Zhang Daniu struggled and shouted that he wanted to hit someone, but he shut up after being loudly reprimanded by the constable. However, his eyes were still glaring angrily at Lin Gangzi as if he wanted to kill him.
Now that things are like this, Zhao can no longer exonerate Zhang Daniu. She can only seize on Lin Gangzi: "Lin Gangzi, you heartless bastard, you not only lured us to harm our sister's family, but you also won't admit it."
She turned to Song Anxin and cried, "Grandma Mei, we were really misled by this scoundrel and lost our minds for a moment! You said yourself that we're family, and if we expose him, we can live in harmony. You must let my Da Niu go..."
At this moment, Aunt Tietou immediately cried out loudly from outside:
"You filthy, shit-eating bastard, spewing filth from your mouth, slandering our Gangzi, the county magistrate, and Fengnian's mother, you must not believe her!"
Although I used to dislike you, I see you've changed for the better, and I feel I can do the same. I regret what I did to you before. My Gangzi has at least received some education and knows some principles from books; he wouldn't treat your family like that.
Song Anxin knew that Aunt Tietou was no longer targeting her like before. Every time she came to deliver duck eggs, she was very polite. Many women also said that she had become much more amiable. But he really couldn't agree with Lin Gangzi.
She sighed inwardly and said to the magistrate above:
"Your Honor, the matter is now very clear. Zhang Daniu has confessed to his crimes. I request Your Honor to make the final decision. As for Lin Gangzi's instigation, I request Your Honor to investigate this matter thoroughly."
"What! Granny Mei, didn't you say you'd let me go if I just revealed who was behind this?!" Zhang Daniu exclaimed, jumping up and down.
Song Anxin smiled and said, "When did I make such a promise? I only said that our family can still get along harmoniously, and isn't that harmonious enough?"
"You broke the law, go to jail, our family will see you off."
Lin Fengshou and Song Anbang were deeply impressed by the shameless logic of their mothers/sisters.
Yan Shuping had already heard reports from his subordinates about the relationship between the Zhang family and the two Lin families.
Hearing Song Anxin's words, a smile involuntarily appeared in her eyes, though no one else noticed. This second sister-in-law of the Lin family was not only exceptionally talented, but also adept at luring enemies.
"You! You..." Zhang Daniu then realized he had been tricked, and he was so angry that his face turned red and his neck bulged. If it weren't for the yamen runners stopping him, his fist would probably have landed on Song Anxin.
Standing to the side, Zhao cried, "Grandma Mei, we're family after all! Please let Da Niu go..."
At this moment, Song Anbang knelt below and said:
“The emperor is subject to the same laws as the common people. If I break the law while teaching children in Linjia Village, I should be punished accordingly. If you are spared because you are my sister’s in-law, then where is the law of my Great Yin Dynasty?”
Upon hearing Song Tongsheng speak, the villagers below all said:
"That's right, that's how Song Tongsheng teaches his children. We must make sure this Zhang couple is punished today, otherwise our children will think that just because they're relatives they can steal things and they'll follow suit."
Song Anxin thought to herself that Song Anbang, being a scholar, truly carried weight with his words. She continued speaking to the county magistrate:
“My lord, my brother is right. Even if the emperor breaks the law, he shall be punished the same as the common people. I will not tolerate Zhang Daniu just because the Zhang family is related to us by marriage. Please enforce the law impartially.”
Yan Shuping nodded slightly and then said in a deep voice, "Zhang Daniu's crimes have been proven. He should be thrown into prison immediately. We will investigate the matter he conspired with Lin Gangzi in detail before deciding on his next sentence."
Lin Gangzi was temporarily detained, and his fate would be determined after the case was resolved. Zhang Zhaoshi fabricated a story and gave a false testimony in court; she was given five strokes of the cane as a warning to others!
"Court adjourned!"
The constables standing around: "Majestic... Mighty..."
Upon hearing the verdict, Zhang Daniu turned ashen-faced, looking utterly incredulous, while Zhao fainted. Everyone knew that Zhang Daniu couldn't escape; he would either be exiled or imprisoned for hard labor.
Zhao was dragged aside and began to be beaten with a cane. When the bailiffs struck him with the first cane, he woke up from his unconsciousness with a cry of pain. His cries of pain grew more and more miserable with each subsequent blow, until he fainted again from the pain of the last cane.
The surrounding villagers were terrified when they saw this, and they vowed never to blindly protect anyone again, not even their own husbands.
Lin Gangzi was naturally to be taken away as well, and the Tie Tou couple burst into tears again. Liu Hong'er arrived later, only finding out after being notified by someone else.
She pretended to cry, protecting her stomach, but not a single tear came out. She just wanted to keep this scoundrel locked up for a few more days so she could see him less.
The constables had the two men under their custody and were about to take them away when an elderly couple rushed into the crowd.
They blocked Zhang Daniu's path and shouted, "You are not allowed to take my Daniu away! Daniu is my only son. If you take him away, we will fight you to the death!"
The two elderly people were hunched over, their faces etched with the marks of suffering, yet their mouths revealed a cruel and ruthless expression.
Zhao was still unconscious when she heard the familiar voice. She slowly woke up, and upon seeing it, she immediately perked up. Because she had been beaten with a board, she almost fainted again with the slightest movement, and could only crawl on the ground and shout loudly:
"Father, Mother, Meizi's in-laws are going to send Da Niu to jail! What a heartless bastard you've raised! You have to save Da Niu, he's the only pillar of our family!"
Song Anxin then realized that these were Zhang Daniu's biological parents, who were also Meizi's biological parents.
It's ridiculous how Zhang's parents are like this. Their daughter was sold off by their son and beaten half to death without even showing her face, but now that their son is in trouble, they rush over immediately, acting as if they'd fight to the death for their son.
Therefore, where there are unruly children, there are also unruly parents. A person is ruined by such parents who have no bottom line in their favoritism, and in the end, they will only suffer the consequences.
At the same time, Song Anxin sighed inwardly. She was so protective of her son; she wondered how Zhang Mei had endured so much hardship growing up. Mei had finally found hope in her family, and now she must be filled with despair. She could only hope that Fengnian could comfort her.
The constables didn't care about their old age and their attempts to make jokes. They pushed Zhang Daniu's parents aside, and they fell to the ground.
The constable said fiercely, "You dare to stop the yamen officers from enforcing the law! Do you want to go to jail with us?!"
Zhang Daniu's parents fell to the ground, their faces pale with fright. They were simple-minded, but they were still genuinely afraid of the yamen runners.
They dared not stop the constables any longer. Zhang Daniu's mother got up and shouted:
"Where's Zhang Mei?! Zhang Mei, you come out here right now! You brat, how dare you team up with your in-laws to send your own brother to jail! I'll beat you to death!"
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