Chapter 316 Witness is dead
Zhao Duan had seen a psychological symptom in his previous life, called "Scheherazade Complex". The name originated from the heroine of "One Thousand and One Nights":
The Emperor Every night a young girl is summoned to the palace and killed the next day.
In order to stop the killing, Scheherazade, the daughter of the prime minister, took the initiative to enter the palace. She told the emperor a story every night and cut out key plot points. Therefore, the emperor had no choice but to spare her life in order to hear the follow-up.
The next night, I continued to tell myself, and then broke it out... I continued to tell the story of One Thousand and One Nights, and finally moved the emperor to give up killing.
At this moment, Zhao Duan adopted the same strategy.
Considering that every practitioner fantasizes about becoming an immortal, and that the obvious allusions and backgrounds such as Journey to the West need to be eliminated, and it needs to be a long story...he finally chose this one.
Although he certainly couldn't remember the original text, he remembered the general plot.
Even if you have forgotten some, you can still compile a paragraph based on your rich reading experience... In the end, it is enough to "just use it to suit your liking".
"...If you want to hear what happened, let's listen to the explanation next time."
After Zhao Duan finished speaking, he opened his eyes and saw the sorceress in golden armor and wedding dress sitting on the eaves above her head, listening to the opera.
Stare into each other's eyes.
Pei Niannu woke up from the story, stared at him with cold eyes, and said intermittently: "Continue... continue..."
Sure enough, we can communicate!
Zhao Duan was overjoyed, smiled and cupped his hands and said: "Senior, I will allow this junior to tell you about it later. I am here because I want to..."
Pei Niannu sneered, and a rainbow suddenly appeared on the floating scale beam beside him.
"puff!"
Zhao Duan's eyebrows were pierced, his body became stiff, and he fell straight down. The moment before he was kicked out of the "Six Chapters Classic", he only heard the other party's voice:
"Next time... come again."
——
"Huh..." In the courtyard of the White Horse Prison, Zhao Duan woke up suddenly, with beads of sweat on his forehead, and cursed in his heart:
"This is different from what was promised. Is it so vicious? It's even related to the small black room." All the steps were omitted? Oh, yes, she may know that she can’t close my little dark room..."
"What's wrong?" At this time, the old supervisor came back after finishing his work and asked curiously.
"It's nothing, I just had a nightmare." Zhao Duan said helplessly.
Well, considering that this method worked, he decided to persevere and try again.
The reason why the other party didn't take the bait may be that the length of what he said was too short to create enough attraction. Just like reading a novel for only a few chapters, there won't be a strong reaction after it is finished.
But after reading hundreds of thousands of words, immersing yourself in it, and then quitting, you will be able to achieve outstanding results... Well, the premise is that you are not hammered to death by an angry senior...
Zhao Duan silently summed up his experience.
"No more talking, I'll take my leave."
He got up and went home in a hurry, preparing to write more words, save enough manuscripts, and complete the strategy as soon as possible.
"… frizzy."
Sun Lianying opened her mouth, but shook her head helplessly with her hands behind her back, thinking that the sweet-scented osmanthus wine you owe me has not yet been cashed.
…
In the next few days, the changes in the DPRK were exactly as Sun Lianying expected.
The Jiangnan gentry began to lobby continuously, and the three-level joint trial gradually fell into a tug-of-war.
On the third day, news suddenly emerged, claiming that Wang Chusheng had long had a grudge against Gao Lian for a certain incident, and there were several doubts in the evidence he provided.
The meaning is obvious: it is believed that Wang Chusheng is making false accusations to frame the chief envoy.
On the fourth day, new doubts arose about the case, this time on the whistleblower "Song Tiju".
Some people question why Song Tiju was able to obtain so much evidence and why he disappeared mysteriously. The motive for his prosecution remained a mystery for a while.
On the fifth day, rumors began to circulate, vaguely questioning the "imperial envoy" Zhao Duan.
Someone brought out evidence that after Zhao Duan arrived in Taicang Mansion, he asked Gao Lian and other local officials for bribes, but to no avail.
Therefore, Zhao Duan, who failed to ask for bribes, is suspected of retaliating and avenging private revenge...
As soon as the news came out, the capital was in an uproar.
Especially after several verifications, it was found that it was true. For a while, many people who originally insisted on convicting were shaken.
