When the book-traveling little detective meets the two-faced prince

At first, I heard He Yu talking about his parents on the boat, and then he mentioned the two filial piety, as well as Cui Yan's panic fear that he would encounter an accident, and the injuries on the soldiers.

Lin Lezhi had already become suspicious and wary.

But at that time he didn't know which one it was between Cheng Su and Hong Mingxu. However, as the truth was revealed step by step, and judging from all of Cheng Su's performance on the island, he should not be the one who had the intention to kill.

In this case, the only person who meets all the conditions is Hong Mingxu.

But he never expected that Hong Mingxu not only wanted the soldiers who came here to never return, but was also the culprit behind the disappearance of Huaifeng Village eleven years ago.

Perhaps because he no longer had to act, Hong Mingxu seemed much more relaxed. He put down the knife, smiled calmly, and said in a nonchalant manner, "So, you stayed here to be a hero, just to save them."

"So what?"

Lin Lezhi said with a determined look.

"Nothing. I don't deny that you are quite capable. You can deduce the cause and effect of things just by these irrelevant details. But judging by your current appearance..." He looked Jiang Lian'an up and down, with an unconcealable smile in his eyes, and shook his head: "You can't stop me, you can't even protect yourself."

"..."

Lin Lezhi felt that there was nothing to say to such a person.

Even a thief who worked as a servant to support his mother would show mercy and let Jiang Ge go, fulfilling his filial piety.

Jiang Ge also sympathized with the difficulties of the chaotic times and knew that they had to become bandits in order to survive.

Can……

Hong Mingxu doesn't know.

He killed so many people just to save himself.

However, when Hong Mingxu turned his gaze to Cui Yan, the satisfaction in his eyes was replaced by resentment and anger.

"What about you? Why did you leave your peaceful life behind and come here to die? You acted like a coward before, but now you look like you want to kill me."

He suddenly raised his knife, the sharp blade piercing the air and pointing directly at Cui Yan. He glared at him, his eyes filled with resentment, gnashing his teeth and angrily saying, "Tell me, were you the one who spread rumors about me in front of the general? Who are you?"

Cheng Su was speechless now, so Hong Mingxu could only ask Cui Yan for an answer.

Cui Yan's eyes showed no fear at all. He even took a firm step towards Hong Mingxu, his eyes filled with hatred and sadness as he asked, "Do you still remember Diecui Ridge eleven years ago?"

Hearing this, Hong Mingxu's eyes were filled with a great deal of fear. He tightened his eyes, and the extra thought in his eyes was no longer there. He asked again in a deep voice: "Who are you?"

"I'm nobody, just an orphan."

As he said this, a wave of hatred appeared in Cui Yan's eyes, and his voice seemed to be mixed with wails.

"Thirteen years ago, the general, under the Emperor's orders, attacked the Yunqiang Kingdom and won a resounding victory. The Emperor was overjoyed and issued a general amnesty, allowing many death row prisoners to be given new lives and return to normal life."

When he heard about thirteen years ago, Lin Lezhi's eyes couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, and then his expression became very focused and solemn.

"But who would want to stay with a group of death row prisoners who have killed people? No matter where they go, the tattoos on their faces will be seen by everyone, so they are shunned like the plague. Their families think they are a disgrace to the family and are unwilling to let them return home. They also know that their crimes are heinous and they are ashamed of themselves. They have no choice but to go to Diecui Ridge. They plan to stay in the mountains for the rest of their lives, never leave, and make a living by hunting.

Diecui Ridge originally belonged to the Yunqiang Kingdom. Because Cheng Su led his troops to a great victory, the soldiers of the Yunqiang Kingdom retreated and Diecui Ridge became the property of Northern Qi.

There are many mountains and the land is green all year round, hence the name Diecui Ridge.

Because the mountains there are dangerous, full of poisonous snakes and ferocious beasts, and the river at the foot of the mountain is turbulent, one can lose his life if he is not careful. Unless someone is taking the risk to collect herbs, almost no one dares to go there.

