Since the Tang Nation capital had been relocated to the Eastern Capital, the Five Surnames and Seven Clans had not gathered together in An’du City for a full hundred years — though to say “Five Surnames and Seven Clans” was no longer entirely accurate. There were only four surnames and six clans now. The Suizhou Su Family had long since ceased to exist as anything traceable.

And after today, it was possible they would not even be able to keep “four surnames and six clans” intact.

The most treasured Fourth Young Master of the Yangdu Hua Family had died under unclear circumstances on the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s home ground. The Hua Family Head had publicly declared his intention to fight the Taiyuan Jiang Family to the bitter end, and had summoned the Three Courts to hear the case.

The previous midnight, the Court of Judicial Review’s Chief Justice Chen Yanfan, the Ministry of Justice’s Minister Peng Jing, and the Censorate’s Grand Censor Fang Feiguang had all arrived simultaneously in An’du City. By early morning, they had opened the hearing in the An’du Prefecture Office — the case of the murder of An’du Adjutant Hua Yitang and the Jingmen’s Lin Sui’an.

The three of them sat presiding in the seats of honor. Three old men, between them nearly two hundred years of age, who had ridden hard for three days without rest and yet showed not the faintest sign of exhaustion — their minds were completely sharp.

By comparison, Taiyuan Jiang Family Head Jiang Yongcong was in a pitiable state, needing to be helped to his seat and all but melting into it — a pool of soft flesh, his gaze unfocused, his color grim, drifting in and out of consciousness. It was said his eighty-third birthday was coming next month, and odds were he would not make it past this year.

With Jiang Wencong in such a state that he could manage no affairs at all, the entire Jiang clan deferred to Jiang Wende in all things — but the lineup of figures present today was simply too formidable, and even Jiang Wende, as Censorate Vice Censor, could only occupy a side seat.

On the right-hand side, in order: Ganzhou Jiang Family Head Jiang Xirong, Longxi Bai Family Head Bai Haoran, Yangdu Hua Family Head Hua Yihuan, Qingzhou Bai Family Head Bai Rong. Seated to the side: Imperial Scribe Bai Ruyi, Qingzhou Bai Family’s Bai Xiang, the second Hua daughter Hua Yifeng, the third Hua daughter Hua Yimeng, and Three Grain Academy’s Headmaster He Si.

The left-hand side was no less impressive: in order, Taiyuan Jiang Family Head Jiang Yongcong, Censorate Vice Censor Jiang Wende, Yingyang Ling Family Head Ling Xiufeng, Qingzhou Wan Family Head Wan Ping. An’du Prefect Jia Mu had been relegated to the very last seat at the end.

Court of Judicial Review’s Judicial Inspector Ling Zhiyan stood behind the recording officer — his position curiously beyond categorization.

Every person in the hall was a figure capable of turning the world upside down at will. On the surface, they maintained a veneer of civility. The atmosphere outside the hall, however, was taut enough to snap. The guards brought by the Yingyang Ling Family and the Qingzhou Wan Family were all hard men forged in battle, while the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s commanding Jinyu Guards were no easy opponents either. The two factions faced each other with drawn tensions, blades metaphorically pointed — and Gu Liang with his constables and yamen clerks caught between them, every leg trembling in the middle, could only brace themselves at the main hall entrance and pray that if it came to blows, they at least would not be the ones caught in it.

With the constables all occupied inside the compound, the task of maintaining order for the crowd of spectators outside the Prefecture Office gates fell to Jin Ruo and the Jingmen. People who had come simply to watch had filled the streets wall to wall, every one of them trying to cram closer, and Jin Ruo, the Four Saints, and Tianji had yelled themselves hoarse without making the slightest dent in the public’s enthusiasm for spectacle.

At the Hour of the Dragon, the hearing convened. The voice of the court rang out.

Grand Censor Fang Feiguang struck the gavel. “Call the plaintiff —”

Hua Yihuan shook out his robe and stepped forward, bowing respectfully. “Hua Yihuan pays respects to the three presiding officials.”

