Liu Baihu's funeral took three full days, and Senior Brother Cheng found dozens of senior monks and recited the Sutra of Transcendence for three days and three nights in a row, spending a hundred taels of silver!

Three days later, Liu Xin, under the leadership of Senior Brother Cheng, went to the Thousand Households in Inner East City to order, and after Liu Baihu died of illness three days ago, Senior Brother Cheng immediately sent someone to hand over the excerpt of Liu Baihu's death, as well as Liu Xin's succession form and household registration certificate. It will take three days for the approval of the Thousand Households, so the time to go there today is just right.

It takes an hour's walk from the willow house to the thousand households in the inner east city, and it takes half an hour to take the carriage.

The time of the thousands of households in Jinyi and Wei is every hour, and the time when Liu Xin arrives at the thousand households in the inner East City is seven o'clock. There is still a moment to come, but the gate of the Thousand Households in Inner East City is empty, and it stands to reason that many school captains should come to order at this time.

Senior Brother Cheng couldn't see anything on his face, but just told Liu Xin to be careful, and then took Liu Xin into the Thousand Households.

Senior Brother Cheng also has the identity of a Jinyi Wei scribe, this clerk is one of the cheap officials in Zhengyang, all the small officials are not in the establishment, there is no money, only money and food issued from time to time, barely full.

Of course, the scribes of Jinyiwei are still different from those in other places, after all, Jinyiwei has a lot of oil and water, and the school captains and household officials naturally do not write documents by themselves, so they will recruit scribes, and give clerks more money and food than in other places.

However, these scribes are basically people who have a relationship with Jinyiwei, such as Senior Brother Cheng, who is a scribe under Liu Baihu, and has the dual identity of the Liu family's housekeeper and clerk.

Basically, all the scribes of Jinyiwei are fertile and do not flow into the fields of outsiders.

Senior Brother Cheng took Liu Xin straight into the inner hall of the Thousand Households, and the people in the inner square should be lined up on weekdays, but at this time, none of them were seen.

The duty room of the Thousand Households in Neidong City was also empty, Liu Xin stood in the courtyard, and Senior Brother Cheng rummaged through the rooms with different colors, but finally shook his head and came back.

"It's strange, there's no one to see. Even if the task is out on weekdays, a few scribes should be there, and there should be a few lieutenants left behind. Here's what's going on, this is. ”

"Uncle Cheng should have a way, since this situation is unusual now, there must be a problem, we can't sit still."

"That's right, you wait a minute!" After Senior Brother Cheng finished speaking, he left the Thousand Households in Inner East City.

Not long after, Senior Brother Cheng came back, his face was very ugly.

"There was a case in the imperial city, and several thousands of households in the inner city were transferred, but there was already a big case, and people had to be kept here. But since there is no one left here, it is estimated that someone wants to give you a dismount. ”

"Dismount?" Liu Xin was a little puzzled.

Senior Brother Cheng frowned deeply and said: "Liu Licheng is a cautious eye, Jinyiwei is divided into three factions, and the three factions are standing, this is the way of Jinyiwei to command Wang Zhongjie as an official." Among them, Wang Zhongjie controls all the Jinyi guards of other provinces except for the five northeastern provinces, these people are Wang Zhongjie's disciples and grandchildren, he is very smart, he scattered all his henchmen, and firmly controlled the periphery. In the five northeastern provinces, there are almost no henchmen. ”

"And the commander of Nanzhen Fusi, who is in charge of the internal inspection of Jinyiwei, is actually a person from the palace. That is, the subordinates of Mi Yusong, the commander of the East Investigation Factory, everyone knows this. He was an eyeliner for the emperor. Therefore, Nanzhen Fuji is actually Mi Yusong's subordinate. ”

