Chapter 13: Family members, this cool guy surnamed Mei is actually the male lead!
Because the outer city and the academy are far apart, most people usually travel back and forth by using the Wind Riding Technique. Since Yu Sui did not learn the Nine Stream Technique, Blackbeard made arrangements in advance.
The speed of the carriage was almost the same as that of the Wind Riding Technique. Because of the added mechanical techniques, the horse was also a top-quality horse that had been praised by a master. Its running speed was, in a sense, also a kind of low-level technique.
Yu Sui lifted the carriage curtain and looked out curiously.
“Each school within the academy has its own forbidden areas. Some of these forbidden areas will kill anyone who breaks in, without even a trial. Young Master Gu broke into the Legalist school’s first-level forbidden area, the Upside-Down Moon Cave.” Blackbeard explained the situation to her on the way. “He said that he did not break in on his own initiative, but was invited by someone. However, he cannot find the invitation to go to the Upside-Down Moon Cave on his Wind-Listening Ruler.”
"Coincidentally, the forbidden Milky Way Water in the Upside-Down Moon Cave disappeared that very night. Although the Milky Way Water was not found on him, he was suspected of being an accomplice."
Yu Sui propped her chin on her hand and looked outside. After listening, she turned her head back and asked, "What is Milky Way Water?"
Blackbeard respectfully replied, "It is a prohibited drug for making drugs, and it is extremely harmful. Because it cannot be destroyed, it can only be placed in the Upside-Down Moon Cave and allowed to disappear naturally over time."
Yu Sui was suddenly reminded of Young Master Lin from the Imperial Academy years ago; the image of him kneeling down and shouting at the top of his lungs still echoed in her mind.
"Today's trial is to decide whether to treat Young Master Gu as an accomplice in the theft," Blackbeard explained. "The academy's decisions are generally made by the family's saints, with only a very few cases of serious sins being judged by the academy's twenty-four saints. The decision could be to expel him from the academy or to deprive him of his life."
After saying that, he added, "However, Young Master Gu's situation hasn't reached the point of taking his life or his life; expulsion from the academy is just a bit dangerous."
Yu Sui asked, "Isn't there a risk of death involved in drug production?"
Blackbeard paused for a moment, then said, "Young Master Gu cultivates both the Fa and Ming schools. He is acquainted with the sages of the Fa school. If anyone were to propose stripping him of his life or death, he would be the first to reject it."
The fact that he excelled in both fields demonstrates his exceptional talent.
Yu Sui suddenly realized and asked, "Then is Brother Gu going to be judged by the twenty-four saints in the academy today?"
“It’s not twenty-four. The loss of the Milky Way only involves three families: the Legalist School, the School of Names, and the School of Ghosts,” Ji Meng said solemnly. “Each of these three families will send a saint to attend today’s trial. The most severe outcome should be expulsion from the academy.”
Yu Sui gestured and said, "He is a disciple of a famous school, and the matter originated from the Legalist school. What does he have to do with the Ghost Daoist school?"
“Legalist judgments adhere to the principle that the guilty should be punished, and no tie is allowed in any matter. There are only two outcomes: right or wrong,” Jimon explained. “Therefore, a judgment requires at least three people to avoid a tie.”
"The Ghost Path is not entirely unrelated to this matter. The Milky Way Water cannot be destroyed, but the Ghost Path's supernatural abilities and techniques can accelerate its dissolution and disappearance. In dealing with the Milky Way Water, the Ghost Path and the Legalist School have always joined forces."
Blackbeard pondered, “Master Zhu of the School of Names need not worry, he is on Young Master Gu’s side. Although the Legalists are targeting him, they cannot break the rules. The Scales of the Di Constellation exist as the standard for judgment. As long as the scales are on Young Master Gu’s side, they cannot convict him.”
After he finished speaking, he looked up and saw that the little princess looked blank, as if she did not understand. Blackbeard was secretly worried: He had heard that the princess of the royal family had no talent and was probably the first person in the Nangong family to be a mediocre person. Now that he saw it with his own eyes, he found that apart from being good-looking, she really had no other advantages.
In this world, being good-looking is not enough.
Yu Sui rested her chin on her hand and said, "Isn't there one left?"
"The Ghost Path? This should be fine. There is only one Saint of the Ghost Path, but this Saint is somewhat special." Ji Meng looked at Yu Sui's bewildered gaze and spoke more patiently. "To understand his specialness, you must first understand the highest realm of the Ghost Path. Those who follow the Ghost Path pursue 'the dissolution of the physical body, but the eternal existence of consciousness.' Very few have achieved this so far. This Saint of the Ghost Path in the academy has achieved the eternal existence of consciousness after death."
