For the people of Xuchang, they have watched a big show in the past few days.
The upper-level game was too far away for the common people, and they did not know the stakes involved. However, after Song Bin was beheaded, a general purge began in the court.
The children of the aristocratic family who used to be high and mighty in the past have now had their old scores brought to light.
In order to increase the persuasiveness, the Ministry of Punishment specially posted a list of the crimes committed by these people to make it public, why they were arrested, what they committed, etc., and there were dedicated people beside them to explain to the people at regular intervals.
"Isn't this Situ Zhao Wencongzi? He was also arrested? What does the court want to do?"
"In the past few years, the matter of colluding with the government office and embezzling other people's property has been revealed. It is said that some people were killed. However, Cao Cao was in power at that time and the matter was ignored. This time, under the new law, Marquis Wen will treat everyone equally, as long as he breaks the law
, will definitely be investigated.”
"But that happened during Cao Cao's time. Why is it being liquidated now?"
"What? The Cao Cao period doesn't count? It wasn't the Han Dynasty yet? Who is Cao Cao? Of course he must be with those powerful people, but who is Marquis Wen? He started from a young age and knew the sufferings of the common people like us, and finally
What is unseen is such a bully. I heard that when Marquis Wen was still in the border area, he almost had Ding Yuan's son beheaded because he oppressed the good. It was also because of this that he had a personal grudge with Ding Yuan and what happened later.
Son."
"I see!"
"Yes, these people usually enjoy the people's blessings, but they don't think about making decisions for the people. What they are doing now is retribution."
Generally speaking, the people are quite excited about the settlement of old accounts. Maybe these people have nothing to do with them. After all, the number of children of powerful people is limited, and not everyone has bad moral character and runs out to oppress good people.
But this is often the case. Under the guidance of public opinion, people tend to overshadow the evil deeds of a few people to the whole.
In addition, in the last years of the Han Dynasty, class differentiation had become very obvious. People like Lu Bu and Chu Nan were willing to serve the people without fearing the powerful, and severely punished those who persecuted the people. For the people, it was a great pleasure.
Spring plowing has not yet begun, but because of this incident, the hopes of Lu Bu, Chu Nan, Chen Gong and others have greatly increased.
Lu Mansion, main hall.
"Why is Mr. Situ free to come here today?" Lu Bu looked at Zhao Wen and said calmly.
There wasn't much pleasure. After all, when Lu Bu came to visit them before, he didn't have any expectations for them, and naturally he wasn't that resentful. Now that Zhao Wen came to visit, although Lu Bu felt relieved, he didn't feel very happy.
However, looking at Lu Bu's calm demeanor at this moment, Zhao Wen's heart sank.
When he declined Lu Bu's request to help Song Bin, he didn't expect the other party's counterattack to come so quickly. Moreover, even he didn't know about Zhao Chang's matter. How did the other party find out about it?
And there is solid evidence.
At this time, if Lu Bu looks like a villain, let him vent his anger, suffer some anger, and still have a chance to bring his son back. After all, that is the only bloodline left by his brother. Zhao Wen naturally does not want his brother to
One lineage was cut off like this.
But at this moment Lu Bu was calm and calm, with a calm look on his face, Zhao Wen knew that this matter was difficult to resolve.
"Marquis Wen, although Quan Zi has committed a crime, his crime is not worthy of death." Zhao Wen considered.
Zhao Chang colluded with the government and swallowed people's private property. Although a life was caused, the man committed suicide, and he did not actively beat people to death like Song Bin did. This kind of case can be sentenced harshly, but it can also be sentenced lightly.
.
"A life was lost." Lu Bu took a sip of the bitter tea soup, looked at Zhao Wen's appearance, carefully recalled the actions of Chen Gong and Chu Nan, and said as if an old god was here: "My previous officer was Song Bin
When the matter was going on, what did Situ Gong say? As ministers of the imperial court, we should set an example. If an official's son breaks the law, his crime will be increased by one degree! I feel that the punishment imposed by the Ministry of Punishment is correct."
These were almost Zhao Wen's exact words. Now that Lu Bu said it, he felt refreshed. He looked at Zhao Wen and said with a smile, "Situ Gong came to the official to talk about this today... Could it be that he wants to break his promise?"
