Chapter 541 Xu Kun
Officials above the fourth rank in the capital are basically forty years old and above, and their wives are naturally long past the age of having children - even if there are a few old wives who occasionally bloom, they are mostly from young and beautiful concubines.
Therefore, it is only natural that Sun Shaozu would be at the top of the list.
Apart from him, the only official above the fourth rank whose wife was pregnant was the Shaoqing of the Taichang Temple.
Even among officials of the fifth and sixth ranks, there are only five on the list, and most of them are second-generation officials who have enjoyed the protection of their ancestors.
Only when the level below the seventh rank did the number of people begin to grow explosively - and among them, the Hanlin Academy and the Censors, which were filled with Jinshi, accounted for a considerable proportion.
However, when it came to the eighth grade, the number began to plummet again.
This is because most low-level officials have become officials through years of experience - those who have passed the imperial examinations have to wait until they are older and have no hope of passing the imperial examinations before they choose to become a ninth-rank official.
Let’s get back to the story.
However, Sun Shaozong first took a rough look and then checked off several key suspects from top to bottom - since he was the ace spy that the White Lotus Sect had high hopes for, he should have at least one of the three qualities of 'high position', 'power' and 'bright future'.
With this in mind, the cheap eldest brother is more likely to be suspected - among the list of more than 40 people, he seems to be the only one who can truly be described as "powerful and with a bright future".
And if you think about it carefully, the Sun family has a "father-killing feud" with the imperial court!
In addition, the two brothers were once in trouble, so the cost of buying them out doesn't seem to be very high...
Tsk~
After all this investigation, it won't really lead to our own fault, right? !
Just as he was struggling, he heard footsteps approaching from afar. Sun Shaozong looked up subconsciously, only to see Lu Hui walking in with a gloomy face.
Sun Shaozong immediately calmed down his worries, handed the '家有孕妻.txt' to Lu Hui, and said calmly, "This was just sent to me. Please take a look, Your Excellency."
After all, Sun Shaozong still trusted his eldest brother and felt that he would not do such a thing to "betray his brother".
Lu Hui took the list, but did not rush to read it. Instead, he asked, "Has Captain Sun found out who the real traitor is?"
After receiving a negative answer, his complexion seemed to be even worse. He rolled up the list, tapped it on his palm a few times, and suddenly said resolutely: "At this critical moment, there is no time for mercy - come, bring Zang Liang and Xu Kun's family members here quickly!"
This clearly showed that they were planning to torture the two men into confessions without caring about anything!
But didn’t he say before that he would wait until the traitor was found and then use the other party’s family as a trump card?
"grown ups."
Sun Shaozong couldn't help but wonder, "Why are you so anxious? Is there something wrong again?"
"It's that old thief Ge Zhan!"
It turned out that Lu Hui had brought the Xiangzhu Wang to interrogate Ge Zhan just now.
He originally wanted to take advantage of the betrayal of Master Wang Xiang to pry open Ge Zhan's mouth in one fell swoop.
Unexpectedly, although Ge Zhan spoke, the message he revealed made Lu Hui very disappointed and even angry.
According to Ge Zhan, when he led his team in a hurry to the capital, he knew that this mission was a life-threatening one, so before leaving, he discussed with the leader and several elders that after he left the northwest, the addresses, contact methods, and secret codes of each branch would be replaced on a large scale.
In other words, Master Wang's confession, which seemed to be full of explosive information, was actually just like a piece of waste paper!
And from the looks of it, even if we pry open Ge Zhan's mouth, we may not be able to get much useful information .
This was a heavy blow to Lu Hui, who was eager to make achievements to save his face and gain the trust of the court. No wonder he suddenly became anxious and couldn't wait to find out the traitor.
Of course, this is also because the leaders such as Zhao Jiayi have been cleared of suspicion, and the remaining ones are only two minor officials of the sixth and seventh ranks. Even if they were wrongly killed on a "false charge", for a secret agency like the Northern Pacification Office, it is a routine "loss" within the tolerance range, and it is not enough to make everyone feel insecure.
To put it bluntly, glory and risk have always been two sides of the same coin. If the Dragon Guards, who are usually extremely powerful, really make mistakes, their fate will be even worse than others.
Although Sun Shaozong wanted to persuade him, looking at Lu Hui's resolute look, he was afraid that he would not change his mind easily.
In addition, it was difficult to identify the real traitor from the confessions, so he did not dare to take the blame...
Therefore, after a slight hesitation, Sun Shaozong had to settle for the next best thing and bowed his hands and said, "Sir, there is still a brother of mine in there. Why don't you let me try to persuade him with words first? If that doesn't work, it won't be too late to torture him."
Although it is routine "loss", it would be best if the real traitor can be identified without torture.
So Lu Hui entrusted the initial interrogation work to Sun Shaozong without a second thought - as for the later stages, if he was really unable to do so, Sun Shaozong could only choose to turn a blind eye.
At least that's what Sun Shaozong thought at first.
until……
He met Zang Liang's daughter!
