"What happened?" Yuan Shu immediately became alert.
Dengzhou, like Liaodong, was the front line against the Jiannu.
The Jiannu navy has not yet been destroyed.
Although it is unlikely that they will launch a surprise attack on Dengzhou, we must be on guard against it.
The soldier said quickly, "A few navy officers and soldiers stole roosters after drinking, and were discovered and attacked. It happened that the officers and soldiers guarding the city were changing shifts, so they were all caught and brought here."
"Whose subordinates do the naval officers and soldiers belong to?" Yuan Shu asked hurriedly.
Dengzhou now has three naval forces.
In addition to the Guanliao Dengjin Navy and the Sichuan Navy (Yang Zhan, Zeng Ying), there is also the Fujian Navy which has just arrived here.
He will look for whoever's soldiers cause trouble.
The soldier first glanced at Zheng Chenggong next to him, then lowered his voice and said, "Your Excellency, the ones who caused the trouble were the officers and soldiers of the Fujian Navy."
Zheng Chenggong and Yuan Shu were very close, and this sentence entered his ears very clearly.
Zheng Chenggong patted the soldier on the shoulder and asked, "Are you sure he is from the Fujian Navy?"
"They didn't dare to tell us their identities, so we guessed them based on their accents," the soldier replied.
"It should be correct!" Zheng Chenggong frowned.
After arriving in Dengzhou, he repeatedly ordered his soldiers every day to strictly prohibit them from disturbing the people.
But soldiers are also human beings.
When a group of young and energetic guys get together, they need to find ways to consume their energy.
Otherwise it is easy to get into trouble.
To this end, he made a plan to train every other day so as to achieve a balance between relaxation and work.
But I didn't expect that the soldiers would cause trouble during their rest time.
Just when Zheng Chenggong was extremely upset, Yuan Shu came over and asked, "How do you plan to deal with those people, Lord Zheng?"
"This is Lord Yuan's territory. Lord Yuan has the final say on how to deal with them." Zheng Chenggong threw the question to Yuan Shu.
"They are officers and soldiers of the Fujian Navy. According to the rules, you should deal with them." Yuan Shu threw the question back to Zheng Chenggong.
This incident itself was not a big deal, but it caused a lot of public opinion.
So they both want the other party to handle it.
While the two of them were discussing, the soldiers took the navy officer who stole the chicken and the plaintiff outside the government office.
Sun Zhixie and others who were surrounding the government office were excited upon seeing this and immediately surrounded him to inquire about the case.
Amidst a burst of noise, both the plaintiff and the defendant were brought to the lobby of the government office.
Sun Zhixie and others stood outside and watched.
At this point, Yuan Shu had no choice but to go to court to try the case.
Zheng Chenggong sat on a chair in the corner, as heavy as water.
"Bring the plaintiff!" Yuan Shu shouted.
The bailiff shouted, and then seven or eight people were brought in.
The leader was an old man dressed in brocade clothes, looking like a Confucian scholar with extraordinary temperament.
The servants followed behind him with their heads lowered, looking very fearful.
After seeing his appearance clearly, Yuan Shu had a bad feeling.
This man was called Han Yuan, a local gentry.
The Han clan was a prominent local family. From Hongzhi to Wanli to Chongzhen, clan members held important positions in the court.
Han Yuan himself once served as an official in the court, and later retired and returned home.
"Han Yuan pays respect to the Governor."
Yuan Shu smiled and said, "What's this, Mr. Han?"
"Ah!" Han Yuan sighed, "Today I heard from my servant that someone stole chickens, and the patrol officers caught them, so I followed them to the government office to complain to you, sir."
"Just let the housekeeper take care of such a small matter. There's no need to go there in person." Yuan Shu advised.
"Since we are free anyway, we might as well come here to stimulate our brains." Han Yuan said with some ulterior motive.
Yuan Shu knew that he was here to pick a fight, so he changed the subject and asked about something else.
A moment later the accused was brought up.
The soldiers were completely sober.
At this moment they didn't dare to look up, for fear of meeting Zheng Chenggong's eyes.
Yuan Shu began to ask about their identities.
Although they were extremely reluctant in their hearts, the rule in the government hall was that they either spoke out themselves or were beaten until they spoke out.
So I can only tell the truth.
After learning the other party's identity, Yuan Shu asked again: "Can you be punished?"
"I was the only one who stole the chickens. I plead guilty and accept the punishment. Please release the others." A soldier stepped forward to take the blame.
"Plaintiff!" Yuan Shu looked at Han Cheng, "The defendant said he pleads guilty and accepts the punishment."
Han Yuan smiled and said nothing.
Just when Yuan Shu was puzzled, the crowd watching outside suddenly broke out into a commotion.
Sun Zhixie led the group in shouting, "He is a government soldier who broke the law knowingly. His crime is unforgivable. Please chop off his head, Lord Yuan."
"Yes, cut him down."
"Cut him."
Under his leadership, the onlookers petitioned loudly.
Han Yuan is also a member of the Kong conservative faction.
Although he had not gathered outside the Dengzhou government office to petition before, he provided charcoal fire, hot water and hot porridge to the people on the scene for heating.
Otherwise he would have been frozen away long ago.
It is because of his support that these scholars can persevere.
"Sir," Han Yuan clasped his hands together, "You just heard it, the people demanded that he be killed."
"Kill him?" Yuan Shu sneered, "This is the lobby of the government office, not a temple for making wishes. Everything must be done according to the rules."
Han Yuan also sneered: "Your Excellency is right, this is indeed the lobby of the government office, but the words of the people outside are subject to the law!"
As Yuan Shu and Zheng Chenggong watched, Han Yuan continued, "The soldiers are the king's army; the people are also the king's people."
"The soldiers robbed the people of their property, and then fought with them and injured them. According to the Ming Dynasty law, they should be caned 100 times and sentenced to three years in prison, but... those who injure others should be beheaded! Moreover, these soldiers knew the law but broke it, so according to the Ming Dynasty law, they should be beheaded."
Han Yuan was charged with robbery in broad daylight.
This was a serious crime in the Ming Dynasty.
Yuan Shu snorted coldly: "Whether it is robbery or theft, it is not your turn to decide."
"The witness is right here," Han Yuan pointed at the injured servant behind him, "You will know once you ask."
Yuan Shu ignored Han Yuan and asked the soldiers again about what happened.
The soldiers admitted to stealing.
But Han Yuan insisted that it was robbery.
The two sides debated this point.
It was just a chicken, but Han Yuan chose to make a fuss about it.
On the surface, he was against Yuan Shu, but in fact he was against the imperial court.
Why go against the court?
Because the imperial court determined that Duke Yansheng had colluded with the enemy and acquitted the people who had killed him.
He doesn't agree.
Therefore, they had to use this method to oppose Yuan Shu and express their dissatisfaction with the court.
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