Chapter 589: Shen Shixing is a Bad Man

Shen Shixing was curious: would this pack of petty scoundrels, led by the Sea Dragon Gang, truly dare to kill him, the Governor of Songjiang, right here in Songjiang Prefecture? Did they really have the guts?

Magistrate Lian Biao of Zhenping County, Nanyang Prefecture, Henan, and the county clerk Liu Rukang had died one after another at the hands of the county jail warden Li Ducai. If one looks for the essence behind the phenomena, one would find it was because information was absolutely sealed off, leading to the reckless and lawless behavior of local officials.

So, as Songjiang Prefecture was a thoroughfare for nine provinces—a place marinated in the flavor of silver—would it also exhibit similar characteristics?

After all, some people who put money above all else believed that money could do anything; with money, one could defy public order, good customs, and the law.

Shen Shixing felt that if he were to be killed, he might at least leave a name in history. Of course, if he could avoid dying, he would still prefer to cling to life.

Shen Shixing had completely lost trust in the local authorities. In fact, Governors across the Great Ming did not trust the local authorities much. When taking up their posts, they would all bring their own private secretaries and staff—usually one or two secretaries, plus a group of retainers and guards to protect their own safety.

Yin Zhengmao taking guest troops to Lu Song, and Ling Yunyi taking three thousand guest troops to show off their power everywhere—it was the same logic. Governors all had their own trusted aides; the circumstances were just different, and the scale varied slightly.

As a disciple of Zhang Juzheng and a fellow student of the Great Ming Emperor, plus the fact that Songjiang Prefecture was a vital bridgehead for opening the seas, Shen Shixing was protected by the Embroidered Uniform Guard of the Southern Yamen. At this moment, Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang was in Songjiang Prefecture.

Shen Shixing issued an order for the Shanghai County constables to cooperate with the Huating County constables to wipe out the four major gangs led by the Sea Dragon Gang.

The development of events took Shen Shixing completely by surprise. The Huating County constables' arrest operation was extremely smooth because before they had even reached Shanghai County, Shanghai County, having received the news, had rounded up the Sea Dragon Gang in one fell swoop. The ringleaders, along with the accountant, were all captured and brought to justice, and were to be escorted to Huating County.

This was a cutting-off of ties, and the speed was so fast it left Shen Shixing dumbfounded.

An operation involving over fifty people could not possibly be kept from prying eyes, so Shen Shixing had no intention of hiding the news. If he had truly wanted to hide the news, the person coming to the Songjiang Prefectural Yamen should have been Chen Lin, not Zhang Cheng, a eunuch Commandant who mediated conflicts between all parties.

Shen Shixing's original intention was to test the reaction of the local officials in Songjiang Prefecture.

Yan Shixuan, the Magistrate of Shanghai County, personally led one hundred and fifty constables to escort the criminals to the Songjiang Prefectural Yamen. After handing the criminals over to the Vice Prefect of Songjiang, Yan Shixuan sent a visiting card, requesting an audience with the Governor.

Shen Shixing met Yan Shixuan the next day.

Yan Shixuan, a Jinshi from the eighth year of Wanli, had been an official in charge of supervision in Songjiang Prefecture. In the tenth year of Wanli, he passed the official selection and was recommended by the Jin Party core member Wang Jiaping to be the Magistrate of Shanghai County. This kind of recommendation was a guarantee; if Yan Shixuan ran into trouble, Wang Jiaping would bear joint responsibility—he was on the list for collective punishment.

Yan Shixuan was of military household status from Yulin Guard, Suide Department, Yan'an Prefecture, Shaanxi. His father had old ties with Wang Jiaping. Yan Shixuan had not been able to become Wang Jiaping's disciple because, under the prevailing trend of avoiding the "master-disciple" label, Wang Jiaping was extremely cautious about his disciples. He had only taken in Wan Wenqing and Wu Weizhong out of genuine appreciation for their talent.

