Chapter 14

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Luo Hong had a bad feeling spawning in his heart. 

As he looked at the two younger emissaries who bowed to him, he had to force a smile which was uglier than his sour look.

“Please don’t say that. I didn’t do anything. It’s not me!” Luo Hong shook his hands.

‘Lesson? What the hell did I do to teach them? WHAT?! These three disappeared for a moment and they came back different! They don’t even want free money?!’

While holding the stack of credit notes tightly, he felt like he was holding loneliness itself, and he did not know what to do with it.

Luo Feng had made it clear that he would not take it.

Luo Hong actually wanted to befriend the emissary from the Court of Judicial Review with the mone instead of getting on their bad side, so he did not push it.

However, he felt empty as if he had just lost a billion in the blink of an eye.

If the three emissaries accepted his money, his impromptu plan would be considered a success, and his Sin Level would surely climb to the positive. More importantly, he might be able to steal a peek at the prize in the Prize Pool.

Now, with the three of them rejecting his bribe, what else could he do? Nothing! 

Luo Hong sighed. ‘At least, the magistrate took my money.’

He felt grateful because Magistrate Liu was the magistrate of Anping County, hence he must hold a certain status and power under his command. With him accepting the money, Luo Hong might be able to harvest quite a decent amount of Sin Level. Therefore, it was not entirely a fruitless trip either.

Right after the thought faded from Luo Hong’s mind, Luo Feng went back to his seat and sat down calmly. He looked rather serious compared to earlier.

“My young lord, these two are my subordinates and my students. They are also around your age. Maybe you can make their acquaintance.

“Xin Wei, Fang Zheng,” Luo Feng introduced the duo to Luo Hong.

Luo Hong nodded with a smile. He simply took a piece of credit note and handed them over as if he was offering them a piece of cigarette, but the two of them sternly shook their hands.

Luo Hong was deeply disappointed after being rejected again.

Xin Wei and Fang Zheng were surprised that Luo Hong was still testing them. 

Fortunately, they were smart enough to not fall for the trick.

On the other hand, Luo Feng looked a lot more relaxed. After he made sure that Luo Hong was not related to the evil that massacred the village, plus the terrifying reminder from the man in green, he was much friendlier to the man.

Some thoughts later, he looked at the young lady in black uniform. “Xin Wei, summon Magistrate Liu. Remember Young Lord Luo’s teachings, and make the magistrate spit out what he’s taken. As imperial officials, we must be mindful of our behavior and code of conduct.”

“Yes, sir.” Xin Wei nodded. She lifted her hand and the red ruler slid out from her sleeve. She held it precisely in her fair hand.

Luo Hong remained calm despite hearing what Luo Feng said to his subordinate.

‘Spit out what he’s taken? What is that supposed to mean? Don’t you people do something stupid!’

However, before Luo Hong could say a word to stop them, Xin Wei had already dashed out of the rear court.

A while later, Magistrate Liu and the master of records, Wang Long, was brought into the rear court again. Magistrate Liu looked furious and Wang Long looked extremely terrified.

Xin Wei had a stack of credit notes in her hands when she walked up to Luo Hong. “My young lord, please take it back.”

She showed a sweet smile to Luo Hong.

Luo Hong’s eyes were almost dead as he stiffly took the credit notes back. It was the bribe that he had given Magistrate Liu earlier, and it had been forcefully returned to him.

Bang! 

Luo Feng slammed the arm of the chair strongly. He grabbed several pieces of credit notes and threw them at Wang Long. The credit notes were thrown into his face while some of them were scattered in the air.

The atmosphere in the rear court suddenly felt tense. Luo Feng’s black and red cape fluttered without the wind while a strong intimidating pressure emanated from him.

Thud! 

Wang Long’s legs turned into jelly and he fell on his knees.

“Bribing imperial officials? Do you acknowledge your crimes?!” Luo Feng bellowed.

Wang Long was shocked. ‘Double standards!’ 

However, he dared not voice his mind because he knew who Luo Feng was, so he was more afraid than before.

“M-my lord, please spare me!”

