Storytelling
The man put down his black cloak and said, "There is someone waiting outside. If you go out, you will be charged with a crime and sentenced to death." This person was Yuwen Yi.
"What do you think, Master Yuwen?" Zhao Mingshang went straight to the point.
"Mr. Tan and Mr. Xu, follow me out to get out of sight. When the prison is empty, come out on your own."
Isn't this just breaking out of prison? What kind of brilliant idea do you think it is?
Xu Ning secretly complained, but openly said, "That won't do. Wouldn't that mean we're admitting our guilt? Let's wait and see what this Lu prefect is going to do."
"If you all think this way, why not use yourself as bait to lure the snake out of its hole?"
Not long after Yuwen Yi left, several more yamen officials came and said, "Sign this. You can leave after signing." One of the yamen officials threw a piece of paper of indictment into each of the two cells.
"What's this?"
"What do you mean? What do you mean by killing a brothel girl? Did the prefect make a mistake?" Zhao Mingshang said in a gentle voice with a smile on his face.
"Just sign if I ask you to. Why so much nonsense?" one of the men said impatiently.
After reading the confession, several people understood the prefect's intention.
So this is looking for a scapegoat.
Xu Ning lost his patience and pulled the man's arm hard. He raised his leg and bent his knee to hit the man's stomach, then hit the man's neck hard with his side palm, and the man fainted.
Zhao Mingchang showed no mercy and stabbed one man in the stomach with the hilt of his sword. He then kicked another man in the leg, causing him to curl up on the ground. Qu Yi, who was standing opposite him, looked at the man on the ground with a grim expression, as if he had been kicked.
Tang Xixu and Xu Lian changed into the two men's clothes, slightly lowered their hats, and ducked their heads as they passed the jailers. The jailers didn't suspect anything, so they turned around and knocked out the two guards guarding the gate. They repeated the same process again, obtaining three more sets of clothes in less than a quarter of an hour.
Several people walked out one by one with their hats slightly lowered.
"What are you doing?" A sentry outside the prison became suspicious.
"There's a fire in the prison! Someone bring water!" Qu Yi set a fire before leaving. The fire wasn't big, only burning the two rooms where they lived.
There was chaos outside the prison and everyone was rushing to put out the fire, so they didn't notice these people at all.
"Master, something bad has happened. There's a fire in the cell."
Lu Shiren stood up instantly: "It's bad! Go to the cell quickly!"
"You bold lunatic! How dare you escape from prison!" Xu Ning and his group just arrived in front of the government office. Lu Shiren was so angry that he didn't even wear his official hat properly.
"We are innocent, how can we escape from prison?" The huge fire attracted many people to watch. Xu Ning was unwilling to be outdone.
"Everyone come and take a look. The prefect Lin Yao is accusing people of crimes and falsely accusing them of crimes!" Qu Yi saw that people were gathering around him and wanted to force the prefect.
Zhao Mingchang hurriedly said: "The brothel girl jumped to her death and it had nothing to do with us. Why are you blaming us?" She wanted to let the people know that they were innocent.
"Aren't these the people who performed on the street a few days ago?"
"I was there at the time, and several people were performing. How could they have time to commit the crime?"
More and more people came, and Tang Xixu added fuel to the fire: "Actually, you know that your son has made too many enemies, and those enemies are not us at all. Recently, the government office couldn't find the real culprit of the falling case, and the people in the city are in a panic, and there are even rumors of ghosts. So you want to find someone to close the case hastily to stop people from talking. Right? Lu Shiren." The young man squinted his eyes and smiled.
Lu Shiren's heart trembled violently, as if his throat was being strangled. He really didn't know who the murderer of his son was, but he didn't dare to say anything, especially when he met the young man's eyes.
He was too familiar with this look, like a sharp dagger in the dark night.
Seeing the urgency of the situation and the testimony of many civilians, Lu Shiren could only give in: "Four days at most. If we can't find the real murderer within four days, then you are the murderer."
"I have a request. We can all read the Yanei files." Xu Ning took the opportunity to make a request. It's always a good idea to know more about the person.
The people outside the hall dispersed and the group went to the scene of the crime.
