When Huo Zhengyuan was introduced to the Dongyuan study by the servants of the Song family, he saw Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren still pointing around the map of Nanjing and discussing the follow-up countermeasures.
Even when they saw Huo Zhengyuan enter the study, Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren did not stop talking. Song Chengren still pointed at various locations on the map and kept talking, while Zhou Shangjing raised his head and glanced at Huo Zhengyuan, first nodded and smiled, and then waved.
Huo Zhengyuan was invited to stand nearby and listen, but he had no intention of avoiding it at all.
Seeing the attitude of Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren, Huo Zhengyuan couldn't help but be stunned. He didn't understand what the two old foxes were planning, but he still bowed respectfully, then walked to Song Chengren and stood to listen.
Then, Huo Zhengyuan heard Song Chengren's serious voice.
"The group of dead soldiers who are wanted by the Nanjing government only has about ten people. They should be only a very small part of the entire dead soldier organization. A few days ago, a mysterious person passed the news to us through the Liang Gang, saying that
The scale of that dead warrior organization was far larger than expected, with at least two hundred dead warriors!
The leader of this dead warrior organization was the notorious bandit Jiang Xiao, who should have been beheaded by the court and abandoned the city long ago! The most important thing is that Jiang Xiao did not know what his purpose was, even if he knew that Nanjing was
The city was under martial law, but he still secretly sneaked back into Nanjing..."
As Song Chengren spoke, Huo Zhengyuan was keenly aware that the two old foxes, Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren, were secretly observing changes in his expressions.
Obviously, Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren both speculated that Huo Zhengyuan had secretly revealed the news to them, so they deliberately mentioned the matter in front of Huo Zhengyuan, obviously wanting to take the opportunity to test Huo Zhengyuan's reaction.
In fact, Zhou and Song's guesses were correct. It was Huo Zhengyuan who arranged for Hu Xiao to contact the Liang Gang and revealed more information about the "Chaofeng" organization to them through the Liang Gang channels, as well as Jiang Xiao's existence and movements.
This is so that when necessary, the "Zhou Party" forces can be used in time to deal with Jiang Xiao and the "Chaofeng" organization.
But at this time, Huo Zhengyuan thought that the time had not come yet, so naturally he would not admit it. After realizing that Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren were secretly observing him, Huo Zhengyuan immediately looked confused, as if he did not understand what Song Chengren was talking about at all.
, even completely unaware of the existence of the "Chaofeng" organization.
Seeing that Huo Zhengyuan did not show any abnormality, Song Chengren frowned slightly, but his expression was as usual the next moment. He raised his finger again and pointed to a location on the Nanjing map, and said slowly: "If this news is true, it means
It seems that there are still more dead soldiers hiding in the dark in Nanjing City! After various tests, I think this location is the most suspicious!"
Huo Zhengyuan lowered his head and looked at the position of Song Chengren's finger, only to find that it was a section of the city wall at the southeastern edge of Nanjing City. It was the entrance where the Qingxi River system merged into Nanjing City.
As a smart man, Huo Zhengyuan immediately thought of something and his eyes flashed.
Song Chengren continued: "This is the entrance where the Jiuqu Qingxi River flows into Nanjing City. Where the city wall and the river overlap, there is a sluice blocking the internal and external access. It is under the full jurisdiction of a battalion of Nanjing defenders!
It is currently the plum rainy season, and floods have surged out of the embankments a few days ago. The water levels of various rivers and streams in Nanjing have surged. Even the Qingxi River Channel, which has gradually dried up in recent years, has quickly restored its shipping capacity!
After much thought, I thought that if Jiang Xiao wanted to sneak back into Nanjing secretly, this location would be the best breakthrough point. He only needed to control and bribe the military attache responsible for the area, and he could do it without anyone noticing.
The sluice was temporarily opened. Although the large group of people could not pass, it was enough for two hundred dead men to swim in!
Therefore, I sent people to search this location today, and also arranged for a few smart people to carefully observe the reaction of the defenders here, and I feel that the situation here is even more suspicious!"
Zhou Shangjing raised his old eyes and observed Huo Zhengyuan again for a moment, then asked: "Oh? What is suspicious about it?"
Song Chengren said coldly: "Among all the forces in Nanjing City, the Nanjing defenders have always had a low status, and they have always been respectful when in contact with the Song family. The military attache in charge of this section of the city defense is named Tang Kun.
He is a defender of hundreds of families, and he is also a greedy, lustful villain who always follows the influence of others. He never dares to disobey my Song family!
But today, when I sent people to search this place, Tang Kun actually showed obvious resistance and was completely unwilling to cooperate with the search. The person I sent to search just took a few glances and asked him to show his attitude.
He drove him away forcefully, and also said that the outside world could not be allowed to pry at will near the garrison area, which was completely inconsistent with his previous temperament!
At the same time, there are many warehouses and a privately built dock in this area, all of which are properties under the name of the Grain Gang, so the Grain Gang has also arranged for a leader to manage this place. The leader of this Grain Gang is named Cai Tan.
