Go to Kaifeng to be a civil servant

Outside the gate of the women's prison in the Chenzhou Mansion, a bunch of guards were lying here and there, all of them fell into a coma after being hit by Zhan Zhao.Only one jailer was still in a conscious state, but was pressed against the throat by the giant gate, and he was also on the verge of fainting.

Zhan Zhao had a cold face, the color of which was comparable to the black face of Mr. Bao, the signature of Kaifeng Mansion.

"what did you just say?"

The jailer whose throat was pressed by the giant que was pale, and he repeated the sentence just now: "I, I said, there is no female prisoner named Qiuniang in the prison."

Ju Que shuddered, leaning a little closer to the jailer's neck.

"Think carefully. The female prisoner is Huang Shi Qiuniang, who was convicted of adultery."

The jailer was trembling all over, and said in a crying voice: "This, this hero, there is really no female prisoner named Qiuniang in the prison..."

Hearing the words, Zhan Zhao frowned, and couldn't help but look at Jin Qian.

Jin Qian was also very puzzled and shook his head inexplicably.

Zhan Zhao looked the jailer in front of him up and down a few times, saw that the jailer was so frightened that his tongue was stiff, and he didn't have the guts to make nonsense, so he withdrew his que, thought for a while and continued to ask: "Then, do you know about the case of Zhang Songde poisoning Huang Dahu?" ?”

Seeing the sharp sword leaving his neck, the jailer finally breathed a sigh of relief, but he didn't dare to neglect the hero in front of him. Upon hearing the question, he quickly replied: "I know, I know, almost everyone in Chenzhou knows about this case."

"Then do you know Huang Dahu's wife?"

"Huang Dahu's wife..." The jailer thought for a while, and suddenly said loudly: "Ah, I remembered, Huang Dahu's wife is called Qiuniang. Could it be that the hero is asking about her?"

Zhan Zhao nodded and said, "She should be convicted of adultery and should be imprisoned."

The jailer shook his head and said, "Hero, if you are looking for her, then you are in the wrong place. You should go to the 'Ruanhongtang'."

Zhan Zhao was taken aback: "Ruanhongtang?"

"That's right, even though that Qiuniang was convicted of adultery, she was taken away by the people from Hou Ye's residence as soon as she got out of the court, and she has never been imprisoned at all."

"what?!"

This time it was not Zhan Zhao who spoke, but Jin Qian who cried out in surprise.

The jailer thought that Jin Qian didn't believe him, so he hurriedly continued: "This, this little hero, the villain definitely didn't lie to you, that Qiuniang looks very iconic, she must have been taken by Lord Anle, and asked the magistrate It is impossible to intercede and take her away."

Jin Qian glanced at Zhan Zhao, only to see that Zhan Zhao's eyes were full of anger, his black pupils were faintly shining, his heart suddenly turned cold, and he thought to himself: My dear, this time I'm in serious trouble, I thought it was just coming to the house It’s enough to walk around the Yamen Prison, but now it seems that I’m going to go to that so-called "soft red hall" for a night tour...

"Where is Ruanhongtang located in the city?"

"In the southwest suburbs."

Zhan Zhao nodded slightly, then raised his head suddenly, pointed at it, and the jailer fell to the ground in response, then turned his head and ordered to Jin Qian: "Catcher Jin, I'll go to the "Ruanhong Hall" to check."

Tsk tsk... sure enough...

-

"Ruanhongtang", as the name suggests, is a place where red makeup is placed under house arrest. Although it is located in the outskirts of the city, it has blue tiles, vermilion jacarandas, and high pavilions. The rich aroma of rouge is tangy and choking.

Standing outside the high wall of the "soft red hall", Jin Qian secretly smacked his tongue: Tsk tsk, he is indeed the only son of the old Pang family.

Looking at Zhan Zhao again, he stood upright, and the night wind blew slowly, but he just lifted the corner of his clothes lightly, but it was like a storm rushing ahead, cold and frightening.

Zhan Zhao just entered Chenzhou, although he didn't see the miserable situation that Zhang Songde said, but he saw that the life of the people in Chenzhou mansion was not very rich, but at this time, seeing this "soft red hall", it was extremely luxurious , the taste of minced gold was heavy, and he couldn't help being angry, clenched his fists, exerted force with his feet, his body rose straight out of thin air, like a cat, and quietly landed on the roof tiles in the courtyard.

