socalfunplaces Page 509
Page 509
With a thud, Xu Qi'an knelt down in front of Li Chang'an. "Master, your disciple has killed someone."
Princess Pingyang turned pale with fright when she saw the faint bloodstains on the hem of Xu Qi'an's clothes.
"Junior brother, you're a night watchman, you only kill bad guys, right?"
Li Chang'an remained silent, because he could roughly guess who Xu Qi'an had killed.
Xu Qi'an said to Princess Pingyang, "We killed bad guys, but they were still the silver gong of the night watchman, and the son of a gold gong!"
Princess Pingyang and Xu Qi'an were already quite familiar with each other, and upon hearing this, she exclaimed in surprise, "The night watchmen are strictly governed by law, and insubordination is a capital offense, reportedly punishable by being cut in half at the waist!"
Li Chang'an said, "Tell me, what happened?"
Xu Qi'an recounted the incident, then said with some indignation, "That girl was only twelve or thirteen years old. I simply cannot tolerate it. How could a night watchman bully someone like that? He's an absolute beast!"
After hearing Xu Qi'an's words, Princess Pingyang's eyes were already red. Clearly, Zhu Yinluo's actions had reminded her of some unpleasant memories.
"These lawless scoundrels deserve to die!"
To Xu Qi'an's surprise, Li Chang'an's expression remained unchanged. "It's nothing serious. Is there anything else?"
Xu Qi'an said bluntly, "I never imagined that the night watchman's office would be such a filthy and corrupt place. I don't want to work here anymore."
Li Chang'an knew that this incident had awakened Xu Qi'an's bottom line as a policeman from his previous life, and he was genuinely disappointed in the night watchmen.
"Ning Yan, go back with peace of mind. If you are sentenced to death, I will find a way to save your life."
Xu Qi'an was determined to leave, but Li Chang'an continued, "However, if there is a chance for your death sentence to be overturned, then you should continue working as a night watchman."
"The world needs to change. You'll make a difference if you stay with the night watchman."
Li Chang'an certainly didn't want Xu Qi'an to abandon his responsibilities. If Xu Qi'an left, who would solve the Sangbo case? Did he expect Li Chang'an to have to do it all himself?
Xu Qi'an's mind raced. He guessed that staying with the night watchmen might be helpful to his master's plans.
Moreover, Li Chang'an had already told him that since he was here, he should make the best of it and consider himself a person of this world.
"Yes! Disciple, obey!"
Xu Qi'an turned and left, completely relieved to have received Li Chang'an's promise.
He had a feeling that Li Chang'an understood the world much better than he did.
After Xu Qi'an left, Princess Pingyang said to Li Chang'an, "Master, Ning Yan did nothing wrong. I will go back and ask my father to write a letter to exonerate him!"
Li Chang'an said, "There's no rush. Wei Yuan and the others will help Ning Yan get away with it. We can ask His Highness Prince Yu to submit a letter when things take a turn for the better."
Then, Li Chang'an said to Pingyang, "You can focus on your cultivation. I'll be right back."
After leaving Li Chang'an's residence, Xu Qi'an headed towards the night watchman's office.
Meanwhile, the night watchman's office was already starting to fall into disarray.
Several men carrying Zhu Yinluo's body rushed toward Zhu Jinluo's main room, shouting as they went.
"Xu Qi'an committed insubordination, disregarded the law, and murdered his superior!"
Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao, on the other hand, ran towards Yang Yan's Divine Spear Hall like madmen.
Zhu Jinluo's real name is Zhu Yang. He is a fourth-rank military officer, born into a military family, and is a key talent cultivated by the night watchman's office.
He was considered Wei Yuan's direct descendant, and of his three sons, only the third son, Zhu Chengzhu, was exceptionally talented and was also the youngest silver-robed among the night watchmen.
"My lord! My lord! The Third Young Master has been murdered!"
Zhu Yang, who was looking at the case file, looked up instantly. He could hardly believe his ears and grabbed the person's collar.
"What nonsense are you talking about? Who would dare kill the Silver Luo night watchman! It's just a matter of confiscating his property!"
The messenger, Yinluo, breathlessly reported, "Zhu Yinluo's heart was shattered by a punch from Tongluo Xu Qi'an, and his life is already cut off."
Zhu Yang followed Yin Luo outside the door, just as several gongs came running over. His third son had already closed his eyes, with a bowl-sized transparent hole in his chest.
"Xu Qi'an! Where is Xu Qi'an?!"
Upon seeing his son's body, Zhu Yang nearly went mad, his eyes turning bloodshot, and he almost fainted.
Seeing that the golden gong was furious, the gong players immediately began to explain the situation all at once.
"The young master was joking around with several female relatives of convicted officials when he got into an argument with Xu Qi'an..."
"Xu Qi'an, relying on his master's backing, killed the young master with a single punch!"
"Xu Qi'an has disappeared..."
"Sir, we sent men to follow Xu Qi'an. They've left Li Chang'an's residence and are heading towards the yamen!"
