Chapter 65: Choreman |
Five people arrived, led by Elder Xia.
The two inside the prison cell inexplicably felt relieved upon seeing Elder Xia, knowing their chance to leave had likely arrived.
Of course, on the surface, they still wore expressions of dissatisfaction at being imprisoned after their punishment, sitting cross-legged on the ground motionless, coldly eyeing Xia Fuli and the others.
Xia Fuli stood before the iron bars, watching closely the two in ragged clothes for a while before slowly saying, "It has now been ascertained that Wei Bian indeed instigated someone to assassinate you two.
The matter is unrelated to Bian Weiying; Wei Bian acted out of jealousy and resentment towards you, Shi Chun, due to love."
These words left the two inside the cell a little confused.
Shi Chun, who had been trying to maintain a poker face, couldn't help but drop his cold and stern expression, asking in bewilderment, "Jealousy due to love, what does that mean? What does someone else's jealousy have to do with me? Why target me?"
Xia Fuli: "The incident occurred when you were shopping with Bian Weiying. It's unheard of for Bian Weiying to shop with any man.
Wei Bian likes Bian Weiying, and therefore became jealous of you, instigating someone to assassinate you."
Shi Chun immediately turned his head and shot him a glare, as if saying, You believe these lies too?
At least he didn't believe it. He made a sound, then directly pointed out the crux of the problem, "So, the assassination of us two has absolutely no connection to Bian Weiying?"
Xia Fuli heard the implication in his words and inwardly praised him; he wasn't stupid, just impulsive and foolish due to youthful vigor.
He said indifferently, "Believe it or not, the facts are all here, with human and material evidence complete. This is the truth."
Shi Chun coldly retorted, "You investigate yourselves however you like.
As long as you're happy."
At the time of the incident, he saw the scene very clearly.
Bian Weiying herself came to oversee things outside Anle Inn, and that Wei Bian was clearly acting on Bian Weiying's meaningful glance. If that could be unrelated, then he had been the Chief of East Nine Plains for nothing all those years.
It was simply because she was the daughter of the Wukang Mountain Sect Master; someone wanted to help Bian Weiying clear herself of suspicion and let a dead man take the blame. He knew this in his heart.
Hearing this, Wu Jinliang also understood, and immediately retorted, "We don't understand all that. Tell us something we can understand.
What's next?"
They really wanted to know when they would be let out, and how much longer they had to dawdle.
Xia Fuli: "You killed the assassin in self-defense, and Linkang City's rules are clear on that; we have no objection.
Your crime lies in assassinating Wei Bian—can that be called self-defense? Regardless of your background or origin, how could Wukang Mountain disciples be presumptuously handled by outsiders?" The last sentence was a stern reprimand delivered with authority.
The four Wukang Mountain disciples at his sides unconsciously puffed out their chests, a feeling of pride surging within them.
"After deliberation by Wukang Mountain, it was indeed ascertained that Disciples of This Sect were at fault beforehand. Therefore, you are granted an opportunity to reform yourselves; you will be confined to Wukang Mountain for one year and punished to serve as a choreman for one year.
If you show sincere repentance, you will be released upon completion of the term, or even earlier. If you resist repentance, you will be confined until you genuinely repent.
Do you accept this Resolution?"
Shi Chun sneered, "May I ask, if someone from an influential sect or a powerful Faction encountered such a situation, would your Wukang Mountain dare to confine them in this manner?"
If such a situation truly arose, there would naturally be an appropriate adjusted response, but currently, in front of outsiders, Xia Fuli would not speak softly.
"We will confine them regardless!"
Wu Jinliang stood up abruptly, slamming his palm on the ground, and angrily declared, "I am the first to disobey!"
Xia Fuli said composedly, "It's useless even if you disobey; we will naturally beat you until you comply.
This Seat is merely here to inform you, not to give you choices."
Shi Chun also stood up, "Then don't be so hypocritical here!"
Both wore angry expressions, unwilling to submit, each convinced they were acting quite well.
No emotion could be read on Xia Fuli's face. He tilted his head and said, "Give them clothes to change into."
