Three Philosophical Questions for Travelers

Haven's verdict, [-]

Haven's verdict, [-]

All eyes in the court were on Charles the Great, and the man moved a chair, climbed up on the chair, and looked down at everyone.He looked around to make sure everyone was looking at him, and then he said: "I only have one younger brother, and I want to save his life! This is my master's will, I have to do this! So I want your support Me! In order to repay you, I will distribute my property to everyone present!" He shouted loudly, "The Charles family has [-] gold coins! There are no more than [-] people present today, and each person can get at least [-]. Gold coins! Thirty!"

When he called out thirty gold coins, the whole court was completely boiling, and people cheered as if they saw a princess stripping.

Thirty gold coins are a huge sum of money for ordinary poor people, and many people may not be able to earn this money after decades of hard work.Under this naked temptation, all morality and justice have become bullshit.No one shouted for justice any more, only excited exclamation and bursts of cheers remained in the audience.Big Charles laughed, shook his arms, and shouted, "Long live reconciliation!"

So the people below immediately shouted to him: "Long live the reconciliation!" The voices were uniform, as if they had been trained.

"Reconciliation!" he yelled.

The people below followed suit and shouted: "Reconciliation!"

"Long live!" he shouted again.

"Long live! Long live! Long live!"

In an instant, the balance of victory fell to Great Charles, and the will of the people was no match for the naked temptation of money.The shouts hit like a storm, tearing up the bright and beautiful things before, and the ancient court became more fragile under the shock of the shouts, and the ceiling seemed to be about to fall.

"No! Don't believe him!" Violet yelled at the thousands of people, "Don't be deceived by him! He's a profiteer, a bully, and a miser! He won't spend the money!"

"Who says I can't?" Great Charles took out a roll of parchment from his pocket, shook the thing, and said, "This is a deed from my iron vault! The Charles family, here is all the property—thirty thousand gold, Just take it!"

At this moment, Haiwen saw Violet kneeling on the ground in despair, with her hair loose, covering her face and crying bitterly.

Little Charles, who had been expressionless, also collapsed.He was trembling all over, and then all the snot and tears poured out, and he couldn't even stand up.He leaned on the table and kept crying.Big Charles went over and took his arm, and said, "I will save you, my brother."

The shouts became more frenzied, and people shouted "Long live the reconciliation!" Those who were excited before were among them, and they shouted hard, as if the louder they shouted, the more gold coins they could get.

However, a few people remained calm. The tailor holding the Poseidon flag stood in the opposite direction and continued to shout for justice. ; There was also a woman who got into a fight with the man next to her, rolled into a ball, and then people laughed.

Hai Wen was helpless in the face of all this.

The nobles are against me, and the people are against me, what should I do?Should I compromise with all this?

He was a little confused in a trance, and he began to doubt the value of the things he had been protecting with his life all this time—if [-] gold coins can buy justice, then is it necessary for people to protect such cheap things with their lives?

Haiwen rang the big bell to ask people to quiet down, but the sound of the alarm bell was of no avail. The bell symbolizing the law was drowned in the carnival of [-] gold coins, and no one paid any attention.Haven couldn't bear it anymore, and he shouted: "Soldiers, maintain order!" Then the guards pushed the crowd and got rid of all the people who rushed into the court.Haven told Big Charles to stop instigating the crowd. Big Charles yelled with a smirk: "My lord! Have you seen the public opinion?" After saying this, he got off the chair, and it took more than ten minutes for people to gradually recover. calm.

The court calmed down, but Hai Wen couldn't calm down—what should I do next?He watched everything that happened in front of him, not knowing what to do next.His power is based on the law, nobles, and common people, but now he wants to do something that is not allowed by the law, nobles, and common people. The result of doing so is that power will bite him back.

At this moment, the smiling cat who had been silent all this time spoke.

"My lord, you can acquit him." The smiling cat smiled as always, calmly.

"That's impossible." Haven said.

"It doesn't matter, because he will die sooner or later." The moment he finished speaking, Smiley Cat suddenly "Dang! Dang! Dang! Dang!" nailed four machetes on the table, and no one could see where he came from Take out the knife.

"I swear here, today's defendant, Manto Charles, you can't get out of Bear Mountain City!"

Everyone was shocked, and Big Charles was so scared that he couldn't speak.Haven said, "You can't do that, Spike."

