The strongest nine thousand years old

When Emperor Taizu founded the country, he once said that if the people had grievances, they could beat drums to appeal. County officials would investigate the grievances when they heard the drums. If anyone turned a deaf ear, they would be dismissed and investigated on the spot!

If Xu Zhiming turns a deaf ear to this injustice, he will lose his job!

Without bothering to entertain Chen Dong, Xu Zhiming walked out of the governor's mansion quickly with a gloomy face.

Chief Clerk Lin Yu and Military Officer Wang Liang bowed to Chen Dong and quickly caught up with Xu Zhiming.

"Consul Chen, this..." Zhang Qun hesitated.

Chen Dong had no appetite for this bland soup, so the sound of the injustice drum saved his stomach.

"Let's go and take a look together." Chen Dong said.

The group stood up and walked towards the gate of the governor's mansion without eating or drinking.

In front of the gate, the old woman who had just beaten the drum was stopped by the officials from the government office.

Xu Zhiming asked in a deep voice: "Old man, what grievances have you suffered? If you beat the drum without any grievances, you will be sent to prison!"

The old woman was leaning on a wooden stick as a cane. Her old, dark face was filled with anger. "You don't have to scare me. Today, I will risk my life to expose the true colors of corrupt officials like you!"

Xu Zhiming's expression suddenly changed, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Old man, you have to provide evidence when you speak!"

"I won't talk to you. I want to talk to the senior official from Yanjing City." The old woman looked past Xu Zhiming and saw Chen Dong who was following behind.

Without hesitation, she threw away her crutches and knelt down to Chen Dong.

Chen Dong was startled, and quickly stepped forward, holding the old woman's arms, "Old lady, what are you doing? If you have something to say, just say it. If you have any grievances, I will definitely redress them for you. No matter whether it is the governor or the chief secretary, I will never tolerate it!"

Xu Zhiming and Lin Yu's faces suddenly looked a little ugly.

As a result of this incident, Chen Dong didn't even know what was going on, but he wanted to chop off their heads as a sacrifice. How can he be justified in this?

The old woman stretched out her withered and skinny fingers and pointed at Zhang Qun, "I want to sue him! This so-called inspection team took human life lightly. Without any evidence, they falsely accused my son of corruption. My son was killed, and our property was confiscated. I am the only old woman left to survive in this world!"

"Even if I risk my life today, I will bring down this inspection team!" said the old woman angrily.

Chen Dong was startled and subconsciously looked at Zhang Qun.

The emperor's disciple has a promising future. How could Zhang Qun frame someone like that?

Zhang Qun wouldn’t think that just because he’s called “Chen Dong” he has all the power in the court, right?

Zhang Qun panicked and quickly said, "Master, please understand. I don't know her at all, and I didn't do anything to frame her."

"You're lying! You're lying!" the old woman screamed, "You dare to do it but not take responsibility for it. Are you still a man?"

Chen Dong raised his eyebrows. The husband has his own reasons and the wife has her own reasons. This matter is hard to sort out.

But the inspection team represents Yan Yunzheng's reputation and is the most important beginning of punishing corruption. If they fail here, how can they carry out their work in the future?

Chen Dong made up his mind and said in a deep voice: "Since both parties insist on their own opinions, the case will be tried in the governor's mansion today, and all the people can listen in!"

As soon as Chen Dong said this, the faces of everyone present changed.

Xu Zhiming and his men didn't expect Chen Dong to play such a big game, and they couldn't help showing panic on their faces. What if Zhang Qun really framed him? If His Majesty blames him, not only will Zhang Qun be in trouble, but the chief officials of this state will also have to suffer.

The onlookers applauded. No matter what the truth was, they were happy to see a high-ranking official being tried.

"As expected of a high-ranking official from Yanjing City, he is very courageous!"

"Legalists say that if a prince breaks the law, he is guilty of the same crime as a commoner. If the members of this inspection team really broke the law, will they be punished?"

"Master Xu, you should learn from others and stop trying to smooth things over."

"Today is truly a first for Yongzhou. I'm going to record it with pen and paper."

Everyone was talking about it and calling their friends to watch this unique trial.

And all this did not surprise Chen Dong.

Chen Dong pressed his hands down and said, "Don't worry, everyone. I will ask the officers to clear the place now. The interrogation will begin in an hour. If your family and friends are interested, you can come and watch."

"If the inspection team really framed me, I will chop off his head on the spot to give you justice and give an explanation to His Majesty."

"Okay! Well said!"

"Hurry up, I can't wait."

"There is still one hour left, go and call someone."

"This kind of grand occasion should not be missed."

The people were very enthusiastic, and before long, there was a crowd of people surrounding the place in three layers.

Chen Dong asked the officers to build a simple platform. While the officers were busy, Chen Dong called Zhang Qun aside.

"Tell me the truth, have you ever done it?" Chen Dong asked in a deep voice.

Zhang Qun said without hesitation: "Definitely not! Although I want to make a contribution, I will not take human life for the sake of it."

"You won't, but what about the others?" Chen Dong's eyes swept over the other members of the inspection team.

The incident involving Zhang Xingchen and the other two gave Chen Dong a warning. A was right, C was right, but something went wrong. The only person who could have gone wrong was B, who was in the middle.

Zhang Qun also thought of this and couldn't help but frowned.

He can guarantee that there is nothing wrong with himself, but he can't guarantee that there is nothing wrong with others.

You can only know a person's face but not his heart. To achieve merit, anything is possible. Moreover, he has been busy with the various schools of thought during this period and has indeed been slack in his work on corruption. It is unknown what cases they have handled.

Seeing Zhang Qun's expression, Chen Dong understood, "You only have one hour to clean up your mess. Once the interrogation begins, you'll be on your own."

Zhang Qun's face turned pale, he gave Chen Dong a grateful look, and immediately walked towards the others.

He must know the truth.

An hour later, after the police struck the gong, Chen Dong strode onto the platform.

"My fellow villagers, you all know what happened, so I won't go into details. The trial is now open, and both parties are invited to confront each other face to face!"

As soon as Chen Dong finished speaking, the old woman and Zhang Qun went up to the platform together.

One of them was ragged and unkempt, while the other was dressed in gorgeous clothes and looked full of energy. Just from the first meeting, the people's hearts had already tilted towards the disadvantaged old woman.

Chen Dong's face darkened, and he secretly groaned in his heart. But the arrow was on the string and had to be shot.

"Bring the plaintiff and the defendant. Today, I will open a trial outside the governor's mansion!"

Zhang Qun and the old lady walked up to the platform one on the left and one on the right. Chen Dong didn't waste any words and directly asked the old lady to tell him the whole story.

The old woman glared at Zhang Qun fiercely and began to tell her story.

"My son..."