Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 407 Good Official
Inside the Ministry of Justice prison.

Xu Huaiyi handed the document, which had been revised many times, to the clerk, who casually flipped through it and tossed it aside.

“Lord Xu,” the clerk said, “it still hasn’t been clear who wrote the secret letter to you.”

Xu Huaiyi frowned: "I've said it many times, since it's a secret letter, we naturally don't know who sent it."

As they were talking, the jailer brought in the food and served it to the clerk. The clerk didn't stand on ceremony and immediately slurped up a mouthful of noodles. However, he made such a big movement that he accidentally spilled the soup outside.

The clerk glanced at it and simply used Xu Huaiyi's documents to wipe the table.

"You..." Xu Huaiyi was furious, "You actually used documents..."

The clerk's face showed a dismissive expression: "Anyway, you'll have to rewrite it."

Xu Huaiyi clenched his fist, but the clerk showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, he slightly raised his head, as if waiting for Xu Huaiyi's fist to fall.

Xu Huaiyi sneered, took a deep breath, and slowly released his hand. A hint of regret flashed in the clerk's eyes. If Xu Huaiyi had hit him, his job for the day would have been finished.

He was getting old and would soon be leaving the Ministry of Justice. If he could do some favors for the officials before then, he could earn some money and buy some land in the countryside. The clerk had calculated his options clearly. He wasn't afraid of suffering a great loss in front of Xu Huaiyi; Lord Xu was a good official and wouldn't be ruthless, so there was nothing to fear.

Even if Lord Xu loses his official position because of this, he will hold those officials accountable and will not make things difficult for a lowly clerk like him.

The clerk continued eating his food, speaking indistinctly, "Lord Weng gave the order, saying it was the Minister's will, that you must explain the whole story clearly, and please don't make things difficult for us."

Xu Huaiyi gritted his teeth, when suddenly he heard a sound coming from outside.

"Why are you interrogating me? I don't know those women. I've said it countless times: we found them in the village cellar and rescued them one by one. If you want to know who kidnapped and sold them, you should go to the manager."

The one speaking was Zhang, the head constable, who had gone to Li Family Village with Xu Huaiyi.

Xu Huaiyi was about to go out to look when he was stopped by the constables at the door. These constables worked for Weng Yi and his men and had always been negligent towards Xu Huaiyi. Now, under Weng Yi's orders, they were even more unscrupulous. The two of them stepped forward and blocked the door completely.

Just as they were arguing, a woman cried out, "Chief Zhang, save us... Chief Zhang, please tell them that you sent me to the manor. Please make it clear to these constables that you can't abandon us. When you gave me the order, you said you would protect us."

"It wasn't my intention to frame the manor and its manager; it was Chief Zhang who taught me to do it this way."

Xu Huaiyi's expression immediately changed. He looked at the constables and clerks in astonishment and raised his voice, "You are actually distorting the truth! Even with conclusive evidence, you still instigate people to make baseless accusations. This is the Ministry of Justice of the Great Liang Dynasty. How dare you do this?"

Xu Huaiyi could endure being targeted and tormented, but when he heard that they were going to frame Zhang, he was immediately enraged and reached out to hit the constable.

"Get out of my way, I need to see Minister Xia."

The two constables looked fierce and neither of them was willing to move. They easily blocked the punches thrown by Xu Huaiyi.

The clerk seized the opportunity and rushed forward, seemingly to persuade Xu Huaiyi, but actually using his body to block Xu Huaiyi. As a result, Xu Huaiyi's punch landed on the clerk's face.

"Lord Xu, you mustn't do this... Ouch..."

The clerk took a few steps back, then staggered and fell to the ground.

Upon seeing this, the constable raised his voice and said, "Lord Xu, how can you hit someone?"

Xu Huaiyi ignored the clerk and continued to argue with the constable in front of him. At some point, the constable drew his sword.

Xu Huaiyi reached out and pressed down on the hilt of the knife. As the three of them were struggling, Xu Huaiyi suddenly felt the yamen runner in front of him loosen his grip, and the sword that was originally in the runner's hand was handed to Xu Huaiyi.

Then, with a burst of strength, he raised the blade and delivered a solid slash to the constable.

The constable staggered back, revealing Xu Huaiyi's face splattered with blood.

Another constable shouted, "Murder! Lord Xu has murdered someone!"

The door was finally opened, but there were many jailers standing outside. Everyone's eyes were on Xu Huaiyi, as if they were all intimidated by his fierce appearance.

Hearing the commotion, Weng Yi rushed over and was immediately surprised to see what was happening.

“Huaiyi…Lord Xu,” Weng Yi said, “what are you doing?”

As soon as Weng Yi finished speaking, a woman's voice rang out again: "Besides Chief Zhang, he was the one who ordered me to do things. Chief Zhang called him Young Master Xu. Before going to the estate, he also told me... told me..."

The woman covered her face in shame and cried as she spoke.

"What did you say?" Zhang, the head constable, shouted at the woman.

The woman was even more horrified, waving her hands and pleading, "Don't kill me, don't kill me!" Her clothes were thin, and she looked extremely haggard and pitiful.

Everyone in the Ministry of Justice looked at Xu Huaiyi with righteous indignation, seeing him as a corrupt official, a wicked man, and a scourge to the people. Weng Yi's brows furrowed, and a righteous expression appeared on his face. He looked at the woman and said, "If that is indeed the case, the yamen will certainly do justice for you."

