The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 116 Exposed
Heyin County, inside the county government office.

Sima Ban sat on the left side, looking at Yin Damu with a playful look in his eyes.

Yin Damu sat in the upper seat with a gloomy expression.

"So, the captain failed to capture the wanted criminal Wang Yuan? And failed to rescue Magistrate Guo?"

Sima Ban asked.

Yin Damu said sternly, "They fled on the very day they started the rebellion. They took no money with them, and they didn't take the people with them. There were only about twenty of them, riding fast horses and traveling by light boats. They fled deep into the mountains. By the time we arrived, the rebels didn't know their exact location. They only knew they had entered Wangwu Mountain. The troops I lead are all Hu cavalry. Do you expect me to lead the cavalry to search the mountains?"

Sima Ban quickly defended himself, "Captain Yin, please don't be angry. I'm not questioning you. I just want to know the battle situation."

"So how much did you gain along the way?"

"We didn't find any rebels along the way. All we saw were civilians who had been tortured. We didn't capture any of them."

"what??"

Sima Ban's face suddenly turned gloomy.

Sima Ban was not surprised at all that Yin Damu failed to capture Wang Yuan and others.

Wang Yuan and his companions were too cunning. On the day of the uprising, they burned, killed and looted, and after making a name for themselves, they left their followers to continue wreaking havoc in the county and conquering all directions, while he himself left Heyin with his confidants.

They even distributed the money and food they looted and took nothing with them.

This is different from any thieves who start a rebellion.

Now that they have entered the mountains, it will be impossible to catch those people unless we unite with the surrounding counties and mobilize a large number of people to search the mountains and forests.

Sima Ban was unwilling to go with them because he simply did not want to take on this responsibility.

He was not angry that Yin Damu was not caught. He could even help Yin Damu write a letter to plead for him. After all, they all ate meat together, so they should take care of each other.

However, Yin Damu said that he did not encounter any rebels.

This can't be tolerated.

Aren’t those who fled along the way all traitors?

I killed them as traitors and took it as my own achievement, but you are the most noble? Are you unwilling to take action?

When everyone is corrupt, the only one who is not corrupt will become everyone's common enemy.

Yin Damu's actions will undoubtedly embarrass those good ministers who killed innocent people.

Sima Ban was not afraid of Yin Damu.

Yin Damu's reputation in the court is probably worse than Jia Chong's. He is the kind of person that Zhong would spit in his face if he saw him.

In name, Yin Damu helped Sima Yi get rid of powerful officials and support the country.

But the problem is that Yin Damu is equivalent to betraying his sponsor.

This is the most unacceptable thing about the dual monarchy in the late Han Dynasty.

Cao Wei did not completely inherit the political system of the late Han Dynasty, but instead took its dregs and discarded its essence.

Whether it was the disciple system of recommenders and recommendees in the official system, or the local geopolitical system where county officials were the rulers, they were all inherited.

Sima Ban asked unhappily, "Captain Yin, are you sympathizing with those rebels?"

Yin Damu frowned and said nothing.

The atmosphere suddenly became a little serious.

Sima Ban sneered, "I will report the Captain's actions in detail to the General. Wang Yuan and the others fled entirely due to the Captain's fault!"

Having said that, he stood up, turned around and left the county government office.

The other officers looked at each other and followed Sima Ban away.

Captain Yin sat alone in the upper seat and slowly grasped the hilt of the sword.

Even if it was for the great cause of supporting the world, he would not allow his subordinates to plunder and massacre his own people.

Sima Ban had already summoned the other generals and officers at this moment. If there was a battle between Yin Damu and Sima Ban, everyone would naturally stand on Sima Ban's side.

Apart from anything else, the surname Zuo Changshi sounds reassuring.

Sima Ban and many generals jointly drafted a memorial, reporting Yin Damu's incompetence and dereliction of duty, and decided to put all the blame on him.

Just as everyone was discussing, a knight suddenly rushed into the house.

"Changshi! An angel is coming!!"

Sima Ban was overjoyed when he heard this. He looked at the officers around him and said proudly, "They're here to count our achievements! Our chance to become famous has arrived!"

He immediately led people to greet them.

Fu Gu stood outside the city gate, looking at the city in front of him with a serious expression.

The bloodstains on the ground had not yet disappeared, and the roadside was littered with corpses. Knights were counting them one by one. The city was very quiet, no sound could be heard, and thick smoke could be vaguely seen rising in the distance.

Fu Gu had once served as the governor of Henan and was particularly familiar with the area. Heyin County at this moment was completely different from the prosperous county town he remembered.