"From what I know, Huimeng Tower has very strict rules, and women in the building are not allowed to go out. And the place where the fall occurred was Mingshanju, which means that the deceased was either allowed out or escaped secretly."
"You're talking nonsense, but from what Bai Ju said, he should have run away on his own." Xu Ning was speechless to Qu Yi.
"The madam just said that she had an argument with Miss Xiaowan and then left. She didn't show any emotion when she left. When the customers called for her, they found that she was gone. They searched for her for several days but couldn't find her. A few days before she fell from the building, someone left a note asking her to come to Mingshanju on Xi'nan Street. She was late because of something urgent, and finally heard the news of her death at the government office." Xu Lian frowned and thought.
"Mrs. Lu, have there been any suspicious people in the past ten days?" Zhao Mingshang called the owner of Mingshanju. Due to the falling case, there were fewer customers at Mingshanju.
Seeing that the visitor was not an official, Lu Rui turned a deaf ear to him.
Xu Ning took some silver and put it in Lu Rui's hand: "Boss, you've been thinking about it for so long. Do you remember it now?"
Lu Rui was blinded by money: "I remember now, I remember now. There was a young man here recently, about 20 years old, dressed like a scholar, very elegant. Yes, he's from a wealthy family, with some money. He was here the morning after someone fell from the building."
Tang Xixu looked around and saw no signs of a struggle. He asked, "What did the deceased yell before entering the building?"
Several people went back to Menglou to find Bai Ju and asked her to take out Xiao Wan's indenture contract, but the madam just rolled her eyes and refused.
"Hurry up and take it." Tang Xixu put the dagger against Bai Ju's neck.
"Take it, take it, take it."
Zhao Mingchang took it first. Xu Ning came over and silently recited the deceased's name, a little puzzled: "Pan Ruyi... I always feel like I've heard this name somewhere."
"I didn't expect she was a daughter of an official. Her father, Pan Qi, was originally the governor of Jizhou. Five years ago, he was reported and imprisoned for embezzling disaster relief funds from the imperial court. The following year, his daughter, Pan Ruyi, married Wu Yun."
A few people were contemplating the street outside the window when they heard people applauding: "Good! Good!"
"Wu Dalang was very poor, and Pan Ruyi, who had grown up in luxury, had never experienced such injustice. Therefore, their marriage was unhappy. Then a handsome and wealthy man appeared. He treated Pan Ruyi well and helped her regain her wealth and glory. The two of them had an affair for a long time, and Wu Dalang knew about it but dared not say a word. Later, they even lived together."
"Humph! This is outrageous! Such a fickle woman deserves to die!"
Xu Ning suddenly realized, yes.
No one said anything and just listened carefully to what was said.
"Later, Wu Yun couldn't stand it anymore, so he gathered a group of people and beat them to death while they were out. He then met a kind-hearted woman, and they got married."
There are many doubts in this case, and everyone looks heavy-hearted.
"Who is Wu Yun?"
"A native of Jizhou. An ordinary farmer." Qu Yi had listened to the story and heard it told by the onlookers.
"That means Pan Ruyi married into the family in the 21st year of Zhenning. What happened between the three of them was just a small matter between the three of them, so how could it be known to everyone?"
Zhao Mingchang frowned and looked at Xu Ning. "Linyao is right next to Jizhou. Not surprisingly, most people in Linyao know about it. And they probably just think it's just a storybook for entertainment."
Several people were silent at once, unable to speak.
I can’t imagine how a woman in her twenties could endure all these rumors.
Until now, there are still people talking about this story, and Pan Ruyi is still being "scolded".
And it wasn't just one day, it wasn't just one city.
"The person behind this is really vicious!"
"He just wanted Pan Ruyi to die." Tang Xixu calmly stated the murderer's purpose.
Zhao Mingshang and Qu Yi immediately decided to go to Jizhou.
The night was as dark as ink, without a single star. The streets that used to be bustling with people at night were now deserted.
"Boom, boom, boom"
"It's dry, be careful with fire"
Ding, ding, ding!
"Beware of thieves and thefts, close the doors and windows, and all the ghosts, big and small, will sit in a row, and everything will be safe and sound."
It was already past the first watch of the night. Only a few lanterns were lit on the street. Every household had already gone to bed, except for two or three scholars who were studying hard by long candles.
