Survival countdown

Sima Jiao was punched hard in the face, Zheng Chuzhi was satisfied, and the imperial envoy quickly tricked the commander-in-chief and counselor Sun Chengyi to come over and put him directly in the prison. To sue Sun Chengyi for leading people to kill the whole family of the Huang family, the imperial merchant in the south of the Yangtze River, is simply a blessing from heaven!

Zheng Chuzhi was so happy that he immediately put aside his plan to return to Yangzhou, and stayed in the inn in Jiangyang County to continue watching, looking for an opportunity to use his ability to stir up shit.

During the days of staying in the inn, Zheng Chuzhi naturally found that the "imperial envoy" in his eyes often came to find the "guard Du Yuhou" in the courtyard opposite the door, and seeing them get along with the "Du Yuhou" vaguely, it was very strange .

Zheng Chuzhi didn't take the fact that the Prince of Lin'an married a male wife seriously, remember that the male wife of the Prince of Lin'an was called Zhao Baiyu?

Emperor Yuanshou ordered Zhao Baiyu to be an imperial envoy. Zheng Chuzhi guessed that it was to deceive others. The real manipulator behind it was Huo Jingtang, who was loyal to Emperor Yuanshou.

He naturally guessed that Zhao Baiyu was a princess of the county on the surface, but was an obedient pawn in essence, and the 'Guard Du Yuhou' represented Huo Jingtang, so the imperial envoy unconsciously took a lower level in front of his subordinate Du Yuhou.

And from the confrontation in the courtroom, it can be seen that 'Du Yuhou' is more clever in his tongue, and he is better at controlling the field than the so-called imperial envoy.

"No." Zheng Chuzhi pondered his inner speculation, but still felt that something was not right. "I always feel that the face of the 'imperial envoy' is very familiar, as if I met somewhere, not in Kyoto Prefecture."

The scientific examination fraud case was revealed. As Qin Wang's uncle, he not only had to avoid suspicion, but because he had just returned to Beijing to report on his duties, he had no need to go to court. He missed the famous scene of Zhao Baiyu saving his mentor in front of the imperial court. Afterwards, he lived in seclusion. looks.

But he had investigated Zhao Baiyu, and the other party had never been out of the capital before he served as an imperial envoy, so logically speaking, he shouldn't have the impression of familiarity.

The strangest thing is that the 'imperial envoy' has the temperament of a soldier.

Zheng Chuzhi, who is also a soldier, grasped this point, the more he thought about it, the more weird he felt. The civil servant Zhao Baiyu didn't run away. I remember that he was still a premature baby, but the "imperial envoy" above the court was strong and healthy, with steady and light steps, and sharp eyes. , especially the right hand is habitually leaning on the waist, where soldiers usually hang a ring knife, could it be——

The 'imperial envoy' is Du Yuhou, but the 'guard Du Yuhou' is the real imperial envoy?

If the 'imperial envoy' was the bodyguard, and he might have been transferred from the Northwest Army, then it would make sense why he felt familiar, and he should have met at the border.

"That's right! This makes sense. Although the imperial envoy is a chess piece, he obeys His Majesty and Huo Jingtang, but he dares to go to the imperial court to argue for his reasons, and he can still find out the unjust case from a file. Zhao Baiyu is not a fool." " Zheng Chuzhi grabbed his hands and muttered to himself: "He is the imperial envoy. The imperial envoy went deep into the disaster area, experienced the epidemic first-hand, and tricked Lu Liangshi around. It really has a weird way, and he doesn't play cards according to common sense."

Zheng Chuzhi paced back and forth, and suddenly clapped his hands and laughed loudly: "Okay! Okay! He is indeed a geek! It depends on whether he can bring down the prince. Even if he can't, it would be a happy event to make him stumble hard."

"He's not going to reveal his identity yet. He probably really wants to deal with An Huaide and cheat Sima Jiao by the way." Zheng Chuzhi consciously guessed what Zhao Baiyu was thinking, and nodded repeatedly, smugly saying: "But he just didn't expect that I could guess When I come out, I will be a yellow bird and watch them fight to the bottom."

