"Uncle Ma, it's Guiyue now. We Central Plains people have to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival and have a reunion dinner. Xianglin is stationed at Shanhaiguan, and Fengyi is about to give birth. It's not good to come to this bloody place. I will give Ma for them both. Uncle will offer incense and these fruits and drinks. Uncle, with the blessing of the spirit of heaven, when Xianglin goes to battle to kill the enemy, he is the only one who can stab the Tatars, and no Tatars can hurt him. I also want to bless Fengyi and give birth to the baby smoothly. , mother and son, mother and daughter, as long as they are safe. Uncle, this is the wine shipped from Sichuan and Sichuan to Xianglin's mansion last year. This one is the smoked dried meat and bean paste glutinous rice cake made by Fengyi. She said that Xianglin likes to eat very much, and I think my uncle also likes this bite."
In the imperial prison of Fusi, Beizhen, Zheng Haizhu patiently arranged the wine and offerings in front of Ma Qiancheng's memorial tablet.
Liu Qiao folded his arms and leaned against the door frame of the cell. Behind him, the scribe Gu Qingquan stood respectfully.
"Mrs. Zheng is interested." Liu Qiao watched for a while and said sincerely.
Zheng Haizhu said: "If I weren't busy with Wenhua Hall matters, I should have come a few days ago. Now, the Mid-Autumn Festival has passed."
Then he sighed and said, "Uncle Ma, if he hadn't committed suicide back then, he would still be in his fifties now. It's the age when he gets on his horse to fight with guns and gets off his horse to play with his grandchildren."
Liu Qiao accompanied him and said with emotion: "Madam, you have dealt with many warriors in recent years. Don't you know the temperament of our warriors? You can't be killed and you can't be humiliated. You are obviously brave and loyal, but you are framed as a traitor and traitor. Ma A bloody man like Xuan Fu can't think about it for a moment, and I'm afraid it would be the same if it were me, Old Liu."
After saying that, Liu Qiao turned around quickly and said to Gu Qingquan, who was listening attentively to the words of the two of them: "Little talented man Gu, if you become a Jinshi later and put on an official robe, you must remember not to be a cruel official with swords and pens. Long Live Lord is here to live in vain. You have forced us warriors to die, who will guard the border for you to defend against the enemy? Who will guard the gate of the capital for you, so that your wives, children, and children can live in peace? "
Gu Qingquan made a look of sincerity and fear: "I would like to listen to the instructions of the Governor. I have always respected all generals the most."
Liu Qiao nodded, as if remembering something again, and praised: "Has Ma Xuanfu tidied up this room? It looks more presentable than before."
Gu Qingquan said respectfully: "I used to think that we still need to make prison cells. Last time, the Commander-in-Chief of the Guards announced that he would always worship Ma Xuanfu just like he worshiped Yue Shaobao, so he asked his subordinates to clean up the debris and clean it. ”
Zheng Haizhu interjected: "On behalf of Xianglin and his wife, thank you Mr. Gu."
Gu Qingquan hurriedly bowed: "I don't dare to take it seriously. Madam, just call me Xiao Gu."
Zheng Haizhu walked up to him and said warmly: "Then let's call him Xiao Gu, without birth points. Xiao Gu, my servant said that you are a master of the capital. The Yuezhou Restaurant I mentioned last time was very authentic. It's a pity that that time, General Zhang Shen wants to eat Yunnan food. Today is a good day, and I want to ask you again, is there a Fahua Temple in the capital?"
Gu Qingquan just raised his head, and his eyes met the woman in front of him with her spring-like gaze.
But when the boy heard the words "Fahua Temple" and was looked at by gentle eyes, his heart was solidly shuddered.
When he was stunned for a moment, Zheng Haizhu turned his head and explained to Liu Qiao in a familiar tone: "We have a Fahua Temple in Songjiang, which was built in the Song Dynasty. It is very effective. This time, I almost lost my life in the palace for only ten days. I failed twice, but luckily the bad luck turned into good luck, so I must go to the temple to worship."
Liu Qiao showed a clear expression: "Hey, I have to go and thank the Bodhisattva. If Songjiang doesn't have time to go back, then he can visit the temple of his relatives in Beijing. There must be 180 large and small temples in Beijing. Xiaogu, there are Is it called Fahua Temple?"
Gu Qingquan had already come back to his senses and said respectfully: "I remember there is one, it should be in Zhengdongfang, in the Biangan Hutong area."
Liu Qiao rolled his eyes and thought for a while: "Biaogan Hutong, Biaogan Hutong, is it close to the South Patrol Hall? That area of homes with no dignitaries is also the boundary of the patrol camp. We Jinyiwei will not run to that end. No wonder I didn’t know there was a temple there.”
He looked back at Zheng Haizhu with a smile: "It's just past noon. If Madam wants to go, can Xiao Gu accompany you to lead the way?"
Zheng Haizhu waved his hand and said: "I can't do it today. I ate mutton buns in the morning and I didn't bring enough incense or money with me. When we go to the Buddha to offer incense, we are all very particular about it. We must be vegetarian for three days. Three days later it happens to be the birthday of the Lantern Buddha. That day I Go. Don’t bother Xiao Gu. The avenues in the capital are like a chessboard, so it’s not difficult to find.”
