Yongtai 21st year, spring, Shanghai County.
After several months, Sun Yixie and Huang Donglai finally returned to the place where they started and returned to Dashu's arms.
And Zhao Yi, the commander-in-chief of Jinyiwei who stayed here as the liaison with Eunuch Wei, had already been prepared to meet them.
Dear friends, please note that it is "response", not "receive the wind".
Although according to human nature, Shuanghe and Eunuch Wei went overseas for such a long time and finally returned from their mission. Whether it was Zhao Zongqi on behalf of the official or an individual, it would be a good idea to give them a welcome, even to host a banquet. It should be...
However, we also know that this mission is not fundamentally about showing off; it would already be quite shameful if the national treasure in the palace was stolen by the Japanese mission. If the news is leaked, What should we do if some criminals think that your security in the Forbidden City is just like that, and then they start to have other ideas? Furthermore, the consequences of the theft were not solved through diplomatic means, but the national treasure was recovered by two men in the world... What kind of statement is this? Could it be that our country, the Heavenly Kingdom, has no deterrent effect on these barbarians? Will even a stolen antique be returned? And is there no one in the imperial court itself? Need help from outsiders?
Also, even if you want to eat, drink and have fun, the most I can do is arrange it for you before departure. Now that you have all returned, and the Xuanlong Bi is already in hand, you have to deal with these extraneous things... What if things are lost again? The crime of losing this national treasure from you for the second time is greater than not finding it in the first place.
After my analysis, I think you readers will understand that it is impossible to expect General Zhao Qi to arrange a banquet for Sun and Huang. Even in this "reception", the focus is not on these two people. , but the Xilong Bi.
Don't think it's unkind. Serving the emperor is like this most of the time. As long as you complete the task in the end, everything else is easy to talk about. You can make up any story you want, and the reward is absolutely indispensable; but if you don't get the things back , that is "failure to fulfill the emperor's mandate". This "failure" alone is enough to punish you. As for how much effort you put in and how many objective difficulties you encountered in the process, you can't say more. significance.
Mr. Zhao Qi and Eunuch Wei are both old spies of the imperial court. Naturally, they know these truths clearly. They did not follow Shuang Xie Zheng's empty talk. After the meeting, they directly pointed out the above-mentioned methods to Sun and Huang. I don't think you two should be surprised. If you want to really relax, wait until you return to Beijing and recover.
After hearing this, Sun and Huang discussed it for a while, and then they both thought: How about we hand over the things to the father-in-law and the general flag here, and we won't go to the capital.
Of course, they definitely didn't say this because there was no one to pick up on them after they came back and they were angry with the court. They just felt that it was not worth it to continue going north.
From their perspective, this account is actually easy to calculate:
First, the emperor issued the order to retrieve the Xuan Long Bi at the end of last autumn. The past six months have almost passed, and his initial anger must have dissipated, and if he calms down and thinks about it, the matter itself is indeed not a big deal. It's a big deal, so it's very possible... The emperor had already forgotten about this matter at this time. If Sun Huang goes to return to his life now, he won't get a warm reception.
Secondly, as we have mentioned in detail before, the rewards Shuangxi received in the "Thirteen Dead Animals" incident are almost over for them. Rewarding them with other things is of little significance and may even become a burden. , so even if the emperor was really enthusiastic about rewarding them in the end, the result would be new problems.
Third, the routines in the Central Plains are too deep, and the journey north is not short; this kind of escort mission is not only tiring physically, but also mentally tiring. Eunuch Wei and Mr. Zhao are members of the imperial court, so they have to do it whether they do it or not, but both of them Why should Xie suffer the consequences again for some rewards that he doesn't want? It's better to entrust the things to Eunuch Wei and General Zhao Qi here, and use this as a favor.
So, after Sun Huang finished discussing it himself, he went to Wei and Zhao to express his idea.
When Wei Qian and Zhao Yi first heard their request, they originally refused to agree. After all, the emperor's order was for Shuang Xie to retrieve the Xuan Long Bi, and Wei and Zhao only worked as logistics for Sun Huang.
But then Shuangxi settled the accounts for them and told them about the "response" they had planned. The thoughts of Zongqi and the father-in-law changed...
Especially General Zhao, he thought to himself: What these two boys said makes sense. It has been so long, and His Majesty is busy with everything, and I am afraid he has long forgotten the specific order he gave. Even if he still remembers it, as long as Xi The dragon bi was finally returned successfully, and His Majesty must have been happy. Then we followed what these two boys said, "The two young heroes claimed that they were from the world, and it was inconvenient for them to enter the palace many times. In addition, they were indifferent to fame and fortune, and were unwilling to He was rewarded again, so he begged his subordinates to report back to His Majesty on his behalf and hope for forgiveness." If this rhetoric of retreating in order to advance was reported, His Majesty would not be angry, or even very moved. When the time comes, the discussion Aren’t Eunuch Wei and I the only ones to receive the rewards for meritorious deeds?
