After the hero goes crazy

When Lu Zhi heard Yao Shouning's voice, he was subconsciously overjoyed.

The frowning eyebrows were loosened, and he couldn't help showing a smile, and subconsciously wanted to turn his head to look in the direction of the source of the sound.

But the moment he turned his head, the terrible past that happened in his mind resurfaced in his mind - when Su Miaozhen was possessed by a demon fox, he also called his name and cursed him, causing him to lose his mind and make a scandal .

The past is unbearable, and the bloody memory attacks Lu Zhi's reason.

He forcibly resisted the urge to turn his head, ignoring the voice calling out to him.

"My son, my son... oh my son..."

Yao Shouning waved his hands excitedly, but Lu Zhi turned a deaf ear.

Her expression changed from being happy at the beginning to gradually being puzzled, and then a little angry:

"My lord, I'm here—"

Lu Zhi looked at his nose with his eyes and his heart with his nose, secretly vigilant: this might be a trick of evil spirits.

However, Yao Shouning remembered the scene of the last meeting between the two before they parted.

Before the prince left Shendu, he said that he had something to tell her when he came back. At that time, she was nervous and apprehensive, and worried for a long time.

Unexpectedly, after being separated for several months, when Lu Zhi came back, he called him and ignored him.

She wrinkled her eyebrows, what a shame you are!
Beside Lu Zhi, the moment Luo Ziwen heard Yao Shouning's shout, he turned his head and saw the carriage stopped across the street in the distance.

Yao Ruoyun was standing beside the car at this time, waving to everyone with a happy face.

Duan Changya also saw people from the Yao family. He and Luo Ziwen first turned around and waved to everyone in the Yao family, then turned to look at Lu Zhi happily:

"My lord, what a coincidence, we met people from the Yao family as soon as we came back today."

After speaking, he was puzzled again:
"Second Miss Yao is greeting you, why are you ignoring her?"

Before he came back, Lu Zhi felt like returning home, he was clearly thinking about Yao Shouning, why did he ignore him when he saw him?

He wondered in his heart, after saying this, Luo Ziwen clearly saw Lu Zhi's eyebrows twitch, and a look of panic appeared on his face.

At this moment, Yao Shouning got angry:

"Lu Zhi, why are you ignoring me!"

She was upset and called Lu Zhi by his name.

The prince turned his head quickly, and he saw Yao Ruoyun. Beside him, Yao Shouning retracted his head, grabbed the window with a tender white hand, and closed it tightly with a 'bang'.

"..."

Lu Zhi panicked, pulled the reins quickly, and walked across the street.

Luo Ziwen and Duan Changya looked like they were enjoying the show, and followed.

"Yao, Yao, brother—"

As Lu Zhi approached the carriage, he felt a timid feeling of being close to home.

He had dealt with Yao's family in the past, but for some reason, when he saw Yao Ruoyun again this time, he always felt awkward and guilty.

In terms of age, Yao Ruoyun was two years older than him, so it was normal for him to call 'big brother', but he has always been very self-confident and rarely humbled, especially in front of people around him, he always felt weird.

After yelling these words, out of the corner of Lu Zhi's eyes, he felt the bodies of Duan Changya and Luo Ziwen beside him trembled, making the sound of suppressed laughter.

"..." He clenched his fists tightly, his cheeks were faintly hot.

Yao Ruoyun also felt a little weird when he called out to her. Just as she didn't know how to respond, the closed car window was pushed open again:

"He's my big brother!"

"Shou Ning—" Yao Ruoyun was a little embarrassed.

And Lu Zhi was a little surprised:
"Shou Ning."

She got angry and angry, and immediately broke the gap between the two of them who had been separated for several months, and made Shi Zi instantly regain the familiarity and intimacy of the past.

"Shou Ning!" He shouted again, with a smile on his face.

Yao Shouning put on a pretty face, and when he heard him call him, he turned his face away like he did before, as if he didn't hear it.

"..." Yao Wanning in the car showed a look of optimism.

Su Miaozhen was a little embarrassed, but she also paid attention to the movement between the two.

"Shouning..." Seeing that she was angry, Shizi cried out inwardly that something was wrong, so he called again cautiously.

"Why did you ignore me just now?" Yao Shouning was still a little angry when he remembered that he had greeted him earlier, but he turned a deaf ear to him.

"How can I ignore you!" Lu Zhi felt aggrieved when he heard this:

"How could I ignore you."

He was eager to explain, and blurted out this sentence without thinking.

Yao Shouning's cheeks smeared with heat when he heard the words, and turned his head to look around guiltily.

Seeing that Luo Ziwen, Duan Changya and others looked calm, and Yao Ruoyun didn't seem to hear Shizi's implication, she breathed a sigh of relief, thinking of Shizi's words, and seeing his anxious expression, sincere eyes, not fake, the unhappiness in her heart suddenly Disperse.

But the girl's mind is hard to guess. Although she believed that Lu Zhi was speaking sincerely at this time, but he did hear her greeting before and turned his face away, and she became suspicious again:
"In this case, why didn't you turn around and answer me when I called you just now?"

"Injustice!"

Hearing what she said, Lu Zhi immediately cried out:

"I was bitten by a snake once, and I was afraid of well ropes for ten years—"

"..." Su Miaozhen, who was eavesdropping on the two people's quarrel together with Yao Wanning in the carriage, was startled for a moment, and then she was so ashamed and angry that she wished she could find a crack in the ground and slip down.

The memory of the dead began to attack her, and she remembered the ugly things she did when she was dominated by the Fox King.

"Miaozhen, don't panic." Yao Wanning saw Su Miaozhen's flustered and embarrassed face, and comforted her with a smile.

