Zhang Li left with the order, and a dozen of his men acted quickly.
Now that we know where Liu Bi is, we can conduct a targeted investigation, and the news came back in less than two hours.
Xie Zhiyuan learned that Liu Bi was originally the coachman of the former prefect Qi Hongming. Combined with what Cheng Cheng had mentioned about Ye Wenchang before, he could probably guess what Chen Ping was worried about recently.
The teacher dedicated himself to serving the people, but after his accidental death, he was framed by rumors and false accusations. Of course, as a closed disciple, he could not just sit back and ignore it.
Although Xie Zhiyuan did not know Ye Wenchang, he could tell from Chen Ping that there must be a hidden agenda in the matter of corruption and slander.
It’s just that he still doesn’t understand why he is so anxious to find Liu Bi now after so many years.
However, Xie Zhiyuan did not want to explore these matters. He looked in the direction of the prefect's Yamen, thinking about how to talk to Lu Wei.
"Send me your greeting card and prepare a gift to go to the Lu Mansion tomorrow."
"Yes." The person outside the door responded.
On the other side, Lu Wei frowned slightly when he received Xie Zhiyuan's greeting message.
He had known for a long time that Xie Zhiyuan was studying in Zhengxing Prefecture and had been there for more than half a year. It was normal for young people to like to travel and have fun, but today he suddenly handed over a greeting card. He didn't know why.
But he didn’t pay too much attention and just asked the housekeeper to prepare for the reception.
At noon the next day, Xie Zhiyuan arrived as promised.
Lu Wei was wearing regular clothes and smiling when he went out to greet him.
"Thank you, my nephew! We parted ways in the capital back then, and I don't want to see you again today. My nephew has become more and more considerate."
Xie Zhiyuan bowed his hands and said, "The water in Qianzhou really nourishes people. Isn't Uncle Lu even more elegant than before?"
In his early years, Lu Wei worked in the capital and was an official in the same dynasty as Xie Zhiyuan's father, so he met him several times on certain occasions.
Therefore, when they meet, they refer to each other as uncle and nephew, making them look closer.
As Lu Wei walked inside, he said with greetings: "I wonder how you're doing, sir?"
"Thank you Uncle Lu for your concern. My father is still in good health."
"How long do you plan to stay in Zhengxing Mansion at this time? You can come to my place often on weekdays."
"My nephew has a wild temper and likes to play around. That's why I came to see you today. I hope Uncle Lu can forgive me."
The food and wine were served piping hot. Xie Zhiyuan made a toast first as an apology, and then slowly took his seat.
Lu Wei waved his hand and sighed: "Qianzhou has also been plagued by disasters in the past two years. First there was a drought and then there was a locust plague. It is really disturbing. I also have many things to do, so I have no time to take care of other things."
"Even so, the Zhengxing Mansion has remained unscathed under your rule." Xie Zhiyuan complimented.
Lu Wei smiled slightly and quickly said that it was only because the people of Qianzhou were united that they were lucky enough to survive safely.
Halfway through the luncheon, we had a great conversation.
After Xie Zhiyuan had laid the groundwork, he said, "To be honest with Uncle Lu, my nephew came to visit today because he actually has something to ask for."
Lu Wei nodded tacitly, as if he had been waiting for him to speak, but on the surface he pretended to be surprised and asked: "Oh? For a person like my nephew, is there anything else that can trouble you?"
"Uncle Lu was joking. In fact, I was looking for someone recently, but I heard that he was locked up in a cell." Xie Zhiyuan said warmly.
"Who?" Lu Wei was a little surprised, he didn't expect such a thing.
"This man's name is Liu Bi, and he was arrested for stealing government property a few years ago."
"This name sounds familiar," Lu Wei pondered for a moment before suddenly saying, "Oh, he is the coachman of the former prefect Qi, right? He was indeed sentenced to hanging for stealing government property, and he reported it twice in the past few years. Dali Temple reviewed it, but there was still no reply. So the person has been in jail. When my nephew mentioned it, I remembered that there was such a person."
