The winter night is cold and solemn, the cold wind is howling, the night cannot see the edge, and the darkness is overwhelming. In the deep darkness, a woman carried a lamp and lifted the curtain out, disturbing the frost on the ground, and the darkness receded from her feet like a tide.
The world is dark, but there is warmth and light around her. When she saw Lu Heng, her eyes naturally smiled, and she said softly, "Second brother, you are back."
Lu Heng's heart seemed to melt for a moment in such a cold night, and a smile appeared on his face: "Why did you come out without putting on your clothes? It's cold outside, go back quickly."
Wang Yanqing was afraid that it would be too late, so she came out without a cloak and only wearing homely clothes. Wang Yanqing said, "It's only two steps away, it's okay."
Lu Heng took her by the shoulders, forcibly turned her around, and pushed her back into the house: "It's not enough to only take two steps. Many diseases are accumulated little by little like this."
Lu Heng and Wang Yanqing returned to the house. He glanced at the dining room and asked, "Have you eaten yet?"
Wang Yanqing handed the lantern to the maid and came forward to help Lu Heng untie his cloak: "I ate a few snacks in the afternoon before going to bed, but I lost my appetite when I woke up."
Lu Heng's cloak was large and heavy, and Wang Yanqing had to hold it tightly to prevent the cloak from falling to the ground. She patted off the broken snow on the collar and folded the hem carefully. Seeing Wang Yanqing's movements, Lu Heng said, "No need to fold it, just leave it to the maid."
Wang Yanqing shook his head, still folded the cloak, and placed it neatly in the maid's tray. The two of them sat down at the table of the Eight Immortals, the maid lightly served the dishes and removed the food box, Wang Yanqing lifted the teapot, scalded the cup with water, and then poured a cup of hot tea, placed it in front of Lu Heng, and asked, "Second brother , is Liang Rong's case going well?"
Lu Heng held the tea cup in his hand and said slowly, "It went well naturally. It has been sent to the commander Chen Du for review. If the commander has no opinion, the case can be settled."
The commander of Chen Du in Lu Heng's mouth was Chen Yin, who was also an old minister from Xingwang's mansion. Wang Yanqing glanced at Lu Heng quietly, and asked in a low voice, "Second brother, after all, this is a case that Mr. Chen has finalized. We will investigate it privately, does it really matter?"
Lu Heng smiled and turned the tea cup slowly: "Those who are able to investigate the case will stay there. This is indeed a wrongful case. What's wrong with rehabilitating it? Don't worry, I know these things in my mind."
Seeing this, Wang Yanqing stopped talking. She found that although the second brother laughed often, he was far more terrifying than those stern black-faced men. He didn't hide his ambitions and methods in the slightest. He was sharp-edged and eager to move. At the age of twenty-two, he dared to openly challenge his superiors and seniors.
For such a person, Wang Yanqing didn't know whether to admire him for his boldness and carefulness, or to worry that he was too easy to break.
Lu Heng drank a cup of tea, and his body was almost warm before he started to move his chopsticks. This meal was arranged according to Wang Yanqing's own taste. She took two bites of the dishes and found that Lu Heng took the dishes very evenly, and each dish was basically the same number of times. She whimpered softly and asked, "Second brother, don't you like these?"
"No." Lu Heng vetoed and asked, "Why do you ask that?"
"I see that the number of times you pick up vegetables is the same. It seems like I calculated it deliberately, and I thought you didn't like it." Wang Yanqing sat upright and said seriously, "I was negligent and forgot to ask the second brother what he liked."
Lu Heng shook his head, smiled and said, "Don't worry about me, I don't have the mental arithmetic, I'm just used to it."
Wang Yanqing tilted her head slightly, feeling very strange: "Can you still get used to it?"
"When I was a child, my father taught me to learn to play chess in order to sharpen my temper. Gradually, I got used to paying attention to the numbers around me. In fact, there is no difference, you don't need to care."
Not to mention, a person like Lu Heng is very good at counting. Wang Yanqing asked curiously, "If the second brother is naturally sensitive to numbers, wouldn't it be great to play the leaf card?"
Lu Heng heard the laugh and nodded slowly: "It can be considered a trick. But I rarely play these."
