Even now, he is still full of benevolence, justice and morality.
Yes, he is not an ordinary person. He is a veteran of three dynasties. He is the chief assistant who accompanied Shen Muchi to the throne and has the ability to follow the dragon.
There are countless civil servants behind him, waiting to spot Shen Muchi's mistakes. How dare he kill him casually?
He wouldn't dare!
But Shen Muchi smiled when he heard him say such words.
Smiling contemptuously.
He threw something in front of Zhong Ming.
It is a paper bag. The paper bag is spread out. The salt inside is not very white and not very fine. Obviously, it cannot be compared with official salt.
Zhong Ming looked up in surprise and saw Shen Muchi looking down at him.
"What is the crime of selling illegal salt? Mr. Zhong, do you know?"
Shen Muchi leaned forward slightly, his eyes and brows filled with the joy of a winner.
On the contrary is Zhong Ming's loneliness.
He sat down on the ground, his eyes turning gray.
It's over, everything is over...
Shen Muchi waved his hand: "Come here, take Zhong Ming down and keep him under my guard."
Zhong Ming's hands were quickly hanged, and the guards on the third floor and the third floor around him trapped him and headed towards the imperial city.
It's ridiculous that a weak civil servant like him would need so many guards.
Mu Qingchao watched Zhong Ming being taken away from behind. He felt a little anxious and subconsciously took a few steps to catch up. She also wanted to ask about her grandfather and grandmother.
But the next second, Shen Muchi held him down.
As soon as Mu Qingchao turned around, he met Shen Muchi's eyes. He looked at her with a gentle expression, which was different from the cold and cruel look when he faced Zhong Ming.
"Is it cold?" he asked.
Mu Qingchao shook his head: "Your Majesty, the daughter of the people wants to send Master Zhong off."
"What? Are you soft-hearted?" Shen Muchi asked.
Is she soft-hearted? Of course not. Even though Zhong Ming looked so lonely and lonely when facing her grandfather, what does this have to do with her?
Everyone has their own difficulties, everyone just needs to stand in their own position and perform their duties.
Mu Qingchao did not know how to put himself in someone else's shoes and sympathize with the suffering of others.
But when she looked at Shen Muchi, she smiled and said: "After all... he is the uncle of the common girl."
Shen Muchi asked her, "Do you regret it?"
Mu Qingchao shook his head: "People's girls know right from wrong, and they also know how to make choices. If my uncle doesn't die, your majesty will die. In contrast, people's girls choose your majesty."
She has long since learned to tell lies with her eyes open. She knows what role to play and what words to say to make Shen Muchi happy.
She was careful not to go against his wishes at all.
Sure enough, she saw Shen Mu smiling broadly.
He had sworn before that if this calamity could be passed safely, he would repay her well.
Now, it's time to cash in.
Shen Muchi reached out and touched her head.
"Now that you've made your choice, don't read it to avoid getting more uneasy."
"Let's go back with me. I'm afraid the wind and cold haven't fully recovered some time ago, and I fell into the water again today. How can my body withstand such a torment?"
"Can……"
Mu Qingchao wanted to say something else, but he saw that Shen Muchi was already unhappy.
"Listen to me!" His tone was unequivocal.
Just now he wouldn't let Mu Qingchao go see Zhong Ming alone because she had her own way. Thinking about it now, Shen Muchi felt a little regretful.
Seeing Shen Muchi like this, Mu Qingchao didn't dare to say anything anymore. She was always with Shen Muchi, walking on thin ice with every step she took.
She could only follow him, get into the carriage with him, and go to the imperial city.
**
Zhong Ming fell off his horse.
Shen Muchi pulled out the carrot and brought out the mud, followed the clue of the private salt and found out a lot of things. He made a heavy move and listed a total of seventy-three crimes of the Zhong family. He never gave Zhong Ming any more. A chance to turn around.
Of course, not only one member of the Zhong family was implicated in this matter, but anyone in the court who had anything to do with it could not escape.
The most unlucky person was Prince Ning. After receiving the news about the bell, he came all the way from Ningzhou and was caught just as he arrived at Jinling.
As the only remaining prince of the late emperor besides Shen Muchi, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep him.
The Zhong family was ransacked, and countless gold and silver money and countless antique calligraphy and paintings were confiscated.
When the old lady was escorted out, she was still shouting: "What are you doing? Do you know who I am?"
"What a rebellion! Where is your leader? Let him come and talk to me!"
"Someone is coming! Someone is coming!"
"Where's the bell? I want to see the bell!"
The old lady kept making trouble and did not call the leader or the bell.
In comparison, Ma was much more honest. As he was being escorted outside, Mrs. Zhong sneered when she looked at her.
"Mom, can't you see it yet? The Zhong family has collapsed, and your son can't even protect himself. I advise you to save some energy so that you can get on your way."
Ma's words made the old lady feel full of resentment.
He stepped forward and slapped her on the face.
"Sangmenxing, it's not all you, who are you showing your face to with such a sad face all day long?"
"It's all you, it's you who got into trouble."
"Bitch, bitch, I asked my son to divorce you, but he didn't listen. Now it's better. It's brought trouble to all my Zhong family, and I want you to pay with your life today!"
As the old lady spoke, she actually came up to grab Ma's hair.
Madam Ma was trying to avoid him, but at this moment a guard behind him kicked him.
"Be honest, what's the fuss about?"
Following the guard's shout, the old lady rolled to the ground, covered in mud.
Now the old lady didn't care about her face anymore, she just sat down on the ground, patted her thighs and started howling.
"Oh, it's killing, it's killing..."
"Everyone, come and take a look, the officers and soldiers are beating someone..."
"So many officers and soldiers are bullying me, an old woman who is half dead..."
Old Mrs. Zhong was crying and singing. There were already many people gathered in front of the Zhong Mansion, but with such a commotion, the crowd was even more crowded, pointing at them.
Ma Shi couldn't hear what they were saying clearly.
But she only felt that her face was shameless. She was no better than her mother-in-law. She was the legitimate daughter of a scholarly family. Such loss of face only made her feel worse than death.
She thought that if her father-in-law was aware of the situation, he would be very angry.
The old lady's move was effective against Zhong Ming, but it had no effect at all on these officers and soldiers.
I saw a few officers and soldiers lifting her up, as rough as lifting a chicken, but they didn't care whether she was old, weak, sick or disabled.
"Don't cry in a hurry now. When you get to prison later, you will still have to cry."
One sentence frightened the old lady into a cold sweat.
In fact, even if her house was searched, she didn't realize what it meant until she heard the word "prison".
It's a real hell there.
The moment she was in a daze, the officers and soldiers pushed her hard from behind: "What are you still doing in a daze? Let's go!"
As soon as the officers and soldiers left, someone took off the plaque on the door.
A huge plaque with the word "Zhong Mansion" fell to the ground with a crash, causing dust and smoke to rise. It also symbolized that the Zhong family, the home of bells and dishes for hundreds of years, had completely disappeared from this world.