Bei'an County, a county seat under the jurisdiction of Jianchang Prefecture of Yun State.
The county seat is called Bei'an, which is an ancient name.
Six hundred years ago, this was an important town facing the Xia Kingdom's military front and garrisoned for defense. After the two countries stopped fighting, the place was renamed Bei'an to commemorate the end of the war.
It’s just that time flies and changes occur. In the past, it was an important town in the north of Yun Kingdom. Due to the changes in the mountains and rivers in Laai over the past few years, the river changed its course and passed through it.
With the river as a natural hazard, Bei'an County no longer faces the Xia Kingdom's military fronts. However, the name has not been changed.
At this time, in the Bei'an County government office, Hai Rui was sitting on the chair of the county government office without any mercy, with his head lowered and a serious look on his face, constantly flipping through the county government's closed case files in his hand.
Zhidu led the accompanying Legalist disciples and hurriedly moved the files collected in Bei'an County to Hai Rui for him to read.
At this time, under the county government hall, there was the friendly-looking Magistrate Schiller of Bei'an County, who was in his forties and wearing official robes.
Lieutenant Qian Qian led the county government officials to stand over there.
Among these people, especially the leaders, although their faces were relatively calm, they were all worried and uneasy in their hearts, waiting with trepidation for Hai Rui to speak.
In fact, even if we only talk about rank, Hai Rui is just a supervisory censor, no higher than a county magistrate.
However, as the supervisory censor appointed by His Majesty, Hai Rui has the responsibility of supervising all affairs in Jianchang Mansion. He can participate in the affairs of Jianchang Mansion at will, which can be said to be a low-ranking and powerful person.
All the county government officials had no room for resistance in front of him, and they behaved like this in front of him.
It was not until a long time later that Hai Rui slowly closed the file in his hand, raised his head and moved his neck, that he saw a group of officials from the county government waiting here cautiously.
Seeing that these officials did not even dare to express their dignity, Hai Rui frowned on his solemn face, and immediately reprimanded with dissatisfaction:
"Xi County Magistrate, didn't you just say that everyone should not wait here and deal with the official business at hand first? If there is anything important, I will summon you myself!"
When Schiller, who was standing at the front among the county officials, heard this, he realized what he was saying and quickly complained:
"Yes, yes, I didn't pay attention to it!"
After saying that, he quickly cleared his throat and said:
"Master Hai said, everyone go out and deal with the government affairs at hand!"
When all the officials heard this, they immediately bowed their heads and turned around to go out.
At this moment, Hai Rui suddenly spoke:
"By the way, County Magistrate Xi and County Lieutenant Qian will stay first!"
The two people whose names were called by Hai Rui were like students who were suddenly called out by their teacher for detention. Their hearts suddenly skipped a beat.
The other officials in the county government suddenly became nervous when they felt the atmosphere in the county government. They glanced at each other subconsciously, and then they quickly lowered their heads one by one, walked quickly, and walked out of the county.
In the government hall.
These old officials are all ghosts and ghosts. At this time, thinking about the recent major events in the city, I also wondered why Hai Rui, the supervisory censor who was supposed to be in charge of Changning County, appeared in Bei'an County.
There are some guesses.
Schiller and Qian Qian, who were left behind, felt Hai Rui's sharp eyes sweeping over them, and their scalps suddenly felt numb, and their hearts became even more nervous.
Hai Rui looked at the two of them, slowly raised the file in his hand, and said:
"The file in my hand is about the adultery and murder case of He Yang, a poor scholar. I am just wondering why the case was hurriedly closed two months ago? And the file has been sent to the Beijing Criminal Cao
Verification?"
In various local governments, all prisoners sentenced to execution need to be reported to the Beijing Central Criminal Cao for review and approval before they can be actually executed. In order to facilitate management and save certain administrative costs, local governments generally need to wait for a period of time before they can execute these prisoners.
The files were sent to the capital together.
Under such circumstances, this case of adultery and murder was rushed to the prison for review and verification, and anyone with a discerning eye could see the anomalies in it at a glance.
Upon hearing Hai Rui's words, County Magistrate Schiller and County Lieutenant Qian Qian suddenly became vigilant.
Sure enough, this is what I came for!
Schiller opened his lips, trying to explain. But his throat was blocked and it was difficult to speak.
County Lieutenant Qian Qian knew that he was involved in it and could not escape. He immediately felt cruel and cupped his hands and said:
"Reporting to the Censor, the evidence in this case is conclusive, coupled with adultery and murder, it is of a vile nature and corrupts customs. If it is not dealt with severely, it will be difficult for the people to be angry!"
