The Qingzhou cavalry crawled past like a giant dragon with no concealment, and the people looked at it in shock.
All I saw was lightning like a python and thunder deafening.
The heavy rain finally fell and crackled to the ground, and the clang of swords and armor showed the chilling atmosphere.
In a small coastal village, the leading general shouted angrily.
"Everyone, please be honest! Take everyone back without leaving a trace!"
"Starting from today, the coastal defense will be under martial law. Anyone who goes to sea at night will be investigated and dealt with immediately!"
The soldiers quickly captured the private salt field with thunderous momentum, arrested the personnel present, and seized the transporting ships.
A letter was sent to the private salt farm here, and the aftermath personnel were left behind, while the rest continued to attack as quickly as possible.
At the same time, Haixing Mansion.
Tea shop owner, the stone lion in front of Tian Mansion was washed translucent by the heavy rain.
Suddenly, there was a shocking explosion and the door was kicked open.
The concierge woke up from his dream, ran out in disheveled clothes and shouted: "Who is it?! Who is desperate...ah!"
The captain who led the team kicked the concierge away, strode in, and glanced at him coldly, "I am the Lord of Hell."
Twenty or thirty soldiers filed in under the rain, holding bright swords against the eclipsed servants, and then moved to the verandahs on both sides.
The captain who led the team stood in the front yard and ordered: "Clean up the Tian's mansion, other courtyards, businesses, and shops for me! Anyone who has personal relationships with the Tian family will be arrested and brought to justice!"
The rainy night suddenly changed, and the entire Tian Mansion was filled with screams one after another.
Tian Qi was picked up from his sleep and raised in front of the captain with a horrified look on his face. Nuonuo asked in shock: "Master Jun, I am a businessman by my duty. I never cause trouble... ah?!"
”
Before he finished speaking, the captain slapped him across the face with a very impatient expression, "Say one more word and I'll tear your mouth apart!"
There was also chaos in front of Shaoyin's house. After the yamen opened the side door, he aggressively headed towards the backyard.
Soon afterwards, the Qingzhou magistrate came in with a livid face, carrying a steel knife he grabbed from nowhere, and cursed: "Where is that beast!"
"Here!"
Among the crowd, Qingzhou Shaoyin screamed with despair, "I am an official of the imperial court, are you going to rebel?!"
When the Qingzhou magistrate saw that the boy was fully dressed and carrying a baggage on his back, as if he was about to run away when he heard the noise, he became even more furious.
"I have been deceived by you, a rip-off beast, for many years, and my reputation has been ruined for the rest of my life. You still want to run away?" He stepped forward and grabbed Shaoyin, who was a big talker. "Check it out for me! Anyone who has come into contact with this beast in the past
His merchants, relatives and friends must not be left behind. Anyone he recommends to befriend will be suspended from work and investigated! This case will be tried personally by the official. When the investigation is clear, when will the person be released!"
Shaoyin knew that the matter was exposed, and looked at his family around him in despair. At this time, he regretted it too much.
The entire Haixing Mansion and its surrounding towns were turned upside down in one day, and those related to the illegal salt industry were trembling with fear.
Before sunset, more than 400 people were imprisoned, and Qingzhou Prison was almost full.
In the front yard of the Yamen are freshly built tables, rows of copied documents, piles of account books, and temporarily recruited accounting offices ready to serve.
"The situation is urgent. All accounts must be carefully inspected. Those who find out the problems will be rewarded, and those who cover up and cover up will be punished with the same crime!" After the Qingzhou magistrate gave the order, he discussed in a low voice with the judge sitting aside how to properly report such a major case. Only in this way can we protect those innocent Qingzhou officials as much as possible.
Naturally, the accounting gentlemen did not dare to slack off, and their attitude was very serious. It didn't take long for them to discover the clues.
"Tianjia Tianqi's goods shipped from the 13th to the 16th year were ten times more than usual! Sir, there is something wrong with this account book. There is not so much tea in the Qingzhou Tea Garden!"
"Yes! There are also records of shipping goods to Qianzhou, as well as the transactions between the tea shop and Shaoyin."
From thirteen to sixteen years, isn't that the time when the war is at its most intense?
Tongpan stayed up all night, with bloodshot eyes now, and shouted, "Write it all down and compile it all into a book!"
The prefect of Qingzhou was covered in sweat, and his whole face turned pale after hearing this.
Capitalize on the enemy!
If this fails, the entire Qingzhou officialdom will be buried with him!
