"Are you in such a hurry as if your ass is on fire? Calm down! Don't you see I'm entertaining a distinguished guest?" Magistrate Lin scolded.
A wonderful happy occasion had been interrupted by this clueless wretch.
How unlucky!
Thinking of this, a hint more of gloom shadowed Magistrate Lin's eyes.
If this dog couldn't come up with a good explanation, he would surely have him flogged twenty times!
The gatekeeper gasped for breath, his body trembling as he said, "It... It's really on fire!"
Magistrate Lin's eyes were full of impatience. "Speak clearly! What's on fire!"
"The... The granary, the granary is on fire!" the gatekeeper replied.
"What?" Magistrate Lin suddenly stood up.
The granary was on fire?
Then he immediately walked outside and looked up in the direction of the granary.
Sure enough, there was a sea of fire in the sky. If one didn't know better, they might think it was daytime.
How could the granary catch fire at this time when everything was fine?
Immediately afterwards, Magistrate Lin rushed back into the room and said to Zhang Wentong, "The granary is on fire! I have to go and check it out right away. Please forgive my rudeness if I neglect you, sir!"
After hearing this, Zhang Wentong also immediately stood up. "This is a serious matter. Come on, I'll go with you!"
"This... This is not appropriate. The fire is fierce. You don't have to go, sir." Magistrate Lin tried to decline.
"Putting out the fire is the most important thing now!"
After Zhang Wentong said that, without waiting for Magistrate Lin to say anything, he strode in the direction of the granary.
Magistrate Lin gritted his teeth and quickly followed.
He thought to himself, It'd be best if it all burns down!
-
Xie Jingchu brought Ruan Jiu and stood outside the granary.
Seeing the fire getting bigger and bigger, Ruan Jiu was about to rush in to put out the fire.
But Xie Jingchu quickly stopped her. "What are you doing?"
Ruan Jiu was extremely anxious. "To put out the fire!"
"No need. The fire will be out soon."
Ruan Jiu looked at Xie Jingchu's calm face. It seemed as if he had deliberately brought her here to watch the granary on fire.
A sense of unease welled up in her heart.
She asked, "Did you start the fire?"
Xie Jingchu raised his eyebrows, looking rather smug.
Seeing this, Ruan Jiu immediately exclaimed, "Are you crazy! This is the food for the entire Qinzhou City!"
Even if it was to deal with Magistrate Lin, one couldn't use such a cruel method!
If the granary burned down, what would the people of Qinzhou eat?!
Xie Jingchu smiled.
He leaned closer to Ruan Jiu's face and said playfully, "You're not seeing my cruelty for the first time."
Although Xie Jingchu said so, Ruan Jiu still didn't believe it.
She didn't think that Xie Jingchu would ignore the people of the entire Qinzhou City just to bring down Magistrate Lin.
Just then, the outside of the granary was crowded with people. Magistrate Lin and Zhang Wentong also rushed over.
With the concerted efforts of everyone, the fire was soon put out.
Immediately afterwards, Magistrate Lin and Zhang Wentong went into the granary to check the losses caused by the fire.
The people waited anxiously outside the granary for the result.
Unexpectedly, when Magistrate Lin came out, he was being escorted by several soldiers.
Zhang Wentong had a livid face and said nothing.
"What's going on?" Ruan Jiu looked at Xie Jingchu beside her in confusion.
Xie Jingchu raised his eyebrows and said, "Come on, let's find another place to watch the show."
In the yamen, Magistrate Lin had his official robe taken off and was kneeling on the ground, looking panicked and his body trembling uncontrollably.
Zhang Wentong was sitting upright in the middle, looking rather grim.
The on - looking people at the door were all confused.
Even if the granary was burned, Magistrate Lin would at most be accused of dereliction of duty.
There was no need to immediately dismiss him from office and hold a trial in front of so many people.
The gavel banged, followed by Zhang Wentong's angry shout.
"Lin Youcai, where are all the grains in the granary!"
Magistrate Lin was startled. He raised his eyes, his gaze shifting uneasily. "They... They've all been burned up..."
"Nonsense! Could this small fire burn all 30,000 dan of grain completely?" Zhang Wentong shouted angrily again.
"Sir, you saw how fierce the fire was just now. It's normal for them to be burned to ashes." Magistrate Lin explained.
But Zhang Wentong obviously didn't believe this explanation.
His eyes narrowed. "There should be at least some residue left!"
Magistrate Lin didn't expect that the person who had just been drinking and chatting with him would be so aggressive now.
Could it be because he hadn't been 'generous' enough?
So, Magistrate Lin immediately put on a flattering expression and said, "Sir Zhang, we can close the door first. I'll explain it to you in detail. Then you'll know why all the grains were burned completely."
After hearing this, Zhang Wentong snorted. "As the parent - official of Qinzhou City, you should explain to the people of Qinzhou City how the grains in the granary disappeared, not to me!"
Hearing this, Magistrate Lin was puzzled.
Was his expression not clear enough?
He immediately said, "Sir Zhang, your words sound so distant. You just said that we're like a family."
Hearing this, Zhang Wentong snorted.
He hadn't brought this up, but Lin Youcai did first.
He said coldly, "The food, clothing, and daily necessities in the magistrate's mansion are better than those of many high - ranking officials in the capital. You're just a mere magistrate with a monthly salary of only a hundred taels of silver. Where did all those jewels and silk fabrics come from?"
Hearing this, Magistrate Lin nervously swallowed his saliva and said, "They were all handed down from our ancestors!"
Zhang Wentong didn't listen to Magistrate Lin's sophistry and directly said, "Did you secretly sell the grains!"
"No!" Magistrate Lin immediately denied. "Sir Zhang, you can't just accuse me of something without evidence just because you have a higher position than me!"
As long as there was no evidence, he couldn't be convicted.
Just then, a soldier rushed in.
He whispered something in Zhang Wentong's ear and then handed over what he was holding.
Zhang Wentong looked solemn and carefully flipped through the things in his hand.
Seeing Zhang Wentong's face getting uglier and uglier, Magistrate Lin began to feel uneasy. Even his breathing became cautious.
After a moment, Zhang Wentong slammed his palm on the table.
He suddenly stood up, pointed at Magistrate Lin kneeling on the ground, and angrily shouted, "Lin Youcai, now that a large amount of gold, silver, and treasures have been found in your secret room, as well as contracts for buying and selling grains, how do you explain this!"
As soon as these words were said, Magistrate Lin instantly went limp.
His eyes were full of despair.
It's over!
All is lost!
Only then did he realize that Zhang Wentong's sudden visit wasn't to have a drink.
It was to deliberately look for evidence of his corruption and bribery!
Zhang Wentong had never really wanted to be a part of his 'family'!
"All of Lin Youcai's family members will be exiled to the border. Lin Youcai will be escorted back to the capital to await the emperor's judgment!"
Hearing that Magistrate Lin had finally got his just deserts, Ruan Jiu immediately felt relieved.
After all, Magistrate Lin had used his official position to bully the people and amass wealth for years, making Qinzhou City a mess.
"Did you set this up?" Ruan Jiu asked Xie Jingchu.
Xie Jingchu proudly raised his head and replied, "Of course."
Although Ruan Jiu sincerely admired Xie Jingchu's strategy, there was still a question in her mind.
"But where did you get so much silver to buy the grains?"