Volume 4: Gathering of Sages Chapter 687: Patting the Case
Hong Shanchang's forehead was covered with veins, his temples were throbbing, and he was so angry that he was fuming. He had lived for most of his life, and when he was in Jiangxi, he had exposed several hypocritical people who looked righteous and upright, and he had also been plotted against by others. However, these people were honest and upright in public, but secretly they were thieves and prostitutes, and everything was a conspiracy. How could he have encountered such a reckless behavior as Zhang Shou?
He stared at Zhang Shou fiercely and growled in a low voice: "Zhang Shou, you dared to kidnap me in front of the gate of the elegant residence where the emperor summoned us mountain masters. You are so arrogant! Do you think I dare not call for help? I am saving your face!"
"So that Headmaster Hong can know that if you want to call for help, the guards outside were transferred from the Ruiqi Battalion to my house by the Emperor after he heard the news from the Second Prince. They are here to serve as escorts for an insignificant official like me."
After hearing these words, Chief Hong's face turned gloomy. Zhang Shou smiled and said, "If I hadn't resorted to this desperate measure and forced you to get on the car, with your prejudice against me, you would have just walked away with a "I have nothing to say to you". How could we be riding in the same car calmly and chatting about the past and present?"
Chief Hong almost vomited blood in anger. Is this called being calm? Do you know that I just endured and endured not to shout that someone kidnapped a celebrity in the street! I was afraid that the onlookers would think I was the protagonist of the monkey show, otherwise I would not be so polite to you! Of course, when he learned that Zhang Shou's followers were actually appointed by the emperor, he felt a pang in his heart.
The emperor doesn't care at all about a headmaster like me who is well-versed in classics and history, strictly abides by rites and has impeccable moral conduct. However, Zhang Shou, a young boy who is only good at arithmetic but knows nothing about classics and history, has usurped a high position. How can this be possible in the world!
He was feeling more and more depressed. He sneered and said coldly, "According to what you said, Master Zhang, you came here today to rob me by order?"
"If I say yes, then the emperor will bear the blame. And if I say no, then I will bear the blame." Zhang Shou said two sentences like a tongue twister. Seeing that Hong Shanchang's nose was crooked with anger, he said sincerely, "So, please be patient, Hong Shanchang."
Although he didn't believe a word of Zhang Shou's nonsense, the gloomy-faced Hong Shanchang was too lazy to continue the verbal dispute with others in the car. After all, when he thought that these bickering words would be heard by the guards of the Ruiqi Battalion outside, he lost interest in speaking. He didn't want to look at the face in front of him that was too dazzling, so he simply closed his eyes and rested. He didn't know how long it had been before he heard a faint voice: "Master, we're here."
Seeing that Director Hong Shan suddenly opened his eyes and Ah Liu had already swiftly gotten out of the car door and stood waiting at the bottom, Zhang Shou smiled and leaned out of the car first. After he stood still, he turned around and looked at Director Hong Shan and said, "It's a coincidence that the small restaurant with good food that Ah Liu mentioned earlier is closed right now. Let's just stay in this teahouse."
If he hadn't been unable to stay in the car, Hong Shanchang wouldn't have even wanted to move. At this moment, he got out of the car very reluctantly, but after seeing the hanging sign, his face became as dark as a pot-bottomed helmet.
Before ordinary people enter the Xinglong Teahouse, which even the emperor has visited more than once, they would first consider whether they have enough money. Is this called making do? He had ridiculed behind the scenes that the people who patronized this place were rich people who indulged in wine and meat, while the people who froze to death on the street!
Since we are here, we should make the best of it. After all, he was "kidnapped" by Zhang Shou, and Hong Shanchang wanted to see what Zhang Shou was up to, so when he was politely , he walked in without saying anything. At this time when it was not a good time to eat, there were still seven or eight tables of guests on the first floor, and there were two more tables on the second floor.
As he was looking at this place which was obviously not suitable for talking, he heard Zhang Shou's voice behind him: "Director Hong, let's go to the third floor."
Although the sound was not loud, it was still heard in the empty second floor. The guests at the two tables all looked towards the staircase, then very naturally passed over the old and wrinkled Hong Shanchang, and focused their eyes on the handsome Zhang Shou. Although there were many handsome young men in the capital, there was probably only one who could say frankly that he was going to the third floor.
