Chapter 229

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Protagonist:

Song Miao

Empress Dowager Yang was old and her eyesight poor; to make it easy for her to read, this article was copied in very large characters, filling seven pages, with not many words on each page.

Not only that, the wording in the text was especially plain, with few obscure characters; from beginning to end, almost no allusions were used at all, nor any ornamentation—let alone scholars, even if read aloud to old men and children in the streets and alleys, they could easily understand it without any extra explanation.

Written so simply and fluently, Zhao Yu almost got drawn into it at first read.

Since it was a biography, naturally the whole text spoke of people and told stories.

The story first told how Xin Feng in such-and-such years hunted down criminals, "wearing the moon and carrying the stars, tracking between graves and wilderness."

It then said that he finally got a lead, and how Xin Feng traveled day and night, "at dawn, met a thief armed with weapons in a ruined temple."

"The blade arrived, and Feng blocked it with his arm."

But such conduct was absolutely not without problems.

He did not follow rules very strictly in doing things; even before the verdict was announced, after the criminal had already been caught and surrendered, he still wanted to beat him—an official once advised him, and Feng glared back at him.

Some procedures that should have been followed were not; many reports that should have been made were not said; he did as he pleased, and even had repeated conflicts with colleagues and superiors, drawing complaints throughout the office.

But he was very righteous in dealing with people.

His subordinate's mother was seriously ill; seeking doctors and medicine yielded no result. He remembered that he had once heard somewhere that a patient took a certain maritime prescription and recovered, so he specially asked for leave, inquired everywhere, finally found the original source, and bought that prescription back.

Going to catch a thief, the thief escaped, leaving only the thief's mother holding her grandson, at a loss. He could not bear to watch, took out his own silver to buy cakes, and after inquiring, learned that her mother had always been kind, only unfortunately giving birth to a debt-collecting son. He also entrusted the village head to help look after them, so as not to frighten the old woman and child into illness.

At the beginning of the year, during the Lantern Festival, over a hundred women and children went missing. He stayed awake day and night, searching everywhere for clues. Finally, the kidnapper fled; he led people out to track, not stopping for a day, unraveling the thread step by step, searching for traces, and finally summarized several characteristics of the kidnapper.

As a result, the soldiers took credit, the thief was cunning and actually escaped by water, and Xin Feng also suffered heavy injuries.

Letting the kidnapper escape was naturally a great mistake. After returning to the capital, the office punished him according to regulations.

But several months later, far away in Hua Prefecture, someone, having heard of the kidnapper characteristics Xin Feng had summarized, recognized the thief Lv Mao and reported him to the office. Also, someone else, summarizing experience from Xin Feng's previous dealings with Lv Mao, prepared to catch him.

The article wrote how Hua Prefecture caught the thief, how they arranged things, but in only a few words, fewer than ten characters, it depicted it as if they had laid a net of heaven and earth.

But writing to here, the pen turned, and it began to write how Lv Mao escaped.

How he temporarily ordered a boat, changed clothes, how he prepared, and how he got a warning in time to discover something wrong, immediately fled, how he used his friend's child as a hostage, even killed the old friend who gave the warning, and finally escaped onto a boat.

As for inside the boat, how he was careful and cautious, finally shouted wild words, turned and jumped into the water to escape—only to escape into a fishing net, and was dragged up by the fishermen in one pull.

Thief Chief Lv Mao was caught in the net.

And not long after, in the capital as well as in Yingzhou, many missing women and children gradually returned home.

Escaping death, family reunions—although only a very little brush and ink was used, it was enough to make people imagine the scene.

Zhao Yu was the Emperor, but he was also human.

He followed the story's twists and turns, his heart completely moved—angry, moved, excited. When he saw Lv Mao finally caught in the net, although he already knew this result, he still could not help but slap the table, and the breath he had been holding finally came out in a long sigh.

At the end of the story, the article's timeline回溯 to when Xin Feng was recuperating in Yanjin County. Someone asked him: since he was so badly injured from chasing the criminal, he would most likely be demoted and have his salary deducted in the future; even if someone else caught that thief later, it would be of no benefit to him at all—how did he think, would he regret it?

"Was the thief caught?"

"The thief was caught."

Xin Feng burst into loud laughter.

After reading the last character, Zhao Yu felt his heart tighten and his nose sour; as for his eyes, they even welled with tears, tears falling with the words.

The entire article almost entirely used plain description to write about Xin Feng. Even when writing about Lv Mao later, the more cunning, cautious, and decisive Lv Mao was, the more it showed that Xin Feng not catching him before was only natural; even if he was caught later, it relied heavily on the leads Xin Feng had brought many people to painstakingly obtain.

The text was completely neutral, equally depicting his character flaws and the faults of his rash conduct.

But after reading this article, almost everyone would feel a sense of injustice—why? On what grounds? Does this also warrant demotion? Does this also warrant punishment?

