The Rebirth Of The General Who Always Sees Himself As A Replacement

Chapter 67: Where’s The Political Transparency And World Peace?

“What does it have to do with me?”

At this point, Huo Xin’s intentions couldn’t be more obvious.

However, if Pei Hantang actually allowed Huo Xin to take Yuan Baode away tonight, it would be easier for them to make Yuan Baode fake his death and escape far away. That way, Huo Xin will also be able to destroy all evidence related to the case, and have Yuan Baode return to the Capital in a few years under another name. This was something that the Jail Department can arrange far too easily.

If so, injustice will be covered in dust, and snow will fall in June1. Political transparency, as well as world peace, will be nowhere to be seen.

Pei Hantang lowered his hands to salute with a fist, and spoke out loud: “Lord Huo, there are rules in this Dynasty that must be abided by, one of them being the privilege of the order of arrival. Since Yuan Baode was arrested first by the Capital Prefecture, naturally, he should be imprisoned in the prison of the Capital Prefecture. If Lord Huo wishes to interrogate him, you are welcome to come to the Capital Prefecture at any time. Our Capital Prefecture will treat Lord Huo with the utmost courtesy, and will not allow Lord Huo to be wronged.”

“Now you’re talking about rules?” Huo Xin laughed coldly, uttering the following words with disdain and mockery. His speech was also slower and more precise, so that everyone present would be able to hear him clearly: “Who do you think you are to talk to me about the rules?”

Pei Hantang: “…..”

Wen Heyin, who was standing on the side, couldn’t listen any longer and stepped forward to impulsively say: “You—”

However, Pei Hantang fiercely grabbed Wen Heyin’s wrist, preventing him from uttering any more words.

Wen Heyin was slightly surprised at this reaction, but he soon discovered that Pei Hantang’s hand was trembling slightly and there was a light layer of sweat on his temples. Noticing this, Wen Heyin didn’t utter a single word again and yielded to hear Huo Xin’s words.

Although Huo Xin’s tone of voice had been so light that it could be blown away by the wind, it still managed to make the dozens of people present not even dare to breathe: “How dare the Deputy Magistrate of the Capital Prefecture be so arrogant and conceited, to the point of considering everyone else inferior to him?” Huo Xin’s imposing attitude wasn’t wrathful, but majestic. “So this is what the Magistrate of the Capital Prefecture, Lord Pei, has taught you, huh? Hmm, he has really taught you well.”

Mentioning Pei Hantang’s father was like pinching his key points and hitting him in his weak spot.

“Lord Huo, my Father….” A shiver ran down Pei Hantang’s back. “Has nothing to do with this matter.”

“Has nothing to do with this? If his son isn’t properly educated, of course it’s the father’s fault.” Huo Xin sneered. “Besides, since when can the Deputy Magistrate act without the permission of the Magistrate of the Capital Prefecture?”

As soon as these words left Huo Xin’s mouth, not far away, a man on horseback showed up. The speed at which he was approaching was so quick that dust flew into the air. Finally, he stopped abruptly not far from the Yuan Residence.

As soon as the man dismounted from his horse, he hurriedly walked forward: “Pei Wenqiong!”

Once Pei Hantang fixed his eyes on the man, he realized it was his Father. The Magistrate of the Capital Prefecture, Pei Yu.

“Father? Why are you here?” Pei Hantang was taken aback.

“You, you, you…..” Pei Yu took a few steps towards Pei Hantang and spat angrily: “How dare you not report to me about the arrest of an Imperial Court Official?!”

Pei Hantang: “I had to make an immediate decision at a critical moment in order to arrest a murderer. Why should I submit a report simply because it concerns an Imperial Court Official?”

Pei Yu: “You!”

“Lord Pei.” Huo Xin was getting impatient. “I understand that you want to teach your son a lesson. But could you not delay my detention of the prisoner?”

Pei Yu turned around and bowed to greet Huo Xin: “Lord Huo, I have been impolite. Forgive me.”

