Chapter 95

Huguang Provincial Capital, Huguang Provincial Administration Commission.

Heavy rain poured down, and thunder exploded over the entire Wuchang Prefecture.

Unfortunately, this heavy rain could not extinguish the impact of that great fire, only exacerbating the irritable mood of everyone involved.

In the Provincial Administration Commission, one of the three Huguang offices and the highest administrative agency, the mood was even more filled with irritability.

Administration Commissioner Chen Rui, who had been sitting upright in the hall issuing orders, could not help but stand up.

With a roar, he was almost hoarse: "Where are the people I told you to bring!?"

"Are you trying to tell me that the Linxiang County Magistrate also committed suicide out of fear of punishment!?"

Feng Feng Shiyu, the Huguang Right Councilor who had only been in office for two months, could not suppress his emotions in the face of the reprimand.

He seemed to want to vent all the frustration of these days, shouting angrily: "What's the use of finding me! Are you the Minister or am I the Minister!?"

"In the entire Huguang, our Provincial Administration Commission received the news the latest!"

"Now the entire Huguang is saving itself; by the time we sent people, we couldn't even catch up to the hot stuff!"

"Don't talk about the Linxiang County Magistrate; everyone in the entire Linxiang county office who was still breathing was taken away by the Embroidered Uniform Guard's thousand-man battalion that day!"

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard's thousand-man battalion clearly doesn't trust outsiders and won't let anyone near now; even Zhao Prince Xian went personally and was driven out. What am I?"

A Councilor was a fourth-rank official, and the superior-subordinate relationship with the Administration Commissioner was not that absolute.

Plus, they were all local flowing officials, so even if they quarreled, it was a common occurrence.

Chen Rui truly could not suppress the panic in his heart and paced back and forth in the hall.

He didn't care about being retorted and only pursued the question: "What about those two beasts, Dongting Garrison Commander Qiu Qiao Qiao and River Patrol Commander Chen Xiao!?"

Not to mention anything else, these two were definitely the ones bearing the brunt.

Those were over a thousand mining bandits!

Acting so blatantly, attacking the county government office, and they didn't know at all?

Even the rough men selling sesame cakes outside the government office wouldn't believe this explanation, let alone the central hub!

Feng Feng Shiyu blew his nose and glared, not delaying the serious business, only answering with some agitation: "River Patrol Commander Chen Xiao is being watched by Governor Zhao Prince Xian, and Dongting Garrison Commander Qiu Qiao Qiao is in the hands of the Regional Commander, Marquis Anyuan Liu Zhen."

"Don't even think about it; they don't trust us."

"Not to mention taking the people away, even when I proposed interrogating them, they were like facing a great enemy."

"So much so that the Provincial Administration Commission is completely in the dark about the Linxiang County matter!"

After the incident, it could be said that everyone was in danger.

From the Governor and Regional Commander to the Embroidered Uniform Guard's thousand-man battalion, the Provincial Administration Commission, the Surveillance Commission, and even the Regional Military Commission, no high official in charge could stay out of it.

It was true that the Provincial Administration Commission was the highest administrative agency, but not to mention the Surveillance Commission in charge of prisons and the Regional Military Commission in charge of military affairs, which were of the same rank.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard directly represented imperial power, and the Governor's office was an imperial envoy's office above the three commissions.

At the same time, all these people had the energy and suspicion, and the various subordinate offices drew lines, competing to protect witnesses and evidence, each investigating on their own.

Other offices had soldiers and guards, and their news was well-informed; now they had left the Provincial Administration Commission behind, leaving their own people in the dark.

The more Chen Rui heard, the more irritable he became.

He suddenly picked up the gavel beside him and smashed it randomly on the table!

Slap!

Slap!

Slap!

He cursed incessantly: "A bunch of insects! Not worth conspiring with, not worth conspiring with! At this time, they are still acting like neighbors dumping their troubles on each other!"

"If we don't investigate the matter clearly before the imperial envoy arrives, are we waiting to be scapegoats when the central hub sends people?"

It was certain that someone from the central hub would come.

