Chapter 29 Chapter Twenty-Eight

You TanZhi saw that Xiao Feng and his party went straight to the north and never turned back, so he realized that he was not going to die, he thought: "Why doesn't this traitor kill me? Hmph, he doesn't look down on me at all, he thinks he will kill me Dirty hands. He... what kind of king did he do in the Liao Kingdom? It will be even more difficult for me to take revenge in the future. But I finally found the whereabouts of this traitor." Bending down to pick up the lime bag, he went to look for the dagger that Xiao Feng had snatched away with a whip and thrown away.Suddenly saw a small oilcloth bag in the grass on the left, it was Xiao Feng who took it out of his arms and put it back, immediately picked it up, opened the oilcloth, saw a book inside, flipped through it casually, every page was full of words and phrases. The crooked text, not a single word can be read.It turned out that Xiao Feng was stunned when he saw things and thought about people, when he put this "Yi Jin Jing" back into his bosom, he didn't put it in a safe place, when his horse jolted slightly, he fell into the grass, he didn't notice it.

You TanZhi thought to himself: "This is probably in Khitan script, the book that the traitor carries with him will be of great use to him. I will not return it to him." Feeling a hint of revenge, he wrapped the book back into the oilcloth and put it in the In the arms, go southward in radial direction. He has been learning martial arts from his father since he was a child, but he suffers from a weak body and weak physical strength, which is completely different from the You Clan's powerful foreign martial arts methods. After learning martial arts for three years, he has made very little progress, and he does not look like a child of a famous family.When he was twelve years old, You Ju became discouraged and discussed with his elder brother You Ji.They both said: "My You family's son has done such a three-legged cat's trick, wouldn't it make people laugh? When others hear that he is the nephew of the You family of Juxianzhuang, they don't want to do anything. Use all your strength, the first move killed him. It is better to let him study literature obediently to save his life." So You Tanzhi stopped learning martial arts when he was twelve years old, and You Ju hired an old Confucian to teach him read.

But he refused to pay attention to his studies, and kept annoying the teacher away. You Ju beat him dozens of times, but the more he beat him, the more stubborn and naughty he became.Seeing his son's dishonesty, You Ju sighed and had no choice but to let him go.So You TanZhi is 18 years old this year, although he comes from a famous family, he doesn't know either literature or martial arts.After his uncle and father committed suicide and his mother committed suicide by committing suicide, he was lonely and wandering around, all he wanted was to seek revenge from Qiao Feng. That day during the battle at Juxianzhuang, he hid behind the screen wall to watch the battle, and he could see Qiao Feng's appearance clearly.Hearing that he was from Khitan, he came north in a daze.I saw a little thief throwing a lime bag on the rivers and lakes and hurt the enemy's eyes. I thought this method was good, so I copied it and made one, and kept it by my side.He was wandering around the border, he was captured by Khitan soldiers when they came out to hunt the grassy valley, he unexpectedly met Xiao Feng, and he even threw the lime bag, it was a very coincidence.

He bowed his head and wandered around, thinking: "I tried to catch a poisonous snake or a big centipede, secretly put it on his bed, and when he fell asleep under the quilt, I killed him with one bite. That little girl...that little girl, Oh, she...she is so pretty!" Thinking of Ah Zi's appearance, his chest felt inexplicably hot, and he just thought: "I don't know when, I will see this slender and beautiful little girl with a snow-white complexion again." Just as he was thinking wildly, he suddenly heard the sound of horseshoes. Three Khitan cavalry galloped towards him in the snow. When they saw him, they cheered loudly.A Khitan soldier swung a rope around his neck with a swish, pulling it tight.You TanZhi hastily stretched out his hand to pull it.The Khitan soldier roared and galloped on his horse.You TanZhi could not stand still, he bent over and fell down, being dragged out by the soldier.You TanZhi screamed a few times, then the rope around his throat was tightened, he couldn't scream anymore.

The Khitan soldier was afraid that he would be strangled to death, so he stopped his horse immediately.You TanZhi struggled to get up from the ground, loosened the rope loop around his throat.The Khitan soldier pulled hard, You TanZhi staggered and nearly fell down.The three Khitan soldiers laughed loudly.The Khitan soldier holding the rope waved his hand and galloped his horse, but this time he didn't rush.You TanZhi was afraid that his throat would be strangled again and he would not be able to breathe, so he could only walk two steps and run three steps to follow. Seeing the three Khitan cavalry marching northward, he felt frightened: "This guy Qiao Feng said nicely that he let me go, but he turned around and sent troops to arrest me. This time he caught me." Go, where is life left?" When he left home and headed north, all he could think of was revenge, and he didn't know the heights of heaven and earth, when he suddenly saw Qiao Feng, the scene of his parents' tragic death came to his mind, and as soon as he got angry, he wanted to wrap it in lime. Blind his eyes, then pounced on him and stabbed him to death with a short knife.But he missed a hit, lost all vigor, just wanted to escape with his life, but was taken away by the Khitan soldiers.

At first he was captured by the Khitan soldiers when they came out to dig grassy valleys, and he was among the women, who couldn't walk very fast, but he could keep up with them, and he didn't suffer much, he was only stabbed in the back when he was captured.But now it's very different, he stumbles and runs away, out of breath, falls after he can't walk more than a few dozen steps, every time he falls, there is a bloodstain on the back of his neck when the rope is fixed on him.The Khitan cavalry never stopped, regardless of his life or death, they dragged him straight into Nanjing city.When he entered the city, You TanZhi was already covered in blood, he only hoped to die soon, so as not to suffer so much.

The three Khitan soldiers walked several li in the city and dragged him into a big house.You TanZhi saw that the floor is covered with bluestone slabs, the pillars are thick and the door is high, he doesn't know where it is.The Khitan soldiers who were leading him rode into a large courtyard, suddenly roared loudly, clamped their legs, and the horse galloped away.You TanZhi did not expect that the soldier would gallop his horse when he arrived in the courtyard, after taking three steps, he bent over and fell down. The Khitan soldiers roared repeatedly, they dragged You TanZhi around the courtyard three times, urged the horse to run faster and faster, dozens of officers and soldiers watching shouted loudly to cheer.You TanZhi said in his heart: "So he wants to drag me to death underground!" His forehead, limbs, body collided with the blue stones on the ground, there is no pain anywhere.

Amidst the laughter of all the Khitan soldiers, there was a clear female laughter.You TanZhi was in a daze, faintly heard the woman laughing: "Haha, I'm afraid this man Yuanzi won't be able to let go!" You Tanzhi thought: "What is a human kite?" He felt a tightness in the back of his neck, his body rose into the air, he immediately understood that this Khitan soldier galloped on his horse and pulled him up into the air, playing like a kite . He volleyed all over his body, and lost consciousness from the pain in the back of his neck.Mouth and nose are filled with wind, it's hard to breathe, but when the woman clapped her hands and said with a smile: "Very good, very good, I really let go of the human kite!" A beautiful girl in purple.When he first saw it, his chest trembled violently, his body was floating in the air, and his mind was muddled and messed up.

