Chaos of Ming 1628

Sun Qing stood at the door, a gentle breeze ruffling his clothes.

The postmaster and his men knelt down in unison, begging for mercy and pleading with the other party to show leniency.

Li Qingshan cried out that he was innocent, but his eyes revealed a defiant spirit: "I didn't steal it, I didn't steal it. Beat me to death, I won't admit to doing something I didn't do."

He shouted, and the whip made a whooshing sound as it struck Li Qingshan.

With a "smack," the skin was torn open, and Li Qingshan had another wound on his arm.

Strangely, Li Qingshan made Ruo feel no pain, and even as his flesh tore and flew, he didn't utter a sound.

In this turbulent time, with Madam Ke's death remaining undisclosed and undercurrents swirling, it is precisely the time to bide one's time and conceal one's abilities. Such trivial matters should not be meddlesome.

Unfortunately, Sun Qing admired Li Qingshan.

He received silver over time, and he spent every penny of it on the refugees in Hexi.

"Stop!" Sun Qing shouted and strode downstairs.

Upon seeing this, Li Qingshan quickly called out, "Young Master Sun."

The postmaster, who was kneeling there, heard the commotion and hurriedly looked up and called out, "Young Master Sun, you...you should go upstairs and rest!"

"The people who came this time are no ordinary people!" the postmaster muttered under his breath. "Maybe they're carrying the Duke of Wei's golden seal."

Sun Qing's expression changed.

2. The simplified record in the "Chronicle of Ming History" states: In September, Wei Zhongxian was granted a seal with the inscription "Regent Minister". Madam Ke was granted a seal with the inscription "Imperial Gift of the Holy Lady". Wei Zhongxian's annual stipend was increased by 1,200 shi of rice.

In the fifth year of the Tianqi Emperor's reign, the emperor bestowed these honors upon two individuals simply because the three main halls had been completed.

Later, whenever a golden seal was required, it was as if Wei Zhongxian himself had come.

Now that this seal has arrived, does it mean that Wei Zhongxian has arrived?

Sun Qing looked at the other party but did not see a eunuch. Instead, he saw a young man holding a nine-section whip. He had delicate features but his eyes revealed a fierce look.

Could it be him who went out with the golden seal?

impossible.

As for Wei Zhongxian's son, that's utter nonsense. You see, Wei Zhongxian was originally just a street thug, a gambling addict, who even sold his only daughter.

His wife, realizing he was inhuman, secretly ran away. Later, when Wei Zhongxian had nothing left to sell, he finally decided to sell himself.

Neither his biological son nor Wei Zhongxian himself, who could this person be?

The postmaster, fearing a commotion, continued to plead, "Young Master Sun, this is our life. We are lowly people with worthless lives, and we have no choice but to kneel and beg for your mercy."

"Even you, if you get involved, you'll likely find it difficult to escape!"

Knowing the gravity of the situation and hearing of the impending disaster, Li Qingshan quickly looked at Sun Qing and said, "Young Master Sun, please don't worry about me. We must not let this affect you."

"The villagers all need you; my worthless life isn't worth it."

Sun Qing felt bitter.

The fact that such a person could be attracted to a place like Jiahe County can only mean that the situation there has become too serious to handle.

The person arrived so soon after Madam Ke's death. Could it be that Wei Zhongxian had long harbored the intention to kill Madam Ke and had already discussed it before the poisoned wine was served?

"Kill him!" the boy said, handing the long whip in his hand to a guard beside him.

These people don't care about right or wrong; they simply enjoy seeing despicable people kneel down and beg for mercy.

However, Li Qingshan was stubborn and refused to give in.

The whip arced through the air. Sun Qing frowned, picked up a wooden stick, and struck down the long whip.

The whip fell to the ground. The boy, who was about to leave, suddenly turned around and angrily rebuked Sun Qing: "How dare you interfere in my affairs?"

"May I ask, what wrong has he done?" Sun Qing asked, neither humble nor arrogant.

The boy snatched the whip and raised his hand to lash Sun Qing.

"Young masters, please, this is Young Master Sun of the Sun family of Gaoyang. Please, please, nothing can happen to you!" The postmaster knelt on the ground, begging for mercy.

At first, I just wanted to save Li Qingshan's life.