Such a big thing had happened, and the Administration Commissioner had met with misfortune; the sky had already been pierced!

If they didn't investigate clearly now, when the imperial envoy arrived, those who stood tall would all be dragged out to be scapegoats to establish authority and vent anger!

Feng Feng Shiyu also echoed angrily: "They are all idiots!"

"If this wasn't done by local snakes, could it be done by us flowing officials!?"

"I've only been in office for two months, and they suspect me; their brains must have been kicked by a donkey!"

Although he said so, this was just the incompetent rage of falling into a passive position.

If the Provincial Administration Commission had protected the witnesses and evidence first, they would also have to guard against outsiders.

There was no help for it; it was too crazy!

Burning an imperial envoy!

If the central hub got ruthless and engaged in mass purges, one didn't know how many people would die!

Only by having sufficient evidence to investigate before the imperial envoy arrived would there be hope of clearing one's name.

Chen Rui suddenly paused while venting.

He turned to look at Feng Feng Shiyu and asked urgently: "Which mines were the ones mentioned in the manuscripts of Minister Tang and Supervising Secretary Zhang regarding private mining?"

Although the Administration Commissioner hadn't gotten hold of the witnesses, as the local authority, the manuscripts left behind by Tang Bin and Zhang Chucheng, as well as the remnants of previous investigations, couldn't escape them.

Feng Feng Shiyu recalled for a moment and blurted out: "There are many, but the ones in Wuchang Prefecture include White Pheasant Mountain and Weilu Mountain."

Chen Rui looked at the pouring rain outside the hall.

He turned and ordered the registrar beside him: "Go, prepare a carriage and rain gear! Go to Cao Daye County, we'll follow the trail!"

After speaking, he turned and went back to the inner hall to change his clothes.

Feng Feng Shiyu immediately understood and also went to prepare.

Suddenly remembering something, he looked up, called the registrar who was about to leave, and ordered: "Remember to call all the government soldiers; the reward silver won't be small!"

With the previous disaster, he didn't dare to be careless.

Boom!

A bolt of lightning tore through the sky.

Besides the muffled thunder, it also illuminated the hall of the Governor's office, making Governor Zhao Prince Xian's expression look pale.

Zhao Prince Xian's expression was astonished, and he couldn't care about etiquette, exclaiming in horror: "Is the Marquis of Anyuan saying that the order was issued from the Governor's office!?"

"But I never..."

The Marquis of Anyuan was the Huguang Regional Commander and the actual commander of all Huguang troops.

Liu Zhen, who held the title of Marquis and the General's seal, was on equal footing with the Governor.

Liu Zhen raised his hand to stop Zhao Prince Xian's words and said in a deep voice: "Regardless of anything else, this order was issued from your Governor's office!"

After speaking, he took out a Governor's hand-order with a seal from his bosom.

He showed it to Zhao Prince Xian briefly and immediately put it back into his bosom.

Zhao Prince Xian stood up abruptly: "It wasn't me, Marquis of Anyuan, don't bite people indiscriminately!"

Marquis of Anyuan Liu Zhen's expression remained unchanged, and he said sternly: "I naturally trust Minister Zhao, but this person must be given to me!"

Liu Zhen was, after all, a noble with a high title; if he really relied on his status, he wouldn't be at a disadvantage.

Now that such a big thing had happened, naturally everyone had to show their abilities to clear their names.

Whether these Governors and Administration Commissioners could sit in their positions for another month was hard to say.

Etiquette and politeness were not that important at this time.

Zhao Prince Xian regained his calm and said coldly: "The person will not be given to the Marquis of Anyuan. It is hard to say who will be involved in this matter, and I don't trust anyone right now."

Tang Bin and Zhang Chucheng had brought government guards and nearly two hundred men from the Wuchang Guard on their provincial inspection.

With two hundred elites for protection, not to mention a thousand bandits, even if they faced a thousand elites, they could have broken out in street fighting; it was impossible for them to be trapped in the county government office and unable to get out.

But the coincidence was just here.

The day before the incident, the Niujiaojian bandits robbed passenger ships, looting the people and harming countless.

