"Let me start with a story. Liu Anshi said, "I don't know if young people nowadays still like to listen to this kind of thing?"

Zhao Ji said: "I like to listen to it." When I was young, until I was five years old, I had to listen to a story before I went to bed, and I never stopped for more than 300 days a year. ”

"Isn't it normal to be five years old?" Wang Liefeng said, "My sister still pesters people to tell stories until she is seven or eight years old." ”

"Alas, you don't know, the average child hears a favorite story, will ask people to tell it repeatedly, listen to it, and be happy repeatedly. But I don't like to hear what has been told. Think about it, how thick can a storybook be? If you tell it over and over again, you can read it in half a month. They flipped through the pages of a book, and I had heard every story, and I wouldn't sleep for half the night. In the end, the father-in-law in charge couldn't bear it anymore, and asked people not to read me the story anymore, let me read the book by myself......" Zhao Ji laughed at himself, "Probably this is the height of the cold, in other words, I just owe too much." ”

Liu Anshi said: "His Royal Highness Duanwang, you can't say that, you were a likable child when you were a child, clever and well-behaved, very polite, I am very impressed, why do you look down on yourself at that time now?"

Zhao Ji smiled: "Maybe that's not my nature, but it's also a good thing to be liked." Master Liu, keep telling the story, I accidentally interrupted you. ”

Liu Anshi said: "It doesn't affect, it doesn't affect." He thought for a moment and said, "When you were young, if you were naughty, the adults would say, if you don't obey, let the bad guys take you away, right? I didn't believe that until I saw records of missing people everywhere. In Bianjing alone, there are disappearances every month, and in this world, there are people disappearing all the time. Where they went, no one knows, and who the next person will be is most of the time no one can predict. For example, I wouldn't have thought that I would be forgotten. ”

Wang Liefeng said: "Indeed. The Wan Yan Sheng just now, in the Jurchens, is considered a missing person. He came to Bianjing to play, but was arrested and imprisoned in a small dilapidated house for several months. He was lucky enough not to die, but he escaped. If you don't die in a great calamity, you will have a blessing in the future. But even a person like him who is physically strong and strong in martial arts can be easily kidnapped, and there is no way to ask for help for a long time. It's scary to think about. ”

Liu Anshi said: "I see. It's because I was so malicious just now that I always thought that the Jurchens were so bad, who knew that they would also be killed?"

Zhao Ji said: "Who knows." If he really succeeded, others might think that he had a conflict with the Han Chinese, so he did it. I've found that we tend to call the powerful barbarians, and most of the time we are just afraid of this toughness, or even transcendence, to take advantage of some spiritual advantage. It's dangerous. Maybe one day, the one who will disappear is ......"

He didn't say any more, sighed, and said, "Eh, Lord Liu, you go on!"

Liu Anshi smiled and said: "Once upon a time, there was a Confucian scholar who read a lot and practiced very little, so he was a weak man who was powerless, this is a premise, lest it become a chivalrous legend." He studied very hard, often reading outside until late at night before returning home. He was timid and scared every time he came home. However, it would be a shame for a man to call someone to accompany him because he was afraid to walk alone at night. Therefore, he must not show that he is afraid, not to mention that he always walks this rule, and he knows the direction of his home when he closes his eyes, as well as the landscape on the road, two bridges, and a ridge.

On this day, his eyelids were always jumping, and he thought to himself, maybe he was too tired from reading! Thinking like this, he was still very panicked, so he quickened his pace. It was a bit cold and darker than usual. He walked and walked and crossed two bridges, and when he came to the ridge, there was a farmer who was farming. At this time, it was already a little dark, and as soon as he saw someone, his heart was immediately steady! Coincidentally, the peasant also looked up and saw him, and said to him, "There are often wild beasts in the place ahead, and it is very dangerous for a man to walk at night, but there is a family in the vicinity, so it is better to go there and spend the night to keep it safe!"

