One hundred and fifty-nine
The sky was dark, with only the faint moonlight shining into the solemn courtyard.
No matter how good everyone's night vision is, in such a dim environment, they can only see the shadows and movements of people and objects, but their appearance and details are naturally unclear.
The man holding the knife lowered his voice and said, "Were you sent by that person to kill me and silence me?!"
The men in black said nothing. One of them raised his hand and pressed down, and the eight men immediately rushed forward.
The man took a step back, knife in hand, and said sternly, "If he kills me, all the evidence will be presented to the Zhou family leader!"
But the few of them did not stop at all. At this moment, several sharp arrows broke through the air from the dark night.
The men in black instantly felt the chill, but in the blink of an eye, they didn't even have time to dodge, as sharp arrows had already arrived and pierced the bodies of the three men in black.
It only takes a moment.
Fu Wei, who was on the roof, put away his crossbow, raised his hand and pressed it, then ordered, "Go."
Another wave of men in dark clothes that could blend into the darkness rushed out from all directions, turning the situation around in an instant.
The man in black also adjusted his strategy instantly.
The two men used their killing moves to attack the man, while the others who did not fall ran towards the direction of the arrows with their weapons.
No one was talking, only the clanging of weapons and the barking of dogs.
The people in the alley heard the noise, but they knew to protect themselves and stayed in their houses, not daring to light a lamp or speak loudly.
Even if the men in black were slow-witted, they knew they had fallen into a trap. I'm afraid the person they wanted to kill might not be the one their master mentioned.
The other party was obviously well prepared. Seeing that the situation was not right, the man in black shouted "retreat" and stopped fighting and immediately looked for a way to retreat.
The skills of the two groups were almost equal, but the other side had more people and was gradually at a disadvantage. Even so, the men in black were still desperately looking for a way to retreat, as if they were not asking everyone to get out alive, but only asking one person to escape and go back to report the news.
Fu Wei shouted loudly: "Not a single one can be let go."
The voice had fallen, and he immediately kicked the silver spear on the eaves. When the silver spear was in the air, he grabbed it in an instant, jumped from the roof to the low eaves in the alley, and jumped down.
Fu Wei also joined the fight.
The sharp blade of the man in black was about to hit the man in dark clothes, but at the critical moment, a silver spear appeared from nowhere. With a "clang" sound, the knife was blocked and the man in black was also knocked back a few steps.
The accompanying yamen runners were all shocked for a moment when they saw Fu Wei's powerful and swift spear fighting with the man in black.
This shot completely overturned their understanding of Mr. Fu.
Is their gentle and weak Mr. Fu so fierce?!
He was surprised for a moment, but quickly came to his senses to avoid losing his life.
The yamen runners were not very skilled, but the twelve guards around the head of the Zhou family were carefully selected and trained since childhood, so they were naturally very skilled.
The men in black who were trying to break out were suppressed one after another. Then they heard hurried footsteps and guessed that it was the people from the Xiaowei Camp who had arrived. Seeing that there was no hope of escape, they slit their throats with the knives in their hands.
Fu Wei was quick-witted and agile, and he suddenly used his silver spear to deflect the knife of the nearest person. The Twelve Guards also reacted quickly and knocked the person unconscious.
There were eight people, but only one was left.
Fu Wei glanced at the body of the man in black on the ground and frowned.
The Night Guards rushed into the alley, torches in hand. The captain in charge shouted, "Who's making a noise?!"
The twelve guards stepped forward and revealed their identities. The captain then changed his attitude and said, "We saw a dark figure when we arrived earlier. I sent someone to pursue it."
Fu Wei narrowed his eyes slightly.
There was no need to think about it, the people who came were following him and retreated when they saw the situation was not good.
Fu Wei bowed to the twelve guards and said, "Please keep an eye on this man to prevent him from committing suicide."
