Union

Chapter 88 Watching the Fun

Leaving aside the turmoil in the capital, Yunying, far away in Lingnan Prefecture, was unaware that the gifts from Lady Feng, the Duchess of the State, were already on their way to Lingnan Prefecture.

They only said that the day of Magistrate Fan's execution arrived quickly.

Yunying was too lazy to go out; she had no energy and was listless all day long.

Whether it was because she had no one to accompany her, or because she couldn't bear to see Yunying in such a half-dead state, Qiu Ning got up early in the morning and came to Yunying's courtyard, forcibly dragging Yunying out of the room.

Yunying's clothes were not properly put on, and her hair was a little messy.

She understood Qiu Ning's meaning and knew that if she didn't please Qiu Ning today, she wouldn't have a peaceful life.

Yunying had no choice but to compromise. She washed up again, changed her clothes, and then went out with Qiuning.

After leaving the house, Qiu Ning instructed the driver to head straight to Caishikou.

The market was packed with people; it looked like most of the county's residents had gathered there.

The carriage could not go any further when it was still a mile away from the market.

Qiu Ning and Yun Ying had no choice but to get off the carriage and walk over.

The streets were packed with people, even more than during a major temple fair.

Yunying was bumped twice, and her shoulder ached. She thought she shouldn't go. By the time she squeezed to the front, Magistrate Fan might have already been executed.

But Qiu Ning is unlikely to listen to her.

She dragged Yunying forward, saying, "I made a reservation at Yunlai Inn near Caishikou. I booked a private room on the second floor. Luckily, I acted quickly, otherwise all the rooms would have been booked."

He spoke while panting as he pushed his way forward.

Perhaps it was their outstanding appearance, or perhaps it was their clothing that revealed they were not ordinary people, not to mention the maids and servants following behind them.

Therefore, the people who were pushed aside by Qiu Ning didn't bother to argue with them when they saw them, and simply moved aside to make way for them.

We arrived at Yunlai Inn without any major incidents along the way.

When the two entered the private room they had booked on the second floor, they were both drenched in sweat, and their clothes were wrinkled and looked quite disheveled.

Qiu Ning was already regretting coming over, but as soon as Yun Ying said "I'm exhausted," Qiu Ning immediately retorted, "It's alright, I'm not that tired. You've just been lying in the manor for too long, and your body is weak, that's why you feel like you can't take it anymore."

After drinking a few sips of herbal tea, the sweat on her body subsided. Looking down at the people on the rooftops and trees below, Qiu Ning said to Yun Ying with lingering fear, "Luckily I booked a private room, otherwise we wouldn't know where we'd be now."

Yunying was too lazy to even complain about her. She just silently drank her tea and looked at the vegetable market not far away.

The commotion at Caishikou was so loud that even from a distance, Yunying could hear someone shouting, "They're here! They're coming over! The yamen runners are bringing people over!"

Sure enough, a little while later, bailiffs dragged Magistrate Fan and his entourage out.

Yunying didn't know the others, but she had met Magistrate Fan a few times before, so she recognized him when he appeared.

But she almost didn't recognize him either.

Is this still Magistrate Fan?
Previously, Magistrate Fan held considerable power in Yun Gui County, making him extremely arrogant and self-satisfied.

He wasn't tall, his build was only average, but he had a rather dignified air. Coupled with the nourishment of his power, he looked very young; a man in his fifties looked no more than forty.

But look at Magistrate Fan now, what has become of him?

He was hunched over, his hands and feet shackled. He had a stubble beard, dark skin, and his once black hair had turned gray.

His eyes were lifeless and dull, and his numb and pathetic appearance was far worse than that of a beggar on the street.

Looking at the men following behind Magistrate Fan, they all looked the same.

I heard that among them were Zhao Xiong, a famous bodyguard from Yungui County, and Wu Shixun, a renowned and powerful man from Wuhan.

Yunying couldn't tell which was Zhao Xiong and which was Wu Shixun, because they were both so thin they were just skin and bones, their backs hunched over like those of seventy-year-old men. Their eyes were lifeless, like lonely ghosts who had lost their souls.

"How tragic," Qiu Ning muttered unconsciously, then added bitterly, "Good and evil are rewarded accordingly. Why did I do so many evil deeds? Selling smuggled salt, wasn't that just asking for death?"

Yun Ying didn't notice what Qiu Ning was muttering, because the people, filled with righteous indignation, took out their weapons and began to smash them against several death row inmates.

It could be rotten eggs, dead fish and rotten shrimp, or rotten vegetable leaves and pebbles.

Within moments, all the death row inmates were injured, with County Magistrate Fan being the most severely injured, blood gushing from his face.

Fortunately, the yamen runners quickly stepped in to take charge.

These constables still retained some authority; after shouting a few times, most of the people stopped what they were doing. However, some of the victims, whose families had been destroyed, couldn't help but throw things at them again.

Among them, the maidservant of Magistrate Fan's first wife and the young man from the Shang family were the most hateful. They wished they could tear Magistrate Fan to pieces.

