Magistrate He had been a confused official for several years and had long forgotten the Zhou Law. Hearing this, he adjusted his official hat, tilted his head to look at the legal advisor beside him, and lowered his voice and said, "Go and find out if what he said is true."
The lawyer lowered his head and flipped through the Zhou Code. Finally, he walked up quickly and whispered in Magistrate He's ear: "Sir, it is just as he said. Not a single word is wrong."
Hearing this, Magistrate He looked at Rong Xuan in surprise, inevitably intimidated by the aura of this young man. He patted the gavel and stammered, "Rong Xuan, then according to what you said, how should I change the sentence?"
For the crime of disrespecting the late emperor alone, one deserves death.
Rong Xuan glanced at the kidnapper king calmly, thinking that this was not a difficult matter: "Disrespecting the government and secretly collecting grain, ten strokes of the cane. Buying a good woman as a prostitute, and forcing her into prostitution, three years of exile. Making a false accusation, and being punished by counter-accusation, ten strokes of the cane."
With every sentence he recited, the color on King Guaizi's face faded a little, until in the end his face turned pale as dirt, and he was so frightened that his soul flew away.
Rong Xuan finally smiled and concluded, "Sir, according to the law, you should sentence him to forty strokes of the cane and put him in prison with shackles for three years."
County Magistrate He was a fool, he just listened to whatever others said. In addition, Rong Xuanyan had something in mind, which made him nod his head frequently. He quietly discussed with the master beside him for a while, and finally slammed the gavel heavily, and said to the audience in a deep voice: "Kidnapper, you should have heard the three charges just now. I really didn't expect that you look honest, but in fact you are treacherous and cunning. Come, drag him away and give him 40 strokes of the cane and send him to prison."
After he finished speaking, he threw a chip from the lottery box, one chip representing ten sticks.
Seeing this, the guards were about to drag him away to execute him. The kidnapper Wang suddenly woke up. He didn't know where he got the strength from, but he pushed the guards away and crawled forward, saying, "My lord! My lord! I refuse to obey! I refuse to obey!"
Hearing this, County Magistrate He had no choice but to sit back down on the stool he had just left. He said impatiently, "Why are you dissatisfied?!"
The kidnapper king was also quite quick-witted: "My lord, whether this jade ring is real or fake, I bought it for a hundred silver coins. I can only blame the jade merchant. He, he, he...he deceived me. I was deceived by him and thought that this jade ring was real. That's why I'm asking for compensation! Ignorance is not a crime. How can this be considered a false accusation?!"
Hearing this, Magistrate He stroked his beard, frowned and thought for a moment, then felt that what he said made sense, and turned his head to look at Rong Xuan: "Rong Xuan, since he didn't know that the jade ring was fake, how about exempting him from ten strokes of the cane?"
Rong Xuan raised his eyebrows lightly: "Sir, since he said that he spent a hundred silver coins to buy this jade ring, then ask him to show us the receipt, or find the jade merchant to confront him, otherwise his words are not enough. The Zhou Law says that there is no murder case without a corpse, and there is no theft case without an object. He needs to show evidence before you can change the verdict, otherwise I will not accept it."
County Magistrate He looked at King Guaizi again and said, "Kaizizi, you said you spent a hundred silver coins, but words are not enough. Do you have a receipt? If you don't have a receipt, you can call the jade merchant to confront him. Otherwise, I can't help you."
Although the kidnapper king was wearing silver and jade, he looked rich and generous, but in fact, they were fake gold-plated items used to show off. He was extremely stingy and felt so sad when he spent a penny, so how could he spend a hundred yuan to buy a jade ring
He couldn't produce the receipt, nor could he find the jade merchant, so he could only stammer, "Sir, I don't have the habit of asking for receipts when I buy things, and the merchant is nowhere to be found now. Rong Xuan is clearly trying to embarrass me!"
Magistrate He was too lazy to argue with him: "Since you can't produce a receipt and can't find a witness, then let's just uphold the original verdict and let it go on!"