Wang Yanqing can fully understand that if Lu Heng is really attentive, he must be very good at counting cards, and no one can beat him. Over time, naturally no one wants to play with him. Wang Yanqing said: "The leaf card is nothing but a leisure pastime. The second brother has more important things to do, so naturally he won't waste time on these things."
Wang Yanqing gave Lu Heng a bowl of soup, and Lu Heng took it and gave her a half-smiling look: "In front of me, there is no need to say such flattering words."
"Where is the flattery, it's obviously telling the truth." After Wang Yanqing finished speaking, her face became slightly positive, and she asked, "I haven't asked the second brother what he likes to eat. In the future, I will let the kitchen arrange the meals, so that I can know the proportions."
She still persevered and wanted to cater to Lu Heng's taste. Lu Heng thought about it and said, "I don't have any preferences. You can arrange it as you like. If you have to say it, I prefer less-flavored meals."
Wang Yanqing nodded and wrote down silently: "That's right, the second brother is from Anlu, so naturally he likes light things."
"That's not the reason." Lu Heng took a sip of the soup and said slowly, "Because dishes with mild taste are not easy to be poisoned."
Hearing the helplessness, Wang Yanqing looked at Lu Heng angrily: "Second brother, you are joking again."
Lu Heng smiled at her, but did not refute. Wang Yanqing saw Lu Heng's expression, and the smile on his lips faded a little.
She realized that Lu Heng was telling the truth. Wang Yanqing knew that Lu Heng was suspicious, but he couldn't even be at ease in his own home
Wang Yanqing did not continue this topic, and ate the rest of the meal in silence. The two put down the dishes one after another, and Lu Heng waited for Wang Yanqing to wash his hands in the basin and dry them with a handkerchief before getting up and walking between the tips: "Qingqing, come with me, I have something to show you. "
Wang Yanqing responded and quickly followed behind Lu Heng. The two took their seats on the Arhat bed, and they didn't need any orders. The maid in the room removed the cups on the table of the Eight Immortals, came in and turned on the lights. After Fushen bowed, they quietly retreated, and when they went out, they closed the doors and windows spontaneously. Seeing this battle, Wang Yanqing also felt a drum in his heart: "Second brother, is it a very confidential thing?"
"It doesn't count." Lu Heng said, "It's just some information. This is the biographical history of the civil servants suspected of corruption. This Zhao Huai is the leader. Come and take a look."
Wang Yanqing took the roster from Lu Heng. These booklets were temporarily bound, each with one person written on it, and "Zhao Huai" was written on the thickest title page. Wang Yanqing was the first to pick up Zhao Huai's and look at it. She flipped through it for a while and asked, "Why did he embezzle?"
Wang Yanqing lost her memory, and her knowledge of the officialdom was completely blank. Even so, she could see that Master Zhao was on a fast track and had a very smooth career. Why would such a proud official and promising person get involved in taking bribes
Lu Heng said casually: "People die for wealth, birds die for food, and if the knife does not fall on their heads, everyone feels that they can be spared. The eunuchs Zhang Yong and Xiao Jing of the Zhengde Dynasty secretly gave the court a secret position for their own gain. The ministers give gifts so that they can open the door of convenience. Zhao Huai is one of the key officials who was bribed."
Wang Yanqing nodded slowly, so it was. She asked, "What is the approximate amount?"
Lu Heng stretched out his finger, Wang Yanqing saw it and asked tentatively, "Five thousand taels?"
Lu Heng smiled slightly: "It is indeed five thousand taels, but it is gold."
Wang Yanqing gasped: "So much?"
Lu Heng didn't agree, what is this, Zhao Huai is just an appetizer at best, the real fat sheep hasn't been served yet. Wang Yanqing flipped through the booklet in his hand again, and instantly felt that the paper was heavy.
After Wang Yanqing understood the nature of the case, she carefully studied Zhao Huai's life from the beginning. She read page by page and asked, "There is so much gold, and there will be no shortage of other silver and jewelry. These things take up a lot of space. , I'm afraid it's not easy to hide."
Lu Heng nodded slightly, and the meaning on his face was unclear. This is what troubles them. The Jinyiwei supervises hundreds of officials, and there are spies everywhere. They know the family background of the ministers in the court, and even know what is going on in their beds. The emperor has always known that the people below are greedy, and when he is an official in the court, which one is not corrupt? Jinyiwei is the emperor's eyes and sword. When there is nothing to do, he holds the handle of the officials for the emperor. Once the emperor needs it, he will sweep the people in the way off the chessboard.
