I Am The Villain In The Novel

Chapter 31: Even the Antagonists Can’t Bear to Watch

From the moment Mirror Division rushed in, Zhang Hongwen began to wonder what evidence he had been caught with.

He wasn’t a good official by any means; if his crimes were laid out one by one, it would be enough for a hundred executions.

But in feudal society, the force of law was always inversely proportional to one’s status.

As Li Kan had said that day, there weren’t many charges that could condemn a third-grade official to death in reality.

And Zhang Hongwen didn’t think his involvement in raising demons would be exposed.

It had been nearly five years since then, and there had never been any accidents. All those who knew about it were his trusted confidants, and betrayal was out of the question.

As for other issues besides “raising demon,” Zhang Hongwen felt he still had room to maneuver.

Of course, admitting guilt voluntarily was out of the question.

Just as the cloth was removed from his mouth, he glared at Wei Changtian, as if he had been greatly insulted, and shouted tremblingly:

“You despicable brat! How dare you slander me!”

“I have served as an official for decades, every word and deed of mine is loyal to the Emperor, benevolent to the people!”

“And most importantly, it is true to my own conscience!”

“You ask if I know my crimes?”

“I should be asking you!”

“Your Mirror Division disregards the laws of the Great Peace, what crime is it to silence and force a third-grade imperial official to kneel?!”

…

Zhang Hongwen’s voice was filled with sorrow, anger, and a hint of self-righteousness.

With this level of acting, he could have won an Oscar in his previous life. For someone else, it might have been enough to confuse them on the spot.

Unfortunately, Wei Changtian was a “spoiler,” so after listening, he just chuckled coldly and said unhurriedly:

“Lord Zhang speaks well. It seems that years of illness haven’t affected your eloquence.”

“But you seem a bit forgetful.”

“How about this, I’ll take you somewhere to jog your memory?”

“Mr. Huang, take Lord Zhang away!”

Almost instantly, Wei Changtian’s voice turned extremely cold: “Leave fifty men here to watch over the Zhang family! From now on, anyone who moves or speaks will be executed on the spot!”

…

The torches illuminated the surroundings like a high-power bulb.

Seventy black-clad bailiffs surrounded Zhang Hongwen from all sides, with blades in hand, closely following behind Wei Changtian.

Ahead of them was a trembling household servant leading the way.

“Master, this room is the old master’s bedroom…”

The servant pointed to the door, then was immediately dragged away by two bailiffs.

Under everyone’s gaze, Wei Changtian, recalling the description in the book, stepped into the room.

Xu Qingwan stood on his left and Huang Qianhu on his right, guarding him, while Zhang Hongwen’s face grew paler.

After carefully examining the layout of the room, Wei Changtian’s gaze slowly settled on a large vase placed in the corner.

【…The vase was bulging with a slender neck, and in it was inserted a bouquet of golden chrysanthemums…】

Although Wei Changtian didn’t know exactly what golden chrysanthemums looked like, he could tell that the white petals with yellow centers before him were a kind of chrysanthemum.

Yes, it should be it.

He took a step forward and stood in front of the vase, then turned back to look at Zhang Hongwen.

“Lord Zhang, do you have anything else to say?”

“I, I…” Zhang Hongwen’s legs were trembling, and cold sweat had soaked through his entire body.

His current appearance made it obvious that something was wrong.

There was definitely something going on!

Huang Qianhu finally breathed a sigh of relief at this point, then he saw Wei Changtian suddenly reach out his hand.

“Sword!”

“Ah, yes!”

With a “clang” sound, a chilling blade was unsheathed, the kind of flower-feathered longsword that could wake up countless officials from their dreams, and handed to Wei Changtian.

With one hand, Wei Changtian moved the vase aside, finding the gap in the floor underneath.

Wei Changtian aimed the blade at it and forcefully thrust downward.

“Click! Click clack clack…”

The five-foot-long blade plunged unimpeded into the gap in the ground, and immediately the whole floor began to emit a faint sound of machinery.

“No… no!!!”

Zhang Hongwen suddenly screamed in horror, struggling frantically.

But the next moment, he was immediately gagged, his hands and feet pressed down, and he could only watch helplessly as the hidden door containing the Zhang family’s biggest secret slowly opened.

“Phew!”

A cold wind rushed out, revealing a flight of stone steps descending downwards, the end of which couldn’t be seen clearly.

But judging from the current scene, it was definitely a major project.

But what exactly was hidden in this secret chamber…

Everyone dared not to breathe, all staring fixedly at Wei Changtian.

However, at this moment, Wei Changtian suddenly stepped back with a strange expression on his face.

“What are you all looking at me for? Go in!”

“Do you expect me to go in first?!”

“…”

For an antagonist, and a well-connected one at that, leading the way personally into danger was undoubtedly an action only a fool would do.

The protagonist charging ahead was for show, Wei Changtian felt it was safer to stay back.

Although it wasn’t mentioned in the book, what if there were deadly traps inside this secret chamber?

Even if it turned out to be an overreaction in the end.

After a stick of incense burned down, the ten bailiffs who had been sent down earlier gradually returned.

They were not injured, but their faces looked very ugly.

“Master Wei, Master Huang…”

The head bailiff reported with a grim face, “The steps lead to a huge stone cave, about fifty yards in diameter. We carefully checked, and there were no traps along the way.”

Huang Qianhu hurriedly asked, “What’s in the cave?”

“There’s… there’s a swamp, and in it, there’s…”

“What is it exactly?”

Huang Qianhu frowned and demanded sternly, “Why are you beating around the bush!”

“It’s a toad demon…”

“A toad???!!!”

“Yes…”

“This is ridiculous! Absolutely ridiculous!”

Huang Qianhu was both shocked and furious.

Shocked that Zhang Hongwen dared to keep a demon in his home, and furious that the Mirror Division’s elite men were frightened by a mere toad.

Inexperienced brats!

No matter how ugly and strange a toad may be, how terrifying could it possibly be?

Having handled cases for so many years, he had seen all kinds of bloody and brutal scenes!

“Humph! I’ll go down with Master Wei to take a look!”

Huang Qianhu glanced at the bailiffs, then immediately plunged into the secret door.

Half a stick of incense later.

“Ugh… cough cough!”

“You, stay away from me, don’t vomit on me!”

Wei Changtian moved away a few steps, looking equally unpleasant.

Although he was mentally prepared, the scene before him was enough to challenge any human’s psychological defenses.

In the vast swamp, there lay a gigantic toad, towering over two people in height, its body covered with protrusions the size of watermelons, tightly bound by dozens of thick iron chains.

Its murky eyeballs were filled with malice, with half a human leg hanging from the corner of its mouth, and the ground beneath it littered with severed limbs and grim white bones.

Even the swamp around it had turned deep red.

It seemed that this method of feeding on living beings had been going on for who knows how long.

Damn it, even an antagonist like me can’t bear to watch this!

Glancing at Zhang Hongwen, who had already passed out behind him, Wei Changtian suddenly turned to Huang Qianhu and asked, “Mister Huang, do you think we should let Lord Zhang identify the demon creature he’s been raising?”