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan: “What grievance does the Hua Family Head bring before this court? Whom do you accuse today?”

“The plaintiff accuses the Taiyuan Jiang Family of directing An’du Prefect Jia Mu to conspire in the murder of his fourth brother Hua Yitang and the Jingmen’s Lin Sui’an.” Hua Yihuan produced a scroll. “Here is the written complaint.”

The mood in the hall turned grave. Outside, the crowd of spectators erupted.

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan and Grand Censor Fang Feiguang were both acquainted with the background of this case. Only Minister of Justice Peng Jing was an outsider to it. He read carefully, and his brow furrowed deeply. “What does the Prefect say?”

Jia Mu shot a glance at Jiang Wende, then stepped forward and cupped his hands. “There is absolutely no truth to this! The one who killed Colonel Hua was a band of mountain brigands from outside the city. They set fire to the Prefecture Office and took advantage of the chaos to loot and kill. Colonel Hua was unfortunately killed when he encountered the brigands while going to fight the fire. This has nothing to do with myself or the Taiyuan Jiang Family! Hua Family Head was not in An’du City at the time; he returned suddenly to this devastating news, and in his grief heard some rumors that led him astray. He has simply misunderstood!”

Hua Yihuan gave a cold scoff. He did not so much as glance in Jia Mu’s direction.

“As the plaintiff’s complaint states, Colonel Hua was murdered because he had been investigating an embezzlement case — and the Taiyuan Jiang Family, wishing him silenced, directed Prefect Jia Mu to kill him.” Peng Jing reviewed the complaint again. “The primary suspect in the embezzlement case was An’du Adjutant Zheng Yongyuan. Where is Zheng Yongyuan now?”

Jia Mu sighed. “Adjutant Zheng was, unfortunately, also killed in the prison fire.”

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan muttered, “How very convenient — no witness left to speak.” Grand Censor Fang Feiguang rolled his eyes. “What a suspiciously tidy coincidence.”

Peng Jing was taken aback — these two old rivals had been sniping at each other for over a decade, and had actually started completing each other’s sentences today?

“Whether it’s convenient or not, this official doesn’t dare say,” Jia Mu replied. “But Zheng Yongyuan is unquestionably dead. I, as An’du Prefect, would hardly commit murder over a minor embezzlement case — least of all the murder of the renowned Hua Fourth Young Master. The logic simply doesn’t hold.”

Hua Yihuan said coolly: “And what if what my fourth brother was investigating was not limited to this embezzlement case?”

Jia Mu: “I would ask the Hua Family Head — what else was Colonel Hua investigating? Are there statements, witnesses, and physical evidence?”

“Quite so,” Peng Jing echoed. “Where is Zheng Yongyuan’s statement?”

Jia Mu put on an expression of agonized distress: “After the fire, I searched the Prefecture Office personally. Nothing was found — most likely burned.”

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan: “How very convenient. Burned away.”

Grand Censor Fang Feiguang: “Burned away, too. What an extraordinarily timely burning.”

Peng Jing turned a look at both of them: Would you two please stop with the pointed commentary?

“Ahem — in other words, this case has neither witness nor physical evidence, and amounts to conjecture on the Hua Family Head’s part?” Peng Jing asked.

“There is, of course, physical evidence.” Hua Yihuan said. “It is in the hands of Court of Judicial Review Coroner Fang Ke.”

At these words, not only Peng Jing but Jia Mu and Jiang Wende both paused briefly.

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan seized the gavel and struck it. “Summon Court of Judicial Review Coroner Fang Ke —”

The words “Court of Judicial Review” were delivered at especially impressive volume, accompanied by a pointed sidelong glance at Fang Feiguang.

Fang Ke strode into the hall carrying a black cloth bundle, dropped it on the floor, and something dark and charred rolled out across the stone with a tumbling sound. Everyone leaned forward for a look — and found it was half a torso, scorched and blackened.