A disciple holding clothes immediately pushed a stack of garments through the iron bars, tossing them onto the ground.
"Change into them!"
Wu Jinliang glanced at the fabric of the clothes on the ground. It was clearly cheap, coarse cloth, inferior to even their tattered garments.
He immediately said with great dissatisfaction, "No need. We're used to old clothes; what we have on is fine."
The disciple who threw the clothes said in a deep voice, "Tattered rags that obstruct the view are not permitted on the mountain.
Change into them!"
The two inside the cell stubbornly resisted, silently refusing, vowing to make their act convincing.
Xia Fuli spoke up, "You go in and help them change.
Don't worry about being a bit rough."
"Good!" Several disciples immediately wore sinister grins.
"No need." Shi Chun immediately pushed his hand away in refusal.
"We don't have the habit of letting other men undress us; we'll do it ourselves."
He whispered to himself, This guy surnamed Xia, too. We've cooperated enough, and we're about to slip away. Is there really a need to act so thoroughly?
"Change then, hmph!" Wu Jinliang tore open his tattered upper garment.
With that, the two stripped down to only their underpants in front of the five men, then picked up the coarse gray clothes from the ground and put them on.
As he changed, Wu Jinliang whispered, "Chuntian, why are our clothes always so tattered? It feels like we're not destined to wear good clothes.
How long can a new outfit last?"
"Can you shut your dog mouth and say something pleasant?" Shi Chun grumbled impatiently. He certainly didn't want to get beaten again.
After changing, Shi Chun's clothes were a bit oversized. Being oversized was easy to deal with, merely a matter of rolling up sleeves and pant legs.
Wu Jinliang's clothes, however, were a bit small, with his wrists and ankles slightly exposed. There was nothing he could do; he could only make do with wearing them.
The size of the clothes was secondary; the key was the white-backed, black-lettered circle drawn on both the front and back of the garments, on which the character '役' (Labor) was written.
These clothes were definitely not conjured up on a whim; it was obvious that they were not the first to be confined in this manner.
The prison cell Creaked open, and the two walked out of the prison, seeing the daylight outside again, which was somewhat dazzling.
Under the bright, sunny weather, Shi Chun and his companion looked up at the sky, feeling as if they were in a skywell.
As they walked up the winding steps, looking at the walls that resembled rusted iron, the same color as Wukang Mountain seen from the Outside World, Shi Chun tapped it with his hand, finding it neither stone nor metal, yet the material was extremely hard.
Stepping out of captivity, they immediately saw a sky as clear as if washed clean; the wind and rain of last night seemed never to have occurred.
Last night, it was dark, and Shi Chun and his companion had not yet seen what Wukang Mountain looked like. Now, gazing out, magnificent buildings were nestled among the peaks everywhere, and lakes reflecting the azure sky lay amidst pavilions and towers.
The aura of an Immortal Realm Cavern was somewhat created, yet it felt strange, as if something was missing.
"They're yours now."
Xia Fuli dropped the words to the disciples and left.
Given his status and position and cultivation level, such a trivial matter normally wouldn't require his personal attendance.
This was indeed an exceptionally high-level treatment, which outsiders could also understand, as it involved the Sect Master's daughter and the death of Sect Disciples.
"Go!"
Shi Chun and his companion were pushed forward by the four, led to a place not far from the prison, a large courtyard adjacent to it.
Compared to those magnificent buildings, the low, crude houses before them clearly indicated it was not a good place to live.
In the middle of the courtyard was a large Stone Mill, on which sat a corpulent fatso, with one leg crossed, cracking melon seeds and the like.
Occasionally, he would pick up a cup of tea for a sip, drinking and watching closely Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang, who had been brought in, scrutinizing them.
Arriving before the Stone Mill, the four Wukang Mountain disciples all grinned at the fatso and said, "Fatty Martial Uncle."
The fatso grunted, then asked the two brought in, "These are the ones who killed Senior Brother Wei?"
"Mm, Fatty Martial Uncle, the people have been brought. These two are now in your hands."
The four Wukang Mountain disciples left after the handover.
