Chapter 126 Li Yang Saves Her Husband by "Striking the Drum of Appeal".
Chen Junbo talked a lot, but never came back to the divorce agreement.
Li Yang grew somewhat irritated. "What does all that you've said have to do with the divorce agreement?"
Seeing this, Chen Junbo sighed, "Zhaozhao, Prime Minister Zhuang is a Grand Councilor, and your uncle is the General Who Pacifies the South."
Li Yang felt as if he had been struck on the head.
yes!
My maternal grandfather was a Grand Councilor and the Chief Cabinet Secretary.
My uncle is the General Who Guards the South, commanding an army of 100,000.
Chen Junbai was the leading salt merchant in the Lianghuai region!
"So, Li Yuhan and Liu Yitong have been released, but you are the only one whose home will be raided?!" Li Yang stammered.
Chen Junbo stared at her intently, his eyes filled with tenderness.
"It's my fault that you're in this mess." Li Yang looked back at him and said the answer that was on his mind.
“No,” Chen Junbo replied firmly. “It was my own carelessness that led to this disaster; it has nothing to do with you.”
“But if it weren’t for me, you could have gone home innocent, just like Li Yuhan and the others.” Li Yang was somewhat lost in thought. She never imagined that it all started with her.
"Zhao Zhao!" Chen Junbo mustered his last bit of strength. "Zhao Zhao, it's not your fault."
"But you didn't do anything wrong either!" Li Yang shouted. "You didn't do anything wrong. If it's not my fault, then whose fault is it!"
Chen Junbo reached out and hugged her. "Zhaozhao, things in this world are not always judged by right and wrong. Everything is predestined. Having you in my life is my greatest fortune, and that makes this life worthwhile."
Li Yang was stunned in his arms.
Chen Junbo was right. He was not wrong, nor was she wrong, nor were her maternal grandfather and uncle. However, possessing a treasure is a crime.
She originally thought that Zhang Youdao had slandered Chen Junbai, so she asked her grandfather to find a way to tell Emperor Qing the truth.
She thought that His Majesty was the sovereign and father of all people. If his children were wronged, Emperor Qing would be the patriarch who upholds justice.
No wonder, when Emperor Qing learned that she was his grandfather's granddaughter, he punished his grandfather by closing his residence.
No wonder his tea club was shut down.
No wonder Li Yuhan and Liu Yitong ignored it, while Chen Junbai, who had a clean record, was having his home ransacked.
No wonder that a short-sighted person like Zhang Youdao could so brazenly frame salt merchants.
It turns out she had placed her hopes on the wrong person.
How ridiculous, how ridiculous!
Hearing her sneer, Chen Junbo looked at her with concern, "Zhaozhao, what's wrong?"
"Wrong, wrong." Li Yang stared at Chen Junbo, cupped his face, "Chen Junbo, everything is wrong. It's not your fault, it's not my fault, but everything is wrong!"
“Zhaozhao, listen to me. Stop thinking about this.” Chen Junbo seemed scared. “Sign the divorce papers, forget about me, and live a good life with your grandpa and mother-in-law.”
"No!" Li Yang stood up, wiped away her tears, "Chen Junbo, you wait here and wait for me to come and take you home."
"Zhaozhao, what are you doing?"
“I don’t believe that right and wrong can be reversed in this world, I don’t believe that there is no justice and fairness in this world. Chen Junbai, you always say that people don’t care about right and wrong, but look, if there is no right and wrong, human life is as worthless as grass. I don’t believe it!” Li Yang said as he walked out of the prison cell and went straight to the teahouse.
The teahouse staff picked up Li Yuhan and Liu Yitong early in the morning and learned about the verdict. They were all feeling depressed and crying, and when they saw Li Yang, they all showed sympathy.
"Sister-in-law, we've decided to head back to Songshan Town first. Please accept our condolences." Li Yuhan was always the most considerate, and at this moment she was heading to Liyang.
“Chen Junbo has always treated you well. Now that he’s in trouble, is General Manager Li in such a hurry to leave to go back and take over as the head of the business community?” Li Yang’s words were extremely impolite, which made Li Yuhan’s eyebrows twitch.
"Madam Chen!" Li Yuhan was breathless, and then "sister-in-law" became "Madam Chen".
Li Yang looked at Li Yuhan with a smile on her face, without saying a word. No one had ever seen her like this before. Zi Yan couldn't help but step forward and tug at her sleeve, afraid that the two would have a falling out.
Li Yang rolled up his sleeves and said, "Isn't that right! Chen Junbo is still in jail, and the Chen family will be raided soon. At this time, General Manager Li is in a hurry to return to Songshan Town, but he doesn't care about Chen Junbo's situation at all."
As she spoke, her eyes darted to Liu Yitong, "Is Mr. Liu also leaving?"
Liu Yitong felt uncomfortable under her gaze. "I don't have anything urgent to do back home, but the court has already made its judgment. Sister-in-law, what are you planning to do..."
He stared at Li Yang, whose demeanor today was quite different from his usual cheerful and talkative manner. He wondered what Li Yang was up to.
"As you all know, Chen Junbo is innocent. He has never embezzled or broken the law. Yet today he can be convicted as a wanted criminal, his property confiscated and his property seized. Why can't it be you all tomorrow?" Li Yang looked at Li Yuhan and approached her step by step.
Upon hearing this, Li Yuhan did not continue arguing with her. He was not unaware of the cause and effect of Chen Junbo's actions today. The saying "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold" applies to them. However, without Chen Junbo, his Li family would be the leading merchant family in Lianghuai. Such a great temptation made Li Yuhan start to consider the matter.
"Sister-in-law, do you have a solution?" Zheng Qingbo asked Li Yang upon seeing the situation.
