299 Something Big Is About to Happen
Song Renying waved his hand, "Get up, no need for excessive courtesy."
"Thank you, sir," Li Zhoucheng said, smiling obsequiously. "Elder Song, I have already prepared a reception banquet and accommodations for you at the government office. Why not join me and go to the government office together..."
Before he could finish speaking, he noticed Song Renying's unhappy expression.
Song Renying waved his hand. "No need for such trouble. I've never liked banquets or fancy places. I'll just stay here in Anyang County for now."
At these words, Li Zhoucheng and Magistrate Han were both astonished.
Li Zhoucheng said, "Sir, this is inappropriate. How can you stay in this small county town of Anyang County? Such hospitality is truly unsuitable."
Magistrate Han also nodded repeatedly. "Yes, yes, my County Government Office is very modest. How could it possibly accommodate you, sir?"
Song Renying frowned, showing no intention of changing his mind. "What are you talking about? We are all people of the Great Zhou Dynasty, all subjects of His Majesty the Emperor. If you can reside here, why can't I?"
"Alright, say no more. It's settled."
Song Renying stopped their further attempts at persuasion and firmly made his decision.
The two could only agree.
This time, Song Renying had come to Xuzhou, ostensibly to inspect the work, but in reality, he was there to investigate the matter of counterfeit copper coins.
A few days prior, he had discovered counterfeit coins in the Capital City. Through a secret investigation, he found that the counterfeit coins had circulated from Xuzhou.
Song Renying reported this matter to the emperor, which led to today's encounter in Anyang County.
Song Renying had always intended to accept Qiao Muchen and Zhao Zhitong as his disciples.
So, during this case, he often kept them by his side, guiding them and observing their character.
As a member of their inseparable trio, Zhao Yue was naturally called to come along.
From this moment on, the three of them witnessed firsthand how renowned Elder Song was at solving cases.
It went without saying that Elder Song was truly a man of great wisdom and insight. His intelligence, meticulousness, and godlike detection skills were genuinely earned, not just empty boasts.
From a single unidentified corpse on the riverbank, Elder Song had traced the victim to an escort agency—the Huiyou Escort Agency—merely by the patterns on the deceased's clothing.
According to reports from his subordinates, the flag used by the escort agency bore the same pattern.
Magistrate Han was amazed and couldn't stop flattering him, "Elder Song is truly extraordinary!"
Song Renying chuckled at Magistrate Han's effusive praise. "Alright, go mobilize some men. We'll head to the escort agency to investigate."
At this moment, Prefect Li hurriedly arrived.
Over the past few days, Prefect Li had naturally learned of Song Renying's investigation into the counterfeit coin case, so he was being extraordinarily attentive.
Zhao Zhitong and the others couldn't help but speculate about this seemingly weak and incapable Governor of Xuzhou: Is he really unaware of the private minting of copper coins?
Now that Prefect Li had arrived, he naturally wanted to accompany them to the escort agency.
While Magistrate Han went to deploy manpower, Song Renying asked, "Prefect Li, in Xuzhou, do you have records of all mining operations, large and small, including ore mines and kilns?"
Hearing Song Renying's question, Li Zhoucheng paused for a moment, then quickly cupped his hands and replied respectfully, "In response to Your Excellency, yes, we do. All operations, whether iron ore mines or ceramic kilns, are recorded."
"Hmm." Song Renying merely nodded, without further elaboration.
Soon, the men were assembled, and the group headed to the Huiyou Escort Agency.
Upon entering the escort agency, they saw that the flag at the gate indeed bore the distinctive spiral pattern.
According to their inquiries, not all escorts in the agency had a uniform; only the top-ranking escorts wore specific attire.
So, the corpse found on the riverbank that day likely belonged to one of the leading figures in the escort agency.
However, it was strange. With such a person missing from the escort agency, had they really not noticed at all?
When asked, they learned that working as an escort was a perilous profession. It was not uncommon to lose one's life when escorting dangerous goods.
Therefore, someone going missing from the escort agency didn't cause any particular panic within its ranks.
The group entered the main gate of the escort agency and saw a burly man speaking to a customer.
"Sir, you can rest assured. Our Huiyou Escort Agency takes people's money and guarantees their safety and the safety of their goods. 'Escorts value righteousness before all; connections in all corners of the country are our lifeline.' This is our motto."
"Alright, then. Help me escort someone to Youzhou. The price is negotiable."
After discussing the terms, they settled on a price, and the customer began to pay the deposit.
As the burly man was giving change, Song Renying's eagle-like eyes fell upon the copper coins in his hand.
After the customer left, the burly man hurried over to greet them.
"Gentlemen, are you here to deliver goods or people? You can rest assured when choosing our Huiyou Escort Agency."
Magistrate Han immediately stepped forward, revealed his identity, and explained the situation.
The burly man was one of the leaders of the Huiyou Escort Agency. Although they operated in all corners of the country, they dared not offend the imperial court. Naturally, they paid their respects and answered all questions truthfully.
Qiao Muchen asked, "My good man, could you let me take a look at the copper coins in your hand?"
"These?" The burly man was taken aback. He glanced at the copper coins in his hand and, seeing Qiao Muchen nod, handed them over. "They're just ordinary copper coins, our agency's earnings."
Qiao Muchen nodded. After examining the copper coins closely and weighing them in his hand, he gave Song Renying an affirmative look.
Song Renying stood with one hand behind his back, lost in thought. After asking the burly man a few more questions, he finally inquired, "My good man, have you recently taken on any escort jobs involving copper or iron goods?"
The burly man thought for a moment and said, "Sir, our escort agency is quite reputable. We've escorted many shipments of the copper and iron goods you mentioned."
Magistrate Han immediately said, "Could you provide us with a copy of the records for these escort jobs?"
The burly man looked troubled. "Sir, it's not that we don't want to cooperate, but we in this line of work must abide by our own rules. We cannot casually disclose client information."
Zhao Zhitong smiled. "My good man, we are officials from the government. This is the Magistrate of Anyang County, and this is the Governor of our Xuzhou. We are specifically investigating a case, and this information is crucial evidence. The government will not disclose it. Please cooperate with us."
Under their persuasion, the burly man finally relented and agreed to hand over information on their recent escort jobs to the authorities, repeatedly emphasizing that it absolutely must not be leaked.
Afterwards, they bid farewell and returned to the government office.
The next task was to sift through this information to find anything useful.
Song Renying placed the documents on the desk and said to Zhao Zhitong and the other two, "You three have been busy all day. Go back and get some rest. You can come back to look at these tomorrow."
Seeing that the sky had already darkened, Zhao Zhitong and the others didn't stand on ceremony. They bid farewell and returned to their respective homes.
Qiao Muchen and Zhao Yue escorted Zhao Zhitong back to the medical clinic.
They reached the entrance of the medical clinic.
Zhao Zhitong waved goodbye to them. "See you tomorrow, then."
Qiao Muchen looked at Zhao Zhitong, his eyes gentle. "Yes, see you tomorrow."
Zhao Yue, fanning himself with his folding fan, grinned. "Don't miss your big brother too much!"
Zhao Zhitong looked utterly speechless and gave him a light shove. "...Just go, go! I wouldn't miss you even if I didn't see you for eight hundred years!"