In the blink of an eye, Cai Wuping had someone hand the letter to Cheng Qingyan.
The reply to Cai Wuping was still just a piece of paper, which read, "Didn't see the letter, keep calling."
Cai Wuping slammed his gavel: "How dare you, Ye Zongzhi, try to deceive me! Where is the letter? Why haven't I seen it?"
Then Cai Wuping looked at the constables standing on both sides and asked, "Do you know where the letter from the prefect he mentioned is?"
All the constables said in unison, "We didn't see it!"
Cai Wuping smiled smugly: "You, Ye Zongzhi, actually tried to smear the prefect's name to evade responsibility. You are truly shameless and audacious!"
"Ye Zongzhi has falsely accused the Prefect without cause. In order to protect the Prefect's reputation, I have no choice but to punish you severely."
"Guards, give Ye Zongzhi thirty strokes of the cane and take him to jail. He will be tried again at a later date!"
"Ye Lingxi has shown contempt in court and insulted this official. She shall be punished with twenty strokes of the cane, plus the previous thirty strokes, for a total of fifty strokes. After that, she shall be imprisoned!"
Ye Zongzhi was furious. He had clearly handed in the prefect's letter, but Cai Wuping had ignored the prefect's wishes.
Unexpectedly, the person who only wanted to plead for leniency in court was not only slapped, but also dragged away to be beaten with a board.
When had Ye Lingxi ever suffered such humiliation?
Since begging for mercy won't work, the only option left is to bring out her powerful backer!
Thinking of this, her demeanor changed, and even her swollen face couldn't stop her from speaking: "You, a mere county magistrate, dare to have someone hit me? Do you know that my husband's elder brother is the prefect, your superior?"
"Just you wait! I, Ye Lingxi, will remember this grudge. Once I get out, I'll let my brother know, and he'll make sure you suffer a terrible death!"
In the courtroom, Cai Wuping was presiding over the case when she barged in without cause and started yelling in the courtroom, showing no respect for the law. The beating was already considered a very light punishment.
Cai Wuping ignored her and directly ordered the yamen runners to take the person away for torture.
Having just finished beating Ye Zongzhi's constables, and before they even had a chance to rest, they were assigned tasks.
After beating the old, they moved on to the young, ignoring Ye Lingxi's cries, and directly pressed her onto the torture bench, slapping her with the paddle.
Ye Zongzhi, who had already received fifty strokes of the cane, felt like he had lost half his life. Now, with another thirty strokes to be added, he felt like he could see his great-grandmother.
Moreover, that idiot Ye Lingxi, when he handed the letter to Cai Wuping, didn't he see that Cai Wuping had clearly opened the letter but pretended not to see it?
Bringing up the prefect's name now is useless; it will only make Cai Wuping and his men beat her even harder.
It's just unknown who Cai Wuping's backers are, as they not only imprisoned Wei Yong but also seized control of the government office.
Fortunately, he had written to the prefect in advance, informing him that someone in Yuanning County was plotting a rebellion and had occupied the county government office.
Now, as long as he and Ye Lingxi can endure this beating, even if they are thrown into prison, as long as they don't die, the prefect will definitely come back to rescue them.
After the court session adjourned, Shen Ziyu and Cheng Qingyan summoned Cai Wuping.
“County Magistrate Cai, do you know the name of the Prefect that Ye Zongzhi and the others mentioned in court today?”
"Your Excellency, the current prefect's surname is Chen, and he is the eldest son of the former county magistrate, Chen Shengsen. When Chen Shengsen was dismissed from office, the prefect, Chen Yuanze, was on his way to take up his post in Youping County. It seems that he made considerable achievements during his tenure and was therefore not implicated by the Chen family."
I see, he's an old acquaintance.
However, Chen Shengsen was somewhat ungrateful, actually letting his son follow in his footsteps.
Chen Yuanze is even worse than Chen Shengsen. He dared to torture Mu Zhiyue into this state. He must have a death wish!
County Magistrate Cai has now offended the Prefect, and he and Cheng Qingyan are now in the same boat. He must find a way to remove Chen Yuanze from power, otherwise, once Cheng Qingyan and the others leave, he'll be facing Chen Yuanze alone, and even eight lives wouldn't be enough to save him.
There is some distance between the prefectural capital and Yuanning County. Ye Zongzhi sent a message to Chen Yuanze, saying that Chen Yuanze would arrive here by tomorrow at the latest.
After returning home, Cai Wuping contacted his friends and began gathering evidence of Chen Yuanze's crimes.
What kind of good person is someone who can bend the law for personal gain, protect the Ye family, and condone Ye Zongzhi and Wei Yong's misdeeds?
Since Ye Zongzhi and Ye Lingxi were imprisoned, the Ye family's business has been in chaos.
Many of the original partners began to terminate their contracts with the Ye family, and some of the Ye family's shops also encountered various messy problems, with some shops even being vandalized.
Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu no longer needed to hide their identities and went directly to the pharmacy owned by Yan Nanxing and his wife.
The location of the pharmacy remained the same, but the store has expanded by at least double, with three doctors now serving the medicinal herbs, providing more space, and even having three doctors on duty.
The medicine cabinets covered three entire walls, as tall as the walls themselves. There were at least ten shop assistants and students, and patients lined up from the shop entrance to the other side of the street.
Huh, are there so many patients in Yuanning County? Or are there only so many patients in Yan Nanxing's area?
With these questions in mind, Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu approached the young medicine boy: "Excuse me, is Yan Nanxing in the shop?"
The young apprentice pharmacist was very polite: "What brings you two to my master's shop? My master is not at the pharmacy right now. If possible, I can wait until my master returns and relay your message."
It's understandable that they're not at the pharmacy; they came suddenly without telling Yan Nanxing, so it's normal that they can't find anyone now.
Just as they were about to leave, Xue Ningfei lifted the curtain and came out.
She spotted Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu standing in the lobby at a glance and greeted them happily: "Young Master Cheng, Madam Cheng, what brings you here? Please come in, please come in~"
"Tong'er, go to the Li residence and inform your master that distinguished guests have arrived. Tell him to come back immediately."
Upon entering the inner hall, Xue Ningfei had tea served.
No matter what, Pujitang's current scale is inseparable from Cheng Qingyan's investment; Cheng Qingyan and her team are considered her and Yan Nanxing's partners.
"My husband went to see a doctor. He should be back by now, but I'm afraid he's been dragged into playing chess by the young master of the Li family again."
"So that's how it is," Cheng Qingyan thought, recalling the people queuing up to see a doctor at the entrance. She asked in confusion, "Why are there so many people queuing up to see a doctor at the entrance? When I pass by other pharmacies, their entrances are always deserted. Only here are there an unusually large number of people."
Xue Ningfei explained with a smile, "Young Master Cheng, you may not know this, but these past two days have been the days for Pujitang's monthly free clinic."
“My husband said that our medicinal herb business is now basically stable and we’ve made some money. It’s time to take care of those people who can’t afford medical treatment and medicine, and hopefully give some hope to those suffering from illness in this world.”
Yan Nanxing is very righteous. During the free clinic, he provides free medical treatment and medicine. He holds free clinics for two days every month, so it's no wonder that so many people are queuing up outside.
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