Chapter 550: Zhao Duan: Anyone who steps out of the house will be killed! (5k)
When they arrived outside the Lihua Hall, Zhao Duan stopped, turned his head with his face covered by a white mask, and looked at Zhou Cang, smiling:
"That's enough for here. Thank you for your help."
Zhou Cang hesitated, wanting to remind him once again that being the police officer in Lihua Hall was not an easy job. However, after spending so much time in the government office, the officials were all shrewd. He was also worried that if he spoke too much to someone he had just met, he would leave a bad impression on this official sent from the palace. So he nodded.
"In that case, I'll be leaving first. If the police need you, you can come find me at the Governor's Hall."
Zhao Duan nodded. He watched Zhou Cang leave. He was familiar with the door. He pushed open the door with his left hand, lifted the hem of his robe with his right hand, and stepped over the threshold.
The hall with its own entrance and the antique buildings come into view.
The most eye-catching thing is, of course, the lush pear tree in the courtyard. Because it is autumn, the bright yellow pears on the tree are eye-catching.
There were only a few remaining leaves on the ground, and it was obvious that someone had cleaned it.
The front yard is very quiet.
Zhao Duan didn't rush in. He walked to the tree, raised his hand to pull down the branch, twisted off a pear, wiped it with his sleeve, and was about to eat it.
"Stop!" Suddenly, a familiar shout came from the inner hall, "Who are you? How dare you pick pears from public property?"
Zhao Duan was startled and turned his head to look. He saw a woman in brocade robes, with a slim figure and a face as rosy as an apple, but with cold, vigilant and hostile eyes walking towards him.
Qian Kerou snatched the pear away, holding it in her hand with a bad look in her eyes.
Zhao Duan looked at the secretary's protective expression, the crow's feet at the corners of his eyes spread, and he smiled and said:
"There are so many pears on this tree. If we don't eat them now, they will become overripe and rot."
Qian Kerou glared at him and said:
"What does it have to do with you? You know, the pears in our hall are reserved for my master! Even if they rot on the tree, no outsiders are allowed to eat them!"
Zhao Duan's eyes became more and more curious:
"Your master? That Zhao Shaobao? Oh, do you know that I am the acting police chief appointed by the emperor? I came to take up my post today, and you speak to your superior like this?"
As he spoke, he took out the token from his waist.
Qian Kerou's eyebrows knitted together. As a secretary, she had been informed in advance, but now she only snorted and turned her head to give him a slap on the back of her head.
"Anyway, you can't touch the pears in the yard!"
Zhao Duan found it funny and did not argue. He followed and entered the inner hall.
What caught the eye was the neatly arranged chairs around the large brown conference table, and behind the main seat were the punishment sticks used in the hall.
Everything is so familiar.
He was careless and sat down at the main seat under Qian Kerou's displeased gaze. He tapped the table and said:
"Call the other detectives over."
The secretary put the pears away with a stern face before turning away.
Soon, several familiar figures lazily walked over from behind.
They are Hou Renmeng, who has his arms crossed, a defiant look on his face, and the temperament of a lone wolf.
He had big dark circles under his eyes, fair skin, and was yawning with fatigue.
And Zheng Laojiu, who was holding a bowl of strong tea with soaked red dates in his right hand and today's official newspaper in his left arm - this old Jinyi should have retired this year according to regulations.
But after Zhao Duan joined the company, Lihuatang regained its vitality, and this gray-haired old man from the yamen applied for "delayed retirement".
But after Zhao Duan went to the front line, Lihua Hall suddenly became quiet again.
The four of them sat down carelessly, none of them bothered to look at the New Investigation Division directly, with perfunctory expressions written on their faces.
"Because the Lihuatang Investigation Department is vacant, I have been ordered to take over the position of Investigation Department temporarily. I will be responsible for investigating the traitors in the court. Since you are here to investigate, please report your situation first." Zhao Duan said lightly.
No one paid any attention to them. The four of them acted as if they hadn't heard anything and treated their new boss as if he were air.
It was obviously discussed in advance, and the purpose was to give the new boss a warning.
Zhao Duan folded his hands on his lower abdomen and said lightly:
"Didn't you hear clearly, or is it that Young Master Zhao is a poor teacher and all his men are deaf?"
Suddenly, four sharp gazes came at the same time.
Qian Kerou said coldly, "Sir, please be more respectful when you speak."
Chen Juan also yawned, his eyes cold:
"Xiao Rou is right, sir, please remember that you are only the acting officer. Lihuatang has only had one chief officer since its establishment. If you speak kindly, we will not make things difficult for you. But if you disrespect my master..."
