Chapter 66: I'm Here!

  Liu Xu is not in the small wine shop.

  When he saw from a distance that there was no tea flag or wine banner on the flagpole in front of the door, Xia Yu didn't think much about it and instead gave birth to hope. If Liu Xu really took away Xiao Qi, he wouldn't be able to open for business today.

  However, when he rushed to the small wine house, he saw a iron general blocking the door. Xia Xun got off his horse and searched around, finally prying open the window and crawling inside to search from top to bottom, but didn't see anyone's shadow. He could confirm that there was no secret room or underground cave here.

  Feng Xihui is dead, Zhang Shisan is also dead. Among the four people, Liu Xu can almost be said to be the lowest in status. He cannot return to Ying Tian Fu. If he wants to leave, he should have left when Feng Xihui died. So where can he go? Is Xiao Ding's disappearance related to him or not?

  Xia Huo circled around the small hotel for a long time and started to get impatient.

  "Damn it, where did he go?"

  Xia Jun slammed his fist against the wall, and the pain that shot through his hand suddenly cleared his mind. He slowly turned around in a circle, then sat down on the steps, gently rubbing his face, muttering to himself: "Can't be impulsive, think carefully, where could Liu Xu have gone? Why did he leave at this time? Is this really related to him?"

  Xia Xun thought for half a day without getting anywhere, then suddenly had an idea and changed his train of thought: "What is Liu Xu's role in being arranged here?"

  He immediately followed this line of thinking and analyzed: "Zhang Thirteen became Yang Wenxuan's companion in order to monitor him closely and make it convenient for him to take action; Feng Xihui, on the other hand, was clearly using his official status to provide convenience and protection for their mission as much as possible. An Litong, that fat guy, was originally chosen by them to establish a relationship with Qi Wang, but unfortunately, he was not up to par, so he became Yang Wenxuan's partner in business, coordinating with him on actions. What about Liu Xu? Liu Xu opened a small shop on the banks of the NanYang River, what help could he possibly provide for their mission?"

  Xia Fu was deep in thought, and from a distance, Peng Zikai crouched down like a hunting leopard, quietly observing his movements.

  After a long time, Xia Fu's eyes, which had turned red from staying up all night and anxiety, gradually brightened as if he had thought of something, and he suddenly jumped up.

  The small hotel's surroundings, every brick and tile, every blade of grass had been thoroughly searched by him, there was no value in checking again. He retreated a few steps back, looking around, not far from the front of the shop was a small dock, on the right side of the dock was a row of weeping willows, under the willows several small boats were moored. Behind the tavern, more than two miles away, was a small village. The sandy road along the river led to this place, about five miles outside was a bridge, turning over that bridge was an official road, heading south.

  Xia Han narrowed his eyes, about to walk towards the small village, but he found a fisherman under the weeping willow tree on the right side of the dock, and changed his mind, walking over to him.

  Under the weeping willow, there was a rotten tree trunk half lying in the water, and an old man sat on the dry wood fishing. The river water gently patted the shore, and the ripples almost kissed his shoe soles. Xia Fu walked over and squatted down not far from the old man, picked up a stone chip and threw it into the water, seemingly bored for a moment before saying: "Old sir, are you from this village?"

  The old angler glanced at him and replied: "Yes, where did you come from, young master?"

  "Ah, I live in the city, just out for a casual stroll."

  The old man smiled and said, "Our village is not on the official road, nor is it a hub for waterborne merchants and travelers. Since Qingzhou City is just ahead, there are few people who stop here to rest, so it's usually quite deserted. It's rare for a young master like you to be in high spirits and come all the way here to clear your mind."

  Xia Fu replied: "Yes, I'm a quiet person. Coming here to take a stroll doesn't have any purpose, just looking at the water and trees, and feeling calm and peaceful is enough."

  He took a look at the old man's fish basket and said, "Old fellow, you've been fishing for so long, but I see that there are only two small fish in your basket."

  The old man opened his toothless mouth and laughed: "Hey, it's the same, isn't this also for leisure? Catching big fish is luck, if not, then so be it. Take this small fish back to let the wife stew a fresh soup, taste the flavor, it's pretty good too."

  "Your father is open-minded."

  Xia Xun nodded and then got to the point: "This small village is not big, are you all living by farming?"

  The old man thought the young master was quite to his taste, so he smacked his lips and started chatting with him: "That won't do, this place is too close to the city, there's no land. You see, just that small piece of land over there, it's okay for growing some vegetables and whatnot. Our village has only a dozen or so households, one of which specializes in growing vegetables. The others, some work as porters in the city, some run cargo on boats, and the rest are families with sons who marry daughters-in-law, who give birth to grandsons, who then marry more daughters-in-law... when their homes get too crowded, they move here. It's a good thing, the scenery is beautiful and it's quiet."

  "Looking at you, old man, your body is still good, are you still doing some things?"

  "Heh heh, if you don't work, what do you eat? I'm raising horses for the government office, it's not easy. Luckily when I was young, I worked in a mule stable and learned the skills, so the horses I raise are spirited and strong."

  "Raising horses? You're really something, old man. If you raise them well, you can earn back quite a bit of expenses. How many horses have you raised?"

  The old man laughed and said, "Just one mare and one colt. I'm just a small household, raising a few horses to make some extra money. As long as you take good care of them and feed them fresh grass, they'll be fine. But if you raise too many, it's hard to take care of them all, and you have to feed them bean cakes from time to time, which costs a lot of money. It's not worth it. However, there is a capable person in our village who raises four strong horses, each one robust and sturdy."

