bookcurios Chapter 39 Trial (5)
Chapter 39 Trial (5)
The arrival of the eldest prince and his entourage only briefly interrupted the trial. As the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple returned to his seat, the trial resumed.
Lord Chang numbly picked up the block of wood on the table and knocked it, signaling everyone to be quiet and for the trial to continue.
"Regarding Ning Nanfeng's matter, I have brought a few people from Liu County here, bring them up!"
Soon, three ragged men were brought up. They looked pale and thin, their clothes did not fit them well, and they looked extremely embarrassed.
"The common people pay homage to your lord!"
They had never seen the eldest prince and his companions before. When they came up, they saw three nobles in gorgeous clothes sitting next to them. They were afraid that they would call the wrong names and upset the nobles, so they could only kneel down politely and salute Lord Chang.
"You are all the people who came here voluntarily to identify County Magistrate Ning. You must have suffered a lot at the hands of this county magistrate. Don't be afraid. The eldest prince, the eldest prince's wife, and Princess Anle are all here today. They will definitely make the decision for you. Tell us what you have to say!"
Lord Chang pointed out the identities of the people who were listening to the trial nearby. The three of them quickly turned to the eldest prince and others and kowtowed hard to the ground.
"My name is Qian Fa, and this is my son Qian Duo. I was born and raised in Liu County. At first, I did some small business in Liu County. Later, I got lucky and my business grew bigger and bigger. This was originally a very happy thing. When the previous county magistrate left, he told me that the new county magistrate was originally the son of a marquisate, but because he made a mistake, the marquisate's title was taken away, and he himself was demoted. The marquisate also owed a lot of money, so he kindly reminded me that my business was too big and I was afraid that I would be targeted by the county magistrate!"
Speaking of this, Qian Fa was crying so hard that tears and snot were streaming down his face!
Cheng Jinchu believed that his tears were genuine. After all, he did have a lot of money at the time, and he was indeed brought into this situation by Ning Nanfeng.
"How can I ignore my businesses? What should I do? I have discussed with my family and decided to sell the shop. I have the skills, so I can make a small loss and start over somewhere else. I am doing the same thing now."
Qian Fa choked up, paused for a moment, and then continued his story.
"I'm scared. Ning Nanfeng's people come to my house every few days. My business is not only small, but I can't sell anything in the shop. What can I do? The county magistrate has power. I can only swallow my anger...
So, so, I went to his house several times to give him gifts, and the last time, we made a deal. As long as I handed over half of my property, he would let me go. I was very happy, thinking that at least I had saved half.
As a result, when he got half of my wealth, he suddenly changed his mind and asked me to give him everything. I refused, so he took it away by force and killed my son. I can no longer have an heir...Oh my God! I only have this one son. I am old now. How can I face my ancestors in the future..."
Qian Fa buried his head in the ground and cried loudly. The people around him felt sympathy for him, but when they thought of the ten beatings that the eldest prince had given him before, no one dared to speak.
"You tell me something too!"
There are three people, two of them are father and son, and there is another one.
The man kowtowed hard to Lord Chang again.
"My name is Huang Yuanshan, and I am also from Liu County. I am an orphan and do business in Liu County. I was originally a poor man from a poor family. Fortunately, I went out to work as a helper and met my benefactor, who later became my wife. She was the daughter of the master's family. Seeing that I worked honestly and diligently, she spoke well of me in front of her father several times, and then I was promoted and transferred to work beside the master.
The master also admired my intelligence and quick work, and asked me if I was willing to marry into his family. I am an orphan, and it was the master's family who gave me a complete family and married their beloved daughter to me. I will work hard for them all my life."
A few tears flowed from the corners of Huang Yuanshan's eyes. He pulled his sleeve, wiped them hard, and continued.
"My parents died young, and I grew up eating at many people's homes. After I became successful, I once returned to the village with my wife to pay homage to my parents. The village chief talked to me about the bumpy road from the village to the county town and asked if I could help pay some money to repair it. I was very hesitant at the time, but unexpectedly my wife nodded immediately. She held my hand and said that I grew up eating at many people's homes, so I should be grateful.
For my wife's family, paying this money is not a big deal. Ning County Magistrate also heard about our road construction. Unfortunately, after the road was completed, he showed up and said that we did not follow the rules to build the road and did not report it. He wanted to destroy the road I built..."
When they heard this, the people below did not dare to speak loudly, but they whispered quietly.
"Scumbag!"
"Black-hearted!"
……
Ning Nanfeng naturally heard these kinds of words. There was no expression on his face, but his knees were a little numb from kneeling. These people talk too much!
"My father-in-law and I went to Lord Ning's house several times hoping that he would show some mercy. After all, we are all poor people. After this road is built, they will be closer to the county town in the future. It is not easy for the villagers. But Lord Ning was not moved at all. Not only did he accept the money from my family several times, but he also sent people to destroy the road when we refused to give him the money..."
Having said that, Huang Yuanshan kowtowed vigorously to Lord Chang above him, turned around, and kowtowed to the eldest prince and the others. He kowtowed with great force, and his head became red and swollen. He seemed not to feel the pain and kept kowtowed.
Seeing this, the Qian family father and son also imitated him and kowtowed. Cheng Jinchu frowned.
Eh~ It looks like you have a headache, aren’t you afraid of turning into a fool?
"Please, sir, make the decision for us!"
The Qian family father and son and Huang Yuanshan shouted in unison. Their shouts were heart-wrenching and made people feel very sympathetic.
Watching others' hard work, Mo Ling thought to herself that she couldn't lose. Brother Cheng no longer cared about her, so she had to perform well and make him care about her.
So she kowtowed several times to Lord Chang, and when she raised her head again, her forehead was red and swollen.
Mo Ling had tears in her eyes and she bit her lip. She was so aggrieved that she didn't speak right away. After a long time, as if she had finally recovered, she spoke word by word in a crying voice.
"Sir, the county magistrate of Liu County colluded with the bandits, causing the people of Liu County to suffer terribly. She is such a vicious woman!"
Mo Ling pointed at Cheng Jinchu viciously. Cheng Jinchu looked at Mo Ling in front of him with a blank expression. He remembered that the time he heard the term "poisonous woman" the most was in that TV series. Come to think of it, Silang's emotion was more appropriate when he called her that.
"This vicious woman followed these evil men and harmed so many people. She also stole my identity in the hope of becoming the daughter of an official. Sir, she and the magistrate did these evil things. Now there are witnesses and evidence. May I ask you, sir, what should we do according to the law?"
Lord Chang stroked his beard. He knew the laws of the Han country by heart, so when faced with such a problem, he could answer it fluently!
"Of course he should be beheaded!"