Datang: Longevity for Thousands of Years, Exposed by Xiao Sizi

Chapter 87 Qin Changye! Can you still sit on Diaoyutai a thousand years later?

"Master Lu, you are... biased."

"Recently, Li Shimin has been dealing with bigger and bigger issues, all of which are related to the people of the Tang Dynasty. How could they be related to a child like Li Mingda? I cannot accept your explanation."

The head of the Cui family in Boling couldn't help but speak up and expressed his disapproval.

The head of the Zhaojun Li family also said: "Assassinating Li Shimin's beloved daughter Li Mingda will certainly make Li Shimin angry, and relieve the anger in the hearts of our family."

"But! Enraging an ambitious emperor and the mysterious Qin family is not a good thing for our family. If there is no decisive evidence to prove that Li Mingda is the source of everything, our Zhaojun Li family will not support it."

"I'm sorry, Master Lu, I have to consider the children of my family."

Even the head of the Longxi Li family, who had always believed that the Fanyang Lu family was unfathomable and had attached great importance to them, now expressed his opposition.

"How can a weaned child have any influence on the overall situation? Master Lu, please do not let the Lu family's personal interests, or even your own personal interests, make us anger Li Shimin."

"Even if you assassinate Qin Wenyuan, I think it is more appropriate than assassinating Xiao Sizi."

The other two family heads also objected.

None of the five family heads supported Patriarch Lu’s assassination plan.

Patriarch Lu smiled slightly, as if he was not surprised.

"What the family heads said makes sense, so I, Lu, was just speaking casually, you don't have to take it seriously."

This topic was diverted by the head of the Lu family.

Followed by.

After another half an hour of discussion, all the family heads left the Lu family one after another.

The conclusion they finally reached after discussing this was that there was no other solution and they could only let the family members do their best to prepare for the imperial examination which would be held in a few months.

"Oh!"

Not long after they left, two men in black jumped down from the wall.

"Mr. Lu, I'm sorry."

"It's me who made you lose face."

One of the men in black, Zhu Lian, half-knelt and apologized.

They have been planning to assassinate Li Mingda.

There was no chance outside the city, because he often noticed that if Li Mingda went out of the city, there would always be some mysterious people protecting him in secret.

It’s not those people from the Jinwu Guards, but... people from the martial arts world like them!

Facing such a person, Zhu Lian had no confidence at all.

So Zhu Lian chose the assassination site as the imperial palace.

If it is the Imperial Palace...
At noon, Zhu Lian thought that Li Mingda never went out of the palace. There were countless guards in the palace, so the success rate of the assassination was greatly reduced. But if there were help from the insiders of the major families in the palace, then... the success rate would be greatly improved.

and so.

In order to increase the success rate and minimize the losses to his partners, he went to discuss with the head of the Lu family and asked him to try to ask the aristocratic families for help.

all of these.

It was just a request from him.

Patriarch Lu did it, but the attitudes of those aristocratic families were disappointing!
"It doesn't matter. Although I already knew their answers, I thought you didn't know. Now that you have seen it with your own eyes and heard it with your own ears, it saves me from having to explain it."

The head of the Lu family still had his eyes narrowed.

"Humph! These cowardly noble families are afraid of assassinating Li Mingda? They even said they wanted to make Li Shimin a puppet. How can they overthrow Li Shimin if they don't even have this much courage!"

Another man in black, who had a hot temper, started yelling on the spot.

"Hongyun, shut up!"

Zhu Lian spoke up to stop him.

The voice was full of authority, yet also contained some suppressed anger.

Not angry.

"This, I am telling the truth, Boss, I... forget it, I won't say it anymore, is it okay not to say it?"

The man in black, Zhu Hongyun, saw Zhu Lian's death gaze and waved his hands, looking helpless.

Zhu Lian quickly retracted his gaze and looked at Lu Yuntian, saying apologetically: "Mr. Lu, I didn't discipline my subordinates strictly enough."

Patriarch Lu smiled and said, "It's okay, let's prepare for tonight."

"We received news tonight that Li Mingda is going to Lizheng Palace to have dinner with Empress Changsun. On the way, he will pass by Hanyang Gate. The people stationed there have been bribed. You have two quarters of an hour."

