Chapter 123: Mr. Feng

Chen Liqin observed coldly. Jin Zhu, however, refused to back down. "Lord Chen," he said, "suppressing civilian unrest is originally the business of your Luocheng government office. Since you arrived, I haven't heard you express a single word of thanks."

Chen Liqin snorted coldly and remained silent.

Jin Zhu laughed in frustration, then turned to Chen Ji and said loudly, "I told you earlier not to get involved in this matter, but you insisted. Look, people still don't appreciate it. Let's go. If I ever get involved in civil official affairs again, it means I haven't learned my lesson!"

Chen Ji shook his head. "My lord, we still can't leave. There are still things that need to be done."

Jin Zhu said urgently, "You took down Liu Xianming and caught the Liu family's dead soldiers. That's already a great achievement. If there are no accidents, the notice of your promotion will soon be sent to Luocheng. If you withdraw now, any future trouble caused by the rioters will be unrelated to you. If you continue to stay here, who knows what kind of blame these civil officials will pin on you."

Chen Ji didn't reply.

Jin Zhu let out a cold laugh. "Alright, alright. I won't concern myself with your life or death anymore. If you want to stay here, then stay. Don't come complaining to me if something happens later."

With that, Jin Zhu led Tian Ma and turned to leave. Xi Feng turned his head several times, wanting to advise Chen Ji, but ultimately gave up.

Zhang Zhuo put down the *sha wei bang* in his hand and advised Chen Ji, "Actually, he's also thinking of your well-being."

Chen Ji hummed in response. "I understand!"

The white porridge gradually thickened. Zhang Zhuo ordered someone to extinguish the fire under the pot.

An official asked, "My lord, should we distribute the porridge?"

Zhang Zhuo shook his head. "Not yet. We need to wait for the porridge to cool down a bit."

When it was time to distribute the porridge, the disaster victims lined up one by one to come forward and receive it. Those with bowls used their bowls, and those without used their cupped hands.

Only at this moment did Chen Ji understand why Zhang Zhuo wanted to wait for the porridge to cool down a bit. Many disaster victims had escaped the hardship without even a proper bowl.

At this moment, a man took a mouthful of porridge from his bowl and suddenly threw the bowl onto the ground. "Damn it, these officials are deceiving us! They actually mixed sand in the porridge!"

Saying that, he went to pull a middle-aged man who was holding porridge with cupped hands and scattered the other man's porridge on the ground. "Don't drink this garbage! Grab your tools and fight them! Let's rush into the city and have something good to eat and drink. We won't endure this humiliation!"

The man still wanted to incite the disaster victims to rise up early, but the next moment, the disaster victims in the surrounding line actually swarmed over, lying on the ground and digging the rice porridge mixed with mud into their mouths. No one paid him any attention.

The man was startled. He turned his head and glanced at the disaster victims, then slowly retreated into the crowd.

Among the disaster victims, some men who were originally stirred and eager to move suddenly became silent.

After receiving the porridge, they silently squatted on the ground, swallowing the sand mouthful by mouthful, pouring all the white porridge into their mouths, not leaving a drop.

Time passed by little by little.

Giving out porridge continued from Mao Shi until Chen Shi, and surprisingly, not a single person cursed.

Chen Ji wanted to catch the Liu family's dead soldiers, but there was no trace of them.

Seeing the situation, Zhang Zhuo said to Chen Ji, "Your method didn't work. They are smarter than you imagined. As soon as they see something is impossible, they immediately hide and don't move. These dead soldiers raised by the Liu family are not ordinary rough men. They are all elites among the elites from the Yan Shi military camp. They have both courage and strategy."

Chen Ji cupped his hands to him and said, "As I said earlier, now I need to trouble Lord Zhang."

"Oh?"

Chen Ji explained, "I've long heard that Lord Zhang has the ability to remember everything he sees, reciting historical classics and literature backward as if flowing water. Earlier, I entrusted Lord Zhang to pay attention to details. Do you remember?"

