Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 274 Remember this: the ruler of Songjiang Prefecture still belongs to the Zhu family!
The day after the plaque-awarding and evaluation, at noon.

The scorching sun made the bluestone pavement scorching hot, and the air was filled with restless dust.

The dilapidated wooden door of "Zhang's Cloth Shop," along with the three-foot square space in front of it, was completely surrounded by people.

A large sedan chair for four people, with shiny poles and curtains made of fine lake silk.

A dozen or so muscular servants dressed in short jackets surrounded the sedan chair.

The leader was the steward of Qian Delong's mansion, holding a vicious dog with its tongue lolling out and sharp white teeth.

They were like a gust of evil wind, bringing with them the clamor and malice of the marketplace, and blocked Zhang Zhuo's small shop.

Qian Delong stepped out of the sedan chair. He was over forty years old, obese, with a fair complexion and small eyes that revealed calculation and greed.

He held a gilded folding fan in his hand, slowly fanning himself, but his gaze swept over Zhang Zhuo's cowering figure like a scorpion.

“Old Zhang,” a goatee-bearded lawyer beside him unfolded a contract covered in tiny characters and read in a shrill voice, “Three years ago, you borrowed fifty taels of silver from the Qian family, agreeing to a monthly interest rate of three percent. Now, including principal and interest, the total is three hundred and eighty-two taels and four mace. Can you repay it?”

The surrounding neighbors watched from afar, no one daring to utter a word. Qian Delong had been lending money at exorbitant interest rates in Songjiang Prefecture, causing more than one or two deaths; who would dare to provoke him?

Zhang Zhuo's face was ashen; where had he ever borrowed so much money?

It was clearly because he borrowed twenty taels of silver to treat his wife's illness back then, and had already paid back more than thirty taels of silver in small installments with his weaving wages.

This loan agreement is clearly a forgery!

"I...I've already paid it back...Mr. Qian, you can't..."

"Returned it?" Qian Delong sneered, pointing with his fan at the contract in the lawyer's hand. "It's written in black and white with a red fingerprint. You think you can just say it's returned? The rules of the Qian family aren't something a weaver like you can dictate!"

"Father!" Zhang Xiaowu's blood boiled, his eyes reddened, and he had already grabbed a wooden stick used for beating cloth from the side of the door, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. "Why waste words with these beasts! At worst, we'll die!"

"Xiao Wu! Stop!" Zhang Zhuo held his son tightly. He knew that if they started fighting, they would be beaten half to death, and the shop would be lost.

Zhang Zhuo was trembling all over, not from anger, but from a fear etched into his very bones.

Just as he was about to kneel in despair, the cold, hard brass plaque in his arms touched his heart.

A strange courage emanated from that bronze plaque.

He tremblingly pulled out the identity card from his pocket, which gleamed heavily in the sunlight, and held it in both hands as if it were his last lifeline.

“Mr. Qian…” His voice trembled, but he spoke each word clearly, “I… I am now a fifth-rank official craftsman appointed by the imperial court. Thanks to the Emperor’s grace, this shop… is my foundation, the capital for serving the royal family in the future. I cannot… cannot give it to you.”

Qian Delong was taken aback at first, then burst into ear-piercing laughter as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world.

"Ha ha ha ha--!"

He pointed at the bronze plaque in Zhang Zhuo's hand and shouted to everyone around him, "Come and see! Come and see this novelty! You think you can get away with refusing to pay the money you owe my Qian family with a piece of broken copper? Do you think you're not a lowly craftsman?"

His laughter ceased, his face contorted into a grimace, and he swung his folding fan.

"Go! Seize that piece of broken copper and take this shop with you!"

A servant who was closest to Zhang Zhuo grinned maliciously and reached out with his large, fan-like hand to grab the bronze plaque in Zhang Zhuo's hand.

The servant's fingers were stained with sweat and grease, his fingertips just touching the cold edge of the bronze plaque.

Just at this moment.

"Chirp—!"

A short, sharp whistle pierced the hustle and bustle of the long street like an invisible ice needle.

The sound came from nowhere, yet it clearly penetrated everyone's eardrums, carrying a chilling aura that sent shivers down their spines.

Qian Delong's servants froze in mid-air.

In the next instant, something unexpected happened.

Behind the signboard of the street corner eatery, dozens of guards dressed in black robes and carrying embroidered spring knives suddenly appeared from the crowd that had been watching the excitement.

They seemed to spring up from the ground, silent yet brimming with murderous intent.

Within a few breaths, an impenetrable encirclement was formed, surrounding Qian Delong and his group, along with the entire Zhang's Cloth Shop, in the center.

The sound of scabbards scraping together and the cold glint of weapons drawn from their sheaths chilled even the midday sun.

The once bustling street fell silent instantly.

The onlookers turned pale and scrambled backward, automatically parting to make way for a wide path. At the end of the path, a grand chair carried by four iron-tower-like strongmen slowly approached.

