pappabearbooks Chapter 51 A Big Fish Has Been Caught in the Net
Chapter 51 A Big Fish Has Been Caught in the Net
The Imperial Guards were working frantically, but the Taoist priest of the Bureau of Records couldn't speed things up.
Their verification of cult members is extremely accurate and possesses undeniable authority.
But this process is very time-consuming.
It's not so bad to identify cult members; you only need to discover and lock in any cult-related characteristics to confirm that someone is a cult member.
If you're lucky, you can confirm it on the first inspection; if you're unlucky, you have to check the last feature to confirm it.
Excluding ordinary people from suspicion requires checking all characteristics, which is like having the worst luck every time, and takes a lot of time.
No matter how anxious or overwhelmed the Imperial Guards were, the Taoist priests could only move so quickly.
Commander Lu Huan waited and waited, but finally ran out of patience.
"Go, bring that troublemaking captain over here. I want to ask him myself what to do."
"yes!"
Xiao Zexing had a loud voice and a rough appearance with a thick beard, but he was very meticulous in his work. The personnel he arranged were watertight, and he controlled all the blind spots in the surrounding streets.
It was only because he had handled things properly that Lu Huan let him off the hook.
As for calling Chang Yuan over, it was simply because Lu Huan had lost patience and wanted to find something to do, such as finding out the troublemaker.
He wanted Chang Yuan to give it a try. Since the kid could identify those two as problematic, could he identify more cult members from the crowd?
If so, then everyone is happy, and there will be plenty of rewards to be had.
If not, then give him a good scolding and pin a minor blame on him as punishment for causing trouble.
However, when Lu Huan saw Chang Yuan, he immediately changed his mind.
There's no other reason than that Chang Yuan's face is too handsome.
Upon seeing him, the commander immediately thought of the Embroidered Uniform Guard's signboard and the methods used to secure benefits for the entire Embroidered Uniform Guard.
But Lu Huan immediately thought of something else: his niece seemed to have reserved a subordinate, the captain of the Yu Province Thousand Household Office of the Eastern Garrison Command, who was a very accurate marksman and also very good-looking.
Tsk, is it really that hard to find someone to take the blame and vent your anger on?
Lord Lu was inwardly complaining, but outwardly he smiled and asked, "You caused this mess, do you have any ideas on how to resolve it?"
Chang Yuan was unaware that he had a powerful backer, someone so influential that even the Commander-in-Chief couldn't pin the blame on him, so he was very nervous.
Upon hearing Lu Huan's request, Chang Yuan, with his strong survival instinct, immediately replied, "This humble official can identify the enemy, but a single piece of evidence is insufficient..."
Lu Huan was overjoyed and waved his hand, saying, "It's alright, just focus on identifying the people for me, and the Taoist priests from the Taoist Records Office will naturally come to verify and confirm them."
"If you can catch a big fish for me, I will pardon you today; if you catch nothing, then don't blame me for punishing you."
Upon hearing the commander's words, Chang Yuan's eyes lit up, and the tension between his brows instantly relaxed.
He immediately replied, "Yes, sir!"
Xiao Ze walked over to Chang Yuan and asked in a low voice, "Brother, what do you think we should do?"
Chang Yuan: "...Lord Commander."
Xiao Zexing interrupted, "Just call me Brother Xiao. We're in this together now. Only by working together to do our job well can we escape danger from the Commander's wrath."
Chang Yuan didn't stand on ceremony, cupped his hands and said softly, "Brother Xiao, I, Chang Yuan, greet you."
The two men exchanged a smile and found a spot on the street where the commander couldn't see them, where they began to discuss their plan in hushed tones.
Chang Yuan soon discovered that Xiao Zexing truly did not know how to distinguish, and even his subordinates did not know how to make a basic distinction.
He couldn't help but ask himself a profound question: "That shouldn't be the case. The Ming Dynasty has existed for hundreds of years, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard has been in existence for centuries. How could they not know how to distinguish right from wrong?"
Xiao Zexing looked at Chang Yuan as if he were an idiot and whispered, "In the past, they would only be brought into the Northern Prison (the Northern Garrison Command Prison, also known as the Imperial Prison) after a conviction, and they could get all the information out of him with just a few beatings."
