Judge of the Lamp

Seeing that Xu Zhiqiong was fine, Tao Huayuan was both surprised and happy, and stepped forward to hug Xu Zhiqiong.

Unexpectedly, Chu He rushed down from the middle of the mountain, rushed into the camp, and hugged Xu Zhiqiong first.

"Brother, I thought you couldn't take it anymore, I really wanted to rush down to help you, but they said I couldn't stop the evil thoughts, I was really scared..."

Xu Zhiqiong hugged Chu He tightly and sucked most of his energy from him.

Chu He's body softened and fell to the ground. Xu Zhiqiong recovered some strength and walked from the center of the camp to the outside of the camp.

There were people sitting on the ground in pain everywhere. They were wronged and sad, but the moment they saw Xu Zhiqiong, the hatred in their eyes was still there.

Some people wanted to escape, but were driven back by He Fang with the army, no matter what the reason was, they were rebels after all, how they will be punished depends on Emperor Chang Le's disposal.

Chang Decai brought Peng Xiunian over.

Having been pierced through the heart by Chang Decai, he is not dead yet, after all he has a fifth-rank physique.

Seeing Xu Zhiqiong for the first time, Peng Xiunian exclaimed: "Xiao Situ!"

Xu Zhiqiong nodded and said, "It's me, we are all on our own."

Peng Xiunian looked around at the crowd and said, "What's going on?"

Xu Zhiqiong lowered his voice and said, "I'm here to save you, so don't say anything, I'll find a place to put you down first."

Chang Decai found a tent and took care of Peng Xiunian for the time being. Xu Zhiqiong wiped the blood, changed his clothes, walked into the tent, and looked at Peng Xiunian: "Tan Master Peng, I'm here to save you."

No matter how stupid Peng Xiunian was, he understood the situation.

There was a burst of cursing in the camp: "Traitor! Villain! The true God of Wei Dao is above, and when you come back to the mortal world, you will definitely be smashed into pieces!"

Xu Zhiqiong lowered his palms, signaling Peng Xiunian to calm down: "Don't shout, don't break your heart, I have a few things to ask you, who is Da Sikong?"

"Don't ask too much, I don't want to say a word to you, anyway, I'm going to die, you just do it!"

Xu Zhiqiong said to Chang Decai, "Do it."

Chang Decai tore off a piece of flesh from Peng Xiunian. She was very measured. She only tore off more than [-] pieces at a time, the size of a fingernail. Peng Xiunian was willing to tell the truth.

"Da Sikong is Gongsun Wen."

When the words fell to the ground, Xu Zhiqiong shook his head at Chang Decai and said, "Go ahead."

Chang Decai stepped forward to peel the skin again, and Peng Xiunian wailed, "I'm telling the truth!"

What you're saying is a shitty truth!

I saw with my own eyes that it wasn't Gongsun Wen!
Although it's just a back view, it can't be Gongsun Wen!

Even if Gongsun Wen changed his appearance, it is impossible for him to master the secret technique of the puppet of repeated thoughts. This is a method that even Li Shabai does not know.

Gongsun Wen is the third grade of Confucianism, if he still has such a high level of cultivation in Mohism, he would have become a master long ago!

Chang Decai tore another twenty pieces of flesh, and Peng Xiunian cried, "What I'm telling is the truth, it's the truth!"

Chang Decai pulled Xu Zhiqiong outside the camp, and whispered in a low voice: "Master, I have seen many liars, I should not be wrong about this person, he is not lying."

Xu Zhiqiong believed in Chang Decai's judgment, and he also felt that Peng Xiunian was not lying. …

But if Gongsun Wen is really Da Sikong, many things cannot be explained.

This matter must be investigated.

Xu Zhiqiong discussed with He Fang to collect some food from the surroundings first, so that the people would have a full meal and sleep soundly for a night. He personally wrote a letter and sent it to the palace through Tao Huayuan's circle.

Tao Huayuan said: "You don't have that incense burner, why bother?"

Xu Zhiqiong said: "The censer is not safe, you should send the letter to the Yin Yang Department, find someone who can trust you, and send it to the palace in person, and send it to the emperor."

Tao Huayuan nodded, and then said: "According to the Daxuan law, treason is an unforgivable crime. I'm afraid none of these people will survive."

Xu Zhiqiong said: "I let them live, you can rest assured."

In the evening, Emperor Chang Le received a letter from Xu Zhiqiong.

The letter explained the cause and effect, which scared Emperor Chang Le into a cold sweat.

He called Liang Jixiong and told Liang Jixiong about the matter.

Liang Jixiong trembled for a while, wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "This matter must be told to the true God!"

He was going to Canglong Hall to pray, but he heard Emperor Changle say: "How should we deal with the hundreds of thousands of people in Yunzhou?"

Liang Jixiong was in a dilemma.

