Chapter 199: This Is the Imperial Criminal
Chapter 199: This Is the Imperial Criminal
To be a person… to be an official… the principles…
Each single word was not hard to understand, but mixed in Fang Jifan’s speech, they carried a strange feeling.
At least, Emperor Hongzhi found it quite peculiar.
Zhu Houzhao could not help but find it amusing; did Old Fang really know about these things?
Xiao Jing wore a faint half-smile, his thin lips pursed lightly, with a hint of mockery.
Mou Bin merely crossed his arms; if the Emperor had not been present, he might have snorted in derision.
But unlike them, the attitudes of Fang Jifan’s several disciples were extremely proper.
Ouyang Zhi and the other two sat upright and serious; though their expressions were wooden, they were indescribably solemn.
Tang Yin twirled a brush on the desk, concentrating intently.
Even Xu Jing maintained a serious expression; last time, he had learned his lesson the hard way. Because he did not listen to his Mentor’s words, he suffered a great loss. Otherwise, he might have ranked among the Top Three Candidates in the Palace Examination. Now, he had learned to be obedient; no matter how restless his thoughts might be, whatever his Mentor said was absolute truth, especially when it came to teaching him the principles of being a person and an official.
Wang Shouren’s eyes shone, and he even trembled with excitement, his face completely focused.
Even Perfected Master Li Chaowen, who could neither succeed as a person nor as an official, now appeared to be all ears. Attitude was very important; whether he listened to the rest or not did not matter, but he had to let his Martial Uncle know that he held him in the highest esteem and would gladly remember any of his teachings.
Naturally, the most anticipated figure was still the Imperial Criminal.
At the command to bring in the Imperial Criminal, Zhang Xin and others outside were well prepared. Soon, they escorted in a person who was tightly bound, pushing and shoving him along.
But… was this really the Imperial Criminal?
Everyone gasped in shock, looking at him as if he were a monster.
Even Emperor Hongzhi suddenly lost his composure; the person before him was not an Imperial Criminal at all—he was clearly an ordinary man, plain beyond belief.
The Imperial Criminal was tightly bound, with what appeared to be someone’s Foot-Binding Cloth stuffed in his mouth. His face was gloomy, and he seemed not to have been tortured, though his round-collared robe appeared somewhat dirty and disheveled.
“Bring a chair and let him sit down.”
Fang Jifan held a Ferule in his hand, looking quite the part.
A chair was quickly brought, and after some tying and binding, the Imperial Criminal was secured to the chair.
At that moment, Fang Jifan pointed the Ferule at the Imperial Criminal and declared, “Look, this is the notorious Imperial Criminal!”
“…”
Uh, how was this an Imperial Criminal? No matter how you looked at him, he seemed like an ordinary small merchant who had been wronged. Watching the man’s flushed face as he was manhandled by the Commandants, Emperor Hongzhi’s expression instantly darkened.
Xiao Jing, bending beside him, whispered in a low voice, “Your Majesty, this Fang Jifan is really amusing, hehe…”
Emperor Hongzhi glared at him, but Xiao Jing continued to wear a smile on his face!
It was truly amusing—just like that, this person, whom Fang Jifan claimed to be the Imperial Criminal, was accepted as such…
Actually, at first, Xiao Jing had been a little worried. Could it be that Fang Jifan had actually captured the Imperial Criminal? If that were the case, it would be one thing for the Brocade Guard, but as the head of the Eastern Depot, Xiao Jing felt he would not be able to face anyone.
The Imperial Criminal’s face turned deeply red, as if he could no longer hold back. He struggled fiercely in the chair, and then… everything went black before his eyes as he fell backward and passed out.
Fang Jifan was just about to launch into an eloquent speech, but… his expression immediately soured…
What was that smell of stinky salted fish? And it was getting stronger…
Fang Jifan could not help but glare angrily at Zhang Xin. “Did you hit him?”
“No… no, I didn’t…” Zhang Xin trembled with fear.
Fang Jifan sniffed sharply again; the stench of salted fish was really…
The odor began to spread, and many faces turned red as people struggled to endure it.
Even Emperor Hongzhi, standing in the corner, could not help holding his breath.
Fang Jifan understood and roared furiously at Zhang Xin, “Who in the world is so unhygienic and uncivilized, using their own Foot-Binding Cloth to gag this Imperial Criminal?”
Zhang Xin shuddered and said with a pained expression, “I couldn’t find anything else…”
“Wake him up!” Fang Jifan shot a disdainful look at Zhang Xin; what a useless fellow.
His stomach began to churn; he felt nauseated and very uncomfortable.
Fang Jifan struggled to hold back, but he did not delay any further. While several Commandants worked to revive the Imperial Criminal, Fang Jifan tapped the Ferule on the man and continued, “You all see, don’t you? This person is the Imperial Criminal, the leader of the Beggar Sect. The Beggar Sect claims to have a hundred thousand members, and this man is their chief. Look at him—does he seem vicious?”
Everyone examined the unconscious ‘Imperial Criminal’ and instinctively shook their heads.
Actually, they weren’t sure whether Fang Jifan was fooling everyone.
But… this person really did not look vicious at all.
Fang Jifan then asked, “What does he remind you of when you look at him?”
“…”
Silence fell.
It seemed everyone was unaccustomed to this teaching method.
