Chapter 151: Confession

Lin Jingle opened his mouth, then muttered, "No problem."

He continued interrogating, "Did you intentionally strike Dai Yong's dantian with lethal force?"

Pan Yun immediately shook her head, tears streaming down her face: "No, I was terrified then—I only wanted to save Cui Huai. Every move I made was instinctive defense; I never thought beyond that."

Lin Jingle sneered, "Is that so? But weren't you just choking Nong Zhiyi's throat to threaten us?"

Pan Yun cried even harder, snot dripping out.

Miao Zhen shifted her seat slightly away from her, then pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to her.

Pan Yun quickly took it, wiped her tears and nose, then choked out, "How could that be a threat? Nong Zhiyi was acting under someone's orders—everyone in the academy knows who that is. Didn't I just ask the academy to give us an explanation? What's wrong with that?"

"At most, I'd just finished fighting, my anger hadn't cooled, and my qi was surging—so I spoke harshly. But I never meant to threaten anyone."

Lin Jingle: …

Pan Yun seemed unwilling to stop, adding, "If Master Lin doesn't believe me, ask Headmaster Zhang—did he feel threatened by me back then?"

Wang Feiyin immediately turned his head, smirking, to look at Zhang Zi: "Zi, how did you feel back then?"

Zhang Zi's expression didn't change; he replied coldly, "Just children's outbursts. I felt nothing."

The students watching below whispered among themselves: "Wasn't it said that Headmaster Zhang's face turned green? That she was especially intimidating? But now it doesn't look like it."

"I was there. I can testify—she was terrifying. Even now, thinking back, my blood still boils."

"True—I was there too. I stood to the side. When she turned her head, she was looking right at me. You wouldn't believe it—I trembled inside, convinced she was about to fight Headmaster Zhang right then."

But few believed them. Everyone now saw only Pan Yun, weeping with snot and tears, looking pitiful.

Think about it—she's only nine, much younger than Nong Zhiyi and the others. Though she's a disciple of the Mountain God, and though she won the entrance exam against Zhang Weiyi, one of the prodigies, they still saw her as weak.

"Why are you all talking about this? Shouldn't you be discussing who's behind Nong Zhiyi and the others? Who's the mastermind behind such a big matter?"

"You don't know?"

"Should I know? The Criminal Law Hall hasn't uncovered it yet."

"Does it even need investigation? Use your toes to think—it's clearly the Zhang brothers from Fengqi Academy. I bet it's Zhang Weiliang, or maybe Zhang Weigang. Both have narrow minds."

"But weren't they sent down the mountain for training? Could it be Zhang Weiyi?"

"No way. Brother Zhang Weiyi wouldn't be so petty."

"Why not? Pan Yun defeated him in the entrance exam. He's a fifth-year student; she's a first-year, only nine. He's always been the top among us. Do you think he'd be fine being publicly humiliated like that?"

Zhang Weiyi: …

He coldly replied, "I don't care."

"I wasn't talking about you—why'd you jump in…?" The student's pupils shrank, stunned: "Brother… Brother Zhang…?"

Zhang Weiyi glanced at him, then squeezed past him to stand at the front row.

He dared not protest being cut in line—and stayed silent afterward, too afraid to speak further, though he nearly choked on it.

In the courtyard, Lin Jingle's interrogation continued: "Who is this mastermind you mentioned?"

Pan Yun lifted her head from the handkerchief and stared at Lin Jingle, firm: "Zhang Weiliang."

Lin Jingle showed no expression. Zhang Zi showed none either.

Lin Jingle turned to the three kneeling men beside him: "Is that true?"

As accomplices, the three had only minor injuries, but their faces were no better than Nong Zhiyi's or Dai Yong's.

After the incident, they'd been captured and locked up. Now, pale and trembling, they exchanged fearful glances, too timid to speak.

Nong Zhiyi, who had been silent, groaned and rose, clutching his stomach, his face white: "Master Lin, there's no mastermind. I ordered them to help me."

"Oh?" Lin Jingle looked down at him. "Then why did you ambush and beat up Cui Huai?"

"I wanted his money and resources, and to force him to hand over all his future cultivation supplies. I never expected him to resist—he had a powerful Peace Talisman on him. We got angry, lost control, and didn't hold back."

The other three immediately nodded, glancing nervously at Nong Zhiyi: "We… we followed Nong Zhiyi's orders."

Nong Zhiyi admitted: "Yes, they all followed me."

Lin Jingle sneered at him: "Now you're showing loyalty? Isn't that a bit late? We found you received a hundred taels from below the mountain five days ago. Who sent it?"

Nong Zhiyi turned pale: "I earned it selling talismans."

"Is that so? Who did you sell them to? Why wasn't the payment received then, but sent now?"

Lin Jingle asked in great detail: where the money came from, who sent it.

Nong Zhiyi broke into cold sweat—he couldn't lie, because Lin Jingle could check the bank.

