Three Kingdoms

There is a small courtyard in Chang'an City. It seems to be no different from an ordinary courtyard. There are no complicated people coming and going inside on weekdays. It looks very ordinary.

The back wall of this courtyard is the backyard of the Taoist Temple of the Five Gods.

The Five Directions God Sect is now the main religion in Guanzhong. On weekdays, many believers go to the Taoist temple to burn incense and worship, ask for fortunes and seek blessings. Therefore, they are separated from this small courtyard by a wall, and they seem to be two different worlds.

This quiet place amidst the turmoil is the newly established Youwen Division.

Although Fei Qian and Cao Cao are in a state of relative confrontation, it does not mean that they are completely separated and cut off from each other. Cao Cao needs Fei Qian's goods, and Fei Qian also needs some raw materials and handmade products provided by Cao Cao. Therefore, when the caravan travels between Fei Qian and Cao Cao, there will naturally be some people with ulterior motives mixed in.

If you can't stop people from Cao Cao's side, you can't stop people from other areas.

Ordinary crossings can only protect against reckless people, but for those who have some preparations, such as border checkpoints and passes, most of them can only protect against objects, but it is difficult to protect against people.

Just like in later generations, if you cross the border with some prohibited items, you will be caught easily, but if you pass the border with some prohibited thoughts in your head and follow legal procedures, who can prevent it?

Kan Ze was sitting in the main hall, looking at a piece of information on hand, frowning and thinking for a moment, then picked up the long-handled copper spoon next to the table and lightly tapped the edge of the incense burner, making a crisp impact sound.

The attendant outside the door held his hands at the door.

Notify Chen Cao, Wang Junhou and Ma Junhou from the Siwen Department, and Li Shuzuo from the Archives Department to come and discuss anything.

The young man understood the attendant's response and walked out.

Hu Kanze exhaled a long breath.

Kan Ze rubbed his face vigorously with both hands, calming down his slightly tired expression. He arranged some letters and wooden slips on the desk, drank the remaining half of the tea, then placed the tea cup on the mouth of the teapot, and then left the main hall and headed to the Taoist room with the piece of information he just had.

The Taoist room is actually a courtyard on the back wall of the small courtyard that connects to the Taoist Temple of the Five Gods. Because this Taoist chamber can be entered not only from this small courtyard, but also from the backyard of the Five Directions God Taoist Temple, so it is called that.

Youwen Division is directly under the General's Mansion and is under the command of the Secretariat. Of course, the Secretariat is now concurrently held by Pang Tong.

There is a stone room at the end of the Taoist chamber with no windows. As long as the stone door is closed, no outsiders can overhear the conversation inside.

Kan Ze had a slight headache, but of course he was also a little excited.

The Youwen Division has many responsibilities, but the most important task at the moment is to track down spies, and tracking down spies is not about catching one or two people, but about following the clues and pulling out the entire thread.

Kan Ze didn't wait long, and several people attending the meeting arrived at the stone room one after another.

The few people attending the meeting today are generally considered to be the main officials of the Youwen Department. The first one to arrive was Li Shuzuo from the filing office. This is an old man with graying hair. He is short and moves slightly slowly. Although the filing office he heads does not have much operational power, it is still an important department. All meetings, actions, and results within the Wenwen Department must be archived so that if any problems arise, they can be easily traced back to the source.

The filing office is also the department with the smallest number of people, with only four people, two assistants and two assistants. Basically, they are all elderly and lonely civil servants. They stay at home on weekdays and basically live in the Youwen Division. Therefore, although they move slowly, they come the fastest.

Following Li Shuzuo were the two military princes from the Wen Division. The Information Division is basically an operational force, dedicated to inquiring and collecting information. It is managed with a military structure. Although the Information Division is not responsible for arrests and trials, it will take certain measures when necessary. action.

The last person to come was Chen Caopu, the adjutant of the Youwen Division. He was Kan Ze's deputy. He mainly compared, falsified, and analyzed the information obtained. This position is relatively boring. The requirements for members are not courage, but keen observation and careful thinking. Usually he does not sit in the Youwen Department, but walks outside, so when he comes, he comes in through the Five Directions Taoist Temple.

