Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 270 The Pillow Delivered to Your Door (Additional Chapter for Leader Fat Xiaoxuan)
Yang Yuan was very curious. He wondered what Minister Cao was doing in such a panic. He had not heard of any major changes in the situation.

The doorman led Yang Yuan to the small study in the inner house. The light was on in the study. The doorman stood in front of the door and reported to the inside: "Master, Mr. Yang is here."

The door creaked open. Cao Yong, who was dressed in casual clothes, saw Yang Yuan and stepped aside to let him in. He said, "Thank you for coming so late, Mr. Yang. Please come in."

When Yang Yuan stepped into the study, Cao Yong's calmness disappeared. He immediately closed the door and grabbed Yang Yuan's wrist.

He was extremely strong, his fingers were cold, and he tightly grasped Yang Yuan's wrist, and said in a deep voice:
"Two days! In two days, the three courts will hold a joint trial! By then, Cao will be thrown into prison. If Cao wants to get out again, he will only be a corpse."

Yang Yuan asked in confusion: "Where did Cao Gong get this information?"

Cao Yong's face turned pale as he said, "Among the three judicial departments, I have one or two close friends.

Mr. Yang, Qin Hui has made up his mind to sacrifice the rook to save the king.

He sent someone to hint to me that if I was content to die, he would guarantee me a child, and that was all.

Mr. Yang, please give me a definite answer, whether Youqiusi can save me or not. If you can't do anything, I can arrange my funeral."

Cao Yong's body was extremely tense, but his voice was surprisingly steady, and it was obvious that he was ready to die.

After hearing this, Yang Yuan couldn't help but frown.

He chatted with Xiao Luo for a long time today and got some useful information.

But before he had time to think about how to use this information, he did not expect that Cao Yong was already in a critical situation.

Yang Yuan paced slowly in the room.

Cao Yong swallowed hard and said, "I don't dare to ask for too much. As long as you can save my life, I will give you the share deed and I will hand it over to you immediately."

At this moment, a crisp voice came from outside the door: "Dad!"

"Come in."

As the door opened, a young girl walked in. She was about thirteen years old and graceful. She was wearing a plain green skirt that reached her chest. She had two wisps of fine hair hanging down. Her eyebrows and eyes were as beautiful as flowers, and she was smart and lovely.

The person who came was Cao Miao, but she was dressed a bit like a maid.

Her eyes were slightly red and swollen, as if she had just cried, and looked a little pitiful.

Seeing that there was someone else in the study, Cao Miao looked at Yang Yuan in surprise, and then whispered to Cao Yong: "Father, mother has packed everything."

"Well, you guys...when daybreak comes, disguise yourself as servants buying groceries and leave Lin'an."

Cao Yong said sadly: "Although the valuables I brought with me cannot allow you to continue to live a luxurious life in the future, they are enough to get by."

Cao Miao's eyes were instantly filled with tears. She might have always been more afraid of pleasing this father than of family affection.

But now, whether it is out of fear or real reluctance, I still can't help but shed tears.

She knelt down with sobs and cried, "Father..."

Cao Yong waved his hand and said, "Go, go, once you leave, you can all accept your fate."

Cao Miao sobbed, bowed three times to her father, and then walked out in tears.

Yang Yuan looked at Cao Miao's back with some doubt, and said to Cao Yong: "Mr. Cao, what are you doing..."

Cao Yong sighed and said, "Thanks to my old friend's warning, I can finally make some arrangements in advance.

"My wife and I have nowhere to escape. But the imperial court will not pursue these concubines and illegitimate children too much. If they escape, they may be able to... avoid being implicated by me."

Yang Yuan suddenly realized that this kind of thing was common. Most of the officials in every dynasty were like this.

If a disaster really happens, we can always get some information in advance and make some emergency arrangements.

Especially for Beijing officials whose hometowns are in other places, local officials also require to serve in other places, so their hometowns and the places where they work are always different.

This gives them time and space to adapt.

Generally speaking, family members, including accumulated property, can always be transferred and dispersed in time.

Unless you are like Zhang Juzheng who offends too many people, once you fall from power, your door will be blocked by others.

Cao Yong saw the sympathy on Yang Yuan's face, and suddenly an idea came to his mind: "Mr. Yang, that was our little girl Miao'er, she is only thirteen years old, what do you think of her?"

Yang Yuan raised his eyebrows. Could it be that Minister Cao was going to use the beauty trap as well?
As expected, Cao Yong said, "If Youqiusi can find a chance for me to survive, I will send Miao'er to Mr. Yang to make his bed and serve him."

Yang Yuan looked at Cao Yong and said, "Mr. Cao is really a good father."

Cao Yong said: "It's better than her hiding from place to place, living in fear every day. If this can save the whole family, why not?"

Yang Yuan said: "Mr. Cao really knows how to weigh the pros and cons and calculate gains and losses."

Cao Yong seemed not to have heard his sarcasm, and answered frankly: "I have been managing the economy for half my life."

Yang Yuan's eyes flickered slightly, and he said, "In that case, I will show you a clear path. It is up to Cao Gong to decide whether to go or not."

Cao Yong said in surprise: "Mr. Yang, please speak quickly."

Yang Yuan waved his hand, waited for him to come closer, and whispered something to him in a low voice. Cao Yong was startled.

Yang Yuan said: "Lord Cao should know clearly what the emperor's concern is.

If you want the government to show mercy, there is only one way, find a scapegoat! This scapegoat must satisfy the government."

Cao Yong's face was uncertain, and Yang Yuan did not rush him. He just picked up the tea and sipped it slowly.

