Let my thoughts shine in the bright sunlight.
Lin Jiacuo and Lin Zhengye, who were behind Tang Qi, also leaped out after him and took down the others.
Perhaps it was Cheng Junshi's intention, but this time there weren't many people responsible for escorting them, and they quickly dealt with the rest. A pile of people lay scattered on the ground, but Lin Zhengye's eyes grew increasingly excited: "Brother, did you see that! Wasn't my move just now incredibly cool and dashing!"
Lin Jiacuo laughed and slapped him on the head: "You brat, this is nothing, what are you so smug about?"
Tang Qi also came to his side and said happily, "Not bad skills, it seems I didn't misjudge you—" He then turned his eyes to Lin Jiacuo and said with a smile, "You need to be aware of the danger, or you might really get killed by your brother."
Lin Jiacuo also laughed loudly and said to Tang Qi, "If he beats me, then I'll beat you. Neither of us will get away with it."
The group burst into laughter again, before finally becoming serious again.
Tang Qi had Lin Jiacuo and Lin Zhengye stand guard outside, while he lifted the black cloth and slipped into the prison.
Zhang Dong, with his hands and feet bound, first showed a hint of surprise when he saw someone come in, but then he suppressed it and stared blankly at Tang Qi.
Tang Qi, however, was too lazy to waste time with him and directly took out his sword and held it to his neck: "I'll ask you a few questions, answer honestly."
"Pah! Why should I answer just because you tell me to? Go ahead and kill me if you dare!"
Tang Qi pressed the sword down even deeper, and blood quickly appeared on Zhang Dong's neck. He hurriedly begged Tang Qi for mercy, "No, no, I was wrong, I was just joking. Sir, please ask me anything, I will answer everything I know, and I will not hide anything."
"Who gave you the fake military license plate?"
Zhang Dong paused, then looked at Tang Qi hesitantly and asked, "Who exactly are you?"
Tang Qi said impatiently, "I'll ask you a question, just answer it. Don't say anything else, or else—"
He held the sword horizontally in his hand.
"Yes, it's Young Master Wang!"
Zhang Dong answered without the slightest hesitation.
What did Wang Shili ask you to do?
"Just let me drink, cause a ruckus, and have fun as I please."
Zhang Dong was cornered by Tang Qi's sword, and answered tremblingly.
"When did they approach you, and why was it you?"
"I can't remember exactly, it was probably a few months ago. Why me? Sir, I really don't know how to answer that question."
He tentatively moved the sword blade across his neck with his hand: "Sir, you see I've been so cooperative, so this sword—"
"Stop talking nonsense."
Tang Qi interrupted him forcefully and asked again, "Have you seen Wang Xiuzhen?"
Zhang Dong answered incredibly quickly: "Lord Wang? How could I possibly have met him?"
Tang Qi raised an eyebrow, asked a few more questions before finally sheathing her sword, and looked at him with a smile: "Alright, that's all for you, just stay put."
Tang Qi stood up and saw him looking out of the carriage. When he met Tang Qi's gaze, he chuckled twice. So Tang Qi leaned to the side and looked at him back, saying, "It's me who came. You must be disappointed."
Zhang Dong: ...?
Tang Qi slowly approached Zhang Dong under his gaze, then raised her hand and smiled at him, saying, "Good night, you're welcome."
After Tang Qi lifted the black cloth and came out, Cheng Junshi also dusted himself off and stood up from the ground. Tang Qi had just walked over to say a few words to him when Cheng Junshi suddenly felt dizzy and slumped to the side.
"Hey hey hey?"
Tang Qi quickly took two steps forward and caught Cheng Junshi as he fell. While he was still wondering what was going on, he saw Lin Zhengye standing with his hands on his hips, looking very smug: "I almost missed one."
Tang Qi and Lin Jiacuo exchanged a glance, both stunned. When he helped Cheng Junshi back to the carriage, he almost burst out laughing. Tang Qi placed a few flowers he had just picked from the ground next to Cheng Junshi, then took off his cloak and covered him with it. He put his hands together and said very sincerely, "Cheng Wang, may you have a safe journey."
After saying that, she gave him a deep look, sighed heavily, and then jumped off the carriage with trembling shoulders.
Looking at Tang Qi's appearance, Lin Jiacuo said with a hint of amusement, "Zhong Le, after Cheng Wang wakes up, I'll probably be the one seeing you off."
Tang Qi finally couldn't hold back his laughter and walked up to Lin Zhengye, whose face was ashen. He patted him on the shoulder and said with a grin, "I'm so curious about Cheng Wang's expression when he wakes up and finds out that you've tricked him."
Tang Qi was still laughing, but Lin Zhengye couldn't even cry. No one had told him that this person was the Junior Supervisor of the Criminal Law Department.
"It's alright, it's nothing. Anyway, if something happens, he'll come to me, it has nothing to do with you, don't be afraid."
Tang Qi comforted Lin Zhengye, while Lin Jiacuo asked him from the side, "How was it? How did the questioning go?"
Tang Qi didn't answer, but instead asked Lin Zhengye, "Do you know Wang Shili?"
Lin Zhengye nodded.
Tang Qi then asked, "And what about his father?"
Lin Zhengye paused for a moment, then replied, "It should be some high-ranking official in Jingzhou."
Lin Jiacuo answered for him, then looked at Tang Qi: "His father is the Vice Minister of Revenue, why ask this?"
Do you know his father's name?
Lin Jiacuo was taken aback. After thinking for a while, he slowly replied, "Wang... Xiuzhen?"
