The sixth year of Jingming, autumn!
Yuan Yong's name appeared on the emperor's desk for the first time.
"Who is Yuan Yong?"
The name has been reported to the emperor, and this person's life experience has long been investigated.
Qian Fu bowed and said, "Yuan Yong is from the south. During the Wende period, he studied at the Shanhe Academy for two years and achieved the title of Juren. When Beirong and Xiliang invaded the south, he used his connections to secure a position in the Northwest Military Governor's Office."
Liu Zhao asked, "He spent money to get a job at the Grand Commandery. Is he rich?"
Qian Fu nodded, "This man's wealth is astonishing. However, up to now, this old servant has not yet found out whether his money comes from Zu Meng or some other channel."
Gu Jiu asked, "What is Yuan Yong's family background like? Who are his parents?"
"His parents, as listed in his file, are both honest and well-behaved small landowners. I've sent people to investigate repeatedly but have found nothing amiss. However, his parents simply can't afford to support him financially. From what I've learned, Yuan Yong gifted precious jewelry and jade worth 40,000 to 50,000 taels to establish connections at the Northwest Military Governor's Office. The origins of these jewelry and jade items remain unknown."
Qian Fu felt very ashamed.
As an intelligence professional, he was unable to find out the origins of the jewelry and jade. This is a dereliction of duty.
"So, there are many doubts about Yuan Yong's identity." Liu Zhao frowned.
An honest couple of small landlords would never have such great financial resources.
Qian Fu said that there was nothing wrong with the small landlord couple, and it seemed that there really was nothing wrong with them.
Then it is obvious that Yuan Yong is not the child of this couple, Yuan Yong just borrowed the identities of this couple.
Due to the inconvenience of communication and the identity being borrowed by others, the truth will not be known unless someone is sent to the local area to investigate.
"What did the small landlord couple say?" Gu Jiu asked.
Qian Fu bowed and said, "I personally went to see that old couple and they didn't know Yuan Yong at all. They had never even heard of his name. After repeated verification, I believe the landlord couple was not lying."
Gu Jiu laughed. "Having gone to great lengths to fabricate his origins, Yuan Yong's true identity is quite questionable. He dared to use the identities of a small landowner couple, clearly convinced that they were safe with him and wouldn't reveal his identity. You just said that the jewelry and jade Yuan Yong gave away couldn't be traced back to their origins. Did you investigate the style and craftsmanship of the jewelry and jade? Every craftsman has his or her own unique style and technique."
Qian Fu hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I have investigated. It is not the work of any jade carving craftsman in the Great Zhou. The jewelry and jade he sent out are likely from outside the territory. Whether it came from the sea or from beyond the Great Wall is still under investigation."
Quite interesting.
Liu Zhao ordered, "Continue to talk about Yuan Yong's situation."
Qian Fu organized his speech and said, "After the Northwest War ended, Yuan Yong took the initiative to transfer to the Ma Zheng, which cost him a lot of money. He has been in the Northwest for many years, using his identity as a Ma Zheng official as a cover. In fact, apart from appearing at the Ma Zheng Yamen on the day he reported for duty, no one in the Ma Zheng Yamen has seen him since then."
He used horse officials to penetrate the grasslands, coercing and bribing the various tribes there. In just two or three years, he had gathered an army of over ten thousand people and named his territory Yan. People in the northwest called him "Chief Yan."
A large tribe of over 10,000 people appeared on the grassland, and they were very powerful in combat.
Liu Zhao's brows were already furrowed.
Gu Jiu flipped through the information. "This Yuan Yong's territory is quite interesting. The registered name is Chen Bo, a good citizen of the Great Zhou Dynasty, also from the south. Taking advantage of my encouragement to open up the grasslands, he went to the outer border and bought a large area of pasture. The government even gave him a sixth-rank official title. Humph, my plan to expand the territory abroad, which cost countless manpower and resources, was secretly taken advantage of. He even gathered an army of over ten thousand people, clearly intending to rebel and seize territory!"
Bang!
