Chapter 299: Don’t work hard for gentlemen

"A chicken lives in the hay, gentlemen should not work hard. People are determined, at the hour of You." A vague sound of chanting in the palace came from afar, which also woke up Qin Lei who was sleeping.

"Don't work hard for a gentleman," Qin Lei muttered, "I'll work hard for a night." As he said that, he bounced off the bed and washed his face with the cold well water in the basin. The bone-bending feeling immediately dispelled the tiredness and made the spirit refresh again.

The inner palace was guarded by the large inner guards, and the imperial guards could not enter, so the bright yellow armor was useless. He took off the body and left only the close-fitting soft armor. He opened the bag he brought into the palace, and his night clothes and several special equipment were revealed.

Rubbing the exquisite continuous arm shooting crossbow, Qin Lei placed it aside and began to put Ye Xing on orderly. Shen Qing, who was next to him, had already put on his night walking equipment and sat in the dark waiting for him.

Shen Bing was not in the room. It was not until Qin Lei tied the last dagger to his calf that he pushed the door in, shook the snow all over his body, and whispered to Qin Lei: "It's snowing again."

Qin Lei laughed and said, "Good thing." Shen Qing stood up and put a white shirt on Qin Lei, nodded and said, "The chance of being discovered is much smaller."

Qin Lei tied the strap on the shirt and asked softly: "Are you optimistic about the route?"

Shen Bing nodded and said softly: "It's only one mile from here to Hualinyuan, and then climb over the wall from Hualinyuan into the palace. Although we are in circles, there are much fewer guards." Hualinyuan is the royal racecourse, where Yongfu Palace and Changshui Pavilion are located, but now Emperor Zhaowu and Princess Yongfu are not in the garden. The prince wants to strengthen the garrison of the Forbidden Palace, so he transferred most of the guards, who were not many here.

Qin Lei stretched out his right hand with leather gloves, clenched into a fist, and chuckled, "Good luck, brothers." Shen Bing and Shen Qing looked solemn, and he also stretched out his fist, collided with Qin Lei three times, and said respectfully to Qin Lei, "Good luck, prince." His thumbs were raised at the same time, and the three of them looked at each other and smiled, and then they walked out of the small house.

There was snow but no wind tonight, and heavy snow was falling. Everything around was silent, with only the sound of falling snow, as if countless spring silkworms were gnawing on mulberry leaves. Shen Bing was cutting the way in front of his head, and Shen Qing held a small broom to clean up the traces behind. Qin Lei was protected by the two of them, and his cat's waist was along the base of the wall and quickly slipped out of the military camp.

Xue Naijun had already carefully talked about the patrol rules of the Imperial Guards with Qin Lei and the others. Shen Bing went out to verify it again and found that it was accurate, so he was relieved to lead the way forward.

There is a clearing of more than one mile and a wide open space between the military camp and Hualin Garden, with a Jinshui River more than two meters wide across the middle. At the four corners of the outer wall of Hualin Garden, there is a watchtower tower. If you are usually in normal times, you can see the more open spaces in this area. Even if hundreds of torches burn at night, you can still shine in the field like white ground.

The designer of this defense system is meticulous, but he ignored one thing: in the cold winter, water turns into ice, who can stand on the uncovered watchtower around? It’s better to say it during the day because he is afraid that Shangguan will see it. Even if it’s cold, the soldiers will grit their teeth and persevere.

But as soon as the night entered, several soldiers on duty wrapped themselves in thick broken quilts on the bed, huddled in a corner of the tower, shivering, leaving only one person standing there to keep watch. They dared not stay all of them. If a thief really missed, the dereliction of duty would be executed.

The unlucky soldier was the youngest among them. There was wind at a high place, and snow particles slammed on his face, making the fire hurt, and his eyelids couldn't even open, let alone looking down with wide eyeshadows. Naturally, there was no way to find a few similar white figures on the snow, crawling forward and slowly crawling.

