Chapter 267 Illiterate Deeds
Seven people were brought into the hall, and there was a commotion among the people outside.
"It was him. He joined the club for 1,000 taels and was initially paid 100 taels in interest every month. After two months, he thought it was a treasure trove, but later he refused to pay. He is a liar!"
"It's the same for me. Three thousand taels, but they only took back six hundred taels in interest. They even put all the money into the coffin. And they threatened that if I told on you, I'd end up like the father and son of the Xiao family who disappeared without a reason..."
"Master, please redress my injustice. My leg..."
…
Sounds of cursing, complaints and crying came one after another.
Zhuang Shizhao did not stop it immediately. He looked down at the juror Shaoqing Lu Jun, as well as the Dali Temple Secretary, Dali Sizhi and Dali Pingshi, and slowly slammed the gavel, and the hall suddenly became silent.
Su Qianqian sat at the desk at the side of the hall. Today she didn't have to bother taking notes as the chief clerk was busy beside her. She also held a pen and paper, listening to the statement of the person on trial, marking the key points and handing them over to Lord Zhuang. She was more like a useless mascot.
"Chen Lin, Zhu Liufa and twelve others accused you of defrauding money and threatened to beat you so that they would not report it. Is this true?"
Zhuang Shizhao asked as he looked at the man in his thirties kneeling in the hall.
"My Lord, this is unfair! Zhu Liufa wanted to do business with me. How can you blame me if he loses money? He signed the contract. Please take a look, my Lord."
Chen Lin calmly took out a piece of paper from his arms and held it up.
Zhuang Shizhao frowned and took it and read it, then turned to ask the plaintiff Zhu Liufa: "Have you signed this joint venture agreement? Do you know the details?"
This deed clearly states that Zhu Liufa and Chen Lin are partners in the silk and linen business, each with a capital of 1,000 taels. If there is a loss, it has nothing to do with Chen Lin.
Zhu Liufa was in his forties, wearing a brown cloth. He stared with wide eyes and shook his head and waved his hands repeatedly:
"Master, I have never signed any partnership agreement. I am illiterate. Chen Lin asked me to put my fingerprints on it, and I took the first month's interest!"
"You have no evidence, Zhu Liufa. Your fingerprints are clearly on the deed. You dare to deny it in front of the master? You are just blackmailing me!"
Chen Lin sneered complacently.
"Master, I have never signed any contract. Chen Lin, you are lying to me!" Zhu Liufa's eyes were red with anger.
"Zhu Liufa, stop roaring in the court! The evidence is here, how dare you argue?" Lu Jun shouted loudly, and Zhu Liufa was taken away.
[Chen Lin's father and brother run a small cotton, silk and linen business, but Chen Lin is a bastard in the family, and his legitimate brother makes all the decisions. He is just an errand boy, and he is also a gambler. The monthly salary given by his family is not enough for him to spend.
Three years ago, he met He Sheng, another branch leader of the Wanwu Shengcai Society. Initially, he wanted to join the society to earn money, but later he became a branch leader out of greed and cruelty, specializing in defrauding those who were illiterate but had some savings and were eager to make money. 】
The system then exposed Chen Lin's background.
[This is a clever trick, and it is exactly the same as those tricks used to defraud the elderly. However, why didn't they take out the deed at the beginning? Instead of launching a counterattack now, the decision was well made. 】
Su Qianqian expressed her appreciation for Chen Lin's action, which was to defeat the enemy by taking them by surprise.
As expected, those who later sued Chen Lin all had a deed as evidence, and they were taken away with no tears in their eyes.
[In fact, Chen Lin has a vital point. As long as you know this vital point, all evidence is useless. 】The system said quietly.
[What is the life gate?] 】Su Qianqian was curious.
[Chen Lin himself could not read a single word, so he came up with this method to harm illiterate people. Chen Lin could only recognize these deeds by the marks. As long as the mark on the lower right corner of the deed was covered and then shown to Chen Lin, he would not remember which one was signed by whom, and he would have no idea of the content.