After the two sides pushed and pulled, Wei and Zhao finally agreed.
After that, Eunuch Wei and General Zhao Qi escorted Xie Longbi all the way back to the capital. The result was indeed as they expected. Zhu Qi, who had long forgotten about the matter, was really a double harmonious person after listening to their reports. "Gao Feng Liang Jie" moved me for a short while, and in this mood, I greatly rewarded Wei and Zhao. Everyone was happy. Of course, that is not what we want to go into detail.
We also said that Sun Yixie and Huang Dong came here and said goodbye to Eunuch Wei and General Zhao Qi the next morning. They took Lao Hu out and started wandering around.
This "Old Hu" was naturally known to Hu Wenzhi, because he had become familiar with Shuangxihuan on the ship, so the latter's name for him changed.
Yesterday, he returned to Dashu with Shuang Xie. Because he was tired from the journey and penniless, he stayed in the hotel room the whole day and night after he got off the ship, and didn't go out very often. Shuang Xie also because He was discussing things with Wei Zhao and had no time to pay attention to him.
But today is different. Sun and Huang are now in a state of peace and quiet. That is because their street slut instincts have come out, and they have to take Lao Hu out to broaden their horizons.
Hu Wenzhi, who returned to his hometown after twenty years, really needs a guide to guide him, otherwise he will be a little uncomfortable with many details and habits of life.
"How's it going? Lao Hu, is there anywhere else you want to go? Just mention it, money doesn't matter."
At noon that day, the three of them had just walked out of a good local restaurant and were still picking their teeth. Sun Yixie was already asking Hu Wenzhi where he was going next.
"Haha, I want to go everywhere, I have seen them all, and they are all new, haha..." Hu Wenzhi followed closely behind, his face full of joy.
As a person who has been well-trained in the strategy and strategy of the city, he actually has not shown this look for many years; in fact, when he had dinner alone in the hotel room last night, it was just because he had eaten the food from the Central Plains for a long time. During the meal, he secretly wiped away a few tears.
Who could know at this moment that behind his simple words "I have seen them all, and they are all new" are the regrets and sorrows left by twenty years of wandering.
"Then why don't you go to the market for a walk? Buy some clothes." Soon, Huang Donglai suggested, "I heard that the local weaving industry is also ranked among the best in the country. We have been here for the past few months. , the clothes we replaced are almost ruined, why don’t we go get a few pieces together?”
His idea was sound, and the three of them left immediately. Not long after, they arrived at the main street of the market.
Before the three of them entered, they saw crowds of people and chatter in the distance.
It’s so lively, why don’t you go and see it?
The three of them squeezed their way to the front of the crowd and discovered that there was a new notice posted on the wall, or... a wanted order.
"A bandit has recently appeared in this county. He has committed more than ten crimes, invading businesses and disturbing people, and is very rampant. According to the investigation, this thief is short and thin, often wears night clothes, and has good deeds. Every time he commits a crime, he will stay at the scene. Below the four words "I am Cao Le", the county is offering a reward for his capture. If there are any clues, please report to the Yamen immediately. If the clues can be used to apprehend this thief, or someone can directly capture this thief alive, this county should have important information. reward."
Since the literacy rate in the society at that time was not high, whenever such notices were posted by the government, there would be enthusiastic literate people reading them to the onlookers, and this time was no exception.
When the people watching the excitement heard it, they would start talking on the spot.
Sun, Huang, and Hu listened for a while and realized that this "Cao Le" seemed to be a righteous thief who robbed the rich and gave to the poor. Of course, this situation did not surprise them because it was usually like this. Only righteous thieves like to leave signatures, tokens, etc. at the scene to mark their identity.
After listening for a while, they learned that Cao Le had been operating in the local area for nearly two months, and his target was either a bully who loved to bully others, or a merchant who was unkind or did shady business for the sake of wealth. , and he would not empty other people's homes, and the amount of money he stole was just a small amount of punishment. After stealing, he would quietly distribute the money to the poor people, so he was not punished for such a long time. Wanted has even gained many fans among the people.
However, just yesterday, this Cao Le actually stole the money from the county magistrate because the county magistrate had accepted a bribe in a civil dispute not long ago and the verdict was unfair.
Can the county magistrate still endure it?
The loss of money is nothing. In fact, to the county magistrate, the little money Cao Le stole was not much, but the problem is... the common people all know that the targets of your crimes are all people who have done bad things. You Isn't this a slap in the face of this county in multiple senses?
So today, even if the county magistrate spends his own money, he still has to issue this notice to arrest this "Cao Le".
"Ha... It's interesting, but I guess they can't catch this guy." After listening for a while, Huang Donglai commented sharply, "Since there is a certain description of his appearance on this notice, we can also tell him." If he is a good man, it means that there must have been some local police officers or some wealthy people's nursing homes who tried to catch him before, but they just couldn't catch him or stop him in the end."
