In fact, Sun Tu's duty, in addition to training the Hu Ben Army, was to find and capture the Liao spies hiding in Bianjing City. However, the investigation of the two cases of Zhou Tong's death and Zhou Xiong's murder had nothing to do with him, so everything could only be done. It's done in secret.
But in fact, what Sun Tu really cares about now is to find out the truth about the murder of his master. As for the Liao spies, he has arrangements, but he is not too worried and only sent a few former Shandong Army scout battalions. The brothers stared at Gongnuyuan to see if they could find any clues.
Because based on his previous judgment, those crossbows should have flowed out of the Crossbow Courtyard. After all, there are only two places in Tokyo that can get weapons such as bows and crossbows, either the Forbidden Army or the Crossbow Academy. The crossbows of the Forbidden Army were all engraved with serial numbers, but those found had no relevant marks, so they could only have come from the Crossbow Academy.
It's just that before Sun Tu had time to investigate the situation in Gongnu Courtyard, his right to investigate the case had been deprived. Of course, even if he had the right to continue investigating the case, he would not be able to randomly arrest and search people in Gongnuyuan like he did with other officials, because the status there was too special and ordinary officials could not enter at all.
To use a similar metaphor, the Gongnu Institute will be equivalent to the scientific research department that specializes in weapons of mass destruction in a thousand years. There are too many weapons and related documents related to the security of the entire country, and the details of any crossbow. Any leakage would be a great threat to the Song Dynasty officials and troops. Therefore, only the officials in the Gongnu Courtyard, or those with the emperor's special decree, can enter. Others, even Cai Jing and Gao Qiu, have difficulty entering.
Therefore, even if Sun Tu had doubts about the place, he could only send people to keep an eye on it to find anyone strange among them. And this arrangement finally came to fruition today. After a few days, people really discovered some strange behaviors of the crossbow master named Cheng Fang - for example, after leaving the Yamen every day, he was not in a hurry to go home, but instead I will go to a hotel two streets away from Gongnuyuan and sit there for a while.
Another example is that although he would order wine and food there, almost all the food and wine were left untouched when he left. It was obvious that he was not really going to drink. Another point that is even more suspicious is that every time he enters the hotel, a guest will also enter and sit at a table not far from him. Although the two were not in the same place, they could obviously communicate quietly.
All this is enough to prove that there is something wrong with Cheng Zhan, which is probably related to the crossbows that fell into the hands of Liao spies. After confirming this, these veteran scouts quickly returned to the Imperial City Division and reported the doubts to Sun Tu.
After Sun Tu figured out the situation, his expression became solemn again: "It seems that those Liao spies are just as I thought. They are not willing to leave empty-handed, and are still trying to get the crossbow again. They Have you followed him to his residence?" He believed that with the agility of these men, it would be impossible not to follow him.
But the result made him a little disappointed: "Back to General, although we followed, those guys were too cautious and cunning, and they used tricks to get rid of them every time." After saying that, the soldier who came to report was still a little ashamed. .
Sun Tu didn't mean to blame him, and said with relief: "I can't blame you. After all, since the other party can be sent to Tokyo to do such things, he must be
Is a good player. And when it comes to your familiarity with the city of Tokyo, you cannot compare with them who have been rooted here for many years. "
"Then how does the general plan to deal with them? Take them directly?" Di Yingyang asked with concern.
"No, taking someone without any evidence will only scare the snake and spoil the whole plan. Besides, we are 80% sure that it was Cheng Fang who stole the crossbow. What if it wasn't him?" Sun Tu thought for a moment and then said He decided: "Simply be more patient until they actually hand over the bows and crossbows, and then it won't be too late to take action. By then, both the stolen goods and the stolen goods will be obtained, and we won't be afraid that they will disown them."
Speaking of this, Sun Tu glanced at the sun that was gradually setting towards the west outside, and said, "Look at the time, it's almost time for the government offices to disperse at Gongnuyuan, right? Come on, I'll go see this Cheng Fang too, look. How did he get in touch with people?" Now that the clues to Zhou Xiong's case were almost complete, he thought of solving the matter here first to lighten his mood.
Di Yingyang was also very interested in this and immediately asked to follow him. After Sun Tu nodded, he didn't waste any time. Under the leadership of the scout, he quickly went straight to the Gongnu Courtyard, and about half an hour later, he appeared in a two-story restaurant facing the street, where he was. From the window, you can see most of the relatively lively long street below.
"General, this is the road he must pass every day, and every time he will choose one of the hotels to go in and sit there for half an hour." The scout explained in a low voice while looking at the end of the long street. When Sun Tu nodded, the man said excitedly: "Here he comes."
