Chapter 600 The Empresss Return to the Empress, Yuanjuns Return to Yuanjun [7k words in one, please vote for me!]
The innermost cell of the old state prison.
"Stab it——!"
As a rusty iron door roared with all its strength and was pushed open from the outside by two female historians, Ouyang Rong followed Rong Zhen and walked through the door.
His face looked slightly surprised.
This cell did not contain the eighteen kinds of torture instruments that Ouyang Rong imagined.
Only water.
Kettles, buckets, water jars, puddles, and water drops.
Tick tock...tick tock...tick tock...
Heavy water droplets slowly dripped from the dark and damp ceiling, hitting the calm water.
There is water all around.
The uppers of his boots were already damp as he stepped into the cell.
If Ouyang Rong hadn't just walked all the way from the state prison door on the cliff to this place, he would have thought that this place was some kind of underground river or a damp cave at the bottom of a lake.
The atmosphere of this dark and damp cell made Ouyang Rong feel familiar.
The two female historians who followed behind Rong Zhen walked to both sides and lit torches.
"This is water taken from Xingzi Lake.
"Lao Yangtou said that the lake water is clear, moist, cold, and calm, unlike the turbid and flowing water in rivers. It is too dynamic and is not suitable for the claustrophobic environment of the water prison, which will make the water torture ineffective.
“Especially the water drop torture, which focuses on the dual psychological and physical torture in a confinement environment.
"The lake is the best. The deeper the lake, the better. Within a hundred miles of Xunyang City, the only one that meets this condition is Xingzi Lake..."
The icy girl in palace clothes stood aside and explained softly, her expression unclear.
Ouyang Rong sighed: "No wonder the smell of this water is so familiar."
At this time, a one-eyed old man appeared at the cell door behind the two.
Different from the uniformly dressed green-robed jailers and white-robed female officers who were active in the prison, this old man who was blind in one eye was dressed in navy blue burlap, with sparse white hair and a face like a dead tree.
The old man walked into the door calmly, holding a sheepskin water bag in his hand.
Rong Zhen raised his feet without looking back and took the initiative to get out of the way.
Ouyang Rong stepped aside with her.
The one-eyed old man passed by the two of them quietly and walked straight to the dark depths of the water prison directly ahead.
Ouyang Rong saw what seemed to be a standing black shadow in the depths.
It seemed that the wall lamp was out of oil. The two female officials who were about to light the lamp turned around and went out to get the lamp oil.
The cell was temporarily dark.
Ouyang Rong and Rong Zhen stopped beside the iron gate and did not enter the depths of the cell for the time being.
The one-eyed old man seems to be very familiar with the terrain of this prison, and the dark environment does not hinder his familiarity with the road.
Ouyang Rong and Rong Zhen stood quietly side by side, watching the one-eyed old man go deeper.
This somewhat special one-eyed old man was familiar to Ouyang Rong. He was responsible for the interrogation of the strong man in the next cell just now.
At that time, Ouyang Rong came to observe the interrogation in the middle of the interrogation. The one-eyed old man was immersed in the torture of the prisoner, and the two had no communication or contact.
However, Ouyang Rong was deeply impressed by the one-eyed old man's exquisite and frightening 18 types of torture methods to extract confessions.
However, unlike his calm expression, Yuan Huaimin, who had come to watch today with the intention of taking advantage of the situation, vomited two or three times during the interrogation, and his stomach was missing two meals.
Later, Yuan Huaimin couldn't stand it any longer, so he made an excuse and ran away in a hurry. As a result, he had no chance to meet Ouyang Rong and Rong Zhen in the second water prison.
Anyway, before leaving, Yuan Huaimin looked at his two companions, Ouyang Rong and Rong Zhen, as if they were looking at monsters.
"His surname is Yang, but his given name has not been mentioned for a long time. People in Si Tianjian and Dali Temple in Luodu who know him call him Mr. Yang or Lao Yangtou."
Rong Zhen broke the silence and spoke calmly.
"Old Yangtou was once a cruel official. He was not one of the most famous in those days, but he was not bad at all. He had been around two of the most cruel officials, and some of the most notorious and well-known tortures were done to him.
Advise and advise.
"Even when dealing with Qi Refiners, he has great ideas."
"Cool official? Did he join the Prison Department before?"
