Tongzhuang Shili Rice Flower Fragrance

Just when the magistrate of Fu County felt that there was no way to go, there was a sudden commotion at the door. From a distance, a large group of people was walking straight towards the direction of the court trial, followed by a voice .

"My lord is sent to—"

The sound resounded throughout the trial site, everyone's eyes widened, and the people at the door stepped aside one after another.

Liu Chengye and the others subconsciously looked at Yu Mingyuan, met the sharp eyes of the other party, and quickly turned their heads around. As a group of people outside the hall entered the lobby, everyone knelt on the ground in unison, shouting to welcome the imperial envoy grown ups.

Sangong walked to the center of the hall, stood still and looked around, the surroundings were quiet, the hall was filled with black heads, and no one dared to make a sound.

After about a few breaths, all the people kneeling on the ground heard a slightly majestic female voice: "Get up."

Liu Chengye already found out why this imperial envoy was here yesterday, and the other accomplices naturally also received the news, but other people who didn't know had just found out about this, and couldn't help but want to secretly look at the woman in front of them. I know that since ancient times, there have been a few female officials, but there are almost no female imperial envoys. I don't know the identity of the woman in front of me.

The entourage behind the three officials took out the imperial decree, and a group of people knelt down again. After the imperial decree was read, everything became clear. Everyone finally knew the identity of the female imperial envoy in front of them. Everyone in the hall had different hearts, and their faces were colorful for a while. gorgeous.

Yu Mingyuan, Liu Chengye and the others knew that Sangong would never let this matter go, but they didn't want her to pick this time, but no matter what, the evidence of the whole case is now in their favor, so she jumped out at this time, No matter what, there is no way to turn the tide. Thinking of it this way, I feel more at ease.

Yu Mingyuan trotted down from behind the desk in a hurry, trying to welcome San Gongshi to the position of examiner.

San Gongshi glanced at those people, sneered in his heart, but his face was still light, and he said to Yu Mingyuan: "I will not sit in the seat, and the case will still be heard by the adults. Alright, move me a chair next to Fu County Magistrate and listen to it together."

How dare the magistrate of Fu county sit on an equal footing with the imperial envoy, he hurriedly got up to give up his seat to the official, while he sat down with the county magistrate himself.

The third gentleman was not humble, so he sat down calmly, raised his hand and said: "Where is the interrogation, let's continue."

Fu county magistrate hurriedly got up and explained the details of the case, and then said: "The deed submitted by Xu Zhengde just now is in the hands of the subordinate official. Now one of the two parties to the deed is dead, and the witness is not alive. I don't know how to prove it. The authenticity of the deed is deeply troublesome to the lower officials."

The third gentleman took the deed book and the material delivery certificate, squinted his eyes and looked at it carefully for a while. During this period, there was no sound in the hall, and even a needle could be heard when it fell on the ground.

I saw the third gentleman put down the contract in his hand, turned to Yu Mingyuan and said, "What does Master Yu think?"

Yu Mingyuan didn't expect San Gongshi to ask himself to express his opinion as soon as he came, and he was stunned. He quickly took over the conversation and said: "I always attach importance to evidence in handling cases. Now that the two parties involved are no longer alive, I want to prove the authenticity of their fingerprints. What the magistrate of Fu County said just now is that the fingerprints on other manuscripts are needed for comparison, but it also involves another situation, that is, how to prove that the fingerprints on other manuscripts are his own. It is because it is not rigorous, so the lower officials think that there is no way to prove the authenticity of this contract, so the contract is invalid, and in this case, it can be inferred that the collusion between Xu Zhengde and Zhang Guofu cannot be cleared from the suspicion."

"My lord Yu is right," the third gentleman nodded, and then raised his voice and asked, "But there are other evidences. If there are any doubts at the scene, they can be presented."

At this moment, a person stood out from the crowd below, and she said: "The woman also has a copy of the contract!"

Ming Rou felt that the voice was very familiar, so she hurriedly raised her head to see that the pretty woman standing in front of her, who else could it be other than her own mother Ming Yulan, but she didn't know why she appeared here, holding a piece of rice paper tightly in her hand, Behind him is the inseparable young butler Mu Jianian, and Fu Bo, whom he hasn't seen for a long time.

