Chapter 40

TRANSLATED BY MYPEN_22

Almost all the people of Tonglin County knew about the Zhou family's affairs, and when they heard that the county magistrate was going to hear the Zhou family's case today, they were all surprised and rushed to the county courthouse to see what all the fuss was about. In a short while, the entrance to the county court was crowded with people.

    "Great, Your Excellency." The magistrate finally couldn't resist asking the handsome man sitting down and drinking tea leisurely, a man who didn't have a hideous face or an aggressive tone, but he was just afraid of him and shivered even when he said one more word to him.

    Yan Shi raised his eyes to look at him "Please speak, Magistrate Qian."

    The County Magistrate Qian used his sleeve to wipe the sweat that was about to fall into his eyes, "Zhou, Mrs. Zhou doesn't have any papers. The magistrate told the people below to ..."

    "No need, Lord Qian," Yan Shi put the cup of tea down in his hand and turned to Qu Liujing, "Mr. Qu, you must also help Mrs. Zhou to write a brief."

    "Yes, sir." Qu Liujing put the small box in his hand into his sleeve and stood up from his chair, deliberately bumping into Zhou Yongyan as he passed him, "Sorry, sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry for walking unsteadily." Although his mouth was apologetic, but his face was full of smiles, anyone could tell that he was doing it on purpose, very ungrateful.

    Zhou Yongyan could only swallow his teeth with a smile on his face, saying that he was forgiven.

    Qu Liujing borrowed the master's desk and pen and paper, and asked Madam Zhou to tell him once more what had happened. After Madam Zhou had finished, he took up his pen and wrote in a flamboyant manner. When Qu Liujing had finished writing the brief, the court was ready to rise.

    Hua Ling shook his head "I don't want to eat, brother."

    The young princess is so kind that when he sees others having a bad time, he feels worse than if he had a bad time himself.

    "Have a piece of hawthorn cake?" This is a good way to take the edge off, Yan Shi always thinks that the young princess is young and easily hungry when he is growing up, so he bought a lot of small snacks along the way and fed him whenever and wherever he could.

    When Hua Ling saw this he didn't have the heart to refuse, "Then I'll only eat one piece." I really ate too much at lunch and now I can't eat anymore.

    Yan Shi instructed Zhao Chunhai, who was standing behind him, to fetch a piece of hawthorn cake from the carriage.

    The magistrates in the hall did not hear what Yan Shi said to Zhao Chunhai, but saw him go out and thought he had gone to fetch something important. When Zhao Chunhai delivered the white handkerchief in his hand to Yan Shi and saw Hua Ling eating as if no one was watching, his eyes could not wait to fall to the ground.

    This lord really doted on this male wife.

    When he had finished eating, Qu Liujing had finished writing his paper, and he took it to Yan Shi to read and then delivered it to Magistrate Qian.

    He was only going through the paper, he was well aware of the Zhou family's affairs, so he asked Yan Shi cautiously, "Your Excellency, can we move to the court?"

    The county magistrate nodded his head, and the magistrate straightened his back and gave the hall wood a slap, but he also had the appearance of a county official.

    "Who is kneeling under the hall, what is the grievance quickly tell."

    The woman, Mrs. Zhou, fell to her knees and straightened her back, not humbling herself. "This woman, Mrs. Zhou Zhang, wants to sue Zhou Yongyan for keeping an illegitimate wife and bringing his illegitimate son into the house and pretending to be an abandoned baby, deceiving this woman for more than ten years."

    The magistrate also looked at Zhou Yongyan and slapped the wood and asked, "Zhou Yongyan, do you admit what Zhou Zhang said?"

    The scholar could not kneel down when he saw the magistrate, let alone the fact that Zhou Yongyan was a scholar, so he stood up in the hall and said, "Your Excellency, what Zhou Zhang said is not true. I do not have an illegitimate son, nor do I have an illegitimate wife."

    When Hua Ling heard this, he tugged on Yan Shi's sleeve and whispered, "Brother..."

    Yan Shi patted Hua Ling's hand soothingly, "Don't be anxious, just read on." He had underestimated this Zhou Yongyan, he was really cunning.

    Zhou Zhang was furious "You're talking nonsense! You ..."

    "Silence!" County magistrate Qian slapped the alarming wood and asked Zhou Yongyan, "Do you know where that child was held back then?"

    Zhou Yongyan said, "According to my mother, she picked him up at the river outside the city.

    "Are there any witnesses?"

    "Yes," Zhou Yongyan said, "the servants who went with my mother to offer incense that day can all testify."

    Madam Zhou said angrily, "The servants of the Zhou family are all your people, they will naturally speak for you! Besides, it was you who put the boy by the river."

    Magistrate Qian nodded "Then Zhou Zhang, do you have any evidence for your claim that Zhou Yongyan kept an outlaw?"

