Chapter 21: Twenty-One: A Crowd-Favorite Retained Performance

Twenty-One: A Crowd-Favorite Retained Performance

Leaving other things aside, that arrow shot by the junior sister was incredibly cool.

And right now, at first glance, she cleanly kicked over eight Kunlun slaves without even drawing her sword—just tautening the bowstring and coldly aiming at Liu Zilin’s furious face—was even cooler.

Ouyang Rong began to suspect the junior sister might be the Qi Refiner Yan Wuxu had mentioned.

But he didn’t know which specific Dao lineage she belonged to—Confucian or Daoist—since the Xie Clan of Chen Commandery was a renowned family of Confucianism and Xuanxue, the latter involving Daoism, and Daoism also had reclusive sages.

Ouyang Rong walked over and helped the Hu Ji woman on the ground to her feet, handing her a silk handkerchief to wipe herself.

At that moment, Yan Wuxu arrived with a group of constables in a rush, only to stare in shock at the scene before him: two gentlemen suppressing the bully and his henchmen… well, actually, removing one gentleman might not have changed much, but the junior sister was his aide, and Ouyang Rong currently approved of this pairing of wisdom and courage—his master had foresight, after all, and wisdom mattered too.

“Magistrate, are you unharmed?”

“Do you wish me harm?”

“No, no, just surprised. I thought I was late, panicked.”

“Not late—you came just in time. Protect this… Hu woman, then find a physician to check if she’s injured.”

“Yes, Magistrate.”

At that moment, the man named Liu Zilin roared: “You killed my bird and think you can just walk away!? Get up, you bastards on the ground—don’t pretend to be dead, go fetch reinforcements!”

Even with the bow pointed at him, he remained arrogant, his cold gaze fixed on Xie Ling’s furrowed brow.

But as soon as one Kunlun slave tried to rise, another arrow pinned his leg to the ground.

Yan Wuxu also coldly barked: “How dare you speak to the County Magistrate like that?”

Liu Zilin lifted his chin, sneering: “County Magistrate? Just a beggar! Came to Longcheng to beg for handouts? What’s it this time—money, women, or promotion? Fine, come home with me and kowtow a hundred times to my big brother!”

Ouyang Rong laughed.

Liu Zilin glanced sideways at the arrow stuck in his subordinate’s leg.

“Hmph.”

He scoffed, ignoring the cold-faced girl before him with her overwhelming martial prowess, ignoring the crowd of constables—his eyes only sneered at Ouyang Rong, pointing at his face, spitting threats:

“You shot my bird? This isn’t over!”

“Indeed, it’s not over,” Ouyang Rong nodded.

“Fine, bold. My upstairs dishes are cold now—I’m going to eat! You stay put—we’ll wait, we’ll play.” Liu Zilin brushed dust off his robe, sneered as if no one else existed, and strolled away leisurely.

Ouyang Rong smiled casually and turned to walk back.

On both sides of the long street, scholar and bully walked in opposite directions.

Xie Ling turned to watch Ouyang Rong’s back, frowning as if to speak.

Yan Wuxu’s face was grim; the other government office constables sighed in relief, preparing to follow the magistrate back to the county office.

But the next second, Ouyang Rong’s voice came, tinged with mild surprise:

“Why are you all standing there frozen? He’s about to run—go catch him! Wait, you don’t actually believe his acting fooled me, do you?”

The newly appointed official helplessly shrugged—no chemistry at all.

“Take this law-abiding citizen of Longcheng who was strolling his bird down the street and haul him to the county office. I’m new to Longcheng, have nothing impressive to offer—so let’s give the folks a crowd-favorite retained performance…”

“Today’s case.”

Xie Ling suddenly smiled, leaving everyone stunned.

Liu Zilin’s face changed slightly.

…

Longcheng County Office stood on Luming Avenue in the eastern part of the county town.

The weather was fine today; outside the county office, Assistant Magistrate Diao was leading a group of clerks and government office runners, eagerly waiting at the gate.

Assistant Magistrate Diao, named Diao Guangdou, was a scholar around fifty, with a goatee, his official robe crisp—he was growing impatient, frequently peering toward the street’s end.

Finally, at one moment, Diao spotted a tall young Confucian scholar approaching with a large group—immediately, he rushed forward with his subordinates.

“Magistrate, you’ve finally arrived!”

Being warmly welcomed with tears by a man old enough to be his grandfather made Ouyang Rong deeply uncomfortable—he silently withdrew his hand and asked casually:

“No need to inspect my appointment letter or Ministry of Personnel documents, right?”

“No, no—we saw them that day. You’re our Magistrate, the righteous judge Longcheng has been waiting for.”

“Fine, let’s hold court first.”

“Yes, yes, yes… wait, hold court? Isn’t it supposed to be a welcoming banquet? Hey, who are these people behind you… why is Liu’s third young master here too?”

“There’s a grievance—of course we hold court.”

“But… but the flood destroyed the county office, including the main hall.”

“Then move the magistrate’s desk outside. This street’s perfect—plenty of foot traffic.”

“….”

Soon after, outside Longcheng County Office on Luming Avenue, an unprecedented court session began. Everyone took their places; crowds gathered from all sides, blocking the street entrance completely.

Ouyang Rong changed into his seventh-rank official robes and sat down.

“Court is in session.”

