Volume 2: Female Corpse in Monk's Clothes Chapter 71: Mysterious Disappearance
"I didn't know the judge had arrived. I offended you. I hope you will forgive me!"
After reading Xu Zun's imperial edict and the official documents from the provincial government, the officer who had just entered quickly knelt on one knee and apologized to Xu Zun.
"Is there still law?" Xu Zun shouted excitedly, "We just came in to eat, but these hooligans rushed over and beat us like mad dogs without saying a word, and beat us up!
"Do you know what crime you will be punished for assaulting a seventh-rank official of the Great Xuan Hall? Are you tired of living?"
"Ah!?" The officer trembled all over and hurriedly defended himself, "Sir, please don't bother with them. This is definitely a misunderstanding. They really don't know that you are the Chief Justice! Ignorance is not a crime. Please forgive them, sir!"
The officer apologized while looking at the scene in front of him in confusion:
But the bearded man and others had been beaten to the point where they were almost unrecognizable. They were lying on the ground groaning in pain, and their scene was very miserable.
However, Xu Zun and others were full of energy and chatting and laughing. Who... who beat who?
Zhao Yu and Huo Anu beside him were also wiping their sweat, lamenting how thick-skinned Lord Xu was.
The ones who came up and beat people without saying a word seemed to be these three, right?
"Listen to what you are saying!" However, Xu Zun did not buy it and shouted at the officer righteously, "I am the Chief Justice, this is a misunderstanding!
"If I am just an ordinary citizen, do I deserve to be beaten to death by you? I ask you, where is the law? Where is justice?!"
"This..." The officer was so frightened that his face turned pale. He quickly said, "Your Excellency is right! It is my fault for not disciplining him properly!"
"Also, don't treat me as blind," Xu Zun said again, "You are disturbing the people under the pretext of looking for someone and illegally collecting money. Guess, when I see the governor later, will I report you?"
"Ah!?" The officer quickly knelt down on his knees and bowed his head to apologize, "Sir, please don't do this! I failed to supervise and deserve death. Please have mercy on me. I will clean up the team and enforce strict discipline. I will never dare to do this again..."
Originally, according to the rules, the Daxuan Dynasty also separated the military and politics, and Xu Zun had no control over these soldiers.
However, the Tangzhou Tixing was an official of the provincial government after all. If he really reported the matter to the army, these people would certainly be severely punished, and might even be convicted and imprisoned.
"Well, your attitude is not bad! Get up first!"
Xu Zun knew clearly that if he really took it seriously and sued them, he would lose.
Since these soldiers dared to illegally make money under the guise of looking for people, it means that their superiors must have already acquiesced.
If you really sue them, you will only get a cold shoulder.
So, it’s better to quit while you’re ahead.
"Come here," the officer pointed at the four people who were beaten and ordered, "These guys have brought shame to our team. Take them away and give them 40 military sticks as punishment. Anyone who dares to disturb the people again will be severely punished!"
"Yes!" The soldiers immediately stepped forward and dragged out the captains who had already been beaten badly...
"Boss," the officer was very discerning. He immediately took out a silver ingot and said to the innkeeper, "Why don't you quickly bring out your best wine and food to entertain the Chief Justice!"
“Okay, okay…” The shopkeeper knew that a high-ranking official had arrived, and hurried to the kitchen to prepare meals.
The guys also wisely stepped forward to clean up the battlefield and sort out the mess.
"Sir, this is just a small token of my appreciation. It's not a sign of respect, haha..." The officer took out a purse and stuffed it into Xu Zun's arms.
"Oh..." Xu Zun stopped hurriedly.
He also didn't expect that this soldier would be so outrageous as to dare to bribe openly in public.
From this we can see that Daxuan's bribery is not uncommon.
However, Xu Zun knew his limits and absolutely could not accept the money. If he did, there would be endless troubles.
"This..." The officer didn't expect Xu Zun to refuse it, and was very embarrassed for a moment.
"Come," Xu Zun motioned the officer to sit down and asked, "What's your name? What's your position? Which team do you belong to? As long as you answer truthfully, I won't bother you!"