"When the two quarters of an hour are up, no matter what the outcome, you must retreat. Otherwise, only the underworld will be waiting for you."

Zhu Lian nodded: "I've made a note of it. I'll go down and make arrangements right away."

He stood up and left with the man in black named Zhu Hongyun.

But after taking a few steps, the voice came from behind again.

“Remember, you are Jianghu assassins, not from my Lu family, nor from an aristocratic family.”

These words are full of profound meaning.

Zhu Lian's eyes flickered, and he said without turning his head: "I have made a note of this. Tonight, the Fanyang Lu family and I, Zhu Lian, will have nothing to do with each other."

Done.

Back away slowly.

The head of the Lu family narrowed his eyes and watched the two people leave. He kept watching them until the two people had walked away for a long time. It seemed that he was not looking at Zhu Lian and the others, but thinking about something.

At this time, Lu Ning came up to him and asked, "Dad, can we succeed?"

His voice was calm, but his face was full of fear.

My father is still as ruthless as he was back then, and he always does unbelievable things.

That….
But Princess Jinyang! Li Shimin's beloved daughter!
He dared to assassinate his own father!

And there are people behind "Qin Wenyuan" who are protecting "Qin Wenyuan"...
If this happened to him, he would never dare to do it.

It was precisely because he was timid that the head of the Lu family always stayed in the position of head of the family, and Lu Ning did not dare to say "it's time for you to abdicate".

"Whether you succeed or not, it doesn't matter."

Patriarch Lu smiled faintly.

Those cloudy eyes gazed calmly at the sky outside.

"If we can force that immortal out, then... our goal will be achieved."

........................

The main residence of the Lu family.

East courtyard.

today.

Just as the sun was setting, everyone in the East Courtyard was dismissed.

This is a rare thing in the Lu family.

Because there were many direct descendants of the Lu family living in the east courtyard of the Lu family, and they needed servants to serve them. But today, not only were they dismissed, but all the direct descendants of the Lu family were also dismissed.

"This is strange. Why would the master let us leave today? Don't the young masters need to serve us?!"

"Didn't the master say that the East Courtyard needs repairs today? It has indeed been a while since the East Courtyard was repaired, and many houses are leaking. The master has hired many workers, and they will repair those places after we leave."

"I see, but... there's no need to ask the young masters to leave, right?!"

"Hey~ Deputy Patriarch Lu, maybe he's afraid that the noise of the workers working will disturb the young master and his family."

Many servants talked a lot and left the East Courtyard one after another.

Go to other courtyards of the Lu Mansion and stay for a day.

Afterwards, many members of the Lu family packed up their things and left. Like the servants, they needed to stay in other courtyards for a day.

After the East Courtyard was deserted.

One by one, the men in black came from various corners of the walls to a pavilion in the east courtyard, and all looked at the leading man in black, Zhu Lian.

Tonight they have a goal, to assassinate Princess Jinyang Li Mingda!!!
"Three things."

"First, we will start the action tonight at 21:23-:. We only have two quarters of an hour, and the Lu family will help us when we act."

"Secondly, none of the Five Surnames and Seven Families agree with our assassination plan. We only have Mr. Lu and the Lu family to help us."

"Third, all actions tonight have nothing to do with the Lu family! We are assassins, tempted by the black market bounty in Yangzhou, and come to assassinate Princess Jinyang Li Mingda to deliver the mission."

The words fell.

Some of the men in black had flickering eyes, as if they were somewhat dissatisfied with these three things, but they did not say much.

They are all assassins.

Assassins only need to obey orders.

Promise one by one.

Then they scattered and each prepared their own weapons and hidden weapons.

They are assassins and can only trust themselves, so they would not want other killers to know about their weapons or hidden weapons.

At present, the entire East Courtyard has been vacated, and workers will come to repair it in an hour.

and so.

All assassins have one hour to prepare. After one hour, the entire assassination team will set out for the imperial city to carry out the mission.

Most of the killers left.

But there is still one person left.

Zhu Lian glanced at this person and said unhappily, "What? Hongyun, why don't you leave and get ready?"

