Chapter 78, Seventy-Eighth Palm: Using the people's hard-earned money like sand, squandering it without restraint...

After a long pause, Zhou Yan heard himself squeeze out three dry words, "You're crazy."

This is a ruthless, bloodthirsty madman!

How could Father Emperor appoint such a person? Isn't he afraid that a murderous blade might harm him and cause a great disaster?

Ji Chengnin half-opened his eyelids, his eyes flashing with a sharp, cold light.

For a fleeting moment, Zhou Yan even saw the killing intent in Ji Chengnin's eyes.

It's murderous intent.

He abruptly took half a step back.

Ji Chengnin wanted to kill him?

A pungent, fishy smell filled the room, and Zhou Yan's nostrils flared, a flicker of fear crossing his eyes.

"Why won't they let us collect the body?!"

The sharp question shattered the suffocating silence in the room.

Zhou Yan suddenly turned his head, and at the same time, he involuntarily took two deep breaths and then quickly exhaled, his chest heaving violently.

Several men dressed in mourning clothes stood below the northeast corner of the execution platform, their snow-white attire contrasting sharply with the common people dressed in dark blue cloth.

Zhou Yan frowned in disgust.

What's wrong now?

Seeing that the officers and soldiers did not answer, the leader of the white-clad men became even bolder. His eyes were red-rimmed, and his face was ashen, the same color as his robes. He tremblingly pointed at the officers and soldiers in front of him, “General Ji said that my father broke the law. My family has no high-ranking officials or noble titles, and we are just ordinary people who dare not argue with such important people. Now that my father is dead, are we not even allowed to collect his body?”

His voice grew more and more sorrowful as he spoke, “Even criminals whose names have been crossed out by the Emperor are allowed to have their bodies buried if someone identifies their corpse after death. My father has already been beheaded, and all I want is for him to be laid to rest. What wrong have I done?”

The soldiers who had just carried out the beheading strode forward.

The broad blade sliced ​​through the ground with a "sizzle."

The sharp sound made the young man in white flinch, but the fear in his eyes was quickly replaced by deep hatred. He raised his chin and demanded, "Please, sir, give me an explanation!"

Not far away, the people watched all this, seeing the young man weeping and shouting desperately to seek justice for his deceased father, but they felt no sympathy whatsoever.

Instead, his anger intensified.

Like ice water being poured into a hot oil pan, the crackling and popping sensation causes both pain and anger in the heart.

How dare he complain and plead for justice for his father, who embezzled and misappropriated disaster relief funds and supplies?!

The soldiers stood on the edge of the execution platform, looking down at the young man's fair face.

He said, "Pass on General Jun's order..."

The voice gradually faded, but the expression on Ji Chengnin's face when he said those words became clearer and clearer in my mind.

The young general began, "None of the officials executed this time shall be buried. Their corpses shall be left to rot in the marketplace for three days. These beasts in human form are not worth the waste of coffins; just burn them alive! If any of their families complain, tell them..."

The soldier recalled Ji Chengnin's words and said them word for word to the family members of the convicted officials who were too grief-stricken to stand: "These convicted officials even dared to embezzle disaster relief funds. They are even more arrogant and domineering in their daily lives, preying on the people. Check their family property according to their salary and rank. If there are huge amounts of property of unknown origin, they will all be confiscated into the government treasury!"

Before the words were even finished, the filial son, who had just been wailing and lamenting, suddenly changed his expression, as if someone had grabbed him by the neck. He couldn't utter a single word, staring wide-eyed in disbelief. After a long while, he finally exclaimed in shock and anger, "You, how dare you!"

"Why wouldn't we dare!" Before the soldier could answer, a girl in a cloth skirt spoke up angrily, "Young Master Mu, let me give you a piece of advice: don't rush to collect your father's body. Buying yourself a coffin is the more important thing!"

The young man called Young Master Mu, who was usually aloof and arrogant, had no one who dared to mock him like this except for his father and his father's colleagues. His face immediately turned purple with anger, and he said, "Guards, seize this arrogant whore!"

"Smack!"

No sooner had he spoken than Young Master Mu saw a large, thick hand suddenly enlarge in front of him.

In an instant, he could hear no other noises in his right ear, only a long, drawn-out buzzing sound. Then, a burning pain on his right cheek instantly swept through his entire body.

His body, weakened by wine and women, couldn't withstand the slap. He staggered backward, lost his balance, and fell backward onto his servant.

"Young master, young master!"

The soldier lowered his hand.

Young Master Mu was so dizzy from the beating that it took him a long time to regain focus.

He stared blankly at the person who had attacked him, as if he had been beaten senseless.

"Anyone who causes trouble again will be treated as if they were rioting at the execution ground!"

The soldier raised his voice.

