Two days later, a visitor came to the Zhan Mansion in Auspicious Light City. However, the conversation between the host and the guest didn't seem to be pleasant.
"Zhan Gong, the Tough Claw Tribe has been moving upstream along the Dan River for the past few days. If this continues, they will soon be close to the southernmost Guangyao Town."
The visitor was in his thirties. He was slightly plump and had a beard. Although he was dressed casually, one could tell that his identity wasn't simple from his manners.
Zhan Gong put down the teacup calmly and said, "Manager Ye, this is the new Fengyu Tea from Mount Ning. Why don't you try it?"
Manager Ye didn't move and said seriously, "Zhan Gong, I'm not here to drink tea. Duke Liu was very angry when he heard the news. He has only been in the Commissar for a month and has yet to fulfill his ambitions. He doesn't want to see the Southern Region start a war. No matter what, you have to give him a clear explanation today. "
Zhan Gong looked very confident. Under Ye Zichen's questioning gaze, he slowly took a sip of tea, then put it down and said, "Zhan Gong, you have to believe in my son. Zhitong will definitely be able to pacify that tribe.
Manager Ye said, "How can I believe you in the current situation?"
Zhan Gong laughed and stroked his beard. He said, "I've lived for more than a hundred years. What haven't I seen? Didn't I survive the war 60 years ago? Don't worry. Give me another day and I'll give you an explanation. "
Manager Ye looked at him and stood up. He said, "Okay, then I'll reply to Duke Liu. I hope I can wait for good news from Manager Zhan." He cupped his hands and went out.
Zhan Gong immediately asked the housekeeper to see him out.
However, as soon as Manager Ye left, Zhan Gong's calm expression disappeared from his face and was replaced by deep worry and anxiety.
"What's wrong with that group of students? Didn't I tell them to figure out the situation as soon as they arrived at the Tough Claw Tribe? Why haven't I heard from them yet? "
At this moment, a trusted servant came in and whispered something to him. Zhan Gong was shocked and immediately ordered to change his clothes. He left the house and rushed to Taiyang Academy in a carriage.
In Taiyang Academy's Kuiwen Hall, just like the last time, Academic Supervisor Chi summoned the four Hall Administrators and the various Hall Masters for a meeting. After waiting for a long time, almost everyone had arrived.
Hong Xueling had just said a few words when the door was pushed open. Elder Zhan was panting slightly as he walked in with his walking stick. Immediately, someone stood up and greeted him, "Elder Zhan is here." Then, there were scattered greetings in the hall.
Zhan Gong could clearly feel that these people were not as enthusiastic towards him as they had been the last time.
Superintendent Chi sat on the main seat and did not get up. He looked up and said, "Master Zhan is here. Hmm, this matter is also related to Master Zhan. Since you are here, sit down and listen."
He gave an order to Hong Xueling, indicating for him to continue.
Hong Xueling cleared his throat and said, "According to the news we received, the Tough Claw Tribe has suddenly headed north these days. We suspect that it might have something to do with Jiejie Zhan's hasty handling of affairs …"
Zhan Gong had not sat down yet. When he heard this, he paused and could not help but look up. He said, "Hong Xueling, what is the basis for this?"
Hong Xueling said, "Elder Zhan, after Jiejie Zhan went to the Tough Claw Tribe, he sent back a total of three letters. In each letter, he mentioned that it was difficult to meet the Tough Claw Tribe's Chieftain, so he wanted to find an opportunity to meet him."
He flipped through the documents in front of him and took out a letter. "In particular, the third letter mentioned that the Tough Claw Tribe's Chieftain went out to hunt and he wanted to take the risk to meet him. However, after calculating the time, the Tough Claw Tribe detained him not long after this letter was sent out. Then, the entire tribe began to head north along the river. Therefore, even if he did not cause this matter directly, he must be indirectly related to this matter."
Elder Zhan looked at the people in the seats and said, "Everyone, just last month, the Tough Claw Tribe frequently acted strangely. My son rushed to the Tough Claw Tribe at this critical moment. After that, there was no movement from the tribe in the past month. The reason is obvious without asking. The Tough Claw Tribe is just a barbarian. They don't know etiquette or morality. Today's change may be caused by internal strife. Then we should try to find the root of the problem instead of suspecting our own meritorious member without asking for the reason! "
Someone in the seats said, "Elder Zhan, don't worry. We are just speculating, not concluding."
Hong Xueling said, "Elder Zhan, Jiejie Zhan is now trapped. From what we know, the person you sent to contact him is also missing. Even if we want to find out what happened, we can't count on Jiejie Zhan. Therefore, we need to send someone who is also proficient in the Tough Claw Tribe's language …"
"No need!"
Elder Zhan suddenly waved his sleeves and shouted. The people around him were shocked. They didn't expect him to have such a loud voice at such an old age.
Elder Zhan took two breaths and looked at the people in the seats. He slowed down his tone and said, "Everyone, don't take this too seriously. I think it's just a small matter and can be solved soon."
Hong Xueling looked at him and said, "Elder Zhan, why are you so confident?"
At this time, a helper suddenly walked in with a letter in his hand.
Everyone looked at it.
The letter was sent to Supervisor Chi. He took it and opened it. After reading for a while, he looked up and said, "The Tough Claw Tribe stopped going north."
"They stopped?"
