Chapter 41 (Thank You for Being There - Little Nuo Gao)
Zhao Zhou looked at Fan Tong.
Commander Fan understood the signal, and then addressed the crowd:
"Folks, please be patient, I will explain it to you."
"The imperial court has issued an order that clearly stipulates the punishment for collusion with mountain bandits, Japanese pirates, and other such acts. According to the laws of the Da'an Dynasty, if a thief or thief is the mastermind behind a den of thieves, even if he does not personally participate, but instead shares in the loot, he shall be beheaded."
"Even if it's only partially dirty, thieves will be punished with one hundred strokes of the cane and exiled three thousand li away!"
“Those who collude with thieves or harbor thieves shall be beheaded, and all other family members shall be exiled and half of their property shall be confiscated.”
The people were in a panic: "That flying sword belongs to Assistant Minister Su! Isn't this the end?"
Fan Tong looked at Su Jingge: "Su Jingge, do you have any explanation for this matter?"
"Since you have already discovered that my men are colluding with mountain bandits in the city, why don't you come up here and let me get to the bottom of this?"
Zhao Zhou chuckled upon hearing this: "Then I'll let you die knowing why, so the people won't say I abused my power for nothing." He looked at Constable Zhou, "Take all those people back to the yamen!"
"No need!" A clear, cold male voice could be heard from outside the yamen.
Everyone turned to look upon hearing the sound.
It's a flying sword.
There were about ten people following behind him.
They were all burly and imposing.
However, the clothes he was wearing were not the animal skins and bandit attire he wore; instead, he was dressed in coarse linen.
Hair is neatly combed.
His sideburns were also neatly trimmed.
"These...these are bandits?!"
"It doesn't look like it!"
The people began to retreat, still feeling fear in their hearts.
Zhao Zhou grinned: "Even if you change into civilian clothes, it won't hide the fact that you're a bandit!"
"Flying Sword, do you know what crime you have committed by colluding with mountain bandits?" Zhao Zhou asked.
Fei Jian glanced at Su Jingge, then said, "I know."
"You knew? You knew and still broke the law?" Zhao Zhou asked, somewhat puzzled.
Logically speaking, this flying sword belonged to General Xiao Linyuan's former deputy, and he knew the laws by heart.
Fei Jian crossed his arms and chuckled.
He then glanced at Su Jingge.
She raised her voice and said, "They are not thieves, much less bandits. The imperial court has previously issued a document offering amnesty to all parts of the country. As an official of the imperial court, even if you are only a seventh-rank official, you should know about this news, right?"
Zhao Zhou rolled his eyes: "That's indeed true... but what does that have to do with you colluding with bandits?"
"They had previously submitted a letter of surrender to the imperial court, but the court said that it would not accept the letter without concrete actions of surrender and ordered the magistrate of the local county to supervise them. A year ago, they reclaimed wasteland to benefit the people. After the flood, there was a landslide. They spontaneously formed a team and moved the rubble away bit by bit by hand."
"If you can't move it, smash it piece by piece until the mountain path is exposed again. And you, sitting here enjoying the imperial salary, served by three or five servants in shifts, have you ever really done anything practical for the people?"
Zhao Zhou's lips twitched. How did this little bitch know?
Could it be Xie Mo who said it?
Su Jingge continued, "They found you, which means they have a concrete intention to surrender. They might be granted amnesty, given an official position, or at least become commoners. But what about you? You call them thieves. How can thieves want to become commoners?"
"You said they were delusional, looked down on them, and said they would never become citizens in their lifetime."
Zhao Zhou sneered: "So what? A thief trying to become a citizen?"
Su Jingge was furious, her whole body radiating murderous intent: "Zhao Zhou, you are showing contempt for the laws of the imperial court! What is your punishment?"
"How have I disregarded the laws of the imperial court? Don't make false accusations!"
Su Jingge nodded and sneered, "They were driven away by you earlier because they kindly participated in the city's construction. You think you're so high and mighty, but in reality, you're stingy with the government's funding. You're the real thief!"
"You're the one who drove them to their doom!"
These words filled everyone with terror.
Zhao Zhou was shocked and immediately stood up: "You, you, you!"
He saw the disdainful looks the people were giving him.
It's like watching a thief.
It was as if he were the real thief.
Zhao Zhou's face turned pale, but he calmly sat down again and sneered, "Fine, you say they're acting like commoners, but that requires evidence. Who can testify?"
None of the people present dared to speak out. If they spoke well, all would be well; if they spoke poorly, they could be beheaded or exiled.
Just as the entire room fell silent, Zhao Zhou sneered: "Look, no one can prove it. You're just talking nonsense, it doesn't count."
Just then, Xiao Linyuan appeared at the entrance of the county government office with a group of people.
The people following behind were the ones who had witnessed the bandits' good deeds at the restaurant earlier that day.
They all volunteered to tell the whole story.
Zhao Zhou's face showed an expression of disbelief.
Su Jingge took a letter from Xiao Linyuan's hand. It contained a confession and a fingerprint.
She placed it on the table.
After reading it, Zhao Zhou frowned deeply. This guy came prepared!
"If I'm not mistaken, you should have received their expressions of interest."
Zhao Zhou's mind went blank. He gasped. If this was true, then he had failed to report it to the imperial court.
He will be punished for dereliction of duty.
Zhao Zhou calmed down and narrowed his eyes: "I have never received any."
If he doesn't admit it, what can she do?
He then looked at Fan Tong: "Does the registrar have it?"
"Huh? Yes!"
Zhao Zhou was taken aback.
He stared at him with cold, sharp eyes: "Impossible!"
Fan Tong thought to himself that he had indeed received this letter several times. He took two steps forward and whispered, "Sir, have you forgotten? I once received a letter and reported it to you, and you said that a group of Japanese pirates could be legalized, and refused to accept it..."
Fan Tong looked at Xiao Linyuan with fear. If Xiao Linyuan came out of seclusion and was investigated, it would be considered a defiance of the imperial law. Exile would be the least of his worries; he would be beheaded!
He doesn't want to die.
Zhao Zhou's eyes were as dark as deep pools. He recalled that he had been drunk then, and it seemed like something like that had happened...
At this point, the people's emotions reached a fever pitch: "Lord Zhao, we can all testify for them that they didn't steal our things. Not only that, they even helped us. So, wouldn't it be considered a crime to collude with the bandits?"
"Besides, they were driven away by you and forced into becoming bandits. They also participated in the city's repairs and maintained local order, thus avoiding breaking the law. Aren't we right?"
The people all looked on intently.
Zhao Zhou swallowed: "Logically speaking, there should be such a thing, but I need to investigate whether there is any evidence to prove that they did not harm the people or the court!"
Zhao Zhou ordered Ming, the head constable, and others to immediately go to Xishan to see if the wasteland was indeed being reclaimed.
It will take at least two hours.
The troops set off immediately.
The stars twinkled in the night sky, but the people did not leave; they waited at the entrance of the government office.
-
Everyone was almost asleep when finally the sound of horses' hooves could be heard ahead.
"Reporting, sir!"
Zhao Zhou was dozing off when he woke up and saw that they had returned.
"explain."
“The land on the western hills of the adults is indeed being cultivated, and they have harvested trees, but the trees are not being sold; they are just sitting at the foot of the hill.”
Zhao Zhou stared wide-eyed at the question: "What did you say??"
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