Volume 1: The Storm in the Western Region Chapter 76: The clouds clear and the fog disperses [Part 1]
Zhao Rang ordered the deputy shopkeeper and two assistants to take the "hunchback" to a secluded room and keep him under careful supervision.
Ximen Dazhuang felt that the "hunchback"'s last shout was a bit too strange, and he couldn't help but feel a chill in his back. After Zhao Rang saw his discomfort, he said:
"What are you afraid of? You can scare him enough to wet his pants even if you raise your hand."
After hearing what Zhao Rang said, Ximen Dazhuang regained some of his magnanimity and even volunteered to guard the hunchback.
After everyone left, Zhao Rang stood in the courtyard, looked up to the sky and sighed. He ordered a waiter who was still standing beside him:
"Bring paper and pen to my room."
The clerk complied with the instructions, although he felt in his heart that Zhao Rang was definitely not a person who could read or write, but since he wanted to do it, he would do it. Offending him was the most unwise thing to do in Tologeli right now.
"Come on, let's go back to the house and talk."
Then he called Ye Sanniang and Yuan Kexin to come into the house together.
As soon as the door closed, Yuan Kexin couldn't hold it any longer. She sat at the table and cried while muttering to herself:
"Is my brother already dead..."
It has been several days since they came to check Gan Tuoluo Gai's efforts, and they have not even seen the shadow of Yuan Mingkong. Moreover, the feather arrows that have been traced from the Western Region Merchant Alliance have also disappeared. Yuan Kexin does not know that they are there.
What is the meaning here.
He couldn't see anyone, he couldn't catch the arrow, and he didn't even know whether he was alive or dead.
Who are Zhong Jiaban, Shen Liushu, Tuozi, Xiaolan, and the deputy shopkeeper who is full of kung fu? What is their relationship with each other?
In the past few days, Kexin has not intervened in specific matters. Thinking that bystanders will know better, standing aside and watching, he should be able to grasp the overall situation more accurately.
I didn't expect to see what I saw now, but the more I looked at it, the more confused I became, and I almost forgot my original purpose.
Under such chaos, Yuan Kexin began to doubt everyone, even Zhao Rang.
Especially when she saw that the hunchback had a layer of "shame" on his face, she was even more frightened...
After shedding tears, she turned her gaze to Zhao Rang, staring straight at his face, to be precise, the side of his cheek and the position of his jawline, and said:
"You are Zhao Rang, right? Do you promise that you are Zhao Rang?"
Zhao Rang was sorting out the messy people and clues in his mind, but he couldn't react immediately when Yuan Kexin asked him such a sudden question.
After such a short pause, Yuan Kexin went completely crazy, picked up the teapot on the table, and threw it at Zhao Rang's head.
At the critical moment, Ye Sanniang reached out and stopped, not only stopping the teapot flying in the air, but also Yuan Kexin's body, and then said softly:
"He is Zhao Rang, good sister, listen to my sister and stop making trouble!"
These simple words seemed to contain some illusion. Yuan Kexin was slightly startled after hearing this, then nodded and sat back at the table. Apart from her expression being a little dull, she actually calmed down completely.
As for the teapot, Zhao Rang caught it steadily and put it back on the table.
"I've long heard that there are illusionists in the world, but I didn't expect that the boss lady can do it!"
Ye Sanniang waved her hands and said:
"I don't know any illusions... It's just that my martial arts cultivation is too far ahead of you, so I used my strength to temporarily force the cognition into her mind."
Zhao Rang asked worriedly:
"Is this going to be okay?"
Ye Sanniang replied:
"Nothing will happen, don't worry! This is just to let her calm down temporarily. After the madness just now, she will still be fine!"
Zhao Rang nodded, Ye Sanniang would not lie to him, and she had no reason or need to hurt Yuan Kexin.
However, Yuan Kexin’s suspicion just now was really interesting. Zhao Rang couldn’t help but ask:
"You never doubted me?"
Ye Sanniang asked back:
"What do I suspect of you?"
Zhao Rang said:
"I suspect that Yuan Kexin is suspicious, am I Zhao Rang?"
Ye Sanniang pursed her lips. She had always thought Zhao Rang was very smart, but now she felt that he was not as smart as she thought!
But this is correct. After all, it is difficult for people's cognition and understanding to transcend their own knowledge. The reason why Zhao Rang makes Ye Sanniang think he is smart is because he was born in the Zhao family and is well-informed. Now he feels that he is not smart enough.
It's because after all, he only has a fifth-grade martial arts cultivation, and he is still far away from the true face of this world.
But when he asked this question, Ye Sanniang still had to answer.
If you say this directly, it will easily hurt people's self-esteem. Zhao Rang is not as shameless as Ximen Dahuang's group, but he actually thinks of himself as an immortal.
After thinking about it, the most straightforward thing came to mind:
"Because sister, I am a third-grade martial arts master!"
As soon as he said this, Zhao Rang immediately shut up.
The gap in realm can change everything, and no specific explanation is needed. As long as Zhao Rang does not reach Ye Sanniang's rank in one day, he will not even be qualified to ask further questions.
