Seeing the cavalry continue to move forward, the child gritted his teeth and rushed towards the cavalry.
The cavalry was already on the march at this time. If he did this, he would be trampled to death by the horses' hooves.
A hand grabbed him in time, it was that young man.
He raised his head and said, "If you have any grievances, you can tell me and I can redress your grievances for you!"
The child didn't react at all. He broke free from his hand and rushed towards the cavalry regardless.
The young man driving the car suddenly stopped in front of him and grabbed his hand. The child wanted to get rid of him, but found that he couldn't get away, so he could only glare at the young man driving the car.
"Don't be angry. What my young master said is true. He is an official of Dali Temple and can help you redress your grievances!"
However, the child still had no response, twisting and swaying all over, trying to break away from the young man's hand.
The boy driving the cart could not move, but he could not break free.
When the cavalry passed by, the child suddenly collapsed on the ground and banged his head against the ground.
The young man and the boy driving the cart were both taken aback and held him back to prevent him from harming himself.
The young man frowned, thinking that there might be something wrong with the child's brain, and it would be best to find a doctor to take a look at it, so he said: "Xiao An, take him with you."
The boy driving the bus agreed and picked him up without thinking the child was dirty.
The child's reaction became more intense, struggling desperately on him and biting the boy's hand. The boy had no choice but to knock him unconscious.
The two of them carried the child into the carriage and continued on their way. When it was dark, they finally arrived at Luoyang City.
At this time, it was only half an hour before the city gate closed, and there were so many people entering and leaving the city. The two of them waited in line for a while and finally entered Luoyang City.
The young man driving the carriage said: "Master, it's getting late. Should we go to the Second Young Master's place, or should we go to the East Palace to find the Crown Prince?"
The young man hummed: "Don't even go, just find an inn to stay."
The boy said "Oh" and looked around while driving the car.
After walking for a long time, they couldn't find the inn because it was their first time in Luoyang.
At this moment, a horse team suddenly came towards us, led by a young girl with a cold face.
When the boy driving the car saw the woman, he said happily: "Master, Sister Yu is here to pick us up. The prince must have asked her to come."
The young man in the carriage raised his eyebrows after hearing this, got out of the carriage, and waited silently for the cavalry to approach.
The girl turned over and dismounted, bowed and said: "Fourth Young Master, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince asked me to take you to the East Palace."
The young man said: "How did he know I was arriving today?"
The girl answered truthfully: "His Royal Highness sends someone to wait at the city gate every day. Whenever he sees a young man of about fifteen years old driving a carriage into the city, he will immediately go back to the East Palace to report."
The young man was furious. His name was Wu Zongbao. He had four brothers and four sisters in his family, and he was the fourth.
Because he has a bad temper and hates evil, he often causes trouble outside. In addition to being scolded by his parents, his two brothers and one sister love to nag him when they meet, which annoys him.
A month ago, he violently beat up a bully official's son in Chang'an.
It happened that Empress Wu Zetian was a guest at his home that day. When she learned about it, she not only was not angry, but also asked him to go to Luoyang and serve as the young minister of Dali Temple.
Wu Zongbaona came to Luoyang to take office with great ambition and high spirits. Unexpectedly, as soon as he arrived, Lao Wu, who was behind him, dared to point fingers at him.
He didn't think the other party had good intentions, he just felt that the other party treated him as an older brother as a younger brother, for fear that he would cause trouble in Luoyang.
Although Wu Zongqian was the current prince, he was only the fifth eldest in the Wu family, and he grew up in Chang'an with his brothers and sisters before he was fifteen years old, so no one was afraid of him.
Especially Wu Zongbao.
He has a manic temper, and even his second brother and third sister are not afraid of him when his temper comes. The only one who can suppress him is his eldest brother Wu Zongxiu. How can he tolerate Wu Zongqian treating him like a child?
His patience had been completely exhausted when he faced Yuan Wanchun just now. He glared and said, "Go back and tell Lao Wu that his fourth brother can take care of himself. When I settle down in Luoyang, I will go see him."
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The girl was decisive and ruthless, without any hesitation. She agreed and left with the person.
By this time, the rain had already stopped, and the girl walked too fast. As a result, Wu Zongbao's anger was not fully vented, and his whole body was very hot, so he did not return to the carriage and followed the carriage.
Not long after, they finally found an inn, and the two of them asked for three rooms. Before the child woke up, they left him in a room and asked the waiter to deliver some food to the room.
Then the master and servant came to the first floor, found a table and ordered food.
This inn is very clean, with many guests. Most of the seats in the lobby are occupied, and most of the people are talking about the war between the Tang Dynasty and the Turks.
