Chapter 332 Climbing the Tower
In the attic, officials of all sizes from Changzhou Prefecture gathered together.
Magistrate Ding Meixia, fellow magistrate Wang Shijie, recommendation officer Zhang Yulin, as well as Ding Meixia's series of magistrates, experiencers, governors, ministers, school inspectors, and prison guards. In short, most of the respectable people were present.
On the surface, the dust-washing banquet was about changing cups and talking and laughing, but as the fire along the canal not far away ignited, the officials and the banquet officials instantly began to have their own hidden agendas.
Someone went to take a look at Ding Meixia's face, but saw that Magistrate Ding looked calm and calm, as if nothing had happened, and he felt relieved.
"Perhaps the water has gone out. Just arrange for the yamen to put out the fire and make Mr. Song laugh."
Ding Meixia raised her wine glass tremblingly, but not even a drop of wine was spilled.
However, as Song Li sat still, the scene instantly turned cold.
"I'll let you pour some wine for Mr. Song."
The general magistrate of Changzhou Prefecture laughed along with him, and picked up the wine flask, intending to fill it up for Song Li before he sat down and went back.
Song Li raised his eyes slightly and looked over. When he glanced at him, the general judge of Changzhou shook his hands and spilled a small amount of wine, which was in sharp contrast to the calm Ding Meixia.
"You still have the desire to drink, but I have no desire to do so anymore."
Song Li looked at the wine glass in front of him, folded his hands on his knees, and said with a serious face.
Ding Meixia put the wine glass to her mouth, drank it by herself, and advised: "Today is a dust-free banquet for you, so you should have a drink."
This move was undoubtedly extremely inappropriate, and it made the officials present feel a little embarrassed.
At this moment, fireworks in the distance rose into the sky.
The explosion of gorgeous fireworks left many people at a loss for a moment, but the look in Song Li's eyes changed.
"oh."
Song Li raised the wine glass that Tongpan had filled, and everyone felt relieved.
But the next moment.
"boom!"
Song Li slammed the wine glass onto the ground, making a harsh sound.
At this moment, there was silence in the attic.
Song Li looked around and asked in a deep voice: "Prefect Ding, as a parent official, you know the law and break the law, causing hundreds of thousands of common people in Changzhou to starve, freeze and have no shelter. Why do you still have the heart to sit here and drink?"
As soon as these words came out, the expressions of the officials present changed. A sense of panic arose spontaneously, and many people also showed expressions of astonishment. What's going on?
Those who are dull may have thought that the imperial envoy was dissatisfied with the disaster relief work of Changzhou Prefecture. In order to welcome the governor's team, some of the victims were relocated to other places for fear that the victims would be unsightly. I heard that many of them were drowned by mudslides caused by flash floods. But just "this little thing" doesn't make you fall out, right?
However, officials who were deeply involved in the case of stealing and selling military rations began to become restless. The displacement of the victims alone was obviously not enough to reach the level of "hundreds of thousands of common people". Coupled with the so-called "knowing the law and breaking the law", it is not difficult to imagine that, Perhaps Shilang Song had caught some evidence.
But in their opinion, a minister from Beijing had just been here for a day, and he probably didn't know which way to open the gate of Changzhou City. How could he catch any reliable evidence? The officials of Changzhou Prefecture are not fools, and everything they do is very secretive. They have long been integrated into one, forming a huge network of interests, and the secrets will not be exposed easily.
Ding Meixia raised her eyebrows and slowly stood up: "I don't understand what Lord Song is saying."
Song Li's eyes were gloomy: "You will understand when the Imperial Master arrives later."
Ding Meixia still smiled unabated.
There are police officers outside the warehouse area and dozens of masters from the White Lotus Sect inside. No matter what, the Imperial Master cannot escape. Even if reinforcements are sent now, it will be too late.
All they could get were corpses.
In this world, those who are ruthless will survive. If someone is as indecisive as the Imperial Master, he will not be able to strike at any living person. Even if he does not die here, he will sooner or later lose his life inexplicably in the mudflats of the Jiangnan Prefectures.
The muddy water here is too deep and not everyone can touch it easily.