"You also need time to think."
Tang Qi crossed his arms and continued:
“Zhang Dong used to be a beggar before he started working for Wang Shili. It’s impossible for him to know the names of official ranks so clearly. He probably only knows that his father was a high-ranking official in Jingzhou, just like Zheng Ye.”
Lin Jiacuo said, "But he followed Wang Shili after all, so it's only natural that he knows more."
Tang Qi nodded and said, "Given Wang Shili's character, he probably often mentions that his father is the Vice Minister of Revenue, so it's not surprising that Zhang Dong knows that his father is the Vice Minister of Revenue."
He paused, looked at Lin Jiacuo, and continued, "However, Zhang Dong is too sensitive about the fact that Wang Xiuzhen is the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. Wang Shili won't keep mentioning his father's name every day."
"The reason you know my father's name, besides being a subordinate of the Wolf Strategy Army, is largely because you've had contact with him."
Lin Jiacuo asked him strangely, "So you mean Zhang Dong has been in contact with the Minister?"
"Zhang Dong's reaction was too deliberate, as if he already knew what I was going to ask."
Tang Qi continued, "Haozi said he disappeared a few months ago and reappeared behind Wang Shili about half a month later. If Wang Shili really gave him the fake military tag, he certainly wouldn't have broken off his relationship with Wang Shili in these few months. Moreover, when I approached Zhang Dong just now, it was obvious that he was waiting for someone."
Lin Jiacuo looked at Tang Qi, and then heard him say, "He was too relaxed. He forged a fake military pass and went to Jingzhou for trial. He didn't seem worried at all, just like—"
"It was as if he knew he would be alright."
Lin Zhengye chimed in from the side.
Tang Qi nodded, smiled, and patted him on the shoulder: "Not bad."
"So, you suspect that the fake military license plate was given to Zhang Dong by the Minister?"
Lin Gyatso asked.
“Even if the Minister didn’t personally hand it over to Zhang Dong, he is definitely involved in this matter.”
Lin Jiacuo frowned: "But Zhong Le, I have a question. Don't you think this is too strange?"
Tang Qi looked at him, and Lin Jiacuo continued, "If I were the one who forged the military license plate, I would definitely act secretly. Why would I be so ostentatious like Zhang Dong? Besides, Zhang Dong has been by Wang Shili's side for so long, afraid that others wouldn't know about his relationship with the Wang family. If it really was the Minister who did it, wouldn't this action increase his suspicion?"
Lin Zhengye nodded in agreement: "That's right, it's as if they're not afraid of you investigating, General."
Tang Qi did not answer, which was also what puzzled him. The fake military license plates were made of copper and iron, and Wang Xiuzhen, as the Vice Minister of Revenue, should not normally have access to such things; the only people he could contact were the military. If this matter was indeed related to Wang Xiuzhen, then it meant that the Vice Minister of Revenue had a private relationship with the military.
Tang Qi wondered to himself whether Wang Xiuzhen thought he wouldn't dare to investigate, or whether he wasn't afraid of him investigating at all.
If it's the former, then it's truly wishful thinking, but if it's the latter...
"I need to go to Jingzhou."
Tang Qi suddenly spoke up.
"So sudden? Didn't you just get back?"
Lin Jiacuo was slightly shocked, but Tang Qi said to him, "Prepare well. When I return from Jingzhou, we will head south."
Tang Qi told Lin Jiacuo to take Lin Zhengye away first, then turned to look at the group of people sprawled on the ground and shook his head helplessly: "They went too far. When will they wake up?"
As soon as Cheng Junshi opened his eyes, he caught a glimpse of the cloak Tang Qi had covered him with and a few pitiful wildflowers stuck beside him. The others in the Ministry of Justice were still asleep. As soon as Cheng Junshi moved, stones flew rapidly from a distance. With a quick movement, Cheng Junshi firmly grasped the stones in his palm.
The next moment, a sound came from the hillside next to him. Cheng Junshi was not alert. He just stared at the forest that was slowly calming down. He knew that Tang Qi was guarding there.
Tang Qi broke off a bamboo leaf from the mountain and put it in his mouth. He kicked away a stone at his feet and walked out without looking back. He shrugged and muttered to himself, "Cheng Wang, don't say I didn't help you. If something else happens, it won't be my problem."
The Ministry of Justice was prone to attacks by bandits while escorting important criminals, so Tang Qi simply stayed until Cheng Junshi woke up before leaving. After all, he had the benefits to gain, and there was no reason for others to take the blame.
The remaining people were woken up one after another by Cheng Junshi. Zhuifeng looked at Cheng Junshi, who suddenly had a cloak in his hand, and said, "Sir, are you... cold?"
Cheng Junshi shook his head, then carefully folded the cloak in his hand and handed it to Zhuifeng: "Keep it safe."
Zhui Feng took it, and looking at Cheng Junshi, for a moment he felt that the cloak in his hand was a hundred times heavier. He couldn't tell what kind of precious material the cloak was made of, but it looked very familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before.
Zhui Feng glanced at it a few more times, and then suddenly seemed to remember something and was startled: Isn't this the young marquis's cloak?
He then tentatively asked Cheng Junshi, "Sir, what... have we encountered?"
Cheng Junshi replied calmly, "It's an attack by mountain bandits."
Zhui Feng nodded thoughtfully, then recalled the figure he had seen before being knocked unconscious. He suddenly felt as if he had discovered something extraordinary.
This wasn't some bandit attack; it was clearly a case of willing attackers willingly taking the hit.
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