readx;?readx; Chapter 645 The sandpiper and the clam compete, and the fisherman profits?

Xu Tancheng knelt from the back to the evening. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 infoAt dusk, the upright corpse on the flagpole suddenly shook slightly, and after a while it grew larger and larger, and from below, it looked like a hanged ghost born on a tree in the spring.

The leaves of the trees were blown loudly, the whole branches shook violently, and the thatch that had just hung on the courtyard wall was swept up to the sky, revealing a delicate yellow-green tile...... It turned out that the wind was blowing.

June day baby face, say change will change.

Dark clouds came slowly from the east, finally dispelling the afterglow of the setting sun and turning the whole sky into the bottom of a pot. In the next moment, a purple lightning bolt streaked across the western sky, illuminating the sky as bright as day. With the rumbling thunder, the raindrops the size of beans began to crackle.

The rain was swift and violent, and soon the sky was white. The sultry heat of the day was also driven away without a trace, and Xu Tancheng, who was kneeling in the rain, felt cold to the bone, and his body trembled involuntarily. The body that was hollowed out by the wine and knelt in the sun for an afternoon, where could it withstand the two heavens of ice and fire, and after a while, it fell straight to the ground?

Only then did two black-clothed guards come out and carry the cold Governor Xu in.

Standing in front of the door with his hands in his hands, looking at the rain curtain that slipped from the eaves, and listening to the sound of 'bang-la-la', Qin Lei was silent for a long time before he spoke: "Do you say there is a problem with the pavilion pottery?" His voice was tired and hoarse, completely devoid of his usual confidence.

The vibration caused by this incident to Qin Lei was too great, and even the most trusted ministers were suspected.

Shi Dang looked left and right, and found that he was the only one in the room, so he had to answer: "It should be...... No, Mr. Guantao values the New Deal more than his life, and he is willing to sacrifice his life to defend it, how can he destroy it? After a pause, lest the reason be insufficient, he scratched his cheeks and said: "Besides, he is a master of extreme intelligence, and he will not know the consequences of angering the prince." Shi Dang didn't believe that someone like Guantao could do such a thing, and he wanted to try his best to excuse him.

"The latter is basically, but the former reason holds up." Qin Lei said in a deep voice: "Then what do you say about Hou Xin?" What role did he play in it? ”

"It should be the same crime as Xu Tancheng." Shi Dang couldn't excuse Hou Xin, because the spy agents all over the world suddenly became collectively deaf and blind, and if Hou Xin, the big leader, was not responsible, the three-year-old child would not believe it.

Qin Lei nodded slowly and said, "What you said is right, so are these two people in the same league and deliberately concealing it, or are they derelict in their duties and turning a blind eye?" ”

"It's unlikely that they're going to be in the same boat." Shi Dang calmly analyzed: "In Daqin, the prince is the biggest, what others can give, the prince can give, and what others can't give, the prince can also give." There is a saying that 'people go to high places, and water flows to low places', they are already the prince's sworn friends, how can they be stupid enough to seek the near and far? He said again: "My subordinates don't know much about Governor Xu, so I don't dare to make conclusions, but I still dare to say a few words about Hou Xin's behavior...... Although he is a hippie smile, he has a loyal personality and is calm, and he will neither betray the prince, nor will he be coerced by others because of impulsiveness, so that he will do things that are sorry for the prince. ”

"Sure enough, it's life and death brothers." Qin Lei glanced at him and said with a smile: "I racked my brains to clear his name." As he spoke, his voice sank and said: "Don't dream, whoever has a bad heart for Lone's big thing this time, even if he worships you, he will be killed!" ”

Shi Dang hurriedly bowed his head and explained: "The subordinates talk about things and do not mix personal feelings. ”

Qin Lei looked at him for a moment, and then said with a flat expression: "Then why do you say he is deaf and blind?" ”

Shi Dang shook his head lightly and said, "The prince still needs to ask in person to know." ”

"Heh, you're pushing clean." The corners of Qin Lei's mouth twitched slightly, as if he sneered: "Assuming that what you said is right, and the spy department is not the mastermind, then the main responsibility of the royal secret agent." ”

The palace originally had two sets of intelligence systems, one was the Civil Intelligence Department led by Zhu Gui, and the other was the Espionage Department led by Hou Xin. In the original concept, Qin Lei was prepared to let the two yamen work in parallel so that they could corroborate, compete, and supervise each other.

In practice, however, this architecture is extremely unreasonable...... The overlap of the two major systems and the extremely unreasonable distribution of resources not only cause great waste, but also make the two parties friction constantly, tear each other down, and the internal friction is very serious.

A few years ago, the contradiction reached its highest point, and Qin Lei had no choice but to divide the north and south, and let the Civil Affairs Department concentrate on the southern base camp and the neighboring two provinces of Shanbei; Let the Espionage Department be responsible for the espionage work in the northern provinces and the central capital. As for the external military information, it was handed over to the military intelligence department that was set up separately, and Shen Bing was in charge.

