Chapter 124 declared, "Quiet! No noise allowed in the courtroom!"...

Early January 1999, in the dead of winter.

The city's Public Security Bureau has finally cracked a major case involving dozens of trafficking cases of women and children in Ume City.

Of the two suspects named by "Sister Hong" Chen Zhelan, one resisted fiercely during the arrest and died from his injuries.

The other one, seeing the situation was not good, fled to the border area in advance and has probably already escaped abroad.

At this point, the only big fish left in the "Sister Hong case" was Chen Zhelan, and the suspects below her were all of similar rank to Huo Jia.

On the day the court pronounced its verdict, Wu Wei happened to be returning from out of town and was having dinner at the Huyang Hotel when he heard the news.

He froze, the peanuts he had just picked up fell onto the table, and as he picked up his wine glass to cover himself, he tilted his head back and drank, spilling the liquor down his chin.

Wu Wei was away for a long time. Chen Zhelan hadn't even appeared when he left, and when he returned, the series was already about to end.

After a moment, he confirmed with the person next to him, "Is the 'Sister Hong' you're talking about named Chen Zhelan?"

"Yes, I heard she's quite pretty, but she's a bit old."

Wu Wei then inquired, "Do you know what she did to get arrested?"

"You're from out of town, right? You don't know this? It's caused quite a stir lately. She's been stealing all the children who've gone missing in Wumu City these past few years. I heard she even lures young women from other places to Xinjiang to sell for money..."

Wu Wei knew that Chen Zhelan usually did some small business as a foreman, helping new workers find jobs and earning a little money from the information difference.

But this is completely different from selling women and children; they are worlds apart.

Wu Wei was completely baffled. After finishing his meal, he pondered for a long time before heading towards the Intermediate People's Court.

Ume City has four districts: east, south, west, and north. Each district has a district court responsible for handling civil and criminal cases within its jurisdiction.

In addition to the district court, there is also a municipal intermediate court above the district court, which is responsible for hearing second-instance cases appealed by the district court, as well as complex cases with significant impact within the city.

Because the "Sister Hong" case involved an entire criminal syndicate and hundreds of victims, it was directly tried by the Wumu Intermediate People's Court in accordance with relevant regulations.

Seven people were sentenced today, and the courtroom was packed with spectators.

Above the courtroom, beneath the imposing national emblem, sat a tribunal composed of three judges, with two prosecutors from the municipal procuratorate serving as public prosecutors on the left.

Seated on the right are seven legal aid lawyers appointed by the Bar Association to defend the defendant.

In the very center, standing inside the fence, were seven defendants, their hands still cuffed, with two bailiffs standing behind each of them.

"Thump!" The middle-aged man in the courtroom, dressed in a judge's robe, struck the gavel with a solemn expression.

This case has been under trial for several months, and the court has held several hearings. Today's hearing is specifically for the sentencing, which is why so many people have come to observe.

"...In accordance with Articles XXX and XXX of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China, the verdict is now being pronounced:"

I. Defendant Chen Zhelan is guilty of trafficking women and is sentenced to ten years imprisonment and fined 50,000 yuan.

In court, Chen Zhelan wore a dark gray striped prison uniform, and her long, beautiful black curly hair had been forcibly cut short. Her expression remained normal, revealing no emotion.

When she heard that she was only sentenced to ten years, she was overjoyed, thinking that she still had a chance.

She had already done her research; prisoners could get their sentences reduced if they behaved well while in jail, and maybe she could get out soon.

The two accomplices standing next to Chen Zhelan exchanged a glance. If Sister Hong was only sentenced to ten years, their sentences would be even shorter.

The crowd sitting in the audience began to stir.

"It's not fair! She harmed so many of us, why was she only sentenced to ten years!"

"That's right, my lost son still hasn't been found, who's going to give me a son in return..."

Zhijia also brought her son. She wanted to show Aji that the bad people who had caused them so much suffering would be punished as they deserved.

At this moment, she was also filled with hatred, her eyes reddened, and she held Aji's hand tightly.

Aji didn't understand what was wrong with his mother. He was too young to know what had happened, but he knew that his mother seemed very angry and sad.

“Mom, don’t cry, Aji’s here.” He reached out and hugged Zhijia’s arm, awkwardly comforting her.

An elderly man in a black robe sat in the back row, his hands clasped together, his eyes closed in devout prayer.

"Quiet! No noise is allowed in the courtroom!"

The judge, seated in the courtroom, struck the gavel again, shouting, "Anyone who speaks again will be expelled!"

Several other bailiffs who were standing outside came in to maintain order, and the crowd of onlookers finally quieted down.

The judge continued reading the verdict: "The defendant, Chen Zhelan, is guilty of child trafficking. She is sentenced to death with multiple offenses combined, deprived of her political rights for life, and all her personal property is confiscated." [1]

"Second, the defendant Huo Jia is guilty of child trafficking and is sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined 30,000 yuan."

III. The defendant…

The authoritative male voice continued to read out the sentences for the remaining five people, but Chen Zhelan could no longer hear it at all.

She slumped into a chair, utterly dejected, as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.

Countless faces flashed through my mind in an instant: crying children, begging girls, and elderly people kneeling and praying for blessings on the roadside.

The tears that had been welling up in Zhijia's eyes finally fell, and she murmured to herself, "Well done, well done!"

Reheman, sitting in the back row, had tears in her eyes and clasped her hands together, saying, "Thank you, Bodhisattva, thank you, all the gods. It's good that I'm alive..."

