Perfect Encounter

Outside the window, Long Da's tall and strong figure blocked half of the window. He put his finger to his mouth, made a gesture of silence, and then waved to her, signaling her to come over.

An Ruochen was overjoyed, rushed to the window, lowered his voice and called: "General Long, do you believe me?" He came here secretly, and he would be a joke, but he came unexpectedly. This should be the meaning of believing that she won't set him up on purpose, right?

"You burned your own house down, I'm afraid there must be something urgent." Long Da didn't have the slightest politeness, and got straight to the point.

"I beg the general to save Aunt Lu." An Ruochen didn't talk nonsense, and asked Aunt Lu to come forward to rent her a house. The owner, old man Chen, was killed, probably related to this. Mr. Xie will continue to kill and silence all the things and conjectures.

Long Da frowned, and didn't ask much else, just asked: "Address?"

"The row of houses behind Xitian Street, the one with a willow tree in front of the door." An Ruochen was glad that he had inquired about it seriously.

Without saying a word, Long Da turned around and left.

An Ruochen was stunned for a moment, anxiously wanting to say a lot, the general will save Aunt Lu, I hope in time. She looked out the window, but she didn't see Long Da, and went to the door to listen. It was still quite noisy outside, and everyone seemed to be circling around Zong Zeqing. An Ruochen understood that Zong Zeqing was responsible for diverting attention, in order to cover up General Long's meeting with her.

Just as she was thinking, seeing Long Da appearing by the window again, she hurried over.

"Someone has been sent."

An Ruochen breathed a sigh of relief, "Plop" knelt down and kowtowed: "Thank you General for your kindness."

When he finished speaking, he looked up, but he couldn't see the general because the window frame was blocked, so he hurriedly got up, only to see General Long frowning impatiently. Well, well, it's really wrong for her to spend time kneeling and climbing up and not talking properly in such an emergency.

"What is the general's order?"

"The thieves killed the owner surnamed Chen, blocked his mouth and cut off his fingers. The neighbors have never heard the screams of the severed fingers and the murder. The thieves acted cautiously and decisively. Why did they run away in a panic when they came to you?"

An Ruochen opened her mouth, she didn't meet any thieves, didn't the general know that? Wait, she got it. Officials will come to ask her, and if she sets this person as the one who killed the owner of the house surnamed Chen, then what she said to her father before is somewhat inaccurate.

"Who said they are the same person? I have never seen the murderer who killed the owner surnamed Chen. I only know that the person I saw was of medium height, dressed in black, and covered his face. I was terrified at that time, I really can't remember exactly how. In short, I yelled for help. He wanted to come up to kill me. I was pushed when I wanted to escape. I happened to bump into a chair. The candle fell, the fire started, and the maid came. I I'm too scared, I can't remember clearly." An Ruochen blinked and said seriously.

Long Da nodded, satisfied: "Okay. Then you should be more careful." He glanced at An Ruochen and turned to leave.

"Wait, General, my father won't let me go out."

"Oh." Long Day replied.

An Ruochen frowned, what do you mean? "If there is something urgent, I can't go to the general."

Long Dao: "The door of the general's mansion is not easy to enter. Besides, you can't go out. Didn't you send me the news over and over again?"

So now the general is praising her? An Ruochen's face is broken, general, if you are complimenting someone, can you express some appreciation and satisfaction in your tone?

"General, what's going on at Matchmaker Xu's end?"

"If there is a situation, I will tell you."

"Then what should I do if I want to report to the general?"

"Look at the tea stand a few more times, or set a fire again, and I'll know." The serious tone seemed to be serious about business.

An Ruochen was in a daze, was the general joking? It's not funny at all, General.

General Long himself didn't laugh, he said seriously: "Tomorrow, add a candy seller next to the tea stand."

"..." Well, it's better to sell candy than tea. She can find an excuse to be greedy, and it's okay for the maid to buy it.

"Is there anything else?" Long Da asked.

It seems that there are quite a lot of things, but I didn't think of it for a while. Wait, "Yes, General, will you help me?"

Long Da glanced at her: "Be careful yourself." Then he turned and left.

Is it yes or no? An Ruochen really wanted to drag General Long back and shake him hard.

Behind Xitian Avenue, a tall and thin figure was touching the house with a willow tree at the door. He stood outside the door and listened, then looked around again, and was about to jump into the wall, when he heard a sound of horseshoes, a group of people and horses were running towards this direction, and a voice shouted in a low voice: "The one with the willow tree at the door, hurry up."

