Yunlu didn't expect to consult himself first, lowered his head and thought for a while, and said, "I didn't say this, let the military department send troops to suppress it." Take the leader and chop him! It's inconceivable that something like this happened in a peaceful and prosperous world. Seeing Qianlong looking at himself, he hurriedly said: "The slave thinks that what Prince Zhuang said is absolutely not feasible!" ”

"Why?" Qianlong asked coldly.

"A governor of the imperial court was held hostage with them, and these prisoners did not escape from the prison." Neqin said calmly, "It is the easiest to suppress with soldiers, but it does not take into account the dignity of the imperial court." If the prisoners dare to do this, they have the heart of death, and these outlaws are red-eyed, what can't they do? As soon as the army is raised, the whole world knows that the imperial court has to make a big deal about this idea, which is not worth it. Qianlong nodded and said, "That's what you said, but what kind of thoughtful solution do you have?" Nie Qin said: "The slave thinks that the case in Huzhou should be handled according to it." ”

The Huzhou case was more than 10 years ago. The family surnamed Zhang in Xiaoqiao Town, Huzhou got married, and something happened on the wedding night. The bride colluded with her lover to tie her little son-in-law to the leg of the bed in the cave room and used it as a hostage, and the two lovers openly occupied the cave room to get married. This incident alarmed thousands of people to watch the excitement, and the state reported to the government, the government reported to the province, and reported to the Yongzheng case, so that everyone knew about it. The emperor decreed that the little son-in-law must be protected and the adulterer and adulteress must be captured. Helplessly, these two men and women took strict precautions, and the ten-year-old groom was imprisoned, and they did not dare to disobey if they wanted to eat and drink, and they were surrounded for more than three months. Later, Li Wei of Wuhu Road was specially transferred to check the rescue. Li Wei tried every means to persuade him, but he couldn't move; found an old thief from the prison and bewitched the "couple" with incense, only to rescue the unlucky little son-in-law. Now that he encountered the Shaanzhou prison robbery, he came up with this method. Yunlu shook his head and smiled: "A prison person, more than 500 prison robbers, all use incense sticks to smoke? The opponent and the situation are different, so you can't apply that method. Qianlong asked on the side: "Uncle Sixteen is also what he said, is there no way?" ”

"Since the master is unwilling to kill," Yunlu said, "the minister thinks that it is also a law to surround and not fight, and after a long time, there may not be no defectors among the prisoners." Qianlong shook his head again and again, and said: "I don't want to kill because I am afraid of losing my dignity, not because I feel sorry for these bastards." He thought about it for a long time, and said slowly: "Master, this place in Shaanzhou is the place where the cult's "One Branch of Flower" flows. Therefore, it is better to throw away a county order than to let this group of bandits succeed, this is one. Issued a document to the governors of Henan, Shanxi, and Shaanxi provinces, martial law in the Luoshan area, in case of escape, it is better to kill by mistake than to slip through the net, this is two. 3. Strictly order Sun Guoxi to block the news, not to spread it in vain, and wait for the imperial court to send someone to deal with it - we are so far away, we can't discuss it if it's too detailed, and Luoyang's Ah Gui is not incompetent. ”

Qianlong listened to the arrangement of the relatives, felt that it was very appropriate and thoughtful, glanced at the relatives with appreciation, and said with a smile: "Only in this way, this matter will be handed over to you!" Ah Gui - Is it the pen post style of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, will you try the Jinshi? He hurriedly replied, "Yes." When the emperor was in the palace, he used to purchase tribute satin cloth. He is very capable, and he is very organized in his speech and work. ”

"Don't send a messenger yet, but there should be this meaning in the court edict." Qianlong looked at the snow outside, and said slowly, "Let Sun Guoxi and Ah Gui deal with it on the spot, and don't alarm the ministry, it's best." Kneel down - inform the Heart Cultivation Hall if there is an emergency! ”

At the same time that Qianlong was discussing the Shaanzhou prison incident, Ah Gui had already arrived in Shaanzhou one day earlier on the constitutional order of Sun Guoxi to deal with this first strange case of the founding of the Qing Dynasty.

