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Chapter 150 Court Hearing!

“They’re asking for way too much…” Magistrate Lu frowned and said, “The case from back then is in the past, why bring it up again? I’m not a bodhisattva in a temple, I can’t just let them make their wishes!”

“Indeed, the He brothers’ case involves the river bandits of Shangbaisha, which is incomparable to the ‘Arima case’,” You Muyou nodded.

"Of course," Magistrate Lu said with a bitter face. "Once we trace it back to them, we'll have to suppress the bandits. But we don't have any soldiers of our own, so we'll have to ask the provincial governor's office to send troops to suppress them..."

"Oh dear, please don't." You Muyou's head was spinning as soon as he heard this. "Every time, the troops have to be fed before they can move. It's impossible to fight without two thousand taels of silver. We really can't afford to go through all that trouble."

"If we could wipe out those river bandits, I'd accept it," Magistrate Lu sighed. "But in the past, wasn't it always the same? By the time the government troops finally arrived, the bandits had already fled. At most, they'd leave some old, weak, sick, and disabled people for the government troops to claim credit for. Then, as soon as the government troops left, they'd come back and rob and retaliate like crazy?"

"Because they have people in the navy. They got the news before they even set off from Luzhou, and we couldn't catch them even if we tried a hundred times!" You Muyou said angrily. "Moreover, those government troops are also worthless. They never care about suppressing bandits, but they rack their brains to extort money from the county!"

"They're just keeping bandits around to maintain their own power. Without the river bandits, how can they possibly plunder our land?" Magistrate Lu slammed his fist on the table and said, "Unfortunately, we have no soldiers at our disposal, so we can only continue to be extorted by them..."

“Yes, it would be great if we had a decent army, not many, just a few hundred would be enough…” You Muyou said, then suddenly realized something and turned to look at Magistrate Lu.

Magistrate Lu also looked at him simultaneously, clearly indicating that the two had the same idea.

“There are troops in the city now…” You Muyou said in a low voice.

"Yes, I know what to do!" Magistrate Lu's troubled expression disappeared, and his face regained its luster. "That damned Commander Ma dares to threaten my palace! Let's see how I turn the tables on you!"

~~
Jiang Dianshi was about to burst with pent-up frustration; he had never suffered more days of persecution in his entire life than he had today.

Unfortunately, it was the county magistrate who was scolding him, and he was even in the right. He had no choice but to listen obediently. Not only did he get a thorough dressing-down, but he also had to patrol the streets in the middle of the night…

The river wind in December was bone-chilling, making him shiver and his breath steaming in the air as he cursed incessantly...

Yesterday, Chief Wang was whipped by the magistrate and was forced to lie prostrate in the yamen. The other yamen runners also kept their distance, fearing they might be caught in the crossfire.

Jiang Dianshi was seething with anger when he heard a commotion ahead. A moment later, two militiamen brought over a man wearing a cap with ear flaps to report:
"Fourth Master, this fellow is acting suspiciously at the alley entrance!"

Jiang Dianshi reached out and pulled off the man's hat. By the light of the lantern, he could see the man's face clearly, and immediately kicked him!
"Damn it, you've really got me killed!"

That man was none other than Gongsun You, the head of the Hejiang Wine Shop. Yesterday, when Su Youma was released, he realized he was in deep trouble. Today, hearing that You Muyou had personally come to visit again, he knew he had met his match.

Before he could recover from his shock, three hundred armed mountain people arrived in the city, and there were even regular troops... Gongsun You finally realized that he had stirred up a hornet's nest this time!
He quickly grabbed the silver, intending to go to Magistrate Jiang's residence that very night to seek advice, only to find that the dignified Fourth Master had been sent out to patrol the streets. Fearing that things might go wrong if he delayed, Gongsun, the head of the business, had no choice but to come to him.

