Jiaohua

Chapter 1688 Shang Taiyu's chronic illness

After the messenger entered, he first presented several letters, and then took one out of his pocket and placed it on top: "Commander, this is the only one that is related to Ali."

Yun Bozhong opened the envelope; it was from You Fujun's side.

After reading it, Yun Bozhong's face lit up with joy: "Yu Zhenyao is truly my lucky general!"

Seeing that he was finally all smiles, Yun Guangce was also pleased and got up to go over: "What happened?"

General Yun handed over the letter: "After Ali came to find me, she went south to Guzhou. Take a look."

After reading it, Yun Guangce was overjoyed: "That general Yu Zhenyao, who is always losing, may have won few battles, but he has accomplished great things!"

From the moment Shen Lie generously gave all the treasures Qian Fengrong and Xie Zhong had obtained from digging up graves to Yu Zhenyao, Yun Bozhong knew that Yu Zhenyao was his great lucky charm.

Yu Zhenyao was also very generous. Shen Lie had given so much, and although Yun Bozhong hadn't said anything, everyone could see that Yun Bozhong and Ali had definitely reached some kind of agreement. Therefore, when Yu Zhenyao entertained Ali in Guzhou, he did his best, fearing that she might be dissatisfied in the slightest.

Finally, Yu Zhenyao specially sent five capable subordinates, just in case they might be of use.

As it turned out, they really did come in handy with Ali.

The group that had gathered at the Guzhou post station split into three groups, which were closely followed by Zhenyao's troops.

Two of the groups were from the Northern Yuan Dynasty, and one group was from Youzhou; they were a father and daughter.

Those two groups of Northern Yuan people were extremely adept at counter-tracking. Their troops lost track of them for a time. After several months, they successfully ambushed the three. The three fought to the death and died on the spot. The woman named Liuyue escaped wounded under the desperate cover of her companions.

The Chen father and daughter were even more cunning. They deliberately went to crowded places and were extremely good at disguising themselves, either as father and son, mother and son, or mother and daughter.

The letter we just received says that the woman named Liuyue has gone to look for the Chen father and daughter.

They came from Beiyuan together, and Liuyue seemed to know where the father and daughter were going.

This time, Yu Zhenyao's men stuck to them and wouldn't let them lose track of them again.

Yun Bozhong said happily, "Ali is impervious to both soft and hard tactics, she only responds to favors. If these three fall into our hands, whether they live or die, she will remember this favor!"

Yun Bozhong immediately began to arrange manpower, prioritizing this matter.

November passed quickly, and soon December arrived with its bitter cold.

This year is exceptionally cold; even in the south, heavy snow has fallen.

Xia Zhaoyi received Shen Lie's letter in advance, but she had no way to pick him up.

After returning to the Northern Yuan, she immediately threw herself into military service.

In the past few months, she has hardly stopped, either leading troops or fighting battles. With the help of Zhuge Pan, she also uncovered a dozen traitors.

As early as mid-October, Zhuge Pan finally realized that he had already been exposed.

However, Zhuge Pan was mentally strong. He quickly calmed himself down and wanted to take this opportunity to sow discord, even if it meant taking a few Han generals down with him.

As a result, he misjudged the people around him.

The person watching him closely was not Wang Fengnian and Zhao Ning, or Madam Qu's men, but someone he never expected: Wang Gu, Zhao Yu's strategist.

After Wang Gu secured that big deal for Zhao Yu and Xia Zhaoyi in Hengxiang, he had been reluctantly helping Xia Zhaoyi investigate Lin Quan, while also keeping an eye on Zhuge Pan. Besides Wang Gu, Zhao Tang and Tao Yinhe also stayed in Hengxiang.

Zhuge Pan's tricks accurately grasped the mentality of the three extremely shrewd businessmen, but they were of no use to Wang Gu.

As usual, Wang Gu intercepted Zhuge Pan's letter, and upon reading it, he immediately realized something was amiss.

To confirm his suspicions, he used a little trick to test Zhuge Pan and discovered that Zhuge Pan indeed knew that he had been exposed.

In that case, Zhuge Pan loses his usefulness, because he will avoid all the correct options they need and will cause trouble.

Rather than letting him interfere, it's better to arrest him and interrogate him before he becomes completely useless, to see if we can still squeeze out the last bit of value from him.

Zhuge Pan was secretly imprisoned in a dark dungeon, and his residence was thoroughly searched by Wang Gu. Wang Gu targeted everyone who had ever had contact with him.

As a result, at least a dozen traitors were uncovered, one of whom had even infiltrated the upper echelons of the Yangliu Tower, named Wu Weili, something Wang Gu never expected.

Fearing that he might wrongly implicate loyal and virtuous officials, Wang Gu investigated very thoroughly and meticulously, and the results he obtained astonished him—

This person was actually a spy planted in Zhitu by Chang Yan Wang Shangtai Yu thirty years ago.

Shang Taiyu is 46 years old this year, which means that when he was only 16, he had already made preparations for invading China.

“This Wu Weili is quite a talent,” Wang Gu murmured to Zhao Tang and Tao Yinhe in the study. “For a full thirty years, not three days, not three months, not three years, he not only showed no flaws and didn’t reveal the slightest clue, but his heart is also made of stone. How come, after thirty years, he hasn’t been subtly changed at all? Hasn’t he been influenced or moved in the slightest?”

Zhao Tang said, "He is indeed a talented man, but he is our enemy. He has been lying low for thirty years, committing countless atrocities, big and small. We cannot let him die easily; even being torn to pieces wouldn't be enough to satisfy our hatred!"

This is inevitable.

Overnight, Wang Gu, Zhao Tang, and Tao Yinhe devised a plan to eliminate Wu Weili.

The final step requires Shen Lie's help. He needs to take a longer route on his way to find Ali, making a trip to Tanggua City.

So, when Shen Lie finally met Xia Zhaoyi on the Xibulang Grassland in Beiyuan, he presented Wu Weili as a grand gift.

Besides this generous gift, there were also two smaller items.

One of them was a bronze bell that the old man found beneath Han Ruiqian's underground palace.

The bronze bell did indeed exist, but the old man did not know its purpose.

He, Yuan Muxue, Danxianzhou, and others swayed over in turn, shaking countless times, making an extremely unpleasant sound.

So the old man had Shen Lie bring him along to see if Xia Zhaoyi could figure out anything.

Another small item was a picture pieced together and pasted on Xuan paper. When Yun Bozhong's men were tracking Chen Yongming and Chen Yunqi, they accidentally discovered Chongmen Hui's body in Xizhou.

Chongmen Hui died in front of a secret stone door in Yue Tang Temple; he died of illness.

Unfortunately, there is still no news of his sixth uncle, Chongmen Heng.

After winning several great victories in a row, Xia Zhaoyi was in high spirits. After taking a bath, she and Shen Lie rode to the shore of Xingxue Lake. The two strolled along the dark blue Xingxue Lake, leading their horses and chatting as they walked.

After Shen Lie finished speaking, it was Xia Zhaoyi's turn to speak.

Her smile was bright and cheerful as she said excitedly, "Early on, after the Battle of Eagle Star Fortress, Shang Taiyu's spirit was completely crushed. He's had a terrible year. I received news yesterday that his chronic illness has been accumulating for a long time, and he's nearing his end! I'm planning to give him another strong dose of medicine before the year ends!"