Cao Jing was increasingly panicked, and he couldn't help but think of the things he had secretly done for the prince over the years. Could it be that Duan Muqiu came here for this? No, even if he was to be killed, he would not let Duan Muqiu come to kill him.
Thinking of this, Cao Jing felt a little relieved.
"Since Mr. Cao is sleepy, Duanmu will tell Mr. Cao a story. I wonder if you are willing to listen to it." Duanmuqiu, who saw Cao Jing's restless appearance, glanced slightly at the official.
The minister suddenly spoke.
Facing this "King of Hell"'s initiative to speak, Cao Jing stopped all the random thoughts in his heart, and his already panicked eyes showed a little joy. Since Duanmu Qiu had spoken, he naturally wouldn't be here to capture him. He thought
At this point, he hurriedly responded: "Cao is all ears."
Duanmuqiu walked slowly, his eyes constantly scanning Cao Jing, who was still in shock. He walked to the table and slowly sat down. He actually picked up the still warm tea cup on the side and handed it to his mouth. He raised his hand to stop trying to get up.
Cao Jing called his servants to change the hot water for him.
After taking a sip, I felt that just this cup of tea could buy poor people enough money for several months, and the "story" in my mouth began.
"Once upon a time, there was a young man whose family was poor since he was a child. However, the young man worked hard and studied hard every day. He hoped that one day he would be able to gain fame and change his destiny. However, the laws of heaven were unfair and a war was about to begin."
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Cao Jing's eyes were full of doubts. Duanmu gave a rare smile and continued to speak.
"The war ended and a new dynasty was established. The young man was lucky enough to survive the war. Looking at the devastation on the ground, the young man secretly vowed that if one day he obtains a meritorious service, he must be a good official and benefit the people."
"God pays off. In the new dynasty, Mingjun reopened the imperial examination. The young man really entered high school. In the next few years, his official position became bigger and bigger, and he saw more and more extravagant scenes. The young man began to feel resentful and resentful of himself.
I work hard to be an official, but I only get these stipends. I am unhappy that I have devoted myself to serving the people, but in exchange for these rich merchants living a luxurious life."
"Finally one day, he got a small official position for a businessman who had been begging him to exchange money for status, and he actually got piles of silver and gold. From that moment on, he was fascinated by his heart.
Desire has completely conquered me."
Having said this, Duanmu Qiu put the teacup in his hand back on the table, his eyes were sharp and his tone was cold.
"From that day on, he had long forgotten his wishes and the common people who were born in poverty like him. He began to make money wantonly and started the dirty business of selling titles and officials... But he did many bad things.
Naturally, he was worried that something would happen one day, so he started to think crookedly and worked his way up, and finally instigated His Highness the Crown Prince..."
Looking at Cao Jing again, his face was pale, and he no longer looked like the minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs before. At this moment, he finally understood why the "King of Hell" came. He trembled and wanted to get up, but his hands and feet could not generate any strength.
With this look in Duanmu Qiu's eyes, when he looked at Cao Jing, his eyes were filled with murderous intent.
Not wanting to sit still and wait for death, Cao Jing summoned the strength from nowhere and stood up, shouting with a slightly trembling voice: "Duan Muqiu, how dare you privately investigate officials. This is a serious crime of genocide. I...I want to file a memorial for you. I
...I want to see the Holy One, see...the Prince!"
"Bang!" In the night outside the window, fireworks suddenly burst out, extremely dazzling in the dark city of Jianglin. What's even more strange is that the fireworks did not dissipate, but instead condensed into a big word "Qi Yun", and then slowly
dissipate...
After catching a glimpse of the fireworks signal, Duanmu Qiu ignored the pale-faced Cao Jing, stood up proudly, dusted himself with the Nine Gates Governor's Mansion, crossed the long knife at his waist, and spoke to Cao Jing.
"Master Cao, didn't you ask Duanmu why he visited Cao's house at night? It's strange. I was just telling a story, but you didn't blame yourself. It's ridiculous, it's ridiculous... the time has come."
Cao Jing's tied hair had fallen down at some point. Maybe it was caused by the slap on the table just now, but no one cared about it now. He pointed his trembling fingers at Duanmu Qiu and said sternly: "You...you
What are you going to do? I... I want to see His Highness the Crown Prince. I am a member of the imperial court... How dare you do this!"