That beautiful girl is Ah Zi.She saw You Tanzhi plotting against Xiao Feng, but Xiao Feng spared him from killing him, she was not happy, she rode for a distance, she deliberately lagged behind, she ordered her followers to catch him quietly, but don't let King Xiao know about it.The attendants knew that King Xiao loved her very much, so they gladly obeyed the order, pretended to straighten the horse's girth, stopped behind the hillside, waited for Xiao Feng and his party to go far away, then turned around to catch You TanZhi.AhZi returns to Nanjing, she waits at Yousheng Palace which is far away from Xiao Feng's residence.She asked the Khitan people what new and interesting way to torture sinners, and someone mentioned "putting kites".This method was very favorable to AhZi, she ordered it to be implemented immediately, and actually "released" You TanZhi.

AhZi saw it interestingly, applauded repeatedly, and said: "Let me let you go!" He got on the saddle that the soldier was riding on, took the rope, and said: "Get down!" The soldier jumped off his horse and let A'Zi release "Ren Yuan".AhZi pulled the rope, galloped her horse around, laughed loudly, and repeatedly shouted: "Interesting, interesting!" But she had just recovered from a serious injury, her hands were exhausted after all, her wrists softened, the rope drooped, and there was a bang, You TanZhi He fell down heavily and landed on the bluestone slab, his forehead bumped into the sharp corner of the main step, and a hole was broken immediately, blood gushed out like a fountain.AhZi was very disappointed, annoyed: "This stupid boy is too heavy!"

You TanZhi was in so much pain that he almost fainted, he heard that she was still blaming him for being too heavy, and wanted to explain a few words, but he was too painful to speak.A Khitan soldier came over to untie the rope around his neck, another Khitan soldier tore off the skirt of his body, and wrapped up his wound indiscriminately. The blood kept oozing from the wound, but how could it stop? Ah Zi said: "Okay, okay! Let's play again and put him up again, the higher the better." Although the yard in Yousheng Palace is big, it is impossible for horses to gallop. The Khitan soldiers told AhZi to move it to the courtyard of the Queen's Palace, where it would be better to cast it.A Khitan soldier lifted the rope, passed it under You Tanzhi's armpit, wrapped it around his body for a circle, so as not to grab his neck and strangle him to death, he shouted: "Get up!" Drag him around the school field a few times, and "let him go" again.The rope in the hands of the Khitan soldier gradually became longer and longer, You TanZhi's body gradually floated higher. The Khitan soldier let go of his hand suddenly, with a whoosh, You TanZhi flew upwards like an arrow leaving the string.Ah Zi and all the officers and soldiers applauded loudly.You Tanzhi couldn't help but flew towards the sky, he only said in his heart: "This time I'm dead!" After exhaustion of his ascending force, he rushed down head to foot. Seeing that his head was about to hit the hard ground, four Khitan officers and soldiers swung out rope loops at the same time, wrapped around his waist, and pulled them in all directions.You TanZhi fainted immediately, but the four forces had already frozen his body in mid-air, his head was about three feet off the ground.This blow is extremely dangerous, as long as one of the four soldiers is a little late to strike the rope ring and the force is not even, You Tanzhi will definitely hit his head and bleed.A group of Khitan soldiers used to play in this way like Song people, the captives were thrown into kites, eight or nine out of ten were crushed to death.Even on the soft ground of the grassland, if you dive down from such a high height, even if you don't hit your head, you will break your head and neck, and usually die. Amidst the cheers, four Khitan soldiers put You TanZhi down.Ah Zi took out the silver taels, and a group of officers and soldiers rewarded five taels each.All the officers and soldiers thanked loudly and asked: "What else do you want to play?" AhZi saw You TanZhi passed out, she didn't know whether it was dead or alive, when she released the "human kite" just now, she used too much force, her chest hurts, she couldn't play any more, she said: "Enough is enough. If this kid He is not dead, bring him back to see me tomorrow, I will find another way to amuse him. This man wants to assassinate King Xiao, but he cannot die too easily." All the officers and soldiers agreed in unison, and put You Tan, who was covered in blood, on the frame out. When You TanZhi woke up, a musty smell came straight to his nose, he opened his eyes, it was pitch black, he couldn't see anything, his first thought was: "Am I dead?" Then he felt pain all over his body , Throat thirst unbearable.He shouted hoarsely: "Water! Water!" But who cares? He yelled a few times, fell asleep in a daze, and suddenly saw his uncle, father and Qiao Feng fighting, blood flowed everywhere, and saw his mother hugging him in her arms, comforting him softly, telling him not to be afraid.Then Ah Zi's beautiful face appeared in front of his eyes, and there was a strange light in his bright eyes.This face suddenly shrunk, turning into a triangular snake head, sticking out a long blood-red tongue, sticking out its fangs and biting at him.You TanZhi struggled desperately, but he couldn't move, the snake bit him every bite, on his