The corpse was lying on the ground, the blue-and-white porcelain bowl was shattered on the ground, and the flies were flying around. There is a pot of rhododendron next to the Quchi counter. The red flowers are bright and open like a fire. The soil is also red. The blood splashed on the old shopkeeper when he was cut down.
There were seven dead. The person the assassin really wanted to kill was Eunuch Wang, who died in the center of the lobby, staring at the beams and pillars of the roof, and he could see that his throat was cut before he could run. Two people fell under the table, the long attendants of Eunuch Wang, one left and one right, staring at each other like a chicken with big eyes and small eyes. The assassin used a Garan two-handed knife and cut his throat at the same time. The remaining three were buddies, who died one after the other on the threshold. All of them had their backs chopped off. The terrifying knife was so sharp that it almost cut them in half. Assassins should be afraid that they will report to the officials, and they will be killed.
Situ Jin frowned deeply, and while looking at the body, he said: "This assassin's methods are extremely ruthless, all of them are lethal, and they are not messy. The subordinates found that the prince provoked and arrested several Jianghu people last month, and he was beaten in prison. A few died, I am afraid that the people from the rivers and lakes are seeking revenge, and the members bought the Galan assassin to take revenge."
Shen Wenxing spit out all the sour water in his stomach before coming back, and said, "It's also what it deserves. This eunuch Wang adopted a son from a relative last year, and he didn't worry about it. He was the famous Goulan Washer boy. Overlord, the pink heads on the Qinhuai River can be stacked into eighteen Arhats, and they owe a lot of debt. Eunuch Wang has been hollowed out for more than ten years, and there is no way to do it, so he came up with the idea of this group of Jianghu people. Unexpectedly, he will die It's really not worth it."
Shen Jue glanced at him and saw that the embroidery on Shen Wenxing's knee was stained with filth, he covered his nose with a fan in disgust, and said, "Go to the side, stay away from me."
Shen Wenxing knew that his superintendent liked cleanliness and could not see dirty things, so he moved to the side with interest.
There was a loud scolding from the kitchen, and there was another crackling sound like the cracking of the dishes. Shen Jue glanced over, and a few people pulled a unkempt man over and pushed him in front of Shen Jue.
"Master, found a living mouth."
The man looked a little crazy, the corners of his mouth were drooling, and he kept saying "The ghost is here! The ghost is here!" He opened his eyes and saw the python with teeth and claws on Shen Jue's body. Crawling back, hugging a pillar and shouting, "Don't kill me! Don't kill me!"
"He hid on the beam of the kitchen. The assassin was at night when the beam was dark, so he escaped." You Fanzi said, "It's a pity he's crazy."
Shen Jue winked, and immediately went up, took out a carved agate snuff bottle and put it close to the man's nose. Sure enough, when the man smelled it, his senses became clearer, and he stared at Shen Jue blankly.
"Let's ask you, what did you see?" Shen Jue asked.
The man was still dumbfounded.
Shen Wenxing slapped him, "What did the Governor ask you, what did you see? Did you see the appearance of that assassin?"
The side of the man's face that was drawn is facing the courtyard in the middle of the courtyard. The small courtyard in the south of the Yangtze River is not very big. The sapphire blue porcelain pot in the middle is filled with a tuberose, and a few drops of blood are splashed on the plain white petals. A bit weird. When the man saw the tuberose, he shuddered and stammered, "That's where he came from... From there..."
"Where? Where?" Shen Wenxing followed the man's eyes.
The man got up tremblingly, and suddenly pulled out a goose ling knife from Fanzi's waist. Everyone was startled, and they drew their knives out of their sheaths and surrounded the man.
"He's standing there, like this, you see, like this!" The man picked up a wooden stick from the ground, stood with a slight bow, crossed his hands, drew a strange arc, suddenly raised his face, and let his hair down. Showing a hideous smile, "The nameless ghost of Qiye Jialan, send the prince to a blissful life."
