"Is this where Mr. Zhu lives?"
Jiang Miao looked at the large courtyard in front of him, compared it with Lezhi's description, and felt that it should be correct.
Pei Che said, "That's it. My people have inquired and found out that Mr. Zhu has not left the house since the second day of this month. My people will bring him out later and then we can ask him in detail."
The two men sat in the carriage. After a while, there was a noise outside, as if someone's mouth was blocked and could only make a "wuwu" sound.
"Master, I have brought the person here."
"Very good, you go and keep watch on the surroundings and don't let anyone come over." Pei Che ordered, and after everyone left, he got out of the car with Jiang Miao.
There was a man curled up under the car, his hands and feet were tied, his mouth was tightly blocked, and his eyes were full of fear and confusion. He was chanting in the Buddhist temple, but suddenly several people broke into the room and tied him up without saying a word. For a moment, many thoughts came to his mind, and he felt that his life was over.
However, when the two people who got off the car appeared in front of him, he found that he didn't know them at all. He held a glimmer of hope in his heart, hoping that they were just after money. So, when the thing stuffed in his mouth was taken out, he immediately opened his mouth to beg for mercy.
"Two heroes, spare my life! I don't know who you are, but if I have offended you accidentally before, I am willing to offer you gold, silver and jewelry to make amends. I hope you can spare my life!"
"Zhu Tonghai, take a closer look, who am I?" Pei Che said sternly with a cold face. At this moment, he looked like the legendary Jade-faced Rakshasa, which made people feel terrified.
Zhu Tonghai raised his head cautiously and looked at Pei Che carefully. The light was very dim, and he squinted his eyes to look carefully. Suddenly, his heart skipped a beat. He felt that the person in front of him looked familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen this face before.
"My dear, I am blind and don't remember how I have offended you. All my mistakes are my fault. Please be magnanimous and don't hold it against me!"
Pei Che snorted coldly and said, "Maybe if I call you Master Wuming, you will remember who I am?"
When Zhu Tonghai heard the word "Wuming", he felt as if he had been electrocuted and began to tremble all over. Who else could know this Buddhist name
"It's... it's them. They sent you, right? I didn't say anything. I haven't said anything for all these years. Why don't you let me go!" The emotions that had been suppressed in his heart for all these years suddenly leaked out, making Zhu Tonghai look crazy and mad, with a hideous face.
"There is indeed a problem. The "they" he mentioned should be the masterminds who killed your parents back then, right?" Jiang Miao said in a low voice.
"It should be." Pei Che replied, then he turned to Zhu Tonghai and sneered deliberately, using the same trick he had used on him. "You said you didn't say it, but who can prove it? You got away with it back then, but today is the day you die."
"I really didn't say anything, I really didn't! For so many years, I didn't even dare to go back to Tzu Chi Temple. I have been hiding here and have never been anywhere!" Zhu Tonghai burst into tears and tried his best to prove his innocence. He murmured that he didn't reveal it.
Pei Che decided to give the next dose of strong medicine: "Take a closer look at who I am!"
Zhu Tonghai opened his blurry eyes and looked at Pei Che carefully. Pei Che brought the torch in his hand closer to his face so that he could see clearly. With the help of the firelight, Zhu Tonghai's vision became clearer and clearer. The flawless face in front of him gradually overlapped with the man of that year. However, under the flickering firelight, this face was not as gentle as before, and was covered with frost, as if it had crawled out from underground.
"Pei... Master Pei! No... No, you're already dead, no! You're already dead! Don't come over here, don't come over here!" Zhu Tonghai's face was pale, and his bound hands and feet struggled to move back, fearing that the person in front of him would pounce on him and take his life. He was able to beg for mercy just now, but now he could only speak nonsense.
Pei Che took a step closer: "When you killed me, you should have expected this day to come, right?"
"I didn't hurt you, I just said a few words, I didn't do it!" Zhu Tonghai burst into tears, "I have been chanting the Rebirth Sutra for you every day these years, please be kind and don't kill me!"
"I feel wronged, and I won't be able to rest in peace even in the underworld. You said it wasn't you who did it, then who was it?" Pei Che moved closer, stretched out his hand and grabbed Zhu Tonghai's collar and pulled him over.
Zhu Tonghai was horrified and struggled to step back, but inadvertently touched the hand that was grabbing his collar.
Hot, hot
"You're not a ghost?" Zhu Tonghai was stunned, his expression turned into surprise, "Are you the little kid from back then?" He shook his head, "Impossible, even if you're still alive, you wouldn't be this big. Who are you?"
Pei Che said: "You don't need to know who I am. You just need to tell me everything that happened that year. Who is the person behind the scenes?"
Zhu Tonghai finally calmed down after his mood went through ups and downs.
"I don't know who is behind this either." He shook his head and sat down on the ground dejectedly. He had already faced the reality and knew that he could not escape.
"You still dare to hide it when you are about to die. I don't think you will cry until you see the coffin." Pei Che raised a dangerous arc at the corner of his mouth, and looked at Zhu Tonghai as if he was looking at a dead person.
