Eagle-eyed and wolf-watching

Chapter 1693 If it benefits the country, I will risk my life; how can I avoid it because of personal fortune or misfortune!
"Madam! I have come here today to request an audience with Lord Chu!"

Hearing his wife and the man pulling at each other, Chu Zhiyi looked up and saw his wife, Chu Zhaoshi, and two maids herding a middle-aged scholar dressed as a clerk out of the room.

Although the clerk was somewhat disheveled, he showed no intention of leaving. Just as Chu Zhao was about to say something, she saw Chu Zhiyi returning home, and her words immediately stopped.

Seeing that Madam Chu Zhao was silent, the middle-aged clerk seemed to realize something and immediately turned to look at the door.

After sizing up Chu Zhiyi and observing Chu Zhao's reaction, the middle-aged clerk realized he had met the person in charge. He then walked up to Chu Zhiyi, bowed, and introduced himself with a smile:
"I, Wang Yu, pay my respects to Lord Chu!"

Chu Zhiyi glanced at Wang Yu and said without any hesitation:

"roll!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yu was somewhat taken aback. Although he had heard that Chu Zhiyi was ruthless before he came, he did not expect that this person would be so disrespectful. Before he could even say two words, Chu Zhiyi was telling him to get lost.
Although Wang Yu was in a relatively lowly position at this moment, he was still a figure of importance in his own territory. Therefore, being so contemptuous and insulted like this made him somewhat angry.

But remembering Chu Zhiyi's status, he suppressed his anger and continued speaking with a forced smile and a fawning tone:
"Lord Chu, I have come to pay my respects on behalf of my master. There may have been some misunderstanding between you and my master recently..."

Upon hearing this, Chu Zhiyi's eyes flashed with even more disdain, but he still asked:

Who is your parent?

Faced with this question, Wang Yu assumed that Chu Zhiyi had made an exception, and then continued:

"Lord Chu, may we go inside and talk? Our lord sent me here to pay my respects to you with the utmost sincerity!"

When he said the last four words, "sincerely," Wang Yu emphasized them, seemingly trying to hint at something to Chu Zhiyi!
Upon hearing this, Chu Zhiyi said somewhat jokingly:
"Say what you have to say here, or get out of here!"

Upon hearing Chu Zhiyi's words, Wang Yu immediately realized that he had been too happy too soon. Chu Zhiyi had no intention of making an exception; he even wanted to mock him. Thinking of this, Wang Yu's anger intensified. However, he could only suppress his anger and try to think calmly.

At Chu Zhiyi's request, he was now in a dilemma!
He either leaves now, or he must reveal who's behind him in public right now!

In Wang Yu's mind, such words were always said indoors, never in public. If he said them out loud and people heard them and talked about them outside, wouldn't that give people something to gossip about?
Just as Wang Yu was struggling with his decision, Chu Zhiyi spoke up:
"I'll give you three numbers. If you say your parents' names again, you can get out of here..."

Hearing Chu Zhiyi say this, Wang Yu felt an immediate increase in pressure. Remembering the instructions his superiors had given him before he left, he gritted his teeth and said:

"Lord Chu, don't you know what you're investigating right now?"

Although he already had a guess in his heart, upon hearing Wang Yu's words, Chu Zhiyi's eyes sharpened, and he coldly said:
"I can arrest you right now!"

Hearing Chu Zhiyi say this, Wang Yu understood that playing the soft approach wouldn't work on Chu Zhiyi, so he continued:
"Lord Chu, you are the Inspector General of Youyan, and you have jurisdiction over all criminal matters in Youyan. Of course you can arrest me!"

"But don't forget, you are just the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner. You don't have the authority to rule over Youyan!"

Wang Yu spoke these words with unwavering determination and firmness, a stark contrast to his previous fawning and ingratiating demeanor. He was practically a different person altogether!

Upon seeing this, Chu Zhiyi's eyes were filled with murderous intent, but deep within them also flashed a hint of apprehension.

Just as the atmosphere became somewhat tense, Wang Yu suddenly changed his tone and spoke very earnestly:

"Lord Chu, it has always been said that it's better to resolve conflicts than to let them fester. Having more friends means having more paths to take, while having more enemies means having more obstacles to overcome. There's a misunderstanding between you and my master. If you give me a chance, I believe I can explain it to you!"

After saying this, Wang Yu took out an envelope from his pocket and handed it to Chu Zhiyi, saying:
"Lord Chu, this is my master's sincere gift. Please take a look!"

