Chapter 88: Xiao Ping's Only Flaw
June 4th, Shen time
Shen Kuo was somewhat confident when he came out of the tunnel in the dark. Now he had to hurry to Kaifeng Prefecture Prison. He was confident that he had guessed the key point of Xiao Ping's matter. Now he went to find someone around Xiao Ping to verify it, although he didn't think this person would tell the truth.
He rode his donkey and trotted along the way. When he passed Tianshui Lane, he saw a sea of people in front of the entrance of Jicui Painting Pavilion in the distance. The hat monster had not appeared in the past few months, and the peace in Kaifeng City had finally returned to its former state. However, Shopkeeper Pei's business talent always made his shop stand out.
"What the hell is going on? Are you hiring a female sumo wrestler to show off in front of the store like last month?"
When he got closer and looked inside, he saw a man painting with ink behind the desk in the middle of the shop. Many idle people were watching and applauding. Shen Kuo looked closely and saw that the painter was the emperor's son-in-law, General Yunhui Li Wei. Among the group of people fawning and applauding, the most enthusiastic one was the shopkeeper Pei.
I think the wound on the buttocks of Shopkeeper Pei has healed completely, and now he is with the prince consort. Back then, the prince consort said he wanted to take down his signboard, but I don't know why the two of them can still conduct business cooperation so happily? Shen Kuo looked carefully and found that the blunt pen in the prince consort's hand was clearly the magic pen bestowed by the emperor. He remembered that the pen was painted with red lacquer.
"Everyone, look here. The pen in the prince consort's hand is the magic pen used by Zhang Sengyou back then." Shopkeeper Pei shouted loudly.
"Oh, so this is the magic pen? No wonder he writes so well, this tiger jumping over the ravine is simply amazing. However, I also heard that there is actually a story behind this piece of Zhang Sengyou's pen?" said a writer who was obviously invited to show his support.
"This brother is indeed a learned man who can ask such a question. Speaking of Zhang Sengyou's writing, its origin is amazing..."
Shopkeeper Pei was still keeping things a secret, and the consort Li Wei, who had already started painting, stood there with his hands behind his back and his belly sticking out, looking very proud. The shop assistant had already hung up the tiger painting he had just finished, waiting to raise the price.
"Since Shopkeeper Pei said it's magical, how magical is it? If you don't tell us, won't we neighbors be anxious?"
"Yes, yes." The people around him started to make a noise, adding to the atmosphere for Old Pei. Shen Kuo also found it interesting, and for a moment he forgot that he had to hurry on his way because of an urgent matter.
"Speaking of which, this brush of Sengyao left a magical story of adding finishing touches to a dragon's eyes. With just one stroke of the brush, the dragon on the paper came alive and flew into the sky. Therefore, the imperial son-in-law only used it to paint tigers, and did not dare to paint dragons."
"Oh!!" everyone exclaimed together.
At this time, a breeze blew occasionally, and the flags outside the store fluttered slightly.
"Look," Shopkeeper Pei pointed to the flag outside, "If you just draw a tiger, it will create wind. If you draw a dragon, won't it break out of the painting?"
"It is indeed a magical object, it is indeed a magical object..." Everyone cheered.
Hearing the cheers, those who were squeezed in the back of the crowd and could not see the painting also rushed in to see how the tiger was painted and what the brush looked like. In a short while, the door was blocked.
Even though Shen Kuo was riding on a donkey and had a high altitude, he couldn't see the scene inside. He couldn't help but sigh. If the people of Bianjing believed in these nonsense, there would be no need to worry about Maitreya or other religions that preached supernatural powers and supernatural powers. However, he also knew that the public loved to believe in these things. Then he remembered that he had urgent matters to attend to, so he didn't go in to say hello to the two of them, but rode the donkey directly to Kaifeng Prefecture.
Arriving at the prison gate, Shen Kuo saw Xu Chong's horse still tied to the post at the gate, so he hurried in. The head of the women's prison did not recognize him and refused to let him in. He was so anxious that he shouted outside, which really startled Xu Chong inside. But he saw Xu Chong coming out, looking haggard and with tears on his face, but he walked more steadily and seemed to be walking normally.
Xu Chong said a few words to the female jailer, who bought his advice and left. Xu Chong then led Shen Kuo in and saw that he had already been impregnated with money.
The two chatted all the way into the dark prison cell. It turned out that Xu Chong had come here every day to comfort Jin'er in the past two days, and he comforted Jin'er that he had a way to buy her freedom. At first, Jin'er was a little confused, because she didn't seem to know Xu Chong very well. They just had a joke together at the spy base in Lao Ya Lane, and then they were frightened by the resurrection of the puppet together. Xu Chong was an official and she was a prisoner, so he should have some condescending authority, but he didn't. Instead, Xu Chong seemed to sigh for a long time, and Jin'er seemed a little indifferent.
