If a fight breaks out and his identity is exposed, Zheng Boyuan will also be held accountable.

Seeing Zheng Boyuan deep in thought, Xu Di patted him on the shoulder and said, "When have I ever done anything unreliable? I'm asking for your help because I need you to give me a team of men who can completely obey your orders, and these men must be extremely loyal to you. You also have to ensure that they won't leak any information to me."

The latter condition is somewhat harsh. Although these hundreds of soldiers came from Yuezhou with Zheng Boyuan, there are several subordinate generals under Zheng Boyuan. These subordinate generals have complicated relationships, and who knows whose people are behind them? After all, the people Zheng Boyuan brought are not like the soldiers recruited and trained by the Wei and Wang families.

Zheng Boyuan thought for a moment and asked, "How many people do you plan to take?"

Xu Di thought for a moment and said, "Prepare twenty first, but don't let them know what we're going to do in advance. I'll have other arrangements later."

After Xu Di came out of the camp, he saw a constable waiting nearby. Upon seeing Xu Di, the constable quickly came over and said, "Lord Xu, Lord Yuan sent me here to wait for you, asking you to go back as soon as possible."

Xu Di mounted his horse and, as he followed the constable back, asked him, "Is there something urgent?"

The constable said, "I don't know."

Xu Di rushed back to the county government office, where County Magistrate Yuan was already waiting at the entrance. Upon seeing Xu Di, he quickly ran over. Xu Di dismounted and, seeing his anxious expression, asked, "Lord Yuan, what has happened? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Magistrate Yuan tugged at Xu Di's sleeve and pulled him aside, whispering, "Lord Xu, I investigated the Zhou family's forced land sales back then and found out some other things. They even forcibly abducted women and forced them to sell them. Lord Xu, no matter the outcome, I, Yuan, am determined to follow you. Even if we offend the wrong people, I will still follow you. Otherwise, my conscience won't allow it."

Xu Di hadn't expected such a thing to happen, and asked with a serious face, "Is the situation true?"

County Magistrate Yuan nodded and said, "It's not just one family, it's several. When I went to inquire in secret, some victims came to me and said that in their village, in addition to being forced to sell their land, some girls were also forced to sign indenture contracts. I have already sent people to inquire, and the situation is true."

Xu Di sneered twice and said, "Since that's the case, you should quickly gather evidence, find the victim, and write a complaint. I'll prepare a memorial to the throne. Since we're going to do this, let's go all out and do something big."

Suddenly, Magistrate Yuan was filled with heroic spirit. He grabbed Xu Di's arm and shook it vigorously, saying, "Lord Xu, I, Yuan, am not very talented. I can only run errands for you. I will do as you command."

When Xu Di returned home that night, he sat at the kang table, guarding the two glass-shaded lamps, pondering for a long time before finally starting to write. He didn't finish writing a memorial until dawn.

According to Xu Di's instructions, if a case is to be handled, it should be made into an ironclad one, leaving them no chance to recover. These henchmen are truly hateful, using those people's names to act as accomplices in this rural area, preying on the people. They should be uprooted completely.

Li Yuexi's due date is in the next few days. She has to get up several times at night. Every time she gets up, she sees Xu Di sitting in front of the kang table with a serious look on his face. Li Yuexi knows that he has important things to do, so she doesn't disturb him. She goes to the bathroom with her belly and then comes back to lie down and continue sleeping.

Xu Di finished writing the memorial, turned his head to look at Li Yuexi who was sleeping on the bed, and thought that in the future, if there was anything that required working overtime at night, he must not do it again. He tidied up the room opposite and used it as his study. In case there was anything that was inconvenient to do at the county office and he needed to take it home to do, he would have a place.

While sending memorials to the capital, Xu Di secretly dispatched twenty men, borrowed from Zheng Boyuan, to disguise themselves as merchants and drive several carriages towards Qingzhou.

Xu Di made extensive preparations for this arrest, sending out several groups of people to thoroughly investigate the Zhou family mansion, find out who the Zhou family usually associated with, and most importantly, what the men of the Zhou family looked like and what their characteristics were, ensuring that when he took his men there, he could identify them and bring them back.

Speed ​​is of the essence in war. As long as we can bring the person back, we are not afraid of what will happen next. What we are most afraid of now is that something unexpected will happen and the person will escape.

After Xu Di gave repeated instructions, he sent the people away. Next, he prepared the county jail. After the people were brought back, they would be imprisoned in the jail. Xu Di knew that after the Zhou family members were brought back, someone would definitely come to plead for them and put pressure on them. However, the evidence was already conclusive. As long as he went through the motions, he could convict the Zhou family members. As for if any members of the Zhou family did not confess, a beating should achieve the effect he wanted.

After Xu Di sent his men out, Magistrate Yuan would come over every day to check on them, fearing that something might have gone wrong. Seeing Xu Di's calm and collected demeanor, Magistrate Yuan was truly impressed.

Ten days after they left, they returned with five people: Zhou Bingcheng, the patriarch of the Zhou family, his two sons Zhou Renyi and Zhou Rende, and two stewards.

The guard who led the team returned and told Xu Di that they went to the Zhou family in the middle of the night to steal the people out, and then immediately took the men back. They didn't rest much along the way, and the men and horses were exhausted. The five men who followed them suffered quite a bit.

Zhou Bingcheng was getting old, and by the time he arrived in Penglai, he was already beyond saving. Chen Zhaoci examined him and prescribed two doses of medicine, after which he looked much more energetic.

When Zhou Renyi saw Xu Di, he sneered repeatedly. Zhou Bingcheng, on the other hand, bowed deeply to Xu Di and said, "Lord Xu, I am a law-abiding citizen who is charitable and generous. However, I do not know why I was kidnapped from Qingzhou and brought to Penglai by your men. There must be some misunderstanding. I beg you to investigate."

Xu Di nodded and said, "Old Master Zhou, how could I have invited you back from Qingzhou all this way if I wasn't absolutely certain? Don't worry, I've already prepared the evidence for you."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Renyi snorted twice and said, "Lord Xu, I doubt you know who we are related to."

Xu Di smiled and said, "Are you talking about your sister who married far away in the capital? Of course I know about her, so you can rest assured. But whenever it involves your family or your family's affairs, I have to verify the facts before I dare to invite her back, right?"

Upon hearing Xu Di's words, Zhou Bingcheng's face visibly paled, and he suddenly looked much older.

Xu Di sneered inwardly. Was Zhou Bingcheng hiding something, or was he up to no good? Whatever the reason, he would just accept whatever move they made.

Xu Di refused to believe it. He thought that justice would prevail and that he, a public official who wanted to uphold the people's rights, had nowhere to seek justice. Xu Di knew very well what would happen next, but he just wanted to rub salt in the wound and let some people know that justice will prevail and that justice may be delayed, but it will never be absent.