Chapter 544: Your Majesty, I set up a "game" in Yongjia
Chapter 544: Your Majesty, I set up a "game" in Yongjia (5k monthly ticket request)
came back!
In the dim fourth floor of an old building, Zhao Duan in spirit form suddenly rushed out from the stone wall, gasping subconsciously.
When a familiar environment appeared in his field of vision, he was finally sure that he had successfully broken free from the control of the [Soul-Breaking Sword], traveled thousands of miles, and returned to the depths of the palace.
"It succeeded... I never thought that there would be a day when I could use my visualization ability to escape." Zhao Duan was filled with fear and many complex emotions.
must admit.
Zhao Shixiong's strength was beyond his expectations. Even though he had reserved the [Liangshengmen] as a backup, he was still nearly captured and killed.
Fortunately, in desperation, he remembered this ability of "The World" and successfully escaped from the jaws of death.
"According to the rules I have discovered in the past, as long as I use the mural to return again, I can return to my physical body directly. However, I am not sure if I will still be dragged back by Zhao Shixiong if I go back immediately now."
"As a warrior, he does not master any magic. The reason why he was able to call my soul back must be the power of the weapon in his hand... Before I understand the scope of the weapon's ability, I must not return rashly.
Otherwise, if I am arrested by him again, Zhao Shixiong will be prepared and will probably kill me without giving me time to think again..."
Zhao Duan’s thoughts flashed rapidly, and he cautiously gave up the option of returning to his body immediately.
“As for the safety of my physical body, the Golden Shadow Guard will certainly take care of it, but this is not safe. If Zhao Shixiong can still lock onto my physical body, then I will have no choice but to stay with Pei Niannu and become a wandering ghost.
Well... maybe it will just vanish into thin air, which is worse than her."
Thinking of this, Zhao Duan's heartstrings suddenly tensed up and he felt a strong sense of urgency.
He can't stay in the capital for too long!
Without any hesitation, he immediately floated out of the pavilion and headed straight for the outside of the martial arts hall.
On the way, I ran into Eunuch Hai, who was walking out of the bedroom wearing a coat and holding a lantern in his hand.
"What's the matter that brings you back so late at night? Can you let us sleep well..." Eunuch Hai complained with a frown when he saw him.
As a palace attendant, he always paid close attention to every little thing going on in the palace.
"Huh? No, is your spirit damaged? Why is it flickering?" The old eunuch in the python robe took a closer look and his face changed.
Zhao Duan was like seeing a savior, and immediately said:
"I fought with Zhao Shixiong, and my soul was pulled away from my body by the knife in his hand. I had no choice but to return to the palace to hide. Eunuch, do you know what this method is?"
The silver-haired old eunuch was startled and said seriously:
"Is this true? Come with me to see His Majesty immediately."
Lao Hai, you don’t understand... I’m happy for nothing... Zhao Duan sighed.
The two of them immediately set off and headed for the Yangxin Palace. At this time, the empress had not yet gone to bed.
When Xu Zhenguan caught a glimpse of the two people rushing in from outside the study, the empress's fair face was also stunned. Her sight was attracted by Zhao Duan's dim soul, and her slender eyebrows frowned:
"What happened?!"
Zhao Duan told the story again, but in order to buy time, he did not explain the cause and effect.
A battle with Zhao Shixiong?
Forced to flee back?
Xu Zhenguan stood up suddenly, staring at him in surprise, his divine thoughts at the heavenly realm sweeping over him like an overwhelming force.
Enveloping Zhao Duan, his dim, flickering soul quickly stabilized and gradually returned to fullness.
At the same time, he was surprised to find that on his soul body, from the center of his eyebrows downwards, there was a scarlet scar, like a blood vessel, extending downwards, becoming lighter and lighter, but almost wrapped around half of his body.
"What is this?" Zhao Duan was stunned.
Eunuch Hai is well-informed and said in a deep voice:
"It looks like the scars caused by the sword energy, and it is also similar to a curse that can continuously weaken and debilitate your spirit. Zhao Shixiong must have left this mark on you during the fight, so that he could pull your soul out from the air. If this curse is not removed, you will be targeted again even if you return."
Xu Zhenguan's face was covered with frost. Without hesitation, he wrapped Zhao Duan with his mind and walked out with lotus steps:
"Eunuch Hai, please stay in the palace. I will be back soon."
As soon as she finished speaking, the empress's skirt fluttered, and she rose from the ground and disappeared in the palace.
Zhao Duan followed the empress, riding the wind and flying over the capital city. He saw the buildings of the Tianshi Mansion in front of him getting bigger and bigger.
"I am not good at magic. To be on the safe side, it would be best to ask Zhang Yan for help." The empress explained softly.
