Daming: Internship also counts as work experience

Chapter 107 Can't Hold On

Jia Chuan rubbed his face and said:
"The Prince's Mansion can't come and snatch the bodies, but the Prefectural Government can legitimately remove them. I'm not afraid they'll take the bodies away; as long as Old Zheng has done an autopsy, and I have my comrades sign and seal it in black and white, no one can change that. I'm worried that without a reason to have the yamen runners block the streets, the Prince's Mansion can send people to repair the surrounding houses. Those walls and damaged parts in the courtyards can be repaired in a day if we have enough manpower. If a few more bodies are lost then, the Prefectural Government won't be able to protect them. At that time... this is the Prince's territory, so it's not difficult to do all this. When the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner arrives, even if he reports it as I said, do you think there aren't any of the Prince's people in the court? Will no one raise any questions?"

Gao Yuntian said "Oh," and then said, "Once the body is removed and the surrounding area is repaired, even if you say how many people came last night, the people from the Prince of Han's mansion will accuse you of framing someone. Given Prefect Lin's personality, he'll probably have to play dead. In that case, the Assistant Prefect at the gate is of higher rank than you and is one of the Prince of Han's men. He can act according to the Prince of Han's orders..."

"So, go talk to him, talk for a while, let him think he can get information out of him, and waste as much time as you can."

“I can’t do it! I’m afraid he’ll get information out of me. I’ll go talk to Wu Bing and see who’s more suitable. It’s not like he’ll say something without saying anything, right? He definitely has people like that under him.”

Jia Chuan stood up and said, "Forget it, I'll go. No one else can stop him. You go check on Duo Duo, then come out and find me."

Gao Yuntian said "Oh," and then said, "I always feel you're overthinking it. The people of the Han Prince's Mansion would think of repairing the courtyard wall? I wouldn't even think of that."

……

Hao Wen was pondering whether to go back first. He had been looking at Jia Chuan for a long time but still couldn't figure out what he wanted to do. But if he just went back like this, what would he say?

He wanted to approach Old Zheng and ask him a few questions, but all he saw were corpses, which he found unlucky. He then considered talking to the man standing guard with a sword, but he was afraid that the sword in that man's hand might hurt him.

Just as Hao Wen was hesitating, a person came out of the gate of the house and waved to him. When Hao Wen saw that it was Jia Chuan, he quickly went over.

……

When Chen Mo returned, it was already broad daylight. He went to the house, drank some water, took a pancake and ate it as he walked out. When he got to the door, he saw Jia Chuan and Hao Wen squatting in a corner of the alley, chatting happily, while Gao Yuntian was asleep against the wall.

Chen Mo walked closer, munching on a pancake, and overheard Jia Chuan saying, "...A flurry of attacks from the shadows! I was truly on the verge of death. Hey, you're back. Did you take care of it?"

Chen Mo hummed in agreement and woke Gao Yuntian.

"I consulted a fortune teller before, who said I was born with divine protection, and that I would always be able to turn misfortune into good fortune. This fortune teller is extraordinary; he can speak to the living and also speak for the dead. He doesn't easily consult ordinary people. I also benefited from the Emperor's favor. Didn't I save the Emperor? Let me tell you, I was with the Emperor for those few days, eating, living, and traveling together. We talked about everything. When we arrived in Bazhou, the garrison soldiers and local officials all knelt down. The Emperor didn't say anything else; he first introduced me to them..."

Gao Yuntian rubbed his eyes, looked around, and asked in a low voice, "Where was he talking about?"

"Save the Emperor!"

"Why did we bring this up again?" Gao Yuntian frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "It's also because it's difficult for him."

Chen Mo took a bite of his pancake and asked, "What does he mean by that?"

Gao Yuntian pointed to the sun and said, "I just hope it sets soon."

Chen Mo didn't understand. Chewing on his biscuit, he looked at the alley entrance and saw that Wu Bing and the yamen runner seemed to be arguing. He asked again, "Shouldn't we go over and take a look?"

"No need, Wu Bing can take care of those blind fools."

Chen Mo then looked at Jia Chuan and Hao Wen, who were squatting on the ground.

"...The man's knife was right in front of me. I thought to myself, the Emperor promised me wealth and honor, how could I die like this? In the blink of an eye, I used my best martial arts skills to dodge the knife that was right in front of me. When the man saw that his first attack had failed, he immediately turned the tip of his knife and aimed it straight at my stomach..."

Chen Mo asked in a low voice, "It's the second time already, and you can still listen so attentively?"

Gao Yuntian stretched and said, "But things are different. You keep an eye on things. I'm going to check on Duoduo again. You mustn't leave. I thought everything was fine this morning, but as soon as I got to the courtyard gate, an arrow shot out from the roof. It scared me to death!"

Chen Mo was shocked. He pulled Gao Yuntian aside and asked him all the details before letting Gao Yuntian leave.

