Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 45

Chapter 45 Scholar Meets Soldier
A cavalry troop with horses and knives suddenly rushed over from the not-so-wide streets of the county, instantly scaring away the merchants and civilians who were still buying and selling. Everywhere they passed, some stalls were knocked over and trampled, but no one dared to complain.

When they saw this group of people heading straight for the county government, they were even more frightened. They didn’t know what had happened, could it be that they were going to mutiny? Once this thought spread out, the citizens ignored everything else and ran back to their homes to seek refuge.

In a blink of an eye, the originally bustling area of Ya Qian Street was already deserted. Apart from the shattered ground, not a single person could be seen …

Xiao Mo was too lazy to pay attention to the commotion caused by his team. He only wanted to settle accounts with Lu Zhen, who was bold and bold. Therefore, when he rushed to the entrance of the yamen first, the few servants wanted to ask him what was going on, but they were immediately frightened by his murderous look. In the end, not to mention stopping people, they didn’t even dare to squeak. Only two of them dared to rush in ahead to report the news.

In this way, the entire county government was instantly intimidated by the ferocious appearance of these ferocious soldiers. No one dared to speak out at all. They actually let these dozens of soldiers rush into the Second Hall and arrived in front of Lu Zhen’s public house.

At this moment, the two servants were trembling slightly as they reported to Lu Zhen, “Great … Great Master, in the city … General Xiao … who was stationed in the army … killed … killed … entered …” However, they were unable to even say a single word.

However, judging from the current situation, their report was somewhat redundant. Before Xiao Mo could finish speaking, he had already stepped into the room with a bone-piercing cold wind.

As soon as he entered the room, he didn’t rush to speak. He just swept his eyes around and then fixed his gaze on Lu Zhen’s face, as if he wanted to stare at the person in front of him with two holes.

Although the two servants were only glanced at by him, they were so frightened that they could not even breathe. Their bodies trembled and they almost collapsed to the ground. Xiao Mo was naturally satisfied with this reaction, but Lu Zhen didn’t seem to be able to feel the surging aura of the other party. He actually sat there leisurely, not even showing the slightest intention of getting up to greet him. There was even a faint smile on his face.

The four QinBing also followed Xiao Mo into the public house. Seeing Lu Zhen’s appearance, one of them immediately shouted, “How dare you! How dare you be so rude to see my general!”

Although Lu Zhen had a calm expression on his face, his heart also tightened. After all, the other party had moved the crowd and was aggressive. However, he still resisted the heavy pressure. Faced with the shouting, he asked, “General? How dare you call yourself a general?” His tone was filled with disdain.

Once these words were spoken, Xiao Mo’s expression became even more gloomy. He placed his hand on the saber at his waist and almost drew it out of its sheath. Fortunately, his mind was still clear, so he suppressed the anger in his heart.

Although many people called him a general in private, Xiao Mo understood that this was just a compliment. Lu Zhen’s rebuttal was not a problem, since he was nothing in the army, and he was even more arrogant when it came to the title of general.

But then Lu Zhen’s words almost made him furious, “Xiao Ba, you are always a rank eight military officer. Seeing this officer not only doesn’t bow, but also is so presumptuous, what is the meaning of that?” Well, they want him to greet them in return.

This was the first time Xiao Mo had encountered such a thing. When the previous county magistrates saw him, who wasn’t like his grandson? This fellow’s reaction was actually completely opposite? However, Lu Zhen’s words were also valid. The county magistrate was a rank seven official, two levels higher than his overall position.

This was the situation that would only occur before the Great Ming military attach é had completely lost his position. If the general’s position plummeted a few years later, not to mention the general, even a rank six general would have to greet the county magistrate as a subordinate, or even kneel down.

Right now, the civil and military affairs of the Great Ming Dynasty were in a delicate balance, but no one could overwhelm anyone. Therefore, if we really wanted to talk about it, we could only compare the grade. However, this was Border Town. It was precisely because of the military power in his hands that Xiao Mo dared to offend Guang Ling County Magistrate.

But he really couldn’t get the upper hand in reasoning. In the end, Xiao Mo could only change the topic, “County Magistrate Lu is really leisurely. Our soldiers are always on edge, but you are sitting here peacefully. Not only are you not grateful for our arrival, you are telling me the size of the ranks.”

Lu Zhen smiled again when he heard this, “This official is unable to accept General Xiao’s words. There is a difference between civil and martial dao. Your general is guarding the border and guarding the country. My civil servants are here to pacify the people. How can I say this in a relaxed manner?”

In terms of eloquence, Xiao Mo was naturally no match for Lu Zhen. He quickly understood this point and could only shut his mouth hatefully. After these few shriveled foods were eaten, his aura immediately weakened.

