"Who instructed you?"
The dim prison was filled with a foul odor. In one of the cells, a ragged woman was tied to a wooden frame, her body covered in wounds and barely alive.
Zheng Chang stared at the other person with a gloomy face and cold eyes.
After two days of rigorous investigation and interrogation, the woman finally could not withstand the torture and confessed everything.
However, the clues she gave were of no use at all. The person behind this was so secretive that there was no clue at all.
Thinking of this, Zheng Chang's face turned extremely ugly.
The young master had been missing for several days, and during these few days, Xunyang City was in turmoil. As the situation escalated over the past two days, the young master, the prefect, and even the Wang family were put on the spot.
Public opinion in the city had already begun to spread in this direction. Although the prefectural government quickly mobilized its forces to suppress public opinion and arrested those who spread the rumors, it also sent many people to quietly eliminate the influence...
With the power of the Wang family and the prefectural government, it is not difficult to suppress public opinion.
But until now, the person hiding behind the scenes has not yet revealed himself, which is a huge hidden danger. The longer the other party does not show up, the more passive they will be.
No one knows what conspiracy they are secretly brewing!
Just after the interrogation of the captured women, before Zheng Chang had time to leave the prison, someone hurried over and whispered something in Zheng Chang's ear.
Zheng Chang's expression changed immediately.
"What?!"
"Who did it?"
“…”
Prefectural Office.
"Bang!"
Wang Shiquan angrily smashed the cup in his hand to the ground: "What's going on?!"
"Why hasn't this been resolved yet?!"
Zheng Chang stepped forward with a gloomy expression, "Sir, I'm afraid this is beyond our expectations..."
"I followed your instructions and secretly sent people to handle this matter. Even those restive forces in the city had already been warned..."
"The situation was already under control, but for some reason... it seems a new force has emerged in the city!"
Zheng Chang said coldly, "This force is secretly fanning the flames and stirring up the emotions of the people, making it difficult to resolve this matter!"
Wang Shiquan looked at him coldly: "Hasn't it been found out yet?"
Zheng Chang gritted his teeth and said, "Sir, the enemy's whereabouts are extremely secretive. We have no way of tracking them down. It's as if they had anticipated this. Our people have been led by the nose..."
"waste!"
Wang Shiquan spoke coldly, looking angry.
Public opinion in the city was fermenting, and now the people had already turned their attention to him. If this matter continued to ferment, alarming the governor, or if it was reported to the capital...
"I order you to do whatever it takes to settle this matter as soon as possible!" Wang Shiquan said angrily.
"I obey your command!"
"besides……"
Wang Shiquan took a deep breath and looked up at Zheng Chang: "Where is Wang Changjin?"
Hearing this name, Zheng Chang's heart skipped a beat.
Wang Changjin?
This person is none other than your biological brother.
Zheng Chang's eyelids twitched suddenly, and he lowered his head and said, "The Second Master has lived alone in the west of the city since he moved out of the mansion a few years ago. He never goes out and rarely interacts with the outside world..."
“…”
Xunyang City, western suburbs, house.
A middle-aged man in a plain grey robe was carrying a kettle, watering the flowers and plants in the yard. The flowers and plants were growing lushly and vigorously.
A look of satisfaction appeared on the middle-aged man's face. He put down the kettle and sat down in the pavilion nearby. A servant had already prepared hot tea for him.
The middle-aged man picked up his teacup and drank a cup of hot tea on this cool autumn day, closing his eyes and enjoying it for a while. Until the sound of footsteps in the yard not far away broke the tranquility.
"master!"
A servant hurried into the pavilion and whispered something into the middle-aged man's ear. The middle-aged man was startled for a moment, then recovered and nodded lightly.
"I see."
Not long after, a figure appeared in the yard again.
Wang Shiquan stepped into the courtyard, looked at the middle-aged man sitting in the pavilion, and walked slowly towards him without saying a word.
"grown ups!"
The maid in the pavilion spoke respectfully, but was coldly waved away by Wang Shiquan.
Soon, there were only two people left in the pavilion.
"Long Gold!"
Wang Shiquan stared at the middle-aged man sitting in the pavilion and spoke slowly in a voice neither cold nor indifferent.
Wang Changjin then slowly opened his eyes, a smile appearing on his face: "How come you have time to come to my place today?"
Wang Shiquan had a blank expression on his face, and looked at the middle-aged man in front of him with a slightly complicated look in his eyes. He looked somewhat similar to him.
They are brothers, real brothers!