The kidnapper king was sweating profusely, knowing that he would not be able to escape the disaster today, but he was unwilling to let the Liu family take advantage of him. He glared at Rong Xuan fiercely, then looked at County Magistrate He: "Sir, even if my jade ring is not worth a hundred, it is worth ten. Liu Shuanzhu broke my ring, doesn't he have to pay for it?!"
County Magistrate He finally got smart for once: "But how come I heard that you were the one who beat Liu Shuanzhu first, and that's why Yuzaka's finger was broken?"
The kidnapper king argued, "Sir, I have confirmed him. The worst that can happen is that I will compensate him for a few cents for medicine. His face was injured, so I will pay for it. But should he also pay for the broken jade ring?!"
County Magistrate He really couldn't find a reason to refute. Only Qiaoying was anxious and angry. The Liu family had emptied their savings to pay last year's land rent. Now, let alone ten silver coins, it was a problem whether they could even take out one silver coin.
Everyone looked at Rong Xuan, wanting to hear how he would refute. However, he lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then nodded seriously: "Kidnapper Wang is right, sir, Liu Shuanzhu should indeed compensate them for the ten silver coins. However, they are short of money, so can we let the students pay for it?"
County Magistrate He praised him and said, "Rong Xuan, you are kind-hearted. I agree."
The kidnapper thought that the Rong family was so poor that they only had a wall left, so where would they get the ten silver coins for compensation? He stared at Rong Xuan's movements, and saw that the other party fumbled in his sleeves for a long time, and then pulled out a well-made silver hairpin.
Rong Xuan handed the hairpin to Magistrate He and said, "Please have a look, sir. This is my mother's favorite thing. The hairpin is made of green jade, and a few plum blossoms are inlaid on it with silver. Although it is not the best material, it is made by a skilled craftsman. It should be worth ten silver coins, right?"
County Magistrate He looked at it for a moment, then nodded repeatedly: "The carving is exquisite and lifelike, worth it."
As soon as he finished speaking, Rong Xuan suddenly raised the hairpin and stabbed it hard into the back of the kidnapper king. The kidnapper king almost jumped up in pain, and dropped the hairpin with his backhand. The hairpin fell to the ground with a clang and broke.
The kidnapper king had a bloody hole on his back. He was furious and said, "Rong Xuan! How dare you commit a crime in the government office?!"
Rong Xuan spread his hands and shrugged, picking up the broken hairpin on the ground: "My hairpin is worth ten yuan, you broke my hairpin, so our accounts are even. As for your injuries, I will just pay you a few coins for medical expenses."
He actually copied the King of Kidnapping's "perverse theory" exactly. Anyway, the only valuable thing about this jade hairpin was the silver material on it, so it didn't matter if it broke. Rong Xuan could take it back to the silver shop and sell it for a good price.
The kidnapper king was so angry that he almost fainted. The guards were about to drag him out for punishment, but Rong Xuan suddenly raised his hand to stop him: "Wait a minute—"
County Magistrate He thought he had changed his mind: "Rong Xuan, what's wrong with you?"
Rong Xuan bowed to him and said, "Sir, Liu Shuanzhu's family has always been honest and upright, and Kidnapper Wang is treacherous and cunning. I am afraid that they will not be able to get the money for the soup and medicine, so I would like to ask you to be a witness and let Kidnapper Wang pay in court."
County Magistrate He just wanted to finish the trial quickly so that he could go back and catch up on some sleep, so he naturally agreed. Seeing this, the kidnapper Wang took out five coins from his sleeve with an ugly look on his face and threw them directly in front of Liu Shuanzhu: "Bah! Poor bastard!"
Rong Xuan glanced at him and kindly reminded him, "Mr. Wang, you gave the wrong amount. It's not five cents, but fifty."
The kidnapper king's eyes widened when he heard this, and he said angrily: "Rong Xuan! Are you crazy because of poverty? Why should I pay fifty?! My lord, he is deliberately blackmailing me!"
County Magistrate He also felt that it was too much, and asked Rong Xuan to lower the price a little: "Rong Xuan, Liu Shuanzhu only suffered flesh wounds, and five silver coins would be enough to get medicine from the clinic. Fifty is too much."
