Chapter 43: Claiming Justice

Assuming that the head of the Xue family believed their backing was not powerful enough and therefore did not wish to embroil them in the matter, Yang Chuan walked directly behind him.

"Master Xue, the two of us are officials directly appointed by the Empress of Great Qi. Since we have been dispatched to investigate and redress grievances, we possess the authority to shake every faction in Xiao City. You may speak freely of your daughter's plight without reservation."

"My eldest daughter has suffered from a mental affliction since childhood. To avoid disturbing the people of Xiao City, I voluntarily locked her away in her boudoir. There is no miscarriage of justice here, so the two of you should take your leave."

Seeing that the two of them were insistent on seeking redress for the Xue family, Xue Zong hesitated for a moment before deciding to conceal the truth.

Yet, tears welled up uncontrollably within his wrinkled eyes.

It had been more than two years since his eldest daughter was first violated.

Over these past two years, he had pulled strings and sought help everywhere. How could he not yearn to secure justice for his daughter?

Not only was the Prefect of Xiao City powerless in this matter, but Xue Zong had also secretly sent servants to the capital to find out who Yuan Tianze’s powerful patron truly was.

To his dismay, the servants he dispatched never even reached the capital; they were assassinated along the way, subjecting him to the most fatal threats from Yuan Tianze.

If he refused to swallow the humiliation of his eldest daughter's abuse and keep it buried in his stomach, all thirty-two members of the Xue family would become ghosts under Yuan Tianze’s blade.

Presently, although the imperial court had dispatched two "official emissaries," Xue Zong looked at the young man and woman and felt they were utterly incapable of helping him.

The man was far too slender; for a full-grown man, he possessed scarcely any aura of masculine vigor, looking instead like a fragile scholar.

How could such a frail official possibly contend with Yuan Tianze, who possessed a towering, burly physique and traveled everywhere flanked by a dozen retainers?

As for the woman beside him, her appearance was so dignified and exquisite that she looked more like a wealthy maiden kept strictly within a secluded boudoir.

If she possessed some martial arts skill and could at least protect herself when encountering Yuan Tianze, that would be one thing; but if she lacked any martial prowess, she would simply become the next object of Yuan Tianze’s bullying.

This was Xiao City, not the capital of Great Qi.

As the saying goes, the mountains are high and the emperor is far away. Even if the two of them were appointed directly by the Empress, without armed guards accompanying them, entering Xiao City was like a dragon trapped in shallow water, where even the humblest fish and shrimp could bully them.

"I am grateful that the two of you have come to visit the Xue family, but my family has never suffered any bullying over the years, nor do I have any idea where you heard such rumors."

"Today, I advise you both: if you still manage to retain your official posts in the capital, focus diligently on serving Her Majesty and refrain from meddling in these muddy waters!"

As his voice trailed off, the deep, resonant sound of a bell echoed from afar, causing Xue Zong’s heart to skip a beat.

He immediately turned around, gave Yang Chuan a firm shove, and urged, "Hurry and leave, or it will be too late!"

Judging by the calendar, today was precisely the day Yuan Tianze was scheduled to bring his men to "marry" the second daughter of the Xue family.

The striking of the bell at the Hour of Si meant that the "wedding procession" personally led by Yuan Tianze was about to arrive.

If the two of them stubbornly lingered here, not only would they fail to help the Xue family, but they would also doom everyone present to death!

Naturally failing to comprehend the meaning behind his words, Yang Chuan and Tian Yueying were about to speak when they heard a Xue family servant rush over to report in a panic.

"Master! Magistrate... Magistrate Yuan's wedding procession has arrived!"

"Alas!"

Xue Zong let out a long sigh, turned back to cast a mournful glance at Yang Chuan and the others, and in his desperation could only instruct the servants to hustle the two of them into the inner hall to hide.

Hearing that Yuan Tianze had arrived, Yang Chuan also wanted to see firsthand how this scoundrel bullied the local populace.

Before the servants could drive them away, he took the initiative to pull Tian Yueying and hide behind a folding screen.

Through the carved curve of the screen, they soon caught sight of Yuan Tianze swaggering into the Xue estate.

This man stood well over eight feet tall, his face covered in layers of fleshy rolls, giving off an instantly menacing vibe from his appearance alone.

The head of the Xue family greeted him with a smiling face and reported obediently, "Master Yuan, my youngest daughter is still resting in her boudoir. If you would wait a moment, I will go and fetch her."

"Humpf, why should my esteemed father-in-law go to such trouble? I have brought the 'bridal bed' with me today; I merely need to instruct my servants to go to her chambers and carry my wife directly onto the bed!"

With that, he turned around and flashed an evil grin at the men behind him.

The act of carrying the second daughter of the Xue family onto a bed was a method of humiliation privately invented by Yuan Tianze.

This reminded Yang Chuan, even behind the screen, of the methods used by emperors throughout history in the time and space he came from to favor their imperial concubines.

That method required the concubine to bathe completely.

She was then wrapped in quilts by the estate's servants, and the Chief Eunuch of the Imperial Household would personally lead a team to carry the naked concubine—wrapped only in blankets—straight to the emperor's bedchamber.

True enough, a debauched scoundrel seeking to invent new forms of depravity would stop at nothing!

Ever since he had transmigrated into this era, Yang Chuan had never heard of any monarch in any country inventing such a practice.

Furthermore, both Great Kang and Great Qi were ruled by Empresses, and neither female sovereign had ever kept male consorts; how could such a practice have ever been passed down?

"Humpf, truly the mountains are high and the emperor is far away. This Yuan Tianze intends to be his own local emperor in Xiao City!"

Yang Chuan muttered under his breath behind the screen.

Tian Yueying found the entire spectacle too sickening to watch.

The Xue family's daughter was only