"Silence! Silence!" Zuo Li slammed his gavel, and the crowd at the courthouse entrance immediately fell silent. "No noise is allowed in the courtroom! This is a warning to you all. If there is a next time, you will be punished with a beating!"
For a moment, the area outside the courtroom fell completely silent.
Qian Ye was furious at the words of these foolish and ignorant people... He was secretly angry and wished he could rush to the court and strangle the old woman who gave birth to him but did not raise him.
If they hadn't favored the eldest brother since childhood, how could he have ended up like this?
But they have no conscience; they only want to drive themselves to their deaths!
If only Heaven would be merciful and throw them all into jail by the county magistrate, to be executed on a chosen day.
In this way, years of resentment and bitterness will be released at this moment.
But will Heaven open its eyes?
Qian Ye stared intently at the upright and just magistrate in the courtroom.
Zuo Li coldly looked at Old Madam Qian: "Old Madam Qian, you come and explain to me whether Qian Ye's concubine Hao Zhi died from filth or worry? Please answer truthfully, or the rod will not be blind!"
"This old woman..." Old Lady Qian was so frightened by the county magistrate's cold-bloodedness that she was speechless and couldn't utter a single word.
Because Hao Zhi was not killed by Rong Dong'an, but died from her immoral conduct.
It was because Qian Rong and the county magistrate forcibly took Hao Zhi that Hao Zhi, who was ill, died.
But how could she possibly tell the truth?
Furthermore, the county magistrate had instructed that if the Qian family wanted to remain safe, they must not betray him; otherwise, the Qian family would be completely wiped out of Wenhong County.
Seeing this scene, Rong Sheng recalled what she had heard and seen since arriving in the county town the night before, and immediately understood something. She then said something to Rong Zheng, who was standing beside her.
Rong Zheng was shocked: "Sheng Bao, is this really okay?"
"We'll find out if we try!" Rong Sheng said. "We can't just stand here and do nothing, can we? Otherwise, when will this case be over? It's obvious that the Qian family is looking for a scapegoat, and our father has become their unfortunate scapegoat. If we don't take action, then our father will really become the scapegoat."
Hearing Rong Sheng and Rong Zheng's conversation, Rong Yu also spoke up, "Second brother, listen to Sheng Bao. This is the only chance, because everyone knows that the Qian family has an excellent relationship with the county magistrate. If we miss this opportunity, the county magistrate will definitely eliminate us completely. At that time, even if we want to commit a crime, the county magistrate will not have much of a chance to help us."
Rong Zheng nodded repeatedly, turned and left the courtroom. He arrived at the entrance of the yamen, looked at the grievance drum, picked up the hammer, and began to strike it.
Upon hearing the sound of the grievance drum, Zuo Li, who was presiding over the trial, immediately paused the proceedings. He told Granny Qian and Rong Dong'an to think it over carefully, and that he would investigate who was beating the drum to appeal for justice and determine the urgency of the matter before questioning them.
Soon Rong Zheng was taken to the courtroom by the yamen runners, while Rong Dong'an and Granny Qian had already been taken away.
"Who is this person below, and why are you beating the drum to appeal for justice?" Zuo Li did not recognize Rong Zheng and had never seen him before, but seeing that Rong Zheng's face was somewhat similar to Rong Dong'an's, he immediately knew that this person might be a member of the Rong family.
"This humble subject, Rong Zheng, greets Your Excellency," Rong Zheng's handsome face was cold and hard, yet filled with anger. After kowtowing, he said, "Your Excellency, this humble subject beats the drum to appeal for justice on behalf of my father, Rong Dong'an! Just now, outside the court, this humble subject saw the Qian family falsely accusing my father of murdering the concubine of Qian Ye, the second young master of the Qian family. I was shocked. As his children, we know very well what kind of person our father is, so this humble subject does not believe that my father would do such a cruel thing!"
"Just because you don't believe me, you beat the drum to appeal for justice?" Zuo Li said angrily. "Do you know that disrupting my trial is a great disrespect and will be punished?"
"My lord, for the sake of my father's innocence, I am willing to accept punishment, but please give me a chance to explain!" Rong Zheng said neither humbly nor arrogantly.
Zuo Li raised his eyebrows, full of appreciation for Rong Zheng's words. If children didn't care about their parents' life or death and stood by indifferently, he would not have anything to do with the Rong family after the case was over.
Even if his parents-in-law lecture him, he will not associate with them.
"Very well! Since you have appealed for justice and are closely related to Rong Dong'an's case, I will give you this opportunity because you can provide clues or evidence. If you cannot provide evidence or clues for this case, don't blame me for punishing you!" Zuo Li said sternly, but with gentle eyes.
When Rong Sheng saw the county magistrate like this, the weight on her heart finally lifted.
Because he knew that even if the county magistrate didn't help the Rong family, he wouldn't side with the Qian family either.
In that case, their chances of winning are very high! Very high!
"Thank you, sir!" Rong Zheng quickly seized the opportunity and briefly explained the matter: "Reporting to sir, to be precise, it was five days ago in the evening when the Qian family sent someone to Zhonggui Village, asking my father to go to the Qian family the next day to treat the Qian family's patient. Because the patient's condition was somewhat strange, many doctors were at a loss."
The Qian family charged extremely high consultation fees, and my Rong family was not well-off, so my father agreed to go. He prepared medicine based on the symptoms provided by the servants sent by the Qian family, and we went to the county town the next day.
But this trip lasted for four whole days. During those four days, the entire Rong family couldn't eat or drink, and we were extremely worried that Father had encountered trouble! As everyone knows, the Qian family is a wealthy merchant family in Wenhong County. They look noble and rich, but in reality, they are not easy to approach.
Therefore, when he saw that his father had not returned for two days, his eldest brother Ronghua went to the county town to look for him. However, he did not see his father. Instead, he was kicked out by the Qian family without even a reason!
Unable to see their father or learn of his situation, the eldest brother managed to glean some information from a servant of the Qian family: that their father was treating a patient whose condition was quite serious and wouldn't improve anytime soon. However, no sooner had the eldest brother received this news than Qian Rong, the eldest son of the Qian family, saw him and had him beaten and driven out of Wenhong County!
Many people witnessed this. If Your Excellency does not believe me, you can send someone to inquire.
At this point, Rong Zheng paused, turned his head weakly, and looked at his mother, fourth brother, and Sheng Bao standing at the entrance of the courtroom. Seeing their pained and incredulous expressions, Rong Zheng knew that he had just said the wrong thing.
But this is a courtroom. Even if I'm not very bright, I know this can't be kept secret, and telling the truth would be beneficial to my father's situation.
So, feeling deeply guilty, he turned back to Zuo Li and said, "When my eldest brother Rong Hua returned home, he didn't tell the family about this. Instead, he kept it a secret. The next day, my eldest brother and my third brother Rong Mu came to the county town and tried to find a way to get into the Qian family to find Father and see what trouble he had encountered."
Unexpectedly, they still didn't see their father this time. Neither the eldest brother nor the third brother got a good reception. They were not only scolded by the Qian family, but they were also beaten up again.
My eldest brother and third brother are currently staying at my great-aunt's house, recovering from their injuries! If you don't believe me, you can send someone to my great-aunt's house to bring them here for questioning and to examine their injuries!
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