Longevity, starting from traveling and telling stories

Chapter 184 Going to Black Mountain Again
After Ye Aniu finished asking the question, Cui Mingyuan smiled calmly and said, "Mr. Ye, how was the question?"

The county magistrate and others all focused their attention on Ye Aniu.

He said calmly, "Just now, through my inquiry, I found out that Li Si's medicine was used to poison fish, so he didn't dare to say it."

"Wang Mazi gave some of the poison to Zhang San to poison rats."

"Zhang San sold the medicine to Zhou Xiancai."

As soon as he finished speaking, Cui Mingyuan nodded and thought to himself, he is indeed a talented person.

Naturally, these three people were carefully arranged by him.

"Zhou Xiancai?" the county magistrate asked in confusion. "Li Dahu and Zhou Xiancai had never met before. Why would he poison him? There's absolutely no motive!"

"Besides, even if it's proven that Zhang San sold the medicine to Zhou Xiancai, it doesn't prove that Zhou Xiancai is a suspect."

Cui Mingyuan smiled calmly, looking at Ye Aniu to see how he would respond.

"That's true." Ye Aniu said calmly, "But Zhou Xiancai has been to Li Dahu's house."

The county magistrate suddenly became anxious. Zhou Baopi often gave him benefits. If his son was convicted of murder, and now that the eldest son of Jingzhao Yin was here, he would probably have no way out but death.

"Nonsense," Zhang Zhiwei said sternly, "Zhou Xiancai has no motive for murder, and you're lying without any witnesses."

Zhang Zhiwei suddenly noticed Cui Mingyuan's brow furrowing, and quickly changed the subject, "Do you have any witnesses? And what is Zhou Xiancai's motive?"

Cui Mingyuan said calmly: "Brother Ye, is there any?"

Ye Aniu knew that Cui Mingyuan had secretly helped him several times, so he immediately bowed and said, "Yes."

"There's a peasant woman living in the attic opposite Li Dahu's house. She weaves cloth every day to support her family. She saw Zhou Xiancai enter Li Dahu's house with her own eyes. You can find out by asking her."

"As for the motive, it's very simple. Zhou Xiancai and Li Dahu have no grudges against each other, but he has a grudge against our family, so he framed us. That's the motive."

The county magistrate was startled and immediately whispered a few words to the legal advisor beside him.

The atmosphere at the scene became silent.
After a while, the lawyer came hurriedly and whispered a few words in the county magistrate's ear. The county magistrate was shocked when he heard it.

"Even if Zhou Xiancai entered Li Dahu's house, it doesn't necessarily mean he was the one who poisoned him!" The county magistrate suddenly changed his tone and said kindly, "In this way, the suspicion of the Ren Family Tofu Shop has been lifted. I will release them immediately."

"As for the poisoning incident! I will immediately reopen the investigation. What do you think?"

This is clearly an excuse for Zhou Xiancai! Ye Aniu cursed in his heart, but his father-in-law's family's suspicion was lifted, and his goal was achieved. It seemed that Zhou Xiancai could not be convicted for the time being.

At this moment, Cui Mingyuan stood up calmly, his tone also carrying a bit of chill, and said: "The evidence is irrefutable, the witnesses and physical evidence are all there, isn't this matter clear and straightforward?"

The county magistrate was immediately perplexed. Why had Young Master Cui suddenly become so aggressive? Had Zhou Xiancai offended him? Suddenly, a sudden realization dawned on him.

"Sir, you are absolutely right." He then turned to the yamen runner and shouted, "Arrest Zhou Xiancai."

"Yes." The bailiff took the order and left.

Cui Mingyuan's eyes flashed with a hint of teasing, and he bowed to Ye Aniu and said, "Brother Ye, the matter is settled. I will take my leave. If you pass the imperial examination and choose a date to go to Beijing for the examination, I will prepare a glass of light wine for you. I hope you will do me the honor."

"Sure." Ye Aniu replied with a bow.

The three members of the Ren family were soon released, and Ye Aniu happily welcomed them back at the gate of the yamen.

"Let me go! Let me go!" Zhou Xiancai finally realized he was afraid and cried out, "I've been bewitched. Please, forgive me!"

