Chapter 299 The Imperial Envoy summons! The cavalry rushes out of Taicang
Chapter 299 The Imperial Envoy summons! The cavalry rushes out of Taicang
A list!
The inner residence of Songjiazhuang.
Even though he was mentally prepared, when Zhao Duan saw the names on the paper, his heart still skipped a beat!
At the top of the evidence in the box, on a white paper, was a list of people suspected to be accomplices of the Taicang County Magistrate, who had been investigated by the missing Song Tiju!
Behind each name, the identity is clearly written and the index is marked.
That is, on which page of the stack of documents is the evidence of this person's guilt located?
This was clearly a list of criminals involved in the silver mine corruption case… and among the dozen or so people on the paper, at the top were three names circled in ink:
Gao Lian
Liu Ji, the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner
Sun Xiaozhun, the governor of Taicang
Next to the names of the three people, there is a line of handwriting, which roughly means:
The person behind Wang Chusheng is most likely one of these three people.
As for who exactly they are, or how many there are, according to what Song Tizhu left behind, his ability is not enough to find out.
The reason why he narrowed down the suspects to these three people was because he found out that the Taicang County Magistrate was suspected to have a certain "interest transfer" relationship with the three people.
"The worst has happened..."
Zhao Duan's pupils narrowed and he sighed in his heart.
Before leaving Beijing, Zhao Duan had a conversation with Yuan Li.
The result of the discussion between the two at that time was that it was not something that ordinary people could do to dare to get involved in the silver mine.
Wang Chusheng was able to conceal his secret for a long time without being exposed. His backer was not in Taicang Prefecture but in Linfeng Road.
It was precisely because of this suspicion that he went to great lengths to carry out the "secret attack".
Now, the list provided by Song Tiju confirmed his guess...
"So... the matter is basically clear now. Song Tiju, as the chief officer of the Mining Taxation Department, noticed that the county magistrate Wang Chusheng, who also served as the mine supervisor, was suspected of embezzling mine silver in the name of 'fire consumption'. He secretly continued to investigate, and the level of involvement became higher and higher."
"The old scholar said that Song Tiju wanted to present the evidence to the Taicang prefect, but later stopped...
Is it because he suspected that the prefect Sun Xiaozhun was also involved in the corruption? And because the two chief officials of Linfeng Road were also suspected... he could only report it secretly to the capital..."
"I reported it urgently because I realized that my investigation might be discovered...
Therefore, after the secret letter was sent, he was targeted by the real big tiger behind the scenes. The so-called "disappearance" is most likely to be silenced? Or secretly arrested..."
"The 'disappearance' of County Magistrate Wang Chusheng was to cut off his tail and survive..."
At this moment, many thoughts flashed through Zhao Duan's mind, and his eyes flickered.
Once again, write down all the dozen or so names on the list.
The most valuable part of this list is not the suspicions of Gao, Liu and Sun, but the rest of the names.
These people are all Wang Chusheng's indirect accomplices.
Wang Chusheng fled urgently, but these people may not have disappeared...
Well, even if they escaped in advance, with so many people, even if the "big tiger" behind the scenes had the advantage of location, time was running out and it would be difficult to do everything well.
As long as we follow these clues and conduct investigation and tracing, we may be able to identify the real culprit.
"Master Zhao?"
Inside the hall, seeing him clutching the paper with a changing expression, Xu Junling called out softly, unable to conceal his curiosity:
"What's on the paper?"
The princess can’t see the content from this angle.
Zhao Duan quickly calmed down, a smile reappeared on his face, and he said teasingly:
"Do you really want to see it? I've heard a saying that curiosity kills the cat. Some things are different once you've seen them."
What a weird saying... The noble and reserved Princess Huai'an, who was dressed in a low-key dress, rolled her eyes and snorted:
"If you don't want me to see it, then I won't see it."
"Your Excellency the Imperial Envoy...you see..." At this moment, the fifty-year-old scholar with a long beard opposite spoke cautiously.
