Everyone in the hall, including Shi Hao, felt that the laughter was like drums beating in their ears, deafening.
Qiu Jiangping obviously recognized the person who came. His expression suddenly turned ugly, but he also looked confused. He probably didn't understand why this person suddenly intervened in the case.
The old Taoist stepped into the hall, flicked his whisk, and bowed to Shi Yujun: "I am the Lan Ke Taoist of Mingkun Temple. I am honored to meet you."
Shi Yujun was a civil servant, not a martial artist, so he turned to look at the master beside him.
The master hurried forward and whispered in his ear: "Master, this Lan Ke Zhenren is one of the Twelve Quanzhen of Chongxian Sect, and is also the senior brother of the master of Mingkun Temple."
Shi Yujun suddenly realized it, bowed, and said to the old Taoist: "Master, there is no need to be polite! I wonder why you are here this time?"
The old Taoist pointed at the young man in shackles and said with a smile, "Captain Qiu said that his master's sect is unknown and he is a heretic. But I want to clarify that Shi Hao's martial arts were taught by me, which means that he is an out-of-school disciple of my Chongxian Sect."
Everyone at the door was in an uproar. Qiu Jiangping hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Master! If he is an outer disciple of Chongxian Sect, why didn't Zhuo Sanren recognize him in the Marquis' Mansion that day? Even in terms of martial arts, we can only see that he uses the internal force of Taoism, but we don't know which sect he belongs to?"
The old Taoist Lan Ke waved his whisk again and said with a smile, "Is this the first time that Chief Constable Qiu has met me? I have always done things as I please. Last year in the mountains, I met this kid. I saw that he had good talent and was polite to me. On a whim, I taught him the method of inner alchemy and gave him a mysterious outer elixir to lay a foundation for his martial arts.
"As for the martial arts he used, haha, my Chongxian Sect is the leader of all Taoist sects in the world. There are countless martial arts in it, and Junior Sister Zhuo cannot recognize them all. I gave him a unique sword manual that few people practice. This sword manual is my secret collection. It is not surprising that Junior Sister Zhuo cannot recognize it."
Qiu Jiangping said: "This..."
He just couldn't understand why Shi Hao, who had nothing to do with Chongxian Sect no matter how he looked at it, suddenly became an outer disciple of Chongxian Sect
Then he gritted his teeth and said coldly: "Even if this person is a disciple of the real person, and he committed such a serious crime, does Chongxianmen have to cover it up?"
Taoist Lan Ke said, "If he really committed such a serious crime, I will not condone or cover up for him. But if someone insists on framing my disciple, I will not let him go either."
Qiu Jiangping said: "Both the physical evidence and the witness evidence are here..."
Taoist Lan Ke said, "The so-called physical evidence is the conclusion after the autopsy of this pestle? You said that the people who died on Luanqi Mountain had finger wounds caused by sword energy and a frozen aura. Haha, take me to see those corpses. I will know whether they are real or fake at a glance."
Qiu Jiangping said expressionlessly: "Those brothers have been dead for many days and have been cremated by now."
The crowd at the doorway immediately burst into laughter. Lan Ke, the Taoist priest, sneered, "Cremation? When did this custom come into being in Western Shu?"
Qiu Jiangping said: "Most of those brothers are not from this county, so they have to be sent back to their hometown after death. So after cremation, they are placed in urns and sent back to their hometown thousands of miles away for convenience."
Taoist Lan Ke sneered, "It's not like transporting corpses over thousands of miles is something that only happens today. The Xingjiang Sect, Wujiao, etc. all take on this business. Our bodies and hair are given by our parents, so how can we just cremate the bodies of these deceased people without the consent of their families? Is this the way you six sects work? Or are you afraid that someone will go and check on the dead?"
Everyone outside started arguing, and even Shi Yujun couldn't help but glance at Qiu Jiangping and frowned.
It's not that they don't trust the Six Gates, but the Six Gates has falsely accused innocent people of being thieves more than once or twice.
