Aggrieved Fish Sprite

The old boatman lowered his head and knocked the bag of the tobacco pot on the upper of his shoe twice.

Even when he heard about such a shocking fraud case, he didn't react.

——Ordinary people, who don't know a single big character, how can they have so many worries for the country and the people?And speaking of it, the life of the Chu Dynasty is better, and the Qi Dynasty should forget it.

The matters in the court are for the gentlemen to worry about.If the husbands and fathers are involved in such fraud cases, they will naturally become an unshakable force, so what's the use of saying a few innocuous words?

Besides, in their hearts, there is no official who is not greedy for ink.

Most of the people they come into contact with are low-level officials. After suffering enough, they always feel that only one out of ten officials has a conscience.

Fraud cases are exciting for the intellectuals, but not for the coolies.It's just because they don't know how to do scientific research, and the men at home don't know how to go, at best, they can listen to the excitement and sigh a few times.

The old boatman glanced at the people in the cabin, he couldn't see the origin of these people more and more.

The young boy acting as the coachman was so angry that he could hardly sit still, but the other two just frowned slightly, saying that they were not showing emotions, and the emotions in their eyes were obviously not the same.

Meng Qi tilted his head slightly, opened and closed his lips, and said to Mo Li through sound transmission: "It is human nature to conceal things that are not good for oneself. Mr. Jin Shui also said just now that this is a scandal. He is ashamed to mention it. Why break it?"

The ink carp's eyes darkened, and then nodded slightly.

——Cheating is true, and it is also true that being coerced into taking the exam is false.

——There is no way at all, desperately struggling to seek help everywhere, thinking about how to escape day and night, this is a lie.

Mr. Jin Shui's painful remarks can only be fooled in front of Lu Min, who is not deeply involved in the world.

If, as Mr. Jin Shui said, he is the only person who can take the exam on behalf of him, then he is a cash cow. How can there be no reason why he should not be taken seriously?Plus knowing the inside story, wouldn't those people strictly supervise him?

They came to ask for needles that day, but they could see clearly that the place where Mr. Jin Shui lived was mostly rented houses, and the winding alleys were as complicated as a maze, and the people who lived nearby could not see their faces. , There is no such thing as surveillance.

Even if there are people watching, the two peerless masters will not be able to find out. If you have this kind of ability, you can find someone to take the exam for you, just sneak into the Gongyuan in the capital and change the papers without anyone noticing!

The ink carp sighed secretly.

He saw all the changes in the scholar's expression, and when he realized that his words were not true, Mo Li began to think about what was going on.

Mo Li is not as profound as Meng Qi in observing words and demeanor. After all, as a doctor, he only needs to speculate about the concealed illness, and not to intrigue with patients, so he frowned and thought for a long time, but he couldn't figure it out.

"He is dressed in shabby clothes, his family is poor, and he seems to have an upright temperament. After leaving Beijing, he is even more nervous and fearful.

"Didn't he say that? Because of the death of his father and grandfather, he hated the Qi Dynasty and didn't want to be an official."

"You mean—" Mo Li was surprised at first, then recovered and understood what Meng Qi meant.

It is true that Mr. Jinshui was threatened by someone coming to his door to take the test. He is dissatisfied and wants to get rid of these people. It is true, but he tried his best to ask for help and struggled, hoping that the examiner would find out, and even the idea of ​​exposing this big case was false.

He Sheng is well aware of the danger of cheating in the examination room, but out of resentment towards Xinchao, he doesn't really want to expose it, and the risk of exposing is too great, he simply drifts with the crowd, only seeking his own safety, even at the beginning. Will be happy to collect money to take the exam.

This idea is undoubtedly ridiculous.

The behind-the-scenes people who engaged in fraud in the examination room did not want to "revenge" the Qi Dynasty.

They want to control and use the chess pieces in their hands, pull more people into the water, and weave a big web like a spider. Anyone who wants to destroy this web will be swallowed.

Seeing He Sheng's uneasy and frightened expression, Mo Li sighed in his heart.

As Meng Qi said, people always have things to hide, and things to be ashamed to say. As long as they don't harm others, how should we investigate them?Sit back and watch the tragedy happen, this person will suffer a lot of torture in his heart.

