Free Web NovelChapter 1244: Chapter 1217: Appointment (3)
For instance, the Prefectural Governor of Wuxing County, Lu Jing, who is a cousin of Lu Yuan, has ’silence’ in his name, yet he is not fond of tranquility at all.
He is like a giant black umbrella covering Wuxing County. As long as one pleases him, no matter what the powerful and influential do in Wuxing County, they will be under his protection.
King Langya has tried several times to replace him but has always failed.
Lu Jing loves pearls. Sea pearls lie deep in the ocean. He forces fishermen to deliver a certain quantity of sea pearls, or else they will be marked and imprisoned.
To fulfill this task, each village annually selects pearl collectors to dive into the sea for pearls. Those who dive often do not live long; some, even after bringing up mussels, soon die bleeding from their seven orifices.
Zhao Hanzhang knows this is due to pressure, but in the coastal areas, fishermen believe they have offended the Dragon King.
It’s believed that they stole the Dragon King’s pearls, and thus the Dragon King punishes them.
To escape this task, many fishermen opt to leave their homes and become vagrants. As the coastal fishermen become scarce, the task is imposed on other villages, causing widespread unrest in Wuxing County.
King Langya despises this, having attempted several times to call Lu Jing to account, only to be thwarted by the Lu Family.
This time, Zhao Hanzhang acted more directly, appointing Zhou Qi as the Prefectural Governor of Wuxing County and promptly telegraphed Yuan Li to capture Lu Jing and publicly execute him to quell the public anger.
Yuan Li bears grudges deeply. He had just freed himself when he devoted himself to the military campaign against Wang Dun. Although he was still injured, he insisted on being carried, and Wang Si Niang could not persuade him otherwise.
He discovered that Wang Dun’s assets had gone east, intending to bypass Yuzhang County and head south, so he immediately led a large army to pursue him.
At this time, Zu Ti also led his army southward to join Wang Si Niang, blocking Wang Dun’s routes to the north and east, while also coordinating with Yuan Li.
This means that the armies of both sides were now swarming into Wuchang, Xuancheng, Xin’an, Poyang, and Yuzhang counties.
Yuan Li and Zu Ti’s armies were the closest to Wuxing County, just northeast from there.
Thus, upon receiving the telegram, Yuan Li immediately mobilized troops, informed Zu Ti, and led five thousand men into Wuxing County.
He sent someone ahead to inform Lu Jing, saying, "Tell them the army is short of provisions, and I am here to gather them. I wish to meet the Prefectural Governor of Wuxing County."
The messenger accepted the order and departed.
Lu Jing, without any defenses, came to meet Yuan Li. The Lu Family had sent Lu Yuan to Luoyang, and the feedback along the way was favorable. Zhao Hanzhang was more lenient and valued them more than King Langya.
So Lu Jing came to meet Yuan Li with the intention of making friends, although he secretly looked down on Yuan Li, an official of servile origin. But considering he was Zhao Hanzhang’s confidant, he had no choice.
As soon as he arrived, Yuan Li detained him and deployed troops to surround the Inspector Mansion, arresting all those who should be apprehended.
Yuan Li was adept at gathering intelligence and interrogating suspects, especially with the Dark Department omnipresent. Having operated in Jiangnan for two years, he was well-aware of the deeds of this Prefectural Governor of Wuxing County.
Lu Jing was inherently malicious. While interrogating other officials, Yuan Li might have considered Zhao Hanzhang’s opinion, but he had no such reservations concerning Lu Jing.
He was confident that even if Zhao Hanzhang got angry over his harsh measures against Lu Jing, she wouldn’t remain angry for long.
Yuan Li personally conducted the interrogation.
Before the night was over, they hadn’t gathered much evidence when Lu Jing confessed on his own.
He not only revealed the hiding places of his accumulated wealth over the years, but also implicated many others. The information that most delighted Yuan Li was his correspondence with Lu Yuan and Wang Dun.
This surpasses charges of exploiting the villagers.
Yuan Li opened the letters retrieved from secret compartments, read them, and burst into laughter. He approached Lu Jing gently, "So, you Lu Family intend to conspire with Wang Dun."
Lu Jing shivered under his gentle touch, realizing he had confessed to something grave. He quickly shook his head, "No, no, our Lu Family was merely pretending with Wang Dun, intending to gather evidence to present to the court, without any intention of participation."
Yuan Li gripped his face, speaking coldly, "Do you take me for a fool? These letters were written steadily over the year, with the last one dated twenty-three days ago. At this point, Wang Dun had already plotted rebellion, and the court received no confession from you."
Yuan Li was visibly excited and started to laugh joyously, "I know, your Lu Family and Mrs. Zhou’s family have suffered since King Langya started favoring Liu Kui and Diao Xie."
"Mrs. Zhou’s family’s forces were reduced, pushed from the Yangtze River banks to the Wu County area, while your Lu Family had several fine fields handed over to families migrating from the north. You intended to establish marital ties with the Wang Family and Lu Family, but both families consistently delayed, unwilling to accept. Lu Family descendants were restrictively treated under King Langya. Last time Lu Yuan visited the palace and met Diao Xie, given his lower rank than Diao Xie, he was coerced by Diao Xie to bow, and even publicly scolded by Diao Xie. Hahaha... Isn’t it from that moment that your Lu Family decided to oppose King Langya and sided with Wang Dun?"