At that moment, Shen Jue seemed to see the assassin walking towards him slowly, stepping on the moonlight like silver frost, holding the sparkling long knife in both hands.
In the silence, he opened his mouth, and his voice overlapped with that of the crazy man, low and hoarse.
"Have you seen the knife he used?" Shen Jue waved his hand, indicating that Fanzi should not be nervous.
"I can see it clearly... I can see it clearly. Hengbo, it's a horizontal wave!" The man let go, the knife and stick fell to the ground, and he himself fell to his knees, "Ghost, he's a ghost!"
Shen Jue's calm face finally had a crack, and under the pipa sleeve, where others could not see, his fists slowly clenched.
He seemed to see that under the moonlight, the assassin's face gradually became clearer. It was Xia Houlin's twenty-one-year-old appearance. He had lost his naive and youthful mature appearance, but revealed a dangerous and sinister smile that was unfamiliar to him.
Seven years, they have been separated for seven years.
Shen Jue raised her eyebrows and was silent for a while, but she didn't say a word in the end.
"Hengbo?" Shen Wenxing made a fuss, "Isn't Hengbo something of Garuda, why was he picked up by this nameless ghost?"
"Is there a file of the nameless ghost in the East Factory?" Shen Jue asked Situ Jin.
Situ Jin replied: "Yes. Among the famous assassins in recent years, this person has the thickest file. The decapitated dignitary in Suzhou was also killed by him. This person is vicious and vicious, and he is more ruthless than Garuda. It's more than that, and it seems that there will be a face-lifting technique, Jin Yiwei has been investigating for a long time, but so far there is no clue."
"I'll take a look when I return to Beijing." Shen Jue gave an order, and walked down the steps, Situ Jin and Shen Wenxing followed him mightily. The leader of the East Factory was naturally an overwhelming battle. Outside the inn, there was a circle of people watching the excitement. Without batting an eyelid, Shen Jue stepped on Shen Wenxing's shoulder and got on the carriage, not yet sitting firmly. A letter and a gold tie came in through the crack of the door curtain.
Fanzi said outside: "The imperial concubine and the lady handed over the words, and the governor took a moment to take a look. It was Zhu Xia, who was next to the lady, who said that the governor came to greet him last time. She saw the governor. There is no net on the Lord's fan, thinking that the subordinates are not careful, so they beat the root themselves, hoping that the Lord will not dislike it."
Shen Jue snorted and threw the net out of the sash. The net was fluttering, and under the sun, like a butterfly with folded wings, it landed next to the wheel, the carriage started, and the wheel pressed on the net, leaving deep ruts. print.
After changing into light clothes, Shen Jue turned to the Qinhuai River, and took the boat upstairs.
At dusk, the red glow is reflected in the water, and the waves disappear, like silk cut by scissors, and like the residual fat on a woman's cheek. Before the night fell, the girls had already come out, waving their colorful sleeves on the side of the boat, the sweet and charming fragrance spread out faintly, held by Jiang Bojue, rippling in the heart of Bojue. There was a girl holding a huqin and sang Wu Ge minor tune, her soft voice was tortuous, and it made people feel drunk and could not find the north.
On the Qinhuai River, thousands of doors and thousands of households open towards the water. Some of the river houses have chiseled steps leading directly into the water. The daughters-in-law squatted on the steps to wash their clothes, which seemed to be covered with red clouds. The merchants supported the boats to and fro, like a small leaf drifting with the water, carrying the boat's miscellaneous goods, and intermittently shouting a few times, along with the river water spread far and far.
After all, this is Shen Jue's first time back to Qinhuai River. When he was still studying, Dai Shengyan took him to the Confucius Temple, where he lectured on "Poems" on the chasing moon building. The chasing moon building was high, and when he looked far into the distance, he could see the gurgling river. The river is full of fireworks, and Dai Shengyan never let him approach. He still remembered the crab yellow bun from Chasing Yuelou, taking a mouthful of juice, revealing the yellow filling.
