The two of them talked as they walked, and before they knew it they had arrived at the entrance of the inn. The light in He Zhizhou's room was still on. When Ning Ning knocked on the door and went in, she saw Lin Xun with big dark circles under his eyes.
Xiao Bailong had never made it through the night before, and last night's frantic running had almost consumed all of his energy and strength. Now he was lying on the table like a dead insect.
When he saw her and Pei Ji enter the room, he finally showed some lifelike energy: "Senior Sister and Junior Brother! How is your investigation going?"
Ningning sorted out her thoughts and told the shop owner everything about the portrait of Luan Niang and the strange boy, what she got from her night visit to the city lord's mansion, and what the shop owner said.
He Zhizhou opened his mouth and glared, and finally slapped his thigh: "I know!"
Ningning nodded obediently and waited for his performance.
“I did some practical work today.”
He Zhizhou took out a small notebook from the table. When he opened it carefully, he could see a pile of notes covering the pages: "I passed by a grandmother by the river and asked her about the grievances and disputes between the three people in the City Lord's Mansion. I made a shocking discovery."
Pei Ji leaned against the wall holding his sword, listening to him calmly: "Four years ago, during the flower fair, several major families in Luan City held a party on a cruise ship in the Longyin River deep in the Hundred Flowers. Song Xianning and Luo Yuanming both attended. Miss Song went home with a rosy face and was extremely happy. It was a long time before anyone discovered that she was in a close relationship with a man, and her parents scolded her severely."
He Zhizhou took a sip of water and said, "The most crucial point is that not long after this incident happened, Song Xianning married Luo Yuanming - what does this mean? It means that the man she has been thinking about must be the city lord! Their affair was discovered, and the parents of both parties hit it off and directly arranged the marriage."
Ning Ning continued, "But the relationship between the city lord and his wife is not good."
"This brings us to Luan Niang."
He Zhizhou was serious, showing a somewhat sad look: "Why did the city lord fall in love with her at first sight, and why did he suddenly quarrel with Song Xianning and become unusually cold? It must be that Luan Niang replaced his memory. Luo Yuanming thought he loved Luan Niang, but in fact she was his ex-wife who he abandoned like dregs. Poor Miss Song married with high hopes, but ended up like this - poor!"
Ning Ning couldn't help but clap her hands after hearing this: "Thunderbolts are rolling in the sky, this is just pouring blood directly into my mouth. Senior Brother He, if the author of abusive articles is not you, I will definitely not read them."
"Like that shop owner, I also think Luan Niang is Song Xianning."
Lin Xun said, "Do you remember? The reason why Luo Yuanming fell in love with Luan Niang at first sight was because she was exactly like the goddess in his dream. As the city lord, he naturally couldn't publicize his dream. The only person who knew about this was the person beside him."
But this reasoning doesn't make sense and can be overturned by just one object.
——The painting bought by Luanniang.
If she was not herself, she would not care so much about the painting.
Also questionable is the reason why Luan Niang sealed Song Xianning's bedroom.
No one had set foot in that house for a long time, and Luan Niang probably hadn't used it to do anything. Since it wasn't for herself, and it didn't seem to be for Luo Yuanming, after all the twists and turns, could it be for...
The deceased Song Xianning?
Ningning sat up straight suddenly.
Yes, they have always been obsessed with the love and hate between Luan Niang and Luo Yuanming, and have never considered her and Song Xianning.
Thoughts popped up in my mind one after another. Under this premise, it seemed that what many people had said became traceable.
"Luan Niang has never been to school, so it is impossible for her to be literate. However, she often recites poems with the city lord and writes beautiful calligraphy."
Song Xianning has been studying since childhood, and her handwriting is elegant.
"Luan Niang grew up in Nuan Yu Pavilion and rarely went out. How did she get the news about my shop?"
Song Xianning knows.
"You would never have thought that Luan Niang's personality changed drastically, I caught her delivering a letter in the middle of the night, and the previous city lord's wife suddenly fell seriously ill... all at the same time."
"It's like she knows what kind of woman the city lord likes, and she has completely transformed herself into that type."
What if the person to whom Luan Niang delivered the message in the middle of the night was Song Xianning? The friend was seriously ill and full of suspicions. The truth was not revealed until Song Xianning died, and Luo Yuanming was undoubtedly the most suspicious one.
"She always fights hard. Once she makes up her mind, she will never let go."
She really didn't let go, and transformed herself into a completely different person, becoming the city lord's wife.
Finally, there is the storyteller’s words.
"The city lord's sea of consciousness was damaged since birth, and his spiritual power is weak. Fortunately, he traveled around and found an unexpected opportunity in the border city of Sand Barrier."
What if this opportunity was not Gu Yuelian, but witnessing with one's own eyes the scene of an evil cultivator sacrificing women to refine living souls?
Ningning could feel her heart beating faster.
When several major families were boating in the flower street that year, the person Song Xianning met was not Luo Yuanming, but Luan Niang, who grew up in Baihua.
What was the name of the painting she saw in that store?
"Fiber Condensation".
The sun in the painting breaks through the clouds.
Xian Ning is the cloud.
"He Zhizhou!"
Ning Ning felt something and asked seriously, "Have you found out what Luan Niang's real name was before she entered the brothel?"
"Ah? Oh, that grandma seemed to have mentioned it once."