"Fourth Master, please beat me to death! It's all my fault..." Gongsun You stood at attention and took the beating while asking in a pitiful voice, "I only beg Fourth Master to let me die knowing the truth. What kind of deity did I offend?"

"How would I know which deity you've offended?" Jiang Dianshi panted, his forehead covered in sweat. But after kicking him like that, he did feel warmer.

"Didn't you even bother to figure things out before you started?!"

"They must have investigated him thoroughly." Gongsun Xingshou said with a look of disbelief, "With Su Youma's poor and stingy appearance... he only offers people a small drink when he invites them, and he won't even provide a plate of edamame. Who would believe he has any influence?!"

He paused, then lowered his voice and said, "Besides, even after what happened last year, they didn't react at all. So I thought they were easy targets."

"This time, I followed the Fourth Master's advice and made a point of keeping it safe. Who would have thought it would cause such a big problem?"

"Don't drag me into this!" Jiang Dianshi glared at him and said in a deep voice, "What's done is done, there's no point in saying anything now, let's hurry up and think of a way to cut off the arm and survive?"

"How do you plan to survive by amputating an arm? Please enlighten me, Fourth Master." That's what Gongsun You came to ask.

"..." Jiang Dianshi glanced at him, the meaning of which was crystal clear: you are the one who is in charge.

"Me?" Gongsun Xing Shou pointed to his own nose.

"You'll turn yourself in first thing tomorrow morning and admit that you instructed the proprietress of Heshun to falsely accuse Su Youma," Jiang Dianshi said in a deep voice.

"Does it have to be a villain?" Gongsun You said with a bitter face, "Can't we just find a domesticated servant to take the blame?"

"Of course not!" Jiang Dianshi glared and said, "Nobody's a fool. Everyone pretends to be foolish because they can! Now things are serious, we can't pretend to be foolish anymore, understand?"

"But..." Gongsun Xingshou looked worried and found it difficult to make up his mind.

"Wake up! What time is it now!" Jiang Dianshi grabbed his collar and hissed, "They've already brought troops into the city to force the emperor to abdicate! Lu Zhaoye has lost so much face. If you just find some Tom, Dick, or Harry to take the blame, he'll definitely go ballistic! The Su family can't accept it either!"

“If you turn yourself in, there might still be a chance for things to turn around… It’s not like you’re being asked to confess to murder, just to instigate a false accusation. At most, you’ll get a beating and a two-year sentence.” He then softened his tone and said:

"Don't worry, you'll only suffer a little physical pain. I'll arrange a good place for you to go, just consider it a chance to lay low for a while. You'll be a fine man again in two years!" Magistrate Jiang continued, "Furthermore, after you surrender, I will shut down all the distilleries and breweries in the county..."

"Huh? They want to seal it up too?" Gongsun You exclaimed in surprise.

"Don't worry, it's just for show. Everyone's stopped work during the New Year holiday, so the closure won't affect anything. Those people will definitely be back in the mountains by now. I guarantee the closure will be lifted before work resumes, not a single day will be affected." Jiang, the clerk, promised, then added in a deep voice:

"I'm taking a huge responsibility to help you, so don't be ungrateful!"

“Sigh…” Gongsun You nodded dejectedly.

~~
The next morning, shortly after the county school's carriage picked up Su Lu, another carriage arrived at the county government office.

The clerk from the criminal investigation department arrived with two constables, their attitude unusually polite. The clerk showed Su Youjin the warrant issued by the county magistrate that morning and said, "The magistrate is holding a hearing today for the case of Han Zhao suing your younger brother, and has come to invite your brother to court."

"The master knew he was unable to walk properly, so he specially instructed that a carriage be prepared to pick him up." Fearing that the three hundred family members would become agitated, the clerk whispered, "Don't worry, someone has already come forward to prove that it was a false accusation. Asking your brother to come over is just a formality."

"Alright, alright." Su Youjin hurriedly offered a red envelope as usual, saying, "Brother Yasi, you've worked hard. Please have a cup of tea with the brothers."

