please don't believe me

Dai Bowen walked in the corridor of the courtyard, his usual Taoist robes swaying gently with his steps, but he lost a little bit of the fairy air in public.Especially since he was still in low spirits, he used a dust whisk to cover up his yawns, and his sleepiness mixed with an inexplicable waking up made him look unhappy.

The guards sent him all the way to Prince Tan's temporary study.Prince Tan was looking at something at the desk. When he saw him coming, he got up and approached him, and took a closer look: "You were sleeping and waking up in the carriage earlier. Could it be that the national teacher has a problem with lethargy?"

Yesterday's dinner was so exhausting, and Dai Bowen almost wanted to roll his eyes because he couldn't sleep until the sun was up.He swept his eyes over Prince Tan, and the corners of his mouth twitched: "It's just that I'm tired from walking here."

Prince Tan raised his eyebrows.Because the national teacher is alone, he has not arranged another place to live.Everyone is in the same courtyard, just a few steps from the West Wing of the National Teacher?Tired?

However, the cold-faced Hades didn't expose the impatient national teacher, he just turned around and handed a piece of paper to him.

"What?" Dai Bowen lowered his gaze, "'Tao Chuan transports the official salt'?"

On the palm-sized paper, a short line of characters is only slightly larger than teeny script, and there are obvious creases on the paper.The moment Prince Tan turned around and walked back to the desk, Dai Bowen narrowed his eyes: "...Where did you come from?"

Prince Tan's movements paused: "Huh?"

"...Who gave it to you?" Dai Bowen walked to the table, "Anyone tell me?"

"In the early morning, the maid in the mansion came to deliver the washed clothes, and put them inside." Prince Tan folded it back to its original shape, pinched it on his fingertips, "The guards found it and gave it to me."

Dai Bowen took the paper away and stared into the other person's eyes: "Then, you must know who this is."

A mere informant letter may be hidden from Liang Hongtian's eyelids, but how can it be hidden from the sky-high Prince Tan?The news that can be delivered to him must have a clear source.

Prince Tan suddenly showed a slight smile, lowered his eyes slightly and raised his eyebrows and said, "Actually, you also know who this is."

Dai Bowen frowned and looked into those black eyes. After a while, he lowered his head to open the paper and observed again.

I know who it is, the person who will inform... Dai Bowen stared at the handwriting, and suddenly had a flash of inspiration: "That 'grind'!"

"Nian" was the person who inquired about the case of Yancang in the water town together with "Fang Zhongren" and "listening to the rain through the window" last night.Although they all concealed their names and names, Dai Bowen not only saw who they were one by one, but also informed Prince Tan after the dinner.

"Listen to the rain through the window", Liang Hongtian, who is related to the Yancang case in the water town, and the magistrate of the water town; Middle man: Prince Tan.

Prince Tan was not surprised that he could guess it.In fact, at the dinner yesterday, when the copper box was moving, the two looked at each other, and a tacit understanding had been reached.

Perhaps Cui Yu'an also realized who the national teacher knew was "Rian", and perhaps Dai Bowen's firm answer gave him confidence. In short, this letter was delivered to Prince Tan early in the morning.

However, even if it's not too late now, it's been a while since what Prince Tan called early morning, so: "Tao Chuan... the second officer of the salt ship, didn't he die with the ship?"

Previously, Prince Tan gave a detailed description of the accident of the salt ship, including the list of the dead.When Prince Tan came here for the school examination, it happened that the guards were also listening.When Dai Bowen eloquently recited the list of the dead, the wounded, and the survivors, the guards all expressed that they could not match Master Guoshi.

This kind of irrelevant and irregular thing is the most difficult to memorize!

Prince Tan felt fine at the time, but after nearly ten days, the national teacher could quickly remember it in a difficult situation. Even Prince Tan, who was also familiar with the information, had to admire it in his heart.