He Zhizhou probably understood what she meant by asking, and answered honestly: "We were by the river at the time, and she looked at the boats and said, "Few people know that Luan Niang's real name has this character - her name is Meng Tingzhou. Although it also has the sound of 'Zhou', it has nothing to do with Zhou Yun."
"Why is it not relevant?"
Ningning smiled with relief: "The painting-selling grandmother said that she saw two teenagers dressed in men's clothes often walking side by side. Since one of them is a girl dressed as a boy, why can't the other one be?"
He Zhizhou and Lin Xun were both stunned.
"Do you still remember? When grandma recalled the boy's name, she said -"
Ning Ning's heart pounded against her chest, and her tone of voice rose slightly unconsciously: "They are a boy and a girl. Sometimes the girl calls the boy 'Zhou', but sometimes she calls him 'Yun'. What if this is not a complete name, but the names of two people?"
"Two people?"
Not only Pei Ji, Cheng Ying was also fascinated by what he heard. He was stunned at first, but then he quickly realized the crux of the matter and let out a long breath: "I understand! I will always love Ningning! You are worthy of being you!"
Pei Ji listened quietly, his eyes never leaving her star-like eyes, automatically blocking out the passionate shouts in his heart.
"'Zhou' is not 'Zhou', but the 'Zhou' in Luan Niang's name; as for 'Yun' - 'Xian Ning' is another name for Yun."
Ning Ning suddenly understood, and her tone became much lighter: "Song Xianning is a daughter of an official family, her family would definitely not allow her to go to the red-light district; Luan Niang is also very famous on that street, if her name is called out in public, it would cause unnecessary trouble - that's why the two of them disguised themselves as men and called each other by names that others didn't know, so that it would be much easier for them to interact with each other."
The painting-selling grandmother had always just watched them from afar and had never had any actual contact with them. Once both of them were wearing men's clothes, she could only hear their voices when they were talking.
She determined that it was a man and a woman, and automatically attributed the girl's voice to the same person, so she mixed up the names, sometimes "Zhou" and sometimes "Yun".
These two words have never appeared in one person's mouth at the same time. That's why when Song Xianning was seriously ill, Luan Niang was seen communicating with others frequently. It was not a conspiracy, but she couldn't sleep at night because of her good friend's illness.
So after Song Xianning died, Luan Niang would seal off her former residence and not allow Luo Yuanming to set foot there. The people in the city all thought that she was narrow-minded and could not tolerate any sand in her eyes, but in fact, the reason was completely the opposite -
She knew that Song Xianning's death was closely related to Luo Yuanming, and she didn't want that man to hypocritically tarnish the corner where her best friend once lived.
Ningning's heartbeat was getting faster and faster.
That's why Luanniang asked for the painting of the two of them sitting side by side by the river.
One is because she and Song Xianning first met by the Longyin River, and the other is because...
They were both women, and the look back clearly separated them into a man and a woman walking side by side. Only when they were dressed in men's clothes did they look no different.
This was not some complicated love story from the beginning to the end. Hidden behind the layers of curtains was just an ordinary little thing known only to the two girls.
One is a sickly young lady who is destined to be used as a bargaining chip in a marriage; the other is a prostitute who makes a living by selling her smiles and has no idea where her future lies.
They are not cared about by others and are trapped somewhere all their lives, but they all yearn for freedom and hope to break free from the shackles like a phoenix. Until one day the two met and became each other's best and only friends.
Perhaps Song Xianning had taught Luanniang calligraphy, poetry, and Taoist techniques. Perhaps they had gone out several times in men's clothing and talked about the future and hope by the Longyin River. Later, they were discovered by the Song family, who hastily married Song Xianning to Luo Yuanming. Since then, they had to be separated and communicate with each other by carrier pigeons.
However, Song Xianning died inexplicably in the City Lord's Mansion.
So the girl, who had always been vulgar and heartless, changed her appearance and turned herself into a completely different person. She approached Luo Yuanming step by step and found out the truth bit by bit.
All doubts became clear.
The reason why Song Xianning's relationship with Luo Yuanming deteriorated was that she realized that he was doing something shameful in secret; and the reason why she died of a sudden illness was probably related to the city lord.
But she didn't tell anyone.
Ningning couldn't help but frown. Luan Niang must know everything now, but why would she not make the truth public like Song Xianning did back then?
The shopkeeper once said that evil magic is mostly related to curses, prohibitions and souls. It just so happens that Luo Yuanming is a so-called "genius talisman cultivator"...
Could it be that some kind of restriction was placed on them, prohibiting them from mentioning the matter of soul refining to outsiders?
If this is true, then Luan Niang's current situation is tantamount to a torture worse than death.
She came to investigate the truth, but was trapped in the truth. He knew all the dirty and bloody realities and was about to avenge Song Xianning, but he couldn't say a word to anyone else. He could only stand aside and watch, allowing the murderer to do whatever he wanted.
The same is true for Ningning now.
All the inferences were based on assumptions, and there was no useful evidence or clues. Even if they reported the matter to the elders or the Criminal Court for a search, they would probably not get any results. Instead, they would alert the enemy and put the missing girls in danger.
But maybe... besides Luo Yuanming, Luan Niang is also secretly plotting something.
Everything that happened today was too coincidental, such as Jiuzhou Chungui who was drugged, Meng Jue who happened to fall in front of the door of the painting grandma, and the passerby who He Zhizhou met by the river "accidentally" mentioned Luan Niang's real name.
If she was intentionally guiding them to discover the truth—
What is Luanniang's next plan?
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