Chapter 27 Chapter Eight: The News of Xu Yong's Murder

Xun Xu received the news of Xu Yong's death in early May, and he almost wanted to crush the report. This official document came from Chengdu Siwen Cao Zhengsi and sent it to Hanzhong Siwen Cao Yaoyoucao.Yao You then forwarded it to Xun Xu. The report stated that Xu Yong was killed on the evening of April 21 while walking on a path near the safe house. Wen Cao's staff were also attacked and suffered varying degrees of damage.According to the on-site investigation, in addition to Xu Yong and the two security personnel, footprints of at least six people were also found.Because the two security personnel were attacked and unconscious at the beginning, their impression of the attacker was limited to black clothes.

The first person to spot it was a nearby woodcutter.After seeing the murder scene, he immediately ran to the nearby forester's house.The forest guards immediately reported the situation to the Dujiangyan garrison.As a result, it was not Si Wencao who rushed to the scene first, but the people from the Chengdu Garrison.The Chengdu Garrison didn't know Xu Yong's identity, and thought he was just an ordinary Shu Han citizen, so they treated it as an ordinary murder case.Si Wencao didn't learn of the change until the next morning. Although they immediately sealed off Chengdu City and its surrounding areas, it was too late by then.The killers had all night to escape from the Chengdu Basin, and they could be anywhere by now.

At the end of the report, Chengdu Siwen Cao believed that this was Wei Guo's retaliation against the defectors, and asked Hanzhong to strengthen the search for suspicious persons. Xun Xu was ashamed of the incompetence of his colleagues in Chengdu. He shouted angrily at Pei Xu: "Six people! Six people! Think about it! How could this be done by Wei Guo! If Wei Guo can gather a large group of people in Chengdu They openly killed Si Wencao's key protection target and then retreated, why don't they directly attack the inner city palace!" Pei Xu used his eyes to remind his boss to be cautious in what he said, so as not to be used as a source of criticism in the future.Xun Xu snorted coldly through his nose, and his tone became bitter:

"An intelligence agency that waits for someone to come and say, 'Hey, your key target died yesterday.' My God, I'm starting to wonder if there is a real safe place in our country." Pei Xu picked up the report that Xun Xu had left on the ground, and said sympathetically, "Don't blame them, this has already caused quite a stir in Chengdu, and those guys are in a state of desperation right now." Since the Chengdu Garrison was the first to arrive at the scene, Si Wencao could no longer keep the secret.They had to tell the military about Xu Yong's real identity, and only then did they get Xu Yong's body and the two security personnel back.As a result, the news spread like wildfire, and the reactions from all walks of life in Chengdu were very strong.Some court officials were outraged that Si Wencao harbored a Cao Wei official who was at odds with the Han Dynasty; another part of the court officials accused Si Wencao of being indifferent to those who deserted the dark and turned to the Ming. They said that this was an excellent opportunity for political propaganda ; and the military is also very dissatisfied, because Si Wencao caught a big fish in his hands but refused to share it with them... In short, Cao Jun of Chengdu Siwencao will be the most unfortunate person in the Shu Han during this period .

The impact of this news on Hanzhong is also huge.No one thought that Xu Yong would be killed in Chengdu, especially during this sensitive period.Yao You urgently summoned Xun Xu, Du Bi, Yin Ji, Ma Xin and other Si Wencao officials to discuss how to deal with it. The discussion did not produce any constructive results. After all, what happened in Chengdu was beyond the reach of Siwen Cao in Hanzhong.Few of the officials present were truly sad—after all, Xu Yong was just an exile from Wei Guolai, and his value had been almost drained.Officials are angry only because they feel offended. Du Bi was the only one who felt sad about Xu Yong's death. After all, Xu Yong had saved his life.

At the end of the meeting, no conclusions were reached. Yao You just told all departments to strictly guard against suspicious figures in Hanzhong, and then announced the adjournment of the meeting.Yin Ji, Ma Xin and their entourage left one after another, while Xun Xu and Du Bi were kept by Yao You's eyes. Seeing that there were only three of them left in the room, Yao You let out a long sigh, and asked the two of them in a deliberately controlled low voice: "Do you think there is a connection between Xu Yong's death and the matter you are investigating? ?” "You want to hear my personal opinion?" Xun Xu asked back.

"yes." "I don't have any evidence, just an inference." "But it doesn't matter. This is an informal meeting and no minutes will be kept." Xun Xu replied simply: "I think Xu Yong's death is inextricably linked to Li Ping." After hearing his bold speech, Yao You and Du Bi did not show any surprise on their faces, obviously they thought so too.Yao You leisurely played with a bronze animal inkstone with her right hand, and narrowed her eyes: "The reason? There is no evidence, but there must be some reason." "On April 16, I was summoned by Li Ping. He wanted to know how the Jing'an Division found out that Deng Xian was a spy."

