Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 618 Villain
"Thanks to my brother for reminding me today. Otherwise, I would be in big trouble if I made a mistake. Thank you, brother." Zhou Anmin stood up and bowed to Wu Mengming to thank him. Wu Mengming quickly stopped him and said, "Brother Zhou, you don't have to do this. Brother Zhou has done me a great favor before, so I should naturally consider Brother Zhou."

The two of them exchanged some polite words before letting it go.

After sitting down again, Wu Mengming directly told Zhou Anmin that this matter was not easy to accomplish, and he hoped that Zhou Anmin would be cautious and not do it too aggressively, so as not to become the scapegoat of Emperor Chongzhen.

"I understand." Zhou Anmin nodded, then frowned and said, "But this matter cannot be avoided. His Majesty has sent me to accompany the eunuchs here, and has also issued an imperial decree. It is impossible not to do it."

Wu Mengming naturally understood this truth. He had to find out something about this matter, otherwise he would not be able to explain it to Emperor Chongzhen. He was also worried that Zhou Anmin would investigate too much, which would lead to an unmanageable situation. He was really in a dilemma.

"Of course we have to do it, but...Brother Zhou, have you found out anything now?" Wu Mengming suddenly asked.

Zhou Anmin was a little hesitant. He had already answered this question during the day, but now Wu Mengming asked again, and he knew exactly what it meant. As an old man in the Jinyiwei, Wu Mengming was a hereditary thousand households, and he knew too much about the things in the Jinyiwei.

Jinyiwei never missed a move, let alone Zhou Anmin, who has been rooted in Shanxi for many years. Although Kang Youfu of Hengtong was not caught, it has been half a month since the order was sent from the capital to Shanxi. With Zhou Anmin's ability, he should have gained something. It was natural for Zhou Anmin to hide his tricks in front of Du Xun. This was a common practice. He couldn't show all his cards, otherwise he wouldn't be able to do many things.

With a wry smile, Zhou Anmin said to Wu Mengming, "It seems I can't hide it from you, my dear brother."

"So Brother Zhou has really found some clues?"

"This..." Zhou Anmin hesitated.

"Brother Zhou, this matter is of great importance. If you trust me, please let me know so that I can help you plan it so that you don't make mistakes! Of course, if you don't want to tell me, it doesn't matter. Just treat me as you are today and the future..."

"Brother, what are you talking about? How can I not believe you?" Wu Mengming said so. Zhou Anmin shook his head and sighed before saying, "Brother, your guess is correct. We have indeed found some things these days, but what we found is slightly different from the rumors. This is why I didn't tell you during the day."

"Differences? What differences?" Wu Mengming asked.

Zhou Anmin didn't say anything either. He stood up and walked to the bookshelf beside him. He fumbled on the bookshelf for a while and took out a wooden box. There was a lock on the wooden box, and it was locked.

Putting the wooden box down, Zhou Anmin took out a key from his arms and unlocked it. Wu Mengming leaned in and saw that there was a thick stack of papers inside.

"these are……?"

"This is what I have found. You will know after reading it, my dear brother." Zhou Anmin said, pointing.

Wu Mengming looked solemn. He first glanced at Zhou Anmin, then his gaze fell on the stack of papers. He then reached out to take the wooden box, picked up the paper from it, and read it in the candlelight beside him.

At first, Wu Mengming's expression was normal, but soon his face changed. When he saw half of it, Wu Mengming could no longer conceal the astonishment on his face, and he couldn't help but look up and ask Zhou Anmin.

"Are you serious about this?"

"Of course I am serious!" Zhou Anmin said firmly, "How can I show it to you without any evidence? I dare not lie about such a big thing. If you don't believe me, you can send someone to check again."

Wu Mengming stopped talking and continued reading. After a moment, he finished reading all these things with a frown on his face.

"Since Brother Zhou has found out all this, what's going on with Hengtong?"

"I don't know either." Zhou Anmin shook his head and said, "Now Hengtong's chief manager Kang Youfu has disappeared and has never been found. There is no news whether he is dead or alive. Moreover, the situation in Shanxi is quite complicated. We need to investigate the details. Maybe Hengtong is related to this matter, or maybe they are trying to cover up their tracks. But apart from what we have verified so far, we have not found any evidence that Hengtong has done these things."

Zhou Anmin pointed at the wooden box. Wu Mengming didn't say anything, but just concentrated on thinking. After a moment, he said, "This is a bit unexpected. What are your plans next, Brother Zhou?"

"This is also what I am struggling with now." Zhou Anmin did not hide it from Wu Mengming, and said frankly: "Originally, we wanted to track down Hengtong and its mastermind, but who would have thought that we would find out these things. Today, Eunuch Du made it clear that His Majesty attaches great importance to this matter and has issued an imperial decree for this. What should I do next? I am at a loss for a moment, please teach me."

"This..." Wu Mengming thought for a moment and said, "We should be loyal to the emperor when we receive his salary. We are the Jinyiwei, the emperor's personal army. No matter what we find out, we will report it to His Majesty. We will do whatever His Majesty tells us to do. This is our duty."

"I feel relieved when you say that, my dear brother. Please speak well of me when the time comes. I'll also leave Eunuch Du in my hands." After saying that, Zhou Anmin took out something from his arms and handed it over. Wu Mengming took it and saw that it was a silver note from Hengtong Money House, and the face value was not small.