Everyone was talking about it. Many people were happy.
Elder Zhan breathed a sigh of relief and said excitedly, "I said that my son can solve this problem."
Supervisor Chi ignored him and said in a low voice, "This letter was sent from the Tough Claw Tribe by several students in the school."
"Students, the Tough Claw Tribe?"
Everyone was confused. When did the students of the school go to the Tough Claw Tribe?
Chi Xuejian said with a straight face, "Someone took advantage of Assistant Teacher Zhang's absence to privately transfer his students to communicate with the aborigines of the Tough Claw tribe." He swept his gaze left and right with a stern look, "Who did this?"
According to the rules of the school, whoever taught the students was responsible. If others wanted to transfer them, they had to at least get the permission of the teacher to distinguish between power and responsibility.
Of course, although this was against the rules, it could be big or small. However, without the school's permission and discussion, they took the initiative to send students to the Tough Claw Tribe for communication. If something happened, the Prefect Hall could push the responsibility to the school.
Preceptor Chi turned to look at Preceptor Moqi. Ordinary people would not be able to do such a thing. It had to be Preceptor Moqi, and he was the only one here who had the deepest relationship with Duke Zhan.
Supervisor Moqi felt guilty and unconsciously avoided Supervisor Chi's gaze.
Elder Zhan said, "Don't look at Supervisor Moqi. I asked him to do this. I also want to understand the specific situation. It's for the school and the Protectorate!"
Hong Xueling said coldly, "This is against the rules."
Supervisor Zhan said righteously, "What does this count for in the face of the Protectorate's interests? Moreover, didn't those students bring back letters? The Tough Claw Tribe also stopped. This means that they did the right thing. "
Supervisor Chi said coldly, "Stopped?"
He waved the letter in his hand. "The letter says very clearly that the Tough Claw Tribe stopped because the rain in the Protectorate had affected the lower reaches of the Dan River. The heavy rain made it impossible for the aboriginal barbarians to move forward. This has nothing to do with Envoy Zhan."
He looked at Supervisor Zhan. "The letter also says that Envoy Zhan angered the chief of the Tough Claw Tribe, which led to the subsequent events. This is in line with our previous inference."
Supervisor Zhan's expression changed, and he hurriedly denied, "This is absolutely impossible!"
Supervisor Chi ignored him and passed the letter to Hong Xueling. "Pass it on for everyone to read."
Hong Xueling roughly flipped through it and passed it to the next person. After everyone took turns to read it, they all looked at Supervisor Zhan with unclear expressions.
Supervisor Zhan felt more and more uneasy. The letter was finally passed to him. He reached out to grab it, but perhaps because he was too anxious, he didn't grab it firmly and dropped it to the ground. He bent down to pick it up, but he failed several times. He had to wait for an assistant to come over and place it on the table.
Supervisor Zhan trembled as he took out a pair of glasses. After putting them on, he picked up the letter and read it carefully. After a while, his hands began to tremble as he said angrily, "This is a forgery, it must be a forgery! How can you believe the words of a few students! "
He tore the letter to shreds and then supported himself on the table, panting.
Supervisor Chi looked at him coldly. The letters that were presented to the court were all copied, so it didn't matter even if they were shredded. He said, "The matter is clear, Hong Xueling …"
Hong Xueling nodded and stood up. "Xuanfu sent news that Zhang Fujiao is already on his way back to Auspicious Light. He's not far from Kongyuan now. We will propose to the Commissar to remove Zhan Zhitong's position as envoy and let Zhang Fujiao take over. He will be fully responsible for appeasing the Tough Claw Tribe."
After a pause, he continued, "Since Zhang Fujiao's position is low, I propose to promote him to the Supervisor of the Academy."
The people below exchanged opinions for a while, and one of them spoke first. "I second the motion."
"I second the motion."
"I second the motion."
"I second the motion."
There were voices of agreement.
"Everyone!" Duke Zhan slammed his walking stick on the ground, making a hurried and heavy sound. He shouted himself hoarse, "This is unfair to my son!"
Hong Xueling said sternly, "Duke Zhan, matters that involve the people of the Protectorate are never child's play. Your son went to appease the tribe, but what we see now is that he has let down the expectations of the Academy and the Commissar! Duke Zhan, pay attention to your face. Don't make it too ugly. "
Duke Zhan was still struggling. "But, my son …"
Many people shook their heads secretly, thinking that Duke Zhan had become muddle-headed. It seemed that he was also confused because of his concern. He couldn't see that there was no way to turn things around at this point.
Duke Zhan turned his head and looked at Supervisor Chi. His eyes were red. "Chi Zhao, I've served the Protectorate for eighty years. I've killed enemies and narrowly escaped death. I've educated the people in the Academy and promoted etiquette and music. How can I suffer such injustice? I want to go to the Commissar and report this to Duke Liu … "
"Duke Zhan!"
Hong Xueling suddenly interrupted him.
Duke Zhan looked over in surprise.
Hong Xueling's expression was extremely serious. He said loudly, "Duke Zhan, you have to consider the big picture!"
Duke Zhan's eyes widened. This sentence was strangely familiar, as if he had often said it to others in the past.
The figure in front of him seemed to become blurry, and the voice kept echoing in his ears.
He was a little confused.
The big picture? Am I not considering the big picture?
The walking stick slipped from his hand, and he collapsed.
…
…
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