The capital is a grand place, and those who live here all carry some measure of arrogance.

From heaven to earth, from the ends of the world to the corners of the sea – where could a person not live well? Yet they choose to dwell at the feet of the Son of Heaven, to be trampled by others? Even so, merchants and travelers passing through the capital region all understand that the people of the capital are not born to be stepped on for amusement – in truth, they too can step on others. Either they have connections with the imperial family, or they have ties to heroes of past dynasties. In any case, for eight hundred years, those who ascend through Denglong Gate must never be underestimated.

“Let me tell you all – our Wang family has great origins and is by no means an ordinary household.” Early in the morning, the people of the capital were already gossiping. The speaker was a young woman holding a small infant. She was quite beautiful, standing in a narrow alley with downcast eyes, speaking coldly and instructively.

When the beautiful woman began to speak, discussions immediately erupted on all sides. The narrow alley was packed with common folk, all Beijing neighbors, and they didn’t look entirely ordinary either. A large auntie spoke in a low voice: “Sister, is your Wang family also Tatar?”

Hearing this word “also,” the hearts of the common folk trembled, and they all turned back anxiously to look. They saw that the large auntie had round eyes and thick brows, with a fierce tiger-like face, resembling Kublai Khan from paintings. When the auntie saw everyone staring at her, she was startled and realized she had spoken out of turn. She quickly shrank back into the crowd, not daring to make another sound.

Beijing had experienced rule by three foreign dynasties – the dark Khitan, the familiar Jurchen, everything was there. Seeing the Tatar had fled, the neighbors turned back and said: “Sister, what exactly are the origins of your Wang family? Could you be descendants of Wang Mang?”

Among those surnamed Wang throughout history, only Wang Mang had ever held imperial power, and he was a famously treacherous character. The young woman’s face reddened as she said: “No, our Wang family are not descendants of emperors, merely common people.” The neighbors laughed: “Sister, then what are you boasting about? If we’re talking about ancestors who were famous officials, are there too few of those in our Tongluo Lane?”

This was indeed true. Beijing was formerly called Jidu, Yanjing, and Zhongdu – it had many names and many emperors. There were Jin Prince Hailing Wanyan Liang, Yuan Emperor Shun Temür, leaving their seed everywhere. Even if a stone fell from heaven, it would crush three to five little dragon princes. As for literary figures and famous generals, they were countless. Look at Brother Zhao at the lane entrance who writes Spring Festival couplets – his slender gold script is masterful. Uncle Su who sells mutton at the roadside is skilled at herding sheep, suggesting his background also has some story.

The young woman gazed up at the morning glow, coaxed the baby in her arms, and smiled: “Don’t always think about emperors and generals going to war – life isn’t just about being an official and getting rich. Think of something else.” The neighbors frowned slightly and looked the young woman up and down. In the clear morning sun, after last night’s heavy snow, this young woman stood in the dawn light with slightly flushed fragrant cheeks and skin whiter than snow, as if she were born with rouge when she came into this world. Hearing her claim the surname Wang, someone suddenly shouted: “I know! You’re Wang Zhaojun’s great-granddaughter!”

The young woman smiled sweetly and brushed her beautiful hair: “My husband’s family is surnamed Wang, but my maiden family is surnamed Kong.” The neighbors were shocked and stunned: “Surnamed Kong? Your ancestors are… are…”

“Alright, stop guessing. Let me tell you myself.” The young woman coaxed the son in her arms and said with a smile: “The child in my arms has the single name Kun – he is the seventh generation legitimate son of the Beijing Wang family. He was born with a mission – to protect the entire world.”

“Protect the world?” The neighbors looked on in shock and fear: “Is he a heavenly god reincarnated?”

“Something like that.” The young woman held her infant and brushed her beautiful hair, saying calmly: “My son Wang Kun’s deceased father, the great ancestor, was the sixth disciple under Yongle Master Yao Guangxiao. Master Wang, with the personal name Yan. After Master Yao retired, he instructed our ancestor to settle in Beijing. No matter what happens, our family must never leave the capital, or else the world will fall into great chaos.”

The neighbors around were dumbfounded – no one had expected that the Wang family, appearing so ordinary, actually bore the responsibility for the world’s fate.

“Wang… Sister Wang, does this mean…” a young man said, lowering his head timidly in a cold voice, “your Wang family has lived in Beijing for generations to protect the people of the world?”

“You’re absolutely right.” The young woman closed her eyes serenely: “This Beijing imperial city was built jointly by Master Yao and Master Liu. Back then, Great Ancestor Yan left behind ancestral instructions saying that our Wang family descendants are connected to the world’s fate. Should there be ruin or death, migration or exile – as long as we leave our ancestral land, the world’s rivers and mountains will immediately shake, the people will be displaced, and the day of calamity and destruction will be at hand.”

