Zhang Xing and Li Ding, two smart men, couldn't think of any ideas. Bai Yousi couldn't see them at all, and Qin Bao could only continue to observe the development of the situation with some anxiety.
And then, things turned out to be more and more biased and intense.
No one can resist the wrath of the saint. In other words, everyone, like Zhang and Li, knows the price of the sage's anger, and everyone does not want to be the price. This leads to the process of searching for the source of the rumor.
, excessive punishment and plundering are inevitable, followed by natural attacks and false accusations.
Inevitably, it is inevitable that some of the father-in-laws in Beiya are so self-righteous that they really think that the rumors are aimed at people like them.
For a time, everyone in the entire Western Inspection Team was in danger. No one knew how many people were dismissed from their posts and investigated, and how many palace officials, guards, and soldiers were dismissed, even imprisoned and executed.
Under this situation, even Zhang Xing, who had the skin of Jing'antai to isolate Beiya, was summoned by some father-in-laws for "spreading rumors", but instead because of Niu Dugong's behavior at the scene,
Appearing and scolding accidentally escaped death.
It can only be said that after such a comparison, Niu Du Gong's pattern will be revealed.
The huge team stopped at the foot of Lishan Mountain. It was only a few dozen miles away from Daxing, but it could not advance at all. Nanya Xianggong, who had already entered Daxing in advance to prepare for the arrival, and Guanzhong's left behind, the general managers were completely confused and hurriedly sent out Sima Changying.
Xianggong and Xianggong Yu Changji came to inquire, but received the sage's unsparing statement that he would not leave until the matter was investigated and cleared, and would wait at Lishan Mountain.
Everyone was completely helpless, and the rumor investigation work became more and more severe and the scope became wider and wider.
Three or five days later, before June arrived, there were already fifty or seventy people dead, and their corpses were hung together for public display at the foot of Lishan Mountain... It was hot in the summer, and when the corpses were hung up, flies would immediately cover them.
The smell will show up within two days.
This is only within the Western Inspection Team, and according to some of the confessions, they purchased it somewhere, and heard the rumors while drinking with the local officials somewhere. It is conceivable that under the pressure of the Ministry of Punishments, the local authorities may also
The pursuit continues, and then a large number of prisons are launched.
At this time, Zhang Xing finally let go of his last worries and decided to divert the trouble to the west. After all, this was no longer a case, but a political turmoil.
"Sanlang is in such good spirits."
The weather was hot. When Wang Daiji, a member of the Ministry of War, entered a room on the edge of the back mountain palace of Lishan Mountain, he was already sweating profusely and his clothes were all wet. After seeing the simple food and wine on the table in the room, he was even more excited.
A little surprised. "How do you get food and wine? How do you find such a clean and nice place?"
"It's up to Xiao Zhou." Zhang Xing didn't even get up. He just sat there, raised the wine bottle, and poured the wine first, but it turned out to be blood red, as if it was rare wine. "His father had a wine for many years.
In the old department, I was the second Ying Yanglang general on the left wing in the middle base army, and this is where he is stationed..."
Wang Daiji naturally knew Zhou Xingfan's background, so he just nodded and looked back at the door again, only to find that Qin Bao who invited him had stayed outside without entering, and there was no trace of Xiao Zhou. He knew inside that the other party had something to say, so he
Just come forward and take a seat.
Immediately, Zhang Sanlang put down the wine bottle, and Wang Daiji went directly to drink the wine, but the wine did not enter his throat. It was actually ice-cold red wine, which immediately refreshed his heart and spleen. Then he shouted "Hello" on the spot regardless of his appearance.
Zhang Xing, who was opposite him, smiled and poured another cup for him. Wang Daiji was also unceremonious and immediately poured it for him to drink again.
This happened again and again, no matter how many cups he drank, his yellow beard was stained with red. Only then did Wang Yuanwai Lang stop for a moment, and then let out a long, sultry breath.
Zhang Xing finally raised his hand and said with a smile: "Brother Ninth, is this a good rain after a long drought? In the end, my timely rain in domestic affairs is better than your timely rain in military affairs."
