Chapter 395: Collective Wisdom
Shen Yuexi has always considered herself a woman who doesn't care about trivial matters.
It is precisely because of her casual and carefree nature that she was able to live in a cave with Xiao Zhuo, roll down hillsides, get caught in heavy rain, wear men's clothes without a care in the world, and struggle all the way to where she is today.
So when Jiao Yong sneezed at her, she initially had no intention of dodging. After all, Jiao Yong was an old man in his sixties, and it was not a big deal if he sneezed in the cold weather.
But the baby in her belly kicked her, causing her to change her mind.
She didn't mind, but the baby in her belly did. A sneeze could bring out so many viruses and bacteria, and she wasn't wearing a mask, so she inhaled them head-on. Even if it was just a cold, even if it caused a miscarriage, it would be a serious problem, not to mention a serious illness.
Thinking of the little baby who had been carried with great difficulty for six months and had already started to punch and kick in her belly, she would be heartbroken if something happened to him.
As soon as Jiao Yong finished sneezing, she stood up and hid to the side, raising her sleeves to cover her face.
Suddenly, I heard the sound of a chair falling over and a body falling to the ground.
She dropped her sleeves in surprise and looked at Jiao Yong, who had collapsed to the ground with his chair, clutching his chest with his hands, his mouth open in pain, about to cry out. She wondered if the sneezing had been too intense and triggered some hidden illness.
Xiao Zhuo rushed to Jiao Yong, squatted down and asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling uncomfortable?"
Jiao Yong twisted his body in pain and opened his mouth several times, but no words came out. He saw blood suddenly flowing out from the gaps in his palms that were covering his chest, instantly staining the back of his hands red.
Xiao Zhuo's expression changed, and he asked, "Is it a hidden weapon?"
He stood up and looked out the window, but saw no one in the courtyard. If someone had thrown a hidden weapon in the courtyard, there would have been no time to escape in such a short time. He looked over the courtyard wall and saw a figure on the tower outside the courtyard, which seemed to disappear in a flash.
Just as Shen Yuexi was about to come over to ask, Xiao Zhuo shouted, "Don't come over, there are assassins."
With Xiao Zhuo's reminder, Shen Yuexi finally noticed that Jiao Yong's chest was bleeding. She quickly moved away from the skylight and stood against the wall, saying, "Did it come in from the skylight?"
Thinking that if she hadn't dodged that blow, she would have been the one who got hurt, she couldn't help but feel lucky.
Xiao Zhuo dragged Jiao Yong out of the skylight and said, "It should be, but I don't know what it is."
At this time, the soldiers who heard the noise also rushed into the house. Seeing Jiao Yong's body half stained with blood, they were stunned. They didn't expect that under such strict guard, someone could actually assassinate him.
Xiao Zhuo said to the soldiers, "There is an assassin trying to kill someone, it seems like he is on the top of the tower outside the courtyard. Go check it out." The soldiers immediately rushed out to search for him.
Shen Yuexi called out to a sergeant, "Call Doctor Hua over, hurry up."
Doctor Hua accompanied the army to treat the wounded. After the Battle of Leshan, he did not return to Shengjing, but stayed in Leshan to continue treating the injured soldiers in a temporary clinic next to the county government office.
Xiao Zhuo said to Shen Yuexi, "They are Pei Jingyun's assassins. They have already sneaked into the city."
Shen Yuexi squatted in front of Jiao Yong and said, "Jiao Yong, hold on. We'll call a doctor to treat you right away."
Jiao Yong closed his eyes, breathing out but not in, and kept mumbling to himself.
Shen Yuexi couldn't hear what he said clearly, so she quickly leaned over and put her ear close to his mouth and said, "What do you want to say? Say it again."
Jiao Yong said weakly, "Island...Island."
His words were so unclear that Shen Yuexi only heard the pronunciation of the word "knife". She thought he was saying that the wound on his chest was caused by a flying knife. She looked at the wound carefully but didn't see the handle of the knife. She could only say, "I know. Hold on, the doctor will be here soon."
After saying just two sentences, Jiao Yong's body sank in Xiao Zhuo's arms, and his head drooped softly.
Xiao Zhuo placed his fingers under Jiao Yong's neck for a moment, shook his head, put Jiao Yong's body down, and said to Shen Yuexi, "He's dead."
Shen Yuexi touched his chest and said, "Luckily I dodged it just now, otherwise I would have been the one to die."
Xiao Zhuo also looked quite frightened, his face pale. He reached out and touched the top of her head, saying, "I can't believe he was able to carry out the assassination under such strict guard. What were his last words?"
Shen Yuexi said: "He just mentioned the word 'knife' twice."
"Knife?" Xiao Zhuo pondered, "Only one word?"
As the two pondered, Qi Shengjue and his companions, accompanied by Doctor Hua, hurried over. Everyone was shocked to learn that the assassination attempt was intended for Shen Yuexi. Qi Shengjue broke out in a cold sweat and immediately issued an order that no one within a mile of the county government office be allowed to approach.
Shen Yuexi and Xiao Zhuo did not leave the county government office, but waited in a room outside the prison.
Not long after, the soldiers who had gone to search for the assassin reported that they had not caught him, but they had found traces of gunpowder burns on the windowsill of the tower outside the courtyard.
"Gunpowder?" Shen Yuexi was surprised.
