Back Off, Let Me Come

"So many injuries?"

"It's so cruel..."

"Killing is just a nod... What kind of hatred is there to torture a seventeen or eighteen-year-old child so cruelly?"

No one here could see this kind of cruelty.

Ning Yan exhaled a breath and calmed down: "Judging from the results of Ji Shou's investigation, the so-called ghosts are mostly talking spirits and fooling the world. Perhaps we can follow this clue to secretly check whether there are any matching people in Jinli County. Literary scholar."

The scope of the investigation was suddenly narrowed.

However, this proposal was rejected by Shen Tang with a shake of his head.

She frowned and said, "If that's the case, there's too much movement."

The group of people made this trip specifically to avoid alerting others. Shen Tang leaned back, leaned on the desk, closed his eyes, and tapped the table with his fingers. The ministers from all walks of life were also whispering and exchanging information with each other, and their brows never relaxed.

This is what Ning Yan is worried about: "Indeed, if you don't take action, it's enough. Once you take action, you have to hit the point, but the breakthrough point..."

There are clues, but which clue can be used as a breakthrough?

Shen Tang turned his head and looked in the direction of the window lattice: "Wait."

After saying that, the room fell into an unspeakable silence.

When Ning Yan heard this, her eyes fell on Qi Shan, Chu Yao and others.

Trying to read the progress on their faces.

The host and guest, the doctor, looked around and couldn't get into the conversation.

As the chief of the fourth department of the Ministry of Etiquette, the matter at hand was not in line with his profession. It was not his responsibility to worry as it was beyond his authority. But this does not prevent him from secretly communicating with his colleagues with his fingers: [Oh, I hope this is a simple corruption case...]

The doctor from the Food and Beverage Department rolled his eyes: [Is a corruption case considered innocent or not? Have you ever thought about how many people will die if there is a problem in Jinli County? With our Lord's temper, she would shake the yolks away from the eggs laid by the hens in the corrupt official's house...]

This kind of cutting-edge words came from her own words.

The doctor from the Department of Rites also learned to roll his eyes: "If it is a corruption case, at most a few hundred people will die, and only a thousand people will die." If it weren't for the corruption case, tens of thousands of people would have died. 】

The doctor in the Department of Food and Beverage was awakened: [……]

After all, they are all important officials in the court. Even if the etiquette department is very idle and the four ministers gather together every day to keep warm and eat melon, this can only prove that the department has less work, not that they are not strong enough. If it is really a simple corruption case, the Ministry of Punishment and the Seven Guards and Four Leaders can handle it and let the local Zichong government send troops to surround it. Which corrupt official can escape? Now it was the king himself who took action.

This can only prove that there are things involved behind the case, either the Ministry of Punishment cannot handle it, or the ruler of the country cannot wait for the Ministry of Punishment to investigate the case.

They all hope it's the latter.

The ruler of the country has a really impatient personality, and she often takes matters into her own hands when she encounters cases while patrolling the country, which is in line with her usual temperament.

But, I'm afraid it's the former.

This is also the most worrying guess among the ministers of the Ministry of Rites - first, the supervisory censor who hid his identity in Jinli County, Kunzhou was killed, and then the granary was stolen. Is it the local officials who are audacious, or are they supported by forces that resist the royal court? ?

No one here wants this guess.

This means, start a war!

Is the enemy the Northern Desert or the High Country?

Or--

Are they both involved?

Gao is the name of the country established by Wu Xian.

Doctor of the Department of Food and Beverage: [Indeed, if this war really breaks out, the safety of the grain depots on the Kunzhou battlefield cannot be guaranteed. The enemy may intervene at any time. If another 'ghost steals grain' happens, it will be really embarrassing. The Lord’s murderous intention will only become more serious...]

The doctor of the temple department: [Where did the food and grass go? 】

The doctor from the Department of Etiquette nuzzled in Shen Tang's direction.

[Your Majesty and Prime Minister Chu, don’t they have a headache? 】

If it were just a simple corruption case, Jinli County's official office would have been surrounded long ago. Now they are making secret moves. Isn't it because they are not sure which guess to make? In the worst-case scenario, rashly sending out troops to encircle the enemy would be to alert the enemy, but would miss important clues.

At this time, Shen Tang opened his eyes.

A mature female voice also came from outside the house.

"Lord, people have been brought."

Shen Tang sat up straight: "Wei Heng, come in."

After the words fell, a woman in plain purple clothes entered with a sword in hand, followed by a familiar-looking woman, who was Captain Zhe Chong of Jinli County. The latter was in a sorry state, his Dan Mansion was sealed, and he was still walking with a limp: "Wei Heng, you haven't been discovered, have you?"

Yu Zi shook her head: "Everything went well."

Some of the officials present recognized this Captain Zhechong.

Of course they knew that no one in Jinli County could be trusted, but they didn't expect that the first person their master would arrest would be the chief of Zhe Chong Mansion! For a moment, someone's expression turned even worse. The supervisory censor was suspected to have been killed, and even the Zhechong Mansion was infiltrated.

