One was a Protector-General, the other the Chief Justice; one ruled a frontier territory, the other was a high-ranking court minister. The two held the same rank, both were Phantom Knights, and neither answered to the other. Even though the Chief Justice stood at the heart of the imperial court, he could not use his official rank or position to suppress Cheng Honglie.
Hearing Cheng Honglie's words, the Great Xia Chief Justice, who was inside the sect's main hall, turned cold. "What do you mean by that, Lord Cheng? Must the Office of the Chief Justice seek someone else's permission to investigate cases and pursue wanted criminals?"
"I cannot interfere with the Office of the Chief Justice handling cases and hunting fugitives elsewhere. But your handling of cases within the Northeast Protectorate has already undermined the stability of the entire protectorate and left people in a panic. You neither consult me beforehand nor want me to clean up your mess afterward? That will not do!" Cheng Honglie said with a black face, utterly overbearing and leaving no room for compromise. That blunt, iron-hard statement made even the Chief Justice's expression change.
"In Great Xia, is the Great Xia Code greater, or are you, Cheng Honglie?" the Chief Justice roared furiously. "Do you intend to rebel as well, Cheng Honglie?"
"Hahaha, spare me your threats. Do you think I, Cheng Honglie, was raised on being frightened? If you have the ability, go ahead and have those eminent lords of Xuanyuan Hill strip me of my official hat!" The Protector-General laughed like a slab of gristle that no knife could cut, then glanced again at the group of Censors. Pointing at their noses, he cursed angrily, "You think you're good men, every last one of you upright and incorruptible, hating evil as