Chapter 755 Murder to Silence, Simple and Unadorned [Seeking Monthly Tickets!]

Ouyang Rong silently stared at Rong Zhen's expression for a while.

Rongzhen also glanced at him sideways.

He had a haughty, aloof expression that said, "What are you looking at? Take it or leave it."

Ouyang Rong shook his head:

"It's nothing, I was just asking. After all, dining etiquette differs between the North and the South. In some places, the honored guest sits in the host's seat."

He answered like a gentleman, as if he had automatically ignored her rhetorical question, "Take me home for dinner," as if nothing had happened.

Ouyang Rong withdrew his hand, which was no longer in pain, and thanked him.

"Let's go back to the Buddha statue first."

He gestured towards the main Buddha statue in the grotto and walked towards it first.

Rongzhen glanced at his back and followed him.

After walking together for a while, she inexplicably became angry and annoyed, saying:

"Don't ask me those childish questions again. They're ridiculous, a waste of time, and all you do is stammer and change the subject..." Rong Zhen sneered and nodded to herself. "Which table are we eating at? Heh, let's just sit at the kids' table. That would save us a lot of trouble."

She became increasingly angry as she spoke:

“Ouyang Lianghan, have I been too lenient with you? And what did you just call me? Don’t get too close! You’re getting more and more disrespectful…”

Ouyang Rong kept his head down and walked forward, being cursed all the way, but he didn't say anything back, nor could he.

They certainly deserved it.

The two returned to the high platform at the foot of the Donglin Buddha.

Granny Song and Duan Quanwu were both there, but Yi Qianqiu was still nowhere to be seen, and no one knew where he had gone to do.

Li Congshan's figure also disappeared; he probably left after being rejected by Ouyang Rong.

Ouyang Rong remained calm as he surveyed the high platform.

Rongzhen, who was behind, gradually stopped cursing. As she approached the high platform, she put on a stern face and put her sleeves down, as if she had entered a period of silence.

She suddenly noticed that Ouyang Rong strode forward, climbed onto the platform, and loudly asked the crowd:

Where is General Li?

Duan Quanwu crossed his arms and said, "I just got back."

Granny Song said calmly, "Didn't you tell him to calm down and go back to Shuangfengjian Ferry to continue guarding it?"

Ouyang Rong suddenly shouted:

"The situation has changed. Go after them immediately and deliver this message from the official."

Before anyone could ask questions, he turned around, his face serious, and solemnly said to Rong Zhen:

"Lady Rong, immediately send someone to the south bank to inform Li Congshan and Lady Miaozhen, ordering them to lead a team to board a boat at Shuangfengjian Ferry and return to Xunyang City by waterway. First, block the Xunyang Ferry, then rush to the Prince's Palace! Hurry, hurry, hurry, go quickly!"

Rong Zhen frowned and asked, "Why is that?"

Granny Song said somewhat displeased:

"What happened again? They're gone. What are we going to do at Shuangfengjian? We don't have enough manpower. What if the river bandits from Tiannan Jianghu seize the ferry and cut off the connection between the north and south? Wouldn't we be in a passive position at the main grotto? Junior Scholar, are you out of your mind...?"

As Song Mama questioned her, Rongzhen glanced at Ouyang Rong's unwavering expression, and without waiting for his furrowed brows to answer, immediately turned around and went to make arrangements.

The young woman in palace attire summoned a trusted female official and gave her detailed instructions, ordering her to deliver a message at the ferry crossing on the south bank, and instructing Li Congshan, Lady Miaozhen, and others to obey Ouyang Lianghan's arrangements.

With such tacit understanding and trust, Ouyang Rong looked deeply at Rong Zhen.

He looked around again and asked:

"Where is Commander Yi? Summon her here! And General Wei, summon him here as well."

Granny Song waved her hand: "General Wei is in charge of the Xuanwu Guard formation and cannot come for the time being."

Rong Zhen pursed her lips and turned to ask someone to call Yi Qianqiu.

Before long, the tiger-faced female general, having received the message, hurriedly returned. Dressed in heavy white armor, she ascended the high platform. The "fierce tiger-faced" general surveyed the crowd and asked in a deep voice:

"What happened? Weren't we waiting for the music? Could something have happened to Elder Yu?"

Yi Qianqiu saw Rong Zhen shake her head and look at Ouyang Rong with her dark eyes.

Everyone else turned their attention to Ouyang Rong. Yi Qianqiu looked on in confusion, following the gazes of the others.

"Prefect Ouyang, what is it that you summoned everyone?" she asked with some dissatisfaction.

