Qiu Yizi sighed and said, "Speaking of which, I have the same temperament as you, and am not suitable for being an official in the court. But my adoptive father, the emperor, was reluctant to let me live out my life as a commoner, so he granted me the status of an earl and the position of county magistrate, so-called 'hiding in seclusion'. That's why I have the chance to meet you here, Mr. Lin!"
Lin Shuhan was still savoring the words after hearing them, but Wu Ruofei, who was sitting next to him, could no longer control herself. She stood up, knelt on the ground, looked up to the sky and sighed, "Daddy, Mom, my daughter's day will finally come!" After she finished speaking, two lines of hot tears flowed down the perfect curves of her face.
Seeing this, Lin Shuhan hurried to Wu Ruofei, took out a handkerchief, wiped her tears personally, and whispered comforting words in her ear.
Seeing that the two of them had countless things to say and not wanting to disturb them, Qiu Yizi dragged Yuchi Jiming away from the banquet to enjoy the scenery aside.
Lin Shuhan and Wu Ruofei talked for a while before inviting Qiu Yizi and Yuchi Jiming to join them.
Lin Shuhan said, "If you can help me fulfill my wish, you will be my great benefactor. If there is anything I can do to help you, please tell me. I will never be able to repay you even if I die!"
Qiu Yizi waved her hand and said with a smile: "These are just small matters for me. What can I do to trouble Mr. Lin?"
He took a bite of the dish and suddenly remembered that there was still a "Thirteen Lives Case" in his county that had not been solved. He immediately frowned and swallowed the delicious food with difficulty. Then he said: "If you want to talk about difficult things, I do have one here. I wonder if you can give me some advice?"
"You can say whatever you want. I am a person of limited talent and knowledge. I will be satisfied if I can help you a little." Lin Shuhan replied.
So Qiu Yizi recounted the details of this strange case - from when he first arrived in Shanyin County and took the complaint; to how he captured the former magistrate Li Shenshi in the middle of the night who intended to kill people to silence them; to following the clues and taking great risks to go to the "Liaochen Palace" to capture the lay Buddhist Miaozhen; to how he found twelve corpses in the "Liaochen Palace"; all the way to the moment when Miaozhen confessed to murdering people while practicing Taoism - he thought that the case had been closed up to this point, but he did not expect that when it was sent to the state government for review, it was stuck in the hands of Cai Min and Yin Chengliang, and the case has not been solved to this day.
Lin Shuhan listened to Qiu Yizhi's words very seriously, then frowned and said, "So the incident happened in this 'Liaochen Palace', no wonder the adults can't handle this case."
"Hmm?" Qiu Yizi asked doubtfully, "I think this 'Liaochen Palace' is ordinary and seems to be nothing special. Why can you say that, sir?"
Lin Shuhan took a sip of wine and said expressionlessly, "My Lord, please do not underestimate this Taoist temple. The right and wrong here cannot be explained in a few words."
Lin Shuhan's keeping the suspense immediately aroused Qiu Yizi's curiosity.
Qiu Yizi offered Lin Shuhan a glass of wine and said sincerely, "This matter not only concerns the injustice of the thirteen lives, but also involves the prestige of the court in Jiangnan Road. Therefore, please tell me everything you know. It can be regarded as sharing the worries of my adoptive father and benefiting the people of Shanyin County!"
Lin Shuhan nodded and said, "Since you are new here and an upright person, it is no wonder that you don't know about the dirty things here. Although I am a loner, I have some social interactions with the literary and official circles in Jiangnan, so I know a little about this matter. Let me tell you in detail—"
It turns out that this matter has to start from the side of the late Emperor Zheng Yong.
In his later years, Zheng Yong neglected his duties and became obsessed with the art of cultivating Taoism and becoming an immortal. As a result, the trend of cultivating Taoism flourished in various places. Jiangnan is a place of great wealth and natural treasures, so naturally, it is not willing to lag behind. This "Liaochen Palace" is a place for cultivating Taoism.
Originally, there was only one old nun in charge of the "Liaochen Palace", and it usually received donations and incense, which was nothing unusual. However, ten years ago, a "Miaozhen Lay Buddhist" came from nowhere and accepted the old nun as her disciple. Soon after, the old nun ascended to heaven, and this "Liaochen Palace" became Miaozhen's temple.
While eating, Lin Shuhan said, "It is said that Miao Zhen has a secret technique to keep her youthful appearance. When she first came to the 'Liaochen Palace', she was already in her twenties. Now she is nearly forty, but her appearance is still that of a young girl. Therefore, all the dignitaries from all over Jiangnan Road flock to her."
Qiu Yizhi listened very carefully. When he heard this, he seemed to understand something: "I have met this 'Miaozhen Lay Buddhist' several times. She is still beautiful, but indescribably strange. So this is the truth. No wonder this 'Liaochen Palace' was built with such a unique atmosphere. It turns out that it was built with the money of officials at all levels in Jiangnan Road!"
Lin Shuhan nodded and said, "Your Excellency is right. May I know how this Miaozhen Lay Buddhist maintains his youthful appearance?"
Qiu Yizhi chose her words carefully and said, "I have also asked her. It is said that she used the Taoist method of nourishing yin and replenishing yang. I don't know whether it is true or not."
"What is the method of nourishing yin and replenishing yang?" Yuchi Jiming on the side immediately interrupted.
"Yes, yes, what is the method of nourishing yin and replenishing yang?" Even someone as reserved as Wu Ruofei echoed softly.
Uncle Lin sneered and said, "You women are obsessed with this. Lord Qiu actually said it very gently. In the final analysis, it is nothing more than using the so-called 'bedroom technique' of the Taoists. When having sex with a man, you take all of his yang essence and block the leakage of his yin essence. It is really a method that harms others and benefits yourself."
