The gatekeeper of the Meng's Mansion blocked the door and said angrily, "How dare you! This is the Magistrate's house! How dare you search it!"
"Yes, it is the Magistrate's house. Get out of my way!"
Su Xuntian fiercely pushed open the door of the Meng Residence, waved his hand and shouted, "Search!"
Ma Hui, Xu Haoran, and other experienced patrolmen immediately rushed into the Meng's Mansion and turned it upside down.
The so-called evidence that Su Xuntian had concocted was fake. It could fool Magistrate Hua, who turned a blind eye to it, but it was far from enough to bring down an eighth-grade official. In other words, it could not withstand scrutiny. They needed real evidence, real evidence of a serious crime.
In order to get the real evidence, Squad Leader Zhou came to the Meng's Mansion even though he was injured. He personally led the search and brought all the experienced constables here. Because the government of Hulu County was too weak, these constables lived aimlessly, but they did not neglect their ancestral skills. With their sharp eyes, if the Meng's Mansion really had any secrets, they would be able to find them no matter how well hidden they were.
Just in case, Su Xuntian also prepared some fake evidence according to Ye Xiaotian's instructions. If they could not find anything, they would have to frame the Meng's Mansion, which Squad Leader Su liked to do.
In the study, Ma Hui looked up and down, left and right, but he could not read a word. In the end, he waved his hand and ordered, "No matter what is hung on the wall, spread on the table, or placed on the shelf, as long as there is something written on it, whether it is paper, porcelain, pottery, bronze, or iron, bring it all back to the County Office and let the Warden have a look!"
County Magistrate Meng had an old wife and four concubines. Except for the wife's simple and elegant residence, the four concubines' residences were all magnificent, with all kinds of utensils, paintings, pearls, jade, and antiques. Xu Haoran looked at these things and sneered, "How can an official with a salary of five stones of rice a month save so much money? He must have taken bribes. Bring everything back to the County Office and let the Warden have a look! "
Su Xuntian ran to the Meng's Mansion and went to the bathroom first. When he came out, he tied his belt and whispered to a constable, "Have you found the cellar of the Meng's Mansion? Hurry up and find it. If we find it, we will have to disguise it as a brothel. "
While speaking, Su Xuntian raised his head and happened to see Xu Haoran instructing the servants to move things out of the rooms of County Magistrate Meng's wives and concubines. County Magistrate Meng's fourth concubine and a dozen or so servant girls were all standing in the courtyard, some looking distressed and some crying.
Su Xuntian's eyes lit up and he shouted, "When did Meng Qingwei take in so many concubines? How come I didn't know about it? Look, there are so many girls here. It's hard to say if there aren't any girls who were kidnapped by him. Bring them all back to the County Office and let me interrogate them one by one! "
At this time, a constable ran over and excitedly said to Su Xuntian, "Captain Su, we found the cellar."
Su Xuntian was overjoyed and said, "Let's go and take a look!" Before he left, he didn't forget to tell another constable, "Bring all these women back to the County Office. Don't leave a single one behind!"
Su Xuntian excitedly ran to the backyard of the Meng's Mansion. The constables were gathered on the grass at the end of the backyard. They had just pried open the entrance to the cellar and used a ladder to get in. Someone poked his head in and saw that the cellar was very spacious. It was dark and gloomy without any light. He ordered someone to bring a torch and was about to go in to take a look.
"Let me, let me!"
Su Xuntian hurriedly called out, grabbed the torch, and climbed down the ladder.
"Ah! Such a big cellar, could it be to store autumn vegetables? Impossible, there must be a problem, there must be a problem! "
Su Xuntian held the torch and looked around. He felt that this dark cellar was not a normal cellar. When the other constables came down, he gathered his courage and went forward.
"Aiyo, there are a few barrels here!"
Su Xuntian patted a wooden barrel beside him. Hearing the muffled sound, he excitedly said, "This barrel isn't empty. There must be a problem inside. There must be a problem. Quickly open it!"
Su Xuntian used his hand to pull at the barrel lid, but it did not open. He called a constable over and asked him to hold the torch. He then took out his knife and used the tip of the knife to pry open the barrel lid. Su Xuntian pried a few times and waited for the barrel lid to loosen. He sheathed the knife and opened the barrel lid. He reached his hand inside and felt something soft. It was paper and cotton, as if there was something hidden underneath.
Su Xuntian peeled off the cotton and paper and saw something black underneath. He didn't know what it was, but it looked like some black powder. He snatched the torch from the constable's hand and carefully looked at it. Then he grabbed a handful of it and opened it in his hand. He looked at it carefully under the light of the fire and said, "Eh? What is this? Could it be charcoal powder? "
"Ao!"
