Yue Mingquan was determined to be resolute, but no matter what, he couldn't escape the trap Huo Weilou set for him.
One day and one night of imprisonment made him very uneasy, and the attitude of the embroiderer made him understand that Huo Weilou must have known something, and he was suffering in the bottom of his heart. At this moment, he saw Lu Ke bringing the embroiderer to Wang Qingfu. He went to the courtyard where Wu Yu lived, and the two of them had already been interrogated.
Huo Weilou has been in charge of the Embroidered Clothes Envoy for many years, since he has the right to kill them first, it is nothing to torture them. Rumor has it that in his hands, even the heinous criminals at the bottom of the prison must obediently speak up.
Yue Mingquan was terrified, but at this moment, he still had hope in his heart.
A heinous evil can be concealed for ten years, of course he is not alone. During these ten years, Wang Qingfu was far away in the capital, and they never corresponded. Even if he returned to Beijing to report on his duties, it was only a few scenes But inexplicably, he felt awe and trust from the bottom of his heart for this unremarkable gentle scholar.
Not for anything else, but because he dared to think about the relic when he was a young Shaoqing.
Dare to do such a thing, Wang Qingfu, who is an official in the capital, naturally knew the serious consequences, but he did it anyway, Yue Ming knew that in terms of fear, Wang Qingfu was above him, and he also believed that Wang Qingfu would never open his mouth to plead guilty, because In the past ten years, any evidence has disappeared. As long as they deny it, even Wu Zhaohou will not be able to convict them.
Huo Weilou told all about the events of that year, no matter how flustered Yue Mingquan was, he still kept his mouth shut, but at this moment, Lu Ke appeared. One of his confidants, he always existed, making the whole situation flawless, so when he heard Wang Qingfu's voice, Yue Mingquan's hard-won faith began to loosen.
Sitting in front of him is Huo Weilou, the famous Marquis Wu Zhao, and Wang Qingfu who can hold his breath, but Huo Weilou has a hundred ways to make him speak, as long as he puts the blame on him, even if it is the theft of relics. Big crime, maybe Wang Qingfu still has a chance to survive. In the end, Wang Qingfu reminded Lu Ke that he was a desperado...
Back then when he killed Jingkong, Wang Qingfu also acted decisively and mercilessly.
Yue Ming's eyes were about to burst.
His originally solid defenses, in this day and night, suffered from torment, fear, suspicion, and anger, and finally, at this moment, they all collapsed. He looked at Huo Weilou with red eyes, and his whole body seemed to have aged a lot in an instant.
"Back then, I was the general soldier of Luozhou. At that age, I had some achievements, but it was extremely difficult for me to go up the ranks. Although my background was not poor, I didn't take the path of civil servants. There is no connection at home, so I can only fight for military merits, but the garrison is different from the frontier army, the subordinates are very anxious... At that time, Wang Qingfu found the subordinates."
Huo Weilou stared, "He came out in the first place?"
Yue Mingquan nodded, "Yes, it was him from the beginning."
Huo Weilou had a hint of sarcasm in his eyes, "He's a young minister of the Taichang Temple and has no real power in his hands, but you are the commander-in-chief of one side, but can you believe his words?"
Huo Weilou's suspicious face made Yue Mingquan anxious, "Xiaguan didn't believe it at first, but he was from the Wang family of Qiangzhou. Although he entered Taichang Temple, he was very young, and he didn't look like a lunatic at all. A person who is not a lunatic suddenly comes to you with great determination to tell you about such an earth-shattering event, in the eyes of the subordinates, it is because he has something to do."
Yue Mingquan gritted his teeth, "Besides, at the beginning, he only said that he came to find Xiaguan to cooperate with a major event, because he valued Xiaguan's character and knew Xiaguan's life, so he came to look for Xiaguan, and promised a lot of money and a way to get promoted. The official didn't know that it was the relic that he was going to steal. After he ordered the official to find a juggler, and ordered the official to change the lotus platform mechanism, and did these things well, the official didn't know that the big thing he was going to do was to steal the relic. Sha Lizi, the lower officials should be very frightened, but at that time it was difficult to get rid of the tiger, and many things were done by the lower officials, once there was a quarrel with him, the first to suffer would be the lower officials, and the lower officials would have the position of the day. It's not easy, how can you give up so easily? So Xiaguan gritted his teeth and followed him!"
