Chapter 1201: Honest People Are All Reasonable

Man Gu sat up, dazed. After a moment of careful thought, he confirmed this was not a dream. The reason was simple: he couldn't dream something like this.

"Masters, I admit I didn't understand the rules of officialdom back then and offended Prefect Lu, which made him dislike me. But you can't just arrest him for that."

Meng Jingzhou gave a thumbs-up, reassuring Man Gu: "We did everything according to regulations. It's the Prefect who has issues himself."

Man Gu breathed a sigh of relief. That's right, the two Masters were law-abiding people; they wouldn't arrest anyone out of personal vendetta. He recalled asking the two Masters for help to catch a ghost. After just one night, they had arrested his superior, so the answer was obvious.

"So, Prefect Lu was the one causing trouble?" As expected of the two Masters, they had solved a problem that had plagued him for three months on the very same day.

"Not exactly," Lu Yang said. "We happened to encounter an illegal organization while on night duty and followed the clues to discover that Prefect Lu had been protecting this organization."

"I see," Man Gu nodded. This wasn't the first time he had dealt with a Prefect, so he had no psychological burden. He and Lu Yang, his senior brother, had even killed the Prefect of Yanjiang Prefecture. Furthermore, it was just an arrest, not an assassination, so it was hardly a big deal.

Arresting Prefect Lu was a major event that couldn't be hidden. Moreover, Lu Yang and his companion were upright and just, so there was no need to conceal it. The news of Prefect Lu's arrest quickly spread throughout the entire yamen.

"What?! Prefect Lu was arrested by the new guys?" Everyone in the yamen who heard this news would freeze for two seconds, their brains needing a moment to process the information. "Didn't they just start yesterday? And they arrested the Prefect on their first night?" They had worked in the official system for so many years; not only had they never seen such a thing, they had never even heard of anything so outrageous.

"Master Scribe, what do you think—Oh, you're drinking medicine. We won't disturb you then." Originally, the yamen runners wanted to ask the scribe for his opinion, but seeing him trembling as he took his herbal medicine, they wisely left.

How could the scribe not tremble? For the past few years, he had constantly advised Man Gu on what not to do. He had long heard that Prefect Lu disliked Man Gu, and if it weren't for Man Gu being the top scholar, he would have been given a hard time long ago. Man Gu's year-end performance review depended on the Prefect's evaluation, so he had tried everything to maintain the relationship between Man Gu and the Prefect. Now, that was no longer necessary.

"Let the court begin!" Man Gu, in his official robes, rolled up his sleeves and slammed his palm on the table, louder than any gavel. "Bring up the prisoner!"

"Order!"

Two junior constables who had rendered great service escorted Prefect Lu forward. Hearing there was another court session, the common people came to watch the excitement. Only after seeing it did they truly believe that this time it was truly worth it; a high official had been arrested. Old Man Wang, along with Young Blacksmith Wang, were so astonished they couldn't close their mouths for a long time when they saw the two constables from last night escorting Prefect Lu.

"Didn't they say they were going to arrest the Hundred Swords Alliance? How did they end up arresting the Prefect?"

"Man Gu, how dare you let them arrest me!" Prefect Lu was furious beyond words; it was obvious these two junior constables were acting on Man Gu's orders!

"How dare I not arrest you—oh, at this point, I should say you engaged in corruption and abused your power for personal gain. Naturally, I, this official, must arrest you!"

"Did the Hundred Swords Alliance regularly supply you with spirit stones? Is that true?"

"No."

"Did you instruct the Hundred Swords Alliance to use all means to seize swords from various parts of Barren Province?"

"No."

"One hundred and eight swords were found in your room, ranging in quality from Soul Transformation to Golden Core grade. Are they yours?"

"No."

"Did you violate court regulations by visiting brothels and pleasure boats after work? Is that true?"

"No."

Man Gu turned his head and said to the scribe, who was busily writing: "Note this down: the evidence is conclusive, yet he refuses to confess. This does not count as a confession, and there are no grounds for leniency or reduced sentencing."

Before the court session, Lu Yang and his companion had acted swiftly, returning to gather all the evidence, including the ninety-nine members of the Hundred Swords Alliance. However, there were too many members in the Hundred Swords Alliance, and their testimonies hadn't been fully collected yet. They had only questioned the alliance leader, the deputy leader, and the four members of Xuanhei Overlord. It wasn't a major issue; they could just hold another court session later to complete the testimonies.

"I am an official appointed by the imperial court! No official below the fourth rank has the authority to deal with me!" Prefect Lu grew increasingly enraged; this was an utter disgrace.

"Wait a moment." Man Gu said this, then proceeded to flip through various regulations in court, first checking the criminal law to determine the charges, then the criminal procedure law to establish jurisdiction. Only then did he close the book with satisfaction. "See? The law states that I can handle anything within my jurisdiction. It doesn't say low-ranking officials can't arrest high-ranking ones."

Man Gu revealed his identity jade token: "Besides, I'm from the Dao Inquiry Sect. Our disciples have law enforcement authority."

Man Gu had always regarded Lu Yang and his companion as role models. Lu Yang and his companion were honest people, and he was too; honest people always reasoned things out.

"Alright, take him back." Man Gu saw that Prefect Lu said nothing, so there was no need to interrogate him further.

The news of Man Gu arresting his direct superior quickly reached the ears of Barren Province's high-ranking officials. Their reactions were not much different from those in the yamen; all of them froze for two seconds, doubting if they had heard correctly. It was said that history mirrored reality, yet such a thing had never happened across the combined three hundred thousand years of the Dayu, Daqian, and Daxia dynasties.

"Look on the bright side," one high-ranking official even found it in him to joke, "at least future generations will have a reference when studying history." He had interacted with Man Gu a few times and knew this was something Man Gu would do.

"Actually, there are precedents. This is how things usually go at the end of dynasties when rebellions break out."

"Minister Song, that's going too far. Are you suggesting Man Gu is rebelling?"

"You said that, not me."

"That's exactly what you meant!"

Seeing the conversation heading in an unfavorable direction, Governor Lü tapped the table. "Alright, enough with the jokes. Although this incident has no precedent, Man Gu's actions are not in violation of regulations. From the evidence submitted, Prefect Lu indeed committed illegal acts and should be stripped of his office."

"Then who should be the Prefect? Man Gu? Ever since he became the county magistrate, he has governed Quyi County meticulously, and its economy has also seen significant development."

"Of course the economy could develop significantly! He personally went down into mines to excavate minerals when his cultivation fluctuated to the Body Integration stage, almost digging out an entire mineral vein! How is that different from cheating? He cannot be the Prefect."

"As long as he can develop the economy, that's enough. Why demand so much? His cultivation is right there; can we tell him not to use it?"

"If not Man Gu, then who? There aren't many capable people in Zhongshan Prefecture. Who can take on this great responsibility?"

Governor Lü shook his head and made a final decision: "Man Gu is indeed not suitable. Although he is the top scholar, his qualifications are not yet sufficient, and exceptional promotion requires an imperial decree. In my opinion, the magistrate of Guyuan County in Zhongshan Prefecture is a steady person, has sufficient experience, and can command respect. He can be appointed as the Prefect."