ten steps one kill

In the dead of night, Liu Hongfeng once again stood outside the Yamen of Yingzhou Mansion.

There is no one around, two gray stone lions stand on both sides of the courtyard gate, with faint moss hanging on their backs, and there are puddles formed by the accumulation of rainwater at their feet, the surface is blown by the night wind, and the dead branches and leaves are falling In it, there was a smell of decay.

Liu Hongfeng led Liu Qian into the courtyard one after the other, closing the Zhumen behind their backs.

There is also no human breath in the government office, the windows are closed all day long, and the smell of decay and damp diffuses in the courtroom, lingering.

There are still knife marks of different shades on both sides of the long and narrow corridor.Two days ago, Liu Hongfeng cut Tang Zhen's throat with his own hands here. Although Tianjimen had sent someone to take care of it and the body had been buried in the backyard, there were still bright red blood stains on the weapon rack by the wall, faintly visible in the darkness. Like a hard-to-heal scar.

The moment of confrontation is always extremely dangerous. Liu Hongfeng recalled the battle at that time, and the touch left by cutting off the opponent's tongue was still lingering between his fingers. Tang Zhen's mouth was full of blood, and he spat out vicious words in an indistinct voice.Those cursed words turned into invisible spider threads, and after Tang Zhen's death, they were still entangled in his ears and lingered for a long time.

——Not only will you die, but you will also experience a more tragic ending than death. You will be swallowed by your own lies, and you will be betrayed by all relatives, and you will not end well.

The strange thing is that the inaudible sound at that time became very clear now, sounding from a dark and empty corner, as if coming from the mouth of an invisible ghost, repeating over and over again, bit by bit occupying his ears and gnawing away at his soul mind.

Until Liu Qian pulled the corner of his clothes from behind, bringing his thoughts back to reality.

The pulling force was very light and restrained, and the small body approached him, but kept a certain distance cautiously, just grabbing his clothes with his hands.

He lowered his head and asked, "Why, you're not afraid of ghosts, are you?"

"Of course I'm not afraid!" Liu Qian replied immediately, "...it's just that this place is gloomy, and I'm just a little cold."

A child's ability to tell lies is as good as his size, which is really not very good. Liu Hongfeng smiled in his heart, and did not expose it deliberately. In court, do you still remember the names of those three people?"

Liu Qianyang raised his head, and replied crisply: "Yu Minzhi, the prefect of Yingzhou County, chief arrester Ding Jun, prison officer Li Xiancheng."

Liu Hongfeng raised her eyebrows: "You have a pretty good memory."

Liu Qian pouted and said, "I steamed their bones with my own hands, how could I forget them so quickly."

Liu Hongfeng nodded and said: "Human life is human life after all. Everyone can only live once. There is no value in life. Good people and evil people have the same weight. You should keep it in your heart."

Liu Qian frowned, remained silent for a while, and asked, "Will you remember everyone you killed?"

Liu Hongfeng replied without hesitation: "Yes, I remember all of them."

"The same goes for bad guys?"

"Even if Tang Zhen is as heinous as he is, I will remember it clearly."

Liu Qian asked again: "If there are too many names, won't your heart become more and more heavy?"

"That's okay. If you can't remember it in your head, you can use a pen to write it down. If you can't finish it with a pen, you can engrave it on a stone."

"Aren't you afraid of trouble?"

Facing Liu Qiantian's genuine inquiry, Liu Hongfeng replied flatly: "The thing I hate the most in my life is people who wantonly plunder lives but don't take it seriously. In this world, good and evil are but a wall. It may not be that he has never done evil deeds and never hurt others. If you treat your life as a trifle, no matter how high your position is, no matter how powerful your martial arts are, you are still inferior to an animal."

At this point, Duan Changya's stern face suddenly flashed before his eyes, his brows could not help but frown, his eyes sank, and there was a very reserved pain on his calm face.

At this time, Liu Qian who was beside him said, "By the way, let's send candles to the souls of the dead, so that they can go back to the underworld peacefully, and will not become unjust ghosts and cause harm to the world."

