"Mr. Tang, right?" Zhao Yizhi asked the slightly wealthy old man in front of him.
"Common people, Tang Yousheng pays homage to Your Majesty." The fat old man knelt on the ground respectfully and kowtowed to Zhao Yizhi.
Zhao Yizhi smiled and asked softly: "Without courtesy, Mr. Tang, are you comfortable working as the accountant in the Taishi Mansion?"
Tang Yousheng hurriedly replied: "I am an old man who is old and frail. He only wants to work for food and clothing and does not dare to ask for 'freedom'. Master... Ah, Master Li asked me to be a bookkeeper when I saw that I knew a few words." , not qualified for the job, shame on the villain."
"That's enough, I didn't come to you to talk about this!" Zhao Yizhi's patience was exhausted by Tang Yousheng's careless eyes. "I ask you, did Butler Liu Tai and Liu withdraw a sum of money from you? Leave it to Liu Mouzi so that Liu Mouzi can find someone to assassinate me?"
Zhao Yizhi asked directly, which not only shocked Tang Yousheng, but also made Wang Zhenliang on the side feel a little uncomfortable. "Your Majesty is too direct..."
"Your Majesty, there is absolutely no such thing. The common people don't know anything about it!" Tang Yousheng raised his head and looked at Zhao Yizhi with a blank look on his face.
"How bold! How dare you look directly at the king with the intention of assassinating him!" Wang Zhenliang shouted from the side.
Tang Yousheng was so panicked that he fell down again, his fat body trembling, and he looked very scared.
Zhao Yizhi waved to Wang Zhenliang, and Wang Zhenliang quickly took a handful of account books from the little eunuch beside him and respectfully presented them to Zhao Yizhi. Zhao Yizhi opened the account book and started reading. After reading it once, he handed it to Wang Zhenliang: "Read it."
Wang Zhenliang took the account book and read: "On the ninth day of July in the third year of Qingguan, Aunt Zhang paid one tael of silver to buy cloth; on the eleventh day of July in the third year of Qingguan, Xiao Si went home with two taels of silver; on the seventh day of the third year of Qingguan, On the thirteenth day of the month, Butler Liu paid five hundred taels of silver to buy candles..."
"Okay, that's it." Zhao Yizhi interrupted and asked Xiang Yousheng: "Butler Liu paid 500 taels of silver to buy candles? Is there anything wrong? Have you ever bought back the candles?"
Tang Yousheng rolled his eyes and replied: "It's true. As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, Taishi Li said that it was too deserted in previous years and wanted to make it more lively this year. Therefore, Butler Liu spent a lot of silver to buy candles..."
"I want five hundred taels!" Zhao Yizhi raised his voice slightly. "A candle of five hundred taels can be burned in the Taishi Mansion! Where is the candle?"
"Candlelight... Candlelight... Butler Liu paid an extra tael of silver to the shopkeeper. He said it was deposited in the account. From now on, it will be handled at major festivals every year. It is too troublesome to withdraw it again and again, so..."
"Bastard!" Zhao Yizhi shouted softly. Tang Yousheng quickly lowered his head and did not dare to speak any more.
Zhao Yizhi looked at Tang Yousheng and was a little angry, but since the other party killed him in one bite and said he was buying fireworks, the emperor could still control how many fireworks he bought. For a while, Zhao Yizhi couldn't do anything to him.
"Manager Wang, take him down first, along with this account book, and interrogate every transaction carefully, so that he can make up a good reason for me! Remember, lock him up with Butler Liu and let them make a good confession!" Zhao Yizhi threw the account book in front of Tang Yousheng.
Wang Zhenliang and Tang Yousheng were both shocked. What did this mean? Regardless of whether the crime is true or false, there is no reason to ask someone to make a confession after catching the person committing the crime! But seeing that Zhao Yizhi didn't look like he was joking, Wang Zhenliang had no choice but to agree.