The neighbors were filled with doubt and disbelief – they had never imagined such strange affairs existed in the world. As they looked at each other in bewilderment, suddenly a strange roar erupted.

“Bullshit!” In the sudden silence, a small old man pushed through the crowd and pointed angrily: “What seventh generation ancestor, eighth generation ancestor? Call out your sixth generation ancestor! I have questions for him!”

“The sixth generation ancestor isn’t here.” The young woman turned her head away and said coldly: “I’ve told you many times – he went out on business.”

“Not here?” The small old man said angrily: “I don’t believe it.” He pushed past the young woman and shouted toward the door: “Wang Yitong! You bastard, get out here! Stop having your wife fool me! Get out!” The old man’s language was unrestrained, and the young woman became angry too, her eyes reddening as she scolded: “I told you! My husband isn’t here! If you keep pestering and won’t leave, I’ll report you to the authorities!”

“Report to the authorities?” The small old man was slightly stunned, then became furious: “Good! You’re actually going to report to the authorities? Your husband owes me three months’ rent and now he’s hiding from me – what kind of reasoning is this? Come! Let’s go to the government office right now! Let the honorable magistrate judge who’s in the wrong!” He grabbed the young woman’s jade arm and shouted: “Come!” The young woman cried: “I won’t go!”

Early in the morning, the neighbors had stood for half an hour listening to the young woman talk for so long, finally understanding what had happened – it was the rent collector who had come. As for the sixth and eighth generation ancestors, it all came down to one sentence: the master doesn’t want to move.

As both sides argued fiercely, a kind-hearted auntie came over and said quietly: “Old sir, how much does Brother Yitong owe you?”

“Three taels of silver!” the old man roared furiously, repeating emphatically: “Did you hear? Three – taels – of – silver!”

Three taels of silver – too much won’t save your life, too little will take your life. Hearing this, the neighbors were shocked and immediately retreated in silence. The old man’s arrogance grew stronger, he pulled more tightly and shouted: “Pay up quickly! Otherwise give me back the house!”

“No!” The young woman was so anxious that tears rolled down: “Master Yao commanded that our Wang family descendants must never leave the capital, or else great disaster will befall the world!”

“Disaster your mother’s head!” the old man cursed: “If you don’t give me the three taels of rent today, I’ll make great disaster befall you!”

Just as they were pulling and cursing each other, suddenly a little girl rushed out shouting: “Mother!” She hugged the old man’s leg and bit down hard.

“Ah!” the old man cried out in pain. They say a fierce father has no weak daughter – looking at Wang Yitong’s daughter with her sharp teeth and quick mouth, she bit the old man until he cried for his parents in misery. As she was gnawing, the old man raised his palm and roared: “You little bitch! Just like your mother!” The slap flew out, aimed at the little girl’s face to make her cry loudly. Just as he was about to strike, suddenly his hand tightened – someone had grabbed it.

“A hero has arrived!” The neighbors were slightly shocked and looked back quickly. They saw a man wearing a cotton jacket standing proudly in the street, having caught the old man’s palm. They heard him say coldly: “Old man, they only owe you three taels of silver – is it worth making such a big fuss?”

The old man looked carefully and was startled to see such an ugly face – crooked mouth, slanted nose, squinting eyes coldly looking sideways. He couldn’t help but be greatly shocked and said tremblingly: “Dong Laowu?”

The neighbors cried out in alarm: “Dong Laowu!” Once these three words were spoken, the neighbors fled in terror as if seeing a demon. The young woman’s pretty face also turned deathly pale and her whole body shook. Only the little girl didn’t know better and still looked up to ask: “Mother, who is Dong Laowu?”

There are many “fifth sons” in the world – Wang Laowu, Zhao Laowu, Qian Laowu – but the most vicious one lives in Cat Flower Lane. His surname is Dong, he ranks fifth, and people call him “Crooked-Mouth Evil God Dong Laowu.”

Dong Laowu was lazy and good for nothing, pretending to be dead to get sympathy, but he was born with tremendous strength. He regularly gathered gangs and dominated the entire Cat Flower Lane. Recently, his claws had gradually reached toward Tongluo Lane, extending toward Green Bamboo Lane. Seeing the neighbors all staring at him, Dong Laowu sneered: “What are you looking at? Never seen a bad person before?” The neighbors were frightened and hurriedly looked down at the ground, not daring to look again. Dong Laowu scoffed and looked sideways at the old man, saying coldly: “Old dog, how much does this woman owe you?”