He felt that these people should not be killed.

But how to convince the emperor?
"The crime of conspiracy and rebellion should be punished, but they are all the people of Daxuan. They were bewitched by the traitor Peng Xiunian, but they made a big mistake. According to the old man, all the generals of the rebel army were executed, and the rest were sentenced to death. Hard labor."

"Sentence to hard labor? Is it appropriate?" Emperor Chang Le narrowed his eyes.

Liang Jixiong smacked his lips and said, "Also, it would be good to find some people and kill them as an example."

Emperor Chang Le still shook his head: "This matter has to be discussed with the cabinet, old ancestor, don't go back to the Canglong Palace, I will call Yan Anqing, the chief assistant of the cabinet, and see what he says."

Not long after, Yan Anqing came to the Secret Pavilion, Emperor Changle didn't say anything about the death of Zhu Wu, only said that Xu Zhiqiong had quelled the rebellion, and asked Yan Anqing to come, only to discuss the matter of dealing with the rebels.

Yan Anqing thought for a long time and said, "The rebels should be punished!"

Emperor Chang Le frowned: "All the more than [-] rebels will be punished?"

Yan An counted and said: "Everyone will be punished!"

Liang Jixiong gritted his teeth and looked at Yan Anqing.

Elder Shengwei cannot interfere in political affairs, but Yan Anqing's attitude annoyed Liang Jixiong very much.

Emperor Changle asked Yan Anqing: "The people of Yunzhou were bewitched by the prefect Peng Xiunian and blamed all the tyrannical government of the prefecture on the imperial court for these years, so they got involved in this rebellion, but they didn't consider the reason?"

Yan Anqing sighed and said, "It's justifiable in emotion, but unforgivable in reason. Conspiracy is an unforgivable felony, and the laws of the country cannot tolerate it."

Liang Jixiong couldn't bear it anymore, and said aside: "The heads of more than [-] people have fallen, but how deep is the imperial court's enmity with Yunzhou? But how to explain to the families of these more than [-] people? There will be peace in Yunzhou in the future. Is it?"

Yan Anqing shook his head and said: "There is no need to explain, all the children of his family will be sent to the army and sent to the north."

Liang Jixiong said angrily: "In this way, do you want to make Yunzhou extinct?"

Yan Anqing said: "The people in the surrounding counties can be moved to Yunzhou. In ten years, Yunzhou will definitely return to its old appearance."

Emperor Chang Le poured blood into Tong Ren, stared at Yan Anqing with bright red eyes, and said, "Is this really your intention?" …

Yan Anqing saluted and said: "I know that this action is not in line with His Majesty's wishes, but in order to proclaim the country, the rebels must be severely punished, those who have made meritorious deeds must be rewarded, and those who have committed crimes must be punished. This is the foundation of the law of the country!"

Emperor Changle stared at Yan Anqing for a long time, then suddenly smiled and said: "If you are guilty, you must be punished, but what you say is good. The people rebelled because they couldn't bear to be exploited and oppressed. Although the state government pretended to do it under the guise of the imperial court, the imperial court has neglected it. You have to admit it, right?"

Yan Anqing was startled, but didn't make a sound.

Emperor Chang Le said again: "If you care about crimes, the imperial court can't get rid of the responsibility, even I can't get rid of the responsibility, and ask me how to deal with my crimes?"

Yan Anqing was at a loss for words and didn't know how to answer for a moment.

Emperor Chang Le sighed softly: "Yan Aiqing, you go to Longtu Pavilion to rest for a while, and discuss with you after I make up my mind."

Yan Anqing resigned, Liang Jixiong said angrily: "In the past, Your Majesty said that in the court, there are angry husbands teaching meticulous work, but the old man still doesn't believe it. Now looking at it, Yan Anqing must be careful!"

Emperor Chang Le shook his head and said: "He didn't do it carefully, he did this because he really considered for the imperial court."

Liang Jixiong said in amazement: "Your Majesty, are you really going to kill those more than one hundred thousand people?"

Emperor Chang Le shook his head and said: "If I do it freely, what's the difference between it and the foolish emperor that Peng Xiunian made up? What's the difference between this court and the court that Peng Xiunian made up?"

After finishing speaking, Emperor Changle handed Xu Zhiqiong's letter to Liang Jixiong.

In the letter, Xu Zhiqiong asked Emperor Changle to forgive the people of Yunzhou, and listed three reasons.

First, the imperial court committed the crime of negligence, and the blame cannot be placed entirely on the people.

Second, if there is a blood feud, there will never be peace in the southern border of Daxuan.

There is one remaining reason that cannot be said. The people of Yunzhou know that they have committed the crime of treason, and they are filled with fear.

After reading the letter, Liang Jixiong let out a sigh of relief.

Thanks to Zhiqiong for his thoughtfulness.

He not only saved the people of Yunzhou, but also Daxuan.

