Wei and Jin Cooks

Chapter 1218: Fear

Lu Jing's face turned pale and she was speechless.

Yuan Li knew that he had guessed right. He laughed loudly and immediately wrote a letter to Zhao Hanzhang, handing all the evidence to his confidants and asking them to rush back to Luoyang. He also sent a letter to Zhao Hanzhang via telegram to tell her about it. , and then said: "The Lu family can be destroyed."

Zhao Hanzhang felt very regretful for a while after receiving the telegram. It would have been better if it hadn't been at this time. It would have been better if the incident had been exposed earlier or later. Now... it's not appropriate.

 Zhao Hanzhang suppressed the telegram and waited for the evidence to arrive.

Zhou Qi led the military in Yangzhou, and most of the powerful Jiangnan clans who accompanied him were happy. This shows that Zhao Hanzhang recognized their status in Jiangnan.

Only Lu Yuan was the most unhappy. "He is the magistrate of Wuxing County, but what about Lu Jing? There must be an explanation for whether he was promoted or transferred. Why was Zhou Qi suddenly appointed as the magistrate of Wuxing County?"

“Could it be to drive a wedge between the Zhou family and the Lu family?”

 Lu Yuan: "Humph, how can this trivial trick be used to drive a wedge between our two clans?"

 “Brother Lu, isn’t he very unhappy now?”

Lu Yuanqiang supported: "Who said that? I'm not angry at all now, I'm just confused."

 His doubts were soon cleared.

Yuan Li's 800-mile express was delivered to Luoyang on the third day. At this time, Zhou Qi and Director Wang had not yet left. They rarely came to Luoyang. Naturally, they had to communicate with some celebrities who had long been famous in the world. In addition, they followed them. Many people in Luoyang decided to stay in Luoyang. They said goodbye and did not know when they would see each other again. There was also Zhao Hanzhang. They also wanted to know more about the regent general so that they could better cooperate in government affairs in the future...

 Because of all these reasons, neither of them left.

Zhou Qi has already met with Lu Yuan and said that he would mention the transfer of Lu Jing to Zhao Hanzhang. They are both from Wu, so they should be more united outside and not be provoked by others...

Zhou Qi himself suspected that Zhao Hanzhang's move was to drive a wedge between him and the Lu family, but he could not refuse the position, so he could only appease Lu Yuan and find a way to find a good place for Lu Jing.

 He only met Zhao Hanzhang twice, and whenever he wanted to mention this matter, he was distracted by Zhao Hanzhang.

As the saying goes, there are only three things, and he planned to mention it one last time today. If Zhao Hanzhang continued to change the topic, the matter could not be mentioned again, and he could only find a way to get the news from elsewhere.

Unexpectedly, he was not diverted from the topic today, but asked his question smoothly, "...Where will the current Wuxing County Governor Lu Jing be transferred? The lower officials will always have to hand over to him."

During the Eight Kings Rebellion, there were many situations where there were two governors in a state and two governors in a county. You appointed your people, and I appointed mine. Or the former one had not yet resigned and was transferred, and the latter one had already. to places.

 In addition, there are also those who hold official positions themselves.

 As for who will win the place in the end, it depends on each person’s ability.

For example, when Zhao Hanzhang was appointed the governor of Yuzhou, she did not report it to the court at all. She accepted the appointment with the previous governor. The court also appointed the governor of Yuzhou. However, because she was so powerful in Yuzhou, the new governor did not dare to take up the post for fear of losing her life. Then she occupied the position of governor of Yuzhou.

 But now, Zhao Hanzhang is in control of the court, and the court has a great say. Obviously, it is impossible for him and Lu Jing to compete for the position of Wuxing County Sheriff.

Since Zhao Hanzhang asked him to be the governor of Wuxing County, why should the position be vacated for him?

Zhao Hanzhang: "Don't worry, Lu Jing has been captured and will be executed soon. You can take office directly as soon as you arrive in Wuxing."

