Xingcheng, known as Xingcheng in ancient times, is located in the northwest of Tianshou, only half a day away from the capital.
The previous emperor was violent and bloodthirsty, and abused torture to the point that the heavenly prison could not hold death row prisoners, so the faint-hearted emperor chose Xingcheng nearby and built twelve prisons here, named after the month of December, to detain the whole country. to commit, repeat offenses. Every autumn, death row prisoners from all over the country gather here, numbering more than a thousand, almost catching up with half of the local residents.
There are many criminals, and many people die, and the execution platform outside the city will kill blood in rivers at every turn. Over time, when people mention Xingcheng, the first thing that comes to mind is the twelve death prisons. They often mistake the word "Xing" as the word for "penalty", and the name "xingcheng" has spread all over the world. "Xingcheng" is the correct name.
Since the founding of the country, this dynasty has advocated the law of leniency in punishment and province, and the city of punishment has gradually declined. It is only used to confine some prisoners who cannot be killed. But after all, many people died in this place, which affected the feng shui. As soon as you entered the city, there would be overcast winds blowing obliquely and crows circling. Even in the dog days and the scorching sun, it was difficult to completely dispel the coolness.
Wen Heng and Nie Ying hid themselves on the roof of the store facing the street, watching the convoy gradually enter the "First Moon Prison", and the two doors slammed shut in front of them.
Following this all the way, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief at this moment. Nie Ying said angrily: "I can't go wrong this time, I'm not a member of the government, and I won't be able to enter the Xingcheng prison!"
Wen Heng turned around, sat on the eaves and meditated, wondering to himself, "The government has arrested so many people, what are they going to do?"
"What else can I do?" Nie Ying didn't hesitate. "Of course, they were used as hostages to blackmail the major sects, and the Central Plains martial arts bowed their heads to them."
"The rivers and lakes and the imperial court have never been related to each other. What are the benefits of the major sects, and are they worth such a big fight?" Wen Heng said, "And it's not just one family. Their offense is half of the Central Plains martial arts. The imperial court can really bear this. Is it a big price?"
Nie Ying couldn't answer the latter question, but he had a lot to say about the former question: "Brother, have you ever calculated how much money it takes to support a sect?"
Seeing Wen Heng's eyes dazed, Nie Ying sat down beside him cross-legged and said eloquently: "Sectarians like Chu's Sword Sect and Zhao Yao Shanzhuang have no more than a few hundred people from the head to the lowest disciples, less than one. The number of households in the village. But look at these sects, which one does not occupy a hundred miles of mountains and rivers as its own gateway, and how much can these places produce annually? Not to mention the farms at the foot of the mountain and the shops in the city.”
"It is said that the rivers and lakes and the imperial court have nothing to do with each other, how can they really draw a line, and everyone will stand on one side? Let's not talk about it, whenever there is a war in Lianzhou, Yanmen must send people to support it. For the sake of being a martial arts master, I don’t dare to have a bad relationship with Huan Yanmen. But the nobles in the capital don’t care about this, they wish that all the sects were dead, so that these fields, mountains and forests could be pulled into their own money bags.”
Wen Heng: "Brother said so, the imperial court has moved in the past few years?"
"It's not just 'moving', it's not breaking at all." Nie Ying said, "I remember that Yanmen used to have a pasture at the foot of Pengyan Mountain. They raised fat and strong horses. All the horses were forcibly taken away. Recently, the land tax has been increased in a different way, so we are about to put a knife around our necks and force us to pay for money. I heard that all major sects have been suppressed in this way in recent years. However, it's just that everyone has a deep foundation, and the right should spend money to eliminate disasters, it's really not worth fighting with the court for a little profit."
Wen Heng frowned slightly, as if he was reminded of something, his face was indescribably cold and gloomy, and after a while he said in a low voice: "Big brother sees things clearly, right in the middle of the gate, little brother is ashamed of himself."
Nie Ying suddenly made him stunned, his ears were red, and he waved his hands again and again: "Good brother, brother understands your good intentions, you don't have to bother to brag for me. I don't understand this, but I just heard people say it by chance. , use it to speculate and sell it now.”
Wen Heng was still wondering. As far as he observed the disciples of the Chunjun School, these people immersed in martial arts usually don't pay much attention to the outside world. Not to mention young disciples, even some elders may not be very clear about how much private property the sect has and how it operates. At first glance, Nie Ying seemed to be a big sect disciple who was devoted to his righteousness and wealth, and was not careful about small details. The temperament and way of doing things that he showed in his speech these days, it is hard to make people believe that he has such a meticulous and thorough mind.
"Which master's insight is it?"
Nie Ying snorted, and said unhappily: "The master of shit is the sanctimonious boy in the Dragon Realm... He has always had more twists and turns in his stomach than others."
"… "
Wen Heng: "Okay, it's reasonable."
The towering wall blocked their vision, how difficult it was to spy on the situation in the Beginning Moon Prison. Nie Ying looked at the sparsely-traveled street under the roof. Because he was approaching the enemy's lair, his mind was surging again after finally calming down. At one moment, he felt that a great opportunity was in front of him, and at the same time, he was worried that with his own martial arts, it would be impossible to resist the guards of the prison. After thinking about it, the more hesitant he became, a manic-depressive aura filled his mind, making him confused, so he could not wait to immediately draw a knife to open the gate of the prison and rush in to kill it.