And the commander of the Beizhen Fusi, Tongzhi Kou Gang, is the spokesperson of the court's Wenchen, and this so-called Wenchen does not refer to a certain person, but to a group of people, who are headed by the six departments. In the previous dynasty, there was an example of Jinyiwei taking Wenchen indiscriminately, so from that time on, Wenchen took control of Jinyiwei near Gyeonggi without regard for face. And the reason why I say that Wang Zhongjie is smart is because almost all the commanders of the Jinyi Guard before him have not died well, and the reason is that they refuse to let go of power, and they always choose to wrestle with the ministers in the land of Gyeonggi. The more powerful ones fought against the Wenchens, and after some of them were defeated, they couldn't keep the bone foam. ”

"But Dai De'an and Kou Gang are not fools, will they let themselves be used as guns by Wang Zhongjie." Liu Xin had already understood the power struggle within Jinyiwei at this time. The commander of Jinyiwei made Wang Zhongjie want to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, and throw the contradiction to the two irreconcilable groups of eunuchs and Wenchen.

In all dynasties, compared with the contradiction between Jinyiwei and Wenchen, the real blood feud between the eunuch and the Wenchen is called.

Although Liu Xin felt that Wang Zhongjie's hand was beautiful, he was not the only smart person after all. Liu Xin has never looked down on others, let alone underestimated others.

Senior Brother Cheng nodded and said: "That's right, Dai De'an and Kou Gang are also old foxes, so the fourth party force has been pulled in, and Wang Zhongjie will not be able to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, if he doesn't end up, this benefit may be lost at any time." ”

Liu Xin frowned at first, then reacted and said softly: "Martial Emperor City!" ”

Senior Brother Cheng looked at Liu Xin with satisfaction, he felt that although this junior brother was not punctual and unruly, he was still smart, and this was the real initial recognition of Liu Xin.

"The real rise of Emperor Wu City has only been eleven years ago. It is a miracle that they have been able to gain a foothold in these forces of the court, and now they want to continue to expand their energy, which can be described as an inch. And Nanzhen Fusi is in the hands of Dai De'an, which is ironclad and cannot be shaken. Kou Gang could only lure the wolf into the house and give out the thousand households in the Inner East City. Only by throwing this piece of fat out can you attract the big fish of Emperor Wu City to bite! ”

"And what does this have to do with today's events?" Liu Xin felt that Senior Brother Cheng hadn't talked about the key for a long time.

Senior Brother Cheng said solemnly: "If you don't understand the key to this, you won't be able to understand why they are targeting you today." Liu Licheng is a disciple of Emperor Wu City, but he has only been a thousand households in Inner East City for three years. This time is not long, it is not short, and for the interior of Jinyiwei, he is only initially in control. Even among the four hundred households under the jurisdiction of the Thousand Households in Neidong City, only three of them were his henchmen, and the remaining one was Liu Baihu, who was Kou Gang's person on the surface. ”

"Liu Licheng wants to quickly control the Qianhu Office in the Inner East City, and then he can continue to develop the interior of Jinyiwei. Liu Baihu was seriously ill and had no heirs, so his position as a hundred households could have been easily obtained by Liu Licheng. But when you come, everything is different. ”

"I understand, but even if you want to make it difficult, Liu Licheng can't help it, the pro-army is a hereditary system, this is a law, and it cannot be changed!"

"If there are no heirs, it is also the law that after three days of death, they can be inherited by the children of other guards. Liu Licheng originally played this abacus. But if you come, it is estimated that Liu Licheng will have to think of another idea. After all, you are from outside, you have just entered the imperial capital, and you don't belong to any party if you want to come, and now is the best time to win over. ”

"Then why are you hanging us here today?" Liu Xin was a little puzzled, since he wanted to win over, why did he still do what he did today.

Senior Brother Cheng smiled, and pretended to be profound: "This is the unspoken rule of officialdom, suppress first, and then win over." I don't really understand how this tradition came about, but I have to say that it works. ”

Liu Xin: "..."

"There is a big case in the Imperial City, the Thousand Households in the Inner East City set off temporarily last night, these scribes did not come this morning, it is estimated that Liu Licheng deliberately arranged it. If you take office today, whether you have a little bit or not, you can be regarded as having entered the post. If you don't go to the imperial city today, it will be dereliction of duty, and the most severe punishment according to the law is dismissal. If you want to come to this Liu Licheng to play this hand, it is unlikely that you will be dismissed, after all, you just came. In this way, in fact, his purpose is very clear, if you don't go today, a crime of dereliction of duty will definitely make you uneasy. Afterwards, he comforted you again and helped you cover up this guilt, thinking that if you were an ordinary person, you should be grateful to Liu Licheng at this time, even if you are not grateful to Dade, at least you are grateful in your heart. ”

Liu Xin suddenly, I see.