That night, Emperor Changle issued an edict that Peng Xiunian, the chief criminal of the treason, was executed Ling Chi, and more than [-] accomplices were executed together, and the rest were ignored.

In addition, Emperor Changle also had to raise a sum of money and grain to appease the common people.

Yan Anqing was quite dissatisfied with this, but he is not alone in the cabinet now. With the insistence of Wang Yanyang, Qiu Dongcai and other cabinet ministers, the cabinet agreed to draft the draft, and the edict was sent to Yunzhou the next day.

The night before the execution, Xu Zhiqiong interrogated Peng Xiunian for a whole night.

After being tortured, Peng Xiunian explained everything he knew in detail.

Unexpectedly, his confession was exactly the same as Xiao Songting's.

Peng Xiunian has never met Xiao Songting, so there is no possibility of them colluding, why do they even make up the same lies?
Didn't they both lie?
But logically, their confessions made no sense at all!
At noon the next day, Peng Xiunian was tied to a punishment post and executed. He Fang gathered more than [-] people to watch the execution.

Li Shabai made a magic circle with nine prayer puppets, so that all the people could clearly see and hear the execution process. …

Every time the executioner made a cut, Peng Xiunian and the others wailed.

The people watching the execution actually cried for it. The veteran who had chatted with Xu Zhiqiong cried, "The magistrate is a good man. If the magistrate dies, it will be our turn."

This was expected by Xu Zhiqiong. Xu Zhiqiong walked up to Peng Xiunian and said in a low voice: "To be honest, I will make you suffer less. Let me first tell you what the taxes and taxes collected over the years have gone to." place?"

Peng Xiunian was tortured for a few days, his will was destroyed long ago, he just wanted to get relief quickly, and wept aloud: "I have been the magistrate for thirteen years, and I have collected more than five million taels of tax silver, and two million taels have been handed over. From the Nufu Sect General Altar, one million taels will be given to colleagues in the prefecture and county, and the remaining two million taels will be divided into four places to hide. What I said at the time is true!"

Word by word, clearly reached the ears of the common people.

The old soldier cried: "The prefect is a good man, the prefect...good man, good, good..."

He blinked, wondering if he had heard wrong.

Xu Zhiqiong asked again: "Who killed the Yanghuo people in Yunzhou?"

Peng Xiunian cried: "It's not my intention, it's an order from the Nufu Sect head altar, I'm following orders!"

The old soldier wiped away tears, this time he was sure he heard correctly.

Xu Zhiqiong said again: "Repeat what you said just now, and say it carefully, especially how the money came from, it's best to explain clearly one by one."

Peng Xiunian really said it.

He said the taxes and money that he had collected privately over the years, one by one.

After saying that, Peng Xiunian looked at Xu Zhiqiong and said, "You say it to my heart's content, but you can't break your promise."

Xu Zhiqiong is a man of faith, so how could such a thing break his promise.

"According to the imperial court's order, it should be [-] knives late. You only told the truth, and you said it twice. I will spare you two knives, eight hundred and ninety-eight knives. You see it is fair!"

Peng Xiunian shouted: "I can say it a few more times, as long as you let me say it a few more times!"

Xu Zhiqiong shook his head and said with a smile: "Twice is enough, and then the execution!"

The executioner stepped forward and cut a knife.

Peng Xiunian wailed.

The people stopped crying.

Until the last cut, not a single commoner shed tears.

Peng Xiunian died, and more than [-] accomplices were executed at the same time.

All those who should be killed were killed, and fear surged into the hearts of the people again.

They felt it was their turn.

Xu Zhiqiong stood in the middle of the high platform and shouted loudly, "Do you know who I am?"

The audience was silent.

They really don't know who this person is.

"I'm Xu Zhiqiong!"

Everyone commented, "What kind of poverty is he?"

"The vault of the sky!"

The crowd whispered, "Why does he say Cang is poor?"

"I am the Marquis of Daxuan, and my food city is in Yunzhou. As the Marquis of Yunzhou, I tell you that the imperial court has issued an order. I forgive you for your innocence!"

The people stared at Xu Zhiqiong with wide eyes, they couldn't believe it was true.

Xu Zhiqiong prepared an impassioned speech, first counting the crimes of Peng Xiunian and others, then counting the evil deeds of the Nufu Sect, then detailing the new policies of the court, and then focusing on Yunhou's heroic deeds.

But when the words came to his lips, Xu Zhiqiong only said one sentence: "You have suffered, each of you will receive some food and money, and go back to live!"

The people continued to stare at Xu Zhiqiong, believing that this was definitely not true.

Xu Zhiqiong turned and left, his figure looked very tall against the sunlight.

Can't speak, can't say a word.

Walk steadily, every step must be steady.

Meritorious refinement!

No, I can't stand anymore.

This time the number is huge!