Although Lin Shuhan's words were not explicit, they made the two women at the table blush.
So he continued, "The beauty of a woman is to be like a lotus in clear water, naturally free of decoration. To act like this is not only not beautiful, but also sinister. Wasn't this lay Buddhist Miaozhen arrested by Lord Qiu, and is he about to be annihilated?"
Qiu Yizhi heard Lin Shuhan go off topic, so he quickly continued, "I didn't expect that this Miaozhen layman actually has such a reputation in the Jiangnan officialdom. No wonder the case I reported has been delayed for so long."
Lin Shuhan said: "This is actually just one of the very small reasons. As for the deeper reasons... it is really not worth telling to outsiders!"
Qiu Yizi had been talking to Lin Shuhan for the whole afternoon. Knowing that he liked to keep people in suspense, he quickly offered him a glass of wine and said, "Mr. Lin is my confidant, so I'm afraid I can't be called an outsider, right? Please give me some advice."
Lin Shuhan nodded and said, "This is the most disgusting place in the Jiangnan officialdom. I am a scholar after all, so I am too ashamed to talk about it."
He paused, sorted out his words, and then continued: "Eternal life and eternal beauty are what everyone dreams of. Even some bigwigs in the Jiangnan officialdom are not immune to this and are also pursuing this illusory thing. By the way, did you also detain those Taoist nuns in the 'Liaochen Palace'? You might as well go back and find a midwife to examine them. If any of them are half-virgins, please dig out my tongue!"
After hearing this, Qiu Yizi's mind buzzed and she asked in surprise, "Could it be that the nuns in the 'Liaochen Palace' are all tools for the officials in Jiangnan to absorb their yin and replenish their yang?"
Lin Shuhan shook his head and said, "It's not just the 'Liaochen Palace' in Shanyin County. All the well-known Taoist temples in Jiangnan are like this. It's just that Miaozhen is too bold because he is so proud of his outstanding appearance."
"Alas!" Qiu Yizi couldn't help but sighed and said, "Jiangnan is a civilized and enlightened place. Every time the imperial examinations are held, the candidates for the imperial examinations are ranked first in the country, and even occupy half of the country. But I didn't expect that the officialdom would be so corrupt and rotten. It can be said that it is all show and no substance."
Lin Shuhan smiled bitterly and said, "Your Excellency still overestimated these filthy officials. Later, the Taoist priests in several Taoist temples in Jiangnan followed suit, and ran around among the officials' families in the name of praying for children and blessings. They were so promiscuous that it really ruined the civility of the country! It was because of this that Cai Min and Yin Chengliang had to cover the bed with the quilt and refused to lift it up, otherwise there would be a mess inside that would not be tolerated by the world!"
After hearing what Lin Shuhan said, Qiu Yizi could no longer sit still. He drank the wine in the glass, then stood up suddenly and walked around the half pine tree, muttering something to himself.
Lin Shuhan continued, "So Lord Qiu is only handling the case of Miao Zhen, a lay Buddhist in Liaochen Palace, but in fact, it involves dozens of Taoist temples and monasteries in Jiangnan, and it also concerns the honor and shame of countless officials. It is no exaggeration to say that Lord Qiu is the enemy of the entire Jiangnan officialdom! What's more, there are many successful Jinshi in Jiangnan throughout the dynasties, and there are countless officials from Jiangnan in the six ministries of the court. They are more or less from the same hometown and the same year with the local officials in Jiangnan. Even if this case is brought to the Ministry of Justice, it may not be able to be handled!"
Hearing this, Qiu Yizhi stopped, looked straight at Lin Shuhan, and asked, "Is the Jiangnan officialdom so rigid that we can only let it rot?"
Lin Shuhan took a sip of wine to moisten his throat, and said, "The Jiangnan officialdom has been so corrupt for a long time. There are also many hot-blooded and knowledgeable people who want to poke this mess. However, these people have neither power nor strategy. As a result, some people with backbone simply resigned from their posts, while those with less backbone could only take care of themselves, and the most despicable ones just became corrupt and joined the crowd."
Qiu Yizhi shook his head, looked up to the sky and sighed: "I followed the emperor to fight against the Turks in the north, to destroy the evil cult in the south, and to fight against the rebellion. During this period, I went through life and death several times. I thought that there would be no more difficult things in the world, but I didn't expect that the ups and downs of officialdom would be thousands of times more complicated and difficult than fighting on the battlefield..."
Lin Shuhan smiled and said, "Master Qiu, don't be discouraged. I think if we want to thoroughly punish these dirty officials in Jiangnan, I'm afraid we still have to rely on Master Qiu."
Qiu Yizhi looked at Lin Shuhan with a puzzled look on his face and said, "What virtue and ability do I have, Qiu Yizhi? I am just a small county magistrate. How can I stir up the officialdom in Jiangnan?"
Lin Shuhan laughed again and said, "Your Excellency doesn't understand. In the officialdom, the size of the position is secondary. The key is to see how strong your connections are. The same two county magistrates, whether they can have a say in the state and prefecture government offices, their policies will be very different. Take Master Qiu for example. Master Qiu is a close relative of the emperor and a man of great ability. Not to mention stirring up the officialdom in Jiangnan, even turning it upside down is a piece of cake!"
Qiu Yizi's blood boiled when she heard what Lin Shuhan said, and a light of hope ignited in her eyes, but then it went out. She said lightly: "I remember before I left Beijing, Master Zhongli Kuang once told me that the current emperor's ascension to the throne was not a matter of course, and the most feared thing is an unstable situation. I don't think my adoptive father is willing to make this decision to thoroughly sort out Jiangnan!" (To be continued)