Chapter 014 The mantis stalks the cicada
That night, Zhao Xin and Xu Kaixian, who were responsible for collecting information, entered Qianhu Station one after another, and Han Shizhong, who went to Jiangning, also returned to Xuanwu Lane before the city gate closed.
Chen Cao stared at the people in the hall: "Han Shizhong, you speak first."
Han Shizhong clasped his fists and said: "Your Excellency, my subordinates quickly went to Jiangning. As a Jinyiwei, I went directly to the county government to inquire about the county magistrate. Then they searched the home of the deceased Zhang Liang. Zhang Liang had been studying in the Imperial College, and his family sent A slave took care of his food and lodging in the city. On the night of the incident, Zhang Liang returned to Jiangning. Many people at home and the slaves confirmed that his left eye was bruised and he complained of pain in his right chest. He did not seek medical treatment. Early the next morning The slave who brought the food found him dead on the bed."
Then he took out a large roll of rice paper from his bag and said, "This is their testimony, it has been signed."
"What did Jiangning County say?" Chen Cao looked at the confession and asked.
"Jianning County conducted an autopsy and concluded that the deceased died of internal bleeding caused by a broken sternum. I found a lot of letters in the deceased's study. My subordinates thought they might be of some use, so I seized them all and brought them back." Han Shizhong said and asked his subordinates to bring them back. The school captain brought in a large bag of things, which were all items from Zhang Liang's study.
"Where is the servant responsible for his daily life?" Chen Cao raised his head and asked.
"My lord, I didn't find any slave in his house. I also asked about it. The slave disappeared on the night of the incident." Han Shizhong cupped his hands and said.
Chen Cao knocked on the desk, then stared at Zhao Xin and said: "Launch the Tiqi, and from now on, we will look for Zhang Liang's slave. I estimate that he is the key figure in this case."
"Sir, my subordinates inquired at Zuixiang Building and learned that Mr. Song did have an argument with the deceased that night, and then they got into a fight. A familiar figure quietly told me that the cause of the incident seemed to be that the deceased insulted Mr. Song first. The family members of the family, and then there was a fight." Xin Zhao replied.
Chen Cao chuckled, and then asked: "Did you go to your sweetheart's place for prostitution while investigating the case?"
Xin Zhao laughed awkwardly and then touched his head with his hand. Xu Kai looked at Xin Zhao jokingly and shook his head, then said seriously: "Sir, all the evidence points directly to Song Zongqi, but my subordinates also asked Tiqi from around Zuixiang Building to investigate him. There will be no news about that slave until tomorrow at the earliest."
Chen Cao nodded, then ignored everyone and began to read Zhang Liang's letters brought back by Han Shizhong to see if he could find some answers in them.
Jinyiwei has guarding thousands of households in thirteen provinces. There are also many Jinyiwei agents in each provincial government-level agency. Yingtian Mansion is in Nanjing, so Jinyiwei agents are naturally indispensable. There are Jinyiwei agents in every yamen in Nanjing. , one is responsible for inquiring about information, and the other is to monitor whether these officials and generals have any intentions or actions against corruption.
Today is the trial of Song Che's murder case in Yingtian Mansion. The presiding judge is Huang Chengxian, the general judge of Yingtian Mansion. Just like the trial of Chen Cao at that time, for the sake of fairness, Liao Wen, an experienced officer from the Beicheng Army and Horses Division, was invited to attend, along with Jiangning County. In order to avoid suspicion, Chen Cao did not come in person, including the envoy and other officials involved. Instead, he sent Han Shizhong, the chief flag officer, to come and listen to the case.
After all the characters arrived, Huang Cheng was shocked and summoned Song Che to the court.
Song Che had a military status, and the prison did not dare to torture him in private, so when he appeared, he was as unscathed as when he met Chen Cao.
"Song Che, you are a member of the military. Today, you don't have to kneel down when you are in court. You can answer while standing." Huang Cheng spoke first, then stared at Zhang Liang's wife who was kneeling in the hall and asked: "Ms. Zhang Chen, I am the official Now that the court is about to begin, you first introduce yourself to your family, what is your relationship with the deceased Zhang Liang?"
Mrs. Zhang and Chen cried and said, "I would like to inform you all, my surname is Chen, a native of Jiangning, and Zhang Liang is my husband."
"What grievances you have, tell me carefully."
