lady, please calm down

July 19th.

The end of the afternoon is the time when the heat is the hottest in the day.

The willows beside the road were scorched by the scorching sun, and their slender leaves were curled up listlessly. Even the chirping of cicadas sounded weak.

Xianggongzhong Village, Changhua County.

Under the shade of the trees, several old men sat around the head of the village, discussing the fire that had broken out at the Du family's home the previous evening.

"Accident? You must be kidding. My nephew works as a farmhand in Mr. Cao's house. I heard him say that the foreign student saw that Du Yu was easy to bully, so he took possession of Miss Du's body. Afterwards, he pulled up his pants and refused to recognize her, which led to this disaster."

As soon as one person finished speaking, another person from the same village said, "Du Yu can be deceived? Do you believe this? They are not easy to deal with. Old Du is addicted to gambling. He coaxed Du Xiaoniang into being a secret agent more than a year ago. Who in our village doesn't know this? If the foreign scholar was tempted by her beauty and paid some money, why would he kill someone and then burn himself in the Du family? In my opinion, there is something fishy about this matter."

The man who spoke first was speechless after being refuted, and could not help but shouting: "How can you speak for a stranger!"

"I'm talking about 'reason'. When did I ever speak for outsiders?"

Seeing that the two were arguing, someone immediately said, "Village head, you should know the most about this matter. Can you explain it to everyone?"

The man was holding a stand and waving a palm leaf fan. After looking around at everyone, he said, "What the fourth brother said is pretty much right."

'Old Four' was the one who said that a foreigner had raped Du Yue'er and denied it afterwards.

When those who disagreed with him heard that the village head had already made his decision on the matter, they did not dare to speak again even if they had doubts in their hearts.

Then, another person said, "Village head, I heard that the man who died was a student of the current emperor. He won't bring disaster to our village, right?"

The village head frowned and said, "The emperor's students must also be reasonable. If anyone wants to wrong us, Cao Gong will be there to uphold justice for everyone."

As they were talking, they suddenly saw a cloud of dust approaching rapidly on the official road in the east direction.

Amid the sound of horse hooves, a team of knights gradually revealed their true faces from the dust.

There was an extreme shortage of horses in Jiangnan, and the hundreds of knights who suddenly appeared here were riding the tall Hequ horses, which were rare in the local area and worth a fortune.

Although it was midsummer, all the knights on horseback were wearing armor, with a short crossbow on the left waist and a feather sword on the right waist.

The lining exposed at the cuffs and neckline is embroidered with bright yellow piping
If you meet someone who knows the business, he can recognize them at a glance from their configuration and sleeve collars. They are the emperor's personal army!

But Xianggongzhong, the village head, is naturally not someone who knows his business.

The reason they were guarding here was to guard the Du family courtyard after the fire. This was the crime scene. Although the Changhua County Government had cordoned off this place with ropes, the weather was hot and the government officials were unwilling to stay here and suffer, so they assigned this matter to them.

"Stop!"

The Du family courtyard was all charred black, and anyone could see that this place was unusual. The leading young general raised his hand and shouted, and more than 200 riders reined in their horses in unison.

The young general turned his head to glance at the headman under the shade of the tree, then retracted his gaze, dismounted, ignored the rope pulled up by the county government, and walked straight into the yard.

The head of the village saw this and quickly stood up, walked over and shouted, "Hey, who are you? This place has been blocked by the county magistrate, no outsiders are allowed to enter!"

But the young general pretended not to hear anything and walked straight into the west room where only four charred walls were left.

He was about to step forward to stop them, but the accompanying knight stretched out his arm to block them, blocking their way.
In Jiangnan, soldiers had a low status, but they were not people that a village head like him dared to offend. Seeing that the title of 'county magistrate' failed to scare off these big-headed soldiers, the village head could only stand there awkwardly.

Not long after, the young general walked around the Du family courtyard, turned around and walked towards the head of the village, and asked directly, "Where is Xiao Cui's body?"

"Xiao Cui?"