Qiu Jiangping had no expression on his face and stopped trying to argue. Anyway, the body had already been cremated, so no matter how outsiders questioned it, this statement was unquestionable evidence.
Shi Yujun said, "Even if this conclusion is a little insufficient as evidence, someone saw Shi Hao hanging out with the gangsters who kidnapped children last night, and even tried to kill them to silence them. The evidence is irrefutable."
Yuan Jia shouted, "That's right, I saw it with my own eyes last night, I was even injured by him and barely escaped with my life."
But a sharp girl's voice rang out from outside: "This is impossible."
The crowd parted at the door, and a young girl floated in. The girl was wearing a peach-colored cloud-patterned Taoist skirt, and was pretty and elegant, with a sword tied around her waist.
Shi Yujun said: "This girl is..."
The young girl bowed in the hall and said, "I am Du Yuejiao from Ming Kun Yuan. Shi Hao has been with me these past few days. I can testify that he has never participated in kidnapping children."
Qiu Jiangping said, "Miss Du, you didn't recognize him last time at the Marquis' Mansion."
Du Yuejiao said sarcastically, "Aren't you the chief constable? How come you have such an IQ? Of course you didn't recognize me before we met in the Marquis' Mansion. Now that we've met in the Marquis' Mansion, don't you recognize me?"
She was mean by nature, and her sharp words made everyone laugh.
Qiu Jiangping's face turned red and white at this remark, and he said angrily: "At that time, you didn't treat this kid well."
Du Yuejiao snorted, "At that time, I didn't know that he was a disciple accepted by my uncle outside, so why should I treat him well? After returning to the temple, I learned that he was a fellow disciple. Since we are in the same sect, why should I treat him badly
"You should also apologize to him for what you did to him before!"
Yuan Jia shouted, "Even if you have been with him these days, I encountered this thief last night at night. He left quietly at night..."
Du Yuejiao said: "Impossible!"
Qiu Jiangping asked: "Why is this?"
Du Yuejiao pursed her lips: "We were together last night too."
Yuan Jia said: "It was the middle of the night at that time."
Du Yuejiao said: "We are together even in the middle of the night."
Qiu Jiangping asked: "Who else is with you?"
Du Yuejiao said: "There were only two of us, in the wilderness at the time, and there was no one else."
Qiu Jiangping said: "He might have taken advantage of you, Miss Du, sleeping..."
Du Yuejiao said: "We didn't sleep either."
Qiu Jiangping frowned and said, "You two, in the middle of the night, in the wilderness, what are you doing?"
The girl's face turned red, and she stamped her feet suddenly, saying shyly, "What do you care?"
Everyone outside burst into laughter. Someone shouted, "A man and a woman alone, in the middle of the night, in the wilderness with no one around, and not sleeping, what do you think they are doing?"
The laughter became louder and louder, and some people even whistled. Someone else laughed and said, "They are playing in the wild... that or something!"
Shi Yujun held the gavel and banged the room around: "Silence! Silence!" But no matter what, the room just couldn't quiet down.
Qiu Jiangping was speechless for a moment.
Shi Yujun frowned and glared at Qiu Jiangping. Seeing that the commotion outside was difficult to calm down, he called his lawyer over and asked in a low voice, "How do you think this case should be handled?"
The lawyer came over and said, "Master, I don't think these evidences from the Six Gates are that credible. This Shi Hao saved the county lady. Xiaohan Mountain City is considered a local landlord. He is also related to Chongxianmen. Based on this little evidence..."
Shi Yujun knew that this trip by the Six Gates was most likely another frame-up.
However, in the past, when this was done, most of the people who were framed were weak people who were unable to protect themselves, and no matter how the victims cried out for justice, it was useless.
To put it bluntly, if this young man was just the young lord of Xiaohanshan City, then it would be unfair and the problem would not be too big.
Now that Chongxian Sect was involved, he didn't want to go against such a big martial arts sect.