The constable next to him suddenly let out a loud cry that sounded like a Tibetan mastiff, scaring Su Xuntian. The black charcoal powder in his hand scattered all over the ground. Su Xuntian angrily scolded, "Are you crazy? What are you yelling for? Don't you know that scaring people will scare them to death? "
As he cursed angrily, he waved the torch in his hand, making the flames crackle. The bailiff was scared out of his wits, and as he scrambled away, he turned his head and yelled, "Captain, gunpowder! Gunpowder! That's gunpowder! "
Su Xuntian was puzzled as he raised the torch and looked in the direction of the constable who had already disappeared. He was baffled and said to himself, "What gunpowder? Could it be that Meng Qingwei was pouring gunpowder? Selling medicinal ingredients … this crime doesn't seem to be enough to bring him down … Ah? Ah, ah, ah ~ ~ ~ "
Su Xuntian suddenly reacted. He straightened his back and screamed. He screamed a few times and then immediately ran away. Su Xuntian ran to the entrance of the cellar without using his hands. He held the torch in one hand and ran up the ladder. His speed and agility were truly breathtaking.
Su Xuntian ran along the ladder out of the cellar. He didn't stop and continued to run forward without his feet touching the ground. He almost ran into the arms of another person. That person was Captain Zhou, who was leaning on a walking stick. Two bailiffs hurriedly supported Captain Zhou, who was leaning backwards. Captain Zhou looked at the ashen-faced Su Xuntian and said unhappily, "Captain Su, why are you panicking?"
Su Xuntian pointed behind him and raised the torch again. He said incoherently, "You you you, me me me, be careful, I almost lit it, fire! Fire fire fire fire … "
Squad Leader Zhou said impatiently, "Fire, fire, fire, fire, what fire?"
Su Xuntian forcefully stamped his feet to overcome his nervous stutter. "Gunpowder!"
…
The main goods that the Ming Empire prohibited from exportation included salt, iron, gunpowder, and tea. In addition, there were also copper coins. For different countries, these strictly controlled goods were slightly different. For example, in the northern countries, salt and tea were strictly controlled goods, but in the southern coastal countries, the ban on salt had no effect. Therefore, the southern border would absolutely not check these things.
But there was one thing that the Ming Empire strictly controlled, no matter what country it was. That was gunpowder. This kind of goods was classified as military goods. Whether it was privately purchased, hoarded, or transported, it was a major crime. And in the deep cellar at the end of the back garden of County Magistrate Meng's house, there were more than a dozen barrels of gunpowder.
There was a large amount of gunpowder stored in the cellar. Of course, it couldn't become Meng Qingwei's sex den. Who would choose this kind of place to fool around? Unless he really wanted to ascend to immortality amidst Floating Immortality. Therefore, Su Xuntian's framing was easily exposed. But … who cared now?
It didn't matter if Meng Qingwei hoarded gunpowder to sell to the mountain tribes at a high price or to transport it through Yunnan to the southern countries. This was a major crime. With irrefutable evidence, he was definitely going to be convicted!
County Magistrate Meng was arrested. Moreover, it was ordered by his subordinate, Warden Tie Xiang. Subsequently, irrefutable evidence was found in his house. This news quickly caused a sensation in the whole city. Everyone was talking about this matter excitedly. When talking about Ye Xiaotian, there was no one who didn't give him a thumbs up.
Annam Tien gave him a thumbs up and praised, "Good lad, you have a way! How many people in the world dare to make a move against their superior? You have to know that there is no superior who does not fear to overthrow their superior. This Ai Dian Shi's career has been bumpy since then, but he still did not turn back. This is what makes him great. "
Zhan Ning 'er curled her lips and said, "So great? That day on Wong Tai Sin Ridge, didn't he run away at the sight of the wind?"
Annam Tien shook his head and said, "You are wrong. Who doesn't know that a good man does not fight with a woman?"
Zhan Ning 'er stared at him and scolded, "What did you say?"
Annam Tien hurriedly said, "Ah! I am saying that fighting for everything is not a good man, but a hothead. Or should I say, a greedy person. There are things that you should do and things that you should not do. That is a real man. "
Zhan Ning 'er snickered and said mockingly, "Man of character? When he found out that he was poisoned by me, he didn't even dare to let out a fart. "
Annam Tien rubbed his chin and said thoughtfully, "That's right! From what I observed in the court that day, this is not in line with this person's character. Unless … "
Zhan Ning 'er said, "Unless what?"
Annam Tien said, "Unless he has already guessed that you are just scaring him!"
Zhan Ning 'er was stunned. "How can he be so smart?"
Annam Tien said, "Do you think he is stupid?"
Zhan Ning 'er thought for a while and did not say anything else. Annam Tien knew that this cousin of his, who had always been strong-willed, actually agreed with his view. Annam Tien smiled and said, "This person, I want to remind Great Grandfather to be careful."
Zhan Ning 'er looked at him and said, "Such a small character, how can he enter Grandfather's eyes?"
Annam Tien said, "Every big shot starts from a small character, even if they are from the same background as you and I. Although Gourd County has been abandoned by us, it is not impossible for a few outstanding talents to come from this land. "
Annam Tien stood up and slowly walked to the window with his hands behind his back. Outside the window was the Cross Street. They were on the second floor and looked down at the bustling crowd. Annam Tien sighed and said, "Talent is hard to come by …"
Zhan Ning 'er also followed up and said disdainfully, "I think this person is rebellious. If you want to recruit him, be careful of him."
Annam Tien smiled and proudly raised his chin, "Who am I?"