As a celestial being, she was not without means to treat the injuries to her soul, but because her soul was too special, she dared not act rashly and preferred to seek treatment from "professionals".
For this reason, it doesn’t matter even if the special reason why Zhao Duan could return is exposed. This is not a very important secret.
……
In the blink of an eye, the king and his minister fell into a small courtyard deep in the Tianshi Mansion.
The big banyan tree was crystal clear in the night, half green and half like red cloud, extremely eye-catching.
When the empress descended from the sky, her powerful grace made the plants and trees in the courtyard bend down, and even the big banyan tree trembled.
"Where is the Heavenly Master?" Xu Zhen looked at the empty rocking chair under the tree and opened his mouth slightly.
With a creaking sound, the lights in the courtyard first came on, and then the door opened. Zhang Yan, wearing a priest's robe, walked out in surprise:
"Your Majesty, you visited me at night. What do you mean by...Huh? Little friend Zhao?"
When the old Taoist priest saw Zhao Duan, he couldn't help but be stunned.
Although he practiced the Way of Heaven, he did not do divination all the time, not to mention that the Way of Heaven would also be affected when it came to the Martial God Diagram. He knew nothing about Zhao Duan's situation.
"Greetings, Heavenly Master." Zhao Duan bowed his hands and did not rashly call the empress "Old Zhang" in a casual manner.
To avoid suspicion, so as not to call too intimately and cause Zhenbao to have wild thoughts.
Under the night sky, Xu Zhenguan spoke majestically and gracefully:
"There is no time to explain. Please ask the Heavenly Master to help resolve the hidden dangers of his soul."
I knew that you two were here for no good reason... Zhang Yan complained in his heart, took a few steps closer, and stared at Zhao Duan.
Under the gray eyebrows, golden light surged in the eye sockets.
At this moment, Zhao Duan shuddered, as if he was suppressed by the entire world, or as if he was being looked down upon by the gods in the sky.
After a moment, Zhang Yan raised his eyebrows and said in surprise:
"Soul-breaking sword wound... Has this garrison soldier made a comeback?"
"Soul-breaking Sword?" Zhao Duan and the Empress asked in unison.
As a general of the border army, Zhao Shixiong's intelligence was naturally recorded in the court, but his weapon was not called this name in the information.
However, it is obvious that Zhao Shixiong concealed the situation of the weapons. This is not surprising. As a general guarding the border, it is not surprising that he hides some trump cards.
Zhang Yan nodded and said:
"It's an old item from six hundred years ago. Haha, in that era, many weapons were melted into one or two magic objects when they were cast, so that warriors could occasionally use magic. However, most magic objects required magicians to drive them, so there were not many such weapons...
It just so happens that there is a record in the Tianshi Mansion about the Soul-Breaking Sword, which can reflect the scenes that have occurred in a certain area within a certain period of time.
If you use it against an enemy, you can plant a 'soul mark' on the enemy during the fight, which is the red scar on your body. As long as you are not far enough away from the person holding the knife, your soul will be trapped by the knife...
Could it be that Zhao Xiaoyou encountered this creature on the front line? Yet he was able to escape back to Beijing across thousands of miles, interesting..."
The old Taoist priest was amazed.
Zhao Duan sighed: "Just tell me if it can be cured."
Zhang Yan smiled and said, "It's easy."
He waved his hand casually, and the big banyan tree above his head rustled, and leaves fell one by one, swirling around Zhao Duan.
"Boom bang bang..."
There was an explosion sound from Zhao Duan's body, and the remaining scarlet soul seal shattered into pieces. After a few breaths, it dissipated and overflowed.
The banyan leaves turned crimson, dull and fell to the ground.
"It has been erased. Now if you go back, you won't be targeted." Zhang Yan said with a smile and his hands behind his back.
Every profession has its specialties, and when it comes to the field of magic, there is nothing in the world that this old man cannot solve.
The empress breathed a sigh of relief, her cold and solemn expression relaxed, and she nodded solemnly:
"Thank you for your help, Master."
Old Zhang is very kind. He wrote off all the previous freeloading from me... Zhao Duan breathed a sigh of relief as he felt his soul and body gradually stabilize.
Zhang Yanyi asked:
"No need to thank me, but how did Mr. Zhao appear in the capital? Could you tell me about it?"
Zhao Duan looked at Xu Zhenguan. The empress thought about it and told him the situation frankly. She did not mention any details, only saying that it was related to "The World".
"Is there such a magical effect?" Zhang Yan was surprised. "Emperor Taizu of Yu State was a great man. No wonder Qingshan Wuxiankui is obsessed with the royal inheritance."
