Capítulo 32: Public questioning.
The white-haired elder's expression grew serious when Yin Long voiced his thoughts, the elder's eyes flashing with a faint light. The elder took a step back, not picking up the crystal plate again, and gave Yin Long a courteous bow.
"Worry not, Young Master, your command will be completed straight away! I shall personally make sure that everyone gathers and that the betrayal is paid for in full, you can place your trust in me!"
The elder excused himself and left with hurried steps after he straightened his back again, leaving Yin Long alone within the room. Yin Long placed his finger on the plate and insert a bit of Qi, restarting the recording and watching it quietly once more before stopping it and placing the plate into his interspatial ring. He then stood up from his seat and walked over to the fireplace located next to the window, his gaze landing on the framed contract. His eyes slid over it for a bit before he placed his hand on it and drew it into his interspatial ring, letting out a low voice as he left the room.
"The time to honor you has come."
Yin Long left the mansion and the estate while wearing a calm expression, navigating the streets of the city until he reached a large dome-shaped building. He nodded at the four soldiers guarding the door as they opened it for him, allowing him to enter the wide hallway behind the door. The hallway went in a straight line for a bit before it split into ten smaller hallways that each went in slightly different directions. He followed the rightmost hallway until it stopped, arriving in the room that took up almost the entire space within this dome.
The room was somewhat similar to an arena, elevated seating areas gathered around a circular stone platform at the very center. Some of the seating areas were blocked off by walls covered in small runes, each one serving a different purpose. This was the judgment hall of the Lang clan, this was where they performed the trials for criminals who came from the clan, such as clan leaders and elders.
The room was still completely empty so Yin Long walked over to the seating area reserved for the judge, which was located a few meters from the stone platform where the accused would stand. He sat down in the sole seat in the square box and leaned back into the chair, resting his right elbow on the elbow rest and leaning his head against his hand while he waited for the others to arrive.
He didn't have to wait long, people were already starting to flood into the room only an hour after Yin Long, arrived, the seats quickly starting to fill up as the people's whispers produced a low buzz. Lan Yun also arrived, but she didn't go up to greet Yin Long, finding a slightly secluded spot where she could stand and observe the event. Yin Long's expression remained the same as the venue started filling up, even when Tang Heng, Tang Fen's father entered in a nervous state, he only showed a light smile.
An hour later, the entire venue had filled up with people from the Lang clan and from the four villages, the news of what had happened already spreading. Lang Ru, Lang Huo, and Tang Fen, all arrived at the same time. Lang Huo and Tang Fen arrived from the hallway that led directly to the stone platform, the attention of everyone in the room landing on the two people standing as the accused.
Lang Ru arrived from the same hallway as Yin Long, her brows somewhat furrowed as she took a seat close to the platform, her gaze moving between Yin Long and Lang Huo. Lang Ru played with a white jade ring on her left hand, her finger continuously swiping it as her thoughts moved. The last to arrive was the white-haired elder that brought Yin Long the news, one of his eyebrows rising slightly when he saw that Yin Long had taken the seat of the judge. But he quickly lowered his eyebrow again and walked over, smiling comfortingly at Yin Long.
"I've gathered them all, Young Master, so it's about time to begin. Don't worry and just leave everything to me, I'll make sure that those who would tarnish and betray the reputation of the clan like that will get what they deserve."
Yin Long's gaze moved slightly in response to the elder's words, giving him a short glance before it returned to the two people standing side by side on the platform. The elder took a step forward and position himself in front of the seating area reserved for the judge, clearing his throat and using a bit of Qi to make his voice so loud that everyone in the venue could hear it.
"Clan Leader, you stand here accu...?"
The voice of the elder was interrupted by the loud sound of wood dragging across stone, his head turning slightly to look at the now standing Yin Long. Yin Long swiped his interspatial ring and took out the crystal plate, placing it on the top of the wooden wall that surrounded his seating area. He placed a Spirit Stone on top of it and activated it, the images recorded in it getting projected into the air, this time so large that everyone could see them.
A slight gasp ran through the crowd when they saw the recorded scenes, Tang Fen looking on nervously while Lang Huo's own expression turned dignified. Yin Long replayed the recording twice to make sure that everyone fully understood what was happening, him and Lang Huo sharing a short conversation that fell into the ears of everyone.
"You don't deny that this is you, nor that it happened, correct?"
Yin Long started it off with a calm question, but no one really believed that the recording was faked, something Lang Huo proved straight away with a nod.
"I don't, that is me and Sister Fen, it should be from about a day after you left for Stone Heart Village."
Another soft gasp ran through the crowd when Lang Huo confirmed it all to be true, even confirming that she had barely waited a day after Yin Long left to make a move on his fiancee. But Yin Long remained completely calm and simply continued his questioning.
"So you admit to sharing a highly intimate relationship with Tang Fen, correct?"
It was a bit of a pointless question given the evidence that had been presented, but it was still something that Yin Long wanted to hear, he needed to hear it from Lang Huo herself. And she obliged him, her gaze strong and without the slightest shred of regret.
