Chapter 188 Approaching (2)
When Lu Tong, the Prefect of Jingzhao, received the report, he was so shocked that he stood up abruptly and immediately asked the official who came to report the case: "The entire village has been massacred? Have you found any clues?"
The officer shivered from the cold: "No, there was no trace left. Wuling Village, the closest to Linxia Village, also heard no commotion. The two villages are only four or five miles apart. The villagers usually visit each other often, but because it snowed heavily the other day, the villagers did not go out. Nobody knows what happened in Linxia Village."
Lu Tongdao: "What do you think, Lord Yang? Could it be the work of robbers?"
The official said in a trembling voice, "Our superiors said that if it was the work of bandits, even if they slaughtered the whole village, they couldn't possibly tear everyone to pieces..." You know, human bones are very hard. If it's targeting one person or even a family, it's indeed possible to cut them into pieces, but to tear one or two hundred people to pieces is absolutely impossible.
Lu Tong's expression changed. "You mean almost everyone was reduced to pieces? There wasn't a single intact corpse?" He didn't quite believe what the official was saying; it was too exaggerated.
The officer said, "None of the corpses we found were intact. We just don't know if there are any we haven't found yet."
Lu Tong asked, "What did Lord Yang say?"
The officer said, "Sir, you think they were attacked by a pack of beasts, most likely wolves."
If it wasn't caused by humans, then such a horrific scene must have been caused by an attack from wild animals. The most common large ferocious beasts are bears and tigers. However, bears hibernate in winter, and although tigers have such power, they are usually solitary animals. It's impossible for one tiger to slaughter an entire village. The most likely cause is a pack of wolves.
Lu Tong murmured, "A wolf pack? But Tianjin has never experienced such a devastating wolf attack in all its history..."
But since he hadn't seen the scene, he couldn't make a judgment. He could only send someone to investigate: "Do you know how many people live in Linxia Village?"
The official said, "The exact number is still unclear, but the village chief of the neighboring village said that there are fifty-two households in Linxia Village."
Fifty-two households, even if each household has only five people, that's more than two hundred people. This is already a very serious case.
Such a major case should have required Lü Tong's personal attention, but now that the emperor had gone to Tangquan Palace, the security of the capital had become even more important. He could not leave the capital without the emperor's permission. He immediately summoned Tang Shaocheng, the vice magistrate, and Gong Deyou, the judicial officer, and ordered them to take the coroner and a hundred guards to Linxia Village to investigate the truth of the incident.
Tang Shaocheng and Gong Deyou were also hearing about such a tragedy for the first time. They didn't even have time to go home and immediately gathered their men to rush to Linxia Village.
They rode at the speed of an army, covering more than a hundred miles in half a day. Lü Tong was stationed at the Jingzhao Prefecture to await their news.
Such a serious case should have required Lu Tong to obtain definite information before submitting a report, but he had a bad feeling. According to Magistrate Yang, the incident had occurred three or four days ago, but there was no movement in Wuling Village, which was only four or five miles away from Linxia Village. This indicated that the beasts had left after attacking Linxia Village. Where did they go? If they went south, that would be fine, but if they went north, Emperor Hongxing was currently spending the winter on Yunfu Mountain with all the officials of the Six Ministries.
Thinking of this, Lü Tong couldn't sit still. Although there were no definite investigation results yet, he still wrote a memorial and sent it to Tangquan Palace. It was better to be prepared for such things. Yunfu Mountain was a warm and pleasant place. Because of the hot springs, it was rich in water and grass and had many wild animals. It would be bad if the wolf pack really went north and scared the nobleman.
When Lü Tong sent this memorial, he was just reminding the emperor and hadn't really considered that the wolf pack might attack Tangquan Palace. Emperor Hongxing had brought the Imperial Guards and the Qilin Army with him, which were the most elite troops in the entire Great Wu Dynasty. Moreover, he had two great generals, Pang Shi and Li Xiaoxiao, by his side. With a large population and complete equipment, Lü Tong didn't think the wolf pack would dare to attack Yunfu Mountain.
The memorial had been traveling for almost a day when it arrived at Tangquan Palace in the evening. Coincidentally, it was Meng Guanqi who received the memorial.
He opened Lü Tong's memorial, glanced at it, and his expression changed drastically. He immediately went to find Emperor Hongxing.
Emperor Hongxing was discussing matters with several Grand Secretaries when he saw Meng Guanqi rushing in with a memorial. He couldn't help but ask, "What is it?"
After reading the report handed to him by Lü Tong, his expression changed: "The entire village was wiped out and torn to pieces?"
The senior officials were shocked upon hearing this and quickly took the memorial to read it.
Minister of War Wu Xiuwen said, "That's it? Was it done by a human or a wild animal? What is Lü Tong good for? He just sent a message and that was it. Didn't he find out anything?"