"The foreign student who died here!"

"Oh, he is buried in the east of the village."

"Buried?"

The young general showed an angry look, but the village head said confidently: "This is the order of the county master and Mr. Cao. The weather is so hot, are we going to let the body rot here if we don't bury it?"

"Where is it buried? Take me there!"

"What are you going to do?"

"Take his body back!"

"That won't do. Without the order from Master Cao and the Magistrate, I can't give you the body."

"I'll say it one last time, take me there!"

The young general spoke word by word slowly. Before the head of the village could say something, a soldier beside him drew his sword and placed it on his neck.

"Don't worry, sir. I will take you there."

There is a decisive change of tone.

Bringing Cui Zaidao's body back to Huaibei for burial was ordered personally by His Majesty. If I dare to say any more here, my life will be in danger.

Xiao Yi's situation can be considered the most successful.

After setting off overnight last night, the eldest son, Xiao Yi, Pang Shengyi and others entered the border of Changhua County before noon today, and then divided into three teams.

Xiao Yi came to Xianggong's tomb to take Cui Zaidao home
Pang Shengyi led a battalion of knights into the county town and escorted the magistrate Lu Xiaozhai and his family to Lin'an.

The eldest son himself went directly to Caotang Fort.
Caotang Fort, the Changhua Cao family has been thriving here for hundreds of years.

It is said that the ancestors of the Cao family had a governor as early as the Tang Dynasty. During the Zhou Dynasty, sixteen people in the family passed the imperial examination and became Jinshi in less than two hundred years.

The eldest son led a battalion of knights into the village entrance and saw more than a dozen stone and wooden archways in the shape of successful candidates for the imperial examination towering above the road and extending deep into the village.

This background and this style can indeed easily make people feel a sense of respect out of thin air.

But it didn't work for the stubborn eldest son. He only remembered the words of his emperor brother: 'Bring Cao Ling's family back to Lin'an. Anyone who stands in the way will be killed without mercy!'

A total of five hundred riders had arrived at the village entrance with murderous intent. It was impossible for Cao Ling to be unaware of it.

His first reaction was indeed a bit of shock. In the past two hundred years, had he ever heard of the emperor sending his own troops to arrest people?
How will all the officials in the court cope with this situation?

It was not until then that Cao Ling figured out where Cui Zaidao's strong character of preferring death to disgrace came from. It was inherited from the new king of the Great Chu.

To put it nicely, it means not caring about gains and losses and being unwilling to compromise.

To put it bluntly, it means not following rules and not considering consequences!

Just like Cui Zaidao, who could have lived a good life but would rather die than be a pawn of the Cao family.

It is also thought that the emperor should have sent officials from the Ministry of Justice or the Dali Temple to investigate the case, but he insisted on handling it himself. This was bound to cause a backlash among the officials.

However, Cao Ling also knew that it was a matter of life and death for the family.

Originally, he had planned to abandon one of his sons to take the blame if things really got out of hand, but seeing that the emperor was going to wipe out his Cao family, he simply stopped giving in. He asked the housekeeper to encourage the farmhands and farmhands to delay the attack for a while, and called his third son Cao Zhuo, who participated in the whole process. Time was urgent, and there was no time to pack up the floating wealth and valuables. Cao Ling only quickly gathered the land deeds and shops together and handed them to Cao Zhuo, and solemnly instructed: "My son, listen carefully, take these things and go to your eldest sister quickly. When you need money, you can abandon the land and shops. The life and death of my Cao family, young and old, is entrusted to you!"

"Father! Why don't we escape as a family?"

In a hurry, Cao Zhuo said something stupid, and Cao Ling couldn't help but scold him: "Stupid! There are more than a hundred people in the family, half of whom are women, children, and the elderly. Can you escape from the emperor's personal army? Besides, now in the whole Jiangnan, except for a few places such as Fujian Road and Jiangnan West Road, the rest have changed their flags and returned to Chu. Where can you escape to?"

