Qing Yao

Chapter 443 Don't blame Teacher Zhao!

Just ask.

The old master didn't say what status Zhao An used to ask, but that didn't stop him from making a special trip back to the Anhui examination hall to put on the imperial yellow jacket, and then appear before Marquis Jinghai Shi Bingren with Xiao Shuan, Xu Lin and others.

The Marquis had been placed under "supervision" by Master Fu's men more than an hour earlier, but when Zhao An appeared coldly in front of him wearing a yellow jacket, the Marquis thought the matter could be suppressed.

Because Master Fu accepted 10,000 taels of silver from him.

This shows that Master Fu was dishonest. He took the 10,000 taels of silver notes from the Shi family and then went home for dinner.

This is a typical case of taking money without doing anything, which is completely different from the way He Zhongtang takes money and does things, and if he can't do it, he will refund the amount he was charged.

They are truly despicable people.

Actually, Master Fu didn't want to help the Marquis suppress the matter, but Heshen either didn't make a decision, or once he made a decision, Master Fu couldn't persuade him otherwise.

Wolves and jackals are allies, but the jackal will always listen to the wolf.

Master Fu could never be considered "headed by Master Fu" in his entire life.

If anyone's to blame, it's Shih Ping-jen himself for being so foolish and creating trouble for himself.

Master Fu specifically asked Commander Fan of the Military Governor's Office about the details of the incident. At that time, he felt that this Marquis Shi did not know how to behave. The Emperor personally issued an edict to raise the banner, so why is he making trouble here?

So what if the materials are incomplete? When a living person is standing in front of you, why would you care what his grandfather or paternal grandfather is called or what he does? Does that mean the paternal grandfathers are fake?

With a "smack," the official seal was stamped and the item was put into a leather bag. Would it be Heshen, the commander-in-chief, or the Emperor himself who would check it?
Eat carrots and worry less.

Now look what's happened! You've defiled the old master's imperial edict and destroyed the imperial calligraphy. Even if it doesn't cost your entire family their lives, you, the marquis, will probably have to stick out your neck and get a knife.

Thinking about it carefully, Zhao Youlu's words make sense. Regardless of whether you, Marquis Jinghai, did it intentionally or unintentionally, the saying goes, "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down." If you are not made an example of, who knows what other people might jump out and cause trouble for them in the future.

Zhao Youlu's face is the Grand Secretary's backside!

Is it okay to touch a tiger's butt whenever you want?

Zhao An greeted the two banner commanders who were supervising Shi Bingren, then pushed open the door and went straight to the point: "Marquis Jinghai, the Emperor has asked me to ask you some questions."

When Lord Shi, who was sitting there, saw that it was Zhao An who had entered, he was immediately startled, but he still obediently knelt down and said, "Your subject Shi Bingren reports as ordered."

Looking at Shi Bingren, whom he considered dead in his heart, Zhao Anqing coughed lightly and said calmly, "Are you using my calligraphy as a stepping stone, or as a pledge of allegiance to someone?"

"this!"

The Marquis trembled upon being asked these two questions: Where do you even begin!

What stepping stone? What pledge of allegiance?

Intuition told him something was wrong, and he wanted to protest his innocence, but Zhao An didn't give him the chance. His face suddenly hardened: "Marquis Jinghai, you only need to answer the Emperor's question. There's no need to say anything else."

He paused briefly, then shouted, "Is it a stepping stone or a pledge of loyalty? Speak!"

The Marquis's choice was to never tell, because no matter which option he chose, he would not escape death, and it would even implicate his family.

Even a fool would understand that his superior, Heshen, wanted to kill him.

To survive, one must grit one's teeth; only in this way might one be lucky enough to retain one's life.

When Zhao An arrived, he knew that Lord Shi would definitely not "confess." He gave a slight hum with a blank expression. Yang Xiaoshuan quickly placed a confession, which was already filled with charges of crimes, in front of Lord Shi and handed him a pen and ink.

"My lord, sign it and you'll suffer less physical pain."

Zhao An looks a bit like Zhao Wenzhuo, the Nine Gates Admiral who looks at people with a sidelong glance.

"This is?"

