Cheng Lian'an got off the boat and asked the steward to sew An Siti's head and body together briefly. He also asked Xiao Shengzi to find a blanket and wrap it up, and tie strings around his head and feet. He asked two soldiers to carry it to the mass grave in Nanshulin. The night was dark and deep. Cheng Lianan walked forward with a torch in his hand. He looked left and right. He could feel the smell of rot coming faintly. The wind whined in the woods. It seemed like something was moving fast and strangely. Going deeper. Seven or eight feet away. The rotten smell is getting stronger and stronger. A large pile of corpses is faintly visible in front. The moonlight shines through the gaps between the trees, illuminating the palms that are separated and stretched out among the corpses. They look like mushrooms growing out of feces.

His heart beat faster and faster. Suddenly his feet slipped and he threw himself on the ground. The torch rolled to the ground and went out. At the same time, he felt a buzzing around him. Countless beans shot up from the ground and hit him in the face.

He shouted out loud: "There is... there is a ghost."

Xiao Shengzi waved the torch around, dragging the light and driving away the "bean grains". The buzzing stopped. He hurriedly helped Cheng Lian'an up and said: "Grandpa, don't be afraid. It's a fly. After all, it's warm in the south. This thing is still good. Not dead yet."

Cheng Lian'an reacted and felt relieved. He slapped him on the head and cursed: "I won't let you scream again." Xiao Shengzi hurriedly said: "Yes, father-in-law." After Cheng Lian'an slapped him, he looked at Xiao Shengzi. Shengzi's face was red and dripping with blood. He was surprised. He thought: "How can I get such strength?" Suddenly he realized something. He turned over his palm and looked at it. He saw that the blood and mud on it were bright red and half of it was still stuck on. A crushed maggot immediately made my throat sore. I almost vomited it. While wiping it on Xiao Shengzi, I looked at it with the torch in his hand. I saw the ground was wet and greasy. It would have taken me to drag the dead body into the woods. Passing this road, the ground has already been soaked with blood.

He grabbed the fire. He suppressed his nausea and took a photo forward. There were heavy lights and shadows. He always felt that something was moving in the direction of the pile of corpses. He asked vaguely: "Hey, look. Is there anyone over there?"

Xiao Shengzi stretched his neck to look. Just now, it seemed that there was indeed half a corpse crawling. It was disheveled and looked like a female ghost. Now the torch was shining on it and it stopped moving again. He didn't dare to say that there was, and he didn't dare to say that there wasn't. He hesitated. He shrank back. The two soldiers raised their hands with sore hands and said nonchalantly: "Some poor people know that there are dead bodies here. Sometimes they come to pick up things at night. They shout twice and they scare them away."

Cheng Lian felt reassured and said: "Don't carry it forward. Just... bury it here." He instructed Xiao Shengzi to stay and watch them dig the hole. He exited and went to the riverside to wash his hands. When he squatted forward, he I felt a bright sway in the water. Suddenly I couldn't hold it any longer and spit it out with a loud sound.

After a long time, things calmed down. He moved to a nest in the upstream direction. While washing his hands, he wished in a low voice: "You have troubled me enough. Now I can rest in peace. Everything in this world is determined by fate. I can't help it at all." Man, if you weren't like that, you wouldn't be provoked by this, and you wouldn't die like this. It can be seen that sin comes from the heart, and evil is done by oneself. If you have to blame it, blame your surname An for having such an unlucky name. Think carefully, think carefully. Isn't it the other way around? It's a substitute death. It can be seen that this is God's arrangement. It has nothing to do with me..."

He muttered for a long time. He closed his eyes and clapped his hands together and clapped twice. He stood up and ran back and forth to the camp. When he saw Fang Yinhe and Fang Zhennuo grilling meat around a campfire, he walked over. Fang Yin He didn't know the deeper things. He thought that Boss Cao had killed An Siti for him. Cheng Lianan probably wanted to find fault with himself, so he was very careful in his replies. Cheng Lianan saw that Fang Zhennuo had an extra waist badge on his belt, so he knew it was him. Cao Xiangfei gave it to him. He was just temporarily walking in the factory. He was almost the same as before.

