…
Yanjing City, the town government.
Chi Hou, who was wearing a long blue robe, held a white jade chess piece in his hand. He looked at the chessboard in front of him, then looked up at the stars hanging in the sky, and sighed softly.
"Brother Yuan Guo, let's end the chess game here today." Chi Hou said as he prepared to get up.
"What? It's rare for Hong brother to come to Yanjing City. Don't you want to play two more games with me?" Xing Yuanguo, who was wearing a purple and gold robe, smiled softly and pressed down Chi Hou who was about to stand up.
"Haha, what are you talking about, Brother Yuan Guo? How could I not want to play chess with my brother? It's just that the moonlight is clear tonight, and my brother wants to go outside and walk around." Chi Hou smiled softly.
"It's not peaceful in Yanjing City tonight. Are you sure Hong Di wants to go out for a walk?" Xing Yuanguo looked at Chi Hou and then continued.
"No matter how uneasy it is, this is also Yanjing City. There shouldn't be any big things happening under the Emperor's feet, right?" Chi Hou was stunned for a moment and replied again.
"Yes, in Yanjing City, at the foot of the Emperor, Hong Di wants to go out for a walk. It's natural for me to stop him, but this game of chess must be played to the end, right?" Xing Yuanguo nodded when he heard this.
"Hmm... Okay!" Chi Hou also nodded when he heard this, and his eyes returned to the chessboard in front of him again.
This is a chess game that should have ended long ago. The outcome of the game between white and black has long been decided. White has an absolute advantage on the field.
However, Xing Yuanguo had no intention of admitting defeat.
Moreover, on the contrary, he took advantage of White's carelessness and snatched several advantages in succession, which forced Chi Hou to regain his concentration again.
The white pieces fell, and the black pieces were collected.
Xing Yuanguo's brows furrowed again, with a look of concentration on his face. He held the sunspot in his hand, but he was hesitant. He held it for a full moment without dropping it.
Chi Hou finally moved his eyes away from the chessboard again, and looked up at the darkening night.
At this moment, a sergeant wearing bright armor also walked in from outside the small courtyard and quickly came to Xing Yuanguo and Chi Hou.
"Meet the two marquises!"
"Well, let's briefly talk about what happened in Yanjing City tonight." Xing Yuanguo glanced at the sergeant, then at Chi Hou in front of him, and said calmly.
"Yes!" The sergeant nodded immediately after hearing this, and then said: "Fang Zhengzheng was attacked in Qixingfang, and the opponent was the envoy from the Southern Territory. However, Fang Zhengzheng was not injured, and those people were also captured. The prince suggested that people from the Ministry of War escort them, and those envoys from the Southern Region are now being sent to the prison of the Ministry of Punishment."
"Understood, let's get down." After hearing this, Xing Yuanguo waved directly to the sergeant.
"Yes!" The sergeant immediately retreated.
Chi Hou's eyes narrowed slightly at this moment, and then he stood up from the chair and looked at the leaving sergeant, with a hint of anxiety flashing across his face.
"Brother Yuan Guo, chess can be played at any time, otherwise we will still..."
"Hong Di! When this game of chess is over, I will naturally let you go for a walk in Yanjing City. You won't insist on spoiling my interest, right?" Xing Yuanguo's tone was slightly unhappy.
"This... I'm ashamed of myself, I shouldn't spoil my brother's interest!" Chi Hou's body froze slightly, then he gritted his teeth and sat back on the chair again, but the anxious expression on his face became more and more intense.
"Brother Hong, our Thirteen Houses have always been of the same mind since the founding of the Great Xia Dynasty. I will not stop you from doing anything you want to do. However, don't forget, our Thirteen Houses have always been united. One heart!"
"Brother Yuan Guo, of course the Thirteen Houses are of the same mind. This is what we have always..."
"Okay, let's play chess first. Brother Wei will go shopping with you in person later. As for the candidate you mentioned to me as Minister of Justice, Brother Wei will also give you an answer tonight."
"Thank you, brother." After hearing the selection of Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, Chi Hou looked stunned, and then he was slightly happy, and the anxious expression on his face disappeared.
…
The Ministry of Punishment, one of the six bureaus of the Great Xia Dynasty, was in charge of punishment and prison justice. It had a minister and three ministers, namely the left minister, the middle minister and the right minister.
Since Wan Chong, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, was imprisoned, many major cases have been suppressed temporarily. However, tonight, it is destined that there will be no peace in the Yamen of the Ministry of Justice.
The two ministers on the left and middle were sitting in the yamen, waiting anxiously.
