Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 585 Questioning and Acting! Poisoning!

Tear it——!
A crisp, piercing sound of tearing silk suddenly rang out, shocking everyone present!

Amidst everyone's horrified gazes, Xi Zhaoxue grabbed her clothes at the front with both hands and forcefully pulled them apart to the sides!
A blinding expanse of white was exposed in the courtroom.

Her voice wasn't loud, but it was like an icicle in the cold winter, each word piercing clearly into everyone's eardrums: "The lord just spoke the golden words, saying that a woman would never abandon her own reputation to slander others."

"Very well! Today, I, Xi Zhaoxue, will also forfeit my innocence and, in front of the Provincial Inspector and all the elders present, testify that Zhao Wenyuan, the magistrate of Shanxian County, raped me on a certain day of a certain month of a certain year!"

"My lord, how do you intend to explain yourself?!"

The smugness and majesty on Zhao Wenyuan's face froze instantly, then turned into a terrifying purplish-red.

He pointed a trembling finger at Xi Zhaoxue, his lips moving but only able to squeeze out broken syllables of "You...you...you madwoman!" from his throat, unable to utter a complete sentence.

For her brother's sake, Xi Zhaoxue had long since disregarded life, death, and reputation, and now she was fearless: "Isn't this exactly the principle you use to judge cases, sir?"

"Could this same logic, when applied to my brother, be considered irrefutable proof that he has committed adultery with women?"

"But it doesn't apply to you, sir?"

"Where is justice?!"

"The master just said that only those who experienced it firsthand can describe the details."

"Now, I can recount in detail how you broke into my room, how you tore my clothes, and how you raped me!"

"Then, can we also use this as grounds to convict the adult?"

Xi Zhaoxue stood up and walked towards Zhao Wenyuan, pressing him closer step by step.

"boom!"

Shen Mo, sitting at the head of the table, slammed the gavel down once more!

"Xi Zhaoxue!" His voice was icy cold as he roared, "The courtroom is a place for judging cases, not a stage for you to make trouble, act unreasonably, and play dirty tricks!"

"I have tolerated you repeatedly because I am so eager to save your brother."

"But if you dare to distort the truth again, to use such clumsy tricks to desecrate the court and maliciously slander an official of the imperial court, then don't blame me for being ruthless!"

After saying that, he turned to Zhao Wenyuan, who was already furious and out of his mind, and said in a deep voice, "Magistrate Zhao, don't pay any more attention to this madwoman's nonsense!"

"The rape case has been settled!"

"Let's get to the point immediately and find out for me how he committed murder in a fit of rage after his affair was exposed!"

"Today, we must ensure this case is airtight and set the record straight!"

"Your subordinate obeys!" Zhao Wenyuan took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the anger that was about to burst forth.

He slowly straightened up, his face regaining the cold, authoritative look typical of officials, as if his earlier lapse in composure had never happened.

As the head of a county, he usually has absolute authority, but today he was repeatedly contradicted in public by a commoner, losing face completely.

If this case hadn't reached the Emperor's ears, and if there hadn't been a superior present, plus so many people watching, he would have already used severe torture to teach these arrogant siblings a lesson.

At this moment, he could only suppress his murderous intent and instead play the role of a kind and benevolent person.

"Tanzhu, continue your story." Zhao Wenyuan's voice was unreadable.

"Yes!" Tan Zhu responded, and continued to sob in a mournful tone: "Xi Yunlang, having tasted the sweetness, has since frequently sought opportunities to meet with me in secret and forced me to commit illicit acts."

“I think that since I have given him my virginity, I am his. In addition, with the consent of my parents and the words of the matchmaker, I will eventually marry him.”

Even though she felt wronged in her heart, she could only... she could only accept his demands with tears in her eyes.

“I naively thought that since we had consummated our marriage, he would treat me well and marry me properly as soon as possible and bring me into his home.”

"Unexpectedly, when the two families were discussing the wedding date and betrothal gifts, he suddenly reneged on his promise!"

"Not only are they unwilling to use a grand wedding procession, but they're also stingy with even the most basic betrothal gifts!"

"He even bluntly said that since I am already his woman, why bother with all those formalities? I can just move into his house and live with him. The wedding can be done hastily, which will save a lot of money!"

Tan Zhu's cries suddenly became shrill: "My lord, please understand! My family may be poor, but we still have our pride!"

"When ordinary families marry off their daughters, they still have the proper matchmaking and betrothal rites, all for the sake of showing respect."

"But when it came to me, he actually wanted me to enter his house without any ceremony or betrothal!"

"This... how is this any different from being a slave or servant?"

