It wasn't easy to become an official in the Tang dynasty, and the aristocratic families were still the main providers of court officials.
At this time, most of the quotas for the so-called imperial examinations were in the hands of the major clans. How many famous poets and scholars couldn't even muddle their way to an official position at the age of fifty? Even if they were to become an official, they couldn't even dream of becoming a seventh-rank official without the backing of a major clan.
It was easier said than done for a commoner to stand out, but Yang Mingsheng had risen from a small Director of the Ministry of Justice to the third highest position in the Ministry of Justice in just a few years!
Who was the Disciplinary Officer of the Ministry of Justice? One step up would be the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Justice. Above him were only the two positions of Minister and Assistant Minister, but he could already be considered an important official in the court. Yang Mingsheng wasn't born into an aristocratic family, nor had he married into a noble family. How could it be so easy for him to sit in this position?
Yang Fan's heart was full of doubts, but he couldn't be sure that Yang Langzhong was the person he was looking for. Yang Langzhong was a Director of the Ministry of Justice and a civil official. Coincidentally, there was also a civil official at the scene of the murder. Apart from the soldiers of the Dragonmartial Army, there was only one civil official. He clearly remembered the civil official's appearance. He wanted to take a look at this Yang Langzhong's appearance before deciding what to do next.
However, there weren't many people who had seen Yang Langzhong. Most people in the workshop knew Yang Langzhong's house, but very few had seen Yang Langzhong. Even the shopkeeper of Marquis Wu's Shop and Bōshō had never seen Yang Langzhong in person. With their status, even if they were to visit, they were only qualified to chat with Yang Langzhong's steward.
The Disciplinary Officer was of high status and power. How could commoners like them have the chance to see him? Even workers like Yang Fan and Maqiao, who were responsible for opening the workshop, could only see the carriage of four horses driving out of the Yang Residence when they opened the door every day.
The next day, Yang Fan woke up very early. He was not in charge of opening the workshop this month, so there was no need for him to wake up so early.
Yang Fan found a random excuse to strike up a conversation with the stall keeper and took the initiative to help him buy breakfast. He hurried to Jiang Xuning's stall and bought two bowls of noodle soup. When he walked back to the main gate of the Yang Mansion, the red lacquered gate of the Yang Mansion opened on time.
When it was Yang Fan's turn to open the gate, he had to welcome and send the officials' carriages and horses to the court every day. The Yang Residence was located at the first bend of the entrance to the Fang Square. The residence's gate faced the Cross Street inside the Fang Square, so he was very clear about the time Yang Langzhong opened and left the Fang Square every day. On the other hand, Yang Langzhong always went out on time, never early, never late.
The door opened!
The hinges of the Yang Residence's main gate must be regularly oiled and maintained, so that when the gate was opened, it would be soundless.
When the red lacquered gate opened, the sunlight shone on the door, rippling with a bloody light. Yang Fan could not help but squint his eyes slightly.
A few servants walked out of the Yang Family and lifted the tall threshold to the side. A carriage with four horses and four horses slowly came out of the courtyard. The carriage, surrounded by a few puffed out slaves, drove towards the entrance. The servants at the back lowered the threshold again.
Yang Fan suddenly picked up a big wooden bowl and walked over.
"Ouch!"
Yang Fan cried out, as if he had just seen the Yang Family's carriage. He wanted to dodge, but in his haste, he tripped on the uneven ground and fell forward. The bowl of noodle soup splashed out, splashing onto the head and face of a slave.
"Damn it! You little beast, how preposterous! "
The slave flew into a rage and reached out to grab Yang Fan. His claw stretched out, but for some reason, it was stuck in the greasy bowl.
"Huh? You're so unreasonable. I accidentally tripped and fell. I was just about to apologize, so how could you hit me?! ' Can the rich and powerful be so unreasonable? "
Yang Fan stretched his neck and cried out.
The slave's claw missed, and his head and face were covered in grease. He was already very annoyed, and when he heard Yang Fan complain, he was so angry that his whole body trembled. He stepped forward and grabbed Yang Fan's collar, about to punch him.
