Chapter 613: City Gate Opens
Daji did not follow up to find out what happened. Manbao and Bai Shanbao also kept the matter in their hearts. They only leaned on the window to look at the yard at night. After the snacks stopped coming, they knew that the man would not come again.
This seemed to be a good thing, but for some reason, Manbao and Bai Shanbao always felt uncomfortable and were depressed for two days.
Because the situation outside was not stable, Zhou Silang and Zhou Lijun could not go out to work, and they felt a little depressed staying in the yard every day.
Four days have passed, and the authorities still haven't caught the assassin. Yesterday, officers came to investigate again. This time they were much more perfunctory, but they still searched the place. They found that some people were clumsy and broke things, which caused great dissatisfaction among everyone.
Zhou Silang occasionally went out to squat in the alley and complain to his neighbors about the rudeness of the officers and soldiers.
However, this time they may have noticed everyone's dissatisfaction, or perhaps because of the requirements from above, no one dared to take things anymore.
Despite this, people still complained, "The shop hasn't been open for several days, how much money will be lost in just one day?"
"Vegetable prices have gone up now. If the city gates don't open, we won't even be able to afford vegetables."
"Forget vegetables. There's a checkpoint every twenty steps on the street now. Every man passing by is checked. Didn't you see that Old Zheng, the water seller at the corner of the alley, hasn't come yet? I heard that he came here yesterday with a cart of water and was checked five times. All the money on him was taken..."
"So now we have to fetch water ourselves, and we can't carry money or valuables with us when we go out, otherwise we'll search you clean."
"Why didn't Magistrate Tang take any action and actually sent soldiers from the palace to conduct a search?"
"Hush, keep your voice down. After the Dragon Boat Festival, anyone who dares to speak ill of the King of Yizhou will be considered an assassin with malicious intent. Be careful not to be arrested like Yan San in Yan's Alley."
Everyone paused in their discussion, and after a moment of silence, they turned to other topics. "Do you have any pickles at home? I'm thinking that since we can't buy vegetables, it would be nice to mix pickles with steamed buns."
"Yes, there are, but not many. I think the young cucumbers grown in your yard are good. You can cut them up and pickle them. They are also very delicious..."
Zhou Silang, having heard enough gossip, said goodbye and went home. Mr. Zhuang, aware of the discussions outside, lowered his eyes and thought for a moment before saying, "The city gates won't be closed for much longer. If the assassin can't be caught now, the Yizhou Palace will probably intensify the search. You should try not to go out for the next two days."
Zhou Silang agreed. It just so happened that he had bought a lot of vegetables today, so he could go out less.
The city gate opened earlier than Mr. Zhuang expected. In the evening of the day they were discussing this, County Magistrate Tang sent heavy troops to guard the city gate and then opened it.
All those who are still staying in the city can leave the city after being searched and finding three or more companions who can testify against each other.
Most of the people still staying in the city are middle-aged.
Because in the previous four days, County Magistrate Tang had kept the small city gate open, so women, children, the elderly and the young, as long as they did not carry luggage that could hide people, could leave the city after inspection.
Chang Changshi of the Yizhou Palace watched with a solemn expression. Seeing that the tense atmosphere had eased, he turned to look at County Magistrate Tang. "Can you guarantee that you can stop the assassin?"
"It's been four days. You've searched Yizhou City three times. Have you found the person?" County Magistrate Tang said, "If you can't find him, what's the point of sealing the city gates? It's better to open the gates and lure him out."
"With so many people, most of them young and strong, can you recognize the assassin?"
"No," County Magistrate Tang said matter-of-factly, "Didn't you say they were seriously injured? They haven't had any medical care or medicine for four days. If they dared to come, the soldiers would have found them."
"What if their injuries heal after taking the medicine?"
County Magistrate Tang sarcastically said, "You've been asked to take over all the clinics and pharmacies in the city. Where else can they get medicine? Didn't Guard Qin swear that they were seriously injured and couldn't escape far?"
Chang Changshi said nothing more.
Because of the search, the speed was very slow, but no matter how slow it was, the city gates on both sides were opened wide and people were let out one by one, and the number of people gathered in the city was slowly decreasing.
It was not yet dark, and all those who wanted to leave the city had already left, but there was still no sign of the assassin.
Chang Changshi's expression grew colder, "Could it be that he escaped from the small city gate a few days ago?"
"Impossible," County Magistrate Tang said slowly, "Only children under twelve, people over fifty, and women were allowed to leave through the small city gate. Guard Qin also sent someone to watch over them, so there would be no problem for those leaving the city."
Chang Changshi couldn't help but murmur, "Then where are they hiding?"
County Magistrate Tang said nothing.
Chang Changshi quickly recovered and looked at County Magistrate Tang. He narrowed his eyes and said, "Sir Tang is a renowned expert in criminal law. Can't you find out where they are?"
County Magistrate Tang lowered his eyes and said with a look of regret: "These assassins are very skilled. I still don't have any clues."
Chang Changshi frowned.
County Magistrate Tang then asked, "Have you found out anything about their origins?"
Chang Changshi immediately tensed his back and shook his head heavily, "No."
County Magistrate Tang didn't ask any more questions. He glanced at the empty city gate below and turned around and said, "Let's go. You can check it one last time tonight. Tomorrow the city gate will be open to entry and exit."
Chang Changshi looked a little unhappy as he followed County Magistrate Tang down from the city wall.
Chang Changshi went back to the Yizhou Palace. County Magistrate Tang didn't know whether he could rest, but he couldn't rest anyway.
He rode directly to the governor's mansion. Just as the governor Ming had sent off a group of colleagues and sat down to drink a sip of tea, the county magistrate Tang arrived.
As soon as he saw him, Governor Ming felt a headache. He waved his hand to let the servants leave, and he took County Magistrate Tang to the study room at the back.
"Is everyone out?"
"Well, at least the people gathered at the city gate have left." He couldn't care less about other places.
The Ming governor motioned him to sit down, stared at his face, and asked, "Can't you really catch the assassin?"
County Magistrate Tang looked up at him and said, "Sir, I am only a small county magistrate. If so many talented people in the Yizhou Palace couldn't catch him, how could I possibly catch him?"
He sneered and said, "They said they were going to search the entire city, but they haven't searched every household yet. The assassin's origins are all being investigated by the Yizhou Palace. I'm not a god, so I can't just tell where the assassin is out of thin air, right?"
That's true. The Ming governor sighed, "There's a serious conflict going on within the palace. I originally wanted to take over this matter. After all, if the assassin can't be found, we can't escape the blame either. But when I got involved, I found that the waters here are very murky. I thought about it and gave up. I'd rather be impeached here than get involved in the internal strife within the palace."
County Magistrate Tang nodded in agreement, which was why he didn't want to deal with the Yizhou Palace.
"Anyway, tonight is the last time. After tonight, no one is allowed to disturb the people again." County Magistrate Tang said, "It's been almost five days. The people of Yizhou City are finally feeling stable. I don't want any more trouble."
The Ming governor nodded, "Lord Zhang also meant the same thing."
Otherwise, they wouldn't have opened the city gates so forcefully today.
The next update will be around 6:00 PM
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
