No. 1 Girl in the Imperial City

At the darkest hour before dawn, the two ships docked by the sea finally left the sea slowly and headed for the wider sea outside.

The people on the boat didn't know that there were two more girls who were locked up at the bottom of the cabin.

Although the guards around the port and even on the ship were quite strict, they still couldn't stop a master like Qu Fang, nor could they stop people like Luo Junyao and Qin Yao'er.

After Qu Fang watched the two girls blend into the group of girls smoothly, he found a comfortable place on the boat to hide, and the two boats began to move slowly.

Compared with Qu Fang, who was able to come and go freely on the boat, life for Luo Junyao and Qin Yao'er was not so easy.

More than 100 girls were squeezed into the not-so-big space at the bottom of the cabin.Not to mention the filthy and dull air, and the darkness without even a trace of fire, they could only be squeezed together side by side, and it was difficult for them to move their bodies.

But the advantage lies in safety and stability. They don't have the ability of Qu Fang. It is quite troublesome to hide around on the boat. It is better to be safe.

These girls were obviously not arrested the first day, and they were already a little numb.

They sat quietly in the dark, motionless, and some of them had already fallen into a drowsy sleep.

Even for martial arts practitioners, no matter how good their eyes are in such a place without the slightest light, it is not easy to use them.

Qin Yao'er was very depressed, so she could only hug Luo Junyao tightly, "Yao Yao..."

Luo Junyao was also very helpless, he refused to let her follow her, and now he can only ask for trouble.

"It's okay, bear with it." Luo Junyao said in a low voice, "It will take three days at most."

"..." Qin Yao'er felt his eyes go dark.

Are they going to stay in such a ghost place for three days? !It's better to go up and play peek-a-boo with the people on the boat.

Luo Junyao felt that she hadn't suffered such a crime for a long time. They sailed on the ship for three days, and when they disembarked three days later, even if there was no disguise to cover up, she still felt that her face was already sallow.

I was locked in a dark room for three days, and I could only go out for a short time every day, and I only had one meal a day. After such a toss, my weak body couldn't stand it.

When disembarking, several girls were carried down half dead.

Naturally, Luo Junyao and Qin Yao'er would not be tied up with ropes to get off the boat like the other women. Before the boat was about to dock, they had slipped out of the small dark room and hid.

Then, taking advantage of the noise and chaos after the ship docked, he quietly disembarked.

It was broad daylight when the boat arrived at Yingzhou Island, and there were many boats parked in the entire port, and the crowds on the pier were very lively.

There are people who come and go carrying goods, and there are also rich people who are dressed in gorgeous and exquisite clothes and walk leisurely. There are also people selling various goods on the roadside around the pier, which is a lively and prosperous scene.

Seeing the girls who got off the boat being taken into the carriages parked on the side of the road, and the carriages drove all the way to the northwest, the three of them slowly looked away.

"What are we doing now?" Qin Yao'er asked.

Luo Junyao thought for a while, and said, "Go to the city first, and then find out where those girls were sent. Mr. Qu, please keep an eye on where those ores were transported, and then we will meet in the city."…

"Are you sure?" Qu Fang asked.

Luo Jun said: "Mr. Qu, don't worry, we will be fine. I just saw the sign, and Gu Jue has already arrived."

Qu Fang nodded, "Okay, be careful."

"Ah."

Yingzhou is a county according to Dasheng's level plan, and its area is only at the level of a medium-sized county in Dasheng, but Yingzhou City does not look like a county seat.

The scale of Yingzhou City is no worse than Dasheng's medium-sized state capital, and the defense of the city wall is the standard that only a prefecture city can have.When entering the city, although no one checked the road guide or anything, the soldiers standing at the gate of the city holding weapons and staring at them were enough to make people feel intimidated.

It is impossible for the Yingzhou county government to have such soldiers and horses. These people are obviously the private soldiers of the Fang family.

Luo Junyao's guess was quickly confirmed. These people were not shy about it, and there was a square character written on their clothes and vests.

In this place, the county magistrate of Yingzhou is more than just a puppet, he is simply a transparent person.

Or...he is already a member of the Fang family, right?

Yingzhou city is also very lively, there are all kinds of people here, two young girls like Luo Junyao and Qin Yao'er walk on the street without being awkward, and there are even many people from the Jianghu and foreigners.The local residents of Yingzhou are obviously used to this kind of situation, and they are not afraid of those vicious outsiders with weapons, and they still shout and get angry as usual.

A man from the rivers and lakes on the street overturned a small stall because of a disagreement for some reason. This man obviously had a bad temper and raised his fist and wanted to hit someone.But soon soldiers patrolling the city came over and arrested the Jianghu man and took him away.

