Opposite the entrance hall

When the genius was dim, and the surroundings were still unclear, Du Heng sneaked into someone's room. Taking advantage of the dark night, he jumped in through the window. There was no movement in the room, and there was no sound at all. After a while, it jumped out of the window again, and the cat walked back to the next room along the way it came. The door was opened again until the sky was bright and the wind was blowing.

Ji Si pushed the door open and stretched out. The weather in Xiangzhou today is rarely rainy or sunny, neither hot nor cold. Looking at each other, their moods are much lighter, and there are still some smiles on their faces.

He is a lazy master. When he was in Lin'an, he was pampered and contented with pleasure. Although he came to Xiangzhou this time for inspection, anyone with a discerning eye would know that it was just a formality. Otherwise, he would not have sent the Shaoqing of Dali Temple. Come here, so no one really thinks that Ji Si is here to suffer. The whole family of the Dou family may have been instructed to enshrine him like a living ancestor. leak.

He was still alone while having breakfast, and Ji Si was used to it. Food donations from major commercial firms, food distribution to refugees, warehouse repairs, ditches for water diversion, none of these things were trivial, and everyone needed to be guarded. They had to guard early in the morning, so that they could finish their work and return to Lin'an earlier.

It is an exaggeration to say that Ji Si is the most idle in the whole Xiangzhou city except for the crying children.

Not long after this breakfast, two people hurried past in the opposite corridor outside, with huge strides, they walked away in the blink of an eye.

Ji Si tilted his head and squinted his eyes for a look, then hooked his lips, patted the crumbs on his hands, got up and chased after him.

For some reason, Dou Yuanliang always felt worried these days. He had a lot of things on his mind in the past few nights, and he didn't have a good rest for a few days. These uninvited guests will return to where they came from as soon as possible.

Cang Zhi twisted his waist that night, called the doctor to take a look at it last night, and finally drank the soothing soup to take a breather, Wang Zhigui came to report in a panic, saying that something happened on the other side. Suddenly his face changed, and he rushed out without even getting dressed.

His complexion was particularly solemn, thoughts were surging in his mind, and he began to rearrange the order of every detail, but for some reason he always felt that he had overlooked an important point, but no matter how he thought about it, he couldn't figure out what went wrong.

Dou Yuanliang's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps and shouts coming from behind him. The voice was very familiar. He frowned, and there was a touch of irritability and displeasure in his eyes, which disappeared in an instant, and changed into a respectful and polite expression in an instant. With a smile on his face, he stopped and bowed and bowed in salute: "Your Excellency got up, you had a good rest last night."

"This bed is a bit hard, so it's not as good as the brocade quilt and soft quilt in my house, but it's barely enough to make ends meet." Ji Si waved his hand and asked curiously, "Where are Master Dou and Wang Pansi going in such a hurry?" ah?"

Speaking of which, Dou Yuanliang is extremely contemptuous of people like Ji Si, and he is always vain on weekdays. He is a Jinshi with a serious background, and he is full of talent by reading the Four Books and the Five Classics. The servants are not comparable, although they are all slaves, but they are more noble than Ji Si.

So hearing Ji Si's question, it was just a perfunctory pretending to be polite, but in fact he didn't take people seriously, "It's not a big deal, it's just something wrong, I can deal with it as an official, so I don't want to disturb Mr. Shi Lang's rest .”

"What's wrong?" Ji Si said in surprise, with an anxious expression on his face, "Then I have to listen carefully, lest in a few days I will return to Master Jingdu to hand over the booklet, and the emperor asks, if I don't know everything, it will be bad Oh, alas! If it weren't for the fear that the emperor would ask, I would have a headache with all these twists and turns. This place is nothing to ask for. It doesn't look like a place where I live, and I don't know why I stay here. Wouldn't it be nice to go back to Lin'an, why didn't Du Heng finish his work..."

Ji Sixu babbled on, the topic turned to complaints and irritability as expected, and the lines were full of wishing to leave Xiangzhou and return to Lin'an as soon as possible, and really couldn't stay any longer.