Tang Yousheng saw that Zhao Yizhi couldn't find anything against him, so he wanted to complain, but then he thought, in front of the emperor, even his own master had to bow his head, why should he contradict the emperor at this time? If the master wins the game, he will naturally get himself out. Thinking of this, Tang Yousheng said nothing, said goodbye to Zhao Yizhi, and left with Wang Zhenliang honestly.
Zhao Yizhi felt sulky after seeing Wang Zhenliang leaving with Tang Yousheng. What the maid Xiaocui said was right. This was indeed done by Butler Liu of the Grand Master's residence. The five hundred taels spent on buying candles were clearly used to bribe Liu Mouse to assassinate her. But as the king of a country, she couldn't do anything about it. nothing.
"Damn Liu Tai! Damn Tang Yousheng! Master Li, you are really good at it, you just want to plot an assassination in front of me! But I can't do anything to you, and let Liu Mouse be so clumsy..." Zhao Yi Zhi said to himself, and suddenly paused here, "Uh? Liu Mouse? Mouse..."
"Come here!" Zhao Yizhi shouted toward the door.
A little eunuch lowered his head and ran in in a panic, about to kneel down. Zhao Yizhi said: "Forgive me, go and tell Shan Shan to bring the assassin who assassinated me in the prison to me! The one who knows how to use rats!"
The little eunuch still knelt down, kowtowed, and hurriedly ran out without daring to say a word.
In the Prison of the Ministry of Punishment, last night's escape did not have much impact on the prison. Someone was still being brought in. This time, the person who was brought in was Mr. Tang Yousheng, the accountant of the Taishi Mansion.
"Why are you here too! Your Majesty knows!" As soon as Liu Tai saw that Tang Yousheng was arrested and locked up opposite him, he was frightened out of his wits. He quickly grabbed the cell door and asked nervously.
"Almost!" Tang Yousheng wiped the sweat from his forehead: "His Majesty most likely knew about it. He took me to the palace, brought the account book to the palace, and asked the big man in front of me. The eunuch began to read."
"Ledger! Is it that ledger!" Liu Taixin raised his voice.
"How can it be possible? Isn't that copy in the master's study? It's my copy. I have changed the use. I will pair it with the master at the end of the year. As long as the amount is not bad, the master can find it there..."
"Shh! Don't talk! This prison is no better than in the house. You dare to say anything! I'm going to kill you!" Liu Tai stared and drank the soothing soup to survive.
Tang Yousheng also frowned: "I don't know what the little emperor is thinking. He also said that you and I should be locked up together so that we can collude in confession. I guess someone is listening, so we should be careful."
In fact, there were many prisoners in this prison. Because of the robbery by Mr. Wu and others last night, those prisoners either died in the "Snow Falling on Thousand Mountains" in Zangyun, or they were still lying in the sick prison hospital. There were only a few prisoners in the cells on this floor, and there were no guards guarding them. The two of them continued to chat quietly.
In the cell below Liu Tai and others, someone was about to be taken out.
The big knife in Hanshan's hand knocked on the iron prison door: "Hu Lishan, have you found Mr. Wu and the Fourth Young Master?"
"No, don't rush me. I'm distracted when you rush me. Isn't this delaying things?" Hu Lishan said with some complaints.
Shan Shan laughed secretly, suppressed his laughter and said with a straight face: "Your Majesty has something to say, you don't have to look for it."
"Ah? No need to look for it anymore? The relationship is so good, these two bastards don't know where to hide... Wait, what do you mean no need to look for it? Your Majesty is not going to kill me, is he?" Hu Lishan just breathed a sigh of relief and immediately noticed Sensing something was wrong, a pair of little mouse eyes stared at Shanshan and asked tentatively.
"Then I don't know. His Majesty has called you into the palace to see you. Come out. But I have to tell you first. There are many masters in the palace. If you have any evil intentions, you have to think carefully." Shan warned.
Hu Lishan felt half relieved when he heard that His Majesty wanted to recruit him into the palace. His Majesty would never recruit a death row prisoner like him into the palace if he wanted to execute him. With just one order, his head would immediately fall to the ground, so why bother? Do you need to enter the palace? He didn't even need an imperial edict, just an oral edict and he returned to the west.
