The green mountains are like daisies, and the low fields are near the water.

Far and near in a green show, there is a faint sound of birds and birds coming from it, the cry is crisp and pleasant, I don't know if it is a thrush or something else.

Pei Yunyao stood in the shadow cast by the dead trees, looking at the floating clouds scattered on the top of the mountain in the distance.

Floating clouds shrouded over the village, like a shadow that could not be dispelled, tightly wrapping the long day.

How much silver can a bird be worth?

Ten taels, twenty taels?

Five hundred taels, one thousand taels?

Neither.

It turns out that one bird is so valuable that it can cost four lives, perhaps more.

How ridiculous.

Such unequal weights at both ends of the scales are almost ridiculous.

Lu Yu heard his own voice: "Where are the rest of the Yang family?" ”

Pei Yunyao said that all four members of the Yang family were killed in the fire. "But there are other distant relatives?" she asked. ”

"Nope."

Pei Yunyao said: "The eldest daughter of the Yang family died of illness before the accident, except for the Yang family and his wife, there is only one son-in-law and stupid son. They are no longer alive. ”

Lu Yu was silent.

Although I had already guessed this ending, when I really heard this sentence, I still felt that my heart was covered with a layer of gloom.

She looked at the room that stood on the barren grass, and walked slowly forward.

The house was no longer visible, the fire had burned everything, and the ashes had long since solidified. Only the door frame of the collapsed house can glimpse the critical situation of the day.

There was a copper hook hanging under the wall of the house.

Lu Yu stretched out his hand and stroked the blackened copper hook.

It seems that before this, the blue gauze birdcage hanging under the copper hook, the thrush sings happily in the cage, and in front of and behind the door, a family of four is smiling and sifting tea.

She withdrew her hand and whispered, "It's true." ”

Pei Yunyao looked at her.

Lu Yu lowered his eyelashes.

The Yang family's encounter is similar to the Lu family.

The same door and four houses were destroyed, and the same fire destroyed everything. The difference is that the Lu family rose because of Lu Rou, and the Yang family rose because of the thrush. The husband is innocent and guilty, and the ordinary people suffer unjustified disasters, such as pigs and sheep being dragged onto the felt board of the slaughterhouse, and there is no way to fight back, so they can only be slaughtered.

Even in the eyes of those powerful, human life is not as valuable as a thrush.

Pigs and dogs are not as good.

It is like a blazing fire rising from the heart, the calmer it is, the more turbulent it is. She suppressed the hatred in her heart and asked Pei Yunyao: "In this way, Qi Yutai is because he can't ask the Yang family for thrushes, and then kills people and birds?" Lu Yu frowned: "But in this case, why does Qi Yutai hate thrushes again?" ”

People don't hate something for no reason, and the fact that the Taishi Mansion has not raised birds for many years looks more like avoidance than disgust.

Why did Qi Yutai avoid it?

Pei Yunyu said lightly: "I later learned about this and asked the Imperial City Division about it, and the Imperial City Division informed the news that there were traces of a fight in the Yang family's house. After a pause, he continued: "I heard that Qi Yutai encountered bandits on the road when he traveled in those days, and he was slightly injured. ”

Lu Yu's heart moved: "This is ......"

"Yang Weng's son-in-law, Yang Dalang, has learned boxing and foot kung fu from the head of the martial arts hall for a few years." He turned around and looked at Lu Yu.

In an instant, Lu Yu suddenly realized.

The fog of chaos in my mind gradually became clear.

Qi Yutai was bound to get the thrush, so he took the people and horses to Mangming Township. But Yang Weng loved his deceased daughter deeply, and turned a blind eye to the silver brought by Qi Yutai, and politely declined. Qi Yutai was annoyed and angry, the two may have had an argument halfway, Yang Weng's son-in-law Yang Dalang rushed over, Yang Dalang is a martial artist, not a person who is obedient, and he saw that his father-in-law was deceived and came to help......

Qi Yutai may have suffered Yang Dalang's loss at this time and suffered some "minor injuries".

It's just that even if Yang Dalang is strong in martial arts, he will eventually be invincible with two fists and four hands, and he will hurt the prince of Taishifu. So the family of four, along with the son who was stupid and stupid, and had no power to fight back, all died.

The Qi family, who left, set fire to the Yang family's house and destroyed all the evidence. However, Qi Yutai suffered from heart disease because of this incident......

This person is rumored to be timid, and his relatives have always had epilepsy, and his mind was already in a trance.

And Qi Qing, who loved his son deeply and was afraid that his son would follow his wife's old path, also drove away all the birds and finches in the house, in order to avoid irritating Qi Yutai and causing the hidden epilepsy to attack early.

