Volume 2: Residence in the Capital Chapter 261: Never Blame the King
The appointment of the governor of Xuanda was a little unexpected to Wang Jie, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture. Compared with staying in the capital, he really preferred to govern a region. Although there were also constraints, it was much better than the high-ranking officials in the capital, who were no better than dogs. He also didn't have to face all kinds of troubles. However, no matter how confident he was, he knew that the situation in Xuanfu and Datong after the war would definitely be difficult to deal with.
Moreover, when Lu Chan came to convey the appointment, he was very considerate and told him that it was Zhang Shou who recommended him.
It would be a joke if a sixth-rank official recommended a second-rank official. Wang Jie knew that if Lü Chan had not received the emperor's tacit approval, such information would never have reached him. As for the emperor's order to transfer people from Jiuzhangtang to strengthen his entourage, he did not understand that the emperor was worried and wanted to place a private person there. Instead, he was very happy to accept it.
The main premise is that the emperor was very wise and did not send Lu Zhaichang, the fat boy from the Lu family who was always good at causing trouble, over!
However, everyone knew that Wang Jie was about to leave Beijing, but he had not yet been dismissed as the governor of Shuntian Prefecture - because the government at all levels had not yet issued the seal, and even the previous appointment of the governor of Xuanda was made by the emperor who urgently summoned the cabinet ministers, so he could not set off until the new governor of Shuntian Prefecture came out. What's more, it was said that it was snowing heavily in Xuanfu, and it was impossible to travel on the road.
Therefore, although Wang Jie, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, had already entered the countdown, he was still sitting quietly in Shuntian Prefecture. Although everyone from the clerks to the policemen were preparing to send off the iron-faced Wang Datou, no one dared to show the slightest joy, and they did not dare to be negligent in their work. That night, Lin Laohu, the head of the prison who went to deal with the fight between the local hooligans and bullies, brought back a group of people for Wang Dayin.
At this moment, Wang Jie in the second hall was staring at Zhang Shou who was calm and composed, Zhu Tingfang who was composed, Zhu Ying who was looking around, and Ah Liu who had no expression on his face. He felt his temples throbbing and he couldn't help but get a headache.
He tried hard to suppress the urge to curse, and said with a stern face, "Dr. Zhang, please explain to me, what were you doing in the middle of the night in a place that is notoriously remote and often has all kinds of crimes? And you brought so many guards with you, you can't tell me that you were going to eliminate violence and protect the good, right?"
"Why can't it be about eliminating violence and upholding justice?" Zhu Ying muttered, but when she noticed that Wang Datou's face had turned black and his eyes were murderous, she immediately stopped joking and hid behind Zhang Shou.
Zhu Tingfang was about to speak, but when he saw Zhang Shou step forward, bow to Wang Jie, and start explaining what happened tonight before him, he remained silent and stood there listening to what Zhang Shou had to say with interest.
"Wang Dayin, tonight, someone sent a private message to Ah Liu, saying that they wanted to tell the truth about the old beggar woman beating the drum in Shuntian Mansion. However, they would not tell him until Yingying and I go together, so Ah Liu, who is skilled and brave, drove Yingying and me out. But at the same time, someone sent a message to Master Zhu, saying that there might be a trick, so it would be better to bring more people and follow behind..."
But as Zhu Tingfang listened, his face remained motionless, but he felt a little sneered in his heart. Zhang Shou's statement, which sounded quite plausible, was actually complete nonsense!
It wasn't someone else who sent him a message. It was clearly Zhang Shou who asked Mother Jiang to tell him that after the incident on New Year's Eve, Liu had found a group of local thugs to investigate the mystery behind the complaints. Now one of them had found out the mystery and suspected a fraud, so he asked him to take a few more people with him just in case, but not to mix with Zhu Hong and others, and to try to hold back and not kill anyone.
Zhang Shou first explained the causes and consequences in detail, and then began to explain the consequences: "The guy who asked Ah Liu to come out with us was very thoughtful about the meeting place. He did not tell Ah Liu in advance, but set up marks along the way. After we arrived at the place, he did not come out to meet us. Ah Liu finally scared him out, but said that the old beggar's granddaughter was captured, so he beat the drum to complain."
Seeing that Wang Jie listened carefully, he continued, "When the guy was halfway through his words, Ah Liu noticed someone sneaking up on him not far away, so he raised his hand and shot an arrow to scare the person away..."
This time, Wang Jie suddenly interrupted Zhang Shou with a stern face: "You said Ah Liu actually shot an arrow? In the capital, bows and arrows are not allowed to be used recklessly. Doesn't he know this ban?"