Yu Sui was stunned.
This sage of the Ghost Path is honored as Chang Gen. The "dissolution of the physical body, but the eternal existence of consciousness" that Ji Meng spoke of is called a Transformation God in the Ghost Path realm.
Ji Meng continued to explain: "Chang Gen Sheng Lao will not attend the judgment. Although his consciousness is long-lasting, it is difficult for him to manifest in a concrete form. He will only take action when there is a major event in the Ghost Daoist school. Therefore, the one representing the Ghost Daoist school in this judgment is Sheng Lao's disciple, Mei Liangyu."
Yu Sui nodded, indicating that she wanted to hear more.
Ji Meng felt a little embarrassed by her curious gaze and unconsciously straightened his back, racking his brains to explain in a more accessible way: "There are thousands of students in the Ghost Dao Academy, but Elder Chang Gen only has one disciple, so the Ghost Dao family can only be represented by Mei Liangyu in the judgment."
"Although this person has an eccentric temper, he has no grudges against us, and I've heard from others that he follows the principle of 'minding his own business,' meaning he doesn't get involved in troubled matters and just lets things slide."
"Therefore, the Ghost Daoists should be neutral. As long as the Di Su Tian Pang Tong is not convicted, Mei Liangyu is also on our side."
Yu Sui suddenly realized and said "Oh," then pointed to herself with the hand that had been supporting her cheek: "Then all I need to do is send the Di Su Tian Libra over, right?"
Blackbeard said, "Yes, the Di Su Tian Ping is unique. The Legalist sage knows that it is in the hands of the prince. Only by having the prince's successor, the princess, personally deliver it can we avoid suspicion."
Yu Sui breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Luckily, it was just a delivery. If I had to use the Di Constellation Scales to debate with the Legalists, I'm afraid I would have killed them."
Ji Meng: "..."
He gave a slightly awkward laugh, thinking to himself, "If you were to debate with the Legalists, my brother would probably go from being expelled from the academy to being sentenced to death."
Blackbeard sighed inwardly. How could the prince, with his illustrious reputation, allow a mere commoner to inherit the throne?
The carriage sped along, traveling from the outer city into the academy in the morning breeze carrying the fragrance of flowers, before turning onto the Legalist trial ground.
The interrogation arena was a large circle, with four stone pillars inscribed with Legalist laws standing on a high platform in the center. A rack was set up along the edge of the platform, with various instruments of torture hanging on it.
Some are terrifying at first glance, while others are incomprehensible at first glance, and once you learn what kind of torture device they are, you will avoid them like the plague.
The trial grounds had four tiers of stands, constructed of black stone, with only the central circular platform for execution carved from white stone. The stands were divided into a front and a back area, ascending from the lowest to the highest point. One could enter on foot through the front door and by carriage through the back door.
At this moment, there were already quite a few people in the stands of the interrogation arena, including teachers and students from various colleges. They stood in groups of three or five, or sat alone at a distance.
People continued to come in through the front door.
Currently, only Legalist disciples responsible for maintaining order are running around the interrogation site. They are dressed in uniform black uniforms with red armbands on their left arms, bearing the Legalist mark.
At the edge of the first-floor stands, Princess Shangyang, with her sleeves rolled up, looked displeased. Her sisters beside her were fanning her with round fans, trying to calm her down.
Princess Shangyang looked at the girl in white not far away and said in an unfriendly tone: "Hey, Gu Gan has saved you time and time again, but this time you just stand by and watch the show, not caring if it gets worse. You're unwilling to lend a hand. If he's expelled from the academy by your Legalist school, I'll never forgive you, Xun Zhiya!"
Upon hearing this, the girl named Xun Zhiya frowned slightly. Her eyes were light-colored, which made her appear somewhat indifferent. At this moment, she only glanced at Princess Shangyang briefly before looking away.
There were also many people standing around Xun Zhiya, including Li Jinshuang, who had just entered the academy today.
On the second floor, a little further away, Wei Ren plopped down on the stone steps, leaning back with his arms outstretched on the stone railing, legs crossed, and yawned while looking up at the sky with a relaxed expression.
Xue Jiayue dragged the exhausted Xue Mushi up, only to bump into Wei Ren, who was sitting in front blocking their way. She immediately felt annoyed: "It's you!"
