The waiter smiled and handed over a wine bottle and a bag of freshly fried salt-baked peanuts.
Xia Zhaoyi took it and said with a sweet smile: "Thank you, little brother!"
The rice wine was warm and the peanuts were radiating heat. The smell was very tempting. Xia Zhaoyi left the restaurant with her things.
There is a small vegetable market in the back. The vegetable vendors are shouting loudly, the butchers in the butcher shop are slaughtering meat with big knives, and the chickens, ducks and geese in cages are screaming together, waiting for the servants of wealthy families to come and pick them.
Xia Zhaoyi passed through a group of laughing and scolding boys and went to a quiet alley.
The sun was shining warmly on the small courtyard. It was extremely quiet in the courtyard. There was no smoke or dust at all. There were no clothes or winter quilts hung out to dry, no pots and pans, not even a leaf of vegetables.
Xia Zhaoyi approached and stood outside the door, her eyebrows slightly raised.
She didn't like Quan Jiuwei. The last time she came to look for him, she ended up unhappy. From Quan Jiuwei's words and demeanor, she could smell too many things wrong.
However, you still have to ask.
Xia Zhaoyi stepped forward, raised her hand to knock on the door, paused, stretched out her finger and lightly touched the door knocker. A thick layer of dust accumulated on her fingertips.
Xia Zhaoyi went to the other side door, which was also covered with dust and had a large lock left behind.
She looked around and saw an old man drying his quilt in the distance and turning around holding a wooden basin.
Xia Zhaoyi looked back, and a silver hairpin quickly slipped out of her sleeve. She pierced the door lock with one hand, her ears moved slightly, and she moved the silver hairpin slightly following the sound.
Soon there was a soft "click" sound, and the door lock opened. Xia Zhaoyi caught the fallen lock with one hand and pushed the door open.
The old man turned around, raised his head and looked forward. It seemed that someone had flashed by just now.
The sun shines brightly outside the window, illuminating half of the house.
Xia Zhaoyi put the wine pot, peanuts, and the sauce-flavored pancakes in her hands on the table, and went to the stove.
The stove was empty, firewood was piled up and down, and there were only two or three bowls and chopsticks. It looked like no one had touched it for a while.
The bedroom upstairs was in a mess and had been rummaged through, but the bedding was neat.
The desk is also messy, and there are not many books in Jiuwei. Xia Zhaoyi has a good memory. He has been here before and has some impressions of the arrangement of his books. Now he can see at a glance that there are at least five books missing on the bookshelf next to him.
Except for the bedding, the tables and chairs were also neat, and there were no traces of a struggle on the ground. It didn't look like someone had been harmed, but more like he had run away.
Xia Zhaoyi frowned and turned around to leave. His eyes accidentally passed by and saw something under the bed.
Xia Zhaoyi went over and found out that it was a set of men's clothes, made of fine silk, elegant and luxurious, and the style looked like it would be worn by a wealthy gentleman in his forties.
There were a lot of blood stains on the lining, as well as on the corners of the clothes, but other parts were very clean.
It seems that you can guess why Quan Jiuwei escaped.
The rice wine he brought was already cold. Xia Zhaoyi took the wine bottle, peanuts and soybean-flavored pancakes and left the hut.
Returning to the street, she gave away the rice wine and other items in her hand to others, then found a teahouse and chose a window facing the street to sit.
The late autumn and early winter in the capital in her memory were filled with the aroma of simmering meat and porridge, and there were people steaming rice cakes and putting up window grilles everywhere, but now the streets were obviously cold.
Xia Zhaoyi withdrew his gaze and looked at the tea cup in his hand. He shook the teacup gently and the tea water rippled.
Yu He died, Yu Kai died, and most of the people in the Yu Mansion were imprisoned by Li Dongyan and sent to the prison of the Ministry of Punishment.
But Quan Jiuwei didn't know who he killed and fled out of fear of crime.
Xia Zhaoyi shook the cup again, and the reflection in the cup was disrupted again.
She put down the teacup, stood up, put a whole penny of broken silver on the table, turned around and left.
"Hey, young guest," the waiter just brought over the fried side dishes, "I've already prepared everything, why do you want to leave?"
"You can eat." Xia Zhaoyi said and walked away.
The waiter frowned, and as soon as he put the dishes away, he was about to go over and teach someone a lesson. When he saw the broken silver on the table, he paused and picked it up blankly.
When I looked up again, the girl was gone.
"What a weirdo," the guy muttered.
………………
The sun is getting bigger and bigger, and it is a bit dazzling.
Chamberlain Zhao yawned quietly, glanced at the guard next to him, and quickly closed his mouth.
Behind him, in the main hall, the officials were quarreling with red faces, and no one was convinced.
Chamberlain Zhao felt that they were really noisy. He clearly remembered that everyone was harmonious in the past. Even if there was a dispute, it would not become like this. When did it become like this? It seems to have been several years.
The quarrels have become increasingly fierce over the years, and several people have resigned from their jobs due to the quarrels.
His temper is really bad, and he is also really anxious.
That's right, they were anxious. Chamberlain Zhao felt that each of these ministers had become particularly uneasy and frightened.
"...Your Majesty, I don't agree with what Jiang Shilang said. The current lax taxation will only aggravate the contradictions. Those who are idle will be even more idle, and those who seize and support land will be even more lazy. Now it is even more necessary to tax heavily. At this time, the only way is to start from these
Only by taking food from the hands of those who occupy the land can we help the victims!"
"Your Majesty! This is absolutely impossible. Once taxes are imposed heavily, the poor will become even poorer, and those who cannot afford to eat will starve to death!"
"Your Majesty, I agree with Lord Yu's words, and I believe that not only heavy taxes must be imposed, but also heavy punishments. Recently, the number of refugees in the capital has increased, and there are many robbers and robbers in the streets. I believe that heavy punishments should be used in times of chaos, and the current plan should follow the example of the Qin Dynasty.
law!"
"I second the motion! The laws of Qin say that if someone kills a person and fails to rescue someone within a hundred steps, if someone breaks into a house and injures someone, and if the people inside call for help and fail to rescue others, they are all guilty and should be severely punished. I deeply believe that this is the case, and this should be the case!"
"Absurd! You are too ridiculous! Your Majesty, heavy taxes and heavy regulations will only make people more dissatisfied. I agree with Jiang Shilang's words, light taxes and weak taxes to appease people's livelihood!"
…
Chamberlain Zhao sighed, suddenly feeling a sigh of relief in his heart.
I'm sorry that people's lives are so difficult.
At this time, when he saw many figures appearing in the distance, Chamberlain Zhao blinked and suspected that he had seen it wrong.
Who is the old man being supported by two men?
Taifu An?
I haven't seen you for a few days, but you are already aging and miserable like this?
"Taifu An, please slow down, why don't you stay here for a while, and I'll go ask your majesty if I can bring you a sedan?" said the servant Liao.
An Qiuwan shook his head and said calmly: "Servant Liao has a kind heart, so there's no need."
The words were spoken lightly, but his lips were pale and frightening from blood loss.
An Yuzhi and An Yudao were supporting him, one on the left and the other on the right. Both of them looked ugly, taking every step carefully for fear of hurting their elderly father.
"That's good," said the servant Liao, "but I'd better go and report to the emperor first. I see that the morning court has not left yet. Taifu An, are you waiting here, or are you going to the palace?"
Taifu An looked towards the towering Chongzheng Hall in front, thought for a while and said, "Let's go to the hall."
