The years have passed, the flowers have bloomed, and it has come to February of the new year in a blink of an eye.

The scholars gathered in the capital, and after several rounds of brutal "fighting" in the examination room, Du Wenlin stood out with his gorgeous writing, outstanding appearance, and incisive insights, and was handpicked as the champion by the Wanli Emperor. The list eye is Shi Jikai from Jiangxi, and Tanhua is Lin Fengsheng.

After thanking the emperor in the three palaces, they prepared to report to the Ministry of Rites on a certain day.

Then he began to go back to his hometown to thank his parents, respect his teacher, worship his ancestors, and so on.

After doing these things, Du Wenlin went to visit Governor Cao on the way back to the capital.

Governor Cao summoned officials of all sizes in Nanjing, gave Du Wenlin a banquet to congratulate.

Cao Cuizhu was overjoyed to see that Du Wenlin was now the champion of high school and returned with glory.

"When I work in the capital and settle down, I will come back and marry you." Du Wenlin said while holding Cuizhu's hand.

"Well, the slave family is waiting for you!"

Du Wenlin wanted to tell her about the meeting between Mrs. Cao and the man in black that night, but he didn't know how to speak, after all, mother and daughter are connected, how can they accept such a fact?

However, it is not a way to keep it hidden, after all, his mother has already joined the sect organization and is planning to involve Governor Cao in it.

If it is directly told to Governor Cao, it is even more inappropriate.

That would not only ruin the family, but might even give birth to more branches.

The most important thing is that this is something that I overheard occasionally, and the other party is my mother-in-law, so as far as my current identity is concerned, I have to hide this matter for the time being.

I thought about it for a long time, but I didn't come up with a proper solution.

Du Wenlin briefly described the process of how he met Yang Shangshu last year to Governor Cao, and Governor Cao was overjoyed after hearing it. He already had a good relationship with Yang Shangshu, so he immediately wrote a letter to him, asking him to take care of Du Wenlin at work in the future.

Du Wenlin didn't want to take this letter, but due to Governor Cao's hard work, he finally accepted it.

Back in the capital, according to the usual practice, Du Wenlin and the winners of this year's first, second, and third grades entered Hanlin.

Du Wenlin temporarily assisted in the compilation of the history of the dynasty.

I saw Yang Shangshu again at the Qionglin banquet given by the emperor himself, and Yang Shangshu couldn't help but congratulate and encourage him.

What surprised Du Wenlin the most was that the three thieves who wanted to assassinate in the snowy night were Zhao Zhigao, the deputy minister of the imperial cabinet.

He only told Du Wenlin that night that his surname was Zhao, but he didn't expect that he would be a member of the first rank of the government and the opposition.

Zhao Ge held Du Wenlin's hands in his hands, thanked him again for the rescue that night, and sighed:

"If I have more talented people like you, why worry about the country's affairs and the people's happiness?"

On this day, Du Wenlin received a post from Yang Shangshu and invited him to Yang's Mansion as a guest.

Yang Shangshu's mansion, Du Wenlin, was familiar with the road, and he arrived in front of his door before the sky was dark.

There was already a small tweed sedan chair parked in front of the door, and it seemed that a distinguished guest had arrived before it.

The housekeeper led Du Wenlin to the hall, and in addition to Yang Shangshu, there was also a middle-aged man in civilian clothes in his forties.

Everyone introduced each other, and the other visitor turned out to be Lord Zhao Jinzhao, the imperial history of the left capital.

After taking their seats, the two officialdom old-timers couldn't help but praise Du Wenlin's knowledge and character.

Then, the two talked about something that shocked Du Wenlin.

"Lord Yang, last year, Hu Jinsheng was intercepted and killed halfway, and now it has been more than a year, is there any news?" Zhao Yushi asked.

Yang Shangshu sighed:

"For more than a year, Jinyiwei and Dongchang have dispatched a large number of people to hunt down the killer, but so far they have not gained the slightest. The person who responded at that time reported that, according to the investigation of the scene, it seemed that it was the 'desert zerg'. ”

Hearing the words "Desert Zerg", Du Wenlin was shocked, and suddenly remembered the brutal killing, and couldn't help but shudder.

"What kind of organization is the 'Desert Zerg'?"

