Qingyu Case: Female Minister of Dali Temple

Zhang Boshan was so frightened that his legs went limp. Fortunately, Bao Chengle quickly caught him and prevented him from falling to the ground. The three shopkeepers were also frightened and hurried forward to try to comfort him.

"Don't panic, sir." Bao Chengle looked around and saw that they were all his own people. He felt relieved and asked the two to guard the door. He turned around and persuaded, "Wait a moment to see if there are any other people coming."

"Yes, yes, let's see if anyone else is coming. Everything will be fine if someone else comes." Zhang Boshan hurriedly stood up with the help of the table and looked towards the door hopefully.

The three shopkeepers also looked towards the door.

Bao Chengle only took a glance, then retracted his gaze and whispered: "Even if no one comes, your Excellency does not need to panic. The relationship between your Excellency and the shopkeepers has never been open. As long as your Excellency does not recognize the shopkeepers, it is slander."

Then he looked at the three shopkeepers and asked, "When did Mr. Chen Liu ask you to come and see her?"

Shopkeeper Shen and Shopkeeper Tian looked at Shopkeeper Xu at the same time, and Shopkeeper Xu quickly replied, "It was the escort Zhao Qiang of the company who informed us last night."

Bao Chengle frowned: "The Zhao Qiang from Zhaojia Village?"

Shopkeeper Xu nodded, "It was him. He said that Young Master Chen asked him to lead the way to Taojiazhuang and Qingshui Town, and then he followed us back to the county town. Before we parted, Young Master Chen asked him to inform us that we were coming to see her today."

As he spoke, he took out the document from his sleeve and handed it over respectfully.

After Bao Chengle read it, he said, "It is indeed the handwriting of Mr. Chen Liu."

Zhang Boshan was panicked when he heard this, and asked hurriedly, "Besides asking you to come and see her, did she say anything else?"

Shopkeeper Xu shook his head. "Nothing else was said. That's why we wanted to come here early to ask you for advice."

"Where's Zhao Qiang? Go call him over!" Zhang Boshan said anxiously, "He has been following you for the past two days, so he must know something about this!"

Shopkeeper Xu smiled bitterly and said, "I questioned him for a long time last night, but he insisted that he knew nothing. I was worried that Mr. Chen Liu might have entrusted him with something else, so I didn't dare to press him too hard."

Shopkeeper Shen said in a gloomy tone, "Now he relies on Young Master Chen Liu, so why would he still take you and me seriously?"

Zhang Boshan said sullenly, "Young Master Chen Liu will leave one day. I wonder how he can still rely on me when the time comes!"

Shopkeeper Xu quickly expressed his opinion: "Don't worry, sir. As long as Mr. Chen Liu leaves Hongyuan County, I will immediately drive him out of Fulai Trading Company!"

Shopkeeper Shen sneered, "All the escorts of Fulai Commercial Bank are from Zhaojia Village, right? Shopkeeper Xu, aren't you afraid that if you chase Zhao Qiang away, the people of Zhaojia Village will quit?"

"We'll talk about the future later." Bao Chengle interrupted their conversation and said coldly, "The young master will ask you to come over for questioning soon, so you should think about how to deal with the current situation."

Upon hearing this, Shopkeepers Shen and Xu immediately straightened their expressions and said with Shopkeeper Tian, ​​"Don't worry, sir. No matter what Young Master Chen Liu asks, we will just say we don't know."

Bao Chengle shook his head and said as he thought, "Since Sixth Master Chen asked the adults to come out to pick you up, he might have a testing intention. If you say you don't know everything, it will be too deliberate and make people suspicious. It's better to answer the important things and tell the truth about the details. Who doesn't have personal relationships in the officialdom? Even if Sixth Master Chen is dissatisfied, he can only blame you a few words. If you really want to get to the bottom of something, just complain. Sixth Master Chen wants to call Zhao Qiang out for a confrontation, and Manager Xu can just complain about how the company was seized by the people of Zhaojia Village."

The three of them immediately complimented him, "Master Bao is absolutely right."

Even though they had discussed it this way, they were still a little nervous. When Fu Jiu came to invite him, Zhang Boshan tried to hold back on the way, but he couldn't help but asked with a smile, "Young Master, are you awake?"

