Being an emperor is not something he can do, so he can only rely on his connections.

Seeing this, Xiao Kewei's face finally turned completely pale, and he staggered to the classroom as escorted by the bailiffs.

Before leaving, he shouted unwillingly: "Zhang Jingwei! You will regret this! The three major families will not let you go..."

The voice gradually faded away. Zhang Jingwei turned and said to the crowd, "I hereby order a thorough investigation of all official matters handled by Xiao Kewei, effective immediately. All those implicated will be detained. Huang Dianshi will temporarily assume the position of Chief Registrar. Qian Ming will contact the Yunzhou military to dispatch a specialist to Gaoyang for an immediate audit."

Huang Liang bowed and replied, "Yes!"

Zhang Jingwei put away his serious expression and called out to Zhao Peixin with a playful look, "Brother Zhao~"

Zhao Peixin was stunned for a moment and then quickly responded, "I'm here!"

Zhang Jingwei said, "Please tell me about the three major families."

……

These three families have been entrenched in Gaoyang for many years and their power is deeply rooted, which is completely different from ordinary landlords and gentry.

The Zhou family, originally from Jiangnan, has been operating the salt and iron business in Suzhou for a century. The current head, Zhou Shichang, leveraged his family's connections in the imperial court to arrive in Gaoyang twenty years ago and acquire tens of thousands of acres of fertile farmland at a fraction of the cost. Today, the Zhou family's holdings in Gaoyang exceed the county government's official farmland by 30%. Every autumn harvest, the Zhou family's granaries overflow with grain, enough to feed the entire Gaoyang population for over three years.

The Chen family originated as merchants from Shanxi, with their "Longchang" business name spread across seven northern provinces. Old Master Chen, drawn to Gaoyang's strategic location at the crossroads of north and south, relocated the family's operations there thirty years ago. Today, eight out of ten cloth shops in Gaoyang bear the Chen family's name, and even the uniforms for county officials are sourced from the Chen family's shops. Even more impressively, the Chen family controls the medicinal herb trade route from Gaoyang to Yunzhou. The annual profits from the ginseng and deer antler trade alone are worth half the county government's tax revenue.

The most feared of all was the Shi family. The Shi family was a prominent family in the capital, and the current prime minister was also surnamed Shi, the current head of the Shi family. Five years ago, Prime Minister Shi sent relatives and a large number of servants to Gaoyang. Under the guise of "supervising mining affairs," they seized control of all the mines in the county. Even the government-run iron and copper mines were branded "Shiji." It was said that Shi Huaijin delivered secret letters to the capital every month, and even the officials in the prefecture had to act according to his wishes.

Although these three families fought each other openly and secretly, they were surprisingly united in dealing with the Zhang family. Even Zhang Jingwei's father could not gain anything good in Gaoyang. All of the Zhang family's properties in Gaoyang were swallowed up one by one by these three families.

The reason why Xiao Kewei could sit so firmly in the position of chief clerk was precisely because he knew how to play both sides among the three families, and he covered up countless shameful deeds for them every year.

……

Zhang Jingwei stood with his hands behind his back, scanning the crowd with a sharp gaze: "Then as a county magistrate, do I also have to listen to the three major families?"

Zhao Peixin shrank his neck and answered cautiously, "In theory, yes."

"Haha, so funny..." Zhang Jingwei suddenly burst into laughter, but there was a hint of sharpness in his laughter.

At this time, Mu Tou stepped forward quickly: "Master, Sun Yaolang and Jiuer are here."

Zhang Jingwei paused for a moment and said, "Well, let them wait for me in the back hall first." Then he turned to Zhao Peixin and said, "Brother Zhao, as a clerk in the government office, you should know that the imperial court exempted Yunzhou from taxes for a year last year."

Zhao Peixin's forehead was covered with sweat, and he quickly saluted: "Of course I know! It's just that the government office was following the instructions of Xiao Zhubu, and they collected an extra spring tax."

Zhang Jingwei slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups clink. "What a 'follow instructions'! I want you to post a notice tonight. Starting tomorrow, for a month, refund the bad taxes. No more waiting. Every household in the village must know this."

"Yes! I'll do it right away!" Zhao Peixin felt as if he had been pardoned and was about to leave when he was stopped again.

