After I finished writing in the afternoon, the website crashed. I couldn't update it no matter what. Then, I had an urgent matter to attend to and had to leave today, so I sent the contents of the chapter to the editor and asked him to help me update it. I didn't expect to come back and find that there were no updates. I'm truly sorry.
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Gao Da's pupils constricted slightly as he stared at the eunuch in front of him. He had carried out secret guard work for the royal family for many years. Of course, he recognized the ace of the internal court in front of him. For a moment, he wondered if Eunuch Yao had also come to Dazhou. He took a deep breath. Although he would not be afraid even if Eunuch Yao came personally, he knew that the Palace had certainly found out about his whereabouts. The difficulties he was about to face must be terrifying.
The eunuch coughed gently and took out a cloth from his clothes to wipe away the blood at the corners of his lips. In a raspy voice, he said, "Eunuch Yao did not come. This is a matter for the court. I am now working for Scholar He."
Gao Da glanced at him and cautiously took half a step back. His gaze swept around and his grip on his mute wife's hand tightened. Hearing the eunuch's words, he finally knew that there were people in court who did not believe he had died and had been investigating this matter in secret.
Two more eunuchs walked out from the shadows by the city gate.
Gao Da stared at the eunuch in the lead and said, "You are not a match for me."
The three aces of the internal court were silent, particularly the one in front. His emotions were unusually complicated. This time, they had followed the aces of the Ministry of Justice's 13 yamens to Dazhou to do business. They faintly knew that Scholar He was investigating the omissions from the Dong Mountain incident three years ago. This eunuch had not thought that he would actually find Gao Da, this Tiger Guard.
The officials of the Ministry of Justice had already surrounded them. Other than those who had been injured by Gao Da's knife, there were dozens of people. Looking at the situation, even if Gao Da grew wings, he would not be able to fly out.
The eunuch coughed again. When he had exchanged blows with Gao Da earlier, his internal strength had rebounded and he had already been injured. The gaze he looked at Gao Da with fear and admiration.
"I didn't expect you to actually be alive. I also didn't expect you to not fall behind all these years." The eunuch's gaze was a bit muddy but carried a ruthless coldness. "Since I was lucky to run into you today, don't think about leaving."
As if his face had changed, the eunuch's expression suddenly became cold and grim. Gao Da had long gotten used to the way the internal court did things. He only looked at him calmly and said, "If you want to keep me here, you will probably have to pay a great price."
"We are not afraid of paying the price." The eunuch glanced at the beautiful woman beside him and said with a strange smile, "However, the price you will pay may not be something you can bear."
"Just surrender. You know you have no way out, so why drag others down?" the eunuch said gently.
At this moment, the sun had already set, leaving behind a wisp of helpless twilight that enveloped the city gate. It was drowsy and caused one to feel drowsy.
A hint of struggle and sorrow flashed through Gao Da's eyes. After a moment of silence, he faintly said, "If I'm captured by you, I won't be able to live. Does that mean she will be able to live?"
The eunuch lowered his head and said a moment later, "Adults naturally have to pay for their actions. As for whether the child on your chest is dead or alive, only the Palace can decide."
"Then why shouldn't I?"
"You don't have to die right now. You can live a few more days. As for this child, perhaps after that young man learns of this matter, he will be willing to protect it for you. "The eunuch glanced at him meaningfully.
Young man? A glimmer of confusion flashed through Gao Da's eyes. If Sir Fan junior knew he was still alive in this world, was surrounded by people outside the Dazhou city gate, and knew he had a child in his arms, what would he do? He had committed the crime of deceiving the ruler, so there was no reason for him to escape. However, Sir Fan junior should be able to protect the child in his arms, right?
The officials of the Ministry of Justice all maintained their silence. The gaze they looked at the knife-wielding man carried a glimmer of fear. In the battle at the city gate earlier, in just a few breaths, six of their colleagues had died tragically to that blade light.
They knew this knife-wielding man with his wife and child was the legendary Tiger Guard, the Tiger Guard who had fought Sigu Jian to the death on Dong Mountain.
They had already surrounded him, so why didn't they immediately charge forward and cut him to pieces? Everyone had this impulse because of the unease in their hearts. However, they knew that Scholar He's secret investigation this time would ultimately rely on these three internal court aces. The other party had not spoken to attack, so it was best for them to remain silent.