Zhao Duan closed the box and, like a magic trick, put it into the silver scroll in his sleeve and said seriously:
"I will take the things away now and will not disturb you any more. I hope you will keep your mouth shut. I will finish the Taicang case in the next two days and I will count it as a credit to your Song family."
"I dare not, I dare not ask for anything. It is our Song family's blessing to be able to serve Your Majesty." Mr. Song stood up to see him off.
I just want to distance myself from this matter and stay as far away from the so-called credit as possible.
Xu Junling's attention was focused on the three words "these two days", and he couldn't help but be surprised.
Judging from what Zhao Duan said, he seems to be confident that he can solve the case in a short time?
real or fake……
The three people in the hall stood up and were about to go out.
But just after taking a few steps, Lu Qingfeng and his companions looked towards the courtyard across the courtyard wall, only to hear noisy sounds accompanied by shouting.
"This..." Mr. Song looked at the imperial envoy in confusion.
Zhao Duan also frowned.
The next second, a group of people rushed through the courtyard and arrived at the backyard. A servant shouted anxiously:
"Master! The county magistrate is here to search for the thief..."
As the servant was shouting, Zhao Duan saw a group of about twenty clerks in the uniforms of detectives, carrying scabbards and rushing in with ferocious looks.
The one in the lead was dressed slightly differently; he was the captain of the police.
He walked in with a fierce look on his face, his eyes fixed on Zhao Duan and the others.
The posture of holding the knife handle became more exaggerated, and he raised his chin with a scrutinizing look:
"We are officials from the Taicang County Government. We have received reports from the people that you were behaving suspiciously around the mine. Please come back to the government office with us."
Everyone was stunned for a moment.
Zhao Duan and Xu Junling looked at each other with strange expressions.
Mr. Song was also confused and doubtful for a moment: "I'm afraid this matter is a misunderstanding..."
"Mr. Song,"
The county constable naturally recognized this gentleman and spoke in a more polite tone.
The words could not be rejected, and he clasped his fists:
"Now the imperial envoy from Beijing has come to the city. The silver mine is an important place and the supervision is strict. I would like to ask Mr. Song to go to the government office with him. When the county magistrate comes back, he can investigate thoroughly and then release him."
"..."Mr. Song was stunned for a moment, and looked at Zhao Duan's expression with some suspicion.
He suddenly felt a little unsure whether this was the imperial envoy.
"Sir, please come in." The head constable made a "please" gesture with a blank expression. The constables behind him gathered in a fan shape, as if ready to capture him at any time.
Xu Junling's expression remained unchanged.
Lu Qingfeng rolled up his sleeves, his brows lowered, and the man holding the knife held the handle, looking at him with disdain, trying to stop him.
——He can overthrow a few small constables in two breaths.
"Okay," Zhao Duan smiled and gave them a look, asking them to stay calm:
"I was just thinking of going to the county government office to sit down."
While speaking, a folded yellowed paper slipped out from the sleeve behind his back and fell into his palm. It turned out that words had been written on that special "talisman" for communication at some point in time.
At this moment, with the traction of Qi, the two ink words "Come quickly" on the brown-yellow paper quickly dried and disappeared.
"Now that we have the evidence, there is no need to cover it up."
Soon, the group left Song's residence under the surveillance of the county detectives.
The Song clan members were left with anxious and ugly expressions.
"What should I do?"
Mr. Song's wife and children were in a panic. The young master of the Song family suddenly grabbed Coach Xie and said:
"Please ask the instructor to personally go and inform Prefect Sun of the news that my father has been taken away."
The old scholar was a guest of honor of the prefect Sun Xiaozheng, and the panicked Song family instinctively sought his help.
"Yes!" Coach Xie ran away. The young boy Xiaowu rolled his eyes and seized the opportunity to redeem himself:
"Master, I'm going too!"
……
……
In the city, inside the post house.
In the separate courtyard where the "imperial envoy" lived, the royal guards of Lihua Hall sat in the courtyard in groups of three or four, killing time out of boredom.
