The Heavens of Film and Television: From Serving as a Soldier

Chapter 199 Preparation
Ten months have passed since the princess chose her husband.

The situation in the capital has changed a lot, and some things have become unusual.

The Eighteenth Prince has been in a coma since the assassination, and His Majesty the Emperor visits him from time to time.

After the Northern Yan envoy Baili Qi was defeated by three children, he had no face to stay in Jinling City and returned to Northern Yan early.

Mei Changsu smiled faintly at the princess and said, "Princess, did you not expect this ending?"

Mu Nihuang said: "It doesn't matter whether she gets married or not, I just hope that Mu Qing can take over the important responsibilities of the palace as soon as possible."

Suddenly he remembered something and said, "Sir, this Lingxu Sword Formation looks quite decent, but the abilities of these three children are not enough to defeat the Bailiqi Warriors."

Mei Changsu said: "The princess is very intelligent and I can't hide it from you."

"Yes, Baili Qi is from the Jiangzuo League. This is just to be on the safe side, so that the princess won't choose an unsuitable partner." Mei Changsu continued, "This is also the suggestion of His Royal Highness the Eighteenth Prince."

"suggestion?"

"Yes, the princess is in charge of 100,000 soldiers in the northern border. What if..."

Mu Nihuang cupped her hands and said, "I understand. Goodbye."

"Princess, walk slowly."

After Mu Nihuang left the palace, Zhang Yang, wearing a mask, came out and asked, "Why, you can't bear to leave?"

Mei Changsu did not turn around and said, "Your Highness, this is a bit unfair to a soldier like the princess."

Zhang Yang smiled and said, "There is no such thing as fairness or unfairness in this world, only suitability or inappropriateness. She, a woman, is already a very high-ranking official for reaching this position, but the North only knows about Prince Mu's Palace but not the court, which is not good."

"See you at your house tonight."

……

About ten miles outside the west city of the royal capital, there is a stretch of rolling grassland, a clear stream flows from the side, and a dense forest on the other side of the river. Due to the quiet scenery, complete terrain, and close proximity to the official road, it has always been a place for noble sons to ride horses or practice archery.

The sound of hoofbeats was like rain. Two riders were galloping along the river bank, one in front and the other behind. Their horses were like dragons and their riders were like brocade. Their reins and saddles were gorgeous and their riding skills were superb. The man in front was running so hard that he turned his horse's head and stepped into the river. Water splashed in all directions, soaking his black boots and clothes.

"Jingrui! Don't be crazy. It's winter. Come up here quickly!" The man on the shore pulled the reins and shouted.

The knight in the water seemed not to hear anything and let the jade horse under his crotch splash around in the water. The water was already deep enough to reach the horse's belly.

"Okay!" The man on the shore also got angry. "You're not going to come up, right? Then I'll go down. At worst, I'll freeze and get sick like before..."

Following these words, the man on the shore rushed down without hesitation. His companion finally reacted and turned his horse to block him. The two horses ran diagonally upwards side by side and crossed a small slope. Xiao Jingrui suddenly pulled the reins, jumped off the horse, ran a few steps with all his strength, and suddenly fell to the ground, burying his head in the deep weeds.

Yan Yujin shook his head, threw off the stirrup, walked over and gave him a soft kick in the stomach: "Hey, are you pretending to be dead?"

The man on the ground didn't even make a sound. His jet-black hair fell on his cheeks, and together with the weeds, covered his face completely.

"I really can't do anything about you." Yan Yujin sat down next to him, pulling off a piece of grass and holding it in his mouth, "Haven't you always loved pretending to be magnanimous since you were a child? Everyone knows that Young Master Xiao is broad-minded and gentle, and a rare modest gentleman. What are you making a fuss about now? Brother Su didn't say anything, so why did he make you so angry?"

Xiao Jingrui turned over suddenly, his face tense and his eyes staring straight at the sky.

"After sunbathing your back, now you want to sunbathe your belly?" Yan Yujin smiled and lay beside him, fiddling with his ears with a blade of grass. "Your shoes and socks are all wet, right? Take them off and sunbathe together."

"Go away and don't bother me!" Xiao Jingrui pushed his hand away.