Fu Jiu broke off a branch and put it in his mouth, pretending to look at the scenery, looking east and west. When he heard his question, he answered casually, "I woke up."

Zhang Boshan bowed slightly and asked tentatively, "Young man, do you know why the young master asked them to come here?"

The three shopkeepers immediately pricked up their ears.

Fu Jiu glanced at him, then at the trembling shopkeepers, and snorted, "What's going on? You'll know when you get there."

Zhang Boshan smiled apologetically, "I am really worried about you, young master. You see, you are not in good health to begin with. After traveling thousands of miles to Hongyuan County, you did not even have time to rest. You started to work hard and have not stopped until today. I think if this matter is not serious, I can handle it. Why should I bother you again? Do you think this makes sense?"

Fu Jiu spit out the branch and said, "If you could solve it, you wouldn't have come all the way to Hongyuan County! Stop talking nonsense and leave!"

Guessing that Chen Shao had finished his meal, Fu Jiu didn't delay any longer and strode towards Chengfeng Courtyard.

Zhang Boshan looked unhappy. Bao Chengle looked at his receding back and reminded him in a low voice: "Sir, don't worry. It should be about the case."

Zhang Boshan quickly asked, "Really?"

When he heard that they were called in to investigate the case, Shopkeeper Shen immediately lost the desire to fight with Shopkeeper Xu: "Sir, please help me. I didn't kill anyone."

Shopkeepers Xu and Tian also pleaded again and again.

Zhang Boshan straightened up instantly, "Whether someone was killed or not is not up to you to decide, hurry up and leave, don't keep the young master waiting!"

Shopkeeper Shen was unwilling: "Sir..."

Zhang Boshan said impatiently: "Alright, you didn't kill him, no one can wrongly accuse you. When you see me later, please show me some respect! If I lose face, you won't be any better off!"

Shopkeeper Shen looked at Shopkeeper Xu silently, who sighed silently and followed him. Shopkeeper Shen and Shopkeeper Tian could only follow him in panic.

Fu Jiu, who had returned earlier, saw them coming and immediately said, "Master, they are here."

Chen Shao, who was already sitting in the hall waiting for them, said, "Please invite them in."

Zhang Boshan came in with his people, bowed first, introduced them one by one, and then stood aside as if it had nothing to do with him.

The three shopkeepers knelt on the ground, kowtowed and greeted each other, and did not dare to say anything more.

"Get up." Chen Shao put the teacup aside and glanced at the three people one by one. "Don't be nervous. I just want to ask you a few questions."

The three of them were still frightened in their hearts, but they responded humbly.

Chen Shao said: "How many employees do your three companies employ?"

When Shopkeeper Shen heard that he was not asking a question, he immediately bowed and answered, "We at Fenglong Trading Company are in the medicinal herbs business. Medicinal herbs are hard to come by, especially wild ones. That's why we employ more assistants than them, nearly two hundred."

Shopkeeper Tian followed closely behind: "Our Rongfa Company is engaged in the silkworm cocoon business, and we have the fewest people, only exactly ninety."

Shopkeeper Xu finally said, "We at Fulai Trading Company are engaged in the business of mountain products. Although mountain products are easier to obtain than medicinal herbs, they are much harder to obtain than silkworm cocoons. Therefore, the number of employees in our store is not as many as that of Fenglong Trading Company, but it is much more than that of Rongfa Trading Company. We employ a total of 163 employees."

Chen Shao asked: "Is there a roster?"

The three nodded in succession.

Chen Shao: "Then go back and bring it to me."

Although the three of them didn't understand, they still responded in unison. When they turned around to leave, Chen Shao stopped them again: "How do your companies arrange people to go to the county or town to collect goods? Does everyone have a fixed place to go, or do you assign them at will?"

Looking at the three people, Chen Shao signaled Manager Shen to answer first.

Shopkeeper Shen said respectfully, "The merchants pay according to the quality and quantity of the goods collected, so they all have fixed places to go. Most of these places are developed by themselves, and only a very small number of them are vacated after the predecessors left and then passed on to others."

It was pretty much what she guessed. Chen Shao asked again, "Are all these changes registered on the roster?"

The three of them answered in succession: "Registered."

Chen Shao: "Do you still have the roster of those guys who left?"

All three of them nodded: "Leave it here."

Chen Shao: "Then bring them all to me."

Three of them went.