Just about to be admitted to the hospital, Zhan Zhao suddenly felt that something was wrong. Jin Qian who had been following behind him disappeared. Zhan Zhao hurriedly turned his head to check, and saw that Jin Qian was still standing alone on the ground outside the courtyard, bowing his head and tearing something.

Zhan Zhao was about to remind him, but saw that Jin Qian tore off two skirts from the hem, jumped onto the roof, walked to Zhan Zhao's side, and handed a piece of skirt to Zhan Zhao.

Zhan Zhao took the lapel, looked straight at Jin Qian, his sword eyebrows slightly lowered.

Seeing Zhan Zhao looking at him, Jin Qian felt helpless and thought: Is this cat being stupid in Gongmen?Now that we have come to this "Ruanhongtang" to do night raids, it is clear that we are looking for the bad luck of the great uncle of the dynasty. The appearance of this cat is unforgettable. If we miss it, it will not implicate us modern people. Why don't you quickly cover your face and groom it, so that you won't be caught in the future—tsk, can it be that this cat can only catch thieves, but can't pretend to be a thief? That's all, let's set an example for the cat.

Seeing that Jin Qian's hands were tied tightly to his face, only a pair of eyes were exposed, and he looked around again, then lowered his voice and said, "Lord Zhan, with such a mask, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it."

Zhan Zhao pinched the front of his shirt in his hands, and suddenly he couldn't laugh or cry.Thinking about this Nanxia Zhan Zhao, who has been famous in Jianghu since he was a child, how could he not know the reason why he should cover his face to hide his identity when he visits other houses at night.It's just that he inspected the courtyard on the roof just now, and he didn't find heavy guards, nor did he find any people with high martial arts skills. With his and Jin Qian's lightness kung fu, he will surely be able to retreat, but now look at the expression of this little policeman , seems to think that he does not understand the common sense of the world, and intends to remind him.

Looking at Jin Qian again, his eyes were shining brightly, staring straight at his face, wishing to pull out a layer of skin.

Zhan Zhao had no choice but to cover his face before jumping into the courtyard.Only then did Jin Qian feel relieved, and then followed.

The two of them were like a glimpse, and they walked back and forth in the courtyard not long after.But in this "Ruanhongtang", there are many pavilions and wing rooms. The two searched for a long time, but still found nothing.The two were anxious, and happened to pass by a servant not far ahead, Zhan Zhao's figure flickered, and he got behind the servant, and with a single finger, he immediately stopped his figure.

"Where is Qiu Niang?"

The servant saw a black shadow flashing in front of his eyes, and he was as stiff as a stone. He thought he had encountered a ghost, and was frightened out of his wits. He couldn't even utter a word.

"Brother ghost, what, what Qiuniang, I, I don't know, you can find someone else..."

"Think about it again, it's Huang Dahu's wife, Huang Shi Qiuniang."

The servant was stunned when he heard this, and thought: Why is this ghost's tone so warm now?Most likely it is not an evil ghost who came to take his life, but maybe it was just a good ghost who came to look for people.

Thinking of this, the servant became more courageous and cleared up a lot. After being reminded by Zhan Zhao, he recalled it and hurriedly replied, "You are asking about the butcher's wife, right?"

"Exactly."

"She's locked up on the ground floor of the attic over there..."

Zhan Zhao and Jin Qian followed the gazes of the servants, and saw a three-storey attic in the northeast corner of the courtyard, shrouded in moonlight, pitch black and giving off a somewhat gloomy atmosphere.

Zhan Zhao knocked the servant unconscious with one finger, and led Jin Qian to rush to the attic.

The two came to the attic, and saw that there were layers of chains tied to the gate at the bottom of the attic. The situation was very strange.

With his body leaning against the door panel, Zhan Zhao lowered his voice and asked, "Is there anyone inside?"

The door was silent for a long time before I heard a low female voice say: "Go back and tell you Lord Hou, I would rather die than obey, so don't waste your efforts..."

Zhan Zhao slightly raised his voice, and asked again: "The person inside is Huang Dahu's wife, Huang Shi Qiuniang?"

The voice inside the door was silent for a moment, and there was a sound of staggering footsteps from far to near, gradually approaching the door, and heard the woman say: "Who are you? Why do you know my name?"

