Chapter 53: Manor
February 14th
The three people in the distance stood face to face for a while, and it seemed that they had nothing to say. Shen Kuo thought that they were about to disperse and there was no extra information to collect. However, the man under the tree couldn't help but throw out a new topic.
"That Yu Lao Si lost his mother's stone tablet, and Saint Aunt did not pursue the matter, but now he is taking advantage of Saint Aunt's absence and is being very proud of himself. Even if Saint Aunt is not here, according to the old rules, Saint Yong'er should take over all internal and external affairs. How can it be his turn as a carpenter who cultivates ghosts and immortals to make decisions? In terms of status in the sect, he is just one of the four hexagram masters under Saint Aunt's seat."
"You also know that is the old rule? Now that the great event is about to be accomplished, the whole world knows that the emperor has lost the mandate of heaven. At this juncture, you think of the saint Hu Yong'er. Have you ever seen Hu Yong'er? It's just that the saint has mentioned her a few times before."
"How could I not know? Jiu Gong saw it last month."
"Then why don't you ask Jiu Gong to find her?"
"Didn't I just say that on the day when I asked for the Five Thunders Curse, Jiu Gong's whereabouts were unknown."
"Hahaha, you want to find someone whose whereabouts are unknown to testify against Hu Yong'er?"
The verbal dispute started again, and then it became a little intense. Shen Kuo also noticed a piece of information. The original leader of the Maitreya Sect was the Saint Aunt, who was now missing, and the temporary successor was Yu Jing Yu Silang. And this dispute seemed to be caused by the complaints of the members of the sect against Yu Lao Si.
"Stop arguing, both of you. Let's get down to business first." The old man on the side acted as a peacemaker and admonished both parties.
The man on the tree came down swiftly, folded the demon banner angrily and hid it beside him.
"I will go and report now. I will report your contribution in helping me find this item. Please remember the disrespectful words to Master Yu and Master Zhuge."
The man left a veiled warning and walked away. The two people behind him did not say anything but just followed him.
Behind them, Shen Kuo and Xu Chong followed far behind. Shen Kuo stepped on a few branches along the way, startling a few birds, which made Xu Chong sweat. Fortunately, they were not discovered by the people in front. These three people were obviously members of the Maitreya Sect, but they were not very vigilant, perhaps because they were angry and not very alert.
It was still unknown why these three had found this place first, but when they argued, they always leaked some information, which was what Shen Kuo was most interested in. This information strengthened his previous conjecture.
Judging from the words of these three people, there is indeed a problem within the Maitreya Sect, just as he judged. The root of everything is that the acting leader, Saint Aunt, has disappeared. Now the leader seems to be vacant, and Yu Jing has taken the position of acting leader. Such a rash action is obviously unreasonable, just as he knows that Saint Aunt will not blame him when she comes back, or that Saint Aunt will not come back at all, and the time when Saint Aunt disappeared happened to be the night when the puppet fell from the sky. This is a very interesting thing.
The three of them went outside, where a horse was parked. The man with the demon flag got on the horse and rode towards the northeast without saying a word.
Shen Kuo scratched his head. He wanted to follow these people to the lair, but he didn't expect them to go their separate ways. He didn't know where the remaining two would go. Which one should he follow? Xu Chong patted Shen Kuo on the shoulder and whispered, "I'll go after this person."
Xu Chong is a better rider and has better eyesight, so he is indeed the best choice for chasing people on horseback.
"Okay, you chase that guy, and I'll follow these two."
"Brother Shen, you'd better not follow us. If you are discovered, it will be dangerous, and you can't fight back with fists and feet. It's better for you to go back by yourself." Xu Chong said.
"I have my own way. If I can't follow you, I won't force it."
"Don't take risks. It's better to abandon the city early." Xu Chong reminded again. Seeing the man on horseback going away, he became anxious.
"I know, Brother Xu. There is one more thing you must remember. The five bodies in the backyard of the Qi family's outer house are particularly important, especially the female body. You must preserve it and do not damage it or bury it. Remember this."
Xu Chong looked a little confused, but Shen Kuo held his wrist tightly. He knew that this matter was of great importance, and there was no time to ask in detail at this time, so he nodded quickly. He went to find a horse and chased the man. Although the man had disappeared long ago, there was only one road to the north. He remembered that the man was wearing black clothes and riding a horse with five-colored horses. He could probably catch up with him if he rode faster.
Shen Kuo stayed behind to follow the two men, but the two men were not in a hurry and just sat in the woods waiting, as if waiting for it to get darker.
Shen Kuo used his homemade eavesdropping device to eavesdrop from a distance.