    Madam Zhou's expression suddenly dimmed "In reply to Your Excellency's words, there is no evidence."

    "Then how can I trust you without evidence?"

    Mrs. Zhou said, "A blood test will tell you."

    Since Zhou Yongyan kept saying that the child was an abandoned baby, but if he and the child's blood were fused together then Zhou Yongyan's lie would be self-evident.

    At that moment, the magistrate ordered that the second young master be summoned to court.

    From the moment Mrs Zhou said she wanted a blood test, Zhou Yongyan was like a frosted aubergine. When the second young master arrived in the courtroom, he seemed to come to his senses and said loudly, "Your Excellency, this blood test does not prove anything.

    Magistrate Qian was in a bit of a quandary, what Zhou Yongyan said seemed to make some sense. Yan Shi rubbed his chin, this Zhou Yongyan really seemed to be arguing strongly.

    At this time, Qu Liujing tilted towards him and bent his ear to say a few words to him, and Yan Shi nodded.

    I have a method to prove whether the second young master is Zhou Xieyuan's biological son or not, and also whether Zhou Xieyuan has kept an outside wife."

    The magistrate said, "Please tell me, doctor."

    Qu Liujing looked at Zhou Yongyan with his arms around him, "Zhou Xieyuan, do you really not know who the second young master's parents are?"

    He didn't believe that this man would have any knowledge, so he said, "I really don't know."

    "Very well," Qu Liujing nodded and then smiled, "Zhou Jie Yuan really thinks everyone is a fool, think about it, if my lord did not have full evidence, how would he let the magistrate Qian open the case? If Zhou Jieyuan says that the blood test is false, then we can do a bone test. I started studying medicine when I was three years old and have become a little more accomplished. If the second young master's blood melts into the bones, the person is naturally the second young master's real mother. If the second young master's blood melts into the bones, then that person is naturally the second young master's real mother. Then Zhou Xieyuan, you claim to be an orphan without a father or mother, how can you be related to another woman? Brothers of the officials, please also bear with me and take the second young master with you."

    "I won't go! I won't go! You will never dig up my mother's grave!" The Second Young Master, who had been kneeling beside Madam Zhou, suddenly launched into a frenzy, his eyes staring viciously at Qu Liujing, and he even stood up and tried to push him with both hands.

    He even stood up and tried to push him with his hands. "Yo, the second young master is so fierce," Qu Liujing flicked backwards, not even letting him touch his clothes. The magistrate next to him went to restrain him and pushed him to the ground and kneeled down, "Be honest!"

    The second young master was only a teenager, how could he have the strength of two adults, he was immediately pinned down and couldn't move, but only stared at Qu Liujing angrily with one pair of eyes.

    Qu Liujing dusted off his clothes and cupped his fist at the magistrate, "I wonder if the magistrate understands?"

    The magistrate was confused, "Understand what?"

    The corners of Qu Liujing mouth curled up into a smile as he glanced at the Zhou family and continued, "Just now, the second young master said he wouldn't let us dig his mother's grave. It was his mother he was talking about. Isn't he an orphan who doesn't know who his parents are? Why did he say that his mother was buried in that tomb?" Qu Liujing repeated the word "his mother".

    The truth was that Yan Shi and the others had no idea where the orphan was buried, let alone whether Young Master Zhou knew or not.

    They didn't know that he wasn't born to Madam Zhou. The second young master was too young to be fooled.

    The next step is to see what the magistrate will do.

    The county magistrate slapped the wood of the hall, "Zhou Yongyan still does not confess to the truth!"

    "The second young master looked at Zhou Yongyan with tears in his eyes, knowing that he had caused trouble, but there was nothing he could do about it.

    Zhou Yongyan saw that this situation can no longer deny the past, just want to confess, just heard the outside noise, a lot of crying.

    "Who is making noise in the hall?" Magistrate Qian asked.

    A magistrate reported, "Your Excellency, it's Zhou Xieyuan's mother, Mrs. Zhou, who is clamouring to go to court."

    The magistrate could not make up his mind, so he put his eyes on Yan Shi, but he did not even look at him. The magistrate had to make his own decision, "Bring her up here."

    When Old Lady Zhou went to the court, crying and wailing, Magistrate Qian said, "Why is the woman in front of the court making a ruckus?"

    The old lady wiped her tears and said, "I am begging for my son's mercy, he only did something wrong back then.

    "You can't say that," said Magistrate Qian, "even though the man is dead, the mistakes he made are still there, so how can they be written off?"

    Old lady Zhou said, "He was too young and inevitably made mistakes.

    Mrs Zhou laughed coldly, "If that's the case, so many murderers say I was wrong after killing someone, can the dead person come back to life?"

    Old Lady Zhou's face turned white and red as she pointed her finger at Madame Zhou and cursed "You shameless bitch, if anything happens to my son, I won't be done with you!"