Qi Dong Fang looked at the two children and thought they were very interesting. At this time, he couldn't find his previous thoughts. Listening to the two people casually talking, Qi Dong's sweat flowed even faster. He found that the weather was not so hot, and there was a kind of coldness from inside out.
If possible, Qi Dong really wanted to strangle the two children to death, but he could only think about it. Not to mention that there were guards standing beside the two children, even if there was no one beside them, he wouldn't dare to do it.
He naturally knew who the two children were. One was the son of the Provincial Governor, and the other was his future daughter-in-law. If anyone dared to harm them, the people here would tear them apart before the people with the crossbows could do anything.
Since he couldn't do it, he could only use other methods. Qi Dong thought about it. He didn't have anything on him that could attract the children, so he grabbed a handful of mud from the ground. There was a lot of sand, so he rubbed it vigorously. He first rubbed out the large grains of sand, and the rest was barely enough to make something.
While the others were eating, he made a small stick of grass and made and sculpted it. Soon, the two hands holding each other's hands made a small clay man. Its face looked similar to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan. Ignoring the uncomfortable feeling of his clothes sticking to his body due to the hot weather and the nervousness, he smiled and brought it closer to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan who were eating.
"Little Young Master, do you think it's fun? If it's fun, I'll make it for the two of you. I can make whatever you want. "
This was the only method Qi Dong could think of, and he hoped it would be useful.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan put down their chopsticks and looked at the clay man, then looked at Qi Dong and nodded. Without waiting for Qi Dong to say his purpose, Zhang Xiaobao spoke.
"It's fun. I didn't expect that not only are you good at calculating, but you're also so skillful. Can you really make whatever we want?"
"Yes, absolutely. Little Young Master and Little Miss, I'll make it." Seeing that there was hope, Qi Dong hurriedly promised happily.
Wang Juan looked at the place where the salt was boiling and said with a smile, "I want a clay man like that."
"What kind?" Qi Dong asked.
"A good deputy county magistrate who is always considerate of the people and won't try his best to make money from selling salt every day. He needs to have a heart that is purer than gemstones, a pair of clear eyes, and a sense of justice. Even if his nose is a little flat, even if he is a little short, even if his eyes are a little small, he is still tall in the eyes of the people. He is as lofty as a mountain and as vast as the sea. I wonder if you can pinch him?"
Wang Juan said to Qi Dong with a smile.
With a clatter, the clay figurine in Qi Dong's hand fell to the ground. Then, with a plop, he knelt down in front of Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan. His face was full of fear, and his body was trembling.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan continued to eat as if they didn't see it. From time to time, they would give each other their favorite food. They looked like they were innocent.
The people nearby also heard Wang Juan's words. As long as they were not stupid, they would know who Wang Juan was talking about. At this time, they realized that County Magistrate Qi had been lying to them to cook salt for the past few days. He said that it was for others to eat and to save money for the Provincial Governor. In fact, he kept it for himself.
They were so angry that they stopped eating. They stood up and surrounded Qi Dong. If it weren't for the fact that Little Young Master and Little Miss didn't do anything, they would have boiled Qi Dong like seawater to see if they could get a heart that was purer than gemstones.
"I'm guilty. I know I'm wrong. I'm guilty." Qi Dong thought that he had done a good job and no one would find out. Now he understood that the Provincial Governor must have found out and sent the two kids here.
While saying that he was guilty, he kept kowtowing.
Zhang Xiaobao put the last grain of rice into his mouth. He smacked his lips and rinsed his mouth with water. He looked at Qi Dong who was kneeling there and said, "My father asked me to ask you if you can't do things peacefully because of gambling debts?"
"No, I never gamble." Qi Dong shook his head and answered.
"Do you have family members who are sick but don't have money to treat them? Do you need good medicine? "Zhang Xiaobao asked again.
"No one is sick. Everyone is fine." Qi Dong continued to shake his head.
"Do you have children who are married?"
"My son is only 10 years old and my daughter is only 7 years old. How can they get married? No."
"Since you don't have children, then your crime of corruption can't be reduced. How will you be sentenced? If you are not as good as the law, you will be flogged 70 times. If you are not as good as the law, you will be flogged 100 times. If you are not as good as the law, you will be a disciple for a year. If you are not as good as the law, you will be punished. If you are the one who lost the ransom, you will be punished.
If you are the one who begged, you will be punished. If you are the one who gave, you will be punished. If not, you will be sentenced to both. I'm confused. Are you talking about Deputy County Magistrate Qi? "
Zhang Xiaobao looked at Qi Dong and asked. When Qi Dong heard these two crimes, he shivered. No matter which one he was sentenced to, he wouldn't be punished. Some things couldn't be said. For example, according to the calculations, the new Provincial Governor's family should have been killed countless times. Bribery, doing business for personal gain, disobeying the rules, having too many servants in the family, privately appointing officials, and some other things that he didn't know about. None of these things would end well.
