AEOGA CH42

The Prefect of Quling trembled all over as a surge of heat flowed down between his thighs, dampening the floor beneath him.

He was so frightened that he had actually lost control of his bladder.

With County Magistrate Zhang’s cautionary tale right before his eyes—whose severed head was still rolling on the ground, staring at him with unseeing, unclosing eyes—it was nearly impossible not to wet his pants in fear.

The onlookers from the common populace sighed and tutted, covering their noses and mouths in disgust.

“What kind of Prefect is he? Usually, he only knows how to lord his authority over us. The moment His Majesty arrives, he pisses his pants in fright. How utterly embarrassing.”

“Embarrassing? He threw his shame away long ago! I just wonder where he gets the nerve—never doing a single good deed, only knowing how to squeeze us dry, and even expecting us to praise him. His conscience was devoured by dogs.”

“If His Majesty executes him too, I’ll be the first to set off firecrackers in celebration.”

“My family sells firecrackers! If this corrupt official dies, I’ll hand out free firecrackers for everyone to join in a grand nationwide celebration!”

“This wicked scoundrel! Beheading is far too lenient for him; he should be sliced a thousand times, executed by slow slicing!”

“What’s so special about dying? Wouldn’t it be better to mutilate him into a human swine and throw him into a latrine pit?”

Listening to the endless barrage of curses, the Prefect of Quling’s cloudy, aged eyes lost even more of their luster.

It was only natural that the deeds he had committed would draw the ire and curses of the populace, but he could never stand hearing it. Thus, he had sent his subordinates to keep a close watch on public sentiment. Whoever dared to curse him behind his back would be arrested and thrown into the heavy dungeons on charges of insulting an imperial court official, receiving severe punishment. As time went on, the people harbored resentments they dared not voice, and were even forced to praise him against their conscience.

The common folk had accumulated grievances for a long time; now, they could finally vent and curse to their hearts’ content.

Seeing the mob’s rising fury outside, as the people’s voices grew louder and their curses turned increasingly foul, the yamen bailiffs feared the vulgar language would taint the ears of His Majesty and His Highness the Empress. They were just about to shout for silence when they saw Lu Xuechao gently shake his head, gesturing for them not to interfere.

To block the mouths of the people is more dangerous than damming a river; when a dammed river bursts, many will be harmed. The same applies to the people.

The Prefect of Quling had deluded himself into trying to stop the mouths of the masses, and now he was merely suffering the backlash.

Therefore, those who manage rivers must dredge them to guide the flow; those who govern the people must open channels to let them speak.

Xie Chongjin, with the supreme dignity of an Emperor, had acted as a county magistrate in this tiny town of Qiuling for a day precisely so the common folk could speak their minds freely.

The Prefect of Quling knelt on the ground in utter humiliation: “This servant failed to strictly manage his subordinates. I pray Your Majesty bestow punishment upon me…”

Even now, he still harbored a foolish hope, claiming only the crime of failing to strictly supervise those beneath him.

The County Magistrate of Qiuling had committed so many transgressions; as his immediate superior, he could not escape involvement either, but being implicated at least wouldn’t carry a death sentence.

“A fine ‘failure to strictly manage subordinates’—you truly know how to downplay your crimes,” Xie Chongjin said in a measured voice. “Prefect of the Capital, present the evidence.”

“Understood.” The Prefect of the Capital immediately ordered his men to present the proof of crimes. “This servant has fulfilled my mission, conducting visits and investigations all across Quling, gathering the evidence of Liu Hanzhang’s selling of official posts, lining his own pockets, preying upon the populace, and colluding between officials and merchants. Every single offense warrants the death penalty; ten thousand deaths would not suffice to expiate his guilt.”

Liu Hanzhang was the name of the Prefect of Quling.

Xie Chongjin glanced at those pieces of evidence. He likely already knew the truth in his heart, and having been consumed by rage all day, he now lacked any extra expression. He tossed the evidence directly in front of Liu Hanzhang: “Do you plead guilty or not?”

Looking at the ironclad, mountain-like evidence that left no room for denial, Liu Hanzhang’s face turned completely ashen.

He should have foreseen this day. The Prefect of the Capital governed Yujing; how could anyone sitting in that position be an ordinary person? When His Majesty dispatched such a prominent figure here, how could he have believed he could pull the wool over everyone’s eyes?

Evidently, the evidence had long since been thoroughly gathered, merely waiting for the day His Majesty personally arrived, which would be the day of his demise.

Xie Chongjin spoke without a trace of emotion: “Punishing several crimes combined, the sentence is death by slow slicing, execution to take place tomorrow at noon. Adjourned.”