The prison is located in the northwest corner of Shaanzhou City. Unlike other prisons, this is an underground prison – a courtyard dug out of a thick layer of loess like a tofu block, with only one passage into the patio, and a hole is dug along the four walls of the patio, which is called the cell. It is surrounded by walls, and there are watchtowers at the four corners—the most tightly sealed prison in Henan, and the most tightly sealed prison in the country. The key robbers and death row prisoners who were captured in western Henan have always been sent here to be imprisoned, and there has never been an escape of criminals. However, the guards slackened off and did not go down to the cell for a whole month. The newly arrived state commander Mi Xiaozu had never seen such a type of prison cell, so he went down to inspect it on a whim, but he did not expect to be swarmed by the rioting prisoners and taken hostage, and even the officials and jailers who went down with him were not spared.

Ah Gui's office is located in the northwest of the Yuewang Temple in the north of the city, and when you climb the tower to look out, you can see the situation in the prison at a glance. The 2,000 Green Battalion soldiers transferred from Luoyang have been surrounding this place for four days and four nights, and it is still not known who is the first culprit in the robbery. He decided to shout to-day, and went up to the watchtower of the prison in a black lamb's skin.

"Hey—listen—" shouted a thousand chiefs with a hand-rolled bull, "our prefect Ah Taizun is talking to you!" ”

There was a moment of silence below, and then someone laughed: "What a fucking prefect!" We are the old charter! If there's a fart, let it go! Ah Gui leaned out and said loudly, "Which of you is the head?" Come out and speak! There was silence for a while, and someone replied, "We don't have heads!" ”

"Can you live without a head?" Ah Gui laughed loudly and sarcastically, "I'm Ah Gui, a Manchurian man, if you are a hero, come out!" ”

"I'm sorry, we don't want to be fooled - you want to recognize who the leader is, so that you can cut off your head in the future, right?"

Ah Gui tightened his lips, suppressed his anger, and sneered, "Do any of you still want to live?" I only have one sentence, whoever wants to live, he will defect first! Limited to one day and one night, release Mi Daren, otherwise I will open the river to release water to flood this nest, this square pond is a good place to raise fish and feed shrimp! ”

"As long as you are willing to give up these dozen people, Lao Tzu doesn't care about this life! Tell your surname A, a seventh-grade official, an eighth-grade prison officer, and more than a dozen officials, you release water, and we will soak them first! ”

"I don't believe they're alive!"

"If you don't believe it, release the water!"

"Let it go!" Ah Gui was furious and shouted loudly, "Lao Tzu is also a prank-servant!" ”

"In!"

"Block the water in the upper reaches of the Runhe River in the northeast of the city, bring the water of the Jianhe River over, and release the water to flood his dog's day! - Listen, you bastards, put six feet in water! I'm watching you drown! ”

There seemed to be a hurried discussion in the cell below, and several masked men pushed the two unkempt officials out and sneered at Ah Gui: "Let your brothers talk to you!" Ah Gui was silent, slowed down, and asked, "Master Mi, do you have anything to say?" Mi Xiaozu seemed to be in a trance and looked at the row of soldiers with swords and bows on the top of the Sanzhang kiln and Ah Gui, and said: "My lord, do what you should do, since you want to release water, then release - don't mutter!" Before he finished speaking, he was slapped twice in the face, and the corners of Mi Xiaozu's mouth were bleeding. A tall masked man next to him scolded: "Fuck your cunt! What did you just say? Mi Xiaozu also let go, and shouted: "They are from the Flower Cult—" the warden also shouted at the top of his voice, "--it is Wang Lao Wuhe who is the head-" Before he finished speaking, both of them were taken off their chins, and a group of people surrounded them with punches and kicks, and then pushed them back.

Ah Gui suddenly felt sad in his heart, he had only seen the anti-thief killing official in books, Mi Xiaozu had fallen to such a point, he couldn't help but feel a sense of sorrow. Thinking about it, he shouted: "Wang Lao Wu, listen, Mi Xiaozu is cowardly and incompetent, and he is not a good official. The court doesn't feel sorry for him! If you let him go, you can still save these 500 ignorant prisoners, isn't it also Yin Gong? I won't hide it from you, you can't live, don't you think about so many people?! When he listened closely, there seemed to be a discussion below, and suddenly he burst into laughter. Wang Lao Wu's voice shouted through the window: "Ah Gui, don't hang this kind of flowery intestines with your fifth master." In your mother's womb, I am already a famous 'Five Yamas' in the underworld, what haven't you seen? Ah Gui was silent for a while, and said with a smile: "Zhong Kui met five ghosts today, count you as a character!" Tell me, what charter do you have? ”