Mrs. Zhang Chen wiped her tears with an embroidered handkerchief and said: "Returning to your lords, my husband is a scholar and has been studying hard in the Nanjing Imperial College. However, he suddenly returned to his home in Jiangning from Nanjing last night, and when he came back, his face was still wet. Bruises, my husband didn’t mention the reason, so he went back to his room to sleep. When the woman got up this morning, she found... she found...my husband had passed away. Ah..."
After explaining the main process, Huang Chengxian turned to look at the Jiangning County magistrate sitting aside and asked: "How did your county deal with it?"
The envoy stood up and cupped his hands towards Huang Chengxian: "My lord, after receiving the report from the mistress, the official took Wu Zuo and others to Zhang's house for inspection. After Wu Zuo carefully checked, it was found that Zhang Liang died of internal bleeding caused by a broken sternum."
"Jiang Ning's work, but is there something wrong?" Huang Chengxian asked seriously.
"My lord, my family has passed down the autopsy for many years, but it is still my fault. If you don't believe me, I can ask the widow of Yingtian Mansion to do another autopsy."
Huang Cheng nodded first, and then asked Zhang Chen, "Zhang Chen, I want to ask you, who sent Zhang Liang home?"
Mrs. Zhang Chen raised her head and said, "My lord, the person who sent your husband back is his personal servant."
"Where is that man?"
Zhang Chen thought about it carefully and shook her head: "He disappeared the next day. He must have been frightened and went home."
"Okay, Song Che, I want to ask you, did you have a fight with Zhang Liang that night?"
Seeing that Huang Cheng asked himself first, Song Che nodded, and then said angrily: "As you all know in Dingjiao, I took my subordinates to Zuixiang Building to collect the cases that night. When I was about to go out, Zhang Liang suddenly shouted insults at me, and his words affected my deceased family. I carefully recalled my parents and other female relatives in my family, and I have never had any interactions or enmity with them in my life, and he did not look like he was drunk at the time. He was so angry that he made a move, and at that time..."
"Okay," Huang Chengxian waved his hand and said, "Just admit that you did it. This case is actually very simple. The two of you had a private fight. You were born in the military. Zhang Liang is a scholar who has no power to restrain a chicken. Naturally. It’s not your opponent. Because of your mistake, the opponent will bleed to death later.”
"Sir, I did punch him at that time, but the force was only enough to hurt him. He would never have died. I didn't kill him." Song Che immediately retorted after hearing Huang Chengxian's words.
In fact, according to Huang Chengxian's statement, Song Che's crime was negligent causing death. According to the Ming Dynasty Law, he was just exiled. With his status in the military, he was 100% exiled to Liaodong or northwest and other places to guard the border. In this situation It's just that I went to live in another place in disguise.
But this result was a big blow to Song Che.
Snapped...
With a bang, Huang Chengxian was heard to say: "Case closed. Song Che, the general flag officer of the Wucheng Army and Horses Division, was negligent and caused death. According to the law, he was dismissed from his post and exiled for three thousand miles. He was assigned to guard the border in Liaodong. Although Zhang Liang, the deceased in this case, was A student at the Imperial College, he got into a fight with Song Che and insulted him verbally. The testimonies of all parties showed that he intended to take revenge afterwards. Although he died, he was not innocent. Song Che was ordered to pay the Zhang family two hundred taels of pension silver. All parties Draw a pledge..."
"Lord Liao, I was wronged because I was wronged. I didn't treat him so harshly..." Song Che shouted.
Liao Wen didn't look embarrassed. The Beicheng Military and Horse Department also made a lot of inquiries around, and all the information they got was unfavorable to Song Che. It's good that Song Che can get this verdict today. At worst, he will have to fight for a few more years until the emperor's wedding. Amnesty can return to Nanjing again.
After Liao Wen shook his head gently at Song Che, he led the people out of the government office, while Han Shizhong immediately headed towards Xuanwu Alley. Song Che's face was ashen, and he was pulled back to the prison by the government officials.
In the lobby of the Qianhu Institute in Xuanwu Lane, Chen Cao was sitting upright, listening to Han Shizhong's report: "Sir, it is a good thing that Song Zongqi was sentenced like this. If the Imperial College of Nanjing had a request, I am afraid that Song Zongqi would have to die for his life before he would agree. Give it up. Now I am exiled to guard the border in Liaodong, where there are Tatars. If I have performed meritorious deeds, I can still make up for it and return to Nanjing."
Chen Cao listened quietly, tapping his right hand habitually on the desk. His past fishing experience told him that if you want the fish to take the bait, you must learn to wait. However, now: "Let me ask you, do you think the Imperial Academy Company Didn’t you even send anyone to observe?”
