Everyone was stunned.

After a while, the messenger remembered his mission and said in a dry voice: "General Tan, Lord..."

"Shut up!" Tan Hongfei shouted, and then, with his bell-like eyes, he turned to the man kneeling in the main hall. His throat tightened for a moment, and every hair on his body trembled. "What did you say? Speak clearly - which loyal man?"

The middle-aged man straightened up, his face looked sallow and pitiful, but his face was filled with an indescribable determination: "Twenty years ago, the northern barbarians suffered a natural disaster, and the wolf king led his troops to invade with his ambition. The old Anding Marquis used the power of the Black Iron Camp to pacify the northern border and made the wolves bow their heads. He presented the annual tribute and his goddess sisters to our dynasty. The late Emperor Yuanhe took the elder sister of the two as his concubine and made the younger sister a princess, ordering them to enter the palace to serve and wait for marriage to the royal family."

"Unexpectedly, these two witches had evil intentions and great plans. First, they forged the correspondence between the old marquis and the Wolf King, falsely accusing the old marquis of threatening the eighteen tribes after the war, taking kickbacks and hoarding purple gold, and then used witchcraft to charm the late emperor, alienating the relationship between the monarch and his subjects day and night..."

Jingzhao Yin Zhu was furious after hearing these two sentences. He immediately shouted, "Come here! Take down this scoundrel who slandered our late emperor!"

Tan Hongfei's eyes widened: "Let's see who dares!"

He roared, and all the soldiers from the Shuibei camp around him drew their swords. They were all wearing silver armor, and the swords gleamed like snow. The ferocious animal head carvings on the hilts seemed to be rushing out to eat people.

Zhu Heng's face turned pale, and he held on to his courage as a scholar, and asked in a trembling voice: "Tan Hongfei, do you want to rebel?"

Tan Hongfei sneered, turned around and strode down the stone steps, walked straight to the middle-aged man, stabbed his long saber into the ground, stood in front of him like an iron tower, and asked, "Go on, what next?"

The man who complained said, "General, do you remember that because the young marquis was still young and had no one to supervise him at home, after the border was pacified, the old marquis discussed with the princess and her husband and brought him to the garrison."

Tan Hongfei's eyes flashed, and a few words evoked old memories. He still remembered that the now powerful Marshal Gu was an absolute naughty child when he was young. He dared to get into trouble and was not afraid of anyone. The old marquis and the princess had no parents or elders to discipline him, and seeing that he was about to become lawless, they had to take the child away with them.

Tan Hongfei: "Yes, it is true."

The middle-aged man said, "The witch took the opportunity to say that the old marquis must have a big plan by taking his only son away at this time. Maybe he wants to divide the east and west with the emperor. The late Emperor Yuanhe was deceived by her soul-stealing technique and was very angry with the old marquis. He was also afraid that thirty iron cavalrymen could flatten the barbarian's black iron camp. He didn't know what to do."

Tan Hongfei: “Ridiculous!”

The middle-aged man remained calm and spoke eloquently: "At that time, the witch and another traitor worked together to set up a vicious plan. They asked my father, Eunuch Wu, to go to the northern border with thirty assassins and two unorthodox men in the name of rewarding the army, sneak into the garrison, and carry out assassinations. In order to prevent the conspiracy from being exposed after failure, they also specially had the assassins tattoo wolf heads on their chests to pretend to be barbarians."

Tan Hongfei's breathing became heavier and heavier.

Back then, thirty barbarian warriors sneaked into the Northern Frontier garrison without any warning, almost like a sudden drop from the sky. They first used a despicable trick to sprinkle paralyzing powder into people's food and drink, then changed into black iron light fur coats and suddenly launched an attack. The soldiers saw the light fur cavalry whizzing past the patrol camp every day, and they were completely unprepared for a while...

Tan Hongfei murmured, "Yes, you are right. I was just a small general at that time, and there were indeed only thirty people in the Qingqiu death squad."

