Chapter 86 The Bride-to-Be
Song Tongsheng was clearly the key figure in the turning point of the situation; otherwise, Ning Jue would not have focused on telling his story.
The two competitions yielded completely different results. Song Tongsheng said that Dou Zheng seemed like a completely different person after the competition...
Bai Hua pondered silently for a while, then, following her guess, asked suspiciously, "So, young master, because of Song Tongsheng's words, you suspect that there's more to Dou Zheng's death than meets the eye?"
Ning Jue shook his head: "Dou Zheng is indeed dead. There is no need for me to dig up his grave to verify it. On the day Dou Zheng was buried, there were so many people in and around Jiaozhou City who came to mourn him. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, no one had the ability to steal the body and replace it."
Bai Hua asked anxiously, "If there's nothing wrong with the body, then where is the problem?"
Ning Jue looked at Bai Hua and told her the truth of the results of his investigation: "The person who died was indeed Dou Zheng, but I'm afraid... Dou Zheng was just using the name of Mad Fist to roam the martial arts world. The real Mad Fist is someone else."
Upon hearing this, Bai Hua's heart skipped a beat.
She had initially considered this idea, but quickly dismissed it because it seemed too outlandish.
How could the mighty Mad Fist, one of the four great masters of the martial arts world, a familiar face and a renowned figure, be fake?
"How did you continue your investigation, young master?" Bai Hua was eager to know the ins and outs of the matter, feeling that a grand conspiracy was hidden behind it.
Ning Jue generously shared a secret with Bai Hua without reservation: "Song Tongsheng said that in the two competitions, Dou Zheng's martial arts skills changed, but his facial features remained the same; he still had that familiar face. Disguise does exist in the world today, especially in the Southern Regions where witchcraft and sorcery are prevalent. But these tricks might fool ordinary people, but to deceive a master of deception is almost impossible, unless..."
Bai Hua followed Ning Jue's train of thought. After he paused, she naturally continued, "Unless, the two of them originally looked alike, with similar eyebrows and eyes?"
Ning Jue nodded and continued, "After dealing with Song Tongsheng, Chen Fu and I stayed in Jiaozhou City to secretly investigate Dou Zheng's living relatives. He never married and had no children, so we went to great lengths to find the Dou family genealogy from a distant relative's house. The genealogy recorded that Dou Zheng had three distant cousins, one of whom was a name I recognized."
Bai Hua asked in surprise, "Who is it?"
Ning Jue replied, "Dou Wei."
Bai Hua didn't find the name familiar, but she vaguely remembered it, as if she had heard it somewhere before.
Seeing that she tried hard to recall but still couldn't come up with anything, Ning Jue didn't wait any longer and reminded her, "When we left Xianyang Mountain and headed south, we passed through Suizhou. I took you to the painting hall of my master's mother's family, the Ning family. Do you remember?"
Upon hearing this, Bai Hua's mind immediately cleared, and she nodded in reply, "I remember. That private garden in the painting hall was elegant and quaint, like a poetic world. I think the name was... Qingyue Painting Hall?"
Ning Jue praised her: "You have a good memory, that's the name. That day I took you to the Ning family ancestral hall to pay respects to the tablets of my master and mistress. While waiting, we looked at the paintings. There was one painting that was quite special. It depicted three young men and women. I recognized two of them as my master and mistress, and the other one as their eldest brother. I don't have much of an impression of this senior brother. He had already left the sect before I formally became a disciple of my master. I have no interest in inquiring about other people's affairs, but I happened to hear from Ning Changlin that this senior brother wanted to pursue an official career, which led to a disagreement with my great master. He left in a huff and never returned."
Bai Hua suddenly realized something: "Your senior uncle's name seems to be Dou Wei?"
Ning Jue did not respond, tacitly agreeing.
Bai Hua's emotions suddenly surged: "So, Dou Wei is both the Sword Saint's senior brother and the Mad Fist's cousin... This person later entered officialdom and became a government official. Who is he now?"
He could never still be called Dou Wei now. Bai Hua had been in Beijing for many years and knew the names of officials with even a little reputation, but the name 'Dou Wei' was completely unfamiliar to her.