Later, after Princess Heyang joined the gang, her royal spy also defected...... The direction of this intelligence team, which is not bad, coincides with the Espionage Department, and it is also the north of Zhongdu and Qin.

Qin Lei has always felt scratching his head about how to deal with these people. Because this kind of underground system is often tightly organized, and most of them are single-line connections, even if the princess of Heyang and the several leaders exposed in the open are defeated, it will not affect its integrity, and it will also completely push a force loyal to the royal family to the hostile side.

There was really no way, Qin Lei had no choice but to go back to the old path, let the Royal Secret Spy and the Spy Department exist in parallel, monitor and compete with each other, and wait for an opportunity to solve this problem in one fell swoop.

Hearing the prince ask the royal spy, Shi Dang knew that the matter was very important, and after thinking for a long time, he said slowly: "The royal spy must have something wrong, but the specific situation should be asked by Her Royal Highness the eldest princess or Hou Xin." ”

Seeing that he didn't dare to answer again, Qin Lei realized that the content of the conversation was too dangerous, and it was not something that a captain of the guard could afford at all. But looking around, apart from these loyal martial artists, who else can be trusted?

The sky was as bright as day again, and the angular face of Qin Lei was reflected in it, and the lines were like knives, cold and hard, and full of depression. Gently stretching out his hand, feeling the taste of the wind and rain, he smiled self-deprecatingly: "I never understood why the ancient kings called them lonely and widowed, and secretly laughed at them: 'What is it called, you have to curse yourself for being widowed and lonely.'" 'Now Lone finally understands......"

"There's no way they can't help it." Slowly closing the window in front of him with both hands, keeping the wind and rain outside, the room suddenly became much quieter, and Qin Lei's deep voice became clear: "In fact, who wants to have no friends, no relatives and no trust?" It's just that the authority all the way, just like mountaineering, the higher you go, the more dangerous, the more ruthless, and the narrower. ”

With his eyes closed, he muttered in a low voice, as if forgetting that there was another person in the room, and said to himself, "All the way up, there are fewer and fewer people accompanying me...... It may be a fall to death, it may be that you can't withstand the cold and freeze to death, or it may be killed by your own hands because of a fight for food and clothing...... Witnessing or causing so many deaths, your heart will become colder and harder, and the higher you climb, the colder it gets, and the more you become accustomed to this loneliness. Until you stand at the top and look down on everything in the world, how exciting it must be...... But be sure to keep an eye on your side. ”

Qin Lei closed his eyes tightly, and his voice was faintly audible: "Because everyone is looking up, there are still people who are thinking about how to pull you down and replace you, and there are people who are thinking about avenging those who were killed by you." His hands were spread upward, and his voice gradually increased: "At this time, you have subordinates, admirers, enemies, haters, but you have no friends!" You will be alone forever! Until the end of life! ”

After speaking, he opened his eyes, and seemed to have returned to his former calm, only by getting along day and night like a stone daring, can he find a trace of indifference that he has never felt before, and a stronger determination from the expression of the prince!

"Order Hou Xin to show up before sunset tomorrow, otherwise he will come and see him." Shi Dang was still in a daze, and Qin Lei had already begun to order: "Order Princess Heyang to appear before sunset the day after tomorrow, otherwise, ...... I'll see you on the head. ”

"The whole country was ordered to enter a state of martial law, and the 1st and 2nd Guards armies went to the provinces and capitals under the pretext of drills, waiting for the next order at any time." Qin Lei continued: "And tell Zhang Zhizhi about this matter, and tell him that if he didn't know about it before, then he would receive forty whips first, and then he personally led it, starting from the cabinet, six departments and nine secretaries, nine provincial governors, two Beijing Mansion Yin, one hundred and eight prefects, one by one, whoever has a problem will be arrested, don't take care of the situation, don't worry about not being able to provoke, it's all recorded in the account of the lonely king!" ”

When he stopped talking, Shi Dang dared to ask out loud: "Can Hou Xin and Princess Heyang even arrive?" "With the traffic conditions at that time, even if you ride a sweaty horse, it is impossible to fly from the central capital in one day.

"It's not something you should worry about." Qin Lei waved his hand and said, "Go down." ”

Shi Kang sighed in his heart, bowed his head and retreated. He knew that speaking for Hou Xin today had already affected his image in the prince's heart, but if he did it all over again, he would still do it, this was his temperament.

By the time Xu Tancheng woke up, it was already the morning of the next day, and the heavy rain had already stopped last night, and the scorching sun hung up on the sky again, steaming the stagnant water on the ground into heat. The whole Shangyang City seemed to be packed into a steamer, hot and stuffy.

