treacherous world

As soon as Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang heard the words "ghost-masked man", they immediately thought of the ghost-masked man who attacked Li Laofeng and fought with Bai Yutang that night.

Bai Yutang asked about the appearance of the ghost mask in detail, and both Zhan Zhao and Zhan Zhao thought about it... They thought it looked like it, but it didn't look very similar.

"The strange thing is, why did that person go to Xiaoyao Island?" Gongsun was a little puzzled, "How long has it been since Xiaoyao Island was built, and besides, there is nothing on the island."

"Could it be a trick to divert the tiger away from the mountain?" Zhan Zhao asked.

"Impossible." Bai Yutang shook his head, "What's the use of sending us out of the empty island? My brothers are all on the empty island... and the island is full of institutions, it's hard to go up and make trouble sky."

Everyone thought it was reasonable, so they frowned and continued to think, but they couldn't think of a reason... What is there on Xiaoyao Island that attracts the ghost-faced man?

Not long after, the boat approached the shore, and a shadow guard came to pick it up.According to Zhao Pu's order, the shadow guards have strengthened the vigilance around the island. Xiaoyao Island is not to mention heavily guarded, but there are thousands of Zhao Pu's confidants and favorite generals, all of whom are brave and skilled Zhao family troops.They have searched the entire island according to the order, but they have not found it.

"How is it?" After everyone had cleared the room, Zhan Zhao asked Qing Ying who was running into the room while wiping his sweat.

"Except for the back mountain, there is no one." Qingying shook her head.

"The back mountain?" Bai Yutang thought for a while, "Where is the forest?"

"There is a small forest." Zhao Pu thought for a while, "There is also a big farm, which raises all the livestock on Xiaoyao Island, as well as the lambs, rabbits and deer raised by the little four... At the end there is There is a small hill, and the beach is on the other side of the hill.”

"There is something very strange." Zhan Zhao suddenly remembered something, and asked Bai Yutang, "It's only been a matter of two days since we picked up Lao Crazy Li, and are there any boats going to and from Xiaoyao Island in these two days?"

Zhao Pu looked at Zhe Ying.

Zhe Ying shook his head, "No, only our shadow guard boats came once and then left immediately. It is impossible for someone to be on our boat, there is nowhere to hide!"

"That's right!" Ziying also came over and said, "Think about it, Xiaoyao Island is just a ferry, surrounded by strict guards, and there are whistles on it. We are defending according to the old Zhao's army camp. It is impossible for someone to come and not know. , isn't that bad!"

Everyone looked at each other after hearing this - that's right, could it be that this person was already on Xiaoyao Island a few days ago?Then it is not the same person as that day!

"Or...is there any other way to enter Xiaoyao Island?" Bai Yutang asked suddenly.

Zhan Zhao frowned upon hearing this, and whispered to him, "Oh, don't be suspicious, okay?"

Bai Yutang laughed dryly, looking at him—it's not impossible, for example, the ghost ship or something.

Zhan Zhao was stunned for a moment, rubbed his chin and began to think about it, and felt that it was quite a thing to match the ghost face with the ghost boat.

After everyone got off the boat, they first went to the main hall of Xiaoyao Island to sit down.

Speaking of which, Zhan Zhao has not been to Xiaoyao Island yet, but after a closer look, the construction is adequate. Zhao Pu and Gongsun are indeed more tasteful. A large manor is surrounded by walls and surrounded by plum trees.Today is colder, and the plum blossoms are sprouting buds.The courtyards in front and back are elegant but not vulgar, and even a bit rough, probably in line with Zhao Pu's preference for fighting all the year round.

Feiying took everyone to the place where the ghost-masked man was seen yesterday, which was in the Xikuan courtyard of the villa.Feiying Daiying and several shadow guards chased him all the way past the training ground, he climbed over a fence near the back mountain, and looked for... he was nowhere to be found.

"Wow..." Ziying looked at Feiying with a look of surprise, "Why did you come to this remote place like Xikuayuan at night? Playing wild with Huiying?"

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Fei Ying stretched out her hand and pinched Zi Ying's ear, which hurt him a lot.

"Oh... my aunt, please forgive me!"

After Feiying had had a good time pinching her, she told everyone that she was attracted by a black cat. The black cat's eyes were red and frightening to death!

Zhan Zhao was stunned after hearing this, and Bai Yutang was also stunned... Last night?Impossible, that little black cat was trapped in the empty island last night, right?Zhan Zhao stayed with him for a while.

"Could it be that there are two cats?" Zhan Zhao thought for a while, "Actually, as for cats, there might be three or four...Anyway, most black cats in the world look similar, huh?"

What he asked was Bai Yutang.

Bai Yutang looked at him and shook his head seriously, "No, each one is very different."

Zhan Zhao seemed confused, "Is it different?"

Bai Yutang looked elsewhere and said nothing.

Sure enough, there are quite a few cats on the island, but not many dogs. The girls like Fei Ying feed them whenever they see cute kittens, so they are familiar with those cats. It is said that there are about a hundred of them... But the red one I have never seen a cat with black eyes.What's more, these cats are very smart. They move around in places with people during the day, and they can beg for food. At night, they go into the mountains to catch wild mice and the like, so the cats are usually nowhere to be seen at night!

