Zhang Shi, do you know your crime

As soon as the words "penalty reduced by one degree" came out, a glimmer of light welled up in Xu Qin's eyes. It was like a drowning person catching a life-saving straw!

The confidence in her heart also surged.

She was following the laws of Huaian and doing what the city of Huaian, and even the entire Yunjing, encouraged. What did she do wrong?

Thus, her voice grew a few decibels louder as she argued.

"Lord Zhou, I was just pursuing love. Moreover, I read those books in the library pavilion, such as 'A Lifetime of Red Romance: The Stubborn Marquis', 'Destined Match: Marrying None but You', 'The Domineering Prince's Little Wife', 'Your Highness the Heir: If You Love, Please Love Deeply', 'Sorry, I Am the General's Woman', and 'The Marquis Surnamed Tang: Sweet to the Point of Sorrow'."

"Doesn't it say so in all these books?"

"These stories are all based on reality; any coincidence is definitely not accidental!"

"I just followed the meaning in the books to pursue my own love."

"My lord, I am wronged!"

"I beg you to uphold justice for me!"

Lord Zhou nodded again and said, "So you were influenced by books in everything you did. That is the way of the sages. If that is the case, your penalty can be reduced by another degree."

Saying so, Lord Zhou cast a rather displeased glance at Wang Ming and Zhang Shi.

To think they dared to hide such crucial information.

They almost made him wrongly convict a good person!

As for Zhang Shi and Wang Ming...

They looked at each other!

Looking utterly dumbfounded!

"My lord, my lord, there's more, there's more..."

Seeing a way out, Xu Qin's desire to survive surged to its peak, and her confidence skyrocketed. Her voice grew even louder.

She said, "My lord, these two men said I did it on purpose, but actually, I didn't mean to."

"I did all this to pursue true love!"

"I am no longer young, but my love has not arrived. For the sake of love, I am willing to risk everything, which is why I did what I did."

"It was only to wait for the domineering prince of my dreams to appear. Little did I expect that instead of my domineering prince, I only waited for these two men."

"Especially this one who claims to be the owner of the horse. Looking like that, yet riding such a handsome horse, causing me to misunderstand."

"If I had known earlier that he was the owner of the horse, I wouldn't have bothered to touch it even if you beat me to death. He misled me, forcing me to make a mistake, and now he is turning around to bite me, slandering me, and even trying to use a private lynching to humiliate me."

"I beg you, my lord, to stand up for me!"

"To stand up for the people of our Huaian City Mutual Love Alliance!"

Lord Zhou's face grew increasingly serious, and his eyes grew sharper. He nodded heavily and said, "So that's how it is, so that's how it is. It truly is..."

"I almost wronged a good person!"

"To think you did such a thing just to pursue true love. In that case, your penalty can be reduced by yet another degree."

"In fact, you are practically innocent!"

"At most, you just need to slightly compensate them for their losses, and that will be the end of it. Of course, according to our Huaian City laws, since you did it for love, you do not need to compensate too much."

"You can just put your mind at ease."

"I, like the clear blue sky above, will definitely uphold justice for you!"

Overjoyed, Xu Qin hurriedly thanked him. "Thank you, my lord, thank you, my lord. Your lordship sees every detail clearly, letting no bad person go and wronging no good person. You truly are an existence revered by all the people of Huaian City."

"I, Xu Qin, on behalf of all the brothers and sisters of the Huaian City Mutual Love Alliance, thank you, my lord!"

Lord Zhou's face was calm, as placid as an ancient well, and he said, "I am merely strictly abiding by the law and doing my duty. You don't need to do this."

Saying so, Lord Zhou suddenly turned around, two sharp glints shooting from his eyes.

After sweeping past Wang Ming, his gaze landed on Zhang Shi's face.

He said coldly, "General Zhang Shi, you deliberately concealed the true details of the case, vainly attempting to confuse my judgment. You almost caused me to misjudge and create a tragic miscarriage of justice."

"Do you confess your guilt?"

Zhang Shi was completely dumbfounded.

He pointed a finger at himself.

