Public Trial

"I- No, En Yongping pays my respect to the esteemed lords from the Black Tortoise Sect!" En Yongping hurriedly clashed his fists and bowed.

His guards were caught by surprise, but they were not stupid either.

They might not know much about this Black Tortoise Sect, but how could they not figure out the situation after seeing their leader pay his greetings?

The guards' aggressive expressions took a 180 degree turn and immediately turned into looks of respect.

"Greetings, esteemed lords from the Black Tortoise Sect!" the guards bowed along with their magistrate.

"Rise," Mo Mian answered in a natural manner.

"Thank you, esteemed lord," En Yongping raised his head, followed by the guards. "May I know the reason behind your visit to our small town today?"

"I heard that you are friends with Young Noble Hui?" Mo Mian cut to the chase.

Hearing that, Hui Shajing felt his heart skip a beat.

It appeared that whatever was meant to come would eventually come.

At the same time, En Yongping felt the corner of his lips twitch.

It was actually rather obvious what was happening here. After all, he was already aware that the five cultivators had brought Hui Shajing's entourage back to town as prisoners.

If given the choice, he would definitely have adamantly denied any relationship between them. But how was he supposed to do so now that Hui Shajing himself was standing in front of him?

"We are indeed slightly acquainted..." En Yongping said reluctantly.

Hui Shajing could not help but smile wryly.

It had not been long since the last time they met. Back then, En Yongping had greeted him with such enthusiasm and fanfare, constantly harping on how there was a close bond between the Hui Family and the Magistrate Hall.

But now that he was in trouble, they became only slightly acquainted?

Then again, it was not like he could not understand the reason behind this change.

If it were him, he would probably have gone one step further and denied the relationship altogether!

"I see," Mo Mian nodded. "Well then, let us tell you what your slight acquaintance did."

"P-Please do..." En Yongping said nervously after sneaking a peek at Hui Shajing.

"He and his men raided the bandits' hideout and cleared the mountain of the bandit scourge," Chu Han said.

En Yongping: "???"

He had been expecting something heinous, but it sounded like Hui Shajing actually ended up doing something virtuous this time?

"I-Is that so?" En Yongping answered hesitantly. "Sounds like he did good then?"

"That's not all," Chu Han continued. "They promised to pass the discovered loot to you once they return to town, though we are not sure if they would follow through on that. After all, he and his men also killed the bandits who had surrendered despite having promised to spare their lives. The women and children in the bandits' hideout were also killed, having their bodies left to rot in the open. Oh right, many of the women's corpses were not dressed when they were found."

Hui Shajing and his men slowly lowered their heads as they heard Chu Han list out what they had done.

At the same time, En Yongping could only sigh in his heart.

Hui Shajing promised to bring the loot back to him?

As if they would ever do that!

But that was not a big problem in and of itself. After all, they did work hard to take down the bandits' hideout on their own.

The issue here was the way they had treated the survivors.

Why did they have to do that?

And more importantly, why did they have to get caught by cultivators from the Black Tortoise Sect of all people?

However, En Yongping quickly adjusted his feelings.

"That's preposterous! How could you have done such heinous things to the weak and defenceless? What a disgrace to your family name and the reputation of our Mountainhorn Town!" En Yongping shouted at Hui Shajing before turning back to Mo Mian. "Don't worry, esteemed lords. I will definitely look into this matter and make sure to punish Young Noble Hui accordingly!"

"No, that's not enough," Mo Mian shook his head.

"I'm sorry, what do you mean...?" En Yongping did not expect that response.

"It would take too long for you to slowly investigate this matter. We don't have the time to wait, and who knows if you will truly investigate?" Mo Mian scoffed. "After all, you are slightly acquainted, aren't you?"

"W-What do you suggest we do then, esteemed lord?" En Yongping asked timidly.

"Let's proceed with the trial today," Mo Mian answered.

"T-Today?" En Yongping smiled awkwardly. "Please pardon this lowly one for expressing my thoughts, but that might be a little rushed. After all, we have yet to gather any information or evidence on their wrongdoings. I'm afraid the public would be unconvinced if we were to pass a verdict without looking further into it."

"Evidence? We are the evidence," Mo Mian said imperiously. "Do you think we have too much time on our hands to bother framing someone from your town?"

"I dare not think that!" En Yongping quickly denied. "I am just afraid that the ignorant public will not be convinced if we don't go through a suitable investigation process. Please understand our predicament as well, esteemed lord..."

"How about a public trial, then?" Zhao Yunxiao suggested. "This way, we can let the public decide if it's suitable."

"A public trial?" En Yongping did not expect to hear that.

"That's right, let this be a public trial then," Mo Mian agreed immediately. "And let's have it done today."

"Today?" En Yongping's expression froze.

A public trial was different from regular trials. For the latter, the public would be able to listen in on the entire hearing session. At the end of the session, the voice of the public would be heard, and the verdict could be overturned if there was an overwhelming objection from the masses.

During such a trial, all evidence and statements would be laid bare for all to see, removing any possibility of hiding facts from the public.

Should they really go with that, it would be extremely difficult to help Hui Shajing with a lighter sentence even if he wanted to, at least not without incurring the wrath of the masses.

Though in this case, the masses were the least of his concerns.

