After Waking up Beside the Villain

The beautiful land in the south of the Yangtze River, the imperial state of Jinling.

Winding with green water, passing Zhulou far away.

The horseshoes stepped on the drizzle and mud, and came out around the mountain, with open plains and rolling hills in front of them.

Chu Yun's voice urged the horse to move forward. Looking far away, one could see misty rain, the sky was blue, and the river was going east.Among the criss-crossing fields, there are large paddy fields stretching green and green, and wisps of cooking smoke can be faintly seen, scattered into the rainy sky.

With such scenery, one can tell at a glance that it has entered the boundary of Jiangnan.

After half a month of traveling through wind and rain, it finally arrived.

At first glance, the Jiangnan in Daxia is actually not much different from the Jiangnan in Chu Yunsheng's impression.

It includes the fertile soil of Huaiyang, Suzhou and Hangzhou, and merges Jiangzhou and Huaizhou. Since ancient times, it has been known as the land of fish and rice, the granary of the world, and has countless reputations and legends.The rich and beautiful scenery is available in all seasons, the ancient temples and famous sites are still lingering, a misty rain is falling, and the river is full of green lotus and the sky is connected with leaves.

The pen and ink of literati and poets are mostly written here, and the disasters of wars and wars are rarely affected. The iron chains are intertwined and the mountains are beautiful.

"After Shanbai County, which is ten miles away, is Jinling. Once you enter Jinling, you have truly arrived in Jiangzhou and Jiangnan."

The two horses walked side by side, Xie Chengyun raised the bamboo hat on his head, looked at the front of the gradually widening road, and said.

The sound of hooves slowed down.

Chu Yun said: "It's getting late, if you hurry up, you might be able to reach the county seat. However, Shanbai County is quite close to Jinling. Although the Ning family is a Jinling family, they are unable to manage Shanbai County within the range of the Baili Shui Gang. But there is no guarantee that there will be no hidden forces in the county."

Xie Chengyun glanced at Chu Yunsheng with a smile, and said: "Chu Chu's words are old-fashioned, not like a stunned young man who is walking in the rivers and lakes for the first time."

"The Ning family is only a second-rate family in Jinling City, but they have conflicts with the Zheng family and the Baili Shui Gang in Jiangzhou. They want to gain a foothold, so they voted for my Xie family. They have infiltrated both the Baili Shui Gang and the Zheng family. Naturally, Shanbai County is no exception. When I came to investigate the Ning family this time, it is best to be cautious, first find a nearby village or post station to rest, change your outfit, inquire about the news, and then make other comments."

Chu Yunsheng nodded slightly.

He was not surprised by Xie Chengyun's decision.

During this period of getting along with each other, he had a thorough understanding of Xie Chengyun's temperament.Although Xie Chengyun is a gambler, and he is good at making unexpected moves, but most of the time he still acts cautiously and considerately.

The investigation of the Ning family that Xie Chengyun said was the main purpose of the two of them rushing to Jiangnan.

The Ning family is an aristocratic family in Jinling, but their influence is limited to the city of Jinling. It is completely incomparable with the Zheng family, which has occupied most of Jiangzhou, and Qingshanguan, which controls the entire Huaizhou. The Baili Water Gang, which is extremely large and has connections with the Great Xia court.

According to the usual practice, the Ning family should be like many small forces in the south of the Yangtze River, throwing themselves under the door of these big forces and gaining backing.

However, the head of the Ning family had a very bad relationship with the Zheng family and the Bailishui Gang due to some grievances and grudges when he was young, and he did not agree with the rules of the Qingshan Temple, so he chose to vote for Shangjing like some other forces that belonged to everyone. The Xie family has become a vassal of the Xie family.

The Patriarch of the Ning family is named Ning Tiancheng, nicknamed "Lengyue Handao", half-step Dingdan, and wields the famous knife Lengyuedao on the weapon spectrum, and he can be regarded as a well-known master in the entire Jiangzhou.

His eldest son, Ning Shouduo, was wounded and attacked after a martial arts competition a few days ago, fell into a coma, occasionally woke up, behaved crazy and strange, as if he did not recognize his relatives, and his situation was quite scary.