The Twelve Guards had just seen the side of this refined young man that couldn't be judged by appearances. They felt a little more respect for him and spoke more politely, "Please rest assured, young man. We will keep a close eye on him."
Fu Wei: "Thank you all very much."
The captain of the Twelve Guards looked at the man being chased by two groups of people in the yard, and squinted his eyes slightly to look at him.
The Twelve Guards were much better than ordinary guards in terms of both physical skills and observation of details.
Because the people in the Night Guard Camp were holding torches, their vision was clear, and they could also see the man's appearance clearly.
When viewed from a distance or in the dark, the person looks similar to the portrait, but if you look closely, you can still see traces of disguise.
As for why I have to pretend...
After a little thought, the answer came to mind - this was undoubtedly a trick to lure people into a trap.
"Please be sure to bring this Wu Xiaowei to the Sect Master. I will personally explain the situation to the Sect Master."
There was something hidden in Fu Wei's words. Wei Chang was a smart man and understood it immediately.
This trap also has a trick of confusing the public, making it difficult for the mastermind behind the scenes to distinguish the real Wu Xiaowei from the fake one, and disturbing his mind.
The guard nodded and said, "Don't worry, Mr. Fu, we have it in our heads."
The Twelve Guards only obey the orders of the Sect Leader, who tells them to follow the Second Master's orders and assist in investigating the case of misappropriation of military pay four years ago.
Since it is related to the investigation of military pay, they have no choice but to do their part.
The men from the Twelve Guards tied up the living man in black, forced him to take a pill, and then carried him away, while the men from the Night Guard Camp began to clean up the body, neatly and efficiently without leaving a trace.
There will definitely be casualties in the fight between the two sides. Fu Wei sighed, asked someone to quickly light the lights in the house, and brought all the injured people into the house.
A yamen runner quickly brought a large bag of medical supplies. Fu Wei immediately took it, opened it, and distributed the hemostatic drugs and gauze to several yamen runners who had nothing else to do. He arranged the arrangements in an orderly manner, "Follow my previous instructions to stop the bleeding, bandage, and sew. I will do it. Yamen runners Xu and Wu will help me."
To ensure that the plan was not leaked, only four people knew about what happened today.
On weekdays, it was impossible for the yamen runners to spend all their time talking about deployment when they gathered together. In the remaining time, Fu Wei asked the yamen runners to learn how to use medicine, bandage wounds, and suture.
County Magistrate Zhou also agreed that the yamen runners should learn some simple bandaging techniques.
It took half an hour to deal with the seriously injured yamen runner.
Once everything was handled, Fu Wei took off the temporary armband made of rope, asked a few people to stay behind to look after the injured, and then immediately rushed back to Zhou's house.
At the Zhou Mansion, people belonging to County Magistrate Zhou had already been waiting at the front door, and they went to greet Fu Wei as soon as they saw him.
He walked up to Fu Wei and said quickly, "Sir, you were called over by Sect Master Zhou more than half an hour ago. Before leaving, he told his subordinates to wait here for you and to go to Minglanxuan."
Minglanxuan is where Sect Master Zhou’s study is located.
Fu Wei nodded and called on the people from Zhou Mansion to lead the way to Minglanxuan.
When they arrived outside Minglanxuan, there were people guarding it. Fu Wei stepped forward and asked to see Sect Master Zhou.
"The Sect Master has instructed that if Mr. Fu wants to see you, please come in directly." After saying this, he made a gesture of invitation: "Please follow me, Mr. Fu."
As the guard at the gate walked all the way to the study, he announced, "Mr. Fu is back," and a cold voice came from inside the house, "Come in."
Even before entering, just the sound made people feel the pressure from Sect Master Zhou.
The guard pushed open the door and Fu Wei walked in from outside.
There were only a father and son in the house, Sect Leader Zhou and County Magistrate Zhou, while the remaining man in black and the man pretending to be Captain Wu were not there.
Fu Wei entered the room and found it gloomy and solemn. A sense of pressure came towards him from the seat of honor.