It wasn't one of the 'Since the moment I saw you XX' series. The little girl was only about one year old, tightly held in her mother's arms. She looked so skinny and pitiful that she immediately touched Sun Shaozong, who had just become a father.
Who did this little guy offend again?
With a sigh inwardly, Sun Shaozong perked up his alertness, called over Yang Licai and whispered some instructions to him. After Yang Licai went down and prepared everything, he led Xu Kun's parents and wife into the interrogation room.
Speaking of Xu Kun's wife, she was also innocent - she was Xu Kun's second wife after he came to Beijing. Who would have thought that such a thing would happen less than half a year after their marriage.
Because she was a second wife, this woman was just a girl from a common family. How could she have seen the gloomy scene in this dungeon?
Before entering the interrogation room, he was so scared that his legs were shaking and his eyes were filled with tears. When he saw the dozens of hideous torture instruments in the interrogation room, his muscles went limp from Baihui acupoint to Yongquan acupoint. He collapsed at the door with a plop and refused to move another step.
The two old men were still quite courageous. They walked into the interrogation room leaning against each other, and asked in fear and hope: "Sir, our Xu Kun..."
Sun Shaozong did not answer. Instead, Yang Licai, who had been waiting inside, waved his hand, and several Dragon Guards immediately stepped forward and locked the old couple, along with the frightened daughter-in-law, to the wall without saying a word.
"Please spare my life, sir! Please spare my life, sir!"
When the two old men saw this scene, they immediately lost all their energy and spirit. However, Xu Kun's wife came to her senses and immediately screamed: "I just married him a few days ago. I don't know anything about what he did, sir!"
The high-pitched scream echoed in the interrogation room, and at the same time a hot and pungent smell filled the air. It was obvious that the woman had lost control of her bladder due to fear.
Yang Licai frowned and shrugged his nose. His right hand, which was hidden in his sleeve, moved. He seemed to want to take out a handkerchief to cover his wound. However, in front of Sun Shaozong, he finally held back - the boss was calm and composed, so how could a subordinate dare to act pretentiously?
But he couldn't help but suggest: "Sir, how about shutting up this woman?"
"No need, just let her shout."
As he was speaking, he heard the rattling of iron chains outside, and then a thin man with a ferocious face rushed in.
When he saw the three people hanging on the wall, he immediately knelt down, banged his head on the ground and said, "I am an unfilial son. I have made you two suffer so much!"
After that, he straightened up and glared at Sun Shaozong, saying, "Master Qianhu, I, Xu Kun, joined the Northern Pacification Division as a military candidate at the age of 19. I have been working in the wind and rain for 14 years. Even if I have no merit, I have worked hard, right? Now that I haven't figured out the right and wrong, how can you implicate my parents?!"
This fellow originally had squinting eyes, but now they were wide open. His chest rose and fell like mountains when he spoke, and the iron chains that held his hands behind his back made a series of rattling sounds. It was obvious that he was extremely angry.
Judging from his expression, he doesn't seem to feel guilty.
However, we cannot rule out the possibility that he possesses Oscar-level acting skills - after all, if he is a spy, he is truly performing with his life right now.
"How do you know you haven't figured it out?"
Sun Shaozong asked calmly, and then sneered, "After investigation, at the end of Si time (close to 11 o'clock in the morning), someone threw a note through the wall to tip off the thieves inside. At that time, the only two people who had the opportunity to approach the backyard of Liyue Bureau were you and Zang Liang."
Having said this, he lowered his body slightly, stared at Xu Kun with burning eyes, and said word by word: "And just now, Zang Liang has proved his innocence!"
When Xu Kun heard this, his face turned pale. Having been a Dragon Guard for more than ten years, he knew very well what it meant to be 'the only one who could not prove his innocence'!
"No... this is impossible!"
Then he roared in panic and fury, "I have been following the governor in Jiangnan, how could I have anything to do with the White Lotus Sect?!"
"So that's it."
Sun Shaozong still stared at him intently and asked, "Isn't it the White Lotus Sect that's behind you?"
"I……"
Xu Kun was speechless for a moment, and then he said angrily: "No one ordered me to do that. I, Xu Kun, have never done anything to let down the governor or the Northern Pacification Office!"
Judging from the subtle facial expressions, there is still no flaw to be seen, especially the confusion at that moment. Even if he had been prepared, it would have been difficult to act so naturally.
From this perspective, Zang Liang’s suspicion is probably...
Although there was some progress, Sun Shaozong couldn't be happy. He sighed in his heart, stood up straight, and winked at Yang Licai who was standing beside him.
Yang Licai immediately led his men forward and freed all of Xu Kun's family members.
At the same time, the lieutenant colonel who was in charge of escorting Xu Kun also hurried forward to open the chains on him.
This sudden change made Xu Kun completely confused. He subconsciously rubbed the bruise on his wrist and said hesitantly: "Sir, what are you doing..."
"In fact, Zang Liang has not yet cleared his suspicion. If you want to prove your innocence, cooperate with me in a play."
