The snowflakes drifted in the air, and the snow did not fall densely, but it did not stop for a moment.

The rooftops of all parts of the city in Beiping are already covered with snow, and they are white as far as the eye can see; At this time, it is almost the end of the year, and there are red lanterns dotted in the middle, which also adds a bit of color.

A group of several people walked into the gatehouse of Yanwangfu with umbrellas, and then walked along the road that had been cleared of snow, and walked a little more to the west. The old monk holding the Zen staff in front was Yao Guangxiao, and he came to a door with a few people, then took the umbrella and handed it to the novice next to him.

Xiao Shami and the other two did not enter, only Yao Guangxiao entered the door.

After a while, Yuan Hui and a civil official greeted him. Yuan Heng wore a black veil and a regimental collar robe, he was originally a scholar, but now he is the governor of the palace and has been awarded an official position.

Yuan Hui and the civil officials around him stepped forward together. Yao Guangxiao also responded with a one-handed salute, his triangular eyes looked at Yuan Hui's face, and then looked at the civil official next to him.

"This is Zhang Yan, the book of the Yan Palace, Master Dao Yan has seen." Yuan Jue said.

Yao Guangxiao nodded and asked, "Did the monk confess?" ”

Yuan Jue said: "No, he didn't admit how to torture him, only said that we wronged him." ”

"Let's see." Yao Guangxiao said.

The group of three then walked down the narrow aisle to the inside. It was a brick-walled courtyard, which was not originally a prison, and there were few rooms; However, after King Yan raised his army, some important prisoners were inconvenient to send to the official prison, so this sturdy building was chosen as a place to temporarily hold prisoners.

Not long after, Yao Guangxiao and the others stopped in front of a fence. I saw that the fence was made of thigh-thick hardwood, and was bound with thick iron chains. When I looked inside, a bald monk was curled up in the corner, and the blood marks on his ragged robe were shocking. The monk still had chains on his feet and dragged a round iron ball.

Yao Guangxiao observed and saw that the monk huddled in the thatch moved, and it seemed that he was not dead.

At this time, Yuan Heng said: "The former Yan Wang's Mansion Governor Shi Gecheng betrayed the prince after being persuaded to surrender. When the prince raised his army, according to Master Daoyan's intentions, we didn't kill him, and he was interrogated several times later.

Ge Cheng's mouth is not strong, and he has said everything he knows. It's a pity that he doesn't know much, but he only spies on the inside of the Yan Palace, and Zhang Hao has been killed on the spot at the beginning of the prince's army.

We originally thought that Ge Cheng was useless, but he revealed some clues in his words: Ge Cheng and Zhang Yu met once in Huiju Temple before, and a monk from Huiju Temple arranged a room for them...... That monk is the one now, and the Dharma name is empty. ”

Yao Guangxiao listened and said: "This person is under the guise of becoming a monk, and he may be a traitorous spy. ”

At this moment, the monk inside made a hoarse voice, "The poor monk is not a traitor, the political envoy Zhang Yu is a member of the party, and the poor monk only received him twice, how did he become a traitor?" ”

Yao Guangxiao didn't talk to Monk Xukong at all, and soon left the gate of the fence.

The three of them walked into a nearby room and sat down separately. Yuan Hui frowned, and muttered to himself, "Could it be that we have really wronged Xukong?" Judging from what is being asked at the moment, the relationship between Monk Xukong and Zhang Yu and the others is indeed not very large......"

Yao Guangxiao raised his hand, and Yuan Heng stopped his mouth in amusement.

