Anyang County Government Office.
Chen Qingqing stood outside the lobby.
Beneath the plaque that reads "Mirror of Justice," a middle-aged county magistrate, dressed in official robes and wearing a black gauze hat, sits on a high chair in the center.
This man was Qin Shousheng, the magistrate of Anyang County. He was a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) and had served in Anyang for many years, but his reputation was generally poor.
County Magistrate Shen Yuanze sat upright to one side, carefully examining the man who bore a resemblance to Madam Fan, while coldly observing Chen Feng and the others.
Qin Shousheng picked up the gavel and slammed it down, shouting, "Who is kneeling before me? What grievance do they have? Speak quickly!"
Chen Feng knelt down on both knees, holding up the petition, "Your Honor, I am Chen Feng from Nanshan Village, Qingshui Town. I worked as a handyman at the Qingshui Restaurant. The day before I left, I was drugged and falsely accused of theft. I was beaten and almost died. I beg Your Honor to do me justice."
County Magistrate Shen Yuanze hurriedly said, "Lord Qin, this person is the one I mentioned to you a few days ago who filed a report. The coroner examined the injuries, and they were indeed caused by a beating. As for the reason, please summon both parties to come and confront each other."
Qin Shousheng nodded. "The county magistrate is right. The defendant has arrived."
"Your Excellency, I have already sent someone on horseback to Qingshui Town to fetch the person. They should be back soon."
"Alright." Qin Shousheng said, gesturing to the clerk beside him to bring over the petition.
After reading the complaint, Qin Shousheng was instantly enraged and slammed his gavel down.
"This Wu Shiren is incredibly audacious! He actually allowed the accountant and others to beat up someone! Guards, bring the defendant here!"
At this moment, Wu Shiren, Wang Decai, and others were led outside the main hall by the yamen runners.
They thought Chen Feng was long dead, but they never expected that his sister would actually report the injury to the authorities.
Fortunately, Shen Yuanze was his friend of many years and told him in advance that Chen Qingqing might report him.
Initially feeling uneasy, the group discussed it together...
Convinced that Chen Feng was doomed, even if they filed a lawsuit, as long as they stubbornly refused to admit it, Chen Qingqing would not win the case.
Incredibly, Chen Feng's severe injuries miraculously healed.
However, they were not afraid. Only a few of them knew what happened that day, and as long as their testimonies matched, the case could not be concluded.
Wu Shiren, emboldened, entered the main hall, knelt down and kowtowed, "Your Honor, we are innocent, please do justice for us!"
Enemies meeting are bound to be furious. The moment Chen Feng saw these people, he almost couldn't resist rushing forward to strangle these heartless bastards.
He glared fiercely at the group.
“You falsely accused me of stealing money, intending to force a confession out of me. How dare you say you are innocent?”
Wang Decai snorted coldly and said disdainfully, "Chen Feng, when did we frame you or beat you? Don't make false accusations, or I'll sue you for defamation."
Qin Shousheng slammed his gavel and raised his voice, "Silence! Is this your decision or mine?"
Everyone stopped arguing.
Qin Shousheng asked loudly, "Chen Feng, you said Wu Shiren, Wang Decai and others beat you up. Do you have any evidence, such as someone who saw it or a witness who is willing to testify for you?"
Chen Feng glared at Wang Decai and his group, his eyes bloodshot, his voice filled with barely suppressed anger.
"Your Honor, they colluded to get me drunk the night before, and the next day they accused me of stealing their silver. They then subjected me to torture, beating me unconscious. All of them were present. If Your Honor interrogates them rigorously, they will surely confess."
"Nonsense! How can I, an official, arbitrarily resort to torture when investigating a case? What if I were to be forced to confess? Wouldn't that be maliciously smearing me and showing contempt for the law!" Qin Shousheng shouted sternly before turning to Wu Shiren and the others. "Do you agree with the plaintiff's statement?"
Before Wu Shiren could speak, Wang Decai hurriedly spoke up to defend himself, "Your Honor, I am innocent! We have no grudge against Chen Feng. We were just beating up a menial job."
The accusations of stealing silver and using vigilante justice are nothing but malicious slander; he's just trying to blackmail us.
The injuries he sustained had nothing to do with us; they were from a drunken night when he harassed someone's wife and was brutally beaten.
Our manager kindly rescued him, but he repays kindness with enmity and tries to take advantage of us. Please, Your Honor, see the truth!
"You're talking nonsense! I didn't harass the young wife. These injuries are from what you guys did!" Chen Feng roared, barely containing his anger.
Wu Shiren glanced at him contemptuously, then kowtowed, "Your Honor, this man has been beaten senseless. He has worked as a handyman in my shop for more than three years. I have always treated him kindly and benevolently, but he has repaid kindness with enmity and is trying to extort money from me. I beg Your Honor to investigate and do justice for this humble subject!"
At this moment, Shen Yuanze whispered in Qin Shousheng's ear, "Sir, this Wu Shiren is an old acquaintance of ours. He's given you plenty of gifts during the holidays. We can't just listen to the plaintiff's side of the story..."
Qin Shousheng's expression froze as he carefully examined Wu Shiren. He remembered that three years ago, Wu Shiren had unjustly beaten a shop assistant so badly that the employee's family had filed a complaint with the county government.
He intended to handle the case impartially, but who would have thought that Wu Shiren would know how to curry favor and directly offer him two hundred taels of silver?
They had no choice but to go against their conscience and convict Wu Shiren of accidental injury, giving the injured party a few taels of silver to hastily close the case.
From then on, Wu Shiren was deeply grateful to this official and would send him some money as a token of respect every year.
Thinking of this, Qin Shousheng drew out his words, "Chen Feng, the defendant's statement is reasonable and well-founded. Since you say that they beat you, do you have any witnesses? If not, this official cannot make a decision for you."
"This..." Chen Feng was speechless. All the people who beat him were present, and there was no one else in the store at the time. Where was he supposed to find witnesses?
"Since you have no witnesses, this case is not valid. I am merciful and will not pursue the matter further. You may leave now, and do not come back to cause trouble."
After Qin Shousheng finished speaking, he waved to the crowd.
"Both sides are only telling one side of the story. How can I, the official, listen to only one side? This case is without evidence. You may all return home now!"
"Sir, we have witnesses waiting outside the courtroom," Chen Qingqing, who had remained silent until now, shouted.
Just as Qin Shousheng was about to slam his gavel and adjourn the court, he heard someone shouting loudly. A hint of impatience flashed across his face, but he still asked, "Who are you? What evidence do you have?"
Chen Qingqing looked directly at Qin Shousheng, her pretty face showing no sign of panic. "Your Excellency, I am Chen Feng's sister. The witnesses I mentioned are Wu Shiren's daughter, Wu Cuihua, and several head chefs in the kitchen can also testify to this."
......
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