The dream of a lonely hero

A secret interrogation room in Xijing Prefecture. Behind the case sat Zhao Guangyi, the acting governor of Xijing Prefecture, with his staff member Chai Yuxi on the left and Miao Yanjun, the "Fallen Leaf Scholar", the Xijing Right Army Patrol Envoy on the right. A short man with a pale face and thin muscles, about thirty years old, was kneeling in the hall. Miao Yanjun shouted at the short man: "The gentleman in the hall is the current emperor's brother, the prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture. Tell the truth quickly!"

The short man was so scared that he trembled all over and cried: "Master of the Southern Court! Please make a decision for me!"

"Dongdong!" He kept kowtowing.

Miao Yanjun said: "Stop talking so much!"

The short man said: "Hey! I am Tao Erlang from Fuzhou. I am a martial artist. Eight years ago, I came to the streets of Xijing with my wife Zhang Pingniang to perform. Although I am ugly, I am good at martial arts. My wife Pingniang is beautiful and plays the flower drum well. Business is good, but the good times did not last long. One day, I was performing on the street with Pingniang. A group of people rushed out from the crowd to rob Pingniang. I turned around and ran away when I saw that they were coming fiercely. Later, I found out that the group was the servants of Li Canjun, the Gongcao of Xijing Prefecture. The tall man in the lead was Yan Kui, the housekeeper of Li Canjun. Since then, Yan Kui has been chasing me. Thanks to my cleverness, I hid in the home of Zhang Guofa, the young marshal, and changed my name to Zhang Erlang. Later, I became the housekeeper."

Miao Yanjun said: " How did you help the tyrant to rob women in Zhang Guofa's house, and how did you rob Li Shuxue? "

Tao Erlang said: "Sir! I took money from others to help them get rid of disasters, and I had to do those evil things for Zhang Guofa. Every year, I robbed about 180 unmarried women for Zhang Guofa-"

Zhao Guangyi was stunned for a moment, and interrupted Miao Yanjun: "Yanjun, when you searched Zhang Guofa's house, how many robbed women were found?"

Miao Yanjun said: "Report to the South Court! Found three or five." Turning to Tao Erlang, he asked, "Where are those robbed women hidden?"

Tao Erlang said: "Zhang Guofa sold them to-sold them to-"

Miao Yanjun shouted: "Who did you sell them to?"

Tao Erlang said: "Sold them to Wang Xian, the military officer of the Household Department of Xijing Prefecture."

The room was silent for a while.

Zhao Guangyi said: "Tao Erlang, how do you know?"

Tao Erlang said: "At first, it was Zhang Guofa who traded with Wang Xian, and later Zhang Guofa asked me to trade with Wang Xian."

Zhao Guangyi said: "Why did Wang Xian buy so many women?"

Tao Erlang said: "Wang Xian sold them to the abbot of Changshou Temple. Oh! I heard Zhang Guofa say that Wang Xian sold them to Changshou Temple and made a profit of several strings of money. Later, Zhang Guofa found this There is no other way, just skip Wang Xian and do business directly with Jinmiao. "

Zhao Guangyi said: "Jinmiao is a monk, why did he buy so many women?"

Tao Erlang said: "I don't know."

Miao Yanjun shouted: "If you don't tell the truth, you will die!"

Tao Erlang was so scared that he kowtowed and said: "I dare not, I dare not!"

Zhao Guangyi said: "Tao Erlang think about it again."

Tao Erlang tried to think for a while., said: "I heard from Zhang Guofa that Jin Miao wants to use those women as materials."

Zhao Guangyi said: "What materials does he want to use?"

Tao Erlang said: "I don't know."

Zhao Guangyi was silent for a moment, and said to Chai Yuxi who was sitting on the side: "The military officer of Xijing Prefecture eight years ago should be the current Li Fu, the attendant!"

Chai Yuxi said: "That's right."

Tao Erlang said: "I beg the Lord of the Southern Court to make a decision for me!"

