Prison Dragon

An hour later, the lonely boat was floating among the mountains and rivers, and Chu Ge led them into a ruined temple, which contained food and medicine prepared in advance.

According to Chu Ge's words, this place has already reached the junction of Luozhou and Xiuyang.

Yesterday Xiao Ning took Jiang Ling ashore first, but unexpectedly encountered an ambush, Xiao Ning bravely broke out of the siege and jumped into the river with Jiang Ling, only to escape, he and Yang Yuchun were the most seriously injured.

Jiang Ling knew some medicine, and immediately supported the sick body to bandage the two.

Yang You stood aside and carefully observed the environment of the ruined temple.

While rowing, he noticed that Chu Ge's boatman was deaf and dumb, and communicated with people only by gestures.

How did Chu Ge come, how did a prostitute know their itinerary, and why did he make all the preparations in advance?

Many doubts enveloped Yang You, but due to the relationship between Chu Ge and Zhuo Xinhong, he did not ask them face to face.

After Chu Ge said goodbye to the boatman, he entered the ruined temple with Zhuo Xinhong.She took out sesame seed cakes from the food basket and handed them to Zhuo Xinhong.

Zhuo Xinhong didn't answer, just kept looking at her, and asked coldly, "Why are you here?"

Chu Ge sighed, "On the night you set off, Concubine Hui's nephew Duwei Wu Cong came to Qingyuan as a guest, and Yanru went to serve her. She heard Wu Cong and a man say that you would not be able to reach the Southwest, and said that you would not be able to reach the southwest. I have already prepared all the funeral matters for His Royal Highness. Yan Ru felt that something was wrong, so she came to tell me."

Sure enough, it was the same as Yang You guessed.

Wu Cong used to be a general, but was later transferred to the capital by the emperor. He was clever enough to win over Yang Ting's people without anyone noticing, Yang Ting hadn't noticed yet.

But Chu Ge was also bold, she wanted to inform Zhuo Xinhong, but couldn't leave Qingyuan, so she ran to Xu Kaiji and begged Xu Kaiji to help her redeem her body and return her good status.After Xu Kaiji heard about this, he immediately sent people to chase after Yang You and his party, but Chu Ge was stuck by the household registration for two or three days before leaving Beijing to go south.She learned about Yang You's travel route from Xu Kaiji, and calculated the time to take a small road to chase after him. She knew that she would definitely not be able to catch up in Luozhou, so she prepared to go to Xiuyang first and wait.

Unexpectedly, the wind and rain rushed last night, and the civilian boat she was on had to dock at the small pier by the Luo River.Normally speaking, no one would go out due to strong wind and heavy rain, but last night, Luozhou soldiers suddenly appeared, sealed off the pier, and began to search for people one by one, and they did not leave all night.

Chu Ge didn't ask the reason behind his indirect remarks, but only knew how many people they were looking for.

The official boat that Yang You was on was a special one, and Chu Ge waited for a long time but did not see the official boat passing by the river.

Although these things are fragmentary, she still pieced together some key factors from them. Assuming that Yang You was really targeted, then they must have managed to escape, otherwise no one would send troops to block the river bank, the Luoshui river bank It is long, and there are many small Luzhou islands in the center. If the soldiers have not withdrawn, it means that they have not found Yang You and his party.

So where are they most likely hiding?

Chu Ge sneaked out of the pier in the dark, rode a horse along the river for a while, found a civilian boat, and searched for the traces of Yang You and his party along the river. She didn't dare to say anything, and could only signal by singing.

Zhuo Xinhong still had doubts, although he didn't want to think this way, but all suspicious factors must be removed, he said: "Time is running short, how do you prepare medicine and food here?"

Chu Ge knew his concerns, and said bluntly: "There are many rangers and bandits along the Luoshui River, and there are often places for them to rest in the mountains. These places will have all the necessary things for travel."

"Then how do you know?" When she said this, Zhuo Xinhong became even more suspicious.

