Chapter 279: Searching for the Tribute Fruit

Zhang Zhao said angrily, "It is not that I am womanishly benevolent, but that the miners are mostly villagers from nearby. If you slaughter the people of these few villages, it will only make the commoners feel that the Northern Frontier Army is cruel, and you will lose the support of the people."

"Could it be that since they stole the Tribute Fruit, they shouldn't be executed to the ninth degree?"

Seeing the two at loggerheads, it looked as if they were about to start a quarrel.

Xiao Moting saw this and stepped forward.

"Commandant Zhao, hand these thieves over to me to deal with."

Zhao Li turned his head, his gaze playful.

"I have heard that the Prince is kind-hearted, but these people stole military provisions and even snatched precious Tribute Fruit. The Prince wouldn't be thinking of letting these thieves off the hook, would he?"

"Since ancient times, the law has shown no mercy. If the Prince spares this gang of thieves, how will you command respect in the future?"

"They are deserters from the Yuan Clan and are also major criminals who stole Tribute Fruit. Forgive this subordinate for being unable to hand them over to you."

At this very moment, Bai Wei's consciousness had already quietly come over to watch the excitement.

Hearing Zhao Li's words, she couldn't help but "pfft" in her heart.

This person had a sanctimonious appearance and was full of high-sounding words, but in reality, his heart was pitch black.

Isn't he just using grand principles to pressure Xiao Moting?

Xiao Moting's expression was calm, "Commandant Zhao, this gang of thieves has committed a crime, and I certainly will not deal with them lightly. You say to handle this according to Military Order; then, according to the Military Order, they were captured by my Northern Frontier Army within the territory of my Northern Frontier mine, so they should rightfully be handed over to the Northern Frontier to handle."

He had reason and evidence, and Zhao Li choked, unexpectedly unable to reply for a moment.

Bai Wei couldn't help but call out "well done" in her heart.

Fortunately, Xiao Moting was smart and didn't fall for the trap.

Zhao Li was a Commandant of the Imperial Guard from Shengjing. If he came to the territory of the Northern Frontier and, under the guise of punishing thieves, slaughtered all the villagers of these few villages, it would only ruin Xiao Moting's prestige.

If this matter spread, others would either think Xiao Moting stood by and watched, being overly cruel, or think he was weak and incompetent, allowing a mere Imperial Guard Commandant to run wild on his own turf.

From then on, Xiao Moting would gradually lose the support of the people, the commoners of the Northern Frontier would fear and distance themselves from him, and those who wanted to come and rely on the Northern Frontier would also steer clear.

In this way, it would fall right into the Emperor's treacherous plot to weaken Xiao Moting.

Xiao Moting's words were reasonable, and Zhao Li could find no grounds for rebuttal, so he could only look sullenly at the crowd kneeling on the ground.

"Prince, since you wish to deal with these deserters yourself, then this subordinate can only obey."

"However, the Tribute Fruit was stolen by them; now that they cannot hand over the Tribute Fruit, it is also a capital offense."

"In order to report back to the Emperor, this subordinate can only personally observe the execution so that I may report back."

Xiao Moting glanced at Zhao Li, knowing he was bent on putting these people to death, and nodded.

"You may."

After speaking, he waved his hand.

"Take these people away and guard them strictly."

The Northern Frontier Army rushed forward, capturing all the dozen or so deserters on the ground, as well as the hundreds of villagers around them, and brought them back to the mining camp.

Zhao Li returned to the camp, and as soon as he entered the door, he slammed the table in a fit of rage.

"This is simply outrageous."

A subordinate hurriedly leaned in, "Commandant Zhao, I saw that the Fourth Prince's tone seemed to want to spare the lives of these villagers. What shall we do?"

"What shall we do?" Zhao Li sneered, "Xiao Moting insists on taking this hot potato, so let him take it. Those dozen or so people are deserters, and they also stole military provisions and snatched Tribute; any one of these is a capital crime. If Xiao Moting dares to spare their lives, he is guilty of corruption and perverting the law!"

"As for those hundreds of villagers, they harbored deserters and even shared the Tribute Fruit, which is also a capital crime."

"I want to see how Xiao Moting handles this matter."

The subordinate thought for a moment, "What if Xiao Moting is hard-hearted and really kills all these villagers?"

Zhao Li sat down in his chair and leisurely took a sip of tea.

"Then that would mean he is cruel and ruthless, addicted to slaughter! When the time comes, we will spread this matter, saying the Fourth Prince flew into a murderous rage and slaughtered several villages."

"Doesn't everyone say that Xiao Moting has high prestige among the people and is kind and benevolent? I want to see who will still think he is benevolent after the news of him slaughtering villagers spreads."

The subordinate was overjoyed, "Commandant, this move of yours to borrow a knife to kill is truly brilliant."

Zhao Li sighed and shook his head.

"It is not that I am brilliant, but that the Emperor is looking for an excuse to cut off Xiao Moting's wings."

"Who told him not to listen to the Emperor's orders and not to take Shengjing seriously? This is his own doing."

"If he releases the villagers, he is perverting the law for personal gain; if he kills the villagers, he is cruel and bloodthirsty. Either way, no matter what he does tomorrow, he will be in a lose-lose situation."

Just as Zhao Li and his subordinate were discussing how to dig a pit for Xiao Moting.

Xiao Moting also closed his door and relied on passing notes to discuss with Bai Wei.

"Shennü Daren, what do you think of this matter?"

Bai Wei already knew the ins and outs of the matter and was very certain.

"Xiao Moting, this is definitely a trap they set for you, thinking your prestige is too high and wanting to destroy your support among the people in the Northern Frontier."

"I know," Xiao Moting was also very clear, "but the villagers did indeed break the law. If I release them privately, I will likewise lose the support of the people."

Bai Wei held the note and also began to worry.

It really is the art of the emperor; the palace dramas played on television are actually all true.

But how should she and Xiao Moting respond?

Bai Wei thought for a moment, "Zhao Li ran to the Northern Frontier mining camp under the name of the Tribute Fruit being stolen. If the Tribute Fruit is found, he will have no reason to manage this matter, and then you can quickly send him away."

"Bai, the villages nearby are suffering from famine, and the villagers have already eaten the Tribute Fruit in order to survive."

"It doesn't matter if they ate it; I will think of a way," Bai Wei had an idea in her heart, "Xiao Moting, tell me, what exactly does the Tribute Fruit look like?"

"This kind of Tribute Fruit is a rare treasure from the Western Regions, extremely precious, fragrant, sweet, and delicious, with plenty of juice and great flavor. Production in the Western Regions is also scarce; it can only be offered as tribute once a year, and it does not store well. Only the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, the Empress... and a few others can enjoy it."

Bai Wei looked at the note and was speechless for a moment.

Precious, sweet... all of that is just empty talk.

In the modern era, any random large watermelon is also sweet, delicious, juicy, and flavorful.

She passed a note over.

"Xiao Moting, draw me a Tribute Fruit."

Xiao Moting received the note and was also troubled.

Bai wanted a drawing of a Tribute Fruit, but he had been demoted to Beijiang since he was young and was not favored, so he had never seen what a Tribute Fruit looked like.

Even the Imperial Concubines in the palace could not taste such precious Tribute Fruit, and his mother had never eaten one either.

Those dozen or so deserters had indeed seen Tribute Fruit, and some villagers had seen them too, but these people were illiterate and could not even write a few characters, let alone draw a Tribute Fruit.

If he let them draw it, they might end up drawing something unrecognizable, and if he passed that to Bai, wouldn't it ruin things?