Dingbei Hou's doctor brother

The rain continued for three days without stopping. Xiao Yan barely picked out about a thousand soldiers as reserve, and even conducted three days of intensive training before setting off.

During this period, Cao Yuejin went to the higher-level provincial government for a meeting, and all matters in the county were handled by County Magistrate Tian.

The previous notice of surrender persuaded a small number of bandits to surrender. Peng Bing was so angry that he gathered all the people in the village in an open space, with several young people tied up on the side.

He stood on the high platform, scanning the people below and giving them a lecture.

"Do you know why I called you here now?"

The people below looked at each other, their minds as clear as mirrors, and they said nothing. Peng Bing spoke again.

"I called you here to show you what happens to deserters. When you joined, I told you that if you deserted one day, you would be shot.

"Well... there's an old saying that goes, 'It's easy to get on a pirate ship, but hard to get off.' Once you get on this Changyun Mountain, even if you die, you must leave your body on the mountain for me."

After he finished his lecture, Ge Hongzhi, who was standing next to him, approached him with an embarrassed look on his face and whispered.

"You'd better stop scolding me. Can't you see the boss is glaring at you? The words 'thief or not' are so ugly."

"Aren't we just bandits?" Peng Bing blurted out like an idiot.

Then, he glanced at the boss Jie Caizhen's expression and immediately stepped aside without saying anything.

The next moment, a few gunshots were heard, and several tied-up bandits fell to the ground one after another. The rest were so scared that they dared not move, and Xie Caizhen spoke.

"You are all the heroes of Changyun Mountain. We have been together through life and death for many years. The government is corrupt and we have no good life for it. The old and young at home need food and drink. If we don't fight hard and are caught by the government, we will die."

"They can sit high in the palace, clothed in fine clothes and fed with delicious food, while the common people below have to serve them as slaves and servants. Those people are our relatives and friends."

"In recent years, natural disasters and man-made disasters have killed and maimed ordinary people. The government has pocketed money and food, and they have enough to eat and drink. We can only watch helplessly, forced to take action. Yet, they can still come to encircle and suppress us under the pretext of righteousness. Tell me, is there still justice in the world?"

"No!!" the bandits shouted indignantly, "Those corrupt officials deserve to die. We will resist to the death."

"Humph, if they dare to come, they won't be able to leave Changyun Mountain alive."

"Yes! All the damn officials must die. I'm going to kill them all."

After the meeting, Xie Caizhen returned to the house. Peng Bing said with a grin, "Big brother is really good at talking. He made me want to fight those bastards right away."

"Fight your head." Xie Caizhen slapped him casually.

"You're being rude. Even though we're the boss, we can't always use force on our subordinates. We have to be more flexible depending on the situation. If we can't keep their hearts, who will fight for you?"

Peng Bing rubbed his arms and said with a silly smile, "Big brother is right."

Xie Caizhen sighed and looked at Ge Hongzhi, "Has the commission been paid to us after we captured the woman and her?"

Ge Hongzhi said: "Not yet, but it should be on the way."

Xie Caizhen thought for a while and said, "Wait for him for a while. If he still doesn't send it, then push it down the cliff and offer it to the gods."

In the evening, after everyone finished their meal, Xiao Yan and the other two were discussing the route for the next day in the room when they heard a knock on the door.

Su Chengfeng opened the door and saw County Magistrate Tian standing at the door. He asked, "What's the matter, County Magistrate Tian?"

County Magistrate Tian glanced inside and Su Chengfeng made way for him to come in.

"My Lord, are you discussing tomorrow's route? I was just about to speak on that."

Xiao Yan looked at the map on the table and casually responded, "County Magistrate Tian, ​​please speak."

"It's like this. It's been raining constantly these past few days, with heavy rain at night. In some places, the mountains have collapsed, blocking the road. We need to find another way up."

Xiao Yan thought for a moment and looked up at him, "Where else can we go up the mountain?"

County Magistrate Tian walked over and pointed to the map on the table.

"You can get to the mountain from here, but you have to take a slightly longer detour, about seven or eight miles. Horses can take the trail directly to the foot of the mountain, but you have to walk to go up the mountain."