Bewitched? Ye Aniu looked at Zhou Xiancai, who was tied up by the yamen runners, and suddenly his eyes were stunned and he took a breath. Could it be? It was him?

I shook my head and thought, never mind, it’s okay now, I’ll just not have any contact with him anymore.

"Wife, father-in-law, mother-in-law, let's go back!" Ye Aniu said while supporting Mr. Ren. The old man had been in prison for so long, he was afraid he couldn't bear it anymore.

"Okay." Master Ren breathed a sigh of relief and said softly, "Old lady, make a few more dishes today. I want to have a few more drinks with my son-in-law."

"Okay." The family went home happily.

Some are happy and some are sad, but this week's peeling is not so lucky.

"Master Zhang, please," he sighed and begged the county magistrate, "I'll pay any amount of money as long as you can save my son's life."

"Mr. Zhou, it's not that I don't want to protect Young Master Ling, it's just... well..." He shook his sleeves and sighed, "It's because he offended the eldest son of the Jingzhao Yin. It's him who wants Young Master Zhou dead. It's not that I don't want to protect him, but that I can't."

After hearing this, Zhou Paopi slumped in his chair, muttering to himself, "It's over, it's all over."

"If you want to blame someone, blame the Ren family for being so lucky. They've had many benefactors to help them." The county magistrate sighed and advised, "Mr. Zhou, please accept my condolences and remarry and have another child!"

"In the autumn and winter... the young master will be beheaded at the vegetable market. I will instruct the executioner to move the knife quickly so that he suffers less."

After hearing this, Zhou Paopi's body suddenly trembled and he slumped down in the chair.

With a blank look in his eyes, he kept muttering to himself, "It's over, it's all over."

"It's all that damned Ren family's fault!" Zhou Paopi suddenly gritted his teeth, clenching his fists tightly as he said, "I will make you pay for your blood debt with blood."

the other side.

When the Ren family returned home, Aunt Ren was busy in the kitchen and Ren Youlan was also helping. Soon, the mother and daughter prepared a large table of delicious dishes.

Mr. Ren sat at the table and drank alone. He said that he was able to escape death this time thanks to his son-in-law.

He picked up the wine glass and said with a chuckle, "Son-in-law, how is your study going?"

Ye Aniu replied respectfully: "It's okay!"

Master Ren nodded and asked, "Are you confident of passing the provincial examination?"

Ye Aniu pondered for a moment and said, "I will do my best to live up to the expectations of my father-in-law, mother-in-law, and Youlan."

Master Ren laughed heartily and said, "Okay, come and have a drink with me!"

The two of them were just drinking at first, but in the end, Master Ren directly took the bowl. He couldn't believe that he, who had been drinking all his life, was drunk by his son-in-law who usually never drank.

As expected, Ye Aniu acted as if nothing had happened, and it was he who carried Master Ren back.

"Look at you, why did you make my dad drink so much?" Ren Youlan said with a complaining tone.

Ye Ah Niu chuckled and said, "I've been trying to persuade my father-in-law not to drink, but he seems a little dissatisfied with my alcohol tolerance."

"That's enough." Ren Youlan began to tidy up Ye Aniu's clothes, hung them aside, and suddenly said in a sweet voice: "Husband, we should rest."

Ye Ah Niu definitely understood what she meant! It was just that she was too delicate. That always made him feel uncomfortable.

The wind was particularly strong at night, and it always made the windows creak, not knowing whether it was the windows or something else that was making the creaking sound.

The next day.

The news that Zhou Xiancai was sentenced to be executed spread throughout the streets and alleys, and the county magistrate prepared to execute him in autumn or winter according to the law.

However, this explosive news only lasted for three days, and people quickly forgot about it. At most, it became a topic of conversation after tea, and life soon returned to normal. The days passed like this one after another.

One morning a month later.

Ren Youlan slept for a long time before waking up. She was tossed around day and night and felt like her whole body was falling apart. Today, she was woken up and saw her husband sitting on the table banging on the table.

She suddenly said in a soft and teasing voice, "What's the matter? You've been tearing my bones apart day and night, and now you want to tear down my house?"

Ye Aniu put down the work in his hands and chuckled, "I just want to make a backpack! I need it on my way to the provincial capital today."

