At the same time, Cen Yong was also sighing in the county government office and drinking to drown his sorrows.
County Magistrate Li Ang was imprisoned, and the county government office naturally became his residence. When he met Han Du, Cen Yong tried his best to free up the county government office for Han Du and let him live in the house. But Han Du could see at a glance that he couldn't hide the reluctance on his face, and he just rejected Cen Yong for his own convenience.
In this banquet tonight, he was the most disappointed person. When the emperor appointed him as an imperial envoy, he was so high-spirited and had such a promising future.
Just when Cen Yong thought that he had handled the matter beautifully and imagined that the Emperor would be delighted after returning to the capital, and that he would rise to the top and become a high-ranking official and could afford to sit on a horse.
The news that another imperial envoy was sent from the capital by the emperor shattered his dream into pieces.
His case was thoroughly investigated, and the causes and consequences were written down on the notebook and presented to the emperor. As a result, the emperor said nothing to him and directly sent another imperial envoy.
What it means is already obvious. It was because the emperor felt that he had failed to handle matters well and had failed to live up to his divine grace.
Cen Yong never imagined that he would only get this result after working hard in Liyang County for a whole month. And in his opinion, this case is very clear, it is the county magistrate Li Ang who extorted money from the people. Even Li Ang confessed, what else would require the emperor to send another imperial envoy?
Although he didn't know what the emperor was thinking, Cen Yong knew that he was finished. His ideals, his ambitions, his dream of rising to prominence, his whole life... everything came to an end the moment the imperial envoy arrived.
...
Han Du didn't care what others were plotting, nor did he care who was frustrated and troubled. Instead, he was thinking about what he should do now.
The next day, Han Du directly ordered no one to visit on the grounds of being drunk.
Now I am eager to visit Han Du, or to test Han Du's reality, and these people happened to be the ones who helped Han Du last night.
You invited me to the banquet, and you persuaded me to drink. Now that I've gotten myself drunk, why don't you allow me to take a day off? This reason is so apt and perfect.
Han Du shook off those clingy flies and took Li Jizu on the road to find Jiang Shi. Jiang was actually a person who was secretly placed in the local area by resigning from old age and returning to his hometown. As long as he is found, he will definitely know what is going on in Liyang County.
Han Du, Li Jizu, and two soldiers, disguised themselves and went out quietly before those people arrived. However, he did not choose to leave the city immediately. There were very few people leaving the city in the morning. Going out now would be too eye-catching and could not be hidden from the eyes of local snakes.
Han Du waited until the people outside the city entered the city first and then left, then blended in with the crowd and left quietly.
I asked while walking, but fortunately, Jiangjia Village was more than ten miles away from the county seat, and Han Du and his party found it quickly.
"Is Jiangjia Village in front of me? Why does it look so depressed?" Han Du was a little confused.
It stands to reason that this place is not far from the county seat. Even if it gets a little glory from the county seat, it should not be so depressed. Liyang is an upper county, but the scene in this village now is worse than that of the lower county, and it is full of desolation.
Li Jizu took a look and sighed, "Yes, this place is not even as good as our hometown. Our hometown is dozens of miles away from the county seat, and it is still in the lower county. Lord Marquis, is there something wrong here?"
"Humph~" Han Du sneered with a cold light in his eyes, "Go find someone first and ask what's going on."
Han Du led Li Jizu and others towards the village. When they reached the village, they saw an old man with gray hair sitting on a stone under a big tree to rest.
Han Du stepped forward with a smile and asked softly: "Old man."
After shouting, the old man didn't respond. Han Du had to raise his voice and shouted again, "Old man!"
The old man's eyes trembled slightly, and then he opened his eyes. When he saw the people in front of him, he quickly came back to his senses and said, "How many of you, how many distinguished guests are here?"
Han Du quickly took a step back and explained with a smile: "Don't be afraid, old man. We are merchants passing by. Seeing the old man resting here, we came to ask for directions. Please forgive me for disturbing you."
"Oh, that's it. Ask for directions. Tell the little old man where your distinguished guest wants to go. As long as the little old man knows, the little old man will not dare to hide anything." The old man slowly sat up straight. He straightened his body, arched his back and said to Han Du.
Seeing that the atmosphere had calmed down, Han Du took the initiative to pause and look at the old man's level in order to avoid the trouble of the old man raising his head. Asked: "I am going to Jiangjia Village, but I don't know how to get there. I wonder if the old man can help me and show me the way?"
Unexpectedly, when the old man heard that Han Du was looking for Jiangjiacun, his expression suddenly changed. The kindness and enthusiasm just now disappeared, and he faced everyone with a cold and gloomy face.