Liu Zhao slammed his fist on the table.
"The imperial court paid a huge price to drive Bei Rong to the Western Regions. The grassland development plan had just begun to make some progress, but someone took advantage of it and started causing trouble outside the Great Wall. I will not be able to vent my anger until this person is eliminated."
Gu Jiu and Liu Zhao exchanged a glance.
The couple already have a great understanding of each other.
“Fight!”
"beat!"
Before Yuan Yong could really grow stronger, he defeated him with his strength and killed him directly.
The prairie that we acquired at a huge price was taken advantage of by others. Did they really think that we, as a couple, were easy to bully?
Liu Zhao said with a stern face, "Since Yuan Yong has served in the Northwest Military Governor's Office, the people there must be familiar with him. I will issue an edict to the Northwest Military Governor's Office today. If you want money, I will give you money. If you want people, I will give you people. I only ask that Yuan Yong be dealt with within a year."
Gu Jiu said to Qian Fu, "Tell Lord Li and Chen Zhuangshi to bring Yuan Yong's head to me. If I don't see Yuan Yong's head, they won't have a good life."
"That's what I meant, too."
Attack Yuan Yong, this is the clear order.
Carrying Yuan Yong's head back to the capital to see the emperor, this cannot be written in the imperial edict. Not even a written record can be left.
This matter must be communicated verbally.
Anyway, after the cement road was built, the journey from Beijing to the northwest was shortened by half.
A round trip won’t delay much.
Qian Fu took the order and left.
Gu Jiu reminded Liu Zhao, "With the war in the northwest, there will definitely be some disturbances in the court. Control your temper and don't confront the court officials. There will also be a war in the south, and you will need the support of the court officials at this time."
"Don't worry, I know my limits."
"With the war going on in the south, Yang Ji can be transferred there to take charge. He's pretty much rectified the Jiangnan bureaucracy. It's time for him to move on, and he has combat experience. Also, the students from the Military Academy will be sent to the battlefields in the south for training."
Gu Jiu was speaking and taking notes at the same time.
"Yuan Yong's identity is somewhat murky and must be thoroughly investigated. Have someone collect the jewelry and jade he gave away and have them inspected. Qian Fu is very good at gathering intelligence, but he's weak when it comes to jewelry and jade. Perhaps he's overlooked something."
Liu Zhao took the brush from her hand and said, "There are people who will take care of these things. Don't worry about it since you haven't been feeling well these past two days."
Gu Jiu wanted to cool down, so he blew the wind.
I've had a stuffy nose and felt drowsy these past two days.
Liu Zhao was worried about her health and did not allow her to work hard.
Gu Jiu agreed with him, "Okay, okay, you arrange for people to do these things, I won't interfere. I'm just curious about Yuan Yong's identity."
"We'll find out sooner or later."
…
Wang Xuecheng was invited to Wenqing Bookstore, and he thought Yan Ci wanted to talk to him about something.
When he arrived at Wenqing Bookstore, he found out that it was the Intelligence Department under the Imperial Household Department who was looking for him.
Wait, when did the Eunuch Bureau have an Intelligence Department?
Although he was not involved in officialdom, many of the people he came into contact with were bigwigs, and he had some understanding of the situation of the court and the eunuchs.
Are these people scammers?
He looked hesitant, alarm bells ringing in his heart.
Qin Liu, Qian Fu's apprentice, head of the Intelligence Department.
Seeing that Wang Xuecheng doubted their identities, he took out his badge and showed it to them.
"The Intelligence Department is a secret department and is not open to the public. When you leave this door today, just pretend nothing happened. If we find out you've been talking nonsense outside, you know the consequences. Also, if we were scammers, how could we get Wenqing Bookstore to cooperate? Others may not know who we are, but Boss Huang knows for sure."
yes!
If a liar can fool ordinary people, he certainly cannot fool Huang Qubing.
When he first came in, he saw Huang Qubing.
Huang Qubing said nothing, obviously agreeing.
Qin Liu continued, "I hope you can answer the following questions truthfully. We will have someone verify everything you say. So don't expect to deceive us."
