One.

Yishui is as chaotic as the Yellow River. Wang Yi walked along the riverside, surging water, turbulent waves, down the river, and did not know how deep the river could be. On the way home, Wang Yi once passed by Yishui, Hebei, where the river water was as turbid as this.

The wind is sluggish and the water is cold.

The strong man is gone, and he will never return.

This is a ballad once sung by Jing Ke, who assassinated the King of Qin.

Although Wang Yi has not read any books, the water of the Yi River has also aroused his memory of the martyrs. Wang Yi walked along the river humming a ballad, and the wharf was not far from him. Boats sailing between the two sides of the river are moored there, and the surrounding area is full of people and vendors selling tea and pastries.

"I need to buy some pastries for the third and fourth children. ”

Wang Yi has three younger siblings, the second is the younger sister Wang Ling, the third is the younger brother Wang San, and the fourth is the youngest brother Wang Mo. Wang Yi's father was also a poor farmer, and he didn't read any books, so naturally he couldn't come up with a good name. The fourth is called Wang Mo instead of Wang Si, because the fourth is a homonym for "death", which is unlucky. The villagers often made fun of Wang Yi's father, saying that if he had an eighth child, would he be named "Wang Ba".

Wang Yi bought some pastries from the vendor and two bottles of wine for his father. In Yunnan, Wang Yi sold an opal, and in addition to the entanglement on the road, there was still a lot of money left. An opal is worth 100 taels of gold and 2,000 taels of silver. And that's only a tenth of its regular price. In order to make a secret transaction, Wang Yi had to reduce the price. After all, it's too eye-catching for a nobody to sell gems worth thousands of dollars.

"Now I can finally turn over. ”

Wang Yi wanted to use the remaining money to buy some land and poultry, and a variety of grains. Although I don't know what the market is, plus the four opals on his body that have not yet been sold, it is enough to buy the entire Ge Xun store. However, he was not so greedy, as long as he did not worry about food and clothing, he was satisfied. Wang Yi suddenly noticed that the wine vendor looked abnormal. Although eight years had passed, Wang Yi vaguely recognized the vendor, but the vendor pretended not to know him.

"Has I changed so much?"

Wang Yi muttered in his heart, but he didn't take the initiative to talk to the vendor.

The peddler handed the wine to Wang Yi. He took the wine and hurried home, trying to get home before dark. As a result, he couldn't hear the hawkers behind him.

The pastry vendor muttered to himself.

"I'm afraid no one will be blessed with this pastry. ”

The liquor vendor continued.

"This wine is always needed. ”

"I'm afraid more is needed. ”

An old man sat on a bench and drank wine, shook his head habitually, and added. Several old men in the same group also nodded in agreement. At this moment, several young people were sitting under the tree drinking, and one of them stood up younger. The old man didn't see it, and even if he did, he wouldn't think much about it.

The young man crossed the dirt road that ran through the sorghum fields and walked straight to the neighboring village. The sorghum fields are as endless as the sea, and under the clear blue sky, they are blown by a gentle breeze. As far as the eye can see, there is not a single figure in this ten miles radius. This is the autumn scene that can be seen everywhere in Shandong.

The land is barren and the rivers are muddy, and it is not a habitable land. Drought in spring and summer, and freezing winds and snow in winter. The environment was harsh, like a penal colony for prisoners.

The so-called one side of the water and soil to support one side. In such an environment, the people of Jiangzhou are all rough and rough, and there are many exiled prisoners, people who have absconded to commit crimes, and their descendants living here. The people here can solve it with their hands, never solve it with their mouths, no matter how small things are, they don't fight hard, and they will never give up. Even if the mighty dart master passes by here, he must cover his edge, lower the dart flag, and pass by in a low-key manner, otherwise he may become a ghost under the knife of the people of Jiangzhou at any time.

Looking at the thirteen provinces in the north and south of the world and the forty-nine states in the Central Plains, I am afraid that the only one that can be compared with this Jiangzhou is Foshan, Guangdong.

Of course, rough people have their own advantages in being rough. Although the people of Jiangzhou treat people indifferently and rudely, once they have a heart-to-heart, they are extremely affectionate and righteous.

Sun Fuzi is one of them. His ancestors had absconded for sin, and he was now in his fourth generation. This kind of thing is very common in Jiangzhou, and people don't need to hide it. Of course, this is not something to be proud of.