So he honestly kept his mouth shut.
At the awkward moment, the clerk brought me pen and paper.
Zhao Rang took away the teapot on the table, made room, and spread the paper flatly on the table.
Ye Sanniang crossed her arms and walked aside, opened the inkstone, dripped some water into it, and started to submerge it.
The setting sun shone in through the window lattice, casting a little warmth, and it looked like the years were peaceful. Looking at Ye Sanniang's slender hands that were constantly rotating and grinding, Zhao Rang's mind moved for no reason.
"Think of whatever you want to write quickly, as random thoughts will delay the business!"
Zhao Rang wanted to ask Ye Sanniang how he knew that he was in a state of confusion just now, but the answer he got was probably "I am a third-level martial arts master", so he thought it would be better not to humiliate himself.
Soon, Ye Sanniang finished grinding the ink and gently pushed the inkstone to press the upper right corner of the paper. In this way, the inkstone could also be used as a paperweight, killing two birds with one stone.
Zhao Rang picked up his pen, dipped it in thick ink, and then wrote two strange words on the paper.
The first character is three "small" characters placed together, "四". The second character is three "heart" characters placed in the same way, "氛".
After writing these two words, Zhao Rang put down his pen and waved his hand in front of Yuan Kexin, but she grabbed his wrist.
"You said it, I'm listening!"
Yuan Kexin was completely attracted by the two words on the paper. She immediately thought that these two words must be related to the note with three "cautions" written at the beginning.
Although she didn't recognize the notes on the note, somehow Yuan Kexin always believed that this note must have a lot to do with his brother Yuan Mingkong!
Now I see these two strange words written by Zhao Rang on the paper. If I take them apart, don't they exactly turn out to be three "cautions"?
Seeing that Yuan Kexin had regained consciousness, Zhao Rang pointed to these two words and asked:
"Do you know these two words?"
Yuan Kexin shook his head, expressing his ignorance.
Zhao Rang explained:
"Let me talk about the second word first. Three hearts are falling, which means doubt. It is said that if there is fear inside, there is something wrong below."
"What do you mean by this?"
Yuan Kexin frowned and recalled:
"We received the warning note not long after we entered the bank. We had not seen Shen Liushu at that time."
"If this word means doubt, there is doubt inside and there is something going on underneath. This word refers to the semicolon of Tongbao Bank?!"
Zhao Rang smiled and said:
"Yes, this word refers to the suspicious things in Tongbao Bank's semicolon."
Considering what happened in the past few days, Yuan Kexin showed a look of surprise, but soon frowned and asked:
"What about the first word? Is it talking about Shen Liushu? Or is it the little lady he named?"
Zhao Rang shook his head and explained:
"The first word doesn't have any special meaning. Three little ones placed together are still small. But one small is small enough. Are three small ones placed together smaller, or even the smallest?"
Yuan Kexin took a breath of cold air and said:
"It means that there are many doubts in the Tongbao Bank branch. Let us be careful and careful. It is best to be like a grate and screen carefully to ensure that nothing is missed!"
Zhao Rang said:
"Yes, that's the truth! The person who threw the bullets already knew that there were unusual problems in Tongbao Bank. But he didn't know the specifics, so he could only remind us in this way."
Yuan Kexin hesitated again and again, and finally asked:
"Is this person my brother? And Brother Zhao, how did you detect the ingenuity in this?"
Zhao Rang did not answer the first question, but picked up the pen again and wrote down three precautions on the paper.
The three words written carefully are much larger than those on the original note, but the positions and fonts are exactly the same.
After finishing writing, Zhao asked the person to tear off the piece of paper with three cautions written on it, cut it into the same shape as the note, and said to Yuan Kexin:
"Do you see that the note is enlarged now?"
Yuan Kexin nodded.
She wanted to urge Zhao Rang to hurry up, but she was afraid that she would be distracted by talking and miss some important information.
Zhao Rang folded the two ends of the enlarged version of the note, held it in his hand, and compared it with the sunset shining through the window. After adjusting the angle, the shadows of the two strange characters were projected on the table!
"When I first opened the note, I was a little confused...Three cautions. Although the note is small, the space is large enough to write down, but why is it written in a crooked and unseemly way? It turns out that's why!"
The reason why Zhao Rang didn't say how he came up with the idea was because he felt it would be too disgusting to say it...
This method came to him when he saw the hunchback peed his pants and the color of his gray cloth pants turned darker!
Light-colored trousers will completely change their appearance when they get wet, just like Yuan Mingkong has been using the fine iron box made by Boss Zhu to store maps. They have to borrow external forces to present the reality they want to express.
Thinking about the misplacement and arrangement of the six words in the note, Zhao Rang immediately understood it, so he quickly asked the clerk to bring him paper and pen for verification.
"Think about it, besides you brothers and sisters, how many people can get something made by Boss Zhu himself?"
"Only those who have seen those two iron-box maps can understand how to understand that note! In the whole Chagan Tologer, I guess you and I are the only ones."