Volume 3: Dragon and Snake Movement Chapter 368: Death is Difficult
When they saw Zhu Tingfang grabbing Xu Cheng by the collar and dragging him directly to the gate of the county government, the students of Wendao School who were recommended by Mr. Xu were all dumbfounded. Cao Wu, who personally brought a few disciples to maintain order, was as silent as a cicada, and gestured to those on his side to keep quiet. Not only them, but also the people who had been making loud noises just now suddenly became quiet.
In this dead silence, many people timidly stole glances at the scar on Zhu Tingfang's face, and even those who were pushing and shoving to get closer to him stopped unconsciously. Although Zhu Tingfang had not been in Cangzhou for a long time, just looking at the few things he had done, each one was full of murderous intent, so much so that his name could stop children from crying at night.
Seeing Zhu Tingfang's fierceness, Zhang Shou, who followed him, could not help but be amazed. He actually didn't want to come out, but Ge Yong glared at him fiercely, clearly meaning to go and keep an eye on your brother-in-law, so he had to follow and keep an eye on him, lest his brother-in-law indulge the people to tear Xu Cheng to pieces in the future... Although this was a bit exaggerated, he believed that Zhu Tingfang could do it.
Sure enough, the next moment, he heard Zhu Tingfang say, "Xu Cheng's crimes have just been announced. These were the complaints submitted by the victims to the county government over the past few days. Some people may be afraid of his former power and dare not come, but what they have seen is already outrageous. But he just said in court that the punishment of scholars and officials is not the same as that of civilians."
Before the crowd could start to make noise again, he said sternly, "I agree with this point. I graduated from the Ruxing Hall of the Imperial Academy, and I ranked first in all subjects. Of course, I know what the Book of Rites says: punishment is not imposed on officials, and etiquette is not extended to common people. But, Xu Cheng, ask yourself, can you still be considered a scholar-official?"
Zhang Shou paused when he saw Zhu Tingfang talking, and then someone below boldly shouted that it didn't count, until Zhu Tingfang glanced over and hurriedly shut up. He continued Zhu Tingfang's words: "The punishment for not punishing officials is that officials are well-educated in poetry and books, and they should know the law, understand the law, and abide by the law. If they really break the law, then they will be sorry for reading the saints' books for many years, their reputation, and their family."
He ignored Xu Cheng's angry look and said slowly, "So, since you are a noble scholar, you should know your own mistakes after breaking the law..."
He suddenly raised his voice and shouted fiercely: "You should feel guilty and repent. Why do you keep crying out for injustice and refuse to accept the charges when the evidence is clear? You don't even have the courage to take responsibility. Are you worthy of being a scholar-official? You don't even have the courage to face the people. Are you worthy of being a scholar-official? You are like a stray dog who can only whine for survival. Are you worthy of being a scholar-official?"
Xu Cheng's nerves were already tense to the extreme. Under Zhang Shou's rapid-fire questioning, he wanted to refute several times but failed to find the opportunity. When Zhang Shou finally finished speaking, his eyes widened and his throat seemed to be pressed by something heavy, and he could no longer utter a word. However, he could not speak, so Zhang Shou asked again.
"Who, then, are the literati?"
“Not those pedantic people who only know how to recite the books of sages and saints every day and claim to be erudite, but those masters who are well-versed in poetry and literature and are willing to bring the light of knowledge to poor students, such as Mr. Xu from Wendao Yishu.”
“Not those empty talkers in the court, who would refuse to do things like controlling floods, providing disaster relief, suppressing bandits, and comforting the people, saying that these were not the affairs of the literati; but those down-to-earth officials who worked step by step in the localities, making the prefectures and counties well governed and the streets free of loot; those practical men who risked their lives and worked hard, and those philanthropists who risked their lives to save the world!”
"They are those who stick to their own path wholeheartedly and are not afraid of what others say; they are those who, even if they are accused of being treacherous, can still say frankly that they have no fear and no regrets and have done practical things; they are those who turn back, turn over a new leaf, and reform themselves; they are also those who have made great contributions in the first half of their lives, but have lost their integrity in their old age, but after they suddenly realize their shame and regret, they write down their intentions."
After saying all this, Zhang Shou looked at Xu Cheng, who looked ashen, and said, "The so-called scholar-officials should at least know shame and then be brave! The so-called scholar-officials should not be people like you who are greedy, shameless, and have no self-awareness!"
