Translator – Xiao He Lian
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Chapter 78.2
Song Jingwen said: “Mister Chu, just speak frankly.”
“Mister Shen has a sick brother who needs money for medical treatment. Why would she destroy her own well-established brand just to ruin Miss Sun’s reputation? Forgive me for speaking frankly, this matter is completely unreasonable.”
“Unreasonable?”
“Perhaps Miss Shen did the opposite?” Song Jingwen said with a smile, “Mister Chu, look at the evidence in front of you! If Miss Sun hadn’t been lucky that day, she would have been disfigured today! Is this reasonable?”
Chu Xun raised the corner of his mouth, “Speaking of good fortune, I am even more puzzled. Baixiang Pavilion is one of the best perfume and powder shops in the capital, with a wide variety of rouge and powder. If you are so lucky, how could Miss Sun choose this poisonous powder at first sight?”
Song Jingwen narrowed his eyes and retorted, “What nonsense! This rogue was clearly handed over to Miss Sun by Miss Shen herself!”
Chu Xun chuckled, “Mister Song, knows that our law has always severely punished the act of falsely accusing others. If this is a false accusation, they will be punished for it accordingly. If the hired lawyer received more than 100 copper coins, he will not only be punished for corruption, but also receive an additional punishment.”
Song Jingwen sneered, “Mister Chu should worry about himself.”
Immediately afterwards, Chu Xun also called two witnesses. These two women were guests who appeared in Baixiang Pavilion.
They also passed the in-court trial.
And the statements were consistent—Sun Mi personally selected the rogue and Shen Zhen had not touched the bottle.
Song Jingwen was a seasoned veteran after all. Seeing that they were trying to use this to get away with the crime, he calmly called up another person.
The woman surnamed Jia knelt down as soon as she came up, covering her red, swollen and rotten face and said, “My lord, two days ago, I also went to Baixiang Pavilion once. I was a maid in Pingkang lane and my status was low. The rogue was expensive and I couldn’t afford it. I was tempted and stole one. Who knew that after using it twice, my face was ruined.”
“Please, My Lord, take into account the fact that I surrendered and confessed and impose a lighter punishment.”
“Two days ago? You mean, there is still poison powder in her Baixiang Pavilion?”
“Yes, My Lord, you can send someone to check it out.”
Shen Zhen looked down at yet another disfigured woman, feeling a little sad. Sun Mi can really go to any lengths to harm her.
Baixiang Pavilion was very close to Jingzhao Prefecture, and the yamen runners sent out by Lu Yan returned very quickly.
They brought back two boxes of incense powder and upon inspection, one of the boxes was found to be highly toxic.
Shen Zhen suddenly understood why Lu Yan told her not to take out the account book of Baixiang Pavilion in advance, because once it was taken out in advance, the fake witness in front of her would not appear here.
Shen Zhen asked slowly: “I wonder if you can let me take a look at the bottles in this box?”
Lu Yan nodded and sent someone to hand a bunch of short-necked bottles to Shen Zhen.
Shen Zhen took it, looked it over carefully and said softly, “My Lord, what this girl is holding and what is in this box are not the rogue from Baixiang Pavilion at all.”
“You still want to deny it?” asked the woman surnamed Jia.
Shen Zhen took out an account book, turned to the date three days ago and said word by word: “Every bottle of rogue in Baixiang Pavilion has a mark on the bottom of the bottle, which corresponds to the account book one by one. Every time one is sold, one is crossed out and the customer’s name is signed. These are all recorded in the account book. Please take a look at them, My Lord.”
When Song Jingwen heard this, his heart skipped a beat and he thought to himself that something was wrong.
He couldn’t help but step forward and say, “According to the laws of the Great Jin Dynasty, evidence must be submitted to the government one day in advance. Since Miss Shen is taking it out now, who knows if it is a fake account made overnight!”
Lu Yan sneered in a low voice: “Whether it is a false account or not, I will make my own decision. How can I allow you to be so presumptuous here?”
Song Jingwen choked. If the account book was real, the government would just have to investigate every household and would immediately regard it as irrefutable evidence.
