Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 282 His Majesty is furious, it's very difficult to deal with

Theoretically, Jiangnan suffered from the war, but because the war was so hasty and the Tartars were also determined to run this land of fish and rice as their own, the extent of the devastation it suffered was far less than that of Jiangbei.

However, this is only compared with Jiangbei. If Jiangnan is taken alone, the losses suffered can also be said to be serious.

Take Huating for example. Because the war affected the farming season, the grain output of the entire Huating was affected to varying degrees. Among them, the areas with the largest reduction in yield were the tens of thousands of acres owned by the Liu family and those taken away by the Tartars.

If someone else thought of it, the work was done by the tenants and farmhands on the farm. Whether the Liu family was exterminated or not, or whether the land was taken away by the Tartars or not, it should not be a factor affecting the harvest.

But the land is not like other things after all. If you put in less effort, it will produce less.

At that time, no one knows what will happen in the future. Even if the necessary procedures have been completed as in previous years, the energy invested in it will inevitably be reduced.

Under such circumstances, production cuts are naturally inevitable.

Fortunately, there is a way to purchase grain from overseas, which eventually eliminated the famine.

But everything in the world is inextricably linked, so how can the impact of a war be completely offset so easily?

"Your Excellency! My Zhou family has always been law-abiding. Why is this happening?"

Seeing the master of the Zhou family forcefully rushing in front of him, the Magistrate of Huating glanced at him inadvertently and then frowned and said, "Wu Zhikui has confessed everything in the Jinyiwei prison. How dare you still make trouble here?!"

"But I really don't know who Wu Zhikui is!"

After hearing this, the Magistrate of Huating County looked around again, but unlike the previous time when he hid himself, this time he even turned his head away, obviously intending to throw the bag to Wu Changrui who was standing beside him.

To be honest, he is still depressed now.

Because a war was about to break out in the south these days, he simply went through the routine procedures of transferring troops and did not ask any more questions.

But who would have thought that just as the night fell today, two people from the Advisory Council led a military officer straight into the county government office, and then took out an imperial edict signed by the cabinet and asked him to help capture the court's wanted criminal.

However, the decree only said that the Huating Zhou family was related to Wu Zhikui's killing of Ruan Dacheng, but it did not mention even a word about how they were related.

Under such circumstances, there would naturally be no problem for him to throw this issue to the people in the Advisory Council.

"You must have had some contact with Chen Xianshun from the Chen family in Suzhou."

"Yes, I did have some dealings with the Chen family, but they were just poetry and tea parties, and there was absolutely no conspiracy!"

"You still dare to quibble! A few years ago, a total of 28 of you met at the Chen family's villa in Nanxun. During the meeting, you mentioned several times that Ruan Butang went south to avenge the suppression of the past. Later, Cao Yingfang from Kunshan claimed that 'we must not sit and wait for death', and you all echoed her. Now that there are witnesses and evidence, you still dare to speak sweetly. Do you really think that the laws of the Ming Dynasty cannot punish you?!"

As Wu Changrui finished speaking, not to mention the master of the Zhou family who was so frightened that he collapsed on the ground, even the magistrate of Huating, who was the arresting official, was so frightened by such details that a chill went straight to his head.

Given the number of people involved and the specific words used, it is certain that the master of the Zhou family was not arrested by mistake, but how did the court know this?

With this in mind, the Magistrate of Huating couldn't help but recall whether there was anything wrong with his usual words and deeds. After thinking it over for several times and feeling that there was nothing wrong, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"My Lord! Those are just their drunken nonsense, don't take them seriously!"

"I think you won't cry until you see the coffin!" Seeing that this guy still refused to admit his guilt, Wu Changrui cursed him angrily and then continued, "Chen Xianshun accepted your commission and began to deceive Wu Zhikui after he left. You guys are so clever. You actually said that the experienced general had committed a heinous crime. Do you think you can escape the crime of treason without doing it yourself?!"

"Wu Ziyi! I have been wronged."

"Snapped!"