Captain Zhe Chong also turned pale when he saw Shen Tang.

Still pretending to be calm: "Lord, why is this?"

"I have never revealed my true identity to you. When Yuan Liang asked you to mention someone, he only said that I was a member of the Criminal Department responsible for supervising the case. But just now in prison, Yuan Liang deliberately revealed my identity, but you didn't say anything. No surprise, just call me 'Lord'. You know my identity but pretend not to know, so it is reasonable for me to suspect you and interrogate you."

Shen Tang is also unwilling to interrogate the captain of Zhechong Mansion, which would be too shameful, but she is the biggest breakthrough at present, so she can give it a try.

Zhe Chong rolled the captain's throat several times.

With beads of sweat on his forehead, he said nervously: "The last general..."

"Don't lie, you can't lie either. I allow you to tell the truth now and take the initiative to confess to give you dignity. If you don't know what to do, you have to see the spirit of the Ministry of Justice. If the foundation of your cultivation is damaged, you will only be responsible for the consequences." To bear it.”

These words struck a chord with Captain Zhe Chong.

Everything she has now is based on military merit.

Military merit is obtained by relying on this force.

The foundation of cultivation is destroyed, and the future is also ruined.

"Gu's eyes can't tolerate sand, and I hate being fooled the most in my life. Now I'm just interrogating you instead of killing you directly. You should know why." Naturally, it was because she knew that Captain Zhechong had a problem but was not the mastermind. She had the chance to be given a lighter sentence. Feel down.

"Speaking of which, who told you that I would come?"

Before Lieutenant Zhe Chong could open her mouth, a ray of light fell from her head, like a shackle imprisoning her neck, and a strange and unpredictable cold force occupied her chest. She had a premonition that if she lied, she would be in agony.

Yu Zi was indifferent: "Tell the truth, it's best to tell the truth."

There are so many hard bones in the Prison of the Ministry of Punishment that I couldn't bear.

Lieutenant Zhe Chong swallowed in a cold sweat.

He struggled to say a few words: "Yes, it's Liu Changshi..."

Shen Tang: "Liu Changshi? Do you know the origin of this person?"

Captain Zhe Chong shook his head again.

She was really not familiar with Governor Shi of Jinli County, and the only few times they met were to give gifts in private. Captain Zhe Chong said this with a look of shame on his face. At first, her family took the benefits from Chang Shi behind her back. When she returned home after a break, she found out that they had already spent seven to eight hundred percent of the money they had received.

She gritted her teeth and pieced together a sum of money to pay back.

Later, my father, who had always been honest, became addicted to gambling for some unknown reason and owed a large amount of gambling debt in the gambling house.

Naturally, the gambling house didn't dare to come to seek bad luck for her. Not only did it not happen, but it actually served her father well, taking the opportunity to get closer to other relatives, and playing tricks to put the other party in jail. Captain Zhe Chong could only shamelessly go to someone to intercede and see if he could be lenient or reconcile with the victim privately. Chang Shi was very considerate to her. Not only did he not embarrass her, he also made peace with her.

With this incident, the relationship is closer.

Her family went behind her back and received benefits one after another.

Starting from a small favor, her family was fed a huge appetite. When she realized something was wrong, the boat could no longer get off. Liu Changshi often visited her to have heart-to-heart conversations with her, saying that it was a pity that her current material conditions and status were not in line with her.

One day, a plate of gold ingots was delivered.

The golden color almost dazzled her eyes.

[Gudu...this, this cannot be accepted...]

Liu Changshi smiled nonchalantly, took out a neatly folded land deed from his sleeve, and gently pushed it over: [I heard that the royal family said that the captain wanted to repair the old house? If there is no family to support it, when will the old house be repaired? The friendship between you and me is just a helping hand between colleagues. It happened that Liu had a piece of land in the east of the city, and the house there was suitable for a captain. 】

[Can't accept it, can't accept it...]

Lieutenant Zhe Chong refused heartily.

Within two days, I heard the news that the old house was under construction.

I found a lot of things in my home that I shouldn’t have.

Liu Changshi looked at her angrily, smiled and comforted her and sat down: "Why is the captain so nervous?" Alas, that's all. If you really don't want to accept the money, I can't force it. But if you give this money away, I won’t get it back. Captain, if you really feel sorry for yourself, why don't you do something for me? 】

There is no free lunch in the world.

The captain also knew that the money that had been spent would be difficult to repay in a short period of time with his salary, but he did not want to hastily agree to the other party's request and leave hidden dangers for his future. Liu Changshi saw the captain's embarrassment and said: "This matter will not embarrass the captain." 】

This thing is really not difficult.

I just asked her to help collect the money.

Captain Zhe Chong: [Debt collection? 】

Liu Changshi smiled bitterly and said: [A few merchants came to borrow money before, but they refused to pay it back when the time came. Those rogues were difficult to deal with, and I was worried about how to deal with them. 】

Captain Zhe Chong breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

This job is really not difficult.

