"Has your mentor concluded that Xie Mengting is involved in this case?" Cheng Zhong asked. "Oh, that's not the case. I just wanted to go there this time to find out some information about the deceased Du Chongde," Hai Rui said. Cheng Zhong laughed and said, "If that's the case, would you like to change your clothes before going?" "Change your clothes?" Hai Rui asked strangely, "Why? Is there something wrong with my clothes?" Cheng Zhong thought for a while and said: "Since it is not certain whether Xie Mengting committed the crime, my teacher bringing all the officials to visit will inevitably cause panic, even affect his reputation, and then affect his business. Isn't it inappropriate for my teacher to do this?" " Hai Rui nodded. Cheng Zhong said that he had indeed not considered it before. In fact, even if he had, he would not care. So he said, "Then what if I come to visit you in the name of a visit? " "That would be even more inappropriate. "My mentor!" Cheng Zhong said with a smile: "If it's a visit, the mentor can't bring these public servants, and he can bring only one or two followers at most. Secondly, the mentor wears official clothes to visit the gentry under the rule, and he uses public affairs to promote Xie Mengting. "Hai Rui seemed to not know Cheng Zhong and said repeatedly: "It was not your reminder, I almost missed the point." Cheng Zhong also breathed a sigh of relief. In fact, he didn't have to say what he just said. Without knowing Hai Rui's character, it would be very risky to say those words rashly. If it doesn't suit him and touches Hai Rui's psychological bottom line, it will make Hai Rui disgusted. But Cheng Zhong still said that it was not because he was rash. There were two main reasons: First: Hai Rui was his teacher. If Hai Rui could gain a foothold in Huating County and then be promoted step by step, it would be of great help to him. Very big. On the other hand, if Hai Rui is unreasonable and offends all the gentry in Huating County, he will definitely be attacked by a group of people. Since he and Hai Rui are now tied with a rope, he will naturally find a way to help Hai Rui not to Made too many enemies. Second: Hai Rui is interested in him now because of an article in the county examination. If he cannot quickly show his value to Hai Rui, his interaction with Hai Rui will become Hai Rui's unilateral contribution and support. , thus making the relationship between the two loose and difficult to control. At the same time, he also knew that if he blindly emphasized the negative impact of Hai Rui wearing public clothes on Xie Mengting, he would not be able to persuade Hai Rui. It would even make Hai Rui look down on him, thinking that he was timid and wanted to accept the squire with ulterior motives. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because Hai Rui comes from a poor family and he has an aversion to rich people. Just because Xie Mengting sent him several greetings, he judged him as being rich and unkind. It makes no sense. So Cheng Zhong changed his perspective and told Hai Rui that if he came to the house in official uniform, he would be promoting Xie Mengting, and this worked. Through this incident, Cheng Zhong also began to slowly explore and understand Hai Rui's temperament: This man may seem stubborn and unreasonable on the surface, but as long as he finds the right method, he can be persuaded. Xie Mengting¡¯s home is not too far from the Zifen River. It is considered a wealthy community in Huating County. Many people are proud to own a house here. Seeing that the Xie family¡¯s majestic appearance was not inferior to that of the county government, Hai Rui snorted again. If it was during the period of Emperor Hongwu, this would be a crime of trespassing. During the Hongwu period, there were many cases of wealthy businessmen being executed for wearing silk and satin. But now, the Ming Dynasty has existed for more than a hundred years, and future generations no longer pay as much attention to these details as Ming Taizu did. Wang Peiqi took the initiative to inform Hai Rui. Because of her hard work and diligence, Wang Peiqi was very popular with Hai Rui. Now she even brought him with her, which made Zhou Huan quite envious. After a while, Xie Mengting hurriedly opened the middle door and welcomed him out. Xie Mengting is a fat man, weighing at least more than two hundred pounds by visual inspection. Coupled with being wrapped in a cotton robe, he looks even more bloated! As he walked, Cheng Zhong felt as if the earth was shaking. The distance from the backyard to the front door was not long, but it also made Xie Mengting breathless. His image was very different from what Cheng Zhong had expected. In Cheng Zhong's imagination, Xie Mengting, as the richest businessman in the county, should be wise and diligent. Even if he is thin and has a face like a monkey, Cheng Zhong would not be surprised. Every sentence he spoke contained philosophical thoughts, such as: "We still have to have dreams, what if they come true?" Beside Xie Mengting, there was a young man following him, it was Xie Jiangbo! Xie Jiangbo was a little surprised to see Cheng Zhong, but since Hai Rui and Xie Meng Tinghai were not present, they could only communicate with each other with their eyes. "The county magistrate is here to bring glory to the humble house." Xie