There was a hint of determination in Yue Mingquan's eyes, and Huo Weilou narrowed his eyes, "He is just the young minister of Taichang Temple, how can I give you a chance to be promoted? Even if it is the Wang family of Qiangzhou, his Wang family of Qiangzhou is declining more and more now, not to mention, you Still a general."
Yue Mingquan shook his head, "He didn't say anything, the official asked me many times at that time, but he kept his mouth shut, but because of this, the official inexplicably believed him even more, and seeing that he was confident, the official thought, he must have a way Not only that, he said what he should say, and never said a word that he shouldn't say, mysterious and unpredictable, which always made the lower officials think that he was not simple."
Huo Weilou just found it absurd that Yue Mingquan colluded with Wang Qingfu without knowing the details of stealing relics, "Tell me about the day of the pawn in detail—"
"Before the grand ceremony, the lower official sent people to add a small organ to the lotus platform. The method of hiding people in the lotus platform was thought up by Wang Qingfu, but the lower official found it. The lower official is in the army. It was earlier. Nian and traveled with Master for two years, naturally met a few people from the rivers and lakes, found him, and hid him on the eve of the ceremony, he is a young man who is very good at softening bones."
"On the eve of the eve, Xiaguan predicted that there would be rain the next day, but in order to ensure safety, Xiaguan also prepared other methods. On the day of the pawn ceremony, Buddhist incense and candles were lit everywhere. If it did not rain that day, Xiaguan would order If people set fire to it, then the lower officials will order people to send the lotus platform and the treasure letter to the Daxiong Palace for safekeeping, and as long as they are out of everyone's sight, the relics can be stolen."
"The key to the treasure letter was given to the official by Wang Qingfu. At that time, he gave the key to the official, and the official was shocked. Later, the official taught the young man how to unlock it. After making sure it was safe, he gave it away. Send it into the lotus platform."
"Later on the day of the big pawn, it really rained, and the relic was stolen smoothly, but unexpectedly... Jing Kong found that the treasure letter was lighter, and what was stolen was only a gold coffin and a glass bottle, which were not heavy, but Jing Kong As careful as a hair, I still found out, and the lower officials were a little afraid at that time, but no one noticed the lotus platform."
"The lotus platform was sent back to the warehouse as an ordinary utensil, and the official released the man that night and ordered him to go down the mountain. That night, the Luozhou garrison, which was brought by the official, was under martial law on Qixia Mountain. Mistakes and omissions, the lower official naturally knew clearly, after the young man left, the lower official thought the matter was over, and later His Majesty left, although there were a few people left to investigate, but with the lower official around, nothing could be found out , but I didn't expect that Jingkong discovered the Buddhist scriptures again."
Huo Weilou frowned, "Did you propose to kill Jingkong, or Wang Qingfu?"
"It's Wang Qingfu." Yue Mingquan didn't hesitate, "I didn't send someone to buy the Buddhist scriptures, so naturally I don't take it seriously, and the person who bought the Buddhist scriptures has already been dealt with by Wang Qingfu, even if everyone knows about it, it doesn't matter, but Wang Qingfu was very decisive, and he said, in order to prevent everyone from chasing the relics endlessly, why not just find a scapegoat, Jing Kong is the host, and today he is the only one who has held the treasure letter with his own hands, if he suddenly disappears, the whole thing will come to an end. Doubts will fall on him."
Huo Weilou narrowed his eyes, "Wang Qingfu has another argument."
Yue Mingquan stared, "Of course he will put all the blame on Xiaguan, but what Xiaguan said is true. He and Xiaguan were the ones who killed Jing Kong back then. Although he was not good at martial arts, he carried with him Holding a dagger, he stabbed Qingkong with that dagger. After Qingkong passed away, he said that the workshop would not stay for long. If the corpse was hidden under the mud, it might be turned out soon, but It would take a lot of trouble to transport the corpse down the mountain, so he said it would be best to hide the corpse in a Buddha statue."
"At that time, the body and head of the statue of the venerable had already been molded, and it was only a matter of welding them together. The craftsmen even set up the shelves, and the stove beside it was not resting day and night. The officials divided the corpses and put them in the Buddha statue. In the body, the head was connected to it, and then the soft iron core in the furnace beside it was embedded in it, so that the Buddha statue was sealed. On the second day, Xiaguan arrived at the workshop early in the morning, first searched the workshop, and then ordered The craftsmen quickly molded the Buddha statue. At that time, a leading craftsman asked the Venerable who secretly welded the statue, but was suppressed by the officials. It seems like a small wave will pass quickly."