As Lord Shi's gaze swept over the confession, he became increasingly alarmed. It stated that he admitted to harboring resentment and deliberately damaging the imperial seal to curse the emperor!
This one point alone is enough for him to execute him immediately.

His eyes blazed with fury, and he roared, "You Zhao, if you're going to frame someone, you'll always find a reason! You'll die a horrible death for framing loyal officials!"

"Loyal and virtuous?"

Zhao An sneered, bent down and leaned closer, "How did your ancestor Shi Lang go from being a loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty to a meritorious official of our Great Qing? My lord, I advise you to sign it, so that it will save trouble for both of us."

"you!"

Enraged, the Marquis lunged at Zhao An, but was easily pushed down onto the kang by the skilled Zhao An with a simple grappling technique.

He casually instructed Xu Lin, "Keep a close eye on him, don't let him try to kill himself!"

He then walked out of the house.

Just now in the palace, I overheard the old master implying that Shi Bingren was doomed, so whether Shi Bingren signed or not, his fate was already sealed.

However, Zhao An wanted to exterminate the entire family of the Marquis of Jinghai, so it would be difficult to achieve his goal with just a confession.

Just as he was pondering this, a group of imperial guards wearing yellow jackets entered the governor's office, among them was Zhao An's good brother, Qingyao.

The leader of the group was another first-class bodyguard, Ming Antai, whom Zhao An also knew. He was the one who had come to Anhui specifically to deliver the documents for the acting governor of Anhui.

"Greetings to Lord Zhao!" After bowing, Ming Antai didn't waste any words and said in a low voice, "The Grand Secretary's intention is either not to do it at all, or to make it an ironclad case. If it can't be done here by the Marquis of Jinghai, you can go to the Marquis's residence to take a look."

Hou Mansion?

Zhao An's eyes lit up. That's right! It was a fabricated story anyway. Why should I argue with you, the person involved? I'll just raid your house!
If it's the Marquis's mansion, I don't believe we can't find evidence of your Shi family's conspiracy against the Qing Dynasty.

With evidence in this regard, the scope can naturally be expanded.

Just do it!

Suddenly, a group of guards in yellow jackets stormed into the house, turning the Jinghai Marquis's residence into chaos in the blink of an eye, with cries echoing throughout the house.

The guards ransacked the place like wolves, discarding precious artifacts and jade pieces at will, while women and children were driven to a corner to tremble in fear.

Zhao An, the commander-in-chief of the raid, stood with his hands behind his back in the courtyard, seemingly oblivious to the chaos before him. What he needed was not gold and silver, but something that could completely destroy the Shi family.

"My lord, we have thoroughly searched the study inside and out, and found mostly ordinary books and correspondence, nothing special."

Qingyao, who had just come out of the Marquis's study, shook his head repeatedly.

Ming Antai also came over to report that no contraband had been found.

Zhao An frowned slightly. He couldn't believe that a marquis's mansion, which had been passed down for generations, would be so clean. He frowned and ordered, "Search again! Hidden walls, secret compartments, under the floor tiles, knock on every inch!"

Upon receiving the order, the guards immediately launched a second large-scale search, while Zhao An strolled into Shi Bingren's study.

The study was furnished in a simple and unpretentious style, reminiscent of a military family. The decor was not luxurious, but it exuded an air of prestige.

The Marquis's mansion, which has been around for over a hundred years, has a rich history and heritage.

I picked up a few books from the bookshelf at random and flipped through them; they were all ordinary classics and did not violate any prohibitions.

However, they found an inconspicuous sandalwood box at the bottom of the bookshelf. Qingyao and the others had searched the box, but probably found nothing and just left it there.

Zhao An picked it up and saw that it contained several yellowed old manuscripts, which looked quite old, but they were all military books.

I casually flipped open the first book, glanced at it briefly, and tossed it onto the bookshelf. I looked at the other books but found nothing of interest. Just as I was about to put them down, I suddenly noticed a line of writing on the bottom page of this military book called "Wei Liao Zi".

The handwriting isn't very good, but judging from the ink marks, it's at least a hundred years old.

