Chapter 17: The County Magistrate took the secret letter and looked at it. His face suddenly...

Liu Yeshu was brought to the courtroom, feeling lost. Who was she? Why was she here? Everything around her felt unfamiliar. She looked around, seeing a spacious hall, its walls covered in majestic plaques and couplets. In the center, a plaque reading "A Bright Mirror Hangs High" gleamed majestically in the candlelight.

The county magistrate sat in the hall, dressed in his official uniform, his face solemn. Yamen runners stood on either side, holding water and fire sticks, their eyes piercing. Below, several clerks lowered their heads to take notes. Everything was in perfect order. The entire hall was filled with an invisible pressure, making people feel insignificant and intimidated.

Liu Yeshu forced herself to remain calm and straightened her back. Beads of sweat had already formed on her palms, but she knew she couldn't show any fear at this moment.

"Open the court!" With this order, everyone in the hall stood up in unison. Liu Yeshu couldn't help but feel nervous and knelt down in a hurry.

County Magistrate Tang Fang sat behind a high desk, his eyes piercing as he sized Liu Yeshu up and down. He asked in a stern tone, "Are you Liu Yeshu?"

Liu Yeshu took a deep breath and replied, "Your Excellency, I am the one who made it."

"Liu Yeshu, do you admit your guilt?"

Liu Yeshu forced herself to remain calm, clenching her hands until her fingertips turned slightly white, and slowly spoke, "I don't know what crime I have committed."

"Hmph!" Tang Fang snorted coldly and slammed the table. "How dare you! As a criminal slave, you dare to engage in business without permission! What's more, you evaded taxes, which is a serious crime!"

When Liu Yeshu heard this, he broke out in a cold sweat.

Criminal slaves are not allowed to engage in business...

She then realized her negligence and hurriedly explained, "Sir, I was indeed negligent, but I did not intend to evade taxes. My family is poor, and I just want to rely on my little skills to support my family. I really didn't know that this could be considered business..."

The county magistrate interrupted her impatiently, "According to the law, convicts cannot engage in business, let alone own property! Businessmen must pay taxes on time. Violators will be fined fifty taels of silver. Repeat offenders will be punished with eighty strokes of the cane and exiled to the army. You are already a convict, so your crime is even more severe! Moreover, even if you were not a convict, making money from business without paying taxes is deceiving the emperor and should be punished according to the law!"

Liu Yeshu wanted to argue again, but Tang Fang didn't even give her a chance. He waved his hand, and two yamen runners came forward and threw the table, the kimchi jar, and the sesame eggs on the ground. It was clear evidence.

The table in the stall had been smashed to pieces. Ling'er had spent a lot of effort to make this table. He said that although the table was ugly, it was still stable.

Liu Yeshu shook her head to drive away the sad scene.

She couldn't bring herself to feel sorry for herself as she stared at the dismantled stall before her. She thought, since her brother hadn't appeared with the yamen runners, he must have gone home to inform her parents. But her parents were also slaves, so besides worrying about it, there was nothing she could do. She could only save herself.

If she wanted to save herself, she would probably have to make amends for her mistakes. She quickly pulled up the agricultural encyclopedia in her mind, looking for ways to save her life after making a sacrifice.

"grown ups……"

Suddenly, there was a commotion outside the hall. It was Liu Yeling who brought her parents to the yamen.

"Where is my daughter? I want to see her!" Liu's mother shouted at the top of her lungs with red eyes.

Father Liu grabbed his wife and knelt before the county magistrate, his face filled with pleading: "Sir, my daughter is young and ignorant. If she has offended us, please have mercy on her. We will definitely discipline her and will never let her make the same mistake again."

But the ruthless yamen runners were as unyielding as iron, firmly blocking them outside the door. No matter how much the Liu family begged, they could not enter the hall.

Father Liu seemed to have remembered something at this moment and said to Mother Liu, "Wait here!" After that, he quickly left. Mother Liu paced back and forth anxiously outside the door, wanting to rush in and defend her daughter, but she was helpless.

