This arrow shot not only cut off He Dingkun's scolding, but also all the movements of thousands of people at the scene. Everyone stood motionless as if they had been hit by a immobilization spell, their wide eyes full of disbelief. At this moment, everyone's minds were blank. Even Lin Chong was completely stunned at this moment, unable to recover from this sudden change.
It wasn't until Huo Wenyao, the leader of the troublemaking candidates who was behind He Dingkun, screamed that the others finally woke up suddenly. He was in the closest position to He Shilang, so he could clearly see all the details of the killing arrow. Not only did he see the arrow piercing He Dingkun's head, but he also saw the blood mixed with the arrow splashed out. The liquid and brain matter splashed onto his face.
The warm feeling instantly frightened the young examinee who only knew how to read and write. Then a scream came out of Huo Wenyao's mouth uncontrollably, breaking the eerie silence of the scene. . Then, countless candidates around them also screamed: "Kill... kill..."
Some people stood there in a daze, some people looked around hurriedly, thinking about turning around and running away, and some people looked ahead out of shock and anger, wanting to question Lin Qianha as to why such a thing happened. The century-old inertia of being a noble and a military man cannot be completely reversed in just two years. These candidates naturally have a sense of superiority when facing soldiers, and they are not afraid even if they are facing an official of the imperial court.
But at this moment, a greater crisis has befallen them. A voice suddenly sounded from the middle of the army: "The examinee assassinated the imperial official, which is tantamount to rebellion. Kill him!"
The soldiers who gathered around them had their hearts tensed and were ready to take action at any time. Now when they suddenly heard such a shout, many people subconsciously launched an attack. Dozens of arrows flew out immediately, and more soldiers waved their swords and guns and rushed towards the candidates who were already in a mess.
This time, it is really the wolf among the sheep. Those scholar candidates and the common people are unarmed and defenseless. If they are asked to write articles and criticize the soldiers, they are good at it, but if they are really allowed to face the soldiers with real swords and guns, then they can only lead the way. Killed.
In an instant, screams rang out from all directions, and many soldiers fell down, while more people scattered and fled outside. But how could their movements compare to the well-trained and well-organized officers and soldiers? They only took a few steps before they were intercepted and stabbed over.
All the officials in front of the Yamen were dumbfounded. The prefect Dai Quan reacted very quickly and shouted loudly to Lin Chong who was also stunned on the spot: "Lin Qianji, you can't do it. These people are the seeds of our Jiangnan education. Absolutely not…”
"Stop, don't hurt anyone!" His words finally woke up Lin Chong. He looked pale but stepped forward quickly. The sword on his waist had been unsheathed and he blocked several attacks on the candidates. , finally stopped the soldiers from attacking the candidates.
After all, he is the commander-in-chief of this army, and his prestige is here. Even in such a messy situation, as he shouted one after another, the situation was quickly controlled. But even so, the scene in front of the government office was extremely miserable.
Thousands of candidates, who were so aggressive just now, have fallen to the ground, and countless people have
There were wounds and blood stains on their heads, and they were screaming repeatedly. Those who were still standing were trembling, and they didn't have any sense of scholarly grace. Now they look like quails. With their heads lowered, they don't even have the courage to look at any of the soldiers, let alone say anything.
If the murder of He Shilang before had only aroused their anger and made them dare to confront the government, after experiencing this siege, they had completely lost their courage. After all, there are only very few scholars in the world who can sacrifice their lives for righteousness, and most of them cherish their lives very much.
They dare to act so recklessly today because they have determined that the government will not do anything to them. After all, the law does not punish the public. And as the prefect said, they are the seeds of learning in Hangzhou and even Zhejiang in the past ten years. Who dares to really treat them? Start
But the facts slapped them hard, letting them know that there would be a heavy price to pay for such reckless behavior. At this moment, apart from fear, the first thought of these candidates was regret. If they had known this would be the result, they should have stayed at home like their classmates who had never come to Hangzhou. But now, it's too late.
Lin Chong was still full of surprise and doubt. After a while, he called on the people from the government office to help save the dead and wounded. Then he strode up to the reorganized subordinates and glanced at everyone one by one: "Who shot that arrow just now?" What was said, and who shouted that cry that made everyone suddenly attack these soldiers who had no power to resist?"
What happened this time was so big that he still didn't know how to deal with it. Just for one of his subordinates to shoot and kill the third-grade Minister of Etiquette and the local examiner in public was already a huge event, not to mention the casualties caused to hundreds of examinees today. Even he could not afford such a crime.
