As soon as the words were spoken, the whole room fell silent.
The old woman first stared with her cloudy eyes wide in astonishment, then reacted, her expression froze, and finally she howled loudly to cover up her guilty conscience. Typical - I am old, my voice is loud, I am right, I can make a fuss.
The common people watching were also caught up in Shen Tang's logic for a long time, looking at each other in bewilderment, always feeling that what he said made sense, but they couldn't put their finger on it. If they hadn't been silenced by Shen Tang, they would have probably been chattering for a while.
Which family’s daughter-in-law doesn’t have to work
What happens if you touch the knife, the tip of the knife, or the needle and thread
but-
If a pregnant woman touches these, the fetus will be deformed.
So, should we touch or not touch
If pregnant women don't touch it, who will do these jobs
Should the mother-in-law and husband serve tea and water? On second thought, their wives/mothers/other women in the family have never received such treatment when they were pregnant. And the children born were fine, too? So, the work can be done.
Shen Tang ignored the old woman's sincere performance.
"Why, you can't give an explanation? Didn't you swear that the child was in this state because of Widow Zhuo? Do you have any evidence that the child was injured that time? Wasn't it you and your son who threatened a pregnant woman to do it? If a pregnant woman really can't touch these things, then you and your son have evil intentions and are harming your daughter-in-law and grandchildren! If you can touch them, you are falsely accusing Widow Zhuo!"
Then he asked Gu Chi, "Wang Chao, what is the crime of false accusation?"
Although Gu Chi's knowledge in this area is not as proficient as Kang Shi's, he still has a solid foundation and can talk about some basic common sense.
He bowed and spoke slowly.
"If we follow the old law, false accusations will lead to punishment."
"What do you mean?"
Because there was a group of common people watching below, cramming their ears to listen carefully, Gu Chi could only explain it in a simpler and easier way.
"If it is verified that the old woman's family fabricated the facts and falsely accused the widow Zhuo, then the sentence will be based on the crime of the falsely accused. That is, the old woman's family falsely accused the widow Zhuo of murdering her only grandson, and according to the law, the old woman's family should be punished for the crime of 'murder'."
What happens when you murder someone...
Even an illiterate person knows that one life is worth another!
The old woman's face turned pale.
Widow Zhuo had not yet recovered from this reversal, but she knew that she and her daughter were safe, and she couldn't help but cry for joy.
Shen Tang asked again: "This is the old law, what about the new law?"
Gu Chi said: "It depends on the severity of the crime. For lighter crimes, the punishment is 30 strokes of the cane, parading through the streets for seven days, and confining to the hut for one year. For heavier crimes, the punishment is 100 strokes of the cane and confining to the hut for five or seven years."
The common people watching all gasped.
Shen Tang snorted coldly when he saw this.
It is useless to explain to them earnestly when dealing with feudal superstition. They don't know what science is. Only magic can defeat magic. In their logic, defeating them with their logic can really make them remember!
The old woman had been frightened by the conversation between Shen Tang and Gu Chi, her face pale and her whole body shaking like a sieve. She didn't dare to howl anymore.
He glared at his daughter-in-law out of the corner of his eye.
The young woman was trembling all over when she was stared at by her, and she stammered: "But, but I did feel pain at that time..."
Shen Tang was speechless: "You were about to give birth at that time, and the baby's movements were abnormal? This excuse doesn't hold water!"
The young woman was so anxious that sweat broke out on her forehead.
As soon as the child was born, she was frightened by his horrible appearance, and her first reaction was to worry that her mother-in-law and husband would blame her.
She was just too scared.
The child crawled out of her belly. If something happened, how could she escape? This was the lifeblood of her mother-in-law and husband!
If she admitted the crime, her life would be ruined. When she was in a state of panic, her mother-in-law said the taboo with a ferocious expression, and she was like a drowning person grabbing a stake. She didn't want to hurt anyone, but she didn't want to die even more. She reluctantly admitted the accusation against Widow Zhuo.
After her mother-in-law said it so many times, she began to believe it.
