Criminal investigation in ancient times

One of the three giants of Jiangzhou salt merchants was chopped off in such a muddle-headed manner. Before everyone could figure out what was going on, Zhang Rui punched them with lightning speed, hitting these salt merchants straight away. They were top-heavy, terrified in their hearts, afraid that they would not be able to be kind this time.

This act of killing chickens and monkeys actually shocked the salt merchants in Jiangzhou enough, and immediately covered up his filth, for fear that he would be taken away by others like Ge Huaimao.All of a sudden, the whole Jiangzhou felt like an enemy, and everyone was in danger.The only thing that surprised Zhang Rui was that Wu Zefeng, the magistrate of Jiangzhou, actually picked everything out of this incident... There was no reason for taking bribes with the salt merchants, and Zhang Rui was confused, could it be possible? Is this Wu Zefeng really what he looks like?

But Tianxianglou clearly said that he had something to do with the salt merchant... The two choices before him are to investigate, or not to investigate!Zhang Rui faintly felt that if this matter continued to be investigated, many things that he did not want to see might be involved.

The Ge family collapsed, and the Ge family's business suddenly became like a piece of fat. Although the bold were exhausted and the timid starved to death, no one dared to act recklessly at such a critical point.In the end, it was Feng and Chu who came forward and took over the Ge family's business. Since then, there are only two "Big Three" in Jiangzhou. The competition between the two salt merchants suddenly became unprecedentedly fierce. Applause.

On this day of Xiao Sha ushered in Zhang Rui's second Spring Festival in ancient times.

Early in the morning, Uncle Han bought back the things that needed to be sacrificed. In previous years, he spent the New Year at home, but this year, they all ended up in the inn. Fortunately, they were not the only ones in the inn, and there were many merchants who didn't have time to go home. I can only celebrate the New Year in this inn.

When it got dark, the innkeeper sent a waiter next to the room to tell that there would be fireworks at Wangjiang Tower in Jiangzhou tonight.

Fireworks are rare in ancient times, only some are released during the festivals, and the appearance is incomparable with all kinds of modern fireworks, and these people are pleasantly surprised by the appearance of blooming in the sky.

Uncle Han hurriedly packed up his things, and went first with the two children accompanied by Duan Xiaobai.

Zhang Rui also changed into neat clothes, got up and went out with Zhou Yin.

There was a cool wind blowing outside, blowing the sleeves of the clothes flying.Zhang Rui took a deep breath and exhaled, "It's one year older, I always feel a little unreal."

Zhou Yin smiled and said, "How?"

Zhang Rui: "Originally, he was a run-down kid who lost his parents, but now he has become a senior member of the fourth rank in the blink of an eye."

Zhou Yin stopped and looked at him and said, "Do you still want to go up again?"

Zhang Rui looked at him and shook his head and said, "It's extremely cold at the top, and it's already difficult to be in this position. If I go up any further, I'm afraid I won't be able to bear the pressure, and sooner or later I will send the head of this superior."

Zhou Yin smiled and took his hand and said, "Then it's good to continue like this. You have handled the affairs of the Ge family very well, and the private salt booklet has also been submitted. I am afraid there will be major changes in Beijing."

Zhang Rui smiled wryly: "This time I'm on the same line as the First Prince. If he ascends the throne in the future, it would be best for me to return to the land. He can't let me resign... Also ask him to leave my whole body."

Zhou Yin tightened his hand, squeezed Zhang Rui and said: "No, there is me, I will not let the eldest prince hurt you at all."

Zhang Rui wanted to say that you might not be able to protect yourself, but he felt that it would be meaningless to say it, so he nodded: "I don't want to think about that, let's go watch the fireworks!" The two of them walked towards Wangjiang Tower as they spoke.

A lot of people had already surrounded the river, and from a long distance away, they saw the tiger jumping up and down, dragging Qing Luo around.

Zhang Rui walked over and said, "There are a lot of people here, you two, be careful not to get lost."

Huzi bared his teeth and said with a smile, "My lord, I've already been around Jiangzhou city, it's not easy to lose it."

Zhang Rui smiled and knocked on his head: "Then you take Qing Luo well and don't lose him."

Huzi put on a serious look and cupped his hands and said, "I obey, my lord!"

Qing Luo was so shaken by him that he laughed loudly. A while ago, because of his master, he was reluctant to talk to others for a long time. Now it is best to think about it. The dead can miss it, but the living have to keep going go down.