Zhu Hongyun smiled and said, "Boss, it's only an hour, there's plenty of time. I'm here to accompany you. After all, tonight we are assassinating the princess of the dynasty. It's dangerous now. Whether we can come back or not is another matter. Of course, we should do more things we want to do in this hard-earned free time."

"And Boss, I just want to follow you, hahaha."

Zhu Lian rolled his eyes and said, "You are such a troublemaker. Sometimes I really doubt whether it is right to bring you into the path of being a killer."

Say it.

He was too lazy to care about Zhu Hongyun and walked towards the room on his own.

Zhu Hongyun was rescued by him ten years ago. The two depended on each other and he trusted them very much. They became sworn brothers, so he had no doubt in leaving the responsibility to Zhu Hongyun.

"Hey, wait for me, boss."

Zhu Hongyun hurriedly jogged to catch up.

There was a creaking sound from the front, and Zhu Lian opened the door, revealing the scene inside the room.

This is a ancestral hall.

Generally, ancestral halls worship various gods and Buddhas, but this temple is dedicated to an elegant knight.

Zhu Lian took the incense and lit it with ease, then knelt down in front of the statue of the knight.

"Jing Ke, I wish my assassination tonight will be successful."

"If you succeed, I, Zhu Lian, will be as famous as you in the history books!!"

“In the future, I, Zhu Lian, will also be able to accept the worship of others!!”

After Zhu Lian bowed, his eyes flashed with endless heat.

Although Zhu Hongyun was also burning incense and kneeling beside him, his expression seemed more like he was just going through the motions.

The two men dropped the incense into the incense burner and then left the room.

"Boss, this matter... I think we should just forget about it. Assassinating a princess, and the most beloved princess of the ruthless emperor..."

"I guess that ruthless emperor must have placed endless emotions on this Princess Jinyang."

"Even if we succeed, I'm afraid we will only be hunted down by the world endlessly."

"And I heard from Mr. Lu that some immortal being would care about Princess Jinyang. I feel uneasy when I hear that."

"For a false reputation, the lower half of my body has to live in fear. Is it really... worth it?!"

Zhu Hongyun sighed secretly, feeling quite melancholy.

perhaps.

That's why he stayed.

Persuade his boss not to continue the assassination of Li Mingda.

Zhu Lian glanced at him and said indifferently, "Apart from those who were born into noble families, most of those whose names can be passed down through the ages have extraordinary life experiences."

"I, Zhu Lian, was born into a farming family. My parents died when I was young. If I want to leave my name in history, this is the only way."

"If you don't dare, then stay here. Find a time to leave the city tomorrow. No... maybe the whole city will be under martial law tomorrow, so you can leave the city later."

Zhu Hongyun smiled and said, "No, I'm not leaving! I was just talking casually."

Zhu Lian nodded and said, "That's good. The reason for assassinating Li Mingda is firstly for fame, and secondly, I, Zhu Lian, still owe Mr. Lu a great favor. I have been wandering around the martial arts world for many years, and I, Zhu Lian, have never owed anyone a favor, so I should repay him."

Zhu Hongyun snorted coldly when he heard this: "Hmph! Boss, it would be fine if you didn't say this. It makes me angry when you say this." "The head of the Lu family has never given us a public identity since he sent a pigeon to summon us to Chang'an City a few days ago. We can only live like mice without any connection with his Lu family."

"Every time you gathered intelligence and reported to him, it was in a deserted place, either in a secret passage or a teahouse. No third person ever heard your conversation. To be honest, did Patriarch Lu really treat us as his own people?!"

Zhu Lian's expression changed, and he said coldly: "Hongyun, don't talk nonsense! We will repay your kindness and leave. There is no need to point fingers at your actions!"

"You and I, brothers, owe Mr. Lu two lives. If it weren't for Mr. Lu, we would have died in the assassination mission in Yangzhou. After the assassination of Li Mingda this time, plus the half-month intelligence delivery, these two lives are completely repaid."

Zhu Hongyun waved his hands helplessly and said, "Okay, okay, boss, I get it."

"Well, it's still early. You can warm up with me first to prevent your kung fu from getting rusty."

Zhu Lian took out a very light long-faced sword from the weapon rack.

As he drew the sword from its sheath, the sound of the sword ringing filled his ears, clear and crisp.