Having said that, Ren Youlan suddenly became quiet. It was certain that she was reluctant to let her husband go on a long journey. After all, she had just gotten used to having someone around her, and suddenly she was back to the empty space she had before, which made her a little uncomfortable.

The atmosphere at lunch today was a bit dull, and no one spoke. Perhaps it was because Ah Niu was leaving and everyone was a little reluctant to see him go.

After the meal, Ren Youlan prepared a lot of dry food and water and stuffed them into Ye Aniu's backpack.

She held back her tears, pretended to smile, and held Ye Aniu's hand tightly.

"Husband, be careful on your journey." Ren Youlan's voice trembled. She tried to appear calmer and said, "When you get to the provincial capital, remember to send a message home."

Ye Aniu looked at his wife pretending to be strong and felt infinite pity in his heart.

He held Ren Youlan in his arms and said softly, "Take good care of your parents and yourself until I reach high school."

Ren Youlan nodded, forced a smile, waved his hand, and said, "Don't waste time, hurry up!"

Ye Aniu carried a backpack and looked back every time he took a step.

Ren Youlan stood at the door, looked at Ye Aniu and waved, signaling him not to worry.

Ye Aniu walked towards Black Mountain. It was said that a long time ago, this place suddenly became dark and the whole mountain was filled with black air, which is why it was named Black Mountain. However, this rumor has been around for a long time and its truth is unknown.

Ye Aniu didn't believe it. It was just a rumor! Don't take it seriously. There are no ghosts in the world.
Soon, night falls.

Deep in the mountains, the silence is so frightening that the heart is trembling. Under the dim light, the trees begin to sway like ghosts as the breeze blows gently.

There was no village in front and no shop behind, so Ye Aniu could only move forward slowly under the faint moonlight.

The road was bumpy and covered with thorns. With a ripping sound, Ye Aniu's clothes were torn by the branches. He sighed and said, "Oh! I shouldn't have been so obsessed with my wife's beauty. I wish I had left home earlier."

I don’t know how long I walked like this.

suddenly.

He saw a building in the distance ahead. Ye Aniu was secretly happy, as he didn't have to sleep outdoors in the mountains.

Without caring about anything else, he quickened his pace and ran towards the vaguely visible building.

Soon, the outline of the building became clearer.

Ye Aniu took a look in the moonlight and saw that it was a rather dilapidated temple.

The three words "Lanruo Temple" can be vaguely seen on the crooked sign above the door.

Ye Aniu stepped into the temple cautiously, looked around, and found that there was nothing inside except a Buddha statue with a ferocious-looking face.

Hiss. It's a bit cold. Ye Aniu hugged his arms and decided to get some dry firewood to light a fire.

It was bitterly cold in the mountains at night, but the fire instantly warmed him up, making him feel warm all over.

At this moment, footsteps were heard. Ye Aniu looked over cautiously and saw a man with a hideous scar on his face slowly walking into the temple.

He had a butcher knife on his waist, and he looked like a butcher. It seemed that he also came here to rest.

Neither of them paid any attention to the other.

I don’t know how long it took, but Ye Aniu took out the dry food and water from his backpack and started eating.

"Hmm," the scarred man snorted coldly, raised his eyebrows, and motioned Ye Aniu to give him some.

Ye Aniu's heart trembled. A wise man would not suffer a loss in front of him. He was given a steamed bun. Fighting is not good, and taking a step back will open up a new world.

Looking at the scarred man with a face full of flesh, he threw a steamed bun at him and put down the bamboo cup he had touched. He couldn't beat him, he really couldn't beat him, so he had to endure it and wait for a chance to beat him.

at this time.

Not far from the temple, there was a murmur.

"Hey boss, why did you kill that village woman just now? I haven't had enough fun yet." A voice complained.

Another calmer voice sounded, scolding: "What are you kidding? Aren't you afraid that the government will come after you?"

"Hey, there seems to be a fire in the dilapidated temple ahead, and there seems to be someone there." Another voice whispered, "Want to take advantage of this opportunity?"

"Hush!" A low and somewhat fierce voice came, saying, "Listen to my orders and act accordingly. Be careful and don't reveal your true identity."