Sitting on the right side of Wu Zongbao were two men, both wearing furs and looking like merchants from the North.
The two of them drank a glass of wine. The man on the left wiped the corner of his mouth and said with a smile: "Others say that the eldest son of the Wu family is the most like a father. It seems to be true. The young marshal dares to lead at such a young age.
Five hundred death squads attacked the Turks at night, which is really admirable!"
A smile appeared on Wu Zongbao's face. The person these two people were talking about was none other than his eldest brother Wu Zongxiu.
He heard from his mother that his eldest brother had loved military life since he was a child. He followed his father into the military camp at the age of ten and was designated by his father as the heir to the Xitu Camp. People in Chang'an called him Young Marshal.
Wu Zongbao would sometimes be a little jealous, but there was nothing he could do about it because he was born late.
Moreover, Wu Zongxiu was indifferent to outsiders, but was extremely gentle and kind to his younger brothers and sisters. Everyone admired him, so Wu Zongbao was quite proud to hear outsiders praising his eldest brother.
Another person smiled and said: "I heard that the five sons of His Royal Highness King Zhou are all very talented. Needless to say, the eldest son, the fifth son is the prince, so he is naturally talented. I don't know what the other three sons are like."
Wu Zongbao's ears immediately stood up.
The man from before asked curiously: "Don't you even know the Erlang of the Wu family? He was the Tanhualang last year. It is said that he has a quick mind. Not only can he write a poem in ten steps, but he is also proficient in all kinds of music. He was a sensation in Luoyang at that time!"
Another person said "Ah" and said: "I happened to go to Yingdong last year, but I didn't have time to come back, so I missed the opportunity to see Erlang of the Wu family."
The man first narrowed his eyes and said, "Are you also going to Yingdong to dig for gold?"
The other person smiled and said nothing.
Wu Zongbao frowned secretly. He also heard that the Yingdong Protectorate was full of gold and silver mountains, and people often took risks to mine them privately, and the court repeatedly banned them.
The man who had been to Yingdong asked again: "What about Si Lang, Liu Lang?"
Wu Zongxiu immediately eliminated distracting thoughts and listened intently.
Xian Naren said: "I heard that Liu Lang was born with supernatural powers and was personally trained by General Xue. His military talents are not inferior to Da Lang's. It's just that he is still young and lacks a chance to show off."
The other man nodded repeatedly and said with a smile: "The people trained by General Xue will definitely not be any worse." After a pause, he asked again: "What about Shiro?"
Wu Zongbao held the teacup tightly, his heart beating rapidly.
The first person said: "Well, well..." He laughed dryly and said: "Let's drink, drink."
The other person understood and didn't ask any more questions.
Wu Zongbao's anger surged and he stood up abruptly. He didn't even bother to eat anymore and strode back to his room on the second floor.
The boy driving the bus had no choice but to ask the waiter to deliver the food to the guest room, and then followed.
When the two passed by the child's house, they suddenly heard a "pop, pop, pop, pop, pop" sound.
When I opened the door, I saw the child standing by the table, stuffing the food on the table into his mouth desperately, his cheeks bulging like two big buns.
He didn't stop when he saw the two people coming in. They both guessed that he hadn't eaten for a long time, so they didn't disturb him and waited quietly for him to finish.
After a long time, the child finally stopped, and his mouth that had been busy finally stopped moving.
Wu Zongbao took the opportunity and said: "You can tell me your grievances now. I am the young minister of Dali Temple. No matter how big your grievances are, I can help you redress."
In my heart, I secretly hoped that this child would be so wronged that he would be able to do something great and impress others.
The child glanced at him, suddenly fell to his knees and kowtowed three times.
Just when Wu Zongbao thought he was going to tell his grievances, he walked straight towards the door, seemingly planning to leave.
Wu Zongbao hurriedly blocked his path and said, "Do you have any grievances?"
Recalling the scene when the child stopped Qianniu Wei to file a grievance, he thought there was no way it was false and said, "If you don't believe me, I will take you to Dali Temple right now!"
The child looked up at him, with confusion in his eyes.
Wu Zongbao suddenly thought: "This kid is so young, maybe he doesn't even know what Dali Temple is!"
He immediately said: "I am from the government. You should know about the government, right?"
The child's eyes changed, and they were suddenly full of hostility. He ducked and tried to pass by Wu Zongxiu.
Wu Zongxiu stretched out his hand and grabbed the back of his neck. His patience was suddenly worn out, and he said angrily: "What's wrong with you little brat? Can't you tell the difference between good and bad?"
The young man driving the carriage hurriedly advised: "Master, how can you behave like a child?"
Wu Zongxiu was very irritable. If it was normal, it would be fine if this kid refused to accept the kindness. He was too lazy to take care of it.
