A small town located between Hu County and Chang'an. A bluestone road runs from north to south. There are small shops on both sides. Children are chasing and playing, adding a bit of vitality to the town. Xue Rengui came in a hurry and found a restaurant to stop.
, handed the war horse to the shop assistant: "Feed it with the best ingredients, bring a pot of wine, a plate of peanuts, and a plate of braised pork."
"Okay, please come in objectively." The shop clerk hurriedly gathered.
Xue Rengui entered the store, sat down by the window, and looked at the people on the street. The shopkeeper personally brought drinks and food. There were not many guests in restaurants in such a small place and they were not very particular. Xue Rengui asked pretending to be casual.
: "Where was the imperial cement road built?"
"I've been to Hu County and I went to see it. It's very smooth and hard. It's incredible. The Protector is so awesome. With this cement road, no matter it rains or snows, you don't have to worry about the road being slippery. I heard
It won't take a few days to reach Chang'an, and thanks to our Lord Protector, it will be much faster to go back and forth from Chang'an in the future."
Xue Rengui was a little nervous, and he actually built it as far as Hu County. Isn't it not far from the town? He pretended to smile casually and said: "When the road is opened, there will be more businessmen going back and forth, and your business will also increase a lot. It should be easy."
I am so grateful to the Lord Protector, otherwise such good things would not have happened."
"It doesn't mean that if there are more people building roads, there will be more food. The food in the nearby people's homes is sold at a high price. Who wouldn't benefit from it? I heard that many people have given longevity tablets to the Protector."
"What else is there?" Xue Rengui was a little nervous. After thinking about it, he realized that the common people had only one strength left and no place to make money. However, they could not eat all the vegetables and fruits they grew and could sell them to road builders at a reasonable price.
If you are only higher than the market, but not lower, and you make a small profit, how can you not be grateful?
At this time, several military lords came in, and one of them shouted: "Shopkeeper, it's been a long time since we brought the delicious food here, and it's indispensable for you to have a penny of silver."
"Hey, Master Jun is here. Is this Xiu Mu?" the shopkeeper walked up with a smile on his face.
"I don't have time to take a bath. I asked for leave to come here to perform the tooth ceremony. I'm almost starting to feel like a bird in my mouth. Come up quickly. After eating, my brothers have to go back and do errands." Someone explained.
The shopkeeper hurriedly went to work. Xue Rengui was eating and listening. These people were very close to each other. They didn't talk about road construction. They were all thinking about the romantic days in Chang'an. It was obvious that their status was not low.
He is an ordinary soldier, with no calluses on his hands. Although his skin is tanned, he is obviously fat.
No one who is a regular soldier will be fat, and it is even less likely that someone who works as a coolie on road construction will be fat. Could it be that they are the "interns" that the young master once mentioned? The interns come from noble families. No wonder they are so popular in Chang'an, shouting: "How many times do you think this is the case?"
Does the military master know Luo Zhang?"
A few people were chatting happily, and when they heard someone asking about Luo Zhang, they all looked over with a little more vigilance in their eyes. One of them asked: "This... looks familiar, does he know our Lord Luo?"
"I heard that the Luo family's marksmanship is unparalleled in the world. I came here for a while. I wonder if any of the military masters can report on my behalf? This meal will be paid by a certain person."
It's best to find Luo Zhang's identity. If that doesn't work, you can just go directly.
One person asked warily: "Want to compete with Mr. Luo?"
"Exactly!"
The other party burst into laughter: "It's not that I'm attacking you, but it's where you came from and where you're going. Mr. Luo never competes with others, and Mr. Luo is busy with his affairs and has no time to care about such things."
"Are you 'interns'?"
"Oh, I know a lot."
Xue Rengui smiled and said: "I've got you guys here, I'm Zhao Xiaohu."
Zhao Xiaohu is from Zhaojiacun, a captain of the village protection team, and was recommended by Luo Zhang. He will definitely come here when he hears this name.
"Okay, for the sake of food, it's okay to help you pass on the message. I don't care whether you come or not." One person said with a smile.
Xue Rengui smiled and didn't say much.
After the meal, those people left in a hurry and left the town. One of them said: "Are you sending him a message? It's not a joke to piss off Mr. Luo."
"It's bullshit, but who are we? We're just cheating."
Everyone smiled knowingly, no longer entangled, but one person frowned and thought, and reminded uneasily: "The other party knows about the 'intern', and I'm afraid his identity is not simple. If he has a background, he will cause trouble for nothing. Moreover, this person came here on a special trip.
, if you come to us and accuse me, Mr. Luo won’t be lenient."
"Yes, it's really troublesome."
"Forget it, just mention it later and don't say too much. As for whether Mr. Luo is going or not, we can't control it. But if you don't mention it, there will be hidden dangers. You won't get into trouble."
