Cross the Sea in the Red Chamber

Jiang Ning's question is very good. Since the king of Nan'an County is so useful to Qianxiang Kingdom, he is restraining the soldiers to show mercy to their subordinates, and funding the enemy to help them supply. In theory, Qianxiang Kingdom should keep them. It is only right to protect the interests of Qianxiang country and protect the safety of Qianxiang country from generation to generation.And why did they put the crime of assassinating His Highness the Crown Prince on him, the crime of murdering His Royal Highness once found out?This is not like treating a "friend", but more like treating a life-and-death enemy.

Jiang Yuan smiled slightly and said, "I thought about it, since both of us have confirmed that these assassins must be the spies of Qianxiang Kingdom, then the only reason why Qianxiang Congress is so unreasonable is that they have already found their next home."

"This next family is very unusual. They can definitely provide Qianxiang Kingdom with support far beyond the Nan'an County King, and help beyond the four kings with different surnames... Oh, this is not enough for Qianxiang Kingdom to do so amazingly. , even if they find the next family, as long as they are separated from the king of Nan'an County safely, they will not hesitate to turn against the king of Nan'an County to prove that this family and the king of Nan'an County and even the four kings with different surnames are life and death enemies. That’s why they chose to help them get rid of the King of Nan’an... Maybe they paid a lot of money and supplies for this assassination.”

"Next?" Jiang Ning frowned, he was good at judging cases, but he didn't know much about this kind of court scheming, "It seems that it can only be like this, otherwise it won't make sense. However, he will become an enemy of Nan'an County King and four kings with different surnames. He can't wait to kill him to reduce the power of the four kings. He will not stop Qianxiang Kingdom from assassinating His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and even provide help... Could it be? yes……"

"Shh," Jiang Yuan made a silent gesture, "you don't have to say it, as long as you guess it, it's meaningless to say it. Hmph, I didn't expect them to dare to do such a thing. Heh, Dare to do things like benevolence and treason, it seems that I have underestimated them in the past."

Jiang Ning was a little disdainful, and rolled his eyes, "What's the matter, it's all left over from their play. Qingyuan, you forgot, when Emperor Gao rebelled, they were the ones who offered the capital. They are the ones who made small moves to delay the reinforcements, no wonder His Highness refuses to let them go, this group of people don't know what it means to be loyal to the emperor and love the country, and they will do anything for their own benefit."

Jiang Yuan shook his head and said: "Up to now, basically everything has been guessed by us, the only remaining question is - how did they enter Beijing. I have very strict management at the checkpoints, and there are no guides and pass-throughs." Talismans are absolutely difficult to move forward. Passing Talismans is different from guides. It is extremely difficult for people from the government to forge fakes. So how did these assassins without household registration enter Beijing? How could so many checkpoints not stop them? ? If there are only one or two people, there is probably a way to escape the inspection, but there are dozens of them, how did they escape the inspection?"

Jiang Yuan's worries are very reasonable.The talisman and household registration of the Jing Dynasty were different from those of the previous dynasty, and the management was extremely strict.The Jia family had to spend millions of taels of silver in order to change their daughter Jia Yuanchun's household registration from an official to a slave. This was because Situ Sheng deliberately let them pass, otherwise it would be impossible to spend another million taels.It can be seen from this that it is impossible to create a household registration out of thin air.

Household registration management is already very strict, and the management of Chuanfu can only be stricter!

The issuance and management of the talisman is so strict that it can be called abnormal. This kind of ultimatum specially for customs clearance is generally only issued to officials with official needs or rich businessmen and wealthy families with deep backgrounds, and it is not allowed to be issued to civilians.

Even if it is very rare to get a talisman, the above must fill in the identity, place of origin, name, even height, appearance, and whether or not he has committed a crime, etc. of the person who bears the talisman.Not only must the talisman be checked every time a checkpoint is reached and the government will leave a document record, but also the official seal of the checkpoint chief officer needs to be stamped on the document album to pass.Without the official seal of the chief officer of the previous checkpoint, the soldiers guarding the next checkpoint have the right to arrest the passer-by as a wanted criminal.

For example, if a person's talisman states that he has a fair complexion, then if he suffers from gastrointestinal problems halfway and his face turns yellow, it is very likely that he will have difficulty passing the level.If the talisman says that he has a beard and he shaves off his beard halfway, then the next level will be impossible to pass.

In the era of the Jing Dynasty, Chuanfu was simply a collection of modern ID cards and passports, and the strict management was no worse than modern times...