She knew that in ancient times, bows and crossbows were the most common weapons, and cannons were extremely rare siege weapons. She hadn't expected the assassin to also use gunpowder. What could have been the weapon that shot Jiao Yong?
Seeing her surprise, Xiao Zhuo asked, "What kind of hidden weapon did the other party use to penetrate the window from such a long distance?"
At this time, Doctor Hua entered the room, holding a plate in his hand, and said, "Prince An, I have already taken out the thing that caused Jiao Yong's death."
Shen Yuexi and Xiao Zhuo both stood up and walked to Doctor Hua. They saw a blood-stained white cloth on the tray in his hand, and in the center of the white cloth was a black iron bullet.
"This thing broke Jiao Yong's sternum and injured his heart," Doctor Hua said. "Even if I arrived in time, I'm afraid there's nothing I can do to save him."
Shen Yuexi took a breath and said, "This is a bullet."
Xiao Zhuo asked: "Bullets?"
"Yes, my husband, don't you know the structure of a cannon?" Shen Yuexi said, "You can think of it as an assassin holding a miniature cannon. It also uses the explosive force of gunpowder to shoot projectiles, which is called a musket."
Xiao Zhuo was surprised at first, then said with relief: "I never thought that the other party could forge such a powerful weapon."
Shen Yuexi curled her lips and said, "It's nothing, but it's indeed surprising."
She has a universal manufacturing machine, and as long as there are materials, there is basically nothing that Big Bear can't make. She was surprised that someone could invent firearms in this era.
The officials in the county hall were on edge upon learning of Jiao Yong's assassination. When Xiao Zhuo and Shen Yuexi arrived and announced the events, everyone began to whisper and discuss the matter.
More than twenty compilers and editors in the Hanlin Academy were all top three in the palace examination during the reign of Emperor Yongde. After some discussion, they nominated a leader.
The man said, "Prince Princess An previously asked Jiao Yong about the traitor's location, but Jiao Yong refused to reveal it. Now, as he was nearing death, he must have felt resentful and would no longer insist on concealing it. In our humble opinion... he wasn't referring to anything that had harmed him, but rather the location of the traitor."
Seeing that what he said made sense, everyone asked, "So what did he say?"
Compiled: "Island, the island of islands."
After everyone discussed this, Shen Yuexi suddenly came to her senses and said, "I understand. Pei Jingyun's base is on an island."
She had originally thought these officials were only capable of flattery, but she hadn't expected them to be so clever and discover the truth so quickly. No wonder Xiao Zhuo had said they were all talented individuals; she had truly underestimated them before.
Xiao Zhuo said, "Now, my doubts are cleared up. Five thousand Iron Pagoda cavalrymen are a considerable army, yet I was unaware of this. Furthermore, the Black Light Armor required four thousand blacksmiths to create, and took eight years to build. How could such a large-scale armament be hidden from public view?"
Shen Yuexi clapped her hands and smiled, "So she's hiding on an island. That must be where she trains assassins. We..."
She laughed and laughed, but then she couldn't laugh anymore.
I know there is an island, but where is it in such a vast ocean?
Xiao Zhuo was not worried. He stood up and said, "Yuexi, since the Queen Mother is on the island, she must need ships to transport supplies and personnel. We just need to go to the port and ask around. We will definitely find some clues."
The Minister of Works, who was in charge of the entire Great Yan's construction projects, immediately stood up and said, "Prince An, I will immediately order all ports to promptly report the records of ships coming and going. This will surely reveal the rebels' travel history."
Xiao Zhuo asked, "Is there any record of islands in the Ministry of Works' records?"
The Minister of Works said, "There are indeed more than a dozen of them. The closest is over thirty miles from the land, and the farthest is nearly a hundred miles away. But they are all small islands and cannot accommodate thousands of people. I will investigate them in detail later..."
There was one more thing he didn't say. He didn't expect to need these things this time, so he didn't bring them with him.
The Prime Minister said, "Don't worry, Prince An. I will take care of these matters. Prince An and Princess An can go to the backyard to rest first. Once we find the traitor's lair, I will report to Prince An immediately."
Shen Yuexi said, "Prime Minister, my two sisters have been kidnapped by Pei Jingyun's assassins. You must hurry."
The Prime Minister said, "Princess An, rest assured. We simply didn't know the traitor was hiding on the island, which is why she's been at large until now. We've arranged for officials from various departments to investigate, and we'll have results within a few days."
Seeing that so many people were working together, Shen Yuexi didn't need to worry about anything, so she went back to the backyard with Xiao Zhuo to rest.
After an entire afternoon of tossing and turning, it was almost dark. Qi Shengjue was afraid that the assassin would come again, so to ensure the safety of Xiao Zhuo and Chen Yuexi, the entire county government office was filled with soldiers, and torches were as bright as day.
Back inside, Xiao Zhuo sat at the table and said, "Since the other party has a musket, we should not easily show up in public from now on."
Shen Yuexi was a little unconvinced and said, "Husband, I can make better weapons."
She didn't want to do this at first, but since the other party had made a musket, don't blame her for fighting back.
"Big Bear," she bent her fingers and tapped her head lightly, asking in her mind, "Is it turned on?"
During the battle with the Xirong army, the big bear turned the entire lake into torrential rain and poured it down on the heads of the Xirong army. It has been shut down for many days, and it’s time to start it up again.
"Dear Master, Big Bear is here. What are you going to make?"
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