When Huang Zunsu walked into the courtroom, people were already standing inside and outside the Songjiang Mansion Office.
There were silkworm farmers who went to besiege Han Mansion for half an hour, and there were also scholars and commoners who ignored the night and came to watch the excitement.
Many of the latter may have failed the scientific examinations many times, or may have been working indifferently, but only "watching the excitement", a non-technical thing, suddenly lifted their spirits and made them feel that they were not just useless people. .
At least it contributed to the crowds of people and discussions in this worldly drama.
How can a big show be successful without the audience? Therefore, the policemen who were in charge of the curfew turned a blind eye and allowed the revelers to pour out of the neighborhoods and gather in the courtroom.
Tonight's Songjiang government court was even more exciting than when the Shanghai County government tried a beautiful nun.
Because, there is more than one woman.
What's more, these women come from wealthy families.
In such a solemn and festive atmosphere, Huang Zunsu sat down on the Taishi chair behind the official eucalyptus with a sullen face.
Yingtian Prefecture has a new Zuodu censor, and Magistrate Zhuang and Tongpan Ma'erdi have gone to worship at the top of the mountain. Huang Zunsu, as a promotion official, was temporarily promoted from the third-in-command of Songjiang Prefecture to the first-in-command. He went up to the hall alone to listen to the news tonight.
"Mr. Miao has an order to move a chair for the old lady and watch her seat." Huang Zunsu gave orders first.
"Thank you, Mr. Huang. The old woman can just stand and report."
Muata said loudly.
There were murmurs among the crowd, and they all sighed: This old concubine of the Gu family is so full of energy.
Huang Zunsu looked at the other five women standing in the front row.
Mrs. Shen, the eldest daughter-in-law of Mansion Gu, her eyes were unfocused, but her posture had not lost its imposingness, and she still carried the dignified air of the mistress of a gentleman's mansion.
Qian, the number one mistress of the Han Mansion, frowned, her eyes lowered, and her whole body was enveloped in the exhaustion of being in danger and escaping from danger.
Han Xiying, the third lady of the Han family, held her arms with both hands, trembling as she leaned towards Mrs. Shen.
This kind of movement seemed to be an instruction from her subconscious mind, so much so that she didn't even understand it clearly, so she moved very slowly.
The eldest lady of the Han family, Han Xiying, and her female companion Zheng Haizhu have the same look. They are neither angry nor happy, nor happy nor proud. There are no waves in their eyes, but they are not stagnant. .
In Huang Zunsu's opinion, these two people looked like the same students he had seen in the examination room before. They calmly read the test questions and then began to write articles with concentration.
Huang Zunsu used a force that was not exaggerated but was powerful enough to show the majesty of the broken eucalyptus. He slapped the tree with a bang and said, "Mr. Miao, tell me what happened."
"I am going to report Mrs. Shen, the daughter-in-law of Gu's family, for committing adultery and committing a crime, which is shocking."
Following this earth-shattering first sentence, people on the three floors inside and outside the hall all stared into Miao's narration in silence.
This is a connected story.
After marrying into the Gu family, Shen, a lady who was obsessed with female celebrities, fully thought that her mother-in-law, Miao, would pass on her unique skills in court embroidery to her eldest daughter-in-law. However, Miao said that she would pass on the skill on the grounds that Shen's hands were congenitally deficient. To my grandson’s wife.
Shen only gave birth to a daughter after her marriage, but no son, so she wanted to give her niece to her eldest son, Gu Shouqian, as his legitimate wife. However, the Gu family fell in love with Han Ximeng, the eldest daughter of the Han family.
Unwilling to give up, Shen paid for a "green turban" (referring to the brothel turtle) from Suzhou, and then the green turban found an old prostitute who was good at Ningbo embroidery.
The history of Yong embroidery can be traced back to the Warring States Period. It was completely different from the Su embroidery that reached its peak in the Yuan and Ming Dynasties. It only used gold and silver silk threads as the main ones, but it could express a myriad of atmospheres.