In the hall, the county magistrate threw out a new charge: "Slave Liu, are you aware that someone has reported you for illegally occupying government stalls and disrupting order in the East Market? You don't admit this, do you?"

Liu Yeshu was so shocked that she could hardly believe her ears.

For the sake of Shopkeeper Mo, she no longer needed to take care of Brother-in-law Mo, but she had never missed paying the rent for the stall, so how could it suddenly become illegal occupation of land?

But Tang Fang pretended not to hear her argument and sneered, "Because you are a criminal slave."

Liu Yeshu was furious and immediately asked, "Is everything a slave does wrong?!"

Tang Fang had investigated countless cases and was incredibly experienced. He was waiting for her to say this. He narrowed his eyes and asked, "Are you questioning... the emperor's will?"

Liu Yeshu knew that he had said the wrong thing and broke out in a cold sweat.

Liu Yeshu wanted to say more, but the county magistrate waved his hand and sternly said, "Come here, take Liu Yeshu to the prison! We'll make a decision after we investigate the case. If he's guilty, he'll be sent to a brothel!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall erupted in an uproar. The onlookers began to discuss the situation, some expressing sympathy, others gloating. Upon hearing this, Mother Liu's body went limp and she fainted, only to be held up by her younger brother.

Liu Yeshu shuddered at the mention of "brothel." Fighting back tears, she gritted her teeth and said, "Sir, while I made a mistake, I never intended to evade taxes. I am willing to pay all fines and make amends. I beg you to be lenient..."

Hearing the words "make amends", Gao Fang raised an eyebrow and then asked with interest: "How can you, a criminal slave, make amends?"

Liu Yeshu gritted his teeth and said, "I know a way to improve the seeds..."

At that moment, a yamen runner quickly approached the county magistrate and handed him a letter. Liu Yeshu fell silent. Gao Fang took it and glanced at it, his expression suddenly changing. He read it carefully several times, his brow furrowed, as if he was lost in thought.

After a moment, Gao Fang raised his head, his gaze resting on Liu Yeshu meaningfully for a moment, and asked, "Slave Liu, do you admit your guilt?"

Liu Yeshu's heart skipped a beat. Seeing that the county magistrate's expression had softened, she feared that things might improve, so she answered honestly, "I acknowledge my guilt and am willing to accept any fines."

Gao Fang thought to himself that this Liu was quite perceptive. He cleared his throat and announced, "Since this is Liu Yeshu's first offense and he has shown remorse, I will give him a lenient sentence."

He paused and continued, "According to the law, a slave who engages in business without authorization shall be fined one hundred taels of silver. However, considering that Liu Yeshu's business is small and this is his first offense, the fine can be reduced by half to fifty taels, payable within three days. In addition, he is not allowed to engage in business without authorization again, otherwise he will be severely punished!"

"Thank you, sir!"

Liu Yeshu thanked the county magistrate for his mercy. She breathed a sigh of relief and felt exhausted all over.

She looked back with lingering fear, and met the gazes of Liu's mother and brother, like birds colliding in mid-air after escaping a disaster.

The crowd scattered like birds and beasts, and a dark shadow walked away with the crowd.

*

When I came out of the yamen, the sun was setting.

"Thanks to our ancestors, you finally came out!" Mother Liu stroked her daughter's hair and burst into tears.

Seeing that his sister was fine, Liu Yeling felt relieved, but then he remembered that the government wanted a fine of fifty taels, and he felt like a stone was pressing on his chest again - if he couldn't pay the fine, his sister would probably still not be able to escape.

The three of them walked together, but on the way they met Liu's father who was in a hurry.

Father Liu had been worried, but now that he saw his daughter was safe and sound, he felt relieved. He breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Shu'er? You're out? Did the government release you?"

Mother Liu wiped her tears and said to Father Liu, "It's a good thing you found the person. The county magistrate received a secret letter and released him."

Upon hearing this, Father Liu couldn't help but frown and said in confusion: "But... I clearly didn't find anyone."

