Auspicious five years, October.

Jiangnan, Binzhou.

On a snowy night, a hole broke in the roof of the Land Temple, and moonlight and fine snow swirled down on the old and broken idols. Shen Zhou wrapped the thickest clothes on his body around Yuan Niang and the white cat, and rested against the pillar with his sword.

Suddenly there was a heavy wheezing sound in the quiet of the night.

Shen Zhou opened his eyes violently and covered Yuanniang's mouth. Yuanniang was awakened, but she obediently didn't make a sound, and let Shen Zhou carry her to the empty stomach of the land. Shen Zhou hesitated, cut off a corner of his robe, and blindfolded her.

"Don't make a sound." Shen Zhou instructed.

Messy footsteps rushed into the Land Temple, and a thin figure slammed to the ground, branded with blood. The killer who followed behind raised his knife high above his head and slashed down, but his movements froze in the air. The killer felt a cold and hot chest in his chest, and then the blood in his whole body spurted out of the crack.

Shen Zhou kicked him on the shoulder, pulled out his broken sword, and turned to look at the embarrassed man on the ground.

The man was dressed in several thin, patched robes wrapped in three layers inside and three layers outside, his hands and cheeks were frozen red like rotten persimmons, and his skin was chapped. He rolled his eyes slowly, as if he hadn't recovered from the thrilling chase just now.

"Is there anyone else in the back?" Shen Zhou asked expressionlessly.

The man swallowed with difficulty and said, "No." ”

Shen Zhou nodded, ready to leave with Yuanniang in his arms. He thought it was someone from the Mountain Ghost Clan who came after him when he smelled it, but he didn't expect it to be a misunderstanding.

The man looked at Shen Zhou's back and stopped talking, as if he wanted to open his mouth to beg Shen Zhou for something, but as if he didn't dare to trust him, and finally watched Shen Zhou leave with Yuan Niang in his arms from the statue.

——

Auspicious five years, November.

Jiang Qiao opened a cloth village, specializing in the business of rich and noble families.

After Jiang Changgongzi died on the ship returning to Guangling for no apparent reason, the Guangling Jiang clan also completely lost Jiang Qiao's whereabouts. A fire in the Scarlet Jade Pavilion burned everything in "Oiran Georgie" cleanly, and Jiang Qiao started business naturally. She gathered a large group of businessmen from the south to the north to explore the price differences of raw silk in various places, and the business of turning her left hand to her right hand was very smooth.

Because she was afraid of meeting the guests of the former Jade Fang, Jiang Qiao never showed up, and only entrusted the shopkeeper to handle all matters, and she manipulated the overall situation behind her back.

"Now grain prices are rising everywhere, and they all say that 'grain cheapness hurts farmers', but the soaring grain prices have made farmers unable to eat, and they have not had a single star or a half more money in their hands." Jiang Qiao quickly made an calculation, "Buy from the farmers at a low price, and sell from the squires at a high price." I'm afraid that many people will die again next year. ”

Chu Zhixia sat in front of the charcoal basin with his back to her to keep warm, worried.

"The difficulty of the New Deal lies in the lower but not the higher. Although His Majesty is determined to implement the new policy, the people who obstruct it openly and secretly still do not give up. Chu Zhixia shook his head, "If this difficulty is not solved for a day, there will be no fewer people who will die for a day." ”

"Why do you have to wait so long?" Jiang Qiao said in confusion.

"Not everyone can be this 'chicken'." Chu Zhixia raised his head and said a little distractedly.

This case must be big enough that His Majesty, civil and military officials, cannot ignore it, and cannot sit idly by; The grievances must be shocking enough to arouse the feelings of the poor reading characters - the most important thing is that Bai Ziche must be allowed to handle this case.

Bai Ziche has neither a prominent maternal family nor the support of a big family. The only thing he could rely on was the emperor's favor and the poor and white scholars like him. Those who win the hearts of the people win the world, this sentence is also applicable to Bai Ziche.