Rong Xuan sighed deliberately: "Your Excellency doesn't know that fifty is not only not a lot, on the contrary, I received more than ten silver coins."
He did the math for Magistrate He: "There are four people in the Liu family. Grandpa Liu is too old to work in the fields, Qiaoying is still young, and his granddaughter-in-law is still pregnant, so the family depends on Liu Shuanzhu for support. Including fodder for livestock and cotton grain for the winter, their family's annual food and clothing expenses are fifteen silver coins. It is said that it takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone. Liu Shuanzhu is now seriously injured and will have to stay in bed for at least three years to recover. That means he can't work in the fields within three years, a total loss of forty-five silver coins. And during these three years, he can't stop taking medicine. His annual medicine cost is five, and three years is fifteen, a total of sixty silver coins."
After Rong Xuan finished speaking, he continued to calculate in front of everyone's dumbfounded expressions: "Kidnapper King violated the official order and collected rent privately. The contract should be invalidated. Therefore, the ten silver coins that Liu family paid him before should be returned in full. Sixty plus eleven is seventy... Sir, I take back what I said just now. The amount that Kidnapper King should pay is not fifty, but seventy."
The kidnapper king was so angry that he wanted to rush up and strangle Rong Xuan to death: "I can earn a hundred silver coins a year, and you just stabbed me with a hairpin, so you have to compensate me three hundred?!"
Rong Xuan smiled and said, "Mr. Wang, extortion with injury is punishable by ten strokes of the cane. You, Liu Shuanzhu, are not on the same level. First, the hairpin I stabbed you with just now did not affect your eating, drinking and walking. You can tell from your loud voice now. Second, your wound is very light. It will scab over tomorrow. You don't even need to apply medicine. Third, you bought a good woman for a cheap woman. You should be exiled for three years. That is to say, you will spend the next three years in prison. During this period, you will not be able to do any business, and you will not have any income. Naturally, I don't have to compensate you."
He spoke so lightly that it could infuriate people to death: "Sir, please judge the case quickly. I cannot bear to see such a shameless person standing in the court. The evil deeds of the kidnapper king are known to everyone in the country. He has done more than one thing, saying that he would not buy good people and treat them as cheap. As a parent official, you should investigate it carefully and thoroughly."
County Magistrate He waved his hands, not wanting to bother himself at all: "We'll discuss this matter later, later."
Rong Xuan held his hand and shook his head seriously: "Sir, I'm afraid it won't work."
County Magistrate He stared: "Why not?"
Rong Xuan slowly stepped back a few steps, speaking in a clear voice for everyone to hear: "Sir, I am thinking about you. The trend of kidnapping and seduction is prevalent. According to Chapter 13, Article 9 of the Zhou Law, if the local officials know about it and let it go, they will be punished according to the rules. If the soldiers of the township security office fail to conduct inquiries, they will be caned 80 times and dismissed from labor. If they know about it and let it go, they will be caned 100 times. This place is close to the emperor's city. If the news gets to the ears of the superiors, wouldn't it be a waste of your career?"
When he said this, not only Magistrate He, but also the yamen runners standing by tightened their buttocks. Eighty strokes of the cane? Can a perfect person still survive
Hearing that he might lose his job, County Magistrate He was like a sore spot, and he woke up instantly. He didn't need his master's advice, he immediately slammed the table and said, "Come here! The kidnapper king is rampant in the village, and he must be causing a lot of trouble. As a parent official, how can I sit back and do nothing! Captain Zhao, quickly take people to his house to conduct a thorough investigation to see if there is any kidnapping or seduction!"
The gavel slammed hard, the sound shook the whole hall, and even the spider on the plaque fell down in fright.
…
The case was decided. The people who were watching the excitement outside dispersed a little after seeing this, but they still did not go far away. They were immersed in the wonderful debate just now and could not come back to their senses. They could not help but look at the man in white.