"So if you don't want to be grateful to him, then you are going to the Imperial City now, and I will show you the way. Of course, if you want to join which side ......"

"No, no ifs. I don't want to be on either side. Liu Xin said lightly: "If you come, you will be safe, you will be subordinate, you will be constrained everywhere, where can you do big things!" ”

Senior Brother Cheng laughed and said, "Good ambition, since this is the case, I will definitely help!" ”

It is still relatively far from the inner east city to the imperial city, and the imperial city is inhabited by humerus ministers, imperial relatives and so on.

When Liu Xin arrived at the gate of the imperial city, it was already four quarters of the hour, and it took an hour, and this was still the situation of the carriage.

showed his identity, but Liu Xin did not have a waist card, so he could only be passed on by people. There is also an institution of Jinyi Guard in this imperial city, General Han.

But this group of people is just a group of standing piles, and they are not really useful.

After another half an hour, a Han general came out and handed Liu Xin a waist card of a brocade guard.

Senior Brother Cheng is not a Jinyi guard, so he can't enter. Liu Xin could only follow the Han general into the imperial city alone, his frame could not enter, and the two could only walk.

In the end, the Han general took Liu Xin to the Jinyi Wei Mansion in the imperial city, which was originally the garrison of the Han general, and has now been requisitioned by the Jinyi Guard.

The commander of Jinyiwei was on an errand outside, so at this time, the person who presided over the case in the imperial city was the commander of the Beizhen Fusi and the same knowledge Kou Gang.

Kou Gang is a middle-aged man with a delicate face, a short beard, wearing a brocade robe, a strong figure, and a tight robe. Because his image was too civil, he was once called the white-faced man, because he once fought hundreds of enemies on the battlefield with the Northern Barbarians, which made the Northern Barbarians frightened.

If it is only by virtue of military merits, it is not enough to be rewarded by the emperor and become the commander of the Jinyi Guard. The real key to his ability to sit in this position is that he joined Gu Dawen, the left capital of the former Metropolitan Procuratorate, and became Gu Dawen's introductory son-in-law. Only then did he gain Wenchen's trust, and he was immediately put in this position.

has military merits, and the help of civil servants, Kou Gang was in the limelight for a while.

Now in the palace of the imperial city, Kou Gang is sitting behind a large table with his eyes closed, and below him are four thousand households chattering about something.

Among the 4,000 households in the imperial capital, the 2,000 households in the inner city are heavier, and the outer city is slightly secondary.

Since coming to this imperial city last night, the four thousand households have not closed their eyes, this case is too strange, and too complicated, none of the four people are willing to take over, and they have been arguing since last night until now, and they have not made the division of labor clear.

"Whew~" Kou Gang, who closed his eyes and recuperated, suddenly let out a sigh, opened his eyes, and said in a small voice:

"Raising soldiers for a thousand days and using soldiers for a while, you have served in Jinyi Wei for far more than a thousand days, why is it too much to use even for a while now?"

Kou Gang's voice was not loud, but as soon as the words came out, the whole room immediately fell silent.

Kou Gang's gaze slowly swept over, and finally fell on the face of Liu Licheng, who looked tired.

"Liu Qianhu!"

"The subordinates are here!" Liu Licheng took a step forward with sincere fear.

"The Inner East City Qianhu Office is in charge of the investigation, and Liu Qianhu should be the person who has the most say in handling this kind of case, I don't know what you think?"

Liu Licheng was asked like this, and cold sweat suddenly oozed out of his face, he was a single tree in Beizhen Fusi, he was actually not afraid of Kou Gang, and even Wang Zhongjie. But he was afraid of Shangguan Ba and Emperor Wu City. If he can't open up the situation in Jinyiwei, that's the most unacceptable result for him.