As powerful men from the lineage of sorcerers, both Zhang Yanyi and Xuan Yin have little interest in the inheritance of the God of War.
But Wu Xiankui, who also belongs to the lineage of warriors, is different. When mentioning Qingshan Wu Xiankui who participated in the "Luoshan Fengshan", neither the king nor the minister said anything, but it was obvious that they kept this account in mind.
If it weren't for the fact that the six vassal kings were rebelling and suppressing the rebellion was a top priority, Xu Zhenguan would have to leave for the time being. Otherwise, he would have gone to Qingshan, Donghai in person to get his revenge.
Zhang Yan glanced at Zhao Duan and suddenly said:
"Your spirit can travel back and forth between the two places, but without a physical body, it is inconvenient to just rely on your spirit to travel. My unworthy disciple Gongshu is good at this, so you can teach him to make you a body that is convenient for storage."
That guy Gongshu Tianyuan... Zhao Duan subconsciously felt a little annoyed. Many of his creations were not very decent...
However, the little fat man's cooking skills are fine. If he had a physical body, at least he could go home and talk to his aunt and sister normally, without having to dress up as a ghost to scare people...
"Thank you, Master." Zhao Duan bowed.
Zhang Yan smiled and said:
"You're welcome. I'll keep today's consultation fee and the cost of the body in mind and pay you back later."
Zhao Duan: “…”
He suddenly understood who Jin Jian inherited his money-loving personality from!
……
Royal study room.
Eunuch Hai waited anxiously for a while, and saw a golden light shooting towards him in the night sky.
The empress and Zhao Duan returned, and the bright red scar on the latter's body had disappeared.
"Eunuch Hai, please go back first. There is nothing wrong here. I have something to say to Zhao Qing." The empress said calmly.
The old eunuch in the dragon robe bowed and left.
After confirming that Zhao Shixiong's Soul-Breaking Sword could not lock onto the physical body and could return at any time, both the king and his minister felt much more at ease.
Especially Zhao Duan, relying on the mysterious connection with his body, he confirmed that his physical body should not be in any danger.
Therefore, I have decided to delay a little and briefly describe what happened on the front line.
In this way, even if he really encountered danger after returning, at least the court would know what happened and could make the right response.
"What's going on? Didn't I tell you not to fight with Zhao Shixiong? Is he targeting you?"
The door is closed.
When only the emperor and his minister were left in the room, the orange light from the lampshade shone on the beautiful face of the empress. Her eyes were filled with anger and a bit of worry.
Zhao Duan hurriedly explained:
"I took no risks, but something unexpected happened. This is what happened..."
As time was running out, he used concise words to describe several things he had done after lurking in Yongjia City.
The empress listened quietly. When she heard that Huai'an Palace had sent someone to contact them, her eyes lit up. She didn't expect there would be such a pleasant surprise.
After hearing that Zhao Duan had hunted down a group of military supervisors headed by Wang Qi, he nodded slightly. Killing the military supervisors and avoiding Zhao Shixiong was indeed a good choice.
After learning that Zhao Duan had killed someone, he faced a full-scale manhunt, but he did the opposite. Instead of running away and hiding, he took the initiative to create chaos to attract the attention of the rebels, openly repairing the plank road, secretly crossing Chencang, and rescuing people from the prison...
Therefore, after the fight with Zhao Shixiong... the empress did not show any joy on her face, but instead a hint of anger:
"Why do you do this?"
Zhao Duan asked curiously, "Your Majesty, do you think this is inappropriate? I shouldn't do this?"
Xu Zhenguan sat opposite him, staring at him with a stern face, took a deep breath, and then said seriously:
"The prefect of Yongjia and other officials remained loyal to the court in the face of the rebels. I am very moved and am willing to do my best to rescue them. But... it also depends on how much it costs!"
She was in a bad mood, not because she was angry with Zhao Duan, but because she was worried.
Just like Zhao Duan, who repeatedly assured himself before lurking in Yongjia that he would never take any risks, he ended up risking his own life and launching a feint attack on the five military camps, making such a big move just to rescue a group of local officials...
"Your life is more important than their lives."
Xu Zhenguan said calmly:
"Such an unwise decision is not like your usual style."
Zhenbao, be careful with your words... What you said is somewhat politically incorrect... It was the feudal era that protected you... Zhao Duan complained, but a warm current still flowed through his heart.
He smiled and said:
"Your Majesty, you know that this is not my style. I have never been a good person, let alone someone who would rather use the army and risk his life to save some local officials."
Xu Zhenguan was stunned for a moment, the anger on her pale face slightly subsided, and she said suspiciously:
"You're not here to save people? Then why bother with a fight? You're not just trying to test Zhao Shixiong's strength, are you?"