Hou Renmeng had an expressionless face. With a "bang", he pressed the scabbard on the table and snorted:
"He who hides his head and shows his tail is a rat."
"Ahem..." Zheng Laojiu put down his teacup, spat, and smiled to smooth things over:
"Sir, please don't get excited. We are a bunch of troublemakers in Lihua Hall. We have a bad reputation..."
Zheng Laojiu suddenly stopped talking halfway because he found that the masked airborne police officer was calm and did not look angry at all.
He just raised his right hand and took off the mask on his face, revealing a familiar face.
Zhao Duan stared at Hou Renmeng with a half-smile, "Who are you calling a rat?"
The hall suddenly became quiet.
Only the autumn wind swept the fallen leaves through the hall.
"Ah!" The next second, Qian Kerou's butt seemed to have springs installed, and she jumped up. A look of surprise appeared on her round face, and she stammered:
"Sir...sir?!"
Chen Juan was stunned, as if he had seen a ghost, and then subconsciously a look of surprise appeared on his face!
The other two were the same.
The adults are back!
A huge surprise swept through the four people's hearts. They seemed to be stunned by the surprise. They changed their previous arrogance and nonchalant attitude, stood up straight with shining eyes, and then they were in great confusion again.
Zhao Duan smiled and put a finger to his lips:
"Hush, keep your voice down. I don't want to make the news of my return public for now, just a few people will know. This time, I'm still in charge of the western frontier of Linfeng, but I'm using the talismans in the palace to return through magic."
The four of them were shocked and bewildered, and then suddenly realized:
"We were just discussing why we had to send a police officer here. It turns out you wanted to hide your identity, sir."
Immediately, they thought of their previous actions and became nervous again.
Hou Renmeng hesitated and put away the knife on the table:
"I'm a rat, I'm a rat."
Zhao Duan withdrew his gaze from him and looked at Qian Kerou again:
"Pear, can I eat it?"
The secretary's face flushed red, and she quickly handed over the hidden pear with both hands. Her nose felt sore, and she said with slightly red eyes:
"If you want to eat it, I will go pick it right away."
Zheng Laojiu sighed:
"The first batch of ripe pears turned out to be rotten. We wanted to eat some, but Xiaorou stopped us. She said we had to wait for the adults to return triumphantly."
Zhao Duan felt a warm feeling in his heart. The people from Lihuatang were his first batch of direct subordinates. They had been with him on many business trips and had been with him through thick and thin.
He missed me a little after not seeing me for a few months. He smiled and said:
"I will be stationed in the capital for a long time. This time, I was commissioned by His Majesty to take charge of the Qingliu Party traitor case."
The four of them were suddenly energized, and all their laziness was swept away, and they were full of fighting spirit.
With sincere smiles on their faces, they finally got to stretch their muscles after being idle for so long.
Zhao Duan didn't waste time on small talk and asked:
"Xiao Rou, what's the progress of this case? Tell me the details."
"yes!"
Qian Kerou wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, bursting into laughter, and quickly took out a stack of documents:
“Although we haven’t done anything big recently, we are still keeping an eye on this case.
The governor also sent over some information last night. This is the list of officials in the Qingliu Party who are suspected of colluding with the anti-King.
The few people circled above have been arrested, and they all insisted that it was Yuan Li who assigned them..."
Zhao Duan opened the document and quickly scanned the pages. The names on the paper were arranged from high to low according to their official ranks.
There were more than a dozen people.
And this is definitely not all, there must be more that has not been exposed yet.
"Very good," Zhao Duan threw away the rest of the paper, leaving only the first one, and pointed to the first name on the list, saying:
"Get ready, call someone, and follow me to arrest him."
The four of them were stunned. On the first day after their master came back, he went straight to arresting people? And he even skipped over the little fish.
Just grab the biggest one?
Zheng Laojiu whispered:
"Sir, this Peng Wenliang is a fourth-rank assistant censor of the Censorate... and a pillar of the Qingliu Party. If we arrest him directly, will it..."
Zhao Duan raised his hand, put the mask back on, stood up and said:
"Just arrest people. If the sky falls, I will bear the consequences."
…
Outside the Governor's Hall, next to the stone table in the courtyard.
Haitang, the chief inspector of the Narcissus Hall, looked at Ma Yan with a heroic figure, a teardrop mole at the corner of her eye, and a flying knife hanging from her waist:
"Du Gong, who is that acting police chief?"
Next to him, Zhang Han, the king of facial paralysis and curls, also asked curiously:
"It's strange that he was assigned to take over Zhao Jisi's shift, and he was even wearing a mask."
Ma Yan sat upright on the stone bench, closed his eyes and waited.
