After ten years of accompanying me in my studies, the entire court begged me to shut up.

A person dressed in black robes walked out from the back room.

The man approached the hall, bowed, and said, "Your Excellency, I have completed the autopsy. The deceased, Madam Liu, did not die by hanging. Instead, she was strangled, and the scene was staged!"

These words caused an uproar in the room.

Wu Youfu's face changed drastically, and he lay on the ground trembling all over.

The onlookers immediately erupted in uproar.

Yang Shen looked at Wu Youfu and said calmly, "The matter is clear. The county government was investigating hidden land and households, and in order to resist the government, you didn't hesitate to strangle your own concubine and then frame Wang Sizhi! Master Wu, she was your bedmate! How cruel you are!"

Wu Youfu, his face flushed with anxiety, blurted out, "I didn't strangle him!"

Yang Shen pressed further, "Who strangled him?"

Cold sweat poured down Wu Youfu's forehead, and he subconsciously replied, "It's Zhang Hu and Zhang Bao..."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he suddenly realized what he had said, and his face turned deathly pale.

Yang Shen looked at him with a half-smile: "And who are Zhang Hu and Zhang Bao?"

Wu Youfu opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

Yang Shen turned to look at the doorway: "Who is Zhang Hu? Who is Zhang Bao?"

The servants brought by the Wu family, who had been listening at the door, were now dumbfounded.

Two of them collapsed to their knees, their faces ashen.

Seeing this, Liu Yong waved his hand and said, "Take him down!"

Several constables immediately rushed forward and pinned the two men to the ground.

Only then did Han Zhong react, looking at the man in black robes: "You are not the coroner of this prefecture, who are you?"

The man bowed and said, "I am Zhao Wu, and I am Young Master Yang's attendant."

Han Zhong was furious: "How dare you! Why are you impersonating a coroner? Who gave you permission to handle the corpse?"

Yang Shen quickly stepped forward and explained, "Prefect Han, please calm down! Zhao Wu did not impersonate a coroner. He only said that the autopsy was completed from beginning to end, but he never said that he was a coroner! Moreover, he did not touch the body. It was Wu Youfu who confessed because he was guilty."

Wu Youfu's eyes widened as he finally understood.

No one performed an autopsy from beginning to end! I was scammed!

"you……"

Enraged, Wu Youfu coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Yang Shen squatted down and looked at him: "Master Wu, why are you doing this? With your intelligence and talent, I'm afraid you couldn't have come up with such a treacherous method. If you can confess to the mastermind behind this, you might get a lighter sentence."

Wu Youfu, panting heavily, gritted his teeth and said, "Either I die or I live, what chance do I have?"

Yang Shen shook his head: "If I redeem myself through meritorious service, I might be spared the death penalty and sentenced to exile or something."

Wu Youfu's eyes darted around, and he immediately perked up, struggling to shout, "I confess! I confess! Everything I did was at someone's behest!"

Han Zhong asked in a deep voice, "Who is it?"

Wu Youfu shouted, "It's Chen Nianzu! He said that as long as someone dies, he can force Magistrate Wang to leave!"

Han Zhong demanded, "Where is Chen Nianzu?"

Wu Youfu's face was deathly pale. He muttered, "It was here just a moment ago, but now it's gone. It ran away!"

Yang Shen said calmly, "Don't worry, they can't escape."

Wu Youfu frowned, his face full of doubt.

Just then, a commotion arose at the entrance of the government office.

"Make way! Make way! This is a case handled by the Imperial Guards!"

Upon hearing the name of the Imperial Guards, the crowd quickly made way for them.

Li Chun strode in, followed by two captains escorting an elderly man with gray hair and beard.

The old man looked flustered, and his clothes were somewhat disheveled; it was Chen Nianzu.

Li Chun walked to the front of the hall, clasped his hands in a salute, and said: "This humble officer is Li Chun, commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Today, I was passing through Shuntian Prefecture and saw that this man had an unfriendly face and was acting suspiciously. He did not seem to be a good person, so I brought him here for questioning by Prefect Han."

