The inner hall of the Daoist temple was utterly silent, no one dared to make a sound in agreement.
Everyone knew that the noble scion named Xia Lie was indeed arrogant and overbearing, and given to unpredictable bouts of anger, assaulting innocent passersby on the street without any reason.
Even the worst-behaved scions in Qingdu were not as outrageous as him.
But even though it was the truth, who would dare to openly criticize his errors in front of the deputy general of the Northwest Border Military Commander?
"Acting outrageously? Unpredictable in disposition?"
Upon hearing this, the deputy general also fell silent.
He was somewhat familiar with the temperament of this Xia Lie.
Initially, when the commander had just found Xia Lie, accompanied by the Personal Guard, he was a shy and cowardly private school student, his gaze continually darting about, not daring to look others in the eye, and he always bowed his head and endured silently whenever confronted.
Until the commander issued an order.
The students who had bullied Xia Lie, along with their families, were all apprehended and brought before him, trembling as they knelt down to beg for mercy in front of Xia Lie.
From the moment Xia Lie froze, he knew—
This timid young man was about to change.
However, exactly what he would transform into, he could not predict.
Before he came to the Daoist temple, although he had also made inquiries through the Prefectural Governor and the Capital Commandant of Qingdu, those people had completely omitted any mention of Xia Lie's misconduct.
Perhaps they were hesitant to criticize him in his presence?
With this thought, the deputy general glanced over the crowd and said, "Who else can prove that Xia Lie's behavior is indeed so?"
The crowd looked around at each other, but no one came forward, showing signs of being struck mute with dread.
After all, none of them were privy to the deputy general's thoughts—how could they be sure of his intentions?
If someone stood out and angered this important figure, wouldn't that be asking for trouble?
For a moment, the inner hall of the Daoist temple was silent.
The deputy general frowned slightly, just about to speak when he heard a young man's voice:
"Sir, I can prove it."
Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look and saw a young man clothed in coarse fabric slowly stepping forward from the crowd, his demeanor serious, neither fawning nor smiling.
It was Lin Yue.
"You can prove it?"
The deputy general examined Lin Yue slightly and asked, "This person says that Xia Lie acts outrageously, has unpredictable moods, and even whips and beats innocent passersby in the street. Is that true?"
Lin Yue promptly bowed and said, "Sir, the actions and behavior of Xia Lie are not simply outrageous or mood-driven; he has lashed out at the innocent more than once or twice. I beg for your clear judgment, sir. Simply send someone to inquire, and all will be crystal clear."
The crowd looked at him somewhat surprised, not expecting him to be so bold and outspoken, unafraid of provoking the deputy general.
After Lin Yue finished speaking, he simply bowed slightly and remained silent.
He understood that he should ideally keep his distance from this affair and not get involved.
But he also knew he could not escape being implicated and was bound to be called upon to testify, so he might as well take the initiative to step forward.
The deputy general pondered for a moment, then turned his attention to a nervous, tall, thin man and said, "You may go down. If what you say is true, you will duly be rewarded handsomely."
The tall, thin man looked slightly startled, immediately showing a trace of joy, but he quickly composed himself and bowed, saying, "Thank you, sir."
After the tall, thin man had left, the deputy general looked at Lin Yue again and nodded slightly, "You do have some courage. Just wait here; I still have some questions to ask you later."
Lin Yue didn't say anything, just cupped his fists in a salute and stood aside.
The deputy general's gaze swept over the crowd and he asked, "On the fifth day of June, did anyone see Xia Lie outside the Daoist temple?"
Seeing that no one responded, the deputy general shook his head slightly and continued, "Next question, within this Daoist temple, do you know of anyone who has a grudge against Xia Lie or has had a conflict with him?"
"Sir."
"Sir."
As soon as he said this, several people immediately responded and quickly stepped forward.
The deputy general said dryly, "One at a time."
He immediately looked at one slightly chubby man and said, "You go first."
The slightly chubby man immediately controlled his expression, but clearly showed a trace of joy, while the others sighed softly and retreated reluctantly.
"Responding to the sir."
The slightly chubby man respectfully said, "On the third day of June, within this Daoist temple, someone had a conflict with Xia Lie; from the situation at that time, it seemed likely they would bear a grudge."
"Oh? Who?" the deputy general immediately asked.
Upon hearing this, the slightly chubby man turned his gaze to Lin Yue, who stood not far away, and with a serious tone, said, "Sir, on the third day of June, the person who had a conflict with Xia Lie was Lin Yue."
"Lin Yue?"
Following his gaze, the deputy general saw it was indeed the courageous young man he had recently acknowledged, and he slightly narrowed his eyes.
In that moment, he somewhat understood.
It was no wonder that the others skirted around and dared not openly accuse Xia Lie, while this young man not only dared to step forward but even did so without hesitation or reservation, vowing with certainty.
It turned out, did this person already detest Xia Lie?
"What exactly happened that day, tell me everything exactly as it was," the deputy general said sternly.
"Yes."
The slightly chubby man then said, "That day, I and several other secular disciples, including Lin Yue, were learning a Martial Arts Cultivation Method in the temple. At lunchtime, a young woman brought food for Lin Yue, and the two of them dined near the entrance of the temple, witnessed by quite a few people."