Zheng Chuzhi, who guessed a bit of the truth, stayed in the inn and observed Zhao Baiyu's movements every day. The day before, he had gathered a group of people in the middle of the night. After sending them away, a few other people with extraordinary skills came, who seemed to have received the order and ran away in a hurry for eight hundred miles.

Zheng Chuzhi scratched his head and wanted to know Zhao Baiyu's plan, and also wanted to get closer to eavesdrop, but there were no less than three masters hidden in Zhao Baiyu's yard, and their skills were better than him, a veteran of the battlefield.

The eavesdropping plan was aborted, Zheng Chuzhi could only divert his attention to Du Cao and An Huaide, it was good not to pay attention, but when he paid attention, he found that Sima Jiao and An Huaide, who were also members of the Prince's Clan, seemed to be fighting a bit fiercely.

An Huaide took imperial envoys to forcibly detain Sun Senju and questioned her about the torture. He also said that the origin of the person who claimed to be an orphan of the Huang family was unknown, whether she had been verified, and whether there were other evidences. life officer.

The words were harsh, and even speculated that the imperial envoys were eager for quick success and quick profit, and they went beyond the provincial level to investigate the case of Liangjiang's injustice.

Sima Jiao asked about the case of the rebellious party in Xuzhou. There was no other evidence for the three thousand fishermen in Yujiazhai being beaten as accomplices of the rebellious party. How could they all be put in prison?

He also pointed out that although there are so-called witnesses, that is, "rebellious parties" who were rounded up and resisted with weapons, and were executed on the spot, it does not prove that they are indeed rebellious parties, because they died, and the confession of the whole case became a death confession.

And death confession is not recognized!

A death confession is not useless, there must be prerequisites, which are not listed here for the time being.

One of the two parties accused the imperial envoy of Huang's family being wiped out, while Sima Jiao accused An Huaide of the suspicion of the Xuzhou rebellion, delaying An Huaide's pace of suppressing the imperial envoy to save Sun Shenshu.

Zheng Chuzhi was confused, and couldn't figure out that both Du Cao and An Huaide were members of the prince's family, so why did they have a falling out?Could it be that Zhao Baiyu alienated them?

How to separate?

Zheng Chuzhi couldn't figure it out, and seeing Zhao Baiyu in the center of the storm, he didn't say a word, calmly, reading and drawing in the yard every day, very elegant.

Zheng Chuzhi, who has been an official for [-] years, also has to admire Zhao Baiyu's character. Given time, he may be able to become a marquis and a prime minister, ranking among the three princes.

An Huaide and Sima Jiao had a bloody fight in the air, and Zheng Chuzhi was anxious that he couldn't use his shit-stirring skills, so he walked back and forth outside Zhao Baiyu's yard.

On this day, Zheng Chuzhi was wandering outside Zhao Baiyu's yard again, and found that the fake imperial envoys hurried into Zhao Baiyu's yard in various forms, and almost fell down. Not long after, Zhao Baiyu came out with a serious expression.

Zheng Chuzhi was curious, and hurriedly followed behind them, when he heard Zhao Baiyu ask in a low voice, "Are you sure you checked correctly?"

Fake imperial envoy: "The general found out during an unannounced visit to Huainan, can there be any mistakes?"

Zhao Baiyu: "I also believe in the ability of the king of the county. Since he is the one who spoke, nine out of ten it is true. If the news is true, we must act as soon as possible, before everyone else."

False imperial envoy: "I'll take your letter now and ask the battalion soldiers to surround that villa together."

Zhao Baiyu: "Don't startle the snake, the first thing is the money, you must get the 200 million taels of disaster relief money! As long as you get the disaster relief money, you can take down An Huaide, a dog official who caressing about human life!"

"—!"

200 million taels of disaster relief silver was found?

Sure enough, it has something to do with An Huaide and the prince!

Could it be because of this money that Sima Jiao and An Huaide fell out?

Zheng Chuzhi was so anxious that he scratched his heart and wanted to know which villa the silver was in, and he wanted to grab credit.

Because of King Qin's incident, Emperor Yuanshou had suspicions about Zheng Guogong's government. Originally, returning to Beijing to report on his duties was a formality, and he was promoted to a level or two before returning to the Dingzhou border to take charge of the army. As a result, he was temporarily transferred to Huainan as a general. What kind of transfer envoy.

