In the Kaifeng government office, Qiu Wuzuo walked out of prison, walking briskly and getting ready to get off work.
He saw Gongsun Zhao walking towards him. His tiredness had faded a lot, but he still had a cold face and furrowed brows, thinking about something.
Since Qiu Wuzuo got to know this person, he felt that his brows had never relaxed, and he had never seen him smile before, so he didn't take it seriously. He smiled and said, "Sanlang, have you felt more relaxed these days?"
Gongsun Zhao hummed.
Qiu Wuzuo said: "This is all thanks to Mr. Lin. I didn't expect him to be so experienced in deploying his manpower. He has made suggestions on recent cases. The detectives have successfully captured the murderers. Fan Longtu was very happy.
This is also the result of Sanlang's recommendation. You can invite him to a banquet. You two can move around more and deepen your friendship..."
Gongsun Zhao hummed again.
Qiu Wu looked at his friend carefully, looked at the case record in his hand, and deliberately coughed heavily.
Gongsun Zhao finally came to his senses: "You just said...a banquet invitation? That is indeed the case. Please take the trouble to arrange it!"
Qiu Wuzuo frowned and stopped leaving the yamen. Instead, he followed his friend into the house and whispered: "Sanlang, what are you checking again?"
Gongsun Zhao knew that he couldn't hide it. Seeing that the sky was getting dark, he lit a candle and spread out the case files.
Qiu Wuzuo glanced briefly, then his pupils shrank: "You started investigating the case of the Four Murderers again?"
Gongsun Zhao said coldly: "Li Xian is replaced by Li Xian, why should he replace him with the Four Evils? I am afraid of these eunuchs?"
Qiu Wuzuo said with a headache: "The eunuchs in the former Tang Dynasty were very troublesome. Since the founding of this dynasty, eunuchs have been suppressed. Li Xian was the only eunuch who started his career as a supervisor of the army and finally took charge of the military! When Li Xian died,
The late emperor first gave him the posthumous title of 'Min Ke', and then changed it to 'Zhong Min' three years ago. This man cannot be moved!"
After all, Gongsun Zhao's political situation was not comparable to that of Qiu Wuzuo. He explained: "You don't have to worry. Li Xian's biggest fault was not that he was greedy for fame and caused trouble on the border, but that he relied on favor and arrogance."
"When you are proud, you boss the officers around, but when it comes to trouble, you blame yourself for your mistakes. Therefore, not only do you not have the hearts of the soldiers in the northwest, but also the hearts of the courtiers. That's why you were impeached by the imperial censor, and eventually demoted. Chen died of old age.
state."
"The reason why the late emperor changed his posthumous title was to promote the war, not to value Li Xian..."
Qiu Wuzuo suddenly understood, but said strangely: "Even so, Li Xian is dead and it has been concluded. What's the use of checking old cases?"
Gongsun Zhao's eyes sharpened: "Why is it useless? Law enforcement is strict and protection is the law of the Song Dynasty. Even if Li Xian dies of illness, even if the victim's relatives have already left Beijing, the investigation must be carried out! Especially the two cases cannot be let go, one is Li Xian
Embezzling huge sums of money, and the other one was the fire eight years ago!"
Qiu Wuzuo asked curiously: "Is it true that the four villains embezzled huge sums of money? Didn't they find nothing?"
Gongsun Zhaodao: "Eunuchs are the most greedy for money. I really don't know whether Li Xian was as greedy as the censor said, but all the subsequent events make me inclined to believe that this matter is true, especially in the eight years of Jingzhong
The fire was even more suspicious!"
Qiu Wuzuo became serious: "That year when you first entered the Kaifeng government office, you experienced the worst fire in the previous dynasty, killing and injuring hundreds of people!"
For the first time, Gongsun Zhao's eyebrows showed fear, and the candlelight reflected in his pupils, as if igniting a flame with teeth and claws: "Any fire together is too tragic, the Rongwang Palace fire is like this, and the Yuanyou Fire is like this!"
King Rong is Zhao Yuanyan, the Eight Great Kings, the Eight Wise Kings in folklore. This person in real history was favored by his father and brother since he was a child. He developed a flamboyant personality and did not pay much attention to etiquette. He may not have done any big bad things, but he was also known as
Not as good as a wise king.
And the most noteworthy thing he left to future generations was the huge fire started by his maid Han.
Because the woman teamed up with her lover to steal and expose her secret, she originally wanted to set a small fire and elope in the chaos. However, the wind direction changed that night and a fire burned down Prince Rong's palace. The fire also spread to the palace, destroying the left and inner warehouses.
, Chongwenyuan, and the Secret Pavilion were all burned to the ground.
The first two are the treasury and the inner treasury of the Northern Song Dynasty. The wealth accumulated by Zhao Kuangyin and Zhao Guangyi for decades was stored in them. There were mountains of gold and silk, and a storehouse of fragrant medicines, with a total value of tens of millions.
The property was completely burned. "Every storehouse was burned at one time, and the incense could be smelled for more than ten miles." It can be imagined that Zhenzong collapsed at that time. "I did not waste what I had accumulated in the two dynasties. It is a pity that it is all gone in one day."
.”
The latter two, Chongwenyuan and Secret Pavilion, housed all kinds of unique and rare books from the Tang Dynasty, the Five Dynasties, and up to the Song Dynasty. These precious historical documents and archives were also burned clean, and many historical mysteries were unable to find the truth.
.
According to the "Xu Zi Zhi Tong Jian", the furious Zhenzong personally ordered that Han's hands and feet be cut off like human pigs, paraded in the streets for three days, and then executed in a hurry. It is not known whether this is true, but in any case,
The losses caused by this maidservant were extremely heavy. From then on, the imperial court paid unprecedented attention to fires and established the first professional fire brigade in Chinese history.
