Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 69: The Real Murderer Appears (th Update, Please Subscribe First!)
"This damn weather in Lingnan is so hot!"

"Hasn't the posthouse arrived yet?"

Wang Shifang stuck his head out and spoke in an irritable voice, which made the servants so panicked that they were sweating profusely. They quickened their pace as they carried the sedan chair, not daring to breathe.

Their master is no longer the Deputy Censor and Education Commissioner of Guangdong.

He became a local prefect.

The regular rank of the Deputy Censor is the fourth rank, but when he concurrently holds important posts such as the Inspector of Education, he can be promoted to the fourth rank by adding titles.

The local prefect is also of the fourth rank.

For example, Gu Shanjie, the prefect of Qiongzhou, was of the same rank as Wang Shifang.

But there is no doubt that there is a huge gap between the two in terms of power and status.

If Wang Shifang had been assigned to be the prefect of Hainan Island, he would have resigned long ago and would not have even taken office.

But now, he was transferred to be the prefect of Si'en Prefecture in Guangxi.

Where is Si'en Mansion?
Due to its barren land, frequent wars, heavy taxes, and lack of commercial supplements, it is the poorest prefecture in Guangxi, without a doubt.

Historically, their plight was only slightly alleviated after the implementation of the "Reform of Natives and Returning Natives to Han Chinese" policy during the Wanli period, but they still ranked first on Guangxi's tax exemption list for a long time.

They are so poor that even the government can't squeeze any money out of them.

Furthermore, in the sixth year of the Jiajing reign, after suppressing the local peasant uprising of Bazhai, Wang Yangming personally visited the prefectural government seat, Qiaoli, and discovered that the prefecture seat was surrounded by mountains. The surrounding peaks resembled spears, swords, and halberds, and were overgrown with thorns. Miasma filled the area, and the cliffs were rocky and shady. Harsh crops were difficult to grow, foxes and rats were rampant, and diseases were common.

Listening to this series of adjectives, there is no doubt that they are full of bad things.

In order to maintain public security, in the seventh year of Jiajing, the government seat was finally moved to Huangtian Posthouse, sixty miles away from Qiaoli.

In the long run, this is definitely beneficial, as we are finally no longer trapped in the mountains. However, given the conditions there, it is obvious that it will not be completed in less than three years.

If Wang Shifang goes there now, he will just end up eating dirt!
However, this time, he was ready to take up the post.

"Don't even think about forcing me to resign!"

"As long as I am still in the officialdom, those who sympathize with my father-in-law and Yang Gelao will place their trust in me. I am still young, and I will eventually turn things around!"

"Zhang Cong, Gui E, Fang Xianfu, Huo Tao! You treacherous ministers who relied on grand rituals to rise to power, I don't believe you can continue to deceive the emperor and achieve your success to the end!"

When Wang Shifang first realized that he had fallen into a trap, not only did he not get the evidence account book back, but he was also completely targeted by the Jinyiwei. He was in a state of panic all day long.

But he soon discovered that the law does not hold everyone responsible, let alone himself, who has suffered more.

So from the moment he stepped down as the superintendent of education, Wang Shifang made a decision and decided to persevere and wait for a turnaround.

But now as he set out on the journey, thinking about having to endure the hardships of life in that evil place, he still couldn't help but feel filled with anger and resentment.

"Are we there?"

"We're here! Master, the posthouse is just ahead... Huh?"

After a lot of effort, the inn was in sight. Just when I could rest for a while and wash off the dust, I heard the sound of fighting.

"You bastard, I, your grandfather, am not in a good mood today!"

"You run so fast, and if you keep talking dirty, I'll chop off your dog heads and eat them with wine!"

A few big men rushed out first, cursing and saying something. When they saw a figure chasing them, they immediately fled in all directions.

A scarred man was holding a five-foot-long knife in his hand, with blood dripping from the tip of the knife. He looked coldly at the men who were fleeing in different directions, and without hesitation, he put the back of the knife on his shoulder and walked back in a swagger.

"How can such a vicious and ferocious outlaw live in an inn?"

Wang Shifang and his group, who were not far away, watched this scene and their faces changed.

As soon as Wang Shifang asked the question, he realized that he had asked a stupid question.

It was precisely because he was a desperado that the post station didn’t dare to stop him!
Poor mountains and bad waters produce unruly people. A few years ago, Wang Yangming was appointed Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, mainly to quell the rebellion. He used both kindness and force, and the effect was very good, but he could not completely eliminate the unrest in various parts of Guangdong.

There was chaos among the Li people on Hainan Island, and the chieftains in other areas were also restless.

Therefore, Wang Shifang had basically stayed in Guangzhou before and rarely left the city. Now he was forced to hurry on. Unexpectedly, he had bad luck and encountered such a fierce character.

Wang Shifang couldn't bear to stay in such a place. He looked up at the sky and said to the manager beside him, "Take your men and explore the road ahead. If there's a suitable inn to rest in, book it and come back to report."

"Yes!"

The steward and his men rode away in a hurry. As the sun gradually set, just when Wang Shifang felt that he and his party would have to spend the night in this inn, sharing a room with that vicious desperado, the sound of horse hooves was heard, and the steward ran up to him excitedly: "There is an inn up ahead, where you can rest your feet in peace!"

