Aftermath

His lifespan increased by more than three times, leaving Li Nuo completely baffled.

But upon further thought, it wasn't that strange. The criminals he had apprehended before were all ordinary people with no connections, lacking even basic martial arts cultivation. Wang Yue, however, was not only the son of a high-ranking court official but also a martial artist of the Second Realm. If the previous criminals were mere "minor monsters," Wang Yue could certainly be considered a "mini-boss."

The difficulty of judging him was far greater than that of the previous criminals, so a slightly larger experience reward was only reasonable.

This shared a similar principle with the Legalist school's cultivation.

The higher the status and prestige of the criminals judged by the Legalist school, the faster their cultivation would grow. In the end, powerful Legalist practitioners could no longer gain strength from judging ordinary people and would set their sights on the highest officials in the court.

Li Nuo had a small guess.

An ordinary person sentenced to three years of imprisonment would only increase his lifespan by three days. A beating would not add anything, and multiple people would need to accumulate it.

Wang Yue, a martial artist of the Second Realm, received three years of imprisonment and one hundred blows. His lifespan increased by eleven days, more than three times that of the three years of imprisonment. Could the lifespan added by the codex be calculated based on the criminal's strength and status? Ordinary people received no bonus, those in the First Realm doubled it, those in the Second Realm tripled it, those in the Third Realm quadrupled it, and so on...

By this calculation, the Seventh Realm would grant an eightfold increase.

Sentencing an ordinary person to death only increased his lifespan by ten days.

If the rules for extending lifespan were indeed like this, sentencing a Seventh Realm expert to death could increase his lifespan by eighty days, nearly three months. While this seemed like a lot, the effort and reward were completely disproportionate.

The Seventh Realm was already the realm of the saints. Who could capture and sentence a saint?

Let alone the Seventh Realm, even the Sixth Realm was impossible.

Such beings were as formidable as a small army.

Even those in the Fifth Realm were titans who dominated a region, inevitably backed by powerful forces that could easily transcend secular authority and law. However, all of this was just Li Nuo's speculation for now. He would only know the specifics of how lifespan increased after actually apprehending these powerful individuals.

Even so, this was still good news for Li Nuo.

Who wouldn't want a "score multiplier" of two, three, or even four or five times? If he could apprehend and judge some murderers from the Fourth Realm, gaining a few extra months of lifespan, he could finally breathe a little easier and wouldn't have to push himself so hard every day.

He had been busy all day and hadn't even had time to eat. He hadn't felt anything while judging the cases, but now that he was free, he felt exhausted and hungry. Fortunately, by the time he got home, dinner was already prepared. Li Nuo just focused on shoveling rice into his mouth, finding even plain rice more delicious than usual.

He ate dinner with Song Jiaren, but they didn't have much to say to each other.

Li Nuo also had no energy to talk. His eyes were so heavy he could barely keep them open. He mechanically shoveled rice into his mouth, his eyelids growing heavier and heavier, his movements slowing down, and slowing down...

A moment later, Song Jiaren looked at Li Nuo, who was slumped over the dining table with a few grains of rice still on his face, his breathing already even. She shook her head slightly, got up, walked over, removed the rice grains from his face, then picked him up horizontally and carried him out of the dining hall, slowly walking into a small courtyard...

In Li Nuo's room, Song Jiaren placed him on the bed. With a gentle wave of her hand, his shoes and socks automatically came off and were neatly placed on the floor. The folded brocade quilt also opened by itself and gently covered Li Nuo.

Song Jiaren stood by the bedside, watching him quietly for a while, then turned and left.

As the door creaked shut, the room returned to its quiet state.

However, at this moment, in some of the prominent households of Chang'an, things were far from peaceful.

In the evening, the commotion caused by the common people in front of the Chang'an County Office had been quite significant, alarming some officials and influential figures living nearby. After sending their servants out to inquire, they quickly learned the whole story.

The son of the Official of the Ministry of Personnel had violated the law and was arrested by the Chang'an County Office. In front of countless citizens of Chang'an, he was beaten one hundred times and sentenced to three years of imprisonment.

The official rank of Zheng Wu Pin (fifth rank, senior grade) was not too high, but it was not low either. According to the Great Xia Codex, officials of this rank, not only could they atone for their own crimes with money or rank, but their direct relatives who committed offenses below "Exile" could also commute their sentences with silver.

It was only three years of imprisonment, which amounted to three hundred taels of silver. For the Wang family, three hundred taels was nothing.

However, Wang Duo did not choose to use silver to atone for his son's crime. Instead, he personally delivered his only son to the Chang'an County Office, allowing the government to deal with him as it saw fit. This left many people bewildered.