Then, he slammed the gavel and said, "There is no evidence in this case yet. Come on, let the suspect go. If there is new evidence in the future, we will make a decision."
A yamen runner stepped forward to loosen the shackles for Master Hao. Qiu Jiangping said anxiously: "Sir..."
Shi Yujun glanced at him and said, "The case is closed, let's not talk about it anymore." Although he didn't know what personal grudge the local Six Gates had with this young man, he didn't want to get involved in it for no reason.
Qiu Jiangping had no choice but to bow and retreat.
—
Shi Hao followed Lan Ke Taoist outside and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your help, senior."
Taoist Lan Ke stroked his short beard and smiled, "Don't thank me. My niece said that if you hadn't rescued her from the evildoers, she would have met with misfortune. You saved my niece, so I helped you, and it's only right."
It turned out that this Taoist Lan Ke also had the surname Du. In the Chongxian Sect, he was Du Yuejiao's uncle, and in terms of blood relationship, he was actually her uncle.
Du Yuejiao looked at Shi Hao and whispered, "You were with me last night, why didn't you say it in court and let me testify for you?"
Shi Hao said: "This..."
Du Yuejiao took a look at him, her heart softened, and she whispered, "What a person you are!" But she didn't know what she was thinking about.
As he was speaking, he saw Qiu Jiangping coming. Shi Hao sneered and went to meet Qiu Jiangping.
Qiu Jiangping's eyes were piercing, but he put on a smile: "So, Master is a disciple of Lan Ke Zhenren of Chongxian Sect. I am so disrespectful, so disrespectful!"
Shi Hao smiled faintly and said, "Captain, you are too polite!"
Qiu Jiangping stared at him and said, "Today's incident was a misunderstanding. Please don't take it to heart, Master. If you and I can resolve our differences, I will definitely help you with all my heart if you need my Six Gates in the future."
Shi Hao smiled and said, "Sure! Sure!"
The two sides bowed to each other with forced smiles, and Qiu Jiangping turned and left.
Shi Hao returned to Lan Ke Taoist and Du Yuejiao.
Du Yuejiao frowned and asked in confusion, "It would be fine if the Six Gates didn't arrest the real villains, but why did they come to arrest you?"
Shi Hao sneered: "The constable named Yuan Jia is the supernatural being I met in the mountains yesterday."
Du Yuejiao's face changed: "But that supernatural being is in the same group with those thieves who kidnap and sell children! Could it be that..."
Chapter 24 This case is not simple
Shi Hao said: "I bumped into Yuan Jia last night. Since he is from the Six Gates, he must have a way to find out my identity through my appearance.
"The most important thing is that they don't know how much I know. They think that since I was able to track them to such a place, I must have a deep understanding of their evil deeds behind the scenes. They are desperate and want to take the initiative and make a complaint first."
Du Yuejiao said angrily: "These people are too hateful."
Taoist Lan Ke brushed his beard and said, "The Six Gates have always behaved like this. They hold power in their hands, so they are used to using it to commit crimes. Framing people and falsely accusing innocent people of being thieves is their usual trick, and it can indeed solve most problems."
Du Yuejiao said worriedly: "If these people can't do it openly, I'm afraid they will do it secretly."
He looked at Lan Ke Taoist and said, "Uncle, how about letting Senior Brother Shi live in Ming Kun Temple? No matter how daring those people are, they won't dare to cause trouble in Ming Kun Temple."
Taoist Lan Ke smiled and said, "It's rare that you are so worried about someone. Since I told others that he is my external disciple, there will be no problem in taking him back to the temple."
Shi Hao pretended to hesitate: "This..."
If you want to find out the truth behind the "Conferred God" experiment, the best way is naturally to enter the Mingkun Temple.
As the saying goes, "No venture, no gain." From this point of view, the persecution of him by the local Six Gates actually helped him.
But of course he had to pretend to hesitate.
Du Yuejiao pulled his sleeve and whispered, "Master, just listen to me this time. If you live in Mingkun Temple, these guys won't dare to do evil things in the dark."
