Chapter 361: Reconstructing the Scene

“Moreover, we only have witnesses now, no victim. Without a complete chain of evidence, you can’t convict me.” When it came to legal theories, Du Ping could outshine anyone in Great Zhou. 

If not for Du Ping’s less-than-stellar reputation, the Minister of Justice would have invited him to write a legal textbook.

The Mayor of Anyang City sighed helplessly. Since Du Ping refused to confess, he had no choice but to contact the imperial court and request the Emperor to send a royal family member to perform time reversal. 

Calculating the time, they should arrive soon.

“Du Ping, what trouble have you gotten into this time?” Jiang Li descended from above.

“Greetings, Human Sovereign.” All the officials present bowed respectfully upon seeing Jiang Li.

“You must uphold justice for me! Ever since you set the conditions for me to join the Human Sovereign Hall, I’ve been determined to become its commander and have significantly reduced my drinking,” Du Ping cried out in grievance.

The Mayor of Anyang City chimed in: “I can confirm this. Previously, Du Ping would drink four times in three days, finishing a whole jar each time. Now he only drinks once every three days.”

Jiang Li asked curiously: “How much does he drink each time now?”

“Four jars.”

“…”

Jiang Li felt Du Ping was bound to break the law sooner or later: “Alright, tell me what happened today.”

The Mayor explained: “Last night we received a report claiming that after drinking, Du Ping staggered out of a tavern, saw a woman in white by the roadside, and pounced on her. The woman screamed and fled in panic. Du Ping tried to give chase but collapsed on the ground from drunkenness.”

“These people – the tavern owner, patrons, and neighbors – can all corroborate the incident.”

The witnesses became visibly excited upon seeing Jiang Li.

“I swear it’s true! Du Ping really pounced on that woman in white!”

“I heard the woman’s scream – it was absolutely terrified!”

“It’s just too bad we couldn’t find the woman in white, otherwise we could definitely prove Du Ping’s actions!”

Jiang Li had no interest in playing detective games – they were too mentally exhausting: “Let’s leave this to the professionals.”

“Your Honor, the Nineteenth Princess has arrived.”

The Mayor hurried out to greet her: “Nineteenth Princess.”

The Nineteenth Princess smiled faintly and nodded gracefully, but when she caught sight of Jiang Li from the corner of her eye, her face lit up with joy.

The Nineteenth Princess was none other than Ji Kongkong. After several years apart, she had blossomed into a graceful young woman, radiating confidence and sunshine, though her chest was slightly smaller than others her age.

Many young men had been captivated by Ji Kongkong’s beauty and talents, hoping Emperor Ji Zhi would arrange a marriage.

Emperor Ji Zhi had given them all cold shoulders.

Ji Kongkong possessed extraordinary cultivation talent and had already reached the Nascent Soul stage, progressing much faster than Qin Luan.

“Uncle Jiang?” Princess Ji Kongkong ran up to Jiang Li when she saw him, though she was too embarrassed to throw herself into his arms like she used to.

“It’s Kongkong! Long time no see – you’ve grown into an independent young woman.” Jiang Li smiled warmly. The fact that Emperor Ji Zhi had sent Ji Kongkong alone with just a few attendants, without other royal family members, indicated her mastery of the Time Dao no longer required guidance.

“Uncle Jiang, what brings you here?” Ji Kongkong was surprised to see Jiang Li.

“I heard there were ghosts here. Came to see the spectacle.”

“You’re always joking, Uncle Jiang.”

Ji Kongkong thought Jiang Li was kidding and didn’t take it seriously.

After the Mayor recounted the case again, Ji Kongkong also found the matter suspicious.

Time stood still as Ji Kongkong stepped into the River of Time and returned to the Nine Provinces – the entire process took less than an instant.

“Well?” Du Ping hoped Ji Kongkong would clear his name.

Frowning slightly without answering, Ji Kongkong projected the scenes she witnessed in the River of Time into the air using her spiritual sense.

…

Midnight, outside a small tavern.

Du Ping passed by the tavern and couldn’t resist the aroma of alcohol. Patrons spotted him and called out enthusiastically: “Du Ping! Come have a drink!”

“No no, I’m quitting. Today’s my third day sober.”

The patrons persisted: “Come on! Three days deserves a reward!”

“Alright.” Du Ping found their logic convincing.

After downing four jars of wine, Du Ping belched: “This is the last time. Starting tomorrow, I’m quitting for real.”

Both the tavern owner and patrons shook their heads with smiles. Du Ping always said this but never made it past day four.

“You okay? Can you get home?” The patrons remembered how Du Ping usually collapsed outside after drinking.

“I’m fine, not that drunk.” Du Ping waved dismissively.

“Then could you stop talking to that post?”

Du Ping said nothing more and staggered forward.

Without warning, a blurry white figure appeared nearby as if materializing from thin air.

The white figure appeared unstable, like a wisp of mist.

Du Ping’s expression changed as if seeing something extraordinary, and he lunged at the figure.

The white figure let out a piercing shriek at Du Ping’s aggressive approach before vanishing, leaving Du Ping grasping at air.

Losing his balance, Du Ping fell to the ground and immediately began snoring.

A second-floor resident witnessed this and reported it as public harassment.

…

“What the hell is that?” The witnesses couldn’t comprehend the white figure.

Ji Kongkong’s cheeks flushed slightly: “This is what I saw. Even with my vision, I couldn’t discern how the white figure appeared or disappeared. This is the actual scene from the River of Time. If Uncle Jiang could enter the River, he might see more details.”

“I suspect it’s a ghost,” the Mayor said gravely. He’d received multiple reports from citizens claiming ghost sightings with strikingly similar descriptions.

He himself had witnessed similar phenomena that left him terrified.

Despite being a Divine Transformation cultivator, something could appear right behind him without detection and breathe in his ear.

Visible to the eye yet completely absent to spiritual sense!

The Mayor found the situation deeply unsettling and had reported it through official channels.

The imperial court, receiving similar reports from various regions, had contacted the Human Sovereign Hall guards for assistance.

The guards had brought the matter to the Hall.

“It might indeed be a ghost,” Jiang Li agreed. The white figure’s appearance and disappearance defied logic and didn’t resemble any known technique.

But how could ghosts appear in the Nine Provinces? Shouldn’t they all be in the Underworld?

Hearing their serious discussion, Ji Kongkong showed fear and subtly moved closer to Jiang Li for comfort. While she loved Jiang Li’s adventure stories, ghost stories terrified her.

“So Du Ping harassed a female ghost?” The Mayor remembered the original purpose of summoning Ji Kongkong.

He felt conflicted. The Great Zhou Law specified that “harassment of women” applied to female humans and female demons, but didn’t mention ghosts as protected subjects.

Should they expand the interpretation to include ghosts?

Du Ping glared at the Mayor. Determined to give me a criminal record today, aren’t you?