Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Looking at the officers kneeling in a neat formation before him, Yun Zhonghe felt somewhat confused.
I… Just what kind of an official position was I given?
Am I this powerful? That I can manage so many people?
Immediately after, several middle-aged female servants stepped forward and stripped Yun Zhonghe of his shirt.
“My dear sisters, don’t do this, don’t do this!” Yun Zhonghe said in a bashful manner. “I have not bathed in days.”
It was far more than not bathing. His hair was still like weeds, and he had maintained his look of a beggar.
There there, we are good-looking men all the same, but look at how fine and exquisite that Shen Lang’s life is.
Luckily, the few female servants did not strip Yun Zhonghe completely naked. This had to be because he had not revealed his incomparably handsome face. Otherwise, he would have lost his chastity by now! Being beautiful men, we must know how to protect ourselves.
Then, the middle-aged ladies used their rough and strong hands to put Yun Zhonghe’s official uniform and hat on him.
Somehow or another, this scene felt familiar to Yun Zhonghe.
Was this a copycat version of the Chen Qiao Mutiny, where he had a green robe draped over him?
Immediately after that, Yun Zhonghe found that his official uniform was actually green in color, and what about his hat? It wouldn’t be green as well, right?
But he still did not recognize this official uniform and hat that he had donned. He still had no idea what official position he was assigned.
But everyone present only had one feeling when they saw Yun Zhonghe in this outfit. They thought he was only going to be an official in name.
“My Lord, please,” a chubby, middle-aged aide said as he came forward and saluted with a bow.
“Where to?” Yun Zhonghe asked.
“Lord Wen of Torn Gust Decree has been waiting for a long time,” the middle-aged scribe said.
Lord Wen? Wen Daofu?
This man was truly a big shot. He was an absolute direct descendant of the former castellan, Jing E, and had made many meritorious contributions to the expansion of the City of Torn Gust. Furthermore, he was also Jing Zhongyue’s teacher.
This person was such a venerable character that even Jing Zhongyue had to treat him with reverence.
As for Jing Wubian?
Sorry, if he were to see this great old lord, he would be like a meek mouse running into a cat. Jing Wubian had been consistently subjected to beatings by Wen Daofu since starting his childhood studies.
Yun Zhonghe followed the scribe and headed towards the main court of the bureau, with dozens of officials following behind him.
“My lord, Yun AoTian is here,” the middle-aged man said.
“Come in!” A cold voice was heard coming from inside.
Just by listening to his voice, Yun Zhonghe knew that this was someone who would be very difficult to get along with. This was the stereotypical kind of person who was harsh on himself and even harsher on others.
The door was pushed open, and Yun Zhonghe walked in.
Everyone else stood outside the door in a bowing position, not even daring to straighten their backs.
After entering, Yun Zhonghe saw a thin and gaunt figure donning a vermillion red official uniform. This person was none other than Wen Daofu.
His official uniform was old and worn out. His skin was old and wrinkled, and he had a face that looked severely sharp as if it had been carved by a knife or tapered by an axe.
This was an honest and upright official, one who made his subordinates go terror-stricken at the mere sound of him.
When he saw Yun Zhonghe enter, the other party did not turn around.
“You are Yun AoTian?”
“Yes.”
“What scholarly merits do you have?”
“Initiation to schooling during early childhood but dropped out after a year,” Yun Zhonghe answered.
“Nonsense…” Wen Daofu said in a stern voice. “The castellan is really messing around. What does she take my Bureau of Torn Gust for? What does she make out of the position of adviser of the judicial department?”
Hearing this, Yun Zhonghe finally understood what official position he had been given.
It was, in fact, lord of the judicial department.
What kind of an official position was this? It was the equivalent of combining a police chief, warden, judge, and prosecutor of the City of Torn Gust, all into one body.
The chief officer in charge of law and order, punishment and imprisonment, as well as criminal investigation.
It was an absolute powerhouse of a position. It was a very, very important official position.
How could Jing Zhongyue actually be so generous as to give this beggar, Yun Zhonghe, such a powerful and significant official position?
That was simply outrageous.
Yun Zhonghe merely demanded an official position that was no lower than Li Tian’s. But Li Tian was only a centurion, and not even a centurion of the regular army.
“What’s your background like? Have you ever assumed the office of any kind of official position?” Wen Daofu asked.
Yun Zhonghe said, “I was born into the life of a beggar and a ruffian and have never held any official position.”
