Chapter 67: Paper Flick to Escape
February 17th
Hearing Xiaoping's shameless dirty talk, Wen Yanbo suddenly slammed the table in anger, stepped forward and grabbed Xiaoping by the collar: "You, you, you are such an uneducated witch. How dare you say such shameless and obscene words..." However, she was a Privy Councilor after all, so she did not use force in the end, but let go and sat aside.
"You don't have to provoke us with these shameless crazy words. How could I let you stay alone in a room? Cunzhong, you go up and watch her. Don't take your eyes off her for a moment. If she has any problems, come down and tell me. Wen Shuxiang and I will sit here and wait."
Lao Bao gave Shen Kuo a strange order.
"this?"
"Just do it. I know you are a disciple of Confucius and will not be seduced by her seduction and do something dirty. Just sit by her side with a candle and see through her tricks. Don't let her commit suicide or destroy any evidence. If her cronies don't come to rescue her tomorrow morning, send her to the Military Headquarters and let her suffer. I don't believe she can escape. Prime Minister Wen and I are fighting for our dignity as the first-rank officials of the court and are waiting here for you, a little witch, to make trouble."
"yes!"
Xiao Ping smiled and picked up the zither, and lazily went upstairs. The heavy handcuffs and shackles really made her walk unsteadily. Shen Kuo followed closely behind and tried to help her, but she broke free. When the two of them reached the corner of the stairs, they heard the sound of the night watch outside. It was already midnight.
Downstairs, Bao Zheng and Wen Yanbo sat opposite each other in silence. Although it seemed that they had finally caught a live person, the two did not dare to take it lightly.
This morning, when he went to court, Lao Bao saw that the emperor had become so haggard, and he could not help but feel sad. He only hated that he could not share the emperor's worries. In the afternoon, he returned to the military department and sat alone in the hall, blaming himself. Now, apart from waiting for Shen Kuo to make some progress, he had no other choice. However, Wen Yanbo appeared.
This was the third time that Wen Yanbo had visited the Military Headquarters since the establishment of the undercover investigation team. However, Wen Yanbo did not bring any profound insights, but only a pot of wine. After the two of them drank a few glasses each, Wen Yanbo also joined Lao Bao in sighing and lamenting.
Just as the two old men were about to burst into tears, the express riders sent by Xu Chong arrived just in time and brought the best news in more than a month - they had found an important person and knew where he was hiding in Bianliang City, in a house rented by a former imperial physician on the bank of Cai River outside Zhuque Gate. At this moment, Xu Chong and Shen Kuo had already led people to block this person.
Bao Zheng knew that Shen Kuo was a cautious person and would not send anyone to report him unless he was 70% sure. He immediately called up as many troops as he could rushed here, fearing that Xu Chong and Shen Kuo would escape again because of the lack of manpower.
Now, the demon has become a prisoner, and they only need to wait and see how the Maitreya Sect hiding outside can make some noise under heavy siege, or wait to see that the Maitreya Sect is powerless, thus proving that the opponent is not that strong and is heading towards haste and failure. Tomorrow, when I go to the palace to see the emperor, I will finally have some words to comfort the emperor.
Old Bao admired Wen Yanbo's good luck from the bottom of his heart. He had always been a little careless and lacked enthusiasm for the case, and lacked the vigor and decisiveness when he wiped out the Maitreya Sect in Beizhou. But today, he arrived in time and ran into this good show. Yang Wei De was not so lucky.
After a while, Lao Bao wanted to discuss with Wen Yanbo the order of questions to be asked during the interrogation tomorrow, but he saw that Wen Yanbo had begun to doze off and gradually began to snore. The corners of the prime minister's mouth were drooling.
Upstairs, Xiaoping was sitting at the table, and Shen Kuo was pacing back and forth.
Xiao Ping put the piano on the table without saying anything, just staring out the window. The room was in a mess, with all kinds of clothes thrown on the bed. It was unclear whether it was messed up by Xu Chong's search just now, or Xiao Ping was planning to pack up and run away.
Shen Kuo walked to the closet and saw all kinds of clothes hanging inside, including a few men's coarse cloth cloaks and a few pairs of hemp shoes, which looked quite old. He took the soap-colored cloak and found that it even had a faint scent of camellia, which was Xiao Ping's scent. The fact that it had her scent meant that the clothes were either worn by her or by someone very close to her, so it obviously couldn't be Jin'er, right? Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel a prick in his heart.
"Why are there still men's clothes here?" he asked without thinking. This was not a question that should be asked. It was not related to the case and there was no need to delve into it. The answer was self-evident and asking would only add to his troubles.