Zheng Chuzhi was clear about the intention of Emperor Yuanshou's move.

Why did he dare to stir up the water in Huainan officialdom without any scruple?

Because Emperor Yuanshou originally wanted him to add fire, so he just followed the trend.

Being an official for a long time may not be a good life, but he must be able to think through the thoughts of the Holy One above his head, and a good courtier is to pretend to be stupid and obedient.But a good courtier, apart from trying to figure out the holy will and pretending to be stupid, has to seize the opportunity to make meritorious deeds, and now is a good opportunity to earn him good political achievements——

Wisdom solved the robbery case of Xuzhou disaster relief bank.

Zheng Chuzhi found the right time, stepped forward quickly, and bumped into Zhao Baiyu who came in through the courtyard door, "Who doesn't have eyes when walking?"

Zhao Baiyu took the lead in apologizing: "The mark is reckless, please forgive me, my lord."

Zheng Chuzhi took a closer look, and his expression calmed down: "It's you. Your performance in the courtroom that day was brave, and you made all the colleagues in Huainan ashamed."

Zhao Baiyu made a humble gesture: "The mark is panic."

"Don't talk to me about panic and recklessness. I'm a warrior, and I can't stand the sourness of civil servants. To be honest, I appreciate your courage to fight for the people in the court that day. Speaking of which, my officer I don't know your name yet."

"Mark Zhao Dawei."

My surname is Zhao.

Zheng Chuzhi gossiped and said as usual: "You are the infantry capital Yuhou... from Sanya? Walking in front of the imperial court, your roots are young and red, and your future is boundless. Someday you will be released, and you will roll around in the northwest or northeast, and you will be an official. Zhuo Yizhuo, I guess I have to call you a job."

Zhao Baiyu hurriedly cupped his hands: "I am afraid to bid, my lord, don't break the bid."

Zheng Chuzhi waved his hand: "I'm telling you something from the bottom of my heart, what are you afraid of? I said I appreciate you, and I'm not talking nonsense. One day you really let go, and you will come to the Jizhou Army and be my young general."

Zhao Baiyu pursed his lips and smiled, with imperceptible anticipation in his eyes: "I am so grateful." There was also a hint of gratitude and ambition on his face at the right time.

If he hadn't guessed his identity, he would have been deceived.

Zheng Chuzhi sneered in his heart, and his face became more gentle: "Just now I saw you and the imperial envoy were in a hurry and looked embarrassed, but it has something to do with the case of Sun Shen's extermination of Jiangnan imperial merchants?"

Zhao Baiyu smiled a bit reluctantly: "It's a bit tricky, but the people have grievances, and the imperial envoy is duty bound."

Zheng Chuzhi: "After all, it is a cross-provincial case. Without an order from His Majesty, it is trespassing. Even if the truth is found out and justice is returned to the people, it is inevitable that you will be involved in the case. It is a small matter to lose the official, and the big thing is that the future stops here."

"Is it so serious?" Zhao Baiyu was stunned, twitching the corners of his mouth, his eyes couldn't hide the anxiety: "But I... our imperial envoys are only performing their duties, returning justice to the people, punishing evil and promoting good, and the imperial envoys caught me. He is a corrupt official, how could he lose his official position?"

Zheng Chuzhi: "You have to follow the regulations, and you have to have a handwritten or oral order from His Majesty, allowing you to enforce the law across provinces. This is the rule, and there is no rule without rules."

Zhao Baiyu: "But His Majesty has allowed the imperial envoy to act cheaply—"

"Did your majesty only ask you to investigate the case of Deng Wen'an? Did you ask you to investigate the officialdom in Huainan, or did you ask you to visit the states and counties all over the world? Alas, I see that you and the imperial envoy are still young, and if you don't understand the officialdom, you should talk less and do less. The truth is, you can do your duty well, you shouldn’t meddle, don’t meddle in other people’s business. Unless His Majesty tells you clearly, otherwise, you’d rather not move. What is the face of the Liangjiang officials? Didn’t you say clearly that the Liangjiang officials have no skills, and you have to be an imperial envoy patrolling Huainan to handle the case? If you don’t hand over the case, you will be slapped in the face. You can’t trust the Liangjiang officials. What do the people think? What does Your Majesty think?"

