Life and death book rumors

Tang Shengzhi has never been to Yangzhou, but he often hears that Yangzhou is a great place to visit and enjoy the scenery. Therefore, as soon as he arrived in Yangzhou City, he found a hotel to stay in early, and after everything was properly arranged, he changed into clean clothes and walked on the street with a long sword.

On the streets of Yangzhou after the snow in winter, although the weather is cold, the dripping water becomes ice, the houses are covered with snow, and there is a slight cold wind, but it is still people and cars, stalls are lined up, shouting and shouting constantly, and it is very lively.

Tang Shengzhi walked all the way, walked around and looked, did not feel empty in the stomach, was looking for a good hotel to fill it, looked up, saw that there was a red brick and green tile at the bend of the street in front of him, carved beams and painted columns, the two-story pavilion of the eaves and the wall, a big plaque was hung upstairs, and the words "Tianyi Pavilion" were vaguely visible in the big book above.

Tang Shengzhi patted his head and smiled, what do you really want, I am so lucky. Yes, listen to the eldest brother, the best hotel in Yangzhou is this Tianyi Pavilion, the hotel decoration is exquisite, the wine and food are authentic, the color and fragrance are complete, the accompaniment of the beautiful national color and natural fragrance, everything is impeccable, it is the real Huaiyang cuisine of the whole world. It seems that his mouth is not bad, and he is at peace when he comes.

Tang Shengzhi stretched out his hand and touched the silver in his arms, so he strode forward and stepped into Tianyi Pavilion with his sword.

There was already a little two leading the way, and he had to go upstairs.

Tang Shengzhi saw that there were already several tables of guests in the hall, and he saw that there was a person in the brocade clothes who was wearing an old gray robe, which was very incongruous, this person looked like he was forty or fifty years old, with sword eyebrows and square mouth, and was leisurely drinking and eating alone. This person stared in all directions, listened in all directions, and placed a black sharkskin sheath gold waist knife on the table, and a large red brocade burden next to it. His clothes are so plain, his weapons are so flamboyant, and his wraps are so gorgeous, he is by no means a mediocre and lonely person; Tang Shengzhi can't help but take a few more glances at this person.

Tang Shengzhi has been to the Central Plains, and he doesn't know that this person is the seven gates of the imperial court, Lin Mushan, a famous iron hand in the rivers and lakes.

Tang Shengzhi was not a person who liked to cause trouble, so he chose a table close to the window, put the sword on the table, and moved the stool to sit down.

Xiao Er brewed a cup of high-grade Biluo spring tea in the morning, stood with a smile on the side, nodded and said, "This master, what do you use?"

Tang Shengzhi took out a small ingot of broken silver from his bosom and pushed it on the table in front of Xiao Er, took a sip of tea, and said with a smile: "No, little second brother, I came to Yangzhou for the first time, and I came to Baodian for the first time, I don't know how the food and wine in Baodian are." In this way, I asked the second brother to choose four hot dishes and four cold dishes, plus two pots of high-quality liquor. This bit of silver invited the second brother to laugh. ”

When the shopkeeper heard this, he smiled a little wider, picked up the silver into his arms, and said happily: "Thank you for the reward, the villain will carefully pick the wine and food to pack the uncle's opinions; ”

Tang Shengzhi pointed to the window behind him and said with a smile: "But I don't know if this window can be opened, I want to see the scenery outside." ”

Xiao Er hesitated for a moment, looked back at the other drinkers in the hall, or immediately stepped forward to roll up the curtain, pushed open a window, and smiled sideways: "There is a river below, if it is in spring and summer, the guests will grab your table; Xiao Er smiled and bowed back.

Tang Shengzhi walked to the window with tea and looked out of thin air:

Outside the window, you can see the beautiful scenery wrapped in white. Your Excellency Lou was originally a lake and river, the river was frozen and covered with thick white snow, like a flat river; under the gray sky, a few small birds were flying in the ice and snow to feed; in the distance, on the river, there were actually two or three small boats fishing in the river, and a wisp of cooking smoke rose from the boat. This kind of idle fishing in the snow is elegant, which is different from the leisurely and comfortable in the lofty mountains and mountains of Sichuan. Since ancient times, there have been many leisure feelings in the south of the Yangtze River, and there are so many delicate rivers and mountains, so that a comfortable life is fascinating; Tang Shengzhi has a lot of feelings, and said casually: "Thousands of mountains and birds fly away, and only then do people disappear." Lonely boat, fishing alone in the cold river and snow. Clever and high!"