With tears in her eyes, Su Miaozhen leaned towards her:
"cousin."

"Why did you suddenly turn over old accounts?"

Yao Shouning also heard the commotion in the car, so she didn't need to turn her head, she could also feel her cousin's embarrassment at this moment.

She quickly winked at Lu Zhi, and Lu Zhi felt aggrieved and said:
"It's not that I want to turn over old scores, it's just..."

Before he finished speaking, he saw Yao Shouning winking at him desperately.

Shizi Bingxue is smart, suddenly realized, his lips moved, and he asked silently: "Your cousin is also in the car?"

Yao Shouning nodded, and the corners of Lu Zhi's mouth twitched, showing a speechless expression.

"Anyway, it's my fault. I won't do it again next time. Don't be angry with me, okay?"

He sincerely apologized, looking at the girl:

"I don't ignore others, and I won't ignore you, Shouning."

When the prince spoke, he was still a little puzzled: it's really strange.He and Yao Shouning have known each other for a long time. In the past, they were equal in status. When they first met, he was even very confident. When they went out and bickered, he often had the upper hand...

At some point, the status of the two was reversed, and he was completely suppressed by Yao Shouning.

Once she got angry, he couldn't think of a way to deal with it at all, he could only bow his head and beg for mercy, fearing that she would ignore him.

Thinking of this, Lu Zhi felt bad.

He thought of his father, and Yao Hui's appearance in front of Liu Shi.

I don't know if Luo Ziwen and Duan Changya will secretly laugh at themselves when they see their worthless appearance.

To change this situation, otherwise I will never turn around in the future, and I will always be like Lu Wuji and Yao Hui, letting my wife be rounded and flattened, without any courage.

With this thought in his mind, before he could think of a solution, his eyes fell on Yao Shouning.

'But Shouning is so cute! '

Lu Zhi sighed secretly.

The girl tried her best to keep a straight face, with a pair of beautiful eyes overflowing with stubbornness.

Her lips are bright red, and her cheeks are like flawless white jade, whether she is smiling, laughing or angry, she has a special charm.

During the time she left Shendu, she seemed to have lost some weight, and her chin was a little pointed. It may be that Liu Shi was injured and still awake. She was often worried and couldn't eat or sleep.

Even so, it did not damage her beauty. No wonder Wen Jingsui was so distraught after being rejected by her, as if the sky was about to fall.

Wen Jingsui!
Thinking of this name, Lu Zhi trembled.

The messy thoughts in my mind suddenly disappeared, the thoughts of reviving the masculinity, worrying about being ridiculed by Luo Ziwen, Duan Changya and others disappeared.

He was even vaguely glad that Shou Ning's character was so clear to him after spending a long time with her.

She is extroverted, but gentle and polite, and does not lose her temper indiscriminately.

Be polite and distant to Wen Jing at any time.

Thinking of this, Lu Zhi felt a little happy again: Shou Ning treats me differently again, she is angry with me and wants me to explain the reason clearly, it means she values ​​me and gives me another chance.

The more he thought about it, the sweeter he felt, and he couldn't help laughing out "hehe":

"It's all my fault. I'm to blame for my overthinking. When I return to Shendu, what I want to see the most is you. I'm happy when I hear you call me."

"..."

When Luo Ziwen heard this, he raised his eyebrows.

Yao Ruoyun was also a little surprised, and felt that there was a crisis.

Yao Shouning's cheeks were flushed, and the prince asked again:
"Don't be mad at me, okay?"

This was just a misunderstanding. After explaining clearly, Yao Shouning naturally wouldn't hold on to this matter. Hearing this, he blushed and nodded:

"it is good."

"It's been a long time since I've been away from God," he was forgiven by Yao Shouning, his heart fluttered, half subconsciously, half boldly trying to test her mind:
"Did you think of me?"

As soon as he asked this, Luo Ziwen and others were all taken aback:
"Sir..."

Most of the girls are thin-skinned, and now they are under the watchful eyes of the public, how could it be possible for Lu Zhi to get an answer to this question?
Before he could interrupt, Yao Shouning nodded:
"Of course I did."

One dares to ask, the other dares to answer.

Yao Shouning ignored everyone's surprised expressions, stretched out his hand, and counted his fingers:

"From the end of March, you said that there was news of Xuanyinmu in Jindi. Since then, you have left the capital of God, and now it has been several months."

She sighed:
"My mother hasn't woken up. I'm counting on my fingers every day, hoping that you and the eldest princess will come back."

"..."

Lu Zhi hesitated for a moment.

This answer was different from what he had imagined, but he quickly comforted himself, no matter what reason Yao Shouning missed him, she was always looking forward to her return.

He smiled again, and said:
"Although I came back a bit late, I brought back the Xuanyin wooden coffin, which was made by Master Zhou Rongtai's uncle in the Xuanwu Gate. He is the younger brother of Master Rongying's uncle, and he knows that you saved Master Rongying's uncle..."

The two got together, chatting about gossip as if no one was there.

Yao Ruoyun was a little unhappy when he heard Lu Zhi and his younger sister talk at first, but he wanted to interrupt several times, but he felt that the conversation between Shizi and Yao Shouning was obviously about business and gossip, but the atmosphere between the two was special, so he tried Tried it a few times, but couldn't get it in at all.

After a few times, he gave up his original plan, turned around and said to Luo Ziwen and Duan Changya:
"Fortunately, you are back today, otherwise we might be trapped here."

……

In the carriage, Su Miaozhen was still embarrassed at first, but after hearing that Shizi and Yao Shouning gradually changed the subject, she was relieved.

