The First Lackey Under The Empress

Scholars' Street.

The summer sun was scorching, and tea sheds lined both sides of the street.

At this moment, a group of menacing imperial guards occupied one of the tea sheds.

Everyone around avoided them, fearing to provoke the ill luck brought by these "Kings of Hell."

Hou Renmeng slammed his scabbard on the table, a knife in his hand reflecting the sunlight, and wiped it carefully with a handkerchief.

"Chief, if the target resists arrest later, are we really going to take them by force?" an officer asked.

Hou Renmeng, with thick eyebrows, large eyes, and a defiant expression, squinted, revealing crow's feet at the corners of his eyes:

"What else?"

The officer, who had been expelled from the Peony Hall along with him, clicked his teeth and said:

"I feel like I'm dreaming. We're going to arrest over a dozen people today alone.

The first one is the Vice Minister of the Civil Service Department, a sixth-rank official in the capital. The key is that this guy is a member of the Li faction, with considerable backing. Are you sure you haven't made a mistake?"

Hou Renmeng grinned:

"If we're talking about backing, our new Commissioner Zhao's backer is the Emperor himself. What backer is bigger than the Emperor?

Stop talking nonsense, you lot. I know what you're like.

Have you ever been soft when arresting people in the past? What kind of trouble haven't you stirred up? Or are you saying that after being in the Pear Blossom Hall for half a year, you've become timid as mice?"

The group of followers laughed.

The troublemakers in the Pear Blossom Hall were far more than just five; there were many more followers underneath who were not to be trifled with.

Those who didn't understand thought the Pear Blossom Hall was the most useless division, but the truth was quite the opposite.

Anyone who could become a troublemaker but wasn't kicked out, only relegated to the 'Cold Palace,' had real skills.

This group was like a bunch of Sun Wukongs. Without a Monkey King leading them, they were inconspicuous.

But when Zhao Du'an gave the order, the courage and ruthlessness displayed by these unruly officers far surpassed the softies in other divisions.

"Stop talking nonsense, here they come."

Hou Renmeng stood up, crossed his arms, and walked to the center of the long street. He saw a carriage approaching from the front.

Soon, the carriage was forced to stop. A clerk accompanying the carriage lifted the curtain, revealing a middle-aged man sitting upright, frowning and saying:

"Why are you blocking the road?"

Several imperial guards surrounded the carriage from both sides, laughing.

Without a word, a rain of fists and feet fell, beating the Vice Minister of the Civil Service Department's personal attendant until he wailed and scurried away, covering his head.

"Stop!" The Vice Minister, with his impressive background, was furious and shouted sternly.

However, upon seeing the imperial guards' uniforms, he felt a sense of instinctive fear.

"Sir, Commissioner Zhao of the Pear Blossom Hall invites you for a visit," Hou Renmeng grinned, producing the arrest warrant.

"What crime have I committed? You…" The Vice Minister tried to struggle.

Hou Renmeng flicked his wrist, and the knife in his hand whistled through the air!

With a "whoosh" and a "thud," it plunged straight into the carriage.

Passing close to his scalp, it pinned the Vice Minister's official hat firmly to the carriage, the handle of the knife still trembling!

"Ah! !"

The middle-aged official fell back in fright, and the onlookers scattered in a panic, shouting, "Murder!"

Hou Renmeng dragged the sixth-rank official out like a dead dog, threw him on the ground, spat a mouthful of phlegm, and tilted his head, saying:

"Tie him up."

Then he took out a torn piece of paper from his pocket:

"Next."

… …

… …

On the other side.

Old Zheng reined in his horse, steadily controlling the spirited steed beneath him, and looked up at the Ministry of Rites' seven-bay office building across the street.

Beside him, his followers dismounted and immediately handed him his ever-present large tea mug as soon as Old Zheng got down.

"Commissioner Zheng, should we wait here?" one of the followers asked:

"If we wait until the officials are dismissed at noon before making the arrest, we can minimize the impact."

Old Zheng took the large tea mug, took a satisfying gulp, and said with a smile:

"Time is tight, the mission is heavy, so we won't wait."

Seeing the follower hesitate, he said:

"If you have something to say, just say it."

The young follower, who had been transferred from another division, asked in confusion:

"You're getting old and will be retiring soon. Why bother with all this?"

He had been assigned to Old Zheng after joining the Pear Blossom Hall.

In his impression, this old superior was always kind and gentle, quite different from the stereotypical image of the Jinyiwei Yama.

He was just biding his time in the Pear Blossom Hall.

It didn't seem necessary to create complications in his final year.

Old Zheng hadn't said anything yet when another middle-aged Jinyiwei walked over.

He smiled and patted the young colleague on the shoulder, saying:

"You're still too young. You've been in the Jinyiwei for a while now, haven't you heard the story of 'Plum Blossom Number Nine'?"

Old Zheng smiled and sighed:

"Times have changed."

The history of the Jinyiwei was never short of legends.

Plum Blossom Number Nine was a famous figure in the Jinyiwei thirty years ago.

He came from the "Plum Blossom Hall" and was called Number Nine because his name contained the number "Nine." He was bold, meticulous, and extremely capable, solving many major cases.

He was once promoted to Commissioner of the Plum Blossom Hall and was the youngest Commissioner at the time.

Unfortunately, perhaps due to youthful exuberance or his innate sense of justice, Plum Blossom Number Nine couldn't stand the behavior of another Commissioner during a house raid. He refused to collude and angrily drew his sword.

Afterward, facing the Director's demand for a self-criticism, he angrily entered the Director's Hall with his sword, chopped the plaque, and was demoted all the way to the lowest-level follower.

