The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 311 Trading
Li Hongyi sent Li Hongji to a cave entrance and whispered: "Brother, are you really going to take this risk?"

Li Hongji said solemnly: "In this situation, if we two brothers want to survive, we have to fight hard."

Li Hongyi said hurriedly: "Then I will accompany you."

Li Hongji turned his head and glanced at the two Japanese pirates not far behind him, and said in a low voice: "No, Kang Dayong doesn't completely trust me and won't let our brothers leave at the same time. You have to stay as a hostage."

Li Hongyi's expression suddenly changed. Li Hongji patted him on the shoulder and comforted him: "Don't worry, I will be back. I am sure of dealing with a money-hungry and lustful dog official like Dai Li."

Li Hongyi hesitated and said: "Brother, be careful. If there is a chance...brother, just run away for your own life. Don't worry about me. We can survive one by one."

Li Hongji's face darkened: "Fart, who do you think my eldest brother is? How could I leave you alone? Don't forget our agreement. My eldest brother still owes you a prince."

Li Hongyi's heart warmed up when he heard this, and blood surged in his chest. He nodded heavily: "Then I'll wait for the good news from brother."

Li Hongji then turned around and disappeared into the darkness, heading north along the mountain path.

This Big Copper Mountain is not a barren mountain. There are temples and mines in the mountain. There are usually many pilgrims and workers coming in and out, so there are many remote mountain trails. Otherwise, it will be dark and it will be impossible to walk in the mountain. .

Li Hongji has a very good memory, especially for roads and a strong sense of direction. Even if it is a complicated mountain path, he can roughly remember it after walking through it once, and rarely makes mistakes. This may be his personal talent. It was also the reason why he had the confidence to cross the mountains and find Dai Li's camp.

Of course, it is extremely difficult to walk in the mountains without a fire at night. Firstly, it is dark and you cannot see clearly. Secondly, there are many wild beasts and poisonous insects in the mountains. If you are not careful, if you are bitten, you may go to the west.

Therefore, Li Hongji did not dare to be careless. He held a knife in his right hand and a long stick in his left hand to clear the way. While moving forward cautiously, he kept slapping the surrounding grass to scare away the snakes and insects hiding in it.

At dawn, Li Hongji finally successfully reached the northern perimeter of Datong Mountain. There is a main road leading out of the mountain. It has been blocked by officers and soldiers. Antlers have been set up to stop horses, and sentries are on duty for twelve hours.

There is a troop stationed in the open space a hundred meters behind the guard post. This is where the camp of Yangzhou Guard Commander Dai Li is located. There is a force of one thousand households, that is, 1,200 people, and he is directly responsible for leading this troop. His name was Dai Chaoren, and he was Dai Li's nephew. In other words, he was Dai Li's confidant in the Yangzhou Guard and was completely loyal to him personally.

Let's say that Li Hongji hid in the dark and observed for a long time, confirming that the general's flag on the tree above the camp was the word "dai". Then he took a deep breath, flashed out of the dark, and walked straight to the sentry post.

Several officers and soldiers on duty were sleepy. It was not until Li Hongji came nearby that they noticed that they were startled. They drew their knives and shouted: "Who is it?"

Some soldiers bent their bows and aimed arrows, and some soldiers raised their matchlock guns. Li Hongji quickly raised his hands, lying on the ground and loudly said: "Don't shoot the arrows, the young man is just a woodcutter who went into the mountain to chop wood."

Several officers and soldiers observed for a moment vigilantly, and after confirming that there was only one person on the other side, they breathed a sigh of relief, and immediately rushed over to the two of them, tied up Li Hongji, and then escorted him back to the guard post for interrogation.

"Boy, don't think we are fools. You are dressed like this. You don't even have a hatchet or a pole, and you are a woodcutter. Please tell me honestly, or you will suffer." Xiaoqi, the leader, shouted sternly.

Unexpectedly, Li Hongji laughed calmly: "The military master has good eyesight. I am indeed not a woodcutter, but I know your commander Dai Li. Take me there quickly. If you have any urgent matters, see him!"

The little flag was stunned for a moment, then laughed angrily and said: "You are the only one who knows our Commander Dai? Don't stick a scallion in a fucking pig's nose - you are pretending to be an elephant. I think you are itchy and deserve a beating, so I'll give you a beating first." Let’s talk.” After that, he started to take action.

Li Hongji shouted, "How dare you! I really know your commander Dai. If you dare to touch me, just try it. If you make a big mistake, I'm afraid you, a small flag, can't afford it!"

The Xiao Qi was shocked and doubtful, but seeing Li Hongji's stern expression, he was a little unsure in the end, so he sent someone to ask for instructions from above, and said harshly: "Boy, if you dare to lie to me, I will chop you up."

