting Beirong, they can't sit idly by. Otherwise, who will go to war in the future? Half of the country is already in danger, is it necessary to subjugate the country
As for Yan Jing's side, people have already been arranged. After hearing the news, the official Yan even said that his father was a master of planning—isn't this saving lives? Save my brother's daughter, Miss Yan Wu! He hurriedly sent more than 30 students from the academies to the streets and alleys, and strongly appealed to the emperor to investigate carefully, so as not to cause unjust, false and wrong cases.
The fourth prince heard that Ding Neishi said that someone had sent him a message at the door, saying that he had something to do today, so he hurriedly prepared to enter the palace. He had lived here for so many days, and at this moment he hurriedly bid farewell to the old official Jiang, then hurriedly got into the carriage, and drove to the imperial city with the servant Ding and three or four sergeants guarding the tomb.
Passing through the busy city, from the car window, he heard the noise of people on the street, everyone was talking about the emperor's copying and killing of Zhenbeihou Mansion and Pingyuanhou Mansion. Upstairs, someone was playing the dental board and singing loudly: "Shen Jiaerlang died in a hundred battles, blood stained the country forever..."
Some of the people said loudly: "I don't believe that the Zhenbeihou has defected to the enemy. Yancheng has not yet fallen! The Shen family army is still holding on! How can they copy and kill the Zhenbeihou's mansion now?! This is a traitor who is destroying himself!" There was a lot of support: "That's right! It's the right thing! My elder brother followed Pingyuanhou to fight against the enemy. He is an upright gentleman. How can Pingyuanhou's rebels fight against the enemy as a rebellion?!"...
There were horses flying in, and someone came shouting: "Urgent report! Urgent report! Beirong on the Northeast Road has been defeated! The second son of Shen is the leader!" The people were in an uproar! "Really? Are you sure?!"…
The fourth prince raised the corner of his mouth in the car: Of course it's true, but it's not true at this time.
The fourth prince guessed rightly. In the northeast, thousands of people from Beirong burned down the village and killed people, which inspired the fighting spirit of the farmers. The volunteer soldiers are all from the surrounding towns. If they don't resist, their own village will inevitably be destroyed one day. What's more, Beirong is also a group of people, and there are not many cavalry, so if there is a battle, there will be fewer people fleeing. The more the farmers fought, the braver they were, and more people joined the volunteer army, and their morale was high. Those wounded soldiers had bows and crossbows, which could cover the volunteer soldiers approaching Beirong and fighting close to each other. In the last battle, more than a dozen volunteers fought against one of the Beirong soldiers. No matter how vigorous the Beirong people were, they couldn't stop seven or eight hoes from hitting at the same time. Thousands of Beirong people were killed or injured, and the rest fled back to Beirong with the grain they had plundered.
Fearing that the local officials' memorials would be too slow, the scholars of Yan's Academy followed Yan's instructions and wrote a battle report and sent it to the capital. Although the letter did not detail how Shen Jian retreated the Beirong army, it reported that Governor Shen led people to defeat the invasion of Beirong Northeast Road, and now the remaining enemies have also been eliminated.
At this time, the post station had already been paralyzed, and the main roads a hundred miles outside the capital were all checkpoints arranged by Marquis Pingyuan to check correspondence in the name of volunteer soldiers. Knowing the mission of the visitor, the volunteers enthusiastically accepted the battle report and promised to send it to the capital. The person who sent the letter was not a special messenger, and the battle report was not an official document. He was just passing on a message. He was naturally happy to see the volunteer soldiers taking over. He handed the battle report to the volunteer soldiers and went back by himself.
I waited for this battle report outside the capital for a few days, and when someone from the city gave me a letter, someone took the battle report, entered the city, announced it loudly all the way, and sent it to the imperial city.
When the fourth prince's carriage approached the gate of the palace, Ding's waiter sitting outside the carriage slowed down the driver according to the fourth prince's prior instructions. The fourth prince was worrying about whether he had come early and whether he needed to find a place to stop for a while, when he heard a woman crying: "I'm wronged! I'm wronged!"