Yao You nodded: "Well, I saw your report, and you answered it very well, and you didn't reveal anything." Xun Xu waved his hand slightly: "Indeed, I didn't disclose Xu Yong's specific situation to him, but he knew at least two things: First, Si Wencao has a very valuable exile from Wei State in his hands; second, The exile has been sent to Chengdu." "So what? Even in Chengdu, Xu Yong's existence is strictly kept secret." Hearing what Yao You said, Xun Xu showed a sarcastic smile: "I don't think so. Now I have deep doubts about the ability of our colleagues in Chengdu." After a pause, he continued, "Li Ping is familiar with the operation of our country's institutions. He can easily deduce that Xu Yong is under the protection of Chengdu Siwencao. Next, he only needs to try to find out from Siwencao where Xu Yong is resettled."

"Can he do it?" "He has already done it. Think about it, there are at least six murderers who attacked Xu Yong, and they have a very precise understanding of the victim's place of residence and daily routine. No matter the scale or the level of sophistication of planning, it is not one or two Wei Guo's spies can instigate it. With all due respect, there must be an insider hidden behind this, and the level is quite high." "It is indeed a very bold conjecture." Yao You put the bronze beast inkstone back on the table. Du Bi, who had been silent all this time, suddenly interjected: "That is to say, you think that after Li Ping learned of Xu Yong's existence, he was afraid that he would reveal Zhulong's identity and pose a threat to himself, so he secretly used his influence in Chengdu. planned the assassination?"

"Yes, but unfortunately I don't have any evidence to prove this." Xun Xu said it very calmly, with a trace of regret in his tone. Both Yao You and Du Bi showed understanding expressions on their faces, and there was nothing they could do about it.The meeting ended like this. Yao You asked the Jing'an Department to continue to maintain the current work situation. He also promised to send someone to Chengdu to observe the progress of the investigation of Xu Yong's murder, and to report the progress to Hanzhong in time. After coming out of the conference room, Du Bi and Xun Xu walked side by side. They were the only two of them in this section of the dark gray masonry corridor, and the echo of their footsteps was very clear.

Suddenly, Xun Xu turned his head and whispered to Du Bi, "I'm very sorry about what happened to Xu Yong." The latter cast complicated eyes on the blue eaves extending to the north of his head, with a sad expression: "...he thinks that our country can give him a better life, so he puts his trust in me. I let him down." "This matter is beyond your control, you have tried your best." "Maybe it was a mistake to send him to Chengdu." "Listen, Fu Guo, Xu Yong's death is a tragedy. But, as intelligence officials, we sometimes have to be cold and heartless, because there are more important things to do." Xun Xu tried to persuade Du Bi.He remembered that Yin Ji had said before that the only shortcoming of his student was some sentimentality. Du Bi stretched out his hand and patted Xun Xu's shoulder, showing a grateful smile: "Don't worry, Xiaohe, I know this, this is not the first time." The two walked a few steps forward in silence.Xun Xu wanted to change the atmosphere, so he asked again: "By the way, how is your progress?" The Jing'an Division was in charge of internal affairs reconnaissance and operations, while the Military Advisory Division in charge of Du Bi was responsible for collecting, sorting out, and analyzing the intelligence submitted by various places.Both sectors are integral to each other.Since only four people knew about the current investigation of Li Yan and "Zhulong", Du Bi had to personally check the information on this aspect.His job is to carefully investigate all the links of intelligence flow and possible leaks in Hanzhong in the past five years, hoping to separate "Zhulong" by this.It's not an easy job. "Well, recently I'm reconsidering the action two years ago. Was that the first time you fought against Candle Dragon?" Hearing what Du Bi said, Xun Xu's expression darkened.It was an unforgettable defeat, and he fell to the place closest to victory.But Xun Xu immediately recovered his cheerful expression: "That time of Mi Chong? Did you find anything valuable?" "Not yet, the workload is too great. Hundreds of documents, meeting minutes, letters, confessions, and lengthy reports from Jing'an Division need to be read and compared. I can only do these by myself." Du Bi's tone seemed to be It was teasing Xun Xu. Xun Xu shrugged his shoulders: "Those who are able work harder." The two came to a corner of the corridor, and a servant in a hurry just happened to walk in front of them.This reckless