Shen had a good idea of Han Ximeng's temperament, so he asked the green turban to pretend to be a silk merchant, used Ningbo embroidered handkerchiefs to set up a trap, and made all kinds of pretense to lure Han Ximeng to study with the prostitute in Suzhou who pretended to be a foreigner. Green Turban came forward to find Qiu Wanliang, a water bandit in Qiandun Town, kidnapped Han Ximeng, humiliated his innocence, and detained him in the bandit's stronghold. In this way, the marriage between the Han and Gu families will be broken.
Unexpectedly, during the robbery of the bandit camp last year, Han Ximeng and Zheng Haizhu not only were not humiliated, but also fought side by side with Huang Zunsu and Ma Xianglin by accident, and became celebrities who were praised by the government. The marriage between Han Ximeng and Gu Shouqian No loss at all.
What's even more troublesome is that the green turban killed the prostitute who pretended to be a senior Yongxiu embroiderer in Suzhou, and kept blackmailing the Shen family with the attitude of harboring secrets.
Mr. Shen's heart disease became more and more serious, and he resented Zheng Haizhu, a stinky girl, for living such a prosperous life.
Shen wanted to kill her, but she couldn't just kill her to satisfy her hatred.
She took advantage of Gu Mansion's large supply of mulberry leaves to silkworm farmers, and sent her confidants to poison the mulberry leaves. As a result, 70% to 80% of the silkworm babies from dozens of silkworm households could not spin silk after being clustered. Taking advantage of this reason, she proposed to Attai Mu that the Gu family would act like a village virtuous family and host a ceremony to welcome the Silkworm Goddess "Horse-headed Lady", and proposed that Zheng Haizhu, who had a special status, be the main usher in the white horse. .
According to Shen's plan, Zheng Haizhu was burned to death, and along with the charade of the Silkworm God's punishment, Han Xiying, who she had deceived and controlled as a minion, would collude with Azhen from the tailoring shop to print the name of the Han family. On the silk bottom, Shen himself embroidered pictures of Japanese erotic palaces and massacres. These were embroidered by Han Ximeng and Zheng Haizhu, and it was only then that the Silkworm God took the life of Zheng Haizhu, a fawning and evil woman.
And Han Ximeng will also be infamous in Songjiang Mansion, and it is impossible for the Gu Mansion to allow her to marry into the house again.
I never thought that this girl named Zheng would not die this time.
The green turban happened to be blackmailing Shen, and because he still couldn't pay his gambling debt, he came to Songjiang to ask for money from Shen.
Shen immediately revised his plan and handed the unsightly embroidery to the green turban and told him to take it with him and wait in the restaurant. Someone would take him to the government to report the eldest lady of the Han family and Miss Zheng.
In fact, Shen's biggest accomplice was hidden in the restaurant. He re-enacted the trick of suddenly dropping strange fires and burning people with fierce flames, and once again left a message at the scene: "Two o'clock roosters, a line of wild geese, the east capital and the west border, the silkworm god punishes sins". foil.
After the murder, the accomplices of the restaurant opened the box in public and announced that the guest who had been burned to death had bought the box of embroidery from Miss Han and Miss Zheng for a large sum of money, hoping to sell it to Japan at a high price.
The lives of farmers in the Ming Dynasty are getting harder and harder year by year. Silkworm farmers, like mulberry farmers and rice farmers, have to bear extremely heavy taxes to support the Zhu family's descendants, who are as numerous as locusts, and the empire's densely packed bureaucrats and gentry.
In the eyes of silkworm farmers, the failure of silkworms to spin cocoons means that they cannot pay this year's taxes, which means that they may have to sell their sons and daughters.
The second "Sky Fire" in Xiuwa Tower, where the dirty embroidery was exposed to the public, finally ignited the anger in the hearts of the troubled people.
Silkworm farmers flocked to the Han Mansion under the constant fanning of invisible people but audible sounds.
They believed that Zheng Haizhu, whether a witch or a descendant of the Japanese, must be burned to death so that the Silkworm God would be satisfied with the mortal warriors' understanding of her will and allow the batch of ripe silkworms to successfully spin cocoons a month later.