The old man laughed dryly: “Three… three taels of silver.” Dong Laowu twisted his nose: “Such a small amount is worth getting worked up over? How about this – for neighborhood peace, let me pay this money, how about it?” The old man said tremblingly: “You… you have money?”

“Money?” Dong Laowu smiled contemptuously, shook his hand, and scattered a handful of broken silver: “Ten taels of silver, treat yourself to a meal.”

The old man joyfully gathered up the silver, his smile coming from deep in his heart: “Thank you, benefactor.” He was about to take his leave when he was grabbed by the collar. He heard Dong Laowu say: “Don’t rush to leave. Come, come, come – first apologize to them properly, then you can go.”

The neighbors made sounds of surprise – seeing this Dong Laowu who usually committed all kinds of evil, today his conscience had apparently awakened and he was actually paying rent for others? The old man didn’t care about any of this – as long as he had money, that was enough. He quickly smiled obsequiously at the mother and daughter: “Sorry, sister-in-law. I was too hasty earlier and gave offense – please don’t take it to heart.” The young woman said quietly: “No… no problem. I also had my faults.” After exchanging a few words of courtesy, she bowed to Dong Laowu: “Thank you, big brother, for your righteous assistance. When our finances improve, we will certainly express our gratitude and repay you.”

Dong Laowu said: “Repayment isn’t necessary, but gratitude is required.” He put his hand on the woman’s shoulder: “Let’s go.”

“Go?” The young woman looked puzzled: “Go where?” Dong Laowu smiled: “Into the house – don’t you want to thank me? I’ll let you thank me properly right now.” He embraced the woman’s slender waist and was about to drag her into the house. The young woman was horrified: “Let go! Let go!”

Dong Laowu released his hands and frowned: “What? Haven’t even said one word of thanks and you’re already unwilling?” The young woman shouted: “Take back your stinking money! How dare you touch my body! Be careful – I’ll tell my husband and have him settle accounts with you!”

“Settle accounts?” Dong Laowu laughed: “What? You still don’t know about that matter?” The young woman said angrily: “What matter?” Dong Laowu smiled: “Sister-in-law, let me tell you – your husband is in prison.” The young woman was greatly shocked: “What?”

Dong Laowu smiled: “I witnessed it with my own eyes last night. This fellow went crazy and actually became a bandit at Hongluo Temple. Now he’s been thrown into the Ministry of Justice prison, waiting to be executed.” Hearing this, all the neighbors were stunned, not knowing whether Dong Laowu’s words were true or false. The little girl was frightened and began crying loudly. The young woman opened her mouth wide and said coldly: “You’re lying…”

Dong Laowu smiled: “Sister-in-law doesn’t believe it? Come, come, come – let’s go into the house and I’ll tell you in detail.” The young woman was pulled by Dong Laowu’s outstretched hand and couldn’t help but scream: “Help! Someone come quickly! Help!” The neighbors were dumbfounded – they had never expected that in broad daylight, someone would openly molest a woman. A young man pushed through the crowd and shouted: “Dong Laowu! Let her go!”

Seeing someone act righteously, Dong Laowu didn’t dare be too presumptuous. He released his hand reluctantly: “I’ve let go – what do you want to do?”

The young man shouted: “Dong Laowu! If you want to show off in Green Bamboo Lane, you’ve miscalculated! Let me tell you, my surname is Jing, and my ancestor was the world’s greatest hero, named Jing Ke!” Before the word was finished, Dong Laowu backhanded a slap, knocking the young man rolling away, saying lightly: “Nonsense. If you’re Jing Ke, then I’m the First Emperor of Qin. Let me tell you – I’ve trained in martial arts.”

To be a local bully, the most important thing is to practice martial arts for physical strength. Otherwise, if you’re weak and frail, how can you do bad things?

Dong Laowu laughed heartily. Seeing that the townspeople were afraid, he embraced the young woman’s shoulders and smiled: “Sister-in-law, let’s go.”

Just as they were talking, suddenly someone heavily patted his shoulder. Dong Laowu turned around to look and saw a strong man behind him – it was the pig-slaughtering butcher surnamed Huang from the lane entrance. He heard him laugh: “Dong Laowu? Do you know who my ancestor was?”

“Yellow cat, yellow dog, yellow-haired girl,” Dong Laowu sneered contemptuously: “How would I know?”

“Huang Chao.” The butcher surnamed Huang’s eyes revealed a fierce light as he said coldly: “A descendant of the Huang family is here. What exactly have you trained in? Speak up quickly.”

