Carp Talk (Thirteen)
"We both miscalculated!" Wanzhe shouted anxiously, "They're a gang! They're a gang!"
Wan Mian was completely thrown into disarray after hearing this. For some unknown reason, a vision suddenly appeared before his eyes. He watched helplessly as all his wealth and gold and silver vanished into thin air...
While Wan Mian was stunned, Wan Zhe pushed the door open and ran away. He walked straight to the county government office uncontrollably, wanting to discuss the matter with Xu Hui.
Xu Hui's servants were unable to stop the angry Wanzhe and had to put him in the inner office.
It seemed as if Xu Hui had already expected Wanzhe to come to him. His expression was unusually calm, in stark contrast to Wanzhe's astonished look.
So he dismissed the servants and left an empty room alone to talk with Wanzhe.
"I know why you came here. You want to sever ties with me so that you can preserve your Wan family lineage, right?"
"Xu Hui, you abused your power and killed people. This is your crime. I was just confused and followed your orders."
"Bah!" Xu Hui bared his teeth. The man's face before him was so disgusting that it made him nauseous. "Don't even think about putting all the blame on me! Don't forget, this was your idea, wasn't it? Didn't you also pocket some of the money for disaster relief? Wanzhe, let me make it clear to you, you and I are tied together. If the rope breaks, neither of us will have a good end!"
Wanzhe almost bit his back teeth to pieces. He never thought that his death would come so suddenly.
"Now that things have come to this, neither you nor I can find another way to survive..."
Wanzhe was completely hopeless and collapsed on the ground, his eyes filled with the tragic sight of himself being tortured.
Suddenly, an idea flashed in his mind, and he remembered that Lord Wang Hu was behind him! Lord Wang would definitely be able to save him!
Grasping at this last straw, Wanzhe hurriedly used the pen and ink in Xu Hui's room to write a note, hoping that Wang Hu could save his life.
After the letter was written, he asked Xu Hui for the fastest carrier pigeon and tied the note firmly to the pigeon's feet, hoping that Wang Hu could come up with some countermeasures before the Chief Censor arrived.
And this note is the only hope for the two.
The current situation is no longer helpful; the two have gone too far.
They waited like this day after day, looking at the carrier pigeons in the distance and calculating the pace of the Chief Censor. Their sleep became more and more restless. After not seeing each other for a few days, their faces looked like two different people.
After much difficulty, they finally received news from Wang Hu on this day. However, the black words on it were like daggers, piercing deep into their hearts.
"You two have done evil in this matter, and you will suffer the consequences. Don't bother me."
With just a few words, Wang Hu completely eliminated the last hope of the two people.
In an instant, Wanzhe fell to the ground, beating his chest and stamping his feet, full of regret.
Not only Wanzhe, but Xu Hui also felt disheartened. His despair had already surpassed Wanzhe's - all these things were led by him, and he was the target of the Chief Censor's attack.
"It's over, it's all over..."
In the despair of the two, Wanzhe suddenly stood up and walked towards the door. Xu Hui saw him and immediately pulled him back, asking, "Where are you going?"
"I don't want to wait here to die with you. As the county magistrate, you can't escape, but I can. At worst, I can live a life of escape and save my life."
Xu Hui couldn't tolerate this. He grabbed Wanzhe's upper arm with even greater force and said fiercely, "Do you really think you can escape? Do you really think I'll let you get away with it?"
"You little scoundrel, it was you who came to ask for marriage!" Wanzhe glared at Xu Hui, who looked fierce in front of him, and became increasingly angry. "Now that you're in trouble, you've turned your back on me?"
"Hmph! You old fox, don't play dumb. Don't you understand the purpose of my marriage with your family? I was blinded and misjudged your Wan family. I didn't realize you didn't have a good backer. You also got a share of the wealth. Even if I, Xu Hui, die in a horrible way, I will drag you to hell with me!"
In the fierce confrontation, the alliance between the two had long been invalidated, and the sharing of happiness was only for the sake of interests.
And sharing the same hardships? That's just a joke.
Just as the two men were about to tear each other apart, they heard hurried footsteps outside the door, followed by the housekeeper's stuttering report: "Master... Master... The Chief Censor has arrived at the yamen... He wants to see you..."
