Qing Yao

Chapter 276 Fu Zhongtang's Assistance
"I believe that Lord Fu will be able to find out the truth and give me justice. I also ask that you go ahead and investigate without hesitation, and not hold back because you are worried about me. I, Zhao Youlu, am upright and honest, and have a clear conscience. Why would I be afraid of the slander and framing of those treacherous villains!"
"So that Lord Fu may know, I, Zhao Youlu, have never left a bad name or a bad reputation since I became an official. As the saying goes, 'A gentle spring breeze can accommodate all things, and clear autumn waters cannot sully the dust of the world!' Many outsiders may doubt or criticize me, but I, Zhao Youlu, only adhere to one principle: to be a good official who serves the people is enough!"

When he got emotional, Zhao An slammed his fist hard on the hard table. "I don't blame Zhu Gui for picking ginseng from my hands, because Lord Zhu may have been misled by treacherous villains. But when I think about the more than 20 million people in Anhui Province living in dire straits, I, as the grain transport commissioner, can't sleep night after night!"

"How wonderful that it leaves no room for mistakes or infamy! How wonderful that its refined and tolerant style is as gentle as a spring breeze, and its elegant and unblemished writing is as clear as autumn water!"

Fu Chang was moved and stood up, "Lord Zhao truly deserves to be called the 'Tofu Justice' praised by all the people of Jiangning!"

This moment of emotion lasted only a few seconds, because the provincial governor suddenly remembered that this seemingly unrelated official had given him eight thousand taels of silver as soon as he took office.

The question is, if the legal salary and allowance for maintaining integrity for an entire year don't even add up to two thousand taels, where did he get eight thousand taels of silver notes from?

Was it money he embezzled before, or was it given to him by someone else?
Heshen?

I don't know what the provincial governor was thinking. He didn't consider the possibility that Tofu Justice was a fake tofu, but instead insisted that Tofu Justice had someone backing him up.

Just as they were wondering about this, a report came from outside that someone wanted to see Magistrate Zhao.

who?

Fu Chang knew a money shop owner in Jiangning City named Zhu Bingwen.

How could a money shop manager know the governor of a province?

There's no other reason than that Manager Zhu previously worked at the Tongzhou Money Exchange in the capital, which was owned by Grand Councilor Fu Chang'an.

Although Manager Zhu was only managing the Jiangning Money Exchange business for Fu Zhongtang, in the eyes of Fu Chang, the provincial governor, Manager Zhu was Fu Zhongtang's confidant.

A gatekeeper for the prime minister starts at the seventh rank, so this confidant must be at least a fourth rank.

What brings Manager Zhu here?
They came to deliver money to Magistrate Zhao, who is awaiting trial.

A full 100,000 taels of silver.

It was placed directly on the table in front of the provincial governor.

Perhaps out of consideration for Magistrate Zhao's feelings, or perhaps because Fu Chang was present, Manager Zhu didn't say much, only saying that he would visit again after Magistrate Zhao was free of trouble.

The subtext is: I'll go back and process the relevant loan procedures for you, Lord Zhao.

This was clearly a deliberate act, intentionally letting the presiding judge, Fu Chang, witness this scene, which also conveyed a very simple signal.

Zhao Youlu is someone that Lord Fu values ​​highly; you'd better keep that in mind, Lord Fu.

It was entirely at Fu Chang'an's behest that Fu Chang protect Zhao Youlu.

If the presiding judge, Fu Chang, reports that Zhao An is fine, and the two Grand Councilors vouch for him, then Zhao An will definitely be safe.

However, the signal was received in Fuchang, but it was two signals. The extra signal was the genuine "Five Blessings".

Otherwise, why would Heshen and Fu Chang'an, two of the emperor's most favored officials, be vying to give him money?

That's it!

Fu Chang, who always seeks stability, is prepared to go all in. Whether or not there is an investigation is not important; what matters is that "Wu Fu'er" must be innocent. However, Zhao An's meaning is very clear: he hopes that Fu Chang can handle the case with a fact-based attitude, "fair, open, and just," rather than trying to help another friend overturn the case through dishonest means from the perspective of a friend.