Perhaps it was because he saw Gao Da struggling and hesitating that the expression of the internal court ace gradually darkened. In a stern voice, he said, "You were a Tiger Guard of the royal family. You fled on Dong Mountain and abandoned the ruler. This is seen as treason! If you still don't kneel, do you want to continue rebelling? "
Gao Da's face became deathly pale. Sigu Jian's sword had attacked from the sky on Dong Mountain. The limbs of his comrades below the long stone steps had been sent flying. Fresh blood flowed between the mountain rocks. These scenes reappeared in front of his eyes.
He was the Commander of the Tiger Guards and a well-known figure among the hundreds of Tiger Guards. Ever since he was young, he had been instilled with the idea of loyalty to the ruler and patriotism. He was willing to die for the Emperor. However, Gao Da had followed Fan Xian for three whole years. His horizons had gradually widened. Most importantly, his personality and outlook on life had been greatly influenced by Fan Xian.
Fan Xian had always been a gentle person. The small details of his daily life and the taste in his words were enough to affect too many people by his side.
Thus, Gao Da was the first Tiger Guard in history to flee on the eve of battle.
The ace of the internal court had brought up the Dong Mountain incident to weaken his fighting spirit. The deathly pale color on Gao Da's face did not remain for long. It gradually returned to normal. He stared at the other party with a chill and said, "Abandoned the ruler?"
Abandoned the ruler? When he had made up his mind to flee Dong Mountain, Gao Da had struggled in his heart. However, during these three years of wandering among the Qing people, his thoughts in his dreams at night, and the rumors he had heard, they had made him think about the events of the past countless times.
His voice became sharp and cold like a knife. He angrily said, "Was it me who abandoned the Emperor, or was it the Emperor who abandoned me?"
"On Dong Mountain, a hundred Tiger Guards all died at the hands of the enemy for the sake of exhausting Sigu Jian's killing intent!" Gao Da grew angry. His voice grew louder as his eyes widened in anger. "I am a Tiger Guard. I am willing to use my life to protect the Emperor's safety, but I am not willing to throw my life away for some bullsh * t reason."
"Even if I die, I want to die knowing the reason!"
Gao Da's hand slowly tightened around the hilt of his knife and pulled the mute woman behind him. Glaring at the ace of the internal court, he enunciated each word clearly, "I just don't want to die like those companions of mine who are useless and muddle-headed. What is wrong with that?"
The ace's voice grew sharp and trembled. It was as if he had not expected to hear this Tiger Guard say such treasonous words outside Dazhou's city gates. He cursed angrily in a sharp voice, "If the Emperor wants the official to die, the official has no choice but to die! As a Tiger Guard, how could you say such treasonous words? You are truly incorrigible! "
"I've already done treasonous things. What's there to say?" At this moment, Gao Da suddenly felt his entire body relax. He had finally vented all of his resentment toward the Emperor. Yes, the Tiger Guards were only death fighters raised by the royal family, but Gao Da was already an independent person. He did not want to live muddleheaded and die muddleheaded!
Gao Da used strips of cloth to tightly tie the mute woman to his back. His hands forcefully tightened the lines. As he did this, no one at the city gates moved. They all waited nervously for the ace of the internal court to speak.
"If you continue to defy the edict, don't you think that Sir Fan junior will be dragged down by you?" The ace's hands slowly trembled. He was gathering his energy. Suddenly, he opened his mouth and said something that pierced straight into Gao Da's heart.
Gao Da laughed coldly and said, "Who is Fan Xian? If he's dragged down, then he's dragged down. Is there anyone good in this world? "
The ace's expression changed slightly. It was as if he had not expected Gao Da to say such a thing. Did he not have any affection for Sir Fan junior anymore?
Of course, the truth of the matter was not like this. When the ace said that he was not under Eunuch Yao's orders to capture him, Gao Da knew that there was something fishy about this matter. After hearing Scholar He's name, Gao Da immediately knew what he wanted to do. More accurately, he knew what he wanted to do.
Regardless of whether it was in court or among the Qing people, everyone knew that in the Qing court, Sir Fan junior had been suppressing Scholar He with all his strength. Scholar He, relying on his royal favor, was also fighting desperately against Sir Fan junior. The two sides were like fire and water. However, under the Emperor's suppression, there was no chance for them to explode.
Gao Da knew that given Sir Fan junior's ability and strength, it was impossible for He Zongwei to find a way to defeat him.
There did not seem to be a single hole in Sir Fan junior's body.
Unexpectedly, he, who had escaped from Dong Mountain and survived, was, without question, a hole in Fan Xian's plan.
