"Make way, all of you make way."
Before long, dozens of government officials pushed through the crowd and entered the restaurant, pushing aside the people at the stairwell and going up to the second floor.
"Great General Shenwei, Commander Zhong." Surrounded by officials, the magistrate and county constable of Huayin County, Weizhou, arrived before Wang Han and Zhong Shidao. Upon seeing the two, they first clasped their hands and bowed to greet them.
"Who are you?" Wang Han asked knowingly, looking at the two men.
"Great General Shenwei, I am Tai E, the magistrate of Huayin County. Beside me is Ji Tan, the county magistrate of Huayin County." Upon hearing this, the magistrate of Huayin County quickly introduced himself.
"Too hungry? Extremely greedy?" Upon hearing this, Wang Han sneered. "So you're saying you're the officials in charge of Huayin County? That name is far too suggestive!"
“You jest, sir. A name is given by one’s parents and cannot be taken lightly.” Upon hearing this, the two men’s expressions immediately hardened. The magistrate of Huayin County took a deep breath and said with a smile, then took the box from the county magistrate who was holding it and gently placed it on the table. He continued, “General Shenwei has come to Huayin, but I have been too busy with official duties to come and pay my respects. Please forgive me.”
Looking at the box on the table, Wang Han opened it and saw that it was full of gold ingots. He said, "This source of all evil is indeed a good thing, otherwise so many people wouldn't be pursuing it, Yang Zhi."
"Your subordinate is here." Upon hearing Wang Han call his name, Yang Zhi immediately stood up and replied.
Wang Han instructed, "Take the good things the magistrate sent and buy them as grain to distribute to the surrounding people. It should be taken from the people and used for the people."
"Your subordinate obeys." Yang Zhi immediately walked over and took the box away.
Upon seeing this, the magistrate of Huayin County felt a pang of unease, gritted his teeth, but said nothing.
"What brings you here, Magistrate? You're not just here to pay your respects, are you?" Wang Han said with a smile.
"General Shenwei, I have heard that your soldiers killed Zheng Tu in the street, arrested Zheng Tu's family and his apprentice Xiao Si, as well as the owner of an inn on the outskirts of the city. As the magistrate of Huayin County, I naturally have to come and inquire about the reasons, otherwise I would be derelict in my duty." Upon hearing this, the magistrate of Huayin County quickly said with a smile.
"Oh!" Upon hearing this, Wang Han looked enlightened and said, "So this is what you're talking about. Well, the father and daughter, Jin Cuilian, came to me to complain. After inquiring, I learned that Zheng Tu is a real scoundrel. He colludes with thugs, bullies the villagers, and persecutes the people. We have witnesses and physical evidence, so we sent someone to kill him and bring him here to be displayed to appease the people."
"Zheng Tu's family, his servant apprentice, and the innkeeper were all his accomplices, so they were all brought here for interrogation and punishment."
"General Shenwei, since they are accomplices of that tyrant Zheng Tu, then hand them over to me to be taken back to the yamen for questioning and punishment. This matter is also within my jurisdiction," the magistrate of Huayin said with a smile. He didn't mention Zheng Tu's death, implying that Wang Han was a military man, and this matter of local bullies was not Wang Han's responsibility. However, given Wang Han's high status, it wasn't appropriate to offend him; killing the ringleaders would suffice.
"Your jurisdiction is indeed your responsibility. This bullying is your responsibility." Upon hearing this, Wang Han smiled and said, "However, it is also within my jurisdiction. I am a soldier, and I came to Weizhou to suppress bandits. Zheng Tu's bullying of the villagers is indeed not my responsibility, but his abduction of women, extortion of money, arson, and attempted murder are the actions of bandits. Zheng Tu's family and his apprentice Xiao Si are his accomplices, so this matter is naturally under my jurisdiction as well."
"The Divine Might General has been ordered to suppress the bandits. All prefectures and counties must obey the Divine Might General's orders. The General has full authority to decide on matters related to the bandit suppression." Zhong Shidao interjected, making his position clear: he was a soldier, and the Divine Might General was the leader.
"This... isn't it a bit far-fetched for the General to say that?" said the magistrate of Huayin County. He was already considering retreating, but the Zheng Tu family had been working for them. Now that Zheng Tu was dead, if the whole family were to die as well, it would discourage his men. He was also afraid that Wang Han would implicate him during interrogation, and then he would be in serious trouble. He feared that even a hundred heads wouldn't be enough to pay off his debt.
“That’s not far-fetched, otherwise I wouldn’t have had his body dragged back to prepare for hanging it up for public display,” Wang Han said with a smile.
"General, you may display Zheng Tu's body at any time, but please hand over the rest of them to me for questioning first." The magistrate said, "It is not too late for you to question them after I have questioned them."
The magistrate thought he should bring the people into the yamen first and then figure out what to do. Even if that didn't work, he could try and sentence them first, or even kill them.
"No need for such trouble. I'll interrogate them on the spot, determine their crimes, and then hand them over to you," Wang Han said with a smile. "Don't tell me I don't have the authority to convict these bandits, Your Excellency!"
"General, please don't address me as 'Lord,' it's too kind of you. The title 'Divine Might General' is granted by imperial decree, of course I have this authority." Hearing this, the magistrate said helplessly. He couldn't refute it in the slightest; it was an imperial edict. He could only hope that these people didn't know too much and wouldn't expose him.
“Since the magistrate is here, let’s all go down and listen in. In case they fight like dogs, the magistrate will have a better understanding of the situation during the interrogation,” Wang Han said. He then gave the magistrate no chance to continue speaking and ordered Yang Zhi and the others, “Take everyone to the street, drag the corpses down with them, beat the drums and gongs, and interrogate them in public.”
"Yes." Upon hearing this, Yang Zhi and the others immediately responded and dragged Zheng Tu's family and servants downstairs.
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