Yan Yujin immediately raised his eyebrows: "Hey! Look carefully, it's me. I'm not your punching bag. If you've been treated coldly by other friends, don't look for it on me. I never have the habit of cushioning others' backs!"

Xiao Jingrui turned over and sat up, staring at him angrily: "What did you say?"

"You glare at me and I'm afraid of you?" Yan Yujin glared back, his voice getting louder and louder. "You're angry because you feel ignored! Ever since Brother Su said to you, 'Jingrui, don't ask anymore, it's none of your business', you've already started to feel uncomfortable, right?"

"I do not have……"

"Don't pretend in front of me," Yan Yujin blocked him with one sentence, "Then when he left the palace, he didn't want to take the carriage, saying that he wanted to walk slowly by himself for a while, and that he had something to think about. You can't see the expression on your face at that time... Then he chased after him to accompany him, but was rejected in the end, right? That was not a courtesy, it was a rejection, it was clearly saying that he didn't want you to follow him, why don't you understand?"

"I understand!"

"Why are you still angry if you understand? You said that like a child, 'Then go by yourself, I'm going to play polo'. How did you expect him to answer you? Do you want to hear him say, 'Jingrui, why are you like this? I was sick and you left me to play/'? Come on, how old are you? Brother Su's answer was right. You can do whatever you want. There's no need to tell him. It's just the truth. You're not so angry that you just turn around and leave, are you?"

"But we are friends," Xiao Jingrui bit his lower lip, "Shouldn't friends care about each other?"

Yan Yujin shrugged and said with a flat mouth: "You still say that you understand. Let me tell you, Brother Su said that not to reject your concern for him, he really, really wants to walk back slowly by himself! As for why he wants to walk on the street alone, I haven't figured it out yet. I was planning to follow him secretly to see, but you, idiot, turned around and left, so I had to chase you."

"You mean..." Xiao Jingrui asked in a daze, "Brother Su wants to go alone, not only to think about things, but also for other purposes?"

Yan Yujin laughed a few times and squinted at his friend, "Jingrui, you didn't think until now that Brother Su came to Jinling with us to recuperate?"

"I..." Xiao Jingrui paused, "Of course I'm not that slow... He didn't seem to be hiding it from us on purpose. He just let things develop naturally..."

"It must not be a coincidence that Brother Su was involved in this series of events after arriving in the capital. All his actions must have his specific purpose, but unfortunately we don't know what he wants to do."

Xiao Jingrui's thick and clear eyebrows gathered together, forming two lines, and he sighed deeply, "I think I know..."

"You know?" Yan Yujin's eyes widened immediately, and he pressed on him, "Then tell me!"

"I asked Xie Bi about it. It turns out that the 'unicorn talent' he mentioned at that time was said by the Lord of Langya Pavilion. The reason why the Crown Prince and Prince Yu competed to recruit him was also here." Xiao Jingrui pushed the pile of weights on his body. It didn't move, so forget it. "I think, with Brother Su's ability and the power of Jiangzuo League, he couldn't have known about this after arriving in the capital..."

"Yeah," Yan Yujin nodded, "That makes sense, let's continue."

"Since Brother Su already knew that the Crown Prince and Prince Yu were interested in him, then even if he didn't come to the capital, trouble would still come to him. Maybe by then, it won't just be him who will be dragged into it, but also the entire Jiangzuo League."

"So, in order to avoid bringing trouble to Langzhou, the clan leader came to the capital to deal with it himself?" Yan Yujin tilted his head and smiled, "That makes sense. People like you would speculate the result."

"Of course I'm not that naive!" Xiao Jingrui tapped the head hanging above him in annoyance, "But Brother Su is very passive in this matter! The power of the Crown Prince and Prince Yu is definitely not something a gang can contend with. Besides, Brother Su is full of talent, resourceful and decisive, and he is indeed worthy of the reputation of a unicorn talent. Even if he came to the capital to really choose a master to serve, there is nothing wrong with that. Who doesn't want to make achievements and win great fame in the world? Besides, you and I can see how much he cares about his Jiangzuo League. If he succeeds in the capital, the Jiangzuo League will be supported by the court, which is also one of his goals..."

"Then what are you going to do?" Yan Yujin looked at him deeply. "He is a man of the underworld, but he wants to get involved in political disputes to gain fame. You are obviously a son of a noble family, but you always hope to be free and not get involved in government affairs. You two are obviously two people with opposite goals, why do you still value him so much?"