After leaving the imperial prison and heading to the check-in room, Zheng Haizhu looked at no one around and said seriously in a low voice: "Director Liu, my people have watched the doctor surnamed Bo, as well as Li Kezhuo, the chief minister of Honglu Temple. , both of them have recently entered Fahua Temple."
Liu Qiao also wiped away the careless smile on his face and became serious.
He originally thought that Zheng Haizhu was too suspicious. He had caught the moment when Gu Qingquan changed his color for a moment, and it was inevitable for him, Old Liu, to have doubts in his heart.
"This guy is not only stalking the lady, but is he also connected with the doctor?"
Zheng Haizhu said: "It's possible, so Bo knew that your child had gastrointestinal problems after he was born, so he chose an alley nearest to your home to open the door and sit in the hall. But maybe Gu Qingquan and them are from two different groups, and they happen to know the law. It's just a Hua Temple. In any case, Governor Liu, just like you did to Mr. Bo, don't disturb this ancient talent for the time being."
Liu Qiao nodded and asked, "Madam, are you really going to Fahua Temple in three days? Will there be any guards?"
"I'm going to explore the temple. There are many people on Buddha's birthday, so it's not eye-catching. There are guards, so Governor Liu can rest assured."
"good."
Zheng Haizhu glanced at Liu Qiao's solemn expression with a slight frown on his eyebrows.
In fact, before taking advantage of the opportunity to pay homage to Ma Xuanfu and go to the imperial prison to find out the truth, Zheng Haizhu was still wary of Liu Qiao.
Now it seems that I should be able to ask directly.
She then briefly explained the strangeness of the Tujia writing on the bed where Ma Xuanfu slept.
Liu Qiao didn't react for a while, so he clicked his tongue and said, "Nanhong? Nanzhu? Zhunan? I'll check these names. Is there anyone with this name in Beizhen Fusi in those years?"
Zheng Haizhu shook his head: "It can't be a person's name. Wang Wenyan asked someone to find out. Ma Xuanfu doesn't speak Chinese very well, so how could he express the meaning of a person's name in Chinese pronunciation in native language?"
Liu Qiao stopped and looked down at the shadow cast by the big locust tree in the midday sun.
He suddenly said to Zheng Haizhu: "Pull me over to take a look at the character you don't recognize."
Zheng Haizhu used her toes to draw on the sand the symbols that "ding" does not look like "ding" and "ge" does not look like "piece".
Liu Qiao stared at it for a moment, then raised his head and said: "This is not a word, it means the head of the gun. I guess it means killing."
Zheng Haizhu stared at Liu Qiao and uttered four words: "Nan Zhu kill me?"
Liu Qiao's pupils suddenly shrank, and his thoughts were covered by a deeper panic.
He cast his gaze towards the distant Fusi Gate of Beizhen.
"Mrs. Zheng, you know that our Jinyi Guards did not have Beizhen Fusi at the beginning."
"Well, I know a little bit about it. Beizhen Fusi was added during the reign of Emperor Yongle."
Liu Qiao nodded and continued slowly: "Beizhen Fusi was responsible for clearing out the remnants of Jianwen for Lord Yongle. However, according to my grandfather, at that time, even in the edict, there was no mention of the word "remnants of Jianwen". , those who jumped out on their own initiative, or were bitten by political opponents, even if they are loyal to the old master, how can they be called 'evil'? Because I heard that Emperor Jianwen fled to the south, and we are in Fusi, Beizhen. Call the person who comes here Nanzhu."
There was a "bang", and the sound of a fire cannon was heard from behind the barracks not far away, followed by several more, and the sudden loud noise made the crows on the big locust tree fly up and cry, Rush into the distance.
Liu and Zheng raised their heads and watched the birds gradually disappear into the sky.
"Captain Liu, what I'm concerned about is, are there Nanzhu in your Fusi prison in Beizhen seven years ago and now?"
"Mrs. Zheng, we can't just guess this matter. We have to report it to Commander Wei."
"Yeah, but it's better not to let the news out too much."
"Then, do we still need to inform General Pony?"
Zheng Haizhu fell into silence. In her heart, of course she wanted to tell Ma Xianglin in detail when she met. In half a month, it will be September. If Zhu Changluo is fine, it will be too late for her to go to Shanhaiguan again, right? After all, right now, it's just a gray line.
…
Three days later, on August 22nd, it was the birthday of the Buddha.
"Light up the lamp in front of the Buddha and extinguish the fire in your heart. May this great wisdom illuminate and destroy all ignorance."
In front of Fahua Temple, the Jiaotan River branches off into a tributary and converges into a small pond.
At this time, Buddhist believers were singing "Gatha for Lamp Offering" and were releasing turtles and carp into the pond in an orderly manner.
Zheng Haizhu and Hua Er, with simple clothes and smooth hair, like the most common women who offer incense in the capital, bought incense, candles and flowers from the seller by the pond and walked into Fahua Temple.
Two strong servants sent by Wang Wenyan were about twenty or thirty steps away from them, following them slowly, scanning the surroundings with their four eyes in a well-trained manner.