But the comments he just heard from others made him feel uncomfortable, as if he was the most useless among the five brothers of the Wu family.
He wanted to do something big and make everyone look at him with admiration. No matter whether this kid was willing or not, he had to help him redress his grievances.
"Xiao An, go get a rope and tie up this kid."
The driver driver said "Oh" and left the house neatly. As he walked back and forth, he had a rope in his hand and tied the child to the chair regardless of his struggle.
When he tied him to the opponent's chest, he suddenly screamed and jumped back violently.
Wu Zongbao said angrily: "What's wrong with you? Could it be that he also had a mouth on his chest and bit you?"
The boy driving the car put his hand behind his back and said in panic: "Master, this child... seems to be a girl!"
Wu Zongbao was also surprised. He looked at "his" chest and found that it was much more bulging than the boy's. He nodded and said, "Well, it seems to be a girl."
The girl glared at him and whined, like a little beast sensing danger.
Xiao An's eyes were very sharp. When she opened her mouth to howl, he saw her tongue and said in surprise: "Master, this girl seems... as if someone has cut off her tongue!"
Wu Zongbao was startled and hurriedly came to the girl's side and wanted to open her mouth to check, but the girl bit her mouth tightly and refused to open it.
It was Xiao An who tapped her chin. The girl lost all her strength and Wu Zongbao opened her mouth.
At first glance, it turned out that only half of the tongue was left, and the wound was neat. It was thought to have been cut with a sharp knife, and the wound had just scarred, so it should have happened recently.
Wu Zongbao was furious: "Which bastard son would do such a cruel thing to a child? If the young master finds out about it, he will have to be skinned!"
In anger, he kicked the leg of the table hard.
The girl looked at him for a while, then suddenly stopped struggling, lowered her head and buried it on her chest.
After a while, she took out a piece of paper from the clothes on her chest with her mouth.
The paper was already wet and torn when she applied force. The boy driving the car said, "Don't move, I'll help you get it." He carefully helped her take out the paper. It was the piece of paper with "Injustice" written on it.
The paper was already blurry and dark, and the original words could not be seen clearly. The girl looked at the paper and shouted "Ahhhh".
Wu Zongbao patted his chest and said loudly: "I know you have been wronged. Don't worry, I will definitely help you redress your grievances."
The girl finally responded this time, swinging her head forward as if to express her gratitude.
Wu Zongbao immediately untied the girl's rope, thinking: "This child can't speak, how should he communicate?"
With a thought in his heart, he said: "Xiao An, go to the carriage and fetch the four treasures from the study."
Xiao An agreed and quickly left the room. After a while, he called back and forth and placed the four treasures of the study flat on the table.
Wu Zongbao said: "Little girl, let me ask you a few questions. If you can't speak, just write your answers, okay?"
The girl shook her head repeatedly and waved her hands.
Wu Zongbao frowned, not understanding what she meant for a moment. Xiao An next to him said: "Master, she must not be able to write!"
The girl on the side nodded repeatedly after hearing this.
Wu Zongbao raised his eyebrows. This girl is speechless and illiterate. How should I communicate with her?
He thought for a while and asked: "Are you from Luoyang?"
The girl shook her head.
Wu Zongbao asked again: "Where is your family?"
The girl didn't respond. Wu Zongbao slapped his forehead and changed the question: "Is your family in Luoyang?"
The girl shook her head.
"Then do you know the way home?"
The girl still shook her head.
Wu Zongbao was immediately discouraged. He felt that the girl's grievances must be related to her family members. As long as her family members were found, it would be easier to solve the problem.
Although he was impatient, he was not stupid. In a flash of thought, he asked again: "Do you know anyone in Luoyang?"
The girl was stunned for a while, then nodded slightly.
Wu Zongbao was overjoyed and said, "Can you take me to find them?" He thought that knowing the girl's identity would make it easier to find her family.
The girl hesitated for a while and finally nodded.
It was getting late, so Wu Zongbao decided to go to Dali Temple tomorrow to complete the handover procedures.
Then, as the Shaoqing of Dali Temple, he began to investigate this first major case.
At dawn the next day, when the girl came out of the house, both Wu Zongbao and Xiao An were surprised.
After washing her face, this little girl turned out to be very beautiful and her skin was white and tender.
Wu Zongbao looked at her palms and found that the skin on her hands was also very tender. She was definitely not a peasant woman, and he secretly became suspicious.
Without saying anything else, he took Xiao An and the girl to the Dali Temple Office. Zhugenan, the Minister of Dali Temple, learned of his arrival and came out to greet him personally.
