Chapter 1466: As Long As They Don't Die

"Someone come, take Wu Lin and Wu Mu to the torture chamber. Tell the brothers in the torture chamber to use the real tools, no fakes. Just leave them one breath of life, enough for the Six Doors brothers to take their statements!"

The jailers heard this and immediately got excited!

This was their specialty!

They promptly dragged Wu Lin and Wu Mu out of their cell and hauled them off to the torture chamber. The whole way was filled with the Wu brothers' screams.

Falling on Chen Chen Guanlou's ears, it was music to his ears! Like the simplest notes composing the most magnificent movement!

Excellent!

When dealing with criminals like these, strike hard, strike ruthlessly! No mercy whatsoever!

Said leave one breath of life, and absolutely not two breaths.

When the Six Doors brothers came to take statements, they saw only two blood-soaked humanoid lumps.

"Th-this… you lot went way too hard. How are we supposed to take statements like this!"

"Don't worry, both prisoners are awake, they don't dare pass out. Go ahead and record, guaranteed not a single lie!"

"Even if we can take statements, how are they supposed to walk to the execution ground looking like this?"

"Give it some time and they'll heal up, won't delay the execution."

"Tch… no sense of proportion at all! Who gave the order?"

"Our lord gave the order. He said these two came from the Great Wastes, never seen the specialties of Jingcheng, didn't know the height of the sky or the depth of the earth. So he instructed us to let them see what the government is, what the law is! We were just strictly carrying out our lord's orders!"

The torturer finished speaking, chuckling, the very picture of loyalty and virtue.

Little did he know, in the eyes of the Six Doors brothers, it was utterly chilling, their hair standing on end!

Way too terrifying!

Since it was Chen Chen Guanlou's order, what was there to say.

Take the statements!

After finishing the statements, the Six Doors men still muttered a couple of things in front of Chen Chen Guanlou, "Next time go a little easier, at least give us a heads up, we could have come early to take statements!"

Chen Chen Guanlou wore a beaming smile, "Didn't delay your work, did it! Since it didn't, why so much nonsense!"

Six Doors men: …

Forget it, forget it!

Can't afford to offend, can afford to avoid!

The wind's up, scatter!

As for the two prisoners, Chen Chen Guanlou instructed that only the most basic medicine be used to keep them alive, guaranteed not to die, everything else ignored. No painkillers, no bandaging of exposed wounds. If they ran a fever or got infected, give them a little medicine, whether they lived or died was up to fate.

He didn't even want to give the two prisoners any medicine at all, let them die for all he cared!

On second thought, they couldn't die just yet.

They had to be publicly executed, punished according to the law! Spread word of this case, let the people in the Great Wastes hear about it and weigh the consequences. It was also to comfort the victim's family, to give the surviving little boy some solace.

Without public execution according to law, it would never be perfect, wouldn't match this era's ideal way of dealing with the most heinous criminals. People want to see criminals executed according to law, only then does the heart feel satisfied.

Dying in a cell, what kind of business was that? Deeply unsatisfying!

Only by personally seeing the prisoners beheaded could the victims rest in peace!

Therefore…

"Treat their faces a little, at least let people know who's being executed at the grounds!"

Mu Yiguan Mu confirmed repeatedly, "Only treat the face, nothing else?"

"Only the face! Make sure people can recognize them!"

The sole survivor, the little boy, eight or nine years old, almost ten, remembered everything. Naturally he remembered the murderers' faces.

The fundamental purpose of treating the face was to comfort the little boy, to help him overcome his fear. To let him know that no matter how fierce and vicious the criminal, they too would be beheaded!

Having received his instructions, Mu Yiguan Mu indeed only treated the face; for other injuries, he simply applied basic medicine, just enough to keep them alive!

In the cells, the two brothers' agonized wails could be heard every day.

Those screams one after another stimulated the other prisoners, who cursed nonstop all day long, blasting the other party's ancestors back eighteen generations.

Some prisoners couldn't take it and decisively filed complaints, demanding a cell change!