The smiling cat said: "My lord, what you have done is good enough, but after all, you are a member of the system, and I am not—I am a ranger!"

"You can't do that! You can't kill my brother!" Big Charles shouted at him.

The smiling cat glared at Big Charles and said: "You despicable villain, protect him as much as you can! You give him bodyguards! You lock him up! But the ranger's sword will hang over his head forever! I will definitely Take his life!"

Haiwen was excited by his words, but he was a judge, and he couldn't let the smiling cat be so presumptuous in court. "Spike!" he yelled, "I warn you, it's a threat! You—"

"This is intimidation, my lord!" the smiling cat roared loudly.He jumped onto the plaintiff's box and stomped hard on the large wooden court table.He drew his knife and said loudly: "If the law can solve everything, what do you need a ranger? Crimes that cannot be punished within the law need to be punished outside the law!"

At this time, the jury began to shout after the smiling cat again, the blacksmith, the scholar, the tailor, and many others who had been silent before, these people once again shouted for justice.

Then the people divided into two factions, and there was a tendency to fight in the courtroom.

At this moment, Tang De'en shouted: "My lord, adjourn the court!"

Tang Deen's suggestion is very good. Neither the jury nor Haiwen himself can calm down at this moment, but the court must calm down.Therefore, Haven announced an adjournment, and the trial of the case will continue tomorrow.

As the court adjourned, the crowd also dispersed. Haiwen and the smiling cat looked at each other in silence, and Violet sat on the chair in relief, as if she was ten years older.

Brother Charles remained where he was, waiting to be dealt with.

The court will continue tomorrow, and Haiwen will not do anything to them at this time.Big Charles bowed his head in silence, Little Charles looked ahead, and Hai Wen looked at Little Charles and said, "You didn't say a word today."

Little Charles looked at him and said, "I have no face to speak."

Haiwen passed him by. At that moment, Haiwen said: "The trial will continue tomorrow. Your brother bought your life, but money can't buy your sins. You should do it yourself."

After saying this, he left, and he had to prepare for the next day's trial.He must find loopholes in the code, so as to move back the next day.He couldn't forget Violet's crying and the laughing ranger's roar. He was the master of Bear Mountain, and he had to do something.

He was busy until very late, until Hyacinth came to bring him supper in his pajamas, and then he thought about resting.He hadn't been in vain all night, and he was confident in himself.

Unexpectedly, however, his preparations were useless the next day.

Because little Charles hanged himself.he died.

Haven's verdict, [-]

Haven's verdict, [-]

Haiwen learned about this in the morning.As a suspect who has not yet been convicted, Charles Jr. has the right to live in a hotel outside for the time being. Haiwen asked a few soldiers to watch him to avoid escaping, but he did not expect such a thing to happen.

Hai Wen immediately went to the scene of the incident. He drove on the street, and saw that the crowd was concentrated somewhere. Many people rushed to tell each other that "the person is dead", and then ran quickly.When Haiwen arrived, the hotel entrance was already crowded with people.

Haven ordered the soldiers to maintain order, and then walked in.Hearing the cry of Charles the Great, he pushed aside the crowd and walked into the corridor of the hotel.A swaying shadow blocked the sunlight and swayed across his face; when he looked up, he saw the body of little Charles hanging from the ceiling.Great Charles knelt at his feet, and was wailing.

A sigh came from behind Haiwen, and when he turned his head, he saw the smiling cat holding a knife in his arms, and the smile on his face had disappeared.Then he heard Violet murmur, "How did he kill himself? How did he kill himself?"

Haiwen saw a piece of parchment full of words lying at the feet of little Charles. He picked it up and saw that it was a suicide note.

He looked at the writing on it:

This is my suicide note, to all the people I have hurt, those who hate me, and the only brother who loves me.

I am Manto Charles, a sinful man.

I'm sorry for you guys (crossed out here with a black line)

I am not qualified to apologize, and I have no one to apologize to.Because most of the people I hurt die, and those who are alive will not forgive me.

Before yesterday, I had never thought of apologizing and atonement, and I had no conscience, morality or mercy.

Because no one treats me with sincerity, no one loves me.The whole world wants to kill me, so I have to kill the whole world first.

But yesterday I found out I was wrong.

My brother loves me.

Even though I hurt him countless times, he still treats me as his younger brother, and he wants to take my life with one of his own.

I realized that I have an older brother, and that there is real affection between brothers.