hands, legs, neck, everywhere, especially on his forehead.Seeing his own flesh being bitten off piece by piece, he just wanted to scream, but he couldn't make a sound... I tossed and tossed all night, tortured when I was awake, and suffered in general in my sleep. The next day two Khitan soldiers escorted him to see AhZi again, his high fever still persisted, he only took a step and fell forward.Two Khitan soldiers grabbed his left arm and right arm respectively, scolded him loudly, and dragged him into a big room.You TanZhi thought: "Where are they dragging me? Are they dragging me out to kill me?" His mind was dizzy and he couldn't think about it, he seemed to pass through two long corridors and came to the outside of a hall.Two Khitan soldiers reported a few words outside the door, a woman inside responded, the hall door was pushed open, and the Khitan soldiers embraced him in. You TanZhi raised his head, he saw a huge carpet with colorful patterns on the floor and floor, a beautiful girl was sitting on the brocade mat at the end of the carpet, it was AhZi.She was barefoot, stepping on the carpet.When You Tanzhi saw her pair of snow-white and crystal-clear little feet, they were really as soft as jade and as soft as satin, his heart beat violently immediately.His eyes were fixed on her pair of feet, and when he saw that the flesh color of her instep was transparent, there were a few small blue veins faintly reflected under the jelly lotus root-like instep, and he really wanted to reach out and touch it gently.The two Khitan soldiers let him go.You TanZhi swayed a few times, and finally managed to stand still.He never took his eyes off Ah Zi's little feet, he saw that the toenails of her ten toes were all light red, like ten small petals. AhZi saw in her eyes that it was an ugly boy covered in blood, his face was distorted, his jaw was protruding, but greedy flames shot out from his eyes.She frowned slightly, thinking: "How about a new way to torture him?" All of a sudden, You Tanzhi let out two "ho ho" sounds from his throat, a force from nowhere, like a leopard, he rushed towards AZi swiftly, hugged her calf, bowed his head and kissed her Instep of both feet.Ah Zi was taken aback and screamed.The two Khitan soldiers and the four maidservants serving beside Ah Zi shouted in unison, rushed forward and pulled them away. But he hugged her tightly with both hands and refused to let go.The Khitan soldiers pulled with all their strength, and actually pulled Ah Zi off the brocade mat, and she fell onto the carpet.The two Khitan soldiers didn't dare to pull any more, one hit You TanZhi hard on the back, the other punched You TanZhi on the right side of the cheek.You TanZhi's wound was swollen, the high fever did not subside, his mind was not clear, he seemed to be insane, he was completely at a loss for the scene in front of him.He hugged Ah Zi's calf tightly, kissing the backs and soles of her feet constantly. AhZi felt his hot and dry lips kissing the soles of her feet. She was scared, but she also had a strange feeling of numbness and itching. She suddenly screamed: "Ah! He bit my toe." He hurriedly turned to the two Khitans. Bing said: "Go away quickly, this man has gone crazy, oh, don't let him bite off my toe." You TanZhi bit her toe lightly, although AhZi didn't hurt, but she was very frightened, afraid of the Khitan soldiers If he was beaten hard again, he would bite hard without regard for his life. The two Khitan soldiers had no choice but to let go.AhZi shouted: "Don't bite, I will spare you." You TanZhi was in a frenzy at this moment, how could he hear what she said?A Khitan soldier held down the hilt of the waist knife, only wanting to pull out the knife, swung the knife to cut off his neck and cut off his head, but he held AhZi's calf tightly with his hands, and the knife would not hurt him. After seeing Ah Zi, he hesitated. AhZi said again: "Hey! Why are you biting me? Open your mouth quickly, I'll ask someone to heal your wounds and let you go back to the Central Plains." You TanZhi still ignored him, but his teeth didn't use force and the pain didn't bite anymore She gently caressed her instep with both hands, her heart fluttered, as if she became a human kite again and rose into the clouds. A Khitan soldier had an idea, grabbed You Tanzhi by the throat.You TanZhi's throat was constricted, he opened his mouth involuntarily.Ah Zi hastily withdrew her legs, pulled her toes out of his mouth, stood up, fearing that he would go crazy and bite again, she shrank her feet behind the brocade mat.Two Khitan soldiers grabbed You Tanzhi and punched him in the chest.When he punched a dozen or so times, he spat out a few mouthfuls of blood, staining a brightly colored carpet. AhZi said: "Stop it, don't fight!" After the thrill just now, I think this kid is weird and interesting, I don't want to kill him immediately.The Khitan soldiers stopped fighting.AhZi sat cross-legged on the brocade mat, sat her bare feet under her buttocks, thinking in her mind: "How can I torture him?" When she looked up, she saw You TanZhi staring at her without blinking, she asked: " What are you looking at me for?" You TanZhi put life and death aside, and said: "You are very good-looking, I will just look at you!" AhZi's face blushed, and said in her heart: "This kid is so bold, he dared to say such frivolous words to me." But in her life, no young man had ever praised her for being beautiful in person.When she