As the refugees buzzed with discussion, Shen Cong whispered into the ears of the two Jin Yi Wei guards, "My lords, your subordinate has discovered a major case here. I beg you to uphold justice!"
Then, he strode to the center of the open space, his expression suddenly turning extremely stern, as if genuinely enraged by the discovery of a grave offense. His eyes, sharp as torches, swept over the assembled crowd. Waving his hands, he boomed:
"Who is Hai Rui? Step forward and answer!"
A gasp!
A hiss!
The refugees, upon hearing this, were filled with panic. Their thoughts were unanimous—they had indeed colluded to pressure Lord Hai. Without clarifying anything, they came directly to question Lord Hai?
This?
Was it over...?
...
Hai Rui had already suspected that this Censor was part of the Yan family. Now, he had no doubt.
He was no fool. A moment's thought revealed it all—
It must be that Zhu Mo caused trouble in Hangzhou, giving the Yan family leverage. The Yan family then made their move in court... Elder Xu and the others couldn't withstand the pressure, so the imperial court dispatched a Supervising Censor, accompanied by two Jin Yi Wei guards, to investigate matters in Jiangnan. What matters? It must be that damned anti-Japanese debt and the state-run money shop.
Especially that "Baoshi" thing? The moment he first heard it, he felt something was amiss. Now, it had become a crime, seized upon by the Yan faction. Zhu Mo was young and surely couldn't withstand the pressure. He was suppressed by the Censor. To protect himself, he compromised with the Yan family. Today, he would help buy land. He didn't need to speak; just standing there was enough for the disaster relief envoy to endorse the land purchase...
Alas...
It must be so.
Hai Rui sighed inwardly.
But now,
Since they had pressed him, he, Hai Rui, would absolutely not bow his head in defeat. His resolve hardened. He stood up abruptly and replied loudly:
"This county official is here! If you wish to kill or flay, do as you please! I, Hai Rui, will say this first—even if the Emperor himself came, the refugees' land will not be sold cheaply! We won't sell, even if beaten to death!"
A roar!
A thunderclap!
All the refugees felt instantly invigorated!
Everyone turned their gaze to Hai Rui, like abused orphans looking to their parents. The atmosphere instantly shifted from dispirited fear to one of solemn heroism.
...
At this moment,
A cold, sharp smile flickered across Zhu Mo's lips—
Who could be fooled by such a simple trick?
Wasn't this just "social death"?
Simultaneously, the system presented a dazzling, eye-popping assessment report—
[Event Classification: Scapegoat Social Death Incident;]
[Metrics: Soft Violence Index 95%; Probability 75%; Mental Damage Rating 99%;]
[Consequences: No judicial traceability; Description: No evidence to prove Shen Cong's intentional harm...]
[Recommendation: Pray...]
Damn it!
Zhu Mo almost spat blood. This damn system was too vicious! Fortunately, he had seen enough of the official dealings in the Great Ming. Otherwise, he would truly have to pray under injustice...
The moment he saw Shen Cong stirring up trouble and subtly pointing the finger at him, he had already reacted—
This brat must have seen that bowl of clear congee and used it as leverage to question Hai Rui. What was the purpose of questioning Hai Rui? Wasn't it to incite the refugees' anger? And when the refugees were angry, they would lose their reason... Then, to protect Hai Rui, they would clash with the officials!
At that time,
This old fellow Shen Cong would claim that I, Zhu Mo, brought the officials to forcefully buy good land, thus inciting civil unrest. This way, the blame would be pinned on me... This guy would even say I colluded with Hai Rui, embezzled relief silver, causing the refugees to only have clear congee to drink, and so on. He would wield the Yan family's authority like a royal decree, perhaps even arrest me on the spot and escort me to the capital!
There was even a possibility—
This brat would directly unfurl the King's Command Token and have me beheaded in the street on the spot? The officials in Jiangnan had long harbored resentment, waiting to vent. They would respond to a single call! Then, rumors would spread like wildfire, painting me as a villain killed by the refugees...
Upon thinking this,
Zhu Mo couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion. In his previous world, there were many such people. These individuals, with their mouths, would falsely accuse and use the malice of onlookers to manipulate others. The victim, often unable to defend himself, would lose his mind amidst the mob's public opinion, leading to social death.
