History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 278 Cavalry Advisor Zhao Zhi
However, such a bold and far-sighted scheme was also conceived by others.

In other words, the other party can replace him!
How could he compete with the other party when he was trapped in such a predicament? This shows that he could only be the fugitive Gao Cong, and would never become the powerful minister Gao Cong who was second only to the emperor!
The chains rattled, and Gao the thief could no longer maintain his composure. He tried to deceive him with lies: "This kind of thing is not something you, at such a young age, can deduce. Who told you? We'll make a deal. You tell me who he is, and I'll tell you what I saw in Wuyi County. You're so eager to ask those criminals, are there any relatives of yours among them?"

Wei Yao calmly put away the paper tube and said sarcastically, "The fox harms the people in the wilderness and then pretends to be a human to frame the wronged souls. You don't need to bother with your schemes. I won't ask about the Wuyi County matter. Anyway, you will soon be going to the Yellow Springs. Let those wronged souls confront you in person."

Gao Cong pounced like a mad beast, but even with the chains taut, he couldn't reach Wei Yao. He roared in fury, "My crime doesn't warrant death! How dare you treat human life so lightly?"

"Dare." Wei Yao replied with a single word.

"what--"

"what--"

"I'm not reconciled! I'm not reconciled!"

The iron hook swung into the gap in the fence, and Gao Cong's howl stopped abruptly after the second cry.

Gu Kai stayed in the dungeon, while Wei Yao and her mother returned to the surface with Yuan Mao.

A jailer pushed a wheelbarrow with a large sack on it.

Yuan Mao asked, "What are you pushing?"

"Reporting to my lord, we found something in the northern suburbs with our hunting dogs that may be related to the thief we captured four days ago."

The jailer opened the sack, and an indescribable, unpleasant odor wafted out.

This is the cloak that Gao Cong made from human hair and monkey fur. The way the collar is tied is unique. Even though it is dirty, you can still see the original red color.

"It's Gong Ai's."

Wei Yao understood that her poor disciple could not possibly be alive.

Yuan Mao was quick and helped remove the red rope from the collar of the cloak.

The three walked towards the government quarters.

Zhao Zhi has been recommended by the Prince of Rencheng and will come to the Cavalry Department of the Sizhou Prefecture tomorrow to serve as the head of the department, "Cadre Military Advisor," in charge of cavalry affairs. His rank is upper sixth grade.

This official position is much better than the "General of Accumulated Archery" who commands the Mulan Camp. This year, the official rank system was reformed, and all the miscellaneous generals with titles such as Accumulated Archery, Accumulated Crossbow, and Strong Crossbow were all placed at the seventh rank.

Yuan Mao pointed to the house facing south and said, "Aunt Zhao, that's the office."

The military officers on duty came to pay their respects. Among them were those in charge of stables and livestock, those in charge of weapons, those in charge of clerks and documents, and those who managed miscellaneous livestock and arranged for riding.

While Zhao Zhi was talking to the military officer, Wei Yao and Yuan Mao went into the office first. Inside, just like outside, lush orchids grew, absorbing the smell of the newly painted walls. Several imposing bows hung on the north wall, a weapon rack stood against the east wall, and a desk stood against the west wall, with books on it and on either side.

"That's wonderful!" Wei Yao was happy for her mother. "It's so spacious, much brighter than my old house, and the roof is so high!"

She walked towards the books, and Yuan Mao watched her from behind. He couldn't help but keep looking at her waist. The more he looked, the more his heart fluttered, and the more he fluttered, the more he wanted to look.

Wei Yao picked up the top scroll, unfolded it, and found it contained illustrations of martial arts moves, but no text.

It was the first time she had seen a fighting diagram showing each move. When she saw the second move with interest, Yuan Mao couldn't resist. He placed his hand on the back of her hand, then nervously pulled it back. He was so nervous that his voice trembled slightly as he said, "I miss you... Yao Yao."

Wei Yao, being mischievous, shoved the martial arts diagram in his face: "I'll use this move to beat you up."

Some were happy, some were envious. In another section of the government compound, separated by several courtyard walls, Yuan Zhi sighed deeply in the direction of the Cavalry Officer.

When Chief Clerk Gou came over, he overheard the conversation and said, "Your Excellency should save up some 'sighs' so that your subordinates don't get chilblains when winter comes."

"Haha." Yuan Zhi laughed to cover his guilt and asked, "Has Wei Yao finished questioning Gao Cong? What was the result?"

