Female General (Twenty-one)
The summer nights are hot, and the only noise in the wild mountains and wilderness is the chirping of insects.
The officers and soldiers of the brigade held torches, and the flames flickered, casting long and short shadows of people on the rugged rocks and sparse grass and trees.
Xiao Linchumo walked at the back of the team and could clearly see the expressions of every accompanying person in the group.
After getting off the carriage, the crisp sound of leather boots stepping on gravel, the friction sound of cloth shoes sliding over wet moss, and the suppressed breathing, intertwined in the dead silence of the night, adding to the heaviness.
The air was hot and sticky, filled with the smell of dust, sweat, and rotting grass.
The three wives of the Huang family and their families were guarded in the middle of the team and had difficulty walking.
The eldest lady was supported by two strong maids on both sides. Even though the mountain road was rugged, she still tried her best to maintain a dignified posture, with her back straight, as if a string stretched to the limit and would break in the next moment.
The second wife, who was born timid, looked embarrassed. She walked with one foot deep and one foot shallow, and didn't care that her embroidered shoes hurt from stepping on the gravel.
Huang Chun stood behind the third lady, his eyelids lowered, his gaze fixed on the swaying light and shadows under his feet and the rugged mountain road.
The third lady, on the other hand, was surprisingly calm. She let the firelight pass over her pale face and allowed the sweat to soak the few strands of hair on her temples, sticking to her forehead.
The Huang family is no pushover.
Xiao Lin deliberately slowed down his pace and quietly tugged at the corner of Chu Mo's clothes.
Chu Mo turned around, and she immediately murmured in a hoarse voice: "Boss Chu, I found something."
She was about to pull out the hidden arrow she had found earlier, but she was surprised to see Chu Mo was very calm. He stretched out his fingertips and gently pushed her hand away, whispering, "Keep it, we'll talk later."
Xiao Lin was disappointed and had no choice but to follow his advice.
As the team cut through the branches and climbed the mountainside with difficulty, waves of disgusting fishy and rotten odors mixed with the smell of sweat and burnt smoke hit them in the face.
At that time, Xiao Lin was glad that she was wrapped thickly, and the layers of linen could block a lot of the stench for her. It was just a pity for Chu Mo, who didn't have time to wear a mask.
Soon, the torches in front of me became more and more conspicuous. Not far away, I saw a large ball of shaking orange and yellow, like a brand new sun. But upon closer inspection, it seemed not bright enough.
Perhaps Huang Heng was alert, and soon he noticed the footsteps of the crowd. He then went forward one after another, helping several women who were feeling unsteady on their feet.
The first lady glanced at him briefly and did not put her arm around him. Needless to say, the third lady was young and not so weak that she needed someone to support her.
Xiao Lin guessed Huang Heng's biological mother at a glance - when others ignored him, only Second Madam Yu grabbed his wrist and slowly raised her fingertips to brush across his temples a few inches.
But in Xiao Lin's eyes, this scene of loving mother and filial son was nothing but a thief's heart shrouded in a veil.
The murderer must be Huang Heng.
But there is no evidence at the moment, so it will take some effort to make him atone for his sins.
At the end of the sight, at the core of the fire, the scene was horrific.
A body was lying there, torn beyond recognition by wild wolves, with broken bones and flesh tangled, the bones visible.
The dark red blood soaked into the soil beneath him and solidified into strange patches.
There were some torn pieces of cloth scattered around, dull in color, stained with mud and blood, as if they had been torn off their prey by wild beasts and discarded.
The two soldiers held their breath, crouched on the ground, and carefully picked up the scattered scraps of cloth and body parts with the tips of their knives, their movements stiff and cautious.
Li Yunchi took a step forward, wrinkled his nose, and moved an inch closer, but then couldn't help but step back a foot.
"Sir," a crouching sergeant said hoarsely, his voice difficult to hear, "please look here."
He used the tip of his knife to pick up a piece of leather robe that was half buried in the soil and had been gnawed and torn. Although the robe was incomplete, the fabric and workmanship could still be identified.
In the firelight, a dark purple old mark was revealed on the skin at the edge of the shoulder armor that had not completely rotted, and it was particularly glaring next to the wound torn by the wolf's fangs.
"It's him." Li Yun subconsciously avoided the foul smell rising in front of him and coughed twice. "The scroll states that before he joined the army, he worked as a boatman. Now I see the rope marks on his shoulder blade, more than half an inch deep. It must be this boy without a doubt."