In fact, if you think about these things carefully, they are very suspicious: As the saying goes, the sun rises, the sun rises, and the sun rests, how can there be people plowing the land at night? And as soon as you see him, you open your mouth to talk to him? Passing by every day, it is a way home, and it is not living in the barren mountains and mountains, how can there be wild beasts? Wild boars are not necessarily there. And his home is already very remote, why would an unheard of family suddenly pop up near here, or a big family?—— the Confucian student walked a little in the direction pointed by the peasant, and it didn't take long to find a big family, big night, brightly lit, lively like a restaurant.

Confucian didn't dare to go in at first, thinking of the tiger infested, he struggled for a long time, but he still mustered up the courage to knock on the door. Unexpectedly, he knocked on the door, and immediately someone came to open the door for him, and it was the owner of the mansion who showed great enthusiasm for his arrival!

"As for people, it is always like this, and most of the time they refuse to believe the truth of sarcasm, no matter how earnest and profound, or ironclad evidence. And if he is good, blowing him up and comparing him with the unattainable great man, or even deliberately ironic, people will put these praises on themselves, and if there happens to be a little bit of collision, such as a hobby in life, or a small flaw that this great man will have, people will think, ah, yes, exactly like me, so I am so good. It's an ironic thing. This Confucian student had such a mentality, and when the master of the house said to him, "If you study so hard, you will definitely be able to get the top prize, and the official is really talented, and he can recite poems", he was very moved and happy, and thought that he had finally been appreciated. On the surface, he prevaricated and said that he was not talented, but he just skimmed some poetry books, which can be described as 'no one asks about the cold window for ten years, and the title of the gold list is known to the world'...... In his heart, he had already racked his brains to search for sentences, and brought out and quoted all the few things he remembered, and it didn't matter whether he used it correctly or not, he could be worshiped by people if he used it! Therefore, they brought out the delicacies of the mountains and seas, and the Confucian scholars ate a big meal with peace of mind, because his family was poor, and he had never seen so much meat in a meal, and he didn't eat it for nothing! However, it seems to us now that eating too much meat is not good for the body, as if it were? haha. The meat was roasted, stewed, steamed, and had to be made to look like half a pig. Confucius didn't eat much meat, but he always felt that the taste of meat was weird, and after thinking about it, ah, the meat he usually eats is not good!

"It's just a matter of eating and drinking for nothing, but I didn't expect there to be better service later. At the banquet, the Confucian scholars were so drunk that they were very drunk! As for the people, when they got drunk, they were either literate, sat on the side and kept silent, and the more serious ones were unconscious, or they were ruffians, and they were sprinkling and rolling around and going crazy with alcohol, and drinking was really not a good thing! What about the behavior of this Confucian student? Most of the scholars were restless in their hearts, but they lacked physical strength, and their courage was even smaller, and some evil thoughts in their hearts accumulated on weekdays and did not come out, and when they got drunk, they poured out their brains in one go, and the whole person became vulgar and unbearable. He was so drunk that he couldn't talk anymore, so he began to scold that today's world is too dark, very unfriendly to readers, and has many relationships, and it is even more difficult for people with lofty ideals like him to get ahead. But the wine ran out. How long a person can get drunk depends on when the alcohol stops. Of course, you can't stop drinking. So the head of the household called his youngest daughter over and asked her to pour a glass of wine for Confucius. I saw that the little daughter was born beautiful, bright and beautiful, and she was very beautiful with a smile and a smile, and she secretly sent autumn waves to him! I don't know if there is one, and I don't know if I can see clearly when I am drunk. Alas, this is good, usually the Confucian student saw the girl, he didn't dare to raise his eyes, for fear of being scolded for being poor and sour and talented, but he was full of wine and food, and he was bold, and his two eyes stared straight at people up and down, and the girl smiled at him, and he was overjoyed.

"Strangely, the owner of the house was not angry at all. General Wang, you said that you have a sister, and if your sister is looked at by others, you will definitely want to beat that person. Who knows, the owner of the house actually stood up and said that he would go back to the house to rest first, and let his daughter accompany Confucius well, so he raised his head and drank the wine, and really turned around and went back, leaving Confucius and his little daughter. Confucian was unrestrained, more and more presumptuous, and said a few frivolous words to amuse the girl, but the girl was not angry, but accepted it happily and laughed even more happily. Now the Confucian students were excited, and as soon as the hooligans came up, they said anything vulgar. But the girl gladly accepted it, and even got into a fight with him.

