Chen Yan glared at Qin Mubai angrily: "Can you stop being so frivolous and casual and give me a clear answer?"
"Some people in the world are just weird. They don't believe their promises even though they are serious; they take their perfunctory promises seriously even though they are false." Qin Mubai said, "I thought you were such a person, so I went out of my way to be perfunctory with you."
"Man, don't be so petty!" Chen Yan knew that she was in the wrong. She glared at Qin Mubai hatefully and then walked back, leaning against the pillar, and said, "Now it's my turn to ask you a few questions. You If you answer well, I will believe you, and I will naturally tell you everything you want to know. If you answer poorly, I will never say a word easily even if I am dead today."
"Then what are you waiting for? Just ask!"
Chen Yan said: "Are you ready to investigate Zhang Tianci's case?"
"Of course." Qin Mubai said, "To tell you the truth, King Wu and I came out to investigate the Jishan case thoroughly on the emperor's order. Originally, we didn't know that the matter would be so complicated, let alone Jishan County. Ling Hui died suddenly, which led to a series of major cases. From the beginning, we were innocently involved, and we couldn't help but get deeper and deeper. In fact, we didn't want to chase or fight. We are deliberately targeting no one, and we don’t want more people to suffer because of this. Everything we are doing now is to reduce the crisis caused by this case as much as possible. Except for those villains who are the culprits of heinous crimes, try not to let others go. It’s good to spread the disease. Of course, this includes ourselves. So, everything we are doing now is just to save people, save ourselves, and try to reduce the impact on the country. "
"Seeing that what you said is sincere and logical, I believe you for the time being." Chen Yan said, "Second question, how will you deal with Zhang Tianci?"
"He must not die now." Qin Mubai said concisely and concisely, "That's because his death date must be after everything has settled."
"Does that mean Zhang Tianci must die?" Chen Yan nodded, "I believe this too. In fact, I may know more about the case than you do. I did lie to you before. In the letters I exchanged with my husband During this period, he poured out a lot of bitterness to me, especially when the construction of the Jishan Lake Flood Control Embankment began. He and I have always talked about everything. He is a person who values affection and justice. Many times he would care about the interests and face of others, and would rather sacrifice himself. Therefore, he was very painful and hesitant, not knowing what to do. He said countless times that he wanted to resign and return home to live with me, but he really couldn't let go. It took ten years of hard work to gain fame and official position. From that time on, I hated officialdom and people who were officials."
"You finally told the truth." Qin Mubai smiled slightly, "The truth sounds different."
"I haven't finished asking yet." Chen Yan glanced at Qin Mubai coldly and said, "If you investigate this case all the way and find out some important figures that you didn't expect... for you The big shot is naturally extraordinary—so what will you do?”
"You mean..." Qin Mubai smiled slyly, thinking that she had already mentioned this, why didn't I deceive her
After deliberately raising his tone and selling it off, Qin Mubai said: "Are you referring to someone who is 'bigger' than the King of Wu?"
Chen Yan remained calm and noncommittal: "Answer the question first."
"Act as appropriate." Qin Mubai said, "I can only answer this. It would be too false to say that we should deal with it justly or make any promises now."
"That means, you have to look at who the other party is and then decide how to deal with it, right?" Chen Yan said.
"right."
Chen Yan became silent and stopped talking.
After a while, Qin Mubai said, "Are you done asking? Now can you tell me the truth and tell me your secret?"
Chen Yan raised her apricot eyes and glanced at Qin Mubai, with a look of hesitation and hesitation in the corners of her eyes.
"I won't force you." Qin Mubai said, "Actually, just because you don't tell me about many things doesn't mean that I don't know. It's just that I don't have conclusive evidence and can't implement it, but I can make a bold guess."
"You take a guess." Chen Yan said calmly, "Anyway, if it doesn't come from my mouth, it won't prove anything."
"This makes sense, so I guessed it." Qin Mubai said, "In fact, Zhu Chengwen did write down a confidential account book, and he may have realized that he would be in danger, so he transferred this account book in advance. I sent it to you in case you need it in the future. This account book records the whereabouts and uses of many imperial funds, and some of them must be shady, which is a metaphor for bribes to certain people."
Chen Yan listened quietly without comment, without any change in her expression.
Qin Mubai smiled to himself and continued: "Zhu Chengwen died later, so you immediately thought that he was retaliated or killed to silence him, and then you came to take revenge. But you have many worries, that is Because there are some people involved in this account book, you feel very embarrassed. Maybe he is kind to Zhu Chengwen, or kind to you, or he is inextricably linked to the two of you, so you are in trouble. A moment of dilemma. At the same time, you learned that King Wu and I came to Jishan to provide relief and were investigating the case, so you wanted to know how far we had found out and how to get involved with us. "
Chen Yan remained silent and said nothing.
"Just yesterday afternoon, you saw Zhang Tianci coming to the military camp, and the King of Wu received him and gave him a reward." Qin Mubai said, "Maybe because of this, you think that we and Zhang Tianci are the same. This makes You are very angry and anxious. Firstly, you feel that you have been used and deceived by me. Secondly, you are eager for revenge. Thirdly... you really want to kill Zhang Tianci immediately and silence him, just to cover up what is recorded in the account book. That’s what I said, right?”