"...Do you know how many routes there are to get to Beijing from Dongzhao County? To be honest, I used to be a frog in a well, and I think you are too. You really should go out and see the world, see this beautiful country, see the scenery along the way, see... Hey, where are you from?"

"Huh? What did Judge Jia just ask?"

"It's nothing, it's nothing. Where were we?"

"Oh, quite a few people came last night. Judge Jia said there were some with extremely high martial arts skills. How are those three doing now?" Hao Wen thought he was clever and seized the opportunity to ask first.

"How do you know there are three people?" Jia Chuan asked, feigning surprise.

"Didn't you just say that?"

"When did I say that? Did I just say that?" Jia Chuan asked Chen Mo, looking up at him.

Chen Mo shook his head cooperatively and said, "I didn't say that."

"Really? I don't even know how many experts there are, how do you know there are three?"

Hao Wen was stunned. He blinked and seriously thought about how to smooth things over.

Jia Chuan didn't urge him. He was also very tired. He could only hold out for an hour or two like this. Otherwise, he would be knocked unconscious.

As Jia Chuan was pondering this, he noticed that the number of people at the alley entrance had increased. He raised his eyebrows and muttered, "We can't hold them off any longer."

……

Zhu Gaoxu had a habit of getting up to practice swordsmanship before dawn every day, and he usually didn't need to be woken up by eunuchs. But today, he was gently woken up by eunuchs before dawn. The reason he was so easily woken up was naturally because he was not sleeping soundly. If the people in the palace were lying in ambush, as Zhu Heng had deduced, Jia Chuan might have left early, and he might have received the good news when he woke up.

Zhu Gaoxu kept this matter on his mind, and before going to sleep, he instructed that if there was any news, he should be woken up immediately.

So the first thing Zhu Gaochi asked when he woke up was, "Killed?"

The eunuch bowed and said, "Minister Wang and the others are in the study. They ordered me to wake Your Highness, saying they have urgent news to report." Zhu Gaoxu's mood immediately soured. He thought that Jia Chuan must have done something strange again, making the original plan impossible to implement. For Zhu Gaoxu, this was the worst possible outcome.

However, surprises are everywhere.

When Zhu Gaoxu sat down in the study, he saw the group exchanging glances, as if no one wanted to be the first to speak, and he became somewhat angry.

"What's there to be afraid to say? After we set up the ambush, we found he was no longer in the house?"

Wang Bin glanced at Zhu Heng, whose face was deathly pale, gritted his teeth, and remained silent.

Zhu Heng knew he couldn't avoid it, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and kneel down first, then say in a trembling voice, "Those who went were all left behind."

Zhu Gaoxu was momentarily stunned, as if he hadn't understood, and leaned forward to ask, "What do you mean by leaving them all behind?"

Wang Bin bowed and said, "None of the men we sent have returned. All we've heard is that... tonight, someone tried to launch a night attack on Judge Jia's residence, but Judge Jia wiped them all out."

Zhu Gaoxu suddenly stood up and performed the 'smashing and throwing' act that had been repeated many times in the past few days.

Wang Bin pulled Zhu Heng up in time, otherwise Zhu Heng might have been disfigured.

Looking at the crazed Zhu Gaoxu, Wang Bin sighed inwardly: If he had ignored him from the beginning, he wouldn't have this obsession now. The more he couldn't kill him, the more he wanted to kill him. The more he wanted to kill him, the harder it was to come up with a safe way, which caused him to neglect important matters.

Mei Qing lowered his head, knowing that the only thing to do now was to wait for Zhu Gaoxu to calm down. Anyone who dared to say anything at this point would suffer the consequences.

Wei Da and Qian Xun stood at the very back. Qian Xun was still a little dazed when he arrived, but when he heard that they had failed, he became completely sober. Right now, he just wanted to go back to sleep, so he didn't have to be afraid since he hadn't heard anything.

What does "annihilate them all" mean? Qian Xun didn't dare to think about it too much. He knew exactly who the people he sent were, and even if they failed, they shouldn't all have returned.

Suddenly, a corner of Qian Xun's heart felt a little resentful towards Jia Chuan: What if you had come two months earlier?
Fortunately, Zhu Gaoxu had grown up through setbacks. After venting his frustrations, he gradually calmed down on his own without needing anyone to persuade him, and the room fell into an eerie silence.

Mei Qing knew that she couldn't rely on Wang Bin to help Zhu Heng anymore; that pull just now had already exhausted all her efforts.

Mei Qing coughed lightly and said softly, "Right now, we don't know if any of the people we sent were alive. I think if we want to keep them all, the only way is... to leave no one alive. Otherwise, it's unlikely we can keep them all. If those left are all dead, then we don't need to worry. No matter how much Jia Chuan fabricates, without a confession to cooperate, the prince can accuse him of framing someone, and he'll have to accept it. So, the most urgent thing is to find out if there are any survivors, especially the people in the manor..."