"Greetings, Governor." Yan Shixuan did not look flustered at all. Even when he saw Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang, who was wearing a flying-fish robe and carrying an embroidered-spring saber, he remained as steady as Mount Tai.

"The waters in Songjiang Prefecture are a bit deep. There is both the Zhang Dang and the Jin Party," Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang said meaningfully, looking at Shen Shixing and then at Yan Shixuan.

As far as Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang was concerned, he was neither Zhang Dang nor Jin Party; he was the Emperor's claw and tooth. His presence in Songjiang Prefecture was, firstly, to audit taxes, and secondly, to keep an eye on things so that a farce of killing an official wouldn't break out. Zhenping County had already caused the Great Ming court to lose face.

Yan Shixuan thought for a moment and added: "There is also the Zhe Party. The disciple of the Grand Minister, Xu Bingzheng, the Magistrate of Qingpu County, is a member of the Zhe Party."

"Oh? I originally thought it was a standoff, but I didn't expect it to be a three-way melee," Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang frowned, then relaxed and said calmly.

"Since you knew the Sea Dragon Gang was committing all kinds of evil, why were you unwilling to eradicate them? Why did you have to wait until I knew about this matter before you were willing to act?" Shen Shixing asked, his brows tightly furrowed. Since the cutting-off of ties was so fast, and the Sea Dragon Gang's big boss, Hai Lao Si, had also been captured and brought to justice, his identity verified.

Why hadn't Yan Shixuan acted before?

Yan Shixuan said with great helplessness: "When the Grand Minister was in Songjiang Prefecture, these people didn't dare to act recklessly. Since Governor Shen took office, they have become increasingly arrogant."

"In *Water Margin*, when Lu Zhishen beat up 'Zhen Guanxi', after the butcher Zheng Tu died, the neighbors reported the case. The Prefect of Weizhou said to those around him: 'Lu Da is a Commandant from the Grand Coordinator's office; I dare not capture the culprit without authorization.'"

"The Prefect of Weizhou then personally went to the Grand Coordinator's office and informed the Grand Coordinator of the ins and outs of the matter."

Yan Shixuan looked at Shen Shixing. This time, his answer was very solemn. Although he was borrowing a plot point from *Water Margin*, Yan Shixuan had already made his point very clear: when Wang Daokun was there, these people didn't dare to cause any deaths. Now that you, Shen Shixing, have arrived, they are so arrogant—who knows if they are the lackeys you, Shen Shixing, have recruited?

Shanghai County wanted to handle it, but they were afraid of hitting the rat while breaking the vase; they didn't dare to act.

"Nonsense! What does that have to do with me?" Shen Shixing sneered.

Yan Shixuan sighed and said: "The Prefect of Weizhou even ran to the Grand Coordinator's office to ask if Lu Zhishen should be captured. That was just the random speculation of those clerks who hadn't experienced the officialdom. In fact, one cannot even ask."

"Governor Shen comes from the court in the capital; you are a person from the heavens. Your teacher is the Grand Secretary and Imperial Tutor of this court, and your colleagues are all future high-ranking officials in the capital. Naturally, you don't know the difficulties we people below face."

Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang nodded in deep agreement and said: "Magistrate Yan's words are reasonable."

Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang had been handling cases in the Southern Yamen for years. People from the heavens like Shen Shixing didn't quite understand the twists and turns of local officials. They had to be wary of many things, especially Governors who descended from the sky; naturally, they had to be cautious, and then even more cautious.

In Shen Shixing's view, it was Magistrate Yan Shixuan of Shanghai County who was quickly cutting ties, but in Yan Shixuan's view, Shen Shixing ordering the strike against these lackeys was also a quick cutting of ties.

"What makes you think that this Hai Mingyuan of the Sea Dragon Gang is my man? In front of the Commandant, let's make everything clear. Even if this goes to the Zhao Wenhua Hall, I, Shen Shixing, am upright and open; I am not afraid of questioning." Shen Shixing was a bit angry. If Yan Shixuan couldn't give a reason today, even if it went to the Emperor, he would have to make it clear.

