Xu Taiping jumped high.

Swing the iron ruler and slam it down.

The heavy iron ruler made a dull whistling sound.

With a strong gust of wind, it smashed into a patch of grass.

"Whew-"

"Bang-"

"Ahh

Whirring.

Crashing sounds.

Screams.

Ringing almost at the same time.

As the screams began, the grass became messy, and a stream of blood erupted from the void.

A faint figure appeared in the area where the bleeding was bleeding.

Although the figure only flickered twice before disappearing again.

But Xu Taiping saw it clearly.

And.

There is still fresh blood dripping on the ground.

Under normal circumstances, in the middle of the night, the visibility is low, and the average person cannot see this.

But at this moment.

Xu Taiping drove "discerning".

A little bit of light will make a difference.

When he rushed out of the station, he opened his skills, and while he was running away, he quietly observed.

It wasn't until he found that someone was hiding his figure and catching up with him that he suddenly counterattacked.

Why?

The reason is simple.

The paper man's way of speaking and fighting is too intelligent, which must be the result of human manipulation.

Since it is manipulation, there must be a manipulation distance.

It is impossible for a manipulator to manipulate two paper figures to talk and fight from a distance of thousands of miles.

So.

He rushed out of the post station and ran back along the road he had come from, making a gesture to escape, but in fact he was pulling at high speed, thus exposing the manipulator's feet.

The facts also proved his speculation.

Just in the beginning.

The manipulator was well hidden, and he never found the clues.

But it was soon revealed that information such as the sound of breathing, footsteps, footprints, and even dripping sweat as the operator ran was collected one by one.

When he stopped running to fight back, he noticed that the manipulator had slipped into the bushes on the side of the road and hidden.

So.

After killing the two paper figures in one fell swoop, he didn't hesitate to go straight to the grass.

Swing an iron ruler and smash it down.

Sure enough, the hit was a must.

See the manipulator fleeing in embarrassment.

couldn't help but sneer: "Want to escape? Stay with you! ”

The voice fell.

Jumping and swooping, he swung the iron ruler again and smashed it down.

"Poof—"

The iron ruler once again sturdied and hit the manipulator.

The manipulator who hid his figure, a mouthful of blood spurted out, showing his figure, staggering to the ground, his mouth full of blood, his face full of panic, and kept begging for mercy: "Master Xu, don't, don't kill me, I'm forced to ......"

Xu Taiping frowned.

It's an old man.

Dry.

Ugly face.

The dress is also shabby.

Not like a great person.

Instead, he is like the most common dry old man in the countryside.

Think so.

But he raised his hand and smashed it.

Seeing this, the old man gritted his teeth and raised a peachwood sword and stabbed Xu Taiping back.

Hum.

Xu Taiping was even angrier.

Dodging sideways, he changed his moves at the same time, and smashed the peachwood sword with a backhand swing of the iron ruler.

"Click-"

The peachwood sword broke off in response.

Xu Taiping stepped up again and slammed it.

"Poof—"

"Ahh

This time.

The knot smashed firmly into the old man's calf bone.

One foot down.

Broken tendons and fractures.

Again.

The thighs instantly opened their flesh.

"Ahh

"Xu Ye spares his life!

"Stop fighting-

"Master Xu, Master Xu, I said, I'll tell you everything I know-"

When Xu Taiping heard this, he withdrew.

The sharp gaze scanned the old man for a moment.

Raise the ruler again.

Under the frightened gaze of the old man, he fell hard.

"Poof—"

The old man's right arm bent instantly.

"Ahhh

The old man hugged his bent right arm and screamed miserably.

Xu Taiping put away the iron ruler and snorted coldly: "Shut up!" ”

The old man immediately clenched his teeth, and without saying a word, he endured the severe pain, and beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down, and soon a large area of dirt was wet.

Xu Taiping squatted down and looked at the old man's eyes: "I'll ask you three questions, answer honestly, and after answering, I'll let you go."

"But if you're clever......"

As he spoke, he patted the heavy blood-stained iron ruler.

The old man nodded hurriedly, and painfully squeezed out a sentence from between his teeth: "You, you ask, I, I will say everything." ”

"Who told you to kill me?"