He patted his head belatedly after talking for a while, and then brought the topic back, "Look, I've gone too far, what did you just talk about? Oh! Master Dou just said something happened? What is it?"

Dou Yuanliang was extremely irritable, but his face was still calm, he frowned and looked hesitant, and sighed: "Your Excellency, I don't know, isn't the warehouse collapsed? When the food comes over, it’s good to put it in the government office for the time being, but who knows that the chief envoy of Longxi and the people from the commercial firm have quarreled, and the next official is going to deal with this matter."

Hearing this, Ji Si was happy in his heart, lowered his eyes to cover the emotions in his eyes, and when he raised his eyes again, his face was full of disbelief, "How could this be? Didn't you all be fine yesterday? Master Du is also guarding the government office, why not?" We got into an argument, but what is the reason for the argument?"

"It is said that the food donated by the commercial bank does not match what was recorded yesterday. It is deliberately done to tease the officials. It is not trustworthy for the business."

Ji Si frowned and thought for a moment, then said slowly: "It happens that I'm fine, so I'll take a look with you."

"This..." Dou Yuanliang hesitated.

"Why?" Ji Si raised his brows, his eyes froze, "Master Dou doesn't want me to accompany you like this? Those who know are to resolve disputes between the government and the people, but those who don't know think that Master Dou is going to do it behind my back Some shady business, huh?"

"I don't dare," Dou Yuanliang hastily defended with a change of expression, "I wouldn't dare to be an official even if I had ten guts. I just think that it is useless to bother Mr. Minister for such a trivial matter, so I don't want to bother you." grown ups."

"So that's the case, but I'm worrying too much," Ji Si smiled, "It's just that the emperor sent me to inspect the situation in Xiangzhou. The people's voices should be listened to. Master Dou thinks this is the reason?"

"What the minister said is that the lower officials are stupid."

"Then let's go and see which play this is about."

After Ji Si finished speaking, he bypassed the two of them and walked out first. Seeing this, Wang Zhigui immediately approached Dou Yuanliang's ear and said anxiously: "My lord, this..."

As soon as he spoke, he was interrupted by Dou Yuanliang raising his hand, and then suppressed his voice and said, "Let him go, and he will leave Xiangzhou in a few days. There will be nothing wrong at that time."

Wang Zhigui understood immediately, nodded his head and said, "Yes."

The two looked at each other, and hurried up to meet them.

The Xiangzhou government office was not far from the governor's mansion. When turning into the street, there were still many people on the street, and the shops on both sides were also open. Although it was very deserted, it was still lively.

Before reaching the gate of the yamen, I saw a long line of carts lined up one after another, with rice grains and millet piled up on them. In front of each car, there were logos and flags of their respective grain companies. To the colorful flags fluttering in the wind, there is still a sense of large-scale disaster relief and cohesion.

They bypassed the traffic that was blocking the road, and as soon as they stepped on the threshold, they heard the sound of arguing from inside.

"Guard Zheng, what do you mean by Yuanliang Grain Account? This grain is what you want to donate, but today you don't keep your promises. Xiangzhou is suffering from floods. Fortunately, the grain accounts of major commercial firms are generous and willing to donate grain to the people. Our chief envoy is of course grateful, and we have written down all of them. We will definitely be grateful in the future. This donation is voluntary, and no one has ever threatened it. It is moral to donate, and it is not okay to donate. It doesn’t violate the friendship, if you change your mind, you can say it early, but what Zheng Guanshi said is different from what he did, and he even did it deliberately in front of other companies, but he is teasing the government and openly opposing the court!"

The person who spoke was Liu Renxin's subordinate. Ji Si had met him a few times, and he didn't worry about making a sound and stood outside the crowd watching for a while.