At this moment, a figure also walked in from outside the Yamen, wearing a bright red official uniform, showing his identity as the chief minister of the court.
"Yu Xiang!" When the two ministers from the left and middle saw the figure walking in, they immediately stood up from their chairs and walked to the door.
"Well, thank you for your hard work, sir. I feel really sorry for asking you to come out so late!" Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping smiled immediately when he saw the two ministers coming out.
"You're welcome, Mr. Yu. This is my job, so why bother talking about hard work?" Upon hearing this, the two ministers from the left and middle immediately shook their heads and replied.
"Okay!" Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping nodded, and his eyes instantly scanned every corner of the Penal Department Yamen: "Isn't the right minister Wen Chuan here?"
"Excuse me, Wen Chuan's son Wen Dabao happened to be at Qixingfang tonight. I heard he is still in a coma. Wenchuan should still be there at Qixingfang, right?" The two ministers in the left and middle looked at each other and replied truthfully. .
"Still in Qixingfang? This Wenchuan usually just indulges his son, but at this time... Well, since he is not here, we can only help you two adults!" Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping's face turned cold slightly. .
"I'll wait for Mr. Yu's arrangements!" the two ministers from the left and middle immediately replied. At the same time, a faint smile appeared in their eyes.
For them, it was obviously a good thing that Wen Chuan would not come tonight.
after all…
Now is the time when the position of Shangshu is vacant. At this time, anyone with a discerning eye can actually tell at a glance between those who have contributed and those who have not.
The prince is in charge, and the left prime minister is the chief assistant.
How rare is this opportunity to contribute? But Wenchuan actually ignored his official duties for the sake of a rebellious son. It can only be said that Wenchuan was not destined to be a minister.
"Okay, let's not talk nonsense about the truth. You can make arrangements to get the person out of the prison of the Ministry of Punishment." After hearing this, Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping was no longer polite.
"Don't worry, Mr. Yu. The people in the prison of the Criminal Department have been arranged tonight, and the prisoners can be picked up at any time. However, now outside..." Zuo Shilang said with a little worry.
"The City Guards have surrounded the Criminal Department. In my opinion, it is better to just stay in the prison..." The middle minister suggested at this time.
"No!" Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping shook his head: "Prince Duan ordered the siege of the Punishment Department this time, which somewhat surprised the Prime Minister. In this way, if someone died in the Prison of the Punishment Department, it might be a little inappropriate!"
"What Yu Xiang said is absolutely true. Now that the Ministry of Justice is under siege, once another life is caused in the jail of the Ministry of Justice, Prince Duan will definitely take the opportunity to cause trouble. Maybe the candidate for the Minister of Justice will..."
"Well, so we can only send the person out of the Punishment Department first. As long as the person leaves the Punishment Department, everything will be easy to handle. We can also charge Duan Wang with obstructing the Punishment Department's handling of the case!" Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping said in a cold tone.
"Yu Xiang is wise, but now all four gates of the Criminal Department are surrounded by city guards. How can we send people out of the Criminal Department?" Zuo Shilang nodded, and then asked.
"When the truth came out, I had people carry the sedan in. There were four boxes in my sedan. These four boxes were exactly the same as the chairs inside the sedan. But if all eight people were put in, Being in a sedan chair will inevitably arouse suspicion, but I wonder if the two adults are willing to take this risk?"
"This..." Upon hearing this, the two assistant ministers Zuo Zhong naturally understood the meaning of Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping's words.
It is not uncommon for people to hide things in sedan chairs, especially in the palace. Many concubines will use this method when they want to purchase some obscure things outside.
In terms of safety, of course it is not too high.
However, it is the most commonly used and most convenient method.
"You two adults, don't worry. The true identity is there, let alone a few city guards. Even if Prince Duan comes in person, he will never dare to dismantle the sedan chair for inspection!" Of course Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping could tell that the two people in the middle The waiter's hesitation.
"Okay, since Yu Xiang is here, there is no problem on my side."
"I don't have any problem either!"
When the two ministers from the left and middle heard Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping speak again, they looked at each other again. Finally, they gritted their teeth and nodded in reply.
"Well, it's just that Wenchuan hasn't arrived tonight. Of these eight people, two of them are hiding in the sedan, and the two adults are hiding four more. The remaining two..."
"Please rest assured, Mr. Yu, my wife is out on a tour tonight. I will immediately order someone to call my wife over. In this way, we can gather four sedan chairs!" Zuo Shilang said immediately.
"Okay, that's hard work!" Zuo Xiangyu Yiping nodded when he heard this.
