Luo Longwen smiled faintly and said, "Minister Ma, Fan Yingqi's reasoning is not without merit. I believe the case should be concluded as follows... let's proceed according to his wishes."
What?
The three were immediately perplexed. They had been so aggressive before, why the hasty conclusion now?
Ma Sen asked, "Lord Luo, what about the confessions we obtained from Li Mingfeng and that Huang Ying? This morning, during our discussion, Fan Yingqi surprisingly claimed it was a baseless retraction and inadmissible! Lord Luo, are we truly not going to argue for it?"
Luo Longwen chuckled, "At that time, we interrogated Li Mingfeng only to pressure Fan Yingqi, to facilitate the deployment of troops to attack that village. Did we not attack later? What we want is dead bodies, we want to escalate the situation. Now that it has escalated, that's enough..."
He spoke as if hesitating, his expression inscrutable, leaving the three even more bewildered. They felt Luo Longwen was hiding some powerful move. But he was a distinguished guest of the Yan family, so how could they inquire?
After a brief chat, Luo Longwen appeared exceptionally composed, speaking leisurely, "None of you need to worry. Whatever Fan Yingqi says, that's how it will be. I am returning to the capital to report. Hmm, Kong Yang, you are the governor, your position is esteemed. Fan Yingqi cannot conceal things from you. You must keep a close eye on it and ensure no mistakes are made. Hmm, Wen Mu, Ru Cheng, stop your bickering. If you continue, Tan Lun will not be able to remain silent. Conclude the case quickly and send it to the capital."
The three, at a loss, could only agree.
Meanwhile, at the Western Military Camp in Jingde Town.
Fan Yingqi and Pan Sheng were troubled by the new immigrant potters.
The two considered that the Youyi garrison from the Zhoushan Public Office was stationed in the village. If they were to conduct a thorough search and make mass arrests, it would inevitably force Zhu Mo into conflict.
However, if they did not investigate, a crucial link would be missing from the case files, making it difficult to report to the court.
Fan Yingqi's descent into Jiangyou this time had doubled his troubles. The mere thought of Zhu Mo sent a surge of blood rushing to his head. He scratched his hair, agitated, "Siming, tell me, the Youyi garrison from the Zhoushan Public Office is stationed in the village. Doesn't that clearly indicate Zhu Mo's involvement? If we don't clarify this, how can we account for it?"
Pan Sheng also knew Zhu Mo was not to be trifled with. The accusation of rebellion this time was originally a smear campaign by the Crown Prince. If they were to truly accuse him of rebellion, there was little basis for it. Moreover, in the grand undertaking of reform, Zhang Juzheng was his ally. It would be truly unjust to wrong him. He immediately replied, "Brother Bo Zhen, your subordinate believes that the Zhoushan Public Office is, after all, an agency under the Ministry of Justice. It is not unreasonable to send some people to investigate the case. Moreover, the leader is Zhongwu School Lieutenant Lü Kun, not Zhu Mo himself. Therefore, I believe a casual inquiry will suffice. Are there not seven or eight people in prison already, whose confessions have been recorded? This time, we will send people there, have Lü Kun, Xu Chuan, and those other leaders explain clearly, and record their confessions. Is that sufficient?"
Fan Yingqi had argued with Ma Sen that morning and had a nagging feeling that this case would still cause trouble!
But after thinking for a long time, he couldn't pinpoint the source of the problem. He then said, "Siming, you will have to take the trouble to record the confessions. Record more, and make sure the matter of the armed conflict is explained clearly. As for the rebellion, it was led by those seven or eight people, and the others were merely swept along. Say that out of consideration for the ignorance of the Qi slaves, and given the casualties from the armed conflict, the focus will be on pacification. The case files will be prepared first. If the court has further considerations, we can investigate later... Also, that Lü Kun from the Zhoushan Public Office, have him explain why he came and how he became involved in the armed conflict, and so on."
Pan Sheng noted it all down and, before dusk, hurried off with over twenty yamen runners. They worked until midnight, recording the statements of fourteen people, including Lü Kun, Xu Chuan, and Wang Shengcai.
The next morning, Fan Yingqi convened the officials again. To his surprise, it went very smoothly. Ma Sen and Lu Wen also suddenly agreed to downplay the matter. The final judgment maintained the initial assessment: a portion of the Qi slaves, dissatisfied with their harsh living conditions and frequently ostracized by the older potters, had conspired to rebel. They fabricated prophecies, forged a grand marshal's seal for all forces, and secretly burned imperial artifacts, awaiting the opportunity to support Zhu Mo as King Wu. The kiln owner, Li Mingfeng, reported the conspiracy. The rebel Qi slaves then instigated conflict, leading to more than ten armed clashes. During this, imperial troops suppressed the unrest twice, resulting in the deaths of one thousand three hundred and fifty-six people.
