Not just Zhang Xing, everyone with a little bit of care knows that the Eastern Capital is bound to be in chaos. In fact, there will be chaos like weapons, turmoil, and blood flowing like rain. But someone has to break through the window paper and turn the rain clouds into a rain of blood.
.
In this regard, most people think that the first drop of blood should come from the Ministry of Punishment. It will be Zhang Wenda and Zhang Shangshu who lead the aggressive Ministry of Punishment to attack first and put the meat knife that they have treasured for more than ten years on someone's back.
Open your eyes.
But now it seems that the Punishment Department has overestimated its capabilities. The first drop of blood came from the Punishment Department, but it was actually his own family who shed the blood first - the prisoner had just been taken away for a whole day, and he had just settled down.
I'm afraid that before the review was completed, a prison robbery was launched in a hurry, obviously because of the summer rain.
Rainwater and a copper bowl to clean the streets became the biggest helpers in the prison robbery.
Dozens of robbers who were obviously well-educated, well-organized, and equipped calmly dispersed and gathered near the Punishment Department under the cover of the rain. Then they suddenly reunited and launched a violent prison robbery. The Punishment Department was caught off guard and was killed directly.
At this time, an extremely critical situation is that at this time, in Dongdu City, all the organized violent organizations during the day are dispersing, while all the organized violent organizations that only appeared at night have not yet assembled.
In fact, even the members of the Ministry of Punishment were evacuating and changing shifts, and even Zhang Shangshu's own carriage left shortly after being escorted by a group of Jinwu guards who had just assembled.
Because of this, the Ministry of Punishment was unable to obtain large-scale armed support from the establishment in a short period of time.
But the most terrible thing was yet to come. The prison robbery was successful. The robbers threw simple summer clothes to the prisoners, then directly dropped their weapons and disappeared into the streets full of ordinary people with the target prisoners.
The common people have to earn a living. They have to sell stalls even when it rains, transport firewood, and buy rice. Otherwise, what will they cook and cook tomorrow?
The copper bowl for cleaning the street sounded, but it was not over yet. It was the time when everyone on the street was returning home with various belongings. Moreover, it was summer and raining again, and there was no large-scale organized violent troops surrounding them.
How to check if you live there?
Cao Zhongcheng's identity was there, and of course he didn't move, but it was said that the Niu Du Gong from Beiya flew over directly, and the Baidi General View of Huixunfang across the river also went to two masters of the Condensation Stage to help, but they
We only captured five fugitives and it was useless.
When it gets dark, the prison robbery will be successful.
The Ministry of Punishment suffered such a catastrophe. Although many people were secretly happy in their hearts, they could not withstand Ziweigong's anger.
To put it bluntly, let alone the fact that the Ministry of Punishment does things according to the will of the saints, it is absolutely intolerable to say that the main prison of the Ministry of Punishment of a country, under the emperor's feet, was breached like this.
Nan Ya's ministers had nothing to say, and immediately increased the pressure. Bai Yousi's brother, who was on duty and didn't know where he was ranked, was the first responsible person and the most unlucky person. He was beaten to the end and put into action on the spot.
The Ministry of Punishment Prison.
As it happened, the prison was so empty that it was almost like a private prison.
But it was too late to take care of this. Immediately, Jing'an Taichung Town Fusi, Dongzhen Fusi, Ministry of Justice, Jinwu Guards, City Defense Army, Luoyang Henan County Yamen, and violent agencies affiliated to various departments of the empire began to mobilize in large numbers, braving the summer
Rainwater swept the streets, inspected every square, and even went out of the city to search the mountains, in order to arrest all the fugitives within the half-month period given by the saint.
It is about seeing people alive and seeing corpses when dead.
For a time, the entire eastern capital city was lined up with swords and soldiers, just like in wartime.
It was impossible for Zhang Xing to escape this disaster. On the afternoon of the second day after the incident, he followed Bai Yousi's second patrol team to Nancheng in the rain to monitor a section of the city wall.
On the afternoon of the third day, news of the emperor's wrath officially came, and the patrol team received a death order directly from the city wall to be fully responsible for searching Nancheng Jiaqing and Jiaqing Second Square.
This was also Zhang Xing's first contact with Nanchengfang, where urban poor people live.
"Obviously man-made."
In the pouring rain, under the eyes of a group of local residents who couldn't tell whether it was fear, vigilance, anticipation, or numbness, Zhang Xing, who was soaked all over, easily jumped down from the wall of Jiajing Village. Immediately afterwards, Qin Bao also
It was easily turned over from outside the wall. "It is opened at the entrance of the main alley. There are piles of debris below and traces of ropes... It should be used for smuggling in and out at night."