“Nonsense, nonsense…” Wen Daofu said in a stern voice. “What do you take my office of the City of Torn Gust for? Do you think any random Tom, Dick, or Harry can also become an official, is that it? Where’s the dignity? Where’s the stateliness?”
“Your name is Yun AoTian, right? Go back to wherever you come from. Scram! Run as far away as you can!”
This old man really had a fiery temper, and it also seemed like he was in a bad mood.
“Men, throw this beggar out and strip him of his official uniform,” Wen Daofu thundered.
“Hold it!” Yun Zhonghe said, “Lord Wen, the one who sent me here to be an official is Jing Zhongyue, and she is the monarch of the Valley of Torn Gust. Could it be that you are bent on defying her orders? Are you bullying the young ruler just because you think you are qualified and senior enough?”
Wen Daofu’s sharp gaze swept over Yun Zhonghe like electricity. With a sneer, he said, “Little one, the monarch is my student. We are like father and daughter, so it’s not like you can drive a wedge between us.”
This old thing’s eyes were really sharp. Yun Zhonghe apparently appeared to be a forty to fifty-year-old man, yet the old man saw through his guise right away.
“You come with me,” said Wen Daofu of Torn Gust Decree in a cold voice. Then, he walked towards the backyard with a few cold and ruthless warriors following behind him.
Arriving at the backyard, he opened a secret door and entered a secret underground chamber.
This secret room was more than ten meters below the surface, and it seemed to be particularly gloomy and scary.
By right, such an underground basement should be warm in the winter and cool in the summer, but at that point in time, the place was as cold as an ice cellar.
“The judicial official is the chief officer of matters of punishment and imprisonment. It is of utmost importance. The most important ability of this official position lies in criminal investigation. Do you know how to investigate cases?” Wen Daofu asked.
“I have not tried before. But how do we know if we don’t try?” Yun Zhonghe answered.
The crowd sneered.
Something like criminal investigation required at least a dozen years of studying and a dozen years of practice.
You’re just a beggar and a ruffian, what could you know?
“Have you ever read the book ‘Collected Cases of Injustice Rectified’? Or ‘Words of the Dead’?” Wen Daofu asked.
In this world, these were the most fundamental books to introduce one to criminal investigation.
“No,” Yun Zhonghe said.
The crowd was even more disdainful of him. There were as many as a few hundred books about criminal investigation. A wall could actually be built by piling all these books up. Any judicial official would have to read all of those books. ‘Collected Cases of Injustice Rectified’ and ‘Words of the Dead’ were comprehensively the most enlightening books for initiation.
You have not even read these two books, and yet, you are talking about solving crimes?
This had to be the most absurd mistake in the world.
The long flight of stairs finally came to an end, and they entered the underground chamber.
It was really frigid in there. Yun Zhonghe was almost shivering from the cold, and it was very obvious that there was a lot of ice hidden there.
There was a bed set up there and it was covered with a white cloth.
Lord Wen Daofu stepped forward, and without warning, he lifted the white cloth to reveal a completely naked… corpse.
It was a middle-aged man, slightly fat.
There was a wound on his chest where his heart was, and that had led directly to his death.
“This was the former adviser of the judicial department,” Lord Wen Daofu said.
Yun Zhonghe suddenly shuddered. This meant that this was his predecessor?? He had died on the stage, and was killed by a sword through his heart?
No wonder?
A judicial official was the chief officer of punishment and imprisonment, and he had power and influence. It was really one carrot, one pit, where everyone would have a role of his own. How could it possibly be his, Yun Zhonghe’s, turn to take this position?
It turned out that the former adviser of the judicial department was dead, murdered by someone.
Then for me to be the new adviser of the judicial department, am I not in a very dangerous situation?
“Bring them here!” Wen Daofu ordered.
Suddenly, several warriors brought in another three people.
A scribe, a servant, and a warrior.
“On your knees!”
The three people knelt on the ground in a straight and stiff stance.
Lord Wen Daofu said, “Yun AoTian, as an adviser of the judicial department, your utmost priority is to solve cases. I have already solved the murder case of the former adviser of the judicial department and found the murderer, who is one of these few people in front of us.”
Yun Zhonghe immediately looked towards the three people kneeling on the ground.
Wen Daofu said, “This is a very simple case. I will give you one incense stick’s worth of time, and you need to find the murderer of the former adviser without delay. If you are able to do so, I will allow you to stay on as an official in my Bureau of Torn Gust. But if you find the wrong murderer, then it will be a case of wrongful conviction. You will receive fifty heavy strokes and after that be expelled from the City of Torn Gust.”