Zhao Huai is an outdated chess piece, but Zhang Yong sent it very secretly. Jinyi Weikong knew the amount, but he didn't know where Zhao Huai hid the money.
Corruption is the same as catching rape. If you don't catch the righteous master on the bed, it is not a mistake. Lu Heng wasn't afraid to offend people, but he had to grasp the location of the stolen money before he could make an attack, otherwise, once he was out of the bag, he would be sent off.
Especially now that he is still on the cusp, Chen Yin, Fu Tingzhou, and Yang Yingning are all staring at him.
Lu Heng sighed softly and said, "That's right. Corrupt officials hide money, but there are several ways to hide money from ancient times to the present, such as building walls, sandwiching walls, and secret cellars. However, I sent dark piles into Zhao Huai's house to find them, in the bedroom, study, No gold and silver were found in the garden, and no mezzanine was found in the walls. People who went to Zhao Huai's hometown returned nothing."
If the money is not in your own home, and it has not been transported back to your hometown, where else can it be? Wang Yanqing fell into deep thought, Lu Heng waited for a while, and said slowly: "There are two possibilities now. First, there are other secret rooms or cellars in Zhao Huai's house, we don't know yet; second, he hid the money outside, we are there He looked around, and naturally he couldn't find it."
Wang Yanqing looked at the volume in his hand, and slowly shook his head: "I don't think it's outside, I should be by his side, at least a place he can often see."
"Oh?" Lu Heng asked calmly, "Why did Qingqing say that?"
"Looking at his childhood experience, I guessed it." Wang Yanqing pointed out a page that recorded Zhao Huai's family to Lu Heng, and said, "He was young and lost his parents and was raised by his mother. He has two sisters on him. Although he is supported by his family, he still relies on his mother and sister to weave for his daily livelihood. People who grow up in this environment tend to be weak and tend to become dependent on female elders. Even if a smooth career in adulthood makes up for his self-confidence, he will never He will become a bold and decisive person who dares to take risks. He seems to be hard but is actually soft and cowardly, and he has a childhood experience of lack of money, and he will not worry about hiding money outside. It's a place that he can touch all the time."
Lu Heng didn't speak, but his eyes were full of smiles: "Qingqing has never seen Zhao Huai, how do you know Zhao Huai's character?"
"Guess." Wang Yanqing took the book back and said, "Although people have their own ideas, people who grew up in similar environments often have similar behaviors. It depends on a person's family background, growth environment, and life. Through experience, I can probably guess the character of this person. I think according to Zhao Huai's thinking, anyway, if I were him, I would never trust someone else with the money I finally collected."
Lu Heng finally laughed, his eyes shrouded Wang Yanqing like a fine net, and said slowly, "I feel the same way, so I focused on his home, but I couldn't find it."
Wang Yanqing closed the book and imagined that he was a young man who lost his father, had a poor family, and depended entirely on his clan to support him. She tried to think about it for a while, but her mind was empty, and there was a feeling that she had no idea what to do. Lu Heng looked at it for a while, then asked casually, "Qingqing, what did you think of?"
Wang Yanqing sighed and looked at Lu Heng truthfully: "Second brother, there is so little information now, I can't think of it."
"No hurry." Lu Heng held Wang Yanqing's hand and said, "You haven't met Zhao Huai yet, so how could you just come up with your brain? Here is the map of Zhao Huai's house, take your time and wait until you're ready. Tell me, I will take you to see Zhao Huai."
Wang Yanqing nodded in agreement, she bit her lip after speaking, and hesitated. Lu Heng remained calm and asked, "What's wrong?"
Wang Yanqing raised her head and looked at Lu Heng nervously: "Second brother, if I can't ask, it will waste your time in vain, what should I do?"
Lu Heng laughed, shook the back of her hand silently, and said, "It doesn't matter. Originally, this is my business. Without you, I would also interrogate them. You are here to help me, not to owe me. You don't have to give it to yourself. Too much pressure, prepare with peace of mind, and don’t care about the time.”