"Wang Qingfu and Wu Yu were officials from the capital. They stayed in the temple for a month, but Feng Lun and the officials stayed longer. The officials used their power to wipe out all possible clues."
Huo Weilou's eyes dimmed, "But it's impossible for Feng Lun to be unaware."
Yue Mingquan pulled out a very ugly wry smile, "It's about the workshop. Feng Lun had heard a little bit about the weird incident in the workshop when he was suppressed by officials, but he didn't ask much about it. When the portrait fell out, he thought of what happened ten years ago. After arriving in the temple, he tried to test Xiaguan once intentionally or unintentionally. At that time, Xiaguan knew that he remembered what happened back then. The next official told Feng Lun to shut up."
Huo Weilou frowned slightly, Yue Mingquan was afraid that he wouldn't believe it, "It's true, Wang Qingfu doesn't look like a man, but he is really a ruthless character. The officer disposes of it..."
Huo Weilou narrowed his eyes, and Yue Mingquan said: "The man was sunk into the Lancang River by the subordinate officials when he came to collect the money three months later."
Yue Ming's expression turned bitter, "The matter has come to that point, and I can't stop it anymore. I can only think about how to keep the glory I have. Fortunately... fortunately, after that, the matter finally subsided."
Huo Weilou asked, "Since he promised you a chance to be promoted, you didn't get promoted that fast."
At this point, Yue Mingquan sighed, "Yes, it's not as fast as Xiaguan thought, but it's extremely stable."
"Joining the Zhenxi Army, is that what you mean?"
Yue Mingquan shook his head, and a strange light appeared in his eyes, "No, it's not the meaning of the lower official, nor is it his promise. In the past ten years, every time the lower official feels anxious about waiting, the situation will always be better. Some, later joined the Zhenxi Army, which was considered to be in line with the lower official's own mind, the lower official felt that Wang Qingfu seemed to know some magic, he seemed to know what the lower official was thinking."
Huo Weilou's phoenix eyes were narrowed, "You mean, the two of you have had no other contact these years?"
Yue Mingquan should be, Huo Weilou asked again, "It was he who came to you back then, and there is no proof?"
Yue Mingquan nodded again, Huo Weilou smiled coldly, "In this case, you may have committed this case alone, and Wang Qingfu was just dragged in by you."
Yue Mingquan immediately said: "No! No!" He rolled his eyes in a panic, "The relic! The relic was taken away by him, and... and that key, yes, I keep that key .”
Yue Mingquan seemed to be grasping at straws, "When the young man came back, although Xiaguan sank him, he was a little worried in his heart, so he asked for the key back. At that time, Wang Qingfu sent a letter saying, Xiaguan It is only said that the key has also sunk in the river, so it will not be discovered, he should believe it, so he will not ask any more questions."
"Now the key is placed in the old house of Xiaguan's hometown in Cangzhou. The shape of the key is strange. It must be made by a skilled craftsman. Master Hou will be able to find out something after getting the key."
Huo Weilou remained silent, and another layer of cold sweat broke out on Yue Mingquan's forehead. He searched carefully, but found that he had not left any evidence of his relationship with Wang Qingfu in the past ten years, especially when he was with Wang Qingfu back then. Related matters were deliberately avoided, and since he was responsible for all the specific matters back then, Wang Qingfu seemed to be able to stay out of them.
Suddenly, Yue Mingquan looked at Huo Weilou and froze in place.
Seeing him like this, Lin Huai frowned slightly, Eunuch Fu was also a little puzzled, but Huo Weilou curled his lips lightly, "Soldiers never tire of cheating."
Yue Mingquan was sweating like rain, his face turned blue and red, his whole body was shaking like angry or angry, but Huo Weilou said softly, "You can understand now, you are not stupid."
Yue Mingquan clenched his fists tightly, and his teeth seemed to be crushed. He fell into the situation of Huo Weilou, and he counted all the secrets of the year, but when he wanted to prove that Wang Qingfu was the culprit, he found that Wang Qingfu had already picked himself dry. It's clean, but if that's the case, what iron evidence did Huo Weilou use to make Wang Qingfu speak
And Wang Qingfu's mouth is so strict.