guy hurried his steps and almost collided with two people head-on.He stopped in embarrassment, looked up and saw that it was Xun Xu, hurriedly saluted, and then said eagerly: "Xun Zong, Mr. Pei just sent a message, please return to the Jing'an Department immediately." Xun Xu and Du Bi looked at each other.Xun Xu asked, "Did he mention what happened in his message?" "Yes, my lord." The servant replied unequivocally. "What is it?" Xun Xu's tone became tense and severe. If it wasn't for a particularly important matter, Pei Xu wouldn't be in such a hurry to find him. "Your wife and children have arrived in Nanzheng safely, and they are all waiting for you in Jing'an Division's exclusive inn, my lord." Xun Xu raised his eyebrows, trying hard to put on a calm expression, but he failed. Xun Xu got married in the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an, when he was twenty-five years old.His wife is the daughter of a colleague, surnamed Zhao, with a very ordinary appearance, but a gentle and virtuous personality.After getting married, the relationship between the husband and wife has been very harmonious, and they had a child named Xun Zheng in the second year of Jianxing.In the fifth year of Jianxing, the Prime Minister's Mansion moved northward to Hanzhong and began preparations for the Northern Expedition.Xun Xu also moved to Hanzhong with the deputy director of the entire Jing'an Department.According to regulations, low-level officials were not allowed to bring their family members with them, so Mrs. Xun and Xun Zheng stayed in Chengdu and lived with her father. Due to the complicated affairs of the Jing'an Department, Xun Xu only went back to Chengdu once during the three years from the fifth year of Jianxing to the eighth year of Jianxing, and that time he was transferred to Jiangdong for a visit. Usually, the husband and wife communicated by letter. .This situation of separation between the two places lasted until the beginning of the ninth year of Jianxing. Xun Xu's official rank was promoted to "three hundred stones" from the original "bi three hundred stones", and he was qualified to move his family to Hanzhong. .So Xun Xu submitted the application, which was approved in March.Mrs. Xun and Xun Zheng left immediately after getting permission, and finally arrived in Nanzheng in early May. After Xun Xu left the "Taoist Temple" and bid farewell to Du Bi, he rushed directly to the exclusive post of Jing'an Division without saying a word.When he arrived, he noticed several carriages parked in front of the pavilion.Judging from the Chiwujiao flag on the side of the carriage canopy, they are a regular convoy of couriers going back and forth between Nanzheng and Chengdu every month.Mrs. Xun obviously came here in these carriages. He stood at the gate of the post house, caressing the bun with both hands carelessly, and then stepped into the gate of the post house.As soon as he entered, he heard a loud cry from the hall: "Daddy!" Then a seven-year-old boy jumped out and threw himself into Xun Xu's arms excitedly, screaming and jumping. Xun Xu held his son in his arms, stroked his head lightly, and murmured, "You've grown taller, Zhenger, you've grown taller..." "Zhenger misses Daddy so much." "Father misses you too." Xun Xu patted his face lovingly. Although the child was only seven years old, the distance between his brows vaguely resembled his father's.At this time, footsteps came, and Xun Xu raised his head again, and saw his wife standing in front of him with a smile.The exhaustion from the long journey still remained on Mrs. Xun's face, but her smile was still so gentle, unchanged from when she was newly married. "Ah Ti, are you here?" "Here we come, Mr. Xiang." "Is everything going well?" "Well, it's okay, but Zheng'er doesn't like riding in carriages very much." The two exchanged a few brief greetings, and did not say much. They left each other's eyes to express their feelings.Xun Xu knelt down, hugged Xun Zheng in his arms with one hand, then got up and held his wife's left hand, which was very rough, the result of years of hard work.Xun Xu rubbed her calluses with her thumb with a little guilt, and said: "Are you tired, Arti? The house has been prepared for you, and the luggage will be sent back to the posthouse." "Sir, let's go home first." Mrs. Xun replied softly.Hearing the word "go home" slipping from his wife's lips, Xun Xu felt a warm tremor in an instant, and a sense of happiness flooded into his body like the tide of the Yangtze River.Whether it is Zhulong or Li Ping, these troublesome things have become irrelevant and insignificant at this moment.The exhaustion, anxiety and depression accumulated since March melted away like snow on the top of the Qinling Mountains, washed away by this call to "go home". Xun Xu used to return