Clearly, that old bitch Bai Yousi commanded considerable respect. At the very least, she had treated them at Gentlemanly Ward often enough that, when Zhang Xing and the other patrol cavalrymen on duty went around notifying everyone, practically every last one promised to go. Perhaps a handful genuinely did not want to, but none said so to their faces.
As for the money, Bai Sanniang simply promised everyone fifty taels each.
Zhang Xing's rough assessment was that either thirty taels was too little and the Bai Clan found it embarrassing, or the danger of this trip was greater than he had imagined, making thirty taels too paltry.
In any event, that very afternoon, the entire Second Patrol Team of the Jing'an Directorate's Central Pacification Office assembled on the directorate's main island.
There were twenty-seven riders in all. Beneath the Vermilion Sash were one Black Sash, three White Ribbons, and twenty-two patrol cavalrymen, all dressed in regulation brocade uniforms and Warrior Caps, with Embroidered-Mouth Sabers at their sides. Most brought their own prized horses; those like Qin Bao, whose beloved horses were not yet fit to ride, borrowed official horses instead. They then collected their patrol documents and identification tags from the Black Tower in turn, along with some dry rations and small change. They also had several mules and packhorses. Once everything was ready, there was still daylight, so they left the city and headed straight west.
That evening, following the Gu River from the Western Park area, they reached the foot of Xiao Mountain.
The route between the Eastern and Western Capitals, with mountains behind it and rivers before it, was probably the busiest and most vital stretch of road in all Great Wei. The roads were clear, and the official post station system was fully established. As Great Wei's most representative instrument of force, the Brocade-Clad Patrol Unit naturally received the treatment due to it.
Interestingly, once they were barely twenty or thirty li outside the Eastern Capital, the officials along the road already looked at the Brocade-clad Patrol Cavalry with unmistakable wariness and apprehension.
What could they do? These were damned spies with the authority to gather intelligence and submit reports to the throne, after all.
That evening, right after dinner, the damned spies began a meeting to prepare their persecution of loyal and worthy men. This time, both the Black Sash and the White Ribbons were present, so Zhang Xing naturally sat quietly and listened.
"We were busy with one thing after another all afternoon and had no chance to explain the particulars of the case. Let me go over them."
Bai Yousi sat on the windowsill holding her longsword, while Qian Tang took two men out on patrol. As deputy patrol inspector and a Black Sash, Hu Yan naturally occupied the central seat in the main room of the post station's western courtyard, explaining matters to the Brocade-clad Patrol Cavalry, who had booked the entire courtyard.
The case itself was actually as simple as could be.
Even before Minister of Justice Zhang Wenda was assassinated, the court had found a letter in Yang Shen's command tent. It had been written by Han Shixiong, the governor-general of Liangzhou. In it, this Pillar of the State had secretly agreed with Yang Shen that, once Yang Shen raised troops to attack the Eastern Capital, he would march from Liangzhou against the Western Capital, supporting each other's movements.
And this letter might well have been an important weight on the scales when Yang Shen rejected Li Shu's advice and resolved to attack the Eastern Capital.
Of course, given how quickly Yang Shen was defeated and killed, Han Shixiong could not possibly have accomplished anything. The court had also dispatched Supreme Pillar of the State Han Changmei early on to arrest him... Han Changmei captured him easily and took him back to the Western Capital, where he then handed him over to an envoy from the Northern Office stationed there.
The envoy dared not delay and immediately escorted the prisoner back toward the Eastern Capital.
But when they reached Tong Pass, hadn't the summer rains been falling incessantly? The road ahead was somewhat obstructed, so they stopped briefly at an official post station east of Tong Pass to wait for it to clear.
During their stay, Han Shixiong invited the envoy to drink. They drank for three days straight, and then he suddenly seized his chance and escaped...
At this point, the case sounded like a complete accident. In reality, however, every member of the Brocade-clad Patrol Cavalry, Zhang Xing included, knew something of the inside story. They were merely listening.