Soon, the soldiers who went to report came back and whispered something into Xiaoqi's ear. The latter glared at Li Hongji angrily and said, "Let's go, Commander Dai wants to see you."

Then, Xiaoqi personally escorted Li Hongji to a tent. He saw a military general about fifty years old sitting in the middle. It was Dai Liwudu, the commander of the Yangzhou Guard. Next to him stood a man with shining armor. Qian Hu, this person is Dai Li's nephew Dai Chaoren.

Dai Li squinted at Li Hongji who was brought in, and found that he did not recognize him. A trace of doubt flashed in his eyes, and he asked coldly: "Do you know me?"

Li Hongji smiled and said, "I don't know Mr. Dai, but I know Miss Yancui."

Dai Li's old face suddenly pulled down.

It turns out that Dai Li was greedy for money and lustful. He would take a concubine almost every year, and Yancui was his favorite concubine. This girl was once a famous prostitute in Qinhuai. She was proficient in all kinds of music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and her reputation became famous for a while. Later, Kanglingcheng, a big salt merchant, bought her from Jinlinghua with a lot of money and gave it to Dai Li as a concubine.

At this time, Li Hongji smiled again and said: "Miss Yancui is extremely talented and beautiful, and she is light and soft. Lord Dai must be very satisfied, but the silver for redemption is a bit expensive, five hundred taels - gold!"

Dai Li's expression suddenly changed and he shouted: "Who are you?"

Li Hongji laughed loudly: "Aren't you looking for me? I am Li Hongji, or maybe Li Ji too!"

Dai Li was happy at first, then surprised. He winked at his nephew Dai Chaoren, who immediately sent the soldiers out of the tent and then guarded the door with a sword in his hand.

Dai Li then asked coldly: "It turns out that you are the leader of the thieves, Li Hongji. Now that you have come to your door, aren't you afraid of death?"

Li Hongji said firmly: "Of course I am afraid of death, but I am not here to die."

Dai Li said with a gloomy face: "Tell me, what is your purpose of coming here? How did you learn about Yan Cui?"

Li Hongji smiled and said: "It's nothing urgent. I just want to make a deal with Mr. Dai."

Dai Li sneered: "Why?"

"Just rely on this piece of cloth in my arms." Li Hongji's hands were tied and he could only indicate with his eyes.

Dai Chaoren immediately stepped forward and took out a piece of cloth with written words from Li Hongji's arms. He took a quick glance at it and did not dare to look at it more. He handed it to Dai Li with both hands. The latter quickly took it and took a closer look. He was so pale that he even broke out in cold sweat.

As soon as Li Hongji saw it, he knew he had seven inches of the opponent, and he was convinced.

"Where did you get this...?" Dai Li's eyes flashed with coldness, and his breathing became obviously rapid.

Li Hongji smiled and said: "It was copied from an account book. By the way, there are many accounts recorded in it, including many about Mr. Dai. In addition, not only Yangzhou officialdom, but also the Nanjing Six Ministries and the capital. It's really disappointing. People are amazed.”

Dai Li hurriedly asked: "Where is the account book? Hand it over quickly. Not only will I spare your life, I will also let you choose the rich and beautiful women." Li Hongji said suddenly: "Master Dai, do you think that I, Li Hongji, am an idiot because I gave you the account book?" , Not to mention money and beauty, I’m afraid I won’t even be able to protect my life.”

Dai Li suddenly became fierce and said sternly: "I can kill you right now."

Li Hongji said disdainfully: "If I don't go back before the sun sets today, Kang Dayong will hand over the account book to Jia Huan. You can weigh it yourself."

Dai Li's expression changed, and he said in a deep voice: "So, the account book is now in Kang Dayong's hands?"

"It's not on me anyway."

Dai Li waved his hand, and his nephew Dai Chaoren immediately stepped forward and searched Li Hongji's body, but found nothing. Dai Li had no choice but to say: "Tell me, what deal do you want to make with me?"

Li Hongji smiled and said: "It's very simple, just open a hole and let us leave."

Dai Li frowned and said, "This is a capital crime."

"If the account book falls into the hands of Jin Yiwei, Master Dai will probably die even worse, and you won't be the only one who will die. A large number of people will probably be buried with you!"

Dai Li was immediately held seven inches away, and after a long time he gritted his teeth and said, "It's okay to let you go, but you have to hand over the account book to yourself, otherwise..."

Li Hongji immediately interrupted: "Let's talk about this after we get out safely."

Dai Li's face darkened involuntarily, and he sneered: "What if you don't keep your word?"

