Linzhi

He Rong and He Zhan looked at each other, and this time He Zhan spoke first: "Then you should know what we want to ask."

Weng Hao's voice was indifferent: "14 years ago, I overheard that Zhao's maidservant was conspiring with others, saying that she was ordered by King Zheng to blame King Lu..."

"Shut up!" He Zhan said angrily, "Weng Hao, I have also heard a little about the Chen Wuliang case. Although you were involved in it back then, you were not the mastermind after all, and it is possible to get a lighter sentence. As long as you are willing to cooperate with us, Tell the truth."

Weng Hao said with sarcasm: "You two gentlemen, what I said is the truth. I heard their conspiracy, and then I went to report to His Majesty. At that time, His Majesty had discovered that King Lu and King Zheng had private correspondence, and was dissatisfied with King Lu. Witch Gu When the crime happened, the crime of cursing the crown prince was confirmed, His Majesty was furious, and ordered King Lu to be deposed as a commoner, and the whole family was exiled, and you all know what happened afterwards."

"Weng Hao," He Rong squatted down, looking straight at him, "Even if what you said is true, how can ordinary people get it casually? Who ordered that maidservant? Don't you know at all? "

In the darkness, Weng Hao vaguely saw He Rong's face, but couldn't see the expression on the other's face.

His biological mother was implicated and died. He grew up charged with crimes since he was a child, and was disgusted by his father because he once fell off the horse with his younger brother. Weng Hao is not only the history of the palace, but also watched He Rong grow up. In his impression, the one who walked with a limp The crutched little boy is now standing upright, with extraordinary tolerance, except that he still holds a bamboo stick in his hand.

He Rong said slowly: "I still remember when I was four years old, once under the jujube tree in the front yard, I wanted to go up the tree to pick dates, but because I was too young, I could only watch helplessly, and the maids beside me didn't dare You let me climb the tree without authorization, and you happened to pass by, so you picked some for me when you saw it, and told me to be careful not to climb the tree naughty."

Weng Hao smiled dumbly: "I didn't expect that Saburo would still remember the trivial things so many years ago."

He Rong: "I will remember all the kindness I have given to me, even if it is only a little bit."

Weng Hao: "So the crown prince is His Majesty's reverse scale. No matter who touches it, it will not end well. The matter of your biological mother, whether it is being used or implicated, after many years, it is meaningless to pursue it again. There is no case."

He Rong was not sure that Weng Hao was an insider, but what he said made He Rong firmer in his guess.

"I'm afraid that people lurking in the dark are still harboring ulterior motives, always looking for opportunities to prepare for the next conspiracy, and you, Weng Hao, may also be implicated again."

Weng Hao was silent.

The guard had been waiting outside for a long time, so he couldn't help coming in and urging: "My lords, please hurry up!"

He Rong lowered his voice and sped up his speech: "Think about it carefully, cooperate with us, we will save your life, and we will intercede in front of His Majesty to help you reduce your guilt..."

The guard at the other end has already come over: "My lords, these criminals will be interrogated tomorrow, and someone from Yushitai will come to inspect soon, please don't make it difficult for the villain!"

He Zhan: "Let's go out now, thank you."

Then he said to He Rong: "Third Brother, come back tomorrow."

Weng Hao never spoke again, He Rong was a little disappointed, but had to leave with He Zhan.

The moment they stepped out of the prison, with the sun shining on their bodies, the two of them suddenly felt that their bodies and minds were also brightened from the inside to the outside.

He Zhan said: "Weng Hao may know some inside information."

He Rong nodded: "I think so too, if I can stay a little longer, it will be completely different."

He Zhan said with a smile: "After the interrogation tomorrow, we will come to find him again. After he has been intimidated by the officials at Yushitai, he should be able to pry his mouth easily."

He Rong was not so optimistic: "Help me pay more attention, I'll come back tomorrow."

He Zhan nodded, then frowned: "Third brother, I thought about it, the person who would put witchcraft in Lu Wang's mansion back then must have hoped that his father would be unlucky. The theory is that Zheng Wang He Lin and the others were already plotting to rebel. It is too likely to frame father again... Among the princes, the prince was seriously ill at the time, but King Qi and King Wei were still young, they were only fifteen or sixteen years old at that time, they were still living in the palace, and they were not yet married. You have that kind of heart, but you don’t have that ability and manpower?”

He Rong was silent.