Chu Ge smiled softly, "My father used to be the chief of Luoshui Water Transport, and I have lived by Luoshui for 20 years anyway. I know all these things. Do you have any questions?"

Zhuo Xinhong took the cake and began to eat it with big mouthfuls. After fleeing overnight, the cold wind blew in the reeds. He was also extremely hungry.

Chu Ge came over to help Xiao Ning bandage the wound. Although Xiao Ning had many injuries and looked scary, fortunately, none of them hurt vital parts, but the blood flowed a lot and his face was pale.

Yang Yuchun had actually been stabbed several times. Jiang Ling and Yang You were worried that he was seriously injured at first, but who knew that he slept for a while last night, and he was more energetic than Yang You this morning, like a weed in the mountains. It can be restored to life in time.

Xiao Ning patted Yang Yuchun's shoulder with a smile, "You are young and have a good foundation."

Yang Yuchun chuckled.

This is the first time for Xiao Ning to meet the legendary Chu Ge girl. At first glance, she is also a person with skin that is better than snow and looking forward to radiance. He is more beautiful than his younger brother. How can Miss Chu make Zhuo Xinhong Haunted?

Xiao Ning said: "Miss Chu, Xiaosheng Jing Ming Dao Xiao Ning."

Chu Ge raised his head to look at him, and replied softly, "So it's Mr. Zhuo's senior brother, so be polite."

Not to mention, she is really pretty when she smiles, like spring flowers in March, gentle and touching.

"Since Miss Chu's father is the chief of water transportation, why did he come to the capital..." Xiao Ning did not tell the truth.

Yang You sat silently beside Yang Yuchun, listening to their conversation and observing everyone's speech and demeanor.

Chu Ge didn't have too much sorrow and resentment about her life experience, and said calmly: "My father was arrested for corruption, exiled to Lingnan, and died of illness on the way. We are a small family with few people. After passing away and being robbed by mountain bandits, my family was gone. Later, I was sold to Qingyuan, and then I settled down in the capital."

With just a few words, the joys and sorrows of a family are passed indifferently.

Xiao Ning also realized that he had raised an inappropriate topic.

Zhuo Xinhong said in surprise: "You never told me."

"What's the point of saying this?" Chu Ge laughed, "It's all in the past."

She said to Xiao Ning: "Master Dao, my surname is not Chu, Chu Ge is just a nickname."

Xiao Ning quickly apologized, "I'm sorry girl."

Chu Ge shook his head, "It's okay."

After helping a few men with the basic matters, she walked outside the ruined temple, consciously leaving room for them to talk.

Yang Yuchun picked up a cake and handed it to Yang You. Yang You took a bite, and it was dry and astringent. It wasn't fine white flour, and I don't know what kind of coarse flour was caught in it. The bitterness carried a strong salty taste, and there was a little Finely crushed sand.

Yang You chewed it twice, and almost didn't spit it out. Seeing that everyone else was eating, he also knew that the most important thing right now was to recover his energy.

Having something to eat is the most important thing.

Seeing that he couldn't eat, Yang Yuchun handed him a pot of water, and Yang You barely swallowed half a piece of cake with the water, and couldn't eat any more.

Yang Yuchun ate all the cakes left, and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty is suffering."

"It's okay." Yang You said with a smile.

In the current situation, they first need to know what happened in Luozhou, who actually participated in the assassination of Yang You, and whether the blockade of the coastal cities exists.

Someone needs to go down the mountain to find information.

After Yang You expressed his opinion, Zhuo Xinhong and Jiang Ling, who were basically uninjured, immediately expressed their willingness to go down the mountain.

Yang You looked at them, shook his head slowly, and said after deliberation: "Brother Zhuo, if possible, I would like to ask Miss Chu Ge..."

"No!" Zhuo Xinhong immediately refused.

