Lintai Storm Record

An anecdote about Fengyue place?The emperor is also pitiful. "

Lu Guan ignored Song Qianzhi's words, and continued to ask: "Then, did Lou Jiangyue tell you this letter of love?"

"Yes, Lou Jiangyue was sent back to Yingchun Garden by the eunuch very late that night. He lived next door to me. He was still beating chopsticks and singing that night, so I went to ask. At that time, there was wine and meat on the table. , pen, ink, paper and inkstone are all available, as if I want to write something. Because it was very late, I wanted to go back to my room, but Lou Jiangyue asked me to have a drink with him. The hospitality was hard to come by, so I sat down and had a drink with him. Take a sip and chat with him a few words."

"He told you the content of the petition letter?" Lu Guan asked.

"He gave me an impassioned speech, counting the various disasters across the country from the beginning of last year to the beginning of winter this year. Both adults know that there was also a snow disaster at the beginning of last year. After the snow disaster, there was a flood in the south during the rainy season. In the autumn, several counties were plagued by locusts and had no harvest. The emperor issued an order to exempt those counties from taxes. Since winter, there has been heavy snowfall. In addition to the earthquake more than two months ago, the emperor had no choice but to issue an edict of guilt. , Let the Ministry of Households provide money for relief."

Lu Guan asked the secretary to put down his pen and go out first.

Song Qianzhi took the record of the book office, but did not remember these few sentences.

"Go ahead." Song Qianzhi glanced at Wang Zaoguo, dispelling the embarrassment and hesitation in Wang Zauguo's eyes.

"Lou Jiangyue believes that the emperor should not be confined to the inner palace, allowing powerful ministers to control the government. Corrupt officials in the court run rampant and cover each other. The top and bottom are rotten. The most abominable thing is to block the way of speech, so that good suggestions cannot be passed on. Da Tian listened, talents cannot be used where they should be used, more than half of the capital officials are students of Li Xiang, and the remaining [-]% are disciples of Zhou Xiang..." At this point, Wang Zaoguo paused for a while, his head full. He glanced at Song Qianzhi in cold sweat.

"Go on." Song Qianzhi was expressionless, and no one could see what was going on in his mind. Not only did he not write down what Wang Zaoguo said, but he was playing with the brush between his middle two fingers.

"Lou Jiangyue said that the emperor kept him here to care about the people's feelings. This year, the people of Chu Chu have had a difficult time. The emperor knows, but he has no way to know how miserable the people's life is. This report The love letter means that Lou Jiangyue wants to plead for the people as a commoner."

Lu Guan frowned: "Did he mention these two Chief Assistants in his love letter?"

Wang Zauguo's back was completely wet, he lowered his head, and said with difficulty: "I haven't seen this love letter with my own eyes, so I don't know what was written in it. But Lou Jiangyue was a little drunk that night, maybe it was because of alcohol. It’s unknown if he spoke the truth later and became bolder. As for whether he wrote this matter in his love letter in the end, I really don’t know.”

"In the Ministry of Criminal Justice, including when you were interrogated here for the first time, why didn't you say so?" Lu Guan's words were stern, and he was sitting taller than ordinary people standing, with thin cheeks and sharp eyes like eagles, quite powerful.

Wang Zaoguo just looked up, then buried his head, and murmured: "Lou Jiangyue is dead, no one knows that there is this letter of love, if I say such rebellious and slanderous words about Shangguan through my mouth, there will be no evidence to prove it." , I only have ten thousand deaths..."

"I can't die, at most it's a death." Song Qianzhi said casually, "What you said is indeed dead. I have a question. Since you didn't dare to say it before, why did you suddenly dare to say it now? Why did you dispel your original concerns? ?”

There was a hint of approval in Lu Guan's eyes, he didn't look at Song Qianzhi, he just paid attention to Wang Zauguo, he saw that he was clasping his hands, his fingers turned white, his face was hidden in the shadow, and he couldn't see clearly, but the veins on his forehead were bulging, obviously he was very nervous .

