Chapter 172: “Fair and Impartial”

The three large words “Fair and Impartial” were prominently displayed in bright red lacquer, hanging high above the public court.

Below, a weary-looking county magistrate, his official robe loosely draped and misaligned, sat at his desk with his hands clasped.

This man was none other than the county magistrate of Shanyang County—Lu Ming.

Lu Ming had sparse eyebrows, small eyes, a broad face, and a large nose. His beady pupils, no bigger than mung beans, were fixed intently on the corpses laid out before him, his brows furrowing into deep creases.

In the hall, only a handful of yellow-clad constables stood silently around the room.

At this moment, the public court’s doors were tightly shut, and several oil lamps were placed around the walls. The bright light illuminated the constables’ faces, revealing their grim and somber expressions.

—

“Zhao Quan…”

“At your service!”

“Tell me the truth—did you and your men kill Zheng Er’s group?”

“Reporting to Magistrate Lu, no, we did not!”

“Fine… Now is not the time to talk about supernatural nonsense. I’ll assume for the moment that these men were killed by ghosts…”

“But let me ask you—do you understand the consequences of Zheng Er’s death?”

“I do. Zheng Wuwei will go mad with rage. When that happens, not only will we suffer his revenge, but the innocent people of Shanyang County will also be caught in the crossfire!”

Hearing this, Lu Ming let out a cold sneer. He then grabbed the wooden gavel on the table and hurled it at Zhao Quan with force!

Thud!

The gavel struck Zhao Quan squarely on the forehead, producing a dull sound before clattering to the floor.

In an instant, a thin stream of blood trickled down from Zhao Quan’s forehead.

Seeing this, the surrounding constables all shuddered, immediately lowering their heads, afraid to make eye contact.

“Since you damn well knew this, why did you act on your own? Who told you to listen to that so-called ‘mister’ and arrest Zheng Er?!”

“Why the hell didn’t you report to me first?!”

“And now that you’ve messed everything up, you come running to me?!”

Despite being hit, Zhao Quan remained silent. He wiped the blood from his eyes and clasped his hands respectfully.

“Magistrate Lu, I believe my judgment wasn’t wrong.”

“I’ve served in Shanyang County for years. I’ve seen all sorts of people, from the lowliest to the highest.”

“That ‘mister’ only arrived recently, yet his demeanor is extraordinary. I can’t quite put it into words, but he carries an aura of natural authority!”

“There’s a chance he really is a student of the Imperial Preceptor… If that’s true, then my actions might actually count as atonement for past mistakes!”

Bang!

“Nonsense!”

Lu Ming slammed the table, his voice thundering:

“I just received a message from Baoying County today—this time, the Imperial Preceptor is traveling with soldiers and skilled individuals, but he has brought no students!”

“What?!” Zhao Quan’s face twisted in disbelief. “But that mister was so confident… Could he have another identity?”

“Zhao Quan, you damned fool!” Lu Ming cursed before exhaling sharply.

He continued, “The Imperial Preceptor will arrive in Shanyang County in two days.”

“What we need to do now is stabilize Zheng Wuwei before he arrives!”

“I predict that within a day, Zheng Wuwei will find out his brother has gone missing!”

Zhao Quan responded, “Are you suggesting that we reveal the entire situation in Shanyang County to the Imperial Preceptor and let him handle this disaster?”

“Exactly!” Lu Ming paused before adding, “As long as we put on a convincing performance, even if the Imperial Preceptor holds us accountable later, we won’t face severe punishment!”

“But now there’s a problem—how do we endure the wrath of that madman, Zheng Wuwei, for an entire day?”

Hearing this, Zhao Quan furrowed his brows and responded, “How about we find a way to suppress the news for two days?”

“The only people who know about Zheng Er’s death are those present, as well as Mr. Gu’s female companion and Mao Cuicui.”

“As long as we all keep our mouths shut, it should be possible to keep this under wraps for two days, right?”

County Magistrate Lu sneered, “Do you think Zheng Wuwei is that easy to fool? If it were anyone else, maybe—but this is his own blood brother, his only family in the world!”

“If by tomorrow night, he still hasn’t heard from his brother, do you think he won’t be able to figure out where he went missing and what he was doing before that?”

Magistrate Lu’s words sent a chill down Zhao Quan’s spine.

Indeed, even Zheng Er had the means to detect when he was being watched or ambushed.

And Zheng Wuwei was a hundred times more formidable than his brother.

“Tomorrow, when Zheng Wuwei can’t find his brother, he’ll definitely come looking for us…” Magistrate Lu’s voice grew heavy. “When that happens, we’ll hand over Mao Cuicui, Mr. Gu, and that young girl to him!”

“We’ll tell him that they killed Zheng Er… and then we’ll assure him that the Imperial Preceptor is arriving soon. Once the Imperial Preceptor leaves, the county office will make it up to him properly…”

“What?!”

Zhao Quan was utterly shocked. He had never imagined that Magistrate Lu, who usually seemed fairly reasonable, could come up with such a ruthless scheme!

“Magistrate Lu! This… this doesn’t seem right!”

Magistrate Lu let out a disdainful laugh. “Not right? Then tell me, what is ‘right’?”

“Is it taking your wife and children out there to be slaughtered?”

“Or do you suggest all the constables here send their families away, only for them to be violated?”

“If this plan succeeds, the cancer of Shanyang County can finally be eradicated, and we will no longer have to live under the bandits’ threat.”

“The skies of Shanyang County will be clear once more!”

“Even if it means sacrificing those three, it’s worth it… because it will save many more lives.”

Zhao Quan fell silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth. “Magistrate Lu, this is just one mistake after another…”

“One mistake after another?” Magistrate Lu snorted. “Right and wrong depend entirely on perspective!”

“The corruption in Shanyang County has plagued the people for too long. With the Imperial Preceptor arriving, this is a rare opportunity… It’s just bad luck for those three—they came here, meddled where they shouldn’t have, and coincidentally got involved in Zheng Er’s death.”

“I believe I am doing the right thing. If this succeeds, it will be a crime in the present but a merit for future generations!”

“Now, go and capture Mao Cuicui and the others!”

“Make sure they’re alive—otherwise, they won’t be enough to satisfy Zheng Wuwei’s wrath!”

Clang!

Zhao Quan drew his blade. The steel was still stained with dried blood.

“Magistrate Lu, it was this very sword that the ghost took from me to kill Zheng Er and his men…”

“Do you know?”

“In that moment, I thought I saw the stone broker among the dead… I could feel that he wanted to kill me… But he didn’t.”

“That’s why I can’t throw his poor lover into the fire pit again…”