Wang Shiquan's expression was hidden, and his tone was cold: "Did you do it?"
Wang Changjin seemed a little surprised and glanced at him: "What do you mean?"
"Were you the one behind all the things Qin'er did in the past few years?" Wang Shiquan stared at his face.
Wang Changjin, however, showed no sign of panic or uneasiness at being exposed. Instead, he raised the corner of his mouth slightly, with a hint of sarcasm: "Since you've come all this way, you must already have the answer in your mind. If that's the case, why bother with this?"
"So, it was you who did it?"
Wang Shiquan's eyes instantly became extremely gloomy: "Why do you do this?!"
"Why?"
Wang Changjin raised the corner of his mouth slightly: "Why do you say that?"
"Everything I do is for the good of our Wang family!"
Wang Shiquan's expression immediately became furious. He angrily said, "For the good of the Wang family? Which of these things you've done isn't dragging the Wang family into the abyss?!"
"Human trafficking, smuggling salt, embezzlement, land annexation... Which of these crimes is not enough to make you die ten times over?!"
Wang Shiquan was extremely angry. He could never have imagined that his own brother would do such a heartless thing behind his back.
However, Wang Changjin's eyes were filled with a hint of contempt, as if he didn't take it to heart at all. He glanced at Wang Shiquan and said, "If it weren't for what I did, would our Wang family have the status it has today?"
"Without me winning over the major aristocratic families in Yanzhou and Xunyang County, how could you have secured the position of Xunyang Governor?"
"My dear brother, you don't think that you have been able to stay in the position of Xunyang Governor for ten years because you are capable and competent, right?"
Wang Shiquan's face suddenly turned ugly: "What do you mean by that?"
Wang Changjin picked up his teacup, took a sip, and spoke calmly, "When the Jiang family fell, how many people were eyeing the position of Xunyang Governor? Ask yourself, were you qualified and capable of holding this position back then?"
Wang Shiquan's face was gloomy and he stood there silently without saying a word.
Indeed, his becoming the prefect of Xunyang was beyond everyone's expectations. With his qualifications, he was not qualified at all.
But he finally got it!
It was not only because of the Wang family's efforts, but also because he had the support of many aristocratic families in Yanzhou and Xunyang County.
Wang Shiquan had always believed that it was a combination of luck and God's blessing. But after hearing Wang Changjin's words, he had an unbelievable thought in his mind.
"You were able to become the governor of Xunyang because of the support of those noble families, but do you think that those noble families would support you and our Wang family for nothing?"
Wang Changjin sneered, "What they want is profit. Our Wang family can provide them with enough bargaining chips. They don't care who the Xunyang prefect is. They only care about how much benefit our Wang family can give them!"
"If it weren't for my efforts over the years, do you really think our Wang family would have achieved the status we have today? As the prefect of Xunyang, could you really have sat there comfortably until now?"
Wang Shiquan suddenly stood there in a daze, not saying a word for a long time.
When the truth was revealed, it was hard for him to accept.
"so……"
Wang Shiquan's voice was hoarse: "Is this why you did all these things behind my back all these years?"
"You were responsible for all the things that happened in Xunyang County over the years?!"
Wang Changjin's expression remained calm as he glanced at him and said, "Everything I do is for the good of the Wang family."
Wang Shiquan said angrily: "You are dragging the Wang family into the abyss. If anything goes wrong, the Wang family will be doomed!"
"abyss?"
Wang Changjin, however, was unconcerned: "You and I are already in the abyss, and we have no choice... My dear brother, have you really forgotten what happened more than ten years ago?"
"Have you really forgotten why the Jiang family was wiped out overnight?"
Wang Shiquan's expression immediately changed, becoming uncertain.
"Once a traitor, always a traitor!"
Wang Changjin looked at him and sneered, "Jiang Cheng was just like you back then, stubborn and unyielding. You know what happened to him in the end..."
Wang Shiquan was completely silent!
He wanted to refute, but he couldn't say a word.
Ten years ago, since he took office, he had always wanted to be a good official. But in the end, it seemed that everything was in vain.
It turned out that he still couldn't escape from this carefully woven cage!
"In Yanzhou, and even within Xunyang County, the various forces have long been closely connected. A single move can affect the entire body... You can't change it, and you don't need to change it!"
Wang Changjin saw Wang Shiquan remain silent and shook his head gently: "You can still continue to be the governor of Xunyang. No one can shake your position. This Xunyang County still belongs to our Wang family. No one can change it!"
