Outside the courtyard of the Chen Mansion, the president of the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce.
Chenjia Ferry.
A middle-aged man in white clothes, about thirty years old, with all his beard and beard removed, his hair firmly tied into a bun, his sleeves fluttering, his skirt swaying slightly, not stained by dust and drizzle, he looks like a scholar. It can be seen that this man likes to be clean.
It is worth mentioning that his long hair and eyebrows are all white, without a trace of blue hair. Like others, they are very white.
The young man was in vain, and there was no trace of his old age, which added a bit of sadness to his originally heroic face.
Holding an oil-paper umbrella in his hand, he slowly walked onto the ferry from the bow of a large merchant ship.
Outside the Chen Mansion, several doorkeepers welcomed him in.
In the inner courtyard, there is a simple room with a beautiful carved screen.
In the room, there is a small table made of ancient red sandalwood with carved orchids and butterflies, and two light chairs inlaid with jade tassels.
On the table is a pot of fragrant wine, a few plates of the best side dishes in the south of the Yangtze River, sauced meat with mushrooms, diced chicken and yuba, cold daylilies, and a plate of salt-baked peanuts.
Two middle-aged men sat on the chairs and exchanged drinks.
One of them is Chen Daofeng, who avenged his fiancée, and the other is the white-haired middle-aged man.
The two of them gradually became close friends because they studied together under Mr. Gu Liu in Changzhou in their early years.
However, after completing his studies, Chen Daofeng returned home to inherit his ancestral business and start a business. By chance, the white-haired middle-aged man became a disciple of a knight-errant and learned martial arts.
"Brother Chen is having a good time today, and he actually started drinking. It seems things are done." The white-haired middle-aged man took a sip from his wine glass and said with a smile, "Good wine, good wine."
Chen Daofeng nodded, with a wry smile on his lips, "Thanks to Brother Ruan for his guidance, I found someone from the seventh floor to take action."
The white-haired middle-aged man shook his head, his brows furrowed slightly, and there was a hint of loss in his eyes, and he replied: "It's a pity that the people on the seventh floor only kill people and don't look for anyone."
Chen Daofeng comforted him and said, "Brother Ruan is generous. Your sweetheart is still alive. As long as you are sincere, you will definitely find her. It is better than your brother's sweetheart dying at the hands of that thief."
When the white-haired middle-aged man heard this, he sighed, "I won't mention it, I'll be sad if I mention it. Let's drink, drink."
After the two drank for a while.
Chen Daofeng mentioned the hired killer:
"To be honest, Brother Ruan, the seven floors you recommended to me are really great. There are many experts in martial arts among my disciples, and they are all no match for Kong Jian. They all have gone and never come back.
However, as soon as the people on the seventh floor took action, in just one drizzly morning, except for the evil monk who was sheltering in the temple, I recently heard that it was a fatal move, which was really powerful. "
The white-haired middle-aged man was also shocked when he heard this, "Oh, is there such a thing? Nakong Jian is the elder of the Arhat Hall of Huatan Temple!
The Luohan Hall of Huatan Temple is a Buddhist temple where Huatan Temple controls the martial arts classics and resists foreign enemies. In addition, Kong Jian has practiced such sinister martial arts as the Bone-Destroying Palm. Who can attack so cleanly? "
When Chen Daofeng saw that the white-haired middle-aged man also had a look of surprise on his face, he asked curiously: "Aren't all the seven-story killers so powerful? Why is Brother Ruan so surprised?"
The white-haired middle-aged man frowned and replied: "Of course not. No matter how weak Na Kong Jian's martial arts is, he won't be killed with one move. I wonder if the person who took over Brother Chen's mission was given a seven-kill order?"
Chen Daofeng said: "Sent it away."
"Then what's the number on the order? Can the killer tell me his name?" The white-haired middle-aged man continued to ask.
Chen Daofeng said:
"The order is like a black apricot, with the character 'Qi' on the front and the character 'Ji' on the back. The killer calls it Ji Ruge.
