After Waking up Beside the Villain

A candle was lit on the table, and the transparent glass cover drove away the darkness in the small half of the room.

This is a study room, but there is no elegance in the furnishings, on the contrary, it feels rich and luxurious.

The walls are covered with calligraphy and paintings of famous people, piles of square inkstones on red sandalwood shelves, gold and silver porcelain of various colors, beaded antiques, seats inlaid with gold rims, a white jade mat, and two red lacquered wooden mats next to them. The basin is filled with ice cubes, even if the summer night is sweltering, it is still cool and refreshing.

The county magistrate of Shanbai County was sitting in this cool chair, with one hand on the armrest and the other on the edge of the table, as if he was about to get busy with official duties at his desk.

However, the flickering light from the candlelight vaguely illuminated the county magistrate's pale face and the scarlet sharp wound between the fat and fat neck.

Large swaths of blood flowed down, soaking the white middle coat and the light blue official uniform on the outside, with both hands deftly groping inside the blood-stained clothes, as if looking for something.

The owner of the hand was wearing night clothes, with his head and face covered by a mask, only revealing a pair of dark and narrow eyes.

"Sure enough, I have it with me..."

As soon as the rummaging stopped, the man's eyes brightened, he pinched his fingers, and took out a letter from the county magistrate's lapel, opened it and glanced briefly, his eyes changed: "This Han Bo is really very cunning , and even kept the account book privately, Mr. Zheng really hit the spot!"

Stuffing the letter on his body, the man listened vigilantly to the movement outside the window, then turned to turn over the desk and the red sandalwood shelf.

In the process of rummaging, he did not forget to search for some portable gold, silver and jade and put them in his arms, and turned the study into a mess in the blink of an eye.

In the end, he found a booklet from a hidden compartment under the desk case, and happily flipped through it by candlelight to confirm.

At this moment, a ray of extremely cold wind suddenly swept across the back of his neck gently, making him shiver uncontrollably, with goose bumps all over his body.

"Who?"

He was frightened and guarded, and in an instant he drew the sword with his backhand and swung it behind him.

However, this sword cut nothing.

He quickly turned around and looked around, the study room was still empty, and there was no second figure other than him.

No, besides him, there was another person, or rather, a corpse.

Subconsciously, he looked down at the county magistrate who was killed in the chair, only to see that the corpse that had been sitting with its head bowed before raised its head at some point, and a pair of frightened eyes were fixedly staring at him.

The man froze, the hairs all over his body stood up, terrified and frightened, his mind lost for a moment.

And at this moment, a hand patted his shoulder lightly, and he suddenly raised his head, facing a pair of dark, cold eyes with hidden mysteries.

In an instant, his eyes became blurred, his thoughts drowsy, and he fell into a hollow state of half dream and half awake.

In this state of emptiness, he heard a cold voice asking: "Who are you and why are you here?"

His thoughts were empty, without too many thoughts, and he replied honestly in a weak and erratic voice: "My name is Wu Qiao, and I am the guest minister of Jiangling County, Jiangzhou. I am in charge of dealing with some shady affairs. It was ordered by the county guard to kill the county magistrate of Shanbai County."

The voice paused, and continued to ask: "Why did the county guard kill the county magistrate of Shanbai County?"

"Shanbai County is not a rich county. Although there are various forces, they don't pay attention to everything in the county. The county magistrate Han Bo is greedy and intends to cling to the county guard, so the county guard mainly arranges the bribery. In Shanbai County. A few days ago, the county guard ordered me to send a secret letter, informing Han Bo that the Patriarch of the Zheng family died suddenly, and the new Patriarch didn’t want to join forces with the county guard, and would invite the court to audit the accounts.”

Wu Qiao seemed to be asleep and woke up, and said slowly: "The county guard ordered Han Bo to collect money and wipe his hands and feet to make up for the shortfall."

"But I don't want to. Han Bo used this to blackmail the county guard, and even wanted to send a certificate of nomination to climb up to the Zheng family. But Han Bo would never have imagined that the county guard and the Zheng family didn't have a falling out, and everything was just a morning. Just play a good show, just to find out those who have two hearts, and solve it as soon as possible."

The voice said: "There must be a lot of people with two hearts, if they are all killed, aren't you afraid that there will be too much noise?"

Wu Qiao said: "The county guard ordered that only three people be killed, and the rest will be dealt with separately."

"Apart from Han Bo, who are the other two? Why are these three special?" the voice asked.

