Let's talk about Cheng Dong. After the imperial envoy camp left Xiping, he left the brigade with several officers in disguise and went to other prefectures and counties in Runing Prefecture to learn about the situation. What surprised him was that the ordinary people they met wherever they went
The common people all praised Su Hao and Kanyu Camp. On the one hand, this was because the people of Runing had suffered so much from being bullied by officials and powerful men, and they felt very relieved when they saw Su Hao standing up for them; on the other hand, it was because
Because Kanyu Camp, under the command of Su Hao, strictly implemented the policy of being close to the people, the soldiers of Kanyu Camp helped the people build houses, build stoves, and cultivate land, and did a lot of good things. At that time, there were very few officers and soldiers like Kanyu Camp.
As you can see, people naturally gave it rave reviews.
"It's strange. Could it be that Su Hao has already seen through our hiding place? He has arranged people along the way to put in good words for him?" Cheng Dong couldn't help but said to his subordinates.
"Editor Cheng, in my opinion, these people don't look like lobbyists bribed by Xueshi Su. I think what they say is somewhat credible." A police officer named Jiang Qing cautiously said to him.
Cheng Dong reminded.
Cheng Dong nodded and said: "You are right. Su Hao has always been good at winning people's hearts. It is possible that he lets his soldiers plow the fields for the people to win the people's favor for him."
Jiang Qing hesitated for a moment and asked: "Editor Cheng, why do you insist on thinking that Xueshi Su is a treacherous person? I heard that you and Xueshi Su are from the same hometown. Could it be that he has some bad deeds in the past and let you know about it?"
Cheng Dong said: "I did have some disputes with him in the past, but this is not the reason why I have a bad feeling towards him. This man is a scholar, but he is colluding with the eunuchs. This time, he came to Runing to let the merchants and gentry in Runing
Everyone is in danger, and the purpose of doing all this is just to gain fame in front of the Holy One. Isn’t this kind of character worthy of being despised by all the scholars in the world?"
"Uh... haha. I see, that's it." Jiang Qing laughed awkwardly. From the perspective of a low-level officer like him, it really doesn't matter whether he is an eunuch or not. There are no so-called scholars.
How clean are they? They are all recruited from various yamen, and they are very familiar with the virtues of the officials with academic backgrounds in the yamen. When it comes to corruption, these scholars are probably even worse than the eunuchs in the palace.
of.
"No, it won't work if we just ask these people. There should be family members in the merchants who were indiscriminately arrested by Su Hao. Let's go to them and ask." Cheng Dong decided to give up after walking a few places.
It turned out to be the original intention. He also saw that Kanyuying had a good reputation among the local people. If he continued the investigation like this, it would be difficult to get any evidence that would be beneficial to him.
Cheng Dong changed the target of the investigation, and it turned out to be quite fruitful. He visited officials in several counties, and through these officials he found the family members of the businessmen and powerful people who were captured by Su Hao. Naturally, these people hated Su Hao deeply.
Yes, I heard that Cheng Dong came to understand the situation on behalf of the imperial court. As if they were meeting a relative, they pulled Cheng Dong into tears and accused Su Hao of his crimes.
Cheng Dong is also a very smart person. Of course, he can hear that there are some untruths in the accusations of these officials and powerful family members. However, he still got some valuable information for himself from them. In Huguang Bank, Cheng Dong
Dong learned in detail the process of Su Hao coming to arrest the shopkeeper Xia Shushen and the accountant Ren Zonghui, and was keenly aware that Su Hao had adopted a frame-up method.
"Hmph, this method is just to hide things from the country people. It's very difficult to hide it from me, Cheng Bangzhi." Cheng Dong sneered.
Jiang Qingdao: "Editor Cheng and Xuexian Su arrested Shopkeeper Xia. They did use frame-up methods. But they found evidence from Huguang Bank that they had occupied people's farmland. In this way, it doesn't matter whether it was frame-up or not.
Alright?"
Cheng Dong said: "Who can tell clearly whether this kind of evidence is true or false? They arrested the person first, and under torture, it is possible that a weak scholar like Shopkeeper Xia could not survive the torture and be beaten into submission.
.Is the evidence obtained under severe punishment convincing?"
"...Then what should we do according to the editor's intention?" Jiang Qing was speechless. Once he has a preconceived opinion on anything, it cannot be fair. He also saw that this editor has a great influence on Su.
The bachelor hated it to the core of his heart, and Editor Cheng would treat it like a treasure if there was any evidence that could cause problems for the bachelor.
"We will collect the testimonies of each family as evidence to impeach Su Hao." Cheng Dong said with confidence.
Cheng Dong laboriously traveled through five or six counties, and it took him more than ten days to complete this circle. When he returned to Runing City with a thick pile of evidence, he heard that the case was nearing completion.
The suspects transferred by Su Hao to the imperial envoy basically confessed to their crimes. Various documentary evidence and witness evidence formed a complete chain of evidence that Cheng Dong could not easily overturn.
"How could this happen?" Cheng Dong asked Wu Boxing with his eyes widened. If he had known this, what kind of investigation would he have spent so much effort on?
