The shout of "Majesty!" grew louder, carrying a solemn and dignified air, and the noisy courtyard quickly quieted down.
"Plaintiff, what is your complaint?" The county magistrate looked at the Ling family.
When Shi Lao Er tried to speak, the county magistrate gave him a warning look.
Ling Laosan bowed to the magistrate and said, "Your Excellency, I am a carpenter. On the thirteenth of June, the shrine of Shi Lao Er's family broke down, and they asked me to repair it. This porcelain piece was not originally placed on the shrine. While I was focused on repairing the shrine and unaware of what was happening, Shi Lao Er placed the porcelain piece in a place where I could easily bump into it. I accidentally bumped into the porcelain piece, and it fell and shattered into pieces."
"Old Master Shi said that the porcelain was an antique, that it had been blessed, and that it was worth fifty taels of silver. He demanded that our family pay fifty taels in compensation. If we couldn't pay it back within six months, he would have to marry my daughter Yin to Shi Zhenxiang as his wife."
"I suspect that this porcelain is fake and not worth fifty taels of silver at all. The Shi family is setting a trap for our Ling family and deliberately trying to cheat our Ling family's daughter."
The county magistrate looked at Shi Lao Er: "Shi Lao Er, is what Ling Lao San said true?"
Shi Lao Er snorted: "There's truth to it and falsehood to it. Ling Lao San is deliberately trying to confuse the adults."
"It's true that Ling Laosan broke the porcelain, and it's true that it was blessed. Our Shi family does indeed ask that if we can't afford to pay for it, we'll marry Ling Yin to our family as our daughter-in-law. As for deliberately setting a trap, that's a miscarriage of justice. It's just that Ling Laosan was blind and broke our family's fine porcelain, which is our family's prized possession. We thought that our family might not be able to afford to pay fifty taels of silver, so we proposed to marry our daughter to the Shi family. In the village, which girl is worth fifty taels of silver? We've already been very kind and benevolent."
“It’s not certain whether this porcelain is worth fifty taels. You’re just quoting whatever price you want.” Ling Laosan said, “Sir, if this kind of phenomenon is allowed to continue, wouldn’t everyone be able to use something worthless to cheat others? Wouldn’t that cause chaos in the world?”
The county magistrate looked at Shi Lao Er and asked, "Is this porcelain in your house really an antique? Is it really worth fifty taels?"
Shi Lao Er felt a little guilty, but then he thought that since it couldn't be determined by appraisal, as long as he insisted on the amount, the county magistrate would have no choice.
"Fifty taels is still too little. It should be worth at least eighty taels. It's only because we, the Shi family, are considering our fellow villagers that we've reduced the price by a small half."
"But the Ling family is not satisfied and has turned around and accused us of harming them. Your Honor, please give the Shi family justice."
The magistrate instructed his clerk, "Go and invite Master Liang over so he can properly appraise it."
In court, there are always disputes over damaged items. In order to determine their value, the government employs a special appraiser.
Shi Lao Er was stunned for a moment. There was an expert witness?
He believed that whether it was worth the price depended entirely on the county magistrate's judgment, and if he insisted on it, the county magistrate would have to accept it.
His heart skipped a beat, and a hint of panic showed on his face, but he forced himself to remain calm.
During this lull, the county magistrate looked at Shi Zhenxiang again: "And what's the situation with this one?"
"Why did your Ling family come to court and request that this patient also be summoned?"
“My lord, it is like this. This Shi Zhenxiang is the son of Shi Lao Er. He was the man the Shi family wanted my daughter to marry. Just a few days ago, Shi Zhenxiang was crippled and will never be able to have children. My daughter absolutely cannot marry him,” Qiu Shi said.
The county magistrate sent his constables to investigate.
Shi Zhenxiang was taken to a clinic by Shi Lao Er and subjected to all sorts of treatments. Now his wound is inflamed, oozing pus, and emitting a foul stench.
The constable glanced at him, then covered his mouth and nose and took several steps back. His stomach was churning, and it took him a long time to finally speak.
"Your Honor, he's completely crippled! Ugh—"
The constables rushed out.
The people outside the courtroom were in an uproar, thinking it was a misinformation. How could something as important as a man be rendered useless so easily?
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