Xiao Youran smiled and looked at Magistrate Sun, "Uncle Sun, even if this was done by the County Magistrate's wife, could it be that this cousin of the Liu family made a deal with the County Magistrate's wife not because she is Magistrate Feng's wife, but because she is just some man's wife?"
Magistrate Sun immediately realized, "County Assistant Feng, even if you were unaware of this matter, you cannot escape responsibility!"
County Magistrate Feng's lips twitched, and he glared fiercely at Xiao Youran.
The magistrate standing next to him nodded in agreement, "That's true."
Jiang Youchen stood in front of Xiao Youran, blocking County Magistrate Feng's view, and glared back angrily.
Xiao Youran turned to Aunt Yun Liu and said, "Madam Feng, you mentioned when you visited our home last time that your husband has more than a dozen concubines, no fewer than twenty illegitimate children, and your entire family has more than a hundred members. It is truly a large family with many children and grandchildren."
Aunt Yun Liu was still unaware of what the little girl meant by saying this at this juncture when Wen Yuanbai slowly spoke up, "If that's really the case, then I wonder... how can Magistrate Feng, with his eighth-rank official salary, afford the expenses of over a hundred people in his household?"
Upon hearing this, Magistrate Feng's face immediately turned very pale.
Aunt Yun turned pale and immediately bowed her head to confess, "Reporting to Lord Sun, what Liu Laosan said is correct; this matter is indeed related to me. I shouldn't have instigated him to persuade He Chi to file a lawsuit. I only wanted to gain some benefits after he got the cloth shop, but I never asked Yun to poison Liu and her son! This matter has nothing to do with me! Please investigate thoroughly, Your Excellency!"
She was clear-headed and knew that money was a small matter compared to human life.
Moreover, she emphasized the words "after taking over the cloth shop".
Magistrate Feng immediately realized his mistake. "Your Honor! My wife was confused. She made a deal with that Liu Laosan, but she only offered advice and didn't receive any money. I am certainly not without fault in this matter, so please be lenient with me!"
Your boss is right here, so you'd better confess and accept some punishment to put an end to this.
If you really investigate, which official doesn't have some secrets?
Some of them could even be fatal.
He doesn't ask for anything now, he just wants to live a peaceful life for two years before retiring.
Magistrate Sun naturally handled each matter one by one. Even if it involved other cases, he would have to resolve this matter first.
Therefore, after a brief questioning, a verdict was reached.
Aunt Yunliu was sentenced to thirty strokes of the cane, fined three hundred taels of silver, and paraded through the streets in shackles for three days; County Magistrate Feng was fined half a year's salary and disqualified from the annual performance evaluation.
Liu Laosan deliberately framed Liu Laosan, attempting to bribe court officials. Furthermore, he was convicted of poisoning Liu Laosan and his mother, and was sentenced to be executed in the autumn.
He Chi was misled into framing others. Considering his timely confession, he was sentenced to fifty strokes of the cane, fined one hundred taels of silver, and paraded through the streets in shackles for three days.
Magistrate Feng was unperturbed and naturally accepted the punishment with gratitude.
Having escaped death, Liu and her husband embraced and wept for a while. She promised to save her son's life before watching He Chi being taken away in remorse.
When Aunt Yun was taken away, she brushed past Old Madam Yun, her face ashen.
She was strong-willed her whole life, but she never expected that in her old age she would be paraded through the streets as a public spectacle. This was even more humiliating than being killed!
Moreover, it was during a fight against the fourth branch of the Yun family that they suffered a crushing defeat!
No, no, why would she want someone to frame the fourth branch of the Yun family?
They thought they were all commoners now, and that Liu was mentally unstable. The official contract seemed utterly absurd and illogical. She even specifically asked Magistrate Feng to hold the trial when Magistrate Sun was absent. How did that damned Liu Laosan lose this case, which was supposed to be won?
After weeping for a while, Madam Yun and the others, including Madam Li, helped each other out of the yamen.
