Chapter 771: Concession

"Pay with their lives?"

"Jiang Zongshi for Jiang Zongshi, Great Jiang Zongshi for Great Jiang Zongshi. It can be higher, but not lower. One life for one life, exempting the death penalty. Once the death penalty is exempted, the living punishment is easier to handle."

Liang Qu's tongue was tied, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.

After a long while.

"Why is there such a rule?"

"Concession."

"Concession?"

The old monk laughed: "When a prince breaks the law, is it really the same crime as a commoner?"

Liang Qu was silent.

"Human power has its limits, hence there are families, clans, villages, and countries. Husbands and wives can divorce, branches can be separated. Human hearts are not the same, greed is never satisfied, and unity must have compromises.

If one side is powerful, the other must concede. Hence the saying of paying with death to save life, to avoid pushing people to a dead end and causing them to defect completely. If there were no such move, what do you think would be the outcome for Prefect Jian?"

Liang Qu thought for a moment, and the answer immediately surfaced.

"Hide it forever. If exposed, die, or join the Ghost Mother Sect or the Great Snow Mountain."

"And with this move?"

"An old Jiang Zongshi of the Qingzhou Jian clan dies, Jian Zhongyi returns to Qingzhou, and waits for the next opportunity?"

"Indeed."

To think it was like this...

"Would the old Jiang Zongshi of the Jian clan be willing?"

"Things have reached this point, most likely the path has been paved. The Jian clan originally had three Perfected Forms. Whether willing or not, I fear it is no longer for that elder to choose."

"Master, you..."

Liang Qu knew the old monk had come to hunt down the evil monk, and suddenly hearing this...

The Vajra King.

"You should go and see, get to the bottom of it, ask clearly." The old monk pressed his palms together. "The way of disaster energy should not exist in the world. I naturally wish to eliminate it quickly, but since it is entangled with the evil monk, it must know of my existence and will surely hold back."

"Good!"

"I will accompany you!" Long Eying spoke up. "Since the other party has entered the Jiang Zongshi realm, there is much danger."

Liang Qu naturally had no objections.

The two rode Chishan together and arrived at the Pingyang Prefecture Office in the blink of an eye.

At this moment, the entire Prefecture Office was surrounded by commoners, discussing in waves, crowded and impassable.

"Prefect Jian is a good official. Pingyang Prefecture is governed so well. Is there some injustice?"

"You can know a person's face but not their heart. How do you know he is a good person?"

"Are you the roundworm in his belly?"

"Hey! Master Liang is here!"

Yixing Town was very close to Pingyang Prefecture, and coupled with Liang Qu's various reputations, people in the prefecture also called him this.

Liang Qu had no time to greet them: "Trouble the fellow villagers to make way and let me in!"

"Master Liang, find out clearly and come out to tell us!"

"If I can say, I naturally will."

"Got it, hurry, hurry, make way, make way, don't block Master Liang and Lady Liang!"

Hey!

The crowd parted.

Liang Qu paid a little attention to the person who shouted, then quickly jumped into the Prefecture Office with Long Eying.

The duty official saw Liang Qu and did not stop him, letting him pass directly.

All the way to the central hall.

"The people are quite complete..."

Liang Qu scanned the area.

The high hall of the Pingyang Prefecture Office was now occupied by Gongye Kaifei, the commander of the Three Judicial Departments, sitting on the seat. Jian Zhongyi, the "Prefect" in the center, was kneeling. On both sides, people from the Demon Hunting Division and the River Po Office were packed full.

Behind Xu Yuelong, Seeing Ran Zhongshi, Ran Ying, Xiang Fang Su, and others were all there.

A group of high officials, with leaders acting as spectators, quite like officials holding killing sticks. It was truly a rare sight.

Ke Wenbin caught a glimpse of Liang Qu and waved quietly.

Liang Qu pulled Long Eying and blended into the group as low-key as possible.

Jian Zhongyi did not tilt his gaze at all, continuing his explanation on his own.

"Where did you go this afternoon? You almost missed the big show!" Ke Wenbin asked. "Went to Jiangchuan County to take a look. Is it a trial now? Where has it reached?"

"About halfway through. You're lucky. Gongye Kaifei didn't dare to interrogate a Jiang Zongshi, so he waited until our River Po Office leaders and the Demon Hunting Division commander were all present before starting."

"What exactly happened? The Huazhu County levee burst, was it really Prefect Jian... who did it?"

"As of now, it can't be fake. Jian Zhongyi said that the third leader of the Sand River Gang was actually influenced by the Great Snow Mountain secret technique 'Greed, Hatred, and Delusion Sutra', which amplified his inner cruelty and self-destructive tendencies, leading to the levee destruction. So the root cause is him."

"The purpose?"