Although he couldn't see what was inside the envelope, Chu Zhiyi, having spent so many years in the entertainment industry, had at least seen what was in it, even if he hadn't eaten pork himself. He naturally understood what was inside, but he still showed no respect, directly knocking the envelope Wang Yu handed him to the ground and saying seriously:
"Take your dirty money away. Don't think you can buy everyone off just because you have some dirty cash!"

"Go back and tell your family that I will definitely bring him to justice and give those people he harmed an explanation..."

Wang Yu looked at Chu Zhiyi, who was so righteous and incorruptible, and was momentarily taken aback. He seemed not to have expected that there would be such an upright and incorruptible party member in the Daqian Party!
However, Wang Yu quickly made his choice. He picked up the envelope that had been knocked to the ground, then took another deep look at Chu Zhiyi, and left without saying anything more.

Since this wasn't the first time something like this had happened, Chu Zhiyi didn't pay too much attention to it. After chasing Wang Yu away, he spoke to his wife, Chu Zhao Shi:
"My lady, you did the right thing! Don't bother talking to this kind of person; just get rid of him!"

Hearing her husband say this, Madam Chu Zhao sighed and said:

"Husband! Even if you don't accept money or help him, there's no need to offend people like this!"

"He was right about one thing: it's better to resolve conflicts than to let them fester. Are you trying to antagonize him to the death?"

"Hmph! That's just a woman's view!"

"If all the Party members in the Great Qian Dynasty are thinking about how not to offend anyone, how to make money, how to befriend people, and how to curry favor with others, then does the Great Qian Dynasty have any future?"

"His Majesty once said, 'If it benefits the country, I will risk my life; how can I avoid it because of personal gain or loss?' This is our lifelong aspiration!"

Seeing her husband speaking so righteously, Lady Zhao of Chu sighed and said:

"My husband, I'm afraid that one day you'll face their retaliation..."

"What's there to be afraid of! The current emperor is a wise and powerful ruler who can surely distinguish between loyalty and treachery. As long as I, Chu Zhiyi, act uprightly and stand straight, there is nothing to fear!"

Seeing that she couldn't persuade her husband, Chu Zhao couldn't help but sigh.

Chu Zhiyi, however, paid no attention to his wife's concerns and asked directly:
"Where's the food? I'm starving!"

Upon hearing what Chu Zhao said, Chu Zhao also prepared dinner for Chu Zhiyi.

After finishing his meal, Chu Zhiyi met with his mother and chatted for a few minutes. Ignoring his child's request, he went straight into the study.

In the study, Chu Zhiyi continued to look at the documents he had brought back from the government office. Although Wang Yu, who came today, did not directly mention his master's name!

But he said he didn't know what he was looking for.

Chu Zhiyi was perfectly clear about what he needed to investigate, but the problem was that he was investigating more than just one case!
These are the cases of the Hu family in Yuyang and the case in Zhuoxian!

Both of these cases have their own backgrounds!
The Hu family is most likely backed by Zhao Jian, the prefect of Yuyang!
Behind Magistrate Wang of Zhuo County is Zhang Zhiwen, the Provincial Governor of Youyan!
So, who is Wang Yu representing?

Thinking of this, Chu Zhiyi fell into deep thought. The investigations by the Provincial Surveillance Commission were top secret; even many within the Commission were unaware of them. Since the "official" Wang Yu mentioned had sent him, it meant he knew Chu Zhiyi was investigating him!
Thinking about this, Chu Zhiyi couldn't help but suspect Zhang Zhiwen!

After all, Zhang Zhiwen was the only person besides the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner who knew about the investigation, and I reported the situation to him, the Provincial Treasurer, according to government practice!

But after thinking about it carefully, Chu Zhiyi felt it wasn't Zhang Zhiwen!

After all, Zhang Zhiwen had just had an argument with him at the Provincial Administration Commission a couple of days ago, so sending Wang Yu to find him at this time didn't seem like Zhang Zhiwen's style...

After thinking for a long time, Chu Zhiyi still couldn't figure it out. In addition, he was a little tired after working in the yamen all day, so he went back to his room to rest.

Just as Chu Zhiyi returned to his room yawning, he found his wife, Chu Zhaoshi, sitting in front of the dressing table, seemingly getting ready.

Seeing this, Chu Zhiyi lay down on the bed and said:
"Why are you getting dressed so late? Aren't you going to sleep?"

