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nChapter 27: Punishment

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nSuch a grand commotion was guaranteed to shock and alert the Su Clan.

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nThe first person to arrive was the Su Clan’s head of security, Pei Jiyun. He was Su Changche’s nephew, and was an Origin Qi Scholar in the Blood Gushing realm. Of the Su Clan’s second generation, he was second only to a handful of people like Su Keji or Su Huaiyou.

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nThe most rare thing was that the way this person dealt with matters could be considered quite fair. As the clan’s head of security, he was not allowed to have too much political bias.

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nUpon seeing that he was the first to arrive, Su Chen’s heart relaxed.

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nAlthough Pei Jiyun was not as warm as Su Feihu towards him, he at least did not discriminate against or try to suppress him. He was someone who could be reasoned with.

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nAt this moment, Pei Jiyun arrived. Upon seeing the condition of Su Yue and Mo Dayan, he was very clearly dazed for a moment before he glanced at Su Chen. “Su Chen, what are you doing?”

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nSu Chen gently laughed and responded, “What I am doing cannot be explained in a sentence or two. Let’s wait for all the elders to arrive before I address your questions all at once, okay?”

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nPei Jiyun was startled, but in the end he nodded and said, “Sure, but you have to release Su Yue first.”

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n“That won’t do. Without him, most people probably won’t even give me an opportunity to speak.” As Su Chen spoke, he placed his right hand on Su Yue’s eyes. “Make no mistake, if a blind man gets pushed too far, he can do anything.”

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nPei Jiyun sucked in a breath of air, then hurriedly said, “Okay, okay, don’t be hasty, isn’t it enough for you to just hold onto him? Let’s just wait here together for the clan’s other elders.”

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n“Uncle Pei, you might not be able to rest just yet.” Su Chen pointed at those charioteers behind him. “These people were all witnesses to what happened today, so I need them to testify. But to prevent anyone from having evil intentions and lying, I ask that Uncle Pei confine them separately and interrogate them individually.

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nAll of the charioteers were shocked. Some of them had not been frightened by Su Chen’s words, and had only pretended to lower their heads to him. They were holding their hatred in their hearts and waiting for an opportunity to strike back at him once they escaped his grasp.

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nThey never expected that Su Chen actually had such a method up his sleeve. It felt like what he had said before was to stabilize the situation, but the real tactic was still waiting for them.

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nPei Jiyun didn’t care about what they thought. Su Chen’s words caused his eyes to light up.

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nWith the testimony of enough people, regardless of who was in the right or wrong, there wouldn’t be a mistaken conviction. Since every injustice had its own perpetrator, any responsibility would not fall upon him, the head of security.

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nThus, he waved his hand. “Catch all of them and interrogate them individually. Without my permission, do not allow anybody to visit them!”

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nOne of the clan’s guards had already stepped forwards and taken away all of those charioteers. When they tried to take away Mingshu and Zhou Hong, they were stopped by Su Chen, which Pei Jiyun didn’t mind. He could tell that although Su Chen had injured those people, the trouble had most likely been stirred up by the other party. Otherwise, Su Chen wouldn’t be so calm and unhurried.

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nNot long after, all the masters in the Su Clan were all shocked into action.

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nSu Cheng’an came, Su Keji came, Su Feihu came, Tang Hongrui came, and Yan Wushuang also came.

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nA large group of people stood around Su Chen, confused, but no one dared to draw near to Su Chen because he was still holding onto Su Yue.

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nHis two fingers were placed on Su Yue’s eyelids no matter who pleaded with him.

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nWhen Su Changqing arrived and saw the scene, he was so enraged that his nose became slanted. “Su Cheng’an, look at what your son did! Tell him to quickly release Yue’er!”

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nSu Cheng’an wore an expression of embarrassment. “This unfilial son hasn’t listened to me for a long time. Just now, I ordered him to release your son, but he just wouldn’t listen. Instead, he used a needle to draw a scratch on Su Yue’s face……”

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n“Su Cheng’an, you’re not a man!” Tang Hongrui began to yell piercingly, “For something so big to happen and you act not to protect Chen’er, but instead directly call him an unfilial son. Did you even ask what exactly happened?”

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nSu Cheng’an’s face reddened. “How would I know if he doesn’t say anything?”

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n“You yourself also know that he hasn’t said exactly what happened and you still call him an unfilial son, telling him to release the person? Have you even looked around, do you not see how many bastards are eyeing Su Chen like he’s prey? If he releases the person, would there even be a chance for Chen’er to defend himself?” Tang Hongrui asked angrily.

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nYan Wushuang let out a gentle cough, “Madame’s words are basically throwing a lot of people under the bus. Everyone here is actually just concerned for Chen’er……”

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n“Slut, close your mouth, you’re one of the hungry scavengers eyeing my son.” Tang Hongrui pointed at Yan Wushuang and cursed, “Don’t think that I don’t know about the things that you, b*tch, did behind my back. If it wasn’t for my Chen’er’s caution, we would have been harmed by you a long time ago!”