With that, Lord Wen Daofu waved his hand.
Without further ado, someone lit an incense stick, and at that instant, the countdown began.
Then, four more warriors flocked in. Two of them were holding thick water-fire sticks and looked murderous.
One could only fear the shattering of his pelvic bones if he had to undergo fifty strikes from those sticks.
Crap!
This was definitely a conspiracy between Jing Zhongyue and Wen Daofu.
The chief officer of the judicial department, in charge of punishment and imprisonment cases, was dead, so there was a vacancy. But Jing Zhongyue had no intention of getting Yun Zhonghe to take up this position at all. Would that not be a joke? This official position was also one of the few principal officials in the Bureau of Torn Gust, and it should be taken up by a scholar at the very least.
You, Yun Zhonghe, are merely a beggar. A ruffian. Just who do you think you are, and in what capacity do you think you qualify to be a judicial official?
So, it was all just a show that they staged for Yun Zhonghe earlier, just to let him have a little fun in donning an official uniform. In truth, this would not even be announced to the public, so there would not be any damage to the city’s dignity.
This was simply taking Yun Zhonghe as a fool as they messed around with him.
This was too much!
Lord Wen Daofu said, “Yun AoTian, don’t you dare say I didn’t give you a chance. If you are able to, find the murderer. If you do, I will let you stay here and take up an official position without saying another word. But if you come up with a wrong verdict, then don’t blame me for being merciless.”
Jing Zhongyue, you’re such a vicious woman.
How was this even an hour? A single incense stick would take at most fifteen minutes.
Not only was she intent on driving Yun Zhonghe out of the City of Torn Gust, but she also wanted him beaten until he was half dead. It was really obvious that Yun Zhonghe had offended her badly.
“Stop wasting time, get going!” Lord Wen Daofu said. Then he sat down on a chair and closed his eyes for a break.
Yun Zhonghe came to realize that the incense stick burned exceptionally fast. It would barely last five minutes, let alone a whole fifteen, right?
Lord Wen Daofu closed his eyes and sneered.
Yueyue, you are really being nonsensical. Your teacher is so busy, where can I find the time to waste on this stinky bug of a beggar?
This beggar before me wants to break this case within a quarter of an hour and find the murderer? Simply fool’s gibberish!
Just wait until the time is up, I will beat the hell out of this little punk and then drive him out of the City of Torn Gust.
If such a person can become a judicial official, where is the prestige of the City of Torn Gust? Where does that leave my, Wen Daofu’s, dignity?
Everyone present in the room was also celebrating.
This trap laid by Lord Wen Daofu was so unfathomably deep that Yun AoTian was surely a goner.
***
Solving a case within five minutes and finding the right murderer was indeed a feat that was tougher than ascending to heaven.
Yun Zhonghe gazed at the three men kneeling on the ground.
The middle-aged scribe should be the aide of the former adviser of the judicial department.
The warrior should be his bodyguard.
The servant should be a house slave at his residence.
Which of these three people was the murderer?
Five minutes was totally not enough for any interrogation at all.
Yun Zhonghe closed his eyes. Could it be that everything was predestined by God?
Today, he had a case to solve. And last night, a psychotic patient, numbered as Twenty-seven, who claimed to be a psychic, had possessed him.
Ghost Bride, now it’s the time to see what you are capable of.
Yun Zhonghe went to stand before the corpse. Once again, he closed his eyes and said, “Twenty-seven, Twenty-seven, possess me now.”
“Director, your slave is here. Your slave has come…”
Yun Zhonghe suddenly shivered, and Number Twenty-seven was done possessing him.
Then he bent down and leaned forward so that his face was right in front of the corpse of the former advisor of the judicial department. In his heart, he said, “Oh dead one, what was the last thing you said right before your moment of death?”
Suddenly, a strange voice rang inside Yun Zhonghe’s mind.
“So long as I die, my family will be safe. Hahahaha! Ah….”
These, these were the last words the former adviser of the judicial department said before dying?
This was the so-called ability of a psychic? To be able to hear the last words of the dead?
That was simply weird! But this ability was indeed quite scary.
Yet this made things quite interesting.
This former adviser of the judicial department committed suicide, and that meant that he himself was the murderer.
Hahaha!
Lord Wen Daofu, how very sinister of you. This is a dark and bottomless trap that you set up for me.
But such a shrewd and crafty man like you would also have to fall into my, Yun Zhonghe’s, trap.
***