“If one day I achieve my soaring ambitions, I dare laugh that Huang Chao was no real man” – this ancient first fierce god was Huang Chao. Legend says this man caused great chaos in more than ten provinces south of the Yangtze River, killing eight million people. Indeed, his descendants also had black hair on their chests, broad shoulders and thick arms, slaughtering over eighty pigs each year. If it came to a hard fight, Dong Laowu was exactly matched. Seeing the descendant of Huang Chao appear, all the neighbors cheered. Dong Laowu couldn’t help but soften his tone and said with a forced smile: “Brother Huang, we don’t interfere with each other – let’s talk it over.”

“Talk it over?” The butcher surnamed Huang laughed: “With someone like you, I only have one word to say.” He bent down close to his ear, raised his big vinegar-bowl fist, aimed at the stomach, and delivered a vicious punch, laughing: “Fuck!” After a muffled groan, Dong Laowu fell to the ground, clutching his stomach and rolling. The butcher surnamed Huang sneered: “How’s that? Still comfortable?”

Dong Laowu laughed dryly and gasped: “Comfortable, comfortable.” The butcher surnamed Huang smiled: “If it’s comfortable, let’s fight again.” Dong Laowu gasped: “No, no – I need to find helpers.” The butcher surnamed Huang laughed: “Want to find brothers? Who do you want to find? Boss Cat from Sheep Market Street? The Dog Leg Gang from North City Suburbs?” Dong Laowu shook his head: “Stop guessing – we’re going to Dongzhi Gate.”

“Dongzhi Gate?” The butcher surnamed Huang’s eyes turned and he said in horror: “Wait! You… you’re going to the government office?” Dong Laowu sighed: “Nonsense, haven’t you heard? When petty people seek revenge and gentlemen file cases – we’re not hooligans or local bullies. When we get beaten, of course we find the constable brothers to help.”

Using violence to counter violence is absolutely wrong – the biggest gang in the world is at Dongzhi Gate. The people that government constables hate most are those vigilantes who seek private revenge and steal their jobs. Dong Laowu patted the butcher’s shoulder calmly: “Hurry home and make your final arrangements – the constables will arrive soon.” Thinking of how the Tongguan front lines had been extremely short of manpower these past few years, the butcher surnamed Huang turned pale with horror, quickly retreated backward, and no longer dared to come forward.

“Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha!” Dong Laowu laughed loudly and dragged the young woman toward the door again.

Everything in the world has something that overcomes it. Dong Laowu could defeat the refined young man but couldn’t beat the black-faced butcher. Yet however big the black-faced butcher’s fists were, how could he overcome the iron-faced government constables? Soon dozens of people would come calling with shackles and handcuffs, binding hands and feet – wouldn’t he become a big stuffed dumpling?

The trick to being a bad person is to report to the authorities. With hundreds of constables backing you, who would you still fear? Dong Laowu laughed wildly with pride when suddenly an old woman rushed out and shouted sternly: “Dong Laowu! Stop right there!”

Dong Laowu was slightly startled, then smiled with relief: “I wondered who it was – it’s Aunt Wang.” Wang Yitong’s old mother appeared, pointing angrily: “Surnamed Dong! You can go to the government office to report others, but can’t others report you? Let me tell you! If your dog paws dare touch one finger of my daughter-in-law, don’t blame the honorable magistrate for chopping off your dog head!”

Hearing this, all the neighbors cheered. Looking at this Old Lady Wang – usually muddled and incompetent, only knowing how to eat, drink, and smile foolishly – at this moment her head was crystal clear. The government office belonged neither to the Wang family nor the Dong family. If Dong Laowu could report to the authorities, couldn’t others do the same?

The laws of the Zhengtong Dynasty were strict. If officials were caught taking bribes, they were often slashed from neck to buttocks with a single knife and publicly skinned. If Dong Laowu wanted to collude with Beijing officials, he might as well report the corrupt officials together. Amid the cheering, Old Lady Wang stepped forward and pointed angrily: “Dong Laowu! If you still have any regard for the law, quickly release my daughter-in-law! Otherwise, you’ll die!”

“The law?” Dong Laowu blinked: “What law? The house rules of you people surnamed ‘Wang’?” The old woman said angrily: “Stop playing dumb! The law is the imperial law! Don’t you understand?” Dong Laowu made a long “oh” sound: “So that’s it.”

He nodded and sighed: “Old lady, you keep talking about ‘the law,’ but do you know what ‘the law’ is called?”

Old Lady Wang was bewildered for a long time, never having thought that “the law” had a name. As she hesitated and stammered, Dong Laowu opened his traveling bundle and took out a book to show to the townspeople.

What a thick book – a heavy, large volume. Dong Laowu pointed at the title and squinted: “Come look carefully – this is the law. Read it and see what the law is called?” The old woman squinted her dim old eyes and could vaguely see characters on the book cover – from top to bottom there should be six. She struggled to read the first character, mumbling: “Grand… Grand…”

Dong Laowu smiled: “Amazing, you can recognize the character ‘Grand.’ Now what about the second character?”

