The security inside the yamen was also very strict, with a guard every five steps and a sentry every ten steps, and soldiers patrolling from time to time. Although there were many people in the yamen, it was unusually quiet, and the occasional cough and wheeze could be heard clearly, appearing extremely solemn and dignified.
Such a serious atmosphere made Qiu Yizhi dare not act rashly. He quickly tidied up his clothes and went to the hall of the government office. However, he saw that among the four chief judges, His Royal Highness Zheng Xin and the Governor of Jiangnan Province Yin Chengliang had already sat down in the hall, but the Governor of Yuezhou, Cai Min, had not yet arrived.
So Qiu Yizi first bowed to Zheng Xin, then kowtowed to Yin Chengliang as a greeting, and then sat down next to Yin Chengliang.
After a while, Cai Min also trotted up to the hall, bent his knees, and knelt down to pay respect to Zheng Xin and Yin Chengliang. Qiu Yizhi sat side by side with Yin Chengliang, but was Cai Min's subordinate, so he quickly stepped aside and returned to his seat after Cai Min finished paying respect.
Soon after, more officials came to pay homage.
These officials were not from the Jiangnan Circuit, but were sent to Jiangnan by the Ministry of Personnel, Ministry of Revenue, and Ministry of Rites to take charge of various areas. Although they usually obeyed the orders of the governors of various states and circuits, they were still organized under the six central ministries and had a slightly independent status, so Zheng Xin also asked them to come and listen.
Most of these officials were of the fourth or fifth rank, but they were one or two ranks higher than Qiu Yizi, so whenever they came to pay their respects and kowtow, Qiu Yizi would stand up and avoid them. After a few rounds of this, he became impatient and left the hall under the pretext of urinating, meditating alone in the corridor.
After half an hour, just as the Chenpai time came, a burst of rapid drum beats suddenly came from outside the government office.
Qiu Yizi knew in her heart: this was Yang Ying'er, the plaintiff in the "Thirteen Lives Case", beating the drum at the door to complain, as a way of reporting the case.
This case has been delayed for a long time. Yang Ying'er has been suing for her husband for nearly two years. Qiu Yizhi received the complaint more than two months ago. It is really unnecessary to arrange for Yang Ying'er to beat the drum to appeal for justice, but this is the system of the Han Dynasty, and the Jiangnan Road is no exception.
So Qiu Yizi hurried back to the lobby and saw Zheng Xin leading Yin Chengliang, Cai Min and others slowly walking out of the yamen to receive the lawsuit. She then quickly walked into the queue, stood behind Cai Min, and walked forward with the flow of people.
He followed Cai Min out of the government office and saw Yang Ying'er kneeling on the ground, holding the petition in her hand, and shouting loudly: "I have been wronged, please help me, sir!"
She had brought this case to justice countless times, and had called out the words "serving the people" countless times, but her voice was no longer as hoarse as it was at the beginning, and her tone was instead filled with numbness and indifference.
Yin Chengliang didn't care about all that and said mechanically, "Who is kneeling in front of the door? What grievance do you want to complain about?"
Yang Ying'er spent the night in Qixia Temple last night, and the matchmaker and midwife who often walked around in the government office had already taught her how to speak.
Yang Ying'er was heard reciting word for word: "My husband Bi Xiuwen was murdered by a villain, so I came to the government office to appeal for justice. All my grievances have been recorded in the petition, and I hope the judge will help me!" After that, she held the petition high up.
Yin Chengliang was unwilling to accept the complaint, but now he was being watched by the emperor's eldest son, Zheng Xin, and by his colleagues and subordinates. He was in a desperate situation and had no choice but to take the complaint. He took a symbolic look at it and said, "Your grievance is great. I will open the court and investigate the case."
Yang Ying'er had long known that it was this Yin Chengliang who had repeatedly obstructed Qiu Yizi from seeking justice for her, and her hatred for him was no less than that for Miao Zhen.
However, Yang Ying'er was only a woman who had never seen the world. She was frightened by the pomp and circumstance created by the court. She dared not to lose her temper. She could only say in a low voice as she was taught last night, "I will leave it to you, my Lord!"
This hypocritical ceremony was finally completed, and the Jiangnan Road government finally began to try the case.
After the yamen runners on both sides shouted in a threatening tone, Yin Chengliang was about to speak, but then he remembered that there was a "Grand Prince" sitting high behind him, so he turned around and said, "Grand Prince, I am a lowly official, how dare I act so arrogantly in front of you. In my humble opinion, why don't you ask your Grand Prince to preside over the trial?"
Zheng Xin would certainly not accept this task. He waved his hand and said, "I don't understand local justice. This case is an internal matter of your province. As a prince, it is inconvenient for me to interfere too much. It is better to ask Lord Yin or other officials of Jiangnan Province to preside over the trial."
After hearing what Qiu Yizi said, Yin Chengliang immediately became furious - what do you mean by "don't interfere too much"? Aren't you interfering enough and not deeply enough
However, Yin Chengliang only dared to think about this idea in his heart, and never dared to speak it out. But he didn't want to be the chief judge, so he imitated Zheng Xin's words and said, "Sir Cai, this case happened in Yuezhou. You are the governor of Yuezhou, and you have the responsibility to defend the territory. Why don't you be the chief judge?"
Cai Min cursed inwardly, "Old Fox", but didn't dare to say it to his face. She could only put on a smile and said to Qiu Yizi beside her, "Master Qiu, the crime scene, the plaintiff's address, the defendant's address, and the exhibits are all in your county. Why don't you let Master Qiu preside over the trial?"
Qiu Yizi did not have any of their ulterior motives. The position of chief judge, which was a hot potato in the eyes of Cai Min and Yin Chengliang, was something he could accept without any scruples.
