Chapter 200: Capturing the Lin Family
The hall was silent, with calming incense burning in the stove. Concubine Zhe sat in front of the window, looking up at the magnolia tree outside the back window, wondering what she was thinking about.
There was a sound at the door, and Lin Rusheng slowly walked to her side, sighing helplessly, "Mu'er is still a child, why did you attack him? He has always been loyal and righteous, no different from the emperor, why are you arguing with him?"
"Twenty years old, can you still call me a child?"
Concubine Zhe fiddled with a magnolia in the vase, lowered her eyes and whispered, "My daughter is afraid that he is too similar to Yan Chong. Yan Chong has four sons, and only Mu'er has the most similar personality to him. We have painstakingly offered the throne to Mu'er, but he may not be willing to accept it. Even if he wears the dragon robe and sits on the throne, there is no guarantee that he will follow Yan Chong's path."
"He's your son, you have to trust him." Lin Rusheng shook his head and laughed, gently twisting his beard. "Mu'er wants to fight for the country. I have already promised him on your behalf."
Concubine Zhe turned her head abruptly, her face darkening slightly, "Father..."
"Don't be so hasty to reject the child's words." Lin Rusheng sat down beside her, smiling as he spoke. "You and I have often worried about Mu'er's temper. Now that he has changed, you should be happy. Princess Rongqing's escape has indeed given the northwest cause for further unrest. Although that old man Zhang Pu is doing his best to suppress this matter, don't forget what kind of people are in the cabinet."
"Those cowardly old bastards would rather negotiate peace than fight." Lin Rusheng propped a soft pillow behind his waist and spoke slowly. "The Northwest is very arrogant right now. Many ministers in the court are getting impatient and asking Zhang Pu and Huo Beiting to send troops to suppress the Northwest. But Zhang Pu seems to have ignored the petitions, neither sending troops nor agreeing to marry a princess. Huo Beiting has also been nowhere to be seen. I don't know where he has gone."
"There's a lot of resentment in the court about the two's attitudes. If Mu'er could show up at this time, there would be no need to worry about a lack of supporters."
Concubine Zhe paused, her eyes still filled with caution. "But Mu'er is in poor health, and we only have 10,000 soldiers. How can we win the battle in the northwest?"
"Look at you, your brain is just too slow." Lin Rusheng laughed and said in a calm voice, "I only let Mu'er train the soldiers, but not fight in the battlefield. It's just a show. This can suppress those old ministers without angering the northwestern barbarians, and it also satisfies Mu'er's wish. Why not do it?"
Concubine Zhe's eyes lit up, and she was actually persuaded by him. "This is a good idea, father is really smart!"
Lin Rusheng threw his head back and laughed, his eyes full of pride.
Until the sunset, the carriage quietly left the palace and headed towards the Lin family's old house.
Along the way, the smile on Lin Rusheng's face never faded, as if he had already seen Yan Mu's handsome appearance in the dragon robe.
But when he saw the old house in flames, he could no longer laugh.
As soon as the carriage turned the corner, it was surrounded by many imperial guards and could not move.
The car was suddenly stopped, and a crack appeared on Lin Rusheng's smiling face. He subconsciously looked at the man beside him, "Old Wang..."
Butler Wang lifted the carriage curtain and looked out. He saw a large group of people gathered in front of the Lin family's old house, all holding torches. They were not friendly. His face suddenly changed, "Master, this is not good..."
"Master Lin, I have heard of your great name for a long time, and today I finally see you in person."
A man riding a tall horse slowly appeared from the side. The dim firelight reflected on his dark red robe, adding a bit of horror. His handsome face was half hidden in the shadows, and he looked at Lin Rusheng, who was sitting in the carriage with a grim expression, with a half-smile.
"Who are you?" Lin Rusheng sat up straight, his eyes sweeping over the imperial guards one by one, finally landing on the man not far away. "Why are you besieging my Lin family mansion?"
The man's lips curled up into a faint smile, and he introduced himself calmly, "Nice to meet you. I'm Xie Suzhou, a newly appointed doctor at the Ministry of Revenue."
"Doctor of the Ministry of Revenue?" Lin Rusheng narrowed his eyes, got out of the car, and glared at him coldly, "Are you the winner of this year's provincial examination?"
"Exactly."
After getting the exact answer, Lin Rusheng's face turned pale and he asked in a deep voice, "What's the matter with you today?"
Xie Suzhou tightened the reins and looked down at him, "Please forgive me, Lord Lin. The Lin family has committed a serious crime. I have been ordered to arrest all 83 members of the Lin family. Now, I only need you, Lord Lin."
"What!"
Lin Rusheng quickly raised his eyes and looked towards the door, and saw that his four concubines were tied up and gagged, and his children were huddled together and thrown in the corner. When they saw him looking at them, they all sobbed and shook their heads at him.
"You..." Lin Rusheng turned his head to look at the man on horseback and shouted, "What did I do wrong? You'd better explain it to me word for word, or don't blame me for reporting you to the higher authorities and having you dismissed!"
Seeing that he was still resisting stubbornly, Xie Suzhou lowered his eyes and sneered, "Raising private soldiers, privately adjusting the price of salt, inciting panic among the people, and making huge profits from it. In every way, how has this wronged Lord Lin?"
Lin Rusheng's face changed in shock, and even the steward Wang who was following beside him turned pale.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Lin Rusheng felt a chill run down his spine. Even though his legs felt weak, he still managed to maintain his composure. "You're trying to accuse me of something with nothing to show for it. You're quite bold!"
Xie Suzhou's eyes were filled with sarcasm, and he opened his thin lips slightly, "If I had no evidence, how could I dare to arrest Lord Lin?"
Lin Rusheng took a deep breath, suppressed his inner anger, and whispered, "I heard... Doctor Xie comes from a humble background. No one in your family has been able to help you for three generations. If you go against me, what good will you get? Don't wait until all your years of hard work have gone to waste before you regret it."
"If you stop today, I can pretend nothing happened."
What he said sounded very righteous, but if you didn't know what kind of person he was, you would probably be fooled by him.
Xie Suzhou chuckled and shook his head in refusal. "Master Lin, this trick won't work on me. I made it clear from the beginning: I'm here to arrest the entire Lin family." "Against orders?" Lin Rusheng had been too anxious just now and only now realized something was wrong. "Against orders... by whose orders?"
"Of course it's mine."
At this moment, Lin Rusheng noticed a carriage parked not far away. The curtain was lifted, revealing Zhang Pu's old face and the familiar fox smile on his face. "Lin Rusheng, you have committed a heinous crime and threatened court officials. Your crime is even more serious. What else do you have to say?"
"Zhang Pu..." Seeing that old face, Lin Rusheng almost bit his back teeth to pieces. His eyes wandered between him and Xie Suzhou, his expression becoming uglier and uglier. "This is the trap you set for me! I, Lin Rusheng, have always been upright in my actions. How could I -"
Before he could finish his words, he suddenly fell silent and stared at the letter that Zhang Pu was using to fan himself.
It was a secret letter between him and those salt merchants.
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