Jiuxi

Chapter 499 Chapter 497 [Hook sinking]

After thousands of years of development, Yongjia City is now the capital of Qi Dynasty. The political and economic center has been combined into one. It has surpassed the old capital Heluo and the capital of Jing Dynasty to become the largest city in the world.

There are more than one million residents in the city, and there are countless shops and restaurants.

Under today's objective conditions, trying to find a specific target in this big city is tantamount to finding a needle in a haystack. This is why the Sutra Weaving Division knew that spies from the northern Yan and Jing countries were hiding in the city, but still couldn't do anything to them.

Especially in the extremely bustling and lively markets in the North City, they have always been a place where good and bad people are mixed, and many inconspicuous shops hide unknown secrets.

For example, there is a pharmacy called "Xinglin Pavilion" in Cuiweifang.

It has a very ordinary name and a very simple facade, which is not worth mentioning compared with other shops on the same street.

But the business of this pharmacy is very good, and most of their customers have certain identities.

The reason is not complicated at all. The real owner behind Xinglin Pavilion is Tan Dongping, the judge of Taiyuan Hospital, whose status is only lower than that of the chief of the hospital, Gui Qiuliang.

At about three o'clock in the morning, an ordinary-looking man in his thirties walked into the pharmacy, whispered a few words to the waiter, and was then led to the backyard.

The shopkeeper of the pharmacy, whose surname was also Tan, was considered a distant relative of Tan Dongping. He looked at the man for a few times, and then motioned to the waiter to leave.

"Where's the stuff?"

The man in his thirties spoke in a low tone and got straight to the point.

Shopkeeper Tan looked very nervous, and the man was not surprised. After all, if the meeting between the two of them today was exposed, the result would be the confiscation of the family and the extermination of the clan.

"My master said, it's just this once, there will be no next time!"

Shopkeeper Tan reluctantly took out a copied prescription from his arms and handed it to the man.

The man glanced at the prescription, then carefully folded the prescription and stuffed it into his arms. Before leaving, he warned: "Tell your master to keep this matter in your stomach, otherwise no one can save him."

The master they were referring to was of course Tan Dongping, who was sentenced to death at the Taiyuan Hospital, and the origin of this prescription was self-evident.

Shopkeeper Tan looked at the thirty-year-old man's leaving figure fiercely, and couldn't help but slumped to the ground after he left.

This is not fear, but fear from the bottom of my heart.

He struggled to get up, and then quickly walked to a more private room next to him. As soon as he entered the door, he knelt on his knees and said sweating profusely: "The grass people have handed over the prescription to that person in accordance with Master Tiji's request. "

There are two people sitting in the room. The middle-aged man on the left is Qin Zheng, the warp weaver, and the one on the right is Lu Chen, the Marquis of Shanyang.

Qin Zheng glanced at the shopkeeper lightly and said: "In the next few days, you have to maintain the previous state and do whatever you need to do. Then the Weaving Department will arrest you and your judge Tan. But you Don’t worry too much, this is just a formality, you will stay in the warp weaving department’s prison for the time being, and you will be released when the time is right.”

Shopkeeper Tan kowtowed and said, "Thank you, Lord Tiju, for your forgiveness. The common people are grateful."

Qin Zheng immediately left the room with Lu Chen, and boarded the waiting carriage from another narrow street at the back door of the pharmacy.

As for this pharmacy and Shopkeeper Tan, they have naturally been under the control of elite spies from the Sutra Weaving Department for a long time.

The carriage moved steadily towards the palace in the south.

Lu Chen said with a slightly solemn expression: "Is that prescription used by His Majesty?"

Qin Zheng said calmly: "Yes, but you don't have to worry about there being something wrong with the prescription. It was the prescription prescribed by Gui Qiuliang. It has been cross-verified by many imperial doctors, and people will try the medicine in advance. The palace has always been very controlling in this regard. strict."

Lu Chen breathed a sigh of relief and said, "But those who are interested can judge His Majesty's condition from this prescription."

Qin Zheng did not deny it.

There is no doubt that this is the first and most important step in luring the monarch and ministers in the north to take the bait.

Only if they knew Li Duan's physical condition in advance could they take risks in border wars.

Lu Chen collected his thoughts and said slowly: "So the court ruled that Tan Dongping was a secret agent who had been arranged by you a long time ago, and sent this prescription to the spies in the north through him?"

To his surprise, Qin Zheng shook his head and said, "No."

Lu Chen's eyes narrowed slightly.

Qin Zheng explained: "The Sutra Weaving Department has indeed noticed the existence of Xinglin Pavilion very early, and also knew that it was Tan Dongping's property, but it was just filed before, because Tan Dongping did not leak the secrets of Taiyuan Hospital to the outside world, he just used it It is common for me to make some money by selling medicinal materials. Your Majesty doesn't really care about it. As long as the people below stick to the bottom line, your Majesty will allow them to get some benefits. After all, there will be no fish if the water is clear." Lu Chen understood this. , but if Tan Dongping is not an internal agent of Jing Ren's rebellion, how can Qin Zheng ensure that the development of things follows his plan?
When he thought of this, he immediately reacted and asked: "Who is the mastermind behind the person who took away the prescription?"

Qin Zheng said calmly: "His name is Bian Yin. There have been twelve cadres in the Sutra Weaving Department, and he is the third."

These words instantly brought Lu Chen back to a few years ago.

