Chapter 56 Madness Lord Xiao was tainted by all four evil paths.
Feng Tan was speechless, a breath caught in her throat. She realized that this man was truly vindictive, petty, and especially good at settling scores later.
However, in the end, Feng Tan owed him a favor. His unprovoked act of kindness made her uneasy, so she sincerely said, "I cannot accept a reward without merit. I owe you a favor, so I will repay you with a promise. If Lord Xiao ever needs my help in the future, I will definitely keep my promise."
Xiao Yinshi chuckled. He wondered what kind of environment had fostered Feng Tan's quick wit. He said calmly, "As you say."
After saying that, the man slowly removed his long, slender fingers from the ancient box, gesturing for Feng Tan to take it and follow. He walked ahead and said slowly, "The case file of the female calamity, which was placed in the Censorate, has been divided in two. This is only one part; the other part is in my residence."
Feng Tan quickly locked the ancient box and followed behind him, asking, "What is the purpose of placing the case file of the female calamity case in two different places?"
Xiao Yinshi didn't stop walking; his voice, carried by the cool breeze, reached Feng Tan's ears: "Beware of petty thieves like you."
Feng Tan: "......"
Returning to the alleyway where Xiao Yinshi's residence was located, the scenery was completely different. Under the bright moonlight, the pale gray ancient walls had been transformed into a vibrant green tapestry by lush vines. Moonlight filtered through the sparse leaves, casting dappled shadows and adding a touch of life and mystery to the walls. A spring breeze rustled the vines as they gently moved.
Upon closer listening, the rustling sound was accompanied by the hissing of a snake's tongue.
Xiao Yinshi paused, a wary glint in his dark eyes. He subtly stopped Feng Tan, signaling her to remain silent.
Feng Tan also noticed the strangeness in this dark alley. Despite the bright moonlight, there were no shadows under their feet... As long as you stand in the light, there will definitely be a shadow, unless what they are seeing is an illusion.
While in the waters off Linzhang, Feng Tan had already experienced an illusion attack. Tonight's second deadly trap is most likely the work of Gao Yu. Feng Tan is determined to block all his escape routes, so he has chosen to fight with his back to the wall. If one attempt fails, he will try again; eventually, he will be able to take Feng Tan's life.
The bright moonlight gradually faded to blood red, casting a crimson glow on the green vines. Coupled with the increasing hissing of snakes, the dark alley became even more eerie.
The green vines slowly transformed, and one after another, venomous green snakes emerged from the branches, their tongues flicking out. Their red, vertical pupils were cold and sinister, and they all hung motionless on the wall, watching the two of them.
Feng Tan was almost overcome with trypophobia just looking at them. She looked up at Xiao Yinshi's resolute profile, pursed her lips, and spoke in a very soft voice, "My lord, have you recovered your strength? I think the defensive shield you used at sea last time was quite effective."
When needed, he addressed her as "you"; when not needed, he addressed her as "you." Xiao Yinshi looked down at this aloof face that seemed to have everything under control, his eyes darkening slightly, and said, "Two percent."
Feng Tan's expression turned much uglier. She gripped her short, sharp knife tightly, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in her eyes as she looked at the snakes. "I've heard from familiar animal trainers that snakes are cold-blooded and extremely difficult to tame. It seems I can finally see for myself how obedient tamed venomous snakes can be."
As soon as she finished speaking, a rough and unpleasant old woman's voice came from all around, "Ignorant brat, today your great-grandmother will show you what's what!"
As the sound of the flute rang out, the snakes seemed to hear some kind of signal and leaped out from between the brick walls, creating a terrifying scene under the blazing red moonlight.
Xiao Yinshi had just come out of the government office and was not carrying any sharp weapons. If he tried to kill the snakes up close, he would risk being bitten by the venomous snakes. He shook off an attacking snake and glanced at Feng Tan, saying, "Where are your poop powder, itching powder, and aphrodisiac powder?"
"They've all hit Shen Shiyi!" Feng Tan regretfully severed the head of one venomous snake, then dodged another's attack. This couldn't go on; there were too many of them, and their stamina would soon be exhausted! Xiao Yinshi was also unlucky today. His inner strength hadn't recovered, and he hadn't brought any weapons, so she dragged him into this disgusting snake trap from which he couldn't escape.
The sound of the flute was like a demonic chant, growing more and more intense. The snakes' attacks became increasingly cunning as the pitch rose. In the midst of the fight, Feng Tan devised a plan. Without making a sound, he grabbed Xiao Yinshi's hand, took out a grenade from the subsystem, and placed it in Xiao Yinshi's palm. The two exchanged a glance and moved in tacit agreement to the sides of the dark alley.
Snakes have a keen sense of smell, and after being domesticated, they will attack specific targets. Feng Tan had already noticed this when she was near Xiao Yinshi; most of the snakes were attacking her, with very few attacking Xiao Yinshi. Since Gao Yu wanted to kill Feng Tan, he must have prepared something with Feng Tan's scent beforehand for the snakes to smell. Therefore, once the two are separated, the snakes will definitely target Feng Tan.
Feng Tan touched the ground with her toes, her speed far exceeding that of the swarm of venomous snakes. Xiao Yinshi seized the opportunity, recalling Feng Tan's actions when using a grenade in the Hall of Joy, and quickly pulled the plug, throwing it into the snakes.
With a deafening explosion, most of the venomous snakes were blasted to pieces, their flesh and blood flying everywhere. As the smoke cleared, a gigantic python of immense size could be seen standing behind Xiao Yinshi. Feng Tan's pupils constricted sharply, and he shouted, "Xiao Yinshi, run!"