Not only that, but some well-informed officials learned through unofficial channels that after returning from the Chang'an County Office, Wang Duo immediately sold off the Wang family's shops, land, and houses in Chang'an at a low price. He also submitted a memorial to the Left Minister of Personnel overnight, resigning and returning to his hometown. Before leaving, he donated all his family property to the national treasury...

This made things even more incomprehensible.

Although the Official of the Ministry of Personnel's rank was not very high, the power he wielded was considerable. Wang Duo was in the prime of his life and in good health. He had worked hard to reach this position, and there was still potential for further advancement in the future. Why would he resign for no reason? Even if he wanted to resign, he didn't need to sell off his assets and donate them...

Countless people were baffled by his actions.

"What's going on with Director Wang?"

"This minor matter shouldn't warrant such a reaction, right?"

"There must be a reason behind this!"

"Investigate, investigate further!"

Soon after, someone finally managed to uncover more insider information.

However, this insider information was even more shocking.

"What? It was Li Xuanjing's people who made the move?"

"I understand now. Wang Duo was a subordinate of Prince Rui. Prince Rui's faction just suffered a significant loss at Li Xuanjing's hands, with many officials falling from grace. It seems it's Wang Duo's turn this time. This case was just a pretext..."

"Prince Chun is trying to completely crush Prince Rui's faction!"

"It wasn't the Court of Judicial Review that acted this time, but the Chang'an County Office. Could it be that the new Magistrate of Chang'an has already pledged allegiance to Li Xuanjing, and thus to Prince Chun?"

"Does that even need to be asked? Otherwise, how could a mere Magistrate of Chang'an offend the Director of the Ministry of Personnel's Examination Department and Prince Rui?"

"No wonder Wang Duo resigned and donated his wealth. It was to save his own life..."

"This new Magistrate of Chang'an should not be underestimated!"

"Heh, another dog has joined Li Xuanjing's ranks..."

The resignation of the Official of the Ministry of Personnel stirred up a small storm within the upper echelons of Chang'an.

This seemingly minor case on the surface was actually a clash between two princes.

Prince Chun, with Li Xuanjing as his capable right-hand man, had a unique advantage in certain aspects. Among the other princely factions, officials who maintained their integrity were fine, but if they were found to be corrupt, Li Xuanjing could easily catch them and they would face dire consequences.

The Official of the Ministry of Personnel being implicated by his son served as a warning to other officials.

Unbeknownst to how many officials woke their children in the dead of night, earnestly warning them to take Wang Yue's case as a lesson.

Others with guilty consciences immediately began thinking of ways to resolve the matter peacefully. Whether it was a warning or compensation, the key was to prevent it from escalating into a public spectacle.

At this moment, at the Li Manor.

It was late at night, and candlelight flickered in a study somewhere within the manor.

Steward Wu stood before the desk and said, "...Later, Wang Duo personally tied up his son and brought him here. Young Master, at the entrance of the Chang'an County Office, in front of the common people, he beat him one hundred strokes and sentenced him to three years of imprisonment..."

After speaking, he tentatively asked, "Later, this old servant remembered that Wang Duo seems to be one of Prince Rui's men. Will this offend Prince Rui even more and cause trouble for Master?"

The refined middle-aged man took a sip of tea and said, "It's nothing. Prince Rui hates this official to the bone. One more Wang Duo or one less Wang Duo makes no difference."

Steward Wu thought for a moment and then said, "A while ago, Prince Rui suffered such a great loss under Master, he must be holding a grudge. Last time Young Master was attacked, could it have been instigated by Prince Rui? This old servant questioned the female assassin, but she knew nothing. Perhaps she is hiding something. Should we use some other methods..."

Li Xuanjing waved his hand and said, "If it were truly Prince Rui, he wouldn't have left any traces. There's no need for such a futile effort."

Then, he asked, "What did Young Master do today?"

Mentioning Young Master, Steward Wu said helplessly, "Young Master went to the county office early in the morning and only returned at night. He was so dedicated to handling cases that he neglected his meals and sleep. In this old servant's opinion, he has made up his mind to practice Legalism..."

Young Master's determination to practice Legalism was far greater than he imagined.

If this continued, the end result would either be Young Master denouncing his own kin for the sake of justice, or Master disowning him...

What a sin!

Li Xuanjing simply smiled, "It's fine. If he wants to practice it, let him."

Only after Steward Wu left the room did he slowly stand up, walk to the window, gaze at the bright moon in the sky, and sigh with a hint of regret, "Wang Duo..."