Zhan Zhao and Jin Qian were overjoyed when they heard that, they saw Zhan Zhao pull out the giant gate, swing it down against the iron chain, a cold light flashed across, and sparks flew everywhere, but the iron chains did not know what kind of material they were made of. After being chopped down by the giant gate that cut iron like mud, it was still intact.

I heard Qiuniang whisper inside the door: "People outside the door, don't worry about it. The Marquis of Anle once said when he added this lock that this chain lock is made of cold iron, unless you have a key , otherwise even if it is a god-given artifact, it cannot be disconnected."

Zhan Zhao frowned, the Ju Que retracted its sheath, paused, and asked again: "Mr. Huang, why are you imprisoned here?"

Suddenly there was a slight weeping sound from inside the door, and Qiuniang choked up and said, "Then An Lehou wanted to get involved with me, but Qiuniang swore to die, that's why he related me here."

"It's simply lawless and reckless!" Zhan Zhao shouted in a muffled voice, wanting to grit his silver teeth.

Jin Qian only felt the murderous aura on his side like a knife's edge, his skin hurt from being shaved, and he thought badly: This cat won't be angry for a while, so he will draw his sword and chop that An Lehou...

Looking at Zhan Zhao again, although his eyes were bloodshot and his face was livid, he didn't make a move. He just stood quietly. You, your husband Huang Dahu was killed by that Zhang Songde?"

The weeping inside the door stopped instantly, and Qiu Niang excitedly said: "Of course not, Dr. Zhang treats my husband for free, and he also gives tonics as a gift. How can such a kind-hearted person harm others?"

"Then who was Huang Dahu killed by?"

"This... I really don't know..."

"Has Huang Dahu ever had any grudges with others?"

"My husband has always been honest and honest, and never enmity with others."

"..." Zhan Zhao remained silent.

Hearing a plop from inside the door, it should be Qiuniang kneeling on the ground.

"This hero, although Qiuniang doesn't know the identity of the hero, but Qiuniang is here to make a mistake. I hope the hero can help Qiuniang wash away her grievances and help Dr. Zhang to redress her grievances. Qiuniang kowtows to you here..."

After saying that, there was a knocking sound from inside the door.

Zhan Zhao sighed and said, "You don't have to be like this, if you two are indeed innocent, you will surely see the light of day again, but at this moment you are deeply trapped in a tiger's den, but it can't save you from the sea of ​​suffering..."

Before he finished speaking, he heard the sound of noisy footsteps in the distance. Zhan and Jin immediately held their breaths and drifted away from the place like two wisps of smoke. In front of the attic, there was a sudden silence.

Not long after, a pair of courtyard guards rushed over, glanced at the iron chain on the door, and then left in peace.

Besides, Zhan and Jin left the "Ruanhongtang" and ran towards the city without touching the ground. After a while, they came to the "Yule Building" where they stayed during the day. Just when they stopped, there were two A figure came out from the shadows and saluted the two of them, "Master Zhan!"

Jin Qian fixed his eyes and saw that it was Zhang Long and Zhao Hu who came.

Zhan Zhao nodded and said, "Two brothers, how is the investigation?"

Zhang Long took a step forward and replied: "My lord, the two of us went to Huang Dahu's house to investigate. Huang Dahu's wife believed that her daughter-in-law had colluded with outsiders and killed her son; and the man testified in the hall, claiming to have seen Zhang Songde and Huang Dahu with his own eyes." The wife of the ambiguous neighbor's family, but for some reason, has always been reluctant to utter a word."

Hearing the words, Zhan Zhao lowered his eyebrows slightly, and asked again, "Can you find physical evidence?"

Zhao Hu stepped forward, lifted a medicine jar, handed it to Zhan Zhao and said, "The bowl containing the medicine has been taken as the prefect of Chenzhou as evidence in court, but we forgot about this medicine jar. We are at Huang Dahu's house. This piece of paper was found in the backyard, and it was found in the grass in the backyard, and there was a medicine store name badge on the outside of the straw paper." After finishing speaking, he took out another scrap of straw paper from his pocket and handed it to Zhan Zhao.

Zhan Zhao took the medicine jar, the toilet paper, frowned even more, looked up and down a few times, then handed it to Jin Qian and said, "Catcher Jin, take a look, is there any clue to follow?"