Rong Xuan walked out of the government office, unaware of the gazes from all around him. He weighed the heavy purse in his hand. The kidnapper king only had ten pieces of silver on him, so the rest could only be supplemented with small gold ingots, but it was still very heavy.
As he thought about this, he couldn't help but look up at the scorching sun hanging high in the sky, and couldn't help feeling dazed: He actually won the lawsuit
But it's not surprising. The loopholes in ancient laws are like a sieve. If you are in the right, it is not too difficult to overturn the verdict.
Ji Fan had been following Rong Xuan quietly from behind. Seeing that he had overturned the case with just a few words in the courtroom, and even made the kidnapper king pay compensation, forcing the foolish county magistrate to investigate the matter thoroughly, a light flashed in his eyes.
His husband is really awesome...
At this time, Uncle Liu and Qiaoying also walked out of the government office with Shuanzhu. When they saw Rong Xuan standing at the door, they knelt down without saying anything and cried, "Rongzi, thank you for saving my life. If you hadn't helped me in the hall, how would our family survive..."
Rong Xuan quickly helped them up from the ground: "It's just a small favor, not worth mentioning."
He lowered his head and looked at the silver bag in his hand. "Master Liu, this is the seventy silver ounces that the kidnapper king paid as compensation. Ten of them are your debts, and there are sixty left. According to the market price, as a lawyer, I need to take a 40% commission from you to overturn the case, which means fourteen percent as compensation."
Rong Xuan was a very clear-headed person. Saving people was saving people, and the reward was the reward. Moreover, he was now penniless, so why should he pretend to be so calm? After saying this, he took out a gold ingot and four pieces of silver from his purse, and handed the rest of the money to Uncle Liu.
Uncle Liu was shocked and quickly pushed it back: "Rongzi, you are embarrassing me! You saved Qiaoying, we should thank you, why do we still want your money!"
They were simple farmers who could not read or write. They felt that since the silver was won by Rong Xuan in the lawsuit, it should belong to him.
Rong Xuan corrected him, "This is not my money. This is the money that King Kidnapper wants to pay you. Shuanzhu is injured now. Although he won't be unable to walk for three years, he still needs to rest for a while. Don't you want to eat or drink? Seeing a doctor also costs money, so just accept it."
Uncle Liu still felt unworthy of the honor: "This... this, this..."
Rong Xuan could only stuff the purse into Qiao Ying's hand and said, "I just happened to be taking my husband to the clinic for treatment. Shuan Zhu is also injured. Let's go together so as not to delay their recovery."
Qiaoying wiped her tears, nodded with red eyes and said, "Thank you, Rongzi."
So they went to the clinic together. Shuanzhu was injured, and Rongxuan took Ji Fan to see... a brain doctor
The chief doctor was a well-known medical expert. He first took Ji Fan's pulse, then frowned and checked the location of the bruise on the back of his head. After thinking for a long time, he said, "There is a blood clot in the back of his head. I think he was hit too hard by external force, so his memory is confused. I will give him acupuncture to activate blood circulation and use medicinal materials to remove the blood stasis. You should come for a follow-up visit every five days to see how he recovers."
Ji Fan didn't like others touching him, and he kept frowning. Especially when the doctor checked the mass on the back of his head, the splitting headache suddenly came over him again, and he turned pale and groaned in pain.
"Doctor, please be gentler."
Rong Xuan was quick to pull Ji Fan to his side. Wu Shi gently rubbed the back of his head and explained, "My husband often has headaches. You were too harsh."
The doctor was so angry that he almost blew his beard and glared at him. He had been practicing medicine for decades, so how could he not know how to use the right amount of force? Because he couldn't chase the customer away, he barely swallowed his anger, frowned, walked behind the medicine cabinet, picked up a pen and quickly wrote a few prescriptions, and handed them to the apprentice beside him to get the medicine.
"The blood congestion in the back of the brain naturally causes headaches. Fortunately, your husband practices martial arts and has a healthy physique. If it were an ordinary person, he would be stupid or foolish. The most urgent task now is to treat his internal injuries, and the rest can be treated slowly."