Ouyang Rong, who had been pondering with his sleeves tucked in, first turned his head and instructed the trusted female official beside Rong Zhen:

"Please bring Old Yang and the criminal up here. They're waiting outside the bamboo grove. I've given them instructions..."

The trusted female official first looked at Rong Zhen's expression.

Rong Zhen hesitated for a moment, then spoke to Ouyang Rong: "Ouyang Lianghan, is this matter really so urgent? Can we discuss it later..."

Ouyang Rong gazed at her, eyes meeting, and said sincerely, "Please allow me, Madam, to trust you."

Rong Zhen silently shifted her gaze: "I believe you."

The trusted female official then clasped her hands in a salute, acknowledged the order, and withdrew.

"Yes, the female historian, the governor."

Having made the arrangements, Ouyang Rong stepped forward and, in front of everyone, pulled a bloodstained confession from his sleeve. His expression was solemn as he shouted:

"I recently cracked a major case and unexpectedly discovered a shocking conspiracy! It is so filthy and disgusting that it must be made public to expose the evil deeds. All of you present here are pillars of the state and confidants of the Emperor. Please testify and participate in the public trial. We will then jointly report to Luoyang and ask the Emperor to make a wise judgment and punish the traitors!"

On the high platform, the young governor's voice was powerful and resonant, echoing throughout the entire area. Even the female officials and armored soldiers guarding in the distance could hear it clearly and couldn't help but turn their heads towards the high platform.

The entire room fell silent for a moment.

The people on stage looked at each other and exchanged glances.

Granny Song frowned: "What earth-shattering conspiracy? Who is the traitor?"

Duan Quanwu also asked, "Your Excellency, are you implying that there is one among us?"

Ouyang Rong did not answer, but calmly asked the two:

"What is the punishment for secretly colluding with rebels in the Jianghu of Tiannan, making secret agreements, and endangering the safety of Xunyang City and the Donglin Buddha?"

Yi Qianqiu said coldly, "Of course it's a capital offense, a crime deserving of death. Colluding with the enemy is an unforgivable crime."

Granny Song and Duan Quanwu both nodded in agreement: "That's right."

"good."

Ouyang Rong asked calmly, "What if the person doing this was a princess of the current dynasty or a prince?"

The entire room fell silent.

Everyone stared intently at the young governor holding up his confession. The clever ones among them had already realized what was going on and were vaguely connecting the dots.

Duan Quanwu waved his hand:

"Prefect Ouyang, please don't joke around. Even a rough old man like me knows that our Great Zhou Dynasty has a wise and virtuous ruler and ministers who are of one mind. The government is harmonious and peaceful. How could there be a prince or princess secretly colluding with the enemy? That's truly absurd."

Granny Song's face darkened:

"Junior Scholar, what do you mean? What's wrong with you today? You've been talking nonsense. Do you know that once certain words are put on the scales by someone with ulterior motives, neither the governor nor the scholar can keep their official hats? I advise you to be careful with your words. We'll pretend we didn't hear what you just said."

Yi Qianqiu looked at Rong Zhen, who remained silent, with a puzzled expression.

Rong Zhen turned her head slightly and stared at Ouyang Rong's righteous profile. Her small face was somewhat lost in thought, and it was unclear what she was thinking.

Yi Qianqiu suddenly spoke:

“Prefect Ouyang, the most important thing right now is to defend the Buddha statue and lure and annihilate the rebels in the southern Jianghu, not to hear about any cases you have solved. These cases may be important, but everything has its priorities. The most important thing right now is the former.”

She stepped forward, intending to pull Ouyang Rong off the stage:

"Please come down first. We can talk about it later. You can discuss it with Lady Rongzhen first. Let's not delay everyone's business now."

"This is the important matter! A matter of utmost importance, a matter that cannot be ignored!"

Ouyang Rong waved his hand dismissively, righteously rejecting Yi Qianqiu's suggestion. He raised the bloodstained confession in his hand and stated unequivocally:

"Commander Yi, this case involves the safety of the Donglin Buddha. Don't you think it's a serious matter? It must be made public so that we can expose the traitors' conspiracies and tricks. This will be very helpful for our next actions. At least it will let everyone know who is behind this and who we should be wary of."

At this moment, the trusted female official who had just received the order to leave returned, bringing back Old Yang and his group.

Old Yang walked at the front, holding a handkerchief in his hand, wiping the blood-stained bamboo strips from his palm with his head down. Behind him were four attendants, supporting a blood-stained man who was on the verge of death.

The latter had her head down and hair hanging loose, making it difficult to see her face. Blood dripped from her body, leaving a trail of blood, and she seemed to be sobbing weakly.

Granny Song, Yi Qianqiu, and the others looked at each other in bewilderment.

Old Yang led his team up to the high platform.