Young Master Mu shivered violently.

The rain poured down on him, making his teeth chatter from the cold.

This person meant that not only could he not take his father's body back for burial, but his home would also be ransacked.

Upstairs, Zhou Yan asked in shock, "You weren't satisfied with just killing people, you also wanted to confiscate their property?"

Ji Chengnin stared at Zhou Yan.

Even when he wasn't smiling, his dark eyes exuded boundless intimidation, both stern and menacing, creating a powerful sense of oppression that made Zhou Yan want to run away immediately.

"idiot."

Zhou Yan thought she had misheard. "What?"

Whether this young General Ji was too good-tempered or too bad-tempered, he opened his mouth and uttered two clear words: "Fool."

Zhou Yan was furious. "Ji Chengnin, how dare you be so disrespectful to me, Your Highness!"

Ji Chengning interrupted coldly, “If we allow those beasts to embezzle and break the law, Yan County will be in chaos within a month! Luanyang has not yet been pacified, and now a new problem has been added. If His Majesty holds you accountable, as the prince accompanying the army, you will be the first to bear the brunt. Third Prince, don’t you understand the implications?”

Ji Chengnin's words were harsh, but true, making Zhou Yan feel breathless.

A pair of bloodshot eyes stared intently at Ji Chengnin, as if wanting to tear him apart and devour him alive.

Unfortunately, he had no way to refute it.

If he doesn't understand, he's stupid; if he does understand, he's both stupid and wicked.

His breathing became more rapid, and a hissing sound came from his throat.

Although Ruan Min showed no favoritism towards Zhou Yan, the Third Prince appeared to be on the verge of fainting. To prevent any trouble, Ruan Min immediately said, "General, Your Highness, please calm down." Faced with such a sharp-tempered superior, Ruan Min was surprised to find that his own temper could actually be considered mild. "General, His Highness is only worried about you, fearing that your actions might displease the officials of Yan County. Besides, the man is already dead..."

Ji Chengnin sneered, "So what if he's dead? His family dared to embezzle national funds at will just because he held an important position. They squandered the people's hard-earned money like grains of sand, and there was no such thing as a free lunch." His voice grew colder and colder, "Don't even mention confiscating his property. Even if he had sewn gold and silver treasures under his skin, I, the general, would burn him to ashes and still get the money back!"

Zhou Yan's face turned from red to purple, then from purple to white. "I...I want to impeach you!"

Ji Chengnin said coldly, "Then you can speak to His Majesty."

Zhou Yan was so angry that he couldn't stand up. If Ruan Min hadn't caught him in time, he would have fainted with his eyes rolled back.

The atmosphere was so tense that it was almost impossible to breathe.

"Creak—"

Ruan Min turned his head abruptly.

Yes, his eyes widened in surprise; it was Mr. Cui, who often accompanied Ji Chengning.

Mr. Cui was wearing a very light gray coat. The fabric was indistinguishable, and there were no patterns on it. The plainness was cold, and the coat made his skin look even paler, like the first snowflakes illuminated by moonlight, exuding a chilling and sinister aura.

He held a black umbrella sprinkled with gold flowers in one hand, his bony fingers gripping the handle, and in the other hand he held a scruffy little dog.

Ruan Min nearly popped his eyes out.

What is he doing here to cause trouble again? Isn't Ji Chengnin angry enough already?!

"Tick-tock, tick-tock."

Rainwater streamed down the closed umbrella, landing at Cui Yao's feet and quickly forming a small puddle.

To Ruan Min's surprise, Ji Chengning, who had just wanted to slap Zhou Yan twice to bring him to his senses, did not get angry at Cui Yao, who was dressed in a manner completely unrelated to official business.

Instead of getting angry, his expression softened considerably.

Ji Chengnin coughed lightly, "Lord Cui... why did you bring the dog?"

Although he sounded complaining, he took the initiative to go and take the dog.

The puppy had grown a bit, but instead of getting thinner, it had gotten even fatter. No one knew what the bored soldiers had been feeding it; it was now a fluffy ball.

Zhou Yan took a deep breath.

Ji Chengning's attitude was so gentle, yet he treated him with utter disdain, which shows that in Ji Chengning's heart he was not even as good as a dog!

He glared at Cui Yao resentfully, then turned and left.

Ji Chengnin snorted coldly.

Ruan Min hurriedly said, "General, there are still some miscellaneous matters in the camp, so I will go down first."

Ji Chengnin nodded.

Ruan Min immediately withdrew, making sure to close the door behind him.

Cui Yao then replied gently, "I brought it here so that Your Highness could see how much weight it has gained." As she spoke, she reached out and gently rubbed the puppy's round belly.

She was clearly afraid he would get too angry.

