In the mountains.
Xie Yan beheaded a man, and the fresh blood splashed on his face. Against the bloodshot eyes caused by two days without sleep, he looked like a Shura.
Chen Tingfeng drew his bow in a tree, shot an arrow at the bandit who was slashing at Xie Yan, and then fired several more arrows, pinning the remaining bandits to the ground.
Xie Yan wiped his face and looked back at Chen Tingfeng hidden in the leaves. There was still a hint of hostility in his expression. "Are they all dead?"
Chen Tingfeng put away his bow and arrow, kicked off the branch, and landed beside him. "Yes, they're all here."
Xie Yan suddenly slumped to the ground as if all the bones had been pulled out of his body. "Damn it! I'm exhausted!"
Chen Tingfeng patted the back of his head, rummaged through the body of the obvious leader, pulled out the token hidden around his waist, and threw it to Xie Yan. "They're Xiongnu."
"Damn it!" Xie Yan cursed, picked up the token and looked at it, then hammered the ground hard. "I knew a bunch of bandit farmers couldn't be so good at fighting!"
Chen Tingfeng took out a flare from his waist, lit it, and shot it straight into the sky. After that, he lifted his robe and sat down beside Xie Yan.
After two days of running around, he was also extremely tired.
"There are still spies in the capital colluding with them," Chen Tingfeng said calmly. "It's the Liu family."
"The Liu family?" Xie Yan was obviously stunned. "The one whose step - wife is a shrew?"
Chen Tingfeng nodded. Xie Yan frowned. "Are they trying to rebel?"
But Chen Tingfeng shook his head. "I'm afraid it's more than that."
Why would they need to collude with the enemy if they just wanted to rebel? The old emperor was old and muddle - headed, and there were many people in the court who were dissatisfied with him. If the Liu family really wanted to rebel, they could just secretly win over those people. Besides, the eldest prince was at the border and the second prince had no real power. It would be difficult but not impossible to get rid of them. Why take the risk of colluding with the enemy and giving away the country?
There must be something fishy.
He pondered for a moment and suddenly said, "We can't return to the capital yet."
Xie Yan lay back on the dead branches and sighed. "I know. Not all the enemies have been captured, and your father was injured because of this. If we go back now, I don't need to guess to know that the memorials accusing me will be enough to drown me."
That's the bad thing about being a prince. If things are done well, it's the emperor's credit; if not, it's the prince who's called incompetent.
Chen Tingfeng glanced at him. "Don't feel guilty. If you really want to repay us, just make my father a high - ranking but idle official after you become the emperor."
Chen Xuan took that knife for Xie Yan. Otherwise, with Chen Xuan's martial arts, he could fight three people at once without getting a scratch.
Xie Yan laughed. "Sure, I'll promote all your family members!"
"It's a pity that one got away," a hint of cruelty flashed in Xie Yan's eyes. "That man must not be left alive."
The one who got away was that effeminate man. If it weren't for his instigation and the use of the drug, those bandit farmers wouldn't have dared to kill even if they had ten times the courage.
"It's really a pity," Xie Yan looked at the corpses on the ground and said calmly. "The common people were mixed up with the Xiongnu. By the end, I didn't even know who I was killing."
"Even if we didn't kill those common people, they would be executed after being escorted back to the capital." Chen Tingfeng saw through his soft - heartedness and said bluntly.
Killing someone was a capital crime, especially for a group of bandits who had killed court soldiers.
Xie Yan sighed again and rubbed his temples wearily. "I know."
Both of them had good hearing and naturally heard the rapid footsteps approaching them.
"The people to clean up the mess are coming. Shall we leave?" Xie Yan asked.
Chen Tingfeng stood up, patted his clothes, and said firmly, "Let's go."
The enemy was not all captured yet, so they had to hide their tracks.
When the enemy is in the open and we are in the dark, that's the most effective way to defeat them.
When a group of soldiers came to the place according to the direction of the flare, they only saw the corpses on the ground and no sign of the commander.
When the news reached the court, the emperor was still sleeping off a hangover.
Chen Xuan had asked for sick leave. He was always diligent, and it was really rare for him to ask for leave. He must be seriously injured, the court officials speculated.
It was already common for the emperor not to show up at the morning court. The officials gathered in small groups, chatting and waiting for the eunuch to announce the end of the court half an hour later.
The old duke of the Duke's Mansion frowned, looked at the old man of the Zhang family, and said sarcastically, "Rare! Our dean actually comes to the court."
The old master Zhang gave him a disdainful look and flicked his sleeve. "Oh, why is there a mosquito buzzing? Zhongqing, did you hear it?"
Master Zhang kept a straight face but was actually holding back his laughter. "Summer is coming soon, father. It's normal to have more mosquitoes."
The old duke was so angry at their act that he couldn't help rolling his eyes. "If I were a mosquito, I'd surely bite you to death."
Although these two old officials were always sarcastic to each other, they actually had the best relationship.
"Xuan didn't come to the court today. Shall we go and visit him after the court?" the old duke asked.
The old master Zhang stroked his gray beard. "Go empty - handed?"
"You have the nerve to say that!" the old duke spat. "I remember Xuan loves drinking, just like his dead father. After the court, go home and carry a barrel of wine to him."
"Use my wine as a gift? Shameless!" the old master Zhang scolded slowly. "That wine was reserved as a wedding gift for his son. It's too good for him."
"You have so much wine in your cellar. Do you really miss this one barrel?" the old duke was speechless. "You're such a miser. Why don't you just die of stinginess?"
"Besides, his son's wedding? That'll be a long wait. He rejects every matchmaker who comes to the door. Hey? I heard your family's marriage proposal was also rejected?" the old duke laughed. "Oh, someone must be so angry!"
The old master Zhang was calm. "It's still better than someone who sent his daughter into the palace."
As soon as he said this, the old duke's face turned green.
In the early years, the emperor wasn't so muddle - headed and was quite handsome. At that time, the Duke's Mansion was accused in a memorial and almost lost its title. He listened to the slander of his relatives and impulsively sent his daughter into the palace to consolidate the family's status. Who would have thought that just a few years later, the emperor seemed to be cursed and indulged in the company of beautiful women every day.
His beautiful daughter was just waiting to die in the deep palace.
He was so angry!
Now it was the old master Zhang's turn to laugh. After laughing, he looked at the empty dragon throne and said calmly, "Fortune changes. I think it's about to turn to the Chen family."
"Zhongqing, after the court, go to my cellar and pick a good barrel of wine to send to the Marquis's Mansion," he said. "Remember to choose the strongest one."
Master Zhang nodded understandingly, feeling deep sympathy for his good colleague.
At the Marquis's Mansion.
Chen Xuan looked at the barrel of wine carried in front of him, quite confused. "You said who sent it?"
"The Zhang family," the butler had to say it again. "The Zhang family with all sons."
Chen Xuan walked around the wine barrel, scratched his head, and looked up at the sky. He said in a daze, "Is it going to rain blood? That miser actually sent me wine?"
Madam Bai patted him. "What miser? You should even call him uncle."
The old master Zhang and the late old master Chen were as close as brothers. Chen Xuan was a generation younger than the old master Zhang, so calling him uncle was right.
As everyone knew, the old master Zhang was very good at brewing wine but also very stingy. He never let anyone drink his wine.
But today he actually sent wine!
How could Chen Xuan not be surprised?
He was stunned for a long time, took a deep breath, and stepped forward to open the wine barrel. Instead of the pungent smell of wine, a strong smell of medicine hit him!
Chen Xuan looked inside and his face instantly turned green.
Ginseng wine! A great tonic!