Han Shizhong nodded: "It's your lord. The only people who went there were those from the Beicheng Military and Horse Division and the envoys from Jiangning County. No officials from the Nanjing Imperial College came."
The word "unscientific" came to Chen Cao's mind. Zhang Liang was a student of the Imperial College. When something happened, the Imperial College didn't even send a professor to observe.
"Sir," Han Shizhong interrupted Chen Cao's thoughts: "Maybe the Imperial College thinks that Zhang Liang died in the wrong place."
"Sir," Xin Zhao quickly walked into the lobby: "Sir, my subordinate personally went to Jiangning, intimidated the local Qingpi, and then arrested a few more. From it, I got a piece of news. Zhang Liang's slave is named Zhang Qi. He is a servant who sold himself to the Zhang family, and Zhang Qi has a son named Zhang Shishi."
Chen Cao raised his head: "What a good guy, you actually named your son Shishi. Are you sure the name is correct?"
Zhao Xin smiled when he heard this, and then said: "My subordinate is not mistaken, his name is indeed Zhang Shishi. This guy is a gambler. He borrowed loan sharks from these green men at high interest rates. However, Zhang Shishi paid off the loan sharks yesterday. I feel that Something was fishy, so I went to Zhang Qi’s home to investigate, but unknown to you, the entire Zhang family was missing.”
Bang...
Chen Cao slapped the table: "There is indeed something wrong with this guy. Zhao Xin, you did a good job."
"I would like to thank you for your compliment."
"Did you find out where Zhang Qi's family went?" Chen Cao asked.
Xin Zhao shook his head: "My subordinates have asked the local Tiqi to investigate, and they have also strictly ordered those Qingpi to tell the local Tiqi once they get the news. Since they have disappeared, they should not show up so soon. My lord, is it possible that Zhang Qi is involved in the case? ?”
More than implicated...
Chen Cao already knew in his heart that Song Che's case has been closed and the file has been sent to the Nanjing Criminal Department. After review, it will be sent to the Capital Criminal Department for files. But if Song Che wants to return to Nanjing, he still has to find Zhang Qi and overturn Huang Chengxian's case. Only by passing the verdict can Song Che be rescued, and now, there is no need to rush much.
"Leave it to Han Shizhong to find the whereabouts of Zhang Qi's family. Remember, this is a big deal and must be done well."
Things ended here, Chen Cao went straight to the Song family. Song Yin couldn't help crying after learning what happened to her eldest brother Song Che. But now even Chen Cao has no good solution, because the evidence points to Song Che, the key figure. Zhang Qi's family is also missing. If you want to reverse the case, as before, you must find Zhang Qi to know whether Song Che was unjustly accused.
What's more, Song Che himself has always made it clear that he didn't do anything serious and Zhang Liang couldn't die, so Zhang Qi, who sent him back in the whole matter, must know everything.
"Brother YCIS, what should we do now..." Song Yin cried.
Chen Cao hated seeing a woman cry the most, and she was such a good-looking woman, so he patted her shoulder and said: "Don't worry, I will overturn Shi Xiu's case sooner or later, but now the case has been closed, and the file has been sent to the capital. Ministry of Punishment, Shi Xiu can only go to Liaodong, what I can do is send someone to follow the escort all the way there to prevent him from suffering on the road."
Song Che was escorted to Liaodong three days later. Before leaving, Chen Cao saw him off and specifically asked Chen Cao to take care of his little sister Song Yin. So Chen Cao generously said that he would take Song Yin to the Chen family for better care.
Song Che had no objection. The two of them had a close relationship. Even if Chen Cao took Song Yin under his wing, it would be better than following his useless big brother.
"Shi Xiu, please keep these thousand taels of silver notes. Liaodong is no better than Nanjing. In addition, these scattered silver coins will be used on the road. Take care of them along the way. I will definitely help you reverse the case." Chen Cao said and handed the baggage handed over by Zhao Xin to Song Dynasty. Che's hand.
"Yozhong, take your time with the case. As long as you remember that I was wrongly accused, it will be fine. Also, I leave my little sister to you."
...
Landlords in the Ming Dynasty enclosed land and sealed villages, and they liked to call themselves such-and-such Yuanwai or such-and-such Master. Of course, those who called themselves Yuanwai had to be real officials. Landlords like Chen Cao also moved surrounding tenants to A large village formed around his residence, and then its name was changed to 'Chenjiazhuang'.
The so-called aristocratic families often evolve slowly like this. Of course, around Nanjing, there are countless Zhuangzi like Chenjiazhuang, and Chen Cao's Zhuangzi is already a small household compared to Nanjing's landlords.
