Chapter 698 Tragedy on New Year's Eve

"Call--" Suddenly, from outside, an official in black yamen uniform came galloping to the city gate on a black horse and stopped.

As soon as he uttered the call, the two tipsy guards raised their heads and looked at him with confusion.

Before I could ask him what he was doing here, the man said hurriedly, "Is the prefect at Dong's house in the city? I have something important to discuss with you. Please show me the way."

"Yes, the prefect and the county magistrate are here. What can I do for you? The Dong family is in Moyan Lane on Youran Street. Just knock on the door of Sanshan Academy when you see them." Although they were both officials, the clothes on this man were different from theirs.

One belongs to the county and is dark blue, and the other belongs to Ruling Prefecture and is jet black.

The officials on horseback were of higher rank than them.

Therefore, the attitudes of the two were somewhat flattering.

"Okay, thank you." The man did not explain, nor did he even get off his horse. After asking the question, he whipped the horse's butt. The horse felt pain, and he pulled the reins and ran towards the city.

"What's going on? Did something happen? Why are you in such a hurry?" The two officers looked at each other, somewhat confused.

"I don't know. He won't tell me. Forget it. Never mind. It has nothing to do with us. We just need to keep an eye on the city gate. The wine is almost finished. Let's drink the rest to avoid him finding trouble with us when he sees us drinking. Officials from Ruling Prefecture always think they are superior to others. We have to be careful."

Although the two did not know each other, their previous images were deeply rooted in people's hearts.

They were afraid that when this person came out, he would see them drinking and deliberately cause trouble.

They quickly drank the sake in the pot and ate the braised pork in half.

Then the two of them stood on the left and the right.

The right hand always rests on the sword.

Look straight ahead.

"Knock, knock, knock--" When they arrived at the gate of Sanshan School, there was a knock on the door of Dong's house.

The concierge came to open the door.

After explaining the reason, the official soon came to the inner courtyard under the guidance of the gatekeeper.

"My Lord, my Lord, something terrible has happened. The Liu family in the city has been wiped out. All 52 members of the family, including dogs, cats, birds, horses and other livestock, have died. Their deaths are extremely tragic. I have come here specially to report this. Please return home as soon as possible."

The officer knelt on the ground, with fear in his eyes as he spoke.

It seemed as if the scene I had seen before was still lingering in front of my eyes for a long time.

It’s terrible. It’s so terrible.

There were fifty-two people, but not a single body was intact. The men’s heads were chopped off and hung on the trees at home, while the women’s arms were chopped off and hung on the beams with ropes, like dried bacon.

The officer's face was extremely pale. No one knew whether he was frozen by the cold wind on the way here or because he was frightened earlier.

"What? Is this true? Come on, quickly prepare the carriage. I'll let you come with me. By the way, are there any witnesses or physical evidence? Is the city gate closed?"

Meng Zhili had drunk some wine tonight and was a little drunk. When he heard this, he instantly perked up.

Fifty-two people died.

The whole family was wiped out.

Not to mention since he took office, even in the past few decades, he has never heard of such a serious case.

It's no exaggeration to say that this is a major case. If he can't investigate it clearly, he'd have no chance of being an official.

Meng Zhili suddenly stood up from the armchair and walked out while talking.

Meng Bujiu followed closely behind.

"Yes, there were three little beggars in the city who went to Mr. Liu's house to beg for food. After they were done, they did not leave immediately, but waited in the corner of the alley. At midnight, Mr. Chen's family would set off firecrackers. In the past, at this time, Mr. Liu would always give money to those who came to ask for wedding money, so the three little beggars waited there.

As evening approached, the three little beggars did not see it with their own eyes, but they heard some noises. However, the situation was urgent, so the subordinates did not interrogate him, thinking that reporting to the master first was the most important thing. "

The officer lowered his head and reported.

The father and son quickly left with the officers.

One rode a horse and two took a carriage.

As for Dong Qingyi, she stayed at home to accompany Dong Wei.

After the three left, Meng Bujiu ordered the gates of Lianshan Town to be closed. Now they didn't know who the criminal was and why he killed people. They were afraid that he might escape here, so it was safer to close the gates.

At this time, in the main hall of her home, Jiang Fubao was listening to her second uncle telling stories while drinking a cup of hot milk tea. A bamboo straw was inserted into the cup, and she squeezed the glutinous rice into small pieces and sucked them up along with the milk tea, chewing them while drinking, feeling very happy.

"Second uncle, the hero you mentioned robs the rich and gives to the poor. Does that mean there are no more poor people in that town?"

Jiang Ruyi asked, she held her chin and looked at Jiang Eryong with innocent eyes.

The small head is full of problems.

"On the contrary, there were only 30% of the poor people in the city. When they learned that this hero loved to rob the rich and help the poor, those who were not that poor stopped working and became lazy, waiting for this hero to help them. Anyway, they would not earn as much as those poor people even if they worked hard, so they might as well become the poor people themselves.

Within five years, the hero was exhausted to death, and the number of poor people in the city increased by 20% compared to the beginning, while the number of rich people decreased by more than half. Without the hero, the poor became poorer and the rich moved away one after another, some died and some left. From then on, this town became the foundation of several surrounding towns and eventually became a deserted city.

Unlike a happy ending, the ending of Jiang Eryong's stories always surprises Jiang Fubao.

"Second uncle, in that case, what's the point of me being a hero?" Jiang Huanyu pouted speechlessly.

Why did she practice martial arts? Wasn't it to become a hero?

"You have to be a hero, but you can't be a foolish hero who only knows how to give money. There's a saying in the book that goes like this: It's better to teach a man how to fish than to give him a fish. If you always give money to poor people, they will get used to it and naturally become lazy.

Because they know that even if they do nothing, there will be people who will help them. So, if Huanyue wants to help the poor, she should find another way instead of doing something illegal. The rich have done nothing wrong. Our family is rich now. Are you going to rob us to save others?"

Jiang Shoujia, who had just left the card table, heard his granddaughter's words and answered quickly.

Jiang Huanyu nodded, not quite understanding.

"Then how can I help them?" She looked confused, after all, she was just a young girl who had not yet experienced the world.

"If you ask me, we should build a people's hall." Jiang Fubao said while chewing the glutinous rice balls after drinking the last sip of milk tea.

Jiang Huanyu didn't understand what he said because he was eating and his speech was unclear. She looked at Jiang Fubao and asked, "Fubao, what candy are you talking about?"

"Well, Baixingtang." Jiang Fubao swallowed the glutinous rice balls in his mouth and said again.

"What is the Common People Hall?" Jiang Shoujia also looked at her curiously.