Shu Niang came out with a basket of eggs and placed it carefully on the ground: "They are all eggs laid in the past two months. There are fourteen of them. How many do you think you can give?"
Huang Ke's face was pale, sweat was pouring from his forehead, and he winked at Shu Niang repeatedly.
Shu Niang didn't see it, but carefully picked up an egg with soft feathers and blew it, then continued to Gu Zhengchen: "As long as the price is right, we will sell it."
Gu Zhengchen picked up an egg and saw that Shu Niang was so nervous that she was afraid of beating it, so he smiled and said: "I want these eggs, fourteen eggs, roughly three or four liang per catty, two hundred yuan, is that enough?" "
Shu Niang didn't expect that the merchant who came was so generous and the price was realistic, so she simply agreed.
Gu Zhengchen asked Li Chengyi to get the money.
In the Ming Dynasty, eggs were much more expensive than meat. One pound of eggs could be exchanged for forty or fifty pounds of rice. Ordinary people raise chickens at home and may not be willing to eat two eggs throughout the year.
Gu Zhengchen asked Li Chengyi to give him two more coins and bought the basket together. Then he said to Shu Niang, "You must save this money and don't let anyone worry about it."
After Shu Niang counted clearly, she wrapped it in a handkerchief and walked into the room.
Gu Zhengchen looked at Huang Ke: "I am investigating the shipwreck case. Hu Benmo is the most critical person in the case. He is dead, but I have reason to believe that as a shrewd accountant, he will not leave anything behind. Or evidence. So, you still don’t know anything?”
Huang Ke stared at Gu Zhengchen rudely, gritted his teeth and asked, "I'm very curious, how did you show up here after staying in the government office all this time!"
"Who told you that I have been staying at the government office?"
Gu Zhengchen asked with a smile.
Huang Ke was speechless and didn't know how to answer.
Gu Zhengchen gave everyone the impression that he was indeed staying at the government office. After all, no one had ever left the gate. But the problem is that you don’t have to go through the main gate to leave the government office. You can also go out by climbing a ladder and climbing over the wall...
"Hu Benmo's family is very miserable. If you hadn't secretly helped her, her wife and children would have starved to death. Huang Ke, I think you know very well how Hu's leg was broken. If you knew You can tell me something."
Gu Zhengchen said seriously.
Huang Ke looked deeply at Gu Zhengchen and shook his head: "I don't know anything. This is the result of anyone who asks."
Gu Zhengchen smiled and nodded slightly: "It's really hard for you to speak. Once you want to speak, you might have to sink a ship. By then, it will be the Hu family who will starve to death, and Shu Niang who will have her leg broken. My family, your family, have no hope and support. Well, it’s not appropriate to ask you. Now that I have bought the eggs, it’s time for me to go back.”
Huang Ke looked at Gu Zhengchen who was leaving with a smile, trembling all over. After Gu Zhengchen left the alley and lost sight of his figure, Huang Ke sat slumped in the yard, breathing heavily.
Seeing this, Shu Niang quickly brought a sweat towel and asked with concern: "What's wrong with you? You have a fever and are sweating so much?"
Huang Ke took the sweat towel and wiped his face, and asked: "Just now - the businessman who bought eggs, you saw him in Qianxi Village, did he go to Hu Benmo's house?"
Shu Niang shook her head: "If they went to Hu Benmo's house, how could I bring them here? What, they went to Hu Benmo's house?"
Huang Ke didn't say much. He stood up and walked to the wooden pile, put the wood in place, raised the ax and chopped it down. He said solemnly: "Don't go to Hu Benmo's place from now on. I will let others deliver food. Just be careful in everything." .”
The stream is gurgling and the bridge is filled with autumn breeze.
Li Chengyi asked with some confusion: "Didn't Master say that the shipwreck case was being investigated secretly to avoid alerting the enemy? Why did he tell Huang Ke directly today? If he told the matter, it would be even more difficult for us to investigate. ?”
Gu Zhengchen glanced at Li Chengyi, then cast his gaze on the stream, looking into the distance and said: "Hu Benmo's death must be a conspiracy, and it cannot be said to be murder. Who has the courage to do such a thing, and who has the energy? Where? The battles in Jinling were probably more cruel than those in Jinling. At least most people in Jinling still followed the rules and knew what was appropriate. But in this place, the sky is high and the emperor is far away, so they can act arrogantly. Assuming that Hu Benmo was silenced by some people, Then have you ever thought about why they broke Hu’s leg?”
Li Chengyi stared: "They didn't get what they wanted from Hu Benmo, or in other words, they only got part of it!"
Gu Zhengchen nodded slightly: "So they asked Mrs. Hu. We don't know whether Mrs. Hu handed over the things or not, but one thing is certain. Hu Benmo's family is a thorn in the eyes and flesh of those people. And Huang Ke, as the government official The jailer is secretly helping Hu Benmo’s family. Isn’t this clearly against that group of people?”
"There is no final conclusion on whether Huang Ke is Huang He or not. At least Huang Ke is not a government official or judge. His family is too poor compared to many officials. I believe he knows something. It’s just out of distrust of me and the protection of my family that I dare not say anything.”
Li Chengyi thought for a while and realized that Gu Zhengchen's analysis was correct.
For some people, Hu Benmo is a betrayer. The betrayer will die, the betrayer's family will be unlucky, and people who sympathize with the betrayer are not allowed to exist.