Zheng Chuzhi put his hands behind his back, and earnestly remonstrated: "It won't happen for a while, and you can't stand it if you catch some small mistakes of yours and jointly join you. You are in charge of unjust cases in different provinces, and there is a lot of room to make a fuss about. go--"

Zhao Baiyu reminded: "It's not me, it's the imperial envoy."

"Oh, that's right, it's easy to say, it's your imperial envoy, I'm just worried that you will be implicated, and you are going to Yangzhou with the imperial envoy. I guess His Majesty wants to cultivate you and give you a chance to make contributions. It depends on whether you can seize it." , can have an outstanding and eye-catching performance, and must not be delayed."

"Thank you for reminding me, my lord, I am very grateful for the mark."

Zheng Chuzhi waved his hand to indicate that it was a trivial matter, and tried his tone carefully: "Just now I listened to the imperial envoy discussing with you, and I vaguely heard where the battalion is going to be borrowed from? But you want to borrow the battalion to catch Shuai An?"

Zhao Baiyu hesitated for a moment, then answered vaguely.

Zheng Chuzhi: "The commander-in-chief is in charge of the military affairs of a province. Among them, the two armies of Xin and Yang are the commander-in-arms. There are three lathe crossbows, and there are also bow and crossbowmen who are brave and good at fighting. The Huai army, the southern army and the commander-in-chief are not very close. If the imperial envoy wants to dispatch the battalion, the Huai army and the southern army are the first choice, but beware of someone tipping off the news, and don’t let the commander have time to mobilize troops to resist.”

Zhao Baiyu immediately said sharply: "The handsome envoy An Gan! There is no disaster caused by natural disasters and chaos for the people, and no disasters caused by foreign enemies attacking the city. How can he use his own selfishness to resist the imperial envoy and send a message to ask questions? If he dares to mobilize troops to resist, it is treason. The imperial envoy You can cut first and play later!"

Zheng Chuzhi: "Just in case, I'm just offering a suggestion. Speaking of which, the old man has been in the army for many years and was stationed in Huainan. The Yangzhou camp commander used to be my subordinate. He even came to visit me some time ago... How about this, let the old man come forward to sell favors , and asked the Yangzhou Camp Metropolitan to be dispatched by the imperial envoy, with my guarantee, the word of mouth must be strictly guarded, and it will not be heard by the commander-in-chief."

Zhao Baiyu originally wanted to refuse, but he hesitated when he heard that it was the prisoner of the Yangzhou camp.

Zheng Chuzhi took his expression into his eyes, and he had some guesses in his heart. It seems that the relief money is not in Yangzhou City, but should be hidden around Yangzhou.

"An Huaide is scheming and scheming. Don't look at the fact that you are fighting to the death with Ducao now. You are still a prince's party. Interests are entangled and difficult to separate. When they react later, they may join forces to deal with you as an imperial envoy. Let's talk about Sun Shen, even if he If you really destroy people, you don’t have to transfer the case to Liang Jiang, so what does it have to do with An Huaide? Fighting down a Sun Shenshi and a Xiao Wence, you can’t defeat a deeply entrenched civil society group.”

Zhao Baiyu showed fear, and said righteously: "Your Excellency, be careful what you say. If the people have a grievance, you should wash away their grievances and return them to justice. It is not for your own selfishness, let alone to bring down any official. My lord, don't come here." speculate."

Zheng Chuzhi stroked his beard: "This old man is narrow-minded, and he still looks at the sea." When he reached the fork in the road, he said goodbye to Zhao Baiyu, saying: "I sincerely want to help. If the imperial envoy is interested, you can come to me at any time."

After saying that, he walked back to his own yard.

Zhao Baiyu watched his back disappear, then turned around and smiled: "Old fox."

***

As soon as he turned into the courtyard, Adjutant Cui who had already left suddenly appeared: "What did the old fox Zheng Chuzhi say?"

Zhao Baiyu: "I want to put someone in."

Adjutant Cui: "As he wished?"

Zhao Baiyu whispered softly: "If someone asks for something, we will help if we can. We traveled all the way here to share His Majesty's worries, and we are also very cooperative with us as a qualified shit-stirring stick. We can't let people Return empty-handed."