She raised her head, saw Yao Wanning smiling, and felt a faint heat on her cheeks.

"cousin……"

"Miaozhen, don't feel guilty, Shouning and we all know that you were controlled by evil spirits back then, and it was not your intention to do those things."

Yao Wanning comforted her with soft words, opened her arms, and embraced her:
"Don't blame yourself, Shouning never blamed you again, Shizi must be clear in his heart."

When Su Miaozhen heard this, the tip of her nose became sour.

When she was under the control of evil spirits, she only felt that there were bad people around her. She felt that Yao Shouning was vicious and willful, and Yao Wanning was mean and short-lived, so she made things difficult for herself with words several times.

After waking up now, I realized that my cousin is cute and caring, and that my cousin is also gentle and understanding.

Lu Zhi only liked Yao Shouning wholeheartedly, and he never hid his heart. Outsiders could see it clearly, but he was the only one who couldn't see it clearly when he was deceived by the evil words.

The eldest son and the cousin are very well matched, the two look right in appearance, and their personalities are in harmony, it is difficult for outsiders to get along with each other when they get along. I wonder how I would believe the demon's nonsense back then?
"Cousin—" With resentment towards Yaoxie mixed in her heart, she hugged Yao Wanning's body instead.

Outside the carriage, Shizi talked to Yao Shouning for a while, and then looked around.

Naturally, he saw the people from Zhenmasi, his eyes met Cheng Fuyun's, and seeing the vigilance in his eyes, he also saw the imperial decree in his hand and the people surrounding the bulletin board.

Once he got rid of Yao Shouning's influence on him, Shizi's brain quickly cleared up, and he approached Yao Shouning:

"What are the people from Zhenmensi doing here? Why are you here?"

When he entered the city, the gate of the city was about to be closed, and the Yao family happened to stop here—— Various thoughts swirled in his mind, and he speculated:
"You are going out of the city, and the people from Zhenmasi blocked you here?"

Yao Shouning sighed, and before he could reply, Yao Ruoyun, who was talking to Luo Ziwen, finally found a chance to interrupt, and when he heard this, he turned around and responded:
"Correct."

Lu Zhi frowned. He looked into the distance and saw three carriages side by side.

Except for the one that Yao Shouning was in, there were people from the Yao family including Su Wenfang and Cao Mama in the other two.

The population of the Yao family is simple, but almost half of them live here.

Something must have happened!

This thought flashed through his mind, but he didn't rush to ask, but looked at Yao Shouning:
"Go, I'll take you out of the city first."

Lu Zhi didn't ask about the cause and effect, and was going to help the Yao family solve their predicament first.

Yao Ruoyun was overjoyed at first when he heard the words. He originally thought that today's trip might not go well, but he didn't know that when he met his eldest son again, Lu Zhi was not only willing to protect them, but even sent them out of the city.

He was about to agree, but before he could speak, his body instinctively turned his head to look at Yao Shouning.

I saw my sister frowned, with a hesitant expression on her face.

"Shou Ning."

Yao Ruoyun called her out in surprise. Yesterday, she didn't want to leave home and wanted to share the troubles with her family. Yao Shouning was clearly against it at that time.

Today, everyone was forced to be blocked in the city gate, but fortunately they met the eldest son, and Lu Zhi was willing to help. Yao Ruoyun didn't understand why her sister showed such an expression.

But although he had doubts in his heart, he asked:

"What do you think?"

"I—" Yao Shouning hesitated for a moment, the previously predicted scene flashed in his mind, Yao Wanning stood in front of the monstrous river.

The scene at that time was fleeting, and now, with her memories, there seemed to be a follow-up.

I saw the river rolling in, and the rolled up waves were as high as several feet, like an approaching mountain.

Yao Wanning opened her arms slowly, and she shouted loudly: "Zhu Shizhen—"

The predicted picture stopped abruptly, and the sound completely disappeared.

Hong Bo's roar remained in Yao Shouning's mind, and the surging momentum made her heart palpitate for a moment.

This scene should be extremely dangerous, but for some reason, a word that her grandfather mentioned that day suddenly appeared in her heart: Renhe.

"Renhe—" she muttered to herself.

"'Renhe'?" Yao Ruoyun originally wanted to ask her what to do, but she didn't expect that she seemed to be in a daze for a moment, and then said such a strange word.

Yao Ruoyun's complexion was a little weird:

"What do you mean?"

She shook her head, remembering that when her grandfather mentioned this word in the past, the original meaning of the original words was: even if the evil spirits have exhausted their means, they occupy the right time and place, but they lack human harmony, so they are destined to be unsatisfactory.

But when she thought of her sister and predicted the future, how could such a thought suddenly pop up?

Yao Shouning bit his lower lip, feeling a little uncertain.

She suddenly retracted her head and looked into the carriage.

Yao Wanning was embracing Su Miaozhen, coaxing her cousin softly, she noticed that her sister suddenly turned her head and looked at her in a daze.

"Shouning, what's wrong?" She asked softly.

Yao Shouning also wanted to ask himself what was wrong.

She calmed down and looked at her sister steadily.

Yao Wanning's small face is pale, her eyes are bright and gentle, the youthfulness of a girl has faded from her eyebrows and eyes, perhaps because she is pregnant, she has a sense of tranquility and elegance.

Seeing that her sister hadn't spoken for a long time, she stretched out her hand, trying to pull Yao Shouning.

Her thin and soft hands covered Yao Shouning's cheeks, and Wen Sheng asked again:
"Shouning, what's the matter?" Her eyes were covered with worry, Yao Shouning subconsciously held her palm, and his fingertips touched her pulse.

