Water Margin: From a White-Robed Scholar to Donning the Yellow Robe

Chapter 42 The Golden Lotus Struck by Lightning

Hearing that the magistrate was still protecting Ximen Qing, Wu Song became even angrier. Forcibly suppressing his anger, he asked, "May I ask, Your Honor, where is it that Ximen Qing cannot be convicted?"

The magistrate picked up the blue-and-white porcelain teacup on the table, took a sip of tea, and slowly said, "Is this physical evidence? It's just a bowl of medicine. Who can prove that Ximen Qing intended to use this bowl of medicine to harm Wu Da?"

Zhao Si then said, "I can testify that I saw Pan Jinlian return from Wang Po's house and pour a small packet of powder into the medicine pot when she went to the kitchen to boil the medicine."

The magistrate slammed his gavel and roared, "Outrageous! If this proves that Ximen Qing wanted to poison Wu Dalang, where is the law of the Song Dynasty? Where is justice and fairness?"

Zhao Si was completely bewildered; what was going on here?

"This medicine was brewed by Pan Jinlian, and the powder was put into the medicine pot by Pan Jinlian. What does it have to do with Ximen Qing? Let's not even discuss whether it is poison or not. Even if it is poison, it was Pan Jinlian who wanted to poison Wu Dalang. According to the law, she should be hanged."

Zhao Si was completely bewildered, but he found the magistrate's words to make sense. He scratched his head and said, "It seems so."

Wang Lun couldn't help but smile bitterly. Indeed, officials have two mouths; right and wrong are entirely up to them.

Pan Jinlian trembled with fear. Seeing Ximen Qing lying motionless and Wang Po already unconscious, she wondered if she was going to be accused of murder.

"Pan Jinlian, let me ask you this: did you intend to poison Wu Da, or did Ximen Qing poison Wu Da?" The magistrate had now seized the initiative and was extremely arrogant.

Pan Jinlian's face turned deathly pale, and she murmured, "I..."

"Bang!" The magistrate slammed the gavel again.

"Think carefully before you reply. Yang Jian, the current commander of the Imperial Guards in Tokyo, is a distant relative of Master Ximen. They often interact. Furthermore, the Ximen family is a prominent clan in Yanggu and Qinghe. Would they really poison a pancake seller like Wu Dalang?"

Pan Jinlian's mind lit up, and she immediately understood that Ximen Qing had someone behind him, and that person was the Commander of the Imperial Guards in Tokyo. Although she didn't know what kind of official position that was, being in Tokyo meant that he must be someone very powerful.

"I am innocent! Master Ximen did not poison Wu Da, and I did not poison Wu Da either. It was all..." Pan Jinlian's gaze swept across the room and fixed on Zhao Si. "It was all him! He was the one who put the poison in the medicine pot and tried to force Wu Da to drink it. I tried my best to stop him, but then Wu Da's constable returned and mistakenly thought it was me. I beg you, Your Honor, to do me justice!"

Wang Lun couldn't help but glance at Pan Jinlian. This woman was indeed not to be trifled with. Her reaction speed was so fast that she understood the magistrate's implied meaning in an instant and quickly found a scapegoat.

He's very good at shifting blame.

The magistrate nodded inwardly. No wonder Ximen Qing had taken a liking to this woman. Not only was she very beautiful, but she was also quick-witted and had a silver tongue. If she weren't already Ximen Qing's lover, the magistrate himself would have wanted to take advantage of Pan Jinlian.

He looked at Pan Jinlian with admiration and nodded, saying, "Don't worry, I will take care of things for you."

Wu Song angrily said, "You're muddle-headed! You call white black and black white. You can't even tell right from wrong. What use is a corrupt official like you?"

The magistrate was furious and shouted, "Wu Song, don't forget who gave you a bowl of rice to eat! Without me, would you be where you are today?"

Wang Lun stepped forward and gently patted Wu Song on the shoulder, signaling him not to act rashly, and said with a smile, "May I say a few words?"

Seeing that this man had an extraordinary bearing, the magistrate feared that he was not someone to be trifled with. Considering that he was now in an invincible position, he waved his hand and said, "Tell me."