"Oh," the officer replied quickly, "I am Ranlin, the Wuzheng of the 17th Squadron of the Shangyuan Garrison Army."
oh……
Xu Zun searched his memory and found that Wu Zheng was a military position. Although he had no rank, he was in charge of at least two to three hundred people and had certain real power.
"What are you looking for by conducting such a massive search in Dahuai County?" Xu Zun asked again.
"Sir," Ran Lin replied hastily, "The daughter of Marquis Changping is missing. I am responsible for searching Dahuai Town and nearby villages to find Miss Lu's whereabouts!"
"Oh..." Xu Zun asked again, "Do you know how Miss Lu, the Marquis of Changping, disappeared?"
"I was kidnapped by criminals five days ago!" Ran Lin answered truthfully.
"What!?" Xu Zun was surprised. "Kidnapped?"
"No way?" Zhao Yu was also shocked. "That's the daughter of the Marquis's family. Who is so bold?"
"Where was he kidnapped?" Xu Zun asked again.
"Well..." Ran Lin hesitated.
"You can speak freely," Xu Zunyan said, "You have read the official document. This time I came to Shangyuan City just to investigate this case!"
"Oh," Ran Lin no longer hesitated, "Miss Lu was attacked and kidnapped by criminals on her way home from Qinglan Study after school!"
"Study?" Xu Zun was curious, "Then Miss Lu has no guards?"
"Two sedan bearers, two guards, and a personal maid were all knocked unconscious by the criminals!" said Ran Lin.
"What's Miss Lu's name? How old is she?" Xu Zun asked again.
"Lu Mingyue, 16 years old."
As he spoke, Ran Lin waved to his soldier, who immediately handed over a scroll.
As the scroll opened, a portrait of a young and beautiful woman was revealed.
"We have never seen this Miss Lu," Ran Lin explained, "so I don't know whether this portrait is realistic or not."
"Okay," Xu Zun carefully looked at Lu Mingyue's portrait, and then asked Ran Lin, "Tell me about the study!"
"Qinglan Study is located in Qinglan Temple. It is the only girls' school in Shangyuan City. All the students there are noble ladies from Shangyuan City." Ran Lin introduced, "Miss Lu goes to the study to attend lectures twice a week."
oh……
Xu Zun searched his memory and did not expect that the Great Xuan Dynasty did have a relaxed policy towards women and allowed women to study in class.
"What do people usually talk about in the study?" Xu Zun asked again.
"Well, I don't know about that," Ran Lin shook his head, "I guess they are all about Taoism or Taoist scriptures, right?"
"Oh..." Xu Zun pondered for a moment and asked, "Have you gained anything in your search over the past few days?"
"No!" Ran Lin answered simply, "Nothing was found. The criminal disappeared without a trace after kidnapping the young lady. It's as if he disappeared from the face of the earth!"
It’s like this…
Xu Zun frowned, already sensing that there was something unusual in this case.
Since they dared to kidnap the daughter of the Marquis's family, this group of criminals must have some ulterior motive!
Logically speaking, five days have passed, so you should have received the ransom letter by now, right?
Could it be... that it's not about seeking wealth, but revenge?
Or... Marquis Changping had already received the blackmail letter, but under pressure, he did not inform the government?
Although he has not yet obtained all the information, Xu Zun has already vaguely felt that neither of the above two situations seems to be reasonable.
If it was revenge, the body should have been found long ago!
If threatened with extortion, the Marquis of Changping would certainly find a way to stop the search, and these soldiers would not have made such a big fuss.
This case... seems a little weird?
"Hey?" At this time, Huo Anu remembered something and asked Ran Lin, "You said you were from the Shangyuan Garrison Army, then who is the captain of your garrison army?"
"The left colonel is the flag colonel Yuan Xingtai." Ran Lin replied.
"What about the right colonel?" Huo Anu asked.
"The right lieutenant is our direct superior," Ran Lin replied, "Jingwu lieutenant Shen Xinglian..."
