Early the next morning, as soon as Chu Yuan woke up, Father Sixi brought a steaming breakfast, saying that the King of Southwest bought it himself on the street, and it was all light in taste.
"Someone is holding a funeral outside?" Chu Yuan frowned slightly.
"Back to the emperor, it is the people in this city who put together the money to ask the master to perform a ritual for the deceased old people." Sixi said, "Although the shantang has been sealed, the deceased will not be able to go to the ground for a while, but it is safe to do so in the outer street. Reading the Duanjing is also a big guy's heart."
Duan Baiyue walked in with a bag of snacks.
Si Xi Gong Gong Shi Yu withdrew.
"Is your nose okay?" Duan Baiyue asked.
Chu Yuan nodded, pulled out the chair and sat at the table.
"I didn't buy it just now, try it while it's still hot." Duan Baiyue opened the paper bag, "Fried dumplings with special dried fish."
Chu Yuan frowned: "Finky."
"How do you know it's fishy if you haven't eaten it yet." Duan Baiyue poured some vinegar into the small plate in front of him, and put a dumpling in it, "Try it."
Chu Yuan took a bite, the juice was full and delicious.
"How is it?" Duan Baiyue asked.
Chu Yuan put down his chopsticks and looked out the window: "It's still fishy."
Duan Baiyue shook his head with a smile, and handed him a bowl of vegetable porridge.
"Can those corpses in the Shantang be found?" Chu Yuan took another bite of the fried dumplings.
"This is still eating, do you really want to talk about corpses?" Duan Baiyue laughed.
Chu Yuan said: "Yes."
"Those corpses should have been planted by humans after they died. The worms devoured the bones and deformed them. Coupled with the burning of fire, even experienced people might not be able to tell that the deceased was actually a young man." Duan Bai Yuedao, "As for Sun Man's corpse, it was forcibly processed with Gu worms when he was about to die, so it is different from the rest of the dead. "
Chu Yuan really put down his chopsticks and stopped eating.
Duan Baiyue was helpless: "I should let you finish your meal first."
"Can you tell where those corpses came from?" Chu Yuan asked again.
"The damage is too serious." Duan Baiyue said: "My people have also gone to check, there is no sign of being turned over in the mass graves in the city, and I have not heard of where people were lost or their graves were dug up. "
"That's the corpse that was transported from somewhere else, and the old man in the shantang was exchanged for the unknowing." Chu Yuan said, "There are only 25 people in the shantang on weekdays, and the murderer only prepared 20 people. Five corpses. Unexpectedly, one more person was discovered during the operation that night. In order to avoid mistakes, he went to the street to arrest him. He happened to meet Sun Man who went to an affair and killed him. "
Duan Baiyue nodded: "There are often large quantities of goods entering and leaving here, and it is not difficult to transport corpses into the city, but the twenty-six living people are no more than others, and it would take a lot of time to think about getting out of the city. And after the fire, the gates of the city were heavily guarded. Not even a single mosquito can fly out, so according to this inference, ninety-nine percent of the elderly people in the shantang should still be hiding in the city."
"What's the purpose?" Chu Yuan frowned slightly.
"The people living in Shantang are all old carpenters." Duan Baiyue knocked on the table and reminded, "The old man Mu Chi is also an old carpenter."
Chu Yuan asked, "Tiansha teach?"
Duan Baiyue nodded: "kidnapping so many old craftsmen, I'm afraid that Lan Ji is going to break some old institutions."
"Why do you act at this time?" Chu Yuan said, "Knowing that I am in Dayan City, even if she tied someone up, it would be difficult for her to take them out."
"In order to frighten Xu Zhiqiu." Duan Baiyue said, "If it weren't for you, he would be the first person in the city, and the Demon Cult might not be able to threaten him. But now even if there is only a trace of strangeness, he will be frightened by it, Lan If Ji Ruo wants to use it to win him over, this is the best time."
"It's a pity that Xu Aiqing has been loyal all his life." Chu Yuan shook his head, "My son is so unsatisfactory."
"It's too early to tell the truth." Duan Baiyue said, "As for those corpses in the shantang, it's safe to go to the ground tomorrow. It can also let Lan Ji relax his vigilance and feel that we haven't found anything."
Chu Yuan nodded: "Okay."
"The matter of the corpse is over, do you still want to go to Xu's study tonight?" Duan Baiyue asked again.