Zhou Qi was frightened and asked quickly: "Why did the general kill Lu Jing? Is it just to let the subordinate take over?"

Zhao Hanzhang frowned, and Zhao Yunxin on the side scolded: "How dare you, in Zhou Sima's eyes, is the general such an unreasonable and arrogant person?"

“What kind of person is he, Lu Jing, a good official? He seizes people’s land for personal gain, increases taxes privately, and colludes with powerful and wealthy businessmen in the fish and meat village..."

Zhou Qi complained in his heart, is this kind of thing a rare thing in Jin Dynasty?

Moreover, Lu Jing himself is powerful, so it would be strange if he didn't collude with her, right? This kind of person can be demoted or taken away from his position. There are many ways to deal with it. How can he be beheaded?

Still killing them locally, they were not brought to Luoyang for trial, and they didn’t even have a chance to complain about their injustice...

Zhou Qi felt that Zhao Hanzhang's move was inappropriate. If people like Lu Jing were to be killed, how many officials in the world would have their heads chopped off?

Well, the officials in Jiangbei have probably changed a lot, but most of the officials in Jiangnan are still the same as before.

Zhou Qi was about to plead his love, but Zhao Yunxin, who had been paying attention to his expression, gave out the last reason, "...colluding with Wang Dun and intending to rebel."

Zhao Yunxin said meaningfully: "Lu Jing and Wang Dun have been in contact for a long time. Before Wang Dun's rebellion, he conspired with him to start a rebellion together. From the letters, we learned that there were many Jiangnan officials and nobles who conspired with him."

A chill ran down Zhou Qi's spine, as if his feet were on the ground, and he felt dizzy... He had also had this intention, and had an ambiguous period with Wang Dun, all of which was reflected in his letters...

 Zhou Qi looked at Zhao Hanzhang.

Zhao Hanzhang shook his head at Zhao Yunxin, and then said: "The people in Wuxing County are complaining, and the people's complaints have reached a point that I can't ignore, so I ordered Yuan Li to investigate. Unexpectedly, the investigation found evidence that Lu Jing and Wang Dun colluded. .”

Zhao Yunxin held up a box and handed it to Zhou Qi at Zhao Hanzhang's signal.

Zhou Qi opened it and looked at it. Inside was a stack of letters. Not only were they written by Wang Dun to Lu Jing, but there were also letters exchanged between Lu Yuan and several members of the Lu family and Lu Jing.

Although there is a lack of letters written by Lu Jing, it can be seen from these letters that everyone in the Lu family is considering getting involved with Wang Dun. There are many complaints in the letters that Wang Xin of Langya favored Liu Kui, Diao Xie and others and suppressed them...

Several people also revealed in the letter that King Langya was weak and might not be able to compete with Zhao Hanzhang. It would be better to defect to Wang Dun and give it a try, and maybe win a bright future for the family.

Zhou Qi's heart grew heavier as he watched. To be honest, he had had this plan, but he didn't have time to put it into practice. As for Lu Jing, he quietly provided news to Wang Dun and also provided food and grass when his army passed by.

Zhou Qi clenched the letter in her hand, and after a thousand thoughts in her mind, she knelt down on the ground to plead for the Lu family, "General, the future of Jiangnan was uncertain before, and people's hearts were unavoidable, but everyone only dared to think in their hearts, and never dared to Apply it to reality. The evil things in the world should be judged by their deeds without regard for their intentions. From the letter, we can know that it was Lu Jing’s idea to provide food and fodder to Wang Dun, and the Lu family did not know about it. "

He said: "If Mr. Lu had known about it, Lu Yuan would not have followed me north to Beijing."

Zhao Hanzhang nodded: "I believe in Lu Yuan and the Lu family, so I only ordered Yuan Li to capture Lu Jing and left the rest of the Lu family alone."

She turned to Zhao Yunxin and said, "Please invite Lu Yuan and Jiang Feng to come into the palace."

 Zhao Yunxin bowed in response.