Zhao Wen felt depressed in his chest. He didn't think that Song Bin's death and this incident were two different things. Lu Bu's attitude at that time also showed no sincerity in saving people. Even if he wanted to help, he just asked and left. How could he go on?
catch?
Now it seems that this matter was clearly done by Lu Bu, who used Song Bin's death to settle matters and blocked their way to plead for mercy in advance.
"Song Bin violated the national law and deserved his death. I have nothing to say, but everyone has to be the same, right?" Lu Bu turned around and imitated his son-in-law's tone, but the smile on his face that showed as much elegance as possible did not feel natural no matter how he looked at it.
Zhao Wen was obviously not in the mood to care about Lu Bu's awkward smile. After a moment of silence, he said to Lu Bu: "Marquis Wen, the disputes in the court should be strict. I deeply regret what happened to Mr. Song. It's just that this matter cannot be resolved."
It’s time to vent your anger on others.”
"Situ Gong is saying that the Ministry of Punishment made a wrong verdict?" Lu Bu looked serious, looked at Chao Wen and said: "If this is really the case, as long as Situ Gong can find evidence to prove that Mr. Zhao is innocent, Bu will definitely give Mr. Zhao justice.
."
"This..." Zhao Wen didn't know whether Lu Bu really didn't understand or pretended not to understand. Looking at Lu Bu, Lu Bu also looked at him seriously. Finally, Zhao Wen sighed and said: "This matter is indeed true. I am willing to let it go."
Now that I have resigned from the position of Situ, I sincerely request the Ministry of Punishment to be more lenient and give me a lighter sentence."
Lu Bu shook his head and said: "Situ Gong's words are wrong. Merits and faults cannot be offset. At that time, I remember that General Song was willing to exchange his own merits for a lighter sentence. This seems to be what Kong Wenju said. How come today, he exchanges his official position for it?
Are you here?"
On that day, Lu Bu came to beg for mercy from every family, and each family had different reasons for refusing. This saying that merits and demerits cannot be balanced was attributed to Kong Rong.
Zhao Wen suddenly wants to punch Kong Rong now. If he refuses, just refuse. What's the point?
"Marquis Wen, the most taboo thing in this court dispute is to involve the innocent." Zhao Wen said in a deep voice.
"Oh?" Lu Bu straightened up slightly, looked at Zhao Wen and said, "Situ Gong is teaching me how to be an official?"
"Marquis Wen cannot guarantee his longevity!" Zhao Wen took a deep breath and said.
"So what?" Lu Bu withdrew his gaze and said calmly: "I am a rough man. He only accepts death. It is natural to pay debts and kill people to pay for their lives. Since everyone agrees with the new law, then act according to the rules. Don't do anything fundamental.
I don't know what it means to be an official, but hundreds of thousands of people in Xuchang are here to watch. Such a trend is what the people want. If Cao Cao finally gets rid of the problem, it will naturally have nothing to do with Situ Gong.
, But as far as I am concerned, where is the majesty of my official position!?"
"Okay!" Zhao Wen stood up, sighed and said: "Marquis Wen is an upright official, and Wen admires him for it. In this case, I have no face to stay here any longer, so take my leave!"
"Send off guests!" Lu Bu waved his hand without getting up.
Zhao Wen left, and several officials came over one after another. In order to give them enough time, Chu Nan deliberately pushed the execution date to three days later.
In the Situ Mansion, Zhao Wen was a little depressed. The elder brother left only such a son. Everything else was good, but he was a little greedy for money. For his rank, this was not a big deal, but this little thing became a big deal.
A reminder of death.
To be honest, Zhao Wen really regretted it. He thought that Lu Bu would take revenge, whether it was dismissal from office or killing people. In fact, it would be harmful to Lu Bu.
Whether a force can last long, military strength and talents are important, but more importantly, it must have rules. No matter how Lu Bu retaliates, it will impact the rules. Once the rules are broken, people will scatter, so Zhao Wen is not worried about Lu Bu's violence.
He didn't want to kill someone, but he expected him to do it.
But what he didn't expect was that Lu Bu started directly with the case this time, and the murder was justified. Not only could he find no fault with it, but he also gained popularity.
He also cultivated the Qi of Haoran, and Zhao Wen could clearly feel that the popularity he had gathered in the past few days had declined, and there was even the slightest hint of public dissatisfaction.
