With a warehouse full of supplies, I stood alone as king in this chaotic world, gun in hand.

Shi Wei straightened his robes, sat down in the main seat of the hall, picked up the complaint, and carefully read it through.

The guards brought over two armchairs for Bei Chenyan and Nangong Wu to sit and listen, while Qi Ziyang stood to the side.

"Bang!" Shi Wei slammed the gavel on the table and shouted:

"Master Chu, four years ago, your eldest son forcibly abducted Xu Qinghe's wife, Madam Lu, and killed her one-and-a-half-year-old child; caused Madam Lu to miscarry her two-month-old fetus; and severely beat Madam Lu. After Xu Qinghe took her home, she died in the middle of the night. Do you admit to this or not?"

The wealthy man, Chu, trembled violently, but still tried to argue: "Sir, this is a slander! This is absolutely not true. Xu Qinghe killed my son and then ran off to become a bandit. This is the truth..."

Just as Shi Wei was about to ask another question, Bei Chenyan spoke up again, "Since he won't confess, then beat him."

They arrived in Ji County last night and conducted covert investigations overnight, not only investigating the Chu family but also Deng Song's activities in Ji County over the years.

They have already gathered a lot of evidence, and they have come to the yamen today to deal with Deng Song and the Chu family.

At Bei Chenyan's command, several guards picked up their batons and began beating the Chu family of five.

They used tremendous force, the kind that meant to kill; with just one blow, the Chu family screamed in agony.

The wealthy man, Chu, cried out, "Injustice! As the crown prince, are you trying to force a confession out of him...?"

"Innocent?" Qi Ziyang sneered. "Summon the witnesses!"

A dozen or so people walked in from outside and knelt down in the main hall.

At this moment, a large number of common people had arrived outside the courtroom. They had heard that the Crown Prince had come in person to interrogate the county magistrate, and they all stood outside the gate to listen to the trial.

Shi Wei dared not speak. It was obvious that the Crown Prince had come prepared, and that he was targeting the county magistrate and the Chu family. Having him sit here was just for show.

A middle-aged man pointed at the wealthy Chu and accused him: "Your Highness, this Chu fellow is a tyrant. He and his accomplices bribed Magistrate Deng to run rampant in the city, oppressing the people. They are utterly wicked."

"Four years ago, their eldest son, Chu Dafu, snatched Xu Qinghe's wife on the street and even threw his one-and-a-half-year-old son to his death. This is something I witnessed with my own eyes..."

Faced with witnesses and physical evidence, Deng Song and the Chu family had no way to deny their wrongdoing.

Bei Chenyan concluded, "Deng Song, as the magistrate of Ji County, is lazy and indolent in his duties, does not work for the benefit of the people, and even colludes with local bullies to persecute the people."

His second crime: During his more than ten years in office, Deng Song allowed cruel officials to exploit the people, embezzled more than 100,000 taels of silver, and bribed officials of the court, causing widespread resentment among the people under his jurisdiction.

"Deng Song, if I hadn't come here secretly to investigate, I would never have known that you, a mere county magistrate, were so audacious and reckless, deceiving your superiors and committing so many evil deeds."

Shi Wei couldn't sit still any longer, so he ran out and knelt down.

He knew things had gotten out of hand! If the imperial court investigated, he might also be implicated.

"Your Highness, spare my life!" Deng Song kowtowed and begged for mercy.

"Spare your life, but who will seek justice for those who died unjustly at your hands?" Bei Chenyan coldly snorted and gave the order:

"Guards! Order Deng Song to be hanged, and have his body displayed outside the city gates for three days as a warning to others!"

"Yes!" Wei Yang personally dragged Deng Song out of the courtroom and, in front of the people, took a rope and hanged Deng Song.

"Good riddance! This corrupt official was even more despicable than the Chu family; he should have died long ago."

The onlookers cheered.

When the Chu family saw Deng Song executed, they were terrified, their foreheads hitting the ground with loud thuds.

"Your Highness, spare our lives! We will never dare to do it again. We are willing to donate all our wealth to the court, begging Your Highness to spare our family's lives..."

"Damn it, you've done so many evil deeds, you deserve to die a thousand deaths, and now that you're about to die, you still want to live?" Qi Ziyang was furious and kicked him hard.

Bei Chenyan then ordered: "These five people have committed numerous evils and their crimes are unforgivable. They shall also be hanged and their bodies shall be dragged outside the city gate and left to rot for three days to appease the wronged souls of those they killed."

As for the rest of the Deng and Chu families, they were exiled to the desolate southern frontier to perform hard labor, with no possibility of pardon! All their property was confiscated to compensate the victims.

"yes!"

The guards personally dragged the five members of the Chu family out and strangled them in public.

"Your Highness is wise! Long live the Crown Prince!" The people knelt down and shouted "Long live the Crown Prince!"

Deng Song and the Chu family were both heinous criminals. If ordinary officials were to handle the case, it would take at least several months to sentence them according to procedure.

This prince is quite something; with witnesses and physical evidence, he was executed immediately, which is truly gratifying.

After the guards strangled the six men, they took them outside the city with the ropes still around their necks.

The common people, always eager for a spectacle, followed suit, forming a large and orderly procession behind the corpse as they headed out of the city gate.

Inside the courtroom, Shi Wei and the bailiffs were still kneeling on the ground, awaiting their fate.

Bei Chenyan's gaze swept over the trembling constables, and he spoke slowly: "These people aided and abetted the evildoers. They shall each be given a fifty-fifty lash and imprisoned. They will be tried again later. All those involved in the case shall be severely punished."

"Your Highness, spare my life!"

A chorus of pleas for mercy filled the air.

If someone gets fifty lashes, they'll either be beaten to death or bedridden for half a year. Even if they aren't sentenced, they'll be crippled.

Without saying a word, the guards dragged the man away to be executed.

Soon, the sound of a cane being struck could be heard outside.

Only Shi Wei remained kneeling in the courtroom.

"Please punish me, Your Highness!" Shi Wei kowtowed.

"Punishment? What mistake did you make?" Bei Chenyan asked him.

"As the magistrate of Ji County, I have failed to share the burdens of the people, nor have I been able to discover the crimes of Deng Song and the Chu family and report them to the court..." Shi Wei trailed off, unable to continue.

Because he had been in office in Ji County for less than half a year, although he knew that the Chu family were not good people, he did not expect that they had done so many evil things.

"Alright! If you had reported Deng Song, you would probably be dead by now!" Qi Ziyang said.

Deng Song had connections in the capital. If someone were to report him, the complaint would be intercepted before it even reached the Censorate, and the accuser would be assassinated.

Bei Chenyan pondered for a moment before issuing the order, "From this day forward, I hereby appoint you as the magistrate of Ji County."

Although Shi Wei was only a recommended scholar, he had studied at the Imperial Academy for several years and was fully capable of serving as a county magistrate.

Shi Wei was stunned, thinking he had misheard, and didn't react.

"Shi Wei, you've encountered a great fortune, why don't you quickly express your gratitude?" Qi Ziyang shook his head.

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness!" Shi Wei hurriedly kowtowed to express his gratitude.

"I'm leaving Ji County to you! I'll come back in a year." After giving his instructions, Bei Chenyan walked out.

Cao Li stepped forward and handed Shi Wei a small box. "These are all evidence of the evil deeds committed by Deng Song and the Chu family. Please take care of them."

"Yes!" Shi Wei bowed, "Respectfully seeing off His Highness the Crown Prince!"