……
Before they could finish speaking, they saw a flash of golden light before their eyes, and Zhu Yang had vanished.
Xu Qi'an walked down the street, not far from the night watchman's office.
Suddenly, a loud shout rang out amidst the commotion of the inner city, "You little bastard, pay for my son's life!"
By the time Xu Qi'an reacted, the overwhelming sword intent of the fourth-rank martial artist had already enveloped him.
A chilling aura nearly froze him; it was the aura of a master swordsman!
"Keng!"
With a soft sound, Zhu Yang's black-gold longsword was caught in mid-air by two fingers of a hand.
"Third rank! An immortal body!" Zhu Yang, who had just appeared, was shocked by Li Chang'an's cultivation level.
Xu Qi'an's body temperature hadn't returned to normal, and his teeth were still chattering. "Master... Master..."
Li Chang'an stood beside him, easily snapping Zhu Yang's black-gold longsword in half, and then with a flick of his hand, sent Zhu Yang flying.
Zhu Yang coughed up blood, his internal energy became disordered, and he collapsed several dozen feet away.
A brawl broke out in the inner city, and the people scattered, hiding in shops and street corners, watching the commotion from a distance.
"Li Chang'an! Your disciple committed insubordination and murdered Yinluo. Are you going to openly protect him?!"
Li Chang'an said calmly, "Zhu Chengzhu, as a night watchman, actually forcibly took a woman, a crime deserving of death. Ning Yan upheld justice and executed him, which is a great achievement!"
As the two were talking, a green figure appeared before Zhu Yang; it was Wei Yuan himself who had come.
"Brother Li, Zhu Yang acted impulsively and offended you without understanding the situation."
"Give me the courtesy of letting him go, and the authorities will certainly handle this matter impartially."
Li Chang'an knew that Zhu Yang was Wei Yuan's man, and Wei Yuan was also afraid that Li Chang'an would kill Zhu Jinluo in the street.
“Brother Wei, you are protecting Zhu Yang, but Zhu Yang may not necessarily remember your kindness.”
Before Wei Yuan could figure out the meaning behind Li Chang'an's words, Li Chang'an had already vanished without a trace.
Zhu Yang got up from the ground and shouted, "Lord Wei, you must do justice for me!"
Xu Qi'an also stood ramrod straight, meeting Zhu Yang's gaze without showing any weakness.
"Lord Wei, Zhu Chengzhu's crimes are unforgivable. I killed him to give the night watchmen a thorough overhaul and a strong cure!"
Chapter 308 Huaiqing: Come and beg me!
Suddenly, a shout came from the street, and a large group of night watchmen rushed over.
"The night watchman is on duty; get out of the way immediately!"
Upon seeing a large number of night watchmen arrive, the people who had been hiding to watch the commotion scattered, and all the windows in their rooms were closed, for fear of getting themselves into trouble.
Li Yuchun and his men stood in front of Xu Qi'an. After hearing the story, he offered Xu Qi'an his unreserved support.
Behind Zhu Jinluo came two gold gong players, as well as more than a dozen silver and bronze gong players who usually followed him.
Seeing this scene, Yang Yan and Nangong Qianrou sided with Xu Qi'an, and the two sides were evenly matched.
When Xu Qi'an saw that someone was supporting him, he felt a surge of warmth in his heart, and his extinguished hope was rekindled.
Zhu Yang shouted urgently, "Yang Yan, Nangong! What are you doing? Xu Qi'an has committed a serious crime of insubordination!"
In an imperial society, the judgment of right and wrong was often based on social rank. For example, if someone offended the emperor, it was considered treason, regardless of the reason.
Within the watchmen's ranks, if the copper gong slayer killed the silver gong slayer, it would be a violation of the watchmen's ironclad rule.
"Alright, let's talk about it when we get back." Wei Yuan said calmly, then disappeared in a flash.
The seventh floor of Haoqi Pavilion.
Wei Yuan sat high in the hall, Xu Qi'an and Zhu Yang faced off, and Zhu Chengzhu's blood-soaked corpse lay below.
Zhu Yang, the first to speak, said, "Lord Wei, my son Zhu Chengzhu was killed by Xu Qi'an. Many people witnessed the incident. I beg Lord Wei to make a wise judgment!"
Wei Yuan said slowly, "Who was there at the time? Explain what happened clearly."
The night watchman, who usually had the gentle demeanor of a scholar, was unusually dignified today.
One of the silver gongs present recounted the whole story, showing that no one was biased.
After hearing this, Wei Yuan's expression became even more somber, because while it was true that Xu Qi'an was obstructing Zhu Chengzhu, killing Zhu Chengzhu was a grave mistake.
Yang Yan knew that at this moment, someone needed to stand firmly on Xu Qi'an's side for Xu Qi'an to have a chance to survive.
Whether out of his conscience or because of the many times Li Chang'an had helped him, he had to speak up for Xu Qi'an.