"I..." Wang Zauguo made up his mind, raised his head, his eyes were red, "One of my cousins ​​was doing business in Qidong, and he was in the disaster area during the earthquake. One leg was broken by a falling beam. It took two months for the imperial court to distribute the disaster relief items to Qidong. Each person had a thin quilt, five catties of rice, three catties of flour, and half of the children’s money. They were everywhere. The collapsed houses and even the dilapidated temples were crowded with people, and the yamen of Qidong County was closed tightly, and the parents and officials used the excuse that the yamen needs to be repaired as an excuse not to come to court.” Wang Zauguo couldn’t help panting, and after a long time, he said a word in the silence, “That cousin Failed to come back from Qidong. At that time, the state capital in the north of Qidong County did not allow the refugees to go north, so the Qidong county magistrate ordered the city gate to be closed, and the book to the court also said that the disaster was not serious. Within ten days, Qidong County There was a major earthquake in Anliang County in the south, causing tens of thousands of deaths and injuries. For a while, there were displaced refugees all over the place, and they reported to the court when they couldn't hide it. The emperor also exempted these counties from taxes and opened warehouses again, but there were still many refugees. .”

"With five catties of rice and three catties of flour, an adult would have nothing to eat for a month. How could the refugees be so desperate?" Song Qianzhi said.

Wang Zaoguo said: "Master Song has learned a lot."

"So you suddenly realized how difficult people's livelihood is, and want to tell the truth?"

Wang Zauguo was sweating: "It wasn't sudden. For today's breakfast, a guilty official like me had two steamed buns of fine noodles and a bowl of millet porridge. I don't know how many people outside the city who were affected by the snow disaster. How to spend the year."

Lu Guan interrupted Wang Zauguo's lament, and then asked: "You only saw Lou Jiangyue writing this love letter, are you sure it is the love letter he mentioned to you?"

"Definitely." Wang Zaoguo affirmed, "I don't know what to write, but I only wrote about the comfort of the seven counties in the south after the earthquake. After two glasses of wine and a few gossips, he asked me to go back and rest first."

"Is this what happened the night Lou Jiangyue and you first entered the palace?" Song Qianzhi asked.Lou Jiangyue was murdered five days after entering the palace. On the fourth day of the twelfth lunar month, that was the last day of November, Lou Jiangyue and Wang Zauguo were taken into the palace together.Because these two people were recommended by Li Xiang, they would go to Li Xiang's mansion to pay a visit first, and Li Xiang would give a few words, and then the people in the palace would take them into the palace together from Li Xiang.Regardless of Wang Zaoguo himself, Lou Jiangyue lived in a place like Zhang Jingju before entering the palace, so it was naturally very inconvenient for people in the palace to go.

"Yes. I've told you everything I know." Wang Zauguo's complexion was pale, and there was faint worry in his eyes.

"What are you worried about?" Song Qianzhi raised his hand, "I didn't write down a single word, and there is no outsider here except me and Mr. Lu."

Wang Zauguo gritted his teeth, wanting to say something.

"My grandfather has been buried in the ground and is at peace, if you try to turn it over, you won't be able to get it over his head." Song Qianzhi said casually.

Wang Zaoguo didn't expect Song Qianzhi to say it so openly, and his eyes widened immediately.

"Furthermore, no emperor has ever been able to achieve perfection in government and state affairs. Since ancient times, there has never been a perfect dynasty. Otherwise, generations will be peaceful and prosperous. What do we officials do? Feeding so many people for nothing."

Wang Zauguo murmured, "What Master Song said is true."

"That is to say, only you know about this petition?" Lu Guan asked.

"No, the emperor also knows."

"The emperor knows?" Lu Guan's eyes showed a hint of surprise.

This imperceptible look fell on Song Qianzhi's eyes.It seems that the emperor didn't tell Lu Guan that there was such a thing. If the emperor didn't tell, it would indeed be Lu Guan's ability to follow this line.But why didn't the emperor say it?Could it be that, like Wang Zaoguo, he was concerned about the reputation of the two Chief Assistants?Song Qianzhi didn't believe it.Since ancient times, in the families of ruthless emperors, there were many chief assistants who were dug out by the emperor to whip their corpses to vent their anger.

Or Fu Mingshao hasn't had time to communicate with Lu Guan?Not impossible.

Song Qianzhi was a little confused for a while, what kind of attitude Fu Mingshao had towards Lu Guan.Song Qianzhi sat at the head of the secretary province for four years, and it was safe and sound. Lu Guan was sent down without warning. The past was still blank, and there was nothing to check, except that the queen mother seemed to know some inside information, so there was no way to check. Apart from being Fu Mingshao's confidant, Song Qianzhi didn't think about other officials.

But this confidant doesn't seem to be so trusted by the emperor.

Wang Zauguo was escorted back to his cell.

Song Qianzhi ordered a basin of clean cold water to be fetched. The water in the twelfth lunar month was as cold as ice. He first twisted the handkerchief and applied it to his forehead, then wiped his face and hands clean.

