Chapter 142 Come Prepared
Su Hanchu spoke as soon as he heard this.
"Your Excellency, the Yan family brought thugs to Guanping Village. This wasn't a negotiation, but an attempt to coerce the villagers into selling their land. Furthermore, this isn't the first time they've assaulted villagers. The last time, they even compensated them for their medical expenses. The headman can testify to this.
"Yesterday, the Yan family brought even more thugs than last time. The entire Guanping Village witnessed it all. The Yan family attacked us first with sticks. But the Yan family is really shameless. They were the first to attack us, and their skills were inferior to theirs, yet they still want to complain."
Yan Shaofeng spoke anxiously.
"Then what about your slander against the Yan family? When we arrived at your village, your rice had already rotted. Why are you blaming this on my family? My Yan family is not the one being taken advantage of."
Looking at the two people arguing with each other, County Magistrate Hua slammed the chopping board on the table.
"Bang!" "That's enough! How can you make such a commotion in the court? Do you think this county court is a vegetable market?"
Yan Shaofeng bowed to the county magistrate.
"Sir, the rice fields in Guanping Village have a problem that has caused the rice harvest to fail. This is a sympathetic matter, but it has nothing to do with my Yan family. You can't let the Jun family pin this matter on my Yan family just because my Yan family happened to want to buy land in Guanping Village.
Everything requires evidence. Young Master Jun keeps saying that this was done by my Yan family. Could Madam Jun please produce some evidence?"
Su Hanchu also looked up at Hua County Magistrate.
"Your Excellency, even if there's no evidence pointing to the Yan family, their actions clearly indicate they're inextricably linked to this matter. We, the over 400 households in Guanping Village, implore you to investigate the truth, bring the perpetrators of the poisoning to justice, and compensate the villagers for their losses."
County Magistrate Hua spoke in a deep voice.
"You both have different opinions on this matter, and it's really hard to tell who's telling the truth. So, let's suspend this case for now. Once Guanping Village produces evidence, I'll reopen the case."
With such perfunctory words, anyone with a little common sense would think that County Magistrate Hua was probably bribed. Well, since the other party could produce the documents, there must be someone on the government side to back him up. Su Hanchu looked up at County Magistrate Hua, and this time his eyes were a little sharp.
"Your Excellency, County Magistrate, we are but ordinary citizens. We can only voice our grievances and suspicions. It is you, Your Excellency, who will be the one to investigate and gather evidence. After all, You are the father and mother of us common people."
When County Magistrate Hua saw Su Hanchu's sweet talk, a look of displeasure appeared on his face.
"Su Hanchu, are you going to teach this county how to do things?"
Upon hearing this, Su Hanchu looked up at County Magistrate Hua, without any fear in his eyes.
"I dare not. As a villager of Guanping Village, I also have dozens of acres of rice fields that were tragically destroyed. As an ordinary citizen, if I encounter difficulties or suffer grievances, I should seek help from local officials. This is my duty. As for whether local officials will act on behalf of the people, that depends on their way of doing things."
When Yan Shaofeng saw that County Magistrate Hua was on his side, he was delighted. He thought that the money he had spent before was not wasted, so he hurriedly bowed and spoke.
"Your Excellency, County Magistrate, it's understandable that Madam Jun is so anxious. After all, we've lost so much rice. I think there must have been some kind of insect plague this year, or perhaps the weather was too hot, which had a negative impact on the rice.
My Yan family has been doing business for many years, and we still have some savings. Therefore, we have increased the land purchase price to ten taels of silver per mu, which can be regarded as a subsidy for the loss of rice crops this year. This matter is actually very easy to resolve. Everyone signs the contract and our Yan family gives the money without hesitation, and everyone is happy.
Upon hearing this, County Magistrate Hua stroked his beard and seemed to think about it.
"Well, that's a good idea. The Yan family is indeed a good one, and Zhou Li is right. Since things have come to this, why don't we all just sign. It just so happens that the Yan family is willing to compensate everyone for this year's losses. Such a good thing is hard to come by."
Su Hanchu frowned when he heard this. Although he had long guessed that the other party had bribed the government, the county magistrate's obvious prejudice still made him worried.
"Since County Magistrate Hua thinks this is a good thing, why not give this good thing to the Hua family?"
Su Hanchu heard the familiar voice, turned around and saw Jun Moye striding towards him. A hint of surprise immediately flashed in his eyes. For some reason, he always felt that the problem could be solved perfectly with his arrival.
County Magistrate Hua never expected that someone would dare to challenge him in such a way.
"Who is coming?"
Jun Moye first looked at Su Hanchu gently, then walked towards the county magistrate step by step.
"Jun Moye, a villager of Guanping Village, has long heard that County Magistrate Hua is knowledgeable and has a broad vision. He has seen many fine things. I have a jade pendant here. Why not ask County Magistrate Hua to take a look at it?"
Upon hearing this, County Magistrate Hua spoke angrily.
"Jun Moye, this is a courtroom where cases are being tried, not a place for you to show off your goodies, you..."
Jun Moye had already handed the jade pendant to him.
When County Magistrate Hua saw the words "As if I were here in person" on it, he was so frightened that his whole body trembled and he hurriedly stood up and knelt to salute.
Jun Moye stopped him with a look and spoke in a low voice.
"Hua County Magistrate, thank you for your help in checking this. This was given to me by my family elders, so I have naturally kept it well. Hua County Magistrate, please continue to try the Guanping Village case. I happen to have brought a few people with me, and they may be of some help to you in your trial."
After hearing this, County Magistrate Hua hurriedly calmed down his shock and spoke with some trembling.
“Who…who is it…?”
Jun Moye retreated and stood beside Su Hanchu.
"County Magistrate Hua, the rice in Guanping Village has suddenly withered, resulting in a total crop failure this year. This isn't a natural disaster, but a man-made one. Doctor Li in town has already investigated for us and found that someone has planted withering grass and lime in the rice paddies. Doctor Li is waiting outside the gate, and Your Excellency, County Magistrate, can see him at any time."
Under the intimidation of Long Pei, County Magistrate Hua naturally agreed with Jun Moye's words.
"Someone, please call in Doctor Li."
Doctor Li quickly entered the lobby.
"I greet the County Magistrate."
County Magistrate Hua turned his gaze towards him.
"The Jun family said that you checked the rice fields in Guanping Village and confirmed that they were poisoned, right?"
Doctor Li spoke.
"Yes, I've been practicing medicine for over twenty years. There's no way I could have mistaken the difference between Thousand-bone Grass and Lime. The person who poisoned me must have mixed the Thousand-bone Grass and lime and then let it flow into the stream and into the rice fields."
Yan Shaofeng looked at Doctor Li, still hoping for the best. Even if someone confirmed that the poisoning was intentional, so what? This couldn't prove that it was the Yan family who did it.
But his luck was soon dashed.
Jun Moye raised his hand and bowed.
"My Lord County Magistrate, it has been confirmed that the rice is withering because someone has poisoned it. There are many rice fields in this village. If you want to make the rice in the entire village wither, you will need a lot of Qianku grass and lime.
The lime is easy to deal with, but the Thousand Withered Grass needs to be obtained from the pharmacy. Next, I would like to ask the county magistrate to meet with two more people: the doctor from Huichun Hall in town, and the herbalist from Tongxin Hall.
Seeing that Jun Moye was so obviously well prepared, County Magistrate Hua glanced at Yan Shaofeng and finally decided not to take sides.
“Spread…spread…”
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