The Ning family searched for a doctor to no avail and had nowhere to go, so they sent a secret letter from thousands of miles away, requesting the Xie family to send a famous doctor in Beijing for treatment.

Looking at this letter alone, it may not be a big deal, but when it is put together with the assassination of Xie Chengyun, it is a bit special, and people can't help but think about it.

In particular, before Chu Yunsheng left Beijing, he heard from Xie Chengyun the Xie family's investigation into the assassination, and felt that the Ning family's secret letter came by coincidence.

The assassination of Yu Dan, according to Xie Chengyun, was not instigated by any force behind it, but just that Yu Dan encountered a high reward task in the black market, and was tempted by money, so he came to take risks.

Su Nv Snake and Yan Zhi Hu possessed secret techniques, they died and escaped, but they didn't get too many clues, but it can be seen that they are different from Yu Dan, they didn't come here to receive a reward.

And the reward offered by the black market was not to take Xie Chengyun's life, but to injure him severely, and then take the opportunity to feed him a pill when he was unable to resist.

Xie's family found pills from Yu Dan's body, summoned the family physicians, studied it carefully, and found that it was just a common tonic, as if there was nothing special about it.

In the end, the Xie family still found clues from the Jackdaw Pavilion, which claims to be omniscient, and learned that this pill is most likely a supplementary drug of a secret method. It can be said that it is quite weird and vicious.

It's just that the clues about the origin of the pill and the secret method, as well as more assassinations and rewards, can't be traced.

And at this moment, a secret letter from Jinling Ning's family arrived at Xie's family.

The situation of the young master of the Ning family, Ning Shou, was somewhat similar to the transformation of the puppet described by the secret method.

It's just that Xie Chengyun had just been assassinated, and the Xie family had just found out about the puppet's secret technique, and the Ning family's secret letter arrived. Such a coincidence, one has to wonder whether it was unintentional or a trap.

Therefore, when the famous doctor and Xie Jiadingdan went to Jiangnan by boat, Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun went overland, disguised themselves to hide from the eyes and ears, and came to Jiangnan secretly, intending to investigate secretly.

Since it is a secret investigation, it is not appropriate to startle the snake.

Shanbai County was right in front of them, and they didn't plan to enter the city immediately, but rode their horses slowly, heading towards the direction where the cooking smoke was coming out, looking for a place to stay.

The drizzle continued and the path was muddy.

The two men and two horses walked less than a mile, and saw a village built by the river in the misty rain and twilight.

The houses in the village are low, with the eaves and thatch stretching into stretches, and the sound of cocks crowing and dogs barking can be heard in the distance, which is a very ordinary farm scenery.

But there was one thing that made Chu Yunsheng feel weird. It was the evening when every household should start a fire for cooking, but except for a few wisps of cooking smoke, there were no more people lighting stoves in the whole village. At the head of the village, there were no villagers returning from work, and the village seemed unreasonably empty and deserted for such a large village.

This village is near the official road, and the fields and crops are growing very well, so it is absolutely impossible to be an empty village.But for a while, it seems that there are few people, which is quite strange.

"Something's wrong."

Xie Chengyun frowned.

Chu Yunsheng reined in his horse and held down the dagger at his waist.

Gradually, as the two approached, the sound of silk and bamboo playing and singing faintly floated in the misty wind and rain, as if they were singing on a stage.

"Singing in the rain?"

Xie Chengyun was slightly surprised.

The two rode their horses around the village and came to the river bank following the sound.

The field of vision suddenly widened here, and the voice of the people gradually became louder.

At a glance, I saw a simple high platform built on the river bank. Several people with painted faces and masks were singing loudly and dancing on the platform.On the edge of the stage, there are still dwarves playing and singing, and there are two big drums with blood-red patterns on the bottom, and a strong man with a naked upper body is holding the drumsticks, but he doesn't beat it.

Under the platform, hundreds of villagers gathered in a chaotic manner, all prostrate on the ground, not daring to make a loud noise, only making a buzzing sound like mosquitoes.

Surrounding these villagers, there are actually a dozen or so yamen servants surrounding them, seeming to be guarding them.

This is a big show, rather than a weird sacrifice, with demons dancing wildly on the stage, while the audience is solemn and depressing.

Seeing this, Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun got off their horses and hid behind a corner, looking at the river bank.

