"Since you have all guessed it, there is nothing more to say. I am just a servant who follows orders. It is our duty to go through fire and water for our master. When the prince was training us guards, the most important thing he emphasized was loyalty." The old man admitted his identity.
"Are you someone close to my grandfather?"
"Yes. Later, the prince arranged four guards to be by the third young master's side, and I was one of them."
The "Prince" he was referring to was of course the old prince.
"What's your name?"
"Mo Zhen." The old man lowered his head again.
Shangguan Ziqi had some impression of his name, but it was rather vague.
After all, he was still quite young at that time, and he didn't always serve his grandfather.
It seemed that he had nothing more to ask. This was the person that his uncle arranged to provide him with money.
The whole family works for him, and is willing to sacrifice their lives for him.
My grandfather trained secret guards, and they were all loyal.
In other words, the secret guards trained by the palace are all loyal.
"You said there were four of you. Where are the other three?" Shangguan Ziqi asked after a while.
"I don't know. I've been away from my son for more than ten years. I don't know if they are still alive. We are all in our teens."
It’s not easy to live at this age.
As guards, each of them must have been injured, and it is unlikely that they can be in good health. They may even die of illness at an early age.
"Is the killer who infiltrated the bandit group yesterday your man?" Shangguan Ziqi wanted to confirm his guess.
"No, I just received the order to come here." Lin Zhen answered very straightforwardly. There was nothing to hide about this matter.
The eldest son is not a fool, he can definitely guess what is going on.
After finding out the answer clearly, Shangguan Ziqi sighed deeply.
I don't have the heart to torture him, and there's no need to do so.
He is just a loyal subordinate who works for his master.
Moreover, he has been away from home for more than ten years, so he probably doesn't know a lot about his uncle.
He is already in his teens and doesn't have much power to resist. Now he is treated as a bandit, which makes up for his many years of sacrifice for the palace.
And for his loyalty.
Although he was used by the third uncle to deal with the eldest wife, at least he was loyal to the prince's wife.
"Let's go!" Shangguan Ziqi took Yu Yuanzheng and led him out of the cell.
Looking at the gloomy sky outside, Shangguan Ziqi felt extremely heavy.
Why does Uncle San need so much money?
In Luohe City, he cultivated a Lin family to provide him with money.
Here he met another subordinate, who organized a group of bandits to rob people on the road and also provided him with money.
With this question in mind, the two returned to the Inn.
However, not long after they returned to the Inn, County Magistrate Liu came in a hurry.
"Young master, it's bad. The bandit leader committed suicide." County Magistrate Liu came running over breathlessly and reported immediately when he saw Shangguan Ziqi.
When Shangguan Ziqi and Yu Yuanzheng were questioning, the county magistrate was certainly not present.
As soon as they were about to kill him, Mo Zhen committed suicide, which showed that he didn't want to live anymore.
His son and wife are both dead, and he is old.
It would be more decent to die like this.
The secret guards and bodyguards in the palace were not emotionless assassins, but they were all married women.
"Bury it." Shangguan Ziqi just gave the order lightly.
This made County Magistrate Liu stunned.
But he knew how to read people's faces and knew that Shangguan Ziqi was in a bad mood, so he had to go back to the county government office in shame, thinking that the bandit leader had been killed on the spot.
Then they started to interrogate them one by one and write files.
This is a great achievement!
Although it was Shangguan Ziqi who helped him catch the bandits, it was also during his term of office that such a large group of bandits was resolved.
Promotion is a sure thing.
After resting for a day in Yonghe County, they set off again on the third day.
Seeing that there was no garrison left, Shangguan Ziqi personally went to the garrison captain and borrowed a hundred men to escort them back to the capital.
Moreover, each person was given ten taels of silver as a reward for their hard work.
There were only more than a thousand soldiers stationed there, and when they heard about this good thing, they all scrambled to come.
The result was decided by a duel, and finally the one hundred strongest fighters were sent.
