Oh no! My grandmother made me shoulder the responsibility for eight households!

Chapter 320 I came from the mountains, carrying a large machete.

In one afternoon, Lin Chen met with thirty-seven people who were crying out for justice.

Some had their land forcibly seized, some were driven to the point of losing their families, some were wrongfully imprisoned, and some had their daughters taken away.

Every case, more or less, is related to the Zhou family.

The Zhou family is the largest family in the county. They have been entrenched in the Southwest Province for decades, with their influence deeply entrenched and their network of relationships extending throughout the entire provincial capital.

More than half of those officials were related to the Zhou family.

Lin Chen listened to all the cases without saying a word.

He sat in the main hall of the government office, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest.

Hey.

Hey.

Hey.

Each sound seemed to strike the hearts of those officials.

Zhou Shiren knelt on the ground, trembling all over.

Other officials were also kneeling, some trembling, some motionless, and a few with normal expressions, such as the prefect Zhang Zheng.

Lin Chen knocked for a while, then suddenly stopped and said calmly:

"Finished the investigation?"

"The investigation is complete." Yenching University nodded.

"Of the thirty-seven cases, thirty-five are related to the Zhou family, and the remaining two are also related to the Zhou family's in-laws."

Lin Chen nodded and looked at Zhou Shiren: "Prefect Zhou, is there anything you wish to say?"

Zhou Shiren stammered, "Your Highness...Your Highness, spare me! Those were all done by my men, I...I knew nothing about it!"

Lin Chen sneered, "It was done by your subordinates again. What are you, the prefect, good for then?"

Zhou Shiren was speechless.

Lin Chen looked at the officials: "And you? Do you have anything to say?"

No one dared to speak.

Several people who wanted to speak were pulled back by the people next to them.

Lin Chen grew impatient and coldly said, "Zhang Zheng."

Zhang Zheng raised his head: "Your humble servant is here."

Why aren't you saying anything?

Zhang Zheng paused for a moment, then said, "This humble official has nothing to say."

Lin Chen raised an eyebrow: "Oh?"

Zhang Zheng hesitated for a moment and said:

"The Zhou family is powerful and I cannot afford to offend them, but I have not colluded with them either, so I have nothing to say."

Lin Chen stared at Zhang Zheng for a while, then suddenly burst out laughing:

"That's interesting."

He stood up, walked up to Zhang Zheng, and looked down at him.

Zhang was kneeling, but his back was straight and his eyes did not flinch.

"You know about these cases, why don't you do anything about them?" Lin Chen asked calmly.

"I tried to manage it, but failed. I impeached the Zhou family three times, but all three times the accusations were suppressed. The Zhou family has connections in the court, and I cannot afford to offend them."

"Then how dare you say it now?"

"Because the prince has arrived."

Lin Chen turned around, returned to his seat, and sat down.

Then he waved.

Yan Da understood, walked up to Zhou Shiren, and picked him up.

Zhou Shiren was so frightened that his soul almost left his body:

"Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, spare me! This humble official is willing to hand over all his wealth! This humble official is willing..."

Lin Chen waved his hand.

Yan Da slapped him on the back of the head, and Zhou Shiren's eyes rolled back as he fainted.

Lin Chen looked at the officials: "I will investigate Zhou Shiren's matter. What about you? Do you have anything to say?"

The lobby was quiet for a while.

Then, someone spoke up.

A middle-aged official, dressed in a blue official robe, crawled forward a few steps on his knees.

"Your Highness, I am guilty! I accepted three thousand taels of silver from the Zhou family to help them settle a case!"

Lin Chen looked at him without saying anything.

The man continued, "This humble official is willing to hand over the embezzled funds and testify against the Zhou family!"

Once someone started, others couldn't resist joining in.

"Your Highness, I am also guilty! I accepted five thousand taels of silver from the Zhou family!"

"Your Highness, I have received two thousand taels of silver and a house from the Zhou family!"

