Embers

When Suhe arrived at Changluo County, there was no one guarding the city gate; the first thing he saw was thick black smoke.

The people on the street were either rushing about or huddled together talking animatedly, clearly indicating that something big had happened in the city.

"What happened?"

Su He spurred his horse and galloped toward the black smoke, but he stopped after only a short distance because he found the area around the county government office was even more chaotic.

One of the main gates of the county government office was leaning against the frame, and the other was lying on the ground, leaving many muddy marks from being stepped on.

As I dismounted and approached, I saw that the table in the front hall had been overturned, the gavel had rolled to the base of the wall, and blood had dried into black lines along the cracks in the floor tiles, emitting a foul odor.

The overturning of a county government office could be a big deal, but it could also be a small one.

On a grander scale, this is practically a slap in the face to the Yan Kingdom's imperial court.

Even though the Yan Kingdom is now weak, a lean tiger is still bigger than a horse.

It should be noted that during the most glorious period of the Yan Kingdom, it unified the entire Dongjin Continent. With a single decree from the Yan Ancestor, the major powers of the other continents were required to come to pay tribute every year.

As for how to put it in a smaller way...

If the person doing this were a high-ranking official or a member of the imperial family, the official document from the court would simply be a request for residence renovation.

But is that even possible?

"..."

When Suhe deduced this, her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

If the man in gray is that person, then it's quite possible.

His heart was pounding in his chest. Su He was so excited that he practically ran into the government office.

There was no one in the main hall, no one in the backyard, but there was one person in the office... a minor official was hunched over his desk, writing furiously.

Suhe walked behind him and saw the first line of text.

[A gray-clad sorcerer has killed an official and destroyed his seal; he is suspected to be an evil cultivator from another continent. Report this to the prefectural city immediately.]

"Who told you to write it like that!"

Suhe's eyelids twitched violently.

Hearing a sound behind him, the clerk dropped his pen in fright. As he stood up, his knee slammed against the bottom of the table, turning pale with pain. He masked his fear with a roar:

"You audacious scoundrel! How dare you trespass on the sacred grounds of the government office! There may be some trouble in Changluo County, but the Yan Kingdom still exists. Believe me or not..."

He stopped halfway through his sentence, a wooden token almost pressed against his face.

"Chengtian Prefecture, Xunjin Division, Secretary, Suhe."

Suhe raised the field work token.

Upon seeing the token, the clerk was overjoyed rather than angry, as if he had found a lifeline: "Sir, are you from the capital?"

Su He was anxious and went straight to the point:

"What are you doing!"

"I am Liu Asi, a clerk in the clerk's office. Please don't misunderstand, sir. I am just a scribe."

"Miswriting a word can kill you!"

Suhe pulled the urgent report out of the table.

Liu Asi was confused and wisely didn't dare to reply.

Su He glanced at the handwriting, his expression growing even more serious, and asked again:

"Where's the original?"

"They...they've been seen off."

"When?"

"At the end of the day, not long after the county magistrate died, Huang, the head constable, sent the message by a courier, saying that the prefectural city should know, that the Liu family was finished, and that this matter could not be suppressed."

Su He's fingers tightened. Combining the clues from the ancient locust village, he roughly guessed some of the story's outline. He quickly asked again:

"Is that man in gray still in the city?"

"They killed someone and then left the city," the clerk shook his head.

Su He quickly asked a couple more questions, and after learning the general outline of the matter, he opened the window of the office and looked towards the end of the long street.

That person left...where will they go?

Suhe took off chasing after him, wanting to gamble on a direction, even if he was wrong, it would be better than sitting here.

However, after taking two steps, he stopped again.

The urgent report was still lying on the table, and the words "[Gray-Clad Demon]" stung my eyes.

The letter was sent at the end of the 5-7 PM. It's already night. The post horse is traveling on the official road. If it's a black horse, they can change horses at each stop. It should arrive in the prefectural city by tomorrow morning.

There's no need to guess; once the urgent report enters the prefectural office, it will definitely be sent up the chain of command.

Killing officials, destroying official seals, foreign heretics, provoking national power...

Border wars are frequent these days, with several small countries relying on the support of major powers from other continents to frequently provoke Yan's territory.

If this gets out, it will affect Yan Kingdom's prestige in the world, and Yan Kingdom will definitely take the initiative to attack.

The Prefect will definitely stamp the urgent report with the Prefectural Seal, and the arrest warrant will be distributed to all places, including city gates, post stations, ferry crossings, and border troops.

so...

Is the Yan Kingdom issuing an arrest warrant for Yan Zu?

When the thought popped into Suhe's head, she found it utterly absurd.

He looked towards the city gate, exhaled a few long breaths, and finally decided to give up the idea of ​​chasing Yan Zu. The probability of catching him was too small, and the matter at hand was too important.

Su He turned back to the table, her voice a little dry:

"Liu Asi, the magistrate is dead, but what about the clerk?"

"He, he's dead too."

"The registrar?"

"He's hiding. He was just in the backyard a moment ago, but I don't know where he's gone now."

"Who's in charge of the county government now?"

Liu Asi glanced at him but dared not answer.

Su He slammed the token on the table. The wooden token wasn't heavy, but the sound made Liu Asi flinch.

"According to the laws of Yan Kingdom, when a local official dies, the Bureau of Investigation and Apprehension may temporarily seize the documents until the prefectural city sends someone to take over! From now on, the case room is sealed off, and any remaining documents are temporarily under my examination. Anyone who takes even one will be considered to have destroyed a case!"

