Hangu Pass is located at the end of the ancient Weihan Road, which is the throat passage between the Wei River Valley and the Central Plains. It is the place where "one man can guard the pass, and ten thousand people cannot open it". The geographical location is very dangerous, and it was the Zhou Dynasty that achieved effective rule over the vast eastern plains.

The important pass has always been stationed with heavy troops to prevent Huaiyi invasion.

When Zhao Bohu and his party saw the tall Hangu Pass gate from a distance, it was getting late. A red sun slowly set in the west against the tall turrets of Hangu Pass, and thousands of golden lights burst out from the gaps in the arches of the turrets.

It shoots out and shines brightly all around.

Every time this group of people leaves Haojing and comes to this pass, everything feels new, not to mention that after walking for nearly ten years, it was raining and muddy, and they suffered a lot. Today finally arrived, and it goes without saying that I feel happy. Especially

It was Ji Hu. If Zhao Bohu hadn't said it first, he would have jumped out of the car long ago.

"Brother Hu", Zhao Bohu looked at Ji Hu with a slightly threatening look: "From now on, you can only call me 'eldest brother' or 'eldest brother', I call you 'Brother Hu', in case the walls have ears.

You have to call me this even in private when no one is around. Do you understand?"

"I understand, I understand." Ji Hu asked impatiently: "Do I have to hide in the car and not be able to come out after entering the customs?"

"No need." Zhao Bohu consoled him: "The guards are coming from the palace. I'm afraid they have seen you, so I have to be on guard. After entering the customs, I will place them outside the city and return early tomorrow morning. Cheng Zhou here

The army must have never seen you, and then you will be free to show your face."

"Great!" Ji Hu cheered, stroking his hands.

"Shh-" Zhao Bohu raised his index finger in warning, and Ji Hu obeyed and became quiet.

"Sir, the generals guarding the gate are coming to greet you!" the sergeant outside the car reported.

"Invite him to meet you in front of the car!" Zhao Bohu ordered.

Unexpectedly, the general who came to greet him turned out to be a young general in his prime. He wore a gauze crown on his head, a gold and silver hook on his waist, and a brand new armor. He was meticulously finished and looked like

He was full of energy and extraordinary martial prowess. When he saw Zhao Bohu, the visitor lifted up his clothes and knelt down: "Young general, Ji Duoyou, the general of Zhou Ding's division, pays homage to the king's envoy."

Zhao Bohu stepped aside and said, "Don't dare, don't dare. We both have the same surname and clan name Ji, how dare we accept this great gift?"

Although the capital of the Zhou Dynasty was in Haojing, from a geographical point of view, Haojing was not the geographical center. The real regional center was Luoyi. Therefore, Luoyi was named the Eastern Capital. The Zhou Dynasty retained a set of customs and rich traditions in this place.

The administrative system of Hao area and other systems. Like Fenghao area, there are also fiefs and fields of various princes around Luoyi and Chengsi, and the princes also sent clans to govern here.

The Eight Divisions of Chengzhou were named after the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches. Each division was assigned a military chief by an important vassal state in the Central Plains. Zhao Bohu made a mental calculation and concluded that Division Ding should be in charge of the defense of the country.

"Is the young general a member of the Weiguo clan?" he asked.

Ji Duoyou had a look of admiration on his face: "Young Master Zhao is well-informed and knowledgeable. The young general belongs to the clan of the Wei Kingdom and is already a distant clan three generations away. My father is the commander-in-chief of Master Ding, and I have been specially sent to welcome the Young Master."

Zhao Bohu ordered fifty military chariots of the Imperial Guard to be stationed at the corner tower outside the pass. They would set off back to Haojing early tomorrow morning. His retainer Mi Bo followed the convoy back to his hometown to resume his duties. He himself drove into Hangu Pass on his bicycle.

The sunset is like a huge firebird, lighting up the sky in the west

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The sky turned red. Gradually, the firebird burned out, leaving only pieces of bright red gemstones embedded in the clouds that looked like ashes. The light of the gemstones became weaker and weaker, the red color receded, turned from gray to black, and was finally submerged in the sky.

In the vast twilight.

Ji Hu was leaning in front of the turret window. When he saw the beautiful scenery, he was immediately infatuated. He couldn't help but sigh: "It's so beautiful!"

Zhao Bohu turned around and saw that he was stunned and said with a smile: "Are you stunned now? The world of Zhou Dynasty is vast and boundless. When you get to Jianghan, you will see enough."

"In my lifetime, I will definitely visit every inch of the mountains and rivers in the Great Zhou Dynasty and bring all the Yi, Di, and Rong barbarians back to their original form." Ji Hu said bitterly.

When a child said this, he became quite angry. Zhao Bohu frowned, and just as he was about to say something, a waiter suddenly invited the two of them over to attend the reception banquet.

In the hall of the main building of Hangu Pass, the main seat was vacant. The chief general of Hangu Pass and the chief general of Cheng Zhou Ding, Ji Zheng, were sitting on the left and right. The three of them gave way for a long time, but in the end, Zhao Bohu couldn't make the move and still sat on the main seat.

Now. Ji Hu and Ji Duoyou were sitting at the bottom table with them at the foot of the stairs.

After everyone drank a few glasses of wine together, Ji Zheng said: "Master Wang has too many rules. He returned without saying a word early this morning. Otherwise, we should have invited them to drink the Wind-Winding Wine."

Zhao Bohu explained: "They are the royal guards of the king. When they left the capital, they said they would return to the capital in ten days. Now they have been delayed by the heavy rain. Why not be in a hurry?"