But just as the sense of injustice arose, they would be reminded by the content of the article—that it was wrong in the first place. If the court did not handle it according to regulations and showed leniency, then there would be no rules left in the world.

After finishing the article, people would not be angry, only feel regret.

The office was not wrong; Xin Feng might have been wrong. But in the eyes of ordinary people, that wrong was not wrong at all. Moreover, some things in the world simply have no right or wrong.

It was just too regrettable.

Others could only sigh in regret; fortunately, Zhao Yu was different.

"This Xin Feng." He could not help but laugh, and the laugh still carried tears.

Empress Dowager Yang hurriedly had someone send her son silk, a copper basin, and also shed tears with him for a while. Then she asked again: "I don't know where that Xin Feng is now? How are his injuries?"

"Since he is seriously injured, he surely cannot recover that quickly." Zhao Yu said.

He said: "Empress Mother, this person has many merits and labors, and is such a person in how he does things. How can he be ignored? Let alone letting the common people see it—they would only think my Zhao family is stingy and harsh in treatment. In the future, who would be willing to risk their lives and exert themselves for us—even if the common people don't say it, how could my heart be at ease?"

"But although he is understandable, the fact remains that he was not thorough in his actions, leading to the thief escaping. If it is overturned in a moment, how is that different from changing orders from morning to evening? Moreover, the Capital Prefecture Office did not make a mistake..."

Empress Dowager Yang immediately shook her head and said: "My son is right. Changing orders from morning to evening is inappropriate. Once the Emperor speaks, those below will inevitably speculate, and it will be even harder to do things in the future..."

She thought for a moment and said: "I am old now and no longer care about your court affairs these days, which makes it just right for me to step forward."

Speaking, she said to a palace attendant on the side: "Take my gift and visit him. See what condition that Xin Feng, the Censor Xin, is in now, and whether he can move."

In Pan Tao Lane, just after urging the two children to put on their clothes themselves and let them go wash their hands, and after changing a basin of water for her husband to wash his face, Du Shi heard someone knocking on the door.

As soon as she answered the door, it was exactly the helper that Song Xiaoniangzi had found, bringing breakfast to the door.

The other party was a woman in her forties, who tidied things up very nimbly, worked carefully, and rarely inquired into private matters, with little idle talk.

After two days, Du Shi was already very satisfied with her.

This helper set out the breakfast, waited until everyone finished eating, then cleared the table, tidied the room once more, and washed and dried the clothes taken off the previous day.

After all the housework was done, and seeing that the time had come, when the helper was about to finish work, she did not leave immediately but stood at the door and quietly asked: "Sister-in-law Du, is the official in your household surnamed Xin?"

"Yes."

"Is he called Xin Feng, the Censor of the Capital Prefecture Office?"

Du Shi was stunned for a moment, then nodded.

Because it was a short-term hire, and she had only come two days ago, she hadn't said much to the other party, only briefly mentioning that her husband was doing kitchen duty in the yamen, had been accidentally injured, and was currently recuperating, yet she didn't expect the other party to know all about it.

Knowing was one thing, but suddenly asking this one sentence, what did it mean?

Before Du Shi could ask, that group of hires across the way already said: "I also heard it from others, only then did I know that the official master of our family is precisely Xin Feng, Censor Xin — I have a paternal cousin who was abducted at the beginning of the year, it was that very day of the Upper Yuan Festival, the family searched everywhere, stopped working, stopped earning money, only wanting to find the person back, who knew after searching for half a year, not a single shadow was found, truly unable to eat during the day, unable to sleep at night."

"Originally thought we would never see her again, who knew a few days ago the yamen came to the door, and actually sent my paternal cousin back, only saying they caught the abduction ringleader, questioned out many words, following the confession found traces of many abducted people, and rescued them out."

"Everyone was happy beyond measure, my uncle's whole family wanted to thank the yamen runners who caught the abductors, who knew upon asking at the yamen for half a day, inside they reported out several names, all were officials, one listen and it was wrong……"

"Just inquiring everywhere, unexpectedly got the news, asked again, this place is precisely Pan Tao Lane, and there's an official master with an injured leg — if not Censor Xin, then who??"

Speaking, she picked up a basket from the door side, handed it over saying: "Nothing much to give, only my aunt makes mugwort cakes, got up early this morning to freshly make and steam them, sixty in total, plus some other small things……"

Du Shi hurriedly pushed that basket back, saying: "How can this do, you also know it's the yamen, cannot randomly accept people's things, if discovered!"

The two people were just pushing back and forth, when suddenly heard a burst of noisy voices from the alley outside, not long after, several people rushed over.

"Du Niangzi, outside came a few heavenly envoys, saying they want to find your family's Lao Xin!"

"Family hurry tidy up, people will arrive immediately!"

"Need help??" The speaker rolled up their sleeves.