The old marquis used thirty heavy armors to crush eighteen tribes, and the witch returned him thirty light furs, turning the invincible Black Iron Camp upside down and injuring the only heir of the Marquis of Anding.

Tan Hongfei suddenly laughed softly: "That was a great shame for the Black Iron Camp - I remember that the old marquis happened to be out on patrol, and the princess had been feeling unwell and had not eaten anything since the beginning. Otherwise, it would have been more than just the young marquis who was injured, right?"

The commander of the Northern Camp stabbed the ground with his saber, and a crack appeared on the palm-thick stone floor. "The princess was furious and insisted that there was a traitor in our army. More than a dozen of us brothers were responsible for the defense of the Northern Frontier garrison, and we were to blame. We couldn't explain ourselves, so we had to take off our armor and resign, and return to Beijing to face the blame... For so many years, I have been privately blaming her, thinking that she was so worried about her son that she lost her mind... It turns out that it is really..."

When Tan Hongfei said this, he suddenly burst into tears without any warning. He didn't wipe his tears away, nor did he choke up. He just stood there like an iron tower, gasping for air as if in extreme pain.

Zhu Heng was stunned by the tears of the black-faced devil. For a moment, even the rage that was swollen in his heart seemed to be stabbed by something, and he let out all the anger.

Jingzhao Yin's tone softened a bit, and he said, "This matter is of great importance. It would be biased to rely on this person's one-sided statement alone. General Tan, please be cautious."

Tan Hongfei came back to his senses slightly. In his heart, he had actually believed it about 70% - no one knew better than Tan Hongfei, who was in charge of the defense of the Northern Frontier garrison, how impeccable the defense of the Black Iron Camp was, but he couldn't explain it clearly.

Even though Gu Yun had been kind to his former subordinates from the Black Iron Camp for many years, and even helped him climb to the position of commander of the Northern Camp, he always remembered that he had been wronged for not doing his job well, and had nowhere to appeal.

Tan Hongfei glanced at Zhu Heng, gritted his teeth, lowered his head and asked the middle-aged man: "Yes, what evidence do you have?"

The man took out the blood letter from his bosom and prostrated himself, saying, "This was written by my late father. His body is now outside the door. The general will know if he is Wu He as soon as he sees him, and will also know if what I said is true."

Zhu Heng frowned, but Tan Hongfei had already ordered people to carry it.

A moment later, a dead male corpse that looked like a dead tree was carried in. The hanged man was not at peace, his cheeks were swollen, his tongue was protruding, and his throat was purple like a ghost. However, Tan Hongfei only took a glance at it, then hastily looked away as if he was overwhelmed, and said in a hoarse voice: "I remember that old eunuch had a triangular scar at the corner of his eye..."

The middle-aged man kneeling on the ground crawled over, turned the face of the male corpse over little by little, and pushed aside the dry white hair. Suddenly, there was an old triangular scar on the corner of the eye that was covered with wrinkles and age spots.

There was total silence all around, and Zhu Heng's face was pale. He suddenly took a deep breath and raised his hand to straighten his official hat that was knocked askew by General Tan's slap. His scholarly hands were still shaking, but he asked, "What happened next?"

The man in the hall said, "Fortunately, the young marquis was blessed by heaven and survived the disaster. Later, the late emperor woke up from the witch's magic and regretted it. He secretly dealt with the barbarian witch's sisters and showed more favor to the young marquis, bringing him into the palace to take care of him personally. However, although the witch was killed, the villain who had plotted against the late emperor is still there. Fearing that the Gu family's favor would fade, she teamed up with Eunuch Wu He and wanted to attack the young marquis again."

Zhu Heng: "You need to think carefully before you speak about the secrets of the palace."

