Zhao Qian had considerable strength, and he used all his might, slapping Zhang Kangnian so hard that he saw stars.
Zhang Kangnian was filled with resentment and anger, but his mouth had been gagged, and he could only make muffled noises.
After leaving the general's mansion, Zhao Qian threw the bound Zhang Kangnian onto a horse and led a group of people toward the city gate.
Although Zhang Kangnian had only been the city's garrison general for a short time, quite a few people in the city had seen him. In addition, he was wearing a suit of armor that signified his status, which attracted the curious glances of many passersby along the way.
"What's going on? Isn't that General Zhang? Why is he tied up and gagged?"
"I don't know. They were escorted out of the General's mansion. Could they have done something wrong?"
"Why don't we follow them and see what happens?"
"I think it's a good idea!"
Some people whispered among themselves as they quickly followed.
Yan Xiao was naturally going too; the excitement started because of her, and it wouldn't be complete without her presence.
However, she was not in a hurry at all. After having a leisurely meal at the mansion, she timed it carefully and had a carriage prepared to head towards the city gate.
Those who came to watch the spectacle saw that there were already many soldiers standing there when they arrived at the city gate tower. Judging from their clothes, they were all from different branches of the military.
After Zhao Qian arrived at the city gate, he ordered the garrison commander Zhang Kangnian to be hanged.
Upon hearing this, the garrison soldiers exchanged glances, none daring to step forward. The deputy commander, Li, hesitated for a moment before stepping forward and saying:
"Guard Zhao, may I ask what crime General Zhang has committed, and whether his actions are appropriate?"
Zhao Qian didn't bother with any more pleasantries with Lieutenant General Li. He directly took out the waist token Yan Xiao had given him, held it up, and said coldly:
"Zhang Kangnian disregarded military regulations and the safety of the people in the city. Last night, he secretly released Jiang Xinrui, a traitor who had defected to the enemy, out of the city. His crime was heinous."
Today, when his wife questioned him, although he admitted to disobeying military regulations by letting Jiang Xinrui go, he refused to admit his mistake and even dared to offend his wife, which is unforgivable.
I was ordered by my wife to hang Zhang Kangnian at the city gate and beat him to death as part of military discipline. You all had better be uninvolved in this matter, or you will be punished as accomplices.
Zhao Qian's voice was loud and clear, and not only the soldiers, but also those who came to watch the spectacle could hear it clearly.
Ordinary people watching the spectacle felt that today's excitement was one thing after another: first, a warrant was issued for Jiang Xinrui's arrest, and then it was announced that Jiang Xinrui had defected to the enemy.
They hadn't even finished processing this news and still had doubts about its authenticity when they turned around and immediately arrested a city guard general who had released Jiang Xinrui without permission. It was truly an endless spectacle.
Upon hearing this news, the soldiers reacted in various ways, with most showing signs of resentment.
Especially those soldiers who were gathered together because of their past acquaintance with Jiang Xinrui, their faces were full of undisguised resentment.
Most of them believed in Jiang Xinrui's character and suspected that Yan Xiaoxiao was deliberately setting up this scheme because she couldn't let Jiang Xinrui off the hook.
As for Jiang Xinrui's blatant lies in public yesterday, although they had heard about it, they didn't really believe it, feeling that there must be some hidden story they didn't know about.
However, when the general left, he gave that lady real power. This third-rank city garrison general could be killed at will, let alone them, who were just nobodys. So they did not dare to step forward.
With Jiang Xinrui already having escaped from Jiangbei, there's even less need for them to cause trouble at this time.
At the same time, they didn't believe that Yan Xiao would really dare to kill Zhang Kangnian, a third-rank city garrison general, thinking that it was probably just a show to scare them.
Zhao Qian glanced at the people with varying expressions and knew that some of them would be dissatisfied, but there was nothing he could do about it.
He had said everything he could. As for the rest, he could only wait and see how the lady would handle the situation. He was just a guard; he only needed to follow orders.
Zhao Qian signaled for his men to hang Zhang Kangnian on the execution platform, without removing the rag from his mouth, and then ordered them to beat him.
Zhang Kangnian's face was full of humiliation, and he made muffled sounds, clearly wanting to say something, but Zhao Qian was afraid that he would continue to utter foul language, so he didn't give him a chance at all.
At Zhao Qian's command, the executioners picked up sticks and began to beat Zhang Kangnian.
Zhang Kangnian felt the pain, but he couldn't even cry out. Before he could even let out a muffled groan, another blow came down.
His miserable state made the soldiers present frown, but none of them dared to be the first to speak up and stop him; they could only watch coldly from the sidelines.
After being hit countless times, the cloth in Zhang Kangnian's mouth was soaked with blood, his muffled groans grew fainter and fainter, and then he fell silent.
Zhao Qian, recognizing the situation, signaled for his men to stop and gave the following instructions:
"Check if he's dead."
Upon hearing this, the man immediately stopped what he was doing and went forward to check. Then he walked up to Zhao Qian and reported:
"Guard Zhao, the man isn't dead, he's just unconscious."
"Um."
Zhao Qian nodded knowingly and gave the order without hesitation:
"Splash water on him, and keep hitting him when he wakes up."
Zhao Qian's words caused some soldiers who thought it was just for show and that Yan Xiao wouldn't really want to kill Xiang Kangnian to change their expressions.
Some people finally couldn't sit still any longer. One of the city's garrison leaders glanced at the expressions of the soldiers, then at the unconscious Zhang Kangnian, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes. Finally, as if he had made up his mind, he stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said:
"Guard Zhao, isn't this a bit inappropriate? General Zhang is, after all, a meritorious official who has made military achievements. He was personally appointed as the city's guard general by the Grand General. Shouldn't we keep him under guard and wait for the Grand General to return before making a decision?"
If we were to show him no respect whatsoever and beat him to death in public without any clear explanation, I fear it would chill the hearts of countless soldiers!
As soon as this person finished speaking, some people who disapproved of it seemed to have found courage and began to echo him:
"Yes, we can't just kill him without knowing why."
"Everything is said by the General's wife. We haven't seen any concrete evidence, so the truth is still unknown!"
“That’s right. Even if General Shen were here, he couldn’t act so arbitrarily. This is going too far.”
Zhao Qian frowned slightly upon hearing these comments, and was about to reprimand them when a cold female voice came from behind the crowd:
"Do you all want to teach this lady how to do things, or do you want to be tortured along with your General Zhang to fulfill your good intentions?"
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