"What do you mean to be able to know?" Ran Qiunian couldn't help but ask, "Where is my brother Qiubai now?" ”

Zhang Shulin lowered his eyes and explained to Ran Qiubai all the things that happened on the day Ran Qiubai disappeared.

"On that day, I found out that Brother Qiubai and my cousin had an argument for some reason, and I was very worried, so I chased after him and tried to persuade him. Who knew that he happened to see his cousin, and he poured Brother Qiubai medicine on the grounds of reparation wine. ”

Zhang Shulin didn't know why the two turned their faces around, but he had a deep friendship for both of them, and naturally he didn't want to see either party hurt.

Seeing that Ran Qiubai was drugged by Zhang Shaoxian, he hurriedly went up to stop Zhang Shaoxian, who wanted to continue to attack him.

Who knew that Zhang Shaoxian scolded him for a while, told him not to meddle in his affairs, and used his family as a threat to make him quiet. Zhang Shulin couldn't, and he couldn't get over the level in his heart, so he had to wait for Zhang Shao to pay attention to it first, and then quietly let Ran Qiubai go.

"Where did you hide Brother Qiubai?"

When Ran Qiunian heard this, he couldn't help but take a step forward, forced in front of Zhang Shulin, and asked urgently.

"I don't know what medicine my cousin gave Brother Qiubai, he hasn't woken up, I'm afraid of being discovered, so I can only hire a group of merchants to return to Splendid City and bring him back."

Zhang Shulin's face was full of guilt, after he sent people away, he was afraid that Zhang Shao would find out first, and he didn't dare to take care of him all the way, making the illusion that Ran Qiubai had escaped by himself, dragging the caravan around Lingzhou City, under the pretext of recruiting people, in fact, to buy more time for Ran Qiubai to meet Splendid City.

"Those caravans have been gone for a few days, I don't dare to inquire about the news, and I don't know if they have sent Brother Qiubai back to Splendid City."

Although Zhang Shulin's method is very risky, for a half-grown man like him who has neither connections nor support, it is already the best way he can think of in that situation.

Although Ran Qiunian was anxious, he also knew that he couldn't be blamed. had to look at Xiao Yin behind him with worried eyes.

Xiao Yin received Ran Qiunian's eyes, looked at her soothingly, stepped forward to Zhang Shulin, and said, "You tell me the business name of that caravan, and I will send someone to pursue it all the way." Do you know their proprietors and shopkeepers? Who is the principal of the caravan? ”

"I heard that it is a convoy of the Feng family firm, which often travels back and forth between the two places to do business. I heard that Feng Ran's two families have always been good friends, so I ordered such a caravan and asked them to send Brother Qiu Bai back. ”

The Feng family? Ran Qiu Nianxiu frowned slightly, how could it be so coincidental that she actually picked the Feng family?

Her heart sank, and she couldn't help but say to Xiao Yin: "Big brother, the Feng family is right to the Ran family...... These days, there are quite a lot of points to watch, and the people who entrust Brother Qiubai to the Feng family, will they? ”

Xiao Yin's face was also a little solemn, but he didn't want to make Ran Qiunian even more worried, so he didn't show it.

"What? Is there anything wrong with the Feng family? Zhang Shulin's heart jumped, shouldn't he have done something bad with good intentions? Sent Brother Qiu Bai to the wolf's den again, right?

"Did you and the person in charge of the caravan know Qiubai's identity?" Xiao Yin asked.

"It's hard to make a noise about this matter, and I'm afraid that my cousin will hear the wind and not say anything. It was only deduced that it was a relative in the caravan, who had some emergencies and had to rush back earlier, but the caravan would not be able to leave for several days. I gave a few taels of silver, and begged them to take care of them on the way, and send people to the summer village where Ran's family was outside the city. ”

Hearing this, Ran Qiunian relaxed slightly, but he was still worried, for fear that those businessmen would find out about Qiubai's brother's identity or feel cumbersome on the road and leave people behind.

"Thank you for that. In return, I'll tell you a few things. ”

Xiao Yin glanced at the worried Ran Qiunian and said to Zhang Shulin.

"These are all things I should do, I tell you that I just hope that Brother Qiubai is safe and sound, not in exchange for anything."

Zhang Shulin waved his hand again and again, looking serious.

But Xiao Yin told him bluntly: "Do you know what Zhang Shaoxian is doing in private?" ”

"Cousin?" Zhang Shulin was stunned for a moment, recalling the day when he broke the dispute between Ran Qiubai and Zhang Shaoxian, he vaguely heard the words, and said with some hesitation, "But when my cousin was running the caravan to run the goods, he carried prohibited things that shouldn't be brought?" ”

"Yes, so do you know what he's smuggling in secret?"

Xiao Yin continued to ask, not forgetting to look at the look on his face.

"To say that it is a prohibited thing must be those things that are strictly forbidden to be sold privately and are profitable in the commercial law. Maybe it's official salt, maybe it's the best silk, I don't know. ”

Zhang Shulin shook his head, no matter what Zhang Shao smuggled first, since Ran Qiubai would have such a big quarrel with him because of this, it must be that this thing violated the law, and Ran Qiubai has always despised these things the most.

"Then you really underestimate him, he smuggles iron ore." Ran Qiunian blurted out.

"What? Smuggling iron ore is a great crime of treason, how can his cousin ...... It's no wonder that Brother Qiu Bai had such a big fire that day, no wonder his cousin must kill Brother Qiu Bai. ”

Zhang Shulin took a few steps back in disbelief, looking quite devastated, but it made Ran Qiunian completely believe that he was indeed kept in the dark.