In Chen's house today, there are two female relatives, Chen Qing and Li Fengchun. Song Yin lived in the same house with Chen Qing after arriving at Chen's house. The backyard steward Xiaolan, four maids and twelve beautiful slaves, Chen Cao carefully I looked around and found that most of these maids and slaves were around fourteen or fifteen years old.
"Brother, where did you buy these people?"
At the end of Wanli Dynasty, a drought occurred in the Shaanxi-Gansu region, and refugees from both places poured into the two capitals. Yaxing dealers took in these young women, and after they were enthroned and registered in the government, they were included in the lowly register, and then they were resold by the government and privately.
Slaves and maids are two different things. In terms of Chen Cao's lecherousness, both could be married, but maids were usually from good families and were sold to the master's family. When they reached a certain age, they had to be returned to the maid's family just like palace maids, while slaves were It was different. The slaves were all from humble backgrounds. After being sold into the master's family, they became the master's family. It was not a problem to kill them at will, and the government would not interfere.
This is equivalent to the harem system. Xiaolan is the steward of the entire backyard, even though she comes from a humble background, then she is a maid, and finally a slave.
Chen Cao also bought some slaves and servants, all of whom were refugees. If he bought one, he would give it to a whole family. Ten slaves equaled ten families. Chen Cao placed them at the entrance of Zhuangzi.
Today is a good day. Chen Cao is having a concubine. Marrying a wife is different from keeping a concubine. Marrying a wife requires three matchmaking and six certificates, registration with the government, and a big banquet. But taking a concubine is simple. Just set up a few tables and invite some relatives and friends. , there is no need to even carry a sedan chair, let alone go to the government to register. In the Ming Dynasty, there were countless cases where a concubine was beaten to death by the families of landlords, wealthy businessmen and officials.
The Jinyiwei system came to seven or eight tables, basically in charge of each hundred households, trial hundred households, and individual general banner officials in the Qianhu Station. Of course, Xu Xianchun, the town governor, and Zhang Yanzong, the nominal governor of Nanzhen Fusi, also sent People sent congratulatory gifts, and together with some officials from the Five Cities Military and Horse Department, the entire banquet was set up with nearly twenty tables.
"Sir, the steward of Duke Wei's Mansion has sent a congratulatory gift." Xu Kaixian was in charge of welcoming guests at the gate and walked into the courtyard to inform Chen Cao.
Chen Cao didn't dare to neglect, even if he was just a housekeeper, it was something Chen Cao couldn't afford to offend, so he hurried out to greet him. The person who came was the housekeeper Wei Zhong, who sent a carriage of congratulatory gifts. After handing the gift list to Chen Cao, he handed it over. Go, Chen Cao sent him a long way before turning back.
In the new house, Li Fengchun, wearing a pink hijab and pink Jifu, sat on the edge of the bed until Chen Cao entered the house after drinking.
Although he was not dressed in bright red, Li Fengchun was happy from the bottom of his heart. His husband-in-law was a great talent and an official of the Imperial Guard. Li Fengchun couldn't help but tremble when he thought of this.
"Are you crying?" Chen Cao opened his hijab. He didn't see Li Fengchun crying, so he smiled and said, "Why are you shaking? But you have a cold?"
Li Fengchun raised his head, his brows and eyes staring at Chen Cao, which shone even more impressively under the candlelight. After enduring it for so long, Chen Cao became impatient. He tore open Li Fengchun's Jifu, revealing a white waistcoat made of silk material. The clothes were thin and moist, and a little transparent. In this era, underwear did not exist, and there was no sagging at all. In this way, Chen Cao's hands were trembling, and he pulled open his waistcoat jacket, and what came into view was It’s Li Fengchun’s red bellyband.
"My lord, I have never been cared for, so please have mercy on me..."
The happiest thing in life is to lie on a woman's belly and sleep in. Whether it's before or after time travel, Chen Cao is like this. When he opens his eyes early in the morning, what catches his eyes is the bright red on the white bed sheets. Then he looks at himself Li Fengchun next to him had fallen asleep with disheveled hair due to seven consecutive expeditions last night, and he has not woken up yet.
However, a servant came to the door and whispered outside the door: "Master, Zhao Baihu is here and waiting in the main hall."
Xin Zhao must have something to do when he came early in the morning. As soon as Chen Cao got up, Li Fengchun opened his eyes, then sat up with difficulty, preparing to dress Chen Cao.