Rong Xuan was not in a hurry to restore Ji Fan's memory anyway, so he lowered his head and glanced at him: "Then listen to the doctor and treat him slowly?"
Ji Fan had a headache and had been leaning on Rong Xuan's shoulder. Hearing this, he closed his eyes and nodded slightly without any objection.
The Shuanzhu next door has been treated with medicine. Farmers are strong and tough. The beating from the kidnapper king was just a superficial injury. He will recover after a few days of rest. Rong Xuan said in the hall that he couldn't go out for three years, which was a pure exaggeration.
He covered his chest and walked out with Qiaoying's support. He was so grateful that he didn't know what to do. He said weakly, "Rongzi, thank you for saving my life. Otherwise, we farmers would have suffered great injustice and would have nowhere to seek justice. After I recover from my injury, I will come to thank you."
Rong Xuan said, "I heard that your wife is pregnant. You should spend more time with her when you have time. You can save the money or use it for business. Set aside a portion for your child to study and learn. If he learns to read and understands, he will not be bullied by others."
Shuanzhu nodded repeatedly, wishing that his words were the golden rule: "You are right, I will save money now and send my children to school in the future, so that I can also become an educated person."
Uncle Liu went to the brothel and brought back the oxcart that was left in front of the brothel. They took the medicine prescribed by the doctor and returned on the oxcart along the same route.
The sun was about to set in the sky, and the sky was full of rosy clouds. Countless birds flew back with their wings flapping, and from a distance, only a dense mass of black dots remained. Rong Xuan lazily leaned on the ox cart, holding a dogtail grass in his mouth. He didn't know if it was an illusion, but he vaguely heard a sharp eagle cry. He looked up and saw a black eagle flapping its wings and circling in the sky, unwilling to leave for a long time.
Ji Fan also seemed to have heard the sound and murmured to himself: "Where did the eagle come from?"
Rong Xuan spat out the grass in his mouth and said, "This is a falcon. When the royal nobles go out hunting, they will bring their trained falcons to hunt hares. Maybe it can't find its owner."
The eagle finally seemed tired of flying, and landed on a dead branch not far away. It lowered its head, preened its feathers, and became quiet and stopped singing.
Ji Fan met its eyes, and some flashes of light flashed through his mind again. But this time it was more blurred, and it seemed to be a valley with trees.
he…
Who is it
Ji Fan closed his eyes and frowned, unable to remember anything. Finally, he looked at Rong Xuan, who was standing beside him, but saw that he was looking at Qiao Ying with his chin propped up, admiring the girl's delicate appearance, and immediately put this question behind his mind.
"Husband."
Ji Fan's sudden opening of his mouth caused Rong Xuan to cough again. He turned around subconsciously and asked stutteringly, "What...what happened?"
He remembered that he didn't tell Qiaoying.
Ji Fan said nothing, but closed his eyes and rested his head on his legs, silently declaring his right of possession: "I have a headache."
Rong Xuan didn't think much about it: "Then you take a rest for a while, I'll make you some medicine when we get home."
After this incident, he finally stopped looking at Qiaoying and waited patiently to go home. Rong's mother was anxious because she didn't see them come back for a long time.
When the ox cart passed the entrance of the village, there were more than a dozen fine horses tied to the woods beside the road, which was quite eye-catching. Rong Xuan glanced at it casually, sat up straight, and recalled the group of swordsmen he saw at the market today, wondering if it was the people of the Marquis of Donglin who came to investigate
Thinking of this, he didn't care about anything else and said to Uncle Liu: "Uncle, I suddenly remembered that I have something urgent to do at home. Could you please drive faster?"
When Uncle Liu heard that he had something urgent to do, he quickly whipped his whip and drove towards Rong's house. Rong's house was at the end of the village, a long distance away from the head of the village, and it would take at least a cup of tea to walk there.
Ji Fan suddenly sensed Rong Xuanmo's vigilance and subconsciously opened his eyes: "What's wrong?"
Rong declared that he should not say anything: "I'll tell you when I get back."