Qin Lei and the other two climbed down the Jinshui River smoothly and followed the river to the base of the palace wall. Then they lay on the ground for a little rest. They took off the white cloth skin from their waists, raised their heads and took a bite. The spicy Lao Shao entered the stomach along the throat, making the frozen body heat up again. The three of them then put their heads together, and Shen Bing whispered: "Behind the wall is a forest of thorns, specifically for overturning the wall." This was for Shen Qing to hear that among the three, he was the only one who had never entered Hualinyuan.

Qin Lei laughed in a low voice: "Last time I stayed here, I came to weed every night to voluntarily and opened a two-foot-wide path." Since the first day he entered this palace, he had a premonition that there would be a day of flying over the eaves and walls in the future, and his sixth sense of womanhood.

As he said that, he signaled Shen Bing to get out of his position, he climbed to the low water gate, stroked the railings as thick as his arms, and finally stopped at the second last right. Seeing his left hand stretching back, Shen Bing quickly handed a small saw in his hand.

Qin Lei's right hand stroked the iron rod. After a while, he paused two inches above, and his left hand stuck the small saw on the railing.

Shen Qing rubbed his eyes and found that the thin saw blade had completely penetrated into the iron rod, and was about to be sawed off. Shen Bing saw his mouth wide open, and leaned in his ear and whispered: "The prince has already sawed off the railing by 80%..." Shen Qing then understood what it means to 'prepare for the future and be prepared for any trouble'.

Within a quarter of an hour, the prince heard the whisper, "Okay." As soon as he finished speaking, he crawled through the sawed hole. After Shen Bing and the other two came in, he reconnected the unloaded railing and wrapped the cloth strips tightly, and then turned around and left.

After carefully identifying the direction, Qin Lei and the two of them went ashore, pulled a sour jujube branch that had been pressed against the big stone, and it really revealed a two-foot-wide path. The three of them walked carefully along the path for a moment, and their eyes suddenly became clear, but there were thorns.

The three of them crawled down and observed around. They saw that everything was silent in the empty Hualin Garden, and there was no sign of a figure. Qin Lei breathed a sigh of relief and pointed to the birch forest to the west. The three of them followed the thorns and rushed into the forest without stopping, but they reached the edge of the horse farm.

After walking along the outside of the horse farm for a while, he finally reached the three-meter-high palace wall. The three of them entered the grass under the wall. Shen Bing was about to shoot out the flying claw spear hook, but Qin Lei held it. He immediately became alert and lay on his back in the ditch, holding his breath without moving, and then he heard a small group of soldiers patrolling the night and coming from a distance.

Several soldiers whispered to the cold weather and walked very quickly. As they were approaching, they heard a man silly saying, "Grandma, I'm drunk too much and want to pee." Someone laughed at the side and said, "Be careful that the sticks are frozen, but my sister-in-law is going to blame." Someone answered, "It's just right to serve the ladies, so that I can save the cold weather from coming out to suffer."

He heard the man laugh and scolded, "Get out of your mother's egg, some people can't pee when they see you." He walked to the side of the road and began to untidy his belt.

Qin Lei and Shen Qing opened their mouths and looked at Shen Bing. The place where he was hiding seemed a coincidence... A golden arc fell from the sky, with the soldier's little bird on one end, and the other end followed by Chen Dusi's face that was paler than snow...

The bastard soldier may have been holding it in for a long time, but he has not finished scattering it. The hot water column repeatedly washed away Lord Shen's face. Fortunately, Shen Dusi has practiced a qi-holding skill in Qingchuan Lake...

Listening to the sound of water, Qin Lei and the other two kept cruciating in their hearts, praying that Chen Dusi would not be angry and shocked the other person's Que'er. His concern was obviously unnecessary until the bastard soldier shook comfortably, shook and stuffed the thing back. Shen Bing didn't move at all, as if he was asleep.