---
Fang Che had not been seen for quite some time, and no one in the mansion mentioned his whereabouts, so no one cared.
But Fang Jingyu is different. She is the one who has always been concerned about this.
She wanted to ask Wan Mian where Fang Che had gone, but Wan Mian had been drinking and partying every day during that period and was rarely sober.
Sometimes Fang Jingyu couldn't help wondering if the two had been possessed by ghosts and spirits. One had vanished, the other had lost his true nature.
Unlike Wan Mian, Fang Jingyu has piles of chores waiting for her to do every day, including washing clothes, buying groceries and cooking. She has to take care of everything.
Seeing that there was no food left at home, she had no choice but to carry her basket and go to the market.
When she was selecting radishes at a stall and was about to ask the owner for the price, a woman suddenly came through the crowd, pushed Fang Jingyu aside, and shouted at the stall owner: "Lao Ma, how can you still sell vegetables here! They said a body was found outside the city. Could it be your missing second son?"
The stall owner immediately dropped his work and left with the woman in a panic. Fang Jingyu was also attracted by the woman's words and followed her half-believingly.
But after walking a few steps, she saw a familiar figure. When she looked closely, it was Xiao Lin, whom she met at the inn before coming to Wu County!
After not seeing each other for a long time, she suddenly remembered the mosquito repellent ball that Xiao Lin gave her. He had even said that he would treat her to a meal, but he had forgotten about it when he landed in Wu County. She felt ashamed to say that.
She was very happy and called her quickly. Xiao Lin and Mu You were also stopped by Fang Jingyu's call. They turned around and were surprised to find that it was Fang Jingyu.
"Long time no see! Why are you still here?" Fang Jingyu ran forward and greeted him.
"We come here to work. By the way, where are you going?" Xiao Lin replied.
Fang Jingyu raised his chin towards the city gate and said, "I heard a body was found outside the city. I want to go take a look."
When Xiao Lin heard her say that, he thought it was a coincidence. She and the other two also planned to join in the fun, so the three of them made an appointment to go together.
Not far outside the city, you can vaguely see a group of people gathered together. When you get closer, you can hear the crowd's murmurings. It seems that everyone is arguing about whose family that is.
Fang Jingyu finally squeezed in through the gap.
Only through the crowd did she see the face of the corpse clearly. Every inch of its features looked so familiar.
Her legs suddenly went limp and tears welled up in her eyes - that was her beloved brother!
The vegetable basket in Fang Jingyu's hand fell to the ground with a clang. She knelt and crawled beside the corpse, choking with sobs. No matter how carefully she looked at it, it was clearly Fang Che's face.
Fang Jingyu was stunned, there was no sign at all.
When they met Fang Che again, the brother and sister were separated forever.
When the people around saw that someone had claimed the body, the discussions died down and were replaced by looks of pity.
Fang Jingyu cried heart-wrenchingly, while Xiao Lin and Mu You could only stand aside, speechless.
Fortunately, someone reported the incident to the police, and two officers calmly dispersed the crowd and came forward.
Just as they were about to move Fang Che's body away, Fang Jingyu hugged her brother tightly. She protected her brother's head and didn't want him to be moved onto the cold stretcher.
One of the officers saw that she was a woman, so he squatted down and tried to persuade her carefully, but Fang Jingyu refused to listen to any persuasion. Her eyes were swollen and her nose was sore from crying, but she still had no intention of letting go.
They stayed like this for a long time, until all the people around had dispersed and everyone went back to do their own things, but Fang Jingyu still refused to let go.
Xiao Lin felt that this was not a solution, so she slowly leaned over and whispered to Fang Jingyu, "Your brother also needs to be settled. Let's calm down and find the reason together, okay..."
The more he spoke, the more Xiao Lin felt his nose become sore.
She was an easily moved person. Even though she had seen life and death many times during her few days in Wu County - whether it was the unjust deaths of civilians caused by collusion between officials and businessmen, or the heroic sacrifice of Lu Er and his wife who dared to be the first to do so, she could not hide her grief when she saw Fang Jingyu crying while holding Fang Che's corpse.
When she expressed her inner feelings in words, the string that had been tense in her heart broke.