Thinking back carefully, the widow Zhuo was indeed a whore. Her husband was strong and honest, worked hard and complained little, and many young wives liked him openly or secretly. Was it unreasonable for the widow Zhuo, who had been dry for many years, to seduce her husband and harm her son
Even though I had wronged Widow Zhuo...
But flies don't bite seamless eggs. If Widow Zhuo had been more careful in her daily life, how could such misunderstandings have arisen
Who knew things would turn out like this.
According to what Mr. Shen said, he would be punished by being caned and forced to pound rice.
She cried in a voice that sounded like tears: "If my child wasn't killed by Widow Zhuo... then why was he born in such a strange shape?"
She struggled unwillingly out of cowardice.
Shen Tang said: "This is related to many factors. It is possible that someone in your ancestors was like this, or it may be that you were too busy when you were pregnant and did not eat enough. In short, you ate too badly. Think about it, the child must absorb from the mother to grow smoothly. If you don't live well, how can the child be healthy? In short, this matter has nothing to do with Widow Zhuo..."
Widow Zhuo has nothing to do with it.
But the old woman’s family of three has a big problem.
If we don't punish them, how can we curb this unhealthy trend of fabricating and framing others? If the person sitting here today was not Shen Tang, but anyone who believed in this taboo, would the fate of Widow Zhuo and her daughter be good? If they didn't die, they would be forced to death!
We must ruthlessly set an example!
"Since this is your first offense, I wanted to give you a lighter punishment. But if you succeed in making a false accusation, Widow Zhuo will have no choice but to die to prove her integrity! This is a life! If I don't impose a severe punishment, it will not be enough to warn the public!"
Shen Tang's tone became heavier.
"Old woman, considering your advanced age, I will spare you the twenty strokes of the cane. You will only be punished with ten strokes of the cane, three years of pounding rice, and seven days of public display!"
"As for you—"
Shen Tang looked at the young woman.
"Giving sympathy to you because you have been in labor for less than a month and are weak, I will spare you the thirty canings. You will also have to pound rice for three years and be put on display for seven days!"
Finally, she looked at the man who had remained silent.
"As an adult male in the family, you have no ability to distinguish right from wrong. You allowed your old mother to maliciously accuse an innocent person without stopping her, and almost killed an innocent person. This is truly a heinous crime! The fifty strokes of the cane that your mother and wife were spared will be imposed on you. I sentence you to fifty strokes of the cane, three years in prison, and seven days of public display!"
The old woman's son and the young woman's husband vaguely knew the seriousness of the matter before Shen Tang started to judge, but they did not dare to say a word. However, they could not help but feel a little hatred towards their old mother, daughter-in-law and even their innocent son.
I hate my old mother’s tyranny and dominance.
I hate my daughter-in-law’s incompetence and cowardice.
He hated his son for being a deformed monster and bringing shame to him.
But when he heard Shen Tang's penalty, he was stunned.
Finally he stopped keeping silent and started to protest his injustice - fifty strokes of the cane and three years in prison, isn't this going to cost him his life
The old woman and the young woman were also frightened.
The reaction is bigger than hearing his own penalty.
They cried and wailed as if the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing.
As Gu Chi and the others were speechless, Shen Tang silenced the three of them, and the world suddenly became quiet. Shen Tang turned around and asked Gu Chi, "Is the sentence severe?"
She couldn't make a dictate on her own, lest the sentence be too light or too heavy. Gu Chi wrote down the final verdict.
He smiled and said, "It's just right."
It is well-balanced and full of humanistic care, fully taking into account the old woman's age and the young woman's health. It is very good.
Even if Kang Shi came, the sentence would be almost the same.
Shen Tang looked at the common people below and said earnestly, "A kind word can warm you through the winter, but an evil word can hurt you through the summer. I hope you will remember this, and remember that words can kill people invisibly!"
The moment she finished speaking, the young scholar and Qi Shan looked up at the top of their heads in tacit understanding, and unexpectedly, auspicious clouds and rays of light gathered!