"These are two different things! I value Brother Su because he is a good friend worth making friends with. It has nothing to do with whether he will enter the official career in the future, right?"

"But the path he chose is not the same as that of other scholars in the world," Yan Yujin's tone gradually revealed a hint of coldness, "Jingrui, Brother Su has obviously decided to participate in the fight for the throne, don't you feel a little uneasy?"

Xiao Jingrui pursed his lips and thought for a long time, then sighed, "Yes, I am a little worried. What if the side he chooses loses in the future..."

"That's not what I meant," Yan Yujin interrupted him immediately, "I don't care which side he chooses, but what about you? Aren't you afraid that the Xie family's position is exactly the opposite of his?"

Xiao Jingrui had never thought of this before. He was silent for a long time before he stammered, "That shouldn't be a problem. Although Xie Bi is more inclined towards Prince Yu, my father is very neutral..."

"Your father can't remain neutral forever!" Yan Yujin asserted, "Your father is different from my father. Although my father has the title of marquis, it is a sinecure. Your father is the head of the military officials and the pillar of the court. The succession is the most important thing for the royal family in history. How can he stay out of it so easily?"

"But...but..." Xiao Jingrui thought about it carefully, and when he thought of the worst case scenario, he suddenly felt a chill and broke out in a cold sweat.

"Hey, hey," Yan Yujin quickly patted his pale cheek, "It's a 50-50 chance, not low. There's no need to scare yourself so early, right?"

Xiao Jingrui pushed his friend aside, his face heavy, "No, I still have to go and persuade Brother Su, the court is too muddy, it's better for him not to come in..."

"Tsk, you said he was passive. Even if he agreed to you, would the Crown Prince and Prince Yu agree?" Yan Yujin patted the grass debris on his hands and sat up cross-legged. "Jing Rui, to be honest, things are no longer within our control. I just want to remind you that we may be friends or enemies in the future. Don't be too fond of him."

Xiao Jingrui's whole body froze. He didn't know whether he was surprised because he didn't understand why the other party said that, or he was shocked because he understood the deep meaning of his words. He stared at Yan Yujin for a long time without saying a word.

"Alas," the uncle of the emperor, who was never serious, rarely showed a serious expression. He put his hands heavily on Xiao Jingrui's shoulders and whispered, "You should also understand that Brother Su is different from us. How deep and hard his heart is, and what kind of thoughts are in it, we can't see through it at all... But you are different. Your heart is too warm, too soft, and too real. So listen to me, keep a little distance, isn't it good for everyone to just maintain a casual relationship? He is no longer the Brother Su you brought to Beijing and promised to take care of him when he recovered from his illness. I'm sure he doesn't have any spare time to think of you now. If you still treat him as a good friend as before, you will definitely be the one who suffers and gets hurt in the future. Do you understand?"

"Yujin..."

"I'm a good friend so I'll tell you these things. From now on, you have to tell yourself that Su Zhe is a friend you met by chance and you don't have a close relationship with him. You went to Beijing together and he stayed at your guest house, that's all. Don't think of him as your confidant unilaterally. I don't know how close he is to you, but I only know that in his eyes you can't be his confidant as well. To put it bluntly, Brother Su is a person whose depth is unfathomable. No matter how successful you or I are, we are not qualified to be his confidant."

Xiao Jingrui had almost never seen Yan Yujin speak to him so seriously and solemnly, so he could not help but be shocked. He lowered his head and thought for a long time. After thinking about it, he felt that what he said was not wrong, but the subtle feelings between people could not be explained or distinguished by just a few words.
"Okay, that's all. Think about it slowly." Yan Yujin jumped up, dragged Xiao Jingrui's arm and pulled him up, and smiled heartlessly again, "Now accompany me to Miaoyinfang to listen to music. I haven't been there for a long time. Miss Gong Yu must miss me a lot. I heard that there is a new tune by Mr. Thirteen. Let's take a pleasure boat to the lake to see the lights in the evening. How about it?"

"What else can I do?" Xiao Jingrui rolled his eyes at him. "Your young master asked me to accompany him. How dare I refuse?"

"Haha, now you know what's best for you. You're wet but you're not afraid of the cold. Let's go. We'll have clothes to change into when we get to Miaoyinfang..."