"Who is making noise in the hall!" Yu Mingyuan didn't expect that there would be people rushing in to deliver evidence at this time. He felt a little uneasy in his heart, and his tone was even worse. He raised his voice, intending to overwhelm others in terms of momentum, which meant a warning It was quite heavy, as if she wanted to imply that Ming Yulan should stop talking nonsense.

How could Ming Yulan be overwhelmed by him, she stepped forward and said loudly: "The woman is Ming Yulan, the daughter of Ming Quan, a former member of the Ming family, and my father is the guarantor of this contract."

Ming Rou in the crowd had never seen her mother so calm and composed. Ming Yulan's back was straight in front of her eyes, which was very different from the attitude she used to cling to her unscrupulous father, and her temperament gradually became prominent. Li couldn't help but rejoice.

The appearance of Ming Yulan instantly disrupted the rhythm of Yu Mingyuan's court trial, and made him feel very angry. Unfortunately, before he could speak, Sangong said to the yamen servant next to him: "Since it is the relevant witness, And bring her here."

Ming Yulan was brought to the hall, knelt down to salute, and then presented the deed: "One of the handprints on the deed belonged to my father. Several people signed the deed that day, and the women happened to accompany them As a guest at Xu’s house, the contract was signed and the woman was there, so she can be sure that the contract is genuine, and the contract is in triplicate, and the woman still keeps one of them.”

Yu Mingyuan suddenly felt his temples throbbing. He looked around, wondering who had leaked the news, which led to the emergence of new witnesses and evidence, and it appeared so timely.

Until the third gentleman beside him coughed lightly, Yu Mingyuan didn't dare to neglect, and quickly asked Liu Chengye to arrange someone to verify the status of the contract.

With the imperial envoy here, no one dared to take it lightly, and even spoke cautiously.

Liu Chengye replied: "Return to the imperial envoy, this contract is exactly the same as the previous one. It was signed by Xu Zhengde and Zhang Guofu respectively. Mingquan is the witness. The fingerprints of the three are exactly the same. Please decide."

Yu Mingyuan said: "Even if new evidence emerges, it's just two identical contracts. It's still the same as what I said just now. Two of the parties involved are not alive, and the fingerprints cannot be verified, so they are invalid."

Liu Chengye and others also whispered in agreement.

Ming Yulan said: "The women were also there that day, why can't they be used as witnesses to prove the authenticity of the contract."

At that time Zhang Huan stood up and said: "The little official was also there that day, and the little official can prove that the contract signed is not this one, and the amount and specifications of the materials on it are wrong."

The two couldn't stop arguing for a moment, and the surrounding people also talked about it. The whole wind direction was one-sided from the beginning, and slowly reversed.

Just when the two sides were at a stalemate, a loud voice came from behind the crowd: "Since everyone wants the party to come to the scene in person, now that Zhang is here, the contract is still uncountable.

As soon as the words were finished, a fat man walked out from behind the crowd, not Zhang Guofu or anyone else.

The onlookers backed away one after another, yelling ghosts.

For a moment, the entire courtroom was in chaos.

Several officials in the hall, big and small, also stood up with horror on their faces.

Liu Chengye's eyes widened even more. Looking at Zhang Guofu who was walking towards him, he took several big steps back and said with a trembling mouth, "You—are you a human or a ghost?"

Zhang Guofu laughed loudly, and said with a ruthless face: "Master Liu, I didn't expect that."

Under the suggestion of San Gongshi earlier, Zhang Guofu quickly figured out his situation. A breakthrough was opened here, so there was such a trick of feigning death.

Of course, as the party in charge of the construction, Zhang Guofu can't stay out of the matter anyway, but even if he has to take responsibility, it's better than moving his head, not to mention the infamy of the Zhang family. Zhang Guofu, who figured all this out Without hesitation, he took the medicine of feigning death and entered the game of Sangong.

As expected, Liu Chengye and his party were deceived. Taking advantage of Zhang Guofu's sudden death, they couldn't wait to hold the trial, and wanted to find out the matter as soon as possible.