Upon hearing this, Madam Chu Zhao's gaze shifted from the dressing table in front of her to Chu Zhiyi.

The couple looked into each other's eyes. Although the wife didn't say anything, Chu Zhiyi sensed her thoughts from her gaze and then said:

"I'm tired! I've had a whole day at the yamen! Let's talk about it another day!"

Upon hearing Chu Zhiyi's words, his wife's face immediately showed disappointment, while Chu Zhiyi continued:

"You're a mother of two now, stop thinking about that kind of thing. Look at Mrs. Ma next door!"

Upon hearing Chu Zhiyi mention Madam Ma, Madam Chu Zhao seemed somewhat agitated and immediately spoke up:

"Mrs. Ma is a widow. Am I a widow?"

"I'm not saying you're a widow, I'm just telling you to learn from her!"

"Hmph! I think you're just having an affair, and now that you've had your fill of eating out, you're complaining that the food at home isn't good enough!"

"Don't talk nonsense! Who do I have? Don't you know who I, Chu Zhiyi, am?"

"As the saying goes, you can know a person's face but not their heart; who knows if you have any ulterior motives..."

"Stop joking around! Go get some rest! I've been so busy lately, I really don't have the energy for this!"

Hearing Chu Zhiyi say this, Chu Zhaoshi pouted but still extinguished the kerosene lamp and returned to bed.

In the darkness, Chu Zhao Shi grew angrier and angrier, feeling that she was not a widow at all, yet she was now living the life of a widow.

Especially Chu Zhiyi's snoring made Chu Zhao feel that she was unlucky to have married a heartless man!

Just as Chu Zhao was feeling sorry for herself, some rustling sounds came from the courtyard. At first, Chu Zhao thought she had misheard, but upon closer listening, she found that the sound was real!
The thought of this frightened Chu Zhao Shi, a young woman, and she instinctively touched her sleeping husband beside her.

Chu Zhiyi was shaken awake in a daze, and immediately assumed that Chu Zhao Shi still wanted more, so he said:

"Stop fooling around! Go to sleep!"

"Zhiyi! Listen, there's a sound coming from our yard!"

"What's that sound? Don't scare yourself! Go to sleep!"

Just as Chu Zhiyi finished speaking, a terrified voice came from the courtyard.
"The fire is coming! The fire is coming! Come and put it out!"

Upon hearing this, Chu Zhiyi, still somewhat dazed, jolted awake and opened his eyes in disbelief…

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Zhuoxian County Government Office
Ye Mingsheng sat high in the main seat, looking at Wang Chong kneeling beside him, and asked calmly:
"This is your last chance! I hope you can seize it!"

Upon hearing Ye Mingsheng's words, Wang Chong, who was kneeling on the ground, hesitated for a moment, but his eyes quickly hardened again.

The magistrate of Zhuo County kowtowed several times to Ye Mingsheng, then said with a look of remorse:

"Your Majesty, I was blinded by greed and committed such an outrageous act. I deserve to die a thousand deaths. Please, Your Majesty, punish me!"

After saying this, Wang Chong prostrated himself and said no more.

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng glanced at Wang Chong and, seeing that he still had no intention of speaking, waved his hand, and the guards beside him immediately took the magistrate of Zhuo County away.

After Wang Chong was taken away, Ye Mingsheng looked at his son Jingren beside him and said:

"Did you understand what Wang Chong meant in his words?"

Jingren answered without hesitation:
"This Magistrate Wang has confessed! He admitted to colluding with those factory owners to oppress the people!"

Upon hearing his son's answer, Ye Mingsheng couldn't help but shake his head.

Seeing this, Jingren asked, somewhat puzzled:
"Dad, that's what he meant! What else did he say?"

Looking at his son's puzzled face, Ye Mingsheng sighed with emotion:

"Jingren, you really didn't inherit a single bit of your mother's political talent!"

Hearing his father suddenly bring this up, Jingren, who was confused, scratched his head awkwardly.

After his reflections, Ye Mingsheng was also filled with mixed feelings.

Although Jingren did not inherit An Miaoyi's talent for Zz and was only average in Zz sensitivity, he also did not inherit his mother's cold-blooded and ruthless values ​​that treated human life as worthless.

Ye Mingsheng could only console himself that the advantages outweighed the disadvantages; otherwise, he would have even more of a headache if Jing Ren ended up like An Miaoyi…