Liu Yeshu was also very surprised and asked, "Dad, you went to ask General Qi for help, right?"

"That's right. I wanted to go to the Qi Mansion to plead for mercy, but Butler Zhao said that General Qi had just left and had gone to the military camp. So I thought about going home and riding a camel to the military camp, but I didn't expect to meet you on the road."

Hearing this, Liu Yeling, who had been silent all this time, suddenly realized and said, "Then I know, it might be Sister Yurou who helped!"

Liu Yeshu was even more puzzled: "Chu Yurou? Is she the girl we rescued that day?"

"Yes!" Liu Di said excitedly, "I was running too fast on the way home and accidentally bumped into her. She asked me why I was so anxious, and I told her about the government officials. Sister Yu Rou told me not to worry, and she might have a solution."

After hearing what her brother said, Liu Yeshu's doubts deepened: "What method did Miss Chu use?"

Liu Yeling shook her head. "That... she didn't say that. She left in a hurry after she finished speaking. I was in a hurry to get home, so I didn't ask any further questions."

The Liu family members looked at each other, unable to explain what was going on for a moment.

Liu Yeshu had some vague guesses in his mind, but he was not sure. He decided to find an opportunity tomorrow to go to Chu Yurou's house in person to thank her and find out the whole story.

*

When the Liu family returned to their home, they found someone waiting outside. Looking closer, they saw Aunt Sun hunched over, pacing at the door. Sun Hong stood nearby, kicking pebbles on the ground in a gloomy manner.

When Aunt Sun saw them coming, she immediately put on a smile and came forward stealthily.

"Oh, Shu'er, I heard that something happened to you today. We were so scared!" Aunt Sun yelled as soon as she came in, with an exaggerated look of concern on her face.

Although she wore a look of concern, her eyes flickered with ill intent. Without waiting for an invitation, she led Sun Hong into the house on her own.

Sun Hong followed her mother, head bowed, seemingly reluctant to come. She managed to raise her head and whispered, "Miss Liu, are you okay?" There was a hint of embarrassment and apology in her tone.

Liu Yeshu forced a smile: "Thank you for your concern, I'm fine now."

Mother Liu said nothing and served tea to the two people who had come to visit suddenly.

Aunt Sun took Liu Yeshu's hand and sighed, "Look at you, how could you have ended up in such a mess?" Then, she lowered her voice and said mysteriously, "Shu'er, I have an idea. Why don't you sell me your kimchi and sesame egg recipes? That way, your family can get some relief. Don't you have to pay the fine in three days?"

At the word "fine," Liu Yeshu's family froze. Their current savings wouldn't even amount to ten taels of silver, a far cry from the fifty taels the government demanded.

Aunt Sun felt more confident after seeing this. She took a sip of tea, a glint of greed flashing in her eyes. "How about this? I'll give you ten taels of silver. What do you think?"

When these words were spoken, everyone in the Liu family was stunned except Liu Yeshu.

Father and Mother Liu exchanged surprised glances. If they could really sell this recipe, it would indeed ease the pressure of raising funds within three days. Liu Yeling frowned. He hated these two people who took advantage of the situation.

Liu Yeshu was silent for a moment, then said calmly, "Aunt Sun, this happened too suddenly. I need to think about it carefully."

When Sun Hong heard her mother's suggestion, a trace of shame flashed across her face. She secretly glanced at Liu Yeshu and nervously peeled the barbs from her other hand with one hand.

When Aunt Sun saw that Liu Yeshu did not agree, the smile on her face gradually froze.

Seeing this, Liu Yeshu said gently, "It's getting late, and I'm really exhausted from today's interrogation. Aunt Sun, Sister Sun, you should go back and rest early." As she said that, she politely and firmly sent the two of them out of the house.

The moment the door closed, Sun Hong finally couldn't help but whisper to her mother, "Mom, how could you do this? The Liu family is in trouble now. It's fine if you don't help, but how can you take advantage of them?"

Aunt Sun snorted disapprovingly: "What do you know? This is called a business opportunity!"