With a quick glance, Li Kuo took the topographic layout of the mansion into his mind.
"Follow me." The young man whispered and ran quickly along the alley at the corner.
There are probably three entrances and three exits to this house.
They took the side door and climbed in, which happened to be the second courtyard of the mansion. "That should be the warehouse!" The young man pointed to a bluestone building not far away and whispered.
"Brother Kuo'er, let me tell you, we came here in the middle of the night. Are we a little confused? I think the old shopkeeper Chen is also an honest man, not like a liar. In my opinion, we should go back early."
Zhang Yanji regretted it as soon as he entered the mansion. After all, he and Li Kuo were also generals in the fourth rank of the Tang Dynasty. If they were discovered wearing night clothes and sneaking into other people's mansions late at night, how could they be exaggerated?
It would be fine if Brother Kuo'er sent a few scouts from the Tongwu Camp to investigate, but he wanted to go out personally. If his whereabouts were exposed, it would be really interesting.
Li Kuo frowned slightly and said, "I don't care whether he is an honest person or not. I only know that the refined salt shipped to Chang'an and Luoyang does not match the accounts he provided. There is a full 40% discrepancy."
Zhang Yanji spread his hands and said, "That's up to you, but we have to leave quickly and come back quickly!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a fire dragon was lit at the back of the warehouse, and more than ten boys with lit lanterns escorted a person from the backyard.
"Get away!" Li Kuo hurriedly pushed his friend behind a cypress tree and lowered his voice: "I told him that his account was false. It seems that there is something wrong."
"Uh, uh!" Zhang Yanji's mouth was covered by Li Kuo and he couldn't make a sound. He only nodded to express his admiration for the young man. Brother Kuo'er is really brilliant, he can guess everything accurately.
The dozen or so young men outside the warehouse stood in two lines, holding torches and watching the movements around them with vigilance. The people among them glanced around and saw nothing out of the ordinary, then walked into the warehouse.
"Creak!" The door of the warehouse opened with a sound, and the figure of the man in the middle was instantly lost in a bunch of candlelight.
In the long silent night, Li Kuo and his friends held their breath and stared at the barn.
All the secrets are hidden in it, but I can't enter it!
Li Kuo could clearly hear his own heartbeat. This was a big gamble. He was infinitely close to the truth of the matter, and the closer he got to the truth, the more frightened he became!
However, no matter how frightened he was, he could not retreat, because this was also a task secretly assigned to him by His Majesty the Emperor. He wanted to find out the person who had embezzled huge amounts of salt profits and get rid of this moth for the imperial court. This person who could monopolize Jianghuai salt all year round must have hands and eyes.
Form an alliance with the noble families around you. If you want to deal with this person, you must have enough evidence. You only have one chance, and you must win with one blow!
"Brother Kuo'er, he's out!"
Unknowingly, half the time for the incense sticks had passed, and the door opened again. The man frowned and walked out with his hands behind his back, sighing deeply. I saw him giving instructions to the boy beside him.
Saying something, the healthy servant took the order and ran towards the courtyard on the east side.
"Follow him!" Li Kuo took a long breath and was already walking as fast as flying.
Li Kuo clung tightly to the roof of a mansion, tapping the tiles lightly. Beside him was Zhang Yanji, who looked stunned. As a wealthy young man from an aristocratic family, Zhang Yanji really didn't expect that he would suffer another day.
He will do the things favored by common thieves and thieves.
Flying over the eaves and walking over the wall, well, let's call him flying over the eaves and walking over the wall. Two generals who were in the fourth rank of the Tang Dynasty took advantage of the cover of night to climb to the roof of another house just to find out some news about the salt transportation. Isn't this too outrageous?
Although Zhang Yanji repeatedly comforted himself that they were doing this to investigate the case and complete the tasks assigned by His Majesty the Emperor, Zhang Yanji could not help but feel a twinge of pain when he thought of their embarrassment at this time.
"Ding ding ding, ding ding ding!"
Li Kuo frowned slightly. The sound didn't sound like it was coming from the roof tiles of an ordinary house. It was really strange!
The houses built by the wealthy families in Yangzhou City are very different from the houses in Guanlong. Because they need to be protected from rain and snow, the structures of the houses here are mostly integrated and connected embryos, which have good sealing properties. In other words,
If Li Kuo didn't create some gaps, he would not be able to hear the conversations of the people in the room no matter where he was.
Therefore, Li Kuo needed to make a small hole here to expose the secret house to the melting moonlight.
However, when Li Kuo reached out to touch it, he found that it was impossible for him to create a small hole without making any noise.
Because under the bricks and tiles, there is not a mud surface, but cast iron! There is actually a block made of cast iron here!