After the Ming Dynasty's characteristic witch hunt began, deep in the backyard of the Han Mansion, Han Xiying walked to the back door sealed by the maid and opened the latch.
Three strong men who were hired by the Shen family with a lot of money, like wild boars with their fangs exposed, were led by Han Xiying and went straight to the kitchen where Nujuan was hiding.
Miss Han San very much agrees with Concubine Shen’s method.
Whether Zheng Haizhu finally dies this time or whether he can still escape is not that important. What is important is that a vulgar wild man took advantage of the chaos to humiliate Han Ximeng. Afterwards, he said that it was the work of angry silkworm farmers, and the silkworm farmers Escaped.
Then, it would be impossible for the eldest sister to become a vassal with the second brother Gu.
Perhaps, relying on Concubine Shen's promise, one day he could really become Brother Gu's roommate.
…
The courtroom fell into silence, and you could hear a needle drop.
Not only the people, but also Huang Zunsu seemed to have fallen silent.
Miao raised her head and caught Huang Zunsu's expression.
In the bright light, Huang Zunsu's eyes shone with surprise and disgust that could no longer be suppressed.
Miao secretly smiled in her heart, Mr. Huang, although you are already thirty years old, you are still a scholar who has just entered the officialdom. It is not surprising to have such a reaction.
In fact, compared with the various conspiracies and cruel killings in the court and deep in the palace, the tricks Shen, a housewife, pieced together from story books and added to the story, are really very crude.
It's nothing more than the stupid and turbulent public opinion that finally made this drama play out with gongs and drums.
"Old madam, is there anyone who can testify to the whole story you said?"
Finally, Huang Zunsu, who came back to his senses, broke the silence and followed the necessary procedures of the trial.
Miao Attai said: "Back to Mr. Huang, after the ceremony to welcome the Silkworm God, Mr. Zheng, who survived the disaster, reminded me to investigate the servants of Gu Mansion. Mrs. Zheng and me, and Mr. Kong Ming, who is not a clairvoyant, will have a hard time in these short ten days. If we can find out the clues, it seems that it is Shen’s own fault. Mr. Huang, the first witness is Shen’s personal maid, Cuiliu.”
Huang Zunsu said: "Cuiliu, the maid of Gu Mansion, came forward to make a speech."
Cuiliu walked to Mrs. Mu's side, knelt down, and said: "Go back to the master, the green turban not only wants money, but also wants people from the eldest grandma. He said that if the eldest grandma will marry me to him, he will take me with him." When I go back to the countryside of Ningbo, I will never bother my grandma again..."
"You little bitchy little maid, didn't I take care of that bastard?" Mrs. Shen said sharply, her words were dirty, and she no longer had the dignity of a noble lady.
Cuiliu's voice was higher than hers: "But what did you tell me before you found a way to burn that scoundrel to death? You said, why don't you make a temporary solution and let me let him go first, or you can turn around later?" Find someone to kill him and bring me back. When he came to ask you for money last month, he touched me and you pretended you didn't see it."
"So what?" Mrs. Shen was furious, "You are the girl I bought out. If I hadn't bought you from your mother, you would have been receiving customers in the kiln for several years! You have to live the life I give you. You heartless little bitch!"
"Shut up!" Huang Zunsu was shocked, "If Mr. Shen yells at Xiao Xiaogang again, I will punish you!"
Miao Atai stared at Mrs. Shen and said calmly: "Boss, my wife, now I can tell you why I don't teach you embroidery skills. Your hands are diseased. No matter how difficult my technique is, I can still use my strengths and avoid weaknesses when doing needlework. . But you are a person with an impure heart, and you cannot understand the beauty and truth that cannot be drawn into a painting. When the Gu family chooses their eldest daughter-in-law, it is not my turn to speak. But when I choose my direct disciple, I must do it myself. Lord. You cannot enter my eyes."