Ji Chengnin understood perfectly well.

But Cui Yao neither spoke of him nor pointed it out. He leaned back while holding the dog and said, "Zhou Yan," he said, his lips slightly parted. Cui Yao listened attentively, while Ji Chengning's lips curled into a cold smile. "So stupid that he is actually His Highness the Crown Prince's half-brother. Humph, I'm afraid it would tarnish His Highness the Crown Prince's reputation if word got out."

Cui Yao's eyes darkened, but his tone was extremely gentle. He didn't respond to the question about the Crown Prince, but only said, "Fortunately, the General turned the tide." He then poured Ji Chengning a cup of tea. "General, you've worked hard."

Ji Chengnin was so numb by these flattering words that he kept touching his arms, completely forgetting about the two princes of the Zhou family. He said righteously and sternly, "Stop with the flattery."

After speaking, he took the teacup, tilted his head back, and drank the water inside in one gulp.

The heavy rain had stopped sometime earlier, and sunlight filtered through the thick clouds, scattering onto the execution platform.

The people who had previously surrounded the execution platform were still there. The post-rain sunlight was not too glaring, and it gently and softly brushed against people's faces. Some people trembled as if they were burned, and redness rose around their eyes.

Ji Chengnin looked away. "Let's go."

...

Strange things have been happening in the military camp ever since the day of the execution.

For example, you can always find several strings of unknown dried mushrooms, dried chilies, and dried wild fruits on the barricades at the entrance of the military camp, and you can't find the owner. It's as if they just grew out of thin air.

Unable to find the master, General Ji simply waved his hand and accepted everything without any hesitation.

Of course, he didn't eat alone; he ordered the kitchen to distribute the food to the entire army.

Unfortunately, there were thousands of soldiers stationed there, and even if there were hundreds of times more of these things, it wouldn't be enough for these young people who were in their prime and had heavy training every day.

Dried mushrooms were chopped up and mixed with some vegetables to make a filling for pancakes, but there wasn't a single piece of mushroom in each pancake.

They ate with smug satisfaction, as if these weren't just wild mushrooms, but some kind of divine food. "Look, look," they said, "given to us by the people. Do you have any? Hehehe, you don't, do you—"

All of these things.

Ji Chengning couldn't stand this arrogant attitude, which was disrupting the morale of the army—not because he hadn't eaten either.

Then more people brought things, which were divided into ten portions, wrapped in red paper, and the thread used to tie the red paper was a bright light yellow. After the military exercise, the top ten in the entire army were given the prizes.

The soldiers who received the red paper packets were so eager to wear them to their chests that they looked like newly appointed scholars parading through the streets with flowers in their hair.

Ji Chengnin then ordered a willow basket to be hung on the barricade, filled with strings of silver and copper coins. But the next time, something was still secretly hung on the barricade, and not a single coin was missing.

General Ji pondered deeply.

The next day, the money in the basket turned into sesame candy, cloud cakes, and finger-sized peach shortbread, all carefully wrapped in oil paper. Although they were not expensive pastries, they were considered rare in Yan County at that time.

To the soldiers' delight, the small oil paper packets inside were indeed fewer, but today—there was something else extra, and this extra thing came with a small bamboo slip, crookedly engraved with: General Zeng Ji.

After pondering for a while, Ji Chengning confirmed that the person who sent the gift should have written "Gift".

Half an hour later, Cui Yao, who had been waiting for Ji Chengning to return and confirm the documents, finally couldn't help but ask, "Has the general not returned yet?"

Having witnessed Ji Chengnin's actions, Li Bi remained silent for a long time. "Reporting to Mr. Cui, the general has lost his way, so he has no choice but to walk back and forth," he paused, feeling ashamed of his own words, "to find his way."

Cui Yao: "Oh, I got lost. I thought..." He paused, "Hmm?"

Lost?

How did Ji Chengning get lost in such a square place, where you could find your way even with your eyes closed?

Puzzled, he gathered the documents and went out to investigate.

He walked nearly a hundred steps outside and ran into Ji Chengnin.

The imposing General Ji carried a bag of dried fish in his left hand and held a small dog in his right.

The salty aroma of the dried fish made the puppy whimper, but Ji Chengning pinched its mouth and scolded it, "You can't eat this, it's too salty."

The puppy looked at him with a pitiful expression, and kept pawing at the bag of dried fish, straining with its short, chubby limbs.

Ji Chengnin held its rear end with his hand and gave it a light pat. "Don't you want to die?"

As he moved, something rustled in his hair.

Cui Yao and Li Bi looked closely and saw that there was a small bamboo stick hanging behind Ji Chengning's hair ornament. With the owner's movements, it collided with the hair ornament, making a clicking sound, one after another, like the sound of jade.