Zhu Tingfang was slightly stunned, and then he remembered that unless they were noble children of high rank, or officers and soldiers with official positions in the army, the capital city strictly prohibited bows and arrows, and he couldn't help but feel a little worried. But when he looked at Ah Liu, he saw that the young man still looked calm and composed, and even Zhang Shou did not show any panic.
The next moment, he got the answer: "A Liu is now the martial arts instructor of the second son Zhu of the Duke of Zhao's mansion. Because he was appointed by the emperor and was to teach the second son Zhu archery, the emperor gave him a title in the Ruiqi Battalion and let him receive a salary."
As for how much the salary is, Zhang Shou certainly wouldn't say - if he told others about Ah Liu's high salary, it would surely cause public outrage!
Although Wang Jie frowned in disapproval, the Ruiqi Battalion was the imperial guards. If the emperor wanted to place someone there, and he insisted on resisting, it would be a desperate pursuit of fame. After all, the young man in front of him had made contributions in capturing traitors. So he coughed and changed the subject, "Dr. Zhang, please continue."
Zhang Shou knew that Wang Jie was not the kind of person who was so strong in his own area that he could not adapt, so he continued his speech calmly.
" While Ah Liu was threatening those sneaky guys, the guy who had arranged to meet him suddenly attacked, rolled under the carriage, and stabbed the carriage with a knife. If Yingying and I hadn't heard the noise outside, we would have been afraid of being caught in the car, so we quietly opened the back door of the carriage and got out. I'm afraid the consequences would be disastrous..."
After briefly describing the process of Ah Liu capturing the people, Zhang Shou also said that Zhu Hong and others who followed behind were forced to fight back by guys who rushed out from nowhere with sticks, while the other group of people led by Zhu Tingfang discovered those sneaky guys who were forced to retreat by Ah Liu, so they stepped forward to capture them...
In short, in the eyes of Zhu Tingfang who had personally experienced this incident, Zhang Shou's behavior was typical of evading the truth and addressing the false. Nine things were true and one was false, and the falsehood seemed so real!
Wang Jie also heard that Zhang Shou's words were not entirely true, but he knew that no matter what, it was obvious that Zhang Shou or the Zhu family wanted to find out who was behind the incident. Therefore, he only asked Zhu Tingfang and Zhu Ying a few questions, and seeing that they said the same thing as Zhang Shou, he did not ask Ah Liu at all and made a decision directly.
"Go and inform Magistrate Song. He will judge those local hooligans and bullies. After finding out the reasons, he will make direct decisions. If necessary, he will be beaten. After that, he will be exiled or sentenced to hard labor. Don't put so many people in the prison. The cells of Shuntian Prefecture are almost full with the endless cases."
Lin Lao Hu, the head of the prison, agreed timidly. Hearing that Wang Jie did not throw out the most difficult assassin, he could not help but sigh that Wang Datou was still Wang Datou. He was willing to take the blame for such a dark matter. Although it was not easy to follow Wang Datou, he had to admire his own prefectural governor in terms of taking responsibility.
So, even though he knew he shouldn't say too much, he still asked in a low voice: "Wang Dayin, after the 18th day of the first lunar month, all major government offices will officially start issuing official documents. I think the person who will take over your position as the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture should be here. This case..." Wouldn't it be easier for you to wait for the new prefect to take over this case?
Before he could finish his words, Wang Jie said firmly, "Is there any need to say this? One should leave after one's work is done. Do you think this government will leave the unfinished cases to others? Whether they are relatives of the emperor or princes, this government has dealt with them before! Go quickly and stop talking nonsense!"
Seeing Lin Lao Hu hurriedly turning around and running away, and Ah Liu thinking for a moment outside, he also quietly retreated. Zhu Ying didn't understand what was going on, but she had always admired Wang Jie, so she couldn't help but say, "Wang Dayin, the guy Ah Liu caught is a desperate man. He was trying to commit suicide before in my eldest brother's hands. I'm afraid that this kind of person can't tell the truth even if he is tortured."
"Did I ever say that I would torture him to open his mouth?" Wang Jie sneered, then looked at Zhu Tingfang and said, "Mr. Zhu, you probably don't know that your future brother-in-law has caused a lot of trouble since he came to the capital. There are several unsolved cases that have been thrown to me, and I had to cut the Gordian knot for most of them."
"Of course, the so-called quick and decisive action means that if I can get any information out of the investigation, I will interrogate them and find out the mastermind behind the scenes to serve as a warning to others, such as Zheng Huai'en. But if I can't get any information out of the investigation, I will have to deal with the main culprit. For example, the eunuch who framed Dr. Zhang, I can only deal with that person."