to an empty house with brick and stone structure, but now he finally feels "home". After the family completed the formalities, they walked out of the post house together.Holding his son in one hand and his wife in the other, Xun Xu cheerfully boarded a simple carriage prepared in advance and headed towards his home. "It's nice to have a family..." Pei Xu, who was standing at the gate of the post house, watched the three people leave, and sighed enviously.He had been standing by the side just now, but Xun Xu actually ignored him.Asheer on the side teased him and said, "Are you envious? It's not that there are no women in Hanzhong, Mr. Pei, be brave." "Forget it, here... I'd rather go to your Nanban to find one." "Tsk, the taste is still very strong. In fact, there is no difference. It is the same after blowing on the lamp." Pei Xu glared at him, then closed his mouth resentfully, he was not Asher's opponent on this topic.The two of them went into the post house, ordered the post house soldiers to take a car, and sent the luggage Mrs. Xun brought from Chengdu to Xun Xu's mansion, and sent someone to deliver a jar of good wine and some fresh fruits and vegetables to Xun Xu. , it was a congratulatory gift from colleagues in Jing'an Division. After these things were done, Pei Xu said to Asher again: "Go to the Jing'an Division and ask for a leave of absence for Xun Zong. Just let him rest for a day." "Well, okay, let Mr. Xun take a rest. Anyway, there is nothing important recently." Asher clapped his hands in agreement. What Asher did not expect was that the validity period of his words only lasted twelve hours. The gentle summer wind blew across the high mountains of the Qinling Mountains, and then gradually melted between the tents of the two armies.It is already a cool summer, but there is still a winter-like chilling atmosphere on the slopes of the Qinling Mountains. The camps of the two armies were not far apart, and a slightly raised hillside formed a natural boundary between them.The two wings of the hillside are covered with off-white tents of cowhide or felt, like mushrooms that grow out of the moment after the rain.It was almost dusk now, a dozen bonfires had been lit, and black smoke slowly rose into the gloomy sky.Scattered wooden watchtowers were erected on the nearby higher hills, with flags saying "Da Han", "Zhuge" or "Da Wei" and "Sima" flying on them.On the further periphery, two fences made of antlers, stones and wood marked the area controlled by both sides. Since Sima Yi suffered a disastrous defeat in March, the confrontation between Shu Han and Wei Jun has lasted for more than two months. "Prime Minister." Jiang Wei appeared from behind Zhuge Liang.Zhuge Liang didn't turn his head back, his eyes were still fixed on the big flag of Wei Jun in the distance.Sima Yi is like a damn tortoise, completely retracting himself into the shell, no matter how challenging the Han army is, he will not be moved. "Prime Minister, I need to show you something." "Oh?" Jiang Wei took out two letters from his arms and handed them to Zhuge Liang respectfully with both hands.Zhuge Liang took the letter, and after reading it, he said lightly: "It's time to go back to Hanzhong." The old man's tone was full of regret and exhaustion. He put the two letters in the wooden box beside him and waved his hands. On the afternoon of May 5th, Xun Zheng stood in front of his new house, looking up at the sparrow nest on the top of a poplar tree outside the door, where four chicks poked their heads out and howled.Mrs. Xun's head was wrapped in blue cloth, and she was cleaning inside and out with a broom in her hand; while his father was sitting on the threshold, sharpening a wooden stick with a small knife, with a piece of cowhide and a few copper nails at his feet. The Secretary of the Prime Minister's Mansion of the Shu Han Dynasty heard that Cao Jing'an was engaged in Xun Xu Xun Xiaohe and his current task was to make a slingshot for his son that could shoot birds. He felt that this was not much easier than catching the candle dragon. He is very clear about how the slingshot is done, but "knowing" and "knowing how to do it" are two different things.Xun Zheng poked his head into the yard every once in a while and asked his father if you were doing well.Xun Xu comforted him by saying that he would wait a little longer, but at the same time regretted that he joined the Jing'an Division instead of the Military Technical Division.He almost wanted to call Qiao Jun over to help. With a bang, Xun Xu chipped the stick again.He scratched his head in despair, and picked up a new branch.There were already a dozen chipped residues scattered at his feet. At this moment, there was a rush of horseshoes outside the courtyard.Xun Xu raised his head when he heard the sound, stopped what he