The woman knelt down and kowtowed to Weng Yi to express her gratitude.

Weng Yi looked at Xu Huaiyi: "I will definitely report to the Minister about what Lord Xu did in the yamen today. Although we are fellow students, I will absolutely not protect you in this matter."

When Xu Huaiyi's gaze swept over Weng Yi and the others, his expression remained calm, but when it landed on the woman, a complex emotion flickered in his eyes.

Zhang, the head constable, stared wide-eyed at the woman: "We were the ones who rescued you, how can you turn around and accuse us? Are you trying to frame this good official who stands up for the people and send him to prison?"

"You're doing this... you've corrupted your conscience... you're encouraging these corrupt officials to do whatever they want. Do you think they'll let you live? You'll end up killing yourself too."

Weng Yi ordered the constables: "Gag him. He still dares to threaten innocent people."

Zhang, the head constable, was tightly bound and taken to the prison to await trial.

Weng Yi looked at Xu Huaiyi with a stern face: "Does Lord Xu need me to send someone to do it?"

Before Xu Huaiyi could speak, Weng Yi said, "Take down the culprit and keep him under temporary custody. I will report to the imperial court and let them deal with him."

Xu Huaiyi took a deep breath: "What about the people on the estate and the nuns? They are all members of the demonic sect, and you dare to let them go?"

Weng Yi lowered his voice: "Lord Xu should think about what will happen to him!"

Xu Huaiyi gripped the hilt of the knife tightly, clearly struggling, but Weng Yi did not give him the chance. Instead, he said sternly, "Take the blade away."

Several constables approached with ill intentions. Xu Huaiyi brandished his knife to defend himself, but he was just a weak scholar. Even though he had learned some martial arts from Zhang the constable, he was no match for these constables and was quickly pinned to the ground.

Just as Weng Yi was about to make Xu Huaiyi suffer some more, a clerk came to report: "Someone from Cining Palace has come to ask about that Abbess Mingzhen."

"It is said that when the Empress Dowager arrived at Yunqi Temple, she did not see many nuns, so she sent someone to inquire about the situation."

Weng Yi was overjoyed. He had only been thinking about profiting from the Xia family and others, and had completely forgotten about Cining Palace. The Empress Dowager had great faith in the nuns of Yunqi Temple.

"Where is he? I'll go see him myself."

The clerk immediately stepped forward to lead the way.

Weng Yi quickened his pace, fearing that someone in the yamen had learned of the news and rushed to see the people from the palace. Only when he entered the room and saw the female official sitting to the side drinking tea did Weng Yi breathe a sigh of relief.

Weng Yi stepped forward and bowed, but the master of ceremonies hurriedly said, "Your Excellency, there is no need for such formalities. I am just an ordinary female historian who came to inquire about the situation on behalf of the Empress Dowager. I should not be allowed to enter the government office. I just informed the clerk not to spread the news that people from Cining Palace have come to the government office."

Upon seeing the waist token in the master of ceremonies' hand, Weng Yi happily replied, "Don't worry, Madam, no one will know."

The master of ceremonies nodded, not dwelling on the matter: "May I ask, Your Excellency, what did Abbess Mingzhen and the others do, and why were they brought to the Ministry of Justice?"

Seeing the questioning look in the emcee's eyes, Weng Yi hurriedly said, "It's all a misunderstanding. Abbess Mingzhen was being threatened because she was trying to rescue those innocent women who had been kidnapped and sold."

The emcee exclaimed in surprise, "The nun saved so many women?"

Weng Yi nodded: "The nun is compassionate and her actions deserve praise."

Weng Yi praised Master Mingzhen enthusiastically, but for some reason, he sensed that the lady in front of him was not very happy.

However, in the blink of an eye, the lady's gaze seemed to soften again, and the master of ceremonies looked at Weng Yi: "Please tell me the ins and outs of this case, so that I can go back and report to the Empress Dowager."

Weng Yi was naturally pleased with this. If even the Cining Palace knew about this case, Xu Huaiyi would have no chance of overturning it, no matter how powerful he was.

After hearing Weng Yi's account of the case, the emcee put down her teacup: "So, in other words, if it weren't for Lord Weng, then Li Family Manor would be a place for kidnapping and trafficking people and harboring women? And Steward Li and the nun would be cult members who turned against each other?"

Weng Yi nodded: "How could a merchant family like the Li family engage in the business of buying and selling women? The nuns are even more so. Just now, some women have already told the truth. They were not kidnapped and sold at all, but were instigated by others to falsely accuse the Li family."

"How could such a thing as plundering and selling happen in a place like Bianjing?" Weng Yi continued. Both the Emperor and the Empress Dowager liked to see the world at peace and prosperous, which is why he said such a thing.

The master of ceremonies raised his eyes after a long while, then nodded and said, "Lord Weng is indeed a wise and discerning official who speaks up for the people."

Weng Yi was delighted to hear this. If the female historian were to report these words to the Empress Dowager, and the Empress Dowager were to inadvertently say a few good words for him in the Emperor's ear, would he be able to rise to prominence?
The master of ceremonies asked, "You said you wanted to arrest the Guo family's boatmen and punish that Lord Xu. Have you made the arrangements?"

Weng Yi couldn't understand why the lady was so concerned about this matter. Could it be that she wanted to avenge the nun?
“I’ve already sent people to bring them in,” Weng Yi said. “Not one will be missing; they will all be punished according to the law.”

That concludes today's update.

I'll add another 1,000 words.

Update tomorrow morning.