A raincoat wind and snow to the small garden

Chapter 31: Liangzhou Ghost Soldiers (Part )

This time, the body of Duke Zheng Huai was examined by Chu Daofu.

Zheng Huai was assassinated by a skilled martial artist, who nearly killed him with a single blow. His death was unremarkable, except for the strange discovery of a spear head with the Chinese character "王" (king) carved into it, found on the table.

The tip of the gun had long been corroded by wind and sand, and was covered in rust, bearing the marks of time.

On the ground on one side, the word "injustice" was written with Zheng Huai's blood.

Xiang Xiaoyuan asked, "Can you find out the source of the material and origin of the spearhead of this spear?"

Chu Daofu smiled and said, "Master has already asked officials from the Ministry of Justice to take it and trace its origin. I think they'll have results within three days. But there's no need for them to go to great lengths to investigate. This spear must have come from the Wang family, who served as the governor of Longyou eight years ago."

The Longyou Jiedushi was in charge of all the major border cities in the northwest, and the Liangzhou under his rule became a border province bordering 26 countries in the Western Regions. It was a border fortress for defending against powerful grassland forces such as the Xiongnu and the Dayuezhi.

Xiang Xiaoyuan only knew so much about the official system. Eight years ago, at the age of six, she was still living under the care of her aunt, struggling to make ends meet. In an era when she couldn't even get enough to eat, how could she care about the lives of the rich and powerful?

Seeing Xiang Xiaoyuan's confused look, Chu Daofu was happy to teach his little apprentice. He waved to Xiaoyuan and called her to the tea room.

Chu Daofu took some coarse salt, brewed a pot of tea, and poured Xiang Xiaoyuan a cup. He then slowly spoke, "Eight years ago, Wang Junyang, the governor of Longyou, colluded with the Xiongnu, intending to ally with foreign nations to invade. Although a Han Chinese from the Wei Kingdom, he sided with the Huns. Such acts of treason are beyond description. To expose Wang Junyang's ambitions for rebellion, Zheng Huai, under the order of His Majesty, led his army to encircle and suppress the Wang family's rebellious generals. In just half a month, Zheng Huai slaughtered all 30,000 Wang family soldiers, and the northwest front fell into the hands of the Zheng family."

The battle with the Wang family was the key to returning to Beijing to seize power. After killing Wang Junyang, Emperor Xie Zhen not only obtained land, but also obtained enough military supplies for his campaigns in the south and the north.

Regardless of the truth behind this battle, Xie Zhen was completely beneficial. The alliance between warlord Zheng Huai and Emperor Xie Zhen was a mutually beneficial partnership. Zheng Huai needed the imperial orders from Xie Zhen to justify his actions, while Xie Zhen needed Zheng Huai's military power to break free from the encirclement and end his miserable life of fleeing.

Xiang Xiaoyuan recalled his childhood.

At that time, she was able to see the fleeing father and son of the Tian family in the mountains, which meant that the situation of Xie Zhen and Xie Yunxue was not optimistic before. At that time, the country could even be said to be on the verge of collapse and in danger.

After Xie Zhen was restored to power, within just ten years, the aristocratic families declined, the power of the military governors was reduced, and the imperial power became dominant. This shows how cruel Xie Zhen's methods were.

Xiang Xiaoyuan had long since experienced Xie Zhen's cunning ways; she knew how unscrupulous he could be. Initially, he was simply afraid that her parents would leak the secret, revealing the royal family's whereabouts and attracting pursuers. He had, however, exterminated the entire family of hunters who had so graciously entertained the Tian family, shooting them to death in the snowy plains.

If the master is so vicious, how upright can the servants he raises be?
Xiang Xiaoyuan couldn't help but wonder, God knows whether the Wang family really rebelled back then, or was just accused of a false crime.

However, Xiang Xiaoyuan hated Xie Zhen and would naturally think the worst of his actions. Perhaps he would be a little more merciful when governing the country. After all, the Wei Kingdom was now peaceful and prosperous, and the people lived and worked in peace and contentment. It was not as difficult as in the past when warlords were divided and heroes were fighting among themselves.