Jin Qian put the medicine jar under his nose and smelled it carefully, judging from the smell, it was indeed a tonic, then took out the silver needle from the cloth bag in his arms, and tested it in the medicine jar, the silver needle turned black, which was a sign of severe poison; Then I opened the straw paper and looked inside and out. I saw a red seal on the outside of the straw paper, which said "Benevolence Hall", and a little white powder on the inside. After careful identification, it turned out to be arsenic.

"Master Zhan, the medicine dregs left in this medicine pot are indeed tonic ingredients, which are the same as those in the prescription presented by Zhang Fusong, except that there is an extra flavor in it, which is highly poisonous arsenic."

"Then this scrap of paper..."

"There is still a little powder on the straw paper, which is white and tasteless, it is arsenic."

Zhan Zhao lowered his eyes, pondered for a moment, and said, "Jin Qian, take these two pieces of evidence away."

"...Yes." Jin Qian replied.But I complained in my heart: tsk tsk, last time I carried the black basin on my back for several days, and I was half exhausted, and now I have another medicine pot... Could it be that we, a modern person, only went to ancient times to do coolies? !

Zhang Long and Zhao Hu looked at each other.I saw Zhang Long said again: "Master Zhan, on the way to investigate the case, the two of us found that although the main streets of the city were pedestrians as usual, there was no one in the small streets and alleys. It's strange, it seems to be very afraid that I will wait for the entry, and there seems to be something unspeakable."

Zhao Hu also said: "Except for the few restaurants, restaurants, and establishments that start with 'Yule', the rest of the shops are hardly open, and there are no vendors selling food, vegetables and fruits on the street. .”

"Also," Zhang Long continued, "There are dead people in every family. Although there is no publicity, it is true that every family is doing funerals."

The two looked at each other again and said in unison: "Lord Zhan, according to what I see, the drought in Chenzhou is indeed as Mr. Gongsun said."

When Zhan and Jin heard this, they immediately understood.

Zhan Zhao immediately ordered to Zhang Long and Zhao Hu: "Zhang Long, Zhao Hu, you two should set off as soon as the sun breaks, hurry back to Kaifeng, report the case to the adults one by one, and explain the seriousness of the disaster in Chenzhou. , my lord, please hurry up and ask for an order to come to Chenzhou to release food for disaster relief."

"Your subordinates obey!" Zhang Long and Zhao Hu clasped their fists in reply.

Hearing this, Jin Qian was overjoyed and asked: "Master Zhan, when shall we go back to Kaifeng?" He said in his heart: Now it seems that the battle between the Pang family and the Kaifeng mansion is imminent, and it is not suitable to stay here for a long time. I am enlightened, and I know the truth of being wise and protecting one's life.

Zhan Zhao shook his head when he heard the words, "Hurry up Jin, you still want to investigate Zhang Songde's case here with me, how can you go back to Kaifeng?"

Jin Qian was taken aback, and immediately blurted out: "What?"

"The case of Zhang Songde has not been clarified yet, how can I return to Beijing to die? Besides, staying here can also observe the disaster situation and help adults."

"Cough...Master Zhan, this subordinate is willing to exchange with Master Zhang Long and Zhao Hu, let the two masters stay here to help Master Zhan, and report back to Beijing."

"From all over the Kaifeng mansion, only Catcher Jin's lightness skills are comparable to Zhan's. Naturally, he will stay and investigate the case with Zhan."

As soon as this remark came out, Jin Qian only felt that the four angry lights of Zhang Long and Zhao Hu shot directly at his back, like four sharp swords, shooting and killing everyone without mercy.

Jin Qian shivered all over his body, he was about to say something vague, but he heard Zhan Zhao slowly shaking his head and said: "Besides, the policeman Jin doesn't know how to ride a horse, how can such an urgent matter be entrusted to you?"

The four sharp swords immediately dissipated, replaced by four complacent gazes.

Jin Qian was speechless, mumbling for a long time without answering, he could only watch Zhang Long and Zhao Hu look at him provocatively, and walked towards the city gate beamingly.

Zhan Zhao saw the two leave, and wanted to visit the mansion again, but when he turned his eyes, he saw Jin Qian's face was tired, and his eyes turned white. Thinking about how tired he was all day today, he hadn't rested yet. I'm so thin, I'm afraid it's hard to support, and seeing that the sky is already slightly pale, I made up my mind and led Jinqian to "Yule Inn" to rest for half a day.