In this way, after he passes away, he will finally be able to give an explanation to his wife and son.

As the trial ended and the defendants were being led away by bailiffs, Chen Zhelan turned her head and saw Wu Wei again.

Wu Wei's lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he swallowed it back, only nodding in farewell and silently watching her go for the last time.

Chen Zhelan was helped out of the courtroom by two bailiffs, one on each side. Her steps were unsteady, her eyes filled with tears. She looked up at the ceiling and burst into laughter, "Hahahaha..."

When news of the verdict reached the Chen family, Chen Mianmian and Ji Yu were already out traveling.

Chen Muhe ate the walnut kernels that Lin Huijun had peeled and said angrily, "Finally, she's been caught. This is what bad people deserve."

If Chen Zhelan hadn't taken her sister to Xinjiang and sold her to Wu Wei, her sister wouldn't have suffered so much in her previous life and wouldn't have died so young.

By a twist of fate, my sister was able to meet Ji Yu and achieve a happy ending, which is a blessing for their whole family.

It's just a pity that she doesn't know when she'll have the chance to see her two lovely and well-behaved nieces again.

Lin Huijun was unaware of the story behind it all; she simply felt grateful that her family was lucky not to have been harmed by Chen Zhelan.

…

Half a month later, Yan Yuhua and Lin Shanhu's yard was finally repaired.

The design is inspired by the Chen family's Nine-Ringed Rings. To the left of the entrance is the kitchen, and to the right are the toilet and storage room.

Further up is Lin Qiaofang's room. The room in the middle of the courtyard serves as the living room, with Yan Yuhua and her husband's rooms on either side, and He Maimiao and her husband's rooms on either side.

Yan Yuhua also did some simple renovations to the remaining two empty rooms, leaving them for her daughter and granddaughter's family to stay in when they needed to stay overnight.

On the farm she contracted, winter wheat had already been planted long ago, awaiting a bountiful harvest next year.

Chen Mian and Ji Yu returned just in time for their housewarming.

"Grandma, your yard is so beautiful! It's so much bigger than our house. You and Grandpa are amazing!"

As soon as Chen Mian entered, she began to praise Yan Yuhua's courtyard, saying it was indeed beautiful.

When the Chen family was building the courtyard, they were in a hurry to move in, so they used the simplest red bricks, as long as they were sturdy and easy to use.

Unlike Yan Yuhua and Lin Shanhu, who had planned from the beginning to build a courtyard with Xinjiang characteristics.

The walls at the entrance are made of locally unique colored bricks, which are so colorful that when the sunlight shines on them, it looks like a vibrant oil painting.

The gate is also inlaid with colorful patterns, symbolizing "good fortune, peace and health".

Yan Yuhua was so pleased with her granddaughter that she smiled broadly, and the wrinkles on her face seemed to lessen.

"You, you really know how to talk better than anyone else. You were so sweet-talking when you were little, and you've become even more eloquent as you've grown up." Yan Yuhua patted Chen Mian's arm affectionately.

"How was your trip? Did you have fun?"

Chen Mian's eyes crinkled into two crescent moons as she smiled and told her grandmother about the fun things that happened on her trip.

She and Ji Yu drove from Urumqi to Kashgar, carrying thick blankets and cooking utensils, stopping frequently along the way.

If you're tired, just stop the car and sleep; if you're hungry, find a place to cook.

Sometimes you'll run into other people out having fun on the way, from all over the country, chatting about everything from flying in the sky to swimming in the water.

After arriving in Kashgar, Ji Yu took her on a tour of the military base and had a meal with her former superiors.

Yan Yuhua also became interested: "What you're saying makes me want to go out and travel. Apart from coming to Xinjiang, I've never been far from home."

“Of course you can. You and Grandpa are both in good health now, and there’s nothing to worry about at home, so it’s perfect for you to go out and have some fun,” Chen Mian said.

"However, you can wait until after the New Year when the weather is warmer before going out. The scenery will be even better then."

Chen Mianmian was planning her grandmother's travel itinerary for the coming year. "Then you and Grandpa will have to get your driver's licenses first. You can't just walk around like you used to when you went out to play."

"You little rascal," Yan Yuhua poked Chen Mian's forehead with her finger. "Haven't had Grandma's cooking in a long time, have you? What do you want to eat today? Grandma will make it for you."

"I'm craving jiaotuan (a type of porridge). I crave it when I'm out."

Making jiaotuan is too laborious; inexperienced people often end up with something like paste that's inedible.

When Chen Mianmian was bored on the road, she and Ji Yu tried it together, but for some reason, it just didn't taste good.

"Okay, no problem at all, Grandma will make it for you." Yan Yuhua agreed with a smile, then turned and looked around. "Why didn't I see Ji Yu come with you? Has he already gone back to work?"

Chen Mian: "His mother is close to her due date and has already checked into the hospital. He said he would go and take a look first before coming over."

"This is also your mother-in-law. Aren't you going to visit her?"

Chen Mian said innocently, "I've already bought everything, but Ji Yu won't let me go."

“He said that the obstetrics and gynecology department is full of pregnant women, and he was afraid that I would be scared if I went there, so he told me to just wait at home. Aunt Xiaoyue said the same thing.”

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Author's note: In reality, the death penalty wouldn't be handed down so quickly. It's just for the sake of the plot in the novel, so please don't take it seriously.