OBS Chapter 59 Favoritism and Corruption!
Chapter 59 Favoritism and Corruption!
"Of course," Tao Heng said with a smile.
He was very happy that Zhao An came to read books, as this was an opportunity for him to get closer to Zhao An, and at the same time, he admired Zhao An more and more.
Many martial arts talents are indeed very skilled and make rapid progress in their training, but they are not quick-witted.
Even if such people have a high level of martial arts skills, their future achievements will be limited.
Zhao Anze is clearly not the kind of brute who only knows how to use his muscles; his future achievements are limitless.
The two were chatting when they were suddenly interrupted by the sound of drums coming from outside the mansion.
"Who is beating the drum?" Tao Heng asked.
A short while later, a soldier rushed in from outside the study and reported, "Sir, a scholar is beating a drum, claiming that his name has been altered on his county examination paper."
"Such a thing is true?" Tao Heng frowned.
"Take that scholar to the courtyard."
Inside the council hall, several generals from the prefectural city stood with their arms crossed, scrutinizing the poor scholar kneeling in the courtyard.
They had also heard the drumbeats, and upon inquiring, they learned that it was about favoritism and corruption in the county examination.
They remained calm and showed no particular surprise.
They were originally from local powerful families. When the previous magistrate was still in office, there were many such incidents. Everyone knew about them but kept quiet about them.
"Whose fault was this, that led this kid to file a complaint here?" Zhou Botao, with his square head, turned to look at the other officers present.
Hu Dingtian's expression darkened slightly, and he tapped his fingers lightly on the table, but he didn't say anything more.
If he remembers correctly, his third child in the family seems to have been the top liberal arts student this year.
But the problem is, based on his understanding, his third child shouldn't be able to achieve this score...
"What an idiot!" Hu Dingtian cursed inwardly.
Normally, even if someone wanted to change a name, they would only choose to change the last few names on the list.
With such a prominent position at the top of the list, it would be quite difficult to cover up if something were to happen.
He had just returned and hoped it had nothing to do with his younger brother.
Soon, County Magistrate Tao Heng returned with Zhao An.
Zhao An glanced sideways, somewhat surprised.
The person beating the drum was none other than Li Tianhuai.
Zhao An looked at Li Tianhuai's bruised and swollen face and remained silent for the time being.
He wanted to hear what had happened.
"You said the name on your county exam paper was altered?" Tao Heng asked directly, getting straight to the point.
"Yes, the ten papers that passed the exam were published today. One of them is identical to mine in terms of content and handwriting, but the name on the list is different." Li Tianhuai also saw Zhao An standing to the side, but he had no mind to greet him at the moment.
"Who inflicted these injuries on you?" Tao Heng asked again.
"A group of people came today, I don't know where they came from. They smashed up my place and threatened me not to report it to the authorities," Li Tianhuai said truthfully.
If it were an ordinary person, they might have given up on the matter in order to survive.
But Li Tianhuai not only did not compromise, but also did not go to the outer city government office to report to the authorities. Instead, he tried every means to get into the inner city and directly knocked on the magistrate's office to appeal for justice.
In his view, the clerks in the outer city government offices might have been bribed by the other party, who had connections to the highest levels.
The only person who might uphold justice for him is the newly appointed county magistrate.
"Do you know the consequences of filing a false report? Are you lying?" Tao Heng asked, his hands behind his back.
"Every word is true. I wrote this document word by word, and I would never have misread it," Li Tianhuai said earnestly.
"If Your Excellency does not believe me, I can write it down from memory right now, and you can see the difference by comparing the handwriting."
Tao Heng was extremely astute; he had already confirmed in his heart that what the scholar in front of him said was true.
However, this matter is likely to involve quite a few people.
He was not only considering the right or wrong of the matter, but also the impact of the investigation.
Just as he was lost in thought, a voice came from behind him.
"My lord, it's hard to tell whether what this man said is true or false. Why don't we take him to the yamen for a thorough investigation?" Hu Dingtian approached Li Tianhuai, gave him a deep look, and suggested.
"No, the government might be colluding with those people. I'm afraid..." Li Tianhuai said rashly in his anxiety.
However, before he could finish speaking, Hu Dingtian's face darkened, and he let out a heavy snort.
"Nonsense! Without any evidence, how dare you frame a court official!"
After saying that, he suddenly raised his foot and kicked.
As a general of the prefecture, he was not only burly and imposing, but his kick was also quite powerful. Caught off guard, Li Tianhuai, with his frail scholarly physique, might even have been kicked to death.
boom!
With a muffled thud, Li Tianhuai turned pale and stood frozen in shock, unable to react at all.
Fortunately, the vicious kick that was coming at him was stopped by another foot on the side.
Zhao An raised his knee and leg, his instep directly blocking the person's descending foot.
As the two forces clashed, Hu Dingtian realized that he couldn't land a single kick!
His eyes were cold as he stared at Zhao An in front of him, his expression growing increasingly hostile.
The bloody, murderous aura emanating from the battlefield instantly filled the air, making it feel suffocating.
However, the next moment, a similarly bloody and ruthless killing intent surged from Zhao An's body. In terms of aura, he was in no way weaker than this prefectural general!
"I remember you, you're the one who got the top score in martial arts this year?!"
Hu Dingtian recalled that the county magistrate had just mentioned the background of this young man.
He just didn't expect that at this critical moment, this kid would dare to stop him!
Is it youthful impetuosity, or just courting death...?
Hu Dingtian thought fiercely to himself.
"Stop!" Magistrate Tao Heng finally shouted.
Seeing this, Hu Dingtian reluctantly withdrew his foot and stepped aside.
"Please forgive me, Magistrate, but I simply cannot tolerate this unruly commoner daring to speak so disrespectfully in front of you," Hu Dingtian said, bowing respectfully.
Tao Heng could not possibly fail to see the meaning behind Hu Dingtian's unusual behavior.
The more this is the case, the more it proves that the matter is true.
"Zhao An, what is your relationship with this person?" Tao Heng asked, looking at Zhao An.
"I learned military strategy from Brother Li's books in the past," Zhao An replied truthfully.
"And what do you think?"
"Based on my understanding of Brother Li, he is not one to spout nonsense," Zhao An said calmly.
He didn't care about the background or the so-called prefectural general.
As long as Hu Dingtian's red name remains unchanged, if they meet again in the future and conditions permit, he will definitely kill this person, regardless of any past grievances or personal grudges!
Tao Heng pondered for a moment, then said, "Two now, three now."
"Yes, sir." Two guards stepped forward.
"You two go and assist Magistrate Fan in thoroughly investigating this matter and presenting the truth to me," Tao Heng instructed.
"Yes." The two guards replied and quickly left.
Hu Dingtian, standing to the side, pursed his lips and ultimately remained silent, retreating quietly.
"I haven't asked yet, who on that list are you suing?" Tao Heng then asked Li Tianhuai.
Li Tianhuai gritted his teeth and said without hesitation.
"Hu Dingwen, the top liberal arts student!"
"Please, Your Excellency, do me justice!"