"Sir, there are footprints here too."
Pei Che went to bed very late yesterday, and came up the mountain early this morning, looking a little tired. He wiped his face, followed the yamen runner who came to report to the place where the footprints were found, and then ordered someone to compare the size of the footprints.
The yamen runner in charge of the survey took the straw used to measure other footprints and compared them with the footprints found now and said, "Sir, these all match the ones just now. No new ones have been found."
Pei Che said: "That is to say, there are only four of them in total. After they captured someone in Xiahe County, they walked in this direction." The reason why he was so sure that they had captured the person was because the footprints found later were deeper than those found before, which clearly showed that they were carrying a heavy object.
After hearing this, Xiahe County Magistrate Chen Shun looked embarrassed and ashamed. When Pei Che came over yesterday, he was a little puzzled. He didn't expect Pei Che to ask about the missing case right away.
Chen Shun didn't understand, so he had to tell Pei Che everything he knew. Pei Che immediately frowned and scolded him for being confused, and said that he would punish him if he couldn't distinguish the priorities next time. Chen Shun was dissatisfied and felt that it was very embarrassing to be scolded in public by a young man in his early twenties like Pei Che. Unfortunately, the officialdom is not a place where seniority is judged by age. As a subordinate, facing the anger of his superior, he had no choice but to endure it.
But when he followed Pei Che and his group to the mountain and witnessed the so-called scene of wild beasts injuring people, his dissatisfaction turned into uneasiness.
"Master Chen, do you know where this leads to?" Pei Che suddenly asked.
Chen Shun was startled, and looked in the direction he pointed, and said hurriedly: "Master Pei, go straight ahead from here, and after climbing over two more mountains, you will reach the border of Guyang County. Our Cangzhou is surrounded by mountains, and the mountains between all counties are connected."
Guyang County, when Pei Che heard the name, he immediately thought of the two people who disappeared in Tuyan Village. Tuyan Village was within the jurisdiction of Guyang County.
"How long would it take to search all these mountains?"
"Search the mountains?" Chen Shun was surprised. "These mountains are overgrown with vegetation, and many places are uninhabited. If you want to search all the mountains in Cangzhou, it will probably take at least ten days or half a month. And it must be done by all the government offices in the whole state." In fact, this time is still to be discussed. You know, some places cannot be entered directly. Chen Shun hoped that Pei Che, who heard his words, would give up this unrealistic idea.
Pei Che did exactly what he wished, and he began to hesitate. First, searching the mountain required manpower, and he couldn't arrange for the yamen runners of the whole state to spend ten days or half a month to search the mountain. Secondly, the mountain was connected to the outside world. If those people got the news and left the mountain, then all their previous efforts would be in vain, and it might also bring trouble to other states.
For all the reasons, Pei Che could only look at the mountain with regret and put the idea of searching the mountain in the bottom of his heart.
After walking a little further down, they found no more footprints. Pei Che looked at the tired-looking runners and announced that they would go back.
It was already noon when the group came down the mountain. Pei Che ordered the guards to find a restaurant, order a few tables of food, and invite the yamen runners to eat before returning to the yamen.
Chen Shun wanted to show his courtesy and sneak out to pay the bill while a group of people were resting inside, but he didn't expect that Pei Che's guards had already deposited the money at the account office. He left the counter in a huff and wanted to go back to the private room, but suddenly a yamen runner came in and shouted, "Sir, I found you." Fortunately, someone saw them coming this way after entering the city.
Chen Shun was a little nervous: "But what happened in the government office again?" He was worried that there would be more trouble! Seeing that Lord Pei was going back to the state capital, it would be meaningless if something unexpected happened to keep him here.
The yamen runner shook his head: "No, sir, it's the prefect's wife who came to see you." There was a hint of excitement on his face, and a sense of satisfaction of "getting some gossip".
Chen Shun was stunned for a moment, then he laughed: "I'm afraid that Master Pei didn't come back overnight, and Madam is worried." As for what he was worried about, that's a matter of opinion. I didn't expect that the prefect was also afraid of the female tiger at home. But think about it, their prefect looks very philandering, and no one would worry about him wandering outside all day.
"Yes," the yamen runner had no idea that Chen Shun had imagined so many things, and shared his own experience with a look of amazement, "When they said the lady had come, I was surprised. Why was it a man? Later I realized that they were the couple that the emperor personally ordered to get married last year."