Hearing Qian Qian's words, Hai Rui's eyes became sharper and he scolded:
"Qian County Lieutenant, what I'm asking now is County Magistrate Xi. I'm afraid it's inappropriate for you to assume your position in such a way!"
Hai Rui's words made Qian Qian choke for a moment, and then with a hint of indignation, he lowered his head and said no more.
Upon seeing this, County Magistrate Xi knew that it would be difficult to fool him, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and said:
"Master Yushi, this matter is indeed in a bad mood. The plague in the north has been severe before, and the people are already panic-stricken. If this kind of thing is not done seriously and quickly, I am afraid it will arouse the indignation of the people..."
At this time, Zhang Tang hurriedly walked into the lobby and nodded slightly to Hai Rui.
Hai Rui noticed Zhang Tang's expression and interrupted with a solemn voice:
"Oh, is that the reason? Why is it different from the description on the petition I received before?"
Speaking of this, even though Schiller and Qian Qian were prepared, their hearts trembled.
"No, I don't know what's the difference... I guess it's just stupid people in the market spreading rumors. Master Censor, please don't be gullible..." Schiller swallowed and stammered.
When Hai Rui heard this, his eyes became solemn and he snorted coldly:
"Then it's best to do what Magistrate Xi said! I'm here this time to re-investigate the case. There is some grievance, and none of the evildoers can escape!"
Qian Qian, who had been holding back until now, couldn't help but say:
"Master Yushi! The case has been closed. After sending it to the prison for verification, I'm afraid it's inappropriate for you to suddenly intervene!"
Hearing this, Hai Rui asked with a cold face:
"If there's anything wrong, you might as well tell me!"
When Qian Qian heard this, he was blocked again.
As the supervisory censor, Hai Rui really has the right to intervene in this matter.
Although the case was stopped by the censor when it reached the point of being sent to the prison, which somewhat refuted the face of the local county officials, there was nothing wrong with it in terms of the system and process.
"Master Hai, please give me some face, let this matter go!" Qian Qian lowered his head slightly and held his hands in his hands, and said in a low posture.
Hearing this, Hai Rui's eyes flashed with disgust, and his voice became colder as he ordered:
"Zhidu, go and bring back all the people involved in the case from the Huang family! The suspect He Yang and the Huang family's concubine, the Wang family, also need to be interrogated as soon as possible!"
When Zhi Du heard this, he immediately handed over his hands.
Seeing Hai Rui being so disrespectful, Qian Qian's eyes twitched slightly, and the inch-long scars on his face made him look even more ferocious.
He suddenly raised his head and looked at Hai Rui, his eyes showing evil intent. He glared at Hai Rui fiercely, then flicked his sleeves and walked away.
Magistrate Schiller looked at Hai Rui, who had a cold face, and then at Qian Qian, who was leaving, with a regretful and helpless look on his face. Then he sighed heavily, but he couldn't help but advise:
"Master Hai, don't do this. County Captain Qian Qian has a good background, so..."
Before he finished speaking, Hai Rui interrupted him directly and said:
"There is no need to tell this officer about this kind of thing. However, where he comes from, if he colludes and bullies the people in front of others because of his background, I will not let him go! Magistrate Xi, if you know anything, you can take the initiative to confess.
I appreciate your merits and may be dealt with lightly!"
Hearing this, Schiller's face became even more troubled and he was speechless for a long time. In the end, he could only bite the bullet and cup his hands towards Hai Rui, turned around and left.
After Schiller left, Zhang Tang turned around, raised his hands to Hai Rui and said:
"Sir, I have found out. The powerful Huang family in the area has a lot of assets and is very wealthy. He Yang, a scholar, has a good reputation in the local area and is outstanding in talent and learning. He was invited by the head of the Huang family to start a clan school at home.
Mrs. Wang is the concubine of the head of the Huang family. Three months ago, the head of the Huang family died suddenly, and then the news came out of the Huang family that Mrs. Wang had colluded with He Yang and assassinated the head of the Huang family in order to elope.
"
Hearing this, Hai Rui nodded and asked again:
"What role does County Captain Qian Qian play in this?"
"According to the information obtained by the official, the wife of the Huang family is the sister of the county captain Qian Qian. This time the Huang family died, and the family property fell into the hands of Qian Qian's sister and her nephew."
"Okay, find out as soon as possible. If the false accusation is true and the intention is to kill innocent people, we will take it down immediately. Use this as a reason to go to the Jianchang Mansion Office and secretly investigate the matter of the imperial court's relief of food and grass!"
"yes!"
-------------------
County Captain Qian Qian walked out of the county office angrily, got into his carriage and scolded:
"Walk!"
Upon hearing this, the Qian family's servant immediately waved his whip and drove the carriage slowly.