There was a bit of disdain in Duanmuqiu's eyes, and he said coldly: "According to the Holy Order, Cao Jing seduced His Highness the Crown Prince into selling his official position to make money, and he did not repent.
Immediately kill the three Yi tribes, please do this!"
Cao Jing opened his mouth wide and couldn't believe his ears. Even if he sold his official position to make money, how could he end up being summarily executed and still slander his own three tribes? His eyes were full of despair, and he suddenly shouted: "Why?
Maybe, I...I don't believe it, Duanmuqiu, you are avenging your private revenge, you...you..."
In desperation, he remembered that there were still children of the Yan family guarding his house. Yan Ruohai was the master of the army. If he could call the children of the Yan family, he might be able to save his life. Without having time to think about the reason, Cao Jing grabbed the life-saving straw.
, continued to shout: "Master Yan, save me...Yan..."
As soon as the words came out, a figure was reflected in Cao Jing's desperate eyes. He slowly walked in from outside the hall. It was the person he was asking for help. He rolled away and crawled to the ground. He dragged the Yan family disciples by their clothes and begged.
: "Save me...save..."
Before he finished speaking, he saw that the feet of the Yan family disciples who had been extremely polite to him in the past few days were stained with red. Looking up, he saw bloody footprints where he came from. He hurriedly looked up and saw this person.
Blood was still dripping from the Yan family's children's cheeks.
There seemed to be something warm dripping on his cheek. He stretched out his hand to wipe it away blankly, but what fell into his eyes was a hand full of blood.
"ah!!"
"Lord Duanmu, all fifty-three members of the Cao Mansion have been executed!" The Yan family's children, while Cao Jing screamed in terror, bowed to Duanmu Qiu beside him to report.
Unexpectedly, the life-saving straw he had been waiting for turned out to be the evil ghost hanging on the side of the "King of Hell". Cao Jing was already unable to get up, and could only keep leaning on the ground with his hands and crawling backwards...
"Well done, go and guard outside the mansion. Anyone who dares to get close to Cao's mansion will be killed!" Duanmu looked at Cao Jing who was lying limp on the ground, and ordered softly without any emotion.
"Yes!" The Yan family disciple suddenly turned around and walked out with his head held high.
Turning his gaze to Cao Jing on the ground, Duanmuqiu slowly said: "Don't worry, Mr. Cao, everyone in the Cao family passed away in their sleep, and there is no pain..."
Cao Jing was about to open his mouth to shout, but he didn't want to be unable to make any sound anymore. At this moment, a faint sound of screams could be heard outside the silent window.
"I'm only asking this once. If Mr. Cao answers honestly, I may be able to save my life." Duanmuqiu saw Cao Jing's limp appearance. There was no sympathy in his eyes, and he still spoke in a calm tone.
Now that he was alive, Cao Jing naturally did not want to let it go. His already limp body seemed to have some weight or some strength, and he crawled on the ground until he was at Duanmuqiu's feet. He kept begging: "Master Duanmu, please spare my life. I am willing to give all my wealth to you."
Gift..."
Kicking Cao Jing over, Duanmuqiu took a step back as if he disliked him for soiling his shoes: "Master Cao, you should have a list. Among them, there are not only records of those merchants who came to you to buy official positions, but also
You...are impressed by the people whom Prime Minister Fan You ordered you to install."
How dare Cao Jing hide anything, he quickly said: "Yes, there is such a roster, just...in my study, it's all...that damn Fan Mou, he ordered me
If you do this, please Lord Duanmu say a few kind words for me in front of the Holy Master, Cao..."
"Master Cao, stop talking nonsense and take me to get it!" Duanmuqiu impatiently interrupted Cao Jing's begging for mercy.
"Sir... please come with me!" Cao Jing wanted to put all the blame on Fan Mou, who died without any evidence, but Duan Muqiu didn't buy it, so he could only take Duan Muqiu to the study to get the roster.
As soon as he came out of the main hall, the scene in front of him almost made Cao Jing faint on the spot. This was his own palace, and it would be more appropriate to say it was a hell on earth.
The servants serving outside the mansion were already splattered with blood. The smell of blood had already spread throughout the courtyard. If you glanced sideways, you could see that there seemed to be blood spilling on the windows of the courtyard at home and beside the door...