Since we can have brotherhood, so can other people—everyone else, father and son, mother and daughter, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends... there will be affection between these people.They will love each other, real love exists.

I always thought that the word love was made up by magicians to deceive people.

Since love exists, everything I did before was wrong.

I am unforgivable.I have ruined countless families and this beautiful world.

So I decided to atone for my crime in the most direct way. You can say that I committed suicide in fear of crime, or it could be something else, I don't care.

At the end of my life, I long for forgiveness, please tell that lady who was a slave that I regret killing her companion.I was stupid because I always thought that slaves have no feelings and no pain, so I killed many people, I am sorry, I am in pain.

Tell Haven and the Laughing Ranger that I tried to kill them.I thought they were just stones holding me back, I didn't think they were human beings like me.I am in so much pain now that I wish I could die immediately.

Finally, my brother, I don't hate you anymore.Don't continue to blame yourself for childhood things, I forgive you, I hope you can forgive me.Be a good person from now on, don't be like me.

Oh, and let me tell you, drama is really a good thing, much more interesting than loan sharking.I still want to be an actor. (The words here are blurred by water)

I love you, bye.

—Your brother, Manto Charles.

Hai Wen put down the letter, feeling mixed emotions in his heart, which was hard to express for a while.At this moment, Big Charles cried and said: "This is my retribution!" Big Charles shouted hoarsely, "Retribution! I have done too many wicked things, so...so I suffered retribution, and I can't save him! I can't save him! I was almost, almost able to save my brother's life... Ah——!" After saying this, he lay on the ground, hammered the floor and cried loudly, with snot and tears flowing all over the floor .

There is no need to fight the lawsuit.Hai Wen dispersed the crowd, leaving only the few people around him.Big Charles was still crying. He stood behind the sad man and didn't know what to say.

Suddenly, the voice of the smiling cat came from behind: "My lord, this is the best result."

Haven didn't know how to answer, and it was true, which saved troublesome legal procedures.The "legal propaganda" of the Great Charles case has turned into a confrontation between the old and the new classes, and there will be no good results if this continues.Now whether it is Haiwen or the old nobleman, it is hard to get off the tiger, and after Charles Jr. committed suicide, this matter can be justified and ended.

Violet also nodded and said, "Maybe so."

But Big Charles was not satisfied with the result. He wiped away the tears on his face and shouted at the two people: "It's not good at all! Not at all! My brother is dead! I only have him as a relative, He is dead!" He trembled with grief and anger, "I have done so much, just want to save his life! He can be imprisoned, exiled, but as long as he can live! I just want him to live!"

"It's his own choice, Big Charles," said Haven. "He's gone now, and I'm... very sorry about that."

Big Charles rushed up and grabbed Haven by the collar, they were face to face, and Haven could almost see his pores. "It's a pity you didn't kill him yourself, didn't you?" cried Big Charles.

Smiley Cat pulled out the knife beside him, and Hai Wen gestured for him to put it down.Afterwards, Haven said to Great Charles: "My regret is that he was not able to wash away his sins and get forgiveness before he died." Haven handed the suicide note to Great Charles and said, "Have you read this?"

Big Charles let go of Haiwen, then grabbed the suicide note and quickly read it.Haiwen watched him bursting into tears while reading, and when he let go of his hand at the end of the reading, the letter slowly fell to the ground.Big Charles smiled wryly while weeping, and said, "He said he doesn't blame me anymore."

"Then do you still blame him?" Haven asked.

Big Charles shook his head and said, "How could I blame him? He's my own brother."

Hai Wen nodded, and said, "He's still begging for forgiveness from others—Smiley Cat, Violet, now that little Charles has spent his life washing away his sins, can you forgive him?"

The smiling cat said first: "Everyone is dead, forget it."

Violet pondered for a while, with a very painful expression on her face, "It was not me who was hurt by him, but other slaves. I can't say that I didn't forgive. But... those people are already dead. What kind of grievances can there be between them? Well, that's it."

"That's good." Haven nodded and said, "Tomorrow I will put up a notice—the case of Manto Charles is over."

Haven's verdict, X

Haven's verdict, X

The next day, Haiwen ordered someone to post a notice and went to the gate of the court.The notice stated that Charles Jr. had hanged himself in the room, and the lawsuit would not be heard the next day.