"It must be the work of a local gang." Hu Yan, who appeared in the team again with a black ribbon, twitched his beard and frowned. "Let's go around in a circle. How many holes are there in total?"
"Twenty-three damaged, seven or eight missing." Zhang Xing blurted out, but regardless of propriety, he directly took off his brocade uniform, wringed his shirtless clothes, and then put them back on. "This does not include the ones hidden in the residents' homes.
Secret door..."
"Brother Hu." Qin Bao also wiped the water on his forehead. "It's impossible to block it like this."
"Let's go back to the intersection first and wait for Qian Tang and the others." Hu Yan shook his head and turned directly to the central store in the square.
Zhang Xing, Qin Bao, and several other patrolling knights naturally had nothing to say and could only follow them immediately.
Arriving at the intersection, unexpectedly, Qian Tang and another small group led by Li Qingchen were waiting here early.
"How's it going over there? Why did you come back so early?" Hu Yan asked from afar in the rain.
"Reporting to Brother Hu, except for the cross street regulations in the square, all the other narrow streets and alleys have been renovated..." Qian Tang, who was standing under the pavilion in the square, walked directly into the rain to respond. "I really can't figure out the road.
, I’m afraid it would be a bit difficult to follow the example of those near Luoshui and conduct door-to-door inspections.”
"You don't have to think about it. It must be the same in Jiaqingfang next door. Most patrols can fly. Now that the restrictions in the city have been relaxed, you can see the roads clearly." Hu Yan, who looked a little ugly, did not speak, but Li Qingchen complained in the pavilion.
Zhang Xing followed Hu Yan into the pavilion. Before he could say anything, he noticed the buzzing sound. He could only slap a mosquito to death with his backhand, and then sat down by the well mouth, ready to listen with his arms in his arms.
However, as soon as he turned around and sat down, he saw two people suddenly walking into the alley next to him on the road behind him, and he couldn't help but be shocked:
"Is that a follower?"
"Yes, I followed him after I picked him off the square wall." Hu Yan blurted out without looking back. "It must be a local gang."
As soon as these words came out, Zhang Xing, Qian Tang and others were fine. Li Qingchen and Qin Bao almost instantly stood up with their swords in hand and prepared to go there.
"return!"
A thunderous scolding immediately erupted from the pavilion. It was obvious that Hu Yan, the deputy inspector who had just returned to the team, was really angry at this time.
Qin Bao and Li Qingchen returned chattering, but they were almost confused.
"I'm afraid the gangs in Nancheng are different from those in Luoshui." Zhang Xing roughly guessed. "Be careful and don't follow them into the alley."
"That's right." Hu Yan also sighed. "I just wanted to say this on the way. The problem here in Nancheng is not the broken walls and streets, but the people... The gangs in Nancheng are no more powerful than those in Beicheng.
There are so many...it would be too difficult to search them."
"Is it because there are many experts?" Li Qingchen couldn't help but interjected, causing Zhang Xing, who had just killed a mosquito, to kill another mosquito on the spot.
"It's because people are poor and have a low life." Hu Yan held the knife and turned around to look around the rain. "Do you believe that the young people here can kill officials for fifty coppers at the age of fifteen? You guys are stuck in the right cultivation level.
Don’t be alone on the pulse plate... If you are really alone, you won’t even know how you died.”
Everyone was silent for a moment.
Next, the atmosphere in the pavilion seemed a bit solemn, no one spoke, only the rain kept falling... After all, the environment and personnel here were very different from the areas on both sides of Luoshui where they lived... There was a feeling of being at a loss.
Moreover, it was still raining, I was so tired, and I was faced with an order that was very difficult to complete.
That is when everyone was silent, suddenly, a whistle came from the tall and towering Dongdu City Wall to the south.
"Let's go!" Hu Yan patted the black ribbon on his waist and shook his head repeatedly. "We are not the ones who make the decision. We just tell the truth and listen to the inspection instructions."
A group of more than ten knights in brocade uniforms stood up and followed Hu Yan into the rain, heading north.
Zhang Xing, on the other hand, followed the others and walked seven or eight steps along the cross street in the square. Suddenly he pulled Qin Bao to stop: "Brother Hu! I'm going to ask about the stocks of groceries in these stores, and let Qin Bao follow me to guard him.
, will be there soon."
Hu Yan stopped and looked back, obviously stunned, as if he wanted to say something, but still nodded slightly: "Just know the pros and cons in your heart, don't be left alone."
After saying that, he led the other patrolmen who were a little confused and continued walking north. Qian Tang hesitated for a while, but after glancing to the north, he went straight north.
