MWC – Chapter 193 The Solution

I AM DROPPING THIS NOVEL. IF ANYONE WANTS TO CONTINUE THEY CAN. IF POSSIBLE PLEASE SHARE THE LINK SO I CAN BINGE READ TOO.

Back at Wolong Fort, Lu Ming once again picked up the thick stack of books—these were all purchased in Gravel City. They were local laws and custom guides written in Central Continent language, including some ancient legal codes.

Outside the window, what had been bright and sunny weather suddenly turned gloomy. Thick, rolling black clouds pressed in from the north.

In the dry season, such a scene was rare.

Lu Ming looked out the window and let out a soft sigh.

He had initially thought this was just a minor case—something he could easily resolve with a wave of his hand upon arrival.

But unexpectedly, while Old Liu had indeed been set up in a “honey trap” scheme, the fact that he had committed rape was also objectively true.

And on top of that, it would be Richard handling the prosecution.

“Knock, knock, knock”—the door was gently knocked. Luo Er’s voice came through: “Master, Madam Sanjin and Madam Papaya request an audience.”

Lu Ming gave a simple “Yes.”

The door was gently pushed open, and two graceful figures walked in.

Madam Sanjin was still dressed in a snow-white, thin, long gown. Papaya wore a red gauzy wrap. The floors of the fortress were covered in thick carpets; following noblewomen’s customs, neither wore shoes. Their pale, jade-like feet stepped onto the crimson velvet carpet as they walked with elegant bearing. The two women knelt in unison and said, “Respected master, your humble servants greet you.”

Madam Sanjin spoke the words fluently. Though Papaya’s tone was a little strange, it was clear she was speaking Central Continent language—likely something she had crammed desperately to learn at the last minute.

Lu Ming waved his hand, signaling for Luo Er to leave and close the door behind him.

He then looked toward Madam Sanjin. Compared to her earlier panic, she now seemed much calmer. As he regarded this silver-haired beauty, the initial strangeness he had felt faded. In fact, from a certain perspective, he admired her—she was willing to suffer any humiliation for the honor of her family.

She had remained unmarried all her life, and now was even willing to marry a young man from the East, and with no regrets.

After thinking it through, Lu Ming said, “Madam Sanjin, I’ll ask you to act as interpreter and convey my words to Papaya. Right now, there’s no one else here—just the three of us. What we say won’t reach a fourth person. So let’s set aside honor and appearances. We can speak freely.”

Madam Sanjin seemed like she wanted to speak, but when Lu Ming raised a hand and fixed her with a certain look, her heart skipped a beat for some unknown reason.

“Translate that for Papaya,” Lu Ming said with a smile.

Madam Sanjin began translating rapidly for Papaya.

After she finished, Lu Ming continued: “About what happened yesterday—I was caught off guard. My response may have had some flaws. On top of that, my younger sister stirred things up. She comes from a different background, and in her eyes, your previous way of life was full of hardship. She’s used to helping others. In fact, she used to sponsor…”

Lu Ming sighed inwardly. He didn’t know whether Nicole’s emotional wounds had ever truly healed.

That orphanage child who had been abused to death had dealt her a huge blow, even if she had never shown it outwardly.

Perhaps her attachment to him—and her involvement in wiping out that Nazi-like organization—had a lot to do with it.

Maybe he had given her a profound sense of security.

She was probably keeping a close eye on the progress of this case from behind the scenes.

Their many overlapping experiences were deeply entangled, far too complex to explain in a few words.

And yet, the one thing she spoke about the least was precisely this case—and the child she had once sponsored. It was as if none of it had ever happened.

Perhaps everyone has a burden they cannot bear.

Lu Ming could only hope that his younger sister’s life going forward would be smooth and happy.

Deep in thought, he looked again at the two beautiful women and said, “But my sister is young. Her views are different from mine. As for your lives—you know best what you’ve been through, right?”

Once Madam Sanjin had translated that, Lu Ming turned to Papaya. “First, let’s talk about you. I’ve actually read some local storybooks to understand the local values. In those books, it’s always clear what is condemned and what is encouraged—they reflect the essence of a civilization’s values. And since they’re told through short, simple stories, they’re easy to grasp. But I digress.”

Lu Ming coughed lightly and continued, “I’ve also inquired about local customs, and now I’ve come to a conclusion. Your husband, Mr. Hawkeye Luo, left you here last night without a clear explanation. But actually, if my status is high enough, even if I return you to him like this, it won’t be a problem. And if I later bring great benefits to your husband, no one will speak ill of him. On the contrary, people will respect him more. And you too—no one would think you were at fault. You would only be held in higher esteem.”

Would you like the continuation of the chapter translated as well?