Soon, the big show on the stage ended. A stooped and thin old woman was wearing a black and red cloak and leaning on a snake-headed cane. She walked onto the stage step by step, looking like a witch.

After standing still, the sorceress raised her hands high and let out a loud roar in an old voice. Immediately, the strong man beat the big drum, and the loud sound shook the river bank.

The humming sound in the audience stopped, and the villagers lowered their heads even more deeply, as if in awe.

"July [-]th, worship the river god and offer sacrifices!"

The sorceress waved her hands and crutches excitedly, knelt down facing the river, and shouted loudly.

As soon as this sound came out, the crowd of villagers crawling down there finally couldn't suppress it, and there was a heart-piercing cry.

Amidst the cries, those masked people on the stage jumped down one after another, and pinned down and tied up a dozen or so villagers who were kneeling together.

These dozen or so villagers, old and young, hugged each other and cried, calling their parents, grandparents, and grandchildren, like a big family. Among them, a strong man wanted to resist and escape, but was kicked down by the yamen servant next to him. Putting the knife on the shelf, I dare not move it again.

"You bastards! All these years, I, Li Fusheng, have helped you a lot in the village. How dare you say that someone is busy and rushing to plant the land. I didn't help plant the seedlings, and whose house is under construction. The rain was leaking, and I didn't go to help lay the tiles? Today——today, you are going to kill my whole family, you have no conscience, you are all f***ing conscience-stricken!"

"What kind of shit witch, shit river god, they are all monsters that cannibalize people!"

"Let go of me! Let go of me, you are all bad people, you will die badly, all of you will die badly!"

"Second Grandpa! Second Grandpa, save my daughter, she doesn't want to go into the river!"

"I, Li Dabao, have a clear conscience all my life, doing good deeds and accumulating virtue, this river god is blind, this God is blind!"

Amidst the mournful howling and cursing, many villagers showed their faces unbearable, but they could only bury their heads even deeper, tremblingly watching the big family bound into rice dumplings being escorted to the bank of the river.

There was a small boat moored there, and several masked men threw the men, women, children, and children onto the boat one by one, filling the boat to the brim.The other two acted as boatmen, boarded another larger boat, and pulled the boat to the middle of the river.

The continuous drizzle made the middle of the river thick with fog. After the boat arrived, two masked men tore the rope away, let the boat stop in the river, and rowed the boat back to the shore.

Chu Yunsheng slowly pressed the two sabers tightly.

"It was a human sacrifice."

Xie Chengyun stared at the boat floating on the river, and said in a cold voice: "The Great Xia court and the families of the various sects banned this method of sacrifice. I didn't expect that there would be such a tradition in a village so close to Jinling City. The government Not only did they not come to stop them, but instead they sent yamen servants to help the tyrant in his mischief, he should be killed!"

Having found out the situation on the shore, and seeing that the big boat on the river was about to come back slowly, neither Chu Yunsheng nor Xie Chengyun planned to wait any longer.

Xie Chengyun took the lead in flying up, and blatantly drew his sword.

"what!"

"Someone, someone is flying over!"

While everyone on the river bank was distracted by the sword light, Chu Yunsheng skimmed the water, landed on the big boat, and swung the back of his sword.The two masked men saw a flash of blue shadows, and before they could react, they felt a pain in their necks and both fainted.

Putting away the knife and holding the oar, Chu Yunsheng quickly turned the bow of the boat, rowed towards the center of the river, and came back to the vicinity of the small boat.

On the small boat, the Li family members who were already desperate and helpless, unable to even cry out, all opened their eyes wide in astonishment, staring at the big boat returning from the fog, dazed and terrified.

The rain was so heavy that they didn't see what happened on the big boat, and they didn't know why the big boat came back suddenly.

Suddenly, a timid and hoarse child's voice sounded from the boat: "Mother, no, it's not a monster, it's a fairy, it's brother fairy..."

When these words sounded, the other people on the small boat had already seen clearly the people coming through the fog on the big boat.

The man was not the faces or masks they were familiar with, but a young man with a stern appearance, wearing a green coat, a cape hat, and two knives on his waist.

"What kind of god? Grandpa Wang said that apart from officers, soldiers and bandits, those who carry weapons are heroes who walk the rivers and lakes! This young man is so handsome, he must not be a bandit officer or soldier, but a hero, definitely a hero. A hero is here to save us." !"