When he was young, he had been wandering and did not return to his hometown until he was not confused. When he returned to Jiangzhou, he had an extra scar on his face and three fingers. Although people are puzzled, they don't dare to ask in detail, so no one knows what he has experienced outside in the past few years. He is known only in terms of conduct, and his ferocity is no less than that of his ancestors. When he returned to his hometown, the first thing he did was to find his uncle and ask for his property. It turned out that his uncle had usurped the inheritance left by his father to his grandson. In the face of the menacing grandson, the uncle not only refused to return it, but also sent the strong men of the family to the grandson. The strong man is tall and large, armed with a murder weapon.

Master Sun brought back two people from abroad, one of whom was a thin old man. However, when the old man broke the wrists of eight strong men, no one laughed at him for being thin.

The uncle couldn't make a plan and made another plan, so he invited a famous underworld master from the rivers and lakes. This is worse than his appropriation of his nephew's property. Therefore, when Master Sun beat the master of the underworld to his knees and begged for mercy, even if Master Sun killed his uncle on the spot, people would not be surprised.

However, Sun Fuzi did not do so. After snatching back his rightful possessions, he drove his uncle to a foreign land, and that's it. Of course, he was not revered by the locals entirely because of this.

A month later, he took his uncle, who had been left in the country, and not only returned all his property, but also gave him interest so that he could continue to live there.

"I just want everyone to know that these are the possessions I deserve. ”

After this incident, he was regarded as a true man by the villagers, and people have called him the eldest brother ever since. As the years passed, the "eldest brother" had become a silver-haired "master". During this period, he never did anything that violated the morality of grace and righteousness, nor did he do anything mercenary. Therefore, although he did not find a position and was not a wealthy person, there was nothing he could not solve in Jiangzhou.

The young man walked into the courtyard of his grandson's house. At this time, it was almost dusk, and the sunset illuminated the sorghum fields red.

"Wang Yi is back. ”

The old man brought by Sun Fuzi is still thin and small. People call him "Stranger Ding Lao Er". The reason why he is the second child of Ding is because he claims to be the second son of the Ding family. And 30 years after he settled in Jiangzhou, he is still called a foreigner, because in this land, no matter how long he lives, a foreigner is always a foreigner.

Ding Lao Er rushed over when he heard the news, gave a few copper coins and sent away the young man who came to report the news. He walked into the study and continued to play the unfinished game of chess with Master Sun. At the moment, the two sides are engaged in a fierce battle in the lower left of the game. After careful consideration, Ding Lao Er took the lead and took the advantage. This made Sun Fuzi fall into a long period of thought. At this time, Ding Lao Er spoke.

"I heard that Wang Yi has returned. ”

Master Sun pretended not to hear and was silent. After a long while, he muttered.

"I'd like to see what kind of man he becomes. ”

"When he left here, he was already a man of great bones. After all, no one can easily give up their life, even for the sake of their family. ”

Master Sun nodded and shook his head again. He looked at the chessboard, as if wondering what to do next, and then continued.

"If he asks me for help, I won't turn it away. ”

Ding Lao Er was silent, thought for a moment, slowly shook his head, and said.

"It's hard to imagine him being able to ask you for help, and I bet he doesn't even know who his enemies are. ”

Master Sun couldn't help but smack his tongue. The first time Master Sun saw him was when Ding Lao Er lost his family due to gambling. The two met at that time, and they have been inseparable ever since, and now it has been thirty years. Ding Lao Er quit gambling, and it has also been 30 years, but he still talks about gambling, which is really helpless.

"If that's the case, it's not worth my help. ”

The meaning of Master Sun is obvious. If Wang Yi came to the door to ask for help, Sun Fuzi would not stand idly by, but if Wang Yi did not come to the door, Sun Fuzi would not intervene in this hatred. This is his consistent style, and it is also the principle of life that he has implemented for 70 years.

As it turned out, the liquor dealer's prophecy was wrong. Wang Yi didn't drink, just sat down on the ground. At his feet, what was supposed to be his home, a warm harbor where the family should live happily together, has now been burned to ashes by the fire.

The king sat there until the sun went down and rose again.

Two.

The morning dew exuded a biting chill, pulling Wang Yi back to reality.

"Who the hell is it, and why?"

