Chapter 128: What’s Your Identity? What’s Your Father’s Identity?
Chapter 128: Chapter 128: What’s Your Identity? What’s Your Father’s Identity?
The crowd was packed three layers deep, forming an impenetrable circle around the execution grounds. People stood on tiptoe, craning their necks, eager to get a glimpse of the daredevil who had impersonated a Jing’an Guard.
On the execution platform, Gu Mingshan knelt with his hands bound behind his back. His hair was a mess, and he wore a prisoner’s uniform of white cloth with black characters. His face was bruised and swollen, and his body was covered in wounds.
Beside him stood a tall, burly executioner, cradling a Ghost Head Saber in his arms.
A group of Jing’an Guards stood ramrod straight around the platform, hands on the hilts of their sabers, ready to deal with any emergencies.
Several meters away, behind a long table, Pei Shaoqing sat quietly in his official robes, waiting for the appointed hour.
Time passed, one second at a time.
"My Lord, it is noon." Sun Youliang looked up at the sky, then walked to Pei Shaoqing’s side to remind him.
Pei Shaoqing grabbed a token and tossed it out.
He lightly spat out a single word: "Behead."
"The Lord has given the order! The time has come! Behead him!" Sun Youliang took a step forward, his voice booming like thunder.
The executioner gave Pei Shaoqing a clasped-fist salute, walked around behind Gu Mingshan, and removed the Death Sentence Token from his back.
Gu Mingshan’s face was deathly pale, sweat pouring down his face as he roared hysterically, "Pei Shaoqing, I’ll be waiting for you in the underworld! You won’t meet a good end!"
Pei Shaoqing sneered. ’This guy is tough. Facing death, and he still hasn’t begged for mercy.’
’For a hard-headed man so eager to die, he was always happy to oblige.’
"Spare him!" Just as the executioner raised the Ghost Head Saber, a loud shout came from the city gates.
Everyone instinctively turned toward the sound. A group of Jing’an Guards on horseback was galloping into the city, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The cloud patterns on their collars and cuffs were a dazzling gold, while those on the uniforms of Pei Shaoqing and his men were red. This was the most significant difference between the official robes of the South Town and North Town Jing’an Guard.
Gu Mingshan was instantly ecstatic and burst out laughing. "You can’t kill me, Pei Shaoqing! My master is here in person. Just you wait and pay the price!"
The executioner turned his head to look at Pei Shaoqing.
’My Lord, should I still bring the blade down or not?’
"Halt the execution," Pei Shaoqing said, raising a hand.
"Yes, My Lord." The executioner stepped aside.
"Pei Shaoqing! How dare you!" The young man leading the Southern Garrison Jing’an Guard leaped from his horse, landing steadily on the execution platform. He glared at Pei Shaoqing, his face cold as he rebuked him, "You would dare execute a colleague without authorization!"
His dozens of subordinates followed suit, leaping onto the platform and warily eyeing the men from the Tongzhou Hundred Households, their hands never leaving the hilts of their sabers.
In response, the men of the Tongzhou Hundred Households rushed forward and surrounded them, their gazes hostile.
The crowd of onlookers scattered in an instant.
And as they dispersed, they did so with an unusual, unspoken quietness.
"And who are you?" Pei Shaoqing asked nonchalantly, not even shifting in his seat behind the table.
The young man pulled out his waist token and threw it. It landed like a dart on the wooden table in front of Pei Shaoqing, sinking three inches into the wood. "I am Meng Qingyun, a Hundred Households Commander of the Southern Garrison Command."
"So it’s Commander Meng." Pei Shaoqing effortlessly pulled the token out and tossed it back to him. With a puzzled look, he asked, "How have I executed a colleague without authorization? This criminal was impersonating someone from your Southern Garrison Command. He deserves death for that alone."
"Nonsense! He’s my squad leader, Gu Mingshan!" Meng Qingyun said coldly, catching his token.
"That’s what this criminal claimed as well, but he couldn’t produce any credentials." Pei Shaoqing shook his head, then looked at Meng Qingyun with a hostile gaze. "Since he couldn’t produce credentials, that proves he isn’t a member of the Southern Garrison Command.
And yet, Commander Meng, you insist he is. Could it be that you’re related, and you allowed him to run around swindling people in your name? Now that he’s been caught, are you trying to cover for him? Commander Meng, you mustn’t knowingly break the law."
