No Turning Back
Seeing that the dock worker truly knew nothing, Princess Jade Hayes let him go, knowing she wouldn't get any useful information.
Magistrate's Mansion
"All the way here, I haven't seen any public announcements. The townsfolk are only curious about our convoy, but no one knows who we are. Yet Justin Zhao hasn't prepared anything or told the people a thing," Princess Jade Hayes said.
"That dog official, Justin Zhao, is too much!" Martin Wu gritted his teeth in anger, waving his fists as if itching to give Justin Zhao a good beating.
Simon Yu suddenly said, "Martin Wu, when we go in, you'd better keep your temper in check. A mighty dragon can't suppress a local snake. We're newcomers here, so it's best not to pick a fight. Remember that."
Martin Wu snorted in defiance, retorting, "Do you think I'm stupid? I'm just venting in front of Queen Lily of Qin. I wouldn't be dumb enough to say that to that dog official's face!"
The group got off the carriage and arrived outside the gates of the Magistrate's Mansion.
Eight guards stood at the entrance, each with their noses in the air and a thuggish demeanor. They looked just like the attendants they'd seen earlier at the dock—practically stamped from the same mold.
It seemed all the attendants at the Magistrate's Mansion had the same attitude—cut from the same cloth.
Simon Yu sneered, "Queen Lily of Qin has arrived! Why aren't you opening the gate at once? Where's Justin Zhao? Have him come out to greet us!"
Magistrate's Mansion
Justin Zhao, fat and jowly, sat in his chair while Nina Zhao (Concubine), a beautiful woman beside him, sobbed, tears streaming down her face: "My lord, I only have one brother, and now Queen Lily of Qin's people have gouged out his eyes and thrown him into the river! He's your brother-in-law, and Queen Lily of Qin doing this to him is a slap in your face! My lord, you must stand up for me—my brother can't lose his eyes for nothing!"
Seeing Nina Zhao (Concubine) cry, Justin Zhao's heart ached. He hurried to comfort her, "Nina Zhao, don't cry. Your tears break my heart! I know your brother has suffered, but she's Queen Lily of Qin. Should I really pick a fight with her over your brother?"
Nina Zhao (Concubine) sobbed, "My lord, you're the kingpin of Anchester—what's Queen Lily of Qin compared to you? Here in Anchester, the emperor is far away and you rule as Magistrate. Now the court wants to redraw the borders and hand Anchester over to this so-called Kingdom of Qin. If you just give in, you'll be under Queen Lily of Qin's thumb from now on! How humiliating is that?"
Justin Zhao replied, "Absolutely not! I've been running Anchester for over a decade—my roots run deep. All the big families and clans here are loyal to me. The court has sent imperial inspectors before, trying to take Anchester from me. Those imperial inspectors—either I bought them off, and they did as I said, or if they were stubborn, I got rid of them. Now they send this Prince and Queen Lily of Qin—I'm not concerned about them at all."
Nina Zhao (Concubine) said, "That's right, my lord. Here in Anchester, your word is law—you're more powerful than the emperor himself. But you sent your brother-in-law to greet them, and Queen Lily of Qin didn't hesitate to blind him! Isn't that humiliating? If you swallow this insult, you'll have a woman riding roughshod over you! If you ask me, you should do what you did with those imperial inspectors—in for a penny, in for a pound. Why not just deal with Queen Lily of Qin once and for all..."