As the sun set in the west, the common folk departed in high spirits, laughing aloud, thoroughly satisfied with today’s trial. Whenever they ran into those who hadn’t gone to the yamen to watch, they lamented how pitiful it was for the other party to miss out on the public trial presided over by His Majesty and His Highness the Empress. They then grabbed hold of them, colorfully recounting everything that had transpired in the public court.

Later on, this play The Emperor and Empress’s Public Trial at the County Yamen was even adapted into a theatrical opera, becoming a classic passed down through the generations.

Of course, that was a story for later.

For now, after the common folk dispersed, Xie Chongjin also instructed the imperial envoy entourage to head back to their respective rooms to rest. Lu Xuechao’s upright, straight back instantly slumped, leaning lazily against Xie Chongjin.

Having rushed along the road for days on end, he was already exhausted to the core. Sitting upright in full view of the public for an entire day while managing the official affairs of Qiuling Town also drained his mind—though their process of resolving cases looked effortless, putting it in the terms of the player’s world, they had utilized knowledge from law, medicine, forensic medicine, criminology, and criminal psychology. Often, as Xie Chongjin read the case details and the locals provided supplementary explanations, an automatic criminal profile image would take shape in Lu Xuechao’s mind. This was not entirely foolproof; for many dockets with insufficient evidence, they even had to judge whether to skip them, or else they would be judging cases recklessly.

The energy required for such high-intensity work in a single day was unimaginable.

After a full day of high-intensity work, Lu Xuechao was truly weary to the extreme.

He didn’t even want to move a single finger.

Ached by his exhaustion, Xie Chongjin picked him up in his arms and looked for an empty guest room, deciding to stay overnight at the yamen.

When an Emperor traveled, unless it was an incognito visit, he would stay at imperial villas or courier stations. A tiny place like Qiuling Town lacked such facilities, and reaching one would require traveling through the night—Lu Xuechao didn’t want to drag his body around anymore.

The Prefect of the Capital and the troops accompanying the army occupied most of the rooms, leaving the finest, unused room for His Majesty and His Highness the Empress. As for the master bedroom where County Magistrate Zhang had lived, they skipped it entirely—too unlucky.

Xie Chongjin carried Lu Xuechao into the guest room, only to see the entire room dripping in gold and brilliance. Though they dared not use the overstepping imperial vermilion or purple, it was still filled with bright yellow opulence and dazzling treasures.

For a local yamen to be decorated so sumptuously, one could only imagine how much of the people’s wealth and blood had been squeezed out to pay for it.

Xie Chongjin placed Lu Xuechao down on a chair, suddenly realizing it was mealtime. He said with regret: “You must be exhausted today. Blame me, I actually forgot to call you to have lunch. What would you like to eat for dinner?”

Having spent the entire day busy with the public trial, Xie Chongjin had been so enraged by those cases that he couldn’t eat, completely forgetting about meals. His own body could endure it, but Lu Xuechao’s might not.

Lu Xuechao said weakly: “Whatever is convenient, as long as it’s a hot dish. I really don’t want to eat dry rations anymore.”

Thanks to the dry rations, and having witnessed the hardships of the common folk, he no longer found those home-cooked dishes so difficult to swallow.

Normally, when the Emperor and Empress went on an inspection tour and arrived at a local region, local officials would host a banquet to entertain them, allowing them to enjoy a lavish feast. However, as soon as Xie Chongjin arrived, he had executed the local official…

So there was nothing left to entertain them with.

Qiuling was a small place without famous wines or dishes. What Lu Xuechao could name might not be available here, and he didn’t feel like cooking himself either, so he settled for having whatever was at hand.

Xie Chongjin said: “Then I’ll have someone bring back some dishes from a restaurant.”

Before Xie Chongjin could call anyone, an attendant bowed outside the door: “Your Majesty, Your Highness the Empress.”

Xie Chongjin asked through the door: “What is it?”

The attendant reported: “A crowd of Qiuling’s common folk are waiting outside the yamen, saying they want to send food to You and the brothers aiding the disaster relief.”

Xie Chongjin and Lu Xuechao exchanged a glance.

Xie Chongjin opened the door.

Outside the yamen, a crowded throng of common folk had gathered, having actually returned. It was even livelier than during the day.

They held baskets in their hands, carried food boxes, or held rice bowls that were still steaming hot.

The Prefect of the Capital and a group of attendants were already outside the door, looking troubled.

