In front of the Inspection Bureau.
As Jiang Ning made his move, the crowd erupted in murmurs.
No one had expected Jiang Ning to act so directly.
"Release Captain Xiao!"
"Release Captain Xiao!"
"..."
Several voices rang out.
Jiang Ning ignored them and said, "Xie Xiaojiu, arrest these two. They dared to attack me, disrespecting a superior. Arrest them first."
"Yes!" Xie Xiaojiu immediately responded.
The situation had reversed. With Jiang Ning backing her, Xie Xiaojiu felt a surge of confidence.
With one of the four deputy commanders supporting her, what did she have to fear from these captains?
This was her confidence at this moment.
In the next moment.
Xie Xiaojiu, holding her sword, charged like a gust of wind toward Lü Renyao and the other captain.
The two had just been injured by Jiang Ning's full-force attack and were far from their peak condition. Seeing Xie Xiaojiu charging at them, they immediately rose to counterattack.
"Brothers, we're all from the Martial Academy. Someone, join me!!" Lü Renyao shouted.
Hearing this, several people stepped forward from the crowd.
Meanwhile, Jiang Ning no longer paid attention to Xie Xiaojiu's fight.
The two who had attacked him earlier a captain and Lü Renyao had been injured by him.
Especially Lü Renyao, who had been injured by Jiang Ning's punch yesterday and had attacked him again today. Jiang Ning hadn't held back much, so Lü Renyao was likely in bad shape.
In such a situation, if Xie Xiaojiu couldn't handle it, it would be a disgrace to her reputation as a prodigy.
And it would also be a disservice to Lin Qingyi's high regard for her.
Then, Jiang Ning looked at Xiao Tianhe in his grasp.
"Speak. Where are the people you arrested this morning?"
Xiao Tianhe pointed at his throat, his face red and unable to make a sound.
Seeing this, Jiang Ning loosened his grip.
Thud
Xiao Tianhe fell to the ground in mid-air.
Cough cough
He coughed a few times, catching his breath, and then said, "I didn't know there was a friend of the commander among the commoners. If the commander tells me who it is, I'll release them from the county jail immediately!"
Xiao Tianhe had completely surrendered.
At that moment.
"Trash!!" a voice rang out.
Then, the sallow-faced He Jinyun stepped out from the crowd again.
"You dare touch my people?" he said to Jiang Ning.
"Is the young lord planning to abuse his power for personal gain?" Jiang Ning smiled.
Hearing this, He Jinyun gave Jiang Ning a serious look.
"You have quite the nerve!"
Jiang Ning said, "The young lord also has quite the nerve! In front of so many people, the young lord still wants to shield his subordinate."
"You do have nerve!!" He Jinyun's expression darkened as he spoke.
"Enough!" A deep voice came from the entrance of the Inspection Bureau.
Hearing this voice, everyone was startled.
They turned to see Hong Minghu and Ye Qiu.
The crowd parted, making way for the two.
"Greetings, Bureau Head! Greetings, Commander Ye!"
Someone spoke, and the others followed suit.
"Greetings, Bureau Head! Greetings, Commander Ye!"
"Greetings, Bureau Head! Greetings, Commander Ye!"
"Greetings, Bureau Head! Greetings, Commander Ye!"
"..."
"What kind of behavior is this?" Hong Minghu glanced at He Jinyun and Jiang Ning. "Causing such a scene at the entrance of the Inspection Bureau is simply disgraceful. It's a joke."
"Please investigate, Bureau Head!" Xie Xiaojiu, who had stopped fighting, stepped forward. "Captain Xiao accepted bribes, abused his power, and arbitrarily arrested the owners of several taverns, sealing their businesses."
"Captain Xiao, is this true?" Hong Minghu's gaze fell on Xiao Tianhe, his voice low.
Seeing Hong Minghu's calm gaze, Xiao Tianhe couldn't help but tremble slightly.
"Confess truthfully, and you may receive leniency," Hong Minghu added.
Xiao Tianhe nodded. "I did accept bribes."
"You are sentenced to one month in the hard labor prison. Do you accept?" Hong Minghu said.
"I accept," Xiao Tianhe replied in a low voice.
Then.
Hong Minghu looked at Xie Xiaojiu.
"Xie Xiaojiu, you did well to report this, but you also disrespected a superior. Your merits and faults cancel each other out. You will neither be rewarded nor punished. Do you accept?"
Xie Xiaojiu nodded repeatedly. "I accept."
Then Hong Minghu looked at Jiang Ning.
