The days when I fished in Daming

"I'm sorry to have to obey."

"Guards, administer severe punishment! First, give him twenty strokes of the cane."

Simple and straightforward, Zheng Xiong is no longer acting.

Everyone in the hall was awestruck by Zheng Xiong's actions.

Kong Xi was alright; at most, he was a second-generation rich kid with no real power or official position.

Kong Xisi was different; his official position alone was enough to deter most people.

Not to mention that he was a member of the Kong family. Although there was a distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children, he was still a member of the Kong family.

If you count on your palms, there are no more than a handful of people in the entire world who would dare to torture Kong Xisi.

Without a doubt, Zheng Xiong was the one caught in that palm strike.

Do I need to repeat myself?

"Bang, bang, bang."

A series of muffled thuds followed.

"Aaaaah, Zheng Xiong, you'll die a horrible death!"

Zheng Xiong ignored him and let him curse. After a while, he fell silent, leaving only faint murmurs.

"My lord, the punishment is over."

Despite her aged appearance, Kong Xisi is in much better physical condition than Kong Xi.

Compared to Kong Xi's lifeless body, Kong Xisi could at least move around a bit to relieve his physical discomfort.

"Kong Xisi, do you plead guilty or not?"

"Not guilty."

"Then let's keep hitting you. Let's see if your bones are harder, or if my rod is harder."

"Give him another twenty strokes of the cane."

It must be said that Kong Xisi is quite a figure.

He then received twenty lashes, and apart from screaming in agony, he didn't utter a single word.

You have the bearing of this Marquis; this Marquis approves of you.

"Okay, stop, let him catch his breath."

After saying that, Zheng Xiong calmly picked up his tea and sipped it gently.

The entire courtroom fell into an eerie silence, broken only by the wails of the two men and the sound of Zheng Xiong sipping his tea.

The atmosphere in the room was slightly tense.

Zheng Xiong appeared to have stopped moving, but he was actually thinking about how to end this matter, which is why he tactfully drank tea.

Originally, taking down Kong Xi and Kong Xisi was just a way to clear my mind and ease my emotions.

As for the Kong family's revenge, it's nothing to worry about.

Zhu Yuanzhang already disliked the Kong family, so he wasn't afraid of a mere favorite minister.

The matter should have ended there, but Zheng Xiong suddenly changed his mind.

The two men from the Kong family were nothing more than playthings to him.

The Kong family, as a family that has truly been passed down for thousands of years, is still considered quite prominent in Zheng Xiong's eyes.

It should have ended here.

But Zheng Xiong suddenly realized that taking down two small fry wasn't very meaningful; if he was going to play, he should play big.

Once this thought arises, it spreads wildly in the mind like a virus, becoming uncontrollable.

There is something to say.

What's the point of being greedy for a few dollars from a child? If you're going to be greedy, be greedy all the time.

The same applies here.

What's the point of fighting small monsters? If you're going to fight, fight the big tiger.

Defeating a thousand small monsters doesn't necessarily yield as many loot items as defeating a single big boss.

Moreover, if planned well, there are many benefits.

The more Zheng Xiong thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. His eyes brightened, and he looked at the Kong family father and son with anticipation.

Even a single glance from that aggressive gaze sent chills down the spines of the father and son.

Upon closer inspection, it seemed like an illusion, very unreal.

After that, Zheng Xiong fell silent and received no punishment, leaving the two of them in agony.

Time also slowly passed by here.

I don’t know how long it took.

Suddenly, a figure appeared outside the door, followed by two, three, and a small group of people, which broke the eerie atmosphere once again.

"Xi Xue, how are you?"

"No need to think, you'll see it just by looking." However, Kong Xisi still mustered her courage and said to Kong Xixue, who hurriedly approached.

"Zheng Xiong framed me, and he also tortured my son into confessing. Brother, you must get justice for us!"

After saying this, Kong Xisi couldn't catch her breath and completely fainted.

Kong Xixue was furious when he saw this and roared at Zheng Xiong.

"Zheng Xiong, you forced a confession out of me. Do you have no respect for the law?"

“I certainly have the law, but it doesn’t apply to beasts, because beasts don’t deserve it.”

Kong Xixue thought a lot before he came, because he was targeting Zheng Xiong and there was a possibility that Zheng Xiong would turn against him.

To his surprise, Zheng Xiong immediately started cursing.

Kong Xi is a beast, Kong Xisi is a beast, then what am I?
Isn't this just insulting yourself?

I. . .

"His mouth is full of foul language; did he even finish reading those classic texts?"

Kong Xixue has quite a temper; he's rather interesting, which surprised Zheng Xiong.

"Tsk tsk, you're no better. You're supposed to be the Duke of Yansheng! Yet you're so vulgar."

"Thanks to you, now that you've taken over the case, I'm taking the person away. I'm not going to accompany you."

Zheng Xiong chuckled, his smile somewhat eerie, making him look exactly like a villain.

"That won't do, the case isn't closed yet! Just wait a moment, it'll be done in a bit."

"Impossible! Kong Xisi is an official, and his case should be handled by the Dali Temple. You have already overstepped your bounds and abused your power, which is against the rules. What gives you the right to continue the trial!"

"Why?"

Zheng Xiong thought for a moment and chuckled.

"Can't I be a little willful because I have so many iron scrolls?"

It was unexpected again; even though Kong Xixue had thought a lot, he was still caught off guard.

Who can I reason with about this?

For a moment, I was caught off guard and paused in surprise.

Just then, a person came running up to Zheng Xiong from outside the hall and whispered something to him.

Zheng Xiong was surprised at first, then said loudly.

"What? Your Majesty has given me another iron scroll? Your Majesty's kindness is beyond my ability to repay. I will remember it in my heart and live up to Your Majesty's expectations."

As he spoke, he didn't forget to stand up and bow towards the direction of the imperial city.

At this moment, Kong Xixue felt as uncomfortable as if he had swallowed a fly.

The most painful thing in life is not being stabbed in the back, but being betrayed.

Old Zhu's assistance made Zheng Xiong's words surprisingly reasonable.

The reason given for having many iron coils seemed to convince me.

"So what if you have a lot of iron scrolls! That's His Majesty's trust. You've taken advantage of His Majesty's trust to do evil, and I swear I'll impeach you."

"Is it okay if I don't participate?"

"impossible."

"Then I'm sorry."

?

"Men, seize Kong Xixue!"

These words startled Kong Xixue.

Everyone was stunned for a moment.

Although they all share the same surname, Kong, they are completely different from each other.

Kong Xisi does not represent the Kong family; he is dispensable.

Kong Xixue is completely different.

He can represent not only the Confucian family and the Confucian school, but even the orthodox school.

The two men were worlds apart in status.

There's no pressure in capturing Kong Xisi, and there's no pressure in beating him either.

Now that it's Kong Xixue's turn to be arrested, the pressure is immense.

Even though they were just constables and yamen runners, they understood what arresting Kong Xixue meant, and they all hesitated.

Kong Xixue said in even greater surprise.

"Come on, I'm standing right here today. Who dares to arrest me?"

"I dare!" (End of Chapter)