A sturdy young man who had obviously heard too many storytelling stories lit up his eyes, and with a big smile on his face, which was still covered with snot and tears, he shouted: "Hero! We are here! We are here!"

The children in the family were happy, but the adults couldn't easily believe that someone came to save them, and they all showed vigilance.

Chu Yunsheng didn't care about the reaction of the people on the boat. When he reached the vicinity of the boat, he directly used lightness skills and skimmed to the bow of the boat. .

The rope fell to the ground, and the family regained their freedom. They finally believed that Chu Yunsheng was indeed the hero who came to save them. Immediately, ecstasy welled up in their hearts, their eyes were red, and they were crying. Kneeling on the boat, they were about to kowtow to Chu Yunsheng : "Thank you, hero! Thank you, hero, for saving your life!"

Infuriating, Chu Yunsheng stopped the family from prostrating, and said, "The river is turbulent, and the rain and fog are getting thicker. You can't stay here for long, so row the boat ashore quickly."

The invisible force stopped the legs that were about to bend, and the Li family felt even more awed, and they dared not say anything more. Immediately, they moved their hands and feet, and jumped on the big boat one after another, sitting in the cabin, rowing the oars, and working together Paddled the big boat to the shore.

When the river bank could be seen from a distance, the old man named Li Dabao holding the oar in the bow showed hesitation and fear, and whispered to Chu Yun: "Young master, are you really the hero in the Jianghu? You have seen a lot, do you know if there is a river god in our river?"

"No, it's not that the little old man is afraid of anything, it's just that if there is a river god who guarantees good weather for our ten miles and eight villages, then our sacrifices escaped today and angered the river god, then our village and the surrounding folks will suffer. It's... the little old man, the little old man has never done anything wrong in his life, and somehow he chose our old Li's family..."

"No one, no one..."

Sweaty messy hair stuck to the old man's forehead and face. He was wearing a patched gown. His complexion was dark, old and wrinkled, and there was some soreness in his yellow eyes. When he blinked, it was like the drizzle Melt into one.

His words were topsy-turvy, full of fear, and as he spoke, his voice gradually lowered, his chapped lips were pursed, and he rowed his head in suspense.

Chu Yunsheng's coir raincoat had already been taken off, and he put it on the two children. The wet rain and mist rushed over, making his heart gradually feel damp.

He was paddling with the old man on the other side of the bow. After hearing this, he was silent for a moment, then slowly revealed a gentle smile, and said, "The old man should have heard that there are wandering immortals known as land gods in this world." .Since there are immortals in the world, there must also be gods, but the immortals grow up little by little from the knights of the rivers and lakes.

"It's not far from Jinling, and it's not far from Huaizhou Qingshan Temple. At your age, have you heard that the gods in Jinling and Qingshan Temple eat living people for a living?"

"It doesn't make sense."

Chu Yunsheng smiled slightly, and said in a deep voice: "If the river god in this river really wants to feed on living people, then it is not a god, but a monster, a devil. Such a monster should be killed by someone, but It’s not about offering sacrifices. Even if you’re a monster, you can’t control the wind and rain. Instead of asking for it, it’s better to ask the Taoist priest of Qingshan Temple, and it’s better to ask yourself.”

The old man froze for a moment, the palm holding the oar was damp, but gradually clenched tightly.

Chu Yunsheng did not open his mouth to deny the existence of gods and immortals, because the peak of military power in this world is indeed beyond the reach of ordinary people, and these villagers are confined to a corner, and they are seldom literate, and they don't understand the meaning of strange powers and gods. It is said that gods and demons are deeply rooted in their minds. If they open their mouths, they will completely deny it and say that there are no gods and demons in the world. The old man will probably only think that he is crazy and arrogant, and he will not listen to a word.

Don't talk about gods and monsters, but only talk about good and evil merits and demerits, which is the appropriate persuasion and comfort.

"Yes! The hero is right!"

The old man didn't make a sound, but the sturdy young man sitting on the hatchway said loudly: "Grandpa, when my aunt and her family were thrown onto the boat, I said that there were no gods in the river, and if there were, they were monsters, human-eating monsters." The gods are good gods, how can you eat people, you still don't believe it!"

