Crime

Zhang Beichen had already expected this to happen. If he were to stop these thousands of people in a moment of rashness, he would probably be hacked to death like the previous county magistrate.

"They should be here soon." Zhang Beichen looked at the horizon and saw a row of black shadows approaching quickly.

It was a small cavalry team led by a Black Armored general. He was riding a horned evil beast and galloping across the wilderness as if he was flying.

The Black Armored general was the first to arrive. He held a long spear in his hand and threw it at an empty space.

The long spear streaked across like a shooting star, then smashed into the ground!

"Boom boom boom!" A thunderous boom rang out as a huge crater appeared in the ground, sending rocks and soil flying. This massive commotion instantly stunned everyone in the arena.

The general in black armor had already arrived. He shouted to the crowd, "Che Yang of the Black Armored Army is here, who dares to be impudent?"

His voice released a wave of pressure, and those without cultivation could not stand steadily, either retreating or falling to the ground!

Taking advantage of this time, the cavalrymen behind him had arrived and separated the people involved in the armed fight.

The fighters knew very well that no matter how fiercely they fought, they were not qualified to fight against the army, so they looked at them warily.

"Which one of you is Lord Zhang?" The Black Armored General Che Yang looked at the crowd.

"It's me." Zhang Beichen stood out and cupped his hands to Che Yang, "Thank you for your help, General!"

"It's fine. Why are there so many people fighting today?" Che Yang jumped off the beast and asked.

There were too many people gathered here, and if they were not stopped in time, it might turn into a riot!

"They are fighting over the water source. I'll solve the water problem," Zhang Beichen said.

"Mm." Even though Che Yang had ordered his men to continue suppressing them, these people still refused to retreat. It was obvious that if Che Yang's men left, they would continue to fight.

Bai Liangpu and Yang Shan seemed to have anticipated the development of the situation, so they were not in a hurry. They just waited at the same place to see how Zhang Beichen would deal with it.

So many people had died, and there were still so many people participating in the armed fight. According to the 'order to cultivate grass' issued by Zhang Beichen, these thousands of people would be punished!

However, if he punished a thousand people at once, wouldn't it cause a mass rebellion?

The custom of Kingdom Qin was that the law did not punish the masses. If they were not punished, Zhang Beichen's 'order to cultivate grass' would exist in name only, and he would also face the backlash of the national destiny!

Even if Zhang Beichen found a way to get away with it, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow, the fighting would continue!

At that time, it wouldn't be a matter of whether Zhang Beichen was a county magistrate or not. According to Qin law, it would be a capital crime if the chaos was under his jurisdiction!

Bai Liangpu, Bai Liangju, and Yang Shan were all waiting for a good show. The two parties that had been separated by the cavalrymen were still cursing at each other, and they had no intention of stopping.

"Your Highness, Zhang Beichen is in trouble. Even if I were in his place, it wouldn't be easy to handle." In the distance, two people were looking at them.

It was Ying Yiren and Jing Ping. Today, Ying Yiren was patrolling the military camp when she chanced upon Zhang Beichen's request for Che Yang to come over and help.

Hearing that there was a riot, Ying Yiren rushed over to take a look.

Ying Yiren thought for a moment and immediately understood the Bai and Yang families' plan. The two families had deliberately let their subordinates do as they pleased, causing them to start an armed fight.

If Zhang Beichen tried to interfere and was killed in the chaos, they could just find someone to take the blame. If Zhang Beichen didn't care about it, then he would be guilty of poor management of the county.

Even now, Zhang Beichen was very calm. Even if he let Che Yang lead the cavalry, the situation would still be tricky. If they were not careful, they would face the danger of his decree being 'broken'!

"These guys really deserve to die!" Ying Yiren's eyes were cold as she looked at Bai Liangpu and the others, her tone carrying a hint of killing intent!

Jing Ping was shocked. He knew clearly that although Ying Yiren was a woman, she had been the general of agile cavalry before she ascended the throne. She had fought many times on the battlefield, and her killing intent was not fake.

"Her Highness values Zhang Beichen more than I thought!" Jing Ping was getting more and more curious. Why was that?

Zhang Beichen walked to the middle of the crowd and berated, "The county has already issued a decree to prohibit private and armed fighting. You knowingly broke the law, what should you be punished for?"

"They were the ones who made the first move!"

"It's not my fault, I'm just here to join in the fun!"

"Come, arrest me! There are thousands of people here, arrest them all! There's no rice at home. Does the county government provide food?"

"The law can't punish the masses. Don't be afraid, everyone!" In the crowd, some people were clamoring.

