Chapter 132
"Have you found out anything?" Marshal Zhu was quite curious about what happened to the fire that day. He heard that it could not be put out. Even when water was poured on the burning treasure house, the fire became more and more intense.
Shi Mei summarized what he had learned and replied, "No, the prefectural government residence was burned beyond recognition. The yamen staff checked and found nothing suspicious. The night watchman was the first to discover the fire last night. When questioned if he noticed anything unusual at the time, he said that he saw the fire starting from a point at the very edge, at the very edge. The fire seemed to grow with the wind, and it suddenly spread out like a fiery snake, rapidly burning the prefectural government residence. The yamen staff checked the outermost layer he mentioned, which was a guest room, and the fire didn't start from below."
Marshal Zhu pondered, this heavenly fire was indeed strange, like a rootless fire.
"By the way, the night watchman also said that he seemed to smell a strange smell at that time."
"What does it smell like?"
"The night watchman said he didn't know, it was a smell unlike anything he had ever smelled before."
Marshal Zhu sighed, "This method is becoming more and more mysterious."
Although there was no evidence, Marshal Zhu intuitively believed that it was done by the group of people from the Yichun military settlement. Otherwise, how could he explain that Yao Chunnuan had just made a harsh statement during the day, and then something happened in the prefectural mansion at night?
It's right not to provoke them. This generation of young people is getting more and more powerful. Zhu Dashuai deeply feels that the waves behind push the waves ahead, and those who don't know what's good for them will be beaten to death on the beach.
Shi Mei remained silent, mainly because he agreed with Marshal Zhu's speculation. Otherwise, why was it that the rest of the prefectural government was fine, but the area surrounding Prefect Lei's treasury was completely burned, as if it had been the focus of the heavenly fire, leaving only ashes and a bare expanse?
"General, this matter is not over yet. The Crown Prince will definitely send an imperial envoy to deal with it."
The confrontation between 40,000 to 50,000 troops is already a very serious incident and cannot be resolved so casually.
Right and wrong in this matter can only be determined by who is stronger and who is right. If Governor Lei had successfully occupied the Yichun military settlement, then what he had the old Taoist priest say would be the truth. Unfortunately, the old Taoist priest he brought with him was killed, and he, despite bringing 20,000 troops, was forced to retreat. This means he was wrong. The Yichun military settlement was right.
In this matter, because Governor Lei was in the wrong and he was the one who provoked first, the prince had to give an explanation to the Yichun military garrison on the surface.
Now the prefectural government's residence has been burned to pieces. Regardless of whether it was done by the Yichun military garrison, at least they did not take any more extreme actions on the surface. Shi Mei guessed that they were just waiting for the reaction from the prince.
Shi Mei guessed that the prince would send a capable minister as an imperial envoy to handle the matter, but even he did not expect that the prince would come in person.
Hearing Shi Mei's words, Marshal Zhu once again sympathized with Governor Lei. "Why did he do that? This time, his reputation and dignity were completely destroyed. The savings he had accumulated for most of his life were also burned by this heavenly fire."
Shi Mei nodded. This time, Governor Lei was in a really miserable state!
"Old Shi, I know you all think I'm a coward and don't dare to argue with the Yichun military. But look at this, this Lei Taishou, who argued with the Yichun military, ended up with nothing. Isn't that miserable?"
"Don't take it lightly. Don't think that just because we have tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, it makes any difference. This Yichun Army is very strange. It's just like the saying goes, when you meet a strong opponent, you become stronger."
"Besides, I've struggled for most of my life and don't want to compete anymore. My biggest wish right now is to preserve the hard work I've put in for most of my life. The glorious era for us old guys is over. Now is the era of the young people. The tide of the times is on them. It's unwise to compete with them."
Marshal Zhu's words echoed the famous Qing Dynasty poem "Talented men emerge in every generation, and each leads the trend for hundreds of years." It's a pity that he was not born in that era, but the meaning is the same.
******
While the prefectural government suffered, the inhabitants of the Yichun military settlement were remarkably happy. When they met, they made faces and whispered to each other.
"Was it our military settlement that did this?"
"It must have been done by Chief Secretary Yao, right?"
Bang! "Are you stupid? Who would be so eager to blame themselves for something bad? They're really trying to blame themselves for everything, good or bad! Haven't you heard? The fire that burned down the governor's mansion and the governor's treasury was a fire from heaven. It was God's doing. What does it have to do with us?"
"Yes, we understand. It was because the heavens couldn't stand the fact that Governor Lei was oppressing the people and slandering the loyal and honest people, so they sent down a fire from heaven to burn down his governor's mansion."
"That's the right thing to think of."
The villagers didn't know that several of their core leaders, including Yao Zhubo, had not slept all night.
The core members of the senior management are as follows: Wu Zongguan, Yu Chen, Yao Chunnuan, Xu Chong, Lu Chengjun, Zhou Yushu, and Ji Ze. These seven are the backbone of the military settlement. The absorption of Xu Chong, Lu Chengjun, Zhou Yushu, and Ji Ze was a unanimous decision made by Yao Chunnuan and the other two.
Xu Chong had already suffered numerous injustices in Jinxi Prefecture and was deeply dissatisfied with the court's personnel system. He had already sensed this, so he quickly accepted the three men's open offer to recruit him. Lu Chengjun, a trusted confidant of the general, naturally followed suit. Zhou Yushu, a man of pure heart, persuaded him by emphasizing the improved lives of the people after the great cause was successful. Ji Ze, a man of keen judgment, felt a strong sense of belonging to the military settlement, as Yao Chunnuan had been suppressing their common enemy, Wang Lang. He readily accepted their offer.
