137. Killer
In the withered woods, Chen Ji sat cross-legged on the soft rotten leaves, muttering to himself.
"Immortals and Taoists are not gods, but they accumulate energy and vitality to believe that they are real. The wonderful voice of the Yellow Boy is hard to hear, and the jade book, crimson tablets, and red cinnabar characters..."
Wu Yun squatted on his head, stretched his neck to read the writing on the paper scroll, and asked curiously: "Can chanting scriptures summon help?"
Chen Ji continued reading for a moment without interruption before replying, "It's not certain that we can actually call for reinforcements. It depends on the reinforcements' understanding..."
Wu Yun was puzzled: "What if the reinforcements don't have the ability to understand?"
Chen Ji thought for a moment and said, "Then let's see if he can bear the pain."
As long as the pain lasts long enough, the golden pig will definitely come looking for him.
Chen Ji and his group did not hide their tracks along the way, and the literary gathering at Luhun Villa was known to everyone. As long as Jin Zhu felt sorry enough, he would definitely find a way to find him.
At this time, the prince's voice came from a distance: "Chen Ji, you were taken away by a wolf, what took you so long?"
Chen Ji stood up, pulled the dark cloud from his head, and said softly, "Master's fortune-telling has always been very accurate. This time it must be very dangerous. If I don't call you, don't rashly do anything risky."
Wuyun meowed, "I know, I know!"
Chen Ji wrapped the wooden box with cloth again and tied it to Wuyun's back.
At this moment, the prince's voice was heard from outside the woods again: "Chen Ji?"
Chen Ji glanced at the paper scroll in his hand again, wrote down a few words, and then responded to the prince: "I'm coming!"
When he returned to the official road, Chen Ji saw the scholars standing beside the ox cart, listening quietly to Wang Daosheng's lecture.
Wang Daosheng didn't care who was listening or whether he was paid for his studies. He just spoke calmly: "Investigating things, seeking knowledge, sincerity, uprightness of mind, self-cultivation, regulating the family, governing the state, and pacifying the world—these are the eight principles. And investigating things and seeking knowledge is the cornerstone of the eight principles..."
When he saw Chen Ji coming, he said to the scholars, "We are about to set off."
The scholars smiled and replied, "Listening to your lecture has been a real enlightenment. Anyway, the oxcart can't go very fast. Please continue your lecture. We will just follow behind the oxcart and listen as we go."
Another scholar said, "I heard that after the flood in western Henan, a group of victims became bandits in Longwangtun. They specialize in looting, burning, killing, and plundering. With so many people traveling with them, I'm sure they wouldn't dare to do anything reckless."
Wang Daosheng nodded: "Okay."
Seeing that these people were determined to follow him, Chen Ji didn't say much. All he needed to do now was wait for the golden pig to arrive.
He jumped onto the oxcart and sat down. Bai Li handed him a cowhide water bag from the left and asked with concern, "Are you okay? Have some water."
After Chen Ji finished reciting Zhayun, he took the water bag and whispered, "Princess, if you really encounter the bandits they mentioned, you must remember to run to me with the prince."
Bai Li blinked and said nonchalantly, "Okay. But if we really encounter bandits, will you only save the two of us?"
Chen Ji thought for a moment and replied in a low voice: "My ability is limited. I may not be able to save both of you, let alone others."
Bai Li said "oh" and was silent for a moment: "Chen Ji, if we really encounter bandits, I mean those really fierce bandits, if you can't save us, just run away by yourself, your own life is more important."
Chen Wenxiao sat across from him and sneered, "You can still save people? Princess, don't be intimidated by him."
Bai Li rolled his eyes and said, "When the bandits really come, just don't piss your pants."
Chen Ji suddenly looked directly at Chen Wenxiao and said calmly, "After you pinned your problems on me, did you feel so guilty that you couldn't sleep at night? So you wanted everyone to hate me, despise me, and despise me. That way, even if I refute you in the future, no one would believe me."
