Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 194 Successor
"grown ups."

Before the county magistrate could react, he saw the clerk hurrying over.

"Sir, take a look at this."

The clerk found some notes in the inner room. He had only glanced at them a little when he was startled by what was written on them. He immediately closed the notes and went to find the county magistrate.

The county magistrate noticed the clerk's unusual expression and immediately asked, "What's wrong?"

The clerk swallowed nervously: "You'll see at a glance."

The county magistrate leaned close to the lamp and unfolded the paper. As Xie Qi's handwriting came into view, the magistrate's expression grew increasingly grim. It was a petition written by Xie Zishao, and the person he was suing was... He Tan.

“This…” the county magistrate said, “He is planning to go to the Drum Court in the capital to file a complaint.”

The only way for ordinary people to sue officials is to go to the Dengwen Drum Court, as the petition states that they want to appeal their grievances directly to the Emperor.

The clerk whispered, "Should we report this?"

The two fell silent for a moment.

The petition stated that the He family dispatched forty or fifty soldiers to transport silk to the north. Along the way, they requisitioned several dozen Yang family members and donkey carts. All checkpoints along the route were exempt from taxes. The silk was exchanged for a large amount of silver, which was all taken by the He family. The Yang family also helped sell some of the silk. At that time, this business was personally managed by Yang Mingjing, the head of the Yang clan.

The county magistrate's heart was pounding in his chest, and his hair stood on end.

He instinctively clutched the paper tightly, and it took him a while to come to his senses.

This is to kill him. A murder case has implicated the He family. How could a mere county magistrate handle this?

not only that.

The indictment also stated that He Tan protected Madam Xie and, through her, controlled the northern trade routes, paving the way for the He family to sell smuggled goods in the future.

Anyone who sees these notes will suspect that Xie Zishao's death is related to He Tan and Xie Da Niangzi.

How should the case be investigated?

The clerk said in a low voice, "Fortunately, Inspector He is not in Daming Prefecture."

The county magistrate's eyes lit up. He remembered that He Tan had instructed someone to inform the yamen before leaving the city. Since He Tan wasn't there, there was still time to investigate and prevent an immediate uproar.

The county magistrate said, "Since Master Xie is no longer here, many things need to be investigated slowly. Right now, we should find the culprit first."

The clerk responded.

Moreover, the county magistrate needs to report these matters to the county first.

The county magistrate suddenly felt that it was better not to be the county magistrate; at least, in such a situation, there was someone he could rely on.

"Should we go to the Yang family tomorrow?" the clerk asked again.

Since there is a note, it is only right to investigate the Yang family first. The county magistrate hesitated for a moment: "This... please let the county magistrate decide!" He felt as if a huge pit had cracked open in the ground, and he didn't know how deep it was. If he was not careful, he would fall in and never be able to climb out.

The county magistrate was very thoughtful, but the clerk was blocked and turned back before he could even leave the Xie family's residence.

"My lord," the clerk said, "Prefect Hu has arrived."

This case should be handled by the Daming County government. The county government hasn't even written any documents yet, so how did it alarm the prefectural magistrate of Daming Prefecture?

The county magistrate immediately thought of Prefect Liu.

After straightening his official robes, the county magistrate went out to greet him, but Judge Hu, with a brisk pace, said before he could even approach, "I have heard that a murder has occurred on the pleasure boat."

The county magistrate hurriedly gave a detailed report.

Judge Hu's gaze fell on the paper in the county magistrate's hand: "Have you found the evidence? Let me see it." "This," the county magistrate hesitated for a moment and said, "According to the rules, it should be sent to the county government office. Your Excellency can go to the office to take a look. Otherwise, if the evidence is lost, the county magistrate will surely blame you."

Judge Hu's gaze darkened.

The county magistrate immediately lowered his head, but still did not hand over the note. This was not the first time the Yang and Xie families had fought. Last time, he thought that Madam Xie was going to be implicated in a crime, but who knew that the situation would suddenly change and Xie Chongjun would end up in prison.

Having learned from past experience, the county magistrate would never dare to make a hasty judgment unless the evidence was conclusive. Besides, he had seen Wang Zheng in Sanhe Village. Although he didn't know what relationship Wang Zheng had with Madam Xie, just because he knew Wang Zheng, he couldn't allow others to falsely accuse Madam Xie.

Moreover, he was an official of Daming County, and he had to be conscientious in his duties.

Judge Hu's face turned cold: "I am in charge of the trial of all the prison cases in this prefecture. You can't even look at this?"

The county magistrate's gaze fell on Judge Hu, who was still wearing a long robe but not his official uniform: "Your Excellency is still on leave, so I will handle the official business here. Rest assured, Your Excellency, I will have someone take all the papers in this room to the yamen, check them one by one, and then report to the prefectural yamen."

Judge Hu looked at the county magistrate, but the magistrate refused to back down, and he could not force him to comply.

Judge Hu sneered, "Since that's the case, I will go to the county office after dawn." When he went to the county office in his official robes, neither the county magistrate nor the county assistant could stop him from seeing these papers.

The county magistrate bowed and said, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Prefect."

As Judge Hu's figure receded into the distance, the county magistrate realized that he was drenched in sweat. He had a heart full of conscience; he was a coward who thought that by working as a county magistrate in Daming County for a few years and getting an excellent rating from the Ministry of Personnel, he could retire in the capital. He never expected to encounter such a series of major cases recently.

That's all he can do; what happens next is up to Madam Xie herself.

Deep down, the county magistrate didn't want anything to happen to Madam Xie. If it weren't for Madam Xie selling Buddhist charcoal and clay stoves this winter, the people's lives would probably have been even more difficult.

The county magistrate saw all the benefits that had been brought to Daming Prefecture.

But it's also true that you can't fight city hall.

The fact that Judge Hu was able to come here shows that the Liu family has made some arrangements behind the scenes... I just hope Inspector He will return soon.

……

Xie Yuyan slept soundly after drinking some wine.

When she woke up, Yu Chen was still asleep in her arms. She didn't get up immediately, but instead stroked Yu Chen's chin with her hand. Yu Chen was awakened by her touch and stretched out a long yawn.

After washing and grooming herself, Yu's mother had someone bring her food.

While eating, Yang Qin did not forget to talk about the poems written by Zuo Shangying and others last night, which totaled six poems.

Zhang couldn't help but ask, "Did you like those poems?"

Yang Qin shook his head: "None of them are as good as the prodigy's poems."

In Yang Qin's heart, no one could compare to Wang Yan in terms of talent. Xie Yuyan smiled slightly. Yang Qin was unaware that Wang Yan, his favorite person, had also been there last night.

"Madam."

Just as Xie Yuyan was about to have Yang Qin recite his lessons, Mama Yu walked into the room and said, "Someone from the yamen has come to summon the Second Master for questioning."

Xie Yuyan put down the calligraphy brush in her hand and looked at Mother Yu: "Is there anything else?"

Madam Yu nodded: "This servant has seen quite a few yamen runners; it's not as simple as just bringing people along."

Xie Yuyan stopped Yang Qin, who was about to run out, and said, "Stay in the house and stay with Mother."

Yang Qin was unwilling, but Xie Yuyan gave him a sidelong glance, so he could only stand obediently beside Zhang Shi.

Xie Yuyan went out of the house to see what those people wanted to do.