Song QingShu trod on the water the entire way. By the time he reached River Tomb City, the sky was already dark. Even with his profound cultivation, running such a long distance was still unbearably tiring.
"The planes from my previous life are still the best." Song Qingshu couldn't help but miss the days when he could leisurely fly across half the country in two hours.
He observed from a small hill outside the city. Most of the Jin's tents were stationed outside the city. He secretly heaved a sigh of relief. Although the Jin soldiers were definitely stationed in the city, most of them were outside the city to minimize the impact on the people.
After resting for a while and recovering his energy, Song Qingshu entered the city. This wasn't his first time coming to Jiangling City. He couldn't help but sigh at the nostalgia.
The last time he came here was when he had just transmigrated to this world, and it was when he was at his lowest. With Icy Snow's help, he met Ding Dian here and learned the "Divine Reflection Scripture". It was also the first time he saw the beautiful Huang Rong.
"I wonder if Rong 'er has heard news about Guo Jing. I hope it won't affect her pregnancy." Thinking of her round belly, a gentle smile flashed across Song Qingshu's face.
However, he quickly collected his thoughts. Jiangling was currently in a state of war. It was fine during the day, but there would be a curfew at night. If he delayed any longer, he wouldn't be able to find anyone to ask for directions.
Although he knew Qi Fang's current address, he wasn't very familiar with Jiangling City. He might not be able to find the specific street.
After knocking on a few doors, he finally got the location of Qi Fang's residence under the lure of silver. He hid under the cover of the night from the patrolling Jin soldiers and finally found Qi Fang's residence.
"I wonder how she's been all this time." An image of a young married woman in tears appeared in his mind. Song Qingshu sighed inwardly. Qi Fang really had a hard life. Her childhood sweetheart was separated by a conspiracy, and she was unknowingly married to the 'murderer of her father'. The only senior brother who loved and cared for her in the world also died a violent death …
"I hope my appearance can change her fate. At the very least, she can live a happier life for the rest of her life." Song Qingshu suddenly stopped and frowned as he looked at the courtyard house not far away.
Although this courtyard was not big, it was very unique and had all the necessary facilities. After all, Qi Fang was the young mistress of the Wan Clan and the former granddaughter-in-law of the Prime Minister's family. In addition, Song Qingshu had sent his subordinates to escort her back and had also brought a lot of interrogations, so it was not surprising that she lived in such a courtyard.
The reason why Song Qingshu frowned was because his inner breath detected the presence of more than one man in the courtyard. Of course, he did not let his imagination run wild. He knew Qi Fang's character. She was a very loyal and traditional woman. Of course, what happened between them was an accident. She would never invite a man into the house in the middle of the night. Besides, there were more than one or two men in the house!
"Did something happen to her?" Song Qingshu thought of something and quickly snuck in. There were hidden guards at the entrance of the courtyard. He was worried that he would alert the enemy and bring danger to Qi Fang, so he did not force his way in. Instead, he silently slid to the roof of the house in the middle and decided to observe the situation first.
"Tell me, where is the City-Linking Incantation?" At this moment, a somewhat familiar voice suddenly came from below.
"City-Linking Incantation?" Song Qingshu was stunned. "So they are here for the City-Linking Incantation. Why does this person's voice sound so familiar?"
He was puzzled. He untied the tile and saw a middle-aged man with bags as big as an old man standing there. It was Ling Tuisi, the magistrate of Jiangling whom he had interacted with years ago.
"So it's this vicious guy!" Song Qingshu did not have a good impression of him. In the original work, he buried his daughter alive for the treasure. In this world, Song Qingshu was almost tricked by him.
"I really don't know what the City-Linking Incantation is." At this moment, a panicked and pitiful voice came from the other side. Song Qingshu could tell that it was Qi Fang's voice. He changed his angle and looked down. As expected, he saw Qi Fang kneeling on the ground, hugging her daughter tightly in her arms. Her face was full of tears.
Seeing her like this, Song Qingshu's expression turned cold. He was about to help when he suddenly saw two people sitting on the other side. "Eh, why is it him?"