It's not that he didn't think about He Zhan's conjectures, and he even had conjectures that were a hundred times more bizarre than this, but he overturned them one by one in the end.

If it wasn't done by a certain prince, then who would it be?

He Rong said: "Let's see the results of the interrogation tomorrow first."

They were not allowed to participate in this case, and the interrogation process and results are of course unknown. The Criminal Department and Dali Temple were almost abandoned by the emperor in this incident, and Yushitai directly reported it to the imperial court, unless the emperor wanted others to know.

As we all know, King Qi is in charge of the Ministry of Punishment. Most of his wings were cut off when this incident happened. None of the people who could get into the position of the six ministers and nine ministers in the court were fools. Wang liquidated.

To put it more seriously, the emperor thought that King Qi had the heart of disobedience.

But the emperor is old and in poor health. Even if he refuses to establish a crown prince, he has to do so in order to avoid chaos behind him. At this juncture, it is undoubtedly an obvious signal that the emperor has no intention of establishing a crown prince. The king is the prince.

Excluding King Qi, the only emperors under his knees are He Tai, King Lu, and He Hui, King Wei.

Anyone who has come into contact with He Tai, or knows him a little bit, knows the temperament and ability of this King Lu, and only two words are enough to describe it: Yongrou.

However, there are many mediocre kings throughout the ages, and it doesn't mean that mediocrity can't be the master. At least he is not a tyrant, and he can listen to the advice of his subordinates.

More importantly, the sons of King Qi and King Wei are still young, and they can't show their advantages and disadvantages, while the sons of King Lu are already able to take charge of their own affairs. For the sake of the inheritance of the country, the emperor will choose King Lu, which is not true. It's strange.

However, after one wave was not settled, another wave rose again. After the court dispersed the next day, when He Rong and He Zhan arrived at the gate of the Nanya Prison, they heard the guards complaining to their companions: "Why did you die? What hasn't been found yet? Could it be that you have a guilty conscience?"

He Rong's heart skipped a beat, and He Zhan strode forward and asked them, "Who died?"

The guards didn't hide it either: "It's a prisoner named Weng Hao. It is said that he used to be the servant of the Ministry of Punishment."

The worst expected situation happened, and He Rong calmed down.

"When did you die, how did you die, where is the body?"

Guard: "The body is still there. There is no assistant at Yushitai, so I temporarily found an assistant from the Ministry of Criminal Justice and Jingzhao Mansion. It is true that I committed suicide. I brought him food this morning, but he broke the pottery bowl." , cut himself in pieces."

He Rong: "After we left yesterday, did anyone come?"

This guard is still the one who received He Rong and the others yesterday: "After the two gentlemen left yesterday, Yushitai came to interrogate them. Not only Weng Hao, but several others were also taken away. When they came back, they were all neat and tidy. There was no torture, and later the housekeeper of the Weng family brought the family members of the Weng family to visit, and they were fine at the time, but I don’t know what happened, after a night, I couldn’t think about it.”

He Rong and the two went into the prison again and went around, even seeing Weng Hao's body, and found nothing unusual.

After leaving the prison, He Rong said: "I'll go to Yushitai to see if I can try to get a confession statement. You can go to Weng's house and have a look."

He Zhan agreed, and the two of them split up, but He Rong's side was not going well. This case was directly responsible to the emperor. An upstart in the court, he said to him: "Weng Hao's confession is similar to other people's. Chen Wuliang's case was suppressed at the request of Minister of Criminal Affairs Qin Luan. After getting a lot of benefits, Weng Hao must have committed suicide out of fear of crime."

He Rong raised a question: "According to the law of this dynasty, for such a crime as Weng Hao, if it is light, he will be dismissed from office, ransacked his family to make up for his crime, and if he is serious, he will be exiled into the army. He will not die. Why did he commit suicide?"

The censor was speechless and could only guess: "Maybe it is to protect the family? Once he dies, his family will not have to follow him into exile."

He Rong was noncommittal, but the other party had already said enough, any more would be beyond his authority, and he didn't want to embarrass the other party, so he didn't ask any more questions.

He and He Zhan made an appointment to meet at Yang Jun's rouge shop, but He Rong waited there for a long time, drank several cups of tea with Yang Jun, and He Zhan finally showed up in the evening.

"Third brother!" He Zhan came in from the back door of the shop, striding forward, sweating profusely.

Gao hurriedly brought him a cup of tea.