He immediately decided to stay in this house, and slept in the girl's room—the owner of the house did not say a word about what room he had left, and every step was to lead him to the girl's room, how could there be such a good thing? However, the Confucian was bewitched by beauty, mainly because he was not a good person, so he was tricked. However, so far, I haven't seen what they want to do, how can someone pull someone to stay overnight for no reason, is it really to marry?

"We don't know, and the Confucian scholar doesn't know even more. In the next few nights, the beautiful girl came to Confucius every night to make love, and now, Confucius didn't even want to read, and he didn't bother to step out of the room.

"Confucian students have not been in contact with many women, maybe only their own mothers and female relatives and elders, and cousins and cousins have married early, and they basically only have one side. On the fourth day, when the girl came, she suddenly cried in front of him and begged for help, saying, "You have entered the den of thieves!" The girl said, in fact, this family has long planned to kill you and sacrifice to the ghosts, and I am not the daughter of the head of the household at all, I am a woman from a good family, and they have taken you to receive guests here, and they asked me to seduce you and coax you, in fact, to stabilize you here, so that they can wait for them to start! I've had five or six people, most of them stay here for five or six days, and then they're killed, their heads cut off and their blood drained, their limbs cut off, their stomachs cut open, their entrails removed, and their limbs discarded, or they are made into vegetables......

When this Confucian scholar heard this, he was so frightened that his soul did not possess his body, and his three souls lost six souls! All he had eaten in the past few days had been human flesh! Five or six days, isn't today the fifth day? If it hadn't been for the girl's reminder, he would have only had two days to live! While it was already dark, he chiseled a hole in the wall overnight and ran away with the girl.

They ran all night, and when it was dawn, they ran forty miles out of the official office, reported to the magistrate, and then they both collapsed to the ground, foaming at the mouth with exhaustion.

When the officers and soldiers heard the news, they immediately dispatched personnel to arrest and hunt down all the people in the house, many of whom did not even lift their pants! There were also a large number of corpses without heads and internal organs. Later, after investigation, it was discovered that this family was actually a cult group that had killed dozens of people to sacrifice ghosts, and that the peasant who was giving directions to Confucian in the field was actually a member of this cult group......

Zhao Ji's hairs stood on end when he heard this, and said: "It's really terrifying, I can't imagine that it's so dangerous outside, I don't know how many times Wang Liefeng has protected me." Thank you so much. So, do you know these things?"

Wang Liefeng nodded and said, "I've heard a little about it, but I've never heard such a detailed description, it's really creepy." ”

Liu Anshi said: "This case was handled when I first took office in the local government. At that time, I was very young, but I was not as young as King Duan, and I was about the same age as General Wang. At that time, when this man and woman came to my office to ask for help, I was shocked. I was dumbfounded, I couldn't imagine that there was such a terrible thing in this world. I thought that the Great Song Dynasty was civilized and civilized, and the religion was prosperous, but in fact, it was just that I had too little contact with things and didn't care too much about the masses. If you start from the bottom, you will find that there are all kinds of chaos in society, and it will be difficult to get rid of them for a long time. This kind of folk practice of human sacrifice is not uncommon, and many officials are accustomed to it, concealing it and not reporting it, and releasing it after two days, after all, it cannot be eradicated. But I insisted on writing to the court, so the first emperor was furious and immediately sent an edict: Killing people and sacrificing ghosts can be used Ling Chi. ”

"Ling Chi?" Zhao Jiqi said, "I remember, there is no such thing in the Great Song Law." ”

"His Royal Highness King Duan," Liu Anshi said, "You see that I was put into the heavenly prison, is there any legal provision?"

