Seeing the old woman beside him move away, Zhang Xiaobai’s heart instead filled with fury.

Was he really that terrifying?

Could they truly be treating him as a murderer?

So his anger flared up, and he shouted at the old woman, “You better speak clearly. Don’t speak nonsense in this court hall, and don’t wrongly accuse me, or it will be a capital offense.”

The old woman’s body trembled!

Upon hearing the words “capital offense,” Magistrate Zhuo on the high bench picked up the gavel and struck it down fiercely, glaring at Zhang Xiaobai with fury. “How dare you intimidate the witness! And dare to speak of capital offenses—are you a magistrate?”

He wasn’t!

Zhang Xiaobai immediately put on a miserable face and replied, “Your Honor, I’m only asking her not to wrongly accuse anyone.”

“This is a court hall. No one is permitted to lie, including you.”

“I…”

“You be quiet. This official is not asking you right now.” Magistrate Zhuo turned to ask the old woman, “You, quickly tell everything you saw that day. Do not speak falsely, nor lie.”

The old woman leaned forward, looked fearfully at Zhang Xiaobai, then immediately lowered her head again. Her voice trembling, she said, “In… in response to Your Honor, at that time, I happened to be passing by the small alley behind the Zhao Family Troupe and heard people arguing inside. They were arguing fiercely, so I hurried over to look, and then I saw… two people from the Zhao Family Troupe. As it happened, I knew both of them—one was Young Master Wang, and the other was Young Master Zhang beside me. I heard them arguing about… something like a script or a role. At that time, Young Master Wang was very agitated, constantly shouting at Young Master Zhang, and even punched Young Master Zhang. The two got into a scuffle because of this. Young Master Zhang’s clothes were torn by Young Master Wang, and he was pushed to the ground. So, Young Master Zhang said at that time he would kill Young Master Wang. Young Master Wang didn’t pay attention and just left.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Magistrate Zhuo slammed the table.

“Bang!”

Deafening!

The entire hall fell silent.

Zhang Xiaobai’s heart trembled, his eyes flickering, and his hands hidden within his robe trembled even more violently.

Magistrate Zhuo looked at Zhang Xiaobai and questioned, “Zhang Xiaobai, do you admit that you did indeed have an argument with Wang Jun at that time? And said such words?”

“I…”

“Tell the truth now.”

Zhang Xiaobai’s chest heaved up and down, his eyes flickering even more intensely. Even if beaten to death now, he wouldn’t admit it. He took a deep breath and said, “I… I didn’t. Really didn’t. That day, I never saw Wang Jun, nor did I fight with him.”

“So you mean this woman is lying?”

“Of… of course!”

The old woman wouldn’t stand for this. She straightened up and said, “I didn’t lie. I saw it with my own eyes. Your Honor, everything I said is true.”

Zhang Xiaobai glared at her fiercely. “You’re so old, your eyes and ears don’t work well. Of course what you say isn’t credible. You must have seen wrong, and you must have heard wrong too.”

The old woman defended herself, “Though I’m old, my eyes and ears have no problems. I saw you and Young Master Wang arguing and fighting in the back alley, and you did indeed say you would kill him.”

“You… tell me, did someone give you money? To deliberately frame me?”

“Honorable magistrate, everyone can testify to my character as Li Daniang. If I speak even one false word, then… then let me die a terrible death.” The old woman kowtowed resoundingly to Magistrate Zhuo.

But Zhang Xiaobai just refused to admit it.

His slender fingers pointed at the old woman. “Heaven can see, I didn’t kill anyone!”

Suddenly—

A voice came from the crowd of spectators outside the court hall: “Your Honor, I saw medicine for treating scratches in Zhang Xiaobai’s room yesterday.”

Huh?

Everyone’s eyes looked toward the source of the voice.

The speaker was precisely the person who had gone to Zhang Xiaobai’s room yesterday to deliver costumes!

Xiao Jiang!

He had a completely resolute appearance.

When Magistrate Zhuo heard this, he immediately signaled to the constables blocking the entrance to the court hall.

Upon receiving the order, the constables brought Xiao Jiang into the court hall.

Xiao Jiang knelt on the ground.

Magistrate Zhuo pointed at him. “What did you say?”

Xiao Jiang said, “I went to find Zhang Xiaobai yesterday to deliver his costumes. He dawdled for a long time before opening the door for me. At that time his clothes were disheveled, and I thought he was hiding a woman in his room, so I went in to look around. I discovered some white powder on the table. At the time, I dabbed some with my finger and found it was medicine specifically for treating scratch wounds. I think it must have been that Zhang Xiaobai was injured by Wang Jun and was applying medicine in his room at that time. By coincidence, I went to deliver his costumes. In his nervousness, he didn’t even have time to put on his clothes, and the medicine was knocked over.”

Zhang Xiaobai’s face immediately turned white as a sheet. He looked at Xiao Jiang with astonishment and rebuked, “Xiao Jiang, why are you harming me too?”

I treated you like a brother.

But you want me dead!

No helping it—who told Zhang Xiaobai to usually be sharp-tongued and mean, unforgiving when in the right? Almost everyone in the troupe couldn’t stand him.

Xiao Jiang didn’t like him either, because every time he helped Zhang Xiaobai wash costumes, he would haggle down the price.

“I’m not harming you. Everything I said is true.”

“You…”

“Then why don’t you take off your clothes and show Your Honor! I’m certain you definitely have injuries on your body.”

Zhang Xiaobai instinctively used his hands to clutch tightly at the clothes on his chest.

So—

Magistrate Zhuo immediately ordered, “Someone, strip Zhang Xiaobai’s clothes off completely for this official!”

Strip them completely?

Did it have to be so brutal?

Two constables immediately stepped forward to strip his clothes.

Zhang Xiaobai struggled. “You… you don’t touch me.”

No matter how strong he was, he couldn’t withstand the strength of several constables.

In the end, his upper garment was stripped completely clean.

Revealing his fair, lean upper body, and the several scars on his chest.

Now he was unable to defend himself even with a hundred mouths.

Completely finished.

His entire person collapsed on the ground like a deflated ball.

Magistrate Zhuo said, “Zhang Xiaobai, now you have injuries on your body, which shows they were inflicted by Wang Jun. Both witness and physical evidence are present. Will you still not admit it?”

There was no way out; he could only speak.

After a moment of silence, he looked up and said, “Yes, at that time Wang Jun and I did indeed argue in the back alley. That was because… because the troupe master wanted me to be the male lead. He was dissatisfied in his heart and came to argue with me, so we quarreled. I was also beaten by him, scratched like this on my body. Could I not be angry? So I said I would kill him. But… I was only saying it. I didn’t really intend to kill anyone. Besides, no one saw me kill anyone.”

Magistrate Zhuo asked, “The coroner has already examined the body. Wang Jun’s time of death was between the end of the xu hour and the zi hour. Where were you during that time?”

“I was in my room.”

“Is there a witness?”

“After Wang Jun beat me, I went to buy some medicine for treating scratches. After that, I stayed in my room the whole time and never went out, because… I was worried about being discovered. How embarrassing would that be? Naturally I was avoiding people. Where… where would there be a witness?” Zhang Xiaobai was utterly helpless.