"Hey, this benevolent brother is really good Yaxing, the cold snow day is actually intoxicated by the beautiful scenery outside the window, touching the scene, Jiang Xue of Liuliuzhou read it casually, teach me to wait for good life to envy, presumably he is also a master outside the world. A man behind him laughed heartily.

Tang Shengzhi hurriedly turned around and looked, and saw two young sons in brocade standing behind him, one red and one green, contrasting with each other, each carrying a long sword, hurriedly put down the teacup, hugged his fists and saw it, and said with a humble smile: "Tang Shengzhi, a native of Xiashu, people in the countryside don't understand life, and they haven't seen anything in the world, and they are lonely and unheard. Ask the two honorific names. ”

The two people on the opposite side glanced at the tattoo on the back of Tang Shengzhi's hand, their faces trembled, and they glanced at each other, and sweat was already oozing from their foreheads.

The young man in red returned the salute with his fists, pointed at the man in green, and said with a smile: "This is the young owner of Huide Villa in Hebei, and his surname is Yifan." He patted his chest and said: "In Xiafu's surname Ximen is Hongyun, and the three-eyed Guanyin Ximen Qingyuan is my father." ”

Tang Shengzhi knew the name of the Three-Eyed Guanyin Ximen Qingyuan, and he was also shocked in his heart, so he hurriedly gave a deep salute and said with a straight face: "Fortunately, fortunately, Tang is honored to meet the two brothers." If the two brothers don't dislike it, how about a few drinks together?"

Tang Shengzhi heard that Ximen Yuanqing was very arrogant, both righteous and evil, and rarely interacted with people, and the people who came were his sons who could not afford to be offended in every way.

Bo Xi saw that Tang Shengzhi was so respectful to him, his face was greatly relaxed, the atmosphere was much more cheerful, and the two were busy returning the salute. Bo Yifan said with a smile: "No, Brother Tang, the two of us have this intention, then it is better to be respectful than to obey fate." ”

Tang Shengzhi stretched out his hand to invite the two of them to take a seat, and asked Xiao Er to add a cup of chopsticks, wine and food, and the three of them ate and drank.

Tang Shengzhi got up and poured wine to the three of them, raised his glass and said: "When I first arrived in the Central Plains, I didn't know the local customs and customs, so it was inevitable that there would be shortcomings; Tang did it first as a respect, please drink this cup together. ”

The three of them drank together.

Ximen Hongyun said with a smile: "Brother Tang has seen the outside, where do people who practice martial arts have so many etiquette rules? ”

Bo Yifan stood up beside him and poured wine while smiling: "That's it, are the heroes of the world a family?" Brother Tang is from Sichuan, Tang Shengyi, the head of the Tang Sect, must have heard of it? Tang is a first-class martial arts master in the world!" Bo Yifan glanced at the tattoo on the back of Tang Shengzhi's hand, and then raised his head and glanced at Ximen Hongyun.

Tang Shengzhi hurriedly stood up and saluted again and again, and said with a smile: "Don't hide it from the two brothers, Tang Shengyi is the eldest brother, a remote person, not enough to worry about, the two brothers are concerned about it, thank you very much." ”

Bo Yifan raised his glass and glanced at Ximen Hongyun, nodded, and said with a smile: "It turned out that the second master of the Tang Sect was here, and Brother Ximen was indeed very lazy, so he should be willing to punish a cup." Who in the world doesn't know that the Tang Sect lives in the southwest and the rivers and lakes of Weizhen? Who else doesn't know that Brother Zun transports poison and detoxification and is proud of the rivers and lakes, and the Tang Gate Sword is unique in its own right?

The two of them got up and drank together.

Tang Shengzhi didn't speak much, smiled shyly, glanced at his tattoo, there was no smugness on his face, and said with a humble smile: "A small family, living on the border, how to worry about self-defense tricks that don't enter the stream, it's really not worth mentioning." What the two brothers Tai Mo want to make fun of! I am very puzzled, the two brothers are also the same as below, it is precisely because they came to Yangzhou to congratulate Qiu Lao Hero on his birthday?"

Bo Yifan nodded, slightly disappointed: "Exactly, it's okay not to mention this matter, and now I feel very uncomfortable when I talk about it." Bo Yifan's face was sad, and his mood changed instantly.

