Ji Fangming had known Kong Xianrong for quite some time, and their friendship was one of serendipity. They first met while taking shelter from the rain in a teahouse, where Kong Xianrong’s impromptu poetry impressed Ji Fangming with its brilliance.
The two hit it off immediately, engaging in delightful conversation and quickly becoming close friends and kindred spirits. They often likened themselves to Boya and Ziqi, the legendary friends of ancient China.
However, fate had other plans. When Jinxiu Fang was falsely accused, Kong Xianrong’s entire family was executed. Ji Fangming stood among the crowd, watching helplessly as his friend’s family met their gruesome end, their blood staining the ground.
In his final moments, Kong Xianrong spotted Ji Fangming in the crowd and offered a smile, as if to say that he had no regrets, for having such a friend in this life was honor enough.
Ji Fangming’s heart was heavy with grief. He knew his friend had been wrongly accused but felt powerless to help. Filled with self-loathing for his inability to act, the only thing he could do was to collect his friend’s remains for burial.
For years, he tirelessly searched for evidence to clear his friend’s name, but to no avail. It wasn’t until recently that he discovered Madam Chen was the one who had deliberately confused the summer clothes to frame Kong Xianrong and his wife, Zhang Baoying. Only then did he take action.
As Ji Fangming finished his account, a somber mood fell over everyone present. The loss of such a dear friend to false accusations and the execution of an entire family was a tragedy that would weigh heavily on anyone’s heart.
Shen Du’s expression darkened as he tapped his fingers on the table. “So, you admit to killing Madam Chen?” he inquired.
“Yes,” Ji Fangming confessed without hesitation, his eyes filled with a mix of sorrow and venom. “She deserved to die. Everyone at Jinxiu Fang died unjustly, and it was all because of her. She was the mastermind, the true murderer. By killing her, I was merely appeasing the spirits of my friend and his family. What’s wrong with that?”
“Even for the most heinous criminals, it is the imperial law that must pass judgment,” Shen Du replied. “If you had grievances, you could have petitioned for justice or appealed the case. Taking matters into your own hands and committing murder is wrong.”
Ji Fangming let out a bitter laugh. “You make it sound so simple, Grand Secretary. Petition for justice? Appeal the case? All these years, everyone knows Jinxiu Fang died unjustly, but who has stood up to speak the truth? Look at you, holding such a high position, trusted by the Empress – yet you’ve let this case remain buried all these years. What does that say?”
Shen Du remained silent. Ji Fangming wasn’t wrong, and even Zhu Yan had reproached him before for allowing unrelated injustices to slip through his fingers despite his position of power.
But who could understand his predicament? Others only saw his status and authority, never considering the constraints and difficulties he faced. Such was human nature.
Shen Du glanced at Zhu Yan, who stood silently at the side of the hall, her eyes downcast and pensive. Why wasn’t she interfering as she usually did?
Time seemed to stretch on endlessly, the oppressive silence in the hall making it difficult for everyone to breathe.
At that moment, a group from the inner hall carefully brought in Chen Shoujie. Qi Yeyun and two brothers from the Imperial Guard were watching over him, gesturing for him to remain quiet.
Noticing the silence in the main hall, Qi Yeyun scratched his head, wondering if they had arrived too late and the case had already been concluded.
As he pondered this, a voice broke the silence in the main hall.
“If you’ve already killed Madam Chen, why did you spare County Magistrate Chen Shoujie?” Shen Du asked, his tone even heavier than before.
“Madam Chen was the mastermind and deserved to die, but Chen Shoujie is no saint either. I didn’t spare him out of mercy, but because I didn’t have the chance to kill him,” Ji Fangming replied. He continued, “Grand Secretary, have you ever witnessed the moment when all the people of Jinxiu Fang were beheaded? The blood flowed like a river, and even three days of heavy rain couldn’t wash it away. The blood of every wronged soul flowed through the streets of Chang’an. Besides Madam Chen, Chen Shoujie is also culpable for this tragedy.”
“He protected the real culprit. He deserves to die…”
“Didn’t have the chance…” Shen Du interrupted, seemingly confused by Ji Fangming’s words. “With your skills, killing someone would be easy. Why say you didn’t have the chance?”
A cold, eerie smile spread across Ji Fangming’s face. “Wouldn’t it be too easy to simply kill them? When I dealt with Madam Chen, I hadn’t considered this, but when it came to Chen Shoujie, I suddenly thought of another approach. Why give them a quick death when I could torture them, make them experience the same helplessness and despair?”
Hearing this, Zhu Yan’s heart skipped a beat, and she looked at Ji Fangming with astonishment.
Ji Fangming’s eyes narrowed, filled with a mix of resignation and relief. “Brother Xianrong, I’ve finally brought justice for you all. It wasn’t in vain that I endured all these years. Your family’s death was so unjust, that not even the young children were spared from execution. Heh…”
Ji Fangming laughed bitterly, seeming to have lost his mind. “I wanted to use a sacrificial ritual to punish those who deserved it. I couldn’t let them off so easily. They had to die in agony. But I never expected Chen Shoujie to be such a coward, like a frightened mouse. Just one ritual, and he was scared out of his wits.”
“What ritual?” Zhu Yan asked urgently as if suddenly realizing something.
Ji Fangming’s expression went blank. “You wouldn’t understand. The return of the moth, eternal damnation, never to be reborn,” he muttered, making strange gestures. Then he opened his eyes, which were bloodshot. “These people are so sinful, they deserve to fall into the Avici Hell for eternity, never to be reincarnated.
But later, I found things weren’t going as planned. You started to suspect him, even though he had gone mad. So, I had no choice but to silence him!”
Ji Fangming’s words sent chills down everyone’s spines. Such a cruel method of revenge was beyond their imagination.
Everyone knew about the injustice of the Jinxiu Fang case, yet as he said, no one had stood up for justice. Even though he had killed those who deserved to die, he now had to pay with his own life for their sake.
It seemed unfair, but under imperial law, justice had to be served.
As the case reached this point, everyone present understood the whole story. Despite Ji Fangming’s unfortunate circumstances, the fact remained that he had committed murder. It was time to conclude the case.
In the inner hall, Chen Shoujie, who had been listening to everything, was now in tears. He seemed to recall the events of the past, filled with remorse.
“It’s all my fault,” he sobbed. “I shouldn’t have hidden the truth for so many years…”