The prince is more stable

Chapter 172: Questions
Zhao Xiaoqian felt that Zhang Xiaoyi was a man of great righteousness, and he was also a man of great righteousness.

He's not bragging, he really thinks so.

When a friend gets into trouble, they will help him immediately. Both Zhang Xiaoyi and Zhao Xiaoqian did it.

If Zhang Xiaoyi had any sense, he would have respectfully given him the nickname "Timely Rain", which would be beneficial for him in his future travels in the world, and he would be able to bring anyone in trouble to Liangshan.

It is actually not easy to find a person by name in a construction site with tens of thousands of people.

But Zhao Xiaoqian's badge played a big role. The "Imperial City Division" still had great weight in the hearts of ordinary soldiers and civilians in the Song Dynasty. The appearance of people from the Imperial City Division most likely meant that they had bad intentions.

Anyone would choose to be obedient and honest when faced with someone who has bad intentions and whom you cannot afford to offend.

The commander of the imperial guards quickly brought Hu Wei here. It was indeed difficult for him. The commander was sweating profusely when he arrived in front of Zhao Xiaoqian.

The supervisor named Hu Wei had a look of anxiety and fear on his face. Perhaps it was because of something the commander said when he found him. Hu Wei now looked very uneasy, with deep fear in his eyes.

When Hu Wei saw the Imperial City Division and others dressed in black, staring at him expressionlessly, his legs went weak and he almost fell down.

"I am Hu Wei, a humble official, and I am here to pay my respects to...this distinguished gentleman." Hu Wei saluted tremblingly.

Zhao Xiaoqian took a look at him. This man had an ordinary appearance and an ordinary figure. He was ordinary in every aspect. If he were thrown into the streets of Bianjing, he would be lost in the crowd in the blink of an eye. He had no outstanding features at all.

"Your name is Hu Wei?" Zhao Xiaoqian asked.

"Yes."

Zhao Xiaoqian leaned close to his face and smiled amiably, "Hu Wei, you should feel honored that I have to personally travel out of the city just for a nobody like you."

"The last person I had to personally visit was Su Zhe, the Minister of the Imperial Household. You are now on par with the current Vice Prime Minister. Isn't that an honor?"

Hu Wei became increasingly flustered, and forced an ugly smile: "...It's an honor."

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "Okay, I hope you'll cooperate with me from now on. Once you enter the Imperial City Division, answer whatever I ask you. Don't play tricks or try to be clever. The Bingjingwu torture instruments give me, the leader, the cold chill just looking at them. I really don't want you to try them."

Hu Wei suddenly felt cold all over and looked at him in horror. He couldn't understand why he was targeted by the Imperial City Bureau for no reason. And from Zhao Xiaoqian's tone, he knew that he had committed a serious crime, otherwise why would they bring out the notorious Bingjingwu.

"Your Excellency, sir, what have I, an humble official, done wrong? I, an humble official... am innocent!" Hu Wei howled miserably.

"Everyone who enters the Imperial City Division claims they've been wronged, and in the end, without exception, they're all found to be innocent." Zhao Xiaoqian patted his shoulder with a smile, "I hope you're a tough guy who won't admit guilt even if beaten to death. Otherwise, your colleagues and subordinates at Bingjingwu will have a really boring time."

"You withheld wages from the laborers, tortured the poor river workers, and murdered the people. I'll give you some time to come up with a good excuse and see if you can convince me to let you go."

Turning around and waving at Wei Jie, Zhao Xiaoqian said, "Take him away. Tell Liu Dan to treat the supervisor well and dig out everything that can be dug. A group of river officials have just been investigated and punished, and another group has arrived. The Imperial City Bureau has work to do."

Hu, who was crying out for justice, was not taken away. Zhao Xiaoqian stood on the river bank, looking at the construction site in full swing, and sighed deeply.

In the imagined scene, officials and civilians work together, pushing carts to tamp earth and lay stones with joy. When it is time for dinner, they are served simple meals, and everyone eats with a smile on their face.

When they get off work, they go to the foreman to collect their wages for the day. Their pockets are bulging, and they happily go home with the money to buy food and clothes for their wives and children.