If not granted, they'd self-harm, or go on hunger strike!

Huang Ye ignored them all!

When they starved until they had no strength left, a bowl of hot soup was poured down their throats, and they were alive again!

On and on, the hunger strikers also gave up hope, spending every day accompanied by screams, thoroughly tormented!

In the blink of an eye, three months passed, spring arrived with warmth and blossoms!

Finally shed the thick padded jackets and put on brightly colored spring clothes!

The Wu brothers' case was too heinous!

The higher-ups wanted to drag it out a while longer before sentencing.

Excellent!

Let the Wu brothers suffer a little more!

Weren't they so tough and reckless!

A tiny prison could show them what it meant to be under the Son of Heaven, what it meant to be at the foot of the imperial city, what it meant to be the bottom line of the law! They really treated Jingcheng like the Great Wastes, didn't know life from death!

Pure Yang True Man invited Chen Chen Guanlou to drink.

He knew it had to be about his cheap son Gu Shanhe!

Chen Chen Guanlou arrived at the appointment on time, the location a painted pleasure boat, privacy more than sufficient.

A True Man still has his reputation to maintain!

Couldn't openly visit a brothel, lest word reached the palace and the Emperor grew disgusted!

The moment the two met, before the wine and dishes were even fully served, Pure Yang True Man started sighing and groaning nonstop, ruining the appetite!

Chen Chen Guanlou found him thoroughly annoying.

"Could you show me a little respect? I haven't eaten my fill yet! Wait until I'm full, then sigh all you want."

"Fine, fine, fine. Eat first, eat first."

A moment later, Pure Yang True Man complained again: "Other people come to a painted pleasure boat to look at beauties and drink to liven the mood! But you? You came here specifically to eat the banquet. What a waste of money!"

"It's your money being wasted anyway. I'm happy!"

Chen Chen Guanlou wiped his mouth, having eaten to about seventy percent full—just right.

"Tell me, what trouble has that cheap son of yours gotten into for you this time?"

Sigh!

Pure Yang True Man let out another sigh.

"He doesn't want to stay at the Ministry of Justice anymore. He wants to transfer to the Ministry of Works, to learn some real skills."

"Coming to me about this is useless! Just say the word to Your Majesty, and Your Majesty will handle it for you."

Pure Yang True Man's mouth twitched. As if the Emperor were his family's, just say a word and it gets done—how shameless would that be.

He suspected the other man was mocking him, but had no proof.

"I know you're upset. Don't get upset yet."

Chen Chen Guanlou, hearing this, immediately rolled his eyes and said nothing.

Pure Yang True Man then continued: "That boy is a handful. Kicking out those two fellow villagers would have been enough, but he had to be clingy and keep dragging things out. Now a murder case has come up, and he's gotten dragged into it too.

I've already scolded him and warned him: from now on, except for his adoptive father's family, he is not to receive any person who comes to Jingcheng from the Great Wastes, nor have any contact with them! The Great Wastes is too wild a place—lawless, daring to cause trouble even under the Son of Heaven's feet. If I'd known from the start that he was hosting two fellow villagers from the Great Wastes, I would definitely have stopped him!"

After rambling on for a while, seeing Chen Chen Guanlou still not relenting, he said again: "That little boy—if he has nowhere to go, Jade Spring Palace can take him in, raise him to adulthood, and provide for his education. Once he's grown, his own wishes will decide. Whatever he chooses to do, Jade Spring Palace will give him a sum of money to start with—no less than a thousand taels! How about handling it this way—will it work?"

Chen Chen Guanlou reluctantly relented. "Fine! About the little boy, I've already looked into it. He has relatives, but those relatives probably can't be relied on. They've already started eyeing his family's house. They're not even afraid of a haunted house, or that family coming to haunt them. As for the house, ask the little boy's opinion, and you people at Jade Spring Palace help handle it properly!"

"No problem. Once the little boy enters Jade Spring Palace, his safety will be guaranteed!"