"You are so courageous. You really don't take my two thousand stones seriously."
At this time, Jiyin County and Dingtao County were guarding the temple.
The prefect Zhang Chong was losing his temper with his staff.
In the morning, he was doing business as usual. Suddenly, the county governor came in and said that Li Jin of Chengshi had gone out of his way to cross the county and rushed to Chengyang with unknown intentions.
At that time, Zhang Chong was so frightened that he fell down and immediately thought whether the news had been leaked somewhere in the shogunate.
In the past two years, he has often complained that the Li family is powerful and lawless, and that he, a man with two thousand stones, cannot be powerful enough to leave the county and temple.
One day, one or two local tycoons will be killed to reduce their prestige.
But God has mercy on him, he just said it casually.
If he didn't say anything, wouldn't it mean that no one would take him seriously?
He, Zhang Chong, came from the Zhang family in Yanshi, Henan County, and was the successor of Zhang Cang, the prime minister of the Western Han Dynasty.
After Zhang Cang followed Emperor Gaozu to pacify Zang Tu, he was granted the title of Marquis of Beiping, and his family moved from Hanoi to Yanshi, where their surname became prominent.
He has always been proud of the fact that he is very similar to his ancestors, who are both tall and tall, and have a body as plump and fair as gourd seeds.
Their family has a secret health-preserving formula, which is to drink human milk, and there are many wet nurses who provide it every day.
But among the many drinkers in the clan, he is the only one who has cultivated such a good official body.
After that, the journey was indeed prosperous, and now I have reached the commandery with two thousand stones. The next step is to be among the nine ministers.
Back then, his ancestor had saved himself from death by virtue of this body. Now, he has risen to great heights by virtue of this body.
Sure enough, people with good looks generally have good luck.
Their family's law school is "The Chunqiu Zuo Family", but unlike other schools, they also study the Yin and Yang School.
Zhang Cang studied under Xunzi in his early years. Unlike his classmates Li Si and Han Fei, he was well-read, well versed in laws and calendars, and was knowledgeable in calendar calculation. It can be said that he was a first-class calendar legalist.
Zhang Chong mainly studied "Zhang Cang" written by his ancestor, and he was quite involved in astronomy, astrology, and gas reading.
Originally, this kind of knowledge was not allowed to be studied privately, but because it was a Zhang family study and had only been passed down within the family, the superiors just let it go.
He had long seen that Li Qian, a grass snake in the lake, was unwilling to be subordinated to others and had been a disaster for a long time. Especially his younger brother Li Jin, who was also a monstrous man.
What is this party trying to do by colluding with guests and colluding with water bandits?
But he really had no intention of running the Li family.
After all, those who learn Yin and Yang know best how to act according to the times and act according to their ability, and will never do anything head-on.
This is not cowardice, this is wisdom, the wisdom of overcoming hardness with softness.
But he didn't expect that these reckless men would directly lift the desk and come to give him a blow.
Why did Minghuo Zhizhang go to Chengyang? Could he not know?
Isn't it just to eliminate his supporters in the county, the Zhong family?
Really, really, what a reckless man.
It seems that I have to continue to be gentle, lie down, and endure it first.
Just when Zhang Chong was justifying his story in his mind, Yi Shuzuo came with a letter, saying that it was reported by Li Jin.
Zhang Chong's heart ached, knowing that the Zhong family was doomed.
Alas, what a pity that this family is a good family. Were the wet nurses at home sent by them?
But who would have expected that when Zhang Chong opened it, it turned out to be Li Jin's confession sheet.
The letter stated that the Juye Ze water bandits robbed the canals that set out from Qingzhou this year and took four of the Jibei King's canals.
Then he led the inspection team to hunt down the water bandits who fled on the shore overnight, and finally caught up with them at the Reed Marsh twenty miles outside Chengyang.
After a great battle, 300 prisoners and 120 heads were killed, and six ships of grain and tribute were captured.
But it is a pity that the guards of the King of Jibei and Qingzhou Bangfu were both killed.