"Yo~ Zhu Lian, who ranks first in the Yangzhou assassination rankings, is going to practice. I'm really looking forward to it!"

Zhu Hongyun walked to the back with a grin on his face.

There were several pigeon cages with pigeons in them.

Turn it on.

The hungry pigeons instantly flew into the sky and scattered in all directions.

"Whoosh whoosh!"

Only a series of faint sounds were heard, and it was Zhu Lian who threw out hidden weapons with his right hand.

In an instant.

Five pigeons flew into the sky and fell to the ground at the same time, bleeding.

On their necks, there is an extremely delicate silver needle.

Without exception.

All of them died from puncture of blood vessels.

then.

Zhu Hongyun threw out another piece of cloth.

Zhu Lian's eyes flickered and he swung the sword forward.

Although he was holding a rapier.

But the moves are grand and bold, full of heroism.

The moment the cloth hit the ground, it had been cut into several complete sword marks.

Densely packed and regular.

But it is still a piece of cloth. You can pick up the whole piece of cloth with your hand, but you can only see dense sword marks on it.

From this, we can see how terrifying this person's swordsmanship is!!

"Boss, this... you are still as good as ever!"

Zhu Hongyun was delighted.

I am very happy for my boss.

The assassination tonight.

There is his own boss, and many famous killers from Yangzhou City.

In addition, Li Mingda has the Lu family's hidden weapons with him, which can be used to counterattack and kill their people.

The inside should be in harmony with the outside.

How could this assassination not be successful?
This will surely be the 125th successful assassination mission for him and his boss!

Zhu Lian's expression also looked much better. After all, he was going to assassinate a princess, and he felt a lot of pressure inside.

"Yeah, I hope I won't get too nervous and mess up."

Zhu Lian let out a breath.

"No! The conditions for this assassination are much better than what we had before, with the help of other assassins and the Lu family's insiders. It will definitely succeed!"

"Once we're done with this, we'll return to Yangzhou City, away from this place of trouble! We'll return to a place we're familiar with and begin our escape!"

Zhu Hongyun was smiling.

He bent down to pick up the cloth and prepared to clean up the area.

"Well, I hope so."

Zhu Lian responded absentmindedly.

"Hey, Boss, why are you..."

Bang! !

Before he could finish his words, Zhu Hongyun was knocked unconscious by a knife strike.

Zhu Lian held the shaky Zhu Hongyun in his arms and said with a complicated expression, "I'm sorry, Hongyun."

"This assassination mission is for the princess, the daughter of the emperor who gathers all the troops in the world. I cannot let you take risks."

"After all, he is a member of the imperial family. Even if we are 90% sure, it won't work."

"Just have a good sleep. Mr. Lu will arrange for you to leave the city tomorrow."

Zhu Lian sighed and held him in his arms as they walked.

Open the gate to the yard here.

Across the door, Patriarch Lu, Lu Ning, and several family guards behind Patriarch Lu were standing there.

"Are you sure? You won't let your brother help you?"

Patriarch Lu couldn't help but ask.

Zhu Lian nodded and said, "When I rescued him more than ten years ago, he was still a child. I just took him in because I was soft-hearted."

"Afterwards, even though Hongyun was very mischievous, it also gave me a sense of belonging and made me understand what the bond of family is."

"It is a taboo for a killer to show his true feelings. I have tried to kill him several times when he was asleep late at night, but I finally stopped."

"I learned from this that humans can never be lone wolves, they are always social creatures~"

Zhu Lian was filled with emotion, and then he said seriously: "From then on, I began to face my inner feelings and taught Hongyun all kinds of martial arts just to let him protect himself."

"But I didn't expect that he also wanted to become a killer. I couldn't persuade him, so I had to do this."

"In my previous assassination career, the targets were all under my control, so I could let Hongyun participate. But tonight... the opponent is a member of the imperial family. Even if she is a child, she is a real member of the imperial family."

"Mr. Lu, I'm not sure at all."

"So, please take care of my brother Zhu Hongyun and wait for tomorrow to come and arrange for him to leave the city."

Patriarch Lu's eyes flickered, and he said, "I understand."

