Ming Dynasty: My Father Zhang Juzheng

Chapter 25 Disaster

The scene changed, and the two came to a teahouse box and sat opposite each other.

As soon as he sat down, Xu Jue couldn't wait to say, "Fifth Master, our master is really at his wit's end this time. Please help us save the life of our master's nephew."

"What happened to Feng Bangning?" Zhang Yunxiu asked.

Because Feng Bao had no son, his brother only had this one son.

Therefore, Feng Bao treated his nephew like his own son and even promoted him from a ruffian to the position of deputy captain of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

When Xu Jue heard Zhang Yunxiu's question, he did not dare to hide it and told the whole story:
However, after the land measurement was implemented throughout the country, all the nobles and wealthy families began to complain bitterly.

Feng Bao had three thousand acres of fertile land in Wanping, outside the capital, which also needed to be remeasured. The trouble was with the land.

Half a month ago, Wanping County Magistrate Zhao Lin measured the Feng family's land.

Although Feng Bao felt pained, he had no choice but to agree to it for Zhang Juzheng's sake. But Feng Bangning was a money-conscious person.

After hearing this, he took his men and headed straight to the outskirts of Wanping County.

As soon as I arrived at the field, I saw a middle-aged man and several police officers wandering around his field.

Feng Bangning took two steps forward, smiled and called Zhao Lin aside, and asked, "Do you know who owns this land?"

Zhao Lin remained calm and replied, "From the family of Feng Bao, eunuch Feng."

"That's good to know." Feng Bangning looked proud, and then said, "We won't make it difficult for you. We have already measured this land. It is a total of 1,500 acres. You just need to go back and report it."

"That won't work." Zhao Lin took one look and saw that the land was at least 2,500 acres, so he refused resolutely.

Feng Bangning smiled and ordered someone to bring a small gift box.

Zhao Lin took it, opened it and saw that it contained five silver bills.

"What do you mean?"

"Five hundred taels," Feng Bangning pointed at the banknote and said with a smile, "It's not a small amount. How much salary do you get as a county magistrate in a year? Why do you want to do something that hurts others and does not benefit yourself? Who can you support with your son, daughter, and wife with this little salary?"

Zhao Lin realized that Feng Bangning wanted to bribe him. He was furious and shouted, "Although my salary is low, it is what I earned. I can spend it with peace of mind."

"Never take your dirty money."

"Six hundred taels." Feng Bangning's face twitched.

Zhao Lin threw the banknotes at Feng Bangning's face and yelled, "I am loyal to the emperor. I will never tolerate scum like you who are already rich and wealthy but still want to steal the court!"

Now, Feng Bangning became completely famous.

A small eighth-rank county magistrate actually rejected his wishes time and again.

He was so angry that he grabbed Zhao Lin by the collar, pointed at his chest and asked, "Look, what am I wearing? You are just an eighth-rank official, a sesame-sized thing, and you are not qualified to talk to me like this."

"Humph, although my position is low, I got it step by step through my own talent and study!" Zhao Lin raised his neck and said sarcastically, "I just don't know who Captain Feng relied on to learn how many characters he can read?"

"Fuck you."

Feng Bangning slapped him.

There was a "pop" sound, and five blood-red fingers appeared on Zhao Lin's shiny cheek.

His face was filled with astonishment, his eyes widened, and he said with trembling lips: "You... you dare to hit me?"

"I'm beating you, a blind soldier, to let you know how many eyes the Horse King has!"

After Feng Bangning finished speaking, he raised his hand and slapped him again.

The police officer standing by knew that he was a prominent figure, so he dared not approach him. He could only shrink his neck and stand aside.

Poor Zhao Lin was furious, but he was a scholar after all, and he could not struggle. After a while, he was beaten until he bled.

But he remained silent and stared at Feng Bangning. Feng Bangning saw that Zhao Lin was a tough guy and was afraid that something might happen, so he let go of Zhao Lin.

Without support, Zhao Lin fell to the ground. Feng Bangning spat and cursed, "What a damn bad luck! Forget it, I am unlucky to step on a pile of stinky dog ​​shit."

After hearing this, Zhang Yunxiu's face turned grim.

Feng Bangning openly defied the imperial court and assaulted imperial officials, both of which were serious crimes.

But if someone else committed these sins, he might be sentenced to death, but if he committed them, the most he would get would be exile.

He looked suspiciously at Xu Jue.

Xu Jue smiled awkwardly, lowered his head and whispered, "To be honest, Master Zhang, Zhao Lin is dead."

"What?!" Zhang Yunxiu stood up suddenly as if he was stung by a wasp and asked, "Feng Bangning beat someone to death?"

"No, no, he died on his own last night." Xu Jue waved his hands.

Died by himself?

How can a healthy and living person die on his own?
Only then did Zhang Yunxiu realize how thorny this matter was.

Zhao Lin's original intention was to survey the land and confront the powerful in order to implement his father's new policies. It would be unacceptable if the troublemakers were not severely punished.

Besides, the person is dead now.

Resisting taxation and beating officials will not result in death.

But killing an imperial official, even if he was only an eighth-rank official, would be a huge matter.

If Zhang Juzheng dared to show partiality, not only would the nobles disapprove, but even his own comrades in the trenches would disapprove.

Unfortunately, that man is Feng Bao's nephew, so Zhang Juzheng is in a dilemma.

Seeing that Zhang Yunxiu had become a gourd with a pierced mouth, Xu Jue hurriedly continued, "Mr. Zhang, my master only has this one nephew. Please help him. My master will definitely reward you handsomely in the future."

Zhang Yunxiu wanted to refuse, but when he thought of Feng Bao's help several times, he had to grit his teeth and come up with a bad idea: "In one word, 'delay'!"

"drag?"

"That's right." Zhang Yunxiu nodded and continued, "It took half a month between Zhao Lin's beating and his sudden death. No one can prove whether it was caused by the injury from that beating."

"Another point, as long as we delay long enough, when everyone forgets about this matter, Feng Bangning can be saved."

This has always been a means of litigation.

Feng Bao's family is big and powerful, so he can afford to delay. But how can the Zhao family, a small family, afford to delay?
In the end, spending a little more money and getting the matter over with can still be considered an explanation.

Although this was shameless, Zhang Yunxiu had no choice.

His emotions told him that Feng Bangning deserved to die.

But reason told him that now was not the time to turn against Feng Bao, at least not yet.

When Xu Jue heard this idea, he slapped his thigh and laughed, "This is a great idea. It just so happens that our young master is a member of the Imperial Guard. This case will not be handed over to the Ministry of Justice, but will fall directly into the hands of the Fourth Young Master."

"The most important thing now is to appease the widow of the Zhao family, spend more money and don't let her make trouble." Zhang Yunxiu advised.

"We don't need to worry about that. Our master has already sent someone to send a thousand taels of silver." Xu Jue was very pleased. "A young girl would only cost fifty taels of silver at most. A thousand taels is enough for her family to spend their whole lives."

"No amount of money can buy a life." Zhang Yunxiu said coldly.

After being stabbed, Xu Jue was embarrassed and said "thank you" and walked away.

(End of this chapter)