Chu Yuan said: "Go."
Duan Baiyue smiled and said, "In the afternoon, I will sleep for a while before I have the energy to stay up late to investigate the case."
Looking at the faint blue and black under his eyes, Chu Yuan hesitated, and finally just lowered his head and took a mouthful of porridge.
He came to Dayan City without sleep, and immediately encountered the fire in the Shantang. Thinking about it, I only slept well last night for a few hours, but I went out to buy breakfast early in the morning, and I bought it twice. Thinking of this, although Chu Yuan was still losing his appetite because of the corpse, he finally finished eating a plate of fried dumplings and a bowl of porridge before going to the study to deal with political affairs.
After he left, Duan Baiyue just wanted to go back to the inn to have a look, but Father Sixi entered the door again and said that the emperor ordered him to come down. If the King of Southwest has nothing to do, he should rest in this inn in the afternoon, and don't run around again.
Duan Baiyue laughed dumbly: "Don't you want to run around again?"
Father Si Xi put his hands up and smiled, "The emperor's decree is indeed the case."
Duan Baiyue readily agreed, or simply said... I couldn't ask for it.
I was really tired a few days ago, so Duan Baiyue fell asleep not long after his head touched the pillow. It was extremely quiet outside, not to mention people, not even a mouse could get in. A team of imperial guards surrounded the small courtyard, wondering in their hearts, why did the emperor make a decree to guard this empty courtyard when he knew that he was in the study
The twilight was dark, and Chu Yuan had just returned to his residence from the study when Eunuch Sixi said that the King of Southwest China had been sleeping and did not even eat.
Duan Baiyue was lying on the bed, listening to the movement outside leisurely, and the corners of her lips raised an arc. He is a martial artist, and naturally he woke up when the door of the courtyard creaked just now, but he didn't make a sound, just waiting for the man to come in and call.
After a while, someone did push the door open.
Duan Baiyue turned her head and saw Father Sixi walked in.
…
Duan Baiyue calmly retracted her gaze and continued to stare at the top of the bed.
"The emperor is still waiting for the prince to have a meal together." Father Sixi stood by the bed with a deep smile in his eyes. If you don't call it this time, maybe it will come next time. After all, no one can tell the emperor's temperament, but don't be discouraged.
Duan Baiyue took a deep breath, got up and went to the next door to wash up.
The food on the table was still bland, and even the jar of salt and pepper was taken away.
Duan Baiyue looked at the big bowl of vegetarian fried rice in front of her, smiling calmly.
Chu Yuan eats by himself.
"There are mountain mushrooms in it, and the soup is freshly made, so you can keep your body healthy." Father Sixi was waiting at the table.
"Very good." Duan Baiyue picked up the chopsticks and swallowed fiercely.
It's a little underwhelming as expected, but it's really good.
It was only because of the original sentence "The emperor specially instructed to cook it lightly, I am afraid that he is still worried about the internal injury of the prince."
Not to mention the soup and rice without oil and salt, even if it is a bitter traditional Chinese medicine for scorpion poisonous insects, I am afraid that I can eat it without changing my face.
Everything in the Xu residence's study was the same as before. Obviously, Xu Zhiqiu did not find that anyone had broken into it. This time, Duan Baiyue used a translucent gauze bag to pack the night pearl, which was just enough to light up even if there was no moonlight.
Chu Yuan lowered his head and quickly copied the ledger, while Duan Baiyue stayed aside, his eyes never leaving his profile for a moment. It is said that the Queen of Great Chu had a peerless appearance back then, and now it seems to be well-founded - otherwise, how could she have given birth to such a handsome and handsome prince.
"Okay." Chu Yuan dried the ink and restored everything to its original state, "Let's go."
In all fairness, Duan Baiyue was a little reluctant to leave like this.
Chu Yuan had already left the door.
Duan Baiyue sighed in her heart and followed behind.
"It's dry, be careful with candles!" On the street, a watchman was walking past.
The surroundings were empty, and Duan Baiyue grabbed the wrist of the person around him and led him into a small courtyard.
"Master..." The obscene words continued in my ears, and two strings of bright red lanterns hung high on the eaves, which was a brothel.
Duan Baiyue: "..."
Chu Yuan was stunned for a moment, then he waved his hand away angrily, and returned to the inn alone, locking the bedroom door without turning his head.
