Chapter Fifteen True Purpose

  "Do you still remember when Hong the painter painted that same painting?"

  "This can't be remembered, Master Hong painted so many paintings, and the time he came was also mostly uncertain. We were all outsiders, afraid of being laughed at if we said something wrong, so we rarely asked."

  "Let's go in and take a look first." Zhou Ke said after finishing speaking, then carefully examined the library with Ren Moqi.

  It's been said that Lord Hao is a man of great order and discipline, and today I can see it for myself through the arrangement of the document library. Everything in the library is placed very neatly, with clear categories and separate areas for different types of documents, making it easy to find what you need. To ensure the absolute safety of the documents, the ceiling of the library is extremely high, and without special means, it's difficult for ordinary people to jump out from the top. The walls are also very thick and solid, with no signs of ever being dug into. There are only a few small windows on the wall, used for ventilation. However, upon closer inspection, one window seems newer than the others, so Zhou Ke asks, "Was that window replaced later?" The old soldier replies, "Lord, you have a good eye! The original window was severely aged, and the frame was loose to the point where it could be removed with just a push. Because of that window, stray cats would often come and go from this place. But this is a critical area! To ensure the safety of the documents, we reported and replaced the window. Since then, there haven't been any stray cats entering."

  "Stray cat?" Zhou Ke muttered to himself. Then he asked again: "When did you replace the window?"

  The old soldier thought for a moment and said: "It's also a coincidence, just eight years ago, after Hong the painter left."

  "Oh?" This piqued Zhou Ke and Ren Moji's great interest, "Was that stray cat also in and out of this place eight years ago too?"

  "Right back at you, sir!"

  "But didn't wild cats enter before?"

  "Whether it was before or not we don't know, anyway Wei Da said he saw it once!"

  "Who is Wei Da?"

  "Oh, that's right. Our little fire is ten people, and the front door is guarded by two people each time, with a shift change at 5 am and 5 pm every day."

  "Also at 5 am?"

  "Right, we change shifts twice a day, ten of us take turns to keep watch."

  "Are you ten people? What about the other six?" Zhou Ke and Ren Moci happened to arrive just in time, at exactly 5 pm, catching them during shift change. So they saw four people right away, two of whom were new recruits who didn't know anything about what had happened before and couldn't help much.

  "What's this? The two of you want to see them?"

  "Besides Wei Da, are there any other veterans like you two among the six people who have worked here eight years ago? Or someone who knows Hong Yi?"

  "Let me think... Ah, yes! It's Wei Da now. The others have all been transferred or should be retiring around this age."

  "Go get Wei Da!"

  On one side, they went to find Wei Da. On the other side, Ren Mo asked about eight years ago when Hong Yi left for the capital before this place had any unusual situation, but everyone replied that there was none.

  Zhou Ke and Ren Moji went out to check the outside of the newer window. This place, although also within the military camp, was a perfect secluded spot. If there were no patrolling guards walking around here, just fixed sentries, it would be impossible for anyone to detect this location. But how could they guarantee that there wouldn't be any patrolling guards? Ah, Hong Yi painted here every day and had already figured out the guards' patrol routes. Moreover, during shift changes, it was the most chaotic time, and he had a perfect opportunity to escape! Zhou Ke couldn't help but admire Hong Yi's ingenuity. He had carefully planned and utilized his painter's unique perspective to find such a safe place to escape from the library! As long as he safely escaped from the library, even if someone saw him, since he was friends with Lord Hao and often came here to paint, who would still suspect him? But the problem was how did he enter the library, and what did he go in for?

