[Rat cat] Long live the emperor

In order to control civil and military officials with different minds, the first emperor sent secret guards to steal children from officials' homes at his own expense, and hid the stolen children in underground secret passages.The clinker tunnel caught fire, and none of the more than 20 children escaped. They were all trapped underground and roasted alive into mummies.

Suddenly shocked by such a tragedy, Zhao Xiaozhen couldn't help covering her mouth, "Is the fire really an accident? Was it arson!"

The elegant smile of the Eighth Sage King had an inexplicable sarcasm, "The secret guard's investigation result was an accident."

Zhao Zhen was so angry that he frequently tapped the table with his fingertips, "Investigation results? Whose investigation results? What kind of bullshit result is this! Zhao Heng actually believed it? Is he crazy or fooling himself? A tortoise, a coward who can only lie to his ears and steal his bell!" Zhao Zhen was not a good-tempered person, he opened and closed his upper and lower lips and spoke to the point.

"Good scolding." The Eighth Sage King pinned Zhao Xiaozhen, who was furious, and rewarded him with a pat on the head.

"I also thought back then that the first emperor didn't believe the one-sided words of the hidden guard. He was evading, deceiving himself and others in order to evade responsibility. When he was panicked, even if he knew it was a false truth, as long as it could alleviate his guilt and Regret, he will believe it without hesitation! Therefore, the first emperor believed the words of the hidden guard, gave up investigating the real culprit of the arson, and kept convincing himself that it was just an accident." Sadly deceiving himself, I don’t know when the first emperor dreamed back at midnight Have no regrets.

"However, paper can never contain fire." Zhao Zhen snorted coldly.

"That's right, paper can never contain fire." The Eight Sage King sighed, "Maybe it's the retribution of heaven, or maybe it's man-made. Yes. From then on, the whole person of the first emperor changed, he became suspicious, his personality became more and more extreme, he had no intention of dealing with government affairs, and he didn't trust anyone except the dark guards..."

Zhao Zhen frowned, "Could it be the hidden guards who set the fire?"

The Baxian King smiled wryly, "I also had this suspicion back then, but unfortunately..."

No evidence!

The two looked at each other and sighed in unison—the secret guard was too clean, guessing without evidence is meaningless.

Zhao Zhen couldn't figure it out, "Aren't the dark guards very loyal? Why did there appear to be traitors?" Zhao Zhen himself also relied heavily on the dark guards. Ying didn't really hurt him, on the contrary, he often protected him, and did not hesitate to block swords and swords for him. How could the hidden guards around the first emperor be different?

The Baxian King was also puzzled by this point, "Since the founding of the country, the dark guards have always been the most trusted force of the Zhao family, but there are inevitably one or two exceptions. This [exception] was made by him."

Zhao Zhen was super curious about the legendary dark guard, and pestered the Eight Sage Kings to find out the inside story.

The Eighth Sage King is not too clear, "I only know that person was not the leader of the late emperor's secret guard at the beginning, but he was promoted after the death of the original leader. The emperor trusted him very much, and we only met a few On the other hand, in my memory, it is indeed different from ordinary dark guards, with a flexible mind and a glib tongue, no matter what things can be done properly, I am not as dull as ordinary dark guards."

The Eighth Wise King thought for a while, "For example, if the ordinary hidden guard is a dog, that person is a wolf."

Zhao Xiaozhen blinked: "It feels similar to Chengying."

"Chengying?" The Baxian King smiled and shook his head, "It's not at the same level at all. Chengying is at most a hybrid of a wolf and a dog. Although there is a bit of a wolf in his character, he is willing to be tamed by you. By the way, I haven't seen you for a long time." Chengying sticks to you, did you two quarrel?"

The Baxian King didn't know about Chengying yet, so Zhao Zhen didn't bother to explain them one by one, so he simply changed the subject.

"Uncle, do you know that person's name?"

The Eighth Sage King stroked his chin: "The general nature of the Zhao family is arrogance, which usually manifests itself as not treating people as human beings. The late emperor was such a person."

Zhao Xiaozhen wiped away his sweat silently: All the people surnamed Zhao were injured in the legendary map cannon.

The Eighth Sage King sighed: "I think the first emperor always regarded the dark guards as [obedient dogs]. Dogs have no human rights. If the master is happy, he will touch it twice, and if he is unhappy, he will kick him away. The first emperor I never thought about naming them seriously, and usually call them indiscriminately."

"But that person is quite special." The Eighth Sage King suddenly remembered, "Sometimes the former emperor would call him [Wang Cai] [狗dan] [狗兵] and so on. It is said that it is a folk custom, it is better to use a humble name. I think the late emperor was just fooling around."

