Chapter 00222: The Arrival of Supervisor He!
# The Arrival of Supervisor He!
Chapter 222
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 222: The Arrival of Supervisor He!
Just as the head of the Zhan family was being dragged out by the private soldiers of the Li family and thrown to the ground, with several large footprints on his face, a large troop came galloping from the southern gate of the city, the thunderous sound of hooves like rolling thunder, raising clouds of dust as the common folk instinctively made way.
The soldiers were clad in bright armor, their steeds spirited and vigorous, exuding an impressive aura.
Among the army, two giant wolves accompanied them, their size comparable to lions, with scarlet tongues dripping saliva, scaring everyone away from approaching.
At the front, the flag bearers held high a large banner, the bright red character “He” visible from afar.
The officials exchanged glances, could it be, perhaps, could it really be?
In the blink of an eye, the army arrived at the Zhan residence, and a handsome man at the forefront raised his chin, leading a hundred or so cavalrymen to charge into the Zhan residence to “mediate.”
The two giant wolves also roared as they rushed inside.
With them around, the heads of these two families might regain their senses a bit quicker.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the handsome man dismounted and approached the officials, asking, “What’s going on? Is this how Dunyu welcomes me?”
A figure emerged from behind him, it was Peng Jue'an, the military officer.
The latter hurriedly addressed the officials, “This is the newly appointed Supervisor He of Xia Prefecture, our superior.”
He Chunhua flipped his left hand, and the State Order gleamed brilliantly.
The crowd had no doubts left and collectively bowed in respect.
“No need for formalities.” He Chunhua waited for them to complete their greetings before saying, “From this moment on, Peng Jue'an is relieved of his duties as military officer and assigned elsewhere; Zeng Feixiong—”
Zeng Feixiong jumped off his horse and strode over.
He Chunhua tossed him a kite coin, which he had taken from Peng Jue'an: “I appoint you as the military officer of the Xia Prefecture Supervisor’s Office, in charge of military affairs. Do your job well!”
Zeng Feixiong loudly responded, “Yes!”
In just a few breaths, the military officer of Xia Prefecture was replaced.
The officials understood that this new Supervisor had not directly entered Dunyu City but had instead first gone to Qingping Township to reveal his identity, directly taking over an army of over a thousand men from Peng Jue'an before turning back to Dunyu.
What they did not know was that the supporting troops had also directly charged into Peng Jue'an’s home, where He Chunhua had taken out the royal decree and various seals, directly seizing military power in front of the arriving Xia Prefecture army.
The humiliation He Chunhua felt when facing Sun Fuping with the royal decree back then was the same humiliation Peng Jue'an faced today.
Only by seizing military power could he have enough manpower and prestige to quickly establish himself in Dunyu.
Now, He Chunhua’s army had expanded to over two thousand two hundred men.
At this moment, the ranks parted, and over two hundred people were brought out, including members of the Zhan family and private soldiers of the Li family, all bearing signs of struggle, their clothes in tatters, some even bleeding from their heads.
He Chunhua’s face was stern as he declared, “Someone committed murder on the southern county road, and I captured them and brought them back.”
The supporting troops that had charged into the Zhan residence were fierce as wolves, even more ruthless than the fighting parties.
The officials feared the Li family and did not dare to take action, but the supporting troops had no such concerns.
The private soldiers of the Li family, blinded by rage, attempted to resist, only to be slapped or kicked to the ground.
However, He Chunhua’s subordinates were a mixed bunch, including ruffians from Heishui City and rebels from Woling Pass, who knew precisely how to inflict pain without killing.
The crowd grew larger, their eyes shining with excitement at the spectacle.
Soon, the chaos in the Zhan residence ceased, and both fighting parties were brought out.
Li Zhi and Li Rong could have avoided the fray, but now their clothes were torn, and they bore some injuries.
The Zhan family fared worse, with over a hundred injured and more than ten knocked to the ground, uncertain if they could still breathe.
“Outrageous!” He Chunhua tightened his grip on the horsewhip, pointing at the Li family as he reprimanded, his voice like thunder, “Breaking into private residences, raising private armies, bullying the weak, robbing in broad daylight—do you think you can overturn the heavens? Do you still recognize the law?”
The officials beside him hurriedly introduced his identity.
Seeing this unfamiliar official exuding authority, both families guessed his significance.
The head of the Zhan family, Zhan Qingmao, was both shocked and delighted, spitting out a broken tooth before pleading with Supervisor He for justice; the Li family members, under the watchful gaze of the two drooling giant wolves, felt their anger dissipate and fear rise.
The three hundred private soldiers brought by the Li family were also disarmed, standing with their heads down.
Li Rong stepped forward to defend, “My family’s old master was murdered; these people are involved!”
Li Zhi moved his lips but did not speak.
He Chunhua coldly replied, “I’ll spare you some face; now come with me to the yamen for a public trial. These private soldiers who assaulted others will all be detained; help the injured into the Zhan residence. You—” he pointed at the Zhizhong officer, “—summon doctors to the Zhan residence to treat the wounded, with expenses to be recorded, to be borne by the Li family later.”
He then called the Beijia officer forward: “As for you, assist the Zhan family in assessing their losses. All three hundred suspects are here; you are responsible for collecting all their stolen goods as evidence! As for the people, detain them for trial!”
“Alright, the representatives of the Li and Zhan families, now come with me!”
He issued orders fluidly, arranging everything clearly, and as he spoke, he used true strength, ensuring everyone present could hear him clearly.
