Remembrance of Tianyin's Adventure

In the imperial study room, Renzong was sitting on a dragon chair, with his wide robe sleeves resting on the dragon book case, his gaze was drawn away from the straight figure of the kneeling courtier, and he said on the stacks of notebooks at hand: "Waiting for the court tomorrow morning, Bao Qing Submit the memorandum, the truth will be self-evident, you have just recovered from serious injuries, why rush to the palace to clarify with me?"

Zhan Zhao said: "This minister is not here to clarify, but to plead guilty!"

"Apology?" Renzong was slightly surprised, and said with a smile, "For Bao Qing again?"

Zhan Zhao was taken aback, looking at Renzong with innocent eyes.

Renzong laughed and said: "Why, I have wronged you?" He thought: "In the Qinglongzhu case, if you hadn't been for Baoqing's official reputation, how could you willingly plead guilty?"

But he heard Zhan Zhao say: "The emperor has indeed wronged his minister."

Renzong shook his head and said: "I didn't wrong you, but you misunderstood me! Yu Qianfan told you, I handed over the power of verification to Bao Qing, don't you know the intention?"

Zhan Zhao cupped his hands and said, "The emperor's trust and protection are deeply felt by me. However, it is unfair for the emperor to deal with it like this."

The eunuch Wang Xi standing beside the Longshu case was brought out by Chen Lin. Because Zhan Zhao had saved Chen Lin’s life, he had always been grateful to him. Now seeing Zhan Zhao being so outspoken in front of the emperor, he was secretly anxious. : "Ouch! My guard Zhan, how dare you say Long Live is 'unfair'?"

Although Renzong looked displeased, he did not blame Zhan Zhao, and asked, "How can I be unfair?"

Zhan Zhao replied: "The emperor handed this case over to Mr. Bao for verification. No matter how impartially he handles it, in the eyes of all the ministers, it is difficult to avoid the suspicion of partiality. This is unfair to Mr. Bao; since Mr. Bao cannot avoid suspicion, the humble minister Even if one is innocent, it is difficult for others to accept it, this is unfair to the humble official; this matter will definitely damage the prestige of Kaifeng Mansion in the court and the reputation in the hearts of the people, this is unfair to the world!"

"Zhan Zhao!" Renzong said angrily, "How dare you be so presumptuous in front of me?"

Wang Xi's eyes trembled in fear, and he quickly winked at Zhan Zhao.

But I heard Zhan Zhao say again: "I have offended Longyan, and I am willing to accept the crime. However, I really don't want to see that the emperor's sympathy for his subordinates is hindering the court because of improper use."

These words touched Renzong. He couldn't help but think of how many decrees have violated his original intention due to improper implementation since he became a government.As a king, he controls the world, and he must be cautious about any small decision-making!

Thinking of this, Renzong took a deep breath, then let it out slowly, and said to Zhan Zhao, "Get down!" Wang Xi was relieved, and quietly raised his sleeves, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"I don't dare!" Zhan Zhao bowed his head and said, "I'm here to apologize!"

Renzong smiled wryly in his heart: "It's hard for you to remember that you are here to plead guilty. I thought that the fault was all on me!" His face was still majestic, and he asked Zhan Zhao, "What crime have you committed?"

Zhan Zhao cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, it is really my fault that the witch escaped on the cliff a few days ago."

"What?" Renzong looked at this loyal and selfless courtier in shock, and wondered, "Could it be that you really have an affair with that demon girl?"

"No!" Zhan Zhao looked directly at Renzong with clear eyes.

Renzong nodded and asked, "Then why do you want to indulge the witch?"

"I didn't intend to indulge." Zhan Zhao said: "The demon girl had lost all her martial arts at that time, and I was negligent for a while, thinking that she could not escape, so I didn't capture her immediately, but went forward alone and asked her... a personal matter " Kowtow said: "The humble official neglected his duty in handling the case, first private and then public, which caused the demon girl to take the opportunity to escape, please forgive me!"

Renzong was puzzled and said: "Since you have no personal relationship with her, why do you have any personal matters?"

"This..." Zhan Zhao didn't intend to hide it, but he didn't know how to report it. Could it be that he wanted to tell the emperor about his entanglement with Caiyun?

"Why?" Renzong said: "It's not like you Zhan Zhao to be so hesitant. Is there anything that I can't tell me?"

"No!" Zhan Zhao said: "It's just a long story. In fact... it's that demon girl who looks exactly like a deceased confidant of my minister."

"A bosom friend? A confidante?" A smile slowly faded on Renzong's face, and he secretly laughed in his heart: "I thought you were really out of this world."