Mao Xiaoer was on night watch that night, but he didn't really want to come to this street. Someone had died not long ago, so it was unlucky, and it had been haunted recently, which was really scary.
As he yawned, he saw a figure passing by ten miles away. He rubbed his eyes hard. The figure was slender, holding an oil-paper umbrella, with long black hair falling to his hips.
The fog spread and became thicker and thicker. The woman stood at the street corner motionless.
"Young lady, please go back quickly. The weather is getting colder. I see you are wearing thin clothes, so you might catch a cold." Mao Xiaoer was not a bad person. He gave her careful instructions and then left.
He turned around and walked about ten steps, but when he bent down to pick up a mallet, a face with tears and blood suddenly approached him. "Wow!" The woman's face was pale, and her hair covered most of her face. Mao Xiaoer fainted from fright.
The female ghost did not cause any trouble and just continued walking.
A scream had just occurred, and some people on the street were awake. "What happened in the middle of the night?" A white figure flew by, dragging someone out of the door. "Snap!" Before the man could even scream, his head fell to the floor. Blood drenched his neck, though some of his veins were still alive.
The next day, a group of people gathered in a circle, some mothers blindfolding their children. A bloody letter was left on the head, written on a white cloth: "I died a tragic death. Give me back the truth."
"What's going on?" The three of them spent most of the night reading the Pan family's files and only got up at 9:00 a.m.
The body was taken to the morgue, and Xu Ning felt sick when he entered the room.
"There's a rumor going around that a female ghost is taking lives, and I'm the next one. Some even think she wants Lin Yaocheng buried with her." Xu Lian's expression grew more serious. "The man who died last night was named Xing Yong. He was a scholar who loved nothing more than reciting poems and beauties."
Xu Ning understood and hurried back to Menglou, with Tang Xixu following quietly behind.
"Tell me, what is the relationship between Xing Yong and Xiao Wan?" Tang Xixu put the knife to the man's neck again.
Bai Ju understood clearly that these people would not kill her, yet she still refused to speak. "Speak or not, my patience has its limits." The young man spoke calmly, but the knife had already penetrated the madam's skin, and Bai Ju could already feel the pain.
"Ah, it's a guest. He likes Xiao Wan very much. Every time he comes, he asks for her. They recite poems and write couplets. Not long ago, he even said that he would redeem her when he passed the imperial examination."
When the two of them returned, Xu Ning just frowned and thought about the case.
"There's a new wonton shop over there. I heard it's delicious." Tang Xixu pushed people towards the wonton stall.
Xu Ning didn't react in time. She took a bite and found it was meat, and it was a little hot. "I'm scared of meat today." The girl's eyebrows were twisted into a frown.
Tang Xixu didn't think twice and put his hand under Xu Ning's chin. "Then spit it out. Don't eat things you hate." The young man said in a gentle tone.
"Never mind, it's so disgusting, I imported it."
"Hurry up." The young man lowered his voice, as if he would get angry in the next second.
Xu Ning had no choice but to spit it out, feeling a little embarrassed.
The young man just put half a mouthful of wonton to his mouth and said, "Hey, don't eat this, there is still a big bowl here." Xu Ning knocked his hand over.
"It's a bit of a waste." Tang Xixu said slowly.
I didn't expect that he valued food so much.
After eating, the two returned to the inn. It couldn't really be called an inn, just a dilapidated temple. After all, they didn't have much money, so they could only make do.
"Last night, night watchman Mao Xiaoer said he saw a female ghost who looked just like Xiao Wan. Xiao Wan didn't kill him, which means she killed for a purpose."
Xu Lian added: "One more thing. I went to check this afternoon, and the body was gone."
"The coroner checked and confirmed she was indeed dead. Who on earth is trying to avenge her?"
Several people had investigated and discovered that Pan Ruyi had initially been a parachute dancer since arriving in Linyao, and was, in fact, Bai Ju's apprentice. She had also learned pipa from Fang Niang, and was apparently close to the managers of the Linyao City brothels.
"This murderer might also be able to do some face-lifting."
"It's Buhuo City again?" Xu Ning became more and more curious about this ghost town that was rarely mentioned in the original book.
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