Fangzhou Xier, starting with failing the art exam

The sound was peculiar, like the call of a bird.

The man in black's expression changed drastically.

This is... the "Wind-Catching Whistle" of the Dali Temple!

"not good!"

"There's an ambush! Run!"

With a loud roar, he was the first to rush towards the secret passage behind the cave.

But it was too late.

"Everyone, freeze! This is a case handled by the Dali Temple!"

A loud shout came from all directions, making people's eardrums ache.

In an instant, dozens of figures wielding crossbows and carrying swords emerged from the surrounding darkness, completely surrounding the cave.

Torches were lit one after another, illuminating the abandoned land as if it were daytime.

The leader was Zhao Si, another of Lin Yue's trusted confidants.

He was not tall, but his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's.

"Put down your weapons, kneel down and surrender, and you will be spared death!" Zhao Si shouted.

The men responsible for carrying the loads had never seen anything like this before. They were so frightened that their legs went weak, and they all knelt down on the ground with a thud, dropping the sticks they were holding.

"Sir, spare my life! Sir, spare my life!"

"We're just poor guys who get paid to do things, we don't know anything!"

Only the man in black reacted extremely quickly.

The moment the whistle blew, he abandoned the idea of ​​escaping through the secret passage, because he could tell that the whistles were coming from different directions, indicating that they were completely surrounded.

He suddenly drew a soft sword from his waist and, instead of retreating, charged towards the weakest point in the encirclement.

He wanted to fight his way out!

"court death!"

Zhao Si snorted coldly, not taking him seriously at all.

He didn't even take action himself; he just made a gesture.

"Whoosh whoosh!"

Three crossbow bolts, already cocked, were arranged in a triangular formation, blocking all of the men in black's advance routes.

The man in black's pupils contracted, and with a swift twist of his wrist, his soft sword flashed with silver light, deflecting all three crossbow bolts with a clang.

But his momentum was also halted by this.

In that brief moment of delay, two constables from the Dali Temple attacked from both sides.

They worked together seamlessly, one attacking the upper body while the other swept the lower body, their blades flashing and forming an impenetrable net.

The man in black was skilled in martial arts, and his soft sword was unpredictable. He managed to withstand the combined attack of the two for more than a dozen rounds.

But he was facing the elite of the entire Dali Temple.

"Take it!"

Zhao Si lost patience when he saw that he was still putting up a stubborn resistance.

At his command, four more constables joined the fray.

Six against one!

The man in black suddenly felt immense pressure, struggling to cope and facing numerous perilous situations.

He knew he was doomed today, and a resolute glint flashed in his eyes.

He feinted, forcing back the two constables in front of him, then suddenly leaned back and opened his mouth to bite his own molars.

There, a highly poisonous venom sac is hidden!

"Want to die? It's not that easy!"

Zhao Si had been on guard against this move for a long time.

A flash of cold light appeared, and Zhao Si had already closed in on him without him noticing, delivering a chop to his jawbone.

There was a crisp sound of "click".

The man in black screamed, spitting out a mouthful of teeth mixed with blood. His jaw was dislocated and slumped limply.

His last hope was also dashed.

Two constables stepped forward and bound him tightly with specially made chains, leaving him no strength to even move a finger.

Zhao Si stepped forward, squatted down, and roughly pried open his mouth to check. Only after confirming that the poison sac had been shattered did he feel relieved.

"take away!"

He waved his hand, then turned his gaze to the dark cave dwelling.

"Go in and see what they're up to."

Two constables, carrying torches, cautiously entered the cave dwelling.

The cave dwelling was empty except for a dozen or so large wooden crates, neatly stacked in a corner.

"Boss, they're all here!"

Zhao Si went inside and randomly picked a box.

He didn't open it directly, but first carefully examined the outside of the box, and soon found an extremely fine scratch on the bottom.

It is the number "five".

Zhao Si's lips curled up slightly.

Wang Wu is still as efficient as ever.