Even though Chief Hong had only been to this place once, he was still clear about the significance of the third floor. He subconsciously wanted to stop Zhang Shou, but then he felt someone holding his arm again. The next moment, he was forcefully dragged up by Zhang Shou.
Just like he didn't yell in the carriage just now, although his face was livid, Hong Shanchang still restrained the urge to curse. In public, was he going to scold Zhang Shou for going to the third floor that the emperor had once occupied? But the problem was that this was not the imperial garden, so it couldn't be regarded as a conventional principle.
Ah Liu watched Zhang Shou and Hong Shan go up, but he stopped at the stairs. Seeing the waiter who followed him up and looked around, he said calmly: "Make a pot of good tea, four-color snacks, and something light."
As he spoke, he glanced at the two tables of guests on the second floor. He saw that there were tea and snacks on the tables. It was obvious that they were here to drink tea and chat. Their accents did not sound like those of locals from Beijing. They probably wanted to get an achievement of being here so that they could brag about it when they returned. So he withdrew his gaze and did not care that these people were still lingering.
When the Xinglong Tea House was renovated, the floors, windows and walls on the third floor were all designed with special interlayer sound insulation, and even covered with cotton blankets. The four new private rooms built in the four corners after the Imperial Chef Selection Competition were very suitable for dignitaries to meet and talk with guests. If the doors and windows of the private rooms were closed, unless you had superb hearing, it would be impossible to hear clearly what people were saying.
Of course, if the young master provokes Chief Hong Shan and he starts roaring in anger, there will be nothing that can be done.
Although he was revisiting an old place, Zhang Shou had no interest in reminiscing about the imperial chef selection competitions here. However, he did not speak immediately. Instead, he waited until Ah Liu personally brought up the tea and snacks, and then hurried down to the stairs to wait. He had just forced Hong Shanchang to go to the small private room at the corner of the east wall, and then he went straight to the point and asked, "What does Hong Shanchang think of the death of the second prince?"
Chief Hong was used to those roundabout opening remarks, and was very uncomfortable with Zhang Shou's straightforward style. However, he had just been forcibly taken to a carriage and then to the third floor of Xinglong Tea House. He was furious and could not help but fight back angrily, "It's just that the Second Prince's life or death is unknown. Do you really want him to die, Master Zhang?"
"That's right."
Zhang Shou admitted it very readily. Seeing that Hong Shanchang was stunned at first, and then he slammed the table and stood up, after the dull thud, the teapot and four plates of snacks on the table did not move at all, but Hong Shanchang's right hand turned red visibly. He said lightly: "Because if the second prince is not dead, he must be in more pain than death right now."
Although Hong Shanzhang was a bit pedantic, he was definitely not stupid, so he certainly understood Zhang Shou's hidden meaning. However, it was precisely because he understood that he was extremely furious.
"Just because of this, do we have to insist that he is dead? Where is the right and wrong? Yes, the Second Prince is useless, uneducated, and does not listen to the teachings of his father and emperor. He has a bad reputation in the capital and even caused a farce such as humiliating the daughter of an official in the street and poisoning the Kunning Palace. But this is not a reason for the emperor to say that he is dead without a detailed investigation after he was killed by someone!"
He raised his voice unconsciously, and even forgot the consequences of his mortal body struggling against the rosewood table. He slapped the table hard again, and ignored it even though it hurt.
"My old servant came back yesterday and said that when he went out to buy paper, he heard two servants of an official family mocking each other. I thought about it at first and felt that it was right. How could a mere guilty prince be compared with the welfare of the people?"
"After all, there is corruption, waste, abandoned children crying out for food, and people suffering from grievances that are difficult to redress, but this is no reason for the Second Prince to die at sea without anyone caring!"
"Moreover, if he died like this, and the eldest prince also died like this, then wouldn't someone blame the emperor and his father, saying that the emperor wanted to abandon the eldest and establish the youngest to eliminate future troubles, so he first deposed the queen and then killed the two sons!"
From the very beginning, Zhang Shou did not take out the letter of unknown origin that Hong received last night. Instead, he directly "kidnapped" Chief Hong here with a tough attitude, and then further angered the other party with a nonchalant attitude, and finally lured Chief Hong to tell the truth from his heart. While he was secretly happy that he had finally succeeded, he could not help but feel secretly awe-inspiring.
"Mr. Hong Shan is exaggerating, isn't he? Who would suspect that a king or a father would kill his son?"
