Demoting my wife to a concubine? After being reborn, I turned around and married into the imperial f

The person who arrived was Zi Tao.

Chu Wanrou was somewhat shocked when she saw her.

It's been so long since we last saw each other, why did Second Brother bring her here?

"Who goes there?" Zhou Qing asked loudly.

"The maid Zitao was previously a first-class maid serving the second young lady."

Zhou Qing nodded and asked, "Did you see Miss Chu personally or order someone to switch the betrothal gifts?"

Upon hearing this, Zitao nodded and said, "Reporting to you, sir, this servant personally witnessed the eldest young lady sending Chunxi and the steward to switch the betrothal gifts, replacing them with inferior ones."

"You're talking nonsense!" Chunxi was furious and couldn't help but curse.

Zitao suddenly turned her head to look at Chunxi and said, "I saw this with my own eyes, Chunxi, you'd better tell the adults the truth as soon as possible."

"you......"

Chu Xunzhen raised his right hand and stood in front of Chunxi, his voice carrying a calming power: "There's no need to argue with her."

Chunxi composed herself, glared angrily at Zitao, and then respectfully said to Chu Xunzhen, "Yes."

Zhou Qing asked, "In what year, month, and day did you witness Chunxi and the steward exchanging betrothal gifts?"

He then asked, "When you saw it, were there any other people present? Did they see it at the same time?"

Zitao shook her head and said, "I made a mistake earlier and was punished with a beating. I have been recuperating in the courtyard. On the day of the betrothal gifts exchange, the second young lady went out. When I went to find the family physician for treatment, I saw Chunxi and the steward exchanging the betrothal gifts."

"Is there anyone who can testify that you went to the prefectural physician for treatment that day?" Zhou Qing asked thoughtfully.

"Of course. Doctor Gao can attest to that. I had a follow-up appointment with him that day," Zi Tao recalled.

Chu Wanrou frowned, feeling somewhat uneasy.

That day, she sent Zitao to serve the Ninth Prince. Zitao was unwilling, but she coerced and bribed her. Later, Zitao was punished. She ignored her and planned to let her fend for herself. But who would have thought that after all that time, she would be much better now, able to walk and jump.

Zhou Qing nodded and asked no further questions, then sent someone to investigate.

Gu Changfeng walked to Chu Mingli's side and said to him, "Thank you, Brother Mingli. If we escape safely today, I will definitely prepare a generous gift to express my gratitude in the future."

Chu Mingli laughed heartily: "No need for that. You are Rou'er's fiancé, and I am Rou'er's brother. We are family. When the time comes, we can go to Qianjinfang in the city for a few rounds of games."

As he spoke, his eyes darted around.

"It would be impolite to refuse Brother Mingli's invitation," Gu Changfeng nodded with a smile. In his previous life, when Chu Xunzhen was his wife, the three young masters of the Chu family looked at him with disdain, refusing to speak to him at all, giving off a feeling of keeping everyone at arm's length.

Unexpectedly, he has a different marriage partner in this life. First, the Mingyuan brothers have become closer to him, and then today, the Mingli brothers even brought Zitao here as a witness to help him.

How could he not be grateful? He felt even more that Rou'er was a lucky star.

Thinking that he had married a jinx in his previous life, yet the Chongding Marquis's family was still able to rise to become a top-tier aristocratic family, he was certain that with Rou'er's precious lucky destiny in this life, he would be able to walk a better path than in his previous life.

The people Zhou Qing sent to investigate have returned.

"Your Honor, the truth has been ascertained. Everything Miss Zitao said was false. The physician testified that she did not go there at the time Miss Zitao mentioned. We have also questioned the maids and servants in the manor, and they all said that Zitao stayed in the courtyard the whole time and did not go out."

Upon hearing this, Chu Wanrou was incredulous. As if realizing something, she immediately said, "My lord, Physician Gao's words cannot be trusted. He will definitely side with Chu Xunzhen."

