The haze was approaching and thick, as if the fog was rising from the darkness at the same time, and even flowing down from a high place, and everything around was quickly darkened and silent, only the stray dogs barked lowly, and a black wild cat quickly passed through the street, with a green light flashing in its eyes, and quietly ran quickly along the walls of the tall Xinghuafang, and soon disappeared into the night mist.

In the twilight when the wild cats disappeared, the sound of hurried footsteps and hooves of horses was heard in the distance, and soon, a group of hundreds of soldiers and servants appeared from the night fog, all fully armed and indifferent, and rushed straight to Du Youlin's mansion in Xinghuafang.

At the same time, at the other end of the same Xinghua Workshop, more than a hundred soldiers smashed open the door of Liu Ji's mansion, and there was a burst of chickens and dogs, and the soldiers dragged out Liu Ji with a dead face, letting his family chase and cry,

The sound of soldiers' galloping footsteps and horses' hooves pierced the night of Xinghuafang, and the lights of every house were turned on, and then all of them went dark, except for countless pairs of frightened eyes peeking out in the cracks of the windows and doors.

Du Youlin and Liu Ji were taken directly to the prison of Dali Temple and detained separately, Du Youlin didn't know what was going on, he was furious, screaming and screaming, while struggling desperately, using Tai, and even using the emperor to threaten the soldiers who captured him, but to no avail, 'clang' a loud noise, and put him in a dark and boundless, as if isolated from the world.

But Liu Ji knew that all this was caused by his impulsiveness, and remorse attacked him like an overwhelming locust. gnawed at the heart of the earth, his flesh, all his senses, and in the end there was only one consciousness left in the black prison to cry alone, still regretful.

The cell was filled with the stench of rotting flesh and skin, and there was a low sound of scurrying around from time to time, what frightened people was not the source of the rancid stench, nor the low scurrying thing, but that he couldn't see anything, Liu Ji closed his eyes in fear.

I don't know how long it took. An hour, a night, or a hundred years, Liu Ji sat in a corner, his back against the cold stone wall, the dampness on the stone wall had soaked his clothes, but he refused to leave this only place to rely on, suddenly. There was a slight sound of footsteps in the silent dungeon, and the footsteps were getting closer, beating at his heart and making his ears ache.

There was a sound of chains, the door of the cell was opened by a 'creak', a dim light shot in, and then a black shadow entered, Liu Ji pounced, grabbed the iron fence and shouted, "I was mistaken!" I wrote that letter drunk. If it's not true, I won't tell you! I'm not going to tell anyone. ”

The shadow didn't say a word. I only looked at him through the thick iron fence for a long time, and finally spoke: "Liu Ji." You only have two paths! ”

The voice was cold, without the slightest emotion, 'two roads', the three words were like three knives inserted into Liu Ji's chest, he took two steps back, his eyes stared at the black shadow, and gritted his teeth and said: "Yang Zhao! You dog thief, I've fallen for you. ”

This moment. He finally understood that he had fallen into a trap dug by Yang Zhao. He was taken advantage of, and his letter would be the beginning of a bloody storm, and needless to say, one path would necessarily be to cooperate with them, and the other way. Fa, he nodded, a cruel smile flashed in his eyes, and a word burst out of his tense lips: 'Die! ’

"Liu Ji, the above orders you to re-honor the whistleblower again and add these names!"

He took out a piece of paper from his bosom and said with a faint smile: "I'll just wait here, I must write it within an hour, if I can't write it well, I will kill you." ”

.

The long dark night finally passed, Chang'an was embraced by the white mist, above the mist, the clear sky was blue, and the spherical sun was like a crimson hollow buoy, rippling on the milky white sea of fog.

"Master, there are guests looking for you!"

Early in the morning, Li Qing was woken up by Song Mei outside, he was refreshed, and was just about to turn over, but suddenly remembered his wife beside him, the rapid wind immediately turned into a drizzle, and he crept up from the bed, for fear of disturbing her sleep.

Although Li Qingdi's movements were slight, she still woke up the curtain, she stood up slightly, her expression was lazy, and her face was still overflowing with the shyness of last night, "Li Lang, don't you sleep for a while?" ”

"Lie down! Lie down! You can't move at all. ”

Li Qing gently helped the curtain to lie down like a child, "It seems that someone is looking for me, I'll go out and have a look!" ”

Li Qing kissed the curtain's face, put on his shoes, and stepped out of the door in a few steps, "Who is looking for me?" ”

"I don't know, it's an official master, and there are a few public servants behind him."

"Public?" Li Qing suddenly remembered something, "Could it be that Xian Yu Fuli really sued himself, and the officials came to arrest people?" ”

Xiaoyu herself did not have a deed of sale, but her parents did, according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, the children born by slaves also belonged to the master, Li Qing remembered this at the beginning, but he went directly to Yibin from Chengdu, and he was so busy that he did not stop for a day, and he gradually forgot about it, but he didn't expect to turn over this old account today, he had sent someone to Chengdu to find Xian Yu Zhongtong, and he must complete this matter before marrying Xiaoyu.