Yang Fan immediately shouted at the top of his lungs, "Someone come quickly! Fellow villagers, come and see! The people of Yang Langzhong's family are bullying us! "
A group of bored commoners surrounded them. Yang Fan, who was very popular with women, immediately received the enthusiastic support of the aunties and wives, "This is too unreasonable! How can they be like this! Even if they are powerful and influential, they can't bully people like this … "
"Stop!"
The slave threw a punch. Yang Fan covered his head with both hands and used his forearm to block the punch. The slave was about to throw a second punch when a dignified shout suddenly came from the carriage.
The bamboo curtains were slowly rolled up, revealing a cold and solemn face.
Yang Mingsheng, about forty years old, had a slender neck, a hooked nose, and a pair of sharp eyes. He slightly turned his head and looked out of the carriage. His disdainful eyes were like a vulture looking down at its prey from a high vantage point. It was very intimidating. In particular, the two deeply sunken wrinkles on both sides of his nose caused his face to reveal an extremely cold and stern expression.
Yang Langzhong coldly asked, "What is it?"
"Ah Lang (Master), this rascal splashed soup all over my face for no reason …"
The servant quickly explained the situation to Yang Mingsheng. Without waiting for Yang Fan to speak, many people around helped Yang Fan, "He was just careless. Wasn't it because he wanted to avoid your carriage? He has already apologized. Killing someone is just a matter of nodding his head to the ground. What else do you want? "
Yang Mingsheng's brows slightly wrinkled. He withdrew his hawk-like sharp gaze and lightly said, "Let him go. Go back and change your clothes. You don't need to accompany me to court today! Let's go! "
The bamboo curtain was slowly lowered, covering his upright and still body.
The commoners, to him, were just ants under his feet. If an ant climbed onto his feet, he would just flick it away. Who would be angry with an ant?
The carriage rumbled away, and the people who had gathered to watch the show also dispersed. The ant that was ignored by Yang Langzhong was still staring in the direction of his departure, motionless.
That pair of sunken eyes, that hawk-like nose, that sharp and cold gaze, that meticulous hair, and especially those two ravine-like wrinkles, were like magnets that deeply attracted his eyes.
Yang Fan's eyes gradually rippled with a bloody shadow. The scene in front of him was sometimes hazy and sometimes clear. He seemed to see a verdant valley, a burning village, mutilated corpses, and mournful and desperate cries. He seemed to see his Elder Sister running in the mountains like a doe, watching her head fly …
All kinds of scenes changed in his mind. The background was always Yang Mingsheng's infinitely magnified image: sunken eyes, hawk-like nose, and two deep wrinkles.
"Kill! Kill them all! Don't let a single one go! "
The fierce and gloomy voice kept echoing in Yang Fan's ears, getting louder and louder!
The blood, the fire, and the corpses were all diluted by the louder and louder voice. Finally, only the face with the sunken eyes and hawk-like nose was infinitely magnified, covering the entire valley, rippling in the blood red flames. Under the ravine-like wrinkles, the mouth opened and closed, roaring, "Kill! Kill them all! Don't let a single one go! "
Yang Mingsheng, it was him.
He was Yang Mingsheng!
Yang Fan would never forget Yang Mingsheng's appearance for the rest of his life. At that time, he was still young. He was lying in the grass with a clump of weeds covering his body. Only a pair of frightened eyes could be seen. He could only see this person. This person's appearance had been deeply engraved in his mind since then. He didn't know how many times he had woken up from nightmares.
Many years had passed, and he rarely had nightmares, but he had never forgotten this image. He had never forgotten it.
The heavens had pity on him. He had finally found the cruel official with the sunken eyes and hawk-like nose!
Who said there was no heaven's will? Wasn't this the will of heaven?
"Elder Sister! Father, Mother … "
Yang Fan's eyes were lightly covered with a layer of tears. He raised his face and blinked away the tears in his eyes.
Then, he lowered his head and walked back. A heart-palpitating smile quietly appeared on his lips.
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