Chapter 237 Interrogation
"We didn't touch anything in Young Master Li's room." Wang Dazhu thought for a moment and answered with certainty, "We just looked around the room and found a few traces."

"It was the adults who asked us to do this. We didn't know there was a murder case."

"Did the prefect ask you to come?" Li Daoxuan was a little surprised.

"That's right." Wang Dazhu said, "If it weren't for this, we wouldn't have come so early in the morning to arrest Master Li. On a day like this, it's better to sleep comfortably at home."

"So that's how it is." Li Daoxuan finally realized that it was not the police who were causing trouble, but the Yangzhou prefect who was looking for him.

But he had no grudge against the Yangzhou prefect, so why would the other party be like this?
When something fatal happened at his residence, he asked someone to check it out that night.

The next morning, he called the police to arrest him. This speed would probably be considered fast even in later generations.

Who is dead?

Who reported the case?

Why did you come so early?

I just happened to arrive at the inn and these servants were also here?
There were so many weird things in it that Li Daoxuan felt that it was a trap.

But he did not know the Yangzhou prefect, and he could not think of any reason why the other party would cause trouble for him.

"Could it be that I have offended someone?" Li Daoxuan pinched his chin and thought carefully while sitting in the carriage.

He thought about it and it seemed that he had not offended anyone.

I was filled with doubts, and it seemed that I would only be able to understand after meeting the Yangzhou prefect.

As the carriage drove on, Li Daoxuan asked Wang Dazhu some questions and got a lot of information from him.

One is the age of the Yangzhou prefect, and the other is some miscellaneous affairs in Yangzhou.

When the carriage stopped, he had arrived at the Yangzhou government office.

"Does this count as being in jail for the second time?" Li Daoxuan joked to himself.

Looking at the Yangzhou government office in front of us, it is much larger than the government office in Dongyang Town where we visited before. After all, it is the government office of a city, and it is much more unique.

During this period, the levels of a town were divided into three categories: "city", "town" and "village". The "city" was further divided into the capital, provincial capital, prefectural capital, state and county capital. It was called a "city" because it had city walls, and the residents in the city were called "city residents". The government offices set up in the city included the Daotai Yamen, the Futai Yamen and the county Yamen, etc.

"Towns" are often outside the city. All place names with "town, market, shop, port, square, lane, street" will be listed as "towns" after verification. "Towns" are also divided into four levels: city, central town, intermediate town, and standard town. Generally, no government offices are set up. However, at this time, the "towns" in the Jiangnan region were economically active, gathering a large number of handicraft workshops. People at that time also regarded towns as cities. For example, Xu Yilin, a Jinshi from Pinghu, Zhejiang in the seventh year of Jiaqing, was recorded as "living in Zhapu City for generations", and Li Tielin, a Jinshi from Linyu, Zhili in the tenth year of Tongzhi, was recorded as "living in the south street of Shanhaiguan Town for generations". And these prosperous "towns" would also have government offices, and Dongyang Town was one of them.

The Taotai Yamen, Futai Yamen and County Yamen were just the more common yamen during this period. According to the three-level governor-general system of "province, prefecture and county" at that time, there would also be governors, governors, governors, governors and school governors in the provincial capital.

The Zhitai is the governor's office, and the official position is governor-general, the second rank, for example, the Governor-General of Zhili, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi. This is a high-ranking official in charge of one or more provinces. As the saying goes, "he is in charge of governing the military and civilians, controlling the civil and military affairs, supervising officials, and repairing the borders."

Futai is the governor's office. The official title is governor, of the second rank, and is also a senior official of a province. The relationship between him and the governor-general is very delicate. Although he is half a level lower than the governor-general, he is not a subordinate of the governor-general. Like the governor-general, the governor-general can directly face the imperial power of the Qing court. The original Qing court had "eight governors-general". In addition to the Governor-General of Zhili, the Governor-General of Liangjiang and the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, there were also the Governor-General of Huguang, the Governor-General of Sichuan, the Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang, the Governor-General of Yunnan and Guizhou, and the Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu. At this time, the Governor-General of the Three Eastern Provinces was added, and there were nine governors-general. At this time, there were only more than ten governors-general. The reason was that "the governors-general and governors-general were in different cities". When a governor-general governed multiple provinces, there was no governor's office in the province where the governor's office was located, but governor's offices were set up in other provincial capitals.