Ximen Hongyun ate a bite of food, talked and laughed freely: "Originally, there was nothing, Brother Bo was really worried." As Brother Tang said, the two of us also came to Yangzhou to congratulate the old hero of Longqiu Zhuang Qiu on his birthday, and he has come to Yangzhou for three days, which is not far from the birthday of the owner of Qiu Zhuang and four days to think about taking advantage of this gap The two of us went out to visit together, but unexpectedly encountered an irritable thing, which was quite congested, and this was not specially out to find a place to relieve boredom and drink. ”

Tang Shengzhi didn't understand very much, and he didn't know what to say, so he had to smile awkwardly.

Ximen Hongyun said with a smile: "I heard that someone in the Chongya Academy outside the west gate of Yangzhou City discarded a package, saying that there was a book and two black and white iron plates inside, which were very mysterious. Originally, it was indeed common for pedestrians to lose things, but someone had to say that it was the reappearance of the book of life and death! This made Yangzhou City all kinds of right and wrong in an instant. ”

"Book of Life and Death, do you mean the Book of Life and Death of the Ten Palaces of Yama in the rumors of the rivers and lakes?" Tang Shengzhi said with a wide range of eyes. This is the second time that Tang Shengzhi has heard the book of life and death in just one day, and he wonders how this land south of the Yangtze River is so unpeaceful.

Ximen Hongyun sighed and said: "Exactly, Brother Tang is not from the Central Plains, he must not know that there was a bloody case of life and death in Yangzhou last month, and more than 20 members of Qiu Yuanze's family in Chengde Villa were killed." The case has not yet been clarified, and at present, people inside and outside Yangzhou are uncertain. Fortunately, we have never done anything despicable, and we don't have to worry if the cult will not come to our door for no reason. It's just that I don't know who will suffer again this time!"

Ximen Hongyun paused, spread his hands, and said: "But when the two of us drank some wine yesterday, and went to see what was going on with the spirit of the wine, we heard that the book of life and death was missing;

Tang Shengzhi nodded and said: "I also heard in Sichuan that this book of life and death has appeared in the rivers and lakes more than ten times, and many bloody cases have been done. There is a rumor that once the book of life and death appears, it will take a life; once the book of life and death arrives, the gods will not escape; and the name of the book of life and death, the gods will not take care of it. I wonder if that's the case?"

Ximen Hongyun looked solemn and said, "Brother Tang's words are good. These are all rumors, no one has really seen them, or perhaps the people who have seen them have already made people die. That's why Brother Bo and I didn't believe the rumors and went to see it through wine, but we didn't see it!

Tang Shengzhi said with a smile: "Such an ominous thing, ordinary people are still afraid to avoid, how can it not be seen? ”

Ximen Hongyun took a sip of wine and said, "What Brother Tang said is also exactly what I want. At that time, the master of the courtyard heard that it was a book of life and death in the martial arts, and urgently ordered the door to take it and put it back to the place where it was found, and did not allow everyone to watch, waiting for it to fend for itself. There are many people on the rivers and lakes who go to watch, but no one dares to look at it, and they are afraid of catching fire. I don't want to be at night, but Bozi is gone. ”

Tang Shengzhi poured wine to the three of them, raised his glass and said: "The two brothers are worried about it, in the next view, this matter is ten ** is human right and wrong, although he has lived in the border for a long time, but he also heard that life and death have always appeared in the martial arts colleagues, and the thin cards have never appeared together, they are all thin cards before and after, as if they have become a phenomenon." Is there a dragon and a crouching tiger hidden in this small academy? Or is there a martial arts master hiding in it? This thin card seems to be the same as the rules, different from the past. ”

Bo Yifan was speechless when he heard this, and he was stunned.

Ximen Hongyun said with a smile: "What Brother Tang said is not unreasonable. My father also carefully examined and visited, saying that the book of life and death first appeared about twenty-one years ago, that is, when Yue Feiyue's predecessor was killed in the Fengbo Pavilion. Legend has it that it was Grandpa Yue's heroes who inquired into the place where Grandpa Yue was imprisoned, and wanted to take advantage of the darkness to rob him. On the morning when everyone was about to start, everyone saw in the room a thin piece of paper with the names of more than a dozen heroes who participated in the robbery, no more, no less, and everyone did not care; unexpectedly, all of them died in the evening, all of them died from sword wounds and palm wounds; only three iron medals, one silver and two bronze, were found at the scene, and this was the first time that life and death books appeared in the rivers and lakes. In the past 20 years, Life and Death Bo has appeared more than a dozen times, and each time he appears, a current martial arts master has been killed, but he has never connected with others and caused damage to property; about three years ago, Life and Death Bo has become more and more vicious, and every time he appears, he will destroy the whole family and plunder the family property, and the people killed are no longer limited to martial arts colleagues, but officials and businessmen are all there; for this reason, the imperial court has many investigations, but there is no result. In addition, my father also summed up a few experiences. ”