"This fence is connected to the back mountain, you can look for it." Zhao Pu told everyone to go to the mountain to find it... Anyway, it is only a small hillside, and the biggest animals are nothing but horses and deer.

Zhan Zhao wanted to go to the beach with Bai Yutang, while Gongsun and Zhao Pu led people to search the mansion from room to room.And as for what to look for?Everyone didn't expect to find any ghost-masked man, in short, what can be found is what it is!

The coast of the back mountain of Xiaoyao Island is very long, the long sandy beach is white, and there are piles of sand on it, some are made into bunnies and some are made into kittens, and the biggest two are next to each other A kitten and a little mouse.

Bai Yutang looked at it and coughed, no need to ask, just guessed it was Xiaosi who did it!

"This case is really exhausting!" Zhan Zhao shook his head, "There is no clue at all, and we still don't know who the murderer is, and the intention has not yet been revealed."

Bai Yutang walked beside Zhan Zhao, stepping on the soft sand, didn't answer the words, and kept his head down, thinking about his thoughts.

Just as I was thinking, I heard a "meow", and saw two kittens appearing in front of my eyes.

Bai Yutang was taken aback for a moment, then saw Zhan Zhao put the two cats in front of his eyes, and said, "Look, they are clearly the same!"

These two are tiger-striped kittens, they are about the same size and look almost the same, probably born from the same mother.Bai Yutang was surprised, "Cat, where did you get the cat?"

"There are a lot nearby." Zhan Zhao said with a smile, "Look around, Feiying said a hundred just now, I think it's underestimated, at least two hundred, probably on the beach to catch jumping fish Eat crabs and the like."

"Did Zhao Pu bring these cats from other places?" Bai Yutang asked suddenly.

Zhan Zhao shook his head, "No, I remember I heard Xiao Sizi say something before, saying that there are a lot of cats on Xiaoyao Island, let me play with them."

When Bai Yutang heard this, he frowned and looked puzzled, "It's strange."

"What's the matter?" Zhan Zhao saw him staring at the kittens in a daze, and said, "It's really hard to distinguish one breed of cat, and it's even more difficult to distinguish two cats with black eyes and red eyes."

Seeing that the eyeballs of the tiger-striped kitten were also golden, Bai Yutang reached out to lift it up and put it next to Zhan Zhao's face, "The eyes are the same as the breed... the difference is huge!"

Zhan Zhao was stunned for a while, then realized that Bai Yutang was teasing him again.

The two walked for a while, and saw a large group of cats sitting by the beach, raising their heads, staring straight at the extra black island in the distance, their eyes seemed to be adoring.

Zhan Zhao couldn't understand it, and thought that it would be great if he could go over and chat with them for a while, the group of cats might know the origin of the island.

In this way, everyone touched the entire Xiaoyao Island, counting almost every grain of sand and every grass, but there was nothing suspicious... Seeing, it was already dark.

That night, everyone rested in separate rooms, Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang couldn't sleep, and felt that the case was worrying, so they wandered around Xiaoyao Island with their swords in hand.

Turning around, Zhan Zhao suddenly asked Fei Ying who was following behind and guiding them, "Where are those cats?"

Bai Yutang looked around, indeed, there wasn't a single cat nearby.

"Oh, they're all hiding!" Feiying said, "Maybe they're sleeping or going up the mountain to catch mice... In short, we basically don't see cats at night."

"Then there must be a fixed place to sleep, right?" Zhan Zhao asked, "Do you know where you sleep in such a cold day?"

"Hmm..." Fei Ying seemed to be in a daze for a while, "Don't say it, I really haven't found it!"

"Have you ever found a cat litter?" Bai Yutang thought of this, and said to Fei Ying, "Quickly, let Zhao Pu mobilize everyone to find out where the cats on the island are!"

"Ah?" Fei Ying didn't know why, but seeing Bai Yutang's expression, she quickly nodded in agreement and ran back to the mansion.

Zhan Zhao didn't understand what Bai Yutang meant, so he asked, "What's the matter? What are you looking for the cats for? You're not afraid of them being cold at night, are you? They are very smart, so they naturally have a place to go!"

"No!" Bai Yutang shook his head again and again, "Mao'er, Xiaoyao Island used to belong to Zikong Island. Before I handed over the island to Zhao Pu, I was afraid that there might be beasts or other things on the island, so I sent someone to check it out. There is nothing on it! Naturally, there are no cats! How long has the island been given to him? In less than half a year, the house has just been built, and suddenly so many cats came!"

"Could it be that the boatman who repaired the ship brought it here..." Zhan Zhao thought for a while, but also thought it was wrong, even if he brought a few cats, it is impossible to become so many at once!In half a year, the female cat will give birth to cubs in about three months, and after half a year, she will give birth to two litters! .

"What are you looking for a cat for?"

