Chapter 71 The Journey Home (4)
In the quiet, dilapidated temple, people were fast asleep, nestled together. Suddenly, a deafening clap of thunder seemed to strike their ears, startling them awake.
Ah Sheng burst into tears in fright and hugged Zhao Jian tightly beside her.
The fire had long since died out, and the temple was pitch black.
Pang Shi rummaged through his bundle, took out a tinderbox, and waved it in the wind. The tinderbox, made of pine wood and tung oil, ignited and quickly dispelled the darkness of the night. Meanwhile, Zhao Jian also lit his tinderbox.
The prince wiped away the cold sweat that had broken out in his skin and asked in surprise, "Why is there such a loud thunder in the middle of winter? Is this a unique celestial phenomenon in the south?"
Pang Shi and Wan Quan were also unaware of the situation, and couldn't help but look towards Meng Guanqi's direction.
Meng Guanqi was taken aback. After recalling for a moment, he bowed to the Crown Prince and said, "When I came to Biyang County with my parents, it was during the Spring Equinox, so I have never seen the celestial phenomenon of thunder in the dead of winter..."
The Crown Prince suddenly realized, "That's right, I forgot that I also grew up in the capital, and I've only been here for less than a year..."
In the north, thunder is usually heard around the time of the Awakening of Insects (Jingzhe). It seems that the vast differences between the north and south cannot be truly appreciated without experiencing them firsthand.
Fortunately, the thunder only rang once and then stopped, but everyone in the temple was awakened.
Meng Guanqi subconsciously began searching for Li Xiaoxiao, but couldn't find her anywhere. He couldn't help but worry: "Zhao Jian, where's Xiaoxiao?"
Zhao Jian kept watch for about three hours before taking over from Li Xiaoxiao. He felt like he had just fallen asleep when he heard a thunderclap, and subconsciously replied, "I don't know either, is she outside the temple?"
Pang Shi also noticed that someone was missing. Thinking of her extraordinary skills, his heart skipped a beat, and his eyes narrowed: "Young Master Meng, where did your maid go?"
Zhao Jian hurriedly said, "Reporting to the general, I guarded for three hours last night before I relieved Xiaoxiao. She might—" Just then, a figure wearing a straw hat and a raincoat rushed in from outside: "There's a situation outside!"
Pang Shi was startled and quickly stood up: "What's going on?"
Li smiled and said, "I went out to relieve myself just now, and suddenly there was thunder. Several horses tied outside the door were scared away. I chased after them and thought I saw several people lying under a tree!"
Everyone in the temple was shocked: "Several people are lying there? You're not seeing things, are you?"
Li Xiaoxiao wiped the rain from her forehead, still seemingly shaken: "I didn't have any fire on me. I only caught a glimpse when the lightning flashed, so I couldn't see very clearly, but it looked like there were several people..."
Although they couldn't see clearly, how could Pang Shi and the others sleep? If it weren't for the snowstorm and nowhere to stay, they wouldn't have stopped in this dilapidated temple. Those assassins who had come to chase them hadn't returned all night, and there was no guarantee they wouldn't leave traces that would attract others to follow them.
He picked up the knife and tucked it into his waistband, then walked up to Li Xiaoxiao: "Take me to see it." He couldn't rest easy until he saw it for himself.
Li Xiaoxiao put on her straw hat and went out with Pang Shi.
After walking less than a hundred meters from the dilapidated temple, Pang Shi finally saw the tree that Li Xiaoxiao had mentioned. Sure enough, he saw people lying haphazardly under the tree, and there was a faint smell of burning in the air.
He gripped the hilt of his knife and stepped forward, kicking over a corpse. He shone a tinderbox on it and immediately took a step back.
The corpse had curly hair and a charred face, indicating it had been burned.
He examined ten corpses in succession, and all of them had their eyes wide open, their faces charred black, and they died with their eyes wide open. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he simply wouldn't have believed it: "These people were all struck by lightning!"
This earth-shattering thunderbolt actually killed ten people!
What a coincidence!
Pang Shi, who had never believed in ghosts or gods, couldn't help but feel uneasy at the sight: "Quick, let's get out of here."
