Chapter 130 I'm dying of curiosity!
Cui Yanwu's gaze swept over Xu Feng, finally settling on his steady gait. "Your legs are healed?"
Xu Feng's smile faltered, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, as if he hadn't expected that after so many years, Cui Yanwu would still remember him, and even care about his leg.
He was immediately filled with gratitude and bowed, saying, "Twenty years have passed, and Lord Cui still remembers me."
“How could I not remember?” Cui Yanwu put down his teacup, his fingertips pausing lightly on the rim.
"You are the first person I pulled out of a pile of corpses after I joined the army."
But your name was clearly Xu Lanfeng back then, how come you are now the manager of Xu's Pawnshop, Xu Feng?
I looked up your biography before I came, and there wasn't a single word about your military service.
Xu Feng's smile remained unchanged, only his eyes softened slightly, and he said frankly, "Because for the past twenty years, I have been living as a twin brother."
Cui Yanwu paused for a moment, then seemed to understand something and sighed softly: "It seems your brother didn't make it through."
When his younger brother was mentioned, Xu Feng's eyes reddened slightly, and his tone became more somber: "Yes, that winter was too cold. He was already on his deathbed, and I suffered such a serious injury."
After treating me, there wasn't much money left to buy medicine for my younger brother, so he didn't make it back to work a few days after I was sent home..."
He stopped halfway through his sentence, clasped his hands deeply in a salute to Cui Yanwu, and said, "Xu Lanfeng once again thanks Lord Cui for saving my life back then."
If it weren't for you, I would have perished in that mountain of corpses and sea of blood long ago, let alone lived these past twenty years in place of my brother.
Cui Yanwu did not stop him and accepted the bow without hesitation. When he stood up, a slight smile appeared on his lips: "We are all people who have been on the battlefield. Who hasn't carried a few comrades who were lucky enough to survive on their backs?"
"You survived and are still living like this; all the effort I put into carrying you all the way back then wasn't in vain."
He raised his hand and patted Xu Feng's arm a few times. "It's true that things are unpredictable. If you had told me twenty years ago that you would become the manager of the largest pawnshop in the capital, I would never have believed it."
Xu Feng laughed along, his tone full of wistfulness: "Don't even mention Lord Cui not believing it, even I myself back then would have thought it was a pipe dream."
“Hey, that’s not right.” Xie Ji suddenly interjected.
"Even if you took your brother's identity, when we investigated your life, how come it said you were the only son in your family?"
Not only is there not a trace of your military service, but there isn't even a single member of your entire clan who has any connection to Lord Cui in the military.
Xu Feng didn't hide anything and explained frankly, "That's Madam's skill."
To prevent anyone from discovering my relationship with Lord Cui, she has put a lot of effort into researching my life story over the years.
Apart from Cui Yanwu, Pei Zhiwei, Xiao Yunzhan, and Xie Ji all felt a chill run down their spines.
Xu Feng's meaning was crystal clear: Wang had probably done a lot to erase his past.
They instinctively thought that those who might know Xu Lanfeng's past might have been...
Xu Feng saw through their thoughts at a glance and quickly added, "There's no need for you all to think of Madam as so ruthless."
In the twenty years since, my hometown, being a poor place, has naturally been overshadowed by the common occurrences of birth, aging, illness, and death. Many old stories have simply been forgotten, requiring little effort from my wife.
When Wang Jingya was mentioned, Cui Yanwu didn't respond. He simply picked up the teacup on the table, took a small sip, and remained calm, revealing little emotion.
Pei Zhiwei was pondering to herself that Xu Feng said he was rescued from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood by Cui Yanwu twenty years ago, and not long after that, he was found by Wang Jingya, who even helped him change his identity.
This shows that Wang Jingya has been keeping an eye on Cui Yanwu's every move over the years by sending supplies to Cui Yanwu's army.
Fang Yi, the comrade he saved, was sent back to his hometown, and she came to his door.
No wonder she felt comfortable entrusting such important evidence to Xu Feng for safekeeping.
But every time Pei Zhiwei saw Cui Yanwu fall silent whenever Wang Jingya was mentioned, she felt a tickle in her heart, like a little bug crawling on her.
She cleared her throat, trying to keep her expression calm so as not to appear as if she were prying into her elders' privacy.
Xie Ji didn't have so many concerns. His face clearly showed that he was "I'm so curious." He moved his mouth, as if he wanted to ask but didn't dare to. His conflicted look made Pei Zhiwei want to laugh.
Xiao Yunzhan was the most composed. Knowing that Cui Yanwu was unwilling to say more, he took the opportunity to speak, his gaze falling on Xu Feng: "You two have finished catching up, let's get down to business."
Lord Cui has arrived. What about the evidence your wife asked you to keep?
And where is the owner of Yangdu Liu's Pharmacy now?
Xu Feng nodded and said, "Your Highness, please don't be anxious. The evidence is in a very safe place. I will take you to Manager Liu first."
As he spoke, he made a "please" gesture.
