novelSusiti Chapter 59, Step 3 – Step 3 is called "Wait for him to die".
Chapter 59, Step 3 – Step 3 is called "Wait for him to die".
Zhao Ping's partner arrived a day earlier than expected.
Dong Yun's sentry was crouching at a tea stall in the back alley of the Jianwei Guild Hall.
The person selling wontons had set up a small stove. The steam blocked their face.
It was noon. A horse entered the city through the south gate. The horse was covered in sweat.
The rider dismounted. The horse wasn't tethered. He turned directly into the back alley of the guild hall.
It knocked four times.
The door opened.
The sentry's hand twitched beneath his apron. A charcoal pencil. A thin piece of wood.
The person who opened the door showed half of their face.
Male. Around forty years old. An old scar on his left cheek.
It extends from the corner of the eye to the corner of the mouth. Not deep, but long.
The rider went inside. The door closed.
The sentry tucked the wooden plank into the lining of his apron. The wontons continued to cook.
-
At dusk that day, the wooden plank reached Dong Yun's hands.
Dong Yun glanced at it. His expression changed.
I didn't go to the Imperial Study. I went back to my duty room first.
A stack of old files was pulled out from the bottom of the cabinet.
The Palace Entry and Exit Register of the First Year of Jianxing.
Turning the pages one by one. I reached page thirty-seven. Then I stopped.
An old scar on my left cheek. From the corner of my eye to the corner of my mouth.
The name is written next to it.
Zhou De.
In the first year of Jianxing (220 AD), I served as a miscellaneous servant in the Inner Palace Service. I worked there for three months.
I resigned. Reason—my elderly mother is seriously ill.
Dong Yun closed the entry and exit register and stood up.
This time, we went to the Imperial Study.
-
Liu Shan was reading the first day's report on the tax inspection in Jianwei, which was sent by Jiang Wan.
Zhao Ping's cloth shop accounts have been sealed.
All three shops have suspended operations pending investigation.
Dong Yun entered. He did not bow. The wooden board and the entry and exit register were placed together on the table.
"I recognize the person who received the goods at the Jianwei Guild Hall."
Liu Shan looked up.
"Zhou De. He spent three months in the Inner Palace Service in the first year of Jianxing."
Liu Shan's gaze fell on the sketch of the scar.
"What can you do in three months?"
Dong Yun lowered his voice.
"I know the layout of the palace well. Which corridor leads to the kitchen. Which gate has a shift change. Which corners are unguarded."
Liu Shan turned the wooden board over. The back was blank.
Where does he live now?
"The sentries followed. Half an hour after the riders left, Zhou De emerged from the main gate of the guild hall and returned to a house in the west of the city. It was a detached house with a high wall."
"Where are the neighbors?"
"An empty house on the left. An elderly couple on the right. They sell tofu."
Liu Shan's thumb touched the indentation. He turned it halfway around.
"He's been to the palace before. He knows the way. Liu An also entered the palace in the first year of Jianxing."
Dong Yun took over.
"The same batch."
The hall remained quiet for five breaths.
They entered the palace in the same batch. One stayed. One left.
Those who left stayed outside to provide support. Those who stayed behind paved the way. Four whole years.
How did Zhou De and Liu An communicate?
"I haven't found out yet. But Chen San leaves the palace every five days to make purchases. He picks up his goods at Yongxing Inn. The goods come from Qian Dafu."
"Qian Dafu's goods come from the Jianwei Guild Hall."
"The goods from the guild hall passed through Zhou De's hands."
Liu Shan stood up. He walked to the diagram. He picked up a vermilion brush.
Cross out the blank circle indicating "to be filled in". Fill in two characters: Zhou De.
Draw the line upwards from Zhou De, connecting to the Jianwei Guild Hall. Draw it downwards, connecting to Chen San, Liu An, and Zhou Fu.
The entire chain. Eight people.
From the Cao Wei military intelligence office to the aconite on his pillow, it took eight turns.
"Is Zhou De the leader?"