My sister's wrist is slightly cold, and her pulse is slower than ordinary people, but she is not short-lived, and her relationship with the "River God" is still unclear.

With Yao Shouning's time reset several times, history has changed.

Taizu married Yao's wife and gave birth to Emperor Tianyuan.

She had long foreseen that one day in the future, she would hug her nephew, travel through time and space, and hand him over to Taizu.

The elder sister's child will inherit the land of Daqing, that is to say, the elder sister will not die in the flood she foresaw, and she will give birth safely!

This thought was like a sharp axe, splitting the fog that shrouded her heart, and all doubts suddenly became clear.

Yao Shouning suddenly realized that she was like a fan of the authorities, and because she cared about it, she became chaotic, so she committed a stupidity.

History is a foregone conclusion, at least for now there are no signs of change.

If history is fixed, then the future can be inferred from the past, and Yao Wanning's life is not in danger for the time being, so it can also be presumed that the "river god" situation is not unbreakable!
Thinking of this, she almost jumped up with joy.

She suppressed her excitement and asked:
"Sister, if I make the decision, I will keep you—" When she said this, she was stunned for a moment when she saw Yao Wanning, and then she showed joy.

Yao Wanning seemed to have guessed what she was going to say later, and looked at her with a smile, with encouragement on her face.

The elder sister's expression made Yao Shouning guess her answer, the girl felt a little relieved, and then asked:

"Maybe you will face a crisis, will you blame me then?" She said softly.

"No." Yao Wanning shook her head, looking at her sister seriously:

"How could I blame you?" She took a deep breath:

"I didn't want to leave at all. The reason why I agreed was that I didn't want to be a drag on everyone."

She didn't want to leave, but over the years because of her illness, she got used to hiding her thoughts and obeying her mother's arrangements for her life.

Therefore, when Yao Shouning wanted her to leave Shendu City, even though she hesitated, she still obeyed her sister in the end.

Yao Shouning pursed his lips, and when he heard what his sister said, his heart was filled with emotion. She said:
"I want to say that we don't have to leave God's City for the time being, I—"

She shook her head, the thoughts in her mind were chaotic, and she couldn't articulate clearly for a while:

"But I can assure you that I will do my best to protect you."

After finishing speaking, she looked at Su Miaozhen again:

"cousin--"

"Of course I want to be with everyone." Before she finished speaking, Su Miaozhen said:

"If my cousin doesn't leave, of course I won't either."

Both girls declared that they would obey her arrangement, Yao Shouning heaved a sigh of relief, feeling a little strange in his heart.

She was originally the youngest, and she used to follow Liu's decision. Even though she had some thoughts in her heart, most of them were suppressed by her mother, and it was difficult for her to make her own decisions and express her thoughts.

She was once as weak as her elder sister, even though she behaved a little out of line, but at this moment, it seemed more like an invisible protest against Liu's restraint.

It wasn't until Liu Shi was injured and fell down, and she became the master of the house and took responsibility, that Yao Shouning gradually realized that he didn't reject this feeling.

The support and trust of her family gave Yao Shouning infinite courage. Even though her prediction of the future was not very clear, she developed the confidence to fight.

"it is good."

She quickly made a decision, then turned to look at the prince outside the carriage:

"We're leaving town."

Her expression was firm, as if she had turned her head to discuss with the two sisters in the car for a moment, and she seemed to have matured again:
"Brother, let's go back to Yao's house first," she paused, then said with a smile:

"I always feel like things are turning around."

After finishing speaking, she looked at Lu Zhi again:
"Your Majesty, will you send us off?" She looked calm, as if she had a reassuring calmness on her body.

How could Lu Zhi say 'not good', he nodded vigorously.

But looking at Yao Shouning's smile, he felt that his actions were unsteady, so he quickly added:
"Of course."

After the two finished talking, Yao Shouning saw Cheng Fuyun's vigilance out of the corner of his eye, and she glanced at Lu Zhi again. Lu Zhi understood what she meant, then straightened up, turned his horse's head and walked towards Cheng Fuyun.

Cheng Fuyun secretly screamed in his heart that something was wrong, he only regretted that he came a step late today and failed to stop Lu Zhi from outside the city.

If he had arrived a little earlier, closed and locked the city gate ahead of time, even if Lu Zhi came back, it would be difficult for him to break into the city with his team of dozens of people.

'No - it's not that I'm late. Thinking of this, Cheng Fuyun shook his head: "Obviously Second Ms. Yao dragged me to talk and wasted time." '

He looked at Yao Shouning again, and saw the girl smiling and waving at him.

She looked innocent, but after the previous conversation, Yao Shouning seemed to know many secrets, and Cheng Fuyun had a ghost in his heart, and felt that Yao Shouning's smile had a deep meaning.

He secretly speculated: Did the Second Young Miss Yao ask him for help and talk to him earlier, or did she receive the news and intentionally delay him so that the son could enter the city smoothly?

Cheng Fuyun couldn't figure out what was going on, seeing that Lu Zhi had come, he suppressed the distracting thoughts in his mind, and stepped forward to negotiate with him.

The two had different positions, talked for a while, and finally broke up unhappy.

With a sullen face, Lu Zhi turned back and glanced at the refugees around him, as if he had guessed the plight of the Yao family.

He signaled Luo Ziwen and Duan Changya to each lead a dozen or so black armor guards on both sides of the Yao family's carriage.

The name of the Black Armor in the General's Mansion is well known in the city of God. Those refugees who originally harbored evil intentions saw this scene, only to be lost and scattered.

Lu Zhi personally took the lead, walked on the side of Yao Shouning's carriage, and talked to her about the things since leaving God's Capital.

