harleyscars Page 32
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It is only today that we see disciples resting on the sidelines while their superiors are working hard.
When one-third of the wheat field has been harvested, another procedure automatically begins: the Six Hall Stewards, as representatives of the disciples, will also take up sickles and join the harvest.
This symbolizes the farmers' disciples' reluctance to see the elderly suffer and their willingness to share the burden, and it is one of the sacrificial activities.
In front of 20,000 disciples, this procedure was mainly symbolic; as for its actual meaning, well, that's a matter of opinion.
The Xia Kui did not appear at this time. According to the procedure, the Xia Kui would kneel before the Shennong statue on an empty stomach all day, experiencing the suffering of hunger on behalf of the entire farming family.
Therefore, even during the Autumn Harvest Festival, most of the disciples of the Farmers' School never actually see what the Hero Leader looks like.
As the sun gradually moved westward, the wheat still standing in the field decreased rapidly. After all, the head steward was no ordinary person, and harvesting was not tiring at all.
Once the wheat field was completely flattened, disciples would immediately rush to carry away the harvested wheat. Soon after, steaming hot wheat porridge would be carried back to the field ridge, and all the disciples would each take a bite, savoring the food earned through the sweat of the hall masters and stewards.
This ceremony has now officially ended, but there will be a third grand ceremony tonight!
Even though everyone had been exposed to the sun all day, they would still gather in front of the statue of Shennong at the Tomb of the Six Sages in the evening to hold a group sacrifice.
However, this year's mass memorial service began with a bloody incident...
A shocking murder case that left everyone stunned... from the perpetrators to the onlookers...
Chapter 44 The Scandal of Kuiwei Hall
To facilitate the personnel arrangements for the grand sacrificial ceremony that evening, the heads of the six halls and the senior members of each hall gathered in advance at Chungu Manor outside the Tomb of the Six Sages.
When the time came, they were assigned to lead the ordinary disciples to line up in an orderly fashion in front of the Shennong statue outside the Tomb of the Six Sages.
The grand ceremony was traditionally held at the hour of Hai (9-11 PM), but at the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), first, a huge sound of wooden planks breaking resounded through the sky, and then flames were seen shooting into the sky from the direction of the Kuiwei Hall in Chungu Village.
Lu Wei finished his meditation, stepped out of the room, and looked around. He saw dozens of peasant disciples carrying torches running towards the house from which the loud noise had come.
"Judging from the rank, that's... the residence of the head steward of Kuiwei Hall?"
"Has a scandal involving Kuiwei Hall broken out?"
Picking up his fine iron sword, Lu Wei used his lightness skill to quickly approach the center of the conflict.
The Kuiwei Hall scandal was a sign that the Luo Wang (Net of Heaven) was officially infiltrating the upper echelons of the Farmers' Clan.
After this incident, Chen Sheng, the current leader of the Kuiwei Hall, will transform into Sheng Qi, the Black Swordsman who strikes fear into the hearts of the martial arts world, and Wu Kuang, the chief steward of Kuiwei, will infiltrate the Luo Wang organization under the arrangement of the chivalrous leader Tian Guang.
Tian Mi, a spy for the Luo Wang organization, will succeed as the head of the Kuiwei Hall under the guise of a 'victim' after having seduced Tian Meng, Tian Zhong, and other high-ranking members of the peasant clan...
Lu Wei knew about the whole incident a long time ago, but like Jing Ni and her mother, he didn't know the exact time of the outbreak.
A few weeks ago, when he was on a mountain patrol with his subordinates, the topic of Wu Kuang, the head steward of Kuiwei Hall, marrying Tian Mi came up in conversation. At that time, he had a vague premonition about the upcoming autumn harvest festival.
A few days ago, after Lu Ni reported to him that Tian Zhong had gone out and not returned all night, his premonition about this matter became even stronger.
However, he did not allow Lu Ni to continue the investigation. Lu Wei had no intention of interfering in the Kuiwei Hall scandal.
Chen Sheng and Wu Kuang were not his 'friends'; they didn't even know each other. The only time they met was when they were harvesting wheat at noon, and that was a one-sided meeting.
To disrupt the elaborate scheme orchestrated by the Tian family and Luo Wang for the sake of two strangers, and to place oneself in the spotlight, is hardly a wise choice.
Most importantly, this does no good for me.
