"I have only just arrived at the court, and you have already convicted me without even asking any questions. Is this how you have been judging cases all these years?"
Su Qinghe's words were firm and resounding, and the surrounding onlookers began to whisper among themselves.
"quiet!"
Luo Pinzheng noticed some unusual noises coming from the crowd, his expression changed, and he slammed the wooden board in his hand.
"In all the years I have been in office, I have always handled cases impartially and have never wronged anyone."
"I made you kneel down because I have evidence, Zhao Xin!"
She turned her head to look at Zhao Xin, who was sitting to the side.
"My lord!" Zhao Xin understood immediately and stood up, walking to the center of the hall.
Luo Pinzheng cleared his throat, his face serious.
“This person’s name is Zhao Xin. Yesterday, she came to the government office to accuse you of forcibly taking her husband and abducting his younger brother.”
"However, after official investigation, it was found that Ji Yuan was the legitimate son of the Zhao family, and Ji Qingyu was actually Ji Yuan's younger brother!"
"Zhao Xin, present the evidence!"
Luo Pinzheng slammed his hand on the wooden board, and the yamen runner standing beside the desk immediately walked up to Zhao Xin.
Zhao Xin gave Su Qinghe a sinister look and pulled a booklet out of his pocket.
"My lord, this is my family's genealogy! Ji Yuan, as the current head of my Zhao family, has his name and information on the second to last page!"
Zhao Xin handed the booklet to the yamen runner, who then showed it to Luo Pinzheng and the surrounding witnesses.
"Ji Yuan, the eldest son of the Ji family in Yuzhou, was betrothed to Zhao Xin, the eldest daughter of the Zhao family, in the first year of Dawu."
"Birth date and time..."
"Mother...Father..."
The booklet was passed around among the onlookers, and people would read it aloud from time to time, causing more and more discussion to arise.
"It really is true! This contains information about several generations of the Zhao family; it can't be fake!"
"These sisters are really bold, daring to set their sights on the rich man's husband! They're shameless!"
"This young man is really unlucky. He was living a good life when someone snatched him away. How could his wife tolerate him now? He'll definitely be divorced when he goes back!"
"He deserves it. Look at his expression. He clearly followed that woman willingly. His wife was right there beside him, but he didn't react at all. His wife should be the one who's unlucky to have married such a scoundrel!"
Seeing his past identity being made public, Ji Yuan helplessly gripped Su Qinghe's hand.
"Brother..."
Ji Qingyu was also a little scared at this moment. He looked up at Su Qinghe and saw that she was still calm. He felt a little more at ease.
Hearing the insults directed at Su Qinghe from those around her, Zhao Xin breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Su Qinghe and Ji Yuan with a cold smile.
"Hmph! You bitch, you really think you can have a backer just because you found a woman."
"Your name is clearly written in the family genealogy. As long as the marriage contract is still valid and I haven't divorced you, even if you become a ghost, you will be a ghost of the Zhao family!"
Zhao Xin thought to himself smugly, then turned and cupped his hands in greeting to Luo Pinzheng behind the desk.
“My lord, I have presented the family genealogy. In addition, to avoid wrongly accusing her, I have also brought witnesses.”
"Oh? Send it up!" Luo Pinzheng narrowed his eyes, appearing serious on the surface but inwardly very happy.
She was worried about how to cure Su Qinghe, and with the birthday of the Prince of Changping approaching, there was still no news about the fruit-bearing tree.
Zhao Xin arrived just in time, and his preparations were so thorough that it saved her a lot of trouble!
The witnesses were brought in; there were two women and one man in total, and the man was Jing'er, who was standing next to Zhao Xin.
"Do you know these three people?" Su Qinghe whispered in Ji Yuan's ear.
"I only recognize Jing'er; he's Zhao Xin's fourth husband!"
Ji Yuan carefully examined the three of them and replied softly.
"I recognize that woman with the pockmarked face next to me; she's a servant in the manor!"
Suddenly, Ji Qingyu tugged at Su Qinghe's sleeve.
"Understood!" Su Qinghe nodded.
"This humble subject greets Your Excellency!"
The three of them bowed in unison.
"Well! Since you are witnesses, then each of you may speak!"
Luo Pinzheng nodded at them and patted the wooden board in his hand again.
"grown ups!"
Jing'er spoke first.
“My name is Jing’er. I am the fourth husband of the mistress. When the master is at home, I often go to serve him! And this gentleman in front of me…”
As Jing'er spoke, she turned to look at Ji Yuan behind Su Qinghe.
“This young man looks exactly like my husband.”
After Jing'er finished speaking, she bowed slightly to Luo Pinzheng and then fell silent.
"Hmm! And you!" Luo Pinzheng nodded, looked at the pockmarked woman next to Jing'er, and gestured for her to speak.
"Reporting to you, sir, when the Ji family was still in existence, I worked there. At that time, the eldest son had already married, and I only saw him a few times from afar when he returned to his parents' home."
"His face is not very clear, so I cannot guarantee whether he is the eldest son."
"But the young master is not yet married, though I see him often; he is this very gentleman!"
She pointed at Ji Qingyu.
"Okay! Next one!" Luo Pinzheng looked at the last person.
"Reporting to Your Excellency!" The man bowed to Luo Pinzheng.
"My name is Cao Wen, and I currently serve as a clerk in the Ministry of Rites of Yuzhou, responsible for registering weddings, funerals and other important events in various households."
"When the eldest son of the Ji family and the head of the Zhao family exchanged marriage contracts, both families' elders brought them to the Ministry of Rites."
"The Ministry of Rites has portraits of the two men from years ago. At the request of the Zhao family head, I brought here a copy of the portrait of the eldest son of the Ji family. Please take a look!"
Cao Wen took out a roll of Xuan paper from his sleeve.
"Um!"
Luo Pinzheng nodded, and the government officials took the items back upstairs.
The Xuan paper was unfolded, revealing a young man, and Luo Pin was secretly pleased.
Things are progressing very smoothly.
She handed the Xuan paper to the yamen runner, who, as before, took the paper and walked around the crowd once.
"They really do look alike!"
Another round of discussion broke out among the crowd.
Su Qinghe glanced at it and saw that although the person on it was young, it was clearly Ji Yuan.
"Now that we have both witnesses and physical evidence, Su Qinghe, what do you have to say for yourself?"
Luo Pin was frowning, his gaze towards Su Qinghe carrying a hint of smugness.
"Forcibly taking a married man is a serious crime, but you also abducted your husband's younger brother, making your crime even more serious!"
She slammed her hand on the wooden board and shouted angrily.
"According to the laws of Dawu, he should be flogged one hundred times and imprisoned for ten years!"
"Someone come here!"
She shouted, and several constables rushed into the hall instantly.
Seeing that things were about to be settled, Zhao Xin couldn't help but smile.
Now let's see how arrogant you can be!
"Master Wife!"
Seeing a group of people rushing towards him with sticks, Ji Yuan's eyes reddened with anxiety.
“Su Qinghe…” Ji Qingyu also nervously grabbed her hand.
"Wait!"
Taking their hands, Su Qinghe shouted.
"Su Qinghe, the evidence is irrefutable. Are you still trying to deny it?"
Luo Pinzheng waved his hand, and several constables stopped around him.
Su Qinghe took two steps forward and turned to look at Zhao Xin coldly.
"I admit that he is the eldest son of the Ji family!"
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