Red Mansion: After being expelled from the family, I was granted the title of Marquis of Mobei

Chapter 90: Arty
Jia Jue said calmly after hearing this.

"Why do you think His Majesty didn't send officials from the Ministry of Revenue or the Three Law Departments to investigate the case, but instead sent me."

Gu Qianfan nodded and said.

"I understand. Please give the order, my Lord."

Jia Jue said with a calm smile.

"The previous Jiangnan Salt Administration case was caused by the instigation of salt officials and salt merchants at the docks near Yangzhou. Due to the urgency of the matter, I was able to investigate the case with lightning speed."

"This tariff case cannot be so crude now."

"Didn't you just say that Yuhang, under the jurisdiction of Qiantang County, is a major port for overseas merchant ships to dock."

"If that's the case, then the Qiantang County Magistrate is naturally one of the participants, or at least he should be an insider."

"Gu Qianfan, listen to my orders."

"I order you to lead my Jinyiwei to raid Qiantang tonight and capture the Qiantang County Magistrate."

"We must pry his mouth open before tomorrow morning."

Gu Qianfan said after bowing.

"I will obey the order of the Marquis."

After Jia Jue waved his hand, Gu Qianfan left the inn.

Not long after, Jia Jue traveled incognito to the residence of Yang Zhiyuan, the judge of Liangzhe Transport.

After arriving at Yang Zhiyuan's mansion, Jia Jue did not go to the main door, but went to the back door.

Then Jia Jue's personal soldiers knocked on the back door and handed a brocade box to a servant of the Yang Mansion, asking him to pass it on to Yang Zhiyuan.

Not long after, Yang Zhiyuan hurried to the back door, walked to Jia Jue's carriage, bowed respectfully and said.

"I didn't know your Excellency was coming. I failed to greet you. I beg for your forgiveness."

Then Jia Jue got off the carriage, looked at Yang Zhiyuan calmly and said.

"But is Yang Zhiyuan, the Liangzhe Transport Magistrate, present?"

Yang Zhiyuan nodded immediately.

"It is my humble servant. May I ask what your superiors are doing?"

Jia Jue waved his hand and said.

"This is not the place to talk."

Yang Zhiyuan nodded repeatedly.

"I was inconsiderate. Please come in."

Yang Zhiyuan diligently led the way and took Jia Jue all the way to the study.

After serving tea, Yang Zhiyuan sent the maid away, then respectfully took out the golden order and returned it to Jia Jue.

"Sir, this is His Majesty's golden order. Please take it back."

"I wonder what your Excellency's name is?"

Jia Jue said calmly.

"Jia Jue."

After hearing this, Yang Zhiyuan couldn't help but stand in awe. He bowed again and said.

"So it's the Marquis of Guanjun who's here. I'm sorry I didn't recognize you, Your Majesty. Please forgive me."

"I wonder what instructions the Marquis has for you now that you have come to my humble abode."

Jia Jue said after leisurely drinking a sip of tea.

"Yang Zhiyuan, do you admit your guilt?"

Yang Zhiyuan was startled and said hurriedly in fear and trepidation.

"Your Majesty, I have been diligent and conscientious in my duties since I took office. I dare not neglect them for a single day."

Jia Jue looked at Yang Zhiyuan meaningfully and said.

"Oh! Is that true?"

"I'm asking you, what are your responsibilities as the Judge of the Liangzhe Transportation Office?"

Yang Zhiyuan sorted out his thoughts and said.

"My Lord, I am responsible for supervising the transportation of goods along the Liangzhe Road. Whether it is salt and iron transportation or other transportation, as long as it is along the Liangzhe Road, it is within my supervision."

Jia Jue gave Yang Zhiyuan a sharp look, and then reprimanded him harshly.

"You still know your responsibilities."

"In that case, maritime trade is naturally under your supervision. Are you aware that there are a large number of overseas merchant ships smuggling in Liangzhe Road?"

"This, your subordinate, your subordinate..."

When Jia Jue mentioned maritime trade, Yang Zhiyuan was immediately shocked.

It’s not that Yang Zhiyuan also accepted bribes in overseas merchant ship smuggling. On the contrary, Yang Zhiyuan was a rare honest official. Not only did he keep himself clean, he also hated smuggling and had been secretly collecting evidence of smuggling.

Although Yang Zhiyuan wanted to report to the court, he felt a little uneasy.

Because the scale of smuggling was so large, the annual turnover was as high as 10 to 20 million taels of silver, and the profits were in the millions.

Yang Zhiyuan knew very well that smuggling on this scale could not be covered up by Qiantang County or even the entire Hangzhou. They did not have the power to do so.

God must have the support of these people.

Yang Zhiyuan was worried that if he reported it rashly, he might get into trouble.

Not only will the smuggling incident not be exposed, but he might even lose his life.