Zhan Zhao's reddish cheeks and subtle silence satisfied Renzong very much.For a long time, Renzong felt that Bao Zheng and Zhan Zhao were too loyal to the country, upright and selfless, getting along with these two people was really rigid and boring.Hearing Zhan Zhao talk about private matters at this moment, Renzong became very interested, and even Wang Xi who was beside him quietly pricked up his ears.

While Zhan Zhao was calmly waiting for Renzong's punishment, he saw Renzong standing up and smiling, "Follow me to the Imperial Garden and tell me your 'long story' story!" Zhan Zhao had no choice but to Complying with the order, the calm state of mind disappeared.

In a simple dwelling in the east city of Kaifeng Prefecture, a young man in Taoist uniform poked his head out of the door, looked left and right a few times, carefully closed the door and inserted the latch.He hurried to the bed, stopped suddenly, turned around and ran to the window, closed the window tightly, then ran back to the bed in peace, and moved the bed away with difficulty.

He squatted down, found a loose stone on the wall behind the bed, and dug it out with all his strength, exposing a hole in the wall.So he rolled up his long sleeves, stretched his arms into the hole, and fumbled for a long time before he found a sheepskin package.He couldn't wait to move the bed back to its original position, so he squatted on the ground and hurriedly opened the package, revealing a layer of oiled paper package, opened the oiled paper package again, and took out a roll of broken bamboo slips from it.

He stood up in a hurry, walked to the window in two or three steps, and carefully looked at the bamboo slips with the sunlight coming in through the window paper.On the right side of the bamboo slips, there are four characters engraved in small seal script: Soul-moving Dafa!

Holding the bamboo slips tightly, he looked up to the sky and said, "Master, this disciple will help you fulfill this wish tonight."

Although the Royal Garden is not the most magnificent and magnificent among the many royal gardens, its nobility and magnificence are the best in the world.As the saying goes, mountains have veins, and water has sources; there is no flower that is not unique, and there is no stone that is not intriguing.The path in the garden is even more straight in the curve, and the curve can be seen in the straight. The viewer travels through it, changing the scene everywhere.

It's a pity that such an exquisite garden was set up. Renzong and Zhan Zhaojun and his ministers strolled in it, but they both turned a blind eye: one tried his best to make the twists and turns of Xue Yunfan's case and the complicated and difficult entanglement between the murderer Lian Caiyun and himself as plain as possible. Tell the truth to the emperor around him; one is interested in searching for details worth pondering from the boring narration of the courtiers.

After saying that, Zhan Zhao heaved a sigh of relief, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, this is the truth."

Renzong looked at Zhan Zhao with playful eyes and said, "It's really hard to explain it so hard for you." He thought: "I listened harder!" Then asked: "What does the demon girl have to do with Lian Caiyun?"

Zhan Zhao subconsciously looked at the scorching sun above his head.Although it is past midsummer, the sun is still scorching hot, as if it is going to melt people.Before leaving the mansion, although he ate a few snacks and took medicine, he was still seriously injured and weak.After entering the palace, she knelt in the imperial study for a long time, and then accompanied the emperor to visit the imperial garden for a long time, and gradually felt exhausted.At this moment, the scorching sun was on his head, evaporating what little energy he had left.If it was for national affairs, he would naturally have no complaints or regrets, but he stayed in the palace for a long time to tell the emperor about his "confidante beauty", which is really dumbfounding.He wanted to report his illness to the emperor and go back to the government, but when he heard that the emperor had just asked the right question, he couldn't help but answer, so he had to persevere.

Although Renzong didn't understand the relationship between Tongyun and Lian Caiyun, he could somewhat understand Zhan Zhao's conflicted feelings in the face of Tongyun, and he decided not to criticize him anymore.Thinking of the Tianyin faction mentioned by Zhan Zhao, he asked: "According to what you said, although the Tianyin faction harbored imperial criminals, they have no intention of becoming an enemy of the imperial court. Should I punish them lightly?"

Zhan Zhao said: "I have reported everything about the Tianyin School truthfully. As for how the emperor will deal with it, I dare not speak rashly."

Renzong was puzzled and said, "Why is this? Could it be that you have something to do with the Tianyin Sect?"

Zhan Zhao said: "Don't dare to lie to the emperor, I have already worshiped Mr. Situ, the head of the Tianyin School, as a teacher and became a member of the school." At this moment, he still doesn't know that he has succeeded the head of the Tianyin School.

Renzong said in displeasure: "As a third-rank member of the imperial court, you also shoulder the heavy responsibility of rescuing the princess. You know that everyone who has anything to do with the witch is an imperial court criminal. How dare you worship Tianyin sect?"

Zhan Zhao said: "It's not that I acted boldly, but that when I was trapped in the Tianyin Sect's stone mansion, I was deeply loved by Mr. Situ, and by chance, I realized the mystery of the sect in the forbidden area. Except for joining the Tianyin Sect, I really don't know How can I repay the Pynder!"

