Cases the Ministry of Punishments Can't Solve, I'll Solve

"Call out!"

The crossbow bolts whistled through the air.

The middle-aged officer drew his longsword and deflected the incoming crossbow bolts, the fierce energy cultivated in the military suddenly surging up.

That little gong dared to shoot an arrow at him; he deserved to be killed today. Nightwatchers are always arrogant and domineering; if they don't retaliate now, when will they?

The middle-aged officer raised his longsword and shouted, "Anyone who trespasses on the Ministry of Justice shall die!"

The clanging sounds continued, and the soldiers drew their swords, their expressions solemn, as if they were about to go to war.

Xu Qi'an reined in his horse, its hooves rearing high. He pulled out the imperial gold token. "This official is here to investigate the case by imperial decree. I shall step down."

The middle-aged military officer was unfazed and led his men to block their path. "The Ministry of Justice is also investigating the case by imperial decree; unauthorized personnel are not allowed to approach."

"Don't make a mistake for yourself." Xu Qi'an squinted.

"If Your Excellency wishes to enter the Ministry of Justice, that is fine. Please allow me to send someone to inform you." The middle-aged military officer sent a guard to deliver the message.

As they waited and waited, the guard never returned.

Min Shan pointed his knife at the other man and roared, "You bastard, are you trying to mess with me?"

"Listen up, everyone. No one is allowed to enter the yamen before the Minister of Ministry of Justice gives his permission. Anyone who trespasses will be killed without exception," the middle-aged officer sneered.

"Yes," the guards murmured.

The Ministry of Justice is trying to cut off this lead. No matter how much I make a fuss, they're determined to delay it for a few days. They'll finish their investigation and reap what they've sown, or the clues will prove worthless before they hand the person over to me. I'm a convict; time is of the essence. A surge of anger welled up inside Xu Qi'an.

"If you insist on stopping me, don't blame me for using my privileges as a gold medalist." Xu Qi'an gripped the hilt of his knife.

"Execute first, report later?" The middle-aged officer sneered, his long sword carrying a powerful aura. "You, a mere bronze gong, dare to kill someone at the entrance of the Ministry of Justice?"

With a flash of bright light, Xu Qi'an passed the middle-aged military officer and came to a steady stop at the entrance of the Ministry of Justice.

It was only at this moment that both sides realized that Xu Qi'an had acted so decisively, including his fellow Nightwatchers.

Xu Qi'an held the knife in his right hand, flicked his wrist, and a line of blood appeared on the ground.

The middle-aged officer swayed and fell backward to the ground.

A soldier stepped forward to examine the officer, touched his neck, and exclaimed, "Dead!"

The night Nightwatchers's expressions changed.

Despite the conflict, and the fact that everyone seemed ready to fight, the incident escalated if someone was killed, especially someone from the Ministry of Justice.

Even the most arrogant Nightwatchers never committed murder in the street at the gate of any of the Six Ministries.

Brush!

All the soldiers turned around and faced Xu Qi'an. The atmosphere was like a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment.

This lousy technique only makes me a "three-second man." It's not enough to sustain me in a long battle. I'll find a chance to switch to something else in the future.

Despite his exhaustion, Xu Qi'an pulled out a gold medal and showed it to everyone. "I'm acting on imperial orders. Anyone who obstructs me will be executed without mercy!"

He swept his sharp gaze across the soldiers.

"Get back now!" he roared.

Under the combined shock of the gold medal and the officer's corpse, the soldiers retreated.

Xu Qi'an received the sheath and led two silver gong players and twelve bronze gong players into the Ministry of Ministry of Justice.

Along the way, Yang Feng and Min Shan, the two silver gongs, kept scrutinizing Xu Qi'an, as if they were getting to know him all over again.

Min Shan frowned and said, "Isn't this too impulsive! Killing someone outside the Ministry of Justice, especially someone with an official position, aren't you afraid of being investigated later?"

Even after his first murder, Xu Qi'an still harbored a fierce aura between his brows. He glanced at the bearded man and asked, "Do I have any consequences?"

Min Shan was taken aback.

Xu Qi'an continued with a cold laugh, "I'm already in dire straits. For me right now, progress is life, clues are life. Anyone who dares to block my investigation will lose their life."

"The Ministry of Justice and the Nightwatchers's Office have always been at odds, and with the prefectural government offices also vying for credit, these people are stumbling blocks to my investigations. If I'm not ruthless, a second, a third, or even a fourth person will jump out to obstruct me. If I don't kill them, they will indirectly kill me."

"If I kill one fool today, others who are foolish will be wary and afraid tomorrow. This is also a way to reduce killing."

As Xu Qi'an spoke, he glanced at Yang Feng and Min Shan, the two silver gongs, and said with a forced smile, "Even you two, who are both under Yang Jinluo, question me and don't trust my abilities. What about the government and the Ministry of Justice?"

He made his words very clear; he was establishing his authority.

The two silver gongs, Yang and Min, laughed and said, "Lord Xu, we underestimated you."

This time, the address of "Lord Xu" was True Intention, not merely a response forced by imperial decree.