Zheng Si on the side was weeping, bowed his body and covered his head with sweat. Hearing the phrase "openly against the court", his legs softened and he almost fell to his knees with a bang. He quickly stabilized his body and cried: "My lords! Mingjian! Our Yuanliang Lianghao has always been conscientiously obeying the arrangements of the court, and we have never had a second heart in being fair and law-abiding. This time, we donate food because we, as citizens of Dajin, should do our best for Dajin. Xiangzhou I have relatives and friends who are also our family, how dare I lie, how dare I tease, I don’t know how the [-] dans of grain that were clearly promised have turned into [-] dans of grain, there must be a misunderstanding.”

"It's written in black and white in this booklet, maybe we wronged you."

"This, this, this..." Zheng Si argued speechlessly. He had read the booklet, and he knew that the black and white paper on it was written in his own handwriting, and it was also printed with the stamp of the Yuanliang Lianghao. It was precisely because it was clear that it changed I don't understand.

Seeing this, people from other commercial firms all criticized, "This is a word of faith for the merchant. If you don't believe it, you can't hand it in. If you don't believe it, the merchant is not available. If the Yuanliang Food Company doesn't want to donate these grains, or suddenly I regret it, I just said a word earlier, I have to wait until today to embarrass the adults of the chief envoy."

"This food donation is voluntary. If Xiangzhou is in trouble, we are obliged to do it for the people of Dajin. Yuanliang Liang said on the face of it that it is for Dajin and for the people of Xiangzhou. If you donate the [-] grain, you will donate it. But now it looks like it’s just a gimmick made casually.”

"Hey, even such a major event as the flood in Xiangzhou can be used to fool people. At such a critical time, there are still people who can be so hypocritical. Natural disasters are not terrible, but the people's hearts are terrible!"

"My lord, we want to donate another [-] dan of grain, just to make a small contribution."

"Our firm also thinks so."

"Do your best for the country, even if you die."

……

Ji Si had finished watching the play, cleared his throat and walked through the crowd, looked around and asked, "What happened?"

The people present were either the chief envoy or the Xiangzhou government office. Even the housekeepers of various commercial firms met once yesterday, and they all fell silent after seeing him.

The head chief envoy, Sina, bowed his head and saluted, stepped forward and handed over the food booklet respectfully: "Master Minister, the number reported by the Yuanliang Food Company in the booklet yesterday is clearly a voluntary donation of [-] dan of food for the refugees in Xiangzhou." , but today I only gave three thousand, although no matter how much it is out of my heart, I should be grateful, but it is really a bit of a joke to say something like this without faith."

Ji Si took the booklet and turned to that page to have a look. He looked serious on the surface, but in fact he was very familiar with it. The handwriting on it was written by Du Heng, and the chapter was carved by himself with a radish, so he was confused. As a layman, I really meet someone who knows the tricks and can see the tricks at a glance.

He glanced at it, handed it back, frowned and said to Zheng Si, "What does Guanshi Zheng mean?"

The moment Zheng Si saw Ji Si, he felt that he was holding on to the life-saving rope, and when he was questioned, he said emotionally: "Master Shi Lang, Yuanliang Lianghao didn't mean to tease you adults, the little one yesterday Obviously with adults..."

Having said that, Zheng Si suddenly fell silent.

"What happened yesterday?" Ji Si asked.

The two had a conversation yesterday, and he came here on orders, offering gifts and bribes, intending to please Ji Si and make full preparations for winning over the imperial merchant.

But this cannot be said.

Thinking about this clearly, Zheng Si's limbs turned cold. At this moment, he suddenly understood that Ji Si was not here to save him, but to convict him.

After waiting for a long time, Zheng Si still didn't say what he said, and the audience looked at each other, not sure what it meant, and cast their eyes on Ji Si.

The latter stared at Zheng Si for a long while, then waved his hand after a while and said, "I thought it was a big deal, the flood in Xiangzhou is a national disaster, and it's really a good thing for all the housekeepers to have the heart to relieve the country's worries." For the blessing of my Dajin, what I donate is not food, but a life-saving thing. It is a heart, a loyalty to Dajin, and a model for businessmen. This is undoubtedly the case! The Yuanliang Liang name is intentional, then The [-] dans of food today are even more unnecessary, they are doing it like a self-made brand, making other companies laugh, not to mention Master Du is still here, and his booklet will be handed over to the emperor."