At this time, Zhang Xing had already dragged Qin Bao into a grain store beside the road.
In the district-market system, each district has a wall, with cross streets and chessboard-like alleys inside. Houses can communicate with each other through the gates only at specific times during the day. In this case, internal business must
To be complete, generally speaking, you must have rice, soy sauce, vinegar, tea salt, charcoal, cloth and other goods for sale, and they are also generally concentrated near the intersection in the square.
Among them, rice stores are the most common type, and they cannot stop for a moment. Even if it is raining, there are still people queuing up.
The store owner and customers were all startled when they saw two warriors in brocade clothes suddenly barging in. If they hadn't blocked the doorstep, the people in the store might have fled.
"Shopkeeper, don't panic, I'm just here to ask one thing, how much food does your store have in stock at this time?" Zhang Xing got straight to the point.
"One, one hundred and eighty, eighty shi." The shopkeeper, who was dressed in cloth, was still nervous. "One hundred and eighty shi for all kinds of rice, flour and grains... Why are the two officials asking this?"
"Why is there so little?" Qin Bao is a good showman after all. Although he didn't know why Zhang Xing asked these questions, he immediately noticed something strange. "How many grain stores do you have in your shop?"
"About seven or eight?" The store owner was still confused.
"It's still too little..." Qin Bao realized the problem.
"Sister-in-law, how much rice can you carry in this bag?" Zhang Xing suddenly looked at the customer buying rice.
"Report to the official, I can, can hold four buckets." The woman carrying a child on her back, wearing common clothes and wooden hairpin, approached carefully.
"Then how many buckets do you want to buy this time?" Zhang Xing continued to ask with an expressionless face.
But Qin Bao had already woken up and immediately stared with wide eyes.
"One, one bucket..." The woman became more and more frightened. "I only brought fifteen dollars, only fifteen dollars."
Qin Bao immediately touched his arms.
"Walk!"
Zhang Xing scolded him, just like Hu Yan suddenly got angry and scolded Li Qingchen before, but he was the first to walk into the rain.
Qin Bao didn't have time to think too much, and naturally didn't have time to give the money, so he lowered his head and followed.
As soon as the two of them came out, two shirtless men standing outside snorted coldly and went directly into the store for questioning. Zhang Xing still ignored them and just lowered his head and walked quickly with Qin Bao, quickly catching up with Hu Yan and his party, and then
Exit Jiaqing Square, go up the city wall, and turn to the tower on the south city wall located in the middle of Jiaqing and Jiajing Second Square.
This is the temporary stronghold for the second patrol team directly under the Fusi of Jing'an Taichung Town, led by Bai Yousi, to pursue the imperial prisoners.
The group of people turned into the tower. Bai Yousi and another group of people were already waiting here, waiting next to the fire in the middle. When the two groups met, they immediately compared the situation of the two squares.
Zhang Xing did not interrupt, nor did he intend to warm himself by the fire. Instead, holding his knife, he walked to the north-facing window of the tower, lay down directly on the window, and stared at the Dongdu City shrouded in the summer rain in a daze.
Qin Bao, on the other hand, squeezed to the fire.
After a while, both sides finished comparing the information, and both felt embarrassed, and the situation became awkward for a while.
At this time, Qin Bao, who looked back at Zhang Xing several times but received no response, finally blushed and spoke: "Inspector, deputy inspector, I also have something to say... I just went to inspect with Brother Zhang."
I went to the rice shop in Jiaqingfang and found that it was not as good as other shops in the north. The stores in the shop had very little stock..."
"It's just a few stores, remember a few faces, pay a little attention to them, and allow them to purchase goods on a daily basis." Li Qingchen blurted out. "Don't delay the inspection."
"It's not just a store." Qin Bao took a breath and continued to look at Bai Yousi and Hu Yanlai seriously. "The honest residents here don't have any inventory at home, so they have to buy it themselves in a few days... Zhang San and I
I bumped into a sister-in-law who was carrying a child on her back and only bought a bushel of rice."
"no……"
Hu Yan had already ducked and lowered his head, Bai Yousi's expression turned gloomy, Qian Tang and several experienced patrolmen even raised their heads and sighed slightly, Li Qingchen still didn't understand. "We let the store go to purchase goods, and let these residents in
Isn’t it enough to just buy things in the shop?”
"Li Twelve, do you understand? The reason why stores have low inventory is because they have small capital. The store has little money and can only buy groceries at one time. The reason why residents have no inventory at home is because they don't have any money at home.