The cold wind blew by, causing Cao Jing to stand unsteadily and teetering on the verge of falling. His crotch felt warm and cool...
Duanmu Qiu, who was following behind him, looked at this dignified third-grade official who was incontinent, and his eyes were extremely disgusted. But before he could get the thing, he could only cover his nose gently, reach out and pull out the knife and sheath from his waist, and put it in his hand.
The moment Cao Jing was about to fall to the ground, his figure flashed, the knife entered the armpits of his arms, twisted slightly, lifted him up, and spoke sternly.
"While I'm still in a good mood, quickly lead the way."
Although Cao Jing's legs were weak, the idea of survival still existed. Wei Nuo opened his mouth and led the way to a hidden compartment in the study. He took out the roster wrapped in oil paper and handed it to Duan Muqiu tremblingly.
After taking the roster and thinking for a moment, Duanmuqiu opened the oil paper package and flipped through a few pages. He was already sure that this was what he was looking for.
"Duanmu... Sir, I have followed your instructions to fetch this thing. Can you..." Cao Jing took advantage of Duanmuqiu to look through the roster. Thinking that he had complied with his request, he immediately spoke anxiously, asking for Duanmu.
Autumn fulfills the promise.
But the moment he opened his mouth, he saw the cold light in Duanmuqiu's hand.
It wasn't until he saw this cold light clearly that Cao Jing finally understood the origin of Duanmuqiu's name "King of Hell". At some point, Duanmuqiu's face had put on a terrifying mask, which really looked like the king of hell in the underworld.
Life is normal, as soon as the vision is darkened, there is no consciousness anymore.
Without the blood gushing out from Cao Jing's corpse, Duanmuqiu, who only had his eyes exposed, had no emotion in his eyes. He gently took off the mask of the King of Hell on his face and threw it on the corpse on the ground. ap.
Under the cover of night, it was not clear what Duanmu Qiu's expression was, but he could only see his bloody back standing in the Cao Mansion, holding the roster in his hand, looking at it for a moment, then turned to look at the word "Qi Yun" that was gradually disappearing in the air.
What to think about.
Perhaps a long time had passed, and a soft voice came steadily. He saw the corpse in the courtyard, without any disturbance, as if he didn't want to step on the blood on the ground again. The man used Qing Kung to go to the study, his eyes ignored Cao Jing's corpse on the ground, and his expression was slightly relaxed.
, and seeing Duanmuqiu looking back at the sky, he spoke respectfully in a low voice: "Master Duanmu."
Pulled back from his thoughts by this person's call, Duanmu Qiu turned his head briefly, saw the person coming, and immediately responded: "The matter has been settled."
Seeing Duanmu Qiu speak, the guard in the man's eyes suddenly disappeared, and he said respectfully with a hint of urging: "Now that Master Duanmu has finished the matter, we'd better go back and recover as soon as possible."
Duanmuqiu's cold eyes swept over this person's face, making the visitor feel slightly cold and quickly lowered his head to avoid Duanmuqiu's gaze.
After looking at it for a moment, Duanmu withdrew the cold light in his eyes and said coldly: "If you have accomplished this great feat, you will be rewarded based on your merits. Brother Yan deserves a share of his contribution."
"Master Duanmu made the arrangements properly, and Yan just followed the tide." The disciples of the Yan family bowed their heads and replied respectfully.
Feeling the chill all over their bodies, the disciples of the Yan family breathed a sigh of relief, followed Duan Muqiu's pace, and hurried out of Cao's Mansion. When they opened the door of Cao's Mansion, they saw more than a hundred and nine guards standing silently outside Cao's Mansion.
In addition, these nine guards all wear masks of the King of Hell, and they are full of murderous auras, just like the evil ghosts around the King of Hell who are demanding life.
The children of the Yan family couldn't help but be horrified. Duanmu Qiu had only been able to take over the Nine Gates Division for a few days. The momentum of these Nine Gate Guards was completely different from before. They looked at Duanmuqiu who got on his horse and left with an uncertain mood, and then looked back at the slowly closing door.
At the gate of Cao's Mansion, several Nine Gate Guards have silently left their team to guard in front of Cao's Mansion...