After saying that, she turned to Huang Zunsu and reported: "Mr. Huang, after the white horse float was burned down, Miss Zheng reminded me that Shen was in charge of Sannong on weekdays. I wonder if there was something wrong with Shen's people. So I decided to use that I asked the servants and maids in the room, and talked about the Silkworm God's punishment. Not only did Cuiliu often make mistakes in her work, but she also looked bad. I stared at her and asked, and she finally confessed to me. I sent my personal maid Zhu Xiang, in the name of delivering decoctions and prescriptions, went to Han Mansion to inform the eldest lady and Zheng about the matter. Zheng suggested not to scare the snake and let Shen reveal his evil deeds before he could take her. However, at that time, even Cuiliu , I only knew that Mrs. Shen would fan the silkworm farmers and cause trouble today, taking the opportunity to find ruffians to humiliate people's innocence, but they didn't know that she would take advantage of the situation to kill the green turban."
Everyone in the hall who has a brain knows that the old lady's last sentence is very important. If Zheng Haizhu knew that Shen was going to kill a second person, but Zheng Haizhu suggested not reporting it to the official, it would be against the law, even if the green turban He is a villain himself.
Huang Zunsu nodded: "So, those two men in the hall were arranged by you in advance?"
Mu Atai replied: "That is the friend Zheng found from Nanhui. You Cuiliu mixed with the real gangsters and recommended it to Shen. Shen didn't have any doubts and told them that the third lady of the Han family would give them Open the door, because this third lady wants to see her sister robbed more than anyone else."
When the people hearing the lawsuit heard this, they couldn't help but start talking again.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."
"That third lady? You can't tell, but she is still a delicate little girl, with such a vicious heart."
In the midst of the hustle and bustle, Captain Liu's voice suddenly sounded: "Bring the prisoner Feng Abao here."
It was Boss Feng of the Xiuwa Restaurant who was pushed into the hall by Captain Liu with his hands cut behind his back.
When the Songjiang scholars saw that it was Boss Feng who was usually the most kind and kind-hearted, they all thought that the next thing that came out was a cry of "the common people have been wronged".
Unexpectedly, after Boss Feng knelt down, he was very calm when he spoke: "Master, the murder idea was given to Grandma Shen by the villain, and it was also done by the villain. The villain had received great favor from her mother's family in the past, because she wanted to In order to repay Grandma Shen, and because the villain could get phosphorite soaked in sulfur charcoal from the kiln in his hometown, he encouraged Grandma Shen to use this method to kill people."
Huang Zunsu said solemnly: "In the two fires, one person was injured and the other died. Is this the same method?"
Boss Feng nodded: "This is the method. After the phosphorus stone dissolved in sulfur charcoal oil is poured out, it will not burn until the sulfur charcoal disperses. Therefore, it takes less than half an incense stick to apply the medicine to the flames. . The first time, our people poured mulberry branches on the horse's feet, but there was no chance of pouring it on Zheng's dress. The silk horse burned, but Zheng was still able to escape. The second time, I did it myself, while the food was being served. , pour the potion on the hem of the green turban's robe, once it catches fire, he will definitely not be alive again."
Zheng Haizhu, who was listening carefully on the side, ignored the court rules and asked: "This potion has a sulfur smell. It was able to cover up the first time because someone set off firecrackers around. How to cover up the smell the second time?"
Boss Feng had obviously made up his mind to take the responsibility for Shen, and he had no intention of getting angry with Zheng Haizhu. He said calmly: "I learned from Grandma Shen that the green turban is from Ningbo, so I specially prepared Ningbo pairs for him. Smelly."
Double odor is a famous dish in Ningbo Prefecture. Stinky winter melon steamed with stinky amaranth stems. The smell is more pungent than stinky tofu. It is more than enough to cover up the sulfur gas in the small bottle.
After Boss Feng told the story of the murder, he seemed to be afraid that Huang Zunsu wouldn't believe it, and added loudly: "Master, Grandma Shen didn't let the bandits kill these two women last year, and she didn't find anyone to kill Zheng when she returned to Songjiang this year. She. No matter how resentful Grandma Shen was, she would not actually kill someone. It was only because of my hard persuasion and help on her behalf that the two things were accomplished."
