For the first time, Han Yuanzheng felt uneasy. As his father said, if this implicated the Prime Minister and thus affected His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's appointment as the Relief Envoy of Youzhou, then their sin would be too great.
A sentence Song Chi said to him these days kept lingering in his ears.
Since you can treat others as pawns, will the big shots in the capital treat you as pawns?
This possibility is not impossible, and it has now reached the edge.
His father may have noticed it, so he prepared to let him leave early.
"Yuanzheng, you go first. If you leave first, no matter what happens in the future, it will have nothing to do with you. Your second uncle can protect you." Han Yu's face was serious. This was a precautionary measure and a worst-case scenario.
"Father, has it really come to this?" Han Yuanzheng clenched his fists with an unwilling look on his face.
"Another risky option is to kill Feng Yuan, but it's too late. Feng Yuan will definitely be on guard. I think he's already prepared. Even if we take the risk of killing him, it won't help. And... Song Chi, Luo Yurou is by his side protecting him now, so we have no way to start."
Han Yu said in a low voice, "Our biggest problem is that we underestimated Song Chi."
Before, he had never taken Song Chi seriously, treating him as just a young boy, but now he has become a big problem.
"I still have to take the provincial examination, how can I leave?"
Han Yuanzheng gritted his teeth and said, "After passing the provincial examination, I will have to take the metropolitan examination in February next year and pass the imperial examination to become an official. If I leave now, how can I have another chance?"
Han Yu knew that his son had great ambitions and had already passed the imperial examination and obtained the status of a scholar. With his own talent and the support of his family in the future, his future was limitless.
But now something unexpected happens.
"The provincial examination will be held in the state capital. You can go to Jiangzhou City first. By the time the provincial examination begins, I believe the situation will have been settled."
Han Yu was still trying to comfort him, saying that this was the only promising son in his family and there must not be any accidents.
"Father, is this really necessary?"
"It's okay to avoid the limelight." Han Yu sighed, "A gentleman doesn't stand under a dangerous wall."
"You can leave for the provincial capital tomorrow and go to see Governor Xu." Han Yu's tone left no room for refusal.
"But......"
"No buts," Han Yu soothed. "Momentary gains and losses don't mean a thing. You're a piece of porcelain displayed on a rosewood bookshelf, while Song Chi is just a pottery jar thrown on the street... You're degrading yourself by confronting him head-on."
Han Yuan was about to say something but hesitated, but still agreed.
But he secretly swore in his heart that he must take revenge on Song Chi.
"Yes, father."
The two of them tried to find a way out for themselves in front of Zhou Zhengan, which made Zhou Zhengan very unhappy and a little flustered.
It is true that he is the prefect, but he is still far behind the Han family.
It seems that going to Song Chi was the right decision. Zhou Zhengan asked expressionlessly, "Have you informed the Prime Minister about what happened here?"
He was not a close confidant of the Prime Minister and had no dealings with him, but he knew that Han Yu had close correspondence with the Prime Minister.
"Expedited transmission."
Han Yu sighed deeply. "Things are changing so fast. I just reported the rising grain prices to the Prime Minister, and then the grain prices have calmed down. I then reported that I had to get rid of Song Chi, but I didn't expect Song Chi to be alive..."
"I have an idea."
Zhou Zhengan stood up. "Feng Yuan has evidence against us, but if he wants to send it to the capital, he needs someone to deliver it. As long as we deploy strict defenses and conduct a thorough search, we will definitely find it and intercept the evidence... If we can't enter the capital, what else can we do?"
Han Yu's eyes lit up.
This is indeed a solution, and Zhou Zhengan, as the prefect, is fully capable of doing it.
"That's what we'll do," he agreed. "Starting tomorrow, no... starting tonight, we'll begin a rigorous search and investigation. We'll form a dragnet so that no secret letters can escape from Ji County!"
"Not only can they not send it out, they can't send it in either!" Zhou Zhengan continued, "Local officials cannot leave their jurisdiction unless they are ordered by imperial decree. Feng Yuan has no other options."
"Um."
Han Yu said, "This will at least buy us some time. We can report this to the Prime Minister first. Even if something does happen, we'll have a plan to deal with it."
"Um."
The two of them discussed a plan in a few words.
At this time, Han Yuanzheng said, "The provincial examination will be held in a few days, and Song Chi will definitely participate. The provincial examination is presided over by you, Lord Zhou, so you must not let him pass."
"Even if he passes the provincial exam, he'll only be a student. It won't make a big difference."
Zhou Zhengan deliberately said: "This matter is not important now, let's think about how to get rid of him."
For him, giving Song Chi the first place in the prefectural case was really nothing, and it might even save him some trouble.
"Your Excellency is absolutely right."
Han Yuanzheng had no suspicion of anything. Compared with the crisis they were about to face, this was really nothing.
Moreover, Zhou Zhengan and they were all on the same boat, but he didn't expect that now that disaster was imminent, they would all fly away.
The next day, Han Yuanzheng packed his bags and quietly left Jixian for the state capital.
This was the first time he was forced to leave his hometown, with endless hatred.
At the same time, under Zhou Zhengan's order, martial law was imposed on all important road stations outside the city, especially for strangers, who were strictly searched and not a single one was released.
Ji County seemed to have returned to peace, at least the common people did not feel the intensity of the struggle at all.
Song Chi had a rare moment of free time, and finally had time to take Luo Yurou shopping as planned.
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