Luoyang.
A Luo River flows across Luoyang City from west to east, dividing it into two parts, the south and the north.
North of the Luo River, the imperial city and palace city occupy the northwest corner, and there are twenty-nine squares in the northeast corner; south of the Luo River, there are seventy-eight squares.
At the beginning of Tianbao's reign, "Dongdu" was changed to "Tokyo", and people still used to call Luoyang "Eastern Capital". There is one Dongdu Mu, who is led by the prince from a distance. If the prince does not come to the post, he is actually in charge of government affairs by Henan Yin. There are also two Shaoyin, from the fourth rank, who are the deputies of Henan Yin.
The Henan government office is located in Xuanfanfang, south of Luoshui.
In mid-September, Zhou Xian hurried to the government office.
He is the magistrate of Luoyang County. Luoyang County is attached to Henan Prefecture, which is equivalent to Chang'an and Wannian County being attached to Jingzhao Prefecture. It's just that there is a center above Jingzhao Mansion, but the Dongdu Mu is not here, and the saint has not come to Luoyang for ten years, the Henan Mansion needs to exercise more autonomy.
"Is Linghu Shaoyin here?
"In the public house, Magistrate Zhou invites you."
Zhou Xian hurried to the first public room on the left side of the back office. He called out the door, pushed the door open and went in. He saluted Linghu Tao who was sitting there and said, "Shao Yin, I heard that the saint sent envoys to check for disaster relief." It’s over.”
The Linghu family is a Dunhuang family. They served as governors of Dunhuang for generations before the Jin Dynasty, until the Northern Zhou Dynasty General Linghu Zheng moved to Guanzhong. After that, the Linghu family served as officials in the Sui and Tang dynasties, and there were many people who held the position of public officials, such as , the famous founding official Linghu Defen.
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Linghu Tao is the great-grandson of Linghu Decai.
At this time, he was checking the accounts and said without raising his head: "Sit down, don't make a fuss."
Zhou Xian kept talking while sitting down, saying: "The saint appointed the imperial concubine's step-brother as Yanshi Wei. I'm afraid the person who came here is not good. It is said that some monsters and thieves came to Huaqing Palace and disturbed the saint."
Linghu Tao asked: "Where did you get the news?"
Miao Jinqing was re-appointed as Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. He returned to Beijing from Wei County and told his subordinates when passing through Luoyang.
Linghu Tao stroked his long beard, shook his head and said: "Miao Jinqing comes from Weizhou, how do you know the details of the capital?"
Zhou Xian said: "Since the Right Prime Minister summoned him back to the capital, what did the envoy tell him?"
Linghu Tao asked: "Did he give you some advice?"
Zhou Xian said: "He said that if the problem is not in Henan Prefecture, then it is in Shaanzhou."
"It's just selfish."
Linghu Tao knew the inside story. Miao Jinqing was born in a Confucian family with extraordinary reputation, demeanor, and qualifications. If he hadn't been demoted for being the number one scholar five years ago, he would have become the prime minister if he took any further steps, threatening the right prime minister. After losing his position, he may not be willing to return to the court to preside over the official affairs department. He is probably eyeing the post of governor of Shaanxi County.
"He criticized Dou Tingzhi in just a few words, and you were taken advantage of by him?" Linghu said: "Dou Tingzhi has already given the saint an explanation. At that time, due to the military incident in Longyou, the court was in an urgent need to collect grain, and a fleet of canal boats capsized while crossing the three gates of the Yellow River. , the victims were temporarily recruited to transport the food by land, and the food passed through Tongguan, and the victims were recruited to dig up Mount Huashan, which has nothing to do with Shaanxi County."
Zhou Xian whispered: "Then...Yanshi County Lieutenant Wang Yanxiang?"
"Committing suicide out of fear of guilt, the case is closed, what else is there to say?"
"I'm afraid it was an open and covert investigation, otherwise how could the imperial concubine's sworn brother come to Yanshi?
"You care too much about the affairs of neighboring counties!" Linghu Tao scolded, and then said: "Being a school secretary and a lieutenant are the most normal steps for promotion. Why do you have to worry about it?"
Zhou Xian said: "The lower official is worried that he will come to find fault..."
Linghu said: "The problem is not in Henan Prefecture but in Shaanxi Prefecture. Doesn't Dou Tingzhi know this? People passing through his territory, how can he, an important official in his side, not handle them well?"