Liu Hongfeng was slightly taken aback: "Who told you this truth?"

"Sister Jin'e said it." Liu Qian's tone suddenly rose.

Liu Hongfeng smiled lightly and said, "I guessed it, besides your late master, you are willing to listen to her words, the only one in this world."

"It's because what she said made sense!" Liu Qian argued.

It was rare for Liu Hongfeng not to refute, but just replied: "Okay, let's do it according to her reasoning."

Encouraged, Liu Qian immediately became energetic, jumped to the wall in two or three steps, rummaged through the bottom of the shelf under the wall lamp, and found some white candles.Hold it carefully with two hands.

Liu Hongfeng smiled and said, "You idiot..."

It's a pity that Liu Qian didn't even hear a word of the series of reprimands that followed.He stared at the palm of his hand for a while, then walked to the backyard.

The yard is located behind the courtroom. Compared with the long and narrow courtroom, the yard is much wider. There are buildings on three sides, including a study room, a bedroom, and a warehouse. To the underground prison.However, before the Martial Arts Conference, Yingzhou Island had always been quiet and peaceful, and the prison had been vacant for a long time. There was a layer of rust hanging on the door lock, obviously it hadn't been opened for a long time.

The tombs of the three of them were in the corner of the courtyard, and they were erected hastily, which really didn't match their official positions during their lifetime.Although these three people had no outstanding achievements in their lives, and they were not clean and honest, they did not have major mistakes.It's a pity that he died in the brothel in vain, he lost all face, and his subordinates scattered as monkeys, and his end was bleak.

It was Tang Zhenhe, whom the Tianji Gate probably despised, they didn't even set up a simple wooden monument, only the wet soil that had just been turned over could reveal that someone was buried.

Liu Qianguo really placed candles in front of each piece of wet soil, lit them one by one with a fire, then knelt down in front of her, folded her hands in front of her chest, and moved her lips slightly, as if muttering something, but made no sound.

Liu Hongfeng was beside him, so he couldn't hear what he said clearly, and he didn't know how much he had in his little heart.It wasn't until the five white candles fluttered slightly and almost burned to the end that he stood up with a relieved look on his face, and kicked his numb knees in the air.

The last ray of candle flame jumped and disappeared into the night sky along with the burnt candle body.

Liu Qian looked up and looked around, muttering, "This yard is so dark."

"It's just too dark," Liu Hongfeng responded, "I've done more than a hundred moves with you just now, and I taught you a new movement technique. At this moment, your back should be aching, and your whole body is aching."

"No!" Liu Qian replied, but involuntarily stretched his hands behind his back and clasped his wrists.

Liu Hongfeng patted him on the back and said, "Okay, now that the night is quiet and the yard is empty, go find a soft bed and sleep well."

Liu Qian shook her head: "I won't go."

"Huh?" Liu Hongfeng looked suspicious, and saw that he insisted on following him, so he argued, "I won't leave the government office either, I just went to the back study to check things, and I'll accompany you later. "

Liu Qian looked up at the other party and asked, "Are you going to investigate the bloody clothes case?"

Liu Hongfeng froze immediately, and his face suddenly turned cold: "How did you know about the bloody clothes case?"

"Why don't I know?" Liu Qian asked back: "In the documents left by Master, the black and white characters are clearly written, and it's not like I don't know the characters."

"Documents?" Liu Hongfeng was stunned, and felt in his close-fitting pocket, and found that the things hidden inside had disappeared, and his heart sank again.

Seeing Liu Hongfeng flustered, Liu Qian took out an envelope from his waist pocket, held it up in front of the other person, and said while shaking, "You don't need to look for it, it's in my hand."

Liu Hongfeng looked serious: "When did you get it?"

Liu Qian raised the corners of his mouth, his eyes were filled with triumph, and he said: "When I challenged you just now, you didn't even realize it."

