These are two peculiar people.
When Li Zongfeng and Li Chengyi were sizing up Gu Zhengchen and Xiao Cheng, Gu Zhengchen was also sizing up each other.
Obviously, the so-called admiration for people is nothing more than a test of one's eyesight.
Each identity has its own behavioral characteristics. For example, a farmer who works frequently will have rough and dark skin, his hands are covered with wind and frost, and his calluses are thick and old. For example, a guard sergeant, between moving and sitting, He always carries the shadow of long-term battles. His hands are used to place weapons on his waist. His eyes are sharp and alert. He walks with a long stride. There are calluses in his hands, but the distribution of calluses is very uneven. They may be caused by archery between the fingers. Maybe he was holding a long knife or a spear, between the tiger's mouth...
If you expect the farmers to have fair faces, the sergeants to apply hairspray, and to kill a group of people and still have clean clothes and no blood on their faces, then you are either an idiot screenwriter or a brainless director.
Through detailed observation, inferring where one comes from, specific identity, and specialties is not a profound knowledge. It is somewhat similar to the county magistrate's reasoning and judgment of cases.
It's just that the observation of investigating the case is more inclined to "reasoning", and the observation of the two people in front of me is obviously "observation of words and expressions".
Li Zongfeng clasped his fists and said to Gu Zhengchen: "Li Zongfeng, this is the eldest son Li Chengyi, also known as Changge. May I ask who's the younger brother's name?"
"Zhang San."
Gu Zhengchen looked at Li Zongfeng and went straight to the point: "I heard that you have made friends from all over the world in Luoyang Town and are quite prestigious. Even the words of the county magistrate are not as effective as yours. But is that so?"
Li Zongfeng laughed loudly and waved his hands repeatedly: "This is all touted by the neighbors. We are just a hundred people, how dare we compare with the county magistrate."
Gu Zhengchen smiled indifferently and did not go into details. He turned to ask: "This Luoyang town seems to be different from other places in Hui'an County. The voices of the people selling goods along the street are mostly in Chinese. Why is this?"
When Li Zongfeng saw Gu Zhengchen's question, he couldn't help but sigh: "Speaking of this matter, it is also related to the Wuhu chaos in the Western Jin Dynasty. Seeing that little brother Zhang is elegant and extraordinary, he should have known about those dark days. In the late Three Kingdoms, The population of the Central Plains dropped sharply. The Wei and Jin Dynasties continued to recruit the Wuhu people, and successively moved 2.5 million Xianbei people, 700,000 Huns, 800,000 Qiang people, and 1 million Di people inland. By the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, due to the Eight Kings Chaos, the number of Han people is far lower than the number of Wuhu..."
Gu Zhengchen felt heavy.
No Han Chinese will be in a good mood when they hear about Wu Huan Hua. It can be said that it was the darkest moment when the Han nation was almost extinct.
A Han ethnic group of 20 to 30 million people was forcibly killed into several million ethnic minorities.
Li Zongfeng recounted: "During that period, the Han people had no choice but to flee. One of them went to the northwest, the Hexi Corridor area. The other went south and entered Jiangxi, Fujian and other places. Later, whether it was the war in the early Tang Dynasty or the late Tang Dynasty, During the war or the defeat of the Southern Song Dynasty, many people moved south here. The Han people who initially moved here were mainly Luoyang people, so they called this place Luoyang..."
Most of the people in Luoyang Town are Han people from the north, so it is natural that they mainly speak Chinese.
"How much do you know about Tang Hu in Hui'an County?"
Gu Zhengchen suddenly changed the topic.
Li Zongfeng suddenly became alert, and Li Chengyi also looked at Gu Zhengchen in surprise.
"Why, this name can't be mentioned?"
Gu Zhengchen saw the two men looking solemn.
Li Zongfeng looked around and saw that no one was paying attention, so he whispered: "Hui'an Tang Hu is the only son of Tang Xian, the general magistrate of Quanzhou Prefecture. Who dares to talk openly about this person?"
"Oh, let's not talk about Tang Hu."
Li Zongfeng relaxed.
"Tell me about Tang Xian."
Gu Zhengchen spoke.
Li Zongfeng and Li Chengyi looked dull, you might as well be talking about Tang Hu...
Li Chengyi squinted at Gu Zhengchen and asked, "Are you from the government?"
Gu Zhengchen nodded slightly: "That's right."
Li Chengyi stood up and stared at Gu Zhengchen: "Can you take me into the government office?"
"Shut up!"
Li Zongfeng pulled Li Chengyi over and said with a cold face: "Go read your book and don't stay here."
Li Chengyi looked at Gu Zhengchen stubbornly.
Gu Zhengchen and Li Chengyi looked at each other and said slowly: "Yes, but I need to know your purpose."
Li Zongfeng pushed Li Chengyi away, arranged for the waiter to take him away, then returned to the table and smiled: "Brother Zhang, I'm really sorry, my son has a knot in his heart."
"What knot?"
Gu Zhengchen asked.
The waiter came to arrange the food and wine, and the dishes were all served.
A few rounds of drinking.
There was sadness in Li Zongfeng's eyes: "In July of the fifth year of Hongwu, a shipwreck occurred on the Luoyang River. At that time, 21 of the thirty-seven people on board fell into the water and drowned, including my daughter-in-law Zhao Yingying, who is Chang Ge’s wife. She is a Hui’an girl across the river, and she usually lives in her natal family.”
Gu Zhengchen was a little confused: "Shipwreck - case, why is it called a case? Could it be that this is not an accident?"