He did not define Charles Jr. as a suicide in fear of crime, but said that he took the initiative to wash away his sins by suicide. From the legal definition, Charles Jr. was a free man, not a death row prisoner.Therefore, Haven will not hang his body on the city wall to show the public, and allow him to get a decent funeral.

The subsequent funeral was handled by Charles the Great. He bought an expensive coffin and asked Tang Deen to choose an excellent hiding place for him, and spent money to buy it and turn it into a private cemetery.He told Haiwen that he planned to be buried here after his death.

He Wen attended the funeral, and he was surprised to find that there was no one who really came to bury Charles Jr., except for his elder brother escorting his younger brother, there was no one else.Those funeral processions were also paid by Great Charles.

The weather has been hot these past few days, and even the nights have been hot and dry.The hot wind makes people sweat, and the chirping of cicadas is annoying.The funeral procession set off early in the morning, from Bear Mountain to the outskirts of the city, and Haiwen followed him, and he felt sweaty after walking too far.He was only wearing a single shirt, but it didn't take long for the clothes to get soaked, and a brown V shape was printed on his chest and back by sweat.

They arrived at the burial place around seven o'clock in the morning.Big Charles read out the eulogy, and the following audience, except for Haven, were all hired people—this eulogy was only read by Big Charles to himself.

After reading the eulogy, he ordered people to dig the soil and bury him.During the whole process, Big Charles was watching from the side, and Hai Wen stood watching from a distance. The relationship between him and Big Charles has always been delicate. At first, they were enemies, then they were both enemies and friends, and then they were superiors and subordinates. And now... he doesn't know anymore.

At this moment, Haven no longer hated the brothers, but he sympathized with Charles.

If their brothers hadn't been born in the Charles family in Mustang, maybe they would have made a good couple?He couldn't help thinking this way, but then he thought, if they were born in poor families, they might not survive.

Big Charles stood in the sun, sweating profusely from the scorching sun.The man stood alone in the sun, watching the last of his relatives be buried in the earth.He had stopped crying, he had cried enough, but this silent sadness was more heart-wrenching.

After everything was done, it was already nine o'clock in the morning.The funeral procession took the money and left, leaving only Haven and Charles the Great.

This place is indeed beautiful. According to Haiwen's previous life, it is "good Fengshui", with trickling streams, singing birds and fragrant flowers. The cemetery is hidden in this piece of nature, exuding the tranquil beauty of a girl.Charles was probably tired, so he sat down in front of the tombstone.He stroked the writing on the stone tablet with his hand, silent.

Haiwen came to him and said, "I left a carriage, let's go back together later."

Big Charles nodded silently, and then stopped talking.After about 5 minutes, he said to Haven: "My lord, you said you wanted to make me a knight, right?"

"Correct."

"Come on," he said, "I'm not interested in being a knight."

Haiwen said: "But you deserve it. I will reward you for your meritorious service."

"Reward me...will my brother come back?" He stroked the tombstone and sighed, "My lord, I feel that my life has been wasted."

"You're just so sad."

"No, I failed to fulfill the responsibilities of a man. I am a failed brother and a failed son." At this time, a little yellow bird landed beside Charles, and Charles stroked it lightly, and continued, " On the eve of my departure from Wild Horse Land, when I was packing my luggage, I found my father's suicide note. It was a few years old, and it may have been written by him on a drunken night. It was a whim. Not too much nonsense, just saying, I hope our brothers are harmonious, and I hope we forgive him. Alas, my father is a person who saves face. Even if he finds out that he is wrong, he will not come to apologize to the child. But I am still very surprised , I thought... my father always thought he was right, and it turned out that he was just like us, longing for forgiveness."

He swallowed a mouthful of saliva. At this moment, a few more birds came. Charles felt from his pocket, as if he wanted to get some corn or something, but he only found a few gold coins.With a wry smile, he threw the gold coin to the bird, and the bird pecked at him blankly.

"That's when I decided that I would find my brother, apologize to him, and save him. I would save him at all costs. This was my mistake, and it was my brother's responsibility. But I Failed, I failed to fulfill my father's last wish, I failed to save my brother's life, I..." He spilled another handful of silver coins from his pocket, and the birds scattered when they saw that there was no corn to eat.Gold and silver coins fell on the grass, glistening in the sun.

"All I have left is this gold." He looked at the coins. "I have turned against my brother for these things, and I have done countless bad things for these things. My lord, why do you think this thing is so powerful? Isn't it What kind of magic did the king put into the coin when he minted it?"