"Wait a minute, Lord Qian, wait a minute!" County Magistrate Schiller hurried out of the county office and shouted to Qian Qian's carriage.
"Stop!"
Qian Qian spoke, and the carriage that had just started stopped again.
"Huhuhu, Qian, Master Qian, Huhu..."
Qian Qian lifted the car curtain, looked at the panting Magistrate Schiller, and said with a gloomy face:
"I thought the county magistrate would stay there and wait for our censor to reprimand him!"
Schiller held the carriage and breathed heavily for a long time, and then finally said:
"Master Qian, you see you have misunderstood, haven't you! I feel that there is no need to make things so tense..."
When Qian Qian heard this, he snorted coldly and said dissatisfiedly:
"Master Xi, you have also seen it. Didn't I give this Hai Rui face? It's because he didn't give me face! Well, in that case, I want to see whether it is his toughness or my face that is tougher!"
Hearing this, Schiller nodded repeatedly and said:
"It goes without saying that Mr. Qian was born in the frontier army. His former Shangguan colleagues are all over the county, government and county. His connections are even with the current frontier army general. Naturally, your face will be harder!"
Qian Qian snorted coldly, touched the scar under his eyes, and said proudly:
"Hahaha, back then I was a personal guard of General Zhendong, and I accompanied him on an expedition to a small country in the south. I got separated from the army and strayed into the dense forest, and was besieged by the local natives. It was I who tried my best to protect Shi Zhendong and fought my way out of the dense forest.
I almost lost an eye for this.”
Qian Qian paused, then sneered:
"Hai Rui, relying on his position as censor, used his authority in Jianchang Mansion and interfered in local government affairs wantonly. His behavior is abominable! I will write to my former colleagues and read Hai Rui's book to reform him.
He won the position of censor!"
After hearing what Qian Qian said, Schiller's eyes suddenly flashed with joy, but his face did not show any signs of it. He made a look of great agreement and nodded repeatedly:
"Yes, yes, Lord Hai is young and vigorous after all. He has only been in the official position for a short time. I wonder what happened to Lord Qian..."
Seeing Schiller's compliment, Qian Qian couldn't help but have a hint of pride in his expression, and he smiled proudly.
--------------------------
Yun State, Zhongqing City, the residence of Qu Cheng, the minister of the current dynasty.
By this time, it was already late at night.
A carriage, hanging a lantern with the word "qu" written on it, quietly stopped in front of the Qu Mansion.
A man dressed as an aristocratic young man stepped out of the carriage, and several figures came out to greet him. They gave him a slight salute and said:
"Sir, you are finally back!"
At that time, the minister ordered Qu Cheng to have only one son, named Qu Jing.
To be called this by a servant of the Qu family, this young master is naturally Qu Jing.
After Xiang Shan, the steward of the Qu family, finished saluting, he quickly leaned into Qu Jing's ear and whispered:
"Sir, I'm waiting for you in the study! I've ordered you to go find him immediately if you come back."
When Qu Jing heard this, her heart skipped a beat and she said:
"Father is waiting for me?"
Hearing this, Xiang Shan nodded solemnly and said:
"And the master seems to be in a bad mood right now..."
At this moment, Qu Jing's heart was even more chilled, and she immediately walked towards the mansion.
But as soon as he stepped into the mansion, he immediately signaled the servants to disperse, and under the leadership of Xiang Shan, he walked towards his father's study.
When there was no one around, Qu Jing suddenly lowered her voice and asked Xiang Shan:
"But that matter, did my father know about it?"
Hearing this, Xiang Shan quickly looked around. After confirming that there was really no one, he replied:
"Don't worry, sir, I've already taken care of that matter. Master, it's definitely not because of this matter!"
After hearing what Xiang Shan said, Qu Jing breathed a long sigh of relief and relaxed visibly.
After pondering for a moment, Qu Jing couldn't help but exhorted again:
"That's good, that's good! Remember, don't let father know about this...and the young lady, don't let her know either!"
Xiang Shan nodded quickly and said respectfully:
"Don't worry, young master, I will never reveal a word!"
Qu Jing nodded with satisfaction, looked at the study not far away, stopped, then pulled off a jade pendant she was wearing from her waist, stuffed it into Xiang Shan's hand, and encouraged:
"It's your reward! Work hard and I will never treat you badly!"
Xiang Shan touched the jade pendant in his hand, then immediately made a smile and whispered quickly:
"Thank you, Master!"
"Go for it!"
After Qu Cheng finished speaking, he stood on the spot and straightened his clothes. Then he strode to the study room, knocked a few times, and said loudly:
"Father, the child is back!"
"Come in." Qu Cheng's relatively calm voice came from the study.