was studying in the Xingxiu School, all the senior brothers regarded her as an elf and naughty little girl; when she was a little older, the master looked at her in a strange way, sometimes reaching out to touch her face and breasts, she was afraid Get up and escape.When he was with Xiao Feng, he was either afraid of her making trouble, or worried about her sudden death, he never paid attention to whether she was beautiful or ugly.You Tanzhi praised you so bluntly and sincerely, she couldn't help but secretly rejoiced in her heart, she thought: "I keep him by my side and use him for entertainment, it's very good. It's just that my brother-in-law said that I would let him go, if Knowing that I have arrested him again, he must be angry. If my brother-in-law never knows, what can I do? What if my brother-in-law comes in suddenly and sees him?" She pondered for a moment, then suddenly thought: "Ah Zhu is the best at dressing up. If I pretend to be my father, my brother-in-law will not be able to recognize her. If I change this kid, my brother-in-law will not be able to recognize her. But if he doesn't want to, I will make up with him." After that, he immediately washed off the make-up and returned to his original appearance, isn’t it useless?” Her crooked eyebrows frowned towards the center of her brows, and she immediately had an idea, clapping her hands and laughing: "Good idea, good idea! Let's do it!" She said to the two soldiers for a while.The two soldiers don't understand something, so please ask for instructions.Ah Zi explained in detail, and ordered the maid to take out fifty taels of silver and hand it over to them.Two Khitan soldiers took it, bowed and saluted, and carried You Tanzhi out of the hall. You TanZhi shouted: "I want to see her, I want to see this cruel and beautiful little girl." The Khitan soldiers and all the maids don't understand Chinese, so they don't know what he is shouting. AhZi heard him yelling, looked at his back with a smile on her face, and thought of her clever idea, the more she thought about it, the more proud she became.
You TanZhi was carried back to the dungeon and thrown on the haystack.In the evening, someone brought a bowl of mutton and some bread.You TanZhi's high fever persisted, he babbled nonsense loudly, the man was so frightened that he put down his food and immediately backed away.You Tanzhi didn't even know he was hungry, he never ate the mutton pancake. That night, three Khitans walked into the dungeon.You TanZhi was in a daze, seeing the strange expressions of these three people, it was obvious that they had malicious intentions.I vaguely knew that it was not a good thing, I struggled to stand up, and wanted to climb out and escape.Two Khitan men came up and held him down, turned him over so that his face was upside down.You TanZhi scolded: "Dog Khitan, you will die badly, I will cut you into pieces." Suddenly, the third Khitan held a white ball in both hands, like cotton, like white snow, Pressed hard on his face.You TanZhi only felt his face was wet and cold, his mind cleared up for a while, but he couldn't breathe, he thought: "So they sealed my seven orifices, they want to suffocate me to death!" But this guess was wrong after a while, someone poked his nose and mouth a few times, and he was able to breathe, but he couldn't open his eyes, he only felt his face was wet and greasy, and someone pressed and pinched his face everywhere, and it was like sticking to his face. A layer of wet surface, or a sticky piece of slime.You TanZhi thought in a daze, "What kind of strange method do these villains want to use to kill me?" After a while, the layer of ooze on his face was gently peeled off, You TanZhi opened his eyes, and saw a face model made of wet flour next to his face.The Khitan held it carefully in both hands, lest it might be damaged.You TanZhi scolded again: "Smelly Liao dog, I will tell you to die without a place to bury you." The three Khitan people ignored him, took the piece of wet noodles and went away. You TanZhi suddenly remembered: "That's right, they put poison on my face, after a while, my face will be festered, skin and flesh will be peeled off, and I will become a ghost..." The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became, he thought: "It's better not If you are tortured to death by them, you might as well hit yourself to death!" Immediately, he slammed his head against the wall, bang bang bang three times.Hearing the sound, the jailer rushed in and bound his hands and feet.You TanZhi was knocked half to death, he had no choice but to let himself be manipulated. After a few days, there was no pain on his face, let alone ulceration.But he was determined to die. Although he was hungry, he didn't touch the food sent by the jailer. On the fourth day, the three Khitans took him out again.You TanZhi suddenly felt sweet in the misery, thinking that AhZi called him to humiliate and torture again, although he suffered a lot, he could see her beautiful face again, he couldn't help showing a bit of a bitter smile on his face. The three Khitans led him through several alleys and into a large dark stone house.I saw the blazing charcoal fire illuminating half of the stone house, a muscular blacksmith with his upper body bare, standing beside a big anvil, holding a dark object, and examining it carefully.Three Khitan people pushed You TanZhi in front of the blacksmith, they took his hands separately, the other grabbed his