"Now that this has landed on our heads, there are some things that have to be said." After Hu Yan finished recounting the surface story, Bai Yousi, who had been out of sight until then, suddenly appeared in the room and called on someone. "Zhang Xing, tell everyone the key points, both what should be said and what shouldn't."
No one was surprised, and Zhang Xing had already learned to take it calmly. He passed around several sheets of paper prepared in advance, then expressionlessly pointed out the essentials:
"There are four interesting points here... First, Supreme Pillar of the State Han Changmei is the uncle of Han Shixiong, Pillar of the State and governor-general of Liangzhou. Second, Han Yingong, the commander at Tong Pass, is another of Han Shixiong's uncles. Third, Li Ding, the deputy director of the Chariot Bureau under the Ministry of War who was responsible for repairing the road washed out by flash floods at the time, is Han Shixiong's cousin and the nephew of Han Changmei and Han Yingong through their sister. Finally, according to Han Shixiong's letter, he intended to raise troops in support of Yang Shen because he had always felt that his father, the former Duke of Ying and Supreme Pillar of the State Han Bolong, had been wronged, and that the court had treated his family unfairly. But everyone knows the court has hardly mistreated the Han Clan. It merely allowed General Han Changmei to inherit the former Duke of Ying's military command, title, and revenue estates. Still, it is only natural that Han Shixiong should resent this, and there has indeed long been discord within the Han Clan over it."
With matters laid out so plainly, the atmosphere in the main room of the post station's side courtyard remained somewhat tense and awkward.
It was not that no one wanted to ask questions. Even the stupidest among them could more or less smell something fishy here... But how should one put it? The former Duke of Ying, Han Bolong, had been one of Great Wei's nine founding heroes and one of its four great generals. Some matters really were beyond what these men dared comment on.
"There's something I'd like to ask." In the end, it was Qin Bao who spoke, cautiously and earnestly. "Were all the roads around Guanlong built by the Han family and their relatives? How could there be so many coincidences?"
"Put it this way." Before Li Qingchen could mock him, Zhang Xing answered first. "Suppose we fail to catch him this time, and the court says Governor-General Bai of Jingzhou also exchanged letters with Yang Shen, then arrests him too, only for him to escape somewhere in Nanyang... If you went to investigate, you could find ten people named Bai along the road, another ten former subordinates of the Bai Clan, and ten relatives by marriage besides... That's just how great houses work."
Everyone looked toward Bai Yousi. She said nothing, and no one knew whether she was tacitly agreeing, could not be bothered to quibble with her subordinates, or was thinking about something else.
"In that case..." Qin Bao hesitated briefly, then asked in return, "it wasn't necessarily the Han Clan's own doing?"
"It's quite possible he simply escaped on his own." Zhang Xing nodded. "That would be the best outcome... But we can't proceed on that assumption. Han Yingong or Li Ding might have rescued him. Han Changmei might have cleared himself of suspicion before rescuing his nephew, deliberately steering us toward investigating an innocent Han Yingong and Li Ding. Or Han Changmei, Han Yingong, and Li Ding might even have worked together to rescue him. All are possible."
A chorus of sighs went around the room.
"That is how things stand." Bai Yousi seemed only just to have come back to herself and issued her instructions calmly. "Everyone must be prepared. Tong Pass is General Han Yingong's garrison, and he has always had a fiery temperament... Even though it is only three to five days' journey from the Eastern Capital, we must still act cautiously. Don't provoke him on your own initiative... Once we arrive, no one is to leave the team without permission. We'll start investigating at the post station Han Shixiong escaped from, proceeding step by step and following the rules. I don't believe a living, breathing man can vanish into thin air."
Everyone hurriedly cupped their hands in solemn acknowledgment.
A day later, the Brocade-clad Patrol Cavalry reached Taolin Post Station, fifteen li east of Tong Pass.
PS: Wishing everyone continued happiness in the New Year.
One more thing: I don't know what happened with the event in the event center, but the paid release is actually on the fifth. There are no VIP chapters in my backend yet, so please be patient.
Before you continue