“This charred remain was recovered from the ruins of the prison fire. A total of seventy-nine such pieces were found, which assemble into forty-eight individuals. This particular piece runs from the neck to the lower ribcage. Its uppermost section was embedded in the earth and was not fully burned — the surface retains a small amount of intact skin.” Fang Ke arranged the piece neatly, produced a small brush to clean off the surface ash, then wiped it clean with white cloth. “Please observe — on the left shoulder of this body is a tattoo. The tattoo resembles a feather.”

Everyone pinched their noses and craned their necks for a look — and sure enough, there was a feather tattoo. And its shape was unmistakably familiar.

Bai Rong: “Good lord — isn’t that the exact tattoo of the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s Jinyu Guards?!”

Bai Xiang: “It really is the Jinyu Guards who killed my sworn brother! Return his life!”

Grand Censor Fang Feiguang snatched the gavel back and struck it down. “Jiang Wende — what do you say to this?!”

Jiang Wende paced forward, cupping his hands. “Grand Censor, this truly is a grave injustice to this official. At the time, the fire at the Prefecture Office was raging out of control, and manpower was insufficient. Prefect Jia called upon the Jiang Family for assistance, and these Jinyu Guards all went to fight the flames. Not only have they lost their lives, but now they are having murder pinned on them as well — this is truly chilling.”

Jia Mu: “Yes, yes — these Jinyu Guards were all heroes who gave their lives fighting the fire!”

Fang Ke: “Then why have these individuals all been reduced to body parts?”

Jia Mu: “Perhaps the fire was too fierce, and burning timber or roof beams fell and severed the bodies.”

“All of these bodies were severed by a sharp blade — not crushed!”

“Everything was burned to this state — perhaps Coroner Fang’s eyes simply went blurry and he made an error in his assessment?”

“That is absolute —”

“Ahem, ahem!” Peng Jing commandeered the gavel and struck twice. “This is a court of law. Private disputes are not permitted.” He paused. “Beyond the tattoos on the body parts — are there any other pieces of evidence?”

Hua Yihuan narrowed his eyes. Fang Ke went silent. A brief flash of satisfaction crossed Jia Mu’s and Jiang Wende’s faces.

And then, from outside the gates, the crowd of spectators and Jingmen disciples suddenly erupted in a rolling, surging wave of clamor. The crowd parted like water, and Jin Ruo came sprinting through the main gate, his face alight. “The witnesses have arrived!”

Through the crowd walked two figures, the open sky blue above them and the morning’s ten-thousand-pointed radiance behind them — for one brief and unreal moment, they seemed like beings descended from the heavens. As they entered the hall, the divine light around them fell away, and they became visible: one was a young woman in a short black jacket, a two-foot blade in hand, phoenix eyes piercing and bright, her bearing valiant and full of spirit; the other wore a magnificently elaborate wide-sleeved long robe, his complexion brilliant as a peony in full bloom, a small folding fan flicking open and shut in his hand.

Everyone in the hall rose instinctively to their feet, staring in stunned, speechless astonishment.

Jiang Wende’s pupils shrank to pinpoints, and the color of his face went entirely to iron.

Jia Mu’s legs gave out beneath him. He sat down hard on the ground, and pointed at the two of them with a shriek: “GHOSTS!! GHOSTS!!”

Grand Censor Fang Feiguang: “Heavens above, actual ghosts?!”

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan: “Tch. ‘Trouble lives a thousand years’ — how apt.”

Minister Peng Jing: “And these two are…?”

Hua Yitang: “This official — An’du Adjutant Hua Yitang —”

Lin Sui’an: “This commoner — Lin Sui’an —”

Both bowed simultaneously: “Paying respects to the presiding officials!”

Peng Jing’s jaw dropped. Hua Yihuan smiled for the first time. He stepped forward and clapped Hua Yitang on the shoulder. “Over to you.”

Hua Yitang grinned broadly. “Elder brother, have no worries!”

