Calamity Messenger-Chapter 82 - 66: Guarantee

"The Jie Family can also vouch."

Jie Zilong followed closely behind, standing with Shang Yue: "Our two families can vouch that Jiang Shi is definitely not the murderer."

"Eldest Young Master Shang, World Instructor..." Lu Wangji didn’t move his head, but his eyes slanted enough to gaze at Shang Yue, looking as sharp as an eagle, as cunning as a wolf, "Do you have the authority to represent your families in making this decision?"

"Jiang Shi is not an ordinary person; she has slaughtered noble clans ruthlessly, born into a humble background, and possesses the Power of Calamity. She can be regarded as inherently evil; if indulged, the consequences will be endless. Do your two families really want to vouch for her?"

By the last sentence, his voice had become extremely severe, almost threatening.

"Even though the Court is currently governed by Chancellor Shang, it doesn’t mean your Shang Family can overshadow everything." Chen Linchuan also said coldly, "If Jiang Shi were from a noble family, it might be forgivable, but she is just a Commoner Black Belt who has committed such atrocities. If this can be allowed, then what distinguishes our Liang Kingdom from the brutal northern barbarians? No sense of honor, no hierarchy, moral principles in chaos, good and evil clashing — have you forgotten the chaos of the Five Families two hundred years ago!?"

"No need, no need," Zhou Ye mediated, "It’s just a murder case, far less severe than the chaos of the Five Families. Let the Three Ministries handle it; why fight here until you’re red in the face? Besides, the chaos of the Five Families is so far back, few young people understand it now."

"I recently read ’Taiping Ji’ by Uncle Zeng." Qunyu Book said flatly, " During Jin Kingdom’s Taiping era, the Scholarly Clan dominated, suppressing Warriors, and even Third-Turn Messengers faced exclusion due to their humble origins, being ordered around by the Scholarly Clan. Eventually, the five major governors fragmented and became independent, noble families either fought against or joined forces, leading to scenes of corpses strewn across Lancang River’s banks, hatred boiling, mighty ones running rampant, the weak ones at their mercy, neither fully human nor ghost. Ultimately, Liang Taizu drew his sword to pacify the world, establishing the Ninth Grade system, stipulating that contributions affect family status. And thus came the peace and prosperity for one hundred and fifty years." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

"Exactly." Chen Linchuan nodded, "If even murdering young nobles with high merit is easily forgiven, who can trust the Ninth Grade system’s fairness? If strong bullying the weak is allowed, who can assure their family’s perennial prosperity?"

"Jie Zilong, Shang Yue, as noble families, are you leading the way in undermining the rites?"

The two sides on the field became tense, with the Jie Family and Shang Family wanting to protect Jiang Shi, but other families and the Court were determined to put Jiang Shi to death. Yet now all evidence points to Jiang Shi’s brutal murder of noble families, making things extremely unfavorable for her whether in terms of morality or the big picture.

Qian Gongyu managed to stop crying with difficulty, but her face was smeared with snot and tears, mixed with her animalized features that made her look like a filthy little tiger. She stretched out her hand to tug Shang Xinlei’s sleeve, sniffing hard but not saying anything, yet her tearful eyes fully expressed her plea — now only the Jie Family and Shang Family can protect Jiang Shi.

Shang Xinlei stepped back and said in a low voice, "They’ve joined forces. The Quan Family, Chen Family, Zhou Family, and Lu Wangji representing the Court — no matter who fabricated this murder case, Jiang Shi will definitely not escape, they’re using this case to put Jiang Shi to death."

"I have a way to prove Jiang Shi’s innocence!" Qian Gongyu said hoarsely, "Her clothes were definitely dirtied by Uncle Lin — Lin Yao. As long as we find Lin Yao, we can prove Jiang Shi was framed!"

"Let’s not talk about how to find him, how can you be sure Lin Yao is still alive?" Shang Xinlei sighed, "If they decided to do this, they must’ve made it watertight. A dead noble family member is actually not much, weighing almost nothing in Jiangnan City, but put this on the scale, it’s heavy as a thousand pounds."

