The flood washed away the Dragon King Temple
"Yes...yes..." the grain official's voice cried out in despair, "It's an order from above! I...I was just following orders, Lord Zhou! Please see the truth! Please spare my life!"
"The higher-ups?" Zhou Ziye's voice was completely calm: "Which higher-ups? What's their name? What's their official position? Explain clearly."
"Yes...yes..." The grain official's eyes darted frantically, pleading for help as he looked at the two guards standing beside him. The two guards ignored him completely, not even glancing at him. Finally, the grain official seemed to have lost all his strength, collapsing utterly: "Yes...Lord Zhou, it was his men who came to give the order. They said it was the will of a nobleman in the capital, to replace the new grain with the old, nearly rotten grain that had been piling up for years, and to make sure the accounts are balanced."
A deathly silence.
The anger on Wang Shili's face froze, turning into an incredulous astonishment. He abruptly turned to look at Zhou Ziye.
Zhou Keng? It really is his second uncle! Although he had suspected it before, Wang Shili still found it hard to believe when the grain official directly exposed it.
Zhou Ziye's face was unreadable. He seemed not to have heard the name and continued to press, his tone not even quickening: "Where is the new grain that was exchanged?"
"No...I don't know...I really don't know, sir!" The grain official kowtowed repeatedly: "The people who came only ordered us to exchange the grain for accounting purposes. We have no right to inquire about the new grain, let alone dare to ask about it!"
Just then, an even louder commotion came from outside the granary, and the sound of horses' hooves grew louder and louder, quickly shattering the deathly silence inside.
A bodyguard who was guarding the door rushed in and whispered an urgent report to Zhou Ziye: "Sir, something bad has happened! A patrol team has come to the granary. The leader is Lord Zhou. He said that he received a tip that something has happened in the granary and that there may be a mob attack. He wants to take over the defense immediately and seal off the granary."
Wang Shili's expression changed: "Lord Zhou? How come he arrived so quickly?!" This was clearly an attempt to silence him.
Zhou Ziye's expression suddenly changed, and he looked sharply at the grain official who was slumped on the ground.
Almost simultaneously, the grain official, seemingly summoning strength from nowhere, suddenly let out a piercing scream: "They're trying to silence me! They're coming to kill me! Lord Zhou, save me! I'll testify! I'll—"
"Pfft!"
A very faint, muffled thud, like a sharp blade piercing flesh.
The grain official's shouts came to an abrupt halt.
A thin line of blood seeped from his neck. His eyes bulged as he looked incredulously to his side and behind him—where stood one of Zhou Keng's personal guards.
Everything happened in an instant.
After doing all this, the guard remained expressionless, as if he had merely dusted off some dirt.
Wang Shili was stunned, staring at the man with his mouth agape, unable to utter a single word.
The grain official's body slumped to the ground, his eyes still wide open, filled with endless terror.
Zhou Ziye's gaze was fixed on the guard who had made the move. The guard met his gaze without flinching, and even a very subtle, provocative smile appeared on his lips.
Footsteps and the clanging of armor were already close by outside the warehouse. Torchlight shone through the crack in the door, and Zhou Keng's voice, which carried his usual feigned friendliness but now couldn't hide his authority, rang out from outside: "Ke'er, what's the situation inside?"
Zhou Ziye's gaze froze. He looked at the personal guard who had made the move. The man even had a hint of mockery in his eyes, as if he was enjoying Zhou Ziye's panic.
Wang Shili was so anxious that the veins on his forehead bulged, but he was helpless. He could only subconsciously take half a step closer to Zhou Ziye: "Hey, he is still your second uncle. No matter what, you and he are related. He can't really use you and me as stepping stones to get to the top, can he?"
Zhou Ziye glanced at him and said indifferently, "You can look forward to it."
"What...what am I expecting? What am I expecting!" Wang Shili clenched his fist and punched the air.
Zhou Ziye turned his head away and continued to stare at the door. Soon, Zhou Keng came in with his men. However, to Zhou Ziye's surprise, Zhou Keng brought not only the patrol battalion, but also someone else who was pressing down beside him, which surprised him even more.
Tang Qi and his group were all bound by their wrists and were brought in one by one by Zhou Keng's men.
Zhou Ziye never expected that his second uncle would even capture them all.
"What does Lord Zhou mean by this?" Cheng Junshi asked Zhou Keng calmly, extending his hand.
“County Commandant Cheng, this is called making an example of someone.”
"You've detained a high-ranking official without cause, Lord Zhou. Aren't you afraid His Majesty will find out?" Ye Qian said coldly from the side.
Zhou Keng looked at him and suddenly laughed, then slowly nodded: "You've reminded me, it's true that we shouldn't have detained an official of the imperial court."
With a wave of his hand, two men quickly came forward and cut the ropes binding Cheng Junshi and Ye Qian's wrists. Zhou Keng continued slowly, "Alright, now there are no more officials appointed by the imperial court."
"You!" Cheng Junshi was furious, but Ye Qian pulled him back. The latter looked up at Zhou Keng and asked, "What's your reason for arresting them?"