Xiao Yan took a look and said, "Then let's go from here."

County Magistrate Tian added, "It would be best to go at night. The bandits are less alert. If we leave in the afternoon, we'll arrive at the entrance near dusk."

After finalizing the matter, County Magistrate Tian left the side courtyard and suddenly looked back. He touched his mustache and smiled strangely.

Xiao Yan took off his coat and hung it on the hanger. A small thing fell to the ground. He looked down and saw that it was the small red cloth bag that Lu Ziqing took before leaving.

He picked it up and lay down in bed, resting his head on one hand, looking at the little red cloth bag intently.

It's been over a month since I left Beijing. What has Lu Ziqing been doing? Has anything happened to him? Is he sick?

The surroundings were dim and quiet, except for the thing called longing that unconsciously pulled Xiao Yan towards the Mingtang.

He saw Lu Ziqing's shyness when she was caught off guard, her every frown and smile in the sunlight, her sorrow and worry that had been intertwined with both good and bad fortune, and...

That made him fall into a state of lust that he could not control.

Scenes intertwine and are deeply engraved in the long-forgotten heart. The moon is full and the water is full, and there is no room for anything else.

Xiao Yan had missed someone before, but that was just an expectation without regrets. He had never tasted the pain mixed with it. It was invisible and intangible, but it made people feel anxious and uneasy for no reason.

Lu Ziqing will leave, he said he does not belong to the capital, does not belong to the officialdom...

He was afraid of guilt, of unnecessary entanglement, and of being trapped in the world. He was like a gust of wind, unable to be bound or retained.

An indescribable fear suddenly crept into Xiao Yan's heart for a long time... He clenched the red cloth bag and slowly closed his eyes.

In the capital, the person Xiao Yan missed was still sitting at the desk in Chongcuixuan, teaching Chen Ji to read.

In just one month, Chen Ji had memorized the entire Book of Changes, and Lu Ziqing would explain the principles and mysteries to him from time to time.

The content was too profound and Chen Ji was confused, but Lu Ziqing still patiently explained it to him. Gradually, even the servants in the mansion became interested and would stand in the yard to listen to the lecture.

Su Chengyi also took on the role of martial arts teacher, teaching Chen Ji and the servants kung fu. The fighting and playing were so lively that Chen Jing would run to the Marquis' Mansion whenever he had nothing to do.

Here, Chen Jing could talk freely without any guard, without the airs of a prince. He and the people in the mansion could listen to Lu Ziqing's discussions on scriptures and philosophy, and their martial arts competitions, and he felt extremely relaxed both physically and mentally.

Not only did Chen Ji study and practice martial arts, Lu Ziqing also took him to the garden to plant flowers and plants, and accompanied him in eating, drinking and having fun like an old father.

Late at night, Lu Ziqing would return to Xiao Yan's room. Perhaps because that person was not there, his mind gradually calmed down over the past month, and he could easily get into the state of homework in the morning and evening.

But there was one thing he himself had not realized, that was that he would miss Xiao Yan in an inadvertent moment or when he was lying in bed at night.

For example, at this moment, he was standing by the window again, looking at the swaying treetops outside the window and whispering to himself.

"I hope that the Marquis can turn this misfortune into good fortune and return to the capital safely."

Su Chengfeng sat up again with an ugly look on his face, because he had slept with Yang Zhounan in his arms for another night.

At this moment, he couldn't help but start to wonder if he had also been led astray by that person and had developed some kind of problem.

However, this thought passed quickly. He actually hated his bad habit of not sleeping well. Lu Ziqing had often complained about it before. He just hoped that the bandit suppression operation would end soon.

When Su Chengfeng put on his clothes, Yang Zhounan opened his eyes drowsily. For the past two nights, he had been so excited and restless because of his "initiative" that he could not fall asleep until the second half of the night.

The rain stopped in the afternoon, and Xiao Yan led 800 elite soldiers to the north of Changyun Mountain. The mountain roads were all small paths, and some sections were cliffs, so the soldiers had to ride their horses slowly.

When they were halfway along the route, the soldier at the back began to murmur.

"How do we get this way? Doesn't this direction lead to the mass grave?"

"Yeah, why take the long way around when there's a shortcut?"