"Rites and rules are Liang Kingdom’s greatest laws."

"The murder case is just an excuse." Jie Yuan Shao crouched down, took out a handkerchief, and wiped Qian Gongyu’s little dirty face, lowering his voice, "Even the Power of Calamity is merely an excuse — they just don’t want Jiang Shi to join the Shang Family or the Jie Family, willing to nip her in the bud without hesitation."

"Did you notice? The road to the personal score list is filled with the most elite soldiers, even other family guards are blocking there. They’re preventing Jiang Shi from retrieving her personal treasure chest." Jie Yuan Shao said with a hint of sarcasm in his voice, "They even want to seize Jiang Shi’s treasure chest."

"But to think they can make us bow just like this is too underestimating the Jie and Shang Families." She said seriously, "Rest assured, now it’s not just about Jiang Shi. To others, Jiang Shi is already one of us; if we can’t even protect you, where’s the dignity of our two families?"

"Exactly." Shang Xinlei’s tone was somewhat complex, "The dignity of noble families cannot be easily trampled."

Qian Gongyu immediately let out a sigh of relief; if Jie Yuan Shao said they would definitely protect Jiang Shi, she might not fully believe it, but if she said her family would protect Jiang Shi for dignity, she had no doubt whatsoever.

At the family level, honor and reputation are the most valuable assets.

Just at this moment, several squads of soldiers entered the camp, all armed with the Divine Machine Crossbow, forming a perimeter around the crowd. Although they didn’t lift the Divine Machine Crossbow, the murderous intent pervaded the forest, making noble youths watching the commotion feel the severity of the situation; some left discreetly, while more hid in safe corners to continue watching, unwilling to miss the unfolding drama — if the Five Major Families and the Court really clashed in the forest, witnessing such a thrilling plot, it would be worth it even if affected!

"Lu Wangji, what do you mean?" Jie Zilong was blunt in addressing his name, "What, do you also want to pin a crime of murdering nobles on me? With my status, it would at least take Group Elder Quan’s death for you to have the grounds to arrest me."

"Hey, Uncle Zilong, that’s not a funny joke." Qunyu Book raised both hands in surrender, "I’ve always respected you."

"Respect? If you came to negotiate slowly with me, fine, even if you bypassed me and approached the old man directly for a discussion, that would be acceptable, as long as courtesy precedes force." Jie Zilong raised his head, unable to suppress his anger any longer, "Instead, you’re telling me ’Jiang Shi committed murder’ all of a sudden, using rules and rites to press us so we can’t reach out — have you ever respected the Jie Family!"

"World Instructor, calm down." Shang Yue patted Jie Zilong’s shoulder and looked at Lu Wangji: "Lu Xiaoqi, what do you say? Even our two families’ guarantee isn’t enough?"

"What law allows your two families to vouch for a rebel committing regicide?" Lu Wangji said flatly. With hundreds of soldiers present and backed by three major families, he absolutely didn’t need to show face to the Jie or Shang Families, "If you don’t have evidence to prove Jiang Shi’s innocence, please step aside; I need to arrest the criminal Jiang Shi now. Or perhaps..."

"Regicide, an unforgivable crime, is one of the twelve Jade Laws set by Great Liang Ancestor at the founding of the state." He stared intently at both of them, his voice as deep as echoes from an abyss, "You want to go against the Jade Laws set by Grand Ancestor Emperor of Liang Kingdom?"

The forest suddenly fell silent, everyone waiting for Shang Yue and Jie Zilong’s reply. Depending on their answer, the soldiers’ Divine Machine Crossbows might shift their aim from Jiang Shi to them — no one can defy the emperor’s law, no one.

"Huainan Underground Palace Secret Realm." Shang Yue coughed, "If the name of our family alone isn’t enough, then adding this should suffice."

Everyone was taken aback; he continued, "I will mortgage the Huainan Underground Palace Secret Realm to the Court for five years, in that time, we will definitely prove Jiang Shi’s innocence. Should we fail to provide evidence then, the Huainan Underground Palace will belong to the Court."

"How about it?"