"Sanlang, if you say that, I won't admit it." Wang Daiji held the cold wine glass and shook his head in reply. "Now you can have some leisure time, but I am so busy because the father-in-law in Beiya is punishing me with resentment.
In the army, the people you want to entrust are the heroes of the Fifth Army... Even if you want to be busy, you can't be busy outside in the army."
Zhang Xing also picked up the wine glass, but he seemed to be smiling.
"Sanlang, please tell me if you have anything to say." Seeing this, Wang Daiji felt something was wrong, so he hurriedly picked up a chopstick of vegetables and urged him.
"I have a few things I would like to ask Brother Wang Jiu." Zhang Xing finally calmed down slightly and put down his wine glass. "Let's do it one by one, there's no rush... Tell me, how should this rumor case be concluded?"
"How can we end it?" Wang Daiji also looked a little depressed when he heard this. "Can the exact source of this kind of rumor really be found? If we find out, no one dares to believe that he is the first one, right? It's just to investigate, to find out.
The purpose of killing is to make the saint breathe out such a bad breath... When the saint feels comfortable with the killing and the saint feels it is okay to investigate, then the case can be closed... Don't you know this truth?"
"Brother, of course I think so too." Zhang Xing nodded: "But I still want to ask, Brother Wang is out there, does he have any real clues about this matter?"
"Really not." Wang Daiji shook his head and said. "Now we can only confirm that the Guanzhong area probably spread widely after the Holy Emperor entered Tongguan, and he probably made his fortune between Huayin and Zhengxian... But it's hard to say, because there are several
Documents reported by local officials all said that there seems to be this rumor in the east of Tongguan, and the local officials there have stepped up their inquiries."
He sighed in his heart, but on his face Zhang Xing did not comment, but calmly changed the question: "Brother Ninth has worked so hard these days, how much benefit have you gained?"
Wang Daiji quickly drank a drink, then shook his yellow beard and laughed dryly: "What did Sanlang say? How about this kind of thing...how to measure the benefits?"
"That's right." Zhang Xing held his chin and said thoughtfully. "It's just that he is from a humble background and has no cultivation, so he has to try his best to make friends with heroes to pave the way for future promotions... How can we measure the benefits?"
Wang Daiji instinctively wanted to deny it, but how could he not know that the other party had always acted in the same way as him and had no intention of ridiculing him, and this time he specially asked him to drink in a remote house in the back mountain and meet in private, so he must have something of real interest to say.
So, after thinking about it for a while, the military officer, Wailang, just held his chopsticks and said, "Do you have anything else to ask, Sanlang?"
"Yes." Zhang Xingfu poured another glass for the other party and continued to ask, "I would like to ask Brother Wang, what kind of person do you think the saint is today?"
Wang Daiji was finally startled, then immediately put down his chopsticks and said solemnly: "A saint is naturally a saint. Under the three splendors and four emperors, he is the supreme on earth! Otherwise, how can we call him a saint?"
"Well said!" Zhang Xing suddenly laughed, and then responded. "What I want is Brother Ninth's words."
Wang Daiji thought that the other party was looking for him to vent his dissatisfaction and complain about the saint. At this time, he was surprised when he heard this, but when he thought that the other party was Zhang Sanlang, who was famous in the Eastern Capital after all, he could reject Cao Huangshu at the top, rely on the Yitian Sword at the middle, and he had a lot of friends at the bottom.
, a hero with broad knowledge, whether he is in Jinyi Patrol or Fulong Guard, he can manage well, and there is Huaiyou League outside to wave his hand... He even dares to fight... Such a person has always felt that his future life is to be feared, how can he be like that today?
So stupid that he easily exposed his sincerity in front of himself that could be used as an excuse?
As soon as he thought about this, the well-known military officer Wailang became cautious: "Sanlang, what exactly are you asking?"
"Don't worry, let me ask you one by one." Zhang Xing put away his smile and continued to ask questions with an expressionless face. "Since Brother Wang Jiu respects the saint so much, let me ask an unnecessary question... Are you stuck as a member of the Ministry of War and Law?