"Your Highness, this humble official..."

In an instant, the hall was in chaos as more than a dozen people scrambled to confess their crimes.

Lin Chen just watched, his face expressionless.

He waited until they had all finished shouting before he spoke:

"Is there anything else?"

No one spoke anymore.

Lin Chen counted them; there were seventeen in total.

He looked at Zhang Zheng: "Are these people usually close to the Zhou family?"

Zhang Zheng nodded: "They are all Zhou family confidants."

Lin Chen laughed angrily, "Arrest them all."

Yan Da waved his hand, and the Imperial City Guards rushed in and pinned the seventeen people to the ground.

The remaining officials either breathed a sigh of relief, turned pale, or had shifty eyes.

Lin Chen looked at them and said slowly:

"Those who surrender today, pay up and relinquish your power, and I may spare your lives. Those who don't surrender—"

He paused, then smiled:

"Once I find out, their entire family will be wiped out!"

The remaining officials turned pale instantly, and one with poor mental fortitude collapsed to the ground.

Then one after another.

In the end, only Zhang Zheng and another young man remained standing in the entire lobby.

Lin Chen looked at the young man.

The young man turned pale with nervousness.

Lin Chen asked, "What's your name?"

"This humble official, Li Wen, is... is the magistrate of the prefectural government," the young man replied tremblingly.

"Took office last year?"

"yes!"

"Has anyone given you money this past year?"

"have."

"You accepted it?"

"I didn't dare accept it."

"You didn't dare accept it? Why?"

"This humble official...this humble official is timid."

Lin Chen laughed heartily, looked at the young man, and continued to ask:

"Do you know anything about the Zhou family?"

The young man nodded: "I know a little."

Lin Chen asked, "Then why didn't you report it?"

The young man was silent for a moment, then said:

"Reporting it won't do any good. I am a lowly official with little influence, and reporting it will only get me into trouble."

Lin Chen didn't ask any more questions and waved his hand, "You can go now."

The young man paused for a moment, then quickly bowed and left.

Zhang Zheng was the only one left in the lobby.

Lin Chen looked at him: "Zhang Tongpan, why aren't you leaving?"

"I have something else to report," Zhang Zheng replied, bowing slightly.

Lin Chen frowned slightly: "What is it?"

Zhang Zhengdao: "Zhou Shiren is the third younger brother of the Zhou family patriarch."

Lin Chen nodded: "I know."

Zhang Zheng was stunned. "Since Your Highness knew, why did you still..."

Lin Chen smiled dismissively.

"Zhang Tongpan, do you think I'm afraid of a mere Zhou family?"

Zhang Zheng gave a wry smile:

"I'm not worried about Your Highness, but about the common people. Zhou Shiren has fallen, but this branch of the Zhou family still exists. What if they retaliate..."

Lin Chen interrupted him: "Do they dare?"

Zhang Zheng was stunned.

Lin Chen stood up and walked up to him:

"Zhang Tongpan, do you know how many people I've killed along the way?"

Zhang Zheng shook his head.

Lin Chen chuckled and said, "I've lost count, but I can tell you one thing: none of the people I've killed have dared to retaliate."

He patted Zhang Zheng on the shoulder: "Because they're all dead."

Zhang Zheng stood there, stunned.

Lin Chen turned around and walked out.

As he reached the door, he suddenly turned back:

"Zhang Tongpan, from today onwards, you are the prefect of the Southwest Circuit."

Zhang Zheng was stunned.

"What? You don't deserve it?" Lin Chen narrowed his eyes.

Zhang Zheng snapped out of his daze and knelt down with a thud: "Your humble servant... Your humble servant..."

"Alright, alright, stop kowtowing." Lin Chen waved his hand. "Do a good job. If you do well, I'll promote you. If you don't—"

"I will kill you too."

After saying that, Lin Chen left with his hands behind his back.

Zhang Zheng was left kneeling there, unable to react for a long time.