It was already a huge risk for Chu Ge to come to find them. She is a girl who just thinks about Zhuo Xinhong's old relationship and shouldn't be involved in their affairs, and Yang You can't talk about it.

Chu Ge heard his name, walked in and said, "What is calling me? Do you want to go down the mountain to see the situation?"

She is very intelligent and very sensitive to the situation.

Yang You felt that he had guessed her identity.

"I'll go."

She didn't hesitate at all.

Zhuo Xinhong was angry. He stood up and pulled Chu Ge aside, "You? Do you know how dangerous this matter is? It's about the prince. If you keep silent, no one will give you a chance to pass on the news. You are a weak woman. What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to show you the situation. It's nothing more than whether the troops have withdrawn or not, whether they have arrested people or not. There will be no danger." Chu Ge is familiar with these things.

Zhuo Xinhong did not let go no matter what.

After arguing with him, Chu Ge lost his patience. He pointed at Zhuo Xinhong's nose and said, "All of you speak the capital accent, and the other speaks the Hebei dialect. You have thin skin and tender flesh. You look like an official son. You can be seen as soon as you enter the city, let alone enter the city, I am afraid that you will be arrested halfway."

"Then you can't go either."

"Why don't you let me go? I can go wherever I want!"

"In short, you are not allowed to go!"

"I'm redeemed now!" Chu Ge took out a piece of paper from his pocket and slapped it on Zhuo Xinhong's face, "You can't control me!"

"You!!!" Zhuo Xinhong blushed and his neck was thick.

Xiao Ning took out a handful of fried beans from the food basket and handed it to Yang You: "Eat and watch."

Yang Yuchun took the fried beans, turned his hands over, blowing away the bean shells and excess salt, put them in his hands to signal Yang You to eat.

Yang You picked up the fried beans and threw one into his mouth. After leaving it for a long time, the beans were a bit damp, but they still tasted better than cakes.

Click, click, the sound of chewing beans was drowned out in the quarrel between Zhuo Xinhong and Chu Ge.

Zhuo Xinhong picked up the deed and looked at it carefully, "Even if you redeem yourself, you are still my woman. This matter is too dangerous. If you are discovered, you may be silenced. I will not allow you to take risks."

Chu Ge was completely unmoved, "If you don't have a household registration, you don't have three letters and six etiquettes. I don't know what kind of person you are, and you are not my father. You can't control me. I have to go today."

She said she was about to go out.

Zhuo Xinhong quickly grabbed her hand, "Come back! I haven't settled the matter with you yet! Didn't I leave money for you to stay in the capital? Brother Xu will take care of the matter, you and Just to add to the chaos."

Chu Ge shook off his hand, and snorted coldly, "Can others be as familiar with Luoshui as I am?"

"Then you can't go out of Beijing casually. I don't know how many open and dark arrows have been shot along the way. The Southwest is not a good place. Why do good people come to suffer? You are only for me anyway, and I am not a long-term person. Today Let's talk about it. I don't take you out because I feel that women are a drag, so don't think that I have feelings for you. "

Chu Ge has been with him for a long time, how can he not know that Zhuo Xinhong has a sharp mouth and a bean curd heart. On the surface, he looks like a tough person, but in reality he is weak and affectionate. she.

But since she decided to redeem herself and chase after her, she can no longer be like before. Chu Ge in the past was just a flower in Qingyuan, a canary, who could act coquettishly to her master, but now Chu Ge must be with Zhuo Xinhong Bear the wind and rain.

This is the request she made for herself. From the moment she stepped out of the capital, she could no longer be Zhuo Xinhong's belongings, but his companion, someone who could stand at the same height as him.

Chu Ge stomped his feet and shouted: "How much do you think you have? Don't take yourself too seriously, don't put gold on your face, I'm not here for you, just pretend to be sentimental!"

"Okay!" Xiao Ning applauded, "That's right! Miss Chu Ge, today I know that you are indeed a hero among women!"

Zhuo Xinhong's face turned dark.