Meng Qingyun frowned and turned to look at Gu Mingshan.
Pei Shaoqing was half right. He was indeed related to Gu Mingshan—Gu Mingshan was his brother-in-law.
"My Lord! He’s full of shit! It was him! He crushed my token!" Gu Mingshan yelled, craning his neck.
Meng Qingyun looked at Pei Shaoqing coldly, a humorless smile on his face. "Lord Pei, you truly are audacious."
"That is utter slander! My family has served as officials for generations, basking in the Emperor’s boundless grace. How could I possibly commit such a crime?" Pei Shaoqing declared, radiating righteousness.
Then, his tone shifted. "Besides, if what he says is true, why didn’t I just crush your token, Commander Meng? It’s clearly a groundless accusation!"
Meng Qingyun couldn’t be bothered to engage in a war of words with him. "Release my man at once," he said impatiently.
"Do you have proof?" Pei Shaoqing asked calmly.
Meng Qingyun’s face turned livid with rage. He snapped, "Do you expect me to return to the Capital City and bring back the roster of the Southern Garrison Command for you, the Lord of Pingyang, to inspect?"
"That would be acceptable," Pei Shaoqing said with a slight smile.
Meng Qingyun roared, "Are you going to release him or not?"
"I will never release a criminal." Pei Shaoqing’s voice was filled with righteous conviction, each word resounding. "Continue the execution. If anyone dares to interfere, kill them without mercy!"
"Yes, sir!" Sun Youliang and the others shouted in response.
At the same time, they all drew their sabers.
The subordinates behind Meng Qingyun also drew their sabers in unison.
The two sides faced off, the air thick with tension.
Meng Qingyun stared intently at Pei Shaoqing and said, word by word, "I don’t believe you actually dare to do it."
"Behead him," Pei Shaoqing said, his face devoid of expression.
The executioner gritted his teeth and brought the Ghost Head Saber down hard.
Meng Qingyun’s pupils contracted in shock. The long saber at his waist flew from its sheath like a streak of light, trying to intercept the Ghost Head Saber.
WHOOSH!
An arrow, a streak of black light, tore through the air.
CLANG!
With a sharp ring and a shower of sparks, the saber was knocked from Meng Qingyun’s hand, flying through the air before embedding itself in the ground. The impact forced him back two steps.
"My Lord!"
His subordinates behind him quickly reached out to steady him.
"Get off!" Meng Qingyun shook them off, then snapped his head up to look at a distant rooftop straight ahead.
There, clad in an emerald green dress that accentuated her graceful, voluptuous figure, stood Liu Yuheng. She held the Fallen Moon Bow, which was nearly as tall as she was, and had already drawn a second arrow. The sharp arrowhead gleamed with a cold light under the hot sun.
THWACK!
And in that same instant, the Ghost Head Saber fell.
Meng Qingyun whipped his head around to look at his brother-in-law.
Gu Mingshan’s head had already fallen, spraying blood everywhere. The headless corpse slowly toppled over, blood gushing madly from the stump of his neck. His head rolled a few times on the ground before coming to a stop face-up. The smile was still on his face, his mouth not yet closed, but his eyes were already vacant.
"AHHH!" Meng Qingyun’s eyes were bloodshot, looking as if they might burst. He snatched a saber from a subordinate’s waist and charged at Pei Shaoqing, his eyes blazing with killing intent as he roared, "You executed a colleague! You deserve death!"
"My Lord, don’t!" a Standard-Bearer behind him shouted in alarm, but it was too late.
Pei Shaoqing remained seated, a mocking look in his eyes. He leisurely lifted his teacup and blew on the surface, as if he didn’t even see the approaching blade.
CLANG!
Wang Peng parried Meng Qingyun’s strike, and the two became locked in combat, their clashing blades creating fierce gusts of wind and showers of sparks.
"They’re attacking our Lord! Kill them!"
Sun Youliang led the charge against Meng Qingyun’s subordinates.
The men of the Tongzhou Hundred Households immediately swarmed forward.
The North Town hated the South Town to the bone. Now that they finally had a chance for revenge, every man fought with all his might.
"The South Town is tasked with investigating the North Town! Resisting us with force is a death wish!" a South Town Standard-Bearer threatened sharply as he drew his saber to meet the attack.
