Rong Shanhai and the others slumped to the ground in despair. A few feet away from them, the body of the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, a confidant of Prime Minister Cui, lay quietly.
The ground was covered in blood, and the head, severed from the body, stared unblinkingly at Rong Shanhai and the others.
Originally, Lord Jiang looked at Tang Huan in disbelief, not believing that the other party would dare to kill him.
But after its head fell and rolled a few times, it finally looked at these people.
"Don't look at me, don't look at me. The person who killed you was Tang Huan. Even if you become a ghost, go find him. It has nothing to do with me."
A timid and cowardly official covered his eyes, too afraid to look at the corpse.
Rong Shanhai gave a bitter smile, looking dejected and sullen.
He lost, he lost miserably.
Even with the backing of Cui Xiang's protégé, Tang Huan was still no match for him.
Even though Xie Wu had clearly given up, Tang Huan still recklessly attacked and slashed Lord Jiang. Everyone thought that this action would bring disaster upon them, but what they received was an imperial edict from the capital.
"He was a tutor at the Imperial Academy, held an official position in the Hanlin Academy, and even fought against the Northern Regions delegation, winning two matches for Daqing. As a result, he was appreciated by His Majesty and awarded a certificate of merit..."
Rong Shanhai's consciousness had become blurred, almost turning into a puddle of mush.
He used to look down on Tang Huan because this young county magistrate was arrogant and unruly, relying on his relationship with Xie Wu, and caused trouble in Qihuai County by collecting taxes.
All of these behaviors displeased Rong Shanhai.
But unbeknownst to him, the other party had already accomplished so much in the capital, even if it was just one of those things, it was something Rong Shanhai could never have done in his entire life.
Rong Shanhai lamented bitterly, "Lord Jiang, you have caused me so much suffering!"
At this moment, Rong Shanhai realized that it wasn't that Lord Jiang was unaware of all this, but rather that he had deliberately concealed it from him.
They were used as a tool to deal with Tang Huan.
Perhaps Tang Huan really did offend Prime Minister Cui in the capital, and their relationship was very bad, but it couldn't be brought up in public yet.
"If even a vice minister of the Court of Judicial Review can be killed without hesitation, then we people are probably no match for him at all..."
Rong Shanhai slumped his hands, giving up on thinking any further.
All he knew was that his fate would likely be dire.
This conclusion was drawn from that imperial edict.
Gongyang Tingbai and Qin Yuyang also had a great curiosity about the so-called "iron certificate," while Li Daikui and Xue'e were equally curious about what it was, but they did not have as clear as the two of them about what it meant.
"This iron certificate is really powerful? It just looks like a piece of iron, so why did those guys look like they'd lost their souls when they saw it?"
Li Da Kui took the imperial edict from Eunuch Shen and held it in his arms. He looked it over for a few moments, then looked at Rong Shan Hai and the others.
Xie Wu stared intently at the iron certificate, trying to memorize every word and every pattern on it.
His hands trembled as he reached out to touch the iron certificate, as if he were looking at his most cherished possession.
"Old Xie, is this really necessary? It's just a piece of iron, why are you acting like you're touching a woman?" Li Daikui asked, puzzled.
Xie Wu scolded in a low voice, "You don't understand anything. This is something that no woman can compare to. You couldn't get one like this even if you had many women. Do you know what this imperial edict means?"
Li Daikui hesitated and cast a pleading look at Xue'e.
However, Xue'e had never heard of this imperial edict before, and simply shook her head.
Qin Yuyang said in a deep voice, "The Iron Certificate of Immunity is a token of immunity from death, a certificate used by the emperor to reward his subjects. In other words, from now on, no matter what Tang Huan does, as long as he has this, he can be guaranteed to live."
"A get-out-of-jail-free card?" Li Daikui's eyes widened as he realized the significance of this thing.
He immediately began to stroke it with great joy, cherishing it even more than Xie Wu.
"Why are you touching it so enthusiastically?" Xie Wu asked.
"Your getaway card, Lao Xie, you've been touching it the whole time, your hand never stopped."
Xie Wu puffed out his chest. "This iron certificate is also called the Golden Token of Immunity. It can not only help Old Tang avoid death, but as long as Daqing exists, Old Tang's descendants and relatives can also be exempted from death with this token."
After saying that, he straightened his clothes and said, "I am Lao Tang's brother-in-law in name and in fact."
Li Daikui revealed a jealous look in his eyes and said bluntly, "She did it, she's not even my own sister..."
Because of the appearance of the iron certificate, everyone knew that there would be no other outcome for today's events.
After reading the imperial edict, Eunuch Shen handed the document to Tang Huan and then looked around.
He visibly flinched when he saw the body.
"Lord Tang, this..."
"Oh, this is the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. He came to Qihuai County with the intention of doing something indecent to me, but I have already apprehended him on the spot."
"As for those people over there who colluded with traitors and plotted rebellion, I also plan to deal with them."
Xiao Shen smiled and said, "Lord Tang, this is Qihuai County, and you are the magistrate of Qihuai County. Moreover, Prefect Xie Wu is also here. You don't need to tell me these things."
Tang Huan put her arm around Xiao Shen's neck and waved to Xue'e.
Xue'e, unfazed, took out a hundred-tael silver note and handed it to Xiao Shen.
Xiao Shen glanced at the people around him and didn't accept it immediately.
Tang Huan laughed when he saw this, and then asked Xue'e for a hundred-tael silver note and handed it to Xiao Shen.
"I'm sorry to have troubled you to bring all the way from the capital to Qihuai County. Besides, you brought me such great news, so I naturally had to share it with you."
After hesitating for a moment, seeing Tang Huan's kind smile, Xiao Shen finally put the silver note away.
Tang Huan put his arm around Xiao Shen and walked into the post station, asking, "Why are all the things sent to Qihuai County?"
"Lord Tang, to be honest, not long after you left the palace yesterday, His Majesty drafted an imperial edict and instructed me to deliver it to you. However, when I arrived at your residence, it was already deserted. After consulting with His Majesty, she instructed me to send the document directly back to Qihuai County."
Tang Huan patted Xiao Shen on the shoulder, "You've worked hard. Why don't you stay in Qihuai County for a few days?"
The two entered the post station, but the others did not leave immediately.
Gongyang Tingbai glanced sideways at the group of people kneeling on the ground, his voice cold, "A bunch of blind fools who think they can get away with anything just because they've befriended a high-ranking official in the Court of Judicial Review, and dare to cause trouble for Tang Huan."
"How do you think he will deal with these people?" Qin Yuyang asked.
"Just kill them. The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review is already dead. Killing these people will solve everything and we won't have to worry about their confessions."
Gongyang heard Bai speak casually, but the listeners felt as if they were facing a formidable enemy.
Qin Yuyang nodded slightly and said, "That's true. This kind of imperial edict has never appeared in the history of Daqing before. In the end, Wu Lanxi was willing to give one to Tang Huan. Now they can only blame their own bad luck."
So be it. We have the imperial edict and the iron certificate in hand, so there are no future troubles.
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