"The other two are Zhao Gusheng, the county magistrate of Ping'an County, and Jiang Dayan, the third head of the Bailishui Gang." Wu Qiao said, "These three people have participated in the sacrifice of the river god from the beginning to the end, and they cannot be left alive. "

"Sacrificing to the river god?"

The voice was silent for a moment, and said, "How much do you know about this matter?"

Wu Qiao said in a dazed voice, "After the Wen River broke its embankment two years ago, the county guard selected Shanbai County and Ping'an County on both sides of the Wen River, and issued a secret order for these two counties to start offering sacrifices to the river god. The selected sacrifices must be a family, not If there are any omissions, except for those on the list designated by the county magistrate, the rest can be decided by the county magistrate himself."

"The selected sacrifices must be sent alive to the center of the Wenhe River. People from the Baili Shui Gang will lurk nearby. After the sacrifice is over, the sacrifices on the list will be transported away. Those not on the list can be killed or traded. It's all up to Jiang Dayan to decide. I once heard the sheriff mention it unintentionally, and it seems that the Zheng family took over the sacrifice."

"I... that's all I know."

At this time, another voice sounded softly, sounding far and near, sighing: "Then it seems that there is no need to keep you anymore."

Hearing these words, Wu Qiao's heart was inexplicably excited, and his sanity returned, and he was about to struggle to wake up.

But before he could really wake up, his protective qi was pierced, and a chill came from his throat.

"Uh--!"

His eyes widened, the unspoken screams in his throat were abruptly cut off, his numb hands raised to cover his throat, but only wet blood was touched.

Xie Chengyun retracted his sword, supported the fallen Wu Qiao with one hand, and silently put his body on the ground, then turned to look at Chu Yunsheng, searched for the ledger and secret letter, and said in a voice transmission: " This secret technique created by Chuchu is somewhat similar to the mind-stimulating technique of the evil way of Yuding Cave in the Western Regions."

Chu Yunsheng closed his eyes and collected the escaping qi from his body, heaving a sigh of relief.

During the half a month of rushing to the south of the Yangtze River, although it was quite hard work day and night, Chu Yunsheng did not slack off at all, wasting time and studying the secret method all the time.

There is only one unique move in the Sheng Sheng Yi Dao Jing, which is integrated into the sword method, and it seems that the means are single and slightly insufficient.

So while he was on his way, he delved into the cultivation method and created such a secret method. In certain environments and atmospheres, he mobilized his true energy, created the illusion of falsehood and reality, and created an opportunity to make the enemy lose his mind. Opportunity, change the trajectory of true energy flow, and briefly confuse the enemy.

This secret method was created by myself, and it was the first time I used it. The effect is good, but there are many restrictions. If the environment is not suitable or the enemy is firm and powerful, and the realm is high, it will be useless.

But having an auxiliary means is better than nothing.

After reading through the ledger and the secret letter, and confirming that there was no discrepancy with what Wu Qiao said, Chu Yunsheng said: "When I went to Hexin to rescue Li's family today, I didn't find anyone from the Bailishui Gang spying on me. It is very likely that Jiang Dayan has been silenced, or he has a premonition that something is wrong, so stop in time."

"The former is the most likely."

"Jiang Dayan is not like the county magistrates of the two counties. He is from the Jianghu, and the Bailishui gang is in control of the surrounding movements. If the magistrates of the two counties die first, he will definitely find out and be vigilant. So here Among the three, he should be the first to be silenced."

Xie Chengyun nodded slightly, and said: "It seems that the real people behind the scenes are the Jiangzhou Zheng family, and the county guard is probably just a target pushed to the front. But the county guard is not a fuel-efficient lamp, and the sacrifices transported away He was taken away by the Zheng family, which should be a secret, but he 'unintentionally' revealed it to his confidant Keqing, obviously he has other ideas and doesn't trust the Zheng family."

"It's related to the Zheng family. It seems that this sacrifice to the river god is involved in a lot, and the conspiracy is very big."

Chu Yun said: "And this Wu Qiao said that the old head of the Zheng family died suddenly, and the new head just took over."

Xie Chengyun was stunned, and looked at Chu Yunsheng, confirming that the other party and himself had thought of one thing—the changes of the patriarch and the young master of this family seemed to be a little too much.

This is not a place to talk. After simply sorting out the clues and disposing of the killer Wu Qiao's body, the two of them didn't stay any longer, and quickly jumped out of the window and left the county office.

Early the next morning, before dawn, Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun bid farewell to the Li family in Baituo Village, and rode onto the official road.

The two changed their outfits, entered the county seat of Shanbai County, sat casually in front of the tea stall, and soon heard the news that the magistrate of Shanbai County had been killed.