The only explanation is that Huo Weilou lied to him, but just now, it was clearly Wang Qingfu again...
Yue Mingquan seemed to understand, but also didn't seem to understand, his whole body trembled like chaff, his eyes widened as if he was going to be dazed, Huo Weilou saw him like this, and shouted: "Luke—"
Lu Ke, who was on standby, immediately entered the door, Huo Weilou raised his jaw, "Let General Yue listen."
Lu Ke understood Huo Weilou's meaning as soon as he rolled his eyes, so he coughed lightly and said in a voice very similar to Wang Qingfu: "General Yue."
Yue Mingquan was startled, his pupils trembled, it was clearly Lu Ke's face, but the voice of speaking turned into Wang Qingfu's voice, which made Yue Mingquan feel very strange, but he also instantly understood the situation of just now, he He had heard that Huo Weilou had a lot of capable people and strange men, but he never expected that Lu Ke, who was born as an embroiderer, could act as the voice of others.
Yue Mingquan was drenched in cold sweat, and he seemed to have been drained of all his strength. If Wang Qingfu let go first, then he had acted helplessly, and it was not even considered morally unjust, but he was just stupid enough to enter Huo Weilou. The trick, I told all the things of the year, especially the key, and now I have no chance even if I want to retract the confession.
Yue Mingquan laughed miserably, "Your Majesty has good means."
Huo Weilou raised his sword eyebrows lightly, "If you lose to Benhou, it doesn't mean you are incompetent."
Yue Ming's whole body was crumbling, Huo Weilou sighed, "Now that I've said this, I think you know the result, and now, the evil things you do alone, at least don't hurt your family, this Marquis knows you You have a wife and children in Cangzhou, and you don't want your children to be involved."
Yue Mingquan smiled miserably again, he gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his eyes were a little more calm, "Don't worry, Lord Hou, what I said above is true, I'm an official... no... criminal minister, criminal minister, can you be with Wang Qingfu?" Confront in court."
Huo Weilou raised his hand, "Bring a pen and paper—"
Just now the pen and paper were just for show, but at this moment, it is time to really write down the evidence to be presented in court. Yue Mingquan's pen hand was trembling, but he had to write down the events of the year in great detail, word by word. He wrote for more than half an hour, and at the moment when he stopped writing, he suddenly remembered that the writing time in the right room just now was too short, but at that time he was flustered, and he was only concerned about maintaining his superficial calm, so how could he notice these side effects? minutiae.
Lin Huai put away the testimonies one by one, and Huo Weilou asked again, "Do you know that Wang Qingfu wants relics, what's the point?"
Yue Mingquan shook his head, "I don't know, he said what he should say, and he didn't say a word when he shouldn't. Sometimes the guilty minister even felt that there was a sense of righteousness in him that was not afraid of life and death. As long as he didn't want to, anyone would pry Don't open his mouth."
"However..." Yue Mingquan looked at Huo Weilou, "However, it's different when facing Lord Hou. If the chief official was anyone else today, the guilty minister would not open his mouth so easily."
These words were quite flattering, but Huo Weilou said: "Don't spoil the word 'Dayi', if evil people in the world should be called righteousness, then those in the Zhenxi Army who desperately killed the enemy in order to defend the border town General, how would you describe it?"
For a moment, Yue Ming felt a sense of sadness all over his body. He subconsciously turned his eyes to look out of the window, as if he wanted to see the desolate night in the northwest through the window lattice, but he could no longer see it. Countless halls were waiting for him. Trial and prison, in the end, his life will end on the guillotine on a certain calm day.
He could have returned home shrouded in horse leather, but in the end, he ended up in such a bleak and humiliating end.
When he walked out of the main entrance, Yue Mingquan's back was no longer as straight as it was when he came in. His back was hunched and his steps were heavy, like an old man in old age, and he himself knew that he really didn't have many days to live.
The room fell silent, Lin Huai collected Yue Mingquan's testimony and asked, "Master Hou, do you want to continue interrogating Wang Qingfu?"
Huo Weilou glanced at the sky, it was already dark, late night is indeed suitable for interrogating serious prisoners, but he felt that there seemed to be something missing around him, looked around, and suddenly realized that he hadn't seen Bo Ruoyou for half a day.
