The bear child of the Red Chamber, Jia Cong

Lin Hai led his disciples and recently befriended Chen Ruiwen, a scholar, to visit Wuxi for two days. On the third day, someone from Chen Ruiwen's family came looking for him. After a while, he bid farewell to Lin Hai, saying that the family had something important to do. Go back to Suzhou first.It was inconvenient for Lin Hai to ask him to stay, and he didn't ask too many questions, so he said goodbye after a few words of pleasantries.

Chen Ruiwen left the inn and went straight to the Wuxi county office.When he arrived at the county government office, the leader of the water bandits on the lake yesterday was already waiting. The county magistrate Zhang Yuan and a young white-clothed scribe were sitting on the left and right, and the king of Wu sat in the first place.Chen Ruiwen hurriedly stepped forward to salute.

King Wu squinted his eyes and said, "Mr. Chen, I followed your plan to come to Wuxi overnight. It seems like the trip was for nothing."

Chen Ruiwen bowed and said, "Unexpectedly, General Xu did not find the boat that Master Lin and I were on."

The leader of the water bandits, General Xu, hurried forward and said: "Because the final general listened to Mr. Chen's intelligence and Mr. Wei's strategy, he underestimated the enemy's defeat. There is also a final general."

The young man who was under King Wu's attack stood up and cupped his hands and said: "It is really a mistake for the students to tell General Xu not to bring bows and arrows. At first, it was because he was afraid of shooting Mr. Lin by mistake, and the students never thought that those Beijing scoundrels from the Taiping Escort knew how to swim. "

General Xu clenched his fists and said, "Mr. Wei easily said 'mistake', do you know how many of my subordinates have died?"

"It's just that according to what General Xu said, everyone on Mr. Lin's ship has the ability to be a general. They also use crossbows, a poison dart made by a high-level man, and many former firearms and cast iron mines. Then The boat is not a cruise ship at all, it seems like a battleship. Even if you have a bow and arrow, it will not be easy to capture."

General Xu said angrily: "Aren't the arrows among the brothers the arrows of the crossbow?"

Chen Ruiwen hurriedly said: "General Xu, the students have been on board the whole time. If there was a battle, how could the students not know? Besides, according to what the general said, the two of your ships fought at around [-]:[-] until [-]:[-]. It was only after a quarter that the soldiers rested. Just after the end of the day, Mr. Lin entered the cabin to rest, and Jia Cong was chatting with the students about interesting things in Beijing; until Mr. Lin got up at about four o'clock, the two of us went to the bow of the boat to caress about the past, reminisce about the past, and talk about poetry Dissertation. Dare to ask General Xu, how did Jia Cong chat with the students at the same time and argue with the general at the same time? Even if the students were deaf and could not hear the sound of fighting, could it be that he would be separated and unable to succeed? Later, when you fought on the deck Didn't you see the student and Master Lin? Could it be that the student and Master Lin know the invisibility technique?"

General Xu said: "The general has never seen Mr. Chen and Mr. Lin, but last night, the general and his brothers followed Mr. Zhang to see the ship. It was indeed the one who fought the general, and it was also Mr. Chen." The ship you are referring to."

Chen Ruiwen said: "Obviously it is another boat that is fighting with General Xu, I just don't know who that Jay Chou is, the prince must be more careful. The students have checked the tone of Lord Lin and Jia Cong last night." Then he said it once.

The King of Wu couldn't help laughing: "He called the waiting bodyguard Sun Bodyguard! Could it be that he thought of Sun Dasheng?"

Chen Ruiwen laughed and said: "Jia Cong is young after all, he is sometimes confused. It is obvious that there is not a Kun escort in their escort agency, Cai escort has long since left, and the waiting escort is not the age General Xu said. And we A total of eight people came out from Suzhou, Lord Lin, students, Jia Cong, Jarvis, Lord Lin's guard Yang Song, sister-in-law Ruijin, and two young bodyguards who can swim. Jia Congruo called the names of the three bodyguards. Names, the number is not enough."

General Xu sneered, "Mr. Chen meant that the last general lied?"

Chen Ruiwen hurriedly cupped his hands and said: "General Xu is overthinking. The holes in the general's boat and the iron nails on his calf are all real evidence."

General Xu said angrily: "If you didn't swear that there was only one Yang Song on the boat, Yang Song was not good at water, how could you have underestimated the enemy so much!"

Mr. Wei hurriedly said: "General Xu calm down, I'm afraid that Mr. Lin is not on board."

General Xu became more and more angry: "Many brothers and I have gone to see the ship! It is that ship! Unless Mr. Chen pointed to the wrong ship!"

King Wu pondered: "I have never heard of a bachelor named Jay Chou in the Imperial Academy. Also, General Xu said that the young man who is good at using poison darts is extremely skilled in martial arts and his shots are fierce. The Rongguo Mansion can't support such a person. It's like a big insider." Everyone was shocked.He added, "Some of the top experts were taken away by Liu Dengxi, and some were subdued by the King of Yan. It is not impossible for the King of Yan to send someone to protect Lin Hai."