If you go out to Tianjie or Luoshui to work for one day, you can only have rice for the second or third day..." Qin Bao finally got a little angry. "Only let the stores purchase goods, and don't let these poor people work to make money.
Where did they come from to buy rice, grains and groceries? It’s not a proverb, it’s a truth. If they were all sealed up and locked up in large numbers, they would run out of food every three to five days.
, people can starve to death in seven or eight days!”
Li Qingchen had never been scolded by Qin Bao in public before, but what he said was simple and easy to understand, and he couldn't refute it for a while, so he just started talking about it.
Bai Yousi glanced at Zhang Xing, who was watching the rain with his back to everyone, but the latter remained silent and motionless. In desperation, the female inspector also looked a little embarrassed:
"The poverty-stricken village in Nancheng is not just Jiaqing, but Jiaqing No. 2, right? What will other villages do?"
"What can be done?" Qian Tang felt extremely distressed when he saw his home inspection in such a mess, and immediately lowered his voice to respond. "Inspection... I know what you are thinking, but in fact, this Dongdu City is known as
The most kind place in the world, but every year when it snows, people in the south of the city freeze to death, and even when it rains like this, people often die... At that time, did anyone want to protect one or two? We felt dirty this time because it was all over our heads.
Hands...and other shops, I'm afraid they won't care about anything."
"You have to bite the bullet and do it!" After a while, Hu Yan struggled to speak out and pushed. "This is not a joke... His Majesty was so angry that even Bai Shilang was sent directly to prison, and people like us were suppressed layer by layer.
If someone is caught in an obviously bad situation, I'm afraid it would be normal for him to be executed... Jiaqing and Jiajing, the secret passages, and the waterways are ignored for the time being. Instead of going deep, seal the four gates and square walls first, and cross the cross street.
Then, sweep the streets and alleys in order, and always give instructions to the superiors."
Everyone went to see Bai Yousi. Bai Yousi was speechless for a long time, but finally lowered his head:
"There is something I haven't told you. This afternoon, I don't know whether it was the decree issued directly by Ziwei Palace or the decree requested by the Nanya Dukes. Anyway, an order was issued. Anyone who is a fugitive involved in Yang Shen's case will be punished.
The theory of death row is that he will be killed without mercy, his immediate family members will be implicated, he will be killed on the spot, and his family property will be confiscated... In other words, mass killings have begun in the north."
"They are all on duty, and we are helpless." When Hu Yan heard this, he became more and more frustrated, and his tone became more urgent. "The best way to deal with inspections is to make them faster, harder, and more rigorous...
, give the order! The military order given by the superiors is to seal the workshop for inspection!"
Bai Yousi took a long breath and was about to call Zhang Xing.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Xing actually took the initiative to look back at him at this time: "So, even the inspection team and Brother Hu have no good solution?"
"good."
Hu Yan raised his eyes and looked at the other party. He was very impressed by this young man who carried a body thousands of miles away, so he can be regarded as respectful. "Zhang Sanlang, do you have it?"
"I have two strategies!" Zhang Xing held his knife in hand and said seriously. "I don't know if it is feasible or not? Please ask the two inspectors to consult with you brothers for details."
"We are all grasshoppers on the same rope." Qian Tang urged before Bai Yousi. "Quickly speaking, as long as you can relieve everyone's difficulties, we are only grateful to you."
"The best policy is to seal the village according to the rules first, and then everyone will spend five days to repair the walls of the village and build houses for the people in the village. At the same time, buy several hundred pounds of grain and distribute it to the residents, in order to gather people's hearts. Once the hearts of the people are gathered,
, whenever there is something wrong in the company, someone will inevitably show mercy. This is my experience..."
"That's almost it." Li Qingchen was furious. "To win over people's hearts, Sister Si's family background has won people's hearts like this. I'm afraid she won't have to wait for the fugitives in the house to be found, and she will be rebelled by someone here first."
Bai Yousi and Hu Yan were also a little disappointed.
But Zhang Xing smiled calmly: "Then we have to make the last move!"
"What's the next step?" Bai Yousi maintained his last patience and expectation for the subordinate in front of him.
"The next step is divided into five steps."
Zhang Xing held the knife in one hand and raised his fingers slightly to hold it in front of him.
"The first thing is to ask for power! Please ask the inspector to immediately summon the relevant Henan County officers, city wall defenders, Jinwu guards on the street... and Jingjiehu... around the two squares, and tell them that you are a genuine fifth-grade Zhu Shou inspector.
, or the noble Bai family, let all of them gather their power in the hands of the inspection, unified command, and unified use. Whoever dares to say no, if anyone is playing tricks, kill Liwei directly... Be quick and ruthless!"
