Chapter 300 Interrogation of Zhao Duan
A day later, the huge imperial envoy team once again became the focus of the whole city.
This time, the operation was carried out without any warning and no preparation was made in advance.
Therefore, when hundreds of cavalrymen silently rushed out like a tide along the main road of the south gate of the city, the people in the city panicked and fled, their eyes full of fear and confusion.
"Censor Chen, where are we going?"
Sun Xiaozheng, who had just caught up with the cavalry, rode a horse, grabbed the reins, stretched his neck and asked loudly to the middle-aged censor beside him.
While speaking, his eyes glanced at the front of the team, where the fake imperial envoy was still wearing Zhao Duan's appearance and was surrounded by the brocade-clad men of Lihua Hall.
Although Chen Hong is a civil servant, he is surprisingly good at horse riding.
He then grinned and replied loudly:
"How would I know where the imperial envoy wants to go? But I think he's going to inspect the mines."
Inspection...Is there such a sudden inspection?
It was like a sneak attack, they didn’t want us to catch up at all... Prefect Sun complained in his heart.
My heart is somewhat at peace
——He had already repeatedly instructed people to keep a close watch on the mine.
With County Magistrate Wang in charge, it wouldn't be a problem even if the imperial envoy launched a surprise attack.
At this time, the team marched out of the city gate and headed towards the mine.
Taicang is a slightly special place. In ordinary prefectural cities, the prefectural government and the county government are all in one city.
The Taicang County Government Office was originally like this, but due to the subsequent silver mining, a large number of factory areas were derived.
With the eating, drinking, defecation and urination of the workers in the mine, the town near the silver mine gradually expanded.
It has long exceeded the scale of an ordinary small town. Later, in order to facilitate administration, the Taicang County Government simply moved out of the provincial capital and moved here.
Therefore, the provincial capital and the county government office are separated by a mine, so the distance is not far.
The autumn wind is cold and the clouds are floating above our heads.
Magistrate Sun lay on the horse, and after a while of shaking, a huge silver mine appeared in front of him, as if it was hammered by a god.
The group also slowed down their horses slightly. The workers stationed at the mine and the people from the county government saw them from afar and took the initiative to greet them.
"After the disappearance of the criminal official Wang Chusheng, to ensure peace at the mine, this government ordered the Taicang County Magistrate to temporarily assume the duties of the County Magistrate."
Magistrate Sun was on his horse and introduced loudly.
After saying this, Sun Xiaozhun rode forward, glanced at the group of people coming, and frowned:
"Where is County Magistrate Wang?"
The Taicang Dianshi who was in the lead was terrified and frightened by the noise.
Having guessed that it might be the imperial envoy, he hurriedly and tremblingly responded when the prefect asked:
"Reporting to the prefect, the county magistrate was here just now, but he had some urgent matters at the yamen, so he hurried back to deal with them...Should I send someone to look for him?"
Trash, can't be found at the critical moment... Sun Xiaozhun was unhappy and turned to look at "Zhao Duan":
"Master Zhao, I'm quite familiar with this place. I'd like to show you around..."
"Which direction is the county government office?" the leading "Zhao Duan" suddenly asked.
Sun Xiaozhun was stunned for a moment, then pointed to the town in the distance with his whip in hand: "It's right here."
"Zhao Duan" rode forward:
"Go to the county government office."
Rumble...
The team surrounded by cavalry passed through the mine without entering, like a black muddy torrent sweeping up Prefect Sun and flowing towards the county government office.
The distant mountains are all red, and the nearby cavalry are like black lines. This scene can be painted.
In the distance, on another fork in the road, Coach Xie pulled the reins of his horse and watched in surprise and suspicion as the imperial troops moved away.
"Master, why are the soldiers here?"
Behind him, Xiaowu, who insisted on following him on a bad horse, had a dazed expression on his face.
The boy's eyes were filled with fear and deep envy:
"So impressive, as if protecting some high-ranking official."
"Imperial Envoy..."
Coach Xie murmured, "Did you see that guy in the red official robe in the team just now?"
"Ah, it seems so. Could it be the prefect?"
The boy, whose face was bruised but who actually had no internal injuries, was stunned.
With his knowledge, he also knew that the crimson official robe was only worn by the prefect in the entire Taicang city.
"The prefect is personally accompanying him, so he must be an imperial envoy going to the countryside. Come on, let's follow him."
Coach Xie thought for a moment and turned his horse around.
He entered the city to look for Magistrate Sun, but now he ran into him halfway and had no choice but to follow him.
"oh oh,"
Xiao Wu nodded excitedly, feeling extremely curious and wanting to know what such a majestic imperial envoy looked like.
…
…
Taicang County Government Office.
After Zhao Duan and his group were taken back to the county government office, they were not thrown into jail or subjected to excessive harassment.
I don’t know if it was because of Mr. Song’s face or because the captain was not sure of his identity.