Liu Hongfeng and Liu Qian fought each other with the aim of training his ability, all attention was focused on his every move, and he definitely would not be wary of other moves.Unexpectedly, this kid actually took advantage of his own loopholes.Thinking of this, Liu Hongfeng became even more angry, and said with a dark face: "How many times have I told you, don't look at things you shouldn't, don't you understand human speech?"

Unexpectedly, Liu Qian raised her eyebrows and said sullenly, "This is something left by my master before he passed away. Why can't I read it. Are you speaking human language?"

"I'm here for you!"

"You are nosy!"

"You stinky brat—" Liu Hongfeng was so angry that his breath trembled, and he couldn't speak for a moment.

Liu Qian chased after the victory, and said: "It's too late, even if you don't let me see it, I have read it every word. I know you are investigating the bloody clothes case ten years ago. This is the first time you came to Master's door , It is for this reason that you were charged with murder and almost lost your head, and it is also to protect the evidence left by Master. Although I am younger than you, I am not stupid, so don't try to fool me!"

"Bold and daring! Mess with me! I don't know the seriousness!" Liu Hongfeng stared at him fiercely, "Since you know how precious the evidence is, why don't you return it to me quickly."

Liu Qian just shook her head: "No!"

"give me!"

"I don't want to give it!"

"You—" Liu Hongfeng was so angry that he raised his hand high, and was about to hit Liu Qian on the head.

Liu Qian didn't hide, just hugged the envelope in her arms and closed her eyes forcefully.

Liu Hongfeng's fist was hanging in the air, clenched and rattling, but he couldn't drop it no matter what.He remembered that Liu Qian used to be indifferent to him, either punching or kicking, with no respect at all, but now he didn't even hide, and obediently waited for his fist to come down.

He usually doesn't feel sorry for Liu Qian, he always greets him casually and teases him wantonly, but now he can't even drop a single punch.

He finally put down his hand slowly, gritted his teeth and said, "Little bastard, you're sure I can't bear to beat you, right?"

Liu Qian opened her eyes cautiously, her eyelids trembled, her lips were tightly pursed, and she looked shocked. Liu Hongfeng saw it, her heart softened, and her tone softened, saying: "You, you have such a bad temper. I don’t know who I learned from.”

The child's mind is very sensitive, and he immediately heard the meaning of compromise in the other party's words, slowly straightened his back, relaxed the strength in his hands, and muttered in a low voice: "You were sent to the sky prison because of this piece of paper, you almost died I lost my life, next time I don't want to see you standing in the prison car, I...I feel bad too."

Liu Hongfeng was stunned, sighed, and said: "You also know that the thing in your hand is extremely dangerous. It involves an unsolved case ten years ago, and it is extremely precious evidence. If the case from that year is brought up again, it may alarm the entire martial arts world. How many people are secretly watching its movements, and your master is risking his life to protect it, but you treat it so lightly, did you think carefully before throwing your temper?"

"Do you think I haven't thought about it? I'm not stupid," Liu Qian argued. "Of course I know that many people want to snatch it, so I want to hold it for you. If you are so public, others will definitely pay attention to you everywhere." , but I’m just a kid, they won’t be wary of me, wouldn’t it be safer to hold things in my hands.”

Liu Hongfeng snorted: "How do you know that others won't find out? If someone finds out, have you thought about the consequences? Are you eating the guts of a bear, or do you think your life is not long enough?"

"Then what about you?" Liu Qian asked back, "You know it's dangerous, but you insist on jumping into the fire pit, so what?"

Liu Hongfeng said in a deep voice: "Of course I have a reason. My mother was victimized and died for no reason. If I don't take revenge, I will be disloyal and unfilial. What face do I have to live in this world?"

"Then it's the same for me. Am I going to be a coward and see Master die in vain?"

Liu Hongfeng was stunned again, lowering her eyes to stare at the kid beside her, and didn't answer for a long time.

Liu Qian puffed out his cheeks, clenched his fists, stubbornly raised his neck, stared, and his thin waist was tense, for fear of letting others see that he was not strong enough.