He was waiting to see what kind of action the new police department would cause, and was always ready to rush to the rescue if anything happened to Lihuatang.
Haitang and Zhang Han came to join in the fun out of curiosity.
Hearing this, he opened his eyes and said calmly:
"This person is likely an outsider, and his identity is unknown. His Majesty hasn't disclosed it. Hiding his face isn't surprising. The royal family has a few hidden guards operating outside the capital. Since this person is acting, he won't be stationed there permanently. To facilitate his continued activities in the future, it's indeed necessary to conceal his face."
After a pause, he continued:
"As for the purpose, Your Majesty understands clearly. This person will handle the matter of the Qingliu Party's traitor. All you need to do is cooperate."
"Dealing with the Qingliu Party? Does this person have the ability to do that?" Haitang was a little unconvinced:
"That means he'll have to compete with Yuan Li. Do you really think everyone is Zhao Duan? Haha, I'm afraid this guy can't even control those troublemakers in Lihua Hall. He'll have to recruit from us."
She was a little gloating.
Zhang Han said seriously:
"Since we're trying to eliminate the traitor, we should give him a hand. Haitang, why don't you and I go to Lihua Hall and help him put the pressure on."
Just as he finished speaking, there was a sudden commotion in the distance, and the sound of horse hooves roared past outside the yard.
The three of them were stunned, and then they saw Captain Zhou Cang hurried over and shouted:
"Lord Governor. That trusted detective... he... he led a large group of elite soldiers from the Pear Blossom Hall out in full force, and I don't know where he went!"
What?
Haitang and Zhang Han were stunned. Mobilizing the entire Lihua Hall?
This person actually subdued those troublemakers in such a short time and made them cooperate with the operation?
Is there such a person hidden among the shadow guards?
I'm afraid that even Luo Ke, the shadow guard who has been lurking for many years and stabbed Cao Mao in the back, is not as good as him.
Ma Yan suddenly opened his eyes, a little surprised flashed across his face, and said in a deep voice:
"Send someone to follow them. I need to know their movements."
…
…
The office of the Censorate was not far from the imperial yamen.
When Zhao Duan led the four golden flowers and the Lihuatang out in full force, they arrived outside the magnificent building complex of the yamen.
It immediately attracted the attention of the gatekeeper.
As one of the "Three Departments", the Censorate has a very high status in the court. Similar to the Imperial Court, it controls the power and responsibility of supervising all officials.
There is also an independent prison called "Taiwan Prison".
When Zhao Duan fought against the Minister of Dali Temple, he was imprisoned in the Taiwan Prison.
In addition, with Yuan Li in charge, the Censorate was one of the few places in the capital that was not very afraid of the "living devils" of the imperial court.
"Is there anything I can do for you?" an official asked cautiously.
Zhao Duan dismounted, led a group of brocade-clad soldiers, and said calmly with his hands behind his back:
"I am the acting inspector of Lihua Hall. I have come here to track down a traitor within the court. Get out of here immediately. Anyone who dares to stop me will be treated as an accomplice of the traitor."
After saying this, he rushed into the Censorate without stopping.
The gatekeeper saw a group of murderous demons and knew that he could not stop them, so he turned around and ran back to report.
Zhao Duan ignored them and led the crowd inside.
There are many courtyards in the Censorate, with government offices scattered around.
The "duty room" where the Chief Censor-in-Chief worked was easy to find. Zhao Duan had a clear purpose and went straight to the target without beating around the bush.
The blue-robed imperial censors who were dressed along the way all looked over in surprise.
Some people walked out of the room, some popped their heads out of the windows, and some stood in the corridor, talking among themselves.
A group of imperial guards, like loaches entering a pond, passed through the small courtyards in a domineering and overbearing manner.
"What's going on? Why are those people from the imperial court here?"
"Could it be to assist in the investigation? But it doesn't look right. They can't be here to arrest anyone, right?"
"Heh... Coming to my Censorate to arrest people, isn't that a joke? Are you pretending that Mr. Yuan doesn't exist?" Someone sneered.
Some people even had sharp eyes and said in astonishment:
"Are they from the Lihua Hall? How is that possible? Isn't Commander Zhao at the front lines? Who could command the Lihua Hall?"
Zhao Duan ignored the pointing and talking around him.
Soon, they arrived at a guard room with carved beams and painted rafters. The room had black tiles, green windows, red-painted wooden pillars, and bamboos planted in the yard.
He came to the door, kicked it open with a bang, and stepped into the room.
I saw that there were about four or five desks scattered around in the duty room, and a censor was working there. In the innermost position, there was a single desk, and a middle-aged man was sitting behind it.
At this moment, everyone in the room looked up in surprise, some of them still holding brushes in their hands, looking confused and uncertain.
