RPAGF Chapter 134 Precarious
Chapter 134 Precarious
The next day, when Chang Ningchen was getting ready to go to court, the radio came in in a panic, saying, "Your Majesty! The Marquis of Zhenbei was met with villains on his way home last night... and died!"
What?! Chang Ningchen was shocked. Lian He lived in the capital after all! How could someone kill someone in the capital?! Unless someone did it on purpose!
After attending court, Chang Ningchen observed everyone's expressions in the court. He suddenly found that everyone's expressions were similar to those when he usually attended court. For a moment, Chang Ningchen felt heartbroken.
Chang Ningchen and the other three people had a private chat. When the two of them were alone, Zhang Chenhe expressed his sorrow for Lian He's death. He comforted Chang Ningchen that he would let the Ministry of Personnel investigate the matter carefully, and that was all.
Wei Canghe saw that Chang Ningchen looked unhappy for a moment. Although the expression changed quickly, Chang Ningchen still noticed it.
Ke Baihe expressed his sadness, but now is not the time to be sad. He wants to find out the real murderer and not let Lian He die in such an unclear way!
Chang Ningchen looked at Qiu He. Now he was the only one he could speak his mind to. He asked, "Do you know who killed Lian He?"
Qiu He shook his head and said, "We haven't found out yet. The criminal was very vicious and chopped off his head..."
Chang Ningchen felt very sad when he heard about Lian He's miserable condition. If he hadn't asked someone to go to the palace to talk to him, he wouldn't have returned to the Marquis' Mansion so late and encountered an accident.
Qiu He thought Chang Ningchen was worried about his fate, so he comforted him, "Lian He doesn't affect the current situation. He was just a minor figure in the civil service anyway, so it doesn't matter if he's gone."
Chang Ningchen blew his nose, then went back to his bedroom to cry. He had originally thought Lian He was Dongfang He, but he didn't expect him to be the first to go offline! Moreover, few of his good friends were sad about his death, and he felt particularly uncomfortable.
That night, Chang Ningchen told Xiong Chen about Lian He's death. Xiong Chen burst into tears and asked, "Are the others okay?"
Chang Ningchen looked at him and said, "It's hard to say..."
In fact, everyone knows that this is just the beginning.
Things turned out just as Chang Ningchen had expected. Ke Baihe, who was investigating the cause of Lian He's death, was the second person to die.
Ke Baihe went incognito to investigate the street where Lian He had the incident, but his servant found that his master had not returned home and reported it to the authorities.
When the officials searched a large manor, the servants guarding the gate would not let them in. Even after they revealed their identities, the servants of the manor still cursed at them and refused to let them in.
I heard from the people nearby that this manor belongs to the steward of the largest clan in the capital, and all the officials in the capital have to respect them.
Zhuangzi's servant said that unless there is clear evidence, anyone who breaks in will have to bear the consequences!
Ke Baihe's servants were anxious and angry, so they had to release several mastiffs raised by Ke Baihe to find their owner. It was also the mastiffs that dug Ke Baihe's body out of the farm.
Chang Ningchen could no longer sit still and asked officials to investigate the matter, but Qiu He reported that their subordinates encountered obstacles. However, it was not long before Zhang Chenhe brought the case file from the Ministry of Personnel to Chang Ningchen and said that the case had been solved.
Zhang Chenhe said, "It was the owner of that manor who mistakenly killed Ke Baihe, mistaking him for a villain. Now he has surrendered himself..."
Chang Ningchen took the case file and looked through it. It was clearly written down what happened and when, without any loopholes, but the problem was that the case was settled too quickly.
Qiu He said it was difficult to investigate, but Zhang Chenhe had already investigated it the next day. This was too strange...
On the surface, Chang Ningchen looked relieved, as if a stone had fallen from his heart and a matter was over, but his knuckles had turned white from pulling the file so hard.
After the case of Ke Baihe's accidental death ended, Qiu He completely lost his voice, and most officials in the court obeyed Zhang Chenhe's orders.
Qiu He looked at Chang Ningchen worriedly and said, "I'm afraid I'll be gone soon too."
Chang Ningchen clenched his fists with a sad look on his face, fearing that if he didn't make a decision, they would be the ones to die!
Xiong Chen kept crying in Chang Ningchen's dream. He said to Chang Ningchen, "Talk to them. Maybe it's just a misunderstanding."
Chang Ningchen was so upset by Xiong Chen's crying that he called Zhang Chenhe, Wei Canghe and Qiu He the next day to have a chat with them.
Zhang Chenhe and Wei Canghe were smiling before they entered the room, but when they were the only four people left in the room, the smiles on their faces gradually faded.
Chang Ningchen looked at Zhang Chenhe and questioned him: "Chenhe, I gave you the formula to benefit the people, but you used it to make money!"
Zhang Chenhe smiled and said, "Your Majesty, you are too naive. How can ordinary people afford those things? If they become rich and wealthy, they will stop working. If they don't farm or weave, where will the food and clothes come from? Farmers are the foundation of the country. Let them know the benefits of business and everyone will go into business. No one will farm and the fields will be left uncultivated. The foundation of the country will be unstable."
Zhang Chenhe's parents taught him that civilians were like ants and were not worthy of pity. For them, keeping the ants alive was the greatest blessing, and they were born to be the benefactors of the ants. Only with them could the ants have food to fill their stomachs.
Therefore, Zhang Chenhe despised Qiu He, a commoner. As a member of an official family, Zhang Chenhe was unwilling to be friends with Qiu He, but the emperor was the emperor and his subjects were his subjects. He had no choice but to obey the emperor's order to make friends with this ant.
Chang Ningchen touched his chin. No wonder people in ancient times hated merchants so much. Without anyone to farm, everyone would be very angry. But this does not mean that the people do not hate those exploitative bureaucrats, and this is not a reason to let them eat their fill!
Looking at Zhang Chenhe, Chang Ningchen said angrily: "You also know that there are ordinary people who have no food to eat and no clothes to wear. If that's the case, why don't you let them have enough food and clothes to wear? You think you are noble and superior, but in fact you are just greedy rats! Big rat, big rat, don't eat my millet! I have a three-year-old daughter, and no one cares about me... This is how we are seen by the people! We only know how to eat their flesh and blood and don't care whether they live or die!"
Zhang Chenhe's face turned blue and red after being scolded by Chang Ningchen. It was the first time that Xiong Chen pointed at his nose and scolded him, which made him very angry, but Chang Ningchen was indeed right.
Qiu He threw the evidence he had found recently onto the table and said, "That manor is the Zhang family's housekeeper's villa. A housekeeper can live in such a grand manor, which shows that the Zhang family has made a lot of money! They are even in the capital, but they can't let officials enter the manor. If they are so arrogant under the emperor's feet, what will happen if they are far away?!"
A big tree attracts the wind, and the tree wants to be quiet but the wind does not stop. Even if Zhang Chenhe can keep himself clean, it is impossible for there to be no parasites in the Zhang family with so many people.