Chen Wenxiao's expression changed: "What are you talking about?"
After saying that, he realized that his voice was a little loud, and quickly lowered his voice: "Don't talk nonsense, white paper
The black evidence points to you, what does it have to do with me?"
He wanted to argue, but Chen Ji ignored him and closed his eyes to recite Zhayun silently. When he encountered a part he couldn't remember, he would secretly pull out the paper scroll from his sleeve to take a look.
Chen Wenxiao looked at Chen Ji's calm appearance and felt as if a stone was pressing on his chest, making it difficult for him to breathe.
When he wanted to make another sarcastic remark, he was too afraid to speak.
Bai Li looked at Chen Ji strangely.
Put the blame on others?
…
…
At noon, the official road ran parallel to the Yi River outside Luo City. On the left side of the ox cart was the sparkling golden Yi River, and on the right side were undulating hills and woods.
On the Yi River, a boatman is casting a net.
Prince Jing was in high spirits. Regardless of his position as a driver, he lifted his straw hat and shouted, "Boatman, did you catch any fish today?"
The elderly boatman, wearing a straw raincoat, responded loudly: "The market is not good today, we only caught a few grass carp."
Prince Jing laughed and said, "Are these fish for sale?"
The boatman slowly approached with his black-sailed boat and said, "Sell it, why not?"
Prince Jing turned around and smiled at Wang Daosheng, saying, "Mr. Wang, today's journey went smoothly. We can see that we will definitely reach Luhun Villa before sunset. Why don't we stop here and grill some fish? You can't get such fresh fish in the city."
Wang Daosheng responded gently, "It's rare... that the driver is so in the mood. Let's stop here for a while."
The prince and Baili jumped off the cart with a cheer and stretched themselves lazily: "We've been sitting in the ox cart all morning, our butts are sore."
Zhang Xia also jumped off the horse, took Bai Li's hand with a smile, and the two of them whispered to each other for a few words, then turned and walked into the woods.
At this moment, a few cat meows were heard in the forest, and Chen Ji suddenly clenched the dagger in his sleeve.
Chen Ji took a few steps forward and pulled Bai Li and Zhang Xia back: "Don't go, it's dangerous!"
Zhang Xia was stunned for a moment: "What are you doing?"
Chen Ji didn't look at her, but just stared at the depths of the woods, pulling the two of them slowly back to the river.
Wuyun said he had seen more than ten bodies in the woods, unburied. The bodies of the dead looked strange, with kitchen knives, hoes, and rakes scattered around them.
Why are there more than ten bodies here? They are victims of the Longwangtun bandits. Forced by life, they became bandits and ambushed here to rob passing merchants, but were killed.
Who killed him and why?
Chen Ji knew nothing about it.
He only knew that there was danger in the woods.
As he retreated, Zhang Xia swung his arms, trying to break free from Chen Ji's grip, but then he heard Bai Li say, "Zhang Xia, listen to him!"
Zhang Xia stopped struggling.
When they quietly retreated to the riverside, Chen Ji turned around and glanced at the boatman who had just landed. He saw the boatman jumping off the boat with a bamboo basket in his hand and saying, "Gentlemen, there are eight grass carps in total. You can pay fifty-two coins each."
Prince Jing was about to go forward to buy the fish when Chen Ji suddenly asked from a distance of more than ten steps: "Boatman, how much do you usually sell one fish to the fishmonger?"
The boatman was stunned for a moment: "On weekdays...on weekdays, it sells for forty coins a piece."
Chen Ji asked, "Isn't it measured by jin?"
The boatman smiled and said, "Yes, yes, it is weighed by the jin. I misunderstood you."
The next moment, an accompanying scholar suddenly pulled Prince Jing back and whispered, "It's an assassin!"
After saying this, the six scholars simultaneously smashed the boxes behind them. There was not a single book inside, only two eight-cut swords fell out.
The six scholars ignored everyone else and just stayed close to Prince Jing.
