Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 190

Chapter 190 Have Traces To Follow

Although he promised Zhu Chang to settle their grievances, this case was taken by Shun Tian Manor. A county magistrate under Lu Zhen was indeed difficult to interfere with. It was difficult to get some relevant files to look at because he and Shun Tian Manor had some enmity. The other party would not give him face at all.

Therefore, in order to find out the truth of the case, one had to find another way to investigate. For example, those gang members who had clashed with the Green Bamboo Gang before and then attacked, but were able to escape unscathed after the fire broke out.

However, after two days of investigation, Lu Zhen scratched his head again. He sent people to look for them according to Zhu Chang’s description. The result was that these people had disappeared. After Shangyuan Festival, these people did not appear where they had been staying, as if they had already left the capital.

After learning of this result, Zhu Chang’s mood became even more nervous and depressed. The other party had even considered this. Was there still a chance for his brother to turn around?

Lu Zhen, on the other hand, still had a faint smile on his face, “This can prove one thing, that is, there was indeed someone behind this matter, so these fellows would disappear so thoroughly.”

“Sir, what should we do?” Even Lin Lie didn’t know what to do. “Even this path was cut off by them. Can we really get some clues from the government?”

“Naturally, that’s impossible. Not to mention that they have a gap with me, even if they don’t, this matter is related to the factory guards. They don’t dare to reveal the truth to me.” Lu Zhen shook his head.

“Then what should we do next?” Lin Lie was a little confused. He seemed to have nowhere to go.

“Do you really think these native capital clans would leave so obediently?” Lu Zhen suddenly asked, “They have connections in the capital, families, and some fame. But once they leave this place, what else can they do? Will they be willing?”

“That’s what I said, but this is the capital that the guards arranged for them to leave. Do they dare not obey?”

“Naturally, they don’t dare to go against the factory guards’ wishes. However, it is very likely that they will return after leaving.” Lu Zhen smiled and said, “Perhaps not all of them, but it’s possible for one or two of them to sneak back. What do you think?”

“That’s right, but …” Lin Lie still hesitated. “The capital is so big, how can we find someone?”

“Brother Zhu, you have to step forward.” Lu Zhen turned to look at Zhu Chang, who had been silent for a long time. “Your Green Bamboo Gang has been operating in the capital for many years. Back then, you were confident that you could send us out of the city. Today, you will definitely be able to find these people, right?”

Zhu Chang was stunned, then nodded, “Although our Green Bamboo Gang has always been suppressed, there are always some trusted friends who are willing to help.”

“That’s enough. Please meet them secretly and let the local snakes in the capital look for someone. As long as they find someone, things will be much easier.”

“But” Zhu Chang’s face was still filled with worry, “Even if we find someone, will it really help? Even if they fall into our hands, will they honestly tell the truth? Furthermore, even if they really desperately tell the truth, as long as the Shun Tian Manor refuses to believe us, we will still be helpless.”

This point had always troubled Zhu Chang. Especially after he finally got Lu Zhen’s nod and was able to think a little further, this concern became even deeper.

Lu Zhen nodded to show his understanding, but then smiled, “I have my own way of doing this, but now is not the time to say it.” That night, he didn’t fall asleep until dawn, thinking about how to reverse the case for the people from the Green Bamboo Gang.

Seeing him say this, Zhu Chang naturally didn’t say anything hesitant, so he cupped his hands and agreed. After all, this was for his brother. Even if he felt that it was difficult and hopeless, he still had to fight it out.

After he disguised himself and left to contact his friends, Lu Zhen stood up and said, “Come, let’s go meet the suffering master.” He had not only found one path to walk, but the other path was much more open, and that was the owner of the shops that had been burned down by the fire.

After carefully looking at the case, Lu Zhen saw another strand of mystery. The shops that were destroyed by the fire that day were actually the least prone to fire: two jewelry shops, two jade shops, and a pawnshop.

As the center of the world, the capital naturally had to gather good things here. Whether it was those favors or bribes, other than gold and silver, jade, antiques, and treasures were the most elegant things that officials loved. As a result, more merchants opened these shops in the capital.

There were many shops on the street where the accident had occurred, and it was also these shops that had been burned down. This was too strange. If there was a fire in a book shop or restaurant, it was reasonable. However, such a shop with precious goods on it had to be fire-proof. How could it be set ablaze by a single fire?

This question was ignored by the Shun Tian Manor when investigating the case, but Lu Zhen wouldn’t pretend that he couldn’t see it. Therefore, he decided to ask the bitter owners of these burned shops about the situation before making any plans.