Wang Yi thought about it all night, but still couldn't think of a reason. The ruins in front of me are obviously traces left by human arson, and the time should be three or four months ago. The burn marks on the earthen wall, which have not been wiped out under the blowing of the bitter wind in Jiangzhou, are the best evidence. The old bowls that remain in the ruins show that they were not moved spontaneously. Wang Yi's mother and sister are very simple people, even if they get rich overnight, they will not easily throw away any old furniture that can still be used.

Also, it was an arrow that Wang Yi found in the ruins. This arrow is as white as a wolf's tooth, the arrow is three-ridged, covered with small thorns, commonly known as the wolf's tooth arrow, and it is said that it is as sharp as a wolf's tooth.

Such a ferocious weapon is rarely seen in the Nanban, which is known for its barbarism. Wang Yi knew that this arrow must have come from the rivers and lakes.

Wang Yi shook his head.

"However, the Wang family has nothing to do with the rivers and lakes, how could they be poisoned by this?"

Wang Yi has also heard a little about the rumors about the rivers and lakes. The people of Jianghu have always regarded human life as a mustard, and it is not surprising that such weapons are used. However, what reason did they have to slaughter a few members of the Wang family overnight?

Wang Yi raised his head and stared blankly at the sky. The sun slowly rises and turns the entire sorghum field red.

Zhang Erlao has three sons under his knees, the eldest is named Zhang Da, and the third is Zhang Shao. The Zhang family was poor and had no extra land to give to their sons, so the sons still lived with their parents after they got married. Seeing that the mouth of food is increasing, but the land is not increasing at all, life becomes more and more embarrassing, and there is no sign of improvement. At this time, Zhang Shao seized an opportunity to improve the lives of the whole family.

Zhang Shao is the servant of Chen Laoliu, the housekeeper of Chenjiazhuang. On this day, Zhang Shao excitedly found his eldest brother and said that he had the opportunity to make a lot of money. According to Zhang Shao, things are not difficult to do, but they have to betray their conscience.

Zhang Da thought for a long time, and finally nodded in agreement. Zhang Da, who betrayed his conscience, got a huge sum of money on the same day. For people at the bottom of society, food and clothing are more important than anything else. The so-called warehouse is honest and knows etiquette, and knows honor and disgrace when food and clothing are sufficient. Food and clothing have not yet been resolved, so how can we talk about conscience? Zhang Da has taken people's money, so naturally he wants to share people's worries. And the arrival of Wang Yi made Zhang Da re-examine his conscience.

Wang Yi stood at the door and handed the pastries and wine he bought yesterday to Zhang Da.

"It's just a gift, it's not a tribute, but I hope to accept it with a smile. ”

"Why are you so polite...... Thank you. ”

The Central Plains society pays attention to courtesy and exchanges, and Jiangzhou is naturally no exception. Faced with Wang Yi's gift, Zhang Da couldn't refuse, so he reluctantly accepted it. After a while, Zhang Da barely squeezed out a smile and said.

"I heard that you are on your way to military service, and it is a great blessing to be able to come back safely. ”

"Yes, it's already a miracle that I'm alive. ”

"Yes, I'm glad to see you alive. ”

Zhang Da nodded, but he couldn't help but think in his heart that for some people, it was not a good thing for Wang Yi to come back alive. Perhaps, for himself.

"Home ......!"

"The family ...... business!"

Both of them spoke at the same time and closed their mouths at the same time. After a moment of silence, Zhang Da coughed lightly a few times and spoke first.

"Family affairs, please also mourn and change. It's all those hateful guys......!"

They came and went without a trace, no one could see their faces, and no one knew where they lived. On the day they arrived, the sound of horses' hooves seemed to be heard in the distance in the village, but it was soon overwhelmed by the summer downpour, and even the horses' hoof prints were washed away by the rain, leaving only a pile of ruins and five unchilled corpses.

Afterwards, several neighbors came to collect the body, cremated the bones that had not been burned, and placed the ashes in a nearby temple. No one has ever thought of suing the officials, so who cares about the lives of these rural villagers? Those who fail to sue the officials will be beaten up by the government, and no one wants to take this risk.

The temple where the ashes are housed is managed by only an elderly monk. As the years passed, the temple gradually fell into disrepair, the ashes left behind by the burning paper drifted in the wind, and the door of the Buddhist shrine where the ashes were kept was dilapidated and swayed in the wind. Here, Wang Yi quietly listened to Zhang Da finish the whole thing, without interrupting or asking questions. After listening, he knelt in front of his family's ashes and kowtowed a few times, then turned to Zhang Da to express his gratitude.