At that time, he avenged me, and I wanted to buy his token to be buried with Yueru to comfort her soul in heaven, but the man refused to give up the token no matter what. "
Hearing this, the white-haired middle-aged man suddenly looked horrified, "It's a good thing that you still want his token. You are lucky."
Seeing his frightened expression, Chen Daofeng asked for some reason:
"Brother Ruan, how do you say this?"
When the white-haired middle-aged man heard this, his surprise turned into exclamation and said:
"I said that the death of an old monk in Huatan Temple would lead to a meeting to eliminate demons. It turns out that it was Ji Ruge who took over your mission on the seventh floor."
Chen Daofeng heard this and asked curiously: "Who is Ji Ruge? How did he attract so much attention from the world?"
The white-haired middle-aged man replied slowly:
"Brother Chen, please listen to me carefully. This seven-story building is located at the junction of the Xiongnu, Xianbei and Central Plains. It is called Muyun Mountain.
It is a very chaotic place. The reason why the owner of the Seven-story building chose this place as his base is that this is a "three-nothing" zone. The Seven-story building is huge and pays local taxes to the three countries every year. The security on the border is unstable, and the officials in charge get rich. An, therefore, Muyun Mountain is protected by the officials of the three places, which makes the seven-story building sit firmly in Muyun Mountain.
There are many killers on the seventh floor, but they are not from a specific sect. Many killers are only employed, and it is up to them whether they accept tasks or not. "
Chen Daofeng heard this and asked doubtfully:
"If you say this, aren't these seven floors in name only, a piece of loose sand? How can such an existence stay firmly in Muyun Mountain and still have such a great reputation?"
The white-haired middle-aged man smiled and replied:
"Brother Chen doesn't know something. Every killer recruited by Seventh Floor will sign an agreement with Seventh Floor, and he will serve Seventh Floor for free three times in his life.
In other words, as long as the owner of the seventh floor is willing, he can summon all the killers in a short time and kill three times for free for him.
There are countless killers on the seventh floor, and there are many masters. They take three free shots. I'm afraid no sect in this world can handle it!
The seventh floor is like a huge hornet's nest standing on Muyun Mountain. No one dares to poke it, and no one can poke it! "
Chen Daofeng heard this and replied in surprise: "That's it."
The white-haired middle-aged man continued:
"The seventh floor is only responsible for testing the killer level, and giving the price and tasks for each floor.
The killer levels range from 'one' to 'seven', and the mission levels also range from 'one' to 'seven'. This is where the name of the seventh floor comes from.
The number in the seven-kill order of the person who took over your task is 'Qi', which is Ji Ruge, the top killer on the seventh floor. You said he killed the old monk Kong Jian, wasn't he easy to catch? "
Chen Daofeng broke into a cold sweat when he heard this, "It turns out he is the top killer on the seventh floor. No wonder he is so good."
When the two talked about the matter on the seventh floor, their voices became much lower, for fear that the walls had ears and others might overhear.
The white-haired middle-aged man praised him: "Isn't that right! I heard that Ji Ruge's martial arts is not the best in the world, but his ability as an assassin to kill people is unparalleled. He is elusive and his whereabouts are hard to find."
After he finished speaking, he asked Chen Daofeng:
"The mansion knows that you hired killers to kill Kong Jian's servants, but have they all been dismissed?"
Chen Daofeng said:
"It has been arranged long ago. Except for you and me, I have given money to all the servants in the house who know about this matter to leave Jiangnan and settle down."
The white-haired middle-aged man replied:
"This is the best. Paying a murderer to kill someone is originally a shameful business, but the existence of the seventh floor is a special one.
From now on, Brother Chen has to be strict in his speech. If the matter of hiring a killer to kill Kong Jian is exposed, it will not be a serious disaster.
