The hall is built by reducing columns. The front hall is wide and tall, and the back hall has thick wooden pillars to bear the weight. The mottled paint marks on the beams and columns are the accumulation of time. A plaque hangs high in the back hall of the hall.
It is engraved with four large Chinese characters in regular script: "loyalty is present and ancient".
There is a solid wooden partition wall placed under the plaque. The four sides of the board wall are hollowed out and carved with grass and rattan patterns, and couplets are hung on both sides. A square table is placed in front of the board wall. Li Rufeng is sitting in the Taishi chair on the left, with the tea rhyme lingering on the table.
The sun has set and the moon has not yet risen. The sky is very dark. In the dusk, the projections of the two people sitting quietly in the hall are dim and blurry.
Liao Sanniang was sitting at the bottom, gently beating her shoulders and back with her fists. Li Rufeng glanced at her from the corner of his eye and said: "When you are tired, go and have a rest. Things can't be done in one or two days. You have to recuperate."
Be prepared for the coming time."
Liao Sanniang didn't speak, just shook her head and said softly, a little tiredly: "Wait until the text of the telegram comes out, then go and rest."
While he was talking, a waiter held a big piece of wax, put it on the table, and turned around to retreat.
Liao Sanniang looked at the candlelight, her mood rising and falling with the candlelight.
Li Rufeng is waiting for important news.
There was a call from Lingao, and Leng Ningyun's secretary He Xiang was translating the call.
The connection between Lingao and Beijing can only be through wireless telegraphy. The Jingshi station is equipped with a telegraph machine, but the radio environment in this time and space is pure. When the weather is good, the signal of a low-power radio station such as Silicon 2W can span thousands of miles, but the signal between Jingshi and Hainan
After all, they are thousands of miles apart. Although the radio station assigned to the Jingshi station has higher power, it still cannot report stably in case of bad weather or abnormal atmospheric magnetic field. Generally, it is forwarded through Shandong and Nanjing stations, and the timeliness is slightly poor.
This time they didn't wait long. They got through to Lingao when they needed it most and got a call back in less than three days.
Lingao acted quickly. On the issue of the life safety of the senators, the Senate's deep-rooted procrastination did not exist and his actions were always resolute.
Accidents are like diseases, they often come unexpectedly, and no one can guarantee that he will not encounter any accidents. The more resources you devote to rescuing others from crises, the more resources you can confidently apply for when you are in danger.
Once the exception becomes the rule, a privilege will be formed.
The purpose of the elders has always been: one for everyone, and everyone for one.
Of course, this purpose is limited to the elders.
A servant from Leng Zhai walked in quickly, accompanied by his assistant Liansheng. Without saying a word, he handed a wordless envelope directly into Li Rufeng's hand.
Li Rufeng said nothing, waved his hand, motioning for the two of them to go out, and then opened a simple code book at hand.
After the telegram is received, it must be decoded twice, and no clear text is transmitted between personnel to prevent the message from being lost, stolen, or peeked during the journey and personnel handover. The only ones at the Capital Station are the veteran Leng Ningyun, the telegraph operator He Xiang, and the armed forces.
The person in charge, Li Rufeng, each had a copy, and the other staff members were translated by He Xiang and then conveyed by Leng Ningyun.
Li Rufeng took out a pencil, compared it with the code book, and quickly recorded it on a piece of paper. The pencil rustled on the letter paper.
Li Rufeng wrote with great difficulty. His rough hands were covered with knife-like patterns, and he held a thin pencil, which seemed unusually inconsistent.
It was completely dark and the hall was quiet. Liao Sanniang watched Li Rufeng silently.
On the candlestick, the candle tears had dried. The waiter came in and replaced it with a new candle. This was already the third candle.
The dancing candlelight illuminated Li Rufeng's angular face, making his expression look uncertain.
After translating the telegram, Li Rufeng blew off the lead dust on the paper, read it quickly, and then handed it to Liao Sanniang.
Liao Sanniang looked around through the dim candlelight and saw the message:
Cantonese Urgent Secret No. 1007:
On January 4, 1637, the caller learned that the Senate attached great importance to the Leng Ningyun case and it was now numbered "Jingzi 01 Case". On the day the telegram arrived, a joint task force for the "Jingzi 01 Case" was formed from military intelligence and special investigation.
The working group has set sail on a special ship that day and will disembark at Tianjin Port in the near future and head to Beijing by land. Relevant comrades at the Jingshi Station are requested to make connections in advance and cooperate with the data collection work.
In addition, we agree with the conservative response plan adopted by Jingshi Station in advance, and hereby put forward the following points, and ask Jingshi Station to arrange accordingly:
1. The case adopts a step-by-step principle, that is, two steps to save people and solve the case. There is no rush to solve the case. The first thing is to strive for the safe return of Leng Ningyun. On the premise of ensuring the first step, the second step of work is prudently promoted. If the two steps conflict, the second step can be solved.
Give up as appropriate.
2. Life is more important than property rights. Jingshi Station can use all resources to ensure the personal safety of Elder Leng. Wu Kaidi is now appointed as the temporary acting station director of Jingshi Station, authorized to handle matters related to cold cases with full authority. After full communication with relevant comrades of Jingshi Station,
You can allocate Delong's working capital, and at the same time keep a record of the inflow and outflow of relevant funds to prepare for subsequent financial inspections.
3. According to the principle of secret investigation, all investigation work at the Jingshi Station is immediately transferred underground to wait for action to avoid irritating criminals and threatening the safety of hostages. All cases have shown that no criminals have stopped committing crimes under pressure from the police after their family members called the police.
Since the first example, when the situation worsens, criminals will kill hostages to vent their anger and then escape.
