Chapter 15 Chapter Three Xu His Identity

Cao Gong is not a good memory for the people of Xuzhou.In the fourth year of Chuping and the first year of Xingping, Duke Cao's army attacked Xuzhou twice and slaughtered several cities.In the exaggerated descriptions of some poets, Surabaya was even cut off. I don't intend to criticize Duke Cao's deeds, but in conclusion, there is no doubt that people in Xuzhou don't like Duke Cao, or hate him very much. Xu is from Xuzhou. Although his hometown is Guangling, it is possible that some of his relatives and friends died in those two massacres.Looking at it this way, his motive is probably out of hatred - after all, for Xuzhou people, there are many people who hate Cao Gong so much.

"It's my negligence. I didn't strictly review Xu when he was called into the Tiger Guard. But who would have expected that a Guangling man would have hatred for the massacre near Surabaya?" Xu Chu was defending, as if he was shirking his responsibility.But in my opinion, he said that, but there is no deep meaning.But I did not say that the time is not yet ripe. With some doubts, I came to the cell where the two guards were held.This cell is just a temporary detention center, very simple, if the prisoners inside want to escape, it doesn't take much effort. When the guard opened the cell door, the two guards were curled up in the cell. When they heard the door opening, the two raised their heads in horror.There are only light beards around their mouths, and they are still two teenagers.This protracted war made every young and strong man take up arms.

I walked into the cell, signaled the guards to close the door, and said loudly: "If I am kidnapped, don't worry about me, just kill the kidnapper." This is a tradition of the Cao army, which started with General Xiahou Dun: For hostage-takers, there is no need to worry about hostages.This principle may seem crude, but it prevents many problems. "I was appointed by Mr. Cao to investigate Xu's background. You must tell me the truth." I told them in a pleasant manner that there is no need for unnecessary threats, they have already made a big mistake enough to kill their heads, and if they don't take this opportunity to make up for their mistakes, they will die.

"Did you know Xu He before?" One of them nodded, the other shook his head.The guard who said he knew Xu Tata was Zheng Guan, and he was fairly familiar with Xu Tata. Zheng Guan’s description was similar to Xu Chu’s. On the day of the assassination, Xu He brought two strange soldiers to the big tent, claiming that he was dispatched from elsewhere to take over the work of the guards. They have changed the guard.Then he and his companions returned to the camp, where they remained until they were captured. "Did Xu say anything when he changed his guard with you?" "Routine, I didn't say anything else. Xu has always been a taciturn person." Zheng Guan replied.

"Routine words are fine, I will listen to every word." Zheng Guan thought about it carefully, and told me: "He said that the tiger guard who was supposed to change guard was injured by an arrow, and Captain Xu asked him to transfer two people from other troops to replace him. That's all." "What clothes were they wearing?" "Ordinary guard outfit." "Are all three wearing them? Are you sure?" "Sure, the tiger guard is ocher, which is different from ordinary guard outfits." "After the assassination happened, did you go back to the scene?"

The two shook their heads together: "We have been sleeping since we went back, until we were arrested and put in prison." I lowered my head and pondered for a while, then asked again: "How much do you know about Xu? Who do you know he has frequent contacts with? Who else is in the family?" Zheng Guan is very embarrassed, he is only familiar with Xu He to a certain degree.After thinking for a long time, he finally said: "Xu has a relatively withdrawn personality, doesn't socialize much, and rarely mentions his family situation. But he is quite enthusiastic, and often helps us read some letters from the secretary's family."

"He reads the notices for you? Does he know how to read?" Another person raised his head: "Yes, he said it was taught by my brother." "He has a brother?" "It should be. He is from Guangling, but his accent is very similar to that of Gunzhou. We joked that he was a fugitive, and he argued that he had gone with his brother's accent." Coming out of the cell, my heart was a little heavy.It is certain that Xu Chu did not tell the whole truth.This burly man is much more subtle than he looks on the outside, nine out of ten sentences are true, he only lied at key points, if he is not careful, he will be easily fooled.