"No, no, it's no trouble at all..." The clerk hurriedly waved his hands, avoiding him like the plague. These days, even if the people in the government were starving to death, they wouldn't dare accept his money.

They will never forget that the Su family of Erlang is someone they can't afford to offend...

After discussing it, the family decided that Cheng Xiucai, Su Youjin, and Su Youcai would go first, while the others would be assigned to help as needed.

They didn't even take the county's carriage; instead, they had Su Youma carried to the county government office. Firstly, the carriage ride was too bumpy, and secondly, they needed to show the people of the county that the Su family wasn't just making trouble for no reason…

Because it was not a day for issuing notices on the first or fifteenth of the lunar month, the magistrate did not ascend the main hall, but instead conducted the trial in the second hall.

The layout of the second hall was similar to that of the main hall, only slightly smaller. The central screen had been changed from a "Landscape with Sunrise" to a "Pine and Crane for Longevity" painting, and the plaque above the magistrate's head had changed from "A Bright Mirror Hangs High" to "Using Virtue to Transform People".

There is actually another subtle difference that most people wouldn't notice—in the divination tube on the main hall table, there are black and red divination slips. The black ones are used for punishments such as caning, while the red ones are only used when a death sentence is handed down.

In the second hall, however, there were only black death warrants, no red ones, indicating that the death penalty could not be imposed here…

Therefore, when the magistrate is in the second courtroom, he usually asks questions about relatively minor cases or makes preliminary mediations. Sometimes, he doesn't even have a bailiff standing in the court to carry out the executions.

But today the situation is clearly different. Outside the second hall, there are armed soldiers standing in large numbers, and below the hall, there are two rows of clerks wearing round turbans, black robes, red cloth belts, and holding water and fire sticks!
The clerk in charge of taking the notes was also in position early, as if facing a formidable enemy!
The plaintiff and the numerous witnesses in the corridor were all on edge. They hadn't witnessed the events of last night, but they had heard about them. No one had expected that suing Su Youma would cause such a huge mess…

Many witnesses didn't dare to come today; they were forced to come to court by the officers.

Once Su Youma was in place, the bailiff struck the court drum to signal the start of the proceedings!
Amidst the booming of drums, Magistrate Lu, dressed in a seventh-rank official robe and wearing a black gauze hat with wings, emerged from behind the screen and sat upright in the hall.

His eyebrows were raised, and he had dark circles under his eyes, giving him a sinister look and a menacing air. He was completely different from his usual sleepy self!

The bailiffs below the hall struck the ground in unison with their water-and-fire sticks, shouting in unison, "Majesty...!"

After finishing his speech, Magistrate Lu slammed his gavel down heavily. "Bring the plaintiff!"

Han Zhao was then led to the court by the clerk of the criminal office to kowtow. Magistrate Lu said in a deep voice, "Han Zhao, this county received your complaint before, accusing Su Youma of causing the death of your husband Han Duo with his wine. Is this true? Answer the truth!"

“My dear parents, this is what happened,” Han Zhaoshi said, wiping away her tears. “My husband was young and strong, without any illness or disease. He went to Su Youma’s house for a drink, and when he came back, he died. How are we, a widow and orphan, supposed to live? Waaah…”

"Summon the witnesses!" Magistrate Lu didn't waste any more words with her and sent another group of people to interrogate them.

"Were you all drinking together at the Su family's house that day?" He looked coldly at the first witness kneeling below the court.

"Yes, sir."

"You said that night, some drank a few ounces, while others drank a pound or two?" Magistrate Lu asked, flipping through the case file again.

"Yes..." The witness's voice betrayed his guilt, but he couldn't change his story right away.

Changing one's testimony can also result in being punished with a beating...

"Nonsense!" Magistrate Lu slammed his gavel. "I have already questioned the other guests who drank. Su Youma was only given one ounce of wine per person. How come you were allowed to drink more?!"

(End of this chapter)