Chapter 252 Pressing forward step by step In front of the censor, he did not dare to lose his temper, and could only suppress his anger and smile, "Sir Censor, don't listen to this brat's nonsense. I have a grudge against him, as you know, and he wants to take advantage of this opportunity to trick me!" "What do you mean by cheating you? I'm just speaking the truth. If I really wanted to cheat you, would I have waited until now?" Gu Chan said with a sly smile. "..."Zheng Shixian. The censor interrupted the two with a wave of his hand, "Alright, stop arguing. There are so many common people watching on both sides of the official road, how can we not let her speak clearly?" After saying that, he looked at the middle-aged woman kneeling in front of him and said, "Tell me! What's going on?" "Your Excellency the Censor, I am originally from Zhongyuan City and live in the civilian area in the west district of Zhongyuan City. My family has six acres of land and I make a living with my husband and father-in-law. We originally had land to farm and our life was not rich, but we could still survive. Unexpectedly, half a year ago, the county government forcibly confiscated my six acres of land on false grounds. My husband and father-in-law went to the county government to ask for an explanation, but they beat them up and threw them out. They were seriously injured and died one after another!" The middle-aged woman cried as she spoke, and she cried so hard that tears came out, looking so pitiful. Even at the end, she was crying so hard that she couldn't speak, and her eyes were red and swollen from crying. The people who were watching the excitement on both sides of the official road, after finding out the reason, all glared at Zheng Shixian fiercely. For a moment, Zheng Shixian stood where he was, feeling quite uneasy, and bursts of cold sweat appeared on his forehead. He knew about the land acquisition half a year ago, and he was the one who issued the official document himself. However, he did not supervise it himself, but handed it over to his brother-in-law.
He originally thought that his brother-in-law would be able to handle this small matter well, but who knew that it would become famous and leave him with such a big disaster! The middle-aged woman cried for a while, and then said heartbreakingly, "Master Censor, ever since my husband and father-in-law died of serious injuries, I have been reporting to the authorities everywhere for more than half a year, but no one paid any attention to me. Even the government office would not let me in. I just happened to learn that the court had sent a censor to Zhongyuan City, so I am waiting here. Please make a decision for me!" "You get up first!" the censor waved his hand. Gu Chan hurried forward and reached out to help the middle-aged woman up from the ground. The censor turned his head and looked at Zheng Shixian and asked, "Is what she said true?" "Your Excellency the Censor, the land expropriation in Zhongyuan City half a year ago was an order issued by the imperial court! Those who cannot pay the taxes must make up for the taxes by expropriating land. I am only acting in accordance with the law, and I am not the one in charge of supervising this matter, so I am not very clear about the specific situation." Zheng Shixian hurriedly excused himself. "As the official of Zhongyuan City, how can you be so ambiguous? I will give you some time now to handle this matter. If you fail to handle it well, when we arrive in Kyoto, I will report this matter to the emperor and he will make the decision. What do you think?" The censor said with a cold face. Zheng Shixian was so frightened that his whole body trembled and beads of sweat the size of beans instantly appeared on his forehead. It would be fine if the censor wanted to deal with him, but it would be hard to say if this matter was reported to the emperor. So he hurriedly said, "Don't worry, censor, I will definitely handle this matter." After saying that, Zheng Shixian quickly ran back to the second carriage, took out a bundle from it, took out a stack of silver bills, then ran quickly to the middle-aged woman with the silver bills and stuffed them into her hands. The middle-aged woman was stunned when she received the thick stack of banknotes. Zheng Shixian pretended to smile and said, "Here is 10,000 taels of silver. Take it first and consider it as compensation for your husband and father-in-law. As for your six acres of land, I will help you investigate it in detail after I return from Kyoto. Don't worry, I will punish the person who killed your husband and father-in-law and give you justice." "Sir Zheng, my husband and father-in-law were beaten to death by your men. What use do I have for this silver? I don't want the silver today. I just want my six acres of land and the life of the person who killed my husband and father-in-law." The middle-aged woman had a stiff face and stuffed the ten thousand taels of silver note back into Zheng Shixian's hand. Zheng Shixian widened his eyes. He never expected that this poor and dirty woman could be so cunning! Gu Chan stood aside and didn't say anything until now. She crossed her arms and said with a sneer on her face, "Sir Zheng, you are really good at procrastination! Could it be that the person who was in charge of supervising the land acquisition half a year ago was one of your relatives? Otherwise, why would you defend this person so much?" "Gu Chan, don't talk nonsense. I have always been fair and honest in my work. How could I do something as evil as you said?" Zheng Shixian said angrily. "That's fine! Anyway, we are only more than 20 miles away from Zhongyuan City. If we ride at full speed, it will only take two hours to go back and forth. Why don't you tell the Lord Censor and ask him to send two people back to confront the people who were responsible for the land acquisition half a year ago. Wouldn't it be better to resolve this matter quickly?" Gu Chan pressed on. The crowd watching the fun also agreed and thought her suggestion was a good one. Zheng Shixian suddenly panicked! Dry! It was his brother-in-law who was in charge of the land acquisition half a year ago! He couldn't just send someone to arrest his brother-in-law now, could he? At this moment, he was completely confused and stood there, not knowing what to say. The censor glanced at him and said, "Master Zheng, what's wrong with you? Why are you so nervous? Could it be that what Gu Chan said was right?"
"Your Excellency the Censor, this... I..." Zheng Shixian was speechless. "In my opinion, Gu Chan's suggestion is very good. Just tell me who was responsible for the land acquisition half a year ago. I will immediately send two masters from the palace to arrest him." The censor also began to threaten. Zheng Shixian reached out and wiped the sweat from his forehead. His eyes rolled cunningly, and he wanted to find a scapegoat to replace his brother-in-law. But before he could say anything, Gu Chan said, "Sister, do you know what the man who was in charge of the land acquisition half a year ago looked like?" "Little brother, of course I know him. Even if he turns into ashes, I will recognize him." The middle-aged woman said gritting her teeth. "That's good. As long as you remember what he looks like, you won't have to worry about catching the wrong person. Lord Zheng, do you think I'm right?" Gu Chan said with a sneer. Zheng Shixian's heart sank into the sea in an instant! He was just thinking about finding a scapegoat for his brother-in-law, but Gu Chan's words blocked his idea. If he really finds a scapegoat and the middle-aged woman points out that it is not this person, he will be in trouble! At this moment, he was extremely conflicted and he opened his mouth but couldn't utter a word for a long time. Everyone present stared at him like wolves and tigers, which brought him tremendous psychological pressure. (End of this chapter)