I have been sick recently and am in poor spirits, so I have rarely replied to reviews and updates. Everyone, please forgive me.
After the wind and snow in the fields.
The fragrance of tea still lingered in the room and floated in the quiet space. After a long time, Haitang quietly said, "I understand."
Ku He did not look at her face. Smiling slightly, he said, "Didn't Fan Xian ask you for the Heart of Tianyi Dao in his letter? Give it to him. "
Give it to him? The two clean words made Haitang raise her head in shock. She didn't know if her teacher was joking or had lost his mind. The supreme Heart of Tianyi Dao? That was a secret that could not be passed on. Was he going to give it to a powerful official of the Southern court so easily?
Ku He smiled slightly and said, "This is something his mother gave me. It is only right that I return it to him. Besides, for the Qi Kingdom, the more powerful Fan Xian is, the more headaches the Southern royal family will have. It can satisfy my wish and also be beneficial to the country. It is the best of both worlds. Why not do it? "
Haitang opened her mouth slightly and couldn't speak for a moment. She knew what her teacher's true intentions were. A chill grew in her heart.
This teacher and disciple had only guessed the relationship between Fan Xian and the Ye family. They did not know Fan Xian's other identity, so they unilaterally thought that after his identity was exposed, Fan Xian could only be a ferocious tiger within the Qing Kingdom. Back then, when the Ye family had disappeared like smoke, the Qing royal family would have to bear the greatest responsibility. In the eyes of the Northern Qi people, the more powerful Fan Xian was, the more trouble Qing Kingdom would have and the safer their country would be.
"Teacher, if Fan Xian cannot withstand it this time, what do we do?"
The Ye family's property had all been taken over by the Qing royal family. Logically speaking, once the news that Fan Xian was a descendant of the Ye family got out, the Qing royal family would kill him in the shortest amount of time possible.
Ku He shook his head and sighed quietly. "The nobles who toppled the Ye family seemed to have all died in that night of bloodshed in Jingdou a dozen years ago. I truly cannot guess what the subsequent events will be like. Does the Ye family still have enemies hiding in the Royal Palace in the South? Perhaps that blind man wants to use this matter to force those people to appear. "
As the Imperial Advisor of Northern Qi, Ku He's first consideration was the interests of Northern Qi and the kingdom of the mother and son in the palace. As for what kind of predicament Fan Xian would face, it was not within his considerations. The old man smiled slightly and said, "Even if Fan Xian is unable to face the oncoming attack, with the blind man standing firmly behind him, even if he fails and wants to die, it will not be an easy matter."
However, it was too risky to use the Heart of Tianyi Dao to trade for such a powerful enemy. Furthermore, the words the teacher had said indicated a terrifying thing. The Heart of Tianyi Dao had been given to the teacher by Fan Xian's mother.
"Miss Ye … what kind of person is she?" Haitang's face was full of shock.
Ku He furrowed his brows slightly and thought hard for a long time before he quietly said, "At the beginning, I thought she was a little fairy who did not touch the world of mortals. Later on, I discovered that was not the case …"
"Heaven Meridian Warrior?"
"He's not a Heaven Meridian Warrior." Ku He continued to smile and said, "The young lady of the Ye family is a mysterious woman who far exceeds normal geniuses."
…
…
After a long time, Haitang respectfully saw Imperial Advisor Ku He out of the room. Looking at the teacher's bare feet stepping in the snow, the girl said in a gentle voice, "Teacher, Sir Xiao En?"
In the snow, Ku He's figure paused slightly. A moment later, he said in a gentle voice, "He is with Master Zhuang. These two brothers were strangers in life, but they traveled together in death. It is not bad. "
Haitang lowered her head and did not say anything to hide her shock. It was not until today that she learned of this matter.
"This is a matter of the older generation. You young people have your own world. The Heart must be personally handed to Fan Xian's hands." After Ku He said this, he took a step and disappeared into the wind and snow. Flipping his straw hat, he covered his old and smooth head.