With a long sigh, the old man lowered his head, wiped his eyes, and did not answer.

Obviously, this kind of living sacrifice is not the first time. In these years, it is unknown how many innocent people have been harmed.

Chu Yunsheng was furious in his heart, and his true energy was shaken. He couldn't help raising his hand, and stroked the dagger at his waist.

After a while, the big ship docked, and Chu Yunsheng took the Li family off the ship.

On the river bank, Xie Chengyun had already dealt with everything. The sorceress, the yamen servants and others were all knocked out and tied up. The villagers stood up and crowded around the open space in front of the high platform, as if intimidated by Xie Chengyun's sword just now. His aggressive methods, fearful eyes, did not dare to make loud noises, but they all stared at the sorceress and the others with hatred.

A child hid behind the adult, picked up small stones on the ground and secretly smashed the witch's head.

An old man over half a century old came out of the crowd and talked with Xie Chengyun. He was obviously the village chief of this village.

Chu Yunsheng came over, and after a few steps, he heard the village head sigh and said cautiously: "Young master, it's not that we really like this living sacrifice, but it's because our ten miles and eight villages must worship the god of the river. In case the God of the River is really unhappy and causes disaster."

Some villagers also whispered: "The crops have grown well in the past two years and the harvest has been sufficient, but it is all thanks to the God of the River. If you anger the God of the River and cause disasters like the past few years, then what? Can you bear it?"

"Look, Li Dabao's family is back, alas, what a crime, how can this sacrifice be brought back, isn't this grabbing food from the mouth of the God of the River!"

"In the past, how many people were willing to make sacrifices? But they also made sacrifices. Aren't they afraid that our villages will suffer disasters? This year it's our village's turn. Li Dabao is not happy anymore. He really wants to make trouble Disaster, he is the sinner first!"

Some people scolded angrily: "It doesn't hurt your back to stand and talk, and it's not your family who dares to go to the big river as a sacrifice!"

"God of the river, God of the river, I think it's a monster! It's best to ask the Taoist masters to kill the demons!"

"This living sacrifice has been gone for a hundred or eighty years, and it has been brought up again in the past two years. Who knows what An's heart is..."

Facing the whispers and the words of the village chief, Xie Chengyun didn't show any anger, but still smiled gently and politely, with a personable demeanor.

He didn't answer the village chief's words, but said: "Old man, since Daxia came to the world, he has abolished the tradition of offering sacrifices to river gods in various places and made it a violation of the law. As the village chief, you should It’s not like they didn’t know about this. If the River God would really be angry because of the lack of living sacrifices, then the first one to suffer is the imperial court, and it shouldn’t be you.”

The village chief was startled and waved his hands again and again: "How dare you talk about the imperial court!"

The surrounding villagers were silent, obviously not knowing what laws or regulations the imperial court had on offering sacrifices to the river god.

"Does this mean that the head of the river god must be beheaded?"

Someone whispered: "But this river god was sacrificed by the county magistrate!"

Xie Chengyun glanced at the crowd inadvertently, and said with a smile: "Old man, this was abolished by the imperial court, so it's okay not to say it. Even if the crime of sacrificing human beings is not so serious as ransacking their homes and beheading them, it is by no means a crime." Petty theft and the like, if you are accused, you will definitely go to jail."

The villagers were horrified. Going to prison would be a terrible event and a serious crime for them, who have been honest and responsible all their lives.

The village head also changed his face greatly, and said bitterly: "Young master, this is not the old man's decision! Look at these yamen servants, these arresters, they are all sent by the county magistrate, just to watch us These people from ten miles and eight villages have done the sacrifice of the river god honestly, how dare we little people refuse to do so?"

Xie Chengyun said: "Oh? Is it the river god's sacrifice ordered by the county magistrate?"

The village chief nodded, hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth, and said, "Young master, you don't know, the sacrifice to the river god has indeed been abolished a long time ago. Our Baituo village is no exception. It's just about Two years ago, there was a heavy rain in the area of ​​Wenshan, which lasted for several days and nights, and the water of the Wen River rose, washing away all the crops and villages.”

"At that time, the area around Shanbai County was full of refugees, and they wanted to grab a piece of bark. It was not easy for the rain to stop, the water to recede, and the plague to break out again, and too many people died."