He Zhan thanked him, raised his head and took a big gulp before saying, "I'm exhausted!"

He Rong: "How?"

He Zhan sighed: "Twists and turns, twists and turns!"

He went to the Weng family, and soon saw the heartbroken family members of the Weng family, but he didn't ask anything, but unexpectedly learned about a family affair of the Weng family.

It turned out that Weng Hao's wife had only one daughter for many years, and Weng Hao took another concubine. The concubine's belly was very competitive, and a son was born within two years after entering the house. He was loved by Weng Hao because of his lively temperament, but Weng Hao But there is a worry, that is, the wives and concubines at home are at odds, and they often argue. He favors the concubine's room, but he can't divorce his wife and support his concubine. In desperation, he had to buy another house outside, house the concubine's room, and separate the wives and concubines.Weng's wife hated the little concubine deeply, and while talking with He Zhan, she couldn't help scolding Weng Hao for having no conscience, liking the new and loathing the old.

He Zhan had no interest in the family affairs of the Weng family, but in order to know more about the inside story, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and listen.

When Mrs. Weng mentioned that the concubine's house was where the housekeeper helped Weng Hao run for sex, He Zhan's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly asked the housekeeper where he was going.

According to Weng's wife, although Steward Liu is the housekeeper of the house here, he runs with Weng Hao on both sides. He is an old man next to Weng Hao, and he is very trusted by Weng Hao. It was very clear that even Weng Hao's concubine's room was arranged for him by Housekeeper Liu at the beginning, so when Weng's wife mentioned this person, her expression was hesitant and she had no good words.

But He Zhan was a little surprised. Among the people who visited Weng Hao yesterday, besides the family members of the Weng family, there was also Butler Liu. He thought that Butler Liu must know something, so he bid farewell to the Weng family and went to the house of the butler.

However, the Liu family told He Zhan that someone came in a hurry yesterday evening and delivered a letter to Butler Liu. Butler Liu locked himself in the house for a while, then went out soon, and has not come back yet.

He Zhan realized that something was wrong, went around Liu's house, and then went to Weng Hao's concubine's house, but didn't ask any questions.

After some words, the tea was already cold, but he didn't care, so he drank the cold tea in one gulp.

He Rong: "Butler Liu may have encountered an accident."

"That's right, I think so too." He Zhan took out something from his arms, "But I found this in the corner of Butler Liu's house."

A piece of paper the size of a thumbnail, with burnt marks on the edge, sniffing it close to the nose, besides the burnt smell, there is also a faint fragrance.

Yang Jun took the piece of paper, touched it, smelled it again, and immediately said: "This is Shu paper!"

Then he snorted again, and asked in confusion: "But the Shu paper has no fragrance, is it extra incense?"

He Zhan smiled: "Because this is Huanhuatan paper among Shu papers."

At that time, the world made paper all over Xuanzhou, Yizhou, Yuezhou, and Yizhou paper was the best, which was called Shu paper. written.Among the Shu papers, there is another kind of flower and grass paper from Huanhuatan. Because it was made by the Huanhua River, a craftsman was ingenious. He embedded dried flowers and plants in the paper and made it with incense. It was sought after by many princes and nobles. Due to the time-consuming production and the scarcity of output, it was listed as a tribute. Looking at the court, only a few people were bestowed by the emperor and could afford this kind of paper.

So Yang Jun could only see that it was Shu paper, but he didn't know that there was something special about it.

After He Tai was ennobled, he was also rewarded with many things, among them this kind of Shu paper.

Yang Jun: "As a housekeeper of the Liu family, it is impossible to afford this kind of thing, let alone the Liu family, I guess Weng Hao himself can't afford it."

He Zhan murmured: "This kind of paper can't be bought outside even if you want to buy it. You can count the ones that can be used in the court with ten fingers... Weng Hao has stayed in the Ministry of Punishment for so many years, and the Ministry of Punishment is in the presence of King Qi. Anyway, so he really is King Qi?"

Seeing that the third brother did not speak, he said again: "When Bing Shen rebelled against the case, King Qi was already 17 years old, and his mother was in charge of the six palaces, and Concubine Shu, who was the same queen, was not without the ability and reason to do such a thing. It happened. At that time, the crown prince was seriously ill, and he was about to die, and King Zheng's rebellion was about to be exposed. As long as our father also falls, there will be no obstacles in front of King Qi."

