Gu Yun lowered his head slightly, and immediately knew who this trip south was for.

To some extent, Gu Yun, who grew up in the deep palace, actually understands Li Feng better than Chang Geng.

If a person is too ambitious and lacks the ability, he can easily end up in Li Feng's situation. Emperor Long An understands the art of power, but even the most powerful sheepdog can only herd sheep. Even if it has sharp teeth and can kill a wolf when fighting alone, it cannot be the wolf king - the same principle.

Gu Yun didn't need to inquire about the factions in the court and their political views. No matter what Xu Ling's purpose was, no matter which sect or faction he belonged to, he was actually Li Feng's man.

Li Feng likes this kind of people who do not flatter, do not form cliques, have no identity or background. He has been pursuing the word "pure minister" all his life.

Regardless of what the concept of "pure minister" is, in the eyes of Emperor Long'an, these two words have two meanings: first, the emperor must have promoted him himself, without any powerful officials from aristocratic families fanning the flames, and his background must be clean; secondly, the emperor must feel that he is safe and controllable.

At the beginning, Prince Yan Li Min took this path. At that time, he had no foundation in the court, no one to rely on, no power, and no influence. There was only a little royal blood in his body - and it was a mixed-blood that aroused doubts. As an almost ignorant man, he fearlessly took up the responsibility of the Military Affairs Council, and was just a "pure minister" in Li Feng's eyes.

However, Li Feng later discovered that Prince Yan was not an "ignorant man" and had too many tricks to change the situation. The emperor was manipulated by him and no longer dared to believe in his "purity", so Emperor Long'an sent a purer one to restrain him.

Through the pair of swallow-like eyes on Lord Xu's face, an emperor was peeping out, but it was a pity that these "clairvoyant eyes" still had a pure heart. Presumably, before Prince Yan had time to use up all his tricks, he had already taken the bait.

Nowadays, Daliang can no longer tolerate truly upright, honest, loyal and righteous people. Although Gu Yun has avoided interfering in internal affairs for many years, he knows very well what kind of people they are.

Even though he was far away in the frontier, he had heard about what Chang Geng had done after entering the court. However, knowing and hearing is one thing, and seeing it with one's own eyes is another. In fact, until now, in Gu Yun's heart, Chang Geng has always been the gentle and pure young man he was back then. He may be talented, but he never relies on his talent to be arrogant. He may have a little temper, but he doesn't get angry easily. Even if he does, he does it in moderation, just to tell the person who offended him "I'm angry". Most of the people who were retaliated against would only feel that they were scratched by a familiar little animal, leaving a white mark without breaking the skin.

It can hurt deep into one's bones.

So real and warm... so real that even though Gu Yun knew it in his heart, he could not emotionally connect him with the murderous and decisive Prince Yan Li Min.

Now, under the bitter wind and rain of the south of the Yangtze River, these two seemingly unrelated images finally gradually overlapped into one, and for a moment, each of them seemed strange.

Gu Yun's chest pain, which had been causing him difficulty breathing, became even more severe.

However, being in the enemy camp, the coach could not be sad, so he could only put on an almost frivolous look of ease and silently endure the pain.

The group quickly followed the Western captives to the nearest sentry post. According to the Western captives, the people at their sentry post were divided into two groups, patrolling in turns. It was easy to patrol the no-man's land, and over time, these Western cavalrymen became more negligent, and did not even notice the enemy sneaking in.

"That Russian guy said there were only two heavy armors in the sentry post," Xu Ling whispered, "The others are useless. Marshal, can the heavy armors help us cross the river?"

"Yes," Gu Yun replied, "It will sink as soon as it goes in, faster than a pig cage, and it is specially used to treat all kinds of adulterers and whores."

Xu Ling: “…”

He thought Marquis Anding was serious for a while just now, but now it seems that it was just an illusion.

Gu Yun wiped his face, wiped away the fatigue, and pretended to be very energetic: "Don't worry, let's borrow these sentry furs to sneak into the front line by the river, and wait for an opportunity to get one of their short dragons that move very fast. Sir Xu, don't worry, I have just informed General Zhong, and there will be support over there when we reach the river."

Xu Ling was stunned and asked, "General Gu has already contacted General Zhong? When did they do that?"

Gu Yun said seriously: "We are in perfect harmony."

