Qin Dezheng was still calm. Although the 50 taels offer was beyond his expectations, it did not shock him. He thought about it for a while, said "wait a moment" and went out.
Su Xiaopei was a little uneasy, she had no experience in this kind of thing, she always accepted as much as others gave her, but her career was smooth sailing, and no one had treated her badly. Now that they were negotiating the price, Qin Chutou left. She rushed over and called out "strong man" in a low voice, intending to discuss with him what the reserve price would be. If Qin Chutou raised an objection, the two of them would be good at talking. Consistent.
But Ran Feize was not in a hurry: "Don't panic, girl, this Ning'an City is not a stone town, the government is very rich, fifty taels, they can afford it. The head catcher is thin-skinned, and the governor is eager to close the case, only fifty taels. Two, I will never refuse."
"Oh." Su Xiaopei sat up again. Well, trust him.
Fifty-two bites to death do not relax.
After a while, Qin Chutou came back. As Ran Feize expected, Qin Chatou did not waste time on money, and agreed immediately. Said that if the two criminals could be successfully caught and the case solved, they would be paid fifty taels.
"What if only one person is caught?" Ran Feize said again, "If one is broken, pay half, twenty-five taels."
Qin Zhutou was taken aback for a moment, but he happily agreed: "Yes." He just discussed with the governor. The governor only wanted to solve the case quickly, and spending money is a trivial matter.
With these words, Ran Feize was satisfied.
Su Xiaopei admired that Ma Zhengyuan used to be worth fifty taels, but now he turned around and changed to twenty-five taels. That's how bargaining works.
Qin Chutou coughed and drew Su Xiaopei's attention back. "Miss Su, I have already set up cards all over the city gate, and the officials will also step up the search in the city. As for the Sima Mansion, while waiting for their news, I also sent people in disguise to keep an eye on the gate of the mansion and see this. Whether there are suspicious people waiting to come in and out for two days."
Su Xiaopei nodded. Qin Chutou asked, "What's your plan on the girl's side?"
"I plan to suggest to Lord Qin that all Ma Zhengyuan's reward notices be scattered."
Qin Dezheng was stunned for a moment, then suddenly, "Don't worry, girl, the reward for the girl and Ran Zhuangshi has nothing to do with this notice. No matter whether others provide clues to the murder, as long as the perpetrator is caught, both the girl and Ran Zhuangshi will receive it. Silver."
Su Xiaopei was also stunned, where did he think? She smiled, and Ran Feize really took the direction of the headmaster's thinking away.
"My lord, the announcement has nothing to do with rewarding silver. Ma Zhengyuan, after his mother remarried, has no more attention and attention. He has an embarrassing status in his stepfather's house. Other brothers and sisters look down on him, and the servants are also negligent and disrespectful to him. After that, he fell in love with his sister Ma Yao, who was the only person in the family who cared about him, but this relationship could not come to an end. Ma Yao was under pressure and asked to become a nun in order to make him give up. So far, Ma Zhengyuan's spirit The world fell apart."
At this time, Ran Feize coughed twice, Su Xiaopei reacted, cleared his throat, and said, "I mean, Ma Zhengyuan has never been cared for, no one cares about him, he finally had hope, but it was dashed. He will never get what he wants, and at this time he plans to take revenge. Bai Zhukuai said that when Ma Zhengyuan went to see Ma Yao for the last time, he said 'you wait', and then he started committing crimes in various cities."
Qin De was nodding his head, he knew all this.
Su Xiaopei continued: "After he committed the crime, everyone was terrified and talked about it everywhere, and he was satisfied all of a sudden. The woman he couldn't get was obtained in this way, and he punished her. He used to be bullied, but now people People are afraid of him, he is full of self-confidence. That's why the government has posted a reward notice everywhere and he dares to continue to commit crimes. This is what he wants. It's helping him to spread the word, and it's encouraging him. Therefore, the reward notices must be scattered from every city."
Qin Dezheng had never thought of this level, and he raised his eyebrows and thought deeply.
