Ch. 548 - The Masochism, and the Canton Fair

When people were in unfamiliar environments, they inevitably would miss their past.

For example, Sun Shaozong, even though he only had a rough impression before his travels, still had a different sense of closeness to the protagonist, Jia Baoyu, compared to others.

It was not surprising that those who have read Dream of the Red Chamber and traveled to the world of the Red Chamber would choose to give their illegitimate child a *’Supernatural Jade.’*

Sun Shaozong was pondering in that small shop, feeling that it was quite difficult to put aside the premise of the interloper and link Zhou Xi's case with Prince Yizhong.

On the other hand, there was a ready-made source that could be utilized by the Northern Detective Department…

Thinking of this, Sun Shaozong checked out of the small shop and hurried to the Northern Detective Department Dungeon.

Without any accidents, after Sun Shaozong left, two more White Lotus Sect rebels in the dungeon surrendered. Unfortunately, the confessions they made were still the same old routine and were worthless.

In addition to disappointment, Lu Hui simply handed over several thieves, including Ge Zhan, to Yang Licai for responsibility, while he had a determined mind to pry open Auntie Li's mouth to catch all the spies of the White Lotus Sect stationed in the Capital.

"Zang Liang..."

"Ah!!!"

As he was speaking, he heard a mournful scream coming from the neighboring interrogation room. Sun Shaozong frowned, and Yang Licai quickly stepped forward to use a cork to block the copper pipes used for sound transmission.

Although the screams were still piercing into his ears, at least the decibel level had already dropped quite a bit. Sun Shaozong then continued his previous conversation and asked, "Did Zang Liang remember anything else?"

Yang Licai shook his head and said, "After you went to the Crown Prince's Mansion, the Pacifier handed Zang Liang over to Thousand Household Zhao and Hundred Household Song for interrogation. I don't know what they have asked."

***Tch!***

Zhao Jiayi and Song Xiong, who were implicated by Zang Liang, were imprisoned in this water prison for over a month and almost confessed their lives and wealth.

At present, Lu Hui sent the two of them to interrogate Zang Liang, probably to appease them a bit, and also to use the resentment in their hearts to intimidate Zang Liang.

However, it was also good to wait until Zang Liang could not survive, and then find a way to guide him from the side. It should not be difficult for him to blame the mastermind behind the scenes on Prince Yizhong. After all, Prince Yizhong was already the number one scapegoat of the Zhou Dynasty.

The court's emphasis on Prince Yizhong's remaining followers was far higher than that of the White Lotus Sect. At that time, regardless of whether Zang Liang could provide empirical evidence, based solely on the words *'Prince Yizhong.'* the Northern Town Governor would never dare to neglect carelessness.

Anyway, what Sun Shaozong really cared about was not the origin of that supernatural jade, but whether there were hidden conspiracies behind it that could turn Prince Yizhong around.

So as long as it could force the court to take precautions and not allow the remaining party of Prince Yizhong to take advantage of it, it was enough.

Shouldn't that be enough?

Sun Shaozong was pondering when he heard a chaotic sound of footsteps outside the door. Before long, he heard the small guard guarding the door coming to report that Lu Hui had invited Sun Shaozong to the detention room for a discussion.

Was there any progress with Auntie Li?

Sun Shaozong didn’t dare to neglect and quickly left Yang Licai to take the detention room. However, as soon as he entered the door, he knew he had made a mistake. With Lu Hui's pot-bottomed black face, he knew there was no progress.

But the hidden stakes in the Capital were different from the branches of the White Lotus Sect in the northwest, especially those that had infiltrated the government. It might not be easy to replace and transfer them, right?

"Pacifier."

Seeing him confined there without any intention of speaking first, Sun Shaozong could only cautiously probe and say, "At Auntie Li's place..."

"Don't mention that old... old..."

Lu Hui angrily interrupted Sun Shaozong's questioning, but couldn't think of how to describe Auntie Li for a moment. In the end, he angrily kicked over the table and cursed heavily, "Damn it, how could I encounter such a thing again!"

Seeing Lu Hui's reaction, Sun Shaozong showed some interest, so he indirectly asked about the inexplicable reasons that made Lu Hui angry.

It was said that Lu Hui ran into a wall at Ge Zhan's place, and then judged that the group of thieves from the northwest had little value to extract, so he decisively shifted his energy to Auntie Li.

Firstly, a series of threats and temptations were unsuccessful, and then *’measures’* were taken, such as alternating greetings of iron plate barbecue, meat sandwiched with film, and three fresh minced seeds.

Auntie Li, however, was tough and firm, not only not showing any fear, but also shouting and scolding loudly, unable to resist provocation.

However, Lu Hui has been a Dragon Guard for so many years and has seen many tough bones, but there were not many who could persist until the end; he has not been discouraged by this.

The only choice left was to scratch the heart, dig out the lungs, and pierce the bone marrow, without harming one's life, just like practicing on Auntie Li.

However, after experiencing seven or eight forms of torture, Auntie Li's situation gradually became eerie.

The initial moaning and cursing turned into cat-like sobbing and gasping; eyes half open and half closed, exuding confusion and madness. Two legs were tightly clamped and twisted like fried dough twists

The most outrageous thing was that the small guard carrying the execution was about to threaten a few words with a burnt iron, but she took the initiative to straighten her chest and rubbed it up in circles!

At that time, Lu Hui became suspicious and had someone strip off this old woman. As expected, he didn't know how many times she had been high…

"Damn it!"

Speaking of this, Lu Hui couldn't help but curse again, "These crazy women who don't know how to die. I have also met one in Jiangnan before. The more you torture her, the more she feels comfortable all over, more energetic than playing with a man!"

No wonder he was so depressed.