After these people all sat down, they gave a slight signal and asked the guards to close the door of the stone room from the outside.

Everyone, a certain person has just received a piece of intelligence. Kan Ze said as he handed the manuscript of the intelligence to Chen Caopu, and then he passed it on to other people. If this intelligence is true, we are now facing a very big problem. big problem

The other four people did not speak immediately, but circulated information. After about a stick of incense, everyone had finished reading, with different expressions on their faces.

Is the source of this information reliable? Wang Junhou asked with a frown. It could be seen that this was what he cared about most.

Kan Ze glanced at Chen Caoyu.

Chen Caopu immediately said: Reliable. Many officials personally admitted that someone was inquiring about the new battleship in Xuanwu Pond. This thing is not normal.

Kan Ze nodded and said: Generally speaking, most people will care about the hottest issues in Qinglong Temple, rather than what new battleships are in the Xuanwu Pond.

The children of the noble clan have despised industry and commerce for three to four hundred years. Although there is a slight change now, it is definitely not more eye-catching than the scripture annotations at Qinglong Temple.

Ma Junhou laughed and asked: In that case, why not arrest all those who inquired about the new warship?

Chen Caopu shook his head and said: Not all of the people who came forward to investigate and inquire may be suspects. They may have asked casually, or they may have been instructed by others. If these people are arrested, then the people behind may run away. Youwen Division does not have the right to arrest, and even if it does, if Kan Ze takes action, it is difficult to guarantee how many useful people will be captured, and whether there will be someone who takes advantage of troubled waters to frame him.

Kan Ze knocked on the table and said: Catching one or two may have merit, but it is useless! What we have to do is to seize the entire line and seize the most important people, not these few exposed fools. And I suspect that if more than one spy wants to take action, they must all be caught, otherwise there will still be hidden dangers in the future.

Li Shuzuo sat aside, silent, but kept recording everyone's speeches.

Ma Junhou scratched the back of his head and said: "If it is an ordinary artifact, this is a warship. Moreover, the area around Xuanwu Pond is under surveillance. Soldiers are on strict guard, and the craftsmen responsible for the production are under control. Even this spy rarely goes out." You want to steal, but you have no way to do it?

Chen Caopu glanced at Ma Junhou. Don't forget about Tongguan.

Ma Junhou took a breath, coughed twice, and then stopped talking.

The others fell into silence when they heard this.

The espionage incident that occurred in Tongguan was a case reported within the Youwen Department, and several people present had seen it. If General Hussar had not arrived at Tongguan and personally investigated and arrested the lurking spies, Tongguan would have been in chaos!

Yes, the spies in Tongguan were wiped out, but what about other areas?

How many people are hiding in the dark?

Kanze knocked on the table again. The warship cannot be stolen, but the blueprints and models can be stolen.

Everyone was stunned for a moment, and then suddenly realized. Yes, the warship is so big that it is impossible to steal it except for the blueprints, but before building the warship, there must be a ship model.

The only people who can enter and exit the Xuanwuchi Shipyard at will are craftsmen and soldiers. Kan Ze made a summary, so the current work is divided into two aspects. On the one hand, he continues to sort out the residence of foreigners and their related personnel affairs. Ma Junhou is responsible for this matter. On the other hand, he keeps an eye on the storage of ship models. Department, find out how many craftsmen and soldiers have access to the drawings and ship models. This is the responsibility of Wang Junhou

What questions do the two military princes have? Kanze asked.

The two armies looked at each other, and then Ma Junhou said: I'm afraid I'm a little short on manpower. I wonder if I can add some more manpower to help?

Kan Ze glanced at Ma Junhou and said, "Okay." Who do you need to add? Submit the list to Chen Caopu. Wang Junhou, where are you?

Me? Wang Junhou thought for a while and said, my side is generally sufficient, and there is no need to increase manpower for the time being.

Kan Ze nodded, that's it, let's break up the meeting. After signing the name, everyone went about their business!

Everyone stood up and signed and stamped their signatures on Li Shuzuo's meeting files. Kan Ze looked at the record written by the clerk, and there was no discrepancy. He just signed it and pulled the rope on the side, which triggered the bell outside the door. Then the guard opened the stone door and everyone filed out.