"You are not merchants at all."
The doubtful statement must be the tone.
Han Du immediately knew that the old man was not doubting him, but was sure that he and others were not merchants.
"How can I see it?"
The old man sneered disdainfully, "Jiangjia Village is so poor that there are not even a few hairs on the tails of mice. If you are merchants, you make money by buying goods. There is nothing in Jiangjia Village that is worthy of your special trip. "
Han Du didn't feel any embarrassment after his lie was exposed. Instead, he raised his head and laughed twice, then looked at the old man and said, "Businessmen don't necessarily have to buy goods, they can also find people."
"Who are you looking for?" The old man became more alert.
Seeing the old man's attitude, Han Du immediately understood that he was on the right track. This was Jiangjia Village.
He smiled and said, "Jiang Shi, do you know the old man?"
The old man's expression changed again and again, and after a while he uttered, "I don't know him."
"Old man, it's meaningless to say this." Han Du stared at him with a smile on his face, "The old man can test my identity, can't I still detect whether what the old man said is true or false? This should be Jiangjia Village, right? And old man, you also know Jiang Shi, right?"
After Han Du revealed his thoughts, the old man's face became more and more gloomy.
Han Du didn't want to irritate him anymore for the sake of his age. Then he smiled and said sincerely: "Don't worry, old man, we are good people. We are just looking for Jiang Shi to ask him something."
"Good person? Do you have the word "good person" written on your face?" The old man sneered at Han Du's words and said with a sneer. He knows people but not their hearts. The old man has suffered more losses in his life than others have crossed. How can he trust others so easily?
If it weren't for the fact that these people were dressed unusually and couldn't be easily offended, he would have called people to drive them away.
Han Du was not angry, but smiled and said, "Old man, we are Jiang Shi's friends. You'd better tell us where Jiang Shi is."
"Friends?" The old man glanced at Han Du with contempt, his expression seemed to say, you are a friend if you open your mouth and keep silent, are you lying?
He said with great disdain: "These days, anyone dares to pretend to be a friend. You said you are Jiang Shi's friend, who can testify for you?"
Damn it... If Han Du hadn't seen this bad old man because he was too old, he would have really wanted to punch him in the eye. I don’t know Jiang Shi, how can I prove that I am his friend? Besides, I was unfamiliar with this place in the wilderness, who could testify for me?
At this time, one of the two soldiers from Genlai secretly tugged on Li Jizu's lapel.
Li Jizu turned around, but the soldier gave him a look that had something to say.
Li Jizu pondered for a moment and nodded immediately.
The soldier stood up and said to the old man: "Jiang Shi and we are brothers who stir the food in the same pot. He is nineteen years old this year. When he left home, his parents were still here, and he still has a younger brother and a younger sister."
Han Du didn't pay attention to the soldier's sudden words. Instead, he folded his hands to see what the old man said.
The old man glanced at the soldier in surprise, and after pondering for a moment, he said, "What you said is correct, but it is not difficult to find out the information if you inquire carefully."
In fact, after the old man heard what the soldier said, he already believed it. It was more than ten years ago that Jiang Shi left home to join the army. This information was not as easy to find out as he said. If it hadn't come from Jiang Shi's mouth, no one else might know it unless they were the old people in Jiangjia Village.
When the soldier saw that the old man was still refusing to let go, he added, "His nickname is Shidun."
When the old man heard these two words, his whole body was shocked. Even among the villagers, many people have long forgotten Jiang Shi’s nickname. After all, as long as there are children in the village, they will scream pebbles and pebbles. Who would remember an ordinary person who has been away from home for more than ten years? What about the person’s nickname?
The old man remembered it because Jiang Shi was his nephew and close relative. Hearing the soldiers say Jiang Shi's nickname, the old man no longer had any doubts. These people indeed knew Jiang Shi.
The old man looked at Han Du carefully for a long time. He couldn't see any malice on Han Du's smiling face, so he couldn't help but fell silent.
After a while, the old man asked: "Who are you?"
Han Du then smiled and pointed at the soldiers and said, "Didn't he just say that we are friends of Jiang Shi in the army, so naturally we are members of the army."
"It turns out he's a general in the army. I'm sorry, little old man." Only then did a smile appear on the old man's face, and he stood up and bowed to Han Du.
Han Du accepted the old man's courtesy without hesitation and did not shy away from the old man because of his age. The others also acted as if it was a matter of course, thinking that as the Marquis, they were qualified enough to receive this gift.
The old man bowed, originally wanting to test Han Du's identity. But he didn't expect that Han Du actually accepted him. Is this really a general?
But how is this possible?