When the Zhou family master was about to protest his injustice, Wu Changrui swung his only remaining arm and knocked him to the ground.

"Your Majesty is kindhearted! People like you who have beastly hearts should have been killed long ago, otherwise how could such a big case like today have happened!"

"Be careful!"

Tonight, the magistrate of Huating has been in an extremely passive position. If Wu Changrui really did not understand the infighting in officialdom, it is possible that after tonight, the Advisory Council, an institution with no real power, would have a lot of say in the county.

Just, right...

So when the county magistrate heard the slight disrespect in Wu Changrui's words, he immediately seized on it.

"I know that Wu Ziyi once died for Your Majesty, but Your Majesty is kind-hearted and loves the people, which is a great blessing for the people of the Ming Dynasty. You must not judge me like this."

"No, we don't mean that."

"Don't be nervous, Advisor Wu. We are all on the same side and won't let this out," he said to Wu Changrui with a smile on his face. Then the magistrate changed his expression and said to the soldiers around him, "Come here, shut up this stubborn guy and escort him to Yingtian for trial in the morning!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the soldiers, as ferocious as wolves and tigers, came forward, and the eyes of the Huating County Magistrate seemed to be filled with some pride of turning defeat into victory.

The so-called power struggle is actually a struggle for the right to speak.

Any official would be extremely sensitive to this. Even though Wu Changrui had no ulterior motives tonight, after recovering from the initial shock, the Huating County Magistrate still felt the threat of the Advisory Council to his authority.

Don't think that the job of arresting people only offends people, and the people who do the job cannot get any real benefits from it.

But the root cause of this matter still depends on how you understand it. If you look at it from another angle, isn't such an offensive task a good opportunity to establish one's own authority?
"My Lords, the heads of each family have arrived at the county government office."

Just when Wu Changrui was a little confused by the sudden change in the magistrate's state, and the Huating magistrate was a little proud of his words, a county yamen runner approached them tremblingly, and then whispered. Gathering the heads of each family was the solution Wu Changrui thought of.

His purpose was simple, which was to use the Zhou family's chicken to scare the monkeys of other families.

When he made this decision, the Huating County Magistrate's soul had not yet fully returned to his original position, so he could not react to the action that was obviously beyond his authority.

But now that he has recovered, this job that can greatly enhance his family's prestige will naturally return to the hands of the original owner.

"Counselor Wu, we have to seal up the Zhou family's assets after this. It's inevitable that I'll be in trouble if I stay here. Why don't you let me handle the affairs of each family? You stay here to keep an eye on them so that those shady guys can be alert."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Changrui became a little conflicted.

He really wanted to use this as an excuse to give that group of cunning people who took advantage of others and bullied the locals a good scolding, but the magistrate was right, the runners in the county government were also a group of people who were troublesome, even if there were soldiers around tonight, who knew what tricks those cunning guys would use.

Under such circumstances, he thought about it for several times and finally reluctantly gave up the opportunity to vent his anger. He decided to stay in Zhou Mansion and keep a close eye on things for His Majesty.

"Your Excellency is indeed thoughtful. The court is short of money everywhere right now. We should pay more attention to this place."

At this point, the Huating County Magistrate would not stay long. After saying a few more words, he left Wu Changrui and others here to handle the follow-up matters, and he took three or two runners and went straight to the county government office.

It is undeniable that confiscating property is a very lucrative job, but the Zhou family is now not only full of soldiers sent by the higher-ups, but also Jinyiwei who came to convey the imperial edict. Even if he could really transfer Wu Changrui away, he might not have the courage to do anything in such a crowded place.
A moment later, a group of people rushed into the county government office. In the dim light, he saw five or six figures sitting in rows in the hall.

"Greetings, Master."

When they saw the magistrate, a group of usually very graceful leaders immediately bowed to the ground. Seeing this, he not only did not feel happy, but also sneered in his heart.

The heads of each family were either juren or xiucai, and those who were even closer had donated money to become gongsheng or something like that in the provincial school. According to common sense, even if he was the local official, everyone only had to bow when they saw him. How could they have ever performed such a formal ceremony of kneeling and kowtow?
"Oh my! You are all village elders, why do you have to do this? Why do you have to do this?"