Huang Ke took the risk to do this, not just out of sympathy.
Xiao Cheng walked over and said in a deep voice: "I checked, no one is following me, you can go back to the government office."
Gu Zhengchen nodded slightly and said to Xiao Cheng: "Send a message to Qin Song, Mei Hong and others, asking them to come to Jinjiang City as soon as possible. The water here is a bit deep, and there are not many people keeping an eye on what's going on in the city. I'm always worried."
Xiao Cheng agreed.
It was getting late when he returned to the government office. In order to avoid anyone being suspicious, Gu Zhengchen made a special appearance and went to the household.
The moonlight shines, no need to light a lamp.
Tongpanzhai.
Tang Xian stood in the courtyard, looking up at the moon, thinking endlessly.
Boom boom.
There was a knock on the door, and the housekeeper opened the door. Wu Kang, the colleague, came with a man in black robes.
Wu Kang walked quickly to Tang Xian, his face serious, and then stood sideways.
Tang Xian saluted the man in black robes and said in a deep voice, "Tang Xian has seen the divination operator."
Bu Suanzi took off his hat, revealing a sinister look. His face was thin and long, with a high nose bridge and thick and long eyebrows. At the age of more than thirty years, Wu Kang, Tang Xian and others looked in awe. color.
"The emperor has sent a powerful person. Don't underestimate him."
Bu Suanzi's voice was hoarse and his Adam's apple was constantly protruding.
Tang Xian frowned: "But the investigation information has been sent?"
Bu Suanzi nodded, took out a letter from his arms, and handed it to Tang Xian: "There are five thousand words in it, all of which are about Gu Zhengchen's terrible and extraordinary qualities. After reading it, you will know that you must not let this happen. You continue to stay in Quanzhou Mansion, otherwise, you will become prisoners one by one!"
Tang Xian opened the letter and read it carefully. The more he read, the more frightened he became, and the more he looked at it, the uglier his face became.
The county government had the last laugh in fighting internally, and became famous in Jinling for solving strange cases externally.
Beat the tiger to magistrate the county!
For some unknown reason, for no clear reason, but no one objected, he was made a male of Quanzhou County and enjoyed the title of nobility!
Not to mention, he was actually commanding the Jurong Guards!
This is a senior general of the Guard!
He holds many positions, including the head of the household department and the deputy director of the treasure bank promotion department!
What is even more frightening is that this person has a well-established background. Not only is he on good terms with the East Palace, but he also has a close relationship with the emperor. Before coming to Quanzhou Prefecture, he was sent to the prison of the Ministry of Punishment, and then - knocked out Chen Ning's teeth!
Tang Xian handed the letter to Wu Kang and closed his eyes to digest the news one by one.
I thought that Gu Zhengchen was young and energetic, easy to deal with, and easy to show his flaws. His initial strength was just a pretense to show his attitude. After all, after so many days, he had not conflicted with anyone. ..??m
But who would have imagined that underneath his seemingly gentle face, there are methods more ferocious than a tiger!
After Wu Kang saw it, he could hardly believe it and looked at Bu Suanzi: "This can't be true. When has such a person appeared in the imperial court? We have heard of the name of a man from Quanzhou County, but he is young. What kind of military title is used to determine the title?"
Bu Suanzi shook his head: "Those of us in Jinling have not found out what military achievements he was knighted for. The military merits of killing the pirates in Nansha at the mouth of the Yangtze River were after he was knighted. You have seen it, and it is clear, right? In front of you He is not an easy master to deal with, he is very good at following the clues, and if he seizes a small flaw, he can open a big hole!"
"The case of Jurong Guo's private casting of copper coins is enough to prove that this person has extraordinary abilities. My father said that he must leave as soon as possible. Even if he pays some price, he cannot be allowed to stay in Quanzhou Prefecture for a long time! So, you can't Instead of sitting and waiting for him to make the first move, take the initiative!”
Tang Xian took the letter and glanced at it again. His frosty cheeks trembled: "I have overestimated him. Unexpectedly, I still underestimated him. In this case, let's drag him into the water first. If he doesn't want to go into the water, , then pour water all over him, and if he gets soaked, he will always go into the water to wash himself off."
Wu Kang sighed: "This is the only way."
clang!
The sound of the gong suddenly exploded, tearing apart the silence of the government office.
Zhang Pei banged the gong fiercely and shouted at the top of his lungs: "The prefect has ordered that all officials in the government office go to the lobby to do the counting. If they fail to do so on time, they will be severely punished!"
clang!
The gong sounded loudly, and the officials who had been lying down stood up one after another, cursing.
Wu Kang raised his head and looked at the moon. I'm going to ask if there is anything wrong with the prefect's mind. It's early in the morning and it's late at night. You can light Hai!
The fortune teller covered his head with his hat and said coldly: "It seems that I was too late after all. He unsheathed him before we took action."
Wu Kang and Tang Xian looked at each other, said nothing, and quickly prepared their official uniforms.
Although Tang Xian was "removed" from his post, after all, he had no official documents and still had an official status. Since the prefect had called him, he had to go with him.
call out!
A dart was shot on the door panel. The official who wanted to open the door suddenly trembled and looked back.
Xiao Cheng dragged the water and fire stick and walked over slowly, shouting to the officials who wanted to leave the government office: "The prefect has an order to light the knot in the lobby. May I ask this official, when will the lobby be outside the government office?" "
