Zhang San, please behave yourself!
Chapter 543 - 505: Truth: Two Choices Part 2

Chapter 543: Chapter 505: Truth: Two Choices Part 2

Zhang San continued, "This is Hu Xingxiang, the daughter of the Hu Family from the Five Immortal Clans of the Northeast."

Upon hearing this, Mei Fei couldn’t help but draw in a breath of cold air.

How the hell are there demons involved?

But then he remembered how Zhang San had accommodated Ying Zhao’s clan in the Helan Mountains, and it seemed quite normal for Zhang San to know some demons.

Moreover, since they were from the Five Immortal Clans of the Northeast, truth be told, they weren’t particularly far from Longyun Path in the north; it wouldn’t be wise to offend them.

Thus, Mei Fei immediately bowed with clasped hands toward them.

He then discovered that this delicate-looking young lady was even more beautiful than Ximen Jinxing by several degrees, her frailty possessing an added touch of cuteness and charm.

Truly befitting of a Fox Demon.

"Grand Commander-in-Chief, pay no attention to the fact that she is a girl from the Five Immortal Clans of the Northeast; that golden hairpin she wears was a gift from Empress Dugu herself."

Of course, Zhang San would not admit it was a gift from Empress Dugu to him which he then passed to Hu Xingxiang.

But this information alone was enough to shock Mei Fei immensely.

Mei Fei stared at the two women, one on either side of Zhang San, realizing that he couldn’t afford to offend just these two ladies alone.

"Grand Commander-in-Chief Mei, let me introduce you to this person; he is quite exceptional, always bearing the title of the foremost under the Purple Mansion Realm. He is the Second Hall Master of Wind Divine Hall, Jia Tulong!"

At that moment, Jia Tulong, looking nervous, stepped forward and bowed with clasped hands toward Mei Fei.

Mei Fei immediately reciprocated the gesture.

After all, Wind Divine Hall could be said to be the strongest martial path power in the north of Longyun Path. Not every other martial path power would heed its commands, but the influence of Wind Divine Hall was without doubt the greatest, without equal.

It wasn’t an exaggeration to call it the overlord.

Mei Fei quickly returned the bow, just about to say something, but at that moment, a military officer in his thirties ran over and skidded to a halt on his knees in front of Mei Fei.

"Grand Commander-in-Chief, please preside over justice! It’s this man! This man..."

The officer who had suddenly emerged pointed at Jia Tulong, so overcome with emotion that he was speechless.

Zhang San pretended not to know anything, turned his head to glance at Jia Tulong, and asked with a face full of shock, "Hall Master Jia, are you interested in the love of men? How... how did this happen? Did you force someone, or did you not pay them?"

The officer kneeling on the ground, upon hearing Zhang San’s words, was so distraught that he almost passed out right there.

"Grand Commander-in-Chief Mei! It’s this man! This person! He killed my grandfather! You must seek justice for my grandfather!"

After finishing his words, the man repeatedly knocked his forehead on the ground before Mei Fei.

In that moment, Mei Fei was in quite a bind.

Because Mei Fei had originally not planned to bring Shen Jieshi out just yet.

But the man insisted on running out on his own.

At that time, Zheng Poyue was among the crowd. Since Shen Buxing held considerable influence in the army, saving Shen Jieshi was a risky move, but it would enable Mei Fei to gain a foothold in the Shuofang Army in the future.

But the current Zheng Poyue had become smarter.

Had he been the old man, he would have charged out with Shen Jieshi to accuse Zhang San the moment he arrived.

Now, however, Zheng Poyue had learned to be patient, to plan thoroughly before taking action.

Why rush out on his own? A momentary outburst would only serve to release his emotions.

He just needed to wait and see, if Zhang San was undoubtedly going to die, he could step in later and kick him while he was down, and if Zhang San survived, it saved him from suffering along with him.

At this point, all Mei Fei could do was pretend to know nothing, looking at Zhang San awkwardly. He sighed and then asked, "Zhang San, not only are you the Great Sui Army’s General Ningyuan, but also the Military Chief of the Town Martial Office. I can understand your difficulties. However, now that such a matter has arisen, what do you think..."

Zhang San simply smiled.

"Grand Commander-in-Chief Mei, you should be able to see that this is a false accusation!"

"Early this morning, many martial artists came to the Town Martial Office to file complaints. Do you know what everyone was saying?"

Zhang San cleared his throat and, using the Forty-Eight Layers Tower, called out loudly toward the entire Shuofang Army camp.

"This morning, martial artists from Longyun Path went to the Town Martial Office to accuse Shuofang Army officer Shen Buxing of colluding with Tujue people!"

Zhang San’s shout, although he now had only developed it to a loud voice with a slight vibration effect from the Forty-Eight Layers Tower, clearly spread throughout the whole Shuofang Army camp.

Even many martial artists outside the camp gates could hear Zhang San’s voice at this moment.

