Qing Yao

Chapter 351 The Judicial Commissioner's Case
I wholeheartedly agree, so let's make that decision.

The imperial court has bestowed honors, so it is only natural for everyone to come and receive them.

With Zhao An and the Provincial Judge following suit, a resolution was reached to arrest the criminal officers of the Fubiao Army.

Those who made the arrests were definitely armed constables from the Provincial Judicial Office, because this major case had to be led by the Provincial Judicial Office, which held judicial power. In other words, Zhao An's hands must not be stained with blood.

To ensure absolute success, Zhao An secretly ordered Ye Zhigui, Xu Lin, and others to select 300 members of the Canal Gang as personal guards and secretly infiltrate the Provincial Governor's Office. If the officers of the Provincial Governor's Office resisted, they were to be executed on the spot, and afterwards, irrefutable evidence would be presented to them.

In order to lull the Fubiao group into a false sense of security, Zhao An ordered officials of the seventh rank and above from the provincial capital's government offices, including the governor's office, the provincial governor's office, the Anqing prefect's office, and the salt commissioner's office, to come to a "meeting."

It should give people a sense of victory, joy, unity, and progress.

Perhaps this is also a manifestation of Zhao An's perverse sense of humor.

The next morning, Old Song sent someone to the Fubiao garrison to notify all officers of the rank of battalion commander and above to go to the provincial government office to receive the imperial rewards.

Upon receiving the notice, everyone in Fubiao was overjoyed.

They had been waiting for this day for a long time; they had been eagerly anticipating it.

Although Governor Zhu was leaving his post and returning to the capital, he had indeed reported their achievements to the court before he left. The new Governor Zhao was rumored to be at odds with Governor Zhu, but since taking office, he has not made things difficult for the generals of the garrison, and has granted all their requests.

It was clear that they intended to win over the people of Fubiao.

Given this, Fu Biao had no reason to distance himself from or even oppose Lord Zhao.

As the old saying goes, you should be loyal to whoever is in charge.

Lord Zhu has left and forgotten us; now Lord Zhao is in charge. Only a fool would dare to mess with Lord Zhao if he's honest and upright.

The atmosphere at the Fubiao garrison was joyous.

The original commander of the Fubiao was Li Zhong, the deputy general, but he was killed by Zhao An with an Ebilun sword in Suzhou. Now the nominal head of the Fubiao is Zhao Jiangong, the assistant general.

Li Zhong's death in Fubiao did not cause much of a stir. After all, Li Zhong's actions were too dishonest; he insisted on running into the line of fire of Lord Zhao. Who could he blame?

Apart from a few of Li Zhong's close confidants who shed a few tears, the other officers didn't take it to heart at all.

The officers who received the notification all gathered around Lieutenant General Zhao Jiangong. As the de facto "top leader" of the military command, Lieutenant General Zhao was in high spirits, stroking his short beard and smiling at the guerrillas, commanders, and garrison commanders who had gathered around him:

"See? What did I tell you? As long as Lord Zhu reports our achievements, no matter how much that new official Zhao sets fires, he won't dare burn our record of merits! Come on, everyone, get yourselves ready, so as not to lose face for our governor in front of Lord Zhao later! Everyone, be on your best!"

"Don't worry, sir, the brothers will be even more spirited than the groom!"

A guerrilla officer stepped forward and chimed in, "The position of Commander-in-Chief of Huaibei has been vacant since Ding Yousan's death. Perhaps the imperial court can appoint you as Commander-in-Chief of Huaibei this time!"

The commander standing nearby chimed in, "Who knows, our Lord Zhao might just get a yellow jacket from the Emperor, just like the Provincial Governor!"

"A yellow jacket? I wouldn't dare dream of that, but I'd be perfectly content with just one promotion."

Zhao Jiangong laughed heartily, full of pride. He said he dared not even think about it, but it was as if he could already see the yellow jacket beckoning to him.

Overjoyed, he waved his hand and said, "Let's go to the provincial governor's office!"

"Whoo!"

The officers responded in unison, mounted their horses, donned their armor, and galloped toward the governor's office, without any personal guards following them.