, but he has a good reputation. It is said that he is a good old man who takes care of his family and is filial. Therefore, he has always had a bad relationship with Tang Kun Tang Baihu, who has a very bad reputation, and they often have conflicts...
But this time, facing the search team I sent, Cai Tan and Tang Kun had the same stance as never before. They cooperated tacitly and wanted to drive the search team away as soon as possible... When these signs were combined, it naturally caused me to...
Doubt!
Maybe...both Tang Kun and the grain gang leader Cai Tan have been bribed and controlled by Jiang Xiao, so Jiang Xiao and his dead men can return secretly without anyone noticing.
The city of Nanjing is now hiding within the jurisdiction of these two people, accepting their protection and cover!
Although all these things are just my speculations, this kind of speculation can completely explain all the suspicious things, so I think we must focus on investigating this location next, maybe we will find something!"
After hearing this, Huo Zhengyuan finally couldn't control his expression. His face changed slightly, and his eyes were full of thinking.
Combining the information on his side, Huo Zhengyuan could not help but agree with Song Chengren's conclusion and believed that Song Chengren's speculation was very reasonable.
According to Tang Cheng, Jiang Xiao met him secretly twice, both in a awning boat on the Qingxi River. Therefore, Tang Cheng and Huo Zhengyuan also inferred in their hearts that Jiang Xiao and his dead men were most likely hiding in the
Somewhere along the Qingxi River.
But Huo Zhengyuan originally thought that only he had this information, but he never expected that Song Chengren could infer similar conclusions through various suspicious signs despite insufficient information, and also cast doubt on him.
I threw myself into the Qingxi River!
Moreover, Song Chengren's inference was even more accurate. He directly found the most likely hiding place of Jiang Xiao and his dead men, and even speculated on the specific way in which Jiang Xiao and his dead men secretly sneaked back into Nanjing.
, and who exactly is sheltering and shielding Jiang Xiao and the dead men under his command.
But this means that Jiang Xiao and his dead men will soon fall prey to the two old foxes Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren. They will be unable to escape under the trap set by Zhou and Song.
And the "Zhou Party" forces can find conclusive evidence that the seventh prince Zhu Hejian is secretly raising dead soldiers, and then completely control the matter of the crown prince's dethronement, and take the opportunity to manipulate the situation in the temple and reap all the benefits!
As for Huo Zhengyuan himself, even though he had exhausted all his mechanisms and prepared a large number of backup plans, his efforts must have been in vain.
Thinking of this, Huo Zhengyuan naturally couldn't bear it any longer, and couldn't help but lose control of his expression.
Although Huo Zhengyuan quickly controlled his expression again and returned to his ignorant look. He still seemed not to understand what Song Chengren was talking about, but the change in his expression at this moment still did not escape the seemingly dazed look between Zhou Shangjing and Song Chengren.
A pair of old eyes.
Then, a hint of meaning flashed across Zhou Shangjing's old face, he smiled and nodded: "A greedy and lustful defender Baihu, and a filial grain gang leader who cares about his family, both of these people are easy to control and bribe... Although this
All speculations have yet to be proven, but they must be taken precautions against!
Head of the Song family, it will be up to you to come forward and contact the Nanjing defenders and the grain gang to find out the truth as soon as possible. If your guess is true, then immediately mobilize all parties to kill Jiang Xiao and his dead men in one fell swoop! And!
Those suspicious locations in the west of the city must not be missed, and we must not let any fish slip through the net! It is already the evening hour, and I hope you can arrange everything before tomorrow's hour!"
While Song Chengren nodded, he also glanced at Huo Zhengyuan meaningfully. After Huo Zhengyuan raised his eyes and looked at him, he nodded and smiled at Huo Zhengyuan, then turned around and quickly left the room.
At the same time, Zhou Shangjing also looked up at Huo Zhengyuan again, his expression full of admiration, and proactively asked: "Zigu, you have been in Nanjing for more than three months, right? After I came to Nanjing for inspection on orders,
, I have always wanted to meet you, but you always avoided me, as if I were a savage beast... But why are you willing to take the initiative to visit me today?"
After hearing Zhou Shangjing's joking and inquiry, Huo Zhengyuan couldn't help but sigh in his heart, and secretly complained: "I have been avoiding you, not because you, an old fox, are too scheming. Once I come into contact with you, I will be in trouble."
The probability will be taken advantage of by you, allowing you to reveal the secrets in your heart, and you will take all the benefits? Although I pride myself on being smart, I have no confidence in front of you! I waited until today, and I finally made up my mind to meet you, and I had enough knowledge beforehand.
I was prepared, but I still fell into the trap. The secret information I collected with great difficulty was all used to make a wedding dress for you!"
While he was thinking secretly, Zhou Shangjing was extremely respectful on the surface, bowing his head and saying: "I heard that Zhou Shoufu is not in good health, so of course I should come to visit you... Judging from Zhou Shoufu, your mental complexion is indeed far worse than when you were in the capital.
I hope you will take care of yourself."
Zhou Shangjing sighed and shook his head, with a trace of sadness flashing across his expression.
But the next moment, Zhou Shangjing's words caused Huo Zhengyuan's expression to change uncontrollably once again.