"Aren't you talking nonsense? The key to unlocking the bank has always been kept by me personally. How could someone steal it without anyone noticing?" Zheng Michang sneered at Hai Rui's words and mocked. .
Then Zheng Michang followed this train of thought and continued.
"Even if my key is stolen by a gangster, I can't open the bank. After all, except when counting the silver coins, no one is allowed to approach the bank. Violators will be killed! Unless they are colluding and I have no knowledge of it." In this case, steal the key and then..."
The more Zheng Michang thought about it, the more he felt it was possible, and his eyes gradually became sharper. No wonder he was so sleepy before, someone must be doing something behind his back! He used something similar to Ecstasy. Otherwise, how could he fall asleep so easily by relying on his own will?
"You, come to me immediately!"
Perhaps in order to verify his conjecture, Zheng Michang called the subordinate who had previously been responsible for waking him up, and said in a deep voice: "You have nothing else to argue with, hurry up and get the truth! Where did you hide the one hundred thousand taels of silver?" ?”
"Sir, this subordinate is wronged! The work of counting silver coins has always been carried out under your supervision. How can I do this?" The subordinate who was called out by Zheng Michang flashed in his eyes. A trace of panic, and he cried.
"It seems right to think so, but the suspicion on you cannot be cleared for the time being. There are also those guards responsible for guarding the bank. They must have colluded with outsiders and robbed themselves! Come and capture them together with me. "
"yes!"
As soon as Zheng Michang finished speaking, soldiers immediately responded, wanting to take all the guards down for interrogation.
"Sir, we are wronged! Ever since we received your order, we have always fulfilled our duties and dare not let a mosquito in." Upon seeing this, the guards knelt down on the ground with a plop and begged Zheng Michang for mercy. .
"Hmph, you still dare to quibble. I will drag you down and serve you with severe punishment! We must let them tell the whereabouts of the silver coins."
Zheng Michang ignored his subordinates' pleas for mercy, but waved his hand and motioned to the soldiers to pull them down and torture them.
In fact, Zheng Michang knew very well that the stolen silver had nothing to do with these guards. It was just that for such a big case, someone had to stand up and take responsibility.
There is no other way, just for the sake of the black gauze hat on your head, let's suffer them a little longer.
"Wait a minute, Chief Envoy, I think they have been wronged!"
Just as the guards were about to be escorted off, Hai Rui spoke up and stopped the soldiers.
"Hmph, you said they were unjustly accused, but they are unjustly accused? I believe that they are suspected of committing a major crime. They must be interrogated before their innocence can be proven, and they will be detained by me!"
"Your Excellency, Chief Envoy, please give me some more time! Your Majesty already has some clues about the case, and I believe the case will be solved soon." Hai Rui said softly, cupping his hand towards Zheng Michang.
"Sir, this..." Regarding Hai Rui's request, Zheng Michang did not dare to make up his mind, so he handed over the decision-making power to Hu Zongxian who was standing aside.
Hu Zongxian nodded slightly and agreed.
When Zheng Michang saw this, he said to Hai Rui: "Okay, I will give you some more time. If you still can't find the stolen silver by then, you have to act according to my wishes. Do you understand?" ?”
"Well, I understand. If I can't find out by then, I'll do what the Chief Envoy wants!"
After listening to Zheng Michang's words, Hai Rui nodded and began to look around the bank, searching for any clues that might be left behind.
I don’t know how much time passed. Just when Zheng Michang was getting impatient, he heard Hai Rui’s voice: “My Lord Chief Secretary, after you discovered that the silver coins were stolen, you issued an order that no one should enter or leave the Chief Secretary’s premises. Bar?"
"That's natural. Not only that, I asked everyone to leave the bank immediately and also controlled all those responsible for counting the banknotes!"
After Zheng Michang finished speaking, his face was full of contentment.
"The official has discovered the key clues. Combined with what the chief envoy said, we can conclude that these one hundred thousand taels of silver have never been lost!"
"In other words, these one hundred thousand taels of silver have actually always been in the warehouse."
Hai Rui said, showing the soil found in the corner to Zheng Michang and Hu Zongxian.
"This... this is mud. How can there be mud in this bank? Could it be that..." Zheng Michang couldn't help but be shocked when he saw clearly what was in Hai Rui's hand.
Hu Zongxian on the side also seemed to realize something, and turned his attention to the stone tiles paved on the ground.
"Come here, dig up the floor tiles and see if they are empty underneath." Hu Zongxian frowned and ordered.
After a while, several soldiers came with shovels and pried open all the floor tiles in the warehouse.
After the floor tiles were pried open, a large rectangular hole was revealed, which was filled with silver coins of the same color.
Hai Rui leaned down, picked up an ingot, and sent it to Zheng Michang: "Mr. Chief Envoy, look at this, is this the silver that was lost in the warehouse?"
Zheng Michang took the silver from Hai Rui, and after comparing the quality, weight, and size one by one, he said happily: "Yes, this is the stolen silver. I will ask someone to count the number. "
After Zheng Michang finished speaking, he glanced at the subordinate kneeling on the ground with an extremely cold gaze, and it was this man who had disturbed his dreams before.
…
"Reporting to your lord, the number of silver taels has been counted. There is a total of one hundred thousand taels, exactly!"
I don’t know how long it took, but the person responsible for counting the silver finally completed the count and reported it to Hu Zongxianhui.
"Okay, now that the stolen silver has been found, let's just close this case! You can handle the people involved yourself." Upon seeing this, Hu Zongxian couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief and ordered.
"Yes, Mr. Governor! This case should be closed. I will never let anyone go."
Zheng Michang bowed his hands to Hu Zongxian and responded respectfully.
"My lord, my lord, please forgive me this time! I am also obsessed with money. My wife is seriously ill and needs money for treatment. I have no choice but to..."
"Damn it, you're going to use your family as a shield when something happens, right? I look down on trash like you the most! Damn you!"
As Zheng Michang spoke, he became furious, then flew forward and kicked the man hard on the chest, knocking him to the ground.
Perhaps feeling that it was not enough to relieve his anger, Zheng Michang took the shovel from the hands of the soldiers on the side and hit the man on the head a few more times. In an instant, blood flowed profusely.
"Fuck you, I asked you to use the salt tax, I asked you to use my black hat, I asked you to fool me! Who gave you such courage? Damn you!" Zheng Michang scolded and pushed the shovel to He greeted.
"Why are you still standing there? Beat me to death! Damn it!" Perhaps because he was tired from the beating, Zheng Michang threw the shovel on the ground and ordered the soldiers outside.
"Yes!" After hearing Zheng Michang's order, the soldiers outside immediately surrounded him, and then beat him severely.
"Okay, is the Chief Secretary's Yamen the home of local gangsters? Look at what you are doing now. It should be done in accordance with the laws of the Ming Dynasty!" Seeing that the heat was almost over, Hu Zongxian waved his hand and said softly.
"Quick, stop! Stop!" Seeing this, Zheng Mi Chang quickly asked the soldiers to stop.
At this time, the man on the ground was already breathing in but not breathing out, and looked like he was dying.
(End of chapter)
