"Stop!" Xu Zhi wiped off the lipstick marks on his face and shouted angrily: "Do you know where this is? How dare you come in and cause trouble? Do you know who I am?!"

"Who are you?" The officers were stunned.

"I am Xu Zhi, the former third-rank Right Vice Minister of the Nanjing Ministry of Justice!" Vice Minister Xu gave his name proudly.

"Arrest him!" The captain in charge took a look at the list in his hand and found that the old Minister Xu was ranked very high up.

"How dare you!" Seeing the soldiers rushing towards him with ropes in hand, Xu Zhi was shocked and angry and said, "Are you rebelling? I am a third-rank minister!"

"Oh, you are registered? That's useless." The captain waved his hand, and several strong soldiers pressed Xu Zhi to the ground and tied him up tightly.

Although the royal decree could not affect officials above the third rank, that was for those who were still in office. Those who had retired or were still registered were not exempt. It was just that everyone would retire, and they had to keep a decent attitude towards each other, so it created the illusion that even after retirement, they were still third rank officials.

Unfortunately, Hai Rui didn't buy it at all. You are nothing after retirement, and I will still take it!

Seeing that even Xu Zhi had been arrested, the Xu family members completely lost their desire to curse and surrendered one by one like eggplants hit by frost.

The officers tied up the people one by one according to the list, but finally found that there were still a few people who were not caught.

"Where are Xu Long and Xu Chen?" Zhong Zhengji took the list and asked the Xu family, "And where are their sons?"

The crowd was silent for a while, and someone said, "The two masters were called by the old master to Tuisi Garden to listen to the opera, and you gentlemen also went with him."

"Is that so?" Zhong Zhenji nodded and said in a deep voice, "Pack the account books and land deeds and take them back with the prisoners!"

"I protest!" Xu Zhi was brought before Zhong Zhenji and angrily said, "Zhong Zhenji, you bastard, eat me..."

"Shut your mouth." Prefect Zhong shouted with a dark face, and his constable stuffed a piece of rag into Xu Zhi's mouth.

"Wuwu, um..." Xu Zhi could no longer speak.

~~

Tuisi Garden and Songfeng Hall in Wanhe.

Xu Jie's brothers Xu Long and Xu Chen came with their son as promised, but he was not seen wearing costumes, nor was the troupe seen?

"Brother, what are you talking about?" Xu Chen asked curiously, "Why don't I see you wearing makeup?"

"I sang Farewell My Concubine." Xu Jie snorted unhappily, "You are the black horse."

"Hehe, brother, you're joking..." Xu Chen said embarrassedly.

"Who is joking with you?" Xu Jie said with a gloomy face, "My Xu family is in danger, and you are still standing here like nothing happened. Are you blinded by lard?"

"Ah?" The two brothers were stunned and said, "With my brother here, it shouldn't have come to this, right?"

"It shouldn't be this serious, it shouldn't be this serious." Xu Jie sighed and said, "You guys always think that you can do whatever you want under the banner of this old man, and that's why you have brought disaster to the Xu family."

He pointed outside and said, "You have been sentenced by the governor's office. Aren't you afraid at all?"

"It would be a lie to say I'm not afraid. I'm here to ask you what to do." Xu Long apologized with a smile.

"Hide here and don't go out." Xu Jie replied indifferently.

"Ah?" The Xu family members were shocked and asked, "Could it be that Hai Rui dares to come to the East Palace to arrest someone?"

"Don't even mention Nanchan Temple. Even without me here to protect them, they will come in and arrest people." Xu Jie sighed and said, "Xu Zhi, that idiot, won't come. He will be imprisoned sooner or later."

"Ah?" The Xu family was shocked again and said, "He is a third-rank minister, who dares to arrest him!"

"Hai Rui dared." Xu Jie closed his eyes in pain. These idiots had been arrogant under his wings for too long. They didn't realize how serious the trouble of the Xu family was this time. What was a retired minister? The retired elders would be ruined...

But Lord Xu was prepared. This time he was using the "torture trick", also known as "living towards death". Only by making himself lose face and suffer all kinds of punishment could he arouse the sympathy of the emperor and his ministers in the capital, make those landlords and bureaucrats mourn, save the Xu family, and bring down Hai Rui...

But this process is so ecstatic. It is unbearable for ordinary people, just like eating rice in a rice field.

~~

Meanwhile, Niu Mowang, the deputy minister of Niu, also led his men to Tuisi Garden in the east of the city.

Tuisi Garden is the residence of Lord Xu, and many common people come here to join in the fun.

But although the old cow has a big nostril, he is not that brave and does not dare to break into the room directly.

After all, the person living inside was Xu Jie, the old man who had restored order and benefited the government and the people. Moreover, Xu Jie himself was not among the prisoners. If he broke in and arrested someone without reason, he would probably be scolded to death by the censors in the future.

As I was wandering, I suddenly heard crazy shouts coming from the west of the city.

"The Xu family has fallen!"

"Minister Xu has been arrested!"

"The Xu family was raided!"

People turned their heads to look and saw people running wildly and shouting excitedly all over the world.

"Copy Xu! Copy Xu!"

My goodness! When the nearly a thousand people surrounding Tuisi Garden heard this, they were immediately in an uproar, as if firecrackers had been lit.

"What are we waiting for? Let's get going!"

"Tear down this garden!"

"Yes, pull out the old turtle Xu!"

The people had surrounded Tuisi Garden for several days and were already full of anger. When they heard that Xu's residence at Nanchan Temple had been breached, how could they hold back their anger?

Someone immediately picked up a brick and threw it at the gate of Tuisi Garden. Another person brought a ladder and prepared to climb over the wall to get in.

"What, what should we do?" Seeing that the situation was getting out of control, the captain in charge quickly asked Niu Chenshi for instructions.

Niu Mowang was also very anxious, but suddenly he had a flash of inspiration and seemed to have realized something.

"Watch out, don't let anyone set fire to the garden," he gave the order.

"Uh..." The captain was stunned, wondering what kind of order this was. Just forbid arson, but can looting and smashing be allowed?

This is exactly what Niu Chenshi meant.

Lord Hai asked him to protect Lord Xu. If nothing happens in Tuisi Garden, what's the point of protecting him?

Only when a situation threatens Lord Xu's safety can we talk about protection.

This way I won't have to worry so much... I went in to protect Lord Xu. Without my protection, Lord Xu's life or death would be unpredictable!

I, old cow, am really smart, moo.

So Niu Chenshi ordered the government troops to stay put and only arrest those unruly people who intended to set fire. The rest of the people who wanted to throw bricks or climb the walls were left alone.

With the connivance of the government troops, the common people became more and more excited. Soon they climbed over the wall and opened the door of the mansion from the inside.

"Go in!" The people rushed in and scattered the Xu family servants who tried to stop them.

"Go in quickly and protect Elder Xu!" Niu Chenshi said sternly, "If the old man is in danger, we will all be held responsible!"

The officers and soldiers rushed in quickly. Niu Chenshi stayed behind with more than ten officers. He showed the royal flag that allowed them to execute first and report later, and did not allow the people behind to enter.

There were too many people put in there, and it caused a big mess. This is no joke...

ps. Chapter 2, please give me your monthly vote!