They had only taken less than ten meters when a sound of a tree breaking rang out behind them. With a loud crash, a tree as thick as two people could hug fell down, burying several corpses beneath it.
Pang Shi was startled and pulled Li Xiaoxiao back several feet: "Run!"
As Li Xiaoxiao ran, she said, "Why did this tree suddenly fall down?"
Pang Shi said in a deep voice, "I'll explain when we get back."
Li Xiaoxiao smiled as she ran.
The timing is perfect.
The temple wasn't far away, and the two returned to it in no time.
The crown prince came forward: "How is it? What's the situation outside?"
Pang Shi told the Crown Prince what he had just seen: "Your Highness, Li Xiaoxiao and I found a total of ten corpses. They were all killed by lightning. It seems that the lightning struck the big tree, and the ten people happened to be hiding under the tree and were all killed by the lightning."
The crown prince exclaimed, "How is this possible?"
Pang Shi also found it amazing: "It's absolutely true. Those people were dressed exactly like the assassins who were chasing us. They must have tracked us down to the temple and were planning to ambush us, but they were caught in a winter thunderstorm and died a violent death."
Absurd! The Crown Prince thought Pang Shi was joking; how could they all have been struck dead by lightning?
Wan Quan was overjoyed: "Congratulations, Your Highness! This thunder is an auspicious sign! Heaven must have known that Your Highness was in danger, so it sent down this thunder in the winter to eliminate this villain who was blocking your way. It is Heaven's protection that Your Highness escaped danger!"
The crown prince was both surprised and delighted. As the heir apparent and the future ruler of the land, he naturally felt that such an auspicious omen was a sign of divine intervention. However, eunuchs were always good at exaggerating, and they could make a small good thing sound perfect. Although he was happy, he dared not show it.
Wan Quan was a eunuch, Pang Shi was a military man, the others were servants, and only Meng Guanqi was a scholar. The Crown Prince pondered for a moment and asked Meng Guanqi, "What does Young Master Meng think about this matter?"
Meng Guanqi stepped forward: "The Zuo Zhuan says that Jin and Chu are only favored by Heaven and cannot be contended with. Your Highness is a lucky person, and lucky people are naturally blessed by Heaven. At this time, in the dead of winter, Heaven has sent down thunder for no reason. It is probably to clear away the hidden dangers for Your Highness and save Your Highness from the fire and water."
Upon hearing this, the prince felt as if he had drunk sweet rain in the sweltering heat of March, and his whole body and mind were filled with joy. The wound in his chest seemed to have stopped hurting. He had never felt that the phrase "good fortune favors the virtuous" was so fitting for him.
He smiled slightly and said, "I was able to escape danger today thanks to everyone's help. I will never forget Young Master Meng's righteous act of saving me."
Wan Quan hurriedly said, "This old servant believes that this place has been blessed with auspicious omens and is truly a blessed land. Please allow this old servant to rebuild the golden body of the Half-Buddha, so that I may also share in Your Majesty's glory."
The prince was very satisfied: "Very well then. After I leave here, you shall personally urge the reconstruction of this temple and recast the golden body of the Half-Buddha."
Unfortunately, the Crown Prince's good fortune didn't last long. As dawn broke and everyone was preparing to pack up and leave, Pang Shi discovered that Li Wenkui, who had been resting with his eyes closed since the previous night, had quietly disappeared.
"Lord Li!" Pang Shi was shocked and immediately knocked Li Wenkui down to help him. Wan Quan rushed over to help untie Li Wenkui's clothes. Li Wenkui's belt was tied very tightly, and it was a big, bulging clump that was very difficult to untie. In his haste, Pang Shi simply ripped the belt off.
A clump of intestines fell out.
Pang Shi's eyes turned red as he noticed that in addition to the knife wounds on Li Wenkui's shoulders, hands, and feet, there was also a huge horizontal cut in his abdomen, with his intestines protruding. Despite suffering such severe injuries, Li Wenkui hadn't mentioned a word about it.
The brief moment of smugness and high spirits on the prince's face vanished without a trace.
