Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 282 Self-destruction without attack
When the confidant heard Song Ming's words, his expression changed and he whispered, "Master, this..."

Song Ming waved his hand and said, "No need to ask any more questions, just write it down!"

This is also done to prepare for the worst outcome. If I really become a scapegoat, others will not have an easy time either.

Song Ming paused and then said, "By the way, what is Lu Zheng doing now?"

The confidant said, "He's searching for demons and ghosts in the city. He and the county lieutenant have already caught quite a few. The whole city is buzzing with rumors..."

Song Ming sighed inwardly when he heard this, thinking that Lu Zheng was indeed well prepared, otherwise how could he know so much.

Song Ming pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Let him go! You leave here and hide in the city, don't show up, or you'll get into trouble later."

The confidant understood the seriousness of the matter and left the mansion quietly without staying any longer.

Song Ming returned to his room and sat down to rest. He felt uneasy and that the days were passing by like years.

Things had gotten to this point, and he, a county magistrate, was no longer able to fight against Lu Zheng. He could only leave it to fate and see how Maozhou would react.

Song Ming took a sip of tea and said quietly, "Am I really going to become the scapegoat?"

When Song Ming was the magistrate of Qianshan County, he took over the mess here and was already on the wrong ship. He had lived in peace and stability all these years, but now he can no longer hold on.

He felt a little regretful, regretting that he didn't get out earlier, but instead stayed in this position to gain benefits.

……

Lu Zheng brought a group of officials and raided several places in the county where demons and ghosts were hiding.

Some demons and ghosts were not silenced, so they were escorted to the county government office by officials and imprisoned.

After doing all this, Lu Zheng left the county town and went to the camp at the foot of the mountain to reassure the people.

The county lieutenant and others breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Lu Zheng leave temporarily.

No matter what, at least Lu Zheng captured the demon and did not interrogate it immediately. Otherwise, if he found out something, it would be difficult for these officials to end up in trouble.

"Sir, those monsters and ghosts..." a policeman asked in a low voice.

The county lieutenant said calmly, "Keep him locked up. Don't move for now. I'll go ask Lord Song."

After saying this, the county lieutenant hurried to see Song Ming.

When he saw Song Ming, the county lieutenant found that Song Ming was completely depressed and seemed to have lost his energy.

"Sir?" the county lieutenant couldn't help but call out.

Song Ming sat back in his study, raised his eyebrows and looked at the person who came, and said in a calm tone: "It's the county lieutenant, what's going on?"

The county lieutenant couldn't help but ask, "How did the conversation between you and Lu Zheng go?"

Hearing this, Song Ming said leisurely, "This person is unyielding and wants to fight us to the end."

The county lieutenant concentrated his thoughts and asked, "What do you plan to do, sir?"

"Just wait." Song Ming said slowly, "Wait for someone to come up, maybe there will be a turning point..."

The county lieutenant couldn't help but frown when he saw Song Ming's tone and expression.

Since he could serve as the county lieutenant in Qianshan County, he was certainly not incompetent and he could clearly see something strange was going on.

"Do you have anything else to say?" Song Ming asked.

The county lieutenant shook his head and said, "Take care of yourself, my lord. I will take my leave now."

"Go ahead and maintain public order in the city." Song Ming waved his hand.

"Yes." The county lieutenant clasped his hands and took his leave.

After leaving Song Ming's mansion, the county lieutenant's face suddenly darkened.

He went straight back to his residence, changed his clothes, sneaked out of the city, and fled all the way.

There is no doubt that the county lieutenant has realized that something is wrong. If he doesn't leave now, he will probably have to stay and be buried with him.

Even Song Ming looked like he was determined to die, so a subordinate like him would not have a good ending.

The things I have done with my colleagues over the years are enough to make me deserve to have my head chopped off.

At this moment, a grass stem suddenly attacked the county lieutenant.

The county lieutenant was startled and drew his sword to fight back. When he looked closely, he found that it was a strange-looking straw man.

"Where do you want to go?"

A little girl's voice came from a distance.

The county lieutenant suddenly turned his head and saw a little girl walking slowly towards him.

He immediately showed a look of vigilance, "You are..."

Without saying a word, Qing Wan commanded a group of bean soldiers to emerge from all directions and directly besiege the county lieutenant.

In just a short while, the county lieutenant was tied up and carried by several soldiers to the south of the city.

Lu Zheng was patrolling a small hill outside the camp. When he saw some soldiers carrying people over, he couldn't help but blink.

He stepped lightly and floated closer.

"Hey, isn't this the county lieutenant? What happened?"

Lu Zheng looked at the tied-up county lieutenant with a smile, his expression meaningful, "Let him down!"

Upon hearing this, several bean soldiers threw the person to the ground.

The county lieutenant fluttered a few times, then sat up with difficulty. His expression remained calm as he said, "So this is Master Lu's trick. I thought it was a sneak attack by a demon." Lu Zheng stood by and said, "Shouldn't the county lieutenant be maintaining security in the city? Why are you dressed like this? Are you going to visit relatives somewhere?"

The county lieutenant twitched his lips. Lu Zheng would find an excuse for him, but he would not be stupid enough to admit it.

The county lieutenant thought about it and said, "I'm going to the state capital to report it!"