"Brother Lingguan, we received an order from Saint Aunt to find the library, but now Saint Aunt has disappeared strangely, and we don't know who to report to."
"The Saint Lady comes and goes without a trace. In the past, when she opened an altar to invite gods and demons, there were also cases where the gods traveled to the sky and did not return for several days. Don't worry."
"However, Yu Lao Si was assigning errands and establishing new rules, as if the Saint Lady would not come back. His impatience was a little strange. A brother said that before the Saint Lady invited the gods and demons, she saw Yu Lao Si and Master Zhuge writing and drawing on paper. When they saw people coming, they hid the paper, as if they were plotting something."
"I've already told you not to spread these groundless rumors that will only throw you off balance. This time, great things are about to happen. As long as the brothers work together, we will be able to overthrow the court, kill the tyrant, and start a new era."
"Well, that's the only way. I just can't stand seeing that Yu Lao Si acting so arrogantly."
"You also know that when my sect was poor and exhausted, he took out gold, silver and the manor to help us get back on our feet. This contribution must be remembered no matter what."
The two stopped talking and didn't leave. They just sat there and took out some dry food from their pockets to eat. Shen Kuo's stomach was rumbling, and he felt inside his clothes, but there was only a kitten curled up there, sleeping soundly. He couldn't help but think, "How nice it would be if I had a chicken leg?"
Three quarters past ten.
A bright moon quietly emerged from the clouds and hung high in the sky. This was not a dark and windy night that was conducive to stealth.
The two Maitreya followers suddenly stood up and headed towards the mountains in the south. Shen Kuo, who was almost dozing off, hurried to follow them. The moonlight was bright and he could see the two sneaky figures from afar. He didn't need to follow too closely and kept a distance of half a mile.
After walking a few miles, you can see a cluster of light in the dark mountains.
The mountain over there is not high, but there are clearly people there, and it looks like a mountain villa.
Normally, people in the countryside would have blown out their lights and gone to bed by now, but there were lights flickering in the mountains over there, which was really strange. It seemed that these two guys were heading there tonight.
Shen Kuo followed him with one foot deep and one foot shallow. He was not good at following. If it was pitch dark, he would have lost him long ago. Fortunately, the moonlight was good tonight, and there was a little wind, so the sound of the wind covered up the occasional noise he made. The two people in front, one old and one young, did not seem to be experienced thieves. They only paid attention to the front and did not pay attention to the back.
From time to time, the sound of the wind brought some sounds of music, singing and dancing from the mountains ahead. It was clearly a night banquet.
When they reached the edge of the mountain pass, the two thieves hid in the ditch and apparently saw something. Suddenly, an eagle screamed in the sky, and Shen Kuo quickly squatted in the grass.
After waiting for a while, there were more barking and neighing sounds. Looking towards the source of the noise, a group of more than ten people on horseback and a group of small dogs were galloping over. Looking under the moonlight, the leader was a young man wearing a silver fox fur coat, with a falcon perched on his shoulder, looking very majestic.
The young man flashed by, followed by a dozen men who looked like servants with bows and arrows. The saddles of the six or seven horses they were riding were empty, but were loaded with prey such as foxes, wolves, deer roe and rabbits. It was obvious that they were sons of officials who had returned from a hunting trip.
After the group of people went in, after a while, the two thieves got up and sneaked into the mountain.
There was only a narrow strip of sky before entering the mountain. There was a road between the cliffs on both sides, but it became wider and wider. In the distance, lights and a manor appeared. They walked through some small courtyards and arrived in front of the largest courtyard. This courtyard was built on the mountain and looked quite large. There were sounds of singing and dancing coming from inside the courtyard wall. Looking at the scattered houses and eaves inside, it was obviously a grand mountain villa.
The two thieves walked along the shadow of the courtyard wall, clearly trying to find a way in. They stopped under a willow tree, looked around, and then disappeared in a flash.
Shen Kuo rubbed his eyes and made sure that they were indeed gone. Then he followed them carefully and found that there was a drainage ditch under the courtyard wall. The ditch was originally blocked by a bamboo raft, but the raft had been moved to the side. The two thieves probably entered from here.
He suddenly felt a little flustered, and hesitated whether to follow him in. Although he was also working for the court, after all, the owner of the manor had not invited him, and entering without permission was considered a thief.
As he stood by the wall, thinking about how the master should teach him and how to act in an emergency, he could vaguely hear the sound of singing and laughter coming from inside. There were more than just wealthy families inside, most of them were nobles and wealthy families. Although he couldn't see the face of the young man who just entered, he could feel the nobleness on his body in the dark night. He was definitely not an ordinary young master of a wealthy family. If he was really a person who could cover the sky with one hand , what would he do if he caught him and beat him to death without any explanation?
