Chapter 77 "My anger, though so intense, is still difficult to contain..."
On the day of the execution, dark clouds loomed over the city, heavy and oppressive, as if a divine punishment had struck.
A chilling wind howled.
Ji Chengning poured himself a cup of tea first, and then politely gestured to Ruan Min that he would pour it himself if she wanted some.
Ruan Min: "..."
General Ji's dislike for him was written all over his face, and he remained silent for a moment.
He bowed his head like a loyal but helpless old servant and said, "These officials embezzled disaster relief funds and grain, and they should indeed be killed. However, the general has already personally killed Zhang Wenzhi, which led to impeachment by the officials. If we kill these twenty people today, it will be difficult to quell the uproar."
Ji Chengnin paused in his act of serving tea.
Ruan Min had long since lost the contempt he felt when they first met, and now saw Ji Chengning as an extremely formidable ancestor.
He's exactly the same as Marquis Yongning!
No wonder they are blood relatives.
Anyone who has met Marquis Yongning will have no doubt that Ji Chengning carries the blood of that arrogant, flamboyant, and decisive general from back then.
Upon being glanced at by Ji Chengning, Ruan Min immediately explained, "I have no other intention. I just think that if the general kills people because of corruption, it may cause turmoil in the officialdom in the long run. Officials will be in a state of panic and will not be able to concentrate on their work, which will be detrimental to the people. Moreover, if the general is given a reputation for indiscriminate killing as a result," he paused for a few seconds, "it will hinder the general's future."
That's the truth.
Throughout history, among all the fierce generals who were ruthless killers, very few managed to have a good ending. In the end, they were discarded like birds after the bow was put away, and if they could get a cup of poisoned wine and be allowed to die with their bodies intact, that was already considered an extraordinary act of mercy from the emperor.
"Click".
The teacup was casually placed on the table.
Ji Chengnin smiled and said, "General Ruan, do you think I am a bloodthirsty madman?"
Ruan Min immediately replied, "This subordinate dares not."
I dare not, rather than, not.
Ji Chengnin, however, seemed completely unconcerned and waved his hand dismissively.
Ruan Min, not understanding why, took two steps to the side.
A large bamboo window is now visible.
At this moment, both windows were open to the outside, and gusts of cold wind were blowing into the room.
The wind and sand, along with a lingering, fishy smell, were swept into the room.
Ruan Min frowned slightly when he was hit in the face by sand.
Ji Chengnin didn't look at him.
His gaze drifted out the window.
This is the intersection of several roads in Yan County. Years of drought and war have caused all industries to decline, and the center of the main road is usually very empty, with no children even playing.
Today, however, is completely different from usual.
Despite the fierce wind, the crowd of people surrounded the center of the road, making it completely impassable.
Heads jostled about, all looking up to see inside.
Just like... Ji Chengnin's thoughts paused for a moment, just like the lantern festival back then, when he and his cousin watched the lanterns together.
The crowd was packed, everyone with a smile on their face, watching the musicians performing on the high platform with anticipation and amazement.
However, standing on the high platform at the very center were not the dancers, but soldiers in black armor, holding sharp blades, standing on the left and right to maintain order.
A very strong soldier, dressed in a crimson short jacket and with a black xiezhi belt around his waist, held a large sword in both hands. Unlike the long swords carried by other soldiers, this sword had a wide and heavy blade, and upon closer inspection, the hilt was engraved with scriptures for the salvation of the dead.
This is a knife specifically designed for decapitating people.
The dark clouds made the knife appear even more imposing and somber.
Just one glance is enough to terrify one.
In particular, the first five officials who were escorted to the platform.
A sergeant called out, "Verify identity—"
As he spoke, soldiers stepped forward, holding up portraits and descriptions of age and features attached to their bodies, and compared them one by one with the officials who had been brought to the execution platform.
The five men's legs had long since given way, and with the soldiers' forceful press, they immediately collapsed to their knees. Only one of them remained kneeling steadily, while the other five slumped to the ground, their knees leaving behind a pool of foul-smelling yellow fluid.
As the soldiers expressionlessly checked his identity, an official, who was crying his eyes out, suddenly shouted, "Sir, sir, save me!"
"Whoosh!"
The soldiers present suddenly drew their swords.
Ji Chengnin narrowed his eyes.
The crowd was somewhat turbulent, but the expected hijacking and interception did not occur.
Too……
Some people thought with a sense of satisfaction, "Even Lord Zhang Wenzhi is dead, who else can save them?"
The official who had been shouting earlier was now dazed and crying and laughing as he kowtowed, saying, "My lord, I have money, I have plenty of money! I beg you, if you just let me go today, I'm willing to give you all my wealth as a token of my gratitude!"
Saliva dripped from his dry lips as he chuckled. The next moment, however, his face suddenly contorted into tears. He kowtowed and pleaded, “My lord, I have an ailing mother to care for, and a wife and children to raise. I am her only son. She is in poor health; how could she bear to hear such terrible news? I beg you, my lord, have mercy. If I can see my mother off in her final moments, I am willing to offer my neck for execution!”
The sound blended with the howling wind, creating a chilling effect.
However, none of the onlookers took cover.
"My lord...hehehe, Zhang Wenzhi, you've ruined me, you deserve to die—my lord, help me, help me!"
Amidst the wails and the roar of thunder, Ji Chengnin's voice was as soft as a sigh: "A fine weapon is an inauspicious instrument; even a sage uses it only as a last resort."
