The return of the son-in-law

He Zudao happened to come to the study, and was just about to sit down and deal with the official business that was to be completed today, when he heard someone report: "My lord, there are people beating drums outside to complain about grievances, what should my lord do?"

Now Shi Guogan, the magistrate of Xuzhou, is dead, and Guo Zhanan, the general judge, has become a suspect. He is temporarily dismissed from all government affairs and placed under house arrest in the government office.It can be said that the people in the Xuzhou Government Yamen who could have dealt with this matter were unable to come forward.

He Zudao was a little helpless, now is the critical moment, although it has been explained that nothing about this matter can be leaked out, but the fire cannot be contained, Xuzhou has already started to spread a lot of rumors.If the common people were allowed to beat drums outside to voice grievances, but no one came forward, I'm afraid those rumors would spread even more fiercely.

"Go and bring people in, I'll handle it."

Because He Zudao had never met Shi Guokang's family members and Huo Yu, he only thought that these two were ordinary people in Xuzhou, and asked with a straight face: "Who is under the hall? What grievances?"

When Mrs. Zhu heard this, she burst into tears immediately, and said with sobs, "I am the wife of the prefect of Xuzhou. My husband died for no reason. I ask you to make the decision for me!"

Rao has experienced so many turmoil, and never expected that the Zhu family, who was supposed to be in the backyard of the government office, would appear in front of the government office door and beat drums to express his grievances!

"Mr. Zhu, you are already a guilty person. You should stay in the backyard. Why are you here?"

Mrs. Zhu cried more and more, Huo Yu was anxious, so he rushed to say: "My lord, I brought Mrs. Zhu out, please listen to our report."

He Zudao was furious, he slapped the table heavily, and scolded: "Brought it out? Are you your family? You brought someone out if you wanted to? Do you know who Mrs. Zhu is? What's the crime? Come on, take this brat who doesn't know the heights of the sky and the depths of the earth, beat the twenty big boards, and learn the rules!"

A yamen servant next to him wanted to arrest him, Huo Yu hurriedly asked: "My lord, you are neither the magistrate of this state nor the judge of this state, and you beat me without knowing it. Wouldn't it make the world laugh at you if you spread it out? "

He Zudao was very angry: "What a big tone! You have violated the laws and regulations of this dynasty by disregarding the king's law and hiding criminals privately. How dare you say that you are wronged when you are beaten? As for me, I am the Minister of the Ministry of Officials, He Zudao , now that the prefect of Xuzhou and the general judge are inconvenient to come forward, so I will try the case, am I not qualified?"

Huo Yu was relieved first. Hao Yun had told him beforehand that He Zudao was the one with the most right to speak among them, and he had no enmity with Guo Zhanan, and he was an upright person.If it is said who among these few people is Huo Yu can count on, there is only so much to say.

He then argued: "My lord has probably eaten more salt than I have eaten rice. I understand the truth, don't your lord not understand? Everything should be prioritized. If your lord wants to beat me, It's not too late to fight after listening to our words! Although I, Huo Yu, have no skills, I still understand the principle of one person doing things and one person doing the same!"

He Zudao saw that Huo Yu was young but eloquent, so he simply waved his hand to signal the officials to let him go first, and then asked: "Okay, I'll hear what you have to say first."

Huo Yu said: "My lord, let the sufferer speak for himself." Then, he turned his head and said to Mrs. Zhu, "Mrs. Shi, this is the servant of the official department of this dynasty, Mr. He Zudao and your lord. If you have any grievances or doubts, you can feel free to accept them." Tell Master He."

Mrs. Zhu wiped her tears and said, "My lord, a few days ago, Mr. Huang sent someone to tell me that my husband was sentenced to death by Guo Zhan'an in prison. I believed it. But yesterday I thought about it. There are some things that I can't explain, and I ask the adults to make decisions for me."

Zhu's words had pointed the finger at Huang Mingli, He Zudao couldn't help cheering up and asked: "If there's anything wrong, just say it."

Zhu said: "My lord is dead. In order to find the real culprit and avenge my lord, even if I am reprimanded and abandoned by the lord after going to the underworld, I have to tell the truth. To tell you the truth, my lord, in Xuzhou Prison Most of the jailers have received benefits from my lord, especially the old man Lao Cai. For five years, I would personally prepare a small gift to send over during the festivals. My lord died tragically in prison after only three days. , I don’t believe these jailers, at least the prison boss, Lao Cai, would be so easily bought by Guo Zhan’an, there must be something strange in it!”

He Zudao stared at Mrs. Zhu for a while, then turned to look at Huo Yu: "Who are you? Did you teach Mrs. Zhu to say that?"

Huo Yu replied generously: "My name is Huo Yu, and I'm Xu Zhou's brother-in-law of Guo Zhan'an. As for Zhu's words, adults can check the Shi family's account books, and there must be a record of gifts. I and My brother has only been in Xuzhou for two months, so how could he be so predictable that the Zhu family started falsifying records five years ago?"