"Deputy Commander Jiang, you took the initiative to uphold the integrity of the Inspection Bureau. This counts as a minor merit, and you will receive 100 contribution points. Are you satisfied?"
Jiang Ning said, "I am satisfied!"
Hearing this, Hong Minghu nodded slightly.
He then looked at the others who had fought with Xie Xiaojiu.
"Lü Renyao, Huang Xianzong, you two attacked Deputy Commander Jiang, disrespecting a superior. Huang Xianzong, as a captain, is sentenced to half a month in the hard labor prison. Lü Renyao, as a guard, disrespected a superior and was sentenced to three months in the hard labor prison. Do you accept?"
Hearing this, Lü Renyao's expression changed.
Three months in the hard labor prison.
This wasn't like seclusion training. It was enduring two months of torment in a dark, damp cell.
He had the misfortune of seeing the hard labor prison this morning.
The hard labor prison was also known as the water prison.
Inside, it was cold, damp, and pitch black. Because the prison was underground, the space was cramped, and the ceiling was so low that he couldn't even stand up straight.
In such conditions, three days would be unbearable, let alone three months.
Moreover, the environment made it impossible to do anything but feel the passage of time.
"I don't accept!!" Lü Renyao shouted, looking up at Hong Minghu. "The bureau head is biased, favoring Jiang Ning, a local."
"You don't accept? Biased?" Hong Minghu's expression darkened.
"Hmph!" He snorted coldly.
In an instant.
It was as if an invisible force exploded in the air. Lü Renyao staggered back, falling to the ground, blood flowing from his mouth.
"Disobeying orders adds another month to your sentence," Hong Minghu said indifferently.
Then, he looked at the others who had fought with Xie Xiaojiu.
"You all, forming cliques and fighting with colleagues in public, are sentenced to three days in the hard labor prison. Do you accept?"
"With Lü Renyao as an example, the others didn't dare to say another word, all expressing their acceptance.
At this moment.
Ye Qiu stepped forward.
"Everyone, disperse! Today, the bureau head is being lenient because you're all new to the Inspection Bureau and don't understand the rules yet."
"If there's a next time, it won't be so lightly dealt with!"
"I hope you all go back and carefully review what you should do, what you need to do, and what rules you must follow!"
"The Inspection Bureau has very strict rules!!"
After saying this, Ye Qiu turned to the man beside him.
One of the four deputy commanders, Tang Miaomiao.
"Deputy Commander Tang!"
"Sir, please speak!" Tang Miaomiao saluted respectfully.
She was from the academy, the Guangning Prefecture Academy.
She understood the Inspection Bureau better than the Martial Academy students from Dongling County.
So when facing Ye Qiu, she didn't dare to show any disrespect.
Because, strictly speaking, only Ye Qiu, Hong Minghu, and a few others were the true core of the local Inspection Bureau.
The rest were, at best, peripheral members, and at worst, a rabble.
At this moment.
Seeing Tang Miaomiao's respectful salute, Ye Qiu nodded slightly.
"The punishment for those people will be handled by Deputy Commander Tang!"
"Sir, rest assured!" Tang Miaomiao said.
As Ye Qiu and Hong Minghu left, the crowd gradually dispersed.
"Jiang Ning, I'll remember you!" He Jinyun walked past Jiang Ning, suddenly stopping to leave these words before walking away.
"Sir!" Xie Xiaojiu came to Jiang Ning. "Thank you for earlier! I've caused you trouble."
Jiang Ning smiled. "No need for that. Since you're under my command, I can't just stand by and watch you get bullied. Not to mention, Xiao Tianhe arrested a friend of mine this morning."
"Sir, what should we do now?" Xie Xiaojiu asked.
"Go find Feng Jiuge and have her gather some people. We're going to the county jail!"
"Yes, sir!" Xie Xiaojiu saluted and hurried off.
On the other side.
Inside the Inspection Bureau.
Ye Qiu and Hong Minghu walked side by side.
"Bureau Head, you were unusually lenient today," Ye Qiu said.
Hong Minghu spoke slowly, "These people are, after all, students of the Martial Academy and come from prominent families in Dongling City. It's not good to punish them too harshly."
"So, if that girl hadn't had Deputy Commander Jiang's support, you would have made an example of her?" Ye Qiu asked, turning his head.
"Exactly," Hong Minghu admitted frankly.
Then he added, "Today's outcome has weakened the effect, but there's no helping it. These people aren't easy to deal with."