——Swallowing all the grievances in his belly, he also swallowed the fear back into his throat, bluffing out a fearless momentum, just like himself ten years ago.

It was precisely because they were so similar that Liu Hongfeng couldn't bear to see Liu Qian wandering in the rivers and lakes, so he always took Liu Qian by his side, earnestly and kindly, and protected him carefully.

Liu Hongfeng finally calmed down his anger, and after relaxing his whole body, he felt exhausted, all the strength in his hands and feet was exhausted, and he wished he could just lie on the ground, close his eyes, and forget all the troubled affairs of the world.

But he can't forget that he has put in ten years of hard work, but the tragedy of that night is still repeated before his eyes, as if he just saw it yesterday.

He took a deep breath and said, "Since you have decided to keep the evidence with your own hands, hide it carefully, be careful everywhere, and never mention it to anyone other than me."

"Of course." Liu Qian nodded and said, "Do you still need to explain these principles?"

"Even sister Jin'e can't say that."

"I won't tell. I wish she would stay out of our trouble."

Liu Hongfeng shrugged his shoulders, squeezed out a smile, and then put his palm on Liu Qian's head, rubbing it lightly.

After all, Liu Qian was just a child, and when he was shown favor by an adult, his heart immediately fluttered, his hands were put on his waist, and the tip of his nose was about to go up to the sky: "Don't worry, I'm very good at hiding things, I'll take care of you and strip me of my clothes Can't find it either."

Liu Hongfeng pouted, and flicked his forehead with two fingers: "Whoever wants to strip you off, I, Liu Hongfeng, only like to strip off the clothes of beautiful men, and I'm not interested in stinky brats at all."

Liu Qian was screamed by the playing, and after hearing some shameless words, her cheeks blushed immediately: "You, you, you...you are so shameless, you really are a beast!"

Liu Hongfeng rolled his eyelids: "There are too many hypocrites in the world. I, this beast, think exactly like them. It's just that I'm more honest than them, so I can speak their heart out."

"Bah, who is the same as you." Liu Qianbai glanced at him, carefully put the envelope in the bag, and finally clenched five fingers and beat him on the waist, "Aren't you going to the study, why are you dawdling, let's go Bar."

Inside the government office, there is a special room for storing Tibetan scrolls. It is located on the left side of the court. The door opens to the courtyard and cannot be seen from the outside.There is a wooden plaque inlaid with gold hanging on the door, and the inscription "Kirin Book Pavilion" is vigorous and powerful.It's a pity that there are not many books in this bookstore. The books displayed in the bookcases are all the case books and account books of the past years, which fully fill the entire room.

Liu Hongfeng stepped into the room, but he was still not blocked. He had planned many ways to avoid people's eyes, but none of them came in handy.The official guarding the government office died and ran away, leaving an empty yard for him to come in and out freely.

He wandered among the dense shelves, choking on the thick dust in his nose, and sneezing from time to time.Obviously, the case books stored in the pavilion have not been touched for a long time, and the officials are just routinely recording the cases at hand, adding bricks and tiles to the dusty sea here.

Liu Qian followed behind Liu Hongfeng, eyes full of curiosity.Liu Hongfeng casually took down a case file, dusted off the surface, handed it to him, and explained: "Here is the record of the ins and outs of each case, the detailed process of the trial, the witnesses and witnesses, and the conclusion of the final verdict. After the case is closed, the official seal of the government office and the fingerprint of the prisoner will be affixed."

Liu Qian lowered his head and turned over, then raised his head and asked, "What if the case can't be resolved?"

Liu Hongfeng said: "For unresolved cases, just fold a corner and wait for it to be completed later."

Liu Qian flipped through the pages again, brushing over the creases in the corners of the paper, and frowning: "But some of them haven't been filled at all."

Liu Hongfeng shook his head and let out a soft sigh.

Behind every corner that cannot be healed is a period of suffering that cannot be erased.