The neighbors swallowed and stared suspiciously – they probably all only recognized the character “ding.” Dong Laowu laughed heartily: “Alright, alright, this is called ‘Grand Ancestor Criminal Law Code.’ I won’t make it difficult for you.” He opened his traveling bundle and took out paper and brush: “I always carry government petition forms with me. Which charge do you want to file against me? Write it yourselves.”

The old woman snatched the paper and brush and cursed loudly: “Who’s afraid of whom? Beast! I’m going to charge you with molesting decent women and harboring evil intentions…”

Taking the brush, she pondered for a long moment, then suddenly turned around bewildered: “How do you write the character for ‘beast’?”

All the neighbors were stunned. Reading is good, reading is wonderful – but in all of Green Bamboo Lane, after searching high and low, only a few could read. The only literate hero in the entire lane was Wang Yitong, but now he was nowhere to be seen. What could they do?

The lane was very quiet. Dozens of people were there, yet no one knew what the two characters for “beast” looked like. Suddenly the refined young man said: “Wait! I know how to write ‘beast’!” He grabbed the paper and brush, about to sketch Dong Laowu’s portrait, when Dong Laowu kicked him away.

“Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha ha!” Dong Laowu looked up and laughed wildly: “Who has no regard for the law? Is it me, or is it you? Let me tell you bunch of fools! Dong Laowu offends men and women! Breaks rules and regulations, offends fathers and mothers – I break everything except the law! Want to talk law and fight law with me? Bring it on! Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha ha!”

Reason, law, emotion – emotion, law, reason. The first thing to do when becoming a bad person is to study writing well. There’s no help for it – who told them the law is written in characters?

A gentleman uses words, not fists. The bad people of yesteryear wielded swords and sabers, cursing fathers and mothers, constantly running afoul of the law. Today’s bad people wield literature and ink, speaking eloquently – fists and kicks are useless when a stroke of the brush can take off heads. Every one of them is an honored guest in the government offices. Poor Wang Yitong, having fallen into the legal trap, left the entire Tongluo Lane defenseless, ready to be slaughtered by anyone. The moment of invincibility had arrived – Dong Laowu held his fist in his left hand and brush in his right, the law in his heart and money at his waist, walking forward openly and righteously. Who dared curse him would have a thousand constables investigating at their home; who dared strike him would have Judge Bao majestically ascending to court. If the emperor killed him, he’d be a tyrant; if common people beat him, they’d be violent mobs. That mouth of his could criticize the court above and scold all people below. Dong Laowu was truly the greatest scholar in a thousand years!

Dong Laowu finally revealed his true form – his ancestor was not a local bully or bandit, but the Spring and Autumn chronicler of righteous pen, Grand Historian Dong Hu.

“Ha ha ha! Wa ha ha ha ha!” Chinese scholars had endured for thousands of years and finally came out on top today. Dong Laowu laughed wildly without end, dragging the young woman as he was about to step into the Wang family’s main gate, when suddenly a little girl blocked his way, screaming: “Let go of my mother!”

Wang Yitong’s daughter had come – small in age but great in temper. Dong Laowu frowned: “What? You want to fight law with me?”

The little girl shouted: “Yes! I want to fight law with you!” Dong Laowu smiled: “Little girl, what will you fight with? Do you have money? A brush? Or fists?” The little girl screamed shrilly: “I have someone backing me up!” Dong Laowu was surprised: “You have someone backing you up? Who?”

The little girl pointed at the heavens and declared boldly: “The—Heavenly—Lord—”

“The Heavenly Lord?” Dong Laowu was stunned and laughed: “What? Is there still such a thing in this world?” He yawned and walked into the crowd, looking up in all directions, cupping his mouth and calling: “Heavenly Lord! Someone’s calling you! Please respond!” After shouting several times, heaven naturally remained silent, and the human world was also still as winter cicadas. He grinned wickedly, turned around and laughed: “Little girl, the Heavenly Lord is very busy and has no time to pay attention—”

BOOM! A thunderous sound, smoke and dust filled the air, surging ten zhang high. Before them appeared a shocking great stone, ten feet long and wide, weighing a thousand pounds. The Grand Ancestor Criminal Law Code scattered and flew in all directions, slowly falling to the ground. Dong Laowu had disappeared without a trace.

The neighbors were dumbfounded and said tremblingly: “Where… where is he?” The words were still in their mouths when from under the stone, a finger tremblingly emerged, pointing at the neighbors’ shoe tips, then tilted to one side and lay still, exhausted.