After that, Wang Yi raised his head, looked at his wide eyes, and asked word by word.

"That's all for the story, now tell me the truth!"

The sudden question surprised Zhang Dada, and he was so shocked that he couldn't speak. He swallowed nervously, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. He was worried that his weakness would be seen by the king, but he was powerless to hide it at the moment. He had nothing else to do but harden his mouth to the end.

"You may have misunderstood ......!"

Zhang Da looked at Wang Yi's eyes, and those eyes seemed to have insight into everything, which made Zhang Da have to tell the truth.

"My brother is doing chores at Chen Lao Liu's house......!"

Chen Laoliu and the Wang family are in the same suburbs of Gezhudian, but their living conditions are very different. Chen's house is surrounded by dozens of leafy trees and is surrounded by a natural windbreak. Passing through the windbreak, there is a three-foot-high fence. The buildings within the walls are even more extravagant, especially the dragon carved on the eaves, with flying scales and claws, and flying whiskers, as if they are going to fly into the air, which is not magnificent.

Chen Lao has been nearly sixty years old, and he has a rich family background, so he has already resigned from the position of housekeeper of Chenjiazhuang and is living at home. And the vacancy of the position was naturally filled by his son, who continued to do the thing of slapping horses with that three-inch tongue for his father.

Wang Yi sat on a branch deep in the windbreak of Chen Laoliu's house, quietly observing every move inside. Gradually, twilight fell, and the silver moonlight shone on the earth. Wang Yi had been sitting here for two hours. At this time, Wang Yi had roughly guessed the ins and outs of the matter, but in order to hide people's eyes, he pretended not to know, ran all over the streets and alleys, searched around for news of the killer, and went to the wine shop to make a drunken appearance before quietly touching here.

The reason why he did this was to make Chen Laoliu relax his vigilance, and secondly, to protect Zhang Da from being implicated. Of course, once the incident happens, they will always do everything possible to find out the leaker. What Wang Yi can do is to minimize Zhang Da's suspicion. Even if he can't completely get rid of Zhang Da's suspicion, Wang Yi can be regarded as benevolent and righteous.

As the night wore on, the moonlight shone through the branches. Wang Yi slowly got up and took out a knife from his carry-on luggage. This is a broad knife he brought from Yunnan. The long journey from Yunnan to Jiangzhou made him prepare this knife for self-defense, and he has kept it to this day.

Wang Yi jumped off a tree branch with a knife and followed the reflection of the house to the backyard. He knew that Chen Lao Liu's room was there. He found Chen Lao Liu, firstly to punish him for not keeping his promise, and secondly, to find out more news.

However, climbing over a three-foot-high fence is not an easy task. Although Wang Yi has experienced a hundred battles, he has never learned the art of climbing over the wall. Thankfully, he had already figured out what to do.

He took out two branches that he had prepared in advance, tied one end of the branch, and used the other short branch to connect the two long branches together to make a simple ladder. He leaned the ladder against the wall, climbed it slowly, and lowered the ladder to the other end of the wall, ready to escape.

The night was dark, and it was silent, not a sound, not a single light. Wang Yi hid in the corner, quietly recalling all the details that Zhang Da had told him about the layout of the house. Finally, he knew where Chen Lao Liu's room was, so he walked straight over. Wang Yi stood in the doorway and heard snoring coming from inside. He hesitated, but decided to go inside and find out.

He pulled the door slightly, and found that it was latched. He reached through the crack in the door and picked the latch.

There was a thud, and the latch fell. Wang Yi quickly kicked in the door and ran to the bed.

"Who? Who ......?"

The people on the bed were about to get up, but Wang Yiyi put a knife on his neck.

"What are you?"

Chen Lao Liu's mouth kept muttering, but his voice was so small that only Wang Yi beside him could hear it. Obviously, Chen Lao Liu was frightened by the sharp blade in front of him.

"I'm Wang Yi, do you still remember me?"

"Wang, Wangyi, I heard that you have returned from your military service, but what are you doing here?"

Wang Yiyi grabbed Chen Laoliu's gray hair and looked at him with four eyes. He increased the force in his hand, leaving a blood-colored red mark on Chen Lao Liu's neck. Wang Yi glared at him, his eyes full of murderous energy.