"Yujin..."

"Ok?"

"I'd better go back and change my clothes..." "Please, your house is close to the city, and Miaoyinfang is at the west gate. Can't you tell which is closer?"

Xiao Jingrui looked around the ground for a while, and whispered, "I still want to go back and see... I wonder if Brother Su has arrived home after walking alone..."

Yan Yujin's shoulders slumped, his expression extremely helpless.

"I turned and left at that time. What was your reaction when you saw him?"

"No reaction at all." Yan Yujin said with a straight face, "He was really thinking about something at that time. He didn't notice that you were angry at all. He just walked away slowly step by step, taking his original steps."

"You also know that he showed symptoms of illness after drinking that glass of wine. He walked slowly because he was uncomfortable. Even if he was just an ordinary friend as you said, we should have paid attention to it. What if he fainted halfway? After all, this capital is not Jiangzuo, and Feiliu didn't follow him, so he is not familiar with the place..."

"Alright, alright," Yan Yujin raised his hands to admit defeat, "You're talking as if I really have no heart. Let's look for him along the way first. If he really faints somewhere and we find him, we'll send him back first and then listen to the music. Is that what you mean?"

"Why is it that no matter what you say, it sounds strangely awkward?"

"Is it my words or you who are weird?" Yan Yujin snorted, "What kind of person is the leader of Jiangzuo League? Since his purpose of coming to Nanjing is not to recuperate, then he would never really bring only Feiliu with him. I don't know about other things, but the four martial arts masters who escorted me to Beijing are still living in the city."

"Just a look. I'm just afraid that..."

"I've already said what you want to say, why are you still talking so much?" Yan Yujin turned around and led the two men's mounts over. He threw Xiao Jingrui's reins to him, climbed onto the saddle, put his left foot into the stirrup, and just as he pushed with his right foot, he suddenly cried out "Ouch".

"What's wrong?" Xiao Jingrui turned his head.

"I stepped on a stone and almost slipped." Yan Yujin retracted his left foot, moved the gravel away, and kicked it away.

The stone fell in a depression in the grassland. Due to the dense grass, the falling stone itself did not make much noise. Instead, the rustling sound in the grass was clearer.

"Who is eavesdropping there?" Yan Yujin raised his eyebrows and shouted loudly.

"I came here first and you came later, so how can I be considered eavesdropping?" A voice sounded calmly, "I have tried my best not to disturb you, but a stone fell from the sky, so you should at least allow me to hide for a while, right?"

Following this clear voice, a person slowly stood up in front of the two noblemen. He was wearing a simple lotus-colored silk gown, tall and slender, with long hair half tied up and half draped, deep eyes, and a half-smile. He had a young and handsome face, but there was a strand of white hair on his forehead that was faintly visible between the black hair, which added a bit of feminine temperament to him.

After seeing the person clearly, Yan Yujin and Xiao Jingrui looked at each other, then they both took a step back and whispered together, "Who is it?"

"I think it's my brother..."

"What if it's my sister?"

"How long has sister been gone? She's back so soon? Shouldn't it take a while to investigate..."

"That's true. It's so far away..."

The man smiled at them and said softly, "Xiaojin, I am standing far away and letting you guys discuss it. I have no intention of rushing over. Shouldn't that make it clear who I am?"

Yan Yujin blinked his eyes, looked him up and down carefully again, and finally felt relieved. A big smile appeared on his face, and he rushed over happily, hugged the man's neck and shouted: "Brother Xia Qiu, you are back! Is Donghai fun?"

The man raised an evil smile on his lips, slowly put away his arms, and held Yan Yujin in his arms.

Xiao Jingrui felt a chill running down his spine, and the hairs on his back stood up. He took two steps back involuntarily, shouting, "Yujin, run! That's Sister Xia Dong!"

Unfortunately, this warning came too late. Yan Yujin's whole body froze. When he tried to struggle again, his arms had been twisted behind his back. Xia Dong held them behind his waist with one hand. He watched helplessly as her other hand rose up at an extremely slow speed, fell to his face, and gently stroked it.

"Jing Rui..." Yan Yujin said in a trembling voice, "You ungrateful person, why don't you come and save me..."