When the team walked away, Qin Lei and the other two hurried over, endured the odor and helped Shen Bing up, holding Xue and wiping his face. After a long time, Shen Bing returned and bit his lower lip and said, "I remember, it's a pockmarked face, rosacea... Bah, it's so shameful..." He held Xue and wiped his face and neck hard, smiled helplessly at Qin Lei, then raised the spear hook again, aimed at and pulled the trigger.

With a slight sound, the flying claws ejected with a thin rope and crossed the courtyard wall. Shen Bing pulled the rope hard, felt the tension coming from the flying claws grasping the courtyard wall, nodded at Qin Lei, and was the first to climb up.

The three of them successfully flipped into the inner palace. When Shen Bing took back the rope, the three of them looked at each other and knew that they had entered the forbidden palace with dense guards. The chance of being discovered increased greatly, so they had to be vigilant.

Among the three, only Qin Lei entered the inner palace. He took the initiative to open the way forward, and gently led the two into the strange rocks of the rockery, and walked along the path in the garden without hesitation. Seeing his confidence, Shen Bing looked calm and his slight nervousness disappeared.

Little did he know that although Qin Lei had entered the palace many times, he had a large number of eunuchs and guards every time. Except for Cining Palace and Jinyu Palace, he had never been anywhere else. How could he recognize where this was? The only basis was Qin Lin's description.

After a while, the three of them arrived at a fork in the road. Qin Lei stopped and asked softly: "To the left or to the right?" The Shen brothers following him almost fell to the ground, thinking: "Why are you doing this?"

The prince took out a piece of money from his waist and threw it gently. When it fell on the snow, the lettering side was facing up. Qin Lei picked up the money, pointed to the right, and walked over with his waist.

Although it was the coldest winter of the year, the Shen brothers still had a hairy sweat. Only then did they realize that the prince said "If you have to be sure, you will do it." It turned out that it was not a lie.

Perhaps seeing Qin Lei ask for help at a critical moment, God felt quite proud and pointed out a path of quite a bit of divineness for Qin Lei and the other two. After walking along this path, he rarely encountered patrol guards.

The three of them arrived in front of an unguarded courtyard very smoothly. Qin Lei looked at the plaque on the door, and saw the words "Jianjiayuan" written on it. After a moment of careful recollection, he realized that this was the residence of Lao Liu's mother and Concubine Zhou. This concubine was born as a palace maid from the Washing Clothes Bureau. Emperor Zhaowu's rare animal attack made her pregnant. Then she was promoted to the noble, broke away from physical labor, and became a member of the harem of the emperor who was neglected.

Emperor Zhaowu was extremely cold to women. After Zhou Guiren was promoted, the emperor never came to visit again. Therefore, he was least valued by everyone in the palace. Even the Jianjiayuan, which was accompanied by her, was extremely deserted. Even the prince was too lazy to send someone to guard him.

Qin Lei and his three climbed over the wall and entered the yard. The servants in the yard were already asleep, and only the lights were still on in the east wing. The three of them slipped under the wall and heard the voices inside...

"Why don't my mother let the child go out? My younger brother and Aunt Jin have been confined. How can I not go and see it?" This was Qin Zhan's voice, "Fifth brother treats me and me the same way, so I can't let him look down on him."

A gentle female voice sounded: "If you want to save them, stay here honestly." It was obviously the voice of Zhou Guiren.

Qin Zhan asked in a low voice: "What's the use of sitting here?"

Qin Lei had a flash of inspiration in his mind, he got up and pushed the door in, and smiled and said, "It's very useful."

The mother and son in the room turned their heads in surprise and looked at the door. When they saw that it was Qin Lei, Qin Zhan shouted in surprise. However, they saw Qin Lei's index finger standing on his lips. Qin Zhan quickly covered his mouth, but the joy in his eyes could not be blocked.

Qin Lei grinned at him, and Shen Qing also followed him in, closed the door, and let the three of them talk.

Qin Lei bowed to Concubine Zhou and said, "Go to see the aunt." Concubine Zhou smiled and said, "You can't be treated. Can the prince be safe?"

