Painter

Chapter 262 110: Demon Book Case ([-])
The arrival of Mai Wang gave Li Chan an extra layer of speculation about Zhao Changyi's identity, but after another two days, the investigation of the Yaoshu case not only made no progress, but became more and more complicated.In order to investigate the case, the imperial court gathered most of the manpower of Jingzhong Suwei, Sanfasi and Shenzhasi, but it couldn't resist the fact that there were too many people with ulterior motives in the ruling and opposition parties.Although the suspects have been imprisoned one by one, if we want to clarify the inside story of the partisan criticism, I am afraid there will be no results even after a few months.

Rumors spread everywhere in Beijing, and people panicked. Because of the raids throughout the city, the bustling market in the past became quite deserted.Shengyefang in the east of Yujing City is the place where dignitaries live. The environment is originally quiet, but it seems to be the same as usual, but today it seems to be too quiet, even the sound of birdsong has disappeared.

A man in Chinese clothes was riding a horse across the alley. The dead silence of Shengyefang made people uneasy, and another thing haunting his mind prevented him from noticing the abnormalities around him.The man was Wang Xisheng, the general counselor of the court and the servant of the Huangmen, and also the younger brother of Concubine De. At this time, he was walking alone without any entourage.Out of the corner of the alleyway, a team of Jinwu Guards came head-on, Wang Xisheng's heart tightened, but he put on a smile, greeted the captain of the team, and said a few words of condolence.He breathed a sigh of relief when he passed by all the soldiers.The autumn wind was chilling, but beads of sweat oozed from his forehead.

When he reached the west side of Shengyefang, Wang Xisheng stopped near a mansion. After making sure that there was no one around, he unsaddled his horse and went in through the small door at the back of the mansion. He was led into the house by the gatekeeper.

Only in autumn, animal charcoal has been lit in the house, and the food on the table looks very plain, the only thing that can be called meaty is two bowls of egg custard and fish soup.But the chickens that lay eggs eat ginseng and gastrodia elata every day, and the fish soup is also made from 32 kinds of fresh fish.Such a standard of food is as luxurious as that in the palace, but Wang Xisheng is familiar with the owner of this mansion and knows that he is a salt merchant, so it is not surprising.

The salt merchant was entertaining a guest for dinner at this time. The guest was an unfamiliar face, dressed in gray and white dark clothes, handsome and refined, with the appearance of a scholar.It's just that the scholar looked over, but Wang Xisheng felt as if he was being stared at by a poisonous snake.The scholar was obviously a commoner, but Wang Xisheng felt his body was a little stiff, until Huang Dou asked him to sit down slowly opposite the scholar, and then he heard the scholar say, "I'm Qi Shengguang, I've met Wang Shilang."

The scholar had a smile on his face, as if he had expected to be able to catch the servant of the Huangmen sitting opposite him.Wang Xisheng felt very unhappy, and felt that the scholar's name sounded familiar. After thinking for a while, he finally remembered where he had heard the name.This person is a well-known litigator in Yujing, who is very good at sophistry. Wang Xisheng raised his eyebrows and said, "What do you come to see me for?" As he spoke, he glanced at the salt merchant.

The salt merchant looked awkward, while the scholar smiled and said, "Qi has always admired Wang Shilang's poetic talent. I will carefully ponder every poem written by Wang Shilang. Recently..."

Normally, this flattery must have been very useful to Wang Xisheng, but halfway through the scholar's words, the servant of the Huangmen frowned.Wang Xisheng is quite good at making money. As the brother of Concubine De, he can easily obtain official titles. However, because of his shallow literary talent, it is difficult to display his ambitions, so he often uses the hands of salt merchants to purchase other people's poems and record them for his own use.Wang Xisheng's expression was uncertain, and he only heard the scholar continue to say: "Recently, the case of the demon book in Beijing has made everyone feel insecure. I suddenly remembered that in Wang Shilang's "Yuntang Poems", there is a "prince enters the yellow house" This sentence, at this very moment, if it is spread by someone with a heart, I am afraid that it will be suspected by others and cause unnecessary disasters."

The so-called "yellow house" is the imperial palace.And "Prince" can also refer to the children of the Wang family.Wang Xisheng was taken aback for a moment, he had purchased thousands of poems, but he couldn't remember whether there was such a poem, so he turned his attention to the salt merchant.The salt merchant looked away, hesitated for a moment, and whispered to Wang Xisheng, "This is the person who sold this poem."

As soon as the salt merchant's words fell, Wang Xisheng suddenly felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave, and immediately understood that when this person sold his poems, he had already dug a hole for him to jump into.Now because of the demon book case, King Yu has been pushed to the forefront.As Concubine De's younger brother, he has this verse again. Does it mean that Concubine De and King Yu really intend to seize the heir?His face was pale, and he pointed at the scholar, "You, you have already planned it? Could it be that the demon book is also you..."

The scholar was also startled, and then smiled and said: "What about Wang Shilang, I just kindly remind you, there is no plan."

Wang Xisheng put down his trembling fingers, forced himself to calm down, and murmured: "Thank you...Your Majesty for reminding me, what can I teach you?"

The scholar Shi Shiran said: "Since Qi came to visit, he naturally thought of a countermeasure for Wang Shilang and Concubine De. Although Wang Shilang is famous for his poems, there are not many people who know them, and the collection of poems has only been circulated for more than a hundred years. Wang Shilang can rest assured that Qi will take them back one by one, but a few copies have been handed down to the states..."

Although he knew that the other party was blackmailing him, Wang Xisheng could only force a smile, and said along with the other party's words: "It's hard work for you, but I'm tired of traveling, so I should prepare some expenses for you. Five hundred guan Qian, I don’t know what your lord thinks?” Seeing the scholar smiling without saying a word, he probed again: “Eight hundred guan?”

The scholar sneered unceremoniously, "Qi is kind enough to help, why does Wang Shilang bargain so much and regard Qi as a philistine?"

Wang Xisheng quickly got up and pushed the scholar back, "Your Majesty, just open your mouth!"

The scholar smiled faintly and stretched out a finger.

"One thousand strings?" Wang Xisheng asked.

"1000 taels." The scholar shook his head.

At the same time, in another mansion in the west of Shengyefang, a beast with five eyes and six ears was prostrate in a dark room.Twelve Ting Lv were in front of the table, and the voices of countless people and chariots and horses came from the bamboo pipes.One of them listened to the law and repeated: "1000 taels."

Added another sentence: "Gold."

……

Jackdaws flew over Shengyefang and landed on the eaves of the gate.The yellow leaves are falling with the wind, and the Zhanfeng Duo under the eaves occasionally makes a soft sound.

The crow looked around, as if wondering why the place was so dead.When his eyes fell to the bottom, he saw more than a hundred Shenzha Siguancha in green suits surrounded by the wall and in the alley, silently.

Following a frightened crow, Chen Haochu pressed the handle of the knife, his eyes followed the jackdaws away.

He turned his eyes to the side, and the Gyeonggi Youyi Envoy was looking at the mansion in front of him thoughtfully.

Chen Haochu said in a low voice: "Li Youyi is really clever, this case is finally settled."

　Cheated
　　
　
(End of this chapter)