What personal guards should one bring when receiving an award and reward?
The Provincial Governor's Office is not like Grand Commandant Gao's White Tiger Hall!
When the officers arrived at the provincial governor's office on horseback, they found the place filled with joy. A minor official was directing servants to clear the streets. It was undoubtedly for the imperial envoy who was to deliver the imperial decree.

In addition, many other officials who had received the notice also arrived by sedan chair, making the area in front of the provincial governor's office quite lively.

Upon seeing the arrival of the group of military officers, Old Song, who was chatting and laughing with Song Jiawen, the prefect of Anqing, at the door, quickly stepped forward to greet them, his smile so wide it seemed to squeeze out three layers of wrinkles.

"My lord is waiting for you all in the second hall, generals, please!"

Old Song said he had to welcome other officials, so he sent two junior officials from the Bureau of Records to lead the officers of the Fubiao to the second hall. Zhao Jiangong and the others had no doubts and happily escorted them there.

Upon entering the second hall, the officers were stunned by its layout.

Where the ceremonial desk used to be was now placed, there was a long table covered with a large red tablecloth, with only one chair behind it. The chairs below were arranged in two neat rows on the left and right, with a considerable gap between each chair. Next to the chairs were small tables with covered teacups on them.

The layout looked rather strange. By this time, many officials from various government offices who had received the notice had already taken their seats under the guidance of staff. Seeing this, Zhao Jiangong assumed that the layout had been changed at the last minute because there were too many officials and the original arrangement was not feasible. He didn't take it seriously and led his subordinates in with a smile.

"Please take your seats in order of rank, gentlemen!"

A clerk from the provincial governor's office politely stepped forward to show the group of officials their seats, saying that the governor would arrive shortly. "I must say, this seating arrangement is quite interesting."

Zhao Jiangong plopped down in his chair, and his subordinates followed suit, sitting down according to their rank. Some greeted each other, some drank tea, and some chatted. As more and more officials arrived, the atmosphere in the meeting room became increasingly lively.

Old Song and Anqing Prefect Song Jiawen entered the venue shortly afterward. They had just exchanged a few words with the people from the Salt Commissioner's Office when they heard a minor official outside the door shout, "The Provincial Governor has arrived!"

Instantly, dozens of civil and military officials attending the meeting stood up and looked towards the door.

"Please, everyone, have a seat!"

Wearing a second-rank brocade robe with a pheasant emblem and a double-eyed peacock feather on his head, Zhao An entered the second hall with a broad smile. He walked straight to the only main seat and sat down, gesturing for everyone else to sit as well.

"Thank you, Lord Fantai!"

Everyone sat down again, and Fu Biao and his group straightened their backs and looked at Zhao An with eager eyes, clearly wanting to know what the court's reward for them would be.

Unexpectedly, Zhao An slowly opened a folder in his hand, then picked up a slightly cooled teacup and took a sip before calmly looking around the room: "Everyone's here, right?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, they've all arrived!"

The speaker was Old Song, and in his hand was the list of attendees.

"Oh, good."

Zhao An's smile remained unchanged. He slightly raised his right hand and pointed at the crowd with his index finger: "Since the disaster that struck our province last year, His Majesty has been concerned about the peace and tranquility of Anhui Province. He especially instructed me to strengthen the army and prepare for any eventuality. Although the White Lotus Rebellion has been temporarily quelled, the remnants among the people have not yet been eliminated. I feel a great responsibility, and I am also fortunate to have been appointed acting governor by His Majesty. Therefore, I would like to hear about the situation of the governor's detachment first. After all, the governor's detachment is the elite of the Green Standard Army in our province, and it has a stabilizing effect on the military affairs of our province. Who is that?"

The index finger was pointing to Zhao Jiangong, the nominal "top leader" of the military command.

Zhao Jiangong quickly stood up: "This humble general Zhao Jiangong will obey your orders, sir!"

"Jiangong is a good name, and it's also fitting for the occasion."

