Rebirth: Not Being a Waste - Chapter 111

There were people who handled cases in the town, but the courthouse was small, and there weren’t many people on duty.

Zhang Shu followed them to the courthouse and watched as Master Wang and the others entered. He, along with the other townsfolk, waited outside. If a trial was to take place, they would be allowed to watch.

In his mind, Zhang Shu thought this was the perfect time for Zhang Huai to take desperate measures. Why were only Wu Liniang and that man being arrested, while Zhang Huai stood beside Master Wang?

As soon as Master Wang and his men went in, they gave a general account of the case.

When the case turned out to be so complex, the head official immediately set off to report it to the county magistrate, who needed to come to oversee the situation. The county magistrate needed to come and take charge because all the evidence was there. If it was moved, it would become problematic.

The county magistrate was a thin, elderly man, not resembling the usual big-bellied officials. He was, however, known as a righteous official, though whether he was truly pure was another matter. In any case, as long as he served the people, he was considered a good official.

When he heard the case was so complicated, he did not let the county magistrate in charge of criminal affairs handle it alone, but got on a carriage and took a team of officials to deal with it personally.

The townspeople outside discussed the situation. Word spread quickly through the streets that the supposedly dead Lord Wang was alive. Many believed the town’s richest man had truly passed away.

The people inside were strangely silent. Everyone was thinking about their own matters, just waiting for the county magistrate to arrive.

The county was not far from the town, and since the magistrate was traveling by carriage, it didn’t take long for him to arrive. As soon as the crowd saw him, they immediately quieted down, parting to make way for him and his officers to enter.

If nothing unexpected happened, the county magistrate would be the highest-ranking official they would ever see, and some people would never see an official larger than the yamen runners in their entire lives.

The county magistrate slammed the gavel, and the audience immediately fell silent. He called for the court to begin, and the runners below rhythmically tapped their staffs, making a show of strength.

After the court procedure ended, the county magistrate asked, “Who is standing in the hall? Why don’t you kneel before the official?”

The only person standing in the hall was Master Wang. He bowed to the county magistrate and said, “I am a scholar from the twelfth year of the Shenyuan reign. According to the law, a scholar may stand before the court without kneeling.”

The county magistrate nodded. He didn’t expect this person to have passed the exam two years earlier than him.

“So, are you the one who reported this case?”

“Yes, Your Honor. Allow me to explain. Today, I was at home resting when someone suddenly barged in and told me that someone intended to harm me and warned me not to eat anything. I was suspicious, as I’ve always tried to live a virtuous life and deal with others honestly. I felt I had no reason to make anyone resent me. However, this person spoke earnestly, and his expression seemed genuine. I decided to wait and observe. Not long after, the servants came to serve the dishes. I wanted to eat them directly, but then I remembered what the man said. So I found a little white mouse to taste the dishes for me. As a result, there was no poison in the dishes, but the soup was full of poison. The little white mouse died as soon as it ate. I panicked and lost my mind. The man told me not to alert the enemy, so the rumor of my death spread. I was lying in bed when suddenly, two people burst in—my daughter-in-law and my servant—who, to my shock, were having an affair and plotting to kill me. Fortunately, Heaven’s justice is swift, and I was able to expose their plot. I ask Your Honor to investigate the matter thoroughly.”

The townsfolk gasped in unison. To hear that a daughter-in-law and an outsider conspired to harm the elderly father-in-law was a scandal they could talk about for months.

Zhang Shu also gasped. He looked at Wu Liniang again and admired her in his heart. In such an environment, she still managed to seduce Zhang Huai and this servant. Her skills were truly amazing.

The county magistrate showed no expression. He nodded, indicating he understood the situation.

“Does the accused have anything to say in their defense?”

Master Yang was full of doubts after listening to Master Wang’s words. Who saved Master Wang so perfectly? And judging by Master Wang’s words, he knew nothing beforehand—so why did someone send people to beat him the night before?

“I have something to say. Last night, a group of masked men suddenly barged into my house and beat me up. Before they left, they told me it was someone from the Wang family who had sent them. I was filled with resentment. I have served the Wang family faithfully for many years, but why would they treat me like this? In my anger, I did something wrong. Please, Your Honor, I beg for your understanding,” he cried pitifully, wiping his tears and snot.

He said nothing about his affair with Wu Liniang, instead claiming the beating caused his grievances to boil over.

The county magistrate nodded and looked at Master Wang. “Is this true?”

“This…” Master Wang turned his head to look at Zhang Huai and questioned him with his eyes about what was going on. He was the one who sent someone to teach that country bumpkin a lesson the previous night.

“I had an argument with two country folks in the county yesterday. They slandered me again and again, so I sent someone to reason with them. But I didn’t know how they could mistakenly enter the Yang family, and their methods were brutal. It was my negligence. Please, Your Honor, punish me for my mistake.”

Master Yang stood dumbfounded. Could it be a misunderstanding? Why did he rush to act and expose his true colors?