was doing, and his expression became serious.Soon the sound of horseshoes came from far to near, and then stopped outside the courtyard.Xun Xu put down the knife and stood up.He saw Asheer appearing at the door, and Xun Zheng looked at this southern barbarian curiously. Asher's expression was very serious, obviously something big happened.So Xun Xu's eyes immediately changed from a loving father to a strict Jing'an Secretary. "What happened?" "Lord Du wants you to go to him immediately, the sooner the better." "Did he say something?" "No." Xun Xu murmured, he probably guessed that it must have something to do with Li Ping or Zhulong, so he wanted to keep it a secret from Asher.So Xun Xu turned around and told his wife a few words, then walked quickly to the door, and suddenly stopped in his tracks. "By the way, Asheer..." Xun Xu pointed to the pile of spare parts on the ground, "Since you're here, why don't you just stay a little longer and help me make a slingshot." "Fling...a slingshot?" Asher was taken aback. "Yes, Slingshot." Xun Xu was very happy to get rid of this errand. It is said that the Nanman people are quite good at making slingshots, and they once made the Han army who went south suffer a lot.He patted Asher on the shoulder and walked out the door. Xiao Xun outside the door was looking at him disappointedly, and the child's intuition told him that his father was going out again.Xun Xu patted his head, knelt down and said, "Daddy still has work to do and will be back soon; let this uncle help you make a slingshot. pigeons." Xun Zheng widened his eyes in surprise, and turned his head to entangle the bewildered Asher. Xun Xu walked out of the courtyard, got on his horse, and quickly headed towards Jing'an Division.He had walked the road from his home to Jing'an Division countless times, but he had never been so nervous as this time.Du Bi knew that he was on vacation to accompany his wife and children, so unless there was an extremely urgent situation, he would not easily disturb Xun Xu. "Candle Dragon or Li Ping?" This was Xun Xu's first sentence after seeing Du Bi.Du Bi didn't answer directly, nor did he ask about Xun Xu's family life, but waved him to come with him. The two walked side by side into Du Bi's room, and Xun Xu noticed that Du Bi's cases were covered with bamboo slips, plain silk and hemp paper.He recognized that these documents were all from the seventh year of Jianxing, and there was no doubt that they were all related to the Michong incident. After closing the door, Du Bi took out a dark blue bamboo slip from the case, handed it to Xun Xu, and said: "I have reviewed all the documents related to the Michong incident, and found some doubts, so I hope to confirm with you, the party involved. If these doubts are confirmed, we must take immediate action." "I see." "On the early morning of March 5th in the seventh year of Jianxing, the Jing'an Division and the Nanzheng garrison conducted a large-scale raid on the Wudoumi believers in Liaoyang County, right?" "Yes, we arrested more than a hundred believers in that operation, but Mi Chong, Huang Yu and several other masterminds all escaped." "According to the report, you received this information on the afternoon of March 4th, and the search and arrest operation was launched in the early morning of March 5th. Why are you so slow?" Xun Xu frowned and recalled for a while, and then said: "We are scheduled to leave at You hour on March 4th, and we are scheduled to arrive at Chou hour on March 5th. However, due to the participation of Nanzheng's city garrison troops, we are about one hour late. time." "Well, I also found out the decree on the mobilization of the city garrison troops, and it was issued by Cheng Fan." "That's right, at that time he was serving as Nanzheng's city guard." "Did he explain to you afterwards why the troops were late?" Xun Xu was made a little uncomfortable by Du Bi's pressing every step of the way. It felt like he was back when he was being judged, and Du Bi's questions were much sharper than those of the judges. "He said that the garrison was not manned enough. In order to support the Jing'an Division, Nanzheng's defense had to be re-planned, so it took some more time." Du Bi suddenly jumped to another topic: "The target of this raid escaped just before your surprise attack. Did you really write that in the report?" "Yes, all indications show that the target was temporarily alerted and retreated hastily." "Very good..." An incomprehensible smile appeared on Du Bi's face. Xun Xu vaguely sensed the meaning behind the smile, but refused to admit it, so he stood quietly where he was, waiting for the next question . Du Bi picked up another document and opened it in front of Xun Xu, who recognized that it was a report written by himself.Du Bi read: "On March 6th, Huang