Xiao Yinshi stood amidst the billowing smoke, behind him a ferocious python three times his height, its eyes lowered and mouth open, ready to devour any living being. His pupils reflected Feng Tan's rapidly approaching figure, a strange smile curving his thin lips as he let the darkness engulf him, swallowing him whole by the python.
The next instant, Feng Tan slashed a straight, deep wound on the giant python's raised belly with her short, sharp knife. Blood splattered on her face, and thick blood dripped from her eyelids. She looked up amidst the blood and met Xiao Yinshi's strange, dark eyes.
The giant python, its abdomen ripped open, fell straight backward, leaving only Xiao Yinshi's tall and imposing figure standing motionless. He looked at the young man before him, whose eyes trembled, clearly still shaken, and reached out to wipe the blood from the boy's cheek. He said in a deep voice, "Are you... this ruthless towards everyone?"
Seeing that the illusion had been broken, Zhu Qi looked at the two figures standing in the smoke and said, "My lord, we have distinguished guests..."
Before he could even utter the words "Here I am," Xiao Yinshi casually tossed him back to the mansion gate with a wave of his hand.
How could he look like he had only recovered two-tenths of his strength? He was brimming with killing intent; he had clearly recovered to full strength! With his power fully restored, intercepting and killing the giant python would have been a piece of cake for Xiao Yinshi, yet he allowed the python to swallow him whole! You must know that the brilliance of the Great Illusion Technique lies in the fact that if you are swallowed by the illusion within it, then no matter how high your power is, it will be useless unless there is external help to break the illusion.
Feng Tan reached out and slapped away Xiao Yinshi's fingers that were landing on her face. She couldn't understand what kind of trick Xiao Yinshi was playing by gambling with his life. She just thought this man was simply crazy!
Wow, she's really daring! And she's not exactly a pushover!
She used to think that Xiao Yinshi and Feng Tingxiao were both bad in their own way; Xiao Yinshi was obviously bad, and Feng Tingxiao was obviously bad.
But now it seems...
"Lord Xiao is truly a man of both inner and outer virtues, having been tainted by all four evil paths," Feng Tan said calmly.
The four evil realms are hell, hungry ghosts, animals, and asuras.
Feng Tan's words seemed irrelevant to Xiao Yinshi's question, but Xiao Yinshi clearly knew that she was mocking him again.
As the smoke dissipated, blurring Xiao Yinshi's expression, his voice, however, was like a ghost in the darkness: "It is not beauty that bewitches people, but people themselves. Just now... I was attached to appearances."
Only he himself knew that the world was full of bad things, he had no relatives to rely on, and no one to turn to in his heart. So he would not save himself when he could save himself, but instead wanted the person in front of him to save him.
The blood moon faded, and the bright moon still shone in the sky. Feng Tan walked towards Zhu Qi, who had fallen in front of the mansion gate, bent down and picked up the case file he was holding, and said, "Thank you."
Zhu Qi stared blankly at the boy's departing figure, then grimaced as he got up from the ground and finally finished the sentence he hadn't finished saying, "My lord, Princess Liling has been waiting for you for a long time."
As he spoke, he turned to look at Xiao Liling, who had just been standing there, scratched his head, and said, "Hey? Where did she go?"
***
On the petition scattered throughout the city, the line "Why not let Granny Zhou establish the rites?" struck a chord deep within the hearts of every woman in the capital. They vaguely realized that to change the fate of women, they needed to stand at the center of the Dahuang's power structure. After several demonstrations outside the three judicial offices, the Dali Temple, along with the other five judicial offices, totaling 323 officials, worked day and night to discuss the matter. Finally, on June 30th of the seventeenth year of Chongming, they completed the revision of the second edition of the Dahuang Criminal Code.
The main difference between the second part of the Daegu Penal Code and the first part is the difference in the marriage law. It removes the original setting of different punishments for men and women for the same crime, and stipulates that no matter what the reason, domestic violence by a husband against his wife is an unforgivable crime and should be punished with death.
Upon learning this news in prison, Gao Zhizhen was thunderstruck and cried out for his father. But Gao Yu did not see him; instead, he was met by Zhen Yongming, who had served under Gao Yu for many years.
Zhen Yongming gestured to the guards to open the cell. The guards hesitated, but Zhen Yongming smiled and said, "It's alright. I've watched Zhizhen grow up since he was a child. I know what kind of person he is. Open it."
Gao Zhizhen, looking like a wilted blade of grass, lifted his lifeless eyelids and asked, "Uncle Zhen, why doesn't my father come to see me?"
Zhen Yongming looked down at the once noble young master who had fallen to the status of a prisoner, sighed and said, "Zhizhen, I won't beat around the bush with you. Your father is now in a precarious situation."
Upon hearing this, Gao Zhizhen's eyes widened, and he said, "How could that be?! My father is a second-rank minister of the court, a key figure in the cabinet, and has been highly regarded by His Majesty for many years. How could he possibly be in danger?!"
Zhen Yongming said, "Recently, there have been rumors that your father was the mastermind behind the theft of the national treasury, and there is already irrefutable evidence."
"Impossible!" Gao Zhizhen jumped up from the ground, the chains binding him clanking loudly. "My father is impartial and unbiased; he would never do such a thing!"
Zhen Yongming patted him on the back, signaling him to calm down, and said slowly, "Zhizhen, I've come here today to ask you one question: do you want to live?"
Author's note: Thank you for the nutrient solution, babies!
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2024-08-20 21:05:33 and 2024-08-21 21:44:48!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: 38 bottles for "I Like Brainy Plots"; 15 bottles for "Guagua"; and 1 bottle for "Moon Shadow Forest Creek".
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
