Chapter 126 Reunion with the Magistrate, the Blame Lies Overturned (…)
Magistrate Hu, with a bitter face, got up from the ground. "Oh! Lord Zhang, what brings you to our humble place?"
She felt incredibly unlucky. Most of the treasure had been lost in her hands, and she had thought that out of sight, out of mind, she would never see it again and would pretend that the treasure had never existed.
But who could have predicted that this person would take the unconventional path and actually come to invite hatred!
Strangely enough, Zhang Ting is a very eccentric person.
Not only was she able to become a disciple of Zong Xiang, but after Zong Xiang fell from power, she was not implicated at all. Instead, she abandoned the light and joined the dark side of Xu Xiang. That was bad enough, but after Xu Xiang fell from power and was exiled, she was still safe and sound and was even sent out to serve as an official.
Furthermore, Magistrate Hu heard that the Qingliu faction was willing to stand behind this person, cheering her on and clearing her name.
Zhang Ting is completely caught between the pure and the impure, and is even loved by two opposing factions. Is that reasonable?
Strange, extremely strange!
Magistrate Hu sat down in the second seat with a sullen expression.
Zhang Ting leisurely picked up the untouched tea in front of him and took a sip. "We're all old acquaintances. I just happened to be passing through Qishan County, so I stopped by to see Lord Hu."
"Who are you an old acquaintance of?" Magistrate Hu felt a pang of heartache thinking about the money she had previously given to this money-devouring beast, but she dared not show the slightest resentment. Behind this money-devouring beast stood a colossal creature. She nodded and bowed, smiling obsequiously at Zhang Ting, "It has been several years since we last met. Everything is as usual on my end. How are you doing, Lord Zhang?"
"I had a minor accident, but it's nothing serious."
Magistrate Hu thought to himself: You call that a small matter? It really is quite small, haha, it's just that the commotion is so 'small' that even minor officials in these remote places know it by heart.
Unable to discern Zhang Ting's true intentions, she turned and smiled amiably, "When I first heard that Lord Zhang was in deep trouble, I regretted not being able to take his place. Now that I see you are safe and sound, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief."
Zhang Ting stared at the tea leaves floating in the bowl, smiling but saying nothing.
The atmosphere suddenly froze.
Magistrate Hu sensed something amiss, his heart suddenly tightening, and he stammered, "Lord Zhang? Could it be that the court has been making unfavorable remarks about him behind his back?"
Oh dear! Amitabha Buddha, Amitabha Buddha.
After a long while, Zhang Ting seemed to come back to her senses. She bowed apologetically and said, "Please forgive me, Lord Hu." Pointing to the tea leaves at the bottom of the bowl, she continued, "I was moved and immersed in the tea because I saw that the tea at the bottom of this bowl was similar to your recent situation. It is said that everything in this world is indeed in a state of tension and relaxation, complementing each other. The tea leaves rising and falling are just like the ups and downs of life, falling from high and rising from low. It is truly wonderful."
Magistrate Hu only noticed her words about "rising from humble beginnings," which seemed to refer to himself. He was secretly delighted, wondering if the gold-devouring beast had come to bring good news instead of bad news.
Overjoyed, she clasped her hands together, stood up, and moved closer to Zhang Ting with her fleshy face, behaving like a servant. She treated Zhang Ting as her own mistress, personally serving her tea and flattering her in every way possible.
Suddenly, she exclaimed in surprise, then chuckled twice, "Since Lord Zhang has come to our humble place, it must be fate that we meet again. I should prepare a banquet to help you understand our local customs." She raised an eyebrow, conveying a tacit understanding.
Zhang Ting reached out and rejected her offer, criticizing her righteously: "As officials of the court, you and I should be conscientious in our duties, live frugally and wholeheartedly for the public good. Lord Hu, you should not mention those banquets and local gifts again in the future."
Magistrate Hu's eyes twitched violently, but he had no choice but to shamelessly agree with her, "What Lord Zhang said is absolutely right. It was my negligence, and I deserve to be punished." As he spoke, he lightly slapped himself a few times, and the matter was thus left unresolved.
She filled a cup of tea for her 'dear master,' rubbed her hands excitedly, and cautiously inquired, "Lord Zhang, what do you mean by 'rising from humble beginnings'?"
Zhang Ting glanced at her and suddenly broke into a smile. It was a smile as bright as spring sunshine, as gentle as a breeze, which made Magistrate Hu very happy. He was just waiting for her to announce the good news of his promotion.
At this moment, Zhang Ting sighed earnestly, "No, no," and looked at Magistrate Hu with pity, "I meant 'falling from a high place.'"
"What!" These words were like a shocking piece of bad news, which made Magistrate Hu stand up straight with a start. He stood there in a daze, recalling all the bad things he had done in the past, and he couldn't finish thinking about them for a long time.