The news spread throughout Shanbai County in just one morning, and the talkative idlers were terribly frightening. Some said that the county magistrate had his throat cut and bloodletting. Enemies retaliated, some said that the head of the county magistrate was chopped off, the body was separated, the murderer disappeared, only the little maid saw a strange black shadow, very strange, some said it was a gangster who killed a corrupt official, robbed the rich and helped the poor, It's for justice.

The county government wants to block the news, but the county magistrate is dead, and the dragons have no leader, so the words of the chief secretary are not effective at all, and there is no way to stop it.

Xie Chengyun searched for the local snakes in the county familiarly, and after a little inquiring, he also got the news that Jiang Dayan, the third rudder leader of the Bailishui Gang, was assassinated by his enemies.

It is said that this happened two days ago, but it is not so convenient to exchange news in such a large Jiangling County. Haven't heard of it yet.

After confirming all the clues obtained last night, Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun decided to stay in Shanbai County for a few days after discussing to see the reaction of the prefect and Shanbai County, as well as the follow-up of the river god sacrifice.

By the way, Xie Chengyun used Xie's family's hidden stake to get a post from Zheng's family. When they arrived in Jinling, he and Chu Yunsheng would split up, one to Zheng's and the other to Ning's.

The priest of the river god and the sudden death of the old head of the Zheng family seemed extraordinary. Xie Chengyun didn't intend to ignore them, so he let Chu Yunsheng sneak in in disguise, while he himself went to the Ning family according to the original plan, and settled with Xie's family. Dan rendezvous.

It's just that the post that Xie Chengyun took, coincidentally, is the eldest lady of a small family in a remote county in Huaizhou.

Before Chu Yunsheng's men's clothing was warm enough, he changed into a long skirt again.

"On purpose?" Chu Yun asked.

Xie Chengyun wrote a pen to draw his eyebrows, and said solemnly when he heard the words: "Miss, don't rely on your beauty to defile people's innocence."

Chu Yunsheng glanced at Xie Chengyun, but did not respond, but Xie Chengyun's hand holding the pen suddenly tilted, as if he felt a little cold on the back of his waist.

In the next few days, Shanbai County experienced a little turmoil, but it did not have any impact on the lives of ordinary people. It doesn't matter what the day is, those who should go to the field go to the field, and those who should sell the stalls are the same as usual.

Jiangling County sent people to investigate the death of the county magistrate, but after only one day, they hastily closed the case as a vendetta and issued a wanted order for a Jiangyang bandit who had no resemblance to Wuqiao.

After that, the master book temporarily manages the yamen, waiting for the new county magistrate to take office.

Except for a few words from the village on the edge of the Wen River, no one mentioned the sacrifice of the river god.Such customs are usually included in common affairs, and they are not rare. If they are not deliberately mentioned, few people will talk about them.

After making all preparations in Shanbai County, Chu Yunsheng and Xie Chengyun left Shanbai County, crossed Taichuan Lake, and went straight to Jinling.

Jinling is the largest city in Jiangzhou, majestic and majestic, majestic and vicissitudes.

Chu Yunsheng separated from Xie Chengyun outside the city gate, took the Zheng family's post, and entered the city first.

The Zheng family is really easy to find. As a thousand-year-old family with power spanning more than half of Jiangzhou, its main family's residence occupies the most central and most prosperous place in Jinling City.

The high-walled compound is quiet amidst the hustle and bustle. Walking along the river from the noisy long street to here, you can see century-old trees, the sound of water, the chirping of birds and the chirping of cicadas, quiet and peaceful.

It's just that compared to the prosperity of the past when there were plenty of cars and horses, Zheng's family, who was holding a funeral, was hung with white silk and white flags inside and out.

Chu Yunsheng led his horse to the door of Zheng's house, took out the post, and said in a soft voice: "Brothers, this is Zheng Shaoqing's house?"

The deceased old head of the Zheng family was an official in the court and served as the Shaoqing of Taichang Temple, so he is often honored as Zheng Shaoqing.

The guards guarding the door of the Zheng family are all experts in the late stage of Hanshen, all of them are heavy-backed, with flashing eyes, alerting the surroundings.

Seeing that Chu Yunsheng came over to ask, looking so cold and beautiful, and he had a post in his hand, he also lowered his voice, took the post with both hands, and said respectfully: "So it's Miss Ye from Yuzhang County. She has a lot of business in the house, please." Please wait for a moment, let me wait to report."

After all, the guard who accepted the message hurried into the mansion.