Father Sixi touched his nose and asked in a low voice, "Why is the emperor angry?"
Duan Baiyue also lowered her voice and replied, "Because we have found Xu Zhiqiu's case."
Father Sixi suddenly realized: "So it is."
Looking at the closed door, Duan Baiyue sent Sixi back to rest and sat on the steps to watch the moon.
The sky lit up a little, Chu Yuan put the sorted accounts aside and let out a long sigh.
Finally, the night was not wasted.
Outside the door, Duan Baiyue was breaking worms and feeding the spiders. He saw that there was an adult man with a big fist, and the black and white was a little scary.
Chu Yuan saw this scene as soon as he pushed open the door, so his face froze.
Duan Baiyue: "..."
Chu Yuan asked, "What is this?"
"I don't know." Duan Baiyue stood up, swept the spider to the corner of the wall, and said in a casual tone, "Just picked it up from the yard."
The white-fronted spider was dazed, and obviously couldn't understand why it was thrown into the grass by its owner just after eating half of the meal.
"What do you want to eat?" Duan Baiyue asked, "I'll buy it back."
"There are rules to follow between those graphs in the accounts." Chu Yuan said, "As long as you find the right way, it's actually not difficult to understand."
"So?" Duan Baiyue probed.
"Although I only copied a few pages, the amount in the accounts on these pages alone is enough to prove that Xu Zhiqiu is not only greedy, but also a big greedy." Chu Yuan said.
"It's a bit unreasonable." Duan Baiyue shook his head. "There is also a way to be greedy. What is he doing in private? He has the ability to collect money so quietly, even the people don't notice anything strange."
Chu Yuan frowned and sat on the steps, obviously not thinking clearly.
"Even if you can't find the answer for a while, you have to eat." Duan Baiyue said, "Otherwise, it would not be an emperor, but a fairy."
"Think of a way to force Xu Zhiqiu to reveal himself." Chu Yuan said.
Duan Baiyue nodded: "Okay."
Chu Yuan laughed: "So easy to say yes?"
"I will find a way to do what I promised." Duan Baiyue sat next to him, "But there are conditions."
Chu Yuan's expression froze, and he turned to look at him.
Duan Baiyue raised her eyebrows: "Southwest Mansion never suffers."
"What do you want?" Chu Yuan's expression was alienated, and his tone became slightly cold, "The entire southwest is now owned by King Duan."
Duan Baiyue smiled, got up and strode out of the courtyard.
Father-in-law Sixi passed him by, and was thinking of saying hello with a smile, but Yu Guang saw Chu Yuan's expression, so he hurriedly bowed his head and didn't dare to say another word.
There was silence all around, the white-fronted spider cautiously crawled over, continued to nibble on the worm scum that had fallen on the ground before, and was always on guard to avoid being trampled.
Father Sixi stood on the side, worried in his heart. The emperor and the king of the southwest were still fine before, and it only took one night. What the hell happened.
After about a stick of incense, Chu Yuan stood up and wanted to go back to the room, but Duan Baiyue jumped off the courtyard wall again.
"Is there anything else to do with King Duan?" Chu Yuan staggered his gaze.
"The brined chicken I just bought." Duan Baiyue held his wrist and took the person into the house to close the door, with a smile in his voice, "I will promise to help you after eating with peace of mind."
Chu Yuan: "..."
Father Sixi held his breath, bent over and listened outside.
Duan Baiyue washed his hands, opened the paper bag and tore off a chicken leg, which was tender and golden, dripping juice, looking quite tempting.
Chu Yuan hesitated for a moment before saying, "Is this what you call the condition?"
"Otherwise?" Duan Baiyue handed him the chicken leg: "I ate plain noodles for three days in a row. Those who knew it said it was the emperor, and those who didn't know it thought it was a monk."
Chu Yuan: "..."
Duan Baiyue also took a bite of the meat and sighed: "I've been running around for a day, I guess I'll come back tonight with another bowl of green vegetable noodles, at least mix some oil and water first."
Chu Yuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry, wiped his greasy fingers, and peeled off a marinated egg to eat.
Hearing the two people in the room start talking again, Father Sixi was relieved and continued to stand outside, leisurely looking at the clouds with his hands folded.
