Nongmen Shenjue

Mu Qingyan's doubts, Wen Jixue also had similar views.

As a nail, it is best to follow the golden mean, with no merits, no faults, smooth and stable, and not too eye-catching.Xi Yong is greedy by nature, self-reliant and reckless.This way of dealing with things, being able to stay in Yueliang State for 12 years is also because Yueliang State is special, but not everyone is like the current magistrate, and it is not impossible to punish Xi Yong when he encounters a hard-tempered person.

It's not that Xi Yong is really stupid, otherwise he wouldn't be able to get his current position, but his greed is hard to change.

Now that the end of the year is approaching, it may be a little early for the common people to buy new year's goods, but for those in the officialdom, it will be busy in winter.As a seventh-rank county magistrate, his official position is undoubtedly very low. The New Year's greetings booklet presented to the emperor is just following the trend, and in fact it will not reach the emperor's hands at all.Instead, I have to spend my time preparing for the annual ceremony for the Wu family and Rongjun Palace, which must not be sloppy.

For the New Year's gift, it's better to give money directly, but it can't just be money, it's too straightforward.

He was asked by Fourth Master Li to take care of the case before, and he specially asked for a tiger skin from Fourth Master Li, just to prepare for the New Year's ceremony.He had long heard that Fourth Master Li loved dogs, and had raised several ferocious big dogs for hunting in the mountains.He also heard that Fourth Master Li had a tiger skin in his hand, needless to say its value, it was definitely his favorite item, he opened his mouth, and Fourth Master Li was hesitant, but finally delivered it.

Xi Yong wants to give this tiger skin to Rongjun Wangfu.

"Master, Madam is here."

"Madam, what's the matter?" Xi Yong didn't raise his head, he still looked at the gift list in his hand, thinking that it was a bit simple and needed to add something.

Mrs. Xi is over fifty years old. Although she tried her best to take care of it, she still has hoarfrost on her temples, sad lines on her eyes, and a slightly sad voice when she opened her mouth: "I heard that the master is taking great pains to send the New Year's gift to the capital. I am worried about my daughter, so I specially prepared it." Something, please send it to the master."

Xi Yong raised his eyes to look at her, but his tone was impatient: "She is the daughter-in-law of the Wu family. She gave birth to the grandson of the Wu family. She is a great hero of the Wu family. Can the Wu family treat her badly? Instead of giving things, it is better to teach her well. Silks, silks, brocades, fine clothes and food are not enough, what more do you want? She is trampling on herself, and even if she dies, the Wu family can still hire another daughter-in-law, and her son will have a stepmother!"

It is true that Xi Yong is worried and anxious about this, but he is not concerned about his daughter's life or death, but worried that after his daughter's death, the Wu family will gradually become estranged from him.He has been entrenched in Yueliang State for 12 years, and he is seeking to go further, and he needs the help of the Wu family.

There was no response from the previous test, but now I will try again while the New Year's gift is coming, and there should be news.

Mrs. Xi was still worried about her daughter: "I can't blame her for suffering. We forced her to do so, so the young master of the Wu family..."

"There's no end to it! A loving mother has so many losers! You spoiled her for being so stubborn!" Xi Yong waved his hands again and again, unwilling to talk to her again.

Mrs. Xi's eyes were wet, and she left with a sigh.

Xi Yong paced back and forth in the study, and ordered to the outside: "Go and ask Mr. Mao to come over."

Mr. Mao is the master of the yamen, named Maocheng, who used to live in Tianyu County, not only has literary talent and stratagem, but also is very familiar with people from all walks of life in Tianyu County and even Yueliang Prefecture.Xi Yong came to Tianyu County at the beginning of the year to take up the post, and he wanted to find a local supporter. He was recommended by someone and found out about Mr. Mao.

In this way, Mao Cheng has been with him for 12 years, with deep qualifications, and he is also his confidant.

Xi Yong often asks him for advice when he encounters problems, and now he is not sloppy in the face of major issues in the future.

After a while, Mao Cheng came.

Mao Cheng was nearly fifty years old, not tall, fair and thin, with a long beard and a standard literati appearance.This man looks ordinary, he smiles a little bit when he sees people, and he is a little kind, he is very convenient with people in the county government, even if everyone knows that he is Xi Yong's confidant master, he also thinks of him a little bit.

"I don't know why Dong Weng summoned him?"

Xi Yong was very familiar with him, so he naturally understood his temperament, and immediately sighed: "Mr. Mao asked the question clearly."

Mao Cheng smiled: "But it's for an annual ceremony?"

Xi Yong nodded.

The so-called "annual gift" is not given only this year, it can be based on previous years.However, this year has other requirements, so the annual ceremony will naturally have to be rescheduled.Furthermore, he is not allowed to enter the capital without being summoned, he must send a confidant to go there.There are a few confidantes, but they are not very relieved after all.

"Since Dong Weng attaches so much importance to it, why don't I go for it." How could Mao Cheng not know what he was thinking, so he took the initiative to signal this time.

Xi Yong's eyes lit up, and he laughed loudly: "If Mr. Mao is willing to go to Beijing, this matter must be sure. I would like to thank you first here."

Xi Yong is very satisfied with Mao Cheng's ability, and even very proud of being able to get Mao Cheng's help.

He has made up his mind that even if he is successfully transferred, he will take Mao Cheng with him. Not only is Mao Cheng aware of all his secrets, but also the ability of the other party makes him reluctant to give up.Going to a brand new place, Mao Cheng doesn't know how much he can worry about.