After these serious criminals went there, the people of Northern Qi were even more afraid to go there.

It was on the way to Diecui Ridge that they picked up Cui Yan, who was sick and had been thrown out of his home.

At that time, Cui Yan was only two years old.

He only vaguely remembered that his parents took him out, said they would buy him some candy, asked him to wait there, and then left without looking back.

At first they felt that they were not worthy of touching such a clean little life, but after noticing that Cui Yan's cheeks were red and his face was weak, they touched Cui Yan's forehead and found out that the child had a high fever.

I know this child was abandoned.

They couldn't bear it, so they used some folk remedies to help Cui Yan reduce his fever on the way. After a whole night of trying, it finally worked a little, but not long after, the high fever came back.

They had no other options and no money, so even if they went to a clinic, the clinic would be so scared that it would close its doors after seeing the tattoos on their faces.

Finally, a doctor was willing to treat me.

But after taking Cui Yan's pulse, he just shook his head and asked them to prepare for Cui Yan's funeral.

They also felt that the little guy's life was over and were planning to give up, but they couldn't let the little guy die alone outside, so they planned to take Cui Yan to Diecui Ridge.

Although Diecui Ridge is dangerous and rarely visited, the scenery is very beautiful. It is a great place to sleep.

They were death row prisoners and had killed some people, but when Cui Yan was curious about the words engraved on their faces, they did not hide anything and told Cui Yan the truth.

Because you are wrong, you have to admit your guilt.

Although they did not hide the fact that they had killed people, they refused to tell Cui Yan their names. They felt that they were sinners and their names were as unclean as they were. They wanted to start over, so they gave them up.

Cui Yan really wanted to call them that, so he asked Cui Yan to call them according to their age, such as uncle and second uncle.

They were afraid that Cui Yan would be sad, so they didn't tell him that it was not his parents who didn't want him, but that his parents died in the war.

Cui Yan didn't tell them that he actually remembered it.

They refused to tell their own names, but gave Cui Yan the name.

Cui is taken from the Cui in Diecui Ridge, and Yan refers to the rocks on the mountain. At the same time, we also hope that Cui Yan can be like the green trees and rocks on the mountain, never get sick again, and live tenaciously.

This year.

Cui Yan was three years old.

"Didn't the doctor say I couldn't survive?"

Whenever they talk about this, they are amazed, as if they will never get tired of saying it no matter how many times they say it.

"You're so lucky, little guy! We all thought you were dead, but when we came to this mountain, we met a strange man who looked like a banished immortal. He wasn't afraid of the steepness of the mountain or the wild beasts there. He even brought a handsome boy of eight or nine with him, who wasn't afraid of the tattoos on our faces."

This made them feel great gratitude and comfort towards this extraordinary person.

"After asking, he found out we couldn't read or identify herbs, so he used the paper and ink he had with him to draw a picture of the herb for us and told us to go find it in the mountains. But whether we can overcome the dangers and find it depends on our sincerity. If you are sincere, you can survive according to his method."

"So where did they go later?"

"I don't know. We wanted to thank him and treat them to some game, but after he wrote the prescription, he took the child and left."

When they said this, there was regret in their eyes.

in fact.

Not only do they like to talk about this, but Cui Yan also likes to listen to it. This makes Cui Yan feel that he survived not because of his good luck, but thanks to the people he met.

Thanks to this extraordinary man, they were able to dig herbs and catch wild game in the mountains, and then walk the long mountain roads to sell them in the nearest town.

at first.

The clinic was a little hesitant, but since these medicines were difficult to obtain and the price they asked for was indeed not high, they accepted them.

They used the money they earned to buy Cui Yan some fun and delicious things.

Another year passed in the blink of an eye, and Cui Yan was four years old.

I thought.

The days will continue like this.

until.