First, he ran into a nail at Ge Zhan's place, and then he met a masochist.

It seemed unlikely to pry open Auntie Li's mouth in the short term.

But wasn’t there still a list here?

As long as they could dig out that third party, it could also be considered a great achievement.

"By the way."

Speaking of the *'list of pregnant wives,'* Lu Hui immediately restrained his anger and said sternly, "The people below are very confused in their work. They even listed your Brother on the list. I saw your Brother's name and scolded those bastards severely."

The people below were also acting under orders. What was there to be confused about?

Although Lu Hui had checked the name of his Big Brother, he would never relax his surveillance and investigation in secret.

After all, Sun Shaozu was a high-ranking General with military power. If he were a spy of the White Lotus Sect, his nature would probably be much more serious than the other forty or so combined.

But since he pretended to act, how could Sun Shaozong expose it in person?

He had to cooperate and speak in an official tone, "Pacifier, there is no need to avoid anything, just treat it equally. Our ancestors have been loyal and martyred for three generations, and I believe my Elder Brother will never disrespect our family."

"Of course, naturally."

Lu Hui nodded repeatedly, then turned the conversation around and said, "Actually, what I am most worried about right now is that there is an oversight in that list. If *'No. 3's* wife was found to be pregnant only after Ge Zhan and others entered the Capital, he would probably choose to conceal it."

"If we randomly interrogated the officials on the list, wouldn't there be a risk of startling the grass?"

In the 24th year of Jianping, at the suggestion of Prince Yizhong, the court implemented a maternity leave system, allowing officials in the court to take half a month's paid leave before and after their wives gave birth. Of course, this benefit was limited to the legitimate wife of the family, and concubines were not included.

To avoid rushing and affecting the normal operation of the Yamen, the court also stipulated that an application must be submitted to the relevant department one hundred days before childbirth. Those who fail to do so would be deemed to have automatically waived their maternity leave.

The estimated due date these days was not accurate, coupled with the presence of premature infants, who would dare to wait until *’100 days before delivery’* to report?

So after discovering that their wife was pregnant, they immediately reported to the higher authorities to avoid missing out on this cheap opportunity.

And this was precisely why the Northern Town Governor only spent half a day reviewing the list.

Ge Zhan brought people to the Capital to search for the saint, and it has been about a month or so. If during this period, No. 3 discovered that his wife was pregnant and then prepared to wait for the fetus to stabilize before sending her back to her hometown in the countryside for refuge, there was indeed a possibility of concealing this matter.

So Lu Hui's concern was not unfounded.

"According to your wishes..."

"For now, don't touch the people on the list. At the same time, send someone to investigate the city to see if there is any intentional concealment."

This might sound easy, but there were thousands of officials in the Capital, and those small officials were nothing more than a waste of time. Some have real power and rank, but who didn’t live in deep houses and courtyards?

It was not a simple task to investigate whether these official wives who had not left the door were pregnant.

However, there was no need for Sun Shaozong to preside over this matter, so he naturally didn't want to say much. After chatting with Lu Hui about the case, the conversation suddenly changed, and he said anxiously, "Actually, I'm not worried about the spies of the White Lotus Sect now. On the contrary, the power hidden behind Zang Liang makes me feel uneasy."

Lu Hui nodded solemnly and comforted Sun Shaozong, saying, "I have ordered Zhao Jiayi and Song Xiong to thoroughly investigate this matter, and they will never miss any clues."

*Thoroughly investigate?*

He wondered if the daughter-in-law of Cabinet He was included in this thorough investigation.

However, judging from Lu Hui's attitude, it seemed that he had no intention of letting him intervene. Sun Shaozong was also afraid that being too proactive might attract unnecessary suspicion.

Therefore, he temporarily stopped beating and did not continue to push.

So, accompanying Lu Hui in the prison, after a damp and suffocating afternoon, Sun Shaozong quickly stood up to bid farewell.

He was going home to find his Elder Brother, who was taking a break. He wanted to discuss the matter of suppressing the rebellion in Huguang. It was best to also solve the issue of weapons and armor together.

Unexpectedly, they arrived home peacefully, but there was no trace of Sun Shaozu. On the contrary, Lady You came under the guise of visiting her stepmother.

Upon hearing this news, Sun Shaozong suddenly remembered that he had been patronizing a bed of two yesterday, but forgot to inquire about Second Sister You. He had put in so much effort to pimp himself for what purpose?

Reminding himself secretly not to forget to ask the truth today, Sun Shaozong casually asked Zhao Zhongji, "Isn't my Big Brother on vacation today? Why hasn't he come back at this time?"

"Reply to Second Master's words."

Zhao Zhongji hurriedly said, "At noon, the Elder Master came back, but Commander Liu from the patrol camp sent someone to invite him, and then he went out with a few concubines."

He brought a few concubines with him?

He must have attended the Canton Fair again.

Many people in this capital treat their concubines like cows and horses, and even form a unique circle. Recently, there has been a Canton Fair where they each led their unsatisfactory concubines and engaged in extensive exchanges for mutual benefit.

When they were satisfied with each other's *’communication,’* many people exchanged bodily deeds on the spot.

Therefore, in the past two months, the cheap concubines in his Big Brother's house have changed several times like horses. These *’cheap concubines’* referred to identities that were usually bought, promoted by maids, or obtained from a brothel, all belong to cheap concubines.

Xiangling was originally among the lowly concubines, but later she was recognized by her former official father and was promoted to become a good concubine.

Although Sun Shaozong couldn't bear to see such a promiscuous person, buying and selling cheap concubines, it was also a legal and reasonable thing; besides, exchanging them to someone else's house was much stronger than selling them directly to brothels.

Therefore, persuading a few times did not have much effect, so he could only accept.

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