At this time, Jia Jue actually asked Yang Zhiyuan so directly about the smuggling, which naturally made Yang Zhiyuan panic.

He couldn't figure out Jia Jue's intention, so he pondered for a moment and asked tentatively.

"My Lord, you are a military commander. According to the official document received by Yuhang, you are here to inspect the Jiangnan Navy."

"This maritime trade matter doesn't seem to fall within your jurisdiction."

"I don't know why you ask these questions."

Jia Jue didn't waste any time and directly took out a secret decree from his sleeve and said.

"You'll understand for yourself."

After Yang Zhiyuan took the secret decree and read it, he couldn't help but show joy on his face, and then hurriedly said.

"So the Marquis is here to investigate the customs case under imperial order. Your Majesty's strategy of pretending to build a plank road while secretly attacking Chencang is truly brilliant."

"To be honest, my Lord, I have noticed a large amount of smuggling in Liangzhe since I took office."

"It's just that because the implications are so serious, I dare not act rashly."

"Now that the Marquis has been ordered to investigate, I will naturally cooperate fully."

"As far as I know, Qiantang County bears the brunt of the smuggling problem in Liangzhe. Ninety percent of overseas merchant ships dock at Qiantang, bypassing the Maritime Customs Office."

"Zheng Qingtian, the Qiantang County Magistrate, was the one who carried out the operation. He privately opened the checkpoints to allow merchant ships to pass through, then collected one-third of the customs duties as a reward, lining his own pockets."

"But he should just be a minor character. The real mastermind must be in the capital."

"Only the powerful in the Divine Capital have the ability to allow this smuggling case involving an extremely large amount of money to continue for several years."

"In addition, the Maritime Customs and the Ninghai Navy are also in collusion with Zheng Qingtian. They are in cahoots with each other and turn a blind eye to the smuggling."

Jia Jue waved his hand and said impatiently.

"I already have all the information under my belt without you having to tell me."

"What I want to talk about now is your problem."

Yang Zhiyuan was stunned for a moment and said with some confusion.

"My Lord, what is your problem?"

Jia Jue said calmly, "As the transport magistrate of Liangzhe, you knew of the massive smuggling operation in Liangzhe, yet you, fearing death, kept it a secret."

"Tell me what crime you deserve."

After hearing this, Yang Zhiyuan couldn't help but secretly groan in his heart, wow, this champion marquis really has no worries when he is not standing still. Does that mean I have to risk my life to report it?

How much salary do I get a month? With such little money, you want me to risk my life.

Although he complained bitterly in his heart, Yang Zhiyuan still said with a guilty look on his face.

"Your Excellency is right. I was momentarily timid. However, I guarantee with my integrity that I have done absolutely nothing wrong. Please forgive me this time, Your Excellency, considering that I have made no contributions, but have worked hard."

Jia Jue said after leisurely drinking a sip of tea.

"That's easy to say. By the way, Lord Yang, I've heard that you are a man of elegance and refinement, and your mansion has a collection of many valuable calligraphy and paintings."

"Among them is a painting of a night banquet, created by a master of the previous dynasty. Coincidentally, I am also passionate about painting. I wonder if Lord Yang could take out the painting of the night banquet and let me appreciate it."

When Yang Zhiyuan heard this, he felt a little pain in his heart. Oh my god, he was waiting for me here.

Yang Zhiyuan has been in officialdom for many years. If he doesn't even understand what Jia Jue means, then his life has been in vain.

But Yang Zhiyuan also knew that his matter could be big or small, and it all depended on how Jia Jue, the imperial envoy, reported.

As the saying goes, the word "official" has two mouths, and both the upper and lower ones are reasonable.

For the same thing, if Jia Jue said that Yang Zhiyuan was taking risks to secretly collect information about smuggling, it would be one thing. But if Jia Jue said that Yang Zhiyuan was afraid of death and knew about the smuggling but concealed it for personal safety, that would be another matter.

It can be said that Yang Zhiyuan's future depends on a word from Jia Jue.

Although Yang Zhiyuan was reluctant to give up the Night Banquet Picture, he naturally compromised in the end when his life and property were at stake.

"Since Your Majesty is so interested, please wait for a moment. I will be right back."

Looking at Yang Zhiyuan's painful expression, Jia Jue also found it a little ridiculous.

Yang Zhiyuan is also a dilettante, pretending to know something when he doesn't. The Night Banquet Painting in his hand is just a fake given by Zhao Pan'er, but he doesn't know it and acts like it is a treasure.

Although Jia Jue knew that this was a fake, he still had to go through the necessary procedures.

If Jia Jue bypassed Yang Zhiyuan and went directly to find Zhao Pan'er, when he returned to Beijing to report and Emperor Yongping asked him about it, Jia Jue would not be able to justify himself.

It’s impossible for Jia Jue to tell Emperor Yongping that he had traveled through time and knew the plot of Meng Hualu.