After all, Zhu Tingfang had just returned to Beijing not long ago, and his injuries still needed to be healed. His grandmother and stepmother strictly prohibited family members from disturbing him with those troublesome things, so he only knew a little about how his sister Zhu Ying and Zhang Shou met and got to know each other, and only knew about some of Zhang Shou's "great achievements" after arriving in Beijing. As for what kind of mess Zhang Shou had caused, he had no idea.
Therefore, Zhu Tingfang could not help but glance at Zhang Shou. Seeing Zhang Shou touching his nose unnaturally, he thought for a moment and asked, "Couldn't Wang Dayin deliberately create confusion and spread the news that he had found out the mastermind from the assassin, and then escort the assassin to the Ministry of Justice or the Dali Temple, lure the assassin out of his hole on the way, and then capture him? Wouldn't that be a way to lure out the mastermind behind the scenes?"
"This method works against ordinary people, but it's useless against the assassins, let alone the people behind them. Besides, do you think I haven't tried it before? I didn't lure anyone out. They are very patient."
Wang Jie sighed in boredom, and then said calmly: "I am not Bao Zheng who judges the living during the day and the dead at night in the drama. The series of events that have occurred in the court these days are similar to the chaos of the previous dynasties, when the princes fought for the throne and the demons were rampant. So don't say that I can't find out. The emperor has the help of the Imperial Household Department. Has he found out?"
Having said this, seeing that Zhu Tingfang was suddenly speechless, the Shuntian prefect looked at Zhang Shou and snorted.
"And Dr. Zhang recommended me to Xuanda. Wasn't it because he made me, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, take too much blame because of him, and he felt bad about it, so he wanted me to leave this mess, which was also a favor for me?"
Zhang Shou was almost amused by Wang Jie's straightforward tone: "What Wang Dayin said... How dare I let you owe me a favor? The muddy water in Xuanda is even worse than that in the capital. I just think that you, Wang Dayin, are a waste of your talent sitting in Shuntian Prefecture in the capital. You just clean up the mess all day long."
Even though Wang Jie was always upright, he couldn't help but feel relieved when he heard the words "a talent that is not being used properly". He looked Zhang Shou up and down, and finally said unhappily: "In the capital, I cleaned up the mess for the royal family and dignitaries, so that the common people could have a better life. But in Xuan Da, am I not cleaning up the mess for those arrogant soldiers and generals?"
He paused as he spoke, his tone becoming more serious: "I'm not bragging, but if someone else were to be the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, would he be able to withstand the pressure from all sides? To put it bluntly, among the petty officials in the six chambers, there are countless slippery ones. Anyone who is slightly weaker may not even be able to control these petty officials, let alone take action against the civil servants and prefectural examinations."
Putting the civil service examination and the provincial examination on an equal footing, Zhu Tingfang could not help but have a profound understanding of Wang Jie's eccentricity. However, Zhu Ying was somewhat dissatisfied with Wang Jie's statement, especially thinking that Wang Jie did not recognize Zhang Shou's kindness.
Therefore, she rolled her eyes and said with a smile, "According to what Wang Dayin meant, the position of Shuntian prefect must be held by someone who is as impartial, shrewd and capable as you?"
Wang Jie knew that this young lady was unique, so he said directly: "That's what I meant. Could it be that the young lady already has a suitable candidate ?"
Zhu Ying smiled and said proudly: "Of course!"
When she said this, not only Zhu Tingfang was surprised, but even Zhang Shou was also surprised. But Zhu Tingfang was worried that Zhu Ying's words would anger Wang Jie, the ruthless Shuntian prefect, while Zhang Shou was muttering that the eldest lady had suddenly come up with a candidate, and she hoped that she would not cheat anyone.
But soon, the two were stunned by the candidate Zhu Ying mentioned: "My father is very good! Wang Dayin, you see, my father is fair and selfless, and he is the best choice in both literary talent and military strategy. Moreover, he is the emperor's cousin, so he will definitely not be swayed by a few words..."
Wang Jie was overwhelmed. Seeing that Zhu Tingfang and Zhang Shou's expressions were not much better than his, he took a deep breath and said, "Well, since you have handed over those ruffians and bullies to me, and the assassin has also been handed over, don't worry about the rest. I have my own way!"
Zhu Ying was just about to continue trying to win Wang Jie's support for her father, but Zhu Tingfang had already grabbed her arm: "Thank you, Wang Dayin, we will take our leave now!"
Seeing Zhu Tingfang dragging Zhu Ying away without saying anything, Zhang Shou hesitated for a moment, but instead of retreating, he walked directly to Wang Jie and said in a low voice with a smile: "Actually, I also have a candidate. Please ask Wang Dayin to see if he is reliable."
He moved his lips slightly and said a name, then smiled and said, "Of course, that's what I said."