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nBack then, when the True Jade Pavilion’s laborer had been bribed, Tang Hongrui also knew about it. She had even criticized her son, wanting him to hold the laborer accountable publicly instead of letting him go. That way, even if Yan Wushuang’s properties couldn’t be affected, she would still have been thoroughly discredited. But Su Chen believed that doing so would not only smack Yan Wushuang’s face but also Su Cheng’an’s, so in the end he had refused.

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nAt this moment, Yan Wushuang was also getting angry after being cursed at by Tang Hongrui, but while she had a great deal of authority, her status was still lower than Tang Hongrui’s, so she could only look at Su Cheng’an pleadingly.

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nSu Cheng’an’s face alternated shades of red and white. In the end, he could only say, “That’s enough.”

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nTang Hongrui’s personality was inherently forceful. How could she heed Su Cheng’an’s urging? Instead, she began to argue loudly and unrestrainedly with Su Cheng’an.

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nThankfully, at this moment a voice sounded out, “Enough!”

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nAll those present immediately were jolted, then replied in unison.

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n“Clan Leader!”

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nThe crowd parted to form a path, and an older person walked over.

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nThis was the Su Clan’s clan leader, Su Changche.

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nSu Changche wore an azure cloth gown, and held his hands behind his back. His clothing was plain, as was his appearance, and he looked just like an elderly neighbor.

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nBut all the members of the Su Clan, regardless of whether they were loud and clamoring, fiercely arguing, or whispering amongst themselves, all shut their mouths after they saw this old man come, and none dared to make another noise.

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nSu Changeche was not only the clan leader of the Su Clan, but even more he was the founder of the Su Clan.

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nAs the clan that had emerged the latest in Northface City, the Su Clan had been raised up purely based on Su Changche’s strength alone.

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nUpon arriving at the end of the path, Su Changche glanced at Su Chen, Su Yue, and Mo Dayan who was still lying on the ground, then let out a soft sigh.

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n“Big Brother, Su Chen, he…….”

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nSu Changqing wanted to say something, but Su Changche waved his hand and said, “Enough, I already know what happened. This matter originated from Su Yue scheming against Su Chen. He ruined his carriage and secretly planted needles inside with malicious intent. Chen’er was only acting in self-defense. As for Mo Dayan, as a servant he dared to lie to his master, and he also knew that the carriage had been tampered with yet he didn’t say anything. Because of his betrayal and evil actions, he ought to be punished.”

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nWith just a few sentences, Su Changche was able to explain everything that had happened earlier.

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nNo one knew where he had gotten his information from, but that wasn’t important. What was important was that the Head of the Su Clan had spoken, and no one dared to ignore it, let alone question him.

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nThis was a good thing, but also a bad thing.

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nThe good part was that Su Chen didn’t need to defend himself anymore. The bad part was that Su Changche had used the simplest possible description of the events that had transpired. Evidently, he didn’t want this matter to escalate. Based on what he said, this was a family conflict; thus, naturally it should be taken care of low-key. The simpler it was, the better, to prevent any more waves from being created.

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nThis also meant that matters would not escalate to the degree that Su Chen wanted.

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nUpon hearing that Su Yue had placed needles into the carriage to attempt to harm her son, Tang Hongrui fiercely stared at Su Changqing. Su Changqing’s face was completely red, and he lowered his head, not daring to speak. However, the hatred in his heart did not decrease because of this.

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n“For brothers to quarrel really hurts my heart!” After describing the causes of the situation, Su Changche said, “Su Yue harmed Su Chen first and reaped what he sowed. Since he was injured by Su Chen, he can be considered punished already. Chen’er, let him go and we can consider the matter finished here. What do you think?”

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n“Since grandfather has commanded it, how could grandson dare to disobey?” Su Chen tossed Su Yue back.

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n“But Big Brother, although Mo Dayan was disrespectful to his master, Su Chen shouldn’t have acted so heavy-handed. He basically wasted this person,” Su Changqing said, still not satisfied. “Mo Dayan never actively made a move against him, he only kept his silence. If Su Chen was unhappy about it, he should have reported to his superiors. How could he overstep his authority?”

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n“Wasn’t it because you wanted to cover up for each other!” Tang Hongrui let out a loud yell.

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n“Hm?” Su Changche glanced at Tang Hongrui, causing her to unwillingly lower her head and fall silent.

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nSu Changche thought for a moment, then said, “Although Mo Dayan was wrong, he wouldn’t be in this condition according to clan laws at this moment. Su Chen overstepped his authority and the punishment was too severe, so by law Su Chen should be punished. Su Chen, Grandfather will punish you. Do you accept?”

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n“Su Chen is willing to accept.”

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n“Good. Since you severely injured a servant, I will punish you with twenty strikes, forced mining for three months, and half a year’s allowance. Do you have any objections?”

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nSu Chen lifted his head and asked, “Is it possible to switch a form of punishment?”

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nSu Changqing angrily yelled, “Su Chen, you are trying to avoid forced mining!”

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nOf the three great punishments, the one of forced mining was still the heaviest. Although disciples of the Su Clan would not actually need to mine in the caves, they still had to spend a long period of time in the dark mines, living in and enduring the filthy, moist, and cold conditions.

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nBut Su Chen replied, “What if it were Scarlet Punishment?”

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nScarlet Punishment?

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nUpon hearing this, everyone present was stunned.

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