In Kuiwei Hall, there was no personal benefit, and the infiltration of the Luowang into the peasant family was long-term and uncontrollable.
In that case, in a sense, handing Kuiwei Hall over to Tian Mi is the best way to achieve a balance:
First of all, Tian Mi's surname is Tian. Although she is not a close relative of Tian Meng and Tian Hu, she is still of the same clan. In addition, she has an unspeakable private relationship with Tian Meng. Therefore, the Tian family will not have any objection to her taking charge of Kuiwei Hall.
As for Luo Wang, Tian Mi was originally one of their people. After Luo Wang understood the Tian family's plan, they secretly fueled the flames and actively promoted Tian Mi to a higher position.
Having secretly acquired a spy at the level of a hall master, Luo Wang would no longer launch a fierce infiltration and suppression campaign against the Farmers' Clan without any vested interests involved. Their activities could now be focused on Kuiwei Hall, which was actually advantageous to Lu Wei, who intended to target Gonggong Hall.
Finally, Tian Mi herself is a fence-sitter; she leans to whichever side the wind blows the strongest.
Aside from her methods of dealing with men, her ability to manage household affairs was extremely poor.
She has ambition, but she is timid. As a result, once she is settled, she has no motivation to expand outwards.
Living life to the fullest and enjoying everyday pleasures is what Tian Mi pursues throughout her life.
As for the Tian family, all she needed to do was take good care of Tian Meng. As for the Luo Wang organization, she dealt with them casually.
With such a leader, Lu Wei could summon him at will and dismiss him at will once he gained power.
Although this would likely lead to the downfall of Kuiwei Hall under Tian Mi's rule, it would have nothing to do with Lu Wei at present.
With over ten thousand disciples in the Gonggong Hall, he has plenty to keep up with. Once the war to unify the six states begins, even more people will join the Gonggong Hall.
It's already difficult enough to train these people; why go beyond your capabilities to concern yourself with the fate of others?
He'll just be a spectator in this grand spectacle!
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"Hmph, this man has harmed his fellow disciples and bullied his sister-in-law. He has been captured by us brothers. After reporting to the leader of the Heroic Sect, we will definitely give the brothers of the Kuiwei Hall an explanation!"
When Lu Wei arrived, the Tian brothers, Tian Meng and Tian Hu, had already captured Chen Sheng with their disciples and were telling the assembled farmers what had happened.
According to the Tian brothers, Chen Sheng took advantage of Wu Kuang's absence and developed lustful thoughts towards Wu Kuang's wife, Tian Mi, intending to rape her.
Unexpectedly, Wu Kuang returned just in time and witnessed the scene. When Chen Sheng realized that his plan had been exposed, he became extremely vicious, wielding his giant sword to kill Wu Kuang and then attempting to silence Tian Mi.
Fortunately, the Tian brothers arrived in time and stopped the villain's atrocity.
There are many unclear parts in this story, but the pitiful appearance of the victim Tian Mi clinging to Tian Meng, coupled with Wu Kuang's longsword destroyed by the Giant Sword, still made most people present accept the Tian brothers' words.
Lu Wei knew the truth and naturally didn't care about the Tian brothers' story, but something strange made him frown:
What about Tian Zhong?
Where did Tian Zhong go?
Logically, the arrest of Chen Sheng should have been carried out by Tian Meng, Tian Hu, and Tian Zhong together.
With the accusations from the four high-ranking members of the Lieshan Hall, Chiyou Hall, Gonggong Hall, and the Kuiwei Hall where Tian Mi resided, Chen Sheng had no way to defend himself.
Even if Shennongtang and Siyuetang have objections, it's still four against two, giving the Tian family the advantage.
While Tian Zhong's absence doesn't change the overall situation, it significantly diminishes the persuasiveness of the argument.
Tian Meng, Tian Hu, and Tian Mi are all pure members of the Tian clan!
Is it possible that Tian was deliberately framing Chen Sheng?
It should be noted that Chen Sheng held considerable prestige.
If Tian Zhong were to join the accusations, he would indeed share the surname Tian, but that would not be his original surname. This would still be quite effective in fooling ordinary disciples.
Seeing that none of their fellow farmers present had any objections, Tian Meng and Tian Hu exchanged a glance and breathed a sigh of relief. The plan had succeeded!
