No, gentlemen also guard against

Chapter 389 Confession
"What's your last name?"

"Ouyang, whose single name is Rong and whose courtesy name is Lianghan."

"Nation."

"Luling, Nanlong County, Ouyang family."

"Position."

"From the fifth rank to the history of Jiangzhou, he once served as the seventh-rank Dragon City Order...I was admitted as a Jinshi in the first year of Jiushi..."

Two voices, one question and one answer, echoed in the empty lobby.

Ouyang Rong was not wearing official uniform. He stood in the hall with his hands behind his back and replied calmly and fluently.

After a question and answer session.

The questioning voice with a familiar voice directly above the lobby paused for a moment, and then asked the key question:

"Ouyang Lianghan, at the west city gate, the former military commander Zhu Lingxu was executed in public. Did you do it on purpose or accidentally?"

Ouyang Rong affirmed: "On purpose."

"Okay, since you said you were careless, how can you prove... Huh? Wait, what did you say!" The person who asked the question suspected that he heard wrongly.

"Deliberately." Ouyang Rong nodded and said bluntly: "The expedition is about to begin. The general fled in fear of crime and tried to deceive the city defense. He even dared to attack and kill the guards. The city regulations and military laws are not allowed. He will kill without mercy. If he does it again, I will be killed. The sword, the beheading was intentional.”

"This...Brother Lianghan, what you said..."

At the top of the hall, Jiangzhou Sima Yuan Huaimin, who was in charge of the interrogation, couldn't help but look embarrassed and muttered in a low voice.

The clerk next to him who was responsible for recording the confession could not help but pause his writing, glanced sideways at Yuan Sima, and asked with his eyes whether he wanted to record this confession.

Yuan Huaimin, who was pulled in for temporary interrogation today, also had a headache. He quietly looked around, taking advantage of the absence of the cold figure of the girl in palace clothes, he said cautiously:
"Brother Lianghan, there is something wrong with what you said. After all procedures, confession is still very important. Generally, the guilty are convicted by confession, and confession is the most important... How about... How about asking me again?"

Ouyang Rong looked at Sima Yuanda, who was wearing an official hat today.

"Cough cough."

Yuan Huaimin cleared his throat, then with a serious expression, he spoke loudly again, echoing in the hall:
"Ouyang Lianghan, I would like to ask you, the former military commander Zhu Lingxu was executed in public at the west city gate. Was it intentional or accidental?"

"on purpose."

"..." Yuan Huaimin, secretary.

Ouyang Rong knew that Yuan Huaimin was doing it for his own good, so he nodded to his friend and shook his head.

Yuan Huaimin sighed helplessly, why are you so stubborn?

"What a deliberate move."

A cold voice came from outside the lobby. Rong Zhen Longxiu walked into the lobby and said expressionlessly:
"remember."

Yuan Huaimin hurriedly looked away and sat upright.

The clerk immediately became serious and wrote down all the confessions.

Ouyang Rong looked calm.

The girl in palace clothes walked past Ouyang Rong in the center of the hall without looking away, walked up to the top, stood next to Yuan Huaimin's case, turned around, and looked down at Ouyang Rong coldly.

The atmosphere in the lobby fell to freezing point, and for a while, no one spoke.

Ouyang Rong felt more and more that this cold woman was like a refrigerator, cooling down wherever she went.

"cough."

Yuan Huaimin clenched his fist to cover his mouth, coughed, and asked seriously:
"Ms. Female Historian, has the interrogation with Inspector Wang been completed and the confession recorded?"

Rong Zhen ignored it and took the confession file from the clerk. He lowered his eyelashes and scanned it quickly.

Yuan Huaimin was quite thick-skinned and not embarrassed.

It's late night and early morning now.

One day and half the night had passed since Zhu Yuheng led the front army to defect;

Five hours have passed since Zhu Lingxu was beheaded by Ouyang Rong at the city gate.

Xunyang City has now entered a state of emergency combat readiness.

Every household was ordered to close their doors and were not allowed to go out at will. On the streets were teams of patrolling soldiers who were waiting seriously, led by female officials.