The Qingzhou magistrate rushed into the prison, grabbed the beaten Shaoyin who was covered in blood, and yelled with his eyes cracked: "You beast! What can you say now? If you still have some conscience, just call him truthfully!" ”
Shao Yin's eyes were dull, and he knew in his heart that there was no way out, so he said sadly: "I, I am recruiting, I am an experienced clerk who can help me write a note..."
"You come and record it! Remember everything clearly from beginning to end." The Qingzhou magistrate asked someone to record it and interrogated it himself.
Guanjia Town, Qingzhou Daying.
This time, all the generals and their teams went out in full force, and soon they had all the salt fields in their hands, and the pirates captured more than a hundred people.
There were howls in the barracks, and the soldiers directly dragged the captured pirates to the playground for interrogation. Anyone who hesitated would be severely whipped, or his ears and feet chopped off.
The soldiers' attacks were not serious. The pirates had never seen such a crazy formation. In order to avoid the physical pain, they all confessed honestly.
"Tell me! When was the private salt field excavated?"
"God, the ninth year of the Apocalypse."
"Which one was it at the beginning? Who has taken over it?"
"It started in Xiaodong Village. The village chief was responsible for mining, and we helped transport..."
"How was it shipped? Which terminal?"
"The salt will be shipped to Liuwan Wharf, and someone from the Cheng family will be responsible for taking over together."
"...."
After four or five days of interrogation, the entire Haixing Mansion was filled with blood, and even the heavy rain could not wash away the smell of blood.
Several soldiers came in carrying thick pieces of testimony, and then placed them neatly on the desk to report.
"Master Prefect, Master Tongpan! The testimonies of merchants, officials, and pirates are all here."
"I know." Qingzhou Tongpan said calmly.
"Send the testimonials and evidence to the capital as quickly as possible!" Qingzhou magistrate held the report in his hand, with an uncertain expression. He didn't know what the fate of Qingzhou's officialdom would be if these things were handed over.
But he knows better that it is absolutely impossible not to retaliate, and he hopes that there is still room for redemption.
Qingzhou Prefecture Yamen and Qingzhou Camp selected elite forces to form a transportation team of nearly a hundred people, who worked day and night to deliver all the testimonies and physical evidence to the capital in 20 days.
This shocking case also caused a huge shock in the court, and the facts of the case were inadvertently spread.
[Since the Thirteenth Year of the Apocalypse, nearly 100,000 kilograms of private salt from Jianzhou and Qingzhou have crossed the border! More than 50 officials secretly colluded along the way, and the amount of bribes received was as high as 800,000 taels!]
[In order to facilitate transportation and not be discovered, they even colluded with pirates to kill innocent fishermen! Pirates robbed passing merchants, and there were many murders. There were as many as 1,900 missing merchants, crew members, and civilians recorded in the book.
!It’s simply too numerous to mention!】
[Cheng Chang, Guo Shan and their ilk are not uncommon! Qingzhou has great harm, great reputation has great harm!]
There were a lot of discussions among the people, and impeachment memorials continued in the court. The emperor was so angry that he issued an order in court. All the people involved were beheaded in public. He also severely reprimanded the Qingzhou magistrate and Tong Xing, and ignored them for the time being because of their merits in investigating the case.
The news spread quickly, and the whole country was in an uproar!
......
In a courtyard somewhere in the capital, a cold atmosphere enveloped the entire courtyard.
"Trash! In the past six months, troubles have occurred in Qianzhou, Jianzhou, and Qingzhou one after another. What do you do for food?!"
The middle-aged man smashed the tea cup directly at him. Pixiu knelt down and screamed. His face was red from the hot tea, but he didn't dare to dodge at all.
"Please calm down, young master! This matter...This matter happened suddenly, and I don't know who is secretly investigating. But...but fortunately all the important people have withdrawn.
There is no way they can find you here!"
The eldest young master smiled coldly and asked gloomily: "Do you think those people in the court are fools?"
"You mean...?"
"Someone from the imperial court will come forward to mediate. We have been planning for fifteen years, and now we have reached a critical moment, otherwise I will have to skin you today!"
Pixiu knocked his head deeply to the ground, not daring to make a sound.
"The goods from Xianzhou are coming soon. We can't make any mistakes this time, otherwise I will bury your whole family alive!"
"Yes, young master, don't worry."
Pixiu took a few steps back in fear before he dared to get up and leave quickly.
Before I walked out of the corridor, I heard the sound of something being smashed behind me.