Records of the Lost Cases of Helaitang in the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 26 Longyou’s Lost Tracks
"It doesn't matter whether the guest's words are true or not. If the 20 taels of silver are true, there is no reason to refuse." Wang Heng's eyes understood everything.

"Of course, I have never seen 20 taels of silver before. You don't understand." Xiao Hai felt aggrieved for a moment: "The guest was very generous and paid us a deposit of [-] taels each on the spot."

Xiaoquan said: "The guest told us to make preparations and take us there within a few days. At noon on the first day of September, a carriage came to pick up our brothers and go to Longyou."

Mr. Wei asked: "The carriage was hired by a car dealer in the city? Is there any emblem?"

Xiaoquan hesitated for a moment and said: "It doesn't look like it. It's much more gorgeous than the carriages in the car dealership, and the uncle who drives the carriages is very respectful to the guests. At first glance, he is the master and servant."

"Do you hear clearly what the guest's name is? What are the characteristics of his appearance?" Wang Heng asked.

"It seems that his surname is Zhang, Mr. Zhang. His appearance is very ordinary, nothing special." Xiaoquan said.

"The clothes are also very ordinary, just like a rich man, but..." Xiao Hai added: "The skin is a little darker, maybe he has a poor background."

"When we arrived in Longyou County, we were placed in a mountain hut. Mr. Zhang took us to see the valley where the flash flood occurred and the general area downstream of the river. He asked us brothers to wait separately. He left some rice, noodles, fruits and vegetables for us. We have made an appointment to deliver supplies once every ten days," Koizumi said.

Xiaohai said: "Food and lodging are included, and we also have 20 taels of silver as wages. I hope the rich man never finds us, so we can earn a few more months."

"Then, you were found and rescued by the rich man in the end?" Wang Cai said hesitantly.

"Of course, October [-]th was not the day agreed to deliver supplies, but Mr. Zhang drove over early that morning and paid us another ten taels of silver. He told us that the rich man's health has improved in the past few days and he will come every day. When patrolling the mountain, we must go to the waterside to ambush early and finish the work after dark. Sure enough, in the afternoon of the next day, Xiaohai met a group of people at the downstream water mouth and rescued him," Xiaoquan said.

Wang Heng and Xiaocai felt their hearts skip a beat. Mr. Wei nodded secretly. It was just as he had guessed.

Wang Heng asked Xiaohai: "Then you can clearly see what the rich man looks like?"

"It's hard to see clearly with such a large group of people." Xiao Hai's frivolous expression could hardly be formalized as he said: "Besides, Mr. Zhang warned us not to look at what we shouldn't look at. I should be so weak that I should close my eyes and let them manipulate me, so , I didn’t even open my eyes. After dark, I changed cars several times, and it was bumpy all night. I was sent back to the mountain hut the next morning. Mr. Zhang paid our wages and sent us back to Lanxi that day."

"The above is the experience of our two brothers. We have nothing to hide. Let's leave after that." Xiaoquan pulled Xiaohai and was about to leave.

"Wait a minute, can you find Mr. Zhang?" Mr. Wei asked.

Xiaoquan shook his head and said: "Mr. Zhang never revealed his name and address. We don't know his whereabouts at all. It is the mountain hut where he has lived for several months. Now I can't remember the way to get there."

Sitting in a carriage and traveling dozens of miles of mountain roads, and several months had passed, Mr. Wei believed that Xiaoquan was telling the truth. It was unrealistic for them to lead the way to find the mountain hut, and the gray snake grass line was linked together. In the plot, the mountain hut has probably disappeared.

Xiaohai was dragged by Xiaoquan for a few steps, then suddenly stopped and turned around, as if he was waiting for a price and said: "On the first day of September, before Mr. Zhang took us out of the city, he got off the car and stopped for a while. He opened the curtain and went down, and I happened to be sitting next to him. By chance, I saw the corner door of the house. Coincidentally, I used to go to this area frequently when I was going to study, so I recognized where it was at a glance."

