The person who came to rob Jiang Ling was none other than Old Lady Lu, Jiang Ling's former eccentric mother-in-law. It turned out that this old woman had been mixed in with the crowd from the very beginning.

When he saw that Magistrate Duan had rewarded Jiang Ling with fifty taels of silver, he was furious. Why was this woman who had left her son living a better and better life? Why was that widow Wang able to stay at home all day doing nothing but opening her big mouth and waiting to be eaten, just because she was pregnant?

Old Mrs. Lu grew increasingly angry. She suddenly remembered that when her son married Jiang Ling, she had specially built a house for him and given the Jiang family a string of cash as a bride price. Now she had to get every last penny back.

Thinking of this, Old Lady Lu took advantage of everyone's inattention and rushed towards Jiang Ling's direction.

"Hmph! You little whore, this is what you owe me!" Old Mrs. Lu used her hands to desperately shield her chest from the two silver ingots she had snatched earlier.

"Bullshit, I owe you? What do I owe you?" Jiang Ling was really angry, and she reached out to slap Old Lady Lu's face.

The village chief, who was standing nearby, looked pale when he saw what was happening. He never expected that this unruly old man, who had been quiet for a while, would start causing trouble again. He was even more surprised that he would cause trouble in front of the county magistrate.

County Magistrate Duan, his face grim as he watched the farce unfold, suddenly shouted, "Guards! Separate them!"

At a command, the constables rushed to Jiang Ling and Old Lady Lu's side and swiftly separated them.

"Village chief! What exactly is going on?"

The village chief was startled by the magistrate's furrowed brows. Trembling, the village chief knelt before the magistrate, glared fiercely at Old Lady Lu, and didn't know how to respond.

"Village Chief Lu, I'm asking you a question!" Magistrate Duan stared at the village chief with a displeased expression.

The village chief was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat. He could only kowtow repeatedly but could not utter a single word.

"My lord! Please punish this unruly old man immediately!" Jiang Ling said angrily, her eyes blazing with fury.

"Oh? This matter concerning the Jiang family started because of you. Do you know the reason?" Magistrate Duan frowned and turned to ask.

Jiang Ling broke free from the constables' restraints and ran all the way to County Magistrate Duan. She then knelt down and said, "This unruly old woman was my former mother-in-law. Her son and I divorced more than a month ago, and we have the divorce agreement as proof!"

“But this old fellow has repeatedly caused trouble. First, he beat up my youngest daughter, Jiang Wenxi, then he tore up my eldest daughter Jiang Suihe’s books. Now, in broad daylight, he’s snatching the silver you gave me, sir. Please, sir, make a decision!”

"Bullshit! Stop spouting nonsense! Your two little...two daughters are my granddaughters, how could I possibly beat them? My lord! My lord! Please don't listen to this little whore's making baseless accusations!" Seeing that her wicked scheme had not yet succeeded, Old Lady Lu started to act like a spoiled brat again, being unreasonable and tantrum-like!

"My lord! The divorce papers and all the previous agreements are at my home. I am willing to prove my innocence!" Jiang Ling said, banging her head heavily on the ground.

Seeing Jiang Ling's slightly red forehead, Magistrate Duan felt a strange unease. He wanted to offer some words of advice, but after meeting Jiang Ling's determined gaze, he could only swallow back the words he was about to say.

"This humble woman is willing to prove her innocence, please enlighten me, Your Excellency!" Jiang Ling kowtowed heavily to the ground again. Ignoring the piercing pain in her head, she straightened her back and said once more with a resolute attitude.

"Jiang, please get up quickly." Magistrate Duan felt a pang of sadness, but he suppressed his anxiety and spoke out because of his status and the presence of everyone present.

Jiang Ling's stubbornness resurfaced at this moment. She did not get up and intended to continue kowtowing. Seeing this, Magistrate Duan quickly said, "Jiang, I grant you permission to go find the divorce papers! Zhao Liu, you will go with Jiang!"

The constable called Zhao Liu nodded and walked to Jiang Ling's side. Jiang Ling kowtowed again in gratitude and slowly stood up.

The village chief was already terrified by the scene before him, and he glared fiercely at Old Lady Lu in front of him. If it weren't for County Magistrate Duan's presence, the village chief would probably have cursed Old Lady Lu right now. As for Old Lady Lu, she seemed to realize that she had messed up, and she was kneeling on the ground like a leaf, looking somewhat at a loss.

“Mother…you…you…” Lu Youyi, who was standing next to her, wanted to say something but dared not. He could only kneel on the ground with his wife and let out a heavy sigh.

Jiang Ling and Zhao Liu soon appeared before the crowd. This time, Jiang Ling had two pieces of paper in her hands. She walked to Magistrate Duan's side, held the two pieces of paper in both hands, and said, "Please make your decision, Your Honor!"

Magistrate Duan took the two sheets of paper from Jiang Ling with a serious expression and began to read them carefully.

The contents of the two sheets of paper were very simple, totaling only a little over a hundred words. The first page was about Lu Youren and Jiang Ling's divorce, and the second page was about Lu's wife injuring Jiang Wenxi and demanding compensation.

Magistrate Duan picked up the two papers, turned them over and over, and read them carefully several times to make sure he hadn't missed a single word. Then he snorted coldly and said, "Old woman Lu, what else do you have to say?"

Old Lady Lu was so frightened by Magistrate Duan that she trembled even more violently. Trembling and incoherent, she kept kowtowing, trying to beg for Magistrate Duan's forgiveness. Magistrate Duan ignored Old Lady Lu and looked at Jiang Ling with gentle eyes, saying in his still serious tone, "Jiang, this matter was caused by you. How do you intend to deal with it?"

Before she could finish speaking, Old Lady Lu scrambled to Jiang Ling's feet, grabbed Jiang Ling's leg, and began to cry and berate herself for being inhuman and senile. The people around her were about to speak up and try to dissuade her.

Jiang Ling's gaze was cold. She shook her legs vigorously and knelt in front of Magistrate Duan, her face tense, and said, "That old hag Lu has disturbed me time and time again, beaten my daughter, and even threw mud at me. I beg Your Honor to enlighten me!"

"This..." Magistrate Duan was at a loss. According to the law, Granny Lu should have received at least thirty lashes, but looking at her advanced age, Magistrate Duan felt a pang of sympathy. After all, she was an old woman, and if he really ordered her to be punished according to the law, Granny Lu would probably die before she had even received thirty lashes.

When Magistrate Duan's gaze fell on Jiang Ling, his heart was filled with heartache. This thin, slightly dark-skinned village woman had suffered such great injustice in Lujia Village. For a moment, Magistrate Duan did not know how to decide what to do.

Just then, Jiang Ling suddenly spoke up: "Magistrate Duan, please enlighten me!"

Before Magistrate Duan could speak, Old Lady Lu, seeing that her tantrums had failed, scrambled over to Jiang Ling and slapped her across the face, cursing as she did so.

No one present expected Old Lady Lu to act this way, and even Jiang Ling received a solid slap from Old Lady Lu.

Jiang Ling, covering her reddened face, shouted, "Magistrate Duan beat me without cause! I beg you to do justice!"

The village chief, already terrified, broke out in a cold sweat on his forehead and back. He scrambled to Old Lady Lu's side, covered her cursing mouth with his hand, and scolded, "Old lady! Can't you just shut up for a minute!"