— — —
In the valley of the Cang Mountains in the Qing Kingdom, mist rose from the vast expanse of white snow. Dozens of beautiful red-crowned cranes spread their wings and danced. They floated down a few meters from the ground. As if afraid and timid, they tentatively extended their long feet and stepped on the large hot springs surrounded by cedar trees below the mist.
The temperature of the hot springs was just right. It was a little hot. Fan Xian's eyes were closed. His upper body was bare as he soaked in the hot springs. His neck was tilted back and rested on the hard, wet black rocks beside the spring. Most of his body was submerged in the water. His exposed skin was stained with a layer of red. His arms were not thick, but they felt very strong.
Two thin fingers rested firmly on his right wrist. Fei Jie's eyes were closed. His eyebrows were trembling. His messy hair, soaked in the spring water, became unprecedentedly smooth.
After being summoned back to the capital, Fei Jie learned that Fan Xian had brought his family into the Cang Mountains to spend the winter, so he hurried over. Today, the teacher and student were soaking in the hot springs surrounded by cedar trees. This kind of enjoyment was quite extravagant.
"Your figure is not bad." Fei Jie slowly opened his eyes and withdrew his hand from feeling his pulse. The ominous brown in his eyes grew darker and darker. "You usually can't see it when you're wearing clothes."
Fan Xian also opened his eyes and smiled. "The brothers of the Third Bureau have long praised my figure." He paused and then asked, "Teacher, do you have any ideas?"
Fei Jie took a white towel from behind his neck and wet it in the hot spring water. He forcefully wiped the loose skin on his face and didn't speak for a while.
Fan Xian sighed. Seeing his teacher like this, he knew that he didn't have any good ideas for disappearing the zhenqi in his body after it exploded.
"You won't take the medicine I left for you." Fei Jie sighed worriedly. "Why try to be brave? If you take it, at most your zhenqi will be greatly damaged. At the very least, it won't explode. "
Fan Xian shook his head. "To me, greatly damaged zhenqi or no zhenqi at all, what's the difference?"
"There's a big difference. At least you have the power to protect yourself."
Fan Xian laughed. His handsome face was full of confidence. "I still have many ways to save my life. You know that since I was young, I have never been a barbarian who relied on martial arts to conquer the world. In the past, I could fight Haitang with my little tricks. Although my zhenqi is all gone now, I don't think that if anything happens, I can only wait for death with my hands tied."
Fei Jie stared into his eyes for a long time before sighing. "What a little monster. For a warrior, the importance of zhenqi goes without saying. Even if you have the Tiger Guards and the Sixth Bureau watching, you should still show some sadness and disappointment."
"That's unnecessary emotion." Fan Xian recalled Uncle Wu Zhu's teachings when he was young. Faintly, he said, "If I can't be cured, then I have to accept this reality. Sighing and groaning won't help change the situation."
Fan Xian, who was in the hot spring in Cang Mountain, did not know that in the distant north, that unfathomable pair of master and disciple had already determined his identity as if it was child's play. They wanted to use this identity to throw the Qing court into chaos and push him against the Qing royal family.
Regardless of whether or not Haitang would delay this matter, the distance between the two countries was too great. No matter how fast the rumors flew, at least for now, it could not reach the Qing Kingdom. Thus, for Fan Xian, who knew nothing about the Ye family descendant's past, it was not his greatest danger or headache. Right now, he only wanted to recover the zhenqi in his body and heal the damaged walls of his meridians.
"Take care of it first." Fei Jie was silent for a long time. "I will prescribe a method. Take the medicine according to the prescription. Also, don't throw away the medicine I left for you when you were young. They are still useful."
Fan Xian was a little surprised. His zhenqi had already dissipated, so why would he take the medicine? In truth, Fei Jie didn't know what use it had. He just mentioned it in passing. He didn't expect that after so long, Fan Xian would actually use it.
"I've been in Cang Mountain for half a month. I wonder how things are going in the capital." Fan Xian gently patted the hot spring's surface and smiled. "You've come from the capital. Tell me about it."
