Chapter 408: Zhongyuan Disturbance (I)

July 15th is the Zhongyuan Festival, commonly known as the "Ghost Festival".

"Bang, bang, bang!"

As daybreak approached, someone suddenly knocked on Liu Xunyi's door.

"Who?"

"Shang Clan leader Ling Qing wants to see Hei Zhishan!"

"squeak!"

With a slight sound, the door opened. Seeing Ling Qing in a hurry, the sleepy Liu Xunyi frowned and asked suspiciously, "What's the matter?"

"Reporting to Hei Zhishan, a disciple of the Shang Sect just found a carriage of unknown origin in the back alley."

Back Alley refers to a dark alley outside the back door of the Xianwang Mansion. Because it is located in a remote area and is sparsely populated on weekdays, the Xianwang Mansion does not send people to guard it day and night, but only sends people to patrol once in the morning, noon and evening every day.

"Carriage?" Liu Xunyi was confused and asked blankly, "What carriage?"

"Actually, there is nothing wrong with the carriage, but the things on the carriage are very strange." Ling Qing explained, "It is... is..." He hesitated for a long time and was unable to say anything further.

"What is it?"

Seeing Liu Xunyi's impatience, Ling Qing simply changed the topic and said, "I can't explain it clearly. Hei Zhishan, just follow me and you will know it after a glance."

Full of curiosity, Liu Xunyi came to the back alley and saw a carriage parked in the alley. The things on the carriage were ten feet long and one foot wide, quite large, but they were tightly covered with red silk, and the red silk was tightly tied with iron chains. Ordinary people could not untie it at all, nor could they lift the red silk to check the things inside.

At this time, a seal with black characters on a red background was hung on the iron chain, with six big characters written on it: "Respectfully accepted by the wise king of the north."

Upon seeing this object, Liu Xunyi was stunned and asked in surprise: "What is this?"

Ling Qing smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "I don't know. It was like this when I found it. There was no trace of anyone. I guess someone must have put it here last night."

Liu Xunyi thought for a moment, walked forward to take a closer look, sniffed cautiously, and then gently patted it a few times with his hands. Immediately, a series of dull "bang bang bang" sounds came from the red silk.

"It seems to be wood." Liu Xunyi murmured, "There is no smell of saltpeter or sulfur."

"The meaning of the black fan is..."

"Send someone to seal off the back alley to prevent any fraud." Liu Xunyi ordered, "I will report to the mansion master and ask him to make the decision."

"As ordered!"

Half an hour later, Luo Tianjin, who arrived late, slowly walked out of the back door accompanied by Xie Xuan, Jiang Yiwei and others.

"Is this it? It's so mysterious and deliberately mysterious." Luo Tianjin looked at the carriage calmly and whispered, "Xun Yi, open the chain and see what's inside?"

"Yes."

Liu Xunyi pushed the sword out of its sheath, paused, and soared into the sky.

In mid-air, he swung his sword several times, causing the Wuji Sword to collide fiercely with the iron chain, making a series of "clang clang" sounds. In an instant, the chain broke apart and scattered all over the ground with a "clatter".

Seeing this, Ling Qing and Xu Heng stepped forward quickly, each grabbing one corner and pulling downwards at the same time. The huge red silk slid down, and a huge monster as black as ink gradually appeared in front of everyone.

"hiss!"

Everyone looked at it intently and took a deep breath at the same time. On the carriage was a cold coffin. On the coffin was a tablet and a set of shrouds.

However, the most unexpected thing was that on the black tablet, there were five large golden characters written horizontally and vertically: "Luo Hongxuan's Seat".

"This……"

When everyone saw this thing, they were all horrified and filled with astonishment.

"Liu Xunyi, you bastard! How dare you disturb the mansion master with these messy things? What crime should you be punished for?"

Jiang Yiwei's angry shout made Liu Xunyi's head go blank, and the blood in his body seemed to turn cold in an instant.

The gentle look on Luo Tianjin's face gradually faded, replaced by an indescribable anger.

"Palace Master, I..."

Before Liu Xunyi could open her mouth to explain, Luo Tianjin, with a gloomy face, suddenly interrupted and asked, "Who sent it?"

"This... I don't know." Liu Xunyi answered reluctantly.

"When did it appear?" Luo Tianjin stared at the coffin without blinking, his tone frighteningly gloomy.

Liu Xunyi felt extremely bitter, but he dared not not answer, so he could only bite the bullet and reply: "I... don't know either..."

"I don't know this! I don't know that! What do you use this black fan for?"

Before he finished speaking, Luo Tianjin suddenly shouted loudly, which frightened everyone present and made them kneel on the ground.

Liu Xunyi was trembling all over, sweating profusely, kneeling on the ground, holding his breath, covering his face with pale face, not daring to look directly into Luo Tianjin's murderous eyes.

"Palace Lord, calm down!" Xie Xuan took the opportunity to persuade him, "This thing came in a strange way, and you can't blame Liu Xunyi and the others entirely."

"Whoever cursed Xuan'er in such a vicious way, I will make sure he dies a miserable death!" Luo Tianjin's voice trembled due to his inner anger. "Liu Xunyi, I don't care what method you use, you have one day to find the culprit! Otherwise, this coffin will be your final resting place." "Yes..."

Beads of sweat the size of beans covered Liu Xunyi's forehead. Faced with this unexpected disaster, he truly felt what it meant to be "a dumb person eating bitter herbs, unable to express his pain"?
"go!"

Luo Tianjin was furious and left in a huff, leaving everyone in shock, kneeling on the ground, unable to recover for a long time.

……

At noon, Ling Qing, following Liu Xunyi's orders, led his disciples to rush to the four gates of Luoyang City and brought all the guard commanders back to Prince Xian's Palace.