When Shen Kuo arrived, Jin'er was sitting in the solitary cell gnawing on a chicken leg. She ate in a leisurely manner, much like Xiaoping on the night before her trial. It must have been at that time that Xiaoping got the key to the wooden cage, so she was not panicked.
Now Jin'er looked calm and composed. After all, she was only sold by the government, and it wasn't the first time. But this time, an officer who had nothing to do with her cried and shouted to buy her back, which moved her inexplicably and strangely.
Xu Chong stepped forward and saluted Jin'er, and Jin'er put down the chicken leg in return. The chicken leg was probably brought by Xu Chong.
"Sister, I have something I want to ask you. Is it appropriate to ask?" he asked directly.
"Young Master, do you want to ask about Miss Xiaoping?" Jin'er actually guessed Shen Kuo's intention.
"Exactly."
"What if I ask, what if I don't? Since Xu Jieji has lost his fortune and has been spared dozens of blows from me, I should ask. But everything I know about Xiaoping is written down in the confession, so why don't you go to the clerk in Kaifeng Prefecture to take a look?"
"You don't need to read those. I just want to ask something else."
"What kind of something else?" Jin'er asked cautiously.
"On the boat to Tokyo, Xiao Ping once chanted a short two-tone song, "Linjiangxian". I still remember one of the lines: I remember the first time I met Xiao Ping, she was wearing a double-layered silk dress scented with the incense of a heart. The light playing of the pipa told of my longing for her. The bright moon is still there, shining on her cloud-like figure as she returned. Do you know who wrote this for her?"
" You probably know that I was sold from the palace to the brothel, and I only went to the manor in Songzhou at the end of last year. She told me about Xiaoping's widowhood in that house, and I guess she didn't tell the truth. She never told me why her name was on the poem, and I don't know who wrote the poem for her. She just said it was written by an old friend. But she must have 20 or 30 lovers, old acquaintances, confidants, and old friends, right?"
Jin Er only said that Xiao Ping was not telling the truth, which was considered to be a flawless statement. So Shen Kuo asked again:
"Then, who are the people in the family you took refuge with in Guliugang, Zhongmu County?"
"I only heard from Xiaoping that he was a wealthy man in the capital and had been an official. He had two spare rooms in the villa, so he asked Xiaoping to go there to buy goods and sing songs. Xiaoping didn't say anything else. We only stayed in the villa for two days and didn't leave. We asked about the owner's family details in detail."
Jin'er's answer was still flawless.
"Let me ask you again, that day in Songzhou, when I saw you getting off the boat with your zither in your arms, what were you doing?"
"Xiao Ping told me to send it to a pawnshop in Songzhou and sell it for a price. She said I had to buy some jewelry when I returned, lest I come back without any valuables or hairpins and be laughed at by my acquaintances."
"Then why did the zither end up at Xiao Ping's place?"
"Since you asked me that, I find it strange." Jin'er also showed some doubt on her face. "I wonder who she went to Songzhou to redeem the zither?"
"Okay, I have one last question. Why did you come back to turn yourself in?"
"It's because I didn't know anything about it. That day, Xiaoping asked me to go out and inform her aunt's family that they had left Beijing and were waiting for her in an inn outside the city. When I returned, I saw that the whole street was surrounded by soldiers. I thought Xiaoping was arrested, so I didn't dare to go back. So I went back to her aunt's house and left with them. However, Xiaoping came to the inn the next day and said that she had committed some crimes. She also gave me some money and asked me to turn myself in, saying that I had not been with her for a long time and didn't know the details of the case, so I didn't want to be chased by them. I was originally a lowly person and not a good person. I was just sold by the government, so it was better than hiding everywhere. So after separating from Xiaoping's family, I thought about it for a few days in the village inn, and then went back to turn myself in."
"Okay, thank you for telling me this, big sister. If you want to sell you, I have some money to lend to Brother Xu. He is also deeply in love with you, I think you have seen it too."
"However……"
"You don't want to?"
"I am such a person, how dare I refuse to be saved by Xu Jie? But... but there is already another rich man who wants to buy me."
"What kind of rich man is that? I'll break his legs." Xu Chong slammed the table and stood up.
"It is none other than Pei, the owner of the Jicui Literature Society, a wealthy man in Tokyo."
"It's him?" Xu Chong sat down on the ground, "Why is it him?"
"It's just because I often go to him to collect debts for Sister Xiao Ping, which makes him tempted. He said that I am fierce and clever, and he wants to buy me as a concubine so that I can manage his accounts."
Xu Chong's face turned pale, obviously he knew that there was a huge gap in financial resources between them.