Meng Guanqi said, "The incident happened three or four days ago. Tianjin is sending someone to the capital to report to Lord Lü. Lord Lü has also sent people to investigate in Linxia Village. It seems that there won't be a conclusion so soon. This memorial is to remind His Majesty."
Emperor Hongxing frowned: "Whether it was a human attack or a wild animal attack, this matter is too horrifying. Wan Quan, send someone back to the capital to investigate what happened. If it was really the work of the wolves, you must wipe out these beasts."
Wan Quan accepted the order and immediately went to make the arrangements.
Meng Guanqi frowned, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."
Emperor Hongxing said, "What is it? Speak freely."
Meng Guanqi said, "Although Lord Lü's memorial did not specify the details, this is not the first time I have heard of such a tragedy."
What? He had actually heard of such a tragedy? Emperor Hongxing's expression changed: "Where did you hear about it?"
Meng Guanqi said, "Does Your Majesty still remember the banquet at my family's house on November 17th, when my father, as the host, only rushed back after the banquet had started?"
This incident happened not long ago, and even Yang Shimin remembered it clearly. Emperor Hongxing naturally remembered it as well: "Of course I remember. What does his lateness have to do with this?"
Meng Guanqi then recounted the tragic events that Magistrate Meng had encountered in Mianzhou. Emperor Hongxing's expression changed: "Such a tragedy occurred in Mianzhou more than half a month ago. Why wasn't it reported to the court? Who is the prefect? Has the cabinet received any memorials from Mianzhou?"
The ministers all shook their heads. Yang Shimin said, "Huang Li, the prefect of Mianzhou, has not received any memorials from Mianzhou in the past month."
Emperor Hongxing angrily said, "This is outrageous! How could Huang Li conceal such a major event that happened in Mianzhou?"
Meng Guanqi immediately knelt down and begged for forgiveness: "I was also at fault in this matter. I thought that Prefect Huang would definitely organize people to suppress the wolf pack. After the Mianzhou tragedy, I kept an eye on whether there were any memorials from Mianzhou in the cabinet, but more than half a month has passed and I have not received a single word. So I thought that the wolf scourge had been resolved..."
As a result, not only was the wolf calamity not resolved, but Prefect Huang, most likely fearing that the matter would affect his career if it got out, actually concealed it.
The most important thing is that he didn't report to the imperial court. The key issue is that he probably didn't notify the neighboring prefectures, so the wolf pack was allowed to move north, and countless villages like Linxia Village, which are close to the mountains, were massacred by the wolves along the way.
Emperor Hongxing's face was gloomy. He waved his hand to signal Meng Guanqi to stand up: "You are not an imperial censor, and Meng Ying is only passing through Mianzhou. Naturally, it is not appropriate for you to report the tragedy in Mianzhou to me without going through Huang Li. However, Huang Li is truly despicable. Because of his selfishness, he has killed countless innocent people. Meng Guanqi, you immediately draft an imperial edict to bring Huang Li to the capital. Jiang Liandao, you order two people from the Ministry of Justice to take the imperial edict and bring him back for interrogation."
Jiang Liandao, the Minister of Justice, responded and, after Meng Guanqi drafted the imperial edict, sent two officials from the Ministry of Justice to Mianzhou to arrest the person.
After drafting the imperial edict, Meng Guanqi was somewhat worried: "Your Majesty, the wolf pack attacked Linxia Village three or four days ago and then left. Tianjin is only a hundred miles from the capital and less than two hundred miles from Yunfu Mountain. If the wolf pack continues to move north these days, they may have already approached Yunfu Mountain. Should Your Majesty consider returning to the capital?"
Especially since Yunfu Mountain is a volcanic area with a spring-like climate all year round and abundant flowers and trees, there are many small animals living here. No one knows whether wolves will come by smell.
Emperor Hongxing pondered for a moment: "There is no need to panic. If the wolf pack really comes to Yunfu Mountain, that would be even better. In addition to the Imperial Guards, Tangquan Palace also has the Qilin Army. If we can find traces of the wolf pack, we can wipe them out in one fell swoop. I will give orders to the people on duty to pay more attention. Once traces of the wolf pack are found, we will immediately organize a hunt and eliminate them all."
They had gone to great lengths, and had only been at Tangquan Palace for less than seven days. The temperature on Yunfu Mountain was pleasant, and one could soak in the hot springs morning and evening. However, according to the people who delivered memorials to Tangquan Palace every day, the temperature in the capital was getting lower and lower, and there were frequent heavy snowfalls. How could Emperor Hongxing cancel this trip just because of a few wolves?