And Chu Zhixia is waiting for someone.

In the fifth year of the auspicious charm of the previous life, there was an earth-shattering "Binzhou land invasion case". The county magistrate of Chunxian County, Binzhou, could not bear the oppression of the squires and the county guards, and went to Beijing to sue the emperor in anger, but died on the way to Beijing. A beggar inadvertently picked up the official seal from his corpse and sent it to the pawnshop to exchange money for money, only to expose the bloodstained collusion between officials and businessmen.

Chu Zhixia had already sent someone to Binzhou to find the county magistrate, and also delivered a message to the ghost city, hoping that the ghost city lord would help, but there was no news for a long time.

More than 100 people starved to death in Chunxian County, and the peasant households sold their daughters, and they didn't know if they could exchange it for food to live this winter - this was the first news Chu Shixia received. The last one is that someone is secretly chasing and killing the county commander, and Chu Zhixia's people found the killer's body in a land temple in Binzhou, but at the same time lost the trace of the county order.

Chu Zhixia had no choice but to order people to squat at the gate of the imperial capital.

If that county commander really escaped the assassin's pursuit and arrived in the imperial capital, those in the imperial capital who wanted him to die would definitely defend the last line of defense. The gates of the imperial capital must be guarded by soldiers every day when they are opened and closed, and as long as the people above do not want to, he will definitely not be able to enter.

Jiang Qiao was silent for a moment, and then asked, "Is the second son okay lately?" ”

After Huo Wenbai's legs were crippled, he did not move much, his body was weak, and he coughed from time to time. In addition to teaching Bai Ziche, his only pastime is to write music scores, which flow to the jade workshop, causing musicians to compete to play.

"It's not bad, I urged His Royal Highness King Qi to read and write all day long, write and write policies, and criticized His Royal Highness to blood." Chu Shixia smiled and said.

Jiang Qiao also smiled, and his white fingers pressed the abacus. She no longer wears the gorgeous jewelry she wore when she was an oiran, a plain ebony hairpin, and a string of Buddhist beads on her wrist, which complemented Chu Zhixia's dress.

"I'll go first, I wish Boss Jiang a prosperous business." Chu Shixia stood up and arched his hand at her.

Before Jiang Qiao could respond, the door was suddenly knocked open.

"The owner, it's not good, the shopkeeper went out of the city to pick up the raw silk that was transported, and it was detained by Ying Tianfu!" The guy was so anxious that he was about to cry, "Did the Yuan family in the east of the city do it?" Why are you holding us up?! ”

Chu Zhixia has been waiting for her for several days, this news tugged at her spider-web-like fragile nerves, she raised her hand to signal the guy to calm down, and asked, "Is it only our family that is detained, or is it also detained along with others?" ”

The man was stunned, remembered for a moment, and said, "The people at the city gate have been detained!" ”

Chu Zhixia immediately picked up the drinking stream snow and pushed the door out, and did not forget to tell Jiang Qiao: "You don't have to worry about this matter, your shopkeeper will be fine." If I don't come back before dawn, I'll go to the Akiba Mountain Residence to ask Pei Zhang. ”

Jiang Qiao was stunned in place, and said calmly to the guy: "The weather is cold, I'm afraid that the shopkeeper has worked hard this time and suffered from the cold." Let the kitchen cook a pot of thick ginger soup and prepare it, and then go to the doctor. ”

——

The snowflakes of the winter night were stacked on top of the walls, like a pale and silent downpour.

Jing Zhaoyin nodded with a few henchmen and walked half a step behind the "nobleman" from the palace, and walked over the wet aisle of Yingtianfu Prison. In response to the rule of the imperial capital, the three sects and nine streams in the prison can be locked up, and the fishy smell rushes from the nostrils to the heavenly spirit cover.