"Lord Lu, what do you think?"

Lu Guan's voice sounded from behind: "Wang Zaoguo will be tried again."

Song Qianzhi also meant the same thing.

"Spit out a little every time, Mr. Wang is very interesting. If you mention it a few more times, it might be like squeezing bean paste. Use a little more force to get it out."

Before evening, Zhou Xian came back from the palace and shook off the snow when he entered the door. His boots scraped the soles of the threshold twice before he walked in.

"It's been found out that Lin Shutong got the tea from a little father-in-law named Xu Zhou, who is a servant and supervisor, and he always gets the health-preserving tea used by the singing and dancing girls in the Pipa Garden. Eunuch Jiang in front of the Queen Mother is his godfather."

When Wang Zaoguo was judged, he bit his grandfather, now Jiang Meng is involved, and Jiang Meng is involved in the Queen Mother.Song Qianzhi faintly sensed something, and glanced at Zhou Xian without leaving a trace.

"Have you asked him anything?"

Zhou Xian: "Not yet, I'm afraid it will startle the snake, should I bring this Xuzhou father-in-law to the Secretary's Department to ask?"

Song Qianzhi thought for a while and said, "I'll do it."

"If you need to use force, I can go." Lu Guan said suddenly.

"In terms of skill, the two adults probably shouldn't compete with the humble job."

"It's not a group fight, whoever is bigger will take advantage. The emperor asked us to investigate the case, and the way is right. The two of you are people of the same way. When you stop being an official, you can go together to rob the rich and help the poor." Song Song Qianzhi wiped his hands, didn't look at the two of them, walked over and took off his cloak and put it on in a hurry, "I'll go into the palace and let the book office stay, the kitchen cooked that fish, let me think about it, another The secretary Cheng is also staying. No one should sleep tonight."

Song Qianzhi walked out on the front foot, and Lu Guan became attentive.

Zhou Xian crossed his arms and said, "I'll follow and protect Mr. Song."

Lu Guan seemed to be struck by this sentence in his head.

"Why protect him?" If Zhou Xian interrogated Wang Zaoguo with them in the afternoon, there is no need to ask this question. When it comes to Li Xiang, the officials who know the whole secretariat will be in danger. It is always good to be cautious, not to mention that Zhou Xian is Qilin Guard's full-time job is to be the emperor's bodyguard and thug.

But Zhou Xian didn't know who was involved.

The corner of Zhou Xian's mouth twitched: "Eunuch Jiang has brought them all in. If this thread goes into the palace, you should be careful."

After Zhou Xian left, Lu Guan still couldn't dispel his doubts. He walked up and down the hall, always feeling that there were some things he couldn't figure out.Wang Zaoguo's testimony today is too important and timely.

Somewhere, it seems like someone is manipulating all this.

Lu Guan suddenly stepped out of the door in a few hurried steps, and called someone to call over the several rounds of guarding Wang Zaoguo.

"Has anyone seen Wang Zauguo in the past two days, and talked to him?"

Everyone on duty shook their heads.

Lu Guan thought for a while, then asked again: "What about Zhou Xian? Did he go to talk to Wang Zaoguo alone?"

One of them raised his head and took a quick look at Lu Guan, but everyone still shook their heads.

Lu Guan let everyone disperse, and after a while, he went out to the classroom and found the person who had seen him when he was questioning, pointed to him, and said, "You, yes, you are about to be very smart. Come out with me, in the backyard That stone lion is not in the right place, come and help me move it."

Calling him out, Lu Guan took him to an open place, there was no one around, and the sky was very dark, it was impossible for anyone to see clearly who was talking here.

Lu Guan lowered his voice and asked him, "Did Zhou visit Wang Zao Kingdom before?"

"No, no."

"I'll ask you again, has Zhou Xian had any contact with Wang Zaoguo alone?" Lu Guan emphasized his tone, ordering the man to look up at him.

The row of lights under the verandah has not yet been turned on, the sky is blue, and the darkness of the approaching night is looming.

The scar on Lu Guan's face was like a piece of black blood gushing out from the flesh, it was sticky and couldn't be picked off.

"to be frank."

The man was about to cry and glanced around.

"This is the Secretary's Department, and I'm the Secretary's Superintendent!" Lu Guan said sharply with a suppressed voice.

"Master Wang's breakfast today, the little one, the little one had something to do at home, and he arrived late. It was Mr. Zhou who helped the little one deliver the breakfast to Mr. Wang. It should, shouldn't be considered a visit..."

