Fang Linyuan looked at Zhao Pu, his lips moved slightly.

Zhao Pu's words are nothing more than an easy-to-understand truth, but if you really want to see the sun, where can it be so simple to say it casually?

But these words came out of Zhao Xuan's mouth.

There was a certain indescribable warmth in his eyes, which made people inexplicably speechless while not being able to help but trust him.

After a moment, the slightly cool palm landed on the top of his head and touched it gently.

"Alright." I just listened to Zhao Pu say. "Eat something first, what's going on, take your time."

Under Zhao Pu's comfort and guidance, Fang Linyuan finished eating a piece of cake and told Zhao Pu about the results of today's interrogation.

The candlelight in the tent grew brighter until it was about to dawn.

"It is unreasonable to have silver but no food in the army." Fang Linyuan said. "Even in a severe famine year, there will be no food left in the treasury. Even when the imperial court was at the end of its rope, there could be no reason to starve soldiers to death. ”

"The grain stock of the military department can be used for three years of war." I just listened to Zhao Pu say. "There is no grain in Yanzhou, and there is no news from the imperial court, which can only mean that they have never asked the military department for food."

Fang Linyuan turned his head to look at Zhao Pu.

What Zhao Pu said was extremely true, but he really couldn't understand why the lord of Yanzhou would do this.

Zhao Pu saw the doubt in his eyes.

"We don't have evidence at the moment, so guess." I just listened to Zhao Pu say.

"If the commander of an army fails to report his knowledge in a famine year, causing some soldiers in the army to starve to death, and is reprimanded by the emperor, what will the emperor do with him on the grounds that he is sympathetic to the difficulties of the court, the emptiness of the treasury, and the misjudgment of the situation in the army?"

"Since it is a fine and demotion, it will not be used again unless it is necessary." Fang Linyuan said.

Zhao Pu nodded: "Then what if he reported to the imperial court as early as the famine year and asked the military department for food?" ”

"That's a lot easier." Fang Linyuan blurted out. "The year is not good, and the barracks everywhere must be short of food, and the military department will not make it difficult for him alone. All you need to do is report all the running accounts of grain, grass and military salaries to the military headquarters, and within half a month, there will be grain to be distributed......

Speaking of this, Fang Linyuan was slightly stunned and looked straight at Zhao Pu: "The only thing they have to do is actually submit accounts." ”

Seeing Zhao Pu looking at him calmly, he nodded slowly.

"What do you mean...... They can't even report the accounts to the imperial court, so naturally they can't ask the military department for food? He said.

"So there is a problem with the account of the Yanzhou army." I saw Zhao Pu say. "Otherwise, Yanzhou's grain is so expensive, who would be too much."

Fang Linyuan only felt a chill in his back.

Where else can the food go if it is missing? The Lord will not be able to eat many catties of grain alone, and it is not for eating, so it can only be sold.

The price of grain in Yanzhou has doubled, and one life can only be exchanged for three buckets of grain......

If the Lord sells the grain at the price of Yanzhou, and then converts it into the price of the old year and pays the soldiers silver......

The extra silver taels will flow into the pocket of the commander.

"But......" Fang Linyuan's hand resting on his knee trembled a little. In case of an incident, it would be dozens or hundreds of lives, and he couldn't hold it at all. Isn't his future much more expensive than this silver? ”

Zhao Pu looked at him.

He didn't want Fang Linyuan to hear this.

He has been accustomed to seeing such things in the palace ban since he was a child, and knows that Fang Linyuan cares about justice, heavenly principles and human life, in the imperial city and the court, the prices are clearly marked, and the goods can be exchanged for sale at will.

For a moment, his voice was softer, slow and soft, as if he was afraid of disturbing anyone.

"It's easy." He said. "There is no shortage of people like Meng Cheng in the army, as long as someone revolts and causes chaos, then the number of defections and casualties can be changed."

As he spoke, he stretched out his hand and slowly landed on Fang Linyuan's arm, reassuring.

"You see, the number of deserters who have fallen into the grass is not more than 100 people with vague numbers so far? Those thirty-seven lives, filled into these bandits, are only a fraction. ”

Fang Linyuan was cold all over.

He couldn't imagine it...... For most of the year, from last autumn to the beginning of spring this year, their lives were emptied in starvation, and after they died of a handful of dry bones, they would be called deserters.

He ...... How could they ......" Fang Linyuan was speechless.

saw Zhao Pu's hand slowly retracted and held his arm.

He didn't know how much Zhao Pu wanted to hug him at this time through a simple wooden table.

He could only feel that under the cold of the whole body, only the slightly cool hand held on his arm was warm.

"As long as he does something like this, he will definitely leave a trace." I just listened to Zhao Pu say. "If you've found out, he won't be able to escape."