Rather than the masses, En Yongping was more worried about passing a sentence that the cultivators would be unhappy with!

"What's wrong? Are you unwilling?" Pu Feixiang sneered.

"N-No, that's not it," En Yongping quickly denied it, albeit reluctantly. "Let it be today..."

And just like that, the public trial for Hui Shajing and his men had been confirmed.

***

"Big news! Big news! The young master of the Hui Family is going to be publicly trialled at the Magistrate Hall this afternoon!"

"What? Young Noble Hui? How did that happen?"

"I heard that the trial is on the crime of brutality to the innocent."

"Brutality to the innocent? Hahaha, what a joke! If he can be sentenced on that alone, then he would have been imprisoned a long time ago!"

"That's right, isn't he on good terms with Magistrate En? Have they fallen out with each other?"

"I saw Young Noble Hui being escorted to town like a prisoner earlier. Could this be an instruction from the city?"

"What about the Hui Family? Any movement from them so far?"

"Not yet, but I am sure they will move sooner or later. There is no way that they will simply watch as their sole heir gets trialled in public!"

"There is going to be a show to watch then!"

The Magistrate Hall sent out a notice about the upcoming public trial, alerting everyone from all corners of the town.

At the same time, this action also sent tremors through everyone's hearts.

To those who were aware of the power dynamics within Mountainhorn Town, this was akin to the Magistrate Hall shredding all pretences with the Hui Family.

The Magistrate Hall might be the official governing faction of Mountainhorn Town, but the Hui Family was not to be trifled with either.

Such an event would cause the power dynamics in Mountainhorn Town to shift, meaning that the town would no longer be the same from today onwards.

Some had even already started thinking about which faction to side with, should the situation come down to it.

Now, all eyes turned towards the Hui Family, wondering what their response would be.

Yet strangely enough, there were no movements from the Hui Residence in the few hours leading up to the public trial.

***

As the appointed hour for the public trial neared, a huge crowd started gathering outside the Magistrate Hall.

The hearing chamber was located at the very front of the Magistrate Hall, making it easier to manage the crowd for the public trial.

This way, all the guards had to do was stop the crowds from moving past the hearing chamber and into the depths of the Magistrate Hall.

The gate to the hearing chamber opened promptly right as the appointed hour arrived, revealing a scene within that shocked many of those present.

Those who had been sceptical before were finally struck by the reality of the situation.

Magistrate En Yongping stood in his usual main seat while the guards stood by the sides of the chamber, holding long wooden staves.

That much was nothing special.

But this time, the one kneeling on the floor before En Yongping was someone whom everyone had always regarded as the number one talent of Mountainhorn Town's younger generation – Young Noble Hui Shajing!

Right now, he looked nothing like his past self, who had always exuded an aura of confidence wherever he went.

Instead, his head was hung low while his eyes were unfocused. His hair was dishevelled as well, making him look defeated before the trial had even started.

Behind him knelt the usual group that had always followed him whenever he went out of town.

Right now, Uncle Hei, Uncle Bai, and the soldiers looked no different from Hui Shajing. It was almost as though a dark cloud could be seen looming over the entire group, and a thunderstorm would pour down upon them at any moment.

"Hang in there, Young Noble Hui!"

"Don't worry, you will be fine!"

"Young Noble Hui is innocent!"

A few young ladies could no longer control their emotions upon seeing the man of their dreams in such a state, and ended up shouting out in encouragement.

Inconspicuously standing along one side of the hearing chamber, Pu Feixiang frowned upon hearing this.

"Damn, look at how popular this guy is," Pu Feixiang scoffed. "Just what's so good about him?"

"He is rich and influential. That is enough to make him a good catch," Zhao Yunxiao answered from beside him.

"Rich and influential? With just him? Shouldn't there be a long line of girls queuing up to marry me then?" Pu Feixiang said unhappily.

"If you want to take ordinary mortals as your wives, then go ahead. Nobody's stopping you," Gui Longcan rolled his eyes. "But if you want to have other cultivators line up for you, then try becoming an inner disciple before dreaming further."

"I will become one sooner or later!" Pu Feixiang retorted.

"Maybe after I become a core disciple," Gui Longcan shrugged.

"We will see about that!"

"Yes, let's see!"

Zhao Yunxiao was already used to their bickering by now, so he stopped paying attention the moment it started.

Instead, he turned his focus towards the audience that had been stopped at the gate and were watching from the outside.

One point that stood out the most was the wide variety in terms of demographics.

The members of the audience ranged from little boys to old ladies. Their dressing and attire also varied, from cheap apparel to robes typically worn by nobility.

There was lots of loud chatter as the public talked among themselves, with the more expressive ones even blatantly shouting their views on the matter.

But the ones whom Zhao Yunxiao paid more attention to were those who seemed to be just about decently dressed, and were not talking to anyone at all.

After all, the ones who wanted to be present while not drawing any attention to themselves were more likely to have come here for their own personal agenda.

It was unlikely that anyone here would be able to do anything to them, but it never hurt to be careful.

Bang-!

The guards slammed their staves against the floor, silencing the audience in an instant.

"The hour has arrived," En Yongping declared in a solemn manner from his seat. "I hereby announce the commencement of the public trial of Hui Shajing and his men!"