"That is one thing I will never deny or lie about, I am not ashamed of who I love. And given the chance to go back to change things, I would do it all again. So yes, I share a highly intimate bond with Sister Fen."
Lang Huo reached out and grabbed a hold of Tang Fen's hand while speaking, giving it a few soft squeezes to help calm down her nervous counterpart. Yin Long once again nodded his head, starting up the recording again and pointing at the part where Lang Huo was checking that there was no one in the hallway.
"If you aren't ashamed of it, then why hide it?"
Lang Huo faltered slightly, this was one of the harder questions to answer. But in the end, she could only glance at Tang Fen and suck in a deep breath to calm herself before she looked directly at her brother.
"...Because she is supposed to be yours, that is a fact that I can't change. I know that we should have told you earlier, but we didn't want to hurt you."
The crowd burst into hushed whispers when Lang Huo finished her statement. This was a direct confession that she had made a move on someone while knowing full well that she was betrothed to someone else. And the one she made a move on was supposed to marry her own brother, making the betrayal even worse. Yin Long remained silent in the face of the confession, but the white-haired elder and a few other people who had rather high positions within the Lang clan took this opportunity to speak up.
"Shameless! How could a high and mighty clan leader act like that?! Are you trying to drag our esteemed name through the mud?! Let me ask you, onlookers, would you rather have a weak but honorable or a strong but despicable clan leader?!"
"If you are willing to steal from your own brother, then who is to say you aren't willing to steal from the entire clan?!"
"If your own brother means nothing to you then how can we be certain that the clan means anything to you?! Will you betray us as you betrayed him the moment you get the chance?!"
Lang Huo's gaze remained strong and dignified in the face of all the accusations that the elders threw out, she had already been prepared to bear all their hatred when she knew that the truth had been leaked. The accusations of the elders stopped when a loud tapping sound resounded throughout the room, all of them turning to look at Yin Long, who had produced a slight indent in the wall in front of him with his finger.
Yin Long's gaze turned and landed on the now pale Tang Heng, gesturing for him to walk over. When Tang Heng came over, Yin Long took out the framed contract and placed it in front of him, gesturing towards it while he himself sat back down and rested his head against his hand.
"Uncle Heng, you should have a copy of the contract you signed with my father. Please read over your own and compare it to mine, just to make sure that they are the same."
Tang Heng nodded his head with a slight tremble, standing in front of the current Yin Long he couldn't help but feel a slight chill. Was this really the same Yin Long that he was familiar with? Tang Heng took out his own version of the contract and read over both of them, making sure that they were identical before nodding his head at Yin Long, who then turned his gaze onto the white-haired elder.
"So the contracts are the same. Good, that means that they haven't changed over the years. Elder, read the contract aloud for everyone to hear."
The white-haired elder was quite caught off guard after everything he had planned was changed by Yin Long's intervention. But he still maintained his strong front, picking up the framed contract and loudly reading it for everyone in the room.
"...and should Tang Heng's family ever be blessed with two children, one will be kept as the leader of the Tang family and the other will be betrothed to the son of Lang Meng!"
The elder finished reading and placed the contract down, but a cold chill ran down his spine when he placed the contract down, his head raising and his eyes locking with Yin Long's somewhat cold gaze. Yin Long stretched out his left arm, pointing at the contract.
"Read it again, focus on the last part of the contract."
The elder nodded his head, not quite sure why he suddenly felt such a chill when in the presence of Yin Long. He picked up the contract again and started to read it, placing extra focus on the last part of the contract.
"...and should Tang Heng's family ever be blessed with two children, one will be kept as the leader of the Tang family and the other will be betrothed to the son... to the future Lang clan leader...?"
His voice started to trail of slightly when he read over the final part, but Yin Long barked out a cold order that forced him to read it once more.
"Again!"
"Should Tang Heng's family ever be blessed with two children, one will be kept as the leader of the Tang family and the other will be betrothed to the future leader of the Lang clan..."
"Again. Louder!"
"Should Tang Heng's family ever be blessed with two children, one will be kept as the leader of the Tang family and the other will be betrothed to the future leader of the Lang clan."
The white-haired elder felt short of breath after reading it aloud once more, a tense silence falling over the entire venue. It was within this silence that Yin Long stood up and let his narrowed gaze sweep over the elders that had shouted out against Lang Huo earlier.
"Who is the leader of the Lang clan, who can tell me that!?"
The silence continued for a bit after Yin Long posed his question, the gazes of the crowd drifting towards the elders. Faced with all these gazes, the white-haired elder could only squeeze out a weak voice.
"The leader of the Lang clan is Matriarch Lang Huo..."
Yin Long's gaze riveted onto the white-haired elder, turning so sharp that the elder could practically feel cuts appearing on his face. Yin Long leaned against the wall around his seating area, leaning his torso forward with his gaze piercing into not just the white-haired elder but also the other elders who had spoken out earlier.
"Correct, Lang Huo is the leader of the Lang clan by right. So as the contract states, Tang Fen is Lang Huo's fiancee. So tell me, Elders, what exactly is wrong with the two of them being intimate? And tell me, exactly why were the lot of you so eager to denounce her for something like who she loved?"
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