After the ox cart arrived at Rong's house, Rong Xuan happened to see Rong's mother sitting in the yard picking vegetables, and hurriedly pulled Ji Fan forward and asked, "Mother, has anyone come to our house today?"
When Rong's mother heard Rong Xuan's voice, she looked up at him subconsciously, not understanding why her son asked this question. She said in a puzzled tone, "Xuan'er, why did you come back so late today? No one has come to our house before."
Rong Xuan thought that there were about ten villages and towns nearby, and those people probably hadn't had time to find out about this place yet. Hearing this, he didn't bother to explain anything, and quickly pulled Ji Fan into the house: "Stay here and don't move, I'll be back."
After saying that, he ran out of the house, walked to the side of the courtyard wall, and called out to the neighbor next door: "Sister Song! Sister Song! Are you there?"
"Hey~ Who is calling me~"
The voice arrived before the person arrived. The door of the next door creaked open, and a plump woman walked out. She had a pretty face, but because of her fair and delicate skin, she had a bit of charm. It turned out to be the widow Song who often flirted with Rong Xuan.
Rong Xuan said, "Sister Song, do you have any rouge and powder at home? Lend me a box and I will return it to you tomorrow."
Widow Song waved her handkerchief and looked him up and down: "Hey, Rong's eldest son, you haven't married yet, what do you need rouge and powder for?"
Ji Fan has been recuperating in the house. Except for King Guaizi, only other people in the village have seen him.
Rong Xuan made a living by talking, so he didn't need to make up a draft: "Today is my mother's birthday, and I forgot to buy her something. Good sister, lend me a box, and I will buy you a new one tomorrow."
Widow Song heard this and did not doubt it: "You are lucky, I just happen to have an unused box in my room, here, I will give it to you, remember to return it tomorrow."
After saying this, he twisted his waist and went into the house.
Ji Fan could hear their conversation clearly through the window. His fingertips fell on the window frame, leaving a few fingerprints, and he narrowed his eyes coldly: Mother is right, Rong Xuan really likes to tease the widow next door!
Rong's mother stood in the yard and heard their conversation clearly. She frowned and groped her way to Rong Xuan, reaching out and grabbing his sleeve: "Xuan'er, what are you doing?"
Rong Xuan made up another lie and whispered in Rong's mother's ear: "Mother, you don't know that a high-ranking official came to the city today. He likes to capture beautiful women and immediately searched our house. You don't have to worry about it. If someone asks about it later, just say that the seriously injured woman is the wife I married in Jingzhou."
Rong Xuan borrowed the rouge and powder from Widow Song, and took out the plain shirt and dress that Madam Rong used to wear from the box. After returning to the house, he stuffed them all into Ji Fan's arms and said, "Hurry and change them."
Ji Fan picked up the clothes and saw that they were women's clothes. He immediately threw them away, frowned, and said coldly: "I am a man, how can I wear women's clothes."
Rong Xuan: "You are so beautiful, why not wear some?"
Ji Fan turned around and said, "No."
Rong Xuan thought to himself that you are quite strong-willed. He held Ji Fan's shoulders and turned her to face him, coaxing her in a low voice: "Married women should obey their husbands. You have to listen to me. I am your husband. Now that your husband asks you to wear it, you won't wear it?"
Ji Fan still didn't want to say: "Then why did you flirt with the widow next door just now?"
Rong Xuan choked for a moment when he heard the words, then he reacted and immediately touched Ji Fan's face, saying with a smile: "She is not as pretty as you, why would I tease her? If I want to tease someone, it's you."
After saying this, he advised, "Hurry up and change your clothes. A high-ranking official has come to the village and wants to take you back to serve him. What will you do if you are taken away?"
Ji Fan's eyes were filled with cold murderous intent, and he said sinisterly: "Then I will kill them!"
Rong Xuan began to have a headache: "Killing is against the law, change your clothes quickly, don't you even listen to me?"
Ji Fan frowned and said nothing. He didn't know if it was an illusion, but his face looked a little red. Finally, he couldn't resist Rong Xuan's coaxing and finally said: "... You are my husband, so I will listen to you."