Chu Yunsheng retreated to the shade of a tree beside the road and waited.

It is difficult to know the strength of the realm without using hands. The guards staying in front of the door probably thought that Chu Yunsheng was not good at martial arts or bad at martial arts. use.

"Is this the first woman to come to my house in the past few days? Could it be that this Miss Ye is also a romantic debt incurred by the young master during his travels?"

One winked and whispered.

"Not too many, not too many, only the fourth one." Someone said.

Another person interjected: "Hey, don't look too much, but in my opinion, the other three are not as good as this Ms. Ye. Although this Ms. Ye is a little taller, she has such a good looks and temperament. But the three of them can't learn it. The only one who can barely compare is that Miss Ling."

"You have only seen a few stunning beauties, so what do you know?"

Someone else said: "These four girls have their own beauty. Miss Zhao is delicate and beautiful, considerate and virtuous, Miss Qian is plump and charming, smart and lovely, and Miss Ling is charming and charming, pungent and hearty. Of course, I also feel that this Miss Ye is the most beautiful, as gorgeous as peaches and plums, as cold as ice, with a noble temperament and extraordinary demeanor, she can be the first of the four beauties."

Someone sneered: "Come on, stop showing off that bit of ink in your belly. No matter how beautiful you are, it has nothing to do with us. They are here to find the young master."

"Young master, he is the head of the family now."

Several guards were chatting, but they didn't know that their conversations were all heard by the voice of Chu Yun who was a few feet away.

Chu Yunsheng was a little surprised. He didn't expect that besides Ye Wanwan, there were three other women who came to visit the Zheng family in the past few days, and they most likely used similar posts.If it weren't for this, these guards who were used to seeing the aristocratic family wouldn't have put him and the other three together so hastily.

And when Xie Chengyun took this post, he didn't explain too much. Looking at it alone, this is just a very ordinary post from a vassal family, and there is nothing special about it.

I don't know the purpose of the other three women who came to visit, and whether they will cause unnecessary trouble to his actions.

Just as he was thinking about it, a small door on the side of the main gate of Zheng's mansion opened suddenly, and the guards who had gone to report the news came out following a young man in plain white and wearing mourning.

This young man was in his early twenties, handsome and tall, with thin lips and peach blossom eyes, he looked romantic and affectionate.

It's just that he has just lost his father, and his face is full of sorrow and sorrow, and he doesn't see much flair.But when he caught sight of Chu Yunsheng, his eyes suddenly lit up, revealing a look of astonishment.

"I'm Zheng Yuchen, Miss Lao Ye has been waiting for a long time."

Chu Yunsheng's face was cold, and he bowed his hands in return: "It's okay."

Zheng Yuchen didn't care about Chu Yunsheng's indifference, on the contrary, he seemed to be quite useful, his smile became brighter, and he said warmly, "I don't know why Miss Ye came here today?"

According to the pre-prepared speech, Chu Yunsheng said calmly: "It's nothing at all. It's just that I happened to travel around the rivers and lakes and went to Jinling. When I heard about the changes in the Zheng family, I wanted to visit Zheng Shaoqing to offer a stick of incense. The person my father admired most in his life was Shaoqing, if he finds out about this, he will be deeply saddened."

Speaking of his father, Zheng Yuchen's smile faded, and his expression was sad: "Miss Ye has a heart. Please come in with me, don't be here to bask in the sun. Jinling is prosperous, since I have traveled here, why don't I stay for a few more days, and the funeral will be the next day. At the end, there is a ceremony for me to take over as the head of the family, can Miss Ye stay and watch the ceremony?"

While speaking, Zheng Yuchen led Chu Yunsheng into the Zheng family's mansion through the small gate, and someone behind him brought Chu Yunsheng's horse and sent it to the stable.

Seeing Zheng Yuchen's enthusiasm, Chu Yunsheng also followed the pole and said, "I planned to stay for a few days. It's just that Patriarch Zheng is busy with affairs and I don't want to disturb you. After meeting Zheng Shaoqing, I will leave. If Patriarch Zheng has something to do If you want to find me, you can go to Shunlai Inn in the east of the city."

Zheng Yuchen hurriedly said: "The Zheng family has nothing else, but there are many guest houses. It's not troublesome. Since Ms. Ye has arrived in Jinling, there is no reason to go out to live. If this is said, it will appear that my Zheng family is petty and refuses guests. ? Yuchen has not officially ascended to the position of Patriarch, Miss Ye, don't want such a reputation on Yuchen's back."