The sergeants beside the carriage immediately stopped her, and just as she was about to stop drinking, the fourth prince heard the voice of Second Miss Shen from inside the carriage, and hurriedly said, "Let her come over, let me hear what wrongs she has done?" He didn't come early , I think Second Miss Shen has been waiting here for a long time.
Waiter Ding stopped the car and said loudly, "Let her come over!"
Shen Wen came over crying wearing a veil, saluted and said, "Excuse me, is this nobleman going to enter the palace?"
The fourth prince half lifted the curtain of the car and said, "Maybe, if they let me in, I can go in."
There was a woman crying for injustice by the carriage, and people gathered around to see what happened.
Shen Wen bowed deeply, and said loudly: "Your honor, please bring the little girl into the palace, or take the little girl with a message to the Holy Majesty—the little girl is the second daughter of the Marquis of Zhenbei. Now I heard that the imperial court ordered me to sacrifice my father and brother." I really don’t have any letters of collusion with the enemy! The little girl has been praying for her father and brother in the temple, where did she give the letter?! Now, the Imperial Forest Army is raiding my house, please help me, the little girl wants to speak to the heavens, Call out for my father and brother!" Her words were sincere and touching.
The people around were shocked when they heard this, the fourth prince looked embarrassed, stopped for what he thought was enough time, and said, "Um, well, wait here for a while, let me go in and report, and listen to what the Holy Majesty has to say. "
Shen Wen bowed deeply again: "Thank you, nobleman!"
People who heard what Shen Wen said began to discuss: "Hey, this Second Miss Shen said that she didn't donate the letter!" "Then how does the decree say she did?"...
If one of the lines of evidence is false, people will cast doubt on the other pieces of evidence.
"Second Miss Shen didn't offer a book. She was originally praying in the temple, but who dared to use her name to frame her father and brother. Now she has come out of the temple, and she is calling for justice for her father and brother at the entrance of the palace! "This news was spread by word of mouth by people with intentions and unintentional, and quickly spread in the capital. Many people flocked to the palace, wanting to see Second Miss Shen, and more people began to believe that the two governments were wronged.
The prince beat the princess violently, and then went on to deal with the following trivial matters, which wasted a lot of time. When he arrived at the court hall, he saw that there were very few court officials who came to court, presumably the matter about the crown princess was leaked, and the officials of the Lu family stopped court. The prince snorted coldly: Anyway, the capital is about to be moved now, so what does it matter if you don't go to court? He dismissed the court officials, and as soon as he left the main hall, he received a reward from the Imperial Forest Army, saying that he had encountered resistance in both the Pingyuan Hou Mansion and the Zhenbei Hou Mansion. The prince heard that, instead of worrying, he was happy: this confirmed the rebellion of the two mansions. statement! Openly resisting the order and resisting arrest in the capital, this in itself is criminal evidence!
He was just about to go to the emperor, when someone came to report that there was a battle report outside the palace, and the crown prince hurriedly sent someone to pass it in. Only after he read it did he find out that Beirong on the Northeast Road was defeated by the army led by the second son of Shen! The prince's heart sank, and he naturally suppressed the battle report, planning to only tell the emperor about the two houses' rebellion against the Imperial Forest Army. He called the staff who took in Wang Zhi and his wife and handed him the battle report. When the staff saw it, they were frightened into a cold sweat, and stammered, "This, is this true?"
The prince said: "Whether it's true or not, torture the person who sent the news! Don't let him die too easily, ask him if someone ordered him!"