Chai Yuxi said: "Although Li Fu is a close minister of the emperor, can he be greater than the current brother of the Southern Court! As long as you confess the truth, the Southern Court will make a decision for you."

Tao Erlang said: "Thank you, Lord of the Southern Court!" He kowtowed again.

Miao Yanjun said: "How did you snatch Li Shuxue away?"

Tao Erlang said: "I lived in Zhang Guofa's house for a while and thought about seeking revenge on Li Fu for stealing his wife. I secretly inquired about his whereabouts. One day, I found out that his daughter Li Shuxue came to Xijing. I snatched her and presented her to my master Zhang Guofa. Later, Zhang Guofa was afraid of her identity and scolded me. I suggested: Li Shuxue is not innocent. Even if I return her to Li Fu, Li Fu will still pursue her. It is better to cut off Li Shuxue's tongue and sell it to Jinmiao. Zhang Guofa followed the plan. "

Zhao Guangyi said: "Although Li Shuxue can't speak, he can still write."

Tao Erlang said: "I think Zhang Guofa will do it cleanly even if he sells it to Jin Miao, and there will be no trouble." Suddenly he remembered "Nan Ya! My son Zhang Guofa's mansion was raided, and it was not just Li Fu's housekeeper Yan Kui who was chasing me."

Zhao Guangyi said: "Do you recognize him?"

Tao Erlang said: "I don't recognize him."

When interrogating Tao Erlang, Chai Yuxi wrote two confessions. Miao Yanjun took the confession and asked Tao Erlang to sign and seal it, and then detained him in a secret place according to Zhao Guangyi's instructions. Chai Yuxi said: "Lord! Li Fu has always been cautious in his words and deeds, and has a good reputation in the court. He is also a model set by the government for all officials. I didn't expect that he would do something illegal by relying on his power?"

Zhao Guangyi said: "Scum! Gold and jade on the outside, rotten cotton on the inside, full of benevolence and morality, but full of thieves and prostitutes——" The tone changed, "Don't spread it!"

Chai Yuxi said: "Lord! I will keep my mouth shut."

In the back hall of Xijing Yamen, red candles burned high. Zhao Guangyi summoned Wang Xian, a military officer of Xijing Prefecture. Wang Xian was excited and nervous. He was summoned by the Southern Yamen on the first day he arrived in Xijing. He didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse, so he stood aside carefully. The servant of the Yamen offered tea and left. Zhao Guangyi invited Wang Xian to sit down. Wang Xian declined and didn't dare to sit down.

Zhao Guangyi said: "Wang Canjun is an old friend of our government, so don't be so reserved."

Wang Xian did not dare not to sit down, and sat down carefully, saying: "I will listen to the master's questions."

Zhao Guangyi said: "Since I saw you in Dingzhou, I have recognized you as a talent. You are really good. In just a few years, you have become an eighth-rank canjun."

Wang Xian said: "It is all thanks to the master's cultivation. I am the master's man in life and the master's ghost in death."

Zhao Guangyi said"Due to my status as a government official, you are a member of my government, and countless eyes are watching you. No one is perfect, so you must not hide anything from me. If you have anything to say, tell me this morning. If someone finds you wrong, I'm afraid it will be too late for me to protect you." His calm expression was both a caress and a deterrent to Wang Xian.

Wang Xian was so frightened that he knelt down with a plop, knocking over the teacup on the table, spilling the tea on the table, and said: "I would rather die than hide anything from you, my master!"

Zhao Guangyi said: "You have long been my confidant, sit down and answer."

Wang Xian got up and sat down, saying: "My master, please ask me."

Zhao Guangyi said: "You have caused a lot of trouble. If I hadn't invited you here, I would have lost my life."

Wang Xian was trembling with fear and cried: "My master, please save me!"

Zhao Guangyi said: "Don't be afraid! As long as you answer truthfully, my master will save you."

Wang Xian promised repeatedly.

Zhao Guangyi said: "What's the matter with you and the Changshou Temple Supervisor Jin Miao reselling civilian women?"