Start to re-examine the "evidence" brought back by Zhao Duan.
In the Imperial College, more and more students questioned him, while those who criticized Gao Lian gradually became less vocal.
Under a strange atmosphere, and driven by some people both overt and covert, public opinion actually reversed within a few days.
Voices of support for Gao Lian began to appear.
"How could this happen? How could they confuse right and wrong like this?"
In the Lihua Hall, the little secretary Qian Kerou slapped a copy of the Beijing Residence Newspaper on the table with an air of enthusiasm, her round face turning red with anger.
Hou Renmeng, who was holding his shoulders, and Shen Juan, who was staring at the dark circles under his eyes, looked ugly.
"What's wrong? Are you so angry?" Zhao Duan picked up the Di newspaper with a smile and took a look at it, "Just like this, you can't stand it?"
Qian Kerou's eyes were a little red:
"We released the news of asking for bribes, obviously to paralyze the other party, but why did this group of people call it retaliation? With the honor and favor you have now in front of His Majesty, how can you do such a thing for the so-called filial piety? This group of people People are simply...simply..."
"Unreasonable." Hou Renmeng said this word for her.
"That's right!"
Several Jinyi captains who had followed him to Taicang Mansion were also filled with indignation and felt that they had been slandered.
Zhao Duan's expression was very calm. He put down his newspaper with a smile and said: "I am fearless if people say it. If a mere slander can hurt me, can I still live till now?"
Just a little bit of wind and frost...
Shen Juan couldn't help but said: "Sir, you may not care about the rumors, but I'm afraid that if the direction of public opinion has changed, it will be difficult to convict Gao Lian. Wouldn't the Li party's gang have more excuses to try to reverse the case?"
Zhao Duan said calmly:
"You must remember that the real battlefield of the game will never lie in these public opinions. Well, it is not that it is not important, but it is never decisive. Your Majesty wants him to die. If Li Yanfu only has these means, it will delay time at most, but still You can’t change the outcome, just feel at ease and go get busy.”
Only then did the people in brocade disperse.
Although he said this, Zhao Duan still went to the Metropolitan Procuratorate at noon to find out the situation from Chen Hong. Wait in the living room.
"The situation is not good," said the silver-toothed Chen Yushi with a wry smile. After not seeing him for a few days, the deputy imperial envoy looked much tired.
Zhao Duan narrowed his eyes and said in surprise:
"Is it because of the voices of support? Or is it the rumors?"
Chen Hong shook her head and whispered: "Mr. Zhao doesn't know something. Today, urgent documents from various local roads were sent to Beijing, especially Jiancheng Road, Huaishui Road, and Linfeng Road. They are local A memorial for an official to plead for Gao Lian.
Well, Linfeng Road was mainly submitted by some officials from Linfeng Mansion, not Taicang Mansion. In addition, Liu Ji, the inspector-general, asked to resign and return to his hometown... The point is not that, it was the request from the local officials. You know what this means. "
Zhao Duan's face also became serious: "Is this happening?"
He originally thought that lobbying by the southern gentry would go as far as pulling evidence. He didn't want local officials to jointly submit a letter... but the meaning was completely different.
The empress could ignore the words of the capital officials, but she could not ignore the memorials of the local officials.
The former is right under your nose, the latter is beyond reach.
Chen Hong sighed: "Moreover, today's joint trial did not go well. Gao Lian was bitten to death in the hall and was slandered. The evidence provided by Wang Chusheng was really flawed."
Zhao Duan frowned and said: "Before we returned to Beijing, we verified it once. Although not all of the many cases committed by Gao Lian have been confirmed, there are a few important ones that have irrefutable evidence."
Chen Hong said bitterly: "Having said that, Wang Chusheng's words are not all impeccable. Some of the accusations have insufficient evidence, or the clues have been destroyed, or he added fuel to the fire, or he worked for Gao Lian, and Don’t know the whole picture…
In short, after the problem was raised, Li Yanfu's people attacked him to death, saying that since there were many falsehoods, how could he prove that other evidence was true? Request for re-verification.
But if the southern gentry continues to operate like this, I'm afraid there will be less and less evidence in our favor.