In the whole incident, the Qi family was on top, cleaning up the entire Yang family like cleaning up the remnants of fish and blood, erasing all traces. And no one knows the grievances and hatreds in it.

It's like cleaning up the Lu family at the beginning.

The difference is that the Yang family has fallen, and there are no living people except this charred house and a grave with no one to mourn. And the Lu family has a self.

Qi Yutai...... Nor can all traces be erased.

Lu Yu stood in front of the charred house for a long time.

Until someone in the tea garden faintly urged, afraid that they would delay here for too long. Lu Yu turned around and left with Pei Yunyao.

Mangming Township is still as calm and peaceful as when it came, and the charred houses of the Yang family have not affected this place at all. A row of houses on the street had their doors open, and a group of older women were sitting in the sun collecting tea. Earn wages by selecting young leaves from the tea leaves that have been picked.

There are tea baskets everywhere, and the green and blue that can be seen everywhere have washed away the yin of Fang Cai, and there is a little warmth of spring. Lu Yu walked beside Pei Yunyao and heard him say, "It's not early, let's eat here." ”

The two of them came out early, it was past noon at this time, and they didn't even drink saliva after a long journey, and went to find the Yang family's house again. He didn't say that it was okay, but as soon as he said it, Lu Yu also felt a little hungry and thirsty, so he said, "Okay." ”

There is a tea shed in front, and when the two of them were walking forward, a half-big yellow dog suddenly came out of the roadside, which should be a guard dog raised by the villagers along the street.

"What do you do?" Lu Yu frowned.

Pei Yunyi looked at her strangely: "Aren't you afraid of dogs?" ”

Afraid of dogs?

Lu Yu was slightly stunned.

At that time, in the palace marshal's mansion, Duan Xiaoyan brought four black dog cubs to make her lose her temper. Later, Pei Yunyi asked her casually, but he didn't expect him to remember.

The yellow dog flicked his tail and ran to the front, Lu Yu felt the other party's scrutinizing gaze fall on him, and said calmly: "It doesn't look like it bites." ”

Pei Yunyi laughed.

He didn't say anything more, and Lu Yu didn't continue to talk about it.

When I arrived at the door of the tea shed, I could see clearly, not so much a tea shed, but a farmer's small courtyard was opened, and a flag was hung on the beam of the yard, with a "tea" written in white letters on a red background. There was only a lame wooden table and a few bamboo chairs in the courtyard, which should have been prepared by the owner of the village for passers-by to earn a few tea dollars. Therefore, outsiders rarely come, and the ride is very simple.

Out of it came a woman with a yellow turban, and when she saw them, she smiled: "Ah, the son is here again." ”

It turned out to be the woman who showed them the way at the intersection when they first arrived in Mangming Township just now.

Pei Yunyao smiled and sat down on the chair in the courtyard, handed over a piece of silver, and said, "Sister Lao, prepare some food and tea for the two of us." ”

This "eldest sister" obviously pleased the woman, and seeing Pei Yunyi's generous hand, the woman smiled even more happily, "What do you say about bothering, it should be, that is, you are afraid that your son will not be used to eating it, so don't dislike it." While lifting the teapot on the table, he poured two cups of hot tea for the two: "The two of you will drink tea first to moisten your mouth, and wait for a while." With that, he turned around and went to the kitchen.

The yard is not large, but it is clean and tidy, and there are several large baskets of fresh tea on the table, which are drying in the sun.

Lu Yu lifted the veil and took a sip of the tea bowl on the table.

Pei Yunyi smiled: "Drink so refreshingly, aren't you afraid that someone will poison the tea?" ”

Lu Yu subconsciously glanced at the tea bowl in his hand.

The red clay tea bowl is larger than that in Shengjing City, the material is rough, as if it is cast with ordinary clay, revealing a simple and simple, but the tea is extremely sweet, and the emerald green tea leaves float in the water, and the tea water is also leached out of a bit of blue color, and the aroma is tangy.

She looked at Pei Yunyao: "So the adults didn't drink it just now, are you waiting for me to test the poison for you?" ”

He smiled, neither nodding nor denying.

Lu Yu sneered in his heart.

The children of the powerful are used to pretending. She had only heard that the Son of Heaven in the palace had asked the palace people to test the poison before eating, but she didn't expect that the person in front of her was too.

Thinking of this, Lu Yu didn't say anything, and only waited for Pei Yunyi to take a sip of tea before speaking: "Then the adult may be disappointed." She sarcastically said: "I am invincible, maybe I will be safe and sound after drinking this cup of tea, but Master Pei will die if I take a sip." ”

Pei Yunyi: "......"

