Han official!

Chapter 29 False Accusation
The capital pavilions in Chang'an are divided into three categories: street pavilions, flag pavilions, and gate pavilions.

Jieting is a pavilion set up on the street. There are Duting on Gao Street of Zhichengmen, Zhangtai Street of Anmen, and Xiangshi Street of Qingmingmen. They are all Jieting.

It is also called the Jieting Pavilion, which is used to prevent theft and adultery and is responsible for curfew. The daily security of Chang'an depends on Jieting.

The flag pavilion, also known as the market tower, was set up in the nine markets of Chang'an. It was responsible for the business of buying and selling goods, as well as the opening and closing of the nine markets of Chang'an.

The gate pavilion was set up near the city gate, responsible for entry and exit, guarding the city gate, identifying thieves, inspecting and passing tokens, and preventing thieves from entering Chang'an and causing unrest in the city.

The chief of the Zhichengmen Pavilion near Gaojie Pavilion was an acquaintance of Jia Ziguang, who had once rebuked Guo Jie for offending the powerful. He also lent the knights to Yuan Ying to murder Guo Jie. Now, hundreds of knights were all imprisoned in Chang'an Prison.

Guo Jie always leaves no room for maneuver in his work, eliminating all hidden dangers and will never forget Jia Ziguang who has repeatedly opposed him.

"Go back and rest early."

Guo Jie instructed, "Send the millet to the official temple in Chang'an as soon as possible tomorrow. Don't delay, or you will cause dissatisfaction among the superiors."

After experiencing a fierce battle in the neighborhood, he also experienced the attack of Zhu Anshi.

Exhausted physically and mentally.

Zhang Qian, Wei Guang and others bowed in succession and left towards a house. They were tired but excited at the same time, as each of them could get tens of thousands of coins.

Guo Jie returned home without resting, and went to the cook at the Gaojie Duting. He said, "Thanks to your help in exterminating the Yangdi Yuan clan, otherwise the outcome would be uncertain. Even though I am an exceptional swordsman, I must have alarmed the Yuan clan members, and they would have burned the granary, causing widespread concern throughout the city."

"Don't dare to take it seriously."

The chef said respectfully, "You are very polite, Captain. You came to visit me at night. I believe you don't just want to chat for a few minutes."

Guo Jie nodded solemnly and made a gesture of invitation.

Gaojie Duting is located at Zhichengmen, and is also the residence of envoys from vassal states. In order to prevent rebellion by foreigners, it is different from ordinary dutings and its shape is more like a pavilion and tunnel at the frontier.

There is a hou in the capital pavilion, a square platform about three or four zhang high, which is used for pavilion guards to garrison and observe the situation of the officials and people in Gaojie, as well as the movements of the barbarian vassal states.

At this time, it was dark and the watchtower was empty. Guo Jie and the chef went up to the platform three or four stories high one after another.

Guo Jie held down his two-foot sword in silence. "Two questions. One is how many red ribbon armors are hidden in the capital, and the other is where Jia Ziguang lives."

Number of armors?

The chef looked confused, not understanding why he suddenly asked about the number of armors in Duting, and then asked about Jia Ziguang's residence.

Could it be that.
The chef was horrified.

Guo Jie also wanted to frame Jia Ziguang for secretly storing armor.

"This"

The kitchen steward noticed Guo Jie's hand resting on his two-foot sword and said with a wry smile, "The pavilion commander is too cautious. I, a humble official, took the millet from the Yang Di Yuan clan. How could I betray you? Since you want to eradicate the problem, I'm willing to help. I just hope that after you succeed, the position of kitchen steward will be left to my incompetent grandson."

Guo Jie bowed solemnly and said, "I, Guo Jie, will treat him like a brother."

Trust and integrity are worth a thousand gold.

What others say may not be credible, but the promise of the hero Guo Jie is worth far more than a thousand pieces of gold.

The chef smiled cheerfully, "There are many treacherous people in Chang'an. Jia Ziguang may seem like a hero from Nanyang County, but in reality he's just a villain. If someone else had made a promise, I wouldn't trust them easily. But Mr. Guo's promise is worth the risk."