Four male attendants dragged the barely alive Qian Chen and left him in front of the crowd.

Qian Chen barely managed to turn over. Seemingly traumatized by "Bamboo Gentleman," he mustered the strength from who-knows-where and knelt down before Old Yang and Ouyang Rong, begging for mercy with a face full of fear.

Ouyang Rong ignored him and nodded slightly to one of his followers.

The latter immediately took out a set of clothes from his bundle and gestured to the others.

All that could be seen was a tightly bound back armor and a short shirt and trousers, with a peculiar style.

Granny Song asked in surprise, "What is this?"

Ouyang Rong held up the confession and said loudly:

"These are eyewitness testimonies! And physical evidence!"

He turned his head and calmly asked Duan Quanwu:

"General Duan must be familiar with this outfit after suppressing bandits in Hukou County for so long, right?"

Duan Quanwu, who was in charge of suppressing bandits in Hukou County, was certainly no stranger to it.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the gloomy martial artist remained silent for a moment, took a deep breath, and admitted:

"I recognize them. They were worn by those river pirates."

"It's good that we know each other; it would be strange if we didn't."

Ouyang Rong chuckled lightly, pointed at Qian Chen, and slowly said to the crowd:

"This man is named Qian Chen. He looks a bit disheveled, but that's alright. Everyone can come closer and take a look. Some of you may have seen him before. He works for Princess Anhui. The princess often comes to Xunyang Grottoes, and he has been there as well. He is a guard who accompanies and protects the princess... The governor's office has already confirmed all of this."

In the silence that followed, the young governor continued to speak. Only his clear voice echoed across the platform, drawing all eyes to him. The content of his words also gradually made many in the audience tremble with fear:

"A few days ago, he left Princess Anhui's residence to go to Guanyin Temple in Phoenix Ridge, Hukou County, ostensibly to pave the way for Princess Anhui's Buddhist worship today. However, at midnight yesterday, he was caught by my governor's men while secretly meeting with thieves in the back mountain of Guanyin Temple. The clothes of these river pirates were found on this group of thieves, including a military qi cultivator who practices the authentic qi cultivation techniques of the northern border army..."

Granny Song couldn't help but interrupt, "What does 'junior scholar' mean?"

"What do you mean?" Ouyang Rong narrowed his eyes and pointed out in a cold voice, "This morning, Hukou County was captured by this group of river pirates. They seized the official boats and headed south. They are now approaching Xunyang and coming towards us. Deputy Supervisor Song asked what this means. Isn't that clear enough?"

The old woman with the white eyes stared at the young governor and said, word by word, "Princess Anhui is kind-hearted by nature. I am quite certain that she would not do such a thing. There must be some misunderstanding."

Ouyang Rong nodded calmly:

"Hmm, this matter may not really have been done by the princess, but it's strange that these people come from the princess's residence. If they don't listen to her, then who do they listen to? Oh, I remember now, she is Princess Wei. Doesn't that mean that this person was ordered by the Liang Prince's residence or the Wei Prince's residence? That makes sense, very much so. Indeed, Deputy Supervisor Song is clever, quick-witted, and has clear logic. He hits the nail on the head with his words."

"Alright, it seems that the mastermind behind this sordid affair is either Princess Anhui, or the Prince of Liang or the Prince of Wei. There must be one of them who cannot escape responsibility. I think everyone agrees on this point."

Before Song Mama and the others could speak, Ouyang Rong sighed and said:

"I'm sorry, there's no use having objections. We have both witnesses and physical evidence, and more witnesses and physical evidence are on the way."

Ouyang Rong smiled sheepishly, then calmly handed the bloodstained confession to Rong Zhen, gesturing for her to read it:

"This is the recorded statement. Please take a look, Madam Rong and all of you."

Rong Zhen stared at the blood-stained confession with her dark eyes, then quieted down, took it from under her sleeve, stood still, and began to carefully read through it.

Her pretty face gradually darkened.

Ouyang Rong waited a while, then waved his hand to the side:

"Qian Chen, say it again. All the officials are here and will stand up for you."

Qian Chen curled up, buried her head, and sobbed softly, remaining silent for a long time.

Before Ouyang Rong could turn his head, Old Yang had already calmly stepped forward. Qian Chen was immediately terrified and blurted out everything:

“Don’t come any closer, don’t come any closer, I confess, I confess! I was sent to deliver a message, but I really didn’t know that the person I was handing over to was a river pirate… The message I was delivering was… it was ‘When the time comes, act’… I come from the Prince of Wei’s mansion, and a while ago I suddenly received orders to be sent to Xunyang City to serve as Princess Anhui’s bodyguard…”

Under Old Yang's watchful gaze, Qian Chen broke down in tears, burying his face in his hands.