The tall and thin figure frowned, it was too late to leave at this time, he turned around and jumped into the courtyard of the next door.

As soon as he stood firm and hid his figure in the shadow of the corner, he heard the sound of horseshoes approaching the door.

The tall and thin figure stood still, listening carefully to the movement calmly. His eyes were shining brightly. It is Mr. Xie.

Xie Gang jumped off the horse and was facing the door of Mrs. Lu's room. A few soldiers behind him quickly moved away and looked around in a well-trained manner. Xie Gang looked at the door of Mrs. Lu's house, and there was nothing unusual. With a slight push, the door was locked tightly from the inside. Xie Gang nodded to a soldier, the soldier jumped into the courtyard of Aunt Lu's house, turned around and saw nothing unusual, the door of the back room was also locked, jumped out again, and reported softly to Xie Gang.

On Mrs. Lu's roof, a soldier gestured to Xie Gang, indicating that he hadn't heard anything unusual. Another soldier on the roof bent down, ready to rush into the house at any time.

Xie Gang raised his hand and knocked on the door, but no one in the room paid attention. Xie Gang knocked again, and after a while, Aunt Lu put on her coat and held a wooden stick behind the courtyard door and asked, "Who is it?"

"Ma'am, I'm Captain Xie Gang, and I'm here under the order of General Long."

Aunt Lu looked out suspiciously through the crack of the door and saw a general and two soldiers by the moonlight. She was silent for a while and asked, "What's the matter?"

"I want to ask my aunt about the murder case in Pinghu East Lane."

Aunt Lu was silent again, and asked again after a while: "But what happened?"

"No, but there are some things I need to ask my aunt. Can aunt let us in?"

Aunt Lu thought and thought, and opened the door. Xie Gang politely saluted Aunt Lu with fists outside the door, and strode in. The two soldiers outside the gate did not move, they just stood guard at the gate.

Mrs. Lu's yard is very small, and she can see the head at a glance. Xie just went to the back room, when the two soldiers on the roof quickly sneaked in after Aunt Lu came out, after some investigation, they confirmed that no one was lurking and the house was safe.

Aunt Lu followed behind Xie Gang, and when she entered the room, she saw two soldiers suddenly added to the room, she screamed softly in fright.

"Don't panic, aunt. It's just that the city is not peaceful recently. The horse farm was burned, and there was another homicide in Pinghu East Lane. Maybe these thieves are in the same group. To ensure the safety of the people, we routinely check other people related to it. It turned out that the aunt had talked to the deceased old man Chen, so we came to investigate."

Aunt Lu frowned and said, "I haven't seen any outsiders here, and I haven't seen any suspicious people. The neighbors in the neighborhood take care of each other on weekdays, so Lord Lao Jun is bothering you."

Xie Gang nodded: "Okay, I'm sorry to bother you. Let's leave now. If you think of anything, or see any suspicious people, please report to Ziyun Tower in the east of the city. That's the general's office. Ma'am You can play the drums or tell the guards to find me, Xie Gang."

Aunt Lu nodded: "Thank you, Mr. Jun."

Xie Gang led the two soldiers out. Aunt Lu closed the door, hid behind the door and watched them all ride away on horseback. After thinking about it, she went back to her room. She closed the door and windows tightly, turned off the lights and went to sleep, with the big stick beside the bed.

Not long after Xie Gang came out on horseback, he whispered to the soldiers beside him: "Go and watch that house, if anyone sneaks up and tries to sneak in, take it down. Also keep an eye on that old lady during the day, and pay attention to any suspicious people approaching. Report to me quickly.”

Two soldiers led the way.

Mr. Xie came out after Xie Gang and the others had left, looked carefully at their traces, turned his head and left quietly from the other direction with a few vertical leaps.

Nothing happened tonight.

On the second day, Mrs. Lu got up early as usual to work and prepare the goods. When she and the driver delivered the goods to Anfu, she heard the concierge talk about what happened in the middle of the night last night.

"I searched all night, but I haven't seen any ghosts. The master is so angry that he jumps up and down. We all have to tighten our skin when we see anyone scolding someone."

Aunt Lu was startled when she heard that, and hurriedly asked, "What happened to Miss?"

