In a quiet tavern, Yun Jing and Xia Tao sat and drank. No one spoke for a while, and the atmosphere was somewhat silent.
What they drank was low-quality strong liquor from the North. It burned their throats and burned their hearts. One sip was like swallowing live coals, and their foreheads sweated and their skin turned red.
Drinking in the early morning, they drank strong alcohol, and they didn't talk. It was obvious that the two of them were venting some kind of emotion.
When Yunjing faces relatives and friends, he usually doesn't hide his mask and just acts as he should. After getting along with each other these days, he has gradually regarded Xia Tao as a friend, regardless of his identity.
Because of the series of events caused by Zhou Mu, Yunjing's mood was extremely complicated. He wanted to drink some wine to relax, so he drank until the glass was dry and did not disguise his emotions in front of Xia Tao.
As for Xia Tao, it should be said that it is a rare indulgence. It is estimated that since he was sensible, he has rarely had the opportunity to be as wanton as he is now. He has always lived with a mask since he was a child.
By chance, he met Yunjing, a person who didn't care about his identity, and they got along well with each other. In his heart, he really regarded Yunjing as his confidant.
Being slightly drunk, Xia Tao couldn't help but stand up and praise him: "Master He is such a great man. Unless I saw it with my own eyes, I would never have thought that someone could do what he did, killing relatives for the sake of justice, and not hesitate to offend relatives and friends."
There are not many good officials who punish criminals even if they die. Now that I can see it with my own eyes, it is a great blessing for me."
Putting down his wine glass, Yun Jing leaned back on his chair, exhaled a breath of alcohol and shook his head: "The official is a good official, but he must be very bitter inside. Killing relatives for justice sounds like applause, but in fact, he is probably feeling miserable in his heart.
He shed blood and operated on his relatives. Who can understand the suffering? Offending relatives and friends, although it reflects his uprightness, but from now on, I am afraid he will become a loner. With an official like him, he is the most important person in the world.
Blessing is the blessing of the people, but he himself is not happy."
It's not that Yunjing deliberately wants to contradict Xia Tao, but he is explaining a bloody reality.
Did He Zhengdian do something wrong? No matter what angle he stood on, he was right. Everything he did was applauded, but when he did these right things, he paid a heavy price.
.
After hearing this, Xia Tao's cheerful expression froze, and he opened his mouth and said: "When Brother Yun said this, I couldn't be happy anymore. I even felt a little confused. It was clear that Mr. He did nothing wrong.
, but why is this happening?”
"Loyalty and Righteousness Dilemma", Yun Jing's light and fluttering five words point directly to the essence.
Xia Tao was speechless.
However, he quickly adjusted his mentality and said: "No matter what happens, Mr. He's uprightness is worthy of a special book and even a place in history."
"Just after Yi Zhe, Brother Huang, believe it or not, Mr. He's official position has come to an end. He is too upright, especially his performance today, which has become known to everyone. From now on, he will probably be confused in the officialdom.
I can’t go down anymore,” Yunjing sighed.
This is a fact. To put it bluntly, officialdom is a chain of interests. He Zhengdian is too special and appears to be extremely unsociable. He will be ostracized and disliked. How can he continue to be an official?
He didn't do anything wrong per se, but this is reality.
One thing to say, even if someone admires him and wants to promote him, who would dare to use him easily with a character like his?
He Zhengdian can be described as a double-edged sword, which can hurt others and yourself if you are not careful!
"I don't believe it!" Xia Tao laughed, and then added: "How can I not protect such a good official? My aunt will also support her secretly. Even His Majesty will look at him differently. With us here, Brother Yun, what do you think?
Can he still hold up as an official?"
"As long as you are here, of course he will have no problem, but the crux of the problem is, Brother Huang, believe it or not, Mr. He no longer has his ambitions. He is... tired," Yunjing retorted, his tone extremely complicated.
Seeing the essence through the surface, sometimes Yunjing would rather hope that he cannot see through the essence and only see the surface clearly. It is actually quite good to be carefree and carefree, so why bother yourself?
But once you see it clearly, you see it clearly, and it’s not a problem that doesn’t exist if he doesn’t want to.
"this……"
Thinking of He Zhengdian's upright and decisive handling of the case, Xia Tao suddenly realized that Yun Jing might have been right.
If He Zhengdian still wants to realize his ambitions, Xia Tao and others will of course help him protect him, but the other party's heart is no longer in this regard, which is really a headache.
"Brother Huang, why are you thinking so much? Mr. He has a good heart, but he is just too tired. If he wants to, let him rest for a while. What do you think?" Yunjing poured himself a glass of wine and drank it.
Then he smiled.
Nodding thoughtfully, Xia Tao said: "I understand, let Mr. He relax for a while. I hope it won't be too long. Both Dali and the people need officials like him..." At this point, Xia Tao
I couldn't help but laugh and said: "It would be great if the civil and military officials of this dynasty were all officials like Mr. He. Why worry about the world being unjust?"
"I don't agree with what Brother Huang said. It should be noted that if the water is clear, there will be no fish. If they are all good officials like Mr. He, they are all the same. How can we show which official is a good official? In this way, the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty will be the same.
On the contrary, it has become a pool of stagnant water," Yun Jing said with a smile.