Ning Jue replied, "After Dou Wei left Suizhou, his whereabouts became unknown, and the clues went cold. I don't know who he is now, but the Grand General Wang suddenly posted notices in Jiling, intending to find a top swordsman to be his right-hand man. This matter is probably suspicious. I suspect that this matter is inseparable from Dou Wei."
Bai Hua asked anxiously, "If what you say is true, young master, Dou Wei will probably pay extra attention to the results of the competition. Do you have anyone you suspect right now?"
Ning Jue said in a slightly solemn voice, "It's less about being concerned about the arena and more about being concerned about the champion. Rong Linyan just won the championship two days ago, and General Yang's daughter insists on marrying him, causing such a disgraceful incident. Instead of reprimanding his daughter for her rudeness, General Yang indulged her and agreed to keep everything simple, allowing her to marry without any ceremony or ceremony. He is the first suspect. Secondly, the Left Prime Minister is passing by on his way to visit his family, and the timing is perfect, which inevitably arouses suspicion as well."
Bai Hua frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and said seriously, "Comparing the two, General Yang is more suspicious. His youngest daughter... is Yang Yun. I heard some things about her when we were in the capital. She should have someone she likes. Why would she suddenly want to marry my cousin? It's very strange."
Ning Jue hummed in agreement, seemingly agreeing with her statement, and added, "I will stay by the General's side to continue to investigate further. I don't believe the other party won't slip up."
"Great General King?" Bai Hua looked at Ning Jue in confusion, wondering why he said that.
Ning Jue remained expressionless: "On the day of the arena competition, I had already arrived in Jiling. The Great General King had taken his beautiful concubines on an outing to the outskirts of the city, and they lingered there, causing the guards to become lax and shifts to be infrequent. As a result, the Great General King was almost kidnapped by bandits who mistook him for an ordinary wealthy man. At the critical moment, I arrived in time with Chen Fu and the others and rescued him. Afterwards, the Great General King regarded us as his saviors, treating us with great respect and courtesy. He was particularly fond of me, even offering me an official position in private. He had no time to care about the top spot on the arena rankings, but instead, he was single-mindedly trying to get me to join him. Unable to refuse his kind invitation, I now work under the Great General King."
These words were so informative that Bai Hua remained silent for a long time, pondering them deeply.
After a long pause, she tentatively asked, "Were those bandits hired by you, young master, to impersonate others and deliberately cooperate in the act? Your goal is to get close to the Great General, and then, by taking advantage of his favor, take the opportunity to plant your spies from the martial arts world into the imperial court, secretly investigate more people and things, until you find out the culprit."
Ning Jue smiled, his eyes filled with satisfaction: "Hua'er is clever; now you can see right through my thoughts."
Unlike Ning Jue, Bai Hua's expression was not relaxed. She said with a solemn look, "What you are doing, young master, is a risky matter. I am really worried."
Ning Jue took her hand and said firmly, "No matter what happens, just trust me, I will protect you."
Bai Hua instinctively reached out to hold his hand back, and the two tightened their grip, determined to advance or retreat together.
"I believe it, I believe it..."
I believe you will protect me, but I'm afraid you might disregard your own safety.
Bai Hua didn't want to say anything discouraging, so she swallowed her words and prayed in her heart that Ning Jue would be safe and sound, find out the truth, and get away unscathed.
...
Two hours later, Chen Fu arrived at the inn with Jiu Qiu. The two entered quietly through the back door without alerting any outsiders.
After the meeting, Jiuqiu approached Baihua and showed concern for her. After exchanging pleasantries, they got down to business.
Chen Fu detailed the situation in the city: "Rong Linyan was frantically searching for people at first, but then the commotion gradually subsided. I don't know if it was because he was afraid of ruining Miss Bai's reputation or because he was worried that this would displease the Yang family. The Rong family denies that anything happened to the wedding procession, and only tells the outside world that Miss Bai is unwell and it was only last night that it was confirmed that she couldn't get into the bridal sedan chair. She will enter the mansion as usual after she recovers. However, the Yang family's daughter refuses to cooperate. As soon as the news of Miss Bai's illness spread, she deliberately sent someone to report to the authorities, making a big fuss about someone missing from the mansion, which embarrassed the Rong family. Now the Rong mansion is in complete chaos."