In addition, the content of the deed was fabricated by Chen Lin, who relied on marks to remember the content rather than the actual facts. As long as you ask him about the detailed transaction location and who he traded with, you can prove that he forged the contract.
Of course, first of all, he had to recognize the wrong contract and lose his composure. If he himself couldn't recognize it, is it any wonder that the person who signed the contract didn't recognize it either? 】
The system said slowly.
I see!
Lord Zhuang thought for a moment, picked up a deed, called the chief clerk over and whispered a few words to him. The chief clerk nodded, pinched the two tree marks on the lower right corner, and brought it to Chen Lin.
"Chen Lin, look carefully, is this the charcoal sales contract signed between you and Zheng Linxi?" Lord Zhuang asked in a gentle voice.
Chen Lin looked at the deed that the chief clerk unfolded in front of him, his eyes sliding towards the corner, but it happened that the chief clerk's finger pressed on the mark there.
Pretending to look carefully, thinking of an idea in his mind, he moved the chief clerk's finger to check, but the chief clerk glared at him and said, "What's not clear? Are the names there?"
"Yes, that's right, sir. This is the contract for Zheng Linxi to buy charcoal." Chen Lin couldn't see anything wrong. There was indeed a word "Lin" on it. He recognized his name after all, so he nodded and said.
"Bang!" Master Zhuang slammed the gavel and said, "Nonsense! That is clearly the contract between Zhu Liufa and you for the joint business of silk and linen!"
"Ah, sir, I was…dazzled. I was frightened by your authority and admitted my mistake. This is indeed the contract between Zhu…Zhu Liufa and me for the joint venture in silk and linen!"
Chen Lin shuddered with fear, and quickly pretended to take another look, then stammered in reply.
"Chen Lin, did you see it clearly?" Lord Zhuang asked in a deep voice.
"I have seen it clearly and I am definitely not wrong!" Chen Lin hurriedly vowed.
"Chen Lin, then take a look at what this one is?"
Lord Zhuang picked up another deed and handed it to the chief clerk. The chief clerk pressed the mark on the corner and showed it to Chen Lin. The previous one was handed to the Dali Temple Secretary.
The Dali Temple Secretary frowned and read it once, then looked at Chen Lin again, his eyes full of sarcasm.
Chen Lin saw that there was another mark on it. Even if he knew the contents by heart, he couldn't tell which one it was based on a few words he knew.
"This... this is... this is Zheng Linxi, no, it's Zhou Mucheng... that's not right either..."
"Bold Chen Lin, do you know where this is? How dare you tease me in the Dali Temple? Tell me, who was the guarantor for the business you did with Zhou Mucheng? Where did you sign the contract? Where did you ship the goods? What is the name of the business?"
Lord Zhuang asked in a stern voice, and Chen Lin couldn't help but panic. All of them were fabricated out of thin air. He could answer what was written in the deed when suddenly questioned, but if he made up what was not written in the deed, there would inevitably be loopholes.
"Sir, I dare not. The cotton cloth business between Zhou Mucheng and me was signed at Yumingxuan Teahouse. The goods were shipped... The goods were shipped in Xinning Prefecture..."
"Bang!" The gavel made a loud noise.
"No, no, no, it's not in Xinning Prefecture, it's in Hun..."
"Bang!" The gavel sounded again.
[Master Zhuang, are you going to change your career to storytelling?] The gavel clicked so smoothly! Su Qianqian's face looked like an old monk in meditation, but what she said in her heart was completely the opposite.
Mr. Zhuang: Su Qian, you are disrespecting me...
"Chen Lin, don't talk nonsense. Think it over before you speak. The Dali Temple is not a place where you can come and go as you please. If you can't remember, just say you can't remember. But if you talk nonsense, you are defying the law!"
Lu Jun, the Shaoqing of Dali Temple, suddenly spoke up and shouted.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