In this regard,
Zhu Mo had always harbored deep hatred. He was eager to see how many tricks this old fellow could pull. He decided to simply cross his arms, smile faintly, and quietly watch Shen Cong's performance...
As expected,
The moment Shen Cong saw Hai Rui step forward, he loudly questioned:
"Hai Rui! Why can these refugees only drink clear congee? The imperial court has explicit regulations, and you yourself have a famous saying that relief porridge and meals should be 'solid enough to stand a chopstick'... So, pray tell, why have you violated this? According to the laws of the Great Ming, I, this Censor, can impeach you on the spot and dismiss you from office!
If you do not give me a clear answer, I, this Censor, might very well unfurl the King's Command Token and have you beheaded on the spot, as a warning to others!"
Boom!
The thousands of refugees first let out a cry of alarm, almost immediately about to rush forward. But then, upon hearing the words "King's Command Token," they instantly became fearful... The entire scene fell silent.
And looking at the shocked faces of the refugees, Shen Cong's lips curved into a cruel, knowing smile.
...
Heh,
Zhu Mo stared at Shen Cong, also sneering inwardly—
"Keep jumping, the higher the better..."
The reason he hadn't acted yet was that he truly hadn't figured out the situation with the clear congee. If he intervened now, without clarity, he would be very passive and might even let this person escape.
...
And Hai Rui,
At this moment, felt a wave of dizziness, a surge of indescribable grief and indignation rising from his heart.
He, Hai Rui, had been carrying out relief work in Chun'an for nearly half a year. Without money, without grain, the refugees had nothing to eat or drink. Tens of thousands of people had their homes flooded, and they were waiting for him to find them places to sleep...
Shen Cong spoke of clear congee...
Indeed, it was clear congee!
But, had anyone considered him, Hai Rui?
Even these bowls of clear congee were obtained by him personally from General Qi Jiguang's camp! And Qi Jiguang had to extract them from his soldiers' mouths! The people in the imperial court spoke without feeling the pinch, while those in the provincial government like Zheng Bichang and He Maocai completely ignored the situation!
Not only that,
They had been sending people daily to pressure him to buy land, employing countless stratagems and exerting immense pressure. If it weren't for Hai Rui desperately holding his ground, these refugees before him would have already caused an uproar! And in the past six months, not a single person had starved, nor had there been any disaster. The entire Chun'an remained orderly, all of which Hai Rui had achieved by risking his life.
And this person before him, a dignified imperial Censor, was interrogating him like a criminal upon arrival? If one could tolerate this, what could not be tolerated?
Hai Rui immediately remained silent. Instead, he turned his head to look back at the refugees behind him, his tear-filled eyes scanning them one by one, his eyes filled with unwavering determination, as if telling the refugees—
As long as I, Hai Rui, am here, your land is yours!
You will never become abandoned wanderers...
And the refugees seemed to understand Hai Rui's meaning instantly. Everyone straightened their chests, suppressed their sobs, their gazes filled with tragic resolve, merely looking at the few people in the open space—
Towards Shen Cong,
They harbored fear and resentment!
Towards Jin Timeng,
They felt endless contempt and disgust!
Towards the two Jin Yi Wei,
They felt deep disappointment!
And towards Zhu Mo,
They revealed confusion and sadness...
As if asking—
Why doesn't someone like you come to our aid? Instead, you help those villains?
...
Zhu Mo immediately felt a pang in his chest. The two Jin Yi Wei also showed shame on their faces, and couldn't help but quietly approach Zhu Mo.
Zhu Mo decided to endure for a while longer, as the situation was still unclear, and he needed Shen Cong to stir up more intense emotions before he could decisively counterattack.
And at this moment,
The tall, thin Jin Yi Wei on the left quietly asked, "Young Master Zhu, when we set out, Duke Lü of the Directorate of Ceremonial instructed us to ensure your safety... If anything happens later, please do not leave us two."
The plump man resembling a farmer on the right whispered, "Young Master Zhu, I think it's best we leave Chun'an with Young Master Zhu immediately."
Zhu Mo smiled calmly and lowered his voice, "My lords, I believe Hai Rui must have his reasons... Perhaps we should wait and see..."
The two Jin Yi Wei nodded, then moved two steps closer to Zhu Mo, lowering their voices, "Brothers Wu Ming and Wu Liang have already made their intentions clear... Young Master Zhu, we brothers will do as you command..."
Zhu Mo nodded with a smile.