"To collect disaster energy, high-grade long-breath. He broke through to Jiang Zongshi with this. When the levee burst, he didn't collect it completely, only more than half of the floc. It wasn't until the Heavenly Water Morning Dew, the Water Clan War, and after fighting the Ghost Mother Sect last year that he barely collected it all."

Liang Qu clicked his tongue.

"Why confess?"

"He said he was also bewitched by 'Greed, Hatred, and Delusion', stepped into the Jiang Zongshi realm, and only after his spirit became clear did he truly wake up. He even killed the evil monk who bewitched him. As a container for collecting energy, greed took over, and he couldn't help himself."

"Do you believe it?"

"It sounds plausible, who knows? Anyway, this is where it was when you arrived. Just keep listening."

Jian Zhongyi in the center was wearing a scarlet official uniform, his official hat on his head, meticulous. His self-narration came to an end, and he kowtowed to the north.

"Sinful official Jian Zhongyi has failed the Emperor's grace, failed the common people, and failed all living beings in the world!"

There were no tears, no great sadness, and he even appeared somewhat calm.

Gongye Kaifei in the high hall was like sitting on pins and needles, not knowing how to continue the interrogation for a while.

The young masters of the noble families present were all from the great clans of the Imperial Capital. Which one of them wasn't well-informed? What strange and bizarre things hadn't they seen?

Today's one, they really hadn't seen.

There was almost no need for interrogation. It was almost entirely Jian Zhongyi's confession, just let the registrar write it down word for word.

"The ins and outs are known. That Dharma bowl of yours..."

Jian Zhongyi took out an exquisite large bowl from his bosom and placed it on the official's tray.

Liang Qu's gaze narrowed slightly.

To be honest, if not for the surface patterns, one could hardly tell it was a human skull. Most of it was hollowed out and carved, embedded with black curse words, like an exceptionally exquisite work of art.

"Dharma bowl, an object for gathering disaster energy and evil energy. The higher the cultivation, the better. Those with martial bone aptitude are best. I once coveted the skulls of Liang Hengwei, Guan Bai Hu, and Qi Xingti. Fortunately, I did not commit a great mistake!"

Everyone's gaze turned in unison toward the natural martial bone in the hall.

Liang Qu faced the gazes of his colleagues, his scalp tingling.

There was such a thing?

Long Eying held Liang Qu's hand, fingers locked tight, pulling him behind her.

Full of a sense of security.

Xiang Fang Su and others showed disdain.

Gongye Kaifei followed up by asking many details.

Throughout the process, Jian Zhongyi appeared as a remorseful person, and during this time, he did not take the initiative to mention the matter of "paying with death".

"Planned long ago..."

Liang Qu listened carefully, his brows gradually furrowing. He successively recalled some details he hadn't noticed before, mostly learned from the second generation like Seeing Ran Zhongshi.

First, the Qingzhou Jian clan had three Grandmasters, and the direct ancestor of Jian Zhongyi's lineage was over three hundred years old.

Second, it was rumored that his direct ancestor practiced "incest," and the object was Jian Zhongyi's mother!

Forgot who it was, seemed to be Xiang Fang Su, who said that in the imperial examination of the past, the top graduate should have been Magistrate Jian, but because of the rumors, the Holy Emperor considered the bad influence and changed it to the second place!

Third, Jian Zhongyi spent a huge sum to win the longevity treasure.

Where the longevity treasure was used, Liang Qu didn't know very well, but things had reached this point, no need to understand.

One person whose life was at an end, one newly promoted Jiang Zongshi. Even if Jian Zhongyi didn't mention it, the other two Perfected Forms of the Jian clan would probably take the initiative to "request" it, right?

Did Jian Zhongyi want to get rid of his old ancestor long ago?

Waste utilization, killing many birds with one stone...

The more Liang Qu thought, the more he felt it was possible, and the more he thought, the more shocked he became.

Especially since the matter might not end there!

Jian Zhongyi most likely knew of the old monk's existence, the Vajra King, a man of character. How should...

The ins and outs were all clear. Even though the colleagues in Pingyang Prefecture were extremely shocked, the interrogation gradually came to an end.

Signed and fingerprinted, the Three Judicial Departments commander ordered the officials to lock him in the dungeon.

But before the shackles were applied, Jian Zhongyi kowtowed to the north three more times.

"I beg Your Majesty to show mercy and allow the sinful official to survive in the world to redeem my sins through service. Not to save my life, but only hoping to use the nature of disaster energy to find the harm, eliminate the disaster, and be worthy of all living beings in the world!"

"Eliminate the disaster?" Gongye Kaifei was like a frightened bird today, subconsciously straightening his back. "What disaster? Do not hide it, speak quickly!"

"The Great Snow Mountain intends to blood-sacrifice Blue Lake, pollute the Huai River, and recreate human gods!"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 772 =====