Zhang Zhuo laughed loudly. "So you calculated this ability of mine to remember everything I see early on. Don't worry, this official has already remembered the people you mentioned. Follow this official to catch people."

After saying that, he led the officials and rushed into the crowd to catch people. In just a few breaths, he pulled a person out of the disaster victims and knocked them to the ground.

The man, who was being pressed to the ground by the officials with their knees, roared with effort, "My lord, why are you grabbing me?"

"Do you have parents here?"

"No, this commoner's parents died in the flood!"

"Do you have a wife and children here?"

"No, my wife and children also died in the flood."

Zhang Zhuo laughed coldly. "The disaster victims have been hungry for several days. They finish the porridge on the spot when they get it, wishing they could get another bowl. You have no wife, children, or parents, yet you didn't finish the porridge on the spot when you got it. How do you explain that?"

The man cried injustice, "My lord, do you want to convict me based on just this? This is wrongful!"

Zhang Zhuo said calmly, "This method might catch the wrong person, but the situation is urgent, and it's better than doing nothing. Moreover, we will grab all of you and put you in the main prison for now. If there is truly someone who is wronged, this official will personally release you. It's better to kill the wrong person than to let go of a guilty one. We can only resort to this special measure."

However, just at this moment, the Liu family's dead soldiers saw that Zhang Zhuo's move was dangerous and no longer held back.

They drew short knives from their sleeves and dispersed, circling around Zhang Zhuo and the officials, weaving through the disaster victims and rushing straight to the porridge shed.

Zhang Zhuo suddenly turned back. These people were not rushing towards him, but were aiming to kill Chen Ji.

He roared angrily at the officials, "Stop them!"

The officials, however, shrank back.

Their monthly salary was only a few coins. Why should they risk their lives against these kinds of dead soldiers?

More than twenty dead soldiers surged with killing intent. Chen Liqin suddenly turned his head to look, only to see Chen Ji standing expressionlessly under the porridge shed, gazing coldly at the dead soldiers.

The dead soldiers got closer and closer, yet Chen Ji did not retreat or give way.

The next moment, streaks of light shot down from above the city wall with the speed of shooting stars, piercing the legs of the Liu family's dead soldiers one by one like thunder.

The dead soldiers suddenly lifted their heads. Tian Ma had actually returned.

Tian Ma, dressed in white, stood on the battlements of the wall, holding an invisible bow in both hands, drawing the string with force and shooting.

As the shooting star arrows burst forth, a strong wind rolled up, stirring his clothes to fly up and down.

Chen Liqin said, surprised and uncertain, "You hinted earlier for Jin Zhu to argue with me and then leave, and you deliberately mentioned in front of the disaster victims that you were the one who took down Liu Xianming. Was that to use yourself as bait?"

Chen Ji calmly glanced at him, then turned his gaze back to the battlefield.

Under the rain of shooting star arrows, the Liu family's dead soldiers had nowhere to hide.

Some people shouted, "Raise shields!"

The Liu family's dead soldiers were extremely strong. They actually forcibly grabbed the clothes off the backs of the disaster victims and held them up as shields, hoping to use the disaster victims to make Tian Ma hesitant.

But who would have thought that Tian Ma would not stop drawing the bow? That burst of shooting star arrows actually pierced the chests of the disaster victims first without mercy, and then pierced the chests of the dead soldiers.

There was not the slightest hesitation.

The hostage dilemma did not deter Tian Ma in the least, as if the blood in this person's bones was inherently cold.

It was as if he never saw the disaster victims in his eyes, only the dead soldiers behind the disaster victims.

This was the aspect of the Si Lijian that drew criticism.

As Jin Zhu said, the inner court officials raised people like raising Gu. There were no more poisonous Gu insects in the world than them.

"Withdraw!"

"Withdraw!"

The Liu family's dead soldiers turned and fled for their lives. Facing the ruthless, ice-cold methods of the Upper Three Envoys, they could not muster up any fighting spirit.

Zhang Zhuo lifted a waist knife and roared angrily, "Don't let them run!"

