Kaifeng Monster

Chapter 35
The days passed quickly, like the wind flipped the pages of Mr. Gongsun's book, and it was New Year's Eve again.

At this time, patrolling the streets in the afternoon on New Year's Eve cannot be called an errand. In Zhao Hu's words, "it's a beautiful thing."

Think about it, every house is full of joy, every house is decorated with lanterns and festoons, the sound of firecrackers is constant, and the sound of playfulness is endless. Once the lid of the stove is lifted, it is steaming and fragrant. Boiled glutinous rice balls...

This scene, tsk tsk.

Walking around like this all the way, what you see with your eyes and what you hear with your ears is warm and soothing, not to mention how beautiful your heart is.

Seeing that the people live and work in peace and contentment, happily welcoming the spring, all the hard work and hardships this year seem to be nothing.

What's more, after patrolling the streets, there will be a hot New Year's Eve dinner in the Kaifeng mansion, and then you will be able to taste Mr. Gongsun's craftsmanship - it is said that the dumpling stuffing is made by Gongsun Ce himself, and he can also serve the wine with the guard Zhan. Yan Huan, at that time Master Bao must be happily stroking his beard, his black face glowing red...

The more Zhao Hu thought about it, the more beautiful he became, and he couldn't help laughing out loud.

Zhang Long beside him glared at Zhao Hu angrily: "Be serious."

Seriously, oh, yes, you are patrolling the streets, aren't you?
So he cleared his throat, straightened his clothes, straightened his face, kept his eyes fixed, and walked towards the next street.

The next street is Suzaku Street.

After walking for a while, it is Jinhou Lane.

When passing by Jinhou Lane, the two stopped at the same time.

There are some special places that will always remind you of things that you usually don't or don't want to think about.

The bluestone slabs are paved all the way to the end of Jinhou Lane, and two white lanterns are still hanging high under the lintel of Xihualiu.The lantern has been cracked, and dust may have fallen on it, and the drooping pulp paper rattles when it meets the wind, making it even more scattered.

Compared with the hustle and bustle of other places, it is strangely silent.

When it is too quiet, people's thoughts tend to stumble and go far, far away.

Zhao Hu suddenly realized that what he thought was the most difficult day had just passed away so quietly.

After the news of Duanmucui's death came, Xiao Qinghua fell out with the Kaifeng Mansion and left in a rage without a trace.

Two days later, the Duanmu Thatched Cottage was flooded—the thatched cottage was located in a remote place, and there was no one to rescue it nearby.

Chao Dynasty, Ma Han and the others privately speculated that [-]% of the fire was started by Xiao Qinghua.

Speaking of which, this little blue flower's brain is really weird, if it was someone else, he would only carry the gasoline barrel to burn down the house of the enemy's family, how could he have any reason to scrap his own house in a fit of anger?
Or, Xiao Qinghua felt that since the owner was no longer there, leaving the thatched hut would only add to the sadness, so she might as well just let it go.

Leaning against the bluestone, the trickle flows around the waist of the willow. It is not the owner's lead, but the Duanmu bridge.

The blue stones are running slowly, the trickle is gurgling, the small bridge is the same, and the human face is gone.

Zhan Zhao was silent for a long time facing the ruined Duanmu thatched cottage, standing from dusk to late night.In the middle of the night, a strong wind blew up and a heavy snow fell. The wind howled and lifted up the scorched ashes, which were mixed in the mid-air with the heavy snow. The black and white colors were truly shocking.

Zhang Long and the others stood behind Zhan Zhao far away holding a lantern. The light of the lantern was weak and dim, shrinking and thinning between the dark sky and the earth. Zhan Zhao's shadow was stretched very, very long, Thin, lonely, lonely.

Zhang Long suddenly wanted to cry.

On weekdays, a carefree man would not even frown when he was hit by a knife or hung with a sword. On such a quiet snowy night, his vision was blurred.

Zhan Zhao turned around, smiled at them, and said, "Let's go back."

Since then, the Kaifeng mansion has never mentioned Duanmucui.

Zhang Long let out a long breath, and couldn't help but stretched out his elbow to smack Zhao Hu: "Tell me, where did the person from Xihualiu go?"