After another day, rumors began to spread in the city, saying that the emperor was extremely dissatisfied with Xu Zhifu, and it was estimated that he would issue a decree soon to remove the official position and bring people back to the royal city.
Others said that they were afraid that it was not just as simple as dismissal, and others would ask why, but no one could tell.
Others said that this time it was not only Xu Zhifu, but even Master Xu in Wangcheng would be implicated.
For a while, rumors were flying everywhere, and the people said everything, and naturally it also spread to Xu Zhiqiu's ears.
So he became more and more uneasy, and he was like a cat and mouse all day long, and he couldn't even eat, for fear that he would be summoned by the emperor.
This afternoon, a trolley full of firewood entered the prefect's yamen through the back door. Several people in the entourage helped unload the goods in the kitchen, but there was only a thin man who hurriedly went straight to the backyard.
Duan Baiyue fell off the tree and followed silently behind.
"How dare you come now?" Xu Zhiqiu was writing a letter in the study, when someone suddenly covered his mouth from behind, and he was shocked.
"Sir, don't worry." The man who sent Chai Shanmin to untie his acupuncture points, his voice was clear, and it was actually made by a woman.
"Now in this city, there are garrison troops everywhere!" Xu Zhiqiu stomped his feet again and again.
"My lord also knows that the situation is in crisis." The woman sneered, "Even the three-year-old baby is saying that the emperor is quite dissatisfied with the lord's political achievements, just worrying about it will not make a big difference. Opportunity to keep the Wusha hat."
"The emperor is still in the city, why can't we wait until the future?" Xu Zhiqiu lowered his voice and gritted his teeth.
"If the emperor is not there, I'm afraid that the adults will not be willing to be controlled by others." The woman said, "If the adults know each other, they will obediently hand over the gold mountain in the private library, and the leader will not be too embarrassed."
Duan Baiyue frowned slightly when she heard the words. She was still saying that this person was a huge greedy person early in the morning, but she didn't expect to be able to greedy a mountain of gold. It was too incredible.
Xu Zhiqiu's face turned pale and red, and his face was ashen as he sat on the chair.
"Your Excellency is really giving up your mind." Seeing him like this, the woman tutted her head and shook her head, "As long as Qiufeng Village is still there, the Lord's private treasury will not have to worry about running out of money. Are you afraid that you won't be able to burn without firewood?"
"Shut up!" Xu Zhiqiu became more nervous when he heard the words "Autumn Wind Village".
"Sir, let's think about it again, my teacher is not a patient person." After the woman said that, she went out and left. Duan Nian, who had been staring at Xu's study room, got Duan Baiyue's instructions, and followed her all the way out of the house to see what happened.
Duan Baiyue returned to the inn first.
"Qiufeng Village?" Chu Yuan said, "Let's go out of the city quickly, and you can get there in about half an hour. After all, the place in Dayan City is limited, so some large wooden beams and vehicles are first made in Qiufeng Village, and then transported back. It was assembled in shops in the city, and finally sold to various places in Chu through the Yanshui River.”
"Want to go take a look?" Duan Baiyue said, "According to what the two of them said today, Xu Zhiqiu's tricks should be there."
Chu Yuan nodded and said again, "What if someone finds out?"
"It's easy." Duan Baiyue said easily.
Chu Yuan: "..."
He only learned kung fu since he was a child, but he never learned how to disguise.
Duan Baiyue said: "Everyone in the Southwest House is a master of disguise."
Chu Yuan had no choice but to sit on the chair and let him smear on his face.
The fingertips felt soft and cool, the corners of Duan Baiyue's lips rose, and her thumb gently rubbed his side face.
Chu Yuan wanted to beat people out.
Duan Baiyue got closer and closer, with a very focused expression.
Chu Yuan couldn't help but hid back, but there was nowhere to hide. By the end, almost the whole person was stuck on the wall.
Duan Baiyue raised his chin slightly.
Father Sixi accidentally saw it in the crack of the window, and hurriedly turned his back to show that he really didn't see anything.
The two of them were so close together that even the tips of their noses were pressed together.
Feeling the other person's hot breath, Chu Yuan finally couldn't bear it anymore and pushed the person away.
Duan Baiyue looked puzzled: "What does Emperor Chu mean?"
Chu Yuan wiped his face, gritted his teeth and said, "I won't go, I can leave this matter to Xiang Lie."