Qin Lei said in a gentle voice: "Auntie just needs to call me Xiaowu." He said and smiled again: "Boy comes on the snow, but I don't seem to be surprised?"

Concubine Zhou stood up and poured tea for Qin Lei: "I was not very surprised because I heard the Queen Mother said it."

Qin Lei suddenly appeared in his mind. The mysterious look of the old lady claiming to be able to calculate and calculate. She couldn't help but shiver and smiled, "The emperor's grandmother has a clever idea."

Zhou Guiren is a woman from the South with fair skin and gentle eyebrows. She speaks softly: "Three days ago, the Empress Dowager suddenly sent Eunuch Qiu to pass the message." As she said that, she recalled the situation that day and said: "The Empress Dowager said that the palace has changed a lot, and the four gates have been blocked, and there will be traitors who will be besieged by Cining Palace soon. However, my small courtyard may be spared because it is remote."

"The Empress Dowager said that the fifth prince may visit the Forbidden Palace at night, and it will be three days later, that is tonight." Zhou Guiren explained softly: "The Empress Dowager said that the prince is a person who cares about the overall situation and will definitely enter the palace tomorrow morning." As he said that, he looked at Qin Lei with admiration, and Fu Yifu said: "I didn't expect that the prince really disregarded his own safety for the welfare of the Great Qin Dynasty. It is really admirable."

Qin Lei smiled and said, "It's a mistake." It's a mistake. His original intention was to borrow a few eunuch clothes to get into the big house. It can be seen that there is a destiny in the dark. He asked softly again, "I wonder what the emperor and grandmother have to make arrangements?"

Zhou Guiren said softly: "The Empress Dowager said that the prince does not have to worry about her safety. The specific situation in three days is not something she can predict. But there are only two ways to solve it, capture the thief and capture the king, or rescue His Majesty."

Qin Lei said in a lost voice: "Is Your Majesty still here?" After saying that, he felt a little inappropriate and said embarrassedly: "I care about you and you will be confused."

Zhou Guiren smiled generously and said, "The Old Buddha said that the prince's plan is undecided, and what he lacks the most is courage. This time, someone instigated him to break through the sky, but he decided not to kill the monarch directly. Eighty-mostly, he just fainted from the medicine of His Majesty." As he said, he explained, "The Prince said that His Majesty was seriously ill, and the elders of the country were coming to visit him."

Qin Lei nodded, thought for a moment, and asked in a deep voice: "Where is that Taoist priest?"

Zhou Guiren shook his head and said, "The prince needs to find this himself, and the empress dowager cannot know everything."

Qin Zhan, who was next to him, interrupted and said, "I know that he has a good friend, not in Zichen Hall, but in her."

When Zhou Guiren heard this, he frowned and said, "What kind of good looks are, dirty words."

Qin Zhan stuck out his tongue and said, "It's a temporary measure. A few days ago, when I was traveling at night with me, I saw the old Taoist sneaking around, so I followed him all the way, and then I discovered it."

Qin Lei said happily: "If you can catch that guy, you will remember your achievements!"

Zhou Guiren looked at Qin Zhan with a angrily, took out a phoenix-headed arrow from his sleeve, presented it to Qin Lei with both hands, and said solemnly: "Except for guarding Zichen Palace, Cining Palace, and Jinyu Palace are the guards of the East Palace, and the rest are the guards of the inner palace. This is the token of the empress dowager, and most of the guards can be ordered." He said seriously: "The Empress Dowager hopes that the prince should put the overall situation first and do not let my royal family suffer too much."

Qin Lei nodded, took the arrow, put it in his arms, and asked Qin Zhan where Nan Huazi was. He was afraid of causing trouble for the mother and son, so he quietly left Jianjiayuan and returned to the rockery with Shen Bing to discuss.

Shen Bing whispered: "Do you need to change your plan?"

Qin Lei pondered for a moment and said slowly: "Unless it is absolutely necessary, we cannot alarm the snake. We have to follow the original plan."
Chapter completed!