Chu Ge said: "I came here for the prince, if it wasn't for the prince, how could I have the honor to eat the wind and drink the dew, and chase people in the wind and dust?"

Yang You: ...

Don't cause trouble when you quarrel.

After all the talk, in the end Zhuo Xinhong still couldn't hold back Chu Ge.

In fact, they all knew that Chu Ge was the best candidate, so Yang You followed Chu Ge's wishes and asked her to check the situation.

Zhuo Xinhong sighed and squatted outside the door by himself.

Yang Yuchun lit a fire and dried everyone's clothes.

The flames flickered warmly, Yang You looked at the orange flames and yawned sleepily.

After a whole night of tossing, I hardly slept much, and I was always on tenterhooks.

Yang Yuchun took off two pieces of clothes one after another, spread them on the floor, exposing his naked chest, and said to Yang You, "My lord, go to sleep first."

Anyway, we have to wait for Chu Ge's news.

Yang You fell on his clothes and fell into a drowsy sleep.

gurgling, gurgling...

He heard the sound of blisters.

His vision was dim, and he was pushed back and forth by the force of the water, but he couldn't find any support. Black shadows lurked in the water, and the white blade in his hand shone dazzlingly under the water.A hand stretched out, grabbed his neck, and pulled him down into the water.

It was getting darker and darker, and the water temperature was cold, making people numb.Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the shining knife falling down, piercing his chest!

No!No, I don't want to die!I don't want to die! ! !

Yang You shivered suddenly.

"My lord!" Yang Yuchun hugged his head and patted his cheek.

Yang You blinked, feeling that his limbs were out of control, and it took a lot of effort to sort out the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

Yang Yuchun breathed a sigh of relief, and Jiang Ling came over to feel his pulse, "Perhaps I was overly frightened, the death battle yesterday was extremely dangerous, the prince was able to support us and lead us out, now I feel relaxed, I'm afraid all kinds of emotions have come up."

Yang You was sweating profusely, closed his eyes tiredly, put his hands on his chest unconsciously, and touched the dragon scale through his clothes, the cool touch reassured him.

Yang Yuchun saw a red line on his neck, so he stretched out his hand to touch it, Yang You shrank back as if facing an enemy, avoiding his hand, his wandering eyes immediately focused on Yang Yuchun.

Yang Yuchun withdrew his hand in embarrassment.

Yang You regained consciousness, wiped the sweat from his head, and asked, "What's wrong?"

"You are having a nightmare!" Yang Yuchun added more wood to the fire and sat beside him.

Yang You had a terrible headache, and there was a sharp screaming sound in his ear, he must be a little feverish, he sat closer to the fire, Xiao Ning had to rummage through the temple, and found some clothes hidden in the corner, They are all coarse linen clothes, ordinary peasant clothes.

Xiao Ning put the clothes on Yang You, Yang Yuchun touched Yang You's head, then touched his own head, "It's a little hot, let's go to bed, wait for that, when the song girl comes back, I will find a place."

After Yang Yuchun finished speaking, he tightened his clothes tightly, and as soon as Yang You closed his eyes, the sound of bubbles began to appear in his ears, so he could only stare at the fire without moving.

Everyone else covered themselves with their clothes and rested quietly. Yang Yuchun watched the fire by himself and kept watch. He touched Yang You's forehead from time to time. Seeing Yang You's sleepy look, he said with concern, "Sleep, I will watch over."

Yang You shook his head, sat up beside him, "I can't sleep."

Yang Yuchun squeezed his fist and said to himself, "As long as I'm here, there won't be a next time."

Knowing that he was showing his loyalty, Yang You didn't say anything, just smiled, sat sideways, leaned his back on Yang Yuchun, and looked up at the dusty ruined temple.

For some reason, this scene felt familiar to him.

It was when he was a child, Yang You stole sweet potatoes from the kitchen, carried them in his pocket and brought them to Ao Chen's place.