"It's none of your business, let's go."

The man scrambled and ran away quickly, as if there was a ghost behind him waiting to pounce on him and kill him.

All of a sudden, one of the lamps under the porch was turned on, one after another. Actually, it was still early, but because of the snow, the capital city was always gloomy all day long, so the lamps had to be turned on early.

"Lord Lu." A man saw Lu Guan from the corridor and shouted, "It's snowing heavily, why are you standing here? I'll make a brazier for you, sir, go and sit in it?"

Lu Guan's legs stood stiff in the snow, he walked over, met the man's eyes, and said, "The young prisoner said to save dinner tonight, tell the kitchen to cook the fish he bought this afternoon. "

"Yes." The man was not surprised.

Lu Guan walked away, turned around, and asked, "Young prisoner often stays for dinner?"

"Yeah, when the secretary has no cases, he is sorting out the Lintai files and putting them in the library. That's busy. He sealed up the files for this year at the end of last month. As long as he is busy, the secretary will keep food Well, Mr. Song often eats at the secretary's office before going back, and sometimes spends the night behind. Your lord came at the right time, just to relax. This person died at a really bad time. In previous years, the young prison master would let people come the next day for two days Once, the secretary province left two people to guard it."

"He will enjoy the blessing." Lu Guan sneered.

"That's not true. The Master Young Prison comes here every day, except for the first month of the twelfth lunar month when he occasionally goes to visit his own Zhuangzi, which is three or four days off. Even during the Chinese New Year, the Master will also come early in the morning to give to the brothers on duty. Bring some wine and food."

Lu Guan tilted his head, looked at the man, and asked, "Are you very protective of your lord?"

The man didn't know what he said wrong, his face turned pale with shock, and he realized that this is the new chief, and now the top secretary of the Ministry of Secretaryship is not Song Shaojian.He didn't dare to say anything at that time.

Fortunately, Lu Guan didn't ask any more questions and just left.

☆, Lou Jiangyue (pick up)

As night fell, the snow stopped briefly.

A black figure stepped over the thin snowflakes on the roof tiles. His steps lifted and fell, and the snow powder was scattered when he stepped.The man in black moved rapidly in the night without making a sound.

His cold and drooping gaze happened to fall on the big horse running by on the long street.

The guard at the palace gate spoke a few words with Song Qianzhi, he took out an imperial seal, the guard let him go, and took Song Qianzhi's horse to tie it up.

The man in black appeared at the gate of the palace.

"Who is it?" Zhou Xian's face was illuminated upward by the flickering palace lantern, and the guard immediately lowered his eyes, "Master Zhou is back, sir please."

Zhou Xian didn't untie the sword, he followed Song Qianzhi not far or near, and climbed up the wall after a while.

Song Qianzhi walked quickly all the way with his head down, he noticed something, and looked up at the wall sideways.The top of the wall was covered with an inch-thick layer of snow. Song Qianzhi lowered his head again, turned a corner in the deep palace alley, and entered a courtyard of a side hall.

A figure jumped down from the wall.

The figure approached the gate of the courtyard, and pushed open the half-covered door, behind which stood a smiling man.

"Zhou Xian." Song Qianzhi patted the left and right sleeves of his robe, shrunk his neck into the fur collar as if afraid of the cold, "You have been with me for so long, come together."

Zhou Xian said with a smile: "The humble official came to protect the adults."

Song Qianzhi was noncommittal, and took Zhou Xian out of the side hall to the Empress Dowager's Palace on the east side of the palace. The two of them had nothing to say along the way, Song Qianzhi was thinking about something.

Xuzhou is Jiang Meng's godson, so he has to find a way to get Jiang Meng out.

In the night of the twelfth lunar month of winter, the bone-chilling wind can gnaw human bones into pieces.

On the dark palace road, the palace people who passed by sporadically recognized Song Qianzhi, no matter the maids and eunuchs, they all turned sideways to salute him.Zhou Xian was like a shadow, following Song Qianzhi's side.

Song Qianzhi knew that Zhou was first sent by the emperor to monitor his eyes, and he had been in charge of Lintai for many years. In the entire capital, there were many spies from the emperor.It’s funny to say that Fu Mingshao was confined to the deep palace, and most of the government affairs were decided by Prime Minister Li Yeyuan and the six ministers. Among them, Qin Yuning, Minister of the Ministry of War, was a student of Taifu Zhou. Unexpectedly, the prince would fall off the horse and die.Qin Yuning had just joined the Ministry of War. He and Li Yeyuan were rivals in terms of political opinions.