In danger?

The chef himself hid in Jia Ziguang's residence with a batch of armor? Guo Jie opened his mouth, wanting to persuade him not to go, but just provide a batch of armor.

"How does a pavilion chief report an official?"

The chef shut Guo Jie up with a remark: "Could it be that you were wandering around Jia Ziguang's house and stumbled upon a large amount of armor? You and Jia Ziguang are enemies, so why would you wander around Jia Ziguang's house? This would certainly arouse suspicion. Chang'an Magistrate Zhao Yu and Maoling Commander Zhang Tang are both outstanding men, so they might guess some clues."

After the chef finished speaking, he walked down the watchtower alone in the howling cold wind without waiting for Guo Jie's response.

Guo Jie watched the cook leave with a complicated look in his eyes, not knowing what to say for a moment.

At cockcrow time (1-3 a.m.), all the common people in the neighborhood fell into a deep sleep. Gao Street was silent and there was not a single person in the neighborhood.

The side door of the Gaojie Duting suddenly opened, and an old man drove an open cart out of the Duting and quietly headed towards a house.

He opened the back door of Jia Ziguang's house and moved in one set of red-ribboned armor after another.

After the cook had carried all the red armor ribbons, his forehead was already covered in sweat. He couldn't tell whether it was cold sweat or sweat from carrying them one by one.

He got back on the open car and quietly returned to Gaojie Duting.

Guo Jie stood on the watchtower, holding a two-foot sword, observing everything around him.

He was not looking outside the capital, but staring intently at the neighborhood, to prevent the servants in Jia Ziguang's warehouse from suddenly coming out to urinate and running into the cook who was driving the open cart out.

Even if there is a tiger in the servant's room, the chamber pot used for urination still needs to be protected.

False accusation and counter-attack.

According to the Second Year Law, if someone falsely accuses someone of a capital crime, the accuser will be punished by having words tattooed on his face and sentenced to hard labor such as pounding rice in the city.

Falsely accusing others of hoarding armor is a serious crime that will result in the extermination of the entire clan. If it is exposed, the entire clan may be exterminated, and at the very least, the person may be sentenced to beheading.

The next day, Guo Jie arranged for the kitchen steward to go to the official temple in Chang'an to deliver gold cakes and grain, and at the same time took the opportunity to report Jia Ziguang for secretly storing armor.

When Zhao Yu heard that the Yangdi Yuan family in Gaojie had secretly stored armor, he hurried back to Chang'an. He happened to be sitting in the official temple and checking the letter sealed by Zhang Tang.

"Secretly hoarding armor?!"

Zhao Yu and Zhang Tang were shocked when they heard that Dou Ying's guest Jia Ziguang had hidden a red sash armor.

He was also the chief of the gate pavilion in charge of closing the city gate.

"The petty officials dare not lie."

The cook's face was filled with fear, and he trembled as he spoke, "Jia Ziguang once borrowed twenty dan of grain from the Gaojie Duting. Following the proper procedure, the clerk went to Jia Ziguang's house to collect the borrowed grain. Unexpectedly, he discovered twenty sets of red-ribboned armor in the granary. I've heard the story of Marquis Tiao, and I know that hoarding armor is a serious crime of treason."

He was terrified and knelt on the ground, kowtowed repeatedly to the two superior officials: "I dare not conceal anything. Report to the government temple immediately. This matter has nothing to do with me. Please don't implicate me!"

The cook was halfway through his speech when tears started streaming down his face and he couldn't help but burst into tears.

Zhao Yu and Zhang Tang sat in a daze in the back hall, unable to calm down for a long time. They were so shocked by the hidden armor that they were speechless for a long time.

It’s just because Jia Ziguang’s identity is extraordinary.

Dou Ying's guest.

How could a small pavilion chief have the courage to hide armor secretly, let alone in Chang'an City where the emperor lived? It makes people imagine a lot.

(End of this chapter)