"It's just some minor injuries, nothing serious. It's the master who scolded her badly..." The porter fell silent when he said this. He seems to have talked too much, and if it reaches the master's ears, he might be whipped. As servants, they thought it was unreasonable. Although the eldest lady was hurt and frightened, the master still scolded her for shame. But think about it, who knows what else the thief did in the eldest lady's house, this trouble, the eldest lady's reputation is probably ruined.

The concierge shook his head, anyway, he was just a servant, and it was not his turn to talk about the master's affairs. The master was probably afraid that Master Qian would dislike the eldest lady, and the marriage would be ruined.

Aunt Lu couldn't find out more, and she couldn't see An Ruochen, but she was relieved to hear that An Ruochen was fine. Thinking about the military master's night visit to her house yesterday, it might have something to do with it. Aunt Lu remained calm, delivered the goods and went home. When I got home, I took out a pair of scissors and put them in my pocket. Then I fetched water and cooked. Everything was as usual.

After Aunt Lu left from Anfu, a tall and thin man who bought tea from a tea stand across the street from Anfu also left. He circled around the city and watched carefully outside a house for a while, and saw two men in front of the house who didn't seem to care much about his stall, but cared about the house. Behind the house, there was a man strolling around as if he was hanging out, and he had nothing to do.

The tall and thin man calmly avoided the sight of these people, went around to the other side, jumped into another house, and then quietly turned from that house into the house he wanted to enter.

That house is the residence of Matchmaker Xu. Matchmaker Xu hadn't gone out for several days, she was leaning on a chair in a daze at this moment, she jumped up in shock when she saw someone coming.

"Mr. Xie."

Mr. Xie nodded and looked around the room vigilantly.

Matchmaker Xu hurriedly moved a chair for him, and carefully asked, "Why did you come here suddenly? Didn't you tell me not to meet here?"

"No one saw me." Mr. Xie said.

Matchmaker Xu nodded, and wiped her hands on her clothes in a panic. After a while, her palms were sweating.

Mr. Xie pointed to the teapot on the table, and Matchmaker Xu rushed to boil hot water, "I'll make tea for you, sir."

Mr. Xie didn't speak, just waited quietly.

After a while, Matchmaker Xu took hot water to make tea, and respectfully placed it in front of Mr. Xie.

"Sit down." Mr. Xie didn't rush to drink.

Matchmaker Xu sat down obediently, swallowed, her heart beating fast. "Sir please tell me."

Mr. Xie took out the jade rabbit earring from his pocket: "Think again, who is the owner of this earring?"

Matchmaker Xu's face turned pale, "This..." She carefully looked at Mr. Xie's expression, knowing that the other party would not come if he didn't know what to do, so she hurriedly said, "Sir, I have been looking for Mr. Xie for a few days. You reported this matter, but I was stared at by the government, and I dare not act rashly. Every time we meet, we exchange tokens and codes. I am afraid that the government will find out and spoil the master's affairs, so I plan to tell him when the time is right. .”

"Now is the right time, tell me."

Matchmaker Xu lowered her voice and said: "I went to An's that day, and when I saw Miss An's family, I remembered that this earring belonged to Miss An's family. She didn't panic, and told me that she had already done it. I reported to the officer and told General Long. She threatened me that if I dared to reveal a word, which would harm her, General Long would arrest me. I took a closer look and found that there were indeed spies guarding outside An Mansion. .”

"The tea stand?"

"That's right." Matchmaker Xu was surprised, "How does Mr. know?"

"The stall owner has calluses on his tiger's mouth, strong fingers, and a tall and straight figure. He has practiced martial arts. He also has a foreign accent, and he is quite careful about the people who come in and out of Anfu."

"Mr. is really perceptive. Nothing can escape Mr.'s eyes." Matchmaker Xu flattered, carefully observed Mr. Xie's expression, and then carefully asked: "How did Mr. know Miss An?"

"Miss An was thieves last night, and many people were discussing in the streets and alleys today. Coincidentally, after she was thieves, General Long immediately sent someone to the home of Mrs. Lu who delivered the food. The house in Pinghu East Lane is Mrs. Lu. I rented it. But those earrings are exquisite and belong to young girls, and Mrs. Lu can't afford such good things." Mr. Xie said, drinking a cup of tea.

Matchmaker Xu heaved a sigh of relief. Mr. Xie was willing to tell her all these details, and his tone was as usual, so he must have never been suspicious of her. She hurriedly poured another cup of tea respectfully: "Mr. is careful, if it were me, I might not have thought of so much."