Renzong said: "You dare to be disrespectful and associate with the imperial court criminals, just to repay your kindness?"

"Not only that!" Zhan Zhao said: "The Tianyin Sect has always taken the purpose of 'benefiting the people of the world', and I am deeply grateful!"

During the conversation, the two monarchs and ministers had bypassed the Longevity Stone and walked to the Fengchi. Renzong stepped into the Fuyang Pavilion slowly, shaking his dragon robe and sitting on the carved dragon stone pier, muttering: "You rescued the two princesses. This is a great achievement, but you have committed many mistakes, how should I deal with it?" Shaking his head and sighing: "Sometimes, your frankness really gives me a headache!"

Stepping out of the red-painted gate of the Forbidden Palace, Zhan Zhao couldn't help exhaling a long breath, thinking: "Finally this trip is worthwhile".Seeing that it was getting close to Shenshi, he was glad that Bao Zheng didn't follow him, but he saw Zhang Long and Zhao Hu running up from the stone steps from a distance, they looked excited, as if they had been waiting for him for a long time.

Zhan Zhao went down to meet them, and asked, "Why are you here?" Seeing Bao Zheng's sedan chair parked under a thick locust tree, he asked in surprise, "Your Excellency is here too?"

The glare of the sun made it difficult for the two of them to see Zhan Zhao's face clearly, but hearing his voice, they felt that they were in good spirits, so they felt relieved.

Zhang Long replied: "Your Excellency wanted to come, but Guo Zhongqing had just been arrested, and His Excellency was too busy with interrogation, so he had no time to separate himself, so he sent the two of us to take Your Excellency Zhan back to his residence."

"Guo Zhongqing is still alive!" Countless thoughts flashed through Zhan Zhao's mind, and he hurriedly asked, "Where is Tong Yun? Is she still alive?"

Zhang Longdao: "I don't know. The yamen guards in the secret room only captured Guo Zhongqing."

Hearing this, Zhan Zhao's thoughts changed even more, he immediately walked down the stone steps and came to the horse post, stretched out his hand to untie the reins.

Zhang Long stopped him and said, "Master Bao ordered, please take the sedan chair back to your residence!" Then he pointed to the big sedan chair under the tree.

Only then did Zhan Zhao understand why Master Bao sent the two of them here. It turned out that he was worried that his body would be too weak to bear the burden of a saddle horse.Unexpectedly, the adult cared for him so meticulously, but he was disturbed by his personal affair, which caused Tong Yun to escape, and almost harmed the adult, so he felt very guilty.

He untied the rein and said, "My lord's love, Zhan Zhao has appreciated it, but I am not of the same rank as your lord. If I take your lord's official sedan chair, I might violate the court etiquette." This is Lord Bao's sedan chair.If someone with a heart in the court finds out, he will use this to make things difficult for him, saying that he does not abide by etiquette and pampers his subordinates.

Zhao Hu laughed and said, "Master Bao guessed that Master Zhan would say that!" Pointing at the sedan chair, he said, "Look carefully at the sedan chair!"

After careful inspection, Zhan Zhao discovered that the sedan chair was originally taken by Mr. Bao many years ago.

Only to hear Zhao Hu say again: "Master Bao has long been a first-rank official, and that sedan chair was used by Mr. Bao when he was appointed as a 'second-rank' official title. It is only half a rank behind you now. go!"

Zhang Long also persuaded: "If you don't sit down, you will really disappoint Mr. Bao's heart!"

Zhan Zhao saw that Mr. Bao had considered him so carefully, and he couldn't refuse, so he handed over the reins to Zhang Long.After getting on the sedan chair, he ordered the bearer to say: "Four hard-working people, hurry up, I have something urgent to rush back to the government office!"

"Get up the sedan chair!" Zhang Long shouted, and the sedan chair was lifted steadily.During the march, as the sedan chair trembled rhythmically, waves of tiredness swept over him like a tidal wave, making Zhan Zhao unable to resist. Just about to fall asleep, he suddenly felt his pulse stagnate, and he spit out a mouthful of blood, and his heart beat instantly. Such as pounding, sweating profusely.He took out his handkerchief, wiped off the blood from his lips, and adjusted his breath for a long time before his heart was no longer blocked.After the injury was relieved, the sedan chair was carried into the government office and stopped outside the door of Bao Zheng's study.

When Zhan Zhao got off the sedan chair, he saw that Bao Zheng and Gongsun Ce had greeted them out of the study room. Before he could speak, Bao Zheng grabbed his wrist and said, "Are you okay?" Zhan Zhao looked at Zhan Zhao with burning eyes, and saw that he was exhausted. , his face was as white as paper, his clothes were wet with sweat, and he couldn't help but feel his heart tighten.