At this time, sailing in the open sea was like tying your head to the waistband of your trousers. Qian Xiangguo was afraid that he would not dare to brave the wind and waves to send people from the open sea to the vicinity of the capital.Moreover, the sea-going ships of Qianxiang Kingdom did not dare to stick to the coastline and go north, because their ships were far inferior to the large ships of the Jing Dynasty.Therefore, these assassins with great missions must have landed from the southeast coast where the voyage distance is the shortest.

If the assassins arrived at the capital by land, then there are many checkpoints along the way from the southeast coast to the important places of the capital. They have no household registration and no talisman. It is impossible for the assassin team of dozens of people to reach the capital smoothly. Not even helping them.

"Without a household registration and a talisman, even if you want to stay in an inn, the store will not dare to accept it. You also said that they only entered the capital on the day of the assassination, so where did they hide before the assassination? And the mud on their shoes? How to explain?" Jiang Yuan asked.

"I did say that they entered Beijing on the same day, because there is a special mussel in Tongzhou in their intestines... wait..." Jiang Ning seemed to think of something, "Tongzhou? They have passed through Tongzhou before... silt ...There is no way around it, you have to step through the mud...the southeast coast, the capital...I know!"

Jiang Ning's reaction was very quick and his insight was very strong. With just a little hint, he thought about the whole thing clearly, "These people did not travel by land, they went north through the canal. One end of the canal is in the southeast, a distance from them The landing site is not far away, and the canal must pass through Tongzhou before reaching the capital, which explains why they ate the mussels, a specialty of Tongzhou."

"The reason why all of them have mud on their new shoes is because they had to disembark and leave before reaching the port. There is also a checkpoint at the port to check the amulet. If they don't leave early, they will be found. In the middle When they get off the boat, they can’t fly, so they have to step on the river beach to get ashore. What’s on the river beach? It’s all mud, so their shoes get so much mud.”

"Afterwards, this group of assassins probably got the horses that had been prepared long ago on the shore, and they rode into the capital instead. There is no inspection of the pass at the city gate, and they can enter the capital as long as they use the forged road guide. gone."

"If you take a boat, you have to go through far fewer checkpoints than on land. If they basically don't dock, they will only check the pass when they encounter a patrol ship. These Qianxiang people live freely by the sea, They must be proficient in water, and their diving skills are probably extremely high. If they encounter a cruising official ship, these assassins only need to dive underwater, hide at the bottom of the ship, and use the shadow of the ship to cover their bodies so that they will not be easily spotted by the soldiers. "

"It is definitely not possible to hide dozens of assassins with one or two ships. It must be a large fleet to cover them to the capital. We only need to check whether there was a fleet of this size on the day of the assassination. After passing through Tongzhou, you will know who is covering their entry into Beijing!"

The capital of the Jing Dynasty was extremely prosperous, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that it was the center of the world. Not only Jing people but also other foreign merchants gathered here. It was also for this reason that countless caravans entered the capital through Tongzhou every day.

At this time in the Jing Dynasty, river transportation was more convenient and quicker than land transportation, and there were fewer checkpoints. Naturally, it was the first choice for southern caravans going north.Therefore, there were a lot of fleets passing through Tongzhou on the day of the assassination, and it was not easy to determine the fleet where the assassin was.

Even so, this deeply hidden fleet was found by Jiang Ning!

"Why this fleet?" Situ Sheng was also very curious in the womb, and he was very convinced of Jiang Ning and Jiang Yuan's previous deduction, but how did Jiang Ning distinguish this fleet from so many ships? But some can't figure it out.

Jiang Ning explained: "After I went to Tongzhou, I found that there were more than a dozen large-scale fleets passing through Tongzhou on the day of the assassination, but after asking the soldiers who inspected them in detail, I still think it should be this one."

"There are dozens of these assassins. If the fleet is too small, it won't be able to accommodate these many people. However, if the fleet is too large, it will take too long to pass the inspection. These assassins Proficient in water and good at diving, it is also easy to expose flaws. Therefore, the fleet transporting assassins can only have about ten merchant ships, and it will not work if there are more or less. Then there are only three fleets left after exclusion. "

"Assassins can't show up, but merchant ships need someone to drive them, so there must be a certain number of sailors on each merchant ship, plus there are seven or eight assassins living on board, these many people will inevitably reduce the space for storing goods."

"According to common sense, a caravan has traveled a long way from the southeast and traveled thousands of miles into the capital to sell goods. How could it not fill the cargo compartment and even reach the limit of the draft? If not, wouldn't the merchants have to Lost?"