After several twists and turns, he was eventually stripped of his authority to handle cases outside.

Disheartened and seemingly disappointed with the yamen, he disappeared from the scene.

Thus, the yamen had another Zheng Number Nine who spent his days drinking tea, reading newspapers, fiddling with wood carvings, and going through the motions.

"Hehe, I thought I would spend my time in the Pear Blossom Hall, this cold palace, until retirement, but who would have thought that I would meet a small superior who was willing to delegate authority to me, Old Zheng, to arrest people and handle cases."

Old Zheng smiled, his face full of wrinkles:

"Then I have to make some more noise and take off this Jinyiwei uniform before I can say I've finished what I started."

He stuffed the large tea mug into the young follower's arms, walked across the long street towards the opposite side with his hands behind his back, muttering:

"Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites? I've long heard that this person is not a good thing. I didn't expect that one day he would fall into Old Zheng's hands."

Soon, the Ministry of Rites' office was broken open.

With a wave of Old Zheng's hand, the officers behind him surged in like wolves and tigers.

Before long, they dragged out a green-robed official, bound hand and foot.

"Next."

… …

… …

For an entire day, the Jinyiwei of the Pear Blossom Hall launched attacks everywhere, almost running through all the major yamen in the capital.

Each time there was resistance, they would rain down fists and feet, smashing hard with their scabbards, beating a group of civil officials until they cried for their parents and mothers, and then dragging the target out, bound hand and foot.

The process of sending people to the Imperial Prison never stopped.

As a result, people up and down the yamen were all alarmed.

They vaguely thought that some earth-shattering case had occurred in the court, which was why so many officials involved were collectively arrested.

By the evening, the remaining prison cells in the Imperial Prison were almost full.

Four exhausted but faintly excited captains also led their followers back to the Pear Blossom Hall to exchange their gains.

"Sir, all fifty-eight people on the list have been arrested and brought to justice, ready for your interrogation at any time," Qian Kero softly reported as she walked to Zhao Du'an, who seemed to be asleep beside the main seat.

Having seemingly slept all day, but in fact immersed in "contemplation," following the founding emperor through the desert for a day, Zhao Du'an opened his eyes.

He looked at his subordinates who were looking at him eagerly beside the long table.

Outside the hall, the setting sun shone on the large pear tree.

The unripe pears seemed to be plated with warm light, as if they were ripe.

"I know," Zhao Du'an said.

His nonchalant attitude made it seem as if arresting fifty-eight court officials in one breath was not something to be surprised about.

Qian Kero asked:

"Then next, will you interrogate them tonight?"

"Interrogate?" Zhao Du'an raised his eyebrows, "Why interrogate?"

… …

… …

Just as the entire capital was being stirred up by Zhao Du'an's big move.

Inside the Peony Hall, in the council chamber.

The Commissioners of the eight divisions gathered here, having come by coincidence after learning of the Pear Blossom Hall's actions, attempting to discuss the matter.

At this moment, the eight people were scattered on both sides of the long table.

One of them spoke first:

"Everyone must have heard about what Zhao Du'an did today. A full fifty-eight officials, spanning all the major yamen, have been thrown into the Imperial Prison under the pretext of suspected collusion with rebel parties and cooperation with the investigation.

The prison is now overcrowded… At the latest by tomorrow morning, the officialdom will be in an uproar… What exactly does this Zhao want to do?"

After the words fell, Guan Leng, the Commissioner of the Pomegranate Hall, sitting in the first seat on the left, sneered and opened his mouth:

"This Zhao is crazy to grab credit. He sent someone to my place this morning to ask for cases, clamoring about debt, and I cursed him out. Isn't his intention obvious when he started arresting people on a large scale at noon? Isn't it just to gain merit?"

He was stout and burly, his muscles bulging under his official robe, and his beard was like steel needles.

His hands were covered with calluses, and the gnarled blue blood vessels seemed about to burst through his skin.

Next to him.

Haitang, sitting in the first seat on the right below him, said disdainfully:

"Can't you use your brain? Do you really think that Zhao Du'an is a straw bag playboy? Doesn't he know the consequences of such a large-scale search?"

She was slender, heroic, with an oval face, thin lips, a tear mole at the corner of her eye, and her long hair tied into a ponytail behind her head.

A soft leather weapon bag was tied around her waist, filled with throwing knives.

At this moment, as the "Commissioner of the Narcissus Hall," she frowned and analyzed:

"It's true that this Zhao wants to gain merit, but I think he definitely wouldn't do it aimlessly."

Tiechi Guan retorted sarcastically:

"So? Do you really think he has evidence of these fifty-eight people colluding with the rebel party? That's just wishful thinking."

The other Commissioners also participated in the discussion, and for a time everyone expressed their opinions, with different guesses.

In short, they were filled with incomprehension about Zhao Du'an's puzzling behavior.

"Quiet."

Soon, there was a tapping sound on the table, and everyone closed their mouths and looked at the head of the seat.

It was Zhang Han, the Commissioner of the Peony Hall, recognized as the number one, the Director's top man, and the "Workaholic."

Zhang Han was about thirty or forty years old, with a dignified appearance, fair skin, and rarely smiled.

At this moment, attracting everyone's attention, he slowly opened his mouth:

"Have you investigated the commonality of these fifty-eight people who were arrested?

As far as I know, coincidentally, all fifty-eight of these people had, in the previous Zhuang Xiaocheng escape case, submitted letters impeaching Zhao Du'an, requesting that he be executed as a warning to others."