Ye Qiu said, "In that case, the bureau head gave Deputy Commander Jiang quite a bit of face!!"
"Jiang Ning?" Hong Minghu repeated the name, then smiled. "Deputy Commander Jiang's face is not something to be ignored. He's a young grandmaster, after all!!"
"The bureau head thinks so highly of him?" Ye Qiu showed a hint of surprise.
Hong Minghu nodded. "Just wait. Soon, the updated Hidden Dragon Rankings will have a place for him."
County Jail.
"Halt!"
Two jailers drew their swords, eyeing Jiang Ning's group warily.
"Call your jail warden out!" Feng Jiuge stepped forward and said.
"Who are you? Please identify yourselves," one of the jailers said, swallowing his fear.
"Inspection Bureau," Feng Jiuge said indifferently.
Hearing these three words, the jailer immediately nodded.
"Sir, please wait here. I'll go get Warden Zhang!"
Seeing this, Feng Jiuge turned to Jiang Ning. "Sir, their reaction shows that Xiao Tianhe wasn't lying. The people he arrested this morning are indeed here."
Jiang Ning nodded. "He had no reason to lie. In front of the bureau head, he wouldn't dare to lie."
County Jail.
"Damn it, disturbing my nap. Is Xiao Tianhe here again?" A burly middle-aged man cursed as he got up.
"Sir, it's not the same group as this morning. The leader is a woman, a very beautiful and imposing woman."
"A woman?" The burly man was slightly stunned, then said, "Lead the way!"
A moment later.
At the entrance of the county jail.
"Xiao Tianhe didn't come?" The burly man, stepping out of the dark jail into the bright sunlight, squinted at the scene before him, thinking to himself.
In the next moment.
"Greetings, sirs!" He immediately walked toward Jiang Ning's group with a smile. "May I ask how to address you all? I'm Zhang Cheng, the warden of this county jail."
Feng Jiuge said, "Captain Feng Jiuge of the Inspection Bureau."
As she spoke, she showed her silver token to Zhang Cheng.
"Ah, Captain Feng!" Zhang Cheng quickly saluted. "Greetings, Captain Feng!"
Jiang Ning also took out his golden token.
"Deputy Commander Jiang Ning of the Inspection Bureau."
"You're Jiang Ning!!" Zhang Cheng's eyes widened as he looked at Jiang Ning.
"That's right," Jiang Ning nodded.
"Greetings, Deputy Commander Jiang!" Zhang Cheng quickly saluted.
He was also shocked.
Jiang Ning's name had long been famous to him, especially after yesterday. In Luoshui County, this name was now almost universally known.
But knowing the name was one thing; seeing Jiang Ning's face was another.
He was one of the few who had.
As the warden of the county jail, guarding the jail was his primary duty.
So, although he lived a leisurely life in jail, he rarely dared to leave his post without permission.
Guarding the county jail, if he left his post without authorization, it was a capital offense.
Zhang Cheng's thoughts flashed through his mind.
Then he said to Jiang Ning, "Deputy Commander Jiang, may I ask why you've come here today?"
Jiang Ning said, "Warden Zhang, did the Inspection Bureau bring a group of prisoners here this morning?"
Hearing this, Zhang Cheng quickly waved his hand.
"Please, don't call me 'Warden.' In front of Deputy Commander Jiang, a mere ninth-rank jail warden like me doesn't deserve such a title."
Then he added, "But you're right, sir. This morning, someone did bring in a group of prisoners. They're now held on the second floor of the jail."
"Take me to see them," Jiang Ning said.
"Yes, sir!" Zhang Cheng nodded repeatedly and led the way.
As he walked, he said, "Deputy Commander Jiang, the people brought in this morning were arrested by Captain Xiao Tianhe. Before leaving, he instructed me to keep them securely locked up and not allow any visitors."
Feng Jiuge said, "The Xiao Tianhe you mentioned has already been imprisoned in the Inspection Bureau's hard labor prison."
"Imprisoned?" Zhang Cheng looked surprised, then nodded in understanding. "I see!"
A moment later.
Under Zhang Cheng's guidance, the group arrived at the second floor of the county jail.
This floor was darker, damper, and more oppressive than the one above.
"Sir, they're right ahead," Zhang Cheng said.
The group turned a corner and saw several cells holding several people.
The sound of their footsteps alerted the prisoners, who turned to look at the newcomers.
"Miss Ninth?" Tong Xiuyun's face lit up with joy upon seeing Xie Xiaojiu.
"Brother Jiang!!" Cheng Ran's eyes brightened.
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