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Upon hearing that He Ziqi would preside over the court case personally, Qiao Shouyi felt uneasy and wanted to make arrangements to leave. However, He Ziqi surprised him by suggesting, “Mr. Qiao, let’s adjudicate this case together.”
Qiao Shouyi forced a smile and agreed, feeling trapped. He could only instruct his trusted aide to visit his son and have him warn Madam Ma not to speak out of turn!
Unfortunately, the aide never managed to deliver the message to Qiao Yingzhe. He was followed by He Ziqi’s men and eventually collapsed in a secluded corner.
Therefore, when the court session began, Qiao Yingzhe was dumbfounded to see He Ziqi seated in the center of the court, with his father sitting beside him. Qiao Shouyi subtly shook his head at him, leaving Qiao Yingzhe feeling dejected as he stood to the side.
During He Ziqi’s court session at the county yamen, the place was crowded with onlookers.
This case of private communication was more eye-catching than a murder case, arousing excitement.
After the two parties stood in their designated places, Qiao Shouyi realized that the lawyer he had sent for, Zhou Bo, was absent!
Well, he could already foresee the outcome of this case.
Unbeknownst to Qiao Shouyi, Zhou Bo had received his message and was on his way to the county yamen. However, upon learning that the presiding official was County Magistrate He Ziqi, he made an excuse and slipped away.
He knew that his actions might offend the Qiao family, but he had no choice. If he appeared, it would indicate that he had chosen to stand with the Qiao family, but in reality, he didn’t have much faith in them. The previous county magistrate had been outsmarted by the Qiao family, and despite leaving Liucheng, Qiao Shouyi had failed to take over successfully.
Meanwhile, the current county magistrate, He Ziqi, had a decent reputation outside. It was said that after taking over from Zhang Xian, he had governed Changli efficiently. Zhou Bo felt he needed to assess the magistrate’s capabilities before aligning himself with anyone.
Initially willing to come due to the message that the presiding official would be Qiao Shouyi, Zhou Bo had decided to show his face.
However, halfway there, he heard that County Magistrate He Ziqi would be presiding instead!
This changed everything for Zhou Bo. He felt that the magistrate, who had been in office for about ten days, was making his first public appearance to conduct official business. Sensing something amiss, Zhou Bo feared that the magistrate’s first move might target him, so he left the city. He headed to a relative’s home in the neighboring county, planning to stay there for a while until the outcome of the conflict between the two parties was clear.
This case was actually a confusing one.
Madam Ma insisted that her eldest daughter-in-law, Qi Zhen Niang, was having an affair with her cousin Meng Yun. Despite emphasizing that she had seen it with her own eyes, she had no other evidence and was determined to punish the alleged adulterers.
On the other hand, Qi Zhen Niang maintained her innocence and was willing to die to prove it.
Ma was completely torn between believing his mother or his wife.
Additionally, Qi Zhen Niang wanted to leave after proving her innocence and take her only daughter, who had hearing problems, with her. Madam Ma and Ma were both reluctant to let them go.
The crux of the matter was the lack of evidence to prove whether Qi Zhen Niang was involved with her cousin. Neither side could produce conclusive evidence.
As a defense lawyer for the accused, Xue Xu spoke up first, saying, “Please present relevant witnesses or evidence to prove that Qi Zhen Niang and her cousin were involved in an illicit affair.”
“Why should I prove it? Ask Qi Zhen Niang to prove her innocence!” Madam Ma exploded in anger.
Unfazed, Xue Xu replied, “Where is your evidence?”
Madam Ma: “I saw it with my own eyes, how could it be fake? She is my eldest daughter-in-law. If she didn’t do such shameful things, why would I reveal such an ugly truth?”
Onlookers thought Madam Ma’s words made some sense.
“The old lady is right. As the saying goes, don’t air dirty laundry in public. If it wasn’t true, why would she expose her own family’s shame?”
“Poor old lady, this couple is really shameless, causing trouble in someone else’s home!”