Then, Li Chaowen, quite clever and afraid that his Martial Uncle would be left in an awkward silence, quickly spoke up, “He looks like an ordinary worshipper.”
“That’s right.” Fang Jifan pointed the Ferule at the eyebrows and eyes of the unconscious Imperial Criminal and said, “Look, he is neither as handsome as me, nor as repulsive as Jiang Chen…”
Jiang Chen: “…”
Fortunately, Jiang Chen was used to it by now.
Fang Jifan smoothly continued, “Now, someone, take off his clothes.”
“…”
This… everyone’s eyes nearly popped out of their heads.
Even Ouyang Zhi found it hard to bear.
Whether it was because of the overwhelming salted fish smell or his Mentor’s overly strong taste, even the normally calm and steady Ouyang Zhi shuddered.
Several Commandants hesitated but ultimately obediently loosened the bonds on the unconscious Imperial Criminal and removed his outer garment, revealing his bare upper body to everyone.
“Look, his skin… is neither rough nor delicate. Look here…” Fang Jifan pointed at the Imperial Criminal’s upper body, examining it with keen interest as he spoke. “There is even a birthmark here. Needless to say, this must have been with him since birth. Look at his body hair—neither too much nor too little…”
Fang Jifan was very patient, holding the Ferule and pointing out various parts of the ‘Imperial Criminal’s’ body.
“And here…” Fang Jifan pointed at the Imperial Criminal’s face. “Look, he even has pimples on his face. These are youth pimples, commonly seen on the Crown Prince’s face, but he is not youthful at all. From this, we can see that this Imperial Criminal has both similarities and differences compared to us.”
Zhu Houzhao looked left and right, then covered his own face.
Emperor Hongzhi was bewildered.
What was he doing?
Mou Bin became increasingly convinced that Fang Jifan was just putting on an act of madness.
Xiao Jing, looking worried, said, “Your Majesty, could it be… that the Newly Established Count’s Brain Illness has flared up…”
His words were like a wake-up call. Emperor Hongzhi gave Fang Jifan a meaningful glance, then nodded thoughtfully.
…
“Now, let’s look at his nose hair.” Fang Jifan smiled, seemingly finding the salted fish smell rather unbearable. He took a step back, stretched his arm out fully, and pointed the Ferule at the unconscious Imperial Criminal lying on his back. “His nose hair is not very thick. So… what does that mean?”
Fang Jifan tossed the Ferule aside, looked up, and pondered. It was really too much to bear, so he signaled Zhang Xin with his eyes, “Go open the windows.”
“Oh.” Zhang Xin hurried to open the windows.
As several windows were opened, a breath of fresh air rushed in.
Whoosh…
Everyone took a deep breath, and their complexions instantly became rosy.
Only then did Fang Jifan smile and say, “Your Mentor will now continue. This… what does it mean? It means that, look at this Imperial Criminal—he is just a person!”
“…”
Emperor Hongzhi’s face turned ashen. After all that talk, was it all just nonsense?
Fang Jifan, however, clasped his hands behind his back and paced on the platform. “He is neither repulsive nor seven feet tall as the legends say. He is just like us, like everyone else—he has two eyes, one nose, blood in his veins, and flesh on his bones. Look, the so-called Imperial Criminals or notorious bandits in The World, nine out of ten, are just like this. He can be knocked out by the stench of this damned Foot-Binding Cloth; faced with imminent disaster, he would also… wait a moment, look here, bring a needle.”
Zhang Xin brought a needle.
Without ceremony, Fang Jifan took the needle and stabbed it hard into the man’s arm.
The unconscious Imperial Criminal’s eyes shot open, and he woke instantly. His mouth was still stuffed with the Foot-Binding Cloth, but he still let out muffled groans, his body trembling violently. Fortunately, he was tied down, and several Commandants pressed him firmly in place.
“You see.” Fang Jifan tossed the needle aside. “He… also fears pain. Not only does he fear pain, but I guarantee that he also fears death.”
“…”
At this point, Fang Jifan sighed. “Now, do you understand? Imperial Criminals are never scary. An Imperial Criminal is also a person—a living, breathing person with flesh and blood, no different from you or me.”
“Right now, you must be thinking: What is the difference between an Imperial Criminal and us? Zhang Xin, take the Foot-Binding Cloth out of his mouth.”
“Me…” Zhang Xin hesitated.
Fang Jifan felt like drawing a sword to kill this idiot, but… after all, he had to maintain his image. So he smiled and said, “If you don’t take it out, I won’t let you farm anymore.”
Zhang Xin shuddered, quickly pinched his nose with one hand, grabbed a corner of the Foot-Binding Cloth with the other, and yanked it out forcefully.
Huff, huff, huff, huff…
As soon as the Foot-Binding Cloth was removed, the Imperial Criminal breathed like a bellows, then roared angrily, “A scholar would rather die than be humiliated! Kill me!”
“Stuff it back in!” Fang Jifan said swiftly.
Zhang Xin wanted to cry, but he obediently stuffed the Foot-Binding Cloth back into the Imperial Criminal’s mouth.
The Imperial Criminal’s eyes turned bloodshot as he made strange, muffled sounds.
“Did you hear that? He said… ‘A scholar would rather die than be humiliated.’ From this, we can see that this person… actually has his own moral judgment. In his own mind, he considers himself a ‘scholar’ and absolutely does not see himself as a vicious evildoer. Just like us, he believes he is a good person.”