Walking into the guest hall, Li Qing was pleasantly surprised, the person who came was not a servant who arrested him, but Cui Qiao, who was wearing an official uniform, was pacing back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, and several public servants standing at the door were also officials of Dali Temple.

"Why doesn't Uncle Shi go to the court, aren't you afraid of the lack of the official examination?"

Cui Qiao's face was solemn, and he said to a few public servants: "You watch, no one is allowed to come in." ”

Immediately, he took Li Qing's hand and walked inside, and said in a low voice: "Something big happened last night!"

Needless to say, Li Qing also knew what was wrong, he sneered in his heart, and said quietly: "What's the matter?" ”

Cui Qiao was slightly surprised when he saw that his face was calm, but he didn't have time to think about it at the moment, and said hurriedly: "Last night, about one watch, Li Linfu sent someone to arrest Du Youlin, the doctor of Donggong Shanzan, and his son-in-law Liu Ji at the same time in Dali Temple. ”

Cui Qiao took out a book from his arms and quietly handed it to Li Qingdao: "Here is a list written down by one of my henchmen last night for Liu Ji when he was grinding ink, you will transfer it to Tai for me immediately, I can't stay for a long time, I have to leave quickly!" ”

After speaking, he stuffed the book to Li Qing, turned around and left, and when he arrived at the door, he suddenly seemed to remember something, sighed and said to Li Qing: "I only hope you remember one thing, no matter what position I stand on in the future, our relationship between Weng and son-in-law will never change, and the curtain will ask you to take care of her more." ”

He shook his head and called a few dukes to leave quickly, Li Qing watched his back disappear, and then opened the book, which copied the list of more than a dozen people, the first Huo Ran at the top was Wei Jian, the secretary of the Criminal Department, and the second was Wang Zhonghe, the envoy of Hexi Jiedu, and the third was Zhang Qiu and Qiong, who were drawn by Li Qing with a red pen yesterday.

Li Qing took the list and smiled bitterly, what's the point of this giving Tai? If there is really a rebellion, the evidence can be destroyed in time, but it is a false accusation itself, so what if it is notified? Prepare early! ”

He also didn't have time to go back to the inner courtyard, so he walked to the gate and said to Lao Yu: "You go and tell Mrs. later, I have something urgent to go out, and I may be able to come back for dinner in the afternoon." ”

With that, he turned over his horse and galloped in the direction of the East Palace.

There is a court, too in the East Palace Mingde Hall to deal with official business, but Li Qing is looking for himself, Mingde Hall has a clerk's record, he can't open his mouth, can only find Li Jingzhong first, and then Li Jingzhong conveyed, today the East Palace on duty is just his old department, now the chief of the guard has been served by Li Hugun, see Li Qing again, although everyone dare not move at will, but the eyes are full of joy and excitement, someone has already gone in to report for him, after a while, Li Jingzhong heard the news and hurried over, Lao Yuan smiled and said: "General Li has been promoted, We still think that General Li will not bother to come to me again! ”

Li Qing smiled slightly, arched his hand at him and said, "How come!" Li Qing had just returned to Chang'an the day before yesterday, and Father-in-law Li was the first old man I came to visit. ”

After that, he took out a bottle of medicine from his leather bag, handed it to Li Jingzhong and said, "This is the medicine that my father-in-law wanted last time, and I brought it from Nanzhao." ”

Li Jingzhong was stunned, he asked him when he wanted to take the medicine, but as soon as he thought about it, he understood that it must be a good thing, so he hurriedly took it in a hurry, the bottle was heavy, his heart suddenly blossomed, and he smiled again and again: "General Li was the first to visit me, remember to send me medicine, our family is really honored, it is better to go in and sit down, our family can also serve a cup of tea." ”

Li Qing nodded, "Then disturb my father-in-law!" ”

Li Jingzhong is different from Gao Lishi, he has no mansion outside, he lives in the East Palace, he is Li Heng's personal eunuch and chief butler, and the salary is also the highest, and he has his own single courtyard and more than a dozen rooms in the outer buildings of the East Palace. There are also a few palace maids who specialize in serving, enter the guest hall, Li Qing swept around, the room is decorated with golden walls and splendor, extremely elegant, the glass bottle is inserted with artificial jade tree branches, and there are several crystal basins on the sandalwood table, full of courgette fragrant fruit. On the front wall hangs a picture of the prosperous era of Chang'an, and even the frame used for mounting the painting is covered with gold leaf

"What is the matter with General Li coming to our house?"

Closing the door, Li Jingzhong's smile disappeared. The tone also became serious.

"Gonggong Li is really a smart person, and it is about Tai, please convey it."