Hua Yihuan then glanced at Lin Sui’an. Lin Sui’an dipped her head in acknowledgment. Hua Yihuan withdrew to his seat with unhurried dignity.

Lin Sui’an swept her gaze around the room. Bai Ruyi was in tears. Bai Xiang was using his sleeve to scrub his nose — a pair of crybabies, true to the Bai family name. Hua Yimeng and Hua Yifeng had red-rimmed eyes as well, joined by a red-nosed He Sishan. Wan Lin stood on tiptoe waving cheerfully. Fang Ke turned his face aside and made a quiet, sniffling sound. And Judicial Inspector Ling —

Ling Zhiyan’s eyes were still as a cup of water. He curved the corners of his mouth, and gently smiled.

He said not a single word, yet Lin Sui’an understood completely.

He said: You’re both safe. That is enough.

Lin Sui’an smiled back. Ling, the most handsome in the land — you’ve worked hard.

Hua Yitang flicked a glance at Ling Zhiyan, then snapped his fan open with a sharp crack. “Respectfully submitting to the three presiding officials — on the night the Prefecture Office caught fire, this official and Lin Niangzi went to the prison to rescue those detained. Unexpectedly, we were intercepted on the way. Lin Niangzi risked her life, and with tremendous effort barely managed to get both of us out of An’du City. The ones who intercepted and attempted to kill us on that road — were the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s Jinyu Guards!” His expression hardened. “The two of us are the witnesses in this case!”

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan’s eyes brightened considerably. He lunged for the gavel but couldn’t quite reach it. Grand Censor Fang Feiguang got there first and struck it down. “Jiang Wende — with witnesses now present alongside physical evidence, what more do you have to say?!”

“Preposterous!” Jiang Wende bellowed. “These two individuals are standing here before us in perfect health — the charge of murder obviously cannot stand!”

“The Tang Code enumerates six categories of killing,” Ling Zhiyan said, stepping to Hua Yitang’s side: “premeditated killing, intentional killing, killing in a fight, accidental killing, killing through negligence, and killing in jest. Each carries its own penalty and sentencing standard. There are three principles for determining sentencing: first, the identity of the perpetrator and the victim; second, the method and outcome of the killing; and third — the motive for killing. The motive is the single most critical factor in distinguishing among the six categories.”

“The Taiyuan Jiang Family attempted murder but did not complete it — yet the murderous motive remains fully intact. This constitutes the grave crime of premeditated murder. If this is not properly adjudicated and punished, what does the rule of law amount to?!”

Jiang Wende’s brow and eyes twisted in fury. “I have already explained — the Jinyu Guards were only there to fight the fire. They did not kill anyone. That Colonel Hua stands here now is the greatest evidence of that! And everyone in Tang Nation knows that the Taiyuan Jiang Family and the Yangdu Hua Family have long had grievances. How can we rule out the possibility that the Yangdu Hua Family deliberately staged all of this to frame and bring down the Taiyuan Jiang Family?!”

He bowed to the three presiding officials. “The Taiyuan Jiang Family has been subjected to baseless slander and suffered a profound injustice. We earnestly request that the Three Courts conduct a thorough investigation, and bring the shameless individuals who have fabricated these accusations to justice — and restore the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s innocence!”

Lin Sui’an thought: Well. Worthy of the great villain. Reversing black and white really is this man’s exceptional skill.

“As for this matter…” Peng Jing’s own cold sweat was flowing freely. He sent rapid eye signals to his two colleagues — his meaning was unmistakable: Hua the Fourth is standing here completely unharmed. The murder charge collapses entirely. Shall we press on, or smooth things over and let it drop?

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan and Grand Censor Fang Feiguang seemed to have caught his meaning. They spoke at the same moment.

“Now that I think about it,” Chen Yanfan said, “I find myself rather curious about this motive.”

“What motive, exactly,” Fang Feiguang added, “could have been compelling enough to move the Taiyuan Jiang Family to go to such lengths against the Yangdu Hua Family?”

