son-in-law

Chapter 1304 Thunderstorm (7)

Chapter 1304 Thunderstorm (Part 7)

Thunder roared.

It was only in the two or three years following the defeat of the Jurchens that the Huaxia Army began to transform from a military government to a regular government. Now, most of the middle and senior management in various departments have military backgrounds. Peng Yueyun, who came from the Western Army, is now in the Inspectorate. When he gets bored with his writing job, he practices kung fu every day to pass the time. Xu Shaoyuan, on the other hand, came from the Secretariat and joined the Land Administration Working Group. The first thing he does every morning is still to do morning exercises.

The initial standoff was intense between the two men, while the others remained somewhat restrained. However, with Peng Yueyun's outburst, the rest of the team erupted in anger. The men at the front lunged at the other side, and several tall soldiers on the opposite side prepared to retaliate.

Xu Shaoyuan then recognized the person who had arrived: "Peng Yueyun, you..."

To the side, Tang Minjie released his hand from his forehead and suddenly stood up. He shouted, "Xiao Huang! Stop him!" Xiao Huang was the member of the group who was closest to Peng Yueyun at this moment. Hearing Tang Minjie's shout, he was startled and turned around to block Peng Yueyun.

"Get out of my way!" Peng Yueyun pushed the other person away.

Tang Minjie walked forward from the crowd, waving to the side as he said, "Take her hoe!" He was referring to Cheng Min's side.

Having been in the fourth group for two months, Tang Minjie had already gained respect among the group members. But how could Xiao Huang, a member of the group, really stop Peng Yueyun? After pushing the other party aside, Peng Yueyun rushed towards the center of the confrontation. At this moment, the front line had already started fighting. Xu Shaoyuan, who was tall, dragged back two soldiers who were throwing punches, cursing loudly.

Peng Yueyun had just rushed in, about to make a move, when a hand suddenly grabbed his collar. The hand was strong, dragging the man a step, but he immediately stopped moving, because the hand was stained with blood. It belonged to Tang Minjie, whose forehead was still bleeding. Tang Minjie was thin and not particularly strong. One of his glasses was cracked. He looked weak and disheveled, but standing in the middle of the crowd, he grabbed Peng Yueyun and was still shouting, "Stop! Stop!"

Immediately, someone on the other side shouted "Ah—"

Tang Minjie narrowed his eyes and tried to move forward, but Peng Yueyun, whose collar was being grabbed, took a step to the side, raised his arm to shield his head, and with a loud bang, the stool that the furious young soldier opposite him had swung exploded on him. Peng Yueyun stood still, without blinking.

Over there, Xu Shaoyuan grabbed the young soldier by the back and slammed him to the ground, smashing several tables and chairs aside. Then, he kicked another of his men flying.

The rain outside seemed to pause for a moment amidst the fierce fighting, then resumed its downpour. The people in the lobby watched this scene, and someone whistled softly. The hotel guards didn't come up; they just watched from the sidelines—they were veterans too, and their superiors' superiors' superiors could probably track down Hou Wu's men. They knew that when soldiers got carried away, it was difficult to break up a fight; it was easy to get caught up in it. They'd wait until the fight was over, then arrest everyone in the military court.

Lin Jingmei narrowed her eyes only for a moment when her husband was being beaten.

Peng Yueyun stood there, held back by Tang Minjie, and then slapped the back of his head and shouted, "Come on, do it here again!" Tang Minjie pulled him away with a sudden force.

Figures were still moving around in the hall. Someone came out from a short distance away, looked at the mess on the ground, and asked, "Hey, what happened? I heard it from afar. Who messed with our young brother Fang Cheng... uh... uh..."

The figure that happened to emerge was Lin Qiu. He was Lin Jingmei's superior in the Ministry of Commerce and had been highly valued for the past year or so, known for his excellent social skills. Many people had been transferred back to Chengdu this time, and no one knew who he had come to visit. However, he spoke rashly, and before he could finish his sentence, he saw Peng Yueyun and Lin Jingmei and knew that things were in trouble. He wished he could shrink back.

At this point, all he could do was carefully touch his chin to ease the awkwardness.

People from both sides intervened to stop the fight. Peng Yueyun had been beaten, making the situation more complicated. Both sides stopped fighting, and Tang Minjie, covered in blood, stood in the middle, gesturing for both sides to restrain themselves. Meanwhile, on the ground, the young soldier who had been thrown into a pile of tables and chairs immediately got up, shouting, "I'm not afraid of you! I don't care who you are, I want justice today!"

Xu Shaoyuan approached him: "Is this how you demand justice?!"

"If I can't get justice, I'll take his life! I, Fang Cheng, will trade my life for his!"