Ouyang Rong suddenly asked.
Rong Zhen nodded lightly:
"Well, he is an old prison officer in the Prison Department. Later, the Luoyang Prison Department was disbanded. It was not considered disbanded. It was downsized. It was in name only. Most of the former torture officers in the Prison Department had a hard time and could retire intact.
, some went to Dali Temple, some were accepted by Si Tianjian, and some left the Luo Jing government...
"Old Yangtou was specially invited from Jinling after our Supervisory Yuan issued a wanted notice. He has been serving in Jinling State Prison for the past few years. He is considered a semi-retirement... This time he was invited here specifically to interrogate rebels.
Thief. In fact, there are quite a few such masters in the imperial court, and sometimes we have to make good use of them."
Ouyang Rong could hear a hint of respect in Rong Zhen's cold tone.
"Half retreat? I've offended too many people in the past, so I have to keep a low profile." As he spoke, he glanced at the rickety back of the one-eyed old man in front of him.
The prison officials and the cruel officials can be regarded as the old Huangli when the saints just changed dynasties and established the Great Zhou Dynasty.
At that time, this saint had just come to power. In order to take over and consolidate the imperial power, especially to purge the so-called "rebels" internally, he used imperial edicts and hired cruel officials.
The so-called imperial edict mainly refers to cases in which high-ranking officials of the imperial court or members of the clan are guilty and require the emperor to issue an imperial edict before they can be imprisoned.
It is a prison under the direct control of the emperor, and the criminals in this prison are convicted by the emperor himself.
The Department of Prisons is responsible for the prisons, and many notorious and cruel officials have emerged from it.
He specifically went to rectify the Li clan and high-ranking officials who rebelled against their ministers, and many people were bloodbathed and executed.
Pilgrims should use this sacred intention to make arbitrary decisions.
However, at that time, King Xunyang Lixian's family had already been demoted to Jiangzhou and became common people, so they managed to escape this huge political storm.
Otherwise, if he fell into the hands of the cruel officials of the Prison Department, he would probably be accused of treason and unjustly imprisoned like other members of the Li clan.
Later, the imperial power of the Great Zhou Dynasty gradually stabilized, and the current emperor gave up the rule of cruel officials.
First, he widely accepted advice and weakened the prison department step by step. Then he opened Shengting and dealt with most of the notorious cruel officials. Then he suddenly realized that he upheld justice and redressed some well-known injustices, and gained a lot of holy names in one fell swoop...
…
Didn’t you remember that the imperial palace newspaper a few days ago said that someone presented a memorial to praise the saint today as a benevolent and merciful enlightened master? The Great Zhou Dynasty praised Tianshu in praise of the saint and benevolence. Buddha statues in the four directions are also being built. Everything is prosperous. What else is there?
Don't be embarrassed by the bad reputation of "Lord of Adultery and Punishment".
Anyway, Ouyang Rong's evaluation of the cruel officials who once disturbed the court situation was very simple: a useful sharp knife.
However, a closer comparison shows that Ouyang Rong has caught up with the good times.
In the first year of his life, the original Jiu Shi disturbed the empress’s mood by making remarks at the Apricot Garden Banquet in Shendu;
Later, because of Princess Changle's incident, she directly rebuked the empress and expressed her incompetence in raising her daughter and pampering her;
There is also Ouyang Rong's "not obeying the imperial edict until death" not long ago.
This saint actually didn't kill him directly, but came with a nine-community Xiaoxiaole package.
Of course, today is different from the past. The saint sitting in the Luoyang court now is an eighty-year-old woman who eats fasts and chants Buddha's name, and is a loving mother and filial son.
It is no longer the time before when dissidents were everywhere, the imperial power was unstable, and one step could lead to an abyss.
It can be said that she just cares about feathers now, but at least she is still afraid of restraining herself.
In addition, the changes in today's saints do not mean that Ouyang Rong himself deliberately betrayed his integrity and took the opportunity to seek fame.
Because it was Ouyang Lianghan's incident of directly admonishing and contradicting the empress in court that made smart people in the government and the public keenly aware of the change in the direction of the wind, and the elderly empress began to love her name and be kind.
Before this, everyone was actually not sure.
Ouyang Lianghan was the first to personally take the head for a test. He had prepared the coffin in advance and was prepared to go upright and return sideways, so he went to the palace alone and went straight to remonstrate.