Liu Qian understood what he meant, so she didn't ask any more questions. She gently put down the case file, picked up another book with a different format, and asked, "What is this?"

"It's the ledger."

"The government doesn't run shops, so why are there so many account books?"

"Running a government office is not too different from doing business. Because the emperor's food is used, and reports are made to the supervisor every month and quarter, there is also a lot of knowledge in bookkeeping. Since ancient times, corrupt officials have been hiding in these places. Behind the cumbersome brochures, people’s wealth is collected.”

"Oh," Liu Qian nodded superficially, but was really confused, "Why are you so familiar with government affairs?"

Liu Hongfeng smiled lightly, "When I was your age, I dealt with the government every day."

"So you still have such a great ability to make friends with the official?"

"Of course not. I just cry every day in front of the government's gate. I sneaked into the court to cry when I got the chance. I was expelled countless times and even received a court stick. When those officials saw me, their teeth itch, and they wanted to tie me to a stone. Go up and sink into the river."

"Is it really useful for you to cry so much?"

"If it's useful, would I still be here?"

Liu Qian pursed her lips, swallowed the question in her throat, buried her head in the pile of books, and continued to search.

Liu Hongfeng looked at Liu Qian's expression, and seemed to see himself in the past. There was ten years between them, more than 3000 days and nights flew by, like a dream, fleeting, without a trace.

Only happy memories will leave traces. Liu Hongfeng's childhood ended abruptly ten years ago, and his life will no longer be happy, only bitter, and only endless loneliness and patience.

The night is dark, and the moonlight is extremely dim. Even with all the doors and windows open, the bookstore is still shrouded in darkness, dust billows everywhere, and the yellowed pages smell of decay, which makes people dizzy.

Liu Hongfeng even had the illusion that he was digging in the pitch-black soil, his eyes were sore, his fingers were covered with mud, and the secret he was looking for was buried deep underground, never seeing the light of day.

He turned his head to look to the side, just in time to see Liu Qian's face.The latter sat cross-legged on the ground, and the books beside him were piled higher than his head. He couldn't help reminding: "Be careful, don't fall asleep, and let the books fall down and bury you."

Liu Qian glared at him: "I won't fall asleep!" As she said that, she corrected her sitting posture, flipping through the pages of the book in her hand.

The dense shelves are like a forest, and the older the books are, the deeper they are hidden, as if deliberately playing tricks on two people lost in the forest.

Liu Qian's energy didn't last long, her shoulders gradually slumped, her eyelids closed, her head sank, then lifted, then sank again, like a chicken pecking at rice.

Seeing this, Liu Hongfeng laughed secretly, but felt like crying.

He thought that a child at Liu Qian's age should stay in the sun all the time, not in such dark dust.

He could still recall the time when he first met Liu Qian. At that time, he searched hard for clues to the bloody clothes case, and finally found an old man named Hou.Hearing that the other party had a weird temper and refused to entertain guests except patients, he pretended to be a patient and came to visit, and the old doctor's disciple Liu Qian was the one who greeted him when he went out.

Hou Langzhong was not a kind-hearted bodhisattva, he kept his face straight from beginning to end, because his ears were not working well, he spoke in an exceptionally loud and rude voice, and he only gave orders, but rarely listened to opinions.

His legs and feet are not flexible, and he leans on a crooked cane. When he encounters obstacles, he will scold his father and mother, and sometimes even the sick will scold him.When I don't want to move around, I sit on a big chair, and after sitting for a long time, I will fall asleep by myself, and the sound of snoring while sleeping is loud.

Liu Qian had to serve him at such a young age, and seeing his expression, he didn't reply when he was beaten or scolded, but just frowned and suffered silently.

Fortunately, although Hou Langzhong had a stubborn temper, he was not ignorant in business affairs. He regarded Liu Qian as a real closed disciple, and taught him all his wealth and skills. Let the apprentice deal with it.

Liu Qian learned a lot of skills under the ruler, and she sat on the platform for consultation at a young age. Not only is her medical skill superb, she is also very articulate.