Jiuqiu picked up the conversation and continued, "Right now, the people in the city are talking about the abduction of Miss Bai. Whenever it comes to topics related to a woman's chastity, the audience always shows great enthusiasm. Some of the things they say are quite unpleasant, and I'm not comfortable conveying them, for fear of offending the ears of the young lady and gentleman."
As soon as she finished speaking, Jiuqiu's expression became complicated. Chen Fu noticed this keenly and immediately gave her a comforting look.
Ning Jue then looked at Bai Hua and said, "Hua'er, you just asked me what we should do next. Originally, I wanted to arrange for you to rest and recuperate here for a few more days, but now it seems that we probably have to return to the city as soon as possible. If we stay any longer, it may damage your reputation."
Bai Hua pursed her lips, shook her head, and said, "There's no need to consider these things. I don't care about empty fame."
Ning Jue said, "Whether you care or not, I can't let you suffer injustice for no reason. Protecting you means not only keeping you physically safe, but also preventing you from being hurt by words."
Both of them were thinking of each other and placed each other first in their hearts.
Bai Hua said, "I'm fine. Young Master, please proceed according to the original plan. I want to be your support from behind and not become a burden."
Ning Jue remained silent, but a slight bitterness welled up in her heart.
How could it be a burden?
To him, Bai Hua was like a spring of sweet water that a dying man lost in the desert suddenly discovers, or the first ray of dawn that appears after a long polar night.
Her appearance nourished his cold and apathetic heart, and warmed his hardened soul.
After his master and mistress died, nothing in the world could move him anymore. Living alone like this, without any ties, was carefree, but it was also like being a walking corpse, not knowing the meaning of life.
However, she gave him meaning, making him realize once again that it is good to be alive.
Therefore, it has never been a burden.
She was a soft ray of light shining down on him, its illumination perfectly positioned, shining only on him and no one else.
Ning Jue felt a surge of emotion and spoke again: "The original plan was to protect you and never allow anyone to offend you. Now that rumors are circulating that you were kidnapped by bandits and your fate is unknown, I'm going to openly send you into the city. If I could just happen to save the Great General, why can't I just happen to save the Rong family's betrothed?"
"this……"
Bai Hua was speechless for a moment. She hadn't expected him to be so bold. Even with the Grand General Wang in charge, wasn't this too reckless?
Ning Jue continued, his tone so natural even though it was all a lie: "If I fought the robbers to save you, and then, outnumbered, had no choice but to jump into the lake with you to escape, and we got soaked in the water, then you'd have no choice but to marry me."
Bai Hua blinked, completely stunned. Only someone as free-spirited as Ning Jue could come up with such a method.
But it's not entirely impossible.
Seeing that she remained silent, Ning Jue added, "If this is the right way, you will repay my life-saving grace by offering yourself to me, and no one will dare to say a word. As for the Rong family, one arrogant and domineering young lady from the Yang family is enough for them to handle. Even if Rong Linyan is unwilling to give up and tries his best to stop me, given the Grand General's bias, he cannot compete with me. Moreover, you are on my side. So, Hua'er, now all that's left is your word. Are you willing to cooperate with me in making a high-profile display?"
Upon hearing this, Bai Hua's heart couldn't help but beat faster.
Her fingers gripped the hem of her clothes tightly, curling them up again and again, her palms sweaty.
Chen Fu and Jiu Qiu, who were standing nearby, also looked at her and waited quietly for her answer.
After a while, Bai Hua slowly calmed down and made a decision in her heart.
She was willing to be bold with him, so she mustered her courage, nodded, and replied, "I'm willing, I believe you."
This answer carries weight, but it doesn't feel heavy in your heart; it gives you a sense of security and stability.
Ning Jue smiled and tightened his grip on Bai Hua's wrist, stroking it as he said, "Alright, let's prepare to return to the city immediately. Chen Fu, go and prepare the horses. Choose the tallest and strongest one. I want all the onlookers to see that Hua'er is on my horse, no longer the bride waiting to be married to Rong Linyan!"
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