The entire city is strictly prohibited.

Several of Zhu Lingxu's cronies have all been brought under control.

The generals in the former army camp outside the city were all confiscated by the military envoy Rong Zhen on His Majesty's order to "act cheaply". In such a large military camp, without this thin and petite girl in palace clothes speaking, it was temporarily impossible to mobilize a single soldier. One pawn.

The same is true for Jiangzhou lobby.

Rong Zhen and other female officials took over directly.

Ouyang Rong, Wang Lengran and other officials involved in the Jiangzhou lobby were temporarily dismissed and handed over their official seals.

They need to undergo interrogation day and night by Sima, the criminal judge of the state, and the censor stationed in the state, and record confessions on matters such as the defection of the vanguard and the absconding of Zhu Lingxu in fear of crime.

Only when the suspicion is cleared can you get out.

At the moment, the Jiangzhou lobby is still brightly lit even though it is midnight, and officials at all levels are here, working hard overtime.

Zhu Ling's body, separated from his head and arms, was randomly pieced together and placed in an open-air courtyard, covered with a piece of white cloth.

Outside the lobby, they were surrounded and guarded by heavy soldiers.

Until the incident is fully investigated and a characterization is given, not even a single mosquito can fly out.

Not only the Jiangzhou lobby, which is as bright as day, but also the low-key and silent Xunyang Prince's Mansion in Chaisangfang in the north of the city, to the Xunyangdu Wharf on the banks of the river in the south of the city where the curfew is strictly enforced, in the entire Xunyang City, there are countless people who have insomnia tonight.

However, from the handling of the current emergency situation, we can also roughly see how much control the Empress Wei of Luoyang, who serves as the referee, has over the city of Xunyang, which is thousands of miles away.

On the night when Guo Yu and Meng Shouguang falsely conveyed news about the Prince's Palace, if Ouyang Rong and Li Xian's family dared to leave the Xunyang Palace.

The fate of being beheaded directly at the city gate like Zhu Lingxu was probably left to them, without even room for explanation.

And tonight, he will not be absent when he is completely taken over by a female official and is strictly prohibited.

This is the cruelty of political struggle, which does not value the process but only the results and established facts.

As for the process, as long as there are no handles and people are given the opportunity to step on the scale, it will be fine.

These were the rules of the game that Li Guoer lamented that night in front of the ruins of Juxian Garden.

But now, this hefty "treatment" falls on Zhu Lingxu, Wang Lengran and other Wei family's helpers.

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips and looked away from Zhu Lingxu's corpse in white cloth in the courtyard outside the door behind him.

He happened to catch the eye of Rong Zhen who saw the confession.

The two looked at each other.

She asked coldly:

"I asked you to put down your sword. Are you deaf?"

"I heard it, but I'm not familiar with Lady Shi, so I didn't quite recognize it."

Ouyang Rong nodded and praised: "However, Ms. Shi's voice is indeed a bit scary. When the officer executed the prisoner, his hands shook. Fortunately, the sword is still sharp and it does not disgrace the officer's mission."

"So, you are still very proud?"

"I don't dare." After a pause, he said sincerely, "There is still room for improvement. We must guard against arrogance and impetuosity."

Rong Zhen was not here to argue, so he was too lazy to argue, so he took out a "heavy" red cloth and threw it on the table.

Everyone looked and saw that there were fragments of Chen You's dagger that had been broken into four pieces.

The girl in palace clothes pointed at the broken sword and asked indifferently:

"Zhu Lingxu snatched Chen You's sword and attacked and killed you. But what's the explanation for the sword's condition?"

"That's what I asked."

Ouyang Rong smiled:
"Ms. Shi, is it because the lower neck is too hard, or is it because the sword's sharp edge did not cut the lower neck? Well, no matter what the blame is, it must not be because of the attack by General Manager Zhu, but because the official life is too hard.

“It’s not good to bring personal likes and dislikes into the trial.”

"Neither like nor dislike." Rong Zhen said coldly: "I won't help anyone."

You don't help anyone, and you make a bad face to everyone.