Zhan Zhao shook his head with a smile, looked at the setting sun and said, "My subordinate is fine, it's just that it's too hot today!"

How could Bao Zheng believe his words, his black face became more and more gloomy, and he looked at Zhan Zhao, although there was three parts of blame, but seven parts of pity.

After the three entered the study and sat down, Zhan Zhao heard Bao Zheng's admonition without any surprise.Every time he took the initiative to protect Bao Zheng from danger or take responsibility for crimes, Bao Zheng could completely put away his usual kindness and put on the seriousness of a superior and the sternness of an elder.After a long period of tempering, Zhan Zhao's mentality gradually changed from "a little uneasy" to "completely peaceful".

Taking advantage of Bao Zheng's eloquent lectures, Gongsun Ce interjected without losing the opportunity, and asked Zhan Zhao, "Guard Zhan went to face the saint, what's the result?"

Zhan Zhao understood his help, and said to Bao Zheng: "Vice Commander Yu filed a lawsuit against his subordinates, and the Emperor has already handed it over to Ding Shangshu of the Ministry of Officials for verification. Your Excellency does not need to make a report."

Bao Zheng asked: "Have you ever clarified your guilt in front of the emperor?"

Zhan Zhao said: "This subordinate is indeed at fault." So he told Bao Zheng everything he had confessed to the emperor.

Although Bao Zheng guessed that he would be a bit inappropriate in handling Tong Yun, he did not expect that Tong Yun's escape was really due to his negligence. Remembering that he indulged Lian Caiyun and Yun Fan to escape with blood, he deliberately admonished him, watching His pale cheeks, but he couldn't bear it.

Gongsun Ce asked Zhan Zhao, "Has the Emperor ever convicted you?"

"No!" Zhan Zhao said, "We can only make a decision after Ding Shangshu reports the truth."

Gongsun Ce frowned and said: "In this way, the Tianyin faction's criminals will definitely be handed over to the official department temporarily, but the case of kidnapping the princess has not yet been concluded, my lord."

When Zhan Zhao heard him mention the trial, he hurriedly asked: "I heard that Guo Zhongqing has already appeared in the case, did your lord ask about Tong Yun's whereabouts?"

Bao Zheng's face darkened as soon as he heard it, with a look of "you shouldn't care about witches".

Gongsun Ce knew that Zhan Zhao would ask, and sighed: "Guo Zhongqing confessed that after Tongyun fell off the cliff, he died and his body was cremated."

Hearing this, Zhan Zhao was so shocked that he could not speak for a long time, and suddenly asked Bao Zheng, "Did your lord interrogate him clearly, that Tong Yun is really dead?"

Regarding Tong Yun's death, Bao Zheng had doubts at first, but seeing Zhan Zhao's extraordinary concern for Tong Yun, he couldn't help feeling angry, and warned him sharply: "Guard Zhan, Tong Yun is a criminal committed by the imperial court!"

Zhan Zhao said: "Your Excellency, this subordinate understands, but this subordinate just suspects...doubts Tongyun and her..." He wanted to say that Tongyun might have stolen Caiyun's body, but he had no evidence, so how could he speculate wildly, the strange power was chaotic. god?

Gongsun Ce said: "My lord, this matter is indeed strange. It is really difficult to determine Tongyun's whereabouts based on Guo Zhongqing's words alone. Since Zhan Huwei and Guo Zhongqing belong to the same family, it is better to let Zhan Huwei go to the prison to meet him, maybe Can ask some clues."

Bao Zheng pondered for a while, and finally nodded in agreement.

Zhan Zhao thanked Bao Zheng, turned around and went to the cell, but was stopped by Bao Zheng, and said in a deep voice: "Have dinner first, rest for the night, it's not too late to go tomorrow!"

Seeing Bao Zheng's expression, Zhan Zhao didn't dare to disobey him face to face, so he agreed and went out.Not too far away, he heard familiar footsteps behind him, turned around and asked, "What else is there, sir?"

Gongsun Ce looked at Zhan Zhao's way, and said with a sly smile, "Zhan's guards have only been out of the mansion for half a day, so they don't know the way back to the house?"

Zhan Zhao lowered his eyes and smiled, knowing that he couldn't hide it from Gongsun Ce, he said frankly, "Zhan is going to the cell."

Gongsun Ce sighed softly and shook his head, took out a small white porcelain bottle from his bosom, poured out a brown pill, handed it to Zhan Zhao and said, "Take this first." Seeing that Zhan Zhao took the pill, he said, "This medicine It can only temporarily relieve your heart injury. Go back quickly, don't be too tired!"

Zhan Zhao took the pill, cupped his hands and said, "Thank you sir, Zhan Zhao will remember it!"

The author has something to say: take advantage of the Sunday break to update the next chapter, and the real relationship between Tong Yun and Cai Yun will be revealed in the next chapter.