roccoschili Chapter 92 A Hero's Resolute Cut-Off?
Chapter 92 A Hero's Resolute Cut-Off?
Amidst Zhongmei's commotion, the carriage returned to the yamen. When the carriage stopped at the yamen gate, everyone's eyes turned to it.
Inside the car, Li Chong adjusted his hat: "Stop fooling around, we're almost there, I'll explain in detail later."
If secrets are not kept, it will harm oneself. What you are thinking is not yet time to tell Zhongmei, but who knows who outside might overhear it.
The first part of what you said is fine to others, but the part afterward is not.
Although Zhong Mei was unhappy, she knew what was important, so she pouted and stopped making a fuss.
Li Chong bent down and got out of the carriage. He instructed the driver to take Zhong Mei to the back office through the back gate, while he went straight into the office through the front gate.
"Master!" Wu Dalang rushed over.
"Ah, right, you've come at the right time. From now on, you'll be on duty at the front office as a shift leader. Your predecessor died in the mountains, so remember to send him his compensation, lest he feel disheartened."
Li Chong casually arranged Wu Dalang's future, which could also be considered as placing a hand for himself.
Yang Chengde followed behind, his expression unchanged, letting Li Chong arrange personnel as he pleased, seemingly without any resentment.
Li Chong glanced at him, chuckled, and strode forward.
"Gentlemen, let's have a meeting in the hall. I, the magistrate, will talk about the recent bandit suppression campaign."
Many officials glanced at Yang Chengde and carefully bowed, replying, "Yes."
Everyone went up to the hall.
"Sir Sun, Registrar Yang, please come in."
Sun Jun was called out from the crowd and led to Yang Chengde.
"Registrar." Sun Jun bowed respectfully, a hint of unease in his voice.
Yang Chengde forced a smile and patted him on the shoulder: "You have greatly assisted the county magistrate in this bandit suppression, and you have made great contributions. I was right about you."
Sun Jun quickly bowed his head: "Registration Officer, you are wise. I knew nothing about the magistrate's stealthy victory over the enemy. How could I possibly deserve credit? I am utterly unworthy of such praise!"
"You really don't know?" Yang Chengde stared intently at Sun Jun.
Sun Jun shook his head: "I really don't know."
"If that's the case, why didn't you report the county magistrate's victory immediately? Why did you wait for someone else to bring me the news?"
Faced with Yang Chengde's questioning, Sun Jun stammered and could not answer.
Li Chong's information blockade was effective. When Sun Jun learned the truth, he was too shocked to inform Yang Chengde.
Moreover, from his own personal perspective, he was certainly pleased with Li Chong's success.
Sun Jun was, after all, a native of Yanggu County. Li Chong's elimination of the bandits was beneficial to his hometown, so he naturally favored Li Chong in his heart.
However, in Yang Chengde's eyes, who was unaware of this, Sun Jun was no longer trustworthy and might have already defected to Li Chong, or at the very least, he was betting on both sides.
How can we keep someone like that?
Upon seeing the stuttering Sun Jun, a cold glint flashed in Yang Chengde's eyes, but his face remained warm: "Don't panic, I was just asking casually. There were many things to do at the time, and it's possible that I forgot for a moment."
Sun Jun breathed a sigh of relief and quickly bowed in gratitude: "Thank you for your understanding, Chief Clerk."
Yang Chengde nodded, then turned and walked towards the hall: "The magistrate is still waiting for us, please don't delay."
Inside the council hall, everyone stood solemnly, all looking at Li Chong.
Li Chong waved his hand with a smile: "Why are you all standing? Please sit down."
With Li Chong waving his hand, everyone finally sat down.
"This campaign against the bandits was a great victory, thanks not only to the generosity of the elders of Yanggu, but also to the support of everyone here. Without your efforts in allocating supplies and fighting bloody battles, we would not have achieved such a great victory today."
Li Chong surveyed the area and announced loudly, "I guarantee that everyone involved will be rewarded. I have already ordered a discussion of their merits on the way back. Now I will announce it."
His voice echoed throughout the hall, and whoever's name was called would begin to show a look of joy.
Li Chong's generosity pleased everyone.
As for why Li Chong was able to be so generous, it was thanks to Du Heng and Deng Meng.
Since they took over the mountain, they have had no scruples whatsoever, committing robberies and murders one after another, and naturally accumulating a great deal of wealth.
Now that Li Chong has won, all those things have become spoils of war, giving Li Chong the confidence to bestow generous rewards.
Li Chong was certain that after today, the people in the government office would know who to follow to get ahead, and his position would be unshakeable.
"Clerk Sun Jun, the transport of grain supplies has been done properly..."
"Your Excellency!" Yang Chengde suddenly stood up. "I have a report to submit. Your Excellency, please do not rush to reward him."
Li Chong frowned. It wasn't Yang Chengde's turn yet, so why did he suddenly appear?
Blocking someone's path to wealth is like killing their parents. Even if he didn't want to win people's hearts, he wouldn't show up at this time, would he?
Isn't this going against everyone?
"What does Registrar Yang have to say?"
Since Yang Chengde had spoken, Li Chong couldn't very well stop him from talking, so he could only listen to what he had to say.
Yang Chengde glanced at Sun Jun and then said loudly, "Sir Sun is colluding with the enemy; he shouldn't have taken this reward! Moreover, the magistrate should also punish him for treason!"
Upon hearing this, the hall fell silent, and Sun Jun's face turned deathly pale.
Li Chong's expression was unreadable. Was this a fight between dogs, or a desperate act of self-sacrifice?
However, I don't intend to touch Yang Chengde. Is it unnecessary for him to do this?
There's another huge problem he'll have to deal with in the future, so Li Chong didn't plan to bring Yang Chengde down. His eagerness to get rid of him puzzled Li Chong.
"Registrar Yang, you can't just say things like that. Clerk Sun did a decent job escorting the grain this time. He may not have made any great contributions, but he certainly put in the hard work. How can he be punished? As for the matter of colluding with the enemy, you can't just make things up without concrete evidence."
When Li Chong asked him a question, Yang Chengde calmly took out a letter from his pocket.
"The evidence is here; please take a look, Your Excellency."
Upon receiving the letter, Li Chong suddenly realized that it contained his route of advance and the route of transporting supplies, confirming that it was indeed a letter of treason.
Yang Chengde continued, "This letter is indeed written in Sun Jun's handwriting. Doesn't that prove his crime of colluding with the enemy?"
"Commander Sun, is this your letter?" Li Chong held up the letter and gestured.
Sun Jun's face was pale. After opening and closing his mouth a few times, he nodded dejectedly: "It is I, but..."
"It's good that you've admitted it!"
Yang Chengde immediately interrupted Sun Jun, preventing him from continuing.
He then gave a wink, and two men immediately stood up and restrained Sun Jun, rendering him unable to move.
"Your Excellency, why waste words on such a traitor who colludes with foreign enemies? Just throw him in jail and punish him."
Li Chong looked at Yang Chengde with a half-smile: "Registrant Yang seems to be in a hurry? I have a question for you, Registrant Yang: where did you get this letter from?"
Yang Chengde replied righteously and sternly, "That day, when I went to the countryside to check the land taxes, I inadvertently spotted a suspicious-looking person. After ordering my men to stop him, they found this letter on his person. I recognized the handwriting, and that's when I realized why those mountain bandits were so rampant—they had an inside man!"
"Waaah!" Sun Jun struggled to speak, but couldn't get a word out.
Li Chong shook his head. Yang Chengde is really ruthless. He just gave up on a mere clerk like that.
However, Li Chong didn't want him to succeed just like that.