Because of him, his own daughter was paralyzed and bedridden, unable to get up again; also because of him, almost all of the Shang family's relatives died.

After a long and arduous journey, Magistrate Fan finally arrived at the execution ground.

He had been pinned down in front of the guillotine, and the executioner was in position.

Yunying and Qiuning were both frightened and quickly turned their faces away.

Qiu Ning, who had been carefree before, was now terrified. She kept clasping her hands together and bowing repeatedly, saying, "Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, Yama King, I have not done anything wrong. If you want to take souls, take those evil people's souls and send them to hell and into the oil cauldron. Don't take the wrong soul and send me to hell!"

Yunying was speechless. This was all nonsense, talking about Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and Yama.

However, before she could speak, several sharp shouts came from the market, followed by cheers or cries of terror from the crowd.

Yun Ying's heart skipped a beat, and she reflexively turned her head away.

At this moment, Qiu Ning screamed, "The boss, it's the boss!"

Yunying was too busy comforting Qiu Ning to look at the bloody scene. But when she came to her senses, she dared not look again, afraid that she would be terrified like Qiu Ning.

The crowd below began to disperse, and Yunying heard someone say, "I just saw Pan Xing. Magistrate Fan and his gang of villains have been brought to justice, and Pan Xing was so scared that he turned pale and even wet his pants. Hahaha, let's see how Pan Xing and his gang will cause trouble now that they have no backer."

"Stop being a playboy, he'll have to keep a low profile from now on."

"This guy is truly a scoundrel, yet also incredibly clever. He hangs out with Zhao Xiong's gang, but aside from forcing people to buy his drinks and committing a few minor misdeeds, he hasn't done anything that could be fatal. That's amazing."

"Whether it's divine or not, after this incident, anyone in Yun Gui County who wants to do evil will have to think twice about whether their head is strong enough to be chopped off by the county magistrate once or twice."

"The county's public security is going to be much better from now on."

Qiu Ning had obviously heard these discussions as well. Forgetting her fear for a moment, she muttered, "Pan Xing, why are we talking about him again? Did Pan Xing also come to watch the execution?"

That should be true.

Yunying nodded, and Qiuning's talkative mood returned, "I heard you wet your pants? Oh dear, how can you be so easily upset? You're not even as good as me."

"You're not much better off," Yunying muttered softly.

"But I didn't wet my pants! No matter how scared I was, I'm fine now, aren't I?" Qiu Ning was extremely smug. "If you ask me, it's because he did something wrong that he's so scared. Ha, now he knows fear. When he was locked up in jail for stealing the donkey, he wasn't like this at all. Back then, he was fearless and arrogant..." How cocky.

Qiu Ning wanted to swear, but then she saw someone who should never be there, and she immediately shut her mouth in fright.

Yunying followed her gaze and, unsurprisingly, saw the Second Master.

The crowd had mostly dispersed, and Second Master was walking over from the market entrance.

He was already an eye-catching figure, and now, walking on a street almost deserted, he became even more conspicuous.

Today, the Second Master wore a straight-collared brocade robe in a moon-blue hue, a unique shade of light blue. It was light and bright, noble yet understated, and should have suited him well. However, the Second Master's face was gloomy, and the robe only added to his oppressive aura, making even a distant look of him feel fear.

Suiyun was following behind the Second Master, and he was whispering something to her. Seemingly sensing the gaze from not far away, the Second Master's sharp eyes swept over and met Yunying's gaze directly.

Qiu Ning had already crouched down and hid under the window, muttering to herself, "I was so scared, so scared. We didn't tell Second Master we went out today. If he catches us red-handed, we'll definitely get a scolding from him."

Yunying wanted to say that the Second Master wasn't that bored; he wouldn't care whether they stayed in the manor or ran out to play.

He was so busy all day that he had no time to spare, his desk was piled high with official documents, and he barely got three hours of rest each day.

If in the past the Second Master would ask her a couple of questions and try to restrain her a bit, now he won't ask a single question.

Thinking about all this, Yunying couldn't utter a single word.

She wasn't ready to meet the Second Master. Her mind seemed to freeze, and she just stared straight at him, not knowing how to look away.

It was Second Master who was the first to look away.

Perhaps the sunlight was too dazzling, or perhaps he simply couldn't see who she was, but Second Master casually shifted his gaze and walked into the distance with Suiyun.

Below, Qiu Ning was still whispering, "Has Second Master left? Tell me quickly, Yun Ying, didn't Second Master see us?"

Yunying managed to utter a single word, "Yes."

Qiu Ning felt as if she had been granted a pardon and immediately stood up straight. She leaned on the windowsill and looked ahead. Sure enough, she saw that the Second Master had already walked far away. She couldn't help but show a joyful expression as if she had escaped with her life. "The Second Master didn't see us. We escaped a disaster. This is great."

I haven't corrected the typos in this chapter yet; I'll fix them tomorrow. I took the kids out; they're on vacation and I'm so rushed and frustrated.

(End of this chapter)