It has been several years since Wailang has been in the position of the fifth rank. He is only one step away from the fifth rank of entering the palace, but he has never crossed over. Have you ever been tired of it? And seeing Zhang Han and Zhang Xianggong rise three times in five days, he has reached the extreme of human ministers.
, have you ever been envious?"
Of course I'm tired of it!
Of course I am envious!
Wang Daiji was speechless in his heart, but he was cautious after all, so he looked at the other person's face, and although his mind was changing all over, he didn't miss a word in his words: "Zhang Sanlang, don't play riddles. What do you mean?"
"Suppose there is an opportunity now for Brother Wang Jiu to obey the saint's wishes and vent his anger on the saint's behalf. Are you willing to follow the example of Mr. Zhang Han and risk offending his colleagues?" Zhang Xing also didn't agree.
He kept trying to cover it up again. "In exchange for this, his career will jump up?"
Wang Daiji said nothing.
"Or in other words, after the battle between Nanya and the Saint, the situation has become very clear. No matter how many heroes you make, no matter how famous you are, it is useless to make the Saint happy. That makes you give up on making friends with heroes in the past.
Are you willing to take the lower-level route and wholeheartedly cater to the saint at the top in exchange for an official career?" Zhang Xing waited for a moment and saw that the other party did not speak, so he simply said it more openly. "If you say yes, we will continue to talk, you
If you say you don't want to, just think that I, Zhang San, have lost my mind today and we are just here to have a drink."
The face of Wailang, a member of the military department opposite, twitched, and he tried his best to look straight and sighed: "Zhang Sanlang thinks too much... It is the duty of a minister to serve the saints, and to make friends and know heroes, it is to be warm-hearted... This
There is no conflict between top and bottom."
Zhang Xing also pretended to be pretentious: "I knew that Brother Wang Jiu was happy, but unfortunately, I just asked... There is no sure good thing for Brother Wang to share the saint's worries, and then he entered the palace like a fish into the sea."
"It would be weird to be completely sure that an official from a poor family could get into the house in one fell swoop. Otherwise, why would I have wasted so many years? Even Li Ding, who came from such a background, wouldn't have been stuck here for many years.
"?" Wang Daiji also laughed on the spot. "Sanlang, if you have any ideas, you might as well say it openly... Look at this place, there is no one else but you and me. If it comes out of your mouth or enters my ears, it is a rebellious word."
, I can’t even file a lawsuit.”
Well, wasn't he the one who just expressed his loyalty to the saint?
"Okay." Zhang Xing shook his head inwardly, with a sincere expression on his face. "Actually, the reason is very simple. It just depends on whether Brother Wang Jiu has the courage...Does Brother Wang Jiu still remember that before Zhang Wenda's death, the Ministry of Punishment Prison was robbed?
?”
"Of course I remember." Wang Daiji was already a little anxious, but he still managed to stay calm.
"How similar was that time to this time?" Zhang Xing sighed. "The saint was also furious and pursued the whole city... However, when it comes to the specifics of us under Jing'an Tower, no one knows it, and we only say that we are responsible for each other.
In those one or two markets, the chance of finding fugitives is too small, and it will be in vain because of starvation and loss of life. But the higher-ups want you to search the whole city, and they want you to blockade the cities, work hard, and work hard to get out.
...Does Brother Wang Jiu know how I responded at that time?"
"How did you deal with it?" Wang Daiji asked sincerely.
"I told my Miss Bai, who was still on patrol at the time, that the higher-ups want to see your hard work and ask you to do your job ruthlessly. In this case, instead of blocking the market for a long time and starving innocent people to death, it is better to be ruthless.
Select the strong men in the workshop and kill a lot of them!" Zhang Xing laughed in response. "Kill until there is a river of blood and a lot of corpses. The top will be satisfied, the bottom will avoid trouble, and the middle can make a fortune..."
"You mean..." Wang Daiji's heart moved slightly, as if he had caught something, but he couldn't figure it out for a while. "You want to..."
"I mean..." Zhang Xing picked up the already hot wine in front of him and brought it to his mouth, but it actually became cold. After drinking it down, he sneered slightly. "We all know where this rumor came from.
