Chapter 121: Fifty-third Watch【Display of Power in the Court】(Lower)

Fifty-third Watch【Display of Power in the Court】(Lower)

"Well said!" Hu Xiaotian's gaze fell on the four signature tubes on the case, each tube bearing one of the four large characters: enforce, law, strict, bright. The tube marked "enforce" held the arrest warrants, equivalent to modern arrest warrants; the other three tubes contained red, white, and black slips, each slip one foot long. A white slip represented one beating, a black slip five beatings, and a red slip ten beatings. According to the severity of the punishment, different colors and quantities of slips were selected.

Hu Xiaotian grabbed two black slips and threw them out, then said: "Take Wan Ting Chang——" He paused there on purpose.

Wan Ting Chang's heart gave a jolt. Damn, this is getting heated—this guy really means to go head‑to‑head with me? No way, how dare he not give our Wan family face?

Hu Xiaotian, however, was not aiming at Wan Ting Chang; he pointed at the two servants beside him and said: "……You two on the left and right, drag them out and give each five beatings! Seeing that you don't kneel before this official, if there is a next time, you will be executed without mercy!" Well said, smooth‑spoken, even the threat of execution without mercy came out.

Everyone was stunned. Damn, this new county senior is incredibly arrogant—like a cow doing a somersault, horns pointing to the sky. Next time we see him disrespectful, we'll chop off his head. This airs is no ordinary thing; even the county magistrate wouldn't dare say such big words lightly.

Wan Ting Chang had originally been startled, thinking the new county senior had turned hostile and would beat him, but then realized it was his servants who were to be beaten, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Yet soon he realized the truth: when you beat a dog, you look at its owner. Those two servants came with him; beating them is essentially not giving him face.

The bailiffs on both sides stared at each other; everyone knew these were the Wan family's servants, and everyone knew the Wan family's background.

Seeing the bailiffs unmoved, Hu Xiaotian grew annoyed and snapped: "Are you expecting me to do it myself?"

Murong Feiyan said: "No need for the senior to act, your humble servant is willing to take the job."

Liang Da Zhuang also stepped forward: "Senior, I'll do it!" This fellow, since he became a servant, has never had such a mighty and fierce aura. Originally he thought following the young master to this remote town as an attendant was like exile, but gradually he discovered that being out here wasn't as bad as imagined—in fact, it was more carefree and relaxed than before.

Hu Xiaotian waved his hand, fixed his gaze on the bailiffs, and pointed at the two responsible for the beatings: "You guys, hit them!"

The two bailiffs turned pale: "……Senior……"

Seeing them so frightened, Hu Xiaotian exploded, slamming the gavel: "Utter rubbish. Li Two, Wang Three—where are you!" He had just remembered the names of the two gatekeepers he'd seen at the county office entrance.

Li Two and Wang Three were actually in the hall; hearing Hu Xiaotian call them, they hurried forward, bowed, and said: "Senior!"

Hu Xiaotian said: "From today on, you two will swap duties with those two— they will guard the gate, and you two will be in charge of the beatings!"

Li Two and Wang Three were overjoyed. Knowing that beating people in the office is a cushy post, compared to the gatekeepers who have to endure wind and sun, it's like heaven versus earth. These two have dreamed of getting this job; unexpectedly, the newly arrived county senior granted it as soon as he arrived. To say these two are a bit simple‑minded—the county senior is after all the second‑in‑command of Qingyun Xian, with the magistrate Xu Qinglian above them. The sudden windfall dazed their heads. Indeed they rushed forward, pressed the two servants to the ground, pulled down their trousers, raised the board, and began striking.

Board‑beating has its technique; a true master can make the board crack loudly while the offender's flesh remains unharmed. It's said they practiced by hitting tofu—using a small board to strike a piece of tofu, only hearing the sound without breaking it. Afterward the tofu remained a neat square, but inside it was already mush.

Li Two and Wang Three obviously lacked such training; the ten blows landed solidly on the two servants' buttocks, making them wail nonstop, shouting "young master" the whole time.

Wan Ting Chang never expected Hu Xiaotian to say "hit" and actually do it; for a moment he was stunned by his aura. When he came to, the beating was already over. He angrily shouted: "Senior, what crime have these two servants of mine committed? Why do you not inquire into the case before striking?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "They dare to disrespect the court only because you failed to discipline them. Since you can't manage your own servants, this official will naturally discipline them for you." He inwardly sneered. You, a scholar, may skip kneeling, but your two servants are not scholars—I beat them openly and justly.

Wan Ting Chang now realized this Hu senior was not easy to deal with; he thought, when I return I'll tell my father to come and settle the score. However, Hu Xiaotian's beating of his servants had justification—after all, his two servants did not perform the kneeling ritual in court, and according to Dakang law they indeed deserved punishment. Wan Ting Chang recalled his main purpose for coming, clasped his hands again, and said: "Senior, I have a petition here; please review it."