Li Wenkui was the Junior Chamberlain of the Crown Prince's Palace, a fourth-rank official under the Crown Prince, and a very important confidant of him.
These black-clad assassins not only took the lives of his personal guards, but also his trusted confidants.
The crown prince was so angry that he trembled all over, drew his sword, and wanted to rush out to fight someone to the death.
Wan Quan knelt down and hugged his leg, refusing to let go: "Your Highness, Your Highness, calm down, please calm down!"
The Crown Prince roared, "How can I remain calm? They killed the person I trusted most, and they want to take my life too! How can I remain calm?!"
Pang Shi knelt on one knee and clasped his hands in a fist: "Your Highness, Lord Li concealed his injuries because he was afraid that Your Highness would lose control. Please forgive Lord Li's good intentions. Lord Li felt that Your Highness's life was of paramount importance, which is why he was willing to die for the greater good. Please reconsider, Your Highness!"
Li Wenkui remained silent despite his severe injuries, precisely because he was worried that the Crown Prince would rush to Luzhou overnight to find a doctor for him once he learned of the situation. The destructive power of this winter blizzard was no less than that of the assassins in the dark, not to mention that the enemy and friend of Luzhou were still unclear, so how could he easily set foot there?
Meng Guanqi immediately knelt down as well: "Your Highness, please reconsider."
The people in the temple were kneeling in a row. Li Xiaoxiao glanced at the silent Li Wenkui on the ground out of the corner of her eye, and then sadly looked away.
She hadn't realized he was so badly injured, and she never imagined that he would grit his teeth and not utter a single word in his last moments. How loyal must he be to face death so calmly?
The man in black offered his neck for execution, and Li Wenkui died without uttering a single groan. Was this the belief that they each served their own master?
But the current situation does not allow the prince to grieve for too long. The wind and snow lessened after dawn, but did not stop, and they had to leave today.
Lacking medical supplies and severely injured, there was no way to take Li Wenkui's body away from here. Pang Shi, Zhao Jian, and A Sheng dug a grave behind the temple and temporarily buried Li Wenkui there, waiting for the Crown Prince to escape before arranging for someone to take him back to the capital.
As dawn broke, the rain finally stopped, but the wind still howled and was bitterly cold. After burying Li Wenkui, the Crown Prince had to decide on the direction to take.
Because of the pursuit by the men in black, a dozen or so horses appeared outside the temple. Horses are important supplies, so they naturally cannot be left here and must all be taken away.
Wan Quan approached the cold-faced Crown Prince and asked, "Your Highness, Luzhou is only a little over a hundred li away from here. We must set off quickly, and if we walk fast, we can enter the city before dark."
The crown prince nodded, and with Wan Quan's help, he mounted his horse. He walked around the large tree that had been struck down by lightning and the ten corpses on the ground, heading towards Luzhou.
Li Xiaoxiao looked conflicted, trying to figure out how to stop the Crown Prince and his entourage from going to Luzhou.
The one who ran away, Nan Shiwu, went to Luzhou to get reinforcements a few hours ago. If they follow him, wouldn't they be walking into a trap?
The Crown Prince even invited Meng Guanqi to accompany him. Although it was an invitation, would Meng Guanqi dare to refuse? Moreover, this was an excellent opportunity to get close to the Crown Prince, something ordinary people would beg for.
What reason could she possibly give to stop the Crown Prince from going to Luzhou? Was she going to say that she saw Nan Shiwu run away last night?
No, she forgot to retrieve the bodies she brought with her after she used lightning to kill the nine people in Nan Yi last night. So there are only three bodies left behind the dilapidated temple. If no one was looking in that direction, we would probably be exposed.
Not to mention the Crown Prince, even the eunuch Wan Quan and Pang Shi are meticulous people. If the men in black approached the dilapidated temple, stole a corpse, and then they all gathered together and were struck dead by lightning under a tree, even a fool would find something suspicious.
What excuse should I use?
"Your Highness, wait!" Pang Shi's expression suddenly changed, and he quickly dismounted and squatted down to look at the scene.
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