The aides nodded repeatedly, took Wang Zhi back to the mansion, arrested Wang Zhi, and tortured him repeatedly. Wang Zhi couldn't stand it, so he had to say that he didn't see Shen Jian die, but at that time there were more than 100,000 people in Beibei, and Shen Jian only had a thousand people, so there was nothing he could do. win. Still not giving up, the staff continued to use torture to force Wang Zhi to tell who taught him to lie. Poor Wang Zhi only had a dream of being promoted for a few days before he was beaten to death. To the end of his life, he didn't understand how Shen Jian, who was seriously injured, was still alive. Wang Zhi's wife, Xia Zi, insisted that she didn't know about Wang Zhi at all, that she had cheated Miss Shen Er, she was a meritorious person, so the staff locked her up first, and wanted to ask the prince before talking.
The emperor was looking at the list of moving the capital handed by Eunuch Sun, and was about to set off to move the capital in the next day. An eunuch came to report to the emperor, "The fourth prince has arrived at the gate of the palace and said that he has returned to Beijing according to the order."
The emperor hesitated for a moment: this son has not even held a weak crown ceremony in the imperial mausoleum for the past three years. He really doesn't care about the fourth prince, but now that the fourth prince is back, he has to see him anyway, so he said: "Let him come see me."
After a while, the fourth prince got off the palace chariot outside the door, supported by Ding Neishi, and entered the door to pay respects to the emperor.
The emperor was surprised to find that the fourth prince did not become haggard during the three or four years of guarding the mausoleum. Instead, his shoulders were flat and his back was straight, and his expression was calm.
Somewhat certain in his heart, the emperor said in a condescending tone: "Now we are preparing to move the capital, so follow along when you come back."
The fourth prince shook his head and said, "Father, my son doesn't want to leave the capital, and is willing to live and die with the capital."
The emperor frowned and said, "Don't you also want military power? What about protecting the capital?" The word "also" expressed the emperor's deep dissatisfaction.
The fourth prince shook his head again, "I don't have experience in leading troops, I just don't want to move south." What move? This is a game! I also want to save myself some face!
The emperor is very upset! Are you being so heroic to show that I am not brave enough? Just come back and fight against me! The slight goodwill that had just surged to the emperor disappeared immediately. He said with a cold expression: "It's up to you!" He waved his hand to let the fourth prince back down.
Just as the fourth prince was about to leave, he said casually as if he just remembered something: "Just now outside the palace, the boy met a woman who shouted for grievances, saying that she was Miss Shen Er, the second daughter of the Marquis of Zhenbei. Seeing her complaining to the people from all over the world, the child asked the soldiers to stay outside the palace with her, and let the emperor handle it." The fourth prince didn't say anything about introducing Shen Wen, and directly handed over the matter to the emperor, expressing himself Nothing to do with it.
The emperor was taken aback for a moment, and for the conviction of the Zhenbei Hou Mansion and even the Pingyuan Hou Mansion, the collaborating letter presented by the Second Miss Shen was a crucial piece of evidence. Presenting a letter, isn't this overturning the crime of collaborating with the two governments at once
The emperor asked: "Could it be a fake?"
The fourth prince said in an unconcerned tone: "The people don't seem to think she is a fake." It means that if her words are spread in the market and people believe them to be true, even if she is a fake, the case will also be overturned. In the future, any unofficial history and anecdotes will record this rumor that damages the royal reputation.
The emperor thought about it, and the best way is to meet this woman, and immediately say that she is a fake, and have her killed! In this way, everyone will see that the emperor attaches great importance to factual evidence, and even met her in person, but the case is full of ironclad evidence, and there is really no way. Of course, it's okay to kill her if she doesn't see her, but the emperor is a little curious, and wants to see what this woman who has let the crown prince have been deflated for so many years looks like.
The emperor said: "Then bring her in and let me see you." Then he immediately pulled her out and killed her!
The eunuch next to him responded immediately. The fourth prince really wanted to stay, but he couldn't show his intention, so he had to salute and go out, but the emperor said: "Stay here and see what a liar is, next time you will learn more!"
The fourth prince was overjoyed, but he didn't show anything on the surface, he lowered his head and stood beside him silently: What is a liar? That man is indeed a liar! It's just that you may not be able to play with her...