  Xia Fu's eyes lit up and he hastily asked: "Oh? Whose house is that?"

  Old Zhang said, "In the west of the village, there is Old Li's house. Old Li is deaf and mute, and his temper is also strange. He doesn't like to interact with people, so he lives far away from our neighbors and has a large yard all to himself. I saw that he raises horses well, so I wanted to learn some tips from him. Since he's mute, I couldn't ask him anything, so I just followed him around and watched. After thirteen times, I realized there's no special trick - it's just that he's rich, feeds them well, gives them fresh grass and bean cakes every day, and takes the horses out for a walk twice a day. How could they not be raised well?"

  "Oh, yes, that's true, Lao Zhang is good at raising horses, but no matter how great his skills are, they can't compare to others who use money to buy their way in!"

  The old man suddenly felt a sense of rapport and repeatedly said: "That's right, but I won't say it."

  Xia Jiu's mouth slowly hooked up, revealing a smile that made one's heart skip a beat: "I'll go for a walk elsewhere, don't worry, old man, I believe you will definitely catch the big fish!"

  The old man laughed: "Hehe, then I'll borrow your auspicious words."

  Xia Chuan turned around and walked towards that small village. The old man cast his hook into the water, and the float sank several times.

  A fingernail was pulled out, the tip of the finger was bloody and swollen, Xiao Qi curled up her fingers in pain, the bright red blood and the dried black scab made her originally tender small hand look like a deformed tree root.

  Her forehead hair was disheveled, and the beads of sweat as big as soybeans fell down her messy hair one by one, quickly dyed red by the blood on her cheeks. However, her eyes that had gradually lost their luster only showed stubbornness and hatred.

  Liu Xu was extremely furious and cruel, if he continued to use torture, this weak little girl would probably not be able to hold on to her life, but she still refused to give in.

  Liu Xu paced back and forth in the room like a caged beast, suddenly he turned around and pounced on Xiao Ding's side, grabbing her collar with one hand, and shouted in a harsh voice: "You won't say? You still won't say? You stupid woman, who do you think you're protecting? Huh? Do you really think he's your family's young master?"

  Xiao Qi looked at him coldly, as if looking at a madman.

  "Liu Xu spat out the words: 'You foolish girl, your young master was killed by an assassin's knife when he went to Yunhe Town with Ting Xiang to escape the heat last time. The current Yang Wenxuan is a fake, a fake! You understand? Because he looks exactly like Yang Wenxuan, Zhang Thirteen and Feng Jianxiao conspired with me to bring him here to impersonate your family's young master.'"

  Xiao Qi's eyes suddenly widened, staring at him with a look of shock and disbelief.

  Liu Xu sneered, "Let me tell you, I am a Brocade Guard! Have you heard of the Brocade Guard? Zhang Thirteen, Feng Jianxiao, and I are all Brocade Guards. We came to Qingzhou on a secret mission and needed a local to help us, so we chose your family's young master. With our help, he made a fortune in just a few years. But he died, mysteriously slaughtered by someone. There was no way out, so we had to bring in a fake one!"

  Xiao Ding's eyes grew wider and wider, her body trembling uncontrollably. It was clear that she wanted to ask what was going on or refute Liu Xu's absurdity, but she stuffed her mouth shut and couldn't say a word, only making "uh" sounds.

  Liu Xu gritted his teeth and sneered: "Do you think Yang Wenyuan left Yunhe Town in a hurry to go to Xieshantang? Because Zhang Thirteen needs time to teach this fake goods the things that the real Yang Wenyuan should know! Do you think why Tingxiang fell into the water and died? Because she knew that the real Yang Wenyuan was already dead, so she had to die, otherwise we couldn't deceive people with this fake one."

  Xiao Qi's face was already pale, and her complexion had reached an all-time low. She recalled the feeling of unfamiliarity that flashed through her mind when Master returned from the stone shed village; she remembered how Master didn't walk in front of her as usual when they went out for a stroll the next day, but instead often lagged behind, jokingly asking about the names of various streets and alleys, as if he was completely unfamiliar with the route. She recalled the awkwardness that Master would occasionally reveal after that; also...also his favorite dishes, which seemed to have changed dramatically in flavor from then on...

  Looking at Xiao Ding's shocked expression, Liu Xu sneered: "Do you believe it? Do you know what this fake Yang Wenxuan is called? His name is Xia Zhen, he was originally just an ordinary citizen of Nanxun Village in Huzhou! We were originally going to use him to do things for us, but he's very cunning. As soon as he returned to Qingzhou, Zhang Thirteen died the next day..."

  A scene flashed through Xiaojiao's mind, where she stealthily snuck into the ice cellar, although she still didn't think this had anything to do with Zhang Shisan's death. However, with Young Master acting so abnormally, combined with Liu Xu's words...

  Liu Xu said fiercely: "Zhang Thirteen is dead, he has to take orders from Feng Jianzong, Feng Jianzong is the commander of my Imperial Guard, our superior officer. He also holds evidence that Xia Chou impersonated Yang Wenxuan. As a result...Feng Jianzong is also dead, not only did he die, but his house was burned to ashes, and the evidence would have been destroyed even if it were made of iron. Who has the motive to do these things? Only Xia Chou!"

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