Unexpectedly, when they came to the inn, the two people realized that the room price of this inn was astonishingly expensive. The money on their bodies, after the necessary expenses, was enough to rent a room.Zhan Zhao had no choice but to ask for a bedroom for the two of them.Although Jin Qian felt that something was wrong, but he was tired and sleepy, and thought that the cat was an honest and good cat, so there must be no mistakes, so he didn't raise any objections.

But when he entered the room and saw the only wooden bed in the room, Jin Qian's heart immediately rang an alarm.

Looking at Nan Xia Zhan Zhao next to him, although he is also dressed in the dust, he does not lose his elegance at all. He is tall and tall, with broad shoulders and narrow waist, bathed in the warm morning light, like a jade tree in Qiong Yao, handsome and handsome.

Jin Qian subconsciously swallowed a mouthful of saliva, thinking: To be in the same room with such a beauty, tsk tsk—it really challenges our concentration...

Zhan Zhao walked to the bed, took off his coat quickly, but he didn't see Jin Qian, he turned his head and saw this little policeman with straight eyes, his mind wandering away.

Zhan Zhao thought that Jin Qian was in awe of his status as a fourth-rank guard, and seeing his strange expression, he couldn't help but feel a little funny, so he smiled and said, "Jin Qian, don't be too confinement, you have to investigate the case in the afternoon, so you should rest earlier."

Jin Qian only felt a trance in front of his eyes, Zhan Zhao's smile was like a spring breeze blowing on his face, which instantly revived his literary cells that had been sleeping for many years: looking back, smiling, Bai Meisheng, Liugong Fendai colorless...

There was a rush of blood in his head, Jin Qian's feet collapsed for a while, he hurriedly squinted his eyes slightly, turned his gaze to the wooden bed, went straight forward, and lay down on the bed with his clothes on.

Zhan Zhao shook his head helplessly, and also lay down on the bed.

A burst of green grass fragrance burst into Jinqian's mouth and nose.

At this time, Jinqian was looking at the nose with the eyes, the mouth with the nose, and the heart with the mouth, without squinting. He secretly said in his heart: form is not different from emptiness, emptiness is not different from form, form is emptiness, emptiness is form, with a knife on the word "color", sleep ,sleep……

I don't know if that sentence worked, but within half a cup of tea, Jin Qian had already fallen asleep.

But Zhan Zhao is tossing and turning, unable to sleep peacefully.There are many doubts about the case of Zhang Songde in my mind, and I am worried about the drought in Chenzhou, the food and clothing of the people, and thinking of Lord Bao asking for disaster relief, my mind is full of thoughts and chaos.

Suddenly he heard thunder in his ears, he was startled, turned his head and saw that it was Jin Qian's snoring.

Jinqian didn't have a good rest for several days during his trip to Chenzhou. Now his head was on the pillow and his body was on the bed, and he fell into a deep sleep.

Although Jin Qian could be woken up, but seeing him sleeping so soundly, Zhan Zhao couldn't bear to disturb him, so he had to get up and think about the case at ease.

But at a glance, he saw that Jin Qian's arm was hanging outside the bedding, fearing that Jin Qian would catch cold, Zhan Zhao reached out and grabbed Jin Qian's wrist, intending to put him back on the bedding.

But when he touched that slender arm just now, Zhan Zhao was stunned.

Although I used to think that Jin Qian's body was a little thinner than ordinary people, but I just thought that he was still young, coupled with the fact that he lived in no fixed place all year round and had irregular diet, but when he touched Jin Qian's arm at this time, he found that His skin is soft, his bones are thin and thin, like a woman's arm, holding it in the palm of his hand makes people's hearts tremble unexpectedly.

But look at that Jin Qian's sleeping face, half-spoken, snoring continuously, there is no half-female appearance.

Zhan Zhao glanced at the slender wrist in his palm, smiled wryly, and thought: It seems that I am indeed too tired to have such a ridiculous idea.

Thinking of this, Zhan Zhao put Jin Qian back in the quilt room, and lay down on his own, secretly concentrating on his mind, and after a while, he also fell into a deep sleep amidst the snoring.

This sleep, I slept until the evening of that day.