He was restless when his vest was suddenly tapped lightly, and a gentle and pure inner force penetrated into the five inner parts along the key points, and strongly suppressed his rampant inner breath, as if Huang Zhong Dalu was ringing in his ear, He suddenly woke up from the coma, choked slightly, and a hint of red blood overflowed from his lips.
"Concentrate and meditate." Wen Heng pressed one hand against the key point on his back, suppressing his stray anger, and said indifferently, "Brother Nie, you are their hope of being rescued, don't mess around."
His voice was like water breaking ice, and it was so quiet. Nie Ying was woken up by this alarm bell, and realized that she had almost gone into trouble just now. She was shocked and ashamed, and hurriedly said: "Good brother, thank you for saving me again."
"It's just a trivial matter, why should I see it outside?" Wen Heng retracted his palms and asked, "Brother, do you think Young Master Longjing is among the prisoners?"
Without hesitation, Nie Ying said decisively, "I waited at the foot of Siyou Mountain for two days, and I didn't see a half-person figure in Zhaoyao Villa. He must have been captured by a traitor."
Wen Heng said: "The rescue needs to be discussed in the long run. I will tell the big brother after I figure out the method. The first thing right now is to find a way to sneak into the prison and figure out what is going on inside."
Seeing that he described him as calm and organized, Nie Ying was also infected by his calmness, so he dived to think for a moment, and suddenly clapped his palms lightly, and said happily, "I have it!"
"There are hundreds of people in the prison, and there are guards at the head of the cell. So many people can't eat or drink. They must buy vegetables, vegetables, rice noodles, and the usual ration is definitely not enough. We have to find some new sellers. This is not ours. any chance?"
This method is thoughtful and reasonable, and it coincides with what Wen Heng thought. The two of them divided their troops, one guarded the front door and the other went around the back, staring at the people who came in and out of Shiyue Prison. At noon, I saw an old couple pulling an empty scooter out of the back door of the prison. Wen Heng followed silently, and when he reached the intersection, he called Nie Ying again, and the two sneakily followed from the west of the city to a dilapidated alley in the south of the city, only to show up after the old couple entered the courtyard and locked them. See.
Xingcheng was already very yin and qi, and the two of them appeared in other people's yard for no reason.
Fortunately, the two dressed up honestly and simply, they didn't look like bad people, and they were generous in their actions. Anyway, they stabilized the old couple, and they asked about the daily delivery of food. Wen and Nie, who pretended to be the distant grandnephew, went to the prison to deliver food together.
Wen Heng had the entanglement left by Xue Qinglan, plus the money that Nie Ying carried, and took out a small part, which was a lot of gold and silver that the old couple had never seen in their entire lives. Nie Ying was afraid that they would be uneasy, and then reassured: "Relax, Er Lao, we are not evil people. This move is really helpless. No matter whether it happens or not, we will try our best to keep you safe."
Hearing this, Wen Heng only smiled slightly and did not interrupt.
After negotiating the matter, Nie Ying stayed in the small courtyard, called resting feet, but in fact it was monitoring, for fear that the old couple would sneak out to inform. But he is a sincere and generous person, and he is also a paper tiger when he pretends to be vicious. That's right, I went to help my husband loosen the soil and grow vegetables, chop wood and fetch water, and he was very busy in the yard.
Wen Heng was able to get out of the house, so he walked around the vicinity of Shiyue Prison first, but nothing happened. He went to the pharmacy on the street to prepare a few herbs, bought a dagger for self-defense, and dawdled until the evening before returning to the old couple. at home.
Nie Ying helped others with their work all afternoon, and was quite applauded. The old couple looked at him with a kind of kindness in their eyes. Wen Heng handed over a side of sauced pork and a roasted chicken bought on the street to the old woman for cooking. The four of them had a full meal that night. When the bowls were clean, he took out a small porcelain bottle from his sleeve. , put it in Nie Ying's hands, and said to the two opposite: "The planning for tomorrow is very important to me, and I cannot afford to lose it. My eldest brother is a kind person, so the villain has to be done by me."
The old couple didn't understand what he meant and looked at each other, waiting for his next sentence.
Wen Heng lit up the bottom of the bowl and said lightly: "I gave you two 'Duanhunfeiposan' in your meals. If you don't take the antidote within five days, the poison/drug will flare up, and you will die immediately."
"… "
Hearing the bench topple over with a "thump", Nie Ying stood up in shock and said in shock, "What are you doing?!"
Wen Heng sat still, didn't look at him, and said to the two stunned old men: "You two keep your eyes open and see clearly, I'll put the antidote with him, as long as he lives, you can survive. If the two of us are trapped in it, you don't even want to live."
His words were very ominous, Nie Ying's heart skipped a beat, grabbed Wen Heng, and asked sharply, "What do you mean?"
The old couple were just ordinary people living in Xingcheng. How often did they hear about "broken souls fly away", they were so frightened that they hurriedly knelt down and cried and begged for mercy. Wen Heng, however, was really heart-broken, and he was unmoved by the begging and begging of the two old men, and said coldly and ruthlessly: "You don't have to ask me, we have no injustice or enmity, and I don't want you to die, it's just to do so. Just in case, I'm afraid of being stabbed in the back."
The old couple dared not even say that, but Wen Heng couldn't see dissatisfaction on his face, and said lightly, "That's the best." After that, he got up and turned to Nie Ying, and said, "Brother, come with me, what should I do tomorrow? I have a plan in general, you can help me see the details."