"It's all good, if you don't go, wouldn't you be busy for so long." Duan Baiyue took the bronze mirror and put it in front of him, "Are you still satisfied?"
The man in the mirror has mediocre facial features, dull expression, and some spots, and looks like a foreign businessman.
"Let's go and have a look. After all, there is nothing to do in the inn." Duan Baiyue picked up another mask and quickly put it on his face.
Chu Yuan frowned.
Duan Baiyue explained calmly: "When I walked around the rivers and lakes before, I often disguised myself, and naturally I have to be more skilled."
Chu Yuan: "..."
"Let's go." Duan Baiyue said to himself, "Autumn Wind Village, it sounds like a good place."
There are often merchants in this area to come to see the goods, so it is not unusual for anyone to see two foreigners suddenly.
The little doll was playing on the ridge, and Duan Baiyue casually folded a bunch of red flowers by the roadside, took the stamens and pulled them out: "Do you want to eat?"
"Eat?" Chu Yuan frowned.
"Sweet." Duan Baiyue said.
Chu Yuan simply refused. As a prince, if he grabbed everything and stuffed it into his mouth like an ordinary child, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to live now.
"With me here, no one can harm you." Duan Baiyue smiled as if seeing through his mind, "This is called the lantern core, and it's all over the mountains and plains in the southwest."
Chu Yuan just pretended not to hear, and stepped up a few steps to the village not far away.
Since they live by carpentry craftsmanship, the plaques of Qiufeng Village are much more delicate than ordinary villages. In the small courtyard with two roads, men logging and women weaving, and there were a lot of scattered parts. When they saw the two, they all smiled and said hello, thinking that it was a merchant who came to see the goods and receive them.
I walked around the village, but I still didn't see any clues. Every household was sawing wood to make crafts. When I saw someone, I didn't hide it. On the contrary, when I met enthusiastic people, I even greeted them to drink tea. It really didn't seem like they were hiding a secret look.
In a farm at the end of the village, a man was sawing wood dripping with sweat. Duan Baiyue and Chu Yuan walked in together and asked if they could drink a bowl of tea.
"Naturally." The man put down his work and quickly came out of the house with water, "Are you two looking at the goods?"
"Yes." Duan Baiyue nodded, "I wanted to order a batch of carriage wheels. I saw that there seemed to be a lot of scattered parts in the yard, so I came in and asked."
"If you want to buy goods, you still have to order them from the shops in Dayan City." The man said, "We just make some parts here. Every household has different things. The final assembly and sales are still in the city."
"So that's the case." Duan Baiyue was stunned, "Then eldest brother specially made this wheel reel?"
"And the legs and the wooden box." The man wiped his sweat.
"Wooden box?" Duan Baiyue asked, "For jewelry?"
"I don't know. There are craftsmen in the village, and they don't know what to sell outside. The blueprints are all handed over from the big shops in the city.
"It looks a little big, and it doesn't look like something my daughter's family likes." Duan Baiyue picked up a wooden box, "Looking at how skilled the eldest brother is, it took a long time to think about it."
"My ancestors made car wheels. As for this wooden box, I started making it a few years ago, but it sells the best." Probably very few people come here on weekdays, and the men talk more and say with a smile, "Every month At least 200 people will go out."
"It looks very delicate, can I take one with me?" Duan Baiyue asked.
"That can't be done." The man's face was embarrassed, "Wu Yuanwai said that this wooden box cannot be given to outsiders, and it will not be sold for any amount of money."
"That's it." Duan Baiyue apologized, "I'm being reckless."
"Nothing, the guest is too polite." The man waved his hands again and again, "If it's my own, I can take as much as I want, but it's really not allowed. If the guest really wants it, go to Wu's car dealership in Dayan City and ask. That is, after I finish this, I will also send it to the car dealership."
Duan Baiyue nodded: "Thank you."
The two sat for a while, and after drinking tea, they left the village and walked back slowly along the path.
"What's so weird about that wooden box just now?" Chu Yuan asked.
"It can't be said to be weird, but it really doesn't look like something that can be used every day." Duan Baiyue said, "It's cumbersome and not good-looking, and it can't hold many objects. It's normal that it can't be sold."
"Go to the city and see." Chu Yuan said, "Wu's car shop is not far from the post house. I have seen it before, and the business seems to be good."
Duan Baiyue nodded and returned to Dayan City with him.