Seated upright in the chair was Wei Zhongxian.

He wasn't wearing a python robe today, but only an ordinary dark-colored casual outfit, and he was slowly twirling two smooth jade walnuts in his hands.

His gaze fell on a willow tree in the distance, without even glancing at Qian Delong kneeling on the ground.

The grand master's chair stopped in front of the encirclement.

Wei Zhongxian's gaze remained unmoved; he simply spoke softly, his voice gentle yet overwhelming, drowning out the heartbeats of everyone present.

"I remember that when the plaque was awarded the other day, it was said on the high platform that this official craftsman plaque represents the face of the Emperor."

He paused, his fingers, which had been fiddling with the walnuts, stopped.

"What should be the punishment for someone who wants to take advantage of the situation?"

Li Chaoqin, standing beside him, bowed forward, his voice booming like a bell: "Your Excellency, according to the first article of His Majesty's newly promulgated 'Official Craftsmen Law': all registered official craftsmen are officials and workers of the court. Anyone who insults an official craftsman shall be punished with thirty strokes of the cane; anyone who seizes his property shall be punished one degree more severely; anyone who intentionally damages or disrespects the official craftsman's identification plaque shall be considered to have disrespected His Majesty, and shall be unforgivable!"

"The crime is unforgivable!"
Qian Delong could no longer hold on. His obese body collapsed to the ground, and he kowtowed repeatedly, his voice trembling with sobs: "Lord Supervisor, spare me! Lord Supervisor, spare me! I was blind and did not recognize your greatness. I did not know this sign... This sign represents His Majesty's face! I will never dare to do it again!"

Wei Zhongxian then turned his gaze to him with a condescending look, a half-smile on his face.

"Then let's proceed according to the law."

Wei Zhongxian spoke casually, but Qian Delong's wailing stopped abruptly, and he seemed to have lost all his bones, collapsing like mud.

Li Chaoqin understood, stepped forward, and took out a scroll of judgment from his bosom!
"An investigation revealed that Qian Delong, a cotton cloth merchant in Songjiang Prefecture, has been lending money at exorbitant interest rates for three generations, driving thirteen innocent people to their deaths; he colluded with officials to seize 370 mu of farmland; and he smuggled contraband, evading taxes totaling over 70,000 taels..."

As the charges were read out one by one, the faces of the wealthy merchants and gentry who had initially been watching the spectacle with amusement paled with each one.

Their hearts sank, and a bone-chilling cold spread through their bodies!

How could these be charges that were hastily put together?
The people who were driven to their deaths have names and surnames, the land they seized has acres and numbers, and the taxes they evaded have amounts and quantities!
This clearly shows that they have thoroughly investigated the Qian family, even digging up the dirty deeds of their ancestors for eight generations!

The wealthy businessmen present suddenly realized what had happened, as if struck by lightning, their minds buzzing.

I understand! I completely understand!
This is not some new trick by the eunuch faction to amass wealth at all!
The Craftsmen's Register Office was the bait to lure the snake out of its hole, and that small brass plaque was the mirror that revealed the demon.

This is a case of making an example of someone!

When Li Chaoqin read out the last sentence of the verdict, the entire long street was deathly silent.

"By order of the Grand Supervisor: The ringleader, Qian Delong, shall be executed immediately!"

"All of the Qian family's assets...have been confiscated!"

"Eek!" Qian Delong let out a hoarse sound that didn't sound like a human, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted from fright.

Meanwhile, the wealthy merchants and gentry who were hiding in street corners and peeking from behind doors felt dizzy and disoriented. Some of the more timid ones even lost their balance and collapsed to the ground.

"Drag away!"

The guards pounced on him like wolves and tigers, dragging the limp Qian Delong away like a dead dog.

The cries echoed across half the street, but to the other wealthy businessmen, the sound was more like a death knell tolling in their hearts.

Wei Zhongxian stood up and slowly walked to Zhang Zhuo, who was completely stunned.

He picked up the brass plaque, turned around, and faced the horrified, silent merchants and gentry.

He held the bronze medal high, letting its golden light shine into the eyes of everyone who was trembling.

"Look carefully!"

His voice suddenly rose, sharp and authoritative.

"When His Majesty reasons with you, gives you a way out, and offers you an opportunity, you'd better seize it quickly, follow His Majesty's reasoning, and learn to understand reason!"

"If you insist on ignoring the Emperor's favor and trampling on His Majesty's dignity in this mud..."

He used the tip of his foot to grind a clump of mud on the ground.

"This is what will happen to the Qian family!"

Wei Zhongxian's gaze sharpened like lightning as he slowly swept over everyone present, gritting his teeth as he spoke:
"Having occupied the nest for so long, do you really think you've grown phoenix feathers? Don't forget who planted this phoenix tree!"

(End of this chapter)