Therefore, Ouyang Lianghan's reputation as a gentleman is well-known all over the world, and he does not mix in any falsehood. Everyone is convinced, knowing that this "gentleman" can handle things, and he will really do something...
"By the way, back then Master Di was framed and demoted by cruel officials. He was demoted all the way from Kyoto to remote Longcheng County. Old Yangtou and the others supervised and escorted him along the way."
Rong Zhen suddenly spoke.
Ouyang Rong turned to look at her.
At this time, the lights in the water prison came on, and the female officer fetched the lamp oil.
Ouyang Rong first squinted his eyes to adjust to the sudden light in the dark room.
Then he saw clearly the situation inside the cell.
All he saw was a puddle in front of him. The black figure that Ouyang Rong saw not long ago was restrained by torture instruments and forced to stand in the puddle. The water level just reached his chest. Above his head, there were water drops falling continuously.
on his head.
Ouyang Rong's attention fell on the water drop.
He knew about this kind of water drop torture, which is a punishment of both psychological and physical torture.
In the already dark water prison environment, by continuously letting water droplets fall on the victim's head or sensitive parts of the body, repeated stimulation for a long time will lead to the victim's mental breakdown.
Tick tock...tick tock...
The light of the torch lit at the door had become very faint when it fell on the dark shadow inside the water prison.
Ouyang Rong took this opportunity to see clearly the appearance of the black shadow.
This is a fat middle-aged man with an honest appearance. He has a fair and chubby face. You can see the wealth he cultivated before entering prison.
At the moment, he has wet black hair all over his head, his body is swollen from being in the water for a long time, and his lips are pale and bloated like two frozen sausages in the cold winter.
"It's only half a day old. Isn't it enough? Old Yangtou's ability to play with water is indeed amazing, and he deserves his reputation."
Ouyang Rong heard Rong Zhen's voice next to him and couldn't help but look back at her.
"Li Yu, a native of Jiangzhou, has lived in Xunyang City for three generations. He is engaged in medicinal materials business and is quite wealthy. The Li family has the only son of his generation. The neighbors in Xingzifang all call him Yuanwai Li."
Rong Zhen has an excellent memory. She opened her red lips and spoke slowly:
"Liu Yuanwai has an official wife named Sun. The couple is known for their affectionate relationship. Since Yuan Li married Sun, she has never taken a concubine. Even though she lost her wife three years ago, her deceased wife left a daughter named Li Shu, who is now known as Li Shu.
The second daughter of Yunmeng, Jun Yu Nianyuan, was taken away and disappeared.
"The Li family of Xingzifang can be regarded as one of Yunmeng Jianze's informants in Jiangzhou. The current ascertained information is that it was Li's late wife Sun who took the lead. Sun is inextricably linked to Yunmeng Jianze.
However, her past experience has not been found so far.
"During the construction of the Xingzi Lake Giant Buddha, the Yue girls from Yunmeng infiltrated into the city. The Li family's house and herbal medicine shop in Xingzifang became the garrison hall for the Yue girls. The known eldest and second queens were among them.
"Among them, the second daughter Jun Yu Nianyuan sneaked into Li's house near Xingzi Lake as a private school teacher, taught Li's young daughter Li Shu to write, and waited for an opportunity to ambush the Buddha's head convoy that entered the Xingzifang construction site...
"These are known information that have been previously verified."
Ouyang Rong touched his chin, which had some stubble:
"As for Yue Virgin, since you've come to the city, you must have been to Li's House or Li's Pharmacy."
Rong Zhen's cold eyes fell on the wet Li Yu in the puddle in front:
"Yes, you are a virgin. Someone didn't tell the truth. When he confessed before, he deliberately omitted it."
"Uh... uh... uh uh..."
At this time, everyone saw Li Yu in the puddle moving his lips and speaking slurred words.
The one-eyed old man known as Lao Yangtou walked up to Li Yu, squatted down, pulled out the sheepskin water bag, and stuffed it into Li Yu's mouth.
Like a dead fish on a cracked river bed in a drought year that encounters nectar, the plum fish uses all its energy to suck up the clear water in the water bladder.
Just as Li Yu swallowed a mouthful of water, Old Yang suddenly pulled back the sheepskin water bag.