The Jiang siblings were kept behind by Magistrate Sun, who said that Magistrate Zhan wanted to know about the process of removing the curse in Dadu Village.
It turned out that today, Magistrate Sun accompanied Magistrate Zhan to Dadu Village in Pingnan County to inspect the villagers' treatment with the miraculous medicine. They learned that in addition to the two master doctors, there were also two junior doctors who had provided the medicine to treat the villagers. Magistrate Zhan then suggested that they go to Wufeng County to meet the brother and sister.
The brother and sister explained in detail the origin and prevention of schistosomiasis. Magistrate Zhan was deeply moved and instructed his accompanying officials to record the details. He added that Taizhou, located on the coast, had many villages plagued by schistosomiasis for years, much like the villagers of Dadu Village in Pingnan County, who suffered greatly from the disease. He believed that with this prevention method, the villagers along the coast could benefit greatly.
After the Jiang siblings came out, they were warmly and shamefully welcomed into the Liu residence by Madam Liu, who once again cured her son of the poison. Finally, amidst Madam Liu's profuse thanks, they left the Liu residence and returned to Yunji Cloth Shop.
Madam Yun had already returned with Zhou and Li, while Su and Yu remained at the cloth shop, waiting and processing the shop's orders.
Mrs. Su was still in shock. She felt a little relieved when her son and daughter returned. She took their hands and asked them what had happened before they closed the cloth shop and returned to Sanyang Village together.
Along the way, Madam Su recounted the long-standing grievances between Old Madam Yun and Sixth Aunt Yun.
Before even entering the village, Xiao Youran spotted a small figure jumping around outside the gate of the manor through the gap in the carriage curtain.
It was Yueyue.
Hearing the sound of a carriage, Yueyue looked up and then ran towards it.
Xiao Youran quickly told Uncle Feng to stop the carriage, then jumped down herself, and sent the carriage back to the old house first.
Yueyue immediately hugged her, "I'm so sorry, Youran, I begged Mother for help, but Mother..."
Xiao Youran stopped her, "This is not your fault, and don't blame your mother. Didn't Senior Brother Da Bai step in to save us? Besides, fortunately Lord Sun arrived in time and completely cleared our names. Don't worry."
Yueyue breathed a sigh of relief. "After we got back, my cousin has been so cold. He must be angry... You Ran, you should go and check on him!"
Xiao Youran shrugged, "Senior Brother Da Bai is always unpredictable, so there's no point in me going."
Yueyue shook her head. "No, no, I heard my mother apologize to him, saying that it was not appropriate for us to reveal our identities right now, which is why we didn't come to his aid. My cousin just told my mother to rest well, and then went back to his room in a sullen mood. He hasn't come out since."
Xiao Youran felt that it was normal for Senior Brother Da Bai to sulk and sulk for no reason; coaxing him back would be an impossible task.
So she decisively took Yueyue's hand and said, "Let's ignore him and go back to the old house. Aunt Zhao will definitely have made something delicious to calm our nerves."
Wen Yuanbai, sulking alone in the backyard: ...
You said you were here to coax him?
You ungrateful junior sister, do you know that the rare time he lost his temper with his aunt was because of you?
At this moment, the eldest princess, quite helplessly, knocked on the door and came in with a box.
Wen Yuanbai glanced at it casually and remained silent.
"Take it and give it to that little girl. This time it was my fault. I had too many concerns." The princess sighed. "Yuanbai, I never expected that you would risk exposing your own identity to protect that girl."
Wen Yuanbai said calmly, "She is my junior sister."
Even a junior sister is still a sister, and he can be a doting brother to his sister.
The eldest princess glanced at his broken leg and sighed, "With the Xuan King's decree issued, I cannot stay here any longer. I only hope you recover soon."
Wen Yuanbai, seated, bowed to the Princess and said, "Thank you, Aunt, for going to such lengths to visit me."
Princess Chang opened her mouth and said, "Your mother... really misses you."
He nodded slightly. "Mm."
...
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