There were still several days until Feng Xiang’s fiftieth birthday celebration—if he could get the token sooner, that would be for the best. He planned to use this opportunity to bully Feng Tianlan into giving him the token.
Accordingly, he quickly broke his promise that she would be kept alive until his birthday celebration.
Feng Tianlan merely snorted. She’d expected Feng Xiang to break this promise, but she hadn’t expected him to do it so soon. Did he really think she was stupid enough to obediently hand over the token to him?
She was waiting to see how much more shameless he could be.
Seeing that Feng Xiang had spoken, the protestors stopped and turned to him, waiting for him to continue.“A life for a life—it’s only right. As such, I am willing to turn in a family member for justice’s sake!” Feng Xiang shouted in a grave voice. “Guards! Tie up Feng Tianlan and drag her to court! Whether she lives or dies is entirely up to the judge!”
Feng Xiupei stood up, pulled on Feng Xiang’s arm, and sincerely begged him, “Father, don’t do it. That is my sister! All this started because of me, so don’t blame Eldest Sister! If you want to send someone to court, send me instead!”
“Pei’er, you are a strong fighter who is about to become a Spiritualist King. You are also the South Winds Nation’s only hope for becoming a strong country! How can you be a scapegoat for a good-for-nothing? I will not allow this!” Feng Xiang said this resolutely, as if he truly believed in making sure that justice was served.
Seeing the two of them put on such a well-coordinated act, Feng Tianlan snorted even louder and said, “I see that Father is really willing to give up everything to uphold justice.”
Feng Xiang’s face darkened. He stared at Feng Tianlan coldly—was she using the token to threaten him? Did she think he was so easily intimidated?
So long as he could send Feng Tianlan to the dungeon, then she would be the one who was threatened.
“All eyes are on us now, so I’m really not able to get you out of this. But don’t worry, I’ll find a way to bail you out.”Feng Xiang’s words meant that, regardless of whether Feng Tianlan had killed anyone or not, she was going to be labelled a murderer. If she were exonerated, it would only be because of the Feng family’s influence and power.
Humph!
Feng Tianlan looked at Feng Xiupei, who was still pretending to cry, and said, mockingly yet direct, “Then, I’m going to wait and see how righteous Father is.”
“Such audacity! You have to answer to the people!”
“Everyone should be punished equally for their crimes. We will not let you off like this.”
“Feng Tianlan isn’t really considered to be someone of high rank anyway. Her power and influence don’t place her above the law, and she must answer to the people.”
“…”
Feng Xiang’s words and Feng Tianlan’s attitude agitated the people watching. They felt that it was unfair that those with money and power could get away with murder while commoners had to be punished for even the smallest crimes.
The death of a commoner due to a Marrow Cleansing Pill had upset the people, but the idea that South Winds Nation’s law could be manipulated by those with money and power made them even angrier.
Xu Jiayi was standing to one side, and she instructed an underling to contact the people in the court to ensure that Feng Tianlan was convicted for murder.
Feng Xiuyu couldn’t help but lift her eyes out of joy, and she nearly exclaimed that all this was great because they could finally bring down Feng Tianlan.
On the other hand, Feng Xiupei was still crying buckets. She continued to say that she was the one who’d done it and was willing to admit her guilt for her sister’s sake.
This was all pretense, but it fooled the public.
Word spread quickly that a father was dragging his daughter to court, and many people gathered in front of the court to catch a glimpse of what was going to happen.
The governor sat in the high court and looked at Feng Tianlan and everyone else. Even though his head hurt from all that was happening, he kept a serious face and said, “This matter has already been brought to the emperor’s attention, so I will do my best to investigate and judge fairly. I will not allow any abuse of power or personal favors.”