"However, one of the three fleets sells light goods such as silk and rouge, but there are many empty warehouses, and the draft is not very deep. How can there be merchants doing business like this? As soon as you think about it, it must be because there were many assassins hiding in the warehouse. When they reached the checkpoint, the assassins went underwater to hide, so the draft of the ship became shallower. From this, it can be inferred that the fleet transporting those assassins It must be them!"

"It makes sense." Situ Sheng raised the corners of his lips and said, "Cheng An is indeed talented. He was sent to the border town to act as a Taoist platform because Fang Han's return to the country needed to be kept secret. The matter is over, and it is time for Cheng An to return to the capital, it is impossible for the capital to not have a master case judge in charge."

No one knows what will happen in the future. It would be too worrying if there is no one available when you suddenly encounter a big event, so Situ Sheng simply left Jiang Ning in the capital.

"Fleet, hum, historians of Jinling... I thought that historians were nothing more than colluding with local governments and endangering the people. I didn't expect that after the death of Master Shi, his son Shi Ding would even do such things as colluding with the enemy and treason with Qianxiang Kingdom." It turns out that you really have the ability!" Situ Sheng gritted his teeth fiercely, "I thought that this historian had intermarried with the Jia family, the Wang family and other nobles for several generations, and they were connected with each other. I didn't expect that this time, I would even do the business of seeking glory from the seller. It's not good to take refuge in someone, but to take refuge in the lonely good fourth brother!"

That's right, the next family Qianxiang Kingdom abandoned Nan'an County King found was the power of the family and the fourth prince Shun Wang Situhui!

The abacus of the family is really good!The descendants of the aristocratic family are all civil servants, so they lack military support.Domestic military power is either held in the hands of the old emperor, or it falls into the hands of Situ Sheng, so these guys set their minds on overseas countries, and Qianxiang country naturally became the target of their wooing.

Qian Xiangguo wanted to kill the prince, Situ Sheng, because he was afraid that the research and development of Louchuan would continue, threatening the safety of Qianxiang Country.But at this time, Situ Sheng died suddenly, who would benefit the most?Not Qian Xiangguo, but Shun Wang Situhui!

Who can bribe the guards of Donghua Gate and reveal the news that Situ Sheng has left the palace?Of course it's still the fourth prince, Situ Hui!

If Situ Sheng died, the only heir of the old emperor would be Situ Hui.Then no matter how entangled the old emperor was, the dragon chair under his buttocks must and could only be passed on to Situ Hui.

Situ Hui probably agreed to Qianxiang Country. After he ascended the throne, there will always be peace between Qianxiang and Dajing, and there will be no more disputes. Moreover, Dajing will provide some money and food to Qianxiang Country every year.

Anyway, it's all empty promises, why is the promise not the promise, how much the promise is not the promise?At that time, all you have to do is to turn your face and deny anyone.

Because Qianxiang Country has already been ensnared by Situ Hui's empty check, that's why it will help the aristocratic family to deal with their confidant's big trouble - one of the leaders of the honorable forces, Nan'an County King!

One ring is one ring, unfortunately all the puzzles have been solved now...

Hmph, the old emperor deliberately kept Situ Hui, king of Shun, at the beginning. He said that he used Situ Hui as a whetstone to hone Situ Sheng's ability. In fact, it was used to balance Situ Sheng's power. He was afraid that Situ Sheng's power would be too powerful. Big, making it difficult for the seriously ill self to control.But now it's good, this whetstone has colluded with foreign enemies to try to assassinate, and all the things that have been connected with the enemy and betrayed the country have been done, can this still be called a whetstone?Situ Hui has already worn off Prince Yizhong, so is he going to wear off Situ Sheng?

Heh, Cui Cheng, King of Dongping County, King of Nan'an County, Situ Hui, Shi Jia, Qianxiang Kingdom... Now that the fox tails of these people have been exposed, it is not so difficult to catch them all!

Dark, dank, eerily quiet...

When Cui Cheng woke up, the surrounding environment looked like this.

He felt that his hands and feet were bound with heavy chains, firmly locked to the stake behind him, and he couldn't even break free.As he struggled so hard, the chains on his body naturally made some noises, which reminded his captors that he was awake.

"woke up?"

Because the surroundings were too dark, Cui Cheng didn't know who the speaker was.Judging from his voice, the speaker should not be very old. He was sure that he had heard this voice before, but he couldn't remember where he heard it.

He just returned to Dongping County Prince's Mansion at night, who knew that when he passed through a dark alley, he was slammed into a stone and passed out, and when he woke up again, he was already here.This kind of treatment made him feel tense, maybe his identity was discovered!

No... Cui Cheng comforted himself that his identity was hidden so secretly that it was impossible for anyone to find out.