Though banks couldn't reveal customer privacy, the academy's power might still uncover the truth.

Lin Jingle laughed bitterly: "How convenient—the money came from Linjiang Prefecture. Zhang Weiliang has been training there recently."

Zhang Zi looked expressionless and said, "If Master Lin has suspicions, he can send someone to bring him back for joint interrogation; if it is truly he who orchestrated it from behind, the Zhang family will impose severe punishment without mercy."

Zhang Zi said flatly: "If Master Lin suspects him, send someone to bring him back for interrogation. If he truly orchestrated this, the Zhang family will punish him severely."

"Fine," Lin Jingle said. "I'll send Criminal Law Hall personnel to bring him back."

Wang Feiyin: "How can we proceed now? Not everyone's here."

He pointed at Dai Yong lying on the wooden board: "If we don't treat him soon, even my miraculous healing won't save him."

Lin Jingle: "First, save him."

Wang Feiyin: "Who pays for the medicine?"

Zhang Zifang couldn't help sneering: "Wang Feiyin, if you can't speak properly, don't open your mouth. Didn't you hear your little disciple say she acted bravely? Even if we set aside whether Zhang Weiliang was behind it, Nong Zhiyi himself admitted they were the ones who attacked Cui Huai first."

"Pah! If you can't talk, stay quiet," Wang Feiyin snapped. "Are you deaf? My little sister said she acted out of righteousness. Even if we assume Zhang Weiliang had nothing to do with it, Nong Zhiyi admitted they were the ones who ambushed Cui Huai."

"Cui Huai isn't just our neighbor—he's my little sister's fellow disciple and close friend. Even if he were a stranger, witnessing such injustice, one should draw one's sword to help. What fault does she have?" Wang Feiyin glared at Lin Jingle. "Tell me—what did she do wrong?"

Lin Jingle paused, then said: "In this matter, she is blameless."

Wang Feiyin straightened up, proud.

Lin Jingle continued: "But she publicly threatened her elders and the academy, tarnishing its reputation—that is a crime."

Wang Feiyin: "You…"

Lin Jingle raised a hand to stop his protest, his gaze sharp as a blade toward Pan Yun: "Don't play the victim with me. You were threatening us. You were threatening the academy."

"Pan Yun, I understand you've only just joined the academy and feel no sense of belonging. But remember: once you study here, you are the academy's."

Lin Jingle spoke solemnly: "You study here for free. All your expenses and cultivation resources come from the academy. What we teach you isn't just how to survive—it's the foundation for you to reach the Dao. I know there are injustices here, but no matter what, you cannot deny the academy's teaching and protection."

"If there's injustice, go to the Criminal Law Hall or to your academy headmasters for justice. You must not turn hostile—or even hateful—toward the academy. Pan Yun, do you admit this guilt?"

Wang Feiyin frowned.

Pan Yun frowned too. She lowered her eyes, then rose, changed from sitting to kneeling, her face serious: "Master Lin is right. I was wrong. I truly have no sense of belonging to the academy."

She looked ashamed: "Ever since I entered, I've been targeted by my elders. I developed a terrible impression of the academy. Later, I was bullied by the three Zhang brothers. My anger grew. For over a month here, besides my fellow disciples from Yushan County—Xuan Li and Cui Huai—no one else wanted to befriend me. I felt no kindness from the academy. I'm young, so I thought wrongly—I felt resentment."

"When the incident happened, and I learned someone was behind Nong Zhiyi's attack, I grew even angrier. In my prejudice, I assumed it was the academy's elders. Today, when Master Lin shouted at me, I realized how deep my bias was. I shouldn't have let past grievances poison my view of the academy. This guilt—I admit it!"

The students whispered among themselves: "Honestly, if I were her, I'd be even more biased."

"Right—no wonder she's biased. After all, it was Uncle Zhang Zifang who personally placed her in Fengqi Academy."

"I thought he was being kind—wasn't he her patron?"

"Don't be ridiculous. Does he look like a patron? Why did Pan Yun fight the Zhang brothers the moment she entered? Because Zhang Zifang put her in Fengqi Academy. Has any new student ever lived there before?"

"There were three empty rooms. Normally, the top three third- and fourth-year students get them, based on merit points. Pan Yun and her two disciples moved in right away—who could accept that? That's why so many hate them, especially the third- and fourth-year seniors."

"If it were me, I'd hate them too. But now I hate Uncle Zhang Zifang more."

"Who doesn't?"

"Now that Pan Yun lists it out, she really hasn't received much kindness since entering the academy…"

Pan Yun's confession won her a wave of sympathy—few still believed she was guilty.

Lin Jingle listened to the murmurs below, then said: "Since you admit guilt, I'll punish you. According to academy rules: twenty strokes of the cane, and three months of penance on the Reflection Cliff."

"Wait," Wang Feiyin frowned. "Lin Jingle, are you taking revenge? She just asked for justice—and you're sentencing her to three months on the Reflection Cliff?"

(End of Chapter)