So, Li Qing told Li Jingzhong in detail about the incident, and finally took out Cui Qiao's book and handed it over: "This is the person who Li Linfu wants to clean up this time. ”

Li Jingzhong listened intently, his eyes became more and more shocked, since last year, he has been pressed by Li Linfu step by step, and he has hardly stopped for a day. First, Liu Sheng was in the case of stolen goods, and Jing Zhao Yin Han Chaozong was demoted. Li Shizhi was dismissed, and it was easy to get a smuggling case from the Haijia family to save the situation. Solving the Nanzhao problem also gave Tai a slight advantage, but in a blink of an eye, there was a case of Du Youlin, who was Tai's father-in-law, and the situation was much more serious than the case of Liu Sheng's stolen goods.

"No! This matter must be reported immediately, too. ”

Thinking of this, Li Jingzhong hurriedly said: "General Li, please sit down for a while, and I will go and talk to Tai, if necessary." I will summon you. ”

He didn't wait for Li Qing to answer whether he was willing or not, and as soon as he turned around, he ran away in a hurry. Since the person is already in the East Palace, Li Qing knows that it is inevitable to see him too much, although they are a little embarrassed by each other, but the ugly daughter-in-law will have to see her in-laws sooner or later.

Sure enough, after a while, Li Jingzhong's footsteps sounded in the courtyard again, he pushed open the door, beckoned to Li Qing, and said in a low voice: "General Li, please come with me, His Royal Highness wants to see you." ”

.

Before he walked to Tai's dormitory, he heard a few crisp cracking sounds, needless to say, it must be Li Heng who was smashing the cup, it seems that Li Heng also just knew about it from his own mouth, and he couldn't help but worry about the backwardness of the Taidang's intelligence system, it has been five or two hours since the two were arrested, and no one has gotten any news during this time? If it was Li Linfu, he would have already arranged the corresponding strategy, so it can be seen that Li Heng is indeed not Li Linfu's opponent!

Walking into the dormitory, Li Qing once again saw Tai Li Heng, who had turned his face with him, drove him out of the East Palace, and drove him out of the residence, only to see that his face was pale, his eyes were half-closed, and his whole body seemed to be full of exhaustion, he pressed his head with his hands, and was sitting on the wide chair weakly, on the ground, several little eunuchs were hurriedly cleaning up the broken porcelain.

Li Qing took two steps forward, knelt on his left knee and gave a military salute to Li Heng and said, "Li Qing see His Royal Highness!" ”

Hearing Li Qing's voice, Li Heng raised his tired eyes and said in a hoarse voice: "No courtesy!" Hurry up, please take a seat. ”

He sighed, barely bothered and smiled, "Why did you come to see me now after you came back?" ”

Li Qing just sat down, and when he saw Li Heng asking, he hurriedly stood up and said apologetically: "My body is not good, and I need to take care of her, so I didn't have time to come to see His Highness, please forgive Your Highness." ”

Li Heng nodded, "Let's talk about it!" The princess has already told me about your wife's situation, and I heard that she learned to ride a horse and fell down, so you have to be careful in the future! ”

"Thank you Princess for taking care of Weichen's family when Weichen is away, Li Qingxin is grateful!"

Li Heng smiled and waved his hand to sit down, "I entered the palace yesterday morning to see the emperor and suggested that you be appointed as the general of the Taizuo Guard, but the emperor did not agree, and he said that he wanted to release you, but you proposed it yourself?" ”

"Yes! It was for the minister to propose to go to the Western Regions to make contributions, after all, Weichen's qualifications are too shallow, and he is afraid that staying in Beijing for a long time will attract criticism. ”

At this time, the people in the dormitory retreated one after another, leaving only Li Qing and Tai Li Heng, Li Heng glanced at Li Jingzhong, Li Jingzhong understood, and slowly closed the door of the dormitory, and the light in the room immediately dimmed. The dormitory was very quiet, neither of them spoke, Li Heng's eyes flickered, he seemed to be thinking about something, but he looked up at Li Qing from time to time, and finally, he finally said in a low voice: "This matter was the first thing you discovered, you must have thought about it, but I don't know what countermeasures you have?" ”

Li Qing was confident about this matter early in the morning, he smiled slightly, and said frankly: "I suggest that His Royal Highness first talk to the emperor about this matter, no matter what, it is better to explain the matter in person than to hide it and then suspect and suspect each other, I think the emperor is not a fool, maybe he will use this matter to make some chapters, but as long as each other is wary, at least His Royal Highness's position will not be lost." ”

Li Qing's suggestion is in line with Li Heng's heart, he also holds this idea, as long as he can keep his position as the emperor, what will happen to his other subordinates, he doesn't care anymore, his face is heavy, and he can't help but sigh and say: "What you said is not bad at all, what I am most worried about now is that the emperor refuses to see me!" ”

As soon as he finished speaking, the door was suddenly pushed open, and Li Jingzhong crawled in and shouted: "Your Highness, the holy decree has arrived, and the emperor has summoned His Highness to enter the palace quickly!" ”