In reality, there was not a single official on the construction site, and no one knew where they were enjoying themselves. The supervisors were full of complaints and wielding whips, beating the river workers harshly as if they were their enemies. The river workers dared not say a word after being whipped, and endured it silently with gritted teeth.

When it was time to collect their wages, the clerk threw out a few copper coins, asking whether they wanted to take them or not. The workers still didn't dare to argue, but accepted the wages silently, even having to say thank you against their will. Then, with a gloomy face, they wondered what they could buy for their wives and children with these few coins to fill their stomachs...

Unfortunately, the imagined scene did not appear. What really appeared in Zhao Xiaoqian's eyes was the latter.

The people are prosperous and suffer.

The fate of Zhang Xiaoyi and his poor brothers is the fate of all river workers in the Song Dynasty.

Those river workers are so pitiful and hardworking that they are greedy for the money. They deserve to die.

Zhao Xiaoqian did not dare to accept noble words like "hating evil and upholding justice" because he felt guilty and he was not that great.

However, if we can do something for these poor river workers without endangering ourselves, why not do it?

…………

Hu Wei entered the Imperial City Division and confessed quickly, with almost no torture instruments used.

Liu Shan of Bingjingwu had a look of resentment and unwillingness on his face, secretly hating Hu Wei for not living up to his expectations. Why didn't he grit his teeth and persevere a little longer, allowing him to demonstrate the profoundness of Bingjingwu's torture instruments?

From the time Zhang Xiaoyi was beaten to the time Hu Wei was arrested, after the interrogation, Hu Wei confessed very readily and wanted to confess more.

The whole thread of the matter is clear.

Just as Zhao Xiaoqian guessed, Zhang Xiaoyi's poor brothers were just a microcosm of all river workers. In fact, all river workers had the same experience.

The money and grain allocated by the imperial court were still embezzled by the river officials.

It's hard to believe, but you have to believe it.

Zhao Xu had just investigated and punished a group of river officials and replaced them with a new group of officials. However, this group of new officials did not learn the lessons of their predecessors at all. As soon as they took office, they took over the banner of corruption from their predecessors and continued to embezzle and withhold money to enrich their own pockets.

This kind of spirit of fighting for the sake of life is actually used in the matter of corruption. We should admire it, but at the same time, we feel something is wrong.

Such a great and noble spirit, you guys use it on the battlefield to kill the enemy!

The interrogation of Hu Wei went smoothly. In addition to admitting that he had indeed withheld the wages of the river workers, Hu Wei also admitted that he was the mastermind behind the instigation of the idlers to beat up Zhang Xiaoyi.

Wang He, the son of Wang Zao, the water envoy of Du.

Wang He, whom the idlers called "the noble young man", was actually a scholar who was preparing to take part in the imperial examination next year.

Since his father was the governor of Dushui, Wang He didn't have to worry too much about his future. Even if he failed the imperial examination, Wang He would most likely be able to enter the government as a minor official, and then slowly climb up in another way, and eventually achieve his goal of becoming an official.

Of course, now that the Wang family father and son have provoked Zhang Xiaoyi, they have also provoked Zhao Xiaoqian. From now on, the Wang family’s ancestral tombs will probably never emit smoke again... they might even explode.

Zhao Xiaoqian sat in the main hall of the Imperial City Office, looking at a thick stack of confessions on the desk. Hu Wei had confessed everything thoroughly, even remembering the names of his ancestors.

As for the fact that river officials embezzled and withheld wages, Hu Wei also confessed to it.

From ancient times to the present, corruption has been a long chain, existing completely from upstream to downstream. As Zhao Xiaoqian guessed, the upstream of this chain actually involves the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Works and the Censorate. As for the downstream, the supervisors are probably at the bottom.

The confession was very thick, but Zhao Xiaoqian still read it patiently and then sighed deeply.

Originally, he just wanted to help Zhang Xiaoyi vent his anger and take revenge, but as expected, another big case was uncovered. If it was reported to the court, it would probably cause another storm.

What's next?
It’s very simple, just do the original intention of this matter first.

What was his original intention? Of course, it was to avenge Zhang Xiaoyi.

"Come here, bring Wang He to the hall for questioning. I want to see him within an hour."

(End of this chapter)