"Bang!...clang!" A beam of fireworks rose into the sky, illuminating the entire riverside, and everyone looked up at the bright fireworks.

Zhang Rui looked up at the fireworks and his eyes were slightly red, thinking of his parents in the previous life: Mom and Dad, are you all right?No matter where my son goes, I didn't embarrass you, but I can't do my filial piety to you two elders. I wish you both good health and a long life...

Zhou Yin did not watch the fireworks, but looked at Zhang Rui silently. The flowers illuminated the night sky, and at the same time illuminated the person in front of him. Looking at Zhang Rui, who was not considered an adult, the fragility revealed at this moment made him Distressed.She stretched her arms around his shoulders and raised her head to look at the brightness of the night sky like him.

***

It was also the New Year in Beijing, but it seemed to be shrouded in an invisible black mist. The emperor's face was as dark as the night sky after he got the booklet selling private salt from Jiangzhou salt merchants.

Jiang Bozhong stood beside him with a bitter face, wiping the cold sweat on his forehead with his sleeves from time to time. Since he took the position of prime minister, he has never been stable for a day. Make things difficult.Occasionally, the second prince would join in the fun, even though he was as smooth as an egg, he couldn't bear the pressure. He was about to be beaten, and he was rescued by this urgent report from Jiangzhou.

The matter is so important that Jiang Bozhong didn't dare to make decisions without authorization, and directly presented the brochure to the imperial court.

The emperor didn't say a word after reading it, but his expression already decided everything.

Eunuch Chang Sheng came in with the medicine in hand and said, "Your Majesty, it's time to take medicine."

The emperor took the medicine bowl and frowned, threw it to the ground hard and continued coughing heart-piercingly.

Everyone hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed: "The emperor calm down."

"Isn't what I gave him enough? My country will be his in the future, why can't I wait to take it from me!" He covered his mouth and coughed again.

Chang Sheng hurriedly got up and poured a cup of tea from the table and handed it to the emperor.

The emperor drank the tea to suppress the itching in his throat, with an abnormal blush on his face, he said: "Jiang Bozhong, according to my order, the eldest prince will be imprisoned in Dali Temple immediately, and he will not be released without my order." !"

Jiang Bozhong was stunned and said: "This... Your Majesty thinks twice, and the Eldest Prince can't think about it for a while. If you are really escorted into Dali Temple, I am afraid that there will be disturbances in the court..."

The emperor clapped the case and said: "Is he the emperor or I am the emperor! I don't care about those people in the court, and I really think I don't know! Immediately draw up an order for me."

Jiang Bozhong didn't dare to think any more, he hurriedly wrote the imperial edict for the emperor, and the emperor stretched out his withered hand to grab the imperial seal and printed it on the imperial edict.

On the second day, the hall exploded like boiling water!

The eldest prince was brought into Dali Temple for investigation... What does this mean, the emperor is going to abandon the eldest prince!Right Prime Minister Li Qian was startled and frightened, why did the matter in Jiangzhou suddenly reach the emperor!Ordinarily, even if the paperwork was handed up from Jiangzhou, it would have to go through the hands of one's own people, and the emperor would not know anything about it and cut the mess with a sharp knife!Could it be that the people I arranged were all eliminated?If the first prince is imprisoned in Dali Temple, then they will be leaderless on their side, how can they win over the second prince!Thinking of this scared him so that he hurried into the palace to meet the emperor, but the emperor didn't want to see him at all, so he directly complained about his illness, and no one was seen.

Li Qian turned around in a hurry, seeing the eldest prince being taken to the Dali Temple, he was so angry that he couldn't get sick.

There are also many scheming people in the line of the eldest prince, and now that he thinks about it, he knows that the second prince must be in the way, so he begins to expose the second prince's dirty things.

What is being disrespectful to elder brother, what is being rude to courtiers who are ignorant of learning and skills, not being able to distinguish between five grains... These are all trivial things, and they can't shake the position of the second prince at all. Now they are dumbfounded. He has been cautious and cautious for many years, and has never made a mistake. He seems to be unknown, but in fact he has a lot of scheming.The only felony, colluding with courtiers—but wouldn't it be a slap in the face of the eldest prince if this was said!Speaking of colluding with courtiers, who is better than him?The forces in his hands are almost ready to set up another court!

As soon as Prime Minister You fell ill, the group of people were like pheasants with their feathers ripped off, panicked at the news, clutching their buttocks and not knowing where to hide.