"And what about my parents who raised me with such hardship?"

"Besides, nowadays, which family doesn't offer a generous dowry to show their sincerity when their daughter gets married?"

"Firstly, it's to show respect to the woman's parents for raising her, so they can have someone to rely on in their old age; secondly, it's to give me, her future daughter-in-law, a sense of dignity."

"But Xi Yunlang actually wants to disregard even this basic human decency!"

"Is my life really so bitter and so worthless?"

"If she marries into their family so lowly, how can she possibly have any status in the future?"

"I'm afraid I'll have no choice but to endure his beatings and insults, and live that inhuman life!"

She cried her heart out.

With his mouth gagged, Xi Yunlang writhed wildly on the ground, making angry "woof" sounds in his throat. His eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at the woman who had turned black into white, wishing he could eat her flesh and sleep on her skin.

Xi Zhaoxue's gaze was also sharp as a knife. She wanted to speak up several times, but she forcibly held back.

She understood that saying anything at this moment would be futile, and she would only suffer the same fate as her brother, being deprived of the right to speak.

Seeing that the time was right, Tan Zhu calmed down a little before continuing, "My parents are unaware that I have lost my virginity to him. When they heard that the Xi family treated me so disrespectfully, they were furious and immediately wanted to reject the marriage, not wanting their daughter to suffer such humiliation."

"But...but at this moment, I discovered that I was already pregnant."

"If the engagement is broken off now, the child in my womb will be fatherless, and I will be disgraced and have no hope of ever marrying again!"

"If I give birth to the child at my parents' home, I will be too ashamed to face anyone."

"With no other choice, I had to tell my parents everything."

"That day, my father was so angry that he was trembling all over. He beat me severely and scolded me for being shameless."

"The commoner knelt on the ground and recounted how Xi Yunlang coerced her and how she resisted, but was ultimately humiliated by him, crying out her story."

"Upon hearing this, Father burst into tears, pounding his chest and stamping his feet, saying: 'So be it! So be it! Now that she is his woman, carrying his child, she is a member of the Xi family in life and in death! Xi Yunlang will marry her whether he likes it or not!'"

"Afterwards, the father, enduring the excruciating pain of airing his family's dirty laundry in public, summoned the elders of the clan and personally attended the banquet at home, all to seek justice for his daughter."

"My father's idea is that as long as the Xi family is willing to make up for the betrothal gifts and hold a decent wedding so that the marriage can continue, this matter will be let bygones be bygones."

"Otherwise, we'll make sure the Xi family doesn't rest in peace!" "Unexpectedly!" Tan Zhu's voice suddenly rose, filled with grief and indignation, "That Xi Yunlang actually denied it in front of everyone!"

"And then he turned around and accused me, saying he never touched the woman's body!"

She burst into tears again: "He never touched me, so was the child in my womb a gift from heaven?"

How could he be so heartless and cruel!

"Not only are you going to renege on the betrothal gifts, but you're also going to ruin my reputation and tarnish my honor!"

"Upon hearing this news, the woman felt dizzy and utterly despondent."

"My innocence has been destroyed, my family abandoned, and now I've been subjected to this vicious slander. In all the world I live, there is nowhere left for a woman like me to go!"

"In a moment of despair, he went to the lake outside the village, intending to end his life."

Just then, Scholar Chu, who was strolling by the lake, passed by and saw the woman's miserable state. He stepped in to help her and advised her not to take her own life.

"Unexpectedly, this act of kindness was witnessed by Xi Yunlang who happened to be passing by!"

Without saying a word, he rushed forward, pointed at the woman's nose, and began to curse, accusing me of having an affair with Scholar Chu and saying that the child in my womb was not his but Scholar Chu's!

“I am but a weak woman, and I can only endure his insults.”

"But what is the status of Scholar Chu?"

"No matter what, he was a respected scholar in the area, a dignified Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations), how could he suffer such an injustice?"

"The scholar Chu was furious and began to fight with him. Both of them were injured, but the woman managed to separate them."

"The scholar Chu suffered some minor injuries and went home to recuperate."

"Who would have thought...who would have thought that after suffering this loss, he would actually...actually harbor murderous intent!"

Tan Zhu's voice trembled, filled with fear, "He sneaked into the Chu family under the cover of night and... poisoned the medicine that Scholar Chu was taking to recover from his injuries!"

"Poor Scholar Chu, just because he kindly saved a young woman, he was not only unjustly insulted, but also tragically murdered by the villain Xi Yunlang!"

At this point, she seemed unable to hold on any longer. Her body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground, leaving only her heart-wrenching cries echoing throughout the courtroom.

