Chapter 426 The Spy's Mission
Chapter 426 The Spy's Mission
The night was cool as water, and the moonlight shone through the clouds, illuminating the quiet streets.
At the gate of Jinfu Inn, the prefect and others listened in a daze to Lihuatang Jinyi's narration, with different expressions on their faces.
The scholar and Hongye breathed a sigh of relief silently, their lips curled up into a smile: this was consistent with their impression of Zhao Shaobao.
His methods are strange, his mind is meticulous, and his strength needs no explanation.
Prefect Luan Cheng looked dazed, his mind was blank:
Zixiao Palace was destroyed? !
In just two or three hours? Lu Zhengchun was arrested? This Taoist temple, which was well-known in the Binhaidao green forest world, was wiped out by that man? !
"Please wait, I..."
The prefect raised his hand and made a fake grab, but the man in royal uniform ignored him, turned his horse around and left again.
"Mr. Prefect, please wait for Young Master Zhao to come back and ask him in person." The scholar smiled.
Luan Cheng nodded silently but did not move. He stood at the door waiting. After a while, the torches in the distance gradually approached.
One could see a large group of cavalrymen walking in front, pulling out ropes, the ends of which were tied to the hands of Taoist priests who were dressed in tattered clothes and whose shoes were almost worn out.
Like walking the dog.
Further back, there were carts carrying corpses and large boxes - Zixiao Palace had been accumulating wealth over the years, and the wealth within the Taoist temple was considerable.
Zhao Duan only took the most valuable part and brought it back to the city, and left a small team of officers and soldiers to guard the Taoist temple and continue to guard it.
Further behind, there were carriages one after another. Behind the shaking curtains were beautiful women, crying and shivering like pear blossoms in the rain.
Zhao Duan and his team of core members were at the back of the team.
"Governor Luan, it's a good thing that you're here," Zhao Duan rode his horse to the door of the inn in the light of the torch, jumped down, and said:
“These Taoists were involved in the attack on the government troops. It is up to you, the prefect, to decide how to deal with them.
As for the boxes on the cart at the back, some of them contained valuables seized from the rebels, and some contained account books from the Zixiao Palace, which had to be sealed.
Once this matter is settled, the stolen goods must be sent to the capital for storage. As for those women at the back...
According to my investigation, these girls were coerced and bribed by Lu Zhengchun and abducted into the palace for his pleasure in recent years. You are also responsible for their investigation. If they have nothing to do with the rebels, they will be sent back to their hometowns or stay in Zixiao Palace and let them choose for themselves.
Well, that Taoist temple was given by the late emperor. Although Lu Zhengchun was removed, there is no need to abolish the Taoist temple. I think it would be good to change it into an official Taoist temple run by the imperial court."
Luan Cheng listened in a daze, nodded subconsciously, but his eyes were searching among the large group of officers and soldiers:
"That Lu Zhengchun..."
"boom!"
With a sealing talisman stuck on his forehead, the sleeping Lu Zhengchun was thrown to the ground by Gongshu Tianyuan.
Luan Cheng took a deep breath and finally confirmed that he was not dreaming. He quickly asked for details, and after understanding what happened, his expression became extremely complicated.
"Zhao Shaobao... good tactics."
This voice, however, was sincere and heartfelt.
No matter how crude and reckless this method may seem, just tell me whether the result is good or not...
"I will arrange it right away." After being surprised, Luan Cheng's expression revealed excitement. As a prefect of a place, he was undoubtedly displeased with the power of Zixiao Palace. Now that it has been eliminated, he is naturally happy.
"Wait, there is one more thing," Zhao Duan suddenly stopped him and smiled at the latter's blank gaze:
“Please, Magistrate Luan, use your identity to post an official notice in the city, listing the crimes of Zixiao Palace such as amassing wealth, abducting women, and colluding with the rebels. In seven days, Lu Zhengchun and his disciples will be beheaded in public.
Well, remember, you must spread this news as widely as possible so that everyone knows about it."
Governor Luan was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously wanted to say:
Officials were not qualified to carry out executions or beheadings without notification from the imperial court.
Zhao Duan seemed to see through his thoughts. He stuffed the gold medal given to him by the empress when he left Beijing into the prefect's hand, patted his shoulder, and said with a smile:
"Just follow your orders."
On the way, he tried to pry open Lu Zhengchun's mouth and obtain information about Zhuang Xiaocheng, but failed.
Even Gongshu Tianyuan's "fox fairy" cannot deal with the high-level purple-robed Taoist priest in the world.
"Lu Zhengchun, ah Lu Zhengchun, if you don't speak up, do you think I can't use you to catch that old dog Zhuang Xiaocheng?"
Zhao Duan stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the starry night sky:
"Zhuang Xiaocheng, it is impolite not to reciprocate. You gave me a gift, so how can I be stingy and not give you a gift in return?"
……
……
Forbidden City Villa.
In the pavilion built on the steep cliff, Zhuang Xiaocheng, a man of noble character, was sitting cross-legged on the ground, wrapped in a thick blanket, cooking wine.