But at the same time, as she said, there was no use keeping Fang Che's body here. It would be better to bury it and find out the truth.
Fang Jingyu slowly came to her senses. Pulled by reluctance, she let go of his hand and watched her brother, with whom she had depended for her entire life, leave.
But when her fingertips brushed across the back of her brother's head, she accidentally touched a small bump, like a foreign object.
She took the opportunity to secretly pick up the foreign object and held it tightly in her palm.
The two officers worked together to carry Fang Che's body away. After Fang Jingyu made sure they had left, he stretched out his hands tremblingly from behind his back.
When he opened his palm, he saw a small piece of wood covered in blood.
Fang Jingyu hurried to the river to wash the wood, but was frightened by his own guess.
After following the Wan family for these years, Fang Jingyu has also learned some skills in identifying wood. Judging from the texture, it should be rosewood.
But then I thought, in the whole city of Wuhu, apart from the Wan family and the Xu family, no one else could use rosewood.
She couldn't believe what she saw, but the memories that came to her mind hit her hard again.
Staring at the piece of wood in a daze, Fang Jingyu was shocked to realize that Wan Mian had thrown a stool at it a few days ago.
She had seen the stool before; it was incredibly broken. At the time, she was puzzled. What had happened to the hardwood to such a state? Only then did she realize that the stool might have struck Fang Che on the back of the head.
Even though Fang Jingyu knew this very well, she still frowned reluctantly.
Xiao Lin and Mu You stood aside, not knowing what to do. It was not until Fang Jingyu wiped her tears and stood up that Xiao Lin came forward.
Fang Jingyu noticed that Xiao Lin and Mu Youxu had followed. She lowered her eyes and turned her head: "Can you... accompany me? I don't have the courage to face him alone..."
Xiao Lin and Mu You looked at each other, and after exchanging glances, Xiao Lin nodded.
At this time, Wan Mian was still waiting for news from Wan Zhe in his room. When there was a knock on the door, he was greeted by Fang Jingyu with a dead look on his face.
"Ajing?" Wan Mian asked.
"A Mian, I want to talk to you..."
Wan Mian didn't notice anything unusual, but she did notice Xiao Lin and Mu You following her.
He wanted to stop them outside the door, but was stopped by Fang Jingyu.
Even though Wan Mian was confused, looking at Fang Jingyu's lifeless eyes, he still agreed with her.
Walking into Wan Mian's room, Fang Jingyu's eyes were always on the ground. She was looking for traces on the ground with anticipation and fear.
She didn't expect to find blood, and she was always conflicted about her own guess.
But the fact is the fact. Even if she just glanced casually, she still found a black mark on the ground.
Fang Jingyu's heart finally died the moment her eyes fell on the mark.
Along with the love she had buried for more than ten years, it all turned to ashes.
But Wan Mian was confused about their purpose and couldn't help asking, "Ah Jing, what exactly do you want to discuss with me?"
Fang Jingyu bit her lower lip, took a deep breath, tried her best to cover up her trembling voice, and spoke with all her strength: "A Mian... I want to ask you... did you kill my brother..."
This question shocked Wan Mian greatly.
Of course he knew that Fang Che died at his hands, but he didn't understand why Fang Jingyu knew that?
Hadn't he already arranged for someone to dispose of Fang Che's body?
"You...what are you talking about, Ajing..." Wan Mian panicked and his eyes began to wander.
But Fang Jingyu caught his wandering eyes - she knew him too well, and she knew too well how he looked when he lied.
After meeting that look, she finally gave up.
Fang Jingyu raised her head, trying to force back the tears that had already filled her eyes, but she couldn't hold back the grievance in her heart. The sourness blocked her throat, and she still cried.
Seeing Fang Jingyu crying so hard, Wan Mian was suddenly at a loss.
He stepped forward and tried to support Fang Jingyu, saying, "What happened to Ah Che..."
"Stop pretending! The piece of wood on the back of my brother's head is the broken piece of the wooden stool you threw away a while ago! The bloodstains on the floor of your room are the evidence! He's dead! His body was dumped in the suburbs! You killed him! You killed him with your own hands!"
Fang Jingyu couldn't help but roar, scaring Xiao Lin behind her.