Afterward, they sent naval soldiers to suppress them, but were outnumbered, suffering nearly a hundred casualties.

Just at this time, Tang Bin happened to be passing by, and the Military Preparedness Assistant Commissioner Ji Ji Ruzhi, who was suppressing the water bandits, drew away most of Tang Bin's guards.

What was called one link after another!

This was one link after another! It was so precise that it was impossible for anyone to believe it was an accident!

This was also the reason why everyone was in danger now.

As for saying, where did that Military Preparedness Assistant Commissioner Ji Ji Ruzhi get such courage and ability to make Administration Commissioner Tang Bin obediently draw away his guards?

Previously, Zhao Prince Xian had been puzzled, thinking it was because Tang Bin was a civil official and didn't understand the dangers of the world.

Now that Marquis of Anyuan Liu Zhen had investigated it and came to tell him—it was actually a hand-order issued from the Governor's office!

But heaven have mercy!

He had definitely never issued such a hand-order!

Liu Zhen didn't entangle, just stood up to take his leave, expressionless: "I've come anyway; it doesn't matter if Governor Zhao doesn't give me Ji Ji Ruzhi. I will hand over the witnesses and evidence to the imperial envoy when the time comes."

After speaking, he turned and walked into the rain, stepping into a puddle on the road.

Only Zhao Prince Xian was left in the hall, his face changing between light and shadow.

Until Liu Zhen was far away, Zhao Prince Xian roared toward the side hall: "Go! Bring Ji Ji Ruzhi to me!"

After roaring, he overturned the table, leaving a mess.

He muttered coldly: "Whoever dares to touch my seal, I will definitely kill you."

The rain in Huguang was getting heavier and heavier.

The bean-sized rain hit the ground, scattering and splashing on the pedestrians' trouser legs.

A pair of soaked trouser legs swept past quickly, occasionally stepping into a puddle by mistake, causing mud to splash.

It was visible to the naked eye that the legs below the knees were covered in mud.

But Inspecting Hai Yushi Shu Ao, who usually lived a refined life, had no time to care about it at this moment.

He stood in front of the Yuezhou Prefecture government office and said meaningfully: "This is the last place Minister Tang and Supervising Secretary Zhang stayed before the Linxiang case."

Tang Bin and Zhang Chucheng's provincial inspection went all the way to Guiyang before turning back.

Shu Ao had also followed the places where the two had stayed, investigating all the way here.

At that time, the two had stayed in Yuezhou Prefecture until noon the next day before rushing to Linxiang County.

The accompanying advisor frowned: "There are too many suspicious people along the way."

"The thousand-man battalion that was ordered to stop private mining in Guiyang, the several gentry clans in Hengzhou Prefecture that privately minted copper coins, and that Prince in Changsha Prefecture who had a conflict with Minister Tang..."

"Now everyone in the province is suspicious, and even if there are clues, we can't investigate them all."

Shu Ao shook his head: "Investigate as much as we can; I am also an imperial envoy, unlike those ministers, so I don't need to be in a hurry for success."

An Inspecting Hai Yushi was an imperial envoy of the censorate, sent down to inspect the local area, without a specific ministry or specific duties.

In short, he had no base in the local area, only a team of imperial guards, and little connection to the local area.

This directly ruled out his suspicion.

At the same time, there was no major leadership responsibility to bear.

With no debt, he was naturally light, and of course, he didn't have to be like those high officials who were in a hurry to clear their names.

Shu Ao turned his head, looked at the Yuezhou Prefecture government office, and said to the clerk beside him: "Go, tell the Prefect and his assistants to come out and see me."

It would be a lie to say he wasn't afraid of such a treasonous case.

Along the way, he didn't dare to walk into the gates of these government offices easily.

This was so that if something went wrong, he could directly break out on horseback, so as not to follow in their footsteps.

The advisor continued to analyze: "It shouldn't be people from Yuezhou Prefecture. When Minister Tang passed through Changsha, Ji Ji Ruzhi took away his guards; if they wanted to do it, they could have done it before Yuezhou Prefecture, no need to add suspicion to themselves."