Xie Zhiyuan quickly stood up and saluted, and asked carefully: "I wonder if Uncle Lu can let my nephew meet this person."
Lu Wei held the cup for a moment and asked, "What does my nephew want from him?"
"Nothing special, I just want to ask him about something." Xie Zhiyuan came to visit as his own identity today, so naturally he would not say that it was Chen Ping who wanted to see this person.
Seeing that he didn't say the specific reason, Lu Wei couldn't ask further due to his identity, so he immediately said: "Okay, you can go to the cell to meet me tomorrow."
"Please forgive my nephew for overstepping his bounds. I want to see him alone. There are so many people in the cell, so I'm afraid it won't be convenient."
"This..." Lu Wei's face became solemn. Normally, it was no big deal to go to the cell to meet a prisoner as Xie Zhiyuan, it was just a matter of raising his hand.
However, it is really illegal to take death row inmates out of their cells to meet alone. Although Liu Bi’s case has not been answered for several years, if something happens and the superiors inquire about it, it may not be easy to deal with.
"Isn't this inappropriate? He is a prisoner on death row. It will be difficult to deal with him if something happens." Lu Wei expressed his concerns.
How could Xie Zhiyuan not understand? He hurriedly explained: "Uncle Lu, please don't misunderstand me. My nephew just asked him about something, and he can return it after asking."
"That's all?"
"That's it! If there is an accident, my nephew will bear the responsibility."
Lu Wei tapped his fingers on the table and spoke after a long while, "Okay. Since my nephew has spoken, I will send someone to take Liu Bi to Tonghua Courtyard tomorrow at 1:00 pm. After you finish asking questions, we will bring him back. But It’s not advisable to stay out for too long, an hour at most.”
Inspector Tian hurried to the inner office, and after saluting Lu Wei, he asked: "I wonder what your orders are, sir?"
"Here we go. Tonight you go to the prison to pick up a prisoner named Liu Bi and send him to Tonghua Courtyard in the east of the city before midnight." Lu Wei did not say the reason, but just continued the matter.
But he didn't see that when Tian Du, who had his head lowered, heard Liu Bi's name, his pupils shook.
"Yes, sir." Inspector Tian replied while keeping his head down.
"After the person is brought into another hospital, you wait outside the hospital. When the matter is done, someone will notify you and bring the person back at that time. The prisoner must return to the cell before midnight, and there must be no mistake."
"As you command!"
At night, it’s not yet Hai hour.
Inspector Tian and two jailers escorted Liu Bi to a room in Tonghua Villa.
Zhang Li greeted him in the courtyard. Although Captain Tian didn't recognize him, he knew it was Lu Wei's order, so he left the courtyard without asking any questions and waited on the street outside the courtyard gate.
The two jailors were resting against the courtyard wall out of boredom, but Inspector Tian kept staring at the gate of the other courtyard.
Liu Bi was wearing heavy shackles and his feet were shackled. Perhaps because of being imprisoned for many years, he was as skinny as a stick and his eyes were dull.
At this time, he was slumped on the chair in the room, looking gradually panicked.
I have been locked up in jail for the past few years and no one cares about me. Now I am suddenly taken to a secluded place at night. I am afraid it will not be a good thing.
Could it be that he is going to attack me? Why wait until today? The more Liu Bi thought about it, the more afraid he became and his whole body trembled, and the chains made a clanking sound.
Chen Ping, Zhao Jin, Ye Chongwen, and He Qing chose four people to enter the other courtyard through the back door, perfectly avoiding the supervisor Tian Du who was waiting in the front courtyard.
After Zhang Li saw them arriving, he handed over his hands and left quietly. He should have been ordered by Xie Zhiyuan to lurk around to prevent others from approaching.
Chen Ping and the others covered their faces with black cloth before pushing the door open and entering.
Liu Bi came to his senses when he heard the sound of the door opening. He looked up and saw a few unknown people coming in, and they were all dressed in black and had their faces covered. He was so frightened that he quickly stood up from his chair and asked tremblingly.
"You...who are you?"
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Chapter 2 In the evening, I try to be as early as possible.