"These are stolen goods seized from Hengtong. It is inconvenient to keep them with me. I would like to ask you and Eunuch Du to dispose of them properly for me."

Wu Mengming immediately laughed. He was an old hand and could tell how many notes there were in the stack by just touching it. The top note was worth 500 taels of silver. Roughly speaking, it was several thousand taels. This was a huge sum of money. Zhou Anmin was also a smart man. He actually expressed his opinion in this way.

Wu Mengming did not refuse and directly collected the banknotes. Seeing that he accepted them, Zhou Anmin was relieved and continued to talk to Wu Mengming about this matter. The two talked for nearly half an hour. Seeing that it was getting late, Wu Mengming stood up and said goodbye. When he left, he did not take the wooden box and the things he had just seen, but just asked Zhou Anmin to keep them properly, and did not explain anything else.

After leaving Zhou Anmin, Wu Mengming returned to his temporary residence. This place was not far from the Jinyiwei Yamen, and it could be said that it was originally within the scope of the Jinyiwei Yamen. However, because of his arrival, the guards outside had long been replaced by Jinyiwei brought from the capital. When they saw Wu Mengming coming back, these Jinyiwei did not react much and still stood upright at the door.

After entering the courtyard, he walked straight to the house where he lived, pushed the door open and walked in. There was a candle lit in the room, and Du Xun was sitting quietly on a chair in the middle, holding a storybook in his hand and reading it intently.

When he heard the noise and looked up, he saw that it was Wu Mengming who came back, and Du Xun immediately put the storybook aside.

"Master Wu!"

"Eunuch Du!"

"Have you met Zhou Anmin?"

"Yes, and we chatted for quite a while. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come back so late."

"How is it? Did you find out anything?" Du Xun asked.

Wu Mengming smiled and picked up the teacup beside him. Although the tea had long gone cold, he didn't care at all. He took a sip and put it down, saying, "After staying there for so long, there must be some results."

"Oh!" Du Xun's eyes suddenly lit up, and he quickly asked about the results.

Wu Mengming said that the results were quite significant. After just a few words with Zhou Anmin, Zhou Anmin told him the truth. They were right in their guess. Zhou Anmin had indeed concealed something during the day, but some of the things he concealed were surprising, and now he had revealed everything to him.

"Didn't Zhou Anmin have any doubts?" Du Xun asked.

Wu Mengming laughed and said, "Don't worry, Eunuch Du. Zhou Anmin would never doubt me. I knew him in the past and received his kindness. It's not an exaggeration to say that this kindness saved my life. Today, I went to him in the middle of the night to repay his kindness, and my words were also for his own good. How could he possibly doubt me? Naturally, I told him everything I wanted to say."

Du Xun looked at Wu Mengming with a trace of contempt in his eyes. This Wu Mengming was really a villain. He actually said such a thing in a high-sounding manner, and he was not ashamed of taking advantage of the other party. After all, Zhou Anmin was also his savior, but Wu Mengming not only did not repay the favor, but also took advantage of the other party. This kind of person is like a poisonous snake. He must be more careful in the future.

"Lord Wu is devoted to the country, and I really admire him!" Du Xun said half-praisingly and half-sarcastically.

Wu Mengming naturally heard the other meaning in Du Xun's words, but he didn't care at all. He bowed his hands and said to the capital: "I came here by the emperor's order, so I naturally serve your majesty, and I value the Ming Dynasty. As for other personal honors and disgraces, they are nothing. Even if your majesty orders us to die, we will go through fire and water without hesitation! It is my duty to be worthy of your majesty's grace and report to the court and the people."

"Good! Well said!" Du Xun applauded, but secretly cursed Wu Mengming for being shameless. He, a eunuch without a concubine, couldn't do this, and Wu Mengming was even more shameless than him. It was a good thing that this kid didn't enter the palace. If he had entered the palace earlier, how could he have made a name for himself? I'm afraid even Eunuch Wang Chengen is not as good as him.

These thoughts flashed through Du Xun's mind and he put them aside for the time being. Now was not the time to think about these things. He was more concerned about what Wu Mengming had asked Zhou Anmin. Judging from Wu Mengming's current expression, he must have gained a lot, so he immediately started to ask.

Wu Mengming told Du Xun with a smile that he had indeed found out something from Zhou Anmin, and that it was somewhat unexpected.

As Wu Mengming continued to talk, Du Xun's expression gradually became serious. After Wu Mengming finished speaking, Du Xun could no longer sit still and asked anxiously, "Are you serious about this?"

"To be honest, sir, I have carefully examined the evidence collected by Zhou Anmin. I believe that these things are true and Zhou Anmin would not falsify such things. Firstly, he does not have the courage to do so. Secondly, it is not difficult to verify such things. There is no need to do so."

"What a thief!" Du Xun clapped his hands heavily, raised his eyebrows and gritted his teeth and said, "Shanxi is really a place with talented people. There are so many evil spirits hiding here. Not only the Hengtong family, but also the Fan family from Jiexiu? Especially the Fan family is so bold and reckless. They did so many things without telling the court? Could it be that all the local officials are dead? How come no one has noticed it all these years, and no one has reported it to the court?"

(End of this chapter)