He just said: "Since the two gentlemen, Governor Yin and Governor Cai, are willing to entrust this task to me, I will do it with reluctance..."
Before Qiu Yi finished speaking, Zheng Xin said, "The victim Yang Ying'er reported the case to the Jiangnan Dao government office, so it should be tried by Lord Yin, the governor of Jiangnan Dao. Lord Qiu, please don't interfere!"
Zheng Xin said this in a very blunt tone, seeming to be quite dissatisfied with Qiu Yi's self-assertion.
Qiu Yizi was stunned when he heard this, but then he understood: Zheng Xin was not talking to him, but was speaking to Yin Chengliang in a roundabout way. He wanted Yin Chengliang to try the case personally and make himself embarrassed.
After thinking this through, Qiu Yizi immediately replied, "Yes." But he was secretly delighted in his heart.
On the other side, Yin Chengliang thought that Qiu Yizhi had just spoken and had upset the great prince. He couldn't help but feel a little gloating, but he also felt that something was strange. While he was thinking about it, he heard Zheng Xin say, "Master Yin, it's getting late. You should try the case quickly."
So Yin Chengliang didn't have time to think deeply, and quickly agreed, and said to Yang Ying'er who was kneeling in the hall: "Mrs. Yang Ying'er, I have read your petition. Your husband, Bi Xiuwen, a scholar from Shanyin County, suffered an unprovoked disaster, which is indeed pitiful." He paused and said, "Why don't the new magistrate of Shanyin County go to the dangerous place in person and capture the murderer alive - the thief Dao Miaozhen, to redress your husband's injustice."
After that, Yin Chengliang picked up the gavel, slammed it on the table, and said loudly: "Bring the prisoner Miaozhen to the court!"
Before he finished speaking, the guards in the hall started to parrot and shout, "Bring the prisoner Miaozhen to the hall." The shouts spread to the hall. Soon, four burly guards came and carried Miaozhen, who had been waiting in the hall, and threw her on the bluestone floor of the hall.
Yin Chengliang said expressionlessly: "Who is kneeling in the hall? Tell me the truth!"
Miao Zhen smiled and raised her head, adjusted her kneeling position, and said, "I am Lay Buddhist Miao Zhen from Liaochen Palace. I am honored to meet you!"
Yin Chengliang said, "What a shameless thief nun, you are still pretending to be serious even when you are about to die. Let me ask you, did you kill Bi Xiuwen, the successful candidate in the imperial examination in Shanyin County?"
Miao Zhen said: "It can't be said that he was killed. It was because I was cultivating Yin and Yang with Bi Xiaolian, and Bi Xiaolian's body couldn't bear it, so he died. If you say that I killed him, it seems a bit far-fetched..."
Before she could finish, Yin Chengliang slammed the gavel and said in a stern voice, "What a quibble! It's obviously you, the thief, who blindly believed in witchcraft and took people's lives for no reason! Let me ask you, what's the matter with the twelve corpses dug out from your 'Liaochen Palace'?"
Miao Zhen smiled and said, "They were just like Bi Xiaolian, they also cultivated immortality with me, but they were not blessed enough to achieve enlightenment, so they died."
Upon hearing this, Yin Chengliang immediately cursed, "At this point, you, a demon, still dare to be stubborn. However, I consider that you are a woman, so I will give you a chance. Let me ask you, what are the identities of these twelve people who died in vain? If you answer truthfully, you can avoid a beating."
Miao Zhen shook his head and said, "It has been a long time, I can no longer remember it."
"Good, good, good!" These three words seemed to be Yin Chengliang's catchphrase. Qiu Yizi had heard him say it more than once or twice. "Good, you demon! I want to see which is harder, your flesh or my stick. Come on, give me a severe punishment, twenty strokes of the stick!"
He had given the order, but the people standing on duty in the lobby were not the usual government servants, but the Imperial Guards brought by Zheng Xin from the capital. They did not obey Yin Chengliang's orders.
The atmosphere in the classroom was slightly awkward for a moment.
But Zheng Xin said, "This demon is so stubborn, it would be good to beat her a few times to reduce her prestige. Hit her with twenty military sticks first, but be merciful and don't kill her, Lord Yin still has something to say to her."
Several soldiers in the hall received the order and responded in unison. They skillfully used sticks to force Miaozhen to fall to the ground, pulled down her pants, revealing her plump and white buttocks, and started beating her with the sticks.
This Ms. Miaozhen might really have some secret to maintain her youth - at the age of nearly 40, she still looks like a girl of 18 or 19, and she has a charm that ordinary girls don't have. In addition, she is indeed born with beauty. If she had not been a Taoist nun but a prostitute by the Qinhuai River, she would surely have been a stunning beauty that would outshine all her generation.
Therefore, when the graceful Miaozhen exposed her lower body and allowed the soldiers to beat her, the officials present in the court were all stunned and could only hear the dull collision sounds between her flesh and the sticks.
Qiu Yizi felt compassion and turned to Zheng Xin and whispered, "Your Highness, please show mercy and don't beat her to death."
Zheng Xin then gave the order: "Alright! Stop fighting, Lord Yin still needs to question us!"
Several soldiers followed orders and stopped the execution immediately.
After the soldiers left, Yin Chengliang swallowed his saliva and asked, "Miao Zhen! Now you know how powerful the law is? Can you answer my questions truthfully?"
Miao Zhen was in no hurry to reply. She struggled to get up from the ground, carefully tidied up her messy clothes, and said weakly, "What did you ask me just now? I didn't hear it clearly."
Yin Chengliang sneered: "I want to ask you, what are the identities of the twelve corpses dug out from under your 'Liaochen Palace'? Tell me the truth!" (To be continued)