Bad enough.

Zhao Zhen thought that he had a vicious mouth and a cruel heart, and compared with the former emperor, he was like a bodhisattva.

The first emperor took the trouble to push the bottom line of moral integrity, and was always trying to die, never being surpassed.

Zhao Zhen frowned, "If that person really did it, what was his purpose in killing those children? If it was just to get revenge on the late emperor, why didn't he take advantage of the victory to incite all the officials to rebel, and instead let the late emperor survive the difficulties and live happily ever after?" Happy for so many years?"

Eight Wise Kings said: "I didn't know at first, but I found out recently that those imprisoned children are not actually dead."

"What? Didn't die?" At the moment of witnessing the miracle, Zhao Xiaozhen was stunned by the unexpected turn of events.

The Eight Sage King said: "Those children are indeed not dead. They were stolen by that person. The corpses in the secret passage are little beggars begging in Kaifeng. Because the underground is sealed, the corpses were roasted after the fire. There are changes. This is also the reason why the ministers who lost their beloved son did not take revenge on the late emperor, because they already knew that their child was still alive and was controlled by that person."

"That person used these children to blackmail their parents?" Zhao Zhen guessed.

The Eighth Sage King nodded, "That's right, that person used the same means as the previous emperor to control the court."

Zhao Xiaozhen covered her face in despair, "Twenty years have passed, those children have grown into young adults now, right?"

"That's right, those children are among the candidates, and they seem to be waiting for an opportunity to plot something." The Eighth Sage King touched Zhao Zhen's listless little hair, "After all, it was the late emperor who made the crime, I wanted to solve it quietly, so I don't need to tell you, no Thinking about it still leaked the wind.”

"Pang Ji told me~" Zhao Xiaozhen betrayed Pang Ji without hesitation.

Eight Wise Kings made a firm note in his heart, and turned around to continue talking about business.

"I've been trying to contact them, but they formed a small group of their own and strongly rejected outsiders. I could only send people outside to inquire about some gossip. I heard that since that person escaped from Kaifeng, they have split into two factions. The faction advocates changing the dynasty to avenge hatred, while the conservatives advocate going back to their own houses to settle the matter. Whether it is a radical or a conservative, whether it is changing the dynasty or calming down the troubles, there is only one thing in common-they are not reconciled, and they all want to take back what originally belonged to them. "

Zhao Zhen sighed: "What originally belonged to me? Is it the love of my parents, or the noble status, or the huge family business?"

The Baxian King said: "The situation of the ministers in the court must be well known to the emperor. Those who lost their children did experience a heart-wrenching time. They used to regret and suffer, but time is a good medicine. Now 20 Years have passed, the previous feelings have been exhausted, and most families have regained their strength, re-cultivated heirs, and re-born countless children..."

Zhao Zhen was silent for a long time, "They are no longer needed."

Time has magical magic, which can dust the pearl in the palm of your hand, fade the color of rare treasures, and turn the cherished things into tasteless.When things become like this, should we blame the innocent abducted children, the parents who lost their children carelessly, or the passage of time or the indifference of human nature?In fact, the one who should be blamed the most is the instigator, the culprit of all tragedies——Zhao Heng.

But Zhao Heng is dead.

The enemy is no longer there, so besides venting their anger on the enemy's son, who else can they turn to for revenge?

Just like Liu Xun who drew his sword and killed himself, someone has to bear this monstrous hatred.

Zhao Heng was cowardly in the first half of his life, and confused in the second half of his life. The only thing he did right in his life was to die early and rebirth early.

The Eight Sage King said: "The children who were stolen back then have been working with that person, and they have learned a lot of skills. Although their identities cannot be seen, after all, they have no worries about food and clothing and hold great power. They are even more free than their original identities. Well, once that person changes dynasty, they are likely to become the first batch of founding heroes. With such extravagant hopes, they have survived year after year, but as that person's power is declining, even this wishful thinking will be destroyed by you It's all over. From the stars to the moon, to hiding in Tibet, to be scared like a mouse crossing the street every day, unable to return home, no place to complain about grievances, no wonder these days' favored children can't stand it."

When you say that, I'm speechless.

Zhao Xiaozhen raised his forehead, "Is it my fault?"

The Eighth Sage King smiled, "You didn't kill Boren Boren but died because of you. You are at fault, and they are also at fault. But everything has a cause and effect, and the path of rebellion is for them to choose. Since they have decided to fight with If you are an enemy, you should not blame you for being too ruthless. It can only be said that your position determines your destiny. Who made you the enemy, and who made them inferior to others. In fact, you are right, and they are also right, each is his master. .”