It was all about this, since Chu Yunsheng pretended to be Miss Ye Wanwan so understanding, it would be impossible to embarrass Zheng Yuchen, so he had no choice but to agree to stay.

It's just that during the conversation, apart from Zheng Yuchen's lust and over-enthusiasm, there was nothing unusual or inappropriate.Looking at the performance of the guards of the Zheng family, it seems that there is no hidden reason for the death of the old Patriarch.

After Zheng Yuchen led Chu Yunsheng to the mourning hall to worship, he personally arranged a guest house for him.

On the way to the guest house, Chu Yun quietly inquired about Zheng Yuchen's travels in the rivers and lakes and some things on the way back after the sudden death of the old Patriarch.

While chatting happily, a tall and beautiful weak woman suddenly turned out from the hanging flower gate in front of her.

As soon as the woman saw Zheng Yuchen, she showed a joyful expression, and in a blink of an eye, she saw Chu Yunsheng beside Zheng Yuchen. Although she smiled as usual, there was a flash of hostility in her eyes.

"Brother Yuchen, this sister is..."

Zheng Yuchen didn't notice the weak woman's jealousy and hostility at all, so he just smiled coolly and introduced: "This is Miss Ye Wanwan from the Ye family in Huaizhou. She has traveled so far and is here to pay homage to her father. Miss Ye, this is Ling Miss Rui, Zhao Lingrui, a disciple of Tianji Sect in Liangzhou, is also my good friend."

Zhao Lingrui bowed softly, and said with a gentle smile: "Lingrui has met Miss Ye. Miss Ye is going to live in Hanxue Courtyard, I am next to Miss Ye, and Dongke Courtyard only lives in the two of you and me. It's the relationship."

Chu Yunsheng nodded without making a sound, but in his heart he agreed with Zhao Lingrui's suggestion of frequent visits.

Of course, it's not that he suddenly changed his sexual orientation and coveted Zhao Lingrui's beauty, but that Zhao Lingrui is not a disciple of Tianjimen at all, even if he changed his clothes, temperament, and name, Chu Yunsheng, who had been facing this face in the mirror day and night for half a month, could still recognize it at a glance——

This is clearly the saintess of the Nine Immortals Palace, Ji Ling, who escaped from Xie's house with Li Daitao's secret method!

At the same time, to the west of Jinling City.

Xie Chengyun shrank his bones and pretended to be a guard next to Xie Jia Dingdan, and successfully sneaked into Ning's house.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered Ning's house, he saw that the whole Ning's family was planning a happy event. It turned out that the head of the Ning family listened to a young Taoist priest and wanted to celebrate Ning Shou's marriage.

"Taoist priest?"

Xie Chengyun frowned: "Where is the Taoist priest that Ning Tiancheng can trust?"

Xie Zixuan, a master of Xie Family Dingdan and Xie Chengyun's clan uncle, said: "Ning Tiancheng is very shrewd, if he is an ordinary Taoist priest, he would not believe it. But the one who came to give advice was Tai Xuguan's disciple, An Zi, It's called Rong Ange."

"Rong'an song?" Xie Chengyun was thoughtful.

Xie Zixuan nodded: "I have sent someone to check whether this person's origin is true or not, but Taixu is the second view in the world, and ordinary people dare not pretend to be it. According to what Rong Ange said, he came down the mountain to look for his senior brother Yes, I have revealed the list to treat Ning Shou, and I don’t want gold ten thousand taels, I just hope to use the power of the Ning family to find his senior brother in Jiangzhou."

Xie Chengyun said with a half smile but not a smile: "The way he heals is to make Ning Shou happy? What did he do to make Patriarch Ning believe in his medical skills?"

Speaking of this, Xie Zixuan's face also showed a bit of weirdness.

He frowned, and said in a low voice: "This matter is weird, he...he performed a ritual for Ning Shou to catch ghosts and exorcise evil spirits in front of Ning Tiancheng, and then... Ning Shou really woke up!"

Xie Chengyun's eyes changed slightly, he smiled, picked up the tea on the table, blew on it lightly, and sighed speciously: "It seems that this Taoist priest still has some skills."

"In this way, I can only hope that the disciple is a disciple, and the Taixu Temple is the Taixu Temple. Why don't you cultivate the tranquility on the mountain, and come into the mortal world to disturb the chess game and cause hatred."

Hearing this, Xie Zixuan's eyes flashed with a stern look, he gritted his teeth and said in a low voice: "Even if you are too ignorant, the Xie family is not afraid. Anyone who dares to stand in this way will be killed."