Over there, Lu Min couldn't wait to ask: "As far as you know, how many scholars died because they didn't resist or were accidentally exposed?"

Mr. Jin Shui trembled when he heard the words, feeling even more guilty, and said in a trembling voice: "We rarely see each other, but there are exceptions. Someone tried to reveal the truth, but the complaint was stopped before it was submitted to the Tribute Court. Then the whole family disappeared, and the neighbors said that they moved to their hometown in the countryside, but... that day, we were all called to a place, and we saw bloody, dozens of human ears..."

Lu Min almost jumped at the table, but there was no table in the cabin, and one car, two horses and five people were already a bit crowded, so there was no place for him to toss about.

"Such arrogance and arrogance, I simply ignore the court's laws!"

Of course Lu Min was angry, the person who is now the emperor is his big brother, and if he corrupts the government, isn't that just smashing the big brother's property and causing him trouble?

"who are you?"

Mr. Jin Shui looked at Lu Min with a complicated expression. This man sounded like he had a lot of status. Is he the son of a high-ranking official in the Qi Dynasty, or the Jin Yiwei who came to investigate this matter?

"Me?" Lu Min came back to his senses, now he is nothing, and it is impossible to report to the eldest brother.

Lu Min suddenly looked like a deflated ball, waved his hands listlessly and said, "I'm just an insignificant passer-by, and I can only shout a few times when I see injustice, hey! The corruption of lower-level officials is rooted in this."

The old boatman snorted and said disapprovingly: "This is the way of the world. Even if the court catches all these people, the bad ones will still be bad, and they can't make up for it. There are two ways to live."

"The old man said so, and took people away by boat. It seems that there is no way out on the pier?" Meng Qi asked casually.

The old boatman's face darkened, and he was smoking a pipe bag without saying a word.

He Mouse stuck his head out at the cabin door, and interjected: "The guest officer is wrong. Ships come and go at the Taijing Wharf, and goods come in and out frequently. How can the coolies have no food?"

"Only relying on ability, of course there is food to eat, I am afraid that simple things will become complicated, and gang forces are intertwined. In order to seize the territory, the fights are fought every day, and in order to show favor to the small officials in charge of the dock, I hope they will support me. On my own side, I have to give filial piety on time. Where does this money come from, isn’t it just extracted from the hard-earned money of you helpers, am I right or not?”

Meng Qi was well aware of these secrets, and he could report a lot without asking too many questions.

The old boatman made a move.

He Mouse's face changed, and he rushed in three steps at a time, holding the oar in his hand, and stood vigilantly in front of the old boatman, asking in a bad tone, "Who are you guys? How do you know this?"

Meng Qi spread his hands and said casually: "Is this some kind of secret?"

"Of course, this is..." He Mouse suddenly stopped talking.

"A matter within your Green Snake Gang?" Meng Qi asked back, and couldn't help laughing, "This is not the first time this has happened. How can it be a secret? If you don't believe me, I can tell you more."

The old boatman stared at him, and He Mouse was even more nervous.

Naturally, Longmai is not omniscient. Even Meng Qi has to speculate and think based on what he has seen and experienced. He pondered for a while, and then said: "Originally, whether it is to grab the land or give money to the little official, you guys can't do it." Gritting your teeth and passing it, you have to hug each other to eat, but unfortunately the world changes and people's hearts are unpredictable."

He Mouse's eyes widened, and Lu Min's expression was even more respectful. He didn't understand how Meng Qi saw it through.

Mo Li had a dull face, he couldn't expose Meng Qi, so he had to keep silent.

On the contrary, Mr. Jin Shui was on the outside, so he figured out something was wrong.People and things in this world, as long as there is an accident, can be covered by the saying that the world changes and people's hearts are unpredictable!

In fact, Meng Qi is not blindly bluffing.

The wharf outside Taijing City has a long history. During the prosperous period of the Chu Dynasty, caravans flocked from all over the world. Naturally, the previous wharf was not enough, so it was specially renovated.In the last years of the Chen Dynasty, the world was in turmoil, and many people’s families were destroyed. Even people with household registration in Taijing had no land to live on. The caravans supported many inns and restaurants, as well as the coolies on the wharf.