Thankfully I'm not that kind of person.I am a counting official, and I deal with numbers every day. Even a mistake in a number is a big trouble, which made me develop the habit of being cautious. Xu Chu said that the killer he encountered in the tent was wearing a tiger guard uniform.But Zheng Guan said that during the changing of the guard, these killers wore ordinary guard uniforms.This is a tiny contradiction. But this contradiction is enough to reveal many things. It's hard to say who is right and who is wrong now, but Xu Chu must have something to hide.This reminds me that before this, I have somewhere to go, hopefully in time.By the time I finished that job and went to find Xu Chu, it was almost evening.My clothes reeked so badly that anyone passing by covered their noses.

I found Xu Chu again and said frankly: "I believe in your loyalty to Duke Cao, but there are some things you have not said." Xu Chu's eyes widened, as if offended by my words.I am not afraid to speak out my doubts.Xu Chu didn't take it seriously, and said that maybe Xu he secretly changed his uniform when he was on guard. "As an assassin, how could Xu have enough time to change his clothes? Besides, why did he take off his tiger guard uniform and change into an ordinary guard uniform? Why is it necessary?" Xu Chu looked at me with some irritability: "It's hard to guess a madman full of hatred with common sense."

"Maybe, but a normal person can use common sense to speculate, such as you." I stared into his eyes and patted off the rot stains on his clothes.Xu Chu frowned, and moved his nose. He also smelled this smell from me, and it was no stranger to me. I took a deep breath: "I guess, after the assassination, you first dragged Xu's body back to the tent, put on the tiger guard uniform along with the other two corpses, and then reported to Duke Cao." "What am I trying to figure out?" Xu Chu couldn't help retorting. "It is the absolute right to dispose of a dead body." I replied, "Everyone knows that the Tiger Guard is under your jurisdiction. If the assassin dies wearing the Tiger Guard uniform, then you will have the right to dispose of it as soon as possible—if the death I’m afraid you have to inform the other generals and the commander—you must have tampered with the corpse to cover up something before you inspected it. Do you need me to continue?”

Xu Chu's momentum suddenly decreased, and he concealed the clues of the assassination from Duke Cao?This is going to kill your head.If this matter gets out, even if he survives, he will never be able to be a bodyguard again. With the testimony of those two unlucky guards, Xu Chu had no choice but to quibble.When Xu Chu heard my words, his sharpness suddenly disappeared. He let out a long sigh, and his shoulders drooped. I knew he had surrendered. "In addition to changing his clothes, did you also change his skin?" I narrowed my eyes, calmly. Our eyes met, Xu Chu smiled wryly and said, "Mr. Ren, I really can't hide anything from you." "I spent the whole afternoon digging the grave and dissecting the corpse. It's not easy to find clues on the rotting corpse." I said coldly, "On Xu's corpse, I found a trace of skinning. Presumably that is the one you hope to send to him." Others are hiding things with you, right?" Xu Chu remained silent, and took out a piece from his belt.I noticed that it was a piece of human skin, the size of a palm, and it was freshly peeled off, with a faint smell of blood. I secretly breathed a sigh of relief, in fact, Xu's body has rotted beyond recognition.I can barely see some tiny traces, and if I take it seriously, the evidence proves nothing.I can only pretend to be confident to deceive Xu Chu.Unexpectedly, it succeeded. "I peeled this off from Xu's body. You can see why I did it when you look at this piece of skin." Xu Chu handed it to me. I saw a brand on that piece of human skin, and the trace of the brand was a word - "tyrant". "This is the brand used by Taishan County to deal with prisoners. Ba refers to Zang Ba." Xu Chu took a deep breath. "Xu was recruited by me into Tiger Guard. He also has an older brother, you know him too." "His name is Xu Xi?" I asked. Xu Chu nodded.My head buzzed, this time things are complicated.