Seeing this, the others didn't dare to cause trouble, and quickly dispersed.

"These people seem to be nice to the locals?" Qin Yao'er whispered in Luo Junyao's ear.

Luo Jun said: "Rabbits don't eat grass by the side of the nest. If the Fang family can't even maintain the law and order in Yingzhou City, why should they control Yingzhou Island for generations? Even if the imperial court can't control it, the local people have turned against them long ago."

Qin Yao'er nodded, "That's right."

The two walked to a dim sum stall on the side of the road and bought a few pieces of Yingzhou's special pastries.

The dim sum seller was an old woman in her 50s with gray hair. Seeing the cuteness of the two girls, the old woman couldn't help exhorting: "The two girls just came to our place, right? They need to rest early at night. , don’t go out and run around.”

"Auntie has really good eyesight. We just came to Yingzhou with my brother in the past two days." Jun Yao tilted his head slightly, showing a puzzled expression, "I think this place is very bustling and lively, and the government also protects ordinary people, why? Is there any danger?"

The old woman glanced at her colleague who was packing up the overturned goods not far away, sighed and said in a low voice: "What are you protecting, it's not just that you can only admit that you are unlucky, but recently there is a happy event in the city lord's house, and it is stipulated that you are not allowed to be on the street. It was fine in the past, but in the past year, a lot of outsiders came suddenly, and it became more and more chaotic."

last year?
Luo Junyao paid the money, nodded obediently and said, "We understand, thank you for reminding me, auntie."

After bidding farewell to the old lady, the two followed the mark left by Gu Jue while eating snacks. …

Two quarters of an hour later, the two met Gu Jue, who was not very good-looking, in an inn in the city.

"Girl! Long time no see!" Gu Jue couldn't hold back his usual smile anymore, and stared at the two very leisurely looking girls through gritted teeth.

Qin Yao'er swooped up behind Luo Junyao and refused to stand up again. Luo Junyao twitched the corners of his mouth and smiled at him, "Long time no see, do you want some snacks?"

"..." Gu Jue glanced at the snack in her hand speechlessly, turned around and entered the room.

Qin Yao'er tugged at Luo Junyao's sleeve, and said in panic, "He...he seems to be angry."

Luo Junyao was puzzled and said: "It's fine if you're afraid of Ayan, why are you still afraid of him?" General Gu is good-looking and has a good temper. Luo Junyao really doesn't understand why such a quirky little girl like Qin Yao'er is afraid of him.

Qin Yao'er shook her head bitterly and said, "You don't understand."

"Okay, then you stay outside." Luo Junyao patted her on the shoulder and followed her in slowly.

Qin Yao'er was afraid of Gu Jue, but she was not.

Gu Jue looked at Luo Junyao who came in leisurely, but still got up to salute, "I've seen the princess."

Luo Junyao sat down and asked, "When did you come? How many people did you bring to the island?"

Gu Jue said: "Back to the princess, I went to the island yesterday evening. There are 16 people who followed me to the island, and some people will arrive one after another in the past two days. In addition, General Cheng sent two thousand sailors disguised as merchant ships, In the waters near Yingzhou Island. It's just..."

"Just what?" Luo Junyao asked.

Gu Jue frowned and said: "There are dense reefs near Yingzhou Island, and the merchant ships entering and leaving can only be piloted by people on the island to enter the port smoothly. There are also many fleets and soldiers from the Fang family patrolling nearby. Not an easy thing."

Luo Jun shook his head and said: "I also found out when I came in just now that there are probably a lot of soldiers and horses on this island. In a few years, the Fang family may really want to become king on their own, and no one from the coastal navy has reported to the court? "

Gu Jue said helplessly: "In the past few years, the pressure to suppress bandits along the coast has increased sharply. When my subordinates went down to find General Cheng, General Cheng had just repelled a group of pirates who came ashore to plunder and suffered some minor injuries. According to Cheng The general said that this is the third time that pirates have come ashore on a large scale this year. Even guarding a seaside city is difficult, let alone going to sea?"

Luo Junyao sneered and said: "This is interesting. I saw that Yingzhou Island is not too big, and there are not many places that can cultivate land, but the population on the island far exceeds the people with enough food to support them. This place is lonely. Suspended overseas, even if the trade is developed, it is not easy to feed so many people, right?"

These days, it is not cost-effective to buy and sell grain by sea. People prefer silk, tea, gems, spices, gold, silver and porcelain, which are of high value.