He signaled to the guards with his eyes, and they understood immediately and took Zhu Hongyun from Zhu Lian's arms.

Then, take him away.

"and many more."

Zhu Lian stopped the people who were about to leave, thought for a moment, and said, "Mr. Lu, if I haven't returned after my brother wakes up, please tell him not to be an assassin anymore."

"There is a tofu shop in Hangzhou City. I prepared it for him. Just say tofu shop and he will know what it means."

"Mr. Lu, I'll leave everything to you!!"

The words fell.

Patriarch Lu nodded again, indicating that he already knew.

Wait until they leave.

Zhu Lian felt upset for a long time.

He didn't know whether this was worry or relief.

I only know that my mood is extremely complicated.

that's it.

An hour later, all the assassins gathered, and he led the assassins to sneak into the imperial city with complicated thoughts.

Not long after they left, teams of workers entered the east courtyard of the Lu family to do repair work, and the entire Lu family returned to normal.

........................

Xuanwu Street.

Tianxia Restaurant.

This restaurant has had very few customers since its opening because their food is not tasty, but the fact that they are still standing today is something that puzzles many people.

Tianxia Restaurant actually does not make money from the natural flow of diners.

They have their own unique way of making money.

At this moment.

In Tianxia Restaurant, Room No. 1.

A maid came into the room carrying water.

With a creaky sound, the door closed.

A crisp sound was heard in an instant.

"Miss, they are all out."

"Over at the Lu family, all the assassins are out, led by the famous Embroidered Sword Master Zhu Lian from Yangzhou City."

The maid raised her head with a smiling mask on her face.

Its smiling mask,
There is a deep blue mark on the edge, as well as a yin-yang Bagua fish pattern.

She...is a subordinate of Yaoguang of the Seven Stars!
"Oh? Embroidered Sword Zhu Lian has been invited by the Lu family. That's not easy. Haha, it looks like assassinating Little Sizi is a sure thing."

Behind the screen, a woman was playing chess with a charming smile on her face.

"Then...Miss, do you want to...move our hidden chess pieces under His Highness Xiao Sizi? Help them complete the assassination mission?"

The maid made a suggestion.

"No, that's not necessary. If they can succeed, they will succeed. If they can't succeed, they don't need my help. Let them make a fuss."

"Let's make a noise, the louder the better! It would be best if we could make Qin Changye of Wangyun Inn unable to sit still, and also make those twelve guardian gods show up. Haha, wait until Qin Changye and them come out in the open, then he'll know that we're not the only ones trying to kill him."

"After waking up from this century-long journey, Qin Changye cannot... sit alone on Diaoyutai again and watch the changes in history!"

………………

Xu Shi.

Tai Chi Palace.

Li Shimin had been handling government affairs for a long time before he stopped to rest for a while.

It wasn't that he felt tired, it was because his precious daughter came over.

"Father, Sizi is here to see you!"

From afar,

Li Shimin heard the childish voice and burst into howling.

Then, the little guy walked in arrogantly.

That pace.

He swaggered, with his little arms and hands swinging 90 degrees, and his little feet doing the same.

Li Shimin even suspected that if this was not his precious daughter, the little girl would probably be beaten for being so arrogant.

"Little Sizi is here, come, let father hold you."

Without thinking too much, Li Shimin greeted him with a smile on his face.

Although quite arrogant.

But the arrival of the little guy still made him very happy.

As soon as he held the soft little guy in his arms, he felt all the fatigue from handling government affairs that day was swept away.

"This...our little Sizi has become heavier. Father won't be able to hold you anymore."

Li Shimin chuckled.

He used to be able to pick up the little guy with one hand, but now he can’t even do it without some effort. The little guy has grown up.

"Humph~ No way, Father can definitely hug Sizi. Sizi likes to be hugged by Second Brother, Elder Sister, Father and Mother. Now I can hardly hold them anymore. Sizi can just eat less in the future."

"Sizi feels that it is because I ate secretly this afternoon that I gained weight."

Little Sizi's childish voice is very nice to hear.

These days,

Little Sizi always mentioned Qin Changye, which gave Li Shimin a headache. Why did his daughter's first idol become Qin Changye?
As an old father, he has no place anymore, right?
(End of this chapter)