Zhu Tingfang finally couldn't help laughing, and then he let go, letting Xu Cheng fall to the ground. Although he was born into a noble family, he had been a leader in both literature and martial arts since he was a child. Many people who claimed to be talented were defeated in front of him. Even the old officials in the court who were just sitting there doing nothing were looked down upon by him. Zhang Shou's words touched his heart.
Thinking back to Zhang Shou's words that were very much to his liking, he casually drew out the long sword from his waist and threw it directly at Xu Cheng. Seeing that the man was instantly scared out of his wits and actually ran away several steps using his hands and feet, he said calmly: "The original meaning of "no punishment for officials" is that if a scholar-official of high status breaks the law, he should not be humiliated by punishment, but should commit suicide."
"If you really think you are a scholar, you should commit suicide and apologize for your crime when facing this scene where thousands of people are pointing fingers at you!"
First, he was stunned by Zhang Shou's wave after wave of words, then someone threw a sword in front of him, and then he heard a straightforward word of suicide. Xu Cheng was like a small boat struggling to survive in the huge waves, and suddenly encountered a huge wave that was about to capsize the boat!
He tried to reach out his hand tremblingly, but when he touched the hilt of the sword, he felt it was scorching hot and immediately pulled his hand back. But at this moment, he heard a loud shout from the crowd: "You dog official, commit suicide!"
This voice suddenly aroused the emotions in the crowd that had just been pent up because of the words of . In an instant, the voices calling for suicide were endless, so much so that Xu Cheng's face changed constantly. Finally, amid the countless shouts, he grabbed the sword on the ground.
He stood up shakily and saw Zhu Tingfang and Zhang Shou standing side by side, one heroic and the other handsome. He suddenly laughed and said, "You young masters who have enjoyed wealth and luxury since birth, what do you know except criticizing others?"
"Have you ever experienced the pain of studying hard for ten years, day after day, regardless of the cold or heat?"
"Do you know the torment of starving yourself in the examination room just to write a good essay?"
"Do you know how painful it is to kowtow in front of the Grand Master and the Master, hoping that they would remember your insignificant name? Do you know how painful it is to be a poor man who can never make a name for himself and be pointed at and scolded by others?"
"You don't know anything, so why do you blame me!" Xu Cheng waved the sharp sword in his hand like crazy. Seeing that the people around him, who were just so aggressive, were all retreating in a hurry for fear of being injured by mistake, he laughed wildly again.
"See? These ants are like this. If you take a step back, they will push you further. But as long as you swing your sword..."
"They will naturally be in awe of you!"
He once again swung his sword and rushed forward with a sneer on his face, and sure enough, the crowd instantly became chaotic.
But the next moment, he saw Cao Wu and several of his disciples rushing over. Some of them went to help the fallen, some went to stop the riot and maintain order, while Cao Wu stood up to face him. He immediately took a few steps back in panic, and he was very angry. These martial arts sects were usually like obedient dogs, but now seeing him in trouble, they dared to bite their master!
But at this moment, he heard Zhang Shou's voice: "Everyone has a desire to seek benefits and avoid harm. When you whipped the people in the past, they naturally feared you, but they were not afraid of your power, but only of your official position! The official position is given to you by the court, not born with you ! Now that you have lost your official position, if you still want people to fear you, you can only do what you are doing now, waving the sword like a madman!"
Zhang Shou saw Xu Cheng suddenly turn around, and the look in his eyes seemed to want to swallow him up. However, he sneered and said, "As for how hard you worked and how difficult your life was, that's not a reason for you to harm the people, take bribes, and pervert the law! There are thousands of people who study hard in the world. You are lucky enough!"
"You studied hard, but how do you know that General Zhu didn't get up at the sound of cock-crows, and practiced hard in the coldest days of summer and the hottest days of winter? How do you know that those upright officials didn't work diligently, fearing that they would fail the teachings of the sage and fail to live up to their official positions? How do you know that those examiners, such as the Grand Master of Education and the Chief Examiner, didn't work hard and single-mindedly to select talented people for the court?"
"You only care about your own suffering, and don't care about the suffering of others! Xu Cheng, even if you study hard for another hundred years, you will still be a shameless parasite!"
Xu Cheng was finally infuriated by Zhang Shou's words. He subconsciously screamed wildly, waved his sword, and rushed towards Zhang Shou.
At that moment, he completely forgot about the benefits and the future. He just wanted to stab to death this guy who cruelly tore off all his masks with a sword, and wanted to chop the perfect face he had always dreamed of into pieces.