Xi and others attacked the team of craftsmen, and coerced one of the craftsmen to flee to the territory of Wei State along the Baoqin Trail. Jing'an Division laid an ambush at the crossing, but fell into the enemy's plan to divert the tiger away from the mountain. As a result Mi Chong took this opportunity to sneak into the military technical department and stole the blueprint of the crossbow machine. Right?" Xun Xu nodded reluctantly. "I haven't been in Hanzhong for a long time, so I don't know much about it. But is the garrison of the Military Technology Division also in charge of the Nanzheng garrison?" "Yes, the guards of the Military Technical Division are counted as garrison troops, but they are relatively independent and not mixed with other troops." He added, "However, administratively they are still under the jurisdiction of the Tibetans." "That's it." Du Bi seemed to be waiting for Xun Xu's words, and he took out a bamboo slip from the table. This bamboo slip was about five inches long, with one end pointed and dark yellow in color. "This is an order issued on the morning of March 6 in the name of the city guard. The order requires the Military Technical Division to allocate one-third of the guards to the northern mountainous area of ​​Nanzheng for temporary security." "Oh, I did ask him on March 5 to send a garrison to support the Jing'an Division." Du Bi shook his head disapprovingly: "But is it necessary to dispatch the garrison of such a vital department as the Military Technical Division? This is too unreasonable. I checked the city defense deployment on March 5 and found There are fifty soldiers who are in charge of guarding the stables and the armory. Why did Chengfan leave these fifty soldiers alone and transfer them from the Military Technical Department?" "Could it be that you..." Xun Xu stared at Du Bi, and his heartbeat started to speed up. "Not bad!" Du Bi affirmed Xun Xu's eyes, "I don't know if it's a coincidence. Every success of the Jing'an Division was completed without the garrison's knowledge: such as the ambush against Mi Chong in Qinglong Mountain And Gao Tanglong was an undercover agent; and the two failures of Jing'an Division were "coincidentally" related to the abnormal actions of Shucheng Wei. The first slow action of Shucheng Wei led to Mi Chong, Huang Yu and others. Escaped; the second time, the Shucheng Lieutenant's transfer order weakened the military technical department's defense force by half, so that the enemy took advantage of the gap and finally succeeded. Now the Shucheng Lieutenant became Li Ping's staff by a "coincidence". I'm sorry, Xiaohe." After Du Bi finished his analysis, he did not come to a conclusion. He believed that Xun Xu could clearly perceive the hint.Xun Xu licked his lips anxiously, not knowing what to say for a while.Du Bi's sharp analysis is like the sharp crossbow that the Han army is proud of, easily piercing through Xun Xu's psychological armor, forcing him to face one of the two facts that he least wants to face. "So... where is Cheng Fan now?" "According to the person in charge of monitoring, he just returned to Hanzhong today. That's why I hurriedly called you here. Hu Zhong is also back." Xun Xu did some calculations in his mind, regardless of Hu Zhong, Cheng Fan only escorted the food and grass away on April 20th, and he came back today only on May 5th, the speed is suspiciously fast.Thinking of Cheng Fan's sudden appearance on the front line, Xun Xu had no choice but to believe Du Bi's facts. "Some action must be taken immediately!" Xun Xu, who has always belonged to the action group, blurted out.But this time Du Bi was one step faster than him, and had already reached the door: "Okay, let's go." Xun Xu asked in bewilderment, "Where are you going?" "Grain Field Cao." The drowsy hot wind in the afternoon blows the blue curtains, and the golden sunlight flows leisurely into the room through the gaps in the curtains.Looking at the height of the sun outside the window, Luo Shi calculated the time in his head, and he would be able to go home from get off work in another hour.Thinking of this, he couldn't help stretching a long way. This kind of lethargy infected everyone in the room, and yawned one after another.Since the war with the Wei State, Liangtian Cao has rarely had such a leisure time as this afternoon. To be honest, Luo Shi didn't like his own job: dull, boring and poorly paid.As a clerk of Grain Field Cao, his daily job is to count the inventory of the granary, calculate the income and expenditure, and then copy a series of numbers in the account book, day after day.Luo Shi even occasionally envied the soldiers on the front line. Although their work was dangerous, they did not lack passion. "Maybe Ban Chao went to the Western Regions with such a mood back then." He