back.The blacksmith turned his head to look at his face and at the objects in his hand, as if comparing each other. You TanZhi looked at the object in his hand, he saw it was a mask made of wrought iron, it had four holes for mouth, nose and eyes.He was thinking to himself: "Why do you make this thing?" The blacksmith picked up the mask and put it on his face.You TanZhi naturally tilted his head back, but the back of his head was pushed back immediately, he couldn't retreat, the iron mask covered his face.He only felt a chill on his face, and his skin was pressed against the iron. It was strange to say that the mask matched the shape of his eyes, mouth, nose and nose everywhere. You Tanzhi was only surprised for a moment, and immediately understood the truth, suddenly a chill came down his back: "Ah, this mask is custom-made for me. That day they used a wet mask to stick it on my face. I have already made a model of this mask. What is the purpose of making this iron mask carefully? Could it be... Could it be..." He had guessed the vicious intentions of these Khitan people in his heart, but he didn't know what it was for. Thinking about it, I struggled desperately to retreat. The blacksmith took the mask off his face, nodded, seemed to be quite satisfied, took a pair of large iron tongs to clamp the mask, put it in the stove until it burned red, lifted the iron awl in his right hand, and struck it loudly. stand up.He touched the mask for a while, then stretched out his hand to touch You TanZhi's cheekbones and forehead, correcting the inconsistency of the mask. You TanZhi yelled: "God damn Liaogou, God told you all to die! Your cattle and horses fell to death, and your babies died!" He yelled, those Khitan people didn't understand a word.The blacksmith turned around suddenly, stared viciously, raised the red-hot iron tongs, and poked at his eyes.You TanZhi screamed in fright.The blacksmith only frightened him, he laughed, retracted the iron tongs, took another curved iron block, and tried it on You Tan's back head. After the repair was done properly, the blacksmith burned the mask and the half-round iron cover in the furnace until they were red-hot, and said a few words loudly.The three Khitan men lifted You Tanzhi and placed him on a table, making his head protrude from the edge of the table.Two more Khitan men came to help, they pulled his hair hard, making him unable to move his head, five people pressed their hands and pressed their feet, how could You TanZhi move a little bit? The blacksmith picked up the red-hot mask, paused for a while, waited for it to cool slightly, let out a loud shout, and put it on You Tanzhi's face, white smoke rose, scorched stench scattered in all directions.You TanZhi yelled loudly, fainted from the pain.The five Khitans turned him over, the blacksmith clamped the other half of the iron mask and put it on the back of his head, the two semicircular iron masks formed an iron ball and put it on his head.The iron shield was extremely hot, and as soon as it touched the skin, it was burned to a bloody mess.That blacksmith is the most skillful ironworker in Yanjing City, after the two hemispheres of the iron cover are closed, they are perfectly inlaid. You TanZhi felt like he was in hell, he experienced the scorching flames, he didn't know how much time had passed, he suddenly felt a large piece of cold water pouring on his head, and then he woke up slowly, his face and the back of his head were in severe pain, he finally couldn't bear it anymore Stopped, and passed out again.After passing out three times like this, and waking up three times, he yelled loudly, but his voice was extremely hoarse, not like a human voice. He lay motionless, with no thoughts in his head, gritting his teeth to endure the pain in his face and head.After more than two hours, he finally raised his hand and touched his face. The tentacles were cold and hard, which confirmed that the guess was correct, and the iron mask had been put on his head.In anger, he tore the lever hard, but the mask was welded firmly, how could he move it?In desperation, I couldn't help crying loudly. At last he was young, although he suffered so much, he survived and did not die. After a few days, the wound healed slowly, the pain gradually subsided, and he also knew the hunger.Smelling the aroma of mutton and bread, unable to resist the temptation, he stuffed the food into the opening of the iron cover, put it in his mouth, and ate it.At this time, he had already felt the iron mask on his head clearly, knowing that this iron mask sealed his head tightly, and he was determined not to be able to get out of it. He was furious for the first few days, but finally calmed down, thinking: "Qiao Feng, what's wrong with him?" What is the purpose of the dog thief putting an iron mask on my face?" He only knew that all of this was due to Xiao Feng's order, so naturally he couldn't figure it out anyway, the reason why Ah Zi wanted to cover his face was to hide it from Xiao Feng. All these efforts were done by the head of the room under the instruction of Ah Zi.
