Transmigrated into a minor official in a county government, with children at home waiting for rice t

Zhang Sanlang picked up his wine bowl and raised it to everyone: "Then it's settled. However, I'm free tomorrow, so I'll accompany Brother Zhou. If we can negotiate a lower price, that would be best."

Everyone raised their bowls in response, and the sound of the bowls clinking together echoed in the courtyard for quite some time.

The next day, Zhang Sanlang and Zhou Quan went to Wangjiazhuang and successfully bought the house in the north of the city for thirty strings of cash. Seven households jointly signed the contract, specifying their respective shares in the deed.

Zhang Sanlang and Zhou An each contributed ten strings of cash, while the other five households each contributed two strings of cash.

Since everyone was a household registration official and it concerned their own interests, they completed the entire transfer of ownership of the house in just two hours and happily agreed to have a drink together after their shifts ended.

Zhang Sanlang smiled and declined, then turned and went to the second hall.

Zhang Sanlang first bowed to Li Hang and reported the matter of buying the official residence, then turned his head to glance at Zhao Xie.

Zhao Xie looked up at him, and their eyes met.

Zhang Sanlang didn't speak, but merely tilted his chin slightly towards the corridor before turning his gaze back to Li Hang.

Zhao Xie put down his teacup, stood up, and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Li Hang: "Jingzhai, I'm going out for a bit."

Li Hang looked up at him, then at Zhang Sanlang, his lips twitching slightly.

He waved his hand, lowered his head and continued reading the documents on his desk, turning a page with a soft rustling sound.

Zhao Xie walked ahead, tilting his head slightly at Zhang Sanlang, and headed towards the back of the house along the corridor. Zhang Sanlang quickly followed, neither of them walking fast.

Before long, they arrived at Zhao Xie's residence. He pushed open the door of the east wing, stepped aside to let Zhang Sanlang in, then stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind him.

The room was small, with a wooden bed against the wall, the bedding neatly folded, and a sword hanging on the wall.

An old desk by the window holds an oil lamp, several books, and an inkstone.

Zhao Xie sat down on the stool in front of the desk and pointed to the edge of the bed opposite him: "Shouli, sit down."

Zhang Sanlang sat down on the edge of the bed.

Zhao Xie leaned forward slightly, his eyes filled with expectation, his tone tentative: "Shouli, you've made progress so quickly?"

Zhang Sanlang glanced at the window paper; sunlight shone through the paper, casting a soft glow on the table.

He withdrew his gaze, his expression somewhat grave: "Originally, I had no clue. But by chance, I went to the clerk's office yesterday and inadvertently learned something. Clerk Feng's real name is Wang Jian!"

Zhao Xie's eyebrows twitched slightly: "Wang Jian? His age doesn't match! Could he be a descendant?"

Zhang Sanlang nodded: "That's possible. I used the excuse of buying houses for everyone to go to Wangjiazhuang. The owner of that house, Master Wang, moved to Juancheng twenty-five years ago."

"He had a cousin who married Feng Pu, a clerk in the local government office at the time. Five years later, this wealthy man named Wang gave his son and daughter to Feng Pu, and they became his adopted children."

Zhao Xie frowned, tapping his fingers lightly on the table. "And then?"

Zhang Sanlang glanced at him: "I chatted with Master Wang for more than half an hour. He said he was an old scholar who had traveled around to study and visit friends twenty years ago, and only returned to Wangjiazhuang to retire five years ago."

"This sounds ordinary, but upon closer inspection, it doesn't make sense. Why would a local scholar travel around for more than ten years? Even if he entrusted his children to relatives by marriage, why would he change his surname?"

Zhao Xie was silent for a moment, then his eyes gradually brightened. "You think he's that Secretary Wang?"

Zhang Sanlang nodded slowly. "If I'm not mistaken, he gave his children to Feng Pu as a way to secure his future. If the imperial court investigates, separating him from his children will at least protect one side of his life."

