Torn Apart

"I'm here to see Lord Feng." Fen Tao Mother was extremely panicked. If she sued the prefect's son in front of him, she might end up in a miserable situation. But today, in front of so many people watching outside the door, she had to persevere, otherwise her daughter would be abused by that beast sooner or later.

"Who is kneeling in the hall? What injustice has she suffered?" Magistrate Feng slammed the gavel and said with a serious face, it really looked like the truth.

Fen Tao Mother's hands, which were hidden in her sleeves, were clenched until they turned white. She took a deep breath and said: "I live in Qingliu Village outside the Town, and my name is Wu Sanniang. Last night, four gangsters broke into a peasant woman's house and tried to rob my daughter. My daughter was seriously injured and was lying in bed unable to get out of bed. Fortunately, she was rescued by several kind-hearted gentlemen who caught the four criminals. My daughter was able to escape. After interrogation, it was found that the four were instructed by their young master to capture my daughter as a concubine. Please make the decision and give justice to my poor daughter."

Outside the hall, the crowd whispered about the case.

"Another rich young master gone wild, I bet. It's not the first time we've heard about this sort of thing."

"You're right. But ordinary people like us wouldn't dare upset them! We have no choice but to put up with it. One wrong move and our whole family would suffer."

"This woman's got some nerve, complaining to the authorities. Doesn't she fear retaliation?"

"Silence!" Magistrate Feng's stern voice cut through the chatter.

The whispered discussions outside the door finally died down.

As Magistrate Zhifu studied the four bound figures, a sudden unease gnawed at him. Their clothes were tattered, but the patterns on them looked strikingly similar to the uniforms worn by his own estate guards. The four men's disheveled, straw-like hair obscured their faces.

"I find their expressions hard to read—dazed and unresponsive." Magistrate Feng remarked: "We can't trust what they say in their current state. Here's what I propose: Let's send these four to prison first. We'll call for a doctor to examine them. If they're mentally sound, we'll bring them back for a proper trial."

"Your Honor, I have proof." Fen Tao's mother said: "This is their personal testimony from last night. There are bloody fingerprints on it. The whole story and who ordered it are written clearly on it." Fen Tao's mother hurriedly took out a neatly folded piece of rice paper from her bosom.

Magistrate Feng narrowed his eyes and looked at the four men. He was certain that these four men must be the guards of his mansion. He knew without a doubt that it was his youngest son who did it.

"Bring it forward!"

"At once!"

An official took the evidence from Fen Tao's mother and handed it to Magistrate Feng.

As Magistrate Feng read through the paper line by line, his face grew darker. Finally, he tore it to pieces and shouted: "Utter nonsense!"

Pale-faced, Fen Tao's mother watched her evidence vanish.

The crowd of bystanders outside the door exchanged glances. They'd never heard of a case where a magistrate destroyed evidence before it could even be considered.

Su Chenyu and the others had anticipated this might happen.

Su Chenyu was unfazed. Just as he was about to step across the threshold, he was blocked by a guard's halberd brandished the way it brandished him.

"Step back! The judge is working. Irrelevant people should clear out. If you disobey, you'll be thrown in jail for disrupting the court." The guard barked.

Su Chenyu ignored the threat: "Magistrate Feng, there's more than just this one statement. Tearing this up won't change anything."

"Sir." Fen Tao's mother rushed to say: "This is the young master who saved us. He can speak for me."

Magistrate Feng found himself in a difficult position. Frowning deeply, he said: "Let him enter."

The guards withdrew their menacing rods. Su Chenyu strolled in with exaggerated swagger.

"Brash! Don't you know to kneel when you meet a Magistrate Magistrate?" One soldier called out.

Magistrate Feng raised a hand, and the soldier stepped back, falling silent.

Magistrate Feng's eyes narrowed as he scrutinized Su Chenyu. After years as a magistrate, his ability to judge people was sharper than most. This man was clearly no ordinary individual.

"Who are you again? What's your name?" Magistrate Feng asked.

"There's no need for you, Magistrate Feng, to know who I am. But what you did back there was a bit much." Su Chenyu replied.

"I allowed my anger to get the better of me, and yes, it was a bit much. But what do you mean by saying there's more than one set of witness accounts?" Magistrate Feng was also unsure of Su Chenyu's intentions, his expression cautious.

"Just what it sounds like! Something as important as a witness account should always have multiple copies. That way, if someone like you loses their temper and tears up one set, it's no big deal!" Su Chenyu said, waving his fan.

Magistrate Feng's face turned ashen: "These four people are already distraught." He said sternly: "We can't be sure their witness accounts are true. We can't just take your word for it either."

Su Chenyu replied: "That's easy. Just bring the person mentioned in the statements to court. Let them face each other. The truth will come out naturally."

At this moment, Magistrate Feng felt frustrated, wishing his subordinate would step up. Feng Zheng hadn't informed him about any of this, leaving him unaware until now. The sudden turn of events caught him off guard, and he hadn't figured out how to handle it yet.

For a moment, the courtroom fell silent. The onlookers outside could sense something strange was happening. Seeing the strained expression on Magistrate Feng's face, they didn't dare whisper a word.

Su Chenyu broke the silence: "Magistrate Feng, is it really so hard to do this?"

Magistrate Feng released a long sigh: "Wu Sanniang, since your daughter has been saved by this young master and you don't have to worry about sexually transmitted diseases, why not let me lock up the real culprits? I'll also give you fifty taels of silver as compensation. How about that?"

Fen Tao's mother bit her lip. She had already put herself at odds with the authorities, and now was not the time to back down. So she said firmly: "Sir, I don't want these fifty taels of compensation. I just want the masterminds behind this to get punished as they deserve."

Su Chenyu let out a cold laugh. Turning to face the onlookers outside, he said: "I'm sure you're all dying to know who the real mastermind is, someone important enough to hide the truth for! Even now, our brave witness hasn't even mentioned their name."

As they listened to Su Chenyu's words, the onlookers suddenly realized something wasn't right. Some recalled rumors they'd heard earlier and quickly put two and two together. They turned their eyes toward Magistrate Feng, seated high up in court, with newfound understanding.

CRACK!

Magistrate Feng slammed his hand down on the judge's gavel: "What are you trying to accomplish?" He snapped: "How dare you question my decisions! I haven't asked you to kneel before me out of kindness, but you're still trying to interfere with my judgment. What do you think your punishment should be?"

Su Chenyu burst out laughing: "You think you can convict me? You're not even qualified. You can't be fair in your rulings and then stop others from saying so. As Xuanyang Town's leader, is this how you bring justice to the people? Do you deserve to be the Town's governor?"

Magistrate Feng's face turned green with anger. He jumped to his feet and yelled: "Guards! This man is insulting the court and showing disrespect. Give him fifty lashes to take the arrogance out of him, then throw him in jail."

"Yes, sir!" Several officers moved to obey.

"Let's see who dares!" Su Chenyu shouted.