"Where's your family's Lao Xin? Any better? Can he get up? Can he receive guests?"

Because these two days she got the Eldest Sister's assignment, telling Xin Feng to try walking two hundred steps of road every day, and also prescribed new medicine, changing once every hour, to see the effect.

Whether walking, or changing medicine, all needed someone watching.

For this matter, Du Shi was busy from early to late, and also because Song Miao ordered rice and dishes, she didn't even go out the door, naturally didn't know what happened outside, at this time seeing everyone's conduct, and hearing their words, her whole person was extremely bewildered, asked: "What heavenly envoys??"

Just as she was speaking, outside someone came clearing the way, indeed the li-zheng at the head, behind two people leading horses, all heading straight for her.

Further behind, many many people followed, some standing at the alley entrance peeking, some bold directly surrounding over.

And in front of these many people, that li-zheng pointed pointing direction, unknown what he said, among them one heavenly envoy threw the reins, advanced a few steps, directly asked: "Which one is Censor Xin Feng's family member?"

"It's me!" Du Shi's heart pounded.

She brought people, hurriedly entered the door, then turned into the inner room, from far away called "Lao Xin!"

Behind even more several people followed in to watch the excitement.

Xin Feng leaned on the wall walking, called by his wife, turned his head, just about to respond, then saw behind two heavenly envoys followed in.

"This one is Censor Xin, right?"

Got Xin Feng's agreement, and the li-zheng also nodded, the leading heavenly envoy then said: "Don't know if Censor Xin's body is well? Can he walk? Conveying Empress Dowager's words, wanting to invite Censor Xin into the palace for a banquet!"

Xin Feng instantly stiffened, his whole person went dumb.

A roomful of idle people, almost simultaneously let out a "hong" sound, and someone immediately ran out.

Very quickly, outside the house rose a buzzing buzzing discussion sound.

"Empress Dowager invites banquet! Mother, don't know what good things that seat can eat! Fear it really has mountain delicacies sea flavors, dragon liver phoenix gallbladder!"

"Must be heard about Lao Xin's matter, right?"

"Didn't say that surnamed Han student wrote an article? I also heard those xiucai gentlemen read it, ai, heard my tears straight flow — in the past just knew Lao Xin was reliable, but didn't know he was this formidable!"

"This Lao Xin, truly struck it rich!"

Empress Dowager invites banquet, not to mention Xin Feng is already much better, even if still had to lie down, would also be determined to forcefully climb up and go.

But he still felt uneasy in his heart, couldn't help asking: "Two officials, yet don't know from where Empress Dowager heard my name? Suddenly summoning audience, and what is the reason?"

"Empress Dowager heard Censor Xin's many stories of catching abduction ringleaders, catching thieves, praised endlessly, that's why came to summon audience — Censor hurry up, all are waiting!"

Everyone waiting, urging, Xin Feng only had time to change clothes, comb hair then got on the carriage.

Carriage drove into the Imperial Palace, then someone carried a soft sedan over to receive.

Xin Feng lived several decades, first time this kind of treatment, but he couldn't care about being happy, instead heart nervous beyond measure.

Waited to hear the yi-men official report the message, he finally leaned on the cane, walked into Ciming Palace.

Just about to perform salute, opposite someone said: "Censor Xin exempt from礼 — it was old body who made a big request, instead it's Censor Xin's hardship bringing injury, still having to travel into the palace."

Speaking again had someone look at the seat.

Xin Feng hurriedly thanked, one look up, but saw opposite upper seat not only had an old woman, right side seat another person, head wearing jade crown, body wearing common clothes, approximately forty years old.

Who would this be?

"We heard Mother Empress invited Censor Xin to speak of the Upper Yuan Festival abduction case……"

Hearing that one "We" character, Xin Feng's heart gave a startle, also no longer cared to continue guessing what reason exactly made himself able to come to this place.

In his brain almost instantly surged a thought — had I known earlier, no matter what I would have washed my hair first, bathed then come!

Xin Feng in a daze, asked then answered, not asked also randomly answering, for a good long stretch of time, brain inside was a blank.

Until he heard opposite person ask: "I see in the case scroll not clearly said, in that Han Li article also not detailed — that Lv Mao so treacherous, you left what suggestion, actually made people able to recognize his tracks?"

Xin Feng at once woke up.

He heard himself loudly say: "For Your Majesty, Empress Dowager to know, able to discover this thief Lv Mao's tracks, entirely relies on a Song Xiaoniangzi sharp-eyed, clear-minded!"

?? Many thanks EvC for hanging a tasseled Zuo Feel He Bi, a small sachet from Xiao Leaf under the Bodhi tree, a Peace Talisman each from Perfect Foam and Book Friend two dear ones:)

? Thanks Book City my family cat called Egg Egg for sending me two Codeword Tools, a Small Gift=3=

? Thank you everyone~