Zhao Ji suddenly realized: "I understand." The imperial court hated this evil custom very much, so the punishment methods were extremely harsh, even if it was an extrajudicial punishment, but in order to crack down on the cult gang, it could not care so much. So, I think it's pretty good. ”

Liu Anshi nodded and said, "Exactly." ”

Wang Liefeng suddenly said: "If you say this, the imperial court's attitude towards cults is extremely hateful......

Liu Anshi said with a smile: "General Wang really grasped the point. I'll say one more. The most important thing in the cult organization is the "ritual," and when a man was being followed and staying at an inn during the night shift, he heard someone outside the house shouting his name, and he leaned down on the door to peep, only to see more than a dozen strong men in the courtyard erecting an oil pot, and the oil pot was boiling with hot oil. He was so frightened that he didn't dare to go out, and when the men saw that he didn't go out, they angrily threw oil and left. Early the next morning, the shopkeeper told him that every three or five years, he would catch people and throw them in the oil pot to cook them alive and sacrifice them to ghosts. The human sacrifices were actually divided into ranks, the highest sacrifice was Confucianism, the second class was the monks, and the rest were again. Therefore, among the common people, scholars have become the objects of coveting by cult groups. ”

Zhao Ji looked up suddenly.

"There is more than this class, is it? The people are officials above, and the officials are nobles above...... He suddenly broke out in a cold sweat, and suddenly showed an incredible expression, and said in a low voice: "Could it be that there is a cult organization in the palace? Lord Liu, are you sure that the previous Empress Meng was abolished for this reason, and I remember that this matter has not been discussed for many years. ”

Liu Anshi said: "Since His Royal Highness King Duan has experienced such a strange thing, then you must be mentally prepared for this inference, right?"

Zhao Ji lowered his head and said, "Yes, you are right." ”

Liu Anshi said: "Although Empress Meng was deposed, she was named the 'Huayang Sect Master', can His Royal Highness remember this matter? This is a tacit matter in the palace, and if you want to talk about the cause, it may have existed when the first emperor was in power!"

Wang Liefeng said: "Huayang Sect ...... I've heard it a few times, but everyone is very secretive about it, and everyone has only a little information, and they can't even piece together a complete impression. ”

Liu Anshi said: "Yes. It is not forbidden because Empress Meng was deposed, but because it is controlled by interests and is not allowed to be discussed. ”

Zhao Ji held his forehead in a little pain, shook his head repeatedly, and said, "How is it possible...... The whole country was controlled. Oh, my God. In this way, if my brother's poisoning is related to the Huayang Sect, and this poison is caused by Zhao Li, then Zhao Li, Prime Minister Zhang, they have already planned this matter, first attack my brother, and then treat me—why me?" he held his head, closed his eyes, and did not continue.

Wang Liefeng said: "Your Royal Highness Duanwang, don't worry, isn't this Lord Liu? Since the first emperor said that he can help you, then he will definitely be able to help you." Isn't it, Lord Liu?"

Liu Anshi arched his hand and said: "His Royal Highness King Duan, the ministers must do their best." ”

Zhao Ji still held his head and muttered, "The first emperor died in the eighth year of Yuanfeng and died of a violent illness. Today's saints also claim to be acute, but they can't be trusted after all. The first son was because ...... Lord Liu, dare to ask what is the cause of the death of King Cheng Zhao Tong?"

Liu Anshi said: "Lao Chen remembered that he died of illness when he was in his twenties. ”

"What about the second son, Zhao Wei?"

"He died of illness at the age of eighteen or nineteen, and the time was earlier than that of Chengwang, but the earliest should be the fifth son, King Ji, who died early shortly after birth. Then there is the third son, Zhao Jun, who was not available when he was six or seven years old. The fourth son, Zhao Shen, the king of praise, is unknown...... Your Royal Highness Duanwang, do you want to know all this? It's all in the last few years. After the first emperor went, these princes went with him one after another, which has to be said to be a very strange thing. ”

Zhao Ji frowned and said, "It's just a serial murder." Lord Liu, when I was in the prison, did Fei Wei say that when I was three years old, because of the robbery incident, the palace was confined for a period of time? I wondered, the palace was heavily guarded, and even the prisoners who were on the run were mostly back to the people, so who would rush to the palace without anything? So, what I want to know is, what happened at that time?"