Zhou Qing's gaze was indifferent as he said, "According to the guard, the time Miss Zitao mentioned going for her follow-up appointment coincided with the time when the three physicians of the Ping'an Marquis's residence were gathered together discussing medical techniques. Are you implying that the three physicians of the Ping'an Marquis's residence are all biased towards Chu Xunzhen?"

Chu Wanrou was stunned.

How is that possible?

The smile on Gu Changfeng's face froze.

What happened?

Could it be that what Zitao said was false?

Or were those three physicians really biased towards Chu Xunzhen?

Zhou Qing slammed the gavel down on the table and roared at Zi Tao, "Why haven't you told the truth yet? The Ninth Prince is here. If you utter even a single falsehood, not only will you die without a burial place, but your parents, brothers, and sisters will also be implicated."

Zi Tao's expression changed, and with a thud, she knelt on the ground.

"It was the second young master. He told me to frame the eldest young lady and to say that on purpose. In fact, I did not see Chunxi changing the betrothal gifts with my own eyes."

What?

The people immediately erupted in discussion.

"We actually believed her just now and misunderstood the young lady."

"Isn't that right? How could this second young master frame his own sister?"

"I've heard that the young masters of the Ping'an Marquis's mansion all prefer their adopted sister, Chu Wanrou, to their biological sister. It seems that's true."

.......

Zhou Qing's face was grim, but he still said in a deep voice, "Chu Mingli, the second young master of the Ping'an Marquis's Mansion, instigated his maid Zitao to give false testimony. After investigation, the matter has been confirmed. The second young master of the Ping'an Marquis's Mansion shall be punished with fifty strokes of the cane and shall be barred from taking the imperial examination for three years. The maid Zitao shall have been punished with one hundred strokes of the cane, but considering her remorse and voluntary confession, she shall be exempted from the cane punishment and instead be confined for fifteen days."

Zi Tao breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed onto the ground like a lump of mud.

Chu Mingli was stunned.

He was actually going to be flogged.

How is that possible?

"Purple Peach, you're the one who came to see me. Tell me..."

Before Chu Mingli could finish speaking, Chu Xunzhen saw Zitao being dragged away by Zhou Qing's soldiers.

Chu Wanrou's smile vanished. Gu Changfeng and Lu Ruoying's expressions were also quite interesting.

I thought he was a reliable witness, but it turns out he was just spouting nonsense.

Chu Xunzhen's gaze fell silently on Gu Changfeng and Lu Ruoying, her expression neither sad nor happy.

Gu Changfeng disliked Chu Xunzhen's expression.

In his past life, he disliked her for being too cold and dull, inflexible, and not as gentle and charming as ordinary women, nor for her delicate figure.

"Lord Zhou, the people of the Marquis of Chongding's mansion have no evidence to prove that I changed the betrothal gifts. On the contrary, I have ample witnesses and physical evidence to prove that it was the people of the Marquis of Chongding's mansion who changed the betrothal gifts."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qing examined the evidence submitted by Chu Xunzhen once again.

He nodded, stroked his beard, and said, "The evidence is conclusive. The betrothal gifts prepared by the Marquis of Chongding's residence were of inferior quality. The heir apparent of the Marquis of Chongding's residence, Gu Changfeng, is ordered to provide the correct betrothal gifts within three days. Furthermore, the Marquis of Chongding's residence is fined 30,000 taels of silver, to be turned over to the national treasury. Additionally, the Marquis of Ping'an's residence is to compensate 10,000 taels, to be paid within five days. Finally, the Marquis in charge will receive sixty strokes of the cane and be fined two years' salary. Considering that the Marquis of Chongding's residence has difficulty walking and is not in charge, the sixty strokes will be shared between the Marquis's wife, Lu Ruoying, and the heir apparent, Gu Changfeng. The steward involved and all servants who knew about the matter will be exiled three thousand li. The Marquis's residence will publicly apologize, and the wedding will be postponed for one year."