After Mrs. Liu was injured that day, Xu Xiangyi thought of a way, and the eldest princess asked people to search for the whereabouts of Xuanyinmu. After she had a clue, she immediately ordered her son to handle the matter in person, fearing that something might go wrong and hurt Mrs. Liu life.

In Jinzhou, the eldest princess is very powerful, and the collection of Xuanyin wood went smoothly. If the original plan was followed, Lu Zhi would have returned by the end of June.

"But something happened in the middle." When Lu Zhi said this, he paused for a moment:

"There are people missing in Jindi one after another. The cases were reported to the government, which attracted the attention of the prefect, and reported to me."

When Yao Shouning heard this, curiosity arose in his heart.

The eldest princess is the person in charge of Jindi, and Lu Zhi, as her only son, will inherit the command of Jindi in the future. He went back this time purely for private matters, and the case of Jindi can alarm him, which proves that this matter cannot be tolerated. underestimate.

"A lot of people are missing?" she asked.

Lu Zhi nodded:

"Ah."

He knew Yao Shouning's temperament, so he deliberately explained this matter in detail to satisfy her curiosity:
"This Zhizhou is a Jinshi in the ninth year of Shenqi. He was relegated to Ninggu Pagoda because he contradicted my uncle."

The sound of horseshoes followed the side of the car, and along with the rolling of the wheels, Lu Zhi's voice slowly reached Yao Shouning's ears:
"He was born in Guangdong and Guangxi. He couldn't stand the hardships and almost died in the end. It was my mother who valued his character, temperament and ability, and rescued him and left him in Jin."

This person was grateful for the kindness of the eldest princess for saving his life, and moved the eldest princess to give him a chance, so he managed the Jin land very well, which made the eldest princess very relieved.

"This time, there were people missing in Jindi. At the beginning, the government thought that there were thieves from other places sneaking in to commit crimes. Later, Gu Zhizhou found out that something was wrong."

The young man's voice was clear and bright, and he wanted to please Yao Shouning. He told the ins and outs of the case one by one. Not only Yao Shouning listened carefully, but Su Miaozhen and Yao Wanning were also attracted and listened attentively.

"He noticed that since five years ago, people have been reported missing one after another, and the first ones who went missing were some children."

Normally speaking, after a child disappears, the first person to suspect is the kidnapper.

This Gu Zhizhou did not ignore the case because it was small, and immediately investigated the beggars in the city, the buskers who traveled north and south, and the opera gardens.

At that time, the whole city was searched, and the acrobatic troupes and opera troupes that entered the city were searched, and some paihuazi were arrested, but the missing child was not found in the end.

Perhaps it was because Gu Zhizhou attached great importance to this matter at that time and made a big commotion. After six months, there was no case of missing children again, so the matter was left alone.

Hearing this, Yao Shouning had vaguely guessed that there might be something wrong with this matter, maybe it was related to evil spirits in the end, but she didn't ask, but let Lu Zhi continue to talk.

"Five years have passed since this incident, and until more than half a year ago, people were reported missing one after another. From the beginning, one person disappeared in one month, and the number increased every month later."

This Gu Zhizhou was keenly aware that something was wrong, and the investigation file:

"It was found that one person disappeared in November last year, three people disappeared in December, and seven people disappeared in January, and the monthly numbers have been added up since then." He checked the previous household registration book again, and found something was wrong.

"After Gu Zhizhou took office, Jindi will check the household registration every other year." This is for tax purposes, and for the convenience of population management and control of local security.

"After checking the household registration, I found that since five years ago, no local children have been reported missing again, and there have been no similar disappearance cases in the following five years. There are occasional cases, but they all come to different conclusions and cannot be classified together."

Since the son mentioned this, it proved that there must be something wrong, Yao Shouning urged silently with his eyes, and Lu Zhi went on to say:

"Just at this moment, a supervisory envoy from the silver station reported corruption and fraud to an official surnamed Jiao in the Chief Secretary."

What Lu Zhi said seemed to be rambling, with nothing in between, but Yao Shouning vaguely guessed his intentions.

It must be Gu Zhizhou who discovered the clues of the disappearance case from this corruption case.

As soon as she asked this question, Lu Zhi showed approval in his eyes:
"This case is not big, and the amount of money involved is not much, but Gu Zhizhou is as careful as a hair, but he noticed something wrong from this matter." He whispered:
"The official surnamed Jiao is of low rank and doesn't have much power in his hands, but he has the right to dispose of a sum of money." When he said this, he paused for a moment:

"After my mother took over the land of Jin, she ordered the government to allocate a sum of money every year to the counties and townships to deal with the corpses of those who died in foreign lands and were lonely."

When Yao Shouning heard this, a flash of inspiration flashed in his mind, as if he had caught some kind of premonition.

After a person dies, if no one handles it, the corpse will rot, causing a plague.

After Emperor Shenqi ascended the throne, he plundered the people's fat and anointment, and even established a tax on the dead.

Under the rule of Daqing, if someone died in the family, they had to pay a land use fee to the government, which was dubbed by the people as "seeing the coffin to get rich". .

In order to avoid taxation, some people are even unwilling to register their household registration even if they have births in their families. The governance of Daqing has been messed up for a long time.

The eldest princess is completely opposite to him. She manages the land of Jin in an orderly manner, and the people live a prosperous and comfortable life. She even did the opposite to Emperor Shenqi's "dead tax".

A tax is allocated every year for the placement of unburied corpses.

The official surnamed Jiao happened to be in charge of such a sum of money. After in-depth investigation by Gu Zhizhou, it was found that the report of the bank spokesman was true.