AhZi asked the room every day, how did You TanZhi behave after putting on the mask, at first he was worried that he would die because of this, it was disappointing, but later he knew that he would not die, he was very happy.This day they learned that Xiao Feng was going to the southern suburbs for a military parade, so he ordered his room to summon You Tanzhi to Duanfu Palace.In order to please Xiao Feng, Yelu Hongji has granted Ah Zi the title of "Princess Duanfu Princess", and this Duanfu Palace is given to her to live in. As soon as AhZi saw You TanZhi's appearance, she couldn't help feeling a surge of joy from the bottom of her heart, she thought: "My magical method works. This kid put on such a mask, so my brother-in-law will face him Standing up, I am determined not to recognize him." You Tanzhi walked a few steps forward, Ah Zi clapped his hands and said, "In the room, this mask is very well made. I will give you fifty taels of silver, and another thirty taels of silver." Give two silver coins to the blacksmith!" The room said: "Yes! Thank you Princess!" You TanZhi looked out from the two eye holes of the mask, saw AhZi's face was full of joy, charming and innocent, he couldn't help staring at her blankly. AhZi saw that he wore a mask on his face, his expression was strange, but he could still see it through his eyes, so he asked: "Silly boy, why are you looking at me?" You TanZhi said: "I...I ...I don't know. You...you look good." AhZi smiled and said: "You look good too! Do you feel comfortable wearing this mask?" You TanZhi resentfully said: "Do you want to feel comfortable?" AhZi Zige smiled and said: "I can't think of it." Seeing that the mouth hole on his mask was only a narrow slit, he could barely drink soup and eat, if he wanted to eat meat, he had to tear it up with his hands before stuffing it in. , If you want to bite your own toes again, you can't do it anymore, and said with a smile: "I told you to put on this mask, so you can't bite me again." You Tanzhi was overjoyed, and said: "Miss, do you call me... tell me... to always serve by your side?" Ah Zi said: "Bah! You are a big villain. When you are by my side, you always think Ways to harm me, how can I tolerate it?" You Tanzhi said: "I...I...I will definitely not harm the girl. My enemy is only Qiao Feng." Ah Zi said: "You want to harm my brother-in-law? Don't you? Like harming me?" Hearing these words, You Tanzhi's chest felt sore, he was speechless. AhZi laughed and said: "You want to harm my brother-in-law, it's hard to reach the sky. Silly boy, do you want to die?" You TanZhi said: "Of course I don't want to die. But now I have this troublesome thing on my head, I have to deal with it People don’t look like people, ghosts don’t look like ghosts, it’s not much different from being dead.” Ah Zi said: “If you really want to die, that’s easy, but I won’t let you die simply. I cut off your left hand." Turning his head to Shi Li who was standing beside him and said: "Shi Li, you pull him out, first cut off his left hand!" Shi Li replied: "Yes!" He stretched out his hand to pull his arm. You Tanzhi has been in Liao for a long time, he already understood some Khitan language, he exclaimed in shock: "No, no! Girl, I don't want to die, you...you...don't cut off my hand." Ah Zi smiled lightly, said : "It's hard to count what I've said, unless...unless...you kneel and kowtow." You TanZhi hesitated slightly, the room pulled him back two steps.You TanZhi didn't dare to delay any longer, his knees softened, he fell to his knees, he knocked his head down, the iron cover collided with the green brick, and there was a loud noise.Azige smiled coquettishly, and said: "The sound of kowtowing is so nice, I've never heard it before, please kowtow a little more." You Tanzhi is the small owner of Juxian Village, he was called Bainuo in the village, he was pampered and treated well since he was a child, when did he suffer such humiliation?When he first met Xiao Feng, he still had a sense of arrogance that would rather die than surrender, these past few days he suffered severe trauma both mentally and physically, and the youthful arrogance that filled him had disappeared without a trace.Hearing what AZi said, she immediately kowtowed again and again, and there was a bang. This fairy-like girl actually praised her kowtow, and she felt faintly happy in her heart. AhZi smiled sweetly and said: "Very good, from now on you listen to me and don't disobey at all, that's fine, otherwise I will cut off your arm at any time, remember?" You TanZhi said: "Yes, yes! "AZi said: "I put this iron mask on for you, do you know why?" You TanZhi said: "I just don't understand." AZI said: "You are so stupid, I will save you You don't know how to thank me for taking your life. King Xiao wants to chop you into meat paste, don't you know?" You Tanzhi said: "He is my father and enemy, so naturally I won't tolerate him." A Zi said : "He pretended to let you go, then caught you back, and ordered someone to chop you into meat paste. I saw that you are not too bad a kid, and it would be a pity to kill you, so I hid you without telling him. When it comes to you, are you still alive? Even I have a lot to do with it." You Tanzhi suddenly realized, and said: "Ah, it turns out that the girl made this iron mask for me to wear, it was for my own good and saved my life. I... I am so grateful, really... I am so grateful." AhZi played tricks on him, and made him feel grateful and proud. She smiled and said, "So, next time you see King Xiao, you must not speak, so as not to let him hear the voice. If he recognizes it is You, hum, hum! With this pull, your left arm was pulled off, and with this pull, your right arm was torn off. In the room, go and change him into a Khitan clothes, and wash him Wash it, it smells like blood, it smells so bad." The