Yang Jun nodded, and said solemnly: "I also think what Wu Lang said is reasonable. Weng Hao may have secretly colluded with King Qi through Steward Liu. Now that the Ministry of Criminal Justice is under investigation, King Qi is worried that Weng Hao will involve the past and make himself He was dragged into the water, so he used the handle to coerce Weng Hao to commit suicide, and then silence Steward Liu."

Although Gao was very moved by He Rong's trust in such an important matter, she was also a little apprehensive, and dared not speak easily, but when she heard this, she couldn't help but whispered: "I have some doubts."

All eyes fell on Gao Shi.

Gao Shi: "If the other party wants to silence Butler Liu, they should have more covert means. Why did they use letters to convey information, and also used this kind of Shu paper that is very easy to identify?"

Yang Jun rubbed his chin: "Perhaps the other party didn't expect that we would find Steward Liu's house?"

Several people finished what He Rong wanted to say, and he thought about it, but he didn't have any clue.

Seeing that he was slightly tired, He Zhan couldn't help but feel distressed and said: "Third brother, don't think about it, this clue is broken, we have to find it again, after many years, it is not easy to find these."

He Rong patted him on the shoulder: "Yes, you have worked hard too, don't think too much, I will continue to investigate when I have a chance in the future, although Weng Hao is dead, since the people behind the scenes are still there, sooner or later they will show their feet. "

Yang Jun smiled and said: "It's rare for you to come here, so you can use it at my place at night. It just so happens that there is a new restaurant at the end of the alley, and the taste is okay. I will ask them to bring a table of banquets over."

The He family brothers had no objection, the food and drink were called, and the four of them mingled with each other, chatting about their feelings, and it was lively.

He Rong was not as depressed as others imagined. For him, the witchcraft case was a thorn in his heart. This thorn had been buried for many years. He never expected that the truth would come to light in a short period of time. It was an accident, but they also got some clues, not nothing.

When the wine was hot, Yang Jun couldn't help sighing: "Sanlang, Goro, congratulations, you have finally come to the end of all hardships!"

He Rong and the others knew what Yang Jun was referring to. As soon as the case of Chen Wuliang came out, King Qi's power had already been cut down by the emperor himself. From another perspective, it might be that the emperor was paving the way for the eldest son.

Not only Yang Jun thinks this way, but other people also think the same way. The day when the case is closed may be the time when the emperor appoints the crown prince.

However, the emperor once again surprised everyone.

In March of the 23rd year of Wende, Minister of the Ministry of Criminal Affairs and Minister of Dali Temple were deposed because of the Chen Wuliang case and exiled to Lingnan. The rest of the officials were all dismissed for taking bribes under threat, demoted to common people, and confiscated their property.

In April, the king of Qi requested that he be relieved of the Ministry of Punishment's errands and recuperate at home on the grounds that he was ill.

In May, the emperor took Hou Zhan of Xingguo as his envoy to hold the festival, and he supervised all the military forces in Henan and the governor of Luozhou.

He Zhan immediately resigned as General Habayashi, left Beijing to take office, and went to Luozhou.

Luozhou is Luoyang. Although it is not the capital city of Chang'an, it has a special status as an accompanying capital. The appointment of the emperor is undoubtedly meaningful.

From a small point of view, this may be an affirmation of He Zhan's ability, but from a large point of view, this is also personally cultivating power for King Lu.

In August, the Yellow River burst, and countless farmlands on both sides of the river suffered disasters, and the people had no habitats and houses for thousands of miles. At the request of the river management officials of the Ministry of Industry, the emperor wanted to send people to take charge of blocking the mouth and disaster relief. The emperor invited Ying and expressed his willingness to go.

At the same time, in King Wei's mansion, King Wei sighed to the visitors: "Brother Jiu fell so hard that I'm afraid I won't be able to get up again. Your Majesty is so cruel, you must have known about the Prince's Mausoleum." Those evidences were submitted by me, and Su Changhe was also found by me, and I don’t know when they will attack me!”

The visitor said: "King Qi may not be at the end of the road, and His Highness may not have no chance at all. Your Majesty knows that time is running out, so he hastily paved the way for King Lu, and even thought of a way to let He Zhan take charge of Luozhou. I hope that after King Lu ascends the throne, he will also be able to control the troops around Chang'an and give orders at home and abroad, but Luozhou is not Chang'an after all, and it will take a day to hurry up. It's too late."

King Wei was shocked: "In my opinion, brother Jiu doesn't have the guts, does he?"