"When the plague subsided, the magistrate of the county brought this sorceress Jiang to the edge of the Wenhe River, and called all the villages on both sides of the Wenhe River, and told us that the flood was caused by the river god of the Wenhe River. The Lord got angry and sent down the scourge to punish us. If we want to have a good life in the future, we have to sacrifice to the God of the River to make the God of the River happy."

"Grandma Jiang made a decision to select a family in these five or six villages every three months. Even the old and the young, all of them will be used as sacrifices. When offering sacrifices to the river god, they will be tied up and sent to the river in a small boat. In the middle, make a tooth-beating sacrifice for the God of the River."

"This is to kill people!"

"We don't believe in evil, and we don't want to. The family that was selected for the first time packed up their bags and was about to run away, but they didn't go far before being carried back. They were all dead, and their bodies were swollen with bubbles. , was drowned. Some people also said to go to Jinling to file a complaint, but they were brought back and drowned. Everyone was scared and didn’t dare to run again.”

"Slowly, this matter is settled..."

Chu Yunsheng listened, and slowly frowned.

There is definitely something wrong with the county magistrate of Shanbai County.But even if the sacrifice to the river god is accomplished, what good will it do for the county magistrate?

Besides, Baituo Village is not far from Shanbai County, so the county magistrate is not afraid that the Ning family, Zheng family, Baili Water Gang or Qingshan Temple will find out?And this move can last for two years, I am afraid that these parties are either being concealed by someone, or they are not completely ignorant.

Regardless of the former or the latter, it can be seen that this matter is not simple, and it is definitely not a simple sacrifice to the river god.

Xie Chengyun obviously thought of this too, but he didn't continue to ask the village chief, who obviously didn't know more.

"Xie and his friends are going to Jinling City. You can take this sorceress with you and sue the county magistrate for you. Jinling City's prefect is just and honest, and he will definitely give you justice. The two of us are also skilled in martial arts, so we are not afraid of intimidation. , if you can trust me, Xie can write a copy of the complaint and explain why."

Xie Chengyun said: "Elders don't have to worry about the county magistrate's embarrassment. On the way here, I heard that the county magistrate of Shanbai County had some accidents. He will be replaced in two days. He must not have the time to investigate the countryside."

These words were so thoughtful and appropriate that they barely broke the hearts of the villagers of Baituo Village.

The village head also showed a hint of joy that was doubtful.

He hadn't heard about the replacement of the county magistrate, but it was only an hour's journey from Baituo Village to Shanbai County. After relaxing for more than half, looking at the sorceress, the yamen servant and others, there is no fear, full of resentment and anger.

The villagers were no longer afraid, so they were no longer afraid. They rushed up and beat and kicked the sorceress and the servants until Xie Chengyun stopped them, and they were persuaded to leave by the village chief, and they went back home.

Not long after, the river bank became empty and deserted again, except for Xie Chengyun and Chu Yunsheng, there was only a bunch of villains staggering around.

The stage on the bank collapsed and was smashed, and the blood-red drums on both sides fell into the mud, which no longer felt mysterious and weird.

After finding out who they were, Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun separated into two sides to prevent collusion, and woke up the witches and servants one by one to interrogate the matter of offering sacrifices to the river god.

Neither the sorceress nor the servants are strong-minded, and after a little coercion and temptation, they spit out the whole story.

It's just that the sorceress and the yamen servant don't know much, they only know that the county magistrate of Shanbai County manipulated the sacrifice to the river god in order to collect money.

According to the sorceress, according to the instructions of the county magistrate, when choosing sacrifices in these villages, the first choice is those wealthy landlords.

But after the selection, she did not announce the news, but sent a post to remind the family.The family was terrified, and they must be willing to pay a large sum of money to avoid disasters.

After the money falls into the pocket of the county magistrate, the saying of avoiding disasters will spread among the rich households and gentry. In this way, when the sacrifices are selected every three months, there is no need to send any posts. They will tacitly send a large amount of money, just hoping that the number of sacrifices will not fall on themselves.

And this county magistrate and witch are also very shrewd, they have made a thorough investigation when selecting candidates, they will never touch those who are connected with the forces of the world or famous families, and except for those who cannot be offended, the rest of the rich can It is said that a layer of skin needs to be peeled off every three months.