Also killed in the battle was his younger brother Li Jin. He hoped that the eunuch would pity him for his death in the battle and give him an official tomb to honor his merits.
Okay, really good.
Li Jin actually died, which was really surprising. Now, wouldn't Li Qian be heartbroken?
Haha, cool.
The joy came so quickly. Just when Zhang Chong was feeling the most sad, this military report was like a dose of coldness in June, so refreshing that it took off.
Then, Zhang Chong was unwilling to sit in the official office and hurried back to the back office to discuss with his staff.
He told his staff about the situation, and then pretended to scold them a few times, but his joy was evident on his face.
One of the staff members cleverly stepped forward and congratulated:
"Congratulations to Mr. Fu. The so-called benevolent people are helped by God. Those who abuse others are disgusted by God.
That Li Jin only knew how to show off his cruelty and did not practice benevolence. The servant had already expected that he would die violently, but no, God would kill him with false hands."
As soon as someone here congratulated, someone over there was sarcastic:
"What a mad man, why do you know the way of heaven and man better than my lord?
The Lord is from a well-known family, and has early wisdom in his hands. He has banquets in the Yazhai, throws tea pots slowly, wanders leisurely in the reading room, and stubborn people commit suicide. Is this something you can be greedy for?
You had expected this, isn't this all under the master's control?"
I thought it was a straight person, but I didn't expect that it was another flattering person.
The man who was robbed before did not dare to argue, but his face turned red.
Zhang Chong was very happy when he was photographed, but his face was calm and leisurely:
"My family's methods are exquisite. I have only learned a few of them. I can't claim to be proficient in them. But I can still deal with this little country boy with ease."
As he spoke, he pinched his three-inch beard and spoke with a look of disdain.
Then, like a sudden thought:
"Is it illegal for Li Qian to enforce the law across counties?"
An official who knew the names of punishments came forward and said:
"According to the "Han Code", among the officials in the group, if anyone goes out of bounds without permission, he will be flogged a hundred times."
"Then do you think Li Jin should be brought to the Yamen for torture?"
The staff below looked at each other, and they all had troubled expressions. It was the staff member who was outspoken but charming at the same time who came up to persuade:
"My lord, this Li Jin has meritorious service in killing the thief, but the reward is not enough, so how can he be used for torture again?"
Moreover, these soldiers have always been fierce and stubborn. This was the time when Li Gang was grieving and angry after his younger brother died.
We went to arrest him. Although there were court laws and regulations, we were afraid that this man would be rebellious and cause chaos.
It has been four years since my lord came to Jiyin, and the seas and rivers have been clear. Who doesn't miss my lord's kindness, and why should I ruin your reputation for the sake of a rich man like Li Jin?"
Zhang Chong nodded, noncommittal, and then asked:
"What about the Qingzhou tanker case? There is also the robbery of the King of Jibei's tribute. These are all troublesome things."
The staff member wanted to say more, how could the "Feng Chu" on the side make this "Wolong" so beautiful? He stepped forward and interrupted:
"My lord, this matter is easy to hear.
The first is the tribute case of the King of Jibei. Li Jin said in the outside that there were many tributes, but some guards and ministers died.
I think the King of Jibei doesn't care about this at all. As long as the tribute can go to Beijing smoothly, what does it matter if some people die?
Therefore, after we have counted the tribute of King Jibei, we can ship it to Kyoto. This will make no difference to King Jibei.
If he doesn't take action and we don't correct him, then one more thing would be better than one less thing, and it will be treated as if it didn't happen.
The other is the Qingzhou canal boat case, which is important.
The grain was lost, and the fault lies with the grain collectors and the servants who delivered it. Now these people are dead, but their families are still there.
The master can go to the table to check his family property, and his family members can offset it and become slaves.
Then there was the chaos caused by the water bandits. This huge swamp was located between the four counties of Yanzhou. How could it be unique to Jiyin?
My lord, please tell me about the negligence of the governors of Dongping County, Dongping Kingdom and Shanyang County. Anyway, this matter is not our Jiyin County's business.
