Chapter 20 Majesty
"Xiahou the martial hero!"
"From the bottom of my heart, on behalf of all the citizens of the city, I thank you!"
Pei Rong, seeing the flicker in Li Jing's eyes that clearly showed he was moved, quickly knelt on one knee, her face earnest as she spoke.
Influenced by her.
The surrounding citizens also knelt down, their eyes burning with fervor.
"Enough!"
"Enough!"
Seeing the people kneel, Li Jing couldn't help shaking his head. In the end, he too knelt on one knee, paying his respects to the citizens of the city, and said with great solemnity, "The people's wish is my command, I shall not decline!"
"Bravo!"
"Bravo!"
"Bravo!"
Seeing Li Jing agree, the crowd was overjoyed, with some people continuously shouting their praises loudly.
Unbeknownst to Li Jing!
At the very moment he agreed, a stream of official qi suddenly descended from the sky.
His originally sparse and faltering Life Chart was nourished by this stream of official qi and began to grow taller.
Within the red aura that looked like a pillar, an Exotic Beast resembling a tiger was born, roaring incessantly.
Affected by the roar of the Exotic Beast!
The white qi above the heads of the common people suddenly dimmed.
Some couldn't help but feel fear in their hearts, bowing their heads, not daring to meet his gaze.
If there were those who could perceive qi present, they would be greatly astonished.
Constitution!
Indeed, the qi above Xiahou Jiang's head was transforming into the Constitution, one of the nine sons of the dragon, also known as Bi'an.
Bi'an, also known as Constitution, is shaped like a tiger and ranked seventh. It has a penchant for litigation but also possesses mighty power. The tiger-head decoration above the Prison Gate is said to be its likeness. Legend has it that not only is Bi'an eager for justice and upholds righteousness, but it can also distinguish right from wrong and make fair judgments. Its awe-inspiring image is not only adorned on the Prison Gate but also lies prostrate on both sides of the main hall within the Government Office.
Whenever the official presides over the court, the ends of the items such as the administrative officer's tablet and the order-for-silence board feature its image. With an intimidating gaze, it watches over and maintains the solemn and upright qi of the court.
Li Jing could never have imagined.
That by merely accepting the position of Investigation Officer.
He would trigger the reverse flow of official qi, enhance his Life Chart, and even coalesce such an Exotic Beast as Constitution.
"Please ascend to the court, milord!"
"Please ascend to the court, milord!"
"Please ascend to the court, milord!"
The people unaware of the changes in Li Jing's Life Chart, only felt that he was more imposing than before, and an indescribable trust filled their hearts.
And it was exactly because of this!
That everyone was even more supportive of him.
"Please ascend to the court, milord!"
With the support of the populace.
Li Jing slowly made his way to the County Government.
After changing into his official robe, he strode to the center.
And amidst the expectant gazes of the crowd, he slowly took his seat.
Li Jing took his place at the main seat of the court for the first time.
The instant he was seated, the Constitution Exotic Beast above his head suddenly roared towards the heavens.
Influenced by him, the Constitution sculptures on both sides of the Government Office came to life as if alive, their expressions exceptionally vivid, and Golden Light shot out from their eyes.
The surrounding citizens were all amazed.
"It's alive!"
"It's alive!"
Some people even kneeled instinctively, kowtowing to Li Jing.
"Ascend to court!"
"Ascend to court!"
A few dozen soldiers temporarily transferred from the barracks stood aligned on both sides, their faces cold, emitting a strong aura of killing intent.
"Majestic!"
"Majestic!"
"Majestic!"
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
The specially made Killing Sticks landed heavily on the ground, making a bumping noise.
Whether ordinary citizens or others, all felt a sense of having their spirits captured. Some turned pale, their eyes darting away.
"What an imposing figure, Investigation Officer Xiahou is!"
Witnessing Xiahou Jiang's demeanor, whether it was Pei Rong or others, they couldn't help but nod their heads repeatedly.
The village elder's insight is indeed not bad.
Just as everyone was secretly feeling relieved.
The sounding drum outside was suddenly beaten by someone.
Everyone instinctively turned their heads to see, a man and a woman, two beggars, one big and one small, standing outside.
The male beggar, slightly taller, clutched the little girl with one hand while fiercely striking the sounding drum with the other.
The girl beside him seemed frightened and didn't dare to struggle, merely bowing her head low, her face as if scorched by fire.
"Eh?"
Li Jing couldn't help but be slightly stunned as he saw the two beating the drum.
So were the others!
Xiahou Jiang had just been promoted to Investigation Officer, and someone was filing a complaint?
Despite their confusion, Li Jing still turned his head and ordered in a low voice: "Bring the two of them to the court!"
"I am a humble dog egg!"
"I am little Cui!"
"Greetings to the master!"
The two little beggars were not very old.
The boy was about fourteen or fifteen, and the girl even younger, only eleven or twelve.
However, the two of them were quite brave and didn't appear too frightened in the courtroom.
After the two had knelt properly, Li Jing then leaned in to ask, "Those below, do you not have surnames?"
Hearing Li Jing's inquiry, the slightly older Dog Egg replied with a sad face: "Your Honor!"
"Both of us are wandering orphans, only knowing our given names, not our surnames!"
Little Cui beside him, although she didn't speak, also subconsciously nodded in agreement.
"Alas!"
Hearing the words of the two little beggars, many people couldn't help but feel a sting in their hearts.
What a pity!
However!
They also had an unspeakable curiosity in their hearts. Why would such beggars beat the sounding drum?
"Dog Egg!"
"This officer asks you, why did you beat the sounding drum, are you suffering from an injustice!?"
Dog Egg first bowed his head in the manner of the others before slowly articulating: "Your Honor!"
"The girl, Little Cui, next to me is supposed to be my family's child bride."
"Simply because my parents died, she wanted to break off the marriage and marry someone else."
"I could not bear it, so I dragged her to the court, hoping the master could stand up for me!"
"What!?"
Hearing Dog Egg's accusation, many already changed their expression slightly.
One must know, in ancient times, the status of women was not high. Child brides, in particular, were even more lowly. Saying child bride was almost equivalent to saying maidservant.
If Little Cui was truly a child bride, deserting her husband's family to marry someone else, she would be spurned by everyone.
After listening to Dog Egg's claim, Li Jing didn't say anything but turned his head to look at Little Cui beside him, speaking in a kind and pleasant manner: "Young girl!"
"You need not be afraid."
"Tell this officer, what exactly is going on here?"
Seeing that Li Jing did not have the fierceness rumored, Little Cui finally steadied her heart and spoke in a voice as faint as a mosquito's: "My lord!"
"I am not his family's child bride!"
"I am his blood sister!"
"After our parents died!"
"He wanted to force himself on me to become his wife!"
"Although I am but a beggar, and have not read much, I still understand honor and shame, and know that such actions are contrary to human ethics, a huge violation, and would even shame our ancestors!"
"That's why I absolutely refused!"
"What!?"
Hearing the little girl's words, everyone was taken aback, then erupted in uproar.
Their gaze towards the boy also became strange.
Marrying his own blood sister, this move was indeed audacious!
Many more were tonguing their disbelief.
Goodness me!
Isn't this a blatant defiance of human relations!?
If this is true!
This boy is truly despicable.
Seeing that everyone's expression towards him had subtly shifted, Li Jing, sitting above, looked at him with an odd gleam in his eyes.