By right, officials ought to be clean and honest, unable to accept a single needle, thread, grain, or vegetable from the people. Yet the common folk’s hospitality was truly difficult to decline; if they didn’t accept, the people refused to leave, and it wasn’t right to drive them away either.

Seeing Xie Chongjin and Lu Xuechao emerge, the Prefect of the Capital felt as if he had seen a savior, bowing in greeting: “Your Majesty, Your Highness the Empress.”

Seeing the Emperor and Empress, the common folk grew even more excited, preparing to kneel and bow.

Xie Chongjin stated in advance: “Dispense with the ceremony.”

Yet the common folk still knelt down earnestly and kowtowed.

Xie Chongjin: “…”

Forget it.

An elderly man at the front leaned on a walking stick, looking like an elder of great repute locally. Kneeling on the ground, he said in an aged voice: “Your Majesty and Your Highness the Empress have saved us from deep water and scorching fire. This immense grace and virtue will never be forgotten. This humble commoner kowtows to thank Your Majesty, and kowtows to thank Your Highness the Empress.”

Xie Chongjin personally helped him up: “Old senior, there is no need for such ceremony. This is what I ought to do. On the contrary, allowing the people to live in deep water and scorching fire was my dereliction of duty. Receiving such grand thanks makes me feel unworthy.”

The elder stood up falteringly, never expecting the supreme Son of Heaven to be so humble.

He said: “We have nothing good to express our gratitude to Your Majesty and Your Highness the Empress. Each family could only prepare a single dish to combine into a ‘hundred-family meal’ to invite You and the brave soldiers to eat. This represents everyone’s heartfelt sincerity. The food is simple and plain; if Your Majesty cannot get used to it, You need not eat it, but please, we ask that You accept it…”

A crowd of commoners also pleaded: “We pray Your Majesty accept it.”

Xie Chongjin swept his gaze across the faces of all the common folk—face after face filled with reverent eagerness, yet terrified he would find it distasteful.

They had nothing to their name; this was their most sincere expression of gratitude.

Xie Chongjin paused for a moment, then said: “Very well, I shall accept it.”

Only then did the common folk beam with joy.

Xie Chongjin accepted the hundred-family meal. Since there were too many dishes for them to finish, they casually selected a few, leaving the rest to reward the disaster relief soldiers.

Before dining, every dish was tested for poison according to protocol.

Being moved was one thing, but safety procedures could not be omitted. Both Xie Chongjin and Lu Xuechao had experienced far too many poisoning incidents.

Bringing several dishes into the guest room, Xie Chongjin stared at this meal for a long time before picking up his chopsticks.

As he chewed and swallowed, his eyes began to turn slightly red.

The old man was right; this meal was far from sumptuous, and could be called the plainest proper meal Xie Chongjin had ever eaten.

Since childhood, he had eaten imperial delicacies from the palace or fine dishes personally made by Lu Xuechao, never lacking exquisite delicacies. A single dish was extraordinarily expensive—something an ordinary household could not afford in a lifetime.

In comparison, this meal was exceedingly ordinary; most of it consisted of vegetarian dishes, with only a tiny hint of meat to be seen.

Yet it was also extraordinary.

Having just suffered through a flood, the common folk themselves still needed relief; grains and rice were more precious than anything else, and what they could produce was truly meager. Yet those who could slaughter chickens slaughtered chickens, and those who could slaughter pigs slaughtered pigs. Chickens, ducks, fish, and meats were all brought out, every household offering the absolute best they had.

He had merely done a few insignificant things; by what virtue or capability did he deserve such a return?

These dishes were not worth a single coin, yet impossible to buy for a thousand gold pieces.

Lu Xuechao said: “Why are you crying just from eating a meal?”

Xie Chongjin was startled: “Did I cry?”

“No.” Lu Xuechao looked at him. “But your eyes are red.”

Xie Chongjin wiped his eyes and smiled: “Perhaps it’s just too delicious.”

“In past years when traveling south, local officials would host lavish entertainments with rich fish and meats. Looking at it, I only felt disgusted, wondering how much of the people’s blood and fat lay behind it,” Xie Chongjin said softly. “No matter how good the nectar and jade wine in the heavens are, how can they compare to the earthly fires and smoke of the mortal world? Doesn’t Qingshu think so?”

“To be completely honest, I don’t think the hundred-family meal tastes that good,” Lu Xuechao remarked with a calm and critical tone.

Yet he added: “But to be equally honest, I feel this is the most delicious meal I have ever had.”

They guarded the white jade capital up in the heavens, precisely to awaken the ten thousand hearths of mortal smoke below.