perform such deeds that you disapprove! Like an ostrich they follow every noise and love the remotest watering-thought! By God, you people now criticize me for what you had submitted to in 'Umar's time and turn away from them, whereas 'Umar trampled upon you and knocked you on the head and pulled out your root with his sharp tongue! You were so afraid of him that you bowed to his ugliness and beauty and were wholly obedient to him.
But you show insolence and rebel against me who am gentle and lenient to you and have withheld my hand and tongue from you."
At this moment' Marwan was about to say something but 'Uthman exclaimed: "Be silent!"(192)

Marwan ibn al-Hakam
As the subject of Marwan will come up often in subsequent chapters, we should introduce this distinguished personality who later on became one of the Umayyad rulers.
He is the son of al-Hakam ibn Abi al-'As whom we introduced in the chapter on al-Walid and his governorship of Kufah. His by-name is Abu 'Abd al-Malik, and he was a cousin of 'Uthman as well as his son-in-law.
He was born before the capture of Mecca, and he was only a child when he accompanied his father to exile in at-Ta'if by the order of the Prophet. He remained in exile with his father and brothers until Uthman's caliphate, and then 'Uthman brought them back to Medina, and kept Marwan close to him and entrusted him with the scribe office. of his court.
Marwan's presence and his influence on the caliph were the main factor of 'Uthman's misfortune, people's dissatisfaction and eventually Muslims' uprising against 'Uthman. When the rebels besieged him and Marwan instead of treating them with moderation, rose to fight them, he was injured in the neck during the conflict and as a consequence one of the tendons of his neck was cut off and his neck remained awry to the end of his life and the people scoffingly nicknamed him "the crooked figure".
One day 'Ali looked at him and said: "Woe to you, and woe to the ummah of Muhammad from you and your offspring's!"