"Well, that makes sense." Hu Wenzhi also nodded and continued, "And such a righteous thief, the knights of the Jianghu and the heroes of the Green Forest Road will probably not touch him... It seems that the county magistrate is asking for his own trouble by issuing this notice. Humiliated."
The volume of his words was neither high nor low. Mixed in the crowd, it wasn't very ear-piercing at first, but unexpectedly...
"Who is this? How dare you slander an official and say that our county magistrate is 'bringing humiliation to himself'?"
Less than half a second after Hu Wenzhi's words, a few feet behind him, a man suddenly raised his voice and said this in a sinister tone.
As soon as this man spoke, many people around him didn't even see him. Just hearing his voice, they started to hide away, no doubt they were afraid of him.
So, in just a few seconds, the crowd around Sun, Huang, and Hu dispersed, but the three of them followed the sound and turned their heads slowly to look at the person who spoke.
Let’s talk about the man who shouted loudly. He was thirty-six or seventeen years old. He was dressed as a scholar and held a folding fan. He was tall and slender with a bit of slouched shoulders. His appearance was... a narrow forehead, pouty cheeks, gray eyebrows and cock-like eyes. He has a hooked nose and a flat mouth. His face is fair and fair, but there are a little bits of ginger on his cheeks, and there is a black mole on the right side of his nose.
As the saying goes, love comes from the heart. Although this is not entirely accurate, there are indeed many people in this world who deserve it.
For example, the person in front of him has a traitorous look on his face, which can be said to be 30% from his parents and 70% from himself.
So who is this person? It is implied in our book that his surname is Jin and his name is Xu, and he is a well-known local bully. In the entire Shanghai County, whenever he appears, the people can be said to hide from him.
Some people may want to ask, with his appearance, he doesn't seem to be able to fight, so why is he so scared of everyone?
First of all, he himself cannot fight, but his thugs can. At this moment, there are six evil servants behind him.
Secondly, what this man does on a daily basis is much more ruthless than the average bully - all he does is accuse, blackmail, defraud, bully the weak, and take advantage of others.
Ordinary bullies collect protection fees on the roadside and know not to fish in the lake. This is different. If you are targeted by him, he will use the most despicable and vicious methods to wipe you clean. No way of survival is left.
For example, one year, he fell in love with the land of an ordinary farm family and wanted to take it as his own. He first checked to see who was in the family and what their family situation was like. After checking, he found that there was a half-year-old child. That was easy... He just picked a day, and when other people's children were playing outside, he carried a bird cage and walked there. The bird was playing with the child in the cage, and then he suddenly grabbed the child's hand and skewered the bird in the cage to death with a half-eaten candied haws skewer. Then he asked his men to tie the child up, and he came to the door and started to cheat. He said the bird is worth whatever it is. He is clearly blackmailing you. If you don't give it, he will have someone hang the child up and beat him in front of you. If you resist, there are many others and they are still "reasonable". See the official. He's not afraid either. He has a relationship with the county magistrate. Besides, how can you defeat him in court?
Others, such as never paying the bill when eating out, planning to kill people in order to seize other people's wives, defrauding the elderly out of poverty, etc., he did everything, and because he had studied for several years and was cunning and eloquent, he was able to The yamenmen also spent a lot of money to maintain relationships. The people knew what he was doing, but they couldn't do anything about him.
Behind the scenes, people called Jin Xun a "bone-attached maggot". You think this is very hateful.
He's such a guy who eats people's food but doesn't poop on them. Today, when he was watching the excitement, a sentence suddenly came into his ears: "It seems that the county magistrate is humiliating himself by issuing this notice." I had a stress reaction at that time.
How could he miss such a good blackmail opportunity?
So Jin Xun immediately shouted out and stared at Hu Wenzhi who said this.
"Hey, there are three of you?" After the crowd dispersed, Jin Xun saw Sun, Huang, and Hu standing there. He suddenly sneered and started to make false accusations, "Look at each other, you guys Could it be...that Cao Le's accomplice?"
As he spoke, he made a gesture with his hands behind his back. The thugs under his command also understood the situation and immediately swarmed up, preparing to capture the three men on the spot.
According to Jin Xun's idea, based on what Hu Wenzhi said today, whether he is guilty or not, he has to be sent to the Yamen Gate. Even if he can't get any benefits, it is still good to send him to the county magistrate who is in a bad mood to vent his anger. of.
Of course, if these three people were "sensible" and "aware of promotion" and were willing to hand over some of their money and beg Uncle Jin to let them go, he would not be unable to consider it.
However, just when Jin Xun's men rushed about three meters in front of Sun Yixie and the others, a fight with disparity in strength was about to break out...
Suddenly, there was another loud shout: "What are you doing! I'm here today, who dares to touch a hair of Young Master Sun?"