  When Wei Da arrived, Ren Mo asked him the same questions he had asked the other guards. Wei Da's answers were also the same as everyone else's. Zhou Ke asked him, "Did anything unusual happen around the time you saw the wild cat?" Wei Da thought for a moment and said, "Speaking of that wild cat, I remember something now. The day before, I don't know if it was because I ate something bad, but from dawn on, I kept running to the toilet, and my legs were so soft. After a while, Hong the painter came with his painting tools, and I didn't greet him much because of my stomachache. I let another guard, Kong Mazzi, watch the library, and then I went back to the toilet. Who knew that someone was already inside? I waited left and right, but no one came out, and when I shouted, there was no response. Because my stomach hurt so badly and I was so angry, I forcefully opened the door, not knowing who was playing tricks on me, using a grass rope to tie the door from the inside. I originally wanted to scold them, but my stomach really hurt too much, so I didn't care about it for now and just relieved myself first. Maybe because I was too tired from struggling all night, I actually fell asleep in the toilet. When I came back later, it was already around 4 am, and I saw the two people who were coming to take over the shift from afar. I thought that finally, I could rest well, but suddenly I remembered that I hadn't seen Sun Mazzi when I came back earlier! Hong the painter's painting tools were still there, but he wasn't there either. At that time, I was very nervous and worried that something would happen in the library, so I opened it with my key. As a result, I found that the military map on the bookshelf had been moved, exposing one corner! Sir, you know that everything here is arranged very neatly, and it's absolutely impossible for the military map to be exposed like that by itself. At that time, my hands were sweating, but just then, a black wild cat suddenly darted out from beside me, really scaring me. Afterward, I saw the wild cat jump out of the window that was a bit broken, and only then did I think that maybe it was the wild cat's doing.

  "Where did Hong the painter go?" Ren Mo asked, unable to hold back.

  "Oh, later I came out and saw Mr. Hong the painter walking over from his residence, and he handed me some medicine for stomach pain, saying that he had also eaten something bad two days ago and went to the pharmacy to grab a few packets of medicine, which eventually cured his stomach ache, but he didn't eat them again. He said if I wasn't disgusted, I could take it back and cook it to eat. At that time, I was really moved, wanting to give Mr. Hong some silver, but he refused to accept it, saying the medicine was also leftover from him, and if not eaten, would be thrown away, so just consider it a good deed, letting the medicine fulfill its purpose of curing illnesses and saving people! Seeing people and talking to them is really different!"

  Zhou Ke secretly laughed in his heart, this is not helping you at all! It's possible that the one who drugged you and tied up the bathroom door from the inside was also Hong Yi.

  "What about Sun Ma Zi? Where did he go?" Zhou Ke asked.

  "Oh, it was only later that I found out his neighbor's house had caught fire and the flames had spread to his own home. Someone came to tell him, and since he saw that it was almost time for our shift change and I hadn't arrived yet, he hastily rushed back to rescue his family."

  "Then just leave the library unattended?"

  "He told me to watch it for him for a while."

  "Who is that person?"

  "I later asked Sun Ma Zi when I was chatting with him, but he said that at the time, as soon as he heard that his home was on fire, he became flustered and didn't notice who the other person was. He just saw that they were wearing a military uniform, so he felt relieved. Moreover, since he hadn't given the key to that person, and it was almost time for the shift change at noon, he thought nothing big would happen, so he left."

  "Ah-ha!" With that, Zhou Ke had basically figured out Hong Yi's purposes and actions for coming to the Shaanxi Pacification Office. He deliberately offered his famous painting to get close to Lord Hao, then used his unique insight to become friends with him, allowing him to freely enter and exit the military camp. His frequent visits and painting experiences made everyone in the camp familiar with him, and his kind nature made people in the camp have a good impression of him, unaware that he had taken advantage of the opportunity to grasp the situation in the camp, especially the library's circumstances. He found an opportunity to copy the Shaanxi troop distribution map! Obviously, he still had accomplices; the fire at Sun Ma Zi's house was too coincidental, and the person who notified Sun Ma Zi while wearing a military uniform was also suspicious. But more importantly, what would a painter want with the Shaanxi troop distribution map? "Western Xia!" A ominous thought flashed through Zhou Ke's mind, and he immediately ordered Ren Mo Ci to return to Qin Feng Road with him!