He drew his knife, broke the seal on the box, and then pried it open forcefully.

The lid of the box opened with a click.

Inside were only stacks of neatly wrapped papers.

Zhao Si picked up a package, opened it, and saw that it was full of blank files, with a bright red seal stamped on the lower right corner of each page.

Paper donated by the Ministry of Rites.

Zhao Si frowned.

Just blank files?

Why go through all that trouble, from silencing witnesses to relocating the goods, just for this stuff?

He didn't believe it.

"Open all the boxes! Search every inch of them!"

"Yes!"

The constables immediately sprang into action.

Soon, all the boxes were opened, and inside were all identical blank scrolls.

"Boss, we've checked everything, nothing special," a constable reported.

Zhao Si's face darkened.

Could there really be a mistake?

impossible!

Both His Highness Prince Qin and Lord Lin believe that the Hanlin Academy is the key, and there must be something fishy going on there.

"Keep looking!" Zhao Si's voice left no room for argument.

"Pour out all these files, from under the boxes, in the hidden compartments, in every corner!"

The constables dared not delay and immediately carried out boxes of files and dumped them on the ground.

Soon, the floor of the cave dwelling was covered with snow-white paper.

Just then, one of the constables in charge of inspecting the boxes suddenly shouted, "Boss! Look at this!"

Zhao Si walked over quickly.

The constable pointed to the bottom of an empty box.

The bottom of the box looked no different from the other boxes, but upon closer inspection, one could see that the seams between the wooden planks seemed to be wider than in other places.

Zhao Si reached out and tapped on the wooden board.

The sound it produced was noticeably duller than that from other places.

"There's a hidden compartment!"

Zhao Si perked up and used the tip of his knife to pry along the seam.

A thin wooden board was pried up, revealing a hidden compartment underneath.

In the hidden compartment, something lay quietly, completely wrapped in black oilcloth.

Zhao Si's heart skipped a beat.

He carefully took out the package, which was quite heavy.

He didn't open it immediately, but instead took the package and walked out of the cave.

Outside, Wang Wu had arrived sometime earlier and was leaning against a tree, leisurely polishing his small awl.

Seeing Zhao Si come out, Wang Wu whistled: "How about it, Lao Zhao, didn't I do a great job?"

Zhao Si rolled her eyes at him, annoyed: "You're such a chatterbox. Where are the adults?"

"It's on its way, it should arrive soon."

Wang Wu put away the awl, walked over, and his gaze fell on the package in Zhao Si's hand: "What's this?"

"The real deal," Zhao Si replied succinctly.

Just then, a burst of hurried horse hoof sounds came from afar.

Lin Yue has arrived.

He dismounted and glanced at the prisoners kneeling on the ground and the men in black bound like dumplings.

"My lord!" Wang Wu and Zhao Si stepped forward and bowed in unison.

"Where are the things?" Lin Yue asked bluntly.

Zhao Si immediately presented the black package in his hand.

……

Wherever the sun and moon reach, it is scorching earth: Chapter 257: The Mastermind, Presented to the King of Qin at Night

Lin Yue took the heavy package and took a deep breath.

He first scanned the scene.

The subdued man in black, the porter kneeling and begging for mercy, and that bottomless cave.

“Clean this place up, including all those involved, including that one.” He pointed to the man in black.

"All of them were secretly taken back to the Dali Temple prison and placed under strict guard. No one was allowed to visit them, and they were not allowed to have any contact with the outside world."

"Yes!" Zhao Si accepted the order.

Lin Yue turned to another person and instructed, "Wang Wu, take a team of men and immediately return to Hanlin Pavilion. Under the pretext of checking the accounts, conduct another search."

"This time, pry up all the floor tiles and see what's hidden underneath."

“Yes, sir!” Wang Wu replied.

Lin Yue's order meant that his previous guess was correct; there must be other secret rooms in the Hanlin Pavilion.

"Sir, this package..." Zhao Si couldn't help but ask.

Lin Yue weighed the package in his hand, his gaze deep.