The sound of iron hooves echoed inside the city gate. Jin Zhu, leading a horse, rushed out first, leading the secret police in a fierce charge, chasing down the dead soldiers one by one from behind and chopping them down.

Chen Ji lightly exhaled a breath of turbid air. The overall situation was settled.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhang Zhuo and Jin Zhu escorted the Liu family's dead soldiers back to the porridge shed and showed them off proudly. "Six living prisoners remain, boy. Quickly question them. See who the mastermind behind them is. Eh, where are the people?"

At this moment, where was Chen Ji's figure under the porridge shed?

Zhang Zhuo looked at Chen Liqin. "Where are the people?"

Chen Liqin replied, "He said he had important matters to attend to and left first."

Zhang Zhuo stroked his beard and said with regret, "What a pity, I still wanted to chat with him some more!"

Chen Liqin was a bit doubtful. "Is Lord Zhang familiar with him?"

Zhang Zhuo thought for a moment and said, "I feel I'm more familiar with him than you are."

Jin Zhu turned around in the porridge shed and forcibly pulled off all the fingernails of the Liu family's dead soldiers. He actually tortured them on the spot. "Speak, who instructed this matter? Was it Liu Xianming?"

The Liu family's dead soldiers said nothing, only stared viciously at everyone in the field.

When their gaze swept to Jin Zhu, they spat with force. "Eunuch party, lackeys."

Jin Zhu laughed, "Tough enough... Come, men. Pull out this yellow tooth for me so he can only eat soft rice from now on."

But just as his words fell, he heard the sound of carriage wheels pressing on the stone road from inside the city gate.

Jin Zhu turned his head to look, only to see a carriage slowly driving out of the city gate and stopping in front of the porridge shed.

A middle-aged scholar in green scholarly robes sat in the driver's seat and said with a smile, "Lord Jin Zhu, long time no see."

Jin Zhu narrowed his eyes, as if facing a formidable enemy. "Mister Feng!"

Mister Feng, the middle-aged scholar in green robes, jumped down from the carriage and cupped his hands. "There is a gift for my lord in the carriage. Please see for yourself."

Jin Zhu looked up at Tian Ma on the city wall, then slowly stepped forward and used the tip of his knife to lift the carriage curtain. "Liu Xianming?"

Mister Feng cupped his hands and smiled like a spring breeze. "My master says that this rebellious son was determined to kill the Jing Chao thief, but he almost caused a great disaster. He feared punishment and killed himself at home."

According to the details, Chen Ji took off his bamboo hat and ran frantically. He clearly passed by Tai Ping Medical Hall but didn't go in, instead continuing to hurry with his head down.

He stopped in front of the door of a small library, lifted his head and looked at the 'Zhi Xing Yuan' sign. Inside, a deep voice reading echoed, "The Book of Poetry says: The state's boundary is a thousand li, only the people stop..."

Chen Ji tidied his clothes, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and stepped over the threshold.

He walked to the backyard and saw a middle-aged person in blue scholarly robes holding a classic volume, walking at a measured pace. This must be Wang Daosheng.

In the courtyard, Chen Wenzong, Chen Wenxiao, Zhang Xia, Shizi, and Baoyu County Lord were kneeling on grass mats.

Baoyu County Lord turned her head and saw that it was Chen Ji. Her face immediately changed, and she gave him an eye signal.

At this time, Wang Daosheng looked up at Chen Ji, put down the classic volume in his hand, and asked unhurriedly, "So you are Chen Ji?"

Chen Ji hummed in response. "Excuse me, Mister, I had important matters to attend to, so I am late."

"What kind of important matter?"

"Excuse me, Mister, I cannot say!"

Wang Daosheng casually waved the classic volume. "Go stand facing the wall in the front hall."

"Understood!"

Chen Ji walked back to the front hall, faced the wall, and smelled the scent of books in the room. He only felt fatigue washing over him.

Two days and two nights.

Even an official's body couldn't withstand it.

He didn't know when, but listening to the sound of reading in the courtyard, he leaned his forehead against the wall and slowly closed his eyes.