The governor's office is also called the "provincial governor's office". The official title is the governor, who is also a second-rank official. He is in charge of the finances and official affairs of a province. Although the governor and the governor are both second-rank officials, the governor is a subordinate official of the governor, because the governor is often awarded the title of "Military Minister of the Ministry of War" as a second-rank official.

Neitai is the Censorate, also known as the "Censorate" or "Censorate". The official position is Censor, the third rank. Like the governor, they are subordinates of the governor-general, in charge of the public security, justice and even prisons of a province, and can also command a part of the Green Camp. If a major unjust, false or wrong case is encountered, the Censor will be needed to overturn and re-examine it, so it is also called the "Censorate of Criminal Justice".

The academic commissioner is the academic official, and its full name is "supervisor of academic administration". It does not have a fixed rank. Together with the governor and the provincial supervisor, it is called the troika of a province's governance. Although the supervising academic official does not have a fixed rank, he is personally appointed by the emperor and has the status of an imperial envoy. He is a Beijing official and belongs to the Hanlin Academy. He usually stays in the capital and only goes to various places to preside over the imperial examinations. The academic official is not only responsible for the imperial examinations, which is the biggest thing in the life of ancient scholars, but even if a student commits a crime, the academic official will be responsible for the trial directly, bypassing the provincial supervisor. Students also have many privileges on taxation issues, which the governor cannot control, so sometimes their status is even higher than that of the governor and the provincial supervisor.

Daotai refers to the Daotai Yamen, where the official title is Daoyuan, usually the fourth rank, between the provincial capital. In order to prevent the governors and governors from having too much power, the Qing court separated the grain route, river route, and post route under the jurisdiction of Daoyuan, who could directly report to the emperor. Some special Daoyuan were even the second rank, and could compete with the governors and governors. Daotai Yamen was not necessarily set up in the provincial capital, but mostly in the prefectural capital.

If you are in the capital city, there are countless government offices. In addition to the Central Cabinet, the Grand Council, the Six Ministries, and various temples and academies, there are many large and small government offices, at least eighty if not a hundred. There is a saying that goes, "Hanlin Academy articles, Imperial Hospital prescriptions, Guanglu Temple tea, Luanyi Guards swords and guns, and Goldfish Pond women".

Li Daoxuan was brought into the yamen, and Wang Dazhu went to report.

Standing in the lobby, looking at the four big characters on a plaque high up - Fairness and Integrity.

"It's really fair and honest." He sneered.

Soon, the yamen runners came in, standing with sticks in their hands.

Then a middle-aged man in official robes walked in from the back hall.

He had a short beard, wore a green hat on his head, a robe with eight-dragon and five-clawed dragon patterns on it, and a robe with cloud and goose patches, looking like a fourth-rank official.

It’s time to be the prefect of Yangzhou.

His eyes were very majestic, but there was a hint of darkness under his eyelids. Two people followed behind him, both wearing Qing Dynasty official uniforms.

He walked to the front of the hall and sat down. He looked at Li Daoxuan standing in the hall and said, "Open the hall."

"Wei"

"Wu"——

"Who is here? Tell me your name!"

"I'm from Jinling. My surname is Li and my name is Daoxuan." Li Daoxuan said neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Li Daoxuan? That's a good name." The Yangzhou prefect said calmly, "Do you know why I summoned you here today?"

"Your Excellency, I heard that it is related to a murder case." Li Daoxuan replied without any panic on his face.

"You know it too, but do you admit your guilt?" the prefect snorted.

Li Daoxuan was naturally not intimidated by him, as he was used to seeing high-ranking officials. After all, he had met the Governor-General of Liangjiang before, so the prefect of Yangzhou was nothing.

He bowed to the prefect and said, "I don't know what crime I have committed. I hope you can tell me clearly."

"Humph! Do you still want to escape punishment?" the prefect said, and then said to the bailiffs, "Bring them up."

After hearing this, the bailiffs went out of the hall.

Soon, something was brought in and placed next to Li Daoxuan.

"Here is the evidence, and it was found in the house where you live. Do you have anything else to say?"