That was when he had just come to this world. Because he was involved in the battle between the Weaving Department and the Northern Procuratorate, he was later appreciated by Su Yunqing, and specially used his merits to change Lu Chen to a seventh-grade official position.

Although the rank of the cadre is not high, the power in his hands is not small, and his status in the Sutra Weaving Department is roughly similar to that of the imperial censor in the court.

Lu Chen thought for a moment and suddenly said: "So this border officer is the one you laid for Jingguo's spies?"

Qin Zheng did not hide anything and said with a smile: "Yes, actually this matter is not very complicated. Bian Yin was an insider who was instigated by Jingren to rebel. In the past few months, he followed the instructions from the north and used his power to drag Tan Dongping into the water. , to inquire about His Majesty's condition through Tan Dongping. Tan Dongping and his confidants knew nothing about it before, so even if they were followed by spies from the north, these people would not reveal any flaws. Now they only need Bian Yin to hand over the prescription. Give it to Jingguo’s spies and the matter will be completed successfully.”

Lu Chen's eyes showed respect and he sighed: "This matter is indeed a bit unbelievable. Logically speaking, all the officers of the Warp Weaving Department are your confidants, and Bian Yin is the third person, which means that he entered the Warp Weaving Department very early. People actually believe that they can instigate rebellion against such people?”

At this moment, a complex emotion appeared on Qin Zheng's face.

He said softly: "At first, Your Majesty did not agree with me doing this, because if we want to gain Jingren's trust, we will have to pay a high price. But I always believe that the significance of the existence of the Weaving Department cannot only be aimed at Daqi's internal affairs, but also within Daqi. Burying a thorn in the most critical position may play an extremely important role at certain moments. Your Majesty finally agreed. After careful consideration, I chose Bian Yin. He was born in Huzhou, Jiangnan, and no one in his family died in Jingjun. Under the butcher's knife, people who come from a relatively poor family and live a miserable life, and who hold a humble and powerful position in the warp weaving department, are easy targets for Jingguo's spies. "

"But it's difficult to completely gain Jingren's trust."

"This is natural, so I asked Bian Yin to do a few things. Six years ago, in the early autumn of the eighth year of Jianwu, the Huaizhou Governor's Mansion planned the Yongquan Pass offensive. This was actually done jointly by His Majesty, Rong Guogong and I. At that time, Bian Yin had already established initial trust with Jingguo's spies, and he secretly passed the plan to the north, which eventually led to the enemy knowing about the Yongquan Pass offensive in advance and our army returning without success. "

Hearing these words, Lu Chen was slightly startled.

He seemed to have heard about this in his memory.

After thinking for a moment, he finally remembered.

That was the first time he entered Guangling City as the young master of the Lu family. He was brought to the Guangling Mansion Yamen by spies from the Sutra Weaving Department to meet Su Yunqing.

The latter suspected that the Lu family was the work of Bei Yan, so he launched a detailed interrogation of Lu Chen. At that time, he mentioned several very strange things, including the Yongquan Pass offensive planned by Xiao Wangzhi in the eighth year of Jianwu.

This was obviously someone within Da Qi who was tipping off the news to the north. It was also one of the reasons why Su Yunqing suspected the Lu family at that time.

"I see."

Lu Chen's mood was a little complicated at the moment.

Qin Zheng continued: "It's like the attack on the Right Prime Minister the year before last. I wonder if you still remember it?"

Lu Chen nodded and said, "I remember that at that time, someone impeached the right prime minister's protégé, Shen Qingzhong, a scholar at the Hanlin Academy, and then a group of people stood up to impeach the right prime minister on various charges."

Qin Zhengdao: "The evidence that the curtains in Chongqing are not repaired, and the problems in the Xue family of Qingyuan, that is, the Youxiang clan, were all provided to the north by Bian Yin. In the past six years or so, he has not taken action many times. But it is important every time, so he has gained Jingren's trust. Through him, Jingren has taken advantage of me. Your Majesty has never cared about these things because of his trust in me, but I am actually very worried. . If such an important chess piece never plays its role, wouldn’t I be Daqi’s sinner?”

The information I learned from him today answered many of Lu Chen's doubts, because for a long time in the past, the Warp Weaving Department had been somewhat weak compared to the fine craftsmen in the north.

This is obviously not in line with the officials' evaluation of Qin Zheng and the emperor's absolute trust in him.

Until this moment, he didn't know what kind of pressure the middle-aged man in front of him was carrying.

When he thought of this, he looked at the other party's solemn expression and said bluntly: "Master Qin, if you want to gain something, you must pay. I believe that if you and Bian Ganban have been patient for seven years, there will be a perfect ending."

Qin Zheng calmed down and said warmly: "I hope so."

The carriage slowly stopped, and the coachman's voice came from outside: "Sir, we're here."

The two of them got off the carriage one after another and walked into the palace from Hening Gate.

In the cold winter sunshine, Qin Zheng was walking on the wide square, looking at the majestic Duancheng Hall in front of him, and said slowly: "Marquis Lu, the mission of the Weaver Division and I has been completed. Can we defeat the powerful forces in the north in this battle?" Whether the enemy can prevent your Majesty's hard work from being in vain depends entirely on Duke Rongguo, Governor Li, Your Excellency, and the soldiers of Daqi."

Lu Chen couldn't help but stop.

The middle-aged man had slightly white temples and gentle eyes. He cupped his hands and said, "Please."

Lu Chen returned the gift and said seriously: "Da Qi will win."

(End of this chapter)