Peng Jing: “…”

What are you two doing?!

Hua Yitang looked exactly as if he had been waiting for that very half-sentence, and he caught it and carried it forward. “While reviewing the embezzlement case against Adjutant Zheng Yongyuan, this official stumbled across an old case — the case from thirty-two years ago in which the Taiyuan Qin Family was charged with treason. That charge was, in fact, a monstrous injustice, fabricated and manufactured from whole cloth by the Taiyuan Jiang Family!”

The entire hall fell into dead silence.

Everyone seemed to not quite process what they had heard. They stared at Hua Yitang blankly. After a long pause, Peng Jing ventured a careful question: “What did Colonel Hua just say?”

Hua Yitang’s voice rose three full tones: “The Qin Family Army treason case from thirty-two years ago was a wrongful conviction! The masterminds behind it were the Taiyuan Jiang Family!”

A boom — the hall and the crowd outside it alike exploded all at once.

Every great Family Head was rendered speechless in shock. Outside, the crowd let out a cry like a surging wave. Peng Jing struck the gavel again and again, “Order! Order!”

In the uproar, Jia Mu lay flat on the ground, every fold of his body trembling without pause. Lin Sui’an saw Jiang Wende staring at her with unblinking, venomous eyes.

Lin Sui’an blinked: Could it be that Jiang Wende also believed, as the others did, that she was a descendant of the Taiyuan Qin Family?

Peng Jing’s gavel was nearly shattered before some semblance of order returned. He drew in a deep breath. “Colonel Hua — this case is of enormous consequence. You must not make wild, unsupported accusations!”

“This official spent several days conducting investigations and has established a full account of this case from beginning to end.” Hua Yitang cupped his hands. “An’du Adjutant Zheng Yongyuan is the witness — and his true identity is that of an impostor. This individual’s real name is Xu Baishui, and he was the sole survivor of the Liu’an Xu Family all those years ago.”

“The Liu’an Xu Family were the key witnesses in the case of the Qin Family Army’s embezzlement of military funds thirty-two years ago — and that embezzlement case was the preceding cause that led to the treason charge. Xu Baishui himself testified that the embezzlement had been committed by the Xu Family in collusion with the Zheng Family, and had nothing whatsoever to do with the Taiyuan Qin Family. Only later, under the coercion and inducement of the then-Yi City Supervisor — that is to say, the current Censorate Vice Censor Jiang Wende — was the crime of embezzlement forcibly attributed to the Qin Family Army.”

Hua Yitang’s pace was neither too fast nor too slow, his tone neither too light nor too heavy — yet every word landed in those present like a clap of thunder.

Jiang Wende’s eyes bulged with fury. “Complete fabrication! Absolute nonsense! Zheng Yongyuan is dead, so naturally you can spin the story any way you please!”

Hua Yitang raised an eyebrow. “Xu Baishui was indeed silenced by your people — but his statement still exists, you know.”

Jia Mu: “Impossible! The prison was burned to nothing, and the entire Prefecture Office was searched top to bottom. Even the Hua household was searched and came up empty. There is simply no statement from Zheng Yongyuan anywhere!”

Hua Yitang fanned himself, a light laugh escaping his lips. “Some people are not only foolish but also blind. Doctor Fang — show them. Open their eyes a little. Broaden their horizons.”

Fang Ke inclined his head and called out, “Yita.” The blond Persian youth came walking in, cradling a square object covered in white cloth. Fang Ke pulled off the white covering — and the room recoiled in collective horror, nearly retching.

Beneath the cloth was an ornate glass vat, its transparent body filled to the brim with a medley of colorful internal organs, exuding a sharp and putrid smell that made every eye water. Fang Ke, expressionless, drew a long set of tongs from his sleeve, stirred about in the vat, and extracted an oil-paper package. He peeled back layer after layer of wrapping to reveal a scroll.

Fang Ke: “This is Xu Baishui’s statement.”