Yan Shixuan looked at Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang with a look of help, but Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang was also unable to help. Don't drag him into the infighting between you civil officials; he had no stance—he was just a witness.

"Governor Shen, you keep saying you'll take it to the Zhao Wenhua Hall, but there are thousands of chaotic things in this world; how many can actually reach the Zhao Wenhua Hall?" There was a bit more fire in Yan Shixuan's words. People from the heavens could reach the Emperor's ears at the drop of a hat, and they always talked about taking things to the Lingxiao Hall. Only someone with Shen Shixing's prominent status could do that.

"When the common people come to the county yamen to cry out for justice, do you really think I am like those base scholars who must collect their dirty silver? I may not have the integrity of a backbone, but I am not a beast! I dared to bring Hai Lao Si, along with his accountant, concubines, mistresses, children, and adopted sons to the prefectural hall for interrogation—that is because I have a clear conscience." This was the source of Yan Shixuan's anger. People like Hence Hai Rui were rare, but Yan Shixuan was truly not a beast.

Yan Shixuan had endured these beasts for a long time.

High and mighty Shen Shixing's words implied that Yan Shixuan was shielding them. Shen Shixing wasn't afraid of questioning, but was he, Yan Shixuan, afraid of questioning?

At this moment, Shen Shixing completely understood the two words his teacher had spoken: "rigidity."

The officialdom, which is entirely responsible to the superiors, is just this rigid; the Shanghai County Yamen wanted to act, but feared that these people had already bribed their way to Shen Shixing.

To beat a dog, one must first look at its master; if Shen Shixing does not issue the order for arrest, the Shanghai County Yamen simply cannot move, because they do not know if they are Shen Shixing's lackeys.

Shen Shixing did not speak again, which, in the midst of an argument, counted as bowing his head; Shen Shixing was a man of the heavens, the Songjiang Provincial Governor, his direct superior, and a person of high status; not speaking was already bowing his head.

The anger in Yan Shixuan's heart also dissipated, and he then opened his mouth to say: "Then how did Hai Lao Si get his start? He sought shelter under Xu Jie and the Xu family, and was the claw and tooth of the Xu family as they ran rampant in the countryside."

"In the forty-first year of Jiajing, there was a great flood in Songjiang; the water rose above the eaves, the people were starving, and the three families of Songjiang—Sun Kehong of the Sun family, Gu Zhengxin of the Gu family, and Dong Youliang of the Dong family—donated grain and set up twenty-eight porridge stations across three counties and eighteen townships to provide disaster relief."

"Hai Lao Si led the yamen runners of Shanghai County, Songjiang County, and Qingpu County to destroy all twenty-eight porridge stations, and furthermore, he privately hoarded all the donated grain, because the grain donated by these three families blocked the path of the Xu family's land annexation."

"The starving people were driven to desperation, and public grievances filled the roads; thirteen thousand starving people and soldiers from Huating, Shanghai, Qingpu, and Jinshan Guard revolted, intending to break into Jin Zeyuan; it was still this Hai Lao Si who led the yamen runners, the Haihun Gang, water bandits, and Japanese pirates to suppress them, brutally killing over three thousand."

"Provincial Governor Shen, do you know how the Songjiang Prefecture reported this matter to the imperial court at the time?"

"How was it reported?" Shen Shixing's brows were tightly furrowed; he had never heard of this matter; the people revolting against the Xu officials—this matter had escalated to a revolt of over thirteen thousand people; such a huge affair, and Shen Shixing had not even heard of it.

"Japanese pirate trouble." Yan Shixuan sighed and said: "Even if it goes to the Zhao Wenhua Hall, I will take responsibility for these words of mine, because Grand Coordinator Hai knew about this matter, and this was also the direct reason why Grand Coordinator Hai wanted to deal with Xu Jie starting in the fourth year of Longqing."