Of course, we are not going to offend the three counties and offend the public. We are going to advance while retreating, so that we can do the right thing without blaming the public."
With just a few words from an old official, this heinous case was dismissed.
Zhang Chong looked at this man with admiration on his face.
"Okay, let's do it like this. As the saying goes, one thing doesn't bother two masters. You have this plan. You have to use your pen to write a magnificent official document. It must be well-reasoned and well-founded."
The old official was overjoyed, bowed, and accepted the job.
Seeing that Zhang Chong was still deep in thought, another staff member came over to relieve his troubles.
"My lord, you frown deeply, are you still thinking about Li Jin?"
Zhang Chong spread his hands and said to the staff present:
"You are all my confidants. To be honest, I have been troubled by something in the past few days.
Recently, a friend of mine who is the same age in Beijing wrote me a letter telling me about some of the current conflicts between the DPRK and China.
The letter stated that this month, Liu He, the original Dahonglu, succeeded Situ, and since then the relationship with the eunuch party has become tense.
Now in the capital, there are constant rumors that Liu He wants to kill all the eunuchs.
I don't like Liu He, especially his protégé Yang Qiu, who is a cruel official and a vicious dog. No one knows what will happen if this man goes crazy.
Therefore, even Li Shi, I looked disgusted.
But after all, Lao Situ wants to eradicate the eunuchs, so logically speaking, I should support him.
But I still have resentment in my heart, can you please forgive me?"
The staff are all smart people. In fact, from their lord's words, they know that this lord has no intention of sparing the Cheng family and the Li family. He is just hindering the Qing Dynasty and is afraid of being said to be flattering eunuchs and eradicating people with lofty ideals.
After all, Liu He and the eunuchs are now in a powerful position, and the Li family are Liu He's followers.
Eradicating the Li family would inevitably be regarded as showing favor to the eunuchs.
But Zhang Chong definitely could not take refuge with the eunuchs, because his teacher was a famous local in Dingtao.
Since Huan Ling, Yanyu has been the stronghold of the Party members.
If he was mistakenly thought to have taken refuge with the eunuchs, he would not even be able to sit in Dingtao, let alone be ranked among the ninth ministers.
When the master is in trouble, so are they.
Just when everyone was at a loss what to do, a burst of noise suddenly came from the office, followed immediately by the roar of people, crying and shouting everywhere.
Just when everyone was confused, the originally clear sky suddenly darkened.
A strong wind blew up the big trees in the pavilion, making a roaring sound.
Then the sun suddenly disappeared, stars appeared on the sky, and the whole earth became dark.
Just now outside the Yamen Temple, the official was in panic and fell to the ground, begging for mercy and shouting:
"I won't dare to do it again, I won't dare to do it again." This is a sign of doing too much harm.
There were also brave traitors who took advantage of the darkness and confusion to run into businesses and loot and burn them.
The temple guards didn't even see what was going on, so they quickly closed the gate, set up torches, and illuminated the front of the temple.
The rest of the people drew their bows and strings, and anyone who dared to charge the Yamen would be shot without mercy.
But it darkens quickly and lights up quickly.
Just as gongs were ringing all around, warning of thieves and bandits, the sun came out.
The thief who used to hide in the darkness, without the protection of the night, no longer dared to cause trouble, and dispersed with a roar.
At this time, except for the crying in the shop and the mess on the ground, nothing seemed to have happened.
Zhang Chong also came to his senses, and just as he was about to speak, he saw the old official coming up to congratulate him again:
"My Lord is so wise that he can see thousands of miles away and can calculate all the yin and yang. He can even calculate today's solar eclipse.
As the saying goes, the day changes to cultivate virtue, and the moon changes to save punishment.
Now there is a big family named Li in the county who is unruly and disrespectful and has offended the harmony of heaven. Heaven is warning him.
I also ask my lord to obey Heaven's orders, bring him to justice, and cultivate the virtues of the county."