After hearing this, Xia Tao was shocked. This was something that no one had ever taught him. Considering his identity and status, this kind of understanding had already reached the level of an emperor's mind!
"If the water is clear, there will be no fish..."
Muttering to himself and repeating this sentence repeatedly, the more Xia Tao thought about it, the more profound it became, and he even felt like his soul was trembling and suddenly enlightened.
Good or bad, loyalty and treachery...even...balance!
Taking a deep breath, Xia Tao looked at Yun Jing with a look of admiration. He cupped his hands and bowed slightly in a half-master's salute: "Brother Yun has benefited a lot from his words. This salute comes from the bottom of my heart. Brother Yun deserves it."
Yun Jing grinned and said speechlessly: "Brother Huang, what are you doing? We are just drinking and bragging, how can we be on the line?"
"Hahaha, yes, it's just chatting. It's not my fault. I'll punish myself with three drinks." Xia Tao smiled, then grabbed the wine bottle and poured himself wine.
Yunjing snatched it away and said, "You think so well, leave some for me."
"It's not like I can't afford it, shopkeeper, please bring a few more bottles," Xia Tao said speechlessly, heading outside to ask the shopkeeper to serve wine.
Outside the private room, Xia Tao's subordinates thought that if Xia Tao could get help from Yun Jing, in the future... Unfortunately, the two of them are just friends at the moment. Since they are friends, some things cannot cross this line of friendship. Okay.
A mixed bag.
Xia Tao was also thinking about it at this time. Inspired by Yun Jing's saying that when the water is clear, there are no fish, he was wondering whether he should have one or two 'mouse droppings' around him in the future to maintain the balance below.
It can also remind yourself all the time, and at the same time, it can also make the people below have enthusiasm and comparison, and achieve multiple things with one stone...
There is a saying that Xia Tao is very smart. From his height, with a little reminder, he can draw inferences and turn them into useful wisdom for himself.
Xia Tao's words benefited a lot, and were by no means just words.
While they were drinking and chatting, on the other side, the young man Yun Jing was secretly paying attention to was not 'idle' either.
After the young man picked up the jade pendant, he stood on the street waiting for the lost person to come and claim it. He was so simple-minded that all liars in the world wished they were just like him.
However, he stood on the street for a long time, and no one came to claim it, just like someone who lost a jade pendant and didn't even bother to look for it.
The sun was getting higher, and the young man was probably hungry, so he went to buy some sesame seed cakes to eat, and then returned to the same place to wait for someone to claim them.
As a result, the person who really lost the jade pendant did not wait, but instead waited for the liar.
Although the young man had a simple personality, he was not stupid either. He held the jade pendant in his hand and asked the other party about the size, color, material and other information of the jade pendant. He also asked where he bought it and whether he had any evidence or witnesses.
The liar had been observing the liar for a long time, made up his words, and convinced the young man in a few words. Then the young man handed the jade pendant to the liar, and carefully asked the liar to be careful and not to lose it again.
This young man has a good character. Although he is not stupid, he is not very smart either, so he was deceived.
The liar left with "a thousand thanks", but after walking a short distance, he stepped on a piece of dog poop, cursed secretly, and walked quickly to the roadside, holding on to a tree and polishing his shoes on the ground.
However, what the liar didn't notice was that there was a honeycomb on the tree he was supporting. When he was supporting the tree trunk, the honeycomb fell down and hit him on the head...
One can imagine how miserable the liar was when he was stung by a bee. He ran away in a panic, and soon fell into a smelly ditch, which was very unlucky.
He escaped the bees when he fell into the stinking ditch, but someone threw a pair of rusty scissors in the stinky ditch and pricked his arm.
"Blade of Tetanus", coupled with the environment of the stinking ditch, the swindler defrauded a valuable jade pendant, but even if he sold the jade pendant, he didn't know whether it would be able to cure the upcoming pain on his body.
With the current medical conditions, his entire life will be at risk!
This is not over yet. The liar finally washed up and changed his clothes. He was going to take the jade pendant to a pawn shop to sell it and then went to the medical center for treatment. As a result, he met the owner of the jade pendant at the pawn shop. He was beaten up and even dragged him away.
Go to see the official...
On the other side, the boy realized that he had done a good deed and did not care about the follow-up. He left the place with a happy mood. Not far away, he actually picked up a honeycomb where the bees had flown away, and there was actually honey in it!
Honey, the boy enjoyed it so much that he even used the extra money to sell it for some money.
Later, the young man left the county town and went north, out of Yunjing's sensory range.
After 'witnessing' all this, Yunjing was stunned.
Coincidence?
How can there be such a coincidence in the world? The boy's luck... At present, it can only be said to be a series of good luck. After all, what he picked up was not too precious, but these things were picked up one after another, and the attacks against him
People have bad luck...
In this river?
This is unreasonable!
"It's interesting. It's like God is protecting me. I don't know if I will have a chance to meet him in the future."
Muttering in his heart, Yunjing withdrew his gaze.
Chatting with Xia Tao until noon, the two of them had almost finished drinking, and their emotions were fully vented. Then Xia Tao looked at the sky and said goodbye. He still had things to do.
However, before leaving, Xia Tao left Yunjing a way to contact him. If he had anything to do, he could go to him, as long as he could help.
Things were going wrong here, and Yunjing had to continue heading north, so he and Xia Tao agreed to meet again another day and separated...