Yinshan Record

Chapter 338 The Imperial Envoy and the Whereabouts of the Xie Family
News of the civil uprising in Wenning County reached Cizhou Prefecture almost immediately.

Of course, the source of the news was not the panicked magistrate of Wenning County, but rather the nearby imperial guards who sent the message back to the imperial guards' office.

Without any delay, Shi Chibao immediately sent copies of the report to the Cizhou Censorate and to Su Che, the Deputy Commander of the Criminal Division who was recuperating at home.

The report was worded with the utmost rigor typical of the Imperial Guards, using the term "popular uprising" instead of "treason."

Popular uprisings can be large or small, but once rebellion is used, there is only one path left: mass killings.

Either the rebels were slaughtered in droves, or the imperial court was slaughtered in droves; there was no compromise whatsoever.

However, Shi Chibao doesn't have time to deal with a small county like Wenning right now.

Lord Qianhu now has more important work to do.

Perhaps it was the influence of the Langya Wang clan in the court, or perhaps it was the influence of the Duling Su clan, but the court's decision on the disappearance of the Prince of Wuling was finally made.

An imperial censor was dispatched to Cizhou to investigate the matter and clarify the responsibilities of the Imperial Censorate, the Imperial Guards, and other relevant parties.

There were two Imperial Censors from Xingyou who came, both with the cultivation level of the fifth rank of the Rejuvenating Core stage. Given the speed of Rejuvenating Core experts, Shi Chibao felt that by the time he received the news, these people had probably already come knocking on his door.

Upon receiving the news, Shi Chibao immediately arranged for people to organize the case files and unify the narrative, taking into account the possible role Su Che might play.

Commander Shi directly instructed his subordinates to claim ignorance of everything, no matter what the Imperial Censor of You asked.

Anyway, they really don't know anything.

The two messages arrived at Su Che's residence almost one after the other.

These past few days, Young Master Su has been following the Yin-Yang Dharma King to practice the supernatural powers and spells of the Black Emperor lineage, constantly practicing the Yellow Heaven Daoist Techniques. He's been having an incredibly happy time.

After seeing these two messages, Young Master Su simply put them aside and continued to live his peaceful life.

Lu Bai and Zhu Yi, on the other hand, were in turmoil, looking restless all day long.

Seeing the two of them like this, Su Che initially planned to give them a few days off to adjust, but when he thought that this might only make them more uneasy, Su Che simply told them to pack their bags and stay at his residence together.

A few days later, officials from the Imperial Censorate arrived, saying that two Imperial Censors from Youzhou had arrived and asked Young Master Su to come over for questioning.

"They want me to come over for questioning? They really think they're imperial envoys."

Su Che looked at the officials sent by the Censorate in his own hall, and spoke calmly while sipping his tea.

“Go back and tell them that I am sick and need to recuperate, and that I will not see anyone.”

"The two imperial envoys said that if Li Xing does not respond, he will be the prime suspect in the disappearance of the Prince of Wuling."

As Su Che spoke, he glanced at Lu Bai and Zhu Yi on either side.

"So, does that mean I absolutely have to go?"

As he spoke, Young Master Su stood up and dusted off his sleeves.

"Let's go then."

"Doesn't the Chief Justice change into his official robes?"

Su Che looked at the clothes he was wearing.

He wore a light blue robe, a jade belt around his waist, and a gold and silver crown adorned with pearl flowers on his head, which was quite appropriate.

"Hmm, there's still one thing missing."

Su Che ordered his old steward, Su Fu, to find a folding fan with a beautiful woman's face on it before he set off with the officials from the Imperial Censorate.

Cizhou Prefecture was the capital of Cizhou, divided into north and south cities. The north city was the old city, where government offices, armories for storing armor and weapons, and granaries for storing grain were located. The south city was the new city, which was originally a wasteland outside the city. Later, as the population increased, many markets were built, and Cizhou built a city wall to enclose it.

Su Che's residence was in the southern part of the city. It would only take about half an hour to walk from his home to the Censorate. Su Che deliberately did not ride a horse or use any magic. Instead, he slowly moved along the street, swaying slightly and waving a folding fan with a beautiful woman's face on it.

The officials from the Imperial Censorate had no choice but to lead the horses and follow behind.

"Have the two of them met with Chief Clerk Wang and Commander Shi?" "The two imperial envoys have already questioned the officials of the Censorate, the Night Watch Division, and the Imperial Guard Command, and only then did they send me to request that the case be handled."

"Oh," Su Che nodded.

Ask everyone else first before asking me.

Pay attention.

Do you know who these people are?

"I don't know about this one, but I do know that one is named Xiong Shou and the other is named Li Yizhen. I heard that they are both senior censors in the Censorate, and they are well-versed in criminal law. Censor Xiong is from Yuyang Mountain, and the other Censor Li seems to be a rogue cultivator. Both of them are already married..."

"Alright, you know so much even if you didn't know, you probably know exactly where they sleep at night. Our Cizhou Censorate is truly full of hidden talents."

"Your Excellency is too kind."

Su Che strolled leisurely to the location of the Cizhou Imperial Censorate.

There's a saying that goes, "Officials don't bother with their offices."

The meaning is that officials don't maintain their positions. The reason is simple: according to the current rules of the Great Liang, ordinary officials serve a three-year term. After their term is over, they are transferred, either promoted or transferred to another post. They will never let you continue to work.

Today we repaired the government office, and before we could even settle in, we're already being moved to another place.

This government office was essentially built for someone else.

However, the Imperial Censorate is clearly not subject to this rule.

Those who could serve in the Censorate were either imperial relatives or members of high-ranking families.

Once you get to this floor, there are hardly any people left in that circle.

Building a more impressive government office will make you comfortable, and the people who take over will be just as comfortable.

Therefore, when Yu Ze was in office, he thoroughly tidied up the yamen.

Take the sculptures at the entrance of the government office, for example. They were somewhat overstepping their bounds. There were two colorful phoenix sculptures standing at the entrance, which were called "The Arrival of the Phoenix".

This is because Yu Ze has a powerful reputation and deep roots, so no one dares to cause trouble for him. If it were an ordinary person, they would have already listed seventeen or eighteen crimes against him and settled accounts with him.

Su Che slowly walked to the door, only to see Wang Jian standing there, his face full of anxiety.

"The Chief Secretary is quite leisurely, actually here to greet guests."

Wang Jian looked anxious.

“At a time like this, how can Li Xing still have the leisure to make jokes?”

Su Che looked at him noncommittally.

"Why are you panicking, Chief Secretary? If we were to truly determine the guilt, I would probably be the first to be punished, followed by Commander Shi, and lastly the Chief Secretary."

"Oh dear, my young master Su, you've really been oblivious to everything happening around you these past few days."

Wang Changshi lowered his voice and said, "These two have already found out my wife's whereabouts."

What is Madam Xie's whereabouts?

Su Che looked at Chief Secretary Wang curiously. "Shouldn't finding your wife be a good thing? Why are you so panicked?"

"Ok?"

“My wife, my wife keeps an ancient monster by her side.”

Wang Jian spoke slowly and deliberately, almost grinding his teeth: "If the imperial court finds out about this, I'm afraid I'll be severely punished."

(End of this chapter)