Chapter 6: The Xiao Family Tragedy
The fire pit in the hall was extremely large, five feet square, and although no one had added firewood for a long time, several large tree roots were still burning slowly, bringing some light to the main hall.
On the edge of the fire pit lay a skull, its mouth wide open as if still silently screaming.
The skull was dressed in luxury, with a purple qilin wood scabbard inlaid with gold and jade at its waist. On the right hand that had no flesh or blood, it tightly grasped a sharp sword with a cyan glow.
Xiao Ziyang let out a light sigh, if he wasn't mistaken, this person should be the great dragon head of Qinglong Village, the drought dragon king Han Kui, whose name shook Ganbei!
He sat down beside the skull, staring blankly at the wall in front of him, and suddenly became dazed.
Tonight's series of thrilling experiences brought up Xiao Ziyang's long-sealed memories, which could no longer be suppressed.
Xiao Ziyang was just a porter at the Golden Saber Escort Agency, but no one in the agency dared to treat him as an ordinary porter.
He is the adopted son of Lei Kung Tuo, the great leader of the Golden Knife Escort Bureau, and also the undisputed number one master of the Golden Knife Escort Bureau.
Xiao Ziyang was only seventeen years old this year. But his purple-black face, which had been honed by the wind and frost to be as rough as burlap, made it impossible for anyone to guess his true age.
He was extremely tall, nearly nine feet, and had been practicing martial arts for many years, making his body as strong as a bear. Every muscle on his body was as hard as rock.
Previously, people often asked him, how could a rough and unrefined porter like him have such an elegant name.
Xiao Ziyang always smiled but did not answer.
No one knows how much bitterness is hidden in his smile.
Xiao Ziyang's name was given by his father, Xiao Shouqing, a shengyuan, who had read books for over a decade but still hadn't passed the imperial examination to become even a xiucai.
He remembered that when he was a child, his father often held him in his arms and whispered to him that on the day he was born, a purple sun appeared in the sky, so he gave him the name Zi Yang. He said: "My son should be born with the heavenly sign, and in the future, he will not be an ordinary person, and he will surely make the Xiao family proud..."
Every time he said that, Xiao Shouqing would let out a long sigh, and just hold him like this, silently. Little Zi Yang was very sensible, he could hear the bitter intention in his father's sighs, every time at this moment, he would quietly lean against his father's chest without moving.
Xiao Ziyang was exceptionally intelligent from a young age. He could speak at the age of one and write out the "Thousand Character Classic" and other introductory texts by the time he was three years old.
Under Xiao Shouqing's careful guidance, at the age of nine, Xiao Ziyang was able to write excellent articles that even his father couldn't help but admire.
Xiao Ziyang clearly remembered that day when he presented his article to his father with great care.
Xiao Shou carefully read through it, looking at the delicate yet firm childish handwriting on the rice paper, his face showing a mix of sadness and joy, unable to express his emotions.
Xiao Shouqing held his son's article and sat in the courtyard for an entire afternoon, then he tearfully threw the article into the fire pit.
Xiao Ziyang silently looked at his father, unsure of what he had done wrong.
The next day, Xiao Shouqing sent his son to the Golden Knife Escort Bureau in the county town and asked the leader of the bureau, Lei Gengtiger, to accept his son as an apprentice.
Lei Keng Hu is one of the few close friends of Xiao Shou Qing. Although Da Biao Tou is illiterate, he has great respect for Mr. Xiao, who is well-read in poetry and has a broad vision.
Xiao Ziyang didn't understand why his father no longer allowed him to study literature. Studying martial arts was very hard, but he worked very hard and didn't want to disappoint his father.
He is a genius in learning literature and martial arts. He spent only three years to master the skills of Lei Da Biao Tou, and even surpassed his master.
Twelve-year-old Xiao Ziyang defeated his own master and rushed back home excitedly, but the scene in front of him shattered everything.
His father, a helpless old man, and his mother, a rustic woman who regarded her husband as heaven, were actually murdered in their own home.
The Xiao family's tragic case was widely spread in Dayang County, not only because the deceased was a Shengyuan, but also because the Xiao family's case was very suspicious.
The head of the county government said that in the Xiao family murder case, except for the husband and wife who were killed with a very skilled method, nothing was lost from the house, not even a thread.
Xiao's family settled in Dangyang County for over a decade, being kind to others and getting along extremely well with neighbors. The master of the house was a scholar and had quite a reputation in the local countryside. There has never been any mention of Xiao's family having any enemies.
The Xiang family's tragic case became an unsolved mystery. The rumors that had been circulating like a whirlwind came and went quickly, leaving no trace soon after, and were forgotten by the people.
For Xiao Ziyang, his parents' death was like a bolt from the blue, shattering all his hopes for the future.
The officials have forgotten, the fellow villagers have forgotten, how can he forget his parents' unblinking dead eyes!
Xiao Ziyang vowed to find the murderer who killed his parents and avenge them, no matter where they were in the world.
Xiao Ziyang had carefully examined his parents' corpses and was shocked to discover that the murderer was a highly skilled martial artist, as the wounds on his parents' bodies were all in the same position, with no difference in size or depth.
Both parents were killed by a sword thrust from under the ribs, piercing the heart and dying, with very small wounds, not even bleeding much, yet killing people in an instant.
If this sword is shallow by one part, it will not kill a person at all. If it's deep by one part, not only will it waste energy, but it will also cause the wound to spurt out a large amount of blood, and it's inevitable that some will splatter onto the murderer themselves.
Such swordsmanship, Xiao Ziyang had only heard of in some Jianghu rumors, and before he always thought it was exaggerated.
But today, he saw this legendary swordsmanship on his own parents!
What reason could have led this legendary master to come and assassinate his own parents?
The various abnormalities of his father suddenly floated into Xiao Ziyang's mind, perhaps his father had a past he didn't know about, and secrets he didn't know about.
Xiao Ziyang searched the house inch by inch, spending three whole days, and finally found a clue - a letter, a very secretly hidden letter!
Since seeing this letter, Xiao Ziyang has never mentioned revenge again.
This is a letter that looks very ordinary, with nothing special about the paper or handwriting. What's not ordinary are the names of the sender and recipient.
The recipient's name is Zang Zhilong, and the sender's name is Su Dingbei.
The dragon hidden in the cave does not know what kind of person. But Su Dingbei's name can be said to be resounding throughout the Western Cool Empire, the current prime minister, the able minister who governs the world, and the auxiliary country duke. This string of dazzling titles is the prefix of this name.
After reading the letter, Xiao Ziyang fell silent for a long time, then he personally made a sheepskin bag and tied the letter to his chest. Although the letter was on his chest, from that day on, he never touched the letter again, as if he had forgotten its existence, forgotten his parents' great revenge.