"My lord, you are only a ninth-rank official..."

"Even a ninth-rank official is still an official!"

Su He looked at him and said, "The magistrate is dead, the official seal is broken, and there's still someone here who can keep things in order. Find one of them, and I'll have him sit here immediately."

Liu Asi shut up.

Two constables were peering out, but upon hearing this, they retreated.

Suhe ignored them and opened the tattered scrolls and account books piled on the table.

The more he turned the pages, the sullen his face became.

The village protection fee is collected monthly, and all twenty-six villages have it.

Of the gambling den's profits, 70% went to the Liu family, 20% went to the county government's private treasury, and 10% was handed over to the imperial court.

Write it down.

"what?"

Liu Asi was puzzled.

Su He pushed the paper in front of him: "Start writing from Chen Ayue, how the Liu family protected her, how the county government ruled, what happened in the Liu residence today, and write down whatever you saw."

Liu Asi looked at the paper, then at the bloodstains outside that no one had cleaned up, his hands trembling violently.

"Sir, if you write it this way, the county magistrate is also included."

"He was already inside."

"If the prefectural government blames us..."

"Blame me first."

Su He pressed down on the urgent report that read "Gray-Clad Demon," and said, "This one needs to be changed!"

Liu Asi swallowed hard: "Then how should I write it?"

"The Liu Family Scandal in Changluo County".

Su He said, word by word, "The Liu family colluded with the county government, occupying twenty-six villages, buying women, extorting grain, and setting up gambling dens. Now that the case has been exposed, the county magistrate is dead, and a gray-clad knight has rid the country of this scourge. Please quickly request the prefectural city to send personnel to take over."

Liu Asi held his pen in limbo, not daring to put it down.

Suhe looked at him: "Write!"

Liu Asi looked worried: "As for the murderer... they just... they wrote 'involved in a case pending investigation'?"

"The case is under investigation."

"But he did kill the official."

"The prefectural government will investigate."

Su He's voice was steady. "Let's first clarify the Liu family's situation."

Liu Asi lowered his head and wrote.

When he wrote the words "buying a woman," sweat dripped from his forehead onto the edge of the paper. He quickly wiped it with his sleeve, but the more he wiped, the dirtier it became.

Suhe didn't urge him.

He went to the door and banged on the big drum, summoning out all the hidden constables, warehouse clerks, and scribes.

"Those who are alive, go to the investigation room."

Nobody moved.

Su He glanced at them. "Anyone who dares to run away, if someone comes from the prefectural city tomorrow, I'll report them as fugitives. Anyone who dares to burn documents, I'll report them as destroying cases!"

That works.

An old warehouse clerk was moved out first, followed by two constables, and then even the servants hiding in the kitchen were dragged over.

Suhe had the body carried to the backyard and covered, the files moved back to the shelves, and the old records of the Liu family's dealings were piled up separately to one side.

These things kept me busy until the wee hours of the morning.

During the chaos, someone tried to slip an account book into their pocket, but Suhe immediately grabbed their wrist.

"My lord, I'm afraid I'll be blamed by my superiors, because my name is on this list."

"Write down your confession if you have a name on it."

Suhe pulled the ledger back. "Hide it. You're the ringleader. If you write it down, it can be considered a confession."

The man's face gleamed with malice.

Su He quickly came up with a clever idea and pretended to be calm: "I am from Chengtian Prefecture, after all. I have cultivated to the Guanchen Realm but have never killed anyone. I don't mind breaking my fast today."

These words suppressed any malice in the entire room.

Logically speaking, the ninth rank should only be the Body Tempering Realm, but Su He came from Chengtian Prefecture, so no one dared to try.

As dawn approached, the smoke from the Liu residence finally thinned out.

Su He didn't sleep all night and went to the Liu residence with two constables.

The plaque above the Liu residence gate was cracked in two, with two characters lying on the stone steps.

Across the street, a man was squatting, holding a bronze candlestick in his arms. When he saw the officials coming, he was so frightened that he quickly hid it behind his back.

"I didn't steal it, I just picked it up. The Liu family fell, so everyone picked it up."

Su He ignored him and simply collected the account pages that were legible one by one: village protection fees, gambling dens, guarantee agreements, and they all matched the records from the county government.

enough.

He turned and went back to the county government office. Liu Asi had already written the urgent report and confession. The handwriting was still ugly, but it had everything he needed.

Su He read the letter word by word before sealing it in a bamboo tube: "Go to the prefectural city immediately."

Liu Asi's expression changed: "Sir, me?"

"You're a junior clerk in the case office; you've heard, seen, and written about these things. You're the most suitable person to go."

"In the prefectural city, they inquire about the murderer... but where is the chivalrous hero?"

Tell the truth.

Su He paused, "Only say what you saw with your own eyes. Don't make up a single word about what you didn't see."

Liu Asi, holding the bamboo tube, moved his lips: "Then the first urgent report..."

"The first batch has already been shipped and can't be stopped, so you need to hurry."

"Yes, ma'am..."

Liu Asi gritted his teeth, mounted his horse, and with a long neigh, the horse charged out of the long street.

Su He stood at the entrance of the county government office, his palms sweating profusely. He had never dealt with such matters before, nor had he ever commanded so many people.

Thankfully, they managed to calm things down.

But his brow did not unfurrow, because he understood.

The words of a ninth-rank official carry too little weight.

The face of Yan Kingdom carries immense weight.