In the past two years since offering sacrifices to the river god, the county magistrate has made a lot of money, and his belly is full of people's fat and people's anointing.

"Killing people's lives, just for money?"

Xie Chengyun asked.

A trace of surprise flashed across the timid face of the sorceress, and she said in a low voice: "If it's not for money, why else? It's not such a good deal to exchange tens of thousands of taels of snowflake silver with the death of a few untouchables... I was selected and went to the river We can’t blame us for feeding the fish, whoever made them unable to pay for their own lives..."

"My lord, you shouldn't give them a head start. It's just such a grass-roots thing. After one stubble is cut, there will be another stubble. Even if you sacrifice to the river god every day, you can't finish it. Why do you worry about them. "

Even though the sorceress said so, Chu Yunsheng didn't think it was just for money, and the magistrate of Shanbai County dared to make such a noise under the noses of various forces.

There must be something hidden in it, but it is beyond the knowledge of the witch and the servants.

However, no matter what kind of hidden secrets there are, they cannot be concealed. In the prosperous and peaceful world, it is hateful and abominable to treat ordinary people like grass and pigs.

In normal times or in other worlds, Chu Yunsheng would definitely find a way to bring this corrupt official to justice, but at this time, it doesn't have to be like this—Since ancient times, heroes have been banned by martial arts. The villagers had said that the county magistrate would be replaced in these two days, and Chu Yunsheng knew that he was going to kill someone after saying this.

He didn't intend to wait for justice from a court that might not come.

Killing those who should be killed, protecting what should be protected, and doing what should be done is the hero in Xie Chengyun's heart.

"It's getting late, it's time to go for a walk to admire the moon, so as not to disappoint the beauty of Jiangzhou."

Inside the hut, Xie Chengyun lit a candle and said softly.

Chu Yunsheng stared at Xie Chengyun's eyebrows under the candlelight, and said lightly, "Aren't you afraid of revealing your whereabouts?"

Xie Chengyun leaned over, leaned on Chu Yunsheng's shoulder, stroked the dark blue belt with his palm, landed on the scabbard, and with a trembling of his fingers, struck Chu Yunsheng's short knife.

With this low voice, Xie Chengyun laughed and sighed in a low voice: "Afraid, why not? But compared to the danger of being exposed, I am more afraid of being discouraged by sophistication and despising justice for self-interest. The longer the rivers and lakes go, the more you lose your heart. Moreover, it is me who is afraid, not my sword."

"As long as you act carefully, your whereabouts may not be exposed."

Chu Yunsheng said in a low voice: "And the moonlight tonight must be extremely beautiful, you should appreciate it."

Xie Chengyun was slightly stunned, then shook his head after a while, and chuckled softly.

The moon is dark and the wind is high at night, killing people and setting fires.

When you see injustice in anger, you should ask the sword in your heart.

Tonight and this month, it really deserves a reward.

After resting in the house for half an hour, the sky became completely dark.

The Li family warmly invited Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun to treat them like chickens and ducks, fearing that they would be negligent and show no intention of repaying their kindness.

After drinking and eating, the Li family rested separately, and Baituo Village gradually quieted down. Every household turned off the lights and fell into darkness.

The night was getting darker, and the drizzle stopped unconsciously.

Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun changed into night clothes, covered their faces, and did not ride a horse. All the way, they were in full swing, and they quietly rushed to the county seat of Shanbai County.

Under the night, Shanbai County has already fallen asleep, except for the occasional barking of dogs and the sound of watchmen, the place is empty and silent, extremely quiet.

The two of Chu Yunsheng hid in the shadows, and landed in the Shanbai county government office like two fluttering leaves.

When they came, the two had interrogated the county magistrate's residence and appearance from the mouth of the yamen servant, looked around the county government office, and soon found the courtyard where the county magistrate lived.

But as soon as they climbed over the courtyard wall and entered the small courtyard, the two found that the other rooms in the courtyard were all dark, only the study room was still lit. The county magistrate of Shanbai County seemed to have not fallen asleep and was still in the study room .

It's just that I don't know if it's the illusion of the two of them. From the half-closed window of the study room, there seems to be a vague smell of blood floating out.