Chapter 306 Qingzhu
When everyone came over, the waiter discovered that the prince who was the center of attention was actually the man who had eaten in the shop that day. He was stunned for a moment.
Now, after hearing Huo Xifei's words again, he was suddenly excited.
This waiter lost his parents when he was young. Because he was related to the owner of the restaurant, the owner always took good care of him. When he grew up, he let him work as a waiter in the shop to make a living!
Therefore, the clerk was very grateful to the shopkeeper. When the shopkeeper's shop was taken away that day, he was also indignant on behalf of the shopkeeper, but after all, he was just an ordinary citizen and was ultimately powerless.
Now that he has the opportunity to redress his wrongs and regain the shop, he naturally hopes that the shopkeeper can seize it.
After hearing what the waiter said, the owner of the restaurant turned around to look at him, gritted his teeth, walked out of the crowd, and knelt in front of Huo Xifei. The waiter also hurriedly followed and knelt down!
"Greetings to the prince!" The shopkeeper and the clerk kowtowed to Huo Xifei.
"Stand up!" Huo Xifei said softly, "If you have any grievances, just tell me and I will take care of it for you!"
Huo Xifei naturally knew the reason for the injustice suffered by these two people, but he now needed someone to stand up and speak.
"My Lord!" the shopkeeper said hurriedly, "My name is Song Feng, and this is my servant Du Zhuang. I own a small restaurant, a legacy passed down from my ancestors. I've always relied on this inheritance to support my family, and we've lived a comfortable life. But then, for some reason, the family of the county magistrate's concubine took a fancy to my shop. So, the county magistrate sent someone to force me to sell it to him, and the price they offered was extremely low."
"I refused. Not to mention that this shop is my family's property, even if I sold it, the money the county magistrate gave me was too little. It's not enough to support my family. But..." The shopkeeper choked up and said, "When the county magistrate saw that I refused to sell the shop, he forcibly drove me and my employees out of the shop and beat us up. He just threw twenty taels of silver in front of me, saying it was the money to buy the shop!"
At this point, the shopkeeper kowtowed to Huo Xifei and said, "Sir, please help me make the decision!"
After Huo Xifei finished listening to the shopkeeper's story, he turned to look at County Magistrate Jiao and said, "Master Jiao, what do you think about this matter?"
"Prince...Prince!" County Magistrate Jiao was so frightened that his forehead was covered in cold sweat. He had done many such robberies over the years and there had never been any consequences. But after this Prince came, he gathered so many people together. If he continued to talk to them one by one, would he still be alive?
Thinking about the legendary uprightness of this prince, County Magistrate Jiao felt completely disheartened.
"Don't tell me?" Huo Xifei smiled. "Okay, then everyone behind you, tell me one by one. This prince wants to see today how many good things you, the local emperor of Yukang City, have done over the years. Let this prince open his eyes!"
"Prince, please spare my life!" County Magistrate Jiao was so frightened that he kowtowed and begged for mercy.
"Hmph, who's next?" Huo Xifei ignored the County Magistrate Jiao and just asked.
With the hotel owner's opening words and seeing Huo Xifei's attitude towards County Magistrate Jiao, the people behind him also began to believe that this prince was really here to help them, so they hurried forward one by one and told him their grievances.
"Your Majesty, I am the owner of Chen's Rice Shop. The County Magistrate forced me to buy a stake in my shop. The price of rice in the shop is determined by the County Magistrate. At the end of the year, I have to give him half of the profits as dividends. At the end of the year, not only did I not make much money, but I was also often scolded by others. Please, Your Majesty, help me!"
"I am the same, I am the same. I am the owner of the Jixiang Restaurant. I am in the same situation as Owner Chen. I have had a hard time these years. I beg the prince to help me!"
"My wife was born beautiful, and the county magistrate's son took a fancy to her and snatched her away. She refused and bit her tongue to commit suicide. The county magistrate then threw her body into the mountains, leaving it to be torn apart by tigers and wolves. To this day, I still haven't found her body. Please, my lord, help me!"
"My brother was captured for no apparent reason by the county governor. There's been no news of him until now, and we don't know whether he's alive or dead. Please, my Lord, take charge!"
…
The list of charges and the scenes of blood and tears cannot fully express the sorrow and suffering of the people of Yukang City!
Yuan Ziyu glared at County Magistrate Jiao angrily. The crimes of this corrupt official were simply too numerous to list!
County Magistrate Jiao collapsed there with a pale face, listening to the people's cries for justice, and kept saying in his heart: It's over, it's over, all the things that have happened over the years have been exposed to the prince, what should he do?
For the first time, County Magistrate Jiao was angry that Yukang Mansion was too far away from the capital. No matter how hard the efforts of the nobles in the capital were, they would not be able to rescue him in time!
County Magistrate Jiao was panicking and glanced at Mr. He. Seeing that Mr. He also looked distraught, he couldn't help but sigh!
Huo Xifei listened carefully to everything that was said, then turned to look at County Magistrate Jiao, smiled, and asked, "Now, Lord Jiao, do you have anything to say to this prince?"
County Magistrate Jiao looked at Huo Xifei's smiling face, and no matter how he looked at it, he felt a chill that froze him to the bone. He couldn't help but feel a chill rising from the bottom of his heart: "Your subordinate... Your subordinate..."
For a long while, County Magistrate Jiao didn't know how to refute. With all the physical and witness evidence, what could he use to refute?
"Sir Jiao, do you plead guilty?" Huo Xifei's voice was soft, but to County Magistrate Jiao, it was like an arrow piercing his heart!
"Your subordinate... Your subordinate pleads guilty, and I beg Your Highness to show leniency in my punishment!" County Magistrate Jiao had no choice but to plead guilty, and he knelt with his head on the ground, refusing to get up.
"Just plead guilty! Come here!" Huo Xifei said!
"Prince!" Huo Wu stepped forward and responded!
"Go to the county magistrate's office and arrest all of them. Wait for your punishment!" Huo Xifei said, then looked at Master He: "Oh, don't forget, Master He's family too!"
"Young Master!" Master He knew that he couldn't escape, but when he heard Huo Xifei say that, he was still frightened out of his wits and trembled like a sieve.
"Yes, Prince!" Huo Wu took the order and left.
Huo Xifei turned to look at County Magistrate Jiao and continued, "This is the first crime. Now, let's talk about the second crime!"
The second crime?
County Magistrate Jiao trembled all over when he heard this, not knowing what Huo Xifei would say next.
"Lord Jiao, why don't you look up and take a look at this?" Huo Xifei took the thing handed over by Yuan Ziyu and asked County Magistrate Jiao.
County Magistrate Jiao raised his head with a trembling body, and when he saw what was in Huo Xifei's hand, his eyes suddenly widened!
He had only one thought in his mind: It's over, it's all over!
(End of this chapter)
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