After the part of stating grievances ended, the emotions of the masses had been completely mobilized. According to the plan, Xu Dian should appear at this time. As he walked up the trial stage step by step, the perspective was constantly changing. From only seeing the masses in front of him at the beginning to gradually being able to see more people; after fully ascending the stage, the whole scene below the stage was in full view. That was an ocean composed of angry and excited masses. It was completely different from looking down from the simple watchtower; the watchtower was at a monitoring angle, seeing more of the backs of the masses.

"You are to uphold justice for the people, not to uphold justice for yourself to gain fame." Chen Ke's words echoed in his ears. Looking up at Chen Ke's figure going up the stage [Wait, text says "looked up at Chen Ke's figure going up the stage"? No, text says `抬眼看了看往台上陈克的身影`. It likely means he looked up at Chen Ke who was *on the watchtower* or somewhere high? Previous chapter said they were on the watchtower. Maybe Chen Ke is still there or Xu Dian is looking back. Or maybe Chen Ke is also on the stage? Context: Xu Dian is on the trial stage. Chen Ke was on the watchtower. Let's assume Xu Dian looked back/up at Chen Ke.], Xu Dian felt he had enough willpower to face these common people frontally.

"Fellow villagers, a life for a life, paying back debts. Is this a heavenly principle?" Xu Dian shouted. "Liu Yixuan killed people and raped women. Did we wrong him?"

"Didn't wrong him! Kill Liu Yixuan!"

"Kill Liu Yixuan!"

Shouts like ocean tides rushed towards him from below the stage carrying strong passion. Just the sound waves had a kind of pressure, making Xu Dian's hair stand on end, as if he was about to be pushed backward by the enthusiasm of the masses. And Liu Yixuan on the stage was already weak all over, paralyzed on the stage surface like mud. He had cried and begged, but it was useless. The common people had no mercy for him at all; all voices were cursing and scolding, and all statements were demanding Liu Yixuan to pay with his life. The accusations of so many people completely deprived Liu Yixuan of his will; he trembled slightly all over, his eyes full of dullness caused by fear and despair.

"Fellow villagers, our People's Party wants to uphold justice for everyone. We will absolutely not wrong a good person, nor will we ever let go of a bad person. According to the laws of the base area, we sentence Liu Yixuan to death according to law for the murder of villager Wang Deshui. Liu Yixuan raped Wang Deshui's wife and is sentenced to 7 years of fixed-term imprisonment according to law. Punishing for multiple crimes, Liu Yixuan is sentenced to death, to be executed immediately after the Public Trial Rally!"

"Good!" "Good sentence!" "Liu Yixuan deserves to die!" "Kill him now!" The excited masses immediately responded with thunderous roars.

"Fellow villagers, now the judicial power of Fengtai County is held by the People's Party. Everyone must believe that we will enforce the law impartially. The execution of Liu Yixuan will be carried out publicly after this Public Trial Rally; we will absolutely not let these criminals go. Next, we interrogate Zhang Youliang. Everyone can come up to air grievances about how they were bullied by Zhang Youliang on ordinary days. Don't be afraid; now in Fengtai County, our People's Party upholds justice for everyone. Our children are all soldiers in the Insurance Corps; the Insurance Corps is the team of our common people. Whoever dares to bully our common people, the People's Party and the Insurance Corps will uphold justice for our common people."

"Good!" The masses couldn't help applauding. Finally having their own armed force to back up the common people, the common people felt full of confidence in their chests.

While the court bailiffs dragged the dead-pig-like Liu Yixuan down, common people were already scrambling to come on stage to air grievances. "Line up, line up, don't crowd; everyone has a chance to air grievances." Xu Dian shouted hurriedly.

Zhang Youliang was different from Hu Xingzhi; he relied on armed force to run amuck in the countryside. So Zhang Youliang usually not only didn't do any "good deeds" for the common people on the surface, but various extortion incidents emerged one after another.

Besides collecting rent, usury, seizing men and women, and buying and selling people—the common people remembered every single item clearly. But one thing had to be admitted: Zhang Youliang was actually a hard bone. When the common people aired grievances and cursed angrily, Zhang Youliang stiffened his neck and actually cursed back.