Zhou Keng remained unconcerned, his gaze casually sweeping over the group as he casually remarked, "Obstructing official business."
Four very light words.
But that's enough to land them in jail.
“This is utterly reckless! Aren’t you afraid His Majesty will be angry?” Cheng Junshi said almost angrily as he stood outside the prison gate.
"Your Majesty?" Zhou Keng scoffed. "He's far away in the capital, not here. What, do you need another urgent letter delivered by express courier?"
"Do you think your message is faster, or my men's actions are faster?"
“Cheng Wang,” Zhou Keng looked at him, and for a moment Cheng Junshi actually saw pain in his eyes. Although he didn’t know where the pain came from, he heard Zhou Keng continue, “Jingzhou is not as close to you as you think.”
Outside the prison gate, Zhou Ziye, who had been waiting, finally couldn't resist and was about to step forward when Wang Shili suddenly grabbed his clothes and pressed him to the ground, yelling, "What are you going to do?"
Zhou Ziye turned to look at him, and Wang Shili continued in a low voice, "Your second uncle is obviously a ruthless character. At first, I thought he would at least show some consideration, but now it seems that we should leave quickly before he is implicated. If we don't leave, you will end up in jail like those others."
Seeing that Zhou Ziye did not move, Wang Shili tugged at his clothes again and instructed him, "Don't blame me for not reminding you, it will definitely be of no use for you to go there now. When you are also in jail, there will be no way to help you. In any case, it is better to be outside than inside."
As they were talking, Zhou Keng looked over. His gaze lingered on Zhou Ziye for a long time. Wang Shili immediately let go of his hand and took a step away slightly, afraid that the fire on Zhou Ziye would burn him. But to his surprise, Zhou Keng didn't say anything, not even a hint of accusation.
This puzzled not only Zhou Ziye, but also Tang Qi, who was in prison, began to ponder.
From the moment he was arrested by Zhou Keng's men, he began to ponder the reasons why Zhou Keng did this. It was nothing more than his deeds being exposed and he needed to kill people to silence them. But if that were the case, why would he release Cheng Junshi and Ye Qian out of fear of the Emperor's wrath? That simply doesn't make sense.
Moreover, there was the previous incident. This matter was exposed so quickly, and the key evidence was even found by Wang Shili. This made Tang Qi suspect that everything was not so simple.
Even if Zhou Keng were stupid, he wouldn't be so stupid as to fall into such a trap, which made Tang Qi wonder if this was a setup.
But he couldn't figure out who this situation was targeting.
"Ke'er," Zhou Keng finally called out.
Zhou Ziye looked up at him, paused twice, but eventually walked towards him.
"Second Uncle," Zhou Ziye was silent for a moment, then looked up at him again and asked, "Did you exchange the grain in Jinnan?"
Wang Shili was dumbfounded. It turned out that this guy hadn't listened to a single word he had just said. Wasn't he just asking for trouble by saying this now?
Will this implicate me? I shouldn't have acted like I was on Zhou Ziye's side just now. If Zhou Keng really investigates this matter, I can just pin it all on Zhou Ziye. After all, he was the one who made me do this, and I haven't even had a chance to settle accounts with him for what he schemed against me back then.
Wang Shili immediately calculated his escape route in his mind.
"Ke'er," Zhou Keng called him again.
"Second Uncle," Zhou Ziye stared directly at him without avoiding his gaze, his voice unwavering, "Is it you?"
Zhou Keng's face finally darkened, and he raised his hand to press on Zhou Ziye's shoulder: "I am your second uncle."
"So, is that so?" Zhou Ziye seemed oblivious to his hints and stubbornly continued to ask. Wang Shili, standing beside him, swallowed hard.
This is completely over.
Sure enough, the next moment several men grabbed Zhou Ziye's arms. Zhou Keng had a cold face, his hands behind his back, and he didn't even glance at him.
“Since you’re not clear-headed, then stay here and behave yourself.” Zhou Keng continued slowly, “And keep an eye on them. You can be released when you’ve thought things through.”
"Second Uncle!" Zhou Ziye slammed his fist on the cell door, staring intently at Zhou Keng, and said, "Stop it, Second Uncle!"
Zhou Keng turned around and looked at him, and actually laughed.
The laughter was neither sad nor painful, but it made one's heart ache. Zhou Keng didn't say a word.
The horrifying scene silenced almost everyone present.
"Strange, really strange."
After everyone else outside the prison gate had left, Tang Qi sat cross-legged on the ground without any regard for decorum and began to think.
"What's strange?"
“Zhou Keng, if I were him, wouldn’t killing him to silence him be better than putting him in jail?” Tang Qi stroked his chin and continued, “And Cheng Wang and Ye Qian, with their official positions, how could Zhou Keng possibly be afraid of them? Yet he released those who could contact the palace and even kept us witnesses. I think Zhou Keng is afraid that he won’t die.”
Zhou Ziye, a fellow inmate in the next cell, sat in the corner and listened to Tang Qi's speculation without saying a word.
"Hey!" Tang Qi quickly pressed himself against the door and looked at him: "Young Master Zhou, I have an idea, would you like to hear it?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