He was actually warm, and although the front and rear windows were wide open, there was not a trace of wind in the room, and he was sweating as he lay motionless.

Trying to open his eyes, he opened his mouth and let out a hoarse voice: "Water ......"

"Feed him." It was the voice of His Royal Highness King Wucheng, and he was actually in the house.

The black-clothed guard poured salt water into Xu Tancheng's stomach, not caring if he could drink it in time.

Naturally, there will be half of the salt water that will go through his nostrils into the lobes of his lungs.

Xu Tancheng was choked with tears and tears, but he finally came to his senses. didn't have time to wipe away the tears and snot on his face, so he turned over and got out of bed, kowtowed in the direction where the prince spoke: "The guilty minister Xu Tancheng is cheeky to see the prince." ”

"I know I don't have a face." Qin Lei's tone was surprisingly calm, and there was even some ridicule, and he didn't seem to take things to heart, he walked in front of Xu Tancheng with his hands in his hands, and said in a low voice: "Raise your head." Xu Tancheng hurriedly complied and raised his head high.

Looking down at his obviously blessed and haggard old face, Qin Lei sighed and said, "It's really a shame to be a scholar for three days." It's only been a few days, and you've become fat like this? ”

Xu Tancheng's face was full of shame: "The sinner is addicted to wine and dissolute; Excessive immorality and lack of self-control deserve to be the virtue it is today. ”

Hearing that he was honest, he didn't stick gold on his face like that integrity, Qin Lei's smile faded a little, and he asked in a low voice, "We are also old friends, right?" ”

Xu Tancheng nodded, and also said in a low voice: "From this time in the seventeenth year of Zhaowu, it has been a full six years now. ”

"Not bad at all," Qin Lei nodded, pulled a chair and sat opposite him, and said, "I remember that at that time, your Xu family was at a critical juncture of survival, and your father and your brothers secretly communicated with the Maitreya cultists, and they also wanted to confront the Lone King. It was you who rushed from Shannan to Jingzhou Mansion, and after judging the situation clearly, you immediately made a decision and took the initiative to seek reconciliation from King Gu. Only then did the Xu family, one of the four major families in the south, be dragged back from the edge of the cliff. ”

"The subsequent series of contacts, as well as your series of decisions, have left a good impression on King Gu that he is shrewd and capable, and takes the overall situation into account......" Qin Lei recalled softly: "And you also have such an excellent son Xu Qianshan, which makes King Gu always feel that you should be a traditional scholar who believes in 'self-cultivation and Qi family rule the country and level the world', otherwise you will not be able to lift weights between trade-offs and advance and retreat freely, otherwise you will not be able to teach such an excellent son." ”

"Is it the Lone King who is wrong about you? Or are you getting too fast? Qin Lei shook his head slightly, his face full of puzzlement.

"Shame on the sinner...... Xu Tancheng lowered his head, slammed the marble floor hard, and after a few clicks, it was dark and blue, and he said embarrassedly: "Thousands of mistakes, all of them are the fault of the sinner......

"Don't be in a hurry to admit your mistakes," Qin Lei waved his hand and said, "As long as you confess, you don't need to apologize." ”

"Yes." Xu Tancheng's face tightened, and he said in a low voice: "It has been a few years since the criminal ministers went to Longyou, and they also know that I am the prince's person, and everyone has a good life if the well water does not interfere with the river water." But Weichen is a southerner, who came to the north alone to be an official, and is a stranger in a foreign land. It's just that you are not used to life and food, but the increasingly strong sense of loneliness makes it impossible for the sinner to think calmly...... But because of my identity, I can't do anything beyond the norm, so I can only endure it all the time. ”

Later, one day, the criminal minister came to Hexi Mansion to inspect, and the Zhou Governor's Mansion held a banquet to entertain him, and asked his daughter to come out to toast during the banquet. The girl was born exquisitely and clearly, her eyebrows were picturesque, and the sinner softened when she saw it, but after all, the woman was nominally Zhou Yanhe's daughter, and I couldn't say anything about it, so I could only sit on pins and needles there......"

"Then Zhou Yanhe saw through your thoughts," Qin Lei sneered: "After some pretentiousness, I will give my daughter to you as a concubine, and from now on, you will not be lonely, and he will also be your cheap son." ”

Xu Tancheng blushed and said: "What the prince said is good, since then, the criminal minister can no longer be separated from that woman, and he is also very tolerant of Zhou Yanhe, and he also turns a blind eye to some of the things he does...... This gave the thieves an opportunity to hide from the world and destroy the prince's new policy. ”

"Stupid pig!" Qin Lei shouted in a low voice, "Have you forgotten how Wang Yun dealt with Dong Zhuo and Lu Bu? ”

“…… Oh," Xu Tancheng wanted to nod, but he really couldn't remember how this had anything to do with their topic, so he had to muffle his voice, "I don't know." ”

"What a beauty!" Qin Lei shouted, "Haven't you heard of Diao Chan?" "It's rare to show your erudition once, but unfortunately it's in this situation.