She turned around and left.
"Hey, where are you going? Let's watch together." Wei Ren tilted his head and looked over, calling out, "I'm not releasing scorpions this time."
Xue Jiayue turned around, and Wei Ren raised his chin at the exhausted Xue Mushi: "What are you afraid of? No matter whether I release scorpions or centipedes, your cousin will see through it immediately. It's so boring."
Xue Mushi shook off Xue Jiayue's hand and lay down on the stone steps, indicating that he would rather die than run away.
Xue Jiayue then gave up and looked at Wei Ren with annoyance, saying, "What are you doing here too?"
Wei Ren shrugged and said, "I heard on the way that the Legalists were opening the interrogation hall for trials, so I came to join in the fun. It's so rare to see a trial in public like this. It wouldn't be worth it to miss out on this spectacle."
Xue Jiayue snorted, sat down ten steps away from Wei Ren, crossed her arms, and stared at him without blinking.
Wei Ren laughed: "Why are you looking at me like that? I'm not the one being held accountable by the Legalists, am I?"
Xue Jiayue said, "Let's see how you release the scorpions."
Wei Ren turned over and smiled ambiguously at Xue Jiayue: "Want to know? Just come to my farmhouse and you'll find out."
Xue Jiayue: "Pah! Your stone scorpion is disgusting! I'd rather die than go to your farm to learn something like that!"
Wei Ren was scolded, then reached up to touch his face and laughed so hard he bent over.
Compared to the bickering between Wei Ren and Xue Jiayue, most people are more focused on the main characters in today's interrogation.
The young man sitting opposite Wei Ren had an unfriendly expression. His eyebrows were always slightly furrowed for some reason, and his narrow phoenix eyes were sharp, always unconsciously carrying a scrutinizing arrogance when he looked at people.
Sheng Fei is not very optimistic about today's three rulings.
Sitting next to him, Mu Mengbai was playing with the Wind Listening Ruler, his fingers flying across the crossword grid. When he looked up and saw the people in the distance, he exclaimed in surprise and gestured for Sheng Fei to look over: "Why is Zhongli Shan, that old-fashioned guy, here to watch the fun too?"
Sheng Fei looked in the direction he was pointing. Diagonally opposite them, on the third-floor balcony, stood a young man in black robes with a sword at his waist, his posture dignified and his back straight, like a measuring stick.
He stood there alone, his expression calm, silently surveying the crowd below.
Sheng Fei looked away, ignoring why Zhong Lishan had skipped class to watch the commotion.
All he cared about was whether Gu Gan could be expelled from Taiyi Academy today.
“He often plays with Mei Liangyu, so maybe he came to see Mei Liangyu?” Mu Mengbai added, “Whether Gu Gan can be convicted today depends on the Ghost Path.”
Sheng Fei turned his head to look at him: "How did your divination go?"
"So-so," Mu Mengbai said with a somber face. "Anyway, this ruling won't go very smoothly."
Sheng Fei frowned and said, "This is not ordinary, this is utterly useless. You are clearly a disciple of the Fangji family, yet you act like an amateur when it comes to divination."
Mu Mengbai wiped his face and said with a forced smile, "What can I do? I didn't join the Fangji family voluntarily."
Sheng Fei didn't get the divination answer he wanted, and his brows furrowed even more.
Mu Mengbai looked down at the Listening Wind Ruler and replied with a message: "The attitudes of the Ming and Fa families are very clear. The Ming family wants to protect people, while the Fa family has Sha Qian, who is Gu Gan's mortal enemy. This time, he is risking his life to bring Gu Gan to the death penalty."
His eyes lit up a little after he finished speaking.
“Sha Qian fell in love with Xun Zhiya at first sight, but Xun Zhiya didn’t like him. Gu Gan and Xun Zhiya were close and had an ambiguous relationship. Xun Zhiya did not reject Gu Gan either. Sha Qian’s love turned into hatred. For Xun Zhiya’s sake, he wanted to suppress Gu Gan’s limelight. As a result, he repeatedly lost face in front of Gu Gan. With the old and new grudges combined, he wanted Gu Gan to get out of the academy even more than you did.”
"I heard that Sha Qian has a fiancée back in his hometown. I wonder what her name is and where she lives. Otherwise, I would definitely ruin the wedding for him."
"But if I ruin his marriage, do you think Sha Qian will have even more reason to pursue Xun Zhiya without the engagement? He's shameless, so it's quite possible."