Ouyang Rong nodded: "This sword belongs to Chen Canjun. The female historian must have read his confession. Why bother asking me again." Rong Zhen frowned slightly:

"He confessed that this sword is a blessed sword of peace that he went to Donglin Temple to pray for. It is usually used as a decoration and a peace charm. However, he said that this temple was recommended by you casually."

Ouyang Rongcheng nodded:

"Yes, I once stayed at Donglin Temple, so I am naturally familiar with it. I recommend this temple first.

"But Ping'an Sword, Ping'an is kind and can't kill people. This is normal."

He nodded seriously.

Rong Zhen's face was expressionless.

Ouyang Rong coughed:
"Well, why the quality of this sword is so poor must be related to Donglin Temple, which is responsible for the consecration. By the way, the eminent monk Mahawisdom of Donglin Temple is in the city. Ms. Shi, please help yourself."

he reminded.

Rong Zhen squinted at Ouyang Rong.

She was responsible for interrogating Chen You and found no lies. She actually also asked about the great monk Shandao, but this old monk was also a master of Tai Chi, and his proficiency was even more outrageous than that of Ouyang Lianghan.

He talked to her about the Zen theory of "empty nature of dependent origination" and said that the Buddha's sword needs a predestined relationship to kill... and save people.

This eminent monk, the Great Wisdom, even promoted the business of finding a child through marriage to her.

Rong Zhen didn't demolish his ruined temple, which was already a great honor.

After all, he is an eminent monk appointed by His Majesty to protect the country, and he is also involved in the construction of the Donglin Buddha. It is difficult to use special means to force him to question him.

So it is difficult to prove that he was instructed by Ouyang Rong.

But then I thought about it, even if this "Ping An" dagger was deliberately set by Ouyang Lianghan, what could it mean?

At most, it shows that Ouyang Lianghan was hostile to Zhu Lingxu and was always on guard. He even fished for law enforcement and took the opportunity to behead him.

But it was known privately that the two were hostile.

Zhu Lingxu is still absconding in fear of crime, and is still suspected of attacking the city gate guard. This cannot be cleared away.

Thinking of this, Rong Zhen was no longer interested in spending time with these two foxes.

The most important thing at the moment is to find out the defection of Zhu Lingxu's eldest son who led the front army. This is the source of the earthquake. The Great Zhou Dynasty in Luoyang will definitely be shaken by the earthquake.

Rong Zhen pursed his lips.

At this moment, Zhu Yuheng had fled to Hongzhou City and took refuge with Cai Qin.

Rong Zhen couldn't find him to interrogate the reason for defecting.

What's more, they all defected, and even asking for the reason is already a capital crime, and they will be killed without mercy.

As for Zhu Lingxu, he is dead again, and he has been punished for absconding in fear of crime. What else can be said?

Moreover, this kind of veteran chooses to abscond, which has already shown that he either has a guilty conscience or knows that he can't explain anything, so he has no choice but to abscond.

Therefore, even if he is alive, Wang Lengran and others from the Wei family will protect him just to serve as the scapegoat of the Wei family during the court battle. The end may not be better than being beheaded by the city gate, and maybe he will be shot three times from behind in prison. The consequences of committing suicide with a sword.

On the other side where Rong Zhen had just arrived, Persian businessman Li Li, Jiangzhou governor Wang Lengran and others were interrogated and insisted that it was Ouyang Lianghan's conspiracy.

As for the reason, they couldn't come up with it at all. Some people even said that only Ouyang Lianghan could do such a thing after they were in a hurry. They didn't know whether this was a compliment or a scolding.

Therefore, these confessions are more like backbiting and criticizing.

Rong Zhen suddenly asked: "The day before Zhu Lingxu died, you took a day off. Where did you go?"

Ouyang Rong frowned: "Are you asking about such a private matter?"

"You can be more presumptuous." Rong Zhen nodded, his eyes as cold as a knife.

A strand of Ouyang Rong's hair fell from his temples. He raised his eyebrows slightly and decided that a good man would not fight with a woman, so he would give in to this woman's power for the time being:
"Okay, I'm at Prince Xunyang's Mansion. The prince invites me to play the piano. I'm going to have a banquet in the newly renovated Juxian Garden. I'll tell you if you don't get drunk or come back..."

