Chapter 102 What is there to fear if one is followed but dies?
Zhou Yaren: "So you're saying he was in Fenglingdu half a month ago, and then went to Puzhou?"
“But he appeared at Fengling Ferry yesterday.” This indicates that he did not commit murder and flee. Bai Yuan carefully said, “Puzhou and Fengling are not far apart. Goods are constantly transported between the north and south, so it is normal for porters to be hired to travel between the two places.”
"No matter what, find Zhao Si first. Once we find him, we can find out the truth by asking him." Li Liuyun had a clear mind and a specific goal. He wouldn't search aimlessly like a headless fly. After all, his status and position were what they were. He was born into the imperial family and was at the center of power. He had exercised privileges since childhood and was naturally good at using power to mobilize local officials.
Fengling was under the jurisdiction of Ruicheng, and the patrol officers stationed on the river were also assigned by the county government. Therefore, Li Liuyun went directly to the government office, carrying portraits of Chen Ying, the Iron-Faced Man, Lu Bing, and Qin San with him. After arriving at the government office, he flashed his waist token, and all of them were at his beck and call.
The county magistrate took the four portraits and examined them. When he heard the description of the other person they were looking for, his expression changed, and he couldn't help but ask, "What crime has this person committed?"
"You're asking me?" Li Liuyun asked expressionlessly, "Don't you know who the suspects are who boarded the Hong family's salt boats during the murders that occurred under your jurisdiction?"
The county magistrate was shocked. He hadn't expected this "ancestor" to suddenly appear out of nowhere in Ruicheng. With a stern and unapproachable face, he entered without a single smile. His very first words made the magistrate feel as if he were facing a formidable enemy, and he immediately knelt down, saying, "This humble official was negligent. I will immediately send someone to find him!"
Li Liuyun said, "Bring the files here."
The county magistrate was taken aback: "W-what?"
"I need to access the Hong family's files."
"Oh, okay, okay, I'll go right away..." Before he could get up, he heard the other person ask again.
"Who is the suspect, He Laishun?"
This isn't some ancestor; it's more like a living Yama, the King of Hell!
The county magistrate's face was deathly pale, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat. He stammered, "He, He, He Laishun, last night, last night he banged on and on..." until his tongue was tied in knots!
The county head was a stutterer who couldn't even speak properly. Li Liuyun suddenly asked, "Dead?"
The county magistrate only wanted to kneel there and not get up. His subordinates didn't know their own strength. Excessive torture leading to death would definitely be punished and held accountable. Fines and dismissal would be considered light. The county magistrate forced himself to remain calm: "He Laishun was a porter at the ferry. He carried heavy loads all year round, which strained his body and bones. He already suffered from rheumatism, tuberculosis and other chronic diseases. He died last night from a sudden illness!"
Li Liuyun repeated: "Sudden onset of a qi disorder?"
The county magistrate's heart leaped into his throat: "The coroner has already examined the body."
Li Liuyun stared intently at the other person: "Where's the body?"
This "King of Hell" is really good at getting to the bottom of things. Does he want to personally examine the body? The county magistrate lowered his head very low and said: "The body was taken away by the family early this morning."
At this point, if you want to see the body, you'll have to go to He Laishun's house.
The county magistrate had no idea what this man was after, and he couldn't figure out his intentions or his temperament. Fortunately, the man was a young boy who was young and inexperienced in the ways of the world. He figured that as long as he was careful, he could get rid of him. So he braced himself and dealt with him for a short while.
Fortunately, although the young man looked stern and didn't make any trouble, even after reviewing the case files, he didn't criticize the case of the Hong family.
After respectfully seeing Li Liuyun off, the county magistrate's outward composure immediately crumbled. He hurried back to the inner office, urging, "Quickly!"
"Rest assured, sir, He Laishun's body has been properly disposed of. His wife would never dare utter a single word, otherwise her son, He Xiaoyu, would be exiled for murder!" Exile to a place thousands of miles away is a long journey; he could starve, die of illness, or suffer some other accident along the way. Even if the boy were lucky enough to survive, he would most likely perish in the harsh winters and scorching summers. The clerk believed that holding the He family's son's life in his hands would silence him, and that the frail, sickly woman wouldn't dare cause trouble. "Her husband is dead, she wouldn't risk her own son's life too."
When He Xiaoyu returned home and learned that her father had suddenly died in prison due to a gastrointestinal illness, she wanted to rush to the county government office to fight back, but was naturally forced to commit suicide by her own mother.
"The common people don't fight with officials, and the poor don't contend with the rich"—this is a principle that the vulnerable often utter, and they deeply understand that people are divided into different classes, and that fates vary in rank and status. The powerless and lowly are never considered worth dying for; they can only swallow the bloody injustice and eke out a living. This has always been the way of the world.
But what is there to fear in death?
As a mother, I endured and struggled, all because I wanted to protect my only child.
So the unfortunate mother and son could only weep together.
Bai Yuan once believed that the human world was a sea of suffering, a manifestation of all desires, including love, hate, anger, and delusion. Everyone struggled to the fullest in this sea of suffering, unable to let go or see things clearly. Even if one could let go of one thing or see things clearly, countless desires and delusions would follow, thus turning into countless calamities in the sea of suffering. Whether by choice or by force, one could never be freed. So he could only resign himself to his fate and tell himself: everything in the world is determined by fate, and nothing is up to man.
The innocent are also immersed in this turbid world of suffering, led by the nose by the unjust decree, and are no exception.
She stood by the window, watching the crowds come and go in the streets. A merchant who had stayed at the inn led his well-fed white horse out of the inn, paused for a moment on the bustling street, bought a bag of roasted chestnuts from a roadside stall, and then passed by Li Liuyun who was turning back.