The roof of this room has been taken care of a long time ago. It is absolutely impossible to eavesdrop from above with a simple method. Li Kuo smiled coldly, shopkeeper Chen really has a guilty conscience, otherwise why would such a good house be so beautiful?
Do you want to use cast iron for roof barriers?
Li Kuo took a deep breath and gradually calmed down his mood. Like a fallen leaf, he quietly clung to the roof and waited for the opportunity. He did not believe that there would be no flaws in the people in the house!
He just needs a chance, an opportunity that allows him to lift the roof.
About half a cup of tea had passed when Li Kuo suddenly heard the sound of slightly messy footsteps in the room, as well as the sound of tables, tables and chairs being moved. It seemed that there was a dispute among the people in the room.
Immediately afterwards, heavy footsteps sounded in the distance. From the footsteps, Li Kuo could tell that this was a servant doing rough work. Only a servant's steps would be so heavy and his steps would be so dragging. Just right.
While Li Kuo was thinking over and over, suddenly the door of the room opened.
Li Kuo frowned and crawled down again, clinging to the roof. The person who entered was a water boy who had been waiting outside the house for a long time.
Covered by the sound of the boy walking around, Li Kuo pulled out a long cast-iron nail from his waist and struck it quickly on the back of the tile. With the sound of the wooden door opening, the knocking sound was not very obvious. He only had this chance.
!No room for error, absolutely no room for error!
"Ding ding ding!"
"Ding ding ding!"
"Da da da!"
"Yes!" Li Kuo let out a long breath and used a long nail to pry up a piece of tile. Li Kuo did it very lightly and would never make a sound. Moreover, the attention of everyone in the room was focused on the water delivery boy at this moment.
With his body, no one would notice that he was eavesdropping on the roof. In the blink of an eye, four tiles had been lifted by Li Kuo.
Under the tiles were mud and clay. Li Kuo stretched out his fingers and fiddled with them gently. After everything was in place, he finally saw the scene inside the house clearly.
The lights inside the house were dim and warm.
Under the thick scent of ambergris, two middle-aged men were sitting across from each other, drinking tea and chatting.
"Brother Kuo'er, isn't this person, this person is shopkeeper Lao Chen!" Zhang Yanji was shocked. If Li Kuo hadn't stepped forward in time and covered his mouth, he would have shouted out.
"There is also the Prince of Gaoyou County. Hey, he is actually here. Is it possible that he really colluded with Mr. Chen? So your guess is right, Kuo'er. This guy actually steals from his own country and ignores the regulations and laws of the imperial court.
Nothing!”
"Keep your voice down, are you missing me? Are you being discovered?" Li Kuo glanced at him and put the tile back to its original place. "I just said that shopkeeper Chen is not a good person. It seems that he
What we were given to see were forged accounts."
It is now very clear that Changlongji Trading Company, represented by old shopkeeper Chen, may have obtained illicit salt through the network of Gaoyou County Prince. Judging from the current situation, the share seems to be quite large.
"Hey, the amount of salt in your mouth is enough to scare people to death. It is reasonable for him not to tell you the truth. But why is he in Gaoyou Prince's Mansion?" Zhang Yanji poked at the tiles with his fingers, his ears tight.
Stick it in between.
Brother Kuo'er wanted to lure the master behind Changlongji out of his cave by buying refined salt, but he didn't know that the man was so vigilant and not tempted at all. Now, if he wanted to find out the unknown secrets, he could only eavesdrop.
"Well, yes, that's it, yes." He muttered something silently to himself, and after a long time he straightened up and said to Li Kuo: "I can't hear clearly, but the general meaning is that the Gaoyou County Prince is not satisfied with the members given by Changlongji. Chen
The shopkeeper wanted to give him two points as usual, but the Gaoyou County King just opened his mouth and asked for three points!"
Ever since he was a child, Zhang Yanji's hearing has been surprisingly good. He could often hear the sound of horse hooves hundreds of steps away while lying on the ground. Now this advantage has been fully utilized, and he can actually detect the conversations of people in the house.
ten.
"The Gaoyou County Prince threatened Shopkeeper Chen and asked him to think clearly about the consequences, and even threatened to throw him into jail." Zhang Yanji clenched his fists and said bitterly. He hated people relying on their power to make threats, let alone the Gaoyou County Prince who threatened him.
A person is still a shopkeeper who works hard to make decisions for others.
"Can you hear clearly why they are eager to collect salt and profit?" Li Kuo nodded, and he had already made a calculation in his mind.
"Well, I'll listen again." Zhang Yanji leaned against the tiles tightly, twitching his ears: "Shopkeeper Chen begged, let the Gaoyou County Prince put the overall situation first and avoid Cui Shi's pursuit first!
"
ps: Well, actually this is a very big game of chess. Who is the chess piece and who is the planner? Where should Shichiro go?