CH 57

“I deserve to die.”

“This official has eyes but does not recognize Mount Tai1This is a metaphor for someone who is unable to recognize the greatness of another person or situation..”

After being awoken by someone, the county magistrate immediately picked up his black gauze hat that had fallen to the side and put it on his head. He knelt and crawled to Chu Li’s feet, slapping himself in the face while speaking.

Chu Li was too disgusted to watch, finding his behavior a disgrace to the dignity of an imperial officer.

He approached Qiao Yuan, inspected him thoroughly, and, seeing he was unharmed, said, “Kneel to Qiao Yuan. Should anything happen to him, even cutting off your head ten times wouldn’t be enough to make up for it.”

The county magistrate hurriedly kowtowed and crawled toward Qiao Yuan, but Qiao Yuan found his face disgusting and pulled Yu Dameng in front to block him.

Chu Li said to the still kneeling Prefect Zhang, “Prefect Zhang, I’ll leave this case to you.”

Prefect Zhang breathed a sigh of relief and stood up, then turned to the county magistrate with a cold tone and said, “County Magistrate Shi, you may continue to handle the case.”

The county magistrate trembled as he kowtowed, and quickly got up to tidy himself.

Chu Li brought Qiao Yuan to sit aside and happily said, “I received your letter and rushed over immediately. What do you think? Did I make it in time?”

Qiao Yuan, still shaken, feigned annoyance, “If you had come any later, I would have died on the spot.”

“Hehe, don’t be angry!” Chu Li rubbed affectionately against Qiao Yuan’s side, “I really rushed here as fast as I could.”

He sidled up to Qiao Yuan and whispered, avoiding Yu Dameng, “My butt hurts from riding a horse!”

Magistrate Shi had just sat back down at the desk when Ma Shun’er could no longer endure. He knelt and crawled towards Qiao Yuan, crying, “Boss, boss, I was wrong, it was my fault. I should die. I was bewitched, but I didn’t want to!”

He pointed at Zhang Wensheng and Qiao Guangzhi and cried, “It’s them, it’s them! The two of them approached me and offered me two hundred taels of silver to falsely accuse and make a report against the shop for illegal activities. They said they would take care of everything else, but I didn’t want to do it at first. However, they threatened that if I didn’t comply, I would have no place to stand in Yunshui County. As a commoner, how could I not comply?”

He cried bitterly, regretting deeply for not listening to his wife’s advice.

Qiao Yuan’s face turned cold, “I have said that I have always treated you well, but since you have done such a thing, you should bear the consequences yourself. I will never forgive you!”

Just thinking about Yu Dameng wearing shackles overnight made Qiao Yuan wish he could hack Ma Shun’er and the others into ten thousand pieces!

The county magistrate questioned Zhang Wensheng and Qiao Guangzhi. The two of them had collapsed on their knees beside Magistrate Shi earlier. Qiao Guangzhi stood erect, still bearing a trace of defiance, while Zhang Wensheng was already trembling in fear and had no trace of the dignity of a scholar.

He looked up at the magistrate and then pointed at Qiao Guangzhi, saying, “It’s him, it’s him. He holds a grudge against Qiao Yuan for dividing the family property and causing him to lose his job. That’s why he’s using my name to cause trouble. He’s my father-in-law, and filial piety is more important than anything else. I have no choice but to go along with it!”

Qiao Yuan was speechless. This pretentious scholar is facing death, yet he still talks about filial piety as if it’s a banner to hold up!

Qiao Guangzhi chuckled. “Scholar Zhang, how could you accomplish anything with such behavior?”

“Are you really innocent? Don’t you resent Yu Dameng, a mere blacksmith, for winning Qiao Yuan’s heart? Don’t you regret not marrying Qiao Yuan when you see his shop thriving and making a fortune? Aren’t you angry at being humiliated by Qiao Yuan three times? Don’t you envy Yu Laoda’s better reputation, knowledge, and popularity than yours? I just complained a little in front of you, and you eagerly conspired with me. Where is your innocence?”

“For the sake of money, you can break off an engagement with your childhood sweetheart who you were betrothed to since childhood; for fame and fortune, you can abandon your proper wife and demote her to a concubine. How can you even deserve to be called a scholar?”

“I really hate it. How can someone as foolish, short-sighted, and ungrateful as you be able to read books and even become a scholar? Life is so unfair, hahaha.” Qiao Guangzhi laughed wildly as if he had gone mad.