But the absence of Tian Zhong surprised the two of them: Tian Zhong was supposed to be present, but he was nowhere to be seen. What had happened to him?
"Lu Ni made her move?" This thought popped into Lu Wei's mind. Lu Ni was not a high-ranking member of the Farmer's Clan, and Lu Wei had not assigned her to be a patrolling disciple of Spring Valley Manor, so she should be outside the manor right now.
But if she really wanted to come in, the disciples obviously wouldn't be able to notice.
Time ticked by, but Tian Zhong still hadn't arrived.
Zhu Jia, Situ Wanli, and Zhou He arrived one after another. They were shocked to see the scene in front of the dilapidated wooden house. Then Tian Meng repeated his previous statement, which once again caused everyone to fall silent.
After receiving a report from his disciple, the chivalrous leader Tian Guang finally arrived from the Tomb of the Six Sages. He suddenly appeared in the blink of an eye, and glanced expressionlessly at the main characters on the field: the Tian brothers, Tian Mi, and the bound Chen Sheng.
Everyone was stunned by Tian Guang's gaze.
Without saying a word, he flew over to Wu Kuang, who was lying on the ground, squatted down, checked his breathing, his eyes lit up, and then he carried Wu Kuang away from Chun Gu Manor.
In front of the dilapidated wooden house, only the farmers remained, looking at each other in bewilderment: No one had paid any attention to Wu Kuang's condition, and they had all tacitly accepted that he was dead...
"Something terrible has happened! Steward Tian is in trouble!"
A terrified scream shattered the awkward silence.
"What!" Tian Meng's eyes widened.
Lu Wei, who was already mentally prepared while mingling in the crowd, thought to himself, "Just as I expected..."
Chapter 45 Death of Tian Zhong
After binding and imprisoning Chen Sheng with iron chains, the five hall masters hurriedly followed the disciple who discovered the body to the alleyway two houses away.
Tian Zhong's body lay severed at both ends, a long trail of blood running across the ground. He still gripped his short sword tightly in his hand, while his head lay about ten meters away...
This scene chilled the hall masters to the bone, not because of the manner of death: Tian Zhongjian died without even drawing his sword, unable to offer any resistance; the murderer's skill was likely...
"The killer might be someone Tian Zhong knows... There aren't many people who could make Tian Zhong completely unguarded."
As Tian Zhong's immediate superior, Zhou He observed the smooth and neat cut, his face dark as he speculated on another possibility.
He naturally had no good feelings towards Tian Zhong, but to have someone from his Gonggong Hall, especially the head of Gonggong Hall, slaughter his people at the Autumn Harvest Festival was a blatant slap in the face.
A disciple, skilled in hard labor, shakily carried Tian Zhong's head from about ten meters away to the body. Tian Zhong's eyes were not closed, and his expression of curiosity before death further convinced everyone of Zhou He's suspicions.
Tian Zhong was likely traveling with someone when, during their conversation, that person raised a question that intrigued Tian Zhong. Tian Zhong turned to ask further, but unexpectedly, the person suddenly drew their sword and attacked, leading to this scene...
"Is he one of our own?" Zhu Jia had mixed feelings about Tian Zhong, after all, he had once been his adopted son. He used his inner strength to take the head from his disciple's arms and piece it back onto the body.
Tian Meng and Tian Hu exchanged bewildered glances. Logically, Tian Zhong shouldn't have been traveling with anyone else tonight... but if Zhou He's guess wasn't correct, and given the assassin's abilities, the target might have been them instead of Tian Zhong, and the consequences would likely have been dire...
"Although it's very unusual, there's no time left!"
Situ Wanli gazed at the position of the bright moon in the sky and said expressionlessly:
"Whether it's Chen Sheng or Tian Zhong, we won't waste any more time on this. We can't miss the grand sacrificial ceremony for Shennong, the ancestor of the Chinese nation, which takes place every four years!"
"After the sacrifice, it will be even harder to find the traces left by the murderer... Never mind, let's gather the disciples and hold the sacrifice as normal!"
Zhu Jia's voice betrayed his worry, but as Situ Wanli said, they really couldn't afford to waste any more time on these two murders.
"That's settled then. I'll take Tian Zhong back to Gonggong Hall."
Zhou He said in a deep voice, collected Tian Zhong's body, and left first.
The other five hall masters, each with their own thoughts, also dispersed one by one...
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Rewind to one hour earlier.