"There are always people with ill intentions in the world! In order to nip it in the bud, we must find out the whole story and not let anyone have the opportunity to throw dirty water on the emperor and father!" Hong Shanchang stared into Zhang Shou's eyes and said word by word, "Master Zhang, you suddenly kidnapped me here today. Do you know that I want to write a letter to speak out about this matter? Should I check it?"
He realized something and became even more furious: "How dare you bribe someone close to me to spy on me? You are so bold!"
Zhang Shou was shocked by the loud noise. He felt that his ears were a little bit uncomfortable. He stretched out his fingers to press the eardrum and then dug his ears hard. However, his too casual action further aroused the anger of Hong Shanchang. He was so angry that he stretched out his hand to grab his collar, but he was pushed open by him.
"Master Hong, you are too self-indulgent. For a famous scholar like you who has been granted a gold medal and released, it is not worth it for me to bribe the people around you."
Zhang Shou said something extremely harsh. Seeing the man was furious, he said calmly, "As for why I came to you about the Second Prince, the reason is very simple. Your daughter was staying well in the palace, but for no reason she received a note addressed to you, so she had no choice but to hand it over to me."
He paused and said in a very playful tone: "Of course, the content of this note is completely different from what you were worried about just now, Director Hong."
As he spoke, he took out the letter and spread it on the table. He saw that Hong Shanzhang narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but after a quick glance at the content, he immediately became even more furious. He said bluntly: "Of course your daughter did not give it to you privately, but submitted it to the prince first, and the prince even asked the emperor for permission. If you don't believe it, the emperor and the prince can testify."
After explaining this section clearly, Zhang Shou saw that Hong Shanchang's anger had subsided a little, but he still looked extremely vigilant, so he said unhappily: "It's just that I don't believe a word of this kind of cryptic letter, let alone the emperor. But I really want to know, Hong Shanchang, you just said that you wanted to thoroughly investigate the death of the second prince purely for the emperor's reputation..."
"Why are you so stubborn that you think there are so many people with ulterior motives in the world?"
"In other words, the world has been peaceful for so long, and it seems that there have been no traitors for many years. As for the traitors, there have been two in the Linhai Camp, but that was because they had committed serious crimes. After clearing them out time and time again, there shouldn't be any fish that slip through the net. In this case , how many people in the world dare to slander the emperor and father and defame the saint?"
Chief Hong's expression changed constantly, but his eyes were fixed on the letter, as if he wanted to pierce and tear it into pieces with his eyes. It was unknown how long it took before he finally managed to utter a few words from between his teeth.
"Someone sent me a letter." Knowing that Zhang Shou would not use his daughter Hong's name to deceive him, he could not help but feel angry. "The letter said that this accident was not only a deliberate attempt to murder the prince, but also an attempt to take the opportunity to discredit the emperor. I am going back to Jiangxi anyway. I have even recommended my daughter to marry the eldest prince before, so it doesn't matter if I make another direct appeal."
"Even if the letter is fake, a thorough investigation of the Second Prince's death cannot be a sham! Today they sank a ship carrying the Second Prince at sea, and next time, they can certainly make a fuss about it in the Emperor's parade!"
This is a stubborn person who only wants to follow the path he has chosen!
Zhang Shou sighed in his heart for a moment, then smiled and said, "The emperor just insisted that the second prince was dead, but he didn't say that he would not investigate the matter. Moreover, if the second prince was really rescued by chance and sent to the capital, or sent to the local government, the emperor would still recognize him. What the emperor wants to dispel is the idea of some people who want to rise up and use Qihu skin as a banner!"
"As I said at the beginning, don't you think that after being rescued, he was coerced by others and was a rare treasure. Don't you think that the Second Prince might as well be dead?"
Although what Zhang Shou said was indeed a possibility, Hong Shanchang had a stiff face as if everyone owed him three hundred strings of cash, but he did not answer. He casually picked up the bowl of tea that had just been poured but not drunk and poured it into his mouth, and then walked out without saying a word. Zhang Shou not only did not stop him, but followed him slowly out of this small box that was obviously newly built.
When they reached the third floor stairs, he saw that Chief Hong was walking downstairs, so he said to Ah Liu, "Ah Liu, have Captain Han and the others outside escort Chief Hong back. Tell them that this place is close to the public school, and you can just follow me. In broad daylight, is there anyone who dares to assassinate me?"
