The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 117 Capturing Clan Members to Suppress Arrogance
As it turns out, these arrogant and domineering distant relatives of the royal family, who didn't even respect Prince Tu Chengyu, were actually afraid of death.

Just as Tu Chengyu gave Quan Xu a tough order, Su Xuanbao realized he had made a mistake, so he hardened his heart and drew his sword.

Those who were trying to avoid capture stopped on their own and were obediently caught by Quan Xu, Su Xuanbao and the others.

Even after these people were brought before Tu Chengyu with their hands and feet bound, the old clan chief still refused to give up and tried to plead for them one last time.

He walked shakily to Tu Chengyu and said, "Your Highness, after all, we can't both be called Tu. I hope Your Highness will be lenient with me."

Tu Chengyu looked at the old patriarch with a cryptic smile, leaned close to him, and said in a voice only he could hear:

"Do you think their inscriptions are more valuable, or Prince Yixiao's inscriptions?"

Tu Chengyu's voice was so soft it was almost inaudible, but to the old patriarch it was like a thunderclap in his ear.

Only then did he seem to realize that the Prince Su in front of him was not as harmless as he appeared; he was the one who had personally killed the former Crown Prince and his heir.

In front of such a person, their actions just now only served as a pretext for the other party to attack.

Thinking about all this, the old clan chief dared not even imagine what would become of Atong and the others.

The old clan chief fell silent, and Tu Chengyu ignored him, instead calling the county magistrate, Du Ruyi, to his side and asking:
"Magistrate Du, have you received any complaints about that outsider abusing the daughters of the local people in Nanshan?"

Upon hearing this, Du Ruyi turned her eyes to look at the old clan chief, who was standing not far away with a dazed expression, seemingly doing something.

He then turned to look at Atong and the others, and saw that they were all tied up and looked dejected.

He knew that when faced with someone like Prince Su, even those who could usually wield great power in Longxing County could only obediently accept their fate.

Thinking of this, Du Ruyi truthfully replied, "Your Highness, I have not received any such complaint."

Du Ruyi's answer was the same as Tu Chengyu's guess.

These people dared to be so arrogant in front of him, a prince, so naturally they had nothing to fear from him, a cowardly county magistrate.

Therefore, it's obvious that these people, when faced with problems, would never report them to the authorities and ask the county magistrate to make decisions for them.

Moreover, the story they told about abusing the daughters of the people of Nanshan was fabricated by them in an attempt to kill Zhuo Ri, so they were even less likely to report it to the authorities.

Upon hearing the answer he expected from Du Ruyi, Tu Chengyu turned to ask the old clan chief:
"They didn't report the incident to the authorities, but instead made arrests on their own, and now they've even killed someone. How can I let them off easily?"

The old clan chief had given up hope of saving Atong and the others, but he still had to answer Tu Chengyu's question seriously, because he didn't want to get himself involved.

The old clan chief replied, "Your Highness, A-Tong and the others only wanted to catch the bad guys because they saw the villagers being bullied, which is why they didn't bother to report it to the authorities."

Tu Chengyu asked, "They didn't think to report it to the authorities, so didn't you, as the clan leader, think to remind them?"

Upon hearing this, the old clan chief realized that Tu Chengyu had indeed implicated him in the matter, and quickly distanced himself, saying:
“Your Highness, although I am the patriarch of the Tu clan in Longxing County, I am getting old and no longer have the energy to manage many things.”

"I've only heard a little about this matter, and I don't know the specifics of what happened."

The old clan chief dismissed the matter with a few words, leaving no trace of evidence.

Tu Chengyu didn't care that the old clan chief had extricated him from the matter.

He made a big show of arresting Atong and his gang for two reasons. First, because these people were too arrogant, and Tu Chengyu couldn't stand it anymore and wanted to teach them a lesson.

Secondly, Tu Chengyu wanted to use their arrest to divert their attention and make them temporarily forget about Zhuo Ri.

Now that Tu Chengyu sees that the old clan chief is planning to abandon Ah Tong and the others to save the king, he has achieved his goal.

Therefore, Tu Chengyu stopped talking to the old clan leader and turned to Du Ruyi again, saying:

“These people arrested people without the permission of the authorities, and now someone has died.”

"Although they say there was a reason for this, it's only their side of the story."