Soon, the sound of footsteps attracted the attention of Ye Aniu and the scarred man. Ye Aniu subconsciously gripped the bamboo cup, which was his only weapon.

The scarred man looked indifferent, as if nothing mattered to him.

Soon, three people came into the temple.

These three men have fat faces, and one can tell at a glance that they are not good people.

They glanced at the scarred man and Ye Aniu, and immediately showed disdain on their faces. It turned out that he was a butcher and a scholar.

One of the three men jokingly said, "We three brothers have come across this place and haven't eaten yet. Can you get us some food, little brother?"

The three men immediately saw that the butcher and the scholar were not in the same group, so they took the initiative to attack the seemingly weak scholar, trying to test him.

When Ye Aniu heard this, he was immediately puzzled. Am I so easy to bully? Are scholars not human beings?

But he still pretended to be stupid and shook his head to refuse, saying: "This is the dry food my wife prepared for me to take the exam. If I give it to you, I will have nothing to eat."

"If you have nothing to eat, then don't eat! Anyway, you are so thin that you won't die from starvation for a few days." One of them laughed wildly.

"Hahahahahaha." The other two also laughed jokingly.

The laughter gradually died down.

"Stop talking nonsense." One of them suddenly changed his expression and rushed forward with a fierce look. He grabbed Ye Aniu by the collar, holding a long sword in his hand, and put it on his neck, saying viciously: "Hand over the valuables on you."

Just when Ye Aniu was at a loss and thinking about how to escape, a calm and indifferent voice came.

"Three years ago, the Maqian Village tragedy left more than 30 people, including the elderly, women, and children, dead."

The scarred man continued calmly, "A year ago, the Xiangyang Village tragedy occurred. More than half of the villagers died. Many women were raped and murdered, and children were killed."

The three men gripped their weapons tightly, and one of them even held the sword tightly against Ye Aniu's neck.

The scarred man ignored him and continued, "Half a year ago, the three most notorious bandits who were beaten and forced to flee by the Princess of the Great Zhou Dynasty were Wang Zong, Bai Bao, and Tian Jian."

The three were stunned when they heard this. The leader was shocked and asked, "Who are you? How do you know us?"

The scarred man just stood up slowly and moved the butcher knife in his hand.

Whoosh! He dodged, the butcher knife in his hand flashed with a cold light, and the man who had just held Ye Aniu hostage, the long sword in his hand fell to the ground with a clang. He covered his neck, and blood flowed out.

He pointed at the scarred man in disbelief, his eyes wide as bells, a gurgling sound coming from his throat, and then his body went limp and he collapsed to the ground.

"Tian Jian..." With a clang, the two men below him drew their weapons at the same time and asked, "Who are you?"

"Kill your people." The scarred man said calmly.

Before he finished speaking, the scarred man flashed away again.

One of them hurriedly swung his sword to block, but there was a crisp "snap" sound, and the man looked at the broken sword in his hand in disbelief.

Puff! Blood spurted out like a fountain. His broken sword fell to the ground. He subconsciously covered his neck and stumbled out a few steps before collapsing to the ground and dying.

"Wang Zong." Bai Bao, who was left, suddenly seemed to remember something and said in a horrified tone, "You...you...it's you. You are the Six Gates Constable, Chen Tianchou..."

The scarred man said expressionlessly, "Got it? Then get going!"

After saying that, without giving the other party any chance to beg for mercy, he flashed and swung the butcher knife in his hand, and Bai Bao fell to the ground.

The temple was filled with a strong smell of blood.

Ye Aniu was even more stunned. This, this, this, killing people is like killing chickens? He just heard the robber say that he was the chief constable of the Six Gates and an official, so he should be safe.

"How's it going?" The scarred man wiped the butcher knife and put it on his waist, saying, "Isn't your steamed bun eaten in vain?"

It's not just a good meal, I made a killing! Ye Aniu bowed and said, "Thank you very much for saving my life, hero."

"It's okay. I didn't come here to kill them tonight anyway." Chen Tianchou said calmly, "If anything happens later, don't be scared to the point of peeing your pants."

"Is there anything more terrifying than killing people?" Ye Aniu asked doubtfully.

"Killing people?" Chen Tianchou snorted jokingly, "Killing people is nothing. I'm here to kill monsters tonight."