Shi Hao pretended to think carefully, then nodded: "Okay, but I have to go to Yuanrong Chamber of Commerce and get some things."
Du Yuejiao said happily: "I'll go with you!"
Taoist Lan Ke smiled and said, "Then I won't disturb you anymore. I'll go back to the temple first!" He waved his whisk, turned around and walked away.
Shi Hao and Du Yuejiao were walking on the road together. On the way, Shi Hao said slowly: "Just now in the government office, thank you Miss Du... Thank you Yuejiao for helping me. But this will inevitably affect your innocence, which really makes me feel bad."
Du Yuejiao lowered her head and said softly, "If it weren't for you, Master, I would have lost my life. How can I be innocent? Master, you are a gentleman. I acted on my own and caused misunderstandings. This has damaged your reputation."
Shi Hao smiled and said, "I'm a grown man, what's there to be afraid of? It would be the real deal if I could implicate you."
All the way to the clubhouse of Yuanrong Chamber of Commerce, Deng Liang came out and said, "Brother Hao, I'm glad you're okay."
Shi Hao laughed and said, "Did you secretly inform the merchants and gentry in this county, causing so many people to go and watch the fun?"
Deng Liang laughed and said, "I was just worried that those guys from the Six Gates might do something bad, so I spread some rumors."
He pulled Shi Hao aside, turned around to look at Du Yuejiao, and chuckled strangely: "Brother Hao, you are really amazing. You even... Brother Hao, you are amazing!"
Shi Hao looked at this guy making faces and couldn't help but think of his evaluation of Du Yuejiao.
—"Don't be fooled by her beauty. She is as proud as a fairy in heaven and her words are extremely sharp."
— "In my opinion, anyone who marries that girl must have done evil in eight lifetimes, and this is the retribution in this lifetime."
He shook his head in amusement, grabbed Deng Liang, walked up to Du Yuejiao, and said, "Yuejiao, Deng Liang is my good brother. He is the young master here and the young master of Jinjin Yinxiuzhai. The best brocade in Jin County is basically produced by his family. You should have seen it before, right?"
Du Yuejiao placed her hands on her left waist and bowed in a gentle and polite manner: "Hello, Brother Deng. I am honored to meet you!"
Deng Liang was flattered: "Hello, sister-in-law! Hello, sister-in-law!"
Du Yuejiao blushed but didn't say anything.
After chatting with Deng Liang for a while, they left. Deng Liang sent them to the door, and saw that the always arrogant Miss Du even turned around and bowed to Shi Hao before leaving. He couldn't help but sighed: "Brother Hao is worthy of being here. He can tame such a mean tigress."
—
Shi Hao went back to the house to get some things, then hired a carriage and went to Mingkun Temple with Du Yuejiao.
After entering Mingkun Temple, Du Yuejiao brought him to a side hall, where there were gardens full of flowers and plants, all planted with various medicinal herbs, and many alchemy rooms, all with smoke rising from them.
There is also a bronze hall in the distance. The whole hall is cylindrical in shape, with an octagonal roof at the top. There are faint sounds of metal colliding coming from the hall, and no one knows what it is used for.
Du Yuejiao said: "Uncle is one of the twelve Quanzhen of our Chongxian Sect. He is best at casting treasures and elixir stones. Most of the divine crystals found in Taoist temples in various places are sent here, asking uncle to help forge and refine them into magic weapons. There are also many elixirs, all of which are made by uncle."
Entering an alchemy room, I saw Taoist Lan Ke busy in the room.
He classified the various medicinal materials into categories and put them into the steaming medicine pot in order.
The hot air surged out, and Shi Hao and Du Yuejiao, who were standing at the door, both felt a little unbearable. He stood in the steaming heat, not taking it seriously at all.
Du Yuejiao called out, "Uncle! Senior Brother Shi is here."
Lan Ke Dao Ren said without even turning his head: "Okay! Okay! Let him find an empty room in this yard and live there."