"In Beiping City, and even in the Yanwang Mansion, there must be traitors and spies!" Yao Guangxiao said in a very affirmative tone, "There are a lot of things on King Yan's side, and the people of Jingshi will soon know about it, so you can't take it lightly." ”

Yuan Heng nodded hurriedly and said, "Master Dao Yan is reasonable. It's just that after King Yan raised his army, Beiping was in chaos for a long time, and he had no clue for a while. Otherwise, I wouldn't have caught the person who didn't have much to do with the void. ”

Yao Guangxiao said: "Isn't it just a clue? Such a person is in the temple and is most likely responsible for delivering the message. If so, he knows so much that he must pry his mouth open! ”

Yuan Hui nodded and said: "It's also the same idea in the next place, and with only this clue, it took a lot of effort to continue the space." I sent someone to Huiju Temple to check the official document of the degree of emptiness; Then he checked the file from the Sangha Division and determined his name and place of origin before he became a monk. ”

Yuan Heng paused, and then said: "So I sent someone to the place where he was from, and he has quietly picked up his family and is ...... halfway down."

Yao Guangxiao glanced at him, but didn't say anything.

Yuan Hui said helplessly: "That monk is very strict, and what he said is also very reasonable, so we can't be sure that he is a traitor." The only way to do this is to use his family to coerce, what will happen? ”

He frowned, took a breath and said in a deep voice, "I'm afraid that if I really wronged him, I will lose a few innocent lives...... Did you report this matter to King Yan first? ”

"No need." Yao Guangxiao glanced at him, and neither asked Yuan Heng to continue to do it, nor did he have the slightest intention of stopping it.

At this time, Yao Guangxiao asked Zhang Dianshu to bring the confession file and read it carefully. Before leaving, he said, "Find a reliable Langzhong in the Yanwang Mansion and take a look at the injuries for Xukong." ”

Yuan Heng hurriedly said: "I have also ordered that the people in the courtyard will no longer be tortured, just wait for the arrival of the family members who are empty, and he can't help but not speak!" ”

……

It's almost the New Year, even if Beiping City has just gone through the war, it still gradually has the atmosphere of the festival, and the sound of "crackling" firecrackers is heard in the air from time to time, and the couplet hanging lanterns can be seen everywhere.

Compared with various etiquette, Zhu Gaoxu prefers to feel the atmosphere between the markets of the Ming Dynasty.

He ordered the soldiers of the honor guard to go back for the festival, so he found a fur coat and put it on to protect him from the cold, and called Wang Gui to go out.

The cold air was filled with the smell of burning coal, charcoal, gunpowder and all kinds of food, and although the snow was piled up on the corners of the streets, there were still many people walking outside in cotton jackets and spitting white vapor in their mouths.

Zhu Gaoxu and Wang Gui led the horse to walk, and the two of them talked with each other while looking at all kinds of strange things around them.

At this moment, Zhu Gaoxu vaguely heard the words "Someone in Yanwangfu accidentally ate Junying Grass", and he didn't even hear the words before and after, so he only noticed this sentence! He immediately stood in place: "Wang Gui, what did you just say? ”

Wang Gui was stunned for a moment and said, "The slave maid went to the Yan Wang's mansion and walked around with his classmates." ”

"That's not it, Jun Yingcao." Zhu Gaoxu said.

Wang Gui hurriedly said: "Oh! Ma He on the palace of King Yan was renamed Zheng He, and he made great contributions to Zheng Cunba, and King Yan gave him the surname Zheng ......"

Zhu Gaoxu was stunned again, it turned out that Ma He was Zheng He! Of course, Zheng He knew that the reason for his surname Zheng was that he had made meritorious contributions in Zhengcunba...... But at this time, Zhu Gaoxu wanted to hear about Jun Yingcao, so he didn't say anything.

Wang Gui continued: "It's about to be the New Year, and the slave maid gave Zheng He a small gift and sat at his house for a while. During this period, Zheng He mentioned one thing, someone in Yanwangfu was poisoned by eating Jun Yincao by mistake and died without cure. ”

"When was you poisoned?" Zhu Gaoxu asked again.

Wang Gui suddenly said: "In June, it was before King Yan raised his army. ”

Zhu Gaoxu stood there, and suddenly, he felt that many things were gradually becoming clear in his mind.