"Sir, are you really ignorant of women's minds? Or do you think I'm a chaste and virtuous woman? Or a rich girl who never leaves the house? I'm a prostitute in a brothel, and you've known that for a long time. Although my yard is hidden in the downtown area and I dare not show off, I just don't want to disturb ordinary patrons. But I also have lovers who admire me. Sometimes when they come, they leave some clothes for them to change and leave them with me. I wash them for them so that they can change into clean clothes when they come next time." Xiao Ping said calmly.
"But they are some coarse old clothes?"
"Sir, please stop being so ignorant and snobbish," Xiao Ping seemed a little unhappy. "To be in my eyes, it doesn't have to be rich. I have some money, which is enough to support my family. I am used to seeing those who are good at nothing but talented and dissolute. I am tired of them. Even if he is a commoner, as long as he is sincere to me and strong enough to serve me, he is a good match."
"Why do you say that?" Shen Kuo asked.
"I have always been like this. From the first day you met me, I was a prostitute." Xiao Ping looked at Shen Kuo in confusion.
Shen Kuo was speechless. Indeed, Xiao Ping had never concealed her past. Right now, there were indeed more important things to worry about, not the time to be jealous. He hesitated for a moment, but decided to change the subject.
"Do you know that you are committing a capital crime? Why are you working for Maitreya?"
"Hehehe... I have a question for you first. If you don't hide it from me, I will answer you later." She giggled again.
"Just ask."
"I'm asking you, why did you guess it was me? Remember, if you don't answer this question honestly, I won't answer you either."
"It wasn't me who guessed it, it was another expert who guessed it." Shen Kuo said casually. He wanted to be honest, but he didn't want to reveal the monk's name.
"Master? Is it the Yu Hou with the surname Xu? I think he looks thin on the outside but rough on the inside, so he doesn't look like one."
"Not him."
"Is it Yang Shaoqing, the Astronomical Observatory who lives across the street from the Prince Consort? I remember you said that it was he who wrote the letter asking you to come to the capital?"
"Of course it's not Yang Shaoqing. You don't need to know this."
"It's not him either?" Xiao Ping pondered for a moment, seeming to be very troubled by this question. "Logically, you don't have any old friends or relatives in the capital. You've only been here for a few days, how can you meet any expert?"
"Don't guess randomly. I won't tell you the master's name."
"Oh, oh, I remember now..."
"What do you remember?" Shen Kuo asked vigilantly.
"Is it that monk?"
Shen Kuo's face immediately showed astonishment. He was indeed not very good at lying. Even though he said nothing, Xiao Ping knew that he had guessed correctly.
Shen Kuo had a good memory and recalled that day when he and Xiaoping sat side by side on a donkey to go to the capital. When they passed the Bian River and saw the iron oxen, he expressed his feelings about what he saw and heard when he went to the capital as a child. He mentioned that he admired a great monk who had enlightened his life at that time, but he did not mention the name Huai Bing because Xiaoping was not interested in monks at that time and changed the subject.
"It must be that monk. Unfortunately, I found it boring at the time and didn't ask further. Who is he?" Xiao Ping asked with a frown, as if asking herself.
"Even if you guessed it, it won't save your life, right?" Shen Kuo said anxiously. He found that Xiao Ping didn't care about her death at all, but was guessing what the monk was.
"Let me ask you, why do you work for the Maitreya sect?"
"I'm telling you, it's just a question for another. You refuse to tell me who the monk is, so why should I answer you?" Xiao Ping said lazily.
The two sat there for a while without saying anything. Shen Kuo sighed and Xiao Ping pouted as if she was angry at Shen Kuo, totally disregarding life and death. When the night watchman came to an end at midnight, Xiao Ping suddenly became energetic again and stroked the zither on the table with both hands.
She suddenly said in a tender voice, "Sir, my hands and feet are tied and I can't walk. I need your help with something. Can you do it?"
"What can I do for you? Even if I agree, I can't help you escape, and I can't hurt morals and dignity."
"Look at what shameless words you said. Are you afraid that I will turn into a vixen and seduce you? Even if I have such thoughts , I will feel very uncomfortable with two old men sitting downstairs. I can't do that. I just want you to help me go to the window, open the dressing box, and take out some things for me."
"What kind of thing?"
"It must not be something used to commit suicide and destroy evidence. Even if there was, it was just searched and taken away by Xu Jieji." She said with moving eyes, looking at a small box in front of the window.
Shen Kuo hesitated for a moment, assessed the risk, and thought it was not a big problem, so he walked over and carefully opened the box. Sure enough, there were several paper figures lying inside. He took one and looked at it in his hand, and after a closer look, there was nothing unusual.
"What are these paper figures? What do you want them for?"