Ruan Min snapped out of his gloomy and terrifying state and stared at Ji Chengning in astonishment.
What does Ji Chengning mean?
He tried to discern something from the young general's face, but all he saw on that strikingly handsome face was an emotion that seemed to be both sorrowful and pitying.
However, this was clearly not directed at the officials on the execution platform, who were driven beyond recognition by fear and hatred.
He met the other person's dark eyes.
It's so true, so lifelike.
Dark clouds hung low, and golden-purple lightning surged violently within them.
"boom!"
Thunder roared, almost tearing the sky apart.
Ruan Min suddenly shivered, and for a moment, he almost blurted out, "You've seen you before..."
The thunder silenced the barely audible sound he had just managed to utter.
"The time has come!" A loud voice echoed across the execution platform, and the soldiers shouted, "Execute!"
Ruan Min immediately shut up.
The next moment, the soldiers holding broadswords raised their blades high.
The gleaming blade reflected the terrified, distorted face.
"Click!"
The blade sliced into the neck.
Fresh blood gushed out instantly.
The knife was too heavy and too fast. Whether it was from excessive blood loss or from broken bones, the official collapsed to the ground without even groaning.
It stirred up a cloud of dust.
"Ugh!" The official, who had not yet been tortured, had his mouth gagged. He looked at his colleague, whose head had been separated from his body, with eyes wide open in fury.
A foul stench wafted through the air, and his crotch was already soaked.
The onlookers remained silent.
Pairs of eyes, thin and sunken as a result, stared intently at the execution platform.
It turns out that even the most lofty celestial beings, whom they considered supreme, could be killed with a single strike.
No one has an extra life.
Cutting off a head is no harder than killing a chicken, duck, pig, or dog.
Even such an arrogant and dignified adult would reveal such a base and vulgar side when faced with a blade.
"good!"
Someone shouted first, and then a clamor arose from the crowd—"Good, well done!"
Anger, fear, hatred—a mixture of emotions—are enough to shake the heavens and the earth.
The rain, which had been lingering for countless days and nights, finally poured down with a thunderous roar.
On that day, it rained heavily.
The intense rain instantly washed away the blood, and the water, mixed with blood and mud washed by the downpour, surged from the execution platform.
"Crackling and popping—"
It spread rapidly outwards.
The stench of blood mingled with the rainwater, making it indistinguishable from the real thing.
No one left.
The torrential rain made even voices muffled and indistinct; people's lips opened and closed violently, and all that could be seen were angry, hateful, and gleeful faces.
His tattered clothes, soaked through by the rain, clung tightly to his body, and his sallow, bluish complexion looked even more terrifying in the downpour.
Apart from the sound of rain, there were no other sounds.
Thus, amidst the boundless clamor and utter silence, people dressed in tattered, dark clothes stood crowded together, their dense blackness huddled together as if they were an inseparable whole, with only their heads floating abruptly in mid-air.
An official, who had been slumped on the ground, was awakened by the heavy rain. Suddenly faced with the gloomy and resentful faces below the stage, he let out a short scream: "A ghost!"
It's evil spirits, evil spirits have come to take his life!
Only at this moment, only at this moment, did he finally begin to feel fear towards those people whom he regarded as beasts, or even worse than beasts!
Outside the door, Li Bi said curtly, "General, the Third Prince has arrived."
Ji Chengnin didn't turn his head. "No need to stop him."
Ruan Min stood quietly beside Ji Chengning and leaned down to say, "I believe that if the general wanted to intimidate the petty officials, the officials in Yan County are already in a state of panic, and the general's goal has already been achieved."
No, stop killing.
As a result, all the officials harbored resentment. Now that the emperor still favors Ji Chengning, he can burn the memorials impeaching Ji Chengning. But if one day the emperor suddenly becomes suspicious, those officials who hate Ji Chengning so much that they want to tear him to pieces will launch an attack together. Ji Chengning's fate will be even more tragic than that of the beheaded Marquis of Yongning!
Ji Chengnin remained silent.
His gaze fell on the execution platform.
One batch of prisoners after another were brought to the execution platform.
One head after another rolled off.
"Across the vast lands of China, among hundreds of millions of people, how many counties, prefectures, and states are there in a place like Yan County?" His voice was very soft.
So light it almost vanished in the rain.
Zhou Yan finally arrived.
He pushed the door open.
From his perspective, everything on the execution platform was laid out before him: heads scattered everywhere, their wounds washed white by the rain.
Jet black and pure white, intertwined and inseparable.
Zhou Yan abruptly stopped in his tracks.
He looked at Ji Chengnin in disbelief.
"You're really crazy!"
How dare Ji Chengning kill so many people without consulting the court? Isn't he afraid of incurring divine retribution for his heavy sins?
Even if he's not afraid of some mysterious divine retribution, isn't he afraid of being retaliated against?
The purple light rolled menacingly in the clouds.
The lightning illuminated Ji Chengnin's face, making him appear as a snow-white statue, exquisitely sculpted.
Heaven and Earth are ruthless, with...
He suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
For some reason, he was so terrified that he wanted to tremble.
The last head rolled off.
"Roller—"
Terrified, unseeing eyes stared intently in Ji Chengnin's direction.
He heard Ji Chengning say:
"The anger in my heart is still hard to quell."
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Author's note: It's so annoying, I have to pull my hair.
After spending a whole day reciting the "Ode to the Epang Palace," I finally finished writing it.
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