Cheng Lian'an was a "veteran" at the moment. He spoke in an old tone and said something like, "When my teacher returns to Beijing in the future, I can apply for a title based on my merits." He chatted with Fang Zhennuo for a few words. He always felt like he was surrounded by others. There was still the smell of blood. He smelled his palms. No. He looked around and saw a headless corpse dumped not far away. Two officers were guarding the side. He frowned and asked: "Where did the corpse come from? Why? Don't deal with it." The clerk said: "This is the prisoner brought back by Master Zeng..." Fang Yinhe said: "Trash. Can there be any trial for dead people? Everything needs to be ordered. Drag it away and throw it away." The clerk nodded. yes.

Cheng Lianan understood that on the one hand, he was from Kanghuai and had no dealings with Zeng Shiquan. On the other hand, he was trying to please himself because of An Siti's affairs. He smiled and said, "Master Zeng's subordinates are not very clever. As long as they are a bit clever, You are so energetic that you won’t jump into the pit anymore.”

Fang Yinhe had always been angry with Zeng Shiquan. He didn't give any warning before he was trapped. Partly to ensure the execution of the plan, and partly because he wanted to see his jokes. The four bosses in the factory and everyone brought out by Boss Cao were afraid of him. The people brought out by Lu Liang all admired him, the people brought out by Kang Huai respected him, and the people brought out by Zeng Shiquan all hated him. Listening to what Cheng Lianan said, it was obvious that he was also dissatisfied with Zeng Shiquan. This is not surprising at all. Therefore. Hey, hey, have fun.

The two officers dragged the body toward the woods by their feet. Zhang Shisanniang was fat and it was slow and laborious to drag. Cheng Lianan glanced at her body and saw that the flesh on her body was white and tender, and she had two huge breasts. It was hanging upside down. There were some pieces of meat hanging on the neck, like a smashed watermelon. As it was dragged, juice and blood flowed naturally, dragging a black and wet blood line on the ground. I couldn't help but feel sick again. I asked: " This was killed by Master Zeng."

Fang Yinhe shook his head: "It's a big stall. Master Zeng was born in a dim sum restaurant. He has little money. He is not as fragile as Boss Cao."

Fang Zhennuo said: "I've heard that Master Cao of Dongchang is very fast and powerful. When we met, he seemed friendly. Who would have thought that when he started to attack, it was really thunderous. If he hadn't taken action at that time, I'm afraid. Something has happened to Mr. Hou."

Cheng Lian'an asked with great interest: "I heard people in the factory talking about our boss Cao coming from some kind of 'Killer School' in the past. Is that true?" Fang Yinhe said: "It's all said so. But .It seems that no one has heard him personally confirm it.”

Cheng Lian'an said: "My time in the factory is not short. It is easy to get in touch with everyone. Only Lu Liang and Boss Cao can hardly exchange a word with each other."

Fang Yinhe smiled: "Master Lu is actually easy to talk to. It's not difficult to make friends with people if they have quirks." Cheng Lian'an smiled: "Oh, you know him. Tell me quickly." Fang Yinhe said with a smile: "He has some quirks." His hobby is to collect all kinds of saddles. If you go to his house, you will know. There are saddles from various dynasties and generations, gold and silver. There are all kinds of saddles. Everyone who carries them calls him Ju'an Gong. Previously, Hou Hou When I left Beijing, the governor gave me a Sanhe Lihualiu as a gift. I got the saddle from him. It is said that it was the imperial gift of the Yuan Tatar Emperor."

Cheng Lianan said: "Ah, is that his? I saw it. It is indeed a good thing. It is made of pure silver and has Mongolian characters chiseled on it. But the governor who understands Mongolian can't read it. But your Fourth Master recognized it. He talked about eight, four, eight, and sequence five. He was confused when he heard it. He also said what the chiseled word was...the horse was going to chase the clouds...it would take a little longer. .I don’t remember clearly.”