He drew out his sword and used the tip of the sword to cut Zhu Tonghai's forehead all the way to his chin. The cold sword pressed against his face, and the sharp edge of the sword made Zhu Tonghai feel that his face had been cut. Even though he knew he was going to die, he couldn't help but feel scared.
Jiang Miao squatted down, looked at Zhu Tonghai with a smile, and said, "Don't worry, we won't kill you before the truth is revealed. However, in order to get you to tell the truth as soon as possible, we will cut you with a knife. If you don't tell us on the first day, we will cut you once. If you don't tell us on the second day, we will cut you twice. After three to five days, your whole body will be covered in blood. By then, flies and other things will lay eggs on you. If you hold on for a while, they will hatch."
Zhu Tonghai's eyes widened, and breathing became difficult. This man looked gentle, but his heart was so vicious! Listening to his description, Zhu Tonghai seemed to have seen himself covered in blood and full of maggots.
"I'll tell you, I'll tell you, but I really don't know who is the mastermind behind this!" Zhu Tonghai trembled all over and begged for mercy.
Pei Che retracted his sword and said coldly: "Then tell me the whole story."
At that time, Tzu Chi Temple was just a small temple that was broke. Except for the abbot, all the monks would go down the mountain to beg for alms every autumn, in the hope that people would give them some food after the harvest.
This year, a group of people came to the temple and were very generous, saying that they wanted to rebuild the temple. As the head monk of the temple, Wuming's heart began to beat violently when he saw this large sum of money.
He was born in a poor family, and because his family had no money and could not support so many children, they sent him to Tzu Chi Temple. If he had such a large sum of money, wouldn't he be able to reunite with his family
The thoughts in his mind were like a devil, urging him to act quickly every day and night. When he first started, he put the two taels of silver he stole after buying supplies into his arms, and something seemed to be separated from his body. Looking at the Buddha statue in the hall becoming more and more solemn day by day, he kept questioning himself in his heart, but looking at the silver that was increasing day by day, he quietly told himself that he would do it just once. When this matter was over, he sent the silver home and immediately went to confess in front of the Buddha.
However, this matter was eventually known. When he returned to his meditation room that day, he found a masked man sitting in his room with the silver he had embezzled in front of him.
"If Master Wuchen knew that the monks in the temple were stealing, how would he react? I heard that he has always been upright, and he would definitely report it to the authorities for a thorough investigation."
Before he could ask the identity of the visitor, the man started to say a lot of words, which frightened Wuming to death. He knew the abbot's character. If he knew that he was going to do that, he would definitely send him to the authorities! Moreover, even if the abbot was willing to let him go, the people under Master Pei would not let him go.
He immediately knelt down and begged for mercy, saying that he would return all the silver and never do it again. In order to gain people's trust, he even swore a poisonous oath. But in the face of his desperate pleas, the masked man remained unmoved and even laughed out loud.
"Master Wuming, don't be nervous. You don't need to return this silver. In addition to this, I will give you an extra 1,000 taels of silver. As long as you do me a favor."
The man smiled and said, "It's very simple. You just need to put something in the food of those people in the backyard wing."
"Poison? No, no, I won't do anything that is against the will of heaven and earth!" Wuming shook his head like a rattle. Greed was already a big mistake. If he committed the sin of killing, he would definitely go to the eighteenth level of hell after he died!
The masked man scolded, "You are stupid! Who told you to poison this? This is a powder that causes diarrhea. You can take it to the doctor outside for examination. As long as you put it in their food, the one thousand taels of silver will be yours." As he said that, he threw the powder in his hand to Wuming.
"If you don't agree, you will be thrown into the cell tonight. Then, I will have someone treat you well."
After he left, Wuming finally relaxed. He reached out and touched his monk's robe, only to find that it was soaked with cold sweat.
The next day, when he and the driver of the Pei family went down the mountain, he found a chance to go to a pharmacy to ask. The old doctor in the pharmacy smelled it, dipped a little with his finger and put it in his mouth, then told him with certainty that it was croton powder, which could relieve cold accumulation, open the meridians, expel phlegm, and promote water flow, but it should not be used too much.
Wuming was relieved. It was okay if it wasn't poison. Eating some croton powder wouldn't kill anyone. Thinking of the one thousand taels that the man promised, Wuming gritted his teeth and decided to do as he said.
However, the medicine was not administered because the food for Mr. Pei's family was prepared separately, and there were dedicated people in charge of both the food and the water source. Even if one wanted to lure them away, it was impossible.
At night, when the man in black came again, Wuming told him about the incident. He did not expect to get the 1,000 taels, he just wanted to ask the man not to tell anyone about his embezzlement.
The man in black did not comment, but just asked him to keep a close eye on the Pei family's movements and left.
The Pei family lived in the back wing, and Wuming had no way of contacting them with his identity. But fortunately, he had become very familiar with the Pei family's driver these days, and the driver was a good drinker, so he told everything when he drank.
Wuming tried to find out the news about the Pei family by indirect means, but he didn't expect to hear from the driver that someone had bribed him to spread false news to trick his master to go back earlier. After he said that, the driver was already drunk. If Wuming told others about his betrayal, would he have a good ending
Seeing the driver's eyes gradually turn fierce, Wuming made up his mind and told him about his own theft. This way, they both had evidence against each other and didn't have to worry about being exposed.