Despite not sleeping all night, the six or seven of them had red eyes, but each of them was gleaming with an inexplicable excitement. That night, after repeated discussions at the top level, directives were issued overnight.
Initially, Yao Chunnuan, concerned about the possibility of foreign invasion, hadn't wanted to stir up further civil unrest in the Central Plains. But the news sent back by the general changed her mind. While the Huo family army was struggling to resist the invasion, the imperial court was withholding rations and weapons from the northern border. This was truly disheartening. Could she still accept such a court? She might as well destroy it and rebuild it, igniting both external and internal troubles simultaneously.
However, Yao Chunnuan still analyzed the current situation facing the Yichun military settlement. First, regarding the matter of Prefect Lei's attempt to seize the military settlement, once the court or the crown prince has given them an explanation, they can make reasonable demands, which should be granted if they are not excessive. Second, regarding the fact that Prince Ruyin had previously been behind Prefect Lei's back, fanning the flames and attempting to force them to revolt, it would be rude not to reciprocate. They will give Prince Ruyin a huge gift package. Soon, Prince Ruyin will make a big move, and he will definitely be the main culprit!
Given the situation, they had two choices. The first was to follow King Ruyin and find a reason to purge the court.
Second, if they chose not to follow through and instead make demands, the Crown Prince would likely agree, even if they were a bit excessive. However, the downside is that they remain Daliang troops, awaiting orders. This contradicts their broader direction, and if they ultimately rebel, it would be a complete detour, a political waste.
After much discussion and deliberation, everyone finally unanimously decided, "Fuck him!" This opportunity is rare, and it can't be missed. Once lost, it will never come back. Governor Lei, I'll lend you my head.
******
Wang Lang in Qiannan also learned about the stupid things his father-in-law had done and felt helpless.
Objectively speaking, if his father-in-law's opponent was not his ex-wife Yao Chunnuan, this strategy would have been very likely to succeed. His father-in-law underestimated the strength of Yao Chunnuan's gang.
******
Looking at the dejected and untidy Taishou Lei, the Inspector felt that he was both pitiful and hateful. However, there were some things he had to say. "The Crown Prince will arrive in Yichun soon. Cheer up!"
The prince is coming? Lei Taishou was shocked. His affairs had actually alarmed the prince to come. Heaven was going to kill him.
Seeing him like that, the Inspector was furious. What? He still wanted to throw in the towel and become a complete mess? But the Crown Prince was coming to clean up his mess himself, so what right did he have to be passive? Any value he had left in him had to be squeezed out and contributed to the Crown Prince!
"Things have come to this point, and it can't get any worse. You'd better cheer up and don't be passive. Otherwise, think about your children and family!"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Lei Taishou replied tremblingly, "What about here?"
"Don't clean up yet. Send someone to guard it. Let's wait until the prince arrives before we deal with everything." Perhaps the capable people brought by the prince can find some clues.
With a knife hanging over his head, Prefect Lei forced himself to cheer up, arranged for the family members who originally lived in the backyard of the prefect's mansion to evacuate, then sealed off the place and assigned people to guard it.
After finishing all these, Governor Lei dragged his tired body back to his concubine after not sleeping all night.
His appearance made the concubine feel very distressed. She served him tea and water, showing her gentleness and kindness. These were particularly useful to the prefect Lei at that time.
"Master, have a cup of tea. You look so tired, and I feel bad for you. This inspector is really heartless. Master has gone through so much hardship, and all he can do is ask you to do this and that!"
Lei Taishou patted his concubine's hand and said, "Alright, stop talking. Be careful, there are ears on the other side of the wall."
The concubine sat down beside him and whispered, "Master, are all our gold, silver and jewelry really burned?"
Upon hearing this, Governor Lei felt a pang of pain in his heart and almost burst into tears.
"But I heard that the Yichun military settlement was plundered by Yan Guo. Could they really bear to let all that gold, silver, and jewelry burn? Could it be that they took all the gold, silver, and jewelry and set the fire? Think about it, who would be willing to leave so much gold, silver, and jewelry?"
Upon hearing this, Governor Lei's eyes lit up. "Yes, that's right. You're right. They not only stole our private vault outside the capital, but also Marshal Zhu's. They must be habitual criminals. How could they bear to burn all those treasures?"
Seeing that Lei Taishou also agreed with her guess, the concubine hurriedly urged, "Then Master, you should quickly take people to get back those gold and silver treasures! It will be too late if they sell them off."
Governor Lei stood up quickly, but soon stopped in hesitation. There weren't enough people...
"What's wrong?"
"We don't have enough manpower."
The concubine raised her voice and said, "If you don't have enough manpower, go and borrow some. That's the hard work of half your life, don't you want it?"
Prefect Lei thought of something, gritted his teeth, and went out.
Not long after, a voice of shock and anger came from the Inspector's room, "Lei Peng, are you crazy? How dare you forge an imperial edict?!"
"I can't care about that anymore. I must get my gold, silver and jewelry back. At the same time, I must catch the thieves and punish them for their crimes!" Ray Ban said with red eyes. "Inspector, you should get some sleep. When you wake up, everything will be fine."
With his mouth gagged, the Inspector felt desperate. He felt that things were about to get out of control and develop in an unpredictable direction.
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