"I don't have time to talk nonsense with you. Why did you only give 10 taels of silver for the 20 taels you had promised? Why did you send someone to kill my family and burn down my house? Also, what was the name of the person who killed my whole family?" Chen Lao Liu kept rolling his eyes, thinking about how to deal with the uninvited guest in front of him. He is worthy of being cunning and cunning, and at this juncture, he can still calmly think about what answer is best for himself.

Of course, Wang Yi is not a vegetarian either. He saw through Chen Laoliu's trick, dragged him off the bed, stuffed the handle of the knife into his mouth, and said indignantly.

"After so many years as a dog in Chenjiazhuang, I know you won't be obedient. Even if you are honest, I can't guarantee that I will let you go. But I'm telling you, even if you don't want to, I have a way of getting you to speak. If you understand and know what to do, nod!"

After speaking, Wang grabbed Chen Laoliu's arm one by one and pulled it back, and his arm was dislocated. This trick was learned by Wang Yi in Nanban with a comrade-in-arms who had some three-legged cat kung fu. A skilled person can complete this action in an instant without the other person feeling pain. Of course, the current Wang Yi is not so skilled, and he does not need to be so skilled. He couldn't wait to eat Chen Lao Liu alive, how could he care if he was in pain.

This tugging instantly made Chen Laoliu twitch in pain. His eyes widened, and the balls of his eyes were about to roll down from their sockets. The mouth stuffed with the handle of the knife grew larger, but it could not scream. He gasped incessantly, enduring extreme physical pain.

However, the pain has only just begun. Wang Yi pushed Chen Laoliu, who was in pain and had no power to fight back, to the ground, spread his hands, and smashed his fingers with the hilt of the knife.

Chen Laoliu, who was pushed to the ground, turned his head with all his might, trying to see what Wang Yi wanted to do. After turning his head with difficulty, the scene in front of him made Chen Lao Liu fall into even greater fear.

Before Wang Yi made a move, Chen Lao Liu had already begun to nod vigorously. However, Wang Yi ignored it. With a loud bang, the handle of the knife accurately smashed on Chen Laoliu's fingers, and then there was a second loud bang. The so-called ten fingers are connected to the heart. This cone pain soon made Chen Laoliu foam at the mouth, lose consciousness and faint, and once again wake up from the pain. When he came back to his senses, Wang Yi's hand was already raised high, ready to smash the second finger to pieces.

Chen Lao Liu struggled hard, nodding desperately, and his weak neck was about to be broken by him. However, he couldn't care so much. As long as Wang Yi can stop, he is willing to do whatever he wants.

Wang Yi glanced at Chen Laoliu, and his raised hand stopped in mid-air.

"Can't stand it so soon? Looks like you're just that. You are so cunning and cunning, I don't believe you can tell the truth again!"

As soon as these words came out, Chen Lao Liu began to shake his head desperately. As soon as the king stopped, he was willing to tell the truth immediately. At this moment, how he hoped that Wang Yi could give him this opportunity.

Chen Laoliu, whose mouth was gagged by the handle of the knife, couldn't speak, so he could only shake his head desperately and nod desperately. He wanted to tell Wang Yi that he was willing to tell the truth, but he was afraid that Wang Yi would be wrong, so he didn't know whether he should nod or shake his head, so he simply stared at Wang Yi with wide eyes, so anxious that tears were about to flow out. In fact, he was already in tears.

Only then did Wang Yi be sure that Chen Lao Liu would not dare to play tricks and was willing to tell the truth of the facts. For a man, especially a man like Chen Laoliu, who is accustomed to giving orders, it is not easy to lie with tears.

"Let's tell me first, why did the promised twenty taels of silver become ten taels?"

Chen Lao Liu gasped, endured the pain in his heart, and replied in a low voice.

"It's all my fault, you kill me. ”

Wang Yi frowned, hooked his hand and instructed Chen Lao Liu to look at him, and said.

"I warn you, don't answer the wrong questions. Everyone in the world knows that it's your fault, and everyone in the world knows that you don't really want to die. I only listen to the truth. If you really want to die, I will fulfill you, and I will send you to the western heavens, how about it?"

"No, please, spare me!"

At this time, Chen Lao Liu had no regard for his dignity at all. Right now, even begging for mercy has become a luxury for him. He began to tell the truth one by one.