Xiang Xiaoyuan belatedly asked, "Master, are we going to follow the Wang family's traitorous leader's lead?"

Chu Daofu: "Let's hear what Your Highness has to say. However, I think those old-timers definitely don't want us to dig too deep into Your Majesty's past. If they uncover something filthy and smelly, it would be difficult for them to report to Your Majesty."

Chu Daofu's meaning was clear. The emperor's return to the capital was only possible thanks to his conquest of Wang Junyang's northwestern territories. They had stationed themselves outside, recruiting troops and resting their forces, quelling several warlord rebellions and returning to the capital, building up a force and army capable of competing with the aristocratic families. At that time, Xie Zhen was little more than a puppet emperor. In this desperate situation, who knows what he would do to secure his throne.

Now someone is leading them to dig up Xie Zhen's past, isn't that pushing them to their death? Only a fool would do such a stupid thing.

Xiang Xiaoyuan thought of the word "injustice" written on the ground.

"Although we can't rule out the possibility that the murderer deliberately used the Wang family's case of treason to confuse the three judicial officials, if the Wang family army truly had something to hide, shouldn't we just sit back and watch? Thirty thousand soldiers were slaughtered in a border town. They were all Han soldiers. Wouldn't it be better to recruit them? Why kill them all?"

Those are 30,000 lives and 30,000 families. They may be sons, husbands, or fathers... How can they be killed just like that?
Unless Xie Zhen and Zheng Huai had this intention in mind, they knew that they must not surrender these private soldiers who were loyal to the Wang family.

Since we cannot be used by him, we should cut the weeds at their roots to prevent future troubles.

Chu Daofu laughed at her, "Alas, you're truly fearless. You're investigating the past affairs of His Majesty. He's the true emperor, how can we, ants, presume to criticize him?"

Xiang Xiaoyuan stubbornly retorted, "But, if he was wrong, he was wrong. He can't be exempted from punishment just because he is a powerful emperor."

Xiang Xiaoyuan was using the story of his parents to talk about the heavenly family.

Her audacity frightened Chu Daofu.

The old man quickly covered the baby's mouth and sighed: "If you dare to investigate this case, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will be the first one to not forgive you."

Xiang Xiaoyuan rolled his eyes and said with a smile, "But I want to help Your Majesty clear his name, not to expose his past. Your Majesty has worked hard to govern the country, and the people of Wei are prosperous. Yet, in this prosperous era, there are still people who use the case of the traitors to assassinate the old and honorable Duke Zheng, thereby tarnishing Your Majesty's reputation... I stand up for Your Majesty, so what can Your Highness blame me for?"

Chu Daofu suddenly realized what was going on. His apprentice was clever. He was trying to use the excuse of "clearing the emperor's name" to legitimately investigate the Wang family case.

Young people’s new brains are just so useful.

Chu Daofu was touched by her and said helplessly, "Forget it. After all, someone died. It is our job as coroners to investigate the deceased's affairs. I will take full responsibility for this case. I will investigate the old ties between officials in the capital and Zheng Huai, and you will investigate whether there are any remnants of the Wang family's rebels still alive. We will split up and act in two directions. As for the Three Judicial Departments, I have some connections and will do my best to smooth things over for you. However, since you are using my name, you must be careful in what you do and don't really lead me into trouble."

"Don't worry, I'm a very steady person. If you don't believe me, just ask my senior brother." Xiang Xiaoyuan diligently massaged Chu Daofu's shoulders and legs, and acted coquettishly in a childish way, "Master, you are truly the best master in the world."

Chu Daofu was flattered by the little girl and was so overwhelmed with beauty that he forgot all the evil words.

In fact, Xiang Xiaoyuan wanted to investigate this old case, in addition to wanting to find out the truth, he also had another selfish motive... Today, Emperor Xie Zhen has a very high reputation in the hearts of the people and is undoubtedly a wise ruler throughout history.

But Xiang Xiaoyuan knew his sinister nature. Her revenge was not only to kill people, she also wanted to tear off Xie Zhen's hypocritical skin to see if his heart would beat, whether his blood was red, and whether he was a heartless and desireless demon, or a human body made of flesh and blood like her.

(End of this chapter)