The second prince, Zhou Yongzheng, was about to visit the emperor after finishing his studies. He heard from the imperial doctor that the emperor's health was not very good these days. Zhou Yongzheng touched the jade ring on his little finger with a sad face, and walked towards the emperor's bedroom.

When he arrived at the bedroom, he smelled a strong smell of medicine before stepping in. He pondered in his heart that he might really be seriously ill this time.

If you say that the emperor is only in his forties this year, he is still in his prime in modern times, but in ancient times... because he often took those so-called elixir, his body suffered too much, his hair was gray, his face was wrinkled, and he already looked old. up.

The second prince walked in and knelt down and said, "Father, my son has come to see you."

The emperor raised his eyes slightly, looked at him and nodded tiredly, and continued to lie with his eyes closed and pant heavily.There seemed to be a lump of phlegm in his throat, and he kept snoring.

Suddenly, the phlegm stuck in his throat, and the old emperor coughed desperately "cough, cough, cough...", the eunuch next to him hurriedly brought the spittoon, and the second prince took the spittoon and helped the emperor up to let him vomit.

After spitting out a mouthful of bloody phlegm, the old emperor felt much more comfortable, and he waved his hand to let him sit up against the pillow.

"Yongzheng..."

The second prince: "The son is here, does the father have anything to say?"

"In the blink of an eye, you've grown so big... your elder brother...although he's not good with you, but you two are siblings after all. In the future...if I leave, you have to save his life and treat him kindly... You can't...you can't kill him, you know!"

The second prince was so frightened that he knelt on the ground and hurriedly said: "Father! I dare not do such unconscionable things, and I implore Father to stop saying such things. Father, you are just sick. After a while It's fine, don't worry."

The emperor laughed "hehe" twice: "I know what my body is like, what I will tell you today...you just have to listen to it with all your heart..." He closed his eyes and waved his hands to let him go down.

The second prince leaned beside him, his eyes flickering.Chang Sheng hurriedly supported the emperor to lie down, and said: "Second prince, please go back, your majesty is resting." The old emperor was already snoring again while lying on the bed.

"Father, I will come to see you tomorrow." Said and retreated.

Chang Sheng watched the old emperor look at the second prince's back, frowned, called the little eunuch next to him and said: "Serve the emperor, the miscellaneous family will go out to pay respects." After saying that, he left the bedroom in a hurry.

The eldest prince was brought to Dali Temple, the eldest concubine was so anxious, and when she returned to her mother's house, she saw that her father was also sick and lying on the bed, and she couldn't get up. The ground is not working, what should I do now!

Li Qian said: "Yun'er, don't worry, the emperor hasn't announced the establishment of the second prince yet, we still have hope, this time it was my father's mistake, and Jiangzhou didn't inform me of such a big incident, presumably The second prince must have played tricks on it, I have already sent someone to Jiangzhou, ahem...for my father, I underestimated the inspector." The eldest princess hurriedly patted him on the back and looked at Li Qian worriedly.

"Father, what should we do now, in case the emperor really..."

Li Qian shook his head helplessly, gritted his teeth and said: "After all, the emperor only imprisoned the eldest prince in Dali Temple. If he really abandons him, I'm afraid he will be demoted directly outside the pass."

The eldest prince concubine nodded, she was still in doubt, she always felt that this time it would not be so easy and it would be over.

Li Qian's eyes were dark: "If it doesn't work, there is still the last step. Don't worry, Yun'er. I will send you up even if I risk my life for my father."

It should be said that the house leak happened to rain all night, the court here was tossing about the salt merchants, and the Xiongnu there were ready to move.

This winter the Xiongnu experienced a heavy snowstorm, and many cattle and sheep froze to death. The Xiongnu looked at the rich clothes and jade food of the Zhou Dynasty, and their eyes were red. Why did they not have to suffer from hunger? No need to be cold and tired!The Xiongnu Shanyu raised his arms, and tens of thousands of Xiongnu soldiers began to gather.A spy came to report that the Xiongnu had acquired thousands of stone and refined iron from somewhere for a while to make weapons, and the purpose can be imagined.

The frontier is in danger, and the court is fighting with each other. The second prince is in the main battle. Although the first prince's line does not have the first prince, they oppose everything that the second prince supports, and directly advocate for peace.There are still many neutral factions in the court who are still hesitating, waiting for the emperor's words.

The emperor hadn't been to the court for a long time, even after hearing about the Huns, he just waved his hands and let them make their own decisions.People in the court were panicked.

Due to internal and external troubles, the century-old foundation of the Great Zhou Dynasty is in turmoil...