If he had such a face when he passed the imperial examination and became one of the top three Jinshi, perhaps, even though he was old, a widower, and had a pair of children, there might still be people who would choose him as a son-in-law and would be attracted by this promising talent!
How could he have fallen to the point of being just a county magistrate!
A group of crude peasants were able to hold the noble crown prince hostage. Although it was the first time for Xu Cheng to hold a sword, he unconsciously developed full confidence in front of the seemingly weak Zhang Shou. He even ignored Zhu Tingfang next to him and forgot that there were genuine warriors like Cao Wu and his apprentice behind him.
Just as the distance between him and the target was shortened to within a few inches, as if the tip of the sword could pierce the person with just a slight push, his eyes suddenly blurred, and then he was hit hard in the face. In an instant, he felt an almost indescribable pain in his nose, and a liquid of unknown origin spurted out instantly, covering his head and face.
It is said that an unarmed person is absolutely at a disadvantage when facing a knife-wielding criminal - even a martial arts champion can die at the hands of a knife-wielding criminal, and Zhang Shou, who only knows a little bit of Kung Fu, is no exception. However, he had one biggest reliance just now, that is - the sword that Zhu Tingfang threw to Xu Cheng was actually unsharpened...
They had agreed on the sword last night, and they were sure that a coward like Xu Cheng would not use it to commit suicide. This way, they could easily evade others when they were asked about it later. It was just a sword without a blade, what else could it be?
At this moment, Zhang Shou dodged the sword very calmly, punched Xu Cheng in the nose, and seeing the blood spurting out of his nose, he took a step back, not wanting to dirty his clothes. However, when he took a step back, Cao Wu, who had not rushed over in time because Zhu Tingfang had stopped him with his eyes, rushed forward and directly twisted Xu Cheng's arm.
Cao Wu's grip ended in an instant, because he soon saw Zhu Tingfang giving him a look that said "you are just meddling in other people's business". So he hurriedly let go and stepped back, not even bothering to grab the sword from Xu Cheng's hand.
It was not until he saw Zhu Tingfang take a few steps forward, easily take off the sword and throw it to Zhang Shou, and then punch Xu Cheng twice in the left and right eye sockets, that he realized in amazement that this eldest son of the Duke of Zhao, General Mingwei promoted by the emperor himself, had killed a group of assassins in the fight in the back street of Washi.
Xu Cheng was hit in both eyes. His eyes were black and bloody, looking funny like a panda. However, he was too embarrassed to see his own miserable state and only kept howling. Therefore, he had no way of seeing Zhu Tingfang suddenly approaching an attendant guard and pulling out a steel knife.
"He attempted to assassinate the imperial envoy, disregarded public opinion, persisted in his evil deeds, and was stubborn and unrepentant. If he is not killed, it will not be enough to set things right! Go to hell and ask the King of Hell to plead guilty!"
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, a bright knife light suddenly fell, and in an instant, it cut Xu Cheng's throat. Cao Wu, who had not yet retreated a few steps, was caught off guard and was splashed all over by the gushing blood arrow, and only his head and face were spared. Compared to him who was extremely shocked, the crowd around him was first dead silent, and then... that was also dead silent.
No one thought that Zhu Tingfang would kill someone so decisively, and the person he killed was a former imperial official! Even though they had once called for Xu Cheng to commit suicide, suicide and murder are two different things!
Zhang Shou had thought about it, but he was still a little uncomfortable with his future brother-in-law killing people so vigorously. In addition, the man was holding a bloody steel knife, so his first reaction was to hide as far away as possible. Thanks to the time he fought the rebels in Rongshui Village, he had seen blood and dead people, so he was not like a weak scholar who fainted at the sight of blood.
Standing in the courtyard of the county government office with the support of Ah Liu, Ge Yong did not see the bloody scene, but he heard Zhu Tingfang's words clearly. He could not help but hold his forehead with his hand, not knowing what his mood was at this moment.
Well, throwing a sword to force someone to commit suicide, but forcing such a selfish guy to raise the sword to stab, this really conforms to the secret of making decisions on the spot, and at the same time, he can kill the former Changlu County Magistrate, a top three Jinshi, just like killing chickens and sheep...
Even after so many years, Zhu Dalang is still the same Zhu Dalang!
Seeing that the crowd was still in a state of shock, Zhang Shou cleared his throat and coughed, then he said with finality: "Come here, bury Xu Cheng's body first! Go to the palace and bring Xian Yunhe and others to the county government office!"