“Shangshu!!”

Sima Ban smiled widely and recognized the angel's identity at a glance.

"I didn't know the angel was coming, and I didn't go out to greet him. I hope you will forgive me!"

Sima Ban hurriedly saluted, and the other officers also bowed to greet him.

Fu Gu looked at the people in front of him and said, "Everyone, stand up."

Everyone stood up, Sima Ban hurried to Fu Gu's side and asked about the general's condition again.

Fu Gu's attitude was somewhat cold, and he did not want to reminisce with Sima Ban. Sima Ban also understood the situation and said no more. He just stood behind him, waiting for him to speak.

"Tell me about the suppression of the rebellion."

"only!!"

Sima Ban had obviously prepared a story long ago. According to his story, he was the vanguard who defeated the rebels and captured countless enemies. However, the captain was greedy for credit and left everyone to pursue Wang Yuan and others alone, and finally returned empty-handed.
Fu Gu looked at the other officers, and they all nodded in agreement.

Hearing this argument full of loopholes, Fu Gu's face instantly fell.

"Zuo Changshi, are there really so many rebels in the city?"

"General Zhengxi issued an order to execute only the ringleaders, including Wang Yuan. There were only a few dozen people involved in the rebellion, and the rest were coerced. How come when it comes to you, there are tens of thousands of rebels?!"

Sima Ban was stunned and quickly defended himself, "They disobeyed my orders and attacked me. How can they not be considered traitors? The mob in the city must have been planning a rebellion for a long time."

Fu Gu couldn't bear it any longer. He turned around and stared fiercely at Sima Ban in front of him.

"Someone come! Tie this guy up for me!!"

Sima Ban was horrified and immediately a soldier pinned him to the ground.

Sima Ban shouted loudly: "Minister! I am a meritorious general! What crime have I committed?! What crime have I committed?!"

Fu Gu looked at the others with a stern face and said angrily, "The general has issued an order! Anyone who kills innocent people and claims credit for it will be punished unforgivably!"

"Immediately release the captured civilians, reorganize the army, return the looted property, and appease the people!"

"Those who disobey will be killed!!"

He saw Sima Ban still struggling, so he waved his hand and a soldier immediately threw a head in front of everyone.

"Sima Changshi, this is the military merit that General Zhengxi sent me to give you! He said that if you still persist in your wrongdoing, he will give you another one!"

Sima Ban immediately shut his mouth, his eyes filled with fear.

The officers were so frightened that their faces turned pale and they quickly saluted and said yes.

Fu Gu led the rest of the soldiers and walked quickly into the city. Only Sima Ban was left. He looked at his colleagues in despair and trembled.

When Fu Gu walked into the county government office, Yin Damu had just learned the news and came out to greet him.

Captain Yin

Fu Gu looked at the person in front of him with some complicated feelings. He didn't expect that the only person who did not disappoint the General Zhengxi would be this captain of a different surname.

"I was incompetent and allowed the bandit leader to escape without being captured. Please punish me, Minister."

Yin Damu confessed his guilt very straightforwardly.

Fu Gu helped him up and said, "Captain, please don't say such things. Alas, you are the only one who can be pardoned in this rebellion."

Fu Gu sat in the upper seat, and Yin Damu stood in front of him.

Fu Gu's face was filled with grief. He spoke in a low voice, "Across Henan Province, there have been incidents of cruelty to the people. There are riots everywhere. A village headman in Ping County declared that he would follow Wang Yuan and started a rebellion, killing more than 20 people."

"How could such a situation occur under the feet of the emperor?!"

At the beginning, Fu Gu and Du Yu persuaded Sima Zhao to execute only the main culprit and pardon the rest, in order to reduce the influence and make it easier to suppress the rebellion.

However, the officials in the court had not expected that the officials and generals of the Wei Dynasty had fallen to such a level.

They even dared to ignore the orders of the General Zhengxi, directly claiming that they were attacked, and then defined the people as rebels and killed them in large numbers.

The impact of this incident continued to ferment, and the rebellion in Ping County added fuel to the fire.

Urgent reports came from Hebei again, saying that a rebellion had occurred. A group of bandits attacked officials who were away from home and looted the houses and gardens of the powerful outside the city.

The false appearance of prosperity created by Sima Shi was exposed in just a few days.

"Captain Yin, I am ordering you to divide your forces and march to each county to crush the bandits along the way, rectify the officials, and appease the people. This matter cannot escalate any further!"

"When things calm down, I will personally take credit for you!"

"only!!"

(End of this chapter)