?(*–-)?

At the same time, twenty or thirty miles away from Tongguan, a man was walking slowly on the official road carrying a large package. This person has a bad complexion and a large black spot on the left side of his face. His body is slightly stooped. He wears a sun-shading straw hat on his head and a gourd hanging on his waist. He makes the sound of sloshing water as he walks. Holding a wooden stick, he walked forward step by step.

But not long after, the sound of some carriages and horses was heard from behind this person, and then some smoke and dust gradually rose.

A group of caravans came from the rear, and each cart carrying goods was covered with felt cloth and tied with some thick hemp ropes.

The man waved to the caravan and shouted: Can you give me a ride? I'll pay for the car!

A man who looked like a caravan leader came over. Where were he going?

Tongguan!

Fifteen dollars!

I just want to take a ride with someone, but I don’t have any cargo. It’s only over twenty miles, so can I pay five bucks?

Then just walk over there yourself!

Eight coins! I'll pay eight cents!

At least twelve!

Ten dollars! Ten dollars at most! Otherwise I will leave by myself!

The caravan leader frowned and rolled his eyes, okay! Ten dollars! Pay first and sit in the last car.

The caravans are escorted, and not only are they transporting goods along the way, but they are also usually willing to pay for a few people to ride on them, which is extra income anyway.

The man waited until the last car.

The last cart was a flatbed cart, pulled by a mule, and the cart carried fodder for livestock. The handlebar stopped the car, then stretched out his hand to pull the man onto the car board, then waved his whip to let the mule continue to move forward.

What's your name? Where are you from? Handlebar-style asked.

My name is Qin An, from Heluo. The man answered briefly, perhaps because of fatigue from the long journey.

What do you do? Where are you going? The handlebar type asked again.

My family suffered a disaster and can no longer survive. There is my third uncle in Chang'an who wants to visit his relatives.

Oh, that's it. In fact, it's good to go to Chang'an. Apparently no one spoke to me all the way. I was so depressed that I didn't care what the person answered, and just kept talking.

While chatting, Tongguan was in front of us.

The man looked up at Tongguan, his face under the shadow of the straw hat, and he didn't know what his expression was.

The reconstruction of Tongguan is basically over. Although there is still a little tail, the new Tongguan, which combines earth and cement, is the leader among the current passes from any angle and the nightmare of all generals.

get off! get off! Ready for unloading and inspection! Move your hands and feet faster! The caravan leader walked over and shouted all the way, and then glanced at the man, Tongguan has arrived! Go through it yourself!

Qin An nodded, said hello to the driver, got out of the car, and walked to the pedestrian checkpoint on the other side.

At Tongguan, ordinary pedestrians and traveling merchant convoys are separated.

Get in line! Everything you need to pass is in your hand! The soldiers at the checkpoint shouted.

Qin An lowered his head, and then took out the wooden slip used for passing the examination.

The flow of people moved forward slowly.

that! right! you! come over! Hat off! Bring it over to the pass! Open the package! The soldiers took over the check-in box, checked the information written on it, and said to Qin An, where are you from? Where to go?

Qin An handed over the pass. I came from Heluo and wanted to go to Chang'an to visit my relatives.

The soldiers looked up and down, asked him to stand with his hands stretched out, and then began to search him to see if there were any prohibited items on his body. Qin An's package was also opened and spread on the ground. Another soldier poked with the wooden handle of his spear and saw that there were only some old clothes, a small bag of dry food, a bundle of felt blankets and a hatchet inside. The soldiers looked through it briefly and saw nothing unusual.

The soldier who searched Qin An found a money bag from Qin An, opened it and looked at it. To Qin An's surprise, the soldier did not take the money inside. He just took out one, looked at it, and rubbed the money bag again. cloth, he threw the money back, tied it, and threw it to Qin An. He picked up the gourd from Qin An, knocked on the gourd, shook it twice, opened the stopper of the gourd, smelled it, and raised it. Eyebrows, wine?

Qin An apologized and said with a smile: "I'm afraid I'll be stuck on the road. If I want to beat the drunken military master,

The soldier snorted, put the stopper back on, and threw it to Qin An. Come on over!