"Since this matter occurred in Longxing County, I will hand this case over to you, the magistrate of Longxing County, for investigation."

When Du Ruyi heard that Tu Chengyu wanted to hand over the case to her for trial, her eyes were filled with doubt and confusion.

He knew that with his influence in Longxing County, he would inevitably face interference from the old clan chief and his associates when interrogating this case.

If he were to actually conduct the interrogation, the matter might simply be dropped again.

Judging from what Prince Su has done today, Du Ruyi cannot believe that Prince Su could not have imagined such a situation.

But now, Prince Su has specifically asked him to handle this case. I wonder what his intention is.
Could it be that Prince Su is deliberately favoring the Tu family and wants to use him to facilitate this matter?

But if Prince Su really intended to favor them, he could have let them go just now; there was no need to arrest them.

After thinking it over and over, Du Ruyi felt her mind was getting a little muddled.

On the other side, the old clan chief and Atong were also surprised to hear that Tu Chengyu had asked Du Ruyi to try the case.

They shared the same doubts as Du Ruyi.

Therefore, both groups of people looked at Tu Chengyu at the same time, hoping to see some clues on his face.

Tu Chengyu naturally knew what they were thinking, so he deliberately kept a straight face and did not show any other emotions.

As the person caught in the middle between the two sides, Du Ruyi could not see the true intentions of Prince Su, and he was really unsure of himself.

He could only bite the bullet and ask, "Your Highness, you have entrusted this case to me. How would you like me to conduct the interrogation?"

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu feigned confusion and asked, "You are the head of a county, don't you know how to handle cases?"

Faced with Tu Chengyu's rebuke, Du Ruyi was a little worried about himself, but he was even more worried that if he couldn't get Su Wang's opinion, he might not even have the chance to worry in the future.

Therefore, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and ask, "Your Highness, this case involves members of the royal family, and I, a mere county magistrate, am afraid it is difficult for me to handle. I beg Your Highness to tell me, to what extent should this case be tried?"

Tu Chengyu knew that Du Ruyi was afraid of not handling the case well and ending up getting herself into trouble.

He kept asking me questions, wanting me to give him some advice, probably because he wanted Tu Chengyu to help him share the responsibility.

Tu Chengyu could understand his little scheme.

After all, he was a minor county magistrate without any powerful backing, now caught between two powerful figures, and he had to think about his own future.

Therefore, when he asked this question, Tu Chengyu didn't intend to make things difficult for him, and said to him:
“If a prince breaks the law, he is subject to the same punishment as a commoner. Since they have broken the law, they are no longer members of the royal family.”

"When you interrogate them, you only need to do so in accordance with the laws of the dynasty. There is no need to have any concerns."

Hearing that Prince Su had clearly stated his position, Du Ruyi breathed a sigh of relief.

He no longer needs to worry, because judging a case doesn't require him to devote his entire life to it.

Next, at Tu Chengyu's request, Du Ruyi led A Tong and the other criminals back to the county government office.

Accompanied by the old clan chief and others, Tu Chengyu arrived at the Royal Villa in Longxing County.

When Prince Bei Jing was ordered to build Longxing County, he specially constructed a small courtyard on the original site of the former residence of Emperor Taizu as a royal villa, specifically for the royal family to reside in when they returned. Because the emperor would send people to pay homage to their ancestors every few years, this royal villa was constantly cleaned and maintained.

So when Tu Chengyu arrived, everything was already prepared, and he could simply check in.

Since we were going to stay here for a few days, some of our personal belongings were moved to another courtyard.

However, the guards would naturally take care of these tasks, so Tu Chengyu didn't need to worry about them.

He led Xiao Xuanzi, Xiao Xing'er, and the others directly to the courtyard where he would be staying for the next few days.

Because I've been on the ship for the past few days, and then I encountered these things at the dock.

As soon as Tu Chengyu entered the room, he didn't do anything else but changed his clothes and went to rest.

Perhaps because he was really tired, when he woke up after resting, the sun was almost setting.

Knowing that he had to attend a banquet at the old clan chief's place that evening, Tu Chengyu had no intention of going back to sleep.

He had Xiao Xing'er and the others prepare a bath, and then he took a good bath to wash away all his fatigue.