If the two young masters really start fighting now, no matter which one of them suffers a bad outcome, their heads will be in danger.

The young man paused slightly and glanced at Sun Qing disdainfully.

He sneered, "Who do we have here? So the person everyone's been talking about lately is you?"

"You have quite the ability to make the ignorant people of Jiaohe County listen to you."

Sun Qing had no intention of being polite to this kind of spoiled brat. He asked the same question again: "What did he do wrong?"

The boy put away his whip, looking Sun Qing up and down as if he were examining something interesting. Suddenly, he laughed out loud: "I told you, he stole something."

"What?" Sun Qing asked.

"I didn't steal anything." Li Qingshan's voice was firm and strong: "I was delivering water to them, and he said I was as strong as an ox, so he had someone put a tether on me and make me moo like an ox. I refused, and as soon as I stepped out, he said I had stolen something and wanted to beat me to death."

When Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor barefoot, he lavishly rewarded his brothers who had fought alongside him in numerous battles. This, however, sowed the seeds of future trouble.

From the Hongwu era onwards, numerous historical records, notes, and storybooks document how noble sons arbitrarily whipped, imprisoned, and tortured their servants and laborers.

Even the Great Ming Code treated masters with leniency, while regarding servants as lowly. The lives and dignity of the lower classes were not guaranteed at all.

That's still considered polite; at least they gave a reason.

Sun Qing stepped forward, rummaged around on Li Qingshan's body, and with his back to the other person, took out a round object from his pocket and hid it in his sleeve.

Turning around again, Shen Qing had become serious. He bowed to the other person, his voice filled with trepidation and embarrassment: "May I ask, young master, is the lost item round, less than the size of a palm, with a crescent-shaped opening?"

The man smiled and nodded.

Sun Qing then asked, "Does it have patterns, like two fish? Is it top-quality mutton-fat jade?"

"Yes, that's it." The boy was slightly taken aback, then burst into laughter.

"Why!"

Sun Qing sighed and turned to look at Li Qingshan.

Li Qingshan shook his head frantically.

The boy looked at Sun Qing and suddenly smiled knowingly: "Here's what we'll do: if you can hand him over, I'll spare his life."

"Hmm!" Sun Qing nodded, raised his hand, and pointed to the boy's waist: "I think the thing you are looking for is hanging on your waist."

In the courtyard, everyone held their breath.

I knew from the beginning that Li Qingshan was innocent. Whether or not something was missing was not the key point. It was laughable that Sun Qing had so bluntly exposed his false accusations.

"Nonsense! What's in your sleeve then?" the boy retorted angrily. "He clearly stole my things; I just remembered it wrong."

Sun Qing shook his head, took his hand out, and then opened it again.

"This is the only item I found in his arms," ​​Sun Qing said calmly. "I'm curious, young master, do you eat this too?"

The item in Sun Qing's hand was nothing more than a piece of pancake that had been bitten into.

The key point is that this pancake, besides wild vegetables, consisted mainly of unpalatable wheat bran. This was the only thing Li Qingshan had earned after a whole day of work at the post station.

He couldn't bear to eat it; he wanted to save it for his mother.

It was quiet all around, and no one made a sound.

The boy's face was very pale, as if an invisible hand had slapped him across the face.

"Now that the item has been found, please release him." Sun Qing's attitude was firm, and he returned the cake to Li Qingshan.

Li Qingshan looked at Sun Qing, his eyes a little red.

"Let's go!" Sun Qing decided on his own and didn't linger.

He could still rely on the Sun family for support; no matter how arrogant the other party was, they would need a reason to take his life. Besides, Shen Junru was upstairs.

Li Qingshan only has a worthless life.

Li Qingshan's envy intensified. He kowtowed heavily to Sun Qing and then turned and ran away.

"Stop right there!" the boy retorted defiantly. "Who gave you permission to leave?"

Li Qingshan stood in the doorway, his smile fading: "Why don't we talk about the crime of slandering others?"

"You're sick!" The boy glared fiercely at Sun Qing. "He was just a courier; if I killed him, I killed him. And you dare to go against me!"

"What kind of bullshit Sun family is this? None of them even hold positions of power in the court, yet they dare to bark at me like dogs!"

After saying this, the boy raised the whip in his hand and lashed out.