Chapter 917 - 388: Prince Duan
An Zhichen returned to the military camp and told the Second Old Grand Master about the General’s Mansion. The Second Old Grand Master nodded and spoke about the imperial envoy: "The imperial envoy did not appear yesterday because he went on a micro-dress inspection with his attendants."
The imperial envoy appointed by the Emperor is the Left Deputy Minister of Rites. The Left Deputy Minister of Rites, Deng Bin’s younger sister, is favored by the Emperor, and it was through her good words that he got this lucrative position. In simple terms, this is an imperial envoy who rose through nepotism.
An Zhichen’s face immediately turned sour: "Haikou is a mix of dragons and snakes, and the imperial envoy dares to go on a micro-dress inspection? Is this envoy out of his mind? He’s here to investigate a merchant’s corruption and bribery case, not a wrongful death case, what can he find out by visiting incognito? Do ordinary people even know if an imperial court official has taken bribes?"
The Second Old Grand Master relaxed considerably: "The focus is not on the imperial envoy, but on Prince Duan, who also arrived in Haikou this afternoon." The Second Old Grand Master was worried that Haikou would be chaotic because this imperial envoy wasn’t weighty enough to keep control. It’s known that many forces are entrenched in Haikou, making it a true mix of dragons and snakes. Deng Bin is someone who rose through nepotism, and expecting him to solve Haikou’s affairs is optimistic; it would be fortunate if he doesn’t muddy the waters further. But if the imperial envoy were Prince Duan, it would be different; Prince Duan is of noble status, with a high position, capable of maintaining order.
The Second Old Grand Master suspected that the true imperial envoy might be Prince Duan, which was not unreasonable. Prince Duan’s timing of arrival was just too coincidental.
An Zhichen thought for a moment: "Elder Uncle, we should remain unchanged in the face of change." As long as there is no chaos in Haikou, they can just watch from the sidelines.
Deng Bin went on a micro-dress inspection for ten days, and just when everyone was worried about this imperial envoy, Deng Bin finally accepted a petition accusing Zhou Shu of forcing a death. He then held a hearing. Zhou Shu, as the defendant, did not attend but sent the steward to listen to the trial.
No matter how wealthy Zhou Shu was, to someone like Deng Bin, who had a high view of himself, Zhou Shu was still just a merchant. Deng Bin would not give him any regard.
The people in the Capital City all knew that Deng Bin rose through nepotism, and truly noble families wouldn’t take him seriously. But the more such people need to save face, and now that he had become an imperial envoy, he had to show off his authority completely.
Deng Bin ordered his guards to personally bring Zhou Shu to the court for questioning. As a result, Zhou Shu couldn’t say a word to refute the plaintiff’s statement and even presented ample evidence proving that the plaintiff falsely accused him. The lawsuit ultimately turned into a joke.
An Zhichen couldn’t help but shake his head when hearing about this; fortunately, the imperial envoy was not this fool, otherwise, who knows how chaotic Haikou would have become.
At almost the same time, Prince Duan visited the Second Old Grand Master of the An Family. With the assistance of the Second Old Grand Master, Prince Duan managed to invite three officials at once. One was the Magistrate of Haikou, who was in charge of all Haikou’s administrative affairs; the second was the Tongzhi in charge of all Haikou’s taxes; Haikou is a trading port, and the annual taxes submitted are more than those of a province. The third was the Salt Transport Commissioner managing Haikou’s salt transport; Haikou produces sea salt, which is sold inland, being a significant revenue source.
Prince Duan’s style was very assertive, forcefully inviting these three officials to his residence for tea while instructing his Second Grand Master An to have someone raid the homes of these three officials.
In ten days, Prince Duan had roughly figured out the situation in Haikou, and the three he seized were undoubtedly the most corrupt officials.
Raiding homes was something the soldiers particularly enjoyed doing. In the past, it was the Yamen who went, but this time Prince Duan did not trust the locals and directly used the navy.
The troops split into three routes, with An Zhichen leading one team to raid the Magistrate’s home, which was the richest of them all.
Before entering the Magistrate’s house, An Zhichen addressed everyone: "Brothers, I understand it’s not easy, and I won’t make it difficult for you, but do behave appropriately, or don’t blame me for being strict." It was rare to give everyone such a lucrative opportunity, and it wouldn’t be fair to prevent them from taking any benefits. But it can’t be excessive so that it’s evident at a glance.
Everyone understood these words and picked particularly valuable items to stash on themselves without being too greedy. Each person took a few precious items to carry, which was enough to live well for some time.