"Have you sent anyone to investigate?" Zhu Gaoxu asked in a deep voice.

Zhu Heng hurriedly said, "I have already arranged for Magistrate Hao to go." But he dared not say that the others he sent were all stopped by the yamen runners on the outside, and that the yamen runners who had dealings with the servants of the Prince's mansion knew nothing about it.

Zhu Gaoxu did not speak.

Mei Qing added, "This incident... clearly shows that Jia Chuan is cunning, and it also shows that he must have received the full support of that person in the capital before he came. I thought about it, and he may have even more Imperial Guards protecting him. In the end, we underestimated him, and it's not just Mr. Zhu's fault."

Zhu Heng was almost in tears. It was the Prince of Han who decided to send a few people to the manor, and it was Wei Da who arranged the people to ambush them. He only came up with this plan, so how could it be entirely his fault that it failed in the end?
Zhu Gaoxu's face was gloomy, and the corners of his mouth were extremely downturned. His emotions had calmed down a bit, but he was still shrouded in anger.

"So, you can't kill him?" Zhu Gaoxu asked in a cold voice.

Wang Bin quickly bowed and replied, "Your Highness, please do not be so insistent on killing him. Wouldn't it be more satisfying for Your Highness to personally execute him after you have accomplished your mission?"

"If troops are mobilized to surround the house, does he still have a chance of survival?"

Wang Bin was shocked and hurriedly said, "Absolutely not! Deploying troops would be tantamount to appealing to that person in the capital... Your Highness, please don't let a mere Jia Chuan affect the overall situation."

"If no one is left in the house, who will know I've mobilized troops?" Zhu Gaoxu asked, squinting his eyes.

Mei Qing couldn't help but say, "Your Highness, think about it carefully. This might be what Jia Chuan wanted. How could that person in the capital only arrange one Jia Chuan? We don't know how many Jia Chuans are around the residence, or even in the entire Le'an City. Once Your Highness mobilizes troops, this matter... can't be kept secret! Jia Chuan is the bait that the capital has placed in front of Your Highness. As long as Your Highness doesn't take it, he naturally won't be hooked. Jia Chuan will just be a minor judge. Minister Wang is right. When things are done, Your Highness can personally kill him. Wouldn't that be satisfying?"

Zhu Heng then felt remorse. He had always advocated killing Jia Chuan, both to show the one in the capital and to avoid future troubles. Little did he know that the desire to kill was the bait, which Jia Chuan had been clinging to.

Zhu Gaoxu snorted, and said with some sorrow, "What I've always been proud of is that my nephew knows what I'm thinking, yet he can't do anything to me. He knew I was the one who did it, but what could he do to me? Even the history books didn't dare to write a single word about it. The only reason I dared to be so bold was because I knew what he could and couldn't do. Now, he's turned the tables on me, using a mere judge to show me what it means to want to do something but not be able to!"

The people in the room breathed a sigh of relief. Since the prince understood this, he would not do anything out of line again.

"Tell me, how do you plan to clean up this mess?"

Mei Qing hurriedly said, "First, we need to find out the casualties. If there are any survivors, we must eliminate them as soon as possible."

Wang Bin nodded and said, "Before this matter is officially declared and the city gates are open, it is only reasonable for the people from the prefectural government to rush to the prefectural government office to take everyone there, given the magnitude of this matter..."

“That’s right, that’s right. I’ll go to the prefectural government office to oversee things right away. Now that Hao Wen has already gone, news should come back soon. Mr. Zhu, tell me the number of people, and I’ll verify if the numbers match. If they don’t match…”

Qian Xun was speechless for a moment, unsure what to do. Should he ask Jia Chuan for the man? How? Would he even give him the man?
Wang Bin pursed his lips and said, "This is a major issue concerning the safety of the people in Le'an. It's not something a mere judge like him can just detain. If he really dares to do that, the prefectural government will seek help from the Wang Mansion. How can the Wang Mansion sit idly by?"

Zhu Gaoxu's eyes immediately lit up.

At that moment, everyone except Qian Xun forgot about the number of people. How could the Prince's Mansion know the exact number? Even if Jia Chuan gave an inflated figure, what grounds did they have to question him?

Qian Xun sighed. He thought they would understand once they calmed down. Reminding them now... forget it, it would only cause trouble for himself.

He rose, bowed, and took his leave. He then waited at the gate, intending to learn some information from Hao Wen before going to the prefectural government office.

Qian Xun even felt that Hao Wen should have been waiting inside when he arrived at the gatehouse. Hao Wen had arrived early and, knowing something, should have reported back immediately.

But Hao Wen wasn't at the gatehouse. Qian Xun waited for a while, but still no one came. He was so anxious that he cursed Hao Wen's ancestors for eighteen generations before hurriedly leading his men out of the palace.

(End of this chapter)