I'm afraid that as soon as the word 'Ji Ruge' comes out of your mouth, countless masters in the world will destroy you. Ji Ruge comes out every three years. In the past few years, he has established a fierce reputation in the world. Killed many masters from various sects.
Even if his enemy could get some information about Ji Ruge from his employer, it would not be impossible for him to kill everyone in his family. "
Chen Daofeng said in fear: "I don't dare to mention it anymore, I don't dare to mention it anymore, come on! Brother Ruan, after drinking this cup, you and I will forget about this matter."
Hearing this, the white-haired middle-aged man picked up his wine glass and retorted: "This is the best."
After the two of them finished talking, they drank it all in one gulp.
Talking about the white-haired middle-aged man, his surname is Ruan, his given name is Qingchou, and he is called the white-haired scholar.
After studying with Chen Daofeng in his early years, he loved to travel around the world and live a leisurely and peaceful life.
While living in a small county in the southwest of the Central Plains, Ruan Qingchou met his sweetheart.
The two fell in love with each other. Soon after they got married, the Xiongnu and Xianbei rebelled. The people were in dire straits and bandits were everywhere. The sweetheart was kidnapped by a group of strongmen, and her whereabouts are still unknown.
In desperation, Ruan Qingchou committed suicide by throwing himself into the river. By chance, he was rescued by a swordsman from the Jianghu and passed on his mantle.
After becoming a master, Ruan Qingchou was outstanding in swordsmanship, but Ruan Qingchou was not determined to excel in swordsmanship. Instead, he traveled around the world, searching all over the world, vowing to find out the whereabouts of his sweetheart.
After nearly ten years of running around, I still couldn't find the whereabouts of my sweetheart.
However, he became ill due to his thoughts, and there was always a slight sadness between his brows. In his melancholy, his beard and hair gradually turned gray.
The sweetheart was not found, but because he traveled around the world to inquire about Sheng Guang, he heard a lot about things in the world, and became a famous figure in the world, and was nicknamed the White-haired Scholar.
Outside the Chen Mansion.
Chen Daofeng hired a high-quality carriage and sedan to send the white-haired scholar Ruan Qingchou away.
"Brother Ruan, do you really want to go to Huatan Temple?"
Ruan Qingchou lifted the car curtain, stepped on the sedan board, got into the sedan, turned to Chen Daofeng and said:
"Of course I have to go and have a look. To join in the fun, I have to travel to the Xiongnu. I have searched all over the Central Plains to no avail. Maybe the news about my wife Si Xiaoyi is not in the Central Plains."
After he finished speaking, he thought of his wife, Si Xiaoyi, who was smiling like a flower in his heart, and the slight sadness came to his brows. He originally had a heart that traveled all over the world, but when he met Xiao Yi, he had a desire to settle down and vowed to keep the two of them together. They stayed together for a long time and lived a stable life in Nanmu, with men farming and women weaving. However, unexpectedly, God's will was unpredictable and fate played tricks on people. On the contrary, they were even more homeless than before they got married, and they were now at home all over the world.
He sighed softly, cupped his fists and said to Chen Daofeng: "Brother Chen, I'm afraid it will be a few more years before we say goodbye. I don't know when I will be able to go back to Jiangnan and have a drink with you. Please take care of yourself."
Chen Daofeng cupped his fists and returned the gift, wishing: "I hope that when we meet again, Brother Ruan can take my sister-in-law back to Jiangnan with me. Take care!"
After saying goodbye, Ruan Qingchou closed the sedan curtain.
A carriage stepped on bluestone slabs and headed north along Chenjia Alley to Huatan Temple.
The willows in the street are green, the rain at noon is still gentle, and the wind and rain in the city seem to be the most light and sad here.
Ruan Qingchou, a Baixiao in the world, slowly recalled in the sedan chair that in the past few years, Ji Ruge, the world-famous number one killer on the seventh floor, had received a reward of over ten thousand taels for all the tasks he had taken on.
He also seemed to feel that the number one killer on the seventh floor seemed to be very poor and short of money.
...