“…… Haven't heard of it. After racking his brains and thinking about it, Xu Tancheng felt very ashamed, so he had to tell the truth: "The criminal minister has indeed seen the names of the first three in the "Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms", and he also knows some about the grievances between them...... It's just that this 'Diao Chan' doesn't remember where it came from. ”

"Of course it'......s "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Qin Lei realized that he had made the mistake of taking Romance as the official history, and quickly changed his words: "Wang Yun, oh no, what is the origin of this Zhou Yanhe, why is he in the salt and he in the sauce?" ”

"The criminal minister has just found out," Xu Tancheng replied softly, "He is the disciple of the Third Highness." ”

"The third?" Qin Lei patted the head of the bed and said, "This bastard can't hold it anymore!"

"There is also a group of people who play a very bad role in the middle." Xu Tancheng continued to expose: "That is the original group of Ziyu Shi of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, these poor guys who shouted the slogan of 'clean and honest' all day long, and now they have all turned into real officials in the six ministries and nine secretaries. They all look extremely ugly, as if they haven't seen money in dozens of lifetimes...... Moreover, when these people were the imperial historians of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, they handled countless cases, and they were clear about the method of making money, and now they finally have the opportunity to practice it, and they are naturally familiar with the road, no less than the veterans who have been immersed in this way for decades. ”

Not responding to his revelations, Qin Lei continued to ask, "Is there anyone else mixed in there?" ”

"Yes, and the ministers in the capital, if you want things to be smooth and stable, it is the best choice to seal the mouths of the six departments and nine qings with silver. There are also the fathers and elders of the senior officials in the DPRK and the central government, these people relied on the fact that there were officials in the family, so they unscrupulously manipulated the election of the township elders' association, and then controlled the township elders' association, turning the gentry organization set up by the prince with kindness into a tool for them to bully men and women and fish in the township. Xu Tancheng said with indignation: "But after all, they are just some village elders, and they can't collect taxes and make money with confidence, so they shamelessly put pressure on the province, demanding that a considerable part of the money obtained from the card be divided into them, otherwise they will incite the people to resist taxes and not pay the entrance fees to the city." ”

"The power of these township parties is very strong, and if they really do this, they will definitely be yellow if they set up cards to collect taxes." Xu Tancheng whispered: "So those people had to agree and accept this blackmail." ”

"The prince, the princess, the prefect, the imperial history, the village elder...... It's hilarious. Qin Lei said expressionlessly: "Is there anything else?" ”

"Nope." After thinking about it for a long time, Xu Tancheng finally shook his head and said.

"Didn't the provincial revival yamen participate? The family is not involved? Qin Lei looked at Xu Tancheng fixedly, looked at him sweating profusely, and said resignedly: "No...... As long as they are not directly involved. But with their contradictions with the nouveau riche, they will definitely not let go of this opportunity to drive them into the abyss...... They may be waiting for the day when the prince discovers the truth...... Maybe that's why they've been silent. "The 'nouveau riche class' is what the family calls the newly promoted officials, with a faint sense of superiority and a strong sense of loss.

Nodding slowly, the beginning and end of the matter finally took shape in Qin Lei's mind...... This is an organized, premeditated, and systematic case of national theft, in which the perpetrators bribe the ministers of the DPRK and the Central People's Republic of China, corrupt local governors, and extend their tentacles into all aspects of the power stratum, forming an intertwined network of relationships in a vain attempt to snatch the blood of the people and achieve ulterior motives.

"Since you know everything, why didn't you say it earlier?" Qin Lei squinted his eyes and said, "The earlier you say it, the lighter the crime, and it is even possible that you are not guilty and meritorious, don't you know this?" ”

"I know......" Xu Tancheng lowered his head and said: "The criminal minister thinks about confessing to the prince every day, but he is always reluctant to live like a fairy, so he procrastifies it again and again, and finally delays it to the point where he is guilty if he doesn't say it...... I had to live one day at a time. ”

Looking at his blue and white face, Qin Lei suddenly found that this person had been reduced to an honest and ordinary official ruffian, no matter how much he pretended, the kind of bearing and demeanor of the past were gone.

'Wine is a poison that pierces the intestines, and color is a steel knife that scrapes bones. When he left, Qin Lei suddenly had such a sentence in his mind.

"Do you believe him?" Qin Lei asked again.

"I don't believe it." The voice of the answer this time was a little shrill and not made by Shi Dang.

"Actually, it doesn't matter if you believe it or not." Qin Lei sneered: "The facts are already clear, those so-called 'upstarts' are just guns in the hands of those guys!" ”