Back then, when Hence Hai Rui wanted to go after Xu Jie, it really wasn't Hence Hai Rui stirring up trouble; it was truly that if Xu were not brought down, the land of Songjiang Prefecture would have completely belonged to the Xu family.

"Continue," Shen Shixing said after a moment of silence, nodding.

"This Hai Lao Si and the Haihun Gang were already there before I came to Songjiang Prefecture to serve as a supervisory official; ever since Xu Jie died, it's just that they are now called Hai Mingyuan and the Hailong Gang," Yan Shixuan said helplessly: "Therefore, ever since Provincial Governor Shen arrived, these people have become even more arrogant, naturally assuming that Provincial Governor Shen, as part of the Zhang Dang, wanted to make things difficult for me, a member of the Jin Party."

"Moreover, Hai Lao Si has been working for Provincial Governor Shen all along."

"Do not slander a person's innocence; false accusations lead to counter-punishment; I didn't even know of such people before, so how could they be working for me?!" Shen Shixing stood up abruptly, the corners of his mouth twitching; he had interrogated his subordinate, but the subordinate had instead pinned a charge of shielding criminals on him.

Was there no justice left in the world?

"The plating for the *Youlong* and *Feiyun* was all provided by the Hailong Gang." Yan Shixuan stopped pretending and laid his cards on the table; he explained why he believed the Hailong Gang was Shen Shixing's Hailong Gang.

Shen Shixing, like Xu Jie, was a man of the heavens; how could these men of the heavens care about the lives of the people below when they did things? Back then, Hai Lao Si was arrogant and domineering because of Xu Jie; now that Hai Mingyuan was arrogant and domineering, Yan Shixuan naturally assumed it was because Shen Shixing was shielding him.

"How could I..." Shen Shixing hadn't finished his sentence when a flash of insight struck him, and his scalp immediately went numb; he had thought there was a problem in Shanghai County, but after all this time, the problem was on his own end.

Shen Shixing oversaw the officialdom, but he didn't handle every single thing personally; he had left many matters to his private secretary to manage, so Yan Shixuan's accusation could potentially be true.

"I leave it to the Commandant," Shen Shixing said, realizing the problem might be related to himself, and immediately looked at Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang.

This matter had no conflict of interest for Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang; he was just here to watch the show! The show was getting bigger and bigger, and in the infighting between these scholars, who knew how many schemes were at play! Now it was his turn to investigate the truth of the matter.

For the Embroidered Uniform Guard, this was not difficult.

What the Embroidered Uniform Guard feared most was having no clues; without clues, it was like looking for a needle in the ocean, and that would take a long time; now that there were clues, following the vine to find the melon was the simplest type of case for the Embroidered Uniform Guard to handle; Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang let two criminal investigation battalion commanders handle the case, while he himself continued to watch the show.

But there was no show left to watch, because the two men, who possessed great self-restraint, did not continue to argue, but sat down to drink tea and discuss business.

The two sides, who just a moment ago wanted to get rid of each other, were now chatting and laughing, and the content of their discussion was not entirely about trivialities, but mainly about the official factories.

Songjiang Prefecture was preparing to set up an iron horse factory, which was to build steam engines locally in Songjiang Prefecture; this process mainly had several difficulties: improving the reliability of the manufacturing process, ensuring the stability of incoming materials, cost control, mass production, performance optimization, and scaling up, among others.

Each of these major difficulties had to be broken down into countless small difficulties; for example, improving the reliability of the manufacturing equipment process—the Imperial Academy of Sciences had not made the iron horse technology public, which required Shen Shixing, this man of the heavens, to go to the Emperor and use his influence.

Just this step was as difficult as ascending to heaven; Li Le, the Provincial Governor of Yingtian, had jumped up and down so many times just to apply for building a post road in Yingtian Prefecture, and even now the Emperor refused to loosen his grip; Li Le was also a disciple of Zhang Juzheng and a fellow student of the Emperor, yet he hadn't succeeded in using his influence.

