Wei Chong came back from the prison and took a nap. When he woke up, he saw that the sky was slightly bright and a layer of mist was covering the air. He heard that several more "death-row prisoners" had died in the prison, but it did not matter to the overall situation.
When the dust was about to settle, Wei Chong took the officers and soldiers back to the palace and went to Hu Qi to deliver the goods.
Hu Qi was still sulking at the table giving instructions. When he saw Wei Chong coming back from a busy night, he motioned for him to sit down and rest.
"I asked that group of soldiers to wait outside," Wei Chong asked for a cup of tea, "Thank you for your help."
Hu Qi's face was like a flat lake, and he quickly wrote a few words on the paper: "How many are captured?"
"About twenty people, just enough for me." Wei Chong said calmly.
"This soldier is not under my control," Hu Qi snorted dissatisfiedly, "What did you do...I am not responsible for it."
"Of course you don't have to take responsibility, it's just the young ones who make their own decisions..." Wei Chong didn't dare to contradict, so he had to swallow these words.
"Is there anything else?" Hu Qi asked impatiently.
"One more thing," Wei Chong said with a somewhat apologetic smile, "When I went to arrest Wang Liangguan, I had some misunderstandings with the guards at the granary, and I got rough and killed three or four people. Look at this.
What should we do?”
Hu Qi raised his head in astonishment, his anger rose, and he scolded: "What good are you doing for me!"
Wei Chong said nothing. Then Hu Qi calmed down and could only sigh: "Forget it. I can help you hide it for the time being, but paper can't cover the fire after all. If the people in the granary have complaints against us, they may put this matter away."
If the matter is revealed, there needs to be a comprehensive plan."
"This little guy is here to ask you for advice."
Hu Qi pinched his nose, pondered for a moment, and then said: "Let's go to King Wanjun and persuade him to care for the dead and injured, and instruct the king's grain officer to assist the thieves. He will be deprived of his official position and will not be reinstated. This is
A combination of kindness and power may work."
"Shang Shu's wonderful plan! I will go to the palace immediately to advise the prince." Wei Chong bowed.
"Then go ahead, I'll wait for your good news." Hu Qi picked up the pen again.
Wei Chong's actions at night were so fast that Ye Yongjia didn't even know how many new people had been added to the cell. He only heard about the capture of Captain Mao from Inspector Jiang.
Impulsively, he wanted to take a look in the cell, but because Liu Dang had not expressed his position yet, if he entered the prison without permission and met Ma Si, he would be in trouble whether to save him or not.
After all, he is the prefect of Nanjing City. He should not treat this as a child's play and make rash actions. It is best to wait and see what happens.
Ye Yongjia walked into the study room of the yamen. He wanted to ask Wei Chong for a few questions, but he couldn't find him. He had to ask the clerk to bring the documents, but he saw him taking a half step back, as if he had something to say. He was thinking
Feeling irritated, he asked, "What's wrong? Tell me something quickly."
"Prefect Chen of Yangzhou has written to you." The clerk took out a letter from his pocket. "The person he sent asked me to forward it to the study... It's no coincidence that you have arrived."
"Has that person left?" Ye Yongjia asked.
"I guess I'm leaving the city," he replied.
Ye Yongjia looked at the letter handed by the clerk, pondered for a long time, and finally took it hesitantly, opened it, and read the words above in a low voice:
'Yangzhou Chen Tongpao bowed respectfully to Nanjing Magistrate Ting Longxian's younger brother: I haven't seen you for many days. I wonder if you are in good health? How is your family? I miss you very much. As for the robe, there are governors above to protect you, and below you are kind to Guo family.
The situation is no longer difficult. The pawnshops of the Hunan people are becoming more and more prosperous, and they are opened in many places.
And Lu Jifu has recently fallen ill again, and he is about to die, which is actually a good thing. When Jifu dies, the Lu family will be merged into a family, and Chen will be able to enjoy peace. There is an undercurrent surging in Tinglong, and it may not happen overnight.
It can be decided. If there is any difficulty, just tell me your sincere heart, and Brother Yu will take the initiative to discuss it.'
Ye Yongjia picked up his pen and wanted to reply with something. He hung the tip of the pen in the air, unable to make up his mind. Then he dipped in ink several times and wrote only a few words: "Nothing happened, Brother Chen, don't worry about it."
As noon approached, Wei Chong came out of the palace and received the order. He first went to tell the family members of the grain soldiers who accidentally killed them, and generously gave them gold and silk as compensation.
Also distribute all kinds of food
The soldiers' money was euphemistically called money to soothe their moods. He also sternly denounced Wang Liangguan's illegal behavior in front of the public, and acted according to Hu Qi's plan. Since the grain soldiers got the money, they were happy; and knowing that Wang Liangguan was indeed guilty, they
Don't dare to make mistakes anymore.
Seeing that the storm had subsided, Wei Chong didn't stay long, so he hurried to the cell and saw the cell leader taking out a confession. The paper was densely packed with red palm prints, which looked shocking.
"Master Wei, I spent a whole night on trial, asking the more than 20 people of Ma Si's gang to be detained. You can hand it over to Mr. Ye for information." The prison chief said with a smile, as if he wanted to take credit.
Wei Chong laughed heartily and patted his shoulder: "Don't worry, the credit must be yours!"
He took out this confession, which represented the settlement of the dust, and placed it in front of Ye Yongjia, then stepped aside and bowed to salute.
"This is..." Ye Yongjia shivered all over when he saw those blood-red fingerprints.
"Ma Si's comrades told me." Wei Chong said with a smile.
Ye Yongjia grabbed the so-called real evidence with a few fingers and made a crunching sound. "Are we going to kill more than twenty people?"
"Among them, Wang Liangguan, Cai Shuli, and Liu Yamen have been officials for many years and do not need to be killed; but most of these people are desperadoes from other places. They killed people, set fires, and robbed homes for Ma Si. They deserve to be killed.
What's more..." Wei Chong's eyes sharpened, "If we don't kill these prisoners on death row, the people will not be angry!"
After Ye Yongjia heard this, he slammed the table so hard that the confession fell to the ground.
"Did you get the consent of me, the prefect of Nanjing, to arrest these people?" Ye Yongjia said in a stern voice, "Tell me! Where did you arrest these people and when?"
Wei Chong was also driven into panic and pointed his finger to the sky: "The emperor has a decree to abolish redundant officials and rectify the administration of officials. I hope Lord Ye will not forget it!"
Ye Yongjia's face turned red with anger and his eyes widened: "Abolition? The emperor didn't give you the power to arrest or kill people, right?"
Wei Chong sneered with contempt: "Master Ye... not only the emperor, but also the princes of Wanjun and Duke Lu Yue also gave me the power to investigate people. Since I can investigate, I can get to the bottom of it!"
"I'm asking you where you caught these people, don't keep talking to me!" Ye Yongjia shouted loudly.
"Donkey Skin Alley," Wei Chong tugged at his beard, "there are many thieves hiding in this alley. I searched them from house to house and found them."
"A thief? That's nonsense!" Ye Yongjia stood up and grabbed Wei Chong's collar, almost tearing it off, "You just said it blatantly. You are obviously taking ordinary people as the culprits.
Yes or no?!”
Wei Chong's face showed a hint of a ferocious smile, and he admitted generously: "Yes."