Moreover, even if the wolf pack is rampant, there are more than a thousand of them in total. No matter how ferocious the wolf pack is, they can only avoid such a large group of people.
Emperor Hongxing refused to leave, so Meng Guanqi had no choice but to retreat. When Li Xiaoxiao returned with Aze and Ruirui after picking vegetables, she found her husband sitting in the room, deep in thought and looking somewhat melancholy.
Li Xiaoxiao let the two children, who were covered in mud, go soak in the hot spring. She even lit an incense stick for them and had the maid in Aze's room watch over the two children: "You must get up within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, do you hear me?"
During their stay at Tangquan Palace, the two boys soaked in the hot springs every day and learned the rules: they couldn't stay in the hot springs for more than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. It was best to get up and rest for a while, drink some water, and eat some snacks, otherwise they would feel dizzy.
After settling the two children, she went back into the room: "What's wrong? Did His Majesty scold you?"
Why do you look so melancholy?
Meng Guanqi sighed, his expression complex: "I feel uneasy. Do you remember the tragedy that happened to Father in Mianzhou?"
Li Xiaoxiao certainly remembered: "What happened? Did the prefect of Mianzhou finally submit a memorial reporting the wolf attack on the villagers?"
Meng Guanqi shook his head and recounted the tragedy that had occurred in Linxia Village a few days ago: "Lord Lü sent a memorial to remind His Majesty, and I suggested that His Majesty return to the capital, but His Majesty refused... Although we know very little about this matter, I always feel that something is very wrong."
However, since the actual situation was based on other people's accounts and I had not seen the scene, even if I felt something was wrong, I did not realize what was wrong at the moment.
Meng Guanqi asked, "Does Your Majesty feel that with the Imperial Guards and the Qilin Army protecting you, there is nothing to worry about? What do you think?"
Li Xiaoxiao frowned as well: "There are indeed quite a few things that don't sound right."
Meng Guanqi went to his desk and got paper and pen. He wrote down the place names "Fuyuan Town" and "Linxia Village" on the paper and began to list the commonalities between the two tragedies.
He pointed to Fuyuan Town: "This is Mianzhou, the place where the wolf pack first appeared. First, villagers went missing, and then Inspector Zhuang, along with thirty soldiers and the villagers who led the way, were all torn to pieces by the wolf pack. This is Linxia Village in Tianjin, where the entire village was torn to pieces by the wolf pack. It can be seen that the biggest common point of these two tragedies is that there were no intact bodies. What's even stranger is that so many people died, yet not even a single wolf carcass was found."
Didn't those people put up any resistance? Especially when Inspector Zhuang led thirty soldiers into the mountains, they were all carrying weapons, but apart from finding a few tufts of wolf fur at the scene, there wasn't even a single wolf carcass. Wolves aren't people, so if they were really killed on the spot, the wolf pack couldn't possibly take their companion's body away, could they?
Li Xiaoxiao's brows furrowed tightly. Yes, this is too unreasonable. How could there not be a single wolf's corpse left?
She thought for a moment and added, "There is another thing in common: whether it was Fuyuan Town in Mianzhou or Linxia Village in Tianjin, no one who encountered the wolf pack survived. The wife who went back to her parents' home doesn't count; she wasn't in the village at the time."
Meng Guanqi blurted out, "That means no one actually saw the wolf pack; these are all just our speculations."
The two exchanged a chilling glance. Meng Guanqi murmured, "Is this a coincidence or an accident? Did the wolves know they were going to kill us?"
No bodies were left behind, nor were there any eyewitnesses. The wolf pack arrived suddenly and disappeared even more suddenly, leaving nothing but a few tufts of fur.
How did a pack of wild beasts manage to do that?
Meng Guanqi stared at the two place names for a long time before suddenly speaking up: "My father once mentioned that when Inspector Zhuang and those thirty-odd men were discovered, not only were their limbs broken, but all of their internal organs had been pulled out and their heads had been bitten off. I wonder if the situation was the same in Linxia Village?"
The head was bitten off, and all the internal organs were pulled out...
A distant memory suddenly washed over Li Xiaoxiao, and she felt the hairs on her body stand on end. It was as if an invisible electric current was coursing from the soles of her feet to the top of her head, leaving her numb and in pain, completely unable to move.
Her face turned pale instantly, and she suddenly pointed heavily at Fuyuan Town: "What kind of place is this?"
Meng Guanqi was puzzled: "This is Fuyuan Town in Mianzhou."
Li smiled and asked, "What place is it adjacent to?"
Meng Guanqi thought for a moment: "Fuyuan Town is on the border of Mianzhou, so it should be adjacent to Jizhou."
The thunderclap finally exploded overhead, and Li Xiaoxiao felt as if she had fallen into a deep, frozen sea.
Jizhou!
That's where it all began.
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