Ink Burns

Chapter 67 Bloody Tongue
Whether to seek revenge or not is secondary. The medicine sent to the capital was fake, which was enough to exploit him. He cried, begged, gave up money and his family property, only then did Lord Liu feel a little relieved. If Lord Liu really believed that he was seeking revenge, he would definitely, definitely not tolerate him again!

Cheng Xing's hands trembled involuntarily, his lips turned pale, and his mind was in a mess, like a tangled mess of paste. He wanted to shout out his grievances, but he couldn't say anything!

"You bastard, you misled me, harmed me, and destroyed me--!"

Lord Liu waved his hand and slapped Cheng Xinghe's face hard: Everything is clear! When the epidemic came, he leaked the news in the suburbs, and openly and secretly joined forces with his old subordinates to withhold relief food and wages, and be lazy and idle, just to set up many obstacles for the new prefect Bai Yusi, so that it would not be so easy for him to take over Songjiang Prefecture!
What about now? !

Songjiang Prefecture, on the contrary, became the most successful city among the twelve prefectures in Nanzhili. Although some civilians died, it was just a natural disaster that caught people off guard. Everyone could understand it. In fact, the cabinet in the capital had even written a letter to the emperor, praising Boyus for his talent and achievements!

Rumor has it that the Censorate has sent a Chief Censor, two Assistant Censors, and three Palace Censors to the south of the Yangtze River to quell the rebellion.

Songjiang Prefecture is the first stop of the city tour, and Boyus will probably be praised to the sky!
Liu Hezhou has been entrenched in Nanzhili for thirty years, and has been to the twelve prefectures and cities, but he is stuck at the fourth rank, unable to move up or down. Now he knows his fate and has accepted it: he can't be a powerful dragon, and he can't be a local snake! ?
He had originally recommended his student Qiu Qi for the title of prefect of Songjiang Prefecture, but the new emperor caught him off guard and sent Bai Yusi, who had absolutely no connection with the Jiangnan officialdom, to challenge him!

Why!
Why! ?

Why should he give away the position he had worked so hard for half his life to a stranger?
He set a trap: he could use the Cheng family to flatter the powerful and set up many obstacles for Bai Yusi - who knew that the Cheng family opened a charity and worked desperately to save people, and they actually cooperated perfectly with Bai Yusi! This cooperation was so wonderful that he would never believe that the Cheng family and Bai Yusi had not secretly had an affair!

This move even offended the powerful, and the official title of the eldest son Liu Huan was in jeopardy.
Not only did it fail to achieve twice the result with half the effort, but it even ended up losing both the wife and the army, and it was all in vain!

Thinking of this, Lord Liu was furious. He grabbed Cheng Xinghe's collar and slapped him hard in the face with his backhand!

Cheng Xing's forehead hit the corner of the table again. He screamed, his eyelids rolled back, his head drooped, and he fainted!
"Ah!" Shanyue screamed.

“Drag him away—” Lord Liu kicked Cheng Xinghe away, looking at him like a piece of smelly garbage, and said in a deep voice: “Throw him to the western branch of Fushou Mountain on the outskirts of the city. The epidemic is here, and the mountain has not been peaceful recently. The refugees have turned into bandits. Seeing how well-dressed our Young Master Cheng is, I’m afraid they won’t let him go easily—Death to him!!”

Shan Yue was trembling with fear. After taking off the veil, she happened to reveal a frightened but beautiful face: "Will he die?!"

Lord Liu raised his eyes and said, "You don't want him to die?"

Shan Yue looked up at Lord Liu blankly, as if all his courage had been taken away. He tried to smile, but tears welled up in his eyes as he wanted to cry: "If he dies, the Cheng family will be headed by the second master Cheng. The men in the Cheng family are all vicious dogs who eat people without leaving any bones."

Lord Liu frowned, but did not get angry because of Shanyue's sudden questioning: he has always been very tolerant of beautiful girls, even though He in front of him has passed her prime.

"If he dies, he dies. What does it have to do with you?" Lord Liu leaned back in his chair.