Fei Jie scolded him. "You receive at least a dozen intelligence reports every day, and you're still asking an old man like me?"
Fan Xian chuckled.
Fei Jie said coldly, "You used the excuse of recuperating to hide in Cang Mountain, but the Council moved against the Cui family … The capital has long been in an uproar. The north has captured hundreds of people and swallowed millions of taels of silver worth of goods. The crime you gave Cui Jiaan is also very real. It looks like a great family is about to be overthrown. You really are ruthless."
Fan Xian smiled and explained, "It's all what the court needs."
The Overwatch Council's declaration of war against Xinyang was abnormally fierce and sudden, and their actions were extremely ruthless. Spies all over the world had long ago blocked off the Cui family's smuggling routes to the north. With Yan Bingyun at the head of the Fourth Bureau, they brazenly made their move. Without giving Xinyang any time to react, they had already taken control of most of the people, goods, and money.
After all, Fan Xian had been seriously injured. Everyone in the capital knew that he was recuperating in Cang Mountain. Who would have thought that the sickly Commissioner would suddenly and ruthlessly strike? This plan had been planned from the summer until now, and only after receiving the Emperor's tacit approval did it quietly begin. Even if Xinyang had more power in the various counties, they still suffered a great loss.
Most importantly, Fan Xian had hidden his thoughts deeply. The Eldest Princess, Li Yunrui, had clearly underestimated her son-in-law.
"This time you've really offended the Eldest Princess." Fei Jie shook his head and sighed. "The Cui family is one of the Eldest Princess's hands. You've cut off this hand of hers. Aren't you afraid that she …"
Fan Xian didn't finish speaking, but he understood what his teacher meant. After thinking for a moment, he quietly said, "At the beginning, I was also worried. But after fighting with the second prince, I suddenly realized that there was nothing for me to worry about. With the Emperor's secret approval, and the enormous power of the Overwatch Council … who in this world can stand against me? "
Fei Jie knew that Fan Xian was not a mediocre person who would get carried away with success, so he quietly listened to what his student had to say next.
"The resources I hold in my hands are too powerful." Fan Xian sighed. "Regardless of whether it is the princes or the officials in the court, none of them are a match for me. The Director once told me to set my sights higher. Only now do I understand that this not only represents the direction of the future, but it also requires me to cultivate this kind of confidence … even pride as a Commissioner of the Overwatch Council."
"Today, in the court, there are very few people who can stand against me." Fan Xian analyzed himself expressionlessly. "In the end, the court is an organization of violence. Aside from the military, no other government can compare to the Overwatch Council. And the Emperor has always kept a tight grip on the military. This time, when he chased the Ye family out of the capital, it was a clear signal. Although the Eldest Princess has her own power in the military, the Emperor long ago moved Yan Xiaoyi out of the capital. What does Xinyang have to compete with me? "
From Danzhou to the capital, it had only been two years. Following the changes of the times, with the efforts of Chen Pingping and Fan Jian, his mother's former comrades-in-arms, and with the tacit approval of the Emperor of the Qing Kingdom, that beautiful young man had, in a very short period of time, gained power that the world could not imagine. This kind of power was something that even he did not truly feel. It was not until he easily defeated the second prince in the capital that he suddenly realized that he seemed to have underestimated himself in the past.
As long as the Emperor's royal favor did not fade, as long as the old woman in the palace still thought that the young man was, after all, of royal blood, as long as Chen Pingping continued to live out his days in Chen Garden and threw all of the power of the Overwatch Council to him to play with … Fan Xian would firmly stand in the Qing court and not have to worry about any problems.
Fei Jie suddenly said, "Yan Xiaoyi is in the north. Did he not act this time?"
"The Northern Expedition Camp is far away from Cangzhou. There are countless valiant generals in the camp, 100,000 soldiers …" Fan Xian laughed mockingly. "They were unable to react at all. But the elders of the Cui family should have escaped to the camp. That line in Cangzhou, the Fourth Bureau has not been able to completely strangle it."