In short, he was temporarily confined to the side yard of the county government office and was not allowed to leave.
The side yard is not big, with only a stone table and three stone benches in it.
In addition, there is a bunch of gorgeous chrysanthemums.
Zhao Duan, Xu Junling, and Song Juren occupied three stools, while Lu Qingfeng and others stood.
No one had any weapons in their hands, and their swords had been taken away by the police - of course, this was tacitly approved by Zhao Duan.
"What do you want to do?"
Xu Junling slid a jade finger across the rough table with disdain, and as expected, his nail was covered with dust.
As a princess of the royal family, how could she have ever suffered such "grievances" since she was a child?
In the Huai River, let alone an eighth-rank county magistrate, even a seventh-rank county magistrate would bow down and scrape before her.
Dare you not give face to Prince Huai'an?
"The situation is stronger than the people. Can we still fight against the officials?"
Zhao Du was calm and composed. He didn't care at all despite being in a difficult environment.
"Oh, do you think I will believe your nonsense?"
Xu Junling rolled her eyes, looking a little silly. She suddenly smiled and said:
"Be careful! We'll throw you into jail soon. A supervisor and a county magistrate are both missing. Do you think they'll mind if we disappear too?"
"Wouldn't that be better?"
beside.
Mr. Song, who was distracted, was terrified as he listened to the heartless conversation between the two.
I wanted to ask something, but I was worried that someone might have ears, so I swallowed it down.
Everyone waited for a long time, but no one came. Just when their patience was almost exhausted, there was finally movement outside.
"Master, the County Magistrate."
The voice of a clerk could be heard from outside the tightly closed courtyard gate.
Then, the wooden door was opened, and a man wearing an eighth-grade green robe and a seventh-grade black gauze hat appeared, looking very out of place.
An official with a tired look and shifty appearance walked in.
County Magistrate Wang was not in a good mood.
According to his original idea, he would arrest the person first and let his subordinates try him. He would try not to get involved to avoid being blamed.
What can be done? Although the county's head constable looks crude, he actually has his own way of survival, so he turned around and went to report.
It was said that Mr. Song was involved and they were all arrested. The county magistrate was asked how to deal with him.
If they are just unidentified outsiders, rich young men and women, detaining them for the time being is not a big problem.
But Mr. Song was a local gentry and the owner of a manor belonging to the Song family, and he was also a guest of honor of the prefect.
Now, County Magistrate Wang could no longer pretend to be ignorant, so he had to come back depressed and interrogate the case in person.
"County Magistrate Wang!"
In the courtyard, Mr. Song hurriedly stood up and said with a bow:
"You're back, is there any misunderstanding?"
Wang Xiancheng, the professional scapegoat, had a blank expression on his face and did not respond. His eyes were fixed on the men and women in the yard.
His brows were furrowed. As a local official, he had seen the children of prominent families in Taicang Prefecture, but the person in front of him was not one of them.
"Isn't he from this government?"
Muttering in his heart, County Magistrate Wang pretended to be an official and spoke in a pretentious tone:
"Who are you guys, and why are you in Songjiazhuang? Why are you spying on the imperial silver mines? What's your purpose? Who sent you here? What's your motive? Do you have the government's permission to approach the government-run mines without permission? Who's behind you?"
A strong interrogation attitude will shock the prisoner's mind.
Zhao Duan was amazed, thinking that this set of rhetoric sounded a little familiar...
beside.
Mr. Song hurriedly explained:
"It's all a misunderstanding. These two were passing through this county and came to visit me in the village. They had an unexpected argument with the younger generation..."
"Mr. Song, I am interrogating a prisoner."
County Magistrate Wang pointed to the black gauze hat on his head, with a serious expression and a solemn tone:
"The county is currently experiencing unrest. I am temporarily taking over the duties of the county magistrate. Any suspicious individuals must be thoroughly investigated!"
Mr. Song shut his mouth.
I thought to myself, I wanted to help you, but you didn't listen...
Zhao Duan sat on the stone bench, without getting up, and said with a smile:
"You are the county magistrate here? Wang Chusheng's deputy? A mere eighth-rank official, temporarily filling in for a seventh-rank official. It's hard to say whether you are lucky or unlucky."
Who are you... using that tone...
County Magistrate Wang was displeased at first, but when he heard the second half of the sentence, he felt inexplicably sad.
"This is the county government office! I'm interrogating you! I've seen many young masters and young ladies like you. You rely on your family's power to act recklessly. You even dare to assault the people of the Song family. Do you still respect the law?"
County Magistrate Wang acted in a domineering manner, and in a trance, he really had the style of a county lord:
"I don't care about your background, but I have to tell you that the current Imperial Envoy, Lord Zhao, is here in this mansion. No matter how wealthy your family is, can it be greater than Imperial Envoy Zhao? Tell me, what is your purpose?"
(End of this chapter)
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