This Imperial Master is still a little too young in Ding Meixia's heart.
"Somebody come!"
As soon as Song Li finished speaking, the soldiers from the governor's team poured up from the stairs. The heavy footsteps almost broke the last psychological defense line of some officials.
However, seeing that Ding Meixia's expression remained unchanged, they managed to maintain their dignity.
Song Li looked at Ding Meixia, but asked the leading captain.
"Has the team been dispatched to the canal military ration warehouse area?"
The captain raised his hands and said, "Reporting to your lord, three general banners (150 people) were sent there a moment ago."
Song Li stared intently at Ding Meixia's expression, only to find that the old thief, who had been calm and composed just now, had a flash of panic in his eyes that could not be concealed after hearing the news.
Seeing this scene, Song Li picked up a wine glass, filled himself up with wine, raised his head and drank it all.
"No one is allowed to move without my order."
Except for Wang Shijie, Zhang Yulin and a few other officials who were squeezed out by Ding Meixia, the other officials of Changzhou Prefecture, big and small, were more or less involved in this matter. At this time, they were really like ants on a hot pot, restless and unable to stop. Twisting.
The noise outside became louder and louder, and the movement of the army entering the city could not be concealed, which made people panic.
I don't know how long it took, but after Mr. Song drank up the warm rice wine in the flask one glass after another, there was movement below the attic.
Someone came upstairs.
Everyone's hearts suddenly rose to their throats, and they all looked at the attic door with bated breath.
Only one person was seen, slowly climbing up the stairs. This person's clothes were torn, and his left arm was still wrapped in a strip of cloth. The only thing that was noticeable was that he was holding a knife with blood dripping from the scabbard.
"Which one is Ding Meixia?"
A gentle voice came, as if asking you what to eat.
The officials in Changzhou Prefecture hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to respond, but no matter whether they responded or not, they did not act slowly. In this case, people's fear of self-preservation always prevails. The officials actually retreated one after another. He moved his body and exposed Ding Meixia, who was on the right side of the host.
Ding Meixia stared at the visitor.
"Meet the Imperial Master!"
As Song Li spoke out, all the officials fell to the ground one after another as if they were waking up from a dream.
Only then did all the officials realize that the person holding the knife in front of them was actually Jiang Xinghuo, the national preceptor whom Magistrate Ding often commented on as "a woman's benevolence"!
Some time ago, when Magistrate Ding heard about the situation in the capital, he often put himself in his shoes and said how he would send troops to suppress the rebellious Imperial College Supervisors on Taiping Street if he were in that situation. He would never talk to them about any big principles.
A group of scholars can shut up with a wave of a butcher's knife. If reasoning is useful, why use the handle of the knife?
Therefore, Ding Meixia commented that although the Imperial Master was very lucky, he was still too kind-hearted and soft-hearted and could not do anything big.
But when the officials looked at the murderous look in front of them, how could he be such a kind and compassionate person?
He is simply a murderous devil!
Ding Meixia secretly screamed that something was not good.
He couldn't figure it out, in such a seamless layout, how could the national master, who was in a chess game with himself as a pawn, turn against the guest?
What Ding Meixia didn't know was that in the small Qingliang Temple, when Jiang Xinghuo saw Zhao Haichuan fished out of the river and Wang Bin asked him if he could leave, Jiang Xinghuo had already made a decision and made arrangements according to the worst plan. .
Regardless of whether there is a fire in the military grain storage area tonight, the hundreds of soldiers accompanying the governor will control this area, and Zhu Gaoxu's 5,000-strong tax guard will also enter Changzhou City.
Ding Meixia's desperate action just pushed the situation to another extreme.
For Ding Meixia, he couldn't figure it out, but what made him even more desperate was that all the officials knelt on the ground, and no one dared to compete with the Imperial Preceptor. At this moment, the Imperial Preceptor was standing in front of him, a pair of sharp Her eyes were staring at him closely.
Ding Meixia's heart was filled with confusion, and she did not dare to look at Jiang Xinghuo. She lowered her head and respectfully said, "Your Majesty, Ding Mexia, pays homage to the Imperial Master."