Liu Licheng's eyes lit up, and he replied: "Lord Kou, my subordinates have arranged for a few hundred households to block the scene of the crime and search carefully, at this time, there should be some eyebrows, it is better to call them here and understand the situation at the scene clearly, so that we can make some basic judgments." ”

"Find them!"

"Yes!" Liu Licheng immediately turned around and went out to call people.

In a short time, three hundred households came together, their bodies were wet, and the dampness of the night turned into dew in the morning, and wet their robes, and they had not stopped since yesterday afternoon, and the matter was really important, and they had to be careful.

"I've seen Lord Tongzhi, and I've seen four Thousand Households!" The three hundred households said in unison.

"Master Kou wants to know, what did you find at that crime scene, and whether there was anything abnormal?" Liu Licheng asked.

One of the three hundred households was about to answer, but Meng Dingwen, a thousand households in the inner west city, asked in a deep voice: "Why are there only three hundred households, Liu Qianhu, are there only three hundred households under your command?" ”

When Liu Licheng heard this, he seemed to have just discovered that there were only three people in the hundred households, so he hurriedly explained: "My subordinate Liu Baihu was seriously ill and unfortunately died three days ago, so he didn't come. ”

"Sick and dead? Even if it was three days ago, these three days were enough for his sons and nephews to succeed him, if there are no sons and nephews, it should be arranged by you, why is such an important case today, lacking a hundred households, how can you drive your subordinates well! Meng Dingwen said a little aggressively.

Liu Licheng didn't look panicked, but continued to explain: "Liu Baihu has a son and nephew to succeed him, but I heard that Liu Baihu's nephew came from out of town and doesn't know our rules, so Meng Qianhu shouldn't be harsh on the newcomer!" ”

"I'm not harshly scolding the newcomers, but I feel that you are incompetent, no matter what, it is your responsibility to effectively replace the officials of the hundred households. Don't use this kind of reason to prevaricate your negligence! ”

Liu Licheng's face slowly collapsed, this Meng Dingwen is Kou Gang's henchman, and he came out to confront him at this time, probably because of Kou Gang's instructions, he couldn't help but be a little annoyed.

Just when Liu Licheng was thinking quickly about how to fight back against Meng Dingwen, he saw a lieutenant coming in outside, and after saluting, he said to Liu Licheng:

"Liu Qianhu, the new Baihu Liu Xin is here to report!"

"Huh?" Liu Licheng suddenly wondered in his heart, how did this Liu Xin find here? It was the only thought on his mind at the moment.

Meng Dingwen glanced back at Kou Gang without a trace, and Kou Gang had a smile on his face, as if he didn't feel Meng Dingwen's gaze, and ignored it.

"Let him in." Liu Licheng said to the lieutenant.

When Liu Xin first came to this mansion, he heard Liu Licheng summon the four hundred households under his command, so he hurried over, with his martial arts ears and eyes, he heard the words and swords in this room from a distance, Liu Xin couldn't help sneering in his heart, and sure enough, Senior Brother Cheng was right, Liu Licheng just wanted to give him a killing stick.

But it seems that Liu Licheng has no ability, in the current situation, if the other party continues to be aggressive, it is estimated that he Liu Xin will be thrown out by Liu Licheng as a sacrifice.

But fortunately, it arrived in time.

Liu Xin quickly entered the hall and saw the only person sitting in the hall, knowing that it was Kou Gang, so he saluted respectfully:

"Liu Xin, a thousand households in the inner East City, has seen Lord Tongzhi!"

Then he saluted to the gap among the others, and said:

"My subordinates have seen a few thousand households!"

After saluting, Liu Xin raised his head and stood there with his head held high, although he was not wearing the robe of Jinyiwei, he was in good spirits and his posture was upright, which made Kou Gang's eyes shine.

Such a handsome face is relatively rare in Jinyiwei, and he himself is one of them, but now the hero is in the twilight and his heroic appearance is gone.

But this can't stop it, Kou Gang's first impression of Liu Xin is excellent.