Adjutant Cui: "..." Does Zheng Chuzhi know that the credit he has worked so hard to get is a hot potato that Mr. Zhao and the general can't wait to get rid of?

"Let's hesitate for a day or two, let's make an empty sound to defraud Zheng Chuzhi, and help Du Cao scare An Huaide by the way." When Zhao Baiyu came up with a bad idea, he still smiled gently: "If the water is muddy, can you Catch the big fish."

Adjutant Cui was convinced, and asked without shame: "How?"

Zhao Baiyu played with his fingers, thought for a while and said casually: "Which battalion you see is pleasing to the eye, go to their battalion and say something specious, don't disclose the money, other things such as the murder of Zhang Conglu, the imperial merchant's death, etc. Being exterminated... Pick one or two things and poke them at random, they will be like frightened birds, and they will make a fuss."

Adjutant Cui's eyes lit up: "I'm quite familiar with this job!"

Zhao Baiyu was curious, "How to say?"

Adjutant Cui raised a big smile: "Our general likes to play this game, to tease some intentional trippers in the Northwest Army and Jizhou Army, put some dumb guns and fake news, and the two armies decorate with ambiguous gestures, play a game Playing the opposite Daxia and Nanjiang, you can basically play dead."

Zhao Baiyu hissed and became even more curious, "Huo Jingtang must be hated by many people."

Adjutant Cui said with a stern expression: "To say 'hate' is an insult to the general, wishing him to be quartered by five horses, and his bones blown to ashes is the highest respect."

Zhao Baiyu: "..." I suddenly felt that Adjutant Cui's worship was a bit distorted.

Adjutant Cui rubbed his hands: "I won't talk much, I have to arrange my schedule quickly, and I will leave."

***

When Zheng Chuzhi returned to his house, he immediately summoned someone to report to the Yangzhou Camp Supervisor, asking him to privately recruit people to search for suspicious people in the city and the outskirts of Yangzhou, and to investigate places where money may be hidden.

"We must first capture the evidence that the prince and An Huaide robbed the relief money and killed the court officials!" Zheng Chuzhi's eyes lit up with excitement, and he said to himself: "This time the prince and the princelings will definitely be crucified. I can't turn over for the rest of my life!"

***

According to Zhao Baiyu's instructions, Adjutant Cui resumed his identity as the Marquis of Yu, the capital of his bodyguard, and went to Yangzhou, Tongzhou, Luzhou and other prefectures for a visit. It means that Huaide went to Jiangyang County for interrogation.

The camp supervisors in several state capitals passed letters with Fei Ge to inform An Huaide of the news.

An Huaide greeted the people below, and which state camp was transferred, the next one leading to Xuzhou must pass through the prefect of the prefectural camp or the prefect to delay as much as possible, but often greeted with the front foot, and the guards representing the imperial envoy ran to another The state capital caused the other corresponding state capital camps to be in a hurry. They rushed to the next state capital as soon as they were deployed.

Before the imperial envoy issued a decree, the troops in the Xiazhou capital camp in Huainan were exhausted. Everyone turned around and found that the imperial envoy was still leisurely in Jiangyang County, and had no intention of dispatching troops to arrest An Huaide forcibly. The legs of the soldiers and horses in their various camps were about to break from running, and they made a big joke in their panic, and they were dumbfounded.

Seeing the chaos, Sima Jiao didn't care about the purpose of the imperial envoy, and seized the fact that "the Huainan prefecture camp only respects the commander-in-chief and regards the imperial envoy and the imperial court as nothing" and began to criticize vigorously.

Poor Huainan Zhulu camp had not had time to scold the imperial envoys, and then had to rack his brains to explain Ducao's memorabilia to the court and Emperor Yuanshou.

Zheng Chuzhi, who was watching the whole process, clapped his palms alone in the yard and laughed: "Zhao Baiyu is indeed a bit smart, but unfortunately they are all low-level cleverness. It is not the right way to turn evil into evil."

The staff was puzzled: "What does the imperial envoy mean?"