Wang Shiquan seemed to come back to his senses and said in a cold voice: "Qin'er is missing!"
"His disappearance has something to do with you!"
Wang Changjin frowned slightly and fell silent: "I'm also looking for his whereabouts!"
"I'm afraid there are other forces involved in Xunyang City."
Wang Shiquan sneered: "You said that Xunyang County is under the control of our Wang family, but now Qin'er's whereabouts are unknown, and rumors are spreading throughout the city..."
"How do you explain it?"
Wang Changjin was silent for a moment and frowned.
He had also heard about the recent events in Xunyang County and had found some clues, but he was still not sure.
"I heard that Prince Lin has arrived in Xunyang City?" Wang Changjin said.
Wang Shiquan said expressionlessly: "He is at my house."
Then he seemed to realize something: "Is Qin'er's disappearance related to him?"
Wang Changjin didn't explain, but narrowed his eyes slightly: "I heard that Prince Lin has a maid named Jiang by his side..."
Hearing this surname, Wang Shiquan frowned: "What does it mean?"
"The mother of Prince Lin is from the Jiang family of Jiangnan. Is it strange that a maid in Prince Lin's mansion has the surname Jiang?"
"Do you still remember that when the Jiang family was executed, the Jiang mother and daughter escaped and their whereabouts are unknown?"
Wang Shiquan's eyes narrowed.
Of course he didn't forget.
When Jiang Cheng died in Miaojiang, the entire Jiang family was executed, but for some reason Jiang Cheng's wife and daughter escaped.
At that time, their Wang family sent almost all their experts to search for the Jiang family mother and daughter, but when they found them, the mother and daughter had already frozen to death in the river in the wilderness.
Wang Changjin sneered, "The mother and daughter we found back then were completely unrecognizable. Aside from the identical clothing and jewelry, there's no other evidence to prove their identities...Are you truly certain those two bodies are Jiang Cheng's wife and daughter?"
Wang Shiquan's expression changed slightly. He did have doubts and had searched for them over the years, but there was still no clue. He gradually assumed that the mother and daughter were dead.
"You mean, they're still alive?"
Wang Shiquan frowned: "Back then, they were helpless. If they were still alive, how could they have escaped the pursuit?"
Wang Changjin sneered, "Who said they are helpless?"
"What's the meaning?!"
"Jiang Cheng knew Lin Hengzhong back then, when he wasn't even the Lin Prince yet. They had a pretty good relationship..."
Wang Changjin didn't continue, but Wang Shiquan's pupils shrank suddenly: "You mean..."
“I’m back!”
Wang Changjin's eyes gradually became solemn, and he said in a cold voice: "They are back for revenge!"
“…”
"Your Highness, I have followed your instructions and secretly sent people to fan the flames and escalate the situation further..."
Lin Qingqing lowered her head to report the results of the battle, but there was a hint of doubt between her brows: "Your Highness, will it really work if we do this?"
Although spreading public opinion and making a big fuss about the matter would cause some trouble to the Wang family, it would not cause much harm.
"It's no use!"
Lin Jiangnian shook his head slightly.
Lin Qingqing was puzzled: "Then why..."
"This prince only wants to expand the influence of this matter. Whether it can have a great impact on the Wang family is not important..."
Lin Jiangnian sighed: "With this level of farce now, it is almost impossible to shake the status of the Wang family."
not enough!
The evidence is far from enough!
From the existing charges, whether it is human trafficking, smuggling salt and so on, there is no direct evidence to prove that it is related to the Wang family.
The Wang family was no fool, and Wang Qin was clearly no fool either. It was impossible for them to personally handle such a matter. All of this was done by others, with the Wang family controlling it from behind.
Although Wang Qin is now suspected, as long as the Wang family is willing to be ruthless and carry out a righteous extermination, even if the losses are heavy, it will not damage the foundation of the Wang family!
"If this is all you are capable of, it doesn't seem like your style, does it?!"
Lin Jiangnian muttered to himself. Knowing Zhiyuan, this didn't seem like her style. Why would she make such a move if she wasn't absolutely sure?
Moreover, if she wanted revenge, why didn't she show up yet?
What is she waiting for?
Just as Lin Jiangnian was thinking, a burst of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the yard, accompanied by several figures passing by.
"What happened?"
Lin Jiangnian took a look.
Lin Qingqing left in a hurry and hurried back soon after.
"Your Highness!"
"What is it?"
"Wang Qin has been rescued!"
“…”