Chapter 129: The court directly stabbed Song Jin today
Song Jin was brought to the gate of the government office. She was still confused until Mo Hongfu took out a lawsuit from his arms. Then she realized that this was just a premeditated encirclement and suppression, a trap specially prepared for her.
She didn't know what the cause was, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that she was going to court.
A unfamiliar judge sat on the high floor, wearing a black hat and a neatly dressed official uniform. On either side of him were runners holding sticks, looking intimidating without even getting angry. The scholar Mo Hongfu, who was protected by his status as a student, stood there and saluted. Song Jin was pressed against the floor tiles from the knees down. [1]
She was kneeling alone.
All the noise came from above and she felt humiliated.
"Who is beating the drum in the hall?"
"Sir, I want to sue the owner of the Lu Family Restaurant, Lu Mancao, for disguising herself as a man and behaving improperly, using the name of running a restaurant as an excuse to commit fraud."
After saying this, he handed over a petition, which was taken by the clerk and passed to the judge.
Song Jin didn't know what was written on the petition. She only saw the judge holding it in his hand and looking at it carefully, while she turned her head to look outside.
A group of people had gathered outside the yamen to watch the fun. She couldn't find any sign of Meng Qi, and she became more and more panicked. So she turned around and looked behind the hall, hoping that Ji Shubai would come out and save her from the fire.
However, nothing happened. Ji Shubai did not come out, and Meng Qi was nowhere to be seen. She just knelt there waiting for the judge to finish reading the petition and start questioning.
"The one kneeling down is Lu Mancao, the owner of the Lu Family Food Shop?"
Song Jin had no choice but to say yes, and then explained that he had changed his household registration before, changing his name from Lu Mancao to Lu Jin.
The judge asked her if she was a man or a woman. Song Jin said she was a woman, so she was asked, "Why are you dressing as a man?"
With no way out, Song Jin could only calm down and answer, "If you want to wear it, wear it. There is no rule in the Ming Dynasty law that prohibits women from wearing men's clothes, right?"
The judge frowned. There was no such rule, but how could Mo Hongfu let it go?
"Sir, why would this woman disguise herself as a man if she had no reason?"
"Yes, why do you want to act like a man?"
Song Jin had no choice but to answer, "My family runs a wine and food shop. I need to do some shopping and storytelling. It's more convenient to dress up as a man."
"Did you hear that, sir? She said it was more convenient. What convenience did she want? What is it that women cannot do but men can do? Is it something like passing through walls and going in and out with men at will?"
"You're talking nonsense!"
Song Jin's heart sank. She knew very well that such unclear and groundless things were the hardest to explain. Besides, she did have too close contact with Ji Shubai.
Before she could come up with a solution, she heard Mo Hongfu say, "You will know whether the student is talking nonsense or not after you listen to me."
"On the tenth day, this Shopkeeper Lu disguised himself as a man and talked with the masters in the mansion, including the professor of the mansion school. I don't know what kind of magic potion he gave them on the spot. I heard that the professor of the mansion school also wanted to invite this Shopkeeper Lu to give a class. I don't know if this Shopkeeper Lu knew that he was not worthy of the title, so he resolutely refused, and turned around to teach at the Chai family. I have a question. How did this little girl who was born as a slave gain the trust of the masters and the Chai family? If this is not fraud, what is it?"
When the Tongpan heard that this matter involved all the nobles in the mansion and also involved the people in the mansion school, he couldn't help but hesitate. In just a short while, Song Jin saw a head sticking out from behind the hall.
It’s Qingshan.
Qingshan was also startled when he saw her, and immediately shrank back. When Song Jin turned around to look outside, he saw Meng Qi, Arong, Dujuan and others crowded at the door.
She didn't know if she could be saved, but at least she was not alone anymore.
"If you don't believe me, you can ask. Many people in the government office have seen this girl, but she was just dressed as a man. This little girl has deceived many people."
After hearing this, the judge had no choice but to stop the meeting and stood up and went to the back.
When Song Jin saw that the judge who heard the case had left, she got up and went to the gate of the yamen to find Meng Qi. Meng Qi only told her that he had already gone to find Lord Ji and asked her to relax and that he would definitely help her.
Song Jin felt a little relieved.
After Qingshan learned that the person kneeling outside was indeed Song Jin, he hurried back to pass on the message. The first thing Ji Shubai had to do was to find out why he was being tried in court, so he waited for the judge to come back and called him in for questioning.
The judge had no choice but to ask his clerks to find someone to ask first, while he went to see Ji Shubai.
"Master Liu, what's going on outside?"
Judge Liu Tong was familiar with Mo Hongfu. He originally thought that he had taken on an ordinary case. Even if it implicated people in the mansion, it was just a formality. He would make the judgment as it should be. His purpose was not to put Song Jin to death, but just to embarrass her, damage her reputation, make her despised, and prevent her from showing off her power again.
Who knew that it had just begun and the Tongzhi came over to question him, so he didn't want to get involved anymore.
"Master Ji, there is a woman disguised as a man outside. She is said to be a fraud and has implicated many people in the mansion."
"Fraud? What did you defraud? Who did you defraud?" Ji Shubai had never heard of Song Jin defrauding anyone in business. The only person he defrauded was probably him.
The judge had no choice but to tell Ji Shubai what Mo Hongfu had said, and Ji Shubai immediately understood that he was talking about what happened in his home on the tenth day, and he was also involved in it.
This is a difficult matter and needs to be done quietly.
"You all heard what Shopkeeper Lu said that day. Since there was no loss of money, how can it be considered fraud?"
Ji Shubai began to be glad that Song Jin did not accept Lord Zhang's invitation to give lectures, otherwise, who knows what kind of trouble Mo Hongfu would cause.