He saw a man with a strange appearance. His eyebrows were tilted to the left, and he looked like a flying god. It was the Snow Beggar, Wu Liuqi, whom he had met once in Jiangling!
The slightly plump man beside him looked kind, but he could not recognize him.
"Why is Wu Liuqi with Ling Tuisi?" Song Qingshu was puzzled. Back then, Wu Liuqi thought that Mei Niansheng had died in the hands of Ling Tuisi and even tried to assassinate him.
However, what puzzled him even more was the attire of Wu Liuqi and the slightly plump man beside him. There was something familiar about them. The slightly plump man was wearing a golden robe, the attire of a rich family member, which matched his temperament quite well. Wu Liuqi, on the other hand, was wearing a dark green robe, which matched his killing aura very well.
Song Qingshu thought for a long time and finally came to a realization. Their clothes were the same as Zhang San and Li Si's!
He felt a chill in his heart. He did not think that this was a coincidence, especially when he thought of the legendary messengers of the Isle of Chivalry who rewarded good and punished evil. Apart from Zhang San and Li Si, who were well-known in Jianghu, there were also Zhao Da, Qian Er, Friday Zhou, Wu Liu, Zheng Qi, and Wang Ba. Among these eight people, Zhao Da and Qian Er stood out. Be it their identity or their martial arts, they were extremely mysterious. So far, no one knew their true identities. The remaining Zhang San, Li Si, Wu Liu, Zheng Qi, and Wang Ba were of the same level. The six of them were similar in terms of martial arts and status on the Island of Chivalry. As for the messengers of the Island of Chivalry, they were of a different level.
Song QingShu had encountered a dozen or so messengers from the Isle of Heroes in that run-down temple. Although those messengers were powerful, they lacked experience and wisdom in facing enemies. It was obvious that they had relied on medicines and secret manuals to build up their strength. That was why Song QingShu had been able to defeat them so easily despite being outnumbered. It was obvious that those messengers were ranked lower than the rest. If Song QingShu had been up against Messengers from the Isle of Heroes like Zhang San and Li Si, who were experienced in the martial world and had been through countless battles, it would have been a fierce battle.
"Zhang San, Li Si, Wu Liu, Wu Liu …" Song Qingshu thought that Wu Liuqi's name was very similar to Wu Liu's, and his clothes were similar to Zhang San and Li Si's. He was almost certain that Wu Liuqi was now a member of the Island of Chivalry and ranked sixth among the messengers of the Island of Chivalry. The little plump man next to him was most likely Friday.
"How did the people of the Island of Chivalry get involved?" After realizing this, Song Qingshu decided to observe the situation first. After all, Qi Fang was not in any danger for the time being.
At this time, Wu Liuqi heard Qi Fang's words and could not help but snort. "You are Qi Changfa's daughter and Wan Zhenshan's daughter-in-law. How could you not know where the City-Linking Technique is?"
Feeling the coldness in his tone, Song Qingshu frowned. Although Wu Liuqi was the Eagle Claw of the Qing Dynasty in history, he was a man of indomitable spirit in the Golden Book World. It was not his style to bully orphans and widows like this. Did he change after entering the Island of Chivalry, or did he hate Qi Changfa and Wan Zhenshan for killing his Senior Brother, Mei Niansheng?
"I really don't know what the City-Linking Technique is. I have never heard my father or my father-in-law mention it. This is the first time I have heard it from you," Qi Fang explained in vain. The daughter in her arms seemed to have sensed her mother's panic and could not help but burst into tears.
"It seems that you will not shed a tear until you see your coffin!" Ling Tuisi laughed sinisterly. He snatched the baby from her arms and raised it high. "If you don't tell me, I will fall down."
"No!" Qi Fang screamed. She struggled and wanted to rush over, but she was restrained by her subordinates. She could not do anything.
Song Qingshu's heart turned cold. Ling Tuisi did not even blink when he killed his own daughter. He would not hesitate to kill someone else's daughter, even if it was a baby.