Originally, he thought that Lu Zhen would obediently submit and release him if he brought someone along to threaten him. But now, the other party had the upper hand and Xiao Mo didn’t know how to deal with it. He could only sit on the chair angrily and continue to stare at the other party with his eyes.

Lu Zhen, on the other hand, seemed to be in perfect order, as if he had only done some insignificant things. This scene fell into the eyes of the subordinates in the surroundings, causing them to pinch their sweat, but at the same time, they were filled with admiration. Only then did they know how courageous and skilled their county magistrate was.

Actually, what they didn’t know was that Lu Zhen’s back, which seemed to be calm, was already wet, but because he was nervous, he broke out in a large amount of cold sweat.

When Xiao Mo brought people in aggressively just now, he was really afraid that this fellow would directly attack, so it would be difficult for him to deal with it. Fortunately, this person was not a simple-minded person after all. He also wanted to rely on his aura to suppress others, but he allowed himself to retaliate, thus gaining the upper hand in one fell swoop.

Of course, if other people were here, they would have been scared out of their wits by Xiao Mo, so where would they have the guts to confront him? It was also because of Lu Zhen’s temperament that he dared to freely deal with such a threat in the face of life and death on the grassland.

Seeing that he couldn’t suppress Lu Zhen, Xiao Mo finally gritted his teeth and said, “County magistrate Lu, you should know the purpose of my coming here today, right?”

“I would like to hear more about it.” Lu Zhen only replied indifferently, as if he was unmoved.

Xiao Mo felt a stifling sensation in his heart, and he almost lost his temper again. It was only with great difficulty that he suppressed his anger, “In front of the public, don’t tell anyone secretly. Didn’t you, County Magistrate Lu, read the letter I sent you earlier?”

“Oh? You mean about Zheng Fu?” ‘”Didn’t I ask someone to tell Chief Xiao that Zheng Fu has many crimes and the county has decided to report them to the Datong Prefecture’s government for punishment?” Lu Zhen revealed a sudden realization. “So this person definitely can’t be let go casually.”

When the guards heard Lu Zhen reject Xiao Mo’s request so directly, their faces turned angry. If not for the latter giving them a look, they would have already exploded. Even so, these people stared angrily at the young county magistrate in front of them, wishing they could tear him apart.

But at this time, Lu Zhen was completely at ease. He could tell that Xiao Mo was just bluffing, so there was no need to be afraid of him.

“Then what if I want to ask County Magistrate Lu to let him go?” If Xiao Mo had decided to save her because of the Zheng Clan’s pleas and the benefits they promised, he would have done so for the sake of his own face.

Unfortunately, Lu Zhen was still unmoved, “I don’t dare to violate the laws of the Great Ming Empire.”

“Lu Zhen, don’t be unaware of what’s good for you.” Xiao Mo finally couldn’t hold back any longer. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the other party threateningly, “Don’t tell me you won’t even sell this little face?”

“I told you, it’s about the law. There’s no room for manoeuvre.” Lu Zhen shook his head, “The evidence against him, Zheng Fu, is unmistakable. Even if the six ministers and cabinet ministers come, I will not let them go!” These words were loud and forceful, and his gaze was even more unyielding as he faced the other party without the slightest intention of flinching!

“You!” This response caused Xiao Mo’s fury to be ignited. He immediately stood up. His sturdy body only took a single step before he stepped in front of Lu Zhen and was only separated from him by a table.

Everyone outside the room who peeked at the eavesdropping office was both impressed and panicked. It was truly beyond their expectations that their county magistrate would have such backbone.

Over the years, the people in the Guangling County Government had always avoided these garrisons. As long as it was the other party’s request, they would do everything they wanted. Although they could not see anything on the surface, they had already suppressed their anger in their hearts. They were even very dissatisfied with Zheng Fu, who had helped them commit evil deeds. This was also an important reason why the county government did not show any solidarity after he was thrown into prison, so he appeared to be very calm.

Today, Lu Zhen did something that they had never dared to do, which made them feel relieved. Thus, they recognized the county magistrate from the bottom of their hearts. Naturally, they didn’t want anything to happen to him.

However, the situation inside changed abruptly with Lu Zhen’s words. This made everyone’s hearts rise to their throats. They were truly afraid that a bloody incident would occur.

Seeing this, Lin Lie’s heart tightened. He immediately bent down and wanted to rush into the door to save him. However, with just a single move, his path was blocked by the twenty plus QinBing that Xiao Mo had left outside. Even if he had the ability to break through the defense line, he would still spend a lot of time as a sophomore.

At this time, Xiao Mo had already stared down at Lu Zhen and asked in a serious tone, “County Magistrate Lu, let me ask you one more time. Are you going to let go of him or not?” As he said this, he slowly drew the saber from his waist …