Linxiang County was in the territory of Yuezhou Prefecture, and if something happened, they couldn't escape anyway.

Shu Ao sneered: "They've already done such a brainless thing, and you still expect them to be smart?"

After speaking, he ordered the captain: "Go, tell the Yuezhou Guard Commander to come see me too."

Although an Inspecting Hai Yushi was only a seventh-rank official, "acting on behalf of the Son of Heaven, deciding major matters and settling minor ones," his power was not something that could be explained by rank alone.

The court had repeatedly ordered that Inspecting Censors were not allowed to demand local prefects to kneel or humiliate or beat local officials, and it wasn't without reason.

A third-rank Commander only dared to breathe a little louder in front of an Inspecting Hai Yushi.

The advisor's expression changed, and he whispered: "Do you think the Yuezhou Guard is involved?"

This was no small matter; although the Hai Yushi had great power, since they killed a Supervising Secretary and an Administration Commissioner, they wouldn't mind killing an imperial envoy.

After all, a Guard had thousands of people!

Shu Ao said meaningfully: "I don't quite believe that a mining bandit who was exiled could gather over a thousand bandits in less than half a year."

"Besides... whose food the Yuezhou Guard eats is another matter."

Boom!

The thunder sounded again.

Shu Ao took the opportunity to stop his words and didn't explain further, only looking obscurely at the mansion in the distance.

Just at this moment, another bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the plaque of the mansion, where the words "Yueyang Prince's Mansion" were vaguely visible.

The pouring rain in Huguang could not affect the capital, three thousand li away.

The entire Beizhili region began to get hot after noon.

In the Shuntian Prefecture office, someone was as hot as an ant on a hot pan, pacing back and forth and wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Finally, after a while, the steward who had gone to handle the matter ran in.

Panting, he said: "Master, the concubine sent from Huguang has been sent away for you."

He looked at his master's expression again and comforted him: "Master, please rest assured, we haven't had time to handle the matter yet, and the concubine has been dealt with, so outsiders won't know."

Sun Sun Yizheng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He sat down and gulped down water.

After recovering, he said unhappily: "I told you long ago! The silver from Huguang cannot be taken!"

"The mining tax case last year revealed the clues; we should have cut off contact with them early. Your sister, on the other hand, took everything, not afraid of choking to death!"

"Now it's good, such a big thing happened; what if it's investigated to me!"

The steward, who was also his brother-in-law, couldn't help but curl his lips.

The silver was taken by them, but the concubine couldn't be driven away, so he didn't know whose fault it was.

Now he was blaming everyone else.

But he only thought this in his heart, and the steward hurriedly comforted him: "I think there's no need to worry about the sky falling."

"Although we helped do some things in Huguang at the beginning, how long ago was that? Now we've only taken some money and helped clear up minor matters; it's not a major crime, and there's no reason to be implicated to this extent."

Sun Sun Yizheng snorted coldly and scolded: "You haven't read books, what do you know!"

"Still worrying about the sky falling; do you know that the man from Qi encountered falling stars twice, which is why he was so cautious?"

After lecturing him, he felt better and let his brother-in-law go.

Finally, he didn't forget to order: "From now on, we only take money from the gentry and merchants of Shuntian Prefecture; we won't take a cent from those noble people in the local area!"

"A gentleman loves wealth and takes it in the right way, do you understand!?"

The steward bowed repeatedly, indicating he had heard.

Just at this moment.

A clamor suddenly came from outside.

Sun Sun Yizheng's heart tightened, and he stretched his neck to look out in suspicion.

As far as his eyes could see, two eunuchs were in the lead, crossing the front courtyard and walking inside.

Behind the two eunuchs followed people from the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot.

With an aggressive and impolite style, it was clearly not a good thing!

Sun Sun Yizheng took a deep breath and was about to stand up when he felt his body sway.

The steward didn't know why and hurriedly supported him.

Sun Sun Yizheng was about to order something when he saw that he was already surrounded by the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

A man who looked like a big eunuch looked at him with a smile: "Prefect Sun, His Majesty invites you to enter the palace for an audience."

(End of chapter)