The Ministry of Ministry of Justice was a large office, and Xu Qi'an caught a clerk along the way to guide him.

The clerk was powerless and somewhat afraid of the fierce-looking Nightwatchers. He dared not disobey and led them to the council hall.

After passing through the courtyard, we arrived at the Ministry of Ministry of Justice's council hall. It was a spacious hall with no tables, only chairs arranged neatly.

The officials from the two government offices sat on opposite sides, clearly separated.

On the left are the officials of the Ministry of Justice, led by the second-rank Minister of Ministry of Justice, who wears a scarlet robe embroidered with a golden pheasant.

On the right are a group of officials led by Prefect Chen of the Capital Prefecture, a fourth-rank official wearing a scarlet robe embroidered with clouds and wild geese.

In the middle sat a eunuch wearing a tall hat and a python robe. He was pale-faced, beardless, squinting, and had a strange, sarcastic air about him.

Two eunuchs stood beside the eunuch.

Upon reaching the gate, the clerk stammered like a quail, "Gentlemen, the night Nightwatchers has arrived."

Inside the council chamber, more than a dozen powerful officials looked over at the same time.

Facing the gazes of the assembled dignitaries, Xu Qi'an stepped over the threshold, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "I am Xu Qi'an, greetings to all my esteemed officials."

He scanned the crowd and spotted a familiar woman—Lü Qing, one of the constables of the Capital Prefecture.

The latter also noticed him, a deep sense of bewilderment flashing in his eyes. He was even more shocked when he saw the two silver gongs and the other bronze gongs who seemed to be led by Xu Qi'an.

An official from the Ministry of Justice glanced at Xu Qi'an and said indifferently, "Such a major case, yet the Nightwatchers didn't even send a gong. I will definitely submit a memorial to impeach him tomorrow."

Xu Qi'an said calmly, "Why should Nightwatchers report to your Ministry of Justice when investigating a case?"

He paused, then said, "I've heard that the Ministry of Justice has detained many officials from the Court of Judicial Review, the Ministry of Rites, and the palace, and is obstructing our Nightwatchers's interrogations. Your Excellency, may I ask what the meaning of this is?"

Minister Sun had met Xu Qi'an once before, remained silent and didn't even glance at him. He picked up his teacup with a blank expression and took a sip.

In official circles, serving tea is a way of saying goodbye to guests.

Xu Qi'an smiled slightly, stopped arguing, and quietly found a seat.

In everyone's eyes, this meant he had backed down and had tolerated Minister Sun's show of force.

At this moment, a clerk rushed over in a panic, glanced at the Nightwatchers, and whispered a few words in the ear of a Ministry of Justice official.

The official from the Ministry of Justice's face changed drastically. He slammed his fist on the table, pointed his spear at Xu Qi'an and the others, and shouted, "Outrageous! This is utterly lawless!"

The officials in the hall all frowned.

Minister Sun asked, "What's going on?"

The Ministry of Justice official, his expression agitated, cupped his hands and said, "Your Excellency, Eunuch Liu, these Nightwatchers committed murder at the entrance of my Ministry of Justice, and the victim was a high-ranking general! How arrogant and presumptuous! They must be severely punished!"

The officials were taken aback. Even the head eunuch, who had been keeping a low profile and squinting his eyes, looked at Xu Qi'an and the others with surprise.

Minister Sun's expression remained unchanged. He lightly tapped the armrest of his chair and said, "The Ministry of Justice is in charge of criminal law and decrees, sharing His Majesty's burdens and advocating for the people. Guards!"

"Wait!" Xu Qi'an interrupted loudly, his voice laced with a cold laugh. "I am investigating this case by Ministry of Justice is obstructing the investigation. I have the authority to act first and report later. Furthermore, I suspect that the Ministry of Justice is colluding with thieves and is the mastermind behind the bombing of the Yongzhen Shanhe Temple. Minister Sun, why don't you come with me to the Nightwatchers's Office?"

So tough?

The officials in the government office looked at each other in disbelief. Could it really be something a mere gong-wielder dared to say?

Minister Sun was Principal Second Rank, holding great power and one of the most important figures in the court. Yet this lowly official dared to speak like this, completely disregarding Minister Sun.

The officials in the government office couldn't help but look at their superior, only to find that Prefect Chen was looking up at the sky at a 45-degree angle, pretending not to see it.

"How dare you!"

"How dare you frame the Minister? How many heads do you have?"

The Ministry of Justice officials were furious.

Xu Qi'an became even more arrogant, stepping forward, one hand on his sword, staring at the officials from the Ministry of Justice: "If the Ministry of Justice can't solve a case, I will. If the Ministry of Justice can't kill someone, I will kill them!"

"And another one!" Xu Qi'an pulled out the gold medal bestowed by His Majesty from his bosom, and with a tremor of his hand, "Bang!" the gold medal spun and embedded itself in the ground, splashing up fine dust.

"If the Ministry of Justice dares to obstruct my investigation, I'll kill the entire Ministry of Justice!"

Is that clear enough?

The council chamber fell silent. The furious Ministry of Justice officials suddenly fell silent, not out of fear, but out of shock.