The operation of the court formed its own system, and the emperor intervened in everything, but he couldn't do anything.When Fu Mingshao first came to the throne, he wanted to implement the New Deal. The leading officials were impeached by the Metropolitan Procuratorate within half a year. A series of more than a dozen young officials who promoted the New Deal lost their positions due to bribery within two years.

After that, Fu Mingshao became disheartened, and began to delegate power, pursuing the idea of ​​governing by doing nothing.In private, he focused on Lintai, collecting the secret files of officials from various factions, and only waiting for the right time to let these old things make room for the new blood he selected.Naturally, it is impossible for Li Yeyuan and Qin Yuning not to know that Lu Guan's callback is a signal.

Song Qianzhi thought that the empress dowager proposed that Lu Guan be placed in Quzhou, but whether it was the empress dowager's original intention, or was it the result of taking a step back from Fu Mingshao, who was still the prince at the time, he didn't quite understand this old calendar. Got it, gotta figure it out.It won't be long before Li Xiang will come to him.

Under wild thoughts, the Empress Dowager's Compassionate Ning Palace is close in front of her eyes.

Song Qianzhi signaled Zhou Xian not to speak, and went to ask the little eunuch to call Jiang Meng. The little eunuch knew Song Qianzhi, and asked if he should inform the queen mother, Song Qianzhi waved his hand to indicate no.

The eunuch took a piece of silver from Song Qian and ran errands very quickly.

This waited for nearly half an hour.

Zhou Xian observed Song Qianzhi from behind, and saw him standing under the wall with his hands in his sleeves, his cloak set off his tall and straight figure, as straight as a bamboo, as if he was thinking about something.Song Qianzhi and the others were very patient, walking back and forth occasionally, but there was no sign of impatience on their faces.

A middle-aged eunuch who was sweating profusely ran out from the door. It was Jiang Meng. When he saw Zhou Xian, Jiang Meng was stunned for a moment, and then came up with a smile on his face.

"My lords, come here late at night, what's the matter?" Jiang Mengdao, "I just finished serving the Queen Mother, so I kept the adults waiting for a long time."

Song Qianzhi waved his hand.

Jiang Meng immediately shut up, and he glanced at Zhou Xian.

Zhou Xian said, "I'm going for a walk." Then he walked away, and suddenly a figure swayed against the wall, and he didn't know where he went.

Jiang Meng wiped the sweat off his brow: "Qilin Guard's skills are really extraordinary, why did your lord recruit them?"

"Sent by the emperor, don't tell the queen mother, I've been here tonight, and don't mention the Qilin guard to my aunt."

"The servant knows."

"There is an eunuch in charge of tea in the Internal Guard, named Xu Zhou, is he your godson?" Song Qianzhi asked.

Jiang Meng frowned, thought about it carefully, and said carefully: "It seems."

Song Qianzhi frowned.

Without waiting for Song Qianzhi to explode, Jiang Meng quickly changed his words: "Yes, Xuzhou was worshiped at the slave's knee the winter before last. That child is not considered clever, so the slave asked him to go to the house to supervise the objects used by the palaces. If there is any bad work, it will not be managed by the slaves, but still be managed by Mr. Huang, the internal guard."

Song Qianzhi's expression eased.

"I'll give you one hour to hand over the person to Zhou Xian, and go out in a carriage in the palace. Give him a badge for going out of the palace, and just say that he will buy it from the palace. It will take three or four days to return."

"What did this little bastard do?" Jiang Meng finally realized the seriousness of the matter, a layer of sweat glistened on her white face, and she rubbed her fingers back and forth.

"Jiang Meng. There are not many capable people around the queen mother. Do a good job. You should know, and I will definitely tell you."

Jiang Meng's eyes widened suddenly, her throat seemed to be stuck by a blade, her voice froze, she stretched her neck and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

"Yes, where is Master Zhou waiting?"

"Southwest Gate."

Song Qianzhi and Jiang Meng glanced at each other hurriedly, and said in a low voice: "You don't need to let Zhou know about this little matter, just leave it to him. Tell your godson, what should you say when you arrive at the secretary's office?" Whatever you say, keep your mouth shut."

Jiang Meng smiled wryly, "Yes."

Song Qianzhi was about to leave.

Jiang Meng stepped forward and called him to stop.

Song Qianzhi looked at the eunuch approaching suspiciously.