Li Yang turned around, looked at Zheng Qingbo, and then at Zi Yan. His once resolute eyes were now misty with tears.
He hesitated for a moment, biting his lip, then said, "Sound the drum to appeal."
His words caused a stir among those around him.
"Are you crazy?!" Li Yuhan shouted. "Do you think you can just strike the Dengwen Drum as you please?!"
Zheng Qingbo glanced at Li Yuhan, then at Li Yang, “Young Madam, the sounding of the Dengwen Drum must concern matters of great importance to the military and the nation, the most heinous crimes, the most extraordinary grievances and tragedies. Otherwise, the drum must not be struck, and those who disobey will be severely punished.”
“Chen Junbo was falsely accused and convicted, and his family was to be confiscated and he was to be exiled. How can this not be considered a strange and tragic injustice!” After Li Yang finished speaking, he looked up at the crowd.
“However, young mistress, you may not know this, but before the drum is struck, one must first receive thirty strokes of the cane. Even a man would be beaten until his skin is torn and bleeding after thirty strokes.” Zheng Qingbo was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the third year of the Daqing reign and was very familiar with the laws and regulations of the current dynasty.
In this dynasty, and even in the previous dynasty, the Dengwen Drum had become a mere formality. Ordinary people were already frightened away at the mere sight of the thirty strokes of the cane.
Not to mention, if the accusation is untrue, the person who made the accusation will be severely punished. Furthermore, even if they win the case, they may face further repercussions from the government.
Hearing Zheng Qingbo's words, Li Yuhan rolled her eyes at Li Yang. Li Yuhan felt she was an innocent victim; clearly someone was trying to frame Chen Junbo, and she had been dragged into it. Having just come out, hearing Li Yang's cold words made her think he had gone mad.
“Mr. Zheng, I know.” Li Yang lowered his head, as if he had made up his mind. “But now, there is no other way but this method.”
He paused, then added, "If that doesn't work, I'll go into exile with him."
Upon hearing this, Zheng Qingbo leaned back slightly and glanced at Ziyan. He saw that she was staring intently at Liyang, her eyes flickering with uncertainty.
Ziyan reached out and took Liyang's hand. "I'll help you."
Li Yang felt a lump in her throat, but she absolutely couldn't cry at this moment. All the words she wanted to say were condensed into one sentence: "Sister Ziyan."
The other person nodded slightly, their beautiful eyes sparkling. After a moment, Ziyan turned her head, her gaze fixed on Zheng Qingbo, without uttering a word.
Seeing this, Zheng Qingbo quickly said, "Ah, ah, I'll help you too."
Liu Yitong seemed to be influenced by the others, saying, "If you need money, I brought some with me."
As he spoke, he tore open the bundle he had just received that day and pulled out a stack of silver notes from the soles of a pair of shoes. He then flung out a considerable amount of gold and silver from his sleeve, breaking it into small pieces as if to make it easier for him to smooth things over.
"You brought quite a lot," Li Yuhan snorted.
Liu Yitong ignored him and started banging things around, pulling out some gold bracelets and the like from his pocket.
The group stared in disbelief, when Liu Yitong chuckled and said, "Peach Blossom prepared this for me when I left home. I never expected it would come in handy."
Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes turned to Li Yuhan. He swallowed hard and said coldly, "I'll join."
Li Yang forced out a smiley or crying face, and said, "Thank you." Then he looked at everyone and added, "Thank you all."
"Fool." Ziyan placed her other hand on Liyang's hand as well. "What are you thanking me for? Which one of us hasn't received help from Chen Junbai? In the seventh year of Daqing, Zheng Qingbo, you were forced to move to Songshan. It was Chen Junbai who helped you, and that gave you the opportunity to let the world know your name in calligraphy and painting."
In the eighth year of the Daqing reign, I was chosen as the most beautiful courtesan of the Ruyi Pavilion. It was thanks to General Merchant Chen's help that I was spared the fate of being taken as a concubine by an official. That same year, General Merchant Li, your salt business was in dire straits. If it weren't for Chen Junbai, would you have had the silver to pay the salt tax? The following year, General Merchant Liu…”
Liu Yitong raised both hands and said, "I know, I know."
Ziyan then gave up, saying, "So, even if it weren't for you, we would still help him. We should be thanking you."
Ziyan's words put everyone in the room on a high pedestal. If Li Yang had just begged everyone for help, anyone who suggested backing out now would be considered unrighteous and immoral.
As Li Yang held her hand, he felt a warm current flowing through his heart, and he straightened his back a little.
Later, when she recalled that day, she would still feel a warm current flowing through her heart, and the little flowers on the shore would stand up one by one.
However, things didn't go as smoothly back at the Zhuang residence as they had at the teahouse. Upon hearing that Li Yang was going to strike the Dengwen Drum, Zhuang Shutong was the first to object, "No, absolutely not, Zhao Zhao, Mother doesn't agree to you going."
Just as Li Yang was about to speak, she interrupted him again, "Zhao Zhao, thirty strokes of the cane! Even a man who practices martial arts would have to lie in bed for ten days or half a month after receiving it. How could a girl like you endure that?"
Zhuang Ziyang watched the mother and daughter silently. Seeing this, Li Yang grabbed Zhuang Shutong's hand and said, "Mother, Chen Junbai is my husband. He did not embezzle or break the law. It was Zhang Youdao who embezzled the salt tax money."
"Mother knows, but Zhaozhao, you don't know, this case was judged by His Majesty himself, there's no way to overturn it." Zhuang Shutong interrupted her hastily before she could finish, wanting to persuade her daughter to give up the idea of appealing to the emperor.
“Mother, I know.” Li Yang’s reply was very firm.
Zhuang Ziyang then spoke up: "Is this what Chen Junbo told you today?"
Li Yang was startled.
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