During this period, several waves of people came, but they were too far away to hear the sound clearly, and An Ying didn't understand who was who. Until it was dark, An Ying rubbed his numb legs and heard Zhong Tianfu's voice overhead.

"Girl, you've been here all afternoon, it's enough."

An Ying staggered to his feet and said, "Brother Zhong, do you know that I am staying here?" ”

Zhong Tianfu said with a smile: "I have been on duty at the gate of the prison of the Criminal Department for three years, and we are all clear about which corner can see the gate and which boundary can hear the door. ”

An Ying reached out to take out the silver in the purse again, Zhong Tianfu still smiled and said, "Okay, girl, don't touch your few pieces of silver." There's a food shop ahead, go get something to eat, I'll invite you. ”

The restaurant was very small, with only two tables, one of which already had a plate of white-cut mutton, fat and thin, looking crystal clear, with a plate of dipping sauce on the side, and a plate of meatloaf.

An Ying took the initiative to walk to the empty table next to him, but Zhong Tianfu beckoned to An Ying, he sat down at the table, and said to the old man in the shop: "I have a little friend today, Lao Pan will give me another bowl of bamboo shoots and fern wontons." ”

An Yingcai smiled: "It turned out to be the restaurant that Brother Zhong often came to. ”

Seeing An Ying relaxing, Zhong Tianfu pushed the mutton and meatloaf over, "You eat some first, see that you have only drunk a few sips of water since you stood in the morning, it is not easy." ”

An Ying was indeed very hungry, ate a few pieces of mutton, and took another bite of the meatloaf, the juice flowed out, and she was embarrassed to wipe it with the back of her hand.

Zhong Tianfu didn't care, but said: "It's futile for you to stay in the prison of the Criminal Department like this, I advise you to go home early." ”

An Ying raised his head in surprise: "No, I've been observing for a few days, don't you sometimes sneak people in through the side door?" ”

Zhong Tianfu shook his head and said, "I just heard you say that your father was just escorted from Huzhou, and that is the Gongcha case." The case was quite large, and all the criminals were kept in solitary confinement in cell B. Before, all we brought in were ordinary cells. This A, B, and C third-class cell can only be entered after being approved by Du Lang of the Criminal Department. Look, you're not too old, and there's no one else in the family? ”

As soon as the freshly cooked wontons were served, a hot steam came to the face while sitting in front of them, mixed with all kinds of vegetable aromas, tacky but with a strong sense of satisfaction.

An Ying carefully stirred the wonton soup and replied, "My mother has passed away a long time ago. I also have a brother and a sister at home, and I can still move around, but they are still too young. After thinking about it, An Ying asked, "Then can I ask about the Gongcha case?" Lord Yin of Huzhou said that the tea cakes that my family gave to the government this year were big and small, and the weight was not the same, saying that we were short of two catties. But this year, the tea cakes in Mindi are made into two molds, the big one is called a large group, and the small one is called a small group. We also made a fresh picture, according to the mold of Mindi. It stands to reason that the tea molds have all been seen by Lord Fu Yin, and we should not be suddenly arrested and convicted,"

Zhong Tianfu scratched his head, "I don't know about this." Why don't I go to the government office tomorrow and ask, it just so happens that I won't be on duty tomorrow and will go back to the criminal department to do things. ”

An Ying hurriedly thanked her, and took off the burden on her body, Zhong Tianfu stopped her and said, "Girl, you are alone outside, don't show your wealth outside." ”

Unexpectedly, An Ying took out a tea cake from the baggage, "Brother Zhong, my family has been making tea for generations, and there are no valuable items, even if you can get your own tea cake, you don't have to take it and taste it." I came all the way from Huzhou to the capital, and no one has been as enthusiastic as you. ”

Although Zhong Tianfu is a rough man, he also saw that this tea cake was white and must be of the highest quality, and it would be sold a few times in the idle tea shop, so he returned the tea cake and said: "You are about the same age as my little daughter, and it is not easy for me to look at you." You have only been in the capital for a few days, and I don't know how much money you have spent later, I have seen a few rich families, and the case has been tried for several months, and the people have not come out, and the money has been dispersed. ”

