Chapter 278 No Partisanship
Jiang Tangtang originally thought that if he strictly disciplined his subordinates and never gave any concessions to the people from the second and third branches of the Lu family, these people would not be able to cause any trouble in the countryside. However, he did not expect that they had already done so many sneaky things.
He has also established contact with Minister Cui, so it seems it's time to conduct a thorough investigation.
She immediately decided to change her schedule and deal with the affairs of the second and third branches of the Lu family first. "Yuan San, have someone take Lu Yingxun into custody and conduct a thorough investigation. He'll be dealt with according to the law. If he deserves forced labor in the mine, he should be sent there. If he deserves beheading, he should be beheaded."
Aunt Xue frantically grabbed Lu Chengxuan's hand and gnashed her teeth, "How dare you! Did you ask the old lady before doing this?"
"No need to ask the old lady, just follow the law." Jiang Tangtang glanced at Lu Chengxuan coldly and said to Yuan Si, "According to the law, the criminal who rapes a woman should be sentenced to death by hanging. Detain him first."
Aunt Xue was extremely panicked. "My Chengxuan is the grandson of the Lu family. How dare you...you kill the descendants of the Lu family?"
Jiang Tangtang said coldly, "A prince who breaks the law is guilty just like a commoner. If it were my own son who made the mistake today, I would punish him according to the law without showing favoritism."
Lu Chengxuan wanted to escape, but he was no match for Yuan Si. As soon as he moved his hand, Yuan Si broke his bones.
Hearing the crisp sound of broken bones, Aunt Xue almost lost her balance. In her anxiety, she no longer cared about anything else and shouted at Jiang Tangtang, "You can't do this to Xuan'er. Xuan'er is about to marry Minister Cui's daughter. Cui Yueling is pregnant with his child. When the time comes, Minister Cui will help you take over the capital. If you kill Xuan'er now, all your plans will be ruined..."
"Have you contacted Minister Cui?" Jiang Tangtang's expression was heavy, and he couldn't help but wonder if there was a loophole in the border defense.
Aunt Xue thought Jiang Tangtang was moved by her words and said quickly, "No, but we met with the young master of the Cui family. He is the eldest son of the Cui family and has always been relied upon by our father. What he said must be correct."
Jiang Tangtang suppressed her anger and continued to ask, "Any other plans?"
Aunt Xue looked at the villagers around her cautiously and indicated that she wanted to have a private conversation with Jiang Tangtang.
Jiang Tangtang wanted to see what they were planning behind her back. Suppressing her anger, she led them to the inner room and said, "Alright, tell me what you have planned."
"Master Cui said he could assist us. He would be able to capture Xiao Ye without a single soldier, and he could also help us convince the officials to pledge allegiance to the Lu family."
Jiang Tangtang looked at her with interest. "If he can kill Xiao Ye himself and control the ministers, why should he hand over the country to us? Wouldn't it be better for him to be the emperor himself?"
Concubine Xue was encouraged and imitated Cui Jun's flattery, saying, "Master Cui said that the general and his wife are both talented people. It is a blessing for the people to have the country under your rule. They only want to submit and have no intention of taking over the world."
Jiang Tangtang didn't believe a word he said and continued to question. It was obvious that the Cui family might have some plans, but because they failed to approach Lu Shili, they set their sights on the Lu family's second branch.
But obviously, Aunt Xue didn't know much, and she thought she had seized the opportunity to become rich and powerful, so she lobbied Jiang Tangtang frantically.
Jiang Tangtang was very upset when her original schedule was disrupted. She didn't want to argue with her anymore and directly called Yuan Si in. "Take the man away and interrogate him carefully."
Aunt Xue was struck by lightning. She thought she had just persuaded Jiang Tangtang, but she didn't expect Jiang Tangtang to turn against her so suddenly.
She suddenly thought of the performance of the second and third wives in recent years.
Obviously, the Lu family is no longer what it used to be, but the second and third branches never dared to ask Jiang Tangtang and Lu Shiyan for official positions, and only dared to stay in the manor.
She used to think that the men from the second and third wives were cowardly and useless, but now it seems that they had discovered their cold-bloodedness a long time ago?
Aunt Xue felt cold all over and wanted to beg for mercy, but as soon as she opened her mouth, someone stuffed it with a rag.
The villagers guarding outside the yard all breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Aunt Xue being suppressed by Yuan Si.
Someone whispered, "Look, I told you, Madam would never show favoritism. She must have something to ask about, and she's been suppressed, isn't she?"
"Yes, yes, the lady is worthy of being the lady. We should trust her."
…
Everyone praised Jiang Tangtang highly, which gave confidence to those who were originally hesitant and worried that Jiang Tangtang was just talking. More people stood up and sued the second and third branches of the Lu family for their crimes.
Seeing this, a woman in the crowd quietly ran towards the third branch of the Lu family.
After Jiang Caiwei was arrested, Lu Bowen and his two children were the only ones left living with him from the third branch of the Lu family.
Lu Bowen used to live in the capital by relying on the eldest branch of the Lu family. After being exiled, Mrs. Lu was ruthless and split up the family. Since he had no one to rely on, he bullied Jiang Caiwei.
Later, even Jiang Caiwei disappeared. He no longer had the last person to vent his anger on, and became a complete useless person.
As for the two children, he completely ignored them and let them fend for themselves.
Lu Bowen's eldest son, Lu Lang, is now of marriageable age, but no one has arranged his wedding.
Later, he secretly fell in love with a woman in the village.
The woman's husband became useless after a serious illness. Unable to bear the loneliness, the woman fell in love with Lu Lang.
In the past, given Lu Lang's high self-esteem, he would not have been interested in a village woman like Meng.
But after being exiled and suffering a series of setbacks, he had long lost his former noble character.
Although the Lu family was no longer a refugee because of Jiang Tangtang and Lu Shiyan, with a madman like Lu Bowen as their father, the daughters of the good families in the village were not willing to marry him.
He was with Meng at first just to relieve his physical discomfort, but Meng was only in her twenties and had never given birth, so she was different from ordinary village women. Gradually, they developed some different feelings for each other.
Mrs. Meng hurried over, grabbed Lu Lang's sleeve and pulled him out, saying anxiously, "Lu Lang, run! Someone has reported you to Madam Lu, and she's going to send someone to arrest you."
"I didn't kill anyone or set any fire. I just took advantage of the villagers. Can she punish me for those common people?"
Seeing how his father was treated like that by Lu Shiyan and his wife, Lu Lang was afraid of them. Normally, he didn't dare to do anything big, and just took advantage of the villagers to get by. He felt that he had only made a small mistake, and there was no way Lu Shiyan and Jiang Tangtang would beat him to death for such a small mistake.
"Lu Chengxuan has been arrested. I heard he's going to be hanged!"
Lu Lang panicked when he heard this and began to pack his luggage in a hurry, saying, "No way! I haven't done anything serious, so you can't just hang me!"
As he spoke, he suddenly stopped and looked at Meng, "Will adultery be punished by hanging?"
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