But he never expected that this would suit San Gongshi's wishes.

Zhang Guofu knelt on the ground and kowtowed to the three officials: "Bing imperial envoy, Caomin can prove that the contract was signed by Caomin and Xu Zhengde, because the project funds received at that time totaled 3 taels of silver, and the planned material cost was about 1 Within 1 taels, the labor cost is 1 taels, and the remaining [-] taels are used for grassroots relationships and personal rewards."

Hearing Zhang Guofu's statement, there was an uproar among the surrounding crowd in an instant, and the people talked a lot. The 10 taels of silver were actually used in the project, but less than 2 taels, so what is the remaining 8 taels used for? That's a lot of money.

Not only were the people angry, but the county magistrate Fu who was sitting on the stage couldn't help but stood up and patted the table, saying, "It's unreasonable! It's unreasonable!"

Seeing his gaffe, Yu Mingyuan felt bad in his heart, but he still shouted, "My lord Fu, what are you doing to lose your composure in front of the imperial envoy?"

Fu County magistrate ignored him, walked up to San Gong from his seat, knelt down, and said sadly: "Mr. As entrusted by the Holy Majesty, the lower official is willing to apologize with death, please His Royal Highness punish him."

"That's true. You didn't notice such an important matter at all. It's dereliction of duty. However, it's not the time to hold you accountable. I will settle the score with you later." Order to go back.

The county magistrate Fu didn't dare to offend her, so he returned to his seat obediently.

At this time, thin beads of sweat were already appearing on Yu Mingyuan's forehead, hesitating and not knowing how to proceed with the trial.

Sangong sneered and said: "Why, is the magistrate Yu not feeling well right now and needs to rest? Fugao, you come to the trial of the next case! Come here, give Sir Yu a seat, sit by the side and see how Master Fu is doing How did the trial go?"

Yu Mingyuan was kicked off the trial stand by the San Gongshi in a few words. He was very frightened and didn't dare to argue, so he had to change his position and sit on the chair, not daring to move.

The magistrate of Fu County didn't dare to refuse when he saw that the gentleman was so angry, he hurriedly bowed and continued to take over the trial of the case.

As soon as he took the stage, he sorted out Xu Zhengde's case just now, and said slowly: "Since the witness and material evidence has been verified to be true and clear, and the direction is clear——Xu Zhengde, as a material dealer, follows the principle of fair trading, and does not use fakes as fakes. Good facts, so far there are no other doubts in this case, Xu Zhengde will be taken away, and he will be released after completing the procedures, as for Zhang Huan, he will be imprisoned and awaiting release."

"Then there are two other cases. In one, Zhang Guofu still undertook the construction of flood control dams and wharves even though he knew that the budget for the project was insufficient. Vulnerable under the ravages."

When Zhang Guofu heard Fu County Magistrate's words, he couldn't help but feel suspenseful. He was about to speak out when he was glared at by Fu Gao. Thinking about it carefully, this statement seems to be better than the accusation of himself colluding with the superior to embezzle money Some, then hurriedly shut his mouth and remained silent.

Immediately afterwards, I heard the magistrate of Fu County say: "The second case is that Liu Chengye, the county captain of Pingle County, embezzled 7 taels of government project funds, resulting in insufficient funds and the collapse of the project, causing countless casualties among the people recently. Zhang Guofu and Liu Chengye—you What else do you two have to say?"

Zhang Guofu knew that this crime was a light one for him, and if the official hadn't appeared, his fate today would have been even worse. Now that he heard the question from the magistrate of Fu County, he immediately kowtowed and pleaded guilty.

But Liu Chengye who was at the side was now in a dilemma, knelt on the ground with a plop, unable to utter a word.

"Master Liu, do you want to say that the imperial court allocated only 3 taels of silver, or that the entire 10 taels were handed over to Zhang Guofu for disposal? That's the only way to say that. If neither, then the remaining 7 Or did they grow wings and fly into the sky?" The magistrate of Fu County fixed his eyes on Liu Chengye, with anger on his face, and his words were sharp.

