Chapter 263: Be Bold in the Rules
After carefully questioning the details of Pan You'an and sending Siqi back, Sun Shaozong didn’t rush to the scene of the murder.
After all, he was sent out of the Capital on a mission. Even if the Zhili Governor General's Office was empty now, he should return and hand over his official duties before dealing with other matters.
Furthermore, he was a noble fifth-grade official. Wasn’t it a great loss of identity after being warned by a small servant girl if he rushed to the scene in a frenzy to compete with the County Constable?
Therefore, after Siqi left, he ordered someone to rush to Wumiao Street and instructed Jiang Laoqi to guard the scene and not recklessly destroy the evidence. At the same time, he asked Zhang Cheng to prepare the carriage and headed straight to the government office.
There were no words spoken along the way.
Upon arriving at the office, Han Anbang was not currently in the Yamen. He said he had gone to the Ministry of Revenue to argue for this year's financial allocation.
So Sun Shaozong went directly to Jia Yucun.
Jia Yucun saw him coming and naturally welcomed him into the living room, arm in arm, as he had always been friendly.
After the guest was seated, they first exchanged a few pleasantries with Sun Shaozong and then sighed. "Minister Han originally wanted to lure the tiger away from the mountain, but unexpectedly, you have made extraordinary achievements. With your lucky posture, I can't say that in a few years, you will be my supervisor…”
Hehe~
It seemed like he was still looking forward to that scene, but after experiencing the Imperial Decree incident, how could Sun Shaozong still not know his passion for fame, fortune, and power?
If that day were to come, it was estimated that Jia Yucun would appear respectful on the surface while secretly cursing him in his heart!
After a few idle words, Jia Yucun laughed again and said, "You are injured. In a few days, it will be your Big Brother's day of great joy again. In fact, there is no need to rush to the Yamen to hand it over. Your Criminal Department is as solid as gold, and even if you delay for some more time, there won't be any mistakes.”
“I wish I could.”
Sun Shaozong let out a bitter smile and said helplessly, "Last night, there was a young servant in the Rongguo Mansion who was killed, robbed, and thrown into the street on Wumiao Street. His relatives entrusted someone, and she begged my unmarried sister-in-law to come forward and make sure I found out the truth.”
As he spoke, he spread his hands and said, "I can refuse to give a face to others, but this affection can’t be refuted.”
In front of Jia Yucun, Sun Shaozong naturally wouldn't admit that he had been asked by a maid to investigate the case, so it casually fell on Jia Yingchun.
Although Jia Yingchun might not have been aware of the matter of Siqi's doorstep appeal until now, according to rumors, her timid temperament made her unlikely to take the initiative to deny such claims.
Upon hearing what had happened, Jia Yucun couldn't help but burst into laughter and said, "In that case, I will not keep you here any longer. You should hurry to handle the case so that your Big Brother can happily get married.”
Sun Shaozong came out of the courtyard of Jia Yucun’s and arrived at his own Criminal Department office. As soon as he crossed the threshold, he saw a bunch—a group of forty to fifty officials—fanned out under the leadership of Lin Delu.
Upon seeing Sun Shaozong enter the door, he immediately bent down neatly and saluted, saying, "Congratulations to Lord Sun on returning! Congratulations to Lord Sun for your outstanding achievements again.”
Sun Shaozong only slightly raised his sleeves and said in a reserved voice, "You have all worked hard, there is no need to be too polite in front of me.”
“You have worked hard, Your Excellency.”
All the officials once again sent a wave of flattery, and it was only then that they all adjusted from 90 degrees to 150 degrees. As for those who had completely straightened their spines, there were none.
Otherwise, everyone would be the first to straighten!
Sun Shaozong roughly scanned and found that almost all the officials in the Criminal Department were there, except for Wei Ruolan and Qiu Yunfei.
“Your Excellency.”
Lin Delu saw him looking around and quickly reported, "When Assistant Magistrate Wei just heard that you came to the Government Office, he suddenly felt unwell, so he reported sick and left.”
What excuses of ”just heard” and ”suddenly felt uncomfortable,” almost saying that Wei Ruolan couldn't afford to lose, so he deliberately avoided it and disappeared.
However, since the ”main leader” was not present, Sun Shaozong was too lazy to relentlessly beat the dog in the water.
With only a slight nod, he ordered, "Magistrate Lin and Constable Zhao stay, let the others disperse first. We can’t delay official duties in the Yamen just to welcome our official.”
Everyone then returned to the East Cross courtyard, one after another.