Ximen Hongyun paused slightly, turned his head to look left and right, took a sip of wine and said, "My father summed it up:

First, the life and death book must always be delivered in the afternoon, and it seems that it is intended to give the victim a night hour to choose, as if there is some room for relaxation between the two parties, and the life and death book does not want to kill them all;

Second, the assassination took place before the next day was dawn, and the life and death book was not seen afterwards, and the iron plate was always left at the scene to show warning, and the material and number of the iron plate seemed to imply the number and rank of the murderer;

Third, the assassin often only uses his sword and palm when he strikes, and there is never any trace of other blades on the scene; the correctness of his means seems to indicate that this life and death book is not composed of any side door, but by the disciples of the major famous families in the Central Plains;

Fourth, none of the victims has ever thought of hiding and escaping, and no one has ever been able to escape, but this is the most incomprehensible point; could it be that life and death have long been a choice or a duel between the two sides? Is it the best way to solve the problem between each other? This all reveals the difference and evil of life and death. My father said that maybe this is the reason why Life and Death Bo has been crisscrossing the rivers and lakes for decades and no one knows its roots, and the reason why Life and Death Bo has caused an uproar in the rivers and lakes!"

Tang Shengzhi did not answer, but said in his heart: There are many clueless things on the rivers and lakes, fame, power, money, beauty, conspiracy, and bloody revenge, which have been like this for many years; Since ancient times, there have been many rights and wrongs in the rivers and lakes, but the people who fished in the river outside the window lived comfortably! Fortunately, my Tang Sect has no gaps in the rivers and lakes, has no intention of getting ahead, and is left and right, so I am fortunate to have a long-term existence and a moment of comfort.

Sitting down, Tang Shengzhi asked Xiao Er to bring three pots of wine, and got up to serve everyone.

Tang Shengzhi raised his glass and smiled, and said: "Brother Simon, Brother Bo, whether he lives or dies, he thinks that things in the world have cause and effect and pay attention to retribution, and we are powerless; ”

Bo Yifan exhaled, slapped the table and responded loudly: "That's it, take care of the damn Chongya Academy, blame us for the birds, come, do it!"

Bo Yifan took one sip, got up and grabbed the wine jug, looked at Ximen Hongyun, and urged: "Brother Ximen, do it quickly, dry it quickly, don't look for that unwarranted bad luck!"

Ximen Hongyun smiled, frowned and sighed: "Yes, God can no longer blame us for having no conscience, ignore it, that is because you don't give us a chance, empty ambition." Okay, according to what the two of you said, let's toast three times in a row! It's rare that Brother Tang is an understanding person!"

"Fart, it stinks, it stinks!" a man laughed and scolded.

The three of them raised their heads, turned around, looked around at everyone, and saw nothing abnormal, but when they turned around, they saw that there was an extra person beside them.

This person was dressed in white and gray clothes, with a cloth bag on his shoulders, gray hair, and was gobbling up, his mouth was snorting, and his hair was hanging down, so that he could not see his face, but he could still see that he was burly.

The three of them were shocked, facing each other, puzzled, and didn't know what to do.

I heard the man's mouth slurred and scolded: "You little poisonous worm, there are many things that the world doesn't know, and you don't know what kind of predecessors you have?" and wait for the little chicken, the hair is all grown, the old chicken is finally willing to let you go out and walk, and you don't go to me first to honor and respect, you should be punished." Before he finished speaking, he saw this man come out with both hands.

The three of them saw a flower in front of them, and the wine glass in their hands was taken away.

Among the three cups, only Ximen Hongyun had wine in the cup, the man raised his neck and drank it dry, abandoned the cup on the table, leaned on the messy hair on his face, reached out to pick up a piece of beef from the table and stuffed it in his mouth, and scolded: "Look at it, I am very stunned, I don't want to pour wine for the old man quickly, I am not looking for a fight!"

The three of them couldn't help but be overjoyed when they saw his dignity, and they were about to get up to pay respects.

The person who came shook his shoulders, pinched each of the three people's faces with a pair of oily bearded hands, raised his head and laughed, and said happily: "It's free, it's all free, this is not a New Year's holiday, a birthday, a courtesy!"