"Dang! - Dong, Dong!" A gong and two bangs first broke the silence of the winter night. Then, the residents of the capital who had not yet fallen asleep could hear the distant chimes from the university bell.
There are two watchmen, one holding a gong and the other holding a clapper. During the regular watch, they shout out "Beware of candles and thieves." The sound of the university bell rings eight times, as if it has a rhythm, which has the effect of reassuring the soul. .
The bell is neither dull nor loud. It comes from a long distance, as if it has wiped something away from people's hearts, making those who hear it feel relieved. It is exactly eight o'clock in the evening, and the residents of the capital are If you don't go out to drink and have fun, you have to close the door, blow out the oil lamp and go to sleep.
"Master, pack up and go to sleep." A cooing voice next to him woke up Yi Leyao, who was looking at the patio in deep thought. The former first secretary of Alfonso, the governor of Goa, and now the seventh-rank director of the Seiyi Pavilion of the Ministry of Rites, heard this He nodded slightly.
He turned around and looked at his newlywed wife with a smile. Although this beautiful girl did not have a prominent family, she was more than worthy of a "barbarian" like him. Especially when Yi Leyao used language such as "I love you" When expressing his passionate emotions, his wife's shy look made Ines Fernand completely forget everything about Europa.
As a colonial bureaucrat who lost his Portuguese homeland, Ines Fernand could not find a job similar to that of a first secretary even if he returned to Europe. Therefore, after the Ministry of Rites called him up, he was almost overjoyed.
Although her surname was Fernan, and there was also the surname "Fei" among the hundreds of family surnames, Ines felt that "Yuan Sheng" Yi Yin was more remarkable than the ancestors of the Fei family, so she adopted the surname "Yi" and gave herself the name "Yi". "Le Yao", layman Hongbao with double plug gave him the nickname "Xinye" - Yi Yin farmed in Xinye when he was young.
As he walked towards the bed with a smile, someone knocked on the door outside. Following him, the sleepy concierge went to the bedroom to report that a guest named Du was visiting.
When Yi Leyao heard this, he frowned and said, "It's so late. What's this guy doing here?" But he didn't mean to refuse. He smiled apologetically at his wife, packed up his clothes and went to the main room.
"Lao Yi! Lao Yi!" When the person came quickly across the courtyard, he did not have the consciousness to treat the people as officials, which made Yi Leyao helpless for a while.
But he still smiled heartily and responded in a strange tone: "Brother Cancer, if you don't care, why bother?"
Du Liu ignored the Portuguese's intentionally non-standard tone. The scars on his face were distorted by fear. He looked around anxiously and glanced at the old man standing behind the concierge. He shuddered. As if he were a royal guard.
Entering the hall, he made a long bow. Before Yi Le Yao could return the salute, he asked with a pale face: "Lao Yi, is there an official in the Ministry of Rites named Hong Bao'er?"
Yi Leyao also became serious because of Du Liu's nervousness. Hearing this, he said, "The layman Hongbao's name is Tu Long, and he is my good friend. What's the matter?"
"Oh, there is a person named Song Jiu'er who is also from the Ministry of Rites? Do you know him?"
Yi Leyao laughed and said, "What kind of mess is this? Song Jiunai, Shen Shixingge's old servant, whose name is Song Xubin, is the most useful person around the old man - he is an acquaintance of Tu Long, what's the matter?"
Hearing this, Du Liu swallowed his saliva, made a gurgling sound in his throat, and started to sweat more and more. He suddenly glared at Yi Leyao and said, "Lao Yi, how has the relationship between our brothers been like over the years?"
Although Yi Leyao, a foreigner, had a more serious class concept than the people of the Ming Dynasty, the scope of this concept was in Europe and the colonies. In the capital of the Ming Dynasty, he did not feel that this would save him from the casino and save him from danger.
The bankrupt gangster's status is lower than his own - the two have always known each other as friends.
Ines Fernand, the former first secretary, crossed herself on her chest and said, "God is my witness, our friendship is indestructible!"
"Then lend me the money you have - I have to leave tonight." Du Liu simply cupped his hands and spread his palms, waiting for Yi Leyao to come into the house to get the money.
Yi Leyao stumbled and asked, "Wait a minute, you have confused me. What happened?"
Du Liu's face turned pale, and he cupped his hands and said, "Lao Yi, don't pry! If I know, it won't be good for you. Let's talk about it later. I'll explain it to you slowly when I get back to Beijing. You go in and get the money first."
Yi Leyao pondered for a while and said: "Okay, you wait." He went out from the side door of the main room and entered the study. Without taking a cup of tea, he entered the main room with a small baggage in his hand and said: "This is the dragon ticket."
Six hundred - enough for you to spend a few years outside, is it enough? If it's not enough, I still have some scattered gold and silver."
Du Liu's eyes turned red, and he raised his hands vigorously: "I still have a wife, children, and mother. If someone bullies me, I can help if I can. If it's too dangerous, there's no need. Just take care of me secretly."
When Yi Leyao heard this, his eyes were red, and he bowed his hands and said in return: "Brother Du Liu, don't worry." Seeing Du Liu turning around and about to leave, he followed up and asked: "How can eldest brother get out of the city in the middle of the night?"
Du Liu was stunned, slapped his thigh and said, "Fuck, I forgot about this!"
Yi Leyao was stunned when he heard this, and laughed dumbly and said: "I thought that brother had a way out of the city in the middle of the night, but it turned out that he forgot. I said brother, don't be anxious - please go to the study and tell me what's going on.
.”
Du Liu had no choice but to follow him to the study. After the guests and the host were seated, Du Liu first talked about his assignment to investigate the case.
Yi Leyao smiled and said: "The meaning of this poem is that the deceased Prime Minister Zhang Juzheng had an affair with the Queen Mother?"
Du Liu was so frightened that he looked left and right again, and then whispered: "Old Yi, please keep your voice down." Seeing that he was so frightened, Yi Leyao curled his lips and said in his heart: "What's there to be afraid of? Being scared like this
.”
He changed the topic and said: "Why does the elder brother know that this matter is related to Tu Long?"
Du Liu had a constipated expression on his face and sighed: "A friend of mine built a courtyard in Taste of Life. One day he went to eat, got drunk and walked in the wrong direction. He saw Tu Long, Song Jiuer and a group of people inside.
Just having fun - Song Jiuer was writing these four sentences on the wall at that time, and my friend was expelled after reading the first sentence."
Yi Leyao laughed after hearing this and said, "Don't too many people know about this poem? Song Jiu'er has been arrested a long time ago, so why are you so scared to death?"
Du Liu's face became paler and he said: "Oh..., I thought like a good brother at first. But after asking around, I found that except Tu Long, Song Jiu'er's companion who was in the yard that day, Qing Ke, has died of a sudden illness these days.
There are some who have gone to Nanyang, but there is no one in the capital!"
Seeing that Yi Leyao was dumbfounded, Du Liu said again: "I heard that the Marquis of Xining, Song Shien, was also inside that day. His wife and Tu Long were the ones who... these days, none of the brothels in the capital saw Song Shien coming out to play.
Le, everyone said that he was seriously ill - but today he was alive and kicking and his house was ransacked by the Jin Yiwei. The decree has been issued and there will be no mercy within the high wall!"
Yi Leyao took a deep breath and said in a trembling voice, "Are you talking about a Marquis?" Du Liu nodded.
The hairs on Yi Leyao's body stood up. Du Liu stood up and knocked his head on the ground: "Sir Yi, you are the only one who has had an official relationship with a bastard like me - if I was lucky enough to run away,