Fei Jie looked at him and suddenly laughed. "Not bad, not bad at all."
Fan Xian finally became modest. "I am just a man who has made up his mind. For me to be able to do this so beautifully is all thanks to Yan Bingyun."
Fei Jie laughed. "In less than half a year, you were able to pull Ruohai's precious son into your camp and have him rack his brains to plan for you. You … really are not bad."
Fan Xian was silent. He suddenly thought of Lady Shen. At this time, she should be playing mahjong with Wan 'er and the others in the Cang Mountain estate. He thought to himself, after the matter with the Cui family is settled, should I invite Sir Yan junior to the mountains to spend the winter? Thinking of the estate half a mountain away from the hot springs, his mood suddenly improved. He pleaded to Fei Jie, "Teacher, about what I said yesterday, please consider it carefully."
Fei Jie frowned and coughed. "You want a girl as beautiful as a flower to follow me to study medicine … isn't that a bit too pitiful? Even if I agree, the Minister will not allow it. "
"I will talk to father," Fan Xian pleaded. "My sister really likes medicine. Teacher, please take the trouble."
Fei Jie scolded him. "My name is Fei Jie, not Fei Xin."
Fan Xian smiled. He knew that his teacher was angry, and that meant he had agreed.
After a long time, Fei Jie's brows suddenly flashed with a trace of worry. "But have you thought about it? The Director and I are both getting old. There will come a day when we have to leave."
Fan Xian was silent. After a moment, he suddenly said, "I think the Director must have told you about my past."
Fei Jie nodded expressionlessly. "At least up until now, His Majesty … has been good enough to you."
Fan Xian did not deny this. For an illegitimate child, the Emperor was able to "generously" give him the Overwatch Council and the palace treasury. This kind of power, which even princes could not have, was enough to make up for the so-called status problem in the hearts of ordinary people.
But the problem was that Fan Xian was not originally a person of this world. What he asked for was actually simpler. When he looked at problems, he would also be simpler. These two enormous organizations were originally my mother's, not the Qing royal family's. Giving them to me is something that should be done. If you don't give them to me, then you are shameless.
Fei Jie did not know what he was thinking. He sighed and said, "Back in Danzhou, you said you wanted to be a doctor or a chef. In reality, I was very happy, but I was also a little disappointed. The Lady's family business needs to be inherited by you. But now, seeing that you are about to inherit everything from her, I feel a faint fear. I don't know if you will regret it in the future. "
Fan Xian understood what his teacher was worried about. What if one day, the Emperor suddenly felt that his power was too strong and posed a threat to the future heir? What should he do then? He smiled and comforted Fei Jie. "Don't worry. At least for a few years, I think the Emperor will trust my loyalty."
He touched the scar on his chest. It was still a little itchy. After soaking in the hot spring, it appeared even redder and more sinister.
"Don't forget, she is the empress dowager's favorite daughter," Fei Jie warned. "Furthermore, she is a madwoman. On the battlefield, she is no match for you. She will use some crazy methods, just like in the past years on Niulan Street."
Fan Xian suddenly fell silent. A moment later, he said, "There is Wan 'er in the courtyard. Naturally, she won't do anything. As for inside Jingdou … even if she goes crazy, she still has to fear the Emperor. If she really wants to vent her anger, the best chance is to kill me while I am injured and not under the eyes of the Emperor in Jingdou. "
Fei Jie sighed. "It's good that you understand this point."
Fan Xian smiled and said, "The current me is not so easy to kill."
— — — —
With a swish, it was as if a servant had taken a knife and carefully cut open a piece of rice paper.
One li behind the hot spring in Cang Mountain, on the pure white and sparkling snow in the pine forest, a bright red liquid suddenly floated across. It landed on the ground and quickly dyed and soaked. The color was difficult to erase.
An assassin clutched his throat and made a gurgling sound. He fell dead on the snow with a muffled thud.
The swordsman of the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council slowly withdrew his cold sword from behind a tree. He bowed to Gao Da, who was a few feet away, and disappeared into the snow again.