In the East Hall, four city soldiers stood trembling in front of Liu Xunyi, explaining in unison: "Master Liu, no one has transported this kind of coffin into the city in the past month. Unless... they didn't go through the city gate, but flew in from the sky..."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Xu Heng shouted, "Answer whatever Hei Zhishan asks you. Don't say a single extra word!"

"That's right! That's right!" The oldest soldier in the city quickly agreed, "Master Liu, you know our rules. If someone really transports such a large object into the city, we can't help but collect city taxes, and we can't help but open the coffin for inspection. We have just carefully asked all the brothers, and no one has really seen such a thing..."

Before he finished speaking, he raised his hand and swore: "I swear to heaven, every word is true. Besides, our general is friends with the Northern Sage King. Even if we brothers are very brave, we dare not lie to you..."

"That's enough!" Liu Xunyi waved his hand thoughtfully, "Thank you for the trouble. You can get a few ingots of silver later. Palace Master Luo will treat you brothers to tea."

"Thank you, Master Liu!" Upon hearing about the unexpected fortune, the four city soldiers immediately smiled and were delighted.

"Ling Qing, show the guests away!"

After the city troops left, Liu Xunyi cast a meaningful look at Xu Heng and said quietly, "If the coffin didn't come from outside the city, it must have come from inside the city. Brother Xu, lead your men to visit all the coffin shops in Luoyang City and check every door. You will probably find clues."

"I'll do it right now!"

Xu Heng readily agreed and left Dongtang in a hurry.

"I'll go too!" Seeing that Ling Qing and Xu Heng both had errands, Luo Ningyu, the master of Jingmen, could no longer hold back and volunteered, "More people will help, and we can investigate faster."

Liu Xunyi hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Let Liao Chuan and Liao Hai accompany you, bring more people, and you and Brother Xu will act separately."

"As ordered!"

……

At noon, Xu’s Coffin Shop in North City.

Upon learning of Luo Ningyu and her group's identities and purpose, the shop assistant hurriedly served them tea, while he ran to the backyard to report to the shopkeeper.

"Miss..." Liao Chuan just opened his mouth, and suddenly felt that Luo Ningyu looked unhappy, so he quickly changed his words, "Master, we have agreed with Xu Menzhu that he will go to the East City to inquire, and we will go to the West City to inquire, and finally meet up in the North City. Why did you go straight here? We gave up the coffin shop in the West City and didn't check it. What if there is any mistake..."

"Stupid!" Luo Ningyu picked up the teacup and laughed and scolded confidently, "Have you ever heard of the saying, 'Think twice before you act'? Luoyang City is vast and populated, and there are at least dozens of coffin shops of all sizes. Xu Heng is running around like a headless fly. How long will it take for him to find a clue?"

"The Sect Master's intention is..."

Luo Ningyu did not answer but asked: "Let me ask you, what is the material of the coffin that appeared in the back alley?"

"This..." Liao Chuan and Liao Hai looked at each other in confusion.

"You are ignorant!" Luo Ningyu curled her lips and said, "The coffin is made of high-quality sandalwood."

"so what?"

"Top-grade sandalwood is extremely valuable and beyond the reach of ordinary people. Therefore, ordinary coffin shops do not have this kind of wood. In Luoyang City, there are only a handful of shops that can make sandalwood coffins. Among them, Xu's Coffin Shop in the north city is the most famous."

Luo Ningyu's explanation made the Liao brothers suddenly enlightened. They had originally been skeptical about her, but now they were full of admiration for her.

"Although my martial arts skills are not high, I am knowledgeable." Luo Ningyu ordered seriously, "Remember, all disciples of Jing Sect should avoid acting rashly and think twice before making any decisions. When you have nothing to do, read more books and broaden your horizons, which is better than brandishing swords and guns and fighting and killing."

"Yes."

"Oh my! Miss Luo is so honored to be here. I am sorry for not welcoming you in person. Please forgive me! Please forgive me!"

As he was speaking, a rapid voice with a hint of crying suddenly came from the backyard.

Then, a smart-looking middle-aged man came running up to her, nodding and bowing to Luo Ningyu, flattering her to the utmost, and then pretending to be incredulous and sad, he asked in a low voice: "Miss Luo, are you here today? Is it because of your family..."

"Pah, pah, pah!" Luo Ningyu spat, "I'm not looking for you to buy a coffin, but to inquire about a person."

"Oh!" The shopkeeper breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "I'm glad you're alright! I'm glad you're alright! Who does Miss Luo want to inquire about?"

"Top-grade sandalwood, seven feet and three inches, black lacquer with gold seams. In addition, there are eight-treasure shrouds, insect and fish quilts, and pinewood plaques." Luo Ningyu said word by word, "Does the shopkeeper have any impression?"

"This……"

"A fine sandalwood coffin is worth every inch of it. Your store can't sell more than three or five coffins in a year or two, don't tell me you don't remember it?" Without waiting for the shopkeeper to speak, Luo Ningyu added meaningfully, "I might as well tell you frankly that the person who bought this coffin offended the Xianwang Mansion, and my father specifically wanted to find him. If you don't want to get into trouble, just tell the truth. Who bought this coffin?"

Hearing this, the shopkeeper's face suddenly changed, and he instantly turned into an angry face filled with righteous indignation, and shouted: "Miss Luo, calm down, the sandalwood coffin you are talking about is from our shop. The buyer is weird and doesn't look like a good person at first glance. He is really a rebellious son of a bitch, daring to offend the owner of the Luo Mansion. You ask! You ask whatever you want! I will tell you! I will tell you everything!"

As soon as these words came out, Luo Ningyu couldn't help but look at the Liao brothers, and a hint of excitement emerged in the eyes of the three of them at the same time.

……

(End of this chapter)