These businessmen were not low-status shopkeepers, but in front of Lu Zhen, the county magistrate who had recently become famous in the capital, they were still very respectful and honest. Even though he had been waiting for more than half an hour, there wasn’t the slightest bit of impatience when they met.

After seeing them, Lu Zhen smiled and said, “You don’t have to be too polite. Please sit down and talk. Because there are some chores to attend to in the county government, you came a little late. Please don’t blame me.”

“Your Excellency’s words are too heavy. The grass-roots people don’t dare.” A few merchants hurriedly smiled apologetically, but their smiles were filled with bitterness. No matter who it was, it would be very uncomfortable for their property to suffer such a catastrophe. At this time, there was no insurance company that could settle their claims.

Lu Zhen smiled and didn’t have much to say. He went straight to the point, “As the county magistrate of Daxing County, I really feel a little guilty about what happened to everyone. I didn’t expect that the Shangyuan Festival would bring you such a calamity.”

When he saw the few people smiling bitterly and nodding their heads, he continued, “What makes this official even more embarrassed is that the Shuntian Prefecture investigating this case is actually only concerned with taking down the suspects involved, but ignoring your losses. This official, as a colleague of the court, is also somewhat inconspicuous.”

Seeing him speak like this, the merchants were immediately speechless. They didn’t know how to receive it. They were just merchants. At the end of the four people, even though they had some family background, they didn’t dare to be so direct, especially when they criticized the imperial government in front of another official.

Seeing their apprehensive expressions, Lu Zhen smiled, “You don’t have to worry. This official is not here to probe you. On the contrary, this official wants to help you seek justice. After all, you are citizens of the Imperial Court and have paid taxes. The Imperial Court has an obligation to protect you.”

This statement would naturally be nothing in future generations. But at this moment, the few merchants were flattered and didn’t even dare to say anything.

“However, I need your help in order to obtain justice for everyone. This official is puzzled as to why your shop was set on fire. Logically speaking, there should be some precautions.” Lu Zhen didn’t give them much time to think and immediately threw out the question.

The few of them looked at each other for a moment, but they were unable to answer for a moment, and they looked very embarrassed.

“What? Is there anything inconvenient to say?” Lu Zhen’s gaze swept across their faces. Although there was still a smile on their faces, there was still a cold smell.

At this time, Lu Zhen’s recent reputation came into play. A businessman finally spoke after meeting his gaze, “Actually, this matter is very strange for the grass-dwellers, because the fire came from behind and from both sides at the same time. It was not an accident at all.” Moreover, some of the water storage containers in my shop actually had problems at that time, which led to this fire. ”

When one of them spoke, the others no longer had any misgivings. They all responded as if they were saying, “We are the same. That fire burned from all directions at the same time, as if someone was deliberately targeting us.”

Lu Zhen chuckled, “What else? What other strange things happened in your store before and after the fire started? Did you lose anything?”

With this question, the bitterness on the faces of the merchants became even more intense. Although they hadn’t said anything, Lu Zhen knew that there must be something missing from their shop just by looking at their faces.

“What, you still want to hide it from me?” Seeing that they hadn’t spoken, Lu Zhen asked again.

Finally, Owner Hong of Dingyuan Pavilion was the first to be unable to hold back, “Not only did I lose a few treasures in my shop, even a rare red coral that I managed to obtain recently disappeared after the fire.”

“That’s right, the few famous paintings in my shop have also disappeared. There is also a set of pure gold dishes left behind by Tang Dynasty …”

“There are two pieces of carved jade missing from my shop. They are worth at least 1,000 taels …”

Several merchants immediately began to talk to each other, causing Lu Zhen to laugh coldly in his heart. Those fellows were really greedy, they actually took advantage of the fire to take so many things. In this way, perhaps these things were the root cause of their arson, while the Azure Bamboo Gang had been blamed for it incidentally.

This explained why Lu Zhen had always wondered why the factory guards would make such a big commotion in order to deal with a small Azure Bamboo Gang. It turned out that they had other more important targets.

After hearing their words, Lu Zhen asked, “Didn’t you mention this matter to the people of Shuntian Prefecture at that time?”

Boss Hong said with a bitter face, “The government ignored us at all. They only said that this should be done by the arsonist. We’ll talk about it after we find out the case. Afterwards, someone from the East Factory warned us not to report it to the officials …”

Lu Zhen snorted coldly before he understood how reckless the other party was. However, this was also good. In this way, there would be traces to follow.