Although Gu Rouqian also came from a great clan, his family was in Changshu and could not reach this place. Ever since the Prefect had met with trouble and the position had been left vacant, all sorts of monsters and demons had been emerging.
Gu Rouqian was already somewhat exhausted from running around, so he naturally welcomed the arrival of someone with backbone.
As for whether Zhu Ci could withstand these local bullies, he also had a question mark in his heart, so he would wait and see; even if it only served to suppress them a little, it would be for the best.
Gu Rouqian happily went to find various account books.
The accounts of a prefecture city were nothing comparable to those of a county town; a single prefecture was smaller than a modern province, yet much larger than a city.
Moreover, bookkeeping in this era was a complete mess; Zhu Ci only took a few glances before getting a headache, so he directly tossed the ledger to the Fu siblings and said, "You've all studied this, right? Take a look."
Gu Rouqian couldn't help but look at Zhu Ci's attendants with even greater respect, seeing that they all knew how to read account books.
Zhu Ci did not let him wait idly, asking, "Where are the Bailiff and the Magistrate?"
Huh? This Young Prefect really knows how to get straight to the point.
The Bailiff was responsible for the bailiffs, the Magistrate was responsible for legal matters; both were indeed very important positions.
He said with a hint of hesitation, "The Bailiff has already been imprisoned, but the Magistrate is still in office."
Hmm? The Bailiff has been imprisoned? Why?
Gu Rouqian said softly, "Previously, the Bailiff had a bit of a conflict with the Magistrate and the Vice County Magistrate. He injured someone, so the Magistrate sentenced him to death with a stay of execution."
Zhu Ci raised an eyebrow, sensing there was definitely more to this story, but seeing Gu Rouqian's expression, he didn't seem inclined to say much more, clearly not wanting to offend anyone, so he simply didn't ask further.
If there is anything, just arrange for someone to go and ask the Bailiff.
However, regarding this inexplicably parachuted-in Prefect, who was only fifteen years old, many were clearly neither submissive nor believing.
If Gu Rouqian hadn't confirmed the seal was real time and again, these people might have denied it.
But even if it were real, what of it?
The Crown Prince's personal orders are not Imperial Decrees; even if they were Imperial Decrees, they would still have to pass through the Grand Secretariat.
It's not an appointment from the Ministry of Personnel, so they refuse to recognize them all!
Zhu Ci listened to Jiang Quan's report, while Huang Chunyao and Zhu Ying, standing nearby, were both frowning. This.. if they couldn't even see the Bailiff and others refused to cooperate, how could they move things forward?
He couldn't rely on Gu Rouqian for everything, could he?
Zhu Ci had kept his eyes closed, but after Li Cheng finished speaking tremblingly, he opened his eyes and said, "From now on, anyone who refuses to obey orders or obstructs you is to be arrested. I don't care what methods you use, just force them to reveal the forces behind them. Can you do it?"
Li Cheng's eyes instantly lit up. If he could use force, what was there to fear? What he feared most was being unable to act against these people.
He immediately said loudly, "I can do it!"
Zhu Ci waved him off and said, "If you don't have enough manpower, recruit more. If that doesn't work, have Zhao Jia bring men."
Zhao Jia was the deputy company commander stationed at Xialiang, his ability was second only to Li Cheng's. If he also brought men, it would mean that the situation in the entire Suzhou Prefecture would necessitate action.
Li Cheng felt a chill in his heart and immediately said, "This subordinate understands."
Huang Chunyao felt restless upon hearing this. This.. they were starting to arrest people before even doing anything; it would easily lead to trouble.
Zhu Ying, on the contrary, had bright eyes and clearly looked very excited.
Zhu Ci glanced at the two of them and said to Huang Chunyao in a gentle voice, "Mr. Huang, you have been away from home for a long time. If there is something to attend to at home, you may go back and handle it first. Don't worry, nothing much can happen in the Prefecture City."
The Prefecture City won't be turned upside down, but I think you're about to poke a hole through the sky!