Even Che Yang felt awkward, he didn't know whether to release or catch them.

Zhang Beichen looked at Che Yang and said, "General Che Yang, please help me to capture them all. Anyone who dares to resist will be considered to have disobeyed the law and will be killed without mercy!"

Che Yang hesitated for a moment before ordering his subordinates, "Arrest them all."

"Everyone, listen up!" Zhang Beichen shouted at the crowd at the same time, "All of you have broken the law, but there is a difference in severity. Now, I want you to surrender, otherwise, you will be treated as thugs and you will be beheaded on the spot."

"The severity of your crimes will be judged by the county!"

The soldiers started to catch people. Some of them tried to escape, so Zhang Beichen immediately used golden words.

The word 'punish' landed on that person's body, and he was unable to move.

This was one of the functions of Zhang Beichen's 'Order of Reward and Punishment'.

There were still people who wanted to take the opportunity to cause trouble. Zhang Beichen did not hesitate. His spiritual energy turned into a golden blade and killed them!

Seeing that the young county magistrate really dared to kill, the fighters finally settled down. Their hands were tied with ropes and they squatted together.

"Lord Zhang, could it be that you intend to execute all of these people?" Bai Liangpu questioned, "They are the people under your rule. They had an armed fight because you are incompetent. How can you blame it on them?"

"How are you going to punish them? I hope that you can settle this here today. Otherwise, I don't think anyone will agree to you taking them away!"

As Bai Liangpu spoke, a dark mass of people came from the distance. There were martial artists, the old, the weak, and the disabled in this group.

As soon as they arrived, someone shouted, "Release them!"

Someone knelt on the ground and pleaded, "My Lord, my husband didn't do anything! I beg you to let him go!"

"My Lord, my son was deceived. He is not guilty!"

"My Lord, if you take my grandson away, we'll have no one to take care of our entire family. We can only wait for death!"

They blocked Zhang Beichen's way. It was obvious that Bai Liangpu and the others were prepared and would not allow Zhang Beichen to bring these people back to the county government to deal with them. Zhang Beichen could arrest those who broke the law, but the people in front of him didn't break the law. Could he arrest them?

"Everyone," Zhang Beichen said loudly, "I know that some of these people are your family and friends. It's only human nature for you to worry about them."

"Among them, some knowingly broke the law, while others were bewitched and committed mistakes. Since that's the case, I'll hold a public trial here and now to give you an explanation!"

"Ah Da, prepare the space for the trial!" Zhang Beichen ordered.

"Yes, My Lord!" A group of bailiffs immediately surrounded an open space. The prisoners were all detained around the open space, and the soldiers stood guard at the side.

Thousands of pairs of eyes were on Zhang Beichen. If he showed any injustice in law enforcement, the scene would definitely turn into a riot!

Zhang Beichen stood in the middle and looked at the prisoners. He said loudly, "The first to be tried are the ones who committed a felony. What is a felony? This applies to the ones who led the fight, the ones who incited the fight, and the ones who killed others in the fight! The prisoners who meet these conditions, come out!"

After he finished speaking, none of the thousands of prisoners stood up. It was so chaotic just now, who knew who it was?

Seeing this, Zhang Beichen once again used the 'order to cultivate grass', which was blessed by national destiny. This time, he used the ability of his golden skin, [Martyrdom], and sacrificed his own essence and spiritual energy to increase the effect of the spell by three times.

"Felonies, come out and accept your punishment!" Zhang Beichen shouted again. His voice had a soul-shaking effect. Some people's minds became unstable and their legs went soft, kneeling on the ground.

At the same time, balls of light appeared on the 'order to cultivate grass' and flew towards the group. Until a ball of light appeared above everyone's head. Some were light, some were dark, and some were pure black.

Zhang Beichen's face was pale. He had overused his spiritual energy. He quickly ordered, "They are divided into black, gray, and light colors. Black is for felonies, gray is for misdemeanors, and light is for infractions."

"Yes, My Lord!" The bailiffs and soldiers classified the criminals, and the light only lasted for less than ten seconds before it disappeared. In these ten seconds, Zhang Beichen felt like he had been up for three days and three nights without sleep. He was exhausted.

The wanted criminals were brought to Zhang Beichen. There were 21 people in total. Some of them incited the fight and led the fight, and some of them killed people.

They kneeled in front of Zhang Beichen with a face full of unwillingness. Zhang Beichen realized that they were all very old. Some of them even had white hair. They were all old grandfathers.

Just as he was feeling puzzled, Liu Wen's expression changed and he whispered in Zhang Beichen's ear, "My Lord, there's trouble again. You can't kill these people!"