I knew that I was destined not to find the real criminal, and I just wanted to kill and bleed to calm the saint down... Instead of continuing to torture like this, letting the palace people, soldiers, and even innocent people along the way shed this blood, why not let the noble bleed?
?”
"Noble..." Wang Daiji instinctively thought it was ridiculous. "Is your noble so prone to bleeding?"
"Of course the blood of noble people should not be shed." Zhang Xing put down his wine glass and said something expressionless. "But when the blood of noble people is shed, it will be easier for the saint to calm down, because in the saint's place, a pound of noble blood will probably
It is better than the lives of ten civilians or soldiers on patrol; secondly, have you ever thought about who the saint would rather see bleed?"
Wang Daiji was silent for a moment, then asked slowly: "Do you think the saint's true heart would rather see the noble bleed?"
"It must be so." Zhang Sanlang pressed the table firmly.
"Why?" Wang Jiulang pinched his yellow beard and asked, he was really confused.
"Because in the eyes of saints, ordinary soldiers and ordinary people are actually worse than grass and grass... Then I dare to ask, since the saint wants to see people bleed, why would he care about grass and grass?" Zhang Xing asked calmly. "The grass and grass are cut off.
To a saint, the head is just the juice of grass, isn't it? Sometimes, taking it to the extreme to despise it can actually avoid some specific malice."
Wang Daiji was unable to refute.
After thinking for a moment, he still hesitated: "Having said that, your blood is not easy to shed. If it doesn't work, you will lose your life."
"I have to ask the saint, have you long wanted to see some people bleed?" Zhang Xing's tone was erratic. "Brother Ninth?"
"Hey." Wang Daiji, who started to think wildly, answered blankly.
"I don't understand military affairs and personnel affairs, but during this trip to the west, does the saint intend to replace the governors in Guanzhong and Longxi on a large scale?" Zhang Xing asked seriously. "There are even rumors that the saint is planning to directly remove the governors in Guanzhong?"
The general manager of the state is a legacy of history. In layman's terms, it means setting up a general manager in a strategic location, which actually controls multiple states and counties, and grabs military and financial resources to facilitate strategic response. After the Wei Dynasty eliminated more than 80% of the surrounding enemies,
Except for a few general-administrative states along the East China Sea, the remaining thirty-plus general-administrative states are actually equivalent to the upper level of prefectures and counties, and are directly subordinate to the first-level military and political institutions of the central government.
It is a typical issue left over from history.
"Yes." Wang Daiji came to his senses and immediately answered. "Everyone knows what the saint means... And I won't hide it from you. We have had many private discussions with the Ministry of War, and they all feel that the saint's western tour will not only be withdrawn.
The various governor-general states in Guanzhong even intend to unite the surrounding governor-general states such as Hedong, Jingxiang, and Bashu."
"Do you think it can be done?" Zhang Xing asked seriously.
"It should be possible." Wang Daiji responded calmly. "The imperial court has experienced many twists and turns in the past few years, but after all, it is a newly unified situation..."
Zhang Xing nodded, although it has nothing to do with today's topic, but this is the problem... Before a dynasty, empire, or country is destroyed, there must be something special that blinds the eyes of the ruling class and makes them ignore some problems.
Putting it in the Wei Dynasty, according to Zhang Xing, the biggest and core problem now is the Eastern Qi. The people in the hometown of Nanchen have been subjected to harsh tax exploitation, so that the foundation of the entire empire, that is, the people are struggling on the line of life and death.
The whole country looks extremely strong from the top down, but the foundation at the bottom has been tightening and cannot stop shaking.
However, perhaps because in the past few hundred years, it was mainly the clans, powerful men and military leaders who objectively guided the historical process, no one in the ruling class was willing to face up to this most serious issue.
In their eyes, there are nobles, powerful people, foreign invaders, and gods, but there are no ordinary people at the bottom who are as obedient as water.
What's wrong with the sloshing water? Could it have caused the boat to sink?
At the same time, the superficial trend of unification also makes most people feel that this empire and this dynasty are different from the previous separatist regimes.
Hundreds of years of division and war have made people think that no one is willing to rebel unless they are forced to do so.