Fang Linyuan didn't know how trembling his appearance looked at this time.

After staying up all night, his eyes were a little red, and the emotions in his eyes were trembling and broken.

He was suffering from the lives and deaths of others, like a god hanging from the clouds, compassionate, vulnerable, yet unattainably holy.

Zhao Pu wanted to tell Fang Linyuan at this moment that when the master general was arrested and convicted and sentenced to prison, he could take Fang Linyuan to see them.

You can slice their flesh with your own hands, slice open their bellies, and fill them with bran and weeds.

But the spotless god, where can he see such a filthy and bloody scene?

Zhao Xuan's teeth slowly tightened, trembling slightly in the calm.

He endured the distress and tyranny, and his subordinates also carefully controlled their strength, for fear of hurting Fang Linyuan.

For a moment, he gently stroked Fang Linyuan's arm, and when he spoke, his voice was soft and gentle.

"Don't worry." He said. "With you, they will be brought to justice and pay the price they deserve."

——

When the sky was about to dawn, Fang Linyuan could fall asleep.

Zhao Pu had nowhere to go, so Fang Linyuan moved the small table on the couch and wanted to go to sleep on the couch by himself and vacate the bed for Zhao Pu.

Zhao Pu asked him not to worry about this, and said that there was still a case to be tried tomorrow, and even coaxed him to lie on the bed.

With his head on the pillow, Fang Linyuan was dazed, not knowing when he fell asleep.

I only remember that Zhao Pu seemed to be next to him when he slept, and he was still talking to him without a pair.

What he said was all irrelevant gossip, but Fang Linyuan felt inexplicably relieved, especially after last night's arraignment.

He seemed to really believe what Zhao Pu said for no reason, as if as long as Zhao Pu was here, behind those wicked people who disregarded people's lives, there was a Hades king with a merit book in his hand.

He allowed this trust to grow, and when he didn't know that he was about to fall asleep, he reached out and grabbed Zhao Pu's sleeve hanging next to the bed.

"Zhao Pu...... "He will not sleep, and it seems that he still has something to say, but the words behind him have become almost inaudible murmurs.

The fingers under Zhao Xuan's sleeves trembled slightly.

He never knew that just calling his name could make people's blood veins tingle all over his body, so crisp that his heart softened slightly, and collapsed into a piece sweetly and sourly.

"Hmm." He answered very softly, almost inaudible. "I'm here."

And Fang Linyuan, who was sleeping, smacked his lips slightly, turned over, and pressed his entire sleeve.

His cheek was pressed against his hand, like a little lamb leading to a slain neck, and he stretched out his head to rub the executioner as if he were in danger.

The executioner's knife unconsciously turned upside down and plunged limply into his own heart.

That night, Zhao Xuan sat down lightly beside Fang Linyuan's bed, knelt down, and gently lay on the edge of his bed in the posture of Fang Linyuan asleep.

He cautiously let go of his light breathing, which slowly intertwined with Fang Linyuan's calm and gentle breathing.

With such a cold and filthy soul as him, he is also qualified to guard the cleanest and brightest person in his eyes.

Zhao Pu looked at Fang Linyuan quietly.

And his heart beat until dawn in a mess.

——

On the second day, when the sun was three poles, Fang Linyuan got up.

It was rare that he fell asleep in the middle of the night, and his mind was as heavy as pressing a stone when he slept, but this sleep was so restful that he woke up particularly energetic.

And that's a good thing.

Before noon, he used breakfast and lunch together, and led a team of people to search the details of the 37th Village.

There is no basis for the words, and it is necessary to find evidence to support their confessions.

Fang Linyuan first went to the Yamen of Ningbei County and transferred all the confessions related to the Thirty-Seven Village in the past few months.

There is an extremely important trade route next to the Chongzhou mountain range, connecting the north and the south. Because the Chongzhou Mountains stretch for hundreds of miles, most of the merchants passing by in the north pass through this trade road, and they are more than ten miles west of the bandit village.

Most of the cases related to Thirty-Seven Village are also here.

Except for a few robbery and brawls pretending to be bandits, all these cases of robbing the trade road, as Meng Cheng and others said, those who were robbed by the 37 villages would only be taken 20% at most.

There were even caravans that had been looted before arriving in Chongzhou, and after encountering the 37 villages, they were allowed to leave without taking a penny.

And among these files, there is another case that is very interesting.

It was a town near Ningbei County that had three or five burglaries in a few days in a row, slaughtering all the local wealthy families and sweeping them up one by one.

It is said that this was done by the 37 villages on the mountain, and the people in the town were panicked for a while, and they closed their doors every day.