To implement the technology obtained by begging, one must first use the lost-wax casting method to process all the parts.

The lost-wax method is a precision casting method; it is costly, time-consuming, and requires numerous hands; after manufacturing, test runs are needed, and only after test runs does the process of verifying manufacturing reliability begin, and the manufacturing workflows for various parts begin to be confirmed.

Reliability also includes coke, iron materials, sand molds, and so on; all of this requires silver to be thrown at it, and requires the sweat of the craftsmen.

Li Ya didn't steal the steam engine technology at all; this thing is something only a Celestial Empire like the Great Ming could afford to be so extravagant with; just the lost-wax method alone could stump the craftsmen of the West.

This was only one aspect of the problem; there were over thirty similar problems; Shen Shixing and Yan Shixuan, who just a moment ago wished for each other's death, were now working together, hoping that this iron horse factory could land in Songjiang Prefecture as soon as possible.

Two and a half hours passed quickly; Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang listened with great interest; so engineering implementation was such a complex matter.

The criminal investigation battalion commanders finally returned; their faces were very ugly; they told Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang the situation in detail; the more Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang heard, the wider his eyes grew; he looked at Shen Shixing and said blankly: "Provincial Governor Shen, you've been wandering before the gates of hell for over half a year; impressive, you didn't die."

"Just a little bit more, and we could have eaten at your funeral feast; just a little bit."

Shen Shixing had two private secretaries in total; one was a clerk he brought from the capital, who was a fellow townsman of Shen Shixing; this clerk had no problems, and in any case, with the capabilities of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, no problems were found.

The one who had the problem was Shen Shixing's other private secretary, a local of Songjiang Prefecture, Dong Wei of the Huating Dong family; Dong Wei was a *juren* who had failed to pass the imperial examination for *jinshi* three times; after returning to Songjiang Prefecture, he became a clerk in the prefectural yamen; after Shen Shixing took office, Dong Wei became Shen Shixing's private secretary.

When Wang Daokun was Provincial Governor, the local private secretary came from the Songjiang Sun family; when Wang Daokun was promoted to Minister of Works, this local private secretary was taken by Wang Daokun to the Ministry of Works to serve as a clerk, so Shen Shixing could only choose a local private secretary himself.

Dong Wei hadn't been estranged from Shen Shixing from the beginning; Dong Wei handled the matters Shen Shixing entrusted to him very well, and it was unclear exactly when he became completely corrupted; the Songjiang Shipyard was the largest shipyard at the moment, and just a little bit leaking through his fingers could feed a Hailong Gang.

Dong Wei received more and more illicit silver, his courage grew, and his demands increased; in a sense, the fact that the Hailong Gang had followed rules and not caused loss of life in their past gang fights was related to Dong Wei's ever-increasing demands.

Paper cannot wrap up fire; seeing that the gangs led by the Hailong Gang were causing more and more trouble, Dong Wei became increasingly anxious; he had tried to take action several times in the past six months, while Shen Shixing was effectively wandering before the gates of hell.

This brings us to Shen Shixing's other private secretary; Dong Wei had failed many times because this clerk, who had been following Shen Shixing all along, was ruining things; otherwise, Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang could have eaten at the funeral feast long ago.

"I reckon the King of Hell is also confused, wondering why Provincial Governor Shen's soul is flickering like that; are you teasing the King of Hell?" Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang watched the show of Shen Shixing and said happily.

"Ah! Where is this Dong Wei!" Shen Shixing was furious; it was one thing to have wronged Yan Shixuan, but the fault was on his own side!

Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang said with a strange expression: "He ran away; he ran away by boat two days ago; but it's fine, the monk can run, but can the temple run? Their Dong family is still in Huating; I'll go to the Dong family myself in a moment; they still have some tax payment notices that haven't been paid."

Dong Wei could run away alone, but could their Dong family run?