Qin An took the gourd, then packed the package on the ground again, carried it behind his back, then waved to the caravan on the other side, as if saying goodbye, and walked forward.

The soldiers here turned around and seemed to exchange glances with the soldiers over there.

Qin An moved forward and put on the straw hat again, hiding his face under the hat.

What a hassle!

Not greedy for money, not greedy for wine

Very high alert

Even because he waved at the caravan, he paid attention and stepped up the inspection there.

This is really

A headache.

Qin An walked along the five-mile long strip of Tongguan, looking around with his eyes, as if he was unconsciously curious, or looking for something.

There is a height difference between the pass and the new town. Most of the caravans coming from Heluo will not go directly to Tongguan New City. The goods are transported down the road, and then pulled up by the crane, and then the transfer fleet from Tongguan to Chang'an takes over. This is obviously more cost-effective. And convenient. Therefore, if there is a caravan that transports it all the way to Chang'an, it will be particularly eye-catching.

In this way, even if you pretend to be a caravan, it will be very troublesome to sneak into Chang'an.

Not to mention Chang'an, it is relatively easy to enter Tongguan Checkpoint and the same gate, but it is difficult to sneak into Tongguan New City with a convoy or something.

I heard that ferries such as Shaanxi and Tianjin also use this model of taking over transshipments. Well, I don’t know how it is at Wuguan.

The defenses are really tight.

Qin An was walking slowly and thinking.

Didn't see the logo

Are everyone in Tongguan gone?

Suddenly, Qin An seemed to see something and stopped slightly.

Qin An looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to him, so he pretended to have a stomachache, bent over, and instead of entering Tongguan New City directly, he went to the grove in the nearby plain.

After entering the woods, Qin An looked at the people behind him who were not following him, and then suddenly straightened his back and returned to a normal body shape. He quickly walked through the woods, lowering his head and looking around. He quickly ran to one of the trees, squatted down and looked for something at the roots of the tree.

Soon, he pulled a wooden box out from the edge of the tree root. He opened the wooden box and tore open the oil paper wrapped in it. A brocade robe was revealed, as well as a matching middle coat and belt. , boots, a money bag with some money in the corner, a fan and a small piece of jade with a red string beside it.

Qin An chuckled with satisfaction.

Qin An quickly took off his clothes, then took off the gourd on his body, took another old piece of clothing, wet it, and wiped it vigorously on his face and neck. Soon, the color on Qin An's face began to fade, and even the dark spots on his face began to fade. After a few more wipes, his original whiter skin was revealed.

Qin An put on new clothes, took out the hatchet inside the package, removed the handle, and pulled out another paper certificate hidden in it, then put it in his arms and put the old clothes and all All the sundries were stuffed back into the wooden box and buried back in the ground. Finally, I washed my hands with the wine in the gourd and threw the gourd away.

After all these things were done, Qin An looked around, walked out of the grove, and headed towards Tongguan New City. At this moment, Qin An no longer looked like a man on his way to seek relatives, but like a child of a poor family.

Within Tongguan New City, basically there are military equipment and military camps, markets, general public residences, and post stations, etc. are all built on the plateau, relying on Tongguan New City.

After passing through the new city, you can enter Chang'an Sanfu.

Qin An did not enter Tongguan New City directly, but slowly walked with his fan swinging.

Before arriving at the inn, Qin An looked at it and walked in.

Want accommodation? When the old soldier guarding the post house saw Qin An dressed neatly, he brought him a bowl of syrup and asked casually, where did Lang Jun come from?

Well, Guanzhong Di went to Hongnong to visit friends a few days ago and couldn't walk. Is there any room available? Take a break and come back to see the peach blossoms in a few days. At this time, Qin An has already adopted some Guanzhong accent.

Look at the peach blossoms, it’s a little late! However, some old soldiers laughed and said, "If you have twenty for the house, or fifty for the house, which one does the gentleman want?" Nothing wrong? Please register for this old man. Hello, Mr. Lang’s surname is Wei. I don’t know what it means with that.

Qin An, who had changed his surname to Wei, smiled reservedly, as if an old pawn had discovered his secret.