The round-faced female warrior Qian Kerou walked back from the front yard.
Pushing the door open and entering the room, he glanced around and saw Hou Renmeng sitting cross-legged on the bed, wiping a knife with a rag.
Shen Juan, who was disguised as an imperial envoy with a "mask", was lying on the table to catch up on his sleep in a very ungraceful manner.
"Sleep, sleep, sleep. All you do is sleep. What if someone comes in and sees you?"
Qian Kerou kicked Shen Juan in annoyance.
Shen Juan, the well-known bad player in Lihua Hall and addicted to staying up late, yawned, got up, and didn't care:
"There are so many brothers guarding outside, who can get in? Well, what's going on outside?"
Qian Kerou folded her arms, leaned against the wall, and said:
"Censor Chen is discussing a case with that Magistrate Sun. I feel dizzy just listening to them."
"Only talking about the case? Didn't Chen Hong spread the word of bribery yesterday? These people are not sensible at all?" Shen Juan looked puzzled.
Hou Ren, who was sitting on the bed and cleaning his knife, sneered and said:
"My Lord, have you forgotten that I demanded a bribe in the government office and then detained someone?
I guess these people are afraid of being cheated. Besides, we are here to investigate corruption. If they really give us gifts, wouldn't that be courting death?
I think your trick has already been seen through."
Qian Kerou said contemptuously:
"You are just a rough guy who only knows how to fight and kill, and you want to figure out what the adults are thinking? You are on the first floor, and the adults are at least on the fifth floor..."
Shen Juan watched the two quarreling and tried to persuade them helplessly:
"Okay. You tell me, how long do we have to pretend? Even though I'm being aloof with Censor Chen blocking me, these officials are not fools. I estimate that I can only pretend for two or three days at most before they get suspicious."
Qian Kerou had a stern face. As a confidential secretary, she had the consciousness of a class leader:
"We just need to wait patiently for the next instruction. The Lord has a long-term plan and must have made some arrangements. Maybe there will be instructions soon..."
After he finished speaking, Shen Juan suddenly raised his hand to signal for silence, and took out a folded yellow-brown paper from his arms.
On the paper, a ray of fire appeared, and the words "Come quickly" slowly emerged.
"The Lord is calling us over!"
Shen Juan stood up excitedly.
Qian Kerou's eyes lit up:
"I'll go gather some men! Tell General Yuan to set off!"
"Haha, I was so suffocated! I can finally get out!"
The unruly Hou Ren snapped his fingers and flicked the blade, causing a buzzing sound.
The man flew out.
The words "Come quickly" were a signal agreed upon in advance. Once issued, it meant that the entire imperial envoy team was on the move.
By relying on the positioning between the two brown and yellow paperweights, one can roughly sense the direction within a certain distance.
……
The front yard of the post house.
Chen Hong, the dental censor who was chatting with Prefect Sun, heard the noise in the courtyard, his eyes moved, he stood up leisurely, and said with a smile:
"Taiwanese Prime Minister Sun, the imperial envoy is out on a tour. I will go first."
After saying that, he walked away without any explanation.
Because of his swift and decisive actions, the prefect Sun Xiaozheng, who came early today to report the case on behalf of the high-ranking officials in the city, was confused.
The prefect, who was as thin as black iron and had a tough temperament, stood up and chased out of the courtyard in a few steps, his crimson official robe fluttering in the autumn wind.
He was shocked to find that hundreds of cavalrymen swarmed out from the side of the post station.
The leader was none other than Yuan Xingjun, the newly appointed deputy general who had entered the city yesterday with a flag in hand and was wearing a black armor and iron helmet.
"Rumble..."
The sound of horse hooves was like thunder, and a day later, it woke up the entire city.
Sun Xiaozhun was stunned for a second, his face changed drastically, and he grabbed a close follower beside him, his eyes red:
"Hurry and inform Gao Fantai and Liu Nietai!"
After saying this, the prefect picked up his scarlet robe and strode after the imperial envoys:
"Imperial Envoy, wait for me..."
(End of this chapter)