Fang Yinhe said: "Yes. The fourth master also mentioned it when he chatted with us. He said that the words engraved on it are Mongolian proverbs. When translated, it probably means 'a good man aims in all directions'. He returned this saddle in private It was named "Chasing the Clouds and the Sun". It said that this saddle should be paired with a yellow blanket and draped on a maroon horse. When the sunset was low and the sky was clear and the clouds were light, it was put on the prairie and ridden. At that time, there was a flower in the sky. There is a flower on the ground. When the horse gallops, the golden light flashes red and green. It is like the shadow of the sun in the water. It must be very beautiful."

People who often go out to do errands will cheer up when talking about horses. Cheng Lianan was not interested. He murmured: "This thing is a saddle. It can carry the master on top, press down the horse, and be tortured in the middle. Master Lu likes this thing. .It's hard to say that he doesn't have deep meaning... Hey, Mr. Fang, why are you laughing?" Fang Zhennuo said: "Oh, it's nothing." Cheng Lian'an said: "We are all our own people. What can't we let go of? If you have anything to say, just say it." Fang Zhennuo smiled. He seemed to think it would be a bad idea to offend him. He explained: "I was thinking that only by loving a house can you reach a bird. Most of the time, Mr. Lu's love is not Anlan. "Cheng Lian'an straightened up slightly and understood. He also laughed.

Fang Yinhe also figured out the meaning. I'm afraid that if he goes too far with his words, it will be bad for everyone. He said, "Haha. As for Boss Cao, there is really nothing to say. The most famous ones are probably the few. His catchphrase..." His smile suddenly faded. He stood up and said respectfully: "Third Master."

Cheng Lian'an turned around and looked. Zeng Shiquan was not far behind him with a smile. He pressed his hands to Fang Yinhe from a distance and said: "Sit, sit. You're welcome." He was so cordial that he seemed to have no grudges. He also wanted to sit down with him. He came down and reached out and grabbed a few skewers of barbecue: "Damn, I haven't eaten in the afternoon. I'm really hungry... How is Xiaofang? Are you still used to it?" Fang Zhennuo smiled and nodded. He shook his cheeks from side to side and took a bite. Chewing a few pieces of meat in his mouth, he asked again: "Where is the boss?" Fang Yinhe said: "After he said hello to Mr. Fang, he went to inspect elsewhere."

Zeng Shiquan handed a bunch of meat to Fang Zhennuo across the fire: "Don't look at the boss's indifference. He is like us too. There are too many people coming in and out of the factory. He has long since stopped taking it seriously."

Fang Zhennuo took it over with a smile: "Yes. We were talking about him just now." Zeng Shiquan asked what they were talking about. After listening, he was happy: "He came from the killer academy. He is the grandson of the old master of the assassin academy. He is also the eldest son. Where's the eldest grandson?" Fang Yinhe: "Hey, this is the first time I've heard of this. However, the old master of the killer school, isn't he the 'number one killer'? This person has always had no name and is very mysterious. So it turns out his surname is Cao."

There was a tinkling tinkling sound from the direction of the trestle. The sound of pipa played faintly. It was carried by the wind. Zeng Shiquan looked back and threw a clean bamboo stick into the fire. He held his knees and took a look at the faces of the three of them. Circle said: "Our Dongchang knows almost everything about the world. But there are four major mysteries. Until now, we have not found out. The first mystery is the fourth Wulin Xiongfeng Conference. Who stole the martial arts treasure 'Shou Yi Jie Yin Hua'? The second one is the surname of the 'Number One Killer'. Although Boss Cao is the eldest son and grandson of the Number One Killer, he doesn't know what his grandfather's surname is because he only has Only those who inherit the title of 'Number One Killer' and become the headmaster of the Killer Academy have the right to know this surname. Cao Xiangfei's first name and surname were chosen by him when he came out of the academy and wandered around the world. "

Cheng Lian'an said: "I chatted with the people in charge of the archives. I heard them tell a lot of anecdotes about the world. It is said that this 'Assassin School' specializes in assassinations. The money it makes is as rich as the enemy. Boss Cao is the eldest grandson. He will probably inherit the title of leader. I'm in the position. Why did I come here to make a living in the world? Then I entered the East Factory."