"Jiao Guang's annual salary is 35 taels, but he bought a house and raised two outhouses. In addition, there are more than a dozen servants in his family, and his wife wears silk and satin, and wears jewelry that far surpasses that of the husband and wife. income."

The income of officials under the rule of Daqing was not high, especially in recent years when the imperial court was in financial difficulties, and their salaries were often deducted, and their salaries were replaced with Chenmi.

But the eldest princess has a wealth of wealth and treats the officials under her rule well. In addition to the annual salary, there are also subsidies such as rice, cloth, and firewood. Even so, Jiao Guang's consumption far exceeds his income.

Gu Zhizhou became suspicious because of this, and after careful investigation, he found that he embezzled the "funeral expenses" set by the eldest princess every year, a total of 500 taels of silver!
After this investigation, Gu Zhizhou was shocked.

500 taels of silver is not a small amount. For ordinary people, 20 taels of silver can support a family of five for more than a year.

But if the money is used for political affairs, it would be too little.

The land of Jin is quite large, and there are quite a few people who die every year. Many of them have no relatives, no reason, and no one to collect their bodies.

"Five years ago, the 500 taels were often not enough. Every year, the financial secretary always had to declare more, but since five years ago, the 500 taels have never been spent."

Lu Zhi sighed:

"There is no excess, but there is no surplus either." Yao Shouning answered:

"It's all in the pocket of Mr. Jiao."

Lu Zhi nodded slightly, and Yao Shouning said again:
"But it is impossible that there are no lonely and helpless people who died in Jindi."

"Yes." Lu Zhi glanced at her, "After further investigation by Gu Zhizhou, it was discovered that in the past few years, many charity villages in Jinzhong had existed in name only, and the local Yizhuang officials had changed the homes of the Yizhuang, took it as their own, and started other businesses These Yizhuang officials are in cahoots with Jiao Guang, and get a sum of money from Jiao Guang every year, manage it up and down, and keep it secret."

It is precisely because of this that this special case of missing persons has been silent for five years.

"..."

Although Yao Shouning had guessed some clues, he still felt chills when he heard Shizi say this.

"Gu Zhizhou was furious immediately, arrested Jiao Guang and related people, and conducted a strict investigation, and ordered Jinzhong officials to correspond to the household registration all night, and asked the soldiers to check the population—"

Lu Zhi may also feel that this matter is too unbelievable. He was speechless, omitted the middle part, and finally said:
"After investigation, it was found that during the five years, there were more than [-] missing persons!"

This number is simply horrifying.

You must know that the eldest princess has managed the land of Jin well. Although it is not up to the level of not closing the house at night, there are always a small number of beggars and homeless people in the city. People, this can be said to be a shocking case.

"These people have no relatives, no one remembers them when they die or disappear, and no one of the common people meddles in their own business to report the crime, which is why Jiao Guang took advantage of the loophole."

When Lu Zhi said this, he was also a little angry:

"After Gu Zhizhou's interrogation, Jiao Guang confessed that he was also panicked at the beginning, afraid that people would not die, so he didn't dare to embezzle. Later, when he found out that these missing people would not appear again, he gradually became more courageous."

As the saying goes, people die for wealth, and birds die for food.

In order to embezzle the money, he actually searched the household registration and recorded the orphans and widows registered in the city one by one. After the incident, he found that these people disappeared one after another strangely.

"More than that, he also paid attention to some solitary merchants who went to Jindi, and later discovered through the account books he left that many of these merchants also disappeared in Jindi."

In the past five years, such a huge case occurred in Jindi, but it was strictly hidden because of the corruption of a small official.

Gu Zhizhou already knew that something big happened, so he suppressed his uneasiness, and then cross-compared this big case with those disappearance cases five years ago.

He remembered the disappearance of the first batch of children five years ago, which was similar to this case——

Yao Shouning and Lu Zhi said in unison:

"The whereabouts of those who are missing are unknown."

The prince responded and said:
"You can't see people alive, and you can't see dead bodies when you're dead."

Speaking of which, things have gradually become bizarre.

Yao Shouning frowned and analyzed:

"This matter is no longer an ordinary case."

Zhu Hengrui looks carefree on the outside, but in fact she is thick and thin.

For many years, she has managed the land of Jin in an orderly manner, and the people under her rule live and work in peace and contentment. Even though crimes still occur, it is absolutely impossible for such a vicious case to occur.

To handle such a big case without anyone noticing it, causing nearly a thousand people to disappear, leaving no one alive or dead, is not possible for ordinary small-scale gangs to do so.

The eldest princess is powerful, powerful, has soldiers, and has money. In the land of Jin, she insists that there is no difference. It is impossible for such a large group of evil forces to hide.

"Is it caused by evil spirits?"

She guessed.

Hearing what she said, Lu Zhi's expression didn't change, but he continued:

"Gu Zhizhou found something was wrong, so he started to investigate the beggars and people living alone in the city, and sent more people to protect and monitor secretly, trying to catch the murderer—"

As soon as this move came out, the main messenger behind the scenes obviously knew that the matter had been exposed.

When Yao Shouning saw that he said this, his phoenix eyes were darkened, and he seemed a little angry, so he couldn't help being a little surprised:

"Didn't catch it in the end?"

"Yes!" Lu Zhi replied:
"It's not just that the mastermind behind the scenes didn't restrain himself, but he became more and more arrogant." As if knowing that his deeds were exposed, the harm was even more blatant.

"Since the end of last year, the missing people are not limited to single households, beggars, etc., but people with families."

The number of victims has gradually increased, and the only thing in common is that their whereabouts are unknown.