Zhao Hu was staring at the closed gate of Xihualiu in a daze, and shook his head when he heard the words: "I don't know, just like last time, it disappeared suddenly. I didn't even bother to come to Kaifeng mansion to pick up Miss Hongluan."

Oh, by the way, Hongluan, after being severely injured by the cat demon, has been recuperating in Kaifeng Mansion, and after she calms down, Xihualiu has already disappeared.

"Could something happen?" Zhang Long guessed, "Will you encounter a difficult spirit and get involved in it all at once?"

"That's a good relationship." Zhao Hu snorted coldly, "Wicked people will be tortured by wicked people, and Wen Guweiyu... deserves to suffer."

What is this?Did not say.

In front of Xihualiu's gate, Wen Guwei still left three points of thin noodles.

It is said that if someone scolds you behind your back, you will sneeze. If you are unlucky and trigger your allergic rhinitis, you will sneeze more than a dozen times in a row and cannot stop.

Wen Gu Weiyu's health is not good, he always looks pale and afraid of the cold, but he didn't even sneeze.

At this moment, he was standing on the tower of Xuanping County, a hundred miles away from Kaifeng, looking down at the thousands of families in the city, with a look of pity in his eyes.If you saw him for the first time, Bao would definitely think that he was a bodhisattva with a heart for the common people—at worst, he must be a great good man who practiced Buddhism.

It would be a big mistake to position Wen Gu Weiyu in this way.

There was a sound of gnawing at his feet, Wen Gu Weiyu stepped aside in disgust, and said, "Mr. Wart Xiong, be gentle."

Wart Xiong, who was pulling away the guards and guards to feast on his belly, raised his head blankly, and wiped the blood all over his head and face.After figuring out what Wen Guweiyu meant, his whole face turned red—of course, since his face was covered with blood, you might not be able to see it, he shrank his shoulders cautiously, and slowly reached out to pick out the pawn. Wei's viscera—it really is a lot more refined.

Not far behind, Li Ji is sitting on the high part of the battlements, raising her head and sticking out her tongue to lick the blood on her paws, her legs are swinging leisurely outside the city wall, from a distance, you really You will suspect that this is just a bold and playful girl.

A little farther away is the "Mr. Wen" who once showed up but has no role in the show.He was tremblingly clutching a torn leather pouch and standing against the crenel, being staggered by the draft at the crenel, but he thought it would make him feel better: because in this way, the smell of blood in his nose would be less It's heavy.

"What's the matter, God of Plague?" Wen Guwei glanced at him sideways, "Are you hesitant at this time of year?"

It turns out that "Mr. Wen" should really be "Mr. Plague", and this Plague is not Wen Wen.

"Mr. Wen Gu, this, this... this is not a joke..." The cold wind for nine days can't blow the sweat from the plague god's forehead, "if the gods from the upper realm find out... "

"On the third day of the first lunar month, Li Ji has already ascended to Yingzhou, Penglai, and the abbot," Wen Guwei didn't look at the God of Plague for a while, "Your medicine has been poured into the drinking springs of the three fairy mountains. Now, they are sleeping. De Zhengxiang, no matter what happens in the world, they will not open their eyes. Once the road to the fairy mountain is cut off, the gods in the upper realm will become blind, what are you afraid of?"

"Mr. Wen Gu, what you want is not just one or two lives." Thinking of the possible consequences, the God of Plague shuddered, "There are thousands of households in this city and tens of thousands of people. If you kill people, you will be punished by God." Yes."

Wen Guweiyu didn't speak, but Li Ji, who was always at ease, spoke.

"Mr. Wen, it's inappropriate to regret at this time, isn't it?" There was an obvious threat in the seemingly indifferent tone, "Why didn't you regret it earlier? Come on, you don’t have to give it when Young Master Wen Gu asks you for medicine. You came and you came, and you gave it. You knocked down the gods of the three fairy mountains, and you told me that you didn’t play anymore? "The figure moved quickly, with a charming smile on his face, and his bloody claws had already touched the shoulders of the God of Plague: "You can't do this when you are a god, don't you think so?"

Plague God's calf began to tremble: "That's it, that's it."

Wen Guweiyu was obviously very satisfied with Li Ji's performance, after the big stick, Jin Yuan came out.