 After a while, both Lu Yuan and Jiang Feng came into the palace. There was no one in the hall. Zhao Hanzhang showed them the letters that Yuan Li had collected.

 Lu Yuan and Jiang Feng were both dripping with cold sweat and their faces were pale.

This matter has nothing to do with Jiang Feng. It can be said that among the four major families in the south of the Yangtze River, the Jiang family was the first to invest in Zhao Hanzhang. Jiang Pu went north to Luoyang with the Lu Yang family and enrolled in Taixue early.

 However, although the four major families fought, they all prospered and suffered losses. The most important thing is that this represents Zhao Hanzhang's attitude towards the powerful families in Jiangnan.

King Langya is a typical example.

When he first went to the south of the Yangtze River, he had a very high profile and wanted them to visit him; after discovering that he was nothing in their eyes, he began to be courteous to the corporal and treat others kindly to win them over;

After having a conflict of interests with them, they used Liu Kui and Diao Xie to suppress them...

How can this prevent them from hating?

 So, is Zhao Hanzhang going to follow the same path as King Langya?

Of course Zhao Hanzhang will not leave.

King Langya transferred too many rights at the beginning, so that he was restricted everywhere. In the eyes of Jiangnan's powerful families, King Langya was competing with them for their interests. His eyes and heart were full of interests, but he had completely forgotten the laws of the court. It seemed that everything was in vain. Can be exchanged for benefits.

  The Wang family and the four major families occupied people's fields in the south of the Yangtze River, granted official positions privately, and selectively implemented King Langya's decrees. Even the clay figures were beaten to death.

 Zhao Hanzhang will never allow this situation to continue in Jiangnan.

 She is willing to make sacrifices and compromise for the sake of Jiangnan's stable situation, but it does not mean that she will retreat without a bottom line.

While grabbing Lu's handle this time, she could talk to them again.

This conversation turned to the dark side. When Zhou Qi, Lu Yuan and Jiang Feng left the palace, the three of them were walking a little empty and their faces were slightly pale, but they were filled with the joy of rebirth after the disaster and the respect for the palace behind them. Deeply fearful, eyes filled with confusion.

Zhao Hanzhang threw all the letters into a brazier and burned them in front of them.

She will not use this to accuse the Lu family. She can tolerate all the powerful people in Jiangnan, whether they are those who have the potential to participate in Wang Dun's rebellion or those who have already surrendered to Wang Dun.

 If the former is not investigated and the latter is not implicated, their lives can be saved.

However, she demanded that from now on, all powerful families in the south of the Yangtze River should abide by national laws, and in order to quell this war and appease the people, each family should release a certain amount of land and redeem it from the treasury;

 It is necessary to release some tenants and slaves unconditionally and allow them to return to their hometowns...

 Provide a certain amount of relief food to the people to help them survive this winter...

 Finally, Lu Jing is going to die.

Zhao Hanzhang's statement is, "It is not because he provided food and grass for Wang Dun and participated in the rebellion, but because he was corrupt and perverted the law, causing resentment among the people of Wuxing County."

This time Lu Yuan did not express any objection, let alone intercede. He agreed very meekly, but he did not believe Zhao Hanzhang's words in his heart. He felt that she killed him because Lu Jing participated in the rebellion.

In the eyes of these wealthy families, poor official performance, dereliction of duty, corruption, and even cruelty are not reasons for execution by the court. Only rebellion because it touches the fundamental interests of the court is.

Zhao Hanzhang naturally saw what they were thinking, and he didn't have to let them believe her reasons.

 It doesn't matter, there is a long time to come, and she has plenty of time to slowly correct their views. Moreover, as long as the people believe this, it will be fine.

This time, Zhao Hanzhang did not ask the post station to deliver the letter, but directly told Yuan Li the result of her handling by telegram.

After Yuan Li received the telegram, he arrested and imprisoned all the subordinate officials in Wuxing County. He directly took over Wuxing County militaryly and let people spread propaganda in the streets and alleys.