“Jia Sidao harassed a lady on the streets in broad daylight. It’s already a heavy crime, yet you accused Luo Hong of being affiliated with the evil beings because you sided Jia Sidao and wanted to take revenge for him. Do you acknowledge your crimes?!” Luo Feng looked furious and cold as the intimidating pressure grew stronger and scarier.

Wang Long bent over and stuck his forehead to the ground. He dared not move. He knew that Luo Feng was treating him with double standards, but he dared not question the way of the Court of Judicial Court.

“Magistrate Liu, you know what to do,” Luo Feng said as he looked at Magistrate Liu.

Magistrate Liu clasped his fists and looked shocked. He subtly glanced at Luo Hong who looked disappointed with the stack of credit notes in his hands.

The emissary from the Court of Judicial Review had not been like this before he left. What did Luo Hong do to change the emissary into a totally different person?

The Luo Residence? The Luo family?! 

Magistrate Liu suddenly thought of something and he widened his eyes in shock. The more he thought about it, the more terrified he was.

After Wang Long was taken away and thrown into jail, Luo Hong was clueless about what would happen to him or how he would be punished, but it would be nothing less than miserable. He had been doing shady things for as long as he was in position, and every single mistake had now become the shackles to put him into jail.

On top of that, even Jia Sidao was involved, and the constables were already on the way to arrest him.

Luo Feng then spent some time talking with Luo Hong and they discussed the incident at Jishan Village.

“Jishan Village was slaughtered mercilessly. It was brutal. Not even the old or the young were spared. Young Lord Luo, you’ve been there before. Can you tell me what happened there?” asked Luo Feng.

Luo Hong was frightened. In his memory, the bandits had raided the village but did not massacre everyone.

“Is this the work of the evil beings?” Luo Hong asked after a deep breath.

Luo Feng nodded. “The so-called evil beings are mostly caused by men who were evil cultivators that cultivated wicked techniques and cultivation arts at the cost of human lives.”

“As a matter of fact, scattered evil cultivators aren’t a big problem. I’m just afraid that these evil cultivators are under the Heaven and Earth Demons. That’s also why the case will come under the court’s attention.”

“Heaven and Earth Demons?” Luo Hong asked.

Luo Feng smiled. He took a sip of tea and continued, “300 years ago, the Great Xia Emperor, the Great Zhou Emperor, and the Great Chu Emperor joined forces and wiped out all the sects in the world. All the sects were under tremendous pressure for more than 100 years, and those within the borders of the three empires were forced to register themselves and they agreed to be ruled by the respective empires.”

“The Heaven and Earth Demons are a bunch of outlaws, refusing to be registered under the official accords, not just here in Great Xia. Even Great Zhou and Great Chu had shadows of the demons.”

“Actually, rather than calling them an evil sect, they are just some rats who are good at hiding. My young lord, you don’t need to worry.”

Luo Hong nodded. He did not hold back on the details when Luo Feng questioned him. He told him everything that happened in Jishan Village, including the bandits, to the emissary.

Luo Feng looked slightly regrettable after hearing Luo Hong’s explanation. The bandits had raided the village before the villagers were killed, so the clues ended with Luo Hong.

Even though he did not get what he sought, Luo Feng was not disappointed.

When Xin Wei and Fang Zheng escorted Luo Hong out of the yamen, Luo Hong noticed that Zhao Donghan was waiting for him in the dark.

“My lord!” Zhao Donghan was delighted when he saw his young lord.

Xin Wei and Fang Zheng glanced at the guard before they returned to the rear court. They did not take the guard seriously. They respected Luo Hong because of his character and the man with immeasurable power behind him. 

However, Zhao Donghan was just a guard, and as emissaries from the court, it was natural for them not to take him seriously.

The sky was still covered in stars.

Outside the yamen, Luo Hong tapped the thick stack of credit notes in his hand and sighed. He did not even use any of the credit notes, but he got a beautiful title for himself.

It seemed like being an antagonist was much more difficult than he thought.

He still had a long way to go. He shook his head with a dismal mood and walked towards the direction of the Luo Residence in disappointment.

The bright moon shed its pure white light on the two who walked on the quiet street, stretching their shadows longer than usual.