After being stared at by Lin Chong, many soldiers took half a step back with guilty conscience. There was only one person who looked at him, then raised his chest and said: "Hui Qianjia, that's what I yelled out in a moment of passion."
Lin Chong's expression suddenly changed. This man was a subordinate he valued very much in the Hangzhou garrison, named Lu Huan. Moreover, he still remembered that this person also came with him from Tokyo to Jiangnan for military training. This meant that he should still be an old man in the army, at least someone who had participated in the war with Liao and Jin. Although he was only the commander of a battalion, in terms of qualifications, In terms of merit, it is certainly not comparable to those generals who were promoted on the spot in Hangzhou.
In other words, it is really not easy to punish this person. And more importantly, if he had fired the arrow, there would have been a big problem with him shouting for the soldiers to rush over. He shot and killed Minister He, so why did he stir things up by saying that a candidate killed an official? Didn't this start the whole incident
"Get him!" But now, Lin Chong had no other choice but to detain the person first and then worry about it later. But just when the subordinates around him responded and wanted to capture Lu Huan and tie him up, he took a step back and said loudly: "Wait a minute."
"Why, do you still dare to resist arrest?" Lin Chong immediately asked with narrowed eyes.
"I don't dare, I just want to talk to Qianjie alone about something." Lu Huan shook his head and looked to the side. There was a corner over there, which was convenient for the two of them to talk alone.
See how calm he is
It seemed that Lin Chong's doubts became more serious. He only thought for a moment, then nodded and said: "Okay, I want to see how you explain this matter."
When the two came to the edge, the first words Lu Huan uttered shocked Lin Chong again: "Now that I have a humble position, I dare not hide it from Qian Ju. In fact, I am from the Imperial City Division, and I am only following orders this time." Act. As early as one month ago, I had received a secret order from the top that some candidates would cause trouble at this time, and I was asked to find the right opportunity to hit them hard so that they would not stand up."
"You... what do you mean?" Lin Chong was so shocked that he couldn't even speak. When he looked at the other party again, his eyes had completely changed. Although he knew that there was the Imperial City Division in the capital, and that the Imperial City Division was still responsible for supervising all officials, he never expected that there was such a person around him.
Lu Huan just smiled softly: "This is all the arrangement of the superior. As a subordinate, I just obey orders. However, I have always only respected Lin Qianha, but I have never thought of being an enemy of you..."
"Wait a minute, even if you are from the Imperial City Department, you have nothing to do with today's incident. You said you knew about today's incident as early as a month ago, why didn't you report it to me early so that we could have something to do? If you take precautions, maybe you can eliminate this turmoil." Lin Chong's mind was confused, and he could only wave his hands and ask what he was most concerned about.
"This humble position is unknown. I just followed orders. Maybe this is the only thing the court wants to see."
"This is impossible. So many innocent people died, and the ones who died were scholar candidates. How could the imperial court be happy to see such a result." At this point, Lin Chong narrowed his eyes again: "Could it be that you want to excuse yourself? Are you just telling me such big words to deceive me?"
"How dare you do this in a humble position? I only tell the truth in my humble position. There is also a secret order here, and it is also written on it that after the matter is completed, it can be handed over to Lin Qianha for personal inspection." After saying that, Lu Huan actually took it out from his arms. He received something that looked like a letter and handed it to Lin Chong respectfully.
Lin Chong didn't hesitate much, so he opened the secret order and read it word by word. And at this glance, his face turned a few points paler. The handwriting on it was quite familiar to him. It was Sun Tu's own handwriting. Together with the seal of Captain Fang, it was the only one in the world that no one could forge.
And what was written on it shocked Lin Chong's soul, and his body began to tremble slightly: "Unexpectedly... It's so... Qianli... Lieutenant, is he actually prepared to use such cruel means to force them to bow their heads? ?”
The content above was too horrifying to hear, and it was in great conflict with Lin Chong's long-held understanding, which made him unable to accept Sun Tu's change and decision for a long time.
But Lu Huan said at this time: "Lin Qianjia didn't know that this change was not just in Hangzhou, but all over the states and counties in the south of the Yangtze River. There were even people elsewhere who wanted to take this opportunity to make moves. That's why the Taiwei did this. The purpose of making such a decision is to completely cut off the thoughts of those people, stabilize the current situation, and at the same time implement the established strategy of abolishing ancient texts."
Lin Chong sighed softly. He knew that Sun Tu's plan was really big, and it was indeed beyond the comprehension of a military commander far away in the south of the Yangtze River. However, when he thought that such a method would cost the lives of countless innocent people, he still felt unable to accept it...