Wang Yanqing nodded slightly, and seeing that it was getting late, Lu Heng sent her back to her room. Although Lu Heng said that he didn't need to care about the time, Wang Yanqing still looked at the information day and night, staring at the map of Zhao Huai's house for a day.
When Wang Yanqing stepped up his research, Lu Heng also encountered some trouble. The emperor left him for half a month, and now ten days have passed in the blink of an eye. Lu Heng held his breath, and the others came out one by one.
Lu Heng came out of the palace and met Chen Yin at Zuoshunmen. When Lu Heng saw the person coming, his expression remained unchanged, and he lowered his eyes slightly to salute Chen Yin: "I have seen the commander of Chen Du."
When Chen Yin saw Lu Heng, he smiled and said, "It's you. I haven't seen you for a long time. I look at you now. When did you come back from Baoding?"
Lu Heng still smiled, like a humble and respectful junior, answering any questions: "Yesterday."
"I just came back yesterday." Chen Yin sighed with a long voice, stared at Lu Heng, and said, "Why have you gone so long? You are leaving Beijing at this juncture. It seems that the embezzlement case handed over to you by the sage has already taken shape? "
Before the emperor urged them, they couldn't wait one by one. Lu Heng's smile deepened, and the end of his eyes was slightly curved, which made the peach blossom eyes more and more sparkling: "Thanks to the trust of the Holy One, I should do my best to share your worries for you."
The expression in Chen Yin's eyes became even colder, and he was not too timid to dare to provoke him in front of him? Chen Yin was different from Lu Heng. Lu Heng maintained an impeccable smile at all times, but Chen Yin was in a bad mood, and the expression on his face naturally cooled down. Chen Yin stared at Lu Heng, exerting invisible pressure. Lu Heng also kept his eyes half-drooped, and seemed to obey and humble, but there was no fear between his brows.
Chen Yin laughed angrily: "It turns out that I underestimated you. Some dogs not only dare to bite outsiders, but if they are not careful, even their own people have to prevent their hands from being bitten."
"Don't dare." Lu Heng said calmly, "I have to rely on the commander Chen Du for guidance. If the commander Chen Du is afraid of dogs, they should be careful in the capital. After all, at the foot of the imperial city, most people are without owners. wild dog."
Chen Yin glared at Lu Heng coldly, then turned and walked into the palace. Lu Heng stopped at the door of Zuo Shun, and when Chen Yin was far away, he turned around and walked out calmly.
Chen Yin called him a dog, so what's the use? It's better than an ownerless dog like Chen Yin.
To put it bluntly, the cabinet, the Imperial Academy, the Censor Desk, who is not the lackey in the emperor's hands? Once someone is disobedient, the emperor only needs to let go of the reins, and some flies will rush up and shred it.
There are so many people in the capital who want to be dogs for the nobles. Lu Heng didn't care about Chen Yin's threat. As long as he completed the emperor's task and made a qualified knife, he wouldn't care even if he offended many emperors. On the contrary, if his blade is no longer sharp, and the tip of the blade can no longer point precisely in the direction the emperor wants, it will be the day of real disaster.
On the night of December 15, the prison was crowded and bloody as usual. The jailer shook his hands and numbly lit the oil lamp on the wall. The dim light quickly swayed from the ground, and the darkness rose and fell like a tide, swaying uncontrollably. In the changing light and shadow, a group of people walked on the dark river. The jailer saw the face of the leader and immediately stood up and saluted: "See Commander Lu."
When the jailer saluted, he vaguely glimpsed a man in a cloak standing behind Commander Lu. Judging by his height and size, he didn't seem like a man. The jailer wanted to instruct the envoy to bring the woman to the prison for what to do. Recently, he has not heard of any minister's family being in distress.
Thoughts flashed in the jailer's mind, but he didn't dare to take a closer look. He just glanced and lowered his head, staring at the black and hard blood stains on the corridor. Lu Heng responded lightly and said, "Where's Zhao Huai?"
The jailer became more cautious and said, "As usual, in the cell."
After the jailer finished speaking, he paused and said tentatively, "If the commander wants to interrogate him, will the young man bring him up?"
"No need." Lu Heng walked past the darkened prison door, the turbulent wall lamps on both sides sprinkled on him, half-bright and half-sleep, like a charm, "Continue to guard the door, no one is allowed to enter without my warrant."