Chapter 497 Two Cases Tried Simultaneously!

The men wanted to advise Wei Dongzhu not to be so angry and impulsive, but the words wouldn't come out.

They couldn't even imagine their daughter marrying into such a family; just thinking about it was like having a fire burning in their hearts. They probably weren't much better than Wei Dongzhu.

The sound of weeping came from the surrounding people; it was a woman crying.

One or two, followed by countless others.

They were all women, and in their husbands' families, they always had to swallow their pride and bear their grievances. Those with parents and brothers to support them got a little more, while those without parents and brothers to support them had no choice but to endure it all.

They deeply empathized with the Regent's words and began to understand what she meant by "opening a way out."

"The Regent is wise!" someone shouted first.

Immediately afterwards, a chorus of responses erupted.

Ignoring the gloomy face of the Vice Minister of War, Shen Lanxi ordered someone to fetch his nephew.

"Today, I, the King, will hold a public trial and bring justice to the woman who died unjustly!"

The Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices looked at his younger brother, who was kneeling on the ground and crying uncontrollably, and felt a mix of shame, bitterness, and helplessness.

They had discussed this matter together before. If their niece's affair became public, their unmarried daughters would definitely face difficulties in finding a husband. He would also be harassed by the Vice Minister of War. The solution they had agreed upon was one that would benefit both sides. It's all that damned maid's fault for meddling!

Shen Lanxi turned to look at Madam Song: "Do you intend to punish the Tian family according to the law?"

After resting for a while, Madam Song regained some strength.

"Yes, I will return what they did to me in full, and even double it."

Shen Lanxi: "Where are your children?"

Madam Song snorted coldly: "Since they no longer recognize me and helped the Tian family to kill me, I don't want them anymore. They are not my children; they are wolves."

"Mother..." Song Niangzi's two children tried to rush forward to beg for mercy, but were stopped by the guards who drew their swords.

“Mother, we were wrong. It’s all Grandmother’s and Father’s fault. It has nothing to do with us…” Song Niangzi’s two children cried and begged for forgiveness.

Shen Lanxi: "Tian Chunshan is to be executed immediately for ordering his mistress to bring the child to the door in an attempt to starve Song Niangzi to death and murder her for money!"

“Tian Chunshan’s mother knew about it but did not report it, so she was an accomplice and should also be executed immediately.”

"Tian Chunshan's children and his concubines were all exiled to Dongchuan to serve as slaves to the armored men."

Tian Chunshan and her son were so frightened they wet themselves; one struggled incessantly, and the other screamed incessantly.

Jingwei gagged Tian Chunshan's mother and dragged her aside.

Madam Song spoke again.

"Regent, can't I just spare their lives?"

Shen Lanxi raised an eyebrow: "Are you going to plead for them?"

Madam Song said viciously, "It's too easy for them to die. I was the one who brought them back from Dongchuan, and now I want them to go back to Dongchuan. There's so much land there that no one is cultivating. I want them to go there and be our slaves, contributing to our Great Zhou!"

Shen Lanxi: "..." That makes sense!

"Alright, I'll leave this matter to you to oversee!"

Madam Song sneered viciously at Tian Chunshan's family. Tian Chunshan's family felt as if they had fallen into hell. It was all over. They were really finished.

The people from the Dali Temple took Tian Chunshan's family away and said they would deal with them after Song Niangzi recovered.

"You should go in and rest too!" Shen Lanxi was concerned about Song Niangzi, but she didn't expect her to refuse directly.

"Thank you, Regent. I'll wait a moment. I want to see how this family, whose daughter was murdered, will be sentenced!"

Shen Lanxi: "...Okay!"

Soon the family of the Vice Minister of War's nephew were brought here.

The younger brother of the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices was furious and accused the family of their crimes.

“My wife and I loved our daughter dearly, and we used most of our family's assets as her dowry. But this family is a wolf in sheep's clothing, and they tricked us into marriage. That villain concealed the fact that he already had several concubines and maids in his family, and even several illegitimate children. After my daughter married into the family, the villain's mother, relying on her status as the mother-in-law, took away my daughter's dowry and even wanted to register the illegitimate children under my daughter's name.” Each sentence was like a knife twisting in his heart, and he wept uncontrollably.

Shen Lanxi: "It's absolutely hateful and despicable!"

The Minister of War's sister immediately retorted, her face darkening, "Nonsense! He's talking nonsense! His daughter is sickly; after marrying into the family, she couldn't even take care of my son, let alone her mother-in-law and sister-in-law. We pitied her because she's too weak and didn't want her to suffer the pain of childbirth again, so we registered the child under her name. It's such a win-win situation! You and your daughter are simply ungrateful!"

The common people were outraged by such shameless words. "Official family, indeed! Bah!"

The Vice Minister of War also looked very ugly. It was originally his sister's family that was unreasonable, but they dared to say it so openly. He was so angry that his face turned green.

Shen Lanxi: "So, you're admitting what he said, that your son already had concubines, maids, and illegitimate children before his marriage?"

The Vice Minister of War's sister immediately put on a disgusting face and said arrogantly, "Which official family doesn't have three wives and four concubines? My son is young and vigorous, and he hasn't been to brothels. What's wrong with having a few concubines and maids?"

That's shameless! This person is utterly shameless.

Although most officials and their families had multiple wives and concubines, they would not allow a son born out of wedlock to embarrass the principal wife before she married into the family. She practically wore the word "shameless" on her face.

Shen Lanxi asked coldly, "Are you admitting to deceiving me into marriage?"

The Vice Minister of War's sister naturally denied it: "Our family's situation is obvious; it's just that they didn't find out the truth."

The Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices was also furious. If the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War continued to indulge his sister's nonsense, he would rather give up his official position than endure such oppression.

"You're talking nonsense! It's clearly your family who tricked me into marriage and then tried to harm my daughter. My wife saw my daughter just a few days ago, and she was perfectly fine. How could she suddenly get sick?"

"Why didn't you notify us to see my daughter one last time after she died? You just buried her hastily. It's clearly because you have a guilty conscience!"

When the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices saw his younger brother's tearful accusations, he felt waves of pain in his heart.

It's all his fault for trying to curry favor with the family of the Vice Minister of War, which led to him arranging such a disastrous marriage for his niece. He has wronged his brother.

Shen Lanxi: "You say your daughter was murdered, do you have any evidence?"

There is indeed no conclusive evidence against the family of the younger brother of the Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Shen Lanxi: "Then let's open the coffin and examine the body!"

"No way!" The sister of the Vice Minister of War shouted to stop him.

Shen Lanxi looked at her sharply: "Historian, record this, this is one of the amendments to the marriage law. A married woman's family has the right to question the cause of her death, and has the right to request an autopsy. After the truth is found, they have the right to take the woman's body home!"

The Vice Minister of War's sister immediately started throwing a tantrum.

"No, she's already married into our family. She's a member of our family in life and in death. None of you can touch her!"