Lin Qingge, vaguely guessing that it was probably nothing good, stepped into the prison. The smell of blood that hit her face wasn't exactly pungent, but it was quite strong.
After taking two steps inside, she saw the black figure standing in the middle of the corridor, with its eyes cast down, seemingly lost in thought, almost blending into the night. Lin Qingge couldn't help but speak up and admonish, "I say, Ling Han, you haven't killed someone again, have you?"
Hearing the voice, the figure, like a statue, finally moved.
She watched as he slowly raised his head, his black eyes, shining with a chilling light, looked at her coldly. Lin Qingge immediately felt as if she were being stared at by a highly aggressive large wild beast, a chill running through her entire body.
"You..."
Just as she was about to ask, Ling Han had already walked towards her slowly. Although the prison was dimly lit, making it impossible for Lin Qingge to see his facial expression clearly, based on her intuition from years of experience, she felt that even if he wasn't stone-faced, he certainly wouldn't be smiling.
Thinking of this, Lin Qingge silently grasped the powder given to her by Murong Bai. When he was only a step away, Ling Han finally stopped. He first sheathed the sharp dagger in his hand, which was as clean as new and unstained by a drop of blood, into his boot, and then took off the black cloak he had found from somewhere.
After completing this series of actions, he cupped his fists towards Lin Qingge: "My Lord."
"You...?" Despite owing him her life, he was still a death row inmate who had killed without remorse. Lin Qingge was unsure of what he intended to do. At the same time, she secretly weighed whether his sword was faster or her action of scattering the powder was faster.
But Ling Han, the person involved, seemed completely oblivious to his recent actions, his black eyes fixed on her. "Replying to my Lord, I have just given those people a small punishment as per your instructions."
Lin Qingge followed the direction Ling Han pointed and vaguely saw a pile of bloody, indescribable things tossed together. She craned her neck to scan the inside of the prison, and the previously sent patrons were all lying slumped on the ground. Beneath each of them was a large pool of blood.
Looking at the patrons, whose lives were uncertain, Lin Qingge said uncertainly, "Uh, are they all still alive?"
"My Lord, please rest assured. I merely severed their roots of sin. Although there was a lot of bleeding, their lives are not in danger. Because they were quite noisy, and I was worried they might disturb your and Madam's rest, I knocked them all out just now."
Lin Qingge, unsure if he was being so brazen because of his status as a death row inmate or if this was simply his style of handling things, twitched her mouth. Although she did want Ling Han to take special care of these scumbags, such clean and efficient methods were truly astonishing.
Feeling that he could go to the imperial palace and apply for the position of a eunuch, starting his second career, Lin Qingge decided not to look at the惨状 (cǎnzhuàng - tragic sight) in the prison anymore and turned to walk out.
But after taking two steps, she stopped again, asking doubtfully, "No, you castrated them, what does Xiao Hei have to do with it?"
"Constable Yan said that tiger and deer penises are both great tonics, so this thing must be very nourishing too. On the principle of not wasting anything, if people can't eat it, it can be given to dogs. At least the effort won't be wasted on outsiders. However, Xiao Hei seemed quite reluctant. As soon as it came in, it rushed out, and then Constable Yan went to catch Xiao Hei."
Lin Qingge, understanding the reason, glanced again at the pile of items she didn't have and thought to herself: No wonder Xiao Hei refused to cooperate, anyone, human or dog, would shake their heads at such disgusting things!
But—how did the brave Ling Han manage to cut off those disgusting things? Lin Qingge's gaze involuntarily fell on Ling Han's well-defined hands.
As if Lin Qingge's gaze was too obvious, Ling Han thought for a moment and explained, "Constable Yan held them down, Lu Mingxuan was responsible for undressing them, and I only needed to lift the knife and chop."
Upon hearing this, Lin Qingge finally understood why Lu Mingxuan had been gagging so much. It was certainly uncomfortable, both mentally and physically, for a con artist who used his looks to trick women out of their money to repeatedly watch the bodies of middle-aged men with flabby bodies and bloated bellies. It was even possible that it would leave him with a lifelong psychological shadow.
However, how did Yan Tinghao, that oaf, conclude that thing was a great tonic? How could a normal person arrive at such a conclusion? Feeling that having one's ears bleed was much better than being blind, Lin Qingge deeply regretted coming out for this stroll. After instructing the oaf Yan Tinghao to ensure the manager of Xiang Tang Pavilion was properly guarded, she yawned and returned to her room to rest.
The next evening.
Lin Qingge suddenly summoned Tang Wan'er, Chen Rao, and Liu Jinhua to the yamen and held court in a manner that was not open to the public.
"威……武……"
"汪……汪……"
Since Yan Tinghao had to guard the manager of Xiang Tang Pavilion, Er Niu and Xiao Hei were still acting as yamen runners.
"My Lord, my second brother is already dead, why have you summoned us here again?"
"Presumptuous!"
Lin Qingge slammed the gavel down abruptly, her voice stern and severe, "How dare you make such a racket in the public hall! Guards, twenty slaps to the face!"
"Yes, my Lord!"
Er Niu walked up to Chen Rao and slapped him across the face. Chen Rao, not expecting to be actually hit, took the blow squarely. Although not skilled in martial arts like Yan Tinghao, as a renowned strong worker in the village, Er Niu, as his name suggested, possessed great strength. With that slap, Chen Rao stumbled, and the cheek that was hit immediately swelled up visibly.
Feeling as if he had been hit by a black bear, Chen Rao's vision was still blurry with stars when the second slap, accompanied by the sound of wind, arrived as expected. Overwhelmed by the powerful force, he was directly knocked to the ground.
Immediately after, a dog's paw with sharp, mud-covered claws appeared before his eyes. He looked at the dog's paw being raised high, and then heavily patted on his... face?
!!!
Feeling that his dignity had been insulted, Chen Rao, furious, wanted to get up and deal with the audacious dead dog. However, he had underestimated his own strength and the size of the dog. Before he could even get up from the ground, he was knocked down again. Then, the dog's paw, with its sharp claws exposed, was raised high again, falling down like raindrops. Although Xiao Hei's strength was nowhere near Er Niu's, the pain from the claws scratching his skin made Chen Rao howl incessantly.
Meanwhile, Xiao Hei, afraid of being stewed, was working hard to prove its worth. But no matter how capable it was, it couldn't be proficient in arithmetic, so by the time Er Niu pulled it away, it had already scratched Chen Rao's face countless times with its paws.
Chen Rao, whose face was swollen like a pig's head and covered in scratches, could barely even open his mouth. He could only glare malevolently at the upright figure seated behind the desk with a venomous gaze.
However, Lin Qingge remained unconcerned. She picked up the gavel and hit it again: "Audacious Chen Rao, do you know your crime?"