At this time, I saw Gongsun running over in a hurry, Zhao Pu had already brought someone to look for it, and asked him to ask Bai Yutang what kind of medicine was sold in the gourd.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao quickly asked, "Are all these cats bought and raised by the fourth son from other places?"

"Of course not. We moved in after the yard was repaired, only to find that there were many cats!" Gongsun smiled, "Zhao Pu also said that Brother Bai is crazy about cats, and he has so many cats..."

Speaking of this, Gongsun felt that something was wrong, why did he blurt out nonsense, so he touched his chin in embarrassment.

But Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao were even more embarrassed.

"Ahem." Gongsun hurriedly coughed and asked Bai Yutang, "What's wrong with the cat?"

"There were no cats on Xiaoyao Island!" Bai Yutang told Gongsun with certainty, "These cats came here through other methods!"

"Other ways?" Gongsun felt fresh after hearing this, "Xiaoyao Island is surrounded by water and there is no way of access. Why can those cats come here? Since ancient times, cats don't know how to swim...they didn't come here by swimming?"

"If there are other ways to come here, that is to say, the little black cat may have used the same method yesterday, and the ghost-masked man also disappeared in the same way!" Zhan Zhao came to a conclusion, and everyone thought it made sense, so they split up again. I found it.

But what makes everyone feel strange is that all the cats on Xiaoyao Island disappeared overnight!

"This is really crazy!" Zhao Pu wondered, so many live cats disappeared in a blink of an eye, it is impossible for all of them to jump into the sea, right?

And the next morning, Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were woken up by Ziying's slamming on the door, "Master Zhan, Fifth Master, get up, the cat is back!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were excited, and opened the door one after another, "Where's the cat?"

Ziying pointed to the beach behind, "They're all sitting on the beach, some are eating, they're alive and kicking!"

"Where did they all come from?" Zhan Zhao was curious.

Zi Ying kept shaking her head, "I didn't see it, Hula appeared all of a sudden!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang looked at each other, their brows were furrowed, and sure enough—there was a problem with the cat's whereabouts.

Zhao Pu ordered, "Everyone on Xiaoyao Island stared at a cat for me. They all watched closely to see where they went at night and how they changed during the day!"

Xiaoyao Island is very lively now, cat!Animals that can't sit still, go to the room and climb trees for a while.The officers, soldiers, and shadow guards on Xiaoyao Island are very skilled... It's a pity that it is too tiring to run around with the cat. From time to time, some people lose track of the cat, or bump into each other without noticing.

The most interesting one is Zhan Zhao.

Originally, he had the best lightness skill, so he jumped and followed by the liveliest white kitten.But don't look at this cat's figure is not bad, but it's a slacker. Others jump up and down, but he squats by the seaside, glances at Zhan Zhao from time to time, lifts his paws to wash his face, and sits there for half an hour without moving.Zhan Zhao let it suffocate, thinking that you are moving!

Bai Yutang was the most relaxed. He didn't stare at any cats. When Gongsun asked, he pointed at Zhan Zhao, "Watch this one!"

Gongsun suppressed a smile and left, while Zhan Zhao continued to grind his teeth and stare at the lazy cat in front of him.

At noon, Uncle Lu on the empty island sent Bai Fulai to deliver a message, saying that the River Gang was going to hold a sacrifice today. This is the rule of the people in the sea. After three days of death, the soul must be summoned, otherwise those souls will stay in the sea and never come back. coming.Originally, this sacrificial ceremony was planned to be held at the seaside, and it was very grand, but it was a pity that Songjiang refused to let it go, saying that they were pirates.

So the river gang had no choice but to return to the ruins scorched by the fire.

This time, many people from Jianghu came to express their condolences. Bai Yutang was secretly surprised when Bai Fu told him the list of sects he had found out.Zhan Zhao also felt strange, "There are so many people? Is He Gang so popular?"

It was inconvenient for Zhao Pu to come forward, so he stayed and continued to watch the cat. Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang reluctantly went to the boundary of the River Gang.

As the boat sailed on the sea, Zhan Zhao asked Bai Yutang, "Are the four brothers going?"

Bai Yutang shook his head, "The River Gang doesn't have much land left now, so there are so many people there, so this time it's just the two of us."

"Actually, they didn't invite me." Zhan Zhao laughed, "If I go with you, will I cause trouble for you?"

Bai Yutang frowned slightly, "How is that possible?"

"That's right." Zhan Zhao put his hands on the railing and looked at the blue sea in front of him, and said with a smile, "Brother Bai is a big trouble in itself, and he doesn't care about adding a little trouble to me, does he?"

Bai Yutang leaned over and stared at Zhan Zhao, "Cat, you are the big trouble!"

The two were looking at each other and bickering without saying a word, and saw Bai Fu coming out from the cabin with a few oranges, just about to shout, Master Wu Zhan was eating oranges...but he yelled out "Oh my God", The orange tray in my hand flew away.

Bai Yutang turned his head and walked quickly to his side, "What's wrong?"

"Fifth Master, look quickly, look quickly!" Bai Fu jumped and pointed to the distance.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang raised their eyes and followed his finger, they were also taken aback.