She sent people to collect the debt privately, but it was completely collected after two or three times. Liu Changshi made a special trip to thank her and gave her a thank you fee. The captain wanted to push it away, but Liu Changshi said: "This is a pure thank you gift, the captain can rest assured." 】

From this she also learned about the official debt.

He was shocked and said: [How is this possible? 】

Liu Changshi seemed to be laughing at her timidity and asked: "Is there any law in the royal court that stipulates that this is not allowed?" No! You can do whatever is not prohibited by law! Since it’s something ‘doable’, what’s wrong with it? There is some spare money at home, so let’s just leave it alone. Why not lend it to merchants to earn some interest? What does the captain think? 】

Then, Liu Changshi said something unknown.

No one in the Jinli County government office knew about this matter.

Everyone pooled their money together to lend money to merchants, collected the money, and then distributed dividends based on the loaned principal. Otherwise, with that little salary alone, which family can live a comfortable life? There is more than one Liu Changshi who did this, so you can rest assured.

There are even officials who go around borrowing money from merchants.

How can we forget our loved ones when there is such a thing as getting rich?

Captain Zhe Chong asked curiously about profit.

Nine times out and thirteen times out, you can get nearly 50% of the invested capital as dividends. Who wouldn’t be tempted by such a huge profit?

Lieutenant Zhe Chong's heart beat like a drum.

This is a business that is not illegal, yet extremely profitable, with guaranteed profits and no loss! After she returned, she looked at the simple rented house with many thoughts in her mind. It is very inconvenient for several members of the family to live in such a small space. If you have money, you can change your house...

Shen Tang chuckled: "So, you also released official debts?"

Good guy, the person who co-authored the loan of official debt is not one person but a group of people. They illegally raised funds and illegally loaned money. The elements are complete!

Captain Zhechong gritted his teeth and nodded: "Yes..."

She also received several dividends.

After many times, her hanging heart relaxed. Thanks to Liu Changshi's favor, he would occasionally help him with some things.

Another thought suddenly came to Shen Tang's mind, and he resisted the urge to take a breath: "Is there anyone else in Zhe Chong Mansion who will also join?"

Captain Zhe Chong nodded again.

Shen Tang raised his hand to his forehead and sighed deeply.

"Yes, it's a Ponzi scheme. If it doesn't cause thunder, who will?"

As the Minister of Household Affairs, Xun Zhen was very sensitive to money. He raised his ears when he heard these words: "Ponzi scheme? Thunder?"

Shen Tang sighed and said: "Ponzi scheme, to put it more simply, is a trick of tearing down the east wall to make up for the west wall. Merchants borrowing official debt is a disguised form of bribing officials to find a backer, but have you ever thought about it? The purpose of doing business is also to make money. Who would keep borrowing the government debt that has been paid out nine times and thirteen times? So, where do the dividends come from? Naturally, it is to attract more people and use their money to make up for the dividend gap. Close The 50% gap, once the hole cannot be repaired, there will be a thunderstorm."

Liu Changshi, haha, what a talented person he is!

While engaging in corruption and bribery, he also ran a Ponzi scheme.

As soon as she saw Captain Zhechong's pale face, she knew that many people in Zhechong Mansion had invested money. With human greed, these people may have added high leverage. Shen Tang laughed angrily at this moment: "So, you are stealing and selling the grain depot to fill holes?"

Lieutenant Zhe Chong said flatly: "This is absolutely not the case!"

She was so anxious that she was speechless.

"Mo, I will never do this..."

Shen Tang looked at Yu Zi, who shook her head.

Yan Ling did not have an attack, and Lieutenant Zhe Chong did not lie.

"How much do you know about the theft of the grain depot? Let me put it another way, what did you do for Liu Changshi before and after the theft of the grain depot?" Shen Tang said and winked at Gu Chi, who understood instantly.

Lieutenant Zhe Chong didn't know what he thought of, his pupils shrank suddenly, his lips moved several times, but he couldn't utter a single word. Shen Tang asked this. No matter how slow she was, she should have known that Liu Changshi might have a problem. No, it's not possible, it's very, very suspicious.

Shen Tang chuckled: "Remember?"

Lieutenant Zhe Chong murmured in a low voice.

"Several caravans left the country that day to pass through the customs..."

If you want to get dividends from official debt, you can't be too strict with merchants, and you must make some conveniences possible. As time went by, the guards relaxed their vigilance towards the merchants holding special documents. It will be released after a symbolic check, which will not waste too much time.

If it's a familiar face, just say hello and let him pass.

Xun Zhen's hands were shaking with heartache.

"...So, the food can't be recovered?"

Shen Tang sighed and made up his mind: "It's not just the food that can't be recovered? Maybe it was shipped out with the food and all the savings of these unlucky people who borrowed money to join the Ponzi scheme."

|ω`)

It’s a new month, please give me a guaranteed monthly ticket (*▽*)

PS: From the time I started private training on September 24, my weight has dropped steadily. I am now about 14 pounds lighter. I feel like I can really achieve my goal before the Chinese New Year.