Chapter 319 Zhao Duan: In the next life, be a good official

Chapter 319 Zhao Duan: In the next life, be a good official

Chapter 319 Zhao Duan: In the next life, be a good official

whoosh-

In the night sky of the capital, a cluster of almost transparent starlight cut through the cold air.

From the direction of Zhao's house, it passed over ancient buildings like a comet with a tail, and finally fell on a high building far away from the Ministry of Justice prison.

Zhao Duan stepped lightly on the tiles with his feet, lowered his head, and was surprised to see a "thin film" covering the surface of his body. The same was true for the golden tablet connected to his left hand, and a faint moonlight overflowed from his pupils.

"I am becoming more and more envious of you warlocks." Zhao Duan sighed sincerely.

"What are you envious of?" Jin Jian tilted his head blankly and pushed the translucent crystal glasses on his nose in confusion.

"You can fly... Never mind. A flying animal like you can't understand the pain of a life that relies on two feet."

Zhao Duan shook his head, quickly ended this boring topic, and looked towards the brightly lit prison of the Ministry of Justice in front of him.

At this moment, perhaps because of Wang Chusheng's death, the Ministry of Justice was particularly "lively" compared to the past.

"I hope Gao Lian is not being interrogated right now." Zhao Duan muttered to himself, and then asked Jin Jian:

"Can you take me in?"

Although he lost the battle between Buddhism and Taoism, Jin Jian, who had made great progress, proudly puffed out his chest:
"Of course!"

After a brief pause, he added guiltily, "But if you make a fuss, I won't be able to cover it up. So, are you going to do something bad again?"

What do you mean again... Xiao Jin Jian, how can you slander someone's innocence out of thin air...

"No comment, just help me bypass the jailers outside." Zhao Duan reached into his arms, and a palm-sized silver scroll appeared in his palm.

On the jade scroll that he had always used as a "storage bag", the four characters "Taixu Huijuan" engraved on it were clearly visible.

"I haven't used you for so long that I almost forgot your true purpose." Zhao Duan stroked the scroll and murmured softly.

At the beginning, the Frost Sword of Kuangfu Society used this item to construct a false long street, making him enter unconsciously.

After Zhao Duan obtained it, he gradually figured out its ability, which is to replicate a small area in reality into the scenery in the painting, and then "overlay" it in the real world.

Today, it finally found its place of use.

……

The Ministry of Justice Prison, the “A” area.

Gao Lian was imprisoned alone in a sturdy cell. There were no ventilation holes on the three walls, and only a row of fine iron bars in front sealed the cage.

This former provincial governor, who was a figure of almost half a provincial governor level, was not lying on the bed at this moment, but was sitting cross-legged in a straw-covered cell.

With his eyes closed, he gently recited the meditation scriptures that were widely circulated among the people of Dayu.

Suddenly, the flame in the fixed brazier in the corridor trembled, as if blown by the wind.

Accompanied by the faint sound of a door opening and gradually approaching footsteps.

Gao Lian stopped chanting the scriptures. He opened his eyes and looked quietly outside the fence. Gradually, a figure walked out of the darkness.

"Zhao Duan?" Gao Lian was stunned.

Standing in the corridor behind a cell door was a man named Zhao, wearing fancy clothes and with an arrogant and cold look.

"Are you surprised?" Zhao Duan looked at the governor in the cell.

After not seeing him for many days, Gao Lian's complexion looked a little worse than when he was escorted to the capital.

He was dressed in prison uniform, and his feet and hands were shackled even in prison.

The hair on his temples, which used to be neatly combed, was now disheveled. However, his face did not show the fear and despair of an ordinary prisoner, but was calm and serene like an old monk.

"I just didn't expect that you would come to visit, and alone." Gao Lian said with a smile after a brief surprise.

Zhao Duan was amazed and said:

"Although I personally captured you and wished you would die, I have to say that you are still so calm in prison. I really admire you. Tsk, but I don't know when you believed in Buddhism. You even recited the scriptures."

Gao Lian shook his head calmly, "Lord Zhao, you didn't come here just to tease me, did you?"

Zhao Duan stood silently outside the railing, looked at him, and said:
"Wang Chusheng is dead."

Gao Lian's haggard face showed genuine surprise, as if he was extremely shocked, and then his eyes showed enlightenment:
"No wonder. I just heard a lot of noise coming from the other end of the cell. The head of the cell came over and looked at me for a while before leaving."

Zhao Duan stared at him: "Do you know how he died?"

Gao Lian shook his head and said hypocritically:
"When a person dies, there is no fixed time. It doesn't matter if he dies early or late, he will die eventually. But since Lord Zhao came to ask me about this, he wouldn't suspect me of murdering someone to silence him, right?"

He smiled, shook his head and showed the shackles on his hands, which made a rattling sound:
"That's too high of a view of me."

Zhao Duan said softly:

"How could I doubt you? But Mr. Gao should also know that there are many people out there who have been working hard for you these days. Do you think they have a motive for killing people?"

Gao Lian was like an old monk in meditation. He said, "My Gao family has been loyal for generations. How could we commit such a rebellious act? You are overthinking it."

When he said the four words "generations of loyalty and goodness", he spoke calmly as if he had a clear conscience.

Zhao Duan looked at him deeply.

The cell was very quiet, the lights flickering. One person was standing outside, and the other was sitting cross-legged like a monk inside, separated by a fence.