However, no one cared about the Provincial Governor. He was caught. It didn't matter how serious the crime was. What was important was that he was convicted.
Qi Dong, who didn't dare to say anything, could only kowtow and say that he was guilty. He didn't say anything.
Of course, Zhang Xiaobao would not sentence Qi Dong to death. He was clever and talented. That was a small account. If he was properly groomed in the future, it would save him a lot of trouble. It would not be a bad idea to let him check the accounts of other departments.
Now, what he was thinking about was to let other people see and give an explanation to the people around. Thinking about this, Zhang Xiaobao ordered, "Come, tie Qi Dong up and send him to my father. Flog him 100 times and lock him up for a year. If he doesn't die from the flogging, consider him lucky."
When the guards arrived, they had already received instructions. When they heard the order, they tied Qi Dong up without another word. Qi Dong did not struggle either. He was frightened by the hundred beatings. With so many beatings, even if he did not die, he would be skinned alive, not to mention that it was intentional.
He clearly knew that Zhang Xiaobao didn't have the authority to tie him up, but he didn't dare to say anything. It was good that he wasn't taken away. Otherwise, when Zhang Xiaobao and the others left, the people would eat him up. At that time, with so many people beating him up, even if he died, it would only be a light punishment. Zhang Zhong probably wouldn't give a heavy sentence to a citizen who beat someone to death.
"You dare to take bribes and bend the law? Do you think that there aren't any accounting experts in my residence? Everyone, everyone, the bad guy has been taken away. Let's all continue eating. Oh, there's also a scribe. Come, take him away too. "
After Qi Dong was taken away, Zhang Xiaobao said something to the people around him. He also took away the scribe who cooperated with the crime. Only then did he and Wang Juan send the plates of food to the washing place and leave happily.
Zhang Xiaobao wasn't worried that other people with thoughts wouldn't know. The speed at which the people spread news was unimaginably fast. In less than a day, everyone in the province would know of this matter. As for how the rumors spread, it didn't matter.
Seeing Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan leave, the people who knew of the situation let out chaotic cheers. They began to excitedly tell the people who didn't know the matter. The more they talked, the more ridiculous it became.
While the people hated Qi Dong and the scribe, they also admired the good official even more. He was able to see through everything. Doing a little trick and he was caught.
The news spread very quickly. By the time Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan rode back to the residence, the people who were working and the management staff all knew of what happened at noon. There were indeed a few who wanted to learn and do it. At this time, they were all frightened. They were glad that they hadn't done it yet. They were also glad that the Provincial Governor had acted early. Otherwise, when they learned and did it, there would be no chance for regret.
Zhang Zhong also heard of this matter. He really didn't know that there was someone who falsified the accounts. After understanding the details, he sighed for Qi Dong. This was a bad idea. The falsification of the accounts reached Xiao Bao. This was purely courting death. The accounts of the family were all managed by the son. There were countless transactions and it was very easy for him to manage. A mere deputy county magistrate dared to falsify the accounts for his son.
Qi Dong was not escorted to Zhang Zhong's residence. Instead, he was directly escorted back to the residence. No one beat him. He was also not locked up in a cell. Instead, he was locked up in the woodshed and thrown into a corner. He was left alone.
He was locked up until night time. No one came to bring him food or water. The weather was hot and the woodshed was stuffy. After being locked up for half a day, he was a little exhausted. The main reason was not physical problems, but psychological pressure. He didn't know how he would be judged. He also didn't know what his family would do when they heard the news.
He spent the whole afternoon thinking about what went wrong. The most clear thing was that the salt that people ate and boiled did not match. However, if it was just checking the accounts, it might not be found out. Unless there was a shrewd person who came to check. Could it be that a commoner could calculate it? Moreover, it was deliberately arranged here. Was it related to the Provincial Governor?
He didn't know that it was because he had made the accounts too detailed and considered too many things. There was also a slight loophole. This was troublesome, especially when it came to firewood. Even if he didn't record it, Zhang Xiaobao wouldn't say anything. Different wood and different cooking methods used different amounts of firewood.
Firewood was not valuable, so it was fine if he didn't record it. However, he had written down the amount of firewood used by others. It was purely superfluous. Who knew what he would think if he understood?
"Xiao Bao, are you just going to lock him up like this? How long will he be locked up? I'm afraid his body can't take it. "After returning to the residence, Wang Juan glanced in the direction of the woodshed and asked Zhang Xiaobao.
"Give him some water at night. As for going to the toilet, he will find a way himself. Otherwise, he will have to endure it. When he understands why we didn't beat him and what he should do, then let him go. For the first three days, we can only give him water. He won't die."
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