The fatso casually spit out the melon seed husks in his mouth. Seeing the two in front of him were neither humble nor overbearing, he merely sneered, not bothering to dwell on anything further; it was clear he meant for there to be plenty of time in the future.
Shi Chun and his companion understood the hidden meaning and didn't bother to argue, knowing they would soon be gone and wouldn't have to endure whatever the fatso had planned, so there was no need to worry.
The fatso suddenly turned his head and shouted, "Where are the others? Are they all dead? Didn't you see people arrived?"
Immediately, two people ran out from the single-story house, one with a square face, the other with a horse-like face; the latter appeared to be around forty or fifty years old.
Oh! Shi Chun and his companion perked up at the sight of the two. For no other reason than that they were wearing the exact same clothes, with the character '役' (Labor) on both the front and back.
The two flattered the fatso by the Stone Mill with fawning expressions. Without waiting for their compliments, the fatso shook his head and said, "What Two-Hour Period is it? Get them the water-carrying tools.
First, complete the morning task of twenty carrying poles of water. They're new here and don't know the rules, so take them on a trip and teach them well."
"Alright."
The two quickly agreed, calling for Shi Chun and his companion to follow them.
After taking the two to a storeroom, they found two Carrying Poles and two pairs of Water Buckets from a pile of tools and assigned them to Shi Chun and his companion.
Seeing this situation, although they didn't know how Elder Xia had truly arranged things, the two were guessing their escape was imminent. So they didn't cause any further trouble, preparing to follow the arrangements first, and complying accepted the work tools.
When they were in East Nine Plains, they also had jobs going deep underground to carry water. Both had done it before, so it truly wasn't their first time; it was just that the tools weren't as good as here.
Under the watchful eye of the fatso by the Stone Mill, Shi Chun and his companion, carrying their poles, followed the other two out of the courtyard.
Stepping out of the Main Gate of the courtyard, the instruction began.
The two newcomers were told not to run around wildly on the mountain; wearing these clothes, they could only go to designated areas when working. Otherwise, if discovered by the Wukang Mountain disciples responsible for alert duty in each area, the consequences would be dire.
Shi Chun couldn't help but ask about the identity of these two choremen. Only then did he learn that they were different from themselves; they were not outsiders but genuine Wukang Mountain disciples who, having committed an error, were punished and demoted to choremen.
Currently, there were forty to fifty others similarly punished.
The younger, square-faced one was called Zou Xingbao, and the older, horse-faced one, nearly fifty, was named Duan You.
Though there was an age difference between them, they were of the same generation within the sect.
The fatso by the Stone Mill was called Pang Tiansheng.
His cultivation talent wasn't great, and he had yet to breakthrough to High Martial cultivation, but his seniority was high, and he was the Sect Master's direct disciple, having been relegated to this corner to manage the Discipline Hall.
Wu Jinliang was puzzled.
There were lakes on the mountain, so why did they still need to go down to carry water? Was it purely for corporal punishment?
Only after an explanation did they learn that the mountain water was all rainwater. After accumulating for a long time, it wasn't fresh enough; it was fine for cleaning, but not suitable for drinking.
There were no water sources on the mountain, so they still had to go down to carry it. Of course, calling it corporal punishment wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Before long, the two were led to another intersection of the path descending the mountain. It was a relatively narrow passage going down the mountain.
Standing at the intersection, they could already see people in the same choreman clothes going up and down, carrying water; some carried full buckets up, others went down with empty water buckets.
"See that? Follow those with empty buckets to the water-carrying spot.
The buckets must be at least ninety percent full; no cutting corners, or you'll be punished. The location is a bit far, so we won't go with you.
We'll wait here for you to return, then take you to your designated pouring-out spot. Remember, don't even think about escaping, or your outcome will be miserable!"
Zou Xingbao pointed out the path descending the mountain with a flurry of instructions.
Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang unconsciously exchanged a meaningful glance, a knowing smile appearing at the corners of their mouths. Just as they thought, how could there be no arrangements? It was right here! Elder Xia's arrangements had indeed come to fruition.
His deliberate statement about not following them clearly meant no supervision, and his intentional reminder not to escape—was that hint not obvious enough?
(End of Chapter)