"It's really a treasure, and it is many times more elegant than the Bada Hutongs in Beijing. I heard that most of the prostitutes here are from Yangzhou thin horses. Well, it’s not much less than Master Zhuang Yuan.” Shen Wenxing smiled, turning to look at Situ Jin, who was expressionless, “Master Situ has been guarding hard all the way, or you will rest here tonight, and it would be in vain if you don’t try something new. Come?"
Situ Jin looked down at him, looked away and still looked at Yan Yan Jiangbo, ignoring him.
Wang Batouer saw Shen Jue, raised his eyebrows, and handed over a book with gold lacquer piping, on which the song was written in teeny small script, "Master, what song do you like to listen to? Our girls can sing, you It's just to listen to the eighteen touches."
Shen Jue ignored him, and Shen Wenxing took the book, but he didn't read it, he just said, "We are from the north. The gentlemen have a bad taste. They only listen to Kunqu Opera. I wonder if there are any girls who can sing?"
Wang Batou burst into laughter, and was about to answer, when he suddenly realized that the voice was in a roundabout way, as if it came out of the palace. I looked up and looked at it for a while, my heart skipped a beat, and I hurriedly bent down, "Several lords, please come with the little one."
The night was dark, and the river houses on both sides of the river were hung with lights, and the lights were connected into a splendid string, like two golden piping on the Qinhuai River. The servants supported the bamboo picks and hung the red gauze lamp on the eaves of the building. The shadows were red. Men and women were feeding each other wine under the shadow of the lamp. The aroma of the wine was mixed with a smooth and sweet smile, like an unreal dream.
Wang Batou led them into the box on the second floor by the water, and went alone without taking the towel to clean up. This box is at the front of the building, with windows on three sides, through which you can see the river full of stars. There is a set of tables and chairs made of pineapple wood in the middle, and a few square stools made of gold lacquered snails are placed against the wall. Sit for the servants who sing songs. There is also a fake painting on the wall. Shen Wenxing took out his handkerchief and dusted off the table and chairs, and Shen Juefang sat down.
After sitting down for a while, Shen Jue nodded to Shen Wenxing. Shen Wen walked to the wall and took down the painting. A small square with the width of a palm appeared on the wall. He pulled the square away, and a single star of light from the box next door leaked out. Shen Wenxing knocked on the wall three times in a very rhythmic manner. On the opposite side, he knocked on the wall four times in a row, Shen Wenxing nodded to Shen Jue, and stood back to one side.
"The villain has seen the governor in high years." A middle-aged man's voice came from across the wall, "The villain has won the trust of Jialan and has taken over the dark cave of the Confucius Temple."
Shen Jue took a sip of tea and said, "Very good. It's not worth our family's efforts to cultivate you. As long as you do things for our family well, your wife, children and mother will naturally not be mistreated."
"Thank you, Governor!" Gao Nian kowtowed twice on the ground before he got up again, "I wonder what the Governor called the villain to ask today?"
Shen Jue rubbed the jade-white porcelain cup in his hand and asked, "How much do you know about the nameless ghost?"
Gao Nian pondered for a while, and said: "The villain has just been in Jialan for a year. Jialan has rules, don't ask about everything, and kill people without restraint. The dark pile is usually tight-lipped, and only occasionally reveals a thing or two. The villain can only hear Some rumors, I'm afraid they won't be true."
"tell me the story."
"This person's real name is Xiahou Lin, the son of the predecessor Jialou Luo Xiahou Pei. He has only gained fame in recent years and is considered a rising star, but his reputation in Jialan is not very good. Like his mother, he never had any secret contact with us. , go it alone, the villain listened to others, he dug several dark caves by himself."
"Oh? Do you know where his dark cave is?"
"I don't know." Gao Nian said, "Only Tang Shiqi and Shu Qing know where his dark cave is."