Seeing that Liu Chengye was speechless, the county magistrate Fu said again: "The secretary will be here, and immediately report the money in and out of the embankment and the wharf."

The magistrate of Fu County naturally read the previous account books, but Sihui was bought by Liu Chengye and others early in the morning and revised the account books, so Fu Gao couldn't find any faults at that time.

But now that things have come to this point, anyone can see that the previous account book is a fabrication.

The secretary knelt on the ground tremblingly, and presented the previous account book.

Seeing that it was the same account book as before, the magistrate Fu threw the account book on his face, and said with a cold snort: "You still use the previous account book to fool me. I'm talking about the real account book. If it doesn't exist, you Just dictate it face-to-face, I won’t pursue the details with you, but you should be able to remember the big items above 5000 taels.”

Si Hui fell on the ground and looked up at Liu Chengye who was beside him, with a perplexed expression on his face, not knowing how to answer.

"Confused, open your eyes and see, now it is the Sangong who is hunting and shepherding on behalf of the heavens, as if the holy man is here in person. Could it be that the scholars you are loyal to are bigger than the current emperor!" The county magistrate saw that a long time had passed, and the secretary would answer Without saying a word, he slapped the gavel angrily and drank.

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room fell silent for an instant. The hat that Fu Gao threw out was not insignificant. If it was serious, it could even approach the crime of treason and treason. For a moment, everyone dared not take a breath. Only the third gentleman in the courtroom was left with his hands on his knees, looking at the black head kneeling on the ground with a relaxed expression.

Si Hui was even more frightened by these words, his face paled for a while, and he kowtowed and said: "The little official is really wronged. It was Master Liu who found the little official and asked the little official to adjust the account book according to his wishes. , The specific silver counting of these things, the small official did not participate at all, but the small official was present to register when Master Liu handed over the 3 taels of silver to Boss Zhang, and the remaining official silver, the small official did not have a dime seen."

"It's good that you are a secretary, and you are eating the salary of the imperial court. You actually conspired with others to calculate the money for the imperial court's disaster prevention project. You have taken the guts of a leopard. Can you take the money!"

Si Hui was so frightened that his whole body trembled, and he hurriedly kowtowed to the third officer and begged for mercy: "Your Highness, the little official was wronged—it was him, Liu Chengye who forced me, and he said that if I didn't help him settle the debt, he would kill me." The whole family, I have no choice but to obey."

No matter what Si Hui said was involuntary or something else, but the words clearly stated that Liu Chengye's private embezzlement of 7 taels of silver was a certainty.

After realizing this, the people onlookers cursed one after another, and some of them who lost their relatives in the flood were even more furious.

"Well, you Liu Chengye, it turns out that you are the chief culprit of this disaster. You are truly unforgivable. Are you worthy of the thousands of victims along the Wanyang River? Are you worthy of the hundreds of people who died this time!"

"Liu Chengye will die—"

"It turned out that it was the thief calling for a thief, but it turned out that he was the one who spread rumors that the Xu family's materials were faulty and caused the dam to collapse. It's really vicious."

"This matter was discovered by the imperial envoy who came down and spent a lot of effort. Those who haven't been found out don't know how many evil things have happened."

………………

There was a lot of discussion around, colleagues and common people cast contemptuous looks on him, even the high-ranking San Gongshi looked at him with cold eyes, Liu Chengye panicked, he raised his eyes to look at Yu Mingyuan beside him, and cast a look for help, Unfortunately, the person in front of him turned his head to the side.

The magistrate of Fu County sneered: "Master Liu, we have been colleagues for more than ten years, and your family property is less than a thousand taels of silver. Where did the money go? Let's recruit it truthfully."

Liu Chengye looked terrified, but still shook his head.

At this time, Sangong finally spoke: "Liu Chengye, 7 taels of silver, and the death toll caused by the collapse of the embankment in recent years are all counted on your head, which is enough to kill your nine clans, or are you willing to use all your clansmen?" Life, to bear all these crimes for the people behind it?"

