Meng Anzhi was somewhat disappointed. Her aunt said that if they escaped these assassins, she would teach them martial arts. It wasn't that her master was bad at teaching, but compared to her aunt, he always felt that he was lacking.
Suddenly, the sound of fighting erupted outside. Meng Anzhi immediately turned to look at her aunt, Jin Shanyao. "Trust your master, he can do it."
After a while, the sounds of fighting subsided.
Lu Chi rushed in, sword in hand, covered in blood like a gourd. He looked at the unconscious man in black, then at the unharmed people on the kang (heated brick bed). Just as his heart was at ease, a wave of grievance washed over him.
"Master, you're just going to sit inside and watch me get hacked to pieces, huh... is that it??"
He almost cried as he said this. He was risking his life outside, afraid that the people inside would get hurt in the slightest, but they were just sitting there as if nothing had happened.
Although Jin Shanyao didn't know what she had done wrong, she thought that people have feelings, so she explained, "I wanted to go outside to take a look, but I was afraid of getting in your way, so I didn't go out."
"How about this, next time someone comes, we'll all go outside to watch, okay?"
Lu Chi nearly fainted from anger. He said "watch," but did he mean "watch a show"?
Forget it, there's no point in explaining. He stepped forward, untied Meng Anci's belt, and turned around to tie up the unconscious man in black tightly.
Meng Anci stood blankly in the corner, pulling up his pants.
Meng Anzhi got up, rummaged through the cabinet on the kang (heated brick bed), found a new belt, handed it to Meng Anci, and turned to Jin Shanyao, "Auntie, shall we report this to the authorities?"
"Report this! Go and beat the drum to appeal for justice right now!"
Lu Chi tied the five assassins to an oxcart and sent the entire cart to the county government office.
It was exactly 3:00 AM, and Magistrate Yang was sound asleep when he was startled awake by a muffled drumbeat. He sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) for a long time, unable to react, until the gatekeeper came to report that someone had filed a police report.
Not sleeping so late at night, could it be a murder case? Magistrate Yang dared not delay, put on his official robes, and rushed to the main hall.
He walked hurriedly, his official hat nearly blown off by the wind. He held the hat with one hand and the table with the other. As soon as he sat down, he saw a dark mass in front of him.
Among the men in black, who were bound hand and foot, was a man in blue.
There were four or five people standing outside the hall. The hall was dimly lit. Magistrate Yang rubbed his eyes and said uncertainly.
"Girl Jin?"
Just as Jin Shanyao was about to greet the fat magistrate, he heard a thud and Lu Chi collapsed to the ground. Ignoring the bloodstains all over his body, he quickly crawled to the desk.
"My lord! My lord, you must do me justice! I have no idea which deity I have offended!"
He pointed back at the group of men in black, explaining in a trembling voice as if he were afraid.
"These thugs broke into my home without provocation, and every move they made was meant to kill me! Non-Self hadn't fought back so fiercely, I would be a dead man by now!"
He seemed to have suffered a great injustice, crawling around the desk and grabbing Magistrate Yang's leg.
"Sir, you are my guardian official! If you don't care whether I live or die, no one else will!"
The men in black, bound and dazed, were used to plotting schemes, but Heir Apparent Lu was actually playing a game of open and aboveboard tactics with them.
If a good person encounters a killer, instead of dealing with him, they should report him to the authorities.
Every family has its rules, and every industry has its regulations. As hitmen, they absolutely cannot afford to alarm the authorities.
The unwritten rules are broken by people like Heir Apparent Lu.
Just now, he wielded his sword with dazzling skill, cleanly and swiftly severing their tendons and ligaments. Now, he's turned around and running to the yamen crying and complaining. Is this still the person they're looking for?
The leader in black tried to see clearly, but found Lu Chi's face somewhat blurry. He tried to rub his eyes, but his hands and feet were bound and he couldn't move at all. The other assassins also noticed something was wrong.
Before they arrived, they checked information from multiple sources to confirm that Lu Chi was in the Anzhi Hall. But now, upon seeing him, they found Lu Chi's appearance somewhat unfamiliar. The man in black wished he could take out a portrait on the spot to compare them.
Unseen by everyone, Jin Shanyao quietly withdrew her Spiritual Power, implanting an illusion into the memories of the assassins.
Even if they were to walk right past Lu Chi with the portrait afterward, they wouldn't recognize him.
