Han Ji

After returning from Dongguan, Liu Bei seemed like a different person.

He would rise before dawn every day to handle official business, inspect the various neighborhoods, and train the servants, doing everything himself. At night, he would light a lamp to read books, either classics or laws, often staying up late into the night.

Zhang Wu felt a pang of heartache: "Doctor, are you risking your life?"

"We have no choice but to fight," Liu Bei said, flipping through the documents. "Time waits for no one."

Jian Yong understood his thoughts and privately told Qian Zhao, "Xuan De is trying to prove himself, that he is worthy of Miss Xun."

Qian Zhao nodded: "It's a good thing."

In July, another major case occurred in the north.

This is a series of robberies. A gang of ruthless bandits robbed three wealthy families in the north, committing murder and robbery with cruel methods.

Jian Yong learned that "the bandits from the north are ruthless and vicious, targeting wealthy families. I heard there are more than twenty of them, all of them desperate criminals."

Liu Bei ordered a city-wide search.

But this group was elusive and swift, and after searching for several days, they couldn't even find a trace of them.

On the fourth day, another wealthy family was robbed, and all seven members of the family perished.

The north was shaken. Wealthy families lived in fear, and some even moved away with their entire families.

The pressure has now fallen on Liu Bei.

The Sili Commandant's Office issued an order: solve the case within ten days, or face accountability.

Liu Bei, along with Qian Zhao and Zhang Wu, investigated the case day and night.

On-site investigation, interviews with witnesses, and analysis of the modus operandi... On the seventh day, a clue was finally found.

A night watchman said that on the night of the incident, he saw several dark figures come out of the house of the wealthy family that had been robbed and head towards the mass grave in the north of the city.

The mass grave is an abandoned cemetery at the foot of Beiman Mountain, which is usually deserted.

"Right there," Liu Bei asserted. "They definitely have a hideout there."

That night, he personally led a team to raid the mass grave.

Sure enough, they found the group of people in an abandoned mortuary.

More than twenty ruthless bandits were dividing their loot. When they saw the government troops arrive, instead of running away, they drew their knives and attacked.

A fierce battle.

These bandits were indeed fierce, but Qian Zhao and Zhang Wu were even more ruthless. Qian Zhao, in particular, wielded a knife with such skill that water seemed impenetrable, and he slashed three people in succession.

Liu Bei also drew his sword and joined the battle. The practical swordsmanship he had honed in Lujiang was concise, ruthless, and focused on striking vital points.

After half an hour of fierce fighting, more than half of the bandits were killed or wounded, and the rest surrendered.

The leader was a one-eyed man who was captured by the police.

After inventorying the stolen goods, most of the stolen property from the three families was recovered.

The case has been solved.

The Commandant of the Capital Region was overjoyed and submitted a memorial requesting credit for Liu Bei.

Emperor Ling wrote in vermilion ink: "Liu Bei is capable and worthy of great use." He was rewarded with 100,000 coins and 50 bolts of silk.

After distributing the rewards, Liu Bei gave them all to the officers who participated in the operation. He kept nothing for himself.

The people in the north were overjoyed again and sent even more plaques.

This time, even some people in the imperial court began to take notice of this young Northern Commandant.

In August, Xun Shuang invited Liu Bei to his residence.

This was not a casual chat in the study, but a formal banquet. In addition to Xun Shuang and Lu Zhi, several upright officials were also present.

During the banquet, Xun Shuang inquired about matters concerning security and criminal justice in the north, to which Liu Bei answered fluently.

The ministers nodded in agreement.

When the banquet ended, Xun Shuang personally escorted Liu Bei to the door.

"Xuande," he rarely smiled, "you've done a good job in the north. Keep up the good work."

"Thank you for your encouragement, Master Xun."

Lu Zhi stood to the side, his eyes filled with satisfaction.

On the way back, Lu Zhi said to Liu Bei, "Lord Ciming is paving the way for you today. Those ministers are all influential figures in the court. If they approve of you, your future will be much smoother."

"The student understands."

"Also," Lu Zhi lowered his voice, "the Yin family has been quiet for the time being. Ciming Gong has been politely declining, so the Yin family naturally won't make a fool of themselves."

Liu Bei felt relieved.

