Chapter 232

Ye Xiaotian solemnly thanked Deputy Xiang and turned his head to look at Deputy Qian Zong. His current identity was that of a criminal official who was being escorted. It was not his turn to deal with these matters, so he could only stand far away from Deputy Xiang.

County Magistrate Yan could not do anything to Deputy Qian Zong. Deputy Qian Zong had made it very clear that he did not use the gunpowder. Instead, it was used to blow them up. The murderer had been caught by Deputy Qian Zong. Mu Dong and the others had brought a few of their trusted aides to the forest. They were caught red-handed.

To be honest, he was the one who did not manage his subordinates well. When such a thing happened in his jurisdiction, how could he blame others for causing trouble? County Magistrate Yan was very angry, but he didn't know who to blame for this unknown fire.

After Deputy Qian Zong finished talking to him, he turned his head and shouted, "Brothers, pack up and get ready to leave."

County Magistrate Yan was stunned, "Qian Zong, where are you going?"

Deputy Qian Zong glanced at him and said, "To the capital, where else can I go?"

County Magistrate Yan held back his anger and said, "You can't go. This case is not over yet. You are the key figures in this case, so you must stay."

Deputy Qian Zong laughed angrily, "What? I was attacked in your jurisdiction. If I was not vigilant, I would have died. Do you still want me to stay?"

The Warden of Ziyang County came up to smooth things over, "General Pi, don't misunderstand. Of course, the county magistrate does not treat you as a criminal. It's just that this case is very serious. Gunpowder was used and so many people died. Our county magistrate needs to give an explanation to everyone.

If General Pi just leaves like this, there will only be a mess in my county with more than ten corpses. How can we explain it to everyone? I ask General Pi to stay for a day or two to help me sort out the cause of the case and be an important witness. "

Deputy Qian Zong's face became a little better, "If you put it like this … It's not a big deal. It's just that we have hundreds of people and we have to feed the horses …"

The Warden quickly said, "Of course I will bear all the responsibility!"

Deputy Qian Zong said, "Okay! Then we will stay for two more days. We can't stay in this orchard anymore. Please arrange a place for us to settle down. By the way, you have seen what happened today. We have more than three hundred people and we are escorting important people, so we can't live separately. The accommodation that you have arranged for us should be able to accommodate us! "

Vice Leader Pi then swaggered off. County Magistrate Yan said angrily, "This military ruffian is too arrogant!"

The Warden smiled bitterly and said, "Your Excellency, which soldier isn't vulgar? Besides, he's not under the jurisdiction of the local government, so naturally he's even more domineering. Right now, it's more important to deal with the aftermath. As long as he's willing to stay, it's fine.

County Magistrate Yan snorted heavily and said, "Take them to the county school and tell Director Hu to make room for them to stay for two or three days!"

The Warden obeyed and hurriedly chased after Vice Leader Pi. County Magistrate Yan looked at the scene and lightly patted his forehead. He felt extremely anxious and didn't know how to deal with such a situation.

Deputy Qian Zong came to Ye Xiaotian's side, "Sir Ye, the Magistrate wants us to stay here for two more days. I'm afraid we can't leave today."

Ye Xiaotian used to be a magistrate and understood the difficulties of these officials. He smiled, "I knew it. If we just leave like this, the Magistrate will be in a difficult position. Fine, let's wait for two more days. "

Ye Xiaotian was talking to Deputy Qian Zong and didn't pay much attention to Deputy Qian Zong. There were people walking between the two groups, blocking his sight. Xu Boyi left in a hurry and Ye Xiaotian didn't notice.

Deputy Qian Zong said, "Fine, we will rest for two days. There was a eunuch there just now. I heard he was sent by the court to check the oranges. In the end, all the oranges were blown up last night. I saw that eunuch's face was black and he didn't seem happy. "

Hearing this, Ye Xiaotian shook his head and broke into laughter. He had never imagined that Xu Boyi, who had disappeared a long time ago, would sneak into the palace and become an incomplete man. If he didn't see it with his own eyes, even if someone told him the eunuch was called Xu Boyi, he would only think it was someone with the same name.

…

The case was not difficult to investigate. Vice-Chief Pi left a few witnesses alive. Through their confessions, County Magistrate Yan found out that the case was actually a continuation of the personal grudge between Ye Xiaotian, who was escorted to the capital for trial, and several local officials in Guizhou. He immediately felt relieved.

County Magistrate Yan ordered people to tidy up the files and clean up the scene. At the same time, he rushed back to the yamen to see the imperial envoy. Xu Boyi listened to the details and thought, "No matter what, this matter can't be blamed on Ye Xiaotian. It's not good to cause more trouble. However, the feud between Ye Xiaotian and a few chieftains can be made into an issue. But there's no rush. I want Ye Xiaotian to see with his own eyes that his woman has been taken by another man. When he's heartbroken, I'll stab him with a knife … "

Thinking of this, Xu Boyi couldn't help but reveal a trace of an evil smile. County Magistrate Yan saw the usually warm imperial envoy reveal a sinister smile. He couldn't help but feel a bit scared. He quickly took a step back and said, "Eunuch Yu, you … what's wrong?"

