northernbook Chapter 153 Dog Officer!
Chapter 153 Dog Officer!
Chapter 153 Corrupt Official!
Back at the inn, Ye Ru found a letter on the table.
"This was delivered by the scholar who used to work with you. He left quickly after delivering it."
Xiao Bai jumped off the bed and said in a deep voice.
"What did he say?"
"I didn't say anything, but since you weren't here, I said I hoped you would see this."
Upon hearing this, Ye Ru quickly opened the letter to read it. As he scanned the contents, he immediately crumpled the letter into a ball.
"what happened?"
Seeing Ye Ru's ashen face, Xiao Bai immediately spoke.
"Officials and bandits colluded; Wang Hu and his gang are in trouble!"
As soon as Ye Ru finished speaking, he turned and walked outside. If he didn't go soon, Wang Hu and Wang Yuan would probably be beheaded.
After leaving the inn, Ye Ru went to Kong Hexuan's place.
"Brother Ye, why are you in such a hurry?"
"Brother Kong, is your flying boat repaired? Could I borrow it?"
Without saying a word, Ye Ru got straight to the point.
"It's fixed. What happened? Did you need it urgently?"
Seeing Ye Ru rushing around, Kong Hexuan couldn't help but become serious. Composure in the face of danger is something that military men should learn. Ye Ru's calm and collected demeanor during the national crisis and his all-out efforts to turn the tide were deeply etched in his mind. Now, seeing Ye Ru in such a hurry, he couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.
"I need to go to Hunan and Hubei. Wang Hu and Wang Yuan have something to do."
Ye Ru said.
"But we shouldn't be in such a rush."
"The country is not as important as them."
These words sent a chill down Kong Hexuan's spine, and he suddenly felt that Ye Ru seemed to have changed in some way.
"Brother Ye, tell me, what happened to Wang Hu and Wang Yuan?"
Ye Ru told Kong Hexuan the contents of the letter, which angered the latter as well:
"With corrupt officials in power, the people are suffering terribly. How could an official of the imperial court do such despicable things, even colluding with bandits to prey on the people! I will go with you to execute that corrupt official!"
After saying this, Kong Hexuan, Meng Qingyang, and the other members of the various aristocratic families gave a warning, and then he and Ye Ru left the place, boarded a flying boat, and headed to Xiangchu.
The letter revealed that Hunan and Hubei, also under the jurisdiction of the Left Prime Minister, were extremely corrupt and decadent, with officials and bandits colluding. Many local residents had been forced to leave their homes and flee to other places due to this oppression.
This Xiangchu region is also home to Mount Heng, one of the Five Sacred Mountains, and Wang Hu's hometown is just a dozen miles away at the foot of this mountain.
From Zhongjie City to Xiangchu, if there were a flying boat, it would only take about three hours to arrive.
Qu County in Hunan and Hubei is the hometown of Qu Yuan. However, because the Left Chancellor took over the area first, people's hearts became corrupted and officials and bandits became even more rampant.
Meanwhile, in Qu County, countless people gathered in the market, and some could be heard cursing corrupt officials. The midday sun shone down on the faces of two blood-soaked prisoners, causing them to lower their heads slightly.
The two prisoners were dressed in prison uniforms, their hands were tied behind their backs, and their faces were covered with bloody welts from being whipped, making them look particularly pitiful.
"Tiger, Yuan'er!"
Below, an elderly woman nearing fifty was wailing loudly, inciting the surrounding villagers to throw whatever they were carrying at the magistrate on the execution platform, who looked grim.
"Guards, arrest all these people and give each of them thirty lashes!"
As soon as the words were spoken, some cruel officials rushed into the crowd with beating sticks and started beating people indiscriminately, and cries of pain filled the air.
"You dog of a magistrate! You insulted my sister's innocence, driving her to suicide several times, and even tried to have bandits from Hengshan harm my whole family. Even if I become a vengeful ghost, I will never let you go!"
Wang Hu's eyes were bloodshot as he roared ferociously, but the executioner held him down tightly.
"I regret not having studied and entered officialdom, otherwise I would have executed you here with a single word! With treacherous officials in power, the country is doomed!"
Wang Yuanyang sighed, then looked at the old woman and shouted:
"Mother, please take good care of my father. Your unfilial son can only repay your kindness in the next life."
“Wang Hu, Wang Yuan, we grew up together. Although we are not blood brothers, we are as close as brothers. How can I bear to watch you die? Don’t worry, once I pass the imperial examination, I will definitely kill these corrupt officials and then commit suicide to join you in the afterlife.”
Song Tao clenched his fists tightly in the crowd, tears streaming down his face.
"Come on, come on, you corrupt official! In eighteen years, I'll be a hero again!"
"You corrupt official, I curse you to a terrible death!"
Wang Hu and Wang Yuan glared angrily.
"You are truly unrepentant! So what if you have insulted your sister's chastity? It is her honor to serve me. In this land, I am the supreme ruler! The lives and deaths of you lowly people are all under my control!"
The magistrate of Qu County laughed heartily, then spat and said sarcastically:
"I've already sent someone to take her to the front lines to comfort the men of Qu County. What can you do about it? You country bumpkin, bah!"
"I am going to kill you!"
Upon hearing this, Wang Hu's eyes turned even bloodshot. He used brute force to break free from the executioner and charged fiercely at the magistrate of Qu County.
"Out of control."
The magistrate of Qu County was a scholar who had passed the imperial examinations. In an instant, he flicked his sleeve, and a gust of wind slammed into Wang Hu, shattering his bones.
"It's noon, execute him immediately!"
The magistrate of Qu County flicked his sleeves and threw out a kill order. The executioner raised his large, ghost-headed cleaver and slashed down fiercely at Wang Yuan.
Their pupils reflected the approaching ghost-headed broadsword, and a resolute look appeared on their faces. Meanwhile, Song Tao and Wang Hu's pupils shrank to the size of pinholes, and a sense of despair enveloped their hearts.
"Lord Ye, let us follow you in our next life."
Wang Yuan closed his eyes, a bittersweet feeling welling up at the corners of his mouth, and then murmured.
"Spare his life!"
clang!
However, just as the ghost-headed broadsword was about to behead Wang Yuan, a golden light accompanied by an angry shout shot out from afar, appearing directly at Wang Yuan's neck. When the ghost-headed broadsword came into contact with the golden light, it was smashed open with a chip.
The powerful force sent the executioner staggering back hundreds of steps.
"Who is it! How dare they obstruct an imperial official from carrying out an execution!"
With a gloomy expression, the magistrate of Qu County looked up at the sky and shouted angrily.
"You dare call yourself an official of the imperial court? You wield power granted by the court, wear the official hat of serving the country and the people, yet secretly you are worse than pigs and dogs, shameless and despicable, preying on the people and turning Qu County into a chaotic mess, leaving the people homeless. How can you have the face to be an official of the imperial court?"
Suddenly, a huge flying boat slowly sailed in from the sky and landed on the ground. Two young scholars walked out from it. The one in the lead raised his eyes and stared intently at the magistrate of Qu County with eyes like a wolf's gaze.
His face flushed and paled by Ye Ru's scolding, the magistrate of Qu County took a deep breath to suppress his rage, then waved his hand, surrounding Ye Ru and his companion. At the same time, a chilling shout rang out:
"You audacious scoundrel, daring to insult an official of the imperial court! Guards, arrest him! Punish him for all his crimes and imprison him! Execute him in the autumn!"