Chapter 40 How dare Su Jingge contact mountain bandits?
Fan Tong and the others quickly walked out of the yamen gate.
Fan Tong, seeing so many people watching, feared it would incite public anger.
He cupped his hands in greeting: "Oh~ this is Aunt Qingyue, haha, she's one of Assistant Manager Su's people, one of our own. Come inside and talk."
Qingyue sneered, "Stop pretending to be a good person! Where is my young lady? Hand her over!"
The idiot said in a low voice, "Assistant Su is very good at handling things at the yamen. He spent the whole afternoon checking the order slips. Let's go in and see if he has figured it out by now."
Qingyue then stepped into the government office.
"Aren't you going to greet them?"
Fan Tong glanced at the servants.
Qingyue looked around and saw that no one was on the high chair.
A short while later, Su Jingge came out from inside.
Zhao Zhou followed closely behind.
"Miss, how are you? Are you injured?" Qingyue checked on Su Jingge.
"I'm fine," she asked softly. "How are you?"
Seeing that the person was indeed unharmed, Qingyue said with relief, "Don't worry, Miss, it's all arranged."
Qingyue looked at Zhao Zhou: "May I ask, sir, has the matter of falsifying materials been investigated and clarified?"
Zhao Zhou casually adjusted his official hat, and the gavel rang out with a 'snap'.
The court was reopened.
The gates were reopened, and the people gathered around to hear the trial.
Zhao Zhou replied to Qingyue's earlier question: "The original plaintiff has returned home due to illness. Su Jingge is the defendant. The details of the case have not yet been clarified, and she is currently imprisoned. The trial will resume the next day!"
"retreat--"
"Wait!" Su Jingge raised her hand to interrupt Zhao Zhou.
Ancient criminal proceedings lacked clearly defined time limits for evidence collection.
The length of time defendants are detained is also not as long as in modern times, where suspects cannot be detained for more than 12 hours.
Even for more serious cases, the time limit should not exceed 24 hours.
But it wasn't like that in ancient times.
The circumstances vary depending on the case and the judicial procedures, so if the case cannot be found, the person will remain detained indefinitely.
She sneered inwardly. Zhao Zhou was doing this because he suspected her of being guilty but she couldn't prove it herself, and Xie Mo was already investigating.
This way, she cannot leave the government office until she has evidence.
Zhao Zhou simply wanted to force her to stop working.
Su Jingge asked, "Does Your Excellency intend to imprison me indefinitely?"
Zhao Zhou stroked his beard, a flash of malice crossing his face: "Assistant Su, you are mistaken. I have always been law-abiding and dutiful. How could I possibly keep you imprisoned indefinitely?"
He sighed, "But until the matter is fully investigated... I'm afraid Assistant Su won't be able to regain his freedom..."
Su Jingge smiled slightly: "My lord, if I want to regain my freedom, besides waiting for the truth to be revealed, why don't you point me in the right direction?"
The two looked at each other, and the meaning was self-evident.
Zhao Zhou smiled and glanced at Fan Tong.
Fan Tong sensed something and took a step closer to the woman.
Fan Tong whispered in her ear:
"Assistant Su is a sensible man. It wouldn't be difficult for him to leave this county government office. If he voluntarily gives up and stops the repairs, and hands over the Yunque Restaurant to us, then disappears from Yuxiang County, wouldn't that settle the matter? Haha."
This means that if she were to openly tell everyone that she was giving up on repairing the city, they would give her an explanation.
They even had to hand over their restaurant.
That's not enough; they must get out of Yuxiang County.
From now on, it's as if this person never existed.
Ha ha!
That old green fly, so cunning, it really has a brilliant plan.
Su Jingge smiled, and Fan Tong smiled too, then turned to look at the yamen runner.
The bailiff presented two documents on his tray.
One version states that due to insufficient capabilities, the individual voluntarily relinquished the city's repairs, and the county government would cover the remaining work.
Second, the restaurant transfer documents.
This was prepared long ago.
Su Jingge picked up the document.
