frightfiction Chapter 564 Another Appeal to the Emperor
Chapter 564 Another Appeal to the Emperor
After saying that, his expression changed. "Half is still missing. Send people to search every house tomorrow. Do you really think that in chaotic times you can do whatever you want? The law doesn't punish the masses, but that depends on what kind of masses you are!"
"Yes." Zhang Biao accepted the order and returned.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Open the door! Open the door now!" The violent banging on the door startled the people inside, who scrambled around in a panic.
"What should we do? What should we do?" The woman and the old man inside hesitated for a long time before finally opening the door.
"Zhang Laoliu, where's the rice and flour you looted yesterday? Hand it over right now!" The soldier was a big, burly man with a face like Zhong Kui, which was quite frightening.
"I...I didn't rob anything yesterday, I...I didn't go anywhere." The old man timidly stepped back, trying to block the cabinet behind him.
The soldier noticed something amiss, "Get out of the way!" and shoved him aside, dragging out two bags of fine rice.
"Heh heh, not only did they loot, they even dared to deceive us! Men, take them away!" The soldiers rushed in like wolves and tigers and seized the old man.
Seeing the situation was turning against her, the woman tried to flee, but the soldier turned and grabbed her by the collar. "And you, don't even think about running away! You had the guts to loot, but now you don't have the guts to admit it! Come on, take them all away!"
For an entire day, thousands of soldiers poured into hundreds of homes on the snow-covered streets, capturing nearly a thousand people who were looting.
The whole of Youzhou was in an uproar; everyone was talking about it.
Zhang Yuntai was having a terrible headache. Why was he always the one dealing with all this mess? He led the entire yamen to investigate each case one by one, waiting for the families to find a way to pay compensation to redeem their loved ones. Those who couldn't afford it were sent to dredge river mud as a form of labor instead of fines. He couldn't let them rob him for nothing, and he couldn't leave any leverage in the hands of others.
Hearing that these were all demands from Manager Gu, Zhang Yuntai thought to himself that he should stay away from this person in the future. He was too stingy. Was it really necessary to mobilize thousands of people and make such a big fuss over such a small amount of goods? Anyway, Wang's Company was rich. Look at that large dormitory, they were giving it away for free, and the coal was given away for free to burn. Wasn't it all the same? He didn't understand.
He Tianxia was equally puzzled: why was Wang Erniu working so hard?
If his informant in Youzhou hadn't told him that Wang Erniu was indeed not in the city and had gone to Liaodong, he wouldn't have had the patience to confine him.
A servant rushed in, "My lord, an urgent report from Shu!"
He Tianxia was unconvinced. With his wife around, what major event could possibly happen? He opened the envelope and slowly glanced at it.
"What!" He jumped to his feet. The Qinglan Sect had been wiped out, and not by Wang Erniu's army, but by the county government and local militia. The reason? Three catties of gold were found in the home of a Qinglan Sect disciple, and this disciple had even more in his sect. So the local militia wiped out thousands of Qinglan Sect members just for that little bit of gold?
He Tianxia was shocked. Who came up with this ruthless scheme?
"My lord, my lord, something terrible has happened!" Another servant rushed in in a panic.
"So what?" He Tianxia turned around impatiently. There wasn't a single one who was easy to deal with.
"A secret letter from the palace says something big has happened." The servant handed over the letter and then withdrew, afraid of being beaten.
He Tianxia opened the document in a few seconds and his face immediately darkened. This Zhao Lue had really gotten involved with him. He had actually brought out all the money he had made from buying and selling official positions over the past ten years, as well as the Huang family's gold mine. If the officials found out about this, he was afraid he would lose his position as commander.
"Men, take away all the hooks we've released. We can't let the officials know what we're doing. Even if it means tearing the sky apart, we have to cover it up!"
"Yes!" In a flash, a shocking event occurred during the morning court session in the palace!
The drum of petitioning sounded again! Zhao Jian, with a headache, ordered someone to enter the palace.
"I, Li Jin, accuse General Wang Erniu of arson, murdering my brother and father and seizing my sister-in-law's property. I have the handprints of Prefect Li Guangming of Qingshui Town and Wang Erniu at the time of the murder as evidence."
Li Guangming stood to the side without saying anything, but silently bowed to show his presence.
Zhao Jian's expression changed slightly. He hadn't even finished dealing with Commander He's matter yet! And now Wang Erniu was in trouble again? Zhao Lue had been so busy with Commander He's case that he had to take leave, and now this had happened. Who could take over?
As usual, Eunuch Wan presented the case testimonies. Zhao Jian glanced through them; they were just the testimonies of the Li family and the investigation records of Magistrate Li. As for the fingerprints, it seemed that Wang Erniu would have to come up with them himself.
“This case is easy to investigate! But Li Guangming, this case has been going on for several years. Why didn’t you stand up back then? Now that Wang Erniu has become a powerful figure, you’re finally filing a complaint against him? Do you know that the Li family is the aggrieved party and can be forgiven? As the county magistrate, you’ve turned a blind eye and let him run around doing official duties?” Zhao Jian looked at Li Guangming with suspicion in his eyes.
Li Guangming sighed softly, almost inaudibly. He straightened his clothes, and a hint of unseen helplessness appeared on his white-haired face. "It is my fault, and I am willing to accept my punishment. However, it is a fact that Wang Erniu killed someone. It was unwise of him to kill someone just because the Li family father and son plotted against Chen Niangzi. I have made many inquiries and learned that the two families have a long-standing feud. Moreover, General Wang was not in the camp that day, so it is very likely that he killed the person himself."
Zhao Jian seemed to be deep in thought. There must be something going on here. He looked down and wondered who he should ask to take care of this matter.
Zhao Guangjun stepped forward with a smile, "Your Majesty, I am unworthy, but I am willing to share Your Majesty's burdens."
"Alright, you're the one!" Zhao Jian didn't believe Wang Erniu could do something so foolish. Even if he doted on his wife, he wouldn't make such a basic mistake.
"Guards, draft an imperial edict ordering Prince Zhao to take charge of the murder case in Qingshui County. Also, urgently summon Wang Erniu back to the capital. He has been in Youzhou for almost a year and it's time for him to return to the capital for the New Year!" Zhao Jian picked up his pen and smiled as he issued the edict. With Wang Erniu's honest and kind nature, he would surely rush back to the capital immediately, so that the whole world would know how obedient his subject, Zhao Jian, was!
Zhao Guangjun rolled his eyes inwardly. What kind of official is he? It's already the Little New Year, there are still a few days left. How can he possibly make it in time? It's freezing cold, even celebrating the Lantern Festival will be difficult.
The unfortunate messenger rode his horse, traveling 800 li (approximately 400 kilometers) on urgent mail to Youzhou.
This matter, through the propaganda of certain individuals, has caused a great uproar in Beijing.
Upon receiving the message, Chu Yi simply smiled calmly and asked Cheng Xiang beside him, "How's it going? Have you found any clues about your godmother's entry into the city?"
"No, our brothers who were on rotation have been going inland these past few nights, and we haven't seen any large groups of people entering the city, especially groups with many female relatives," Cheng Xiang replied.
"That's strange! It shouldn't be like this! Investigate more thoroughly, see if there are any spies among our people. The city is big, there's always a chance we might have missed something." Chu Yi picked up the letter on the table. There was no letter in Shu, no letter in Youzhou, so his godmother could only be in the capital. With He Tianxia's cunning, he would definitely keep her under his watchful eye before he felt at ease. So, his godmother must have entered the city, he just hadn't found any clues yet.