He Zongwei only wanted to capture Gao Da or Wang Qinian. He didn't want these two people to die. As long as he captured Gao Da, it would be like he had captured one of Fan Xian's tails, even though Fan Xian didn't know he had a tail.
Gao Da lifted his wife's body up. The murderous intent in his eyes grew stronger and stronger. He stared at the ace and didn't say a word. If he was captured alive by the court and used by He Zongwei to defeat Sir Fan junior, what kind of harm would that cause?
Gao Da had followed Fan Xian for too long and understood him well. Sir Fan junior appeared cold and heartless, but he was actually a very protective person.
This kind of protection was different from Director Chen's. Fan Xian would give his truest concern to the people close to him. If the court captured him, Sir Fan junior would probably risk a taboo to rescue him.
Gao Da did not want Sir Fan junior to sink into a dangerous situation for him, so he decided to fight to the death and not surrender. He would rather die in front of Dazhou's city gates than surrender without a fight. He also did not want to drag him down for a few more days.
However, he had wronged the wife behind him and the child in front of him.
A glimmer of hopelessness flashed through Gao Da's eyes, as well as a deep sense of guilt. Holding the knife in his hand, he roared and charged forward.
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There was no end to killing people. There would always be a moment when a knife would break. How could one person oppose the powerful machinery of a country? Although Gao Da was valiant, he was not a Great Grandmaster. Under the powerful pursuit of the Qing court, it was already particularly terrifying that he could last until nightfall.
Soaked in blood and exhausted, he only managed to charge three li out of Dazhou. The Ministry of Justice aces and soldiers who had surrounded him cleverly maintained their distance and only attacked in batches. They did not allow the situation to become so chaotic that Gao Da had any chance to break out of the encirclement.
There were torches all around, scattered all around the road. They looked brighter than the stars in the sky.
The ace looked coldly at the pursuit on the road in front of him, judging when Gao Da would run out of energy. He furrowed his brows slightly and said, "Have the children be careful. Don't just attack the woman on his back."
An official of the Ministry of Justice was slightly shocked. Turning his head to glance at him, he asked, "Sir, why is that?"
In the eyes of these officials, although Tiger Guard Gao Da was more powerful than they had imagined, he had a child in his arms and a woman on his back. As long as the tip of the knife pointed toward those places, he would always have some fear and be injured more.
The ace slowly walked toward the center of the battle. As he walked, he coughed. Narrowing his eyes, he said, "If we really accidentally kill that woman, once Gao Da goes crazy, how can we capture him alive? As long as that woman is alive, she is as heavy as a mountain for Gao Da. Even if he wants to commit suicide, he will have to think about it a bit longer. "
Even now, this ace still wanted to capture Gao Da alive. After all, this was something Scholar He had requested countless times. If Gao Da died, how could he threaten Fan Xian? He Zongwei was still hoping to use Gao Da to provoke the relationship between Fan Xian and the Emperor. This ace could not guess.
No one knew how many people Gao Da had killed. He was like a mad tiger and covered in blood. Two of the three internal court aces had already been heavily injured by his heavy blows. Many officials of the Ministry of Justice had also died to his knife. However, his knife was gradually cracking. The zhenqi in his body was about to be exhausted.
Everyone could see that after the court had paid the price of dozens of lives, this vicious imperial criminal was finally about to collapse. Everyone let out a breath in their hearts. The Ministry of Justice's special anesthetic began to be applied to the blade of the knife, preparing to carry out the final work of closing the net.
A row of black carriages came from the other end of the road. This group of carriages was very strange. It was serene and dark like people had come from the underworld. The group of carriages was very long and seemed to have no end in sight.
Gao Da chopped off the right arm of an ace from the 13 yamens to his right. Suddenly, he felt his left knee soften. He knew that he was at the end of his rope. With an unwilling howl, he charged toward the group of carriages.
The pursuing officials were not nervous. They were also not worried about whether or not the group of carriages would be caught in the crossfire. They continued to move forward at a leisurely pace.
In the black carriages, the Overwatch Council official was talking to the old man inside the curtain. He saw the city full of lights and a bloody man. His gaze became complicated.
It was not until the bloody man ran close that the Overwatch Council official saw clearly that there were actually three people in this bloody man.
The Overwatch Council official floated over and caught the bloody man the moment he fell to the ground. His brows twitched. In a raspy voice, he suppressed his excitement and said, "Gao Da, you've gotten a wife."
The knife in Gao Da's hand was stuck into the ground. He was about to take this person hostage when he suddenly heard this joke. Raising his head, he saw a stranger.
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