"Does what your lord said mean that this matter has passed?" the chief envoy asked.

"It's over, it's a trivial matter, and it's delayed by making such a mess."

Zheng Sixin breathed a sigh of relief, but he didn't feel relieved until he heard Ji Si say, "Perhaps Guanshi Zheng made a mistake, and Guanshi Zheng told you that the head of your family will make up for the [-] dan of grain tomorrow." It's over, as for the three thousand loads to be transported back, it will be troublesome, and I will take it back and forth so that you don't have to work hard, do you have any objections to this arrangement?"

Everyone knew who the last question was about. Zheng Si glanced at a certain direction in the crowd, his face was not very good-looking, and he forced a smile: "It should be, it should be."

"Why are you still standing there?" Ji Si glanced at the crowd, "Do what you have to do, and I just look at it casually."

No one dared to refute what he said. After a while, the crowd that was still packed just now dispersed. Ji Si walked towards Dou Yuanliang and smiled gently: "If the flood can subside, the Yuanliang Lianghao will make a great contribution. Lord Dou managed well in the past, and I will definitely praise you greatly when you return to Beijing."

"It's just my duty as an official, I don't dare to ask for rewards," Dou Yuanliang also laughed, "If there is nothing to do, I will go to the refugee camp first."

Ji Si didn't make a sound, just nodded with a smile.

When someone walked out of the gate of the government office, Du Heng, who had been silent all this time, asked, "What do you want to do next?"

"It's not what I want to do, but what he wants to do." Ji Si didn't reply.

Du Heng frowned.

Ji Si looked back at the people behind him and said softly: "Rabbits will bite people when they are in a hurry, and dogs will jump over the wall when they are in a hurry. Let him jump. We just wait for him at the other end of the wall."

The wind blew up the sand and wrinkled the hair on the temples of the two of them. Swallows flew low above their heads, and the surrounding voices were noisy.

The wind was blowing quickly, and the weather changed accordingly. In the evening, it rained cats and dogs, and the government office simply had a lot of staff and transported food in time.

The torrential rain washed over the eaves of the blue tiles, the loess of the mountains and forests, and the raindrops fell into the puddles, splashing large swaths of water, and the crackling sound rang in everyone's ears.

On the slope in the eastern suburbs, the rainwater mixed with the soil rushed down into a small stream and flowed into the Xiangjiang River.

The vegetation on the top of the slope grows luxuriantly, and a soil slope that was piled up not long ago was washed away by the rain little by little, revealing the thing underneath. It was a corpse that had gradually decayed, and the flesh that had not completely decayed was loose and pale. The hair of the corpse was mixed with brown sand, and the exposed rotten flesh was covered with white maggots. They were crowded and dense, wriggling slowly on the rotten flesh, and fled in a hurry after being hit by the rain. In, in the mouth...

The whole body of the corpse was gradually exposed. It was the corpse of an old man, not tall, dressed in rags, with bruises all over his body, his fingers clenched tightly, as if he had suffered unbearable pain before he died.

The rain did not stop, and the thin layer of soil covering the corpse was washed away, and the corpse was carried by the water to slide down the slope, slowly, slowly, and finally, with a bang, fell into the Xiangjiang River, little by little. , was flooded by the river.

Lightning flashed in the sky, illuminating the ever-flowing Xiangjiang River. From north to south, it passed through Xiangzhou City, passed through the underground undercurrent, and flowed into the wells of every household.

The rain is still falling, and the speed of the water flow has not stopped.

The author has something to say:

small theater:

Ji Si: Ziheng, do you know that we have a cp name?

Qi Ran: I don't know.

Ji Si: [Excited Face] His name is Qi Ji Nuannuan.

Qi Ran: Qi Ji Nuan Nuan? 【Suddenly blush】

Ji Si: [Happy] Isn't it very good.

Qi Ran: [Nodding with a blushing face] Very good.

ps: When I get Dou Yuanliang off the horse, guess who this corpse is, as I mentioned earlier, what role does he have.