The door of the Lotus Temple is not big, but it looks like a universe inside.
Behind the main hall, there seems to be a deep Zen room with lush trees and towering stele towers.
Zheng Haizhu offered incense and flowers, donated merit, and stood in front of the sun-drenched hall for a long time.
One of Wang Wenyan's servants walked past her and put a few coins into the merit box.
This means that there is no suspicious person hanging around them.
Zheng Haizhu then greeted Hua Er and followed the sporadic pilgrims who had a sense of autumn outing to the forest behind the temple.
The clear autumn is pleasant, and the breeze brings the rich fragrance of osmanthus and the light smell of grass, as well as the sound of the piano from an unknown Zen room nearby.
"Little master, is your company having a gathering today?" Zheng Haizhu asked a young novice monk who was sweeping the house.
"I met the female Tan Yue. The temple had an abbot at that time who allowed a luthier from Nanzhili to open a forum here. Piano friends came in droves. To this day, there are still Tan Yue who likes qin in Beijing and often come to the small temple to play with each other. Sit alone and play the piano."
Zheng Haizhu clasped his hands and thanked him for the advice, then strolled towards the Zen room surrounded by flowers and trees.
Suddenly, there were rapid footsteps behind him, followed by several harsh yells.
"Zheng Haizhu!"
Zheng Haizhu turned around subconsciously and saw three or four men in brown clothes running towards the Moon Cave Gate behind the main hall.
When the first one saw her reaction to his name, he raised his finger and pointed at her, saying to the left and right: "It's this bitch who went up and disfigured her!"
The pilgrims scattered around suddenly changed their colors when they saw this clearly seeking revenge. They screamed and ran away, for fear of becoming a fish in the pond.
On the other hand, the little novice monk who was sweeping the floor, as soon as he realized what he was doing, he stepped forward to stop him, shouting, "Buddhist pure land, Tan Yue, don't make mistakes, don't make mistakes."
The servant of the Wang family who was sitting on the steps at the back door of the hall also heard the scolding and saw something was wrong. He jumped up, got through the moon cave door, and rushed here.
But the leading man in brown clothes had already rushed forward and pushed the young novice away.
"Hua Er, get out of the way!"
While Zheng Haizhu ordered, he simply used his shoulder to push away Hua Er who was trying to protect her. His right hand had already tightened the stainless steel chisel he took out in a moment.
Back then, Li Guozhu rebelled and joined forces with the Spaniards to intercept her and Yan Siqi at sea. Zheng Haizhu relied on her survival instincts to defend the enemy side by side with Zheng Zhilong. Yan Siqi and Ma Xianglin both told her to learn some self-defense skills, even if they only had five or six moves. At least you can win a chance to survive, or escape, or give your surrounding companions time to come to the rescue.
Yan Siqi taught her in Taiwan, Wu Bondang taught her in Liaodong, and Xu Yilong also taught her in Chongming. The three of them are all good at close combat. They considerately consider the weakness of women, and study the characteristics of Ma Xianglin's fine steel chisel. They only teach the moves on the way of avoidance, turning fierceness into dexterity, making the moves easy to remember. , easy to use.
Zheng Haizhu has practiced a limited number of moves for three or four years. The enemy attacks with fists, kicks, or short blades from all directions, from top to bottom, left, right, and right. She has formed a muscle memory to block and counterattack. of.
Moreover, her first move is always to hold the unedged middle part of the chisel, point the end with the hole outward, and draw it flatly to protect her body, so as to catch the opponent by surprise first, rather than when she doesn't know the reason. , directly use the sharp chisel tip to stab the opponent's vitals.
However, in an instant, a cyan shadow appeared in front of the man in brown clothes.
The stainless steel chisel shines like a white fish in the sun, and can pass through the blue shadow.
Zheng Haizhu felt an obvious impact on his hand and took several steps back unbalanced.
After all, she didn't have a solid foundation in martial arts, so she couldn't help but sit on the dirt.
At the same time, I heard the cyan figure make an "ah" sound, seeming to cry out in pain, and fell to the ground.
"Master, Master!"
"Where did the gangster come from to commit the crime? He took the report to the official!"
Four or five men with narrow sleeves and cloth trousers, who looked like servants, gathered around. One of them helped the man in green robe, and the rest surrounded the men in brown clothes.
"lady!"
Hua Er came over in a few steps and helped Zheng Haizhu up.
"I'm fine!"
Zheng Haizhu had already seen Wang Wenyan's servants rushing behind the bewildered young novice monk, and quickly reminded them that there was no need to rush to reveal that they were on his side.
The man in green robe also stood up and shouted: "You committed a murder in broad daylight. Ah Si, arrest him and report him to the police!"
"Report to the official?"
The leader of the men in brown clothes was a little strangely surprised when he saw Zheng Haizhu making trouble and knocking down the green-robed young man who was blocking his fist a moment ago. At this moment, he suddenly turned serious again and stared with eyes wide. : "In my master's house, even the third-rank officials must bow their hands in greeting when they see him, Eunuch Wei of the Wei Dynasty."
