Wukong was carrying Gao Lang across his back like a sack of potatoes, taking great pleasure in jostling him a lot more than was absolutely necessary. One large furry paw gripped his ankles, while the other gripped his wrists, preventing his escape. In a few bounds, Wukong reached the stage.

“Let me go! My grandfather will skin you for this, you smelly monkey!” shouted Gao Lang.

Almost casually, Wukong lowered Gao Lang to his feet, then smacked his head with a loud “PIAKK!”, causing him to slump unconscious into Wukong’s arms.

Gao Cai, Elder Jing, Elder Mu and his wife and mother, were all stunned. Their eyes were wide open. Gao Cai even had his mouth hanging open. Even if Gao Lang was their prime suspect, wasn’t treating him like this going overboard? All these years, nobody had dared to even sneeze in Gao Lang’s direction, must less insult or mistreat this treasured grandson of Lord Gao!

“Isn’t that Young Master Gao Lang?”

“Treating him like that, aren’t they scared?”

“Maybe we should leave…”

“We’re gonna be in soooo much trouble…”

“Shush! I wanna know what’s going on!”

“Hah! I knew it was him all along, I told you!”

Bajie watched the entire proceedings with his mouth growing increasingly slack, his eyes wide in amazement. When Wukong hit Gao Lang, Bajie couldn’t help chortling loudly, half in disbelief.

Trip undid the bandages around Gao Lang’s hands and arms then raised them high up, showing the two crescent-shaped wounds underneath. Beside them, she held up the pieces of paper showing Gao Xin’s bite marks. The crowd gasped.

One set was brownish-red with scabs and dried blood, the other was black with ink. Despite the difference in colour, everyone could clearly see that the wounds were a perfect match with the bite mark pattern on paper.

“Young Master Gao Lang was the murderer!”

“It was he who defiled our Gao Xin!”

“Hah! I knew it all along! I told you!”

“Lord Gao will be so disappointed!”

At this point, the scariest-looking people in the entire crowd were not Elder Mu, Elder Jing, or even Gao Cai, no matter how grim they looked. The two people who had murder in their eyes and expressions that promised Gao Lang a long, slow and painful death, were Gao Luan and Gao Shu. Elder Mu’s wife and mother.

Trip continued. “Good people of Gao Village. I’ve shared with you many truths. Now, I only have two questions to ask you. The first being, should Bajie be set free?”

“Yes!”

“Of course!”

“Hah! I always knew he was innocent! I told you!”

Trip nodded at Wukong, who dragged Gao Lang along as he moved towards the X-shaped wooden frame. With a couple of kicks, Wukong smashed the wooden frame to pieces, freeing Bajie.

“Thank you Mistress Trip! Thank you Brother Wukong! Bajie will remember your kindness forever!”

Bajie bowed to Trip and Wukong with a first palm salute.

“But first, I must avenge Gao Xin!”

Waddling as fast as he could, Bajie picked up the nine-pronged rake. Wielding it with great familiarity, he brandished it fiercely.

“Brother Wukong, hold that Gao Lang steady. I’m going to bash in his head!” said Bajie with a surprisingly resolute tone.

“Ohh! Good Pigsy! Hit him as hard as you can!” replied Wukong with much glee, holding a still-unconscious Gao Lang out like a sandbag ready to be pummelled.

Just as Bajie was about to raise his rake to strike, a deep and powerful voice accustomed to command roared out, “Whoever touches my grandson, I’ll spend the next month skinning them alive!”

“Aiiiii!” squealed Bajie, dropping his rake. Crawling on hands and knees, he buried his head between his arms as he tried to hide behind the broken remnants of the wooden frame.

A grizzled, weathered man strode towards the stage, his expression promising the wrath of any number of storms. He stood straight and proud, his short hair and beard framing a face like old leather. His body was tough as an oak tree, and built like a tiger. As he walked past, the crowd moved back out of his way while bowing their heads, muttering “Lord Gao”.

Behind Lord Gao were two huge boar hybrids, towering a full head above Lord Gao. Their shoulders, bulging with muscle, were almost twice his width..Tusks grew out from each side of their long bristly snouts, giving them a ferocious look.

Ignoring the Elders Mu and Jing, Lord Gao went up the stage. The two boar hybrids followed him, causing the stage to creak under their feet.

“Well? Still not letting him go?” asked Lord Gao, his tone low and threatening.

“Lord Gao, I’ve heard that you’re a fair and just leader. Could it be that you’re going to make an exception for your grandson, despite what he’s done?” said Trip.

“Lord Gao! Gao Lang killed Gao Xin!”

“You have to punish him, Lord Gao!”

“We saw all the evidence! Gao Lang is guilty!”

“I told everyone but they wouldn’t believe me! I knew all along!”

“Grandfather! Save me!” screamed Gao Lang, who had recovered consciousness.

“Even if he’s done something wrong, I will be the one to punish him. In private, not here.” said Lord Gao, completely ignoring Gao Lang and the crowd.

“Lord Gao, I believe you owe it to your people to let them see that justice is done. How will they know that justice still exists in Gao Village, if Gao Lang is punished in private?”

“Justice? Of course it exists in Gao Village, because I AM THE LAW! Justice is whatever I say it is!”

“Lord Gao, how could you?”

“How is this fair?”

“How will Gao Xin rest in peace?”

At the sounds of protest from the villagers, Lord Gao turned towards the crowd for the first time.

“All of you have had it easy for too long eh? Without me, there wouldn’t be a Gao Village! Without me, all of you would be starving! Now that I’m asking for my grandson back, you won’t even give me this bit of face? You ungrateful wretches!” roared Lord Gao at the crowd.

Turning back to one of the boar hybrids, Lord Gao said “Call my Head of Security! Let him deal with these fools!”

The boar hybrid raised his head and let out a deep snorting growl that was so loud, it echoed.

Trip gritted her teeth, her hand straying towards her revolver. “So this is what you call being fair and just?”

Lord Gao looked at Trip condescendingly. “Little girl, if enough people say I’m fair and just, if they repeat it enough times, everyone else will start to believe it. Those that don’t believe, can always be persuaded to keep quiet. Those that refuse to keep quiet, can be eliminated. This is what being a leader is! This is how one continues being a leader!”

Elder Jing was about to explode with rage, pointing his finger at Lord Gao and sputtering “Bloody Gao! Despicable Gao! You -!”

A small, hunchbacked figure covered in a red robe darted out from the crowd, making its way to Lord Gao in a flash. The hood of the robe was pulled low, covering its face in shadow. The only part of its body that could be seen was a green and yellow-scaled tail poking out the bottom of the red robe.

“You summoned me, Lord Ga-” began the red-robed reptile in a high-pitched, chittering voice. It broke off, staring at Trip.

“IT’S BLACK HAT TRIP! SOUND THE ALARM!” it screamed, fumbling for a bamboo tube slung across its back.

-- Chapter 32, End --