The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 13 Life and death are decided in the hall.

After Liu San Niangzi revealed the truth, the hall fell silent for a moment.

Then someone sighed, "This Li clan is truly a den of wolves. Li Hutou is a descendant of the Li family, yet he is treated like this. Even if they take away his assets, they should at least leave him enough to support himself."

"The original judgment wasn't entirely wrong. That's just how things are within the clan. If anyone's to blame, it's the Li clan for being too ruthless."

Naturally, some people disagreed, saying, "How can this be wrong? Liu San Niangzi has already observed chastity, so why should the clan forcibly seize her deceased husband's property?"

“That’s right. According to custom, a widow is entitled to inherit property after she has observed chastity. The Li brothers forced the widow to remarry, and they should be severely punished!”

The students in the courtyard and hall were discussing and expressing their opinions, and they all believed that there were no major problems overall.

It is said that even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family disputes. The imperial court generally does not interfere in the internal affairs of clans. After Li Dezhu's death, it was perfectly normal for the clan to distribute the inheritance according to family laws and regulations.

Let alone distributing inheritance, the clan can even drown adulterers in pig cages, and murder goes unpunished, let alone this.

However, most clans are not as ruthless as the Li clan in treating orphans and widows, which is a loss of public trust.

Hearing these comments, Liu San Niangzi's face was once again filled with despair, and she looked at Li Qi with hope.

The Li clan chief and his two brothers were all smiles. They were fearless because they were all acting in accordance with the rules, which had been the case since ancient times (the Yuan Dynasty).

This Li Liu woman has caused trouble time and time again; she deserves to die. Now that she's back in the clan, she can't be allowed to stay!
After Liu San Niangzi finished speaking, Li Qi did not immediately issue a verdict, but instead asked the defendant according to procedure: "Does the defendant have anything to add?"

Is there anything inappropriate or concealed in what Lady Liu said? This official upholds the law impartially and will not show favoritism to anyone!

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded unconsciously. Chen Ying glanced at Li Qi with some curiosity, secretly wondering if the prince consort was really going to uphold the original verdict after making such a big fuss.
The Li clan patriarch cupped his hands and said, "Your Excellency, the Li clan is a family of scholars and poets, and we are most careful in observing etiquette. These clan rules were all set by the late Master Zishan. He was a learned scholar, so how could the rules he set be wrong? I hope Your Excellency will understand."

Li Qi's eyes narrowed. "The Zishan Duke you mentioned, is it Li Yuanming, the retired former Minister of Rites?"

The members of the Li clan were already in high spirits. These scenes were all too familiar, exactly the same as what they had experienced at the Liuhe County government office.

The Li clan patriarch replied with a broad smile, "In response to your question, Your Highness, it is indeed Minister Li!"

Everyone in the hall gasped in surprise, never expecting that the Li family of Liuhe County had such a powerful background!
Li Yuanming was not just a former minister; he was a learned scholar with a high reputation and countless students. Even after retiring from office, his influence remained immense.

"Boom!"

The gavel slammed down heavily, and when everyone looked up, the prince consort on the floor was expressionless, resembling a deity in a temple against the backdrop of his official robes.

Something is wrong!
"Since both the plaintiff and the defendant have finished their statements and have nothing to add, I am fully aware of the details of this case."

The Li family members in the hall looked at Li Qi expectantly, while the students and officials from the Ministry of Justice in the courtyard were all filled with curiosity.

All eyes were on Li Qi, and he looked at them one by one.

The members of the Li clan hoped that the original verdict would be upheld, and they also believed that Li Qi would uphold the original verdict.

Since a minister emerged from the clan, everything they have done has been successful.

Chen Ying, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, was curious whether his sentence would be changed, and most people were curious about how his sentence would be changed.

Liu San Niangzi hoped that she could keep her promise, give her a way to survive, and let her know that there is justice in this world!

So she risked her life to come here and sue the Li clan again. And what about Li Qi himself?
He acted according to his own conscience.

He saw many people behind these people.

Zhao Cheng, the deceased magistrate of Jiangpu County, the Imperial Guard who was beaten to death, and Yang Jing, the Minister of Justice who was executed by slow slicing.

