RWNEFE -Chapter 173 Shen Conglian Accused!

Wei Dongzhu still understood the situation clearly.

“Now, how many county prefectures have we attacked?”

Shen Conglian looked up and thought for a moment: “Four, five, six, seven, I guess.”

Shen Yuanjing: “……” No wonder she’s the eldest sister!

“Well then… Master Hu, I’ll go distribute the weapons!” Shen Yuanjing tucked his tail and ran off!

Upon meeting again, the murderous aura around Shen Lanxi was even stronger, her authority even heavier!

“Greetings, Master!”

Xiao Fang frowned: “Shouldn’t our title change? Master doesn’t have the prestige of a general.”

Shen Lanxi said calmly: “A name must be correct for words to hold weight.”

Her soldiers numbered over ten thousand. By soldier count alone, she could legitimately be called a general.

The two rows of soldiers didn’t fully understand, but they didn’t question it. They assumed Shen Lanxi simply liked the title “Master.”

“Master, we have already taken one-tenth of Dongchuan. Should we continue attacking?”

Shen Lanxi’s council today was precisely about this.

“Withdraw the troops. Rest and recuperate.”

They had been fighting for months—iron-clad soldiers couldn’t endure indefinitely.

“Master, I have a question!” Shen Yuanjing asked.

“Ask.”

“With all our activity, why hasn’t the Eastern Liao King responded at all?”

The two rows of soldiers smiled mysteriously.

He thought Master only captured the families of the garrison commanders—why weren’t they killed, but instead treated well?

Shen Lanxi: “Yuanjing, after you’ve rested, read more on military strategy. Don’t work in isolation—discuss your ideas with others.”

Shen Yuanjing was taken aback. Recently, he had been too busy fighting—no time to study strategy!

After returning to Suiyuan, letters began arriving like snowflakes.

The students of Qinglan Academy proved invaluable—they would never leak information!

Each letter was carefully read and personally replied to. Every day, each student handled dozens of such letters.

As the weather warmed, spring clothing gradually replaced cotton jackets. Since revealing her identity, Shen Lanxi dressed as a woman.

Every day she patrolled the garrison, military forts, and government offices, moving among the people—no one dared to stare!

This woman, commanding thousands of troops with iron resolve, was universally respected by soldiers and civilians alike.

“Sir! Please, give this commoner justice!”

During one inspection of a fort, a civilian rushed forward from the crowd, kneeling and crying out.

“What is your grievance?” a palace guard demanded.

The man trembled, his voice shaking as he lay on the ground: “I dare not say!”

Shen Lanxi remained silent.

The guard barked: “If you have a grievance, speak! The Master will judge fairly. If you lie or fail to speak, county law dictates tongue-cutting and foot amputation!”

Terrified, the man sobbed, yelling: “I accuse a member of your family of seizing my wife! Please, Master, give me justice!”

Shen Lanxi coldly asked: “Who?”

“He claimed to be your uncle. My wife went to work at his house. He got drunk and harassed my wife. I confronted him, and he had me beaten and detained my wife. I’ve nowhere else to turn!”

Shen Lanxi: “Bring the one claiming to be my uncle in front of me. Would you recognize him?”

“I recognize him! Even if he turned to dust, I would recognize him!”

Shen Lanxi: “Handle this publicly. Summon all three of my uncles!”

“Yes!” the guard ran to fetch them.

Soon, the three Shen brothers were brought forward.

“Why is it you?” Shen Conglian shouted upon recognizing who it was.

Shen Lanxi frowned: “Second Uncle, you know this person?”

Shen Conglian yelled: “Of course I know him! Even if he turned to ashes, I’d know!”

Clearly, the hatred ran deep.

“He accuses my uncle of seizing a commoner’s wife!”

Shen Conglian pointed at the man, shouting: “Pfft! Seizing a wife? She’s the one refusing to leave our house! And it’s all because of your grandmother!”

Shen Lanxi raised an eyebrow: “Explain carefully.”

The civilian immediately shouted: “It’s not like that! Master, don’t listen to only one side!”

Shen Lanxi: “Quiet. One at a time. There are many civilians here—do you fear I would protect my family?”

The crowd murmured: “Isn’t she the one who loves to behead relatives for the flag when deploying troops?”

“Yes! If she truly protected family, would she ever let us stay alive?”

Shen Conglian: “They were Jiangnan people taking shelter from the rain in a cave during exile. That woman happened to be from the same town as your grandmother. When she came to work for our family, she said all her relatives were dead. She sold herself as a servant under a death contract, all registered with the authorities!”

Shen Lanxi: “Bring that woman here. Bring the official registration from the county office as well!”

“Yes!”

Shen Conglian was angry remembering it: “At first she was fine. Later, we caught her stealing. Your grandmother, pitying a fellow townsman, let her go. But a few days later, while I was resting, she barged into my room, shouting that I harassed her!”

He nearly shouted “Lanxi” by mistake, quickly correcting himself: “She’s nothing but skin and bones, frostbitten on her face and hands. How could I have liked her?”

“All three of my concubines in my rooms are beautiful—how could I favor her?”

Shen Conglian’s chest heaved as he repeated “how could I favor her?” twice—he was genuinely furious.

Shen Lanxi turned to the accuser.

“You may speak.”

The man cried: “Master! My wife said your uncle was drunk that day. My wife’s beauty has faded now, but in Jiangnan, she was elegant and well-educated—a scholar’s daughter, versed in literature and arts. Perhaps your uncle was simply attracted to her refined air!”

Shen Conglian was fuming, nearly spitting blood in anger.

“I’ll beat you for speaking nonsense…”

The guard quickly restrained Shen Conglian. If he attacked the man in public, there would be no way to explain it.

Shen Lanxi: “Have the county office conduct the trial publicly. If my uncle is truly at fault, he shall receive corporal and castration punishments.”

Shen Conglian knew what that meant. During Lanxi’s inspections, someone would loudly chant the punishment details—he could recite them by heart.

“If it’s a false accusation, the accuser faces the same fate as the accused. Men receive corporal and castration punishments; women… the woman must execute the man, then the accused executes the woman!”

Not only the accuser, even Shen Congwen was speechless!

Thank heavens he had done nothing wrong!

Seeing Shen Lanxi step aside, Shen Congwen thought she was leaving: “Lanxi, won’t you judge me?”

Shen Lanxi: “As a relative, I cannot preside to avoid bias. Don’t worry, I won’t leave.”

Shen Congwen had just begun to relax, when she added: “I will stay to supervise the execution!”

Shen Congwen staggered, nearly falling to the ground.

You should go! I can handle this alone!

Not long after, Liang Kuan, Wang Songbai, and Chang Daoyan arrived.

The accuser’s wife and members of the Shen family also arrived.

Then, the accuser’s relatives and neighbors were brought in.