Under the watchful eye of the judge, Lu Chi cried hysterically, his arms tightly gripping Magistrate Yang's thigh, his legs held down by two constables, his whole body suspended in the air.
Even so, Lu Chi didn't forget to wail, "My lord, my lord, you must do justice for this humble subject!"
Magistrate Yang gripped the desk with both hands, frantically shaking his leg in an attempt to shake Lu Chi off. "Let go! If you don't let go, I'll kick you in the head!"
"Sir, even you want to kill me?" Lu Chi looked up at Magistrate Yang in disbelief, his snot almost dripping into his mouth.
Magistrate Yang looked away in disdain. Outside the main hall, Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci in satisfaction. "The student has surpassed the teacher; not bad at all."
Enraged, Magistrate Yang shouted, " Jin Shanyao, come here and drag him away!"
He had seen this man before at the Anzhi Hall. He was a servant that Jin Shanyao had bought. At the time, he had taken a second look at him because of his outstanding demeanor, but he never expected him to be such a rogue.
Magistrate Yang was already overweight, and this movement left him drenched in sweat and wide awake.
Jin Shanyao was engrossed in watching when she was suddenly called out, and it took her a while to react. She stepped forward and grabbed Lu Chi's belt with one hand.
Lu Chi let go of her hand and was lightly Jin Shanyao, where he knelt down with the group of men in black.
Lu Chi wiped his nose with his sleeve, his eyes brimming with tears as he looked at Magistrate Yang, "Your Excellency..."
"Shut up!"
Magistrate Yang, his face dark, slammed the gavel heavily on the table. He didn't want to be an official for even a day longer, since it was so late at night.
Magistrate Yang signaled to the bailiffs to rip the rag out of the black-clad man's mouth. The man, now able to catch his breath, gasped for air, his eyes showing a hint of vulnerability and innocence.
"I ask you, have you ever broken into someone's home by climbing over a wall to murder them?"
The five men in black all shook their heads. One of them, quick-witted as ever, immediately chimed in, "Sir, you must do justice for this humble citizen! I only wanted to steal some things; I never intended to kill anyone."
He had barely finished speaking when Meng Anci, carrying five large knives, ran into the hall, threw them on the ground with a clatter, and then turned around to stand outside the yamen to continue listening to the trial.
A moment of silence fell over the lobby; the man in black seemed to be in pain.
Magistrate Yang narrowed his eyes dangerously, "Thief carrying a knife?"
"Sir, this knife isn't ours... They've framed us."
Stubborn and unyielding, Magistrate Yang's remaining rationality crumbled under the influence of his morning grumpiness.
Enraged, he jumped to his feet, pointed at the man in black, and roared, "You say you're a thief, then how did you sneak in? What did you intend to steal? Where is the stolen goods?"
The man in black was momentarily stunned. "We haven't even made a move yet, and this man has severed our tendons and brought us here. My lord... you must do justice for us commoners!"
"Hmph! Anzhi Hall is not a wealthy family. I see that you have strong muscles and calluses on your hands, so you must be quite skilled. Yet you chose to steal from a medical clinic."
"You've been crippled before you even got anything? Are there really such stupid and incompetent thieves in the world? Tell me, what is your true purpose?"
Lu Chi hadn't expected that Magistrate Yang would have such an air of authority when he was serious. He usually chatted with the people with a smile, treated everyone's home like his own, and even liked to take snacks from the people.
I thought he rose to power through money, but it turns out he's quite quick-witted.
The men in black exchanged a glance. "Sir, no one ordered us to do this. We're just thieves."
After nearly an hour of maneuvering, the group insisted that the thieves were the ones who attacked first, and that they only retaliated because the homeowner had struck first.
Magistrate Yang knew things weren't that simple, but the other party wouldn't change their story, and he couldn't keep up. If he stirred up a hornet's nest, his official career would truly be over.
The gavel slammed onto the table with a crisp thud.
Magistrate Yang said sternly, "Your Honor, listen carefully! The case is now clear. You broke into a private residence at night and committed violence with weapons. The facts are clear. Since no property was stolen and no one was injured, your crime does not warrant the death penalty. Fifty strokes of the cane... Court adjourned."
mighty...
The five men in black were seriously injured. After being flogged fifty times, they had passed out and were thrown out of the county government office by the yamen runners. They lay on the street unclaimed.