"That is, that is." General Guan agreed.

"It's just ------" Ji Zheng asked tentatively: "This time we set out to conquer Chuman, we only led three divisions. Is this too small a force?"

Sure enough, this was the theme of the banquet. Zhao Bohu smiled and picked up the wine glass and said: "General, don't worry too much. This time the king goes out to rescue Hubei, not to destroy Chu. What's more, the Jianghan people

The country has thousands of chariots and millions of troops, so why should we be afraid of Jingchu?"

"Young Master, please don't underestimate the enemy!" Ji Duoyou couldn't sit still and interjected: "Young Master has lived in Fenghao for a long time and doesn't know what the Chu people have done in these years. They attacked the Jiang and Han countries one after another and forced them to surrender to themselves. Hubei

For this reason, the country had to move its capital. In addition, it also connected with the remnants of Huaiyi and was ready to take action. It really should not be underestimated!"

"What do you, a child, know? How dare you boast for the enemy in front of the king's envoy!" Ji Zheng scolded his son, thanked Zhao Bohu and said, "You are so arrogant, I hope Mr. Zhao will forgive me!"

"You are still young, but you can be so mature and prudent. It is really rare!" Zhao Bohu looked at Ji Duoyou with admiration. He knew in his heart that Ji Zheng represented the thoughts of the princes of the Central Plains. They wanted to preserve their strength and did not want to compete with them.

The Chu State in the south was fighting for money, so they held a banquet to test their own cards. It was just for their own sake. On the contrary, Ji Duoyou really wanted to curb the expansion of the Chu State and help the royal family.

Zhao Bohu's words put Ji Zheng's mind at ease. He toasted several glasses of wine and made Ji Hu stagger until he was too drunk. His entourage helped him back to his room to sleep.

After drinking too much, he naturally talked too much. Ji Zheng began to hand over his trump card: "Master Zhao, to tell you the truth, Qi and Ji are not willing to come forward when the three divisions are transferred this time. Song is happy to do so, but they

After all, it is after the Yin people. In the end, it is the turn of Wei Lu and Luoyi's divisions --- tell me, what is this?"

He didn't notice that Zhao Bohu's face was getting more and more ugly, and he said in a low voice:

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"General, you drank too much. Tomorrow you will be arranging your chariots and armor, and we will set off the day after tomorrow!" After saying that, he walked away.

Zhao Bohu walked out of the hall, took a deep breath of the cool air in the night wind, and felt that the turbid air in his chest was relieved. He did not expect that nowadays, in the Central Plains countries, everyone only wants to protect themselves. They are still worth it.

Rely on?

In the early morning, the city gate of Haojing had just opened, and a long procession of military chariots came from the east and slowly entered the city gate. As soon as they entered the city gate, a bicycle was separated from the convoy and drove towards the Zhaoguo Duke's Mansion.

go------

Outside the East Palace, in the dim morning light, Yi Ji looked at the high palace wall in a daze. She wished she could see the young figure of her daughter Bo Ji through the thick palace wall. She has never left her mother since she was born.

In my mother's arms, how are you doing now? Will you cry all the time? Are you willing to have a good meal------

"Your Majesty, it's not a big deal for you to stand here before dawn without eating, drinking or washing! It's better to go back to the palace." The maid next to her advised her distressedly.

"Hu Ji, you don't understand." Yi Ji's face was full of tears: "I hate that I am useless. I can only be controlled by others all my life. I can't even keep my daughter. It's just that I was born in the wrong child. Her mother is a

Mrs. Guozheng, the noble daughter of Jing Ji, even if the Jing family has been defeated, she is still the queen. My mother is a female captive of the Yi people. She was born a slave and cannot even be considered a human being. My mother's family, myself, and my children

They are all her chess pieces. Use them when they are available and discard them when necessary. I really hate it------"

"There is nothing we can do about it!" the palace maid named Fox Ji advised: "My dear, you have to be more open-minded, or you can give birth to a son, and hopefully he will be able to establish a firm foothold in this palace."

"Have a son? Humph!" Yi Ji's eyes were sharp: "Have a son and then let her take it away from you? I won't!" ------

The master and his servants were covered in dew, and they were all focused on the East Palace not far away. They did not notice that a ghostly figure was hiding behind them, and heard the conversation between the two clearly----

--

In the inner courtyard of the palace wall, which Yi Ji could not see through, Fan Ji was holding a silk book in her hand and looking attentively. Gradually, a smile of joy appeared on her face, and she put down the silk book with relief: "Nanny, this is great.

, Hu'er followed Mr. Zhao and arrived safely at Hangu Pass."

"Mother, I don't understand. Why didn't Mr. Zhao let the prince come back with the convoy? Wouldn't this cover up the matter without anyone noticing?" Nianyang Si asked puzzledly.

"You don't understand. The king has just ascended the throne. Inside and outside the palace, there are still many people in the lords and clans of Wang Ji who have their hearts drawn to the late King Xiao and Prince Xi. And how many people among the imperial guards have different aspirations?

?How can we let Hu'er go into danger alone? If we call the young master to escort him back in person, it will definitely delay the southern expedition, so we can only take him with us."

"But, in this case, I don't know when the prince will return. We can't hide it from the king anymore, this------ we can't hide it either!" Naoyang Si thought of the "deceiving the king"

wearing a big hat, quite a bit suspicious.

Fan Ji smiled faintly: "Of course I know I can't hide it. Duke Zhao has come to the palace in person to pay homage. I ordered him to go down and be ready to pick him up. I'm afraid the king will move to the East Palace soon!"

(End of chapter)
Chapter completed!