Huo Xin then winked at the Imperial Guard on his left. The Imperial Guard immediately nodded, dismounted, and walked towards Yuan Baode, who was still being held prisoner by the Guards of the Capital Prefecture.

Upon seeing that the Jail Department was about to take Yuan Baode away, Pei Hantang clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and the veins in his hands popped out. Suddenly, he shouted: “Wait!”

At that instant, the moon hid behind the clouds, further darkening the atmosphere, and the leaves fell without the presence of the wind to blow them away. The situation became so tense that it was hard to breathe.

Pei Hantang raised his eyes, which were vaguely red, and said in a firm tone of voice that refused to yield: “That man is the criminal my Capital Prefecture has been looking for for some time. I cannot allow anyone to take him away.”

Huo Xin looked at Pei Yu and said slowly: “Lord Pei, what is this? Are the affairs of the Capital Prefecture irrelevant to you? Are all the people here under the command of the Deputy Magistrate of the Capital Prefecture?”

Pei Yu’s hands shook with anger. He stood in front of Pei Hantang, kicking him hard as he angrily scolded him: “Unfilial son!”

The Guards of the Capital Prefecture seemed to be frightened. On the other side, Mu Zhiming stopped Wen Heyin, who had taken a small step forward.

However, to Huo Xin’s great surprise, Pei Yu didn’t continue to scold his son. Instead, Pei Yu turned to Huo Xin and bowed again: “Ah, Lord Huo, I can’t control my unfilial son. Now, it’s not a good idea for the Capital Prefecture and the Jail Department to continue to confront each other. How about this? The prisoner will be taken to the Capital Prefecture first, and tomorrow I will personally send the prisoner to the Jail Department. What do you think, Lord Huo?”

Huo Xin’s face immediately turned cold.

However, Pei Yu didn’t speak again. Although he seemed to agree with Huo Xin on the surface, in reality, Pei Yu had no intention of yielding at all.

A moment later, Huo Xin smiled coldly and said: “Good.”

Pei Yu felt relieved. After all, he knew that if the Jail Department and the Capital Prefecture fought in the middle of the night, it was going to be impossible to arrest the criminal. Therefore, Pei Yu could only make use of this sour stunt, so that Huo Xin wouldn’t press them any further, and break the confrontation in the process.

Unexpectedly, Huo Xin slowly said: “Since Lord Pei cannot control his son, I will reluctantly take the trouble to do it for you.”

As soon as Huo Xin finished speaking, the Imperial Guard from the Jail Department who tried to take Yuan Baode away flew over and promptly landed next to Pei Hantang. Before Pei Hantang could react, the Imperial Guard surprised him by giving him a palm strike on the shoulder!

In an instant, Pei Hantang felt that half of his body had become paralyzed, so he rushed to attack the Imperial Guard. However, because he couldn’t compete with the Imperial Guard in his current condition, he was kicked in the knee. Right after, he was defeated. Pei Hantang received a heavy blow on his back, which caused him to lose his balance. He heavily fell to his knees with a dull thud.

“Lord Huo!” Pei Yu never expected that Huo Xin would do such a thing, so he hurriedly asked: “What are you doing?”

At that moment, Huo Xin’s voice sounded as icy as frozen snow, and his eyes were as fierce as a beast’s: “I’m controlling your unfilial son, Lord Pei. Hey you, unfilial son, you lack manners and are ignorant of filial piety. You really need to be well disciplined. Why not…?” Huo Xin paused, thought of something, and sneered: “Why not make him kowtow to you, Lord Pei?”

Footnotes

六月飞雪 liù yuè fēi xuě; This phrase comes from《窦娥冤》by (關漢卿 guān hàn qīng) Guan Hanqing [1235-1300 approx.] from the Yuan Dynasty [1279-1368]. The story is about Dou’e, who was falsely accused by a scoundrel and wrongly sentenced to death by the governor of Chuzhou. Before dying, Dou’e vowed to Heaven and asked for three things, one of which was that snow covered her corpse. Heaven listened and made snow fall in June. Therefore, this sentence is commonly used when someone is being wronged/falsely accused.