But no

A few days later, several local ruffians died on the streets, their bodies tied to stone pillars in front of the yamen, and the tendons of their hands were cut off.

And above their heads, the dagger poked into the wood and poked at the stone pillar, poking a bucket-sized piece of paper with a few large characters written on it.

[Those who defile my cottage deserve death]

These cases were presented in front of Fang Linyuan.

"These bandits, I'm afraid that they have read too much of the book and regard themselves as heroes in the green forest." Seeing that Fang Linyuan's face was not very good-looking, the county guard of Ningbei County immediately considered the words and carefully comforted.

"The general doesn't have to care, in the end, it's just a group of mountain bandits."

Fang Linyuan turned his head and looked at the county guard.

"The adults are jealous and hateful, but even if these bandits have been for more than half a year, they have never reported to the court."

"This ......," the county warden immediately did not know how to answer.

This is indeed a group of hateful bandits...... But these people have been entrenched in Ningbei County for many months, but they really haven't done anything heinous.

In line with the principle that more things are better than less, the county guard put on a posture of suppressing bandits, and after a month or two, he will go through the process of clearing up and suppressing them.

But if it is reported to the court, then there will be a big official to supervise it immediately, and at that time, the trouble will be much more difficult than a group of mountain bandits who are like heroes in the green forest.

The county guard was speechless, and Fang Linyuan didn't intend to embarrass him.

After collecting these case files, he asked the county guard to send someone to transcribe the documents and send them to the barracks on the next two days, and then left with the people.

It was just past noon at this time, and there was still enough time for Fang Linyuan to take a trip to Thirty-Seven Villages.

He still has the key of the 37th village treasury in his hand, and when the items in the bandit village are counted under his eyes, these evidences will be almost cleared.

Zhou Jia led his troops to wait in front of the bandit village early.

These well-versed generals in the capital are very good at this. Like Fan Yushu, he is cautious, careful, and doesn't dare to make a mistake, and he is very reliable in doing things.

He followed Fang Linyuan, rode up the mountain, and opened the door of the warehouse of the bandit village one by one.

Before opening the door, Zhou Jia was still gearing up.

"I heard that most of the people passing through the Chongzhou Trade Road are big businessmen from the North." When the soldier stepped forward to unlock the lock, Zhou Jia said to Fang Linyuan. "I'm afraid that their bandit village is full of gold and silver, right? General, if you bring these back to the capital, Your Majesty will be very happy, and you will definitely reward and praise the general......"

As he spoke, the heavy door was pushed open.

Zhou Jia looked inside curiously, and Fang Linyuan also raised his steps and walked into the warehouse.

"This ...... This ......"

Zhou Jia was stunned by the scene in front of him.

The imaginary room full of gold and jade did not appear. Piled up were dusty weapons, worn tables and chairs, charcoal stoves for wintering, brooms for snow plowing, and ploughshares for land reclamation...... Things are messy, but they are neatly piled up and full, as if they have entered the backyard of a farmhouse.

Zhou Jia looked at Fang Linyuan in surprise.

But seeing that Fang Linyuan's face was calm, he only raised his hand and said to the soldiers in charge of the secretary of the team next to him: "Count it clearly, all of them must be registered." ”

"Yes!" The soldiers answered, and went about their jobs.

Zhou Jia's eyes were about to fall off.

What is there to register in this house full of rags? Throw it directly down the mountain and let those people pick it up and go home?

Seeing Fang Linyuan's calm expression, he looked at him sideways: "What's wrong?" ”

Zhou Jia immediately understood.

"The general is wise!" He said. "How can such a mountain bandit not have a cellar and a dark room? Yes, the subordinates were confused by what was in front of them, why didn't they think of this! ”

Fang Linyuan glanced at him a little speechlessly.

This person has nine knots in his heart, but he can make up for his brain very well.

Over there, without waiting for him to speak, Zhou Jia raised his voice and said, "Check carefully!" If there are any passages or secret doors, they are not allowed to be let go! ”

Seeing his energetic appearance, Fang Linyuan didn't refute him.

Anyway, it's not a bad thing to look carefully.

The search around was orderly, and there were no valuables, which made Fang Linyuan a lot easier, and he didn't have to stare at people who were afraid of doing anything in secret.

Piles of tattered items were turned over and dust was stirred up.

At this moment, a soldier's exclamation came from not far away: "General, there is a secret door here!" ”

Is there really one?

Fang Linyuan was stunned for a moment, and led Zhou Jia to step forward.

I saw that the soldiers in front of me had already pushed open the secret door, and dozens of soldiers swarmed in and explored the way for them first.

Behind the secret door, a dark and damp staircase leads to the bottom of the storeroom. Soldiers had already brought lights, and dozens of people walked ahead, and soon the entire underground chamber was illuminated.

