Chapter 210: Mend the Fence After the Sheep Has Ridden
"Sir Governor! What brings you here? If you need anything, just tell someone to tell me. Why bother coming here in person? I'm so ashamed for not coming to greet you..."
Zhang Daming was feeling uneasy inside, but he smiled in a very flattering manner.
The legal advisor beside him had a look of anticipation in his eyes. He wished Su Yi had come here specifically to settle accounts with Zhang Daming. Only when Zhang Daming, the county magistrate, fell would he have a chance to move up the ladder.
"Without further ado, Qingshi Town Magistrate Zhao Daming receives the imperial decree! By the grace of Heaven and the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees..."
Su Yi coughed and didn't say anything too polite.
He carefully took out the golden secret decree, the content of which was the emperor's grace. Wen Chengyun's exile status had been eliminated and his freedom would no longer be restricted in the future.
In order to allow Wen Chengyun to better cooperate in catching the big fish behind the scenes, Wen Chengfeng decided to first exempt Wen Chengyun from the status of exile. This was just to allow him to no longer be bound by geographical restrictions and be confined to Qingshi Town.
As for not reinstating Wen Chengyun as a prince, it was because Qingshi Town still needed him to stay and search for more evidence. In such a small, barren place like Qingshi Town, if a prince emerged, with such a thriving population, news would inevitably spread back to the capital, potentially alerting the sensitive nerves of the Minister of Revenue and others.
"Long live the emperor, your majesty is wise..."
Zhang Daming and his advisor exchanged a glance. The imperial edict had already been issued, so could it be fake? They simultaneously fell to their knees.
Zhang Daming was especially worried, sweat dripping down his forehead. It was truly a case of good things not working, but bad things working. His master's bad mouth had truly come true. Wen Chengyun's status as an exile had been pardoned, and even though his status as a prince had not yet been restored, this was already a dangerous signal.
"Master Zhang, please get up quickly. This Governor has only come here to announce the Emperor's decree. Now that I have said everything I need to say, I have other matters to attend to, so I will be leaving first."
Su Yi was amused by Zhang Daming's guilty expression. He clearly remembered that when he came, Zhang Daming condoned Lieutenant General Li to torture Wen Chengyun.
Su Yi left with a flick of his sleeve. Zhang Daming slumped down on his official chair, muttering to himself, "It's over, it's over. If I'm ever punished, it'll be disastrous... Master, do you think it's possible for him to be reinstated?"
The lawyer just watched coldly. He himself was quite nice to the Qingping Palace lineage. At least when they were put in prison, he did not deliberately make things difficult for them, but took good care of them.
"Brothers, get to work. This month's protection fee hasn't been collected yet. Don't forget Master Zhang's instructions. Cheng Weiyao's stall is a bit... "
Zhang Daming was deep in thought and in a trance, he heard the shouting of the yamen runners, especially the three words "Cheng Weiyao", which directly stimulated his sensitive points.
Now that Prince Qingping might make a comeback, how could he allow his men to bully Cheng Weiyao again? Judging from previous experiences, this princess was married in place of someone else.
But he couldn't resist the long-term love. Once he returned to the capital, he would be the princess who had been betrothed to the royal jade butterfly! Especially since these yamen runners were collecting protection money and using Zhang Haiyu's name...
"Master! Quick, quick, quick! Stop them."
Zhang Daming stood up suddenly as if he had just woken up from a dream, but the yamen runners who had spoken before had disappeared. He didn't care about anything else and quickly got up and chased after them.
"Tsk, you'll suffer the consequences if you do evil." The lawyer looked at Zhang Daming's figure and sneered.
The yamen runners were now armed with knives and came to Cheng Weiyao's stall in groups of five or six.
The stalls run by the women of Prince Qingping's Mansion were as popular as ever, and the tables, chairs, and benches were filled with diners.
"Fellow vendors, the end of the month has arrived in the blink of an eye. Everyone understands, right? The wise ones proactively offer sacrifices and avoid suffering. As for those who passively offer sacrifices, I don't need to say more, right? They will suffer many disasters!"
As the yamen runners appeared, banging drums and gongs, West Street, which had previously been filled with laughter, suddenly quieted down considerably. The vendors exchanged wry smiles, curled their lips, and reluctantly began to count their silver.
"Why do other people charge one tael, but we charge three? We have several stalls, and each stall charges three taels. Are you relying on us to make a fortune?"
Wen Liyu was originally helping Cheng Weiyao sell ginseng water, and she felt a little unhappy when she saw the yamen runners collecting protection fees from the imperial concubine and the concubine.
But when she received the three or two pieces of money in front of her, she was still as strong as ever. No matter how good her temper was, she couldn't help herself.
"What are you yelling about? Didn't you see the stall owner's wife didn't say anything? These three taels are the rules set by Young Master Zhang Haiyu. If you have any objections, go to the county government and file a complaint!"
The yamen runners spread their hands indifferently. They were just executors. Could they possibly refute the orders from above?
Zhang Daming, who had rushed over from behind, felt his heart leap into his throat when he heard the yamen runner's seemingly matter-of-fact words. With the yamen runner's loud voice shouting, everyone on the street would probably know that his foolish son was targeting Wen Chengyun.
"No, no, no, the protection fee thing was all a misunderstanding. Madam, there's no such thing as that!"
Zhang Daming suddenly pushed through the crowd and grasped the yamen runner's shoulder. He was still dressed in his trial uniform, suddenly appearing here in formal attire and speaking these words.
Cheng Weiyao raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at Zhang Daming with a more scrutinizing look in her eyes. Had this county magistrate suddenly become intelligent? Had he figured out that Wen Chengyun's exile might be fake?
"Why? County Magistrate, are you alright? If you want to dismiss everyone, dismiss them all. Why only dismiss one family?"
"Since the protection fee was a misunderstanding, then I don't have to pay it! Where's my hard-earned money? Give it back to me!"
Before Cheng Weiyao's family expressed their stance, other small vendors who were used to being bullied had already begun to resist in anger.
The yamen runners had barely received the silver and hadn't even warmed it up when Zhang Daming suddenly showed up to disrupt the situation. Seeing the vendors rushing over to grab the silver, they started pushing and shoving out of reflex.
Wen Chengyun was originally in the owner's room of Shuntian Restaurant, thinking about his next move, when the riot on West Street caught his attention.
West Street was where the women of the Prince Qingping's palace set up stalls. Now that Liao Yu had fallen, it was logical that no one should attack his family again...
Wen Chengyun, who was worried, took a look from a distance, but he felt dazzled by the crowds of people pushing and shoving each other on the street.
Fearing that his family might be hurt, he decided to go and find out what happened.
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