When Wu Youfu saw Chen Nianzu, his eyes turned red, and he shouted, "Chen Nianzu! You've ruined my life!"

Chen Nianzu, unable to move, still sneered, "Shut up! You piece of trash! You're good for nothing but causing trouble!"

Han Zhong looked at the scene before him, and his mind was perfectly clear.

Li Chun is the commander of the Eastern Palace guards. How could he possibly pass by Shuntian Prefecture for no reason?

He slammed his gavel: "Silence!"

The hall fell silent.

Han Zhong looked at Chen Nianzu: "Is the person below Chen Nianzu?"

Chen Nianzu straightened his robes, still striving to maintain his composure, and replied, "I am Chen Nianzu, formerly the Director of Studies at the Imperial Academy. Although I have retired, I was once an official appointed by the court. Is this treatment of me today a disgrace to the court?"

Han Zhong's expression remained unchanged: "Someone has accused you of instigating murder and resisting the government. Is that true?"

Chen Nianzu shook his head and calmly said, "That's untrue!"

Wu Youfu panicked and struggled to shout, "It was clearly you who ordered it! Why won't you admit it?"

Chen Nianzu glanced at him sideways, a hint of sarcasm in his eyes: "You say it's true, but do you have any proof?"

Wu Youfu was stunned.

He failed today because of that one sentence!

Chen Nianzu turned to Han Zhong, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Prefect Han, this man first defied the government, then framed an official of the imperial court, and now he is making baseless accusations and attempting to implicate the innocent. I beg you, Prefect, to handle this matter impartially and clear my name!"

Wu Youfu stared wide-eyed at Chen Nianzu.

On that old face was an indifferent expression, as if it were none of his business.

It was as if everything that happened today had nothing to do with him.

His chest heaved violently, and he suddenly roared and lunged forward!

"You old dog! I'll kill you!"

Liu Yong rushed forward to stop him, but Wu Youfu had already gone mad and was tightly gripping Chen Nianzu's neck.

Chen Nianzu struggled, but he was old and weak, and could not break free!

Han Chong slammed his gavel: "Guards! Pull him away!"

Several constables rushed forward, trying to pry Wu Youfu's hands off.

But Wu Youfu was in a bloodthirsty rage. He grabbed Chen Nianzu by the neck with both hands, lifted him up, and slammed him hard to the ground!

boom!

With a muffled thud, red and white substances splattered all over the ground.

Chen Nianzu twitched twice, kicked his legs, and then fell silent.

A deathly silence fell over the hall and the room.

Wu Youfu released his grip and burst into laughter: "That old dog ruined me! Today I'll make you pay with your life! Hahaha!"

Liu Yong pulled him away, reached out to check Chen Nianzu's breath, and looked up with a grave expression: "Your Excellency, Chen Nianzu is dead."

Han Zhong's face turned ashen. After a moment of silence, he waved his hand and said, "Take him away."

Wu Youfu was dragged away, but he was still laughing loudly, as if he had gone mad.

The constables stepped forward, covered Chen Nianzu's body with a white cloth, and carried it out.

Han Chong looked at Wang Shouren and slowly said, "This prefecture announces that Wu Youfu's accusation that Wang Shouren accepted bribes and persecuted his family is a complete fabrication. According to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, those who make false accusations are punished. This case is now being returned to Wuqing County for trial by the Wuqing County government, and justice must be served for the deceased."

"The case of Yang Shen suing Wu Youfu on behalf of 173 people was also tried by the Wuqing County Government."

"Court adjourned!"

The gavel fell.

Han Chong got up and went into the back room.

The constables began to disperse the crowd of onlookers.

As Yang Shen and Wang Shouren walked out of the county government office, they were met by a man.

"Eunuch Xiao, what are you doing here?"

Xiao Jing chuckled and said, "Our family is in charge of the Eastern Depot. How can we ignore such a commotion right under the emperor's nose? I didn't expect Yang Bandu to be such a skilled lawyer."

Yang Shen replied, "These are meager tricks, not worth mentioning!"

Xiao Jing continued, "His Majesty requests your presence!"