…
Listening to the discussions and support from the people around, Madam Ma looked smugly at Xue Xu.
Suddenly, Xue Xu said, “Madam Ma, I know about your affair with the neighbor’s young uncle.”
“What nonsense are you talking about?! I’ll shut your mouth!” Madam Ma really jumped up this time. “On what basis do you say that? What evidence do you have?”
“I saw it with my own eyes!”
“Nonsense!”
“It’s true, I saw it with my own eyes. If you think I’m lying, then you should provide evidence to prove your innocence.”
Madam Ma was speechless.
“You are slandering me!”
“Am I slandering you? What evidence do you have to prove your innocence?”
Madam Ma was speechless.
He Ziqi quietly watched as Xue Xu played his hand, thinking that when necessary, he would give him a push.
Among the onlookers, a middle-aged man with a small beard muttered, “Usually in these situations, isn’t it the woman who has to prove her innocence? Why is this lawyer making things difficult for an old lady?”
Xue Xu looked at the man and suddenly said, “You killed someone last night.”
The man was stunned, “What nonsense are you talking about? Don’t make baseless accusations!”
“I am not making baseless accusations, I saw it with my own eyes.”
As Xue Xu spoke, the people around the middle-aged man with a small beard dispersed, keeping their distance from him as if he were a murderer.
The middle-aged man with a small beard stomped his foot, “You’re talking nonsense, I didn’t kill anyone!”
“What evidence do you have to prove that you didn’t kill anyone?” Xue Xu asked.
The middle-aged man with a small beard hurriedly said, “I didn’t leave the house last night!”
“Who can prove that?”
“My youngest son.” The middle-aged man with a small beard lost his wife two years ago and used to sleep with his youngest son.
“Did he see you at home during the night? Can you confirm that you didn’t sneak out to commit murder?”
The middle-aged man with a small beard was left speechless by his questions. At that time, who wasn’t fast asleep?
Someone whispered, “Is this really necessary?”
Xue Xu glanced at the man, a young man who leaned forward slightly, and asked, “Young man, did you have leek and egg dumplings from the stall across the street this morning?”
“How did you know?”
“Of course I know, I was right behind you. After you left, the stall owner realized you ate two bowls but only paid for one.”
“Nonsense! I only ate one bowl!”
“How can you prove it?”
The young man was at a loss, how could he prove it?
“Do you plan to commit seppuku to prove your innocence?”
The young man retorted, “Why would I commit seppuku? You say I ate two bowls, then provide evidence!”
Xue Xu chuckled, “Exactly, if someone says you ate two bowls, that person should provide evidence of you eating two bowls, rather than making you prove that you didn’t eat two bowls.”
He then turned to the middle-aged man with a small beard and said, “Have you learned from this? When I accused you of murder earlier, you should have asked me to provide evidence of your crime, rather than desperately trying to prove your innocence.”
Others praised, “Exactly, you can’t just accuse someone of murder without evidence. You need to have proof.”
“Madam Ma, do you understand now? You raised the accusation of your eldest daughter-in-law having an affair with her cousin, so you have the responsibility to provide evidence. You can’t let your daughter-in-law, who is innocent, prove something she didn’t do. Otherwise, you also need to prove that you and the neighbor’s young uncle are innocent.”
Madam Ma was at a loss, neither here nor there, completely speechless.
“Is everyone in agreement?” Xue Xu asked.
The middle-aged man with a small beard and the young man quickly nodded, “Yes, yes.” They didn’t want to be put in a difficult position!
Everyone Xue Xu questioned lowered their heads, afraid to disagree. If they did, would they be as troubled and slandered as the middle-aged man with a beard and the young man earlier?
“I think this old man is right. If one can freely accuse others without evidence, and the accused has to prove their innocence, then the world would be in chaos.”
“Yes, it should be like this. If people like the bearded uncle and the young man are hot-tempered, they might really end up proving their innocence with their lives.”