sometimes sighed like this.However, Luo Shi also knows that he will never be able to do something like "throwing a pen into the army". In fact, when he was young, he wanted to be a poet... Luo Shi slowly stretched his hands to the table, and began to write Brushes, carving knives, ink boxes, inkstones, counting chips, and several bamboo slips of account books are arranged in different orders, which is a way for Shu Han scribes to pass the time. At this time, there was a sound of footsteps outside the door, and the scribes all lowered their heads to pretend to be very busy.A colleague pushed the door in with a stack of documents in his hand, and shouted as soon as he entered the room: "The receipt of the grain deposit from the prime minister's mansion, which one of you will deal with it?" This sudden job ruined my comfortable mood, so I looked at each other, hoping that someone would stand up and volunteer. "Receipt of grain deposit" is a document carried by the transport troops to the front line, which contains the quantity of grain transported, half-way loss, rear inventory status, etc.; when the transport troops return to Nanzheng, the grain deposit receipt will also be There are more records of front-line food storage status and consumption speed.The scribes of Liangtian Cao need to compare these figures with Nanzheng's own inventory and past grain output rates to see if the figures match.The function of the return receipt is to give frontline commanders and logistics departments a quantifiable and intuitive supply status; the second is to prevent the discovery of embezzlement and corruption.This work is not difficult, but very cumbersome, and the scribes often need to go to the granaries in the suburbs to check one by one in person. "Then I'll take care of it." Luo Shi lazily scratched his ears with the brush holder, and raised his hand.A while ago, he had just conducted a census of Nanzheng's grain and grass inventory, and the report happened to be on his desk, and the data was ready-made. He took the grain deposit receipt from his colleague, skillfully unwrapped the rope, and spread out the bamboo slips on the desk.Then he picked out Nanzheng's report on grain and grass inventory in April from the bamboo slips on the other side, and placed a counting chip between the two piles of bamboo slips. The working procedure is actually very simple. Luo Shi first glanced at the number of the receipt, and put out a number of calculation chips in front of him; then he glanced at the number of the inventory, and made some additions and subtractions to the calculation chips according to a specific formula; Count and engrave the result on a new bamboo slip.Luo Shi hopes to finish this matter before leaving get off work. Suddenly, he glanced at a certain number on the receipt and felt something was wrong.Luo Shi has been in this position for seven years and can intuitively detect the incongruity in the statistics. "There must be something wrong..." Luo Shi muttered to himself, bent down and checked the document carefully again, the numbers were not flawed, but the sense of disobedience was still there.This might just be his delusion, but now is the time of war, any omission may cause big trouble.Out of a sense of responsibility, Luo Shi felt it was necessary to confirm.He stood up and called out to a scribe who sat diagonally across the room: "Hey, Lao Peng, is the grain inventory data for March still available?" "Oh, it's just there. There's a third cabinet on the right at the back." Luo Shi got up and took out the documents he wanted from the cabinet at the back of the house, walked quickly back to his desk, and read them carefully.His eyes kept going back and forth among the three documents, and the data on the documents were like stones thrown into a pond, causing ripples of surprise on his face.At the end, he couldn't help pressing his chest, and exclaimed softly: "My God, what the hell is going on..." When Xun Xu and Du Bi arrived at the grain field Cao, the sun was already setting, and the officials in Cao were all getting ready to go home from get off work.The two inopportune visitors were, of course, met with cold reception and blank stares. "I'm sorry, Xun Xu. According to regulations, documents related to grain and grass are confidential. You need to fill out three application forms, and we will review them as soon as possible." A supervisor said to Xun Xu in a purely business-like indifferent tone, turning his head from time to time Looking at the sundial under the window, I am very impatient. Xun Xu suppressed his anger and said, "How long will it take?" "It's about three days, but you know, the military situation is urgent now, and our affairs are also very complicated..." The official replied slowly with his eyes narrowed, his hands in his sleeves, and