"Sir, if someone is found in my room, it means I killed him. Then how many people in the world are wrongly accused?" Li Daoxuan said calmly, "Besides, I was not in the room that day, so how can I be said to have committed the crime?"

"You didn't kill him? Humph! I think you won't give up until you get to the Yellow River!" The prefect sneered, "Bring physical evidence."

After that, another bailiff came out and threw a bag on the ground.

There were several yellow talismans scattered around, and Li Daoxuan could tell at a glance that they were the talismans he had drawn.

"You, little sorcerer, use talismans to harm people, so you have an alibi. But when this man died in your room that day, the door was locked, and you did not return home all night to forge evidence of your alibi. But I know that there were talismans everywhere in your room that day, and you must have prepared them in advance. If this does not count as harming people, how could there be any harming people? What's more, the death of this man was not ordinary, and his body was harmed by evil magic. I have someone who can prove that he died because of your talismans." The prefect said righteously.

It's just full of loopholes, and it's obvious that they are trying to convict him.

Li Daoxuan frowned and said to the prefect, "Sir, if I could harm people by drawing the talisman, why did I make it so obvious? Besides, how would you know that he was killed by my talisman?"

"Since the adults said that someone can prove it, why not let that person come out and confront the kid."

"Okay, I'll make you convinced." The prefect called out and waved behind him.

Then a masked man walked out and slowly approached Li Daoxuan.

"This man is the witness. He can prove that your talisman can harm people." The prefect said, "Master, please let this little demon be brought to justice."

The masked man raised his hand to indicate that he understood, and then said, "Please rest assured, Prefect, I have a way to make him squeak."

After the masked man said this, he took out an iron nail from his arms.

There was a white symbol sealed on the iron nail, which was obviously a magical weapon.

"This is a nail that can calm the soul. It is used to restrain evil magic. As long as you can take my nail and show your magic, it means that your talisman will not harm anyone. If you don't dare, then you are guilty."

After hearing this, Li Daoxuan's face suddenly turned cold.

He stared at the calming nail, and the white symbol on it was familiar.

"It's you again." Li Daoxuan said coldly, "Yinshan Sect."

"Haha, it's useless for you to know. Let me verify its authenticity." The masked man laughed.

Li Daoxuan looked at the nail and already knew something about it.

He knew that once he was hit by the nail, he would be a lamb to be slaughtered. He would not be able to cast spells or use talismans. He was afraid that he would not be able to explain himself no matter how reasonable he was.

At the moment when the masked man approached, Li Daoxuan suddenly stood up and kicked the other person in the chest, but it was like kicking a iron plate.

Li Daoxuan was slightly startled and used the force to roll backwards.

The government office was immediately in chaos, and the prefect shouted angrily in the hall: "Rebellion! Rebellion! You thief! How dare you cause chaos in the court! Come here! Capture him!"

Upon hearing this, all the yamen runners rushed over and attacked Li Daoxuan together with the masked man.

Li Daoxuan dodged left and right and kicked two yamen runners to the ground. Then he felt a cold wind on his back and twisted his waist to avoid it.

It was the masked man who attacked with a magic nail, trying to nail Li Daoxuan on the back.

Li Daoxuan dodged by leaning sideways, calmed himself, and took out a talisman from his arms.

He bent down and raised his feet to avoid the two killing sticks, and used the force to jump up.

"Hurry up and make the Yang sound, Langluo Jubin, Duhu Miaolu, Chunyi Shashe, hurry up and obey the command!"

He turned his wrist inward and slapped the talisman towards the masked man, chanting something.

"upbraid!"

Suddenly there was a thunder, and the masked man stood still as if he had been struck by lightning.

Looking at the officers who attacked him again and again, Li Daoxuan did not show any courtesy at all. After kicking down several of them, he looked at the prefect in the hall.

He frowned and was about to go over to ask for clarification, but he felt a stronger sense of crisis coming.

He quickly retracted the step he had taken, and then took several steps back. He saw the masked man who had been bombarded by the thunder magic attacking him again.

"You!" Li Daoxuan looked at this man and realized that he was extraordinary, so he said to the prefect in the hall, "Mr. Prefect, your witness is not an ordinary person."

"What are you talking about?" The prefect was angry. He didn't expect that this young man was so powerful.

(End of this chapter)