Cries of injustice echoed through the air, prompting Qi Tianyu to frown and rub his ears, his tone laced with disdain."If you seek justice, shouldn't you take it up with the authorities? You abducted someone first, then dared to threaten a court official. Are you all so eager to spend a few days in jail?"
He had thought there might be some drama worth watching, but this turned out to be a waste of time. If he had known it would be this dull, he wouldn't have bothered coming.
Before his words had even faded, Wu Si shot to his feet. Zhuo Qing tried to grab him, but he moved so quickly that she didn't even touch the hem of his robe.
He knelt before Lou Xiyan and struck his forehead to the ground three times with a resounding thud. Drawing a deep breath, Wu Si cried out:"My lord Chancellor! This humble peasant is slow-witted, and we would never have come to this if we had a choice! We've been to the magistrate's office countless times. The yamen runners told us the case was already judged, and then drove us out. We tried to seek justice from the Criminal Division, but the lord was no longer in the capital. We had no choice but to appeal to you—but how could commoners like us simply stroll into the Chancellor's residence? We were left with no other option..."
The bitterness in his voice left him unable to continue; he could only bow again and again, his head striking the floor with alarming force.
The sound made Zhuo Qing's heart jolt. Was his skull made of iron? She gave Xiao Wuzi a sharp tap and muttered,"Cry injustice!""What?" Xiao Wuzi was completely confused.Pig!
She twisted his arm hard, hissing through gritted teeth:"Cry—injustice—!"
Finally understanding, Xiao Wuzi let out a howl,"Injustice! We've been wronged!"Her grip was brutal! It hurt like hell!
The pained cry roused the dazed villagers, who quickly joined in the chorus—"My lord Chancellor, grant us justice—!""Please, my lord, hear our plea!"
Lou Xiyan's eyes, cool and discerning, swept over the faces of the angry yet earnest villagers. They did seem to bear genuine grievances.
He stepped forward and helped the still-kowtowing Wu Si to his feet."If there is injustice to redress, speak plainly."
Wu Si scrambled up, not daring to let the Chancellor help him. He fumbled through his robe, and with trembling hands, produced a folded paper."This is our written petition."
They even brought a petition!
Lou Xiyan took it with a faint smile and slowly unfolded it. After a while, still smiling, he asked casually:"Who wrote this?"
Qi Tianyu stood, curiosity piqued, and took the paper. Others might not know, but he had grown up alongside Lou Xiyan—he could tell that the more relaxed his tone and the gentler his smile, the more suspicious he had become.
Damn! Zhuo Qing cursed under her breath.Don't turn around. Don't look at me. Please, for the love of heaven—don't—turn—around!
But fate was cruel. The villagers all turned in unison, their gazes locking onto her.
Damn it! Idiots! Brainless pigs!
She cursed them thoroughly in her heart, running through every insult she could think of over twenty-some years of life. But in the end, she still had to rise slowly, because that "gentle" gaze had already pinned her in place.
Following the villagers' gaze, Lou Xiyan saw a slender figure crouched on the ground, head bowed. After a long moment, the figure stood. A wide hat shaded most of the face, leaving the features indistinct. Clad in coarse hemp garments, the figure looked even smaller, like a harmless youth—but Lou Xiyan wasn't fooled.
He said nothing. Lou Xiyan observed with interest, then asked,"You wrote the petition?"
Still keeping her head down, Zhuo Qing replied in a subdued voice,"Yes."
She desperately wanted to say no, but with a bunch of fools kneeling behind her ready to sell her out at any moment, this was the first time she truly resented the simple goodness of hardworking peasants.
Qi Tianyu gave her a once-over, waving the petition lazily."The phrasing is rather concise and pointed, but the handwriting is atrocious!"
Zhuo Qing remained silent, head still bowed. She had never claimed to have good penmanship—trying to provoke her that way wouldn't work.
Resolving to play dumb, she said nothing. Lou Xiyan wasn't in a hurry. He turned to Wu Si and asked,"You are neither his kin nor directly involved in the case. Why plead on his behalf? What evidence do you have that he was falsely accused?"
Unable to meet Lou Xiyan's eyes, Wu Si poured out the lines he had rehearsed countless times:"My lord Chancellor, Lin Bokang is the benefactor of our entire village! Niujia Village has only three wells—our people, our livestock, and our crops all depend on that water. During dry seasons, when the heavens gave no rain, we had nothing to harvest. For years, our benefactor gave us food and even winter quilts—not for a day or two, but for ten full years!
How could a man like that ever supply substandard goods or swap out military rations? He's not that kind of person! He must have been framed, my lord! Please, investigate!"
So it was that case—the one involving the alleged ration fraud. The Ministry of Justice had ruled on it half a month ago. There were witnesses, physical evidence, even a signed confession.
Lou Xiyan was puzzled."The court has already ruled. Lin Bokang signed his confession. What injustice remains? Do you have new evidence?"
"We…"They had no evidence—only faith.
Panicked, Wu Si fell to his knees once more."He would never do such a thing! My lord, please see the truth!"
A grown man sobbing and bowing repeatedly, joined by the villagers behind him—the thunderous sounds of kowtowing set Zhuo Qing's temper ablaze.
Pigs! All of them! Just bowing and sobbing—why can't they say what needs to be said?!
She grabbed Wu Si by the shoulder."That's enough."
Pushing past the others, she stood face-to-face with Lou Xiyan. Her voice was cold and unwavering."According to Lin Bokang's wife, even after the case was closed, he insisted he had been falsely accused. Tell me—what kind of guilty man still proclaims his innocence?
This case was not tried in public. We have reason to suspect Lin Bokang was coerced into confessing—perhaps through torture, or even while unconscious."
"Torture?"
Now that was an interesting claim. His face remained hidden, but the voice was clear and calm, the bearing steady and composed—this was no ordinary villager.
Lou Xiyan stepped closer."You're making a serious accusation. Do you have evidence?"
Such pressure! His voice was gentle, his smile mild, yet every time their eyes met, Zhuo Qing felt inexplicably tense.
Gu Yun always said the best defense was a good offense—how fortunate that she agreed. She never backed down, and she wasn't about to start now.
Tilting her chin slightly, she returned coldly,"If he was tortured, the injuries on his body will make it plain. Lin Bokang swears he's innocent, yet someone seems desperate to close this case. Tell me, Chancellor—if it was torture, then what?"
Lou Xiyan hadn't expected such defiance. Under the moonlight, they stood almost face to face.
From beneath the brim of that wide hat, a pair of clear, resolute eyes stared back at him.
Yes—clear.
How many years had it been since he'd seen such honest eyes?
In the bureaucratic world, everyone wore masks. He had almost forgotten what sincerity looked like. A warmth stirred within him, and for the sake of that rare clarity, he said gravely:"If what you say is true, the case shall indeed be retried."
Excellent. Time for the finishing blow.
Deliberately raising her voice, Zhuo Qing asked,"For fairness' sake, surely this retrial must be held in public, mustn't it?"
A public retrial? She was cornering him.
If he refused, it would seem unjust. Very well then. Lou Xiyan smiled faintly and replied without hesitation,"I was thinking the same. A public hearing is precisely what this case needs."
Yes! That was the moment she had been waiting for. But then—
"However…"
He drew the word out, stepping closer as he spoke each syllable slowly and clearly:"According to Qiongyue law, if the retrial fails to overturn the original verdict, and no new evidence is found, the one who petitioned for the retrial shall be charged with slandering the court. The lightest penalty is one hundred strokes. The heaviest—three years of forced labor."
What?!
That's a law?! You can get punished just for appealing?!
Why hadn't anyone told her this before?!
She...