...starting talking nonsense again.

After being fooled time and time again, Deputy Inspector Xu finally learned to keep his mouth shut in front of Gu Yun, and deduced from this where Prince Yan's calm and composed attitude, which allowed him to remain calm even when the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing, came from.

Chang Geng was shocked - he had indeed informed General Zhong, but he had used the means of Linyuan Pavilion. It was inconvenient to tell Xu Ling. He had originally prepared another play to show Lord Xu, but who knew that Gu Yun would silently take the blame for him in a few words.

Gu Yun holds the Black Iron Tiger Talisman in his hand, and it is not surprising that he has inhumane ways of communicating with the border garrisons when he is mobilized in wartime. Even the most stupid person would know better and stop asking questions after hearing his evasive words. If they encounter reinforcements later, Xu Ling would not be suspicious anymore.

Chang Geng's wet palms were instantly covered with cold sweat.

"He knows." Chang Geng's heart fluttered for a moment, then he sank coldly.

Man proposes, God disposes. Even the most interconnected plans are bound to have twists and turns and accidents along the way. For Chang Geng, the first accident he encountered was that when he requested to go south in the court that day, he had no time to make an impassioned speech before Gu Yun, who unexpectedly stood up, made the final decision.

The arrow was on the string and had to be shot, so he had no choice but to move forward and make his arrangements more covert.

When it comes to Gu Yun, the ever-planning Prince Yan always gets confused for a moment - it's not that his brain isn't working well enough, it's that he really can't figure out what his plan is.

On the one hand, he wanted to hide it from Gu Yun as he had hidden it from Xu Ling. After all, the conspiracy was too blatant and ultimately failed. He didn't want Gu Yun to see how he had schemed, and he didn't dare to think about how Gu Yun would view this matter.

On the other hand, he secretly hoped that Gu Yun could see through everything, which was almost like a spoiled childish mentality, like making unreasonable troubles to someone very close to him - he wanted that person to know that he was just that kind of person.

He was so conflicted. He was afraid of touching Gu Yun's hard bottom line, but he couldn't help wanting to test it.

Perhaps the most unpredictable thing in the world is not the viciousness of the enemy, but the intentions of the loved one, which no matter how sincere they are, always seem elusive.

Gu Yun looked back at him intentionally or unintentionally. Chang Geng's eyelids twitched uncontrollably, as if he wanted to dodge, and then he looked straight into Gu Yun's eyes, trying to pick out some clues from them.

But at this time, Ge Chen came over without paying attention and whispered in Gu Yun's ear: "Marshal, I suspect that the foreign heavy armor has a special craftsmanship, which is more economical than ours. Either you guys take care of the people first, and I'll take the heavy armor apart and take a look, and learn something from it!"

Ge Chen's appearance just happened to divert Gu Yun's attention. Chang Geng was so hasty that he couldn't figure out what was meant by that look. There were outsiders everywhere who were annoying him, so he couldn't go up and ask for clarification, so he could only be in a state of panic.

Upon hearing this, Gu Yun pointed to a personal guard following Ge Chen and said, "If you can't steal it back, I will think you are lazy. Go back and punish you by military law. Let's go——"

At his command, more than twenty black crows silently surrounded the small Western outpost and quietly dealt with the Western soldiers who were still dreaming. They searched the outpost for a set of garrison defense maps and several sets of light armor. Each of them put on the light fur armor. When the time comes, as long as they put the masks down, no one can tell that the people inside are not original ones.

Gu Yun pointed at the trembling Western soldier captive and said, "Put some light armor on him, put a fuse in the golden box, and fry him into dumpling stuffing if he dares to make trouble. By the way, where's Xiao Ge?"

Ge Chen hurriedly trotted over: "Hey, Marshal, I'm here!"

Gu Yun saw that in such a short time, this person not only dismantled the foreigner's heavy armor, but also dismantled the entire core power of the heavy armor. He tied it around his waist like a miser and refused to put it down. His eyes were as bright as a mouse falling into a rice jar. He ran over and said, "General Gu, do I have to pretend to be a Western soldier too? I want to take this away. Do you have a lighter armor with a bigger belly?"