Zhao Duan looked around at everyone, his eyes fixed on the middle-aged man in the innermost circle, and said arrogantly:
"Are you the Chief Censor, Peng Wenliang?"
Peng Wenliang, as his name suggests, was an official with a scholarly temperament. He wore a green robe that was darker than others, and the details of his robe indicated his fourth-grade rank.
He had light eyebrows and a beard, and was not wearing a black hat. He was holding a brush, and there were calligraphy and paintings hanging on the wall behind him.
There was a flash of panic in his eyes at this moment, but it quickly disappeared, and he calmly placed the pen on the pen holder.
Then he stood up, stared at the official who was also wearing a green shirt but a white mask, and said in a deep voice:
"I am Peng Wenliang. Who are you? What are your intentions?"
Zhao Duan took out the police badge from his waist with two fingers, shook it, and said with a smile:
"I am the new acting officer of the Imperial Court. I have received a report that Lord Peng is colluding with rebels, and I have come to arrest him. How about this? Lord Peng, please come with us."
boom!
The light words caused an uproar.
Before Peng Wenliang could respond, the other imperial censors in the room were fed up and stood up.
One person flew into a rage:
"What's this Acting Police Chief? How come we haven't heard of him? And you're actually slandering Lord Peng!?"
Another old censor spoke in a slightly slower tone, but also expressed his position:
"Both the Censorate and the Imperial Court are places where all officials are supervised. You should know that I, the Censor of the Censorate, am a censor. When have I ever been summoned by you at will?"
Peng Wenliang's face darkened, he stared at Zhao Duan, and laughed in anger:
"You're accusing me of colluding with rebels? Fine, fine, I've never heard of you. Granted, it's true, but you've made a fuss as a new official, and now you've even spread it to my Censorate!"
He angrily asked, "You want to arrest me, where is the arrest warrant?"
Zhao Duan said calmly:
"In this emergency, we must make the necessary arrangements. To prevent Mr. Peng from escaping, we must first arrest him and then replace him."
He is no longer the same person now as when he first entered the imperial court.
At that time, in order to catch Princess Yunyang's lover, he, a marquis without real power, had to go to Ma Yan to apply for an arrest warrant.
But nowadays, I am too lazy to go through the procedures.
Peng Wenliang laughed angrily:
"You're arresting a fourth-rank censor without a warrant. How audacious! With the authority of a mere police officer, you're unworthy to see me! Show me away!"
He waved his hand angrily, and several imperial censors in the room stood up with stern faces, pretending to see him off.
“clang!”
Without any orders, Chen Juan, Hou Renmeng and others drew their swords decisively. Suddenly, the sound of swords being drawn was as continuous as the tide, which made the imperial censors change color.
Laughter came from under Zhao Duan's mask.
He took light steps and walked straight to a table next to Peng Wenliang, pulled over a chair and sat down.
He crossed his legs and calmly picked up a ruler from the table and played with it:
"I have always respected the censors, and since the Metropolitan Censorate and the Imperial Prison are closely connected, I do not wish to resort to violence in the Metropolitan Censorate, brandishing swords and damaging the harmony among my colleagues. If you have a clear conscience, Lord Peng, why not accompany me?"
His attitude clearly showed that he was unwilling to leave.
Peng Wenliang's heart sank and he stared at him deeply. At this time, the commotion here had become louder.
Outside the doors and windows of the duty room, a large number of imperial censors rushed in and gathered in the yard, talking a lot.
Peng Wenliang turned his head and glanced through the open window to an imperial censor outside. The latter understood and went to the back court.
Peng Wenliang stared at Zhao Duan's white mask, his eyes filled with anger, and said indignantly:
"Do you know what you are doing? You are causing a disturbance in the Censorate, arresting a fourth-rank censor without the emperor's order! Not only you, but even Ma Yan doesn't have the guts to do that!"
Zhao Duan smiled without saying anything, just lowered his eyes to play with the bright yellow, crystal clear ruler.
He acted as if he was listening to nothing.
Peng Wenliang suddenly stamped his foot, waved his sleeves, and walked towards the door, shouting:
"I'm going to the palace now! To see His Majesty and report you!"
Zhao Duan crossed his legs, still looking down at the ruler, and suddenly said calmly:
"Wait."
“clang!”
At the door, Hou Renmeng suddenly pulled out his knife, blocking the middle of the open door horizontally, and also blocking Peng Wenliang's way.
Zhao Duan exerted force with his hand, and with a "crack", the ruler cracked and broke into pieces, falling to the ground.
He looked at the jade fragments on the ground and said softly:
"Anyone who steps outside the house will be killed."
(End of this chapter)
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