All three of them were overjoyed. Mr. Wei smiled and said, "I'll pay you a lot of money. Could you please help me take us there?"

Xiao Quan pulled Xiao Hai's sleeve and winked at him, but Xiao Hai smiled and said: "Sir, come with me, but there is a long way to go." Everyone entered the Ximen, walked along Ximen Street to Guanqiao, turned south, and crossed Go into an alley.

With sharp eyes, Wang Cai saw a stone boundary monument "Qingshijing Lane" erected on the roadside. He was so surprised that he read it aloud.

Xiaohai stopped in front of a large house deep in the alley. He walked forward, looked around several times, and said with certainty: "This is it. Mr. Zhang got off the car and entered through the corner door. The carriage stopped for a while, walked forward a few steps, and walked from Come out the front door."

Mr. Wei paid a lot of money to Xiao Hai as promised, and Xiao Hai happily put it in his pocket and left.

The three people who were full of suspicion were left at the door. Looking at the door knocker covered with thick eaves dust and the dusty threshold, it seemed that the door had not been opened for a long time, so Mr. Wei decided to go to the neighbor to ask for information.

Looking around, the door of a house in Donghengtou was half open at this time. Wang Heng stepped forward to knock on the door. Soon an old man came out. Mr. Wei cupped his hands and said, "Do you know what's next to the west..."

Before he finished speaking, the old man said "Huh" and said a little impatiently: "The Jin family in Xihengtou, I don't know how many people have come to ask questions these days. It's been more than half a month since the Jin family moved away. As for where they went, he I didn’t tell anyone at home, but no one is left, so you don’t have to bother knocking on the door.”

After saying that, he ignored the three people and pushed the door inwards with a bang.

These words confirmed what the three of them thought. Shopkeeper Xiaojin was not innocently involved. Even if he was not the mastermind, he was definitely involved.

In mid-winter, the head is short, the daylight is gradually passing, the hands and feet are getting colder, and the mood is even colder.

"Unexpectedly, the person we rescued from the underground river in the forbidden area of ​​the Zhuge family was not He Xiucai, but those two young gentlemen." Wang Cai was a little downcast.

Mr. Wei sighed and said: "It is easy to replace Xiao Hai with He Xiucai. When we came out of the underground river, we were stopped by four people and took an ox cart to Bagua Terrace. After that, the ox cart was tied at the foot of the mountain, and the village was noisy. Rushing to the Bagua stage, all we have to do is drive an ox cart and put He Xiucai into Xiao Hai's cart, then move Xiao Hai back to his own ox cart and leave. One person can do it all."

Wang Heng said flatly: "This person is either Master Zhang or an accomplice of Master Zhang. He must be very familiar with Gaolong Village."

"But why did they go to such trouble to hire Xiao Hai and others to play He Xiucai?" Wang Cai asked.

"I guess it's to save He Xiucai's life." Mr. Wei said with an excited expression: "Shopkeeper Xiaojin and his group, although they designed to trick He Xiucai into the village, they didn't want his life. You can tell as soon as you think about it. The well-dressed young master was injured again. If he was left alone in the mountains and fields, he would have an accident within three to five days. So, they thought of replacing him with someone who looked vaguely similar. As for the Xiaohai brothers, they He was originally a storyteller in the market. He knew in advance that it was a performance and had material support, so he was naturally able to survive in the wilderness."

Wang Heng suddenly said: "No wonder He Xiucai was shocked when he woke up and heard that it was already October [-]th. He should have been in a semi-comatose state some time ago."

After thinking about this, the meaning suddenly became dull. Mr. Wei said: "Since He Xiucai is safe and has returned home well, we don't need to tell him these speculations. It would be unsightly to make him resentful."

The two disciples nodded in agreement, and they also had normal thoughts.

The weather was cold and the ground was freezing, and the dusk was dim. The young people had been busy all day with nothing to do, and the birds and beasts dispersed.

(End of this chapter)