"Did Yue virgin come to Xunyang City?"
The one-eyed old cool official's voice was hoarse and dark, as if he had swallowed hot coals. You have to listen carefully to identify it.
This is definitely not a natural mute voice, it is acquired. Ouyang Rong can hear it.
"Water...water...please give me water."
Li Yu stared at the sheepskin water bag hanging above him with wide eyes, but he reached out and grabbed nothing.
Old Yang held the sheepskin water bag high, his palm motionless, and looked down at him.
There is water all around, but Li Yu is eager for water.
At this time, a cold voice came from the direction of the door:
"Executive member Li, I'm not here today to visit and chat like usual, but I want to trouble you with something. Please draw a picture of me as a virgin."
Ouyang Rong turned his head and glanced at Rong Zhen, who was speaking with her eyes lowered. He felt that she was in a strange mood today.
"Virgin...what virgin?"
Li Yu raised his head, his eyes full of confusion.
Rong Zhen said nothing and looked at him quietly.
Old Yang raised his head and took a sip of water.
Li Yu raised his head and stared at the sheepskin water bag in his hand, licking his lips frequently.
Ouyang Rong stood aside and watched coldly.
The water prison fell into an eerie silence, with the only sound being the ticking of water drops.
"Master Female Historian, Cao Min really doesn't know what you are talking about. Cao Min seems to have heard about that virgin. Cao Min's late wife once mentioned it, but Cao Min has never seen it.
"The purpose of allowing Yunmengze's guests to stay overnight was to repay the debt owed to his late wife. The common people really did not expect that such an extraordinary thing would happen later, which would affect the female historian and the important affairs of the court... The common people deserved death for their crime.
"But Cao Min has written down everything he saw and heard in these days. He has also drawn the general facial features of the first and second ladies in his memory. He has told everything he knows and knows nothing about the others.
"The grass-roots people really don't know who the owner of the Dielianhua is and what the virgin is. They have no memory. Maybe they have appeared in front of the grass-roots people, but the grass-roots people don't know them either..."
Li Yu stood in the water, with the water up to his chest. As he spoke, his body swayed and he was dying.
Rong Zhen stepped forward and said in a surprisingly calm tone:
"Zhu Zhongzhu, I don't need you to describe Yu Nianyuan's appearance. We also know that what you mentioned are useless clues.
"Furthermore, since the Yunmeng Yue girls have chosen your Li family as the stronghold of Xunyang City, it is impossible not to know your Li family well. It is unreasonable to just repay the kindness of a deceased wife.
"You must be someone who knows them well and is very knowledgeable about what they are doing. In this case, if Yue virgin comes to Xunyang City and says you have never seen her, do you think I will believe it?"
Without waiting for Li Yu to explain, Rong Zhen continued:
"I have always been afraid of manslaughter, and I have thought about it for your Li family. I have always thought that your Li family would not be stupid enough to help the Yunmeng nuns in their treasonous act at the cost of the lives of nearly a hundred members of the family.
.
"If you were really deeply involved in this, you should have made preparations to transfer your family members long ago, instead of like now. The eldest daughter Yunmeng, the second daughter-in-law, they abandoned your Li family and fled, taking only one of their children with them.
female……"
"But I just suddenly figured out something and overturned the previous theory of the Li family's innocence. Mr. Li, do you know what it is?"
Li Yu opened his mouth silently, but couldn't spit out a word. Rong Zhen said softly:
"Most people did not expect that the Donglin Giant Buddha's convoy of Buddha heads suddenly entered the city. Yunmeng and the Second Lady were also caught off guard. The absence of the Lady at the scene is proof of this.
"In this case, even if your Li family had any back-up arrangements, it was too late to make them, so in the end, after the Yunmengyue girls hurriedly retreated, they became abandoned pawns.
"Looking at it this way... it makes sense."
Li Yu looked at Rong Zhen blankly.
Rong Zhen turned sideways and motioned to Ouyang Rong's figure at the door not far away, his face expressionless:
"Ouyang Sima is also here today. When I was chatting a few days ago, I heard you mention that you respect Ouyang Sima very much and think that he is a person who can really do practical things for Xunyang City. You always said that Ouyang Sima should be the chief historian.