Wang Lun looked at Pan Jinlian and said, "You said he wanted to poison Wu Da, and you saw him poison him with your own eyes, is that true?"

Pan Jinlian knew that the situation had taken a turn for the better, and with even more confidence, she said, "Yes."

Wang Lun laughed and said, "Now that he says you poisoned the food, and you say he did, why don't you both swear to heaven that if either of you is lying, may lightning strike and kill the liar!"

Gongsun Sheng rolled his eyes; he was about to have to take action himself again.

Pan Jinlian was immediately alarmed. She remembered that when Wu Dalang was about to drink the poison, there was a sudden clap of thunder. Could it be... that heaven really would grant a miracle?

She shook her head hurriedly, her voice trembling, "No, no, no, I won't."

Wang Lun said in a deep voice, "You don't dare?"

Pan Jinlian simply shook her head, looking pitifully at the magistrate.

The magistrate frowned. All this talk of swearing an oath to heaven and divine intervention was utter nonsense. If heaven truly had a spirit, those corrupt officials would have been struck dead by lightning long ago. Of course, he didn't include himself among the corrupt officials he considered.

"In my opinion, this approach is feasible. Let's swear an oath to heaven: whoever lies will be struck by lightning; if no one is struck, then this matter is dropped, and everything will be as if it never happened. What do you say?"

this......

Wu Song jumped up and shouted, "No!"

Wang Lun smiled and said, "It's settled then."

Wu Song looked at Wang Lun in surprise. It was such a clear day, how could there be thunder? If they just let it go like this, what would happen next?

His mind was racing. Seeing Wang Lun's confident demeanor, he thought that perhaps the other party planned to kill Ximen Qing after leaving the county office.

Wu Song nodded secretly. If that's the case, then he would kill Ximen Qing and then go to Liangshan with Wang Lun.

Zhao Si quickly said, "I, Zhao Si, did not poison Wu Da. If I am lying, may I be struck by lightning."

After he finished speaking, all around was quiet. The magistrate glanced at the blue sky outside the courtroom and couldn't help but smile bitterly. What was wrong with him? Did he really think there would be thunder?

Everyone stared at Pan Jinlian.

Pan Jinlian hesitated, not knowing what to do.

After waiting a while, the magistrate grew impatient and said, "Pan Jinlian, is it so hard to make a vow? Did you really poison me?"

Wang Lun laughed and said, "That's right, do you have something to hide?"

Pan Jinlian quickly shook her head: "No, I didn't poison you."

She looked at the sky and saw that it was clear and cloudless, so there was no chance of thunder. She gritted her teeth and said, "I, Pan Jinlian, did not poison Wu Dalang. If I am lying, may I be struck by lightning."

After he finished speaking, all around remained silent, without any thunder.

Pan Jinlian's tense body relaxed slightly, it seemed that the thunder in the room was just an accident.

The magistrate smiled and said, "Then let's leave it at that..."

"Boom—"

Suddenly, a loud noise shook the county government office, and thunder roared, making everyone sway and almost fall over, with dust falling from the roof.

With a scream, Pan Jinlian was instantly charred black and emitted a burnt smell.

This bolt of lightning struck Pan Jinlian dead, turning her into a charred corpse.

The magistrate was so frightened that he trembled all over and turned pale. After staring at the dark-skinned Pan Jinlian for a moment, his eyes rolled back and he fainted from fright.

Wu Song was shocked. He looked up at the sky and murmured, "Heavens... have they truly shown their power?"

Gongsun Sheng put away the Daoist incantation hidden in his sleeve and let out a long sigh of relief.

He had already mastered the Five Thunder Heavenly Heart Orthodox Method to an extremely high level, but it was still very difficult to cast the spell secretly without leaving a trace. At this moment, in order to create the illusion of divine intervention, he had no choice but to cast the spell secretly, which made it even more difficult.

Wang Lun quietly gave him a thumbs up.

After the initial panic subsided, the people knelt down and kowtowed repeatedly to the sky. Those who had lied were especially trembling and shaking.