"Okay, you were tired last night, so just lie down and have a good rest. It's not too late to get up after you've had enough sleep." Chen Cao whispered in Li Fengchun's ear, and then reached out and grabbed a handful on Li Fengchun's chest. .
Li Fengchun blushed and nodded, then covered the silk cover and continued.
When Zhao Xin saw Chen Cao walking into the lobby, he quickly stepped forward and saluted: "Your Excellency, the Governor of the Town has come to order you to escort the prisoner to Beijing for trial." Chen Cao rubbed his sleepy eyes: "Who?"
"Lu Hua, commander of the Songjiang Guards of Zhejiang Province." After saying this, he handed the official document to Chen Cao.
"I heard that a group of Japanese pirates landed in Songjiang years ago. Li Rulong, the commander-in-chief of Zhejiang Preparation for Japanese pirates, had already warned of the incoming Japanese pirates. However, Lu Hua did not pay attention at the time. Later, the Japanese pirates attacked the Shimen Preparatory Japanese Thousand Households, and the entire Qianhu No one survived. The Japanese invaders marched straight in and attacked Songjiang City. The entire Songjiang Guard collapsed without a fight. Lu Hua and his men fought to the death all night before the Japanese invaded Songjiang. In the end, Japanese reinforcements from all over Taizhou arrived and the Japanese invaders collapsed. Walk."
Chen Cao listened to Zhao Xin while reading the official document. He almost understood the cause and effect. Then he closed the official document and said, "When will Lu Hua be escorted?"
"Already on the road, five days at most."
The last time Chen Cao left Nanjing was more than three months ago. The weather in Nanjing in April has become much warmer. As the saying goes, the wind and sunshine will not last long. After arranging things at home, Chen Cao personally escorted Songjiang Wei with his men. The commander sent Lu Hua to the capital.
It takes almost eight days to take the canal from Nanjing to Beijing and two days to reach Tianjin from Tianjin. The waterway is easy and taking a boat all the way is much more comfortable than riding a horse.
Eight days later, Chen Cao arrived at Tianjin Wei. He first went to the Commander's Office to submit the official document. Luo Sigong was not in Tianjin, so Chen Cao did not need to pay a visit. Then he took the sealed official document to the capital and handed it over to Beizhen Fusi. His task was forgotten. It's done.
When Chen Cao and his party arrived outside the Chaoyang Gate of the capital, Chen Cao received news that almost made him fall off his horse.
Li Rubai, the commander-in-chief of Liaodong and the commander of the army, Ning Yuanbo, committed suicide in his residence.
"Xin Zhao, hurry up and find out what's going on..."
After Chen Cao finished speaking, he felt a little dazed. Li Rubai could be said to have been deceived by him, but after accidentally killing the bandit leader Mulhaqi, he was the one who was summoned to the capital to offer prisoners and then made up for his fault. Now, Chen Cao couldn't imagine what Li Waner would do to him when he learned that he was here.
Chen Cao first went to Beizhen Fusi to hand over the job, and then went to visit Luo Sigong at his residence. After paying the respect, he praised Luo Sigong before returning to the inn tiredly.
"Sir," Chen Cao walked into the room, and Zhao Xin hurriedly greeted him: "I asked several brothers from Beizhen Fusi. General Li came to Beijing to offer prisoners. His Majesty Longyan Dayue ordered General Li to attack Earl Ningyuan at the right time. A Yanguan wrote a letter mentioning General Li's army's defeat in Liaodong. Later, with the help of former Prime Minister Fang Congzhe, he got rid of Yanguan's involvement, but...
Just at the beginning of the month, Yuan Yingtai, the new Liaodong economic strategist, wrote a letter stating that the Battle of Baitapu had nothing to do with Li Rubai, but was the result of the then flag officer of Jinyiwei, that is, your Excellency. He also said that it was Li Rubai who forced you to take credit. There is the testimony of Shenyang Jinyiwei. "
hiss...
"What do they want to do?" Chen Cao thought silently.
Zhao Xin heard this and continued: "After that, the imperial censor began to write letters to impeach General Li for the defeat of Liaodong. Fifteen days later, that is, the day before yesterday, General Li committed suicide in his residence."
Zhao Xin saw that Chen Cao was silent, so he whispered: "My lord, I heard from the Han generals on duty at the Qianqing Palace that the Holy Emperor was very sorry for the death of General Li, and I heard that he would be granted a posthumous title."
Chasing?
Chen Cao smiled helplessly. Any pursuit of titles was because the ministers in the imperial court were afraid of the betrayal of the Li family in Shenyang. Otherwise, there would be no pursuit of titles: "The Donglin Party is terrible..."