Zhou Mian understood as soon as he heard that, no matter how at odds with each other, Henan officials would both prosper and suffer. When a minor official came, Dou Tingzhi had no reason not to deal with it first.
"Did Governor Dou get angry with Shao Yin? When we get to Shaanzhou, we must first get him on board, and then the incident of disturbing the Holy Master will be over.
"Yes." Linghu Tao nodded, "Xue Bai has arrived in Shaanzhou, and Dou Tingzhi will send you a letter."
After the discussion was completed, Zhou Xian left.
When I walked out of the Henan government office, I met two people. One was in his forties, wearing a red robe; the other was less than twenty years old, tall and handsome. Although he was wearing a green robe, he looked graceful.
Zhou Xian secretly thought that the Henan government office did not know when such a person came, but he had heard that the coming number one scholar...
Suddenly, he had a thought in his mind, stood still, and said, "Who are you two?
Linghu Tao was writing a letter when a clerk came in and reported in a low voice: "Shao Yin, the newly appointed deputy envoy for water and land transportation, Du Youlin, and Yanshi County Lieutenant Xue Bai have arrived. They also brought Wu Huaishi's letter to Zhou Mian."
The brush was turning, and when he was writing the words "The annual gifts arrived as scheduled," Linghu Tao stopped when he heard the word "Xue Bai" and pondered: "Is there a letter from Shaanzhou?"
"To tell Shao Yin, no."
"Is Wei Fuyin here?
"Not here, Gong Cao asked, has Shao Yin seen them?"
Linghu Tao did not put down his pen, but said: "Let them stay for a while, I will meet them in the third hall."
"Here.
Linghu Tao continued to finish writing the letter in his hand, and then dealt with two more official documents that were not urgent. He then asked someone to ask Du Youlin and Xue Bai how they reacted in the hall. Then he slowly arranged his official robes and went to meet him. See.
He knew about the newly appointed Yanshi Lieutenant Xue Bai, and how Xue Bai came to power by clinging to Mrs. Guo Guo. But Xue Bai is now far away from Chang'an, in a place where Yang's skirt can't cover him, and has become his subordinate.
As a senior official, he cannot behave in a manner that fails to show the dignity of an official.
When they reached the hall, Du Youlin and Xue Bai were about to salute. Linghu Tao had already smiled at Du Youlin and said, "No way. If Duke Du wants to hand over official documents, he should go to the Taifu Office in the Eastern Capital. If he comes to see me, he must not be seen." outside."
In a word, his attitude was like a breath of fresh air, but Du Youlin didn't know how to deal with it.
The abilities of officials who have been in official positions for a long time are far inferior to those of local officials.
"You are so polite, Linghu Shaoyin. I first arrived in Dongdu and I am unfamiliar with business matters, so I laughed at you."
Du Youlin accidentally admitted that he was "officially unfamiliar", and he would inevitably be caught in the officialdom. If there were any mistakes in his affairs in the future, others would use this to blame him.
Linghu Tao understood immediately that this was a good idea, so he recruited an official.
"Take Du Gong to the Taifu Office to hand over the official documents. Once the work is done, I will hold a banquet to welcome him."
"Here."
"Since we're coming, why don't you send someone to let us know early." Linghu Tao said with a slight reproach, "It's so sudden, so there's no good feast.
Du Youlin quickly thanked him politely and was quickly taken to the Taifu Office.
However, Xue Bai could hear the implication of Linghu Tao's words and responded: "Young Master, don't blame me. I'm just a Yanshi Lieutenant and I don't dare to trouble Young Yin to host a banquet."
He arrived at his appointment as normal and there was no need to inform him in advance.
Linghu Tao was still looking at Du Youlin's back, thinking in his mind... It's hard to tell whether Xue Bai took up the post of Yanshi based on the imperial edict to investigate Wang Yansiam's death. It's like coming to check the king's pheasant.
Although the appointment was issued by the right prime minister, how could it be so if the right prime minister had not received a hint from the saint?
"You are young and have a lot of potential."
At this time, Linghu Tao looked at Xue Bai, praised him, and asked with the cordial attitude of an official: "You came from Chang'an, you have received the advice of the saint and the right minister."
"The saints and right ministers have all told me that as a local official, I must put the people first."
This is like a nonsense sentence, but it also seems to imply that Xue Bai has received the holy edict.
Linghu Tao asked, "Have you ever seen Governor Dou when passing by Shaanzhou?"