Zeng Shiquan smiled and said: "To talk about this, the story would be long." It is said that the Killer Academy was established before the Tang Dynasty. It is as famous as the "Yuxia Academy" in Kunlun and the "Yangzhi School" in Tianshan. It had a considerable reputation in the old martial arts world. It has a history of hundreds of years. But what is different from Yuxiayuan and Yangzhi School is that when they train talents, they simply teach martial arts and focus on assassination techniques. They do not instill martial ethics and accept students. Most of them are orphans who were picked up or the orphans of those who were assassinated. Things in the school are quite mysterious. The address often changes and is unknown to outsiders. But there is a rule that many people have heard of. That is: every day After a certain number of years, the hall will select the three best killers to compete. The winner can be promoted to the chief hall leader and inherit the title of 'No. 1 Killer'.

In the last competition, Cao Xiangfei's father and two other killers reached the decisive round. At that time, the other two were slightly inferior to Cao's father in terms of martial arts strength, but their lightness kung fu was slightly better. But in the last round, the old hall master decided The topic is: three people start running at the same time a hundred steps away. The one whose hand touches the big tree next to him first wins. Cao Xiangfei's father knew that he had no advantage in Qinggong, so he made up his mind and prepared to attack the two of them at the starting point. This way There is still a chance to win.

Unexpectedly, on the day of the competition, an order was given. The two killers attacked him at the same time. Taking advantage of his chance to block and dodge, the two quickly withdrew their hands and ran towards the finish line. He chased after him, but only two steps away. He couldn't catch up. Seeing that the two killers were not far from the finish line, he had no hope. He suddenly got wise and took out a dagger from his arms. Everyone saw him taking out the knife and thought he was going to throw it out as a hidden weapon. But that could only hit him. The next one would lose in the end. Unexpectedly, he cut off his own palm with a "click" and threw it away.

The palm left a line of blood in the air, passed the two killers and hit the tree trunk first, leaving a shocking palm print. So he unexpectedly won the victory. However, Cao Xiangfei believed that it was wrong for the two men to attack his father. It made no sense for his father to win by such a trick. For this reason, he stepped forward and started a debate in the school. He believed that none of the three people had the right to succeed the leader. The result of the debate disappointed him: the school almost unanimously believed that: The killer's actions were supposed to be unexpected. Although the actions of the three people all had problems, they were completely within the scope prescribed by the old hall master. Therefore, the result was "fair and effective." Even the two defeated competitors expressed that Agreeing. Seeing his father take the position of the chief hall leader, Cao Xiangfei felt deeply ashamed. He walked away in anger and left the school.

After hearing this, Fang Zhennuo murmured: "... I never imagined that there are such cruel people in the world." This refers to Cao Xiangfei's father. Fang Yinhe and Zeng Shiquan both smiled after hearing this, with very serious expressions on their faces. Disapproval.

Cheng Lianan is very sensitive. Especially Fang Yinhe and Zeng Shiquan have smiles on their faces, but deliberately do not look here. It shows that they are thinking about it together. Indeed, compared to him, it is not like adults cutting off their hands at all. Weird. He smiled and said, "Then why did Boss Cao enter the East Factory?"

Zeng Shiquan smiled and said: "Hey, let's talk about it. But Duan Jiahua. There were more than twenty stalls in our factory back then. It was much more lively than now. At that time, everyone was divided into two groups. One was dragons and the other was ghosts. They fought with each other. It's amazing. The leader of the Ghost Sect is called Chen Xing. This kid used a trick to kill the leader of the Dragon Sect. It was found that the Dragon Sect not only did not fall, but actually held on steadily. It turned out that the real leader was not the one who died, but was hidden in Behind the scenes, the young man known as "Xiao Guo" planned to do some evil to bring him down. However, he was framed and plotted openly and secretly. He planned many times and couldn't do it. He had no choice but to come up with an idea: Find a killer to kill."

Cheng Lian'an said: "Then it must be on the head of our boss Cao."