These words from the official finally completely collapsed Liu Chengye's defense line. His body went limp, and he sat on the ground like a puddle of mud: "It was the nobles in the capital who ordered me to do this..."

When San Gongshi heard the words "noble man from the capital", the expression on his face finally changed. He stood up, walked to Liu Chengye's side, knelt down to be at eye level with him and said, "Oh, which noble man is that?"

Liu Chengye was terrified by the cold aura around her, knocked his head on the ground, trembling all over, and murmured: "I don't know... I don't know..."

A picture of madness.

San Gongshi snorted coldly, stood up, looked down at Liu Chengye's hunched body condescendingly, sneered, and did not continue to ask questions.

It's just that when passing by Fu County Magistrate, his face was very displeased, and said: "Fu Gao, such a big thing happened in Pingle County, as a parent official, you didn't notice it at all, let it develop, and finally died like this Many people, how did you become an official?"

Fu county magistrate knew that he was negligent in this regard, so he knelt down to accept the crime, but he still felt aggrieved and said: "The officials in the county have long been aware of it, but every time they want to investigate, there are always various things happening, and there is no way to do it." Let's start, and the official has written to the imperial court many times, explaining the situation one by one, but there is no reply. The official has been waiting for someone from the imperial court to investigate for the past few years, but no one came. I just heard yesterday that an imperial envoy came to Pingle, and I couldn't help being overjoyed, but I never thought that the official's visit this time was not made by His Majesty after seeing the official's memorial. Take full responsibility for your own inaction over the years."

San Gong knew what was going on as soon as he heard it, Fu Gao alone was unable to move forward or retreat in this environment surrounded by fierce tigers. Long ago, the emperor was still young and eunuchs controlled the government, so it was also difficult for the capital, let alone the lower ones.

She turned her head to Yu Mingyuan and said, "Master Yu, did you hear that, what the county magistrate just said has been submitted to the imperial court many times, I don't know if the memorial has ever been to the government office, and then handed over layer by layer?"

Yu Mingyuan's eyelids twitched suddenly, but he didn't expect the official to cut in from here. If it was received, the official would find the corresponding record in the government office to verify it, but the memorial submitted by Pingle at that time He had been intercepted a long time ago at this step, and there was no corresponding record.

So I had no choice but to bite the bullet and said: "I've never seen the melodies played by Mr. Fu."

Of course Fugao knew that Yu Mingyuan would say that, a raccoon like a dog, not to mention anything else, there are many minions of Liu Chengye in the county government, as soon as the memorial is sent out, he will send people to intercept it first, and even if it really arrives, Yu In Mingyuan's hands, he would not submit it.

At this moment, Uncle Fu, who was originally following behind Ming Yulan, suddenly stepped forward and said, "Master Imperial Envoy, Caomin has something to say."

If it was the court trial held by Yu Mingyuan, the witnesses and material evidence that jumped out one after another during this period would have been hastily dismissed by him, but now this is the place of the San Gongshi, and she is eager for more people to correct. She raised her hand to let Forber speak.

When Fu County Magistrate saw Uncle Fu, he couldn't help being stunned, as if he remembered something.

Uncle Fu knelt on the ground and said: "Cao Min is Fu Lin, the personal old servant of Ming Quan, who passed away in power in the Ming family. I would like to remind Mr. Yu that six years ago I went to Mingzhou with the old man to do business. The county magistrate begged my grandfather to help him quietly send a memorial to Mr. Yu’s home. He said that there were too many unknown eyeliners. It’s gone forever, and I don’t know if Master Yu has received it, so I want to try again.”

"My old man also cares about the people of Pingle, so he agreed to help. After going to Mingzhou, he found Mr. Yu's private house. He heard that Mr. Yu was the richest man in Pingle and asked to see us. My lord, I have completed the task that my lord helped me to explain, but now my lord claims that I have never received any copy of the playbook, the grassroots are puzzled, and I hope my lord can give me some answers."

Yu Mingyuan finally thought of such a thing, couldn't help shrinking his pupils, and made a lot of calculations, and left another trick with the old man.