Lanterns were hung at the corners of the pavilion, and in the distance the entire villa was dotted with lights.
A peaceful atmosphere.
"Gululu."
Zhuang Xiaocheng held a pair of tongs, stirred the scarlet charcoal in the copper basin, looked at the boiling yellow wine, and said:
"Zhao Duan has entered the city, and the prefect Luan Cheng also foolishly ran into him. Our people in Fengcheng sent us news that he had sent troops into the city during the day, and then left the city again. The direction he went seemed to be the Zixiao Palace."
In the pavilion, sitting opposite the Grand Tutor was a figure wearing a loose black robe with a hood covering his face.
A well-proportioned, pampered white hand emerged from the black robe, picked up the wine vessel, sifted out a bowl of wine, drank a sip, and said in a hoarse voice:
"Lu Zhengchun was exposed?"
Zhuang Xiaocheng shook his head and said:
"If he is exposed, why would Zhao Duan enter the city before taking action? He might just try to trick him. However, given Lu Zhengchun's character, he will definitely fight him. With the background of Zixiao Palace, it is enough to test how many cards Zhao Duan has...
However, Zhao the thief must have had the courage to come here. I am afraid that Lu Zhengchun will lose... Isn't this a pity? This old Taoist has a high level of cultivation. If he uses his flying sword at full power, I am afraid that no one in the society can be his opponent..."
The man in black robes was feeling the night wind and said calmly:
"A dog that is wavering and greedy is not worth using no matter how sharp its fangs are. Now it is a good opportunity to get rid of it with the help of Zhao Duan."
Zhuang Xiaocheng, with white hair and beard and wrinkles all over his face, nodded, sighed silently, and said:
"It's just a pity that this time, in order to kill that thief Zhao, no matter whether we succeed or fail, the strength of the society will be greatly damaged."
The man in black robe drank the wine from the bowl and said:
"What do we have to lose to win? Here come the others."
After saying this, the man's body slowly disappeared like ripples, and the wine bowl in his hand disappeared as well.
A few moments.
Two figures came running towards them, one of them was Qi Yuchun, a man with dark stubble and a big gun on his back.
One is Ren Kun, a geomancer with broad shoulders, khaki skin, a robe of the same color, a square face and a flat nose.
The two looked unhappy and said hurriedly:
"We got the news that the Zixiao Palace was razed to the ground by a guy named Zhao, and Lu Zhengchun was captured alive!"
Zhuang Xiaocheng was "shocked" and stood up suddenly, staring at them: "Tell me in detail!" After learning the details, the former Taifu frowned and said with regret:
"If Lu Zhengchun escaped in time, how could the court keep him?"
Qi Yuchun said anxiously:
"Lu Zhengchun was not completely on the same page with us. I don't care whether he lives or dies, but if he is arrested, I am afraid that our position at the headquarters will be exposed!"
Zhuang Xiaocheng shook his head and said calmly:
"He won't tell. Because Lu Zhengchun knows that if he tells the location of the headquarters, he will die. If he doesn't tell, there is still a chance to be rescued."
Ren Kun watched coldly and said, "Even if it's as you said, now that we've lost his fighting power, what should we do next?"
"Wait." Zhuang Xiaocheng stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the two of them calmly, his eyes as deep as the sea:
"Destroying the Zixiao Palace is the reward from the thief Zhao. I have a feeling that with the way this thief is doing things, he will have another trick up his sleeve by tomorrow at the latest. We will counter his moves and fight back."
……
……
Jinfu Inn.
It was late at night, and Lieutenant General Yuanji led a group of cavalry to the camp arranged by the Fengcheng County Government to rest.
The inn also returned to silence. After the door was closed, the kitchen brought out the dinner that had been reheated several times. Everyone sat around in the lobby and began to wolf it down.
The candle burns quietly.
After eating and drinking, Gongshu Tianyuan stroked his round belly, leaned back in his chair, and threw toothpicks to everyone like a magic trick.
He picked his teeth with a stick and boasted to Hongye and the scholar about his heroic performance in the battle:
"...So, how smart is this priest? I had already made a fake person to replace him, so I could avoid the flying sword...It was also because I was holding Lu Zhengchun back head-on that Junior Sister Jin was able to attack from behind."
Jin Jian was full and squinted his eyes comfortably like a kitten, too lazy to compete for credit.
Ah, yes, yes, yes… You are a disciple of Heavenly Master, so everything you said is right… Zhang Han and Haitang complained silently.
However, the two also admitted that the two sorcerers from the Tianshi Mansion did make great contributions in this battle.
Jin Jian's final kill was truly stunning, but without the direct restraint of Gongshu Tianyuan, Lang Shiba, and Ji Yue, it would have been really hard to defeat Lu Zhengchun.
As a result, the two Zhaoya Jisi who had not played any role at all felt frustrated and realized the real gap between them and the genius of cultivation.
"what's on your mind?"