A little bit of light illuminated the eunuch's white face with low eyebrows and pleasing eyes, Jiang Meng straightened his gauze hat, lifted the hem of his green robe, knelt down, and kowtowed twice to Song Qianzhi.

Song Qianzhi didn't say anything.

When Jiang Meng looked up, Song Qianzhi's back was already far away.

The two eunuchs came to support Jiang Meng, vaguely heard the empress dowager murmuring to the celebrity in front of her: "This winter is really cold, and spring may come late."

After leaving the palace, Song Qianzhi didn't go back directly to Secretary's Office, instead he rode his horse and slipped into an alley.

The smell of wine wafted from the entrance of the alley, and the entire alley, which only allowed one horse to pass, was brightly lit, and the tavern was not yet closed, Song Qianzhi got off his horse, took the rein, and walked four rooms inside.

"Boss, heat two jugs of Xifeng wine, seal the bottles, and I'll take them away."

When the shopkeeper saw Song Qianzhi, he showed a warm smile: "Would you like some food or drink?"

"As usual, just bring an extra." Song Qianzhi paid for the drink, found a table and sat down.

His horse stood at the door, untied. The horse turned its head and glanced at him, then stood quietly outside the door.

The voice of the conversation in the shop became quieter from the moment Song Qianzhi entered the door. At the foot of the capital, anyone who wears a fur cloak is either rich or expensive. This alley is called Wine Alley. They are all traffickers.

Many people peeked at Song Qianzhi, it is rare to see people in such fine clothes here.

Song Qianzhi looked out of the door, separated by a door, the inside of the room was intoxicated by the smell of wine and food, and the outside of the door was as cold as hell on earth.

Song Qianzhi stepped on a stool with one leg, playing with chopsticks in his hand, turned around and saw a strong man with an open chest behind him who was looking at him.

"The hero is from the city?"

The man didn't expect Song Qianzhi to talk to him, his eyes panicked and he calmed down.

"I'm from the south, a city that advances half a month."

The accent seemed to be from Rongzhou, two or three hundred miles southeast of the capital, so Song Qianzhi asked.

"My lord has been to Rongzhou?"

Song Qianzhi laughed: "There is Zhuangzi in Rongzhou at home."

The man's eyes widened immediately.

"My lord is from the Anding Hou Song Mansion?"

Only then did Song Qianzhi see a table of people, three strong men, an old man on the table, and a daughter-in-law holding a baby who was waiting to be fed. The woman did not dare to look at Song Qianzhi, but the child in her arms stretched Looking at Song Qianzhi with his neck, the child looked less than one year old, and his small hands were tightly clutching his mother's clothes.

"Yes." Song Qian paused, thinking of something, "Are you from the Song family village?"

The burly man looked at each other with several other big men, in shock, and wanted to speak, but it was inconvenient to say it here.

Song Qianzhi's food and wine are also ready.

"Where are you staying?"

"No. 140, Wuyi Lane, the uncle who has gone to the villain, he will leave after the new year." The man still wanted to say something, seeing that Song Qianzhi was young, but the official authority was strict, he was a little hesitant.

"You guys stay there for two days, and I will come to see you some other day and talk to you." Song Qianzhi touched his body, but the broken silver was gone, and he took out a bank note.

The big man was so frightened that he quickly knelt down: "This can't make..."

"Buy some food and clothing for the old man and the children. It's almost New Year's Eve." Song Qianzhi stopped talking, touched the child's little head squeezed on the mother's arms with a smile, strode out of the tavern, got on his horse, and galloped like lightning Disappeared at the intersection.

In the dark night without stars and moon, there is a hole of light and fire, small but warm.

The big man at the door looked at it for a long time, then he carefully put away the bank note, turned back, and coaxed the child to eat.

The secretary made a dish of braised fish, and the smell of onion, ginger and garlic wafted all over the yard. Song Qianzhi went to wash his hands, and the secretary who stayed behind took out all the wine and vegetables he brought and put them on the table.

Zhou Xian hasn't come back yet.

Song Qianzhi asked the kitchen to leave food for him, and asked Lu Guan to eat first.

Four types of braised meat, winter bamboo shoots, ham slices floating in the milky white soup, green onion, and pleasant aroma, bacon is stir-fried with fresh and tender garlic sprouts, and there is also a brightly fried seasonal vegetable.

Wine was simmering in the small furnace, and the fire was ruddy.

Lu Guan couldn't help being a little dazed.

He couldn't remember how many years he hadn't eaten with a table like this. This winter was colder than usual, but he felt something strange in his heart.Song Qianzhi sat across the table from him, took the chopsticks from the book office, and gave them to him.