Mei Fei was forced to retreat several steps back due to the power of Zhang San’s voice.

"Shen Buxing falsely claimed that Grand Commander-in-Chief Mei Fei encouraged the Longyun Path martial artists to kill the Tujue warriors, but in the end, he pocketed one-third of the reward for himself. The evidence for this, both human and physical, is all there!"

"Afterward, when the martial artists discovered this, they confronted Shen Buxing. In response, Shen Buxing ordered them to be surrounded and killed in an attempt to destroy the bodies and erase the evidence."

"The Second Hall Master of the Wind Divine Hall led people to rescue them, only to be ambushed by Shen Buxing. With no choice, Second Hall Master Jia Tulong had to strike down the traitor who colluded with the Tujue, attempting to spark a chaotic battle between the Frontier Army and the Great Sui martial artists!"

"For this matter, I must look to Grand Commander-in-Chief Mei for a judgement!"

Upon hearing these words, Mei Fei was completely shocked.

Did he know what kind of person Shen Buxing was?

He knew all too well.

But did Shen Buxing collude with the Tujue?

Of course not.

However, the matter at hand, after being loudly exposed by Zhang San, became rather difficult to clarify.

At this moment, Shen Jieshi, who was kneeling on the ground, stood up angrily and roared at Zhang San, "Nonsense! My grandfather fought against the Tujue countless times in his life; how could he possibly collude with them?"

Hearing this, Zhang San couldn’t help but laugh.

At this moment, Zhang San cleared his throat and, instead of using his full Forty-Eight Layers Tower voice, he spoke to Shen Jieshi in a volume that only a few nearby people could hear.

"Since you’ve said that, there are only two possible truths."

"One is as I just stated, Shen Buxing colluded with the Tujue, therefore deliberately stirring up the conflict between the Frontier Army and the Great Sui martial artists, in the hope that we, the Great Sui, would fight among ourselves and thus..."

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! You are simply slandering my grandfather!"

As Shen Jieshi spoke, he lunged at Zhang San, teeth bared and claws ready, only to be repulsed on the spot by Ximen Jinxing, who was wielding a Plum Blossom Bright Silver Hammer bigger than his own head.

"The other possibility is that Grand Commander-in-Chief Mei Fei allowed Shen Buxing to line his own pockets and then share the spoils, embezzling the war trophies and rewards that rightfully belonged to the Great Sui martial artists. As a result, the matter was exposed, inciting the wrath of the martial artists, who in a fit of anger committed murder."

After Zhang San finished speaking, he gave a light smile.

"Shen Jieshi, which of these two truths do you think it is?"

Shen Jieshi naturally knew that the embezzlement had nothing to do with Mei Fei, but when his grandfather had initially said that they should keep the cattle and sheep, he also considered giving a share to Mei Fei afterwards.

So, he turned his head and glanced back at Mei Fei.

But by this moment, Mei Fei had understood everything.

Shen Buxing certainly had embezzled.

No one knew Shen Buxing better than Mei Fei.

It was just because Shen Buxing’s greed was too great and the way he went about it too ugly, he got killed by the martial artists, and the situation got out of control.

If the Emperor Kaihuang found out about this, being accused of poor management would be considered a good outcome. But if Emperor Kaihuang thought he was involved in the embezzlement, it might cost him his own life!

Emperor Kaihuang’s hatred for the corrupt was well-known to Mei Fei.

Originally, it was because Emperor Kaihuang sent someone to secretly test him, offering bribes pretending to bring money that he couldn’t accept due to his inability to fulfill the task, leading Emperor Kaihuang to regard him as an incorruptible official. This had enabled him to rise smoothly and gain the Emperor’s favor.

If Emperor Kaihuang were to think of him as a corrupt official, his life would be over.

On the other hand, if it was Shen Buxing colluding with the Tujue, that would simply indicate a lack of strict control over his subordinates.

At this moment, Mei Fei finally understood that the words Zhang San had been speaking were not meant for Shen Jieshi, but for himself.

"Since the evidence of Shen Buxing’s collusion with the Tujue is conclusive, seize Shen Jieshi!"

Wang Lihui immediately ordered his personal soldiers to take down Shen Jieshi.

Upon seeing the personal soldiers approach, Shen Jieshi shouted loudly, "Grand Commander-in-Chief, my grandfather has always been loyal to the Great Sui, to you! Have you forgotten that my grandfather used to send..."

Splat—

Seeing the turn of events, Mei Fei reacted, striking Shen Jieshi on the chest with one palm, causing Shen Jieshi to spit out a mouthful of fresh blood, then stagger and fall to the ground, lifeless.

In the crowd, all the generals were shocked.

Watching Shen Jieshi’s body, Zheng Poyue inwardly sighed in relief at the close call.

Looking at the indifferent Zhang San, his sense of fear inexplicably deepened.