"Who is that?"
"The governor has lived in the capital for a long time, and he is in the deep palace, and he has never heard the rumors. Now there is a popular poem in the Qinlou Chu Pavilion, the teahouse and the wine shop - 'When the sky strikes with an arrow, the spring city flying flute and a hundred ghosts cry. The sorrows are not over, and the grievances of forgetting Sichuan are full of Jiangdu.', it is the weapons of the three of them. Zhaoying is Tang Shiqi's crossbow machine, Tang Shiqi is a child of Tang's family, and he was caught by Liu Guizang when he was traveling three years ago. ,
Xia Houlin rescued him, and he has been working with Xia Houlin since then. Two years ago, Xia Houlin disguised as Tang Shiqi and sneaked into the Tang Sect, burned down the Tang Sect's classics building, and escaped with a trap. Now they both have been ordered by Tang Sect. "
"This matter has been reported to the Governor by the humble post," said Situ Jin, "the humble post once sent someone to the Tangmen to inquire, and the Tangbao master said that the nameless ghost stole from the Tangmen's 72-way organ technique, and he stole the organ's flying wings. One line of heaven escaped. On the day when the nameless ghost escaped, a net was set up in advance on the narrow place between the two cliffs, and the Tang disciples who chased after them were trapped in the net, watching the nameless ghost fly down the Jialing River and escape by boat. "
"Later he sneaked into the major sects to steal hundreds of swordsmanship techniques, and now even the Seven Stars serial swords far away in the Tianshan Mountains have been brutally murdered." Gao Nian said.
He is out for revenge. The reason for stealing the skills of the sword is that it is difficult to beat Liu Guizang because of the poor swordsmanship. The purpose of practicing the Baijia Dao Technique is to find the ultimate trick to restrain Qi's Dao. Shen Jue nodded his knees, the woven gold embroidery thread on his knees scratched his hands roughly, causing a dull pain.
"What is the second weapon?" Shen Jue asked.
"The knife in the flute is a spring, and it is the weapon of Shuqing. He is a fledgling cucumber egg, and it is said that he is Xia Houlin's junior brother. Xia Houlin has led Shuqing to do business in the past year. It is rumored that the child is timid. Cowardice is not something to be an assassin. As for this third one, it is naturally a transverse wave."
"Xiahou Lin is not an assassin either, but he has become a feared assassin." Shen Jue said coldly, "I want you to pay attention to the location of the Jialan Mountain Temple, do you have any features?"
Gao Nian sighed: "The villain has been entrusted by the superintendent, and there is still no clue to this day. The rules of Jialan are strict, and those who violate the rules will no longer be provided for seven and a half months. But, does the overseer know the Garan Dungeon?"
Shen Jue raised his head, "Dungeon?"
"Underground city is not a city, but relative to the city on the bright side. Where there is white, there is black, and where there is light, there is darkness. The court has a post station, Jialan has a travel post, Fangshi has a teahouse, and Jialan is the same. There are even trick halls, ticket houses, and liquor stores. Robbers, thieves, fugitives, prostitutes, and assassins can all settle in these places, beat, eat, and drink. What ordinary people can do, they can do.”
"A dynasty in the dark." Situ Jin whispered.
Shen Jue sneered, "So, Abbot Jialan is the king in the darkness?"
"Not all." Gao Nian said, "The dungeon is not run by Galan. Galan only has one person stationed at each station to receive the passing assassins. The dungeons are owned by the underworld, the robbers provide food for the thieves, and the prostitutes warm the bed for the assassins. People who cannot see the light live there."
"Let's walk under the sun, we thought that this pickled stuff can only be turned around in the gutter, but I didn't expect that a decent city could be built out of the corners and crevices." Shen Wenxing smacked his tongue.
Shen Jue squinted: "Who do you say is the pickled stuff?"