Was this matter leaked? Or was that matter exposed? Or perhaps something else she couldn't remember?
Oh dear! What should we do? Magistrate Hu clutched his official hat in a panic.
Suddenly, she perked up, turned to look at Zhang Ting, and bowed with a pained expression, saying, "My Lord Zhang, let's not beat around the bush! Tell me what it is?"
Unexpectedly, Zhang Ting stared at her with a look of disappointment and snorted, her tone slightly angry, "What kind of filthy things have you done in the past? Do you think you don't know? I'm trying to remind you, but you're pretending to be ignorant and blaming me for beating around the bush!" She slammed down the teacup in her hand, which landed on the table with a thud, splashing water everywhere.
"Enough, enough, I shouldn't have come here today." With that, she stood up, angrily flicked her sleeve, and was about to leave.
"This won't do!" Magistrate Hu hurriedly blocked her way, his face full of bitterness and grievance. She had done so many bad things, how would he know which one it was?
"Lord Zhang, please don't be angry. It was my words that were biased. Please scold or beat me as you see fit. Just give me a quick death and tell me what really happened," said Magistrate Hu.
Zhang Ting gritted her teeth, pointed at Magistrate Hu with her finger, and sighed repeatedly, as if she were about to die. "The 'good deeds' you've done have become known to the whole world, yet you're still like a headless fly, unable to even find a way out."
"Ah? What...what is going on?!" Magistrate Hu was so anxious he was almost crying.
Zhang Ting said coldly, "What else could it be? Your sordid affair of colluding with local gentry to seize the homes of ordinary people has been discovered by Prefect Liu of the neighboring Tongzhou Prefecture, who has specially instructed the displaced people to come and file a complaint." His tone was deep and resonant, and he spoke as if it were the truth. "Lord Hu, Lord Hu, the most important thing for us officials in the court is to cherish our reputation. Why can't you learn that?"
Magistrate Hu was completely bewildered. "Why is the prefect of Tongzhou Prefecture interfering in the affairs of my Yinzhou Prefecture? I have never met Prefect Liu before, nor have I ever had any grudge against her. Why would she instigate someone to harm me?"
Zhang Ting continued, exasperated, poking Magistrate Hu's stubborn head. "You're incredibly stupid, aren't you? Just because you've done so many bad things doesn't mean everyone in the world is corrupt. Magistrate Liu of Tongzhou Prefecture is upright, honest, and impartial in enforcing the law. Remember the fugitive Mi Fu from Tongzhou Prefecture three years ago? It was Magistrate Liu who personally oversaw her handling of the case. She hated corrupt officials like you who harm the people more than anything else in her life."
Magistrate Hu had heard about the major grain price scandal in Tongzhou Prefecture, and she suddenly realized that the way an honest official acted was indeed very different from hers.
Then Zhang Ting said in a serious tone, "I might as well impeach you. The memorial has already been written and is just waiting to be presented to the Emperor."
How could this be allowed? Magistrate Hu was in a panic, but the incident happened so suddenly that she had only just learned about it. How could she handle this matter properly?
Suddenly, a figure appeared in Magistrate Hu's mind. She looked up at Zhang Ting as if she had seen a guiding light. She knelt down with a thud, clutching Zhang Ting's clothes and pleading, "Lord Zhang, we've known each other for a long time. For the sake of our friendship, please have some compassion and show me the way!"
Zhang Ting is a cunning and eccentric character. He managed to hook up with two prime ministers in succession and even learned the secrets of her impending doom. He must have connections everywhere. It must be easy for him to use his network to resolve her crisis!
Zhang Ting frowned. "Lord Hu, we are all colleagues of the same rank. What are you doing? Get up quickly."
Magistrate Hu, fearing she would refuse, knelt even closer to her, his face contorted with grief, "Lord Zhang, I beg you for mercy! Once this is done, I will repay you with a fortune!"
“Lord Hu, do you think I’m the kind of person who’s greedy for money?” Zhang Ting bent down to help her up, gave her a look that said, “Don’t worry about me,” and patted her hand. “Given our friendship, I will naturally help you.”
If she hadn't embezzled so much of his money, Magistrate Hu would have truly believed it, but now she had no choice but to rely on the all-powerful Zhang Ting.
"Please enlighten me, Lord Zhang."
Zhang Ting smiled and pointed outside, “There’s good news. I happened to run into those vagrants who came to file complaints. I told them that Magistrate Hu is a just and upright official who stands up for the people. As long as you, Magistrate Hu, handle these vagrants properly and turn the tables on them, Prefect Liu’s memorial will naturally be questioned. I will then go back to Tongzhou Prefecture to put in a good word for you, and the Prefect will surely change his opinion of you.”
