Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 48

Chapter 48 Transaction And Truth
The ten thousand zhang tall building was kicked into the air, and the Yangtze River’s heart was broken and the boat collapsed.

This was Zheng Fu’s current state of mind. That kind of despair was not something an ordinary person could endure. Even though he had seen many people in the world before, after knowing that not only were the paths to death severed, but even those backing him in the past could become his own life-threatening death, he felt that he really had no choice but to die.

Since Lu Zhen said that Xiao Mo couldn’t save him, he definitely wouldn’t be bluffing. There was no need for him to deliberately deceive himself. Zheng Fu’s body trembled. His eyes were filled with despair. His lips moved, but he was speechless for a moment.

Looking at his appearance, Lu Zhen’s eyes slowly narrowed. Apart from a bit of pleasure, his mind also spun rapidly, considering when and in what tone he should say what he really wanted to say in front of the other party.

But at this moment, Zheng Fu’s expression suddenly changed and he regained his composure. No, Lu Zhen didn’t come here just to attack him. He didn’t need to. If he was willing to meet him in prison as a county magistrate, he must have other intentions. Thinking of it this way, he cut off his hope that although there was no falsehood, there must be something else he wanted to say.

Lu Zhen was also stunned to find that Zheng Fu seemed to have thought of something. And this change also fell in the latter’s eyes, making him more confident, but his heart was more assured: “County magistrate Lu, what exactly do you want to say, in front of the bright people, don’t say it in secret.”

After all, he was a person who had been immersed in official circles for several years. He was still in control of his temperament. Even though he was still filled with despair, his face was at least as pale and ugly as an ordinary person’s.

Lu Zhen was also slightly absent-minded by his transformation. Then, he waved his hand and signaled for everyone in the surrounding county government to retreat. Naturally, those people didn’t dare to disobey. After cupping their fists and saluting, they retreated far away, completely giving this space to Lu Zhen and the others.

‘”Zheng Dianshi is indeed extraordinary, but this official underestimates you. That’s right, I’m not here to tell you about your current situation, but to make a deal with you.” Lu Zhen clapped his hands approvingly after he was sure that the words of the two of them would not be known to more people.

“Deal?” Zheng Fu suddenly laughed. He looked down at the shackles on his hands and feet and said, “I’m already a prisoner. Does the county magistrate still need to make a deal with someone like me?”

“Of course, as long as you have what I want, we can make a deal. It has nothing to do with who we are.” Lu Zhen looked into the other party’s eyes and said without any hesitation.

Zheng Fu was stunned. He had never thought that the cowardly young county magistrate would say such words. But at this time, he no longer cared about these details. He just stared at the other party and said, “What can I do for you? Furthermore, I am already a prisoner, and the charges have already been reported to the Datong Prefecture. I’m afraid I don’t need to get anything from you, County Magistrate Lu, right?”

“You’re wrong. It’s precisely because you’re already a prisoner that you need my help even more.” Lu Zhen lowered his voice a little, “You should know the truth of what I said just now. Do you think those people will do something to you and your family in order to ensure their own safety?”

Hearing this, Zheng Fu’s already pale face turned even uglier. It was only Jianghu tourists who were unable to deal with their wives and children, but in the official circles, they always paid attention to eliminating their roots. In fact, he, Zheng Dianshi, had done the same thing in the past. He was too familiar with the methods of those people.

Lu Zhen grasped the panic in his heart and continued, “I heard that you just took in a fourth concubine. Last year, you just had your first son, plus your two daughters … Do you think those people will let them go because of your death?” Not to mention the rest of the Zheng Clan. They don’t even need to resort to any tricks. All they need to do is investigate the charges that the Zheng Clan has always committed, and it will be enough for your entire clan to drink a pot of wine. “Am I right?”

Zheng Fu’s body trembled again, but unlike before, Zheng Fu was no longer angry this time, leaving behind boundless and intense fear. No matter how greedy, treacherous, and ferocious he was, he was still the wife and father of a human and cared about his family.

Lu Zhen glanced at the other party in his spare time before continuing, “Right now, the only person who can protect your Zheng Clan is me, the county magistrate of Guang Ling County. After all, this is a county under my control. Unless those people dare to send troops over directly, it won’t be difficult for me to protect a Zheng Clan.”

His words weren’t boasting. Those fellows couldn’t avoid the county magistrate Lu Zhen by any means. As long as he took care of them, the Zheng family would be very safe. Zheng Fu could naturally figure this out, but he was also a little puzzled. Why would Lu Zhen help take care of his family? They were just enemies!

“What price do you want me to pay?” Finally, he asked the question in his heart.

This question alone showed that Zheng Fu already had the intention to compromise. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked at all. Seeing this, Lu Zhen revealed a smile. He was afraid that the other party would break a can and fall, so it was really hard to say anything.

“Actually, I don’t want much. I just want to know the truth and the inside story of the two things from you.”