When common people scolded him for collecting rent, Zhang Youliang scolded back that common people were lazy bones. When common people scolded him for usury, Zhang Youliang scolded back that common people were all poor ghosts who borrowed money to spend when they had none. When common people scolded him for killing, Zhang Youliang scolded back that common people didn't understand the times. From time to time, common people airing grievances rushed up in fury to beat Zhang Youliang. His mouth was broken, his face beaten blue, one eye swollen high and hard to open, but Zhang Youliang neither cried pain nor begged for mercy, tit for tat with the common people.

"You are rebelling. Wait until the government troops come to suppress bandits; you unruly people will all be beheaded one by one." Zhang Youliang even kept cursing the people.

"Comrade Xu Dian, should we gag Zhang Youliang?" the comrade responsible for maintaining order asked angrily. The common people had never seen such a fierce person either; having reached this state, he actually didn't show any weakness at all. Some common people were even somewhat bluffed by Zhang Youliang, and the scolding voices below also decreased a lot.

"Let him curse; gagging him would look like we are afraid of him." Although saying so with his mouth, Xu Dian was really a bit scared in his heart.

Zhang Youliang had many crimes. Just the people airing grievances spoke for more than three hours before barely finishing stating the murder cases and crimes of seizing ancestral land for usury. Zhang Youliang was old after all; having cursed back for so long, his mouth was dry and tongue parched. Apart from trying hard to straighten his body, he also shut his mouth and stopped speaking.

"Comrade Xiong Mingyang, it will be hard on you soon," Xu Dian said.

Xiong Mingyang had been responsible for attacking forts and only rushed back from outside a few days ago. While wiping his broadsword carefully with a cloth, he said: "Don't worry, when chopping off this old dog's head, I absolutely won't be soft-hearted." The last time he encountered someone daring to curse like this was a landlord's daughter when attacking a fort. As for her name, Xiong Mingyang had long forgotten. The hostility and hatred of bully landlords towards the people could not be resolved at all. For a landlord's daughter whose hands had never been stained with blood, who would rather be killed than surrender—Xiong Mingyang had absolutely no sympathy for this kind of person. The fiercer Zhang Youliang cursed, the calmer Xiong Mingyang felt in his heart.

Xu Dian went to pronounce the sentence. Xiong Mingyang didn't even look; he flourished the broadsword in his hand a few times, adjusting the feeling in his hand. He heard Xu Dian read out a series of crimes of Zhang Youliang, and then announce Zhang Youliang's death sentence more than ten times. As soon as the words "Zhang Youliang, death sentence, immediate execution" fell, amidst the roar of the masses, Xiong Mingyang raised his head and strode onto the trial stage.

Seeing Xiong Mingyang carrying a broadsword and walking steadily towards Zhang Youliang step by step, the cheers of the masses weakened instantly. Xiong Mingyang didn't notice these at all; his mind was clear and bright. In his eyes, only Zhang Youliang's withered neck remained. Bailiffs had already pressed Zhang Youliang down, making this old landlord kneel on the ground. Xiong Mingyang waved his hand to signal the bailiffs to step aside. At the moment Zhang Youliang tried to stand up, Xiong Mingyang's broadsword chopped down like thunder. Zhang Youliang's neck was cut neatly, flying into mid-air, flying off the stage.

"Zhang Youliang, you old dog, you also have today!" With a wail, someone already rushed towards Zhang Youliang's head carrying a shoulder pole or wooden stick and began to beat it hard. Xiong Mingyang didn't care so much; he signaled people to drag Liu Yixuan up. At this time, Liu Yixuan had completely collapsed. There was a wooden block on the public trial stage. Liu Yixuan knelt in front of the wooden block, his upper body placed on it. Xiong Mingyang looked at Liu Yixuan with contempt, raised his hand and dropped the knife, cutting off Liu Yixuan's neck like chopping vegetables.

Where had the common people seen such a clean killing method? There was a solemn silence below the stage first, and then earth-shaking cheers rang out.

A stench entered Xiong Mingyang's nasal cavity. He turned his head and saw that some landlords were already trembling with fear, excrement and urine flowing down their trousers with a splash. "If you knew there would be today, why did you do evil before?" Xiong Mingyang shouted loudly to those landlords.