4. Li Rufeng, Liao Sanniang and other comrades will be temporarily seconded from the Qiwei Escort Bureau to the Foreign Intelligence Bureau starting from today. Li Rufeng is now appointed as the temporary security chief of the Jingshi Station, and Liao Sanniang will assist in the work. The above personnel will be responsible for the current security of the Jingshi Station.
Evaluate the situation and provide reference for future decisions at the Jingshi Station. The timeliness of kidnapping cases is of vital importance, and the front-line work situation is changing rapidly. Relevant security personnel must adapt to emergencies and handle them flexibly. In the event of emergencies, there is no need to wait for later orders.
We must let go of our hands and feet, dare to serve, and avoid being rigid and rigid and delaying the processing opportunity.
5. When you are behind enemy lines, with enemies and ourselves mixed together, try to avoid armed conflicts unless necessary.
6. Maintain the existing relationship with the usurping Ming Dynasty to prevent the formation of two lines of containment and inconvenience to the rescue work.
7. Three radio stations are now being transferred from Guangzhou and carried by civilian ships. They will be temporarily networked with existing naval warships and military intelligence radio stations to ensure smooth communication. Please send and receive between 22:00-23:00 every day, and the frequency is XXX.XX
.
8. On the day when the working group arrived, the relevant work of the Jingshi Station was handed over to the working group. The temporary appointments of Dianzhongwu, Li, and Liao were automatically lifted after the handover, and subsequent arrangements were made by the working group.
Recently, the military conflict between me and the reactionary armed forces in Guangxi has intensified. The work of clearing up the local bandits in Guangdong has also entered a critical stage. Affected by the war situation, the intelligence, diplomacy, business and other work of the Zhijingshi Station have been disrupted and have encountered temporary setbacks.
In the face of difficulties, you all should hold on to your original intention and face them head-on. Don't be afraid of the floating clouds covering your eyes. With your ambitions stirred up, you can climb high and look far away. The territory of the Song Dynasty will be within the range of artillery fire. I hope you will work hard and shoulder the heavy burden bravely.
If you make new achievements again, the road ahead will be bright, and I will walk with you.
——Copy of central message to Li Liao January 5, 1637
After Liao Sanniang finished reading the telegram, she breathed a sigh of relief. She seemed to have some confidence in her heart. She handed the telegram back to Li Rufeng. Li Rufeng took it, read it twice more, put the translation close to the candle and lit it. When only a corner of it was burned,
With a shake of his hand, the embers turned into a puff of ashes.
Li Rufeng breathed a sigh of relief and said: "This is to cheer us up. I'm afraid we won't be able to hold on and scatter the stall. Although we didn't say the arrival date, it should not take more than ten days for the working group to arrive."
Liao Sanniang said: "I'm just afraid that things may change."
Li Rufeng frowned and said, "There must be changes."
Liao Sanniang asked: "If the situation really comes to an end and nothing can be done, how many guns do we have?"
Li Rufeng said: "Ten Nanyang blunderbuss are all made of bare barrels. They can hit ninety steps, which is not as fast as the breech-loaded blunderbuss of the imperial army. Only this number of people can safely distribute fire blunderbuss. You and I have four short blunderbuss in total."
, the barrels are grooved, and they are all hidden in the dark cellar."
Liao Sanniang nodded and said: "It can really come in handy in an emergency. There are only a few dozen people in this bureau. If we form an array in the wilderness, we can hit two hundred people with fire blunderbuss. We can only use three to four hundred people by relying on carts to build forts."
The bandits are also good at shooting short muskets, and I can hit them with an accuracy of ten steps."
Li Rufeng chewed his teeth and said with some embarrassment: "I can fight fifteen steps, but if you encounter a large group of thieves with thousands of people, it will be difficult to deal with it. Even if the working group arrives, there will be too few people. I know someone from the Beijing camp."
…”
Liao Sanniang interrupted him and said: "Absolutely not. Just these one hundred thousand taels of silver can lead to military chaos. Soldiers have black eyes since ancient times and can only recognize silver. Even their own fathers will be killed, let alone their friends."
If the officers and soldiers intervene, you, me, and Mr. Leng will all be killed by the rebel army, not to mention..."
Speaking of this, Liao Sanniang paused for a moment before continuing: "Probably he is not a big thief. If he is really a big thief who can bring five to seven thousand people to rally, he will not act like this. The sound of the Australian and Song Army is only in the coastal areas, and the thieves in the Central Plains
With little knowledge and limited information, the inland bandits did not know the elite soldiers of the Song Dynasty and did not care much about the prestige of the Song Dynasty. The bandits did not know what to do today and acted unscrupulously. They killed people like mowing grass and robbed one or two wealthy households but could not redeem themselves for trivial matters.
, there is no need to hide one's head and tail. The thieves do not want to reveal their identity and act sneakily. They can only be rich men in other places and have power on the ground. They are afraid that things will be exposed and they will not be able to stand up. The Ming Dynasty has always controlled the heavy and the light, and the soldiers of the five palaces in the capital are in the center.
, it’s hard to tell from other places, there aren’t many local bandits living around the capital. I was exploring outside the city the day before yesterday, firstly to set up eyes at the pass; secondly, to collect information about the surrounding wealthy people, I guess, maybe..."
Li Rufeng leaned forward and said, "In Jinzhou County, near the capital?"
Liao Sanniang nodded and said: "It's just a wild guess with no evidence. This is called, well, a woman's intuition."
Li Rufeng smiled bitterly and said: "I am really tired. I see that I have no idea what happened, so I want to ask the capital camp. Now I still have to use money to redeem my life, and I will take advantage of the situation."
Liao Sanniang said: "Yes, my mind is confused." She frowned and said, "I just feel a little weird. It is extremely difficult to transport and store one hundred thousand taels of silver. Even if the kidnapper succeeds, he will become a piece of fat..."