Chapter 359 Control
During the three-day banquet, Jiang Qifu was busy showing his courtesy, and the Mu family army quickly took over Gongzhou.
Chi Yan had already begun searching for evidence of his crime.
Moreover, evidence of his corruption and bribery was soon found, and even the account book recording his tribute to King Cheng was found.
The three-day buffet was just a drop in the bucket for the hungry people.
Mu Junyan ordered the government to open the granaries and release the grain.
Du Yun and the female guards opened a porridge stall at each of the four city gates, while the Black Armor Guards knocked on the doors of wealthy families one by one, asking them to donate food for disaster relief.
Prince Yong came in person, Jiang Qifu was forced to set up a buffet, and when Lord Du returned, these wealthy families were scared to death.
They were all eager to show their faces so as not to be mistaken by King Yong for the same kind of Jiang family. When they heard that there was a food donation campaign, they immediately took out all the food that had been stored in their warehouses and sent it to the porridge stalls in carts.
Many people came to help cook porridge and steam buns.
Businessmen and snack vendors also took to the streets to start doing business. Some people did charity and made food and distributed it for free to those in need. Gradually, Gongzhou City regained its former bustle.
Luzhou, which is adjacent to Gongzhou, sent someone to ask for an audience with Mu Junyan that night, but the person was not seen, so they handed over a visiting card.
Unexpectedly, the next morning, the governor of Luzhou County came into the city in person to ask for a meeting.
This time Mu Junyan did not refuse.
"Your humble servant greets His Majesty."
Zhang Guodong, the prefect of Luzhou, bowed respectfully to Mu Junyan.
Mu Junyan raised his hand: "Master Zhang, please don't be polite."
"Your Majesty, I have something important to discuss with you."
Mu Junyan was very considerate and dismissed his attendants.
The two talked until late at night, and Zhang Guodong left quietly.
Mu Junyan summoned Lord Du overnight.
Before dawn, Lord Du personally knocked on the door of two dismissed officials who were familiar with water conservancy and were at home. An hour later, the two of them led a thousand Mu family soldiers to Luzhou.
Ten days had passed before everything in Gongzhou was back to normal operation.
One day, Jiang Qifu was feeling thankful that Prince Yong did not cause him trouble when he was suddenly called to the yamen.
He stepped into the gate nervously, and the yamen runners inside suddenly shouted loudly.
Jiang Qifu was so frightened that his face turned pale and he looked towards the main hall.
Mu Junyan was dressed in a black robe and sat upright.
Cao Li, the man surnamed Du, and several officials from the government office stood aside.
Jiang Qifu had a bad feeling, his heart was beating wildly, and he walked up to him tremblingly, "Your humble servant greets His Majesty."
Mu Junyan glanced at him coldly: "Master Cao, you go ahead and speak."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Cao Li held the case file in his hand and read out Jiang Qifu's various crimes word by word.
Jiang Qifu turned pale upon hearing this.
Jiang Qifu probably never imagined that one day, someone would turn his government office and mansion upside down, and he never thought that the man named Du would have the opportunity to come back and overturn the case, and all the account books would become evidence of his crime.
Cao Li put away the file, glared at Jiang Qifu, and angrily clasped his fists towards Mu Junyan: "Jiang Qifu is corrupt and perverts the law, harming the people, not caring about the lives of the victims, and only caring about his own wine and meat. The evidence is conclusive, please get rid of this evil for the people!"
Jiang Qifu was shocked and said hurriedly: "Your Highness, I am innocent. This, this is all fabricated!"
Cao Li sneered, "Fabrication? This is your Jiang family's account book. It records in detail how much official grain you secretly transported away, and how you replaced it with old grain infested with insects. All the grain was sold after entering the Jiang family's granary. And what is the 500,000 silver coins you send to King Cheng every year? If this isn't a bribe, what is it?"
Jiang Qifu's face turned pale.
Mu Junyan said calmly: "Since the evidence is conclusive, we will temporarily detain him and wait for the emperor's decision."