Wang Xian was originally the ninth-rank commander of the Xishan Dubu Division. He relied on Yan Yun and Liu Qi to get close to Zhao Guangyi in Dingzhou, and gradually became a military officer in Xijing Prefecture. During this period, he naturally bribed Zhao Guangyi through Liu Qi. Liu Qi intercepted a part of it and reported it to Zhao Guangyi. The amount of bribes was naturally not cheap. Wang Xian's salary was far from enough for the bribes. He racked his brains and took great pains to rob his subordinates and extort the people. This money could not pave the way for promotion. Later, he met the Changshou Temple Supervisor Jin Miao, and he had a continuous way to make money. He bought civilian women from Zhang Guofa, one of the "Ten Evils" in Xijing, and sold them to Jin Miao to earn a lot of money.

Zhao Guangyi listened to him quietly and said, "What does Jinmiao buy so many women for?"

Wang Xian said, "To make materials for practicing martial arts."

Zhao Guangyi was puzzled and asked, "What materials for practicing martial arts?"

Wang Xian said, "To practice Taiyin Gong, absorb Yin, guide Qi, and replenish Yang. Jinmiao bought unmarried girls between the ages of twelve or thirteen and seventeen or eighteen. It is said that practicing Taiyin Gong can not only increase martial arts but also prolong life. Jinmiao needs hundreds of young girls as materials every month."

Zhao Guangyi said, "Why do you need so many?"

Wang Xian said, "One 'material' can no longer be used after practicing for seven or eight days. There should be many people practicing Taiyin Gong in Changshou Temple, so the demand is naturally not small."

Zhao Guangyi said, "How to deal with the 'material' that can no longer be used?"

Wang Xian said, "In fact, there is one last use, which is - that is -"

Zhao Guangyi stared at him.

Wang Xian said: "It is also the last step of practicing Taiyin Gong. Clean the 'ingredients' and steam, boil, fry, or roast them to eat. It is called 'eating ginseng'."

This made Zhao Guangyi tremble with fear. He trembled slightly, and his clothes were soaked with cold sweat. He tried to calm down. Wang Xian looked at his pale and cold expression carefully and dared not say anything more. After a long silence, Zhao Guangyi tried to adjust his thoughts and said: "Hui Guang, the abbot of Changshou Temple, also practices Taiyin Gong?"

Wang Xian said: "Yes.Hui Guang is more particular about the ‘ingredients’. He needs seven or eight every day. He practices with each one only once. After practicing, he selects the best ones to eat, and gives the rest to his disciples to practice and eat. It is said that roasting alive has excellent effects. ”

Zhao Guangyi said: “Did you see it with your own eyes?”

Wang Xian said: “I saw it with my own eyes, and I was with Hui Guang——”

There was another silence. Zhao Guangyi waved to him to leave, and Wang Xian walked out carefully and quickly. After a while, Chai Yuxi, Miao Yanjun, Yan Yun, and Yuan Da walked out from the screen behind the table. Miao Yanjun said: “Report to the Lord! I sent a dozen fine soldiers to disguise as civilians to secretly follow and protect Wang Xian.”

Zhao Guangyi thought: “No. Let Yan Yun and Yuan Da lead the team. ”

Miao Yanjun gave some instructions to Yanyun and Yuanda, who took the order and left.

Chai Yuxi was even more horrified when he heard what Wang Xian said behind the screen. Zhao Guangyi, Chai Yuxi and Miao Yanjun stood there for a moment. Zhao Guangyi gathered his strength and said, "This government will flatten the Changshou Temple on Suolong Mountain and cut the evil monk Hui Guang into pieces! Send troops to Suolong Mountain in three days."

Chai Yuxi looked at Miao Yanjun, and the two were silent. Zhao Guangyi looked at them and said, "What, is it wrong?"

Miao Yanjun tried to say, "It's the second day since the lord arrived in Xijing. Isn't it too anxious!"

Zhao Guangyi said, "Urgent! How can this government not be anxious? Xijing is in a mess and the people are living in misery. The government and the public are watching this government! ”

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