Chapter 532: Point Out Any Errors I’ve Made, Lieutenant Governor! (part 1)
For more than twenty days, Xu Qing had come up with countless reasons to convince himself to stay silent. But he hadn’t been able to stop himself from thinking about another possible outcome.
He had known all along that if he stepped out like he did, there were three possible catastrophic outcomes. The first was that the moment he stepped out into the open, he would be struck dead immediately. Although that didn’t seem likely, it was a possibility. After all, to most people, voicing an objection wasn’t the same as outright rebellion.
The second possibility was that he would be imprisoned, whereupon his life or death could be determined by someone’s else’s whim.
The third possibility was that everything would go smoothly, but that he would create immense potential calamities that would lead to further catastrophe.
Of course, all of those possibilities were what would happen if he failed.
The moment he stepped out into the open and mentioned the 30,000-meter pillar of light, he ensured that the first possibility wouldn’t play out. What was more, he hadn’t even considered that the deputy palace lord and others would try to shield him from harm.
Next he had taken out the orders from Palace Lord Kong. With that jade slip as evidence, and as soon as he said he wanted to report the findings of his investigation, he ruled out the second possibility. Although the governor’s murder had previously been announced as having been solved, his carefully worded statement did not exempt Marquis Yao from culpability. He simply said there was more to the story, and that he wanted the people of Sea-Sealing County to hear all the details. Although the lieutenant governor was well-liked, he couldn’t surpass the old governor in terms of being loved by the people. What was more, the brilliant services performed by Palace Lord Kong would not be easily forgotten.
Xu Qing had called upon the names of two people who might as well have been mountains in the hearts of the commoners. Then he coupled that with the 30,000-meter pillar of light, and it bought him the opportunity he sought. The former was what shook the mortals. The latter was what shook the veteran cultivators.
And that was why the lieutenant governor looked deeply at Xu Qing, as if he were only finally realizing who he really was. After all, if Xu Qing said anything that even hinted at him trying to protect Marquis Yao or contradict the previous judgment that had been announced, then it would be easy to crush him.
Silence reigned in heaven and earth.
Xu Qing hovered in front of everyone, the destiny aura slowly gathering above his head.
He knew that his every choice of word was vitally important, and that if he said even one wrong thing, he would be damned by myriad tribulations. He let a few breaths of time pass, then looked at the lieutenant governor.
“In the fourth month of this year, the governor mysteriously died, the Holytides invaded, and eight hundred years of peace in Sea-Sealing County came to an end. The Nightshades besieged the imperial capital, prevented the new governor and the relief troops from coming to our aid, and left Sea-Sealing County isolated and without help. We were being tossed about by the wind and the rain, and everyone felt deeply alarmed.
“In the face of such deadly peril, Palace Lord Kong accepted the orders to stand in as the governor to safeguard Sea-Sealing County.
“In that same month, I worked closely with Palace Lord Kong to process all war reports and announcements. At the end of the fourth month, the situation on the front lines became critical. The palace lord took command of the Sea-Sealing County army and left to defend humankind. Living up to his oath as a swordsage, he personally went to the front lines. On the day he left, I helped the palace lord don his armor.”
Xu Qing’s words were not meaningless in any way. He wanted the hundreds of thousands of listeners to think back to those times. He wanted the mortals to remember what life was like back then in the county capital. He wanted them to clearly remember who it was that had really kept them safe.
“The culprit used this Go board to poison the governor!”
The lieutenant governor’s words caused a buzz in the crowd. After all, everything he was saying seemed completely believable and realistic.
A bitter expression appeared on the lieutenant governor’s face as he looked out at heaven and earth and quietly continued, “Truth be told, my plan has always been to use my time as governor to train my successor from among the deputy palace lords of the three palaces. Li Yunshan, you are my top candidate.”
The lieutenant governor reached out and touched the imperial prince’s blood on the Go board. That blood flowed up his finger, and where it spread, it revealed black energy. After the process was over, it was possible to see black streaks covering the lieutenant governor. He looked... just like the governor had looked in the moment before he died.
“The reason is that I’ve also been poisoned. I also touched the Go pieces on that board. Not just now. I handled the board numerous times before the war began.
“Xu Qing, do you remember that time you paid me a visit? You saw how tired I was, right? I know full well that this poison cannot be cured. That’s why I refused to take the medicine my subordinate gave me. [1]
“The governor perished. Brother Liangxiu perished. And I don’t have much longer to live. Yao Tianyan is on the run. Who could the killer possibly be?”
The lieutenant governor grinned bitterly. His words, coupled with the black energy, struck the altar like millions upon millions of bolts of heavenly lightning. Countless people were visibly shaken.
Even Xu Qing felt moved, and his previous confidence diminished slightly.
“You’re a good kid, Xu Qing,” the lieutenant governor said softly, his expression one of kindness. “Today's events just prove that you deserve that 30,000-meter pillar of light. It’s a good thing. Really.
“And now, does that 30,000-meter pillar of light allow you to approve my governorship? Will it allow me to keep everyone safe?”
Xu Qing didn’t say anything.
To anyone else, those words would sound like the epitome of benevolence. Only Seventh Prince realized that it made the lieutenant governor seem much more dangerous. He knew that those words... were a death sentence! He knew exactly what the lieutenant governor was thinking right now.
So what if the Grand Emperor gave you a 30,000-meter pillar of light? So what if you’re willing to fight your way through entire armies? I didn’t fly into a rage and attack you. I never got flustered and exasperated and started killing people. I just talked things out calmly. And then... I demanded that you say the simple words ‘you may.’ Using popular sentiment, I sentenced your 30,000-meter of light to death!
Everything was dead silent as all gazes shifted to Xu Qing.
The Captain’s expression was a bit fierce. Ning Yan huddled in on himself, his expression one of fear. Qing Qiu had no facial expression whatsoever, but she gripped her scythe even more tightly than before. That random unprepossessing swordsage who had looked proudly at Xu Qing earlier was now frowning and looking at the lieutenant governor with a slightly malevolent expression. On the altar, the masked Generalissimo Bloodhorror shifted his right foot as if he were about to take a step forward....
But then Xu Qing looked up.
1. The lieutenant governor refused to take the medicine from his servant in chapter 494.2. ?