To the west of Taiji Palace and to the north of Guangyun Gate, there is a Yeting courtyard, which was originally a temporary residence for palace officials. Now it has been expanded and specially guarded, and it has become a prison.
It is said to be a prison, but in this small courtyard, there are bedrooms, study rooms, central halls, side rooms, etc., but it is no different from ordinary people's homes.
The only thing is that I can't leave the hospital.
Since Zhou Jun entered this hermitage, several groups of people have come to interrogate him, including the uncles from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the head of the Zongzheng Institute.
I turned over and over again and asked about the details of Zhou Jun's several meetings with Concubine Yang.
Over time, Zhou Jun, who was a policeman in his previous life, probably guessed what happened through the questions asked by everyone.
On this day, Zhou Jun was reading in his room. There was a chant outside the door, and many servants were admitted to the hospital.
Looking at this posture, Zhou Jun knew that someone important might come to question him.
After adjusting his clothes, Zhou Jun walked out of the study, was led by the chamberlain, and saw a familiar person in the hall - Gao Lishi.
When Zhou Jun saw Gao Lishi, he first bowed his hands and saluted, and then called him General Gao.
Gao Lishi glanced at Zhou Jun with a complicated expression and replied: "Consort, sit down and talk."
Zhou Jun sat down as he was told and faced Gao Lishi with a calm expression.
Gao Lishi said: "The prince-in-law lives here leisurely and does not look like a sinner at all."
Zhou Jun smiled and said: "The pure will be pure themselves. The saint's heart is as clear as day, and the general's gaze is as bright as a torch. Sooner or later, he will be able to sort out the chaos and restore someone's innocence."
Gao Lishi took out a piece of paper from his arms, put it in front of Zhou Jun, and asked, "Consort, please take a look, do you recognize it?"
Zhou Jun lowered his head and saw that what was written on the paper was the poem "Die Lian Hua" written by Liu Yong of later generations. He nodded and said, "I recognize it. This Yuefu poem is Jun's fan gift to Princess Wanchun."
Gao Lishi's expression froze and he asked: "Then why did this poem fall on the case of the imperial concubine?"
Zhou Jun: "Princess Wanchun and the imperial concubine have a very good personal relationship. They like to get together on weekdays to study operas and lyrics. It is unusual for the princess to share this Yuefu poem with the imperial concubine as a pleasure in her boudoir."
Gao Lishi had been observing Zhou Jun's expression, and seeing that the other person's expression was not fake, he nodded lightly.
What Gao Lishi didn't know was that Zhou Jun had also been looking at his expression.
Zhou Jun asked: "General Gao, this poem is a happy poem between husband and wife. Even if the noble concubine borrowed it, it was just for private fun. How did it get to this point?"
Gao Lishi glanced at Zhou Jun, hesitant on his face, and then asked: "There is a maid in Xingqing Palace, her name is Xiuchuan, have you heard of her?"
Zhou Jun: "The uncle mentioned this name earlier when he was asking about it, but Jun has never heard of this maid before."
Gao Lishi: "She was imprisoned for interrogation because of an incident involving her lyrics. Late at night, after leaving a letter in blood, she committed suicide."
Zhou Jun: "Let me guess, in that maid's blood letter, is it possible that I used death to prove that I had an affair with the imperial concubine, and that I committed suicide because I was ashamed of the emperor's favor?"
Gao Lishi remained silent.
Zhou Jun saw Gao Lishi looking in one direction, his brows furrowed and one shoulder slightly raised, but this was a suspicious move in his heart.
It can be seen from these micro-expressions and micro-movements that Gao Lishi was also suspicious of this blood letter, but he could not make up his mind.
Zhou Jun said: "General Gao, please think about it, if that servant girl was grateful for the emperor's favor, why didn't she report it to the saint as soon as she knew about the affair? Instead, she had to express it in a blood letter before she died.
loyalty?"
Gao Lishi's frown deepened.
Zhou Jun: "Furthermore, since the slave girl already had the will to die in her heart, why did she panic and defend herself in order to survive when she was facing the saint? Finally, the night the slave girl wrote a letter in blood and committed suicide in a boat,
Are there people coming in and out of the prison, and are there temporary shifts for the jailers? Who is the first to discover the body early in the morning?"
After Gao Lishi heard this, his brows twisted into the character "Chuan".
After taking a long breath, Gao Lishi asked: "One last thing, on the night of the Shangyuan Festival in Tianbao's seventh year, did you ever go to the attic of Huayexianghui Building?"
Zhou Jun was shocked. On the night of the Lantern Festival in Tianbao's seventh year, he was waiting for Yin Yu in the attic of Huaxianhui Building and accidentally bumped into a drunk Yang Yuhuan. This incident may be the key to the entire case.
Now, no matter whether the answer is yes or no, it will be troublesome.
Zhou Jun looked at Gao Lishi and whispered: "This matter involves the dignity of the royal family. Jun suggested that it is better to let Princess Wanchun enter the palace to meet the saint, and then detail the details of that night."
Gao Lishi was stunned for a while, and after thinking about it, he finally nodded. On the other side, there was the residence of Right Minister Li Linfu.
Pang Gong sat in the carriage and was pushed by Yuping into the study in the back compartment.
Li Linfu was sitting cross-legged on the mat, with a chessboard in front of him. He saw Pang Zhonghe and entered the door, and said with a smile: "Lin Fu's hands have been itchy recently, but he can't find anyone suitable to play chess with. Fortunately, Zuo Jian is here.
Come in quickly."
Since Zhou Jun was taken into the palace, Pang Zhonghe had been thinking hard, talking up and down, and his beard and hair had become a lot whiter. When he heard Li Linfu's words, he replied with an unkind expression: "This game of chess, right minister, is too big. Our chess skills are too big."