“Aah!” The people were frightened and retreated. Just as they were panicking, they heard the little girl say with joy: “Everyone look! The Heavenly Lord has shown his divine power again!”

The neighbors looked up stupidly and heard a whooshing sound from overhead. Another large stone flew across the sky, and looking at its direction, it was heading toward the Ministry of Justice.

“I often ask myself – am I fundamentally a good person or a bad person?”

BANG! Something fell from midair – it was a palm slapping down on a table, making it shake violently.

Early in the morning at the Ministry of Justice office sat a person who looked neither good nor bad, neither beautiful nor ugly – he was a mysterious man.

The mysterious man was a rough male with a face full of curly beard and thick whiskers. Looking at him, his front was piled with case files, a fire tongs on his left hand side, and a soup bowl on his right containing full meat wontons – apparently his breakfast.

“Say I’m a bad person, and half the world would disagree. But if you say I’m a good person, probably another half would be reluctant and unwilling.”

The mysterious man lifted a spoon, scooped up wontons, put them in his mysterious mouth, and asked vaguely: “Do you know why it’s like this?”

“The reason is simple.” The mysterious man smiled coldly, asking and answering himself: “Because I’ve killed people.”

“Click click click click” – fearful sounds came from across the table, the sound of chattering teeth. With a clang, the spoon was put down. The mysterious man chewed wontons, his gaze lifting to stare straight ahead. He saw a man sitting before the desk, hands placed on his knees, face pale, whole body shaking, looking quite like a rat.

“The first time I killed, I was only sixteen.” The mysterious man smiled, chewing meat wontons while wiping soup from his mouth, saying vaguely: “Since then, I’ve killed like hemp – sometimes three in a day, sometimes one in three months. In any case, the people I’ve killed are countless. Over thirty-six years, calculating back and forth, at least a thousand people.”

The rat across from him shrank his head and lowered his hands, not daring to move slightly. The mysterious man smiled, his two lips opening and closing with delicious sounds, then said: “Precisely because I kill like hemp, among my close friends and old acquaintances, there’s none who doesn’t fear me; among neighbors and townspeople, there’s none who doesn’t avoid me. You’d think someone as fierce and cruel as me would tremble with fear and be unable to control himself in the dead of night, right?”

“Those who love others will always be loved by them; as for those who kill others, presumably everyone would want to execute them.” The man across was scared to death, trembling all over, his head shaking up and down, looking somewhat like nodding.

“Wrong!” The mysterious man slammed his palm heavily on the table, frightening the man across so much that his feet kicked and he bounced high up. The mysterious man reached out to pinch the rat’s cheek and sneered: “Completely wrong. Let me tell you – though I’ve killed many in my life, I always feel at peace with myself. Even if ghosts knock at my door at midnight, I still sleep soundly with my head covered, without any fear. Do you know why?”

The man across trembled in fear, knowing nothing. The mysterious man chuckled, turned around, picked up a thick stack of case files, and said calmly: “The answer couldn’t be simpler – because in this lifetime, all the people I’ve killed were bad people!”

BANG! The old case files crashed onto the table, revealing the two characters “Ministry of Justice” on the files. The mysterious man rolled up his sleeves, revealing two thick arms. He opened one of the case files and read: “In the fifth year of Jingtai, a female corpse was discovered in the suburbs of Nanhua City. This woman was only about twenty years old, her clothes disheveled, with strangulation marks on her neck, suspected of being raped and murdered.”

“Ah!” came a low cry of alarm from across. The mysterious man continued: “This woman was surnamed Guo, given name Jinhua. Shortly after her death, this case was suppressed and never solved. Pitifully, her five children became orphans, wandering the streets.”

In the candlelight, the mysterious man’s arms were carved with knife scars – the three characters “Guo Jinhua” with protruding scar tissue, looking terrifying. The man across had chattering teeth, having already guessed some of the details.

“Years passed, and this case was forgotten. The government office up and down paid no attention, but among all people under heaven, there was still one person who would never forget. Do you know who he was?” The mysterious man drank meat soup with heroic spirit. The rat across said tremblingly: “Is… is it you?”

“Heh heh heh heh heh.” The mysterious man crossed his arms over his chest and grinned: “To avenge his mother, that child went through countless hardships and finally became a government constable. Ten years passed, and he gained the favor of Minister Zhao, finally sitting in the fourth chair of the Ministry of Justice, specifically responsible for interrogating cases in prison. However, no matter how hard he tried, how much effort he put in, last year within Zhili Province territory, there were still seventy-eight…”

BANG! The mysterious man struck the case files on the table forcefully and said coldly: “Murder cases.”