Only rarely does he inadvertently reveal a childish side. For example, at this moment, his body is curled up in a ball, his consciousness is in a daze, sleepy like a puddle of tofu, saliva is even dripping from his mouth, but his fingers are still Twisting on the corner of the book, as if holding onto a treasure, he couldn't bear to let go for a moment.

Liu Hongfeng leaned over, carefully took the booklet out of his hand, then turned his head and leaned gently on his shoulder.

There was also a layer of dust on Liu Hongfeng's shoulders, his nose was constantly itchy, and his eye sockets were sore from concentrating in the dark for too long.What he was looking for was the records from ten years ago. In the past ten years, the owner of the government office has changed three times, and he has never even heard of the names written on the case records.But he wants to trace a spider's silk clue between the lines of the stranger, closely linking the past and the present.

This was originally an impossible task. The longer the time lapse, the more difficult it is to trace the truth. After ten years, even the current emperor changed his name. The candle of Zhizhen's life lingers forever in the dark and dank past.

The bloody case is one of them.

The ins and outs of the bloody clothes case must start from Lin'an Mansion ten years ago.

Lin'an Mansion is adjacent to the coast, surrounded by ten thousand hectares of fertile fields in the west and vast blue waves in the east. Merchants from all over China come and go, and even Western fleets often come in and out from here.Among the hundreds of miles of city walls, there is constant traffic and crowds all year round. Although it is no longer a capital city, its prosperity is not inferior to that of the capital thousands of miles away.

The prosperity of merchants has also promoted the prosperity of all walks of life. Even Lin'an Mansion has more brothels than nearby ones, occupying a whole wide street. Famous buildings are displayed on both sides of the market. , extravagant.The next few are crowded in the nearby alleys. Although they don't have the ostentation of making money every day, they are also thriving in business, popular and rich in money.

Where there is oil and water, rot and maggots will breed. The Flower Street and Liu Lane in Lin'an Mansion is also the place where Xue Yuguan started his family.

Ten years ago, Xue Yuguan was still young, dressed in fine clothes and high-spirited. There were many proud and wealthy men on this street, but he was different from others. There are only young and beautiful men around him.

There are a lot of gossip and wrongs in Fireworks Alley, and there are many hatreds hidden under the prosperity on the surface, or there is a new star who steals the limelight, which arouses the envy of colleagues; Venting anger... Hatred is useless, but if it hits the blade, it will turn into inestimable power.Gradually, this invisible force breeds in the dark, and accidents happen in the streets and alleys, mostly targeting lonely women who work as prostitutes.Some people were taught a lesson without knowing why, and lost money. What's more, they were taken out by guests for a night, and when they came back, they were seriously ill, and their lives were killed by unknown venom.

Of course, these accidents were not natural disasters, but man-made disasters, all of which were controlled by Xue Yuguan.

At that time, Xue Yuguan had gathered around several elites, all of whom were superb in martial arts and ruthless in their tactics, but they didn't have a famous name at that time, and they were collectively called "Xue's Gang" by the people in the market.

The Xue family's whereabouts are secretive and cunning. Even if they committed crimes, they rarely left evidence. Moreover, because they often warded off disasters for dignitaries and received double protection from the government and wealthy businessmen, they acted even more recklessly.On the contrary, the victims under their knife have nowhere to redress their grievances, so they can only swallow their grievances silently and succumb to coercion and bullying.

Prostitution is a humble occupation, the best ending is to be a concubine for a rich man, and live under the fence for the rest of his life. Those who are not so lucky can only stay in the streets and alleys, welcoming guests day and night , I exhausted my youth in playing and singing every day, until I was old and pale, and my luck fell out of favor, and I ended up in a desolate and lonely ending.

Most of the power and positions in the world are held in the hands of men, and the decent gentlemen among men are full of aversion to vulgar customs, so naturally they don't understand their sufferings, let alone care about their fate.Even if these women encounter accidents, others will think that they are self-inflicted and asking for trouble. Even if they kill people and disturb the government, the officials will only investigate routinely and do not do their best.