Mengting greeted warmly. Hai Rui, on the other hand, bowed his hand in a nonchalant manner, and then said straight to the point: "Shopkeeper Meng, Hai Rui came to ask you about a murder case today.""What?! Murder case?!" Xie Mengting's face changed. Hai Rui was about to say more when Cheng Zhong coughed in time and said, "Teacher, why don't we go in and find out more about it?" Xie Mengting glanced at Cheng Zhong gratefully and said quickly: "Yes, yes, this little Brother is right, Lord County Lord, let's go inside and talk. " People outside the gate are talking too much. If a passerby hears it, they will think that Xie Mengting is involved in a lawsuit. If someone is taking advantage of it, it will definitely affect the Xie family's business. Although the Xie family started as a merchant, the furnishings are very elegant. There is a picture of "Enjoyment in Late Spring" hanging in the middle hall, which tells the story of Confucius leading his disciples to bathe by the Yishui River and blow the wind on a high slope. There are four cupboards on both sides, filled with books. "Shopkeeper Xie is really an elegant man. People who don't know him would think he comes from a scholarly family!" Hai Rui said cheerfully. Xie Mengting's face turned red and he did not answer. Instead, he asked, "What's going on with the murder that the Lord County Master mentioned?" He didn't know what Hai Rui's real intention was when he mentioned the murder. He didn't do any harm. Human life has not even been touched with this intention. Hai Rui said this. Is someone framed, or is the county magistrate trying to take advantage of this? The worst result is that the magistrate is bribed by a business rival and colludes to attack him. Although it is said that you are not afraid of slanting shadows when you are upright, Xie Mengting also knows that if someone from the public family really wants to cause trouble for you, some of them have reasons and some of them have ways. Therefore, Xie Mengting has regarded this as a big crisis for the Xie family! Don't think that Xie Mengting is making a fuss. It's because he is so cautious that he has the wealth he has today. However, judging from the fact that Hai Rui didn't come to the door in official uniform, he probably didn't have conclusive evidence, or he didn't want to completely break his reputation. For the current plan, we have to first listen to what kind of conditions Haizhi County, who prides himself on being honest, will propose. As long as his demands are not excessive, Xie Mengting will not be stingy with yellow and white things. When business grows, it is inevitable to rely on the power of the government. Xie Mengting had a good relationship with the previous county magistrate, and his sudden departure had a great impact on the Xie family. Since Hai Rui took office, Xie Mengting visited him several times but failed to do so, which made Xie Mengting uneasy. "Thank you, shopkeeper, where is Mr. Du Chongde, your teacher now?" Hai Rui asked. "Mr. Du?" Xie Mengting was a little surprised when he heard that Hai Rui was asking about the teacher he hired. He turned to his son and asked, "Jiang Bo, has Mr. Du come back?" Xie Mengting's whereabouts are not at all within the scope of concern. Xie Jiangbo saluted Hai Rui respectfully and said calmly: "Mr. Du took leave of absence two days ago and has not returned yet." After seeing his son's performance, Xie Mengting nodded secretly, not expecting that his son could be so calm. Little did he know that when he came in, Xie Jiangbo had already quietly snooped out some information from Cheng Zhong, and knew that Hai Rui's visit this time was really just to learn about the case and had no impact on the Xie family. "Yes." Hai Rui nodded and asked, "How did this Mr. Du come to your mansion?" "The county magistrate may not know something, but this Mr. Du was originally from Liudu, and he was a civil servant. Master, he only ended up here because he was lame in a fight and his career was cut off. After being introduced by a friend, he came to the house to teach his son." Xie Mengting said. Hai Rui asked some more questions about Du Chongde's performance in the Xie Mansion. Xie Mengting answered one by one. Although Du Chongde was lame, his knowledge and articles were indeed outstanding, something that the other two students and teachers did not possess. If it weren't for the Xie family's wealth, and considering that the other two gentlemen had always worked hard without any merit, Xie Mengting would have planned to fire them. Under the guidance of Du Chongde, Xie Jiangbo also made great progress, and this time he even passed the county examination. Not only that, Du Chongde is also very skilled in calligraphy and painting, and occasionally teaches Xie Mengting's daughter painting in his spare time. This was originally said casually by Xie Mengting, but Hai Rui seemed to have discovered an important clue and suddenly interrupted Xie Mengting and said: "Shopkeeper Xie, please forgive me for being presumptuous in this county, can you please ask your daughter to come out and see me?" Originally, Cheng Zhong was listening. I was a little bored, and suddenly I heard that Hai Rui wanted to invite the daughter of the Xie family to come out to meet him, and I suddenly had a thought, could this be the reason for Du Chongde's death?