Although what Huo Yu said was true, He Zudao didn't believe it, and sent someone to fetch the Shi family's account book, but asked himself, "How did you bring Mrs. Zhu out of the backyard of the government office?"

Huo Yu smiled at this time, and said: "My lord, it's not too late to talk about this matter later. The most important thing right now is to find out the real culprit who killed Shi Guogan, so as not to harm a good person and let the real culprit go unpunished."

This little bastard is a thief!

He Zudao cursed in his heart, but he couldn't get angry, so he could only continue to ask Zhu Shi: "The tree fell and the monkeys scattered. Since these jailers have accepted Shi Guokang's benefits, they are not loyal people, and it is normal to turn against each other. Zhu Shi, you But is there any other evidence?"

Mrs. Zhu thought for a while, and then said: "When the master first took office, he was drunk once, and told me that now a nobleman from the capital came to him and forced him to commit crimes against the law with the lives of our whole family. The matter, after the matter is completed, the prosperity is just around the corner. Mr. He, my master did do something wrong, but it was not his original intention. Let my master find the real culprit!"

He Zudao said coldly: "Shi Guogan knew that he violated the law, and his crime is unforgivable. Mrs. Zhu, these words have nothing to do with Shi Guogan's death. If you can't think of any other evidence, go back to the backyard first, and wait for a sentencing date."

Zhu's eyes widened, she touched her slightly swollen belly with one hand, and shouted: "No, I can't go back! Mr. He, I said, I said! On the first night you came, Huang Mingli came to my house My lord, the two of them discussed for a whole night, and Huang Mingli didn't leave until the cock crowed! My lord, I don't believe in Huang Mingli, I don't believe in Huang Mingli!"

Huo Yu said at this time: "Master He, I also have one thing that I don't understand, so I would like to ask Mr. He to clarify. Those jailers took advantage of others and killed Shi Guogan, so they are accomplices. Why did my brother only kill Shi Guogan? Those who were suspected of Guo Gang were imprisoned, but these accomplices who actually killed Shi Guo Gan were able to sleep at home every day!"

He Zudao was shocked: "What did you say?"

Huo Yu showed a look of surprise: "Your Excellency, you don't know yet? Yesterday, my servants went out to buy vegetables, and when they came back, they said they met Lao Cai's wife buying buns and fried dough sticks, and complained that Lao Cai was snoring the night before."

Snoring, isn't it a peaceful and peaceful sleep?

He Zudao was furious, and shouted to his subordinates: "Go, go and invite Huang Mingli over here, I want to ask him how to investigate the case!"

When Huang Mingli heard the news, he was still having breakfast leisurely. When he heard that Mrs. Zhu, who was supposed to be locked up in the backyard, appeared in front of the government office to beat the drums and complained, and there was Guo Zhanan's younger brother next to him, his chopsticks snapped. Fang, asked angrily: "What's going on!"

The person who came was his subordinate, and he didn't know about it, but he got the news from the person sent by He Zudao a moment earlier than Huang Mingli, and rushed over immediately.

Huang Mingli only felt that what he had eaten before was churning in his stomach, and he couldn't care about anything else, so he called someone to change his clothes, dressed neatly, and rushed to the front in a hurry.

In the yamen hall, He Zudao and others were all present, and they were waiting for Huang Mingli.

On the way Huang Mingli came, Zhu sobbed again and revealed Shi Guokang's old background.

Zhu's family cannot be blamed either, Shi Guogan is dead, the crimes he committed are well documented and cannot be covered up at all.Right now, she is pregnant, and in order to leave a queen for Shi Guogan, she can only drag other people into the water as much as possible, and make Shi Guogan a helpless accomplice.Perhaps in this way, the punishment that was originally intended to be imposed on relatives will be lessened, so that she can continue to live with the child in her belly.

She is a lady, how many people in the court know her?Although they also walk around with other officials' wives on weekdays, the relationship between people is normal and cannot be regarded as evidence of collusion between others and Shi Guogan.Only when she finds someone who has really had contact with Shi Guokang, preferably a secret conversation, will she have the confidence to testify.

Moreover, if the official position is lower than Shi Guogan, how dare he persecute Shi Guogan?If the official position is higher than that of Shi Guokang, she can also find Huang Mingli.

Just like that, Mrs. Zhu found the real culprit who killed her husband by mistake.

While wiping tears, Mrs. Zhu said: "In the past few years, the master has asked me to prepare a generous gift for the nobles in the capital. I think the specifications of this gift are too expensive, and I can't guess that the nobles will Who is it? Anyway, the ledger is here, why don't you take a look yourself."

He Zudao and the others looked at each other, Wang Kaiyang stretched out his hand to open the account book, found the gift list sent to the capital, looked at it carefully, frowned, and whispered: "Masters, please take a look too, I can't see anything here."