This scene actually has a heavy weight.

"Are you unhappy?" Zhao Duan said, "If you want to laugh, just laugh. You can hardly hold back the smile on your face."

Gao Lian's smile spread:

"The villain who framed the loyal minister is dead, so why shouldn't I be happy?"

Zhao Duan sighed and said:

"People outside have always said that the newly appointed governor is 'calm in every major event'. I didn't believe it at first, but at the crab feast in Taicang Prefecture, I believed it half a point. When you were escorted back to the capital and you didn't say a word on the way, I believed it half a point more. But now I understand that you are not calm, but confident." He suddenly took a few steps closer, his whole body almost sticking to the iron fence, his face squeezed in the gap between the two iron railings, looking down at the other person, and lowered his voice and said:

"You know, the southern nobles will do their best to get you out, knowing that Li Yanfu will take action, whether he is willing or not... just like Wang Chusheng is holding the evidence of your crime.

You must have some leverage over Li Yanfu and the others, right? That's why you're so fearless?

Do you think that if Wang Chusheng were to die and lose this witness, the three judges would have more room for maneuver and you could be spared from beheading?"

Gao Lian was stared at by him, and the smile on his face faded. He clasped his hands together solemnly and said:

"Master Zhao, you have many misunderstandings about me."

The shackles on his wrists clashed. He pointed to the quiet surroundings and said:

"Or, what does Lord Zhao want me to say? Admit my so-called crime?"

There was a hint of undisguised contempt in his eyes, as if he was saying:
Do you think I'm stupid?
Gao Lian has remained silent since he was accused of the crab feast.

He had not spoken a single word until he was escorted to the capital. Even after he was imprisoned, he was not interrogated in court and rarely communicated with others.

Just to avoid any gossip.

In his opinion, Zhao Duan came here alone at this moment, and his intention to extract information and testimony was obvious. After all, it was not the first time that the other party used the recording scroll.

"You seem to have misunderstood something."

Zhao Duan looked at him quietly for a few seconds, then slowly squatted down outside the cell separated by a fence.

Staring into his eyes, she smiled:

"Do you think I am here to trick you? Do you think that I am resorting to such desperate measures because Wang Chusheng is dead? Well, let me think about it. You may still be wondering in your heart who ordered me to come here. Was it His Majesty who asked me to come here, or was it Yuan Li, or someone else..."

Zhao Duan shook his head, and suddenly he spat, his eyes suddenly fierce:

"No, you're wrong."

The spit splashed on Gao Lian's cheek in the dim light. He raised his hand to wipe it off and said:
"What's wrong with me?"

Zhao Duan's mouth curled up, he clapped his hands and said:

"You were wrong in that you did those wrong things but didn't have the awareness of death. You were wrong in that you were smart all your life but didn't understand the situation. You were wrong in that you thought you understood everything when you were about to die... You were wrong..."

He suddenly pointed at himself with his thumb and said word by word:

"My mistake is that you look like this, which makes me very uncomfortable."

Suddenly I remembered the famous saying of a fifty-year-old lady in my previous life:

Damn, I hate people who pretend to be cool the most.

Gao Lian's eyebrows twitched wildly, and he suddenly had a bad premonition. His cheeks twitched, and a little uneasiness finally appeared on his calm face:
"What do you want to do? This is the Ministry of Justice Prison...Ah!!"

The next second, without any warning, Gao Lian let out a heart-wrenching cry of pain.

He felt as if he was hit hard in the abdomen by an invisible fist. His body fell suddenly, and he covered his lower abdomen with both hands, and then his heart.

Born into a wealthy family, his fair and plump complexion suddenly turned as red as a cooked shrimp, with large beads of sweat on it.

pain!
Severe pain!

Indescribable pain!
It was as if someone had opened his chest and stuffed a ball of fire into his internal organs.

"what!!"

"You...you dare...this is..."

"stop……"

Gao Lian rolled over in agony on the cold ground, no longer calm and composed, his expression distorted with severe pain.

His voice was sharp and hoarse, as if he was being tortured by burning with fire.

However, no matter how he screamed, the entire prison remained eerily quiet, without any sound.

Not only did no jailer come, but even... the other criminals in the prison didn't make any sound.

It's like...

The entire prison was empty, with only the two of them.

Yes, at this moment, the severe pain made Gao Lian's mind exceptionally clear.

He suddenly realized that from the moment Zhao Duan inexplicably appeared in the corridor, the Ministry of Justice prison had become eerily silent.

"What do I want to do?"

Outside the fence, Zhao Duan was still squatting. In his palms and between his fingers, clusters of almost unreal white flames began to swirl.

Zhao Duan stood up and waved his hand. The iron fences began to burn and were wrapped in white flames, like soft candles.

Collapse, breakage.

Zhao Duan took graceful steps and stepped into the prison cell "in the painting" that had actually been replaced by the scroll. He pressed his boots on Gao Lian's temple and stepped on him, letting out a long sigh:

"Those who kill will be killed. You don't think you are the only ones who kill."

"what--"

Gao Lian was in agony, with intense fear in his eyes, "Lord Zhao, I... I..."

Whoosh... White flames burst out from his mouth, nose, ear holes, and eye sockets, quickly swallowing up his pleas.

"In your next life, be a good official."

(End of this chapter)