What changed in Xunyang City at that time? You also said that there were still good officials with unyielding conscience in the Zhou Dynasty who needed to be discovered by the wise monarch. You also said that if Ouyang Sima was still serving as the chief historian at that time, the Xingzi Lake Giant Buddha and the chaos it caused
The family tragedy will never happen again..."
Li Yu looked at the handsome young man sitting motionless behind him and stammered: "Ouyang Sima..."
Before he could finish speaking, Rong Zhen said calmly:
"But look now, what have you brought to Xunyang City? Li Yu, when I saw your family being ransacked that day, I felt compassion for you, but now, I have exhausted all my kindness and righteousness."
She glanced at Lao Yangtou and turned back to Ouyang Rong.
In Li Yu's painful eyes, Old Yang raised his sheepskin water bag and sprinkled the water on the ground in front of Li Yu.
Lao Yangtou went over and dragged a large piece of sloping wooden board, fixed Li Yu upside down on the wooden board, and then slowly lowered the sloping wooden board with a rope, letting the cold lake water soak into his face while he was standing upside down.
As if he was slowly feeling the cold and suffocating feeling brought by the lake water, Li Yu started to tremble all over, his mouth full of wailing words for mercy, a strong panic visible to the naked eye.
But Lao Yangtou's hands were very steady and without hesitation, he pulled a rope and slowly lowered the board. He watched the lake water soak into Li Yu's mouth and nose, and pulled up his palm a little from time to time, causing the latter to repeatedly wander on the edge of suffocation...
This is the horror of waterboarding, which causes prisoners to experience multiple near-drowning experiences, thereby causing extreme fear and pain.
Ouyang Rong sat at the edge of the door, on a wooden bench brought by the female officer.
He crossed his hands, supported his chin, and turned his back to the torch on the wall. His expression was dim and unclear, as if he was silently watching the scene in front of him.
Rong Zhen closed her eyes when she heard her crying father and mother begging for mercy. Her voice was very soft, but it was very loud in the lonely water prison where there was only the sound of gurgling and sniffing.
resounded in Li Yu’s ears:
"Uncle Li, I will give you one last chance to look more like a virgin.
"Do you know that you are really stupid for always pretending to be stupid? Do you know that those fellow rebels in Tiannan Jianghu have abandoned you long ago?
"Do you know that what happened today was betrayed to the Overwatch Council by your fellow rebels? I know that Yue Virgin is in the city, and Yunmeng Jianze is sending people to find her, and he has also sent people to inquire about you.
Things about the Li family...
"You still say that your Li family is not closely tied to Yunmeng Jianze? Then may I ask where the rare herbs collected from the depths of Yunmeng Ze that are put on the market every year in your Li family pharmacy come from? I really don't know, you are still here
What are you insisting on, do you think you can continue to win sympathy and deceive me?"
As she said that, she waved her hand, and a female officer went out in tacit agreement, and returned after a while, followed by two jailers. They drove a strong man who was unconscious as mud, and threw him on the wet floor in front of Li Yu.
Rong Zhen didn't open his eyes and asked calmly: "Do you want me to read to you all the confessions he took?"
The air seemed to be silent for a moment.
Li Yu, who had been begging for mercy, suddenly became as silent as a dead fish. Except for the violent cough caused by suffocation, he no longer made any begging for mercy.
Ouyang Rong even saw this slightly fat officer, who seemed as timid as a mouse and honest, take the initiative to raise his neck and let his mouth and nose be immersed in the water, as if he was looking for relief.
Lao Yang paused, lowered his head and frowned.
Rong Zhen, who had been sitting back, suddenly rushed forward, grabbed the board, and threw Li Yu, who was almost suffocating in the water, with the board and himself, to the ground next to him.
"Cough cough cough cough cough -!"
Li Yu coughed violently, put his hands on the ground, and kept vomiting lake water on the ground, almost vomiting out his stomach.
"Why?"
Ouyang Rong and Lao Yangtou both looked sideways when they heard this.
I saw Rong Zhen's chest rising and falling for a while. He squatted down in front of the dying Li Yu, stared into his eyes, and asked word by word:
"Why don't you just live a good life and be a good citizen of the Great Zhou Dynasty to protect these rebels in Yunmeng Jianze? You don't even want to tell any traces of Yue Virgin, just paint a look, what will they give you?