"So I stayed for a day and two nights."

Ouyang Rong smiled embarrassedly.

"Do you have any witnesses?"

Ouyang Rong thought for a while: "On that day, many people should have seen the official walking into the palace and never coming out. The female historian can ask you."

"it is good."

Rong Zhen snorted coldly and walked out of the lobby without saying anything.

"continue."

Ouyang Rong watched her leave.

Yuan Huaimin breathed a sigh of relief and continued to interrogate Ouyang Rong.

Subsequently, a group of new censors came one after another to take over the interrogation.

The night passed quickly.

Rong Zhen went to Prince Xunyang's Mansion early in the morning and asked Prince Li Dalang and others.

The result was a positive answer, and many maids even saw Ouyang Lianghan's figure in red playing the piano in the pavilion from a distance when passing by Juxian Garden.

However, due to privacy reasons, the maids could not get close and could only watch Hong Ying from a distance. It was Princess Wei Mei and the little princess Li Guo'er who went to deliver tea in person.

Both mother and daughter testified for Ouyang Rong.

Rong Zhen was silent.

In the next two days, the entire Xunyang City fell into deathly silence.

The news that the forwards had defected and that Zhu Lingxu fled out of fear of crime and was killed by the guards has been sent back to Luoyang. It is currently in the window period and Luoyang's reaction has not yet come.

At the same time, Rong Zhen and other female officials also successively presented the incident and the statements of the officials involved.

Everyone in Xunyang City was quietly waiting for the reaction from Luoyang.

Everyone knows that that's where the real storm is brewing.

Just when people were panicking, Jiangnan Dao's pacifying ambassador, Xunyang Wang Lixian, went out in person to the Jiangzhou lobby to have a private chat with Rong Zhen and other female officials.

No one knew what was discussed.

However, that afternoon, the ban on Jiangzhou lobby was lifted.

The door slowly opened, and all the officials were frightened and went out one after another to go home temporarily.

However, he was still ordered not to leave Xunyang City even half a step.

After all, it is a wartime situation, and there is a formidable enemy like Hongzhou Cai Qin, so Xunyang City cannot stay idle for too long.

In particular, Ouyang Rong, the governor of Jiangzhou, was also responsible for the construction of the Jiangzhou Giant Buddha.

Perhaps this was also the reason why Rong Zhen relented.

Ever since, the order in Xunyang City has been restored to some extent and is back on track.

However, before the instructions from Luoyang came, it was still loose on the outside and tight on the inside.

Under the setting sun at dusk, Ouyang Rong walked out of the Jiangzhou lobby and boarded a long-awaited carriage.

In the carriage, Xie Lingjiang was wearing a plain white men's sword suit today, no longer the red dress she wore on the day Ouyang Rong asked for leave. She looked at Ouyang Rong, whose eyes were bloodshot, and couldn't help but touch the back of his cold hand:

"Sir, are you okay? Take a sip..." He handed over the ginger soup.

Ouyang Rong shook his head and was interrogated continuously by the imperial censor and the old criminal officer. Even though his status as the governor of Jiangsu Province prevented others from using torture to threaten him, it was still very tiring. They were all masters in investigating cases. Ouyang Rong's heart strings were always tense. It was really Don't tell all the lies, tell no lies.

After getting on the carriage, he first ordered Yan Liulang outside: "Keep an eye on Li Li and Wang Lengran. If there are any signs of leaving the city, report them immediately."

Xie Lingjiang suddenly asked:

"Eighth grade?"

Ouyang Rong nodded and took a sip of ginger soup.

He felt the mythical spirituality flowing in his body, just like the warm current of ginger soup entering his throat:
"The ninth grade is famous as a poor scholar, the eighth grade is famous as... a craftsman."

Xie Lingjiang said nothing and took out a handkerchief from his sleeve.

The beauty leaned forward and gently wiped the tired but determined face of this young man who had been promoted to a "craftsman" sword holder.

The carriage was swaying, and the two of them had a tacit understanding of each other.

(End of this chapter)