Shi Zhongyu immediately stepped forward to stop him, "Commander Su, it's just a small matter, there's no need to report it to the capital."
In Daliang, it was no small matter for the people to gather and cause trouble. If unrest occurred, the local official would be dismissed at best, and beheaded at worst.
Shi Zhongyu seemed to want to downplay the issue and resolve it peacefully.
But how could Su Yan stand by and watch Shi Zhongyu make such a clever plan? She immediately raised her voice, "A small matter? How can it be a small matter? This is rebellion! If it's not handled properly, it will surely lead to disaster..."
"Commander Su, you can rest assured. It won't be long before I make sure all the troublemakers at the gate disperse."
Su Yan knew the principle of playing the long game, so she didn't press her advantage against Shi Zhongyu. "Alright then, Prefect Shi is the local official of Suizhou, he can definitely handle this matter. My worries are unnecessary. I still need to continue investigating Li Qingming's case, so I won't disturb you. I'll take my leave now..."
Seeing that Su Yan had no intention of getting involved, Shi Zhongyu breathed a sigh of relief and gave her a fawning smile as he watched her leave, saying, "Take care, Commander Su..."
No sooner had Su Yan left than Tang Rong rushed toward Shi Zhongyu, shouting as he ran, "Master, something terrible has happened! Master, something terrible has happened!"
Shi Zhongyu immediately stopped smiling, glared angrily at Tang Rong who had run over, pulled him aside, and scolded him, afraid that Su Yan, who had left, would hear, "What are you yelling about? Your old man is perfectly fine, what's going on..."
Tang Rong looked anxious, his clothes disheveled and loose, revealing the jiggling fat on his chest. He was panting heavily. "Master, the villagers causing trouble outside are too numerous and powerful to control. They're about to break in."
Upon hearing this, Shi Zhongyu was so angry that his internal organs felt like they were about to explode. His usually mild-mannered nature became impatient, and he cursed, "These unruly people have gone too far! Order the city defense troops to arrest them all and put them in jail!"
Tang Rong hesitated, as it seemed that doing this was not a good idea. After all, the people were like a bundle of firewood, and doing this would only exacerbate the conflict and not solve the root cause.
He then tried to comfort Shi Zhongyu, saying, "Sir, doing this will definitely escalate the villagers' emotions."
Upon hearing this, Shi Zhongyu's face instantly darkened. He grabbed Tang Rong's collar, brought his face close to Tang Rong's, only a finger's width away, and said through gritted teeth, "If this matter reaches Chang'an, not only you, but even your master's head will be in danger. Hurry up and arrest the ringleaders to make an example of them."
Tang Rong felt the breath spraying directly onto his face, and felt a little scared by Shi Zhongyu Ling's seemingly murderous aura. He nodded with his neck hunched, "I'll do it right away."
Shi Zhongyu immediately released Tang Rong's collar and said sternly, "Hurry up and go..."
"Yes, sir, I'll go right away..."
After saying that, Tang Rong scurried off towards the door.
Shi Zhongyu seemed to have thought of something and immediately called out to Tang Rong.
"etc……"
Tang Rong stopped and turned back to Shi Zhongyu with a blank expression. "Master, what's wrong?"
Shi Zhongyu waved to Tang Rong, signaling him to come over.
Although Tang Rong didn't understand what Shi Zhongyu was trying to do, he obediently walked over.
Shi Zhongyu leaned closer to Tang Rong, his gaze fixed on the spot where Su Yan had just left. He deliberately lowered his voice and whispered, "Have someone keep an eye on Su Yan's every move. If anything seems amiss, immediately..."
Before he could finish speaking, Shi Zhongyu made a throat-slitting gesture towards Tang Rong. He had climbed from a minor county magistrate to his current position, and he had to be cautious in everything he did.
After all, it's always better to be safe than sorry.
"Sir, do you suspect that today's events are related to Commander Su?"
Shi Zhongyu nodded, but his expression was not entirely certain. "Although I do not have any evidence for the time being, Su Yan's appearance is too coincidental. I would rather believe it exists than not."
"Understood..."
After Tang Rong left, Shi Zhongyu felt a strong sense of unease.
At this moment, Su Yan was secretly hiding in a corner, watching and observing Shi Zhongyu's every move.
Su Yan knew that Shi Zhongyu was cautious and meticulous, and that she could not find any fault with him.
Only by cornering Shi Zhongyu can we strike at his vital point and seize his Achilles' heel.
They also guessed that Shi Zhongyu would soon turn the conflict towards them.
But Su Yan wasn't afraid at all.
Following Shi Zhongyu's orders, Tang Rong arrested and imprisoned the villagers who had caused the disturbance.
Two days have passed in the blink of an eye.
The county jail was almost overflowing with people, and with Su Yan and Losang secretly stirring things up, the situation was escalating.
Since Suizhou was mostly inhabited by Qiang people, the county government was short-handed, so Shi Zhongyu had no choice but to turn to Luo Yan for help.
Luo Yan had been busy fighting against Luo Sang's forces and vying for the position of chieftain. He had heard about the events of the past few days, but he was powerless to do anything about it.
So when Shi Zhongyu came to his door, his expression was rather unpleasant.
“I say, Prefect Shi, you’d better stay in your county office. My mansion is not a safe haven.”
“Luo Yan, we are in the same boat. If you don’t save me, you won’t survive either. You should know that if the Luo family knows that you are colluding with officials, you will still be able to hold on to your position as chieftain.”
The reason why the Luo family was able to have a place in Suizhou was because they always insisted on keeping to themselves and never interfered in the internal affairs of the Great Liang.
Therefore, the entire family was able to survive when Daliang was established.
Therefore, the Luo family established a clan rule that anyone who succeeds to the position of chieftain must not oppose the Liang Dynasty.
Luo Yan wanted to use the Dark Moon Pavilion to expand his own power, while the Dark Moon Pavilion also wanted to establish an armory in Suizhou.
With Shi Zhongyu acting as a go-between, the two sides hit it off immediately and reached an agreement.
If these things were exposed, it would be an irreversible disaster.
Luo Yan wasn't stupid; he naturally guessed that someone was behind this.
"I originally intended to spare someone's life out of respect for Rufu, but now it seems I can't."
Upon hearing this, Shi Zhongyu's face was filled with anger. He accused Luo Yan, saying, "I told you Wang Ruofu couldn't be kept, but you insisted on keeping her. Now look what happened! Trouble has come knocking. A letter has arrived from the capital. The Crown Prince has learned of what you did to the officials of Daliang and has sent troops to arrest you."
After hearing this, Luo Yan snorted coldly, "What's there to be afraid of? Suizhou is still Liang's territory, and it's not up to the Li family to make decisions."
After hearing Luo Yan's words, Shi Zhongyu quickly realized something was wrong, "What are you going to do..."
Before he could finish speaking, a Qiang servant covered in blood rushed in and knelt calmly before Luo Yan.
"Your Majesty, the elders of the clan have already recommended you to be the next chieftain. Please come to the front hall for a meeting."
"They agreed so quickly? I didn't expect these old bones to be so sensible, saving me the trouble of doing it myself."
Shi Zhongyu looked at Luo Yan with a puzzled expression, not understanding what had happened.
But seeing the servants' clothes stained with blood, he realized that this was no ordinary matter.
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