“What is it?” Zheng Fu asked casually, but his heart skipped a beat. Being able to get Lu Zhen to say so many things must involve a lot of things.

“Firstly, what exactly is the background to my disappearance?” Lu Zhen immediately asked.

This matter had been troubling him ever since he came to Guangling County. If he did not understand the source of this matter, Lu Zhen would always feel that it was piercing in his back. He had already been able to make some judgments through the previous events. This matter should be related to the fact that County Magistrate Lu had grasped the smuggling in the army. In addition, the Zheng Clan had a lot to do with this, so he should be able to obtain the truth from Zheng Fu’s mouth.

Zheng Fu was obviously stunned for a moment. “How could he not even know about this? Could there be some sort of conspiracy?”

Seeing his brows knitting together, Lu Zhen’s heart also jumped up. He wanted to ask, but he restrained himself. However, staring at the other party’s eyes completely exposed the nervousness in his heart.

Zheng Fu did not hesitate too much, or to put it another way, there was no need for him to have too many worries in his current situation. “It seems that you really don’t remember what happened before. In fact, it’s better not to remember it. Knowing it will bring you trouble.”

“This is my business, so I don’t need to trouble you, Zheng Dianshi.”

“Because … for some reason, you suddenly grasped some evidence that Xiao Mo and the others stole military supplies and equipment, and showed it to me.” Finally, Zheng Fu gritted his teeth and told the truth.

Lu Zhen’s expression did not change. He had already guessed this point. What he wanted to know was further development: “Then what?”

“I reported this matter to Xiao Mo and stated your conditions. You actually wanted to use this to ask us for 10,000 taels of silver.” At this point, Zheng Fu’s expression became strange. He really couldn’t imagine how this greedy and stupid fellow would become so shrewd that even he was imprisoned by him.

Lu Zhen was also surprised. Previously, County Magistrate Lu was so bold and stupid that he wanted to threaten Zheng Fu and Xiao Mo who held military power. Wasn’t he courting death? Not to mention that they might not be able to take out such a large sum of money, even if they could, for the sake of safety, it was impossible for them to keep him alive.

As expected, Zheng Fu said, “After Xiao Mo listened to my words, he immediately decided to get rid of you.” However, you are an official of the Imperial Court after all, so it is not easy to kill you directly to the county government, so we pretended to agree to your request, but we transferred you out of the city for the reason that money is not good enough to enter the county government, and arranged for someone to rob and kill you … “Since it is like this, he has nothing to hide, so he told the truth.

Hearing this, Lu Zhen didn’t know whether to laugh or sigh. County Magistrate Lu was truly stupid to a certain extent, or perhaps he had lost his wits, yet he actually believed the other party’s nonsense so easily, causing his men to die.

From the looks of it, the grudge between him, Zheng Fu, and Xiao Mo had already been formed. Fortunately, he had made his move first. Otherwise, he really didn’t know what the outcome of this matter would be.

Very quickly, he suppressed his thoughts and smiled, “Actually, you guys take this statement too seriously. At that time, I didn’t have much evidence to prove that Xiao Mo smuggled military supplies.”

“We thought of this a long time ago. It’s just that this matter is very important. We don’t dare to bet” Zheng Fu said, but it was reasonable.

Lu Zhen nodded, “So the second thing I want you to talk about is the evidence of Xiao Mo selling armaments to Dazi privately! I think with your shrewdness, Zheng Dianshi will definitely leave me with a last resort. I want all the evidence in this regard!” As he spoke, he leaned forward again and stared at the other party’s face.

Zheng Fu was stunned, “You actually still haven’t given up?”

“It’s not that I don’t give up. I’m really helpless. This time, I’m already at odds with Xiao Mo. Only by getting rid of him can I protect myself. And this is the best weapon against him!”

This time, Zheng Fu revealed a hesitant expression. He knew that once he said it, he would never turn back.

Lu Zhen was not in a hurry, he just sat there and stared at the other party, waiting for him to make his final decision. Just now, he had already finished speaking, but speaking more weakened his momentum, so it was better to use silence to increase the pressure on the other party.

Sure enough, after a long period of silence, Zheng Fu finally nodded in frustration, “Alright, since things have come to this point, I have no other choice. I hope that county magistrate Lu can keep his promise and ensure the safety of my family after I say everything.”

“Of course, they are still people under my rule.” Lu Zhen’s heart relaxed as he smiled lightly.

@ @ @ @

In addition, regarding updates, passers-by can only be considered as stable writers. They are not likely to erupt, so they can only maintain the progress of updates at two hours a day. I hope everyone understands. . . . .

Updates are made at 1 p.m. and 9 p.m. every day, a pattern set out in the previous book. . . .

In the end, because Classmate Qinggler had rewarded the Throne Master, passers-by also wanted to express their opinion, so there should be a third watch later. However, it might be time for everyone to wake up tomorrow morning and look at it again. . . .