“So, I won’t be explaining anything to the outside world—none of that ‘it was all a misunderstanding,’ or ‘I never laid a hand on you while you were here.’ That includes your husband. No explanation is needed. He can think I slept with you if he wants. But what I can promise you is this: as long as your husband stays loyal to me and doesn’t stray from the path, the Hawkeye Luo family will only grow more and more prosperous. And you—now and in the future—will be the most respected woman in the Hawkeye Luo family. Who knows? You might even earn yourself a proper epitaph.”

Madam Sanjin’s beautiful eyes were filled with astonishment. She could sense that the man before her was not the same one she had met that morning.

A glint of emotion flickered in her eyes, but she quickly began translating Lu Ming’s words for Papaya.

Papaya lowered her head in a daze, crystalline tears silently slipping from her eyes again. But only she knew what she was thinking—and why she was crying this time.

Lu Ming continued, “So, I’ll take that fishpond, but I’ll be sending you back this afternoon. Of course, if you feel that going back now would be hard to explain to Hawkeye Luo—or that it would draw unwanted gossip—you’re welcome to stay. Once your husband begins to benefit from following me, returning later will only bring you honor.”

Having said this to Papaya, Lu Ming turned to Madam Sanjin and smiled wryly. “As for you… you, honestly, are quite a problem.”

“On the surface, you appear to have fulfilled some great vow in life, living in the embrace of the Dragon God. Your beauty and eternally youthful face, coupled with your unusual silver hair, add to your air of mystique and legend. Among the younger generation of the Poporo family, you’re revered like a goddess.”

“But in truth, your life has been lonely and full of suffering. The bitterness you’ve endured—only you truly know.”

“When Poporo—your nephew—chattered on about me and dropped hints about his intentions, what was going through your mind?”

“Anger? Grief? Utter despair?”

“There’s a saying from my homeland: ‘Spring silkworms spin silk until death; candles weep their last tear as they burn to ash.’ That’s exactly what you’ve become. Now, in your later years, even your last shred of dignity is being torn apart by your family.”

“That must have been painful, right?”

“But still, once you made up your mind, you didn’t complain. You came to me, appearing to act solely in my interest, but in truth—seeking my trust, hoping I would put you to use. All of it for the Poporo family. To serve until death, without regret.”

“To be completely honest—I admire you. And I respect you.”

Madam Sanjin slowly lowered her head.

Lu Ming sighed. “But precisely because of that, you’re different from Papaya. If I send you back, this so-called goddess-like matriarch would immediately fall from grace in the eyes of your people.”

“Your lifelong reputation would be in ruins. The vows you made before coming here—the inner struggles, the humiliation, the endurance—they’d all become worthless.”

He paused, then looked at her. “So here’s what I’m thinking. I won’t send you back. I can even write a formal letter to the City Lord to confirm that you and I now have a master-servant property relationship, since I happen to have use for that.”

“But you must remember this clearly: here, even Luo Yi and Luo Er, my other close aides—any one of them—will always rank above you. You are just one of the many who work for me. And you are absolutely not to secretly help the Poporo family behind my back. Otherwise… I believe you understand the consequences.”

“That said, what is due to the Poporo family, I will definitely deliver. Both the Hawkeye Luo and Poporo families will have no reason to regret following me. And so, your greatest wish will be fulfilled. Perhaps… there will be no more regrets in this lifetime.”

“Because I can also guarantee this: your family will become more prosperous than you ever imagined. Not the kind of prosperity that comes from secretly siphoning off my assets—but one that far surpasses even that.”

Madam Sanjin looked up, wanting to say something, but under Lu Ming’s intense gaze, she slowly lowered her head again.

Lu Ming chuckled, his tone softening. “Really, you can relax from now on. Treat this as the reward for having spent forty-five years upholding your vow. Enjoy life a little. Open your eyes to the world. Stop obsessing over your family’s petty gains. Live for yourself for once—wouldn’t that be nice?”

Madam Sanjin remained silent, then gave a soft nod. “Yes, Master. Every word… I shall remember until death.”

Lu Ming thought for a moment, then added, “According to old customs, if I send a formal petition to the City Lord confirming you as part of my property—given the current scale of my assets, which is honestly quite substantial—your value as the Poporo family’s matriarch would translate to a significant portion of that. Would that make me eligible to become a Monsoon Councilor of this city?”

The so-called Monsoon Councilor, as the name implied—monsoons don’t come year-round, only seasonally. Monsoon Councilors were not part of the regular three-colored council; they were more like honorary outsiders given temporary status.

“And if I remember correctly, Monsoon Councilors, like White Flag Councilors, once held the right to grant pardons to their close relatives who had been sentenced to death by the court?”