"It's a simple matter." Bai Yousi didn't even blink.
"The second step is to seal the square. Don't worry about the waterways and tunnels... It's a good thing if they really escaped from below... The inspector himself is sitting here, condescending, and ready to support at any time. The two squares are assigned manpower, no matter what.
, first plug the gap in the square wall and surround it... This is a direct military order from above."
"Is this necessary?" Bai Yousi frowned, and Qin Bao was also a little disappointed.
"I'm afraid this step must be taken." Zhang Xing lowered his head and smiled. "Then the third step is the same... buy food. There is no shortage of food in the East. The food in Luokou warehouse is piled up like a mountain. Before, a bucket of five cents was enough.
If something like this happened, it would only cost fifteen cents per dou... Several hundred strings of grain, if used sparingly, would be enough for the people in the village to make ends meet these days."
"I told you that you can't distribute food without authorization." Li Qingchen stamped his feet anxiously. "I don't care about human life, but I did it like this. I'm afraid more lives will be lost!"
"If you don't give out food, you won't win people's hearts." Zhang Xing sneered. "This is for the reward. Whoever reports the suspect will be given food. This is the fourth step."
The atmosphere in the tower was slightly stagnant, as if someone had realized something.
"But Third Brother, is there really a suspect in these two houses by chance?" Qin Bao couldn't bear it. "If not, wouldn't the food be distributed when it arrives?"
"Just like who reports merit, don't we have the final say on whether there is a suspect?" Zhang Xing finally stared at Bai Yousi and said the last step. "Inspection, the fifth step is to kill! Killing is not relevant in this case.
People come here to take credit for their hard work!"
"Zhang Xing, you are looking for death..." Just when Qin Bao and others were stunned, Bai Yousi was the first to react, but he became furious. The long sword in his hand flew out on its own, and then suddenly stopped.
Because Hu Yan, the deputy with the black ribbon who has been assisting her for a long time and is also the most experienced here, suddenly showed joy and burst into action:
"feasible!"
Bai Yousi was stunned and froze on the spot again like everyone else who had just reacted.
I can't help it, it's going too fast.
"Inspection, please don't do anything. The truth is actually very simple." Zhang Xing looked at the long sword that was gradually inserted into Bai Yousi's hand and smiled. "In fact, everyone knows the current situation. Those who robbed the prison are like that."
He is well-trained and has a solid foundation for advancing and retreating, but where can he find it easily in the 150 square meters of the Eastern Capital City and the mountains and plains of Beimang?"
"But the emperor is angry, and the princes of Nanya are angry. One level is suppressing the other. The military law is as great as the sky. Everyone has to submit their duties. If they don't submit their duties, what will happen if they themselves are guilty? Then we can only use hard work and strength to give them to the emperor.
Let’s make an explanation from above.”
"Not to mention hard work, when it comes to strength, isn't it the easiest thing to do to kill someone and take credit for it?"
"For example, when we followed the conventional approach, we were told that we could only seal the gate according to military orders, then sweep it carefully, and then ignore the lives of the people below... Why is everyone so intolerant? Because this move is essentially a demonstration of hard work and killing.
The good is forfeiting merit, and the weak is forfeiting merit, which is to use the blood of innocent people to make a statement... The only excuse is that the most evil thing was not done by you or me with our own hands."
"In this case, we have to kill people to take credit anyway, why don't we kill people who deserve to take credit? In other places, because we are incompetent and cowardly, we have to kill the weak and take credit... We are different, we have the ability.
With strategy, organization, and benevolence, we can kill criminals and take credit for the crime, and kill strongmen for the credit!"
After saying this, Zhang Xing looked around in three directions. At this time, even the dullest patrolman suddenly realized. Bai Yousi's eyes were shining, staring at the subordinate he picked up on the road with interest and laughing.
Zhang Xing looked around and saluted Bai Yousi: "Inspection inspection, I heard nursery rhymes on the road today, saying that Jiaqing and Jiajing, every house is clean, we have to do things to deliver to the superiors anyway, why not take advantage of the situation to return these two things?"
Is the place really clean for once?! Put those local gangs on the map as possibly harboring criminals and raid them on a large scale?! Killing him will lead to rivers of blood and heads. Who dares to say that we don’t do our best to serve the king?”
Bai Yousi looked around and didn't wait for the people around him to speak. He just raised his eyebrows and slapped the long sword in his hand on the case: "Well said! Since the princes in the court want to see us kill each other, it will be a river of blood."
, then let’s kill him until his blood flows like a river, and kill him completely! Is there anyone here who dares not kill anyone?!”