Mr. Xie smiled slightly, and said: "Since Miss An's family is weird, and you are the matchmaker for her, so I will ask again if the earring is related to her. Now that I have confirmed it, I am at ease."

Matchmaker Xu slapped her thigh: "It's a good thing that Mr. is here. I've been on fire for the past few days, but there are people watching in Anfu, and there must be one in my place too. I heard what An Ruochen said, But I dare not go out. I was thinking about how to report to my husband, and then my husband came."

Mr. Xie nodded and said, "What else did that An Ruochen tell you, did you mention me?"

"Don't worry, sir. She didn't see him. She only heard me call him out. She said it herself. I have also carefully thought about the situation at that time in the past few days. The husband was sitting with his back facing the window. She must not be able to see him. But she saw me clearly. That's why she used this matter to scare me. If she really saw Mr., then she wouldn't say that."

"That's good. Did she ever say that she thought about how you would do it?"

"She asked me to explain who Mr. Bai is to General Long, but I naturally refused. She had no choice but to tell me to think carefully about the stakes. After I came back, I thought about it and decided to Thinking of reporting a letter to the husband first, and then letting the husband decide how to deal with it. Maybe we will follow the plan and pretend to use fake news to lure them into the bait. What do you think?"

Mr. Xie thought about it seriously, "Your plan is not bad." He drank a cup of tea, and poured another cup for Matchmaker Xu.

Matchmaker Xu was even more at ease when she was praised. She took the tea happily and said, "I don't know that the house was actually rented by Mrs. Lu, and I don't know how much Mrs. Lu knows. I'll find a chance to silence her. That's the same." Show that An Ruochen some color, the little girl's film, who dares to threaten anyone? She will be scared when she sees Mrs. Lu's end, so I will beat her again and let her be used by us She married into Qian's family in Pingnan County, she is the county magistrate's stepmother, and she is only separated from the county magistrate's house by a wall, so it is also useful to us."

"Well. That's a good idea." Mr. Xie said, "It's just that you need to be careful when handling it, and don't fall into her trap."

Matchmaker Xu took a sip of tea and said, "Don't worry sir, I will definitely ask you before doing it. On the other side of Mrs. Lu, sir, I think it's my husband asking someone else to do it, or me..." When she said this, she froze suddenly and stared. Eyes start to twitch. I couldn't hold it anymore, and the cup fell to the ground.

The cup was caught by Mr. Xie in mid-air. He calmly put the cup back on the table, so as not to attract the attention of people outside the room with the sound of breaking.

Matchmaker Xu held her own throat involuntarily. She was speechless and twitched in pain. Her eyes rolled and her mouth began to foam.

Mr. Xie looked at her and said softly: "I don't trust you, I don't trust you. You are the one who should be silenced. If you really wanted to report to me, you would have done so long ago. If you hesitate today, tomorrow you will confess I come."

Matchmaker Xu's ears were buzzing, but she could no longer hear what Mr. Xie said. She convulsed for a while, foaming on the skirt of her clothes, and not long after, her body relaxed and she died.

Mr. Xie sniffed at her, put the cup he was drinking back on the tray, took out the poison powder packet from his cuff, opened it and placed it next to the teapot, and then poured Matchmaker Xu's cup on the table. He looked around the room and pushed the chair he was sitting on under the table.

It seemed that no outsiders had been in this room, only Matchmaker Xu herself.

After finishing all this, Mr. Xie walked out of the room, closed the door, listened to the movement next door, climbed over the wall, and retreated from the same way.

A little later, a man in government uniform walked out from the back side door of the county government office. He looked at the tree outside the door. Under the tree, someone put a dustpan and a broom, as if they hadn't taken it away after cleaning. . The man strolled to the side alley, the clerk who guarded the yamen greeted him, he smiled and waved. Turning into the alley, passing through is the way home, he walks like this every day.

A tall and thin man appeared out of nowhere in the alley, it was Mr. Xie.

Mr. Xie brushed past the man, and when their palms touched, a piece of paper was passed from Mr. Xie's hand to the man's. The man and Mr. Xie both had normal expressions, like two strangers passing by.

When the man returned home, he spread out the paper and saw that there were a few words written on it, which meant that he was asked to find a man named Xie, who was not kind, knew martial arts, and had a bad reputation. When to use it and how to use it, let him wait for the news.

After reading it, the man burned the paper.