"Xu Jieji, don't worry about this matter. Just wait for the official reward to arrive in two days. I think it won't be a big deal."
"That's the only thing I can think of." Xu Chong's expression did not recover.
"I just saw Shopkeeper Pei on the street. He was showing off his magic brush with his husband. I don't think his mind is on this lady."
"You also know about the magic pen?" Jin'er in the cage suddenly became excited. This didn't seem to be something that concerned her.
"Big sister also knows about this pen?"
"I knew it when I was with the Queen. The Queen had always heard about the magic and wanted to borrow it to read, but the stuttering prince consort was as timid as a needle hole and refused to lend it. This made the Queen angry several times."
"Hey, when I saw that the prince consort was so scared, I just hid the pen with me as a talisman." Xu Chong said.
Jin'er retreated back to the wall and continued gnawing on the chicken leg, seeming to be thinking about something and stopped talking.
"Brother Xu, I have something else to ask," Shen Kuo said. "I need to go out of town and borrow your good horse. My donkey is outside. You can take it to the military camp and I will be back in two days."
"You're going to be gone for two days? In two days, on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month, we will go to the palace to receive the reward. If we are late, it will be a big deal."
"I will be back in two days. Just trust me."
"Okay, I'll take you to get the horse now."
The two walked out together. Jin'er suddenly stepped forward and grabbed the cage bars with both hands: "Xu Jieji, you must save me. I don't want to be a mistress with that old shopkeeper."
When I looked again, she was already in tears, looking so pitiful.
"Don't worry, sister. If I don't save you, I wouldn't be worthy of being called a man." Xu Chong said this heroically, then turned around and two lines of tears fell.
The two men went outside together. Xu Chong gave his horse to Shen Kuo and wanted to ask what happened, but Shen Kuo didn't say anything. He just got on the horse and suddenly turned around and said, "Brother Xu, if something big is going to happen in the city, it will probably happen in the next few days. Be careful."
"Is there something else? Is it related to the shining star in the sky?"
"Prince Bao has calculated that given the urgency of Maitreya's actions, if there are still leaders who can gather strength, the plan will be complete within a few days. I'm leaving first, and I'll root them out when I come back."
Shen Kuo turned his horse's head and rode away. Xu Chong turned around and stared at the old donkey.
"Come on, I'll take you back to the barracks to eat black beans."
The donkey brayed twice as a sign of agreement.
Shen Kuo rushed eastward along the canal. This time he left Beijing urgently to solve the mystery in his heart, that is, who is Xiao Ping and who is behind her?
What Jin'er said just now seemed to be true and false. For example, she was unwilling to mention who the owner of Gu Liugang's villa was. It can be seen that she is still protecting Xiao Ping. Obviously, to solve the above mystery, she can only rely on herself... and a small flaw left by Xiao Ping.
He checked into the inn that night without saying anything.
June 5th, Chenshi
Shen Kuo continued to ride his horse at full speed and went straight to Yue Lao Temple when he arrived at Songzhou City.
At noon, they arrived at the gate of Yue Lao Temple. The good horse was exhausted, so they quickly tied it to a tree and climbed up. That day, he saw Xiao Ping coming here from a distance, and then being kidnapped by Jiu Gong and his gang. Many mysteries started from here, and to solve the mystery of Xiao Ping's identity, they naturally had to start from here. He came to the front yard and could already see the towering osmanthus tree behind him.
The temple keeper was worried that there would not be many incense offerings today, so he hurried over to greet Shen Kuo when he heard footsteps entering the temple. Seeing Shen Kuo's appearance as a scholar, he composed a verse in his mind and went forward to sing:
"Young Master, I believe you have come here because of its reputation. This temple is very effective. If you have any love or wish, you can ask Yue Lao to help you find your love."
"How do we ask Yue Lao to help us?" Shen Kuo asked.
"Sir, please follow me?"
He followed the temple keeper to the backyard, only to see that it was densely packed with red strings. Ever since the Tang Dynasty story of the matchmaker pulling the red string, this temple has received many unrequited loves. Now the osmanthus tree is already full of red strings representing a wishful thinking.
"Sir, just write the name of your sweetheart on it," the temple keeper brought a red rope with a piece of red paper on each end, "then write your name on the other end and tie it to the osmanthus tree, and it's done. Of course, if you can donate a few carts of incense oil or a few dozen coins for incense, Yue Lao in the sky will see it and will be happy, and the prayer will be more effective."
“I don’t wear red strings.”
"Sir, you don't wear a red string? What is that for?"
Shen Kuo grabbed a handful of money from his bosom and stuffed it into the temple keeper's pocket: "I want to see the names written on both ends of the red string."