The tall, sturdy white horse parted the crowd, blocking the path and view of a man in a gray shirt. He had to tiptoe and peer over, squeezing close to the side. Not noticing, he bumped into someone. The man in gray said hastily, "Can't you see where you're going..."
Before they could finish speaking, they saw the man using a bamboo cane to probe the way.
Zhou Yaren apologized, "I'm sorry, I really am blind."
The man in the gray shirt was clearly taken aback. He hadn't expected to actually encounter a blind man, and a rather dignified one at that. He immediately forgot about the matter and stepped aside to let the man pass.
Zhou Yaren remained standing still and politely inquired, "Excuse me, do you know how to get to Hongyun Inn?"
The man in gray looked up and saw the sign for "Hongyun Inn," so he kindly gave the blind man directions.
Bai Yuan, who was standing by the window, saw it clearly. It was obviously the blind man who had deliberately bumped into him. Only after Li Liuyun pushed the door open and entered did Bai Yuan turn around and ask, "Didn't you notice there was a tail behind you?"
"What?" Li Liuyun had passed through bustling city streets on his way back and hadn't noticed anyone following him. "How could this be? We just arrived here, who would be watching us? Could it be... spies sent by the government?"
“Maybe not,” Zhou Yaren said, having just returned from outside. “I could tell from his accent that he didn’t sound like a local.”
Bai Yuan asked, "Besides going to the county government office, what other places have you been to?"
Li Liuyun shook his head: "No."
Zhou Yaren asked, "Or did you come into contact with anyone on the way?"
Li Liuyun: "No, not at all." He only went to the county government office and came back, and suddenly he had a pair of eyes watching him. Who else could it be but the people from the county government office?
Bai Yuan said, "From last night until now, I have seen several faces constantly loitering in the crowd, wandering around the area, and looking around from time to time. They look like some kind of sentries on this street."
"A hidden sentry?" Li Liuyun immediately moved to the window.
Bai Yuan had been observing them for a long time, and now he pointed out: "The one squatting in front of Yuan's soy sauce vat in the northeast corner, the one with a headscarf wrapped around his head and holding a bowl in front of the tea stall, the one with two mustaches on his lips on the west side, and the one pacing back and forth in front of the noodle stall, they have been loitering around the area since last night without doing anything."
Li Liuyun's gaze followed Bai Yuan's words one by one.
Zhou Yaren said, "Were you drinking on the rooftop last night and observing them the whole time?"
“Hmm,” Bai Yuan said, “These people have solid lower bodies and should know some martial arts. They don’t seem like ordinary people. Moreover, they are always looking around and their reactions are quite quick.”
Li Liuyun asked in confusion, "Could it be that they came with us too?"
“These people must have been staking out this place before we even arrived in Fengling,” Bai Yuan guessed. “These sentries probably weren’t here to monitor us.”
Li Liuyun: "Then why would someone follow me to the inn?"
“Perhaps they find you suspicious,” Bai Yuan added. “Or perhaps there are people staking out the yamen gate, and anyone who goes in or out of the yamen might be being watched.”
Zhou Yaren agreed: "Very likely."
If it weren't for their involvement, Bai Yuan had no intention of getting involved in matters that didn't concern him: "Judging from the situation, there might be an undercurrent of turmoil here."
Zhou Yaren pondered for a moment: "Could it be related to the Hong family murder case?"
"You suspect these people are an armed force privately maintained by the salt merchant Hong family?" For safety, large salt merchants often hire people skilled in martial arts to guard their homes or escort salt ships along the route to prevent banditry. Bai Yuan understood his meaning. "Because the Hong family was murdered at Fengling Ferry, the family sent people to investigate secretly?"
Zhou Yaren remained noncommittal: "He Laishun may have been tortured to death because officials accepted bribes."
He naturally received bribes from the Hong family.
Li Liuyun then revealed the county magistrate's explanation for He Laishun's death. Zhou Yaren was not surprised at all. If officials tortured prisoners to death in prison, they would definitely cover it up with a pretext such as "dying suddenly from a chronic illness." Otherwise, where would all the wronged souls in the world's prisons come from?
Why should a wronged person be summoned by a ghostly lawsuit?
Zhou Yaren's tone was rather cold: "Officials have always been like this."
Bai Yuan spoke up: "The county magistrate of Ruicheng condoned his subordinates' killing of He Laishun. I wonder what role he played in this, what his position was, and whether he would really send someone to find Zhao Si?"
Since Li Liuyun has personally given the order, the county magistrate will likely send people to search for them, even if it's just for show. However, if the Hong family, the salt merchant, refuses to give up and has dealings with the county magistrate, they will probably do their best to find them.
Li Liuyun couldn't be sure, so the group of teenagers from Taihang Road went out to wander around the streets and alleys early in the morning, visiting shops, taverns, teahouses, theaters, and even gambling dens to broaden their horizons.
As they wandered from house to house, dressed in striking white robes typical of the Taihang Mountains and carrying swords, it was hard not to attract the attention of the sentries. So when they returned to the inn after their tiring stroll, they were each followed by several little tails.
"What?! We were..." Lin Mu gulped down a cup of tea, extremely shocked upon hearing this, and immediately stopped mid-sentence, realizing the gravity of the situation.
You can't just shout when you're being followed; what if someone overhears you?
Lian Zhao was also surprised: "Who would be following us?"
Wen Yi stood there, holding the teapot, stunned: "Why are you following us?"
Yu Heqi: "Yes, I didn't even notice."
Bai Yuan glanced at them indifferently, none of them showing any vigilance.
However, these people lurk quietly in the bustling market, blending in completely with the crowd, making them difficult to detect if one is not paying attention.
Lin Mu suddenly slammed his cup heavily on the table: "Could it be the Gu Master? Has she discovered us?"
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