"Save you?" Xia Dong looked over and asked softly, "Xiao Rui, do you want to come and save him?"

Xiao Jingrui's head suddenly shook like a rattle.

"Xiao Jin, you asked me if Donghai is fun, right? Unfortunately, I don't know, because I've never been there," Xia Dong's fingers suddenly exerted force and twisted Yan Yujin's face hard, leaving a red fingerprint. Xiao Jingrui felt a pain in his teeth when he saw it. "Do you know where I went? It was Binzhou, which is such a poor and desolate place. It was troublesome to investigate. It took me a lot of effort to find out... Who gave me such a headache job? Let me think about it...

"Help me—" Yan Yujin only felt a burning pain on his face and screamed without exaggeration, "I didn't mean to do that... Who knew the emperor would send you..."

"Will your cry for help be of any use?" Xia Dong smiled coldly, "Xia Qiu went to the East China Sea, and Xia Chun went to Qingjiang Prefecture to pick up his wife. I wonder who can come to save you. You disobedient boy, you went out to play and still caused trouble for me. Do you think your sister Xia Dong is too idle? If I really have nothing else to do, I can still discipline you. Have you grown up and become more independent, and have you forgotten the pain you had before?"

Hearing the word "training", the two noble gentlemen felt weak in the knees at the same time.

It is said that there is a theory about dog training, which says that no matter how fierce and ferocious a dog is, it never dares to resist its owner. This is because when it was very young, it was beaten with a stick every time it resisted its owner. Because it was too young, it never won a fight. After being beaten for a long time, a fixed mindset will be formed in its mind, making it believe that this person is absolutely impossible to resist. Even if it grows up in the future and its strength and fangs are far from comparable to those of the past, it will immediately become extremely docile when it sees the owner who once trained it.

Xiao Jingrui and Yan Yujin were two of the group of puppies back then, and Xia Dong was naturally the dog trainer.

The emperors of the Daliang Kingdom have always had a supervisory agency directly under their command, the Xuanjing Division. The members are called Xuanjing Envoys, and they are passed down from generation to generation in the form of master-apprentice relationship. They are extremely loyal to the monarch and have always acted only in accordance with the emperor's orders to investigate the most important and secretive events. The previous leader of the Xuanjing Division, Xia Jiang, had three apprentices in total. Xiaqiu and Xiadong were twin brothers and sisters, while Xiachun was not related to them by blood. The three of them have very different personalities, but like the members of the Shadow of all generations, they have a very deep relationship with each other. Originally, the duties of the Xuanjing Envoy did not include "dog training", but unexpectedly, one day seventeen years ago, His Majesty the Emperor had a sudden idea and felt that the children of the noble families were spoiled and useless, which was not a blessing for the court, so he set aside a corner in the palace and named it Shurenyuan. All boys aged five to eleven from the families of officials of the third rank or above in Kyoto were sent to the Shurenyuan to be trained by the Xuanjing Envoys. Xia Chun and Xia Qiu were gentle people. Although they were strict in supervision, they at least considered the tolerance of these little darlings. However, Xia Dong, who was only 20 years old at the time, had just graduated and was full of passion to serve the royal family. She used the training methods of her master to train these delicate puppies. Every day, you could hear the screams of the Tree People Courtyard. Poor Yan Yujin, who had just turned five years old at the time, was as beautiful as a pearl and a treasure. He was originally a proud and flamboyant little seedling. In a few days, he was trained to automatically roll up all the leaves as if hit by frost when he saw sister Xia Dong. This root of the disease has not been cured at all until now.

"Xia... Sister Xia Dong..." Xiao Jingrui suffered for a shorter period of time, so his symptoms were slightly milder than Yan Yujin's. He bravely said, "Yujin really didn't mean it. We ran into the couple who complained on the road, and we couldn't just ignore it..."

Xia Dong snorted, and the force of twisting Yan Yujin's wrist did not reduce, but his face moved closer. In fact, in terms of appearance alone, although Xia Dong was born androgynous, he could be called very handsome. Because of his intensive practice of internal skills, he looked much younger than his actual age. But for Yan Yujin, whose mind was full of painful memories, this beautiful face was no different from a devil's mask. Seeing it approaching him inch by inch, the uncle felt his scalp tingling and almost couldn't help but scream.