Magistrate Hu was overjoyed. Seeking help from Lord Zhang was definitely the right thing to do. She was truly his lucky star, resolving the matter with just a few words!
She jumped up excitedly, her face contorted with a lewd grin. "Don't worry, Lord Zhang, I will make sure those refugees are well taken care of." She then made a sharp cut across her neck, the cut gleaming with a sinister light.
Zhang Ting was speechless. This Magistrate Hu was truly a genuine villain, and his thought process was just unbelievable.
She slapped Magistrate Hu on the head. "You're stupid enough, but you don't know how to be flexible. By doing this, you're just handing a raft to Lord Liu." She scoffed. "I'm telling you to return the land and houses to the displaced people, provide them with some charitable funds, and leave yourself with a reputation for good deeds."
"You've been a tyrant in Qishan County for so many years, do you really think you're in charge of the whole world?" Zhang Ting warned her sternly, "Lord Hu, the surname here is 'Chen,' not 'Hu.'"
The magistrate was brought back to his senses by her slap, and upon hearing what she said next, he was so frightened that he shrank his head back and said, "This humble official understands, this humble official understands."
Zhang Ting shook her head helplessly. Her throat was dry from talking so much. She picked up the teacup on the table and took a sip.
Zhang Ting told Magistrate Hu some bad news: "There's another problem. Those refugees seem to have mistaken Magistrate Wu for you and have tried to stop her carriage. I heard you have some grudge against her, so to prevent her from using this as an excuse," Zhang Ting patted her shoulder and gave her a meaningful look. "Lord Hu, you should deal with this matter sooner rather than later, or you'll lose your head."
The chill in her words sent a shiver down Magistrate Hu's spine. She timidly touched her neck, secretly relieved that it was still there.
Magistrate Hu, who only wanted to succeed and not die for his country, spoke with righteous indignation: "Lord Zhang, please rest assured, I will definitely give the people justice! Those gentry who have encroached on the people's land and homes will be dealt with seriously by me."
Zhang Ting nodded slightly, reassuring her, "Lord Hu, please go ahead and do it. I'll take care of things with Prefect Liu."
Magistrate Hu had no doubt that Zhang Ting and Prefect Liu had a past relationship. After all, Zhang Ting was the only woman in Tongzhou Prefecture's history to achieve the highest rank in the imperial examinations (three times in the imperial examinations), and it would be unreasonable for the prefect not to try to win her over.
As Magistrate Hu servilely saw Zhang Ting off, her face fell the moment she turned away. She turned to her maid and ordered, "Go outside and find out if there were any displaced people causing trouble today. Why hasn't this reached my ears?" She still had some concerns in her heart.
A moment later, the maid returned, trembling with fear.
"Your Excellency, there were indeed several dozen people who blocked Lord Wu's carriage to plead their case. However, Lord Wu specifically instructed that you need not be bothered with the news, so it has not been sent in until now."
Magistrate Hu slammed his fist on the table, his face contorted with rage. He no longer had any doubts about Zhang Ting's words; instead, he harbored nothing but hatred for Assistant Magistrate Wu.
She cursed with a dark face, "You damned Wu, always getting on my bad side!" Fortunately, Magistrate Zhang had made arrangements for her in advance, otherwise Magistrate Wu would have already caught her red-handed!
At this moment, Magistrate Hu was extremely grateful to Zhang Ting for his help, and his eyes even welled up with tears. The two had only met by chance, yet Magistrate Zhang was willing to go to such lengths for her; he was truly fortunate.
A few moments later, Magistrate Hu's expression turned sour again after his initial感动 (moved/touched).
That gossipy woman from Tongzhou Prefecture was such a busybody! She'd remembered that grudge.
Magistrate Hu's face was gloomy, and he snorted coldly.
One day, she'll make those two pay!
...
Meanwhile, in Tongzhou Prefecture, Prefect Liu was comfortably leaning back in a chair in the courtyard, humming a little tune and leisurely listening to the gentle and melodious opera singing of the performers in the octagonal pavilion, as well as their soft and graceful figures.
He occasionally mimicked the actor's movements with his hands, and looking at his captivating figure, he couldn't help but reveal a playful smile, giving a wink to the clerk beside him.
The minor official returned a knowing smile.
Just then, Prefect Liu suddenly sneezed. She looked up at the sky blankly, wondering if she had caught a fever. It seemed she would have to call a doctor to come and treat her.
Completely unaware that they had been unfairly implicated.
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Author's Note: My darlings, Jinjiang is currently having a summer event where you can get Jinjiang coins and nutrient solution!
Here are the bonus chapter rules: One bonus chapter for every 300 nutrient solutions added to the chapter [starry eyes]
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