After Fu Bo finished speaking, he added: "After the grandfather came back, his health deteriorated. He was suspected of being poisoned, but the doctor didn't find it. This matter is quite strange. I dare not waste the precious time of the imperial envoy. Show mercy and thoroughly investigate the cause of Grandfather's death."

Ming Rou and Ye Qiuniang in the crowd were secretly excited when Uncle Fu appeared. When Uncle Fu was kicked out of the Ming Mansion earlier, Uncle Fu stood by Du Xian's side. Now that I think about it, it must be the grandfather's account. At this time, Uncle Fu proposed to find out the real culprit for the grandfather, and couldn't help but burst into tears.

After listening to Uncle Fu's words, Sangong turned to Fu County Magistrate and said, "Master Fu, is there such a thing?"

The magistrate of Fu County hurriedly said: "It is true. At that time, there was no response to the submission of more than ten scores. I wanted to give up. I just learned that Mingquan went to Mingzhou. Such an entrustment is inherent, but in the end there was still no response. Since then, the lower officials can only protect themselves wisely, but they have also burdened hundreds of thousands of people in Pingle, so the lower officials are incompetent."

"I'll talk about your matter later," San Gongshi stood up, walked in front of Yu Mingyuan, and said coldly, "Master Yu, do you have anything else to say?"

Sweat dripped from Yu Mingyuan's forehead, and his mind was in a hurry to defend himself, but Sangong took a deep breath and said, "Yu Mingyuan, Yu Mingyuan, do you really think that Du Chong can really protect you? "

When Yu Mingyuan heard her mention the word "Du Chong", he suddenly felt weak all over.

"Ah Nian, come out—"

As the official's voice fell, a man's figure squeezed in from the crowd and stood under the hall. Ye Qiuniang and Ming Yulan's mother and daughter were all shocked. This person was Mu Jianian, the housekeeper invited by Du Xian himself, but he did not A person who knows when he has become a public servant.

"It has long been suspected that Du Chong has internal support in Pingle, and indeed he has a younger brother."

As soon as Mu Jianian appeared, the eyes of several people present were suddenly darkened. It is said that this person has been with his father-in-law all these years since he was brought back from Changlefang by Chongming's father-in-law. Didn't hide it from him, in this way, everything would be over.

Up to the present step, the context of the gang headed by Du Chong has gradually become clear. The San Gongshi no longer hesitated, and immediately sent people to arrest Mingyuan and Liu Chengye. Waiting for the verdict, most scholars should wait for the news from the capital, and see how the emperor and Du Chong compete, before finally deciding whether to send Mingyuan, Liu Chengye and others to the capital for trial.

As for the magistrate of Fu County, Sangong said: "Fugao, you were too negligent about the dam, which caused the flood to come without any precautions, which made the disaster worse. I think you have been able to keep your heart for so many years. I'm in the same boat as Yu Mingyuan, and I won't hold you accountable for the time being, but I hope you can properly handle the post-disaster reconstruction and the people's living and working in peace and contentment, and make amends. As for the stolen money, we have to see if it can be recovered. There is no doubt that the dam needs to be repaired. You also have to think about whether there are other feasible ways."

Now this ending is already the best ending Fu County Magistrate could think of. He hurriedly knelt down to accept the order, and heard San Gongshi say: "As for the Ming family, they have given great support and help to Pingle County over the years. I have also heard about the disaster relief, and I also know about the good deeds that the old man did back then, but the cause of his death is really strange, I order you to file a case immediately, and retrial the cause of the old man's death without delay."

Fu Gao listened and responded repeatedly.

Ming's mother and daughter, Ye Qiuniang and others in the crowd heard this, their eyes turned red with excitement, they knelt on the ground and kowtowed to the gentleman. Others saw the source of the flood and the disaster was also investigated clearly. They only thought that the third gentleman was really a blue sky The elder also knelt down on the ground, and called the imperial envoy wise.

San Gongshi looked at the backs of the people who were taken away in the hall, and couldn't help rubbing his brows. The trip to Pingle County this time was considered to have met the expectations.

But she didn't want that when she lowered her head, the woman who had been watching from a distance outside the door watched the trial end, and also walked behind the crowd.