"Xiao Jin, don't talk. Hold me and walk slowly to the official road..." The thin words entered his ears at this time. The body leaning over seemed heavy, and the fishy and sweet smell of blood flowed into his nose at the same time. Yan Yujin's heart sank, but he quickly stabilized his expression, and adjusted his standing angle imperceptibly to support Xia Dong's already unstable body. He still said in a begging tone: "Sister Xia Dong, don't be angry. Wait until you return to Beijing and hand in your mission. You can punish me however you want." As he said that, he took out one hand to hold Xia Dong's arm, half turned his body, and gave Xiao Jingrui a suggestive look.

Xiao Jingrui was startled. After all, he had some experience in the martial arts world, so he immediately noticed that the situation was unusual. Although he still maintained his original posture and expression, his eyes quickly swept left and right, and then he held his breath and sensed his surroundings. As expected, he could feel a faint murderous aura.

"You have always been sweet-talking since you were young," Xia Dong smiled, and her neutral face suddenly revealed a feminine charm. "Do you think you can use a delaying tactic? If you are caught by me, don't even think about escaping. Come with me!"

"Okay, okay, when have I ever dared to disobey Sister Xia Dong?" Yan Yujin laughed, lowered his voice and asked quietly, "How are you, can you ride a horse?"

Xia Dong smiled and patted his head, his lips moving gently: "Just go like this, as long as I don't fall down, they won't dare to come out rashly."

At this time, Xiao Jingrui also led the horse closer, his eyes full of concern, but he did not dare to speak casually.

"Don't worry, they can't hear you if you speak softly at this distance," Xia Dong said in a low voice, "They don't want me to enter the city, so they might make a desperate move... You should also be prepared, there are people in the river and in the woods on the other side..."

The two men secretly gathered their true energy, one of them pretended to have his arm twisted and supported Xia Dong to move forward, while the other one led the mount and deliberately slowed down a few steps to cover them. The three of them slowly moved towards the official road. From a distance, they looked as relaxed as if they were laughing and playing, without any sense of tension.

However, Xia Dong's increasingly disordered breathing and gradually heavy steps indicated that the situation was worsening. Xiao Jingrui looked at the bloody footprints left by the two people in front of him with every step, and knew that something was wrong. He could only let the horse's hooves deliberately trample on the blood-stained grass leaves, just to avoid being noticed by the killers lurking behind him.

Unfortunately, professional killers are always more sensitive than usual. When there was no omission, a thin whistle suddenly sounded in the dense forest across the stream, followed by the shaking of branches and leaves, and several light gray figures flew out. At the same time, the originally calm river surface suddenly rose with water columns, and about ten killers wearing silver water jackets and holding water-dividing spears soared into the sky. The two teams met at a point, and instantly formed a fan shape and rushed towards the three people.

Without a single word, the fierce battle started. The killers' moves were not fancy, and their postures were not beautiful, but they were simple and effective. They rushed, stabbed, chopped, and slashed, and each movement was quick and decisive, with the sole purpose of taking someone's life. Even Xiao Jingrui, who had experienced the dangers of fighting in the martial arts world, was temporarily overwhelmed by the strong killing intent, and his body movements became quite stagnant. As for Yan Yujin, who had only seen martial arts competitions, it was even more difficult for him to adapt. In addition, neither of them had a weapon in hand, and they immediately fell behind in dealing with the fierce attacks of several desperate criminals with bare hands. If the opponent's main purpose was not to target Xia Dong, I'm afraid they would have been killed long ago.

In comparison, Xia Dong, as the Mirror Master, was naturally more experienced. She basically did not move an inch, and a sharp dagger suddenly appeared in her hand. She fought simple with simple, and fought fast with fast. The people who besieged her could not get close to her for a while. Unfortunately, because she had been injured for a long time, she was weak after a long time. After blocking several attacks, her feet became weak, her body swayed a few times, and she fell to the ground. Although she was still able to support herself, she was still in danger.

