Chapter 35 The Cross Talk Inside and Outside the Public Hall

  The official interrupted the two men's cross-talk performance, sighing bitterly: "This can't be said out loud, but it's clearly written on the Guo family's indictment that Master Fan is harboring a grudge over that matter, which is why he committed robbery and murder in the middle of the night."

  Liu asked Fan Xian: "What was the final outcome on the wine tower?"

  "I broke the nose of one of his family's guards." Fan Xian said self-reproachfully.

  "Is everything all right with you?"

  "How could I have done something? At that time, everyone in the wine house saw it, and I am a person who does not suffer losses."

  Liu sighed and turned to the bailiff, saying: "You listen, those who harbor resentment in their hearts are naturally the ones who suffer losses. Our young master has gained a great advantage, how could he still harbor resentment?"

  The bailiff had always only heard the litigant's nonsense in court, and had never seen anyone who hadn't even entered the courtroom yet take the initiative to defend himself. He was stunned and didn't know what to say. The Lyu family's daughter stretched out her hand without any hesitation, and a silver note appeared in the bailiff's hand. After taking a look, his eyes lit up.

  The Liu family has regained the pride and nobility that a madam should have, and said lightly: "This government office, we will go there, we want to see what kind of tricks the Guo family is playing. However, it can't be at this time, you go back and tell Lord Mei, when that young master Guo goes on trial, our people will go to the court to confront him."

  A servant thought this was not right, where is the reason to come and take someone but take a handful of silver tickets back, just about to speak, but was stopped by that little head, responded with a yes, and hurriedly retreated from the Fan Mansion.

  The Fan estate finally returned to calmness, and the flower hall was empty except for Liu Shi and Fan Xian. Fan Xian smiled at Liu Shi, thinking that if she weren't his enemy, it would be great. He had seen her tactics today and couldn't help but feel a little admiration for her. Although the Fan estate was large and prosperous, they had been suddenly attacked by the Guo family, and with his father not present, Liu Shi had handled everything clearly and calmly, without losing face. The key thing was that she had gained a lot of time to deal with the situation.

  As expected, Liu drank a sip of tea and asked faintly: "You're making such a big deal out of this, what's the point?"

  Fan Xian smiled and said, "Father has always hoped that I can quickly make a name for myself in Kyoto. After thinking about it, writing poetry and essays is really meaningless. If I could engage in an official lawsuit with the current Prime Minister's family, I would definitely become famous much faster." This was naturally a joke.

  "You can hit if you want, but why must you reveal your identity and hit? It seems like you're afraid of not being troublesome." There was a hint of anger in Mrs. Liu's words.

  Fan Xian respectfully replied: "It's just that I want to vent my anger. If the person being beaten doesn't know it was me who beat him, how can I vent this anger?"

  Liu looked at him and thought that this handsome young man in front of her was infinitely more capable than her own son, although on the surface he seemed to be doing some lawless things, but looking at his demeanor and composure, she knew he had a good head on his shoulders, and couldn't help but sigh, feeling a little disheartened.

  Fan Xian didn't know what she was thinking, and with a slight smile, he curiously asked: "Auntie, why did you help me just now?"

  Liu slowly raised her head, and there were already some fine lines at the edges of her eyebrows. She seemed to be surprised that the young man would speak so directly. After thinking for a moment, she replied softly: "Although I am surnamed Liu, I am actually a member of the Fan family."

  Fan Xian stared into her eyes, knowing that this woman's words were neither entirely trustworthy nor entirely believable, but he didn't know how to respond.

  A needle falling on the ground in the quiet hall can be heard.

  ……

  ……

  "Master Mei is my father's student, I've already sent someone to fetch the letter. Your father should have received the news by now, and I'm sure nothing will happen, at most we'll just need to compensate them a few taels of silver." Madame Liu closed her eyes, seeming somewhat fatigued. "This afternoon, let the steward accompany you to the Kyoto Prefecture, Tōko Kyō followed you last night, so don't follow him to the prefecture again today, lest it be too showy."

  Fan Xian looked at Liu's still beautiful face with some curiosity, really couldn't understand why a woman from a good family background who was so capable would be willing to marry his father as a concubine.

  After noon, the Fan Mansion had everything ready. All the necessary arrangements were made, and the routes to be taken were informed in advance. People were also sent to gather information, and it was confirmed that Guo Baokun had been carried to the public hall on a stretcher. Only then did Liu Shi arrange the carriages, assign personnel, and escort Fan Xian to the government office like a victorious general.

  Fan Xian, sitting in the carriage, wasn't very concerned about this trip to the public hall. He had hit Guo Baokun truly because he wanted to vent his anger; when he first discovered that the other's gaze was not quite right, he thought of hitting him, and being verbally insulted by the other at the Jing Wang Fu poetry gathering only increased his determination to take action. It was just that having just entered the capital, he had caused such a big commotion, although he had left some room for maneuver, he still feared that it would be difficult to bring things under control later on.