"It's too boring here. I'll show you a magic trick to help you relieve your boredom." Xiaoping said mischievously.
"What kind of trick?"
"It's the immortal magic I just told you: clone, move, and disappear in a snap of a finger."
“Haha, I don’t believe this.”
"Isn't that just perfect? Let's see who is faster, my hands or your eyes?"
"Okay, then I'll see how fast your hand can reach?" Shen Kuo replied. He realized that Xiao Ping was trying to provoke him, but he really didn't believe that Xiao Ping could play any tricks in her current state.
Shen Kuo took out the seven paper figures from the box, carefully checked each one before handing them over to Xiao Ping. Xiao Ping took the two-inch square figures in her hands, tore their feet, and then inserted them into the six strings of the zither, but only at the very edge of the strings. Shen Kuo knew that the outer strings were not played, and wondered what Xiao Ping was doing.
After finishing everything, Xiao Ping took a deep breath, touched the strings with both hands, waited for a moment, and a quiet and solemn piece of "Cloud and Water Zen Realm" flowed from her fingertips.
Bao Zheng was also stroking his beard downstairs when he heard the piano music. He was intoxicated by it for a moment. He didn't expect that this coquettish woman could play such a pure and simple Buddhist music. This music was soothing, profound, indifferent and peaceful. He gradually felt a little sleepy. Wen Yanbo, who was sitting next to him, had fallen asleep a long time ago and was snoring softly at this moment.
Upstairs, Shen Kuo had been staring at her hands and the paper figures on the strings on her left hand. He saw that the paper figures were dancing to the music, but they were just following the vibrations of the strings. It was nothing more than that. There was no such thing as a dance, or a flash of fingers disappearing. He gradually became intoxicated, his eyes blurred, and his mind became scattered. He didn't know how long it had been before Xiao Ping pressed the strings with both hands, and the song ended.
"How?" Xiao Ping asked.
"Sister, you can play the Buddha music even with shackles on, so your skills must be excellent. But you just played a piece late at night, so I can't tell what tricks are hidden in it?"
"I played the first piece, using the sound of the piano to convey my spiritual consciousness, and then attached the seven souls to the paper. Each paper figure was attached with a wisp of my soul, and then the paper figures danced and revived. How is it? It's much more mysterious than the water and fire double judgment, right?"
"You are just playing tricks. I haven't seen the paper figures run away with their spiritual consciousness. There were seven paper figures just now and there are still seven now. Didn't you say: clone and move, and disappear with a flick of a finger?"
"Haha, don't rush me. Since it's a magic technique, it will naturally take some time. I 'll play another tune, and the seven souls will move to the left, where a clone will be born to play with me."
"I don't believe it." Shen Kuo smiled bitterly. The more Xiao Ping acted like this, the more painful it was for him. He didn't know why such a wise elder sister would be so indifferent to life and death and talk nonsense.
"Don't believe it? Wait. Don't blink."
Xiao Ping rubbed her wrists that were rubbed by the shackles, and then began to play the second piece. This time it was a piece of "Eighteen Beats of the Hujia" that was as peaceful as still water. Shen Kuo sat there staring at Xiao Ping playing, but his heart was like a knife, thinking that she would most likely be executed before autumn, and die in her prime. However, there was no fear in Xiao Ping's playing, and even some pleasure flowed from her fingertips. She looked up from time to time and looked at Shen Kuo with affection. That expression didn't seem to be fake at all. What was she thinking?
The melodious song ended again. Nothing happened. Shen Kuo felt a pang of nausea and couldn't hold back his tears.
"Why are you sad, sir?"
"I just don't want you to die..."
"Sir, I know you have a kind heart. Listen to me, Jin'er doesn't know about these things, but this girl is completely innocent."
"I just want you to be alive, no matter what Jin'er is."
"After I leave, she will turn herself in. Don't torture her. She will explain everything clearly. She is just a maid I bought. The contract is in place. Go and tell that sullen-faced official. Just follow the Great Song Criminal Code and sell her off as a slave. Don't hurt his life."
Xiaoping also shed tears, as if she was saying her final farewell.
The two sat facing each other for a while, and the paper figure next to Xiao Ping began to jump. It was unclear whether it was moved by the wind outside the window, or if it really had a soul. Shen Kuo was surprised for a moment, not knowing why it was like this.
"Sir, look, this paper man is alive. My soul has left my body and created a new form nearby. It's about to leave." Xiao Ping said.
Shen Kuo suddenly realized that when Xiao Ping said she wanted to leave just now, she was not making arrangements for her affairs after her death, but she was going to perform a magic spell to escape.
"How to split yourself?"
"Don't say it. It won't work if you say it." She wiped away her tears and started laughing again.