He secretly raised his hand. Just when he was about to rush down to save his daughter, he suddenly heard someone shouting, "Found it, found it." As he spoke, he raised a book called "Selected Poems of the Tang Dynasty". It turned out that when Ling Tuisi and the others interrogated Qi Fang, he had sent his subordinates to search through the house.
Ling Tuisi was overjoyed. He threw the water spinach back into Qi Fang's arms. "You b * tch, you dare to say that you don't know about the City-Linking Technique?"
Qi Fang hurriedly held her daughter in her arms. She looked at the book in his hands and asked in confusion, "Isn't this the Selected Poems of the Tang Dynasty?"
"Playing dumb?" Ling Tuisi's expression turned cold.
However, Wu Liuqi stopped her. "It seems that she doesn't know about it."
Ling Tuisi nodded. "With how cunning Qi Changfa and Wan Zhenshan are, it is possible that they did not tell her. But we will not be able to find out about the secret of the City-Linking Technique, will we?" As he spoke, he became exasperated. He even glared at Qi Fang. She was so frightened that she hugged her daughter tightly.
"That may not be the case." Wu Liuqi pointed at the man in yellow. "My brother is an expert in this field."
Ling Tuisi's vision blurred. The book was already in the hands of the man named Friday. He could not help but feel a chill in his heart. 'The martial arts of these people from the Isle of Heroes are really unfathomable.'
Song Qingshu, who was on the roof, nodded to himself. Friday's kung fu was indeed not bad, but there was nothing to be surprised about.
Friday read the Selected Poems of the Tang Dynasty and said, "If you want to hide the secret, you have to use interlayers, special potions, or use some code words in the plain text …"
He flipped through the book and quickly shook his head. "There is no interlayer."
Then, he took each page and heated it over the candle flame. He then shook his head. "It's useless to heat it with fire."
Then, he calmly brought the page to his nose and sniffed it. "Hmm, apart from the smell of ink, there is also a faint, strange smell …"
As he spoke, he laid the page on the table. He then took out a chopstick and dipped it in some water. He gently scraped the page.
Ling Tuisi and Wu Liuqi's attention was drawn to him. Suddenly, Ling Tuisi shouted in surprise, "A number has appeared!"
Through the gaps between the people, Song Qingshu could vaguely see the word "four" appear in the blank space on the side of the book. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "It looks like the secret of the City-Link Incantation can no longer be kept."
Then, Friday continued to organize the book. Soon, he found all the hidden numbers in the book.
Ling Tuisi frowned and said, "It's useless to just know these numbers. There are so many words in the book. I don't know where to use them, nor do I know the order."
Wu Liuqi smiled. "I know this. Since it is called the City-Linking Technique, it is obviously hidden in the Liancheng Swordsmanship. Every move of the Liancheng Swordsmanship comes from a Tang poem. I happen to know the Liancheng Swordsmanship."
As he spoke, he came to the table. "The first move of the Liancheng Swordsmanship comes from Du Fu's Spring Return … Hmm, here, it is' four '! Alright, 'Mossy Path Facing River Bamboo'. The fourth word is' river '. Remember it. The second move is also from Du Fu's poem. It comes from Zhao Ling. Hmm, it's' fifty-one '! " He continued to count, "Fifteen, ten, fifteen, twenty … 'The mausoleum coils in the air, the bear guards the jade'. The fifty-first word is' mausoleum '."
Ling Tuisi mumbled to himself, "'Jiangling', 'Jiangling'. Wonderful. It is indeed in Jingzhou. It seems that my efforts in half a lifetime were not wasted." However, when he thought about how everything now belonged to the Isle of Heroes, his excitement dissipated by a large margin.
Friday seemed to have read his mind. He said calmly, "If we can find Liang Yuandi's treasure this time, you will be credited. You will be rewarded."
"Thank you, Saint." Ling Tuisi's worries turned to joy. He quickly bowed.
Wu Liuqi ignored him and continued to study. "The third move of the swordsmanship comes from Chu Mo's Holy Fruit Temple. Thirty-three, thirty-three words. The word 'city' in 'The city below is near, and the bells and chimes are mixed with songs' is' Jiangling City '. That's right, that's right! What else is there to be suspicious about? "The fourth move is twenty-eight, hmm, fifteen, ten, fifteen … The twenty-eighth word is' south ',' Jiangling City South '."