Zheng Chuzhi: "He doesn't believe what I said. This trip is a test to see which state capital's camp army can be used. As expected, almost all the state capital camp troops in Huainan are under the control of An Huaide. The battalion army in Yangzhou Mansion was taken under my command early in the morning, and he couldn't reach in."

He is still there, quite at ease: "Wait, Zhao Baiyu has to come to me. I want him to hand over to me the credit for breaking the Xuzhou disaster relief money robbery case—no, not yet. He has to beg me! He has to beg me to lead the Yangzhou battalion army against An Huaide. Doesn't that mean giving up the great credit? Hahahaha..."

Staff: "Your Excellency is wise and powerful, then Zhao Baiyu is just a piece of trash, and I have to obediently serve as a stepping stone for you."

At this time, someone from outside the door sent a message: "My lord, the imperial envoy invites you to talk."

Zheng Chuzhi got up immediately: "Look, here we come."

***

East Palace.

The prince received a letter from Zhao Yuzheng, and after a little thought, he guessed that An Huaide had betrayed the master, and the fifth prince was furious: "How dare An Huaide?"

The dog that supported them with one hand would actually bite them back one day, which was still a fatal blow. Shock and anger were no longer enough to describe the mood at this moment.

"Second brother, what should we do now?" The fifth prince was flustered when he thought of their embezzlement of river money and raising private soldiers. "Is there still time to cut off with An Huaide? The imperial envoy detained the senator next to An Huaide, does it mean that he found something? Did he really touch An Huaide's head? Zhao Baiyu's purpose is that we... will search the house , the head will fall to the ground, and the fate will be worse than the third brother, it's over."

The prince slapped the fifth prince's face with a slap, his face was gloomy, and he stared coldly at his helpless younger brother: "What are you panicking about? It's a good thing for An Huaide to betray his master. He Dao's corruption, Zhang Conglu's death, or the disaster relief money is a good thing." Jie, has something to do with us? Isn’t it all directed by the master behind him?”

The fifth prince was stunned, and it took him a while to realize, ecstatically: "Yes! What does it have to do with us? An Huaide pretended to surrender, but actually obeyed the orders of others, and used the prince's kindness and reputation to do evil outside—Second brother, instead of Why don't we let the imperial envoy reveal the truth, why don't we take the initiative to expose An Huaide?"

Prince: "Don't worry, I have to find the lost relief money, and follow the vines to find out the master behind An Huaide."

The fifth prince suddenly remembered something: "We trained private soldiers in Huainan?"

"An Huaide is in full control of the private soldiers. He didn't read Ducao's memorabilia, which says that the soldiers and horses on the roads and camps only listen to the commanders and envoys, and don't hear the orders of the imperial envoys representing the imperial court. Are you used to it in Huainan?"

"Jiangchen despises the imperial court and has no sense of reverence—" The fifth prince suddenly reacted: "An Huaide is using our money and our power to raise troops for his master?!"

The prince sneered: "It's a good dog." It's a pity that loyalty is not for him.He threw out the brochure he found from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and said, "Look."

The fifth prince browsed quickly and noticed a familiar word: "Yangzhou Jichang Villa... In the seventh year of Yuanfeng, bestow Jichang Villa and Yun Yong—who is Yun Yong?"

"Our Eighth Uncle's word."

"Is it Prince Jing?!"

The Fifth Prince was dumbfounded, his mind went blank, and he couldn't think.

The prince knocked on the pamphlet and said: "Prince Jing is one step away from the throne. He has been suppressed all these years, and he lives in seclusion. If it weren't for the Northwest Army in his hands, he would have been liquidated by Luo Zhi. He intended to rebel, which is reasonable, but he It shouldn't be counted on the lonely head, no one can run wild on the lonely head and get back unscathed!"

"It was also God who helped me, and asked Shiro to come into the villa by chance, and after hearing their conversation, Gu Gu understood the conspiracy." There was no outsider in the room, and the prince no longer suppressed his pity and love. "The orders of the eminent monks in Baohua Temple really came true, and Shiro is the lonely lucky star."

The fifth prince agreed very much: "How can we solve the problem now?"

Prince: "Pass down the order of Gu Jun to ask Sima Jiao to borrow troops from the two Zhejiang provinces and encircle the Jichang Villa!"