"I heard that it is a tribe, or a people, that lives in the desert area of the northern steppe all year round. They are accustomed to living underground, are good at burrowing under the dirt, and are small in stature, hence the name. ”

"Why must they have done it?" Zhao Yushi asked again.

"They are good at using daggers, they are accustomed to suddenly jumping out of the soil to assassinate, and there is also a characteristic that killing people is to seal their throats with a knife. Judging from the scene of the accident, it seems that they did it. ”

"At that time, there were thirteen Jinyi guards who escorted Hu Jinsheng back to Beijing, all of them were good hands, but I didn't expect to be so vulnerable under the hands of the 'Zerg', it is really incredible."

Yang Shangshu didn't answer, and his eyes showed deep worry.

"It is said that the 'Red Seal Sect' that Hu Jinsheng participated in first arose from the Beijing-Tianjin region, why did he get involved in a small prefect in Zhejiang?" Zhao Yushi asked.

"I don't know the details of the plot either. It was occasionally learned from Dongchang last year when he interrogated the owner of a 'Red Seal Sect' altar who committed a crime. According to his confession, Chang Tiangong, the governor of Taiyuan Prefecture, Xu Qinglai, the governor of Yanqing Prefecture, and Hu Jinsheng, the governor of Wenzhou, are all his followers. The most important thing is that he also confessed a shocking thing, the driving force behind this sect is from the palace, that is, its existence is completely for the service of a certain person or force in the palace. ”

"Does the emperor know about this?"

"Lord Wang went to the palace to meet the emperor at that time and reported the results of the interrogation. When the emperor heard this, he was extremely shocked and ordered a thorough investigation of this religion. When the factory guards arrested the three of them separately, Chang Tiangong and Xu Qinglai had already committed suicide by hanging themselves at home. Hu Jinsheng was killed on the way to Beijing. ”

"Two adults, I've seen the 'Desert Zerg'." Du Wenlin couldn't help but interject.

When the two adults heard him say this, they both showed surprised expressions.

Yang Shangshu asked:

"How could you possibly have seen them?"

Du Wenlin recounted in detail the massacre he saw on the road last year.

When he recounted the whirlwind slaughter of officers and soldiers by the man in yellow in the rain, both men had horrified expressions on their faces, as if they did not believe that such a method of killing could be done in the world.

Du Wenlin finished narrating, and the two adults had not recovered from their panic.

After a long time, Yang Shangshu said solemnly:

"Now that it has been confirmed that the tragedy was made by the 'Desert Zerg', don't exaggerate this matter for the time being, so as not to cause panic. It has been more than a year since the case occurred, but there has been no progress in the investigation so far. I will go to the emperor tomorrow and ask the emperor to decree that Jinyiwei cooperate with Dongchang to investigate this case as soon as possible. Speaking of this, he sighed:

"It is said that this matter should be under the jurisdiction of the Criminal Department, but because some officials are involved, the emperor ordered our Ministry to cooperate with the investigation."

"The 'Desert Zerg' is secretive and not easy to find, so I'm afraid we have to start with the 'Red Seal Sect' first." Zhao Yushi said.

Yang Shangshu turned his head to Du Wenlin and said:

"Master Du, judging from your night capture of flower thieves, you are not only young, but also have good skills. Tomorrow, when I go to the Holy Lord, I will recommend you to come to the Ministry of Officials, and then participate in the investigation of this case on behalf of the Ministry of Officials, what do you think? ”

Du Wenlin hurriedly got up and thanked him.

You must know that although the people who can enter the Hanlin Academy are the best in the temple examination, there are many people who have survived ten years and have not yet come out.

I have just entered Hanlin, and I have been appreciated and put on the actual job, which is a rare opportunity!

"Two adults, I take the liberty of asking, what kind of organization is this 'Red Seal Sect'?"

Zhao Yushi continued:

"The 'Red Fengjiao' is a sectarian organization that has emerged in the Beijing-Tianjin region in recent years, and it is said that the surname of the sect leader is Luo. The religion grew rapidly and spread so much that some officials were even involved. Although the religion developed rapidly, it was hidden underground, tightly organized, and not easy to detect. ”

"Oh, what's the harm of this 'Red Seal Sect'?" Du Wenlin asked again.