The middle-aged man laughed loudly, "Thank you, sir. I was a farmer who grew up in the northern border when I was young. I was bullied by barbarians for generations. My parents and brothers all died at the hands of those evil people who pretended to be gods. It was the old marquis who saved our lives and vented our anger. I am of low status and have endured humiliation for many years to serve that old eunuch, not for the benefit of his family, but just for such a day!"

Tan Hongfei had no time to sigh, he was almost numb: "But I remember it was the Third Prince who died that year."

"Yes," the man said, "Wu He applied a poison that can spread into the air to the gas lamp that the young marquis used to study. Wu He said that when the young marquis was young, he liked to adjust the gas lamp to the brightest, and often kept it on all night, and did not turn it off even when he fell asleep. After a night, the air behind the lamp was often hot enough to boil an egg, which would naturally dissolve the poison in the air and then be inhaled into the lungs. The poisoned person would cough incessantly and have a low-grade fever at first, which are common symptoms in children and do not attract attention, but slowly, the person would become weaker until the poison entered his internal organs and no medicine could cure it."

Blood seemed to be dripping from Tan Hongfei's eyes.

"At that time, the gas lamp used by the young marquis in the palace was a colorful glass cover specially supplied by the West. It was very expensive. Only a few princes and the young marquis had it. The queen didn't even have one. Unexpectedly, the third prince accidentally broke his own Western gas lamp. He was afraid of being scolded, but he didn't dare to ask others for help. The young marquis gave him his own lamp instead, secretly glued the broken one back, and covered it with a book every day, pretending to use it as usual."

"You all know what happened later. The Third Prince died of poisoning. The late emperor was furious and investigated the harem. Wu He was imprisoned for murdering the heir to the throne and became the scapegoat for the traitor." The man who filed the complaint said, throwing his sleeves and throwing himself to the ground. He said loudly, "Now I have presented the cause and effect clearly. Thank you, generals. The traitor who has been at large until now is the current uncle of the emperor, Wang Guo!"

Zhu Heng was stunned: "How dare you... You, you are so brave!"

The middle-aged man said: "How dare you sacrifice your body!"

Zhu Heng pressed, "What evidence do you have?"

The middle-aged man took out a letter that was so old that it was curled up. "My Lord, this is a letter that was written between Uncle Wang Guo and the eunuch when they were secretly exchanging letters. You can tell whether it is true or false at a glance."

After saying this, the man put the envelope on the ground and leaned back slightly, as if he was sighing slightly.

"The grudges we have had for so long are now settled in one day."

By the time Tan Hongfei noticed that his expression was different, it was too late. The man suddenly stood up, turned around and slammed into the pillar next to him before anyone could react.

Blood and brain matter fell out at once as if they had exploded, and he died on the spot!

It's like another kind of death warrior.

At this time, in the hot spring villa, Gu Yun's eyelids began to twitch for no apparent reason.

Huo Dan, the commander of the Marquis's household, suddenly burst in, gasping for breath: "My Lord, My Lord..."

Gu Yun suddenly turned around: "What?"

When Commander Huo learned of the changes in the capital, his heart was pounding. Before he could open his mouth, the door was suddenly smashed open.

Chang Geng held a wooden bird tightly in his hand. The little thing had its mouth open and its wings stretched out, its body and head had been cut in half, and he had crushed the hard wood to pieces. The jagged gears were sticking out, piercing his palm and making it bloody. But he seemed to feel no pain, like a fish out of water, gasping for breath, but his chest could not even hold a breath.

In his hand he held a piece of bloodstained sea-patterned paper. After all, a wooden bird was faster than a horse or carriage, and someone had already informed him of the farce in the capital.

Chang Geng's chest felt like it was against a sharp knife, and blood came out with every breath he took. He staggered to Gu Yun and hugged him.

Commander Huo on the side was surprised: "My Lord..."

Gu Yun gestured to him: "Old Huo, you go out first."

Commander Huo moved his throat as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he retreated silently.

This unfortunate kid was quite strong. Gu Yun felt that his waist was about to be broken by him. After Commander Huo left, he freed one hand to pat his back: "What's wrong?"