  But he still wanted to fight, fighting was a means to an end, the key was to see what kind of effect it would have. And Fan Xian wanted to beat up Guo Baokun for three reasons: Firstly, he wanted to use this opportunity to gauge his father's true power in the Kyoto officialdom, so as to make arrangements for the future. His father had always been evasive about these matters, and if he asked directly, he would not get a clear answer. At the same time, he could verify a certain question that had been hidden deep within his heart. Secondly, by getting himself into trouble, no matter what happened, once he was brought to court, it seemed that he would have to live up to the image of Fan Xian, the arrogant and unreasonable young master. This was exactly what Fan Xian hoped for, as he was carefully controlling a certain degree, the "palace" 's favorability towards him - although he should have established his talented side according to his father's request, he was always making a name for himself, planning to let the "palace" initiate a divorce. Everything was for the sake of his sister, Jiji.

  The third reason is simple: Guo Baokun really deserves a beating.

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  Arriving at the gate, Fan Xian jumped in surprise, looking at the excited crowd outside the red wooden fence. With the help of several servants, he squeezed in with great difficulty. Standing on the cool stone slab of the public hall, he looked at the wall behind the judge's bench, where a painting of the sun rising over the East Sea was hung, and the dark and ominous pillars standing around him. He secretly exclaimed "good" to himself, thinking that he had finally arrived at the Beijing High People's Court, and it was worth the trip.

  Turning back, I found that those Kyoto citizens were even more excited than myself, desperately squeezing forward to occupy a better position. Several professional onlookers almost sat on the red fence.

  Fan Xian curiously asked the guest from the Liu family, Zheng Tuo, who had been following him to his mansion. This Mr. Zheng was a famous judicial expert in Jiangnan many years ago and seemed to have a past friendship with the current Kyoto Prefectural Governor, so it was most appropriate for the Liu family to send him.

  Zheng Tuo smiled and explained, "People in Kyoto are all bold, don't look down on a shabby-looking person, he might be some distant relative of the Duke, so no one is afraid of anyone. Like today...the Minister and the Servant's family having an official lawsuit, it's really rare, this kind of excitement definitely nobody wants to miss."

  Fan Xian thought to himself, "Are you guys here to watch a show?" He shook his head slightly. Zheng Tuo asked in a low voice beside him, "Young Master, although we've already gone over this at the mansion before, I still want to ask one last time, did you really do it? Of course, we can't admit it in front of Magistrate Fu, but tell me the truth, and I'll know what to say later."

  Fan Xian said with a sincere face: "Mr. Zheng, I dare not deceive you, I really didn't hit that what's-his-name Guo Gongzi." Zheng Tuo looked at the handsome young man's familiar and honest face, chuckled and patted his shoulder lightly, showing appreciation.

  After a while, the long-awaited shout of Wei finally sounded, and Lord Mei, the prefect, walked out from the back hall with a dignified demeanor and sat down in his chair. After another moment, a mummy was also seated in a wheelchair, pushed out from the back hall by someone, followed by a Taoist priest who was gently shaking a paper fan. Fan Xian couldn't help but smile wryly at the sight of the mummy, thinking to himself that he hadn't used such heavy-handed tactics, and yet even the esteemed Prime Minister's residence would resort to playing this kind of sympathy card.

  Mummy was naturally being beaten up by Guo Baokun, and at this time his whole body was in pain, especially the bridge of his nose, which still hurt terribly. The doctor's treatment had little effect, and he didn't know that Fan Xian had put some hidden strength into that punch. Fan Xian's true energy was different from the common true energy in the world, and it was tyrannical and ferocious, so how could it be cured in a short time?

  Guo Baokun saw Fan Xian standing on the public hall as if nothing was wrong, but his eyes exposed outside the gauze showed a fierce expression, as if he wanted to choose someone to bite. Fan Xian pretended not to see this point and looked at the prosecutor who was shaking the fan, asking Zheng Tao in a low voice, only to know that the other party was a famous prosecutor in the capital, Song Shiran, who had a bad reputation and only did things for the wealthy and powerful families, so he got a nickname called "Rich Mouth".

  The Kyoto governor, Mei Zhili, who was sitting high up, slapped the shock wood in his hand, and the crisp sound echoed clearly. The noisy voices inside and outside the public hall suddenly quieted down, and those onlookers leaning on the red railing became silent, after all, no one wanted to miss a good show.

  "Who is under the hall?" Mei asked slowly, he had already received notifications from both sides and had a plan in his mind. He naturally still had to follow the rules and procedures, and with an air of authority, he swept a glance over the people on the public platform.

  No matter who you are, but in this Kyoto Prefectural Office, you have to listen to me.