Lin Delu was waiting to carefully report on the major and minor events of these days, but he also heard Sun Shaozong explain, "Last night, there was a servant in Rongguo Mansion who was killed near Wumiao Street. You should go to Wanping County and take over this case to the office, and I will personally handle it.”
He heard it was related to Rongguo Mansion, so Lin Delu naturally didn’t dare to neglect it. He quickly rushed outside and drove the carriage straight to Wanping County Government.
After he hurriedly left, Sun Shaozong inquired about Zhao Wuwei and said, "How has Qiu Yunfei been lately?”
“Report to my Lord.”
Zhao Wuwei quickly tilted his shoulders and flattered by saying, "Since the eighth day of the lunar month, Lord Qiu has been forced to submit to Judgment Wei in front of others. He has been wilting and losing his vitality, but in recent days, he seems to have slightly improved.”
This incident appeared to have affected Qiu Yunfei more than Feng Ziying's previous beating in the street.
After all, it was only a loss of force at that time, but this time even Wei Ruolan ruthlessly crushed his arrogant family background, and there was no hope of retaliation, which made Qiu Yunfei downhearted and it was normal.
“Go and call him over, bring a few more capable ones, and go with me to investigate the scene.”
Sun Shaozong casually gave an order, and he advanced inside and took the two local newspapers he had accumulated over the past half month. In the past half month in Jinmen Prefecture, he couldn't see the only newspaper of the Zhou Dynasty, and he felt like something was missing.
After folding the two local newspapers and putting them in his sleeves, Sun Shaozong led them out of the main hall and saw that Qiu Yunfei and several constables were already waiting in the courtyard.
But after seeing Sun Shaozong, this kid had a stern face and a deep hatred.
Obviously, he also harbored resentment towards Sun Shaozong, the initiator of the conflict.
However, even though he didn't feel well, he obediently bowed and showed some improvement.
“Let's go to Wumiao Street.”
Sun Shaozong said this and led everyone out in unison.
When he arrived at the Yamen gate of the office, Qiu Yunfei was about to call for his servant carriage, but Sun Shaozong reached out and stopped him. Without a doubt, he pointed to his carriage and said, "Come ride with me in the same carriage. There are some things I need to explain to you on the way.”
Qiu Yunfei opened his mouth as if he wanted to refuse, but after half a pause, he climbed into the carriage with a stiff face.
Sun Shaozong also got into the carriage but was not in a hurry to speak. Instead, he flipped out the newspaper in his sleeve and looked at it with interest.
Qiu Yunfei originally had a cold and aloof expression on his face, but after waiting for a while, Sun Shaozong still hadn’t spoken. He fidgeted like a monkey and finally couldn't help but sneer, "Now that I've lost face, that person surnamed Wei is also in vain, which can be considered going according to your thoughts.”
Upon hearing this, Sun Shaozong looked up and down at him with disdain on his face. As he looked at him, he became even more annoyed and sneered, "How much is your face worth? This is clearly losing your father's face, the face of your Qiu’s family.”
“You…”
He was being stabbed in the lung by this sentence, and Qiu Yunfei’s attitude immediately exploded, and he jumped up and crashed into the shed with a bang on the back of his head.
He gritted his teeth but couldn't ignore the pain and shouted. He only glared at Sun Shaozong and said, "What do you mean, surnamed Sun? Do you think you deserve to see the jokes of our Qiu family?”
“It's not very interesting, I'm just reminding you that you're actually asking for everything right now.”
Sun Shaozong said calmly, "If it weren't for your constant contempt for the royal law, how would I have had the opportunity to sow discord? If it weren't for your disobedience and being held in check, how could Captain Qiu be unable to withstand the pressure and have to bow to Prince Beijing?”
“You…”
“Do you think that everyone should follow the rules and behave recklessly? Only you can ask, as you like being arrogant and proud. Little do you know that such behavior is so foolish in the eyes of those who are willing to do it.”
“Imagine if Wei Ruolan were to target someone other than me but you, he would just be content to make you bow down. Don't be naive.”
“He can just casually come up with some insidious ideas, which are enough to make you suffer and even lose your life.”
Speaking of this, Sun Shaozong reached out and patted Qiu Yunfei on the shoulder, saying earnestly, "Although the rules and regulations of the royal family are often not as powerful as those of the aristocratic family, only by learning to wield power in the rules and regulations of the royal family can we always maintain power and wealth. Don't forget, Captain Qiu will eventually grow old.”
Qiu Yunfei thought for a moment, but suddenly turned his head and looked at the carriage roof at a 45-degree angle, saying, "What's the use of telling me these things? I didn't want to be a big official.”
This proud attitude…
“Master, we have arrived at the place.”