"The traitor Gao is dead. That guy was incredibly cunning."

Yuan Zhi deduced the past relationship between Gao Cong and Li Biao.

Yuan Zhi knew Li Biao's character well because when he was the magistrate of Luoyang, he had argued with Li Biao over right-of-way in the street, neither of them yielding, and the matter reached the late emperor's ears. From then on, the roads in Luoyang were divided into separate lanes, and the saying "the roads are separated" gradually spread. Yuan Zhi was worried about retaliation from Li Biao, who held a higher official position, so he took the initiative to request to go to Hengzhou.

As for Gao Cong's character, Yuan Zhi learned about it from Jia Zhen, the current magistrate of Luoyang.

When Jia Zhen was serving as a Zhongshu Boshi (a scholar-official in the Imperial Secretariat), he accompanied Gao Cong on a diplomatic mission to Jiangzuo (the region south of the Yangtze River). At that time, Gao Cong was the Zhongshu Shilang (a high-ranking official in the Imperial Secretariat), Jia Zhen's superior. On the return journey, Jia Zhen learned that his mother was ill. Gao Cong allowed Jia Zhen to return home to visit his mother. However, Jia Zhen was soon punished by the court and dismissed from his post. The crime was that he had returned home without permission!
Yuan Zhi then searched through the pile of official documents in the Sizhou government office and found all those related to Li Biao and Gao Cong, thus deducing that Gao Cong would definitely come to Luoyang to find Li Biao!

The conclusion reached by Clerk Gou after careful consideration was that Gao Cong had appeared at the Guangmo city gate in the north. He first determined that the traitor Gao had arrived based on the time of the Yingzhou wanted notice. Once Gao arrived, he would want to gather information about the court, and the best places for him to go would be the west and north of the city.

Because the people living in the south of the city were either local Luoyang commoners or impoverished southerners who had surrendered.

The residents in the east of the city were mostly mid-level officials of the imperial court, and the county government was also located in the east of the city. Many of these officials knew Gao Cong, especially Jia Zhen, the magistrate of Luoyang.

Let's rule out the west side of the city. The west side has a large market, which is indeed a good place to gather information. However, the market is too luxurious, with dignitaries and warriors in large groups. If Gao Cong were recognized in such a place, the chances of him being captured and imprisoned would be slim.

Therefore, the clerk believed that the thief would first stay in the north of the city.

Whether Gao Cong confessed or not, and how many people he harmed on his escape route, was not of interest to Clerk Gou. He was only curious about what Wei Yao said to the thief after rolling up the paper tube, which made the thief lose his composure and suddenly become furious.

He briefly mentioned Wei Yao's strange behavior, and then said, "At that time, Military Advisor Zhao told Mao Lang and Gu Kai to stay far away. Gu Kai didn't hear anything, he only knew that it was a very short sentence."

Yuan Zhi waved his hand dismissively: "Since the person who deserved to die is dead, let's not dwell on it anymore. This matter ends here!"

"Yes."

East of the city, the county government office.

Li Yin, along with several of his father's disciples and Confucian scholars from the Hongchi Poetry Society, waited at the entrance of the government office for the magistrate of Luoyang to emerge.

"Magistrate Jia, we want to see Magistrate Jia."

"Young Master Li served the court with utmost loyalty and dedication; he shouldn't have died under such mysterious circumstances! The cause of Young Master Li's death is suspicious; how can the case be closed so hastily? We feel indignant on behalf of Young Master Li!"

“Our master was murdered. He was in good health all the time, so it’s impossible that he died while walking normally.”

Li Yin's cries mingled with the surrounding lamentations.

He Lan supported Li Yin, feeling a mixture of pity for him and pity for herself. She pitied herself for making the wrong bet! She had thought the Li family could prosper again, and that Li Yin's father could return to the court, but who would have thought that Li Biao would die just days after she became Li Yin's disciple!
Li Biao's son, Li Zhizhen, is useless. He goes to the Ministry of Personnel, Wang Su, every day on his way to and from court, hoping that Wang Su can help put pressure on the county government to investigate the case carefully. But to this day, he has not even been able to see Wang Su.

At this moment, two scholars guarding the back gate of the county government office rushed over and said angrily, "Magistrate Jia left through the back gate!"

"Damn it! It seems he knows... Junior Sister, Junior Sister..."

Li Yin fainted from anger, and He Lan cried out "Ouch!" and fell to the ground with Li Yin.