No matter what he thought in his heart, he could not let anyone find fault with what was happening on the scene. However, there were five or six people kneeling in the hall, and he could only keep talking while stretching out both hands, but he could not stop anyone from bowing.

"It has been several months since you took office, but we haven't had a chance to have a good chat with you. Today, you have helped Huating get rid of a threat. We are so happy that we can only express our gratitude with this greeting."

"Oh? You all know about this?"

"I don't know the details, but the Zhou family has always been rampant in Huating, robbing people by trickery and taking their lives lightly. No matter what crime the court has convicted them of, it will make people happy."

Originally, the magistrate was talking to a slightly plump old man, but Mr. Wen, who was standing nearby, interrupted them in a somewhat rude manner.

Seeing this, the plump old man was a little dissatisfied at first, but in a moment he seemed to realize something and shut his mouth and took a step back.

Everyone present had some connections, and although they were caught off guard at first because the incident happened so suddenly, during the time they spent rushing to the county government office, they learned a general idea from the officers who came to inform them.

At this point, even if some people were unable to figure out the trap hidden in the magistrate's words, how could they not react after Master Wen interrupted them?

"Well, it's good to make people happy. Although I have only been in office for a few months, if there are too many rebels under my rule." The magistrate said this with a long tone, and emphasized the word "rebels". Then he walked to the seat in the middle, and his eyes seemed to glance at everyone's faces inadvertently: "It will be difficult to explain to the higher-ups."

"Don't worry, Master. We have lived in Huating for generations. We are all law-abiding citizens and have no second thoughts about the court."

"Okay, if you say it's not true, then it's not true," the magistrate said in two sentences. He then slightly straightened his clothes and said after he was dressed properly, "I didn't want to disturb you all tonight, but since such a big thing happened, I have to explain it to you, so I can only invite you all to the county government office."

After the words were spoken, everyone became extremely alert. Even though they already knew the general situation, who would dare to be a troublemaker in such a situation?

"The Zhou family is involved in Ruan Dacheng's case. We will arrest them tonight and hand them over to the authorities to investigate their accomplices."

Investigate accomplices strictly!

As the magistrate's heavy voice came out, the masters of each family naturally felt a chill in their hearts.

God have mercy on them. They have lived together in Huating for more than three or two generations. Even though there have been many secret conflicts due to various reasons, except for the Wen family who had already torn their faces with the Zhou family, who else can avoid having some dealings with the Zhou family?

"Your Excellency, you know that although the Zhou family is unpopular, there are always some exchanges of favors among villagers during festivals and holidays. You should say a few good words for us."

"Yes, Master, you have to make the decision for us."

As the masters of each family pleaded one by one, the magistrate's expression became more and more embarrassed. It seemed that he wanted to make excuses for each family, but for various considerations, it was not convenient to do so.

"Alas~~~, although we haven't met each other for a few months, I know through my investigation that you have done nothing wrong, but..."

The magistrate dragged out the word again, and his expression became more and more embarrassed. But who would have thought that under this look, his heart was filled with unprecedented joy.

He was born into a prominent family, so he naturally knew that these big families with various connections in the court did not actually take him, the official, seriously.

Even though there was no shortage of various respects during festivals and holidays, at the root, he was just a small seventh-rank official. If he didn't have a strong handle, he couldn't do anything to them.

Originally, he didn't think much of it. After all, it was a matter of making money, and it wasn't shameful.

But who would have thought that such an opportunity would fall from the sky today, and the masters of various families would be so respectful to him, a small county magistrate, which made him feel like he had parents.

Who caused His Majesty to take action? If you don't want to be affected, just being submissive is not enough.

With this in mind, the magistrate looked at the people in the hall with a look of contempt. When everyone once again focused their attention on him, he slowly said, "It's just that His Majesty is furious this time, and I'm not the only one involved in this case. It's very difficult to handle."

(End of this chapter)