"Then there's nothing for me to do, so I'll return to Shanghai County first." Yan Shixuan looked at Shen Shixing; he was actually a bit worried that Shen Shixing would make things difficult for him; arguing with a Provincial Governor had taken all of Yan Shixuan's courage; the man was a man of the heavens, and making things difficult for him would be easy.

Regarding this matter, Shen Shixing had two ways to handle it: the first was to deal with Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang and report to the imperial court that it was all Yan Shixuan's fault, and that Yan Shixuan's shielding had led to the Hailong Gang's rampage; the second was to submit a memorial of self-reproach, admitting that he had failed to recognize the person's character.

Choosing whether to make things difficult for himself or for his subordinate was not a very difficult matter.

Dealing with Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang was also simple; just let the Dong family come forward and offer a bribe; of course, whether Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang would accept this bribe, Yan Shixuan did not know; he did not understand Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang, and in his eyes, they were all men of the heavens.

The power of this private secretary, Dong Wei, seemed to be nothing, but in fact, it was not; Dong Wei could issue summons to Yan Shixuan, and upon receiving the summons, Yan Shixuan had to come to the Songjiang Prefectural Yamen to be scolded, and he couldn't talk back; he had to listen to the reprimand respectfully and then carefully correct his mistakes.

It is easy to see the King of Hell, but hard to deal with the little devils.

"After Magistrate Yan returns, the matter of the iron horse factory must be overseen as soon as possible; both inside and outside Songjiang Prefecture are waiting for Magistrate Yan's good news, and the iron horse and the factories in the Southern Yamen are also waiting." Shen Shixing instructed Yan Shixuan to handle the errand well; from this point on, this matter had nothing to do with Yan Shixuan.

"Provincial Governor Shen is a gentleman." Upon hearing this, Yan Shixuan bowed deeply, thanking Shen Shixing for not using him as a scapegoat.

Using a subordinate as a scapegoat—wasn't that the most normal thing in the world? But Shen Shixing did not; the master of balancing might not have much integrity, but he was not a beast.

Shen Shixing sat there somewhat dejectedly, not knowing what he was thinking; after a long time, Shen Shixing took out a memorial, preparing to report to the imperial court; this matter was indeed shameful.

Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang went to the Dong family and didn't do anything; he just surrounded the residence and didn't give them food, just starving them hard.

When people are hungry, they only have one worry, and that is an empty stomach; Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang wanted to know Dong Wei's whereabouts; if they dared to commit a crime, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would dare to chase them to the ends of the earth to bring them back.

Soon, Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang learned of Dong Wei's whereabouts; the destination was the Nagasaki Governor's Office, and then to Japan.

Inspector Luo Bingliang Bingliang arrested all of Dong Wei's family members and did not lock them up in Songjiang Prefecture, but in the prison of the Southern Yamen's Regional Commander, waiting for the Emperor's disposal.

Guilt by association is the most common means of deterring crime under the feudal imperial system, and it also comes from the ancestral laws of the founding Emperor; in this day and age, once a person runs away, it is very difficult to catch them.

Zhu Yijun received Shen Shixing's memorial and ate a huge piece of gossip.

"We almost didn't get to see our Provincial Governor Shen! Why do they say the Sun family of Songjiang is loyal to the monarch and loves the country? The clerk of the Minister of Works comes from the Sun family; he followed the Minister of Works for nine years and firmly held his bottom line; let alone wanting Wang Daokun's life, he didn't dare to take even a fraction of a cent of silver, and the Minister of Works relied on him as his confidant." Zhu Yijun spoke of the difference between these two local private secretaries.

That private secretary of Wang Daokun was entered into the Ministry of Personnel's register and became a clerk in the Ministry of Works, holding an official rank of the ninth grade; before recording his official rank, the Embroidered Uniform Guard conducted a comprehensive investigation of this private secretary, and there were no problems.

Shen Shixing's local private secretary—how long had it been, and he was already preparing to take Shen Shixing's life.

"What is the Master's opinion?" Zhu Yijun looked at Shen Shixing's memorial of self-reproach, flipped through it, and found there was no floating slip, which was a bit strange.