Why, are you working so hard? Have you ever thought about your family? Do you really want to make this decision to resist the imperial court on their behalf?
"Three generations of your Li family are Da Qian, people of Da Zhou. You were born in the prosperous age and bathed in the grace of the saints. Not to mention how great Zhou is, not to mention how good it is. At least you, the diligent and tax-paying people, can live and work in peace and contentment. At least the imperial court
We can also elect officials like Ouyang Lianghan who fulfill their duties and seek orders for the people to govern the country.
"You are the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Why do you work for Yunmeng Jianze? To protect them, you don't even want a whole family?"
Mr. Li's swollen face turned red. He seemed to raise his head and tried to look at the angry Rong Zhen, the silent Ouyang Rong and Lao Yangtou.
It became quiet in the water prison. I don’t know how long it had been quiet.
His hoarse voice sounded in the water prison:
"It is true that I am a citizen of the Zhou Dynasty, but I am also a son of Wuyue. Since I killed the evil dragons of Wuyue a thousand years ago, Yuanjun has been the co-owner of thousands of islands and lakes in Yunmeng Daze, nine hundred miles away. I have also been the leader of the land of Wuyue for thousands of years.
The patron saint and protector of the children of Wu and Yue."
After a pause, he said something with a stunned expression that silenced the entire audience.
"As my late wife once said...what belongs to the Empress belongs to the Empress, and what belongs to Yuan Jun belongs to Yuan Jun."
As soon as these words came out, Rong Zhen narrowed his eyes and became quiet.
Old Yang turned his head and looked at her, as if asking for instructions.
Rong Zhen suddenly chuckled:
"What a patron saint of the land of Wuyue, Li Yu. What do you mean to say that you are in Dazhou, but your heart is with Yunmeng? Well, you are very honest and finally told the truth.
"This rebel in Yunmeng Jianze is really deceptive. There must be a lot of people in Wuyue who are doing this. No wonder the Yunmeng Yue girl is so difficult to catch. It turns out there are a lot of fools like you."
Li Yukong looked ahead, his dazed face slowly showing a trace of perseverance and loneliness. Rong Zhen smiled, turned around and waved her hand.
After receiving the signal, Lao Yangtou wiped his hands and walked towards Li Yu.
"etc."
Ouyang Rong suddenly spoke.
Rong Zhen, Old Yang paused and looked at him, who had been silent all this time, as if strange.
Ouyang Rong stepped forward, took a sheepskin water bag, handed it to Li Yu's mouth, and at the same time turned back and said:
"Since Mr. Rong doesn't want to interrogate this person, let this person be interrogated by the lower officials. Anyway, Rong Nushi has given up."
Rong Zhen frowned, "What happened today, you're still not happy after seeing me embarrassed for so long? Let's go, Old Yangtou's waterboarding is useless, so don't waste your time."
Ouyang Rong waved his hand, smiling a little sheepishly:
"Rong Nu Shi, you also said that he is a Xunyang citizen under my rule. He is at fault. I failed to take care of him, which violated the mission of the herdsmen on behalf of the emperor. I also have to fulfill my duty of persuasion. I hope
Please give Nu Shi a chance."
Old Yang glanced at him for a while, and after a while, he looked at Rong Zhen's expression and saw her frowning and looking at Ouyang Rong in silence, indicating her acquiescence.
Ouyang Rong stepped forward and passed by Rong Zhen. Old Yangtou stepped aside silently. At a certain moment, the one-eyed old man with a mute voice turned his head and looked at Ouyang Rong's slender and handsome back, not knowing what he was thinking.
Ouyang Rong came to Li Yu and knelt down. The latter's dead eyes moved slightly... Li Yu looked up with a blank face and saw the handsome young man who helped him up with a bright smile on his face, showing his big white teeth.
"What an empress, Gui Empress, and Yuan Jun, Gui Yuan Jun. They are quite smooth. By the way, I would like to ask, does Li Yuanwai know about the postgraduate entrance examination? Forget it, it doesn't matter if he doesn't know. Anyway, you know that I am sympathetic to you.
."
His tone was very sincere.
Li Yu:......
Rong Zhen, Lao Yangtou:??
…
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(PS: This chapter is a small burst of 7k words, and I have returned one update. I currently owe 18 updates.
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