"I've told you everything I know, Governor, spare my life! Lords, spare my life! Please, please don't kill me!"

Ouyang Rong surveyed the entire room and nodded slightly.

"Gentlemen, you have heard that the Prince Wei's Mansion is colluding with rebels in the southern Jianghu, and there are filthy deals behind it. Or rather, these river pirates are simply assassins kept by the Prince Wei's Mansion in disguise, plotting something sinister. The most likely scenario is that they will use the river pirates to attack the Xunyang Prince's Mansion and endanger our Donglin Buddha. This is a heinous crime of treason, rebellion, and deceiving the emperor. The evidence is irrefutable."

"So the river pirates in Hukou County that we've been so wary of are actually being controlled by the Prince of Wei's mansion! No wonder they're so hard to guard against. They're colluding with the enemy and providing intelligence. This is despicable, shameless, and utterly shameless."

After Ouyang Rong finished speaking, the entire room fell into an unusual silence.

No one spoke.

Yi Qianqiu and the others remained silent, while Rong Zhen quietly lowered her eyes.

Ouyang Rong looked at them and asked sincerely:

"Why are you all silent? Do you feel the evidence is insufficient? It's alright, the next step is simple. Lady Rong, Commander Yi, we will immediately send men to arrest Princess Anhui and her entourage, seal off the Princess's residence, interrogate those involved, and capture the bandits alive. Through severe torture, they will provide more irrefutable evidence. However, before that, please cooperate with me to jointly report to the court and inform His Majesty about Qian Chen's matter. We will investigate further later. Oh, and this white cloth strip was also seized from this person."

As Ouyang Rong untied the white bandage wrapped around the wound on his palm, he said softly:

"I remember there was an inconspicuous groom by Princess Anhui's side back then. Didn't he always wear the same white cloth strip? Everyone should remember that, right? This person needs to be arrested."

At this point, he suddenly called out, "Qian Chen?"

Qian Chen trembled and confessed everything:

“That’s Master Wu, a confidant of the Prince of Wei, who came from the capital. This…this strip of cloth was given to me by Master Wu…he told me to wear it today. He also entrusted me with these matters in Hukou County, and he is in charge of all affairs at Princess Anhui’s residence…”

Ouyang Rong nodded slightly and casually tossed the white cloth strip on the ground.

"Wu? And Master? That sounds like a very imposing name."

Just then, Ouyang Rong noticed someone's gaze shift and turned to look.

A square-faced man walked out of the main grotto.

The man, wearing a white cloth strip on his head and dressed in ordinary groom's clothes, arrived at the high platform without any hindrance.

The main grotto, which was originally heavily guarded and sealed off, was entered as if it were empty. Strangely, no female official or armored soldier tried to stop him along the way.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Wei Wu ascended the high platform, passed by Yi Qianqiu, Granny Song, and others, and stopped in front of Ouyang Rong. Without any hesitation, he bent down and picked up the white cloth strip at Ouyang Rong's feet.

Without looking at Ouyang Rong, Wei Wu turned around, carrying the white cloth strip, and walked up to Qian Chen. Looking down at his blank face, he asked curiously:

"Qian Chen, everyone else is dead, why aren't you dead, huh?"

Under Qian Chen's terrified and distraught gaze, Wei Wu stuffed the white cloth strip directly into his mouth, without even listening to any explanation.

Wei Wu drew the waist knife from Duan Quanwu beside him, walked behind Qian Chen, grabbed his hair, lifted his head high, and then the blade sliced ​​directly across the throat of the struggling, whimpering Qian Chen.

Hot blood gushed out.

The spray landed on the white robes of Duan Quanwu and Yi Qianqiu, who were relatively close by, like plum blossoms in the snow of late winter.

Qian Chen made two "hehe" sounds in his throat, desperately trying to cover his mouth, but he couldn't stop the trickling blood from flowing out, and his body collapsed like slush.

The witness was killed in public.

The young governor tilted his head slightly:

"Master Wu?"

The square-faced man lowered his head and carefully wiped the bloodstained blade with Qian Chen's robe.

"Wei Wu, the governor is looking for me?"

Ouyang Rong didn't speak. He glanced at Wei Wu's back, then at Qian Chen's gradually cooling corpse, and turned to look at the silent crowd.

Wei Wu obsessively cleaned his waist knife, then casually tossed it back to Duan Quanwu.

He stood beside Qian Chen's cold body, turned around, and looked at Ouyang Rong, who was scrutinizing the entire scene, asking with a serious expression:

"What case is it? Your Excellency, is there anything else you need to do by calling everyone here?"

(End of this chapter)