"Well, this is an honest man!" Wang Lao Wu replied with a grin, "Crossing the Yellow River in the north is Pinglu County, which is the boundary of Shanxi. Get ten boats, send two men to take us a hundred miles into the mountains, and see you on the field from here! Gui smiled: "You are so smart! I'll let you go, but what if you don't let people go? Wang Lao Wu said in a loud voice: "Lao Tzu has been walking the rivers and lakes for 30 years, and I haven't heard anyone say that my words don't count!" After crossing the Yellow River, I will leave the hostages to you, and we will change people fifty miles away! ”

Ah Gui gritted his teeth and thought nervously, this place goes to Tongguan in the west and Luoyang in the east, both of which are densely populated places and are heavily guarded. Funiu Mountain in the south and Taihang Mountain in the north are indeed the best places to escape and hide. After a long time before he had an idea, Ah Gui said loudly: "That side is the Shanxi boundary, my people can't follow you for a hundred miles, we will change people on the boat in the center of the Yellow River, and from then on we will go to the west and the east!" ”

This time, there was silence below, and it took a while for Wang Lao Wu to reply: "No, you must walk a hundred miles!" Ah Gui gritted his teeth and said, "I'll let you go for a hundred miles, and the court knows that I want my life." It's in the middle of the Yellow River – otherwise, you'll be waiting to drink the water! Listening closely, it seems that there are a few people below who are arguing quietly. After a long time, Wang Lao Wu reluctantly replied: "Okay, depending on you!" But my brethren will come ashore and change without an ambush—when? ”

"Now!"

"You're a fart!" Wang Lao Wu laughed, "Hundreds of people walk in broad daylight!" Prepare ten boats, start tonight, start more! ”

Ah Gui smiled: "Okay, just get up!" You listen to my words first, if your people dare to go back to my Henan Mansion to make trouble, I will kill your family! As he spoke, he went down the lookout tower and returned to the Yuewang Temple, and summoned the officers and soldiers to discuss the military plane, until the time of the Shen card, the sergeants of each battalion acted separately.

At night watch, the cell door suddenly opened. The first of the prison robbers was more than a dozen people who came out to explore the way, and when they looked outside the prison, they saw that there were no officers and soldiers in the brigade. There was a whistle, and about 100 people ran up the muddy steps. Then there was another whistle, and the rest were divided into two groups, and came up in order, and without saying a word, they marched in order. A jailer carried two oil-paper lamps over and asked loudly, "Which one is Wang Lao Wu?" ”

"I'm here." Wang Lao Wu squeezed out of the crowd and said in an excited voice, "What's the matter with you?" The jailer handed the lamp to Wang Lao Wu with a straight face, and said word by word: "We adults have been deployed on the east, west, and south sides. There are six boats on the north side, one for us to change people, and five for you to cross the river. These two lamps shine on Master Mi, and when the lights go out, we will release arrows and fire muskets, which is Ah Taizun's order! Wang Lao Wu said angrily: "I said that there are ten boats, why are there only five?" Call the one with the surname Ah, or we'll go back to prison!" ”

The jailer smiled and said, "There are only five ferries here, and all of them have been recruited." Our lord is restraining the army at this time, so we can't come. My lord has something to tell you: It is a matter of destiny for each person, how can it be perfect? If you want to go back to prison and kill someone surnamed Mi, listen to it! ”

"All back!" Wang Lao Wu waved his hands and yelled at the prisoners: "We are in a bubble with the dog days here!" ”

But you look at me, prisoners, and I look at you, and look at the lonely wilderness, and no one will go any further. In the middle of the stalemate, countless torches from the east, west and south lit up with stars, and the horns and drums rang out in unison, gradually pressing over. Wang Lao Wu mentioned the jailer and asked viciously, "What does this mean?" ”

"I told you so." This jailer was rewarded by Ah Gui with a lot of money, nicknamed "even knife meat", the most slippery scoundrel, and he was not afraid at all, "This lamp has to shine on Master Mi, and they will release arrows in a while!" Wang Lao Wu then ordered someone to bring Mi Xiaozu over and stand under the lamp, and sure enough, he stopped beating drums and horns. The prisoners, who had breathed the air of freedom, began to agitate, and some of them hid in the crowd and shouted: "Run! Some scolded: "Wang Lao Wu, what the hell are you messing with?" The neatly formed procession began to stir, and it was a mess in an instant, and no one paid attention, and more than 20 selected officers and soldiers had already changed into prison clothes, silently blended into the crowd, and slowly approached Wang Lao Wu.