Zhang Shu was also shocked. It seemed his sleepless night was well-spent. If Zhang Huai didn’t escort the mercenaries to Master Yang’s house, they would have been the ones to suffer. But why was Zhang Huai so kind? Why did he specifically go to Master Yang’s house?

The county magistrate kept looking at Master Wang. When he saw him glance at Zhang Huai, he asked Zhang Huai, who was kneeling on the ground, “Who are you?”

Zhang Huai was watching the show when the topic suddenly turned to him. He immediately kowtowed to the county magistrate. “I… my name is… Zhang Huai. I am the criminal… the criminal’s distant cousin.” Zhang Huai was very nervous at first, but after a few words, he spoke more fluently. “Because the Wang family is big and powerful, I came here to ask for a job. That day, Lord Wang asked me to bring someone to reason with the county folks. I mistakenly went to Master Yang’s house instead, and that morning, I overheard someone plotting to harm Lord Wang near a rockery. I then went to warn him, hoping to prevent him from being harmed by me.”

This statement aligned with what Master Wang and Master Yang said. However, if this was truly a misunderstanding, why was there still talk of a woman committing adultery? And if Master Yang didn’t have someone to help him, how did he succeed? Zhang Huai’s actions seemed too coincidental, almost as if he orchestrated everything. It seemed that the key to the case lay with this woman.

The magistrate thought it over and then slammed the gavel, calling out, “The woman at the stand, raise your head. Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

Wu Liniang, who had been keeping her head lowered, finally looked up at the magistrate. Her hair was disheveled from the struggle. No one could see the expression on her face, and no one knew what she was thinking.

These three men had affairs with her, but when they came here, they all cleared their relationship with her. As expected, men were unreliable. But it wasn’t so easy to clear her name. She would drag them all down with her, one by one!

She raised her head with tears in her eyes and looked at the county magistrate. “County magistrate! I am innocent!” She cried hoarsely, which moved the people present. After all, everyone unconsciously favored the weak.

The magistrate, having observed her, said, “Tell us, what grievances do you have? Speak quickly.”

“I was forced into this!” she cried, pointing at Master Yang beside her. “He is the one who coerced me into conspiring to harm my father-in-law! He was favored by my father-in-law, coming and going freely from the estate. I, on the other hand, have been shut away for so long, with no one to help me. He took advantage of my situation and mistreated me. I had no way of escaping. I wanted to die to preserve my honor, but my child was too young, so I endured the humiliation just to stay alive. Today, he barged into my house and gave me a packet of medicine to put into my father-in-law’s soup. If I didn’t do as he said, he threatened to expose everything. I had no choice but to follow his instructions. And as for my father-in-law, our household has often been filled with conflict. I tried to calm things down, but one day, while drunk, my father-in-law tried took advantage of me. Though he deeply regretted it when he woke up, this incident has haunted me ever since. That’s why, in my desperation, I listened to Master Yang’s words and acted against my father-in-law. As for why my distant cousin brought people to teach Master Yang a lesson, it’s because of me. He’s been coming and going from the Wang family for a long time and had certain feelings for me. One day, he discovered my shameful secret and threatened me with it, demanding that I sleep with him. Of course, I refused, but he held a grudge, so he used this pretext to stir up trouble at Master Yang’s house.”

The people outside opened their mouths again. No wonder people said there were many troubles in front of a widow’s door. It seemed all three men in this case tried to take advantage of her. It was truly despicable.

This little woman was also pitiful. Her husband died, and she had a posthumous child. There was no good person around her. No one knew how she survived. It was really sad. Everyone sighed for her, and some even felt tears welling up as they imagined her, a mother and widow, being mistreated.

Zhang Shu listened impassively to the scene playing out before him. If this were a play, perhaps he would have felt pity for her, but as someone half involved in the situation, he found it very ironic to hear her say these words.

The county magistrate looked at the other three people. “Is it true?”

The other three stood dumbfounded. They didn’t expect this woman to implicate all three of them at once, distancing herself from the matter so clearly, as if she were the one most wronged. But think about it—how could a woman, who was involved with three men for two years, manage to keep the others from realizing anything was wrong? Her manipulation skills were certainly impressive.

Master Yang cried out first, “I didn’t take advantage of her, but that this woman had deliberately seduced me. She often cooked something and brought it to the study. After I ate it, she either said she wanted to learn calligraphy or asked me to paint for her. She was wearing thin clothes and always stuck to me. I was bewitched for a while and fell into her trap!”

Zhang Huai followed closely, “Yes, sir, I occasionally ran into her on the street. She’d throw herself at me, gazing at me with those eyes, seducing me, and I—well, I fell for it.”

Master Wang coughed repeatedly, his throat almost breaking. He pointed at Wu Liniang with a shaking hand, like a fallen leaf drifting in the wind. His face filled with anger, disbelief, and disappointment, making people want to believe he was wronged.

“Daughter-in-law, why do you want to wrong me like this? I’ve been very kind to you and your family!” He emphasized the family and intended to use it to threaten her.

However, what Wu Liniang hated most was her so-called family