“If the accuser has to work hard to provide evidence, then it’s fair. Otherwise, if accusing others is so easy, everyone would want to be the accuser, and the world would be in chaos.”
Xue Xu’s words made many bystanders suddenly realize.
On the sidelines, Qiao Yingzhe saw this scene and cursed inwardly, “What a bunch of fools. They should have killed the person early on, reversed the roles of plaintiff and defendant, and made the Ma family the established beneficiary. Even if they were accused, it would be difficult for the other party to provide evidence.”
This is Xue Xu’s strategy. If they had chosen the role of the plaintiff from the beginning and accused Madam Ma of slander, they would not only have to provide evidence of her slander but also prove their own innocence. That would be a tough task.
Madam Ma, unwilling to accept defeat, said, “Qi Zhen Niang filed for divorce because she had an affair. Would she dare if it wasn’t true?”
Xue Xu replied, “Like I said, where’s the evidence? If you can’t provide evidence, then it’s slander.”
He Ziqi discreetly cleared his throat and suppressed a smile in his eyes. He noticed that their teammate was quite sharp, single-handedly turning the tide of the case.
Qiao Shouyi felt that if he didn’t say something to turn the situation around, the case would be settled against them.
“Sir, even though Madam Ma has no evidence, where there’s smoke, there might not necessarily be fire. Qi Zhen Niang may not be completely innocent, right?”
He Ziqi threw the question to Xue Xu, “Xue Xu, what is your opinion on Mr. Qiao’s query?”
“Replying to the magistrate, this case involves suspicions but lacks concrete evidence. There are no direct witnesses or evidence. Although there are circumstantial evidence, there is no clear indication of guilt.”
Xue Xu’s implication was that this was a case of suspicion.
He continued, “As the ancient saying goes: suspicions of crime should be lightly punished, while suspicions of merit should be heavily rewarded. It’s better to let a guilty person go free than to wrongly punish an innocent one. It is important to thoroughly investigate and understand the truth.”
Punishments for suspected crimes should be lenient or non-existent, and when the importance of someone’s merit is uncertain, they should be rewarded generously. It’s better to let a criminal go free than to wrongly punish an innocent person.
With He Ziqi’s words, the judge’s gavel came down.
The innocence of Qi Zhen Niang and her cousin Meng Yun was determined by the official verdict. As for Qi Zhen Niang’s request to take her granddaughter with her, after confirming her wishes, He Ziqi agreed and allowed her to take her daughter with her.
Madam Ma disagreed with Qi Zhen Niang taking her granddaughter away, as long as she held the child in her hands, they couldn’t turn the tables.
However, as people listened to Qi Zhen Niang’s account of the mistreatment and neglect by the Ma family over the years, even the bystanders couldn’t bear it.
Public opinion surged, condemning Madam Ma for her inhumanity and requesting the magistrate to let the child be with her mother.
He Ziqi went with the flow and resolved the situation.
The matter ended smoothly.
This outcome was completely unexpected for He Ziqi. He had thought it would take much more effort.
Before the trial, he made sure that this Lu Mingzhi was indeed the person mentioned in his mentor’s letter. He had been thinking about how to appear impartial and strict in favoring his own people.
In the end, he found out that all he needed to do was to handle the case fairly?
Xue Xu also found it puzzling. This was too easy, he only used fifty percent of his strength, and the case was resolved?
Lu Mingzhi was in a daze.
Goodness, Boss Xue Xu is truly remarkable, making a grand entrance with just one move.
The sharpness of his tongue rivals that of his father, Lu Desheng.
I wonder who would win if his father came to Pingzhou, and they got into an argument?
And what about his sister? How could she have such sharp eyes?
This little old man used to be just an ordinary old man—skinny and frail. Apart from his fear of death and frequent attempts to run away, he didn’t show any signs of talent.
How could his sister see his extraordinary abilities through such an ordinary appearance? I want to learn how.