room agreed and took him out. Not long after, You TanZhi came in again from the room, and changed him into Khitan clothes.In order to please AhZi, the room deliberately dressed him up colorfully, neither male nor female, like a clown. AZi pursed her lips and smiled: "I will give you a name, called... Tie Chou. From now on I will be Tie Chou, you have to agree. Tie Chou!" You TanZhi hurriedly replied: "Yes!" Ah Zi was very happy, suddenly remembered something, said: "Shi Li! The Great Food Kingdom of the Western Regions sent a lion, right? You ask the lion tamer to bring the lion, and then call a dozen guards." Shi Li agreed Go out and pass the order. Sixteen guards holding spears walked into the hall, bowed to salute Ah Zi, then turned around, pointing the tips of the sixteen spears outward, protecting her.Not long after, a few roars of lions were heard outside the hall, and eight strong men came in carrying a big iron cage.A male lion circled around in the cage, with yellow hair and a long mane, sharp claws and a majestic expression.The lion tamer leads the way with a whip in hand. Seeing this ferocious and fearsome lion, AhZi was very happy, and said: "Tie Chou, what you say sounds nice, but I don't know if it's true or not. Now I want to test you on one thing, see if you listen to me Talk." You TanZhi replied: "Yes!" When he saw the lion, he muttered to himself, he didn't know what the intention was, hearing her say that, his heart beat even more violently.Ah Zi said: "I don't know if the iron cover on your head is firm or not, you stick your head into the iron cage and see if the lion can bite the iron cover to pieces." You TanZhi was shocked, said: "This... this is not to be tried. If it is bitten off, my head..." AZi said: "What use are you? You are afraid of such a small thing, manly man, You should regard death as home. And I think most of them won't be bitten off." You Tanzhi said: "Girl, this is not for fun, even if it can't be bitten, this beast flattened the iron cover, my head... ..." Azi giggled, and said: "At most, your head is flattened. You are such a troublesome boy, your original appearance is not very beautiful, your head is flattened, and you can't see it if you put it in a hood. Don't care if he looks good or not." You TanZhi said urgently: "I'm not greedy for good looks..." AhZi's face sank, and he said: "You are disobedient, you tried it out now, you deliberately lied to me. You put your whole body in Go into the cage and feed the lions!" Instructed the room in Khitan dialect.The room responded: "Yes!" Then he came to pull Youtan's arm. You TanZhi thought to himself: "In the lion cage, there is no life left, why don't you listen to the girl and try your luck with your iron head!" He called: "Don't pull it, don't pull it! Girl, I'm obedient! " AhZi smiled and said: "That's good! Let me tell you, next time I ask you to do something, do it immediately, push back and forth, and make the girl angry. In the room, you whip him thirty lashes." The room responded: "Yes!" He took the whip from the lion tamer, with a "shua" sound, he whipped it on You Tanzhi's back.You TanZhi was in pain, he yelled "Ah". AhZi said: "Tie Chou, let me tell you, I told someone to beat you because I looked down on you. You yelled so loudly, did it mean you didn't like me to beat you?" You TanZhi said, "I like it, thank you for your kindness! "AZi said: "Okay, let's fight!" In the room, Shua Shua Shua whipped ten whips, You TanZhi clenched his teeth and didn't make a sound.Finally, he wore an iron mask on his head, the whip avoided his head, and the leather whip was eaten on his chest and back, so he could still bear it. AhZi heard him suffer silently, felt bored again, said: "Tie Chou, you said you like me to have someone beat you, don't you?" You TanZhi said: "Yes!" AhZi said: "Your words are true真是假？是不是胡说八道地骗我？”游坦之道：“是真的，不敢欺骗姑娘。”阿紫道：“你既喜欢，为什么不笑？为什么不说打得痛快？”游坦之给她折磨得胆战心惊，连愤怒也都忘记了，只得道：“姑娘待我很好，叫人打我，哈哈哈！很是痛快。” 阿紫道：“这才像话，咱们试试！” 啪的一声，又是一鞭，游坦之忙道：“多谢姑娘救命之恩，这一鞭打得好！”转瞬间抽了二十余鞭，与先前的鞭打加起来，早超过三十鞭了。阿紫挥了挥手，说道：“今天就这么算了。你将脑袋伸进笼子里。” 游坦之全身骨痛欲裂，蹒跚着走到笼边，一咬牙，便将脑袋从铁栅间探了进去。 那雄狮乍见他如此上来挑衅，吓了一跳，退开两步，向着他的铁头端祥了半晌，又退后两步，口中呜呜呜地发威。 阿紫叫道：“叫狮子咬啊，它怎么不咬？”那驯狮人叱喝了几声，狮子得到号令，一扑上前，张开大口，便咬在游坦之头上。但听得滋滋声响，狮牙摩擦铁罩。游坦之闭上了双眼，只觉得一股热气从铁罩的眼孔、鼻孔、嘴孔中传进来，知道自己脑袋已在狮口之中，跟着后脑和前额一阵剧痛。套上铁罩之时，他头脸到处给烧红了的铁罩烧炙损伤，过得几日后慢慢结疤愈合，狮子这么一咬，铁罩与结疤处扭脱，所有创口一齐破裂。 雄狮用力咬了几下，咬不进去，牙齿反而撞得甚痛，发起威来，右爪伸出，抓到游坦之肩上。游坦之肩部剧痛，“啊”的一声大叫。狮子突觉口中有物发出巨响，吃了一惊，张口放开了他脑袋，逃到铁笼一角。 那驯狮人大声叱喝，叫狮子再向游坦之咬去。游坦之大怒，突然伸出手臂，抓住了驯狮人的后颈，使劲推出，将他的脑袋硬生生地塞入铁笼之中。驯狮人高声大叫。 阿紫拍手嘻笑，道：“很好，很好！谁也别理会，让他们两人拚个你死我活。” 众契丹兵本要上来拉开游坦之的手，听阿紫这么说，便都站定不动。 驯狮人用力挣扎。游坦之野性发作，说什么也不放开他。驯狮人只有求助于雄狮，大叫：“咬，用力咬他！”狮子听到催促，一声大吼，扑了上来。这畜生只知主人叫它用力去咬，却不知咬什么，两排白森森的利齿合了拢来，喀喇一声，将驯狮人的脑袋咬去了半边，满地都是脑浆鲜血。 阿紫笑道：“铁丑赢了！”命士兵将驯狮人的尸首和狮笼抬出去，对游坦之道：“这就对了！你能逗我喜欢，我要赏你。赏些什么好呢？”她以手支颐，侧头思索。 游坦之道：“姑娘，我不要你赏赐，只求你一件事。”阿紫道：“求什么？”游坦之道：“求你许我陪在你身边，做你的奴仆。”阿紫道：“做我奴仆？为什么？有什么好？嗯，我知道啦，你想等萧大王来看我时，趁机下手害他，为你父母报仇。”游坦之道：“不！不！决计不是。”阿紫道：“难道你不想报仇吗？”游坦之道：“不是不想。但一来报不了，二来不能将姑娘牵连在内。” 阿紫道：“那么你为什么喜欢做我奴仆？”游坦之道：“姑娘是天仙下凡，天下第一美人，我……我……想天天见到你。” 这话无礼已极，以他此时处境，也实在大胆之极。但阿紫听在耳里，却甚受用。她年纪尚幼，容貌虽然秀美，身形却未长成，更兼重伤之余，憔悴黄瘦，说到“天下第一美人”六字，那真是差之远矣，但听到有人对自己容貌如此倾倒，却也不免开心。 忽听得宫卫报道：“大王驾到！”阿紫向游坦之横了一眼，低声道：“萧大王要来啦，你怕不怕？”游坦之怕得要命，硬着头皮颤声道：“不怕！” 殿门大开，萧峰轻裘缓带，走了进来。他一进殿门，便见到地上一滩鲜血，又见游坦之头戴铁罩，模样十分奇怪，向阿紫笑道：“今天你气色很好啊，又在玩什么新花样了？这人头上搅了些什么古怪？”阿紫笑道：“这是西域高昌国进贡的铁头人，名叫铁丑，连狮子也咬不破他的铁头，你瞧，这是狮子的牙齿印。”萧峰看那铁罩，果见猛兽的牙印宛然。阿紫又道：“姊夫，你有没有本事将他的铁套子除了下来？” 游坦之一听，只吓得魂飞魄散。他曾亲眼见到萧峰力斗中原群雄时的神勇，双拳打将出去，将伯父和父亲手中的钢盾也震得脱手，要除下自己头上铁罩，可说轻而易举。当铁罩镶到他头上之时，他懊丧欲绝，这时却又盼望铁罩永远留在自己头上，不让萧峰见到自己的真面目。 