"Xiaowang Village Baozheng Cao Xin."

Xu Taiping frowned.

Cao Xin?

The reporter of the tragedy in Xiaowang Village?

Or is it Xiaowang Village Baozheng?

Bao is the most special part of the bureaucratic system of the Great Jin Dynasty, the most basic cadre, no grade, not much power, but the big and small things in the village are inseparable from Baozheng.

Because "the court does not enter the village".

In other words, the officials of the imperial court and the orders of the imperial court did not enter the village.

First, they can't get in, the local clan power is too strong, and forcible control will stimulate civil unrest.

Second, they can't enter, because there are too many villages, too mixed and even have a certain degree of mobility, and the imperial court is not able to govern it at all.

So.

The imperial court's control over the localities, from the central to the county, was to be given special care only to some of the more special townships and towns.

Townships, towns, and villages below the county-level administrative district are managed by grassroots officials such as township chiefs and baozheng.

Unlike these grassroots officials, the township chief, Baozheng and other rural officials are not appointed, but jointly elected by local residents, and then reported to the imperial court after being elected.

To some extent, the countryside of the Great Jin Dynasty had a certain degree of autonomy.

Of course, the township chief and the baozheng also have to bear the corresponding responsibilities, such as tax collection, conscription, labor and other work related to the village, all these officials are responsible.

If they fail to complete their tasks, these petty officials will either pay out of their own pockets or have to serve themselves.

Of course, the people who can be elected as the head of the township and the person who is upright are basically the most powerful landlords or wealthy families in the local area, just like the emperor of the soil.

The so-called village tyrants who were rampant in the village before the crossing were simply not worth mentioning in front of the township chief and Baozheng of the Great Jin Dynasty.

But.

Baozheng is Baozheng, and in the entire bureaucratic system, the status is the lowest.

Give Baozheng a hundred guts, and he doesn't dare to provoke a head catcher like Xu Taiping.

Just as Xu Taiping did not dare to provoke the general judgment and push officials in the state.

So.

Xu Taiping immediately realized that Cao Xin was the murderer of the Xiaowang Village tragedy.

Even the mastermind.

Well.

It is also possible that there is an accomplice.

Cao Xin!

Xu Taiping wrote down the name.

continued to ask: "In addition to Baozheng, what other identity does Cao Xin have?" ”

"This ......"

"Say!"

"He is still the altar master of the Tianxia Gang."

Xu Taiping was awe-inspiring: "Altar master? The level is so high? ”

The old man wiped a handful of cold sweat, gritted his teeth and explained: "The altar master is under the incense master, the hall master, and the helmsman master, yes, he is the lowest party supervisor of the Tianxia Gang, and under the altar master is the captain, the squad leader and the ordinary gang. ”

Xu Taiping breathed a sigh of relief and asked a third question: "Two days before the tragedy in Xiaowang Village, there was a Taoist priest who went to Xiaowang Village, and that Taoist priest is also a member of the Tianxia Gang?" ”

The old man shook his head: "I, I don't know what Taoist priest is." ”

"You're not from the Tianxia Gang?"

"I ......" the old man said this, suddenly raised his head and squeezed out a smile: "Master Xu, this, this is the fourth question." ”

Xu Taiping smiled.

Stand up.

Draw out the iron ruler.

Turn your wrist.

The iron ruler whirled as it rotated.

Then.

Grab the iron ruler and slam it down.

"Smack-"

A foot went down and smashed into the old man's left shoulder.

"Click-"

There was a crunch.

The old man's shoulder was shattered directly.

Xu Taiping stared at the old man coldly, killing intent churning in his eyes: "You are qualified to negotiate conditions with me?" ”

When the old man heard this, his expression gradually became blank, and his eyes lost their luster little by little.

Xu Taiping squatted down again.

stabbed the old man in the chest with an iron ruler: "My purpose is to solve the case, not to kill people, you are now a wasted person, and whether you kill you or not has no effect on me, so whether you can live or not depends on me, but on you." ”

Speaking of this, he slowed down his voice: "You cooperate, let me be satisfied, and I will spare your life, how about it?" ”