Wang Lao Wu's face was full of oil and sweat, and seeing that this team had already messed up the camp, he didn't dare to hesitate anymore, and shouted with his arms folded: "To the north, go down to the city, cross the river!" ”

The north wall of Shaanzhou City is built on the south bank of the Yellow River, and there is only a zigzag ox lane that winds down to the river beach. When the group of people went down to the city, they saw several boats moored in the Yellow River from a distance, and immediately they burst into cheers and rushed to jump into the boats. Wang Lao Wu took a few cronies to escort more than a dozen people to Mi Xiaozu, occupied the first boat, and shouted hoarsely for a long time, and no one listened to his command at all. The sound of fighting, scolding, and screaming on the huge river beach was so crowded that the sound of people falling into the water was so loud that I couldn't hear him shouting at all. In the blink of an eye, Wang Lao Wu's own boat was also crowded with forty or fifty people, some of them were holding the boat gang, some of them wailed and some scolded angrily to get on the boat. Wang Lao Wu was also confused at this time, shouting "open the boat" and beating those under the boat with a penny. At that moment, the two lights suddenly went out. Wang Lao Wuyi twisted his neck and roared strangely: "Who the hell blew the lamp?" The officers and soldiers may be nearby, aren't they afraid of eating arrows? ”

"Officers and soldiers don't fire arrows." Ah Gui, who was mixed with the crowd, suddenly sneered: "You have to prevent smashing the vase when you fight mice!" ”

"You——? Who are you? ”

"Gui!" Ah Gui shouted, "Don't do it yet?" ”

"Wow!"

More than two dozen Goshkha secretly agreed, and they all flashed their daggers. Wang Lao Wuyi was stunned, Mi Xiaozu had already taken off, the boat villain was dark for many nights, and he didn't know where to get for a while, a boat of prisoners suddenly became a mess, and in the screams, more than a dozen prisoners had fallen into the water with daggers. The rest were stunned, some jumped into the water to escape, and some came up to fight, but how could they withstand the well-trained and prepared officers and soldiers? Seeing that the general trend had gone, Wang Lao Wu raised his hand and shouted to the rest of the boats: "Brothers, stay in the green mountains, don't be afraid of running out of firewood, and escape one by one!" "Shouting that he was about to throw water, he had already been pressed by several people, and he was beaten and kicked while tying up, and he was bound as strong as rice dumplings for a while.

"Not a single one can escape." Secretly, Ah Gui's eyes flickered like ghostly fire, "They will know when they go ashore - you have to go south, maybe you can slip through the net." To the north - too stupid! ”

A day later, Qianlong's strategy for handling the prison case reached Luoyang. At this time, the big case was over, and Ah Gui ordered people to clean up the number of prisoners who were killed and injured and fled: except for the bandit leaders Wang Laowu, Xu Xiaoshan, and Liu Ben, 343 people were captured; One hundred and twenty-one were killed by indiscriminate arrows on the Yellow River beach; Twenty-eight are missing.

After quelling the riot, the staff came to congratulate Gui and prepared to write a solid article to report on the present. Ah Gui smiled and said, "Although I am not responsible for this case, it is not a glorious thing. This excerpt should be written in three articles, and the superintendent is in command, and the strategy is clear; The soldiers of each battalion used their lives to take the thief with their might; Lai Tianzi Hongfu, captured the bandit head alive to eliminate hidden dangers; And please punish Mi Xiaozu. Not long after Mi Xiaozu took office, there was such a huge case in the territory, and there was also a deserved crime, so please ask the emperor to deal with it according to the law - just write it like this, the more earnest, the better! ”

Several masters opened their mouths wide for a long time to "ah" before they understood Ah Gui's meaning, and after thinking about it carefully, they felt more and more that it was wonderful to write like this - the results of the battle were obvious, Ah Gui personally led twenty people who dared to die to infiltrate the five hundred outlaws to rescue the hostages, and almost none of them escaped the net after a night of hard fighting-no one could take the credit. Writing in this way not only admits affection in the province, but even the emperor is also bright, and he is really brilliant in all directions. They had already underestimated this new jinshi in his twenties, but they were so excited at this time. Several masters made a table of wine and food that night, and pushed a master named Yu Lin to write it, and after consulting it all night, he really wrote this article brilliantly. The fold is in duplicate, one is sent to the province, and the other is sent directly to the study by a fast horse.