Let’s call it Sleepy Dragon Pond first.

Ao Chen came up with a whim and wanted to teach him martial arts, but Yang You cried out that he was tired after a few squatting steps, so Ao Chen had no choice but to give up.After a while, Ao Chen said that he should exercise, and took him to the lake to ask him to swim in winter.

Before Yang You had time to react, he was thrown into the lake by the back of his neck and splashed in the cold water for a long time. Fortunately, he didn't lose his ability to swim in the tide in Qiantang and was not drowned by Ao Chen.

Ao Chen looked at him from the bank and laughed, every time Yang You swam to the bank, he would carry Yang You back and throw him back.

Yang You once wondered if he really wanted to kill himself.

Ao Chen laughed enough, went into the water and fished him out himself.

The two picked up a lot of firewood in the pine forest and lit it up in the temple to roast sweet potatoes.

Ao Chen stripped him naked, and dried his clothes by the fire.

He was wearing a robe woven by Ao Chen with exotic materials, leaning against Ao Chen, listening to the sound of crackling fire.

After a while, Ao Chen will ask Yang You if the sweet potatoes are ready.

Yang You was played with by him all day, and he really didn't want to answer him, lying on Ao Chen's lap and looking at the small ruined temple above his head.

The bottom has been cleaned, but the beams are still covered with dust, Yang You can't climb up, and Ao Chen doesn't know how to clean, so let it be dirty, anyway, out of sight and out of mind.

Ao Chen reached out and touched his forehead, "I still remember, the first time I saw Yang Shuo, he was also roasting sweet potatoes. He seemed to be hunted down by the enemy and hid in the mountains with the remnant soldiers. I followed the cloud came, just bumped into him."

It was rare for him to tell his own story, so Yang You listened carefully.

Ao Chen stopped talking.

"No more?" Yang You asked.

"Gone."

"Why did it disappear?" Yang You was puzzled. Shouldn't this historic meeting be engraved in memory for a long time?

Ao Chen smiled softly, maybe it wasn't a smile, Yang You read a lot of complicated meanings from it, which he didn't understand when he was a child, and now he can't recall Ao Chen's demeanor and tone no matter what.

I just remember Ao Chen saying: "Probably one Lengtouqing and the other Lengtouqing talked about their lofty ambitions. The two hit it off right away. After so many years, who still remembers it? There is nothing to remember."

Those sufferings of wind, frost, snow and rain, the pleasure of drinking and talking, the pride of the world, and the ambition of Haiyan Heqing have long been a pile of dust and smoke in the pile of old papers, which will be scattered when the wind blows.

It's worthless to anyone.

Ao Chen understood it late, but Yang Shuo understood it early.

Yang You couldn't taste Ao Chen's bleakness, but at this moment, he was quite moved, he seemed to have a mentality of thinking about the world and the earth, feeling sad and tearful.

Can't tell if it's his own far-fetched idea.

Now that the road ahead is bleak, he still wants to go on, and he hesitates for a while.

Yang Yuchun's upper body was bare, and his skin was dry and warm. Yang You half-closed his eyes and asked casually, "Ou, except for the two times when I was assassinated, have you ever killed anyone?"

He originally wanted to ask why Yang Yuchun reacted quickly at that time and drew his sword without hesitation, and why he was not haunted by any nightmares or negative emotions at all.

"Killed." Yang Yuchun replied.

Yang You was taken aback.

"In the past spring plowing for water, various villages fighting for mines, and rogue fighting were common occurrences. Even if you didn't kill people, your hands would be fatal. In the past, when the village was attacked by bandits, I used my hands more severely, leaving I killed three dogs, and the clan elders covered it up for me. Later, when I fought with Poppi, my hands were neither light nor heavy, so I don’t know if there are any dead people. Those people did the same thing yesterday, I don’t know if there were a few lives left on the knife.”

His Hebei accent made Yang You feel amused, "What does it feel like to kill someone?"