"Ah?"

"Me?"

"Me?"

"That is right, you!" Lord Zhou was as righteous and awe-inspiring as ever, his entire body bursting with a towering aura of majesty. The words he spoke were like the clash of metal weapons, loud enough to shatter the roof tiles.

"Do not think that just because you are a general under the Lord Duke, I would not dare to deal with you. Before the law, everyone is equal."

"Let alone you, even if the Lord Duke himself broke the law, I would arrest him without hesitation!"

...

The Government Office, Inner Hall.

Ren Tianye sat behind his desk, writing incessantly. After meeting with the many officials of Huaian City this time, he was listing out one by one the capable individuals he had approved of in his heart.

He had already filled a whole page, a full several dozen people.

This made Ren Tianye somewhat satisfied.

Huaian City was such a large city, gradually entering the core of Yunjing. As expected, it was filled with hidden dragons and crouching tigers, containing many capable talents. With these capable talents, paired with the personnel he had specially transferred from Yunjing, Huaian City could serve as his solid rear base.

Allowing him to feel at ease whether he advanced or retreated.

Of course, these people were only screened by Ren Tianye and could not be completely confirmed. He still needed Pei Jingzhi to help provide some reference.

After all, there is specialization in different fields. In this aspect, Pei Jingzhi was definitely an expert, while he, Ren Tianye, was slightly inferior.

"Lord Duke..."

At this time, Pei Jingzhi, who was organizing and reviewing books, walked over holding a booklet. "Lord Duke, do you still remember Zhou Zhi?"

"You mean that Zhou Zhi who originally oversaw the penal affairs of the entire Huaian City?"

Ren Tianye nodded and said, "My memory of him is still fresh. From my observation, this person is quite upright and strictly abides by the law. He can be considered a rare, clear-headed individual."

"What is it?"

"Is this person unusable?"

Pei Jingzhi immediately let out a bitter smile, then fell to his knees and said, "Lord Duke, this person has deceived the Lord Duke and truly deserves to die. I failed to see clearly and even proposed letting this person serve as the city's penal official. It is my poor judgment of character that misled the Lord Duke. I ask the Lord Duke to punish me."

Ren Tianye frowned slightly.

Although he dared not say he knew everyone in the world, his eyes were still sharp. All along, he had rarely misjudged anyone.

When he met Zhou Zhi, he could clearly see that Zhou Zhi was indeed upright, daring to face the powerful and wealthy without changing his expression. How could it be...

Could he have misjudged?

Having experienced the ups and downs of the world, Pei Jingzhi's state of mind had reached a higher level. He could already guess what Ren Tianye was thinking and said, "Lord Duke, this person..."

"Alas, he is somewhat like the past me!"

Ren Tianye was taken aback, looking thoughtful, and said, "Continue speaking."

"This person has no evil in his heart. He does not embezzle, nor does he abuse power. He acts diligently and properly, strictly abiding by his duties. Solely in terms of private morals and official integrity, there is absolutely no fault in him."

"Furthermore, he dares to directly confront the powerful and wealthy, strictly abiding by the law, his expression unchanging even with a blade at his neck. He is absolutely a rare good official."

"If this person could have always been under the Lord Duke's command, receiving the Lord Duke's teachings from a young age, I dare guarantee that he would definitely be a great official for a region, bringing blessings to a region."

"He would be the Lord Duke's right-hand man."

"Unfortunately... he was born in Yunjing."

When Pei Jingzhi said these words, Ren Tianye had the feeling that Pei Jingzhi was looking in a mirror. He wasn't talking about this Zhou Zhi at all, but rather Pei Jingzhi himself.

This made Ren Tianye, who had already guessed most of it anyway, understand immediately.

"What? Is he a hopeless romantic too?"

"Yes, Lord Duke!"

Pei Jingzhi handed the book he was holding to Ren Tianye and said, "Lord Duke, this is the record of Zhou Zhi's career advancements. Please review it in detail, Lord Duke."

Ren Tianye took it, and with just a single glance, he felt an immediate headache coming on.

...