Twenty days later, Ah Gui received a letter from the court, along with a letter from Sun Guoxi. Ah Gui burned incense to read, it turned out to be his own original fold, and there were Qianlong's imperial approvals everywhere in the corners of the sky and the earth, and the lines:

Sun Guoxi is so attentive to his errands, which can be said to live up to my kindness.

Good, good, right!

Meritorious personnel are to be listed separately for discussion.

What a pity that such a cunning and ferocious person will die a thousand!

The blank space at the end of the Zhu pen royal approval is for Ah Gui.

I am very happy to read the music, the so-called Hanshu wine, I am actually a big white! Qing handled the Shaanzhou case this time, carefully considered and planned far-sightedly, obeyed orders and made a decision, did not hurt a single soldier, and captured the chief in one fell swoop, cut off the evil and rebelled against the moment, I was overjoyed, why blame? According to Sun Jiagan's report, he is capable, shrewd, and clean, and like this, he is also a good minister in the court. That is, the first culprit such as Wang was imprisoned, and the punishment was severed in Beijing. All the staff members You Lin and Qian Zong Heying and other meritorious personnel will be reported to the department for discussion. Mi Xiaozu was not at fault for inspecting the prison, but he neglected to take precautions, which almost caused a catastrophe and was fined for half a year to stay in office. The previous state decree also had a deserved crime, and Sun Jiagan was ordered to deal with it.

Ah Gui obtained this more than 100-word holy decree with a small prefect, and the meaning of appreciation and praise was overflowing between the lines, and he was naturally very happy. That night, he summoned the 23 Goshkha who boarded the enemy boat with him, as well as three masters, to discuss the matter of escorting Wang Lao Wu and the other three into Beijing. Everyone ate and celebrated together until the two watches dispersed.

From Henan to Beijing, the road was muddy and difficult to walk, and it took more than a month to reach the capital to prevent someone from hijacking the car. After handing over in the lobby of the Criminal Department, Ah Gui breathed a sigh of relief, went home that night, and fell asleep. At the beginning of the second day, the cards got up. He was originally a broken flag man, and he didn't have many friends in the capital. There are only two coated minions in the family, an old man and a young master, who are still left by their ancestors. Ah Gui went out to be an official in Henan, and his acquaintances didn't know the news of his return to Beijing, and no one came to visit. After staying at home for a long time, Ah Gui felt very lonely, and wanted to make the Guandi Temple more lively, so he stepped on the snow and came. After Zhengyangmen, it is really different here, shops in other places are closed, and the streets here are bustling with pedestrians. The snow in front of the Guandi Temple has been trampled on porcelain solid. The snow is swept away at every store. Some shops are stacked into snow lions, some are chiseled into snow elephants, and some have wide facades carved into snow dragons to attract customers. Ah Gui looked at it for a while and found it very interesting, and went into the temple to burn a stick of incense, and was about to come out, when someone next to him asked, "Isn't this Mr. Ah Gui?" ”

"yes!" Ah Gui was stunned by the question, turned around and looked at it for a long time, before remembering He Zhi, who had eaten wine in a Gaojin wine shop, and couldn't help laughing: "When you come back to Beijing, you are the first friend I have seen - are you waiting for the exam in Beijing?" Let's go, let's go to Gao Jin's house for a drinking party! He Zhi smiled and said: "In the past, drinking friends are different from each other today, so it's hard for you to know me!" Ah Gui grinned and said: "Although this prefect is majestic outside, now when he arrives in the capital, he is a rotten sheep's head and the marquis of the Guannei." How can you forget the poor friends! ”

He Zhi glanced at Ah Gui with emotion and said, "If you think so, we can still climb." I'm planning to go to see Cao Xueqin, how about moving and driving? He frowned and shook his head and sighed, "You know what? Xue Qin couldn't stay in the right-wing sect and had already resigned. It's a tough time now! Ah Gui was surprised: "He gets along well with Fu Liuye, how can he be down?" I heard that his wife was still a gift from the sixth master! ”

"The sixth master is not what it used to be, and it will be of great use." He Zhi said lightly: "Now he is on a long business trip, and he is not in Beijing." Alas...... Xueqin's family doesn't know what to do with this time! ”