"Xun Zhiya didn't seem to want to talk to him either. Gu Gan always took the blame when Sha Qian was picking on him. How can he be so capable? He not only cultivates both the Fa and the Law, but he is also proficient in both. I even saw him come to our academy to learn divination last time."
Sheng Xun: "..."
Listening to Mu Mengbai's rambling, his face was full of impatience, but there was nothing he could do about it. The more you tried to stop him, the more he would talk. He didn't know where this guy got so much to say.
Sheng Fei raised his hand and pinched the space between his eyebrows.
"Oh! They're here, they're here! The three saints and our unlucky Gu family are all here!" Mu Mengbai suddenly grabbed Sheng Fei's shoulder and patted him hard halfway through his sentence.
Sheng Fei waved his hand away impatiently, frowning as he looked down.
A large group of people entered through the front gate, including Legalist disciples who were responsible for escorting Gu Gan, as well as disciples from other prominent families who came to support him.
Two elderly men were walking at the front.
One is the renowned scholar Zhu Lao, and the other is the Legalist scholar Yu Sheng.
The two elderly men, both with full heads of silver hair and dressed in white saintly robes, were whispering to each other, looking like two friends taking an afternoon stroll, slowly making their way towards the high judgment platform.
The young man in black, who was slightly behind the other two, was adjusting his sleeves. He stepped into the shadows, and the morning breeze gently lifted his hair, as if parting the clouds to reveal the mist. The cool breeze took the opportunity to sweep across his nonchalant black eyes.
The young man was a head taller than the two elderly men in front of him. His waist belt accentuated his broad shoulders and slender waist. His sleeves were tightly fastened to his wrists, fitting him perfectly and exuding power, ready to be unleashed.
A black robe was draped over his arm. As they turned onto the high stone steps, Mei Liangyu grabbed the robe and put it on, slipping one hand into his sleeve, becoming a black figure between the two white-clad saints.
Mei Liangyu calmly walked to the judge's table and sat down, leaning back in the chair with his long legs crossed. He took out a wind-listening ruler from the sleeve of his outer robe and played with it.
Others weren't as relaxed as him.
Once on the judgment platform, the two saints fell silent, not even exchanging a glance.
The renowned scholar Zhu Lao had kind eyes and brows, while the Legalist Yu Sheng had a solemn expression.
Both of them were looking down at Gu Gan, who was being led onto the interrogation platform by Sha Qian.
On the third tier of the stands, Xiang Feifei, wearing a veil, watched Gu Gan being led onto the interrogation platform. She became somewhat anxious and couldn't help but glare at the golden-robed youth beside her who was still playing with the wind-listening ruler.
"Others are about to be questioned, where are the reinforcements you've brought?" Xiang Feifei asked.
The young man in the golden robe glanced to the side, chuckled, and pointed towards the backstage: "Look, aren't they here?"
The carriage entered the interrogation ground through the back gate, stopped at the side, and the horses lowered their heads and swished their tails, waiting for the people inside to disembark.
When Yu Sui came down, he happened to see Gu Gan walking onto the interrogation platform.
She hadn't seen Gu Gan for two years.
The boy who left the capital that night has grown much taller. His sharp features have replaced the somewhat childish look in my memory, giving him the flamboyance and unruliness of youth.
Gu Gan seemed to have not changed his clothes for several days. He was covered in dirt, wearing only a shirt and trousers, and his slightly disheveled sideburns swayed as he walked with his head down.
His hands were tied behind his back, and several scarlet marks could be vaguely seen on his rolled-up sleeves and neck.
Yu Sui was a bit far away, so she couldn't see Gu Gan after he went on stage. She then carried the box and walked forward.
A chair was placed in the middle of the interrogation platform.
Sha Qian frowned upon seeing this and gestured to the Legalist disciples to remove the chair. Hadn't he already said he would remove it?
When the Legalist disciples tried to take it away, Gu Gan had already sat down hard.
"What, you can't even afford a chair? Our institute isn't that poor," Gu Gan said sarcastically, tilting his head back.
Sha Qian sneered, ignored him, and turned to leave.
Gu Gan's gaze swept towards the edge of the stands, meeting Xun Zhiya's eyes as she looked up, before he looked away a moment later.
Sha Qian stood by the interrogation platform, ready to go and question them at any time.
At this moment, almost everyone's eyes were on Gu Gan in the interrogation room, but he himself kept his head down and remained silent.