"It's all speculation, without any evidence." Chen Yan said calmly.
"It's true that I don't, but it doesn't mean that I can't find it." Qin Mubai said, "Just because I can't do anything to you doesn't mean that I can't do anything to Zhang Tianci. You are a good person who abides by chivalry, but he is an outright A villain. A villain can betray anything if he is greedy for life and afraid of death.”
"So, I must kill him in advance!" Chen Yan shouted angrily.
Qin Mubai breathed a sigh of relief and smiled gently: "You finally admitted it!"
Chen Yan's eyebrows furrowed slightly and she glared at Qin Mubai with anger or resentment, then turned her head and remained silent.
"Actually... the person you want to cover may be the person we also want to help." Qin Mubai said, "Maybe he is also innocent, but he just accepted some money from others and was taken advantage of. Even if there is It's a small mistake, but you shouldn't be affected by such a serious crime. Chen Yan, you know it but don't know why. You think that person is the same person as Zhang Tianci, the mastermind and an accomplice. If this case is investigated, there will be no good results. So you want to eliminate the insiders for him, but you don’t know that you are not helping him, but actually harming him - I have said so much, you should understand what I am talking about, right? "
At this time, Chen Yan was startled: "You... actually know everything?"
"Guess, there is no evidence at all." Qin Mubai smiled slightly, "But my guess is not groundless, it is reasonable. You will not understand this truth, and you will certainly not be able to imagine how I could guess this, Right?"
"That's right... you're so scary! How could you think of so many things? Although you don't have any evidence, the reality is almost the same as what you guessed!" Chen Yan looked at Qin Mubai in surprise, a pair of beautiful For the first time, his big eyes showed a look of panic.
"Maybe that's why you look down on officials!" Qin Mubai laughed at himself, "Officials are full of bad ideas. They think through everything they do, and they think about the causes and consequences. This If you do this kind of thing a lot, you will develop some ability to predict the future.”
"What nonsense are you talking about!" Chen Yan was still surprised and a little confused at the same time, "How on earth did you come up with the idea?"
"Have you thought of Li Daozong, King of Jiangxia?" Qin Mubai said with a smile.
"Uh!..." Chen Yan was startled, "Do you really know?!"
"As expected." Qin Mubai smiled and said, "In fact, we should have opened the skylight and spoken out. Because both King Wu and I have always admired and respected King Jiangxia. King Wu knew him even better. He once Tell me, he is a perfect imperial uncle. He has only one quirk, and that is greed for money, and he is purely greedy for money. He will never be greedy or corrupt, because it is always very easy for him to obtain wealth. Therefore, we have been guessing. There must be a big shot behind Zhang Tianci to provide him with convenience. This big shot is most likely the current King of Jiangxia, Li Daozong, who is the governor of Jinzhou. Zhang Tianci easily got to know Li Daozong through his relationship with the prince, and then fell in love with him. They bribed him. Then, under his banner, they started selling male and female prostitutes. Otherwise, given his personality, he would never have known this. Indulging a little prince to ruin his reputation and bring him into trouble."
"Is that so?" Chen Yan said in surprise, "I always thought that King Jiang Xia was also with Zhang Tianci!"
"Did Zhu Chengwen tell you?" Qin Mubai smiled, "After all, a small official like him doesn't know much about officialdom. Or maybe it was Zhang Tianci, Cheng Songnian and others who told Zhu Cheng Wen deceived him and made him think it was true. Chen Yan, I actually said something disrespectful to the deceased. Now I want to ask you, so I want to ask your forgiveness first."
"Well, you say."
"Zhu Chengwen was actually in the same group with Zhang Tianci and others during his lifetime, right?" Qin Mubai said, "Otherwise, he would not have known so many secrets, and he would not have been killed to silence him. I guess he was motivated by He had no choice but to join Zhang Tianci and others and became one of them. At the same time, he had his own moral bottom line and conscience, so he was always struggling in his heart. I have nowhere to talk, so I told you all this. I think the reason why he caused all this pain is Jiang Xia King Li Daozong. Chen Yan, can you tell me, what is the relationship between Zhu Chengwen and Jiang Xia King? "
Chen Yan's face turned a little pale, she clenched her silver teeth to avoid Qin Mubai's eyes, and nodded slowly: "It seems that I really underestimated you... You are so scary, you can guess this!"
"Tell me! Believe me, I will keep this secret and let the dead Zhu Chengwen retain his last trace of dignity!" Qin Mubai said.
Chen Yan nodded and said: "The King of Jiangxia is my husband's great benefactor. When he went to Beijing to take the exam, my husband was a poor official and couldn't even afford to stay in an inn. He stayed in the streets of Lifang in Chang'an every day, spending time in the streets. By chance, he met King Jiangxia. Seeing that a scholar was so poor but still working hard, King Jiangxia immediately gave him some money and materials and allowed him to live in the official residence to prepare for the exam. . Then, King Jiang Xia, a caring person, specially greeted the people in the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Officials, saying that he had a disciple who was going to take the scientific examination this year. "
"In this way, the King of Jiangxia is indeed very kind to Zhu Chengwen." Qin Mubai said, "In the scientific examination of our dynasty, if you can apply for a good family and a good background, you will be recommended by the noble ministers." ’, this will greatly increase the chance of passing the exam, and from now on, even if he is the disciple of King Jiang Xia, he will be a golden brand wherever he goes.”