"Oh? Oh! "

Xu Boyi came back to his senses. He thought for a moment and said, "County Magistrate, we can't offer the Zhang family's oranges anymore. I hope you can choose a few local families that produce money oranges and choose the best ones to temporarily take over."

County Magistrate Yan said, "Of course. I'll do it right away."

Xu Boyi nodded. Suddenly, he thought of someone and said fiercely, "There's also that relay station official. The place to store the tributes is very important. Although the oranges themselves aren't much, they are tributes from the imperial family. He actually arranged for so many passers-by to stay there, causing the tributes to be destroyed. This is a crime of disrespect! You must punish him severely! "

Actually, tributes are also divided into different grades. It's just some fruits, which aren't worth much. Even if this happened in the Song Dynasty, it wouldn't be as severe as the robbery of Yang Zhi's birthday manual. Moreover, this wasn't a robbery. It was destroyed for other reasons.

County Magistrate Yan was stunned and said, "This … the relay station official only borrowed the orange orchard because the inn was too small to accommodate so many soldiers. As for what happened, I'm afraid he didn't expect it. I don't think we should punish him severely. "

Xu Boyi sneered and said, "Official Yan, this matter isn't about the severity, but what it means? Do you know why Zhang Taiyue ended up like that? "

Xu Boyi lowered his voice and said gloomily, "Because he has no respect for the emperor! In his eyes, he has always treated the emperor as a child who can be scolded and controlled at will! The emperor's biggest taboo now is that someone doesn't respect him. If the emperor hears about this, do you think he will think the same? "

"This …"

County Magistrate Yan's heart skipped a beat. Ever since the Yongle Dynasty, the emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty had suffered defeat after defeat when it came to the interests of all the civil officials. The civil officials, who had won every battle, cried and screamed all day long, as if they had been miserably oppressed by the emperor and the eunuchs. They used their advantage of having the pen to create a stir in public opinion.

However, the emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty wasn't a puppet. At least when it came to dealing with the officials, they still had the power to kill them. As long as the punishment of the officials didn't affect the interests of the entire civil officials, the officials wouldn't jump out to embarrass the emperor.

In fact, this seemingly strange and contradictory behavior was very easy for the officials to understand. They thought of themselves as loyal subjects, the most resolute patriotism to the Emperor! They thought that the emperor was shaking the foundation of the country when it came to the interests of the entire civil officials, so they would stop it at all costs. However, when it came to the punishment of certain officials, they would naturally stand on the emperor's side. They thought that the officials had offended the emperor and had no respect for the emperor, so they should be punished severely.

County Magistrate Yan was only a small seventh-ranked county magistrate. If he made the emperor unhappy, he could just say one word and his future would be over. County Magistrate Yan thought for a bit and asked cautiously, "Eunuch Yu, how do you think we should deal with him?"

Xu Boyi blushed and said, "Do you need this imperial envoy to remind you? This person is very incompetent. I think … he doesn't need to be the deputy prefect anymore! "

County Magistrate Yan's heart turned cold. Ten years of hard work, what a pity! However, Deputy Prefect Xiang had always been obsessed with cooking and County Magistrate Yan didn't like him. Furthermore, it involved his own future, so he could only let his friend die rather than me.

County Magistrate Yan gritted his teeth and said, "I understand! Imperial Envoy, don't worry. Someone should take responsibility for the damage to the tribute! "

Xu Boyi smiled and said, "County Magistrate Yan is a sensible person! Hahaha, don't worry. If His Majesty is unhappy, I will put in a good word for you. This matter has nothing to do with you, Official Yan. "

County Magistrate Yan bowed deeply and said, "Thank you, Imperial Envoy!"

County Magistrate Yan straightened his back and saw that Xu Boyi had already disappeared through the entrance of the hall. He was silent for a moment and could only sigh softly.

… …

Ye Xiaotian and the others were moved to the county school. In order to prevent any accidents, the county yamen had sent people to check the inside and outside of the county school in advance. In fact, County Magistrate Yan had only thought of this place on a whim. It was impossible for someone to set up an ambush here in advance.

However, after Ye Xiaotian and the others moved in, Vice Chief Pi still sent people to check again. Even the roof, the beams, the ground, and the well were not spared. Soon after, the county school became a military stronghold that was guarded impenetrably by them.

Breakfast was sent to the orangery by Deputy Xiang. They had breakfast there and would have lunch at the county school at noon. Today's lunch was delivered rather late. It was already past noon when Xiang Yicheng finally arrived with a few donkey carts.

Vice Chief Pi went up and complained, "Deputy Xiang, why did lunch arrive so late today? I told you early in the morning that we won't be leaving for the time being!"

Deputy Minister Xiang had a long face as he said to Vice Commander Pi, "General Pi is not leaving, but this Xiang is leaving. This is the last meal that this Xiang has brought for you!"

Deputy Pi was shocked and said, "Deputy Xiang, are you suffering from a terminal illness? Why are you leaving at such a young age?"

Deputy Xiang said sorrowfully, "Who said I am suffering from a terminal illness? Isn't it all your fault? The tribute has been damaged and the imperial envoy is furious. I have lost my post and have to go back to the Ministry of Appointments. General Pi, please take care of me along the way! "