We're a Legitimate Religion Now
Bai Qiuran startled and Consciousness wanted to run away.
However, two constables were patrolling the street nearby. They heard Lin Sheng's shout, turned around, saw Bai Qiuran's appearance, and walked towards them.
What Cultist?
Two officers approached, gripping the hilts of their swords, and asked with stern faces.
"Officers, that's him."
Lin Sheng pointed at Bai Qiuran and said, "Last year in Ping Prefecture, this guy blocked my way, preaching some kind of doctrine. Now he's here in Tu Province, blocking my friend again."
"Oh."
The two officers exchanged a glance, then asked Jin Fenglai, "What doctrines did this man preach to you?"
He made me believe in the Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable.
Jin Fenglai answered honestly.
"Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable? I understand."
Two officers took out shackles and handcuffed Lin Sheng, who was shouting.
"Come with us."
"... Huh?"
Lin Sheng looked at his handcuffed hands, somewhat bewildered.
"Officers, have you arrested the wrong person? He's Cultist."
What Cultist?
One of the officials shouted angrily, "The Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable is a belief system personally appointed by His Majesty; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it the State Religion. How dare you now call its followers Cultist? What are your intentions?"
"... Oh, right."
Bai Qiuran scratched his head and laughed, "We're a legal believer now, so we've gotten used to doing it secretly... Sorry, sir."
Lin Sheng was covered in cold sweat. He was used to it, and seeing Bai Qiuran's sneaky behavior, he Consciousness assumed that Bai was doing something shady.
"Go, don't even think about resisting."
The officials escorted Lin Sheng towards the Tu Province government office.
"Otherwise, His Majesty will be furious, and it will implicate your sect. That wouldn't be good. I advise you to be more rational."
Lin Sheng indeed dared not resist. If he did, his sect would be implicated. Not only would his master's Sword Discussion Assembly competition be affected, but the entire Rakshasa Blade Sect might also suffer. He could only obediently follow the officials toward the yamen.
"Brother, the troublesome person is gone."
Bai Qiuran ignored Lin Sheng, pulled Jin Fenglai, and continued, "Let me continue telling you the story of the Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable."
"Sorry, maybe next time."
Jin Fenglai cupped his hands to Bai Qiuran and said, "We were so sorry for misunderstanding you as Cultist, but Brother Lin is my friend, and I have to think of a way to get him out of this mess."
After saying that, he hurriedly left, running towards the direction of the government office.
"It ran away again. Do I really not have any talent in this area?"
Bai Qiuran shook her head, preparing to leave, but then stopped.
"No, if we go back like this, Jinyao and those two unworthy disciples will laugh at us again. It's not dignified at all. Today, I must recruit two people into the sect."
After thinking for a moment, he followed Jin Fenglai and headed towards the yamen (government office).
After the three people left, the two swordsmen, a man and a woman, in the nearby restaurant suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.
"That scared me to death."
The somewhat flamboyant woman patted her chest and said softly, "When I heard that guy shouting 'Cultist' on the street, I thought we'd been exposed."
"Hmph, those Pleasure Sect people are just cowards."
The male swordsman scoffed, then said, "But the Cult Leader's guess was indeed correct. Followers of Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable Venerables have begun to operate at this Sword Discussion Assembly gathering. Did you remember what that person looked like?"
"I've noted it down."
"Alright then."
The man said with satisfaction, "We'll find an opportunity to talk to him. That person must be a believer of considerable status within the Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable Religious Sect."
"Go in!"
Lin Sheng was led by two constables to a side room of the yamen.
The room was furnished like Study Room, where a head constable, whose rank was slightly higher than that of an ordinary constable, sat behind a desk, holding a brush and diligently taking notes.
Recently, due to the Sword Discussion Assembly Tournament, the flow of people in Tu Province has increased several times, and the disputes caused by Jianghu arts practitioners in the vicinity have surged. These minor matters such as street fights and quarrels cannot all be handled by the Tu Province prefect himself. Therefore, the Imperial Court has specially dispatched some officials to the Tu Province government office to handle these incidents.
Upon seeing the two officers bring Lin Sheng in, the head officer sighed and asked, "What did he do this time? Was he in a fight?"
"No, this one is a bit more powerful."
The officials replied, "He shouted in the street that the followers of the Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable are Cultist."
"Yo ho."
Upon hearing this, the head constable looked up and glanced at Lin Sheng.
"Young man, you're quite something. To put it bluntly, your actions could be considered treason, which is punishable by death."
"Officer."
Lin Sheng quickly admitted, "I just misspoke... When that person came to me to preach, the Foundation Establishment Heavenly Venerable was still an unknown figure."
"Then I can't let you go easily, otherwise it would be difficult to explain to my superiors."
The head constable flipped through the Records and then said, "Here's what we'll do. For street fights and arguments, the fine is ten taels of silver. Our rule here is that the loser pays, which is twenty taels of silver. But I'll classify yours as a serious street argument, so you'll have to pay forty taels of silver here. I'll then make a record of it, and you can go home."
"Ah, forty taels..."
Lin Sheng looked troubled. He didn't care about whether or not the registration was filed, since he didn't plan to pursue the martial arts examination route anyway. For people from Jianghu, being registered with the Imperial Court could be considered a kind of "qualification." But forty taels of silver was indeed a bit difficult for him.
Jin Fenglai, the young master of the Golden Wing Blade Sect, felt a pang of pain even taking out twenty taels of silver. Although Lin Sheng was the eldest disciple of the Rakshasa Blade Sect, Rakshasa Blade Luo Tianxiong, while his mentor, was not his father and had no obligation to pay this debt of words for him.
"What? Didn't you bring enough money?"
Seeing that Lin Sheng's expression was not right, the head constable added, "If it's not enough, we can send someone to your home to get more."
The problem is, even if you bring people to my house, I don't have that much money to spare...
Lin Sheng was filled with doubt.
"If there isn't enough money."
The head constable pointed behind him with his thumb.
"Then we'll have to ask you to stay with us for a few days."
That would be incredibly embarrassing, but I can't conjure up that much money anyway.
As Lin Sheng was pondering whether he should swallow his pride and eat Heavenly Prison, an official suddenly walked over to the room with Jin Fenglai.
Brother Lin.
He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Lin Sheng, then without saying a word, took out his money pouch.
"You broke your promise because of me, so I'll cover the cost for you first."
"Brother Jin."
Lin Sheng was deeply moved.
"You're a true brother."
"Don't say those things."
Jin Fenglai smiled and asked, "How much is the fine?"
"Forty taels of silver in total."
The head constable said expressionlessly.
Jin Fenglai's hand froze.
"How many?"
"Forty taels of silver."
The head constable repeated it.
"So much?"
Jin Fenglai's eyes widened.
"I only get twenty taels for fighting in the street."
"Isn't that obvious? The things he says with his mouth are far more serious than any fight you'd have. There are some things in this world you can't just say, okay? If he said that, I'd report it to the authorities and have him convicted and executed."
The head constable reprimanded him irritably.
"Well..."
Jin Fenglai clicked his tongue and said to Lin Sheng, "Wait a minute, I don't have that much cash on me right now, I'll go back and get some..."
"No."
At this moment, Bai Qiuran followed in with another official. He took out a money pouch from his pocket and said to the head official, "I've paid their fines on their behalf."