"The seventh." Gao Da's face was serious. He still carried the long knife on his back. He said to his subordinate, "In a moment, take it to the back of the mountain and burn it."
"Yes."
Gao Da was silent. Recently, there had been more and more assassins sneaking into Cang Mountain with the intention of assassinating Commissioner Fan. He also knew where these assassins came from. Xinyang was indeed somewhat crazy. After the Cui family was destroyed, they chose the most direct method of revenge. Unfortunately, they had clearly underestimated the defensive power around Commissioner Fan.
The seven Tiger Guards were the personal bodyguards the Emperor had assigned to Fan Xian.
However, in this small-scale battle of assassination and counter-assassination, the truly terrifying ones were the swordsmen of the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council. These swordsmen's profession was assassination. They were the official assassins of the Qing Kingdom. Now, in the snowy mountains, they were facing the assassins sent by Xinyang. Naturally, they were incomparably skilled at killing them. Their defense was watertight. In less than three days, they had already killed seven assassins without suffering any injuries themselves.
Gao Da looked at the smear of blood on the white snow and sighed. He was the Emperor's personal guard in the Palace. It was not until today that he realized that these Tiger Guards were very powerful when used to kill enemies head-on. However, when it came to assassination and protection, they were still a bit lacking compared to the people of the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council.
As the leader of the Tiger Guards, he knew that if these Sixth Bureau swordsmen fought him head-on, none of them would be his match. The problem was, assassins would never fight head-on.
Gao Da silently thought that if the head assassin of the Sixth Bureau came to assassinate him, he would not have a sliver of a chance of survival.
After Fan Xian was injured, the level of defense around him had already increased by a few levels. Particularly after Chen Pingping's outburst of anger, the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council finally reacted in shame. They directly placed 12 swordsmen around Fan Xian. In the past, this level of defense was only used by the Emperor when he traveled. After the Emperor frequently used the Tiger Guards, in the entire world, only Chen Garden would have such tight defenses.
After Fan Xian learned of this, he did not give any orders. He only ordered the people of the Qinian Unit to withdraw. Not a single person of the First Bureau was allowed to follow him into the mountains. Only Deng Zi Yue and Su Wenmao were left to be responsible for communication. As for Chen Pingping's "anger", he treated it as a joke. You old cripple had someone stab me, and now you're scolding your subordinates for not protecting themselves. How shameless.
…
…
As Gao Da was silently marveling at the power of the Overwatch Council, there were others who had similar thoughts. The leader of the assassins that Xinyang had sent to the Cang Mountains was wearing a white robe. Hidden in the snow, he carefully observed everything in the mountains.
He was a death soldier from Xinyang. He had long given his life to the Eldest Princess. But seeing the scene just now, he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart. It had already been three whole days. Never mind assassinating Fan Xian, the Xinyang assassins had not even been able to see Fan Xian's face. The continuous, silent deaths of his subordinates made the leader of the assassins, for the first time, think of retreating.
Even if it was the Emperor's Tiger Guards protecting Fan Xian, he had enough confidence to try. Xinyang guessed that Fan Xian's injuries were strange. They estimated that he would not recover for a while.
But the problem was that the Overwatch Council, the Sixth Bureau, and the official assassins were too powerful. They seemed to be able to instinctively smell every strange scent in the snowy mountains and could find all the hidden dangers. With such a group of people protecting Fan Xian, only if Xinyang sent an army up the mountain would they be able to kill him.
The leader of the assassins furrowed his brows. He decided to slide down the tree trunk and return to Xinyang to report the details of this failure. He was very confident in his martial skills. As long as he made detailed arrangements for the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council, he would certainly be able to kill Fan Xian next time.
His body moved slightly, and a speck of snow drilled into his neck. It was slightly cool, then extremely cold.
A black metal drill, separated by a thick layer of snow, accurately pierced into his neck.
(To be continued, if you want to know what happened next, please log on to WWW. CMFU. com. More chapters. Support the author. Support the original reading!)
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