Huang Chunyao also hadn't expected that this person would dare to arrest people directly in the Prefectural Office; Gu Rouqian had previously given him clear hints and insinuations that the people currently in the Prefectural Office all had significant backgrounds, yet he wouldn't listen at all.
This is a place of trouble; one cannot stay here for long!
As a local gentry, Huang Chunyao was very aware of how massive these powerful clans were; they were simply not something an individual could confront head-on.
A powerful dragon cannot suppress a local snake; why can't this Young Master understand that?
Huang Chunyao indeed needed to go back and inform his relatives and friends about the situation in the Prefecture City, discuss what to do next.
According to his judgment, this Young Master would likely return to Jiading within half a month—provided, of course, that he hadn't completely offended those powerful clans and that they were still willing to spare his life; only then would he have a chance of returning to Jiading.
As for his father and elder brother.. the current state of the imperial court is still unknown, they might have lost contact long ago; saving them will likely be fraught with difficulties.
Before leaving, Huang Chunyao ultimately could not bear not to offer a reminder: "Young Master Xi, Suzhou is not like Jiading; you should still be careful."
Zhu Ci knew what he was thinking and said with a slight smile, "Don't worry, Mr. Huang, I understand."
Huang Chunyao glanced at him, his expression extremely complex, before finally letting out a sigh and boarding the carriage.
After he left, Zhu Ci turned to look at Zhu Ying and asked, "What did the Chief say?"
Zhu Ying sneered, "I'm not afraid of them. At worst, I'll just go back to the ship. What can they do to me?"
He was the leader of the Canal Gang with nearly a thousand men under his command, usually, the wealthy families in the city couldn't wait to take a detour just to avoid him. Now, he wanted to see just how far this Young Master could go.
Zhu Ci nodded and turned to walk inside, but before he had taken two steps, he heard a commotion outside. He turned to look at Jiang Xueyan beside him. "What's going on?"
Jiang Xueyan immediately ran out to ask a few questions, upon her return, she said, "Young Master, it is the families of those arrested petty officials who have come to demand their release."
Zhu Ci was decisive: "Don't release them. If they cause more trouble, arrest them all."
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: If you can't suppress the local snakes, then you're not a powerful dragon! Catty with dragon horns. jpg
Next update tomorrow morning at six o'clock~
Chapter 66
The prefectural office had conducted a massive crackdown, arresting many people, after discovering that this new Prefect was truly incredibly tough, all sorts of rumors began to spread.
"What are they saying? Tell me." Zhu Ci said nonchalantly while holding a bowl and sipping porridge.
Li Cheng lowered his head and said, "This subordinate.. this subordinate is slow-witted and cannot remember. In any case, it wasn't anything good. Young Master, how about we just arrest all of them?"
Zhu Ci glanced at him. "Have you all become addicted to making arrests lately? Aren't you afraid the prison won't be able to hold them all? If they want to talk, let them talk; eventually, they will realize that this tactic doesn't work on me."
When scholars want to destroy a person, the first thing they do is slander his reputation.
It has been this way since Qin Shi Huang, after all these years, it remains the same even in the time of Zhang Juzheng.
Zhu Ci took things quite lightly; he did not care what others said, nor did he care whether history would record him as a good or a bad man.
Why worry so much? Most people in this world will never leave a mark in the history books; he only does what he considers to be right.
“Young Master, how about I take some men to teach them a lesson?” Jiang Xueyan offered a bad idea from the side.
Fu Qiulu snorted, "Then they'd have to be unable to recognize you, that is no simple task."
Jiang Xueyan sneered, "Wouldn't covering your face be enough?"
Fu Qiulu added, "So many people are discussing it; do you know who the instigator is? What if you strike the wrong person?"
Jiang Xueyan looked at Li Cheng. "Brother Li has certainly investigated enough by now."
Li Cheng gave a simple, honest smile but said nothing.
Zhu Ci looked left and right; he could tell that Jiang Xueyan and Fu Qiulu did not get along very well.
Jiang Xueyan might not have known that Fu Qiulu's identity was problematic, but her intuition was sharp; she noticed that the Young Master both trusted and distrusted this maid. The trust meant he would entrust her with various trivial matters in their daily lives, while the distrust meant there were many things he would not let her touch.
