HPDBC #416 - Execute first and report later!
#416 - Execute first and report later!
Inside the command tent, lights blazed and the aroma of wine filled the air.
A group of Changzhou officials were still indulging in a world of extravagance, raising cups, exchanging toasts, and engaging in playful banter.
Precious wines swirled in delicate goblets, and rare delicacies filled the table. They reveled in this luxurious moment, completely unaware of the impending storm.
But who could have foreseen that, in the very next second...
The tent flap was abruptly thrown open, and Liang Jin, the Chief Clerk, and Zhao Chuxia entered in quick succession.
Zhao Chuxia's appearance was even more wretched, blood flowing uncontrollably from her mouth, dripping onto the ground. Two maids followed closely behind her, frantically trying to wipe away the ceaseless flow of blood.
Her eyes burned with raging fury, like a provoked mother beast, eager to devour Liang Jin alive.
"Princess, what... what happened?"
The Vice Prefect of Changzhou widened his eyes, his face full of shock, unable to resist asking.
The Changzhou garrison commander also spoke in a deep voice:
"Could it be Fan Jing who did this? This is simply outrageous!"
"He dares to lay a hand on the princess, does he really think he has nine lives?"
The other officials also chimed in with righteous indignation, echoing each other's sentiments.
If Fan Jing had truly committed such a rebellious act, then this time they would finally have the opportunity to get rid of that uncooperative fellow!
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out:
"Stop guessing!"
"Your princess was beaten by me."
Hearing this, everyone turned their heads to look, only to see Liang Jin sitting grandly in the main seat, the honorable position that originally belonged to Zhao Chuxia, now unceremoniously occupied by him.
The words just spoken had come from his mouth.
Immediately, the group of officials couldn't help but be surprised, pointing at Liang Jin and denouncing him.
"Who are you? That seat is for the princess! Get down now, what right do you have to sit there?"
"What?! You beat the princess? Do you know who the princess's father is? Are you really tired of living?"
"You have an immense amount of nerve, daring to beat the princess like this! No matter how powerful your background is, if Prince Pingcheng kills you for this, the Emperor won't say a word."
...
The officials and Zhao Chuxia were in the same interest group, so naturally, they had to speak up for Zhao Chuxia at this time. Their voices rose and fell, full of anger and threats.
The Chief Clerk couldn't help but cough, breaking the noisy situation:
"He is a famous constable from the Six Doors, Chasing Shadow."
As soon as these words came out, all the officials were stunned.
Then, even those officials who were still sitting stood up one after another, respectfully saluting Liang Jin.
The official rank of a famous constable was higher than that of a prefect. In the presence of a famous constable, everyone present, except for the imperial envoy, could only call themselves a subordinate official.
When a subordinate official sees a superior official, they naturally have to salute.
However, everyone's faces were full of surprise and suspicion, constantly looking towards the Chief Clerk.
Why did the dignified Chasing Shadow come to Changzhou?
Wasn't it said that the famous constable coming to Changzhou was Capturing Wind? How come there's another Chasing Shadow?
Faced with the questioning gazes of the crowd, the Chief Clerk was also unable to answer. Now, he could only listen to what this Chasing Shadow had to say.
So, everyone's gaze turned again to Liang Jin in the main seat.
Liang Jin looked at the crowd, his expression stern, and asked in a deep voice:
"Where is the disaster relief silver?"
This first question made everyone's hearts tremble, as if struck hard by a heavy hammer.
No one had expected that this famous constable from the Six Doors was actually here for the disaster relief silver!
They had acted meticulously this time. Could it be that there was a problem in some link, leading to a leak of information?
The crowd couldn't help but exchange glances with each other, and some even began to whisper, trying to find a countermeasure in this chaos.
Liang Jin was not in a hurry. He just sat quietly, with a playful sneer on his face, waiting for this group of officials to collude.
Soon, the officials had unified their story, forming an alliance of offense and defense.
The Vice Prefect of Changzhou was the first to stand up, his face filled with false humility, and saluted Liang Jin:
"Lord Constable, we also just received news that last night, the team transporting the disaster relief silver was attacked by bandits led by 'Timely Rain' Song Jiang and 'Flying Swallow Thief' Yan San娘 about a day's journey from here."
"The soldiers suffered heavy casualties, and all the disaster relief silver has been robbed by Song Jiang and his gang of bandits. After learning this news, we immediately gathered here to discuss countermeasures and prepare to intercept the gang of bandits."