The government began to impose martial law, checking every corner of the city, and strictly checking the gates of the city. Soldiers were sent to patrol day and night every day.

"Just when Gu Zhizhou was having a bad headache, a woman in Xishan Village, Li'an County, Jinzhou beat a drum and complained, saying that the local villagers were violent and everyone became a bandit, and her husband was detained."

The story gets more and more twists and turns.

Although Yao Shouning had guessed that the case Lu Zhi was talking about must be related to evil spirits, she was not in a hurry to uncover the mystery.

It wasn't until now that she realized that Shi Zi was very eloquent.

The young man's mouth is not only harmful to others, when he wants to please someone, he will try his best to win her favor.

He walked side by side with her, understood her personality, likes and dislikes, and knew that she was very curious, so he deliberately explained the case in detail to make her happy.

This kind of flattery made her more satisfied and happy than giving her a gift. Her heart seemed to be full of emotions, which were about to overflow like a spring. With soft eyes, she raised her head to look at the prince.

He was riding on a big maroon horse, with a tall figure and long satin-like hair tied up.

The morning sun was not too hot, covering his brows and eyes with a soft golden shadow. His face was well-defined, with a curvaceous chin connected to his slender neck, and his Adam's apple rolled slightly when he spoke. Between the slenderness of the youth and the straightness of the youth, there is a faint temptation, which makes Yao Shouning dazed.

The prince is very good-looking, speaks nicely, and pleases her.

She was thinking in her heart, when she saw his lips opening and closing when he spoke, she turned her head after an unknown period of time.

Lu Zhi's skin was white and flawless, his eyes were like a speck of ink, and his pupils were clear, reflecting the reflection of her cheek resting on her palm.

Yao Shouning could clearly see his blushing cheeks in the shadow...

"what!"

She reacted and found that Shizi had approached at some point.

"Shouning, why are you in a daze?"

Seeing her misty eyes, Lu Zhi couldn't help asking.

She seemed to be frightened, and quickly reached out to push his face:

"Why are you so close?"

Under her palm, Shizi's skin is slightly cool, the skin is extremely thin, covering the bones, and the two tactile sensations complement each other, making her hands soft and delicate.

Lu Zhi followed her strength and was pushed away by her, secretly happy in his heart, as if there was a faint fragrance on his cheeks, he resisted the urge to reach out and touch his cheeks, and said innocently:
"I see you're lost in thought, and I call you."

"I'm just thinking about the case." When she heard Lu Zhi's words, her cheeks became hotter, and she made random excuses to urge him to stay away:
"Don't get so close, my elder brother and the others are still there, see what it looks like."

"..."

Yao Ruoyun couldn't hear her words, but Su Miaozhen and Yao Wanning in the carriage could hear her clearly.

The conversation between the young girl and the prince was natural, whether it was her pushing the prince's face or Lu Zhi's response, the intimacy was natural, and the two of them didn't seem to feel that there was anything wrong with this interaction.

And what Yao Shouning was worried about was that the prince was getting too close, not that she was too close to the prince.

Su Miao really wanted to laugh, thinking in her heart: Why didn't I find Shouning's character so funny before?
There is obviously mutual affection between her and the prince, and it is difficult for outsiders to get in. Anyone with eyes can see that the prince has her in his heart, and I was deceived by the fox demon, so I really believed in the so-called "past life and present life" '.

Su Miao was really relieved, but Yao Shouning urged again:

"Later, you continue to talk about it."

"Okay." Lu Zhi responded with a good temper, and then said:

"This case happened three years ago. The woman who reported the case was from Pei County, Jinzhou, which is adjacent to Li'an County. She said that her husband was a shopkeeper who went out of town. He heard someone say that Xishan Village, Li'an County was rich. I moved my mind to do business, but I didn't know that I went there, but there was no news."

Two months later, the woman couldn't wait for her husband to come back, so she finally couldn't bear it anymore and decided to hire someone to take her to Li'an County to find her husband.

She went to Xishan Village, but when she was at the head of the village, she was stopped by the village people, and no strangers were allowed to enter, and everyone said that she had never seen her husband.

"This woman didn't believe it. Seeing that the village was backed by green hills, she wondered if her husband was not familiar with the way of life. He went into the deep mountains and wild mountains, and wanted to go in and find someone."

This move angered the villagers, and a dispute broke out between the two sides.

"If the woman hadn't hired someone to go with her, something serious might happen."

The woman backed away in embarrassment, the more she thought about it, the more angry she became. She finally fell asleep at night, but dreamed of her husband, covered in blood, with bloody holes in his eyes, pointing in a certain direction, but couldn't make a sound, and hurriedly turned to her. He waved his hand, as if urging her to leave quickly.

This dream was strange and extraordinary, terrifying and haunting.

After waking up, the woman burst into tears, panicked and frightened, and endured it until dawn, remembering her husband's actions in the dream, pointing her fingers in the direction of the mountain behind Xishan Village.

Thinking about it again, the husband in the dream seemed to be urging her to leave quickly, as if he was afraid that something might happen to her.

The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she became, and while it was still dark, she woke up the hired hand to send her out of Li'an County, and before returning home, she reported the case to the Jindi Yamen.

"Officials in Jindi have assessments every year. My mother attaches great importance to people's livelihood and public security. The detection of the case is related to her promotion. The officials who received the report did not dare to neglect, and immediately launched an investigation."

When Lu Zhi said this, Yao Shouning couldn't bear it anymore:
"Did the investigation result go wrong?"

"Correct."

Lu Zhi nodded approvingly, and Yao Shouning smiled contentedly.