After waking up this morning, there was no need for an autopsy to deduce the case. Bo Ruoyou returned to the room after waiting outside for half a day, and if he wanted to set up this situation, he would not let Bo Ruoyou come. With a murderous spirit, although his mind lacks some careful calculations, he is still determined. He wants to intimidate and coerce Yue Mingquan, and Bo Ruoyou is not suitable for such a scene.
After pondering for a while, Huo Weilou rubbed the center of his brows, "Wang Qingfu is a bit weird, I'm afraid he won't open his mouth easily."
Eunuch Fu also wiped the sweat from his palms, "Yue Mingquan is no longer easy to deal with, why don't you take a rest tonight?"
Huo Weilou nodded, and Lin Huai also breathed a sigh of relief. Although Huo Weilou was the only one who was confronting Yue Mingquan just now, he and Eunuch Fu stood aside and couldn't show the slightest sense of guilt that this was just a game, and it took a lot of effort. The imposing aura of the dangerous building not only frightened Yue Mingquan, but also made it hard for the two of them. Compared with this, Lin Huai couldn't help feeling a little admiration for the young Wu Zhaohou beside him.
Lin Huai said quickly, "Then I will go back to sort out Yue Mingquan's evidence."
Huo Weilou nodded, Lin Huai retreated and left, Eunuch Fu exhaled, "I didn't expect that what happened back then was really the collusion between Yue Wang and Wang, if Youyou didn't find something weird between them, it would be hard to see."
Huo Weilou said immediately after hearing the words: "Call her over."
Eunuch Fu did not suspect him, went out to the other side room, knocked on the door, "Youyou, come here, Master Hou wants to see you."
Bo Ruoyou quickly opened the door, and she could clearly hear the commotion in the yard. When she saw Eunuch Fu, she asked, "Eunuch, is it going well tonight?"
Eunuch Fu nodded with a smile, "Successful, Yue Ming has recruited them all."
Bo Ruoyou also heaved a sigh of relief when he heard the words, and Eunuch Fu pointed to the upper room, "Go, Lord Hou is waiting for you."
Bo Ruoyou responded and went up to the room, entered the door, but Huo Weilou was no longer in the main hall, heard some noise in the left room, Bo Ruoyou went to the left room, and after entering the door, she saw Huo Weilou sitting in front of the window on the couch.
"Greetings to Lord Hou, what orders does Lord Hou have?"
The dim lights illuminated Bo Ruoyou's tall figure, her muscles and bones, especially her clear eyes, when she looked at the Huowei Tower, there was a tiny light flickering in her eyes, as if a galaxy had fallen into it.
Huo Weilou looked at her for a moment, "Yue Mingquan has confessed, Jing Kong was indeed killed by him and Wang Qingfu, and the relic was obtained by Wang Qingfu, this person is not simple."
Bo Ruoyou was a little surprised, because she never thought that Wang Qingfu took the relic, "What can a commoner girl do?"
Huo Weilou said bluntly: "At this point in the case, you can't do much."
Bo Ruoyou seemed a little puzzled, since she couldn't help, why did she call her here
"You have done what you should do, and you have done a good job. Now you can say what you want." Huo Weilou's voice was flat, as if he was just talking about a very common business, but his phoenix eyes were slightly Narrowly, the deepest part of the eyes only reflects the frail and frail shadow of Bo Ruoyou.
Bo Ruoyou clenched her hands nervously by her side, as if she didn't expect this moment to come so fast. She closed her eyes for a moment, but made up her mind very quickly. When she raised her eyes again, only Xia Tanran said, "Minnv doesn't want to waste her work skills. Therefore, Minnv wants to ask Lord Hou to recommend a minnv to the yamen as a job. If she doesn't seek public office, she can do her best."
Huo Weilou frowned slightly. Although he had expected that Bo Ruoyou's request had something to do with her working for him, he didn't expect her request to be so simple. After all, she is quite valued by He Cheng right now. As long as she thinks, He Cheng will even Let her settle down in Qingzhou City.
Huo Weilou asked: "Which yamen do you want to go to?"
"Minister wants to go..." Bo Ruoyou looked at Huo Weilou calmly but firmly, "The yamen of Jingzhao Mansion in the capital."