Tianliangyuan

Chapter 411 The Master did not speak of strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or supernatur

"How much damage have we suffered?"

“One tenant farmer died, and six others were injured, but none of them were too seriously injured. They may need to rest for half a month.”

"Hmm, what was the name of the deceased? How old was he? Who else was in his family?"

Xu Degui replied to each of them, which shows that he knew his master's personality and had made preparations well in advance.

"Send ten strings of cash to that tenant farmer's family. Remember, it's the ten strings of cash I said."

"Yes, master."

“Besides that, tell that the child is still young and that they should focus on their studies. I will take care of their food and other necessities for the next three years. After that, send someone to deliver fifty catties of wheat flour, fifty catties of corn flour, ten catties of meat, and ten catties of millet to them every month. Also, send them three bolts of cloth every three months so they can buy new clothes.”

"Yes, Master. Master is kind and benevolent. On behalf of that family, I thank you, Master."

"No need. You must remember that he died protecting our Hundred Fruit Garden, so you must take good care of his funeral arrangements. Moreover, everything I have instructed must be carried out in a down-to-earth manner. If anyone dares to embezzle even a single word, I will take their life!"

Xu Zhaozhao's last sentence was incredibly harsh.

Xu Degui shuddered, realizing that his master was giving him a warning. He immediately replied that he would definitely do it and would never dare to embezzle money meant for the dead.

The reason Xu Zhaozhao said three years was because the eldest son of that family was only twelve years old, and it was too young for him to start working now.

Moreover, with the money she paid out as compensation, plus the usual rice and flour supply, that family could always have enough to eat.

"In a few days, I will go to Baiguoyuan and have his whole family come over to pay their respects."

"Yes, master."

Xu Zhaozhao said that she was asking the family to come and pay their respects, which was a warning to the people below not to mistreat the family just because the pillar of the family was gone.

Xu Zhaozhao is the master. With her protecting him, who would dare to cause trouble?

The other shops in the city didn't encounter any problems, but someone died at the Hundred Fruit Garden, which Xu Zhaozhao found unbearable.

She can accept some financial loss, after all, these things can be earned back.

But human lives are not an option!

What merit or ability did Xu Zhaozhao possess that she owed someone her life because of some material possessions?

This is absolutely not okay!

Xu Zhaozhao put pressure on Liu Qi's side, and soon, Liu Qi followed the clues and arrested more than 30 people, seizing a large amount of copper coins and weapons.

Zhao Changqing also reaped considerable gains, demonstrating that the chaos in the capital was orchestrated in secret long ago.

"Your Majesty, Magistrate Liu of Chang'an County requests an audience."

"please."

"Yes."

Xu Zhaozhao's pregnancy is not obvious now, but because of the health of the child, she has stopped wearing makeup since she found out she was pregnant. Anyway, Xie Zheng is not at home, so who would she be looking at with her makeup?

Do you want to see it yourself?

She wasn't that narcissistic.

Although Xu Zhaozhao was without makeup, with the help of plant-based superpowers, she could be described as naturally beautiful.

"This humble official greets the Princess of Anle County."

"No gift."

"Thank you, County Princess."

Liu Qi presented all the evidence he had gathered, and finally produced a confession.

"Is this the only one who said he received orders to take action against Xiang Piaopiao?"

"Exactly. If it weren't for Young Master Xu discovering it in time last night, I'm afraid Xiang Piaopiao would have been burned to ashes tonight."

"Hmm, did the others give any details?"

"There are no further matters involving personal grudges at present."

Liu Qi spoke very cleverly, meaning that it was highly likely that someone was secretly stirring up trouble, knowing that chaos was about to break out in the capital, and therefore deliberately using these rebels to create some trouble for their opponents.

Personal grudge?

Xu Zhaozhao sneered. The capital was almost trapped in the fire, and countless people would have lost their lives. How could this be described as a personal grudge?

"If it weren't for my brother's timely discovery, I'm afraid several wards in the capital would already be engulfed in flames. Lord Liu, do you think that someone who has discovered this matter could still arrange this, just out of personal grudges?"

Liu Qi began to break out in a cold sweat.

Sure enough, the pressure unique to the county magistrate arrived, though late!

"The lower official made a mistake."

“I am the Princess of Anle County and Xie Zheng’s wife. The Grand Commander of this expedition is my father, and my husband is the one who made the greatest contribution to my prosperity. Lord Liu, do you think that someone among them is targeting my property simply because of personal grudges?”

Liu Qi could no longer sit still and quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "It was my mistake, please forgive me, Your Highness."

Xu Zhaozhao snorted heavily; she really couldn't quell this anger!

"Are the people who confessed all this still alive?"

"Reporting to the county magistrate, he is alive, but he suffered some torture, though not serious."

“Very well, since you’ve come all this way to inform me of this matter, I’ll go with you.”

Liu Qi was shocked and quickly tried to dissuade him: "Your Highness, you mustn't! How can your noble feet tread on such lowly ground? Rest assured, I will interrogate this person thoroughly and there will be no omissions."

"No need. Besides, you're under a lot of pressure these days, and His Majesty is waiting for your report. Someone, prepare the carriage."

Liu Qi wanted to persuade her again, but who could persuade Xu Zhaozhao with her temperament?

And so, before the Duke of Huguo's mansion knew anything, the young mistress Xu Zhaozhao was sent to the prison of the Chang'an County government.

Xu Zhaozhao dismissed everyone, leaving only Shaoyao and Liu Qi.

What happened next sent chills down Liu Qi's spine.

He didn't understand what Xu Zhaozhao had done, but the prisoner obediently answered all her questions without even trying to resist.

Peony stood outside, not really knowing what was going on inside; her main purpose was to prevent anyone from spying on her.

It wasn't until Xu Zhaozhao handed Liu Qi a statement with her fingerprint on it that he came to his senses.

"County Lord?"

“You are a smart man, so you naturally know what questions you can ask and what questions you can’t ask. Now that we have a confession, Lord Liu, you just need to go and arrest the person.”

Liu Qi nodded, cold sweat dripping down his forehead in thin streams.

This isn't a county princess, she's practically a deity descended to earth!

He watched from the sidelines and still couldn't figure out how the county princess had done it. Such methods of torture were truly unheard of.

After Xu Zhaozhao left, Liu Qi went back into the prison to confirm that the prisoner had not been tortured again. He also asked a doctor to come and examine him and found that he had not been drugged or given any mind-altering drugs.

So how exactly did Xu Zhaozhao manage to get this criminal to confess with just a casual question?

She never even had close contact with the prisoner. Could it really be divine intervention?

Liu Qi shook his head, muttering to himself, "The Master did not speak of disordered physical strength or spiritual energy..."