Song Qingshu naturally knew that the treasure was in the Tianning Temple. He was not surprised at all. Instead, he was even more confused. "Now that the Golden Men have occupied Jiangling, why did they choose this time to retrieve the treasure?"
Wu Liuqi had already deciphered the remaining words. "… The Buddha statue in the main hall of the Tianning Temple in the Western Heaven worships devoutly, communicating with the spirit of Buddha to bless and reborn in paradise …"
Ling Tuisi was shocked. "What 'devoutly worships devoutly, communicating with the spirit of Buddha', and 'blessings from Buddha to reborn in paradise'? Damn it, 'reborn in paradise'. Isn't this asking people to meet the Ten Yama Kings? "
He thought of how he had spent most of his life investigating and even sacrificed his daughter, only to get such a result. He could not help but feel a little crazy.
On the other hand, Friday was calm enough. "I don't think it can be written too clearly here. The treasure is most likely hidden in the Tianning Temple."
After being reminded, Ling Tuisi finally recovered from his madness. "That's right. The Tianning Temple has existed for hundreds of years. It has existed since the time of Emperor Liang Yuan. It is indeed possible that the treasure is hidden in it."
Wu Liuqi closed the book and said, "Let's go to the Tianning Temple to retrieve the treasure first. By the way, is there any news from Bei Haishi?"
Hearing Bei Haishi's name, Song Qingshu could not help but be shocked. It turned out that they were in cahoots.
Friday was also confused. "He brought people to deal with the Ruan family. Unfortunately, there has been no news of him since then. However, I have already sent people to investigate. The Ruan family's ship is still more than a hundred miles away from here. They should arrive tomorrow. "
Ling Tuisi could not help but say, "There has been no news from Doctor Bei. Could something have happened?"
Friday shook his head. "It's impossible. The people that Bei Haishi brought with him are many masters. We have already investigated the guards of the Ruan family. Even if there were twice as many people, they would not be a match for them. There must be other reasons why there has been no news. We can ask him tomorrow."
Wu Liuqi also said, "We have to hurry up and take out the treasure from the Tianning Temple today and tomorrow. We will transport it away when the Ruan family's ship arrives tomorrow."
Song Qingshu, who was on the roof, finally understood what was going on. It turned out that the main reason why Bei Haishi brought people to attack Madam Ruan's fleet was because of their ship.
Ling Tuisi could not help but praise, "Master, you are really clever. Not only did you cut off one of Han Xingzhou's arms, but you also used the Ruan family's ship to let the guards pass. Brilliant, really brilliant."
Friday also could not help but laugh. "After all, Han Xingzhou is now the head of all the officials, and the strength of his subordinates cannot be underestimated. Many people along the river are his direct subordinates, and they do not respect you, master. Now that you have the Ruan family's ship, it is equivalent to having a protective talisman. Master and Minister Han have worked together to protect the ship. Who would dare to stop or inspect it along the way?"
Song Qingshu suddenly realized that Madam Ruan was one of Han Xingzhou's people. She must have gone to Sichuan to deal with Wu Xi's betrayal. However, Jia Shidao got the news and sent someone to kill her in advance. Then, they used her ship to transport the treasure away. In this way, the guards along the way, no matter whether they were from the Han or the Jia, would not stop them. In this way, they could transport the treasure away without anyone knowing.
Moreover, he also understood that they chose to attack when the Jin soldiers were attacking Jiangling. They wanted to use the chaos to cover up the theft. If they were accidentally exposed in the future, they could blame everything on the Jin people and successfully find a scapegoat.
"You're really scheming. It's a pity that the plans of man are no match for the plans of God. Song Qingshu secretly felt lucky. If he had not come to visit Qi Fang on a whim, how would he have known such a big secret?
"Should I kill this woman first?" They discussed going to the Tianning Temple to get the treasure. Ling Tuisi suddenly turned around and looked at Qi Fang. There was a trace of murderous light in his eyes.
-----
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