Su Xiaopei added: "In Miss Sima's case, the murderer wanted to put the blame on Ma Zhengyuan. This intention is very obvious. It stands to reason that if the government believes that Ma Zhengyuan is responsible for this case, then the government should increase the search and reward for Ma Zhengyuan, but the government does not. , in turn, he also distributed Ma Zhengyuan's reward order. If the murderer is well hidden, he can get news from the Sima Mansion and know that the government does not suspect Ma Zhengyuan. That's all, but if he doesn't know, then the government's move It will make him suspicious, irritate him, and once he does something, it will make it easier for us to find him."
Qin Dezheng thinks it makes sense. He said: "Master Fu Yin instructed Master Sima that the relevant case must not be revealed. Today we were discussing matters in the hall of Sima Mansion, and we did not let the servants approach. This matter should be able to be concealed from the outside world. If we claim that the murderer is the Ma Zhengyuan, how about letting the murderer relax his vigilance? In this way, it may be easier for him to reveal his tricks."
"If your lord wants the real murderer to relax his vigilance, he will have to publicize that the murderer is Ma Zhengyuan. If the news reaches Ma Zhengyuan's ears, it will anger him. His halo, I mean, the most important thing to him is the Someone else took it. Someone impersonated him, someone was stealing his honor, and in order to prove himself, he might use more drastic means to prove that, look, this is me, I am unique."
At this time, Ran Feize interjected: "According to the girl's words, if Ma Zhengyuan feels that he is not noticed by a reward order, will he do something more outrageous to attract attention?"
Su Xiaopei nodded: "That's why your lord not only has to issue a reward order, but also issue a seal order. Let's just say that the case of Ma Zhengyuan is a matter of confidentiality and cannot be discussed again. Once discovered, a serious crime will be dealt with." After she finished speaking, she frowned, wondering Is free speech protected here
She looked at Ran Feize, and Ran Feize nodded, indicating that it was feasible.
Ran Feize said to Qin Dezheng: "Sir, I'm afraid it's not enough just to have the commander, send some people to perform the show, and make it a reality. Let the officials and clerks have a drink in the restaurant and discuss the matter, and when they talk about this case, they keep silent. , seems to be intentional or unintentional, the Lord is strictly indisputable, and let the people around him know. The hawkers and the common people talk about it on weekdays and pass it on. In this way, Ma Zhengyuan will know that no matter what he does, his story will never spread again. ."
Qin De is looking at Su Xiaopei. Su Xiaopei nodded: "Ran Zhuangshi is right." In an era without media, that's the only way it can be.
"Then what if Ma Zhengyuan sees no one talking about him again?"
"Sir, please send more people to Zecheng." Su Xiaopei said. Bai Yulang told her that after finding Ma Zhengyuan's family, he notified the local government and asked the other side to monitor closely. From Su Xiaopei's point of view, this step must be paid more attention to by the government.
"You mean, he's going home?"
"Actually, he will eventually come to this point. Even if we don't do these things, he will definitely go back in the end, sooner or later. What he wants most to deter, what he wants most is revenge, it's not that he doesn't know, it doesn't matter. People, the satisfaction they get from strangers is only temporary. He will eventually find that these are not enough. What he wants to see most are those who have really hurt him and made him suffer. In front of him, he is as fearful as those victims. , begging." Su Xiaopei said: "Sir, what we did is to bring this step forward. No one talks about him anymore, his fame is gone, and no one helps him spread his prestige back, so he has to do it himself. already."
Qin De was thinking hard, and finally muttered to himself: "The cities where he committed the crime really revolved around Zecheng. The reward order was also posted in Zecheng."
Su Xiaopei didn't interrupt him. Qin Dezheng thought about it for a long time, then finally raised his eyes and said loudly, "Okay, then, just listen to Miss Su and do this first!"
The three discussed some details again, and then Qin Dezheng invited Su Xiaopei and Ran Feize to the next door, which was separated from the room where he discussed affairs. Then he called in a few cronies and capable generals, discussed the matter with them, and arranged it according to what Su Xiaopei said.
Some were surprised, some were puzzled, some thought it made sense, and the discussions were lively. Su Xiaopei and Ran Feize were listening to their meeting and drinking tea in the next room.
Ran Feize said: "Although the lord needs the help of the girl, he also needs to establish the authority and make arrangements. It is more appropriate for the lord to handle it himself."