When Zuo Shilang looked at the expression on Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping's face, he felt slightly happy. He could almost predict that after this incident, the position of Minister would be in his hands.
Compared with Zuo Shilang, Zhong Shilang felt annoyed.
Just now, he just hesitated and let Zuo Shilang take the credit.
Looking at Zuo Shilang who looked slightly proud, Zhong Shilang almost hit his head against the door to death. Opportunities are so fleeting!
A moment ago, he was laughing at Wen Chuan for not cherishing the opportunity. Now, it was his turn to miss another opportunity, and he could only sigh.
…
Outside the Xingbu Yamen.
Two rows of city guards in bright armor were guarding both sides of the yamen entrance, each holding a torch, illuminating the entire punishment yamen like daylight.
Outside the yamen wall, groups of city guards were patrolling back and forth, holding torches in one hand and spears in the other.
Such a scene naturally attracted passers-by to watch, but they were just watching, and no one dared to approach the Xingbu Yamen.
"What happened?"
"Who knows? I just heard that several Southern Territory envoys were escorted from Qixingfang, and those Southern Territory envoys seemed to want to kill people in Qixingfang!"
"Kill? Who?"
"Who else could it be? Fang Zhengzheng. However, it seems that he was not killed. Instead, he was arrested and sent to the prison of the Criminal Department. I just don't know how the city guards surrounded the Criminal Department?"
One by one, the people looked at the tightly surrounded Xingbu Yamen and discussed in low voices.
At this moment, a group of men and horses also ran over quickly from a distance, led by a man, dressed in white brocade clothes, with a silver-white long sword hanging on his waist.
It was none other than Duan Wang Lin Xinjue.
"Eh? It's Prince Duan who is here!"
"Did something big happen really?"
"It seems that the punishment department is not peaceful tonight."
The people looked at Duan Wang Lin Xinjue and others who were running quickly from a distance. They subconsciously retreated to both sides and watched with wide eyes.
"Your Highness!"
"Your Highness!"
When every city guard saw Duan Wang Lin Xinjue arriving, they all greeted him respectfully.
"Well, get up. Is anyone going in?" Duan Wang Lin Xinjue waved his hand towards the city guard who was about to kneel down and asked.
"Back to His Royal Highness Prince Duan, the Zuo Prime Minister entered not long ago. We couldn't stop him. The wife of the Zuo Shilang also just entered, and was taken in by the Zuo Prime Minister himself." A city guard immediately reported.
"Oh, the Prime Minister Zuo is here in person? It seems that he takes it seriously!" Prince Duan Lin Xinjue frowned slightly, and just as he was about to speak again, the door of the Punishment Department's Yamen also made a soft sound.
Immediately afterwards, the vermilion door also opened from the inside.
Duan Wang Lin Xinjue's eyes narrowed slightly, and a sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth: "What a Yu Yiping, he didn't go through the side door, but the main door!"
Just as Duan Wang Lin Xinjue said in his heart.
Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping walked out of the main entrance of the Xingbu Yamen in a row with four sedan chairs, openly and openly.
"stop!"
At this time, the city guard's spear also stopped in front of Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping's sedan, and a cold light flashed on the bright spear.
"Bold!" A soft shout came from the sedan, and then the sedan stopped. The sedan door came from inside, and Zuo Xiangyu, dressed in bright red official uniform, stepped out smoothly.
A pair of eyes glanced at the city guards blocking the sedan, full of chill.
When several city guards saw Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping, they naturally took a step back. Who in Yanjing city didn't know the reputation of the chief minister in front of them
"As city guards, you did not protect the safety of Yanjing City, but ran to the Yamen of the Ministry of Justice to block the way of the truth. Who gave you such courage?" Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping glanced at the city guards coldly, with an imposing manner. Slightly higher.
When Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping shouted, the city guards immediately took two steps back again, and each one of them was silent. After all, they could not answer Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping's questions.
"As the chief minister of the dynasty, it is understandable for Yu Xiang to reprimand several city guards. However, after all, these city guards are under my jurisdiction. Shouldn't Yu Xiang say hello to me first before reprimanding them? "Duan Wang Lin Xinjue looked at this scene and finally spoke.
"Yu Yiping has met His Highness Duan Wang. He actually didn't see His Highness. However, he really didn't expect that such a big thing happened tonight, and His Highness was still in the mood to... hang out in front of the Xingbu Yamen? "Zuo Xiang Yu Yiping was slightly startled, and then he said with a look of fear on his face.
However, anyone can hear the ridicule and provocation in Zuo Xiangyu Yiping's words. (To be continued.)