Chapter 79

The hilt and part of the sword sheath of the Moon Zi Sword were wrapped in gray cloth and protruded diagonally from Bu Ye's back, making him on horseback appear even more menacing.

In the blink of an eye, the cloud horse galloped from the outermost part of the crowd to the innermost layer, then suddenly exerted force with its hind legs and leaped up.

The people under the hooves were greatly startled, thinking they would be trampled to death, but in fact, they only felt a slight force, not even as much as a light pat. The cloud horse, however, borrowed a completely disproportionate amount of strength from them, rushing into the air, with its four hooves naturally swinging backward, as if flying.

Under everyone's gaze, the cloud horse rose higher and higher, reaching its highest point directly above the execution platform, then glided over the heads of the people, finally landing in the middle of the execution platform and the trapezoidal high platform where the officials were located.

"Clatter!"

The cloud horse's final leap was about thirty meters long, reaching a maximum height of five to six meters, but when it landed, it only took two small steps forward before completely stopping its momentum.

Then, silence.

Everyone on the high platform was speechless, completely stunned; Bu Ye did not speak, his eyes always so cold; on the execution platform, Luo Xiu and others were stunned, not knowing what to say; and the people further away had not yet understood what had happened.

Only in the crowd, Qiutang Shan, Sun Heng, and others felt a surge of blood rush to their heads and their bodies heat up from the moment Bu Ye burst out.

At this moment, Sun Heng even thought that in this lifetime, it was really not necessary to care about being a good or bad person; the most important thing was to have done at least one great and glorious deed. Otherwise, it would be a waste of life!

Magistrate Lu Yu was still standing at the front of the trapezoidal high platform, now about ten meters away from Bu Ye, and much higher in elevation. His reaction was quite quick, already realizing that the person below must be Bu Ye, whose appearance matched the descriptions given by the escaped soldiers.

He instinctively wanted to retreat because he knew very well that Bu Ye was a lawless, cold-blooded killer. Although he was a magistrate, his combat ability was no different from that of an ordinary person...

However, with so many people watching, he couldn't just retreat immediately, and he could see that Bu Ye would not immediately make a move.

"Are you Bu Ye?" Finally, Lu Yu spoke first. The entire venue was silent, and his voice naturally reached everyone's ears.

So, he is Bu Ye!

Many people thought to themselves.

"Yes." Bu Ye stared at Lu Yu like a beast staring at its prey, coldly responding.

"You have a lot of nerve! Guards!"

The soldiers near the trapezoidal high platform, including the White Wolf Camp, immediately sprang into action. The sounds of armor and boots clattered, and before they even approached Bu Ye, their momentum already pressed down on him!

However, Lu Yu did not give any further orders.

The reason was simple: at this moment, Bu Ye's gaze toward Lu Yu clearly changed, like a steel knife slightly pulled out of its sheath, revealing a killing edge.

Lu Yu finally realized that at this distance, Bu Ye could definitely kill him first before being surrounded by the White Wolf Camp.

"Magistrate Lu, I have only come to ask a few questions. If you can give me a reasonable explanation, I am willing to surrender." Bu Ye said coldly.

Lu Yu did not believe Bu Ye's words, but he had no choice now, as Bu Ye could take his life at any moment. He could only pretend to be calm and put on the demeanor of a magistrate: "Ask your questions."

"What crimes did they commit?"

"Isn't it for harboring you, a bloodthirsty, lawless person! If not, how could Lu Qixiao and others have been deceived by you." Lu Yu said with a righteous tone.

Bu Ye nodded: "Harboring, yes. May I ask, Magistrate, did they hide anything when you questioned them?"

Lu Yu wanted to say they did, but the fact was they did not. At the time, with Chai Wangming present, all of Bu Ye's evil deeds and crimes were exposed, and since they knew Bu Ye had no way out, Chen Qingyan and the others did not try to exonerate him, speaking the complete truth.

And now, Chen Qingyan and the others were on the execution platform. If Lu Yu dared to say "yes," Chen Qingyan and the others, who had already given up resistance and did not even cry out for injustice, would definitely not agree and would likely start cursing loudly.

Lu Yu's face darkened: "Although they did not hide anything from me, they did hide it from Captain Lu at the time."

Bu Ye sneered: "May I ask, Magistrate, since Captain Lu is already dead, how do you know they hid anything from him? Did Captain Lu appear to you in a dream?"

"There is no need for Captain Lu to tell me personally; his subordinates knew."

"But as far as I know, all the information Captain Lu had about me came from Chen Qingyan and Chai Wangming, and he asked them privately. Chai Wangming believed I killed his father and wished for my early death; how could he have harbored me? Chen Qingyan might have, but only he and Captain Lu knew about it. Did Chen Qingyan ever admit to you that he had hidden something?"

Lu Yu finally realized that Bu Ye was here to argue. He had given Bu Ye a chance to get close, and now he had to present facts and reason with him.

How could he be a match for Bu Ye, as he was not in the right?

On the other hand, Bu Ye was relentless, and he continued: "Leaving aside Chai Wangming and Chen Qingyan, may I ask, Magistrate, the other eight people on the execution platform, who did not even speak a word to Captain Lu throughout the journey, how did they harbor me?"

"..." Lu Yu was already sweating slightly. Usually, his mind was quick, but now, because he was not in the right and was threatened by Bu Ye, he could not find words to counter.

At this moment, from the back of the trapezoidal high platform, Chai Yujing finally hurried over, saying as he walked: "Knowing and not reporting is the same as harboring."

Bu Ye glanced at Chai Yujing and asked: "So, if they know but do not report, they are guilty?"

"That depends on what they know. In your case, they are guilty." Chai Yujing said calmly.

With his friend's support, Lu Yu finally felt relieved. He had great confidence in Chai Yujing's quick wit. In his life, he had encountered countless troubles, many of which he could not solve himself, but with Chai Yujing's help, he had climbed to his current position. His strength lay in his political skills, while Chai Yujing's strength was in his intelligence and quick reaction.

Bu Ye nodded: "This must be Magistrate Chai. If, according to Magistrate Chai, anyone who knows of my crimes and does not report them is guilty, then isn't everyone in Dongmang Village, except for Chai Wangming, guilty?"

"Yes." Chai Yujing said with certainty.