at the same time urged the two annoying guys leave now. Xun Xu once dealt with Liangtian Cao.It was at the end of the Michong incident. Xun Xu asked to intercept the grain convoy suspected of having the crossbow blueprints, but Liangtian Cao refused on the grounds of "military emergency". As a result, the blueprints flowed into Wei at the last moment.Xun Xu has always been worried about Liangtian Cao's bureaucratic attitude.But now, this bad impression is obviously deeper. Xun Xu stepped forward abruptly, staring angrily at the official with both eyes.Even Soochow had completely opened up its intelligence resources to him, but now he was shut down by a small organization in his own country, and Xun Xu's self-esteem felt hurt.He pointed at the supervisor with his index finger and threatened word by word: "It's an emergency now! In the name of Jing'an Division, I request to open the file for us to investigate!" "Liantian Cao is a key department of Nanzheng, and any investigation must be based on the premise of not damaging its normal work order." The officials did not back down in the slightest.He understands the delicate balance of power in the prime minister's mansion, and knows which frictions must be taken seriously and which frictions can be ignored.Jing'an Division's backstage is Yang Yi, and Liangtian Cao is General Wei Yan's sphere of influence; Yang Yi will definitely not take the initiative to provoke for Jing'an Division. Seeing the other party's bad attitude, Xun Xu was furious.He suddenly pushed himself in front of the official, his nose almost touching the other's nose; the official was startled, and said in a trembling voice, "What are you doing?" Xun Xu ignored him, grabbed the other man's skirt, and punched to fight.Standing aside, Du Bi hastily blocked Xun Xu's move, and said in a deep voice: "Xiaohe... a little intolerance will lead to chaos and big schemes, and now is not the time to make trouble." Only then did Xun Xu barely restrain his anger, and resentfully let go of the Officials with earthy faces frightened. This skirmish attracted the attention of several scribes, including the guards at the door, who also looked inside.Seeing this, Du Bi grabbed Xun Xu's arm and said in a low voice, "Since we have broken our face with the other party, I don't think there will be any results today. Let's go first..." Xun Xu said viciously, "Spit , subordinate staff!" Then he left Liangtian Cao with Du Bi. After leaving Liangtian Cao's compound, the two stood at the gate and waited for the young man to lead the horse.荀诩鼓起腮帮子，气哼哼地望着天空的晚霞不说话，两只脚轮流敲打着地面。杜弼笼起袖子睥睨着他，也不作声。过了一会儿小厮远远地牵着马走过来，杜弼这才轻咳了一声，侧过头去对荀诩说： “孝和，我知道你在想什么。” “唔？”荀诩翻了翻眼皮。 “你是想派阿社尔半夜潜入粮田曹去偷吧？” "..." “我明确告诉你，不可以。那会惹下大乱子的。” 荀诩冷哼了一声，露出被人说中心事的不舒服表情。就在这时候，一名书吏从他们两个人身旁走过，在擦肩而过的一瞬间，他偏过头小声说道：“两位大人，请借一步说话。”说完这名书吏作了个手势，然后匆匆离去。 荀诩和杜弼对视一眼，二话没说，立刻紧跟上那个人。他们两个尾随着他走出粮田曹，一路七转八转到了城郊一处荒僻之地（粮田曹的办公地点本来就在城外）。这里是一处废弃的小庙，年久失修，显得破败不堪。庙的内部缀满了蜘蛛网，神像被几寸厚的尘土覆盖，看不清楚本来样貌；墙壁上的土坯裂开很大的缝隙，看起来整个建筑结构岌岌可危。 三个人都进了庙以后，那人示意他们不要说话，先仔细看看周围，再小心地把两扇糟朽不堪的木门掩上，这才转过身来面对着荀诩与杜弼。借着窗外落日的余光，荀诩看到这是一个四十多岁的枯瘦中年人，身穿着书吏特有的褐色短袍，右手食指有明显的墨迹与刀伤，这是一名老资格书吏典型的特征。他长着一张循规蹈矩的方脸，但现在的表情却混杂着不安与兴奋。荀诩注意到他的袖管形状怪异，里面显然藏着一些硬东西。 “两位大人，请问你们是军正司的么？”书吏怯生生地问了一句，荀诩毫不迟疑地点了点头。书吏露出如释重任的表情，但接下来却又欲言又止，左手不时摩挲着右边的袖管。 “不必紧张，慢慢说，我们洗耳恭听。”荀诩知道这时候需要软性诱导，否则对方可能会临时反悔。 “我不知道该不该说，也许只是一些无关紧要的东西……可是……” “说出来吧，也许在我们眼中那是些有价值的东西。” 听到荀诩的鼓励，书吏这才犹犹豫豫地从袖管里抽出几根竹简，握在手里，正面朝上。 “我是粮田曹的书吏罗石，我怀疑……呃……只是怀疑……粮田曹内部——或许是押粮部队内部——有人在非法侵吞南郑的储备粮草。” 荀诩不动声色，示意他继续说下去。军正司是汉中的纪律检查部门，官员的渎职、贪污以及滥用职权都归他们管。罗石显然把他们误认成是军正司的人，于是来举报腐败事件。但荀诩没有说破自己的身份，而是继续听下去。 “我今天检查了一遍三月份、四月份的粮草库存与押粮回执，发现了一些奇怪的事情。三月底的时候，南郑的粮草库存官方记录跟前线存粮比例是五比一；这一比例在四月初升到了七比一。” “这个比例说明了什么？” “是这样的。”罗石一涉及到专业问题，说话就流畅起来，“这是后方粮草库存和前方粮草库存的一个比值，比值的高低说明了我军补给力的持续能力以及补给线的运输效率。比例越高，说明运补效率越低。一般来说，这个比例应该是在四比一，战时可能会升到六比一或者七比一，超过七比一就意味着前线出现了粮草不足的状况。” “明白了，继续。” “这个情况持续到四月中旬仍旧没有好转，与前线存粮比例攀升到了八比一；但四月底的时候，这一比例突然回落到了六比一。我查阅了相关记录，发现这个比例的下降并非因为运输效率的改善，而是帐面上的数字被人调整……” 荀诩挥了挥手，颇为无奈地说道：“技术细节可以略过，直接说结论吧。” “哦……好……”罗石有些尴尬，“简单来说，有人篡改了四月份的南郑粮草库存绝对数，以致从帐面数字上来看前线补给很充裕；而根据真实库存量，前线从三月底一直持续的补给危机实际上依然存在，没有好转。” “你又是怎么知道的，有什么证据吗？” “我手里恰好有一份四月份的库存统计表，这是我在四月十九日亲自去核实过的；而那份被篡改过的统计表则是在四月二十日公布出来的。两者之间的库存量相差了将近五十万斛，据此计算出的前线粮草状况当然也就截然不同。”罗石说完把那几根竹简交到了荀诩手里。 “换句话说，有人试图通过修改库存数据来掩盖前线的补给问题？” “是的，前线的粮官是参考那份篡改的数据来做调配的。只要它还没被纠正，前线就会误以为后方正源源不断地运送粮草上来，而实际上我们并没有那么多粮食。篡改者就可以利用差额中饱私囊了。” “唔，我们明白了。”杜弼说，荀诩若有所思地将那几枚竹简反复观看，没动声色。 “希望你们能够尽快采取行动，不然时间长了对我军是一个极大的损害。”罗石咽了咽唾沫，又紧张地补充道，“还有，你们能不能不告诉别人是我举报的？我听说军正司有这样的规定……” 杜弼宽慰他道：“放心好了，整个调查过程都不会提及到你的存在。” “那就好，那就好。”罗石这才如释重任，刚才他一直不安地揪着袖管，现在终于松开了手。他冲两人鞠了个躬，抬起头小心翼翼地问道：“那两位大人，我能走了吗？”在得到了肯定的答复以后，罗石转身推开庙门，左右看看没人在附近，一溜烟跑了出去，身形很快隐没在夜幕之中。 等到罗石离开以后，杜弼这才重新将门掩上，他回到庙中问荀诩：“你觉得怎样？有价值吗？” 荀诩用手指灵活地把玩着那几枚竹简，脸上浮现出一种奇妙的表情：“这件事的内幕我还没调查过，不好下什么结论，不过……我倒可以看出谁能得到最大利益。” “哦？”杜弼眉头一挑。 “如果后勤部门宣布补给不成问题——不管是不是真的——那么前线军队就不会轻易撤退，诸葛丞相也就会一直呆在军中……”荀诩说到这里，眼神陡然变得锐利起来，语气也浸满了恶意的揣测。 “……然后汉中的某个人就可以悠哉游哉地做任何他喜欢做的事情了，没人能妨碍他。”