Just as I was daydreaming, I heard a dog barking. In the distance, a group of farmhands came with torches, hoes and rakes, and dogs on patrol. I saw the dog smelled something and was looking for it, coming towards me.
There was no way out, so Shen Kuo had to go into the ditch, which was still over a foot deep. His clothes were soaked after he got in, and he didn't care about his appearance, so he used his hands and feet to climb into the courtyard wall. He could only choose the lesser of two evils. If he was blocked outside by those strong men, he would be knocked down by a hoe before he could even explain himself.
He leaned against the wall and took a few breaths. He heard the barking of dogs getting closer. Someone else spoke again: "I seemed to see a figure just now, but it disappeared in a flash?"
"You are seeing things, aren't you? How can there be a human figure at night? If there is one, it must be a ghost."
"My old master said that there have been changes in the capital recently, and we must be on guard at the farm. My old master also said that if there is a thief, knock him unconscious and send him to the farm. It's okay if you kill him, but don't let him get away."
"I think the water surface below is uneven. Maybe the ghost went in from here? How about we go in and check it out?"
"You are such a dishonest bastard, you are trying to deceive me again. Who would be willing to go down here in this cold February? Why don't you go down by yourself?"
"Hehehe, I'm afraid of the cold too. Why not let the dog in? If there are thieves, the dog's barking will alert those inside and we won't be in any trouble."
"That's a good plan."
Shen Kuo heard that it was not good, so he hurried inside. After walking a distance, he found that the ditch was a drainage ditch for the small lake in the yard. There were rockery and trees on both sides, which was clearly a garden. How could this manor in the deep mountains be built so uniquely?
He also didn't see where the two thieves who came in from the front had gone, so he could only move forward in the dark. This garden was deep and secluded, and he had to walk a long way along the lake before he saw the pavilion in front. There was no dog chasing him from behind, probably because the dog thought the water was too cold and refused to come in. So he stopped and thought about a solution.
Looking up, he saw the lights in the large house in front of him were on, and there was dancing and music coming out. He thought to himself: Since I can't find the two bad guys anymore, and I can't get out through the dog hole the same way, I'm afraid they're still there. It's better to use the light over there to quickly find a tree by the high wall and try to climb out, then escape from this villa and sleep in a random inn for the night.
He slowly approached the side of the house, but could not find a big tree. The house was bright, so he could not see anyone walking outside. He squatted down and slowly crawled under the window frame. He heard a commotion inside, and there was a lewd sound coming out. A window above his head was not closed tightly, so he secretly stretched his neck to look inside.
But there was indeed singing and dancing going on in the house.
Several singing girls were dancing in front of the hall, with musicians playing music nearby. The rest were richly dressed guests, sitting behind the wine tables on both sides.
A white-bearded elder, probably the grandfather of the family, was standing in front, beating the drum with both hands, and he coordinated with the musicians very well. Other guests also followed the beats, some played the sandalwood clappers, and some clapped their hands to cheer, creating a joyful and peaceful atmosphere.
When the song ended, the old man threw away his drumstick, sat back in his armchair and took a breath, still feeling unsatisfied.
The music changed from intense to gentle, the sound of the musician playing the pipa flowed like a clear spring from the mountains, and a tall maid began to dance.
Shen Kuo secretly watched the dancer and saw that she danced gracefully, but he didn't know how she compared to Xiao Ping. He only heard that Xiao Ping was a very good dancer, but he had never seen her.
The white-haired master became interested, clapping his hands and singing: Gently pluck, twist, rub, and pick, first the colorful dress and then the six-yao...
A burst of rapid noise outside interrupted the old man's interest, and Shen Kuo quickly shrank his neck and hid in the shadow of the corridor.
Sure enough, a group of people came out from behind the rockery and hurried over. The leader pushed the door and went in.
"Father, something terrible has happened. A thief just broke into the library and was discovered by my son, but he was not caught."
"Don't shout or scream." The old man said calmly, and after a while he asked again: "Did a thief break into the library?"
The old man pretended to be calm, but the people present were a little bit shocked. After a while, all the musicians, singers and dancers were kicked out, and several people walked past Shen Kuo who was hiding in the shadows with their musical instruments. Fortunately, everyone was in a hurry and didn't notice that there was still someone squatting here.
He hid in the darkness and did not dare to move, holding the badge tightly in his hand, ready to take it out immediately if caught. He did not know whether the rich man in the villa would recognize the things in the palace.