Lu Guan took it over, and Song Qianzhi served him another bowl of soup. During the meal, the secretary and provincial officials, regardless of size, Song Qianzhi called all the cooks to the table.

After drinking two glasses of wine, Song Qianzhi's face became rosy, his eyes were extremely black, and his hair was also like black ink. At this moment, his face looked like a red plum buried in white snow, and the corners of his slightly drunken eyes were slightly red.

"Lord Lu, eat more, it will last long tonight."

According to what Song Qianzhi meant, he wanted to be interrogated overnight.

Lu Guan took a sip of the soup, his eyes moved slightly, and he glanced at the cook.

Song Qianzhi laughed loudly: "Our mother Chen's craftsmanship is very good, I like to eat the food saved by the secretary."

"My lord is just joking, how dare you compare yourself with the chef in the Hou's mansion."

Song Qianzhi waved his hand: "It's all a show, and it's not attractive. Master Lu, how is Chen Niang's craftsmanship?"

"Very good." Lu Guan said concisely.

Chen Niang smiled and filled another bowl of soup for Song Qianzhi.

At this time Zhou Xian came back, followed by a young man who looked like a eunuch.

"Xuzhou?" Song Qianzhi looked sideways.

Zhou Xian pushed the person forward, and when his hand touched Xu Zhou's back, Xu Zhou trembled.

"What are you afraid of? Don't be afraid. I invited you to the secretary's office for a drink. Your godfather didn't tell you clearly?" Song Qianzhi ordered the cook to add three sets of bowls and chopsticks.

Lu Guan: "Qian Shuban, bring Mr. Wang here."

Song Qianzhi squinted his eyes slightly, looking at Lu Guan with a hint of surprise, and joy in the flickering eyes.

Suddenly the plum blossoms fell, and when the wind blew, Song Qianzhi shrank his neck.

Now Wang Zauguo and Xuzhou are sitting together, one is the editor of the Imperial Academy, Li Yeyuan recommended a talent to the emperor, and the other is Jiang Meng's godson, who is in charge of serving the tea.

After drinking and eating, Wang Zauguo and Xu Zhou were less nervous.

Lu Guan even felt that Song Qianzhi was a god-man. He called the prisoners and witnesses who were waiting for trial to a table for dinner. The whole secretarial province was like New Year's Eve. After eating, they were taken away and detained separately.

Trial one by one.

Let Xu Zhou be interrogated first, this time Zhou Xian was also present, he didn't want to be there at first, Song Qianzhi said: "The people brought out from the palace were brought out by Lord Qilinwei himself, it really doesn't make sense for you not to be there, listen, and you won't be able to turn around." To report to the emperor."

Qian Shuban's face was pale and his back was covered with cold sweat.

Song Qianzhi glanced at him: "You remember it, and you don't leave your name, what are you afraid of?"

Xu Zhou also drank three or five glasses of wine, his face turned red, and the eunuch's face was soaked in sweat oil like lard, ruddy, fine and shiny.

"Lord Lu, it's your turn." Song Qianzhi still asked Lu Guan to preside over the interrogation.

Xu Zhou glanced at Lu Guan, and became even more frightened. He trembled a bit, and kept picking his left index finger with his right hand.

"Eunuch Xu Zhou, the secretary will ask you questions, and you must answer truthfully."

The gavel sounded awe-inspiring.

Xu Zhou slumped in the chair with a face like gold paper, his joints seemed to have been pulled out of strength, but his fingers were still picking.Xu Zhou glanced at Zhou Xian, his pupils shrank sharply, and he hummed like a mosquito.

"Do you understand?" Lu Guansheng said like a bell.

"I understand, I understand." Xu Zhou was shocked by this sound, and the words his godfather said to him before he left were floating in his mind, and everything he had done in these years was vivid in his mind.

"Lin Shutong from Pipa Garden, do you know him?"

Xu Zhou took a deep breath, his eyes settled down, and he answered, "Your Excellency is talking about Miss Lin who will lead the dance in the Lantern Festival?"

"Yes."

"Yes, everyone in the palace knows her."

"Are you in charge of the health-preserving tea that your internal servant sent to the Pipa Garden?" Lu Guan asked.

"That's not true. The four of us eunuchs took turns to be on duty. The last health tea Miss Lin received was from the slave."

"Will someone inspect this tea before it goes into storage?"