"Yes, yes, it's better to mention it than not to mention it at all."
Xue Rengui figured out what these people would do, so he ate and waited in the restaurant. The shopkeeper was a little confused, but he didn't dare to come up to urge him, so Xue Rengui asked for more food.
After waiting for a while, Luo Zhang hurried over in casual clothes. He recognized Xue Rengui at a glance, not Zhao Xiaohu. His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly stepped forward, sat down opposite Xue Rengui, and asked eagerly: "Why is it you? Is it you?"
What happened to uncle?"
"Shopkeeper, please add some bowls and chopsticks."
"coming."
When the dishes and chopsticks came up, Xue Rengui signaled the shopkeeper to leave and whispered: "Young master, everything is fine. There is something too big to expose, so I borrowed Zhao Xiaohu's name."
"Tell me what's going on." Luo Zhang became serious.
Xue Rengui looked around warily, motioned Luo Zhang to come closer, and said in a voice that only Luo Zhang could hear: "Someone forced their way into the barbecue bar and Dongshi shop, and also tied up a buyer from Qinjiazhuang, Guanjia Jia.
Suspecting competition among peers, the other party also kidnapped craftsmen from the Ministry of Industry to study household items, such as liquor, soap, etc."
"Who is seeking death...?" Luo Zhang became angry when he heard this.
"Don't worry, just listen to what I have to say." Xue Rengui looked around cautiously and continued in a low voice: "Gong Wei Guo secretly summoned Steward Jia and said that those people might be in Prince Villa."
"Ah..." Luo Zhang's expression changed drastically. Prince Villa is not an ordinary place.
Xue Rengui waited for a moment to let Luo Zhang digest and accept the information, and continued: "I am going to use a trick, but the team protecting the village cannot be exposed easily, and I need your cooperation."
"you say."
"There is a Fengyulou killer named Shen Mei who has joined the house. I plan to use her to spread the news. If the Fengyulou killer comes after me, you show up with someone, drive them to Prince Villa, and take the opportunity to go in and check." Xue Rengui said. Then he told the whole plan, very carefully.
Luo Zhang didn't speak from beginning to end. He listened carefully. After thinking carefully for a moment, he said: "I will arrive two hours in advance to lay an ambush. How many people are needed..."
Xue Rengui explained: "Two hours won't work. I'm worried that the killer will ambush in advance. The earlier the better. You can decide the details yourself. Just hide in the west. I will take a few people to wait in the village, using the rocket as a signal. If no rockets are fired, it means that Shen Mei and the others are trustworthy, so I will ask them to break into the Prince's Villa and set fire to it, and hide a group of people from the Supervisory Office in the east. Once the fire breaks out, the people from the Supervisory Office will come."
"There are also people from the Supervisory Office, are they trustworthy?" Luo Zhang was a little surprised.
"Listen to me." Xue Rengui looked around and whispered: "If there is a problem with Shen Mei and others and the killer arrives, I will send out smoke and you guys will come out and drive them to Prince Villa, but don't chase them. Let the Supervisory Office pursue it. The Supervisory Office is a court department that specializes in major rebellion cases. There are many excuses to get away. If you can't do it, mobilizing troops without permission is a serious crime. If Shen Mei has no problem, don't let her go."
"Then it's enough to just let the Supervisory Office take action. Why do you need me to come?" Luo Zhang asked.
"Because there is a killer, we need to arrest him alive for secret interrogation and cannot hand it over to the Supervisory Office. Once it is made public, it will alert the snake. Secondly, the Supervisory Office needs an excuse for the transfer. At that time, it can be announced that a group of strongmen have gathered, thinking that they are going to rebel, and they came here specially. I went there and found out that I ran into the Prince's Villa. I was worried that something might happen, so I followed the emergency and rushed in to save people before I had time to ask for orders. It's reasonable and reasonable."
"In other words, I came to play the role of a strongman and gave the Supervisory Office an excuse to secretly take away the killers and prisoners for interrogation?" Luo Zhang suddenly asked, asking.
"Yes, the third point is also the most important point. If people know that there is another wave of unidentified people, it can force the court to intensify the investigation, and the Supervisory Office can take further action, seize the initiative, and completely muddy the situation. "In the future, we can use the name of 'strongman' to do many things, clear up the relationship, and make those who plot against us fearful and not dare to mess around." Xue Rengui explained seriously.
"Fish in troubled waters?!"
Luo Zhang suddenly realized, raised his glass and said with emotion: "Uncle has always believed in you, saying that you are both civil and military, how can you be so talented? I didn't believe it before, but I believe it this time. Are two hundred people enough?"
Xue Rengui thought for a while: "Enough, too many people will be easily exposed, but these two hundred people must be reliable."
"Don't worry, I will take care of it." Luo Zhang leaned back, his face full of confidence.
The two laughed in unison and raised their glasses to drink together.