As the saying goes-

The fireworks alley is long, only hearing the buzzing of new swallows and warblers,

There are many tears when you don't see a beauty, and there is no place to talk about your fate.

Under the four seasons of Fangfei, how many beauties have been buried, and the bloody clothes case is the most bizarre one among them.

At first, ten girls disappeared at the same time. Although they were traveling together, they came from different shops and did not know each other. No officer or soldier had ever seen their ranks.Later, the government came to investigate and suspected that they had been murdered, but they searched the streets and alleys, but they couldn't even find anyone.

Seeing people alive and dead bodies, they seemed to evaporate out of thin air, disappearing overnight.

Seven days passed, and even the government forgot about the accident. On the eighth day, someone went to the cemetery in the suburbs to burn paper for their relatives, but found that there were ten more coffins out of thin air in the cemetery. on the hill.The man came closer to check curiously, and was frightened immediately, yelling and jumping, he ran to the government to report the crime.

Each of the ten coffins was filled with a female corpse. The death patterns of the ten people were similar. They were all naked and covered in blood.On the contrary, the faces of the dead bodies were extremely shriveled, their skin was bluish, and their descriptions were haggard, as if someone had drained their blood from their bodies.

Seven days passed, and the dead body had begun to rot, its face was ugly and unsightly, and the original appearance could only be barely recognized.The brothel bosses were ordered to come to identify them, and they all nodded their noses, admitting that they were the ten people who disappeared that night.

Ten coffins fell from the sky out of thin air, and no clues were left inside or outside the coffins. No one knew where they had been, who had killed them, or why they appeared together.

The only clue is the coffin itself. Although Lin'an City is vast, there are not many dead people's businesses. From the choice of wood, it can be deduced that the coffin came from an inconspicuous small shop. The owner is a carpenter named Li.

Carpenter Li ran the business handed down from his ancestors alone. Due to bad luck and poverty, he could not marry a wife and lived alone all year round.On the night when the ten people disappeared, he drank all night in a nearby tavern, and the waiter in the shop witnessed it with his own eyes, so he ruled out the suspect as a criminal.The official sent him up to the hall and asked him where the coffin came from.

His business was muddled, he never kept accounts, he could only talk about it in words, he said that those who ordered these coffins were a few strange men in black hats and black hats, who visited in the middle of the night, there was no Leaving his name, only a small sum of money was left behind.The official was at a loss, and asked around the neighborhood, but no one had ever seen a customer with such a description.The carpenter also said that it must be the master of the underworld who was idle and lonely, so he sent envoys to the underworld to buy coffins, so that he could take a few women back to have fun.

Such crazy talk is obviously nonsense. However, the officials could not find other evidence, so they could only record his absurd words, saying that the dead prostitute went to the underworld to serve the king of Hades.

Not long after the bloody clothes case happened, Xue Yuguan began to frequent the piano building of the wine shop, extravagant and extravagant, as if he made a fortune overnight, and the men around him also changed from a few to dozens, and his momentum became more and more powerful. grow.In Firework Alley, everyone said that the bloody clothes case was related to him.But no one dared to denounce his sin.Some timid and timid girls described him as the underling of the King of Hades, who came here to clean up the atmosphere in the world, and brought back women who picked on the unruly for punishment.In this way, gradually, the name of the Xue Family Gang became the "Blood Clothes Gang".

People always put their bad name on the weak. In this way, they have drawn a clear relationship with the wicked, and the wicked deserved what they suffered, and it has nothing to do with themselves.However, the real villains are branded as fearful in order to give up the struggle and bow their heads and submit.

The Bloody Clothes case was left unsolved like this, and was gradually forgotten by the residents of Firework Alley. Even a few people with good sense mentioned this case, and it was nothing more than a long sigh——

Life is like duckweed, death is destiny, but the world is suffering, and innocent souls weep silently.