"No," Xue Bai said, "On the contrary, I met Duke Miao by chance at Tongguanyi Station. He was transferred back to the Ministry of Civil Affairs from the prefect of Wei County."
Linghu Tao nodded, and was surprised to find that Xue Bai was very sophisticated in officialdom. After listening to Miao Jinqing's instigation, he immediately avoided Shaanzhou, which was quite scheming.
Regardless of whether Xue Bai came under the Holy Order or not, it can be seen that he is difficult to control, but at least he is not impulsive and bites people when he sees them.
Unable to find out more for the moment, Linghu Tao changed his business attitude, dug out several documents, and handed them over one by one.
"When you take office as Yanshi, I have to tell you a few things. The first is the emperor's expectations. During the Kaiyuan period, the sage personally selected one hundred and sixty-three county magistrates to attend a banquet and wrote poems as gifts to the Yucheng magistrate. From then on, the world was a county Officials all take this as a commandment, which is called "New Commandment", also known as "Commander's New Commandment".
Xue Bai took the "New Commandment" and looked at it. There was a poem on it.
"I beg the commander to protect my subordinates. There must be a reason for people's uneasiness. The poem is very long, full of expectations and sincere instructions. It says that the saint asked the local officials to care for the people.
If property is plundered and taxes and services are uneven, the people will be separated. County officials should reform bad habits, get rid of old customs, reform governance, educate and enrich the people, benefit the poor, be hands-on in everything, and work diligently to persuade farmers.
Linghu Tao said: "The reason why prime ministers come from prefectures and counties, and when officials enter official positions, they should first care about the people. Emperor Taizong, 'Water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it.' The people are displaced and cannot let the saints down.
"Shao Yin's words, I will definitely keep them in mind.
"Okay, you should have such ambition."
Linghu Tao was full of praise and said: "Sit down, I will tell you about Yanshi County."
"Thank you Shaoyin."
"Yanshi is just east of Luoyang City, adjacent to Luoyang County. The Yanshi County Government Office is only sixty or seventy miles away, and it is connected to the Luoshui River. You can take a boat eastward tomorrow and go down the river. You will be able to get there soon. arrive."
Xue Bai responded: "Just in time to see the busy Luoyang water transport."
"This place is the center of the Grand Canal." Linghu Tao was also proud of this and sighed, "The river flows in all directions and collects tribute from the world.
After a small interruption, he continued to talk about Yanshi.
"There are 20 counties in Ji, the capital of Henan Prefecture, with a total of 190,000 households and a population of 1.18 million, which is more than Jingzhao Prefecture. Yanshi is a county with nearly 10,000 households and a population of 60,000. How to feed these people ? It’s not an easy task. This is Yanshi County’s annual tax and the list of escaped households. As a county captain, after you take office, you must assist the commander in collecting the taxes. Otherwise, when the exam time comes, don’t blame me for being ruthless. "
"Yanshi borders Luoyang to the west, Gongxian to the east, Fengshi to the south, and the Yellow River to the north. Luoshui and Yishui meet in Yanshi. Cattle boats, merchants, and travelers traveling from south to north all pass through Yanshi , there are endless thieves, thieves, and fugitives. How to protect the neighbors and punish the bad guys is also the responsibility of the county captain..."
South of Luoyang City, Daodefang.
There is an inn near Luoshui. There is a picture of vigorous calligraphy written on the whitewashed wall in the building.
"The Goddess of Luo lives on the water bank, the peonies are flying thousands of miles away, and the fragrance fills the eastern capital; the wine fairy lies in the bamboo forest, and the sweet wine of Dukang spreads to thousands of households, and is famous throughout Zhongzhou.
The view from the window of the upstairs room is excellent.
Luoshui is very wide, not even inferior to some sections of the Yellow River, but it is clearer and slower than the Yellow River. Willows cling to the riverside, and boats come and go on the river, with thousands of sails flying.
That night, Xue Bai and everyone in the Du family stayed at this inn.
Du Youlin works in the Land and Water Transport Office and will rent a house with the Du family in Luoyang.
Xue Bai planned to set off directly from Luoshui Wharf to Yanshi County tomorrow, bringing only his concubine Qinglan, a few staff headed by Yin Liang, and his entourage headed by Lao Liang, Jiang Hai, and Xue Xin, as well as their 's family.