Zhao Duan said calmly:
“Testing this person’s cultivation is only one of the purposes, and it is a secondary purpose.
The leader of the Yunfu rebels seems to be King Mu, but in fact, the real threat is Zhao Shixiong.
Therefore, it is indeed very important to find out his personal strength. Just like tonight's test, I guess that even if this person is not a 'half-step heavenly being', he probably has similar fighting strength, which means that any assassination against him is meaningless. "
Xu Zhenguan said nothing, waiting for him to continue.
Zhao Duan paused, then said with a sly smile:
"However, my real purpose is neither to save him, nor to test him, nor even to assassinate Wang Qi and others to weaken the strength of the rebels. It is... 'dividing'."
"Differentiation?" Xu Zhenguan was stunned.
"Yes, or it would be more appropriate to say 'estrangement'."
Under the light, Zhao Duan's illusory figure suddenly revealed an unfathomable meaning. He said:
“I told Your Majesty last time that there are two factions within the Yunfu rebels, namely Prince Mu’s Mansion and the Southwestern Frontier Army.
When facing the imperial court, the two sides have the same stance and are extremely difficult to deal with. However, if they can split the two groups, causing Prince Mu Xu Jingtang and Zhao Shixiong to become alienated, suspicious of each other, or even turn against each other...
At the very least, the Yunfu rebels will not have the strength to support Prince Jing. At worst, the two tigers will fight each other, and the Yunfu rebels will collapse internally. We can sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, without wasting a single soldier, and we can take back half of the Huai River!"
To alienate Xu Jingtang and Zhao Shixiong?
...Xu Zhenguan's eyes became serious:
“This strategy is not new to the court, but it is extremely difficult to implement.
Prince Mu did not completely trust Zhao Shixiong, as evidenced by the fact that the general arranged to lead the front line was Su Dan. This was also reflected in the fact that a large number of "military supervisors" were stationed among the rebels in Yongjia City.
Everyone knows this, but treason is a capital crime, and the two are now on the same boat. King Mu will not remove Zhao Shixiong just because of some groundless news, and the same goes for the latter. "
It's just a plot to sow discord. The ministers in the court are not stupid. How could they not think of it?
It's just too hard to do.
Zhao Duan said calmly:
"Your Majesty is right. This is a very difficult matter. The two sides cannot easily turn against each other. That is why we have to break through bit by bit. This requires more means and time.
Everything I did when I lurked in Yongjia was just to drill a few small holes in the dam of trust between Zhao Shixiong and Xu Jingtang. "
He said cunningly:
"Your Majesty, when Xu Jingtang, who was in the rear, learned that a large number of military supervisors were killed in Yongjia City, prisoners such as the Yongjia prefect were rescued, and the minister who fought with Zhao Shixiong personally also escaped safely... what would Xu Jingtang think after hearing this news?"
What does King Mu think?
Xu Zhenguan recalled his impression of this famous uncle and said thoughtfully:
"Xu Jingtang has always presented himself as a man of high rank, a man who likes to make friends with heroes, and a scholar, so he has a good reputation in Yunfu.
But I remember that a few years ago, when the late emperor was still alive, at a certain annual festival, all the kings gathered in the capital. After the banquet, the crown prince, my brother, told me privately after drinking that Xu Jingtang was stubborn and suspicious in his heart, which was very different from his appearance. "
After a pause, she said:
"I know what you mean. You want to say that Xu Jingtang might suspect that Zhao Shixiong deliberately 'let the water', so as to make him suspicious. But this is not enough."
Zhao Duan smiled and nodded:
"Just this is indeed not enough. But what if Xu Jingtang received a report from Xiu Yizhizhi and learned that Zhao Shixiong was secretly in contact with the court?"
Thunder breaks out from the ground!
Xu Zhenguan looked at him in astonishment and blurted out:
"You want to use the embroidered clothes to directly spread false information?"
She knew that Zhao Duan had recently instigated a envoy named Nie Yurong to rebel.
If Nie Yurong was used to pass on false information to Xu Jingtang...
"No, this won't work. Xu Jingtang is not a fool. He won't just listen to what Xiu Yi directly said. He will definitely use various means to verify it. By then, not only will Nie Yurong be exposed, but Xu Jingtang will also know that all this is a plot to alienate her, and he will trust Zhao Shixiong even more."
The empress shook her head and denied this speculation.
She thought the plan was not thorough enough and had too many loopholes.
However, Zhao Duan's next words made her face change.
I only heard Zhao Duan say quietly:
"Who said they wanted to spread fake news? What if... the news that Zhao Shixiong secretly communicated with the court is... true?"
(End of this chapter)