One day, the youngest uncle Qi came back excitedly with good news. Although they did not hide it from Cui Yan, they did not tell him what they were going to do.

Just say.

When they come back, they will let Cui Yan live a normal life. They will live openly together at the foot of the mountain and no longer have to hide with them in this mountain.

Can……

Once they left, they never came back.

There were traps set by them in the mountains, so even if Cui Yan didn't go out of the mountains, he could still catch game to eat and wouldn't go hungry.

Cui Yan waited on the mountain day after day, year after year, and three years passed, but he still didn't see them return.

finally.

He went from anticipation to disillusionment, and could only think of one possibility.

They must have been like his parents, thinking he was troublesome and abandoning him.

So he began a hunger strike, trying to starve himself to death.

But human instinct is always to survive. When he was extremely hungry, he still killed and ate the wild game.

Another year passed.

When Cui Yan was eight years old, he left Diecuiling.

Because he was still a child, in good health, and looked very lovable, an elderly couple with no children adopted him.

Five years passed in a flash. Cui Yan was thirteen years old now. He was very hardworking and the villagers liked him very much.

one day.

When the couple was talking at night, they talked about how a few years ago, when someone in the village was returning home at night, he found more than 20 people with words carved on their faces on the road. They looked fierce and did not seem to be good people. They must have gone to do something bad.

When Cui Yan heard that there were words engraved on his face, he was about to fall asleep, but suddenly woke up.

"Where did they go?"

Cui Yan's sudden voice startled the old couple.

He hurriedly said that these were all old things and asked Cui Yan to go to sleep quickly, but Cui Yan couldn't sleep.

He wanted to know what happened to them back then. Didn’t they promise with their own mouths that they would spend the rest of their lives atone for their sins and never hurt anyone again?

Cui Yan did not sleep all night, and from that day on, he had been looking for their whereabouts.

He wanted to find them.

Ask for an answer.

Isn’t it about forgiving sins and leading a normal life?

Hard work pays off. More than a year later, when he went to the town to buy New Year's goods, he finally heard some clues from a soldier who had returned home to rest and was half drunk.

Those death row prisoners died ten years ago, and their bodies were destroyed.

He wanted to find an opportunity to find out clearly, and bought the soldier's favorite wine the next day, but the people around him said that the soldier received an urgent report that night and left.

It is said that the camp where the soldiers were stationed was near Diecui Ridge, and the one leading the troops was General Dingyuan, who was said to be Cheng Su, who had made great military achievements twelve years ago and was named General Dingyuan by the emperor.

Not a few days passed.

The war broke out at the beginning of the new year, and the nearby villages were all affected by the war. Although it did not affect their villages, everyone was in danger.

Everyone hopes that the war will end soon.

During the war, the soldier who came back for rest brought back the bad news of his death.

The war lasted for more than a year before it finally subsided.

Because there were too many wounded soldiers, it was inconvenient to migrate long distances in order to better recuperate. Also, because they had conquered the Yunqiang Kingdom, they found a suitable place to recuperate within the territory of the Yunqiang Kingdom.

It is said that.

General Cheng Su was on the verge of death and it took several days for him to wake up.

His inner desire for answers made him say goodbye to his adoptive parents. Although his adoptive parents were reluctant to let him go, they also felt that Cui Yan had ambitions, so they did not stop him from joining the army.

It was only when he arrived at the military camp that he learned from the old soldiers that they were a gang of rebels who had grudges against the imperial court. The general was ambushed and all the brothers he took with him died. The general almost lost his life there.

It was during the fight that the general pulled off the mask of one of them and learned that they might all be death row prisoners.

Fortunately, the team that Hong Mingxu was in was patrolling nearby at the time. They rescued the general and killed all the rebels, leaving no one alive. Their bodies were also executed and were almost unrecognizable.

The general wanted to investigate, but he had no idea where to start.

Because of his contribution in saving Cheng Su, Hong Mingxu was promoted step by step to the rank of captain and became Cheng Su's capable deputy general.