An Ying shook his head and said, "Brother Zhong, to tell you the truth, I actually squatted at the door of the prison of the Criminal Department for a few days. Some of the family members who came to visit the cell looked rich and powerful, while others were civilians from other places. Some guards at the door obviously watched people serve food, flattered and curryed favor when they met rich people, and did not ignore or speak ill of civilians when they met them. A few days ago, there was an old woman in ragged clothes, and the other guards ignored her, and sometimes drove her away, but you sent her to a cool place, and told her the process of the yamen's affairs. So I was going to stuff the silver into your hands today, but who knows the wrong person. ”

Speaking of this, Zhong Tianfu couldn't help laughing, "I see." You lowered your head and walked towards the gate suddenly, startling me, thinking that you were waiting for Master Su on purpose. However, the tea cake case is in the hands of Master Su, you can rest assured, Lord Su is the youngest waiter in the Criminal Department, he has solved several big cases at a young age, and he is fair, and the people in the capital have given him a nickname, called Su Qingtian. I'm going to work in the criminal department tomorrow, and I'll ask the brother who handled this case to see what the situation is. ”

On the second day, An Ying came to the restaurant to wait for Zhong Tianfu's news.

Zhong Tianfu not only came by himself, but also brought a young man.

"This is Yang Ye, the recorder of our Criminal Department, or your fellow countryman in Huzhou. He is a scholar, and he knows better than me, and he just happened to be on duty together, so he will come and tell you about it. ”

An Ying hurriedly saluted and asked, "Thank you Young Master Yang." ”

Yang Ye waved his hand, turned around and shouted: "Lao Pan, serve us three bowls of cardamom fragrant soup first, add some mint, it's getting hotter and hotter this day." He added, "Miss An, this is what was originally like this. The state capitals are also aware of the new mold this year, which has no stakes, and is fresh and auspicious. However, the palace sent a message, requiring the size and specifications to be consistent, and many tea farmers changed back to the old mold. There are a few tea households who probably didn't receive the news, but they still used a new mold, not only in Huzhou, but also in Mindi, and the nobles in the palace had to be strict, so they caught your father. Even the governor of Huzhou and the governor of Minzhou were suspended and waiting to be released. ”

At this time, the cardamom soup was cooked and served, Zhong Tianfu was afraid that An Ying would be upset, so he hurriedly asked her to drink some first. An Ying turned around in his heart and said, "There are still a few questions here, why do you have to have the same specifications in the first palace this year, and you can't use the mold of Min Di?" In previous years, there were also molds of various families, just asking for a new word, this matter is not a big treachery, there is no need to put it in prison of the Criminal Department. Second, why did other families in Huzhou receive instructions from the official family, but my father did not? The affairs of the imperial tribute are all in charge of the transfer envoy, and for many years, the instructions have been sent to the house to the person, and there has never been a matter of missing instructions. My family has been making this tea cake for several generations, and competition among peers is inevitable, but I really can't think of any tea shop that would do this because of this harm to people's lives and their wealth. ”

Yang Ye was drinking the soup, hearing this, he immediately looked up at the little girl, originally thought that a few words would be able to send her away, generally this kind of inquiry is nothing more than listening to the people in the government to say things again, and then make some money to take care of the people in prison or find Du Langzhong to be punished lightly, such a clear thinking of people is rare, he couldn't help but sit up straight, and said carefully: "This case involves a lot of people, originally this case in the womb of the noble person directly asked the Zhejiang transfer envoy to sign it, I don't know why it fell into the hands of Master Su of the Criminal Department." I went to the front of the peak Cheng Sizhi to help them sort out the paperwork, and I heard that there were also a few tea shops in Fujian, and I heard that they were all because of the new mold. Also, there was an accident at the tea shop in Huzhou Mansion this time, and there are three of them in total. There are two more, one is Hongshengji in Huzhou, and the other is Quanxiangji in Huzhou, both of which were thrown into prison last night. Chu Quanxiang, the boss of Quanxiangji, heard that he was still a brother-in-law with the Tobe squire, and he didn't even get through the relationship, so it was useless to say anything. ”