"Now that Lord Constable has arrived, that is naturally a great thing! Please, Lord Constable, take action and arrest the notorious bandit Song Jiang. Song Jiang's martial arts are superb, and only Lord Constable can easily capture him."
The Vice Prefect's attitude was sincere, and his words were pitiful, making one think that he was the real good official who was pleading for the people.
Liang Jin listened, and sneered, his laughter full of disdain and mockery.
These people really thought he didn't know anything.
Liang Jin didn't arrive only when the princess shot and killed the common people.
After Ji Yan came to the command tent before, Liang Jin had already followed. Relying on his superb lightness skills, he easily sneaked in and had already eavesdropped on everything.
And now, this Vice Prefect was still pretending in front of him?
Liang Jin grabbed a silver chopstick from the table, a cold glint flashing in his eyes, and then suddenly threw it at the Vice Prefect!
"Whoosh!"
The silver chopstick turned into a stream of light, extremely fast, carrying a whistling sound, and hit the Vice Prefect's forehead, deeply piercing into the Vice Prefect's head.
The Vice Prefect was still maintaining his saluting and humble posture, the expression on his face had not yet had time to change, and blood kept gushing out from the wound on his forehead, like a spring, dyeing his entire face red.
Then, his body crashed to the ground, making a dull sound.
At first, everyone failed to react.
After all, this was a fifth-rank official of the imperial court, equivalent to the second-in-command of the entire Changzhou.
He just died like that?
Moreover, it was without any warning, suddenly killed by Liang Jin?
After the Vice Prefect's body fell to the ground, everyone realized it, and they were both shocked and angry, glaring at Liang Jin, their eyes seemingly about to spew fire.
The Chief Clerk pointed at Liang Jin and roared:
"Chasing Shadow!"
"You actually killed a fifth-rank official of the imperial court, what do you want to do? Do you want to rebel?!"
"You have such great courage, who gave you the power to do this?!"
The rest of the officials also glared at Liang Jin with righteous indignation, loudly denouncing him, their voices echoing in the command tent.
Zhao Chuxia watched all this with cold eyes while the maids treated her wounds.
She just wanted to see what would happen to Liang Jin after he committed such a great crime!
Liang Jin snorted coldly, suddenly stood up, his aura menacing, and said loudly:
"Execute first, report later, imperial power specially granted!"
These words immediately caused a great shock to everyone present, like a thunderclap exploding in their ears.
Could it be that Zhu Ying had received special privileges granted by the Emperor?
These Changzhou officials couldn't help but feel guilty.
Their greatest reliance was the order of the imperial court.
But if the Emperor, the highest authority of order, wanted to move against them, then they would truly have no way out but death.
At this moment, the other officials were all trembling with fear, sweating profusely, with large beads of sweat constantly rolling down their foreheads.
However, the Chief Secretary was not so easily intimidated, and he questioned:
"You say imperial privilege, but where is the imperial decree?!"
Without seeing the imperial decree, the Chief Secretary would not easily believe it.
Liang Jin glanced at him sideways, his eyes full of contempt, and then replied loudly:
"I have a secret decree from the Emperor, specifically to investigate the whereabouts of the disaster relief silver."
"Do you really think this official knows nothing?"
"I had already noticed that you were acting suspiciously. I followed Ji Yan all the way here, and I heard everything you discussed here before!"
"You few corrupt officials are truly audacious! How dare you plot against the disaster relief silver?"
"Immediately tell me where the disaster relief silver is! Anyone who tries to deceive me again will suffer the same fate as him!"
As Liang Jin spoke, he kicked the body of the Vice Magistrate into the crowd.
The crowd scattered in fear, their faces filled with shock and disgust.
Liang Jin's words made everyone feel as if they had fallen into an ice cave, a chill running from the soles of their feet to the top of their heads.
Their conversation just now was actually heard by Zhu Ying?
Liang Jin even said Ji Yan's name, so it must be true.
They had heard that Zhu Ying was skilled in investigation and intelligence gathering, and now it was indeed extraordinary!
If this matter were to be exposed, then their entire families would be subjected to the death of a thousand cuts!
For a moment, the officials felt their heads buzzing, as if countless bees were flying around their ears.
When the Chief Secretary heard that Liang Jin actually had a secret decree from the Emperor, he was also taken aback.
Just as he wanted Liang Jin to show the secret decree.
A burst of loud laughter came:
"Hahahaha!"