Liu Anshi said: "Why did His Royal Highness King Duan think of this step?"

"Because," Zhao Ji said, "I still remember that when the flying dragon made a move, many of the guards probably had their arms cut off. I don't remember it, but I remember seeing a lot of blood, and I always remembered it for years afterward. Later, I saw a few of the guards in the palace and asked them why they were missing an arm? They said, 'It's to save you, Your Highness King Duan.' And Lord Liu, the custom of worshipping the heavens that you just mentioned is to cut off limbs. I wondered, could it be—"

Wang Liefeng said, "Are you suspicious that Feiyu is related to the Huayang Sect?"

Zhao Ji said sullenly: "I hope not, but I can't be sure." ”

Liu Anshi said: "His Royal Highness King Duan, something did happen at that time, it was the fourth son of the first emperor who was killed and died in the courtyard, with his head in a different place, and the murderer was never found. There is a theory that," Liu Anshi hesitated, "the first emperor suspected that Feiyu had done it, so he tortured him. ”

Zhao Ji said: "It may not really be him, I guess." Or maybe it's because he's only caught, and he's somehow connected to it, so he naturally becomes an object of wrath. Didn't you say that I had been imprisoned before? If this assumption is true - unfortunately I didn't have time to ask, the time was too short. ”

He sighed again and said, "Lord Liu, during the time you were away from the court, King Hui Zhao Price and King Bao Zhao Shen were gone. The Huayang Sect was slaughtering the heirs of the former emperor, and now there are only three people left before me. Maybe it won't be long before it becomes two people, if the elder brother is the same as the father...... The doctors in the palace could not find out the cause of his poisoning. And then it was my turn. It's hard to live. ”

Wang Liefeng said: "Three people?"

"King Shen Zhao Yan, King Jian Zhao Xiang, and me. Zhao Ji said, "Zhao seems to be two years younger than me, and he should still be in Bianjing City now." He is not in good health, and he is usually a little withdrawn, I don't know what is going on in the outside world, and I am a little worried about whether he will have an accident all day......"

Wang Liefeng bowed his head and said, "Your Royal Highness King Duan, don't worry, I'll go." ”

"Good. Zhao Ji said, "Lord Liu, how do you feel about your health now? Why don't we all go back and rest for a while before we discuss?" You live in my mansion first, I have already told them in advance that no one is allowed to set foot in my mansion except you. However, because the carriage and horses that came to greet me are still near the prison, I can only aggrieved you to walk back with me on foot, I hope you don't dislike it. ”

Liu Anshi said with a smile: "His Royal Highness King Xie Duan, it is an honor to be here. ”

"Hmm. Zhao Ji responded, and said: "Wang Liefeng......"

Wang Liefeng was distracted, and he heard Zhao Ji call him and said, "What?"

"—I've worked so hard for you. Zhao Ji felt sorry and felt that there was nothing to say, so he symbolically politely said half a sentence, and felt that he was very hypocritical after speaking.

Wang Liefeng said with a smile: "His Royal Highness King Duan doesn't have to worry. It's just that His Royal Highness Duanwang, I will come back later, because I want to go home to see, and I am afraid that my sister will be angry with me because I don't say goodbye. I'll be back after that. ”

Zhao Ji smiled reluctantly and said, "Ah, I understand, don't worry." ”

Wang Liefeng thanked him, and then said, "His Royal Highness the King, you and Lord Liu should go first, and I will come over later......"

Liu Anshi suddenly interrupted him and said, "General Wang, seeing that your complexion is not very good, you really need to take a break." ”

Wang Liefeng nodded and said, "Thank you Lord Liu for your concern." Fortunately, my body is harder, and I can't die, and I suffer more sins than others, and I'm used to it, so I don't have to care about this. His Royal Highness King Duan knows, right?"

Only then did Zhao Ji notice that Wang Liefeng's pale face seemed to be bloodless than usual. He was shocked, but he still said: "Yes, Lord Liu, General Wang is strong in martial arts, you don't have to worry too much." ”