"Wait." Zhang Jingwei took a piece of paper from his desk and wrote a few lines. "Take my business card and go to the garrison camp to mobilize troops to help you. Remember, before noon tomorrow, I want to see notices posted all over the streets of Gaoyang!"

Zhao Peixin took the name card with both hands and responded repeatedly: "I will do my best!"

Zhang Jingwei waved his hand and said, "Everyone else, please go away. If you need anything, we can talk about it tomorrow!"

All the officials answered in unison, "Yes," and bowed and left.

After everyone dispersed, Zhang Jingwei came to the back hall.

Sun Yaolang placed a thick stack of documents heavily on the table: "The medical records, autopsy records, and roster are all here!"

Zhang Jingwei flipped through the pages quickly, his brow furrowing ever deeper. "Sure enough, it's the same thing. Internal organ failure." He looked up and asked, "Sun Yaolang, do you know of any poison that can cause a person to work tirelessly until they die of exhaustion?"

Sun Yaolang's eyes flashed with approval. "I'm thinking the same thing." She flipped open a page of the autopsy records. "I've examined more than a dozen bodies. They don't look sick, nor do they look like they were poisoned. They look very much like they died of exhaustion." She suddenly emphasized, "But how could those young and strong people die of exhaustion?!"

"Sudden death is what we often call sudden death." Zhang Jingwei closed the document. "No sleep, no food, no matter how strong you are, it won't help."

Huangfu Ling interjected worriedly, "But it's hard to explain how so many people suddenly died at the same time!"

Jiu'er's eyes suddenly lit up: "That might not be poisoning, it might be taking Wushisan!"

Mu Tou slapped his thigh and said, "That's right! When I was in prison, Tian Cao lived next door to me. He made me dig up lime for him to eat all day long. He also didn't like to sleep and was crazy all day long."

Sun Yaolang shook his head in denial. "But I didn't find any Wu Shi San or any other kind of stone medicine in their stomachs," she explained. "And the symptoms of taking Wu Shi San are a form of chronic poisoning, which can cause mental depression, ulcers, and sores all over the body."

Mu Tou suddenly fell into deep thought: "I think I remembered something..." He looked up suddenly, "When we went to the Water Defense Camp, those assassins seemed to have taken some kind of drug that was addictive and invigorating. Even Brother Gao couldn't resist them."

Sun Yaolang's expression froze when he heard this. "I've heard that in southern Xinjiang, some chieftains use witchcraft to control their slaves, forcing them to work tirelessly day and night."

Zhang Jingwei immediately pressed on, "Hmm? Sun Yaolang, tell me more."

"It's said that they feed the insects with a kind of anesthetic, and then feed them to humans after they become adults and spin cocoons," said Sun Yaolang, lowering his voice. "Originally, it was used to treat illnesses and save lives, but people become addicted after eating it. They lose their appetite, feel no pain, and don't get tired. Withdrawal is like a thousand ants gnawing at your heart, causing unbearable pain."

Zhang Jingwei shuddered when he heard this and blurted out, "Fuck, ecstasy..."

Sun Yaolang looked at him doubtfully: "But this is just hearsay, even I didn't know in the palace..." She shook her head, "Anyway, it's unlikely that he would appear here!"

Zhang Jingwei stood up and paced back and forth. "This is a huge matter. I'm going to write a letter to my teacher to see if he can help me!" He suddenly stopped and said, "Sun Yaolang, I will temporarily hire you as the coroner of Gaoyang. From now on, you can come to the government office to serve."

Sun Yaolang shook his head and refused: "I save people and not for official positions." She looked at Jiuer, "I want to give Jiuer some experience."

Jiuer pointed at herself in surprise: "Ah? Me?"

Zhang Jingwei understood and turned to Jiuer: "Miss Jiuer, would you be willing to be my Gaoyang's coroner?"

Jiuer waved her hands repeatedly: "Mom, I am afraid of blood. I can't show my heart and lungs..."

Sun Yaolang pointed at Mu Tou unhappily and said, "You are not afraid of the blood of such a big living person, so how can you be afraid of the dead?" Mu Tou scratched the back of his head foolishly when he heard this.

Jiu'er's face flushed immediately: "I...ah, hum, let me tell you, this girl is not cheap, how much is the monthly salary?"

Zhang Jingwei couldn't help laughing: "Don't worry, I will definitely satisfy you!"

Jiuer stamped her feet coquettishly: "Humph!"