Chapter 1

"Are you going to confess or not?"

In the grand hall of the Jiangdu County Magistrate's Office, the county magistrate, with a face full of scars, slammed the wooden gavel on the table and then glared fiercely at the young man kneeling below.

The young man looked to be only fifteen or sixteen years old, wearing a thin prisoner's robe. Although there were no visible bloodstains on the robe, some bloodstains could be faintly seen, clearly indicating that he had already been tortured and suffered a great deal.

Facing the magistrate's stern questioning, the young man knelt on the ground, stubbornly lifted his head, glanced at the magistrate on the high dais, his body trembling slightly, and then gritted his teeth: "Sir, I did not kill anyone..."

The county magistrate of Jiangdu, a small, fat man in his forties with a mustache, squinted his eyes and looked at the young man below.

"You stubborn rascal, still trying to argue. There were five people present, and the other four all pointed to you as the one who fought with Chen Qing and accidentally killed him. The coroner has already confirmed that Chen Qing was indeed beaten to death by someone. With both eyewitnesses and physical evidence, how can you still deny it!"

The magistrate glared coldly at the young man and shouted, "Shen Yi, you must think carefully. With all the evidence, I can continue to torture you. Even if I beat you to death here, it would not violate the law!"

"If you confess, considering you are still a minor, the most severe punishment would be exile for three thousand miles, and your life would be spared!"

This county magistrate's name was Feng Lu, and he had been in office for three years.

As the magistrate of a county, it was usually a comfortable position, but since the county seat was attached to the prefecture, the county magistrate's office and the prefecture's office were both in Jiangdu City, making his job less pleasant, and sometimes he even had to endure the displeasure of his superiors.

Even so, he did not need to personally handle every matter in the office. In fact, about 80 to 90 percent of the cases were handled by the county vice-magistrate and his subordinates. However, this time, a murder case occurred in Jiangdu City, and it happened at the famous Ganshui Academy, so he had to personally handle the case.

The case was not complicated. There were six people present, and apart from the deceased Chen Qing, there were five others. Four of these five people unanimously accused the young man Shen Yi of killing Chen Qing.

Over the past four or five days, Shen Yi had been detained and suffered a great deal, but despite his young age, he had a strong will. Even after being tortured multiple times, he refused to confess to the murder.

He lifted his head and looked at Magistrate Feng again, gritting his teeth: "Sir, they were the ones who first bullied Chen Qing. Chen Qing, unable to bear it, fought back. The four of them ganged up on him and beat him to death. I tried to stop them, but they also beat me up!"

"The injuries on my body were not from fighting with Chen Qing, but from being beaten by Fan Dongcheng and the others!"

Shen Yi was so angry that his whole body trembled, and his voice was shaky.

"Everyone at Ganshui Academy knows that Chen Qing and I were close friends. When I learned that he was being beaten, I immediately went to help. How could I have accidentally killed him?"

"Still trying to argue!"

Magistrate Feng squinted his eyes again, his face cold: "Someone at Ganshui Academy is willing to testify that before the incident, you and Chen Qing had a conflict over your mutual affection for the daughter of the academy's head, and out of resentment, you beat Chen Qing to death."

Saying this, Magistrate Feng's face remained expressionless as he looked at Shen Yi again.

"I will give you one last chance. If you confess now, it will be better. If not, I will continue to torture you!"

This case involved the famous Ganshui Academy and its students, which should have been handled with great caution. However, because the prefecture's magistrate had already given instructions, Magistrate Feng now wanted to quickly conclude the case. Once Shen Yi signed the confession, the case would be ironclad, and no one could overturn it after it was submitted to the Ministry of Justice.

Shen Yi's eyes widened as he looked at Magistrate Feng, shouting angrily: "Sir, you are the magistrate of Jiangdu!"

"Because Fan Dongcheng's family is powerful, are you going to twist the truth like this!"

Ganshui Academy was the most famous academy in Jiangdu Prefecture and even in the surrounding prefectures. Therefore, those who could study at Ganshui Academy, besides the truly talented, all had some background.

For example, Fan Dongcheng's family was a major clan in Jiangdu, with many members holding official positions in the court, making them one of the top families in Jiangdu Prefecture.

Chen Qing and Shen Yi, on the other hand, were admitted to Ganshui Academy because of their talent, with the hope that they would achieve success and bring glory to the academy.

Because they were weak, the county magistrate's office dared to frame Shen Yi.

Shen Yi's family was not a major clan in Jiangdu Prefecture. His uncle, although an official, was the magistrate of a small county in the southwest and was often away from home. His father worked in the household of a prince in Jinling and only returned to Jiangdu on leave to visit Shen Yi.

His mother had passed away long ago.

Since he was twelve, Shen Yi had been living in Jiangdu with his younger brother, eating at his uncle's family home.

Now, his father was on his way back from Jinling, and his brother and sister-in-law, who were not direct relatives, had been barred from entering the court.

At this moment, although Shen Yi was not yet sixteen, he was very clear that he could not confess to this crime!

If he confessed, his life would be over!

At the very least, he had to wait for his father to return!

The young man lifted his head and looked at Magistrate Feng, his gaze resolute.

"Magistrate Feng, with so many eyes watching in the academy, you cannot twist the truth!"

"Insolent!"

Magistrate Feng slammed the gavel and shouted.

"A commoner without any official rank dares to speak to me like this and raise a ruckus in the court!"

"Bring him!"

Magistrate Feng waved his hand, threw a command stick, and squinted his eyes again.

"Give him thirty strokes!"

Saying this, Magistrate Feng paused, his voice becoming deeper: "Hit him hard!"

Beating with a stick is a skill. Thirty strokes can either kill a person or just cause superficial injuries. Magistrate Feng's last words meant that the bailiffs should use their full strength.

These bailiffs were experienced, and upon hearing the magistrate's words, they nodded in understanding. Soon, two fierce bailiffs dragged Shen Yi away, raised their sticks high, and with the young man's cries of pain, struck him hard.

Shen Yi had already suffered many punishments over the past few days and had not eaten well. This time, his body could not withstand the beating.

After just twenty strokes, Shen Yi fainted, losing consciousness.

Magistrate Feng sneered, had Shen Yi carried away, and thrown into the county jail.

Thus, the nearly lifeless Shen Yi was thrown into a corner of the jail, left to his fate.

That night, the young man, left to his fate, passed away.

At the same time, a strange soul awakened in the young man's body.

In the middle of the night, the young man, who had "fainted," slowly opened his eyes. Before he could take in his surroundings, he felt a sharp pain in his buttocks.

"Ouch..."

Then, a massive stream of information exploded in his mind.

The soul of the young Shen Yi, which had not yet dissipated, merged with the strange soul, becoming one, indistinguishable from each other.