How many important figures are watching the Ministry of Justice?

How many people have never shown their faces but want to find his weaknesses?

After Yang Jing was suddenly executed, those in his faction must have wanted to kill him even more.
Li Yuanming, now the Minister of Personnel Zhan Hui, is probably watching him closely to see if he reveals any flaws.
Li Qi never forgot that in this dazzling and extravagant capital city, he had almost no friends, but enemies everywhere!

The rights and wrongs of the Li clan.

The life and death of Liu San Niangzi.

With just a few words from Li Qi, he could now grant her a new life.

But Li Qi himself was still like a rootless duckweed, drifting on the turbulent ocean, at risk of capsizing at any moment.

Only by overcoming all obstacles and killing all enemies, just like killing Yang Jing, can one remain safe and sound.

"Today, I will use Lady Liu as bait to lure those willing to take the bait!"

Thinking of this, Li Qi immediately pronounced the verdict: "The case of Liu San Niangzi was originally tried in Liuhe County and then transferred to Yingtian Prefecture. Both cases ruled that the Li clan, her parents-in-law, and her brothers were innocent. I think this verdict is utterly absurd!"

This judge hereby renders the following judgment:

Li Dezhu has a young son who is still alive. All the land and property he left behind before his death belong to the young son and are temporarily kept by Li Liushi. The Li clan shall not interfere.

Li Liushi has never remarried and has children. Given the cruelty and viciousness of the Li clan, it is ruled that Li Liushi should return home with her dowry or live independently, and the Li clan shall not forcibly take her away.
The Li brothers, Li Liu's parents-in-law, and the head of the Li clan were all sentenced to one year of exile;
Since Li Liushi was determined to remain chaste, she appealed to the government and was sentenced to never remarry, to raise Li Dezhu's young son, and to be executed immediately if she ever committed adultery with another man or intentionally caused the death of her young son.
The former magistrate of Liuhe County had been influenced by barbarian customs. He was arrested and brought to Yingtian Prefecture. I will interrogate him again.

The judgment has been issued and shall be executed immediately!
Anyone who dares to disobey shall be executed! Or exiled!

The courtroom fell silent upon the verdict; almost everyone was speechless with disbelief!
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

As is well known, levirate marriage is a common practice among nomadic peoples, which is actually a form of inheritance system that arose from reality.

Unlike agricultural peoples who mainly live in the local area, nomadic peoples may never see their daughters again after they marry. For a tribe, this is equivalent to losing labor. Therefore, in nomadic customs, the groom's family has to pay a high buyout fee to the bride's family, which is essentially selling the daughter. This is the origin of the high dowry system.

When a woman's husband dies, but she is still considered property bought by the tribe, it is impossible for her to return to her parents' home or take the tribe's property with her. Therefore, the property is inherited by her relatives, which is the reason for the birth of the levirate marriage system.

This marriage system was too contrary to the ethics and property system of the Han people and was strongly resisted. However, the tax system of the Yuan Dynasty required that the number of households could not be reduced, so the levirate marriage system had to be implemented.

For Han Chinese women who wanted to avoid being adopted by their brothers-in-law, but could not go against the will of the Yuan emperor, after fierce struggle, the final solution acceptable to both the Han and Mongol rulers was for the women to declare that they would remain chaste.

As long as a woman does not remarry and remains in her husband's family to continue contributing to the family (tribe), she can control and manage her deceased husband's estate because she is still a member of her husband's family (tribe). The Yuan Empire can still collect taxes and corvée labor from households headed by widows.

This is the fundamental reason why the practice of widows remaining chaste suddenly became popular in the Yuan Dynasty, with the number of widows remaining chaste far exceeding that of any previous dynasty!

The Cheng-Zhu school of Neo-Confucianism, once ignored during the Song Dynasty, seized the opportunity presented by the intense clashes between Mongol customary law and Han Chinese traditions regarding marriage, ethics, morality, and property systems. It gained significant influence in the intellectual sphere and successfully merged with the Mongols, becoming the official doctrine! —From "Confucianism and the Mongols in the Song and Yuan Dynasties"

(End of this chapter)