Moreover, Li Yanfu is now deliberately directing this matter to go against the party. He is claiming that framing Gao Lian and forcing internal fighting in the court is a conspiracy against the party and will not work as expected. "
As he spoke, he shook his head, cheered up again, and said:
"However, Mr. Yuan just told us that we have two advantages at the moment. One is that His Majesty only gave us a ten-day period. As long as we get through it, Li Yanfu will not be able to make a comeback in the remaining days, and the situation is still under our control. middle.
Secondly, as long as the county magistrate Wang Chusheng is here, Li Yanfu cannot get around him if he wants to confuse right and wrong. "
Zhao Duan nodded, feeling calmer.
It's just that the clouds are inexplicably cast over my heart, heavy, and I have a bad premonition.
I always feel like things won't go well.
However, this matter was not within his authority, so he could only leave it to Chen Hong and others.
…
In the evening, Zhao Zhai.
In the bedroom, Zhao Duan finished washing and entered meditation again.
Appeared outside the ruined temple.
In the past few days, he had focused all his attention on conquering Pei Niannu. He entered the "Six Chapters Sutra" on time every day and told stories to the woman in golden armor.
As the story progressed and deepened, although he was stabbed to death by the scale beam every time, he clearly felt that Pei Niannu's hostility and coldness were weakening.
Just like constantly heating a piece of ice, there will always be changes when water drops penetrate the stone.
This time, when Zhao Duan stood in the courtyard, he finished telling the climax of the plot and left a follow-up introduction.
He opened his eyes and pretended to be ready to die, saying in his heart: Come on, I'm ready.
However, the expected pain never came.
The sorceress in wedding dress sitting on the eaves was lost in thought, seemingly immersed in the story of cultivating immortals and unable to extricate herself.
Although due to the presence of the mask, her expression could not be seen, and she could only catch a glimpse of half of her white chin, Zhao Duan judged from the width of her calves that were gently shaking:
"This bitch is happy to hear that... …”
Sure enough, after a while, because the plot that he had been holding back for several days was finally finished, Pei Niannu, who was pleased to hear it, lowered his eyes and looked down at Zhao Duan. He mercifully did not poke him to death, but nodded gently and said:
“…very…good…”
Although the world of cultivating immortals in the story is quite different from reality and seems to be a set of cultivation methods conceived by ordinary people, Pei Niannu still felt very happy after hearing it.
It was better than all the stories she had heard.
"When... reward..."
Before Zhao Duan could express his gratitude, Pei Niannu uttered two more words.
Then, she raised a finger and pointed it towards Zhao Duan's eyebrows.
A wisp of white flame suddenly penetrated into Zhao Duan's eyebrows!
With the burning sensation, at this moment, Zhao Duan felt as if a torrent exploded in his mind.
He was no stranger to this. When Lao Xu taught him martial arts, he had a similar experience, but it was far less brutal and arrogant than this one...
"This technique... is a 'spiritual flame'... it can burn the souls of others... leaving no trace on the body... burning the heart, like thin-skinned torture, is particularly cruel to men, harmful but useless... In addition to causing pain to women, it is There are benefits.”
There were intermittent voices in my mind.
"Reward...next time, continue."
After Pei Niannu finished teaching the Dharma, the scale beam beside him flew out like a flying sword.
puff!
……
Zhao Duan suddenly sat up from the bed, and opened his palms in a daze, and a white flame faintly appeared in his palms, and then disappeared.
"Spells in the realm of divine seals... As a warrior, I can use the spells activated by the warrior's qi machine..."
Zhao Duan's eyes burst with surprise, and he finally mastered the first technique of the Shenzhang Realm.
"Senior Pei is still very generous... I have found the correct way to open the "Six Chapters Classic"..."
Zhao Duan was about to try out a new skill when he suddenly heard rapid footsteps outside the door, followed by a knock on the door:
"Dong dong, young master, there is someone looking for you outside. He is a censor who calls himself Chen Hong."
Chen Yushi?
Why did he come to my house so late at night...
Zhao Duan was stunned for a moment, stood up, put on his shoes, put on his coat, and walked out with his slightly tired body. He saw Chen Hong waiting at the door with an extremely ugly face in the night.
"Chen Yushi, what happened?" Zhao Duan's head sank inexplicably.
Chen Hong looked at him, moved her lips, and uttered a sentence: "Wang Chusheng, he's dead!"
(End of chapter)