Fu Wei, bearing this majesty, stepped forward and bowed to Sect Master Zhou, who sat as steady as a mountain, "Greetings, Sect Master."
Sect Leader Zhou glanced at him as he saluted and said sarcastically, "I dare not. I'm afraid that your bow will shorten my lifespan."
Fu Wei straightened his waist and knelt down, still cupping his hands: "It is I who have offended the clan leader and the deceased Duke of the County."
Since Sect Master Zhou is able to sit in the position of the leader of a sect, he must be a powerful character.
I'm afraid all his calculations have been seen through now.
"How dare you plot against me, plot against the old master? I never thought you would be so bold despite your young age."
Sect Leader Zhou didn't get angry but laughed instead, but it was obvious that he was unhappy.
Magistrate Zhou walked up to Fu Wei, bowed his head, and said, "I also acquiesce in this matter. Fu Wei is wrong, and I am also wrong. I am willing to be punished together with Fu Wei."
When Sect Master Zhou heard this name, he rubbed the black jade ring on his finger.
Whether it is Mr. Fu or Mr. Fu, both titles seem distant. But calling him by his name tells him that this person is from Baoding.
Sect Leader Zhou understood what he meant and said with a half-smile, "You two, master and servant, are quite affectionate and loyal."
Seeing that both of them were silent with lowered brows, he shook his head slightly. After a while, he put away all the other expressions on his face and said seriously, "We can sort this out later. Let's discuss the matter first."
Although it was not explicitly stated that Fu Wei was the mastermind behind the plan of luring the snake out of its hole, when Sect Leader Zhou saw the "Captain Wu" who was brought back, he understood everything.
The old man didn't believe in the misappropriation of military funds and had secretly sent people to investigate for many years and had evidence. The incidents of danger and injuries in the Yong'an Teahouse might all be fake.
Really, it's probably just what happened tonight, the casualties, and the unjust case of misappropriation of military pay.
He was really angry when he realized what was happening, but while waiting for Fu Wei to come, he couldn't help but admire the young man's scheming and scheming.
He is only in his twenties, yet he is so calm and calculating.
Every step seems to have flaws and may be exposed at any time, but his calculations are not about being meticulous, but about understanding people's hearts.
For example, he only needed to check to know whether the old man had investigated Erlang, but Fu Wei used the mysterious man in Yong'an Tower and the assassination, as well as Erlang's injury, to divert his focus.
At the same time, this mystification and self-torture also convinced him that there was doubt in the case of misappropriation of military funds. In this case, it was no longer important whether the old man had really investigated it.
The person who framed Erlang might have doubted the identity of "Wu Xiaowei", but since he believed it and agreed to let Erlang stay in Yuzhang, and then dispatched his confidants to let him command, that person would naturally become anxious.
It is easy to make wrong judgments when you are anxious.
Sect Leader Zhou asked, "What about the assassins in Yong'an Tower? Was it arranged by you, or was it someone else?"
Someone really died in the Yong'an Building killer role. It seemed like a performance, but it wasn't.
Even if it was a self-torture trick, Erlang would not be able to cause anyone to die.
Fu Wei replied, "It was Huo Minzhi who wanted to kill me. He had previously hired someone to cut off my legs. Furthermore, he is a very petty person. As early as during the funeral of the late Duke, if Huo Minzhi had seen me meeting with the Magistrate Huo, he would have been jealous and resentful. Furthermore, if I had deliberately provoked him, he would have been so enraged that he would have hired someone to kill me."
"But you are an official appointed by the court and a member of the Zhou family. He dare not go against the Zhou family, so I and you gave him a chance."
Fu Wei slowly told the story of what he had done, and did not hide too much except for the person he suspected.
When Sect Leader Zhou heard him plotting against everyone again, he frowned even amid the young man's applause.
Who would have thought that he, in his fifties, would be schemed against by a young man in his twenties?
