"I understand what you're saying, but he's my brother, and he's your brother too!"
"Miao Shang is spoiled by you!"
Qi Bainian plopped down and said angrily, "You count for him how many bad things he's done over the years! Bullying men and women, embezzling and accepting bribes, I'll punish him so badly he can be locked up until he dies!"
"But didn't you punish him indirectly?" Miao Shaohua argued, "He's been following you since you became the prefect, and after all these years he's only managed to become a squad leader. Isn't it all because you've been keeping him in check?"
Qi Bainian said, "I was protecting him! With his arrogant and domineering personality, if he were given a high-ranking position, wouldn't he cause a huge upheaval?!"
"Stop talking to me about these things, just tell me whether you'll help or not?"
"I can't help."
"Qi Bainian, you ungrateful bastard!"
Miao Shaohua slammed the teacup on the ground and said angrily, "You are a poor orphan and a down-on-his-luck scholar. If I hadn't married you against my family's wishes and allowed you to receive support from my Miao family, would you be where you are today?"
Snap!
Qi Bainian slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "Miao Shaohua! It's true that I'm an orphan, but I grew up on the charity of the people of Jiangcheng. It was the people of Jiangcheng who fed me, not your Miao family! Back then, I was indeed a down-on-his-luck scholar, but I earned my official position through my own abilities and talent. My official position was given to me by the imperial court, not your Miao family! I admit that you have helped me a lot, but it has nothing to do with the Miao family. The Miao family, like the Lu and Tu families, only wants to bleed me dry!"
"It was the people of Jiangcheng who raised me, and it is the people of Jiangcheng who respect and love me, not the Miao people, much less Miao Shang!"
Miao Shaohua stared blankly at Qi Bainian, speechless after being rebuked, and then burst into tears, collapsing onto the edge of the bed.
After crying for a while, Qi Bainian couldn't bear it anymore. He went over and placed his hand on Miao Shaohua's back, saying softly, "Shaohua, from the time you followed me against your family's wishes to the point where we are now, it's been more than twenty years. It hasn't been easy for us..."
“Over the years, as long as it’s not a major violation of the law or something too embarrassing, I’ve tolerated Miao Shang and your family. To repay you, I’ve never taken a concubine. I believe I’ve been fair to you.”
Seeing that Miao Shaohua's sobs had subsided, Qi Bainian gently rubbed her back and comforted her, "Miao Shang's life is important, and so are ours... We can't ruin ourselves for his sake..."
"This time, he's really done for. The massacre of the village has been exposed, and Zhao Cheng and Xu An have caught him red-handed. One of these young masters has the Right Chancellor behind him, and the other has the Marquis of Qingdong behind him. Can your Miao family and I afford to offend them?"
"The key issue is that Miao Shang was in the wrong first. Think about it carefully. There's really no way to resolve this."
Qi Bainian sighed and walked outside.
Miao Shaohua looked up and asked, "How do you intend to punish him?"
Qi Bainian said, "Act in accordance with the law."
Miao Shaohua then asked, "Can he survive?"
Qi Bainian paused for a moment, then walked out without answering.
The following morning, a notice was posted outside the prefectural government office, confirming that Miao Shang had indeed massacred Jiangde Village, and that Miao Shang, along with all those involved, had been beheaded and displayed to the public, executed at noon.
The speed was so fast that even Zhao Cheng was surprised.
By noon, the area around the execution ground was filled with people who were furious at Miao Shang's evil deeds, which caused them great panic.
Although everyone lives in the city, imagine that one day when you go out of the city to run errands or visit relatives, you are suddenly killed and beheaded. Before you die, you think you have encountered pirates, but you never expected that the person who killed you was a soldier from the Yasukuni.
I felt both panicked and frustrated.
Miao Shang deserves to die!
This is intolerable!
Qi Bainian personally oversaw the execution. Zhao Cheng noticed that although the people of Jiangcheng hated Miao Shang to the core, they looked at Qi Bainian with admiration, and some even had fanaticism in their eyes, as if they didn't care at all about the kinship between Qi Bainian and Miao Shang.
On the contrary, Qi Bainian's act of putting righteousness before family ties stirred the people even more.
Before the beheading, the old and the young, the men and the women, all started chatting.
"Lord Qi is truly outstanding; his speed in handling cases is unparalleled!"
"The key point is that he killed his own brother-in-law... Lord Qi has no concubines. If he kills his brother-in-law, won't his wife have a falling out with him?"
"What do you little brats know?" an old man said with considerable pride. "Little Qi grew up in Jiangcheng, eating at the homes of many families. When he was ten years old, he ate at my house for about ten days. We old folks watched him grow up. He is of good character and is very grateful to the people of Jiangcheng. If Little Qi doesn't kill Miao Shang for such a heinous act, then he wouldn't be the Little Qi we know."
“I agree with what Lao Liu said.” Another old man chimed in, “Xiao Qizi treats the people of Jiangcheng like family. After he became the governor of Jiangyang County, he did a lot of good things to benefit the people. The Lu and Tu families couldn’t do anything about him.”
"We, the people of Jiangcheng, have been very fortunate these past few decades. We used to have Magistrate Ma, and now we have Prefect Qi. Children, you have been born in a good era..."
"What's so great about it? Villages have been massacred, haven't they? It just hasn't happened to us yet!"
"That's because Lord Qi didn't know. Now that he does, won't he resolve it immediately?"
"Lord Qi has devoted himself to serving the people, yet some people still question him. They are truly ignorant!"
Hearing these comments, Zhao Cheng and Xu An exchanged glances.
It seems Liu Da was right; Qi Bainian has an excellent reputation in Jiangcheng, and has even been deified in the hearts of the people.
At noon, under the expectant gaze of the people of Jiangcheng, Miao Shang and his entourage were all executed.
Heads lay scattered on the ground, just like the scene when they massacred people in Jiangde Village.
Zhao Cheng deliberately brought Yingying to the execution ground so that she could witness her enemies being punished.
He wanted to let Yingying know that there is a will of Heaven in the dark, justice for all living beings, good deeds are rewarded and evil deeds are severely punished; retribution may be delayed, but it will come eventually.
As the matter was concluded and Qi Bainian was about to leave amidst the cheers of the people, Zhao Cheng walked over and said loudly, "Lord Qi, there is something else I want to tell you!"
Qi Bainian looked at Zhao Cheng without saying a word.
Zhao Cheng said, "When we captured Miao Shang, he said that he was not the first person to do such a thing. He also said that pirates were rampant in Jiangyang County, and that besides Jiangcheng, there were other places in Jiangyang County where villagers were slaughtered and innocent civilians' heads were used to replace the pirates' heads. Killing one Miao Shang is probably not enough to deter the entire Jiangyang County. I hope that Lord Qi will take this matter seriously and restore justice to Jiangyang County!"
Wow!
Upon hearing this, the cheers from the crowd abruptly ceased, replaced by even more enthusiastic discussions.
Qi Bainian narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint appearing on his kind face.
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