Zhang Wensheng angrily said, “What right do you have to criticize me?! You don’t take care of your elderly mother and neglect your late brother’s orphan. You are the one who forgets gratitude and betrays loyalty!”

Afraid they would implicate him if allowed to keep arguing, the county magistrate banged the gavel, immediately sentencing, “The facts of this case are now clear with solid evidence. Zhang Wensheng and Qiao Guangzhi were the masterminds behind Ma Shun’er’s false accusations of Yu Dameng and his husband. By Dachu’s law, false accusers shall take the punishment themselves. False accusers will be punished with ninety lashes and three years of hard labor. Those who incite others to accuse will receive a higher punishment. Those who demote their wives to concubines will be punished with ninety lashes. For multiple crimes, the cumulative punishment is carried out. Hence, Zhang Wensheng will be stripped of his title and punished with one hundred lashes and five years of hard labor. He is not allowed to pay a fine and will be immediately arrested.”

“Criminal Qiao Guangzhi is guilty of the same crime and will share the same penalty. As for Zhang Wensheng’s charge against Qiao Guangzhi for filial impiety, further investigation is required for a future judgment.”

“Criminal Ma Shun’er accepted payment to falsely accuse others, making him guilty of the same crime as he falsely accused of others. Due to the severity of the accusation, the punishment is increased by two degrees. The two crimes will be punished together, and he will be sentenced to 100 lashes and four years of hard labor, with no option for monetary redemption.”

Dachu’s maximum corporal punishment is one hundred lashes. If the total number of cane strikes exceeded one hundred, an additional year of hard labor would be added.  A hundred lashes could cripple a person for life.

“Your Honor!” Qiao Guangzhi demanded with intensity, “Are you innocent either?”

“When you saw Yu Xiangxue’s promising future and sought to engage him as your son-in-law, only to be rejected, did you not harbor thoughts of revenge? When you later sought to ensure your own political future by forming factions, you engaged Zhang Wensheng as your son-in-law and demoted my daughter to a concubine. Can you truly claim to be uninvolved?”

The county magistrate angrily shouted, “Shut up!”

Prefect Zhang said calmly, “Let him continue speaking.”

He was eager to hear precisely what misdeeds Shi Hengtong had committed!

“Fate is really unfair. I hate it!” Qiao Guangzhi’s eyes were venomous as he pointed at the county magistrate and Zhang Wensheng, “You ignorant people, born with such a good background, able to enter school and succeed. And me, I can only stay in this small world, living my life according to other people’s whims!”

Qiao Yuan couldn’t bear it anymore and angrily said, “You think too highly of yourself! You are stubborn and self-centered! You are a deceitful person who is greedy for fame and fortune, and you are also ungrateful. What could the likes of you ever achieve? There are plenty of illiterates who built fortunes from nothing through their own hard work, yet you just complain of the heavens’ and others’ injustices despite lacking any capability! All you do is complain and blame others all day long instead of improving yourself!”

The county magistrate chimed in agreement, “Exactly! Just so!”

Zhang Wensheng saw that Qiao Yuan agreed with his criticism of Qiao Guangzhi, and he crawled over as if he had seen a savior, saying, “Yuan Ge’er, Yuan Ge’er, for the sake of our…”

Qiao Yuan gave him a stern look, and he immediately changed the subject, “Considering the deep friendship between our parents in the past, please help me! I was heartless and ungrateful. Please, I beg you!”

Prefect Zhang saw that Qiao Yuan had an impatient expression on his face, and Yu Dameng was even more furious as if he wanted to eat Zhang Wensheng. He quickly said to the yamen runners, “Why haven’t you taken him away yet?”

The runners took Zhang Wensheng and Ma Shun’er away, but Qiao Guangzhi refused to leave. He said, “I want to see the fate of the county magistrate.”

He sneered at Prefect Zhang, “So you officials don’t cover for each other and only punish us lowly commoners.”

Prefect Zhang was inwardly fuming but maintained a detached expression. He stood up and turned to Shi Hengtong, “County Magistrate Shi, the false accusation case is settled. Now let’s address your case.”

He sternly said, “After investigation, it has been found that during your term, you embezzled and accepted bribes totaling more than three thousand taels, and bribed officials in the capital with more than eight thousand taels. You sought personal gain, favored your relatives, and seized land from the people. You are now dismissed from your position and arrested. After identifying the officials who accepted bribes, you will be immediately punished and sentenced!”

The county magistrate, who was still hoping to beg for mercy from Qiao Yuan, had his official hat removed and his official uniform stripped off by the yamen runners brought by the prefect in an instant.