Therefore, a sage can work hard, always thinking that nothing will happen, and always feeling that he will not push people too far.
The people below feel a little pain, but they still can't help but think that the situation in Wei Dynasty, where the rising sun is red, will definitely not collapse easily, so it is better to endure it.
Back to the present, even Zhang Xing does not think that the saint's withdrawal from the governor's state this time, no matter how big the twists and turns, there will be no real resistance. But on the other hand, this kind of thing is similar to the withdrawal of the vassal state, and it is still
There will definitely be twists and turns in withdrawing the vassal state in a place like Guanzhong.
"Will there be any twists and turns?" Zhang Xing was thinking wildly in his mind, and without delay, Zhang Xing asked a question to which he already had an answer.
"It will definitely happen." Wang Daiji seemed to have realized something, and his tone became gloomy. "They have been stewards for several lifetimes, and they are all relatives of the emperor. When they were born, they were the legitimate sons of the steward of Shangzhu Kingdom. He himself also
After you have become Shangzhuguo and general manager step by step, you naturally take everything for granted... Sometimes, you really feel that the gap between nobles and nobles is like the gap between a dragon and a donkey... Zhang Sanlang, I
I understand what you mean, let’s work together, you and I, and we can do this!”
Zhang Xing smiled and said nothing.
"What do you mean?" Wang Daiji didn't answer.
"I am in charge, and Brother Wang Jiu is outside. But in the end, Brother Wang Jiu came to submit the letter himself, and I didn't show up." Zhang Xing answered frankly.
"Then I have to ask." Wang Daiji was silent for a moment, then put his hands together to look at the other party. "In that case, why do you still come up with such an idea? Or conversely, since you have come up with an idea, why don't you do it yourself instead?
Come to me?"
"I told Brother Ninth not to laugh at me." Zhang Xing hesitated for a moment and said it sincerely.
"nature."
"I was born in the North, and I am afraid that I am not even from a humble family, so I have always been extreme in my heart. I always feel that when hail falls from the sky, it is better to let the noble people at the top suffer instead of letting the people at the bottom suffer."
Zhang Xing has something to say.
"As for why I don't do it myself, it can be said in one word, pretentious... Although I have come up with ideas and have evil thoughts, I still feel that this is blaming innocent people... Those noble people, one by one, are elsewhere.
They all deserved to die, but I'm afraid there is no evidence that they sent people to spread this rumor. Therefore, if I did it myself, Bai Changjian and your close friends with higher backgrounds like Li Ding from the Ministry of War would all be killed.
Look at me differently. I just saw more and more corpses on the road going down Lishan Mountain, and I couldn't help it."
Wang Daiji nodded, and then couldn't help laughing, because he also understood the former reason very well, and the latter reason was also consistent with his previous understanding of Zhang Sanlang. He was smart, courageous, and dared to fight, but he was still a bit young.
Childishness.
How should I put it? It’s understandable.
And at this point, the other party is actually a little more mature than before. At least he has taken a substantial step. In a few years, after a few more years of wasting or polishing in the officialdom, he will become as useless as himself.
Any psychological burden is gone.
"Well, of course I trust Sanlang, but I don't tell anyone secretly." Wang Daiji nodded at the table and asked calmly. "Sanlang, you have been waiting for so long and watching indifferently for so long, there should be a suitable candidate, right?
"
"It is not necessary to select an exact candidate." Zhang Xing replied with a sigh. "But I think that as long as Cao Cheng, the general manager of Yongzhou, led by Duke Mu, is included in your report document, the saint will be happy to believe it."
"That's right." Wang Daiji thought for a while and felt that he had nothing to say. "The saint has wanted to get rid of this last cousin who led the army for a long time... We just helped whip the carriages and horses... and saved many innocent people.
Not to mention, I guess as Emperor Cao Cheng is a member of the noble family, there is no need to even bleed... Thinking about it this way, it is a great merit, but it only means suffering for the noble people."
At the end of the sentence, Wang Jiulang couldn't help but proudly curled up his beard.
Zhang Xing, on the other hand, was silent at this moment and did not speak any more. He knew that although he had never been a good person, after today, he would become even less of a good person.