April 15, the third year of Baoqing in the Song Dynasty, was a cloudy day.

Zhou Lang, the master of Lianxi College, got up very early. He wore a white-washed green robe and waited for the gate of the state yamen to open.

Because it was too early, the doors of the shops on Yaqian Street had not been opened, and almost no one passed by. Only he stood there quietly, lonely, like a quiet tree.

His hands were put together in his sleeves, and his vest was a little a little hunched, making him look a little older than last year. His face, which was as mottled as tree bark, was deeply embedded in it, and his eyebrows were locked in one place, twisted into a twisted character Sichuan.

His eyes fixedly stared at the ground, his eyes full of sorrow, and he didn't know what he was thinking.

The sun rose higher and higher behind the clouds, and from time to time it leaked out light from behind the dark clouds, but was immediately blocked by the flowing clouds, so the sky became darker and the thick clouds became darker and lowered, making people feel that a downpour was coming.

The moment before the gate of the state yamen opened, Ruifuxiang's shopkeeper Ran Daqi ran over with a bag and panting.

He saw Master Zhou running for a while and came to him. His fat body was shaking all over his body. Then he rubbed his hands with a signature smile and said embarrassedly: "Master, I have made you wait for a long time."

Zhou Lang withdrew his gaze from the ground, looked at the bag he carried in his hand, and asked, "How many did he bring?"

Ran Daqi gritted his teeth and lifted the bag with both hands: "Five hundred stags, the silver ingots to be replaced."

The burden was very heavy, which could be seen from his somewhat struggling arm.

Zhou Lang was a little dissatisfied: "No more?"

Ran Daqi scratched his head in embarrassment: "I brought all the money in the shop, and the rest were bet on the payment for the goods, and I would not be able to collect it for a while. You know, Ruifuxiang is expanding everywhere and there is not much money left..."

Zhou Lang pondered for a moment and sighed: "This is not a small amount. You can take it out, which shows that you and Changsun Hong are friends who have exchanged hearts."

Ran Daqi also sighed, which was much deeper than Master Zhou’s: “Who could have thought that it would be related to private salt? This is the crime of beheading! I dare not, how could I know that Changsun Erlang’s father was so bold? This time, the family was confiscated and the family ran away. A mother was arrested and imprisoned. I don’t know if you and I went to ask the Lord Zhizhou to help.”

Zhou Lang clenched his fists in his sleeves and took a deep breath: "No matter whether it succeeds or not, we must try it. Erlang's child has nothing. He will not give up if he is just this old mother, if he doesn't rescue him."

Ran Daqi also sighed. When he remembered the news that Gouzi brought back the night before yesterday that Changsun Hong wanted to rob the prison and save his mother, he was secretly shocked. The family of the private salt dealer confiscated dozens of people from Lijia Village, and they were all locked in the prison of Gongzhou Prefecture. Among them was Changsun Hong's mother Zhang, who was very cautious. He was a twelve or thirteen-year-old boy. How could he dare to rob the prison?

He was anxious and could not help. A merchant asked him to think of ways to make money, and it was a difficult task for him to find a way to get people out of prison.

In desperation, Ran Pu reminded him that Zhou Lang, the master in the academy, seemed to be very familiar with the magistrate, and he was also close to Changsun Hong, so why not beg him? Ran Daqi immediately hugged a life-saving straw and hurriedly found Zhou Lang. After some exchange, Zhou Lang immediately decided that the next day, today, would he immediately go to the Grandmaster.

"Where is Erlang now? Is it safe?" Zhou Lang's question pulled him out of his memories: "The current news is very tight. There are so many people in Lijia Village who traffic in private salt. It is a major case in the court. Many people are staring at it. Don't be found by others."

Ran Daqi smiled bitterly and shook his head and said, "Teacher, to be honest, I don't know where Erlang is hiding. Only the dog knows that he never shows it. He is very tight and should be hiding in a safe place."

"It's so great. If Zhang cannot be rescued, he will definitely be sentenced to death. Qiu Hou asked for the execution and he was arrested again, and the Changsun family will be defeated." Master Zhou nodded gladly: "You and I don't want to inquire. The fewer people you know, the better. The more people you know, the more risks you have, even if you and I don't know."

Ran Daqi nodded and heard the door knocker ringing. The two thick doors in the state yamen with black paint and copper nails slowly opened.

Zhou Lang looked solemn, he tidied up his clothes, took a step forward, bowed to the yamen runner who opened the door, and said, "Please inform the magistrate, Zhou Lang is not talented, please see him!"

The yamen runner probably wouldn't have expected someone to squat at the door early in the morning, so he looked impatient. Ran Daqi came up in time and smiled and stuffed a handful of copper coins.

So a moment later, Grandmaster, who had just finished breakfast, met Zhou Lang and Ran Daqi in the Houya Flower Hall.

Grandmaster Dao's face was a little swollen, his eyes were heavy, his face was dark, and he seemed to be sleeping well.

He sat in a ring chair, and Master Zhou sat on the lower head on the left, and Ran Daqi was not qualified to sit down, so he could only stand behind Master Zhou, like a follower.

"So, Mr. Zhou also came for the private salt case in Lijia Village?" Grandmaster said with a stern face and drank tea. After hearing Master Zhou's purpose, he asked angrily.

"It's just that, it's actually for the matter of the Changsun family." Master Zhou pointed out.

"This matter is very difficult. His family is the first culprit. The Caosi people said that it was his father's head. It is impossible to get rid of the crime." The Grandmaster rubbed his temples, his voice a little hoarse: "The Caosi is very focused on this case, and our prefecture can only cooperate in handling the case and cannot make a decision."

Master Zhou smiled and began to pick up the teacup.

Ran Daqi was very sensible and immediately lifted up his heavy bags. He put a "touch" on the table beside Grandmaster Dao. The silver ingots collided with the table through the bag skin, making a unique pleasant sound.

"This is a little bit of a small meaning. Please accept it with a smile. If you don't have respect, you won't have respect!" Ran Daqi smiled awkwardly, nodded and bowed: "I'd like to think of a solution and help."

Grandmaster's eyes lit up, he reached out to touch the bag, and smiled and said to Master Zhou: "Oh, what is Mr. Zhou doing? Take it back quickly, I can't collect it, I can't collect it!"

Zhou Lang held the teacup he had taken a sip in his hand and begged: "Sir, the head of a state, the prison is also a responsibilities under his jurisdiction. Lijia Village is the territory of Hezhou. Apart from the adults, I can never think of who to look for. Please worry more."

Grandmaster said that he was really embarrassed, but the five hundred-spin yellow and white thing was no longer rejected. He leaned back, leaned on the back of the chair, rubbed the beard on his chin and rubbed again and again: "But... this person selling private salt, saying that he was Changsun Hong didn't know, was his father's sin, and he could barely deal with it, but it was really hard to hide the prison robbery and kill the prison guards, sir..."

Before he could finish his words, he heard a "clang" sound, and the fine porcelain teacup in Master Zhou's hand fell to the ground and fell to pieces.

"Prison robbery!?"

Zhou Lang and Ran Daqi shouted out at the same time, their faces as if they were earthy.

Grandmaster Dao looked at the two men who looked like wooden chickens, got up and took out a Tang newspaper from the table, handed it to Master Zhou, saying, "This is the Tang newspaper we came last night. The night before yesterday, Changsun Hong led dozens of bandits to sneak into the Gongzhou Prefecture prison late the night before, killing people and robbing prison, robbing the body of his mother Zhang, letting more than a hundred criminals go, and setting fire to the prison cell. His arrogance was like rebellion!"
Chapter completed!