Fan Tong smiled.
Zhao Zhou also squinted, looking at her with a sinister gaze.
People versus officials?
Let's see just how strong your wings really are!
This is a capital offense of forgery, and no one can save him now.
Su Jingge, you're dead if you don't sign.
The atmosphere became tense.
Qingyue looked at the two documents.
His eyes were like knives, and his temples throbbed with anger.
She pointed at the man in the hall: "Zhao Zhou, you never do anything that involves people."
"You corrupt official, you keep talking about human relationships and principles, but your actions are utterly despicable and vile. Now you're even threatening people. Aren't you afraid that a bolt of lightning will strike you dead?"
'smack'
The gavel struck.
"What a bold and unruly commoner! How dare you insult an official of the imperial court! If we don't teach you a lesson, you won't know your place!"
"Guards, give him ten lashes!"
Fan Tong spoke.
The two quickly came up, put down their chairs, and pressed their shoulders down.
Su Jingge frowned upon seeing this, but the man in the hall stroked his beard and smiled again.
Her heart was breaking, and she clenched her fists tighter and tighter, but she couldn't save Qingyue.
Because she publicly confronted a court official, even if she were beaten to death, she could not overstep her bounds!
He could only watch as the woman bit her lip, her eyes bloodshot, moaning in agony.
Qingyue was too impulsive, she deserves a beating!
Su Jingge was disappointed in him, and her eyes reddened.
A weathered old man's voice came from outside the yamen:
"Even Confucius heard of the sorrow of the phoenix and the unicorn; what is Dong Long but a chicken or a dog!"
This statement is intended to criticize Zhao Zhou for abusing his power and acting recklessly.
It was a sign of contempt for Zhao Zhou.
After the ten strokes of the cane were finished, Qingyue glared at her, and it was Ying Xiaohu and Weishuang who helped her down.
Zhao Zhou smiled and said, "Assistant Su, how about it? Do you have anything else to say?"
The woman burst into laughter.
That laughter was a powerful and moving sound.
A strong wind swept across the land, whipping up sand and dust that dazzled the eyes.
Su Jingge picked up the two documents and looked at Zhao Zhou's smug expression.
The next second, swish swish swish.
They were all torn up.
Zhao Zhou stared in shock at the white scraps of paper fluttering in the air, falling like snowflakes.
His expression changed drastically, and he was so angry that his teeth were chattering: "Su Jingge, are you defying me?"
The woman shrugged and said, "Go submit to your mother!"
Okay, okay, very good!
'smack'
The gavel struck.
A chill ran down everyone's spine.
Zhao Zhou shouted angrily, "Su Jingge is suspected of disrespecting the laws of the court and falsifying materials. Throw her into jail!"
The constables quickly stepped forward to take the man away.
The entire audience erupted in uproar.
Everyone was struck by the news, their faces turning pale.
Just then, a male voice rang out:
"Report! Report!"
A bailiff ran up and slid down to his knees:
"My lord, something terrible has happened! The bandits have come down the mountain! I...I saw that the person standing with them is Fei Jian!"
The constable said in a panic.
"Huh? The bandits have come down from the mountain?"
"What should we do?"
The people were in a state of panic.
"Flying Sword?" Zhao Zhou's eyes darted around. "Isn't he one of Su Jingge's men? How come he's with bandits?"
So you, Su Jingge, have actually been in contact with bandits! This is a capital offense!
Haha, this is truly a stroke of luck!
Zhao Zhou looked at Su Jingge: "Flying Sword... I remember he was one of yours, right?"
Su Jingge's brows relaxed; she had finally waited for this moment...
The woman smiled slightly: "You're right, sir. He's mine."
"Fine!" Zhao Zhou's face turned cold. "He's now in contact with bandits. My men saw it with their own eyes. You're colluding with bandits; you're doomed!"
"What? Contacting bandits? That's a capital offense! Assistant Manager Su is finished this time!"
"There's absolutely no way out!"
The people were so anxious that they could hardly move their hands.
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