"Slander?" Fang Zheng played with his fan and raised his eyes slightly.
"Do you have any evidence?"
"Created out of nothing! Do you want me to prove my innocence?" The anger had broken Feng Heng's fear, and he roared at Fang Zhengyi.
"Yes." Fang Zheng replied calmly.
"Avenging private revenge! This is avenging private revenge! Even if I offended you before, I still have to submit to your majesty now!" Feng Heng continued to roar.
"What are you yelling at? You are guilty of yelling." Fang Zheng put away his fan with an inexplicable smile on his face: "You said you have no contact with King Wu at all, I don't believe it."
"I talked to King Wu. He invested so much in the shipping industry that you can't imagine. How much money flowed into the Zhou family, and how much money appeared in the world, don't you know at all?"
"The ship that King Wu traveled on was extraordinary, so the noise was bound to be huge. How could he hide it if no one helped him cover it up?"
Thinking of this, Feng Heng suddenly calmed down and his lips couldn't help trembling.
Then he forcefully explained: "It's...the lower official was incompetent and made an oversight."
"An oversight? You say an oversight is an oversight? I think you have managed Yuding City well! If this confession is presented to His Majesty, do you think His Majesty will believe you or me?" Fang Zheng said.
"Master Fang...what do you want from me? Aren't you trying to make things difficult for me?" Feng Heng had a look of pain on his face.
"Xie Xian, bring me the four people from the Zhou family."
Xie Xian nodded, stood up and left.
After a while, the four panicked Zhou family members entered the public room and bowed down in front of Fang Zheng's case.
Fang Zheng got straight to the point: "How are your Zhou family connected with King Wu, and why are you in the Chu family again? I came from the capital to deliver justice. You don't have to be afraid of anything. Speak boldly!"
Mr. Tuesday looks harmless and honest, with rough skin. He looks more like a skilled worker than a young master.
At this time, his eyes were full of despair.
After finally escaping from death, he hid in the Chu family and was robbed again and again. After going round and round, he was finally escorted back to the government office. He had long been determined to die.
Zhou Shao grabbed the ground with his head and cried: "Sir... the common people are wronged, the Zhou family is wronged!"
"The Zhou family has been building ships for generations, but a few years ago someone came to us and paid a lot of money to buy them as their shipbuilding agent."
"I don't know what happened later. I was out shopping with my family's boatman that day. When I got home, the fire was already spreading. Fortunately, there was a bank vault at home, and my late father still had the key with him. There were many secret messages left in the bank vault. I know that my family is building ships for King Wu."
"When the grassroots came out of the bank, they found that the agent who had previously been in contact with the family was leading a group of warriors to search for survivors. He hid in the bank and survived."
"Later, the common people came out because they were really hungry and couldn't bear it. They were going to report to the government. Unexpectedly, they became wanted criminals."
"After that, I went to the Chu family. The common people used their banknotes and shipbuilding skills as collateral to beg Mr. Chu to save my life... Sir, you should know what happened next."
Young Master Zhou's tone suddenly became excited: "Sir! My family must have been killed by King Wu!! They are plotting to murder my family's property! They even joined forces with this dog official!"
"Feng Heng! My clan gives you one hundred thousand taels every year, don't you think it's enough?!"
Feng Heng was shocked: "There is no evidence, so don't talk nonsense! If you bite here randomly, I will punish you with death!"
Young Master Tuesday said angrily: "Although I am only responsible for building ships, there is still a ledger in the bank... everything in it can be recorded clearly! Sir, if you don't believe it, I can take you to see it now!"
"Okay, okay, I understand. I will forgive you. Xie Xian, send a few people to take them to the inn to recuperate and take good care of them so that nothing goes wrong." Fang Zheng waved his hand.
The people probably didn't know the news about King Wu's rebellion. The few survivors of the Zhou family were just shipbuilders, so it was normal for them not to know the inside story.
But now it doesn't matter whether they know the inside story or not. What matters is that they can build ships, which is enough.
"Do you have anything else to say, Master Feng?"
"Slander! This is naked slander! The confessions are all false. Have you ever seen any fictitious account books?" Feng Heng blushed and struggled for a while.
"That's almost it. Are you interested? With this evidence, ten of your lives won't be too much." Fang Zheng leaned forward, leaning on the desk, looking at him mockingly.
"Tell me how much money I have embezzled over the years. I agreed to spare your life." Fang Zheng said with a smile.
Seeing his relaxed attitude, Feng Heng was discouraged for a moment, and smiled bitterly on the ground. After laughing for a while, he lost his mind and muttered: "Two hundred and seventy thousand taels."
"Isn't it right? I give you one hundred thousand taels every year, but you only have 270,000 taels in hand?" Fang Zhengyi asked.
"I managed it from top to bottom. I also like antiques, calligraphy and paintings, so I spent a lot of money." Feng Heng broke the jar and said expressionlessly.
"Then...do you want to live?" Fang Zheng asked in a low voice.
Feng Heng suddenly raised his head and his eyes lit up! My heart was suddenly filled with ecstasy!
Buy your life? Is this guy greedy for money?
"Sir, you also want to..."
Fang Zheng sat upright and smiled slightly: "If you don't take it, and I don't take it, how can we all make progress together?"
Feng Heng nodded repeatedly: "Yes! Yes! Yes! Mr. Fang is right! Please ask Mr. Fang to handle the 270,000 taels on your behalf. There are still some antiques in the official's house..."
"If nothing else, you sign and pledge it first." Fang Zhengyi added.
Feng Heng immediately felt a little desperate again.
play me? This confession is all slander. If you sign it, you will die.
"Don't feel aggrieved. Those things I said were done by you are what you did. If you sign, you will have something to do with it. I will give you a way to live. If you don't sign, you will die. It's up to you to decide."
"Sign! I'll sign!" Feng Heng thought in his heart and felt that there was nothing to think about, so he signed.
As soon as Fang Zheng put away his confession, he said, "Sit down. From now on, we are all our own people. From today on, you will do whatever I ask you to do for me. Do you understand?"
Feng Heng sat back down, shocked: "Then what do you want me to do?"
"I spared your life because of your meritorious service in governance. You left the two hundred and seventy thousand taels to the Chu family. The Chu family has been kind to me. It can be regarded as a thank you gift from me."
"Of course, they didn't get this money for nothing. King Wu fled and the court will definitely send people to recover him. Naturally, they also need good ships."
"So I need you to stay here and supervise the construction with peace of mind."
Feng Heng was shocked. Two hundred and seventy thousand taels were given away so casually?
"Sir, don't you take any of that money?"
"I won't take any money from you. Two hundred and seventy thousand taels may not be enough to build a ship, but you can spend it first, and I will tell the Holy One to allocate the money to you."
"The matter of being dismissed..."
"Don't worry, since you have no contact with King Wu, I will naturally clear your name." Fang Zheng waved his hand: "You can go down and rest first. You have nothing to do here. I will send the money to the Chu family in a few days. "
After Feng Heng left, Xie Xian walked to Fang Zhengyi and said worriedly: "Master, he is considered an accomplice. Is it appropriate not to report to His Majesty the Imperial Guard just after it was established?"
Fang Zhengyi shook his head with a wry smile: "There is no way. If you want to do practical things, you will inevitably get your hands dirty. I will convince Your Majesty when I go back, but time cannot be wasted. The sooner the better for some things."
"Let brothers send a group of people back to Haiyuan City to deposit the money back to Beijing. We will also clean up here. After the arrangements are completed, we will go home."
...