Gu Yun looked at him for a moment with an ambiguous expression, and ordered his personal soldiers to tie up Ge Lingshu. He suddenly laughed and said, "Why wear light armor? It's dozens of kilograms heavy. I have a more suitable role for you. You don't have to wear plain clothes. How about pretending to be a spy who sneaked into the enemy camp and was caught? If we are questioned, we will have an excuse. Oh, by the way, you just happened to be caught red-handed with this thing. Tie him up!"

Ge Chen, with a shocked look on his face, replaced the foreign captives just now. He was caught and tied up by two ruthless guards, his hands and feet hung on long poles, and was carried away swayingly. Ge Chen was not stupid. He vaguely felt that he might have offended the general in some way, and Gu Yun was deliberately making trouble for him. He quickly looked at Chang Geng for help: "King..."

"Wang what?" Gu Yun lowered the iron mask, and his voice came out from behind the cold mask, as if coated with a layer of frost, "Shut his mouth, the prisoner is not allowed to shout."

Prince Yan, who was still in a state of panic, didn't dare to say a word. With his tacit consent, Ge Lingshu turned into a human-shaped ball of grievance and was picked up by a long pole.

The group carried the "prisoners" in a swaggering manner towards the Western garrison. Near dawn, they had crossed a large uninhabited area south of the Yangtze River and approached the enemy camp.

At this time, through the telescope, Gu Yun and others could already see the terrifying Western water monster lying on the surface of the river. Those Western dragons that came and went like the wind like tiger sharks were rampant. This was the first time they faced these whirlwind-like Western dragons. Xu Ling felt a little dizzy for a moment. The Western defense line was too tight. His hands were covered in cold sweat. He didn't know how these people managed to be so arrogant in the enemy camp.

Before they could get close to the garrison, the muzzles of several short cannons moved over and pointed their dark guns at them.

Xu Ling swallowed hard. At this moment, someone held down one of his shoulders. Xu Ling heard King Yan's voice in his ear, "When you are afraid, don't think that we will be dead if we are discovered. You have to think that we have to deal with all of them. If we don't kill them today, we will have to settle accounts with them one by one tomorrow. We are here to kill people, not to be killed."

Xu Ling heard a murderous intent of a hunter in the King Yan's light voice, and he shuddered slightly. The murderous intent seemed to be transmitted to him in a trembling manner. Xu Ling took a deep breath, thought of the piles of bones in the ancestral hall, closed his eyes tightly, and indeed his fear was less.

Prince Yan said again: "Pull the lead of the guide. We don't understand the foreign language very well. We can only rely on Lord Xu. If he moves a little bit... will Lord Xu dare to kill people?"

Deputy Inspector Xu had studied since childhood and had never even killed a chicken. His hand holding the fuse began to tremble involuntarily. His trembling was not a big deal, but the Western prisoner felt that his life was hanging by a thread and began to tremble as well. The hand that King Yan had pressed on Xu Ling's shoulder pressed down, and the force penetrated the steel armor, like a pair of iron pliers, forcibly stabilizing Xu Ling with external force.

Xu Ling gritted his teeth and said, "I dare you. Your Majesty, rest assured that I will not fail you."

Chang Geng slowly withdrew his hand. He felt that Gu Yun was looking at him. He hid behind the iron mask and did not dare to look back. He quietly wiped the cold sweat from his palm.

He can tell everyone what to do, but no one can give him guidance.

At this time, the Western guard spoke something in a foreign language through the copper bell, which was roughly asking what they were doing.

Xu Ling cleared his throat and replied, "I caught a spy from the Central Plains while patrolling the camp. I brought him here to see what to do with him."

The stationed guard poked his head out in confusion. Gu Yun silently tapped the captive's back with the hilt of his western sword: "Be sensible."

Xu Ling did not translate. The Western prisoner had already understood what Gu Yun meant. He tremblingly lifted up his light armor helmet. A tuft of familiar yellow hair dispelled the guard's doubts. The guard glanced at Ge Chen who was hanging on the pole, made a grinning face, waved his hand, and several gun barrels slowly moved away, and the garrison let them in.

"Wait a moment," said the guard who let them in. "The Pope is receiving an important guest, and the adults are accompanying him. No one will care if we report it. Let's go register first and lock up the pig and roast it in the evening."

The others did not react. Xu Ling knew that even King Yan could not give him any guidance at this time. He swallowed twice and asked as calmly as possible, "Where did the guest come from?"