However, the imaginary blood splash did not happen on the spot, and after drinking this bowl of tea and half a pillar of incense, nothing happened to the two of them.

The birds in the courtyard chirped and were silent for a while, Lu Yu put the empty tea bowl back on the table and said, "Master Pei, I don't understand, you can tell me directly about the Yang family last night, why do you want to accompany me here in person today?" ”

Last night, she asked about this in Pei Yunyao's study, but Pei Yunyao refused to tell the reason. However, when I came to Mangming Village today and saw the burned houses of the Yang family, there was no other gain.

Such a simple thing can be explained in a few words, why come and run it yourself?

It can't be that she damaged Pei Yunyao's wooden tower last night, this person deliberately retaliated to make simple things complicated, and she had to toss her to run like this.

Pei Yunyi stared at her and said with a smile: "Doctor Lu's words, why do you seem to blame me for being nosy." ”

"Master Pei is so hearty."

"You said that I have been overly attentive many times, but it seems that I am like a villain who uses my heart and soul."

Lu Yu swallowed the sentence "Isn't it" back in his stomach, and only smiled slightly: "I don't mean that." ”

He nodded and said casually, "I'm afraid you don't believe it." ”

"Don't believe me?"

As she was talking, the woman with the headscarf came out of it with a large wooden tray and put the hot dishes on the tray on the table while laughing: "The two of you have been waiting for a long time, relatives in the township, they are all coarse tea and light rice, don't dislike it." ”

Indeed, they are all simple peasant dishes, such as fried pork in lard, poplar porridge, buckwheat baked cakes, and lettuce...... Steaming hot in a red clay bowl with a fragrant aroma and a basket of fresh loquats.

After the woman finished serving, she said "eat slowly" and was about to leave, but was stopped by Pei Yunyao.

"Eldest sister," Pei Yunyao said with a smile, "We just went to Yang Weng's house to see it, and it was burned thoroughly." ”

"Isn't it," the woman sighed, standing still, "what a family, there's nothing left." ”

"How did Yang Weng's house catch fire, and why didn't anyone find out at that time?"

The woman pursed her lips, "What's the matter, then it's a joke, everyone is working in the tea plantation, and it's too late to find out." ”

"Could it be arson......

As soon as these words came out, the woman was startled, and said again and again: "It's hard to say, we are all ordinary people, who wants to set Yang Weng's house on fire?" Don't say this in the future, we will also suffer if it spreads! After that, as if he was taboo about something, he hurried out of the yard with the empty wooden tray in his hand.

The courtyard was quiet again.

Pei Yunyao poured tea into Lu Yu's empty tea bowl, and said lightly: "Doctor Lu understands?" ”

Lu Yu didn't speak.

This woman just looked hospitable, but Pei Yunyi fled in fright after a few words, obviously silent about the Yang family.

"It's been five years since the Yang family's accident, and Mangming Township is calm." Pei Yunyao pushed the full tea bowl in front of Lu Yu, "If Dr. Lu wants to use the thrush case to deal with the Qi family, you can give up now." ”

Lu Yu was silent.

Not to mention that the fire of the Qi family has burned all the evidence to the ground, nor to mention that the Yang family was wiped out and no one has been left behind, just five years have passed, and there has been no rumor of the Yang family's case until now, which is enough to show that even if the neighbors of Mangming Township know about this matter or something strange, no one dares to investigate in depth, and no one dares to open this mouth for the Yang family.

The fear of the "lowly" for the "noble" seems to be innate and engraved in the bones.

Lu Yu now somewhat understood why Pei Yunyi had to take her on this trip.

is to see with her own eyes the people's fear of the "powerful" and understand the cruelty of the facts, not that he exaggerates between the lines, but that revenge is indeed difficult to ascend to the sky.

"No matter how much you bid, no one dares to speak, no one dares to speak."

Pei Yunyi looked at her and his expression fell silent.

"Girl," he said calmly, "in the future you will face more and more enemies, stronger and stronger, no joke. ”

Hearing this, Lu Yu smiled.

She nodded, and her voice was gentle: "Thank you Master Pei for reminding me, I will take care of it." ”

"What are you going to do, poison Qi Yutai?"

"It's not a matter of worrying about adults."

He ignored Lu Yu's alienation, and smiled indifferently: "The Qi family is not as good as the Kefan family, if you kill Qi Yutai, I'm afraid it will be difficult to get out of the way." ”

"But at least he's dead, isn't he?"

Pei Yunyi was stunned.