Yang Shangshu took over the topic:

"According to the evidence we have gathered, this sect not only uses deception and coercion to force people to join, but also engages in assassinations, kidnappings and other activities. Just like Hu Jinsheng, the prefect of Wenzhou just mentioned, if he is already a member of the 'Red Seal Sect', no one in the court knows how many other officials have joined him. ”

Du Wenlin recounted what he encountered in Meng Village on the way to Beijing.

Yang Shangshu and Zhao Yushi were surprised by the arrogance of the "Red Seal Sect", and they were even more surprised that Du Wenlin, a weak scholar, could scare them away.

Both of them are extremely shrewd people, and they can't help but have a new understanding of the abilities of the young man in front of them.

Everyone turned back to the topic, and Du Wenlin continued:

"Since Hu Jinsheng was intercepted and killed by the 'Desert Zerg' on the way to the capital, it can be seen that he must have a lot of secrets."

"Yes, someone spared no expense to invite the 'Zerg' from the north to assassinate him, which shows that the strength of the person hiding behind him should not be underestimated!" Yang Shangshu said. After a pause, he stared at Liu Wenlin again:

"In the future, you may often deal with these demons and monsters, although you can increase your life experience, but danger is also everywhere, always pay attention to your own safety!"

"Thank you for your concern!"

The boring working environment in the court was not what he longed for.

Thinking that he would be able to walk the rivers and lakes with a sword often in the future, the sense of mystery and excitement made him excited.

And he never dreamed that because of his accession, there would be an uproar from the imperial court to the rivers and lakes.

The "Yesanpo" in Baoding is famous far and wide, it is not only famous for the beautiful scenery, but also famous for the bandits.

Therefore, there is a saying that "I would rather walk a hundred miles than go to the wild three slopes".

But there are people who don't believe in this evil, and this person is a single girl.

On the official road down the slope, a white horse galloped to his heart's content, and immediately a girl of about eighteen or nineteen years old was dressed in a fiery red shirt and trousers with a green ribbon around her waist.

At the bend in the mountain road, a large tree lay across the road, and this big tree could not stop such horses, but in front of the big tree stood four men with machetes.

Running closer, the girl grabbed the reins of the horse, and looked fixedly, and in front of her were four men in their thirties, all dressed in gray and wearing soap boots.

"I didn't expect a big beauty to fall from the sky, and it was not in vain for our brothers to wait for a long time." A tall, thin man said with a sigh of relief.

The other three laughed, with this big beauty, they have gained a lot today.

The girl frowned:

"I don't have the time to laugh with you, please get out of the way!"

The four of them looked at each other, as if they had misheard.

The tall and thin man said:

"It's okay to get out of the way, you have to ask the girl to get off the horse, play with a few brothers, and when a few brothers are happy, they will send the girl on the road, what do you think?"

Several people burst into laughter again.

The girl's face turned red with anger, and she gritted her teeth and said:

"You're really looking for death!"

Immediately, a red cloud suddenly flew up, and the red cloud quickly swept towards the four of them.

When the red cloud floated onto the road, the four strong men who had raised their eyebrows just now were all lying on the ground.

Since their debut, they have never met such a beautiful girl on this road, and they have never seen such a fast skill.

It's a pity that I paid a heavy price for just watching this once.

Two of them had their arms with knives cut off, and two of them had their right legs cut off.

Even if he is still alive, he will never be able to do this businessless business for the rest of his life, and he will not be able to come here to see beautiful girls again.

There was a wail on the ground.

The girl snorted disdainfully, took the soft sword of cold light into her waist, flew on her horse, and was about to leave.

"May I ask the girl's name, and let our brothers remember your great virtue forever!" A man with a broken arm gritted his teeth and asked:

"Haha, you still want to take revenge on me? Tell you, this girl is called, called, called 'Quick Sword King Ling', if you want to find me for revenge, come directly to the east factory of the capital, find Lord Wang Anwang, and find me. The girl said with a smile.

It is clear that the nickname "Fast Sword King Bell" was improvised by the imagination.

When they heard the words of Jingcheng Dongchang and Wang Anwang, the faces of the four people were no longer bloodless.

A horse bell rang, and the girl's fiery back gradually disappeared.

Four pairs of frightened eyes were left behind.