Sure enough, after he spoke, the driver calmed down and started talking to him about money. He then realized that the driver not only loved drinking, but also gambling.
When he was in Liangjing, he lost a lot of money and finally had to borrow money to pay it back. He wanted to ask his wife to go to the master to get a few things that were not often used and sell them, but his wife refused, so he had to give up the idea.
This time when he came to Tzu Chi Temple, someone actually bribed him with money. He was considering whether to do this matter. He wanted the money, but how could he dare to murder his master
Wuming told the man in black the news. The man in black thought about it for a long time and then explained everything to Wuming.
On the second day, when Wu Ming went down the mountain with the coachman to buy things, he gave him an idea that would allow him to get the money without betraying his master.
That is to let the driver set off the next day as the man said. But he would not take the agreed route, but the road behind the mountain instead. When the man asked about it, he would say that the master had changed his mind at the last minute. In this way, no one would suspect him.
When the driver heard this, he thought it was a good idea, and immediately inquired carefully about the situation of the road behind the mountain.
The night before they decided to set off, Wuming got the 1,000 taels of silver as he wished. Holding this light silver note, Wuming felt heavy in his heart. He asked the man in black, "You won't harm Master Pei and the others, right?"
"Don't worry, it's just a false alarm."
After receiving the assurance, Wuming breathed a sigh of relief and his heart was no longer so heavy. However, the next evening, he heard from someone that a carriage fell off a cliff on the road leading to Shuibo County, and all the people on the carriage died, including the driver.
After hearing the news, Wuming trembled all over. The man in black had deceived him, and now he was the only one who knew about it. Would he let him go
Thinking of this, Wuming just wanted to pack up and run away immediately. However, it seemed that someone had been investigating this matter these days, so he didn't dare to act rashly. Although he couldn't escape, there seemed to be a good news, that is, the man in black had never appeared since that day.
After a few months of anxiety, Wuming gradually stopped worrying. He felt that this matter would not implicate him. Just like everyone said, it was just an accident.
Facts have proved that what is coming cannot be avoided. That day, when Wuming went to Shuibo County to buy something and rushed to the temple as usual, two men in black suddenly rushed out from the mountain and attacked him. Wuming dodged in panic, but was still stabbed by a sword, and bleeding immediately.
Wu Ming knew he was no match for him, so he held his breath and pretended to be dead. He had lived by the river since he was a child, and he was very good at holding his breath. The man tried twice but couldn't find any clues, so he said, "Sir, he is really dead."
"It would be good if he died. As long as he died, this matter would never be spread again."
"Yes, if there hadn't been someone watching this place, he would have died long ago. Sir, do you think we should just push him off the cliff..."
"Puff!" Wu Ming, who pretended to be dead, only heard the sound of a knife entering his abdomen, and the man who spoke was silent.
"I'm the only one who needs to know about this."
A sinister voice came to my ears. The man was about to move them to the side of the road and push them off the cliff, but suddenly there was a voice in front of him. It sounded like there were quite a few people. In a hurry, the man just hid them behind a tree, covered them with straw, and left in a hurry.
Wuming waited until there was no sound around him before he got up. He wanted to run away, but he was afraid that the man would come back and not find the body, so he would send people to kill him. So he tore off his own clothes and the man's clothes, and cut some of his flesh to make it look like a beast biting it.
After dragging the murdered man to the other side, he pushed him down a valley, then sneaked back to the temple under the cover of night, took out more than 1,000 taels of silver and medicine that he had hidden, and left without looking back.
Over the years, he lived in fear and did not dare to go to any bigger place. He hid at home all day long and did not dare to marry or have children. He locked himself in the Buddhist temple every day and lived like an ascetic monk.
A few years ago, Zhi somehow found this place. He became ruthless and wanted to kill him to silence him, but in the end, he couldn't bear to do it. He just chopped off one of his legs, so that he could never come down the mountain again.
Unexpectedly, this one thought would harm him. What he regretted more was that he hid the two taels of silver because of a thought that year. Otherwise, nothing would have happened.
"I vaguely remember that the body was pushed down here that year." Wu Ming was taken to the mountain road behind Tzu Chi Temple and asked to follow the traces from that year to find the body.
From their few words, Pei Che understood that these two people must be involved with the government. Ordinary people would not call him "sir". He believed that as long as he found the body and checked the token he was carrying at the time, he would be able to find out something.
Pei Che and Jiang Miao waited for a while, and then a voice came from below: "Master, we found it!"
In addition to a skeleton, what was found was a waist badge, a sword and a few taels of silver. Apart from these, all other items had rotted away due to the passage of time.
"The writing on this copper waist badge has been corroded by rust and can no longer be seen clearly. But judging from its shape, it should be a waist badge of a palace guard, which means that this person is a palace guard!"
Pei Che stared at the badge, his eyes burning with anger. The only people who could use the palace guards to kill people to silence them, besides the emperor, were naturally the princes!
(End of this chapter)