County Magistrate Zheng was only a minor official of the eighth rank; he did not become an official through the selection process of the Ministry of Personnel.
Judging from their surnames, he shares the same surname as Cui Boyong's wife, Madam Zheng, suggesting they may have some connection.
In fact, County Magistrate Zheng was a relative of Madam Zheng, belonging to a collateral branch.
Although he was a son of a collateral branch, he still bore the surname Zheng, so he was considered family.
Therefore, Cui Boyong recommended Zheng County Magistrate to be the magistrate of He County, making him the second-in-command of the county magistrate's office.
Oh no, that's not right, it's not the second-in-command!
Rather, they are the true power holders.
Before the county magistrate of He County got into trouble, Zheng, the county magistrate's assistant, used the power of the prefectural governor's office to sideline the magistrate.
Last year, a civil uprising broke out among the Li people, and the magistrate of He County was killed by the rioters. With no magistrate in He County, Assistant Magistrate Zheng "temporarily" took over the duties of the magistrate, further consolidating his power in his own hands.
He was nominally a county assistant, but in reality, he was already a high-ranking "county magistrate".
Not to mention that the imperial court has not yet appointed a new magistrate, even if a new magistrate is appointed in the future, he will still only be a puppet.
Unfortunately, Yuezhou was too remote, and even the county magistrate, selected by the Ministry of Personnel, was unwilling to come.
This further emboldened Cui Boyong and County Magistrate Zheng.
It's a pity they brought up Xie Yuan, that tough nut to crack.
Cui Boyong sat in the courtroom of the governor's office, looking at the crowd below with a headache.
County Magistrate Zheng was bound hand and foot, and a piece of rag of unknown origin was stuffed into his mouth.
His face was full of emotion, and he kept sobbing. His eyes were fixed on Cui Boyong as if he were saying: Save me! Brother-in-law, please save me!
Zheng Yurong and Zhou Wencheng stood solemnly to the side, each holding a stack of testimonies, with more than a dozen witnesses behind them, seemingly found from nowhere.
With witnesses and physical evidence, Magistrate Zheng's crimes are outrageous!
fall!
How should this case be judged?
...Ahem, of course we can't conduct a fair trial.
Zheng, the county magistrate, was not only a relative of Madam Zheng, but also Cui Boyong's top henchman in Yuezhou.
With the help of County Magistrate Zheng, Cui Boyong controlled the entire He County, making his territory very stable.
In addition, Magistrate Zheng was also very good at accumulating wealth. Every year, he would hand over a portion of the wealth he acquired to the Cui family.
Relatives, top henchmen, and moneybags—unless absolutely necessary, Cui Boyong would never abandon such a useful pawn as Magistrate Zheng.
After clearing his throat twice, Cui Boyong slammed his gavel. "County Magistrate Zheng, did you commit all these illegal acts?"
“You are also a member of the government, so you naturally know the rules of the government.”
"If you confess honestly, you can be spared the pain of being beaten."
Cui Boyong first adopted a strict and impartial demeanor in handling the case.
But then he changed the subject, "Of course, I will not force a confession or wrong an innocent person."
"Did you do these things, or were they done by your former superiors?"
As Cui Boyong spoke, he winked at County Magistrate Zheng.
He had already cursed Magistrate Zheng in his heart: idiot! What an idiot!
When he was captured by Xie's men, he should have blamed everything on the dead magistrate.
As a result, the matter was taken to the prefectural government's court, and they insisted that he personally give them advice!
If Magistrate Zheng had any sense at all, he wouldn't have done that!
In fact, Cui Boyong had really misunderstood Magistrate Zheng.
County Magistrate Zheng wasn't stupid; rather, he was fearless because he had something to rely on.
He's become so arrogant that he's even too lazy to shift the blame.
Cui Boyong: ...This is still stupid!
No matter how arrogant they are in private, they still have to put on a show in public.
A fool like Magistrate Zheng would have been dealt with by the previous magistrate long ago if it weren't for the protection of Prefect Cui!
"Sigh, never mind! Although Zheng may be foolish, he is loyal!"
It's hard to find a dog that's both easy to use and reliable.
Sighing inwardly, Cui Boyong gave Zheng County Magistrate a wink once more.
County Magistrate Zheng is not stupid, really; he can tell the difference between a person's appearance and their intelligence.
Upon receiving Cui Boyong's glance, County Magistrate Zheng instantly understood.
He kept whimpering.
Seeing that Magistrate Zheng's eyes had changed and he was no longer the ridiculously stupid man he once was, Cui Boyong ordered his men to remove the rag stuffed in his mouth.
"Your Excellency is wise! Your prediction is correct! Waaah, I had no choice."
County Magistrate Zheng shouted that he was innocent.
Zheng Yurong's face was ashen, revealing neither joy nor anger.
Her princess had long ago said that Zheng was a vicious dog kept by Cui Boyong.
Unless he is caught red-handed committing a crime, Cui Boyong will never give up on him.
Cui Boyong would take the initiative to help Zheng get off the hook.
Just now, Zheng Yurong indeed heard Cui Boyong "remind" County Magistrate Zheng.
They directly shifted the blame onto the former county magistrate.
Zheng Yurong had Xie Yuan to prepare her, so she wasn't angry when she saw such an absurd scene.
Zhou Wencheng is different now.
He was a typical scholar and had even served as an imperial censor.
He even dared to impeach the former crown prince, which shows his proud and unyielding character.
At this moment, witnessing Cui Boyong's "tricks" firsthand, his anger flared up.
What a fine Cui Boyong! What a fine official appointed by the imperial court and governor of a prefecture!
In the courtroom, under the watchful eyes of everyone, he actually openly instigated Zheng to frame someone else!
They're taking advantage of the fact that the dead can't speak.
"Arrogant! Shameless! The aggrieved party who filed the complaint is Princess Xie, and Cui Boyong dares to abuse his power like this. If it were an ordinary citizen, wouldn't he be even more unscrupulous?"
Zhou Wencheng thought to himself, his hands involuntarily clenching into fists.
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