"He returned five years ago, probably thinking the storm had passed and the court wouldn't reopen old grievances..."

Zhao Xie stood up and walked to the window, turning his back to Zhang Sanlang as he looked at the holly tree in the courtyard for a while. "Shouli, how confident are you in your deduction?"

"Seven points."

"What's lacking is concrete evidence. Master Wang will naturally not admit it voluntarily, and if Feng Jian also doesn't know about his affairs, then this line of inquiry is broken."

Zhao Xie turned around.

He looked at Zhang Sanlang, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Shouli, the Imperial City Guard never asks for concrete evidence when handling cases. Once they arrest someone, they interrogate them thoroughly, and there's no one they can't pry open."

Zhang Sanlang was taken aback upon hearing this.

He looked up at Zhao Xie, his brows furrowing. "What else does Vice Envoy Zhao want me to investigate?"

Zhao Xie walked back to his desk and sat down.

He looked at Zhang Sanlang, his expression gradually becoming serious: "This situation is special. I must obtain concrete evidence for a very important purpose. As for the reason, Shouli, it's better if you don't know."

Zhang Sanlang's brows furrowed even more.

He didn't dare to ask any further questions, but simply lowered his eyelids to look at his hands resting on his knees.

After a long pause, he finally spoke: "This matter has dragged on for too long. How can we obtain solid evidence without arresting and interrogating Master Wang?"

Zhao Xie leaned back in his chair and spread his hands: "Then I'll have to rely on you. Since you were able to find out about Wangjiazhuang, you can start with Feng Jian. I'll give you two months. Within two months, I need to see concrete evidence."

Zhang Sanlang raised his head and looked at Zhao Xie. His face was half-lit and half-shadowed in the sunlight, and a smile still lingered on his lips, but the light in his eyes was earnest.

Zhao Xie leaned forward slightly: "Shouli, you've been in the county government for ten years. You know Feng Jian better than I do. It will be much easier for you to investigate him than to investigate Wang Yuanwai."

Zhang Sanlang was silent for a moment, then nodded: "I'll give it a try."

Zhao Xie's expression turned serious: "Shouli. If this matter is resolved, I can guarantee you a formal position in the Investigation Department. If you're unwilling, I can also find a way to ensure you leave the position..."

Having been promised a lucrative deal, Zhang Sanlang left the east wing a quarter of an hour later.

Zhang Sanlang squinted as he pushed the door open and raised his hand to shield his eyes from the sunlight. Zhao Xie followed behind him and closed the door.

Zhang Sanlang paused for a moment under the eaves, straightened his clothes, and was about to leave the magistrate's residence when he suddenly heard voices coming from the main house. It sounded like a young woman coaxing a child.

He turned his head and glanced inside through the half-open door.

A woman wearing a narrow-sleeved jacket was standing inside the threshold, holding a child of about three years old in her arms, who was fiddling with the embroidery on her jacket with his little hands. The woman lowered her head, gently patted the child's back, and murmured something.

Although Zhang Sanlang had never met her, the person who could appear here was naturally Li Hang's wife.

Just as he was about to look away, the woman noticed and looked up at him.

Zhao Xie also saw it. He stepped forward and bowed to the woman, saying, "Sister-in-law, this is Zhang Shouli, the clerk of the Revenue Department of the County Government. He came to discuss some trivial matters of the County Government with me today, and we just finished discussing them."

He turned to the side and introduced her to Zhang Sanlang: "Shouli, this is the magistrate's wife."

Zhang Sanlang quickly averted his gaze, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "This humble official, Zhang Shouli, greets Madam Li."

Madam Li smiled and nodded gently: "Zhang Yashi."

Hearing the sound, the child in her arms turned his head, stared at Zhang Sanlang with his dark eyes for a moment, and then quickly buried his face back in his mother's shoulder, only revealing half of his ear.

However, it was this one glance that stirred something in Zhang Sanlang's heart!