"I, Peng Yueyun, will trade with you!" Peng Yueyun shouted from behind Tang Minjie, trying to step forward, but was blocked by Tang Minjie.

"You call yourself a soldier!" Xu Shaoyuan kicked Fang Cheng, sending him flying to the ground.

Fang Cheng clutched his stomach: "It's the injustice of military law! They're unfair! Team Leader Xu, you've met my brother, you all know what kind of person he is!"

Tang Minjie, with his left hand outstretched and his right hand still covering his forehead, finally spoke up: "Who is your brother?"

"My brother is Fang Lu! Tang Minjie framed him and climbed to power by stepping on his mistakes, so what are you pretending to be so hypocritical about! Or have you people, so used to profiting from your own people, forgotten how many people you've harmed! Tang Minjie! Even if you hold power, I'm not afraid of you—"

"What Fang Lu! Where did he come from?" Peng Yueyun stepped forward. "Explain yourself and I'll deal with him again!"

"My brother is already dead! Go ahead and do it! Just do it to me, Fang Cheng!"

"Alright." Tang Minjie pushed Peng Yueyun back and waved to the others. "Alright."

Then he sat back down on the stool.

He was confused after being beaten, but now that he understands the reason, he doesn't feel resentful, just has mixed feelings.

Because of his past actions, his resume was shrouded in mystery after returning to the Huaxia Army, with many records being vague and unclear. Fang Lu did provide a detailed account of the land administration issues in Wenpu County, but he committed suicide to take responsibility. Afterwards, Tang Minjie was promoted to the Supervisory Committee, and the others secretly investigated and concluded that he was promoted because of his denunciation of Fang Lu, which has some merit.

If we trace it further back, we might end up with Peng Yueyun, which makes things even more complicated.

Xu Shaoyuan approached Fang Cheng: "There's already a conclusion on your brother's matter from above."

"I don't believe the higher-ups' conclusion; their conclusion wasn't explained clearly!"

"That's because Fang Lu committed suicide for his cronies."

“I don’t believe it. My brother is a selfless and great man. He was just…” Fang Cheng pointed towards Tang Minjie, “He was framed and betrayed by these people who wanted to get promoted and were looking for stepping stones! And above him are even imperial relatives—”

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Xu Shaoyuan interrupted him.

Peng Yueyun's eyes widened suddenly as well.

“I’m just saying! What’s there to be afraid of! I, Fang Cheng, have done nothing wrong and stood up straight. If you have the guts, come and investigate me. I, Fang Cheng, have lived a clean life. Every month, I give my allowance to the children of my comrades-in-arms—and now I’m going to give it to my brother’s child. Come on! Come and investigate me! Tang Minjie, I, Fang Cheng, may not have a future in this life, and I don’t care about a future, but if you can’t keep an eye on me, I’ll keep an eye on you!”

The rain pattered softly. Peng Yueyun wanted to speak, but Tang Minjie held her clothes tightly. Only after hearing this did Tang Minjie finally say, "Okay."

He said, "I will investigate you thoroughly. You keep an eye on me, and I'll keep an eye on you. That's a good approach."

His words were concise and cold. The young soldier opposite him stood up: "Fine! You said it. I'll keep a close eye on you. I'll definitely find out what's behind you!"

"Who are you calling filthy?!" Peng Yueyun stepped forward, only to be helplessly pulled back.

Xu Shaoyuan said to Fang Cheng, "You son of a bitch, Fang Cheng, do you think this is the end of it?"

“It’s not over yet.” The guards who had been watching the show and the hotel’s guard sergeant came out, but before he could finish speaking, Lin Qiu stepped forward and said, “It’s not over yet. You have to pay for the broken bottles and jars.” He put one hand on the guard sergeant’s shoulder.

Xu Shaoyuan looked over there and said, "Yes, we have to compensate. We'll compensate."

The squad leader glanced beside him and saw it was Lin Qiu. He frowned and said, "This is no small matter, heroes, blood has been drawn..."

Tang Minjie then spoke up: "It's just a misunderstanding. I cut myself on the forehead. I won't pursue the matter."

Cheng Min was about to start cursing again when Lin Qiu suddenly clapped his hands: "This, this... that's all! It was a misunderstanding, wasn't it? Old Sun, we're all on the same side... Of course, this... this brother, you guys are also responsible for this fall, Old Xu, you have to pay for the medicine, and the glasses too, hahahaha..."

He's quite a prominent figure in Chengdu now. He came out laughing and joking, trying to smooth things over. Xu Shaoyuan grabbed Fang Cheng's clothes and ordered him to keep quiet, saying, "You have to pay, you have to pay..." The guard's squad leader was in a difficult position, but finally decided to laugh it off.