Cao Zhuo shed tears and said, "But my grandmother is already in her seventies, and my father and mother are also over fifty. If they are taken to Lin'an, wouldn't it be like entering the gates of hell?"

Cao Ling looked at his son and said, "This matter may not be hopeless. If our emperor sends his own troops to arrest people, it will surely terrify all officials. If my father is imprisoned, it will give them an excuse to resist. If you can follow the trend outside, my family may be able to turn danger into safety. This time, on the surface, it is a matter of my Changhua County, but in fact it is a matter of power struggle between the emperor and his ministers."

It was noon.

At the gate of Caotangbao, Cao family steward Cao Bian and dozens of farmhands were blocking the place. On the village wall, farmhands holding hoes and dung forks continued to arrive.

"Get out of the way, I don't want to kill you!"

The eldest son sat on his horse and spoke in a calm tone, as if he was stating a simple fact.

But his honest face made the extremely dangerous words not very intimidating.

Cao Bian was not afraid and said loudly, "My family of Cao has lived here for hundreds of years and has never committed crimes. We have accumulated good deeds for generations and have been repeatedly rewarded by the court. Even civil and military officials who pass by our village must dismount and get off their sedan chairs. It is really rude for the general to lead his troops here in broad daylight! I advise the general to leave quickly to avoid being cursed by scholars all over the world."

When it comes to talking skills, Yao Changzi is slightly better than Sang Biao and Xiaohong. His only advantage is that he can speak human language.

Naturally, he couldn't win the argument with Butler Cao.

Seeing that the big fool didn't say anything, the farmhands behind Cao Bian and the farmhands on the wall couldn't help but shout happily: "Where did this stinky soldier come from? He is trying to extort money from our master? Let's find out who Cao Gong is. The county magistrate comes to visit from time to time. Even when he went to Lin'an, he was a guest of honor of many officials."

"Hahaha, I advise you to go back quickly. This is not the place for you to show off! Be careful or you will suffer the consequences."

"Hey, that big black guy, how much is your monthly salary? Is the small salary you get enough to buy a bottle of wine? Why don't you come to my farm and be a guard?"

"Hahaha"

The farmhand did not recognize the uniforms of the imperial army.

In the past, there had never been a precedent of soldiers coming to the Cao family to cause trouble.

At this moment, in the mansion behind him is Master Cao, who controls everyone's hunger and fullness, and their status.

In front of him were Mr. Cao's chief steward and the farmhands who wanted to take advantage of this rare opportunity to show off their skills and get rewarded later.

At the same time, with Steward Cao in front of them, they, who were servants to begin with, inexplicably developed a sense of superiority when facing the soldiers.

The feeling is probably similar. Although I have no ability, my master is very powerful.

However, the soldiers under the eldest son's command were not used to the current situation. Needless to say, the importance of the personal army was very important, as they were almost all men from Huaibei.

Since the day they joined the army, they have been loved and respected wherever they go. And since the Huaibei Army was formed, Your Majesty has often told everyone to ensure that poor families can have enough food to eat and keep warm.

Therefore, they naturally felt close to the people. These people in front of them were all pale and thin, wearing tattered clothes.

The Huaibei soldiers felt that they were there to help them live a better life, but the other side spoke harshly to them, which made them even more infuriated than when they faced the Jin people!
But since the eldest son had no orders, they could only stand there motionless and could only respond with angry eyes.

"Hey, why are you staring at me? Are you trying to scare me? Hahaha, come here if you dare!"

The ineffective eye attacks made the people in Caotangbao even more arrogant.

The eldest son, on the other hand, seemed unaffected. He just stared at Cao Bian, who was standing in front of him with a proud look on his face, and said seriously, "Get them out of the way, or else, I'm really going to kill someone!"

"Haha. In broad daylight, in a clear and bright world, you are nothing."

Cao Bian was speaking passionately when he saw the big black man on the horse quietly draw out a short crossbow from his waist, draw the string and put the arrow on it in one go, and point his finger at him. Cao Bian was stunned.
But decades of success had made him believe that the other party would not dare to act wildly here, so he quickly took a deep breath and continued what he had just interrupted, "You have trespassed on me without reason."

