The river work of Xuanzhou Mansion was completed, and Mei Xiaoren took over the lawsuit according to the instructions of Governor Li.

According to the law of Daning, ordinary cases are tried by the county government in the jurisdiction, and the county government can directly decide the case if the county government is sentenced to whipping and whipping, and other dispositions need to be reviewed by the government and Taiwan yamen, and then reported to the criminal department for final trial.

As for the case that happened in the state capital, she collected the things related to the case and handed it over to Lao Li for trial.

Mei Xiaoren took over all the files from Gao Jingshu and spent several days cleaning them up. Compared with river workers, she is more familiar with litigation and is relatively easy to get started.

I don't know if God intended to let her go through the experience, but on the tenth day when she took over the lawsuit, an important case occurred on the outskirts of Xuanzhou Mansion.

According to a man from the squire's family who came to report at noon, a gang of robbers broke into his master's mansion before dawn this morning, ransacked the whole mansion, and left.

It was another robbery, and the case was similar to the one she had done before, but it was of a completely different nature.

In the past, the bandits ransacked the villages in the county seat, at most they didn't take the county government seriously, but now these robbers robbed the mansion of Xuanzhou Mansion, right under the nose of the Futai Yamen, which was undoubtedly a resounding slap in the face of Lao Li.

The moment Governor Li learned of this, he smashed the tea cup in his hand with a "snap", which shocked the hearts of the officials present.

Then the errand fell to Mei Xiaoren, and she took someone to the squire's mansion to check.

Mei Xiaoren rushed to the outskirts of the city with more than 30 catchers.

The squire's surname was Liu, and when she came, the door of Liu's house was wide open, and the ground was very messy, with fine sand all over it, and there were many footprints in and out.

The head of the family, Liu Yuanwai, was an old man, and when he saw her dismounting, he came forward and saluted: "The grass people meet the adults." ”

Mei Xiaoren nodded, not in a hurry to enter Liu's mansion, but stood in place and carefully observed every place.

At this time, there were several women standing in front of the door, all sobbing quietly. Liu Yuanwai said that it was his wife and several concubines.

Mei Xiaoren ordered a few catchers to stay outside the door, and by the way, check the clues outside, and she took the others into the house with Liu Yuanwai.

"My lord, it's the mountain bandits from the Evil Tiger Village, they have robbed all the grass people's homes" Liu Yuanwai was so anxious that he beat his chest.

"Why are you so sure you are a bandit from the Evil Tiger Village"

"Because because the grass people's caravan was robbed by them at the foot of the Evil Tiger Mountain, the grass people have reported to the official for this, which makes them hold a grudge."

Mei Xiaoren asked Lin Zhu to take people around to look around, looking for clues, while she followed behind, listening to the description of the head of the house, and walking towards the inner garden.

"My lord, they came before dawn, broke into the grass people's houses and robbed them, you see, my lord" Liu Yuanwai said bitterly, leading her to look around, "It's all robbed"

Mei Xiaoren looked around, the doors of all the rooms were open, and the room was full of traces of rummaging around, and none of them were intact.

It seems that this gang of bandits is menacing, and they have searched all the places without leaks, and they have completely ransacked the entire mansion.

Liu Yuanwai said all he said about how the bandits came and how they robbed, but he never got to the point. Mei Xiaoren then asked, "How many people came?"

"Fifty, all with knives." Liu Yuanwai's voice was shaking when he spoke, and he raised his hand to compare, "The knife is so long, it's really weird and scary." ”

Mei Xiaoren

Stopped, looked at Liu Yuanwai, and asked, "When did you let someone come to report to the official?"

"After they're gone." Liu Yuanwai sighed, "The grass people don't dare to let people report to the official in front of them." ”

"It will take less than an hour to rush from you to the government office, and your family will arrive after noon, and the robbers will come before dawn, which means that they have been here for at least three hours."

"Yes, my lord, you see that this is all gone," Liu Yuanwai spread his hands towards the empty rooms.

Mei Xiaoren looked around again, and then said: "This official will go back to the prefect, and the prefect will definitely arrest that gang of bandits, don't worry." ”

Liu Yuanwai looked sad: "Then please leave it to my lord." ”

Mei Xiaoren left Liu's Mansion with the catchers, and on the way back to the city, he asked Lin Catcher: "What is the origin of the mountain bandits in the Evil Tiger Village?"

"Lord Hui, it's a group of small people in the rivers and lakes, they are entrenched on the Evil Tiger Mountain in the east, and they make a living by robbing caravans." Lin Zhu quickly said, "In the past, Lord Tongzhi led people to suppress them several times, but as soon as the official left, they revived. ”

Mei Xiaoren frowned, "Only robbing the caravan Xuandong is even more birdish than Xuannan and not laying eggs, what caravan can there be?"

"It is adjacent to Gyeongcheon Province to the north, and Gyeongcheon Province is rich in silk, and many merchants buy silk from Gyeongcheon and ship it back to various places to sell."

"I see." Mei Xiaoren nodded.

She almost forgot that the north of Xuandong is Qingchuan, the silk of Qingchuan Mansion is famous all over the world, and her father also takes goods from there, but her family's caravan avoids Xuandong every time and goes back to Yunxian County, and now that I think about it, it should be to avoid that group of mountain bandits.

The long journey takes time and costs money, and not every merchant can afford it, so many caravans choose to take risks and pass down the mountain.

Some of them were spared, and some were sacked like Liu Yuanwai's caravan.

Lin Zhuai said that whenever a businessman reported to the official, Lao Li sent Gao Jingshu to suppress it, and every time he won a big victory. Suppressing it once can get peace for a few months, but after a few months, the mountain bandits will resurrect and continue to do evil, but it is the first time that they have chased after the door to retaliate against the merchants.

Xuanzhou Mansion.

Mei Xiaoren came back and gave a general account of what he saw.

Governor Li was furious, and with a quick hand, another teacup "snapped" and shattered on the ground, splashing everywhere, and everyone was silent.

Lao Li's territory has never had such a big robbery case, or in the suburbs of the city under his nose, plus the wealth of Xuanzhou Mansion depends on businessmen, if this case can't be solved, how can the government make many businessmen feel at ease.

"Your Excellency is angry." Gao Jingshu stepped forward and persuaded, "I will bring people to exterminate that group of mountain bandits tomorrow." ”

"No need" Governor Li rejected Gao Jingshu without hesitation, and turned to look at Mei Xiaoren with a serious face, "This is your errand now." ”

"Humble duty understands." Mei Xiaoren gave up.

In fact, even if Lao Li doesn't command, she will take the initiative to ask for help. Suppressed the mountain bandits in the evil tiger village, which is not only beneficial to the people but also to her family, and there is a greater sweetness behind it, why not.

Governor Li ordered someone to go to his desk to get the arrow, and handed the arrow to Mei Xiaoren in front of all the officials. He pointed to the arrow and said: "Mei Xiaoren, thousands of soldiers are for you to send, you take them with you, and be sure to level the evil tiger village for the old man."

Mei Xiaoren held the arrow in both hands and knelt on the ground to respond: "Obey the order." ”