Li Yun had barely finished speaking when Madam Wang, the eldest wife, stepped forward bravely, clutching a handkerchief and pointing it directly at Wang Pu's corpse. She barked out a cry of accusation from the bottom of her teeth, "He...he was the one who killed the master?"
The people around him did not respond, but they all agreed with this statement.
Seeing this, Wang was immediately enraged, spitting and cursing: "My master had no grudge against him, so why did he do such a cruel thing! Now his retribution has come, he has been devoured by wolves and his body has been shattered in the wilderness! Such a thug deserves to be damned forever, suffering from eternal damnation!"
Wang was cursing at the side, and the second wife immediately leaned her head on Huang Heng's shoulder, her arms twitching irregularly, and Huang Heng also tried to comfort her.
The chirping of insects in the desolate mountains had stopped at some point, and only the thick smell of blood and death weighed heavily on everyone's heart, almost suffocating them.
The officers and soldiers around were even more silent. Only the crackling sound of burning torches and the weeping of their families tore through the iron-heavy summer night.
Afterwards, Li Yun waved his sleeves and brought Wang Pu's remaining body back to the capital.
His sins were silently laid on a corpse in the loneliest mountains.
"How ridiculous!" Mu You, who had been in the backyard of Liu Xiangju for an hour or two, was very dissatisfied when he heard this. He pounded the table and chairs in front of Qian Li, "This is all their speculation! It's not rigorous at all!"
He was so angry that his chest felt like a bellows, breathing out hot air, and the veins on his neck were exposed without any reservation.
Xiao Lin stripped off his corpse-smelling robe piece by piece, grabbed a round fan and fanned fiercely: "But all the evidence they have pointed to Wang Pu, and no one else has any doubts..."
"Then...they suspect Wang Pu. What was Wang Pu's motive for committing this crime?" Mu You's voice grew increasingly anxious, further fueling the already sweltering heat of the night. "Why would he collaborate with the enemy? Why would he murder an imperial official? What was he hiding?"
No matter how Ren Muyou complained, Xiao Lin could not get a word in, and in the end he could only lower his head secretly.
Qian Li sat to one side, listening to the conversation, glancing at their expressions, and then looking at Chu Mo, saying softly, "Yinxi, what do you think?"
Suddenly dragging him into the fray, Chu Mo showed no sign of fear. After taking a sip of tea, he slowly hooked his knuckles at Xiao Lin and said, "Didn't you say you found a new and interesting gadget? Why don't you show it to everyone?"
After Chu Mo's reminder, Xiao Lin finally remembered the sleeve arrow in his arms. He hurriedly said "Oh" and frantically searched in his arms. He grabbed the robe he had taken off and finally touched the handkerchief.
"Look, this is what I found in the grass by the window of the study where Mr. Huang was murdered..."
She held the handkerchief and carefully unfolded the contents, lowering her voice for fear of disturbing them with her nonsense.
Mu You was the first to approach, frowning and muttering, "What is this?"
"It's a hidden arrow." Qian Li came over pushing a wheelchair, his eyes radiating a calmness. "This hidden arrow is extremely finely crafted. If it wasn't a gift from the emperor, it must have been acquired at a great price. This shows that the owner is definitely not an ordinary person."
The conversation between the few of them piqued Chu Mo's interest. After some initial thought, he suddenly asked, "Xiao Lin, besides this sleeve arrow, have you found anything else?"
"Yes, there are a few fresh scratches on the wooden edge of the window that the hidden arrow is pointing at. It looks like... looks like they were caused by a rope?"
Qian Li said, "Why would an ordinary family have hemp ropes placed along their windowsills? I think that scar must have been set up by someone with ulterior motives."
Suddenly, an idea came to Mu You, and he was overjoyed: "Great! This way, doesn't it prove that the real murderer is actually a person of high status? Then Wang Pu can be exonerated! The general can also be released!"
"No." Chu Mo suddenly interrupted, "The coroner found out that Lord Huang died from a sharp blade in the throat, not this weapon. And you noticed early on that the sleeve arrows were delicate and could not kill a strong man on the spot. There must be something hidden."
What he said made sense, causing Xiao Lin to hesitate for a moment. He then opened his mouth to ask again, "Then what if the murderer coated the hidden arrow with poison? Did Lord Huang actually die from the poison?"
Full of doubts, Xiao Lin stayed where he was, looking up into Chu Mo's eyes, but he knew that his heart was as deep as the abyss, and he could not get any answer from him.
"Let me see."
At some point, Qian Li quietly took away the sleeve arrow in the peripheral vision of Xiao Lin and Mu You, pinched the handkerchief and gently turned the sleeve arrow, the three-inch cold blade reflected the candlelight obliquely, and there was no trace of suspicious oiliness or strange color on the blade as it turned.