A slight smile appeared on Jiang Xinghuo's face: "Prefect Ding, thank you for not killing me."
His tone was calm and elegant, like a mountain spring flowing through a bluestone road.
However, everyone could hear that there was deep hatred hidden in the words of the Imperial Master.
"Guo, national preceptor..."
Ding Meixia had beads of sweat on her forehead and spoke with difficulty.
Jiang Xinghuo did not intend to give Ding Meixia a chance to speak, and directly ordered: "Call Cao Song, Shopkeeper Chen, and Zhao Haichuan over in turn."
Soon an attendant brought a chair, but Jiang Xinghuo did not sit down, but stood there.
After saying this, he glanced at the Changzhou government officials who were kneeling on the ground, and his cold voice sounded like the ice of the twelfth lunar month.
"I think everyone knows what happened in Changzhou Mansion. Now it's just a fluke, thinking that no evidence can be found. I will give you the evidence now, so that you can go on your way, and avoid saying that our master is not guilty of murder. "
The first one to be brought up was Cao Song.
Jiang Xinghuo asked loudly while holding a knife.
"Cao Song, a member of the Jinyiwei family, was ordered by Ding Meixia, the governor of Changzhou Prefecture, to secretly go to the military grain storage area near the canal and set fire to cover up the fact that the military grain was stolen and sold. Is this possible?"
Cao Song was also magnanimous. The imperial master had already allowed him to be exiled for three thousand miles to guard the border and perform meritorious service. If he could save his life, he would naturally confess.
"Indeed."
Ding Meixia's face became extremely embarrassed, her white eyebrows trembled, and she opened her mouth and said: "That's nonsense! I don't know this person at all. How can there be any royal guards in Changzhou Prefecture?"
Jiang Xinghuo sneered: "Oh? Has Magistrate Ding really never seen Cao Song?"
"No!"
"What about the fire in the canal military ration storage area? Fortunately, the fire was put out in time, which means that half of the military rations were burned. The remaining half of the warehouse, which should have been full of military rations, was missing. Flying?"
"."
Ding Meixia was sweating on her forehead and her eyes were flickering.
"My master always convinces people with reason."
Jiang Xinghuo looked at the Changzhou Prefecture officials who were kneeling in front of him and said, "It's really not enough to have a witness. Pass on the next one."
Shopkeeper Chen was brought up with a sad face. He had just witnessed the long fight on the edge of life and death. Shopkeeper Chen had already been frightened to death. When he saw the thunderous methods of the imperial master after the army entered the city, he promised to save his life. Commitment means being willing to say anything.
"Governor Ding asked us to steal the military rations. In addition to our rice store, several other large rice stores in Changzhou Prefecture have Governor Ding behind them. The price of rice is also controlled in this way. The military rations in the military grain storage area have increased in value over the past five years. , nearly a million stones of grain were stolen and sold, and now there is nothing left. This is the secret account of our Midian Ji, for fear that one day the Dongchuang incident will be blamed on us."
When Ding Meixia heard this sentence, a look of panic flashed across her face, but she quickly calmed down and shouted sternly: "What are you talking about?!"
After saying that, he looked around as if he was looking for someone to testify for him.
Unfortunately, no one dared to take up the challenge.
Shopkeeper Chen cowered his neck and shook his body into chaff, not daring to say another word.
At this moment, Jiang Xinghuo suddenly pulled out the knife from the scabbard that was lying on the ground.
"Qiang~"
The sound of the sword being drawn was like a dragon roaring and a tiger roaring.
Jiang Xinghuo wiped the blood stains on the long knife and said softly.
"My master didn't let you make any noise."
Ding Meixia wanted to say something else, but finally closed her mouth.
All the officials in Changzhou Prefecture remained silent and did not even dare to breathe loudly.
A third witness was called.
PS: [Important reminder (there is no charge for this content)] Chapters 316 to 356 are about the rectification of officialdom and the suppression of rebellions in Jiangnan. They do not contain any theoretical knowledge. They are all practical content. If you are not interested, you can jump directly to Chapter 366. "Class" will contain theoretical knowledge content from now on.