Governor Wu Bo sighed: "Oh, I must have underestimated Su Gaizhi's ability. He was able to string together the account books confiscated from various merchants, and they were so interlocking that even if you wanted to find fault, you couldn't find fault with them.
He has a bookkeeper under him who is very capable. He has learned a lot and has a strong memory. In front of the two cabinet elders, he clearly explained the figures of loan sharking, casinos, and land annexation in Runing Mansion over the years. The most amazing thing is that
, this bookkeeper turned out to be a woman, I don’t know where Su Hao got her from."
"Woman?" Cheng Dong thought, "Does Minister Wu know this person's name?"
"She... seems to have the same last name as you, let's call her Cheng Yi." Wu Boxing said hesitantly. The name of a small bookkeeper was originally not worth remembering by Wu Boxing, but because Cheng Yi was a woman, Wu Boxing was surprised.
, and then I had some impression of her name.
Damn Su Hao! Cheng Dong cursed secretly in his heart. He knew that Cheng Yi went to Huai'an Mansion with Han Qian last year, and he was also vaguely worried that Cheng Yi would work under Su Hao. Unexpectedly, this worry turned out to be a reality. Not only did Su Hao let
Cheng Yi became his bookkeeper and asked her to appear in front of two cabinet bachelors. Cheng Dong had always been opposed to what Su Hao did. Now that his sister was actually involved, he was really upset.
The anger is unbearable.
Knowing that the entire case was irreversible, Cheng Dong felt a little defeated. The materials in his hand could prove that Su Hao had used improper means in handling the case. If it fell into the hands of senior officials in the court,
It was enough for Su Hao to drink a pot. But Cheng Dong was not interested in this method. After all, he had just entered the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty, and he still had some disdain for these dirty tricks in the officialdom.
After coming out of Wu Boxing's place, Cheng Dong wandered aimlessly on the street. After walking for a few streets, he vaguely felt that the plants and trees in front of him felt familiar, but he couldn't explain the reason. Unknowingly,
, he came to the door of a large house, looking at the lintel of the house and the two big camphor trees in front of the house, the feeling of déjà vu became even stronger.
"Excuse me, whose mansion is this?" Cheng Dong walked to the door of the house and asked the sentry standing guard at the door.
"This is Scholar Su's residence. Who are you?" the sentry replied.
"Xueshi Su? You mean Su Hao?" Cheng Dong was stunned, how could it be such a coincidence that he actually arrived at the door of Su Hao's mansion. Could it be that he felt that this house looked familiar because Su Hao lived in it? However,
It is obviously my first time to come to Runing, how could I feel this way?
The sentry's eyes widened: "You can say the name of our scholar Su casually? Go away. If you talk nonsense here again, I won't be polite."
"I am also an official of the imperial court. How dare you use violence against me!" Cheng Dong shouted. He originally looked down on Su Hao, so how could he bear the harsh words spoken to him by Su Hao's men.
This voice really frightened the sentries. The sentries in front of Su Hao's house were also soldiers from the survey camp. Their superiors had specially told them that the imperial envoys had come these days and brought many officials from the capital, making them unable to
Don't worry, if you accidentally offend any high-ranking official, you will cause trouble for Academician Su.
"My lord, please forgive me for being rude." The sentry apologized, "My lord, are you here to visit my master?"
Cheng Dong hesitated for a moment and asked: "Since you are Su Hao's family soldier, let me ask you, do you know Cheng Yicheng's bookkeeper?"
"Of course I do. Miss Cheng lives there. Sir...do you really want to see her?" When the sentry said the last sentence, he hesitated a little. Although Cheng Yi was not Su Hao's wife or concubine, the soldiers secretly
They all felt that their parents would bring her into their house sooner or later. Otherwise, what would happen if a big girl lived in someone else's backyard? Now this young official came to the door. He didn't see Su Hao, but wanted to see Cheng Yi.
This seems a bit rude, right?
"She is my sister. Can you please let me know?" Cheng Dong said. No matter what opinions he had about Su Hao, the love between brother and sister cannot be erased.
"Oh, it turns out that Sir is Miss Cheng's younger brother. Could it be that Mr. Su's little...well, the little one is too talkative. I will go and report to Miss Cheng." The sentry almost wanted to say the word "brother-in-law".
He quickly swallowed it when it reached his mouth. He told his companions to entertain Cheng Dong well, and he quickly ran into the house to report to Cheng Yi.
After a while, Cheng Yi ran out with small steps. When she saw Cheng Dong, she shouted happily: "Xiao Dong, when did you come?"
"Sister, why do you live in Su Hao's house?" Cheng Dong frowned and said to his sister dissatisfied.
"Xiaodong, this is not the place to talk. Come, follow your sister into the house and talk later." Cheng Yi said. (To be continued...)
ps: Be sure to update a chapter before midnight. I wish all book friends good luck with your new book.
During this period of time, Chengzi has been involved in many things, and the break has lasted even longer. Chengzi would like to sincerely apologize. In the new year, I hope to have more time to write a book, and I also ask for your support.