Liu Baiyao's heart pounded when he heard the magistrate's words, because the corpse he brought was bought from another village and was not from their village at all, nor was it beaten to death.

If the county magistrate were to actually summon a coroner to examine the body, the entire truth would be exposed immediately!

"Magistrate, our county doesn't have a coroner, does it?"

"ah……"

Upon hearing this, Magistrate Wang Hui glanced at Li Zhong standing below the hall and, seeing that he had no reaction, nodded in agreement.

"Just because this county doesn't have it doesn't mean other counties don't!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Baiyao immediately felt reassured. The closest counties to Xianyang were Chang'an and Wannian. Even if coroners from those two places were to come to perform autopsies, the time it would take for them to travel there and back would be more than enough for him to arrange.

"Since that's the case, then I'll sign and put my fingerprint on it!"

Liu Baiyao confidently signed the statement he had just given, then gave Li Zhong a provocative look.

"Young man, let me give you a piece of advice: it's best not to fight against our village!"

"If you return our land to us now, we'll call it even. Otherwise, even if we take this case to the Dali Temple, you won't get the slightest benefit!"

Upon hearing this, Li Jue hesitated for a moment; he really didn't dare to take the case to the Dali Temple.

Because if he, a mere fugitive, were caught by the imperial court, the best outcome would be exile to a place eight thousand miles away!

However, the other party went too far. It was clearly his own estate's land, yet they forcibly demanded it. When they couldn't get it, they framed him, forcing him to sue them!

Fortunately, he received the summons yesterday afternoon and was prepared in advance; otherwise, he would have really been bullied by this scoundrel today!

While Li Jue was secretly angry, Liu Baiyao was also very depressed.

Liu Baiyao never expected that his master, Li Zhong, would personally step forward to challenge him, his servant.

He couldn't even stand to reply; he had to kneel...

According to the custom of the Tang Dynasty, in matters involving disputes among farmers, the head of the household would generally not appear in person, but would instead send the steward of the estate to handle the lawsuit.

After all, the host family were all officials, and no one could afford to lose face like that.

Furthermore, the battlefield for officials is the imperial court. As long as they have connections in the court, they can decide the case however they want.

"Young master, don't you have any elders in your family?"

"You should go back and ask your elders about this. Let them find out who owns my family's estate before deciding whether or not to pursue this lawsuit with us!"

Li Jue snorted coldly upon hearing this.

"I don't care who you are. Even if it's the King of Heaven himself, I'll fight this case to the bitter end!"

"Young master, don't get so angry..."

"Your Excellency, why don't you try to persuade the young master?"

"Behind my estate stands the imperial son-in-law of the current emperor..."

"The prince consort?"

Upon hearing this, Li Jue hesitated again. If he was Li Er's son-in-law, he would most likely recognize him, and then there would be no need for him to fight this lawsuit.

If I back down this time, the other party will definitely escalate their actions in the future, and then I won't be able to stay in Xianyang!

Therefore, after much hesitation, Li Jue decided to fight the case to the end.

Even if he were beheaded or exiled, he could not swallow this insult!

Just as Wang Hui was about to offer some advice to Li Jue, he suddenly heard a commotion outside the door.

"Get out of the way, everyone!"

When the crowd saw the two men dressed as government officials, they immediately made way for them.

The two men made their way through the crowd to the main hall and bowed to Magistrate Wang Hui.

"This humble servant is Wang Wu, the coroner of Chang'an County!"

"This humble servant is Gong Liu, the coroner of Wannian County!"

"Greetings, Your Excellency!"

"you?"

When Wang Hui saw the two of them appear, he was completely stunned.

Because he remembered very clearly that he had not sent anyone to Chang'an to invite a coroner!

"Which one of you is Li Zhong?"

Upon hearing this, Li Jue quickly stepped forward and bowed to the two coroners.

"I am Li Zhong!"

Upon hearing this, the two returned Li Jue's greeting.

"Thank you for the travel expenses, young master. I wonder if we are too late, or if we have caused you any inconvenience!"

"Not too late, not too late at all, you two brothers have arrived just in time!"

Li Jue pointed to the corpse lying on the ground as he spoke.

“Someone has falsely accused me of beating a villager named Tian Qi in Sanglin Village to death, but I disagree because I have never even seen this person. Therefore, I request that you two coroners examine the deceased and seek justice for him!”

Upon hearing this, the two coroners couldn't help but look at Li Jue with new respect.

Although the young man in front of them was the one who was wronged, he did not rush to defend himself, but instead asked the two of them to seek justice for the deceased!

This kindness and virtue are truly admirable.

Li Jing nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this. Although seeking justice for the deceased was similar to seeking justice for oneself, putting the deceased first would surely earn the child a lot of praise.

Sure enough, after Li Jue said that, the people who were watching the commotion outside the door cheered on the spot.

"Well said!"

"The dead deserve respect; justice must be served for the deceased!"

"If the deceased was not involved in this matter, yet is dragged in by some treacherous individuals to frame someone, this is a great disrespect to the deceased!"

Amidst the uproar, Liu Baiyao panicked and kept giving the magistrate meaningful glances.

"Your Excellency, may I speak to you in private?"

As Wang Hui was hesitating, he heard a loud voice coming from outside the door.

"In broad daylight, under the clear sky, why do we need to speak privately?"

This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!