He walked to the tall table next to him, poured a cup of tea and handed it to Dai Bowen: "It is true that the household registration has been cancelled, but looking at it now, I am afraid it may be fraudulent."

The treatment of Prince Tan personally pouring tea, although not exclusive to the emperor, is extremely rare.Dai Bowen put down the paper and took it with both hands.Put it under your nose and smell it, the taste is rich and fragrant, and you can guess how refreshing it will be after drinking it.

Drinking this early in the morning... It seems that Prince Tan is not hard-hitting.

Dai Bowen slowly drank half a cup of warm strong tea, and then said: "The golden cicada has escaped its shell. In other words, it is indeed possible. Who recommended him to come, when did he hit up a private dealer, and who was his support after he escaped... ...You think His Royal Highness already has an idea?"

Prince Tan replied: "His sponsor may be related to the master of Chongyun County, the water town, and he has already sent people there. Moreover, Tao Chuan has been on the ship for more than a year, whether it is sooner or later, smuggling illegal salt? He couldn't do it alone."

Dai Bowen drank good tea, he was not awakened by the smell of tea, but he was refreshed by the hot water.He put the teacup on the case table: "Your Highness is saying that the list of the dead may be the list of illegal salt smugglers?"

"Is it true? Just check it out." Prince Tan said, "The more people there are, the harder it is to hide. It all depends on how capable the person is."

Dai Bowen clapped his palms and smiled lightly: "I don't know other people's abilities, but Prince Tan has repeatedly opened my eyes. His Highness is meticulous and meticulous, which makes me feel that I am redundant."

"National teacher, don't underestimate yourself." Prince Tan walked around behind the desk and sat on the chair of the grand teacher, "Without your great power last night, how could Cui Yu'an have the guts to tell the truth?"

Dai Bowen felt that the structure of the sentence was a bit sarcastic, but the tone sounded really flattering, so he glanced sideways at him: "It's just a surprise. Your Highness just came to me to talk about this matter?"

"It's just one of them." Prince Tan looked at him, "Yesterday's battle, Liang Hongtian has been shaken, and sent news to several people respectively. Although there is no news in the account book, it is not far away."

Dai Bowen tapped the table with his fingertips: "Last night, there were a lot of people talking, and all living beings came and went. How can the prince be sure that he just passed on the news?"

"The more unexpected the situation is, the less thorough people's handling is, it's inevitable." Prince Tan leaned over to take the folded informant letter, and slightly raised it to signal, "He doesn't dare to put himself in danger. , There are very few who can pass on the message. As long as you keep an eye on the movements of the two or three people around him, will you worry about not being able to find the target?"

Dai Bowen showed his power last night, and the last sentence that the case must be closed was almost aimed at Liang Hongtian who was "listening to the rain through the window", which was quite shocking.If he fears that it will be too late, he will tell his accomplices as soon as possible about the previous countermeasures.And Liang Hongtian also knew that if he chose to plot late at night, how could Prince Tan, who had laid a net of heaven and earth, miss it?So the dinner party with people coming and going became his best cover.

However, the crime of smuggling official salt and beheading must be someone who is extremely trustworthy to be the right hand.Last night Liang Hongtian was able to give orders the soonest, but the judge Zhou Xinfang who was at the table next to him, and a valet.During the banquet, it is not surprising that they met one or two other people, and it is not surprising that they have intimate contact with four or five officials in a row?

When Zhou Xinfang toasted and clinked glasses, he would suddenly pretend to be drunk and approach each other. Every time the attendants touched an official, there would be a brief unnatural look on their faces—this was the skill of Prince Tan's guards in observing people.

Dai Bowen wondered, "Why do you think that Liang Hongtian will spread the news that night?"

In fact, this is what Prince Tan guessed, but he will not say it: "Not last night, but also tonight, tomorrow night, Liang Hongtian will not be able to sit still under continuous pressure."

"Continuous pressure?"