Shen Wenxing saw that Shen Jue's face was not very good, and he didn't know which anti-scale he had offended on Shen Jue, so he quickly knelt down and slapped his mouth, "Son is talking too much, it should be beaten! It should be beaten!"
The moon has risen, white and cloudy, like a bird's white breast, curled up on the roof of the house. A small boat slapped the paddle leisurely, and sitting on top of it was a lute-playing waiter, singing Wudi's melodious tune with a bright voice. The painting boat and the boat sailed side by side through the layers of green shadows of poplar branches, and moored into three series of tall culverts. The voice was accompanied by the gurgling river, sweet and drunk, like wine mixed with honey.
Shen Jue had an unreal feeling. All he could see was singing and dancing, but in the shadow of the beautiful scenery, behind Daqi, there was a huge city hidden. Xia Houlin was walking there, appearing on the street in the dark, chasing after his soul.
"Senior, you have done a good job. Your wife, children, and mother will receive due care. Your son has entered school now, and his poems are well written. Ask him and show it to him."
Shen Wenxing responded, took out a stack of rice paper from his arms, and handed it to Gao Nian from the small square.
Gao Nian wiped his tears while watching, and said, "Fortunately, this baby has a bright future. Unlike his father, he has no ability. Governor, thank you for your cultivation. You take care of me, so don't worry."
Just as Shen Jue was about to nod his head, the sound of the piano on the boat suddenly stopped, and a harsh screeching sound came out.
At the same time, a jet-black short arrow suddenly shot out from the other end of the square, making a whistling sound like an owl bird. Shen Jue quickly evaded, the short arrow brushed Shen Jue's hair, and extinguished the candle on the lamp holder behind him.
In an instant, the room was pitch black.
"Alert!" Situ Jin roared loudly.
The wall was penetrated by three long knives at the same time, and the partition wall between the two boxes was a half-palm thick wooden board. After the assassin slashed, he hit the wooden board with his shoulder and stepped on the flying sawdust into Shen Jue's box. In the dark night, only the plain white moonlight penetrated the window screens, shining a little light. In that miserable white light, the assassin who bowed and rushed forward was like a ghost.
The sound of the pipa on the river suddenly became urgent. Shen Jue didn't move. He held the porcelain cup in his hand and listened quietly. He could imagine the prostitute's light-white fingertips plucking the strings quickly, as if disturbing a pool of river waves. There was a clanging sound as if it had fallen to the ground.
Situ Jin's roar resounded throughout the building, and the drunk client suddenly burst into flames, pushed the woman in his arms away, and pulled out the sharp goose ling knife hidden under his robe. At the same time, they threw the hook rope, hooked the curved lantern on the second floor and volleyed up, the robes were spread out, and people saw the black swaying under their robes.
The windows on both sides were breached by Dongchang Fanzi, and the window lattices and door panels were torn apart. The assassins quickly turned around, and the three-foot-long cold sword collided with the golden lacquer goose ling sword.
The cluttered footsteps, the sound of swords joining together, the sound of flesh and blood tearing, and the sound of a woman falling into the water were intertwined. In the darkness, under the cold white moonlight, everyone was in action, except Shen Jue. He looked at the infinite galaxy under the waves of the river, and suddenly remembered Xia Houlin's eyes. He suddenly felt that his heart was empty and a little sad.
He suddenly understood why Xia Houlin had difficulty accepting him as a thief as his father, and stubbornly asked him to take the imperial examinations again. It's just good luck to make people, no one can escape, can't avoid it, that damn fate.
The sound of the piano is turning again!
The speed of his fingers plucked the strings faster and faster, and Shen Jue seemed to hear thousands of troops crossing the long river.
Suddenly, many black-clothed assassins jumped out from under the water. Everyone wore a white porcelain mask. The pale mask had only two dark eye holes, no nose or mouth, like a ghost without a face. However, just as they boarded the ship, a row of people suddenly appeared! It turned out that they had already been hiding under the side of the ship, just waiting for the assassins to board. Fanzi sent out sharp knives at the same time, blood splashed, and the black-clothed assassin was cut open before he could get on the boat, and one by one fell down the Qinhuai River. The dark red blood was pulled into a strand in the black dense stream, swaying like the red silk of a geisha.