So Jia Jue came to Yang's house mainly to show off to Emperor Yongping.

Soon, Yang Zhiyuan came to the study holding three scrolls, then looked at Jia Jue respectfully and said.

"My Lord, please take a look."

"These three paintings, one is "Night Banquet," and the other two are "Boating on the Cold River" and "Sea of ​​Clouds at Huangshan Mountain." They are all masterpieces by great artists."

"Please appreciate it."

Jia Jue also asked Yang Zhiyuan to unfold the scroll in a very meaningful way.

After looking at the three paintings one by one, Jia Jue didn't know how to evaluate Yang Zhiyuan.

Wow, none of these three paintings are real, and they all look fake.

It seems that whether in modern times or ancient times, there is always a group of national treasures.

There are also many innocent people like Yang Zhiyuan.

Although he knew that these three paintings were fake, Jia Jue still pretended to admire them very much.

"It's truly a masterpiece. This has truly opened my eyes."

Yang Zhiyuan said immediately.

"In that case, I will give these three paintings to you, my Lord. They will be given to their rightful owners."

Jia Jue pretended to be embarrassed and said.

"This, this is so embarrassing, how can I take away someone's love."

Yang Zhiyuan's heart was bleeding, but he still said with a smile on his face.

"Your Excellency, what you said is ridiculous. Your Excellency has been working hard for the country, and I can't help you much. I'm giving you these three paintings as a way to entertain yourself after your busy work. It's my humble opinion."

Jia Jue said with a slight smile.

"In that case, I won't be polite."

"By the way, Lord Yang, I don't know where this night banquet painting came from. Could you tell me?"

Yang Zhiyuan nodded and said.

"Of course not. This painting was sold to me by Zhao Pan'er, the owner of the Zhao Teahouse in Qiantang County."

"Zhao's Teahouse is renowned in Qiantang County, and the owner's tea ceremony is renowned in Yuhang. If you have time, you can go and enjoy the tea."

Jia Jue said with a chuckle.

"Really? Let's take a look at the situation. If I have time, I really want to go and take a look."

"Well, I've been bothering Lord Yang for a long time. I'll take my leave now."

"I hope Lord Yang will keep my incognito secret, so as not to alert the enemy and affect my investigation."

Yang Zhiyuan said after bowing.

"Don't worry, my Lord. I understand. I respectfully send you off."

After Jia Jue left the Yang family, Yang Zhiyuan returned to his study and began to beat his feet and stamp his chest, feeling extremely painful.

What he didn't know was that not long after leaving Yang's family, Jia Jue ordered his personal soldiers to tear up and throw away the three paintings that Yang Zhiyuan treasured. These things were of no value at all except for trapping the innocent.

Time flies and it is late at night.

At the residence of Qiantang County Magistrate Zheng Qingtian, the terrified Zheng Qingtian was being held in the study and tortured.

There were more than 30 corpses lying in the mansion, all dressed as guards. The rest of the Zheng family members and servants were detained and guarded in the room by the Jinyiwei.

At the first watch, Jia Jue arrived at Zheng's house, and Gu Qianfan naturally came to greet him.

After paying homage, Gu Qianfan said with a guilty look on his face.

"My Lord, I am incompetent and have yet to pry open Zheng Qingtian's mouth."

Seeing this, Jia Jue said calmly.

"A person who can do such a thing is certainly not a weakling who can be easily frightened and startled. Lead the way, and I will go meet him."

"I obey your orders."

Then Gu Qianfan brought Jia Jue to the study.

In the study, Zheng Qingtian had been beaten to a bloody pulp and fainted.

Seeing this, Jia Jue winked, and then Gu Qianfan poured a cup of cold water on Zheng Qingtian's face, and Zheng Qingtian woke up with a start.

When he saw that there was one more person in the study, and that Gu Qianfan, who was in charge of the interrogation, looked very respectful, Zheng Qingtian knew in his heart that this might be the real boss.

Zheng Qingtian said immediately.

"Sir, it was you who ordered the Imperial Guards to sneak into my residence and torture me into confessing."

"You know, although I am a lowly official, a mere seventh-rank county magistrate, I am also an official appointed by the imperial court."

"You have set up your own court and disregarded the laws of the Great Zhou. I will sue you."

After hearing this, Jia Jue smiled slightly and said.

"Now you remember the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Good, very good."

"Then why didn't you think of the Great Zhou Law when you assisted in the smuggling?"

"Forget it, I'm too lazy to waste time talking to you. I know exactly what you're thinking."

"You just think that the Imperial Guards don't have any evidence against you, and as long as you hold on to your promise and don't tell anyone, your backers will protect you."

"Even if I can't save you, I can save your family."

"But if you open your mouth and irritate your backers, I'm afraid your whole family will die, right?"

(End of this chapter)