But Liu Hongfeng wanted to go against the sky.

Because among the ten dead, one was his biological mother.

His mother was originally a strong woman, she brought him up on her own, taught him to read and write, so that even though he was born in a brothel, he could still be a man with a straight back.

Such a gentle and tough mother turned into an ugly blood corpse, lying in a cold coffin.

Ten years later, Liu Hongfeng never woke up from the nightmare of that day.

Even Liu Qian didn't know that every time she closed her eyes and fell asleep, Liu Hongfeng always saw only one scene, that is, her mother lying in an unknown wooden coffin, her face rotted to the point of showing bones, maggots infested, haggard and hideous look like.

So he is not drowsy, he wishes he could be awake all the time and never dream.

Beside him, Liu Qian's breathing became slower and longer, while his speed of flipping through the pages became faster and faster.He buried his head deep in the scroll, and continued to search for Liu Qian's work.

The moon slipped in and out through the gaps in the clouds, and the twilight cast between the shelves became darker and darker, darker and brighter again, and after an unknown amount of time, his movements finally slowed down, not because of sleepiness, but because he was getting closer Target.

His eyes opened wider and harder in the darkness, and his fingertips slid across the blurred ink and the mottled holes gnawed out by mice, and finally stopped near the handwriting of the year.

The book in his hand is exactly the case file from ten years ago.

However, there were no clues in the case files. Before and after the bloody coat case, there was no murder case recorded on Yingzhou Island. There were only some small cases of theft, husband and wife disputes, and brothers' dispute over land. Of course, it was not the result he was looking for.

He was not discouraged, because he had expected it.The bloody clothes case happened in Lin'an and ended in Lin'an. He never expected to find anything on Yingzhou Island.

What he was really looking for was not the case files, but the account books.

Yingzhou Island is the home of Yan’s Jianjian Zhuang, and it is also a place where famous soldiers and sharp weapons are stored. In the Zhengrong Pavilion on the top of the mountain, not only the famous swords of the world are stored, but also the owner of the village, Yan Yuehua, was entrusted by the court to forge for the army. weapons.

The craftsmen on the island are exquisite in craftsmanship, and they are assisted by the water of Longyin Spring. The refined steel produced on the island is tough and light, which is better than those produced on land. There are all kinds of knives, axes, spears, helmets, saddles and nails, but the output is scarce. , so it is used as the armament of the elite division.

Forged weapons are transported out with merchant ships, and the minerals needed for casting soldiers are transported in with merchant ships. The layman doesn't know how to do it, and it's just a pile of broken copper and iron, which is heavy and heavy, but the insider knows that it's not easy to get in and out. Every item of goods on the island is of great importance, and behind every business is closely related to Chao Gang's safety.Therefore, Yingzhou Island has only one wharf in and out, and the boatmen are only members of Quebeiwu. The government strictly checks the goods entering and leaving the island, checks every item and records it, and then releases it.

Liu Hongfeng turned to the records of the month when the bloody clothes case happened, and found an unusual item.

Coffins, no more, no less, exactly ten.

"What are you looking for?" A wet voice came from behind.At some point, Liu Qian had woken up, rubbing her eyes, and leaning behind Liu Hongfeng, her curious eyes looked over the other's shoulders.

"Coffin." Liu Hongfeng replied without raising her head.

Liu Qian's shoulders couldn't help shaking, and said: "The coffins are all buried in the yard, so you shouldn't be moved by something else."

Liu Hongfeng smiled hypocritically, and said, "I can have any wrong intentions. I'm looking for the account for transporting the coffin."

After finishing speaking, he held up the account book to Liu Qian's eyes, and pointed out the records of ten coffins entering and leaving the island.

Liu Qiandao: "Everyone dies, it's not uncommon to buy a few coffins."

Liu Hongfeng shook his head: "There are very few residents on Yingzhou Island. Except for Yan's Jianjian Village, there are very few big families. It is very unusual to buy ten coffins at a time."