Wang Chong was brought to the courtroom; he had been arrested just an hour earlier.
I spent some time in the prison of the Jingzhao Prefecture, which was packed with prisoners.
He was soon taken to the courtroom to await trial, and was to be brought directly to the courtroom.
The fact that he hadn't heard a thing about such a large-scale arrest suggests that the operation began last night.
In the passageway, I listened to the verdicts of the three cases before me, including witnesses, evidence, and confessions, and the convictions were successfully completed.
How could the clerks and runners of the Jingzhao Prefecture possibly accomplish such a feat in just one night?
Even if officials from the Ministry of Justice were transferred, it was impossible for him not to have heard a word about it.
Combined with the fact that Chengyuan had been raided, he already had a firm suspicion in his mind.
Xuanji Guard, there is absolutely no other possibility!
Before going to the hall, Wang Chong had already figured this out, but he was not sure to what extent the Xuanji Guard had mastered it.
The bailiffs on either side didn't tolerate it at all and threw him to the ground as before.
Knees hit the ground, and a wave of pain washed over him, causing him to groan involuntarily.
"Wang Chong, do you know your crime!"
A question came from Deng Hongyi, the Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture.
Chen Yu squeezed into the crowd, not with the people from Huichuntang, and tried his best to listen.
Wang Chong knelt on the ground, his eyes darting around, "This lowly...this lowly did not know!"
Deng Hongyi's gaze swept across the audience below, his voice flat and emotionless.
"Someone has accused you of lending money at exorbitant interest rates, exploiting people, seizing their land and houses, and driving them to their deaths. Is this true?"
Wang Chong immediately lowered his body, his voice carrying just the right amount of grievance:
"Your Honor, may you bear witness! My family has been running a pharmacy for generations, always honest and fair, treating everyone, young and old, with integrity. All the neighbors can attest to this."
Sometimes, even a petty person might lend money to a neighbor in an emergency, but that's always out of kindness, and it's common for them to ask for some interest.
As for driving someone to their death...that...that's a tremendous injustice!
Deng Hongyi remained silent, only turning his gaze to the registrar beside him.
The registrar understood, unfolded the document, and spoke in a clear and loud voice, each word like a nail:
"Upon investigation, from the third year of the Taiwei era to the present, there have been more than twenty loan documents in which land, houses, livestock, and even people have been used as collateral."
Of these, only three offered a monthly interest rate of 3%, while the rest offered 5% or higher!
Even more egregiously, in cases like the tenant farmer Dasaburo borrowing three shi of millet, the contract stipulated that "six shi of millet shall be returned in the autumn, which is insufficient to offset the debt with land."
Just three months after the contract was signed, interest compounded, and Tian Sanlang's three acres of meager land all went to the Wang family.
Deeply troubled, Tasaburo committed suicide by drowning himself in the river last December. His body surfaced on the Hime River three days later!
The registrar's voice continued, growing increasingly cold and stern:
"Further investigation revealed that Li Ada, a carpenter from Guangde Lane, borrowed two strings of cash to treat his mother's illness. The contract stated that the monthly interest rate was 6% and the term was three months."
Unable to repay the debt when it was due, his entire set of carpentry tools, which he relied on for a living, were taken away, and his ancestral courtyard was used as collateral.
Upon hearing the news, Li Ada's mother was overcome with illness and died that very night!
Li Ada himself is now homeless and his whereabouts are unknown!
"And what's more!" The registrar's voice suddenly rose, filled with anger.
"In order to collect the debt owed by the widow Zhao Zhoushi, he even instructed scoundrels to throw filth at her house in the middle of the night."
They smashed doors and windows and harassed Zhao Zhoushi day and night, causing her to fall ill from fear.
Her six-year-old son was so frightened that he developed a high fever that lasted for three days!
Such behavior is no different from that of robbers and thieves!
The anger outside the hall finally broke through the dam of repression, merging into a surging wave of sound!
"Six percent monthly interest?! That's like sucking people dry!"
“Tadasaburo…what a kind and honest person…”
"Carpenter Li's skills are so good... He's moved all his belongings out..."
"Sister-in-law Zhao is so pitiful... an orphan and a widow..."
"This isn't a pharmacy; it's a skinning shop right in front of the King of Hell's palace!"
"Your Honor! This ruthless wolf cannot be spared!"
Countless fiery gazes, like tangible arrows, shot towards Wang Chong kneeling below the hall.
Wang Chong lay slumped on the ground, his forehead pressed against the blue bricks, trembling, but the panic in his eyes was not visible.
The number of cases handled over the years is more than twenty, which shows that the other party's methods are indeed remarkable, but also very rushed.
Given the methods of the Xuanji Guard, they shouldn't have only found this much.
Wang Chong's feigned sorrow and grievances crumbled, revealing a deathly pale undertone and an undisguised panic beneath.
He suddenly looked up, his voice sharp as he defended himself:
"Sir, it is only right to pay back debts!"
If they can't repay the debt, using land and houses to settle it is also in accordance with the contract.
As for Tian Sanlang and Li Ada's mother... what does that have to do with me?
As for the affairs of the Zhao Zhou family… I know absolutely nothing about them! It must be those ruffians taking this opportunity to cause trouble!
"What a perfectly reasonable statement!" Deng Hongyi's voice now carried the force of thunder and lightning.
He suddenly grabbed a contract from the table, and with a flick of his wrist, the contract unfurled like a funeral banner, displaying itself before Wang Chong and the people outside the hall.
"This contract is made by Zhang Liu's husband, Zhang Aniu, who borrows two shi of millet from you."
The contract states that the monthly interest rate is 7%, the term is three months, and upon maturity, the principal and interest will be repaid as a total of 4.2 shi of millet.
If that's insufficient, two mu of paddy fields outside the east wall of the house will be used as compensation.
"At the time the contract was signed, Zhang Aniu was bedridden and delirious, and only his wife Zhang Liushi pressed her fingerprint on it."
Now that Zhang Aniu has passed away, you have forcibly seized his land.
Her youngest son was critically ill and on the verge of death. Zhang Liu knelt down and begged you to give him medicine to save his life, but you refused to let her in, saying that "the land should have been used to pay off the debt long ago!"
Wang Chong!
Deng Hongyi's voice boomed like thunder.
"The interest on this contract far exceeds what is permitted by law, and it also takes advantage of people's vulnerability and coerces the sick and weak!"
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