What was the story Nightwatchers's office? What was the story behind Wei Yuan?

Sending such a greenhorn to handle the case is just handing leverage over to political enemies.

Based on those words alone, he could be thrown into the Ministry of Justice's prison and never get out. Tomorrow, the Ministry of Justice will jointly impeach Wei Yuan; let's see how he explains himself.

"Heh heh!" The head eunuch in the python robe laughed. "Indeed, young and impetuous, showing off his talents too much."

He looked around at everyone and said, "Let me introduce this gong-bearer. He was recommended by the Princess and personally appointed by His Majesty to be the chief official of the Nightwatchers's office."

"By the way, he was previously sentenced by Duke Wei to be cut in half at the waist in seven days for wounding his superior. His Majesty, being merciful, allowed him to atone for his crime through meritorious service."

The official in charge was personally appointed by His Majesty; no wonder he dared to be so arrogant. He wounded his superior, and seven days later he'd be executed by being cut in half at the waist—no wonder his killing intent was so strong!

The officials of the Ministry of Justice suddenly fell silent.

This is a desperate madman; solving the case is his only chance to survive. Such people are most prone to extremes. If pushed too far, he might be willing to take a few people down with him.

This can be seen from his ruthless killing of the officers.

Seeing that the officials of the Ministry of Justice were all trying to avoid danger and seek personal gain, the chief eunuch gestured for them to sit down and said, "Sit down, everyone. The Sangbo case is very serious. His Majesty attaches great importance to it than the tax silver case. He has specially appointed me as the governor to supervise your handling of the case."

"The Nightwatchers's arrival is just in time; it saves me the trouble of going back to talk to you."

This eunuch clearly favored me. Or rather, the Nightwatchers —was it because of Wei Yuan's connection?

Xu Qi'an clasped his hands in a fist salute and returned to his seat.

Song Tingfeng was very cooperative, running forward to pull out the gold medal and presenting it with both hands. "My lord, here is your gold medal."

Xu Qi'an gave everyone a defiant look, then reached out and took it. "Hmm!"

His second phase of establishing authority was very effective.

By portraying himself as a desperate, reckless man, he could solve many problems that followed. Those in the Ministry of Justice and the local government would have to think twice before vying for credit. He was about to face a madman who would draw his sword and kill at the slightest provocation.

As for what trouble might follow, Xu Qi'an didn't care. Firstly, he believed Wei Yuan would protect him. Secondly, if he couldn't solve the case, he didn't need to worry about the aftermath; he would either die or leave the capital forever.

Eunuch Liu took a sip of tea and said, "People have gone missing from all three government offices. These missing people are very likely spies, helping thieves secretly smuggle gunpowder. What do you all think about this?"

Prefect Chen said, "This prefecture has already sent people to investigate the families of the nine deceased, and they are all still in the capital, completely unaware of their relatives' disappearances. This prefecture deduces that the nine people did not escape, but were silenced."

Eunuch Liu nodded slightly.

An official from the Ministry of Justice said, "There must be more secret documents hidden in these three departments, and even more hidden ones are those used to cover up their crimes and eliminate those who knew the truth."

Eunuch Liu frowned and pondered.

Xu Qi'an listened silently. Since he had stayed to attend the meeting, the detained people were no longer of much use.

Because by simply listening to the conversations of officials from the Ministry of Justice and the prefectural government, one can obtain the information one desires.

"I'm afraid it's not just the Court of Judicial Review and the Ministry of Rites; even the Ministry of Works has these records," Lü Qing said in a deep voice.

Everyone looked at the only woman present.

Eunuch Liu scrutinized Lü Qing, then nodded. "Continue."

Lü Qingdao said, "I have investigated their family backgrounds and social connections. With their abilities, they simply do not have enough capacity to smuggle so much gunpowder from the gunpowder factory. Therefore, there must be someone in the Ministry of Works secretly assisting them, and that person must be of a high rank."

Not a low-ranking official

"Gunpowder is a strategic material that the imperial court attaches great importance to, and various security and anti-theft measures are very strict and comprehensive. This matter could not be accomplished without the assistance of high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Works."

Her logic was clear and reasonable, and the audience nodded in agreement, looking at Lü Qing, the female constable, with new respect.

Xu Qi'an noticed that a eunuch beside Liu Gonggong was writing furiously, seemingly taking notes and recording the conversation.

Is this meant to be shown to Emperor Yuanjing?

The Emperor attaches far more importance to this case than the tax silver case. Well, that makes sense; who knows what that thing from Sangbo is.

Things that are not extremely terrifying or extremely important will not be sealed in Sangbo.

Xu Qi'an thought to himself.

The eunuch Liu, dressed in a python robe, looked towards the Nightwatchers, then at Xu Qi'an, and asked, "Lord Xu, please don't remain silent. As the organizers of the Nightwatchers's activities, have you gained anything?"

Officials from the prefectural government and the Ministry of Justice looked over at the same time.

P. S.: I'm a bit mentally exhausted and don't want to proofread every single word anymore. Please let me know in the comments section below so I can be reminded.

These chapters are quite serious, so I won't be being cheeky.