Xu Zhou seemed to have calmed down a little. He wiped the sweat off his face with his sleeves, and replied, "Before entering the warehouse and after unsealing, they will be inspected and will be taken away only after they are confirmed to be correct. This kind of tea is not exclusively for Pipa Garden. Yes, but its main function is to clear the throat and moisten the lungs. There are two precious medicinal materials in it, which are provided by foreign countries. They have obvious beauty-beautifying effects, but this tea is very cold. Come get it."

Zhou Xian got up suddenly, interrupted Xu Zhou, and asked, "The health tea sent to Lin Shutong, are you sure you checked it?"

Xu Zhou was sweating profusely.

"Grandpa Xu, think about it carefully. Lin Shutong brought several teas together to receive the health-preserving tea from the internal servants. Are you sure you have checked it carefully after it was unsealed? Or is it because he is from the Pipa Garden and not from the palace?" Your mother came to pick it up, so you took a short errand? Or someone talked to you on the way, and you went astray?"

Lu Guan shouted in dissatisfaction: "Zhou Xian."

"Lord Lu, the eunuch's confession involves the palace, so forgive me for overstepping." Zhou Xian didn't pay attention to Lu Guan at all, and then asked Xu Zhou, "Have you figured it out?"

Xu Zhou's eyebrows twitched suddenly, he hurriedly met Zhou Xian's eyes, and whispered: "At that time, my godfather came here."

"Jiang Meng?" Song Qianzhi said.

Xu Zhou's face was extremely ugly.

"Yes, it was the Empress Dowager who came to the former Eunuch Jiang and asked the slaves to wait on him and have a conversation."

"Serve who?" Song Qianzhi asked, "Serve Jiang Meng?"

"Eunuch Jiang is the slave's godfather, and he should be filial to the slave."

"He came alone?"

Xu Zhou glanced at Zhou Xian.

Lu Guan stood up suddenly, left his seat, and walked in front of Xu Zhou, blocking his gaze, forcing Xu Zhou to only look at him.

Xu Zhou's breath became short of breath.

Lu Guan looked down and saw that Xu Zhou's left index finger had been scratched by himself, and a puddle of blood oozed from the wound.

"Xuzhou." Lu Guan's voice was deep and soft.

Xu Zhou raised his head, his eyes met Lu Guan, and his whole body was shocked.

"Xuzhou!"

The second sound sounded like a majestic bell ringing in Xuzhou's skull. He swallowed, and let go of his left index finger with his right hand, which was already mottled with blood.

"When Lin Shutong received raw tea from you, did anyone stop by?"

There was a sudden silence in the room.

It was snowing outside again, rustling.

"No, no one has ever been here. The slave is alone. After Miss Lin came, the slave thought that Miss Lin would perform a dance for the emperor soon, so I specially mixed some tea leaves for her, and took out the tea leaves from the same envelope. The slave took it out and tested it with a silver needle, and after confirming that it was correct, she let Miss Lin sign it and take it away." At this point, Xu Zhou suddenly became nervous, and after waiting for Lu Guan's next sentence, he asked him why he said it in just a few breaths. Two different answers.

Lu Guan didn't ask any more questions, but instead asked Qian Shuban: "Did you write it down?"

Qian Shuban was startled suddenly, and replied, "I wrote it."

"Did you also write Master Zhou's question?"

"wrote."

"Okay, let him sign."

Zhou Xian's face was livid, and a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth: "Master Lu, is he going to show such a testimony to the emperor?"

"This Xuzhou has had some wine, and the night is long. We have time to ask slowly. Qian Shuban, ask him to sign." Lu Guan made a final decision, and walked out the door with his hands in his sleeves.

Song Qianzhi got up, watched Qian Shuban bring it to Xu Zhou for signature and filing, and ordered him to bring some warm water for Xu Zhou to drink so that he could sober up.

"Get some medicine and wipe his hands."

Xu Zhou trembled slightly, Zhou Xian's black robe of Qilin Guard flashed in front of his eyes, he raised his eyes, and saw Song Qianzhi looking at him, the corner of Song Qianzhi's mouth hooked slightly, and his right hand stroked the side of his waist The jade pendant slipped gently twice.

The door is closed.

☆, Lou Jiangyue ([-])

After walking out the door, Song Qianzhi called Zhou Xian to stop, Lu Guan was about to enter the door, saw Song Qianzhi wink, turned around and walked over.

"Zhou Xian, you are from the palace and represent the emperor. There are some things that I haven't explained clearly to you in advance, so I'd like to mention them."

Lu Guan frowned and looked at Song Qianzhi.

宋虔