Naturally, the Du sisters would not follow Xue Bai, including Du Wulang and his wife, who would also stay in Luoyang for a few days to help their parents settle down.
In the wing room on the second floor, Du Wulang bolted the door, stretched out and said, "Finally, I don't have to listen to my grandpa's snoring anymore."
What he was even more happy about was that he would hold his wife to sleep tonight.
Xue Yunniang was busy packing the bedding and asked, "I thought Qi Lang would want to go directly to Yanshi County with my brother."
"I haven't taken you around Luoyang City yet. Besides, I don't want to work hard to get rid of my grandpa now. When I was in Chang'an, I fought hard in Jinwu Prison, and the result is like this. I might as well have nothing. Doing it."
After trekking all the way, Du Wulang also felt a little tired. After that, he spread his hands and said, "Give me a hug."
"Um.
The couple stood hugging each other in the room for a while.
suddenly.
“Dong dong dong!
Suddenly there was a violent knock on the door outside the house.
When Du Wulang heard that the other party was unkind, he immediately asked Xue Yunniang to hide. He walked to the door on tiptoes, lay down at the crack of the door and took a look outside. There was no one outside.
When he looked down, there was a note on the ground.
Du Wulang had no choice but to pick it up and bring it to the candlelight to look at it. He was shocked to see the words "Wang Xianwei did not commit suicide" written on it.
He quickly left the house, rushed to Xue Bai's wing, knocked on the door and said: "Xue Bai, look..."
The door of the house was not bolted and opened with a snap. There was no one inside.
"problem occurs!
Du Wulang was taken aback and hurried to the outside of Du You's neighboring wing. Then he patted his head and thought that it would be better to find his grandpa than his sister, so he hurried to the third floor.
On the third floor lived the Du sisters, Liu Xiangjun's mother and daughter, and other female relatives. Qinglan was standing in the corridor talking to Liu Xiangjun. When she saw Du Wulang coming, she said: "Alang is in the lobby, go find him quickly.
"good."
Du Wulang hurried to the lobby on the first floor, and happened to see a person coming out of the lobby with a sneaky figure. He quickly shouted: "Hey, is this the note you gave me? Wait a minute."
"Chase." Xue Bai suddenly said from behind.
Then Jiang Hai was seen chasing away quickly.
I saw that sneaky figure quickly dodging into the crowd and quickly disappearing on the Luoshui Pier.
Du Wulang was confused. He turned to Xue Bai and asked, "You were in the lobby just now and saw him."
"He is five feet six inches tall and has a slight limp on his feet. He may be injured, but he is more familiar with the environment and Jiang Hai can't catch him."
Xue Bai saw the man at the window of the wing on the third floor. He was discussing matters with the Du sisters when the incident occurred.
I didn't expect that a messenger would suddenly appear, and that the messenger would be so timid.
I had just arrived in Luoyang, and of course he couldn't fully trust me yet. It doesn't matter, he will definitely come again.
"Wang Yansiam did not commit suicide. I can guess it without him having to tell you." Du Shi said: "What I'm curious about is, why did he come to tell you? How did he infer that you might reverse Wang Yansiam's case?"
Xue Bai said: "Does it mean that there is a source of information where he is hiding? In Luoyang City, those who suspect that I came to investigate the case under the Holy Order are none other than those few people."
"There is another possibility." Du Shan said, "Maybe he is not here to avenge Wang Yansiem, but maybe he is here to test you."
Xue Bai pondered: "That further proves that there is another hidden reason behind Wang Yansiam's death. Otherwise, why bother testing me?"
"I don't think it's a test." Du Shi stood by the window and took a look outside, and said, "If so, I wouldn't have even mistaken which wing you live in."
"Then, this person probably really knows some secrets."
That same night, Yanshi County.
There is a house in Sanguanmiao Lane not far to the north of the county office. It is not big or small, and it is tastefully decorated.
Several porters were brought into the house.
“There’s no need to go to such trouble… Clean it up.
Following this instruction, all the books and documents in the study were thrown into the brazier, the beds in the main room were moved away, and the dried blood stains on the floor were washed away.
Half a piece of paper floated out of the brazier and swirled in the night sky, as if it was filled with resentment and did not want to be burned.
The leader, Caoyun Qushuai, stepped on it, then picked it up and looked at it. It was probably a very long poem.
He did recognize a few simple words and read them out casually.
"I beg the commander to protect... this servant.