Chen Ruiwen hurriedly said: "Lin Hai didn't come to Suzhou from Beijing to bid farewell to King Yan happily, but he was kidnapped by King Lu's people. Jian Jia Cong took the opportunity to instigate him to travel in the mountains and rivers, and Fang came from the south."

Mr. Wei said: "Students sent people to investigate the battle of Cangzhou that day. The bodyguards of the Taiping Bodyguard Agency are not bad, but they must not have the ability to defeat General Xu."

General Xu shouted: "My lord! It is indeed that ship!"

The King of Wu meditated for a while, then pointed to Zhang Yuan with his eyes, and Zhang Yuan said to Chen Ruiwen again: "The day before yesterday, a little brother came to the yamen with a post from Rongguo Mansion, saying that he was Jia Shima who came to Wuxi from Beijing. To do business, tomorrow I want to get a safe and not fancy boat to cruise the lake. I have never mentioned Mr. Lin and Mr. Cong, nor have I ever mentioned hiring guards to board the boat. The father who was an official in the early years went to Beijing to donate officials for the next official, begging Even with the connections of the Rongguo Mansion, a county magistrate in Xiaguan District would not dare to offend these families, so he arranged a cruise ship for him."

Chen Ruiwen asked, "Where is the boat?"

Zhang Yuan turned his head to look at King Wu, and King Wu said: "Since that's the case, let's go to the boat first to have a look."

Then King Wu stood up, and Zhang Yuan led them to a small pier, where there was only one boat moored, which was a bit dilapidated.When Chen Ruiwen saw it, General Xu said, "This is the ship!"

King Wu frowned and said, "It's so dilapidated! Why don't you find a new ship for Master Lin."

Zhang Yuan smiled wryly and said: "The lower official thought it was the little steward who came to Wuxi from the Rongguo Mansion to do business and wanted to swim in the lake. It would be nice to get him a boat, and ordered the boatman to clean it up. After all, the lower official is an official ordered by the imperial court. If it wasn't for their residence For the sake of this, how can you serve these slaves and masters?" King Wu felt reasonable after hearing this, so he let it go.

The master personally led the way, and a group of people boarded the boat. General Xu repeatedly said, "This is the boat."The boatman and his wife were all on board, and came to kowtow to King Wu.King Wu waved them up.Chen Ruiwen was shocked when he saw the boatman with gray beard and hair, pointed at him and said: "The boatman yesterday was not you!"

The boatman knelt down again in a hurry: "Master, this boat is usually run by a villain, an old woman, and two children. When there are guests, it will pull a few playful sons and brothers, and when there are no guests, it will also pull goods. But yesterday morning, the few After the guest officer boarded the ship, a little brother in blue gave me 20 taels of silver, saying that he had found another boat lady to cook, and also invited another boat boss and three or four men. The 20 taels The silver is regarded as the money for renting a boat, so we don’t need our family, let us rest. Because he is a middleman made by the magistrate of the county, the villain dare not ask for his deposit.”

Mr. Wei smiled and said: "The 20 taels of silver is enough to buy your boat, and you still have the face to ask for a deposit." He asked him to show the silver again, but the boatman refused to give it.Mr. Wei said, "I don't want your silver, how about the boatman let me take a look and give you [-] yuan for rent?" The boatman immediately took out the silver from his pocket.Mr. Wei took a look at it, and said, "My lord, it is indeed the money in Beijing." He said and handed the money over.

King Wu saw that it was not only the money in Beijing, but also the official bank, so he nodded.Mr. Wei returned the money to the boatman, and he really gave him another twenty copper coins. He and his wife were so happy that they kowtowed again and again.

Mr. Wei searched the bow of the ship carefully, smiled a few times, then turned to King Wu and said: "If it is really this ship, since there has been a battle, there must be some clues left. Could it be that both sides in the fight are so accurate? Didn't a single knife cut off, and a single knife never hit the ship's side?"

After hearing this, General Xu hurriedly checked it again. The ship is quite old, but the scratches have been there for a long time, there are no new ones, and there are no scars like knife marks. He kept saying: "It's weird ..."

Chen Ruiwen led Wu Wang into the cabin from the bow, and pointed to him one by one: "Here I sit with Mr. Lin and drink tea, here I chat with Mr. Cong and eat snacks, here we all eat the boat together. vegetable……"

After they all went in, Mr. Wei quietly pointed to a piece of damage and asked the boatman: "What's broken here? Do you remember?"

The boatman frowned: "I don't remember. Could it be that the guy who received the beans smashed it with a shovel when they were transporting beans the month before?"

Mr. Wei smiled and said: "No problem, I'm just asking casually." After saying that, he walked into the cabin.

A group of people turned around in a circle, there was nothing wrong, and they left.The king of Wu ordered someone to give the boatman ten taels of silver, and the boatman and his wife thanked each other happily.

Mr. Wei laughed softly and said, "Your Highness is very resourceful. The two of them were begging for a living on the lake, and they were blinded by money. Needless to say, they will definitely praise the Highness for your generosity and kindness when they see people."