萧峰伸出手指，在他铁罩上轻弹几下，发出铮铮之声，笑道：“这铁罩甚是牢固，打造得又很精细，毁了岂不可惜？” 阿紫道：“高昌国的使者说道，这个铁头人生来青面獠牙，三分像人，七分像鬼，见到他的人无不惊避，因此他父母打造了一个铁面给他戴着，免他惊吓旁人。姊夫，我很想瞧瞧他的本来面目，到底怎样的可怕。” 游坦之吓得全身发颤，牙齿相击，格格有声。 萧峰看出他恐惧异常，道：“这人怕得厉害，何必去揭开他的铁面？这人既是自小戴惯了铁面，倘若强行除去，只怕使他日后难以过活。” 阿紫拍手道：“那才好玩啊。好像揭了乌龟的硬壳，岂不好看？”萧峰不禁皱眉，说道：“阿紫，前些时候你倒挺乖的，怎么近来又喜欢干这等害得人不死不活的事？” 阿紫倒不是天性残忍恶毒，只因从小在星宿派门下长大，见惯了阴狠毒辣之事，以为该当如此。她对褚万里无礼、伤残马夫人，内心丝毫不以为是错了。此后天天陪着萧峰在长白山下养伤，与萧峰朝夕与共，心中喜悦不胜，对萧峰千依百顺，宛似变了一个人相似。此后来到南京，既有宫女婢仆服侍，萧峰又忙于军政事务，少有时刻相陪，少女情怀，只道姊夫对自己的疼爱减了。在她心中，姊夫早就已变作了情郎，心头千万缕情丝，已尽数牢牢缠在这情郎身上，只盼自己化身为姊姊阿朱，而萧峰也如眷爱阿朱一般对自己深怜蜜爱、生死以之。殊不知在萧峰心中，阿朱既死，世上更没第二个女子能让他动心了。他对阿紫和颜悦色，一来是因阿朱临终时嘱托，二来自己失手将她打得重伤，不免过意不去，阿紫对己温柔缠绵，也不能不假辞色，置之不理。阿紫情根深种，殊无回报，自不免心中郁郁，她对游坦之大加折磨，也是为了发泄心中郁闷之情。 阿紫哼了一声，道：“你又不喜欢我啦！我当然没阿朱那么好，要是我像阿朱一样，你怎么会接连几天不来睬我。”萧峰道：“做了这劳什子的什么南院大王，每日里忙得不可开交。但我不是每天总来陪你一阵么？”阿紫道：“陪我一阵，哼，陪我一阵！我就是不喜欢你这么'陪我一阵'的敷衍了事。倘若我是阿朱，你一定老是陪在我身旁，赶你也不会走开，不会什么'一阵'、'半阵'的！” 萧峰听她的话确也是实情，无言可答，嘿嘿一笑，道：“姊夫是大人，没兴致陪你孩子玩，你找些年轻女伴来陪你说笑解闷吧！”阿紫气忿忿地道：“孩子，孩子……我才不是孩子呢。你没兴致陪我玩，却又干什么来了？”萧峰道：“我来瞧瞧你身子好些没有？今天吃了熊胆么？” 阿紫提起凳上的锦垫，重重往地下一摔，一脚踢开，说道：“我心里不快活，每天便吃一百副熊胆，身子也好不了。” 萧峰见她使小性儿发脾气，若是阿朱，自会设法哄她转嗔为喜，但对这个刁蛮姑娘忍不住生出厌恶之情，只道：“你休息一会儿！”站起身来，径自走了。 阿紫瞧着他背影，怔怔的只是想哭，一瞥眼见到游坦之，满腔怒火，登时便要发泄在他身上，叫道：“室里，再抽他三十鞭！”室里应道：“是！”拿起了鞭子。 游坦之大声道：“姑娘，我又犯了什么错啦？”阿紫不答，挥手道：“快打！”室里唰的一鞭，打了下去。游坦之道：“姑娘，到底我犯了什么错，让我知道，免得下次再犯。”室里唰的一鞭，唰的又是一鞭。 阿紫道：“我要打便打，你就不该问什么罪名，难道打错了你？你问自己犯了什么错，正因为你问，这才要打！” 游坦之道：“是你先打我，我才问的。我还没问，你就叫人打我了。”唰的一鞭，唰唰唰又是三鞭。 阿紫笑道：“我料到你会问，因此叫人先打你。你果然要问，那不是我料事如神么？这证明你对我不够死心塌地。姑娘忽然想到要打人，你倘若忠心，须得自告奋勇，自动献身就打才是。偏偏啰里啰唆的心中不服。好吧，你不喜欢给我打，不打你就是了。” 游坦之听到“不打你就是了”这六个字，心中一凛，全身寒毛都竖了起来，知阿紫若不打他，必定会另外想出比鞭打惨酷十倍的刑罚，甚至撵他出去，永不再见他，不如乖乖地挨上三十鞭，忙道：“是小人错了，姑娘打我是大恩大德，对小人身子有益，请姑娘多多鞭打，打得越多越好。姑娘肯打我，小人再开心也没有了！” 阿紫嫣然一笑，道：“总算你还聪明。我可不给人取巧，你说打得越多越好，以为我一高兴，便饶了你么？”游坦之道：“不是的，小人不敢向姑娘取巧。”阿紫道：“你说打得越多越好，那是你衷心所愿的了？”游坦之道：“是，是小人衷心所愿。”阿紫道：“既然如此，我就成全你。室里，打足一百鞭，他喜欢多挨鞭子。” 游坦之吓了一跳，心想：“这一百鞭打了下来，还有命么？”但事已如此，自己就算坚说不愿，人家要打便打，抗辩有何用处，只得默不作声。 阿紫道：“你为什么不说话？是心中不服吗？我叫人打你，你觉得不公道么？”游坦之道：“小人心悦诚服，知道姑娘鞭打小人，出于成全小人的好心。”阿紫道：“那么刚才你为什么不说话？”游坦之无言可答，怔了一怔，道：“这个……这个……小人心想姑娘待我这般恩德如山，小人心中感激，什么话也说不出来，只想将来不知如何报答姑娘才是。” 阿紫道：“好啊！你说如何报答于我。我一鞭鞭打你，你将这一鞭鞭的仇恨，都记在心中。”游坦之连连摇头，道：“不，不！不是。我说的报答，是真正的报答。小人一心想要为姑娘粉身碎骨，赴汤蹈火。” 阿紫道：“好，那就打吧！”室里应道：“是！”啪的一声，皮鞭抽了下去。 打到五十余鞭时，游坦之痛得头脑也麻木了，双膝发软，慢慢跪了下来。阿紫笑吟吟地看着，只等他出声求饶。只要他求一句饶，她便又找到了口实，可以再加他五十鞭。哪知游坦之这时迷迷糊糊，已然人事不知，只低声呻吟，居然并不求饶。打到七十余鞭时，他已昏晕过去。 阿紫见游坦之奄奄一息，死多活少，不禁扫兴。想到萧峰对自己那股爱理不理的神情，心中百般的郁闷难宣，说道：“抬了下去吧！这个人不好玩！室里，还有什么别的玩意儿没有？” 这一场鞭打，游坦之足足养了一个月伤，这才痊愈。契丹人见阿紫已忘了他，不再找他来折磨，便将他编入一众宋人的俘虏里，叫他做诸般粗重下贱功夫，掏粪坑、洗羊栏、拾牛粪、硝羊皮，什么活儿都干。 游坦之头上戴了铁罩，人人都拿他取笑侮辱，连汉人同胞也当他怪物一般。他逆来顺受，便如变成了哑巴。旁人打骂，他也从不抗拒。只见到有人乘马驰过，便抬起头来瞧上一眼，心中记挂着的便只一件事：“什么时候，姑娘再叫我去鞭打？”他只盼望能见到阿紫，便再挨受鞭笞，痛得死去活来，也所甘愿，从来没想要逃走。 如此过了两个多月，天气渐暖。这一日游坦之随着众人，在南京城外搬土运砖，加厚南京南门旁的城墙。忽听得蹄声得得，几乘马从南门中出来，一个清脆的声音笑道：“啊哟，这铁丑还没死啊！我还道他早死了呢！铁丑，你过来！”正是阿紫的声音。 游坦之日思夜想，盼望的就是这一刻时光，听得阿紫叫他，一双脚却如钉在地上一般，竟不能移动，只觉一颗心怦怦大跳，手掌心都是汗水。 阿紫又叫道：“铁丑，该死的！我叫你过来，你没听见么！”游坦之才应道：“是，姑娘！”转身向她马前走去，忍不住抬起头来瞧了她一眼。相隔四月，阿紫脸色红润，更增俏丽。游坦之心中怦的一跳，脚下一绊，合扑摔了一跤，众人哄笑声中，急忙爬起，不敢再看她，慌慌张张地走到她身前。 阿紫心情甚好，笑道：“铁丑，你怎么没死？”游坦之道：“我说要……要报答姑娘的恩典，还没报答，可不能便死。”阿紫更是喜欢，格格娇笑两声，道：“我正要找一个忠心不二的奴才去做一件事，只怕契丹人粗手粗脚的误事，你还没死，那好得很。你跟我来！”游坦之应道：“是！”跟在她马后。 阿紫挥手命室里和另外三名契丹卫士回去，不必跟随。室里知她不论说了什么，旁人决无劝谏余地，好在这铁面人猥崽懦弱，随着她决无害处，便道：“请姑娘早回！”四人跃下马来，在城门边等候。 阿紫纵马慢慢前行，走出了七八里地，越走越荒凉，转入了一处阴森森的山谷，地下尽是陈年腐草败叶烂成的软泥。再行里许，山路崎岖，阿紫已不能乘马，便跃下马来，命游坦之牵着马，又走一程。但见四下里阴沉沉的，寒风从一条窄窄的山谷通道中刮进来，吹得二人肌肤隐隐生疼。 阿紫道：“好了，便在这里！”命游坦之将马缰系在树上，说道：“你今天瞧见的事，不得向旁人泄露半点，以后也不许向我提起，记得么？” 游坦之道：“是，是！”心中喜悦若狂，阿紫居然只要他一人随从，来到如此隐僻的地方，就算让她狠狠鞭打一顿，那也是甘之如饴。 阿紫伸手入怀，取出一只深黄色的小木鼎，放在地下，说道：“待会儿有什么古怪虫豸出现，你不许大惊小怪，千万不能出声。”游坦之应道：“是！” 阿紫又从怀中取出一个小小布包，打了开来，里面是几块黄色、黑色、紫色、红色的香料。她从每一块香料上捏了少许，放入鼎中，用火刀、火石打着了火，烧了起来，然后合上鼎盖，道：“咱们到那边树下守着。” 阿紫在树下坐定，游坦之不敢坐在她身边，隔着丈许，坐在她下风处一块石头上。寒风刮来，风中带着她身上淡淡香气，游坦之不由得意乱情迷，只觉一生中能有如此一刻，这些日子虽受种种苦楚荼毒，却也不枉了。他只盼阿紫永远在这大树下坐着，自己能永远的这般陪着她。 正自醺醺然如有醉意，忽听得草丛中瑟瑟声响，绿草中红艳艳的一物晃动，却是一条大蜈蚣，全身闪光，头上凸起一个小瘤，与寻常蜈蚣大不相同。 那蜈蚣闻到木鼎中发出的香气，笔直游向木鼎，从鼎下的孔中钻了进去，便不再出来。阿紫从怀中取出一块厚厚的锦缎，蹑手蹑足地走近木鼎，将锦缎罩在鼎上，把木鼎裹得紧紧的，生怕蜈蚣钻了出来，然后放入系在马颈旁的革囊之中，笑道：“走吧！”牵马便行。 游坦之跟在她身后，寻思：“她这座小木鼎古怪得紧，多半还是因烧起香料，才引得这条大蜈蚣到来。不知这条大蜈蚣有什么好玩，姑娘巴巴的到这山谷中来捉？” 阿紫回到端福宫中，吩咐侍卫在殿旁小房中给游坦之安排个住处。游坦之大喜，知道从此可以常与阿紫相见。 果然第二天一早，阿紫便将游坦之传去，领他来到偏殿，亲自关上了殿门，殿中便只他二人。阿紫走向西首一只瓦瓮，揭开瓮盖，笑道：“你瞧，是不是很雄壮？”游坦之向瓮中一看，只见昨日捕来的那条大蜈蚣正自迅速异常地游走。 阿紫取过预备在旁的一只大公鸡，投入瓦瓮。那条大蜈蚣跃上鸡头，吮吸鸡血，那公鸡飞扑跳跃，说什么也啄不到蜈蚣。蜈蚣身子渐渐肿大，红头更如欲滴出血来。过了一会，公鸡僵硬不动，中毒而死。阿紫满脸喜悦之情，低声道：“成啦，成啦！这一门功夫可练得成功了！” 游坦之心道：“原来你捉了蜈蚣，要来练一门功夫。这叫蜈蚣功吗？” 如此七日，每日让蜈蚣吮吸一只大公鸡的血，毒死一只公鸡。那条蜈蚣的身子也大了不少。到第八日上，阿紫又将游坦之叫进殿去，笑眯眯地道：“铁丑，我待你怎样？”游坦之道：“姑娘待我恩重如山。”阿紫道：“你说过要为我粉身碎骨，赴汤蹈火。是真的还是假的？”游坦之道：“自然是真！姑娘但有所命，小人必定遵从。”阿紫道：“那好得很啊。我跟你说，我要练一门功夫，须得有人相助才行。你肯不肯助我练功？倘若练成了，我重重有赏。”游坦之道：“小人当然听姑娘吩咐，也不用什么赏赐。”阿紫道：“那好得很，咱们这就练了。” 她盘膝坐好，双手互搓，闭目运气，过了一会，道：“你伸手到瓦瓮中去，这蜈蚣必定咬你，你千万不可动弹，要让他吸你血液，吸得越多越好。” 游坦之七日来每天见这条大蜈蚣吮吸鸡血，只吮不多时，一只鲜龙活跳的大公鸡便即毙命，可见这蜈蚣毒不可当。听阿紫这么说，不由得迟疑不答。阿紫脸色一沉，问道：“怎么啦，你不愿意吗？”游坦之道：“不是不愿，只不过……只不过……”阿紫道：“怎么？只不过蜈蚣毒性厉害，你怕死是不是？你是人，还是公鸡？”游坦之道：“我不是公鸡。”阿紫道：“是啊，公鸡给蜈蚣吸了血会死，你又不是公鸡，怎么会死？你说过愿意为我赴汤蹈火，粉身碎骨。蜈蚣吸你一点血玩玩，你会粉身碎骨么？” 游坦之无言可答，抬起头来向阿紫瞧去，只见她红红的樱唇下垂，颇有轻蔑之意，衬着嘴唇旁雪白的肌肤，委实美丽万分，登时意乱情迷，就如着了魔一般，说道：“好，我遵从姑娘吩咐。”咬紧牙齿，闭上眼睛，右手慢慢伸入瓦瓮。 他手指一伸入瓮中，中指指尖上便如针刺般忽然剧痛。他忍不住将手一缩。阿紫叫道：“别动，别动！”游坦之强自忍住，睁开眼来，只见那条蜈蚣正咬住了自己中指，果然便在吸血。游坦之全身发毛，只想提起来往地下一甩，一脚踏了下去。但他虽不和阿紫相对，却感觉到她锐利的目光射在自己背上，如同两把利剑般要作势刺下，怎敢稍有动弹？ 好在蜈蚣吸血，并不甚痛，但见那蜈蚣渐渐肿大起来，自己的中指上却也隐隐罩上了一层深紫之色。紫色由浅而深，慢慢转成深黑，再过一会，黑色自指而掌，更自掌沿手臂上升。游坦之这时已将性命甩了出去，反而处之坦然，嘴角边也微微露出笑容，只是这笑容套在铁罩之下，阿紫看不到而已。 阿紫双目凝视在蜈蚣身上，全神贯注，毫不怠忽。终于那蜈蚣放松了游坦之的手指，伏在瓮底不动了。阿紫道：“你轻轻将蜈蚣放入小木鼎中，小心些，可别弄伤了它。” 游坦之依言用木筷轻夹蜈蚣，放入锦凳前的小木鼎中，那蜈蚣竟毫不动弹。阿紫盖上鼎盖，过得片刻，木鼎的孔中有一滴滴黑血滴了下来。 阿紫脸现喜色，忙伸掌将血液接住，盘膝运功，将血液都吸入掌内。游坦之心道：“这是我的血液，却到了她体中。原来她是在练蜈蚣毒掌。”其实阿紫练的不是毒掌，而是“不老长春功”与“化功大法”，前者能以毒质长葆青春，后者则是消人内力的邪术。阿紫曾偷听到师父述说练功之法，不过师父说得简略，她所知不详，练法是否有效，也只能练一步算一步而已。 过了好一会，木鼎再无黑血滴下，阿紫揭起鼎盖，见蜈蚣已然僵毙。 阿紫双掌一搓，瞧自己手掌时，但见两只手掌