It’s limited, I’m afraid I won’t be able to get it all.”
Li Linfu waved his hand and said with a smile: "The chess game is all about planning more and letting less go. No matter how skilled the chess player is, it is impossible to win the whole game. He can only make gains and losses to maintain the overall situation."
Pang Zhonghe glanced at Li Linfu, and with Yuping's support, sat down in front of the chess board.
As usual, Pang Zhonghe holds white and Li Linfu holds black.
Bai's first move fell to Tianyuan. Li Linfu paused, shook his head and said: "Zuo Jian did not change his chess game. It seems to be stable, but in a familiar game, he lost the opportunity."
Pang Zhonghe: "Zhonghe has a stubborn temper and doesn't know how to adapt. The palace tried to persuade him in the early years, but he couldn't change it."
Li Linfu raised his head and glanced at Pang Zhonghe first, then looked at the chess game and said: "Back then, Queen Zhenshun used all kinds of tricks and exhausted all her energy to support King Shou to take the position of crown prince."
Hearing this, Pang Zhonghe was stunned, and the expression on his face slowly softened, and he sighed: "Queen Zhenshun is obsessed with this and has gone through too much..."
Li Linfu: "Not only Zuo Jian, but also Lin Fu was deeply favored by the Queen back then. Now he thinks about how to repay her every day."
Pang Zhonghe asked seemingly casually: "What does the Right Prime Minister plan to do?"
Li Linfu: "Concubine Yang was originally the Concubine of Shou, and she entered the palace only after receiving the favor of the Holy One. Your Majesty stayed away from the Shou King because of this matter. If the situation can be reversed and your Majesty neglects the Concubine, then the Shou King will have a chance to ascend to the throne."
Pang Zhonghe remained silent, but kept making moves in his hands.
Li Linfu further advised: "Right now, Zhou Jun is having an affair with a noble concubine and there is chaos in the harem. This is a great opportunity for King Shou to gain power. As long as Pang Zuojian is willing to help, Lin Fu can build momentum in the court..."
Before Li Linfu finished speaking, his voice slowly dropped. He looked at the chessboard at this time, only to find that the chessboard had formed the appearance of conquering pieces at some point.
(Zhengzi, also known as Zhengzi, is a method in Go that uses the opponent's piece to only have one breath and continuously twists and turns to capture the piece.)
Li Linfu frowned and said: "Zuo Jian, if the chess game continues like this, it is not good for you. Why don't you give up this chess piece and move to other places to survive for yourself?"
Pang Zhonghe turned a deaf ear and faced the disadvantages of Zhengzi, but he went his own way and continued to add more children to his family.
Li Linfu's cheeks twitched unconsciously, and he asked in a deep voice: "Your chess pieces are already dead. Adding more pieces to them will only increase the losses. Why did Zuo Jian pay for this for no reason?
Lose the entire chess game?"
Pang Zhonghe raised his head, his eyes full of perseverance, and his words were sonorous and powerful: "We have identified the chess pieces we want to protect. Even if we lose the whole game, we must protect them!"
The words were about protecting Zi, but the actual meaning was to protect Zhou Jun.
Li Linfu understood the profound meaning, and the smile suddenly disappeared from his face, and he shouted: "Confused!"
Facing the furious Li Linfu, Pang Zhonghe said coldly: "We told you when we sat down that Zhonghe is stubborn and doesn't know how to adapt, but the right prime minister has forgotten it."
Li Linfu forced himself to calm down and tried to persuade: "Zuo Jian, one is the longevity king who may ascend to the throne in the future, and the other is just a little slave. Can't you tell which one is more important?"
Pang Zhonghe stared at Li Linfu and sighed: "Were what we did back then really a good thing for King Shou?"
Li Linfu was stunned and said: "What?"
Pang Zhonghe: "After the Three Common People incident, King Shou was squeezed out, and the princes and princesses who used to come and go were afraid to avoid him. King Shou also made it clear to the old slave that he had no intention of competing for the position of prince, and just wanted to live his life in peace...
Before Queen Zhenshun passed away that year, she called Zhonghe in to pray for the safety of King Shou. Now that I think about it, before the Queen passed away, she did not protect King Shou from ascending to the throne, but she hoped that he could live in peace in the future."
Hearing this, Li Linfu was so angry that he stood up and shouted to Pang Zhonghe: "That's nonsense! Which prince in the world doesn't want to become a prince as soon as possible?!"
Pang Zhonghe looked up at Li Linfu and said slowly: "We came today because we wanted to discuss with the right minister to clear the suspicion of the consort, but now it seems that Zhonghe has been rude. Since our words are not speculative, then our family also
Got to go."
Seeing that Pang Zhonghe was about to get up, Li Linfu gritted his teeth and said, "Even if Zuo Jian doesn't think about King Shou, he should think about himself, right?"
Pang Zhonghe frowned and looked at Li Linfu.
Li Linfu: "Zuo Jian owns Bachuan Street Market and Sanzhou, including countless shops, houses, and land. Nowadays, the price of Bachuan Houses has skyrocketed, and the value of Bachuan Market has skyrocketed. Naturally, it has become the target of prominent families. Zuo Jian Ruoruo
There is no help in the court, and these family properties may be taken away in the blink of an eye. However, as long as I act as a guarantee and King Zaishu is favored, then Zuo Jian will be able to sit back and relax..."
Pang Zhonghe said coldly: "If you don't bother Prime Minister, Zhonghe will make his own arrangements."
Seeing Pang Zhonghe leave the room, Li Linfu could no longer contain the rage in his heart. He lifted up the chessboard and let the black and white chess pieces fall to every corner of the floor.
next chapter
This chapter has been completed!