Both He Mouse and the old boatman spoke Taijing dialect. If they were not from the capital, they had lived in the dock for many years.

Not to mention He Mouse, the old boatman must have witnessed the prosperity and prosperity of the wharf and ferry, and then gradually declined.

Calculated according to the age of the old boatman, when he was in his prime, it coincided with the prosperity of the Chu Dynasty, and a group of people who had no land and could not find a shop to work came to the dock to make a living.At that time, there might be fewer conflicts about job hunting. If the caravan can make money, it will not be stingy in hiring people. The ships are constantly coming and going, and there is only a shortage of people. There is no reason why they can’t eat, but now?

Meng Qi restrained the smile on his face, and asked instead: "How much do you have to hand over the money for leading the way? It's because when you meet foreign businessmen who don't know how to do it, the more they blackmail you, the more money you can get, otherwise Just a trip for nothing? I thought, the money won’t be low, wouldn’t it be [-] Wen a time?”

Twenty Wen was the money that Mr. Jinshui gave He Miaozi, and they had been fighting for a long time over the price.

Meng Qi guessed it casually, seeing He Mouse's expression, Meng Qi himself thought it was a coincidence.

"It's really twenty coins? Sir, you said ten coins before. It seems that the people who take away your money are getting bigger and bigger appetites." Meng Qi was thoughtful, and the money "earned" by leading the way is naturally better than crossing the river by boat. , Unloading comes quickly and is much easier.

Could it be that He Mouse is unhappy and unwilling to take this money and be exploited by this?

——No, relying on mountains to eat mountains depends on water to drink water, just like the old boatman said, as long as life can go on, who wants to change?Making a living is the most important thing, even if you know what you are doing is not authentic.

Mo Li tentatively asked through sound transmission: "Brother Meng, could it be that they are inside their gang..."

"The doctor agrees with me."

Meng Qi didn't wait for Mo Li to respond, and said directly: "It seems that not only the officials are greedy, but also your gang leaders."

He Mouse couldn't hold his oars anymore, looking at Meng Qi was like watching a ghost.

The Green Snake Gang is going to be rotten, except for the gang leader, those elders, the rudder master and the hall master are all covered in silk, and they cover the outside with coarse cloth when they go out.Although each of them still had the old faces, they had changed into appearances that even the old boatmen could not recognize.

In the beginning, because of self-preservation, they formed gangs and competed for territory for many years. Now they have finally become real local snakes.

One side continues to brave the wind and rain on the wharf to make a living, while the other side buys land and houses, wears mink fur and drinks fine wine, raises prostitutes, spends the whole day drunk and dreaming, and constantly squeezes the people under him to pay more money.

The people in the gang envy the latter's life from the bottom of their hearts, and wish to climb up to become them. Every time they drink, they brag about what they saw from the rudder master and hall master, and hope that in the future, they can lie at home with their arms around a woman and wait for money to come in. .

At the pier, there are not only more guide fees, but also money for tea and boat cleaning.

The so-called boat washing is to scoop up water and pour it, and not to move the goods without paying for the tea, and to pay the toll is to directly order the larger ferry to change its location to park, and not to board if no one takes it.

Forget it, but also insatiable, the price rises again and again.

He Mouse is not a good person. Although most of the money has to be handed over, he did get some money. Seeing that these miscellaneous side jobs are getting more and more expensive, He Mouse is completely panicked.

If this continues, the Green Snake Gang will be over, and he won't be able to enjoy this kind of suffering, but the disaster will catch up.

Fortunately, he was not the only one with a brain in the Green Snake Gang, and in the end, Lao Yang made a decision and found a chance for everyone to slip away together.Originally, some people disagreed, but within a few days, there were rumors that the prince seized power and killed the emperor in Taijing, and the gates of the city were blocked for several days.

What else is there to say, run away?

He Mouse held the paddle, feeling annoyed in his heart. It was considered good, but why did there come an extra Mr. Cha, and a group of people with mysterious identities who could see through his brother at a glance?

"Snapped."

The old boatman gave He Mouse a chestnut.

——It's all because this guy is greedy for money. On the way to the pier, he wanted to take the opportunity to earn some "leading money", and then he was arrested by Mr. Cha and others to cheat other scholars.