Chen Ji was stunned. It turned out that these scholars were here to protect Prince Jing!
But since these people are here to protect Prince Jing, then this ship
Who is the murderer at home and in the woods? !
The boatman no longer pretended, he put two fingers on his tongue and whistled.
The six scholars suddenly turned around and heard the sound of footsteps trampling on rotten leaves coming from the forest, and dozens of people rushed out!
Zhang Xia looked at Chen Ji in astonishment. If this man had not stopped them just now, he and Bai Li would have probably run into this group of killers!
But the question is, how did Chen Ji know that there was an ambush in the woods?
The killer in the woods rushed towards the six scholars. As soon as the two sides started fighting, a scholar leaned down to meet them.
The eight-cut knife in the scholar's hand flew up and down, and he chopped more than ten times in two breaths, cutting the tendons of the hands, feet, thigh arteries, and finally the neck. He cut without leaving any room for survival and cut the leading killer into a bloody gourd.
The scholar's green shirt was stained with blood. He took a bow step and slowly brought the knife in front of his eyes. His cold eyes looked at the dozens of killers in front of him through the gap between the two blades.
Expert.
First, kill one person with thundering means, just to gain the upper hand and shock the enemy's courage.
How could the scholar still look as kind as before?
However, Chen Ji suddenly discovered a detail. When the killer saw the scholar's cruel methods, he did not rush forward, nor did he retreat. He just looked at each other, as if a little surprised.
Chen Ji was shocked: "These people are not here to assassinate the prince."
If he really wanted to assassinate a powerful prince, why would he hesitate at this moment? Besides, how could he send such a killer to assassinate a powerful prince?
These killers were not here to kill Prince Jing, nor did they know that Prince Jing was hiding in the ox cart!
Chen Ji was confused. If the killer's target was not Prince Jing, then who would it be?
He turned around to look at Bai Li and the prince beside him, and suddenly shouted, "Run! Hide behind the prince!"
After saying that, he pulled Baili and the prince and ran towards Prince Jing.
As soon as he finished speaking, the killers had made a decision and immediately split into two groups. One group surrounded the scholar and Prince Jing, while the other group rushed towards Chen Ji and others, forcibly separating the two sides.
Wang Daosheng, Chen Wenzong and Chen Wenxiao on the side all ignored it.
Prince Jing's expression changed: "Don't worry about me, save them!"
The scholars' expressions remained unchanged, and they continued to coldly protect Prince Jing, with no intention of rescuing him.
Chen Ji suddenly felt something was wrong. These scholars were specially trained killing weapons. They only cared about fulfilling their duties and didn't care about anything else.
He pulled the prince and Baili to stop and retreat again.
Seeing more than 20 assassins getting closer, Chen Ji shouted towards the woods: "Eat!"
He drew a dagger from his sleeve, his eyes calmed down as he stared at the killer right in front of him.
It was at this moment that Wang Daosheng calmly said, "Wait."
At this moment, it seemed as if the world stopped for a moment, even the heartbeat slowed down, and the Yi River stopped flowing.
Chen Ji saw that the killers' movements slowed down, as if they were swimming in water, and the air was filled with great resistance.
An inexplicably powerful force descends upon the world.
He glanced at Wang Daosheng and immediately wanted to take the opportunity to slash the killers' necks one by one, but Wang Daosheng warned him: "Run."
Chen Ji hesitated for a moment, then turned around, pulled the prince and Baili into the Yi River, and swam quickly to the other side.
Zhang Xia hesitated for a moment and then jumped down.
The moment they fell into the water, the killer's actions all resumed.
The killers looked back at Wang Daosheng in surprise and doubt, only to see him lying on the ground with a pale face.
"Chase!" The killers held their long knives in their mouths and jumped into the icy Yi River one by one.
And the boatman actually jumped onto the black-sailed boat.
I saw the black-sailed boat moving without wind, sailing towards Chenji through the waves.
(End of this chapter)
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