Just then, a voice rang out.

"It's not a misunderstanding, Director Lin, but I don't think we can handle it this way."

Lin Jingmei, carrying a bag and with a cold gaze, walked over.

"Hi, Xiao Lin..." Lin Qiu smiled and sighed.

"They are all soldiers. Fighting like this in public has too much of an impact. Everyone involved should write a self-criticism and submit it to the military law department. If you do not submit it by the day after tomorrow, I will report it according to regulations and have them come to you."

"Hey." Lin Qiu scratched his head, at a loss for what to do.

"As for you," Lin Jingmei walked straight to Fang Cheng and stopped in front of him, "In one day, you assaulted an active-duty military officer and a government official, causing one to bleed from the head. Whether it was a fight or murder is debatable. You can go to the military court to turn yourself in and try to get leniency in the investigation, or have your team leader escort you there. Fang Cheng, I may be the royal relative you're implying, but what I said today is in accordance with the law and regulations. Do you have any objections?"

“I have no objection, you’re right!” Fang Cheng straightened up, looked at Lin Jingmei, and said, “My brother’s case is vague and has many doubts. I’ve submitted two appeals to higher authorities, but I’ve only received perfunctory responses. I have nowhere else to turn, so I’m going all out today. The military law department can assign me to this position, but…”

"Tang Minjie." He turned his gaze this way. "You remember this: as long as I'm alive, I'll keep an eye on you—"

Tang Minjie sat there, rubbing his forehead, and said with his head down, "Me too."

Fang Cheng then walked towards the guards, and everyone around him had complicated expressions. Tang Minjie tugged at Peng Yueyun and whispered, "Tell them that the bleeding has nothing to do with him." At this moment, Lin Jingmei also walked towards the guard's squad leader and whispered, "Since the injured man said that the bleeding was because of a fall, the military court can consider it and not record it." Xu Shaoyuan and Lin Qiu, who were standing to the side, finally relaxed their brows.

The situation eased slightly, and the two sides separated. Cheng Min came over and pressed Tang Minjie's forehead, while Peng Yueyun walked over and demanded, "Old Xu, what kind of soldiers did you bring? Do you know that this is my savior!"

“Old Tang from the second phase, I know him well.” Xu Shaoyuan frowned, looking extremely troubled. “This guy is also a good soldier, including his brother Fang Lu, with whom he has a life-or-death friendship…”

"What's going on with Fang Lu?"

"You didn't know?" Xu Shaoyuan pointed to Tang Minjie's side. "Fang Lu's incident happened in Wenpu. Right after that, Old Tang was transferred to your place. Didn't you know about this?"

"My brother is a gem; he shines wherever he is. It's an honor for him to be transferred here. I don't care how he got here."

"Old Tang's matter is very complicated. I tried to investigate, but it was all turned away. They said it was top secret and it was best not to pry. But that explanation can't suppress Fang Cheng. You see, he's a young man with ideals and drive, actually a good soldier..."

“Who the hell isn’t a good soldier…” Peng Yueyun glared, turned his head to look at Tang Minjie, and then said, “Tell him to wait and not let me find out anything wrong.”

“He’s in serious trouble this time…” Xu Shaoyuan sighed, then said, “Can your Inspectorate threaten people like this? Isn’t this just setting up a target for investigation…”

“This is the first time in my life for me,” Peng Yueyun said defiantly. “But my brother saved my life, and I’ll fight anyone who touches him.”

Lin Jingmei sighed: "You and that Fang Cheng seem to be in cahoots."

Seeing that the atmosphere had eased, Lin Qiu came over and began to smooth things over with laughter.

After a while, Tang Minjie, who was sitting there clutching his forehead, cried out, "Has the doctor not come yet?" He said, "I'm in so much pain."

He had endured countless tortures in the north, yet he still laughed and joked, terrifying a group of Jurchen executioners. When he returned to Chengdu, he cried out in pain, and Peng Yueyun rushed over to comfort him.

The doctor arrived shortly afterward.

This unexpected incident took quite a while. The doctor cleaned and stitched up Tang Minjie's wound. When they returned to the room, it was already completely dark outside, and the thunderstorm had gradually stopped, although there were still light raindrops falling on the road.

Lin Qiu offered to treat everyone to a meal, but they all declined his invitation. The incident was caused by Xu Shaoyuan's subordinates, and he still had a lot of things to deal with and clean up. He had to plead for Fang Cheng, and he might even have to write a self-criticism. He could only apologize to Peng Yueyun and the others first.

Lin Jingmei reassured everyone and made sure there were no loose ends. She then went to the kitchen to give instructions on the nutritious meals. On the way to Tang Minjie's room with Peng Yueyun, Peng Yueyun said, "Do you think I should investigate that Fang Cheng?"