The Public Trial Rally went very smoothly. Three days of public trials basically cleared up the blood debts owed by landlords to the common people cleanly. Only women and children were left in Zhang Youliang's family, and the Zhang family clan was also killed with few remaining. Other landlords didn't have so many blood debts; only the criminals were killed. Then the People's Party divided the floating wealth of the Zhang family and those few landlord families. What should be returned to the common people was returned, especially compensating the families of the victims. These were all done publicly. On the public trial stage, the families of the victims held the compensated property, kneeling on the ground and crying bitterly with emotion.

The new government immediately announced that usury was not allowed in Fengtai County from now on, and the annual interest rate of private loans should not exceed 15%.

After the Public Trial Rally, the image of the People's Party as "Blue Sky" [Upright Official] was thoroughly established. Daring to demand repayment of blood debts from those once majestic landlords—this was something that had never happened in Fengtai County. The propaganda agencies of the base area also mobilized fully: "The People's Party is the party of the common people, the Insurance Corps are the soldiers of the people's children. If the people have any injustice or disputes, go to the court led by Comrade Xu Dian of the People's Party." With such words, when conducting propaganda again, the common people no longer questioned, but sincerely believed.

And the matters of land distribution proceeded smoothly afterwards.

After the public trial, the two sons of Hu Xingzhi's family were released home. Hu Xingzhi dared not mention anything about "People's Representative" anymore. Liu Yixuan was a People's Representative personally promised by Chen Ke, yet he was chopped just like that. Although Liu Yixuan himself deserved it, the idea that Chen Ke's words were completely untrustworthy was also deeply rooted. Hu Xingzhi only hoped to hide quietly through this period of time, and then find an opportunity to leave this place of trouble, Fengtai County, and never return. Although land is important, if life is gone, what use is this land?

Hearing Ren Qiying came to visit, Hu Xingzhi shivered in his heart. It seemed Chen Ke wouldn't let him go.

Whatever he thought in his heart, he had to keep up appearances. Hu Xingzhi invited Ren Qiying in. After guest and host were seated, Ren Qiying said straight to the point: "Uncle Hu, I came this time to talk about land distribution. According to regulations, the base area distributes land at three mu per person. The base area hopes to promote the production team model, that is to say, based on voluntary methods, everyone forms production teams to cultivate and harvest together."

Without even thinking, Hu Xingzhi said dejectedly: "Let Miss Ren make the decision on this matter. I am old and can't do such things. I will just do whatever you young people say."

"Uncle Hu, do you think at this time, you can stay out of it just because you want to?" Ren Qiying asked. "Before I came, Chairman Chen Ke specifically instructed me that regarding the matter of Uncle Hu being a People's Representative, since it was settled, it must be honored."

Hearing this, Hu Xingzhi simply told the truth. "Miss Ren, don't you think this is bullying people too much?"

"Uncle Hu, you took out so many things; if you don't even see the benefits, isn't it too pity? Our People's Party now wants to set up models of getting rich. Uncle Hu, you are also a capable person; why not work hard in this great opportunity?"

"Great opportunity? If I become this bird that sticks its head out, won't I be liquidated in the future? I don't think about good things anymore. I only beg to keep my life honestly."

"Uncle Hu, I won't hide it from you. The Insurance Corps has already sent troops to attack Fengyang Prefecture. If you want to wait, you can also wait and see. If we can't take Fengyang Prefecture, then naturally there is no need to say. If we take Fengyang Prefecture, what are you still afraid of then?"

"Even if you take Fengyang Prefecture, there is still Anqing Prefecture?" Hu Xingzhi asked.

"After taking Fengyang Prefecture, we naturally have to attack Anqing Prefecture immediately. Or, Uncle Hu, you wait until the news of Anqing Prefecture comes out before talking?" Ren Qiying said with a smile.

Hu Xingzhi looked at Ren Qiying in astonishment. "Miss Ren, what exact position do you hold in this People's Party? To actually know so much news?"

"What position I hold is not important. Our People's Party is not just revolutionizing in this Fengtai County; the purpose of the revolution is to liberate the whole of China. Chairman Chen Ke asked me to bring a message: if you are unwilling to join, we won't force you. When we take Anqing Prefecture, you will be free to come and go. We will absolutely not stop you. But I, this girl, think like this: if you run out of Anhui, unfamiliar with people and places in other provinces, why bother? When we liberate the whole of China, could it be that you will run to a foreign country?"

Hearing these words, Hu Xingzhi widened his eyes, actually not knowing what to say.