Zhao Xiaozhen clapped his hands, "It's so complicated, I don't understand it!"

The Baxian King suddenly said, "I almost forgot, I haven't asked the emperor to forgive me yet. The reason why Bao Qing couldn't find any clues about the Taibailou case was actually me being a hindrance. In order to trip Bao Qing, I It took a lot of effort."

→_→So... why do you want to waste all your energy and trip up your own people? !

Zhao Xiaozhen couldn't complain anymore, he waved his hand casually and said, "Not guilty, not guilty, what did Uncle Huang do?"

"That's what happened." The Eighth Sage King said calmly: "The former emperor was vague and wanted to let the real culprit go, but I have been unwilling to do so. I secretly contacted the family who lost the child to inquire about the news. The truth I told you just now is me. It’s been pieced together bit by bit over the years.”

The Eighth Sage King paused, "A child abduction case occurred in the city a few months ago. I was always in a state of turmoil. I was afraid of repeating the tragedy of that year. It happened that an old minister who had been in office for many years came to visit me and said that his family The child who was abducted back then has returned. The old minister couldn't make up his mind whether to recognize his grandson or not, so he came to the mansion to ask my opinion. At that time, the capital was undercurrents, and the man and the emperor fought hard. The heat is in full swing, so it is inevitable that there will be negligence in other places. After being severely frustrated by the emperor, that person was seriously injured, and urgently needed to replenish some people, so my people sneaked in." The Eighth Sage King smiled and seemed very satisfied.

Zhao Xiaozhen was full of anger—I dare you to fight to the death with the people behind the scenes, and you will take advantage of it in the end.

The Baxian King smiled and said: "Do you still remember Fang Jing'an from Taibai Tower? He was also one of the children who were stolen and changed back then, but he was not from a famous family, but just a child from an ordinary family. He was captured by the former emperor to deceive others. This Fang Jing'an has a very special personality. Like Bao Qing, he neither approves of the rebellion of the radicals who change the dynasty, nor the cowardice of the conservatives who calm down. Fang Jing'an only wants to expose the truth of the year and seek justice for the twenty or so children." The eight sages were overjoyed." The idea is so naive, I really miss Bao Qing when he was young."

"Although Fang Jing'an has no malice and is even frankly cute, he has already touched the interests of most people. Therefore, both conservatives and radicals cannot tolerate him, and both factions want to kill him secretly to avoid future troubles. The dead Li Hong didn't know about these entanglements, he just wanted to kill his competitor because he was purely jealous of Fang Jingan's knowledge. Unexpectedly, his cleverness was misunderstood by his cleverness, and he became Fang Jingan's scapegoat.

Zhao Zhen was speechless, "Uncle Huang, why didn't you say it earlier, Mr. Bao is so worried that his teeth hurt."

The Eighth Sage King smiled innocently as always, "I did it to avoid complications. The investigation is almost done. Bao Qing is so jealous, what if Fang Jing'an is influenced by Fang Jing'an, and he has a passion to help him reveal the truth? And the crowd watched Bao Qing couldn't solve the case, he was aggrieved, depressed, tangled, and filled with suffering, the emperor didn't think it was very interesting?" He sent out bursts of pure and kind smiles.

╰(*°▽°*)╯ Nice job!

Uncle Huang, it turns out that I have misunderstood you all along!

You are definitely not a natural stupefaction, you are a proper black-bellied attack!

"Ah-choo—" Mr. Bao, who was writing and writing in Kaifeng Mansion, felt inexplicably cold.

***********

Talk in two parts.

Lord Bao told Zhan Zhao to keep a close eye on Zhao Zhen, and Zhan Zhao was also a little worried about the troubled little apprentice, pushing the lazy Bai Yutang beside him, "Xiaobai, Xiaobai, get up, go home to eat hot pot at night, let's go in Let's pick up Zhao Xiaozhen."

Bai Yutang raised an eyebrow, "He's not a child."

Zhan Zhao was speechless, "He's only eight years old this year, why isn't he a kid."

Bai Yutang was silent for a moment, "Don't worry, that brat is already invincible."

Zhan Zhao was overjoyed, and picked up the lazy Bai Yutang, "Stop talking! As a mouse, do you have the nerve to hibernate!"

Bai Yutang lay on Zhan Zhao's shoulder with the force of the pull, "As a cat, why don't you meow?"

Zhan Zhao gritted his teeth, "Meow!" His voice was slightly shrill.

Bai Yutang was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Good cat, let me bark again~"

Zhan Zhao turned his head and ignored him, when a pure voice came from behind the two—"Meow~~"

The two heroes turned their heads at the same time, and saw Bai Gu lying on the wall of Kaifeng mansion smiling.