They were not allowed to return until they were sent to a county town less than a hundred kilometers away from Beijing, to Mingyang County.
We were escorted by the army along the way and encountered no more problems.
It was already early October.
Shangguan Ru's injuries have almost healed.
The dispatch of troops to escort the people must have alarmed the county magistrate.
This place is close to Beijing, so as a county magistrate, of course I have to come and visit.
After staying one night, we arrived the next morning.
"Zi Zi, the magistrate of Mingyang County, Zhong Weiliang, wants to see you." Qingfeng reported.
"Well, let him in." Shangguan Ziqi also met him as a routine.
Along the way, whenever they settled in a big city or a county town, local officials would inquire about them and then come to meet them.
Qingfeng brought in a young county magistrate who looked to be in his early twenties, of medium build, neither fat nor thin.
"Your humble servant, Zhong Weiliang, the magistrate of Mingyang County, pays his respects to you, my Excellency." Zhong Weiliang bowed deeply without being humble or arrogant.
He did not deliberately inquire about who Shangguan Ziqi and his party were, but since they were escorted by the army, they must be noble people.
"Master Zhong, please don't be so polite." Shangguan Ziqi said calmly as he gave him a helping hand.
Zhong Weiliang then stood up.
There seemed to be two people sitting on the bed, a young man and a young lady.
"Excuse me, who are you?" Zhong Weiliang asked with just a smile, without any flattery or fawning tone.
Shangguan Ziqi can judge a person's character from his expression.
He is a good county magistrate.
"Shangguan Ziqi from Prince Rong's Mansion, this is my wife."
"Greetings, Eldest Master and Eldest Madam." He bowed again.
"Master Zhong is a Jinshi who passed the imperial examination. If I remember correctly, he is also a Tanhualang, right?"
As soon as Yu Yuanzheng heard it, she knew that he was a Jinshi in the same imperial examination as her father, who had even ranked third in the exam.
"That's right." Zhong Weiliang admitted generously.
"Please sit down." Shangguan Ziqi pointed to the chair on the side.
In this inn, they stayed in the upper room, which was divided into inner and outer rooms.
They met the guests outside.
"Why didn't Lord Zhong, a top scholar in the imperial examination, enter the Hanlin Academy, but instead came here to be a county magistrate?" Shangguan Ziqi was just curious.
Such talents usually enter the Hanlin Academy, and after a few years of training, they can directly take up positions in the capital.
"I have no connections or influence in the capital, and I am too young. I am only 22 years old this year, so I am not suitable to enter the Hanlin Academy. So I asked for the position of county magistrate first." Zhong Weiliang was frank.
It is the truth that I tell, and it also shows that I understand practical matters.
Yu Yuanzheng saw that he had a square face and regular features. Although he was not very handsome, he gave people a more upright feeling.
He didn't show much bookishness either.
He must be a person with a story and rich experience to be so calm and reserved.
"Well, the emperor is also a man who values talent. When your term as county magistrate expires, you can consider going to the capital. You can apply to the eldest prince's mansion. This young master can help you get in touch with him."
After just a brief encounter, Shangguan Ziqi felt that this person was good and could be introduced to the eldest prince.
"Thank you, young master." He stood up and bowed again.
At this moment, the sound of Shangguan Ru chasing the child came from outside the door.
"Yuer, come back here. Your uncle and uncle-in-law are entertaining guests."
As soon as she finished speaking, a small figure appeared at the door.
"Uncle, uncle." That sweet voice makes people's hearts melt.
Yu Yuanzheng smiled and waved at her.
"Xiao Yue'er, come in."
Shangguan Ru picked up the child embarrassedly.
"Brother, sister-in-law, I'm sorry. It's my fault that I didn't take good care of the child."
"It's okay." Yu Yuanzheng had already stood up and stood in front of the two of them, reaching out to pick up Xiao Yue'er.
"Miss Shangguan?" Zhong Weiliang's shocked voice rang out.
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