Sun Tu looked down in the direction of his finger and saw a middle-aged man with an extremely ordinary figure and appearance walking slowly. After getting closer, Sun Tu could even see that there seemed to be some uneasiness on his face. His emotions and the hands shrunk in his sleeves were also a little stiff. This made Sun Tu's eyebrows suddenly raised. It couldn't be such a coincidence. Could it be that he was really hiding something
Then, Sun Tu turned his eyes around him, and soon found that several people were watching his every move, but these people were all his own scouts, and there was no trace of the Liao spies as expected. Could it be that people have already entered the hotel and are waiting
Sun Tu thought and became more alert, paying attention to the direction of the other party's movement. Then an unexpected scene occurred. Uncharacteristically, the other party did not enter any of the hotels in this row, but kept walking along the street.
"This... General, in the past he would go into one of the hotels to stay for a while. Why has it changed today..." The subordinate was also a little confused and muttered uneasily.
"We'll talk about other things later. Follow him first. Since things are out of the ordinary, there must be a reason." Sun Tu seemed quite calm and stood up quickly, leaving one person to pay the bill. He led the people downstairs quickly, and then walked away from a distance. Emblazoned behind Cheng Fang.
Fortunately, there were many pedestrians on the street at this time, and the dozen or so people in their group did not seem too obtrusive. Moreover, Cheng Fang was not a very alert person, and he was thoughtful, so he was followed all the way by them. He didn't realize it either, he just went on his own way.
Just as he turned left and right, it soon became difficult to follow. Because he is bent
Entering a rather remote alley, if there were so many people chasing after him, even a fool would be able to spot the problem. The scout frowned even more: "This is not the road to his house. Why did he suddenly come to such a remote place?"
"It's pointless to think too much. It's better to follow and take a look to know the truth." Sun Tu said, waving his hands: "You guys stay here and let a group of people go around to the other side to watch. Brother Ninth and I will follow. See clearly."
"General, this is a little inappropriate. It's better for the younger ones to go in." Someone hurriedly objected, but Sun Tu waved his hand to deny it: "Why, can you be stronger than me in terms of skill? Besides, Brother Jiu and I are The way you dress is the least noticeable."
After he said it, everyone understood. Indeed, Sun Tu and Di Yingyang were both dressed in brocade robes, and they looked noble. No one would suspect that they would stalk people. On the other hand, these scouts are all wearing short clothes and have a lean appearance. Once they lose the cover of the common people who are traveling with them, it will be too easy for their flaws to be exposed.
The situation was urgent, so Sun Tu didn't give them any more time to hesitate, and immediately pulled the somewhat worried Di Yingyang inside. A bitter smile suddenly appeared on the latter's face: "Sanlang, please don't harm me. To tell you the truth, although I have been in the army for many years, my skills are very loose."
"Brother Ninth, don't worry. I'm not asking you to take anyone. I'm just following him to see what this guy is up to. And with me here, I will be able to protect you." As they spoke, the two of them entered the alley. Fortunately, they followed Cheng Fang fast enough and followed Cheng Fang after he turned a corner and entered a bamboo forest.
It was quiet here at this time, and no one could be seen. Only the three of them were walking deeper into the forest. During this period, the crossbow master seemed to turn around and look around warily, but how could he possibly find Sun Tu? After a few glances, it was just a waste of time.
He didn't stop until he came to a large bamboo tree as thick as a human waist. Then he bent down and worked for a while, as if he was burying something. After a while, he finished the work, and then he hurriedly turned back and walked back quickly as if he was relieved.
Sun Tu and Sun Tu had already fled to the darkness on the other side, so he naturally didn't notice anything. After he walked away, Sun Tu was no longer busy following him, but walked quickly towards the big bamboo. If we were 80% sure before, now we are 99% sure that this person is the culprit of the crossbow leak, and he must have buried something important here. And judging by the way he has been traveling with ease, it is obvious that he has not done this just once or twice!
Although the sky was completely dark, it did not affect Sun Tu's vision. As he got closer, he could already spot a few stones deliberately arranged in patterns on the ground. He immediately remembered it, took it away, and pulled it with his bare hands. Soon, he dug a shallow hole in the mud and revealed a box hidden inside.
Sun Tu hurriedly took it out, and when he opened it and looked at it, there was another scroll inside. Pulling it open again, I finally saw what was painted on it. At this moment, even he didn't notice his expression change, and Di Yingyang, who was approaching from the side, was even more shocked and screamed: "Bow and crossbow drawings..."