Although it was well-intentioned for Zhao An to help his friend overturn the verdict from a friend's perspective, Zhao An did not need Fu Chang's good intentions, because he wanted to use Fu Chang to completely bring down Zhu Gui.

In other words, if this official from another region, Fuchang, doesn't conduct a thorough investigation, his objective cannot be achieved.

If the problem can be solved, great; if not, then get rid of the person who raised the problem.

As long as Zhu Gui doesn't leave Anhui, Zhao An won't feel at ease being the official in Anhui.

To uncover the truth of the case, an on-site investigation and firsthand information were necessary. This idea was shared not only by Zhao An but also by the two investigators from the capital.

The day before Fuchang, who had adopted Zhao An's suggestion, set off for Wuhe, Cao Zhenyong and Moergenge had already set off for Wuhe.

Cao Zhenyong meant that this case involved Zhu Gui, the governor of Anhui, who was a well-known upright official. Therefore, it was impossible for Zhu Gui to frame Zhao Youlu. However, judging from the investigation in recent days, Zhao Youlu was obviously a good and honest official who was deeply loved by the people.

This makes the whole thing seem rather strange.

To find out who is right and who is wrong, the only way is to conduct a secret investigation at the scene of the crime. Staying in Jiangning City will never reveal the truth.

Although Morgeng'e was eager to return to the capital to report, he reluctantly went with Cao Zhenyong to Wuhe after Cao Zhenyong's repeated persuasion.

After all, if they could truly uncover the truth of the case, it would be of great benefit to the two of them upon their return to Beijing.

Wuhe is located in Sizhou, which borders Fengyang, and this area was also one of the hardest-hit areas in this drought.

As they traveled, Cao and Mo discovered that most of the rivers along the way had dried up, and some had even completely dried up. It was already April, and if it didn't rain soon, the disaster would become even more severe as the weather grew hotter.

It would be untrue to say that local officials did nothing in the face of natural disasters, but for a drought affecting most of a province, relying solely on self-rescue organized by local officials would undoubtedly be a drop in the ocean in terms of the severity of the disaster.

If the disaster continues for several months, even if the imperial court allocates large quantities of grain for disaster relief, the number of people who die as a result of the disaster will still be an extremely frightening figure.

The fiftieth year of the Qianlong reign was also a drought year. This severe drought swept through the provinces of Henan, Hebei, and Shaanxi, leaving thousands of miles of barren land with no crops, and starving people resorting to cannibalism.

Afterwards, local authorities reported a death toll of over 180 million, but the imperial court deemed this figure unreliable and believed the actual death toll could reach tens of millions.

Considering that the Qianlong era was a golden age, the fact that tens of millions of people died in a single disaster would be a huge tarnish to that golden age. Therefore, the court did not thoroughly investigate the death toll, and the relevant reports on the drought in North China were sealed away.

In fact, many areas in Henan have become extremely desolate due to this drought, and many villages have become uninhabited areas.

Anhui has a population of over 20 million, and 80% of the area is affected by the drought. If this disaster develops in the same way as the severe drought in North China six years ago, Cao Zhenyong estimates that the death toll in Anhui will definitely not be less than two million, and may even be higher.

In addition, upon hearing along the way that signs of drought had already appeared last year, but local officials at all levels had failed to take effective measures, he couldn't help but have some doubts about the governance capabilities of Zhu Gui, a renowned upright official.

Zhu Gui surely knew the principle that prevention is worse than relief.

Did the local officials conceal the truth, or did they report it but fail to take it seriously despite being the governor?
With these questions in mind, Cao Zhenyong and Moergenge continued their journey to Wuhe. They gradually noticed a strange phenomenon: as they traveled north from Jiangning, the roads were filled with groups of refugees fleeing the famine, but the further they went into the disaster area, the fewer refugees there were.

Soon, the two learned the reason from a fellow villager who had asked them to stay at the hotel.

All of this was thanks to Zhao Youlu, the grain commissioner who had his ginseng removed by Zhu Gui, the governor of Anhui!
(End of this chapter)