After taking a few sips of tea, Yang Yuan asked, "Is there something that Cao Gong is reluctant to part with? Or does he still have illusions about Qin Hui?"

Cao Yong smiled bitterly and said, "Now below Qin Hui is Qin Hui. I cannot touch these two, and the emperor does not want to touch them either.

Next up is me, the Minister of Revenue. Is there any other scapegoat whose weight is greater than Cao's?"

Yang Yuan shook his head and said, "If we only consider the official position, there is indeed no one more suitable than you, a second-rank official. However, what is the most important thing in the emperor's mind?" What is it? What could it be?
Cao Yong is now extremely confused and can't think clearly.

Cao Yong bowed and said, "Please explain clearly, Mr. Yang."

Yang Yuan said: "Soldiers!"

Cao Yong suddenly became cheerful. That's right! Military power! It's not just the government that cares about military power. Since Emperor Taizu founded the country and gave up military power over a cup of wine, the government of all generations has always been wary of the possibility of military power falling into the hands of others.

Military power, military power...

Cao Yong suddenly thought of someone and said hurriedly, "I did think of someone. Although his rank is not high, he is a person with military power. I wonder... is this person worthy of being the scapegoat?"

Yang Yuan's eyes lit up, he put down his teacup and asked, "Who is he?"

"Zhang Yunyi, commander of the Dinggong Army, has 5,000 soldiers under his command."

"Who does Dinggong Army belong to?"

"It belongs to the Imperial Guards Palace Front Department."

Yang Yuan was secretly shocked. The imperial guards had just been purged, but there were still some who slipped through the net? And they actually had 5,000 soldiers under their command?

Five thousand soldiers may not be enough on the battlefield, but they are more than enough to stage a coup in the imperial city.

Yang Yuan asked anxiously: "Do you... have any evidence?"

"Yes. Although Cao has followed Qin Hui for many years, he did not know that Zhang Yunyi was his man.

However, two months ago, Qin Hui secretly mobilized more than a thousand elite soldiers under Zhang Yunyi and secretly rushed to Quzhou to quell the rebellion.

Because the military funds consumed could not be spent through normal channels, Cao raised money for him through the Ministry of Revenue, and thus he learned about it. "

Yang Yuan had just led his troops to the East China Sea and knew that without an imperial decree, he could not mobilize an army of more than 300 people.

Qin Hui secretly mobilized thousands of elite soldiers, which was obviously a taboo.

Yang Yuan couldn't help but ask: "When a rebellion breaks out in a local area, it is a legitimate matter to dispatch troops to suppress it. Why do you need to dispatch troops privately?"

Cao Yong said: "Because Wang Xuan, the governor of Quzhou, is the brother-in-law of Qin Hui.

The rebellion in Quzhou was caused by his heavy taxes and levies, which forced the people to rebel.

If the imperial court sends troops, once the cause is found out, Wang He will be held accountable.

Therefore, Qin Hui privately dispatched troops to quell the incident, and did not report the rebellion in Quzhou to the court.

For those who lead the troops, this amount is enough.

And I... I was in charge of the "Ma Huang Crossbow Case"...

He is a general of the Imperial Guards and has what it takes to get the Royal Crossbow...

Yang Yuan couldn't help but smile when he thought about how Qin Privy Envoy had given him a deadline to solve the case, and how he not only solved the case within the deadline but also destroyed a key branch of the Qin faction.

Cao Yong said nervously, "Mr. Yang, do you think this is okay?"

Yang Yuan nodded and said, "Okay, but you are waiting at home for the hearing. If you suddenly impeach a general in the army, it will be too obvious."

Cao Yong asked anxiously: "Then what should I do?"

Yang Yuan smiled and said, "The emperor is very upset about the theft of the military crossbow. I think Zhang Yunyi has the ability to steal the Mahuang crossbow."

Cao Yong suddenly realized: "I understand now."

Yang Yuan said: "However, this military crossbow was found in Shanyin, so..."

Yang Yuan quietly gave some instructions to Cao Yong, who nodded repeatedly.

Yang Yuan said: "The case of the stolen military crossbow is now under the charge of Yang."

Cao Yong felt relieved. The person who gave him the advice was the one in charge of investigating the case. His life was saved.

Without saying anything, Cao Yong immediately lifted his robe, knelt down, and said with tears of gratitude: "I will never forget your life-saving grace. My little daughter Miao'er is only thirteen years old and very smart..."

"Cao Gong, please get up and never mention this matter again."

Yang Yuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. How come Old Cao was addicted to promoting his daughter?

Little did they know that Lao Cao also had his own plans.

In Lao Cao's mind, "Youqiusi" is already a company with great power, and now it seems that Yang Yuan is an important figure in it.

Moreover, Yang Yuan is now in an easy position as someone has arranged an official position in the Privy Council for him, which shows that he has a bright future.

He is now going to betray Qin Hui. If he can get close to Yang Yuan, why not do it?

His daughter who married into the Qin family as a concubine was born to his principal wife. Now, if he could use a concubine's daughter to establish a relationship with the "Youqiu Division", perhaps he could keep this official position.

Cao Yong and Dr. Penfan are both shameless people who can do anything to gain personal benefits. Now, for the sake of their own safety, they are naturally willing to sacrifice even more.

Yang Yuan saw through his thoughts at a glance and didn't want to be the "husband-supporting devil".

When Cao Yong saw that he did not agree, he felt very regretful.

The two sides had already discussed it, so Yang Yuan said goodbye and left.

The Cao family's evacuation plan was urgently canceled.

The next morning, Shangshu Cao, who was waiting for accountability at home, discovered his serious mistake during his "self-reflection", so he went to the court with the self-accusation memorial he had written overnight.

(End of this chapter)