In Batte City’s court system, the City Lord served as judge, acting as a true triune authority.

The four White Flag Councilors served as jurors, but the final verdict rested with the City Lord alone.

The case that Fira Oil was involved in, if it was obvious that in court they were losing, they couldn’t expect the City Lord to rule in their favor.

So, based on old customs, there was a pardon privilege to consider.

For example, the four White Flag Councilors, after the City Lord’s ruling, if a close family member or relative was sentenced to death, they could exercise the pardon privilege, but it would require a vote from the other three councilors to decide if the pardon would be granted.

Monsoon Councilors seemed to have the ability to propose pardons as well, but there were no clear provisions on this.

Moreover, the privilege was for close family members—people everyone knew to be relatives or close friends. Otherwise, the pardon privilege would be abused, leading to many problems, and eventually, it would become worthless.

So, I couldn’t count on Hawkeye Luo or Poporo to propose a pardon for Old Liu.

I’d have to handle it myself as a last-ditch effort to save Old Liu’s life.

Of course, if I end up using this, it means my case is already completely lost.

Meanwhile, Madam Sanjin sighed lightly. “Master, in just three days, I’ve surrendered. You know more than I do.”

Clearly, she wasn’t normally concerned with such matters, so she didn’t understand them fully.

Lu Ming nodded. “Your Zhongzhou dialect is much better now compared to this morning. Your sentences are getting longer and longer.” He thought for a moment. “If you have no objections, I’ll go ahead and write the letter to the Lord of Heavy Power Luo to confirm that you’re now my property.”

He added, “By the way, how should I write this document? Could you teach me the format?”

Inwardly, he shook his head. Confirming a marriage here was essentially a property notarization. The status of women was, in essence, disgustingly low.

Suddenly, an idea flashed through Lu Ming’s mind. “Madam Sanjin, think about it. My assets exceed a certain amount, so the City Lord needs to verify it, right? And for those peasants, their family head confirms their marriage and household registration, while the poor commoners are registered by the four city law enforcement departments.”

“If there were two commoners who had never registered but had been living together for over ten years, according to local law, would they be guilty?”

Madam Sanjin once again shook her head in confusion. The lives of the poor were an area of ignorance for her.

Lu Ming nodded. He thought of the two people, the muddog and the ha-shan, who, though unregistered, had lived together for over ten years without any interference. It seemed that, just like in the Eastern Sea, the area here acknowledged de facto marriages.

“Alright, then. Teach me how to write this official letter confirming you as my property…” Lu Ming said, shaking his head again. He thought, this is absurd. Even in my past life, this would have been ridiculous—let alone here in the Eastern Sea.

Then he looked at Papaya. “What about you? Do you want to leave now, or wait for a few days?”

Papaya had been in a daze, and when Madam Sanjin finished translating, she didn’t respond. Madam Sanjin turned to Lu Ming and said, “Master, she needs some time. The emotional blow is just too great.”

Lu Ming nodded when there was a knock on the door. It was Luo Er’s voice: “Master, there’s an official letter from the Council of Political Affairs.”

Madam Sanjin hurried to open the door, smiling apologetically at Luo Er. Luo Er walked quickly in and handed Lu Ming the letter.

Lu Ming opened it and frowned slightly. It was a notice of the case between Ha Shan and Liu Shoufu, set to be heard the day after tomorrow.

Richard had just arrived in Niccolo, a thousand kilometers away that morning, but had already filed a lawsuit on this side.

Clearly, he didn’t want to stay in this remote place any longer than necessary. He just wanted to start the lawsuit as soon as possible and leave once it was done.

The case would be wrapped up in one or two days.

And indeed, unlike the Eastern Sea, Batte City’s courts handled cases very quickly. For example, if a hearing was scheduled for the afternoon, the next day would have more hearings, and within two or three days, most cases would be settled. After all, there were no particularly complicated cases here. For major cases involving Eastern Sea citizens, smaller cases had to be put aside. And, since the cases that required the City Lord’s judgment were rare—sometimes only one or two a month—most disputes were resolved by the clan heads.

Richard, it seemed, was confident. After all, his team had handled several cases in the Western Region, and not to mention the support he had from the law firm.

It seemed that any lawyer who had worked in the Western Region would pitch in advice and even form a team to accompany him.

This was something that a solo lawyer or a smaller law firm could never compare to.

When would my law firm reach this scale? Lu Ming sighed enviously in his heart.

However, for this case, he had already gotten some inspiration. He was forming a preliminary idea but still needed to review more materials.

Since Richard was intent on suing, let’s have at it.

Let’s see if my small law firm’s junior lawyers can defeat the gigantic law firm’s army of lawyers that he leads.

Lu Ming looked out the window, his eyes growing determined.