Fortunately, after the initial attack, Xiao Jingrui and Yan Yujin had calmed down. Because they knew that those who dared to chase and kill even the Xuanjing Envoy would most likely not care about their identities, not to mention that the other party might not know their identities, so they made up their minds and increased their concentration, and their movements became much smoother. One of them was the heir of Tianquan Villa, and the other practiced the Qianmen Mentality. Their martial arts were definitely the best among the younger generation. In addition, facing such a life-and-death situation, even if it was not for themselves, they also wanted to fight for a way out for their friends, so they used all their strength without leaving any spare energy. After stabilizing their position, the two of them stood shoulder to shoulder in front of Xia Dong, and although they inevitably got some cuts on their bodies, they gradually turned the situation around, and finally successfully seized two water spikes in their hands.

The swordsmanship of Tianquan Villa is so famous in the martial arts world that it can almost compete with Huashan. Xiao Jingrui uses stabbing as sword, and although it is not very handy, the power has been greatly increased. In addition, Yan Yujin's body movements are dazzling, and Xia Dong's moves are strange and bizarre. In the blink of an eye, the disadvantage is reversed, and the two sides fight on equal terms.

After all, assassins are doing dark things. The highest level is to hit the target with one strike. It is of course not good to get into a tangle. Moreover, this place is already the suburbs of Beijing. The longer it takes, the greater the possibility of being seen by passers-by. So the whistle sounded again in the dense forest, fast and short. The three people obviously felt that the focus of the attack had shifted, and began to attack Xiao Yan and the other two. Xia Dong took the opportunity to catch his breath, touched his chest, stepped back a few steps, left the battle group, and adjusted his breathing to stop the bleeding.

Although the pressure increased and Xia Dong was no longer there to fill in the gaps at any time, the cooperation between Xiao Jingrui and Yan Yujin was getting better and better, and their confidence was growing stronger with each battle. When the cold light of the water spike flashed, several killers staggered back, but the other side had more people, so others took their place soon after.

At this time, the whistle changed again, and the tail tone turned sharply downward. The five silver-clad men rushed forward, and it was a suicidal attack. At the same time, the commander in the dense forest appeared in person, stepped on the water waves, and swept across the narrow river. His body movements were extremely fast. In an instant, he appeared at the scene of the killing, led all the other killers, including the injured and fallen people, to make a detour and outflanked, bypassed Xiao Yan and the other two from the left and right sides, and went straight to Xia Dong.

"Sister, be careful!" Yan Yujin shouted in a hurry, and retreated quickly with Xiao Jingrui, trying to rush to Xia Dong's side. But it was not so easy to get rid of the close-range attack, and he watched helplessly as several gray shadows passed by him, and the cold front was like ice, ruthlessly wiping Xia Dong's body.

"Sister Xia Dong..." Amid the two's anxious cries, Xia Dong, who had already collapsed from exhaustion, suddenly raised her head. A cold light flashed in her eyes, and her figure rolled up like a whirlwind, as if a vortex that sucked lives. The green light was accompanied by blood splattering, and the first few figures who arrived were already flying backwards.

This sudden change not only shocked the two nobles, but also the assassins. However, it was not over yet. Xia Dong's sharp body movements did not stop at all, as if a sharp sword was unsheathed, and in a flash, his palm was printed on the chest of one of the assassins, and he went up and neatly removed his jaw, knocked his body to the ground, and stepped on him.

The assassins were already in disarray at this point, seeing that the purpose of the assassination could not be accomplished at all, and they retreated, crossing the stream and retreating into the dense forest. Xiao Yan and the other two had no intention of chasing them, so they stopped at the riverside, turned around and glared at Xia Dong.

The beautiful female Xuanjing Master laughed three times and tapped the captive at her feet with her toes. Her long hair scattered on her shoulders fluttered in the wind. Her eyes moved and her expression was bold. Her voice was also very clear: "Thank you for showing up here to help, otherwise I would not be able to capture this timid leader alive... This person's martial arts are not very good, but his Qinggong is really good. He never came close to me all the way, so he was really not easy to catch... Hahaha..."

Zhang Yang, who was standing in the distance, watched Xia Dong take down the leader, and said to Cao Zhengchun who was standing behind him: "Xia Dong's skills have improved in the past few years."

Cao Zhengchun said: "The Xuan Jing Division's skills are still somewhat unique."

Zhang Yang said: "A lot has happened in this month. You have been tired."

"I will go through fire and water for His Highness."

"Let the doctor come over in a couple of days. I should be waking up by now."

"Yes."

"Come on, go back and lie down, His Majesty will be here soon."

(End of this chapter)