"Put the lamp!" Situ Jin shouted sharply.
The candle was lit again, and the wing room was lit again.
Shen Jue finally saw the situation in the room clearly. The sashes were tattered, and the fans stood still with knives in hand. All three assassins were taken down, and one had a broken arm. Gao Nian was lying on the ground in the next wing, with the assassin's dagger in his chest, and blood gurgled out along the blood trough.
Shen Jue coldly ordered: "Grab that pipa girl, she's the sheath!"
The fans rushed out of the wing like a black tide and jumped into the water. When the woman on the boat saw this, she lost her pipa and jumped into the water to escape. But after all, she was not as fast and violent, and dark red blood flowed quickly on the water.
Gao Nian moaned on the ground, his face was ashen, and his hands were scratching on the ground.
In fact, Gao Nian had accidentally exposed it a long time ago, and Jia Lan offered him a lot of money and asked him to lure Shen Jue out. But how do these homeless outlaws know that there is something more important than life in this world. And those things were pinched in Shen Jue's hands.
Situ Jin held his hand and asked in a low voice, "But what else do I have to explain?"
"I...I did my duty...my wife...my mother..."
"Yes, the Governor will take good care of them." Situ Jin looked at him with determined eyes.
Gao Nian nodded, "Xiahou Lin... Xia Hou Lin also has a maid named Zhaoye... very... strong, and inseparable from Xia Hou... Let the governor... be careful."
Shen Jue was suddenly startled, and couldn't help asking loudly, "What maid?"
However, Gao Nian was already dead. He opened his mouth a few times, his eyes completely lost their brilliance, like a dry well, his head tilted and he died.
Shen Jue grabbed an assassin's collar and asked coldly, "What kind of maid? Explain it to our family, otherwise, our family will want you to die."
It was a man with a shriveled face and deep eyes, his eyes were icy and cold, like a poisonous snake glaring at him. He didn't answer Shen Jue, only whispered: "Director of Dongchang, your name has been written on the Jialan life book, and Jialan remembers you."
A cold smile floated on the corner of Shen Jue's lips, Shen Wenxing got close, seeing Shen Jue smiling coldly, he shuddered unconsciously.
Shen Jue actually didn't like to laugh. He smiled at someone, either because he was on guard, or because that person was about to face a big disaster.
"Don't tell me?" Shen Jue stood up, his face was covered in the shadow of the lamp, half in the light and half in the dark, with a kind of icy Yan Ran, "Isn't Fang Cunzhen still short of people? I gave him flowers, but the sun is still there. I asked our family to be a medicine person for seven and a half months, and I caught a few galan dark piles and sent them over, and I heard that they all died of tossing?"
"No, it's not actually dead, it's just that the seven orifices bleed, and the five senses are lost." Shen Wenxing answered.
"Okay, let's send these together."
"What about the assassins outside?"
"Only these three are the Garan assassins, the others are all hidden piles. Killing me, with three knives, is very worthy of our family." Shen Jue said with a cold smile.
The assassins were all dragged away, and the room fell silent. Shen Jue didn't move, and everyone didn't dare to leave.
Standing alone in the lamp shadow, he didn't know what he was thinking, Shen Wenxing rolled his eyes a few times, winked at Situ Jin, but Situ Jin ignored him.
"Situ," Shen Jue suddenly said, "What would you do if Zhu Mingyue changed and turned into someone you didn't recognize at all?"
"No." Situ Jin said.
"I'm just making an assumption," Shen Jue said impatiently, "what if she changes?"
"I mean," Situ Jin's eyes were fixed, "Mingyue is my wife, no matter what she becomes, I recognize her."