Chen Shun was extremely surprised. It turned out that the creature hidden in Lord Pei's house was a male tiger! I guess it would be even more powerful if it got jealous, right
"Go and invite the lady over quickly. I'll also go up and tell Lord Pei." After Chen Shun gave the order to the yamen runner, he went into the private room and told him about the matter in a rush.
After hearing this, Pei Che changed his previous cold and indifferent look, his facial expression became lively, and his eyebrows softened visibly. He called the waiter, ordered a few dishes that Jiang Miao liked, and then stared at the door eagerly. Chen Shun was surprised again. His wife came, and Master Pei seemed so happy, as if he was deeply in love.
Soon, several voices came closer and closer. Chen Shun also looked outside the door curiously. He wanted to know what kind of man could make Lord Pei so obedient.
Pei Che stood up to greet him: "A Miao, you are here. This is Mr. Chen, the magistrate of Xiahe County, and these are the officials of Xiahe County."
Jiang Miao cupped his fist towards them and said, "Greetings to Mr. Chen and all the officials."
Everyone returned the greetings one after another, fearing that being a step late would make people feel disrespected.
After Jiang Miao sat down, Pei Che came over and asked in a low voice, "Why are you here?" Seeing his delighted look, Jiang Miao's heart skipped a beat. He quickly explained, "I didn't come here to see you on purpose. I have something to tell you!"
Pei Che's mouth curled up, wanting to tell his dear wife what "there is no silver here" meant, but he was afraid that he would expose it and anger Jiang Miao. So he also sat up straight and asked, "What's the matter?"
Jiang Miao told Pei Che what happened on the street yesterday, and then said, "These profiteers disrupted the market order, maliciously lowered prices, and took advantage of others. Is there any law in Daliang that can punish them?"
Pei Che frowned and thought for a while, then said, "There is no specific method of implementation in the law, but to deal with these merchants, there is no need for special laws to punish them."
Jiang Miao understood, and he couldn't help but sigh. Before, he still regarded the ancient times as the modern times with strict laws, and believed that the government must follow the rules and regulations when dealing with others. However, he didn't expect that in the era when the imperial power was greater than heaven, in fact, there were often not so many reasons to talk about.
After figuring it out, Jiang Miao began to ask Pei Che about the progress. After learning that they had confirmed that the missing citizen in Xiahe County was abducted, Jiang Miao said, "Finally, there is progress. In this case, those cases should be sent back to the various government offices for reexamination, right? This is no longer a simple disappearance."
Pei Che nodded: "That's what I was thinking. If we rely on the state capital alone to investigate, our strength is too weak. We should unite all the counties to find out the truth faster."
After dinner, Pei Che led his men back to the state capital. It was almost evening, but the two streets were still very busy. On one side, the rich were desperately giving away money, while on the other side, the poor were desperately making money. This group of people made a lot of money from the rich, slaughtering the fat sheep while not forgetting the little mosquito meat from the people, which can be said to be grabbing two hands.
"The government is investigating a case. All citizens, please leave immediately." A yamen runner took a gong and started beating it as he walked, shouting these words.
Nowadays, people, rich or poor, all have great respect for government officials. When they hear that the government is investigating a case, they leave immediately, fearing that they will be arrested as accomplices if they leave too late. In an instant, the two shopping streets became deserted.
The caravan's chief steward came out of the restaurant at the first sound of the gong. He walked ahead with his men, his face furious.
"I wonder what this officer means. We are a small business, and we do business with conscience. I wonder what case the government is going to investigate here?" When he saw the person beating the gong, the steward instantly changed from being furious to being gentle and polite.
The one who struck the gong snorted coldly: "You know it well, what else do you want me to say?"
The chief steward looked helpless and said, "I really don't know. Please tell me something, sir." He moved his hand, and an ingot of silver weighing about two taels was handed to the official holding the hammer.
The official felt the calmness of his attack and began to soften his attitude: "You have offended someone. If you want to resolve this matter quickly, you need to find the newly appointed prefect as soon as possible."
He emphasized the three words "newly appointed" and the steward immediately understood why this happened today.
It turns out that the arrangements made before are no longer valid.
(End of this chapter)