Shan Yue shed tears, one drop after another falling to the ground, her voice was so pitiful and tearful: "My Lord, I first depended on the Madam for a living, and then depended on the eldest young master, only then was I able to get this 'Qingfeng' invitation. The eldest young master once promised me that if I was chosen, the Cheng family would prepare a generous dowry for me, and I would marry to the capital with the face of Jiangnan - if he died, the Cheng family is a family of shallow-skinned wolves and tigers, how could they be willing to let me share the Cheng family's property?"

"I heard from grandma that it's not just Songjiang Prefecture that's selecting candidates. Several neighboring prefectures are also eyeing them covetously." Shan Yue cried like a song, "How can my daughter pursue her future without the support of the Cheng family?!"

The girl, as beautiful as a crescent moon in the deep twilight, cried with tears in her eyes and every word she said was sad.

Lord Liu raised an eyebrow.

It was true that she wanted to avenge the Duan family, and it was also true that she was worried that her dowry and future would be affected after the truth was revealed - a woman's heart can only accommodate these trivial matters.

"Easy to say."

Lord Liu did not give up his plan to complete the "Qingfeng" post. After seeing Shanyue's true appearance, he immediately understood why Grandma Qin had high hopes for this He: "You should continue to fight and learn skills. As long as Cheng Xinghe is alive, he is still the legitimate head of the Cheng family. If he is useless, you will take advantage of the opportunity. What do you want to take from the Cheng family? What can you take? Isn't it all up to you?"

Lord Liu snorted coldly: "As for that Second Master Cheng, he is not a big deal. It is a compliment for me to mention his name."

Lord Liu called back the people who dragged Cheng Xinghe away: "Don't torture him to death, just avoid the vital parts and disable him——"

As if he remembered something, he smiled coldly: "Sometimes, death is more comfortable than life."

Shan Yue's eyes were filled with joy. She immediately knelt on the ground, kowtowed three times, and said in gratitude: "I will help you get the money, shop, and land that Cheng Xinghe promised you! The Cheng family has made such a huge mistake, and I will definitely give you an explanation!"

Lord Liu was very satisfied with Shanyue's knowledge and understanding: since he was supporting her, she had to be sensible, right?

The Cheng family is useless, but there is still some substance left to be taken out. Since Cheng Xinghe is no longer useful as a puppet, he needs another puppet to help him empty the Cheng family. At least compared to other members of the Cheng family who have unclear relationships with Bai Yusi, He's motives are pure and simple, so it is convenient to cultivate her.

These thirty or fifty thousand taels of silver are not too much, but not too little either. They are worth a few cents if used to smooth over relations.

Lord Liu waved his hand and told Shanyue to go: This matter is temporarily settled.

Shan Yue shed tears and returned to the small room in the side room.

The small room was already empty.

The painter disappeared, leaving only a portrait under the paperweight on the table: the brush tip was sharp, and the strokes were as light and casual as the movement of the mountain moon. With just a few strokes, a pair of cold and upward eyes were outlined.

As her eyes moved, they were filled with hatred and murderous intent, but the shape of her eyes and her long eyelashes were as beautiful as the colorful scales that rise when a poisonous snake arches its back.

Shanyue held the drawing paper tightly with one hand: Who is that painter?
***
It was a dark and windy night. At the foot of Xifengling Mountain on the outskirts of the city, there lay a young man with crippled hands and feet and ragged clothes.

A carriage passed by, and the coachman, Lao Lu, picked up the young man with one hand and then sped away.

A bucket of cold water covered the top, followed by two loud slaps in the face.

Cheng Xinghe finally woke up, and when he opened his eyes he was filled with panic and fear: "Stop hitting me! Stop hitting me!" He wanted to raise his hands, but found his wrists were limp, and his hands just hung lifelessly at his sides, as if he could never lift them up again.

The hand is broken!
Cheng Xinghe subconsciously wanted to stand up, but found a sharp pain coming from his spine. Apart from the pain, he could not feel the existence of his waist and legs!

Cheng Xinghe raised his head in panic, only to find that he was in a carriage. There was a faint "wind death" lamp hanging on the inner wall, and behind the lamp was He Shanyue's flawless face! Cheng Xinghe opened his mouth and shouted angrily: "You stinky woman! Why did you hurt me!"