Then, after changing into a new set of clothes, he led his people to the old clan chief's house for a banquet.

Because this banquet was to welcome Tu Chengyu, a prince of the current dynasty, the old clan chief held a lavish one.

Not only were exquisite dishes and wines arranged, but a famous opera troupe was also invited, and all the prominent figures in the county were summoned to accompany them for drinks.

Although the banquet was very lively, the events of the day had left a lingering sense of distance between everyone.

This made them less relaxed when they saw Tu Chengyu.

After witnessing the arrogance and domineering nature of these people from his hometown, Tu Chengyu had no desire to get close to them.

Both sides had concerns and neither took any other measures to ease tensions.

Therefore, this was supposed to be a lively and exciting welcome banquet that would be the talk of the entire Longxing County for half a year.

In the end, it ended in such an awkward and bleak way, like the desolation of autumn.

Tu Chengyu wasn't too concerned about this result.

He stayed for only a short while that evening, sampled some local delicacies, and then quickly returned to his villa.

After he left, everyone who had come to the old clan chief's house for the banquet also left cleanly.

This scene angered the old patriarch, a man who used to have great prestige in the royal family, so much so that he couldn't sleep well that night.

Tu Chengyu was naturally unaware of what had happened in the old clan chief's house after he left.

He returned to the villa and, as usual, rested and slept.

Then, early the next morning, before dawn, he was woken up by Xiao Xing'er.

The reason Xiao Xing'er woke him up so early was not because she was audacious and didn't want Tu Chengyu to sleep in.

It was because he was going home to pay respects to his ancestors, and according to custom, he had to bathe and burn incense three days in advance and wait patiently.

The bathing ritual had to be completed before sunrise, and this had to be done for three consecutive days to count as a full three days.

Fortunately, Xiao Xing'er and the others took care of the cooking, so Tu Chengyu didn't have to get up so early.

Now he just needs to follow Xiao Xing'er's instructions and go through the entire bathing process.

After taking a bath, change into a brand new set of clothes, and that completes today's bathing routine.

Then, he couldn't go back to his bedroom to catch up on sleep.

He spends the entire day in his study, either calming himself down or trying to quiet his mind.

Alternatively, you could read some scriptures and pray for your ancestors in advance.

Tu Chengyu spent three days like this.

During these three days, Tu Chengyu spent all his time in the study except for resting in his bedroom, and he didn't even go out into the courtyard once.

He bathed and meditated for three days, staying indoors and not venturing out, but something significant happened outside.

These matters naturally pertain to Du Ruyi's interrogation of Atong and the others.

In this incident, Atong and his group initially appeared as victims.

According to them, Zhuo Ri, an outsider, came here and abused the daughters of the villagers in Nanshan Village.

They couldn't stand this situation, so they spontaneously helped arrest people, and then accidentally killed the prisoner.

By saying this, they position themselves as victims, hoping to lessen their guilt.

When Du Ruyi was questioned about the case, he followed the approach they provided and proceeded to try it out.

So, from the beginning, he sent people to the homes of the people in Nanshan Village who had been bullied.

However, his search revealed a major problem.

The constables he sent did not bring the family back alive; instead, they brought news of their suicide.

In this way, both the victim and the perpetrator died, leaving only Ah Tong and his helpers alive.

The case suddenly reached a dead end, making it impossible for Du Ruyi to continue his interrogation.

If things stop here, at most the case will just become an unsolved mystery.

However, at this critical moment, a teenager suddenly appeared and recklessly banged on the county government's grievance drum.

In the past, if Du Ruyi had guessed that the person beating the drum might be suing the Tu family, she wouldn't have needed to pay any attention; the Tu family would have naturally taken care of it.

But now, Tu Chengyu, the Prince of Su, lives in the county town, and it seems he has no intention of taking care of his fellow clansmen here.

Du Ruyi dared not ignore the drummer, so he had someone bring the drummer into the county government office and questioned him personally.

As he suspected, the question revealed that the boy had indeed come to file a complaint against the Tu family.

He told Du Ruyi that the victimized family did not commit suicide at all, but was secretly poisoned at night and then disguised as a suicide.

The boy insisted that he had witnessed the incident with his own eyes and that he even remembered the appearance of one of the murderers.

The boy's sudden appearance made the whole case even more perplexing.

(End of this chapter)