Zhao An nodded slightly to Zhao, the adjutant, and asked with a smile, "How is the training in the Fubiao Camp going? How many firearms, bows and arrows, swords and shields are available? Is the morale of the soldiers still high? Tell me about it one by one, Lord Zhao. Be detailed and tell the truth, and don't lie."

Zhao Jiangong was a little stunned. Wasn't he supposed to be here to hear about the rewards? Why was the provincial governor asking about things in the camp? Something felt off, but since the superior's inquiry involved military affairs, he couldn't refuse to answer. He quickly composed himself, cupped his hands, and said, "Reporting to Your Excellency, since returning from suppressing the bandits, my garrison has not relaxed its efforts. We have been practicing formations and firearms every day."

When reporting to his superior, Zhao Jiangong would certainly exaggerate the situation, but he dared not overstate it, because he was afraid that Zhao An might ask for details. After all, this provincial governor had personally killed religious bandits with a knife in Suzhou, and was not someone who was weak and ignorant of military affairs.

The other generals sat obediently, while the provincial officials who had been summoned to "decorate" watched curiously.

Zhao An, the provincial governor, listened intently, nodding occasionally and interjecting with questions about details such as the misfire rate of muskets, the risk of them exploding, the condition of the ammunition, and how the soldiers were fed and clothed.
He appeared to be a good boss who cared about the development of the pro-independence camp, but he never mentioned imperial edicts or rewards.

Time passed slowly, and Zhao An continued to ask questions while Zhao Jiangong answered. The atmosphere in the hall began to become subtle. Although the Fu Biao group sat upright, they felt like they were sitting on pins and needles because they suspected that the provincial governor was asking such detailed questions because he wanted to investigate the Fu Biao's accounts.
Although the provincial governor's model soldiers were the elite of the Green Standard Army in the province, it is unrealistic to say that they did not exploit the soldiers or receive salaries without working.

Zhao Jiangong was clearly aware of this as well. He was flustered but had no choice but to report. Finally, the governor asked him to sit down, thinking that the official matter of bestowing rewards would begin. However, the governor then pointed to a guerrilla officer and asked him to continue reporting. The guerrilla officer was a pure warrior. He stammered and didn't know how to say it. Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the second hall, causing all the officials in the hall to turn their heads to look.

A group of constables from the Provincial Surveillance Commission, led by a magistrate wearing a hawk-patterned jacket, barged straight in!

Immediately, the magistrate bowed to Zhao An, who was seated at the head of the table, and said respectfully, "This humble official has come to handle the case on the orders of the Provincial Governor. If I have disturbed the Provincial Governor, please forgive me!"

The words were spoken respectfully, but to openly arrest someone and prosecute them in a "meeting" chaired by the provincial governor was simply unheard of!

Many officials were taken aback: How dare the people in the provincial judicial office be so audacious!

They've really gone too far, openly slapping the face of the provincial governor.

The first thing that came to mind was that when the Provincial Governor took office, neither the Provincial Judge nor the Provincial Education Commissioner went to greet him. And then, looking at the scene before him: Good heavens, the big shots finally couldn't resist the urge to fight each other!

Zhao An's brows had already furrowed, but he waved his hand to forcefully suppress his anger and snorted softly, "The Provincial Judicial Commissioner has his own procedures for handling cases, so there's nothing to disturb. But what brings you here?"

The provincial judge straightened up and looked directly at a captain of the provincial garrison sitting in a chair. Then, under the gaze of everyone, he walked towards the captain, showed him an arrest warrant issued by the provincial garrison, and asked in a low voice, "Are you Wang Guozhen, captain of the left battalion of the provincial garrison?"

"it's me."

General Wang looked bewildered and instinctively stood up: "What are you doing?"

"Wang Guozhen!"

The provincial judge's face hardened. "Someone has accused you of forcibly seizing farmland, allowing your slaves to commit violence, and causing injury to people. The provincial judge has ordered you to be arrested and brought in for questioning! Guards, seize you!"

Several fierce-looking armed constables immediately stepped forward and, without saying a word, untied the iron chain and put it around Commander Wang's neck.

(End of this chapter)