At dusk, Xu Fengnian finally came to the source of weak water in the border area of Baoping State. It was an oasis full of verdant green, like a green bead embedded in a yellow sand disc, which made people very happy to see. Xu Fengnian washed his face with water at the edge of the green river, and the vermilion-robed creature was playing in the water like a koi carp. Before he left Beiliang, he knew that the security here was very strict. There are also many shadow catchers and butterfly catchers under the command of Prime Minister Li Mibi, intertwined into a big spider web, led by a vermilion top killer swordsman, who not only protects the ancient and rare old man, but also closely monitors it. Regardless of the route to enjoy the scenery, Or every meal must be reported to the master Li Mibi, plus the old man's own confidant forces, the two confront each other and cooperate with each other to resist endless revenge assassinations.
But in Xu Fengnian's opinion, it really didn't match the information he had received before. The hidden piles were few and far between, and the strong force stationed in the barracks ten miles away had dropped from 600 to only 200. No matter how hard the old man is in the eyes of Bei Mang, after five or six years of completely abstaining from power, he has been living behind the scenes for a long time, and his reputation is naturally not as dreadful as before. The layout of the northern generals, if it is said that Huang Songpu, the privy king of the Southern Court, made a good start as a general in the Southern Dynasty, in fact, earlier, there was someone who was in the high position in the Northern Court imperial account as a survivor of the Spring and Autumn Period, and he could be called the leader of one person. With more than ten thousand people, every time Her Majesty the Empress hunted and discussed matters with the ministers, she was the only person who could convince the rebellious royal family and dignitaries. It can be said that this is why Beimang was able to smoothly carry out the rule of scholars. Thanks to this old man, the purpose of Xu Fengnian's trip was to meet this old man who was hailed as the pillar of Beimang by the Empress. To cast a trap
Xu Fengnian chose this secluded location near the water, and was not in a hurry to enter the hinterland of the oasis. It was clearly a large array of strange armored formations. If he stepped in randomly, he might be taken as an assassin. Those who travel hundreds of miles are half at ninety, and Xu Fengnian waited until the dusk fell, and the shade of the red robe was always in that warm and carefree attitude. Xu Fengnian held his breath, like an old monk in meditation, remembering the camel-riding woman he met on the Gobi Desert half a decade ago, she didn't need to look at her face to know that she was a dragon girl, otherwise Xu Fengnian would not show up to borrow something with Xu Fengnian's current skills water. As for the help in the future, I don't have too many thoughts, it's nothing more than thinking about the kindness of the water, and the spring will repay each other. It is recorded in ancient books that every time this kind of mirage enters the ocean or desert, a mirage will appear. The difference is nothing more than a mirage or a sand mirage. But the world is different. The mirage has been regarded as the key to the fairy mountain by the emperors who seek immortality since ancient times. The mirages seen by ordinary people are naturally fake, but this illusion cannot emerge for no reason after all. After all, there is something to rely on. The emperors of all dynasties ordered alchemists to go out to sea to search for immortals and fairy mountains. There must be a dragon girl in the team, but how to guide them with specific secret techniques is unknown. Whether that woman will become the key of the emperor in the future, Xu Fengnian is indifferent and does not care. It's not for him, a son whose status is in jeopardy, to decide.
How many people in the world can love and hate as happily as the old man in sheepskin fur when he was young? Most of the warriors have traveled the rivers and lakes, and after suffering pain and losses, they all believe in the tenet of seeing more, doing less and talking less. A Xu Xiao, who was passed down in Jianghu, and a Beimang female emperor, who was accepted as an eagle dog, easily made all the people in the two rivers and lakes unable to control themselves.
Xu Fengnian suddenly opened his eyes, and looked at the footpath by the water. At the end of the path, there was an old man and a child coming together. The children were born with red lips and white teeth, and they came on bamboo horses. Using a stalk of green bamboo as the crotch horse, the child is wearing a wide-sleeved Taoist robe, with a natural look, making people forget the vulgarity. The old man next to the child has white beard and hair, is tall and tall, wears a scarf and a green shirt, and has a refreshing air. The old man is holding a bamboo horse and a child in one hand, and holding two volumes of scriptures in the other. Seeing Xu Fengnian who has not hidden his whereabouts, he seems not surprised Yi, let go of Xiaodaotong's hand, and waved to Xu Fengnian with a smile, like a long-lost reunion.