"Master Ji is right. I am sending someone to ask. This matter is strange. All the officials in the government office are involved. Do I have to ask them to come out and testify? I am a lowly person with little influence. This makes it difficult for me to be an official."
Ji Shubai was immediately tempted when he heard that he was about to back off. If he asked him to try the case, there was no guarantee that Mo Hongfu would bring up something else. It would be more convenient and quicker for him to go out and explain everything at once, which would also put Song Jin at ease. So he said, "Let me try this case, and you bring the complaint."
After hearing this, Lord Liu felt as if he had been pardoned. He immediately asked someone to get the complaint and give it to Ji Shubai. Ji Shubai did not hesitate. After reading the complaint, he had an idea in his mind and was about to go out. However, before he could leave, he was stopped by Lu Junnian.
"Something happened."
It was rare for the experienced Lu Junnian to panic. Ji Shubai was shocked: "What happened?"
"Those old guys won't admit it."
Some things are very strange. If a great thing is discovered by a man, especially a famous man, it will be praised. But if it is discovered by a woman, even this thing will be questioned.
Song Jin's performance that day was obvious to all. Everyone thought she was a real man who had learned from a divine man. In addition, people in the prefectural school also praised her. So on the surface, there was a lot of admiration for her. However, when they heard that she was a woman, the voices of criticism immediately surged.
"I said that was pure nonsense, totally unfounded. What about this turning and that turning? If the land under our feet really turns like that, your brain will be turned into a mess."
"That's right, it's all nonsense. I thought she really saw some great man, but it turns out he was just a little servant. Isn't this just a lie?"
"Alas, that's not what you said that day." Someone else objected.
"I was fooled by that little girl at that time. Now that you think about it, don't you feel something is wrong?"
"Humph! She is so cunning that she dares to deceive the officials. Suing her is the least of her worries."
......
The reputation that Song Jin gained through his long speech that day was wiped out in the minds of these people within a few days.
When Ji Shubai learned of this situation, he knew that things were going to be difficult. Song Jin had to deal not only with Mo Hongfu, but also with those officials who looked down on her.
But the more this happened, the more he had to take action, otherwise she would be at the mercy of others.
However, what he didn't expect was that someone got there first.
A group of officials started arguing about whether Song Jin had committed fraud that day. The quarrel directly alarmed Prefect Lin, so he sent people to inquire about the matter. This question aroused their curiosity, so people came too.
After learning that the banquet on the tenth day was hosted by Ji Shubai, he felt that it was not appropriate for him to judge the case, so he asked for the complaint and took a look, intending to go to the front to see this "female swindler" in person.
Ji Shubai's heart was suddenly confused.
"Sir, this is a minor case. Why bother to go and try it in person?"
"The case is not serious, but it has implicated so many people in the government. It's strange. I want to see if this Shopkeeper Lu is genuine or just a name. It's a coincidence that you were the host of the banquet that day. Why don't you come and listen to the trial and see if the youngest Jinshi in recent years in Suzhou Prefecture has also been deceived, hahaha."
Prefect Lin said it unintentionally, but Ji Shubai listened with intent. Song Jin's theory cannot be verified if it is true, but it cannot be refuted if it is false. This is the difficulty.
If she were a great scholar, others would be courteous to her, but she was just a good servant, who would believe her theory? If he could call the "master" over, he might be able to make up a story, but he knew in his heart that the master did not exist.
"Master Lin, why bother? Even if I am the host that day, it will not affect my trial of this case. If you feel it is inappropriate, you can let Master Lu try it first."
Lu Junnian quickly chimed in: "Yes, sir, you are so busy with your affairs, and you still have to try such a small case. Wouldn't it make us look incompetent? If the news gets out, how can we save our dignity?"
A group of officials were watching nearby. Some said that it made sense, while others said that since they had met before, they should avoid suspicion and it would be most fair to let the case be tried by the prefect.
So the case came into the hands of Prefect Lin, and Ji Shubai was ordered to attend the trial.
When Song Jin saw the people inside coming out to the hall again, he went back to the hall and knelt down again. This time there were two people sitting on the table.
The one in the middle was still unfamiliar, he looked to be over fifty years old, with a dignified face.
Ji Shubai was sitting on an extra chair at the lower right. His face was unusually pale, and his hands were unconsciously clenched into fists.
He looked at Song Jin, trying to reassure her, but Song Jin saw it and became even more confused about the situation.
There was a bang of the gavel, and Song Jin was startled and came back to his senses.
The official in the hall asked some questions as usual. Song Jin recognized from the title that this was Lin Zhihe, the current prefect of Suzhou Prefecture. He answered his questions respectfully one by one. Prefect Lin then asked some different questions, such as what he discussed with the officials that day.
Song Jin answered as usual. Prefect Lin frowned. He didn't say whether this new idea was right or wrong. Instead, he questioned where these remarks came from.
Regarding this, Song Jin has told different versions of lies, some about her soul wandering in the Qingxu Heaven, some about two worlds colliding with each other, some about her coming from outer space, and some about a mysterious master secretly teaching her. She told different lies depending on the person she met. She could be said to have tailored the lies to the person.
But facing the prefect in front of him, and being told something by someone, what lie should Song Jin use to solve the current problem?
She didn't have an answer, but Mo Hongfu answered it for her.
"Sir, as far as I know, this young lady is very familiar with Lord Ji. Is it possible that Lord Ji taught her and she said it? Speaking of which, someone saw them hugging and kissing in the street on the Lantern Festival. Their behavior was very intimate. Sir..."
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
Ji Shubai never expected that the hug caused by firecrackers that day would turn into a sharp sword and directly stab Song Jin today.
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