There was a soft blowing sound, and a little fire gradually lit up, and one hand held a blowing torch to light up the oil lamp on the table, and the whole room was lit up immediately.

Cui Cheng was stunned. This is a large cell surrounded by thick bluestones. There are no windows in the cell. The only light is the oil lamp that has just been lit.At the exit is an iron bar that is as thick as an adult's wrist, and on the wall are all execution objects such as leather whips, irons, clamps, and torture sticks.These instruments of torture have been carefully maintained at first glance, polished to a bright spot, and still shone with a chilling light, only to see that Cui Cheng's heart felt chills one after another.

"Ah!...Ah!" In the quiet environment, two sharp and ear-piercing screams suddenly came from afar.Because the voice was too shrill, the original voice of the person who shouted could not be heard at all.Such a piercing voice made Cui Cheng shiver involuntarily.This, what is this place? !

"Just wake up, I'm afraid you'll just sleep forever. Now that you're awake, let's have a good chat." The person who lit the oil lamp said with a cold smile, as if The very plain words combined with the gloomy surroundings are simply chilling.

Cui Cheng's head was originally turned to the direction where the scream came from just now, but when he heard this person's words, he quickly turned his head back, the action was so violent that he almost sprained his not-so-fragile neck.

The person who spoke was only in his twenties, very young.This man was dressed in brocade clothes, sitting on a sandalwood grand teacher's chair that didn't match the prison cell at all, fanning the fan in his hand leisurely.Beside him was a small and exquisite red sandalwood square table. Apart from the newly lit oil lamp, there were also blue and white teapots and cups and several plates of delicate snacks on the table.No matter how you look at it, this person doesn't look like he came to the cell for interrogation, but he looks like a young master who is listening to storytelling and drums in a teahouse.

The light of the oil lamp was dim, and the young man's face was also hidden in the shadows, but Cui Cheng felt that this man was inexplicably familiar.It wasn't until the man raised his head that Cui Cheng was startled. He had seen this young man, and he had seen this young man more than once with Dongping County King. This man was—Guanyinghou Jiangyuan!

Thinking of Guan Yinghou's identity, and thinking about his current situation, Cui Cheng's heart turned cold.He is very sure that this shrewd Lord Hou must have caught something about him. It is very likely that he sent a message to Nan'an County King a few days ago to ask him to go out to Yuquanzhai, but he doesn't know how much this Lord Hou already knows... …

"Ah!...Ah..." The sharp cry of pain came again, but this time it seemed to be a different person, and the voice was slightly deeper, but the painful voice was still the same piercing, and Cui Cheng was startled. The cold sweat flowed down.He didn't know if he would make such a scream because of being tortured. Just listening to this sound made people break out in cold sweat, and he didn't know what torture they had suffered.

The young man didn't seem to care that he didn't speak, but smiled and said to himself: "Cui Cheng Cui Steward... No, maybe I should call you a spy of Qianxiang Kingdom. First, you colluded with the king of Dongping County and the king of Nan'an County, and then He chose to seek refuge with the noble family and King Shun, and finally contacted the Jinling historians to transport assassins, intending to assassinate the current Crown Prince, hmph, you Qianxiang people are quite courageous."

Jiang Yuan's tone was very calm, without any ups and downs, but to Cui Cheng's ears, it was like a thunderbolt. He, how did he know his identity? !Was it revealed by Dongping and Nanan?Or the aristocratic family and King Shun? !

Cui Cheng's mind was completely confused, and before he could control himself, he blurted out a sentence, "How do you know these things?!"

"How did you know? Do you think you did it in a secret way? If it was a secret, why were all of you caught here?" Jiang Yuan's smile looked abnormally cold under the dim light, "Did you hear that? Those screams just now... When you just woke up, the one who yelled should be someone from the Shi family, and the one just now should be your companion in Qianxiang country. The crime of assassinating the prince is just killing The head is too cheap, you have to toss it well, I hope you can shout better after a while, if it is too harsh, it will be meaningless."

"Well, according to me, they are going to be put to death anyway, so why bother to go straight to the knife and it's over. But the punishment department is training new interrogation techniques, so let's use the waste..." After finishing speaking, Jiang Yuan picked up a piece of pastry on the table, and took a bite slowly, with that intoxicated expression, as if what he bit was not the pastry, but the flesh and blood of the prisoner!

What does it mean?This young man doesn't want their confession, they have been completely exposed, everyone has been arrested, and the sentence has come down, what they will face is the punishment before death!

Impossible, how could these Jing people find out their identities?How is it possible to find out everything in such a short time?How was it possible to catch them all so quickly? !Absolutely impossible!

But if he hadn't been discovered, how could he have been caught here?