Everyone present: Urk.

No one dared take the document, so Fang Ke had no choice but to carry it to the three officials himself. Chief Justice Chen Yanfan and Grand Censor Fang Feiguang both held their breath and backed away as far as possible, nudging Peng Jing into the front position. Peng Jing — true to his reputation as Minister of Justice, a man who had seen everything — covered his nose with one hand and used his handkerchief-draped other hand to unfurl the scroll. The statement was in excellent condition; not a single character had bled or blurred. The smell, however, was genuinely terrifying.

All three men held down their rising gorge and skimmed through the statement at speed, and their expressions grew progressively more troubled.

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan: “Do you see this?”

Grand Censor Fang Feiguang: “I’m not blind.”

“The tattoo — the markings on the feather tail of the statement’s seal are unmistakably the Jinyu Guard insignia!” Peng Jing said through gritted teeth.

A sound came from Jia Mu that was not entirely human, and he collapsed in a heap on the ground. Jiang Wende’s body began to shake in a way that resembled a seizure. The fury in the eyes of everyone in the hall was nearly enough to engulf both men alive.

Longxi Bai Family Head Bai Haoran pointed at Jiang Wende with a trembling finger: “Ruination of the nation! Ten unpardonable crimes! Heaven’s punishment! Earth’s condemnation!”

He Sishan looked from the document at the scroll’s seal far across the room, and then looked at Lin Sui’an. Lin Sui’an gave a thumbs-up. He Sishan’s eyes filled with tears.

Fang Ke and Zhu Que completed the final bandaging, helped He Sishan back to his seat. Hua Yifeng gripped He Sishan’s hand tightly. He Sishan smiled and shook his head.

Grand Censor Fang Feiguang struck the gavel down hard. “Gao Hongbo — with iron evidence before you, what really happened thirty-two years ago? Will you not confess now and speak the truth?!”

Jia Mu — Gao Hongbo — began beating his head against the floor in a frenzy of rapid kowtows, “It was not me! This is all Jiang Wende’s doing! He forced me! He used the might of the Taiyuan Jiang Family to coerce me — to lure General Qin out of the city! He swore to me, he swore he was inviting the General to be a guest at the Jiang household, that no harm would come to the General, that is why I agreed! I had no idea the Jiang Family intended to harm the General’s life! I didn’t know it would lead to the catastrophe of Yi City — I was only following orders! It is not my fault! All of this is the fault of the Taiyuan Jiang Family! The fault of Jiang Wende!”

Everyone glared at Jiang Wende with murderous fury.

Lin Sui’an, Hua Yitang, and Ling Zhiyan exchanged a glance, their expressions growing grimmer still.

The true and difficult battle was only just beginning.

“Jiang Wende!” Chief Justice Chen Yanfan was so incensed he gave up even reaching for the gavel, slapping the table repeatedly with his bare palm. “With witnesses and physical evidence now fully assembled, you betrayed the Qin Family Army — you betrayed Tang Nation’s first war god — every account confirmed and every detail harrowing, an outrage against all human decency, a conduct unworthy of an animal! I will memorialize the Emperor and have you sliced to pieces in the execution ground, your three clans obliterated, as an offering to the departed souls of the Qin Family Army!”

Jiang Wende kept his head lowered. His body gradually stopped trembling. He straightened up slowly, and his expression, to everyone’s astonishment, had returned to perfect calm. “There is room for doubt in this case. I rather suspect that someone is using my name and that of the Taiyuan Qin Family to commit these heinous acts. Thirty-two years ago, the Tuzhan Nation’s ambitions were well known — they had besieged Yi City repeatedly without success, and certainly would have been glad to use a scheme of this kind to destroy both the Taiyuan Jiang Family and the Qin Family Army in a single stroke!”

“Gao Hongbo is the true traitor. He is the one who claimed to have personally witnessed Qin Nanyin conspiring with the enemy. He is the one who brought the accusation against the Qin Family Army. We were all deceived by him, and that is why the case was incorrectly judged! All of this is a conspiracy of Tuzhan Nation and Gao Hongbo!”