This decisive and vigorous manner deeply resonated with the onlookers, and some began to clap, the applause gradually spreading.
The common folk felt that today’s spectacle was perfect; the Li and Zhan families performed vigorously, and the new Supervisor’s arrival was swift and decisive, without any hesitation.
On horseback, He Lingchuan smiled as he glanced at the crowd, with Mao Tao and several subordinates in plain clothes hiding among the masses, acting as the atmosphere group, leading the applause.
The carefully prepared debut ceremony by his father had an effect beyond expectations.
Now, the citizens of the city all knew that the new Supervisor of Xia Prefecture had arrived, and upon his appearance, he had subdued the local tyrants of the Li and Zhan families—was this not a display of overwhelming authority?
Unfortunately, the applause was not particularly enthusiastic, indicating the deep fear most people had of the Li family.
The newly appointed military officer, Zeng Feixiong, left two hundred supporting troops behind, both to assist the Zhizhong and Beijia officials and to back them up.
These soldiers had been with the He family for the longest time, robust and ruthless, their discipline and execution far superior to the local troops of Xia Prefecture.
Any difficulties could be resolved on the spot.
The prominent figures of the Li and Zhan families were all taken away by He Chunhua in one fell swoop.
Without their interference, the provincial officials breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhizhong and Beijia exchanged glances, whispering as they entered the Zhan residence, “This Supervisor He seems quite different; he arrived and immediately pressed down the heads of these two families.”
“There’s still a long way to go; let’s wait and see. Who comes here as an official without contending with the Li family? However—” Zhizhong whispered, “Old Li died at such a critical moment; it’s bad luck for the Li family, and good fortune for the new Supervisor He.”
As He Lingchuan looked around while the army entered the city, many pointed at him.
“Wow, that person has a monkey sitting on his shoulder, a monkey wearing a bamboo hat,” a girl exclaimed.
He Lingchuan straightened his back even more.
“This person is quite handsome,” said another, blushing, but why was it a man!
He Lingchuan shivered, automatically interpreting the layers of the crowd’s attention as a welcome.
Now the troop moved north, crossing the city center.
He Chunhua clearly intended to strike while the iron was hot, ostensibly taking the Li and Zhan families to the yamen for a proper accounting, but in reality, to give them a warning.
From He Lingchuan’s observations, the streets of Dunyu were quite wide; the main street could accommodate five carriages side by side, while the auxiliary streets were narrower, but as one ventured deeper, some alleys could only allow one person to pass, and even the stout and pregnant women might struggle to get through.
The buildings were sturdy, lacking unnecessary embellishments, but the two- or three-story small buildings were more numerous than in Heishui City.
He did see several beautiful large residences, expansive in area, with impressive facades, even the bricks used for the walls were particularly neat.
He beckoned to a local officer, pointing ahead: “Whose residence is this?”
“Big family?” The officer shook his head like a wave drum, “No, no, no, this is the residence of the silk merchant Hu family; it can’t compare to the four great families!”
Was that not enough?
After walking over a hundred paces, a row of magnificent houses came into view, with black tiles and gray walls, intricately carved bricks and flying arches, embodying both elegance and grandeur.
The troop walked alongside the outer wall of this house for dozens of breaths.
This was truly a grand residence; compared to this one, the previous silk merchant’s house was instantly overshadowed.
Before He Lingchuan could even ask, the officer answered eagerly: “This is the Li residence.”
“Good, very good.” Even though He Lingchuan had seen the wealth and grandeur of Shihuan City, he was still impressed by the Li family’s grand residence.
Just from the Li family’s stature, it was clear that his father’s position as Supervisor in Xia Prefecture was far more promising than in Qiansong County.
Hmm, wrong, it was more promising.
This officer was clearly clever; He Lingchuan casually asked him, “When did Old Master Li pass away?”
Just a few days ago at a meeting in Ruxian, his father was still worried about how to deal with the old man of the Li family, and today he had just entered the city when he received news of his death.
Was there such a coincidental stroke of good fortune in the world?
“This morning, it happened suddenly.” The officer already knew that this was the eldest son of the Supervisor’s family and spoke freely, “It seems the Li family believes the Zhan family is behind it, so they brought people to take revenge.”
“A large scale, indeed.” This was the capital of Xia Prefecture, not a rural area; the Li family dared to bring over three hundred people to surround and beat the Zhan family without a second thought—this was a textbook case of flouting the law, “Is private fighting common here?”
“This…” The officer was momentarily at a loss for words; giving an affirmative answer would be tantamount to denying his own work. “The villagers are brave, and sometimes it’s unavoidable; we do our best to mediate.”
However, when faced with the hundreds of people from the Li family, they did not dare to wield chains or locks.
In the past, there had been officers injured by these families, and apart from covering some medical expenses, they could only accept their misfortune.
Being beaten was also just being beaten.
Having spent so long in the chaotic Heishui City, He Lingchuan quickly understood.
The further north they went, the more common folk followed behind, creating a lively atmosphere as if it were a festival.
Upon hearing that the new Supervisor He was going to hold a public trial, targeting the two prominent families of Dunyu, everyone immediately perked up, their spirits high, even the wind and snow could not dampen their enthusiasm.
As he looked up, it was already October 6th; time flew by so quickly.
Tomorrow night, the double rewards would expire, so I trouble everyone to check their ticket holders and give me any extra monthly tickets.
Thank you with both hands together.
(End of Chapter)