"Could it be that...Your Majesty wants to watch a sideshow? Then my mouse can do a lot." Hu Lishan stood up with a smile and said to himself.
Shan Shan scolded him with a cold face: "Let me tell you, the palace is also the residence of His Majesty. It is an important place in the capital. You are not allowed to bring any of your rats into the palace. Did you hear that?"
When Hu Lishan heard what Shanshan said, he didn't want to watch a sideshow. When he saw Shanshan with wide eyes, Hu Lishan bowed and nodded, indicating that he obeyed.
"Your Majesty! The prisoner Hu Lishan has been brought here and is waiting outside the door." Shan Shan came in to report.
"Bring it in." Zhao Yizhi reviewed the memorial without raising his head.
Hu Lishan entered the door. His prison clothes had been replaced by a set of ordinary thin clothes, and the shackles on his hands and feet were also removed. When I saw the door coming, I couldn't help but be shocked by Zhao Yizhi's study. Wherever I looked, I felt the nobility: silk curtains, golden wood for desks, gold pens, jade inkstones...
"Kneel down!" A loud shout interrupted Hu Lishan's gaze. Hu Lishan quickly softened his legs and knelt down.
Hu Lishan quietly raised his head and saw the little emperor Zhao Yizhi sitting in front of the desk, but he had a heroic aura and the majesty of an emperor. On the left and right of Qingtianjiahai substation, mountains and rivers were shaking, standing behind him. There were only four masters standing in a study room. Hu Lishan believed that if he acted slightly rashly, he would die immediately without leaving any last words.
"Hu Lishan, the prisoner, kowtows to Your Majesty." After all, Hu Lishan was a member of the martial arts world and had seen some of the market. After kneeling down, he immediately kowtowed to Zhao Yizhi to say hello.
When Zhao Yizhi heard the call, he put down his pen, looked at Hu Lishan and said with a smile: "You were the one who assassinated me last night, right? Those rats were quite powerful, and they made my Xu Shi guards suffer a lot."
"Oops! The little emperor wants to settle an old score!" Hu Lishan secretly screamed.
"Your Majesty, the prisoner was seduced by an adulterer, so he committed the crime. I hope your Majesty will forgive me!" Hu Lishan did not argue that he was wronged, thinking that the little emperor did not call him into the palace to see him crying and begging for mercy. As long as he honestly admits his mistake, Maybe the little emperor appreciates that he is a "strong and strong" man! But Hu Lishan was wrong. Zhao Yizhi just wanted to see him cry and beg for mercy.
"Haha, you are quite honest. Do you know that you are committing the grave crime of exterminating three tribes!" Zhao Yizhi began to put pressure on Hu Lishan.
Sure enough, as soon as Hu Lishan heard that Zhao Yizhi changed his tone and his words were slightly threatening, he knew that he had made the wrong decision. He kowtowed quickly and said: "Your Majesty, the prisoner knows his mistake! Please spare the life of the prisoner!"
When Zhao Yizhi saw Hu Lishan, he immediately surrendered, but he was stunned. This reaction was too quick. Not to mention that he looked like a mouse, he also had the same temperament as a mouse, and he could adapt to the wind.
"I have something I need you to do. Once I've done it, I'll spare your life. Maybe the court will still reuse you. Are you willing?" Zhao Yizhi extended an olive branch.
When Hu Lishan heard this, he realized that this was his way out, and he quickly replied: "The prisoner is willing, but as long as your majesty has his life, there will be swords and fire, and there will be no justice..."
"I heard that your rats are looking for people to find their way, eavesdrop and listen to people's voices, and are omnipotent? There are two prisoners in the prison. Help me listen to what they chatter about and report it every day. Is it possible to do that?" Zhao Yizhi said out of their own purposes.
"The prisoner takes his orders!" Hu Lishan liked this job and was so happy that the mouse's beard stood up.