“Holy Land,” the guard scratched his face impatiently, “Don’t ask about things you shouldn’t know. I really don’t know when they will let us go. This war is endless. Hey, brother, these losers in the no-man’s land caught a spy. If we give them two pieces of jerky to eat, I guess they won’t be able to do anything bigger in their lifetime.”

A group of Western soldiers burst into laughter.

Xu Ling felt relieved a little, and took the lead in pushing the Western prisoner in the direction the guard was pointing. Unexpectedly, at this moment, the Western prisoner suddenly moved, and the special fuse that Xu Ling was holding was exposed. The Western guard who had not yet left saw it at a glance: "Wait, what's behind you?"

Xu Ling broke out in a cold sweat.

The guard approached Xu Ling suspiciously, looked him up and down, and suddenly reached out to hold the sword at his waist: "Lift up your mask."

Xu Ling's heart was pounding and he was stiff and unable to move.

At this moment, a sharp alarm suddenly sounded in the distance, and flames shot up into the sky against the wind. Many Western soldiers ran past them. The Western guard who was questioning them was distracted. Chang Geng suddenly took a step forward, and a thin needle as long as an arm appeared in his hand. He pierced the guard's neck in the blink of an eye.

The Western guard died standing there without a word. A personal soldier took off the guard's helmet, turned around to cut Ge Chen's rope, and put the helmet on his head.

Xu Ling finally caught his breath and noticed that one of Gu Yun's personal soldiers was missing. The next moment, Gu Yun snatched the fuse from Xu Ling's hand and said, "Let's go."

Before Xu Ling could react, he saw Gu Yun pulling open the fuse on the prisoner's back, and the wind-cutting blade in his hand untied something behind the Westerner's light armor. He kicked him out with a flying kick. A large cloud of white mist emerged from the prisoner's back, and with the force of Gu Yun's kick, the light armor pushed him forward with clouds of mist.

The Western captive let out a scream that was not like a human voice. At the same time, the unusual movement here was inevitably noticed. The soldiers of the Black Iron Camp were extremely well-trained. With a gesture from Gu Yun, they raised their bows, crossbows, long and short cannons, and fired in all directions.

It was not until then that the light armor of the Western prisoner exploded. The huge shock blew away the surrounding tents and Western soldiers. Xu Ling lost his balance for a moment, and a hand holding the light armor grabbed him and pulled him forward.

The group took advantage of the chaos and ran wildly. When they turned a corner, Gu Yun suddenly stretched out his hand to stop Xu Linghe, who was holding Chang Geng, and asked quickly in a low voice: "'Running over there, chasing', what do you mean?"

Xu Ling had no time to react and instinctively translated the words into the foreign language of the Westerners.

As soon as he finished speaking, the enemy troops chased after them. Gu Yun raised his hand and drew out the sword on his western light armor. He imitated the words Xu Ling had just taught him vividly, and took the lead in holding the western sword, and "chased" out with confidence and murderous intent.

They all wore the same armor and masks, and it was hard to tell who was who. Gu Yun had been in charge of the Black Iron Camp for many years, and he had the aura of a general. At his command, the Western soldiers couldn't help but follow him.

Xu Ling: “…”

Somehow they went from being hunted to being pursued.

They chased him all the way to the riverside. Xu Ling saw a black shadow suddenly emerge from the distance. The Western armor used for camouflage had been removed. It was Gu Yun's missing guard. The soldiers of the Black Iron Camp let out a long whistle and then jumped into the river. Xu Ling was quick-witted and shouted in a foreign language: "Get on the boat and chase!"

Gu Yun didn't expect that Lord Xu would become so corrupted so quickly by the company of others, and couldn't help but give him a thumbs up.

Before Xu Ling could feel proud, he was thrown down from the river bank by Gu Yun through a light armor weighing dozens of kilograms, and hit a Western dragon with a bang. The sailors on the dragon also heard the noise on the shore, and were confused, so they came to watch. At this moment, several black shadows fell down, and killed several Western sailors with knives. They were killed with one blow, without any delay or sound. The bodies did not have time to fall down, and were quietly carried away by the killer. To outsiders, it seemed as if they were just good comrades walking into the cabin side by side.

A moment later, before the chaos on the shore ended, a Western dragon had already rushed out of the Western garrison port at lightning speed in the early morning light.