After all, physical evidence is always more important than witnesses.
The next moment, Lu Yan lowered his head, picked up a pen, copied a list, and ordered the yamen runners to go door to door to summon them immediately.
An hour later, the yamen officials brought several noble ladies from the capital into Jingzhao Prefecture. After questioning them one by one, they all confirmed that what Shen Zhen said was true.
Sun Mi panicked and angrily said to Song Jingwen: “Hurry up and speak! What are you waiting for!”
Song Jingwen was very familiar with the laws of the Great Jin Dynasty. Faced with such irrefutable evidence, he had a rough idea of what the prefect would decide.
If he gets convicted of false accusation, it is still unclear whether he can leave Jingzhao Prefecture alive today.
After a moment, Lu Yan closed the account book and made a direct decision: “Today’s case has irrefutable evidence. It is a false accusation. Do you want me to send someone to execute you, or do you want to confess yourself?”
Sun Mi’s hands trembled slightly and she said in a voice that only the two of them could hear: “Mister Song, I am the daughter of the Minister of Works, if you dare to confess, I guarantee that you will never leave the capital.”
Song Jingwen looked embarrassed. He had made enough money over the years. If the person next to him was not the daughter of the current Minister of Works, he would definitely find a way to commute his sentence and stay away from the capital.
But just as she said… the Sun family really has the ability to prevent him from leaving the capital.
Sun Mi said nothing, forcing herself to calm down. The laws of the Jin Dynasty were lenient towards the aristocratic families. Even if she was found guilty of false accusation, she could just find someone else to take the blame, or pay some gold or silver….
So there is no need to bow her head and confess her crime.
Seeing that each of these people was more stubborn than the other, Lu Yan said, “Since that’s the case, let’s use the boards.”
As soon as the official came over, Sun Mi said, “I am the daughter of the Minister of Works. Who dares to touch me?”
Seeing that the guard did not move, she turned back and said to a person outside: “Go and call my mother!”
If it were someone else presiding over the case today, there might have been some room for maneuver, but unfortunately it was Lu Yan, who had nothing to fear.
Even if the Minister of Works came, what could he do? Could he get angry at His Majesty’s own nephew?
Besides, Jingzhao Prefecture did nothing wrong in judging the case according to the law.
Lu Yan said coldly, “Go ahead with the punishment.”
The officers from Jingzhao Prefecture dragged Song Jingwen by the legs, tore off his shoes and socks, put a hemp rope around his legs and tightened the rope without giving him even a chance to react. There was a “click” sound, blood gushed out, and Song Jingwen screamed.
Shen Zhen had never seen such a scene before and could not help but close her eyes.
The rope was repeatedly pulled twice. At the same time Sun Mi and Wang Rui were also punished. The boards fell one after another, and the two girls fainted from fright on the third hit.
Not long after, Madam Sun and Madam Wang arrived at Jingzhao Prefecture one after another. Not only did they insist that the incident was instigated by a villain and brought people to take the blame, they also handed over a large amount of silver and money.
Of course, Lu Yan would not make things too difficult for the two families, and he let the young ladies go before he had even finished beating them with ten boards.
In the eyes of the aristocratic families, money is far less important than face. The Jingzhao Prefecture officers punished the legitimate daughters of the Sun and Wang families in court, and no matter how serious the punishment was, it was a complete disrespect.
——
Upon hearing this, Xu Lianyi couldn’t help but laugh coldly, “I thought Sun Mi was smart, but I didn’t expect her to handle this matter like a joke! Crying for her parents in court, how fresh! So embarrassing!”
Xu Yiqing said, “Fourth sister, don’t be angry. Anyway, the Xu family has nothing to do with this matter.”
Xu Lianyi asked, “Do you know who Shen Zhen’s lawyer was that day?”
“I don’t know.”
“It’s Chu Xun from the Chu family in Yangzhou. I heard that Chu Xun has a close relationship with the one from the Lu family.”
“Really?”
“Since the Empress intends to make you the Lu family’s matron, you’d better find out more about Lu Yan’s affairs.”