Chang Geng lowered his head and buried his face in his shoulder. The air around him was filled with the smell of medicine from Gu Yun's body. In the past, he felt at ease when he smelled it, and it could even dispel the haze in his dreams. But now, he no longer wanted to smell the smell of medicine all over his body.

Chang Geng closed his eyes, his ears buzzing, his mind clear with only one thought: "I want to kill all the Li family members."

Gu Yun pulled the crumpled sea-patterned paper out of his hand, scanned it thoroughly, and immediately took a breath of cold air. He pushed Chang Geng away and shouted angrily, "Huo Dan!"

Commander Huo, who was waiting at the door, immediately pushed the door open upon hearing the sound.

Gu Yun was almost going crazy. He stood up so hard that his vision went dark for a moment. He quickly supported himself on the table, and his elbows were shaking.

"Prepare the horses, I want to go back to Beijing." Gu Yun took a deep breath, "You take... cough..."

His voice broke when he said this, and he cleared his throat fiercely: "Take a few Qingqiu with you and go ahead. Make sure to stop Tan Hongfei."

Commander Huo looked at him deeply and said, "Yes!"

Gu Yun turned around to get his court robe and light armor, but Chang Geng grabbed his wrist.

Chang Geng: "Is it all true?"

Gu Yun lowered his head and glanced at him, his eyes full of complicated emotions.

After a pause, Gu Yun whispered, "Of course not. Witchcraft is all nonsense. Uncle Wang Guo is just..."

They were just slaves under the throne, and those two northern barbarian women were just pitiful people who had lost their country and families and were scattered in a foreign land...

Everyone knows the truth, but no one dares to mention it.

Gu Yun pulled his hand away: "It's been a mess recently, don't go back to Beijing yet, stay here for a few days..."

Chang Geng refused to let him go: "That means, except for the part about the witchcraft and Wang Guo, everything you said is true? You know, you have always known it?"

Gu Yun’s patience ran out: “What time is it? You’re still making trouble. Go away!”

Chang Geng spoke almost at the same time as him, whispering, "Why are you still willing to work so hard to protect this broken kingdom for him? Why are you still willing to compromise in every way? Why did you take me in and take care of me for so many years?"

The sound, as light as falling snow, was so weak that it was not worth mentioning under Gu Yun's roar. However, for some reason, the moment the words came out, everyone who was supposed to hear it heard it.

Gu Yun's heart tightened.

Chang Geng's lips were completely bloodless, and he stared at him and asked, "Godfather, why?"

Gu Yun's throat moved slightly, not knowing where to start - how to say it?

Are you saying that he actually didn't know the truth, and that he had always believed all these years that his injury was just an accident, and that he had failed to protect A'yan and had watched him die in the harem struggle?

Until... he was ordered to escort Prince Yinghuo of Calais out of confinement, and then he learned from the malicious werewolf that the poison of the grassland goddess was a secret that was not passed on. Only the goddess herself controlled it for generations, and even her fellow barbarians had no way of knowing it. The incident of thirty light cavalrymen severely damaging the Black Iron Camp twenty years ago had nothing to do with the barbarians.

Family and country, hatred and resentment, the road is long and each of them walks on half of it. If he takes a step forward, no matter which side he takes, he can never turn back.

All these things here are not to be told to outsiders. In the end, Gu Yun said nothing, forcibly pried open Chang Geng's hands, put on armor and tied up his hair.

The general has good intentions, but unfortunately they are made of iron.

Gu Yun's reaction was quick, and the mobilization of hundreds of generals from the Marquis' Mansion was effective, but it was still too late.

When Huo Dan arrived at the foot of the imperial city in a cold sweat, he was shocked to learn that there was a mutiny in the Northern Camp. The Imperial Guards were urgently mobilized, all nine gates of the capital were sealed, and the entire imperial city was in chaos.