Zhu Yuntong's deep eyes narrowed slightly, flashing with scrutinizing light, as if he wanted to dissect and analyze every expression and every word of Tan Zhu to explore the truth behind them.

Xu Miaojin, who was standing to the side, could no longer contain herself. She frowned and whispered in Zhu Yuntong's ear, "Brother Yuntong, there is a flaw here!"

"How did she know that Xi Yunlang had sneaked into the Chu family's residence overnight to poison them?"

"This matter is too suspicious!"

It's not just her.

Tan Zhu's words were extremely informative, leaving the audience speechless and sparking a great deal of discussion.

"Silence!" Zhao Wenyuan shouted, interrupting the commotion in the courtyard. "No whispering or talking is allowed when observing a court hearing!"

Xu Miaojin glanced at Zhu Yunwen, only to see him gently make a shushing gesture, indicating that she should remain calm.

It seems that Zhu Yunwen still wants to see how this candle will manage to make the story coherent.

Once the hall was completely quiet, Zhao Wenyuan turned his gaze back to Tan Zhu and, following the focus of the discussion, asked in a deep voice, "Tan Zhu, how did you know that the person who poisoned the poison was Xi Yunlang?"

Tan Zhu's sobs gradually subsided. She raised her tear-streaked face and said in a hoarse voice, "Your Excellency, that day, Scholar Chu was unjustly accused because of me and was beaten for no reason. This is a great favor, and it is also something I feel extremely guilty about."

“If I do not come to your door to express my gratitude and apologize, I will feel uneasy.”

"Therefore, that night I prepared some small gifts and went to the Chu residence to visit them in person."

"Firstly, it was to express my gratitude for his saving my life."

"Secondly, this matter ultimately arose because of me, and I should personally apologize to you."

When the woman arrived at the Chu family, the scholar Chu was resting in bed due to his injuries.

Seeing him suffer so much for no reason, I felt even more guilty. To express my remorse, I thought of personally serving him medicine.

"But just as I stepped into the dimly lit kitchen of the Chu family, I caught a glimpse of a dark figure out of the corner of my eye. It flashed out of the back window like a ghost and disappeared into the night outside in an instant."

"That figure vaguely resembled Xi Yunlang, but the night was too dark to see clearly."

"The woman was puzzled and called out several times, but no one answered."

"I thought it was just my eyes playing tricks on me, or that it was a servant of the Chu family, so I didn't think much of it. I took the prepared medicine and fed it to Scholar Chu."

"Unexpectedly, when the young woman took her leave and came out of the Chu family's house, and walked into a quiet alley, that figure appeared again!"

"This time, he emerged from the shadows and blocked the young woman's path."

"I can see clearly, it really is Xi Yunlang!"

The woman asked him in surprise what he was doing there so late at night, but he grinned maliciously and spoke filthy words, asking me, "What? Finished your tryst with your lover?"

"I scolded him for spouting false accusations, but he wouldn't listen. Instead, he looked at me with a venomous gaze and said in a sinister tone, 'What's your hurry? You'll be going down to join him soon too!'"

The woman was greatly surprised and pressed him for an explanation.

He laughed wildly and said, "Your adulterer, he drank the medicine I 'sent,' does he think he can live?"

Upon hearing this, I felt a chill run from the soles of my feet straight to the top of my head, and my hands and feet became icy cold!

"I pressed Xi Yunlang repeatedly to tell me what he had done, but he refused to say anything more. Instead, his eyes flashed with a fierce light, as if he intended to harm me!"

The woman was so frightened that she could only scramble back to the Chu family's gate and desperately pound on the door, calling for help.

"The servants of the Chu family came out upon hearing the noise. Seeing this, Xi Yunlang dared not linger any longer and fled in haste under the cover of night."

"After he fled, the woman felt something was wrong and hurriedly urged the Chu family to check on the condition of the scholar Chu."

"As expected, Scholar Chu's condition has worsened; he is experiencing excruciating abdominal pain and is vomiting black blood!"

"Later, although the Chu family consulted all the famous doctors in the city, they were unable to save him."

"He passed away within a day or two!"

As Tan Zhu finished speaking, he suddenly mustered the strength from somewhere and pushed himself up from the ground.

Her hair was disheveled, her face streaked with tears, and she looked like a vengeful ghost. With all her might, she stretched out a trembling finger, pointing it directly at Xi Yunlang, who was being held down tightly, and let out a blood-curdling scream:

"It's him! Xi Yunlang!"

"He poisoned him! He killed Scholar Chu!"

……

(End of this chapter)