Chapter 83 The Difficulty of Escaping the Blame

Liu Ziming glanced at Qi Huan, whose expression was shifting uncertainly, then swept his gaze over the few men on the ground who were so terrified they had nearly fainted, and took a deep breath.

"Head Constable Wang is dead; that is a fact. But how did he die? Why did he die? Our word alone won't be enough to clarify it, and Xu Changze won't accept it."

"When the time comes, he could completely turn the tables on us, claiming we colluded with the Ghostly Creature, or that we murdered a colleague to vie for credit and eliminate dissent."

"Even if Chief Qi testifies for us, the other side's people are all dead, so won't it just be up to Xu Changze to fabricate the story?"

Although Liu Ziming's cultivation was not high and his personality was often timid, he had been struggling and climbing through the ranks in the yamen for so many years that he understood the dirty tactics and the tricks of twisting black into white in officialdom much more clearly than Chen Mu.

"Leaving survivors will actually make things clearer. It will let them confirm Head Constable Wang's crimes, proving that he was the one who acted to murder his superior and harm his colleagues."

"When that happens, even if Xu Changze wants to shield him, with these witnesses, he will have to weigh his options."

Chen Mu fell silent, his gaze dimming, but his hand on the sword hilt relaxed.

He had always lived his life with swift retribution and decisive actions, but Liu Ziming's words were not without reason, and they instantly enlightened him.

In this world where everything relies on superficial evidence and rules, handling the aftermath is sometimes more worth considering and weighing than the act of killing itself.

Instead of handing over the right to explain this case to Xu Changze, it would be better to leave behind some survivors willing to cooperate; they could instead become weapons for their counterattack.

It's just... would these people be willing to cooperate?

His cold gaze turned once again toward the men on the ground who had been scared out of their wits. He did not speak, but simply stepped forward twice and stood quietly before them.

An invisible pressure instantly descended, causing the men's cries and pleas to come to an abrupt halt as they stared blankly at him.

"Tell me, how did Head Constable Wang die?"

Chen Mu finally spoke. His voice was not loud, but it allowed everyone present to hear it clearly.

Those men were stunned and looked up in confusion, glancing at Chen Mu and then at Head Constable Wang's severed head, unable to react for a moment.

How did he die? Wasn't it just your sword stroke a moment ago...

Chen Mu did not repeat himself; he merely turned slightly, seemingly inadvertently, and glanced at Qi Huan, who was standing to the side with an unhappy expression.

This glance was trivial, but when combined with his previous question, the meaning could not have been clearer.

In a flash, one of the slightly sharper men reacted immediately, as if grabbing onto the last straw of hope, and shouted hoarsely.

"It... it was that scoundrel, Head Constable Wang! He was insane and plotted to murder Liu Ziming. After Lord Qi discovered it, he actually attempted to silence Lord Qi along with him!"

The others also shuddered, suddenly struck with inspiration, and chimed in all at once, their stories instantly aligning.

"Yes! He saw that Lord Qi was severely injured and thought he could take advantage of the situation, intending to kill him to cover up his heinous crime!"

"That's exactly it! Although Lord Qi was severely injured, he remained calm in the face of danger and fought back! That Head Constable Wang fought to the death, forcing Lord Qi to execute him on the spot. He deserved to die!"

"Yes! We all saw it! We can all testify! He deserved to die; Lord Qi has removed a great scourge for Yunmeng!"

The men gnashed their teeth one by one, as if they had some deep, blood-feud hatred for Head Constable Wang, and they looked at Chen Mu and Qi Huan with faces full of admiration and gratitude.

They understood very clearly in their hearts that Chen Mu was pointing out a path to survival for them.

Qi Huan's status was high enough, and he was not under the jurisdiction of the local government, so pushing all the blame for Head Constable Wang's death onto him was both plausible and could avoid trouble.

As for them, they were accomplices who had been coerced by Head Constable Wang but had since repented. Not only would Chen Mu not kill them, but he would also protect them so they could testify for him.

Perhaps they might even get some benefits for exposing the crimes and protecting a superior; at the very worst, they could rid themselves of the suspicion of being Head Constable Wang's cronies.

Chen Mu listened as they took turns telling the story of "Head Constable Wang attacking a superior and being killed in retaliation," making it sound very convincing and even fabricating quite a few details, his face devoid of any expression.

Only when they were all parched from talking, having rehearsed their testimonies several times, and were looking at him expectantly, did he coldly spit out two words.

"Get lost."

The men were instantly granted amnesty, kowtowing repeatedly before helping each other up and stumbling away in a panic along the path they had come.

Until the figures of the men gradually blurred and finally disappeared, Chen Mu then turned back to look at Qi Huan.

Qi Huan's complexion had already changed from the initial lividness to a complex expression of being unable to laugh or cry. He pointed at Chen Mu and roared in a low voice, though his tone was quite helpless.

"Chen Mu! You damn... You kid killed the man, and then you dumped it all on me?!"

"And you even taught those people how to fabricate lies right in front of me?!"

He felt that it had truly been an unlucky year. He had nearly been beaten to death by a Ghostly Creature, had just barely saved his life, and then was forced to exert his Qi to travel rapidly for dozens of miles. Then he was threatened by that damn Head Constable Wang, and before he could even throw a few punches to vent his anger, Chen Mu had hacked the man to death.

And in the end, this heavy, black pot of blame was slammed onto his head?!

At this moment, he felt extremely stifled and displeased.

However, Chen Mu merely swept a faint glance at him, as if looking at a child who did not understand the situation, and asked quietly, "Otherwise what? Should I say I killed him?"

Qi Huan was instantly choked up.

"I saved your life, Lord Qi. Without me, you would have already become a snack in the belly of that Ghostly Creature at the Zhao residence."

"Now, it's just letting you shoulder the reputation of self-defense and executing a maniac who murdered his superior..."

"What? Does Lord Qi feel that his life... isn't worth this price?"

Qi Huan opened his mouth, wanting to retort, but found no way to argue back. His chest heaved violently, and his face alternated between green and red.

Was it worth it? Of course it was worth it!

Let alone one Head Constable Wang, even ten Head Constable Wangs could not compare to the preciousness of his own life.

But... but that's not how this is calculated!

The aftermath of this matter would only be more troublesome. Xu Changze would certainly not let it go, and there would undoubtedly be endless wrangling, impeachments, and investigations later on.

But compared to actually dying at the Zhao residence, this trouble seemed not entirely unbearable.

Moreover, without Chen Mu, he would already be dead, and dead men have no right to discuss trouble.

But... why was it so frustrating?

Qi Huan held it in for a long time before squeezing a sentence out through his teeth.

"Even so... you still shouldn't..."

Chen Mu didn't wait for him to finish before interrupting him.

"Shouldn't what? It's just pinning the death of a piece of scum on you; it's nothing more than dealing with some paperwork trouble."

"In my opinion, this life-saving debt... consider it half repaid."

Qi Huan was instantly stunned.

"Half?"

Chen Mu nodded, his tone carrying a sense of natural justification. "The remaining half, you must continue to repay."

Qi Huan was dumbfounded. He looked at Chen Mu, feeling his brain buzzing.

A life-saving debt, can it be repaid in installments?

And listening to what he meant, for the remaining half, who knows what even more troublesome pitfalls were waiting for him.