Because the emperor issued an amnesty thirteen years ago, many prisoners were released. Because of their special identities, no one would recognize the faces of death row prisoners, so how could they know who they were? The case was eventually left unresolved.

The one who told Cui Yan all this was Meng Dafeng.

He Yu and several older brothers asked Meng Dafeng not to tell these stories, saying they were like ghost stories and they didn't want to scare the children so that they couldn't sleep at night.

There was a huge buzzing in Cui Yan's head, and he felt dizzy.

He blamed them for abandoning him, and was even angry that they did not keep their promises and did evil again.

Can……

Listening to what Meng Dafeng said, he always felt a great sense of disconnection.

They were so happy when they left, and they promised me that they would take me down the mountain and live a normal life when they came back. How could they do such a thing as treason?

Everyone cherishes their life, let alone a capital crime.

impossible……

He didn't want to believe it.

Seeing Cui Yan like this, the soldiers in the same tent really thought that Cui Yan was scared, so they stopped joking. Meng Dafeng also felt that he shouldn't have said this to Cui Yan, and his eyes were full of self-blame.

From then on, the soldiers in the same tent all agreed not to mention this matter again.

Can……

Cui Yan's doubts grew day by day, and he really wanted to know the truth of that year.

Although Hong Mingxu had a bad temper, he was also very cautious. Except for the general, he looked fierce to everyone and would not let anyone approach his tent easily.

At last.

He really couldn't stand it anymore, so when Hong Mingxu was out doing something, he sneaked into Cheng Su's tent. Cheng Su's injuries had not yet healed.

He knew that it was wrong for him to trespass into the general's tent, but the general let him go because he had just entered the camp and it was his first offense.

but……

Even if he was going to die, he wanted to know the truth of that year, so he confessed what happened to Cheng Su. After listening, Cheng Su said that before Hong Mingxu killed everyone, he shouted, "Leave someone alive."

Cheng Su originally thought that they were sent by the enemy country to kill him, but after removing their masks, he found that the tattoos on their faces were clearly the style of the Northern Qi Dynasty.

Although he was illiterate, he would recognize the shapes and characters of his own country.

That night.

Only he and Hong Mingxu survived.

According to Cui Yan, Cheng Su discovered that on the day when the group of death row prisoners left Diecui Ridge, Hong Mingxu did go out once due to matters assigned by the army, because Hong Mingxu was one of the few literate soldiers in the army.

He did suspect Hong Mingxu and investigated, but found nothing.

What's more, the situation was critical at the time and the enemy might have other tricks up his sleeve. It was possible that he killed someone in a moment of impatience.

Without substantial evidence, there is no room for doubt.

But Cui Yan still refused to give up.

One day, while preparing hot water for Hong Mingxu to take a bath, he deliberately did not leave. After Hong Mingxu took off his clothes and came out, he found that he was still furious and had someone beat him with a stick a hundred times.

But it’s not without gain.

He discovered that Hong Mingxu had intentionally covered his right arm, and because he had seen it countless times when he was a child, he immediately recognized it as a tattoo.

Fortunately, Cheng Su appeared in time to stop him, so he only got hit by a few sticks.

He told Cheng Su about his discovery of tattooing.

But Cheng Su said that he had known about it for a long time. Cheng Su believed that if one made a mistake, as long as he sincerely repented, he should be given the opportunity to repent.

Hong Mingxu has been by his side for ten years. Although he is a little impatient, he handles military affairs very well. Before there is any evidence, he is willing to believe in Hong Mingxu's character.

I originally thought that Cheng Su would not change his mind easily, and I really shouldn't doubt others just because of a tattoo.

But what Cui Yan didn't expect was.

More than half a month before coming here, the general suddenly changed his mind when he was returning to the camp with his men outside. He decided to go to Pinghai Town to investigate the case and find an opportunity to get to the bottom of the matter.

He wanted to find Hong Mingxu in person to ask for an answer.