A large brazier burned in the room. The mysterious man’s face was covered with sweat that gradually flowed from his eye corners, looking like two streams of clear tears. He wiped his face and continued: “Seventy-eight murder cases means there are seventy-eight children wandering the streets, right?”

The case files on the board table were stacked high like a small mountain. The man across bowed his head silently, unable to speak. The mysterious man said calmly: “When these villains commit crimes, they never think that the other party also has family members. Or even if they think of it, they simply don’t care. Even more hateful – every time we catch them, these people cry louder than anyone about being wronged, mistreated, and pitiful, but no one hears the cries of the victims. Don’t you think this is absurd?”

The man across had tears in his eyes and nodded. The mysterious man smiled, held fire tongs, and poked at a large charcoal brazier, saying softly: “Let me tell you – among robbery cases, theft cases, murder cases, and violent cases, the ones I hate most deeply are rape cases. I often think – if I catch these thieves, what should I do? Should I follow official procedures and let these thieves eat and sleep well, or should I use fire tongs to burn their faces and let them taste what’s worse than death?”

Sparks flew out, black coal turned over, and fierce red flames emerged. The criminal across waved his hands in shock, crying loudly: “No! No!”

“No?” The mysterious man chuckled coldly: “Isn’t it too late to say that? When you raped those women, didn’t they cry out these two words? Why didn’t you stop then? Ah? Ah!”

“No, no!” The fire tongs approached his cheek, and the criminal actually burst into loud tears. The mysterious man grinned wickedly: “Cry! Scream! Think about how you tortured those women! Ha ha! Ha ha! Tormenting you beasts, I’m never tired, you know? Wang… Wang…” He looked down at the suspect’s name on the case file and read in a low voice: “Yitong.”

With a hissing sound, the iron tongs moved forward to burn, and immediately a burning smell spread – something was burning.

“Help! Spare my life! I don’t know anything!” Hearing the criminal’s shrill wails, his spirit quite vigorous, the mysterious man couldn’t help but make a sound of surprise and slowly raised his head. Only then did he realize the iron tongs had missed by a hair’s breadth, merely grazing past the bandit’s face, burning his sideburns without actually burning this person’s cheek.

“Not bad luck.” The mysterious man chuckled coldly: “I’ve seen many refined scum like you. Tell me honestly – were the three rape cases at Xihua Gate, Anding Gate, and Yongding Riverbank your doing?” The criminal cried and wailed, desperately begging: “It wasn’t me, it wasn’t me.” The mysterious man said calmly: “Not you? If it wasn’t you, why are you so frightened?”

The criminal sobbed: “I… I’m afraid of you.” The mysterious man smiled: “Ridiculous. If you were really afraid of me, you would have confessed long ago. Come, let me see how tough you are. Wang… Wang…” He looked down and read the name on the case file again.

“Yitong.” With a hissing sound, the fire tongs shot forward and immediately burned something. A person’s shrill scream was heard: “Help! It’s not my business!” The scream was quite unfamiliar. The mysterious man looked up and was shocked to see a government constable hugging his buttocks, jumping up and down, then falling into a water bucket with a splash, producing clouds of steam.

Sobbing and crying, Wang Yitong’s head swayed as he cried, and at the crucial moment he had dodged away again. The mysterious man, having accidentally injured a colleague, couldn’t help but become furiously angry. He punched the table heavily and roared: “Do you really want to die? I’ll fulfill your wish!” He pressed down Wang Yitong’s head and raised the fire tongs toward the criminal’s left eye. Wang Yitong cried out in shock: “Save me! Save me! Someone please save me!”

“Save you?” The mysterious man laughed heartily: “Who can still save you? Give me a name! Maybe I’ll spare you!”

Wang Yitong cried and wailed. He knew he was finished. Having accidentally violated the law, he had become a bad person in the hearts of the people. Government constables looked down on him, and chivalrous heroes wouldn’t help him. In all the world and three realms, who else could understand his suffering? Wang Yitong stared blankly with tears flowing. He raised his head and suddenly thought of someone, immediately crying out in grief: “Heavenly—Lord—”

“Heavenly Lord?” The mysterious man blinked and smiled: “You’re looking for the wrong person. If there really was a Heavenly Lord in this world, he would have long ago made you villains suffer the consequences of your evil deeds. Would it be my turn to act?” He immediately raised the fire tongs and thrust forcefully, shouting: “Die!”

“What are you doing!” Suddenly came a furious shout. A figure rushed over, pushed the mysterious man away, and roared: “The court has repeatedly ordered that torture to extract confessions is forbidden! Why are you doing this again!”

