Early that morning, Qi Yu met with various county magistrates from Qiongzhou Prefecture in the welcoming hall of Ganfen County.
At the beginning, the atmosphere when the two parties met was still very harmonious.
First meet the etiquette, then serve tea, and finally sit down in friendship.
After some greetings, Qi Yu slowly started to get to the main topic. That is, Xie Jiong’s case of fraud in the examination room.
Of course, this was just a gimmick he used to trick people, but since he used this as a reason to deceive them, he had to give an explanation.
For the county officials, since they have talked about this matter, they have to be more serious.
What they are concerned about is not Xie Jiong's own guilt, but who he bit out.
Qi Yu said in a shocking tone: "According to him, he was emboldened to do this after receiving instructions from nine of you eleven. As for his motive, he said it was to create panic. Give me some color."
As soon as the motive was mentioned, no one believed it. What the officials cared about was the first half of the sentence.
Are nine of the eleven people suspected?
Isn't this nonsense?
How can it be!
Therefore, before Qi Yu could finish what he said, all the county officials retorted: "Master Qi, Xie Jiong is just a slanderer. We have always abided by the law..."
What follows is Datong’s self-defense.
They all acted as if it had nothing to do with them.
"cough!"
Qi Yu pressed his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then started making tea calmly.
All the officials were stunned when they saw this. They were sitting on pins and needles. How could they think about drinking tea?
However, Qi Yu was not in a hurry. He said slowly, "Everyone, don't be so angry. Drink a cup of tea to moisten your throat. Then, let's discuss it again."
Mr. Qi today explained the essence of the tea ceremony very well. The whole set of tea-making movements was done smoothly and in one go. He was even more professional than the waiter in the teahouse.
Although the officials were confused, they still said: "Thank you, sir, for the tea!"
After this commotion, the tense atmosphere that had risen sharply just now calmed down again.
Is this a deliberate attempt to control the rhythm?
Roughly the same!
Qi Yu chuckled, served tea to the officials with his own hands, and then said: "Although Xie Jiong's confession is a bit exaggerated, it is basically true."
Both exaggerated and true?
Isn't this contradictory?
All the officials stared with confused expressions.
However, Qi Yu did not intend to let them really understand. Instead, he pretended to be mysterious and said: "Our Qiongzhou is like a big basin for kneading noodles, and the officials of the imperial court are the ones responsible for kneading noodles. Over the years, they If there is too much noodles, add water, if there is too much water, add noodles, but I have never found a reasonable configuration. Now, the noodles are almost mixed, but the pot is not big enough. Tsk, what should I do if it can’t hold it? "
This metaphor is not difficult to understand. If the court officials are compared to people who make noodles, doesn’t the noodles in the basin specifically refer to officials?
The basin is not big enough to hold it. Could it be a hint that the bureaucracy is bloated?
What should we do? What else can we do?
Isn’t this obvious?
After all the officials thought about it, they were all shocked: It seems that the rumor is true. Mr. Qi really wants to rectify the official system. As for Xie Jiong fabricating a false case, it is nothing more than a crime he wants to accuse. 'It's just the beginning.
After understanding each other, they decided to unite to resist.
Although Qi Yu frowned a little at this, he didn't feel too surprised.
According to his idea, it would be best to persuade these guys to take the initiative to 'give up'. If they cannot achieve this awareness, they will have to take other measures.
So, he said: "Come here, bring Xie Jiong to me!"
"yes!"
Um? What does this mean?
Could it be that he was asking Xie Jiong to bite people randomly?
Guessed it!
In response to the "request" of Magistrate Qi, Mr. Xie cooperated well with this performance and directly staged a "bloody spitting" drama. However, after he finished spraying, without waiting for the officials to question and counterattack, Mr. Qi drank him back.
It is said that they are allowed to defend themselves, but in fact they are not given the slightest chance.
The county officials finally understood that Mr. Qi wanted to win over everyone in the name of handling the case.
If you want to incriminate yourself, why bother?
Naturally, all the officials would not surrender, and they all tried their best to resist.
"I refuse to plead guilty!"
"Master Qi, if you have the ability, just kill us all!"
"..."
Are you trying to bully me into not daring to kill an official?
Uh... I, Qi Yu, really don't have this right, but just because I don't have it doesn't mean that others don't have it!
It seems that the one who has been hiding behind the scenes for a long time
It's time for Shang Fang's sword to be unsheathed.
“I’d like to invite the imperial envoy, Mr. Yin!”
"yes!"
Yin Jun stepped out, and without any nonsense, he directly revealed his true identity.
Moreover, he also read out the imperial edict in public: ...The official system in Qiongzhou is bloated, and it should be simplified. Therefore, the prefect Qi Yu is ordered to carefully rectify it. Anyone who disobeys the order will be killed!
The word "Zhan" made these pairs of eyes so shocked that they were like bells.
They never expected that there would be such an invisible imperial envoy standing behind Mr. Qi. Nowadays, whoever refuses to obey the imperial edict, as for how to rectify it, depends on Qi Yu's personal mood.
"Master Qi, we have no enmity or grudge against you, so why are you ruining our future?"
"Yes, sir, I can't bear to wait!"
"..."
In an instant, the buzzing sound of resentment sounded again, but after Yin Jun's dry cough, the situation returned to calm.
Seeing that their emotions had stabilized, Qi Yu said: "Reorganizing the official system is a helpless move I made to ask for orders from the people. Please forgive me."
Then, he threw another 'big cake' over and said: "Everyone, the development of our Qiongzhou is changing with each passing day, just like the saplings that are growing vigorously, and we have a bright future to look forward to. You are all well-educated scholars, and we are all very knowledgeable. If there is a place for you to be useful, why hang yourself on the tree of becoming an official?"
This sentence can be considered very thorough: Change your career!
But what can you do if you don't become an official?
All the officials sighed together, all worried.
"Everyone, you have two options at the moment. The first is to wait for the official waiting news in order to become an official again. The second is to let me, Qi Yu, arrange your future."
"this……"
"If you can trust me, don't go far away. Stay in Qiongzhou and wait with peace of mind. I promise you that you will still be among the best in the future." Qi Yu said with a faint smile.
Is Mr. Qi expressing his goodwill?
It seems so.
Should I accept it or not?
"Okay, I've finished what I said. Who of you believes it and who doesn't?" Qi Yu looked around at the crowd, picked up the teacup and said, "If you believe in me, please drink the tea in your hand. Otherwise, don't drink it. "
After all the officials understood each other, they all sighed sadly, and then they all picked up the teacups in their hands...
