Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 403 A New Memorial
As she spoke, her expression suddenly turned cold.

"If you want to atone for your sins with a title, feel free to try. Chu Heng murdered Jiang Yan, the evidence is conclusive, and he has been brought back to the Court of Justice prison."

Chu Heng looked at Zhou Zhao in shock, then jumped up in anger, "You tricked me!"

As he spoke, he spat at Zhao Yizhou, "Aren't you a genius? You couldn't see she was bluffing me? You could see it but didn't tell me, right? Zhao Yizhou, you son of a bitch... I'm not insulting my aunt..."

Are you even human? Don't you know we're on the sidelines?

Upon learning the truth, Chu Heng inexplicably felt his headache lessen. He came to his senses, glanced triumphantly at Zhou Zhao, and then laughed wildly.

"The Court of Justice? Haha, do you know who my uncle is? My uncle is your superior, the newly appointed Minister of Justice! If I go to the Court of Justice, I'm going to my uncle's house!"

When Zhao Yizhou saw Zhou Zhao looking at him, his face instantly turned red and then purple.

He had accidentally kissed the snake's head earlier, and it was like a nightmare; he couldn't recover at all.

Su Changying had made him lose face in front of Zhou Zhao; how could he ever hold his head high in front of these two again? He had been filled with shame and anger, his mind clouded with rage. Only now did he come to his senses.

He was furious and looked at Chu Heng with disgust. "Shut up!"

As Zhao Yizhou spoke, he looked at Zhou Zhao and said, "Min Wenshu is not here today. If you need me to be a witness, I will do my duty without hesitation. My father and I are unaware of the things Chu Heng mentioned. Lord Zhou, please handle this impartially and do not listen to Chu Heng's arrogant words."

My father is extremely upright and would never bend the law for personal gain.

Zhou Zhao nodded and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Zhao Yizhou.

She wasn't worried at all about Chu Heng changing his testimony, because this guy was completely fearless. He genuinely felt that killing Jiang Yan was no big deal.

Moreover, even if he recants, at least half of the many spoiled brats at this banquet were her former underlings whom she had beaten up, and there are plenty of people who can testify to that.

Of course, it would be even better if Zhao Yizhou's testimony were available.

As she spoke, she reached out and twisted Chu Heng's hands behind his back, then tied them up. She kicked his calf and shoved him toward the door.

"How am I supposed to go out without shoes? Zhou Zhao, you just wait until I come out..."

Zhou Zhao didn't even glance at Chu Heng again.

Jiang Yan danced barefoot on thorns, so why couldn't Chu Heng walk barefoot to the Court of Justice?

She was in much more pain than he was.

Old Man Chu and Madam Chu tried to stop him, but Zhao Yizhou shook his head at them. Seeing this, the two did not say anything and hurriedly turned around to go find the Court of Justice.

"There is a curfew now. Lord Chu and Madam Chu, do not knowingly violate it. The Northern Army is not your relative's home. If you stay there, don't blame us for not providing adequate hospitality."

The Chu couple paused, their eyes filled with apprehension as they looked at Su Changying.

Zhou Zhao and Su Changying ignored the Chu family and escorted Chu Heng out the door, where A Huang and Fan Lishen were already waiting.

When Fan Lishen saw Zhou Zhao come out, he waved excitedly, "Ah Huang and you guys are so in sync! I was wondering why we had to go around to the back. It turns out it was to prevent some people from running away in desperation!"

I really wanted to go in and see, but Ah Huang thought there were too many people, so I peeked out the window for a long time!

Ah Zhao, you and Brother Changying are really amazing!

Zhou Zhao smiled at Fan Lishen, "There's something even more amazing coming your way, just you wait."

As she spoke, her gaze became somewhat profound.

By the time I finished everything and returned to the small courtyard next to the Court of Justice, it was already late at night, and Chu Yi was already fast asleep.

Zhou Zhao didn't disturb her, but sat down at the table and picked up a pen. Seeing this, Su Changying added charcoal to her brazier and started boiling water on the small stove.

Seeing him bustling around like a bee, Zhou Zhao couldn't help but chuckle and ask, "Are you adding so much fuel to my fire so I can't sleep and just sit here all night?"

Su Changying magically produced a packet of pastries, opened it, and placed it in front of Zhou Zhao.

"Young Master Zhou is in a hurry to write a memorial, so even if I force you to sleep, you will get up and continue writing as soon as I leave."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhao laughed. She picked up a pastry and put it in her mouth. The pastry was sweet, fragrant, soft, and chewy, and eating it made her feel better.

"Where did you get these from? I didn't realize you had any snacks hidden in your pocket before."

Previously, Su Changying used her lightness skill to carry her, and the two were so close that if Su Changying had hidden some snacks in her arms, she would definitely have felt it.

"Did you see that little wooden box on your bookshelf? I asked Chu Yi to prepare it. There are some snacks and treats inside. If you get hungry in the middle of the night or come home late, you can eat these. I know you love Chu Yi and don't want to wake her up in the middle of the night."

She will change the food here regularly, so you don't need to worry about it spoiling.

Zhou Zhao felt a warm glow in her heart as she listened, and she felt a little embarrassed.

As Su Changying's memories returned more and more, he became more and more like his former self, treating her with increasing care and attention.

That's true. When she was little, let alone preparing snacks, sometimes Su Changying would wash her hair while she was lying down and then dry it.

He was a young boy back then, and he had even learned how to comb his hair.

Zhou Yan even wrote a poem to tease him. Of course, that poem was a hundred times better than the lousy poem written by the Marquis of Lu.

"Do you know what I'm going to write?"

Su Changying nodded. "Judging from Chu Heng's arrogant demeanor today, Jiang Yan is definitely not the first person he killed, nor will she be the last. How can you let someone like that get away with something so easily and continue to roam free?"

What you told Fan Lishen is even more serious.

This is what you mean. You must submit a memorial to amend the law, prohibiting the use of titles and gold or silver to atone for crimes; those guilty must be severely punished without exception.

Zhou Zhao met Su Changying's eyes and nodded seriously. "Yes. Originally, I planned to accomplish two things before catching my brother's killer: first, to abolish corporal punishment and prohibit castration as a form of atonement; second, to prohibit the use of titles and gold as a form of atonement."

With these two rules in place, no matter who the murderer of his brother was, he had no chance of escaping punishment and would have to pay with his life.

However, before I could achieve my second condition, Grand Commandant Huo had already committed the heinous crime of treason and was certain to die.

Zhou Zhao paused as he spoke.

"However, I did these things not entirely out of selfish motives. If the law is not fair, and nobles can kill people at will, then where is the dignity of the law?"

How can ordinary people trust the Court of Justice? What good is suing the officials if they die in vain? Then who would still sue the officials?

I know this is different from corporal punishment and castration.

Those who drafted the laws, and those who had the ability to stand in the court and discuss the laws, were all nobles. Who among them didn't hope that one day their unfilial son would make a mistake and have a way out? There would certainly be many who opposed it.

But even so, I had no choice but to do it.

What I want to do is not just solve cases, but constantly refine and improve the law through examples.

It also ensures that all demons, whether dressed in tattered clothes or draped in golden robes, will descend to hell equally.

(End of this chapter)