As he finished confessing, the bailiffs' voices rang out, and the room was illuminated by candlelight.
"Wha...what's going on?"
Yun Mingxuan then raised his head and was stunned to see everyone in the room. In particular, he couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Old Madam Yun and blurted out, "Grandmother...you...you're not dead?"
Then he immediately realized what was happening and roared angrily, "You've tricked me!"
"If you don't do this, will you plead guilty?" Yun Zhourong sneered.
"What crime could I possibly confess to? That old hag isn't dead yet!"
Thinking of his wet crotch, Yun Mingxuan felt extremely ashamed and angry, and his eyes were full of hatred as he looked at Old Madam Yun.
To everyone's surprise, the constable said impatiently, "You committed burglary and caused serious injury, which is enough to warrant the death penalty!"
"You old hag, you actually want me dead!"
Upon hearing this, Yun Mingxuan was taken aback at first. Instead of being afraid, he immediately cursed angrily, "You think I'm afraid of you? I have money to redeem myself. I should have just killed you!"
Such a vicious curse made Old Madam Yun stare wide-eyed in disbelief, her chest heaving violently.
While stealing eggs could be attributed to unintentional mistakes before, it's now certain that Yun Mingxuan is a born villain.
“Yes, we are willing to redeem them!” Qin Shi replied, equally confident.
The bailiff sneered, "The ransom for the death penalty is no small sum. Besides, even if you could come up with the money, you injured your grandmother, which falls under the category of 'unforgivable crimes' of filial impiety. This does not qualify you for ransom, so you are doomed!"
"Cannot be redeemed... What does 'cannot be redeemed' mean...?"
Upon hearing this, the previously arrogant Yun Mingxuan froze completely, his face turning pale with overwhelming fear.
Yun Mingyuan spoke up at the opportune moment, "That means you're dead!"
"No...no way...this is impossible..."
At this, Yun Mingxuan collapsed to the ground, his face ashen, and all traces of arrogance vanished.
He couldn't understand how simply pushing and taking a few eggs could have caused such serious consequences!
"You old hag, that's your own grandson! How could you be so heartless!" Yun Mingzhu reacted and shouted at Madam Yun with red eyes.
"When he pushed his grandmother, did he not think that she was his own grandmother?" Yun Zhourong said coldly.
"Mother, you've already hit the child, that's enough to vent your anger. Don't say anything hurtful."
Yun Hongshen also spoke up, frowning and displeased, "Quickly explain to the constable that this matter should be left at that."
"Oh, your son is truly my good son."
Old Madam Yun sneered, her face expressionless, "If it weren't for Ruan Ruan, this old woman would already be a wronged ghost. It doesn't count!"
"You old hag, wanting to return your own grandson? You're utterly heartless! Aren't you afraid of shortening your lifespan?" Qin Shi was furious and cursed loudly with red eyes.
"Ha, Heaven is watching what people do; only those who have lost all conscience know!"
Seeing their attitude, the constable couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Originally, as long as the person involved was willing to forgive, they could be pardoned or have their punishment reduced. But now, with your attitude, who would be willing to forgive you?"
"Grandmother, Grandmother, I know I was wrong, please forgive me!"
Upon hearing this, Yun Mingxuan immediately looked at Old Madam Yun and pleaded, "I was raised by you since I was a child. You certainly wouldn't bear to see me die, would you, Grandmother?"
The speed at which he changed his expression was nothing short of spectacular.
“Mother, look, the child has already admitted his mistake, please forgive him,” Yun Hongshen quickly said.
"If you're asking for a favor, you should have the proper attitude. Saying a few words isn't considered an apology," Yun Zhourong said coldly.
"What do you want!" Yun Mingzhu said angrily.
"Everyone in your eldest branch of the family, kneel down and kowtow to your grandmother to admit your mistakes, apologize while slapping yourselves, and promise not to do it again."
Yun Zhourong said, word by word, "We'll stop once Grandmother agrees to forgive you."
"Don't push your luck!" Yun Mingxuan clenched his fists, his eyes bloodshot.
"Then go ahead and die. You'll still be heroes in eighteen years." Yun Zhourong shrugged, looking completely indifferent.
"Alright, since we can't reach an agreement, let's follow the rules. We'll send you to the yamen tomorrow." After saying that, the constable tried to pull Yun Mingxuan away.
"I'm willing, I'm willing to admit my mistake!"
Seeing this, Yun Mingxuan could no longer maintain his tough stance and urged the rest of the main branch of the family, "What are you all standing there for? Do you want me to die?!"
Finally, the entire eldest son's family knelt before Old Madam Yun, slapping themselves in the face while apologizing.
The crisp sound of the slap was especially loud in the night.
Only after their faces were swollen like pig's heads did Old Madam Yun speak, "Alright, I hope you can remember this lesson."
"Thank you, Grandma..."
Upon hearing this, the eldest son stopped what he was doing, and his speech became slurred.
"Alright, since the old lady is willing to forgive, then we'll give you a chance to redeem your sentence. The ransom for a death sentence in the Dasheng Dynasty is one thousand taels. Pay up." At this moment, the constable said calmly.
"What did you say, a thousand taels?"
Qin cried out in disbelief, "Where would we get so much money!"
“Auntie, I see you have quite a bit of savings, but you’re not even willing to save your son?” Yun Zhourong said coolly.
"Stop trying to sow discord here. Even if I had money, I wouldn't have that much. Do you know how much a thousand taels is? An ordinary family couldn't save that much in a lifetime!" Madam Qin gritted her teeth in anger.
"Oh, Yun Mingxuan, it's not that we don't give you a chance, it's just that your mother doesn't want to save you, there's nothing we can do."
Upon hearing this, Yun Zhourong shrugged, revealing a look of pity on his face.
"Mother, are you still my mother? Are you just going to watch me die like this?!" Yun Mingxuan shouted immediately upon hearing this.
"I...I'll help, but I really don't have that much money right now. Could you please make an exception, sir? I'll pay the rest in a couple of days." Qin finally relented.
"Yes, but interest must be collected first."
After the constable finished speaking, he ordered his men to lift Yun Mingxuan up. "Watch closely, if he doesn't pay in one day, he'll be lashed ten times. If he still doesn't pay tomorrow, he'll be lashed ten more times, until he pays!"
"No, Mother, I don't want to be whipped! How much money do you have right now to redeem me from this beating?" Yun Mingxuan cried out in fear as soon as he heard this.
"I'll pay! I'll pay!"
Madam Qin quickly called for a halt and then handed over two taels of silver.
The bailiff simply shook his head. "You were punished for causing trouble before, now it's time to atone for your crimes. Follow the rules, one ounce of whipping will cost you one lash."
"What!"
Madam Qin gasped, wanting to accuse the constable of taking advantage of her misfortune, but in the end she handed over the remaining three taels, saying, "This is all I have left, please have mercy, sir."
"Don't worry, you'll get your fair share of lashes." With that, he lashed Yun Mingxuan hard across the back.
"ah…"
The pampered young master had never suffered like this before, and he cried out in pain.
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