"I think it should be investigated."

Do you think he has a problem?

“If he has a problem, it won’t be a problem for your senior at all. But if he doesn’t have a problem, it might really become your senior’s problem.” Lin Jingmei sighed, “You should also investigate Fang Lu’s matter. It concerns your senior, so you should pay attention.”

"I'm happy as long as he comes to me. I don't care about the reason at all, right?"

The two arrived at Tang Minjie's room, where Cheng Min was busy going in and out. She pressed Tang Minjie, whose head was wrapped up, onto the bed and forced him to lie down.

Peng Yueyun and Lin Jingmei both found it interesting.

After the two of them arrived, Cheng Min left. Lin Jingmei stepped forward and asked, "Senior, do you still remember me?"

Tang Minjie threw off the covers and sat up: "Meizi, you've grown up so much in the blink of an eye. Please excuse my appearance."

"Thank you, senior, for pulling Xiao Peng back and saving him again."

Peng Yueyun scratched his head, saying, "I got beaten up."

“You’re thick-skinned and tough. It’s better for you to have been hit than to hit someone. Otherwise, you wouldn’t just be writing a self-criticism.” Lin Jingmei rolled her eyes at him.

"Huh? I'm also required to write a self-criticism? I was just hit, Comrade Jingmei! I didn't lay a hand on him, I didn't have time!"

“But you gave the order,” Lin Jingmei said sternly, “check 800 words! We’ll go back and write them together!”

"Hehe, that's more like it..."

The two showed affection for a while, which made Tang Minjie both amused and annoyed. Then he turned to ask about his injury. In fact, Tang Minjie was not very strong, but he was good at dodging. The chair that came crashing down grazed his forehead, but it didn't hit him too hard, so Tang Minjie didn't care much.

Before coming over, he had prepared many topics to talk about, but now, faced with his injuries, he naturally had nothing to say. He couldn't even eat, so Lin Jingmei gave him a general overview of Xu Shaoyuan, Lin Qiu, and the others' situation that day. After that, she said goodbye and left, telling him to get some rest.

After saying goodbye, Lin Jingmei hesitated and turned back at the door.

"Actually, there's something..." she hesitated.

Tang Minjie smiled at her, then got up from the bed and put on his shoes: "I told you, it's alright. If you have something important to say, please feel free to say it."

"My father passed away a few days ago, leaving me a file to give to you, my senior brother..."

She took out the files from the bag and handed them to Tang Minjie. Then, she began to explain to him the recent situation in the city.

"...From the information that has been leaking out so far, it seems that there is a force operating in the shadows within the military, and this force comes from Zou Xu... According to Father, they were originally not capable of causing any trouble, but after the land reform began, Father also carried out a large-scale crackdown on internal corruption issues, which led to discussions about conquering the country versus ruling it... Zou Xu has been within our ranks for a long time; he understands us and is also afraid of us. Therefore, in the past six months, he has finally been able to use certain statements to incite the middle ranks of the military, creating a climate of fear and unease..."

As Tang Minjie listened, he opened the file and glanced at it, nodding slightly. He asked, "Was the mutiny on the 21st also arranged by Zou Xu?"

“They are thousands of miles apart, so the details cannot be arranged, but it was definitely his people who slowly instigated it.”

"Mm." Tang Minjie nodded.

“Father had already made some arrangements for these matters,” Lin Jingmei said. “The fact that the other side chose to launch an attack is actually a way of slowly exposing themselves, so this period of time can also be used as an opportunity to conduct another purge of the government and the military…”

“Then these people…” Tang Minjie raised the case file in his hand, “I think we’ve already found out everything, what other intentions could they possibly have…”

“Father said these people’s identities are somewhat special, but he didn’t explain in detail to me.” Lin Jingmei frowned as well. “His instructions to me were this: the reason these people in the case file were exposed was because a comrade we arranged discovered them, but this comrade’s identity is very special, and there are some long-term plans involved, so when we remove these spies, we need you to make some clever arrangements so as not to implicate this comrade…”

"In other words, I need to dig from other directions..." Tang Minjie nodded. "Did the teacher give any clues about the identity of this comrade?"

"No, Father said you should judge for yourself."

"understood."

Without asking any further questions, Tang Minjie nodded and put the file away.

Peng Yueyun and his wife got up to say goodbye.

Not far away, at the hotel entrance, Lin Qiu looked at the sky, humming a little tune, and slowly strolled away. He had drunk a little, but wasn't drunk. He still had two banquets to attend.

Chengdu. The sky is covered with rain clouds.

Under the sky, the night was as dark as silk.