"Sanlang, I haven't seen you for a few years, and you are becoming more and more heroic." As soon as Zhugenan went out, he approached him enthusiastically, circled around him, and said with a smile:
"Oh, you look exactly like your father back then. No wonder His Majesty wants you to be the Young Master. I think you will be the one who looks most like your father in the future!"
Wu Zongbao was overjoyed and said with a smile: "Uncle Zhuge, thank you very much. I will ask you for more advice in the future."
Zhuge Nan laughed, put his arm around his shoulders and entered, personally taking him to visit the temple office.
The two of them were walking and chatting about family affairs. Zhuge Nan asked Wu Chengsi whether he would come to Luoyang for the royal banquet this year. Wu Zongbao replied: "Father has not decided yet."
Zhugenan nodded and asked about Xiao An and the girl behind Wu Zongbao. Wu Zongbao only said that they were his followers and did not reveal the identity of the girl.
He wanted to complete the case alone, but of course he didn't want to tell anyone.
After the two chatted for a while, Wu Zongbao was anxious to handle the case and separated from Zhuge Nan, saying that his father had told him to handle something.
He was too lazy to handle the formalities and asked an official from Shaoqing Yamen to handle it. He also took two other officials with him and left the Yamen office. He said to the girl: "Where is the person you know? Bring me immediately."
past."
The girl nodded and walked towards the south. She walked very fast and seemed to be very familiar with Luoyang City.
After walking for a short time, we turned east, passed through Jiji Street, and came to an alley in the northwest corner of a neighborhood, where we stopped outside a house.
Wu Zongbao took a look at the house. It was a very ordinary house in Luoyang. He turned around and asked, "Does anyone you know live in it?"
The girl nodded.
Xiao An stepped forward and knocked on the door. After a while, a rough female voice came from inside: "Who is it?"
Wu Zongbao said: "People from the government, open the door quickly!"
With a few bangs, the door was opened, and a tall and strong woman stuck her head out and looked them over. She saw two officials behind Wu Zongbao wearing official uniforms, with a slight look of panic in their eyes.
"Which yamen do you belong to?"
Wu Zongbao hummed: "Dali Temple!"
After hearing this, the woman's body trembled slightly.
Wu Zongbao narrowed his eyes and thought, "This woman is so afraid of the government. Could she have done something shameful?"
At this moment, the girl standing behind Wu Zongbao poked her face out. The woman's face changed drastically when she saw it, she took a step back, pointed at her and said: "You...you..."
A look of horror on his face.
Wu Zongbao said coldly: "Do you know her?"
The woman hurriedly said: "No...I, I don't know her!"
Wu Zongbao said sternly: "Liar, if you don't know her, why are you so panicked when you see her?"
The woman was silent for a while, her expression slowly returned to calm, she rolled her eyes and said: "Master, this child is a slut. She always comes to my house to beg for food. Then she didn't come for a while. I thought she was dead, but I didn't expect her."
He's still alive, so I'm a little surprised."
Wu Zongbao turned to the girl and asked: "Is what she said true?"
The girl shook her head.
Wu Zongbao was furious: "You idiot, how dare you lie to me! Come here, beat me until she tells the truth!"
Two officers immediately stepped forward, one grabbed the woman's arm and pushed her to the ground.
The woman shouted: "My lord, may I ask what crime this woman has committed?"
Wu Zongbao snorted coldly: "You have committed the crime of deceiving the young master!" He yelled: "Why are you still standing there? Let's hit him with a few sticks first!"
The two officials looked at each other and thought to themselves: "This new young master seems to be a ruthless person. We must not offend him in the future."
He took out the stick from his waist and beat the woman on the back.
The woman was thick-skinned and didn't react at all after being hit with a stick several times. She only said: "Master, what the woman said is true. If you don't believe it, we can go to court!"
Xiao An suddenly said: "Master, this woman is a practicing practitioner."
Wu Zongbao snorted and said, "Could it be a female thief?"
In fact, the woman could easily open up the two Dali Temple officials, but she just didn't dare. When she heard Wu Zongbao's words, her face turned pale and she said, "Master, you must provide evidence when you speak!"
Wu Zongbao said coldly: "Take him back and serve him under severe punishment. I don't believe you can still be so harsh!"
When the woman saw such an unreasonable official, she scolded Wu Zong Baozu for eighteen generations in her heart.
He was scolded and scolded, and he knew that if he kept denying it, he might get this damn dog officer killed, so he finally gave in.
"I said! I said yes!"
Wu Zongbao kicked her fat ass and said angrily: "You are such a bitch, could you have said no earlier?"
The woman was not angry either, and said with a smile: "My lord, this is a long story. Why don't you go into the house of a common woman, and she will explain it to you slowly?"
Wu Zongbao snorted, agreed, and led the people into the house.