The reason why Xu Fengnian didn't avoid it was because he had guessed the identity of the old man. Xu Huainan, who used to be the most powerful official of the Northern Mang court, was born in Liaodong. After careful consideration, he turned out to be a distant relative who was a generation older than Xu Xiao. This relationship can be so great that it can be ignored. Xu Huainan, who had already arrived in Beimang before the scholars fled to the north, became the chief counselor and hero of the Empress Murong who usurped the throne and ascended the throne. It was he who urged the empress, who had not yet secured her seat on the dragon chair, to go south to drive her own conquest in person, and that led to today's division of the world between the north and the south. Liyang's second national power north expedition, it was he who had resigned from his post and returned to the land, and formulated a strategy that made the upstart Tuoba Bodhisattva defeat the third line of Liyang. There was a double-faced spy who sold military information with both hands, causing the empress to be furious, and had to retire from the royal court. In fact, Xu Huainan, a well-deserved meritorious veteran, had serious differences with the empress in his attitude towards the Murong clan, and was disheartened. However, the so-called espionage case that shocked the government and the public was nothing but a step back for both sides.
Looking at this old man who once climbed to the top step by step and then slowly climbed down the steps, Xu Fengnian inevitably had mixed feelings. The person in front of him is a powerful official who can be compared with Xu Xiao in terms of prestige and achievements. Xu Fengnian bowed respectfully and saluted, the very energetic old man approached, helped the young man of the Xu family who was in danger, looked at him for a while, and said with a gratified smile: "I am an old man, but I didn't think it would be you who came to see me." , I even wondered if it was possible for Xu Xiao to visit in person. It was really a big surprise. As expected, it is my Xu family. fetal."
Xu Fengnian smiled bitterly.
Xu Huainan touched the head of the bamboo horse boy next to him, looked at the rippling river, and said softly: "Don't worry, there is a lot of movement on the border of Liangmang, and I have removed a very important swordsman Zhu Xi, because I guessed If you wanted to come over, you took the opportunity to transfer most of the imperial tent cavalry. This place looks the most dangerous, but it is also the safest. During the Qingming Festival, you left the city to kill Tao Qianzhi, and then fought with Tuoba Chunfalcon , let the ignorant young general Zhong Zhong suffer a dumb loss, along the way, he killed the heart-eating demon Xie Ling, and Dunhuang City attracted Deng Tai'a to draw his sword, as if he was still arguing with the Princess Grave on the other side of the Yellow River In terms of grievances, you young man really opened my eyes. At that time, I said, as long as you survive to the point of weakness, I will see you no matter what. Come on, let’s sit and talk.”
Xu Huainan and Xu Fengnian were sitting on the grass by the water, and the naive and naive children suddenly became angry, and when they lifted the bamboo horse, they were about to split into the water. The aura was so strong that Xu Fengnian was suffocated for a moment, and the red robe jumped out of the water, and it was about to overwhelm the river Fortunately, Xu Huainan held the piece of green bamboo pole and shook his head. The childish boy regained his composure and returned to his innocent expression. Seeing Xu Fengnian's strange eyes, the old man revealed some secrets. At the end, Wen Yan said with a smile: "I can't tell whether it is the supreme magical power of the Taoist school to transform the three cleans in one breath, or the uncommon method of cutting off the three corpses on the ten continents, but the one next to me must be a poor child. In recent years, there have been few people in the hut. The number of smart people who know how to burn cold stoves, such as public practice, gradually lose their temper and decrease, and thanks to this child, they don't feel old and boring."