This boy is even better than his father Fu Jun.
Huo Shanrong probably knew what kind of powerful character he had raised, so he didn't care about the fatherly feelings of twenty years and wanted to personally eliminate the adopted son he had trained to be outstanding.
"But I heard that when the men in black were captured, they committed suicide one after another, preferring death to surrender. How could they betray their master? What's the point of having a living person?"
After a long silence, County Magistrate Zhou spoke up: "If someone committed suicide after being captured, he was either a hired assassin or a assassin trained by a powerful family. In Yuzhang, the Zhou family is the only powerful family."
Sect Master Zhou turned his gaze to him.
"The military pay was stolen, possibly to frame me or to do something else with it."
"Since they have access to military pay and are working for him in the Yuzhang Army, they must hold high positions, and it's not just one person. So who could have bribed so many people, or planted so many people in the Yuzhang Army?"
"So, who do you suspect?" Sect Master Zhou lowered his jaw slightly and asked in a deep voice.
How could he not think of what Erlang could think of?
Sect Master Zhou seemed to have the answer in his mind.
Magistrate Zhou looked his father in the eye with a determined look: "Father, I already have a candidate in mind. I don't want you to give me any explanation. I just want to be cleared of all charges."
Sect Leader Zhou gave him a meaningful look.
The father and son faced each other, both silent.
Fu Wei was standing aside, also silent.
After an unknown amount of silence, Sect Leader Zhou placed his hand on the table, palm facing downward, tapping the tabletop intermittently with his index finger.
After a moment, he glanced at Fu Wei, then looked back at his son: "I already know your innocence, and I will return it to you. Besides that, I will take over the military pay and the matter of framing you."
County Magistrate Zhou raised his hand and said, "Thank you, father."
Sect Leader Zhou raised his hand and waved, "Go back. Let me think about how to deal with this."
Fu Wei and County Magistrate Zhou retreated from the study.
After leaving Minglanxuan, County Magistrate Zhou looked at Fu Wei and said, "If there's any blame this time, I'll take it on your behalf. You don't have to worry."
Fu Wei shook his head: "I'm not worried about being blamed, I'm just worried that this matter will be simply covered up."
Upon hearing this, County Magistrate Zhou sighed, put his hands behind his back and walked forward: "Wait a minute."
Fu Wei glanced at the somewhat lonely back of County Magistrate Zhou, then turned to look in the direction of Minglanxuan.
Mu Yunshan collected medicine and food, and if he used the robbed iron mines for private use to make weapons and armor, then whoever was supported by Mu Yunshan would have the intention of rebelling.
The object of Mu Yunshan's support is the Zhou family. The Zhou family has this intention and there is a great possibility that they will become the king.
The emperor was licentious and immoral, and the noble families were suspected and fell one after another. I think Sect Leader Zhou was very clear about the situation of the Zhou family, so he was always prepared.
To confront Huo Shanrong, we really have to rely on the Zhou family.
But it is obvious that Prince Zhou is not a wise leader.
Fu Wei withdrew his gaze, turned around and slowly followed County Magistrate Zhou.
After the two left, Sect Master Zhou in the study said, "Go to Qingyu Courtyard and call the prince."
*
When Prince Zhou heard that Zhou Yi had stayed in his father's study for half an hour, and that Fu Wei had gone straight to the study after returning from outside, he knew that the assassination attempt had not succeeded.
Or rather, he fell into a trap.
Prince Zhou sat quietly in the pavilion wearing a cloak, looking at the courtyard gate, as if waiting for someone.
After a long time, someone came to the gate of the courtyard. It was someone from my father's courtyard.
After a while, the servant entered the courtyard, stopped outside the pavilion, and saluted, saying, "Sir, the Sect Master wants you to come to Minglanxuan's study."
Prince Zhou breathed a sigh of relief, stood up, walked out of the pavilion and headed outside.
Even if his father determined that he did it, he could not admit it.
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