The group exchanged glances; it was rather conspicuous for them to go out together like this.
Xu Feng seemed to have anticipated their concerns and quickly explained, "Don't worry, everyone, the back door of Xu's Pawnshop is a direct route for carriages to enter and exit."
On ordinary days, if we come across some valuable items, or things that are not convenient to display in the shop, or...
He deliberately drew out his words, paused meaningfully, and continued, "They all rely on this carriage for transportation. It's very discreet and won't attract attention."
Upon hearing this, Cui Yanwu no longer hesitated and immediately stood up, saying, "Lead the way."
The group followed Xu Feng, bypassing the pawnshop's front hall where customers occasionally came to pawn items, and headed straight for the back courtyard.
The entire backyard was covered by a thick black cloth, with only two stone lanterns lit in the corners of the walls. The light was just enough for people inside to see, but from the outside, they could not see anything inside the yard.
Judging from the appearance of the black cloth, it must have always been there, and it wasn't specially set up for today.
As soon as they reached the backyard gate, they saw a large carriage parked there.
The carriage was well concealed, and looked neither new nor old, indeed resembling something used to transport valuables, so it would not arouse any suspicion.
"Please get in the carriage." Xu Feng pulled back the carriage curtain and stepped aside to let everyone pass first.
Xiao Yunzhan took the lead, followed closely by Pei Zhiwei and Xie Ji. Cui Yanwu walked at the back, glancing back at the backyard before getting into the car to make sure there was nothing amiss before bending down and crawling into the vehicle.
The carriage slowly started moving, drove out along the path in the backyard, and soon merged into the traffic on the main street.
The carriage was spacious, with soft brocade cushions, and it wasn't crowded even if several people sat there.
The carriage was quiet throughout the journey; no one spoke, and the only sounds were the rumble of the wheels and the occasional hawker's cry.
Before long, the carriage gradually slowed down and finally came to a steady stop.
Xie Ji raised an eyebrow, turned to look at Xu Feng, and said with a hint of certainty, "Manager Xu, you've really found a good place to hide people."
Xu Feng asked with slight surprise, "We haven't lifted the carriage curtain once along the way, how does Your Highness know where we are?"
Xie Ji chuckled, a hint of smugness on his face: "I dare not speak for other places, but I can get a general idea of the capital city with my eyes closed."
Besides, I know exactly where the carriage is going, the angles of its turns, and the sounds around it.
Before he could finish gloating, Cui Yanwu stretched out his long arm and slapped him on the back of the head with just the right amount of force, enough to shut him up.
"I think you're just too idle."
What's there to brag about?
Before Xu Feng brought you here, you found that shopkeeper surnamed Liu. That shows real skill. Now you're just following someone else. What's there to be proud of?
"He really doesn't know how shameless he is."
After he finished speaking, without waiting for Xie Ji to refute him, he pushed open the car door and jumped out.
After seeing the place clearly, even he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
Above the courtyard gate not far away, a conspicuous banner hung, with the three large characters "Luanfeng Tower" prominently displayed.
More than twenty years ago, Luanfeng Tower was one of the top brothels in the capital.
Unlike ordinary brothels, the prostitutes inside were all handsome men. Some performed for female customers, some entertained male customers, and a few could cater to both male and female customers. They were quite famous in the capital.
It would be truly unexpected for someone to be hiding in here; no one would imagine that a pharmacy owner involved in a case would be hidden in such a place.
It was only past noon, and Luanfeng Tower had not yet opened its doors to welcome guests; the courtyard was quiet.
Perhaps they heard the carriage entering the courtyard, because a short while later, a man who looked to be around fifty years old came out from inside.
He was blind in one eye, his face was weathered, and he looked very ordinary. If he were to blend into a crowd, no one would give him a second glance.
The man showed no surprise when he saw them; instead, he knelt down quietly, as if he had been waiting for them for a long time.
Just as he was about to speak, a whooshing sound suddenly came from the air!
Pei Zhiwei reacted extremely quickly, almost instinctively dodging to the side while simultaneously reaching out to pull Xie Ji along.
Xiao Yunzhan instantly stepped in front of Cui Yanwu, his sharp gaze fixed on the direction from which the arrow had come.
The arrow grazed past the man's ear and slammed into the door frame behind him with a "thud." The arrow's fletching was still trembling slightly, demonstrating its immense force.
"Who?" Cui Yanwu shouted in a deep voice.
The courtyard fell into a deathly silence, with only the rustling of the wind through the branches.
Xu Feng's expression changed, and he quickly stood guard beside the carriage, cautiously scanning his surroundings: "This is the backyard of Luanfeng Tower, and very few people come here on weekdays."
Xie Ji had already drawn the sword from his waist, his eyes warily fixed on the direction of the courtyard wall.
"Could it be that all our efforts were in vain, and someone still discovered our whereabouts and is waiting here to wipe us out?"
Pei Zhiwei didn't speak, but carefully observed the trajectory of the arrow.
The arrow was shot in from outside the courtyard wall at a tricky angle, clearly indicating that they came prepared.
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