Within a few days, a large number of people gathered in Wucheng County, Wuxing County. Yuan Li had Lu Jing paraded all the way to Caishikou and beheaded him in front of the people in the city.

The common people were filled with tears when they saw it, especially the villagers and fishermen who were specially found by Yuan Li from the seaside. When they saw Lu Jing's head falling to the ground, they knelt on the ground with a thump, beat their chests and screamed to the sky.

If they hadn't shouted "Well done, well done", the onlookers would have thought they were apologizing for Lu Jing.

The villagers and fishermen screamed and cried, and finally broke through the soldiers' defense line and snatched away the body and head. They wanted to drag Lu Jing's body to the beach to pay homage to his family members who had died innocently because of him over the years.

Yuan Li was shocked, and finally added more troops to **** the body back.

It was one thing to kill Lu Jing, but it was another thing if the corpses were snatched away and humiliated. He himself did not mind enmity with the Lu family, but the general did not.

In order to prevent the Lu family from holding a grudge against the general, Yuan Li not only snatched the body back, but also pretended to have his wife sew up Lu Jing's body in front of the servants of the Lu family, and prepared a coffin for burial.

 Finally, a group of soldiers were asked to **** them back to their hometown with the coffin in hand to avoid the angry people.

Therefore, when these servants returned to the Lu family to report, they also said good things about Yuan Li, "Without General Yuan's protection, I am afraid that Lang Jun's body will not be left, and we will not be able to **** the coffin back home."

The people of the Lu family were filled with resentment, "Then we still have to thank him for Yuan Li's success? If he hadn't led troops into Wuxing County to frame the liar Mi, how could Zimi be like this?"

 Lu Jing, courtesy name Zimi.

But some people in the Lu family have different opinions. "I have opened the coffin and seen that Zimi did not have many injuries on his body, which shows that he was not tortured very much. He acted too recklessly in Wuxing County. I have warned him not to exploit the people too much." , we are Wu people and have lived here for generations. To treat the people so poorly is to be forbearing, and one day we will be punished by our descendants."

"This is a good death. There is no retribution on his descendants. He himself suffered retribution." He said: "If you ask me, he died a good death. The people already hated him so much that they wanted to eat his flesh and humiliate his body. If he still suppressed it, , the whole family will be affected in the future."

 No one said anything.

It took a while before someone said: "I heard that Zhao Hanzhang had heard of his bad reputation in Luoyang, and the people were filled with resentment, so I ordered Yuan Li to go to Wuxing to get people."

"Then they should be tried first and then killed. She didn't even see Zi Mi, and directly ordered the killing, or beheaded in the street. Such cruelty, can she really allow me, the Lu family, and the Jiangnan nobles to participate in politics?"

"Yes, I think she is very hard-hearted. It would be better to choose King Langya if you want to join her."

"Shut up, there are villains like Diao Xie around King Langya. I would rather not be an official than be insulted by such villains."

 “Based on this, Wang Dun is more suitable.”

"Be careful, the head of the family is still in Luoyang. We must let him know about Wuxing County and wait for his reply to discuss it." He immediately wrote a letter and had it sent to Luoyang.

Lu Yuan was already on his way back. After he came out of the palace that night, he urged Director Wang and Zhou Qi to return to Jiangnan together the next day.

 He had to rush back to see Lu Jing for the last time.

He thought that no matter how fast the documents issued by the court were, they would take about the same time as him, but there would always be a time lag in the review and execution. He wanted to see Lu Jing one last time to know what other fatal things he had confessed.

How do you know that Zhao Hanzhang did not send an official document but directly telegraphed the murder?

Just when Lu Yuan was about to cross the river, he met his family members who were going north to report the news. With the letter in hand, Lu Yuan finally felt the fear in the legend.

 Zhao Hanzhang does have terrifying abilities.

Two chapters combined into one. See you tomorrow

 (End of this chapter)