Zeng Shiquan said: "No. At that time, our boss Cao had been living in the world for some years. He made a living as a killer. His reputation was quite famous. He had never failed. After accepting Chen Xing's commission, he lurked in the East Factory at night and entered the governor's office. Of course, it was not the Duke's house at that time. No one knows how he moved his hands. According to the officer who was watching the night outside at the time, the only thing he saw in the Governor's house was the flicker of a candle, and the window paper was bulging. Everyone rushed in and saw Boss Cao kneeling on the ground with a knife thrown next to him. The governor was sitting at the table. His small body was as relaxed as if he had just finished tasting a 60-year-old Pu'er. At that time, he waved his hand. The people left and everyone stayed outside. They only heard people asking: "Why did you commit suicide?" Boss Cao said: "Assassins can't kill others, so they kill themselves." The governor said: "As a man, you should be persistent in your work. You can give up." It's too early. You can leave and come back another day.' There was silence in the room. Then the window opened with a bang and a figure flew out. It seemed like a black kite was being released."

Cheng Lianan said curiously: "It's so easy to let him go."

"This is a wonderful story. Don't interrupt." Zeng Shiquan shook the meat skewers with his hands, rested his elbows on his knees, and put his head forward. He continued: "...In the next three months, Boss Cao came twice more. None of them succeeded. The governor said to him: 'Sneaking into Dongchang is already difficult. You are very tired like this. Please stay with me from now on. It will be easier to assassinate.'"

Cheng Lian'an burst out laughing. Zeng Shiquan: "...That's it. Boss Cao stayed with the Governor. During the day, the Governor ate, and he also ate with him. The Governor worked, and he watched the office. At night, he slept in the Governor's room. He slept in an outhouse... This scared Chen Xing so much. He thought that the killer had been bribed by the governor. He walked in the factory every day with four more bodyguards by his side. I didn't know this until later. .. In the next half year, Boss Cao assassinated the Governor more than twenty times. In short, he never succeeded. Later, another assassination attempt failed. When the Governor restrained him, he sighed and said: "You are not as good as me in martial arts. But while I am sleeping, If you are familiar with it, you will attack when you go to the toilet. There is always a chance. But you refused to die. As a killer, you are too aboveboard. Such people should not be killers anymore. They should contribute to the country.'"

Not only Cheng Lian'an laughed at this time, but Fang Zhennuo and Fang Yinhe also smiled. I didn't expect "Xiao Guo" to be so funny sometimes.

Zeng Shiquan suppressed a smile and said: "At that time, Boss Cao knelt on one knee and said: 'I have been a killer since I was a child. Many of the people who died in my hands were far better than me in martial arts. Now there are more than a hundred people on my chest, back, arms and legs. The scars are the traces they left on me... But they are still dead. You are different from them. You are my master. You and I.' He actually turned around and went out to find Chen Xing and took the deposit. He returned it to him face to face, and also gave him a few hundred taels of "time-lapse fees". This incident made Chen Xing make a big mistake. As a result, some people in the factory changed their original views, and gave new ideas to the Du Gong's strength. Assessment. This also directly affected the subsequent struggle between the two factions."

The sound of the pipa beside the trestle was like a river flowing, refreshing straight into the heart. Several people were silent in front of the fire. The image of Guo Shuronghua leisurely moving his fingers seemed to be emerging at the bottom of the flames. Fang Yinhe said: "I used to think I was very fierce. Wait until I see it. Boss Cao knows that he is a tiger, and I am at most a wolf. But when I meet the Governor, it is different. It feels really hard to say... like a little phosphorus fire in the bones walking in the cave of Yinshan Mountain, shining out a picture along the way. It was cool and elated. Suddenly the cave was exhausted. As soon as I came to the bright land, the sun shone before my eyes and everything grew. I was gone all of a sudden. I didn’t even have time to appreciate the frustration. I just scattered in the wind and was completely defeated."

Zeng Shiquan smiled and said: "You are right to have this idea. I have said this early in the morning: No matter what kind of brain you put in front of the Du Gong, it is not called brain. No matter what kind of martial arts you put in front of the Du Gong, it is not called brain. It’s not called martial arts. There’s no point in playing tricks and playing tricks in front of our governor.” After saying that, he stood up and glanced at Fang Zhennuo and Cheng Lianan’s faces, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally. Pat your butt, stretch your waist, and walk away.

This look was like a finger licking someone's wine. There was a certain kind of endearment, teasing and ridicule. It made the stories he told before have another layer of meaning. Cheng Lianan felt that he was getting hot from his cheeks to his ears.
Chapter completed!