An Ying thought for a moment and asked, "By the way, is the sales list of this tea shop all in the yamen?" ”

Yang Ye thought for a while and said: "If you want to sell it to the government, you have a list, and you have to draw a file for it." If it is sold in its own shop, it is not sold in the yamen. The marketing lists of these tea households are stored in the Criminal Department, and I will copy a copy for you next time. ”

An Ying got up and bowed, "Thank you Young Master Yang for your help." Yang Ye waved his hand and said: "There is no need to be like this, they are all fellow villagers, it is rare for your family to come alone to save your father, I just did some inquiring things, Miss An does not have to make a big gift."

The three of them ate meatloaf and side dishes and chatted.

"Yang Ye is a student of Songhe Academy, a scholar, or a first-class student, after a few years of passing the provincial examination and the Jinshi examination, he can become a big official, which is different from those born in the army like us."

An Ying was surprised: "Students can still do things in the official office?" ”

Yang Ye picked up the meat patty made by Lao Pan Xin and took a bite, ate a mouthful of oil and water, and ate some pickled side dishes to clear his mouth, and when he heard Zhong Tianfu say this, he smiled and answered: "The family is poor, earn some money, otherwise you can't even afford to eat." As soon as the old bell said that he would invite me to dinner, I came immediately, and I wanted this mouthful. ”

An Ying didn't know much about the affairs of the government, and when she saw that Yang Ye and Zhong Tianfu were willing to say more, she asked, "Why can you study in the academy and be an errand in the criminal department?" ”

"The record is a small official with no grade in the criminal department, and there was a rule in the previous dynasty that officials could not enter the official, but I didn't have this bullshit rule. At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, there were not enough officials, but anyone who was literate and could do things could be officials. Now it's not like before, you usually have to enter the Shishi exam before you can wait for the officials to be dispatched. But there are some chores to be done in each ministry, so they will hire literate people to do some copying work. I only work in the criminal department for five days a month, but I have a consistent amount of money and a stone of food every month, which is much more than ordinary work. The college also knew about my situation, and other poor students also had their own livelihoods. ”

An Ying nodded, I see.

He asked again: "I was in Huzhou before, and I heard our Fu Lord Yin say that Master Su is a servant of the Criminal Department, second only to the Shangshu of the Criminal Department, so what other officials are there in the Criminal Department?" I'm not afraid of your jokes, I only knew Huzhou Mansion Yin and Lord Zhizhou before. I don't know about the other officials. ”

Yang Ye didn't make fun of An Ying, but patiently explained: "There is one Shangshu and two waiters in the Criminal Department, divided into left and right. Zuo Shilang is Master Su, who is in charge of criminal and prison laws. The right attendant is Chen Dong, Lord Chen, who is in charge of auditing internal and external account books and road bans. There are four of them in the criminal department, who are specifically in charge of the review of criminal cases, and eight of the officials in the capital are in charge of the punishment of criminal cases, such as imprisonment and exile, exile and military service. ”

"Then there is Bibu Langzhong, who is responsible for auditing the accounts inside and outside the court. Simon Langzhong was in charge of the prohibition of gates, bridges, and roads, as well as the abandonment, relocation, and restoration of their establishments. ”

"Behind it is the main book of the seven products that each department has, the evaluation of the eight products, and the division of the eight products. Finally, it's my ungraded record. ”

Zhong Tianfu punched him with a smile, "You are the one who will be admitted to the Jinshi in the future." Don't forget me, old fellow, and give me a good position. ”

Yang Ye laughed, scratched his head again, and said, "By the way, I heard that the manager of your Huzhou tea shop is also in the capital. You can ask him for news. This thing is also quite strange, it stands to reason that Gongcha is on a business trip, and the tea shop manager can't escape the involvement, but the tea shop in Mindi and Huzhou are all outside. ”