"Do you know that he smuggles iron ore in your name?" The last sentence that Xiao Yin dropped made Zhang Shaoxian completely thrown into the ice pool, and his face turned pale.

Even Ran Qiunian couldn't help but cast a sympathetic look at him.

Zhang Shaoxian is really ruthless, poisonous and ruthless, his brother who has the grace of knowing him can be killed at will, and the cousin who grew up together since childhood and respects him quite a lot can also be used as a substitute for the dead.

"Cousin, he'......"

Zhang Shulin wanted to say that he wouldn't, but he thought that Ran Qiubai was just persuading him to stop that day, so he could be killed by him without hesitation, and he could have some affection for his cousin, who had always been clumsy.

Seeing that Zhang Shulin stopped talking, hanging his head, his face was full of sadness, and he looked like he had accepted his fate, Ran Qiunian suddenly hated iron and steel. With the character of this bun, if she can put Qingxi in his hands with confidence, then it will be red rain in the sky.

"Smuggling iron ore is a felony of stealing the family and exterminating the family, and it will harm your family, relatives and friends, and you are willing to bear such a crime for him?"

Xiao Yin said lightly, as if he didn't care about Zhang Shulin's choice at all.

"Me." Zhang Shulin's heart was full of entanglement, on the one hand, he was thinking about his cousin's family's help to his family over the years, and on the other hand, he felt chilled about Zhang Shaoxian's use of him as a substitute for the dead ghost, of course he knew that he should not accept this crime, but he couldn't say a wordless words.

"You don't really want to take the blame for Zhang Shaoxian's white-eyed wolf, do you? You didn't burn out your brains, did you? ”

Ran Qiunian saw that he still dared to hesitate, and immediately couldn't help but scold.

Zhang Shaoxian lowered his head with guilt and helplessness.

"You go back and think about it, you and I know the crime of smuggling iron ore, Zhang Shaoxian will definitely not be able to escape death. But you and your family still have the opportunity to make meritorious contributions. If you have a decision and a decision, let the jailer pass the word, and I will stay here one more day, and if you don't make a decision, you don't need to say any more. ”

After Xiao Yin finished speaking, without waiting for Zhang Shulin's reply, he summoned the errand guards outside and brought Zhang Shulin back to the prison.

"Big brother, what are the opportunities you are talking about to make meritorious contributions?"

When Zhang Shulin was taken away, Ran Qiunian couldn't help but ask curiously.

"Everyone thought that the case of the loss of the Lingnan iron ore mine was closed, but I always felt that something was wrong."

Xiao Yin did not hide Ran Qiunian and told her all his guesses.

"The iron ore I brought back from the warehouse in the southern suburbs that night, I have seen it after I came back, although it is indeed iron ore, but the condition is very different from the official mine, and it can only be regarded as medium grade at most."

Xiao Yin's expression was a little solemn, Ran Qiunian listened to it on the side, his eyebrows moved slightly, and he asked tentatively: "Big brother, do you think that the batch of iron ore in Zhang Shaoxian's hand is not the one lost in Lingnan at all?" ”

"Yes, the official mines must be of the best quality, and the lost batch in Lingnan City is ready to be transported to the capital and made into raw materials for weapons and armor in the hands of the Imperial Forest Army. The condition can be described as one in a thousand. ”

Ran Qiunian nodded, deeply convinced. This is also what she is most concerned about, she knows that the loss of Lingnan iron ore is just an introduction, and there will be several times when the best iron ore of the imperial court is inexplicably lost, which will cause a stir and even cause the emperor to be angry.

In her previous life, she also overheard the group of officials and wives gossiping in private, saying that the governors sent to Lingnan to investigate were stubble after stubble, but most of them went and never returned, or they returned empty-handed.

It wasn't until the end that the emperor sent a soldier in the army to go with a member of the clan to investigate thoroughly, and then he caught the culprit, that Lingnan County Guard, who was guarding and stealing.

And the domineering lord of the Imperial Guard Mansion in Splendid City is the wife and brother of the Lingnan County Guard, and the two officials protect each other, secretly collude, and smuggle a large amount of iron ore from the official mines of the imperial court to smuggle them everywhere for profit.

"Big brother wants to uproot all the black hands behind this scene at once? If you said that to Zhang Shulin, I am afraid that you already have a way to do it now. ”

Ran Qiunian looked at Xiao Yin with bright eyes, if they could really dig out the deepest nail in the iron ore smuggling case as soon as possible, they could also avoid the innocent death of the court officials who were sent to investigate the case later.

It's just that she is a little worried: "It's just that in this way, I'm afraid that the big brother will endanger his own safety." ”

"Don't worry, I'll do what I can."

After Xiao Yin finished speaking, he touched Ran Qiunian's head, but heard her sigh: "Now Zhang Shao has been arrested first, only Brother Qiubai's whereabouts are unknown, I hope he is okay." ”

"Qiubai, I'll first send someone to follow the traces of the Feng family's caravan that Zhang Shulin said, and we'll set off together tomorrow, don't worry too much, maybe when we return to Splendid City, Qiubai will already return to the Ran family."

Ran Qiunian nodded, hoping so.

"Nian'er, Brother Xiao, you are really still here." Qi Ruoyun's voice suddenly came from outside the door, breaking the contemplation of the two.