It is a poem, which reads:
"The Jin dynasty is in ruins, and the crowing of the rooster awakens a heart of iron."

Gentlemen, let your tears fall freely at Xinting, so that you may come to know Fanyang in the Central Plains!

The phrase “The collapse of the Jin dynasty was an unbearable event” clearly refers to the southward migration of the Western Jin imperial family; “The rooster’s crow awakens an iron heart” is an allusion to the story of Zu Ti, a famous general of the Eastern Jin dynasty, who, with his country in mind, would get up in the middle of the night to practice swordsmanship upon hearing the rooster crow, honing his skills in order to recover the Central Plains.

Zhao An didn't understand the line "Gentlemen, shed tears at Xinting," so he quoted the story of "Weeping at Xinting."

This refers to the gatherings of scholars and officials who fled south after the fall of the Western Jin Dynasty. They would often meet at Xinting in Jinling, facing their homeland and weeping, yet feeling helpless.

The last line, "It is good to know Fanyang in the Central Plains," is something Zhao An, with his historical knowledge, would certainly understand. Fanyang must refer to Li Guangbi, the famous general who quelled the An Lushan Rebellion and revived the Tang Dynasty.

Combined with the incomprehensible third line, the entire poem is actually an appeal to the world not to weep like the people of Jin, but to learn from generals like Li Guangbi and use force to recover the Central Plains and save the country.

The poem avoids any taboos related to literary inquisitions because it doesn't mention "barbarians" or "capitals," nor does it mention "Ming" or "Qing." It can be used by writers from all dynasties to express their aspirations.

But the inscription on the poem caught Zhao An's eye, for it read: "In the autumn of the first year of Yongli (1667), I obtained General Zhang Jiayu's manuscript in Guangdong. I was deeply saddened upon reading it and copied it by hand to preserve it. Respectfully inscribed by Shi Lang."

Who is Zhang Jiayu?
He was a famous minister of the Southern Ming Dynasty who resisted the Qing Dynasty. He was known as one of the "Three Loyalists of Lingnan" along with Chen Bangyan and Chen Zizhuang. In the end, he was defeated and drowned himself, sacrificing his life for his country!

All of his works and poems were banned during the Qing Dynasty!

How did Shi Lang, who was always regarded as a general under the Zheng family, obtain Zhang Jiayu's manuscript?

The answer is simple: in the third year of the Shunzhi reign, Shi Lang followed the Qing army commander Bolo on a southern expedition. Later, he was placed under the command of Li Chengdong to attack Guangdong. During this period, he quelled the Southern Ming anti-Qing righteous army in Dongguan and Zengcheng.

Among them was Zhang Jiayu's troops.

Shi Lang's defection to the Qing was forced, or rather, coerced. After all, Zheng Zhilong, the leader of the Zheng army, had taken the initiative to surrender to the Qing, and Shi Lang, as a general under Zheng, had no choice but to follow his "leaders" no matter how unwilling he was.

However, having surrendered to the Qing, he naturally had to serve the Qing army; otherwise, how could the Manchus trust him, Shi Lang? So Shi Lang followed Li Chengdong to suppress anti-Qing righteous armies throughout Guangdong, killing many people.

Perhaps out of a lingering conscience, or perhaps out of respect for Zhang Jiayu, he copied Zhang's manuscript onto the bottom page of the military book he carried with him after obtaining it.

Whether it was forgotten later or deliberately left behind, a century has passed, and this military treatise, "Wei Liao Zi," which contains Zhang Jiayu's manuscript, has been "unwittingly" inherited by successive Marquises of Jinghai until it was discovered by Zhao An.

Things began to subtly change.

Was Shi Lang loyal or disloyal?

The first year of Yongli was the third year of Shunzhi. As a general of the Qing Dynasty, why did you, Shi Lang, use the reign title of Yongli?

Why didn't his descendants hand over this military book, which contained forbidden poems, to the imperial court?

After closing the book "Wei Liao Zi", Zhao An walked out of the study without making a sound and said to the guard Ming Antai who was searching the place, "Detain all the people in the Jinghai Marquis's mansion, regardless of age or gender, and await further instructions."

(End of this chapter)