Chapter 59: Roaming North and South, Killing with a Single Thought!

A new day begins. After a day of brewing, the violent incident that occurred at the tavern yesterday finally erupts.
Everyone, from government officials to ordinary people, knows about this matter.
Sun Zhixie, the newly appointed chief examiner for the county examination, was publicly gravely injured at a restaurant. The assailant even brutally disfigured Sun Zhixie's face, leaving his fate up to the will of heaven.
Sun Zhixie's official position may not be high and he is not well-liked, but his social status is that of a bureaucrat!
Since Zhu Hongwu, which official has been publicly abused like this?
No!
So, they were shocked! Indignant!
Unable to accept it!
As a result, this matter was quickly brought to the attention of the emperor. The emperor was also furious and ordered the Jinyiwei to apprehend the culprit within a specified time.
The efficiency of the Jinyiwei is quite high. We haven't even started yet, and we already have intelligence.
Last night, when two Jinyiwei were on a mission, they were attacked by a painter named Beizhai.
This Hokusai is the same person who attacked Sun Zhixie.
Due to this connection, the case naturally fell on Lu Wenzhao's shoulders.
Lu Wenzhao is scratching his head because the first person he needs to investigate is the Xin Wangfu.
Due to the imperial decree and various pressures from different factions, Lu Wenzhao could only present a fearless image to attend the meeting with the royal household, which can be seen as a "one-man show". After the meeting, he gave the public an answer:
Can Xu Ning, who was originally just a warrior in the Xing Wang Mansion, be the painter Hokusai? We cannot determine for now. Xu Ning is born with divine power, and Xing Wang intended to cultivate and use him. However, after judging his character during the examination, he was found to be wild and lascivious in manners, ignorant of etiquette, which greatly disappointed Xing Wang and made him give up the idea of using Xu Ning.
But unexpectedly, that person and the Wangfu guard Ding Baiying hooked up together, suspected of eloping, and now Prince Xin does not know where they are.
Every spit from Lu Wenzhao's mouth was acidic when he said these words.
In fact, Zhu Youjian only told him how to talk about it outside, and didn't mention the true situation at all. He emphasized the importance of "handling official matters without hesitation."
Liu Wenzhao knew that there must be hidden information in it, but as Wang didn't mention it, he couldn't grasp the extent of it, especially when it concerned his own junior sister. After much hesitation, Liu Wenzhao finally made up his mind and handed the task to Shen Lian.
Originally, Ling Yunkai also had a share, but he was decisive enough to take sick leave directly and didn't even go to the Thousand House
Others have connections, Lu Wenzhao has no way.
In fact, Ling Yunkai was scared. The more he thought about what happened at the time, the more strange and fearful he became. He dared not see Xu Ning again at all. Moreover, he is now considered socially dead.

After Shen Lian woke up, he didn't go home. By the time everyone found Ling Yunkai, he had already soiled himself, which was quite embarrassing.
But Shen Lian is different. He is the protagonist, and protagonists never know the meaning of cowardice. Moreover, Xu Ning even ransacked his home. This is definitely a situation where there is no other choice but to fight to the death.

Shen Lian gritted his teeth, sharpened his sword fiercely, determined to avenge the shame of that day. Little did he know, he would be facing the Ming Dynasty, the largest and most notorious series of mass murders in the history of China...
Seven days later, Ding Baiying brought Xu Ning the intelligence compiled by Zhu Youjian.
A booklet with over a hundred pages, each page containing a person's name and their current position, address, and so on, very detailed. However, there were too many of them, so Xu Ning could only focus on clearing some of them, unable to reach certain ones that were too far away.
That night, Xu Ning arrogantly returned to the Prince Xin's mansion with Ding Baiying. When Zhu Youjian asked him why he had beaten Sun Zhixie, Xu Ning boldly attacked, punching and knocking down Zhu Youjian. He grabbed the "Fushan Chun Ju Tu" and fought his way out of the Prince Xin's mansion. As he fought, he laughed wildly, exhibiting extreme madness.
The Jinyiwei and the patrolling soldiers heard the news and hurriedly went to the Prince Xin's mansion to help, only to hear that the criminal had actually gone to Sun Zhixie's mansion again.
The Jinyiwei quickly changed direction and arrived at the location, where they were all shocked.
Sun Zhixie was stripped and hung upside down on the rafters, covered in scars and bruises, seemingly subjected to unspeakable torture, causing anyone who saw to be shocked.
What baffled the Imperial Guards was that the culprit, using some unknown means, completely ransacked the Sun family as if a whirlwind had passed through.
Not only gold and silver but also fine fabrics have been swept away, from large furniture to small copper coins and rice grains, everything has been taken away, leaving nothing behind even after scratching the ground three feet deep.
For the first time, the Imperial Guard felt that they might have encountered a case that they couldn't handle themselves.
Just as the incident was causing a sensation in the capital, Xu Ning had already left the city with Ding Baiying in a bulletproof car and headed straight for Tianjin.
Three days later, the Imperial Guards in the capital received a message via carrier pigeon, informing them that the Commander of Tianjin Garrison and his family of five had been killed, and their belongings had been looted.
On the same day that the Commander-in-Chief of Tianjin Military Administration was assassinated, several wealthy households in the local area were also attacked by ruthless bandits. Over ten people were killed or injured, and several individuals remain missing. Furthermore, their residences were completely ransacked and all belongings were stolen.
The Jinyiwei identified this incident as being done by Xu Ning and Ding Baiying, just like the incident in the Prince Xinxing's mansion, the Sun Zhixie case, and the attack on the Jinyiwei.
The emperor was furious!
Although there have been numerous tragedies in the northern regions due to the Liao Dong Jurchens recently, it is the first time such a major case has occurred near the capital.
Emperor issued a decree for the second time, ordering the Jin Yi Wei and Dong Chang to mobilize elite manpower to capture the violent bandits within half a month.
However, just two days after they arrived in Beijing, these elite troops were still dragging their feet, but bad news came again.
Three wealthy households in Hejian Mansion were targeted by violent bandits this time, resulting in even more casualties. Shockingly, two of the households were influential families with high-ranking officials in the current government. Their family roots were completely severed overnight.
The emperor continued to be furious.
However, this is just the beginning.
Xu Ning marched into Shandong through Baoding, Zhenzhou, Shunde, and Dongchang, killing all the way.
Just after being awarded the title of the contemporary Yan Sheng Gong, the vigilant Duke Jing Ke had a strong sense that the other party was most likely heading towards his home. He hurriedly met with the emperor and sent a message home, but it was still too late. He received the news that his ancestral home had been blasted into the sky that same evening.
The bandits used some unknown means, and it was said that at that time the sound was thunderous, and the smoke filled the air, which could be heard dozens of miles away.
As for the casualties, due to the large number, it may take at least ten days to have any results.
Kong Laotou cried bitterly, even the Emperor in his sickbed couldn't do anything about it. He dismissed more than ten officials who were unfavorable in the investigation, and Shen Lian was also demoted two levels, all because he personally witnessed Xu Ning. Otherwise, he would have been completely disposed of earlier.
However, there was still some gain from the sacrifice of the Yeonseong Duke's family. The incident caused a great uproar and was extremely brutal, with many witnesses. Several people confirmed that the ruthless bandits were able to come and go without a trace, solely relying on a peculiar four-wheeled iron-armored carriage. It had no horse to propel it, yet it raced as fast as the wind, enabling them to commit crimes across thousands of miles in a single day and night.