Jiang Xueyan was not stupid; she knew the Young Master must have a reason for doing this, so she naturally did not get close to Fu Qiulu.
And ever since she had made her presence known, Fu Qiulu found herself spending less and less time by the Young Master's side.
The Young Master also relied more and more on these girls who had been rescued, which gave Fu Qiulu a great sense of crisis, naturally, her attitude toward Jiang Xueyan was not good either.
Zhu Ci ignored all this and simply said, "It is harder to stop the mouths of the people than to stop a flooding river. Let them say what they want. Hmm, no, that's not right. Later, you should also arrange for a few people to spread rumors; the more terrifying my words are made to sound, the better."
“Young Master!”
Fu Qiulu and Jiang Xueyan spoke in unison, after speaking, they glared at each other. Fu Qiulu hurriedly said, "How can the Young Master defame himself?"
Zhu Ci let out a light chuckle. "If describing myself as a Rakshasa from hell could make them behave, then I wouldn't mind."
Fu Qiulu looked puzzled, feeling that she completely failed to understand this person's thoughts.
The Young Master's actions and words seem quite different from the education they received.
Fu Qiulu was somewhat confused; in fact, it wasn't just her, Xia Lei and the others were also equally unable to understand.
They had indeed spread the news to Suzhou Prefecture, but no news had come back from Suzhou Prefecture, it was unknown whether the Marquis had actually received it or not.
Zhu Ci said if he didn't care, he truly didn't care, because he was researching rockets.
This rocket is not like the previous rockets; instead, it literally turns arrows into exploding arrows.
Whether it was the single-shot rockets or the Fire-Dragon Water-Spout, they were all considered area-of-effect attacks. While their range might seem small on a battlefield, in a city, they would truly cause mass casualties in an instant.
Zhu Ci considered himself no saint, but he had no intention of killing people like this.
Actually, the most useful should have been the birdlock gun, but unfortunately, things happened too suddenly, it would have been too late to manufacture birdlock guns on short notice; moreover, he didn't even have the raw materials, so where could he find so much iron?
Besides iron, he would also need craftsmen capable of handcrafting gun barrels that wouldn't misfire, which was even harder to come by.
It would be better to modify the arrows. These powerful clans might possess armed forces, but they likely don't have many firearms on hand. They might hide some, but their power is probably only at the level of firecrackers. Furthermore, they might not even dare to keep them at home; if the firearms are poorly made or unstable, they might end up blowing up their own houses.
Zhu Ci's modifications were actually quite simple; he directly altered the arrowheads, changing the originally sharp tips into a curved shape to hold gunpowder instead of wounding the enemy, added a pull ring and fuse to the back.
Actually, these things didn't require much effort from him; he only needed to find a way to design how to assemble them together.
He already had a version of gunpowder with relatively good stability, since pull-rings and fuses had already appeared, he didn't need to conduct experiments over and over again.
However, since he already had pull-ring fuses, he also took the opportunity to create grenades. The power of these things was higher than Exploding Arrows but lower than Rockets, which was just enough to fill the gap. The only drawback was that they relied on manual throwing, so their "range" was naturally not far.
Zhu Ci had Jiang Quan arrange for a reliable person to deliver the blueprints to Xinghuo Firearms Factory, then said, "Oh, by the way, tell the Bailiff that these people are to be executed at noon tomorrow."
Jiang Quan had no objection, but the Bailiff was startled. He hurriedly came over and said, "Young Master, you mustn't, you mustn't! These people.. these people have complicated connections behind them. If you really kill them.."
“If they are truly killed, would they still dare to attack the prefectural office?” Zhu Ci glanced at the Bailiff.
The Bailiff said cautiously, "That.. is hard to say."
Zhu Ci raised an eyebrow. "That's just fine. I was actually worried they wouldn't come."
Bailiff..
Zhu Ci patted his shoulder and said, "Don't worry, selling official posts is a crime no matter when it happens."
These people were truly audacious; with the Prefect not around, they cleared out everyone who opposed them, some even died for no apparent reason.