"Oh, who are you reporting?" Lu Zheng asked.

The county lieutenant remained calm and said, "County Magistrate Song is arbitrary and tyrannical, colluding with demons and ghosts, and even secretly recruiting people to mine..."

The county lieutenant directly revealed some things.

Lu Zheng narrowed his eyes slightly. No one had come from Maozhou City yet. How could the county lieutenant, in order to protect himself, actually turn against his superiors and want to report him?
Of course, Lu Zheng knew that this was a helpless act of the county lieutenant. After all, the other party was preparing to flee to the ends of the earth, but if he was accidentally caught, he would always have to find some excuse to exonerate himself.

"Oh, is this true?" Lu Zheng asked.

The county lieutenant sat there, sighing softly, "Now that things have come to this, why is Master Lu asking questions when he already knows the truth? You brought so many people with you, how could you not know these things? If you can spare my life, I am willing to tell you everything that happened in Qianshan County, and write down the details myself."

Lu Zheng smiled when he heard this. "How much can you, a county lieutenant, know? There are some things that I, Lu, can know without you telling me."

What Lu Zheng wants is not just to overthrow a county magistrate.

The evidence that this county lieutenant could provide him was obviously not more important than what County Magistrate Song could provide him.

Lu Zheng would not protect a person who has committed a heinous crime for such a bargaining chip, no matter what kind of bargaining chip he used.

Lu Zheng turned his head and looked not far away, and saw Zhao Ping and a few others looking towards this side, curious about what was going on here.
Lu Zheng raised his hand and waved, signaling several people to come over.

Seeing this, Zhao Ping and others walked closer and looked at the tied county lieutenant curiously.

"This is the county lieutenant!" said Zhao Ping.

When the county lieutenant saw Zhao Ping, he looked a little unnatural.

This was not the first time he had seen this woman. When Zhao Ping went to assassinate the county magistrate, he personally interrogated Zhao Ping and then had someone send Zhao Ping to Jiang Sheng.

Lu Zheng said, "Send him to the county magistrate and tell him that the county lieutenant wants to report the Qianshan County incident to protect himself. However, I, Lu, will not believe one side of the story, and it is not my place to deal with officials breaking the law... I, Lu, have come here to plead for the people."

Even if the official is guilty, it is not something that Lu Zheng can deal with privately.

All Lu Zheng could do was to take advantage of his fame.

The county lieutenant's face changed drastically when he heard this. He had sneaked out of the city, and now sending him back would not end well.

"Mr. Lu, you can't do this, I..."

However, before the county lieutenant could finish his words, a stream of spiritual power entered his body and directly sealed his acupuncture points, making him unable to speak.

Upon seeing this, Zhao Ping and his companions escorted the county lieutenant directly to the county town on the mountain.

The county lieutenant was unable to struggle and suddenly showed a look of despair.

The county town gates are still closed now. When the guards on the city walls saw someone being escorted over, they became alert.

After learning that the kidnapped person was the county lieutenant, everyone was a little confused.

After learning the whole story, no one dared to let anyone into the city and could only go to inform Song Ming.

Song Ming was exhausted, but when he learned about what the county lieutenant had done, he suddenly became angry and energized.

"Asshole! You're a traitor and you want to report me?"

Song Ming was furious, but he laughed out loud. "Good, very good. The sky hasn't even fallen yet, and you're already thinking this? I'm not fine, so how can you be fine? Go and bring me the county lieutenant!"

Song Ming directly ordered his personal guards to bring the county lieutenant back.

But just a moment later, the two colleagues who had worked together for many years met again.

Song Ming looked at the county lieutenant with a gloomy face. "I have always treated you well, and you have taken advantage of me over the years! You actually left the city without my knowledge and even wanted to report me. You are really brave."

The county lieutenant opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but couldn't speak.

"What? You have nothing to say?" Song Ming said angrily.

He glared at the county lieutenant and soon discovered that he had been acupunctured, so he waved his hand to release the acupuncture points.

"You can speak now." Song Ming said lightly.

The county lieutenant whispered, "Sir, I had no choice... I originally just wanted to sneak away alone, but Lu Zheng had already been on guard and had sent people to ambush outside the city..."

Song Ming laughed angrily and said, "So you're thinking of selling me out?"

The county lieutenant couldn't help but say, "I think the situation is hopeless. Your Excellency thinks the same way. He doesn't even dare to fight and can only give up on himself..."

"Fight? What can you fight with?" Song Ming sneered, "Do you have the strength? Even the governor of the royal family respects him as sir. My Song family doesn't have that many heads to chop off..."

If it were any other scholar with no background, Song Ming could find a way to play tricks on him.

But he was facing Lu Zheng, and he could only be played by him...

Song Ming waved his hand with a look of disdain, "Put him in jail and let him take the blame for what he did over the years!"

Although he, as the county magistrate, was also involved in many things, the county lieutenant's behavior had destroyed the little friendship they had in the past.

He didn't mind letting the other person carry more burdens, since he would be dead sooner or later anyway.

"My lord, you..."

The county lieutenant was very excited. This way, he would be sentenced to death early and there would be no chance of turning things around.

Upon hearing this, the guards nearby blocked the county lieutenant's mouth without saying a word and dragged him away.

(End of this chapter)