Due to the magnitude of the case, the Zhoushan Public Office sent personnel to investigate thoroughly, and they were inadvertently drawn into the armed conflict. A total of thirteen perpetrators were involved, eight of whom were ringleaders, all imprisoned in Fuzhou. The case files were sent to the capital via express messenger that afternoon.
That evening, in Xin Hu Village, Zhu Mo, Lü Kun, Xu Chuan, Wang Shengcai, Wang Wei, and others convened in a house. Many villagers, worried about further trouble, were reluctant to leave, forming several rings around the house.
Xu Chuan knew the villagers' reluctance to leave stemmed from resentment at being falsely accused. He immediately said, "Scholar Zhu, Mister Lü, we can see that the case has concluded, but we are still wronged. All thirteen of us who were arrested are innocent! But the case was so large, so complex, how could we have been saved?" He shook his head, deeply feeling the world was truly dark.
Wang Shengcai advised, "Forget it. We are all of lowly status. The case is settled, and so many people still have to live. For those thirteen, we can build a shrine for them later."
Lü Kun comforted them, "I think the court might not take it too seriously. Perhaps the Crown Prince will even issue a pardon."
Zhu Mo, who had been absent-minded, nodded. "Uncle Jian is right. The Crown Prince's goal was merely to smear me. Once the court's decision comes down, he will likely feign benevolence towards the people again, and perhaps even grant a pardon."
He paused and then added, "I am only worried that the case is not yet over... If it concludes like this, it would be a happy ending for everyone."
Xu Chuan and Wang Shengcai said in unison, "Not over yet?"
"Heh heh," Zhu Mo replied, "Of course, it's not over. I don't think the Yan family will let it go so easily... There will be further complications. We still need to be vigilant. Don't dismantle the barricades yet. We still need to patrol at night. Old Xu, Old Wang, you need to be extra careful. Uncle Jian and I still need to return to Hangzhou."
The villagers were reluctant to part, but they were helpless.
As they mounted their horses, Lü Kun asked, "Zi Xuan, are you saying there will be another storm in the imperial court? Now that we are returning, are you planning to leverage those ceramics?"
Zhu Mo nodded. "Yes, let's see first. They accused us of rebellion, so why can't we accuse them? Let's go! Let's lie low for a while!"
With a shout, he took the lead and quickly disappeared into the night.
Seven days later, the capital.
Jian Ji Hall, early morning.
The Crown Prince and Chen Yiqin arrived more than an hour early.
The report from Jiangyou had arrived the day before yesterday. Yesterday, they had consulted with Yan Shifan once more and agreed to draft a proposal the day after tomorrow, to be dispatched to Jiangyou as quickly as possible via imperial decree. Although Yan Shifan had some doubts, the atmosphere yesterday had been very harmonious. Yan Shifan raised a few points of concern, and after the Crown Prince personally clarified them, Yan Shifan agreed.
At this moment, the two sat opposite each other in conversation. Chen Yiqin was calm and composed, while the Crown Prince was restless. Although his heart was pounding, he felt that overall, things were stable. More than ten days ago, Mu Zhaobi had returned overnight and mentioned that there might be issues with Prince Jing, perhaps feigning madness, and that he would personally lead men to investigate. The Crown Prince had immediately instructed him: if Prince Jing was not mad, then Mu Zhaobi should be killed. Mu Zhaobi, having been through many battles, was naturally not comparable to Fan Yingqi or Yin Shidan. He believed this mission should be without incident. As for the affairs in Jiangyou, Yan Shifan had no objections to the case being concluded in this manner. Even if there were any further complications, as long as Mu Zhaobi eliminated Prince Jing, and Zhu Mo was implicated in rebellion, the throne could not be given to anyone else. Moreover, Yin Tai and Zhang Eryang's elite troops were almost ready. If necessary, anyone who interfered would have their entire families annihilated that very night. Thinking of this, a long-lost smile appeared on his face.
Chen Yiqin had just roughly outlined the strategy. Seeing the Crown Prince's pleased expression, he said, "Your Highness, when Yan Donglou arrives later, I will question him like this. If he disagrees, I will propose replacing the Governors-General of Fujian-Zhejiang and Jizhou-Liaoning. I believe Yan Donglou is a pillar of the nation and should understand the greater good."
"Indeed, indeed," the Crown Prince chuckled. "The Yan family, father and son, shouldn't be so foolish as to miss this. Yan Shifan had no objections yesterday, and Fan Yingqi is mature and steady. Jiangyou should be without any further storms."