Shan Yue didn't want to argue with Cheng Xinghe, so she grabbed Cheng Xinghe's neck with both hands, her eyes calm, "I'm going to ask you three questions, and then start counting. While counting, use force on your hands. When you count to one hundred, you will be strangled to death."

Cheng Xinghe was not given time to answer.

"On the night of the Fushoushan wildfire eight years ago, what were the criteria for abducting 'victims'? How were the thirty-four 'piglets' selected?"

"Is He Qingshu from Hetou Village, Taobao Town, dead?"

"Who is the mastermind? Is it the Princess Yuan Sui?"

As Shanyue asked the question, Cheng Xinghe's eyes widened, and all his thoughts and memories finally returned to their place!

"You, you are number fifteen!"

The one who almost wiped out their entire army, No. 15!
Yes Yes Yes!
It's her!
Beautiful! Cold! Brutal!

With his own strength, he almost killed Princess Yuan Sui's younger brother, that little girl!
Shan Yue's hands became stronger and he said calmly: "One, two, three"

Cheng Xinghe's eyes bulged out, turning red: "You bitch! If you want revenge, go find the people in the capital! Go ahead! You pick on the weak! What ability do you have!"

"Twelve, thirteen, fourteen."

Although she is a very thin girl, her hands are incredibly strong.

Cheng Xinghe's throat was stuck and his breath became weaker and weaker. He raised his head involuntarily and opened his mouth to take in the thin air. His throat and chest made a "hissing" sound like a phoenix box.

"Twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two"

"Please don't kill me——" Cheng Xinghe's voice was hoarse, and there was a pleading look in his eyes: "I, I, I am just a little brother who serves wine, cough cough cough, my lord, my lady, my lady, please..."

Cheng Xinghe burst into tears.

"Thirty-two, thirty-three, thirty-four"

The strength of both hands grew stronger.

Shan Yue stared at Cheng Xinghe calmly and quietly, as if he was looking at an ant.

He had to answer those three questions - Cheng Xinghe only just realized this.

What is it?

Cheng Xing's throat was dry, and his immobile limbs struggled in vain. He tried hard to recall the question and the answer: "The first problem with not having family is that there is no clan. Without a clan, cough cough cough, naturally no one will care, and no one will investigate further."

Shanyue loosened the strength in his hands and slowed down the frequency of counting.

Cheng Xinghe took the opportunity to take a few deep breaths: "Hetou Village He, I don't know, I don't know. The aftermath was, was, it was done by Lord Liu, I don't know"

last question.

"Eighty-seven, eighty-eight, eighty-nine"

Cheng Xinghe closed his eyes in pain: "No, no, it's Cui Yulang. No, no, it's Xue Chen. It's Chang Yusu."

Shan Yue increased the speed of counting and the strength of his hands.

Cheng Xinghe cried out in pain: "They were just bored. They were just having fun. It was just a spur of the moment decision. They even went to Fushou Mountain because they were talking too much. Where did the mastermind come from?"

Shanyue's hands slowly loosened, his face a little dazed.

Their lives, the hatred she had carried for many years, turned out to be just a toy for the other party.
She had always thought that the people who were abducted that night might have some criteria for judging?

For example, she was not polite to her father, her mother was stupid and dull, and Shui Guang was in poor health.
There must be some reasons, right?

Is it because they are not good enough that they suffer this misfortune?

There must be some shortcomings that make this group of "noble people" think they can enforce justice and start the trial, right?

Who knew, it was just a spur-of-the-moment fun?
Just blame them for bad luck?
Shan Yue slowly lowered his head.

Cheng Xinghe found the right moment and shouted loudly outside the car: "Help! Help! Kill——"

Before the word "person" came out, the voice stopped abruptly, and then a naked streak of bright red blood flew out of the car!
Shan Yue took the bone knife in his hand and quickly grabbed Cheng Xinghe's jaw, cutting off the troublesome tongue.

——Just like the tongue of her dull and stupid mother that night was cut off.

(End of this chapter)