Lu Yu said lightly: "Anyway, I will die after all, for a person who is about to die, if he offends in the future, the adults will be more or less forgiving." ”

Pei Yunyi's eyebrows frowned slightly.

She always kept talking about death, and she didn't care about it, as if she didn't care about her life.

Is there any fear, or is it a will to die?

Lu Yu didn't pay attention to what he was thinking, he only took off his veil, picked up a crispy sugar cake with bamboo chopsticks, and said, "My lord, let's hurry up and eat, wait for the food to be cold." ”

I don't want to continue the conversation.

Pei Yunyi paused for a moment, didn't say anything more, and then picked up the chopsticks.

Lu Yu had already taken a bite of the crispy sugar cake.

The crispy sugar cake that has just come out of the pot is easy to burn the mouth, and after a while, it is just right, and when you bite into it, the sweet fragrance of sesame seeds and brown sugar fills the tip of the tongue, which is a very happy taste.

Pei Yunyi looked at her thoughtfully.

He asked, "Dr. Lu likes sweets very much?" ”

When he was in Renxin Medical Center before, Lu Yu also gave him a bamboo tube of sweet ginger honey water, which was so sweet that he couldn't tell the other taste, and he couldn't even stand Duan Xiaofang, but she seemed to be used to it.

It seems that several times he went to the Renxin Medical Center, he saw sweet syrup water on the small table in the Renxin Medical Center...... There is also lotus crisp, Lu Yu's taste is extremely sweet.

Lu Yu paused and said "um".

He nodded, "I see." ”

Didn't say anything more.

The meal was well eaten.

Farmhouse cuisine is always affordable, and there are more natural flavors than the delicacy of the restaurants in Shengjing City. After the two finished eating, the Qingfeng in it also finished eating, and the three of them returned to the gate of the tea garden when they first came, Qingfeng brought the carriage, and the three of them went down the mountain together.

At this time, the sun has gradually sunk in the west, the whole gyro mountain is not as green as when it came, and it is illuminated by the red glow with a layer of blood, and there are two egrets flying by the lakeside along the way, and gradually disappearing in the distant mountain peaks.

The way down the mountain has always been easier than the road up, and when the carriage drove past the foot of the mountain, the sun had just set, and the lanterns in front of the houses of the people at the foot of the mountain were lit up.

There was a faint noise of people outside the carriage, Lu Yu lifted the curtain, and saw a long queue of people at the entrance of a temple on the long street where the carriage and horses were driving, and there was a porridge stall at the front, and a few people wearing soapy clothes were scooping out rice porridge from an iron pot on the side, and serving it in the bowl in the hands of this group of people in line.

This group of people are all ragged, yellow and thin, Lu Yu looked at it for a moment, and suddenly understood, this is soup kitchen?

During the epidemic in Changwu County that year, at the beginning, there were also well-meaning wealthy merchants on the streets to give porridge.

"That's the people of the Taishifu who are relieving hunger." Pei Yunyi's voice came from his side.

"Taishifu?" Lu Yu suddenly turned around.

Pei Yunyi leaned on the carriage, glanced at the lively scene outside, and his voice was very faint: "You should know that Qi Qing is old enough to have a son." ”

Lu Yu frowned.

Miao Liangfang once told her that Qi Qing once had a two-room wife. The first wife was married to him for many years and never became pregnant, and until he died, he did not leave a boy and a woman. However, the stepfamily who married later gave birth to a pair of children Qi Yutai and Qi Huaying.

But what does this have to do with Qi Qing's soup kitchen?

Pei Yunyao hooked his lips: "Qi Qing has no children for many years, and a master calculated a hexagram for him, saying that his ancestors were deeply sinful, and asked him to give more charity and kindness." ”

There was a smile on the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were a little mocking: "Later, Qi Qing gave relief to the hungry every year, asked the monks to build a dojo, built bridges and roads, and married a stepfamily, and sure enough, he gave birth to a son and a daughter. ”

"Later, we, Taishi Qi, believed in fate and effect very much."

He said it teasingly, but Lu Yu only felt ridiculous when he heard it.

If Qi Qingzhen is a person who believes in fate and effect, how can he kill the Lu family and the Yang family. If there is really a cycle of cause and effect in the world, could it be that just because the Qi family distributed a few bowls of porridge and did a few dojos, it would be able to offset the evil of the Qi family's extinction?

It's ridiculous.

Pei Yunyao glanced at her: "What are you thinking?" ”

"I'm thinking, the reason why the Taishi Mansion is like this is nothing more than the belief that 'people can be deceived, but gods and Buddhas cannot be deceived'."

"But he was wrong."

Lu Yu said coldly: "People are the most undeceivable. ”

(End of chapter)