The crowd followed the laughter and saw that it was the Imperial Envoy who was laughing.
The Imperial Envoy slowly walked out of the crowd amidst the puzzled gazes of everyone.
He went straight to Liang Jin, with a confident smile on his face, and said with a smile:
"Zhu Ying, you are very smart and very good."
"After this Imperial Envoy returns, I will definitely speak well of you in front of the Emperor, and your promotion is just around the corner."
"Now that you have already investigated this matter, then this Imperial Envoy has nothing to hide."
"You will get a share of the silver, and from now on, you will be one of us."
As soon as the Imperial Envoy spoke, everyone understood what he meant.
He wanted to buy off the famous detective!
However, this kind of thing is also very normal, everyone has their own price.
As long as the benefits given are large enough, not to mention a famous detective being bought off, even the Emperor can be bought off!
Immediately, the officials began to persuade:
"Lord Detective, the Imperial Envoy is right. The way of being an official is to have many friends and few enemies. It would be a great story if we could turn enemies into friends."
"Yes, if you only rely on the God of Detectives, what if the God of Detectives falls one day? Wouldn't you lose your backer? If we become friends, we can become allies in the future."
"More friends, more paths. Lord Zhu Ying, you are so smart that we don't need to say more. We can even help you resolve your grievances with the Princess!"
...
These officials chattered non-stop, their voices intertwined in the tent.
The Imperial Envoy also looked at Liang Jin with a smile, his face full of confidence, as if he was certain that Liang Jin would not refuse, his eyes full of determination.
Liang Jin helplessly stretched out his hand.
Everyone thought he was going to pat the Imperial Envoy on the shoulder.
But who knew that Liang Jin would actually press down on the Imperial Envoy's head, and then suddenly twist it.
"Crack!"
Accompanied by a crisp sound of bone cracking, the Imperial Envoy's head was twisted one hundred and eighty degrees.
The dignified Imperial Envoy was actually directly killed by Liang Jin!
In the unbelievable gazes of everyone, the Imperial Envoy's body slowly fell to the ground, making a dull sound, as if it was the last sigh for this dark officialdom.
"You... you dare to kill the Imperial Envoy!"
"You have committed a heinous crime! You are truly audacious!"
The Chief Secretary shouted in disbelief, his voice shrill and trembling.
Not only him, but all the other officials were also stunned, their eyes wide, their faces filled with shock and fear.
When they saw Liang Jin kill the Vice Magistrate, they knew that Liang Jin was very bold.
But they didn't expect that Liang Jin would be so bold as to dare to kill the Imperial Envoy!
The Imperial Envoy represents the authority of the Emperor.
Killing the Imperial Envoy is directly opposing the Emperor! It is challenging imperial power!
Unless this Liang Jin really received the Emperor's decree and authorization, even if he is a famous detective, he is destined to suffer the most severe punishment!
The officials were exasperated and couldn't help but shout in surprise and anger:
"Crazy... Zhu Ying, you are really crazy! I must report you! I must impeach you! Prepare to lose your head!"
"This is a dignified Imperial Envoy. The law does not punish high officials. Even if he is wrong, you cannot directly kill him like this. Now it is you who have truly broken the rules of officialdom!"
"Do you really think we can be slaughtered by you? We also have big figures standing behind us! Even if you kill us all today, you will still not escape death in the end!"
...
Liang Jin listened to the officials' shouts with interest, with a faint smile on his face, as if watching a ridiculous farce.
He knew that this was the benefit of the Zhu Ying identity, allowing him to see this spectacle.
If he came as the bandit Song Jiang, he would only need to kill one or two people at random, and this group of people would have already fled for their lives.
But it was because he used the identity of Zhu Ying that these people were still under the inertia of thinking, and actually still trying to engage in a verbal debate?
They are all literati, and literati naturally use their mouths and not their hands.
But they didn't expect that Liang Jin was a bandit martial artist who would never waste words if he could use his hands.
Immediately, Liang Jin glanced at the crowd and said:
"It seems that no one is willing to listen to me."
"I asked where the disaster relief silver is, you just need to tell me and it's over."
"You insist on forcing me to kill people."
Liang Jin glanced at these minor officials and shook his head slightly in disappointment.
He felt that these guys probably didn't know the whereabouts of the disaster relief silver.
So Liang Jin turned his gaze to the Chief Secretary and Zhao Chuxia:
"It's your turn."
"If you don't speak, next time I will kill you two."