Dong Yun shook his head.
"I don't think so. He receives goods, distributes goods, and relays messages. He's a manager, not the owner."
"Where is the boss?"
"In the north."
North. Guanzhong. Cao Wei.
Liu Shan put down his vermilion brush.
That's enough.
Dong Yun waited.
"The chain has been traced. Starting from Zhou De and going upstream—no need to investigate further."
Dong Yun's brow twitched slightly.
"Once the Northern Expedition is launched, the Qing will naturally be eliminated."
Liu Shan returned to his desk and sat down.
"Now we'll close the net. It'll be done in three steps."
"First step. Cut off Chen San. Next time he goes out of the palace to buy things—don't let him come back."
"How do you determine this?"
"He had an accident on the way. He broke his leg. He was sent back to his hometown to recuperate. He bypassed Liu An and went directly through the formal procedures of the Inner Palace Secretariat."
"Step two."
"Liu An. The tax inspector will be at the kitchen tomorrow. All kitchen purchasing accounts will be reviewed for the next three years. Keep him busy. So busy he won't have time for anything else."
"And the third step?"
Liu Shan's gaze fell on the window.
In the corridor, Zhou Fu was squatting at the bottom of the steps, wiping the stone slabs.
"wait."
Dong Yun did not press further.
"The aconite in his cuff. Whether it was the last one or the first one—it depends on how Chen San reacts after he cuts it off."
"They're in a hurry. That means there's only this one left. They'll speed things up."
"No rush. It means there are other channels."
Dong Yun cupped his hands in greeting.
"Your subject understands."
"Go."
Dong Yun walked to the door.
"Xiu Zhao."
"exist."
"Leave Zhou De's house untouched. Don't arrest anyone. Let him think everything is normal."
"When the Northern Expeditionary Army sets off—he will naturally flee north. Follow him as he flees. Wherever he runs—that's where the higher-ups will be."
Dong Yun nodded and went out.
-
into the night.
The curtains moved. (Chen Dao's words.)
"Zhou Fu. Today is as usual. The hidden pocket is still there. Untouched."
Liu Shan placed the silk strip under the paperweight.
Turning to the third draft of the Northern Expedition strategy.
Fourth Route. Wei Yan. The deputy general's position is still empty.
He pulled a strip of silk from his sleeve and wrote a line.
"Ask the Prime Minister: Is Jiang Wei suitable to serve as the deputy general of the fourth route?"
Fold it neatly. Tuck it into the gap in the curtain.
"Deliver it tomorrow morning."
The curtain was taken away.
The corner of the desk was pressed down with the official documents that Qiao Zhou had sent on his first day in office.
List of Imperial Academies in various prefectures of Yizhou. Seventeen academies.
There are 1,200 students.
There was a note underneath: Jiang Wan had taken office as the Salt and Iron Commissioner of Jianwei.
Zhao Ping's cloth shop will be subject to tax audits starting tomorrow.
Liu Shan leaned back in his chair. He tapped his fingers twice on the armrest.
This hidden thread around us. We investigated for four months.
It starts with a piece of wax tube. It continues with a single aconite seed.
One of them, Zhao Heng, died. One of them, Sun Huan, escaped. The rest—are all trapped in the net.
The net isn't tightened. This keeps the north thinking the connection is still open.
We'll talk about it when we reach Guanzhong.
The curtain moved again. (According to Dong Yun's men.)
"Chen Dao reports. Tonight at 7 PM, someone entered Zhou De's residence. They climbed over the back wall."
"Who is it?"
"I couldn't see her face clearly. But her figure—was like a woman's."
Liu Shan raised his hand from the armrest.
woman.
Zhou De's house. A detached house with its own courtyard. High walls. A woman climbing over the wall to get in.
"Keep an eye on them. When they come out—paint their faces."
The curtain was taken away.
Only one bean lamp remained in the hall.
The chain on the graph. Eight people.
The ninth one climbed over the wall and came in.
[End of Chapter]