"I don't know when to leave?" Mao Cheng asked.

"This place is far away from Beijing. In case of rain and snow, it will delay the time. It is better to start earlier. Travel in three days."

Maocheng nodded.

Seeing that Mao Cheng talked to Xi Yong about government affairs again, he said his goodbyes and came out.After leaving the study, Mao Cheng had a faint smile on his lips, even though it was fleeting, it was obviously full of sarcasm.

Maocheng lives in the back street of the county government office, in a small courtyard with about ten rooms in size.Mao Cheng brought his old wife and a few servants with him, so he felt very relaxed and at ease.

Since Wen Jixue said that he wanted to investigate, he naturally didn't delay, and sent someone on the same day, just in time to find that there was something unusual about Mao Cheng.

In the past, I also knew that Xi Yong had a master who was quite capable. If it weren't for this person, Xi Yong would not have been able to gain a firm foothold in Tianyu County so smoothly and quickly.With the help of this person again, Xi Yong hooked up with the local gentry in Guining County and hooked up with some people in Yueliangzhou City.

Liu Yi sent detailed information about Mao Cheng.

Maocheng is not a native of Tianyu County, but his ancestral home is Longshan Prefecture, and he has a reputation as a scholar.It's a pity that this person had bad luck. He was not bad at first, but he failed the exams again and again. Until he was 35 years old, he was discouraged, completely gave up the imperial examination, and went out to travel and relax.A year later, he passed through Yueliang Prefecture and stayed there due to illness. Later, he made friends here and simply bought land and land in Tianyu County, brought his family members here, and opened a private school to educate children.

Two years later, Xi Yong came to Tianyu County to take up his post, and Maocheng became Xi Yong's master.

"Is there something wrong with this Maocheng?" Mu Qingyan carefully examined this person's experience, and only saw one violation: "35 years old is the right age, even if you are in your forties, it is not too late. If you use the old age as an excuse Give up, there is not enough reason."

An old boy with white hair.Most of the scholars in the world aim at imperial examinations, even if they are hungry, they still want to study, because once they achieve fame, they will get corresponding benefits, not only rewards from the court, but also rewards from their families and villages, and they can be respected by others etc.

"It really doesn't stand up to scrutiny." Wen Jixue also questioned.

Earlier, he just didn't pay attention to this person, and his background was mostly rumors, so he ignored it.Now that I have checked carefully and pondered carefully, something strange has emerged.

Mu Qingyan calculated the time, it was more than two years after Maocheng arrived in Yueliang Prefecture after the Xue family incident.He lived in Tianyu County for two or three years before Xi Yong took up his post.

It was this kind of relaxed time that made Maocheng not arouse suspicion, but he was afraid of scrutiny in everything.

For example, the person who recommended Mao Cheng to Xi Yong was Mao Cheng's friend.The other party would recommend him to the new county magistrate, it must have been revealed in his words, otherwise the other party would not make the decision without authorization, otherwise if Mao Cheng was not happy, wouldn't he offend both sides?

Furthermore, the county magistrate before Xi Yong once asked Maocheng to be his teacher to enlighten his youngest daughter.The county magistrate himself is not bad in knowledge, and his wife can also read and write, not to mention that to teach his daughter, there is no need to hire a teacher.It is said that the county magistrate intended to ask Mao Cheng to assist him in the Yamen, but there was no follow-up report, and it is estimated that Mao Cheng declined.

Why not agree to the previous one, but agree to Xi Yong?

In contrast, the previous county magistrate had a good voice, was talented and ambitious.Coupled with the help from his family, after the expiration of his term, the evaluation was good and he was promoted.Xi Yong, on the other hand, was the complete opposite.

"Perhaps, it is precisely because Xi Yong has no talent that he relies heavily on him. Moreover, Xi Yong has some self-knowledge, does not expect to make progress in the short term, and intends to occupy Yueliang Prefecture for a long time." Mu Qingyan clicked on the name Maocheng, and said with emotion : "I'm afraid this person is the real nail!"

"Xi Yong's arrival just coincided with the meeting?" Wen Jixue shook his head: "It is estimated that someone knew that Xi Yong was planning this matter and pushed the boat along the way. A greedy Xi Yong is better than a shrewd and capable one. Even if you show your feet, there are people who will take the blame."

"Now that Xi Yong is looking for a way out, this Mao Cheng will definitely not continue to follow. However, this time he will send the New Year's gift to Beijing on behalf of Xi Yong. Is there any other article?"

"I will let people follow." Wen Jixue also suspected that Mao Cheng would take this opportunity to meet the real master.

Is it the Cai staff member of Xian County Prince's Mansion...

Mu Qingyan said again: "I don't understand, why are you staring at Yueliang Prefecture? Although this is the ancestral home of your Xue family, back then... Could it be that someone knew that you were not dead? If you really knew, why bother hiding it? If it comes out, the imperial court will deal with it. If you don’t know, why have you been staring at it for ten years, and what results can you get?”

Wen Jixue has also been thinking about this question, but she still doesn't understand why.

In his secret heart, he also hoped that some members of his clan would escape, hoping that this would attract surveillance.But he was very clear that the imperial court had already made preparations back then, only the Xue family knew nothing about it, and his father was even tricked into entering Beijing by the emperor's decree.On the same day, the charges were announced and the arrests were made. Not only Xuejia in the capital city, but Xuejia Village in Yueliang Prefecture was also under surveillance early on.

How can anyone escape?

It was a fluke for him to be able to escape.

"I will always know." No matter how many mysteries there are, there will always be a day when they will be solved.