"This is the first one who can't bear the pressure." Prince Tan threw the informant letter on the table, "National Teacher, work harder."

"The rabbit bites in a hurry, and the dog jumps over the wall in a hurry." Dai Bowen looked at the other party and warned, "I can find another opportunity to test, but His Royal Highness, please don't make a mistake."

"The more he messes up, the more beneficial he is to us." Prince Tan Wang Sen sneered, "As for the safety of the national teacher... as long as I am here, I will never let anyone touch your hair."

Liang Hongtian, who was being plotted by Prince Tan and the national teacher, might have wanted to avoid them a long time ago.It's a pity that everyone works in the state government office. Unless Liang Hongtian dares to skip work under the eyes of Prince Tan, it will be difficult to escape Dai Bowen's deliberate "coincidence".

"……National Division."

Liang Hongtian met Dai Bowen head-on on the path behind the Yamen.Although it was not a narrow encounter, but there were only the two of them in the entire courtyard, and it was almost inevitable.

"Wuliang Tianzun." Dai Bowen flicked his whisk and glanced at him indifferently, "Master Liang...some of his complexion is not good, please pay attention to your body."

"Thank you for your care." Liang Hongtian replied, "It's just a little bit of insomnia recently, Liang is ashamed, but let the national teacher bother."

Because the national teacher is not strictly a court official, Liang Hongtian still chose a more equal tone in his daily life conversations.

"Oh?" Dai Bowen asked, "It seems that the prince's arrival put a lot of pressure on Mr. Liang?"

Dai Bowen, who was set up by the National Teacher, suddenly started talking too much, which was actually a sign of being tricked.However, Liang Hongtian hadn't grasped this feature yet, and the national teacher blocked him from talking, so he could only reply: "The national teacher is serious, but it's just Liang's own old problem."

"Old problem?" Dai Bowen suddenly took a step closer and lowered his voice, "Isn't Mr. Liang 'listening to the rain through the window' disturbing your sleep?"

Liang Hongtian's complexion changed, and then he forced himself to calm down and said: "...the national teacher really has a clever plan!"

"I knew it when I saw the envelope last night, but I just missed a good opportunity to make it clear." Dai Bowen said, "You wrote the same question as the prince, it seems that your desire to find out the Yancang case may not be lost to His Royal Highness. "

What he said was so fluent, Liang Hongtian reacted for a moment before saying: "The prince is concerned about the country and the people, and he takes care of all kinds of opportunities. The lower official is because of the disadvantages of his administration. It is his duty to assist in this case. How can it be compared with His Highness."

Dai Bowen looked at him, squinted his eyes and said: "...Master Liang has a sad face, it seems that he hasn't got any news yet?"

Liang Hongtian's eyes widened for a moment, then he lowered his head and said, "...Please tell me clearly!"

He might have guessed that the national teacher was testing him, or he might have been a little flustered, but it didn't matter.Dai Bowen's "play" was coherent, staring at Liang Hongtian for a long time, as if evaluating something, then suddenly took a step closer and said in a low voice: "Master Liang."

Liang Hongtian looked up at him involuntarily, Dai Bowen turned his head to look left and right, and then turned his eyes back to him.

"This morning, someone reported to Prince Tan. It is not a natural disaster, but a man-made disaster..."

The national teacher's eyes were cold and focused, almost revealing a spirit.He spoke slowly, and all the reactions of the other party fell into his eyes, each of which was confirming what he said—or Prince Tan's conjecture—was true.

"Official salt was stolen, the ship was sunk, and innocent people were killed or injured. However, the perpetrators are at large." Dai Bowen's tone was very confident, as if he was not trying to tell Liang Hongtian any news, but to tell him a definite result, " However, as long as one key is grasped, the case will be brightened."

This progressive discourse is approaching what Dai Bowen really wants to say.

"Prince Tan, I'm looking for an account book that records the stolen official salt!"