"The Master's opinion is here." Feng Bao handed Zhang Juzheng's memorial to the Emperor.

Zhang Juzheng's opinion was to let Shen Shixing get out and go home to grow sweet potatoes; according to Zhang Juzheng, this Shen Shixing was unworthy of the imperial court's trust.

"Summon the Master." Zhu Yijun finished reading Zhang Juzheng's memorial and said with a grave expression.

Zhang Juzheng soon arrived at the Imperial Study of the Tonghe Palace; after paying his respects, he immediately said: "Shen Shixing can't even handle this little errand well; what use is he? And he still wants to enter the Cabinet? Let him go home and build a pavilion himself and call it the Wenyuan Pavilion! A local private secretary, Dong Wei, deceived him; with such little ability, he is foolish beyond compare!"

Zhu Yijun smiled and said: "Master, calm down, calm down; let's analyze specific matters specifically; the Hailong Gang's suppression of the people happened during the Jiajing reign, and Xu Jie is already dead, so that's the past. The gang fights of the Hailong Gang during the Wanli reign were also limited to the gangs themselves and did not lead to dire consequences."

"It is already not easy for Shen Shixing to be able to detect the abnormality."

"Isn't this the significance of the Master sending Shen Shixing to Songjiang Prefecture? Some mistakes, if made now, are better than making them later."

Zhang Juzheng's criticism was born of deep love; the Hailong Gang case was actually not a major case; the main culprit in the major case of suppressing the people back then was Xu Jie.

Under Shen Shixing's governance, the Hailong Gang was completely suppressed before it could gain momentum, and this did not affect Shen Shixing's implementation of the Single Whip Law, still achieving the initial goal.

"Master, the human heart is separated by skin; many times, one has to experience many things together to truly be able to fight back-to-back," Zhu Yijun shook his head and said: "No one can see through the human heart."

"My mind is made up; regarding Dong Wei's matter, just fine him one year's salary, demote him three ranks, and let him make amends for his crimes."

"As for Dong Wei, don't let me catch him, otherwise he will go to the vegetable market for execution, to be punished according to the law."

With a demotion of three ranks, Shen Shixing became a joke in the officialdom; originally, given the special nature of Songjiang Prefecture, going to Songjiang Prefecture should at least be a Minister of a Ministry, that is, a Minister serving as Provincial Governor, but Shen Shixing was serving as Provincial Governor of Songjiang with the rank of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.

With a demotion of three ranks, Shen Shixing became the only fifth-grade official in the Great Ming, a Provincial Governor serving as a local governor with the rank of a Director of the Ministry of Personnel; if this isn't a joke, what is?

But throughout the whole process, Shen Shixing did indeed fail to recognize the person's character, so necessary punishment had to be done.

After passing this hurdle, Shen Shixing's path to the capital would be smoother; if he couldn't pass this hurdle, then he could go home and sell sweet potatoes.

"This is the reason why I told him to go home; he can afford to lose face, but I cannot; serving as a local governor with the rank of a Director—if he goes out and says it, Shen Shixing is my disciple, where would I put my face?" Zhang Juzheng said helplessly: "I warned him a thousand times to be careful of these local clerks, yet he still made such a mistake."

"Your Majesty, I am actually more worried about one thing."

"What?" Zhu Yijun was startled and asked suspiciously.

"Dong Wei's corruption—is Shen Shixing really unaware? Dong Wei's escape—did Shen Shixing really not make it convenient? If not, how did Dong Wei leave so smoothly? No matter how you look at it, Dong Wei is a very suitable scapegoat."

"That's why I think he should be dismissed, not demoted three ranks." Zhang Juzheng raised a possibility with a grave expression.

Shen Shixing is a bad person.

Zhu Yijun stared at Zhang Juzheng, once again clearly and explicitly knowing that Zhang Juzheng was truly a ruthless political machine; that was his disciple!