Gao Hongbo exploded in a torrent of curses: “You absolute bastard — it was plainly you!”

Jiang Wende: “Then tell me — if it was truly me who coerced you, do we have any letters exchanged between us? Any written documentation? Any third party who can testify?!”

The bloodshot rage in Gao Hongbo’s eyes nearly consumed them. “I dare swear an oath before heaven — it is this man who harmed General Qin, and if a single word of mine is false, let heaven strike me down —”

“Down with a lightning bolt, is it?” Jiang Wende said coldly. “Gao Hongbo — you just took a solemn oath earlier today. And as we have all seen, that oath amounted to nothing whatsoever.”

Then Jiang Wende turned and bowed once more to the hall. “Three presiding officials, honored Family Heads — I ask you all to consider: thirty-two years ago, Qin Nanyin was Tang Nation’s first war god. The Qin Family Army was the nation’s guardian force, revered across the entire country. My Jiang Family and the Qin Family had always kept to our own affairs — why would the Jinyu Guards have had any reason to surround and attack Qin Nanyin?! The logic simply does not hold. And as Judicial Inspector Ling himself just stated — the Taiyuan Qin Family had absolutely no motive to commit the crime!”

“Well, this is the motive right here!”

Suddenly, a scroll dropped from the sky — a green binding, a red phoenix-character seal, the title reading ‘Pick the Flower While It Blooms’ — and the moment it struck the ground and unrolled, its pages of dragon-scale parchment fluttered open, one after another revealing scene after scene of images so flagrant they burned the eyes.

The hall erupted in collective shock and alarm. Peng Jing slammed the table and shot to his feet: “What is this?!”

“Collect it, quickly!” Chief Justice Chen Yanfan yelped.

Ling Zhiyan crossed the room in a single stride and retrieved the scroll, laying it on the three officials’ table.

“Who is out there?! How dare anyone disturb a proceeding of the court?!” Grand Censor Fang Feiguang bellowed in fury.

In the air above, robes rustled — a figure skimmed across the eaves like a dragonfly touching water, and dropped gracefully into the hall. Black hair, black clothing, black boots, black sash, and on the face — a smooth, burnished silver mask with a faint scar below the left eye.

Lin Sui’an and Hua Yitang exchanged a glance, and both let out a long, deep sigh.

So it had come to this, after all.

“This one goes by Yun Zhong Yue — a thief.” Yun Zhong Yue cupped his hands. “This scroll was stolen by me from the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s Jiang Dongyi. Three presiding officials, please look carefully — what scene is depicted in these pages, and who are the subjects.”

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan, Grand Censor Fang Feiguang, and Minister Peng Jing unrolled the scroll again and turned through it page by page. Their complexions shifted from red to green, green to white, and finally settled on a comprehensive iron-gray.

Ling Zhiyan was on the verge of grinding his teeth to powder. Hua Yitang patted his shoulder and lowered his voice: “The pages involving certain individuals are not in there. Including those involving the Wan Family, and the others — all were destroyed by Lin Sui’an.”

Ling Zhiyan’s eyes flooded red. “This official understands that the Fourth Young Master and Lin Niangzi did this for the sake of the Ling Family. But the others — those who were violated by Jiang Yongshou — they…” His throat tightened, as if he were again about to vomit. He visibly crushed it down. “This official cannot bear it!”

Hua Yitang exhaled a long and heavy breath.

Lin Sui’an looked at Yun Zhong Yue beside her, and she had already worked it out. When Yun Zhong Yue had stolen the scroll, caused the chaos at the Yunshui River, and been entangled with them all this time — everything had been in service of this moment.

Yun Zhong Yue’s silver mask turned toward Jiang Wende. His voice made the mask itself hum and vibrate. “Taiyuan Jiang Family’s former Family Head Jiang Yongshou had a particular habit — whenever he engaged in intimate congress with another person, he would commission a painter to capture the scene. Over many years, this became the scroll that you see here before you.”