Fang Linyuan followed the stairs and walked down step by step.

I heard the soldiers underground hesitate and say: "General, there is nothing in this secret room, just a pile of torn clothes, very ......strange."

Fang Linyuan looked up.

Then I saw that in the huge secret room, there were old and gray robes piled up.

Fang Linyuan's pupils shrank suddenly.

He stared at the clothes for a long time, unable to make a sound.

Zhou Jia, who was next to him, was still muttering, stepped forward, and picked up one of them casually: "Why is it Hu Ren's clothes?" Where did this come from......"

——

It is the clothes of the Hu people.

It's not just the Hu people, it's the Hu bandits who burned and looted in Shangjing on the night of the Flower Dynasty a few months ago.

The dress that Zhou Jia picked up, under the illumination of the lamp and candle, reflected a subtle but unique light.

It was Hu Bu, a Hu cloth that only existed in Beijing, and the color and shape were exactly the same as those of the Hu people and bandits that night.

Fang Linyuan stretched out his hand to take the dress, and saw that on the fabric made of Hu Bu, dark red blood stains and traces of flame burning could be faintly seen.

"Evacuate them all, seal the secret room, and no items in it are to be taken out or destroyed." Fang Linyuan immediately turned his head and said to the soldiers behind him.

Seeing that his expression was serious, Zhou Jia didn't dare to make a fuss, so he quickly threw back the clothes in the hands of the soldiers next to him, and beckoned the soldiers in the secret room to withdraw quickly.

"General, this is ......" Before leaving the secret room, he asked Fang Linyuan carefully.

But I heard Fang Linyuan say: "Don't ask too much first." This secret room was locked, and the rest of the belongings were registered and sent to my account. ”

Seeing him explain this, Zhou Jia nodded hurriedly, and asked Fang Linyuan again: "Is the general going to do something elsewhere?" Do you need to bring a team of people ......?"

I saw Fang Linyuan shake his head slightly, and said, "No need, I'll go to the yamen of the county government and I'll be back tonight." ”

——

He went to find Meng Cheng.

The moment he saw Meng Cheng, he didn't say much, and asked directly: "Where did those clothes come from in the secret room under your warehouse?" ”

Meng Cheng was stunned, obviously he didn't expect Fang Linyuan to care about this.

"We found it when we were hiding in the nearby mountains on the day we escaped from the barracks." He said. "At that time, we were in a hurry to change out of our uniforms, and when we saw more than a hundred or so corpses piled up in the mountains, we changed their clothes."

Fang Linyuan was stunned, and his brows immediately furrowed: "Corpse? ”

"Yes, they were all masked, and many of them had their throats cut, and they were basically killed with a knife."

Meng Cheng said. "I'm afraid this kind of trick was done by some kind of killer, but we were afraid that we would be captured by the master at the time, so we didn't care about so much, so we changed our clothes and left."

"What kind of people they were, do you remember?"

When he asked again, Fang Linyuan's tone was already a little urgent.

Seeing that his expression was serious, Meng Cheng's expression was also a lot more cautious.

"We didn't pay attention to the specific appearance, but half of them are Hu people, with curly hair and are very tall and strong." He said.

Half of them are Hu people?

Fang Linyuan immediately grasped the key point of his words and asked, "What about the other half, is it Han?" ”

Meng Cheng was a little puzzled: "Yes." ”

He didn't understand what the Han people had to ask, and Fang Linyuan's pupils shrank slightly.

Han...... How can half of the bandits who are making trouble be Han Chinese?

The Turks have always been arrogant and suspicious, believing that those who are not of our race will have different hearts. Even if ordinary Turkic herdsmen catch Han women, they will only act as female slaves and will not marry, how can they use Han people for such an important rebellion plan......

Unless, the people who drive them, are not Turks at all.

This guess shocked Fang Linyuan's back.

"Where did you find it, remember?" Fang Linyuan took a deep breath, calmed down a little, and asked again.

"In the Yifeng Mountain, a hundred miles east of Yanzhou Mansion. There are rugged mountains, inaccessible to people, and there are many canyons and ravines, and those corpses are ...... in the canyons," Meng Cheng replied.

Yifeng Mountain ......

This is simply not the right direction.

Fang Linyuan's hand resting on the table slowly clenched and tightened into a fist.

On that day, the Turkic bandits fled northward, taking the official road to the northwest, which was the path back to the Turkic territory.

After that, the traces of these bandits disappeared, and Fang Linyuan and everyone else who investigated the case tacitly assumed that they were fleeing to the Turks.

But the direction of Yifeng Mountain and that road is completely opposite.

Even their escape routes were disguised. Please keep in mind: , URL mobile version,