"Yes." Chen Yan said, "But my husband knew nothing about this, and he muddleheadedly submitted an official paper to the Ministry of Rites (meaning he took the exam as a civilian and did not take advantage of the 'disciple' of King Jiangxia). (a first-level relationship). After he was admitted, he heard the officials from the Ministry of Rites talk about the recommendation of King Jiangxia. He regretted it and became grateful to King Jiangxia from then on. "
"That is indeed a pity." Qin Mubai said, "If he becomes an official by submitting a 'business certificate', his starting point in the official career will be very high, and he may even become an official in the capital as a poor official. , The future is bright. Just because he is an ordinary Jinshi, it is considered good to be a seventh-rank magistrate. Although he will not personally preside over the affairs of the Ministry of Rites, the King of Jiangxia is the official secretary of the Ministry of Rites. There is still authority there. With just a little effort, he completely changed Zhu Chengwen’s life. It’s no wonder that Zhu Chengwen is grateful to him.”
"Actually, before I met King Jiangxia, my husband regarded him as a god in his heart." Chen Yan said, "I have heard him mention King Jiangxia more than once. I heard about King Jiangxia's great achievements in those years, and what he said about him. The young hero loves the people like his own son and has high moral standards. He is a perfect figure. If he could meet him once in his lifetime, his life would no longer be in vain. He never expected that he and his party from Chang'an would actually meet the King of Jiangxia. Thanks to his great kindness... It’s no wonder that my husband was in such pain and struggle after encountering those things when he arrived at Jishan.”
Qin Mubai nodded: "I see, I understand. It seems that the account book really exists, and it must have recorded the whereabouts of part of the embankment repair money. It was probably given to King Jiangxia. Seeing Jiangxia Zhu Chengwen must have been in great pain because the king accepted bribes and was greedy for money. At the same time, Zhang Tianci and Cheng Songnian took advantage of Zhu Chengwen's psychological weakness to coerce him into joining the gang. In desperation, Zhu Chengwen had no choice but to betray King Jiang Xia. I could only accept the humiliation and agreed to do some unjust things. I can imagine Zhu Chengwen's pain as he struggled between kindness and morality. But in the end, Hu Hong's explosion broke the balance in his heart. He decided to report and expose the truth of the flood, even if the world scolded him for being ungrateful."
"Yes. It is precisely because of this that he was killed by Liao Lirong." Chen Yan said, "Actually, I can imagine how relieved my husband was when he died. It may be more painful for him to live like that than to die. It's just that I can imagine how relieved I was when my husband died. It's a pity that if he could live a little longer and see you, he wouldn't be in such pain if you said that King Jiang Xia was just being deceived and used by others!"
Speaking of this, Chen Yan's eyes turned red and her voice became choked up. She hurriedly reached out to cover her mouth, forcing herself not to cry.
"Did he tell you in the letter that if he dies, don't betray King Jiangxia no matter what?" Qin Mubai said.
"Yes. This is the last and only wish he left for me." Chen Yan said, "I don't know why he was so stupid. In the end, he decided to make the truth of this case public at the risk of being scolded and ungrateful. , but left me such a last wish?”
Qin Mubai sighed and sighed leisurely: "It's hard to have both love and righteousness. Zhu Chengwen is a good person. He has a grateful heart and a righteous heart. But these two hearts are different. Without being able to merge, he couldn't live or die. I guess that at the end of his life, he had already anticipated that he might face the disaster of killing people, and he suddenly realized that he could do whatever he wanted in his position. The magistrate of a county has the responsibility to uphold the justice of the king. But after he dies, he will no longer be the magistrate of Jishan. Someone else will handle the brown case, and someone will take over his position as magistrate. , there is only a grateful heart left in his heart, and he hopes that King Jiangxia is safe... Although he doesn't know whether King Jiangxia is really innocent and being taken advantage of, he is just... grateful! "
"That was his only last wish. No matter what he said, I would do it regardless of my own safety." Chen Yan said, "That's it, I came to Jishan. You will know everything that happens next."
Qin Mubai was silent.
Zhu Chengwen, an ordinary member of the Tang Dynasty officials, lived a very painful life under the test of love and blood, kindness and righteousness. As Chen Yan said, death was really a relief for him.
His pain comes from his own unparalleled friendship!
If he were a ruthless and unrighteous person, how could he be in such pain and even lose his life recently
Chen Yan, on the other hand, is a simple and forthright hero who enjoys grudges and grudges. Be loyal to others when entrusted by them, and do not hesitate to die for a word. Don't care about success or failure, right or wrong, and move forward indomitably.
The same emphasis on love and justice.
Why are there so many versions of love and justice in this world? Which one is right or wrong
In other words, should we use simple and absolute "right" and "wrong" to measure love and justice
…