Not only did it not hit Lu Bu, but it actually pulled them down.
"Master, Zhang Yi, the magistrate of Xuchang County, would like to see you." The housekeeper came in and saluted Zhao Wen.
Zhao Wen didn't want to see him at first, but after thinking about it, he nodded and said, "Let him come in."
The root of this matter lies with Zhang Yi. Everyone knows this. Zhang Yi wants to restore the old system. To be precise, he wants to restore the power of the military. What Lu Bu wants to fight is the power of the military. This is what Zhang Yi should have done.
The fundamental reason why Lu Bu's people sided with the scholars was that the two sides had different ideas.
Zhang Yi's method of killing Song Bin was not unskilled, but it was a pity that Lu Bu saw through it.
Now this matter... Zhao Wen has no hope of saving people, but he doesn't want to continue. If Lu Bu continues to investigate, the Central Plains nobles who have been purged by Lu Bu may have to go through a new round of purges.
Zhang Yi was a little lost. When he saw Zhao Wen, he knelt down and kowtowed to Zhao Wen: "Mr. Situ, the Zhang family has only three branches. We cannot stop the Xiaguan line. Please save my son, Mr. Situ!"
He knew that it was useless to ask Lu Bu. Song Xian and others would not agree, so they could only ask Zhao Wen.
Zhao Wen looked at Zhang Yi and sighed: "I have been to the Lu Mansion today. I'm afraid I won't be able to keep my son."
Zhang Yi turned pale when he heard this. Even Zhao Wen couldn't protect his family. How could he...? He looked at Zhao Wen pleadingly: "Mr. Situ, this matter was also..."
Before he finished speaking, Zhao Wen had already interrupted him!
"Shut up!" Zhao Wen's originally gentle expression suddenly turned cold. He looked at Zhang Yi and said, "This matter has already involved too many people. Then Lu Bu... The reason why Marquis Wen hesitated to kill him was not because he had any scruples, but because
It’s to see us struggling like he did back then. Our goal is essentially to repeal the new law, but we never thought about killing anyone!”
"But Lu Bu never really saved anyone!" Zhang Yi gritted his teeth.
If Lü Bucheng wanted to save someone, how could he really not be able to save him?
"This is the most terrifying thing!" Zhao Wen sighed: "Lü Bu is determined to implement the new law, even if he dies, and he transfers the hatred of his subordinates to us. Now Lu Bu's generals, especially those
Song Xian, I'm afraid the person I hate the most is you. Others still have a glimmer of hope, but I'm afraid you..."
When Zhang Yi heard this, he fell to the ground with a pale face. At this moment, he really regretted it. Originally, he was Lu Bu's man and had a bright future. The Xuchang County Magistrate was not comparable to ordinary county magistrates, but because of the uncertainty of the future
Whether he can obtain the power or not, he is placed on the opposite side of Lu Bu, becoming a pawn in the fight between Shiquan and Lu Bu.
Looking back at it now, this matter originally had nothing to do with me, but I got involved in it myself.
Now he can see clearly that he has only been serving as the magistrate of Xuchang County for a short time, and may never have the opportunity to become an official again in this life, and he has also lost his son's life.
All kinds of bitterness came to my heart at this moment.
"County Magistrate Zhang, this matter cannot continue!" Zhao Wen lowered his head, looked at Zhang Yi, and said with a gentle expression: "It started because of you, and it should end because of you!"
Hearing this, Zhang Yi trembled, raised his head and looked at Zhao Wen in disbelief: "What do you mean by Mr. Situ's words?"
"To calm Lu Bu's anger." Zhao Wen stood up and said, "Just treat someone as a sacrifice. This happened because of you. Do you understand?"
Zhang Yi understood that he wanted to use his life to add to his burden, so he immediately stood up and said angrily: "Mr. Situ, I respect you, but..."
Zhao Wen interrupted him and said, "Don't say anything else. Lu Bu can't tolerate you anymore. Could it be that County Magistrate Zhang doesn't want to be integrated into the world?"
Zhang Yi looked at Zhao Wen blankly, but Zhao Wen ignored him and went straight back to the back hall, leaving Zhang Yi alone and fell to the ground, staring blankly in the direction Zhao Wen left...