"However," Lu Zhi looked at him, "although Lord Ciming admires you, you need to achieve even greater things so that he feels at ease marrying his daughter to you."

"Student... will definitely work hard."

In September, Liu Bei received his transfer order.

It wasn't a promotion, but a temporary transfer, to assist in the trial of a major case: the corruption case of the magistrate of Luoyang.

The magistrate of Luoyang was a highly lucrative position with a salary of 1,000 shi (a unit of grain measure), in charge of civil administration in the capital. The current magistrate of Luoyang, surnamed Wang, was the nephew of the eunuch Wang Fu. He was insatiably greedy, and the people were filled with resentment.

The Commandant of the Capital Region had long wanted to take action against him, but had refrained from doing so out of respect for Wang Fu. This time, however, he had seized upon conclusive evidence and, in conjunction with the Censorate, was preparing to seize him in one fell swoop.

The reason for temporarily transferring Liu Bei was that he dared to confront tough issues and had experience in handling cases.

Liu Bei received the transfer order and went to the Sili Commandant's office to report for duty.

The presiding judge was Yang Qiu, the Commandant of the Capital Region, known for his uprightness. Upon meeting Liu Bei, he said directly:

"Liu, the reason I've temporarily transferred you is to be in charge of auditing the accounts. The evidence of Magistrate Wang's corruption lies in the accounts. But the accounts are cleverly made, and most people won't see any flaws. I heard you audited Zhou Chong's accounts in Lujiang, so you have experience."

"I will do my best."

"It's not just about trying our best, it's about finding out the truth." Yang Qiu looked at him. "This operation is a counterattack by the Qingliu faction against the eunuchs. It can only succeed; it cannot fail."

"Understood."

Liu Bei, accompanied by Jian Yong and Li Gongcao, moved into the official residence provided by the Sili Xiaowei's office.

The accounts arrived and filled half a room.

The three of them worked day and night, checking each item meticulously.

Magistrate Wang was indeed cunning; his accounts were flawless. On the surface, the income and expenditure were balanced, without any flaws.

But Liu Bei discovered the problem.

There were several large expenditures, ostensibly for repairing government offices and providing relief to disaster victims, but the corresponding procurement and distribution records did not match.

For example, there was an expenditure for repairing the government office, and the funds were allocated to a timber company. However, the timber company's ledger did not record this transaction at all.

Further investigation revealed that the timber shop was actually a shell company run by Magistrate Wang's brother-in-law.

"Fake accounts," Liu Bei concluded, "using false projects to embezzle public funds."

Following this lead, a string of people were uncovered: the county magistrate, the registrar, the head of the household administration... The entire Luoyang County government was utterly corrupt.

After investigating for half a month, all the evidence was found.

Yang Qiu submitted a memorial impeaching Yang Qiu overnight.

When the memorial was submitted, Wang Fu was greatly alarmed and tried every means to obstruct it. However, this time the evidence was conclusive, and Emperor Ling could not suppress it. He had no choice but to issue an edict: Magistrate Wang was dismissed from his post and investigated, and his family property was confiscated.

Wang Fu was so angry that he fell ill, but there was nothing he could do.

With the case closed, Liu Bei returned to the Northern Commandery.

Yang Qiu personally saw him off, patting him on the shoulder: "Well done. You've done a great job this time, and I'll recommend you for commendation."

"Lord Xie Yang".

Back in the north, Li Gongcao exclaimed excitedly, "Commander, you're famous now! You've even brought down Wang Fu's nephew. Who in the court would dare to look down on you now?"

Liu Bei shook his head: "Becoming famous is not a good thing. This time we've offended Wang Fu, who is even more ruthless than Zhao Zhong and Zhang Rang. From now on, we must be more careful."

Sure enough, retaliation came quickly.

In early October, someone reported that the Northern Commandery had "established a private torture chamber and abused torture."

The informants were a few local thugs who claimed they were arrested and severely tortured by officers from the Commandant's Office without cause.

The Sili Commandant's Office sent people to investigate.

Liu Bei responded calmly, pulling out the case files for arresting these local ruffians. They were all criminals with conclusive evidence, and the arrests and interrogations were lawful.

The investigation was dropped.