The Legalist sage on the judgment platform slowly spoke: "The trial begins regarding the theft of the Milky Way Water from the Upside-Down Moon Cave. Disciple Gu Gan was discovered entering the forbidden Upside-Down Moon Cave before the theft of the Milky Way Water. After being apprehended by the guards on duty, the Milky Way Water also disappeared."
Yu Sheng spoke slowly, yet with an air of authority that made people unconsciously hold their breath to listen.
"You have one last chance to recount the events of that day. Every word you say from now on will determine whether you stay or leave today."
Yu Sheng paused, then looked at the Legalist disciples at the edge of the interrogation platform: "Sha Qian, begin the interrogation."
Before Sha Qian could respond, he was stopped by the sage Zhu Lao: "Since the Milky Way Water was not found on him, it means the item is not with him, and the evidence is not there. It would be unfair to have a Legalist disciple interrogate him."
"Is this unfair?" Yu Sheng said in a deep voice.
Old Zhu still smiled and said, "Although it is just idle gossip from the students, there is a personal grudge between Sha Qian and Gu Gan."
"If someone who harbors resentment towards him is to conduct the interrogation, especially a Legalist disciple skilled in torture, will the outcome be fair and convincing?"
Sitting between the two, Mei Liangyu seemed to be playing with the wind-listening ruler with great concentration.
Standing by the stands, Zhong Lishan took out his Wind-Listening Ruler, lit it, and saw the message sent by the person on the judge's bench:
"The two old men are putting on a show."
Zhong Lishan replied, "Be careful."
"If your parents find out you said that, you'll be the one being judged down there."
Sha Qian, who was below, changed his expression slightly upon hearing the words of the two sages. He had just taken a step to try to explain to Yu Sheng when he heard him say to Zhu Lao, "According to you, what would be considered fair?"
Old Zhu squinted and smiled, "In his case, using fate-telling techniques is too heavy-handed, and interrogation techniques are too excessive. It would be better to use the Scales of the Di constellation for interrogation to distinguish truth from falsehood."
Yu Sheng said slowly, "The supreme treasure of the Legalist school, the Di Su Tian Ping, is unique in the world, but it is not within my Taiyi Academy."
Sha Qian, unable to contain himself any longer, said, "The Di Su Tian Pang is far away in Qingyang Kingdom. Are we supposed to go all the way to Qingyang to find it? Not to mention the time wasted traveling back and forth to Qingyang, who knows who owns the Di Su Tian Pang in Qingyang Kingdom..."
"It's with me."
The girl's clear voice interrupted him.
Yu Sui hurried as fast as he could and finally arrived on time.
Upon hearing the words "Di Su Tian Libra," Yu Sui immediately responded, afraid of missing the best opportunity to give the answer.
Yu Sui walked from the backstage to the interrogation platform, stepping in the golden light of dawn.
She walked into the crowd carrying a black box, attracting everyone in the stands. In the dazzling light, the person who walked out was beautiful and graceful, with delicate eyebrows and almond-shaped eyes, and her steps were light as if she had just come down from heaven.
Upon recognizing the newcomer, Sheng Fei abruptly stood up, his face grim. This startled Mu Mengbai, who also jumped to his feet, asking, "What's wrong? What's wrong?!"
Princess Shangyang, standing on the first floor of the stands, widened her eyes: "Nangong Sui?"
What is she doing here?
The women around her were also stunned, unsure how to respond.
"Huh? How come the Legalist treasure is in the hands of the School of Names?" Xue Jiayue wondered.
Wei Ren followed Yu Sui's movements with his gaze, and chuckled, "Our Qingyang Nangong family's treasures aren't just from famous families; every family has them, more than you can imagine."
Many people in the stands recognized Yu Sui, and those who didn't recognize her recognized her from others' words about Princess Qingyang Nangong.
As Gu Gan watched Yu Sui approach, his gaze shifted from initial astonishment to a gradual smile, and finally to an undisguised gentleness.
As Yu Sui walked past him, she gave him a gentle wink.
Gu Gan couldn't help but chuckle.
Sheng Fei stared at the two of them, his fingers clenching so tightly they cracked. Mu Mengbai gasped, grabbed him, and yelled, "You've never told me your sister is this beautiful!"
"Let Sha Qian try Gu Gan and sentence him to death. I support the death penalty!"
Yu Sui walked toward the judge's platform.
Mei Liangyu toyed with the Wind Listening Ruler in his hand and lightly lifted his eyelids to look.
Zhong Lishan, standing in the stands, opened the message:
Who is this sparkly girl?
[Author's Note]
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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