Assistant Magistrate Diao, seated beside him, struck the wooden tablet:

“Who stands before the court? Why have you come to file a complaint?”

Before the court stood Liu Zilin and the Hu Ji dancer named Yingniang.

The former had his hands behind his back, lips curled; the latter bowed her head, trembling.

For a moment, no one spoke.

“No grievance—dismiss court…” Diao turned to give orders.

Xie Ling immediately stepped forward, helping Yingniang up. “Don’t be afraid—speak your grievance. The Magistrate will uphold justice for you.”

Yingniang opened her mouth but hesitated.

Liu Zilin suddenly sneered.

Yingniang immediately dropped to her knees. “There’s a grievance!”

But before Xie Ling could relax, Yingniang turned toward Liu Zilin and banged her head on the ground:

“It’s Third Young Master who’s wronged! I spilled food on my own face, and that’s why his hawk chased me—it caused Third Young Master to be misunderstood by the Magistrate! It’s my fault, I’m lowly, Third Young Master is wronged!”

Liu Zilin stomped his foot on Yingniang’s head, halting her kowtows, pointing at her humble skull:

“It’s my hawk that’s wronged! All because of this worthless slut it got shot dead—go bury it properly, wear mourning clothes, and attend its funeral!”

“Letting your hawk injure people—and still daring to act tough!”

Ouyang Rong rose, snatched a sack of dead birds from Yan Liulang’s hand, and hurled it hard against Liu Zilin’s face. “Kneel before the court!”

Assistant Magistrate Diao hurriedly stood to intervene, whispering beside Ouyang Rong: “He’s the third son of the Liu family—maybe we should just let it go.”

Ouyang Rong ignored him, nodded to Xie Ling, who was still gripping her sword and clenched fist—she immediately seized a staff from a timid government office runner and stepped forward.

Liu Zilin blustered: “What are you doing? Using private punishment in court? I’ll report you to the prefecture!”

Ouyang Rong’s expression didn’t change—he struck the tablet: “Kneel.”

“I won’t kneel!” Liu Zilin lifted his neck. “I’m a scholar of the Prefectural Academy—I’m due to study at Bai Lu Dong this winter. I’m a scholar—I don’t kneel before officials!”

Xie Ling paused, hesitated, and turned to seek confirmation.

Diao also urged: “Yes, he can’t kneel—maybe we should postpone this case…”

Ouyang Rong suddenly smiled.

“Who said I wanted him to kneel to an official?”

He pulled a jade pendant from his belt and tossed it onto the table. “Funny—I and Brother Xie are also scholars of Bai Lu Dong. Our master is Deputy Headmaster—our seniority exceeds yours. In Confucian hierarchy, respect is ordered—kneel to me!”

Xie Ling raised an eyebrow, glanced at Ouyang Rong with faint admiration, but didn’t pause—she swung the staff straight into the bully’s calf.

Liu Zilin screamed, “Ahh!”—collapsed to his knees, clutching his leg and howling.

The crowd gasped—such brutality!

Xie Ling, who had been helping Yingniang, felt the onlookers’ stares and seemed slightly embarrassed—after a moment, she added coldly: “At the academy, when dealing with degenerates, breaking a leg is normal.”

The junior sister learned “justified action” quickly… Ouyang Rong suppressed a smile, then struck the tablet again:

“Now that you’re kneeling, we continue. Your crimes today: First, throwing objects from above, injuring pedestrians; second, letting your bird injure people, disrupting public order and frightening citizens; third, threatening women in court, twisting truth and falsehood.”

Liu Zilin snarled in defense: “Those were my dishes—I was giving them food, doing good deeds!”

Ouyang Rong grabbed a cup of hot tea from the table and splashed it on his face. “My tea—I’m giving it to you. Also a good deed.”

The crowd erupted in laughter.

Liu Zilin’s face flushed crimson, tea leaves clinging to his skin.

Ouyang Rong’s voice remained calm and orderly:

“Crime one: Compensate each pedestrian struck by falling objects ten taels of silver.

“Crime two: Compensate each frightened citizen ten taels of silver.

“Crime three… you kneel and kowtow to her the same number of times she did.”

“She’s just a slave! You want me to kneel to her??” Liu Zilin stared in disbelief. “It’s just silver, right? I’ve got plenty—how much? I’ll pay!”

Ouyang Rong ignored him, turned to Yingniang: “How many kowtows did you just make?”

Yingniang frantically waved her hands: “I didn’t kowtow, I didn’t!”

Ouyang Rong leaned closer: “What? A hundred? Fine—a hundred!”

Yingniang: “…”

Liu Zilin shouted in protest: “She clearly said she didn’t!”

Ouyang Rong casually tossed a bamboo tally: “Beat him!”

Liu Zilin was stunned and furious, about to speak, but Xie Lingjiang had already kicked him onto the ground before Yingniang, and Yan Liulang also raised his staff, beginning to beat his buttocks; the onlookers cheered loudly.

“Wait—wait… I’ll kowtow, I’ll kowtow!”

“You kowtow, she counts. Finish the kowtows, pay the silver, and get out.”

Ouyang Rong drew a divination slip and threw it down, then rose, brushed his sleeves, and walked to the three high steps of the county government office gate, turning to face the crowd, his voice ringing clear:

“I came to Longcheng for only one thing:

“To relieve the famine.

“To control the floods.

“And… to deliver justice!”