"This man was sneaky at the gates of the city, and the soldiers took him down at once. The official seal was found on his body. Jing Zhaoyin stared at the nobleman and smiled so that his eyes narrowed into a line, and said flatteringly, "Ragged and embarrassed, it is clearly a flower child, how can it be an official of the imperial court?" Xia Guan remembered the teachings of his old ancestor and his old man, and hurriedly invited you to come. ”

"Well done." The noble man let out a contemptuous snort under the hood.

Jing Zhao Yin diligently opened the way for him.

A commotion erupted from the depths of the cell, and after the sound of Ding Ling's loud voice, iron doors opened. Jing Zhaoyin was still stunned, and saw the fierce prisoners rushing out of the cell, staring at them viciously, and the jailer who had passed out in the aisle.

The masked man threw down the heavy key, lowered his voice and said, "Don't step on anyone on the ground." ”

"Are you going to rebel!" Jing Zhaoyin shouted, left the noble man who was the hope of his promotion to the knighthood, turned his head and ran out.

——

When the news of the riot in the prison cell of Yingtianfu was sent to the palace, it did not fall into the ears of the emperor first, but was first sent to the table of the celebrant supervisor.

"What?!" Xu Delu, the eunuch of the palm print, slapped the wine glass, stared at the round eyes and roared, "Riot? The prisoners all ran away? What about the prefectural order?! ”

"Run, run." The little eunuch said tremblingly.

Xu Delu slapped him in the face and said angrily: "Then why don't you go and find it?" Waiting for him to talk nonsense in front of His Majesty and poke a hole in the sky? ”

——

In response to the riot in Tianfu Prison, Yulin Wei assisted in defense.

Yan Jue received the news at home and was about to put on his armor and go out, but was the first to knock on the door.

He looked at Chu Zhixia who suddenly appeared with a solemn expression, and Chu Zhixia still had a person on his shoulder. The humanoid was erect, so thin that only a layer of skin remained, and his cheeks were deeply sunken, and he shivered incessantly.

"Who is this?" Yan asked.

"Binzhou Chunxian County Order, Cao Jie."

Chu Zhixia threw something to Yan Jie, and Yan Jue opened the baggage soaked in blood and snow water, and found that it was an official seal inside.

"I need hot water, ginger soup and mattress."

Chu Zhixia walked in without seeing the field, "The ministers and nobles of the entire imperial capital are looking for him and asking for his life." Now only you can save him, little marquis. Disperse your Yulin guards and search them strictly, going door-to-door and searching with great fanfare to calm their hearts. ”

Yan Jue was confused, but he also understood the huge conspiracy behind this. It was not the first time he had been involved in this kind of thing, and he obeyed Chu Zhixia without surprise. He was about to go out to rectify Yu Linwei, but he saw that the person on Chu Zhixia's shoulder suddenly spasmed, his chest rose and fell violently, and he coughed up a mouthful of phlegm mixed with blood foam.

Chu Zhixia patted him lightly on the back and asked with a grim face, "Isn't it a bit eye-catching to ask for a doctor now?" ”

——

When it was almost dawn, Cao Jie opened his eyes with difficulty from the high heat. The strong smell of ginger soup still lingered in his mouth, and his throat hurt as if it had been scraped over and over again with a knife.

Jing Zhaoyin didn't need to torture him at all, as long as he was thrown in the prison of Ying Tianfu, he would freeze to death in the depths of the prison silently. No one would know that there was a humble county commander who traveled thousands of miles from Binzhou to the imperial capital to demand justice.

"Are you awake?" The girl's voice was crisp, "I'll call Sister Chu." ”

"No ......"

Cao Jiegang wanted to say, "Don't alarm anyone", he walked all the way from Chunxian to the imperial capital, or fled to the imperial capital, and he didn't dare to trust anyone at all. He cautiously blended among the homeless or beggars, avoiding the pursuit of the killers, not daring to reveal his identity and intentions, but he was still caught at the city gates.

But Cao Jie didn't have time to fully reveal a word, so he suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood. He felt a sharp pain in his chest, but it felt as if a wind was passing through his chest, cold and empty. The girl screamed at his sudden onset.