Hu Xiaotian cursed inwardly: now you bring out the paper, Wan Ting Chang, acting as if the office were your own—how arrogant. He gave a glance; Murong Feiyan stepped forward and took the petition from Wan Ting Chang's hand.

Although Wan Ting Chang couldn't see Hu Xiaotian clearly, when Murong Feiyan approached he felt this constable looked familiar. After a moment he realized: this person is clearly the companion of that wandering quack. Recalling the newly appointed county senior's voice, he sucked in a cold breath from the depths of his heart—oh dear, I'm so muddle‑headed, I didn't even recognize that the person seated high in the hall is the very quack who swindled and deceived my household. This fellow has gall—daring to impersonate a county senior in the office! Wan Ting Chang's first thought was that Hu Xiaotian was pretending to be the county senior. To get a clearer look at Hu Xiaotian's face, he involuntarily stepped forward; Murong Feiyan snapped: "Impudent civilian, step back!"

Wan Ting Chang silently cursed; he could now be certain the person before him, the new county senior, was the quack who treated his brother's illness. His mind went into turmoil, a chill ran up his spine.

The petition was truly lengthy; Hu Xiaotian scanned it up and down, nothing more than pushing all blame onto Liu Kuohai. He set the petition aside, rubbed his eyes, and said: "Damn, why is the writing so tiny? Like flies—are they testing my eyesight?" Then he turned to Wan Ting Chang: "Wan Ting Chang, let me ask you—did Liu Kuohai ever strike you at that time?"

Wan Ting Chang shook his head: "No, he beat my servant and smashed my gate."

Hu Xiaotian said: "If that's the case, you step back first; when I need you to testify, you'll come forward again."

Wan Ting Chang, now dazed by Hu Xiaotian's change of identity, heard this and, without arguing, obediently stepped back. He needed to digest how that wandering quack had suddenly become the county senior of Qingyun Xian—not that he didn't understand, but the world's changes were simply too rapid.

Seeing that Hu Xiaotian had no intention of making things difficult for Wan Ting Chang, Guo Shouguang also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. If Hu Xiaotian were to turn hostile on the spot and give Wan Ting Chang a lesson, he too could not completely disentangle himself, after all the magistrate Xu Qinglian had entrusted this matter to him. Originally they had planned to give Hu Xiaotian a soft nail to bump into, but they hadn't expected him to be so forceful—right from disembarking his sharpness showed. This matter must be reported promptly to the magistrate.

After Wan Ting Chang stepped down, the two servants knelt honestly on the plaintiff's stone; having just received five blows, their spirit was completely crushed. Moreover, with their master absent, they had no ground for arrogance, heads drooping, faces mournful—like eggplants struck by autumn frost.

Hu Xiaotian said: "You two, look carefully—was it him who beat you this morning, and did he come to the Wan residence to cause trouble?"

The two servants glanced at Liu Kuohai, then nodded in unison, speaking together: "Senior, it is clear—this person came to the Wan residence to cause trouble; we tried to persuade him to leave kindly, but he not only refused, he also attacked us."

Liu Kuohai said: "You injured my father; naturally I must settle the score with you."

Hu Xiaotian snapped: "Nonsense, I didn't give you permission to speak!"

Liu Kuohai, scolded by Hu Xiaotian, felt indignant, yet he could see that so far Hu Xiaotian was targeting Wan Ting Chang, which meant he was siding with himself; Liu Kuohai hastily shut his mouth.

One servant said: "Senior, this Liu Kuohai is spouting nonsense; his father is the proprietor of the Spring‑Return Hall, invited by our master to treat illness at our home. Yet he not only failed to cure our young master's illness, but spouted absurdities, upsetting our master greatly. Our master has always been kind‑hearted and never blamed others deeply; he merely asked Liu to leave the residence. It was Liu himself who carelessly twisted his ankle, yet now he tries to pin the blame on us."

The other servant said: "Senior, Liu Kuohai and his father are clearly trying to extort money from the Wan family."

Hu Xiaotian asked: "What exactly ails the Wan family's second son?"

One servant replied: "Report to senior, our second son accidentally fell while drunk last night, hit his head on the ground, and thus fell unconscious."

Hu Xiaotian asked: "Which of you two discovered it first?"

The two servants each pointed at the other, saying: "He……" Only then did they realize why the county senior would suddenly ask such a question.

Hu Xiaotian slammed the gavel hard, roaring: "Exactly which one is it!" Actually, from the moment those two servants entered, he had recognized them as the ones who frequently went to the west wing to check on Wan Ting Sheng's condition. Since they had walked into his line of fire, they could only blame their bad luck; today he would certainly get to the bottom of Wan Ting Sheng's injury.

Second watch uploaded—hope everyone subscribes, preferably set auto‑subscribe! Your subscription is the source of power for Zhangyu's writing!