"It's just borrowing Mr.'s skin." Wen Gu Weiyu smiled and comforted the God of Plague. If possible, he didn't even mind touching the bald head of the God of Plague in a gesture of love, "When the gods in the fairy mountain wake up, the diseases in the world The epidemic is over, I will clean up the place, and no one will know what happened here. I will not forget my husband's contribution, and since then, my husband's incense will never be broken..."

The word "incense" hit the God of Plague, and he fell silent.

who is he?plague god.

Don't think that those who touch the "god" live a comfortable life, he is a god, so what, since ancient times, only the God of Plague has to be beaten with gongs and drums, which is not the same as the God of Wealth that everyone is fighting for.Other gods have comfortable fairy mansions to live at ease, what kind of life does he live?Rats cross the street and everyone shouts and beats them. They have no place to eat and have nothing to eat. When they show up, they provoke anger and resentment. Passing ghosts floating around.

If you keep messing around like this, there are only two ways to go, one is to die, and the other is to perish.

Forget it, people live and gods live, aren't they all for food?After all, he has already boarded the thief's ship, so why pretend to be lost at the last moment, knowing that he will return to the ground and become a Buddha?
With a heartbeat, he finally handed out the tightly held leather pouch.

With the sound of firecrackers, crowds gathered at the end of the street, saying goodbye to the old year.

The fireworks are shining, one door is next to the other, and the new year is blossoming.

Legend has it that setting off firecrackers on New Year's Eve is to frighten away the "Nian Beast".

This night in Xuanping County, every house was lit with candles and kept watch for the new year. No one would have imagined that after driving away the "Nian Beast", what would usher in was an endless and overwhelming disease...

Just after the first month, news of a major epidemic came from Xuanping County.

In the past few days, the whole Kaifeng mansion was very busy with the murder of three corpses in Fumao Bank on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year.Discussing the case that night, it was only when I was ugly that I got some clues.The scope of the investigation of the murderer shrinks again and again, and the fog may become clear...

Eunuch Chen, the Xuanshi eunuch, arrived at this time.

When we meet each other in the palace, Eunuch Chen is always calm and unhurried, holding his airs and his voice at the same time. Gong'e will always put on a posture of watching flowers and amusing birds.If you show a look of impatience, he will definitely use his highly recognizable high-pitched voice "ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Impatient", "Stable and dignified to show my greatness", buzzing, buzzing, buzzing, like mosquitoes and flies dancing together, how could one of them collapse.

Therefore, when this Eunuch Chen, who used to be gentle and reserved, suddenly stepped out of the unrestrained style, rampaging from outside the government office in Kaifeng to the door of the study, angrily shouting "Where is Bao Zheng" all the way? The seriousness is self-evident.

What happened next could be described as swift as the wind, and before he could say a few words, Eunuch Chen rushed to ask Mr. Bao to come to the palace to meet him. Looking at the situation, if he hadn't worried that Bao Zheng was a second-rank official, he would have picked up The sleeves are about to be pulled up.

In short, everyone in the Kaifeng Mansion was still dumbfounded, but Eunuch Chen had already "invited" Bao Zheng into the sedan chair, got up and left.

It seems that there are priorities, and the "Great Song Dynasty" must also assess the situation and adapt to local conditions.

Throughout the second half of the night, everyone in Kaifeng Mansion felt uneasy, so Zhan Zhao sent Wang Chao and Ma Han out to inquire about the news.The two went there for a while, and reported that at about the same time, all sedan chairs from Nanqing Palace, Prime Minister Wang's Mansion, and Pang Taishi's Mansion rushed to the imperial city.

After hearing Wang Chao and Ma Han's report, Zhan Zhao didn't say anything, but Gongsun Ce sighed, "I'm afraid something serious will happen after such a battle."

Something really happened.

In the imperial study room, the mist of ambergris in the emerald gilt silk incense burner curls upwards and winds around, subtly blowing the low and stagnant air around.

Sitting behind the desk, the young emperor glanced expressionlessly at the several courtiers standing with their hands down, paused, and then turned his gaze to the county magistrate Xuanping who was tremblingly speaking under the desk.

The county magistrate of Xuanping had sweat on his forehead, his voice was trembling, and his calves were shaking all the time, but he tried his best to suppress these reactions, and tried to report what happened in Xuanping County in a calm tone these days.