The king of Wu was rich, so he would give a reward casually; he was immediately happy when he gave him such a bounty, and said with a smile: "It's just pity for the hard work of my people in Wu country."

Back at the county office, Mr. Wei said: "Looking at it this way, I'm afraid it's really not the same boat." General Xu was about to argue, but swallowed again.He thought again, "My lord, this matter is really strange. How could it be such a coincidence? The boat that General Xu was chasing was exactly the same as Mr. Lin's boat? And they also changed the boat boss and boat lady. Then the academician Jay Chou from the Imperial Academy Who is it? How come there are so many masters on his boat? There are more and more powerful than those on Lin Hai's boat, and there are pig iron mines and hand crossbows."

Chen Ruiwen said: "It's not surprising to change the boat lady. Jia Cong has a tricky mouth, and he must not be used to ordinary boat girls. The boss of the boat change must be because Yang Song and Jarvis are cautious. The students guessed that the boat is probably full of Jia's horses." Although they are all cargo ships, there are several ship bosses. Besides, the students also recognize Jia Cong these days. Although he is young, he is very tactful and aggressive, and he is quite envious of the green forest hawkers. Their family even opened a kiln in the middle of the capital! Standing on the Taihu Lake, they bluntly said that they don’t look down on grassroots bandits and flee when they encounter fights. It’s not like what Jia Cong said or did. It’s just where did the boat that fought General Xu come from? What? From what General Xu said, his first wave was based on Mr. Wei’s plan to get people to dive under the water and try to dig through the bottom of the boat, and there are already many people in navy uniforms waiting under the boat.”

"Oh!" Mr. Wei said, "I forgot!" He hurriedly stood up and said to King Wu, "Sailor clothes! How can ordinary people have that? Unless they are officers and soldiers. My lord, the so-called 'guards' It's officers and soldiers pretending to be. It's not sure who Zhou Xueshi is on the ship."

King Wu said: "Why is their boat exactly the same as Lin Hai's?"

Mr. Wei turned to Zhang Yuan and said, "Then when did Jarvis come to look for Mr. Zhang? And when did you show him the boat?"

Zhang Yuan said: "I came here the morning before yesterday. I can't remember the time. I am busy with business, so I asked the master to lead him to the pier to find a boat."

Chen Ruiwen said: "I went to Wuxi City with Mr. Lin the day before yesterday, and found an inn to rest for a while. Not long after, Jarvis came in and said that the boat has been arranged."

Mr. Wei asked: "Who found the inn? How long did it take?"

"Jarvis found it without much effort."

Mr. Wei clapped his hands and said, "Students understand!" Then he stood up and bowed to the King of Wu, "Master Lin's disciple, Jarvis, is cautious by nature. I heard from Mr. Chen that they invited him at the pier when they were on a cruise in Suzhou. A few fishermen who can swim act as temporary guards, so the trip to Wuxi will not be taken lightly. Since Jia Cong had long wanted to visit Wuxi, they must have contacted the Jia's Horse Company in Wuxi a few days ago, and they are ready to get familiar with Taihu Lake’s boat bosses, young and strong people who are good at water, and boat girls who can cook boat vegetables. If you don’t believe me, we will send people to inquire about the boatman as Mr. Chen said. Students dare to say that they will be found on the cargo ship of Jia’s Horse Company. "

King Wu nodded and said, "Sir, continue."

Mr. Wei cupped his hands again, and said: "Mr. Lin and Mr. Chen and their party arrived in Wuxi the day before yesterday, and Jarvis led the way to the inn. I think I have already found out the location of the inn, so I searched for it according to the address. Because Jia's horse travel Without a cruise ship, he took advantage of the kindness between the Rongguo Mansion and Mr. Zhang in the early years, and asked Mr. Zhang to help him get a boat to swim on the lake. But he didn't notice that someone was following him."

King Wu was shocked: "Following?"

Mr. Wei said: "A master in the inner circle." Everyone in the room took a deep breath.He went on to say, "Master Lin waited until the next day to visit the lake. It took half a day and one night to pretend to be a similar boat. General Kuang Xu didn't board the boat, but the appearance was similar. The cruise boats in Wuxi were basically the same. "

After a while, King Wu asked sullenly, "What do you mean, sir, what does this boatman do?"

Mr. Wei said: "Students don't know. Either they want to rob Mr. Lin, or they want to prevent us from robbing Mr. Lin. If it's the former, they will spoil our affairs, and we will spoil theirs, but it will never happen in the future." Let it go. If it's the latter—" He smiled grimly, "My lord, there are traitors among us."

Everyone was shocked and looked at each other, even King Wu stood up: "Sir, please explain."

Mr. Wei waved his hand again and said: "It may also be that I have been thieves. I was overheard while I was discussing strategies."

Everyone slowed down again.

He continued: "It's just that since Master Lin's ship left the port, Master Chen's subordinates have been following it with small boats. That week, the bachelor's ship found an opportunity to confuse the view, and General Xu followed the wrong ship completely. The timing is great. Some students still suspect that there is a mole.”