Finally hearing the good news, Wang Shifang retreated into the carriage and uttered a condescending command: "Let's go!" After walking about two or three miles, they turned onto a small road. Sure enough, there was an inn not far away. It looked small, but it had everything. Before they even reached the door, a smart-looking servant came to greet them: "Dear guest, you have come a long way and must have worked hard. Please come in and rest! We have prepared fine vintage wines, seasonal side dishes, and iced herbal tea. Please come in! Please come in!"

"Oh?"

Compared to the fierce man with scars on his face, this one was much more pleasing to the eye. Wang Shifang was even more attracted by his words: "Do you have iced lychees, crispy noodles, and iced sugar water?"

The servant was stunned. "I've never even heard of this. This is really a great master, a person from heaven, enjoying the best things that us common people will never see in our lifetime!"

The price of ice in Guangdong was still high these days. Ice was mainly made from cellar ice and saltpeter. In Guangzhou, one catty of ice was worth four dou of rice. A table of ice banquet cost the equivalent of a farmer's half-year food ration. Wang Shifang liked ice banquets very much.

He also liked iced sugar water. The snow sugar (rock sugar) brought by Portuguese merchant ships was combined with local ice products to give birth to this drink.

It was normal for such a small hotel to not have these things. Wang Shifang waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "Nice talk! Reward!"

The servant received the tip and nodded and bowed with a look of joy on his face. When everyone entered the store, the owner quickly served them iced herbal tea and delicious food.

After dinner, Wang Shifang took a bath, changed into clean clothes, and felt relaxed. He took out a book and read it leisurely.

"Hmm! What kind of agarwood is this? It smells quite nice! Yawn..."

As he was looking, an indescribable fragrance wafted in. Wang Shifang sniffed it and was about to ask what kind of agarwood it was as he would use it next, but a wave of fatigue came over him.

It was indeed getting late and he had to travel tomorrow, so he closed the book, took off his coat with the help of his page and maid, and lay down on the bed.

However, when I got to bed, I couldn't fall asleep. I felt drowsy until the fragrance in my nostrils became stronger and stronger, and then I suddenly fell into darkness.

After an unknown amount of time, Wang Shifang suddenly woke up.

Then I realized that something was wrong with me.

His eyes were covered with cloth, and his whole body was...

Hanged up?

"what!"

A scream reached his ears, but it was so hoarse and weak that even he could not hear it clearly, let alone call his men outside.

His two hands subconsciously grabbed his neck, and he was horrified to find that there was really a rope around his neck.

Fortunately, there was a stool under his feet.

Unfortunately, the height of the stool relative to the rope was just enough for me to touch my toes on it and barely keep my balance so as not to be hung up.

“Help…Help…Help…”

Wang Shifang, a pampered civil servant, naturally couldn't stand such treatment. Although he couldn't see, he could feel that there seemed to be someone standing in front of him: "I am an official appointed by the court, a fourth-rank inspector of education. I can give you anything you want. Let's talk it over, let's talk it over!"

After a moment, the person in front of him finally spoke: "Do you still remember the Hepu Rebellion?"

Wang Shifang was stunned.

"Do you know how many innocent people were involved in that so-called bandit rebellion, which swept across two counties and thirteen villages?"

"How many local people, passing merchants, and traveling students have been killed by those 'rioters' you personally trained?"

Wang Shifang's expression changed.

"You should remember Zong Chengxue, the Lingshan County Magistrate who discovered the pearl-diving scheme and the thieves occupying Bailong Village. He initially reported it to the Hepu County Court, but they ignored him. He then tried to expose the truth, but was instead accused of stealing pearls and beaten half to death. Then you demoted him to the position of Tongpan (Tongpan) in Qiongshan, where even medical care is inconvenient. You hoped he would die quietly, right?"

Wang Shifang looked completely terrified.

Of course he remembered Zong Chengxue, the hateful little magistrate who almost caused a big disaster.

It was obvious that all the officials in Hepu County had made proper arrangements, but he, a magistrate from a neighboring county, actually sensed something was amiss and traced the case all the way to Bailong Village, where he found people who were specifically responsible for stealing pearls for them and silencing fishermen. Fortunately, he got there first and destroyed the evidence, then turned the tables and accused the man of embezzling the pearls.

Even if the other party dared to say anything, no one would believe him because his reputation had been tarnished long ago. In fact, according to Wang Shifang's intention, he wanted to cut the weeds and eradicate them completely. But the county magistrate was not an ordinary citizen after all, and his sudden death had to be reported to the capital. Tian Jiading didn't dare to do it after all, so he beat him half to death and then exiled him to Hainan Island.

I didn’t expect to hear this name again after such a long time!

Suddenly, Wang Shifang realized: "So... the murderer who killed Fang Wei is you... Your voice is so familiar!"

Wang Shifang vaguely remembered where he had heard this before, but he just couldn't believe it. "You? You... who are you?"

"Didn't you hear it? Can't believe it? I'll help you!"

The blindfold was removed. Wang Shifang's eyes narrowed at first, then suddenly widened. The bruised face that came into view made him groan in disbelief: "Zheng Zheng Zheng... Zheng Yishu... How could it be you!!"

(End of this chapter)