The Heavenly Lord really showed his divine power. Wang Yitong fell to the ground crying and looked up at his savior. He saw this person had a naturally old face – it was the old Ministry of Justice constable who had escorted him back, the eternal jailer and petty official Wang Yashi.

“Bastard!” The mysterious man was furiously angry and slapped the board table again, shouting sternly: “Seventy-some murder cases in Zhili Province territory, with criminals who are brutal and lustful beyond measure – why do you still protect criminals?”

“I protect criminals?” Wang Yashi was furious and cursed: “This person committed robbery! Not rape! What am I protecting him from?” The mysterious man roared: “Still making excuses! Haven’t you heard? Those who rob money will certainly rob sex. This fellow had the guts to rob with a knife at Hongluo Temple – how would he lack the courage to rape women with a knife? Wang Yashi! Tell me honestly! Why are you protecting him? Could it be you’re also an accomplice?”

“Bullshit!” Wang Yashi was usually called a pig or dog by others, but being called an accomplice was a first. He was so angry that smoke came from all seven orifices, stuttering: “Dong… Dong Laoer, you… you stop slandering people!”

The mysterious man was originally surnamed Dong, ranking second in his family, and was apparently someone who hated evil as much as an enemy. He sneered: “I’m slandering people? You don’t even dare guarantee your own innocence! Do you dare guarantee he didn’t rape and murder? Do you dare? Do you dare? Speak up!”

Dong Laoer had a sharp tongue and even faster hands and feet. He pressed Wang Yitong’s head and pushed it toward the large brazier. Wang Yashi was furious at the sight and immediately fought with punches and kicks to rescue the man. Their subordinates also split into two sides, each cheering for their own. But both sides were evenly matched – after making a commotion for a long time, neither could do anything to the other. Wang Yitong leisurely poured himself tea to drink, planning to put up his feet and watch idly.

Suddenly BANG! Dong Laoer punched the table heavily, frightening Wang Yitong into jumping up. He heard him say hatefully: “You’re ruthless! Today I’ll let you have your way this once – no next time.” He looked down at the case file and shouted: “Men! Take this fellow to Cell Block C-6!”

Wang Yashi said angrily: “What Cell Block C-6? Do you have the final say in this prison?” He hurriedly looked down at the case file and shouted: “Men! Send him to Cell Block C-9!” The Ministry of Justice had several departments under it. One was called the Criminal Investigation Department, specifically responsible for examining cases and extracting confessions, employing over ten interrogation officers, of which Dong Laoer was one. As for Wang Yashi, he was under the Prison Administration Department. As long as prisoners finished being tried and stepped into the prison, they were under his assignment, so his power was also considerable.

A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H – the Ministry of Justice had extremely many prison cells. Who knew what mysteries they held? The two officials started arguing again, roaring at each other. Wang Yashi, fearing complications, immediately shouted: “What are you standing around for! Quickly take the man away!” A large group of jailers responded loudly and immediately rushed forward to drag the prisoner away.

Wang Yashi had won a battle. The prisoner had also escaped a calamity. Dong Laoer was filled with resentment: “The parasites in the government office specifically speak for prisoners! Are they worthy of the people’s trust?” He cursed a few times and asked: “Where does that prisoner live just now? What other people are in his family?”

The constables opened the case file: “That person has a wife living in Tongluo Lane.” Dong Laoer licked his lips and grinned wickedly: “That’s good. I’ll go to his house for a visit now and let him taste what it’s like to be a victim.”

The constables were greatly shocked: “Sir! You… you’re going to…” Dong Laoer said solemnly: “That’s right. We’re going to act on behalf of heaven again. Do you want to come along?” The constables swallowed and all shrank to the corner of the room, pretending to be deaf and mute.

Dong Laoer said contemptuously: “Go on, go be wise and protect yourselves, you selfish things.”

It was dawn, early in the morning. Dong Laoer packed up his official documents and stepped out of the government office. He saw the streets were dark and gloomy, not knowing how many more criminals were still hiding. He snorted: “Heavenly Lord? What right does that Wang fellow have to call those three words? When he was committing crimes, did he still have heaven in his heart? Heavenly Lord, if you really have eyes, you should have sent these rapists to hell long ago! Would there be room for me to act on behalf of heaven?” He put his hands together and prayed to heaven: “Am I right? Heavenly Lord?”

BOOM! Something fell from the sky, making the earth tremble faintly.

The constables had been gambling inside. Hearing the sudden loud noise, they looked at each other in amazement: “An earthquake?” They hurried outside to look and were shocked to see a huge stone on the ground, right in the middle of the road, having smashed a large pit. As for Dong Laoer, he had already disappeared without a trace. Presumably this person had very fast feet and had already gone to act on behalf of heaven.