Chapter 458: Rolling Iron Nails

"What are you doing? What are you doing? Who's causing trouble there, be careful or I'll grab you!"

The Royal Guard who had been stationed at the palace gate never expected anyone else to dare cause trouble here, and they rushed out, surrounding Li Ruoxi tightly.

Li Ruoxi lifted the drumstick in her hand, pressed it against the drumhead, and coldly stared at the Royal Guard running toward her.

She smiled slowly and said, "This humble woman is not causing trouble; I have always heard that whenever the royal Peace Drum is sounded, even the emperor must come to see the humble woman."

"Today this humble woman has a grave grievance and wishes to strike the Peace Drum; I ask you gentlemen to make way first."

The surrounding guards were dumbfounded, wondering what on earth this was.

They had guarded this place for many years and had never seen anyone strike this cracked drum.

Not only since Emperor Longqing ascended the throne, but even throughout the whole history of Southern Qi, striking the Peace Drum has been a rarity.

She is just a girl, a maiden from the Yi Hong Courtyard, and striking the Peace Drum is obviously a chilling matter.

"Leave this place at once! Do not cause trouble again! The Peace Drum is not something a lone woman can strike; do you know the rules for striking the Peace Drum?"

Li Ruoxi laughed loudly, "How could I not know? If I didn't know the rule, I wouldn't be standing here."

"Before striking the drum, one must roll seventy‑seven forty‑nine laps on a floor covered with iron nails; if one still has breath, one must recite the entire petition word for word. That's all. Am I right or not?"

A few guards, hearing Li Ruoxi's detailed explanation, were instantly dumbfounded; could this woman really intend to strike the drum? It was utterly incomprehensible, unheard of.

"Go back quickly. Since you're a woman, we won't make things difficult for you," an elderly guard said, urging Li Ruoxi to leave.

Li Ruoxi laughed, "Thank you, brother, for the reminder. Today I strike the Peace Drum to accuse the present Duke Duan and the entire Duan clan for trampling lives, committing countless murders in Ping Cheng, turning the whole city into a living hell. This humble woman is wronged!"

As soon as Li Ruoxi uttered the words "Duan family," a roar of discussion erupted, and everyone stared in disbelief at the frail woman before them, wondering if she intended to accuse the Duan family.

These days the Duan family has become a hot topic in Jing Cheng; the Third Prince recently led the Duan army in a failed rebellion and has now been locked in a death cell at Dali Temple.

It seems the Duan case is still unresolved, and another accuser has emerged, this time with great momentum.

They actually intend to strike the great drum? Upon hearing this rare news, no one could remain seated.

Wave after wave of people surged toward the East Sima Gate, and in an instant the area was packed, sealing off the place completely.

She intends to accuse the Duan family with a blood letter, each character written in her own blood; at this point the guards no longer thought it was a joke.

The guards hurried into the palace to report; although Li Ruoxi's act was unusual, it is still a rule of Southern Qi.

In short order, following protocol, they laid the carpet covered with iron nails layer by layer before Li Ruoxi, and then the guards stared at her coldly.

"Do you know the royal regulations? The Peace Drum is not struck casually, and petitions are not filed casually either."

"If you file today, and he files tomorrow, where does His Majesty have time to meet such troublesome subjects?"

"Since you intend to accuse, roll over the iron nails seventy‑seven forty‑nine times, ninety‑nine eight‑one times, and see if you can endure."

Li Ruoxi took a deep breath and handed the petition in her hand to a member of the Imperial Guard.

The Royal Guard took the petition, glanced down, and was slightly moved by the delicate characters freshly written in blood.

According to custom, the accuser must roll over the iron nails; before rolling, the petition is handed to the guard, and if one can recite the petition word for word during the rolling, it counts as ultimate success.

Only then can the Peace Drum be struck.

Li Ruoxi had already memorized the petition countless times in her mind; now she slowly approached the iron nails, clad in heavy mourning attire, her whole body wrapped in plain white.

The moment she lay on the iron nails, she let out a muffled groan; blood instantly seeped from her body, staining her white robes a crimson red, and the surrounding townsfolk let out low cries.

Li Ruoxi felt dizzy and nauseous from the pain, sensing all her vitality draining through the holes.

She never expected it to hurt so much; the pain made her teeth grind and her jaw clench, and darkness flickered before her eyes.

If it continues like this, not even a complaint could be made, let alone any words.

She had just lain down, and still had to roll over the iron nails seventy‑seven forty‑nine times; if she survived it would be good enough, and she still had to memorize the petition word by word.

In an instant Li Ruoxi's heart hardened, realizing this was precisely to deprive the people of any chance to appeal.

Even if one wanted to appeal, the petition could not be memorized; the pain was killing them, how could anyone recite it?

Thus, it was to send them to death, to forever silence the people.

He does not believe in fate; he stubbornly refuses it. Fate—so many have died and cannot be in vain; there is still justice in this world. Today Li Ruoxi, covered in countless wounds, seeks justice for the myriad wronged souls. If she were to die in pain here, bleeding to death, she would also die in this palace, to let the world see that such a case exists, that the people of this city have been oppressed to this extreme with no room for retaliation. She—Li Ruoxi—unfortunately, that is her own fate.

Li Ruoxi inhaled deeply, slowly turned right, rolled a circle; in that circle she saw a steel needle pierce her chest and abdomen, the pain striking straight, and her hoarse voice rose as her qi surged.

"I, Li Ruoxi, forming the dawn of Lord Li's journey, am here today to inform the Duan family, Duke Duan, in Ping Cheng to appear before the People's Hospital. Today's case of the bathtub refers to weapon construction, mining, and forging counterfeit coins. If I, Li Ruoxi, speak falsely today, do not call me a thunderbolt that cannot die well."

Li Ruoxi recited line after line, uttering a curse with each, her whole body like a snow gourd snowman, layers of blood streaming down her body, a sight that was shocking to behold.

Unexpectedly, even with such recitation, Li Ruoxi's voice was resonant and her script clear, astonishing everyone. Moreover, as the crowd listened to the scene, their anger grew; they could not believe that such heinous deeds had occurred in ordinary times, and how many sins the Duan family had wrought upon the world.