He Zudao waited for others to see it, and cursed secretly in his heart, what he couldn't see, it was obvious that he could see it!

Look at the records in this gift list, there are several items that only the royal family and nobles can use!Also, the Cuiyu Panlong Sifang carving, which is a specialty of Xuzhou, if I remember correctly, the Fourth Prince Li Shaojin has brought it several times!

Can they talk?

can not say!

Huo Yu watched the words and expressions from the side, and quickly noticed something was wrong.However, he couldn't snatch the account book to read, so he could only keep it in his heart silently, planning to wait for Guo Zhan'an to come out and talk to Guo Zhan'an.

Wei Zichen didn't speak all the time, he always went to see Huo Yu from time to time, He Zudao noticed this, and asked him in a low voice, "Master Wei, is there something wrong with this man?"

Wei Zichen shook his head, realizing that what he had done was too obvious, and said, "There is nothing wrong with it. I just think it is really admirable for this young man to be willing to break the law for his brother-in-law at such a young age."

But He Zudao said: "This person is young, he doesn't know right from wrong, he doesn't distinguish between right and wrong, he only acts on the so-called righteousness, his life is ruined."

Wei Zichen just laughed it off and didn't say anything else.

At this time, Huang Mingli finally came. When he saw Mrs. Zhu in the hall, his heart skipped a beat. His previous guess was half confirmed.

"Mr. Zhu, you are so brave. You dared to die and escaped from the backyard. It is simply an extra crime! Come on, hurry up and take down the prisoner, Mrs. Zhu!"

"Bah!" Now Mrs. Zhu understands that her husband is dead, and the Shi family has no value to use. Huang Mingli intends to kill her completely!

But how could she let Huang Mingli succeed easily?

"Huang Mingli, when you had a secret conversation with my master, you didn't look like this!" Zhu said, "Back then you were begging my master to plan for you and help you take over the other adults. , so that you can take power alone! Have you forgotten all of this?"

Huang Ming was so angry that his face turned red and then pale, and he said angrily: "Diaofu! You are talking nonsense and talking nonsense!"

Indeed, these were all made up by Mrs. Zhu, but these words fell into the ears of He Zudao and others, and what they thought could not be changed by Huang Mingli with a few words.

Among them, the one who reacted the most was probably Wang Kaiyang.He thought about it carefully, in the past few days, Huang Mingli just used him as a gunman, letting him charge ahead alone, while he sat back and enjoyed the success!

It's ridiculous that Huang Mingli let the jailer frame Guo Zhan'an on the basis that there were no other witnesses; but now, Zhu's actions are exactly the same as what he did back then.

In the cycle of karma, the retribution finally came to Huang Mingli.

Shi Guogan has something to do with the military pay, and the gift list he sent may include the fourth prince Li Shaojin.If it is true, Li Shaojin had a relationship with Shi Guogan five years ago, and Li Shaojin might be involved in the matter of military pay.

Wei Zichen understood that this was beyond their ability to deal with, so he made a decisive decision: "Lord Huang, in order to avoid suspicion, you should take a good rest these few days. In order to avoid another person being framed, in my opinion, it is better to write to Your Majesty, please make a decision."

Everyone is a person in the officialdom, they dare not take this hot potato, and immediately respond loudly.Huang Mingli didn't dare to refute, and could only acquiesce in Wei Zichen's handling.

Huo Yu couldn't help but interjected and asked, "My lords, what about my elder brother?"

Wang Kaiyang had a prejudice against Guo Zhan'an, and naturally had no good impression of Huo Yu, Guo Zhan'an's adopted brother, and said, "Where is there a place for you to speak here? Go back after receiving the board. As for Mrs. Zhu, it's better to go back to the backyard to settle down first. Waiting for His Majesty's will."

Huo Yu said: "I admit it, but since my brother didn't kill Shi Guogan, why was he still imprisoned?"

Wang Kaiyang frowned, and just about to speak, he heard Wei Zichen next to him say: "You are very courageous, and you are also forced to do nothing. Although you know the law and break the law, without you, I'm afraid we will always be kept in the dark and wronged." Good man, let the real culprit go. In my opinion, if you make up for your mistakes, you will be spared."

He Zudao and others would not care about a child who has not yet reached the championship, and what Wei Zichen said is reasonable, if Huo Yu hadn't stepped forward, I'm afraid they would have ignored this matter and allowed Huang Mingli to abuse his power.

Huo Yu shook his head: "Since I have merit, my lords, please let me meet my brother. I accept the board, and I will get it after I see my brother, okay?"

Wei Zichen laughed and said: "You are very interesting, you dare to recognize twenty boards just to meet your brother-in-law. Well, I will give you this chance to meet your brother. As for boards, you are young and can't bear it." It doesn’t make sense to waste a good seedling, so let’s avoid it.”

Huo Yu was overjoyed, and bowed to Wei Zichen, "Thank you, my lord!"