For orthodoxy in Taoism, the Dragon and Tiger Golden Elixir has always been regarded as the only right way to prove longevity, and the talisman and outer alchemy are all sects, not to mention the heresy that has not been recorded in any classics, such as killing three corpses. Besides, Xu Fengnian didn't bother to get to the bottom of this little detail. Just a little Taoist boy can make the yin qi full of Yin Qi feel like a big enemy. Is Bei Mang too much to hide the dragon and crouch
Xu Huainan sat cross-legged and said softly, "Since you dare to come here, I will make an exception to meet you honestly and say a few words from the bottom of my heart that I planned to take into the coffin. A few days ago, I will plan the Tunmang matter for Beiliang on behalf of Xu Xiao as agreed. After all, I am not loyal to the royal court, nor do I have the hobby of being a female servant. Because I held back my anger towards Chunqiu and Liyang, and in this case, I am happy to see the turmoil of Lu Mang, which is more interesting than replaying the chess game. Of course, like Xu Xiao, I am a well-known stinky chess player However, according to the Taiping Order of Qijian Yuefu, there are genuine national players inside and outside the chessboard. He has traveled to Liyang for more than ten years, and he has figured out the context. Beimang Liyang Beiliang, my position as a counselor was naturally replaced by this new emperor teacher. I have been waiting for a price all these years, and it has become a big joke. Xu Fengnian, you said that since the royal court is useless to me Wenzhidi, even if I have the cheek to come back, what can I do?"
Xu Fengnian remained silent.
Xu Huainan, who was self-deprecating in his words, did not look at the young prince who had traveled through mountains and rivers, "Are you disappointed?"
Xu Fengnian nodded and said, "If I say I'm not disappointed, I don't believe it myself."
Xu Huainan really opened up the skylight to speak frankly, and said slowly: "When I was born, I was naturally full of wealth. After my death, it is destined that within ten years, all the families will be executed. Half of it is because I deliberately did not restrain the people of the clan, and let the people do what they want. They are young and angry, doing evil, and when I was the prime minister of the North Courtyard, I deliberately had a long-standing feud with Yelu Murong. The other half is that the empress is a woman after all, and it is the nature of women to hold grudges. Before she dies, she is destined to settle old scores with me. Take ten thousand steps back, even if she doesn't embarrass me, the next emperor of Beimang will take my descendants to the knife. I think I can live up to my clansmen. For more than 30 years, I have been at the height of the sun, which is something that ordinary people can't enjoy in a few lifetimes There is only one person who can't die, or can't die so early, it's my little compensation for breaking promises to Xu Xiao."
Xu Fengnian raised his head, puzzled.
Xu Huainan laughed softly: "Back then, Xu Xiao had Zhao Changling and Li Yishan as his right-hand men. I am not a god. I can't give them to you. I can only give you one of them, the future King of Beiliang. If you can trust me, feel free to use it. He was going to die of exhaustion before he was forty."
The old man pointed to his head, "All the plots and tricks I have learned from reading history and self-realization in my life have been taught to this humble concubine."
Without Xu Fengnian asking, the old man smiled and said: "He is already on his way to Beiliang, you will meet naturally when you should meet."
Xu Fengnian was about to stand up to express his thanks, but was stopped by the old man with a wave of his hand, "I owe you father and son, the old man can make such a success in Beimang, and Xu Xiao's help is indispensable."
Xu Huainan suddenly laughed and said: "I remember when I left home when I was young, my original intention was to become a Confucian classicist. After traveling thousands of miles, I would read thousands of volumes of books, as long as I can exegete and annotate. How could I have come to this step."
Xu Fengnian was speechless.
Xu Huainan patted Xu Fengnian on the shoulder, and said kindly: "In the future, after all, you young people will be the ones to guide the world."
After the old man sighed, he asked: "I heard that you have a good temper for practicing swords and swords, but do you have Beiliang Dao? I want to take a look."
Xu Fengnian shook his head and said, "When you come to Beimang, it's not easy to bring the Beiliang Saber. There is only one Chunlei dagger."
The old man patted himself on the forehead and said with a smile: "I'm so confused, a short knife is fine."
Xu Fengnian took out the Chunlei Knife from the bookcase.
Xu Huainan put it on his knees and stared at it for a long time, "I have no joy in my life, and I have nothing to fear in death. The reason why I am patient is that I am waiting to give that grandson a future, and because I have lost one to die with peace of mind." The reason. Since the old man owes Xu Xiao, he can no longer owe you. And the old man also thought of a way to not let anyone down."
Xu Huainan drew out the Chunlei Knife and handed it to Xu Fengnian. The smile on that vicissitudes face was extremely open-minded, "Come, come, cut off Xu Huainan's head, put it in a bag, return to Beiliang, and become the king of Beiliang."