Li Zongfeng shook his head, with a heavy heart: "Among the dead, there was an official in the Yamen House of Quanzhou Prefecture, named Hu Benmo. His body was recovered and he was strangled. If it was just an accidental shipwreck, there would be no death. Do you need to hang yourself before death? In addition, Zhao Yingying’s body was also found. His chest was pierced by a sharp knife, and two other people also died from sharp weapons. Obviously, there was a fight on the ship before it sank. "
Gu Zhengchen frowned.
If this is the case, the shipwreck must not have been an accident, but was done intentionally.
Li Zongfeng sighed: "Because it happened south of the Luoyang River, and many people died, it alarmed the Quanzhou government office. However, after the government office investigated, it adopted the confession of a crew member, saying that he heard the official Hu Benmo and People were discussing the division of the spoils, and they were harmed because the spoils were unevenly divided. As for the others, it was probably because they saw the murderer's face that they were brutally murdered."
Gu Zhengchen picked up the wine bowl and took a sip: "The murderer didn't escape either, he drowned, right?"
Li Zongfeng laughed bitterly, grabbed the wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp: "You are right, the murderer is dead and the case is closed! Over the years, Chang Ge has never been able to let go. He has gone to the government office many times, hoping to retry the case. He also pointed out that there are many doubts in this case, and it is not enough to just rely on the words of one crew member to close the case. It is a pity that no one paid attention to it."
Gu Zhengchen frowned: "Who is the crew member who gave the testimony?"
Li Zongfeng pointed to the Luoyang River: "His name is Sun Si. But he is also dead. He died after being drunk and falling into the river."
"There are really some tricks."
Gu Zhengchen looked solemn.
Now that more than two years have passed since this case, it is no longer easy to investigate from the beginning, and the only person who provided testimony has died.
Li Zongfeng took two mouthfuls of food and sighed again: "Chang Ge has always wanted to overturn the case, find out the truth, and find the real culprit. He wants to go to the government office to read the files, hoping to find flaws through the files. But you also know that the common people Let alone looking through the files, it is even difficult to enter the government office. Once someone is caught checking the files without permission, it is also a serious crime."
Gu Zhengchen put down his wine bowl and asked, "Hu Benmo from Hufang, do you know his condition?"
Li Zongfeng shook his head: "I don't know clearly, I just remember that he is a native of Jinjiang."
"Are you sure you're a local?"
Gu Zhengchen raised his eyebrows.
Li Zongfeng affirmed: "Most of the government officials are locals. The government officials also mentioned that their home is just outside Jinjiang City, in a place called Xiqian Village."
Gu Zhengchen lowered his head and murmured: "It seems that the water in Luoyang River is quite deep."
According to the regulations of the imperial court, household officials could not leave the government office easily.
If Hu Benmo and Xiu Mu left the government office, then he should stay in Jinjiang instead of appearing in Luoyang River, let alone take a boat.
Take a boat towards Luoyang Town, which is going north.
Where does Hu Benmo want to go?
Fuzhou, are you looking for someone to participate in politics in Fujian Province?
Or should we go further north and go to Jinling to complain to Lao Zhu?
If it was an ordinary visit to relatives and friends, he would not be strangled to death on the boat.
The household room is similar to the household department. It is in charge of the finances of Quanzhou Prefecture, the two taxes, and the account books of the entry and expenditure of various money and grain. Hu Benmo probably had some shady accounts in his hands, so he was silenced.
"I'll take this meal."
Li Zongfeng saw Xiao Cheng taking out some broken silver and quickly declined.
Gu Zhengchen waved his hand: "You know my identity. If you eat for nothing but don't pay the bill, wouldn't it be an act of corruption? Brother Li, don't try to harm me."
Li Zongfeng was in awe: "Hui'an, no, there are few officials like you in the whole Quanzhou Prefecture. Little brother Zhang is noble, but I am reckless."
Gu Zhengchen smiled and said, "I wonder if there are any officials in Jinjiang City who are as pedantic and unmoved as me?"
Li Zongfeng nodded seriously: "There really is one."
"who?"
Gu Zhengchen was very curious.
Li Zongfeng said sternly: "Yang Xiu, the magistrate of Jinjiang, is an official who is as honest as water. If it were not for this person to govern Jinjiang, the public resentment would have been overwhelming."
Gu Zhengchen could not imagine how Tang Xian, as the magistrate of Quanzhou Prefecture, could tolerate an upright official under his nose when both the Jinjiang County Government Office and the Quanzhou Prefecture Government Office were located in Jinjiang City.
However, Yang Xiu did not write to the court about the incident in Quanzhou Prefecture. Whether it is truly incorruptible or fake remains to be investigated.
After Gu Zhengchen thanked Li Zongfeng, he went down to the restaurant.
It was already getting late, so I went to stay at the Wan'an Inn not far away.
When Hua Deng was born, the main street of Luoyang Town was very lively.
Gu Zhengchen and Xiao Cheng were walking in the town. It could be seen from the faces of the people passing by and the vendors that there was no big oppression or exploitation here.
After visiting several old people, Gu Zhengchen figured out that Li Zongfeng's ancestors left a lot of properties here. He was considered a wealthy family here, with a bold personality and a willingness to give.
When the poor people here were embarrassed by the government officials because they could not pay taxes, Li Zongfeng stood up and helped the people pay the taxes. The people were wronged. He was the one who unclogged the government offices and coordinated neighborhood disputes. Although he is not the chief here, the two chiefs here listen to his words and receive a lot of favors from him.
Above the place, it is not without merit.
There are always some places and some people who still insist on simple kindness and the softest compassion.