But he didn’t scare a single person away.
A full-blown melee erupted between the two sides.
Liu Yuheng arrived gracefully, Fallen Moon Bow in one hand. Wielding an arrow as a weapon, she wreaked havoc, killing two men in the space of a few breaths.
"Stop! Everyone, stop!" Meng Qingyun looked around, aghast. He immediately dropped his saber and yelled at Pei Shaoqing, "Are you insane, Pei Shaoqing?! Do you really dare to kill all of us? Tell them to stop!"
’The only reason he had dared to attack was that he was certain Pei Shaoqing wouldn’t dare kill a Hundred Households Commander. But if their subordinates suffered heavy casualties, the situation would spiral out of control.’
’Pei Shaoqing might just decide to go all the way and kill him too. So, he decisively backed down to regain control of the situation.’
"Stop," Pei Shaoqing finally said.
Both sides stopped fighting. Because the battle had been brief, only three men had died, all from the Southern Garrison Command, mainly because Liu Yuheng was simply too powerful.
Meng Qingyun’s face was grim. He stared at Pei Shaoqing and said through gritted teeth, "The Lord of Pingyang is truly impressive. In all these years, no Jing’an Guard has ever dared to resist our investigation with force..."
"Don’t try to pin that label on me!" Pei Shaoqing cut him off, rising to his feet. He strode past the table and coldly demanded, "Were you investigating me? Or trying to frame me?"
"Of course it was an investig—" Meng Qingyun began to say.
THUD!
Pei Shaoqing suddenly kicked out.
Outmatched by the situation, Meng Qingyun didn’t dare to dodge.
And so he was kicked to the ground.
He had just started to get up when Pei Shaoqing lifted his foot and stomped on his face, grinding it against the ground. "Did you think I didn’t know who sent you? Hmm? Do you take me for a fool?"
To be stepped on in front of all his subordinates was the ultimate humiliation. Meng Qingyun was both mortified and furious, clenching his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms.
Pei Shaoqing applied more pressure, grinding Meng Qingyun’s face into a bloody mess. He looked down on him with contempt, as if observing a dog.
"She is an Imperial Consort, and I am the Lord of Pingyang. Her father is Marquis Pingxi, and my father is Marquis Weiyuan. What is your status? What is your father’s status? Is the conflict between her and me something you’re qualified to participate in? If you want to gamble on stepping on me to get ahead, you’d better be prepared for me to step on you!"
Hearing this, Meng Qingyun’s face twitched.
His composure finally broke.
Pei Shaoqing kicked him off the execution platform.
"Take your men and get the hell out! If you ever dare to set foot in Tongzhou City again, I’ll kill your entire family."
’He didn’t actually dare to kill Meng Qingyun. Everything he did today was to blow the situation up and force the Emperor to intervene. Killing Meng Qingyun would have been too troublesome.’
’After all, by not killing Meng Qingyun, he could still make an issue of Gu Mingshan’s identity, claiming he was forced to retaliate because Meng Qingyun had led his men to storm the execution grounds.’
’Furthermore, by letting Meng Qingyun return alive to complain to the Southern Garrison Command, the Emperor would have the perfect opportunity to mediate the conflict between him and Noble Consort Wan, and could also take his side in this North-South Town clash.’
’And he, in turn, would have to act just as the Emperor wished: eternally grateful and utterly loyal.’
’As for making a mortal enemy of the Southern Garrison Command...’
’That wasn’t even part of Pei Shaoqing’s calculations.’
’One Hundred Households Commander didn’t represent the entire Southern Garrison Command.’
’Meng Qingyun clearly had no significant backing, or he wouldn’t have risked listening to Noble Consort Wan and helping her deal with him.’
"My Lord! Are you all right?"
"My Lord!"
Meng Qingyun’s subordinates rushed to help him up.
"Get away!" Meng Qingyun shoved them aside, flying into a rage from the humiliation. He clutched his chest, shot Pei Shaoqing a vicious glare, and snarled, "We’re leaving."
The group departed with the corpse from the ground. Though they were still on horseback, their earlier arrogance was gone. They looked more like beaten dogs fleeing with their tails between their legs.
That day, Pei Shaoqing wrote a letter and had it sent to the Capital City.