But as she cried, Wan Mian's expression changed from initial panic to calm.
Wan Mian is now indifferent to life and death.
The cold and ruthless murderous intent penetrated into his heart from his blood-stained fingertips, making his originally warm heart become extremely cold.
"Since you all know..." Wan Mian's eyes began to reveal a strong murderous intent. He slowly moved to the door and gently closed it. "Killing one is killing, killing several is also killing!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he rushed towards Xiao Lin like crazy. Fortunately, Mu You reacted in time and pulled Xiao Lin away immediately, but unfortunately he was caught by Wan Mian.
The two men started fighting each other in an instant.
Mu You had his throat locked by Wan Mian. He grunted and told Xiao Lin to run away quickly. Xiao Lin was flustered and wanted to go up to save Mu You, but was forced back by Wan Mian's scary red eyes.
"Go... go find Chu Mo..." Mu You managed to squeak out a few words from between his teeth. Seeing that his face was already red and swollen, Xiao Lin could only turn around and run away.
But Wan Mian would never allow anyone to escape from his bedroom.
He clasped Mu You's throat tightly with his right arm and tried to reach out to grab Xiao Lin who was trying to escape. But just as he was about to step forward, he felt a sharp pain in his right arm. Turning around, he saw that it was Fang Jingyu who had twisted his arm fiercely.
This distraction allowed Xiao Lin to find the right opportunity to run out.
"A Mian! Stop being stubborn!" Fang Jingyu roared in despair.
Wan Mian refused to listen at all, he was already bloodthirsty.
Seeing that his arms were getting stronger and stronger, Mu You's struggle became weaker and weaker, and Fang Jingyu's eyes became blurred. With nothing else to do, she bit Wan Mian's arm directly.
She bit hard, and Wan Mian cried out in pain, then loosened his arms a little.
Seeing this, Fang Jingyu took the opportunity to pry his hands open and let Mu You out.
Wan Mian immediately stood up and wanted to chase after him, but was held back by Fang Jingyu again.
Seeing Mu You staggering away, he became furious and turned his head viciously, punching and kicking Fang Jingyu who was lying on the ground.
Blood was oozing from the corners of her mouth and her face was pale, but she still held on stubbornly.
Wan Mian was furious and anxious. He looked ferocious and squatted down to grab Fang Jingyu's neck.
There was a huge disparity in strength between the two, and Fang Jingyu had no power to fight back.
After being strangled, she could no longer utter any words and could only whimper: "A Mian...A...Mian..."
However, Wan Mian had lost all his sanity. His hands tightened and Fang Jingyu's voice became weaker.
Then, the hand that was holding Wan Mian's wrist gradually became weak, and finally, she gave up struggling, letting the hideous Wan Mian be reflected in her bloodshot eyes, her eyes full of disappointment.
When Fang Jingyu stopped moving, Wan Mian finally came to his senses and realized what he had done.
Both lives were lost at his hands, and the Fang brothers and sisters all died from his madness.
When his reason regained the upper hand, it was too late.
He had seen this tragic scene before.
Wan Mian fell to his knees with a thud, and tremblingly picked up Fang Jingyu's body.
He used his fingertips to brush away the messy hair on Fang Jingyu's face. At this moment, he woke up and pain occupied his heart. He just repeated "I'm sorry" in a boring way, which seemed to be a sincere confession.
But Fang Jingyu could no longer respond with a "no problem".
There is no turning back from his sins.
Wan Mian went completely crazy. There was no thought in his eyes. That emptiness seemed to swallow up his entire life.
He held Fang Jingyu in his arms, muttering something to himself, and walked aimlessly in the corridor, feeling melancholy.
Suddenly, the pond appeared in front of his eyes. The carp in the pond were swimming carefree, and their tails were swaying to create beautiful ripples.
However, ever since he became addicted to the glory brought by money and power, he no longer had the heart to take care of this pond of koi. The originally clear pond water became turbid without him knowing when.
Wan Mian took one last look at Fang Jingyu's face, suppressed his grief, let go, and threw her into the pool.
His luxurious clothes were soaked by the stirred-up pool water, and soon there were indelible water marks on them.
He stood blankly beside the pond, watching the carp in the pond swim over Fang Jingyu, and his heart sank...
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