Those were the military patrol stations set up every three hundred steps in the streets and alleys of Bianjing. The soldiers in each military patrol station were initially responsible for patrolling fireworks at night, and later they were added to the responsibility of catching bandits.
Even so, the fire in the seventh year of Yuanyou was extremely cruel. It failed to affect the palace, but burned down many houses, directly killing hundreds of people, and thousands more were burned and displaced.
That year Gongsun Zhao had just entered the Kaifeng government office, and his memory was still fresh, and he felt it was unbearable to look back.
He shook his head gently, put aside the past for the time being, and took out a stack of case files: "I have pulled out all the fire cases in Bianjing within ten years. You can take a look."
Qiu Wuzuo picked up the top one first and murmured: "Three months ago, the murderer Shi Tie set fire to the foot shop. He was discovered by the military patrol and was able to put out the fire in time. I still remember this case. He killed someone after a few quarrels.
The thief deserved death for arson, but it was a pity that he escaped into Wuyou Cave..."
He looked at the back again, and after browsing it for a while, he understood what this person meant: "The military patrol shop is very responsible!"
Gongsun Zhao nodded: "Yes, let's not mention the effectiveness of the military patrol shop in catching thieves, but their fire prevention duties have not been slackened. There is definitely something fishy about that fire. I suspect it is related to the wealth Li Xian has accumulated over the years. It must be investigated!
"
Qiu Wuzuo understood. Thinking that the Kaifeng government office now had particularly powerful foreign aid, his waist straightened: "How about we also tell Mr. Lin about this case and let him help solve the case together?"
Gongsun Zhao pursed his lips: "Don't tell me!"
Qiu Wuzuo was startled and said in confusion: "This case has been going on for such a long time. If it could have been solved, Sanlang would have solved it long ago. Now that we are encountering difficulties, Mr. Lin's intelligence and wisdom should make him take action!"
Gongsun Zhao lowered his voice slightly: "I also hope he can help us, but this case will harm him. Have you forgotten what happened to me?"
Qiu Wuzuo's expression changed: "What Sanlang means is that you were assassinated by a thief because of this case?"
Gongsun Zhao said solemnly: "Since the Taoist priest from Jinhua Mountain was transferred to the Ministry of Punishment, I have lost the clue and can only infer purely from the motives."
"I have listed the people I have offended. Although the number is large, it is easy to divide them. Most of them want me to die, but they will not really take action. How can I invite some heretical people from far away in the south of the Yangtze River to arrange this?
To create a situation that could cost me my life requires both ability and courage, and there are huge interests involved behind it."
"After much thought, the people related to Li Xian best fit this situation. Although he was despised in the court, he still had great power in the palace, and those eunuchs were even more arrogant. What couldn't they do?
"
Qiu Wuzuo suddenly realized: "No wonder you want to re-investigate this case. As expected of Saburo, you go straight to the source!"
Gongsun Zhao thought of the prisoner transfer document signed by Fan Chunli, and his voice became deeper and deeper: "This is just speculation after all. If it is wrong, what I am doing now will be in vain. If I can follow the clues to investigate, who would expect this?"
Qiu Wuzuo also sighed: "It is indeed a pity that Taoist Dongyun of Jinhua Mountain will be beheaded in the afternoon tomorrow."
Gongsun Zhao snorted coldly: "This further shows that they are guilty of being thieves. How can the Ministry of Punishment interrogate cases so quickly? They can't wait to kill people and silence them!"
Qiu Wuzuo asked: "Are you going to watch the execution?"
Gongsun Zhao shook his head without hesitation: "That Taoist priest was just a knife for the person behind it. What's the point of seeing him die with your own eyes? Why not read the case files several times, you can always find clues from them. I don't believe it.
Show the person behind the scenes!"
Qiu Wuzuo nodded and said: "I trust Saburo! Then I...leave?"
Gongsun Zhao lowered his head.
The footsteps gradually faded away, but after a while, they came back again. Qiu Zuo sighed and lay on the table: "Who asked you to be my only best friend? I feel uneasy even when I go back. I am with you.
Just look at the case file and look for clues!"
Gongsun Zhao's lips curled up slightly: "Thank you very much!"
The light of the candle shone outside the house and did not go out until late at night.
…
The same late night.
The moonlight fell into the prison of the Ministry of Punishment, shining on the refreshing Taoist priest who had not been tortured at all.
He was closing his eyes to rest, when suddenly his brows moved, he opened his eyes and watched two jailers dragging in a half-dead man.
Then a man in a cloak, wrapped tightly around his body, walked in and whispered: "Please, Priest Dongyun, be released from prison!"
Dong Yunzi didn't move, "What does this mean?"
The jailer said: "Please ask Taoist Master Dongyun to take off his Taoist robe and change with him!"
Dong Yunzi's face changed slightly: "Didn't you say you could let Pindao go out? Why did you use this method of death?"
The jailer said helplessly: "This is the prison of the Ministry of Punishment, not a county government office in another state. You will be beheaded tomorrow afternoon. How will you explain your release?"
The man in the cloak asked: "Does Taoist Priest Dongyun still want to return to Kaifeng Mansion?"
Dong Yunzi's face changed slightly. He was not afraid of the Kaifeng Mansion Office, but when he thought about the person who caught him, he didn't know whether he was practicing martial arts or practicing Taoism. Anyway, he was an extremely scary person. He finally slowly took off his Taoist robe.
The jailer cleaned up the scene, and he followed the cloaked man out. When he left the prison of the Criminal Department and regained his freedom, he couldn't help but snorted: "Stop pretending, I know you, a long-bearded official!"