“The painter’s skill is considerable. Every subject’s identity is clearly discernible. Jiang Yongshou’s selection of subjects was deliberate and specific — all are martial practitioners, both male and female, predominantly in the prime of their youth. Three presiding officials, if you would turn to the first page — and read the opening passage.”

Chief Justice Chen Yanfan flipped swiftly to the first page, and the moment he had read it, drew a sharp breath. “The essence of martial power is the refined flower of yang…”

Grand Censor Fang Feiguang: “Where yin and yang are ordered and in harmony…”

Minister Peng Jing: “Absorbed into the body, prowess increases and lifespan extends — this is the righteous path…”

Though only a handful of lines had been read aloud, every person present was a seasoned political survivor of the highest order — and the implication was immediately and inescapably clear to all. Every face in the room took on an expression of deep revulsion.

“This picture scroll contains not only members of the rivers-and-lakes world, military officers, Jinyu Guards, and sons of noble families, as well as the Grand Martial Examination’s top-ranked martial champion — but furthermore —” Yun Zhong Yue’s cold laugh cut through the air “— Jiang Yongshou’s own son. Jiang Dongyi.”

The room collectively nearly lost its composure. Bai Haoran was incensed beyond words: “An utter abandonment of human decency, the behavior of a beast — such a degenerate, an affront against all heaven’s laws!”

Jiang Wende gave a cold laugh: “This person dares not even show his face, and is moreover a self-confessed thief. How can his testimony be trusted? Furthermore, this is nothing more than a painted scroll — anyone could have painted it. How is anyone to say the contents are not a fabrication?!”

That was precisely the greatest weakness of a picture scroll. Lin Sui’an thought. A painted scroll is not a modern video recording or photograph — it is a work of secondary creation, and its authenticity is inherently questionable.

Yun Zhong Yue gave a low laugh from inside his mask, raised his hand, and removed the silver mask from his face.

A wisp of wind moved across his temples, casting a faint, clear light.

Every person in the room, without exception, held their breath, covered their hearts, and was struck speechless by the force of what was before them.

Hua Yitang’s eyelids convulsed violently. He nearly crushed his fan.

Lin Sui’an was standing closest, and the shock hit her hardest. Her heart stuttered. Qian Jing nearly slipped from her grip.

The face beneath the mask defied the power of words to describe. Bright as the moon, clear as the wind, radiant as spring, pure as untouched snow — and the eyes, like a still autumn lake reflecting the entire night sky, their moving light so immense that all things drowned within them, and could not find their way back.

The strongest reaction came from Jia Mu, who let out a sound that was not entirely human, fell to the ground, and knocked his head against it in a frenzy, “General Qin! It was not me! The one to seek vengeance from is Jiang Wende! Jiang Wende forced me to do it! Everything was done at his command!”

He Sishan fixed his eyes on Yun Zhong Yue’s face, tears streaming freely down his cheeks, his lips forming again and again the words, “General Qin…”

Jiang Wende stumbled backward several steps, his voice breaking. “Impossible — that face — that face — there cannot be another face like this in all the world!”

Lin Sui’an surfaced from the shock slowly. Within Qian Jing’s memory, the angle of sight had always prevented her from seeing Qin Nanyin’s appearance. Only now did she realize — so this was the face of Tang Nation’s first war god. It was genuinely far beyond anything she had imagined.

Qingzhou Wan Family Head Wan Ping rose slowly to his feet. “You… can it be that you are… her son?!”

Yun Zhong Yue smiled, and the brilliance of it filled the entire hall. “My birth father was the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s former Family Head, Jiang Yongshou. I am the final witness to the Taiyuan Jiang Family’s monstrous crimes.”

Side Story

Jin Ruo’s jaw hit the floor: What the — what the — WHAT THE — Hua Yitang’s looks actually LOST?!