"Have I done something wrong?" Wang Xuecheng became more and more panicked.
Qin Liu glanced at him with a cold look in his eyes, "Yuan Yong, do you know him?"
Wang Xuecheng nodded, "I know him!"
"When did you meet? How did you meet..."
Two full hours!
Wang Xuecheng was interrogated by the Intelligence Department for two full hours without even a sip of water.
My throat was sore, but I was still forced to answer questions.
The other party seemed to want to destroy him in this way.
But he was telling the truth!
He and Yuan Yong had known each other for many years, and he couldn't remember many details. He wasn't a top student like Yang Ji, so he really couldn't remember what they had said.
If he had the same memory as Yang Ji, he would not have only passed the exam and obtained the title of scholar.
After two hours, I was finally free.
When I walked out of the house, I saw Yan Ci coming out from next door.
The two brothers were in great trouble, all with pale faces.
"You were questioned too?" the two spoke in unison, then nodded in unison.
"What exactly did Yuan Yong do wrong? He even alarmed the palace. He's asking about something that happened ten years ago. How can I remember?"
Wang Xuecheng looked miserable.
Yan Ci patted his shoulder and said, "Let's go find a quiet place to drink."
The two brothers went to a restaurant outside the city, sternly rebuked the local tyrant, and booked the entire backyard to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.
Although we don’t know what Yuan Yong did wrong, it must be something very serious.
"Yuan Yong, the last time I saw him was six or seven years ago. He was rich and had connections to get into office. The palace is investigating him. Did he cause public outrage while in office? Or did he kill someone and abscond?"
Wang Xuecheng was full of questions.
Yan Ci poured him a glass of wine. "Neither the public outrage nor the murder and escape were enough to warrant an investigation from the palace. Furthermore, it was all old news from ten years ago. Think about their questions. They kept asking if we knew Yuan Yong's background, if we had met Yuan Yong's family, or if we had ever heard him mention them. These questions were clearly an investigation into Yuan Yong's entire ancestry. I guess..."
Yan Ci suddenly lowered his voice, which stimulated Wang Xuecheng to become nervous as well.
"I guess Yuan Yong's identity might not be that simple. Maybe even his name is fake."
Wang Xuecheng opened his mouth wide in shock.
"That's impossible! Yuan Yong took the exams for the scholar and the juren. His identity must have been verified and confirmed before he could take the exam. Oh, and to take the exam for the scholar, you also need a recommendation. It's impossible that all the recommenders are fake."
Yan Ci snorted, "Money makes the world go round. Does Yuan Yong have money?"
Wang Xuecheng nodded and said, of course I have money.
Yuan Yong never concealed the fact that he was rich.
Yan Ci raised his eyebrows and smiled, "He's so rich, it would be easy for him to create a fake identity and find someone to recommend him."
"The person who recommended him back then must be in big trouble." Wang Xuecheng felt panicked and worried about someone who had nothing to do with him.
The person who recommended Yuan Yong was naturally investigated and held accountable.
The consequences are unimaginable.
“Who knows if those people are still alive.”
Yan Ci's words really scared Wang Xuecheng.
"No way!"
Wang Xuecheng thought Yuan Yong was too kind.
How could a ruthless person like Yuan Yong leave hidden dangers for himself?
Yan Ci guessed correctly that the people who recommended Yuan Yong back then had all died over the years for various reasons.
Some people fell into the water and died.
Some people were hacked to death by robbers on the road.
Some people went to brothels to fight with others and were beaten to death.
Only the last one died of illness. However, considering Yuan Yong's methods, the death of the sick person might not be a true death of illness, but more likely a death by poisoning.
The deaths of these people were all made to be accidents.
Moreover, the time of death was not uniform. The earliest and latest death were five years apart.
So no one doubted Yuan Yong.
No one connected these people's deaths to Yuan Yong.
The small landlord couple registered in the archives escaped death because they did not know Yuan Yong and did not know that their identities were being borrowed by someone.
This is a blessing in disguise.
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