Gu Jue was silent for a while and said: "There are indeed several small countries to the east of Yingzhou, but the closest ones are thousands of miles away. In terms of voyage and convenience, Qingzhou should be the easiest place to transport grain to Yingzhou. Qingzhou itself It is a place where grain is produced, and it borders several places with rich land. There is a big port that is as prosperous as the south. There are many merchant ships coming in and out every day, and a few more ships transporting grain among them will not attract the attention of others.  …

Luo Jun shook his forehead and thought for a while, then said: "First find out how many soldiers and horses there are on this island, and the relationship between the Fang family and those pirates."

Gu Jue nodded yes.

Luo Junyao thought for a while and asked again: "By the way, the people you brought here won't attract the attention of the people on the island, right?"

Gu Jue said: "Princess, don't worry, it will be the birthday banquet of the head of the Fang family in Yingzhou in seven days. Recently, many people have come and gone. We also came in the name of birthday celebrations. Our current identities are the fourth son and fifth son of the Gu family, a wealthy businessman in Dongzhou." Miss, the identity is handled by General Cheng himself, so there will be no problem."

"This courtyard is full of our own people?" Luo Jun shook his head.

Gu Jue nodded and smiled, "Exactly."

Gu Jue handed Luo Junyao a copy of his identity details, and Luo Junyao opened it to see the information of the fifth girl of the Gu family.

Gu Yao, 17 years old...

Even the height, shape, general personality and some personal events are clearly written.

In short, this girl was raised in a deep boudoir since she was a child, and she has never seen any outsiders, but she has a relatively outgoing personality and is very favored at home.The Gu family and the Fang family did not have any friendship. This time, the fourth son of the Gu family mainly came to Yingzhou to look at the goods in place of his sick brother, and also to celebrate the birthday of the head of the Fang family. The fifth girl had to pester her brother and go out with her.

Gu Jue's identity must be similar, both belong to the kind that rarely sees outsiders, and the chance of being bumped by others is naturally much lower.

"By the way, there are many people from the rivers and lakes in Yingzhou City, as well as people from other races. I don't think they look like businessmen." Luo Junyao recalled what he saw on the street, and frowned: "I heard from the locals that this The situation has only happened in the past year, what's going on?"

Gu Jue nodded and said: "I also saw it. It is said that the Fang family is recruiting people from the Jianghu. Those foreigners also came from those small countries in the east. The situation is similar to those from the Jianghu. Most of them are locals. I’m going down. I walked around the city last night, and now this island is only those recruited people from the Jianghu.”

After finishing speaking, the two looked at each other, their expressions became a little dignified.

A place like Yingzhou is easy to defend and difficult to attack. The Fang family has recruited many masters and soldiers over the years.As for the weapons that were transported to Qingzhou, Luo Junyao couldn't help but sighed, "I hope Xie Xiao can be smarter."

"Bang bang." The door was knocked lightly twice, and Gu Jue immediately stood up vigilantly.

Luo Jun shook his head, "It's Mr. Qu."

The door was pushed open, and indeed it was Qu Fang who walked in from the outside.

"Mr. Qu has worked hard, how is it?"

Qu Fang said: "It's not far from the city, it's in a valley about seven or eight miles outside the North City Gate. But outside the valley is heavily guarded, ordinary local people hardly go through the North Gate, and outsiders can't get close."

Luo Jun shook his head and said with a smile: "This kind of place will certainly not be able to stop Mr. Qu."

A smile flashed across Qu Fang's face, and he said: "Your guess is correct, there is a workshop for making weapons. There are quite a lot of people inside. When I entered, the people inside were busy, and the managers kept urging Those craftsmen seem to be in a hurry."

"Weapons?" Gu Jue gritted his teeth.

Luo Jun said: "That's right, they transported the iron ore from Qingzhou, and then transported the forged weapons to Qingzhou."

"It seems that Cao Mian is really ambitious." Gu Jue said in a deep voice.

Although he knew it already, Gu Jue couldn't help being angry when he knew the news.They were born and died on the battlefield, but these people are trying to start another war in a place that has only been peaceful for 30 or [-] years!

"Bastard!"

Luo Jun said: "Anyway, first find out the situation on the entire island, and then decide what to do next. It may not be realistic to mobilize a large number of troops to attack Yingzhou Island. We still have to think about whether we can break through from the inside."

The warships and long-range artillery fire these days are really not enough. Soon after Dasheng established the country, his attention was always on the northwest border, and the navy was even more careless.

Even if Luo Junyao gave Xie Yan the blueprint of the big ship before he knew something, it would not be useful in a short while.

"Yes, princess." Gu Jue replied.