"After investigation by the county government in Pei County, it was found that Xishan Village in Li'an County is not weird."

Although Lu Zhi said that Xishan Village is not "weird", since he mentioned the disappearance case, and then changed the subject to mention this case, there is something weird in itself. These cases may be connected in parallel, and there is no weirdness. That is the biggest doubt.

Thinking of this, she felt a little regretful in her heart.

I am trapped in the city of the gods, like a dragon trapped in the shallows. The world is so big, and there are so many strange things. This time, the son is fortunate to be able to participate in it. I am afraid that the big case will be solved, and the knowledge will be increased.

If things are over here, the mother recovers from her injury, the fetus in the sister's womb is born safely, and the matter of the "River God" is resolved, she also wants to leave the capital of God, and like the son, she can participate in various events, then there should be how nice.

"In the face of the investigation by the county government from afar, the people in Xishan Village also complained."

Li in the village was a middle-aged man in his thirties, who seemed to be very prestigious. Hearing the case mentioned by the people in Pei County, he thought of that woman.

He told the people in the government office that the woman had lost her mind and went to their village to play wild when her husband disappeared.

"The surname is Zhu. It is said that most of the villagers are descendants of the Zhu family."

"Surname Zhu?" Hearing this, Yao Shouning couldn't help asking:

"This is the surname of the country. Could it be that the people in Xishan Village are descendants of the royal family?"

The Daqing Dynasty has been passed down for 700 years, and the descendants of the royal family are unknown, spreading all over the world. It is not surprising that there are descendants of the Zhu family in a village in a prefecture or county.

When she thought of this, a flash of inspiration flashed in her heart, as if some important information was almost caught by her, but it seemed that there was a layer of window paper that seemed to be hidden, and it had not been pierced. She could only vaguely feel that this information was very important.

Yao Shouning was a little anxious, but he didn't urge him.

Shizi nodded:

"Yes." He continued:

"The Lizheng of Xishan Village said that it's not that they don't allow women to enter the mountains to search, but that this is against the precepts of the ancestors."

Zhu Lizheng from Xishan Village faced the guards and finally shared his difficulties.

He said that the people in his village were descendants of the royal family, and their ancestors can be traced back to the Qingsuzong period 500 years ago.

"You know about Qing Suzong, right?" Lu Zhi asked.

Yao Shouning nodded.

This Qingsuzong's life experience is very legendary. She loves stories from the novels and talks about legends, so she naturally knows about Qingsuzong.

The origin of Qing Suzong can be described in short words, that is: his mother was originally the daughter of the family at that time, and was accused of marrying the prince at that time as his wife. .

Logically speaking, the prince and his wife are loving and they have an heir. The couple's life should be as sweet as honey.

It's a pity that the good times didn't last long. The princess who was in power at that time was seriously ill, and the medicine was useless.

At that time, the Empress Zhenggong was the birth mother of the prince, and she had long been displeased with the love of her son and daughter-in-law, thinking that her daughter-in-law was jealous, which made her son and heirs weak.

Taking advantage of the opportunity of the princess being seriously ill, she sent the princess out of the palace and found another Taoist temple to fend for itself.

At the same time, invite the princess's sister to enter the palace to make up for the prince's loss of his beloved wife.

Coincidentally, after the concubine left the palace, the emperor passed away, and the prince hurriedly ascended the throne as emperor before he had time to regret being separated from his wife.

Since then, the state affairs have been busy, and the newly married wife is Xiaoyi and gentle, so he gradually forgets the original wife.

A few years later, the younger sister of the former concubine gave birth to a prince, and the queen mother urged the Chinese and military ministers to speak, saying that the country must not have a queen, and asked the emperor to establish a queen as soon as possible and appoint a heir.

The emperor canonized the younger sister of the former concubine as the queen, and made her son the prince.

On the other hand, the Crown Princess who was kicked out of the palace and separated from her husband was supposed to die of serious illness early, but once she was abandoned, she heard that her husband remarried and the family sent her younger sister to fill the palace, and she felt resentful.

Under the support of resentment, he gradually recovered miraculously.

Later, when she heard that her husband had already forgotten her, her younger sister had robbed her of her successor, and her son had been made the heir apparent, she naturally resented her very much.

This former concubine is also a strange woman, she did not accept her fate, but relying on the old people left behind, she successfully aroused the king's memory, remembered her as the first wife, and then had a tryst with the emperor, and brought her back in the palace.

After she entered the palace, she regained the favor of the emperor, suppressed the queen mother, framed her younger sister to fall out of favor, removed her natal family's power in the court one by one, urged the emperor to abolish the current prince, and finally became the master of the palace.

After that, the emperor re-appointed the original son-in-law as the prince, and exiled the abolished prince to Jinzhou.

But the queen was not satisfied with this after she was restored. In addition to resenting the suppression of the queen mother back then, and the fact that the family sent her younger sister to replace herself, she also resented the emperor's ruthlessness. Assassinate the emperor for the second time.

The emperor felt guilty about her, and kept holding back, and finally died in his 40s. Before his death, he made a decree to be buried with his wife.

After his death, the crown prince came to the throne, and he became Qingsuzong in history.

The origin of Qing Suzong is legendary, but the most legendary is his mother, Empress Dowager Zhao.

Since then, there have been many legends about the Empress Dowager Zhao. After her husband died, she was regarded as the Empress Dowager, raised male favorites, put green hats on her husband's head after another, and tampered with the last emperor's will. After death, he will not be buried with the first emperor.

……

Thinking of this legend, Yao Shouning thought in his heart: If she succeeds in her studies in the future, it would be great to have the opportunity to meet the famous Empress Dowager Zhao.