Xiao Lin stood quietly to one side, not breathing.
Qian Lihu leaned closer again, his breath almost stagnant, and he sniffed the cold and frosty blade carefully, his brows slightly furrowed.
After a moment, his tense shoulders suddenly sank, his eyelashes drooped, and his fingertips lightly brushed the arrowhead that was reflected in the candlelight. Finally, he confirmed, "Clean, not poisoned."
No poison? How could it be no poison?
What Qian Li said was completely contrary to Xiao Lin's guess. If there was no poison on the sleeve arrow, it would be impossible to convict Huang Heng. All the previous efforts would have been in vain!
Anxiety welled up in her heart, and she blurted out a question: "How can it be non-toxic? Shouldn't we ask a professional doctor to take a look?"
"I'm ashamed to say that when I was about to commit suicide, I tried to research various poisons in order to achieve a peaceful end. Now, looking at this arrowhead, it hasn't changed color, and there's no sweet or fishy smell. I can definitely tell it wasn't poisoned."
Xiao Lin still couldn't believe it: "Then...could it be a colorless and odorless poison?"
"There is no such poison in the world."
It's over, it's all over, there's no hope at all.
They thought they could use this to restrain Huang Heng, but it turned out that this sleeve arrow was nothing more than an ordinary one. Even if they insisted that it was Huang Heng's murderous hand, their reasoning seemed reasonable.
"Then...then, the general cannot be saved?" Mu You's every word was filled with disappointment. In an instant, his whole body went limp and he sat down on a wooden chair beside his legs.
Qian Li scratched his chin and continued, "Since they have found Wang Pu's body and have evidence in their hands, I'm afraid they will submit a letter to the emperor tomorrow. If the emperor is furious, the general will probably be imprisoned tomorrow and executed on a later date..."
"No!" Xiao Lin shouted, panic in his eyes. "No, the general cannot die unjustly. There must be a way... There must be a way..."
Often at such moments, Xiao Linyi would be overwhelmed by panic. Mu You was about to step forward to comfort him, but seemed to have thought of something and finally withdrew his fingertips.
The backyard of Liuxiang Residence was as hot and stuffy as a cage, and the dim light of the stone lanterns reflected the pale faces of the four people.
The teacup had already gone completely cold, the foam had disappeared, and only brown residue remained at the bottom of the cup.
The only sound around was the increasingly shrill chirping of crickets at the foot of the wall. Even the creaking of the windlass rope beside the well platform, gently plucked by the night wind, was so clear that it made one's heart tighten.
Finally, it was Chu Mo who broke the deadlock: "Tomorrow, I will personally go to the government office to inspect Mr. Huang's body. Xiao Lin and Mu You, you two must quickly enter the palace. Remember, there must be no mistakes on this trip. One wrong step will send the general to the guillotine sooner than he has."
"What are our identities? The palace is heavily guarded, how can we enter? Moreover, we have to rescue the general?" After hearing Chu Mo's arrangements, Mu You suddenly became puzzled and asked in a hurry.
Chu Mo calmly rummaged through his arms and pulled out something that was very familiar to both of them.
"Nachuan Box?" Xiao Lin was shocked, his eyes widening. "Boss Chu, do you allow us to use this thing?"
Chu Mo closed his eyes and blinked his eyelashes.
Before Xiao Lin's words of thanks came the trembling hands of Mu You.
They had witnessed the magical power of the Nachuan Box from Tong Huan a long time ago. Now that they had this treasure, why would they worry about not being able to enter the palace or rescue Gou Su?
The two kids were overjoyed when they saw this, their mouths almost stretched to their ears.
With his eyes fixed on the Nachuan box, Xiao Lin asked Chu Mo as if to greet him, "But Boss Chu, the coroner clearly stated that Mr. Huang died of a sword wound. Why did you go to examine his body?"
But who would have thought that Xiao Lin's casual words would lead to silence.
In her ears, there was only the throbbing of her heartbeat, even the chirping of insects was drowned out in an instant.
Chu Mo's fingertips suddenly paused, his eyes moved, and the corners of his lips seemed to lift up slightly.
The candlelight in the room flickered at this moment, and the dark color like a deep pool instantly drowned out the warm spring water in his eyes just now. The evil mole suddenly appeared like ink, making people feel chilly.
Then he said softly, "How do you know that what the coroner said is true?"
Xiao Lin was stunned, his throat tightened and he couldn't make a sound.
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