Qiao Guangzhi threw his head back in laughter.

Qiao Yuan had always thought that Qiao Guangzhi was just a bad person without a conscience, but the false accusation had revealed a bold and calculating nature that unsettled him. He felt that something was not right and asked his doubts, “Tell me, were you involved in my parents’ deaths?”

Qiao Guangzhi chuckled and asked him back, “What do you think?”

After speaking, he looked deeply at Qiao Yuan with a stern tone and asked, “That’s what I should be asking you. Were they really your parents? Are you truly Yuan Ge’er?”

Qiao Yuan looked at him steadily, his eyes sharp like a knife ready to torture him.

After a tense standoff, Qiao Guangzhi suddenly shouted, “No, you are not Yuan Ge’er! You can’t be!”

“How could that foolish and shortsighted man produce an intelligent and daring son like you?!”

Qiao Yuan laughed coldly, his voice icy, “No, you’re wrong. I am him.”

His tone gradually became sharp, “My father was self-reliant, intelligent, upright in his conduct, and honest in his work. He was a first-class husband in my mother’s heart! You consider yourself extraordinary, but in reality, you are nowhere near as good as him!”

“No!” Qiao Guangzhi roared in furious denial, “You are not Yuan Ge’er!”

He suddenly rushed towards the yamen officer on one side, drew the officer’s sword, and swung it towards Qiao Yuan.

“Yuan Ge’er!” Yu Dameng called out urgently, shielding Qiao Yuan and dodging to the side, kicking Qiao Guangzhi to the ground.

Qiao Guangzhi was immediately restrained by the yamen runners, his eyes filled with hate as he glared at Qiao Yuan, still hissing, “You’re a ghost!”

Qiao Yuan didn’t have time to deal with him and anxiously checked if Yu Dameng was injured.

Eager to make an impression in front of Chu Li, Prefect Zhang immediately stood up and angrily shouted, “Qiao Guangzhi committed a heinous act of violence in the public hall. He is sentenced to be executed by beheading, and the execution date will be chosen! Take him away!”

As Qiao Guangzhi was dragged away, he continued to scream hauntingly, “Someone come! Catch the ghost!”

Everyone did not expect him to become so insane, and for a moment there was some silence.

At this moment, suddenly a person jumped out and laughed, “You have good skills! You haven’t forgotten the martial arts you learned in the army!”

“Major General!” Yu Dameng was overjoyed upon realizing it was Pei You.

“Mm,” Pei You clicked his tongue twice, “but perhaps you should pay more attention to your husband right now.”

Yu Dameng lowered his head to look at Qiao Yuan in his arms. Qiao Yuan, still shaken, was on the verge of tears, “You scared me to death!”

Yu Dameng chuckled sheepishly, scratching his head. “I still got some skills.”

Qiao Yuan angrily punched him and said, “I praise you a little, and you’re already out of breath!”

Yu Dameng hastened to coax his husband.

Chu Li watched the affectionate couple with a touch of envy.

Pei You walked over and rubbed his hair in a teasing manner, asking, “Why didn’t you wait for me?”

“Who are you, huh? Do I know you? Why should I wait for you!” Chu Li retorted fiercely.

Pei You frowned, “Chu Jiaojiao, are you serious?”

Chu Li’s hair stood on end. “Who are you calling Chu Jiaojiao?”

“Who here has the surname Chu?” Pei You retorted.

Chu Li was angry and wanted to hit him, but it made Qiao Yuan laugh instead. “Thank you for today.”

“It’s what I should do,” Chu Li responded.

He approached Qiao Yuan, rubbing against him, and said, “Should I thank you? Your recipes have really helped me hold my head high!” He spoke with a sense of superiority and shot a smug glance at Pei You.

Ever since the shop opened its doors before the New Year, it’s been making a fortune daily. The rare flowers cultivated during the winter sold at unparalleled prices. The profits were immense.

Hearing this, Pei You cupped his fists towards Qiao Yuan. “On behalf of the entire Northwestern Army, I thank Young Master Qiao for your generosity.”

Qiao Yuan replied with a smile, returning the courtesy: “My husband served in the military when he was young and was fortunate enough to receive General’s care.”

After he finished speaking, he turned to Chu Li and said, “I have come up with a new method recently, and I will explain it to you in detail later.”

After a pause, Qiao Yuan continued to Chu Li, “I’ve recently thought of a new method which I’ll explain to you in detail later.”

He thought for a moment and then said, “I have one more big gift to give you!”

Qiao Yuan nodded and bid farewell to Chu Li for the time being.

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