Haitang looked at Zhao Duan, who was silently picking his teeth beside her, and suddenly asked.
Zhao Duan came back to his senses, smiled, and suddenly asked Gongshu Tianyuan curiously:
"Come to think of it, your stand-in is also a talisman?"
"Yes," Gongshu Tianyuan thought to himself that Brother Zhao really appreciated me, and he quickly took out a ball of white mud from his sleeves as if he were a close friend, and said excitedly:
"This is called Spring Mud. It can be molded into anything I want. It's almost real, but it's just a toy. I need to control it within a certain range."
Zhao Duan stroked his chin, and after listening to his explanation, he stared at the lump of spring mud thoughtfully.
Haitang was perceptive and asked:
"Now that we've had enough wine and food, you should tell us your next plan, right? This Lu Zhengchun won't talk no matter what, and you want to stage a big show of beheading him and displaying his head to the public. You even deliberately gave Prefect Luan seven days to post notices all over the city. Is this for Zhuang Xiaocheng to see?"
The female detective who calls herself the detective of the imperial court analyzed:
"Just like you did before, you first promoted the prisoner exchange on a large scale and forced Zhuang Xiaocheng to accept it... Do you have similar ideas this time?
Since Lu Zhengchun is a member of the Kuangfu Society, as long as a large-scale propaganda is carried out to let the members of the Kuangfu Society in Fengcheng and even the entire prefecture know that hundreds of their companions are about to be beheaded, they will inevitably become restless.
Zhuang Xiaocheng had to face the pressure of public opinion. Even if it was to appease his subordinates and maintain the cohesion of the Kuangfu Society, he could not sit idly by...
So, you want to use this trick to force Zhuang Xiaocheng to send people to rob the execution ground? And then arrest him?"
This was the answer she deduced.
Zhao Duan smiled and nodded:
"clever!"
Haitang's mouth corners suddenly curled up, she was very proud, but she didn't notice the hint of teasing in Zhao Duan's eyes.
Zhao Duan looked around at the people at the table and said calmly:
"What the Maritime Police Department said is correct. As long as the news of the execution spreads, Zhuang Xiaocheng must take action.
Moreover, Lu Zhengchun was holding on to his secrets, probably because he was using the intelligence he had to force Zhuang Xiaocheng to rescue him... Zhuang Xiaocheng would have taken action even for this."
Everyone looked at them in awe, thinking that you are so treacherous...
Zhao Duan ignored these people's thoughts and continued:
"But just fishing is not enough. Zhuang Xiaocheng will not be so stupid as to rush in headfirst. Even if he wants to rob the execution ground, he will make certain tactical arrangements. We may seem to have the home advantage, but the Kuangfu Society has been hiding in Fengcheng for several years. This should be their home ground."
After a pause, he said, "So, it's time for our spies planted in the Kuangfu Society to go out."
The golden shadow guard scholar and Hongye straightened their backs:
"What do you want us to do, my Lord?"
Zhao Duan said calmly:
"I need you to contact each spy through the channel and give them an action plan. I will go back to the room later and write the content for you."
"Yes." The two shadow guards agreed readily.
"That's it, everyone is tired, go back and rest first."
Zhao Duan patted his butt, stood up, walked up the wooden stairs and returned to his room.
……
After closing the door, he sat at the table in the inn, but did not rush to write the task. Instead, he turned his wrist and took out a small bronze mirror called "The Mirror of Love and Lust".
Lost in thought.
According to intelligence, for safety reasons, the old dog Zhuang Xiaocheng is still keeping the rescued captives, including Yunxi, in solitary confinement in a grape farm in Fengcheng.
This was also the reason why Zhao Duan had not tried to use the Fengyue Treasure Mirror to detect spies and determine the location of the Kuangfu Society’s headquarters - they were not in the same place at all.
"Zhuang Xiaocheng, Zhuang Xiaocheng... You must know that I have planted spies among the prisoners. If I were you, not only would I not rashly remove those spies, I would also try to turn them against me and play a spy within a spy..."
"Just imagine, if I completely trust these spies, and some of them are pretending to be loyal to the court, but are actually loyal to you, wouldn't that be bad?"
Zhao Duan muttered to himself, put the small mirror aside, picked up a pen and spread out paper, and began to write down the tasks assigned to a group of spies including Yunxi, Qingniao, Wu Ling and others.
Most of these missions are fake, to prevent the existence of "Mission Impossible".
Even if someone really betrayed him and played Infernal Affairs, it would not hurt to leak the fake mission to Zhuang Xiaocheng. Instead, he could use these fake missions to mislead Zhuang Xiaocheng.
Moreover, over the next seven days, he would use the Fengyue Treasure Mirror to observe those spies from time to time.
Of course, there are also a few tasks that are more special.
"Shuashasha..." Zhao Duan quickly wrote a few lines on a piece of paper, then folded the paper and solemnly wrote the recipient's name on the blank space on the back:
Yun Xi.
-
Correct typos first and then correct them
(End of this chapter)