'Buzz~'

The bowstring made a slight sound.

Cao Bian felt as if he was stung by a snake or scorpion on his left chest. He lowered his head and saw a featherless short arrow almost completely embedded in his chest, with only a two-inch long section of the arrow tail exposed.

Cao Bian, the chief steward of Changhua Cao family, slowly raised his head, opened his mouth slightly, and said in disbelief: "You... you really dare to kill me. You, you are finished."

After saying "You're finished", the next moment, Cao Bian fell straight to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

It is a midsummer afternoon and the sun is shining brightly.

There was a sudden silence inside and outside the gate of Caotangbao Manor, with only the incessant chirping of cicadas.

But the eldest son put away his crossbow and raised his hand to wave forward, "Enter the village, capture Cao Ling's family and take them to Lin'an. Anyone who blocks or resists will be killed without mercy!"

"Here!"

The five hundred knights, who had been unable to contain themselves any longer, shouted in unison and rushed in like tigers released from a cage.

The farmhands and farmhands who had been making so much noise just now suddenly let out a scream of fear and scattered like birds and beasts, fleeing to all parts of the farm.

The eldest son took the lead and headed straight for the Cao family mansion in the northwest corner of the village.

Unexpectedly, when the team just arrived at the gate of Cao's house, they saw that more than a hundred members of the Cao family, including Cao Ling, had already been waiting outside the door, and the sound of women crying was heard everywhere.

Cao Ling, who had a stern face, saw his eldest son coming forward, raised his hand and shouted, "Don't hurt the people of Caotang Fort! Cao is here, you can tie him up!"

In the distance, a man who had sold his land to work as a farmhand for Cao's family because he could not pay back the interest on the loan was hiding in a corner and watching this scene. He could not help but shed tears and said: "Master Cao is kind and righteous! Hateful soldiers and ruffians came to ruin the Cao family. In the future, if there is no Master Cao in Changhua County, how can we live?"
But the eldest son in front of Cao Ling looked around strangely. After the soldiers entered the village, as long as no one stopped them, who would chase after the farmhands and kill them for no reason?

At this moment, the farmhands had already run away and there was no fighting within a few hundred steps. When did we hurt the people of Caotang Fort?

The soldiers of the 1st and 2nd Guards Regiments are the most powerful and have the strictest discipline. We are not bandits who enjoy killing people!

The Cao family cooperated very well and therefore suffered less.

The eldest son ordered his subordinates to only capture the adult males of the Cao family. The women and children only needed to follow the team. The elderly women or women with young children were also given several horses to ride on.

But when it was Cao Ling's turn, the eldest son invited him to a secluded place. Cao Ling was very alert and immediately said, "What does this general want? Your Majesty wants to take me to Lin'an, and the general cannot punish me privately."

The eldest son smiled innocently, then punched Cao Ling in the abdomen.

The eldest son's supernatural power was unrivaled in the entire army. In order to avoid killing Cao Ling with one punch, the eldest son only used 30% of his strength. But even so, Cao Ling still curled up on the ground in pain, tears and snot streaming down his face.

This was not the end. The eldest son kicked him several more times before he stopped. Cao Ling almost thought he was going to be beaten to death. It took him half a minute to recover. He curled up on the ground and said, "I have no grudge against the general. Why are you beating me?"

The eldest son scratched his head in embarrassment and said, "I'm sorry. When I came here, His Majesty gave me an oral instruction that when I see you, an old man, I must beat you up first to vent his anger."

"." Cao Ling, who was still gasping in pain, had dirt on his face, but he looked at his eldest son in shock.

Listen, does this sound like something an emperor would say?
Unexpectedly, the eldest son said: "Oh, yes, His Majesty also said that Cui Zaidao was his most proud student. If he dies, all the men in your family must go down to apologize to him, and even the king of heaven cannot save you." (End of this chapter)