51: Chapter 51 Kill them!

Roars rose and fell, deafening in their intensity.

The City Guards held their long spears, barely maintaining order to prevent the agitated crowd from storming the courtroom.

In the courtroom, all the officials of Flower City had gathered.

Lei Lie stood on the left, clad in armor with a saber at his waist, his expression livid.

Wan'er stood on the right, holding a dossier with a cold and stern expression.

Minister Wang Fugui, Elder Tie, and others lined both sides, their eyes burning with rage.

In the center of the courtroom, two men bound tightly were kneeling on the ground.

One was in his thirties, with a rugged face and a thin build; his name was Liu Dashun.

The other was in his early twenties, with a slightly more youthful face and a similarly thin build; his name was Sun Weiwu.

Both men kept their heads buried deep, not daring to look up.

Their clothes were torn in several places; clearly, they had received quite a few punches and kicks from the townspeople on the way to be escorted.

Lei Lie stepped forward to report. "Reporting to the City Lord!"

His voice was loud and resonant, carrying a hint of suppressed fury.

"All water sources in the city have been brought under the control of the City Guards!"

"It is strictly forbidden for anyone to consume or use it!"

"I have already dispatched men to conduct a thorough search one by one to ensure nothing is missed!"

Zhou Yun nodded. "Well done."

Wan'er also stepped forward and bowed, "City Lord, the relevant notices have been posted."

Her voice was calm but carried a hint of chill.

"All residents are now aware of this matter, and no one will drink from the wells until the water sources are confirmed safe."

"Additionally, I have consulted with Elder Tie and Minister Lei to dispatch men to Ganlan Mountain outside the west city to fetch spring water, which will be distributed everywhere to address the urgent need."

Zhou Yun nodded again. "You have worked hard, Wan'er."

After handling these urgent matters, Zhou Yun's gaze finally fell upon the two men kneeling below.

He reached out and picked up the gavel, striking it heavily. "Clap!"

The crisp sound echoed through the courtroom. "Who stands before the court?"

Zhou Yun's voice was not loud, but it carried an Aura that commanded respect without anger.

The two kneeling men trembled simultaneously.

Liu Dashun spoke first, his voice hoarse. "Commoner... Liu Dashun."

Sun Weiwu followed immediately after, his voice trembling. "Commoner... Sun Weiwu."

Zhou Yun looked at them, his gaze calm. "Do you confess to the act of poisoning?"

He paused and emphasized his tone. "Do you plead guilty?"

Liu Dashun's body trembled violently.

He bowed deeply, his forehead hitting the ground heavily. "Commoner... is guilty."

Sun Weiwu also kowtowed, his voice choked with tears. "Commoner is guilty..."

As soon as these words were spoken, an uproar broke out both inside and outside the courtroom.

"They confessed!"

"It was them!"

"Kill them!"

...

The angry shouts grew louder and louder.

Zhou Yun struck the gavel again. "Clap!" "Silence!"

The clamor soon subsided.

Zhou Yun looked at Wan'er. "Wan'er, read the code of law."

Wan'er nodded, unfolded the dossier in her hand, and read aloud.

"According to Chapter 3, Article 12 of the 'Flower City Code'—"

Her voice was clear and cold, reaching the ears of everyone present, word for word.

"Those who poison the public shall be executed."

"They should be immediately taken to the execution ground and beheaded in public!"

Beheaded in public!

These four words exploded in the courtroom like a thunderclap.

The bodies of Liu Dashun and Sun Weiwu stiffened simultaneously.

Their faces instantly turned as pale as paper, devoid of all color.

Sun Weiwu was shaking all over, his teeth chattering, as if he had already seen the scene of his own head falling to the ground.

Outside the courtroom, the townspeople were filled with righteous indignation.

"Good! That's how it should be!"

A middle-aged man waved his fist and shouted loudly.

"In our most difficult time, it was the City Lord who took them in!"

"Giving them food, giving them a place to live, treating them so well!"

"And what was the result? They actually wanted to poison us all to death!"

"They are simply born villains! Heartless, ungrateful wretches!"

"Kill them!"

Another young man also shouted, "They must be killed!"

"Kill one to warn a hundred! Let everyone see what the consequences are for daring to cause trouble in Flower City!"

"Right! Kill them!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

...

The shouting grew louder and louder, almost lifting the roof of the City Lord's mansion.

The anger of the townspeople was understandable.

They had finally found a place to settle down and had finally begun to live a life with food and drink.

And yet these two people wanted to destroy all of this?

Wanted to kill them all?

People like this deserve to die ten thousand times!

In the courtroom, Liu Dashun and Sun Weiwu were trembling all over as they listened to the earth-shattering cries for their execution outside.

Sun Weiwu's tears had already started flowing; he knew he was doomed.

Liu Dashun's complexion was also ugly to the extreme; his lips trembled, but he couldn't say a single word.

Zhou Yun sat in the main seat, quietly watching all of this.

His expression was calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.

But his gaze remained fixed on the two men kneeling below.

Poisoning... was it really just these two people's idea?

Zhou Yun felt a vague sense that things were probably not that simple.

"Kill them!" "Behead them in public!" "Kill! Kill! Kill!"

...

The shouting outside the courtroom was deafening, wave after wave.

Zhou Yun picked up the gavel and struck it heavily. "Clap!" "Silence!"

The clamor subsided once again.

Zhou Yun's gaze fell upon the two men kneeling below, his eyes deep and sharp.

"Why did you do this?"

His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears. "I want to know the truth."

Liu Dashun and Sun Weiwu's bodies trembled simultaneously.

Both men kept their heads lowered, their shoulders trembling uncontrollably, but they refused to speak.

Silence. A deathly silence.

After a long time, Sun Weiwu finally spoke, choking with sobs. "It... it was us..."

His voice was hoarse, carrying a touch of despair. "Please, City Lord... execute us..."

Liu Dashun also kowtowed, his voice trembling. "It is our fault... this commoner deserves to die..."

"Please, City Lord, grant us death..."

The two of them just blindly confessed and begged for death, but avoided answering the question of "why."

Zhou Yun looked at them, his brows slightly furrowed.

The reaction of these two people was very strange.

They clearly knew they were doomed, yet they would rather remain silent than tell the truth.

There must be some hidden story behind this.

Just then, Wan'er stepped out. "City Lord."

Her voice was calm and steady. "I am afraid this matter is not that simple."

Zhou Yun looked at her. "What have you discovered, Wan'er?"

Wan'er took a small cloth bag from her sleeve and unfolded it to reveal a small amount of black powder inside.

"This is the residual poison I found at the scene."

Her gaze swept over the two men kneeling below. "I have examined it; it is 'black stone powder', a Bronze Rank poison powder."

"This poison is colorless and odorless, and difficult to detect once dissolved in water. The poisoned person has no symptoms in the Early Stage, and it will only take effect after three days, at which point the five internal organs will be damaged, and even gods could not save them."