Rebirth: From being expelled from the imperial court to becoming a high-ranking official

Qin Yunhe looked at Zhao Huan.

He is about forty-six or forty-seven years old, looks a bit plump, and dresses like a scholar but not too scholarly.

Qin Yunhe also bowed slightly in return.

"How did Mr. Zhao know that Wang Baoyou had seen Xu Zhongqi giving money to Zhang Yu?"

It is impossible that Wang Baoyou made this certificate for no reason, naturally someone must have mentioned it.

Zhao Huan obviously didn't expect the inspector to get straight to the point. His smile paused for a moment before returning to normal: "The student also heard about it by accident."

"Does Mr. Zhao recognize Zhang Yu?"

"Haha." Zhao Huan waved his fan twice and smiled. "We are both county students, so of course we know each other. But we don't have much contact."

Maybe it was because he thought he was older and could show off in front of the young inspector. Seeing that Qin Yunhe did not continue to ask, Zhao Huan spoke again:

"Do you sympathize with Zhang Yu for losing his reputation because of Ju Bao's incident? It is a pity that ten years of hard work has gone to waste, but wouldn't it be more painful and infuriating if the noble scholars were tarnished by the untouchables?

Zhang Yu was a scholar, but he guaranteed a guarantee for a low-class person. Isn't this a shame for scholars?"

Although Qin Yunhe thought that he was not the kind of person who judged people by their appearance, when he saw Zhao Huan talking so eloquently, Qin Yunhe still felt a little annoyed with Zhao Huan.

Although I am just a student, I feel superior.

Qin Yunhe suppressed the unhappiness in his heart and reminded himself to remain fair and objective.

"How do you know that Zhang Yu must have known about this? He is only twenty-four or twenty-five years old. How could he know about things that happened several generations ago? No matter how you look at it, it is more likely that he was deceived."

"But the witness is right there. He was paid to commit the crime, right?"

Qin Yunhe looked at him for a long while before saying, "Didn't you ask Wang Baoyou carefully? Don't you know that Zhang Yu was ill at the time and said he wanted to write a promissory note, and Zhang's mother also said she would pay it back in the future?"

Zhao Huan's face froze, and he said, "Wang Baoyou never told me this. Didn't the master ask me to come here to ask about the Xu family's origins?"

Qin Yunhe also knew that asking him about Zhang Yu's matter would not help much in solving the case. He just asked casually because he was a little dissatisfied with this person.

"Xu Zhao said that you maliciously reported his family background because you failed to obtain a cemetery plot from him. What's going on?"

Zhao Huan said disdainfully: "If you can't get the cemetery, will you report him? I gave up when I failed. What cemetery do we want? It doesn't matter if it's that one? If his family has that cemetery, he's my family's slave. If they don't have that cemetery, they're still my family's slave."

"Besides the witnesses mentioned earlier, is there any other evidence that Xu Zhao's grandfather was still a slave in your family?"

"There should be some. His family must have a redemption document. But Xu Zhao said it happened several generations ago, and the redemption document can't be found. Your Excellency, don't you think this is suspicious? How could such an important thing as a redemption document be lost?"

"Didn't the Zhao family keep a copy of this redemption document?"

Zhao Huan seemed a little dissatisfied when talking about this: "How could he not keep a copy? I kept asking Zhao Qi for it, but Zhao Qi insisted that he couldn't find it. I was so angry."

"Who is Zhao Qi?"

"Zhao Qi is my nephew's great-grandson, and he is the head of the Zhao family now."

This Zhao Huan is really young but of a high generation, no wonder he acts so arrogantly.

Qin Yunhe immediately asked someone to call in the manager of the Zhao family.

"I, Zhao Baoshuang, greet the Inspector General."

Qin Yunhe asked him to get up, and he stood up and respectfully called to Zhao Huan, "Fourth Old Master."

"Tsk, the old master is the old master, why do you have to call him the fourth old master? Are there any other old masters alive in the Zhao family?"

"Yes, yes, I'm just used to it."

"Why didn't Zhao Qi come?"

This saved Qin Yunhe the trouble of asking.

The Zhao family's steward quickly glanced at Qin Yunhe who was sitting on the upper seat, then lowered his eyebrows and replied in a submissive manner: "Isn't it time for the annual examination again? The master is preparing for the annual examination at home."

"What's there to prepare for the annual exam? It's not the first time I'm taking it."

"Yes, old master is wise. You are so talented in writing that you don't need to prepare. My master is definitely not as good as you."

Qin Yunhe frowned as he listened to the two people's questions and answers.

Finally, Wang He couldn't stand it anymore and shouted, "How dare you! The master is asking questions, what are you two talking about?"

Zhao Baoshuang, the manager of the Zhao family, kowtowed quickly: "Please forgive me, sir. It is really not right for me as a servant to not answer the old master's question."

Qin Yunhe didn't say anything, just said: "It's not that I have to delay your master's preparation for the exam, but you may not know the answer if I ask you about this. I won't waste much time if I ask a few questions."

"Your Excellency, I am asking the same question to you. I have followed the master since I was young. I know everything about the Zhao family, big or small. The master knows everything, and the master probably doesn't know anything that I don't know."

Zhao Huan was a little dissatisfied again: "What is this kid Zhao Qi doing? I, the elder, have come, but he is making excuses."

"The gentry could have passed on the message, but how could they have known that you would come, Master?"

"As a gentry, this is a matter that concerns the nobility and inferiority of the nobles. It is my duty as a gentry. I have already told Zhao Qi to find the Xu family's redemption document."

They started chatting again after just a few words. Qin Yunhe was really speechless about these two people.

“Zhao Baoshuang, you said you know everything about the Zhao family, but do you know when the Xu family redeemed themselves and returned them to the people?”

"Sir, I really don't know about this, and neither does my master. My master is just turning thirty, how could he know this?"

Qin Yunhe looked up at the two people, took out the redemption document that Xu Zhao had handed over earlier, and said, "Xu Zhao came here yesterday with his great-grandfather's redemption document to appeal for justice. The document shows that his family was redeemed by his great-grandfather seventy-six years ago."

"What?" Zhao Huan walked over to Qin Yunhe's desk and looked at the document: "Impossible, how is it possible?"

After looking at it for a few times, he couldn't help it in the end. He took it and started to look at it carefully without caring about Qin Yunhe's identity.

Qin Yunhe watched him read it up and down, back and forth, as if he was very knowledgeable about the document.

After looking at it for a long time, he said with disdain and contempt: "This Xu Zhao is really crazy. He dared to deceive the inspector. Sir, look at this corner. It is obviously deliberately made old. If you don't believe it, find someone who knows the business to check it. It is definitely fake.

I remember very clearly that it was Xu Zhao’s grandfather who redeemed the Xu family and became civilians.”

Zhao Huan's tone was very affirmative.

Before, Zhao Huan talked freely but Qin Yunhe didn't really believe what he said. He even had some preconceived notions and thought that he was the one behind the incident and made a malicious report.

At this moment, Qin Yunhe actually believed what he said.

Seeing that Qin Yunhe didn't say anything, Zhao Huan thought that he didn't believe him, so he said to himself: "The paper test... can't guarantee absolute accuracy. What if the person who tests it is bribed by the Xu family and he tells lies. Sir, I will go to Zhao Qi right now and find the redemption document of the Xu family."

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[Attention, I made some adjustments to the previous part. In the previous chapter where Xu Zhaolai protested his innocence, he submitted a redemption document. I had originally planned to have him submit it later, but after writing this chapter, I felt it was more reasonable to submit it at that time. I didn't arrange it well, I'm very sorry.]