Jiang Qifu was anxious, and he quickly got up and shouted at Mu Junyan: "I am an official appointed by the court. Even if you are a prince, you have no right to detain me without authorization. How can a prefecture be without the jurisdiction of a county governor? Are you trying to rebel and seize the city?"
Chi Yan waved his hand, and the black-armored guard stepped forward and kicked him hard on the knee.
There was a click, and then a bang, and the sound of bones breaking after the knees hit the bluestone slabs heavily.
Jiang Qifu's face was distorted in pain and he rolled over on the ground holding his knees.
Mu Junyan looked at Cao Li and several officials from Gongzhou government office and said, "Gongzhou cannot be without a governor for a day. What do you think should be done?"
Cao Li stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, since Lord Du has returned innocent, loves the people like his own children, is familiar with Gongzhou, and is proficient in water management, it would be most appropriate for Lord Du to resume his official position and manage Gongzhou."
Lord Du, who was standing aside, was very excited. He did not want to be an official, but was heartbroken to see the suffering of the people of Gongzhou.
He really wanted to personally restore Gongzhou to its former prosperous state.
Mu Junyan nodded: "Lord Cao is right. I will trouble Lord Du to temporarily take over the post of county governor. I will submit a memorial to the court to explain the situation and wait for the final decision of the emperor."
"I obey your command."
Lord Du and Cao Li and others all bowed their hands.
Mu Junyan stood up, walked down the platform, and made a gesture of invitation to Lord Du: "Lord Du, Gongzhou is handed over to you. If you have any needs, just send someone to find me. As for the court's order to pay back taxes, you can ignore it for now. I will discuss everything with the court myself."
"yes."
Lord Du's eyes turned red with excitement.
Jiang Qifu watched Lord Du take the position of county magistrate, but his legs were in so much pain that he couldn't utter a word and was soon dragged away by the bailiffs.
Mu Junyan summoned Chi Yan and was giving him instructions when a scout came galloping over on horseback.
I saw them both dismount from their horses.
"Secret report from the capital."
Mu Junyan: "Speak."
"The Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince are heading south with relief funds. The journey is expected to take two months. In addition, the Queen intends to issue an imperial decree ordering the Princess to bring the young prince to the capital to be conferred the title of Crown Prince."
Mu Junyan's face turned cold.
She dares!
But he didn't show it on his face, and calmly ordered: "Got it, keep an eye on it, and report your itinerary at any time."
Chi Yan could not hide his anger: "How dare the Queen take the Princess and the Young Master as hostages!"
Mu Junyan thought for a moment and said, "I will go back to Juzhou to discuss this with the princess. You stay here and keep a close eye on it."
Chi Yan: “Yes!”
Mu Junyan was preparing to rush back to Juzhou overnight. Du Yun was just looking for him, and when he saw him getting ready to mount his horse, he hurriedly called him to stop.
"Your Majesty, what are you doing..."
Mu Junyan: "I'm going back to Juzhou. Do you want to go back with me first or stay here?"
"I will stay here and help Dad run the soup kitchen and treat the orphans."
"Very good. I have something to discuss with Chiyan."
"OK."
Du Yun watched him go away and hurriedly turned back, but Chi Yan was no longer there.
I don't know what happened to the prince, why he rushed back to Juzhou in such a hurry?
…
There was turmoil in Juzhou and many people were arrested.
Large-scale cleansing began inside and outside the city.
The owner of the bookstore became anxious and immediately reported the news to Bian Jing. There were only two spies left in Juzhou, and the others had all been arrested.
The waiter at the bookstore was also terrified: "Boss, what should we do? How about we run away?"
The shopkeeper said angrily, "How can you escape? If you escape, will the queen let you live?"
"Then what should we do? If we don't do something, won't we just wait to die?"
"Don't we still have Du Yun? She has already won the favor of Prince Yong. You should go to Gongzhou right away and find a way to meet her and find out her background. See if she has betrayed or is still loyal to the Queen? And by the way, go and see how Gongzhou is doing."
The waiter had no choice but to say, "This is the only way."
Bianjing.
The prince and his entourage set off in a grand manner. For the sake of comfort, they planned to take the water route, detour through Jiangling and then head south.
At this speed it will take at least two months.
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