"Does Master Dai still have a choice? How about discussing it with others? For example, Eunuch Ji from Prince Yi Zhong's Mansion?" Li Hongji threatened with a smile.

Dai Li was frightened and angry, confused and wanted to kill someone, but he resisted.

"It's just dawn now, Mr. Dai still has time to think about it slowly!" Li Hongji reminded leisurely.

Dai Li pondered for a moment and said coldly: "Detain him first!"

Dai Chaoren kicked Li Hongji, then pushed him down and locked him up, while Dai Li quickly sent a confidant to ride a horse back to Yangzhou City.

Li Hongji was detained in a separate camp. Although he was very calm on the surface, he was still quite nervous inside. Fortunately, around noon, he was taken to Dai Li's camp again.

This time there was actually a screen set up in Dai Li's tent. Li Hongji glanced at the screen and said calmly: "Master Dai, have you thought about it carefully? If I haven't gone back before dark, Kang Dayong will give the account book to Jia. ring."

Dai Li snorted coldly and said, "I can agree to your request, but you must hand over the account books afterwards."

Li Hongji nodded and said: "No problem, but Master Dai must prepare ships, as well as enough food and drinking water, and ensure that we can pass the naval blockade and escape safely along the Yangtze River back to the sea."

Dai Li said with a dark face: "I am only the commander of the Yangzhou Guard. I can't control the Jinling Navy. I'm afraid it will be difficult to do so."

Li Hongji chuckled and said, "If Mr. Dai can't do it, isn't it possible that no one else can do it? The list recorded in the account book seems to be full of people with great hands and eyes."

Dai Li's expression changed, and he seemed to be hesitant. After a long time, he gritted his teeth and said, "I can make arrangements, but before you board the ship, you must hand over the account book, otherwise there will be no discussion."

"Okay, deal!" Li Hongji agreed immediately.

Dai Li breathed a sigh of relief and warned coldly: "You'd better not play tricks, otherwise I can't guarantee that you can escape from the sea alive."

Li Hongji smiled and said: "Don't worry, if Mr. Dai keeps his word, we will naturally not break our promise. If this transaction is successful, maybe there will be opportunities for cooperation in the future?"

Dai Li waved his hand coldly and said: "In three days' time, when you break out from here, there will be people to help you, but there must be some scapegoats, otherwise it will be too obvious and I will not be able to fool you."

Li Hongji's eyes flashed and he nodded in agreement.

Next, Dai Li arranged for someone to send Li Hongji back to the mountains and forests.

As soon as Li Hongji left the camp, two people appeared from behind the screen. One of them was none other than Xu Wenhan, the great-grandson of Prince Yi Zhong, and the other looked like a warrior, with a medium build, a strong body, strong limbs, and bulging temples on both sides. He has very big eyes, like copper bells, and his face is always sullen, giving people a very cold and stern feeling. He also has a pair of bows and arrows slung around his waist. The bow is a hard bow with an iron tire, and it looks like it has a very strong bow power.

Xu Wenhan sneered and said, "Even if we get the account books, brother Kang Dayong and this Li Hongji can't keep them."

Dai Li smiled darkly and said, "Don't worry, Master Han. As soon as we get the account books, we will send them to the West."

Xu Wenhan nodded and said: "Grandpa Ji means that both Jia Huan and Yi Hong must be killed. Mr. Dai, please make arrangements."

Dai Li said cautiously: "Yi Hong has been extra careful since he was blinded last time. There are more than twice as many guards in royal robes guarding him, and there are also specialized shield holders. It may not be easy to assassinate him."

Xu Wenhan said confidently: "Don't worry, Mr. Dai. The three-stone bow used by Big Eyes can shoot a hare from a distance of 250 paces, with 100 hits. As long as he finds a chance to use the bow, Yi Hong and Jia Huan will be dead." And once these two people die, Mr. Dai will have the highest position in the army, so you will naturally have the final say.

To take a step back, even if Big Eye misses in the end, it can still be blamed on the pirates, which will not arouse the suspicion of Yi Hong and Jia Huan. After all, Yi Hong's left eye was shot blind by the pirate's sharp archer. "

Dai Li's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he nodded: "Okay, I will make arrangements now."

…………

On this day, the officers and soldiers cleared two more mountains, but found nothing. The pirates seemed to be frightened by the officers and soldiers' clearing operation yesterday, and they did not dare to run to the outside. They were probably huddled in the caves on the main peak.

At this moment, the sun was already setting in the west. Yi Hong, Jia Huan and others were patrolling a hilltop that had just been cleared, while discussing which hilltop should be surrounded first. At this time, the dead man named Big Eyes was already there. Dai Li's arrangement was to quietly lurk on a nearby mountain, quietly waiting for the opportunity to take action.

(End of this chapter)