"There are just too many people around now; it's impossible to carry out our methods effectively in public."
Chang Yuan understood.
It turns out that the Northern Garrison Commander had been living a life of luxury and comfort, to the point that he could no longer use the Great Memory Restoration Technique and had even lost the most basic ability to discern.
Very good, this is very much in line with the Imperial Guards.
Chang Yuan could only offer him advice: "Let's not investigate ourselves. You should quickly go to the yamen runners in the capital and county yamen, as well as the clerks who have access to the Yellow Register."
"First, exclude residents who have lived here for more than five years, and then use the Baojia system to screen out acquaintances of local residents. The remaining people will be easier to investigate."
Xiao Zexing suddenly realized what was going on and immediately wrote a note to be sent to Daxing County and Wanping County. In the blink of an eye, he summoned hundreds of yamen runners and servants.
These people were all experienced locals who were used to doing their jobs. Chang Yuan understood the requirements as soon as he explained them, and they quickly identified the people they had apprehended on the street.
There's no other reason than that: those who looked familiar were let go, while those who didn't were tied up.
Then, the constables began to enter the alleys and alleys, searching for strangers from house to house.
Before long, the head constable of Shuntian Prefecture, who was in charge of the two counties, came to Chang Yuan and Xiao Zexing, bowed humbly with a smile, and reported: "My lords, I have finished the screening here. There are 155 suspects who cannot prove their identities. You two, please take a look..."
Chang Yuan smiled and asked, "Have all these alleys and houses been checked?"
The head constable of Shuntian Prefecture held a very high position, at least no lower than the captain.
Seeing Chang Yuan and Commander Xiao standing side by side, the head constable dared not be negligent and respectfully replied, "Yes, this is all familiar to us; we guarantee no one will escape!"
Xiao Zexing nodded in satisfaction. These yamen runners were very capable and much more reliable than his own Imperial Guards.
He really had an eye-opening experience today.
Chang Yuan then asked, "Did you search all 155 people you found?"
The head constable immediately replied, "We've already searched them. Five of them were carrying contraband and have been shackled. The others showed no abnormalities."
Chang Yuan turned to Xiao Zexing and said, "Brother Xiao, let's go take a look. There might be a big fish among these 155 people; we can't let someone else get there first!"
Xiao Zexing was overjoyed. He slapped his thigh and stood up, saying, "Let's go, brothers, take a look. If we handle this well, we won't only be innocent today, but we'll also earn merit."
Chang Yuan smiled and gestured for them to proceed, then followed Xiao Zexing to a street intersection.
The area was relatively open, but it was packed with one or two hundred people, all with their hands tied behind their backs, huddled together like a flock of quails, trembling.
Five others were even more unfortunate, bound by shackles weighing dozens of kilograms, forced to lie on the ground and weep.
The surrounding roads and walls were filled with Imperial Guards armed with new single-shot rifles, keeping a close eye on the group of people who had been identified.
Chang Yuan walked over and immediately sensed something.
It feels like a spiritual source!
It feels like a huge harvest!
Chang Yuan looked excitedly at the quail-like crowd in front of him, and was about to point out the two people with the strongest feelings when he was interrupted by a member of the Imperial Guard.
The Imperial Guard, accompanied by two soaking wet white-clad servants carrying something, called out from afar, "Lord Commander, you've made a discovery!"
The Imperial Guards quickly ran up to the two men and showed Xiao Zexing what they were holding: "Lord Commander, we found these two lotus-shaped jade tablets in a well in a courtyard."
After saying that, he handed the two jade tablets to Xiao Zexing, who then picked one up and handed it to Chang Yuan.
He picked up another piece and examined it carefully. Soon, he smiled and said, "It's made of Qingtian jade, but the carving is extraordinary. This is a treasure that only a mid-level or higher charlatan of the Heavenly Principle Sect, or a Heavenly Principle Transcendent being raised from childhood, possesses."
He looked at the crowd and sneered, "Brother Chang, you're right. There are big fish from the Heavenly Principle Sect among these people!"