Monster? Are there still monsters in this world? Ye Aniu was puzzled. This guy was so confident, so killing monsters must be easy! Then he didn't need to run away, just rest for a night! Anyway, he had masters to protect him, so he was not afraid.

The night was dark.

Outside the temple.

Covered in darkness, the moonlight was weak, and could only barely outline the contours of trees not far away. A gust of wind whistled past, and the leaves rustled.

Inside the temple.

The bonfire was swaying a little in the wind, and occasionally it would pop and emit some sparks, which seemed particularly harsh in the silence.

After the body was dragged away, both men dozed off in the warmth of the fire.

Suddenly, a strange sound was heard, as if sharp nails were scratching against stone, making people's hair stand on end.

The two of them were shocked at the same time and woke up instantly.

"What's that smell?" Ye Aniu muttered subconsciously.

It was a strong smell of fox, accompanied by the cry of a fox and the sound of its claws scratching the ground.

The two men stood up quickly. Chen Tianchou held the butcher knife tightly, his eyes as sharp as torches, staring at the door.

Ye Ah Niu's heart was beating so fast that it felt like it was going to burst out of his throat. Oh my god! Could there really be some monster? I hope the monster will spare me because of my handsomeness and eat that scarred face.

at this time.

A huge fox suddenly appeared at the entrance of the temple.

It was as tall as a person and a half, and its eyes flashed with a cold light, which was chilling.

The sharp claws also flashed with coldness in the moonlight.

When Ye Aniu saw this scene, his heart sank to the bottom instantly, and he complained inwardly, "What bad luck I have! First I met robbers, and then I met monsters!"
However, thinking that there was a master like Chen Tianchou here, he comforted himself again. Fortunately, there was a master here, so it shouldn't be a big problem.

At this moment, Chen Tianchou said in a serious tone, "I'll hold it back later, and you find a chance to escape."

"Thank you, sir." Ye Aniu responded politely. I know to run without you telling me.

"Leave this scholar here!" The fox actually spoke in human language, his voice was sharp and sinister.

A fox can talk? This is actually a monster! Ye Aniu was shocked. He asked for me by name? Are scholars not human beings?

Chen Tianchou's eyes suddenly widened with anger, and he tightly gripped the butcher knife and shouted, "Stop being so arrogant, you monster!"

He flashed and rushed towards the fox like lightning, slashing down with the butcher knife in his hand with the force of a tsunami.

How powerful! When Ye Aniu saw this scene, he felt relieved, thinking that he should be able to kill the evil spirits with such a powerful person.

However, he didn't get to be happy for even a second.

The butcher knife that had been invincible just now was suddenly clamped by the fox's sharp claws and could no longer move forward at all.

Immediately afterwards, the fox waved his hand and a powerful airflow gushed out. Chen Tianchou was instantly knocked away with his sword, and hit the wall hard. He rolled several times after landing.

Huh? Isn't this a master? How could he be defeated in a single blow? Ye Aniu's eyes widened, his face filled with disbelief.

"Cough, cough, cough!" Chen Tianchou covered his chest and said in a trembling voice, "Didn't I tell you to run away quickly?"

"I"

I really want to escape! Ye Aniu was speechless for a while, thinking to himself, but you are so disappointing! You couldn't hold me back for even a second, how can I escape? Why don't you try to escape?
"Forget it, I'll do it again." Chen Tianchou covered his chest, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, took a deep breath, and said fiercely: "If you can't escape this time, don't blame me"

"Okay," Ye Aniu responded helplessly. Now, there was nothing he could do but listen to him.

Chen Tianchou gripped the knife again, and his figure flashed as he rushed towards the fox quickly.

A playful look appeared in the fox's eyes, ready to catch it with his claws again and play with it.

However.
The next scene made Ye Aniu unable to help cursing. He saw that Chen Tianchou had no moral integrity and actually rushed out of the door and ran away.
The fox was also stunned. Forget it, let this ugly man run away. His main target was still this handsome young husband.

Suddenly it turned around and a flash of white smoke appeared.

It immediately transformed into an extremely beautiful woman, with the veil on her body faintly visible.

"My young husband, will you be my husband?" The vixen's tone was seductive, with a hint of coquettishness.

(End of this chapter)