Su Xiaopei nodded, not minding this. She could hear the chatter outside, the arrangement was orderly, and her mind had turned to the other side: "Strong man, fifty taels is a lot, right?"
Ran Feize smiled: "It's quite a lot."
He held the tea cup, squinted at her and smiled: "Fifteen taels, eh?"
Su Xiaopei blushed.
"Children." He teased her.
Su Xiaopei hurriedly said, "I don't know, I don't have experience. I mean, I have less experience, so I should learn more from strong men."
"study?"
"It's time to ask the strong men for more advice."
Ran Feize grinned. Su Xiaopei didn't mind either. Twenty-five taels, thank him.
"Strong man, can you afford a toothbrush for twenty-five taels?"
"Tooth sticks? Of course you can afford it." Ran Feize couldn't help but smile again.
After the day was over, Ran Feize took Su Xiaopei to the market, saying that he would make her greedy. He took her to a wash shop, where toothbrushes, toothpaste and toiletries were readily available. Of course, the name is different from what Su Xiaopei knows, but Su Xiaopei is very happy to see it, this is the goal of life!
Her goal has become so humble, it is really sad for those who hear it and those who see it cry.
Su Xiaopei laughed at himself while calculating the price, this one costs 200 yuan, that one costs 300 yuan, this 80 yuan is cheap, that 150 yuan doesn't seem expensive, this one is actually 800 yuan, almost one tael of silver, that two tael of silver, this counts Luxury
Su Xiaopei has no idea about the money and silver here, and the price has to be flipped in her head before she realizes it. I don't know if it's expensive or cheap, but the things she needs are brushing her teeth, washing her face, bathing and washing her hair. She misses modern toiletries so much. . She looked at it for a long time, and she didn't know what it was for and was too embarrassed to ask. She decided to write down this place, and when the twenty-five taels of silver arrived, she would come here to spend her first money in ancient times.
Wandering out, I saw Ran Feize standing on the street waiting for her.
Ran Feize thought it was embarrassing for her to look at the goods with a surprised face when she entered the city, and he knew that the girl could only see and not buy, so he came out first to avoid the shopkeeper's eyes. But this girl is really good. He can see the shopkeeper's sharp eyes from outside, but she ignores it and keeps looking at it slowly. Thinking of this, Ran Feize grinned.
What a laugh, Su Xiaopei gave him a white look and was about to speak, but saw something out of the corner of his eye. She turned her head and saw Sima Wanru walking out at the gate of a house on the corner of the street. She didn't stop there, she quickly walked to the street, and then entered a restaurant opposite. After a while, she came out with a few of her sisters and was heading in the direction of Su Xiaopei and Ran Feize.
The two groups of people quickly passed by on the side of the street. Sima Wanru saw that Ran Feize and Su Xiaopei's expressions changed slightly, but did not speak, and only quickly left with the seniors.
"Why does she look guilty?"
Ran Feize didn't answer, but took Su Xiaopei to the house where Sima Wanru came out, passed the gate, and saw the word "Changfu" by the door. Ran Feize said, "Miss Sima's fiance, is his surname Chang?"
"Yes." Su Xiaopei also thought of it.
"My elder sister passed away, and my younger sister went to visit her brother-in-law's house. It was rude and disrespectful, and she was naturally guilty."
"Isn't that right?"
"When the two parents are interacting with each other, it's not good for the daughter's family to show up like this." Ran Feize touched his chin, "On the other side of the official mansion, the Chang mansion has never been mentioned, right? I don't know, they and the Sima family are so close to each other. What does it have to do with being an in-law?"
Of course Su Xiaopei didn't know the relationship. After they returned to the yamen, Ran Feize approached Qin Zhaotou to talk about it. Qin Zhaotou wrote down that it was related to the Sima family, but they all had plans to investigate.
After nothing happened, Su Xiaopei went back to the inn to sort out her diary and think about the case.
It was night, Su Xiaopei packed his things and was about to rest when there was a knock on the door. She thought that Ran Feize was looking for something, but when she opened the door, she saw Sima Wanru standing outside.
Sima Wanru had a cold face, holding a sword in her hand.