When he arrived, he typed up the draft countless times, and polished the words and sentences again and again, so as to be elegant and beautiful, because it was heard that the emperor liked elegant articles-he even dreamed that the emperor would be impressed by his diction or demeanor, and regretted the previous Why didn't he find this pearl that was left outside the court, and promoted him to a first-rank official on the spot.

So during the preparation process, his blood boiled with enthusiasm, his eye sockets became hot, he thought that smoke was rising from the ancestral grave, and the lintel was hopeful, and he even had a lump in his throat several times—the sudden outbreak of the epidemic in Xuanping County directly contributed to his and When the hottest person in the court met directly, it was like an eye-opener from heaven. He caught him with a single glance, and the Buddha's light shone everywhere, but he didn't shine on others.

The report is complete.

The emperor didn't speak, and the few powerful officials present were also silent.

Xuanping county magistrate was a little apprehensive, his heart bobbing up and down in the waters of hope and disappointment.

After a while, the emperor waved his hand to signal him to back down.

So... back off?

Disappointment instantly dimmed the light of hope in his eyes, and his whole heart sank to the deepest part with a plop.

But he still pretended to be calm and bowed and retired, his movements were standard, and his gestures were impeccable-if there was a so-called etiquette standard for officials in the Song Dynasty in that era, there is no doubt that he could become a model for the whole country.

Who knows, maybe the emperor will appreciate him for his unassuming and generous appearance?
He went out behind Eunuch Chen, the eunuch for public affairs, and looked back at the door that was gradually closing to him with great nostalgia.

After all, he was still unwilling, and asked Eunuch Chen with the last ray of hope: "Eunuch, how is the performance of the next official?"

Eunuch Chen was speechless for a while, and he began to wonder if the county magistrate was out of his mind. In the face of a catastrophe, even a person like him who walks around the palace all the year round knows the seriousness. Confused about your performance in front of the imperial court?

So Eunuch Chen made a decisive decision and replied concisely.

"Pooh."

"What do you think, but it's okay to say." It was the emperor who broke the silence first.

Grand Master Pang shrank his head and generously gave up the right to speak first to others.

The aging Prime Minister Wang deliberately lowered the voice of clearing his throat—seeing the situation, he did not intend to move first—he was getting older, and the closer he was to returning home, the more cautious he would be in his words and deeds: at this age , In case of inadvertent words, how can there be any capital to stand up?It's not bad to be wise and protect yourself.

Bao Zheng's brows were deeply frowned into a word "Chuan", and some information about Xuanping County flashed through his mind quickly—coincidentally, a homicide case in Xuanping was reviewed a few years ago, and the situation of the county post still has an impression—Xuanping, also known as Xuanping Ping, go to Gyeonggi for 670 miles, 22 households, [-] households.This is the figure from the previous year. By this year, the number of households should have increased.Just now the magistrate of Xuanping County said that the epidemic spread extremely fast, and one out of ten people in He County were seriously ill, so there were more than two thousand people who were seriously ill, and more than a hundred died of the disease.

These are the statistics of the county magistrate when he left the city. After he left the city, he rushed to Beijing for one day, and waited for several days in the Imperial Hospital to prevent illness... During these few days, what happened in Xuanping County? ?The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. He had never heard what the emperor said.

It was no different from the usual discussion, but the Eight Wise Kings were the first to speak.

Seeing the Baxian King speak, Grand Master Pang breathed a sigh of relief: Well, you are a relative of the little emperor, it doesn't matter if you say something wrong, you should be the first to test the depth of the water for everyone.

"I think," the Eighth Prince, with a heart of compassion, "should quickly dispatch a famous doctor from the Imperial Hospital to Xuanping to give medicine and stone decoction to relieve the suffering of the people."

It is true that there is no cure for illness.

The Son of Heaven's face was hidden in the shadows, and he hummed for a while, but he didn't praise but didn't object.

Prime Minister Wang looked at the reliability, and immediately nodded thoughtfully, but not too much. As long as the emperor made any changes, he could immediately change the banner.

"The county magistrate of Xuanping is not completely out of his wits," the emperor seemingly casually mentioned, "when he left the city, he closed the Xuanping gate..."

Before the words are finished, the meaning has been conveyed. The key is that someone in the audience understands the meaning.

(End of this chapter)