Yang Yuchun's arm stiffened, "I don't feel it, it's easier than killing a pig."

What kind of metaphor is this?

"The chicken will jump a few times when its head is cut off, and the pig will still struggle if it is stabbed in the neck and bled, but if a person is stabbed, it will still be half-lifed. It's so easy."

Yang You savored his plain and heartless words carefully, and couldn't help laughing, "Killing a man is just a one-shot thing, but it takes a lot of time and energy for a person to grow up."

Yang Yuchun looked down at the knife at his feet, "The old Taoist said that saving people is much more difficult than killing people, so don't swing the knife in your hand lightly. My knife is used to protect the world for the prince."

Yang You didn't expect that Lu Shanjian would teach Yang Yuchun these things, but these words sound a bit outrageous at the moment.

"Don't tell anyone else these things."

Yang Yuchun nodded.

The two chatted about some interesting things about Yang Yuchun's childhood, they were all trivial things in the fields, otherwise it would be endless wandering.

Yang Yuchun is an abandoned baby. He grew up eating hundreds of meals and stayed in the original village until he was 13 years old. He was already a calf. He had already been engaged to the same family, and he was supposed to step in the door. Unexpectedly, the little girl was robbed by bandits on the road. .He rose up and killed three bandits, kept his fiancée, but made the village hated by the bandits.

The officialdom in Hebei has been corrupt for a long time, and officials and bandits have colluded. In order to make a living, the people have more or less connections with bandits in their families. In some places, bandits even maintain daily order and enforce laws.

Ridiculous.

The clan elders in their village had a good relationship with the bandit leader, so they decided to invite the bandit leader to a meal. The bandit made a mistake first, so he didn't bother the village anymore, but Yang Yuchun could no longer stay in his hometown.His fiancée's family packed his bags for him, and he started wandering.

Coolies, trackers, thugs... He is illiterate, can only work as a coolie, and has a bad temper. When others come to him for trouble, he has to find them back. Fleeing.

Finally, he became a long-term worker in a rich family, and encountered a natural disaster. The whole of Hebei was short of food and clothing. The rich family was infected with the plague. The servants robbed the money and food and ran away. He watched the rich family and died , I don’t have the money to ask my husband to use it as a private house, so I can only find a place to bury the person, plant a few trees at random, and then follow the flow of people south to the capital.

After entering the capital, he realized that the world is prosperous, but unfortunately, no matter how prosperous it is, he does not have his share. They are ants under the carved railings, and they are the ashes discarded in front of the gates of dignitaries.

Until he met Yang You.

While Yang Yuchun was talking, he was also thinking about his life.

When I was a child, it was hard, and the old people in the village often said that as long as I got through it, I would be fine.

When wandering in Hebei, when he was starving and desperate in the capital, his only thought was to survive, as long as he survived, he would surely have a good life.

But where the good days are, he doesn't know.

Only that faint hope hung on his life like a thread, as long as it was loosened, he had to finish the game.

Fortunately, he waited.

"After entering the palace, you will know what a good life is."

Listening to his words, Yang You's eyes were moist, "One Jiaodong king can only save one Yang Yuchun. But there are more than tens of thousands of Yang Yuchun in the world..."

Yang Yuchun poked the fire with a wooden stick, looked sideways at Yang You, "My lord, I heard from the old Taoist that you are going to be the emperor."

The sincerity in his words made Yang You unable to avoid this question, "What if I say yes?"

Yang You stopped the meeting, and said seriously: "I want the people in the world to live a good life, not because of the kindness of a certain prince, I hope everyone can live a good life with their own hands."

Yang Yuchun smiled. He didn't know how to evaluate Yang You's dream, but he was faintly excited. He clenched his fist and asked the topic he cared about, "Then can I be a general in the future? The one with the big chicken tail hair kind?"

Yang You laughed, "Wear it and wear it, don't talk about chicken tail feathers, peacock tail feathers will be worn around you."